Mr. 3000

First Yankee to achieve 3000 hits!







Sunday, February 28, 2010

Sams Army Falls Short As the Kid scores one for home

Sam’s Yankee Ice Army played a great Olympic tournament.

The great American Team attempted to become the third team to win Gold for team USA in Olympic history. Down two goals to none on the shoulders of Ryan Miller they made a valiant comeback, only to be denied.

No Miracle on Ice on this date and despite that no one should be sad with Silver. They are the youngest US team lead by Captain Jamie Lagenbrunner. These Yankees have an opportunity to comeback in 2014 and avenge the defeat at the hands of Team Canada.

It was a great Hockey game one for the Ages, they battled back but it was not to be.

Team Canada lead by Coach Mike Babcock from the Detroit Red Wings won the Gold Medal by beating a good Russian Team and an American Team full of All Stars and NHL players.

But the night belonged to number 87 the son of Cole Harbour Nova Scotia. The Captain of the Penguins proved to the world why he is one of the best players in the World. He reminds me of the Yankee Short Stop who always hits in the clutch. This 22 year old won the game in overtime his Goal gave Team Canada the Gold. Sid THE Kid had 4 goals in the Olympics tonight was his night and at 22 it will not be his last Olympics or his last Gold Medal.

Saturday, February 6, 2010

Sports History, a view at Black History in Baseball and the First black ball player

By Frank Solares


February is known as Black History month and we all respect the hard work that Americans of any Color and Ethnic background have given us throughout the years.

I am of the opinion that Black History should not be taught one month a year. It is after all American History regardless of skin color. So each month we will cover a different aspect of black history in baseball.

Baseball has a rich tradition and the history behind this great game is unparallel. Since this is black history we will concentrate on the myth that Jackie Robinson was the first man to integrate a baseball team.

Jackie Robinson was the first to integrate MLB when he joined the Dodgers who had all white baseball players. All this is true and in fact this lead to other men joining MLB there after.

According to the book written by Christian, Ralph J. (2006) "Bud Fowler: The First African American Professional. And Wikipedia.

The first black professional baseball player Was John Walker Jackson who later changed his name to John Fowler, he was known as Bud Fowler. Legend has it was due to the fact that he called everyone Bud. According to Wikipedia Bud was born March 16 1858.

Records kept by Iowa Heritage Illustrated, 87(1): 28-32 Fowler played for a team in Niles Ohio in 1883 and in Stillwater Minnesota in 1884.

There is an image of a black man playing baseball on an all white team. According to Biographer L Robert Davis “Fowler is first mentioned as a player in April 1878 when he pitched for a team in Chelsea, Massachusetts. Later that month, he pitched a game for the Lynn Live Oaks against the Boston Nationals. He finished that season with Worcester. Largely supporting himself as a barber, he continued to play for teams in New England and Canada for the next four years.”

I am not smart enough to know if he was in fact the first black man to play organized baseball other than the Negro League but I surely know that it was not Jackie Robinson based on the accounts I have read.

We might never know who was the first but we must respect the fact that this man existed and he was not white.