I’m going to begin by doing something that I hate when other people do:
I’m going to apologize for MBP not being around too often and being off the grid for most of the offseason. (I really hate when folks do that – I always think “dude, I didn’t even realize you weren’t around until you pointed it out”.) It’s a been a busy stretch in my non-baseball world and there’s only so many times you can talk about free agents and the Hall of Fame without a good chunk of it turning into drivel.
That said, spring training is almost here, so let’s get back in the groove. Coming soon on MBP…
Despite the statement above, we’re going to revisit Andy Pettitte’s Hall of Fame case. I’ve always been a “no” on Pettitte, but I noticed that pretty much every person who I’m sure is smarter than I am has him as a “yes”. That usually gets my attention and at the bare minimum forces me to reconsider. That said, I’m still not sure I’m convinced…
Are the Yankees better than they were in ’23? Absolutely, you’d have to be blind to not see that. Are they good enough to be serious World Series contenders? That depends on your level of optimism.
What I’m reading and what I’m watching. I think I’m going to do more of this in 2024 – I’m a flawed human being but if I have a strength, it’s that I always like to learn more about baseball, which is why I always have a baseball book nearby and usually have something baseball related on the DVR. To wit…
“The Bona Fide Legend of Cool Papa Bell” by Lonnie Wheeler. Cool was so fast, he hit a line drive up the middle and the ball hit him in the head as he slid into second base. Hyperbole aside, it’s an amazing story about a Hall of Fame player and the Hall of Famers he played with and against. Currently revisiting this one…
World Series Game 5, 1956. Yes, Don Larsen’s perfect game, but that isn’t even the most interesting thing to me when looking at this. Did you know that Brooklyn used a shift when Mantle came to the plate, and did you know that it wasn’t treated as a big deal but as something that just made sense? Plus, I’m getting a little long in the tooth, but I’m not old enough to say that I saw Mantle, Berra, Jackie, Snider, Reese, Campanella live and playing for keeps. Definitely going to take a closer look at this one…
56 days until Opening Day.
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