Baseball around the horn

"All it means is you're getting old, you've been around for a long time. I've been lucky. We've always had good players."

— Bobby Cox

Atlanta Braves manager who became the fourth manager in baseball history (joining Connie Mack, John McGraw and Walter Alston) to win 2,000 games with the same team

67Days for the Nationals to reach agreement with first overall draft pick Stephen Strasburg, and his tenacious agent Scott Boras, before losing their claim on the San Diego State pitcher.

Defense witness

The person least upset by the surprising trade that sent Nate McLouth, presented as a cornerstone of the Pirates' future last winter, to Atlanta might just be McLouth himself.

In fact, he defended the Pittsburgh organization from charges that the deal proves the front office doesn't care about winning.

"I'm convinced they want to put a winning team on the field or I wouldn't have signed the (three-year, $15.75 million) contract," he said. "I understand why they did it. They feel like they can help their organization by acquiring three prospects and they have a real good young player (Andrew McCutcheon) to plug into my spot."

Promotional slight

Remember several years ago when Terry Francona, then the Phillies' manager, was ridiculed for not playing third baseman Scott Rolen on a day when the giveaway item was a Rolen T-shirt?

Well, it was Brian McCann Bat Day last Sunday in Atlanta. Oops. Manager Bobby Cox had chosen that day to give McCann a rest. "Maybe he'll get the game-winner off the bench," Cox suggested when the situation was pointed out to him.

Wouldn't you know? McCann entered the game as a pinch-hitter in the eighth with the Braves trailing Milwaukee by two. And his RBI double helped ignite a three-run rally that gave Atlanta the win.

— Philadelphia Daily News

Each week we will profile a league of baseball. Today:

International League