Needing to blog the Mussina win
Mike lost Sunday, got bruised and made an error for the first time in three years, so I felt like blog catch-up on the win in the previous game was necessary and a little pressing. Sunday left Mike needing three wins in four games, and it would be easy to get down now.
So, the previous game: "Mike Mussina worked six innings, improving to 17-7 as he seeks his first 20-win season," the Times said with hope. "He matched a season high with eight strikeouts, improving to 3-0 against the Rays," the AP said. "Mussina's work pushed him past Hall of Famers Bob Feller and Eppa Rixey for sole possession of 34th place all-time list with 267 career victories," MLB.com said. "Moose is this year's Yankee MVP — in a landslide," Yankees Watch said.
Whether Mike gets 20 or not — and I still think he will — what a year it's been for him. When everyone thinks your guy is washed up and the next year he's winning 17 and making a cover at work (above, reprint lawyers, come find my cubicle), it's good to be a fan…
… There's that.
I want to post a link for a fellow Moose fan, David, who's been tracking Mike's place in history and linking here from Strategic Failure this year. David's blog is must-read after a win. It's no Mike Mussina Male Gigolo.
He's been going through a difficult time recently, and he deserves a good story to read. So, here's the first big story and one of the best, from the Sports Illustrated archives of July '94: "The M&M Boys."
Mike Mussina likes to feed deer. Ben McDonald likes to kill them. "I've already told him, 'Keep it up and you're going to have an animal population problem on your hands,' " McDonald says. His large, round eyes grow even bigger at the thought of all those plump, trusting bucks bouncing happily across Mussina's property in suburban Pennsylvania. "I said, 'All it takes is one phone call, and I'll take care of it.' "
Mussina is a big Star Trek fan. McDonald is a Fox kind of a guy who thinks it doesn't get any better than Married … With Children. "I wouldn't watch Star Trek if it was the last show on TV," McDonald says.
Mussina is rock-and-roll, crossword puzzles, Stephen King , subtle humor and, thanks to taking summer classes, a Stanford graduate who needed less than four years to earn his economics degree. McDonald is country, Supersoakers, Field & Stream , slapstick and one of the most legendary college baseball players ever. "One summer I played in the Alaska summer league, and another summer I played on the Olympic team," says McDonald , who left LSU after three years. "See, that was summer school for me. This is my life. I can always go back to college."
Both of them were high school punters. Mussina was the only one who kicked with his shoe on.
Enjoy the story. Fourteen years on, here's to the next win.
September 10th, 2008 at 2:30 PM
Hey Patrick,
Thanks for the shout-out, and the link. I remember my excitement when I saw that SI had put those two on its cover, back when I was in high school. Heh…even then I was planning a path for Mussina to get to 300 wins.
Even with everything else going on in my life, I'm hoping that Mussina can somehow win each of his starts the rest of the way this year and get to 20 for the first time. Surely no pitcher in baseball history deserves it more than he does now.
September 10th, 2008 at 9:49 PM
Hey David — was going to send the link your way tonight — glad you found it! Hope things are going okay this week. You know the one thing I look up on eBay every few months? The old M&M Boys t-shirts. Biggest non-purchase mistake that summer at Camden Yards, or maybe ever, for me. If I ever hit gold and find a stockpile, I'll let you know.