Mike McCann's Field of Fotos

...you share it with Dodgers manager  Dave Roberts  -- who has a knack for helping snap lengthy negative streaks.   B est known for his momentum-turning stolen base against in game four of the 2004 ALCS, Roberts’ daring sprint set up the Red Sox comeback as they erased the Yankees' three games to none series lead, something never done before in baseball... as Boston went on to capture its first World Series title since 1918.   Then in 2020, he managed the Dodgers to their first championship in 32 years.  All told, that’s upending 118 years of history!!  

  May 29th, 2010:   Roy Halladay  pitches a perfect game -- with little margin for error --  as the Phillies blank the Marlins 1-0 at Miami.  The righthander strikes out 12, and uses 115 pitches the become the 20th man to throw a perfect game -- and the second of the 2010 season (Oakland's Dallas Braden did it weeks earlier, marking the first season since 1880 with two perfectos in the same year). Halladay joins Jim Bunning as the only Phillies ever to throw a perfect game; ironically both occurred in road games during their first seasons with the club. Below, he was honored later that season in a pre-game ceremony at Citizens Bank Park.  Doc is third from the left in the upper row.  To his right are manager Charlie Manuel, GM Ruben Amaro Jr and team president David Montgomery.

You're not hearing much about Aaron Judge 's slow start any more.  Not after a strong week, where he homered in four of his last five games and overtook teammate Juan Soto as the AL leader in OPS and on-base percentage.  His 18 doubles pace the league; now tack on 17 home runs (one behind Houston's Kyle Tucker) and you can see why the Yanks are living up to their Bronx Bombers nickname again. (Below:)  As hot as Judge has been, that's how cold Victor Robles has been in '24.  Actually, it's been several years of declining production for the Nats' onetime top prospect.  With a batting average of .120 in the first two months of the season, Washington GM Mike Rizzo ran out of patience hoping for a turnaround.  After he clears waivers, another club will likely take a chance on Robles, who hit 17 homers and stole 28 bases in DC's 2019 championship season. The rest of this baseball season will be a little less fun with Ronald Acuna Junior on the shelf.  The...

Let's start on Friday the 24th with Bartolo Colon , a darned good pitcher with a somewhat goofy persona who starred for the Indians, Angels and Mets, winning 247 games over 21 big league seasons.   The Dominican native also holds the distinction of being the oldest player ever to hit his first career home run .   He was 16 days of turning 43 when he did it as Met against the Padres in 2015.  (See it for yourself here :  With two 20-win seasons and the 2005 AL Cy Young Award to his credit, he would be a strong Hall of Fame candidate had he not also had a 2012 PED suspension on his report card. Saturday 's birthday circle is highlighted by Chris Young (below), who is a member of a unique club: a World Series winner as both a player and executive.  The tall, but oft-injured Texan won 79 games in his 13 year career, highlighted by being a rotation member on the 2015 World Champion Royals.  A Princeton grad, who worked in the baseball commissioner's ...

Out antique shopping with friends, I found this slice of history in a Western Maryland store.  Obscured behind some other items , I couldn't get a clear shot -- or a chance to identify all the players.   It stirred up memories of a different baseball era: A time when major league teams would play an annual exhibition against their top farm clubs. This was the final year for the Braves in Boston (they'd head to Milwaukee that winter). These Braves would go on to win just 64 games. It was the rookie year for 3rd baseman Eddie Mathews , who'd go onto the Hall of Fame as well as earn a singular distinction -- as the only player to appear for the Braves in all three of the cities it called home. Fellow Hall of Famer Warren Spahn went 14-19, while posting an ERA under 3 and leading the NL in strikeouts for the fourth year in a row. In the other dugout, Hagerstown's best pitcher Bob Giggie won 18 that season -- but didn't make the majors until 1959, when he appeared in 1...

The bats were blazing and the fans packed the park all weekend in Philadelphia as the Phillies improved on the best record in baseball, sweeping the Washington Nationals.   I was on hand Saturday night to witness it firsthand from section 327. Here are two big moments captured on my Canon:   Kody Clemens (above) crushing a game tying homer in the bottom of the 9th, then Bryce Harper walking it off an inning later with a sacrifice fly. Sunday's standout was Alec Bohm .  The Phillies 3rd baseman -- and NL leader in RBIs -- contributed a pair of sacrifice flies and then capped his day with a three-run homer to the left field seats. These Phillies are built solidly: strong starting pitching — with Ranger Suarez blossoming into a Cy Young candidate — a lineup with power and good contact hitters (and doing it with star shortstop Trea Turner) and a manager in Rob Thomson who not only has the trust of his players but has helped make this perhaps the most likeable Phil...

If your birthday is Friday the 17th , you share it with Carlos Pena .  The power-hitting 1st baseman, who peaked with a 46-homer season with the '07 Rays, is now a top commentator for MLB Network. There's also Ben Gamel .   Once a top Yankees prospect, he's bounced between six big league clubs, most recently the Padres.  Unable to land an MLB roster spot this spring, he's now enjoying a big season for the Mets AAA club in Syracuse, where he's hitting over .300 with an OPS above 1.0. Gamel and Pena share their birthday with the late Negro Leagues legend Cool Papa Bell . Onto Saturday the 18th , with Mister October: Reggie Jackson crushed 563 home runs over 21 seasons with a knack for grabbing the headlines.  The slugging star of the A's early '70s dynasty, he was among the first of the stars to take advantage of free agency, jumping to the Yankees in 1977 just in time to clash with manager Billy Martin.  While that disfunctional relationship -- co-starring ...