The Things You Think Are Precious I Can't Understand

I can't believe it's not even June yet and I'm already thinking about baseball 24-7.

I love baseball for it's timeless quality. Almost every other sport has a clock to gauge time. With a small lead, the opponent becomes the clock and strategy is focused on the second hand. Not so in baseball - every side has to be played.

I also love the organizational quality of baseball. The exactitude in measurements. The mathematical dedication to tracking numbers and statistics.

And all this is separate from the touches and feels and smells of the game. Smelling a new glove. Feeling the softness of a well-worn glove or a baseball's seams.

I remember on the way to a game once I grew increasingly upset at the dark clouds over the baseball field. I was scheduled to pitch that night and I was agitated at not being able to play against our main rivals. Seeking to calm my nerves, my coach told me, "Calm down, Massey. That's just God making it smell good."

Of course, he was right. There are few smells nicer than fresh rain on a baseball field.

But back to what brought me here.

Above all other sports, I love to talk baseball and its history.

Today, ESPN.com is allowing readers to rank some of the most sacred MLB records.

I ranked the listed ten accomplishments according to my own values - what I found most impressive and most likely to stand for quite some time.

My list, in order:

1. 130 stolen bases in one season (Rickey Henderson) - I read this and thought it was a typo. I find it impressive for two reasons. First, the simplest but less obvious. In order to accumulate that many stolen bases, you gotta get on base first so your on-base percentage is also going to be pretty high. But to steal that many bases is just simply amazing. This will last a while for three reasons - only a reincarnation of Cool Papa Bell could challenge it, too many big sticks in modern MLB line-up takes away the running game, and more left handed relief pitchers.
2. 56 consecutive game hitting streak (Joe D.)- I'll admit it. I could be biased because this is the record of my favorite baseball player of all time. Still, it requires a tremendous amount of skill and luck. Skill in that you gotta be hitting the ball well every day for 2 1/2 months. Sure, you'll get a hop or a favorable scoring every now and then. But not every day for that long a time.
3. 191 RBI's in one season (Hank Wilson) - Again, I read this and thought it was a typo. This number is just monstrous.
4. 30 wins in one season (Denny McLain) - I can't remember who said it, but there's a saying that batting is timing; pitching is disrupting timing. Doing that for 30 W's in one season is prodigious. Especially considering the rotation of a modern-day pitching staff where you may get 30 starts in a season. Think about it for a while - 30 wins is 33% of a very good season for an entire team.
5. 383 strike outs in one season (Nolan Ryan) - Wow. Crash might say that strikeouts are fascist, but this makes Il Duce look like a democrat.
6. .406 batting average (Ted Williams) - Don't get me wrong, this is a phenomenal record. However, it's lessened for a variety of reasons. The first unfair reason - it was the same year The Clipper hit safely in 56 straight games. Plus, it allows a batter to follow up a minor slump with some brilliant hitting.

Let's say a batter takes two sets of 15 at-bats. In one set, he doesn't hit well and gets 4 hits. He's at .267. Not bad but one less hit and he's at the Mendoza Line. But the next 15, he goes on a tear and gets 9 hits (.600). Do that over a season and you've got the record by .028.

I'll give Williams his due props. Going into the final weekend of the 1941 season, his manager offered Williams the opportunity to sit and not risk his .39955 batting average. Instead, he put himself in the line-up for the doubleheader and went 6-for-8.

7. 4256 career hits (Pete Rose) - Good record in that it takes a very consistent career racking up those numbers. I guess if it's tempered at all, it's by the fact that Rose hit 3215 singles - not exactly warning track power.
8. 1.12 ERA (Bob Gibson) - Wow, what a low number. I don't recall seeing one this low since Clemens' 1.87 last year. And again, it's great but achievable by pitching few innings and having a great infield.
9. 59 consecutive scoreless innings (Orel Hershiser) - In a hitter's era, this may not be threatened for quite some time. If the bullpen were not allowed to compete for this record, it could last for quite some time. But, I can imagine a time where Rivera or Duque come in and pitch 2 innings a game and get the record. But for a starter to go that long without a run (not even an earned run), that's unbelievable.
10. 2632 consecutive games played (Cal Ripken) - I like Ripken so I'm not bagging. I even took Melissa to an O's game so she could say she saw him play once. The Streak took on less significance as moved to third base then played less innings. At least he didn't start to DH until after it was over.

It's gonna be a long Fall - for Melissa.