T-post Tom
04-27-2009, 09:54 PM
I generally only buy the bikini issue, but I'll be getting this issue for my Royals' memorabilia collection.
BTW, get thee to the "K" on Wednesday if you want to see the maestro in action.
Greinke to appear on this week’s cover of Sports Illustrated
By BOB DUTTON
The Kansas City Star
Zack Greinke will have to battle more than the Toronto Blue Jays when he looks to extend his streak of innings without an earned run Wednesday night at Kauffman Stadium.
There now will be the added weight of the alleged jinx — of appearing on the cover of Sports Illustrated.
That’s right, the magazine selected Greinke to appear on this week’s cover. Subscribers should begin receiving the issue by mid-week. Newsstand copies will be available later closer to the weekend.
Greinke is the first Royals player to appear on the cover since pitcher David Cone on April 5, 1993 for the magazine’s preview to the upcoming baseball season. The last Royals player to appear on an in-season cover was outfielder Bo Jackson on June 12, 1989.
Impressed? Greinke isn’t.
“There’s a lot more interesting stuff going on right now,” he said. “They should have something else on the cover. Playoff basketball or something else.
“So it’s a mistake. They’ll probably sell their least amount of magazines in a long time — except when NASCAR was on the cover.”
The cover picture is an action shot in part because Greinke declined the magazine’s request to sit for a portrait. The story, written by Kansas City Star columnist Joe Posnanski, chronicles Greinke’s emergence as one of the game’s premier pitchers after a rocky path following his selection as the sixth overall pick in the 2002 draft.
“I just want to play and not deal with all of the other stuff,” Greinke said. “But I know that you have to deal with it. And there’s getting to be a lot more now. But, really, I don’t care about any of that award stuff anymore. It just doesn’t matter.”
Greinke’s reluctance is not directed at Sports Illustrated. He now generally only talks to the media on those days when he pitches. It has nothing to do with any possible SI jinx?
“They have a jinx?” he asked. “Really, all that matters is winning games. Winning is what always mattered (most), but I would still like the other stuff. But now, I don’t care one bit about it — any of it, any award stuff, All-Star or anything.
“All this it’s about is winning games. That’s all it’s about.”
Greinke is 4-0 with a 0.00 ERA and 36 strikeouts in 29 innings over his four starts. His streak of scoreless innings, dating to last season, ended at 38 last Friday when the Tigers scored an unearned run.
Including last season, Greinke has won his last seven starts and has not allowed an earned run in 43 innings.
High quality
Greinke’s efforts lead a staff that entered the week leading the American League with a 3.47 ERA and with 11 quality starts.
The Mariners ranked second in ERA among AL teams at 3.50, while the Blue Jays were third at 3.90. The Mariners and White Sox were tied for second in quality starts with 10.
Greinke and Gil Meche each have three quality starts, which are defined as pitching six or more innings while allowing three or fewer earned runs. Kyle Davies and Sidney Ponson each have two quality starts.
Brian Bannister had a quality start in his only outing before Monday’s game against Toronto.
Prince Alberto
Second baseman Alberto Callaspo carried a nine-game hitting streak into Monday’s game and a .377 average that ranked fifth in the American League. He was batting .286 before his 14-for-32 surge over the last nine games.
Callaspo had an 18-game streak last September that ended when he went zero for four in the season’s final game. Overall, he has hits in 32 of his last 35 games and is batting .347 in that span.
BTW, get thee to the "K" on Wednesday if you want to see the maestro in action.
Greinke to appear on this week’s cover of Sports Illustrated
By BOB DUTTON
The Kansas City Star
Zack Greinke will have to battle more than the Toronto Blue Jays when he looks to extend his streak of innings without an earned run Wednesday night at Kauffman Stadium.
There now will be the added weight of the alleged jinx — of appearing on the cover of Sports Illustrated.
That’s right, the magazine selected Greinke to appear on this week’s cover. Subscribers should begin receiving the issue by mid-week. Newsstand copies will be available later closer to the weekend.
Greinke is the first Royals player to appear on the cover since pitcher David Cone on April 5, 1993 for the magazine’s preview to the upcoming baseball season. The last Royals player to appear on an in-season cover was outfielder Bo Jackson on June 12, 1989.
Impressed? Greinke isn’t.
“There’s a lot more interesting stuff going on right now,” he said. “They should have something else on the cover. Playoff basketball or something else.
“So it’s a mistake. They’ll probably sell their least amount of magazines in a long time — except when NASCAR was on the cover.”
The cover picture is an action shot in part because Greinke declined the magazine’s request to sit for a portrait. The story, written by Kansas City Star columnist Joe Posnanski, chronicles Greinke’s emergence as one of the game’s premier pitchers after a rocky path following his selection as the sixth overall pick in the 2002 draft.
“I just want to play and not deal with all of the other stuff,” Greinke said. “But I know that you have to deal with it. And there’s getting to be a lot more now. But, really, I don’t care about any of that award stuff anymore. It just doesn’t matter.”
Greinke’s reluctance is not directed at Sports Illustrated. He now generally only talks to the media on those days when he pitches. It has nothing to do with any possible SI jinx?
“They have a jinx?” he asked. “Really, all that matters is winning games. Winning is what always mattered (most), but I would still like the other stuff. But now, I don’t care one bit about it — any of it, any award stuff, All-Star or anything.
“All this it’s about is winning games. That’s all it’s about.”
Greinke is 4-0 with a 0.00 ERA and 36 strikeouts in 29 innings over his four starts. His streak of scoreless innings, dating to last season, ended at 38 last Friday when the Tigers scored an unearned run.
Including last season, Greinke has won his last seven starts and has not allowed an earned run in 43 innings.
High quality
Greinke’s efforts lead a staff that entered the week leading the American League with a 3.47 ERA and with 11 quality starts.
The Mariners ranked second in ERA among AL teams at 3.50, while the Blue Jays were third at 3.90. The Mariners and White Sox were tied for second in quality starts with 10.
Greinke and Gil Meche each have three quality starts, which are defined as pitching six or more innings while allowing three or fewer earned runs. Kyle Davies and Sidney Ponson each have two quality starts.
Brian Bannister had a quality start in his only outing before Monday’s game against Toronto.
Prince Alberto
Second baseman Alberto Callaspo carried a nine-game hitting streak into Monday’s game and a .377 average that ranked fifth in the American League. He was batting .286 before his 14-for-32 surge over the last nine games.
Callaspo had an 18-game streak last September that ended when he went zero for four in the season’s final game. Overall, he has hits in 32 of his last 35 games and is batting .347 in that span.