history lessons
Throwback Thursday: Joe Medwick, Beanballs, and the Source of Baseball's "Code"
Baseball's constipated code can be a buzzkill, which is where Bryce Harper's "Make Baseball Fun Again" idea comes from, but there's a century of history behind it.
How NBA Entertainment Helped Save the League and Spread a Renaissance
In the early 1980s, the NBA was floundering. Then NBA Entertainment, the league's new in-house video production team, helped usher in a fan-tastic future.
Throwback Thursday: Johnny Vander Meer's Back-to-Back No-Nos and the Art of Almost Losing It
This week in 1938, Johnny Vander Meer did something no other pitcher has ever done: he just barely kept it together in his consecutive no-hitters. But so are we all, in a way.
How Not to Manage the First Round of the MLB Draft
The MLB Draft is a guessing game, even in the first round. Here are the ten teams that have historically gotten it the most wrong, and how they've done it.
Throwback Thursday: Ted Williams Goes to War
In 1942, Ted Williams began a military career as a fighter pilot that ulitmately would take five years from his career as a ballplayer. History is uncompromising like that.
Throwback Thursday: One Last Slam for the Philadelphia A's, a Baseball Team That Died
Connie Mack's Philadelphia A's were once one of baseball's great franchises. By the time they finally left Philadelphia, they were a dark lesson in complacency.
Lights Out: What a Hot Start Does and Doesn't Mean in Baseball
Many more teams have gotten to the 50-game mark on a 100-win pace than have gone on to win 100 games. How and why they decline says a lot about how to prevent it.
Throwback Thursday: The Two Bad Trades of Mike Piazza
This week in 1998, two teams had a chance to hang onto the best hitting catcher ever to play baseball. Instead, Mike Piazza was traded twice in one week.
WWE Is Talking About A "New Era," And Actually Backing It Up
Pro wrestling loves to tell its own story and always has. That's what WWE's current "new era" talk is about. More importantly: the new era is pretty great so far.
Throwback Thursday: The End Comes For Benny Kauff, Baseball's Unluckiest Renegade
Benny Kauff had the talent to become an All-Star. Instead, this week in 1921, he was banned from baseball forever for dubious reasons. He had that sort of career.
The Chicago Cubs Are Already In Rare Company, And Could Be Special
Even for a hot World Series pick, the Cubs are off to a historically hot start. Very few teams have been this good this early. Most of them finished strong.
Looking Back At Reggie Jackson's Lost Season In Baltimore, 40 Years Later
One of Reggie Jackson's best seasons came in Baltimore, and has more or less vanished down the memory hole. There isn't even a baseball card for it. It happened.