As the New Year swiftly approaches, I really don’t have any resolutions.
But I do have a baseball wish list.
I wish:
— The St. Louis Cardinals would enter the new season with at least one black player on the 25-man roster and one new African-American front office addition. The Redbirds have turned into one of the “whitest” teams in Major League Baseball when you look throughout the entire organization. It’s a betrayal of the team’s history since the late 1950s.
— The Cardinals retire Willie McGee’s number. It should not matter that he is not in the Hall of Fame. Many professional teams retire fan favorites’ numbers. The Cardinals should drop the snooty attitude and retire “51.”
— Curt Flood was honored every year at Busch Stadium. Baseball changed forever because of this man’s philosophical stand. He lost his case in the U.S. Supreme Court, lost his livelihood, but never lost his dignity. Not only should he be honored each year in St. Louis, there should be a Curt Flood Day at every MLB ballpark.
— Barry Bonds is somehow found innocent of all perjury and obstruction charges. Like peace on earth, it ain’t gonna happen.
— Roger Clemens receives a subpoena from Congress inviting him to spend a few hours with them sometime early in 2008.
— Dusty Baker helps turn the Cincinnati Reds into a contender in ’08. He came within a few outs of winning the World Series in San Francisco. He came a few games from winning the World Series in Chicago. He needs a solid first year in the Queen City.
— Dontrelle Willis will throw a 20-win season. My guess is that he was tired of the empty stadium and penny-pinching ways of the Florida Marlins. He is now part of a true championship contender with an offensive lineup that could easily propel Willis to a Cy Young Award level season.
— Philadelphia Phillies superstar and St. Louis native Ryan Howard would hit 62 home runs. Last season, Ryan started the season in a dreadful slump that lasted a month. He would go on to set the MLB strikeout record. But he still managed to blast 47 home runs. Remember that he hit 58 in 2006. The guy who hits 62 next is going to be considered the single-season home run king, and Ryan is deserving.
— Jim Rice is elected to the Baseball hall of Fame in 2008. Because of the Mitchell Report and confirmation (like it was needed) that a high percentage of players used steroids or human growth hormone for more than a decade, players such as Rice should now be shoo-ins for the Hall. They are not in the Hall of Fame because their numbers now look puny compared to those of drug-laced superstars.
— Bud Selig would retire early. I am just so sick of looking at him. He represents everything that is wrong with baseball. His legacy in owners’ minds is one that made them the most money ever. His legacy in fans’ minds should be that he has been one of the worst stewards of the game in its history. (This includes the commissioners that served when baseball was illegally segregated.)
— Ron Washington somehow finds a way to bring the Texas Rangers back to respectability. I’m sure he’ll be looking for a job sometime between now and Oct. 1, 2008, but the holiday season is all about miracles, right?
— And I wish that more black athletes would give baseball a real chance this spring.
Happy New Year! And it’s eight weeks until Spring Training.