Lee Lowenfish

During the 11 PM hour on Oct 24th, the Arizona Diamondbacks shocked the world by eliminating the Philadelphia Phillies and setting up an All-Wild Card and All-Expansion Team World Series against the Texas Rangers (a francise born as the second Washington Senators in 1961) starting on Friday Oct 27 at 8p EDT on FOX.

 

The international trend of today's baseball couldn't have been more on display as the MVPs in each league's Championship Series hail from outside the USA. Rangers' right fielder Adolis Garcia, 30, grew up in Ciego De Avila, Cuba, and the Diamondbacks' switch-hitting second baseman Ketel Marte (Valdez), also 30, comes from Nizao, Dominican Republic. 

 

Nobody talks about October 24th being United Nations Day any more, but I am old enough to remember United Nations Day being celebrated at my small public school in midtown Manhattan.  We sang "The United Nations March" written by great Russian composer Dmitri Shostakovich.  It began, "The sun and the stars are all shining," and continued, "A hymn to a new world in birth." 

 

That age of hope sure didn't last, did it? The UN and the very idea of a UN is in dire straits these days, but I've always believed that a baseball field suggests harmony more than any political structure.  There is a left-center-and-right in both baseball and a legislature, but to hit consistently in the gaps and up the middle remains the best strategy in both our beloved game and politics.  Even though we are not in a pleasant political place these days - to understate our situation I know - I still believe in the analogy.  

 

So let's now hail some of the young international stars whose talents will be on display in the World Series. The Diamondbacks starting catcher Gabriel Moreno, 23, is from Barquisimeta, Venezuela. He may be the toughest hombre still playing in 2023, surviving many recent injuries, one nearly a concussion, to shine this post-season on both sides of the ball. 

 

Arizona left fielder Lourdes Gurriel, Jr., 30, is part of the first family of recent Cuban baseball.  Older brother Yuli Gurriel played for last year's Houston World Series winners and this year for the Miami Marlins. The defection of the Gurriels from Cuba earlier this century was a devastating blow to the Cuban National Team. 

 

What a steal the Diamondbacks pulled off last off-season when they received from Toronto both Gurriel and Moreno in a trade for journeyman outfielder Daulton Varsho.  I understand that the Blue Jays had a backog at catcher but choosing to keep Alejandro Kirk and Danny Jansen - the latter was hurt for crucial parts of this season - now looks like a serious misjudgment.  

 

Every successful team has happy stories like this. I'm pretty sure famed Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy was not a baseball fan, but what he said about all happy families are alike and all unhappy families are unhappy in unique ways sure holds for baseball teams.

 

You cannot talk about the rise of the Diamondbacks - sometimes called Snakes and Serpientes - without mentioning outfielder Corbin Carroll, 23, odds-on favorite to be NL Rookie of the Year.  He comes from Seattle and early on fell in love with Ichiro (Suziki) watching from the upper right field stands the Mariners' great import from Japan.  His game is beginning to remind people of Ichiro's, a deserved compliment.

 

Here's another happy Arizona story - Merrill Kelly, 35, one of the two aces on the pitching staff along with the much younger Zac Gallen.  Kelly, a native of Houston, spent three years playing baseball in the Korean pro league before Arizona brought him back to the States. 

 

I've lauded the Orioles' own 35-year-old finesse pitcher Kyle Gibson many times in this blog for explaining pitching very accessibly to the lay person. Merrill Kelly shared similar insights during the NLCS:  "I have to live on the edges [of the strike zone]," he said. "I make a living by having people [batters] make decisions [on what to swing at]."

 

The Texas Rangers are a less surprising entrant to the World Series because they led the AL West for much of the season until injuries and pitching woes relegated them to a wild card. But like Arizona they had to win the last two games on the road to dethrone the defending world champion Houston Astros.

 

Adolis Garcia was a no-brainer choice for ALCS MVP with his monster homers and fierce presence. The Rangers have another international presence in center fielder Leody Taveras (Salazar), 25, who hails from Tenares, Dominican Republic.  As a key setup man, they have Aroldis Chapman, 35, the former Yankee southpaw from Holguin, Cuba, who is guaranteed to make life interesting for both sides.   

 

On paper, the Rangers look deeper on both sides of the ball, but after sweeping the Brewers and Dodgers and eliminating last year's NL champion Phillies in a seven-game thriller, don't count out Arizona.  If they lose this weekend's two games in Dallas, they can easily say, "We've got them where we want

them on." 

 

That's all for now but here's this weekend's Nor Alley tip - Blake Edwards' "Experiment in Terror" from 1962-63 sometimes called a Hitchcock film that Alfred Hitchcock didn't make.  Lee Remick is stalked by a phone caller (Ross Martin), her sister Stefanie Powers is scared too, and Glenn Ford,

who in real life was a Canadian which may explain his no-nonsense mien, is a policeman trying to help.  The last scene is set in Candlestick Park,

no more spoilers.  Sat Oct 28 at 12M, repeated Su at 10A on TCM.    

 

Always remember - take it easy but take it,  and stay positive, test negative.  I'm happy to report that I am feeling better but always have masks

handy for outdoor/indoor excursions. 

 

 

The World Series was still undecided when I last posted.  Looking back on an interesting Fall Classic, there were too many strikeouts and not enough action-filled games to make it a real classic.

 

It remains very annoying that starting pitchers are not encouraged to go deep into games. Every game now seems to be determined by which bullpen arm screws up.  

 

The Houston-Philadelphia Series certainly had great moments, especially in the crucial Game 5 with the

Series even at 2 games apiece.   As the bottom of the 8th began with the Astros holding onto to a precarious 3-1 lead, I said to myself, "This is a very good game but it needs some great defense to make it truly great."

 

Voila! With the lead cut to 3-2, former Oriole Trey Mancini, an emergency replacement for injured first baseman Yuli Gurriel (whose aging knee gave out in a rundown between third and home), flashed a quick glove over the baseline and came up with Kyle Schwarber's hard grounder to squash a rally and kept Houston in the lead. 

 

Then in the bottom of the 9th with 1 out and Houston leading by only 1 run, Phillies impressive catcher JT Realmuto hit a long drive into the right center field alley that looked like a home run or at least extra bases.  

 

Out of the night came center fielder Chas McCormick sprinting 90 feet to leap at the wall to snare the ball. He landed spread-eagled on his back with the ball in his glove. 

 

Total silence enveloped the once-frenzied ballpark.  Only McCormick knew he made the out.  It was an

unforgettable moment for the unheralded center fielder, a 21st round draft pick who grew up a Phillies fan and attended the 2008 World Series that Philadelphia won over the Tampa Bay Rays.

 

I've said many times that you don't win pennants and World Series without grinders like McCormick.  Earlier in Game 5, Chas hesitated on a fly ball to right center that right fielder Kyle Tucker caught at the

last moment.  

 

After the game McCormick said that he vowed to be aggressive from then on and it sure paid dividends for the Astros.

 

After giving up a record-tying 5 home runs to the Phillies in Game 3 that gave the Phils their 2nd

1-run victory, the exceptional Astros pitchers shut them out. Led by Cristian Javier's six innings, Houston no-hit the Phillies in Game 4 and held them to 3 runs total in the last 3 games.

 

Rookie Jeremy Pena, son of former Cardinals infilelder Geromino Pena, was the MVP of the World Series

and won the same prize during Houston's 4-game sweep of the Yankees in the ALCS.  What a testimony to the scouting and player development departments of the Astros! 

 

They judged correctly that Chas McCormick provided more overalll ability than the traded Miles Straw,

an outstanding defender for Cleveland, and Jose Siri, who has since played for Seattle and Tampa Bay showing flashes of brilliance but not consistency.  

 

And three cheers for manager Dusty Baker who has cemented his place as a future Baseball Hall of Famer.  For some reason, the Hall of Fame refuses to allow player stats to count in a manager's resume.

Dusty amassed nearly 2000 hits in his 19-year MLB career in which he never was on the disabled list and won a World Series with the 1981 Dodgers. Just as important, he remains a vital and positive force in the baseball and larger world.

 

As for the upcoming season, one of my favorite lines about baseball (that probably applies to most sports) is "Every season is different."  As an Oriole fan, I was pleasantly surprised that we rose from the lower depths of the tough AL East to finish four games over .500 at 83-79.

 

However, obvious holes remain in the lineup offensively and the starting rotation has many spots to fill.  The farm system is improved but I hope that the front office doesn't forget - I repeat myself on purpose - that no team truly contends without veteran grinders who come to play hard every day.  

 

To me, that means Jorge Mateo at shortstop should be in the picture with the hope that his streaky

offense becomes less streaky. Maybe Ramon Urias finds a home as a utilty player - ironically he was named Gold Glove third baseman in 2022 but played less than 100 games there. The early analysis  suggests that the position is promising Gunnar Henderson's to lose.  

 

I wouldn't be opposed to a return of Roughned Odor who brought pizzazz to the team but I doubt he'd accept an utility role even smaller than Urias whose brother Luis incidentally plays mainly 3rd base for the Brewers. Spring training starting early February should certainly provide many clues.

 

I don't bet, but I would be very surprised if Aaron Judge did not return to the Yankees.  His eventual signing might be drawn out because he is a member of the Players Association executive board though

as of early 2022, one of only three members of the board not a client of Scott Boras.  

 

So maybe Judge won't ask for every dollar or every additional year.  As for the other free agent drama in

NYC pro baseball, I don't think Jacob DeGrom returns to the Mets.  He has been injured so much

in recent years that I think his long-term health raises serious questions.

 

Whatever happens in all these free agent signings, always remember another wise old adage:
LET THE BUYER BEWARE.

 

As for my teams playing winter sports, Wisconsin football limped to a 6-6 record, firing its coach Paul Chryst after a 2-3 start punctuated by a rout at home against Illinois coached by former coach Brett Bielema.  

 

Jim Leonhard, the home-grown defensive coordinator and former NFL standout, finished the year 4-3, but in a Sunday afternoon Nov 27 shocker, Luke Fickell, former Ohio State and current University of Cincinnati coach, was named the full-time head coach.  

 

Badger basketball took a big hit when breakout guard Johnny Davis turned pro after last year's

emergence.  I said at the time that he wasn't ready for the pros, and the Washington Wizards'  10th

overall draft pick has not started his pro career very well.  

 

He even was briefly sent down to the developmental league. But I guess the money these days is too good for athletes to turn down.  Even if they could use more seasoning at the collegiate level.  

 

Greg Gard's Badger cagers have started 2022-2023 with some gritty play in pre-league contests. They

took defending national champion Kansas to overtime before falling when they couldn't corral a vital

defensive rebound in the final second.

 

The lack of scoring and grit in the frontcourt remains an issue except for senior Tyler Wahl who it has been a pleasure to see emerge as an all-around player, an especially adept passer and driver to the hoop.  

 

First-year guard Connor Essegian from Fort Wayne, indiana looks like a comer. His lineage stands out: grandson of Chuck Essegian, former LA Dodger 1959 world champion and 1952 Stanford Rose Bowl player. And on his mother's side, Connor is related to Hall of Famer Robin Yount. Most importantly, he

exudes a scrappy confidence indicating a desire to make his own name. 

 

As for the Columbia Lions, the football team finished a respectable 6-4, winning its last three games after being routed earlier by Penn and eventual co-league champions Princeton and Yale.

 

Unfortunately men's basketball has now picked up the unfortunate mantle of chronic loser.  Happily, the Columbia women's team is becoming a regular contender.  They are playing a tough pre-league schedule

and then hope to slay the formidable Princeton dragon in league competition.  

 

And now before I sign off, here are some TCM tips for the coming weeks:

Tu Nov 29 8p EDT - Charlie Chaplin's "Monsieur Verdoux" (1947) - his last American film before the

  Cold War Red scare precipitated his return to England. Have only seen it once and want to see

  again how Martha Raye hilariously avoids his murderous advances. 

 

Thursdays in December except for Dec 22 Ava Gardner is Star of Night, starting usually at 8p EDT

Highlights include Th Dec 1 "The Killers" an early noir with Burt Lancaster based on Hemingway story

Th Dec 8 "Barefoot Contessa" with Bogart

F Dec 9 at 6:15A - "Showboat" (1951) with Ava as "mulatto" Julie and Joe E. Brown as Capn Andy

 

Th Dec 15 "Angel Wore Red" followed by Tennessee Williams' "Night of the Iguana"

 

Th Dec 29 Gregory Peck with Ava including "The Great Sinner" (1949), 

"On The Beach" (1959) Nevil Shute's dystopia after nuclear war

"Snows of Kilimanjaro" (1952) based on another Hemingway story

 

Sa Dec 10 primetime salute to Ray Liotta with two TCM debuts from the 1980s

   "Dominic and Eugene" and "Something Wild"

 

Tu Dec 13 features five classic noirs in primetime starting with: 

"Murder, My Sweet" (1944) - Dick Powell definitively leaves his bobby-soxer past in the dust

"The Big Sleep" (1946) and "Lady in the Lake" (1947) followed by two later films:

 "Farewell My Lovely" (1975) and "Marlowe" (1969)

 

 That's all for now.  Stay positive, test negative and take it easy but take it!

    

 

 

 

 

 

 

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