THE PASSION OF BASEBALL

What is something you are passionate about? Passion is contagious and feed off this positive energy. Have you ever seen two people who truly love the game of baseball talk about baseball?

I had a friends wife tell me once that we can remember every play in a game we watched or played in but why is it that we can not remember a simple grocery list that is given to us. Some of us can recite stats for their teams 50 years ago. We can tell who played in what World Series and who the winning pitcher was and who hit the game winning homerun, off of whom and what pitch. Why is that?

A lot of my childhood memories are tied to baseball. I remember spending hours hitting a rock in front of my house pretending to be my idol Rod Carew. I used to mimic his stance and his loose wrists. I wanted to be just like him. I made myself into a switch hitter because of him. As I grew older the demise of my professional career was that I could not hit the breaking ball. I could sit on that fastball and hit it out of the park but as soon as they took something off or put a break on it I could not hit it. So there went my dream of a professional career but not my passion for the game.

I have been playing softball for the past 10 years.

We have been part of the same league for over 10 years. Another team in the same league played for the same amount of time. I remember saying to myself that wouldnt it be cool if all of us can be playing together like this other team when we are 40 something. We were all in our 30s and this team was in their 40s. Well I catch myself thinking now wouldnt it be cool to be playing ball in our 50s like these guys are.

Every year this team beat us. We never beat them. It had almost become an obsession for me to beat them. This year we finally did. After the game I was talking to their captain and kidded him that now I can die in peace. He replied by saying that it has been true joy playing us these past years because he can tell we loved the game and played like it.

Why do a bunch of old people continue to play the game of softball? I truly believe that we can not give up the love of baseball and the passion we have for it. It is part of us and it has shaped who we are. If you looked at each one of us in our profession or home life, the way we live our lives are similar to how we play the game. Getting back to the earlier question on why is it that some people can recite stats or remember every play in a game? Its the love we have for the game of baseball. The passion and the love for the game helps define who some of us are. Find your passion and share it with the world and make each one of us that much better for knowing you.

This article was written by Isaac Kama - A True Baseball Lover

Aron Wallad has been a baseball lover for over 45 years. His passions have included; playing, watching, reading, evaluating, and coaching the game he adores. Check out his baseball ezine. Do you love inspiring quotes, unusual statistics and most of all, heartwarming baseball stories? If you love baseball you will love his baseball ezine.

Go here right now http://www.baseballsprideandjoy.com/index.php?tag=emporium
Contact Aron - aron@baseballsprideandjoy.com

Being a baseball coach can be very rewarding. It is a big responsibility, though. You are basically the ?leader? of your team, and how you act will directly affect how the assistant coaches and the players act. There are some tips you can follow to make yourself a better baseball coach.

These tips are:

1. Give everyone on your baseball team a responsibility. Make each and every person on the team feel if they don?t do something, it won?t get done! Any accomplishments made by a member of the team are shared by the whole team. (It is important to give recognition to individuals, though.)

2. Help everyone on your baseball team make good, informed decisions. As the baseball coach, you need to guide and teach the players to make the good decisions you want them to make. Don?t bully the baseball team to do what you want them to do, just encourage them to do what is best.

3. Always treat your baseball team like they are winners! If your baseball players feel like winners, they will be more likely to win.

4. Let everyone on your baseball team know you care. Be interested in every individual baseball player. Encourage them and show them your support. Look at your behavior around your baseball team and evaluate it carefully.

5. Help your baseball team understand the meaning of playing with good sportsmanship! Good sportsmanship is just as important as winning. Make sure your baseball players understand the meaning of fair play from the moment you become their baseball coach.

6. Make sure you motivate and reward your baseball team players. Just knowing the basic skills and strategies of baseball won?t necessarily make you a very good baseball coach. Being a baseball coach is truly more than just teaching these things. A really good coach can motivate a baseball team to do its best! Good baseball coaches understand and can empathize with the players? feelings of joy, anger, anxiety, frustration, and pride.

7. Don?t make your baseball practices boring or repetitious. Shake up practices by playing games and teaching new techniques and plays. Since only 9 players can play at a time, make sure to keep the rest of the baseball team feeling useful by having them keep score or charting pitching and offence. Make sure to keep each baseball player feeling they have an important role in winning.

8. Make sure you have a plan for your baseball team. Just like a teacher needs to plan for the school year, a baseball coach needs a plan for the season. Having no plan is a sure road to failure.

9. Give your baseball team enough time to review things they have learned. Whether at the end of a practice or the end of a game, give your players time to review what has been learned and what could be improved upon. Keep the review as positive in tone as possible.

10. Make sure you communicate with your baseball team. If you cannot get across to your baseball team what you want, how will they know what to do?

Being a baseball coach can be very rewarding. It is a big responsibility, though. You are basically the ?leader? of your team, and how you act will directly affect how the assistant coaches and the players act. There are some tips you can follow to make yourself a better baseball coach.

These tips are:

1. Give everyone on your baseball team a responsibility. Make each and every person on the team feel if they don?t do something, it won?t get done! Any accomplishments made by a member of the team are shared by the whole team. (It is important to give recognition to individuals, though.)

2. Help everyone on your baseball team make good, informed decisions. As the baseball coach, you need to guide and teach the players to make the good decisions you want them to make. Don?t bully the baseball team to do what you want them to do, just encourage them to do what is best.

3. Always treat your baseball team like they are winners! If your baseball players feel like winners, they will be more likely to win.

4. Let everyone on your baseball team know you care. Be interested in every individual baseball player. Encourage them and show them your support. Look at your behavior around your baseball team and evaluate it carefully.

5. Help your baseball team understand the meaning of playing with good sportsmanship! Good sportsmanship is just as important as winning. Make sure your baseball players understand the meaning of fair play from the moment you become their baseball coach.

6. Make sure you motivate and reward your baseball team players. Just knowing the basic skills and strategies of baseball won?t necessarily make you a very good baseball coach. Being a baseball coach is truly more than just teaching these things. A really good coach can motivate a baseball team to do its best! Good baseball coaches understand and can empathize with the players? feelings of joy, anger, anxiety, frustration, and pride.

7. Don?t make your baseball practices boring or repetitious. Shake up practices by playing games and teaching new techniques and plays. Since only 9 players can play at a time, make sure to keep the rest of the baseball team feeling useful by having them keep score or charting pitching and offence. Make sure to keep each baseball player feeling they have an important role in winning.

8. Make sure you have a plan for your baseball team. Just like a teacher needs to plan for the school year, a baseball coach needs a plan for the season. Having no plan is a sure road to failure.

9. Give your baseball team enough time to review things they have learned. Whether at the end of a practice or the end of a game, give your players time to review what has been learned and what could be improved upon. Keep the review as positive in tone as possible.

10. Make sure you communicate with your baseball team. If you cannot get across to your baseball team what you want, how will they know what to do?

Being a baseball coach can be very rewarding. It is a big responsibility, though. You are basically the ?leader? of your team, and how you act will directly affect how the assistant coaches and the players act. There are some tips you can follow to make yourself a better baseball coach.
These tips are:

1. Give everyone on your baseball team a responsibility. Make each and every person on the team feel if they don?t do something, it won?t get done! Any accomplishments made by a member of the team are shared by the whole team. (It is important to give recognition to individuals, though.)

2. Help everyone on your baseball team make good, informed decisions. As the baseball coach, you need to guide and teach the players to make the good decisions you want them to make. Don?t bully the baseball team to do what you want them to do, just encourage them to do what is best.

3. Always treat your baseball team like they are winners! If your baseball players feel like winners, they will be more likely to win.

4. Let everyone on your baseball team know you care. Be interested in every individual baseball player. Encourage them and show them your support. Look at your behavior around your baseball team and evaluate it carefully.

5. Help your baseball team understand the meaning of playing with good sportsmanship! Good sportsmanship is just as important as winning. Make sure your baseball players understand the meaning of fair play from the moment you become their baseball coach.

6. Make sure you motivate and reward your baseball team players. Just knowing the basic skills and strategies of baseball won?t necessarily make you a very good baseball coach. Being a baseball coach is truly more than just teaching these things. A really good coach can motivate a baseball team to do its best! Good baseball coaches understand and can empathize with the players? feelings of joy, anger, anxiety, frustration, and pride.

7. Don?t make your baseball practices boring or repetitious. Shake up practices by playing games and teaching new techniques and plays. Since only 9 players can play at a time, make sure to keep the rest of the baseball team feeling useful by having them keep score or charting pitching and offence. Make sure to keep each baseball player feeling they have an important role in winning.

8. Make sure you have a plan for your baseball team. Just like a teacher needs to plan for the school year, a baseball coach needs a plan for the season. Having no plan is a sure road to failure.

9. Give your baseball team enough time to review things they have learned. Whether at the end of a practice or the end of a game, give your players time to review what has been learned and what could be improved upon. Keep the review as positive in tone as possible.

10. Make sure you communicate with your baseball team. If you cannot get across to your baseball team what you want, how will they know what to do?

About the Author: Sintilia Miecevole, host of http://www.reelbaseball.com provides you with baseball information from games, cards and equipment to teams, gloves, pictures and more. Be sure to visit http://www.reelbaseball.com for the latest news.

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I love what prominent baseball people have to say about the great ballplayers. They seem to eloquently capture what we are thinking. “It was his solemn duty to catch a ball that wasn’t in the stands.” - Monte Irvin (Newark Eagles OF, May 6, 1981), on Willie Mays

“Maybe they should see if his body is corked.” - Howard ‘Hojo’ Johnson (NY Mets), on Bo Jackson, from Sports Illustrated, October 19, 1986

“When he took BP everybody would kind of stop what they were doing and watch.” - Jim Kaat, former pitcher, on Mickey Mantle

“I played with him for nine years and marveled at how hard he hit and how fast he ran. How can anyone ever forget the catch he made on Gil Hodges’ line drive to save Don Larsen’s perfect game?” - Tony Kubek, former shortstop, on Mickey Mantle

“A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives.” - Jackie Robinson

“Having Willie Stargell on your ball club is like having a diamond ring on your finger.” Chuck Tanner

“Ted Williams was the greatest hitter I ever saw, but (Joe) DiMaggio was the greatest all around player.” Bob Feller

“No one hit home runs the way Babe (Ruth) did. They were something special. They were like homing pigeons. The ball would leave the bat, pause briefly, suddenly gain its bearings, then take off for the stands.” Lefty Gomez

“When Neil Armstong first set foot on the moon, he and all the space scientists were puzzled by an unidentifiable white object. I knew immediately what it was. That was a home run ball hit off me in 1933 by Jimmie Foxx.” Lefty Gomez

“Every time Johnny Bench throws, everybody in baseball drools.” - Harry Dalton

“He (Babe Ruth) hits a ball harder and further than any man I ever saw.” - Bill Dickey “He (Lou Gehrig) just went out and did his job every day.” Bill Dickey

“He gets better every year, that’s what’s remarkable about him. Some guys are good and stay good. Some guys are good and get better. He reminds me of Kareem. Hubie Brown said that Kareem worked at the beginning of every season to improve some facet of his game. It’s that way with the best, whatever the profession. That’s the way this kid is.” Ed Bradley on 60 Minutes - Talking about Derek Jeter

“I think he was one of the greatest third basemen of all time. He had one of the sweetest swings I ever saw.” - Teammate Johnny Logan - Referring to Eddie Mathews

“How good was Stan Musial? He was good enough to take your breath away.” - (1989)Vin Scully “When he (Maury Wills) runs, it’s all downhill.” Vin Scully

Seeing what these writers, ballplayers and managers has to say about these players lights up the page for me. I can visualize these players on the field hitting home runs, running with arms outstretched to catch a ball or throwing out a would be base runner trying to steal a base.

This is my baseball memorabilia.

Feel Free to pass this article on to anyone you think would enjoy reading it.

About the Author

Aron Wallad has been a baseball lover for over 45 years. You will love his honesty and his passion.. You will be touched by the heartwarming stories. The unusual statistics will amaze you and the quotes will make you laugh…Sometimes

Go here right now to join his ezine http://www.baseballsprideandjoy.com

Does your business struggle with profitable online
marketing? If so, you are not alone. Attracting the right
customers to a site and keeping them coming back - while
also turning a profit - can be a challenge. Consequently,
I’m always on the lookout for ways to demonstrate profitable
online strategies.

Last night, as I watched the Baseball All Star Home Run
Derby and visited Major League Baseball’s Web site, it
struck me. The league is doing many things to effectively
find and attract targeted Web customers, while
simultaneously generating revenue.

In fact, I noticed numerous lessons from Major League
Baseball you can consider to profitably target your own
customers. Here are six of them:

Think Through Your Business Models

Free information and activities are present, but well
thought out, revenue generating business models are also
evident.

Lesson 1: Make your profit generators stand out.

MLB.com has a separate, prominent navigation menu for profit
producing activities - MLB Shop, Tickets, Auctions,
Subscriptions - which appears in the upper right on all
pages, where potential paying customers cannot miss it.

Importantly, each corresponding area of the site is narrowly
focused on the visitors’ interests. For example, the shop
sells baseball - and only baseball - items. This is readily
apparent from the slogan “For all things baseball”.

Lesson 2: Sell subscriptions.

The league generates revenue from a variety of event
subscriptions - live video broadcasts, live audio
broadcasts, archived clips, and fantasy games. This also
help open the door for repeat purchases and add-ons.

Lesson 3: Include advertisements.

Pop-ups and other online advertising are a fact of life on
free-to-user sites. Major League Baseball demonstrates taste
and intelligent implementation with their pop-under,
limiting each visitor to a single impression. Banner
advertisements and sponsorships are also apparent.

Develop Profit Pulling Marketing Techniques

Lesson 4: Segment your visitors.

The league uses a “hub and spoke” system, which allows
visitors to choose their own interests. There is one general
site (MLB.com), with links to several specialty sites
(stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com, etc.).

This portal approach helps segment visitors into specific
interest groups. It is a win-win strategy. Visitors find
what they are looking for and the league can more easily
target its marketing activities.

Lesson 5: Target locally.

Each “spoke” off the MLB hub contains local content, which
segments visitors regionally. The league targets products
and services accordingly.

For example, the Cardinals team site includes detailed
information for Cardinals baseball events, ticket purchasing
for Busch stadium games, and auctions for St. Louis related
baseball memorabilia.

Lesson 6: Offer tiered products.

MLB offers subscription services at many levels. By
packaging fantasy games into progressively larger bundles,
they encourage trial as well as repeat visits. The offering
also target customers according to interest level and
budget.

There you have it - five lessons in profitable target
marketing from Major League Baseball.

Copyright 2003 Bobette Kyle. All rights reserved.
marketing? If so, you are not alone. Attracting the right
customers to a site and keeping them coming back - while
also turning a profit - can be a challenge. Consequently,
I’m always on the lookout for ways to demonstrate profitable
online strategies.

Last night, as I watched the Baseball All Star Home Run
Derby and visited Major League Baseball’s Web site, it
struck me. The league is doing many things to effectively
find and attract targeted Web customers, while
simultaneously generating revenue.

In fact, I noticed numerous lessons from Major League
Baseball you can consider to profitably target your own
customers. Here are six of them:

Think Through Your Business Models

Free information and activities are present, but well
thought out, revenue generating business models are also
evident.

Lesson 1: Make your profit generators stand out.

MLB.com has a separate, prominent navigation menu for profit
producing activities - MLB Shop, Tickets, Auctions,
Subscriptions - which appears in the upper right on all
pages, where potential paying customers cannot miss it.

Importantly, each corresponding area of the site is narrowly
focused on the visitors’ interests. For example, the shop
sells baseball - and only baseball - items. This is readily
apparent from the slogan “For all things baseball”.

Lesson 2: Sell subscriptions.

The league generates revenue from a variety of event
subscriptions - live video broadcasts, live audio
broadcasts, archived clips, and fantasy games. This also
help open the door for repeat purchases and add-ons.

Lesson 3: Include advertisements.

Pop-ups and other online advertising are a fact of life on
free-to-user sites. Major League Baseball demonstrates taste
and intelligent implementation with their pop-under,
limiting each visitor to a single impression. Banner
advertisements and sponsorships are also apparent.

Develop Profit Pulling Marketing Techniques

Lesson 4: Segment your visitors.

The league uses a “hub and spoke” system, which allows
visitors to choose their own interests. There is one general
site (MLB.com), with links to several specialty sites
(stlouis.cardinals.mlb.com, etc.).

This portal approach helps segment visitors into specific
interest groups. It is a win-win strategy. Visitors find
what they are looking for and the league can more easily
target its marketing activities.

Lesson 5: Target locally.

Each “spoke” off the MLB hub contains local content, which
segments visitors regionally. The league targets products
and services accordingly.

For example, the Cardinals team site includes detailed
information for Cardinals baseball events, ticket purchasing
for Busch stadium games, and auctions for St. Louis related
baseball memorabilia.

Lesson 6: Offer tiered products.

MLB offers subscription services at many levels. By
packaging fantasy games into progressively larger bundles,
they encourage trial as well as repeat visits. The offering
also target customers according to interest level and
budget.

There you have it - five lessons in profitable target
marketing from Major League Baseball.

Copyright 2003 Bobette Kyle. All rights reserved.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

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February 1 , 2005

Sometime last year while sitting at my desk I began to feel excited. No, it wasn’t because my new pair of jeans was slightly too tight and applying too much pressure on my prostate. It was because I realized how exciting of a sports year 2006 was going to be. Besides the usual great events such as the Super Bowl and March Madness there was also the World Cup of Soccer and Olympic Hockey to look forward to. But just when I thought it couldn’t get any better than that, the powers that be added the World Cup of Baseball, or the World Baseball Classic as I later found it to be named. Three huge global events in a matter of 6 months with March Madness sprinkled in the middle, how can you top that? Well that was then, and this is now.

In reality, I have no one to blame but myself for the let down that I have come to experience. How could I have been so stupid? I mean, surely I should have realized that Bud Selig was running the show and that doom was certainly impending. It may look all well and good now, but here are ten reasons why I wont be watching the World Baseball Calamity, err, Classic.

10. No Yankee pitchers will be allowed to pitch. There is no way that Steinbrenner is going to risk his investments and allow his pitchers to participate in this tournament. Chin Ming Wong is currently listed on the roster of Chinese Taipei, but look for that to change in the next month as they trim rosters from 60 to 30 (this will be a recurring theme throughout the countdown).

9. Chinese Taipei. Just the fact that Chinese Taipei has a team in this thing makes me question its very fabric. Im not exactly sure yet if this is a real country, or just a made up land where every Asian with a hyphenated name was forced to migrate to.

8. Mike Piazza playing for Italy. Give me a break. If you’re going to allow a country to play in the WBC then at least let them lose with their own players. Putting a future hall of famer in their lineup just because his name ends in a vowel seems a little vulgar to me.

7. South Africa. Check out the teams that have been slated in Team USA’s pool: Canada, Mexico, and South Africa? Its one thing to throw this country into the WBC mix, which joins China as being the only teams with a roster that lacks a player who plays on a current major league team, but to put them in a pool with the other North American countries just to give USA one less challenge? Seems pretty obvious to me what’s going on here, not to mention pathetic.

6. Players choosing their country. One of the things that was an initial draw for me was that, being called the World Baseball Classic, I assumed I would be watching the best that each country had to offer while they battled it out against each other. Well, apparently baseball players get to choose where they would like to have been born, and then play for that country. Besides Piazza playing for Italy, you have A’s pitchers Kirk Saarloos and Danny Haren joining former A’s pitcher Mark Mulder on the Netherlands (and after all, Mark Mulder was in fact born in South Holland, Illinois, which, besides the fact that the city contains the word Holland in it, is practically right next door to the Netherlands), and American born Nomar Garciaparra is playing for Mexico (although Michael Young who is half Mexican is playing for Team USA). You also have Alex Rodriguez playing for the Dominican Republic, but then not playing at all, and now apparently playing for the US, even though both the Dominican and US rosters list him as a player for their team. My guess is that by next week he may just decide to play for a World Series of Poker bracelet. While they’re at it they might as well let Barry Bonds play for South Africa. The list goes on and on, which once again shows that this tournament has little to do with national pride, and a lot to do with the financial gain of major league baseball.

5. Drug Testing. Because of the strict Olympic style drug testing, you will be sure to see many more players for the US and other countries drop out of this just as Barry Bonds did. Bonds, who is once again under the delusion that people actually think he is clean, first said he would be honored to play for his country, but recently dropped out, citing the fact that he wants to take more time to rest his knees. Interestingly, he had ample opportunity to announce this in front of the large number of media that was in attendance during a recent celebrity golf tournament Bonds attended, but he instead chose to make the announcement via his web site where he of course is able to avoid any questions that people may want to ask of him. Look for other big names, most notably Roger Clemens, to drop off the roster before they go from 60 to 30 in the next month for similar reasons. The fact is that MLB’s drug testing policy is a joke, and no urine test is going to come close to detecting HGH or anything else that has been newly developed. Even some blood tests will not detect the new designer steroids out there, but it does increase the chance that you will get exposed. However, that is another discussion for another day.

4. All about the money. Let’s face it; the only reason that we are even talking about the World Baseball Classic is because Major League Baseball wants to generate more revenue. Just look at the adds throughout MLB.com. They are even using guilt in order to sell tickets, such as “Your favorite players are supporting their countries. Now its your turn to support yours.” Give me a break. Kind of funny how the rosters are still at 60 players. Wouldn’t it be funny it right after the tickets were sold out they just happened to cut the rosters down to 30, and all the players you wanted to “support” decided they didn’t want to play in March and risk injury? Interesting how that works out.

3. Pitch Counts and Mercy Rules. You heard me right, the WBC has set pitch counts for each round of the World Baseball Classic. For the first round it is set at 65 pitches, and it increases to a whopping 80 pitches in the second round and 95 pitches for the semi’s and finals. Apparently if a pitcher reaches 65 pitches in the midst of an at bat he may finish out that batter, which begs the question does a pitcher who is coming up on his 64th pitch try even harder to throw a strike, regardless of the count, in order to force the batter to make contact in the hope of being able to face one last batter? Talk about changing the way players play the game! They also adopted a mercy rule of 15 runs after 5 innings or 10 runs after 7 in order to end blowouts in a timelier manner. If I wanted to watch little league baseball I would wait until the summer time.

2. March Madness. Talk about poor planning. The WBC takes place smack dab in the middle of March, right during the peak of college basketball’s tournament season. Last year baseball tried to upstage the NCAA with their steroid hearings, and now this? Nice try Bud.

1. Bud Selig. The definition of a poor leader. Sure he got lucky with realignment, the wild card, and interleague play (which by now has kind of lost its luster), but any moron who just happened to be the commissioner during the 90’s would have come up with the same ideas. It was just a matter of time. He single handedly made football the most popular sport in America, and let the issue of steroids run amuck in the world of baseball. Say what you will about George W. Bush, but at least he surrounds himself with competent people. Selig’s cronies are just as clueless as he is. Once again Selig is proving that he’s just about putting money in the pockets of his owners, and that he will continue to milk the fans for all they are worth.

So before you tune in to see just what the World Baseball Classic has to offer, remember these ten things I have laid before you. Don’t make the same mistake you did last year and miss some exciting college hoops because you want to see how uncomfortable some congressmen can make Mark McGwire and Donald Fehr look. Watch something that really matters, not spring training baseball masquerading as the real thing.

RAC’S RANT will appear twice each month on SportsLizard.com. You can contact Dick Richards at racsrant@hotmail.com

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Tell your friends about SportsLizard.com because you know you should.

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About the Author

My name is Dick Richards and I am fortunate to be able to write a bi-weekly column for www.sportslizard.com. The name of the column is Rac’s Rant, and basically I am able to vent on certain topics that have caught my eye during the past week or so, whether they be sports related or not. The column is relatively new, but I look forward to growing as a writer on sportsliard.com as it grows into the great sports collectibles site that it will become.

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I have been fascinated by some of the statistics that have been amassed by some of the major leaguers. Viewing some players numbers has amazed me. My Baseball memorabilia are these amazing stats.

Here are a few achievements I thought might interest you.

Rogers Hornsby From 1921 to 1925 he batted 2679 times - He hit safely 1078 times And averaged .402 during this five year run. Not too shabby From ages 36 to 41 - his final six years in the Majors Rogers batted 350 times total Hit safely 105 times and fell 70 hits short of 3000 hits for his career. Maybe he could have planned better

Lou Gehrig From 1930 to 1934 he drove in 813 runs An average of 162 RBIs per year - Enough said The man was a run producing machine

Ty Cobb He had 1937 RBIs in his career He never hit more than 12 home runs in a single year Seven times he knocked in over 100 runs

Runs Batted In This following stats are based on a per game basis Here are a few of the highest numbers As you can see - no one player averaged one rbi per game Lou Gehrig .921 Hank Greenburg .915 Joe Dimaggio .885 Jimmy Foxx .859

Hey where’s The Babe?

These RBIs statistics are based on a per at bat basis Here are some of the highest Babe Ruth .263 Lou Gehrig .249 Hank Greenburg .249

I hope you enjoyed these unusual stats.

Feel free to pass this on to anyone you think would enjoy the read.

About the Author

Aron Wallad has been a baseball lover for over 45 years. You will love his honesty and his passion.. You will be touched by the heartwarming stories. The unusual statistics will amaze you and the quotes will make you laugh..

Go here right now to join his ezine http://www.baseballsprideandjoy.com

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Many different sources were used for this article. I hope you find it both interesting and helpful. Remember, a journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step.

Any hitter knows the one and only way to get to be a great hitter is to practice more than any other player.

The dynamics behind the pitch are the substance of comprehensive and complicated concepts of physics where calculations of distance and velocity and diameter and spherical phenomenon of specific detail and definition are behind what appears to be merely throwing a ball with pretty acceptable aim so the batter is faked out to miss hitting it.

Today’s players have the advantage of using pitching machines to acquire the skillfulness and expertise that alone comes with practice, practice, practice. Even if the batter is using a pitching machine to practice with, while the pitching machine is not skilled or capable of determining the concepts of pitching that a batter is up against in a regular game with a mortal pitcher, it is still one of the superior ways to advance the skills needed to excel in the pastime.

Pitching machines vary extensively and can be able to accommodate the little leagues to the majors in the talent level, the types of practice pitches they need to practice with, and the velocity and ball types that match the pastime they will be applying their skills to. There are one wheel, curveball, and also two wheel baseball-pitching machines, and many models that come complete with auto feeders and a cordless remote.

A good example of a very good pitching machine is a Zooka portable baseball pitching machines, which are battery-powered and throw using compressed air. The operator rolls a ball into the barrel. The pitching machine detects the ball, pumps up to pressure, beeps, and flashes a pitch alert, throws the ball, and displays the speed.

A Zooka pitching machine will make you a better hitter and fielder. It can give you more batting and fielding practice in one afternoon than you get in a full season of youth-league play.

Their portable pitching machines is rugged, powerful baseball training tools at an affordable price. They are very portable and easy to use, so you will use them often–in the backyard, a local park, or a regulation ballpark.

A typical throw takes 2 to 7 seconds, depending on the power level. A 50 mph throw takes less than 5 seconds.

We hope that you enjoyed this article and gained some knowledge that you were looking for on this subject.

About the Author

William Smith lives in Florida with his wife and three cats. William writes frequently on many subjects that may be of interest to all. Discover all the joys and secrets of baseball at Baseball’s Holy Grail

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My Top Ten Favorite Baseball Movies ? My top ten baseball movies consist of five movies on the list. There have been many movies with a baseball theme that I have liked, but there are only five I have loved. I will get to them soon.

Some of the ones I have liked are “Bull Durham” with Kevin Costner, a light hearted tale about a minor league season in North Carolina and the characters on and around that team. “Bang The Drum Slowly” with Robert DeNiro, “Cobb” with Tommy Lee Jones, “Fear Strikes Out,” “Eight Men Out,” “A League of Their Own,” “Major League,” ?and “Rookie of the Year.” ? One thing that my favorites have in common is that I have been moved to tears. For similar and different reasons, I have been inspired or moved by some of the following scenes.

? Field of Dreams with Kevin Costner and James Earl Jones. When I think about this movie I always think how corny it was. Come on - Cut down a corn field to create a baseball field. I have seen this movie approximately 15 times. It is the only movie I have seen in my adult life twice in the theaters. The scene that is so moving for me is when Kevin Costner asks his father to play catch. He is so awkward in his asking. He is so delighted when his father says “sure.” I melt whenever I see this scene.

? The Rookie with Dennis Quaid

How does a man in his late 30’s leave his family and start playing baseball in the minor leagues. He is fulfilling a dream. There are a couple of scenes in the movie that lead to a most uplifting moment. While playing in the minor leagues in the Tampa Bay organization Dennis Quaid (Playing pitcher Jim Morris) thinks he may have made a mistake by leaving his family to pursue a dumb dream. He is in anguish. He is not making any money pitching in the minors while his family is suffering at home with very little money coming into the house. Finally, after vacillating between playing baseball and going back to his wife to make a constant living he sees one of his teammates and asks him. “Do you know what we are going to do today?” His teammate looks puzzled. Dennis responds to his own question. “We are going to play baseball today.” With a big grin on his face Dennis captures the joy of playing baseball. I loved it.?

The Natural with Robert Redford

The music in this flick was superb. Good versus evil. Robert Redford comes out of the hospital to play in the most important game of the year. As corny as this movie was I loved the scene at the end of the movie when he hits the ball into the lights and a shower of sparkling flashes illuminate the screen. I can still hear the music from that part of the movie, as he circles the bases. I get chills whenever I see this part of the film.

? Pride of The Yankees with Gary Cooper and Teresa Wright

One of my all time favorite movies. One of my all time favorite players, Lou Gehrig, is played on the screen so superbly by Gary Cooper. The scene that gets to me every time is when Lou goes to see the doctor at the hospital because he feels a nagging injury not healing. As his wife nervously waits in the waiting room, Lou is examined and then given the fatal news of his illness. He is greeted by his wife as he leaves the examination room. She then asks him how it went. They embrace and he tells her its a little bump or bruise. She seems to know without him telling her that this is serious. Oh my. I melt every time.?

This following epic motion picture reminds me of a baseball season. Long, lasting and lovable. Baseball by Ken Burns

Can you believe 18 hours of baseball footage? Still pictures from the 19th century. Babe Ruth, Ted Williams, Jackie Robinson, Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, and Lou Gehrig, Buck O’Neil. Highlights on film. Dead ball era. Modern day. Pitchers, hitters. This movie had it all. The pictures were spectacular. There were so many stories that were told. I was amazed. Ken Burns commitment to get this movie done is what moved me.

So there you have it. I cannot thank the people ENOUGH that made these movies. I have been touched writing about their commitment, passion, and excellence.

About the Author

Aron Wallad has been a baseball lover for over 45 years. You will love his honesty and his passion.. You will be touched by the heartwarming stories. The unusual statistics will amaze you and the quotes will make you laugh…

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