credmond@watmath.UUCP (Chris Redmond) (12/10/85)
There's something cold and white flying through the air and piling up on the ground, and since I *know* it isn't Blue Jays opening day :-) and since the traffic on net.sport.baseball has slowed to a trickle of stubborn statistical argument, I know it must be that most dreaded of seasons, winter. So . . . would other people who are missing their daily fix of Tom and Jerry talking about "ducks on the pond", "Doctor Longball making a house call", dear old Cliff Johnson going "oh fer", "long loud outs" and all the other good stuff [yes, those are Blue Jay localisms, but surely everybody's got a local equivalent of Tom and Jerry!] please offer some suggestions on how to get through the next few months? I've got some fragments of baseball on tape, but they'll hardly last me till April! Are any of the table ball games any good, for instance? And what is the best off-season reading material?
jsl@princeton.UUCP (Jong Lee) (12/11/85)
> Are any of the table ball games any good, for instance?
Stratomatic baseball is pretty fun. I used to play it about
eight or nine years ago with a few friends who were as hard
core as I was (for a while anyway). It would have been really
fun with more players though; but with four people, the all-star
teams that we picked were pretty awesome. The best parts of the
game is 1) The Draft, 2) A few loosen up games (akin to spring
training), 3) Trades (get rid of bad performers in 2).), and
4) Keeping statistics of your team (aren't all baseball fans
crazy about stats?).
A fault with this game is
that, one can pull "fast ones"; that is, players that only had
100 at bats could be played regularly -- but we took this into
account as Scouting, whoever ordered the set of cards would
browse thru them before the others had a chance. It kept us
pale and flabby thru several winters, as if we didn't stay indoors
enough already.
Sun_Man@princeton
*** REPLACE THIS LINE WITH YOUR MESSAGE ***gds@mit-eddie.UUCP (Greg Skinner) (12/12/85)
I found something interesting on cable TV one afternoon, on the SIN
(Spanish International Network?) they telecast Winter League Baseball.
Didn't think I was going to see any baseball until the spring -- it was
quite a pleasant surprise. Unfortunately the sportscasting is all in
Spanish (unless you speak it, I suppose).
Anyway, what do folks think about the trade of Joaquin Andujar to the
Giants? If he shapes up that could really turn the Giants around, what
with their other trades. However that could put St. Louis in a more
vulnerable position on the mound -- no doubt they will miss those 21
wins. The Mets are probably ecstatic over this trade -- if Darling,
Gooden and Fernandez win at least 55 between them, that ought to be
enough to keep their distance from the rest of the NL East.
Mets in '86!
Catch the rising stars!
--
It's like a jungle sometimes, it makes me wonder how I keep from goin' under.
Greg Skinner (gregbo)
{decvax!genrad, allegra, ihnp4}!mit-eddie!gds
gds@mit-eddie.mit.edubob@pedsgd.UUCP (Robert A. Weiler) (12/12/85)
Organization : CONCURRENT Computer Corp, Tinton Falls NJ Keywords: In article <394@watmath.UUCP> credmond@watmath.UUCP (Chris Redmond) writes: {...} > >please offer some suggestions on how to get through the next >few months? I've got some fragments of baseball on tape, but >they'll hardly last me till April! > >Are any of the table ball games any good, for instance? >And what is the best off-season reading material? Truth to tell Chris, I thought maybe our news feed broke. I mean jeez, the winter meetings are comming, big deals are being made, the free agent market is dead ( maybe thorugh colusion ); all sorts of stuff to talk about and hardly a peep. So.. 1) Who can tell me anything interesting about Bob Ojeda, recently acquired by the Mets in exchange for Cal Shiraldi? 2) Any guesses on where is Tom Seaver going to play next year? 3) The Pirates have a new manager with no previous major league experience. How do you Pirate fans feel about this? ( ARE there any Pirate fans?) 4) How does Whitey Herzog plan to use Clint Hurdle just drafted from the Mets? What happens if he doesnt make the team, is he a free agent? 5) Who are the best rookie prospects for next year? 6) Seems to me the Phillies got a great deal in the Virgil-Bedrosian/Thompson trade. Did they? Hope this can get some discusion started. PS Nitendeno VS Baseball video game isnt too bad when you get desperate.
kaufman@uiucdcs.CS.UIUC.EDU (12/12/85)
> Are any of the table ball games any good, for instance?
I haven't seen the game, but according to the latest Sporting News (the one
with Kirk Gibson on the cover, I believe in the Keeping Score section), a
company in Wisconsin is coming out with a new game called "Pursue the
Pennant", priced around $30 (US). If you can imagine a game that makes
the Strat-O-Matics of this world sound juvenile, this may be it. According
to TSN, during a playtest of a hypothetical World Series (they ran Yankees
vs. Mets), Billy Martin was kicked out of the 7th game for kicking dirt on
Don Denkinger. Think of it - umpire cards! Other interesting items
include modifications for stadium and wind direction, and best of all,
a Hotheaded Dominican Pitcher factor. Honest. I'm not making this up.
The article also says average playing time is 40 minutes.
Ken Kaufman (uiucdcs!kaufman)citrin@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU (Wayne Citrin) (12/13/85)
In article <394@watmath.UUCP> credmond@watmath.UUCP (Chris Redmond) writes: >And what is the best off-season reading material? Here are a number of recommendations. Unfortunately I don't have the volumes at hand, so I can't provide publishers or, in some cases, authors: Roger Angell's baseball essays are some of the best modern basebell writing around. He writes two long baseball articles for the New Yorker each year, one after spring training, and one after the World Series. His latest post-season article was just published a week ago in The New Yorker. "Late Innings" is a collection of his previous articles. It's available in paperback. Roger Kahn is another author mentioned in the same breath as Angell. His "The Boys of Summer" is a classic, and he has a new book out, "Good Enough to Dream," about his experiences as the owner of a minor league club. I haven't read it, but it's gotten favorable reviews. "The Unforgettable Season" is a collection of newspaper reports tracing the course of the amazing 1908 National League pennant race. It reads like a novel, and offers fascinating insights into the sporting life and sports journalism of the time. It's available in paperback from the Penguin Sports Library. If you're looking for baseball fiction, I enthusiattically recommend "Shoeless Joe," by W. P. Kinsella, available in paperback. It's impossible to describe, but wonderful. Kinsella's collection of baseball short stories "The Thrill of the Grass" is also good. You might try going back to Bernard Malamud's "The Natural." Although Malamud's writing style and lack of baseball knowledge is infuriating at times, the story, which is different from, and much more cynical than that of the film, is still compelling. If you have a rich relative, you might try asking him or her to get you the new book of Topps baseball cards. This book has reproductions of every Topps' card from 1951 to the present. It goes for $75, though. Although I've grown tired of Bill James' Baseball Abstracts, his Historical Abstract, which should be out soon, should be interesting. Finally, a subscription to "The Sporting News" should keep even the most baseball-starved fan going through the winter. Wayne Citrin (ucbvax!citrin)
flynn@acf2.UUCP (Susan Flynn) (12/13/85)
I'll forgive a Met fan anthing, but Andujar was traded to the A's not
the Giants. I don't know if losing Andujar will particularly hurt the Cards,
but I certainly enjoy seeing the White Rat eat his words.
Susan Flynnjeff@utastro.UUCP (Jeff Brown the Scumbag) (12/14/85)
> Stratomatic baseball is pretty fun.
I'll second that. We had an annual double-elimination tourney
every year involving all the major league teams. As 26 teams
doesn't fill a full tournament, we threw in 6 "banjo teams"
drafted from the worst of the previous years' players. The
"worst" was based purely on BA in each position, and ERA for
pitchers. Playing a banjo team was more fun than some real teams
and some implausible things happened; the most successful banjo
team of all time was the Mukilteo Fairies who finished 4th,
eliminating the Dodgers and coming within a hairsbreadth of
making it to the final game; Mike "One-ball" Parrott was the
ace of the staff. Good beer-and-popcorn stuff to last the
winter months.
Jeff Brown the Scumbag
{allegra,ihnp4}!{noao,ut-sally}!utastro!jeff
jeff@astro.UTEXAS.EDU
Astronomy Department, U. of Texas, Austinnichols@h.cs.cmu.edu (David Nichols) (12/15/85)
In article <373@pedsgd.UUCP> bob@pedsgd.UUCP (Robert A. Weiler,7343) writes: >3) The Pirates have a new manager with no previous major league experience. > How do you Pirate fans feel about this? ( ARE there any Pirate fans?) > Yeah, there are a few of us. I don't mind seeing a new guy managing. Leyland is highly thought of by some baseball folks, and I'm ready for some new faces around here. He and Schueler (sp?) are making a special project of Jose Deleon; there are rumors that he will be converted to short relief. The Bucs aren't going to contend next year, but it's going to be alot more fun watching guys like Orsulak, Brown, and Khalifa that it has been watching Hendrick and Kemp. The new management has vowed not to try any quick fixes, but to rebuild slowly. I pretty much agree with this, and am looking forward to watching the young guys start to develop. If you haven't read it yet, go get a copy of "Dollar Sign on the Muscle." Books are a very important way of getting through the winter. -- ARPA: David.Nichols@h.cs.cmu.edu UUCP: {seismo,decvax,allegra}!rochester!cmu-cs-pt!cmu-cs-h!nichols
eagle@ihlpg.UUCP (John Blumenstein) (12/19/85)
> I know it must be that most dreaded of seasons, winter. Usually is but this year we have the Bears > Are any of the table ball games any good, for instance? A group of us play a game called APBA baseball during our lunch hours. During the regular season we have a draft league where we draft and trade players on the previous season's stats. We presently have 16 teams but are growing large. In this league you are a coach and general manager and can do any thing you want with your team. During the unbearable winter we hold our draft and do replays of other years in baseball. We finished up the 1948 National and American League season and the 1916 American season. We are now half way through the 1916 National league season. APBA baseball is not found in stores but through mail order. They advertise in the Sporting News and some baseball magazines(probably in the up coming months). There are 2 version, basic (for beginners - what we use in our league since we are still getting new owners) and the master game. The total basic package is $43.50 (includes 1985 season cards, play boards, storage box, dice, and 1-year subscription to the APBA Journal when ordered throut the APBA Journal. After that you only buy the cards. They also have Football , Golf ... > And what is the best off-season reading material? I have enjoyed Ron Luciano's book, "The Umpire Strikes Back" and hinted to my wife to get me his second book "Strike Two" which I hear is also enjoyable. Good Luck over the winter. John Blumenstein -- John T. Blumenstein ihlpg!eagle -------------------------------------------------------------------- Sulu: "They say she has transwarp drive." Scotty: "Aye, and if my mother had wheels she would be a wagon."
john@cisden.UUCP (John Woolley) (12/20/85)
In article <394@watmath.UUCP> credmond@watmath.UUCP (Chris Redmond) writes: >And what is the best off-season reading material? One I really enjoyed that came out earlier this year (I think) was a novel about a team *all* of whose players were suffering from deep depressions, called _The_Greatest_Slump_of_All_Time_, by Donald Carkeet. Very funny, lots of good baseball. -- Peace and Good!, Fr. John Woolley "The heart has its reasons that the mind does not know." -- Blaise Pascal