It might seem like I am giving the sports world short shrift by glossing over the stupendous Los Angles Clippers win now concept when they traded away a king’s ransom of 1st round draft picks to obtain 29 year old super star Paul George to pair with the reigning NBA Finals M.V.P. Kawhi Leonard, who made his momentous decision to return to Southern California. It was unclear if the 6.4 and 7.1 earthquakes had anything to do with this changing of the NBA landscape. By the way, Paul George Day in Oklahoma City, scheduled for July 7th, has been cancelled.
Leonard jilted the Raptors and the Lakers. LeBron is going to work with Anthony Davis, DeMarcus Cousins, Rajon Rondo, Quinn Cook (formerly with the Warriors) and Danny Green who has signed a two year deal. How are the TV moguls going to show all the Lakers-Clippers games in prime time?
With what has happened and will transpire in the next few days or weeks (Russell Westbrook traded? Andre Iguodala traded by Memphis [to the Lakers?]? prized rookie Zion Williamson hurting his knee in the NBA Summer League?), the NBA will have an entirely different look than it did at the end of the Finals. I wonder how the Raptors fans will react when Leonard returns wearing a Clippers jersey?
Wimbledon is turning the corner and heading to the finish line. There is the feel good story of the U.S. youngster “Coco” Graff, barging past Venus Williams in the opening round and winning two more matches. Rafael Nadal surviving a shot deliberately aimed at his chest by a vengeful and unapologetic Nick Kyrios. Serena Williams and Andy Murray looked awesome in their first mixed doubles match. Serena is still in the draw in singles but Murray is out in the men’s doubles. Roger Federer is still alive as is Novak Djokovic among the men. For the first time since 2000, two Americans will be facing each other in the second week of the tournament when Tennys Sangren and Sam Querry face off.
The United States Women’s World Cup team captured its second straight title by defeating the Netherlands 2-0. The Americans survived the big test against England in the semi-finals, and otherwise appeared to be dominant. Megan Rapinoe, won her second Gold Boot, emblematic of the best player in the tournament. She is fiercely and proudly American, and she cares strongly about gender equality. Congrats to her, Alex Morgan, Carli Lloyd and the rest of this phenomenal team—perhaps the greatest team in women’s sports history and certainly in women’s soccer.
In baseball, the Yankees and Mets split the 2 games at Citi Field. New York then took the first two games from the Rays at the Trop, before being subdued in the last two contests, with Aaron Judge hitting homers in the first inning and the 10th inning, becoming the first to do that since…Mickey Mantle in 1955. D.J. LeMahieu, a.k.a. “The Machine,” is slumping slightly but hitting the ball hard. Aaron Hicks is starting to awaken from his slumber. All this with Luke Voit on the IL. It is crazy how good the Yankees lineup is.
The resurgent Washington Nationals have found life lately behind the arms of Steven Strasberg and Max Scherzer. The lineup has some pop in it —the names Adam Eaton, Trea Turner, Anthony Rendon, Juan Soto, Howie Kendrick and Kurt Suzuki may not be household names outside of the DC metro area, but they are formidable to MLB pitchers. Washington has a lot to do to catch the first place Atlanta Braves, who have slugged their way into the lead in the NL East.
To no one’s surprise, the Dodgers are now 60-30 after 90 games. The NL Central is still a dogfight and will be such into September.
Sadly, the Angels are winning on the road, but are moribund with the death of popular pitcher Tyler Skaggs on Monday. Mike Trout, who was very close to Skaggs, has been punishing pitchers every more than normal. You have to root for the Angels to make the AL Wild Card for what they are collectively going through.
Cleveland pitcher Carlos Carrasco has been diagnosed with leukemia. The 32 year old pitcher was a mainstay in the Indians rotation, which had already lost top line pitcher Corey Kluber to a broken arm. Somehow, Manager Terry Francona has guided his team to enough wins that they sit in the second AL Wild Card spot.
Speaking of Cleveland, the MLB All Stars descend to Progressive Field for the Futures Game on Sunday, the Home Run Derby on Monday and the 90th Midsummer Classic on Tuesday. The Yankees representation is now increased due to injuries—Gleyber Torres and Masahiro Tanaka have joined the squad. C.C. Sabathia, who played 7 1/2 years as an Indian, has been invited back for this game in this, his last season.
I still get thrills and even chills whenever the lineups are announced. The Cleveland faithful will be loud for their players. Some others may get booed—like Yankees or Red Sox players? The game means little—it is an exhibition. But to those chosen to play in the game, it means so much. I still get a good feeling remembering the 1977 and 2008 games at Yankee Stadium.
With the MLB All-Star Game upcoming this Tuesday, I wanted to start something new and different. I went to ranker.com to see how they placed the three best players per baseball franchise and see what you, the reader, might think about the rankings. I am going to do this by Leagues and Divisions.
Leading off for the American League East are the New York Yankees. No surprise that Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig and Mickey Mantle are 1-2-3. Joe Di Maggio is fourth. Derek Jeter is only seventh, solidly ahead of Mariano Rivera. Yogi Berra and Whitey Ford take up fifth and sixth place.
In Boston, Ted Williams, Cy Young and Jimmie Foxx are on top. David Ortiz, the unfortunate shooting victim, is in the fifth spot, just ahead of…Babe Ruth. Hall of Famer Jim Rice is only 13th.
Baltimore’s leaders are Cal Ripken, Jr., Brooks Robinson and Jim Palmer. I though Frank Robinson might have been ahead of Palmer, but he trailed both the pitcher and switch-hitting Eddie Murray. For those who are interested, Boog Powell is No. 6.
Toronto’s top three are Roberto Alomar, Roy Halladay and Joe Carter. I would have thought that Jose Bautista would be higher than seventh.
Rounding out the AL East, Tampa has three players as its all-time best trio who were traded: Evan Longoria, Carl Crawford and David Price. Incredibly, Wade Boggs is tenth. He played his last two seasons as a Tampa player. He is twelfth on the Red Sox list, but he is the best all-time third baseman for Boston.
Starting with Cleveland out of the AL Central, Bob Feller, Jim Thome and Omar Vizquel are the top three for this legendary franchise. Hall of Famers Nap Lajoie, Tris Speaker, Lou Boudreau and Larry Doby follow. I would not have thought this but Kenny Lofton is ahead of Bob Lemon, and Corey Kluber is tenth.
The White Sox top three are Frank Thomas, Shoeless Joe Jackson and Paul Konerko? There are a few White Sox in the Baseball Hall of Fame who are behind Konerko—Luis Aparicio, Nellie Fox, Harold Baines and Luke Appling. Konerko had nice stats on losing teams before he retired in 2014. He has borderline Hall of Fame stats. Let’s see what the voters think of him when he is eligible this off season. I am guessing maybe in the 35-55% range?
Ty Cobb, Al Kaline and Hank Greenberg are the top Detroit Tigers. Mickey Lolich fourth? Bill Freehan and Norm Cash before Miguel Cabrera? It is so surprising that Justin Verlander is only in he twelfth spot. Who was voting in Detroit? Where is Hall of Fame pitcher Jack Morris?
George Brett, Bret Saberhagen and Bo Jackson are the best KC Royals. That’s about right. I still like Freddie Patek.
Kirby Puckett, then Rod Carew and Harmon Killebrew are the top Minnesota Twins. Tony Oliva is fourth. Joe Maurer, who I believe will enter the Hall of Fame, is fifth. Tori Hunter ahead of Kent Hrbek? I don’t know about that. Ditto Johan Santana before Bert Blyleven?
Astros great Nolan Ryan, Craig Biggio and Jeff Bagwell are the front three. For now. Before they retire, Jose Altuve, George Springer and Juston Verlander may make runs at the top three spots.
If it is Texas, then the greatest ballplayer from that state should be ranked number one with the Rangers. Who can argue with Nolan Ryan first, Adrain Beltre second and Ivan Rodriguez third?
The Angels have a player playing right now who is there all-time great. That is, of course, Mike Trout. Only because Trout is one of the greatest players ever to play the game, Nolan Ryan doesn’t finish first for a third team. Rounding out the Angels is Vlad Guerrero. Which leaves Rod Carew in fourth place, after playing only 7 years with the Halos.
Finally, to conclude the American League, I have no quarrel with Seattle’s top Mariners as 1) Ken Griffey, Jr.; 2) Ichiro Suzuki; and 3) Edgar Martinez. Pitchers Randy Johnson and Felix Hernandez are fourth and fifth. Johnson is ranked higher with Arizona, yet he spent more years in the Pacific Northwest than in the Desert Southwest.
Unquestionably, Tom Seaver is the top all-time New York Met. A distant second is Mike Piazza. Then comes David Wright, the club’s all-time leader in many offensive categories. Dwight Gooden and Darryl Strawberry are next in line, then Keith Hernandez, Gary Carter, Jerry Koosman. John Franco and Rusty Staub are the final two in the top 10.
Only Henry Aaron could lead the Atlanta Braves. Sorry, Mets fans, your tormentor Chipper Jones, is second. Greg Maddux, one of my favorite pitchers of all time, comes in third. How do you decide 4-5-6 when it involves John Smoltz, Tom Glavine and Warren Spahn? I don’t know how Eddie Mathews is behind Dale Murphy, who I loved watching on TBS in the 1980’s. Eight of the top 10 Braves are in the Hall of Fame. Keep you eye on Freddie Freeman. The current Braves first baseman is poised to enter the top 10 shortly.
Giancarlo Stanton heads the Marlins top three. Miguel Cabrera is second and the late Jose Fernandez is third. Hanley Ramirez and Gary Sheffield are the next in line.
Philadelphia is Mike Schmidt, Steve Carlton and then in a surprise third, second baseman Chase Utley. In fact, the first nine listed are all in the Hall of Fame or will be. Those players are Jimmy Rollins, Robin Roberts, Roy Halladay, Pete Rose, Jim Bunning and at number ten is Ryan Howard, who will be a close call for the Hall. Cole Hamels ahead of Grover Cleveland Alexander at 11 and 12? Curt Schilling, Larry Bowa and Tug Mc Graw are ahead of the powerful Dick Allen, who had a love/hate relationship with the tempestuous Phillies fans.
Max Scherzer, this year’s dominant pitcher is the top Washington National. Vlad Guerrero, from his days in Montreal, is second, as his Expos’ teammate Andre Dawson, who occupies the third spot. Bryce Harper is actually behind current Nat and former teammate Ryan Zimmerman. Tim Raines is ahead of Gary Carter. You realize how good the Expos were when you see so many of them in the top 20. Names like Dawson, Guerrero, Raines, Carter, Larry Walker, Dennis Martinez, Pedro Martinez, Moises Alou, Tim Wallach, Andres Galarraga and Steve Rogers. Too bad they didn’t win more.
Chicago Cubs stars Ernie Banks, Ryne Sandberg and Billy Williams are the best of the many who have worn the Cubs uniform.The top eight are in the Hall of Fame: Banks, Sandberg, Williams, Greg Maddux, Andre Dawson, Ron Santo, Ferguson Jenkins and Hack Wilson. Anthony Rizzo is already at number 9 and Kris Bryant is at 12. Slugger Sammy Sosa, always suspected of cheating, is no. 10.
If you had three Cincinnati Reds to pick in order, would it be Johnny Bench, Pete Rose and Joe Morgan, all of the Big Red machine title winners? Barry Larkin is at the fourth spot, ahead of Frank Robinson and Tony Perez. Watch Joey Votto sneak up on them—he’s seventh right now.
Robin Yount is ahead of Paul Molitor, who is ahead of Rollie Fingers on the Brewers list. I can see Christian Yelich, the eighth spot, take over number 4 from Cecil Cooper.
Pirates fans would concur that Roberto Clemente, Honus Wagner and Willie Stargell are the best Pirates ever. Ralph Kiner is fourth. World Series hero Bill Mazeroski is fifth, ahead of Paul Waner and Pie Traynor. One of my favorite Pirates, Andre McCutchen, is just ahead of Barry Bonds, but behind the gigantic Dave Parker.
St. Louis is easy for the first two players—Stan Musial and Rogers Hornsby. I would put Bob Gibson in front of Dizzy Dean in third place. The team with the second most World Series titles behind the Yankees has its first 12 headed to or in Cooperstown. Albert Pujols and Yadier Molina will join Ozzie Smith, Lou Brock, Red Schoendienst, Enos Slaughter, Bruce Sutter and Joe Medwick, Sorry to say, just like with the Braves, Bob Uecker didn’t make the list.
Arizona has Randy Johnson on top and his teammate Luis Gonzalez is in second place. Paul Goldschmidt, now a Cardinal, is the third place finisher.
Todd Helton, current third baseman Nolan Arenado and Larry Walker are the best Colorado Rockies. I think Walker should be in the Hall of Fame. The writers disagree.
Sandy Koufax, Jackie Robinson and Duke Snider are the best Dodgers. Clayton Kershaw is already ahead of Don Drysdale. I can see him edging out Duke for third place.
Three members of Cooperstown lead the San Diego Padres. Tony Gwynn, Dave Winfield and Trevor Hoffman are those men. The Padres had a lot of good players, but none match up with these three.
Ending this odyssey is the San Francisco Giants list, headed by Willie Mays. Second is Barry Bonds, no matter if you believe he used steroids or not. Willie Mc Covey is the third Giant. Juan Marichal is in front of Christy Mathewson. Both are leading the first well known New York Giant, Mel Ott.
So when you are watching the All Star Game on Tuesday, envision where some of these stars might be on their team’s lists—or for that matter, with free agency and trades, on other teams lists. Hey—LeMahieu is 18th in Colorado; if he wins the AL batting title, he will be the first man to do such in both leagues. And if he garners the AL M.V.P., he might have started a path to infamy. Remember what I said about Freddie Freeman. Check out Josh Bell from Pittsburgh—over 80 R.B.I. at this point with nearly 30 HR. What about JD Martinez of Boston? Aroldis Chapman and his 100 m.p.h. fastball? Is Cody Bellinger of the Dodgers a budding star? Gleyber Torres too? Will Charlie Blackmon be cursed by his playing in the rarified air at Coors Field? Check out the NL pitching staff—there is some fine young talent.
Remember, it is just an exhibition game. You can fantasize and look at Baseball-Reference.com and check out the stats these guys have put up. Think about what they might do. And enjoy the game. I will.
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