On this date in 1999, Cal Ripken Jr. landed on the disabled list for the first time in what was, at that point, a 19-year career, due to a back injury. Ripken had already voluntarily ended his likely unbreakable streak of 2,632 consecutive games played, though the DL trip served as evidence that baseball’s Iron Man was at least mortal. Ripken would eventually become a first-ballot Hall of Famer, of course, appearing on 98.53 percent of ballots after a career that saw him hit .276/.340/.447 with 431 home runs, a Rookie of the Year Award, two MVPs, eight Silver Sluggers, a pair of Gold Gloves and 19 consecutive All-Star nods. We’ll stick with an Orioles theme to kick off this week’s look at the baseball blogosphere…
- Camden Depot looked at the link between the 2018 All-Star Game and the MASN suit.
- Baltimore Sports And Life looked at baseball’s true power hitters.
- BlueJaysPlus examines the change in player types in Toronto under Alex Anthopoulos.
- The Point of Pittsburgh delved into how the Pirates are minimizing time on the DL.
- Yankees Unscripted thinks the Yankees will be justifiably patient with Stephen Drew.
- Know Hitter says the Tigers should not sign Rafael Soriano.
- Rumbunter broke down Gerrit Cole‘s not-so-secret weapon.
- AZ Snake Pit looked at the D-Backs’ future.
- Grading on the Curve says the Braves and Yanks don’t line up in a Jose Peraza trade.
- Baseball Hot Corner is checking the clock.
- The Sports Esquires looked at unheralded prospects who are ready to make an impact.
Please send submissions to Zach at ZachBBWI@gmail.com.