SB Nation User Blog: Hardcore Legend

1968 World Series Game 1- Open Thread (MLB Network)

Hardcore Legend — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 21:46:39 -0000

31-6, 1.96 22-9, 1.12

the defending champion cardinals are looking to become the first back-to-back champions since the '61 and '62 yankees. the 1967 team returned almost fully intact, this year however, with a healthy gibson for the full season.

in a year loaded with amazing starting pitching, gibson stood above the rest. hoot mowed down opposing batters at an alarming rate. gibson went 22-9, but in his 9 losses posted a 2.14 ERA. he threw 28 complete games, 13 of which were shutouts. of the 6 games gibby didn’t complete, all 6 were his removal for a pinch hitter.

to put this staggering number into a visual picture for you, NEVER in the 1968 season did red schoendienst come to the mound to get the ball from gibson. he was that good. he posted a 1.12 ERA, the lowest ever for a pitcher that threw over 300 innings in a season. gibson pitched in 10 more games in ’68 than in ’67, but gave up 20 fewer runs.

this is also not gibson's first dance, either. gibson goes into the '68 series with a 5-1 lifetime record in the world series with a 1.00 era.

if gibby was dominant this season, mclain was consistent. starting the most games in the major leagues this season, mclain logged equally the most innings. with that, he was able to win 31 games and post a sub-2.00 era. being prone to the longball, it is unclear whether that is a factor of playing in tiger stadium or if mclain has a tendency to be gopher happy. each of the last 3 seasons, he has led the league.

the only cardinals hitter with any real experience vs mclain is maris. maris has faced him 25 times with 6 hits (3 doubles and a triple) and 2 walks/2 strikeouts.

for the Tigers, their offense was ranked first in baseball in OPS+, tied with the reds. for comparisions sake, gibby was 2-0 vs the reds with his 2nd highest strikeout/9 ratio of the season. the highest was against the 2nd best offense in the national league, the pittsburgh pirates. both pittsburgh and cincinnati were below league average in strikeouts, while detroit was slightly above. detroit led the league in homeruns, which lends credence to tiger stadium being behind mclain's gopheritis. if gibby can establish his command early, he may be able to use busch stadiums expansive space to keep the tigers in the yard.

for the cardinals, despite winning fewer games than the tigers, the pressure is on them to win again this season. they have the best pitcher in the league and the highest payroll in the league. a win in this series and they would have undeniable rights to being the team of the decade, knocking off the yankees (2-2 in the 60's) and the dodgers (2-1 in the 60's).

first pitch @ 8:00 pm est on mlb network, pregame with bob costas interviews at 7:00.

Ben Wallace considering retirement

Hardcore Legend — Sun, 31 May 2009 07:17:08 -0000

Ben, by this fan's eyes, was the best post defender we had in the Orlando series and it will sad to see the 'Fro go.

But pragmatically, when I saw this story I automatically thought about his $14 M salary next year and how that money could be used elsewhere to get a legit post scorer to go with Lebron and Mo.

What Ben has to say on the issue:

If Wallace chooses to retire, he will almost certainly seek a buyout since retiring outright would cost him next season's salary. But he said money will not be the determining factor in his decision.

"I think I deserve [a buyout]," Wallace said. "But if I don't get one and I've just got to give it up, that's what I'll do."

From a business standpoint where that buyout ends up could be big for the Cavs. Even saving $7 M would be a step in the right direction.

With Andy likely to ask for a ridiculous amount of money (over $10 M a year), having extra money from Ben's contract to maybe take someone else's big man contract would help this team build to get past the only team that really beat them this year, Orlando.

Which pitcher would you rather have back?

Hardcore Legend — Thu, 07 May 2009 21:11:23 -0000

If tomorrow you woke up and found a blank, already signed Presidential Executive Order laying in the street by your house (you know the government, very wasteful...can't keep track of anything) which way would you fill it out?

Option 1:

A completely healthy and ready to roll Chris Carpenter. Chis comes with a guarantee that he will not face any more physical problems for the duration of his current contract.

Option 2:

Dan Haren.

Discuss.

Poll

Who would you rather have?

It's the Playoffs, Man!

Hardcore Legend — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 03:39:38 -0000

It's the Playoffs, Man!

Bill DeWitt considering changing uniforms

Hardcore Legend — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 02:13:41 -0000

On KTRS last week, Bill DeWitt Jr. said the organization was kicking around the idea of replacing the 'CARDINALS' on the road uniforms and changing it to 'St. LOUIS' under the Birds on the Bats.

I'm kind of a sentimental guy when it comes to stuff like this, so it probably strikes my ire more than most. The only reason teams generally change their uniforms is a) to create a pseudo new era that differentiates from an older one or, in most cases b) to make more money. People by a grey Pujols jersey in 2004 and they have no need for a new one as long as he is with the team. Change the uniform and they have to get the newest incarnation.

Now, as to the change itself. The Birds on the Bat with Cardinals on it has appeared on the chest uninterupted since 1933, sans one season. That season was 1956. In 1956, the Cardinals unveiled a new uniform that featured only the Cardinals script across the chest with a 'Batting Bird' on the sleeve.

This uniform was so widely rejected that the man who designed it was fired and the Cardinals returned to tradition the next year.

There have been modest changes to the uniform over the years.

1951: Yellow bat added.
1957: Piping removed from uniform
1956: Red bill removed from blue hats.
1962: Uniform number moved to front of uniform.
1964: Red hat added to home uniform
1965: Red hat used exclusively
1971: Pullovers with red/white/blue sleeve stripes added
1976: Pillbox hat.
1976: Powder blue road uniform
1979: Uniform number moved from front to sleeve
1981: Uniform number moved back to front.
1985: Grey road uniforms return.
1992: Pullover uniforms replaced by button up uniforms.
1992: Blue hat returns on the road.

That's it. Sans adding the Sunday alternate hat, the uniforms have remained the same since 1992. Not only that, but the chest wordmark has been the same (other than a tad modernization) since 1951.

Sixty years of tradition. The Cardinals refuse to wear BP jerseys during spring training because of tradition. They don't have a third uniform because of tradition.

I know to some, this will be exciting. "Hey, NEW UNIFORM!" but for me, it's a bit sad. Marketing is the only reason you do this. The Cardinals already have the STL on the ballcap, it's not like people are confused as to where the team hails from.

I hope this doesn't happen. In the case of someone like Baltimore, the city name returned to the chest where it had been prior to Peter Angelos buying the team. This, however, would return the city name to the front of the uniform for the first time since 1933.

Where the Cavs can stand historically

Hardcore Legend — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 03:33:17 -0000

As we get into the final dozen games of the NBA Season, the Cavs who started the season on a record breaking pace find themselves still within reach of pretty prestigious company.

First, let's breakdown the schedule:

Home Games:

New Jersey
Minnesota
Dallas
Detroit
San Antonio
Washington
Boston
Philadelphia

Road Games:

Washington
Orlando
Philadelphia
Indiana

HOME

Well, the NBA record for Home record is 40-1, held by the 1985-86 Boston Celtics. Should the Cavs manage to get past New Jersey, Detroit, Minnesota, San Antonio, Dallas and Washington at home, the Celts come into The Q with one final chance to defend that record.

Most Wins

With a current record of 57-13, the best loss total they can hope for is said 13 losses. Not losing another game and finishing the season on a 21 game winning streak, the Cavs would tie for 2nd place all-time with the 1971-72 Los Angeles Lakers and the 1996-1997 Chicago Bulls. I need not tell you how remarkable those teams were.

In fact, no team that has lost less than 14 games has not won the NBA Championship.

.817

Currently, your Cleveland Cavaliers carry an .814 winning percentage. With a victory at the Q on Wednesday vs New Jersey, they would reach the .817 level. That winning percentage, if maintained would preserve a 67 win season.

Only 9 teams in NBA history have won 67 games. 7 of those 9 teams won the NBA Finals. The other two were the '72-73 Celtics (who lost in the ECF) and the '06-'07 Mavs who epically got bounced by the upstart Golden State Warriors.

21 Straight

And finally, the improbable 21 games straight. Now on a 9 game winning streak, winning out would give us 21 straight wins (regular season). That would be one less than Houston's great run of last season and 12 short of Milwaukee's all-time record.

Just something for you to chew on. I've only ever seen another team in my life as great as this Cavs team (95-96 Bulls). The ultimate goal of this team is the NBA Championship, securing the legacies of Big Z and Lebron in Cavs history but I can't help but root for these smaller team goals as well.

VEB March Madness Brackets

Hardcore Legend — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 06:17:10 -0000

I did this last year, I figured I would do it again this year.

http://tournament.fantasysports.yahoo.com/t1

Group ID #188657

Password: izturisstillsux

Fill out your brackets by noon tomorrow (I think). The more the merrier. I think we had somewhere near 100 people in it last year. If you win, you get nothing. Most of us won't even remember you won (I don't remember who did last year).

Have fun.

Anyone find yellow 70's HWC shorts for sale?

Hardcore Legend — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 07:13:51 -0000

I'm sorry if this isn't the type of thing that belongs in a Fanpost but it is something that has been a problem for me for most of the season: Finding these shorts to buy.

Until recently, I hadn't seen them for sale ANYWHERE but through a Google search I finally found these children's version on the cavsteamshop website:

via www.cavaliersteamshop.com

Now, these aren't Authentic (which I'd prefer to have) but at this point I'd take the cheaper made Swingman shorts if anyone knows a seller that has them out there. Are they available at the arena?

These are as hard to find as Mo Williams jerseys. I can't believe that a guy who was an All-Star had so few jerseys made to be sold.

Alex Rodriguez tests positive for steroids

Hardcore Legend — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 19:01:20 -0000

On the 104 player list from 2003, Alex Rodriguez tested positive for 2 different anabolic steroids (per SI.com).

I'm a little worried that a few Cardinals could be on this list. We dodged a big bullet with the Mitchell Report but I don't know that we would be that lucky with this 103 list.

I'm not even sure why this list is being released. This was supposed to be anonymous and some how the Feds are releasing all this information. That shouldn't be.

What's brewing on the trade front?

Hardcore Legend — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 05:10:08 -0000

Just wanted to get the communities take on what might be brewing on the trade front for the Cavs?

I think we've seen the most pressing issue against the likes of Los Angeles and Boston is the front court.

There are two obvious options (one I'd really like to see done):

Marcus Camby - He's not getting any younger. He's 35 years old and his contract is only 2 years with $8 M next year and $7.5 the year after that.

He's a great rebounder and defender but he lacks a certain amount of versatilty of being able to step out and guard a guy like Al Harrington on the wing.

Which brings me to the more positive addition I can hope for:

Amare Stoudamire. The Suns are looking to deal Amare to the Eastern Conference to give themselves cap room and to get better. The Cavs have expiring contracts to offer, Daniel Gibson and JJ Hickson.

Amare costs more, for sure, than Camby. He's not going to be given away. He's also a bit of an 'attitude' guy which could upset the balance of the team. Actually, any trade is likely to upset the balance of the team.

This is the situation Ferry finds himself in. He has a team that is the best record in the Eastern Conference but is in dire need of a lowpost defender if they hope to win a 7 game series vs either Boston, LA or San Antonio this postseason. How does he address that without completely disrupting the great team he's already put together.