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Former St. Louis Cardinals shortstop Ozzie Smith writes a weekly column
for CNN
SI.com. Check out these offerings from Smith for a legend's perspective on the 1998 season. |
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October 13
Little guys can be playoff heroes, too
The baseball postseason is made for heroes. Bright lights. Pressure situations. It's a perfect way for the best players in the game to show their stuff.
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October 6
The smoke has cleared, and the top teams are still playing
With all due respect to this year’s wild card teams and the excitement those races
gave to the final week of the baseball season, what you’re seeing now is what you
should be seeing.
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September 21
Baseball saves its best for last
These are some of the best times in baseball -- the final days of the regular season.
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September 18
Yanks don't wear crown yet; Sosa doesn't get his due
The New York Yankees have clearly been the best team in baseball this year. But before you start penciling them into
the World
Series, take a closer look at some of these numbers.
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September 7
McGwire's exploits way overshadow winning in St. Louis
It is the only thing. And it's not just here in St. Louis, either, but all over the country. All over the world. It's
all-cons
uming.
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August 31
'Andro' controversy begging for some answers
I don't know much about androstenedione, this drug or medicine or supplement or whatever you want to call it.
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August 25
Here's a vote for
Perez, Cepeda ... and
Rose and Jackson
It was good to see Don Sutton and Larry Doby finally make the Baseball Hall of Fame a few
weeks back.
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August 17
NL wild card race may come down to who's hot at the end
Three teams, none of them exactly the New York Yankees, are slugging it out to see who will
make baseball's playoffs. |
August 10
By grabbing reliever Myers, Padres put Braves in bad spot
The San Diego Padres didn't need another closer. They have one of the best in the business,
Trevor Hoffman, and he'll do them just fine. |
August 3
Yanks don't need trades to be the best
After a flurry of late-night phone calls and last-minute details, one thing remains
clear: The New York Yankees, who didn't lift a finger on the final day before baseball's trading
deadline, still are the team to beat.
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July 27
Pulling off a major trade not as easy as it looks
The talks are on. The rumors are flying. It's about that time. Every season, right about now, baseball fans
everywhere are getting psyched up for a whole lot of action as the trading deadline approaches. They rarely get it.
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July 20
Not wild over the wild card
It's late July, a time of the baseball season when the division races ought to be heating up. Instead, we're stuck
with ju
st one race -- the American League West -- and five blowouts. |
July 13
Commissioner Selig will have his work cut out for him
Finally, baseball has a commissioner again. Not an interim commissioner. Not a lame
duck. But a commissioner with all the power to get baseball back where it belongs. |
July 6
All-Star Game belongs to the fans
That noise you hear is the
annual howl
of
anguish that this player or that player was unjustly left off the American or National League All-Star squad. |
June 30
Rangers' Gonzalez at least as impressive as homer hitters
While everyone else worries about 61 home runs and who can break Roger Maris' record, Texas Rangers slugger Juan
Gonzalez has
his sights set on another milestone -- Hack Wilson's 190 RBIs in a season.
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June 22
McGwire not the only one making a run at Maris' record
With all the hype and all the talk surrounding Mark McGwire, it's easy to overlook some other sluggers who are smacking
the ball over the fence at an almost unbelievable pace.
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June 15
Beanball battles? Blame the DH
Have you noticed that the two most violent -- and most widely televised -- beanball brawls this season have occurred in
the Am
erican League? It's not a coincidence.
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June 8
Sleeping Giants awaken in NL West
Watch out for the sleeping Giants. The San Francisco Giants are red-hot, winners of nine straight, and they've taken
over the
National League West lead from the San Diego Padres.
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June 1
Piazza, Mets making the best of their time together
The month of May must have seemed like one long road trip for Mike Piazza. But, wow. What a trip.
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May 25
It may be too late in Baltimore
In Baltimore, the time is now -- or maybe never. The Baltimore Orioles, who many picked to win the American League
East, are
floundering around at the bottom of the division and looking for a way out.
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May 20
McGwire handling pressure like a fastball over the plate
What's amazing about Mark McGwire is not the sheer power he shows every time he swings a bat.
Although that's pretty impressive.
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May 11
Best ever? Give these guys some time
When people stop me and ask me about the best shortstops in baseball today, it seems they're all ready to nominate
their favor
ite player to the Hall of Fame.
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May 4
There's still some magic in those wings
Bret Saberhagen and David Conewere two of the more dominating pitchers of the late 1980s -- Saberhagen with the Kansas
City Ro
yals and Cone with the New York Mets.
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April 27
Brewers feeling at home in NL Central
No one gave a lot of thought to the Milwaukee Brewers before this baseball season. They were kind of a novelty,
switching from
the American to the National League, but they weren't considered a serious contender for a division crown.
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April 20
San Diego having some fun in the sun
When you're competing with some of the best beaches in the world, and SeaWorld, and all that California sunshine,
getting people to come out to a baseball game can be a tough sell.
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April 13
Schilling, Maddux the class of the NL
A few times each season, if you're lucky, you get a chance to see a classic pitching duel. Except it usually ends up
being not
-so-classic.
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April 6
Harry brought baseball to the people
When I was playing, and I was in Chicago, I'd occasionally head over to Harry Caray's restaurant. Seeing how he worked
with people was something to watch.
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March 30
Braves, Dodgers class of the NL
There are the brand new expansion teams, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and the Arizona Diamondbacks. There are the Milwaukee
Brewer
s, coming over from the American League. But the more things change in the National League ...
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March 23
Pitching makes Yanks, O's teams to beat in AL
Get ready. The baseball season opens March 31, and teh one refrain you'll hear from now
until the end of October is about to be unleashed. |
