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Ron Hunt , the first Mets star without having previous ties to the Dodgers, Giants or Yankees, died last Wednesday after several years of declining health.     He was 85.  The scrappy St. Louis native endured himself to Polo Grounds fans with his hard-nosed play and willingness to be hit by a pitch. (Hunt still holds the post-1900 record for most HBP's in a season with 50.)  The runner up to Pete Rose for the 1963 NL Rookie of the Year, Hunt made history the following year, as the first Met ever to start the All Star Game -- fitting as it was played at the brand-new Shea Stadium.  Traded to the Dodgers after the 1966 season, Ron later played for the Giants, Expos and briefly, at the end of his career, the his hometown Cardinals.  I met Ron when he was saluted at Citi Field late in the 2019 season. Freddy Cannon was a bigtime baseball fan -- and was delighted to play at the Dodgers 50th anniversary celebration in Los Angeles -- but made his name as a ...
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If Your Birthday is July 17th...

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...you share it with Adam Lind .  The Indiana native and University of South Alabama product spent a dozen years in the majors -- the first nine with the Blue Jays, followed by single seasons in Milwaukee, Seattle and Washington.  The lefty hitter totaled exactly 200 career homers, while hitting .272. Lind was traded from the Brewers to the Mariners after the 2015 season, for a package that included pitching prospect (and future Milwaukee standout) Freddy Peralta. Did you know that Adam nearly became a Yankee as the end of his career?  Signing with the Bronx Bombers in the winter of 2018, he was cut during spring training and began that minor league season with their Tampa and Scranton-Wilkes Barre farm clubs, but never showed enough to be called up. These days, Lind is the batting coach for the Phillies AAA team, the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs.  
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Players of the Week

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Ben Rice (above) and James Wood (below) each smacked five home runs — while batting over .420 between July 6th and 12th -- to earn American and National League Player of the Week honors.  That's not all they have in common.   Both hit left handed, have already topped 20 homers,  are in their third MLB seasons and have become the #1 power source on their respective clubs. Even better, both will be in Philadelphia tonight, having been named (for the first time) to the All Star Game.   My image of Rice is from a Yankees/Orioles games this May.  I snapped Young in his AAA days, playing for the Nats top farm club Rochester in a the 2024 season opener at Syracuse.
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If Your Birthday is July 10th...

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...you share it with Lawrence Butler.   The New Jersey-born, Atlanta-raised outfielder broke in with the A's in 2023.  He put together strong seasons the next two years -- earning a six-year contract extension -- but hasn't been the same since undergoing knee surgery last September. Still, that long term commitment makes it clear that the A’s expect him to be in the lineup when they arrive in Las Vegas later this decade.   I snapped this photo last August when the Athletics visited the Orioles at Camden Yards.
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Trying to Work Their Way Back

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Since I see more minor than major league games in person, it's easy to get caught up in the stories of the hot prospects, the highly touted draft picks and big international signings such as AJ Ewing, Franklin Arias and Max Clark.  I've shared many stories of enjoying "tomorrow's stars today."   But there's another aspect to MiLB.  Every AAA team has several former major leaguers on their rosters, talented players working and hoping that they'll soon have another chance to shine on the big stage.  Today, I'll focus on several of them. The Mets recently signed Christopher Morel and sent him to their Syracuse farm club.  The Dominican native spent two-and-a-half years with the Cubs, where in 2024, he hammered 26 home runs and drove in 70.  But things fell off the following year; traded mid-season to the Rays, his offensive numbers cratered -- and they failed to improve after he signed with the Marlins, who released him in June.  Now, Morel hopes his...
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If Your Birthday is July 3rd...

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... Yangervis Solarte .  The Venezuelan 3rd baseman made a brief splash with the 2014 Yankees.  Taking advantage of Alex Rodriguez's PED suspension, he batted .429 in Grapefruit League play and made the opening day roster.   While he came back to earth by mid-season, the switch hitter  spent 5-1/2 years in the big leagues, with later stops in San Diego, Toronto and San Francisco. Though he hasn't appeared in the majors since 2019, Solarte has continued his career in the Mexican League.  He's currently with Conspiradores de Querétaro, where at last check, he was hitting in the .340s.  
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Wayback: On This Date in 2000

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Trailing 8-1 in the bottom of the 8th inning, the Mets score a (then-) team-record-tying 10 runs to come from behind and  beat the Braves 11-8 .  Mike Piazza 's 3-run home run snaps a tie and puts the Mets ahead to stay -- as they plate nine of those runs with two outs. More than 52,000 were on hand at Shea Stadium to witness Mets history. The Mets went on to win the National League pennant in 2000.  Piazza slugged 38 homers and, for the sixth and final time, drove in over 100 runs.  He made the All Star team and finished third for NL MVP. My photos are from July 30th, 2016, when the Mets retired Piazza's number 31.  
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