Baseball Source

On Baseball: Baseball stuck with Bonds for next year

2006-10-01T21:16:00.000-04:00

Frank Robinson's baseball career ended with typical class Saturday, and it's difficult to catalog all the Hall of Famer has given to the game in his 51 seasons. But would it be asking too much to request one final favor? Take Barry Bonds with you, Frank. As the game approaches its annual October celebration of greatness, baseball's most depressing lab experiment in artificial greatness refuses to follow Robinson's example. Bonds made it clear last week that he intends to subject the sport to his milk-curdling presence again next year. (Oh, excuse me, that's assuming his family agrees, Bonds said. We all know what a paragon of family values the serial adulterer is.) Fabulous. Another year of nonstop coverage of the least popular figure in sports (sorry, T.O.), another round of checking for federal indictments along with the standings, another season of insulting banners and boos with every at-bat.

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Baseball looking at Olympic return

2006-09-18T22:13:00.000-04:00

The earliest it can win reinstatement is 2009, when the International Olympic Committee considers the sports program for the 2016 Games. The International Baseball Federation said Friday that it has set up a commission "to evaluate and resolve the problems connected with baseball's return to the Olympic program." The move came after a meeting in Rome of international baseball officials from 22 countries. Raffaele Pagnozzi, secretary of the Italian and European Olympic Committees, said he expected baseball to be readmitted "very soon." Baseball and softball were dropped from the Olympics after the 2008 Beijing Games in an IOC vote last year. Baseball has been an Olympic sport since 1992, but will not be part of the 2012 London Games. 2008 GAMES: The host city of the Summer Games is considering hospitalizing the mentally ill, relaxing restrictions on religious services and giving many businesses and factories a holiday as possible contingency measures during the Beijing Olympics.

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Notes: Sanchez says he's not sagging

2006-09-10T17:40:00.000-04:00

CINCINNATI -- Freddy Sanchez can see the question coming from a mile away and, quite frankly, he's sick of having to answer it. No, it's not the inquiries about Sanchez's chase for the batting title that bother him. He's used to dealing with those on a daily basis. What really gets under Sanchez's skin is the question of his durability. Unfairly, perhaps, Sanchez has been tagged as a guy who might wear down as the season progresses. It's an issue that, in no small part, led the Pirates to sign Joe Randa in the offseason and forced Sanchez to hit his way off of the Bucs' bench. With Sanchez mired in a 1-for-13 slump that has dropped his September batting average to .234, is he starting to wear down? "Wearing down? Come on. Of course I am not," Sanchez said.

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MSU Begins Fall Baseball Practice On Labor Day

2006-09-02T17:58:00.000-04:00

STARKVILLE, Miss. - A decades old MSU baseball tradition continues September 4 at Dudy Noble Field when Mississippi State's Baseball Bulldogs begin their fall "off-season work" on Labor Day. Ron Polk, beginning his 28th season as Mississippi State head coach, said 65 players are expected to begin MSU's six-week fall drills Monday. A staggered Monday practice schedule will begin at 11:30 a.m. and continue through the afternoon. Most fall practice sessions will be held in the afternoons at Dudy Noble Field and all are open to the public. "A total evaluation of the players is the focus of our fall practice," said Polk. "Were anxious to see what kind of shape our 35 returning players are in and get our first look at our new signees and walk-on candidates." The Bulldogs return four position starters and 18 letter-winners from the 2005 club that posted a 37-23 record and advanced to the championship of the NCAA Clemson Regional in South Carolina.

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Baseball: Twins Beat White Sox in Playoff Chase

2006-08-28T00:02:00.000-04:00

The Minnesota Twins have moved closer to securing a playoff spot in Major League Baseball's post-season with an extra-inning win over the Chicago White Sox. Minnesota's Nick Punto drove in the winning run in the top of the 11th inning Saturday to give the Twins an 8-7 victory over the defending World Series champion White Sox. The Twins also moved within four games of American League Central division-leading Detroit, as the Tigers lost to the Cleveland Indians, 8-5. Elsewhere in the American League, the Los Angeles Angels beat the New York Yankees 12-7. The Kansas City Royals shut down the Toronto Blue Jays 2-0. The Baltimore Orioles eked out a 3-2 win over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays when Ramon Hernandez drove in the game-ending run with two outs in the ninth inning.

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Former FSU baseball player Mientkiewicz to have surgery

2006-08-25T23:00:00.000-04:00

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Royals first baseman Doug Mientkiewicz - who played at Florida State in the early 1990s - was scheduled for Thursday for season-ending back surgery on Aug. 29. The operation will be performed in Los Angeles by Dr. Robert Watkins, who will remove a portion of the herniated disc that has been causing Mientkiewicz to lose strength in one leg.

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Baseball collector dumping Bonds

2006-08-25T05:46:00.000-04:00

A baseball memorabilia collector is parting with the highlights of his Barry Bonds collection, saying the Giants star treated him poorly during a federal investigation into sales of Bonds collectibles. "I can't stand the guy," said Jeff Kranz of Phoenix, who began collecting Bonds baseball cards in 1988. Kranz also said the value of his collection has decreased because of Bonds' alleged steroid use. The collection is being auctioned online by Lelands.

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