Bayern Trupp » Vinatieri boot right before the half, this

There could be some history made on Friday night in Buffalo. Mike Hessman of the Toledo Mudhens needs one more homer to break the all-time International League career home run mark. Before you say "big deal" as I was tempted to do, you should know who Mike Hessman is and how he made this journey over a long and varied career. First off he was born in Fountain Valley, California, and grew into the dimensions of a true slugger. He is 65" and 215 pounds. He was chosen in the 15th round of the 1996 MLB draft by Atlanta. He made it to the "Show" with the Braves in 2003. He had a long looping swing and struck out too much and generally over a short-lived big league career, the 3B/1B also seemed to be stuck behind better players such as Chipper Jones. Besides Atlanta, Hessman also made pit stops in Detroit and with the New York Mets between 2003 and 2010, hitting .188 with 14 home runs. Over time Hessman became a fixture in the International League. Now 36, he has slugged 258 homers in the "I" to tie the late Ollie Carnegie, who spent the bulk of his career playing in Buffalo. Carnegie played his final season with the Bisons in 1945. These two were a study in physical contrasts. While Hessman is 65", Carnegie was only 57" and weighed 175 pounds. Surely the Major League home run record is more impressive and more prestigious. Babe Ruth broke Roger Connors career mark of 138 back in 1921. The Bambino ran that total up to 714 by 1935, and that mark endured until Hank Aaron broke it on April 8, 1974 at Atlanta against Al Downing and the Dodgers. So Babe Ruth held the career home run record for 53 years. Carnegies mark of 258 has stood since the year he retired as a player in 1945. If you do the math, thats 69 years. Oddly enough Carnegie never played in the Majors, largely because he didnt start playing pro ball on a regular basis until he joined Buffalo at age 32 in 1931. Before that he played mainly semi-pro or amateur ball and held down a regular job. Nowadays 258 home runs doesnt sound like all that imposing a number. But remember today, its all about player development. If you dont make the Majors by your mid-20s or maybe late 20s if youre lucky, youre going to be out of a job. You have to have a special talent and be a unique individual, as Mike Hessman must be to stick around until the age of 36. Hessman had a bit of a scare about a week ago. He had to have some tissue removed from his nose and his forehead. Luckily it proved to be non-cancerous. He missed three games this week waiting for the swelling on his face to go down, then went 0-for-3 at Coca-Cola Field on Thursday afternoon. Friday night is the series finale at Buffalo and it would only seem fitting that he would hit his 259th homer in the city where Ollie Carnegie spent the bulk of his career and is enshrined in the Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame. When Hessman ultimately does break this record, he has other mountains to climb. He is also third on the all-time list of homers hit in the minors. Buzz Arlett is number one with 432, Nick Cullop has 420 and Hessman checks in with 403. Scoring Big Pitching and defence may win championships, but you cant deny the fact that the Blue Jays offence could carry them a long way. Theyve scored 311 runs in 61 games and slugged 87 homers, tops in the American League in both categories. You can add the total home runs for the Royals and Yankees and get 77, 10 fewer than the Jays, or the Rangers and Red Sox and get 85, still two less than the Blue Jays. In the runs scored category, the Jays have rung up 57 more than the second-best team in their division - Baltimore (254) - and then you drop off to Boston and the Yankees at 240 and Tampa Bay at a paltry 228. Boston was the runaway leader in runs scored in the American League last season with 853 and ultimately won the World Series. Im just saying. Unusual Moments This is something that happens so rarely in baseball, yet it happened twice in the last week. The Angels Garrett Richards and Clevelands Justin Masterson both struck out the side on nine pitches. Another oddity came on Wednesday when the Phillies 35-year-old shortstop Jimmy Rollins struck out four times in a game for the first time in his career, earning the famed "Golden Sombrero". The opposing pitcher though was Washingtons Stephen Strasburg, so well cut Rollins some slack. Rollins incidently is up to 2,226 hits now for his career. He needs nine more to pass Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt as the Phillies all-time hits leader. Since the Phils are having such a dismal season, the feeling is growing that Rollins will waive his 10-and-5 rights and will agree to a trade once the record is broken. The Tigers would be a perfect fit. The Atlanta Braves lead the National League East. Yet strangely enough, they have been held to 0 or 1 runs in a game a Major League-high 18 times. At the Draft If youre wondering why the Blue Jays used their ninth-overall pick in the Draft Thursday night to take a pitcher who just had Tommy John surgery in May, consider this. Veteran baseball writer Danny Knobler has seen Jeff Hoffman out of East Carolina pitch and said this of him: "He could be Justin Verlanders brother". Say no more! Fake Nike Shoes Black Friday . Sections of the British media reported Friday that Brooklyn Beckham, the son of United great David, was invited to a training session at the club on Thursday. Nike Shoes Black Friday Online . -- Challenged for the first time under Major League Baseballs expanded replay system, umpires got it right. http://www.nikeshoesblackfriday.com/. His apology came before a pregame ceremony in which the team honoured its 2004 team that won Bostons first World Series championship since 1918. "I realize that I behaved bad in Boston," Ramirez said. Nike Shoes Black Friday China . The Red Sox maintained a share of the AL wild-card lead Tuesday night, using four home runs to beat the Baltimore Orioles 8-7 and set up a dramatic conclusion to the regular season. The skidding Red Sox were 6-19 this month before rebounding to edge the last-place Orioles. Nike Shoes Black Friday Sale . Coetzees finish, with six birdies and no bogeys, took him to 19-under 268 overall and past South African compatriots Thomas Aiken and Justin Walters, the overnight co-leaders. Coetzee was flawless on the East Course at Royal Johannesburg and Kensington Golf Club to clinch his maiden title after 24 top 10 finishes.East Rutherford, NJ (SportsNetwork.com) - Ben Roethlisberger carved up the Indianapolis Colts secondary last week. Eli Manning didnt have as much luck. Andrew Luck tossed three of his four touchdown passes in the third quarter, Manning completed just 12 of his first 29 throws and the Colts cruised to a 40-24 win over the New York Giants on Monday night. The Colts struggled mightily once Vontae Davis exited last Sundays game with a knee injury, surrendering 522 yards and six touchdowns to Big Ben en route to a 51-34 defeat. With the physical corner back in the lineup, however, Manning struggled to find open targets. Manning finished 27-of-52 with most of his 359 yards coming with the game already decided in the fourth quarter. Both of his TD passes came in the final frame. We got that bad taste out of our mouths the way we lost that last game, Colts coach Chuck Pagano said. Luck added to his NFL-leading passing yardage total and tallied his franchise-record seventh straight 300-yard game with 354 on 25-of-46 efficiency for Indianapolis (6-3), which has won six of its last seven games since an 0-2 start. It was great to get back in the win column after a tough one last week, Luck said. T.Y. Hilton hauled in three passes for 71 yards and a touchdown, Reggie Wayne posted four receptions for 70 yards and a score and Dwayne Allen had four catches for 48 yards and a score in the triumph. First-round rookie Odell Beckham tallied eight receptions for 156 yards for the Giants (3-5), who have dropped three in a row on the heels of a three-game winning streak. The Colts led 16-3 at the break, but put the game out of reach in the third. Hilton came down with a jump ball in the right part of the end zone against Giants cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie on the Colts opening touch of the frame to make it 23-3. Rodgers-Cromartie high pointed the pass, but Hiltonn wrestled it away from him as the two were coming down to the ground to complete the 31-yard TD reception.dddddddddddd Beckhams 59-yard catch and run led to an Andre Williams 1-yard TD plunge on New Yorks ensuing touch, but the Colts closed the frame with two more touchdowns. Wayne hauled in a post corner along the left sideline and broke free from Giants cornerback Jayron Hosley en route to a 40-yard touchdown. After Colts safety Sergio Brown recovered a Manning fumble forced by linebacker Jonathan Newsome, Luck flipped a 2-yard TD pass to Allen two plays later to make it 37-10. Adam Vinatieri booted a 43-yard field goal early in the fourth before Larry Donnell and Corey Washington caught TD passes in garbage time to cap the scoring. Earlier, former Giant Hakeem Nicks hauled in a 22-yard completion on a deep cross, which led to a Vinatieri 48-yard field goal to open the scoring midway through the first, and consecutive receptions by Coby Fleener made it 10-0. Fleener caught a pass along the left sideline for 21 yards and following a quick snap -- it appeared Fleener may have been bobbling the catch -- he was left free along the right sideline and strolled in for an easy 32-yard score. Josh Brown and Vinatieri traded field goals of 38 and 31 yards, respectively, late in the second, and another Vinatieri boot right before the half, this one from 48 yards, staked Indy to its 16-3 halftime advantage. Game Notes Luck leads the NFL with 3,085 passing yards ... Another former Giant, Ahmad Bradshaw, carried the ball seven times for 50 yards ... The Colts were 5-of-15 on third down, while New York finished 4-of-16 ... Giants cornerback Prince Amukamara exited the game with a torn biceps ... Giants Hall of Famer Michael Strahan was honored at halftime ... Vinatieri is 20-for-20 on field-goal attempts this year. ' ' '