Longtime minor league broadcaster Stu Paul is lucky to be alive after falling down two flights of stairs while leaving the Principal Park in Des Moines following a recent Nashville Sounds & Iowa Cubs game. The Sounds broadcaster ended up with a dislocated shoulder and torn tendons in each of his knees. In the story Paul talks about the accident and his hope that rehab will go well and allow him to make it back to the broadcast booth before the end of the regular season.
The guys at The Big Lead have done a great Q&A with legendary sports artist Dick Perez. Anyone whose collected baseball cards is probably aware of Perez’s Diamond Kings series of portraits featured by the Donruss & Leaf company back in the 80’s and 90’s. In addition to his baseball card work Perez is responsible for the Perez-Steele postcard sets of players in the Major League Baseball Hall Of Fame and more recently artwork for the Topps Allen & Ginter baseball card product. Perez is now releasing a 560 page book featuring a gallery of his work including both mainstream and non-mainstream baseball work. In the interview, Perez talks about his inspiration for the book and his interaction with his fans.
It’s been a long road filled with the highest of highs and lowest of lows for 2006 1st round pick Andrew Miller. The 6’7″ lefty was one of the best pitchers in the country for the North Carolina Tar Heels when he was selected by the Detroit Tigers with the 6th overall pick. He was rushed to the major leagues after just three appearances at High-A Lakeland, and pitched out of the bullpen for Detroit during the final month of the 2006 season. In 2007 he was back to being a starter, made 13 starts in the minors before once again being rushed to the majors and seeing marginal success. Following the season Miller was traded to Florida as part of the Miguel Cabrera blockbuster deal and struggled in both the majors and minors for three years before being traded by the Marlins to Boston during the 2010 offseason. Boston then released Miller before resigning him to a minor league deal. The 2010 season was the worst statistical season of Miller’s career going 2-9 with a 5.35ERA in the minors and 1-5 with a 8.54ERA for the Marlins. Since joining the Red Sox organization in 2011 however he’s finally beginning to blossom into the pitcher he was expected to be back in 2006. Miller went 3-3 with a 2.47ERA for Triple-A Pawtucket before being promoted to Boston. Since hitting Fenway Park, Miller has given the Red Sox a shot in the arm going 4-1 for the big club. In the in depth story, Miller talks about his roller coaster career, making it to the majors so quickly, dealing with the struggles he’s faced throughout his career, and embracing the success he has found in Boston.
Jeremy Krock of Peoria Illinois launched the Negro Leagues Baseball Grave Marking Project 2003 and in the eight years since Krock has spent countless hours tracking down and adding headstones to the unmarked graves of former Negro League players. In the fascinating story, Krock talks about getting started on his project based on his interest in former Negro Leaguer Jimmie Cruchfield, the detective work he goes through to track down new gravesites, and the financial support he has received from some of the biggest names in Major League Baseball.
Ask any professional baseball player and they will tell you they dream of playing in the Major Leagues one day. For the players in the Independent Pecos League in Southern New Mexico, what the players go through in pursuit of those dreams is pretty amazing. On perhaps the furthest fringes of professional baseball players in the Pecos League deal with small crowds, $100 a week, and even tarantula delays. Amazing read on the sacrifices independent league players make in pursuit of their dreams.
In depth story celebrating the 50th anniversary of the 1961 South Atlantic League All Star Game that would produce an eventual 17 major league players including Hall of Famer Willie Stargell. The game was held in Asheville, North Carolina and featured the 1st place Pittsburgh Pirates affiliate the Asheville Tourists against the Sally League All Stars consisting of the best players off the remaining teams in the league. Players and fans who were at the game talk about the baseball greatness that was on the field and the huge crowd that watched them on that day in July 50 years ago. Great read for the minor league baseball history buff.
This is pretty cool or pretty scary depending on who you are. The Norfolk Tides home game against the Gwinnett Braves was suspended due to rain in the first inning. This wasn’t your garden variety rain storm as the video below shows. Fast forward to the 1:40 mark where the action starts to pick up. It really gets crazy at the 2:25 mark. WARNING: Some profanity in the video as the weather gets more and more intense.