Donnie baseball is catching his share of heat after Bruce Bochy enforced rule 8.06 to force Dodgers’ closer Jonathan Broxton off the mound, and spur the Giants to a come-from-behind 7-5 win in Los Angeles on Tuesday.

While it was Mattingly’s untimely two-step that is catching the headlines, it was Matt Kemp’s Rude-boy behavior that sent the dominoes tumbling.

First of all, there was absolutely no fiber in Kemp’s body that actually wanted to fight – even if his opponent was going to be the diminutive Tim Lincecum. Boxer’s don’t come out of the corner and position themselves between their trainer, the referee, and the other fighter. But instead Kemp gave everyone – in particularly Pablo Sandoval who rushed toward his teammate like a bounding rottweiler – ample opportunity to prevent the fisticuffs from developing.

Here’s an excerpt from Bay Area News Group Giants beat writer Andrew Baggarly’s blog. And remember, Baggarly covered the Dodgers for many years, too.

“Let’s get this out of the way: Kemp is a headcase. He’s a tremendously talented baseball player, but he’s had his share of run-ins with teammates over the years. Lord knows how many times Joe Torre has reached for his favorite migraine medicine on Kemp’s account.

So I wasn’t entirely surprised to see Kemp make like Billy from Family Circus and take a rather curved path toward first base. But like a good college basketball team, it was really interesting to watch everything that happened away from the guy with the ball, er, beef.”

Kemp took exception to a pitch that “clipped” his jersey. This is when the wheels began to loosen.
Home-plate umpire Adrian Johnson was forced to issue warning to both clubs simply because of Kemp’s overreaction.

Also irked by the pitch’s proximity was Joe Torre’s bench coach Bob Schaefer, who began to fume, and was later ejected when Giants reliever Denny Bautista came up and in to Russell Martin. An ejection that would prove critical.

In the sixth inning, Dodgers starter Clayton Kershaw was kept in to bat for himself — during a one-run game — then hit Aaron Rowand with the first pitch in the top of the seventh. Rowand took his base without a scene as both Kershaw and Torre were ejected.

As a result, instead of Torre’s second-in-command (Schaefer) taking the reins, it was the inexperienced Mattingly who became the acting manager – all because Kemp couldn’t distinguish between a bad outing for Lincecum and a pitch with intent.

This all resulted in a thrilling win for the Giants, and a frustrating moment — if not extremely embarrassing — loss for the Dodgers.

Used with permission of the author.

Theo is a staff reporter and feature writer for the Marin Independent Journal where he covers local prep and college sports. As an Associate Production Manager for ESPN, he helped produce Sunday Night Baseball among other national ESPN and ABC Sports telecasts. In addition to his contributions to Sports Climax, he is a columnist for Examiner.com and is the play-by-play voice for Sonoma State University baseball and softball.

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax, LLC

On July 13, 2010, Major League Baseball and the New York Yankees lost one of their most eccentric owners on the same day they celebrated their 81^st All-Star Game. 

George “The Boss” Steinbrenner suffered a heart attack in his Tampa, Florida home and passed away after 37 years of ownership in Major League Baseball, a stint that began in 1973 when he purchased the Yankees.

To commemorate the owner, the Yankees will be wearing custom-made patches on their game jerseys for the remainder of the season.   

Steinbrenner revolutionized ownership in all major league sports after his purchase of the New York Yankees from CBS on January 3, 1973, an acquisition that occurred after his failed attempt to purchase the Cleveland Indians a year earlier.

Steinbrenner would go on to hold ownership of the Yankees longer than any previous owner in the team’s history and soon became known for his controversial moves with management, players and other personnel.

Three months after he unpacked his bags in the Bronx, controversy ensued when the team’s president left the organization after crossing paths with The Boss. The following season, Steinbrenner attempted to hire rival manager Dick Williams from the Oakland Athletics but was prevented from doing so due to Williams remaining under contract with the A’s. Adding controversy to this attempt was the fact Williams had mysteriously resigned following a second consecutive World Series championship for his A’s.

At that same time, the A’s and Yankees rivalry was fueled when the flamboyant Yankees owner began targeting and signing several Oakland players including Catfish Hunter and most notably, Reggie Jackson. 

Steinbrenner was also notorious for his grooming demands that prevented players from displaying facial hair with the exception of mustaches – a policy that was challenged several times most notably by fan favorite, Don Mattingly.

A more recent example of the results from the hair codes around the Yankee clubhouse is when Johnny Damon left the Boston Red Sox organization with his shoulder-length hair and a full beard then showed up at his first Yankees press conference as clean shaven as a Marine.

Throughout his years at the helm, regardless of performance, Steinbrenner would change management. In fact, Billy Martin was fired and eventually rehired five times among the twenty changes that were made in The Boss’ first 23 years of ownership.  Many times personal animosity would result from on-field moves and decisions such as the case of Buck Showalter’s resignation in 1995. 

One of Steinbrenner’s most unusual moves for the era came before the beginning of the 1981 season when Dave Winfield was presented with a $23 million contract over a period of ten years.  At the time, this move made Winfield the highest paid player in the history of baseball. By 1985 Steinbrenner openly questioned the performance of Winfield to media personnel after the team struggled in a September series against the rival Toronto Blue Jays. 

The feud with Winfield finally culminated in 1990 when it was discovered that Steinbrenner had paid for information to be “dug up” on Winfield who had already sued the Yankees in the amount of $300,000 due to a violation of contract issues.

After investigation by MLB, Steinbrenner would receive a lifetime ban from baseball that was later lifted when he was reinstated in 1993. The feud would remain so bitter that Winfield chose to be inducted into the Hall of Fame as a member of the San Diego Padres – the first team Winfield had played for and the city he had left to become a member of the Yankees.

Steinbrenner eventually become less involved in the actual operations of the team and it was during this period that the team became a consistent contender, playing neck-and-neck with the eventual World Series champion Toronto Blue Jays until September 1993. The Yankees finally returned to the playoffs in 1995 ending a 14-year drought. 

In a more recent move that was heavily criticized by the media and numerous members within baseball, Steinbrenner hired Joe Torre in 1996 in what would end up his longest managerial relationship at a record of twelve years. With Torre as manager, Steinbrenner produced a World Series winner when the Yankees defeated a very competitive Atlanta Braves team in six games in 1996. 

The team would return to, and win, the World Series again in 1998, 1999 and 2000 while making the playoffs every season for 12 consecutive years until falling short and finishing third in the competitive American League East in 2008. 

Success was once again right around the corner as the Yankees again captured the World Series championship in 2009 after a series with the Philadelphia Phillies.  The championship marked the 27^thof the organization and the seventh under the ownership of Steinbrenner. 

Steinbrenner leaves behind a legacy of championships and controversy as owner of the New York Yankees.

The salaries of professional sports were forever changed when Dave Winfield was pulled away from the San Diego Padres with such a lucrative offer for that time.  For the most part – prior to Steinbrenner – management was content to hire general managers and presidents who would run the operation of the game as they watched from a distance.

The Boss was one of the first to become involved in day-to-day operations of the team and began a legacy of management changes during unsuccessful periods that still echo today.  Steinbrenner was one of the first to look for immediate success with new management and that trend has continued across all four major sports leagues. Above all, though, Steinbrenner will remain beloved as a man that loved his Yankees, city and game.

Used with permission of the author.

Cade Caldwell is an Atlanta-based sportswriter and contributor to Sports Climax.

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax, LLC

Andre Dawson finally survived the controversial Hall of Fame voting procedure and will join other baseball greats in Cooperstown.

Many felt the slugger, who played 11 seasons with the Montreal Expos and another 10 with the Chicago Cubs, should have been voted in years ago but despite being one of just three major leaguers to steal over 300 bases and hit over 400 homers, Dawson had to endure a nine-year wait to be elected. BTW, the other two players are two of MLB’s greatest players ever; Willie Mays and Barry Bonds.

Dawson’s career stats are impressive and include 2,774 hits, 438 HRs and 1,591 RBIs.

“As I stand here, I’m literally shaking,” said Dawson, the 1987 National League MVP. “I had a knee replacement on one leg that I thought was dead but it’s shaking.”

Dawson was the lone player on the ballot to receive the required 75% of the vote.

Due to his long tenure with both the Expos and Cubs, Cooperstown hasn’t decided whether the eight-time All-Star will be presented with an Expos or Cubs hat.

Other players on the ballot receiving votes:

Andre Dawson 420 77.9
Bert Blyleven 400 74.2
Roberto Alomar 397 73.7
Jack Morris 282 52.3
Barry Larkin 278 51.6
Lee Smith 255 47.3
Edgar Martinez 195 36.2
Tim Raines 164 30.4
Mark McGwire 128 23.7
Alan Trammell 121 22.4
Fred McGriff 116 21.5
Don Mattingly 87 16.1
Dave Parker 82 15.2
Dale Murphy 63 11.7
Harold Baines 33 6.1
Andres Galarraga 22 4.1