Barry Bonds is now 20 home runs behind Hank Aaron’s 755 career homeruns after taking Padres starter Chris Young deep. It was Bonds 86th home run against the Padres in his career. The most he has hit against any Major League team.
As usual, there is always a news story that comes out right after we finish our radio show. MLB announced on Wednesday night that they had reached an agreement with iN DEMAND on carrying the Extra Innings package. iN DEMAND will now be able to offer cable companies with the Extra Innings package. This now leaves Echostar Satellite, LLC, otherwise known as the DISH Network, as the only ones who do not have the Extra Innings package.
iN DEMAND is owned by cable operators Comcast, Cox Communications, and Time Warner Cable. They will make it available as well to the other cable providers around the country.
Any of those cable companies who decide to offer the Extra Innings package will be required to have the new MLB Channel included on it’s basic tier programming with the channel makes it debut in 2009.
“Our chief goal throughout the process was to ensure that fans would have access to as many baseball games and as much baseball coverage as possible,” Bob DuPuy, MLB’s president and chief operating officer, said in a release. “With this agreement, the MLB Channel will launch with an unprecedented platform. We are pleased with the launch of the MLB Channel to so many homes coupled with our agreement to extend the distribution of MLB Extra Innings with iN DEMAND.”
Credit Ken Griffey, Jr. for this one. Griffey had lobbied MLB commissioner Bud Selig about wearing the #42 on April 15th. Why is this significant? It is the 60th anniversary of Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier in baseball.
Jackie Robinson’s #42 had been retired back in 1997 on the 50th anniversary of his breaking the barrier. Selig has offered each team the opportunity to have one of their players to wear the famed #42 on April 15th. So far besides Griffey, Bonds has also signed on for this.
Currently, there is only one member left in the big leagues that wears #42. It is Yankees closer Mariano Rivera, who was grandfathered in because he has worn this number his whole career.
“This is a wonderful gesture on Ken’s part and a fitting tribute to the great Jackie Robinson and one, I believe, that all clubs will eagerly endorse,” Selig said in a release. “To make this happen, I gladly will temporarily suspend the official retirement of uniform No. 42 on that day.
“Jackie continues to be an inspiration to all of our players, and his impact will be felt for as long as our game is played. I thank Ken for finding another special way to mark Jackie Robinson Day.”
Update: The Los Angeles Dodgers have announced that all their players will be wearing #42 during their game that day. Also, Coco Crisp will don the #42 for the Red Sox.
