Trevor Hoffman, who will be retiring today, did not begin entering to “Hells Bells” until well into his career. Once the tradition began, however, he got markedly better. Could these be connected?

Voting for the Hall of Fame is, technically, a “yes” or “no” proposition. In reality, there are a lot more shades of gray.

The “Jack Morris is the winningest pitcher of the 1980s” line began amidst the wake of the 1986-87 collusion. Morris’ strong 1987 season kept it going. He’s now only a few years away from the Hall of Fame.

Cliff Lee made big news this week by spurning the Yankees for the Phillies. It wasn’t the first time the hottest pitcher on the market turned the Yankees down to join a better rotation.

Bill Conlin was awarded the Spink Award yesterday, bringing him into the fraternity of Hall of Fame sportswriters. He may be more famous these days as a “cranky old writer”, but that wasn’t always so. He once wrote a game story through the eyes of a space alien, after all.