Fred's Ramblings

Considering the Los Angeles Dodgers have many of their starters in a season long slump, they have managed to win 20 out of the 29 games played thus far. It doesn’t help that they have now lost series to some of the poorer teams on their schedule, i.e. Arizona, and Pittsburgh. Which leads me to believe that their pitching staff has kept them in the games. Not only have the starters done their job, but the often maligned bullpen has also stepped up and got the job done. The bullpen did not live up to their role in the last game of the series against the Pittsburgh Pirates, and it will be interesting to see if the recent injuries to the bullpen staff will play an important part down the road. We can also assume that the hitters will come alive and start to look like the World Series team they have been picked to be. Time will tell…it would be nice to see them playing for the World Series title in October…or is it November again this year?

It seems like we are losing many of the storied players in Major League History. In early September, Lou Brock passed away and on Friday, the baseball world lost a titan. One of the most legendary figures to ever grace the mound, Hall of Fame Cardinals pitcher Bob Gibson died at age 84 after battling pancreatic cancer for more than a year. The Cardinals confirmed Gibson’s death late Friday night to the New York Times. In his 17-year big-league career, Gibson was a nine-time All-Star, winning an MVPs, two Cy Youngs, two World Series MVPs, two World Series rings and an ERA title. He was 251-174 with a 2.91 ERA and recorded 3,117 strikeouts in nearly 4,000 innings.

Gibson was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in his first try in 1981 with 84 percent of the vote. He’s widely hailed as the greatest pitcher in the storied history of the Cardinals franchise and also in the inner circle of all-time great pitchers. No batter ever “dug in” against Bullet Bob…not unless they wanted to hear some chin music. RIP Bob Gibson.

Longtime big leaguer and Hall of Famer Tom Seaver passed away Monday, August 31, his family confirmed to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. He was 75. Seaver’s family says he “passed peacefully in his sleep of complications of Lewy body dementia and COVID-19.”

Seaver pitched for 20 seasons in the big leagues from 1967-86 and was, quite simply, one of the greatest pitchers to ever live. He retired with a 311-205 record and a 2.86 ERA. Seaver broke in with the Mets (1967-77) and also played for the Reds (1977-82), Mets again (1983), White Sox (1984-86), and Red Sox (1986). He was named the NL Rookie of the Year after throwing 251 innings with a 2.76 ERA in 1967. He won three Cy Young awards (1969. 1973, 1975) and was selected to 12 All-Star Games. Seaver also finished second in the Cy Young voting in 1971 and 1981, and third in 1977. He was voted into the Hall of Fame on the first ballot in 1992. He was a member of the “Miracle Mets” of 1969…rest in peace Tom Seaver.