MLB Information
The 2007 Major league baseball season marks the 60th anniversary of Jackie Robinson’s entry into the game, breaking the color barrier in Baseball. The season took off commemorating the history of Civil Rights in the USA with the “Civil Rights Game” In Memphis, TN between the Cardinals and the Indians.
The Chicago Cubs shined in the AL East, recording their 10,000 win against the Atlanta Braves in Wrigley Field - becoming the 2nd team to reach this record. Sadly for the Philadelphia Phillies, they scored their 10,000 loss to the St Louis Cardinals in July –the first team in the four major sports leagues to achieve this feat. In the West the Texas Rangers set a record for runs scored in a game, scoring 30 runs against the Orioles in August. The rivalry continues between the Red Sox and Yankees in the East for the top standing, while the Orioles and Tampa bay fight to be the first to get out of the cellar in the West.
The AL Central commands attention in ’07 – two playoff teams came from the AL, with the Detroit Tigers making the world series. Detroit is the top contender to take the division once again in ‘07.
In the NL East the Braves were expected to dominate, but the top honors went to the Mets, with the Nationals taking the bottom rung.
In the NL Central, the Cardinals are expected to dominate once more in ’07, with the Pittsburg Pirates challenging them for that top position.
In the West, the LA Dodgers are expected to be the front runners, with the Padres continuing to be dominant. There seems to be only one name in the West, however – Barry Bonds. The left fielder placed the SF Giants on the map in ’07, breaking Hank Aaron’s record as the all-time home run record in MLB history, hitting his 766th home run off Mike Basick of the Washington Nationals. As of the end of August, Bonds has racked up his 766th home run.
’07 has already proved to be record-breaking, headline making season for the MLB – definitely promising excitement for fans.
Almost every major sport across the world follows the same basic pattern when it comes to the scheduling of games. Most leagues start with a training camp, or a preseason, so the team members can get back into the form they need to be in. That preseason is followed by a huge number of games that can take a toll on someone if they’re not used to it. Then the best and brightest teams make the playoffs, or postseason, in the hopes of advancing to the last game or series of games to determine the champion of the entire league. Baseball, probably the toughest sport due to the duration of the season, still follows this pattern. Training camp starts in February and is followed by a month of preseason games. The entire summer is filled with 162 games over a few months, and many times, a player will play more than 10 days in a row. If they’re successful, they make the playoffs, and if they can win there, they advance to the World Series, a best-of-7 series to determine the best team in the league. The World Series is arguably the most exciting week in baseball and maybe in all of sports, and its history is rich and extensive.
The first World Series was held in 1903 between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Boston Pilgrims (now the Red Sox). The Pilgrims took the series 5-3, and it showed that the American League could play ball with the “Father” National League. Unfortunately, John T. Brush, president of the National League champion New York Giants, refused to play the returning American League champion Boston Americans for the World Series in 1904. He was quoted as stating that he refused to compete with a "representative of the inferior American League", but later that year, he retracted his statement and the series continued in 1905 with the New York Giants defeating the Philadelphia Athletics 4-1. The World Series was an idea that stuck and it’s been played every year since with the exception of 1994 when the players and owners “locked” each other out. The 1955 World Series marked the next big change in the set-up with the inception of the Most Valuable Player trophy. The trophy would be voted on by officials and fans immediately after the completion of the last game of the series, and would be handed out right before the winning team accepted their team trophy. The 1955 World Series saw the Brooklyn Dodgers defeat the New York Yankees in a dramatic game seven, and Johnny Podres will forever be known as the first recipient of the Most Valuable Player trophy in the World Series.
There have been some incredible individual feats in the World Series over the last 100 years. The 1920 WS saw Bill Wambsganss record the only unassisted triple play in WS history. The 1956 World Series, also played between Brooklyn and New York, will always be remembered for Don Larsen, the Yankees pitcher, who threw the first and only perfect game in WS history. The 1977 World Series, won 4 games to 2 by the Yankees over the California Angels, will be remembered for Reggie Jackson (later nicknamed “Mr. October” for his heroic accomplishments in the postseason) and his three-homer game. The feat occurred in game six against the Angels and it was only the second time the occurrence had ever happened (Babe Ruth in 1926 and 1929). The 1988 series saw the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Oakland Athletics 4 games to 1 behind dominant pitching from MVP Orel Hershiser and a gutsy play by Kirk Gibson. Gibson had a terrible leg and was so sure he wouldn’t play, he didn’t show up to game one until the second inning. In the ninth inning, Oakland had star closer Dennis Eckersley on the mound, and needed a big play from a hitter. Gibson pinch hit, hit a home run over the right field wall, and gave us a moment we won’t soon forget. Hershiser, named MVP of the series, pitched two complete games while giving up only two runs on seven hits and striking out 17.
The World Series has a certain mystique about it, and it has to rank as one of the biggest games of the year, likely comparably with only the Super Bowl in football and the Stanley Cup in hockey. Every youngster playing Little League baseball has the dream and aspiration to be a World Series champion, and luckily, a few of the more fortunate ones get to experience it first hand.