(Photo Credit: Lehigh Athletics)

Just a few weeks after Davidson College completed its magical NCAA Tournament run in 2008, Lehigh assistant basketball coach Matt Logie went to an AAU tournament in Ohio to watch a skinny high school junior named C.J. McCollum. He wasn’t being recruited by any major colleges, mostly because of his size. He was a shooting guard in a point guard’s body, and an undersized point guard at that.

After seeing him play for the first time in person, Logie didn’t hold back when writing the school’s initial evaluation of McCollum. “Looks like a young Steph Curry,” he wrote. Logie likened McCollum’s physique, baby face, confidence, ball handling, and scorer’s mentality to the then-darling of college basketball, an under-recruited star who carried his small school to within one basket of the Final Four as a sophomore. Curry would become the seventh pick in the 2009 NBA Draft.

McCollum graduated from Lehigh as the Patriot League’s all-time leading scorer and has a chance to make Logie’s initial comparison look even better on June 25, when he is expected to be chosen in the Draft’s lottery. He’d be the first person from Lehigh, a private school in Bethlehem, PA, with around 4,900 undergrads, to play in the NBA.

Diamond in the rough

Even after a major growth spurt, McCollum was just 6-feet and 155 pounds when Logie first saw him in April of his junior year at GlenOak High School in Canton, OH. Logie, now the head coach at Division III Whitworth University in Spokane, WA, had done some research on McCollum’s older brother and predicted C.J. wasn’t done growing. Lehigh head coach Brett Reed saw McCollum in person for the first time that July and immediately knew he wanted him.

Other college coaches started to share those feelings once McCollum grew into his body. The Lehigh staff worried a major conference school might offer a scholarship, but he committed in September, months before he was named the Gatorade Player of the Year in Ohio (over Ohio State-bound big man Jared Sullinger). He was young for his grade—the Lehigh staff had to send his NCAA paperwork to his mother to get signed because he was under 18—but he arrived on campus with his body catching up to his natural skills. He was the best player on a senior-laden team that went to the NCAA Tournament and became the first freshman to win the Patriot League Player of the Year award.

“Imagine the seniors,” Reed says. “It’s their time and they’ve got a young guy coming in and getting the accolades. C.J. handled it well; he deflected praise. Because of his humble nature and team-first attitude, he was well accepted by the seniors.”

The McCollum File
Age: 21
Hometown: Canton, OH
Height: 6’3″
Weight: 197
Position: PG/SG
NCAA Career Stats: 21.3 PPG, 6.3 RPG, 2.7 APG, 2.1 SPG

He shouldered a bigger load his sophomore year as a young Lehigh squad finished 16-15. “Going into his junior year, C.J. and I had a conversation about how he could easily lead the country in scoring,” Reed says. “However, I felt our team would be better if he trusted his teammates more and distributed the ball more. It would have been appealing to continue to be a high-level scoring threat, but he deferred and agreed to do anything to win.” McCollum’s field goal and three-point percentages increased, he dished out more assists, and, oh yeah, he was still fifth in the country in scoring.

Stepping on the sport’s biggest stage, he became a household name. On a day that will go down in NCAA Tournament history, McCollum’s 30 points carried 15 seed Lehigh over 2 seed Duke. (Earlier that day, another 15 seed, Norfolk State, beat Missouri.)

McCollum struggled in a loss to Xavier in the next round, but declared for the Draft to get an evaluation. He didn’t sign with an agent, and eventually announced his decision to return for his senior year in a thoughtful essay for The Sporting News. He wrote that he wanted to get his degree, grow as a player and person, and make another run at the NCAA Tournament. He also noted that his family’s financial situation took away any added pressure of going pro.

His senior year was off to a great start, but against VCU on Jan. 5, McCollum broke a bone in his foot. He required surgery and was sidelined for the rest of the season. He handled the adversity well and all indications are that he’s made a full recovery.

From Lehigh to the lottery?

Ryan Blake, the Director of Scouting for the NBA, said that teams that have done their homework haven’t forgotten about McCollum. “He had to produce a lot of points for a team that wasn’t loaded,” Blake says. “I think he’s going to be one of the better guards (in this draft).” Blake highlighted McCollum’s proficiency in the pick and roll, an NBA staple. It also helps that he is now 6’3” and 197 pounds.

Reed thinks McCollum’s game translates extremely well to the next level. One of Reed’s assistants, Ryan Krueger, came from the New Jersey Nets, and Lehigh has incorporated many NBA concepts because of him. That experience has helped prepare McCollum for the pro game.

McCollum’s combine results were average; no better or worse than those of two other potential lottery pick point guards, Trey Burke and Michael Carter-Williams. McCollum might best compare with this year’s NBA Rookie of the Year, Damian Lillard. Both attended small schools (Lillard went to Weber State) and missed the majority of a college season because of a broken foot (the same bone, in fact). The questions about McCollum’s size, level of competition in college, and whether he can be a true point guard were being asked about Lillard at this time last year. Lillard averaged 19 points and 6.5 assists for Portland this past season.

No two players are identical—McCollum may not be as explosive as Lillard or as deadly from outside as Curry, but those guys didn’t average 6.3 rebounds in college like McCollum did. He struggles at times in isolation defense and needs to continue to develop his three-point shot (he was a 37 percent career three-point shooter; he shot 50 percent as a senior). As Blake points out, just because a player stayed in college for four years doesn’t mean he’s done developing. Besides, McCollum won’t be 22 years old until September 19, making him just a few weeks older than Carter-Williams, who played less than half as many college minutes.

He has participated in individual workouts with several teams and is scheduled for eight total, all in the lottery, including Orlando, which holds the second pick, and Portland, which might like to pair him in the backcourt with Lillard.

Not long ago, he was a scrawny kid flying under the radar on an AAU team with several Division I players. Lehigh didn’t care that he couldn’t be described as simply a point guard or a shooting guard. He rewarded them by delivering the school’s first ever NCAA Tournament win.

Reed said McCollum helped build a culture at Lehigh by encouraging teammates to join him on his frequent trips to the gym to take extra shots. Having a player on the cusp of the NBA has raised the program’s national credibility. Says Reed: “Players who want to go to a great school, have a successful basketball experience, and have aspirations to play beyond college can see that’s a possibility here at Lehigh.”

In the NBA, for the most part, the players literally look down on their coach. Only six of the 30 head coaches were considered forwards in their playing days and just one, Kevin McHale, was ever listed as a center. Five teams are still looking for a head coach; it’s a good bet most will hire a former guard. Why is a big man on the sideline so rare?

Patrick Ewing wants to become an NBA head coach. The former New York Knicks center has been an assistant with three different teams over nine seasons. With no desirable coaching offer on the table last season, he worked as a TV analyst. “It’s just disappointing, but I’m just hoping and waiting somebody gives me a look,” Ewing told CSNNW.com recently. “I just need an opportunity. All it takes is one team.”

Is there a big man bias in the league?* After a season in Washington, Ewing spent three years as an assistant in Houston, where he mentored Yao Ming. He was in Orlando for five seasons; his first, in 2007-08, was when Dwight Howard became a dominant center. Perhaps Yao and Howard become great players without Ewing’s help, but their success boosts Ewing’s resume. Is his 7-foot frame working against him?

While the raw data suggests it is, there could be other factors at play. Maybe more guards than big men want to get into coaching. It’s no secret that many really tall guys are steered towards basketball because of their size as opposed to a passion for the game. But that doesn’t apply to Ewing, who clearly wants a shot. Consider Mark Jackson, who just finished his second season as the Golden State head coach. The Warriors gave Jackson the job even though he had no coaching experience. Jeff Hornaceck was recently named the Suns’ head coach after just two seasons as an assistant. When Orlando fired Stan Van Gundy after last season, the organization went with Jacque Vaughn even though he had less experience than Ewing.

If front offices think former centers, as players, didn’t have to use skill and guile as much as brute force and therefore, as coaches, wouldn’t be good strategists, there’s no proof of that. There simply haven’t been enough big men head coaches to prove anything.

*Looking at other pro sports, if there’s any bias in baseball, it’s in favor of catchers. Twelve of the 30 MLB managers are former catchers, far more than any other position. In the NFL, head coaches’ former positions are split evenly between offense and defense, though only seven reached the NFL as players. There are eight former quarterbacks and nine former defensive backs.

If Tim Teufel gets fired today, I’ll know why. But I’m getting ahead of myself. I went to last night’s Mets game. Even for a Real Fan™ like myself, if Matt Harvey isn’t pitching there’s little incentive to show up. But if the weather’s nice (it was), the company is good (yup), and you’ve got seats in the first row behind the on-deck circle with access to unlimited free food, you could argue it’s worth the trip to Citi Field. I’m not saying you would win that argument, but you could make it.

The evening got off to a promising start—on my way from the subway to the stadium I was handed a Mets towel and a pocket schedule! I had been to two games in April, including Opening Day, and was told the pocket schedules weren’t ready yet. Not ready? The MLB schedule is announced months in advance. It’s as if the baseball season snuck up on the Mets. Then again, without a pocket schedule, maybe it did. It’s the ultimate Catch-22.

My younger brother Steve and I got to our seats while the Reds were still taking batting practice. He had gotten the tickets from his boss; they were in the first row between home plate and the visitors’ dugout. We hung out with my man Brandon Phillips, and by that I mean we watched him interact with Reds fans sitting near us. The Cincinnati second baseman is my new favorite non-Met; he signed autographs and took photos with anyone who asked. When those fans posted the photos on Twitter, Phillips responded to thank them for their support.

My dad and my friend Seth showed up and the game began. The Mets’ starting pitcher, Jon Niese, zipped through the first two hitters of the game before loading the bases for Todd Frazier. Frazier hit a sharp grounder to third and David Wright took a half step back and failed to get his glove down; the ball went through his legs and the Reds led 2-0. Their win expectancy shot to 70 percent on that play and never dipped after that. My dad pointed out that Mike Leake got to hit before he pitched, and that’s never a good thing for the opposing team. He struck out to end the inning but it was 3-0 Reds, all the runs unearned.

Caption: Joey Votto is one of the best hitters in baseball.

Niese was very strong after the first, but it didn’t matter. The Mets got three hits. Ike Davis went 0 for 3; he has one hit in his last 36 at-bats. If he goes 1 for 6 in his next game his batting average will improve. Sandy Alderson said during the broadcast that “We are going to live with Ike a little longer.” Ruben Tejada went 0 for 2 and has three hits in his last 35 at-bats. “Everything was seeming to work,” Leake told reporters after the game, which makes sense against the Mets lineup if not grammatically. Seth asked me if they still show the “hit parade” graphic like they used to at Shea. How would we know?

In the later innings, the action picked up. Not on the field, of course, but in our seats. Earlier in the game, we saw a fan give a foul ball to a young kid. When the same kid caught his own foul ball later on, he spotted the guy and threw the ball to him. At the time, it was the highlight of the game. Until the ninth inning.

We had seen Mets third base coach Tim Teufel give some candy to fans near us between innings. Naturally, we were jealous, and pestered Teufel to give us candy. A guy can only eat free hot dogs, pretzels, peanuts, popcorn, and cookies for so long; eventually, he’s going to need some free candy. After watching the Cincinnati reliever take his warm-up pitches in the ninth, Teufel jogged towards us. “You’re gonna get me fired,” he said as he stuffed a dozen pieces of gum through the netting. Why distributing gum to fans between innings would get a coach fired is beyond me, but he sprinted to his spot in the third base coach’s box before I could find out.

The Mets went quietly in the ninth, and the worst part was that they did so against some guy named Logan Ondrusek. Nothing against Logan, but he’s not Aroldis Chapman, the Cuban Missile. A ninth-inning home run made the score 4-0 and no longer a save opportunity for the Reds’ flame-throwing closer. Denied a Mets victory, I was at least hoping to see Chapman up close and personal. I was also hoping to scout center fielder Shin-Soo Choo, a potential free agent target for the Mets next offseason, but he got the day off. (I did, however, see John Franco. We shook hands as I left the stadium. He will have his bobblehead day on Saturday.)

Harvey pitches today, the second time in a row he starts an afternoon game. Don’t the Mets know people work during the day? The Mets aren’t worth the time or effort these days, but showing up at the ballpark is usually a good time, especially if you have the privilege of awesome seats. I’ll be back to watch the unwatchable team on Friday.

“You think Stanleys grow on trees? Well they don’t. There is no Stanley tree. You think the world is crawling with Phyllis’? Show me that farm.”—Michael Scott, Season 3

The final episode of The Office airs tomorrow night. Let that sink in. What were you doing when the series began, in 2005? Where were you? What kind of person were you? Nine years is a long time. I was a freshman in college when it started. Now I’ve got nearly five years of real-life office experience. No TV show has made me laugh and care about the characters as much as The Office.

The late-night reruns remind us of how much we used to laugh; these days we’ll take a few honest chuckles. But like a Mets fan in the winter, Office devotees will soon find out whether no Office is better than a half-decent Office. I’ll miss it, but it’s time for it to go.

Why did the show decline? There was inevitable plot development: Jim and Pam couldn’t be in limbo forever, and many feel the show fizzled without that tension. Actors left the show to pursue other opportunities, most notably Steve Carell towards the end of Season 7. But the biggest reason for the decline took place behind the scenes.

If you’ll get past the fact that I spent days some time researching this, these numbers are revealing: In Seasons 1-4, 91 percent of the episodes were written by Office veterans (writers who penned at least 10 episodes for the show); in Seasons 5-9, that number plummeted to 44 percent.

Even after Michael left, many of the veteran writers remained on board, but a larger writing staff meant they contributed less frequently. Not only was there an influx of writers who were at best less experienced—and at worst less talented—but there was less continuity across the episodes. The bulk of the first four seasons was written by the same nine people. This season alone has had 14 different lead writers.

“I just feel like the best comedy needs consensus between the writers and performers at the same time, and you don’t want them to be split into two camps that don’t understand each others’ points of view,” Office executive producer Greg Daniels said in 2007. In recent years, the episodes penned by the core group of writers who got the show off the ground were getting lost among the episodes written by newcomers.

Mindy Kaling, who plays Kelly, has been singled out as the show’s best writer (by other writers and fans). She wrote through last season, but her skills were overshadowed by the onslaught of writers who came in to write one or two episodes.

The writing room upheaval is a big reason why the show’s final act—the two-plus post-Michael seasons—has been equal parts depressing, awkward, and confusing. There have been some memorable scenes—Darryl’s Athlead interview stands out—but far more questionable plot decisions. Why was Andy promoted to boss—twice? Why was Robert California, played by James Spader, deployed so haphazardly? As for the Pam/Boom Mic Guy story line, just…why?

But none of that takes away from the brilliance of the series as a whole. It was the comedy with a heart. It made us question our sanity as we actively rooted for Jim and Pam to get together or cringed as Michael sabotaged himself yet again. It’s just a TV show, some idiot would remind us. Fine, but watch Dwight read Michael’s recommendation letter and try not to feel something. That doesn’t do it for you? How about this, you soul-less robot monster:

“It’s hilarious, it’s awful, but it’s familiar.” That’s how David Koechner, who plays Todd Packer, describes the success of the show. He’s right. We laugh at comedians while thinking, That’s so true! Even if it’s annoying in real life, watching someone else complain about it is funny. I get a staff-wide email about cleaning up the “detritus accumulating in the sink,” roll my eyes, and click delete before I’m done reading; Pam attaches a note to the dirty microwave signed, “Sincerely, Disappointed,” and you’ve got a hilarious plot line.

The show has left an imprint on my life like few others. I compare my co-workers to characters on the show. I have been Jim for Halloween more than once. I’ve dedicated more than three entire days, in real time, just watching each episode once. That doesn’t account for the hours of reruns, money spent on merchandise, or time wasted discussing the show with friends. And you know what? When I’m on my death bed, I’ll be perfectly OK with that. Even though The Office doesn’t satisfy me like it used to. Even though it was hard. Even though it went on too long.

That’s what she said.

Using Baseball-Reference’s nifty “Similarity Scores,” we can analyze players with similar statistical profiles. Davis turned 26 in March; some of the hitters most like him through their age 25 seasons are listed in the chart below (click to enlarge)*:

*Bob Robertson (who played from 1967 to 1979) and Glenn Davis (1984-1993), whose stats were also similar to Davis’, were omitted to focus on more recent players. Stats included are home runs, runs batted in, strikeouts, batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, and on-base plus slugging, as well as the career BA and OPS for all players except Davis.

Mets fans have to be happy seeing those names. Delgado would be in the “Hall of Very, Very Good” if such a thing existed. Vaughn won an MVP. Karros and Clark were key contributors on playoff teams; Ortiz and Swisher still are. If Davis could progress as these players did, his career would be a success. But will he?

A key difference between Davis and the other players in the chart is that they had a breakout season—a year in which they performed close to how they’d perform over the rest of their career—at age 25 or 26. After a disappointing 2012, Davis has been atrocious this season, batting .175 with four homers.

Using Wins Above Replacement (WAR), he was one of the most valuable Mets in 2010. Last year he was the team’s least valuable infielder; 23 first basemen had a higher WAR. In other words, he has yet to match his rookie success.

Mets manager Terry Collins has often benched Davis, a left-handed batter, against southpaws, but let’s not pretend he becomes Ted Williams against righties. His numbers against righties (.258/.351/.485) are similar to Josh Willingham’s career stats.

Davis’ struggles have hurt the Mets on the field, but unlike many of the franchise’s recent flops, not in the wallet. He earned the league minimum before getting $3.13 million through arbitration for this season. He is not a free agent until 2017.

If Davis wants to post career numbers similar to his current “comparables,” this would be the year to prove it. Otherwise, he could end up like Travis Lee, whose rookie season for Arizona in 1998 is nearly identical to Davis’ 2010 but who never improved and last played in 2006.

The Mets shouldn’t give up on Davis yet, if only because their other options aren’t appealing. For a team that won’t sniff the playoffs, it makes more sense to see which of the younger players might help the team in the future, and that includes Davis. Come August, if he hasn’t improved and there are young players stuck on the bench because of him, the Mets should revisit the issue. For now, they can only hope the Delgado comparison wasn’t premature.

Regular batting average tells us how often a player gets a hit. BABIP tells us how often a player gets a hit when he puts the ball in play (home runs don’t count). The average BABIP this season is .294. Players have some control over their BABIP, but for the most part it is dependent on luck.

Using BABIP to weed out candidates, we can determine which players have been extremely lucky or unlucky this season. Let’s start with the hitters. Through Tuesday’s games, seven players posted a BABIP of more than .400. Of that bunch, Detroit’s Torii Hunter seems the most likely to regress.* He leads the league with a .420 BABIP; his career BABIP is .309. Hunter’s line-drive percentage is 19, below the league average, which suggests he is not hitting the ball any harder than he has in the past (also, he has just one home run). And yet he’s producing for the first-place Tigers: he has been a top-25 fantasy outfielder this season according to ESPN.com. Don’t expect him to keep it up. If he did, here are what his numbers would look like: .361 BA, 5 HR, 86 RBI, 119 runs, 5 SB. While he should exceed that home run total, he won’t reach those other marks.

Additional candidate for regression: Carlos Gomez, Minnesota Twins

Caption: Murphy is a prime candidate to improve this season.

Who should you pluck from the scrap heap? David Murphy of the Texas Rangers is a good bet. Murphy’s BABIP is .202, 110 points below his career mark, despite an impressive line-drive rate of 23.3 percent. His traditional stats have taken a hit, making him one of the worst fantasy performers this season (348^th among hitters). Expect Murphy’s numbers to vastly improve as the balls he puts in play start to find green grass instead of leather gloves. A .183 average with 10 home runs and no more than 70 combined RBI and runs? Those extrapolated projections are well short of what Murphy is capable of.

Additional candidates for improvement: Adam Dunn, Chicago White Sox; B.J. Upton, Atlanta Braves; Josh Reddick, Oakland Athletics

Which starting pitchers have been lucky? Let’s start with Jordan Zimmermann of the Washington Nationals. Hitters have posted a BABIP of just .188 against him, second lowest in baseball, despite hitting line drives at a rate similar to the league average. Zimmermann has also stranded 83 percent of his runners (the league average is 73 percent). His 5-1 record and 1.64 ERA have made him the fifth-best fantasy starter this season, but those numbers are likely to get worse going forward.

Caption: Zimmermann will be hard pressed to keep up his current pace.

Additional candidate for regression: Travis Wood, Chicago Cubs

On the flip side, Vance Worley has the worst BABIP in baseball among starting pitchers (.407). It’s as if Worley has faced a lineup of Miguel Cabreras. He is winless with a 6.95 ERA for the Minnesota Twins, making him the fifth-least valuable fantasy starter. If you’re in a deep league, however, he may be worth picking up. His advanced statistics suggest his traditional numbers should look more like Andy Pettitte’s this year.

Caption: Worley will get better this year.

Additional candidate for improvement: Joe Blanton, Los Angeles Angels

*As was the case with all players considered, I gave weight to experience and past performance when comparing players with similar statistical profiles this season. For example, I’m hesitant to say Miguel Cabrera or Joey Votto is lucky considering they are former MVPs. Likewise, Matt Moore and Matt Harvey don’t have enough starts to gauge their true baseline. Players like Hunter and Worley have enough of a track record to warrant my predictions.

What’s the best scoop you’ve ever gotten?

When I reported that the Angels were talking to Albert Pujols, which no one knew or even guessed at the time. A lot of other reporters knocked down the story. But it certainly turned out to be accurate!

It’s hard to analyze baseball without using sabermetrics. How do you use advanced stats and what is the best way to present them to fans who might not be that familiar?

I use advanced stats quite frequently. At this point, I assume that the vast majority of people who read me have a working understanding of a lot of this stuff. I don’t go too deeply into WAR—I don’t entirely trust it—but OPS, OPS-plus, ERA-plus, BABIP, I use ’em all. With OPS-plus and ERA-plus, I generally explain them.

How do you feel about the use of technology for replay? Should robots be calling balls and strikes?

I’m for expanded replay—both lines, trapped balls, even calls on the bases. I’m not for robots!

You are Bud Selig and get to make one major policy change. What do you do?

I would shorten the schedule. It would never happen—too much revenue is at stake—but if the sport cut back to 140 games, it would improve a lot of things.

Should MLB allow teams to trade draft picks?

Yes, a thousand times yes. Anything to increase player movement is good for the game. The fan interest at the trade deadline and in the off-season tells us that.

Give me and other Mets fans hope. Do they even sniff the playoffs next year? Or should we tune out until 2015?

I would say 2015 at the earliest. The Braves and Nationals are two of the three youngest teams in baseball. Their futures are quite bright.

That is not to undermine the other gay athletes who have paved the way. Collins acknowledged as much in his thoughtful essay in Sports Illustrated this week. Collins, since he is still in the league, has taken it a step further. Others will follow his lead. A gay friend told me she applauds Collins’ courage but looks forward to the day when an athlete coming out is not a news item at all.

Those questioning Collins’ motives are, at best, overly cynical. This is not a publicity stunt, nor is it a carefully crafted plan to extend his basketball career. If no NBA team wants him next season, he won’t sue the league for discrimination. He says he doesn’t even plan to write a book. Why did Collins come out now, near the tail end of his career? How is that a fair question? Straight people never have to think about when to come out as straight. As an invisible minority, Collins could have gone his whole life without publicly revealing his sexual orientation.

That he came out at all is a landmark event. Sports, like the rest of society, are becoming more tolerant. But we’re just a month removed from that disturbing Mike Rice video where he “motivates” his players with words like “fairies” and “f******.” Collins has probably heard a coach or teammate use those words. So have other closeted athletes. Maybe Collins’ announcement will encourage others to come out. That would be fine, but the bigger potential impact is how the rest of us handle this. More accepting coaches and teammates would make for a safer environment for gay players. There is now a face everyone can associate with a gay athlete.

This is worth celebrating. Collins is a pioneer whose name will not be lost to history. Let’s just not pat ourselves on the back yet. You might be cool with this, but what about your neighbor? Let’s see how his teammates deal with an openly gay player in the locker room; how opposing fans treat him.

Collins can be a voice, but he shouldn’t have to become a symbol. His essay suggests he will be active in the gay rights movement—at the very least, we know he plans to march in Boston’s Gay Pride Parade in June—but if he returns to obscurity that is OK, too. He has done his part. It’s time for us to do ours.

Did you see that?

Maybe the internet is just getting better, but it seems like there have been an awful lot of memorable fan catches this season. It’s only April and we’ve already seen the Catch and Chug, the Popcorn Explosion, the Baby Catch, and Super Glove.

He could always buy it back

Bryce Harper, who has yet to send a tweet that doesn’t include an exclamation point, was not happy when he found his Opening Day jersey being auctioned online. “They just take my jersey away from me and don’t ask if I want it or anything!” Harper tweeted, along with a photo of the auction listing. “First opening day! Jersey gone!”

For those scoring at home…

There’s an old baseball saying that “you can’t steal first,” meaning that even a player with exceptional speed has to find a way to get on base in the first place. On Friday, Jean Segura of the Milwaukee Brewers proved the saying wrong. In a sequence that is beyond bizarre, Segura stole second after leading off the 8^th inning with an infield single. On the next pitch, Ryan Braun walked. Three pitches later, Segura made a break for third, but not before the pitcher had released the ball; Segura was caught in a run-down and ended up on second base with Braun. Both Brewers were tagged, and the rules say Segura is safe and Braun is out. Segura thought he was out and started retreating to the dugout. On his way, he realized he was not out and scooted back to first. Three pitches later, with two outs, Segura tried to steal second for the second time that inning, and was thrown out, thus completing possibly the most unusual base-running adventure in history.

Segura probably should have been called out before he tried to steal second for the second time—after he thought he was out when he wound up on second with Braun, it appears he was tagged after he came off the base. Even if he wasn’t, there is a rule about returning to a previously occupied base (Rule 7.01) that would indicate Segura was out as soon as he retreated back to first. Online play-by-play accounts listed it as “R Braun caught stealing second, pitcher to third to second. J Segura to first,” which may be more confusing than what actually happened.

The next day, Desmond Jennings recorded an unassisted double play for the Rays. Not that crazy, you say? Jennings is a center fielder.

Mascot madness

Speaking of the Rays, their mascot, Raymond, recently got into trouble for holding a fan-made sign that had a tasteless reference to Steve Irwin, better known as the Crocodile Hunter (Irwin was killed by a sting ray). It was another reminder that not all mascots are created equal. Here are some of my thoughts on various MLB mascots:

Dinger: Because he is a dinosaur, the Rockies’ mascot is one of my favorites. You can often spot him on television behind the plate in the late innings, dancing and waving in a sad attempt to distract the visiting pitcher. According to the Rockies’ website, Dinger will appear at your event for $300 an hour. If you’re a non-profit, that rate is cut in half. But the real bargain is a birthday party: Dinger will show up for a flat fee of $250, give your kid a present, and provide goody bags for up to 12 guests. He will also shovel your driveway.

Bernie the Brewer: Seems like a decent enough guy. He charges $200 for an appearance ($100 for non-profit), but he’s a busy mascot: maximum visit time is one hour. Bernie came to be in 1970 when an elderly fan camped out in a trailer atop the stadium scoreboard, vowing not to come down until at least 40,000 fans attended a game. It took two months.

Mr. Redlegs: You can get this bum for as little as $80. While he is a poor man’s Mr. Met, at least he is not as terrifying as the previous mascot, Mr. Red. The Reds also have another mascot, Gapper, for no apparent reason.

Caption: One sick mascot family.

Phillie Phanatic: The Phanatic doesn’t make appearances. That’s probably a good thing, since he was sued last year for assaulting a woman at a pool, where he allegedly flipped the woman’s lounge chair, tossing her into the shallow end of the pool and injuring her head, neck, back, arms, legs, bones, muscles, tendons, ligaments, nerves and tissues, the same body parts the Phillies’ pitching staff injured last season.

The Pirate Parrot: Essentially the Phillie Phantic with a beak, “the Parrot does not come dressed in his costume” for appearances. “Due to the size of the costume, he will need a large, private room to change.” Not worth the inconvenience if you ask me.

Mr. Met: A personal friend of mine, Mr. Met will make an appearance, but his rates are not listed on the Mets website. Why? Because Mr. Met has class, that’s why.

Nothing excites baseball fans like a young ace. When one takes the mound, there is a palpable buzz in the stadium. There’s always the chance of something special. Tonight at Citi Field, two of the best young pitchers in baseball, Matt Harvey and Stephen Strasburg, square off. There will likely be a lot of strikeouts and few runs, the kind of game purists love.

The sample size is small, but this figures to be the first of many National League East battles between these two. Harvey, of the New York Mets, was taken with the seventh pick in the 2010 draft and has made just 13 career starts, his first coming in July last season. He will turn 25 next March. Strasburg was taken by the Washington Nationals with the first pick in 2009, debuted the following year, and has made 48 starts. He turns 25 in July. As the image above notes, they both have the size—6’4″, 220-225 pounds—of a dominant starting pitcher.

They’ve also got the stuff. Their stats through three starts this season are shown in the image above; not included is that Harvey has given up just six hits over his 22 innings. They throw their fastballs at an average of about 95 miles per hour, making them two of the hardest throwers in the game.

The only hurdle for these guys is the disabled list. Strasburg had Tommy John surgery in 2010 and missed nearly all of the 2011 season. Part of this could have to do with Strasburg’s pitching delivery, but the bigger concern is that pitchers get hurt all the time. Hopefully these two can stay healthy, because despite the minimal data, one can say with confidence that they are future stars.

Perhaps you’ve seen these numbers elsewhere, but here are the stats for Harvey, Strasburg, and three former Mets phenoms, through their first 13 starts:

Matt Harvey
W/L: 6-5
ERA: 2.21
IP: 81.1
K: 95
BB: 32
WHIP: .984

Stephen Strasburg
W/L: 5-3
ERA: 2.71
IP: 73
K: 96
BB: 17
WHIP: 1.03

Tom Seaver
W/L: 5-4
ERA: 2.54
IP: 95.2
K: 57
BB: 26
WHIP: 1.17

Doc Gooden
W/L: 6-3
ERA: 2.61
IP: 82.2
K: 96
BB: 35
WHIP: 1.11

Nolan Ryan
W/L: 5-6
ERA: 2.47
IP: 87.1
K: 100
BB: 49
WHIP: 1.26

As you can see, Harvey has the best ERA and the best WHIP (walks and hits per inning pitched) of the bunch, and his strikeout to walk ratio is second only to Strasburg. Unfortunately for Mets fans, the dominance Harvey has displayed so far this season will not last. He is allowing a MLB-best .116 batting average on balls in play (BABIP), which isn’t sustainable. Last year, the major league leader in this category allowed .241; the best since 2002, when this stat was introduced, is .223. In other words, Harvey has gotten lucky when opponents have put the ball in play.

But much of it Harvey’s success is his own doing: he is generating a ton of swings-and-misses this season; he’s only walked six, and has given up just two earned runs and two extra-base hits. If you believe all a pitcher controls is strikeouts, walks, and home runs, you still have to love Harvey. Strasburg is just as electric. Tonight should be fun. Here’s to hoping they duel for years to come.