Goodbye Tony Gwynn, for those who love baseball, he was the best hitter......

[PanhandleVol]

of my generation and imho second only to Ted Williams. In twenty years of baseball, he only struck out 434 times! unreal. As good as he was, he was a better person.
 

[Black Diamond Vol]

That sucks.  Best pure hitter of my lifetime.

[volsboy]

A great hitter, but from all accounts an even better person. The current generation of prima-donnas could learn something from him. What was amazing was how well he did against the best pitchers. Some amazing statistics. He only struck out three times in a game once in nearly twenty seasons. He also got a hit in 75% of all the games he played.

[Black Diamond Vol]

A great hitter, but from all accounts an even better person. The current generation of prima-donnas could learn something from him. What was amazing was how well he did against the best pitchers. Some amazing statistics. He only struck out three times in a game once in nearly twenty seasons. He also got a hit in 75% of all the games he played.

To me, the most amazing thing about him was that he could hit any pitch to any field.  You play him to pull and pitch him inside?  Somehow, he's going to fight that pitch off his fists and take it the other way.  Or vice versa.  The defensive shift wasn't really big yet in Gwynn's day, but if it was, he might've hit .500- leave him that big hole in the left side, and he'll put it through there every time.

[HerbTarlekVol]

Yep.  Guys like Gwynn, Wade Boggs, Rod Carew, and George Brett are just not coming along in this day and time.  If one doesn't have 30/30 potential, or is a defensive whiz as is Andrelton Simmons is, they just don't have much of a place in baseball in this day and time, and that's a real shame.

[Black Diamond Vol]

Yep.  Guys like Gwynn, Wade Boggs, Rod Carew, and George Brett are just not coming along in this day and time.  If one doesn't have 30/30 potential, or is a defensive whiz as is Andrelton Simmons is, they just don't have much of a place in baseball in this day and time, and that's a real shame.

I would've put Ichiro in that class when he was in his prime.  But that's about the most recent example I can think of.

[HerbTarlekVol]

I would've put Ichiro in that class when he was in his prime.  But that's about the most recent example I can think of.

Yeah, hard to have a solid opinion on that one since he played so much of his career in Japan.  It's also hard for me to watch his swing.  Reminds me of a girls softball "slap" hitter.  Just can't handle that. 

[Black Diamond Vol]

Yeah, hard to have a solid opinion on that one since he played so much of his career in Japan.  It's also hard for me to watch his swing.  Reminds me of a girls softball "slap" hitter.  Just can't handle that. 

Yeah, but it's hard to deny nearly 2800 hits in just 13 MLB seasons (and change).  He was 27 when he came to the US.  If he had played his entire career in MLB, he'd be hot on Pete Rose's heels right now, assuming he hadn't surpassed him already.

[HerbTarlekVol]

Yeah, but it's hard to deny nearly 2800 hits in just 13 MLB seasons (and change).  He was 27 when he came to the US.  If he had played his entire career in MLB, he'd be hot on Pete Rose's heels right now, assuming he hadn't surpassed him already.

Don't disagree at all.  One of those guys who I really didn't see play that much, either.  Never saw the Mariners that much since they are on the West Coast, and I avoid watching the damned Yankees at all costs.  

Quick story - back a few years ago me and a couple of buddies went to Atlanta to see the Braves play the Mariners.  We had been given some corporate tickets, on the second row right at the Mariner on deck circle.  One of my buddies was already lit on $9 beers before batting practice ever ended, and he was giving Ichiro down the road the entire time.  Apparently some of Ichiro's relatives had come from Japan to see him play and were sitting right behind us and they took exception to my two buddies riding Ichiro like a rented mule.  One of my buddies is a former NFL player who comes in at near 400 pounds (I'm from Powell, that's probably not hard to figure out) and the other is a big fellow, too, at around 300.  Ichiro's relatives each weighed about a buck ten.  My buddy kept calling Ichiro "Itchy-toe" and riding him unmercifully.  I thought the little Japanese fellows were going to come after the other two a time or two.  It was an interesting evening.  

Oh, and one more thing to add: We stopped at The Varsity on the way down.  I got my normal two chili dawgs, a chili cheese burger, rings, and a frosted orange at about 7 bucks or so. 

Former NFL buddy's dinner at the Varsity was $27, so you can only imagine what it took to fill up a nearly 400 pound former NFL offensive lineman. 

[volsboy]

I saw a statistic that I just found hard to believe, don't understand its reasons. Did you know that there are just 67 black ballplayers in the Major Leagues right now? Why such a low number?

[HerbTarlekVol]

I saw a statistic that I just found hard to believe, don't understand its reasons. Did you know that there are just 67 black ballplayers in the Major Leagues right now? Why such a low number?

For whatever reason blacks aren't playing baseball in this day and time.  Baseball has very much become a rural game.  Not much inner city baseball left any longer.  Blacks have gone to basketball and football and away from baseball.  I see high schools teams from schools where they will be 15, 20, 25% black in student population with zero or just one or two black kids playing. 

And it's not like blacks are being discouraged from playing baseball.  There are opportunities out there.  Baseball has taken a hit across the board.  I can drive by a dozen baseball parks within 10 miles of my house on a May or June evening or weekend and they will be completely empty.  Just not the interest that there used to be, and as a baseball guy that just kills me. 

Plus the influx of Latino and now players from Japan/Korea have taken more and more roster spots, as well. 

[PanhandleVol]

a few days ago while watching the CWS. I'm 54 almost 55 and I remember baseball being much different. So much of professional baseball is Latin American dominated now. The big money comes quickly in basketball and football for most guys. Many good football players in college were pretty good baseball players but did not want to take the time it takes for some to build the skills in a farm system. Ironically college teams seem to be more and more suburban,rural white and Hispanic kids that are attending college for the right reasons and many are not on scholarship. I grew playing organized BASEBALL in what is called Khoury league baseball. I played on three teams at once, Khoury league, High School, and American Legion. Now a days kids are on "traveling teams" that are serious about baseball and their parents spend thousands per year to support them. It has really changed.