No, I don’t mean the Will Ferrell maple-syrup drinking kind. Nor do I mean the droopy Harry Potter kind. I really don’t mean the “I’ve always wanted to be a dentist!” kind. I’m referring to the badass Lord of the Rings, supernaturally athletic kind. Strasburg is the Legolas of minor-league baseball (for at least another week). Of course, the pointy ears are what give it away. Most elves grow their hair long to hide...
Usually, I find some wacky or mad-impressive stat to focus on in this space. Today, however, we’re celebrating a truly impressive achievement. Nine days ago, two Great Lakes Loons teammates were headed to the ballpark for a special Mother’s Day game. Pitcher Elisaul Pimintel and second baseman Rafael Ynoa witnessed a motorcycle accident, and rushed immediately to administer first aid while another motorist called for help. The recent story on MiLB.com reported that the...
I have to tell you, it’s a bit strange to see a guy wearing a baseball cap with an ear of corn on it (and the corn is also wearing a cap – whoah). Then you see the guy’s name is Mike Trout. Then you see that Mike Trout in the corn hat is vying to make it to the L.A. Angels, and the cognitive dissonance is complete. Aaaanyway: Trout is awesome. He’s batting...
Happy Cinco de Mayo, Amigos! Time to look at which teams and individuals are heating up the lower leagues. The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers have a powerful offense. The team’s 0.767 OPS reflects 56 doubles, 13 triples and 14 home runs. It’s a balanced, team effort as well, with no one player dominating the production. Infielder Chris Dennis is the home run leader, with 4; Peter Fatse, who also plays in the dirt, has four...
Yesterday, we posted part 1 of our interview with Dr. Dana Blackmer, a sports psychologist who helps athletes develop mental toughness. In part 2, I asked him some very specific questions about how athletes can deal with specific in-game or career challenges that arise regularly. Bus Leagues: A pitcher gives up a home run, and the game is tied. He only has a few seconds to get over his mistake. What should he do?...
Thanks again to Twitter, we have another fascinating interview for you. Dr. Dana Blackmer is a Ph.D. on the adjunct faculty at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond. He’s also the founder and owner of The Extra Gear, where he designs mental conditioning programs to help athletes reach peak performance. I started with some general questions, which we’ll look at today, and delved into the psychology of in-game situations in the second half of our talk....
So, I went on amazon.com the other day because I needed to order a new charging cable for my cellphone. They cost six bucks, but I’m an online shopping junkie. When you work from home, it’s more fun to get a package every once in a while rather than go shopping with retirees at 10 AM. Of course, while I was on the site, my finger slipped and I accidentally ordered a sports book,...
I’ve never looked too much at the “total bases” category, so I have no idea what might be an impressive number, but doesn’t 59 sound incredible? I mean, didn’t the season just start a couple of weeks ago? I don’t think I’ve stepped on that many bases in my entire life. Jerry Sands of the Great Lakes Loons has accomplished all this base-stomping in just 61 at-bats, with a .447 average and 7 homers....
2012 05 14 Scranton Wilks Barre/ Empire State Yankees vs Pawtucket Red Sox
