Bulls’ Gasol, Mirotic No MJ — on Baseball Diamond

July 19, 2014 @ admin → No Comments

Based on their ceremonial first pitches at Friday’s White Sox game, Chicago Bulls newcomers Pau Gasol and Nikola Mirotic never will pull a Michael Jordan and take time off from the Bulls to play baseball.

Wrestling’s Gail Kim. Just because.

* Speaking of ceremonial first pitches and basketball players, Chicago Sky center Sylvia Fowles will toss out the first pitch at Monday’s Sox game against Kansas City. Something says she will have better form than Gasol and Mirotic.

* Speaking of the Sox, the defeated the Houston Astros 3-2. With a 25-21 home record, the Sox have are second-best in that category in the American League Central. Only Cleveland (29-19) has a better home mark.

* With a 20-33 road record, the Cubs have the most defeats away from home this season in the major leagues. The latest was 5-4 Friday night at Arizona. On the bright (less dim perhaps?) side, Cubs starter Edwin Jackson did not take the loss. On the less bright side, he did blow a 3-0 lead.

* Speaking of the Cubs, first baseman Anthony Rizzo hit two home runs to tie Miami’s Giancarlo Stanton for the National League lead with 22. This might be the only race Cubs fans might want to follow the rest of this season.

* White Sox first baseman Jose Abreu leads the American League in homers with 29. The last time Chicago had home-run leaders in the same season was — wait for it — never. At least if I’m reading the record book correctly (and that’s a big “if” when it’s 3 a.m.). The last time one city had home-run leaders in the same season was 1955 with Mickey Mantle of the New York Yankees and Willie Mays of the New York Giants. If you want to count Brooklyn as New York (and who doesn’t?), then it would be 1956 with Duke Snider of the Brooklyn Dodgers and Mantle.

* Speaking of home runs, Cubs prospects Kris Bryant, Javier Baez and Kyle Schwarber were among farmhands hitting homers. Bryant has 33 this season at AA and AAA. The Cubs do not plan to bring him up this season. Which makes perfect sense — as long as they can fill the ballpark with fans who don’t care or are willing to fantasize about the prospects while they are at Wrigley Field.

* Speaking of Wrigley Field, Billy Joel performed there Friday night). It’s not every day (or night) that fans can go to that ballpark and see a surefire hall of famer. And was it really five years ago that Joel and Elton John played Wrigley and your humble correspondent was part of the crowd (along with mrs. humble correspondent)? Where did that time go? And, yes, that was before the Cubs rebuilding/teardown began.

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"Weird Al" Yankovic – Sports Song from Funny Or Die