Smallthoughts:Old School Tuesday …Billy Williams

Williams was one of the best Cubs players. He was the 1961 National League (NL) Rookie of the Year and was an NL All-Star for six seasons with the Cubs. In 1970, he had a .322 batting average with 42 home runs and 129 runs batted in (RBIs), led the NL with 205 hits, and was the NL Most Valuable Player runner-up. In 1972, he won the NL batting title, hitting

Smallthoughts:Old School Tuesday…Phil Niekro

He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1997. Niekro’s 318 career victories are the most by a knuckleball pitcher and he ranks 16th on the overall all-time wins list. He also won the National League (NL) Gold Glove Award five times. Niekro pitched for 20 seasons for the Milwaukee and Atlanta Braves.

Smallthoughts: Old School Tuesday…Andre Dawson

I always liked watching Andre Dawson play. He played hard all the time. He was part of a young outfield that the Montreal Expos(Now the Washington Nationals) in the 1976-77 years. He played in the outfield Warren Cromartie  and Ellis Valentine. Dawson was a blend of speed and power and played great defense. Valentine had

Smallthoughts: Old School Tuesday …Clyde Drexler

Picture Michael Jordan and Clyde Drexler on the same team in Portland. It almost happened. Portland had the number one pick in 1984 and could have drafted Michael Jordan to team up with Clyde Drexler but the Portland Trailblazers took Sam Bowie. The Bulls took Jordan and the rest as they say is history. During his

Is the door to the Hall of Fame Closed to Pete Rose for good?

The sound you just heard is a door slammed shut. If there was a chance of Pete Rose getting into the Hall of Fame that appears to be completely over, done, like Turkey dinner done. The latest bombshell is that Pete Rose bet on Baseball as a player when he was player- manager of the

Smallthoughts: Old School Tuesday …Dikembe Mutombo

This week Smallthoughts: Old School Tuesday will give attention to 4 recent inductees into Basketball’s Hall of Fame …the first is the finger waving shot blocking Dikembe Mutombo.  Mutombo is commonly referred to as one of the greatest shot blockers and defensive players of all time, winning the NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award

Smallthoughts: Old School Tuesday …Jo Jo White

  If you grew up in the late 60’s and early 70’s and was a New York Knick fan you hated the Boston Celtics…and yes Jo Jo White was hated in new York as well…he wore Celtic green… Jo Jo White was drafted in 1969 in the first round (9th pick overall) by the NBA‘s

Should Pete Rose be reinstated into Baseball?

This is repost from June of 2015…in light of recent developments … This Is the question that is now being put before new commissioner Rob Manfred. Bud Selig wanted no part of it and neither did the other commissioners before Selig since the moment  Bart Giamatti got Rose to sign an agreement that permanently banned

Smallthoughts: Old School Tuesday …Craig Biggio

Biggio spent his entire 20-year baseball career, from 1988 through 2007, as a second baseman, catcher, and outfielder for the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB). Considered to be one of the best all around position players in club history, the Astros retired the number 7 in his honor the year following his retirement.

Smallthoughts: Old School Tuesday …Mike Piazza

The Most popular Met in History is Tom Seaver , Mike Piazza is second a very close second maybe even first if you were not old enough to see Seaver. That’s how good Mike Piazza was. Seaver was an Met who came up through the Met farm system, Piazza was acquired in a trade from