Day: May 13, 2016

by Jacoby Nolnaho

Paul Goldschmidt

     Paul Goldschmidt is one of the best players in the game who plays first base for the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Paul Goldschmidt had an amazing break out season in 2013. This young player helped slug himself into fame. In 2013, he hit 36 home runs. That tied the National League lead with Pedro Alvarez of the Pittsburg Pirates.

Paul Goldschmidt also led the National League in RBIs, too. He had 125 RBIs in 2013. He also showed off some speed for a first basemen which is really rare. During the 2013 he stole 15 bases while scoring 103 runs. In 2014 he was slowed down by injuries. He only played 109 games. But in those 109 games he still showed off his power, socking 19 home runs and driving in 69 RBIs. He stole a total of 9 bases and scored 75 times. He was also voted in to the All-Star game in 2013, 2014, and 2015 due to his amazing accomplishments. In 2015, he became of the only players to hit 20 home runs and to steal 20 bases.

by Jacoby Nolnaho

The Bambino

     Babe Ruth is one of baseball’s best players of all time.  He started out as a pitcher for the Boston Red Sox.  He then moved to the outfield and collected a then record of 714 home runs.  Let’s go on a journey and explore the Babe’s life.

Childhood on the streets

Babe Ruth was born on February 6,  1895. His real name was George Herman Ruth.  He was a trouble maker.  He was one of the pranksters on the block.  His parents were getting stressed out on how bad he was.  So with some hesitation,  they sent him to St.  Mary’s School and Orphanage.  He was there until he was drafted!  The purpose of the school was to teach kids to behave themselves and to find jobs.  One time he tried to escape and run away from the school.  The fence stopped him.  One of the Brother’s stopped him( The Brother’s were like the principals.  They were in charge).

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At St. Mary’s, he got his nickname ”Babe”.  He got it because he was with Brother Herman so long and went everywhere with him.  They called him Herman’s baby. Sadly,  he only got to see his parents once every two months.

Before he went to St. Mary’s,  George didn’t know how to play baseball.  He saw that the kids were playing,  so he decided to play too.  They assigned him to play catcher.  He always wanted to hit like the brothers there, but he would find out he could hit further then all of them combined.

Draft Time

The Babe was playing so well at St. Mary’s that he even attracted Major League scouts.  The Baltimore Orioles drafted him to play.  The young Babe was shocked to hear that he could play and get paid just to play ball.           

Babe the Rookie.

Even though Ruth signed with the Orioles they traded him to the Boston Red Sox.  Babe was a good south pawed pitcher for the Sox.  In his career as a pitcher,  the Babe would go 94-46. He would then move to the outfield.  At that time, the team was in debt.   The Red Sox would then trade ”The Sultan of Swat” to the New York Yankees for money.  That was a mistake by Boston.

Pride of the Yankees

Ruth would become the pride of the Yankees.  He would smack 659 homers with New York.  After Boston traded Ruth,  they went through a depressing era.  They would never win the World Series again until 2004.  This depressing time for Red Sox fans was called the ” Curse of the Bambino”.

   Legendary Moments

One of the Babe’s most known legendary moment was his ”Called Shot”.  In the World Series at Wrigley Field,  he pointed to center field.

He then got two strikes and two balls.  He put two fingers up on each hand.  The next thing he did was crush a home run to center field.  Moments before that he pointed there.  Did Babe Ruth really know that this home run was coming?  Or was he just pointing towards the fans?  That is a mystery that nobody will ever know.

Another one of Babe’s famous moments was when he visited a kid in a hospital.  The kid asked him if he could promise to hit a home run for him.  Yep,  the old Babe did that too.

      Bye, Bye Babe

At the age of 40,  having an amazing  career,  the Babe set  to retire.  Although the Yankees didn’t sign him,  he played a bad year of baseball with the Boston Braves. In his final at bat, he hit a home run.

         Epilogue

Today,  Yankee,  Red Sox,  Oriole, and Braves fans will remember Babe’s legacy forever.  Babe died because of several reasons.  He drank a lot.  He also smoked and chewed tobacco.  Babe Ruth died of throat cancer in 1948, at the age of 53.

Today,  there are monuments everywhere to remember Babe Ruth.  At Oriole Park at Camden Yards,  they have a statue of him. The Yankees retired his number in Monument park.  The Yankees also gave him a plaque in Monument Park.  Plus,  they named the front of Yankee Stadium Babe Ruth Plaza.  So, Babe Ruth’s memory continues.

Bibliography

The book used was:

Riper,  Guernsey Van.  Babe Ruth:  One

        of Baseball’s Greatest. Indianapolis:  Aladdin Paperbacks, 1959.  Print.

by Jacoby Nolnaho

Running Around the Bases with Roger Maris

 Running around the bases with Roger Maris

Roger Maris is one of baseball’s best sluggers.  He is known for breaking Babe Ruth’s record of 60 home runs in 1927 and replacing it with 61 home runs in 1961.  He was a partner and good friend of Hall of Famer,  Mickey Mantle.  Now, we decode his legacy.

     Childhood in Hibbing

Roger Eugene Maras was born in Hibbing.  (Roger would later change the spelling of his name to Maris so people wouldn’t mispronounce it.) He parents were Rudy Sr. and Anne Maras.  Rudy Sr. loved sports so much he even tried out for the Boston Bruins.

Roger had a brother named Rudy Jr.  They were really close.  Since Rudy Sr. shared his love of sports with his kids, Roger started loving sports, too. Hibbing was the first town to have a indoor hockey rink.  So Roger and Rudy Jr. played ice hockey all year long.

          Draft Dreams

Roger was an amazing baseball player.  He attracted major league scouts.  The Cleveland Indians drafted Roger Maris in 1953.

Start in the Majors          

      Roger Maris started his rookie season in 1955.  He would be kept off the field due to injuries.  He would later be traded to the Yankees.

Days with the Bronx Bombers

Roger Maris would join the Yankees in 1960.  This is where all of Roger’s magic happened.

Roger Maris’s first home run was like any other homer.  Nobody knew that this would be the start of the famous 61 homers in’61.  In 1961, Roger Maris was in a race with teammate Mickey Mantle for Ruth’s record.  If Maris hit a home run then Mantle did.  It was like this for a whole year. Then, the M&M boys found out that they had to break the record in 154 games instead of 162. Maris got so stressed out that he started losing his hair!

When Mantle had 53 home runs and Maris 57, it looked like both would have a chance to break the record. But all of a sudden, Mantle got a hip infection.  Mickey Mantle was out of the race! On the final game of the season,  Roger Maris hit his record breaking 61st home run.

        Days with the Cards

In the winter of 1966, the Yankees traded Roger Maris to the Cardinals.  Roger Maris would play two more seasons with cardinals. On May 9 he would smack a two run homer in seat 9 of row 9.

    Roger Maris has his Day

Roger Maris died on December 10, 1985.  He died due to smoking.  He smoked three packs a day!  That is really gross and unhealthy!  No wonder he died at the age of 51.  His family was really sad.  He had been doing good deeds such as visiting hospitals and donating money.  Even though Roger is gone, his memory remains.

 Why is there a * next to 61* ?

There is a star next to 61 because Babe Ruth hit 60 home runs in 154 games and Roger hit 60 home runs after game 154. They changed the number of games so Roger had more opportunities to hit home runs than Ruth.

 

            Bibliography

Here is a good book that can help.

 

Todd, Anne.  Roger Maris. New York:  Chelsea

House Publishers, 2008. Print.

by Jacoby Nolnaho

Hitting Hard with Mickey Mantle

     Mickey Mantle was an amazing slugger during his era.  Today,  the great image of Mickey Mantle continues.  He holds the all time home run record of switch hitters.  Let’s talk about his legacy.  Because of his accomplishments,  he is my favorite baseball player of all time.

A childhood in Oklahoma

Mickey Mantle was born and raised in Oklahoma.  His dad, Mutt, named him after the Philadelphia Athletics catcher Gordon ”Mickey” Cochrane.  Mutt Mantle liked him.  The second Mickey Mantle was born, Mutt wanted him to play ball.  Later in his childhood,  Mickey would love the St. Louis Cardinals.  That’s right,  the Cardinals.  It was not until his baseball career that Mickey would like the Yankees.  He took baseball practice after school with his dad Mutt and his grandpa Charlie. They taught him how to be a switch hitter.  Charlie Mantle would soon get very sick and die of Hodgkin’s disease.  Although the disease didn’t take Mickey’s life, as it did for most of the men in the Mantle family,  it did take the life of Mutt Mantle and Mickey’s son,  Billy later on.  Hodgkin’s disease is very deadly.  Although he learned how to switch hit in his early years,  he would be scarred from the devastating loss of his grandfather.   Later in his playing childhood career,  a tragedy would strike him.  Baseball wasn’t the only sport he played.  He also played football and basketball.  One day while playing football,  he hurt his leg.  He decided to take it like a man and played through it.  What a young Mickey didn’t know was how serious this was.  When he woke up in the morning,  he found an unpleasant  surprise.  He had a huge, blue right knee!  His dad,  Mutt, took him to the hospital right away.  But they couldn’t do anything.  Then they went to another hospital.  They diagnosed him with osteomyelitis.  They tried adding some shots,  but that didn’t work.  So they went to another hospital.  They said there that they might have to cut off his leg so the disease wouldn’t spread.  But his mom, Lovell, defended her son and said no.  Later that night, the shots began to kick in.  A couple days later,  the Mantle family was up and going home.  That’s right.  His leg got better!  If he didn’t take those shots,  there might have been one less person in the Hall of Fame,  and today somebody wearing number seven on the Yankees.  Mickey Mantle’s childhood came with good things such as learning how to switch hit and play baseball, and bad things such as the devastating loss of his grandfather Charlie Mantle and the osteomyelitis infection.  But Mickey pulled through it and used them as examples to push harder in the future.

Minor leagues and Rookie  years.

Mickey Mantle made the team after attending the Yankees spring training camp.  He was so good as a minor leaguer that they decided to bring him up to the big leagues.  Mickey Mantle arrived at the Yankees locker room wearing the number 6. After a while,  Mickey Mantle was demoted ( sent back down to the minors)  because he was in a slump.  He would come back up shortly.  This time wearing his historic number 7.

      Battle of the Rookies

Mickey Mantle faced two challenges during his rookie season:  Willie Mays and injuries.  Later in his rookie season,  Mantle would go to his first World Series.  He would encounter another rookie that was on fire during the season, Willie Mays.  It was the battle of the rookies.  Two future Hall of Famers coming face to face in the world series.  He would try to make a play.  But all of a sudden,  the Yankee great Joe DiMaggio called him off.

When a Hall of Famer calls you off,  you  better stop.  Without thinking,  Mantle attempted to stop in his own speedy tracks.  In the process,  one of Mantle’s cleat spikes got caught in a drainage pipe used to get water off the field.  Within a second,  Mantle was there on the ground with an injured knee.  That would be a sad and disappointing end to Mickey’s rookie season.

Big League Pro

Once Mickey hit the big leagues,  it was the year of the switch hitter.  Although he was probably the worst injury prone in baseball history, meaning that he was injured all the time,  he still put up unbelievable numbers. ( He was injured every single season in fact!)  He led the American league in home runs four times.  He led the league in RBI  (Runs batted in) one time.  That one time was when Mickey Mantle got a triple crown.  That means he led the league in home runs, RBIs, and batting average in the same season.  One bad thing about Mantle was that he had an all or nothing swing.  That means his swing was so big that he either hit a homer or struck out.  The swing got him 536 home runs and 1,710 strikeouts.

The swing also got him the Washington Wallop.  It was a huge home run.  It traveled 565 feet! That home run started the tape measure home runs. But he doesn’t have to worry about the strikeout problem.  Future Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson broke the record Mantle set of K’s that no hitter looks forward to having.  Mickey Mantle’s great playing career earned him a place in both Monument Park at Yankee Stadium and the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

     A Life After Baseball

After a great career in baseball,  Mickey Mantle decided to retire from baseball in the 1968 season.  He would be missed by baseball fans everywhere, including today.  After he retired,  the Yankees held a Mickey Mantle Day at Yankee Stadium.  That day,  the Yankees retired his number and gave him a plaque in Monument Park.  Even though they switched stadiums, they still kept the plaque.  So now if you go to Yankee Stadium,  you can still see the plaque today.  He also received a plaque in Cooperstown after he was inducted into the Hall of Fame. Mickey Mantle also attended the Yankees Old Timers’ Day.  That’s when all of the old greats come and play five innings of non-competitive baseball.

A Devastating Loss in America

In August of 1995,  all the Yankee fans had something to frown about.  Switch hitting slugger,  Mickey Mantle,  died due to liver disease.  After he retired,  he developed a very bad habit.  He had a drinking problem.

His family helped him admit it.  He killed his original liver at first.  A nice organ donation gave him another liver.  You can guess what happened to that one.  Yep.  He killed that one , too. He made a famous speech to America.  After the speech,  the number of liver donations went up quickly.  Mickey Mantle encouraged people to donate organs!  After the speech,  he said something to the kids that were there and the kids that were watching the television.

”Kids. If you want a role model,  here’s a role model.”  He said pointing towards himself. ”Kids, don’t be like me.”  That was one of Mantle’s last wise quotes before he died.

Epilogue

Before Mantle died,  he wanted Americans to know one thing. ”Don’t drink too much or you will end up like me.” Mickey Mantle has had a huge impact of Americans of all kinds, but mostly on baseball fans,  kids, and heavy drinkers.  Today,  people keep the memory of Mickey Mantle alive.  If you go to a Yankee game,  there’s about 25 people you see wearing something of Mickey Mantle.  But there is probably still at least 50 fans that you don’t see, but are still wearing Mantle stuff.

Mickey Mantle will be remembered as a baseball player,  a role model,  and most importantly, a hero.

Bibliography

Try the Sports Heroes and Legends series!  It is an action packed biography series with chapters.  In the middle,  there are rare and unique photos.  I used the series to help me complete two research reports.  You should start reading them today!  Available in libraries and wherever books are sold.

Marlin, John. Mickey Mantle. New York:

Barnes and Noble Publishing Company, 2004. Print.

by Jacoby Nolnaho

Giancarlo Stanton

Giancarlo is considered one of the best baseball players right now. Let’s now look into his current career.

Giancarlo Stanton is one of the greatest sluggers right now.  He also attended in the 2014 Gillette Home Run Derby.   He hit a home run which almost went out of the park. He was also one of the greatest fielders in both leagues.  He makes incredible plays in his right field area. He also steals a base every so often.  The Marlins were everything until the accident happened.

In 2014, Stanton came to bat like any regular time.  Instead of crushing one, he got hit the face by a fastball instead.  His face was bloody and so was the batters box.  He also lost multiple teeth.  He had to be taken of the field by the ambulance car.  While he was being taken away, the grounds crew was covering the blood.  This is what he looked like in the hospital. He would also be a candidate in the 2014 MVP honors.

by Jacoby Nolnaho

Clayton Kershaw

     Clayton Kershaw is not just the ace of the Los Angeles Dodgers but also one of the best players in Major League Baseball today. We now look into the star studded ace.

Clayton Kershaw is not just one of the best pitcher in MLB but also one of if the best players in MLB. Clayton Edward Kershaw is the ace of the Los Angeles Dodgers. In 2014 he had a season that would go down in history. He had one of the best seasons that a pitcher could do. He went 21-3 while racking up 239 batters on K’s with a 1.77 ERA. He did this all in only 198.1 innings. On top of that, he pitched a dominant no-hitter before the All-Star game. A lot of people debated that he should start the All-Star game for the National League. Instead, the St. Louis Cardinals’ ace Adam Wainwright did. In the dominant no-hitter against the Colorado Rockies, he struck out a total of fifteen batters. The last batter he faced also fanned, too. After he sent down the last Rockies’ player on strikes, he did he signature celebration move. He raised both of his hands in the air while facing the crowd. He might not have known it at that time, but Clayton Kershaw would take home the most hardware than any other player in the 2014 offseason.

In the offseason of 2014, Clayton was given many awards for his dominating performance in 2014. His most famous award is the National League Most Valuable Player award. He was the first pitcher to do so in the National League since Bob Gibson. It was also no surprise when he also won the Cy Young Award, too. It was his third Cy Young Award in only four years. This Dodger superstar also won three Gibby Awards.

Clayton also had a .175 batting average. That is bad for an everyday player but amazing for a pitcher. He also got a triple. As you can see, there is no doubt that Clayton Kershaw is the best pitcher in the Major Leagues. Maybe someday he will be enshrined in to the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

by Jacoby Nolnaho

Mike Trout

Mike Trout is one of the best baseball players in the game.  I will now break down his current career.

Mike Trout is one of the best and only all-around players.  He makes amazing plays on a daily basis.  He once robbed a home run from Prince Fielder.  He jumped up and climbed the wall while using his over-stretched arm. He robs home runs and hits them, too.  He also won the 2014 all-star game MVP award.  He is one of the best when on base.  He is a stealing machine. He also was one of the candidates for the 2014 MVP Award. Mike Trout is also a regular at the all-star game.  It is no surprise that he made the 2014 all-star game since he would lead the American league in runs and RBIs.   One thing that is bad about the Trout is that he strikes out way too much.  In 2014, he struck out over 180 times.  Hopefully, he can shorten up his swing.  As you can see, Mike Trout is the best player in the game today.  The Angels are lucky to have Mike Trout.

by Jacoby Nolnaho

Jacob deGrom

Jacob deGrom is a young starting pitcher for the New York Mets. We now look into his dominance.

Jacob deGrom is a starting pitcher for the New York Mets. In his 22 game stint in 2014, deGrom did some pretty neat things. The one thing that stands out is that he won the National League Rookie of the Year award. He had to beat out Billy Hamilton of the Cincinnati Reds and Kolten Wong of the St. Louis Cardinals. In that 22 game span, deGrom went 9-6 with a 2.69 ERA which is really good. He also got 144 strikeouts. He accomplished all of this in just 140.1 innings of work.

His K/9 is 9.24. That means he averaged a little bit over a strikeout per inning. That helped him win the Rookie of the Year. Without deGrom, the Mets might really fall apart. He had a .600 winning percentage in games when he got a decision. That would up his WAR (Wins Above Replacement) which was 3.1. Since the Mets are in the National League, the pitcher has to bat. Jacob showed that he could hit, too, unlike other pitchers. In 46 at-bats, he got 10 hits, scored 3 times, and drove in 2 RBIs.

Jacob deGrom is also a very good defensive fielder. In his 22 games, deGrom didn’t have one single error. That is unbelievable!  The Mets have two of the best pitchers in all of baseball, Jacob deGrom and Matt Harvey. Now, Jacob deGrom can take the pressure off of Matt Harvey in big games. As you can see, Jacob deGrom is a star-studded young pitcher for the New York Mets. He has a bright future with many accomplishments ahead of him.