Year In Review : 2000 American League

Off the field...

"Y2K" spawned a paranoid phenomenon due to the impending threat of the world's computers crashing. Despite millions of dollars and countless man-hours spent in preparation, the impending cyber-disaster amounted to nothing.

The U.S. presidential race between Republican candidate George W. Bush and Democratic hopeful Al Gore ended amid controversy. The world watched as the most powerful nation on earth used the courts to sort out what was the most evenly divided recent presidential election of the United States.

After years of delays, the International Space Station was finally operating in orbit thanks to a combined effort of technological resources from the U.S., Canada, Japan, Russia, eleven nations of the European Space Agency and Brazil.

In the American League...

Shortstop sensation Nomar Garciaparra earned his second consecutive batting title and Pedro Martinez earned his third Cy Young Award in four years, but it wasn't enough to get the Red Sox to the playoffs for a third consecutive season. Despite their best efforts, "The Curse of the Bambino" continued to reign as the Sox finished 2½ games behind the Yankees in the American League East.

The Detroit Tigers topped the Minnesota Twins, 12-11 on October 1st, as Shane Halter became the fourth Major Leaguer in history to play all nine positions in a game. Both teams combined to use fifteen pitchers, tying the Major League mark and setting an American League record.

The Cleveland Indians became the leagues fifth, triple play victim at the hands of the Baltimore Orioles during a September 1st outing. With runners at first and second and no outs, shortstop Melvin Mora intentionally dropped Sandy Alomar's pop fly, then threw to Jerry Hairston who tagged the runner at second as well as the runner coming from first. A confused Alomar retreated to the dugout believing the infield fly rule is in effect and was called out for leaving the basepath.

In the National League...

Major league baseball ordered Atlanta Braves pitcher John Rocker to undergo psychological testing following racial remarks he had made during an off-season interview with Sports Illustrated. He was later suspended for fourteen days and allowed to attend Spring Training after paying an undisclosed fine and attending sensitivity training.

The Chicago Cubs christened the 2000 season by defeating the New York Mets, 5-3 in the Tokyo Dome in Japan marking the first Major League game ever played on Asian soil.

Following the death of Montreal Canadian Maurice Richard, the Expos announced that they would wear "The Rocket's" number nine for the remainder of the season as a tribute to the late hockey icon. It was the first time that a Major League Baseball team was believed to have honored an athlete from another sport.

Around the league...

American League president Gene Budig resigned and was appointed a senior adviser to baseball commissioner Bud Selig. The American and National leagues were officially disbanded as separate legal entities with all rights and functions consolidated in the commissioner's office.

Following a May 16th incident in which sixteen Los Angeles Dodger players and three coaches entered the stands during a fight with fans at Wrigley Field, nineteen suspensions are handed out resulting in the loss of sixty games for the players and twenty-four for the coaches.

Andrew Klein, a boy who was struck in the head and suffered permanent brain damage while attending batting practice before a Florida Marlins game in 1997, was finally awarded $1.05 million by a state court jury. The decision set the stage for limiting children's access to players on the field and required stricter safety guidelines for kid's pre-game ballpark programs.

Four American League teams finished with a better winning percentage than the New York Yankees. However, the Bronx Bombers were really not concerned with the final standings and progressed through the post-season with ease defeating their cross-town rival Mets four games to one in the fourteenth rendition of the "Subway Series".