January 27- Oakland Athletics 1989 WS

Today’s hat was truly the perfect choice for the events that took place. The 1989 World Series Oakland Athletics cap was an acquisition I made a little over a week ago for 1. My collection. 2. Just for Fan Fest. Throughout the 2012 season I had been asked several times by fans, media outlets and executives what may favorite moment, let alone favorite season in the team’s history is. Until the start of this last season I was always pretty staunch on the 1989 season being my personal favorite. I was six-years-old and vividly remembered watching all four games of the Series on the TV at my old house in Bakersfield, California. Watching the team celebrate after sweeping the San Francisco Giants never left my memory as the #1 spot… that is, until the 2012 season started.

Within the first few days of being in New York for the MLB Fan Cave we were asked to make our postseason predictions. After crunching the numbers and deeply analyzing what had happened during Spring Training, I picked the A’s to finish in the newly added second Wild Card spot. I felt good about it. If I had put them to win their division I would have gotten a lot more flack than I received for putting them in a Wild Card spot. I was called a “homer”, “idiot”, and a slew of other negative names for my decision, even though no one really took a constructive route of criticism. Even the Fan Cave had lost faith in the team after they were written off by every critic in the business at the end of May, which was “coincidentally” the same time I was asked to pack my bags and hit the bricks. Injuries and close losses had been a contributing factor in the team’s lack of success, but I wasn’t ready to write the team off. There were still plenty of games and opportunity for the A’s to climb back up the ladder. So, with a couple thousand dollars in my pocket, I hit the road and caught the A’s on the road and at home. In fact, the A’s marketing team contacted me to throw out first pitch for them on July 17^th. The team had caught fire before the All-Star break, and didn’t slow the momentum when regular season play was rekindled. When I took the mound and lobbed out my pitch to Josh Reddick, I felt a sense of positivity in the air. Being so close to the team near the dugout, I could sense that they weren’t thinking about their place in the standings too much. They just wanted to get out and play. The A’s dominated everyone in their path, no matter which stadium they played in. And sure enough, they caught back up to the Texas Rangers, tied their record on the second to last day, and over took and won the American League West division on the last day of the season. Looking back on ’89, all I could think about was how I watched all of their games on TV. In 2012 I watched every game, whether on TV or in person. Most importantly, I was present for all of the big games, with all of my friends. The success of the season was amazing on the field, but even more special in the stands doing the Bernie Lean and Balfour Rage in the right field bleachers. Although we won the World Series in ’89, watching a team, counted out so many times throughout the season, dig deep and play to the best of their abilities and be successful was legendary. I would take the 2012 team over any team the A’s ever put on the field.

4-0: I think it’s pretty obvious what these numbers mean. The A’s swept their Bay Area rival in four games and the Giants hardly put up any kind of a fight. Throughout the Series the Giants never had a lead, and were outscored 32-14. There’s not really much else to add to this without coming off as rude, but let’s face it, the Giants really had no business being there.

5:04- I added this number to the opposite site as a reminder of what was most important through the series. On October 17 at 5:04 PM PST a 7.1 magnitude earthquake ripped through the Bay Area prior to the start of Game 3. Everyone inside Candlestick Park knew what had happened, but no one knew what had taken place on the outside. A large piece of the upper portion of the Bay Bridge had collapsed. A massive portion of the I-880 freeway crumbled, killing 42 people. Experts had estimated that hundreds were killed; however, due to the game set to start at 5:35 PM PST, most cars and people were off the road, ready to watch the game. The timing could not have been more perfect.

January 25- St. Louis Cardinals

Last night was the third time I’ve seen the comedic duo of Randy and Jason Sklar at the now infamous Helium Comedy Club in Portland, Oregon. I’ve been watching/listening to the Sklar Brothers for years starting with their Comedy Central Presents special from 2001, on up through Cheap Seats (2004-2006) and into the their numerous TV appearances, films, Jim Rome fill-ins and especially their podcast entitled Sklarbro Country. The first time I caught them live was back in 2010 with my friend Sean Davis. We shared some laughs; grabbed some beers and he gave me a savage ass-beating at darts after the show. In 2011 I invited my best friend Sam Spencer for round two with Sean and me. This time, I was a little more prepared. Randy and Jason hail from St. Louis, Missouri and a die hard St. Louis Cardinals fans. Trying to score some points and maybe a few words after the show, I threw on my Cardinals road cap that night. Sure enough Cardinals baseball was a hot topic. Granted, this was before their World Series victory that year, and well before I really started venting my disdain for the team.

During the first month of my time in the MLB Fan Cave, I think it was the second week, Todd Pellegrino, one of the producers/directors of the production company overtaking all of the filming in the Fan Cave, came downstairs to talk to me while I was still in the process of mastering the new Samsung Galaxy Note I had won the previous day. He mentioned that he saw my (old) twitter photo (below) and asked if I was a big Sklar Brothers fan. 

For a second I had debated on laying some thick sarcasm, but I was in a good mood and responded with, “of course!” with a huge smile on my face. He sat down next to me and told me stories of how he was the director/producer for Cheap Seats during its run on ESPN Classic, and is also one of my favorite shows of all-time. Needless to say, my nerdisms kicked into full gear. I was hoping after that conversation that one day the two would come in to work on a sketch with us, but no dice. No big deal though. It was at least nice to hear some stories.

Which brings thing back to last night. Much like their show in 2011, I opted to rock another Cardinals hat; this time their classic red game style shown above. If you’ve been keeping pace with my blog, I always have a goofy photo of me wearing the hat, so I figured I could kill two birds with one stone on this one: a photo for this post and make the guys smile. This has always been kind of a theme of mine whenever I know I’m going to be in the presence of baseball fans, players or management, and it truly came out when I was in New York. Despite the fact that I went in as the Oakland Athletics representative, I still had a grip of hats, shirts and jerseys that I wanted to wear during my time. At the same time, only seven other teams were actually being represented throughout the season: Ricardo Marquez (Angels), Lindsay Guentzel (Twins), Ricky Mast and Shaun Kippins (Braves), Eddie Mata (Yankees), Ashley Chavez (Giants) and Kyle Thompson (Cardinals). I had made a promise to the others that I would never wear gear of their teams in the event that a player from their team would show up. I felt it would be too distracting and I didn’t want to spoil their fun. But, anytime a player came in without their team being represented, I stepped up to the plate. This may explain a few things for the people who followed. So, much like those times, and the previous Sklar Brothers show, I bit the bullet to even bring a few seconds of joy and conversation.

But now, onto the numbers…

#1- If you’re any kind of a baseball fan I would truly hope you know who this is. Ozzie Smith played shortstop for the Cardinals from 1982-1996 after playing his first four year with the San Diego Padres which he got hosed on the Rookie if the Year in 1978 by Atlanta Braves third/first baseman Bob Horner. (Yah, I don’t know who the hell that is either.) Despite the folly of the BBWAA, Smith would later go on to win 13 consecutive Gold Gloves as well as make 15 All-Star Game appearances. He also won a World Series title in his first year in St. Louis by beating the Milwaukee Brewers in seven games, but only after sweeping Bob Horner and the Braves in the National League Championship Series. I tried to find a photo of Smith giving the DEGENERATION-X “suck it” sign to Horner, but had no such luck. Smith was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2002, primarily for his defensive prowess.

#5- Before greed and disloyalty plagued him and his wife, Albert Pujols was a dead lock for the Hall of Fame, and probably would have gone down as the second greatest player to don a Cardinals uniform behind Stan Musial. But, Arte Moreno gets what he wants. From 2001-2011 The Machine took St. Louis and the baseball world by storm. He won Rookie of the Year honors easily, three MVPs in 2005, 2008 and 2009 and won two World Series rings in 2006 and 2011. His stats were all ready a fast track into the Hall as well: 2073 hits, .328/445/1329. While I realize where he’s playing now, I couldn’t leave him off of this hat. But it was incredibly hard to leave Willie McGee off.

#45- If there was ever a guy who played Major League Baseball, that I could easily argue is a Top 10 right handed pitcher of all-time, it’s certainly Bob Gibson. Hoot started his career in 1959 and threw his last game on September 3, 1975. Every year he played in the bigs came while wearing a Cardinals uniform. He was one of the calmest pitchers to ever play the game, but at the same time he was one of the fiercest. He never hesitated to throw some chin music if a batter crowded the plate and he certainly never backed down from a challenge. He helped the Cardinals win two World Series trophies in 1964 over the New York Yankees and in 1967 over the Boston Red Sox. In both Series Gibson won the MVP, most notably going 3-0 with a 1.00 ERA and 26 strikeouts. Throughout his career Gibson struck out 3117 batters, won the Cy Young award in 1968 and 1970, as well as the MVP in ’68 after going 22-9 with a 1.12 ERA and 268 strikeouts. Oh, he also won nine Gold Gloves. The man was a gamer every single time he pitched. In 1981 he was inducted into the Hall of Fame by a vote of 337/401. How he didn’t get every vote is beyond me.

While I make a lot of snide jokes and comments about the Cardinals and their fans, I still respect the history of the franchise and the men who suited up. But at the end of the day, I still hate the Cardinals. Knocking the A’s down to the third most successful organization will do that to you.

January 1- Philadelphia Athletics

As a huge fan of the Oakland Athletics, I had to kick the year off with a hat from their past. 

I could have started with a hat of theirs from and even earlier time; however, it didn’t really match my outfit. This hat in particular is a tribute from the Athletics' time in Philadelphia, specifically from 1931-1949. From 1929-1930 the A’s had worn an all white with a navy bill, which also featured the “A” logo in the center of the front panels… but that is a hat I will feature later in the year. A particular note in the history of the A’s and their hats is that they never featured any kind of a logo of their hats from 1901-1928. During that time the A’s had won four World Series, while their fifth, and last in Philadelphia, came in 1930. Therefore, the all navy blue road addition with the white “A”, which I am featuring could in fact be considered a bit of a curse of the franchise as they were subsequently relocated twice after the 1954 season and never found World Series success again until the 1970s.

The A’s went 107-45 under manager/owner Connie Mack that season; in fact, the A’s won the American League pennant, but lost to the St. Louis Cardinals 4-3 in the World Series. An even more important detail of 1931, this is the first year the A’s put numbers on the backs of their jerseys. My personal addition to this hat does in fact date back to 1931. I figured; why not start at the beginning? Of all the players to choose from, I had to stick with three who were enshrined in the MLB Hall of Fame, but most importantly, three guys who were the faces of the franchise that particular year.

#2- Born in Bridgewater, Massachusetts in 1903, Mickey Cochrane was educated at Boston University, where he played five sports, excelling at football and basketball. Although he considered himself a better football player than a baseball player, professional football wasn't as established as major league baseball at the time, so he signed with the Portland Beavers of the Pacific Coast League in 1924. Holla! P-Town in the house!

After just one season in the minor leagues, Cochrane was promoted to the Majors, making his debut with the Athletics on April 14, 1925 at the age of 22. He made an immediate impact by becoming Connie Mack's starting catcher in place of Cy Perkins, who was considered one of the best catchers in the Major Leagues at the time. A left-handed batter, he ran well enough that Mack would occasionally have him bat leadoff. He hit third more often, but whatever his place in the order his primary role was to get on base so that hard-hitting Al Simmons and Jimmie Foxx could drive him in. In May, he tied a twentieth-century major league record by hitting three home runs in a game. He ended his rookie season with a .331 batting average and a .397 on base percentage, helping the Athletics to a second place finish. Cochrane would finish in 10^th place for the American League MVP that season, and probably would have won the Rookie of the Year award had it existed.

By the start of the 1926 season, Cochrane was already considered the best catcher in the major leagues. He won the 1928 AL MVP, mostly for his leadership and defensive skills, when he led the American League in putouts and hit .293 along with 10 home runs and 58 runs batted in. He was a catalyst in the Athletics' pennant-winning years of 1929-1931 when he hit .331, .357 and .349 respectively. He played in those three World Series, winning the first two, but was sometimes blamed for the loss of the 1931 World Series, when the St. Louis Cardinals, led by Pepper Martin, stole eight bases and the Series, although, in his book, The Life of a Baseball Hall of Fame Catcher, author Charlie Bevis cites the Philadelphia pitching staff's carelessness in holding runners as a contributing factor. But notwithstanding this, the blame for the 1931 World Series loss would dog Cochrane for the rest of his life.

1933 would ultimately be Cochrane’s last year with the Athletics as he was dealt to the Detroit Tigers at the end of the season where he went on to win his second AL MVP award as well as make two consecutive All-Star Game appearances in his first years. The first All-Star Game was held at Comiskey Park in 1933 and was the main reason why Cochrane never made it with the Athletics.

For his career Cochrane hit .320 with 1652 total hits, 119 home runs and 832 RBI despite only playing for 13 total years. He was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1947 on his sixth ballot.

Cochrane was also a player I really should have written about during my Stars and Stripes Memorial Day articles, so having blown that opportunity, I’ll make it up now. Cochrane joined the Navy in 1942. He was stationed at Great Lakes Naval Training Station where he coached their formidable baseball team until 1944. On July 7, 1942, Cochrane managed an All-Service team that played against an American League all-star squad at Cleveland’s Municipal Stadium. Before 62,059 fans, the American League beat the servicemen, 5-0.

Tragedy struck Cochrane in 1944, his only son, Gordon Jr, was killed at Normandy on D-Day, June 6, 1944. Former major league pitcher, Elden Auker, wrote in his autobiography, Sleeper Cards and Flannel Uniforms: “The bullet that killed him [Gordon, Jr] had some kind of range. It traveled all the way across the Atlantic, lodged itself into the spirit of Gordon's father, the great Mickey Cochrane, and slowly killed him. Mickey's gravestone shows he died June 28, 1962, but he started dying June 6, 1944. Consider this another life claimed by World War II.”

#3- James Emory Foxx was born in Sudlersville, Maryland on October 22, 1907 to Dell and Mattie Foxx who were farmers. Dell Foxx had played baseball for a town team when he was younger and he instilled a love for the game in young Jimmie. Foxx did well in school but truly excelled in sports, particularly soccer, track and baseball of which he played all three in high school. He dropped out of high school early to join a minor league team managed by former Athletics great Frank "Home Run" Baker. Foxx had hoped to pitch or play third base, but since the team was short on catchers, Foxx moved behind the plate. He immediately drew interest from the Athletics and New York Yankees. Foxx signed with the A's and made his major league debut in 1925 at age 17.

The A's catching duties were already filled by Cochrane, so by 1927, Foxx was splitting time between catching, first base, and the outfield. In 1929, installed as the A's regular first baseman, Foxx had a breakthrough year, batting .354 and hitting 33 home runs.

In 1932, Foxx hit .364, with 58 home runs with 169 RBI, missing the Triple Crown by just three points in batting average. Boston Red Sox first baseman Dale Alexander hit .367, but in just 454 plate appearances; he would not have won the batting title under current rules, which are based upon 3.1 plate appearances per team games played. Foxx did win the Triple Crown the following season, with a batting average of .356, 163 RBIs, and 48 home runs. He won back-to-back AL MVP honors in 1932 and 1933, the first player to ever pull off this accomplishment.

Foxx was one of the three or four most feared sluggers of his era. The great Yankee pitcher Lefty Gomez once said of him, "He has muscles in his hair."

In 1937, Foxx hit a ball into the third deck of the left-field stands at Yankee Stadium, a very rare feat because of the distance and the angle of the stands. Gomez was the pitcher who gave it up, and when asked how far it went, he said, "I don't know, but I do know it took somebody 45 minutes to go up there and get it back."

When the Great Depression fully hit in the early 1930s, Connie Mack was unable to pay the salaries of his highly paid stars, and was obliged to sell off a number of them. In 1936, Mack sold Foxx's contract to the Boston Red Sox for $150,000, following a contract dispute.

Foxx’s Athletics career only lasted 11 seasons, ad the majority of his accomplishment occurred during this time frame. He made the All-Star Game every year in its first three years (1933-1935) and made six more over the next six years of his career in Boston. He won two World Series rings (1929 and 1930), both of which came in an Athletics uniform. 302 of his 534 career home runs were hit with the A’s, same with 1492 of his 2646 career hits and 1075 of his 1922 RBI. He won a third AL MVP award in 1938 with the Red Sox, led the league in home runs three times and twice in RBI with the Athletics and hit .339 for them as well. His career average was .325. But despite playing more years, winning championships and more MVPs with the Athletics, Foxx was elected into the Hall of Fame in 1951 on his first ballot… as a member of the Red Sox. Ridiculous.

#10- Arguably one of the Top-three greatest left-handed pitchers of all-time, Robert Moses Grove (Lefty) was born in Lonaconing, Maryland in 1900 and made his MLB debut on April 14, 1925. That’s right, the same day as Cochrane. Grove battled injuries as a rookie and posted a 10-13 mark (which would prove his only losing record in 17 major league seasons), despite leading the league in strikeouts. Grove then settled down in 1926 and won the first of a record nine earned run average (ERA) titles with a mark of 2.51. In 1927, Grove won 20 games for the first time, and a year later he led the league in wins with 24.

On August 23, 1928 Grover struck out the side in the second inning of a 3-1 win over the Cleveland Indians to become the third American League pitcher and seventh pitcher in major league history to accomplish the feat. On September 27, he did it again in the seventh inning of a 5-3 win over the Chicago White Sox, becoming the first pitcher in major league history to accomplish the feat twice in a career; since then, only Sandy Koufax and Nolan Ryan, both Hall of Famers, have joined him. Grove, however, remains the only pitcher to do it twice in the same season. The sportswriter Arthur "Bugs" Baer wrote, "Lefty Grove could throw a lamb chop past a wolf."

During the Athletics' championship run (1929-1931), Grove led the way as the league's top pitcher, posting records of 20-6, 28-5 and 31-4. In 1930, Grove led the league in wins, ERA (2.06), strikeouts (175), winning percentage, complete games, and shutouts. His 2.06 ERA was 2.32 runs below the league average. He was also chosen as the AL MVP in 1931, making him one of only a handful of pitchers to achieve this honor. His MVP award is the only one not enshrined in Cooperstown, instead being housed at the Georges Creek Library in Lonaconing.

In 1933, Grove became the first player in MLB history to strike out five times in a nine-inning game. On December 12, 1933, team owner Connie Mack traded Grove, along with Max Bishop and Rube Walberg, to the Boston Red Sox for Bob Kline, Rabbit Warstler and $125,000. Basically, as great as Mack was for the Athletics, he was an even bigger prick in the same regard. Grove’s career in Boston wasn’t as fortunate.

Grove was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1947 on his third ballot, believe it or not. He led the league in strikeouts seven years in a row from 1925-1931. He led the league in wins four times in his career, all with the Athletics.