Two weeks in the past, Sunday Notes led with David Cone following in Mark Gubicza’s footsteps. Simply as his fellow pitcher-turned-broadcaster had performed, Cone tackled a difficult profession quiz, augmenting his solutions — a few of them right, others amiss — with entertaining anecdotes about batters he confronted alongside the way in which. At present we’ll hear from one other Nineteen Eighties-Nineties hurler who’s now a broadcast analyst: Jeff Montgomery, who performed with Gubicza in Kansas Metropolis, is the Royals’ franchise chief in each appearances (686) and saves 304).
I started by asking the 64-year-old Wellston, Ohio native which batter he confronted essentially the most occasions.
“I’m going to say both Chili Davis or Kirby Puckett,” guessed Montgomery, naming a pair of gamers who narrowly missed being the right reply. Upon being knowledgeable that it was neither of the 2, the erstwhile nearer contemplated for a number of seconds, solely to throw up his arms. “You bought me,” he admitted. “Who was it?”
I informed Montgomery that it was Paul Molitor, whom he confronted 30 occasions, permitting simply seven hits, all of them singles.
“Oh, Molly. There you go,” responded Montgomery, “Molly was the kind of hitter who was by no means going to be straightforward. He had the power to essentially wait on pitches. He was mainly bat-to-ball, and his bat-to-ball abilities had been unimaginable. There have been truthfully occasions once I thought the pitch was within the catcher’s mitt, and the following factor I knew I used to be watching our proper fielder chasing the ball down the road. Molly’s bat was that quick.
“I feel I did fairly nicely towards him,“ Montgomery added. “However I do bear in mind one recreation within the Metrodome. We had been in further innings, it was a bases-loaded state of affairs, and I had him 0-2. I’d thrown Molly a few sliders away, and determined to come back in with a fastball. He leaned into it for a walk-off hit-by-pitch.”
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Requested who he surrendered essentially the most hits to, Montgomery as soon as once more narrowly missed, guessing Cal Ripken Jr. The reply is Puckett, who went 10-for-26.
“Most likely plenty of these had been balls that he hit 110 mph, proper up the center on the turf in Minneapolis,” stated Montgomery. “The Twins had this type of baseball that was like taking part in in a bowling alley. They used that turf to their benefit. Puckett hit some balls that, whereas they didn’t actually undergo me, felt like they went by means of me. The opposite factor about Puckett is that he might hit a pitch that was neck excessive.”
The batter who took him deep essentially the most occasions?
“I bear in mind among the residence runs towards me, however principally those that had been of the walk-off selection,” stated Montgomery, who surrendered 81 gophers in all. “You bought me there, too. Who was it?”
The reply is Juan Gonzalez, Dean Palmer, and Harold Baines, the final of which is Montgomery’s ordinary reply to “Who was essentially the most troublesome hitter you confronted?” Every of the trio had three.
The batter he punched out essentially the most occasions additionally stumped him.
“I had plenty of success towards Joe Carter [2-for-20, six strikeouts], however it’s in all probability not him,” replied Montgomery. “There have been the massive, sturdy residence run hitters like Rob Deer [2-for-14, eights strikeouts] and Pete Incaviglia [1-for-12, five strikeouts]; I feel I had extra success towards these kinds of guys than anyone. However I wouldn’t have the ability to inform you which one I had essentially the most strikeouts towards.”
Gonzalez — “Ah sure, Johnny Gonzo” — was the righty’s sufferer 9 occasions.
The final ever batter he Kd proved to be a simple query.
“It might be Dean Palmer,” Montgomery stated with out hesitation. “The rationale I bear in mind him being the final is that I’d introduced my retirement. It was a Saturday on the finish of the 1999 season, and we had been taking part in the Tigers. The subsequent day, I noticed him within the [concourse] outdoors of the clubhouse. He stated, ‘Dude, why are you going to retire?’ I informed him that I’d had a nasty yr and didn’t suppose I might preserve going. He goes, ‘Final evening you threw me the most effective slider I’ve seen all season.’ I’ll always remember that remark. That’s why I do know that Dean Palmer my was final strikeout.”
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RANDOM HITTER-PITCHER MATCHUPS
Bake McBride went 5 for 10 towards Clay Kirby.
Gabby Hartnett went 6 for 11 towards Kirby Higbe.
Kerby Farrell went 7 for 11 towards Marino Pieretti.
Wayne Kirby went 6 for 10 towards Rick Sutcliffe.
Kirby Puckett went 9 for 12 towards Mike Birkbeck.
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I generally bankroll non-timely interviews to run through the offseason, and whereas the beginning of spring coaching is my goal cutoff level, a number of sometimes stretch into early weeks of camp. That was the case with Isaac Mattson. What I realized from my late-summer dialog with the 30-year-old Pittsburgh Pirates reliever is that two of his pitches have a little bit of Vulcan to them. To my shock, one among them is his slider.
“One of many greatest jumps I took this season got here from working with a buddy of mine that pitches for the Mets, Reed Garrett,” stated Mattson, who got here out of the Bucs bullpen 44 occasions and put up a 2.45 ERA and a 3.66 FIP over 47-and-two-thirds innings. “He was engaged on slider [during the 2024-2025 offseason] and I sort of adjusted my grip to the one he has.
“I’d all the time sort of held my slider looser,” added the righty, who’d made simply seven big-league appearances previous to final season. “Speaking with Reed, the largest factor was discovering that stress level between my center and ring fingers, the knuckle there. I’m mainly making the Spock signal — that area in between — to create stress. Earlier than, many of the stress was between my thumb, my pointer, and center finger. Shifting that stress level somewhat bit towards the middle of my hand and sort of getting my thumb out of the way in which helped cut back carry.”
His different “Vulcan-esque” — that’s how Mattson described it — providing is predictably his changeup. He started throwing it in 2019 when he was within the Baltimore Orioles group, the objective being to kill spin and get extra depth. His earlier changeup “had extra carry to it, nearly like John Means’s changeup a pair years again.” Mattson informed me that he now presets to his Vulcan with each pitch, explaining that it’s simpler to regulate away from that grip than vice versa.
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Germán Márquez is a Padre now, San Diego having signed the 30-year-old, longtime Colorado Rockies right-hander as a free agent earlier this week. To say that he’s a reclamation challenge could be an understatement. As my colleague Michael Baumann identified after the deal was introduced, Márquez missed many of the 2023 and 2024 seasons as a consequence of a UCL harm, and final yr he struggled to the tune of a 3-16 file and a 6.70 ERA.
Craig Stammen was requested about Márquez yesterday morning.
“He threw quite a bit within the offseason, however he’s simply attempting to get his toes beneath him in camp,” San Diego’s first-year supervisor informed a small group of reporters. “I do know that [pitching coach] Ruben [Niebla] has been working with him on some particular issues. It’s a chance for them to work on these issues, after which ultimately take him to a stay batting observe and right into a recreation.”
Following up, I requested Stammen if the work is mechanical, or whether it is extra about pitch varieties.
“All the above,” replied the 42-year-old pitcher-turned-skipper. “Any time you get on the mound with Reuben, or any of the pitching coaches, they’re checking every little thing out. It may very well be stuff within the weight room. It may very well be stuff within the coaching room. It may very well be mechanics. Could possibly be pitch grips. Could possibly be pitch combine. All that stuff is on the desk, and him being open to doing these kinds of issues might be the primary attribute that he might have.”
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A quiz:
Two quarterbacks who’re within the Professional Soccer Corridor of Fame had been drafted by the identical MLB group out of highschool in the identical yr. Who’re they, and which group took them? (A touch: one of many gamers was later drafted by a distinct MLB group out of faculty and performed briefly within the minors, whereas the opposite by no means performed baseball professionally.)
The reply could be discovered beneath.
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NEWS NOTES
Invoice Mazeroski, a Corridor of Fame second baseman who performed for the Pittsburgh Pirates 1956-1972, died on Friday at age 89. Thought of one of many best-ever defenders at his place, “Maz” gained eight Gold Gloves, was an All-Star in seven of his 17 seasons, and — final however not least — hit arguably essentially the most well-known residence run in World Collection historical past. The Pittsburgh legends’s ninth-inning blast walked off the New York Yankees in 1960’s epic Recreation 7.
Joe Nossek, an outfielder who performed for 3 groups throughout the 1964-1970 seasons, died on February 12 at age 85. A Cleveland native, Nossek notched 122 hits, together with three residence runs, the final of them off of Indians southpaw “Sudden Sam” McDowell. A coach for a number of groups following his taking part in days, Nossek appeared in six video games and went 4-for-20 with the Minnesota Twins within the 1965 World Collection.
Bobby Henrich, an infielder who performed in 48 video games for the Cincinnati Reds from 1957-1959, died earlier this month at age 87. Utilized primarily as a defensive alternative and pinch-runner, the Lawrence, Kansas native went 2-for-16 on the plate and scored 13 runs.
A reminder that this yr’s SABR Analytics Convention is being held at Arizona State College’s downtown Phoenix campus from February 27-March 1. The schedule, together with the spectacular array of featured audio system, could be discovered right here.
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The reply to the quiz is John Elway and Dan Marino, each of whom had been drafted by the Kansas Metropolis Royals in 1979. Marino, a fourth-round choose, opted to attend the College of Pittsburgh and caught with soccer. Elway, an 18th-round choose, went to Stanford, then went to play short-season ball within the New York Yankees system in 1982 after being drafted out of faculty.
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Bryce Miller makes his dwelling throwing a baseball, which is one thing he does very nicely when wholesome. Elbow woes restricted his effectiveness final season — additionally they landed him on the shelf on two events — however a yr prior, the Seattle Mariners right-hander put up a 2.94 ERA and a 3.58 FIP over 180-and-a-third frames.
What if the native Texan had been a Winter Olympics athlete quite than a baseball participant? Which occasion would he be excelling in?
“Winter Olympics? I noticed one thing final evening,” Miller informed me on Friday. “I feel it was known as mountaineering. It’s the primary time they’ve performed it, and all you do is run up a hill with skis on, you then ski down. It appeared extraordinarily straightforward.”
Wait, it appears to be like straightforward to go uphill on skis?
“They’ve like grips on them,” Miller replied with a smile. “They only ran up the hill, then they went down. That’ s a simple Gold Medal for me. Give me every week.”
Truthful sufficient. Any occasions you wouldn’t even wish to attmept?
“I can’t ice skate,” stated Miller. “So, determine skating wouldn’t be any good. I additionally don’t like to bop. Dancing and skating are two of the issues I don’t like, so determine skating could be out.”
What about ski leaping?
“I’d try this,” he replied. “I don’t know concerning the one the place I’d have to do a flip. However the flying squirrel one, I might try this.”
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I requested 20-year-old Mariners pitching prospect Ryan Sloan the identical set of questions.
“Most likely hockey,” stated the Elmhurst, Illinois native, who’s ranked twentieth on our recently-released 2026 Prime 100 Prospects record. “I didn’t play hockey — I can barely skate — however that may be fairly cool. I’ll go to a recreation each from time to time.”
The 6-foot-5, 200-pound hurler went on to call determine skating because the occasion he’d be least prone to even attempt. “Not an opportunity,” he informed me. “I don’t suppose I’ve the construct for it.” As for ski leaping, Sloan matched Miller within the bravery division: “I wouldn’t be against it.”
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A random obscure former participant snapshot:
Scott Livingstone had a career-best season with the San Diego Padres in 1995. Enjoying for first-year supervisor Bruce Bochy, the left-handed-hitting nook infielder slashed .337/.380/.490 with a 133 wRC+ over 213 plate appearances. 4 years earlier, he had what arguably stands as his most memorable recreation. Making his MLB debut with the Detroit Tigers on July 19, 1991, Livingston went 3-for-5 with a stroll and 4 runs scored in a 17-0 shellacking of the Kansas Metropolis Royals.
In 1987, the Dallas native had performed for a star-studded Crew USA squad that included Jim Abbott, Chris Carpenter, Tino Martinez, Gregg Olson, and Scott Servais. The next yr, Livingston was drafted within the second spherical by the Tigers, with whom he went on to play for three-plus seasons earlier than being traded to the Padres, after which by San Diego to St. Louis in a 1997 deal that included Danny Jackson, Phil Plantier, Mark Sweeney, and Fernando Valenzuela.
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LINKS YOU’LL LIKE
Nick Castellanos has no regrets about how his time in Philadelphia ended, though he did take away classes from the rocky end. Julian McWilliams has the story at CBS Sports activities.
Brewer Fanatic’s Michael Trzinski appeared again at how the Seattle Pilots grew to become the Milwaukee Brewers.
The Athletic’s Zack Meisel wrote about Cleveland Guardians pitching prospect Daniel Espino, a health care provider’s son whose promising profession has been stalled a number of occasions as a consequence of surgical procedures.
MLB.com’s Elizabeth Muratore wrote about the mantra that has introduced British coaches to MLB.
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RANDOM FACTS AND STATS
Roberto Clemente and Honus Wagner co-hold the Pittsburgh Pirates franchise file for video games performed. The Corridor of Famers every suited up 2,433 occasions.
Three place gamers in modern-era (since 1901) Cincinnati Reds franchise historical past have recorded successful of their lone plate look for the group: Joseph Burns (in 1910), Pink Lutz (1922), and Paul Noce (1990).
Buster Posey had a .302 BA, 1,500 hits, and 460 extra-base hits, and 729 RBIs.
Sean Casey had a .302 BA, 1,531 hits, and 464 extra-base hits, and 735 RBIs.
Robin Yount had 3,182 hits, together with 251 residence runs.
Tony Clark had 1,188 hits, together with 251 residence runs.
The Detroit Tigers signed Johnny Damon on in the present day’s date in 2010. Damon went on to play one season in Motown, recording 146 of his 2,769 profession hits, in addition to eight of his 235 residence runs and 11 of his 408 stolen bases. He had a 107 wRC+ and a pair of.3 WAR for a Tigers group that completed with a file of 81-81.
Gamers born on in the present day’s date embody Ferdinand De Paige Moore, a primary baseman who went 2-for-4 whereas taking part in in a pair of video games for the Philadelphia Athletics in 1914. Per his B-Ref bio web page, Moore later grew to become a detective for the Atlantic Metropolis police division and at one time was head of the vice squad. He fatally shot a cigar retailer proprietor, after which himself, in 1947.
Additionally born on in the present day’s date was Steve Colyer, a left-hander who made 61 reduction appearances whereas taking part in for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Detroit Tigers, and Atlanta Braves throughout the 2003-2007 seasons. His pitching ledger — a file of 1-1 with a 5.04 ERA over 55-and-a-third innings — isn’t all that notable, however his batting ledger places him in pretty choose firm. Together with Eddie Gaedel and a small variety of others, Colyer walked in his lone profession plate look.
Muggsy Bogues performed in a single recreation and went hitless in two at-bats for the South Atlantic League’s Gastonia Rangers — a group managed by Bump Wills — in 1991. A 5-foot-3 level guard, Bogues performed 14 NBA seasons, 9 of them with the Charlotte Hornets.