Baseball Digest articles from March 2002

Baseball Digest archives from March 2002

Former players tell how to improve game at major league level. (Warm Up Tosses).(American Baseball League)
March 1, 2002... SPRING TRAINING FOR THE 2002 SEASON WAS STILL IN THE FUTURE WHEN SOME former players were asked for their opinions about the on-field aspects of the game today as compared to the time when they basked in the sunshine of America's favorite...

Texas' Alex Rodriguez: a complete package of talent: Ranger's shortstop is one of the majors' top all-around performers with exceptional skills on both offense and defense. (The A-Rod Era)(Cover Story).(American Baseball League)
March 1, 2002... IN THE FUTURE, BASEBALL paleontologists will gather to discuss the most remarkable events of the early 21st century. They will study fossilized spike prints, old gloves preserved in amber and petrified bats. They will proclaim it the...

Anaheim's Garret Anderson quietly put up big offensive numbers. (Productive Angel).(American Baseball League player)
March 1, 2002... DESPITE BACK-TO-BACK seasons of 117 and 123 RBI, Angels outfielder Garret Anderson has received little notice outside of southern California. With his former reputation as a line-drive, high-average hitter, Anderson's emergence as a power...

Baseball's top major league prospects for 2002: some of the most highly rated rookies for the upcoming season include Cleveland outfielder Alex Escobar and Florida pitcher Josh Beckett.(Amercian Baseball League recruiting)
March 1, 2002... IT'S UNLIKELY THE NEW YORK METS will find Number 7 as lucky in the 2002 major league rookie sweepstakes as the Seattle Mariners did in last year's competition, but you've got to credit them for "rolling the dice." The Mariners, of course,...

Shawn Green: Los Anges dodgers. (Baseball Profile).(American Baseball League player)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2002... FULL NAME: Shawn David Green AGE, HT., Wt.: 29, 6-4, 190 Born: November 10, 1972 HOME: LOS Angeles, California STATUS FAMILY: Single NICKNAME: Flaco, which means skinny in Spanish. LIFE OUTSIDE BASEBALL: I enjoy being outside. I like fishing...

American League. (Rookie Reports).(Baseball player evaluations)(Statistical Data Included)
March 1, 2002... ANAHEIM ANGELS Player: Nathan Haynes Position: OF HT: 5-9 WT: 170 B: L T: L Birthdate: 9/7/79 2001 Minor League Team: Arkansas- AA Comments: Quality player who hustles and plays the game hard. Has tremendous speed which makes him...

Baseball quick quiz.(American Baseball League)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
March 1, 2002... 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 2. Who is the only...

National League. (Rookie Reports).(American Baseball League player evaluations)(Statistical Data Included)
March 1, 2002... ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS Player: Lyle Overbay Position: 1B HT: 6-2 WT: 215 B: L T: L Birthdate: 1/28/77 2001 Minor League Team: El Paso- AA Comments: Solid hitter for average with gap power. Has good knowledge of strike zone and is an...

Minor league hitting leaders, 2001.(Brief Article)(Illustration)(Statistical Data Included)
March 1, 2002... MINOR LEAGUE HITTING LEADERS, 2001 BATTING Player, Team Club BA Jim Rushford, High Desert/Huntsville Brewers .354 Hank Blalock, Charlotte/Tulsa Rangers...

Minor league pitching leaders, 2001.(baseball)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
March 1, 2002... MINOR LEAGUE PITCHING LEADERS, 2001 EARNED RUN AVERAGE Pitcher, Team Club ERA Josh Beckett, Brevard County/Portland Marlins 1.54 Seung Song, Augusta/Sarasota ...

The downfall of former pitcher Denny McLain: ex-big leaguer's career tumbled into trouble and tragedy after he won 31 games for Tigers in 1968 and captured A.L. Cy Young and MVP honors. (Fallen Star).(Statistical Data Included)
March 1, 2002... ALMOST THREE DECADES SINCE his days as a big league pitcher ended, Denny McLain still spends his time with a group of guys. He still puts on a uniform every day. He's still in the news. But the guys are all convicts. The uniform is a dark...

When hitters slump, coaches take the rap: batting instructors are often blamed for the poor performances by the players and clubs they "tutor". (Professional Scapegoats).
March 1, 2002... IF SOMEONE WAS TO ASK WHAT WAS new in baseball this year I would say it was the wholesale dismissal of major league batting coaches. `When the clubs assemble for spring training, believe it or not, half of them will open with a new hitting...

When Al Rosen nearly won the triple crown: former Indians third baseman led American League with 43 homers and 145 RBI, but finished second in batting race with .336 average in 1953. (Close But No Cigar).
March 1, 2002... NO CLEVELAND BASEBALL PLAYER has ever won the American League Triple Crown--leading the league in home runs, runs batted in and batting average in the same season. Third baseman Al Rosen came closest. In 1953, he won the league homer title...

Ted Williams: he mastered the strike zone: Hall of Famer trained himself at a young age never to go after a bad pitch, and as a result became one of the greatest batters of all time. (A Hitting Legend).
March 1, 2002... IN THE 125-YEAR HISTORY OF MAJOR LEAGUE baseball, nobody has ever hit five home runs in a game, pitched three no-hitters in a season, or won more than two Triple Crowns. Winning the baseball trifecta is tough enough to win once: the last...

Baseball rules corner: here are some interesting play situations from 2001 season.(Brief Article)
March 1, 2002... IT'S TIME FOR MY ANNUAL BOBSLED ride through the hills and valleys of the baseball rulebook. So fasten your seat belt while I review some interesting situations that occurred during the 2001 season. MARCH 24--So you think spring training is...

2001 World Series shares.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
March 1, 2002... A FULL WORLD SERIES SHARE FOR THE WORLD CHAMPION ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS WAS $279,260.41 WHILE A share for the American League Champion New York Yankees was $201,014.06. The players' pool--which was formed from 60 percent of the gate receipts...

Major league players with 2,000 career hits.(baseball)
March 1, 2002... THROUGH THE 2001 SEASON, THERE HAVE BEEN 219 MAJOR ague players who have collected 2,000 or more hits during their careers--with ten active players within 200 safeties of reaching the plateau. Among these 219 batters, 103 are right-handers, 94...