Friday, Oct. 31, 2008

By STEVE PORTER

Pitching is the name of the game in baseball. It always has been that way and it will never change. There’s never enough good pitching to go around.

In the case of the World Series champion Philadelphia Phillies, they prevailed because of superb relief pitching. Their starters were anchored by ace Cole Hamels, the World Series MVP.

Yet after Hamels, the Philly staffers were no better than the ones trotted out by the St. Louis Cardinals, fourth in the NL Central. The difference between those two teams’ pitching was the Phils’ relief corps. It was magnificent, while the Cards was lousy. St. Louis relievers blew more than 30 games and lost just about the same number of games. With those figures, it’s amazing that the Cards finished 86-76.

Philadelphia’s bullpen, beginning with closer Brad Lidge, couldn’t be matched. That’s because Lidge was perfect - yes, perfect.
He converted every save opportunity this year, including 41 during the regular season. Lidge was 2-0 with a 1.95 ERA and part of the reason the Phillies didn’t lose a postseason game at home.

Now, it’s true that Philadelphia has a powerful lineup, especially at the top. But its bullpen is the reason the Phillies are the best team in baseball.

At one time, starting pitching mattered the most in producing a successful season. I’m from the old school and always believed that. If you had Bob Gibson or Sandy Koufax, you didn’t need anyone to finish off a game for them.

However, the times they are a-changin’ and it’s just as important to have quality relievers. Frankly, it might be more vital.

In the Phillies’ case, the ‘pen was mightier than anything else. It’s something the Cardinals should consider when putting together their 2009 pitching staff.

Wednesday, Oct. 22, 2008
By STEVE PORTER
There’s nothing in Major League Baseball like the World Series. And when the 2008 one began Wednesday night in Tampa Bay, nobody was happier to see it unfold than Dewyane Staats.

Staats, 55, a graduate of East Alton-Wood River High and Southern Illinois University, is the lead broadcaster for the Tampa Bay Rays, making their first appearance in the Fall Classic. The Rays, once the Devil Rays, experienced 10 consecutive losing seasons before putting it all together this year.

“I think it’s the best story in baseball,” Staats said.

Who could dispute that? It may be the best story in years. Not everyone can go from rags to riches these days.

The Rays outlasted those big, bad Boston Red Sox in the American League Championship Series after outflanking the BoSox and those self-inflated New York Yankees during the regular season.

Good for the Rays and great for Staats, who deserves some time in the sun. I’m not talking about that Florida sunshine. He has paid his dues, working for the Astros, Cubs and Yankees.

It’s a story of a local guy making good. Now he’s in the national spotlight with the Rays, eager to complete a storybook season. If they beat the Phillies, they couldn’t have scripted it better.

If so, more power to them. The Staats don’t lie.

Thursday, Oct. 16, 2008
By STEVE PORTER
Fishing is coming to a neighborhood pond near you. It’s high school angling, courtesy of the Illinois High School Association.
The IHSA announced this week that the first Bass Fishing state finals will run next May 8-9. And it’s close to home.
It’ll be at Carlyle Lake, a haven for area angles and boaters. Carlyle Lake is the largest manmade lake, covering 26,000 acres, in Illinois. Whether it’ll be good for snaring bass is another story. I hope the locals take the bait and nobody plays hooky.
It’s one of the most productive fishing areas in the state, the IHSA’s Dave Gannaway said of Carlyle. He said choosing the Clinton County location was a win-win situation.
“We had three other strong bids in the running for this event, but in the end Carlyle clearly separated itself from the others,” Gannaway said. “They have their entire community involved and we look forward to conducting a first-class championship event during our first year.”
The IHSA is the first high school state association in the country to sponsor a bass fishing tournament. Plano Molding Company, a fishing supply company located in the north central part of the state, will join Country Insurance as a bass fishing title sponsor.
So let the fishing begin. Marquette Catholic, Civic Memorial and Metro East Lutheran of Edwardsville are among the area schools set to field teams.
So let the fishing begin. I’ll be there in time for the fish fry. Just one question:
If we eventually go separate classes in fishing, will 1A be designated as minnow and 4A as whale?

Thursday, Oct. 2, 2008
By STEVE PORTER
The IHSA, in its infinite wisdom, threatened to cancel an area Class 2A boys and girls cross country regional because the state organization couldn’t get a Southwestern Illinois team to play host to it.
In the old days, the state organization would assign it to someone and go from there. These days, the IHSA wants schools to volunteer for the events and if members they don’t eagerly agree to throw out a welcome mat, there’s possible retribution.
With that in mind, Triad High came to the rescue of local runners this week. The Knights agreed to play host to a regional, even through they have other activities going on at the school on Saturday, Oct. 25. Civic Memorial, Jersey, Belleville Althoff, Mater Dei Breese, Cahokia, Highland, Mascoutah and Waterloo should thank the Knights .
Now, their boys and girls will have a place to run in hopes of qualifying for the Centralia 2A Sectional. Jersey’s Ryan Todd finished first Wednesday in the Triad Invitational, so he and teammate Jeff Wooldridge could be runners to watch in the regional.
It could be an intriguing regional, which is a lot better than having no regional at all.
I sure hope somebody bids on holding the bass fishing tournament. You’d hate to see that sink or teams play hooky that day..