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May 8, 2026 [LINK / comment]

Nationals slowly climb into 2nd place

To the surprise of almost no one, the Washington Nationals lost 3 games out of 4 in the home series against the red-hot Atlanta Braves two weeks ago. The Nats won the second game (Apr. 21) thanks to another fine outing by Foster Griffin (6 innings) and home runs by James Wood and Curtis Mead; final score 11-4. The next day, the Nats grabbed a 4-1 lead in the 1st inning, but Zach Littell kept giving up runs, and the Braves came out ahead, 8-6. In the final game of the series, Cade Cavalli went 5 innings and threw 10 strikeouts, but the bullpen (more specifically Cionel Perez) folded in the late innings, and the Braves won it, 7-2.

Nevertheless, the Nats continued to show show spunk and even some occasional signs of professional maturity. On April 24 they headed to Chicago and came up short (5-4) against the White Sox. Once again, P.J. Poulin started the first couple innings for the supposed "starter" Miles Mikolas, who seems averse to actually "starting" games. But somehow the Nats bounced back with two straight games that went to the 10th inning, winning by scores of 6-3 and 2-1. Then they got another road series win against the Mets in New York, getting trounced 8-0 in the first game, and then getting revenge 14-2 the next day, capped by Brady House's first career grand slam. In the rubber match game, C.J. Abrams hit a clutch 2-run homer in the top of the 8th, giving the Nats a 5-4 victory. With two straight road series wins, the Nats were climbing close to the .500 mark.

Then on May 1, the Nats welcomed the Milwaukee Brewers to Washington, and the Brew Crew clearly had revenge on their minds after the Nats swept them at American Family Field three weeks earlier. The Nats barely got on the board in the first two games (6-1 and 4-1, respectively), but they pulled off a 3-2 win thanks in great measure to the two RBI singles hit by Nasim Nunez. After a day of rest, the Minnesota Twins began a 3-game series in their franchise's original home city, when they were the Washington Senators. The Twins won 11-2 in the first game, as Nats starting pitcher Cade Cavalli seemed to fall apart in the 2nd inning. But the next day Miles Mikolas actually started the game, and he actually got his first win of the season, as C.J. Abrams' late-inning grand slam put the icing on the cake in a 15-2 rout. The rubber match game was a back-and-forth affair, and the Nats managed to come out ahead, thanks largely to none other than Keibert Ruiz. He hit two doubles and a home run, batting in 4 of the Nats' 7 runs, in a 7-5 decision. That put the Nats into sole possession of 2nd place in the NL East, one game ahead of the Phillies.

Tonight the Nats hit the road again, and in the 6th inning are ahead of the Miami Marlins 3-2.

Washington Nationals page update

My Washington Nationals page has been updated to reflect data for the month of April (including 5 games in March), and trying to keep up with the fluid defensive position assignments. As just one example, James Wood started the season in left field, but now plays in right field.

Among the new pitching rotation, Foster Griffin (ERA of 2.22, with a 3-1 record) thus far has proven he is worth every penny of the $5.5 million contract that he signed in December. The same cannot be said of either Zack Littell ($7 million) or Miles Mikolas ($2.25 million), however. Jake Irvin and Cade Cavalli are a mixed picture, in need of adjustments.

April 20, 2026 [LINK / comment]

Nats eke out a win back home

The Washington Nationals seem to have improved this year, at least as far as batting goes, but so far they just aren't winning as many games at home. After an uplifting 5-2 road trip through Milwaukee and Pittsburgh, they lost the first two games against the Giants in Nationals Park. On Friday night, Zach Littell gave up 6 runs in the 2nd inning, but he was allowed to pitch through the 4th inning, when he gave up 2 more. James Wood homered in the 7th inning, but it didn't affect the outcome. Giants 10, Nats 5. On Saturday, Wood hit hit his 6th of the year, and the Nats tacked on 4 more in the 2nd, but the Giants clawed their way back, and were on the verge of a win in the bottom of the 9th when Brady House hit an RBI single. Curtis Mead was thrown out at 3rd on that play because he didn't slide, for some reason. In the 10th inning the Nats loaded the bases with nobody out, and somehow failed to score. Two unforgivable miscues combined to allow the Giants to prevail 7-6 in 12 innings.

On Sunday, Miles Mikolas did not actually start the game in which he was supposedly the "starting" pitcher, for the third time this season. P.J. Poulin got through two outs in the first inning, and then Mikolas took the mound. Does he have some kind of jitters peculiar to starting pitchers? Be that as it may, he actually had a solid outing for the first time, getting through four full innings before Andrew Alvarez came in to relieve him. The Nats scored on a clutch RBI single by Keibert Ruiz in the 5th inning, followed immediately by a home run by Curtis Mead to make the score 3-0. (He thereby atoned for his "sin" of the previous day, some said.) Alvarez finished the final four innings, getting the win but not the save, which he would have if he had not been the winning pitcher. Overall, the Nats are now 8-5 on the road and 2-7 at home.

Tonight the Nationals welcome the first-place Atlanta Braves to town. The Nats are currently 5 games behind first place, so even if they somehow sweep the Braves in the four-game series, they will still be in second place.

Fenway Park, etc. page fixups

I did some "spring cleaning" with two of my baseball web pages: first, the Stadium statistics, which has updated seating capacity information, indicating the various cases where stadiums reduced their capacity in later years. (That is a growing trend these day, evident in Coors Field, Progressive Field, and elsewhere.) Second, Fenway Park has been reformatted and now includes some newer, bigger photos. In general, I am trying to make the overall format more consistent with other pages, and in the case of Fenway Park I added some larger-size photos. (I did likewise with Progressive Field a few days ago, and will keep up a steady pace on such revisions to other stadium pages in the months to come.) Another change worth mentioning: I am getting rid of the columns showing the "Overhang / shade %" because they are of relatively marginal use and based largely on crude "eyeballing" techniques.

Fenway Park, home of the Boston Red Sox, during a tour on September 5, 2016.

April 17, 2026 [LINK / comment]

Nats manage a split in Pittsburgh

The Washington Nationals had some real momentum going after sweeping the Brewers in Milwaukee over the weekend, and it lasted for exactly one inning as they took on the division-leading Pirates in Pittsburgh on Monday. Cade Cavalli lost command of his pitches in the 2nd inning, and the Pirates capitalized on a bases-loaded situation by scoring 4 runs. He was replaced, and the damage was contained, but in the 5th inning Jackson Rutledge gave up 7 runs, and Brad Lord gave up 3 more. (Rutledge's ERA soared to 47.25 before being sent down to the minors.) Final score: 16-5. But the Nats bounced right back in Game 2, with 3 runs in the first inning and 2 more later, one of which came on C.J. Abrams' 6th (!) home run of the year. This time the bullpen held tight, and te Nats won, 6-5. Wednesday's game was a genuine pitchers' duel, and the Pirates won it, 2-0. Yesterday was one heck of a wild ride, with the Nats scoring 4 runs in the 5th inning and the Pirates quickly matching that. From there it was back and forth, and the the Nats were one strike away from winning it in the bottom of the 9th, but the Pirates tied it. In the top of the 10th inning a single by James Wood scored the "ghost runner" on 2nd base, and then the Pirates grounded into a double play to end it on a triumphant note. Nats 8, Pirates 7. Getting a 2-2 split against a 1st-place team was a nice accomplishment. The Nats are now tied with the Miami Marlins for 2nd place in the NL East, 3 games behind the Atlanta Braves.

Tonight the Nationals welcome the San Francisco Giants to Washington, with one of the new Nats' pitchers Zach Littell facing Logan Webb. And thanks to the recent broadcast rights deal between the Nationals and Gray Media, I'll be watching on our local WHSV TV station!

Minor league (AAA) affiliates

One of my long-standing projects has been to tabulate the minor league teams and stadiums at the next level below the majors, i.e., the AAA teams. There are 20 AAA teams in the International League and 10 AAA teams in the Pacific Coast League. Some of them seem questionable in my mind, however. Eventually I will create a brand new web page with a more elaborate (and accurate) version of the table below. As I took a preliminary look at the stadiums that the 30 minor league teams currently call home, it occurred to me that I have actually visited a few of them. In particular, I have seen (and photographed) Sahlen Field in Buffalo, Victory Field in Indianapolis, Goodmon Field in Durham, NC, and Louisville Slugger Field -- the latter this past January, in fact. In addition, while passing by (in car or train) I also caught brief glimpses of Harbor Park in Norfolk, VA and Southwest University Park in El Paso, TX.

RED borders indicates minor league affiliates that are "too far" from their major league counterparts, and BLUE borders indicate those that are "too close."
"IL" = International League; "PCL" = Pacific Coast League
SOURCE: The above information was derived from www.mlb.com, and the respective AAA pages linked therein.

To summarize, the Rochester Red Wings (WSH), Nashville Sounds (MIL), Indianapolis Indians (PIT), Oklahoma City Comets (LAD), El Paso Chihuahuas (SD), Durham Bulls (TB), Charlotte Knights (CWS), and Salt Lake Bees (LAA) are "too far" from their major league counterparts, in my humble opinion. Meanwhile, the Gwinnett, GA Stripers (ATL), Tacoma Rainiers (SEA), and Sugar Land Space Cowboys (HOU) are "too close" to their MLB counterparts. In the former case ("too far") the situation is sometimes almost unavoidable, given the lack of suitable alternatives. But there are some cases where a mutually-beneficial "trade" could be made:

• The Washington Nationals should adopt Richmond, whose team ("Flying Squirrels") would be upgraded to AAA status, leaving another team for possible "demotion."
• In that case, the Pittsburgh Pirates would get the Rochester Red Wings.
• In that case, the Milwaukee Brewers would get the Indianapolis Indians.
• In that case, the Atlanta Braves would get the Nashville Sounds, relegating the Gwinnett Stripers to AA status.
• Also, the Houston Astros should adopt the El Paso Chihuahuas, relegating the Sugar Land Space Cowboys to AA status.
• In that case, the San Diego Padres could adopt either Oakland (a dicey political situation) or Portland, Oregon as a new AAA franchise.
• In the former case (Oakland), the Seattle Mariners should adopt Portland, Oregon as another new AAA franchise, relegating the Tacoma Rainiers to AA status.

Those changes would substantially rectify the problem of AAA affiliates being either too far or too close from their MLB counterparts. It would be a complicated game of "musical chairs," for sure. As I strive to reach out with baseball fans after a rather pathetic lapse in communication spanning the last two or three years, I invite responses, either via email or comments on this blog post. (Let me know if the registration process isn't working.)

For the record, here is a complete list of all the Washington Nationals's minor league franchises:

• Triple-A: Rochester Red Wings
• Double-A: Harrisburg Senators
• High-A: Wilmington Blue Rocks
• Single-A: Fredericksburg Nationals

And now, live and in living color, PLAY BALL!

[UPDATE: Well, this locally-televised game isn't much fun to watch, so far at least. The Giants scored 6 runs in the 2nd inning, and are ahead 8-3 in the middle of the 6th inning. I had meant to draw attention to an interesting factoid: As of yesterday, the Nationals led the major leagues both in total runs scored (107) as well as in total runs scored by the opposing team (117). Lots of excitement! Also, I made some corrections in the minor league "musical chairs" scenarios above.]

April 12, 2026 [LINK / comment]

Nationals sweep the Brewers!

The Washington Nationals were hosting the L.A. Dodgers for their home opener on Friday April 3, a beautiful day for a ball game. The Nats jumped on top 3-0 in the first inning, thanks to a home run by C.J. Abrams, who is having one heck of an early season. The Nats' starting pitcher Miles Mikolas got the first six outs, but then totally lost it in the third inning, when the Dodgers scored 5 times. By the time Mikolas was replaced in the 5th inning, he had given up 11 earned runs. The rest of the game didn't really matter in a 13-6 blowout. On Saturday, starting pitcher Jake Irvin got roughed up in the early innings, and the final score was 10-5. On Sunday afternoon, after a 2-hour rain delay, the Nats tried mightily to avoid getting swept, and had a 6-3 lead going into the 8th inning. But unfortunately the Dodgers staged a 4-run rally, as relief pitcher Cionel Perez proved utterly ineffective, not even recording a single out. Final score: L.A. 8, Nats 6. Getting swept by the mega-salary L.A. Dodgers surprised no one.

The next day the Nats welcomed the St. Louis Cardinals to town, and showed spunk on the heels of that distressing sweep by scoring twice in the first inning. But the Cards gradually came back and had a 6-3 lead by the middle of the 8th inning. That's when the Nats pulled off an incredible 6-run rally, featuring home runs by James Wood, Brady House, and C.J. Abrams. Final score: Nats 9, Cards 6. On Tuesday the Nats were ahead 5-3 until the Cards tied it in the 8th inning, and the visitors eked out a 7-6 victory in 10 innings. That was a big lost opportunity. On Wednesday Mikolas was on the mound, and fared little better than in his first two starts, as the Nats lost the game, 6-1, and thus, the series.

After a day of rest, the Nats flew west to Milwaukee to face the 8-4 Brewers in American Family Field. The Nats scored twice in the first inning, but a home run by Jake Bauers immediately put the Brewers on top, 3-2. The Nats tied it 3-3 on a double by Jacob Young in the 7th inning, and in the 9th inning they managed to score four times by three well-executed bunts and two singles. And so, the Nats won it, 7-3. On Saturday it was a scoreless game until the 5th inning, when the Nats took a 2-0 lead. Starting pitcher Foster Griffin had a no-hitter going into the 6th inning, and after he was replaced the Brewers loaded the bases but couldn't quite score. In the bottom of the 9th William Contreras hit a lead-off homer, and the the Brewers again loaded the bases but failed to score. Nats 3, Brewers 1. And today, it was a thrilling, back-and-forth game in which James Wood homered for the third day in a row. The Nats took a 6-3 lead in the 7th inning, but the Brewers quickly tied it in the bottom of the inning. The decisive play of the game was in the top of the 8th inning when Keibert Ruiz singled up the middle on a low pitch, scoring two runs that made possible the 8-6 victory which sealed the Nats' first sweep of the year! With a quite respectable 7-8 record, the Nats are now tied with the Phillies for third place in the National League East Division, just behind the Marlins. The 10-6 Atlanta Braves lead the division.

Tomorrow the Nats head to Pittsburgh for a four-game series against the first-place (!) Pirates. (The Brewers had been in first place before getting swept by the Nats.) Cade Cavalli will face the Pirates' ace pitcher Paul Skenes, a daunting challenge, but the way the Nationals' batters have been playing this year, anything is possible. Believe it or not, the Nationals' team batting average (.272) ranks #4 in the majors, close behind the Braves and Astros, and their home run total (17) is tied for 5th place.

Nats' pitchers are a mixed bag

To the surprise of few people, the Washington Nationals' pitchers this year are not exactly ready for prime time. Their relief pitchers keep blowing leads late in the game, and some of their starting pitchers probably won't last long at the rate they're going. In any case, here is the starting rotation for the time being, including their ERAs and innings pitched:

1. Cade Cavalli (2.51 ERA, 14.1 IP)
2. Miles Mikolas* (12.41 ERA, 12.1 IP)
3. Jake Irvin (7.07 ERA, 14.0 IP)
4. Foster Griffin* (1.76 ERA, 15.1 IP)
5. Zach Littell* (4.20 ERA, 15.0 IP)

As for the relievers, Brad Lord, Clayton Beeter, and PJ Poulin seem OK, but Cionel Perez*, Ken Waldichuk*, Cole Henry, and Andre Granillo* have been pretty shaky so far. In today's game against the Brewers, Gus Varland* got his first save with the Nationals, just barely. I hope he continues to improve.

* Asterisks indicate new pitchers for the Nationals this year.

MORE baseball on TV!!!

My last blog post discussed the big news that NBC will be carrying games on most Sunday nights, including tonight's 13-1 blowout of the Cleveland Guardians by the Atlanta Braves. NBC will also show games on a few other days besides Sunday during the summer months, ending on Labor Day, September 7. But wait, there's more! I recently learned that the Gray Media television stations in the Washington Nationals' area (including WHSV Channel 3 here in the Shenandoah Valley) will be carrying ten Nationals games on Friday nights, beginning this Friday on April 17! Whoopeee!!! As of this year, the Nationals are no longer bound to MASN, which is controlled by the Baltimore Orioles, and this spring "Nationals TV" began operations. I gave it a one-week free trial, but learned to my chagrin that my "smart" TV can't download the necessary MLB software to get the signal. I can watch on my iPhone, but the "mirroring" technique to transfer the signal to the TV is prone to frequent signal glitches. For the time being, I'm afraid it's not worth the $19.99 monthly charge. In any case, these new arrangements are another sign that Rob Manfred understands the need to adapt to the new era of Internet-based media.

Progressive Field update

I made some partial corrections to the Progressive Field diagram, taking into account renovations that have been made over the past two years. The main change is that most of the upper deck in right field and along the third base side past the infield has been permanently removed, replaced with new rooftop party areas. In 2015 most of the upper deck in right field (including the portion wrapping around the right field foul pole) was covered up with tarpaulin and temporary structures catering to partiers. The portion of the upper deck from the corner of the grandstand inward has now been restored to its original seating function. The 2025 version diagram now includes the "H" (home) and "V" (visitor) labels next to the respective dugouts. (I need to check to be sure about which bullpen is which, but when the two bullpens are adjacent and parallel to each other, the home team usually occupies the one closer to the field.) As indicated on that page, that diagram is a "work in progress," subject to future corrections.

Also, I got rid of the old (small-size) photos and replaced them with larger-size photos, including this one that I took from the upper deck behind home plate in 2012. (Disclaimer: I made slight digital edits to make the background sky look more appealing.) Beautiful, isn't it?

Progressive Field, home of the Cleveland Guardians (then known as the "Indians"), on August 7, 2012.

March 31, 2026 [LINK / comment]

Play ball! Opening Day Week, 2026

But first, a few words about spring training... Not much is expected of the Washington Nationals this year, since they traded away their ace pitcher Mackenzie Gore to the Texas Rangers, but they still had a surprisingly good spring training season. They finished the preseason with a 14-11 record, including a pair of games that they lost to the Orioles in Baltimore and then Washington on March 22 and 23. Their last game in Florida, against the Mets on March 21, ended on a walk-off home run by a new player named Joey Wiemer, who was released by the Giants last December.

The 2026 regular baseball season began with the New York Yankees playing an evening game against the Giants last Wednesday night in San Francisco, and it was a pretty lopsided affair. The Yankees scored 5 runs in the second inning, and added 2 more later, while the home team struggled just to get any hits. The Yankees swept that series, while the reigning World Series champion Dodgers did likewise at home against the Diamondbacks.

For most teams, Opening Day was on Thursday, and most of the games were in broad daylight -- the way God intended it to be played! Perhaps the most remarkable performance that day was by Cleveland Guardian [right fielder] Chase DeLauter, who led his team to a 6-4 win over the Seattle Mariners with a pair of home runs. He hit home runs in each of the next two games as well, quickly taking the MLB lead in the HR department, with 4. In Toronto, the Blue Jays swept the Sacramento* Athletics 3 games to none, thanks to a late comeback [in the Saturday game] that was resolved in the 11th inning. The poor A's lost their first 4 games, the only team to start that poorly, but finally managed to prevail against the Braves in Atlanta tonight.

* [Technically, the Athletics are avoiding any city affiliation during this awkward transition phase between their old home in Oakland and their future home in Las Vegas. To me that is disrespectful to their temporary host city, so I intend to make up for that by calling them "the Sacramento Athletics."]

Meanwhile, the Washington Nationals started the season on the road, and to the surprise of most people, they have been highly successful. On Thursday in Wrigley Field, Joey Wiemer got things started with a solo homer to left field in the face of a stiff wind. That youngster has some pop! In fact, he reached base in all 4 plate appearances -- 3 hits and one base on balls. With the help of home runs by Jacob Young and Brady House, the Nationals prevailed over the Cubs in that first game, 10-4. After resting on Friday, the two teams played again on Saturday, but this time the Cubs won it, 10-2. It was a disappointing outing for newly-acquired starting pitcher Miles Mikolas, who gave up 4 earned runs (and 2 unearned runs) over 5 innings. But on Sunday the Nats prevailed 6-3 as Joey Wiemer once again homered, and hit a triple and a single as well! Just like on Thursday, he reached base on every plate appearance, including a walk. I should mention that Daylen Lile has been getting some clutch hits as well, keeping up the pace from his very promising MLB debut late last year.

On Monday the Nats traveled to Philadelphia, and stunned the home crowd with a 4-run 1st inning. Soon it was 7-0, and the final score ended up as 13-2. New starting pitcher Foster Griffin managed to get through 5 innings, and was thus credited with the win. With a 3-1 record to start the season, the Nats were briefly tied for 1st place in the NL East -- with 3 other teams! What about Joey Wiemer? At every at-bat the tension mounted, as history was in the making. He was batting 9th, and with 2 outs he was initially called out at first on a ground ball to first baseman Bryce Harper. But after further review it was determined that he beat Harper's throw to the pitcher, and he was thus awarded with a hit to keep his streak alive! He also singled in the 3rd inning, making it 10 consecutive plate appearances reaching base -- the longest such streak to start an MLB season since Carlos Delgado of the Toronto Blue Jays in 1991! But in the top of the 5th he grounded out, putting an end to his magical early season. In today's game the Nats had a couple bad breaks and came up short against the Phillies, 3-2. The game on Wednesday will decide the series, after which the Nationals return home to face the L.A. Dodgers in Washington.

[UPDATE: I neglected to mention that I have updated the Washington Nationals page, which features the team's new regular position players and pitching rotation, as well as the Washington Nationals Annual page, which has such information and annual statistics going back to the team's (re-)founding in 2005. In the former case, I need to make a few more updates and corrections... ]

ABS system debuts in MLB

After getting tested in spring training, use of the new-fangled Automated Ball-Strike system has begun on a regular basis. Most people think it is a positive development, and I tend to agree, even though I wonder whether the technology can translate video images into precise trajectories. It won't end all arguments, but it will at least provide for a quick, smooth resolution of disputes.

Sunday Night Baseball on NBC!

For the first time since the year 2000, two of the games were broadcast nationwide on NBC. Fox has broadcast virtually all regular season MLB games on a more-or-less weekly basis since 1996, but on April 12 and most Sunday evenings from May 31 until early September, [NBC will broadcast games as well. It's too bad that semi-retired NBC announcer Bob Costas won't play much of a role, since he is known to be a big baseball fan.] The addition of a second network will bring baseball to a wider audience, something that is long overdue. For once, Major League Baseball has done something right!

Washington Post downgrades sports

Last month the management at the Washington Post announced that virtually their entire [staff of sports writers was] being let go, as the newspaper struggles to make a buck in this rapidly-changing world. That was bleak news for me, since I rely on the Post to provide scores and insightful analysis, in baseball and in other sports. No more Barry Svrluga, no more Chelsea Janes, no more Andrew Golden... Virtually all sports news items in the Post now are either from the Associated Press (no names) or from reporters working for other newspapers such as the Philadelphia Enquirer. It's all a dirty rotten shame.

Venezuela wins 2026 WBC title

In Miami's LoanDeport Park on March 17 (St. Patrick's Day), the Venezuelan national team beat Team USA 3-2 to take the 2026 World Baseball Classic championship crown. It was a tense struggle in which the American bats were mostly silenced until the bottom of the 8th inning when Bryce Harper thrilled the mostly-American crowd with a game-tying 2-run homer. But the game was decided in the top of the 9th inning, when Eugenio Suarez hit an RBI double. This contest had an unusual political "subtext," in that U.S. military forces abruptly barged into the residence of President Nicolas Maduro on January 3, and whisked him back to the United States to face various criminal charges. President Trump used the occasion to suggest that Venezuela might want to become the 51st state, which is of course a virtual impossibility.

Among the notable outcomes of the 2026 WBC was the emergence of Italy as a serious baseball powerhouse. Seriously? Apparently there are a large enough number of American players with Italian surnames to make up a complete team. (As far as I could tell there were no actual Italian players on that team.) Another big moment was the showdown between the U.S. and Canada, another rivalry with political overtones. The failure of Japan -- the 2023 WBC champions -- to make it to the final round was a bit of a surprise, given Shohei Ohtani's supremacy in contemporary MLB competition. Anyway, congratulations (felicitaciones) to the Venezuelan national team!

Meanwhile, in Milan [ ]

A major sporting event took place last month in Milan, Italy or thereabouts. Congratulations to the American men's and women's hockey teams for winning their respective Olympic gold medal championship games! [ ]

R.I.P. Bill Mazerowski

One of the biggest clutch heroes in Pittsburgh Pirates history passed away on February 20: Bill Mazerowski, who played his entire career (1956-1972) with the Bucs. He was a solid second baseman, and hardly every missed much playing time, averaging 150 games during the 12 seasons when he was in his prime. Of course he is best known for hitting the walk-off home run that decided Game 7 of the 1960 World Series (against the Yankees), in the iconic palace of Forbes Field. Over his entire career he hit 138 home runs, plus two in postseason games, both of which were in the 1960 World Series. He got to experience a second World Series triumph in 1971, and then retired a year later. His career coincided almost exactly with that of revered team mate Roberto Clemente. In 2001 he was admitted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. It happens that he was born in Wheeling, West Virginia, just a short distance downstream from Pittsburgh along the Ohio River. Pittsburgh fans will never forget him.

And so, while large parts of the world are enduring the flames of war and soaring energy prices, at least we have baseball to enjoy as the days steadily grow longer.