September 22, 2008 - I’m not a huge baseball fan but I am a fan of sports history and trivia so my interest was piqued when New York’s iconic Yankee Stadium staged its final game on Sunday to end 85 years of history.
Julia Ruth Stevens (92), daughter of legendary slugger Babe Ruth, tossed out the ceremonial first pitch in front of 54,000 nostalgic fans. Ruth hit the first home run on the stadium’s opening day in 1923
“I’m very sad to see Yankee Stadium will not be in existence any longer,” she told reporters. “I will always have memories of my father hitting towering home runs into the grandstands. He was very honored that the writers nicknamed it ‘The House that Ruth Built.”‘
According to MLB.com
Ruth Stevens still has memories of her father slamming long home runs, starting with 1927 in Yankee Stadium. And even though it’s terrible to think the ballpark has reached its final days, she understands that this moment had to come at some point.
While it was fitting for the daughter of the greatest player in franchise history to open the final game in the house her father “built,” Ruth Stevens knew the Babe would have been amused by the sight of the ball falling well short of the catcher’s glove.
When it was completed in 1923, the Bronx landmark, Yankee Stadium, cost a whopping $2.5 million. The new Yankee Stadium, to be built across the street, is estimated to cost 1.3 billion dollars!
RIP Yankee Stadium.
Filed under: Baseball, News Bytes by jane
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If you’ve ever heard the expression “You throw like a girl,” it means your throw kinda sucks.
The “girl throw” refers to a wimpy style a lot of girls seem to have. Girls often face the target with their forearm cocked back and the ball in their upturned palm. Then they throw with just the arm (rather than the whole body). The action is usually limited to a quick extension of the forearm. Essentially, girls tend to “push” the ball rather than hurl it.
Well, before we go any further - let’s get one thing straight. Girls can throw. In fact, many girls can throw harder and faster than a lot of guys. Softball players like Jennie Finch can pitch a ball close to 90 miles per hour.
Some people think the reason for the “girl throw” is based on physical differences between guys and girls. Not. If you ask an orthopedist, an anatomist, or a coach of a women’s softball team, they’ll tell you that there is no anatomical reason why boys and girls throw differently.
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Filed under: 101-Basics, Baseball, Softball, Tips, Training by Pretty Tough
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PORT ST. LUCIE, FLORIDA Feb. 26, 2008 - The four umpires met at home plate before the game, took a quick group photo and bumped fists for good luck. Then they jogged to their positions, ponytails flapping all the way.
Four female umpires, working Tuesday’s New York Mets’ exhibition opener against the University of Michigan, may have contributed to the most obscure Major League Baseball history ever made.
The unique crew consisted of Perry Barber calling balls and strikes at home plate, Mona Osborne at first base, Theresa Fairlady at second base and Ila Valcarcel, a Girl Scout leader from Pine Island, at third base.
Fairlady reached the Double-A level in the late 1980s and Barber and Valcarcel went to the Harry Wendelstedt umpiring school in 2005 and work college games. Barber, who lives in New York and Clearwater and has helped find spring-training umpires for the Mets for 25 years. Osborne is a former college umpire.
Female umpires are rare, but not unheard of, since they legally won the right to participate in professional baseball in 1972. No woman has ever worked a regular-season major-league game, but last March, Ria Cortesio became the first woman in 18 years to umpire an exhibition game.
What’s it really like for the gals calling the game?
Full story
Filed under: Baseball by jane
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Jan. 27, 2008 - Last year, “Charmed” star and notorious baseball fan, Alyssa Milano, created TOUCH, a sportswear line that offers cute Major League Baseball jerseys, hats and jeans for women.
Now, she’s teamed up with G-III Sports to add several more sports franchises, including the National Hockey League (NHL), the National Football League (NFL), National Basketball Association (NBA), and the Collegiate Licensing Company (CLC), to the collection.
Milano explains: “Female fans are loyal, passionate, stylish and feminine. It’s these core principles that are behind my design philosophy. I am very excited to bring TOUCH apparel to female sports fans everywhere.”
Now, even Jessica Simpson can get cute Dallas Cowboys’ gear!
Filed under: Baseball, Fashion by jane
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September 22, 2008 - I’m not a huge baseball fan but I am a fan of sports history and trivia so my interest was piqued when New York’s iconic Yankee Stadium staged its final game on Sunday to end 85 years of history.
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