All Things Bubba

The New York Times Magazine has a long article about Mariano Rivera. No shocking revelations, but it's a nice tribute.

What I found really cool was the accompanying multimedia piece:

How Mariano Rivera Dominates Hitters

I found it a very good use of computer graphics, showing how Mo throws his cutter, why it's so deceptive, and how good his control is. I tend not to notice the grip on the ball or how it's spinning, so it's nice to see it laid out in simple terms.

Derek Jeter is 36 today. Hard to believe. He was the young kid on the team for so long (not least because of the Yanks' longtime propensity for playing aging veterans over farm kids).

He's had a great career, and is a guaranteed first ballot hall of famer. But 36 is geriatric for a SS. He's never been a great defensive SS, and he's holding up okay so far. (I read somewhere that he's positioning himself deeper, so he has more time to get the ball. With his excellent arm, he can do that. Though it kind of makes you wonder why he didn't do it sooner.)

You have to wonder what the Yankees are going to do with him. After signing A-Rod until he's in his forties, how can the Yankees justify giving Jeter a lesser deal?

But...SS is not a position for aging veterans. And Jeter, unlike A-Rod, isn't the kind of power hitter you can see DHing or moving to 1B or LF. And Jeter has made it clear that he doesn't want to move, and doesn't think he has to. He thinks he can still play SS when he's 40.

Maybe he can. If anyone can, it will be Jeter.

...Bubba Crosby signed with the Dodgers, agreeing to play baseball instead of returning to Rice for his senior year. He got a $995,000 signing bonus. (He later went back to school and finished up his degree.)

Labels: Bubba Crosby

Deadspin has a really interesting story about Pete Rose's corked bats. It shows photographic proof that Pete Rose corked his bats, and used them in games while he was pursuing the hit record. Pretty interesting if you’re into photographic forensics.

Of course, whether corking actually helps is disputed at best. If it does help, the effect is tiny. And some claim it actually hurts.

This doesn’t tarnish Pete’s legacy any. He’s already so controversial, and the bat-corking rumors have been around for a long time.

I'm kind of surprised Rose would sell his corked bats. Maybe he was desperate for cash (due to his gambling debts). Maybe he thought they were so valuable no one would ever cut them open, not realizing the tampering could be revealed by modern technology without damaging the bat.

Since the news broke, other collectors have checked their Rose bats, and more corked bats have been found.

Today in Yankee history....

Infielder Andy Phillips took yet another ride on the Columbus Shuttle when he was returned there as the team recalled outfielder Bubba Crosby on June 15, 2005. And one year later, Nick Green was Columbus-bound to make room for Bubba Crosby yet again, this time coming off the DL.

So, I was talking to this guy from Texas. His last name was Crosby, and I asked him, just making conversation, if he was related to Bubba. To my surprise, he said "probably" - because almost all American Crosbys are related. Turned out, he was a genealogy buff, and had traced his family roots all the way back to the old country. Which was York, England.

According to him, Symon Crosby was on the Susan and Ellin, the 48th Pilgrim ship, arriving in the Plymouth Colony in 1635. He had one son, Thomas, who graduated from Harvard (class of 1653). Thomas had a ton of kids. They eventually spread across New England and Canada, and then the rest of the U.S. Almost every American Crosby is descended from Symon. That means Bubba is probably related to Sidney. And David. And Bing. And while Michael Kay was wrong when he told YES viewers that Bobby Crosby was Bubba's brother, they probably are related.

That really surprised me. I am somewhat interested in etymology (the history of words and names). I knew "Crosby" means something like "farm at the crossroads," and just assumed that it was a common name that arose more than once. Perhaps it is, but here in the U.S., all the Crosbys are descended from one man who arrived in Plymouth 375 years ago.

I read once that on average, family names last only four generations or so. That doesn't necessarily mean the family dies out; if a generation has only daughters, but no sons, or no legitimate sons, the family name dies out though the family may continue.

I guess the flip side of that is if the family name survives, it can become extremely widespread. It's the exponential function - kids having kids have kids.

Speaking of roots...the LA Times had a fascinating three-part series last month about a journalist who investigates the roots of his unusual family name, "Mozingo." No one in his family really knows its origins. It's rumored to be Italian, or French, or Basque. Eventually, he finds out the truth: blue-eyed surfer that he is, he's descended from an African prince. "Mozingo" is a Bantu name.

There are both white and black Mozingos in the U.S. now, and some of the white ones are mortified at their African ancestry. Refuse to believe it, even. All in all, a really interesting read.

Labels: Bubba Crosby

Paul Janish, not seen since sometime in May, got a start at SS today. Mike Leake was on the mound - the Reds' only groundball pitcher. Perhaps they've realized that good infield defense is desirable with a groundball pitcher.

Janish had a great diving stop that began a double play that probably was the difference between winning and losing for the Reds today. He had a couple of other really nice defensive plays, too, impressing the Giants announcers, who hadn't seen him before.

He wasn't too shabby at the dish, either, going 1 for 3 with a walk and run scored.

Labels: Paul Janish