The Big Wind-Up

Last time we visited here there were 10 teams in contention for the playoffs. As the column begins Monday night the Red Sox, Braves, and Padres are gone. The Angels are within a game of eliminating the Yankees. Widget says 5-2 Angels, bottom of the 5th with two baserunners.

Most teams will have a new look to some degree in the 2006 season. Perhaps none more than Boston. Johnny Damon, Kevin Millar, and Bill Mueller are all free agents now. This means that their agents are free to entertain (market) offers from other teams. There has also been talk of a Manny Ramirez trade.

Look also for the Yankees to have a new look in 2006. They’ve made it to post season play every year since 1998, but since the 2000 season haven’t been able to close the deal. George Steinbrenner isn’t a patient man. Bernie Williams’ contract is up. He’s a little slow in center field, and doesn’t have much throwing strength left. Most other position players have performed well, if you overlook Cano’s propensity for errors. Clearly you can’t close the deal without effective pitching. Randy Johnson is no longer the fierce dominant pitcher he once was, at least on a consistent basis. The Angels shelled him out of the game in the 3rd inning last week. Alex Rodriguez? Look for some payroll adjustments next year

When to retire is always a big issue for most players. Usually it comes with the end of a contract. Others remain in the hunt for one more season. Ricky Henderson holds the record as the all time leader in stolen bases. This year he played for the San Diego Surf Dogs of the Golden Baseball League. At 46 years old, he managed only a .270 batting average and 5 home runs in 73 games. Henderson also holds an unrecognized statistic for the most first pitch leadoff home runs, two of which your correspondent witnessed in Oakland.

So how is a player informed that their athletic career is over? Self-doubt is something an athlete fights every day. Babe Ruth hit .181 in his final season. We witness many players who stay too long and are finally forced out by management. Julio Franco is about 47 years old (nobody knows for certain), and still a productive hitter for the Braves. Both Roger Clemens and Randy Johnson are in their early 40’s. Charlie Hough pitched into his late 40’s, and in his final season picked off Ricky Henderson in a steal attempt. The decision to leave on your own terms in the middle of life is a difficult one. No amount of rational reasoning, denial, or prayer seems to relieve the anxiety over leaving a career that has made you rich and famous. Michael Jordan, Mike Tyson, Ricky Henderson, Jerry Rice, Willie Mays, Mohammed Ali, etc. The economics of sports encourages players to hang onto what made them successful (rich) and famous too long in most cases. Base offers this bit of advice as one who has faced the career-changing dilemma to Randy, Kurt, Ricky, Roger, Bernie, and all the others: Accept your age. Anything over 10 years as an elite athlete is remarkable. There are plenty of other opportunities for participation in your field for fame and accomplishment. Send your resume to Fox Sorts Net and ESPN, or perhaps just enjoy living without need off the accumulated riches of your accomplishment.

We might still see the Base prediction for the World Series, at least in part. Several weeks back his wisdom and gut said Houston vs. New York. That may not happen for several reasons. Whoever plays Chicago will win. The White Sox have been resting for a week. Good for pitchers, bad for position players and hitters. They lose their edge.

St. Louis has been resting for a week too, but they have Tony LaRussa.

Houston may already have emptied the emotional tank. 18 innings is a log time to play in the last game of the first round. It was essentially a 5 game series played out in 4 games. Do the Astros have enough juice left to get through the Cardinals? Whoever beats St. Louis wins the WS, that is unless St. Louis wins. The best team at this time will win.

That’s the only certainty at Off.Base@gmail.com