Craiggers, McLouth

In my first post below, I mistakenly attributed to Charlie a thread I had actually seen on Baseball Primer (thanks to the esteemed Mr. Miller for spotting this). The widespread perception of Wilson as something less than what many of us know him to be is a phenomenon in itself. I think it has something to do with the way he looks. He is one of the least intense-looking ballplayers I have ever seen, the anti-Pete-Rose, the anti-Larry-Bowa, the anti-Lloyd-McClendon. We know that the Felipe Alou/Dusty Baker/Lloyd McClendon aggressive style of hitting has been ascendent in Pittsburgh during the current Dark Night of the Soul, so it makes sense that Craig has been something of an outcast. I honestly believe that at least 40% of the baseball fans in Pittsburgh would argue that Turner Ward is a better ballplayer than Craig Wilson. They've been brainwashed to believe that crashing into walls helps teams win more than leaning shoulders into slow curves.

Speaking of guys who have a clue at the plate, I had the opportunity to interview Nate McLouth on the air today. He is a terrific guy, and now I am rooting for him. In my first question, I confessed that I was fuzzy on the math of the last time the Tigers had contended, and wondered how old he was during the last Tigers World Series and what that had meant to him as a lad growing up in Detroit. It was 1984, and he was 2.

Next question, Mr. Price.