Baseball plus TV plus self-promotion = this post

My latest TV Time column is now up at ClassicFlix together. Get revved up for the pennant drive by checking out my All-Star team of baseball players who appeared on classic TV shows:

http://classicflix.com/beta/TV-Time-Baseball-Players-on-Primetime-a-28.html

TV Time: Baseball Players on Primetime
By Rick Brooks

One national pastime arrives around springtime each year, while another one never goes away. Yes, baseball’s return is a cherished annual ritual, but one might argue the real national pastime is watching television. Baseball and television together is a powerful combination.

Here, then, is my All-Star team, by position, of major league players based on their appearances in classic television. We’ll focus on the days before everything was changed by rampant commercialization and ridiculous salaries. Baseball was pretty different then, too.

Let's start in the outfield with a trio of Hall of Famers who were New York superstars and national icons. Instead of going with a strict left field, right field, center field arrangement, I couldn't resist choosing, as the Terry Cashman song puts it, Willie, Mickey, and the Duke.

OF: Willie (read more)