The A train
The
(A) train is the 8th Avenue Express. It runs between 207 Street
Manhattan through 8th Avenue, into Brooklyn via Fulton Street and
to/from Far Rockaway via Rockaways all times.
Also during the
day additional A train service also starts at 207 Street Manhattan with
the same route as above, but this time goes to and from Lefferts
Boulevard.
Basically all A train service is the same but the two
branches split east of Rockaway Boulevard in the Ozone Park Section of
Queens.
Special rush hour service runs to/from Rockaway Park in Queens (6-9am and 4-7pm).
The
A train is the longest route in the NYC System, traveling 31 miles
along its route, from 207 Street Manhattan to Far Rockaway in Queens.
Here are some images of the (A) train.
Interleague Play, should be played all season long!
Interleague play as you may know in MLB is played on one weekend in May, and about two to three weeks around the Summer. Here is how intereague play is set up.
On the May weekend of interleague play it’s usually the geographical rivals’ game, that are played out. For example, the Yankees play the Mets, the Dodgers play the Angels, the Cubs play the White Sox.
The fact that AL and NL teams don’t play frequently against one another, it’s strange isn’t it? In the NFL, NBA, and NHL the teams of both leagues or conferences take on one another very frequently. Why can’t the MLB leagues follow suit?
If inter league play deserves a spot in the MLB season it should be all season long. I’d get rid of all those extra divisional games (for example Red Sox vs Yankees) and have those two teams face NL teams. When will the Rockies visit Yankee Stadium? Will the Cubs ever hit Fenway Park? Will the Yankees ever go back to San Diego? Will the Twins ever hit Busch Stadium in St Louis? I keep asking myself these questions, because the scheduling of interleague play really is so disorganized.
Some people have problems with inter league play even existing. Reasons include the fact that the MLB All Star game and World Series matchups are losing their value to inter league play because those are usually the times where the AL and NL would only face each other. Before Intereague Play, there was never any regular season games between the American League and the National League. There is now, but it’s very limited.
I like Inter League Play because there’s more value to the game. It’s like the American League and the National League are united. This is the unity that makes Major League Baseball. I think that Baseball should consider extending their interleague games from just one block of the season to throughout. No, I don’t mean have each AL team only face only NL teams, I say that make interleague games sporadic so only games with two teams in the same league can face each other.
My final word is, extend Inter League Play throughout the season, or just don’t do it at all.
Mets-Angels Trade
Mets acquire Gary Matthews Jr. from the Los Angeles Angels. In return the Angels take Brian Stokes, one of the Mets relievers.
All I know is that because the Angels had Torii Hunter play a lot, Matthews did not play too frequently. I say the Mets are winners in this trade, he most likely will get the starting Center Fielder’s job. The Angels have another good relief pitcher in Brian Stokes.
Only time will tell.
Gary batted .250 with four home runs and 50 runs batted in for the Angels.
Brian won two game and lost four while with the Mets. His earn run average was about 3.95, and had two save chances but didn’t get any.
All this information I took from ESPN.com.
Softball, like baseball is a national pastime.
Around the United States, softball is played by approximately 40 million people annually. That’s a lot of people. In fact softball rules are applied more than baseball rules in school classes and recreational events all around the nation and around the world. It is sad though to see this sport along with baseball being sliced off the Olympic Program (I know some of you are tired of mentioning it being cut off, but that’s how agitated I feel about the exclusion about those sporting events)
How is Softball different than baseball?
1. Softballs are either 11-12 inches in circumference whereas a baseball has a 9 inch circumference. Softballs are less dense than baseballs.
2. Softball bats must be no longer than 34 inches in length, wood or aluminum may be used at any level, whereas baseball bats can’t be longer than 42 inches, wood or aluminum may be used at grade school and collegiate level, but wood only in professional level.
3. Baselines in baseball are 90 feet whereas softball’s baselines are 60 feet. In other words a softball field is about two-thirds the size of a baseball field.
4. There is a double first base in softball, not baseball though.
5. Softball pitchers must pitch underhand, Baseball pitchers can pitch overhand or underhand.
6. Balks are a bit iffy. In softball, the pitcher making an illegal motion, is charged with a one ball count if the batter does not reach ball safely. In baseball, runners just move one base, no count change made unless bases empty, then it’s one ball.
7. There’s a raised mound in baseball, in softball, no raised mound, just a circle in the middle.
8. Baseball lasts nine innings, while softball is only seven innings long.
The comparison is between baseball and fastpitch softball. Slowpitch softball might have varied rules that may differ from the fastpich type softball.
My favorite walk-off home runs from 1999-2009
I just thought I would give you my favorite walk off home runs of all time from 1999-2009. They involve the postseason action and regular season, because those home runs won games under many different circumstances.
11. Andre Ethier of the Los Angeles Dodgers had four walk home runs in the 2009 Regular Season. This is him after hitting one of those off the Milwaukee Brewers.
10. Chris Burke of the Houston Astros hits a walk off home run off Joey Devine of the Atlanta Braves in 18 innings of Game four of the 2005 National League Division Series to catapult the Astros to the National League Championship Series. They eventually were swept by the Chicago White Sox in the 2005 World Series.
9. Scott Podsednik of the Chicago White Sox hits a game winning home run off Houston Astros’ closer Brad Lidge in Game 2 of the 2005 World Series. Scott never hit a home run in the 2005 MLB Regular Season, and already this is his second in the 2005 Postseason.
8. David Ortiz of the Boston Red Sox hits a walk off home run off Paul Quantrill of the New York Yankees in Game four of the American League Championship Series, forcing a Game 5. This is not the first walk off home run for Ortiz in this tournament, he had another one against Jarrod Washburn in Game three of the American League division Series to put the Red Sox up to this point.
7. New York Yankees third baseman Aaron Boone hits a home run off Tim Wakefield of the Boston Red Sox in the bottom of the 11th inning. The Yankees would eventually lose to the Marlins in the World Series.
6. David Wright of the New York Mets, hits his first ever walk off home run off the San Diego Padres in the 2008 regular season. He never had a walk off home run ever, not even high school nor college.
5. Robin Ventura of the New York Mets hits a grand slam off Kevin Glinchy of the Braves, however it’s a “grand slam single” because he was unable to touch all four bases, in Game 5 of the 1999 National League Championship Series. The Mets eventually lost that series!
4. Magglio Ordonez of the Detroit Tigers hits a game winning three run home run off Huston Street of the Oakland Athletics, thus completing a sweep of the 2006 ALCS. The Tigers would eventually lose to the St Louis Cardinals in the World Series.
3. How about a grand opening of Nationals Park? Ryan Zimmerman of the Washington Nationals hits a walk off shot against the Atlanta Braves on Sunday Night Baseball. That’s how to get things started for the Nats in 2008!
2. Alex Rodriguez hits a walk off grand slam off Chris Ray of the Baltimore Orioles in 2007. This is his third career walk off Grand Slam.
1. My number one favorite walk off home run moment has to go to Jim Thome of the Chicago White Sox. He hits it off Angels pitcher Dustin Moseley in the 2007 Regular season. What make this more special is that it was his 500th of his career.
To be quite honest, it was hard selecting my favorite walk off home runs, I never been to a game that involved a walk off hit, nor a grand slam. I have had been to games that involved multiple home runs though.
What are your favorite walk off home runs?
2010 Olympics.
NBC Olympic coverage of the Winter 2010 games is coming next month. Oh that reminds me, baseball and softball are not in it at all, kicked out of the summer games from 2012 and on. Anyways, let’s forget that. Here are some events that are coming up for the 2010 winter games.
1. Alpine Skiing
2. Biathlon.
3. Bobsleigh
4. Cross Country
5 Curling
6 Figure Skating
7 Freestyle Skiing
8 Ice Hockey
9 Luge
10 Nordic Combined
11 Short Track
12 Skeleton
13 Ski Jumping
14 Snowboarding
15 Skiing
For more info go here: http://www.vancouver2010.com/ There’s information about each sport if you’re not familiar with it, I’m not too familiar with everything yet…
Ice Hockey in the Olympic games means that the NHL Hockey Season may be in hiatus for the duration for the game.
Figure Skating tends to be the most popular sport in these games, as well as Ice Hockey.
The motto for these games is “with glowing hearts”
The Games begin February 12 and end February 28 on the networks of NBC
Today is Martin Luther King Junior Day!
Today is Martin Luther King
Junior Day! We are here to celebrate one of the greatest reverends in the
history of this great nation, the United States of America.
Let’s see, what Martin
Luther King Jr. did that was so significant in our nation were the following:
1. King Jr. was a prominent
leader in the Civil Acts movement.
2. He led the 1955
Montgomery Bus boycott. The boycott was because people of certain color were
sitting in certain sections of the buses. Dark skinned people sat in the back,
while the whites sat in the front.
3. He is most famous for
his “I have a dream speech” (I will not post the text here, since that can be found
anywhere in search engines.
4. He did not support the Vietnam War because the funding could have gone to help the issues of poverty and social welfare.
5. Here’s a video of that speech.
My thoughts about Barry Bonds
Barry Bonds is a baseball player that’s not retired yet, although we may not get a chance to see him play again. Here is my take on the outfielder.
Barry Bonds has to be
amongst the most appreciated baseball players around, however he has been
hounded by several fans as a cheater and a steroid user. I have a message to
those who continue to taunt Bonds as a cheater. It’s not officially proven that
he used steroids, although many people are suspecting that is the case. I do
not believe anything about Barry Bonds using steroids and I continuously refuse
to believe that he cheated unless he confesses or if it’s proven true.
I can understand why fans
think Bonds was on a high in steroids. After all he was thin when he started
with the Pittsburgh Pirates, and became bigger like an American Football
linebacker with the San Francisco Giants. His hitting became better while he
was in the mid 30s when usually their hitting and fielding stats tend to
diminish. Since the speculation of steroids began in the 2000s, Barry has
continually dodged questions regarding Steroids, even to the point where he
cried and played victim. The Media was eating him alive.
In one reality show “Bonds
on Bonds” in the first episode shown on ESPN Bonds said “If it makes them happy to go out
of their way to try to destroy me, go right ahead. You can’t hurt me any more
than you’ve already hurt me,” he said. He continued by saying, “You
don’t see me bringing anyone else into this. I’m going to take it myself.”
Bonds paused as his eyes welled and he choked back tears, “And I’m going
to take it because there’s so many people who depend on me.”
I will be heartbroken to
find out if he actually used performance enhancing drugs. I just can’t imagine
him juicing himself up. According to the book, “The Game of Shadows” published
in 2006, it was said that Bonds was inspired to use steroids when Mark McGwire
used them during the 1998 season. (of course he just admit to that this month)
Was this actually true that he juiced himself to hit 73 home runs in 2001 as a
member of the San Francisco Giants? Many suspect that, but I do not believe
anything about him and steroids.
For now Barry Bonds is the
legit home run king. I know him breaking the home run record by Hank Aaron is
legit. I’ll have to wait for the news and pray that steroids didn’t help him. I
will stand my ground and not believe that he used steroids.
Barry Bonds has not retired
from MLB action, he last played with the San Francisco Giants in the 2007
season and currently hold the record with 762 home runs, but he has not amassed
three thousand hits yet. His Hall of Fame candidacy is not certain yet either. I
wonder why no other team has signed up with him. Oh maybe it’s because pitchers
will throw four baseballs outside of the strike zone so he won’t get anything
to hit. That’s the treatment Bonds has received the last few seasons he’s been
playing.
Barry Bonds was a speedster,
stealing over 500 bases during the course of his career, and a great
outfielder, winning a few gold gloves along the way. He’s also closing in on
2,000 career runs batted in. He’s 45 years old right now, and I think he still
has a few years left of his power, if only a MLB team can give him another
chance besides the San Francisco Giants who won’t sign with him again.
Chances are that he needs
to play in the 2010 season, and so far no one wants to sign with Bonds, fearing
that he might demand some serious cash just to play. He’d still make a good
outfielder, maybe not a fast one, and neither as a base runner, however he
deserves another chance.
If you think he used
steroids, that’s your thought, and I’m not going to argue about it. My
perspective is that he’s innocent until proven guilty.
MLB 2k10
Major League Baseball 2k10 is coming out soon for the 2010 MLB season. I don’t have much information about it, other than the fact that Evan Longoria of the Tampa Bay Rays is in the cover.
According to TGN, which is Total Gaming Network, it was announced at December 14th that Evan Longoria will be on the cover for the game.
“Throughout my career, I’ve taken great pride in my fielding and
defensive ability,” said Longoria. “I’m pumped about the final cover
and sincerely appreciate all the dedicated fans who took time to weigh
in on their favorite image for Major League Baseball 2K10.”
The game comes out this March, and is available for the Nintendo Wii, DS, Playstation 3, and X Box 360.
Steroids and their effects…
This entry won’t be much but when you think about it, steroids do have some positive effects.
Steroids do build muscle mass, they may make a person look stronger. They make a person heal their injuries.
However there are some serious side effects for using steroids!
A person using steroids may run into these problems!
1. High blood pressure.
2. Heart attacks and strokes
3. Liver complications.
4. Mood swings
5. Severe acne may occur
6. Urination problems may occur.
7. Aching joints on muscles
It’s sad that Major League Baseball records are held by players who supposedly used these performance enhancing drugs. In my honest opinion, I have one question to ask “What are you thinking using the drugs?” Some claim they used it as medicine, but to me I see this as more than medicine.
Rich Gossage, states that “cheaters” shouldn’t be in the Hall of fame in baseball? Mark McGwire claims to use “low dosages” Barry Bonds is the Home Run King, and continues to deny using steroids.
Should steroid users be elected to the Hall of fame?
Today there’s a lot of drug testing to detect drug users in sports.
There are commercials informing the dangers of using steroids.
It’s up to us to clean up sports, period.
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