Opinion

Most fans of Major League Baseball can remember the Fall of 1996.

Back then, the New York Yankees were a far more lovable bunch (unless you were a Boston Red Sox fan). There was no clubhouse glittering with All-Star after All-Star, no recent history of dominance.

New York did represent the American League also-rans as the 1995 Wild Card, but they floundered away a 2-0 lead in the Division Series to the Mariners. The Yanks proceeded to drop the next three games in Seattle and saw their season end on that memorable, game-winning slide from Ken Griffey, Jr.

There were five other at bats that played out eerily similar to those of Alex Rodriguez's past postseason failures. 

He came up empty in his first four plate appearances, where only once did the ball leave the infield. Then there was his weak pop-out to shallow center that left the bases loaded in the 12th inning as the rain picked up and the temperatures dropped in the wee hours of the morning at the new Yankee Stadium.

But there were no boos from the exhausted New York fans afterwards and it wasn't because their jaws were frozen shut. 

Milwaukee fans are used to seeing the above joyful celebration between Braun and Fielder, the two young faces of the Brewers franchise.

They are the ones people associate with the positive change that has taken place in recent years.  They are the ones fans buy tickets to watch more than anyone else on the current Brewers roster.  They are the ones fans of other teams think of first upon hearing the name of the Brewers franchise.

But they are also the ones that will cost more money than anyone else on this team in the long run.  

Gary Sheffield is recognized as one of the greatest players who have ever played the game, and he started his Hall of Fame career with no one other than the Marlins.

Well, technically he didn't start out with the Marlins but it was with the Marlins where he made a name for himself.

Gary was a first round draft pick by the Milwaukee Brewers and he spent four years with the Brewers where he underproduced and was constantly fighting with the front office, calling them racist. The Brewers, finally exhausted by Sheffield's attitude, traded him to the Padres.

Dear Bud,

      The season was memorable, but the World Series needs to change. The game has never been healthier, but not for fans. It's your job to fix it...

Lately, the Houston Astros have been hosting a game show. Haven't you heard?

It's called, "Who Wants to Be the Houston Astros Manager?"

Apparently, Bob Melvin and Manny Acta really do . And, of course, so does a motley cast comprised of the likes of Phil Garner, Dave Clark and several others.

For Phillies fans, the joy of Game One of the NLCS was gone, when the Dodgers walked away with a 2-1 victory Friday.

The series is now tied 1-1 with Game Three in Philadelphia on Sunday night.

Wasted was a two-hit, three-strikeout, no walk performance by veteran Pedro Martinez, who hadn't pitched in 17 days. Martinez's day was over when Greg Dobbs pinch hit for him in the top of the eighth inning.

I have never been one to second guess. It's so easy after the fact to say he should have done this or he should have done that. If you raise the concern before it happens, then you have some validity in making a point.

I am what many would consider an "old timer" when it comes to watching baseball. It's been over a half a century and plenty of games have happened where it's very easy to say why did you do this when speaking of a manager's move.

It was the vaudevillian comedian Joe E. Brown who went on the record about it most famously. It was he who put it into words with so much brevity yet pith.

“Rooting for the Yankees,” Brown was jotted down as having said, “is like rooting for U.S. Steel.”

Those Damn Yankees—welcome back to the playoff spotlight.

This article was originally featured on www.stadiumjourney.com .

Back in 1989, the Rogers Centre (previously the Skydome) emerged as a modern marvel of architecture. Thanks to its retractable roof, after 20 years it still stands as one of the most unique ballparks in the majors.

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