30 Year All Star Anniversary: Bo Knows All-Star

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Bo Jackson is one of the biggest multi-sport stars in history. From barreling over Brian Bosworth at the goal line against the Seahawks to breaking a bat over his helmet, Bo could seemingly do everything on a field. He could make the All-Star Game as well, and he did just that, leaving his impact on the 1989 game.

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The 1989 All Star Game was in Anaheim, California, with Angels coach Jimmie Reese throwing out the first pitch and former president Ronald Reagan joining Vin Scully in the broadcast booth for the first inning. Carl Yastrzemski and Don Drysdale were honorary captains for each team.

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AL starter Dave Stewart allowed a leadoff single to Ozzie Smith, who was then caught stealing. After a Tony Gwynn walk and a groundout that moved him to second, Kevin Mitchell singled him in for a quick 1-0 NL lead. After an Eric Davis walk, Mitchell would be driven in by a Howard Johnson single. Although catcher Terry Steinbach couldn’t catch either Davis or Johnson stealing, the batter Pedro Guerrero flew out to end the threat; the National League led 2-0.

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Rick Reuschel, Stewart’s NL counterpart, did not fare better. He gave up a towering leadoff shot to Bo Jackson to start the game. Immediately afterwards, he gave up another solo shot to third baseman Wade Boggs. Although he gave up another single with 2 outs, Reuschel did not give up any more runs. He left the inning with the score tied 2-2.

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In the top of the second, Nolan Ryan retired Ryne Sandberg, Benito Santiago and Smith in order. The bottom of the inning started with a leadoff Ruben Sierra single, followed by a flyout to right fielder Tony Gwynn and another single moving Sierra to third. With runners at the corners and 1 out, Bo Jackson hit a grounder to Ozzie Smith. Smith flipped the ball to Sandberg for an out, but they could not get the double play, giving the AL the lead. Jackson managed to steal second and force a throwing error by Santiago, allowing him to reach third. Jackson was stranded, as John Smoltz forced Boggs to pop up for the final out.

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The top of the third featured a Gwynn single to Ryan, a notoriously bad fielder. Gwynn managed to steal second but Ryan struck out Will Clark and 1989 MVP Kevin Mitchell to leave him stranded. The bottom of the inning brought Rick Sutcliffe out to replace Smoltz, and Sutcliffe gave up a single to Kirby Puckett, allowing him to reach second on a wild pitch. Hall of Famer Harold Baines singled him in, and Baines would eventually be brought in by Ruben Sierra after Cal Ripken and Julio Franco groundouts each allowed him to advance a base.

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The fourth brought no scores by either team, despite a Bo Jackson single. The fifth had the same result, even with a Cal Ripken double. Both innings ended with a runner on third for the AL, while the NL could not muster a runner. The game remained at a 5-2 score until the top of the 8th, where a Glenn Davis walk followed by Kevin Mitchell and Von Hayes singles brought the score to 5-3. Vince Coleman, running for Mitchell, was stranded at third on a Tim Wallach flyout to Mike Greenwell in left to end the inning. The bottom of the inning brought a Ruben Sierra leadoff walk against Mitch Williams, who certainly was living up to his “Wild Thing” nickname. Williams picked Sierra off of first base for the first out, and the inning ended on a whimper.

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The top of the ninth had Doug Jones trying to save the game for the AL. After a Bobby Bonilla leadoff single, he was forced out at second on a ground ball by Willie Randolph. With 1 out, Tony Pena represented the tying run at the plate. It was not to be, as Pena grounded out to Jones, who threw to shortstop Tony Fernandez at second who fired the throw to first baseman Don Mattingly, ending the game.

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Bo Jackson, for his towering shot, sheer hustle and outstanding baserunning, was named MVP as the AL won.

May your pennants fly forever.

-Prentiss

Brad Keller is Moving Away From his Fastball, with Mixed Results

Royals rotation leader (not ace) Brad Keller has experienced some struggles this year. Keller was expected to build off his debut of a 3.08 ERA in 140 innings in 2018, but he has been struggling as of late. (All Stats are excluding his start on June 24, 2019)


Keller is using his fastball 63.9% of the time, much lower than the 69.7% usage rate he posted last year. The usage has impacted his 4 seam usage far more than his sinker, as Keller only uses his sinker one less pitch per every hundred compared to last year. His 4 seam usage has dropped from 44.3% to 39.3%, which is quite drastic. His velocity has slipped concerning all of his pitches, but the change is negligible at best, maybe 1 mph at most.

Keller is using his offspeed pitches more, but not his changeup. His changeup usage declined from 4.1% to 1.9%. One of Keller’s rarer offerings is now a pitch that hitters do not have to worry about: the slider. He is using it 34.2% of the time compared to 26.2% last year. So what are the results?

Keller, this year, is getting fewer swings on pitches outside the zone, fewer swinging strikes and more contact against all of his pitches (the contact has been harder, too). He is in the strike zone 38.6% of the time, compared to 40.8% in his breakout 2018 season. As a whole, Keller’s peripherals are declining. But does this usage bring any benefit?

The Royals righty has only given up 4 home runs this year, and has a 0.4 HR/9, one of the best of those figures in the league. However Keller has walked 46 batters already this year, one of the worst totals in the league. His lack of command leads to more baserunners and runs given up in general. Keller might need to change his approach and focus on commanding his slider better, or varying the sequencing of his pitches.

May your pennants fly forever.

-Prentiss

Billy Hamilton or....Billy Hamilton?

Amazing defensive outfielder. Terror on the basepaths. Not a power hitter. Does this sound familiar? Billy Hamilton fits the mold. Billy Hamilton also fits the mold. Both Billy Hamiltons...well they fit the mold.

When baseball fans hear the name Billy Hamilton, they think of the Royals, and former Reds, centerfielder. Hamilton is currently roaming centerfield, making amazing defensive plays due to his blazing speed. He also is one of the most dangerous on the basepaths today, quickly coming up on 300 stolen bases for his career.

The other Billy Hamilton fits into many of the classifications the present Billy Hamilton does. The old Billy Hamilton has 914 stolen bases, near the top of the stolen base leaderboard. Old Hamilton was 56 fielding runs above average, but that is using the defensive metrics from the 19th century that are notoriously unreliable. He does, however, have a higher fielding percentage and range factor than league average, for what it is worth.

Old Billy Hamilton was a much better hitter than current Billy Hamilton. The old Hamilton posted a 141 OPS+, with a 0.455 OBP and walking 1,189 times to only 362 strikeouts. The current Billy Hamilton has a career 69 OPS+ and an OBP lower than 0.300. He is 72 points underneath past Billy Hamilton. Both posted relatively low slugging percentages, while old Hamilton’s 0.432 is far better than current Hamilton’s 0.329 slugging. Both used their speed to hit many triples, outnumbering their home run count (Editor's Note: !!!).

It is incredibly rare that players share the same name. It is even more rare that both players share the same name, more than a hundred years apart. Most uniquely, they are the same mold of player.

May your pennants fly forever.

-Prentiss