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Zealots face off in IAL All-Star Game

Teddy Ballgame (left) and I wishing each other good luck before the IAL All-Star Game Last weekend was the Illowa APBA League All-Star weekend. Zealot co-writer Teddy Ballgame and I faced off as managers of our respective divisions… … and the best team won. The West Division, behind the hitting of Game MVP Joe Mauer … Continue reading “Zealots face off in IAL All-Star Game”

Teddy Ballgame (left) and I wishing each other good luck before the IAL All-Star Game

Last weekend was the Illowa APBA League All-Star weekend. Zealot co-writer Teddy Ballgame and I faced off as managers of our respective divisions…

… and the best team won.

The West Division, behind the hitting of Game MVP Joe Mauer beat the East Division 6-3. Mauer hit a 5th inning two-run homerun to put the good guys ahead for good. Honorable mention goes to leadoff man Hanley Ramirez who went 2 for 4 with walk and two runs. For the East Division, Miguel Cabrera managed to clobber a two-run dinger in the ninth to make things interesting.

Along with the actual All-Star weekend, all ten of us managed to get 30 games played for our 2007 season (our 32nd year in existence). As for my Twin City Thunderchickens, well.. we didn’t fare so hot. In the five six-game series, we didn’t any. We managed a split in three of them and went 2-4 in the two others. A major factor was a power outage. Albert Pujols hit only 2 homeruns and 7 rbis in 26 games.

One highlight: For my Thunderchickens, John Lackey pitched a no-hitter through 11 innings. Unfortunately, he gave up a hit in the 12th but he got the win (and shutout) when we FINALLY scored a run in the 13th. Very frustrating game that our offense could not come through earlier.

But the best part of the weekend was the camaraderie with ten guys who love baseball. Discussions on the real value of Pete Rose vs Ty Cobb, whether Manny Ramirez is under-rated as a fielder, and of course, trade talk for the upcoming season.

For those wondering what APBA is or what the IAL is about see What is the Illowa APBA League?

Dr Adrian Burgos talk

I’m catching up a little here. Here are some photos from a talk that Dr Adrian Burgos did on campus last week. Dr Burgos is the author of Playing America’s Game: Baseball, Latinos and the Color Line.

Dr Burgos took the time to talk to a journalism student before the talk.

Dr Burgos addressing the crowd.

Dr Burgos gets around. He made a trip to the Negro League Baseball Museum in Kansas City where he presented his book. After his talk at the U of I, Dr Burgos told me he was headed to Washington DC to speak at the National Archives.

If you missed the interview that we did with Dr Burgos on Baseball Zealot Radio, take a listen. It’s definitely worth it especially for baseball history buffs.

Delusions of Grandeur: I’m an All-Star manager!

I finally got off my duff an updated the web site of the Illowa APBA League. It’s been a couple months since I touched it. I’m no web designer but I have fun doing it.

Our All-Star Game is coming up in October. Aside from the draft weekend, that one of highlights of the IAL season for me. We vote in the best players and the best of East battle the the best of the West.

I remember when my buddy Brando was in his first year in the league and was attending his first All-Star weekend. In the beginning, he didn’t see the big deal of a APBA All-Star Game. What was the big deal watching two guys playing APBA?, he thought.

As it came nearer to “Play Ball!”, and the rest of the managers were grabbing their dice, he understood. We weren’t simply going to watch two guys play APBA baseball; we were all part of the game. Each one of us got to roll for our own players. With the managers from one division on one side of the table and the managers of the other division on the other, the friendly trash talk began. It was constant fun chaos for the entire game.

A scene from the 2005 IAL All-Star Weekend

Speaking of managing, we determine the manager by the standings of the previous year. Guess who was in first place last year? Yes, yours truly. That makes me the manager of the West Division which pretty much includes the non-Chicago teams in our league.

Aside from on-the-field decisions, the IAL All-Star manager is responsible for choosing the pitchers and substitutes as well as making a lineup.

You can see the online version of the ballot to determine the starters to get a sense how players are doing in our league (My Albert Pujols will probably not start for the first time in his career. Mark Teixeira has THAT wrapped up).

The results of the balloting will be out soon. Stay tuned.

Friday afternoon cricket

Every Friday when leave the building I work, I’m treated to a display of the the game of cricket.. The large grassy area outside the building may have as many as six or seven cricket games going on at a time. There’s something about it that makes me feel good. I think it’s just great that so many people are playing a game with little or no fanfare but obviously with a lot of devotion.

The young men shown here were nice enough to let me snap a few photos.

I spoke to one them who was playing. He says that on Fridays they are actually practicing for a match that is held on Saturday. This happens pretty much every weekend. From the looks of it, most of the participants, are Indian students (I could be wrong).

I know next to nothing about the game of Cricket but it is fascinating to watch. I love watching the guy who throws the ball (I’m sure there’s a more proper term for him but that will have to do). Unlike baseball, he gets a running start when he unloads. Wow, that’s fun to watch!

More photos are here. For those in the C-U area who want to check out a cricket match, they have matches every Saturday at 1:30 near Mumford Hall.

My final thoughts on the Big Ten Tournament

Shawn Roof and me

Let me first say I had a fantastic time. This was my second Big Ten Tournament and the first time I’ve traveled to see the Illini baseball team play.

Every Illinois fan wishes they could have won the tournament but all things considered, I thought they played well. They were able to defeat a tough Iowa team in the first round and stay around for that much longer (hey, longer than #1 seed Michigan).

It was good to finally meet Brian DeCaussin in person. He and I have been in contact all year via email and phone. I’ve already said enough good things about his web site Big Ten Hardball so I won’t belabor the point. Just check it out.

It was definitely a highlight to meet so many parents of the Illini players. I was honored when some of them knew of The Baseball Zealot and enjoy the postings and pictures. Lars Davis’ mom says that between Big Ten Hardball and The Baseball Zealot, it’s the only way she gets news about her son because, “Lars doesn’t tell me anything.”

Well, he doesn’t tell me anything either but I try to get some good pictures of him in action when I can.

All in all, it was good to be around good baseball. The one thing I like about college baseball is the intimacy of the ballparks. I don’t see a game from the nosebleed section. Rather, I can see it from up close and I can hear it. Sometimes I can even smell it. Note: The Ohio State Buckeyes wore their unwashed jerseys on Sunday, perhaps for luck. I’m sure I could have smelled it then.

Anyway, I’m sold. When the Illini make the tournament in 2008, I’ll be there.

By the way, thanks to Shawn for taking the time to pose in the picture with me. It was 20 minutes after their loss and they were all headed out on the bus. I’m sure he had other things to do and other things (like the loss) on his mind but he took the time. It meant a lot.

Sports Columnist enjoying the Tournament

During today’s Penn State-Minnesota game at the Big Ten baseball tournament, I saw someone who looked very familiar. I nudged Brian from Big Ten Hardball, who was sitting next to me and said, “Isn’t that Jon Saraceno from USA Today? It sure looks like him.”

We discussed it and decided that no, it couldn’t be. USA Today wouldn’t be sending someone as big as Saraceno to cover something like the Big Ten Tournament. So I dismissed it.

Later we found out that indeed, it was him. He was there to watch his son who plays on the Penn State baseball team. So I decided to go over and talk to him.

I’m glad I did. He seemed like a really friendly guy. His son is the backup catcher on the Nittany Lions and he pointed him out. He noticed my Illini hat and noted that his wife was a University of Illinois grad,

A few jokes about USA Today not sending him to cover the tournament and then I asked if I could take his picture. He graciously said yes.

Thanks, Jon!

More sights and observations from the Big Ten Tournament

Thanks to Brian DeCaussin from Big Ten Hardball for taking this photo of me in front of the field at Ray Fisher stadium at the University of Michigan. The stadium is great and the staff here have been very friendly and helpful. Special thanks goes to the lady in the Big Ten Conference T-shirt booth who looked out for me and yelled for me when they finally got the XXL shirts in.

As you can see, the wind on Thursday was sometimes fierce. At times, it would play havoc with fly balls (I saw at least two “easy” fly balls misplayed because the wind took a hold of it). And a couple hits that I thought were goners were pushed back in flyouts.

While watching the Iowa-Penn State game, a couple Minnesota coaches came and sat near us. Brian DeCaussin, who knows everything about Big Ten baseball, told me they were a couple of the assistant coaches.

Remember guys, no spitting in the stands.

I did a double take when I saw a Wisconsin shirt at Ray Fisher stadium. Not that Wisconsin didn’t make the tournament, the Badgers don’t even have a baseball team. I think he was with the Illini crowd though. His son had an Illini cap.

It’s 11:00am and I just stepped outside the cafe (thank you, Artisan Bistro… my wireless crapped out at my hotel and you came through) and I felt a few drops.

Up till now, it’s been fantastic weather if you don’t mind the heat. The breeze does help though unless you’re an outfielder or power hitter (see above). Bit of Big Ten tournament trivia from my program. Minnesota was declared champion in 1993 with a 2-0 record when the last games were rained out. Let’s hope that doesn’t happen here.

Go Illini!