Weblog Entry - 11/09/2008: "WORLD BASEBALL TODAY (November 9, 2008)"

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11/09/2008 Entry: "WORLD BASEBALL TODAY (November 9, 2008)"

by Bruce Baskin
Radio Miami International

AMARO, JR. TO SUCCEED GILLICK AS PHILLIES GM
The world champion Philadelphia Phillies have selected Ruben Amaro, Jr. to take over as general manager of the team, replacing the retiring Pat Gillick. Amaro, the son of a former major league infielder, was himself a Phillies player in the 1990’s. Less than one week after the Phillies defeated Tampa Bay to win the World Series, team president David Montgomery introduced Amaro as Gillick’s successor.
A former Phillies batboy when his dad was playing for the team, Amaro has served ten years as the Phils’ assistant general manager following his retirement as a player in 1998. The 43-year-old Amaro was picked over 58-year-old Mike Arbuckle, another assistant GM with the team. Arbuckle will not return to Philadelphia next season, and it’s rumored Amaro may select former Tampa Bay GM Chuck LaMar to be his assistant with the Phillies.
Amaro says his first priority is to resign pitchers Jamie Moyer and Scott Eyre.

RAYS VEEP FRIEDMAN NAMED SPORTING NEWS EXECUTIVE OF THE YEAR
Despite losing the World Series, good news continues to happen with the Tampa Bay Rays. Rays executive Andrew Friedman has been named the Sporting News Executive of the Year for 2008. The award was announced last Monday at the annual MLB General Managers Meetings in Dana Point, California.
The Texas native kept the Rays’ young nucleus together through last offseason, swung a trade which brought shortstop Jason Bartlett and starting pitcher Matt Garza to Tampa Bay from Minnesota, was willing to bring third baseman Evan Longoria up from the minor leagues when starter Willie Aybar was injured, imported useful veterans Troy Percival, Cliff Floyd and Eric Hinske as free agents, and allowed top pitching prospect David Price to progress slowly through the minors instead of rushing him when the injury bug hit the Rays in August.
Friedman attended Tulane University in New Orleans on a baseball scholarship, and spent two years as the Rays’ director of baseball development before his promotion to the veep’s chair.

STATUES OF THREE LEGENDS UNVEILED AT COOPERSTOWN
For most baseball players, election to the Hall of Fame is the greatest honor they can receive in their careers. However, the National Baseball Hall of Fame recently went one better with three of its most legendary members.
Life-sized bronze statues of outfielder Roberto Clemente, second baseman Jackie Robinson and first baseman Lou Gehrig were unveiled last weekend in a special ceremony in Cooperstown, New York. The ceremony was part of the Hall’s “Character and Courage” celebration. Festivities included Clemente’s widow Vera and Robinson’s widow Rachel, who both briefly spoke to 150 to 200 attendees at the ribbon-cutting event. Boston pitcher Curt Schilling, a longtime admirer of Gehrig, spoke on behalf of the former Yankee.
Following the ceremony, two of Clemente’s sons and baseball author Jonathan Eig took part in a “Voices of the Game” program in the Hall’s Grandstand Theater.

JAPAN SERIES TIED AFTER FOUR GAMES
The Seibu Lions and Yomiuri Giants are making sure the last days of the Japanese baseball season are memorable ones in 2008, with both teams deadlocked after four games of the Japan Series between the Pacific and Central League champions, respectively.
Takeya Nakamura swatted a pair of two-run homers and Takayushi Kishi threw a four-hit shutout last Wednesday night to lead the Lions to a 5-0 whitewashing of the Giants in Game Four to tie the Series at two games apiece. Kishi became only the 12th pitcher to toss a shutout in his Japan Series debut, striking out 10 Yomiuri batters and walking just one in a 147-pitch outing. He is only the second hurler ever to strike out at least one batter in each inning of a Japan Series game, matching Yomiuri’s Takashi Nishimoto, who turned the trick in 1981.
Seventeen-game winner Seth Greisinger took the loss for the Giants, allowing five runs on six hits in five-plus innings. It was the third subpar performance for Greisinger against Seibu this year. He surrendered a total of 14 runs over nine innings in two interleague starts against the Lions during the regular season.
During the Japan Series, Rakuten right-hander Hisashi Iwamura was given the coveted Sawamura Award, which goes to Japan’s top pitcher. Iwamura came off elbow surgery to win 21 games with a 1.87 ERA for the Eagles, striking out 159 batters in 201.1 innings. He was a unanimous pick.

WYVERNS DEFEND KBO TITLE BY BEATING BEARS IN FIVE GAME
The defending champion SK Wyverns capped off a terrific season by defeating the Doosan Bears, 4 games to 1, to win their second consecutive Korean Series in a rematch of last year’s KBO final matchup. The Series win came on the heels of a first-place regular season finish for the Wyverns, who set a KBO record for wins in the process.
In 2007, the Bears won the first two games of the Korean Series before SK came back to win four straight. This time around, Doosan won Game One before the Wyverns reeled off four straight wins.
21-year-old Korean Series MVP Choi Jung became the youngest player ever to be so honored. He hit a three-run homer to break a 1-1 tie in Game Three, stroked an RBI double to put the Wyverns ahead for good in Game Four, and gave SK some breathing room in the fifth and final game with an insurance RBI single in the eighth. Choi received 45 of 69 votes in MVP balloting, winning 10,000,000 won and a 40-inch flat screen TV. “I promised my dad a new car if we won the championship,” Choi said after the Series.
“I guess I can take care of that.”

LIONS PULL OUT SEVENTH GAME WIN TO TAKE TAIWAN SERIES
The President Lions successfully defended their Chinese Professional Baseball League pennant last weekend, shutting out the Brother Elephants, 4-0, to win the seventh and final game of the Taiwan Series at Tainan City Stadium. It was the Lions’ sixth Taiwanese title, tying the Elephants for the most pennants in league history.
President starter Luther Hackman was nearly flawless in tossing his 112-pitch gem against Brother, allowing just four hits and two walks. The Lions plated the only runs Hackman needed in the third inning, scoring twice on a double, a sacrifice and a throwing error. The Taiwan Series was very well-attended, putting a bright spot on a season marked by small crowds and a gambling scandal that resulted in the expulsion of the dMedia T-Rex.

LOS MOCHIS OVERTAKES GUASAVE FOR MEX PAC LEAD
The Los Mochis Caneros have pulled past the Guasave Algodoneros into the top slot of the Mexican Pacific League standings. The Caneros lead the Mex Pac three weeks into the winter season with a 14-7 record, two games up on Guasave’s 12-9 mark. There’s a four-way tie between Hermosillo, Mazatlan, Mexicali and Navojoa for third place, with all teams sporting eleven wins in their first 20 games. At the bottom of the table, defending champion Obregon is struggling out the game with 15 losses in 21 games.
Still, the Yaquis are far from desperate. Chicago White Sox outfielder Jayson Nix homered and drove in four runs to lead Obregon to a 10-1 win over Guasave Wednesday night as Pittsburgh minor leaguer Brian Mazzone allowed one run in 6.1 innings for the win. The same night, Mochis defeated Navojoa, 9-7, as Caneros outfielder Justin Christian singled twice and drove in three runs. Mexicali topped Mazatlan, 4-1, behind two doubles by ex-big leaguer Oscar Robles and six shutout innings by Colorado Rockies pitcher Oscar Villareal. Also on Wednesday, Hermosillo outlasted Culiacan, 8-7, with a pair of longtime Mexican League veterans leading the offense. Carlos Gastelum was 2-for-3 with four RBIs while Juan Canizalez drove in three runs for the Naranjeros.

AZUCAREROS AND GIGANTES TIED FOR FIRST IN DOMINICAN LEAGUE
The Este Azucareros and Cibao Gigantes are deadlocked at the top of the Dominican League leaderboard with identical 11-5 records after the Azucareros beat Cibao, 5-2, on Wednesday night. Este was led by Kansas City Royals infielder Esteban German, who was 3-for-3 with a solo homer to lead the Sugar Men to their third straight win. Nine different Azucareros pitchers combined to hold the Gigantes to sox hits and no earned runs as Cibao lost their third contest in a row.
The Licey Tigres are third in the Dominican League at 8-8 after falling to Cibaenas, 10-5, Wednesday night. Former major leaguer Luis Polonia (who turns 45 this week) went 3-for-4 with three RBIs to help Cibaenas raise their record to 7-9, while Houston outfielder Michael Bourn recorded two hits and three runs. Washington Nats second baseman Emilio Bonifacio had three hits for Licey.
The Cibaenas win came one night after the Aguilas were throttled by the last-place Oriente Estrellas, 15-4. Angels prospect Brandon Wood whacked a homer, scored four runs and drove in two for the Estrellas, who are 3-12.

CARACAS POUNDS ARAGUA, 9-2, TO WIDEN LEAD IN VENEZUELA
The Caracas Leones crushed the Aragua Tigres, 9-2, Wednesday night to run their Venezuelan League record to 14-5, good enough for a 2.5-game lead over 12-8 Zulia. Angels prospect Jesus Guzman, the 2008 Texas League All-Star second baseman, swung the big stick for Caracas by going 3-for-4 with a two-run homer and two runs scored. Guzman is 20-for-40 with nine runs and 11 RBIs over his last ten games for the Leones.
Zulia lost ground by losing, 9-5, to Magallenes Wednesday. Richard Hidalgo was 2-for-3 with a homer for Magallenes, while ex-big leaguers Wiki Gonzalez and Edgardo Alfonzo each had three hits. Brewers farmhand Brandan Katin bashed his league-leading ninth homer for Zulia. Katin is 6-for-8 with eight RBIs in his last two games. One day earlier, Zulia swept Margarita in a doubleheader. Rockies prospect Kenny Perez was the star of the first game for the Aguilas, going 3-for-5 with a double and homer, scoring the winning run in the 11th inning in Gerardo Parra’s triple.

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