Contact
I'm always glad to hear from people who read the site.
If you're interested in talking to me for whatever reason, please feel free to contact me using the Contact form above or directly at lar@wezen-ball.com.
Oh, and don't forget, you can always use the Forums!
Bloguin Baseball Debate
Baseball Bloggers Alliance
Online Flowers Shop for your flowers online at the Online Flowers shop
Party Bets Wanna make baseball a tad more exciting? Check out Party Bets. They have some of the largest online sports betting rooms online. Plus you can just play for fun instead of cash.
Sports Interaction Baseball Fans! Sports Interaction is the best sport betting site on the web to bet on MLB, and if you feel a little adventourous why not try some World Cup betting this year!
|
|
Written by Larry Granillo
|
|
Thursday, 15 April 2010 23:11 |
|
I don't think I've ever mentioned the excellent Rogue's Baseball Index here. For those who don't know, RBI is a website that attempts to define the more, shall we say, unique terms in baseball. From their "About" page:
The Rogue’s Baseball Index is a growing dictionary of the baseball terms that they didn’t teach you in Little League, and that you won’t hear about in the director’s commentary to Angels in the Outfield. This is baseball as the fans know it, as we know it, from the bleachers to the couch, and from Single A to the Show. RBI is baseball like you’ve already thought it.
You might think you know what they're talking about from that cute little description, but you don't really know until you see their definitions of phrases like the Jesus Christ Superstar, the Shadow Legend, or Walking Hank Greenberg (don't forget to click through to the wiki entries at the bottom of each post). You can spend worse time today reading through RBI's (relatively new) archives.
RBI's most recent entry is "Old Milwaukee". The definition:
(Click "Read More" to continue reading.)
Old Milwaukee is the title bestowed upon the eldest active member of the Milwaukee Brewer roster. Used widely by area journalists, soccer moms, and even the more enthusiastic of the local deaf-mute population, the term owes its popularity not merely to its simplicity, but also to the fact that people — almost regardless of race, color, or creed — need little prompting to think about beer.
I love it. As RBI points out, the current holder of the title is Trevor Hoffman. But it got me thinking about the history of the Brewers. In their 40 years in Milwaukee, who has held the title? How has it been handed down? Did we ever have to worry about the "built right" stipulation RBI mentions? Listed below are the players who have held the title in each of the last 40 years. Is there anyone who should be booted for not quite living up to the "Old Milwaukee style"?
The Complete Brewers' "Old Milwaukee" List
| Year | Player | Seasonal Age |
| 1970 |
Tito Francona |
36 |
| 1971 |
Dick Schofield |
36 |
| 1972 |
Joe Azcue |
32 |
| 1973 |
Chris Short |
35 |
| 1974 |
Felipe Alou |
39 |
| 1975 |
Hank Aaron |
41 |
| 1976 |
Hank Aaron |
42 |
| 1977 |
Jimmy Wynn |
35 |
| 1978 |
Larry Haney |
35 |
| 1979 |
Sal Bando |
35 |
| 1980 |
Sal Bando |
36 |
| 1981 |
Sal Bando |
37 |
| 1982 |
Don Sutton |
37 |
| 1983 |
Don Sutton |
38 |
| 1984 |
Don Sutton |
39 |
| 1985 |
Rollie Fingers |
38 |
| 1986 |
Ben Oglivie |
37 |
| 1987 |
Cecil Cooper |
37 |
| 1988 |
Jim Gantner |
35 |
| 1989 |
Jerry Reuss |
40 |
| 1990 |
Dave Parker |
39 |
| 1991 |
Rick Dempsey |
41 |
| 1992 |
Jim Gantner |
39 |
| 1993 |
Robin Yount |
37 |
| 1994 |
Jesse Orosco |
37 |
| 1995 |
Kevin Seitzer |
33 |
| 1996 |
Doug Jones |
39 |
| 1997 |
Doug Jones |
40 |
| 1998 |
Doug Jones |
41 |
| 1999 |
Eric Plunk |
35 |
| 2000 |
Jim Bruske |
35 |
| 2001 |
Tony Fernandez |
39 |
| 2002 |
Lenny Harris |
37 |
| 2003 |
John Vander Wal |
37 |
| 2004 |
Dave Burba |
37 |
| 2005 |
Ricky Bottalico |
35 |
| 2006 |
Brian Shouse |
37 |
| 2007 |
Brian Shouse |
38 |
| 2008 |
Brian Shouse |
39 |
| 2009 |
Trevor Hoffman |
41 |
The only name that jumps out at me as not exactly fitting the "Old Milwaukee" mold that we all love is 2005's Ricky Bottalico, but I could be wrong about that. Most of them are just perfect: Yount, Orosco, Fingers, Hank... You could easily see yourself offering an Old Milwaukee to any of these guys, which, frankly, should be the true test.
Now that you have your complete list of "Old Milwaukee" title holders, I encourage you to check out the Rogue's Baseball Index blog and wiki. Great stuff.
 |
|
About Me
What's with the name? "Wezen" is the name of a star in the constellation Canis Major ("The Great Dog"). It's the star that marks the, ahem, point where the dog's tail meets its hindlegs. It's a name that I've always liked the sound of and so I used it around the internet.
When I started this blog, I didn't expect to put a lot of time into it, so I just gave it the first name I could think of. Now I like it, no matter how strange it may sound, and I just love how the new banner and background make use of it.
What's the site about? There is no real, overriding philosophy guiding the posts here at Wezen-Ball.com. Instead, it's just a place for me to write about what I find interesting in the baseball world. Sometimes that means it'll be original statistical research that I've been working on or some other opinions that I might have. Usually, though, I'll be writing about how a certain player, team, or event from the past was viewed through contemporary accounts.
I do this mostly through the use of my collection of annual baseball preview magazines or other resources available online. So, whether it's looking back to see if Jim Rice was truly "feared"by the people who saw him play, or it's looking back to see how Greg Maddux was viewed early in his career, or if it's just looking back to see what people predicted baseball would be like in the year 2000 (from 1981), you'll find it here.
|