centerfield maz

Craig Steven Swan was born on November 30, 1950, in Van Nuys, California. His father was a draftsman for an aviation company & wanted the young Craig to be a quarterback. While throwing a football his arm became strong & the young Craig preferred baseball. Dodger Stadium 1965 World Series: He pitched a no hitter in the PONY League & his team won the 1965 championship. The Dodgers invited Swan to throw out a ceremonial pitch in Game #5 of the 1965 World Series. Craig got to meet Sandy Koufax & Don Drysdale in the dugout as well. He was drafted at age 17 but chose to attend Arizona State University instead. There he was a top pitcher, setting a record in the 1972 College World Series allowing only one run over 18 innings pitched. The six foot three, right-handed Swan, had a good moving fastball in the low nineties and a hard slider. He was selected by the New York Mets in the third round of the 1972 draft.  Mets Career: Swan was invit...

James Wesley Hook was born November 18, 1936, in Waukegan, Illinois. He was the only boy growing up with two sisters. His parents owned a local pharmacy & his uncle a lumber yard in the small community of about 2,000 people.  Hook was a star player at Northwestern University, but he was also very intelligent, earning a mechanical engineering degree.  The six-foot two right-handed pitcher was signed as a bonus baby by the Cincinnati Reds in 1957, making his MLB debut later that same year. MLB Career: Hook made his debut pitching two innings of relief against the St. Louis Cardinals on September 3rd. On September 25th he made his first star, getting knocked out in the third inning after allowing seven runs (five earned) against the Chicago Cubs. He appeared in only four games over the next two seasons going 0-2 with an ERA over eight.  By 1959 he got a starting role in the Reds rotation and went 5-5 with a 5.13 ERA. In 1960 ...

The Nineties-  1990: Howard Johnson doubled his salary, earning one point six million dollars & with that, the expectations for him were very high. But as was his history he would have better odd number years than even number years. His numbers did not compare to his big season the previous year but he still put-up good numbers.  He hit a HR in the Opening Day Mets 12-3 loss to the Pirates. They would lose two of three in that series & be haunted by these Pirates all season long. On April 16th & 17th he drove in three runs for both games, then drove in two more two days later. He  finished up April at .252 with just four HRs. He began May with HRs in back-to-back games, on Atlanta, then at home in a 5-0 Frank Viola shut out win over the Reds.  Grand Slam: On June 13th, at Wrigley Field, Hojo began his game with a sac fly in the 1st inning. In the 9th inning of a wild game the score was tied at 10-10. Les Lancaster walked Greg...