Yogi Berra Featured Yankee Card of the Week

post from lenNY's Yankees - A Bronx Bombers Blog on 26 October 2009 06:53:00 AM. © lenNY's Yankees - A Bronx Bombers Blog

After the Yankees clinched their 40th pennant last night, I knew I was going to choose this Yogi Berra card because of his illustrious history of playing in the World Series. Berra played in an astounding 14 World Series for a total of 75 games ? that?s[...]

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Tigres Tales

post from The WGOM on 26 October 2009 06:34:32 AM. © The WGOM

Aragua split a doubleheader with Margarita in Aragua Sunday. The Tigres lost the first game 3-1, but won the nightcap 6-2.

In the first game, Frank Diaz was the only player on either team to get two hits, leading the Margarita offense with a pair of singles. Dustin Martin was 1-for-3 for Aragua, and Justin Huber [...]

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World Series Schedule

post from Sliding Into Home: A Yankees Blog on 26 October 2009 05:15:00 AM. © Sliding Into Home: A Yankees Blog

Here's the World Series schedule via Pete Dougherty:

Game 1: Wednesday, October 28th, 7:57 p.m. - Phillies @ Yankees

Game 2: Thursday, October 29th, 7:57 p.m. - Phillies @ Yankees
Game 3: Saturday, October 31st, 7:57 p.m. - Yankees @ Phillies

Game 4: Sunday, November 1st, 8:20 p.m. - Yankees @ Phillies

Game 5: Monday, November 2nd, 7:57 p.m. - Yankees @ Phillies*
Game 6: Wednesday, November 4th, 7:57 p.m. - Phillies @ Yankees*

Game 7: Thursday, November 5th @ 7:57 p.m. - Phillies @ Yankees*

(* ? if necessary)

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le.html

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La Russa expected to return to Cardinals (AP)

post from MLB News Blog on 26 October 2009 05:07:15 AM. © MLB News Blog

The St. Louis Cardinals have scheduled a midday news conference amid reports that Tony La Russa will return for a 15th season as manager, and possibly bring Mark McGwire as hitting coach. The Monday news conference is at 11 a.m. CDT at Busch Stadium. La Russa told The Associated Press in a telephone interview on [...]

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Cards La Russa returning with McGwire (AP)

post from MLB News Blog on 26 October 2009 05:07:15 AM. © MLB News Blog

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Flow Experience

post from Dear (Tommy) John Letters on 26 October 2009 04:19:00 AM. © Dear (Tommy) John Letters

A psychologist by the name of Mihály Csíkszentmihályi proposed the concept of a mental state that he calls flow. Flow is characterized by a complete immersion in the activity at hand. It is a feeling of total focus - all of your energies are aligned with successfully executing your given task. In sports we refer to this as being "in the zone". Most of us have seen it or experienced it first-hand. You may have heard a hitter describe the baseball "looking like a beach ball coming in" or a great shooter "being unconscious" on the court. These are examples of flow. Here are the nine factors that Mihaly (I'm not typing his last name ever again) identifies as accompaniments to a flow experience:

Clear goals (expectations and rules are discernible and goals are attainable and align appropriately with one's skill set and abilities). Moreover, the challenge level and skill level should both be high.^[3]
Concentrating, a high degree of concentration on a limited field of attention (a person engaged in the activity will have the opportunity to focus and to delve deeply into it).
A loss of the feeling of self-consciousness, the merging of action and awareness.
Distorted sense of time, one's subjective experience of time is altered.
Direct and immediate feedback (successes and failures in the course of the activity are apparent, so that behavior can be adjusted as needed).
Balance between ability level and challenge (the activity is neither too easy nor too difficult).
A sense of personal control over the situation or activity.
The activity is intrinsically rewarding, so there is an effortlessness of action.
People become absorbed in their activity, and focus of awareness is narrowed down to the activity itself, action awareness merging.

You might think (since I'm a pitcher) that this post is going to lead to a discussion about a flow experience that I've had on the baseball field. But the truth is, when I read those 9 factors - baseball is not the first thing that comes to my mind. It is with a heavy heart that I admit that the first thing that enters my mind upon reading that outline is... Guitar Hero.

Don't worry, I'm not an addict like many people that I know. In fact, I've only played the game a handful of times. But after the very first night I played it, I remember thinking, "that game is dangerous." I haven't done the research, but my guess is the Mihaly invented it. The format is absolutely perfect for creating a flow experience for every player. "Medium is getting too easy? Here - try the orange button, see what your pinkie finger thinks about that. Oh, you're finally getting the hang of it - try the next song, it's a bit harder. You've finished all the songs on Hard? Step it up to Expert - it is 11 times harder to play those songs on Guitar Hero than it is to play them on an actual guitar. Good luck."

This realization is pretty depressing if you ask me. Kids can create a better competitive experience with a video game than they can playing a game of backyard baseball. Dad - thank you for not buying us a Nintendo when we were younger.

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http://deartommyjohnletters.blogspot.com/2009/10/flow-experience.html

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Wildcards, Tiebreakers & Playoffs: Fixing
Baseball, Part 2

post from The Productive Out on 26 October 2009 02:43:00 AM. © The Productive Out

[...]

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1952 Bowman Small - James Phelan

post from Sports Locker on 26 October 2009 02:41:00 AM. © Sports Locker

My 1952 Bowman Small Texans team set is almost complete. I recently picked up Coach James Phelan's card.

Phelan's Texans won only one game in that 1952 season. They beat George Halas' Bears in a game at the Akron Rubber Bowl on Thanksgiving. Halas may have been guilty of a little overconfidence. He started the game with his 2nd string offense and defense. Meanwhile, Phelan started whomever he could keep in uniform.

I met Art Donovan a couple of years ago. Donovan talked about the game and how Coach Phelan made the Texans go in the stands to thank the 3,000 or so people for coming to the game.

Phelan's biggest compliment may have come from Knute Rockne. He described Phelan as "the smartest quarterback I ever coached. James Phelan was the captain of the 1917 Fighting Irish.

The last (I believe) 1952 Bowman Small Texan I need is #144, Jim Lansford.

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http://sportslocker.blogspot.com/2009/10/1952-bowman-small-james-phelan.html

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Another Look at Starlin Castro

Starlin Castro has attracted a lot of attention in recent weeks. His play in the Arizona Fall League coupled with his 2009 campaign has moved the 19-year old shortstop up the Cubs' prospect list. A report from Cubs.com made the statement, "Starlin Castro is ready for the big leagues."

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Yankees Clinch

The New York Yankees are back. World Series glory is on deck for the 40TH time. A raucous Bronx[...]

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http://baseballhotcorner.blogspot.com/2009/10/yankees-clinch.html

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