One of these years, one of these players will appear in his final Major League game and depart with a dubious distinction. Be it Bartolo Colon, 41, (now with the New York Mets), Maicer Izturis, 34 (Toronto), Endy Chavez, 36, or Scott Downs, 38 (currently free agents), or Bruce Chen, 37, (released by Kansas City […]

There are two major poison groups. The most common are those that occur in a natural state: plants, mushrooms, carbon dioxide, and toxins delivered by fangs or bites. But there’s another type equally quick and deadly, Pittsburgh Poison. Depending on the specific poison or toxin, the effect is lethal on the circulatory, respiratory, or nervous […]

Was It Racism, Just a Bad Deal, or Better Than It Looked? The May 1966 trade of San Francisco first baseman Orlando Cepeda to the Cardinals for pitcher Ray Sadecki is generally ranked with that of Lou Brock for Ernie Broglio, Frank Robinson for Milt Pappas, and Babe Ruth forNo, No, Nanette as one of the […]

In the year 2000, Lee Blessing’s play Cobb opened in New York and immediately attracted attention by provocatively placing another man into the context of Ty Cobb’s combative and talented life. In the play, Oscar Charleston—who played for 10 teams in the Negro Leagues between 1915 and 1954 and was known, among other things, as the “black […]

Watching Derek Jeter’s final season unfold brings both joy and sadness for this lifelong Yankee observer and one-time club employee. The joy is in celebrating the 20 years of memories, and the sadness is, of course, that it is coming to a close. I am taken back to 1968, which was Mickey Mantle’s final season. […]