THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN MONDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2007
SPORTS
7B
MLB
Season holds unforgettable moments
Year brings record-breaking numbers, entertaining highlights to fans
For me, 2007 has been the "Year of the Baseball."
In addition to covering and trying out for the Kansas baseball team, I've been to Kauffman Stadium eight times and the Willie Wilson T-Bones Classic. I saw the Field of Dreams in Dyersville, Iowa. I even took an unpaid internship this summer so I could go to Boston and see a game at Fenway Park, when the Royals were in town, of course.
BY SHAWN SHROYER
KANSAN COLUMNIST
SHROYER@KANSAN.COM
So, it's only appropriate that I bid farewell to the regular season and usher in the postseason. In a particular order, here are my Top 10 and Bottom 5 MLB moments from 2007 as well as a few post and offseason predictions.
STANDING OVATIONS
10. In what may go down as the highlight of the Boston Red Sox season, Manny Ramirez, J.D. Drew, Mike Lowell and Jason Varitek hit four straight home runs at Fenway to surge past the New York Yankees for a 7-6 victory on April 22. It's been the highlight of Drew's season, anyway.
9. Out to prove he's more than just a pretty face, Atlanta Braves manager Bobby Cox surpassed former New York Giants player/manager John McGraw for the all-time ejections record, tallying No. 132. on Aug. 14
7. Looking as rambunctious as John McGrew following a tennis match on those Neu Physical Therapy commercials, Red Sox pitcher Clay Buchholz celebrated becoming the first Red Sox rookie to throw a no-hitter in franchise history on Sept. 1.
8. With a 6-3 victory against the Minnesota Twins, the Kansas City Royals avoided losing 100 games for the fourth year in a row on Sept. 12. Goal for 2008: Get out of the AL Central basement.
6. On Sept. 25, Milwaukee Brewers first baseman Prince Fielder, 23, became the youngest player in MLB history to hit 50 home runs in a season. Those hoping to see a "clean" player sitting atop the all-time home run list should be rooting for this
slugger.
5. The Texas Rangers surrendered an early field goal in a football score-like 30-3 annihilation of the Baltimore Orioles on Aug. 22. Texas' 30 runs set a modern baseball record, and if you didn't see ESPN's Tim Kurkjian rattling off fast facts from the game on Baseball Tonight, you missed a real treat.
4. On Aug. 9, St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Rick Ankiel made his first big league appearance since 2004 and put an exclamation point on his return with a three-run home run in the seventh inning. Originally a pitcher for the Cardinals, Ankiel was a regular in the Cardinals lineup the last two months and hit .285 with 11 home runs.
3. "Iron Man" Cal Ripken Jr. and consummate hitter Tony Gwynn were inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame on July 29. These two class acts are the last of a dying breed, each having played for only one team during his major league career.
2. A collection of future Hall of Famers reached career milestones this season. Mets pitcher Tom Glavine earned his 300th career victory and may be the last ever to do so, while teammate Pedro Martinez notched career strikeout No. 3,000. San Diego Padres closer Trevor Hoffman became the first pitcher to reach the 500 career saves plateau. Rangers outfielder Sammy Sosa hit career home run No. 600, Chicago White Sox designated hitter Jim Thome hit career home run No. 500 and Toronto Blue, Jays designated hitter Frank Thomas hit his 500th home run the same day Houston Astros second baseman Craig Biggio
Cleveland tops Kansas City
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Travis Hafner tuned up for the playoffs with another big day at the plate. Hafner drove in two runs to reach 100 runs batted in for the fourth straight year, and the Cleveland Indians beat the Kansas City Royals 4-2 Sunday in the final game of the regular season.
MLB
The Indians, who won the AL Central, will start C.C. Sabathia in Game 1 of their division series against the New York Yankees on Thursday. The Yankees, who were 6-0 against the Indians this year, will counter with Chien-Ming Wang.
Hafner, who spent a big part of the season in a slump and hit only
.228 in May and .218 in June, is batting. .373 in his last 17 games with three homers and 13 RBIs.
Play was halted for more than 10 minutes in the top of the ninth when a sharply hit grounder bounced up and struck Kansas City third baseman Alex Gordon in the face. Gordon's nose started bleeding but he was able to walk off the field under his own power holding a towel to his face.
It was the final game for Royals manager Buddy Bell, who announced in August that he would step down to spend more time with his family. He finished his time in Kansas City with a 174-262 record.
Associated Press
collected his 3,000th hit.
1. On April 15, Major League Baseball celebrated the 60th anniversary of Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier. It was a wonderful ceremony, and the nation fell in love with Robinson's widow, Rachel ... or at least I did.
MOMENTS OF SILENCE
4. Fellow New York Yankees pitcher Roger Clemens and third baseman Alex Rodriguez also reached career milestones. Clemens won his 350th game while A-Rod hit his 500th home run. Neither of their names have come up nearly enough in this performance-enhancing era.
5. On July 15, the Philadelphia Phillies lost their 10,000th game in franchise history, which begged the question: "What is the worst current MLB franchise?" The Royals were mentioned far too often.
2. Henry Aaron handed his crown as the Home Run King to San Francisco Giants outfielder Barry Bonds after Bonds blasted No. 756 to center field in AT&T Park on Aug. 6. Baseball fans like myself went to bed feeling numb to the occasion.
Minn., collapsed, killing 13 people and injuring many more an hour before the Twins were about to play at home. If any good result from this tragic event, cities all over the country have reassessed the integrity of their bridges.
3. The Yankees clinched a playoff berth after trailing in the Wild Card race by 9.5 games in July. It really speaks to their character that they were able to overcome such a deficit with a measly $190 million payroll.
--is currently looking for healthy volunteers ages 18-49 to participate in a clinical research study involving an outpatient investigational flu vaccine.
A little farther west, the Royals will be big-time buyers. Don't be surprised to see the Royals lure Bonds into being their designated hitter/left fielder, and either Andruw Jones, Aaron Rowand or Mike Cameron into being their new center fielder. Also, GM Dayton Moore will (finally) trade David DeJesus – the slowest center fielder in the bigs – for Florida Matches pitcher Dontrelle Willis. Why not? If they're going to hire Joe Girardi to be their next manager, he'll need some new toys to play with.
1. Just after 6 p.m. on Aug. 1, the I-35W bridge in Minneapolis,
As for offseason predictions, shortly after the Yankees are jettisoned from the playoffs, A-Rod will opt out of his deal with the team and reunite with his former manager, Lou Pinella, on the north side of Chicago. Get excited. Cubs fans
That's the beauty of being a Royals fan. You can dream and, even if you're wrong, still enjoy great moments around the league.
Now that the field is set for the playoffs, it's time to pick a winner. I've been behind the Red Sox all season, and I'm sticking with them. Red Sox over the Mets...oops, I mean the Phillies in six games.
WRITE IT DOWN
Edited by Kaitlyn Syring
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MLB Standings
Boston 96-66
NY Yankees 94-68 (2 GB)
Toronto 83-79 (13 GB)
Baltimore 69-93 (27 GB)
Tampa Bay 66-96 (30 GB)
ALEAST
AL CENTRAL
Minnesota 3, Boston 2
NY Yankees 10, Baltimore 4
Tamp Bay 8, Toronto 5
Cleveland 4, Kansas City 2
Detroit 13, Chicago 3
Oakland 3, LA Angels 2
Seattle 4, Texas 2
ALCENTRAL
Cleveland 96-66
Detroit 88-74 (8 GB)
Minnesota 79-83 (17 GB)
Chicago 72-90 (24 GB)
Kansas City 69-93 (27 GB)
NATIONAL LEAGUE
AL WEST
NL CENTRAL
Chicago Cubs 85-77
Milwaukee 83-79 (2 GB)
St. Louis 77-84 (7 GB)
Houston 73-89 (12 GB)
Cincinnati 72-90 (13 GB)
Pittsburgh 68-94 (17 GB)
NL EAST
Philadelphia 89-73
NY Mets 88-74 (1 GB)
Atlanta 84-78 (5 GB)
Washington 73-89 (16 GB)
Florida 71-91 (18 GB)
ALWEST
Los Angeles 94-68
Seattle 88-74 (6 GB)
Oakland 76-86 (18 GB)
Texas 75-87 (19 GB)
AL WILDCARD
NY Yankees 94-68
Detroit 88-74 (6 GB)
Seattle 88-74 (6 GB)
GAMES
Florida 8, NY Mets 1
Philadelphia 6, Washington 1
Houston 3 Atlanta 0
Milwaukee 11, San Diego 6
St. Louis 6, Pittsburgh 5
Colorado 4, Arizona 3
San Francisco 11, LA Dodgers 2
NL WILDCARD
Colorado 89-73*
San Diego 89-73*
NY Mets 88-74 (1 GB)
Atlanta 84-78 (5 GB)
Arizona 90-72
Colorado 89-73 (1 GB)
San Diego 89-73 (1 GB)
LA Dodgers 82-80 (8 GB)
San Francisco 71-91 (19 GB)
AMERICAN LEAGUE
NLWEST
NL WILDCARD
MLB.com
*San Diego and Colorado play tonight at 6:30 for NL Wildcard playoff spot
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