Tag: Arizona Diamondbacks

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Arizona Diamondbacks

Nov 1 in Sports History: Groundhog Day for Byung-Hyun Kim



Bad case of deja-vu

In 2001: How would you feel if you gave up an improbable, game-tying, eventual series-tying, heart-wrenching, expletive-inducing homerun in the bottom of the ninth inning of a World Series game with millions watching? How would you feel if it happened again almost 24 hours to the minute? Ask Byung-Hyun Kim, who fell victim to the Yankees again in the bottom of the ninth of Game 5 in New York in almost exactly the same fashion as the night before. This time, third baseman Scott Brosius did the honors with the Yankees trailing 2-0 in their last at-bat. Kim’s blank stare was replayed just as much as Brosius’ amazed, arms-in-the-air celebration. Once again, the game went into extra innings and well past midnight (don’t they all nowadays?); and once again the Yankees won it, taking a 3-2 Series lead back to the desert.

In 1959: Jacques Plante of the Montreal Canadiens became the first full-blown sissy-girl in the NHL. Ah, we kid, we kid here. Plante was actually the first smart goaltender in the NHL to regularly don a facemask for protection. After he was nearly decapitated by a shot from New York Rangers’ hall of famer Andy Bathgate, Plante returned to the Madison Square Garden ice with the plastic headgear amid taunts, jeers and the objections of his coach Toe Blake, who felt the mask impaired his vision. The Canadiens won that game 3-1 and 10 of their next 11, so the mask stayed. The Canadiens also later captured their fifth consecutive Stanley cup behind the girly goalie (we kid again…sort of). (espn.com/classic)

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New York Yankees

Oct 31 in Sports History: Byung-Hyun Kim Part I


In 2001: The Yankees gave a still-grieving New York something to cheer about in Game 4 of the World Series. Trailing in the series two games to one and 3-1 in the bottom of the ninth with two outs, Tino Martinez forced extra innings with a two-run shot off Arizona Diamondbacks’ reliever Byung-Hyun Kim. The game went beyond midnight and beyond October, where Derek Jeter’s solo homerun in the bottom of the 11th inning tied the series for the Yanks and earned him the nickname “Mr. November.” If New York, Arizona and the rest of the country who bothered to stay up that late thought they saw an unbelievable, once-in-a-lifetime comeback, they had no idea what was in store the following night.
(…to be continued)

In 1988: The Hoosier Dome hosted the first-ever Monday Night game in Indianapolis between the Colts and the Broncos. In a strange, Halloween-charged atmosphere, the Colts raced out to a 45-10 halftime en route to a Monday Night record 55 points in the 55-23 victory. Eric Dickerson ran for 159 yards and tied another Monday Night record with four touchdowns while John Elway and the defending AFC champion Broncos turned the ball over six times.

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MLB General

The Full Count: Steroids don’t always work

1. The Grimsley Reaper: There was a huge steroid bust on Tuesday, from one of the least likely sources. Arizona reliever Jason Grimsley, after admitting the use of performance enhancing drugs, had his home searched by federal authorities. They did not say what they found, but they were looking for all evidence of contact with other people about the use of these drugs. The most important thing coming from this will be the list of players, according to Grimsley, that have used or distributed these drugs. The list has not been made public yet, but it will likely be extensive as Grimsley has played with 7 total teams dating back to 1989. He has used steroids, human growth horomone, and amphetamines, and is scheduled to be sentenced in August. Despite the use of these drugs, Grimsley is a marginal player at best, with a 4.77 career ERA.

2. The Battle Begins: The White Sox and the Tigers have played once before this season, but that was in early April before we knew that the Tigers were for real. Now they have started a three-game set, and in Game 1 the White Sox barely prevailed. After three solo Tigers homeruns, including one by the suddenly quiet Chris Shelton, the Tigers were up 3-1 entering the eighth inning. But then Alex Cintron, the former Diamondback, stepped up to the plate for the White Sox. With two runners on, Cintron hit a game-winning three-run shot to right, his first homer of the year. Chicago escaped with the victory, but they still trail the Tigers by two games in the AL Central division.

3. About Schmidt: San Francisco starter Jason Schmidt looks well on his way to another great season after a marginal 2005. Schmidt is 6-2 this year with a 2.53 ERA and a .204 opponent’s average. Last night he pitched his best game of the season, with 16 strikeouts and one run allowed in a complete game. The strikeouts tied the all-time Giants record and the major-league season high. Schmidt was named the NL pitcher of the month for May, and has now reeled off 6 straight wins. The Giants defeated the Marlins 2-1 and passed San Diego for 3rd in the NL West.

4. The league’s quietest good team: They are one game back from their division leader, have scored the 4th-most runs in the NL, have one of the highest win totals in the majors, yet they still get no respect. Who are they? The Cincinnati Reds, who beat the Cardinals again last night and have earned the title of the majors’ most disrespected team. Yesterday Eric Milton pitched strong and their offense knocked out Chris Carpenter after five innings. Adam Dunn hit his 18th homer and drove in 3, and the Reds lineup featured six players with multi-hit games. The 7-0 shutout proved once again how valuable Albert Pujols is to the Cardinals, who featured several no-names in their lineup. If the Reds can complete their sweep of the Cards today, than the once-invincible Cardinals will be tied with the Reds in the Central.

5. Rocket takeoff: Roger Clemens pitched his first in a series of minor-league rehab starts on Tuesday, and the results were just alright. Clemens gave up a homer in the first inning, but didn’t allow a run the rest of his three innings pitched. He struck out six, threw 62 pitches, and allowed three hits for the Lexington Legends. Next he’ll go to double-A until he arrives June 22 in what will be the most anticipated mid-season free agent debut in history.