centerfield maz

James Otis Crandall was born October 8th, 1887 in Wadena, Indiana. He was signed by the New York Giants in 1908 & became one of the first pitchers to be used primarily in Relief. He earned the nickname "Doc" because he was able to recuperate sick Giants games. Team mate Damon Runyon said he was "the physician of the pitching emergency." In his first season in New York he went 12-12 third on the Giants staff behind Christy Mathewson (37 wins) & Hooks Wiltse (23 wins) posting a a 2.93 ERA. Over the next five seasons he would close out & finish the most games in the league each year. Crandall also led the league in reief wins from 1910-1912 in pennant years with the Giants. In 1910 he won a career high 17 games (17-4) with an .810 winning % while posting a 2.56 ERA. The Giants would win N.L. Pennants three straight seasons from 1911-1913, losing in the World Series twice to Connie Mack's Philadelphia Athletics & once to the Boston Red Sox. ...

Charles Joseph Hiller was born on October 1, 1934 in Johnsburg, Illinois. The five foot eleven, left hand hitter attended the University of St. Thomas at St. Paul Minnesota.  He would eventually sign a contract with the Cleveland Indians as an amateur free agent in 1957. The next year he was drafted away by the San Francisco Giants & hit .334 at AA Rio Grande in 1960. In 1961 he made the Giants big league squad for Opening Day, getting a hit in his career first game. He was batting .230 by early July & was sent down to AAA where he hit .324 getting called up again in September. Upon his return he had three hits in his first game back, coming against the Philadelphia Phillies. In 1962 he played every game for the Giants at second base, batting .276 with 139 singles (6th in the NL) 13 sac hits (2nd in the NL) 7 sac flies (5th in the NL) 3 HRs 22 doubles 48 RBIs & a .334 on base %.  Trivia: He earned the nick name “Iron Hands” after making 29 errors duri...

Friday October 1st 2016: Terry Collins New York Mets (86-74) guaranteed themselves of at least playing after Sundays last regular season game. Tonight after the Mets downed the Phillies in Philadelphia they reduced their magic number down to one to clinch a wild card spot & a chance for post season action. Jay Bruce, the latest hot hitting Mets hero had a big three hit, three RBI night where he homered for his third straight game. After his benching that seemed like a lifetime ago, Bruce has hit 4 HRs with 8 RBIs in six games. Yes it seems, finally Bruce is on the Loose! Bruce now has 99 RBIs for the season to match his 33 HRs. The center of the Mets offense, Yoenis Cespedes added another RBI as well, giving him 86 on the season. Many of these pennant chasing Mets were not even on the roster when this season started & New York was setting out to avenge their NL Championship title. But injuries, season ending injuries no less, have made this a different ball club. ...

Jeffrey James Reardon was born October 1, 1955 at Pittsfield, Massachusetts. The six foot right hander was signed to a minor league deal out of the University of Massachusetts with the New York Mets in 1977. He won 17 games at AA Jackson the next season getting pushed up to the next AAA level. He was 5-2 with five saves & a 2.09 ERA, at AAA Tidewater in 1979. Trivia: The bearded Reardon, says the origin of the beard was not for intimidation but for the fact as soon as he would shave, he'd have to shave again. It made his life easier. He made his MLB debut in June 1979 earning a win in his first game, pitching one inning relief against the Atlanta Braves. He was back down in Tidewater after that game returning to Shea Stadium at the end of August. Reardon earned his first career save on September 28th against the St. Louis Cardinals in the first game of a double header. In 18 appearances he earned two saves posting a 1.74 ERA going 1-1 for the '79 Mets. In 1980 h...

October 3rd, 1979: In 1979 Pope John Paul II visited Shea Stadium as 60,000 showed up to pay tribute to the future Saint. The Mets had a horrible year that season & the Pope certainly drew more people & had a better outing. According to heads groundkeeper Pete Flynn, he said it rained all day but when the Pope came out the skies stopped raining & the Heavens shined down on him. It was a great day in Shea Stadium history. Quotes: John Paul II at Shea- " A city needs a soul if it is to become a true home for human beings.”

an obit for Marty Balin of one of centerfieldmaz' favorite bands of the sixties Martyn Jerel Buchwald, later to be known as Marty Balin, was born January 30 th 1942 in Cincinnati, Ohio. His family eventually moved west to San Francisco, where he aspired to be a singer. Inspired by rock & roll of the Beatles & the British Invasion, combined with the folk of the Byrds & Simon & Garfunkel's success, he went into that direction. Balin's drive would help him be one of the first key people to develop the "San Francisco sound" of the sixties. First, Balin convinced three other investors to go in with him, in transforming an old pizzeria into a night club on Filmore Street.  This became the Matrix, a groundbreaking club which began to host bands, accompanied by light shows with local artists drawing up colorful posters to advertise the events. An incredible list of bands like the Doors, the Grateful Dead, Big Brother & the Holding Company fe...