Rays 3B Evan Longoria's spectacular, barehanded catch has become a must-see on YouTube

Did Tampa Bay Rays third baseman

Evan Longoria really make this catch?

From Politifact.com, May 24, 2011

The video, if you haven't seen it, is amazing.

Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Evan Longoria is talking to a television reporter along the first-base line. Their backs are facing the baseball diamond, and the two are standing about 125 feet from home plate -- where a fellow Ray is taking batting practice.

The teammate sprays a line drive directly at them. Instinctively, Longoria wheels around his head and torso, extends his right arm and catches the ball barehanded.

The television reporter gasps, Longoria shakes off the pain in his hand and tosses the ball back toward the pitcher's mound. "Keep it on the field," he says, nonchalantly.

The :24-second clip was first posted on YouTube May 6, 2011 by MrSprts12 and has since been viewed more than 3.8 million times.

The biggest question: Is the video real? Or is it fake?

PolitiFact Florida decided to take a break from politics to put the now viral video -- and the Rays superstar third baseman -- to the Truth-O-Meter.

At first glance, the catch seems improbable. And to baseball fans, maybe even impossible. But baseball players have made amazing barehanded grabs before. In 1989, then San Francisco Giants outfielder Kevin Mitchell snared a fly ball off the bat of St. Louis Cardinals shortstop Ozzie Smith with his bare right hand. And in 2005, New York Mets third baseman David Wright dove over his shoulder to catch a pop fly barehanded. Mitchell and Wright were in the middle of games, we should note, and saw the ball coming. Longoria had almost no time to react.

We know several details about the video's origins, as explained by Longoria himself to the St. Petersburg Times' Marc Topkin and the Tampa Tribune's Roger Mooney.

Longoria said the clip was filmed near the end of spring training, after Longoria spent nearly six hours filming a commercial for Gillette. Longoria said the video was shot at McKechnie Field in Bradenton, the spring home of the Pittsburgh Pirates. He claims it's authentic.

The video -- "It's still real, by the way," he said -- was shot with a handheld camera in one take in about five minutes, after the Gillette commercial wrapped.

"Unbelievable, huh?" Longoria, a spokesman for Gillette who has filmed other ads, said. "It's funny when you talk about things going viral; it really does once it gets on things like Twitter and YouTube. It goes from a small snowball to an avalanche quickly."

Let's go back to the tape.

Because there are several things that don't add up.

In the video there are four Gillette logos visible -- two behind home plate and two on a roof facade over the third-base bleachers. But those logos aren't part of McKechnie Field in real life, Trevor Gooby, the Pirates' director of Florida operations, told a reporter for Patch.com. The logos were added digitally and included in the final video that was posted on YouTube.

Next, there is the user who posted the video, MrSprts12. The user created his YouTube account May 4 and has only uploaded the Longoria video. The user lists his company as Gillette.

Then there's the reporter and the video graphic identifying Longoria. There is no television station symbols or letters on the video, and the reporter is holding a microphone without a "flag" that identifies the station where the reporter works. Perhaps even stranger, we could not find the video posted on any news site. (Surely, a TV station would love to claim the video as theirs.)

A strong circumstantial case that the video is doctored.

But we wanted to keep looking. We asked Topkin -- who has covered baseball for the Times since 1987 -- what he thought of the video. From Detroit, where the Rays were playing the Detroit Tigers, Topkin said he believes it to be a well-crafted fake.

Topkin noted several things that aren't typical during a batting practice session. There is no cage surrounding the batter to catch foul balls or stop pitches that aren't hit. There's also no screen protecting the batting practice pitcher. There are no coaches in the video hitting ground balls and no other fielders on the baseball diamond to track down any hits.

And there's more. The batter, after hitting a ball right at Longoria and the reporter, isn't heard yelling for them to get out of the way. And though Longoria makes a miraculous catch, the batter returns immediately to his batting stance like nothing even happened.

The cameraman doesn't warn the reporter or Longoria either.

And there's the frame-by-frame analysis of the video. If you watch closely enough, the ball is falling toward the ground as it approaches Longoria and the reporter. But in the last frame -- right before Longoria catches the ball -- it appears to move upward again.

"Simply put, once the ball has started into a downward trajectory, it cannot then again head upwards without an external force," wrote YouTube user meltingsmoke, one of several thousand people to comment or question on the video's authenticity. "That clearly happens just before the ball is 'caught.' (It's) not the same ball and (its) trajectory is all wrong."

The Times has been asking readers online if they thought the catch was real or fake. The vast majority, though not all, say it's a hoax.

With the evidence overwhelmingly suggesting the video is a fake, we asked Gillette spokesman Michael Norton if the company would put the mystery to rest. "The video was filmed while on location for a Gillette Fusion ProGlide commercial," Norton told us. "We'll leave the 'is it real?' debate up to the viewers."

At PolitiFact, we're ready to make the judgment call for you. From computer-added Gillette signage, to the reaction of the cameraman and the batter, from the way major league teams conduct batting practice, to the video evidence, this viral YouTube video is a clever piece of advertising. And fiction. Longoria is a good sport -- and spokesman for Gillette -- for saying the catch is real. But we're not buying it. We say Pants on Fire!

Chicken and gags situation at this baseball induction ceremony

An irreverent nonprofit group that celebrates the game holds its annual awards, honoring the likes of the San Diego mascot and Dodgers great Maury Wills among others.

Chris Erskine, Los Angeles Times

July 20, 2011

I was listening to the San Diego Chicken give a speech the other day, and he raised some excellent points about sports and the state of the nation, such that it is.

The chicken sounded good, especially considering that he had just flown in that morning. Describing himself as the "Minnie Minoso of mascots," he talked about his five decades in the game, and how he thought baseball has the greatest sense of humor of any sport.

"Baseball is the only sport where you can still hear the squeal of children in the stands," he went on to say, drawing more knowing nods.

After all these years, I still get a charge when I first spot the San Diego Chicken — that same visceral reaction you get when you see a very pregnant woman walking down the sidewalk — her innie now an outtie. You poke whoever's next to you — "Hey, look!" — as if you're about to witness a miracle, pay attention.

I don't know that this overstuffed bird quite qualifies as a miracle, but he is a blessing, a gift and — when turned slowly over a spit — one of the tastiest summer meals you could ever hope for.

Sorry, I can be serious for only so long, one of the life tricks you learn from guys like Ted Giannoulas and Bob Uecker, Nuke LaLoosh and Tommy Lasorda.

In sort of a Lasorda moment, halfway through Giannoulas' speech I start hallucinating about chicken wings, which happens to me at almost every speech, not just those given by poultry. Food fantasies are my go-to place, my mental B-roll. It would be the same fantasy if Nelson Mandela were speaking, or Michelle Bachmann. Maybe even more so.

Suddenly, the chicken is gone and there's another speaker.

"Essentially, the United States is the greatest poem," says writer Jean Hastings Ardell, quoting Walt Whitman as she expands on the rich language of sports.

Baseball is also a poem, of course. But, mercifully, it's also full of laughs and one-liners.

They honored all this Sunday — the poetry and the punch lines — at the Baseball Reliquary's "Induction Day" ceremony. Basically, it's a salute to baseball put together by fans who at one point started ringing cowbells, a tradition we'll get to in a moment.

I don't even know what a reliquary is — sounds like a place priests stash their cigarettes. But if you're starting to get the idea that this organization is for you, let me warn you that its members are almost hopelessly irreverent, literate and sanguine.

I know, right? Who'd expect all that from a bunch of die-hard baseball fans? And who'd expect me to use a word like sanguine?

But that's this group, full of mirth and a love for the game.

They start their meeting with the national anthem, played on a lone electric guitar. After an amp malfunction, filmmaker/guitarist Jon Leonoudakis apologizes and starts over.

"Let's play two," some wise guy woofs.

That done, they break into a rendition of "Take Me Out to the Ball Game," which should begin every meeting in America, not just Seussian extravaganzas like this one.

Here's the bio on the under-the-radar Baseball Reliquary: It's a nonprofit group that celebrates the game with exhibitions and programs throughout the year. Almost everything is free and open to the public.

Atmospherically, the Pasadena-based group is what you'd get if you crossed a meeting of hard-core preservationists with the Royal Order of Raccoons. Ralph Kramden should preside.

Their annual Academy Awards is this "Shrine of the Eternals" induction, held last Sunday, drawing 200 mixed-up souls to the Pasadena Central Library.

In addition to the Chicken, they are honoring Dodgers great Maury Wills, one-armed former outfielder Pete Gray (Nelson Gary Jr. accepting) and Paul Dickson, author of many things, including his wonderful baseball dictionary.

In some sort of apparent screwup, they also give me a small award, something called "The Hilda," named for renowned Brooklyn nutcase Hilda Chester.

Chester is probably the most famous Dodgers fan of all time, best known for the racket she raised with frying pans and cowbells at Ebbets Field, but also for allegedly lying in court in defense of her hero, fellow nutcase Leo Durocher, after the manager went on trial for pummeling a fan with brass knuckles.

And you thought baseball was purer back then?

In any (nut)case, the shrine ceremony is a hoot, not just for its appreciation for baseball's funny bone, but for its recognition of people like Wills, who at almost 80 still looks lean and cat-like enough to swipe 100 bases — an ageless cheetah.

The former shortstop brought down the house with his stories of how he spent eight years in the minors and overcame a debilitating fear of the curveball — switch-hitting saved his career.

"This [ceremony] spanned the gamut of the baseball experience, from the humorous and irreverent to the scholarly and sublime," says the group's founder, Terry Cannon, when it is over. "I like to think that the annual ceremony, in some ways, represents the most special and enduring qualities of baseball."

Right. Now where'd you stash that chicken?

Cal's baseball team faced elimination even before the season started

Golden Bears' program was going to be a victim of budget cuts, but boosters came through with millions and team is in the College World Series for the first time since 1992.

California's Marcus Semien (15) is greeted by teammate Chadd Krist… (George Nikitin / Associated Press)

June 17, 2011
By David Wharton, L.A. Times

Reporting from Berkeley

On that bleak day in September, the day when university officials handed the California baseball team a death sentence, it just so happened the players were scheduled to practice.

They arrived at the ballpark to learn their storied program — more than a century old — had fallen victim to state budget cuts and would be disbanded at season's end.

"I was really angry," sophomore pitcher Justin Jones said. "I was upset, disappointed in the university and kind of ashamed, all at the same time."

Coach David Esquer told his guys that he would help them transfer to other schools. He made it clear they could take the day off to deal with the news.

To his surprise, they laced up their cleats, put on their mitts and began tossing the ball around. Pretty soon, these young men — many of them still teenagers, their futures abruptly scattered to the breeze — were joking and laughing.

"Once we got on the field, we put everything else aside," Jones said. "That was one of the best practices we've ever had."

Esquer recalled glancing at his assistants and saying: "We have a special team here."

A team that could turn calamity into a Cinderella story.

'Roller coaster ride'

Eight teams begin play in the 2011 College World Series this weekend and the Golden Bears will be among them. Their quest for an improbable national championship begins with a game against top-seeded Virginia on Sunday.

So much has changed in the last nine months.

Not only has Cal returned to Omaha for the first time in nearly two decades, it has won an even bigger victory, earning reinstatement with help from rabid supporters who raised millions of dollars.

"Unbelievable," said Austin Booker, a senior outfielder. "It's been a huge roller coaster ride."

As soon as the university announced its athletic department cuts last September, the alumni sprang into action. They understood the administration would not accept a short-term fix — their campaign needed to raise $25 million, enough to support baseball and four other endangered sports for the next seven to 10 years.

"I don't know if it was naivete or passion, or both, but I knew we were going to succeed," said Doug Nickle, a former pitcher who helped lead the effort. "It didn't matter what the numbers were."

In those early days, only three players decided to transfer immediately. As star infielder Tony Renda put it: "It weeded out the people who did not want to be here."

The remaining players contacted teams throughout the country — Renda and Jones committed to Oregon — but vowed to remain with Cal for what looked to be its final season.

That left the Golden Bears with a veteran roster and strong pitching, enough talent to rank in the preseason top 25. The ballpark became a sanctuary, Renda said, "a place where you can forget about things, a place to be yourself and have fun and play a game."

Not that everything went perfectly.

Cal suffered early losses to opponents such as Oklahoma and Connecticut and hit losing streaks during the Pacific 10 Conference schedule, getting swept by Arizona State and Stanford.

Still, Esquer marveled at a team that could ignore the ax hanging over its head. The same could be said for his staff.

Facing imminent unemployment, the coaches vowed to put the players' welfare first. Assistant Dan Hubbs took a wish list of schools from each athlete and began making calls, telling coaches, "I've got someone you should look at." Esquer dealt with upperclassmen who faced a trickier decision — they could transfer for one or two seasons of baseball elsewhere or quit the game to finish their studies at Cal.

"People ask me what it was like," the coach said. "If you can imagine running your program, saving your program and dismantling your program, all at the same time, it was all day, every day."

Before anyone gets the wrong idea, Esquer adds, this effort wasn't entirely noble. If he and his staff could hold the program together for six more months, it might look good on their resumes.

Away from campus, the team's supporters worked just as hard. A relatively small number of big donors — including alum and former Dodgers star Jeff Kent — contributed millions of dollars, but there were hundreds of others giving $5 or $10. Even Stanford alumni, those enemies from across the bay, sent money.

"Think about it," Nickle said. "There's no more rivalry if there's no more Cal."

Wherever the Golden Bears played, opposing fans leaned over the railing to wish them well. After a three-game series at Oregon State, a couple with season tickets near the visiting dugout handed Esquer a check.

"I like what you're doing," the man said. "Good luck."

By February, the campaign had secured more than $12 million in pledges. Then came a setback — university officials decided to reinstate rugby, women's lacrosse and women's gymnastics, but not baseball.

"We were shocked, to say the least," Nickle recalled.

A number of baseball supporters threatened to withdraw their pledges. The fundraisers had to push their anger aside and get back to work.

Finally, on April 8, university Chancellor Robert J. Birgeneau announced that the total raised specifically for baseball had reached $9 million, saving the program. The players got the news in a Tucson hotel before a game against Arizona.

"I didn't believe it at first," Jones said. "This sense of joy overwhelmed me."

Just reward

How do you save a baseball team?

Take equal parts optimism and grit, add the kindness of strangers. And maybe one more thing, an unexpected ingredient that pretty much every Cal player mentions.

Fun.

"You can see on the field that we play looser because we're closer to each other," Booker said. "We have a great time out there."

This attitude translated into a 37-21 record and a dugout where teammates whooped, hollered, and cheered with a sheer volume that occasionally annoyed opponents. Catcher Chadd Krist said: "That's why we have so much success. We have so much energy."

The postseason began with a loss to Baylor in the Houston regional, but Cal bulled its way through the loser's bracket to earn a rematch and won the deciding game with four runs in the bottom of the ninth.

Next came a best-of-three super regional in nearby Santa Clara against upstart Dallas Baptist. Esquer admits that he did not sleep much that weekend, wanting so badly to win as a way of repaying all the donors in the stands. The Golden Bears swept two games to advance.

Now, on the eve of the College World Series opener, it is too early to put this wild ride into perspective, Jones saying: "I don't know if it went by really fast or really long … it's been weird."

But Renda figures if there is any justice in the world, the good feelings won't end yet. He wants a few more victories in Omaha.

"We all deserve it," he said, "for everything we've been through."

Shawn Green Says He'd Play for Israel

Ken Belson, New York Times

June 8, 2011

When Major League Baseball announced last week that Israel would be included in the next World Baseball Classic, it triggered speculation about which current professional players might join the team.

Many of the best Jewish players in the United States, including Ryan Braun and Kevin Youkilis, could play for Israel. Under the rules, a player can join a team if he is a citizen of a country, can qualify for citizenship, holds a passport of that country, or has a parent that is or was a citizen of that nation.

But retired Jewish players in theory could join, too. Shawn Green, 38, who played outfield and first base for the Blue Jays, Dodgers, Diamondbacks and Mets, said he would be willing to come out of retirement to play for Israel.

"It would be an honor," Green said in a phone interview from New York, where he is promoting his new book, "The Way of Baseball: Finding Stillness at 95 MPH." "If it fit into my life situation, I'd love to do it."

Green said he has kept in shape since retiring in 2007, but has not been playing much baseball. But if he got his stroke back, he could provide a punch. He hit 328 home runs and batted .283 in his 15-year career.

Despite Green's Jewish roots, his book describes how he relied on Eastern philosophies in the big leagues. He was influenced by "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance," and he meditated to help block out distracting thoughts. Hitting off the tee to practice, he said, was also a form of mediation.

"I followed the idea of being in the present moment," Green said. "It's more common than not for players to find some routine to enable them to get their thoughts."

Israel to Participate in 2013 World Baseball Classic

  By Ken Belson,
  New York Times

June 1, 2011

Too bad Sandy Koufax is not pitching anymore.

Major League Baseball said Wednesday that a team from Israel would participate in the World Baseball Classic in 2013. The event will be expanded to 28 teams from 16. In a new format, 16 teams, including those from Brazil, Britain, Israel and Thailand, will play in a double-elimination qualifying round in late 2012.

The top four teams will then join 12 other countries, from Australia to Venezuela, in the final round.

Israel's entry in the tournament raises some interesting possibilities. According to the rules, a player is eligible to join a team if a player is a citizen of the nation, qualified for citizenship or can hold a passport of that country. A player who has one parent who is, or was, a citizen of that nation, can also join that team.

Under these rules, several players in Major League Baseball could qualify to play on the Israeli team. Imagine this team:

The infield might include Ike Davis, whose mother is Jewish, at first base; Ian Kinsler of the Rangers at second base; and Kevin Youkilis of the Red Sox at third base. Ryan Braun, the slugger for the Brewers, could bat clean up and play left field. Pitchers Scott Feldman of the Texas Rangers and Jason Marquis of the Washington Nationals could start; John Grabow of the Chicago Cubs could pitch in relief.

The Israeli team could use a few major leaguers. According to the Israel Association of Baseball, more than 1,000 children and adults play baseball in Israel. The six-team Israel Baseball League started in 2007.

The former major leaguers Art Shamsky, Ken Holtzman and Ron Blomberg have managed, and Dan Duquette, a former general manager of the Red Sox and the Expos, was the league's director of player development.