When the Atlanta Braves signed Billy Wager to a 1-year/$6.75 mil contract prior to the 2010 season, there was a general skepticism regarding his health, as well as his level of effectiveness at 39 years old.  Luckily for the Braves, Wagner has surpassed what little expectations the club had at the time of his signing, by notching 35 saves while sporting a 1.43 ERA.  Despite the fact that Wagner is having one of the best seasons of his 15-year career, it was made clear at the beginning of the 2010 campaign that he plans on retiring at end of Braves season.

Normally, the thought of losing one of the best closers in baseball, let alone a guy who has been so vital to the success of his team in 2010, would be incredibly worrisome and drives a GM towards action.  Yet, the Atlanta Braves will find themselves in a unique situation with a vacant closer’s spot and 22-year old Craig Kimbrel ready to continue his dominance on the mound.  For those who have not seen Kimbrel pitch this season, there is only one, accurate way to describe him: utterly filthy.

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The Golden Sombrero presents MLB Look-alikes: Adam LaRoche & Bert from Sesame Street

As if walking off the field under his own power didn’t make him seem like a total badass, Logan Morrison proved how tough he really is by starting both games of Monday’s double-header, less than 24 hours after being drilled in the face by teammate Emilio Bonifacio’s foul ball.

Late last night I reflected on what happened to Morrison by invoking my memories of how a similar incident ended the career of Juan Encarnacion in 2007.  Thankfully(and surprisingly), Morrison escaped the scary incident without any serious injuries- just a golf ball sized lump beneath his left eye and some serious seam marks.

Based upon the video replays of Morrison wearing a foul ball to the face, and considering the photo(pictured above) that he posted on Twitter last night, I expected that he might hit the 15-Day DL, or at the least be held out of Monday’s games- I mean come on, the guy took a batted ball to the face!

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For anyone who has ever played serious baseball, it is common knowledge that when in the on-deck circle, it is important to always be paying close attention as a pitch is delivered.  As a hitter, not only should you be attempting to time the pitcher’s release point, but you also should be paying close attention to avoid serious injury on a sharp foul ball.

However, even when paying attention, an on-deck hitter is still susceptible to being drilled by a foul ball- just ask former Cardinals’ outfielder Juan Encarnacion.  In late August of 2007, Encarnacion was struck in the left-eye socket by a foul ball off the bat of teammate Aaron Miles- an injury that ultimately ended Encarnacion’s career and that has been described by Cardinals’ medical director Dr. George Paletta as, “The worst trauma I’ve seen. Absolutely.”

Fortunately for Florida Marlins’ rookie Logan Morrison, it appears that he will ok after taking a foul ball to left side of his face in the 10^th inning of Sunday’s victory against the Atlanta Braves.

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As I was browsing Sports Illustrated’s archive of covers, I came across something so disturbing that it forced me to reevaluate their legitimacy, and consider a moratorium on my ‘Classic Sports Illustrated Covers’ series.  Sure, I know that it is part of their business to market what is trending across sports, but it is not their business to disgrace living legends.  I get that Jeff Francoeur was one of the most exciting, young, baseball players when he graced the cover in 2005, but there is no way that Sports Illustrated could have honestly believed that he was Cooperstown bound.  To make matters worse, SI’s contentious cover proclaimed Francoeur as “The Natural,” exactly as it did when Ken Griffey, Jr. burst on the scene in 1990.  Comparing an over-producing rookie to what Junior had done in the 15 years since that first cover is a blatant insult.  Hell, even Robert Redford should be pissed off.

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