Baseball Digest articles from June 2001

Baseball Digest archives from June 2001

Un-Covering the Past CECIL COOPER.(play of former Milwaukee Brewer)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2001... Former Brewers slugger appeared on Baseball Digest cover 20 years ago Twenty summers ago, Cecil Cooper was at the height of his major league career and on the verge of bringing the Brewers their most exciting team in franchise history. ...

Letters to the Editor The Fans Speak Out.
June 1, 2001... Many players who are not in the Hall of Fame have just been forgotten. One of them is pitcher Jack W. Taylor. Taylor played ten years, from 1898 to 1907 for the Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals. He won 20 games four times, in 1902,...

U.S. Stamps Honoring Old Major League Parks Arouse Fond Memories.
June 1, 2001... DURING THE MONTH OF JUNE, THE U.S. POSTAL SERVICE WILL ISSUE A NEW set of 34-cent stamps honoring legendary baseball parks that were home grounds for many of the greatest players in history. These stamps depict six parks no longer in...

Giants' Jeff Kent Has A Burning Passion for Success.(San Francisco Giants second baseman)
June 1, 2001... Winner of the National League's MVP Award in 2000 thrives on his preparedness for each at-bat RUNNERS ON BASE. GAME HANGING in the balance. Tension so thick it clogs the arteries of the weak-hearted. And yet, there stands Jeff Kent at home...

Majors' Five-Tool Players Who Are They?(skills of baseball players)
June 1, 2001... HIT FOR AVERAGE, HIT FOR POWER, STRONG THROWING ARM, RUN THE BASES SKILLFULLY, PLAY SOLID DEFENSE THE PRECIOUS FIVE-TOOL PLAYER. The precious five-tool player? In a game full of such labels and rash generalizations, it may be the most...

300 Yankees' Roger Clemens Closing in on Historic Milestone.(New York Yankees)
June 1, 2001... WHEN ROGER CLEMENS HEADED to Winter Haven, Florida, for his first professional spring training in 1983, his mother handed him a note. It wasn't a motherly to-do list about acting like a professional. She didn't tell him to eat his Wheaties. ...

BASEBALL PROFILE.(player Eric Young)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2001... ERIC YOUNG FULL NAME: Eric Orlando Young AGE, HT., WT.: 33, 5-8, 175 Born: May 18, 1967 HOME: Chattanooga, Tennessee STATUS/FAMILY: Married with one child NICKNAME: E.Y. LIFE OUTSIDE BASEBALL: I like to spend time...

Baseball's `Late-Bloomers'.(players whose play improves as they get older)
June 1, 2001... Struggling to get their careers on track, many players have spent several years in the minors before they established themselves in the majors IN THIS AGE OF INSTANT GRATIFICATION, it may seem old fashioned, as well as wearing on the...

Jeff Bagwell HOUSTON'S INSPIRATIONAL LEADER.(Houston Astros)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2001... Astros' star keeps his focus on team goals as he seeks to match his performance of last season SOMETIMES HE CAN SEE THEM looking, or perhaps feel then is a more accurate way of putting it. After all, he's Jeff Bagwell and to the younger...

For Pitchers WHEN IS IT PAIN AND WHEN IS IT ROUTINE?
June 1, 2001... Young hurlers trying to make their mark are often reluctant to complain about nagging arm trouble WHEN YOU LOOK UP THE BIO OF almost any pitcher in a team's press guide, you find the obvious stats that qualify him to be a major leaguer:...

Carrying His Weight.(New York Yankees outfielder Paul O'Neill)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2001... Yankees' Paul O'Neill Continues To Produce Veteran right fielder has played on world championship teams five times, and would like to make it six in 2001 THE YELLING, THE EXPRESSIONS OF languish, they can get old quickly, and so the...

JEFF CIRILLO Colorado's Mr. Consistency.(Colorado Rockies third baseman)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2001... Rockies' third baseman has been a steady producer at the plate over the last five seasons in the majors IT'S STRANGE HOW IN A WORLD where superb athletes are glorified as gods, consistent players are taken for granted. As the Colorado...

Baseball Quick Quiz.(Brief Article)
June 1, 2001... Collect ten points for each question answered correctly. Answers on page 95. (If you score 80 or better, you are a baseball expert; 70 or better, superior; between 60 and 70, good, and between 40 and 60, average. 1. There are only two...

OUTSTANDING IN HIS FIELD.(Cleveland Indians shortstop Omar Vizquel)
June 1, 2001... With His Glove, Omar Vizquel Ranks Among the Best Cleveland shortstop has won eight straight Gold Gloves for his excellence on defense ALEX RODRIGUEZ HAS HIS ULTIMATE Omar Vizquel moment. Everyone does. A-Rod hit a bullet --"the...

Bill Mazeroski Awaits His Induction to Hall of Fame.(Pittsburgh Pirates second baseman)
June 1, 2001... Former Pirate second baseman earned his way to the shrine in Cooperstown with his superb play on defense BILL MAZEROSKI'S LONG WAIT ended last March 6. So did that of his friends and former Pirates teammates. "Twenty-five years ago, his...

Chicago's Invisible Star.(Chicago White Sox fielder Magglio Ordonez)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2001... Magglio Ordonez Carries A Big Stick for White Sox Although he has gained little national attention, young right fielder continues to post impressive stats AFTER A WHITE SOX TRAINING camp dominated by the news of Frank Thomas'...

FIERCE COMPETITOR.(Atlanta Braves third baseman Eddie Matthews)
June 1, 2001... Eddie Mathews Overlooked As One of the Game's Greats Braves third baseman became the seventh player in major league history to club 500 lifetime home runs TOUGH. FIERCE. COMPETITIVE. When you talk to those who played baseball with...

How Much Protective Gear Should Batters Be Allowed?
June 1, 2001... Increased use of elbow padding allows hitters to lean over plate with little fear of hard, inside pitches ON ONE SIDE OF THE ASTROS' clubhouse, there was Craig Biggio--with the boyish good looks, ruffling through a stack of fan mail and...

Hard Work Pushes Fernando Vina to Excel.(St. Louis Cardinals second baseman)(Brief Article)
June 1, 2001... Cardinals' second baseman sets his sights on being the best player at his position in the majors ROBERTO ALOMAR AND JEFF KENT hit better than Fernando Vina. But their range might not be as good as Vina's range. Same for Edgardo Alfonzo....

Baseball Rules Corner.(how baseball teams steal signs from each other in the past and present)
June 1, 2001... Stealing signs during a game has been part of baseball for years SIGN STEALING HAS BEEN A BASEBALL art longer than we've been singing "Take Me Out To The Ballgame". Pilfering an opposing pitcher's habits or tendencies before throwing...

Alphabetical Career Leaders.(achievements of baseball players)(Illustration)
June 1, 2001... Alphabetical Career Leaders The following charts are the top five career batting leaders--in selected categories--by each letter in the alphabet through the 2000 season. Active players and current players closing in on the top five are...