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Birdbats
05-11-2008, 04:24 PM
Because of problems with my ISP, I have not been able to update my blog since 4/30. Very frustrating. I hope to get it resolved this week. In the mean time, here are the blog entries I would have posted if I'd been able.

May 11, 2008. Here's a run down of who used pink bats today: Schumaker (X-Bat, 1st and 4th plate appearances), Kennedy (LS ash, every PA but his last), LaRue (LS ash, 1st PA), Izturis (X-Bat 1st and 2nd PAs), Barton (A-bat), Miles (LS M9) and Ryan (A-bat)... Ankiel did not get a plate appearance... Players all had pink ribbons on their jerseys... Molina pinch hit in the 9th inning using one of Albert's Gwynn-finished Marucci bats.

May 10, 2008. Thanks to the miracle of HDTV, I can tell that Troy Glaus is using a Jason LaRue model of unfinished ash Louisville Slugger.

May 9, 2008. The Post Dispatch reports the following players received pink bats to use on Mother's Day: Duncan (Carolina Clubs), Ankiel, Izturis, Kennedy, LaRue, Miles and Schumaker.

May 8, 2008. Mike Parisi got his first at-bat today; pretty sure he was swinging one of Braden Looper's natural Marucci bats as the 41 on the knob was fairly clear.

May 7, 2008. Troy Glaus used a Gwynn-finished Marucci tonight, and I'm pretty sure it was Albert's bat. Albert started with that bat, but after two groundouts, he switched to the black Marucci... Next time around, Albert was back to the Gwynn finish (he singled) and Glaus followed by using an unfinished ash LS, possibly an Adam Kennedy or Aaron Miles model. Anything to bust a slump, I guess... Jason LaRue was using a black LS ash bat.

May 6, 2008. Hal McRae was spotted wearing his correct number, 15, on the bench tonight... Larry Walker has been in uniform on the bench in Colorado the past couple of nights, wearing his old number 33... Man, weren't those throws by Ankiel unbelievable?... Happy 11th birthday, Michael!

May 5, 2008. Mike Parisi made his MLB debut wearing #65. He's just the third Redbird to don those digits... Pujols used his black Marucci for his first three ABs tonight. After a K and two groundouts, he went back to his Gwynn finish and used it for the double that set up the game-winning run... The 11U team I coach won it's opening game tonight. The boys think they won because of the way they played, but I know it's because they're wearing real stirrups.

May 4, 2008. Last November 16 (http://webpages.charter.net/birdbats/Birdbats/Blogs/20071101.htm), I wrote about the difficulty of estimating the value of bats, using Curt Flood bats as an example. One particular bat I mentioned was listed for sale with an asking price of $3,000. Well, that exact bat just sold at auction -- final price, $1,200... A few days earlier, November 12, I'd written about the value of McGwire bats and suggested a 1998 bat could still fetch up to $2,500. Seems I was off just a bit. An almost perfect '98 Mac bat sold in the Huggins & Scott April auction for $1,900... Ryan Franklin had an odd Sunday cap today. It looked like the part of the bat to the right of the Cardinal was not yellow, as though it was outlined and not filled in. Hello, quality control?

May 3, 2008. Brian Barton was using a natural LS M9, a change from his typical ash bat... A rare site in the second inning as all three batters (Ludwick, Glaus and Ankiel) used the same brand, Rawlings... Caught an interesting bit of video during Fox Sports' lead into the game. It showed Albert Pujols and Derrick Lee meeting behind the batting cage during BP and exchanging bats. Here are screen captures taken before (http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w232/birdbats/Birdbats%20Graphics/PujolsLee1-1.jpg), during (http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w232/birdbats/Birdbats%20Graphics/PujolsLee2-1.jpg) and after (http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w232/birdbats/Birdbats%20Graphics/PujolsLee3-1.jpg) the trade.

May 2, 2008. Brendan Ryan began using a natural Marucci bat late in the game... Looks like some players will be armed with pink bats again this Mother's Day. Will have to stay tuned to see which Cardinals players use them. Last year, not a single pink bat used by a Cardinals player ended up at auction on MLB.com, which defeats the purpose of raising funds for breast cancer research.

May 1 , 2008. With one month in the books, I can officially say I've never known Pujols to be so consistent with his bat use. In 128 plate appearances, he used the Gwynn-finished Marucci bat in 123 of them. He used a black Marucci four times (0-2, 2 walks) and a black Sam Bat once (0-1). He hit .376 with the Gwynn Marucci.

stlgroundskeeper
05-11-2008, 10:25 PM
Jeff-

I appreciate the post. It si one of my daily rituals to check your site for the update. I have missed it this past week.

Andrew