Nomar's birthday

Today is Nomar's 34th birthday.

Happy Birthday Nomar!

So while his stats are a far cry from where he's been (.278-4-47), he can still rake the ball and if he remains healthy throughout the year, he has potential to get hot and finish the season with close to 100 RBI and maybe 20 homers.

It might be a reach, but he could be the key ingredient to the Dodgers down the stretch earning a postseason berth. Let's not yet forecast that his Coopertown credentials are gone.

There's still plenty more baseball for Nomar to play.

Inching closer to football season

OK, so it's summer but the football season isn't that far away. As the pre-season college magazines and NFL fantasy previews start to trickle out into bookstores and news shops, it seems an appropriate time to start to examine what's in store for the 2007 BC football team.

And already the expectations are high for BC. Rivals.com placed the Eagles at No. 16 in their pre-season top-50. While not too surprising, it shows that there is a feeling among the media that Coach Jags's West Coast/pro-style offense and his ability to recruit well will yield some success for BC.

While Matt Ryan is regarded as among the best quarterbacks in the league, the strength of this team will be if the running game can match its production of the past combined with a strong set of receivers and suitable to excellent DBs. More to come on this team as we draw closer to Opening Day on Sept. 1 against Wake Forest.

SI.com gave some ink to Flutie's Hail Mary as part of its "SI reporters write about their favorite sporting events they have attended" series. Ian Thomsen, who worked for The Globe in 1984, gave his version of covering the Miracle in Miami. Interesting fact I never knew, according to Thomsen, BC had already accepted a bid to the Cotton Bowl. That's interesting since, going into the Miami game, the Eagles still had a game at Holy Cross to finish the season. So, a 7-2 team was invited to -- what was at the time -- one of the more prestigious bowl games? Interesting. Like today, I imagine the Cotton Bowl committee was interested in money and selling tickets, and asked BC to participate because the Eagles were (1) out of the national title hunt and -- even it they finished at 7-4 (which was unlikely because we had Holy Cross at our last game) -- (2) knew Flutie and the potent BC offence would be a draw. It didn't hurt that BC was a great team and deserved to be in a top-notch bowl.

With the exception of smaller programs or 6-win teams, today most schools do not accept bowl bids until their season ends -- and for sure BCS-caliber teams wait until the selection show. It's amazing that 23 years ago it was a major bowl making a commitment to a team with two games left to be played.

Vin Scully on Nomar

As I enjoy a free preview of MLB Extra Innings, I am listening to Vin Scully broadcast a Dodgers-Phillies game on LA's FSN channel. The greatest of all time, Scully (at 79!) has still got it, (Bob Ryan addressed this on his blog, not too long ago...so no need to go into too much detail here) but, while not at the height of his powers in the 80s, Scully still can weave great anecdotes into his play-by-play of the game while neither boring his audience nor seeming to talk too much -- even though he's the only one in the booth! His gentle assessment of the game combined with an ability to call big moments appropriately wrapped in a beautiful baritone simply seals it for me that there will never be any one better.

As Nomar stepped up to the plate in the bottom of the first inning, I could not help but think of the path he was on when with the Red Sox and where he would take the Sox. He was going to lead the Sox to the Promised Land while building a Hall of Fame of resume. Well, the Sox won a World Championship but without Nomar, who no longer is on a definitive path to Cooperstown. I dreamed of the Sox playing in the World Series and Scully calling the action -- for a brief moment a dream kinda came to fruition. Nomar doubled in Jeff Kent, scorching the ball down the left field line -- vintage Nomar but without the baseball rattling around in the left field garage door.

Looking back, Nomar's early career made him arguably the most popular athlete in the city -- his geniality with the fans and his aww-shucks attitude endeared him unlike few others. Not seen as selfish and petty like Clemens. Not quirky and oddball-ish like Boggs. Plus he could hit for average, rake balls off the Wall, had good speed and was a spectacular defensive shortstop. Then 2001 happened and his body suffered a setback but not a HOF-debilitating injury. Yet, upon a return to full-time action in 2002, Nomar's average shrunk to .310 after winning back-to-back batting titles in 1999-2000.

The decrease in consistently was not all due to his wrist injury. The toll of the long season and moving from No. 4 to No. 3 in the batting order affected some of his ability to hit for average. In 1998, 1999 and 2000, Nomar hit 4th most nights -- protecting Mo Vaughn and later Brian Daubach. He had 532 and 529 at bats in 1999 and 2000 respectively; both years featured stints on the DL. Returning to play full time in 2002, Nomar had 635 and 658 at bats in 2002 and 2003 . His power increased but with it decreased batting averages and much lower on base percentages.

The combination of his wrist, the injured Achilles' tendon, a deteriorating relationship with the Boston media and his sour feelings toward the new ownership just turned 2004 into a miserable year for him and it seemed Nomar simply could not play shortstop effectively any more -- at least not for a team with aspirations of winning a World Series, and undoubtedly that added to his discomfort. It's just too bad one the franchise's greatest players could not be on the field when the Red Sox won it all.

If the Sox don't trade Nomar in 04, they probably don't win the World Series. That's a strange sentence to write but it's true.

By the way, Nomar's 2-for-3 tonight for the Dodgers. That's a strange sentence to write too.

HR derby

Does any one give a shit about the HR derby anymore? I really don't. (Then why am I DVRing it?)

Honestly it's lost its luster since Fenway in 99 when McGuire was just ridiculous and hit homer after homer over the Wall. Giambi had a good show in 01 but otherwise it's just been only OK since 1999.

pedro

I haven't yet dedicated much time on this blog to my favorite all-time athlete, Pedro Martinez.

While I don't need to fill pages up as to why he is a favorite of mine, the question is: What's not to like?

He pitched seven spectacular seasons for the Red Sox, lead the Sox to its first World Championship in '04, won two Cy Young awards and married a BC grad. And, according to his SportsCentury, he wants one of his kids to attend Boston College. How can I not love a man like that?

Given that he threw a great simulated game on Tuesday, I thought it appropriate to post an email I wrote at the start of this season pertaining to Pedro's status among the greatest of all time. Specifically I argue Pedro is the greatest pitcher of all time predicated on what he accomplished in the era in which it was done. Keep in mind the stats I reference were as of the end of the 2006 season.

The bedrock of this argument is founded on one overarching principle: Pedro Martinez dominated in the most prolific offensive era in the 130-year history of Major League Baseball. To truly understand this argument, one must familiarize themselves with the numbers being put up and the records being broken by batters in general and power hitters in particular. There is overwhelming evidence to support how much more successful offenses were than their pitching counterparts from 1994-2004, so there is no need to toil with all that. But, as an example: Before 1998, the all-time, single-season home run record had not been broken for 37 years before Mark McGuire and Sammy Sosa recorded 70 and 66 home runs respectively. Since 1998, Roger Maris' once untouchable record of 61 homers has been broken six times (McGuire twice, Sosa three times and Bonds once). That's ridiculous. Prior to 1961, the record had stood for 34 years. To sum up: in that 71-year period (1927-1998) only two players had hit 60 home runs. Then from 1998-2001, six times a player hit 60 or more homers. With that understood, let's examine why Pedro was the best of his era (1996-present).

On the surface the numbers are simply spectacular: five ERA titles, three strikeout crowns, six times the league leader in WHIP, four times he's lead the league in K/BB (IMO, the most clear indication of dominance as it suggests the combo of power and control, see Schilling), five times the league leader in Adjusted ERA and twice he's lead the league in winning percentage. Those numbers state the obvious: his dominance is virtually unmatched over the last 10 years (with an argument for Randy Johnson in the same stretch of time). But to see him as the best of all time, one must look more closely at the numbers.

The argument could be made that if Pedro is the best of this era, he's the best of all time. But the evidence creates a clearer picture than what the transient property proves. His numbers stack up to the best pitchers of all time -- while pitching in the most offensive stretch in baseball history. Making him arguably the most dominant pitcher of all time. In 2000 some have argued he pitched the best season of all time:

• His .167 batting average against is the best single-season average of all time, breaking Walter Johnson's record.
• His 285 Adjusted ERA is the second-best single season Adj ERA of all time, bested only by Tim Keefe's 294 in 1880.
• His 1.74 ERA is almost two full runs better than Roger Clemens 3.70 ERA which was the second best in the league -- the greatest discrepancy ever between 1st and 2nd place in ERA for a season.
• His .737 WHIP is the best all time for a single season, breaking Guy Hecker's 1882...yes 1882 record of .769.

Among the all-time greats, Pedro's career stats match up to or surpass all those who get mentioned in the annals of all-time greats:

• .701 winning percentage, 3rd best all time behind Al Spalding (1871-1877) and Spud Chandler (1937-1947).
• 1.022 WHIP, 3rd greatest of all time behind Addie Joss (1902-1910) and Ed Walsh (1904-1917). - 6.82 in hits allowed per 9IP, 3rd all time behind Nolan Ryan and Sandy Koufax.
• 10.25 K/9IP, 3rd all time behind Randy Johnson and Kerry Wood.
• 14th on all-time strikeout list.
• 4.322 K/BB ratio, 2nd all time to Tommy Bond (1874-1884).

Most impressively Pedro's 166 Adjusted ERA is the best of all time. Adjusted ERA (defined as a measure of a pitcher's ability to prevent runs from being scored, adjusted for league and home park factors) is the best indicator of a pitcher's dominance as it takes into account the era, park and other factors. That Pedro's Adj ERA is the best of all time, coupled with his rank among the all-time best in so many categories presents a strong case for him being the greatest of all time.

However, the critics will point to one factor to which he doesn't measure up at all: durability. He has not done it (and will not do it) for many years and his innings pitched totals are puny next to Koufax, Walter Johnson, Gibson, Clemens et al. But it's important to remember that my argument is really based on a per-inning scale. And in an era where managers and coaches closely monitor their pitchers' arms so as to allow them to have longer careers, since 2001 Martinez has been the very definition of success under scrutiny. Under 100 pitches thrown he has been brilliant but when the pitch count approaches or exceeded triple digits, it's important for the manager to be somewhat wary.

Yet, Pedro -- should he return anytime soon -- will be pitching in his 16th major league season. While Koufax amassed all those innings, he retired at 30 and had he received the same kind of treatment as modern pitchers, he may have anchored the Dodgers rotation into the 1970s. Strangely enough, had the Dodgers brass kept any faith in Pedro and not traded him away straight up for Delino Deshields, Martinez could have anchored the Dodgers rotation throughout the 90s and into the 2000s. (As a Sox fan, thank God they didn't.)

Finally let's not forget Pedro's postseason performances. In 13 postseason appearances, Pedro is 6-2 with a 3.40 ERA and 80 strikeouts in 79 1/3 innings pitched with a breathtaking performance in Game 3 of the '04 World Series and a memorable 6 innings of no-hit ball in the clinching Game 5 of the '99 Division Series. And without his performance in Game 5 of the 04 ALSC there are no heroics for David Ortiz and no Greatest Comeback Ever arguments because Pedro -- while not earning a win -- kept the Sox in that game for six innings while being the first pitcher in that series to cool Matsui off with a fastball up and in.

Given the numbers and the time frame in which Pedro has pitched, it's hard to argue that he's not among the best of all time and a sure first-ballot Hall of Famer. Upon closer examination, it's not too difficult to at least understand the contentions that he could be the best pitcher of all time. Still not convinced? Perhaps his performance in the 1999 All-Star Game could offer some insight too.



Here's some more...

Dice-K vs. Beckett

At the beginning of the season some predicted Josh Beckett to be a darkhorse Cy Young candidate (hello Gordon Edes) and while I still don't see that as too foolish of a statement, as the Sox sit halfway through the 2007 season, I don't think I'd pick Beckett to be the Cy Young winner on the Sox starting rotation -- never mind the entire pitching staff. While Beckett has marketedly improved from his performance from last season (5.01 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, 36 HRs), his second season in the Junior Circuit -- while being very worthy of his All-Star selection -- is second to teammate Matsuzaka's efforts this year.

While both WHIP and ERA are comparable and I acknowledge Beckett holds an advantage in both (through July 6, Beckett: 3.44 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, Dice-K: 3.53 ERA, 1.19 WHIP), Matsuzaka did not have a trip to the DL giving him more innings pitched (114 2/3 to 102) and has more strikeouts per 9 innings pitched (9.34 to 8.12), 12 quality starts to Beckett's 10 and Dice-K sits at 10th in the league with a .233 opponent's batting average to Beckett's .241 and opponents are slugging .353 against Dice-K and .371 against Beckett.

To his credit, Beckett does lead in a category I consider very important: K/BB at 4.38 (good for fourth in the league) to Matsuzaka's 3.22 (14th in the AL).

On the whole, the numbers are very comparable and the Sox are lucky to have this duo anchoring the rotation. Once Schilling returns (presumably healthy), the Red Sox will have the most intimidating rotation entering the postseason (barring a wretched collapse, or course). While the Angels and the Tigers have solid staffs, neither Lackey, Escobar and Erving Santana nor Verlander, Bonderman and Durbin really put the fear of God into me when entering a best of 5- or 7-game series against the Red Sox. While Verlander and Bonderman are good...I just don't see them as the modern-day incarnation of the staffs of the 1969 Orioles or the 1998 Yankees.

But, back to Dice-K and Beckett -- at this point now, while it would be close, I'd give the "Best Starting Pitcher" award to Matsuzaka. I just feel a little more confident when he's on the mound. Given he has had five games of nine or more strikeouts and Beckett just reached that plateau last night, I give Matsuzaka the slight edge.

As for team Cy Young winner and MVP, it's no contest. Both go to All-Star Hideki Okajima.

The red hats

Can the Red Sox please bring back the red hats? The red hats with the white uniforms would look undeniably awesome.

Remember the 1970s? Well I don't, but the 1973-78 Sox teams had those distinct, yet tasteful, red hats...simply put: classic. I plead with Larry Luchino and Co. -- while not necessary to bring a retro-70s style back in fashion with the pullover shirts -- to ask the team to wear the red hats (just like this season's BP mesh hats) with the white home uniforms like once a week (maybe on Saturdays). The red hats also look good with the gray road uniforms.

The team wore them briefly in 1997 and 1998 and the alternative red hats just looked so sharp. I really don't know why alternative hats would not be welcomed given that the new ownership has encouraged red jerseys and more of a red-centric look to the current uniforms.

And if fans want a link to a great Sox fan with Sox unis on the mind, visit Paul Lucas's blog, or his see his column on ESPN Page 2. You won't be disappointed.

Also blogger Jere in New York did a great piece on the Sox road uniforms from the 80s.

While we are on uniforms, the league needs the power blue road uniforms back ... in a big way. The Cardinals, Brewers, Braves, Phillies and every other team that wore them need to return MLB to its 70s and early-80s roots with the classic power blue road uniforms. You can't watch a Phillies game now at Citizens Bank without seeing fans adorned in those old-school blue T shirts. I know retro fads die out after a while -- but can we bring them back for now, to capitalize on that awesome retro look?

No. 26

Why haven't the Red Sox retired No. 26 for Wade Boggs yet?

According to the criteria on the team's Web site to have one's number retired -- induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame and at least 10 years with the club -- Boggs should have his number hanging from the rafters along with Williams, Doerr, Cronin, Yaz, Pudge and Jackie Robinson. Boggs was inducted in 2005 into Cooperstown, into the Red Sox Hall of Fame in 2004 and played ball for the Olde Towne Team from 1982 to 1992 -- 11 seasons in all. There has not been a rumor or a whisper of the club hanging the number 26 from the rafters in the last two years, since the BBWAA voted Boggs into the Hall. What's up with that?

Now I understand it's only been two and half years since he officially got voted into the Hall of Fame and it took 18 years for the team to retire No. 9 for Ted Williams -- from his 1966 induction into the HOF to the day in 1984 when they so honored The Kid. But the Red Sox wasted no time in retiring Fisk's No. 27 -- doing so the same year as his induction into the Hall -- in 2000.

Consider the numbers for Boggs (with the Sox alone) and it's a no-brainer: five batting titles, eight times an All-Star, six times leading the AL in OBP, six Silver Slugger awards, twice he lead the league in doubles and seven consecutive seasons of 200 hits. Remarkable. Plus he made appearances on Cheers and The Simpsons.



For a while, some Boston media members have been pressing a case for retiring Tony Conigliaro's No. 25 (currently worn by Mike Lowell). I do agree that consideration should be given to retiring Tony C's number and, furthermore, the Red Sox policy on retiring numbers is a bit too restrictive. If it's not amended, Johnny Pesky and Pedro Martinez will never have their numbers retired. That would be a shame. Anyway, while I consider retiring Tony C's number admirable and appropriate, the rules would dictate that Boggs's 26 takes precedent.

Finally, while I do believe Jim Rice will (finally) be elected into the Hall of Fame this winter (and embarrassingly overdue), his number 14 has to, has to be retired regardless of whether he is inducted into the HOF. No player has worn the number since his retirement from the Sox and no one else ever should.

But until the rules change, some deserving Sox players will not have their numbers retired. Until then let's take care of the players who fit the stipulations. Like Boggs.