Team Breakdown 9/30: Kansas City Royals

(Slugger has some sort of growth coming out of his head which I believe to be a crown)

The Kansas City Royals, if they hadn't beat St. Louis in the 1985 World Series, I'm not sure people in the state of Missouri let alone the United States would know who Kansas City was. It's been a rough couple of decades for the Royals since that World Series win, but with a CY Young pitcher and and a new coach, the Royals look to end that terribleness...which probably won't happen, but at least they have a fountain out in center field.

Team Breakdown
W.S. win: 1985 (only been around since 1969 as K.C. was occupied by the Athletics beforehand)

Favorite moment: The worst call in W.S. history leads to the Royals lone championship over the Cardinals. George Brett flips out after being called out for having too much pine tar.

Least favorite: Former Wal Mart exec cuts prices...in the salary as new Royals owner.

Total Cards: 680

Most appearances: Bo Jackson (20) Mike MacFarlane (17) Bret Saberhagen and Mark Gubicza (16)

Favorite Card: Johnny Damon triple A card

Forgot he played: Jermaine Dye

Never knew: Juan Gonzalez

Hardest names: The Royals love to sign players with impossible names to spell right the first time

Ambiorix Burgos,
Argenis Salazar
Buddy Biancalana
Darwinson Salazar
Doug Mientkiewicz
Johnny Giavotella
Kila Ka'Aihue
Mark Grudzielanek
Runelvys Hernandez

Special shoutout to Coco Crisp

Franchise Player: George Brett

Team Breakdown 8/30: Detroit Tigers

Ah yes, the Detroit Tigers my AL companions who have allowed me to see more baseball games than any other venue with my tenth and most recent trip being a 6-0 shutout of the Yankees. A franchise that I never imagined I would ever care for, has charmed me by hiring every former manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates and by playing NL baseball in the greatest park I've been in (sorry Progressive Field and Great American Ball Park). The Tigers have a rich history and I cannot wait to go back to Comerica (this time to cheer against the Tigers as the Pirates come to town). So here is the sad breakdown of the Detroit Tigers who so far have the lowest amount of cards for a non expansion team.

W.S. Wins: 1984, 1968, 1945, 1935

Favorite Moment: Justin Verlander N0-Hits the Brewers. Honus Wagner punches racist extraordinaire and Tigers great Ty Cobb in the face after Cobb heckled Wagner calling him a Kraut-head in the 1909 W.S.

Least Favorite: Tigers give Cardinals another W.S. title. Ernie Harwell passes away from cancer.

Total Cards:637

Most Appearances: T1.) Alan Trammel and Cecil Fielder (21) Lou Whitaker (18)

Favorite Card: The oldest card in my collection. The first card I asked for personally at a card shop. The most I've paid for an individual baseball card (which was only $3). It is a 1953 Topps Ned Garver baseball card. If you have no idea who Ned Garver is, don't worry. Garver is a fine product of Ney, Ohio or 5 minutes down the road from me and was a mildly succesful pitcher back in the day for the Browns and Tigers. I had always just wanted to have one.

Forgot he played:Rondell White

Never Knew: Matt Stairs

EMU Alum: Pat Sheridan

Great Names: Nate Cornejo, Barbaro Garbey, Bip Roberts, Chet Lemon, Fu Te Ni, Jim Morrison,

Franchise Player I think of: Al Kaline

Team Breakdown 7/30: Cleveland Indians

(And you thought the one below was offensive)

"In case you haven't noticed, and judging by the attendance you haven't, the Indians have managed to win a few ball games, and are threatening to climb out of the cellar." - Harry Doyle

Ah yes Major League, great film and I'd be upset that Harry Doyle (aka Bob Uecker) isn't really the Indians broadcaster, but one of my biggest influences in sports radio is the voice of Indians baseball, Tom Hamilton. Many a nights I listened to the Indians of the mid to late 90's on my radio with Tom Hamilton calling the game. The Indians were once my favorite AL team, but no more as they have dropped to second because the Tigers are closer and more affordable oh and I really like Jim Leyland, but that's for the next breakdown.

Team Breakdown

World Series wins: "Remember, fans, Tuesday is Die Hard Night. Free admission for anyone who was actually alive the last time the Indians won the pennant." - Harry Doyle

1948 and 1920

Favorite moment: Midges swarm the field and the Yankees blow the game as the Indians advance to well...blow the ALCS. The movie Major League.

Least favorite: "Off Nagy's glove...Counsell scores and the Marlins win the World Series" the first of the unforgivable expansion team W.S. victories. That or Ten Cent Beer Night which reminds me that I forgot about Disco Demolition Night when I brokedown the White Sox

Total Cards:745

Most Appearances: Sandy Alomar (20), Albert (Joey) Belle (19) and Doug Jones (16)

Favorite Card: Manny Ramirez Double A Card from 1992

Forgot he played: Brandon Phillips and Brian Giles

Never Knew: Ryan Ludwick

Franchise Player I think of: Kenny Lofton (sorry Bob Feller, Lofton is one of my all-time favorites)

Great Names: Jose Mesa (or table) Wayne Kirby,George Vukovich, Orel Heshiser and Richie Sexson and an honorable mention to the great Satchel Paige.

"The post-game show is brought to you by... Christ, I can't find it. To hell with it."-Harry Doyle

Team Breakdown 6/30: Chicago White Sox

You can put em on the board!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! YES! The Chicago White Sox (or black sox depening on wether you're talking about the 1919 White Sox or the fact that they really wear black socks.) When I think of Chicago right now, I just hear Ozzie Guillen saying something that really pisses someone off or some scumbags beating up an old man who before was trying to coach first base for the Royals which is just slightly better than being jumped by shirtless white trash. But the White do have a World Series win in the last 100 years so I guess that makes them a more legit franchise than say the Cubs (at least the Pirates have three in the last 50 years.) Also my little team was the White Sox who went 4-10 both years with the first forcing me to wear an itchy purple jersey while hitting .028(1/36), but improving .300 points when going to black t-shirts the following year, but I digress...

Team Breakdown

W.S. Wins: (2005, 1917, 1906)

Favorite Moment: Anything done by Jermaine Dye (I have no know reason for really liking Jermaine Dye) the movie Eight Men Out.

Least Favorite: Anything done by AJ Piersynski, the 1919 W.S. and for having a scene at the end of My Best Friend's Wedding.

Total Cards:741

Most Appearances: Frank Thomas(26) Jack McDowell (25) and Ozzie Guillen (21)

Favorite Card: Autographed Robin Ventura card

Forgot he played: Ken Griffey Jr.

Never Knew: Ellis Burks

Great Names:Chief Bender, Rob Mackowiak, Tim "Rock" Raines

Franchise Player I think of:Frank Thomas

Team Breakdown 5/30: Toronto Blue Jays

(I can see why this only lasted one year. Just Awful)

The Toronto Blue Jays. The only reason you can make an argument that the World Series involves the world as the nation to the north is the only country with a team in baseball not in the U.S. And unlike the former Montreal Expos, The Jays have two W.S victories (in the Expos defense their best season was cutoff by the strike in 1994). Toronto is now just a team on the schedule since they haven't been relevant in the AL East since the won back to back titles in 92 and 93 (no playoff appearances since). In fact during one season Shea Hillenbrand wrote "This is a sinking ship" in the locker room resulting in a fight with manager John Gibbons.

The breakdown

W.S. Wins: 1992 and 93

Favorite Jays Moment: Blue Jays beat the Braves in the 1992 W.S. (I'd like to think that the NLCS losing Pirates would have swept Pittsburgh...oh 1992 and wins in Pittsburgh)

Least Favorite: The guy who designed this mascot. A blue jay with muscles...really

Total Cards:712

Most appearances: My Blue Jays card collection is very even as 11 players have 15 or more cards in my collection.

1.) Roy Halladay-20, Kelly Gruber-19, Jimmy Key-18

Favorite Card(s): Danny Ainge and Chris Weinke were both in the Blue Jays farm system but are better known for their work in basketball (Ainge)

and in football (Weinke)

Forgot he played there: Fred McGriff

Never Knew: Cecil Fielder

Franchise Player I think of: Joe Carter (mostly because of his game winning home run in the W.S)

AL EAST FINAL STANDINGS

1.) New York: 843

2.) Boston:811

3.) Toronto:712

4.) Baltimore: 686

5.) Tampa Bay:205

Remembering Ernie Harwell

I had the chance to see Ernie Harwell in person when he said farewell to Tigers fans. I was glad that I got that chance. So I've decided to link Ernie Hartwell's essay "The Game for All America" as it appeared in The Sporting News.

http://www.sportingnews.com/mlb/article/2010-05-05/game-for-all-america

Team Breakdown 4/30: Tampa Bay (Devil) Rays

All it took was a change of name (now all they need is a change of venue from the snoozefest that is Tropicana Field) for the best season in (Devil) Rays history, albeit a very short history. Since 1998 the Rays have had two winning seasons (2008-09) and already have retired one number (Wade Boggs who played for Tampa Bay for two years, but did have his 3000th hit with the franchise).

Team Breakdown

World Series: None (Appeared in 2008)

Favorite Rays Moment: Rays win ALCS over Red Sox

Least Favorite:The building of Tropicana Field and making the movie the Rookie possible.

Total Cards: 205

Most Appearances: Carl Crawford-13, Rocco(Tober) Baldelli-8 Scott Kazmir-7

Favorite Card: Future Stars Card with Josh Hamilton and Carl Crawford

Forgot He Played:Julio Lugo

Never Knew: Robert Fick

Great Names: Akinori Iwamura, Esteban Yan, Quinton McCracken

Franchise Player I think of: Carl Crawford

Ohio is for Losers :-(

With the Cavs looking the win the NBA Championship I started to think who the last team to win a championship from the state of Ohio was? The answer is Ohio St in 2003, but professionaly, you have to go back to 1990 when the Reds swept the defending W.S. Champion A's. Conversely, the great state of Michigan just has to go back to 2008 when the Red Wings hoysted the Stanley Cup and Indiana in 2006 when Peyton Manning brought back the Lombardi Trophy to Indianapolis. And of course Pennsylvania who took home the Super Bowl and Stanley Cup in 2009 and the W.S. in 2008 (now only if the 76ers would get the memo)

Last World Series win in Ohio

Cincinnati: 1990 (last appeared:1990)
Cleveland: 1948 (last appeared:1997)

Last Super Bowl win: NONE
Cincinnati: last appeared in 1988
Cleveland: never appeared in SB but last won NFL Championship in 1964 and had three more before that

Last NBA Championship: NONE
Cleveland: Last appeared in 2007

Last Stanley Cup: NONE
Columbus: Made the playoffs once
Cleveland Barons: two miserable seasons from 1976-78 before being contracted

So I think it's safe to say that Ohio is due for a ring of some sort.

Team Breakdown 3/30: New York Yankees

The team everyone loves to hate (unless you go by some formula concocted by the Wall Street Journal: The Cleveland Indians...really). 27 World Series Titles, the most expensive tickets in baseball and now the house that Jeter built (aka New Yankees Stadium). My hate for them was being directed at the Boston Red Sox, that is until last year when they won again and the fact that Curtis Granderson had to change his number because of some thing that Joe Girardi wants to do. I will say that PA announcer Bob Sheppard has one of the greatest announcing voices ever. "Now batting, the shortstop, Derek Jeter" Also this http://www.outdoorsportsaddict.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/10/jeter-dive-into-stand-1.jpeg is why I hate every Yankee but Derek Jeter or this one http://pictopia.com/perl/get_image?provider_id=314&size=550x550_mb&ptp_photo_id=423600

Now the details

World Series 27: (NL has 43 overall, Rest of the AL has 34 with the Oakland/K.C./Philadelphia Athletics the next in the AL with 9 and one behind the Cardinals 10 NL titles) 09,00-98,96,78,77,62,61,58,56,53-49,47,43,41,39-36,32,28,27,23

Favorite Yankees moment: Maris and Mantle swat for Ruth's record which leads to one of the best baseball movies ever (*61) oh and 1960 W.S. where Pirates second baseman Bill Mazeroski hits a walk off home run to steal the championship from the Bronx Bombers.

Least favorite: See 27 W.S. wins.

Total Cards: 843

Top Appearances:Derek Jeter-31 Bernie Williams 20 Don Mattingly-18

Favorite Card: Any of the Mickey Mantle reprints

Forgot He played for them:Randy Johnson

Never knew: JT Snow and Deion Sanders

Great Names: Goose Gossage, Yogi Berra, Sterling Hitchcock

Player I think of: tie, Babe Ruth and Derek Jeter