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Jake Bird (baseball)
Jacob Timothy Bird (born December 4, 1995) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Colorado Rockies of Major League Baseball (MLB). He played college baseball for the UCLA Bruins, and led the Pac-12 Conference in ERA in 2018. He was selected by the Rockies in the fifth round of the 2018 Major League Baseball draft. He made his MLB debut in 2022. Early life Bird was born in Newhall, California, to Joel and Heidi Bird, was raised in Valencia, California, and is Jewish. His paternal grandmother was Jewish and his mother is Catholic. He has one older brother, Josh, and two younger brothers, Travis and Trent. When Bird was eight years old, at the end of second grade he signed his friends' yearbooks as follows: "Save this autograph for when I’m playing in the major leagues." Amateur career Bird attended West Ranch High School in Stevenson Ranch, California, pitching and playing outfield for the baseball team, and playing for the basketball team. In his senior year of hig ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Albuquerque Isotopes
The Albuquerque Isotopes are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies. They play home games at Rio Grande Credit Union Field at Isotopes Park in Albuquerque, New Mexico, at an elevation of above sea level. In 2003, the Calgary Cannons moved from Alberta to Albuquerque and became the Isotopes playing in the Pacific Coast League. The team was affiliated with the Florida Marlins until 2008 and the Dodgers from 2009 to 2014. In conjunction with Major League Baseball's restructuring of Minor League Baseball in 2021, the Isotopes were organized into the Triple-A West, which was renamed the Pacific Coast League in 2022. The team won division titles in 2003, 2009, and 2012; it has never won a league championship. The Isotopes' mascot is Orbit, a yellow, orange, and red alien. In 2016, ''Forbes'' listed the team as the 14th-most valuable Minor League Baseball team with a value of $34 million. Name origins The team's nam ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Outfield
The outfield, in cricket, baseball and softball is the area of the field of play further from the batsman or batter than the infield. In association football, the outfield players are positioned outside the goal area. In cricket, baseball and softball In baseball, softball and cricket, fielders in the outfield have more ground to cover than infielders, but also more time before the ball reaches them. Catches are most likely to arise from shots that have been 'skied' (in cricket) or 'popped ' (in baseball and softball). If a catch is not possible (for example, the ball has bounced, or is rolling or skidding across the turf) the fielder will attempt to head off, pick up and throw in the ball as quickly as possible to reduce the distance the runners can run and hopefully to effect a run out (cricket) or tag out (baseball and softball). In cricket, where the ball is far more likely to stay low against the ground than in baseball or softball, the condition of the turf has a major ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Changeup
A changeup is a type of pitch in baseball and fastpitch softball. The changeup is a staple off-speed pitch often used in a pitcher's arsenal, usually thrown to look like a fastball but arriving much more slowly to the plate. Its reduced speed coupled with its deceptive delivery is meant to confuse the batter's timing. It is meant to be thrown the same as a fastball, but farther back in the hand, which makes it release from the hand slower while still retaining the look of a fastball. A changeup is generally thrown to be 8–15 miles per hour slower than a fastball. If thrown correctly, the changeup will confuse the batter because the human eye cannot discern that the ball is coming significantly slower until it is around 30 feet from the plate. For example, a batter swings at the oncoming ball as if it were a 90 mph fastball, but instead the ball is coming in at 75 mph—this means they will be swinging too early to hit the ball well (also known as being "way out in f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Slider (pitch)
In baseball, a slider is a breaking ball pitch that tails laterally and down through the batter's hitting zone. It is thrown at a speed that is lower than a fastball, but higher than the pitcher's curveball. The break on the pitch is shorter than that of the curveball, and the release technique is 'between' those of a curveball and a fastball. The slider is similar to the cutter, a fastball pitch, but is more of a breaking ball than the cutter. The slider is also known as a yakker or a snapper. Slider continuum Depending on velocity, a pitch can fall anywhere on the continuum from "fastball" to "slider": * fastball » cut fastball » hard slider » slider » slurve ** cut fastball: slower than fastball ** hard slider: slower than fastball ** slider: slower than fastball The difference between a slider and curveball is that the curveball delivery includes a downward yank on the ball as it is released in addition to the lateral spin applied by the slider grip. The slider is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sinker (pitch)
In baseball, a sinker or sinking fastball is a type of fastball which has significant downward and horizontal movement and is known for inducing ground balls. Pitchers capable of utilizing the sinker are able to throw the pitch almost exclusively, as it forces weak contact and ground balls, allowing them to rely less on secondary pitches in order to change speeds. While coaches agree that this pitch is very similar to the two-seam fastball, a two-seamer tends to have more lateral movement than a sinker. History Before the 1950s, pitchers did not know what caused their pitches to sink or "hop". They regarded either ability as a "gift from heaven". Bill James cites Curt Simmons as the first pitcher to be able to throw both sinkers and rising fastballs, apparently indicating that it was not known how to make a pitch sink and how to make one hop. Throwing mechanics One method of throwing the sinker is to simply grip the baseball along the two seams and throw it similar to a fastba ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cape Cod Baseball League
The Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL or Cape League) is a collegiate summer baseball wooden bat league located on Cape Cod in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. One of the nation's premier collegiate summer leagues, the league boasts over one thousand former players who have gone on to play in the major leagues. History Pre-modern era Origins As early as the 1860s, baseball teams representing various Cape Cod towns and villages were competing against one another. The earliest newspaper account is of an 1867 game in Sandwich between the hometown "Nichols Club" and the visiting Cummaquid team. Though not formalized as a league, the games provided entertainment for residents and summer visitors. In 1885, a Fourth of July baseball game was held matching teams from Barnstable and Sandwich. According to contemporary accounts, the 1885 contest may have been at least the twelfth such annual game. By the late 19th century, an annual championship baseball tournament was being held each ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Falmouth Commodores
The Falmouth Commodores are a collegiate summer baseball team based in Falmouth, Massachusetts. The team is a member of the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL) and plays in the league's West Division. The Commodores play their home games at Arnie Allen Diamond at Guv Fuller Field in Falmouth. The Commodores most recently won the CCBL championship in 1980 when they defeated the Chatham A's in the championship series. The title was the team's sixth overall in the league's modern era, having won four consecutive league titles from 1968 to 1971. The team has been led since 1999 by field manager Jeff Trundy. History Pre-modern era Origins of baseball in Falmouth Baseball has been played in Falmouth since the pre-Civil War days. ''The Barnstable Patriot'' reported on July 7, 1857 that, "the Fourth was celebrated at Falmouth by a game of base ball, in which some of the principal men of that place participated." In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, teams representing various Cape ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Collegiate Summer Baseball
Collegiate summer baseball leagues are amateur baseball leagues in the United States and Canada featuring players who have attended at least one year of college and have at least one year of athletic eligibility remaining. Generally, they operate from early June to early August. In contrast to college baseball, which allow aluminum or other composite baseball bats, players in these leagues use only wooden bats, hence the common nickname of these leagues as "wood-bat leagues". Collegiate summer leagues allow college baseball players the ability to compete using professional rules and equipment, giving them experience and allowing professional scouts the opportunity to observe players under such conditions. To find a collegiate summer team, players work with their college coaches and prospective teams' general managers. They report to summer leagues after completing their spring collegiate season with their NCAA, NAIA, NJCAA, CCCAA, and NWAC teams. Some players arrive late due to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2014 Major League Baseball Draft
The 2014 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft was held from June 5 through June 7, 2014, to assign amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The first two rounds were conducted on June 5, followed by rounds three through ten on June 6, and the last 30 rounds on June 7. It was broadcast from Studio 42 of the MLB Network in Secaucus, New Jersey. The draft order was the reverse order of the 2013 MLB regular season standings. As the Astros finished the 2013 season with the worst record, they had the first overall selection for the third consecutive year. In addition, the Toronto Blue Jays got the 11th pick, as compensation for failing to sign Phil Bickford, the 10th overall selection of the 2013 MLB Draft. The St. Louis Cardinals got bumped from #30 to #31 because although tied with the Boston Red Sox for most wins in the 2013 regular season, the Red Sox had fewer wins in 2012. Kansas City Royals first round draft pick Brandon Finnegan made his Major League debut on S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the United States. The publication has won more than 40 Pulitzer Prizes. It is owned by Patrick Soon-Shiong and published by the Times Mirror Company. The newspaper’s coverage emphasizes California and especially Southern California stories. In the 19th century, the paper developed a reputation for civic boosterism and opposition to labor unions, the latter of which led to the bombing of its headquarters in 1910. The paper's profile grew substantially in the 1960s under publisher Otis Chandler, who adopted a more national focus. In recent decades the paper's readership has declined, and it has been beset by a series of ownership changes, staff reductions, and other controversies. In January 2018, the paper's staff voted to unionize and final ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
University Of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California State Normal School (now San José State University). This school was absorbed with the official founding of UCLA as the Southern Branch of the University of California in 1919, making it the second-oldest of the 10-campus University of California system (after UC Berkeley). UCLA offers 337 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in a wide range of disciplines, enrolling about 31,600 undergraduate and 14,300 graduate and professional students. UCLA received 174,914 undergraduate applications for Fall 2022, including transfers, making the school the most applied-to university in the United States. The university is organized into the College of Letters and Science and 12 professional schools. Six of the schools offer undergraduate degre ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Foothill League
The Foothill League is a high school athletic conference in the Santa Clarita Valley area of Los Angeles County, California that is affiliated with the CIF Southern Section. All current members are part of the William S. Hart Union High School District. Schools As of 2018, the schools in the league are: * Canyon High School *Castaic High School * Golden Valley High School * Hart High School * Saugus High School * Valencia High School *West Ranch High School Former members * Burbank High School (through 2006; joined Pacific League * Burroughs High School (through 2006; joined Pacific League) Sports The Foothill League sponsors the following sports: Fall season * Football * Cross country * Girls' golf * Girls' tennis * Girls' volleyball Winter season * Basketball * Soccer Spring season * Baseball * Boys' golf * Lacrosse * Softball * Swimming/Diving * Track and field * Boys' tennis * Boys' volleyball History The Foothill League is one of the earliest CIF-SS leagues in existenc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
