Congrats to Ichiro, but Rose is still The King

               This past Wednesday in the Miami Marlins’ game against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park, Marlins’ outfielder Ichiro Suzuki doubled in the ninth inning of San Diego’s relief pitcher Fernando Rodney to collect his 2979 career hit in the Major Leagues. Combine that with the 1278 hits he had in his seven years while playing pro ball in Japan and that gives him 4257, which is one more than all-time MLB hit king Pete Rose.

                The baseball media would like you to believe that Ichiro is now the all-time hits leader in professional baseball, but that assumption would be completely false. Now, I’m not going to take away from Ichiro’s accomplishments. I’ve been a fan of his since he came into the game back in 2001. I’ve always admired his hitting ability. As a fan (and a wannabe player) if I had my choice, I’d take 200 hits a year over 50 home runs anytime. Ten consecutive years of 200-plus hits, including a record 262 in 2004, as well as a lifetime batting average in MLB of .314 (give or take a few points after his last game) is nothing to sneeze at.

In fact, if Ichiro is not a first-ballot Hall Of Fame inductee, it would be a miscarriage of justice. However, to take what he did in Japan and add it to what he did in the Majors and then try to say that he has more hits than Pete Rose and should be recognized as the Hit King, well that’s just ridiculous. And I’ll explain why in four points.

                The first being combining hits of two leagues. If you take Ichiro’s hits from the Nippon Baseball League and add it to his MLB totals, then you would have to take Pete’s minor league hits (427) and add them to his MLB hits, giving him a total of 4683 hits. And if you do that, Ichiro has a long way to go.

Not only that, if you’re going to look at the combination of stats from various professional leagues, you would have to do that with all records. MLB would have to hire a few hundred statisticians and researchers to pour over all stat sheets and box scores from the minor leagues in order to update the record book. Sounds rather foolish doesn’t it?

                Now you might be saying that the Nippon Baseball League is superior to the minors, and you are probably right. But to compare it to the calibre of play in MLB is ludicrous, which is my second point. For example, Ichiro would have been hitting against inferior pitching in Japan. And how many of his infield hits would have turned into outs, given the higher quality of defensive ability of MLB players? And how many of his extra base hits would have been run down by the likes of outfielders such as Lorenzo Cain or Mike Trout? There’s a reason why Japanese players have to prove themselves first in the Nippon League before getting a shot in the Majors.

                Let’s take a look at my third point. If you want to put the NPL on par with MLB, then you would have to take away Ichiro’s Rookie of the Year Award he won in 2001 at the age of 27, after nine years of playing major pro ball in another league. After all, if the two leagues are comparable and you want to include all stats, he isn’t a rookie in 2001 if he’s got nine years under his belt.

                I hate to compare sports, but that’s what the NHL did to Wayne Gretzky back in 1980. Since his first two years of professional hockey were in the WHA, when the Edmonton Oilers joined the NHL in 1979-80, Gretzky wasn’t considered a rookie due to his time in the other league. The same would have to be applied to Ichiro.

                Also, if you do it with one record, you would have to do it with every baseball record. Barry Bonds would no longer be the home run king, but rather Sadaharu Oh, who hit 868 home runs in his 22 years playing in Japan.

I don’t believe Major League Baseball will change all the records, and I doubt very much they will recognize Ichiro’s accomplishment as edging Pete Rose off the Hit King throne. This is more a ploy by the media.

Which brings me to my fourth and final point: the Baseball Writers Association of America, that band of merry fellows who have seen fit to discredit any player they don’t think fits the image of baseball. This is just another chance for them to diminish Pete Rose’s accomplishments. While MLB stubbornly refuses to allow Rose back into baseball, the BBWAA could show some support for him but they refuse to do so.

Rose’s gambling on baseball is a black mark on the game, or so they tell us. But if you’re going to hero-worship a womanizing alcoholic (Babe Ruth) or glorify the playing abilities of a racist (Ty Cobb), it smacks of hypocrisy, then, to ostracize someone for something as simple as gambling on his own team to win baseball games. But I digress.

Hats off to Ichiro for his outstanding career. I look forward to seeing him get his 3000th Major League hit at some point this year. But that will still be 1256 behind Pete Rose.

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Top 40 All-time Blue Jays: #11: Jimmy Key

Top Blue Jays Player #11: Jimmy Key

Position: Pitcher

Seasons With the Jays: 9 (1984-1992)

All-Star Game Selection: 1985, 1991

Stats: Games Pitched 317             Innings Pitched  1695.2

                                            Wins/Losses 116-81             Saves 10

                                             ERA 3.42                             Strike outs 944

                                             Games Started  250            Games Finished 24

                                             Complete Games  28           Shutouts  10

                There is no doubt that Jimmy Key would be at the top of any list when it came to most popular Blue Jays. Always a fan favourite, Key was a fixture on the mound at Exhibition Stadium and SkyDome for almost a decade. He was ultra-competitive and always gave everything he had in every outing. He ranks fourth on the Jays’ all-time wins list (116) and is in the top five in numerous other categories: strike outs, ERA, complete games, games started and shut outs.

                He was drafted in the third round of the 1982 Amateur Draft by the Blue Jays and got a job in the bullpen for the 1984 season. All 63 of his appearances in his rookie season were in relief and he posted a 4-5 win/loss record, recorded ten saves, had an ERA of 4.65 and struck out 44 batters.

                For the 1985 season, he earned a spot in the starting rotation and his success helped the Jays win their first division title in team history. In 32 starts, Key posted a 14-6 record, had a 3.00 ERA while striking out 85 batters in 212 2/3 innings. While he never was much of a strike out pitcher, his arsenal of pitches always kept hitters guessing and his deceptive delivery from the stretch allowed him to pick many baserunners off of first base. He earned his first All-Star Game selection in 1985.

                In the ALCS against the Kansas City Royals, Key started two games, losing one and posting a rather high ERA of 5.19.

                He posted similar numbers in 1986 (14-11, 3.57, 141 strike outs) but his best year in a Toronto uniform came in 1987. Key won 17 games that year, posted a league-leading 2.76 ERA, struck out 161 batters and finished second in the Cy Young Award voting to Boston’s Roger Clemens.

                Injuries limited him to only 21 starts in 1988, but he still managed to have a 12-5 record, post a 3.29 ERA and strike out 65 batters. He had a bit of a down year in 1989, finishing with a losing record (13-14) with a 3.88 ERA, but the Jays still won the division crown. In the ALCS against Oakland, Key was the starting pitcher in the Jays’ only win of the series, pitching six innings, allowing three runs and striking out two batters.

                In 1990, Key’s ERA ballooned to 4.25 but he still managed a winning record (13-7). His second All-Star Game appearance happened in 1991 and the game was played in Toronto at SkyDome. He pitched one inning in relief, surrendering no runs or hits and was credited with the win in the American League’s 4-2 win.

                For the season, Key posted a 16-12 record, had a 3.05 ERA and struck out 125 batters. With injuries preventing Dave Stieb from appearing in the playoffs, Key became the only pitcher left from the 1985 staff to pitch in three ALCS series. He had a no-decision in his only game, pitching six innings and giving up two runs. Toronto lost the game and the series to the Minnesota Twins.

                Key’s final year with the Jays would be 1992 and it was a bit of a roller coaster journey for the left-hander. His 13-13 regular season record and 3.53 ERA relegated him to the bullpen for the ALCS against Oakland as the Jays went with a three-man rotation. He was a bit of an afterthought in the series as he only pitched three innings in relief but the Jays defeated the A’s to advance to the World Series.

                With the Jays ahead of the Atlanta Braves two games to one, Toronto manager Cito Gaston decided to put Key back in the rotation and he started Game 4. Key responded with one of the best pitching performances of his career. After Atlanta’s lead off man, Otis Nixon, singled to start the game, Key picked him off of first to set the tone for the rest of the night.

                Key was magnificent, giving up only one run in 7 2/3 innings pitched. He struck out six and didn’t walk a batter. When he was relieved in the top of the eighth, the Toronto fans—sensing that this may be the last time they saw him in a Blue Jays’ uniform—gave him a standing ovation as he departed the game.

                But Key’s World Series wasn’t done. In Game 6, with Toronto holding a three games to two lead in the series, Key came out of the bullpen to pitch in the bottom of the tenth with one out in a tied ballgame. Key subsequently got the next two batters and when Toronto took the lead in the top of the eleventh, he was in line for his second win of the Series. After the first two Atlanta batters reached base, a sacrifice bunt and a ground out scored a run and put the game-tying run on third.

                Mike Timlin came into the game to relief Key and got Nixon to ground out on a bunt attempt to end the game and give the Jays their first World Series title. Key was credited with his second win of the World Series, a fitting ending to his Blue Jays career.

                Despite all his success in Toronto, Key’s best years of his career came in 1993 and 1994 with the New York Yankees. He won 18 games in 1993, finishing fourth in Cy Young voting, and followed that up with 17 wins in the strike-shortened season of 1994 (he finished second for the Cy Young.) Injuries would haunt him in 1995 but he returned to the Yankees in 1996 to help New York win the World Series, getting the victory over Atlanta’s Greg Maddux in the series-clinching Game 6.

                Two years in Baltimore followed before Key retired at the end of the 1998 season.

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Top 40 All-time Blue Jays: #12: Lloyd Moseby

Top Blue Jays Player #12: Lloyd Moseby

Position: Centre Field

Seasons With the Jays: 10 (1980-1989)

MLB Awards: Silver Slugger (1983)

All-Star Game Selection: 1986

Stats: Games Played 1392            Batting Average .257

                                               Base Hits 1319                    Runs Scored 768

                                               Home Runs 149                   RBIs  651

                                               Doubles  242                        Triples  60

                                               Stolen Bases  255                Walks  547

                If you look at the list of all-time batting leaders for the Toronto Blue Jays, you will find Lloyd Moseby’s name in the top five in games played (4^th), at bats (3^rd), runs score (3^rd), hits (4^th), doubles (4^th), triples (2^nd), walks (3^rd) and stolen bases (1^st). He was part of the “best outfield in baseball” in the 1980s along with George Bell and Jesse Barfield. Yet his name is rarely mentioned when mentioning the best Jays’ players of all-time. The reason has to be because he went about his job while drawing little attention to himself and was a model of consistency throughout his ten years with the club.

                Moseby was drafted in the first round (second overall) by Toronto in the 1978 Amateur Draft. In 1980, at the young age of 20, he was a regular in the Toronto line-up. In 114 games, mostly playing in right field, his average was a little low at .229 but he showed flashes of potential with his nine home runs, 46 RBIs and 24 doubles. In the outfield, he only made four errors for a .982 fielding percentage.

                In the strike-shortened season of 1981, Moseby became the everyday centre-fielder, a position he would hold for the rest of the decade. His average climbed a little to .233, and despite playing 14 fewer games than the previous year, his power numbers where similar (nine home runs, 43 RBIs) and he showed his speed on the bases, stealing 11 of them.

                After putting up the same sort of numbers in 1982 (.236, 9, 52, 11 steals), Moseby’s breakout year was 1983. He hit over .300 for the only time in his career (.315) and smashed 18 home runs while driving in 81 and stealing 27 bases. As Moseby improved, so did the Jays who finished with a winning record for the first time in their history.

                While Moseby’s batting average dropped to .280 in 1984, he still hit 18 home runs, drove in 92 runs and stole 39 bases. He also led the league in triples with 15. In 1985, the Blue Jays won the first American League East title in team history, and Moseby’s contributions from the lead off spot or number two in the order were a part of the team’s success. He hit 18 homers, had 70 RBIs and stole 37 bases. One of his home runs came on the second last day of the season in a 5-1 Toronto win over the New York Yankees that clinched the division. In the ALCS, a seven-game loss to the Kansas City Royals, he struggled with a .226 batting average, but still managed to score five runs and add four RBIs.

                His only All-Star Game appearance happened in 1986, as he hit the 20-home run mark for the first time in his career (21) while adding 86 RBIs and stealing 32 bases. He followed that up with the best season of his career in 1987 when he batted .282, hit 26 home runs, added 96 RBIs and stole 39 bases. All the while, his solid defensive play in centre field made him a dependable force in the out field. In his ten years in Toronto, he never committed more than eight errors in a season.

                But his offensive production would start to decline in 1988. His average dropped significantly to .239, and his power numbers suffered as well (10 home runs, 42 RBIs.). However, he managed to steal 30 bases for the fifth consecutive year (31). It was pretty much the same production in 1989 (.221, 11, 43 and 24 stolen bases) but Moseby remained in the lead-off spot, pretty much because the Jays didn’t have many other options.

                The team won their second division title, but lost to the Oakland Athletics in the ALCS. In his last hurrah in a Blue Jays’ uniform, Moseby batted .313, scored four runs, and even hit a home run in his final at-bat as a member of the team when he went deep in the eighth inning of the final game.

                Prior to the 1990 season, Moseby signed as a free agent with the Detroit Tigers. While he played in 122 games in that season, he was used sparingly in 1991 (only 74 games) and subsequently signed with the Yomiuri Giants in Japan and played with them for two seasons before retiring.

                He served as a first base coach for the Jays in 1998 and 1999.

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