The Little General

Gene Mauch passed away at the age of 79 on Monday night.

Mauch was famous being at the helm of teams who collapsed...epically. Before there were the 2004 Yankees, there was Gene Mauch. The most famous collapse was probably the 6 and 1/2 game lead that his Phillies blew with 12 games to go. But his 1986 Angels also pulled off a monsterous choke job with a 3 games to one lead against the Red Sox, and a three run lead in the ninth inning of Game 5.

Imagine how a Mets/Angels series would have played out. Think of how big a choke job the Bill Buckner play was...now think of how a snakebitten Gene Mauch led Angels team would have blown a World Series. Wow. (Oddly enough, Buckner would play for Mauch in 1987.)

Mauch also blew a 2 games to none lead in the 1982 ALCS and lost the best of five...the home team won every game that series.

I hope that the baseball god that took great pains to torture Mauch so incessantly is finding a safe hiding place right about now, because Mauch is up in heaven looking for him...and he's got one of Reggie's bats.

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When dad was 19, he was busy striking out 276 batters (a number Gooden would never reach again).

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At least other N.L. East teams are having problems with Colorado.

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Perhaps John Smoltz can take next season off to go study butterflies in Australia with Ricky Williams.

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See, all the cool kids have a hate list (in one form or another).