SI.com’s 10 best baseball stories from July

Here is a roundup of SI.com’s 10 best baseball stories from the month of July.

Author:
SI Staff
Publish date:
Jul 30, 2016

Here is a roundup of SI.com’s 10 best baseball stories from the month of July.

Baseball’s frightening future

Does baseball need to be fixed? And if so, how? Tom Verducci examines why the game seems to have stagnated, and what can be done to breathe new life into it.

Hall of Fame hopes

Will Miguel Cabrera, Robinson Cano, Clayton Kershaw, Mike Trout and other of baseball’s biggest names under 35 make it to Cooperstown? Jay Jaffe examines the Hall of Fame odds for 12 players.

Worst team ever?

The 1916 Philadelphia Athletics may have been the worst team in modern baseball history. How did they get that way just three years after winning the World Series, and how did Connie Mack keep his job—for 34 more years? By Jon Wertheim.

Return of the home run

As part of his midseason breakdown, Tom Verducci analyzes what has been the biggest story of the year to date: the potentially record-setting rise in home runs.

Griffey Jr.’s sendoff

The man who seemed the simplest and purest of baseball's stars was always the most complicated. SI’s Where Are They Now series checks in with Ken Griffey Jr. as he was preparing for induction in Cooperstown. By Ben Reiter.

Road to 3,000

Ichiro Suzuki will soon reach 3,000 hits, and he’ll do so faster than most. It’s the latest impressive achievement in a career full of them for the 42-year-old outfielder, who is enjoying an outstanding season for the Marlins. By Jay Jaffe.

Next step for Yankees

The Yankees shouldn’t stop at trading closer Aroldis Chapman. New York should undergo a more complete overhaul, and here’s what it should do with every player on the 25-man roster. By Cliff Corcoran.

Pine Tar Game

On July 24, 1983, the Kansas City Royals’ George Brett hit a ninth-inning home run against the New York Yankees that would become the most controversial homer in baseball history. Here is an oral history of the Pine Tar Game.

End of an era

The 1992 MLB All-Star Game, the last one held in San Diego, is a window into a different era of baseball—just before the league underwent some massive changes. By Jay Jaffe.

Game 7

Yankees-Pirates in 1960? Yankees-Diamondbacks in 2001? New York against Boston in 1912? Or Braves-Twins in 1991? These are the 10 best Game 7s in World Series history. By Cliff Corcoran.