1906:  A’s Manager Connie Mack finds himself shorthanded because of so many injuries on the team.  He puts pitcher Alvin “Chief” Bender in left field in the sixth inning.  Bender hit two inside the park home runs.

1929: Carl Hubbell of the New York Giants becomes the first left-handed pitcher in the majors to pith a no-hitter.

1946: Johnny Pesky, Red Sox shortstop, becomes the first player in AL to score six runs in one game.

1973: Pirates’ Willie Stargell hits his second home run out of Dodger stadium, hitting the field pavilion roof 470 feet away.  No one else has hit a home run out of the stadium

Jose Fernandez

Player: Jose Fernandez
Team: Miami Marlins
Age: 21
Relationship Status: Single

After several attempts and three prison terms, Jose successfully defected from Cuba in 2008.  He went to Braulio Alonso High School in Tampa where he pitched for the baseball team.  In the 2011 MLB Draft Jose was chosen by the Marlins in the fourteenth round with a $2 million signing bonus. In 2012 Jose was named Marlins’ Minor League Pitcher of the Year.

In 2013 Fernandez made his MLB Debut on April 7.  On July 6, he was chosen to represent the Marlins in the All-Star team. 

Jose started the 2014 season making him the youngest Opening Day starting pitcher since 1986. 

1) All-Star voting has started!  The season is now in swing and the votes are pouring in. You can enter up to 25 online ballots on MLB.com until July 3 to get your favorite players in the 85th All-Star game.  The teams will be announced the weekend of July 5. 

2) Corey Kluber of the Cleveland Indians has set a new club record.  In the top of the third inning against the White Sox, Kluber fanned (struck-out) seven hitters in a row.  He said “It was kind of the same thing as the whole game, maybe I just happened to get them looking for something else in those at-bats.”

3) Marcus Stroman made his Major League debut with the Blue Jays, Sunday against the Pirates.  He relieved Dustin McGowan in the eighth inning of the 7-1 game. Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said, “We wanted to get him in as soon as possible.  He had a nice little comfortable lead there, a little breathing room; I thought he did great.”

Today marks the three-year anniversary of Osama Bin Laden’s death.  On May 1, 2011 the Phillies fans showed their pride at what better place than the National pastime chanting USA! USA!  The players had no idea what was going on at first. Watch here:

Grilled Sausage with Spicy Sauce

 

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 pounds good-quality kielbasa or other smoked sausage, cut into bite-size pieces
3/4 cup ketchup
3/4 cup spicy brown mustard
1 tablespoon hot sauce

 

Directions:

First you want to soak ten wooden skewers in water for 20 minutes and start warming up the grill to medium. (Brush a little oil on the grill)

 

Put the bite sized sausages on the skewers with a little space between each piece. Place the skewers on the grill for about 4 minutes on each side.

For a dipping sauce mix ketchup, mustard and hot sauce.

Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/duff-goldman/grilled-sausage-with-spicy-sauce-recipe.html?oc=linkback

Grady Sizemore III

Player: Grady Sizemore III
Team: Boston Red Sox
Age: 31
Relationship Status: Engaged

Grady Sizemore III is the triple threat: beauty, brains and baseball. Sizemore graduated high school with a 4.0 GPA and was named valedictorian from Cascade High School in Washington in 2000.

In the 2000 MLB Draft, the Montreal Expos signed Sizemore for a $2 million signing bonus. In 2002 Grady was traded to the Cleveland Indians. On July 21, 2004 he made his MLB Debut. The next few years he began making a name for himself as a three time All-Star (2006&2007&2008), two time Golden Glove winner(2007&2008), and one time Silver Slugger (2008). Sizemore joined the 30-30 Club and was awarded the Heart & Hustle award in 2008.

From 2009-2013 Grady suffered a series of injuries. On January 22, 2014 he signed with the Boston Red Sox with a one-year contract for $15 million.

We can’t wait to see what else he can do.

So many beautif…

So many beautiful men of baseball… who should be today’s Man Crush Monday? Vote now!

1) The Florida House is warning Major League Baseball that if they don’t treat Cuban players better, the teams will no longer receive state money.

 

Representatives Gaetz and Diaz said MLB’s current policy regarding Cuban players encourages human trafficking and smuggling, and jeopardizes potential players and their families.

 

Right now players from other countries, aside from Cuba, can negotiate with all of the MLB teams before a contract is signed. When Cuban players come to the US “they are subject to the amateur draft, potentially costing them tens of millions of dollars.” But if the player is in Cuba, the team’s cannot negotiate with the player.

Read more here: http://www.star-telegram.com/2014/04/24/5764836/fla-house-wants-change-in-mlb.html#storylink=cpy

 

2) On April 23 Wrigley Field celebrated its’ 100th birthday. Throughout the week the Cubs have been celebrating with 10 decade-themed games. The first ballgame played at Wrigley Field was played on April 23, 1914 when the Chicago Federals of the Federal League beat the Kansas City Packers, 9-1. The Cubs played their first game at Wrigley Field two years later on April 20, 1916.

 

3) Angels first baseman Albert Pujols joined one of America’s most prestigious clubs this week. With two homeruns on Tuesday, Pujols earned his way to the 500 club (500 home runs) joining 26 other men in MLB history.

Mascots make their MLB Debut

Some of Baseball’s best men are the mascots. Ever wonder how the mascots started? Well I have, so I decided to do a little research.

It all started back in the 70s. Ted Giannoulas was hired by KGB Radio to promote the station by wearing a chicken suit. The chicken started getting spotted at Padres games, which aside from the strange chicken weren’t very entertaining at the time. The chicken performed tricks and funny stunts and soon became one of the highlights of the Padres games.

Though the Padres weren’t tied to the chicken, the team allowed him to attend games and get the crowd going. Other MLB teams piggy-backed this idea and began coming up with their own mascots. In 1978 baseball’s favorite mascot, the Phillie Phanatic made his MLB debut.

 

 

Huston Street

Player: Huston Street
Team: San Diego Padres
Age: 30
Relationship Status: Married

Huston Street is our featured eye candy of the week. Born and raised in Austin, Texas Huston naturally went to University of Texas at Austin where he made a name for himself on the baseball team. He earned All-American honors every year and won the College World Series in 2002.

In 2004, Street was drafted in the first round by the Oakland Athletics. After only one year in the minors, Street was called up to the major leagues at the start of the 2005 where he won Rookie of the Year the same season.

On November 12, 2008, Street was traded to the Colorado Rockies, and then on December 7, 2011 was traded to the San Diego Padres.

In the 2012 season Huston was named to the All-Star team. Starting June 26, 2013 Street pitched 20¹⁄₃ scoreless innings ending September 3. This helped Huston earn the title National League Player of the Week .

We can’t wait to see what Street has in store for this season.