It’s worth pointing out again that if you combine Ichiro Suzuki’s career in Japan (1,278 hits) and his MLB hits (3,089), you get to 4,367—111 more than Rose. Pete was never particularly sympathetic to that discussion because, you know, of course he wasn’t. The hit record was everything to him. He would quickly point out that he had 427 minor league hits and 86 postseason hits, and Japanese baseball isn’t Major League Baseball, and he’d keep going down this road for as long as necessary. What Ichiro did is its own wonder and Ichiro is infinitely more likable than Rose. But history is history. And Pete Rose is the Hit King.
Japanese baseball may not quite be Major League Baseball, but minor league baseball is DEFINITELY not Japanese baseball. Pete can sit on it, I’m on team Ichiro.
I’d also like to point out that whatever chunk of Pete Rose’s total career was taken out by his time in the minor leagues pales in comparison to the amount of time Ichiro spent in the Japanese league. Pete had about 1,000 more hits than Ichiro, but he also got 4,000 extra at bats. I dare say that if Ichiro spent that additional time in MLB during his younger years he would have hit over .250 and therefore passed old Pete.
“Look… me and the McDonald’s people got this little misunderstanding. See, they’re McDonald’s… I’m McDowell’s. They got the Golden Arches, mine is the Golden Arcs. They got the Big Mac, I got the Big Mick. We both got two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles and onions, but their buns have sesame seeds. My buns have no seeds.”
Just found out that the straw that stirs the drink Mr Crimson has passed away. He was a fixture here back when I first joined UFN back in the day. He liked to stir things up online but was a very kind and fun loving guy in real life. I’ll miss you brother.
Mr Crimson was one of the funniest, most irreverent, original characters on UFN. It is a sad day, indeed.
I’ll never forget the day of PACMAS, UFN was rocking, the rumors were coming very fast and from credible sources, the chat feature here was like a ticker tape, it was hard to follow conversations, things were a blur…
…but Mr. Crimson stood out, he was in ALL CAPS, apparently feeling pretty good about things, soaking it in and sharing his unique humor.
I HATE THE BCS AS MUCH AS ANYONE. I JUST THINK IT’S BETTER TO FIGHT IT FROM THE INSIDE NOT THE OUTSIDE.
Then later…
I WANT YOU ALL TO KNOW I LOVE EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU!
Later that day Greg Wrubell posted one of the worst sour grapes columns about how the PAC chose the wrong school… it was a blessed time to be a Ute!
I knew Dave from when I started working at the Marriott Library in 1995. He was of course the straw that stirred the drink there as well. The old central atrium circulation desk and cashier area where I worked was a constant buzz of shenanigans, often with Dave at the middle of it. So many stories I have from that brief two years I worked there that only a handful of people would get, but instantly remember.
We kept in touch after I moved to Oregon, then California, through the Marriott Fantasy Football League (MFFL), Dave was the straw there too. Intensely competitive and quite good at the game - his encyclopedic knowledge of football came in handy even if he was a Broncos fan.
Shortly after I moved to California, he did as well. Close enough that we would have regular Friday night bbq with cheap meat from Ralph’s. He even convinced me to spend money on a ticket to WWF Monday night raw in Los Angeles and we almost got season tickets to the Avengers.
Upon my return to SLC in 2004, Dave visited a couple of times to see games, culminating in the BYU finale - we made it on the tv broadcast, both looking like half frozen zombies from a very long night and day of festivities. The road trip to Tempe was a memory I won’t soon forget either.
Sadly, we fell out of touch and I regret that I didn’t reach out before now. We hit the point in our lives where you start losing friends and I’ve apparently gotten to that age - lost two Daves in the past year. So make sure to reach out to those people on the periphery of your solar system - I have a phone call to make myself.
I remember that. Dave had everyone convinced that Andrutz was coming here. I never met him in real life but had some good interactions on here. Hopefully his boys find peace.