June 2
Video killed the radio star
Phoenix area TV ratings for the 18-inning game the Diamondbacks played against the Giants in San Francisco on Tuesday night were 9.9 from 12:15-12:30 a.m. and 7.8 from 1:00 to 1:15 a.m. While attendance at The Bob has been disappointing -- seventh in the NL -- despite the club's on-field performance, overall ratings seem to indicate that people are watching, but not going to the ballpark.
In Philadelphia, the average attendance for the amazing Phillies is 17,941, second worst in the league. Yet television ratings are reportedly up considerably, despite media focus on the 76ers in the NBA playoffs and the Eagles in the NFL's offseason. Even in Montreal, where a creative marketing campaign has improved the Olympic Stadium experience, while Les Expos are averaging an abysmal 9,262 fans per game, club officials claim that the television ratings have made a substantial jump.
Is this the first indication that ticket prices have begun to impact fan-viewing habits?
Present tense
Batters all around baseball continue to complain about the inconsistencies of the evolving strike zone. MLB officials believe that the inside strike has decreased and proudly point to the fact that there hasn't been one actual punch thrown thus far as a measure of success.
Perhaps it's the strike zone and perhaps it's the development of pitchers, but through the first two months the AL OPS is down from .792 to .756, NL OPS .773 to .751, on-base percentage down .349 to .334 in the AL, .342 to .321 in the NL.
Jacknife patriot
It has been well-documented that Padres pitcher Adam Eaton missed a start when he stuck himself with a knife trying to open a DVD package. It was, in fact, a two-pack, "Backdraft" and "Apollo 13."
Hall of the mountain kings
The Yankees front three -- Andy Pettitte, Roger Clemens and Mike Mussina -- have made 33 starts through June 1, and in only game had one of them pitched fewer than 5 2/3 innings. Their combined K/BB ratio is also 210/54.
I will remember you
Chuck Finley and Steve Sparks have already faced one another four times, with the Indians and Tigers splitting the games. Their combined lines:
|
Pitcher
|
W-L
|
IP
|
H
|
R
|
ER
|
BB
|
K
|
|
Finley
|
0-2
|
21.2
|
26
|
16
|
16
|
5
|
13
|
|
Sparks
|
2-0
|
26.2
|
28
|
11
|
9
|
8
|
15
|
Mr. Rebound
The last two seasons, left-hander Darren Oliver has made 10 minor-league rehab starts and 14 starts for the Texas Rangers.
Shoot out the lights
The Seattle Mariners are the first team in baseball history to win 20 games in both April and May (a somewhat deceiving stat since teams play more games in April than in the past). They also went 19-10 in September, making them 59-22 during their last three regular-season months.
And, by the way, Aaron Sele is their highest-paid player at $7.5 million per year. The M's are 11-0 in games that he has started.
Oh yes. Through June 1, they have 41 wins, one more than the combined totals of Alex Rodriguez (Texas, 19) and Ken Griffey Jr.'s (Cincinnati, 21) teams.
Walkin' to Memphis
Marquis Grissom got his first walk of the season on Tuesday, so he is now within one of Shea Hillenbrand and two of Alfonso Soriano.
The rain king
The night of May 1, Deion Sanders triumphantly returned from the minors with his 3-for-3, home run performance, and the Reds were tied for first place. The rest of the month, they were 5-22 and are 3-16 in their last three homestands.
I forgot to remember to forget
The plight of the Pirates can best be defined by Brant Brown's stats for Triple-A Indianapolis (a Brewers affiliate): .164 BA, three HR, 110 AB.
The man Pittsburgh traded to the Cubs for Brown, is Jon Lieber. The right-handed Lieber is 5-3 with a 2.95 ERA for Chicago.
The Ballad of Easy Rider
Have we a Rob Deer in the house? Rob Stratton, the 6-foot-6, tattooed former No. 1 pick of the Mets in 1996, recently struck out in 11 consecutive games for Double-A Binghamton. He did this despite ranking seventh in the Eastern League in on-base percentage (.386).
Source: Sportsticker and Howe Sportsbureau
Way over yonder in the minor key
Here is Jose Canseco's line in the first 26 games with the independent Newark Bears:
.263 average, four HR, 19 RBI in 80 at-bats.
His brother Ozzie is hitting .181 with three HR.
Hey, the Atlantic League must be a pitcher's league.
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