Baseball Team Symmetry - Reds vs Browns, part 8

The Reds vs the Browns!? How is this possible!?

Somewhere in Time on a solemn enchanted Field of Dreams the yesteryear dreamers and legends play ball.

The partner of the Cincinnati Reds is the forlorn St. Louis Browns. They match because both their team totems are colours - red & brown. The St. Louis Brown are a team no more, they left St. Louis for Baltimore and underwent metamorphosis to become the Oriels.

The Logo of the Browns is a fascinating icon. It features a throw back to heraldry - a shield with a pattern taken from the American flag but uses the colours brown, orange, and white. In the chief and crest position is a holy man on horseback holding a cross in his hand. There is also a baseball with the teams name written on it - BROWNS -that takes up most of the shield.

On the other hand the term REDS by simple accident became pejorative term for politicians who seemed to operate on socialist principals, was an atheist, or non-conformist during the Cold War.

The St. Louis Browns are perhaps best remembered as the first runner up in the genesis of the MVP award. One hundred and one years ago the Chalmers Automoblie Company announced the player with the highest batting average in Major League Baseball was to get a free car - a Chalmer's Model 30.

1910 Chalmers Model 30
Ty Cobb & Nap Lajoie

As the season went on, two contenders swung their way to top - Ty Cobb with the Detroit Tigers and Nap Lajoie with the Cleveland Indians. But this rivalry turned into something more than just a race for a free car. Perhaps they knew they were laying a foundation of something bigger than themselves. They were in a neck in neck race, up till the end of the season. This award for best batting average, eventually evolved into Major League's Baseballs Writer's Association of America's Most Valuable Player in 1931.

Red and Brown

Ty Cobb was something of passionate player from the Deep South, Georgia to be more specific. Mr. Cobb was loved by some and hated by others for his eye of the tiger like play. While Nap Lajoie was a well mannered man from the North via good old fashioned 'Yankee Pie Country' - Rhode Island.

On October 9, 1910 the Cleveland Indians were scheduled to play the St. Louis Browns in a doubleheader. Nap Lajoie had an opportunity to pull ahead of Ty Cobb and Nap had the sympathy of the other players and coaches of the St. Louis Browns.

The Browns were suffering from a dismal season: 47 wins and 107 losses. It seemed that Nap Lajoie had an home heart advantage. Nap made it on base every all eight times at bat. But on Nap's at last bat there was a wild throw to first base and it was counted as error rather than a hit. The Brown's manager and player-coach Jack O'Conner and Harry Howell tired to bribe the official to count it as hit rather than an error. But she refused, and word eventually got out and O'Conner and Howell were subtly banned from professional baseball.

Famous Ty Cobb Photo Sliding to Safety

However more than eighty years later in 1981 Pete Palmer took a second look at the 1910 batting data for Ty Cobb and Nap Lajoie and saw that Cobb's numbers were inflated - either by accident or on purpose. In reality Nap Lajoie of the Cleveland Indians had the higher batting average.

The foundation of baseball's MVP award is shrouded in a enchanting controversy, several players were banned and the St. Louis Browns took a lot of heat. Eventually their name was lost to the annals of baseball history & trivia.

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This video explains the idea of 'flag symmetry' or in this case baseball team totem symmetry.
It features clips from Field of Dreams, Northern Exposure, and Deepak Chopra. Today it's called synchronicity but before Dr. Carl Jung it was known as Providence. Carl essentially put this semi-superstitious idea into modern terms that 'rationalista academics' wouldn't have a hissy fit over - since they loathe the term providence.

Somewhere in Time on a solemn enchanted Field of Dreams the yesteryear dreamers and legends play ball.

Baseball Team Symmetry - Nationals & Mets, part 7

Mets Logo

The Mets and Nationals are linked as baseball partners. Why? The Mets are a resurrected name that stems from the original Metropolitans that played baseball in the late 1800s. Coincidentally in the 1800s there was another team called the Washington Nationals (who are now the Twins). The original Washington Nationals played in the National league form 1886 to 1889. One of its most famous players was Connie Mack whose Major League Baseball career began on September 11, 1889. But soon the original Nationals folded - Mr. Mack later gained fame as longest serving manager in baseball history, with the most wins with the Philadelphia A's.

DC Logo
Note DC was originally shaped like a baseball field!

The original Metropolitans played from 1880-1887. They played in Jersey and Brooklyn like many leagues did in Baseball's golden era. But the Metropolitans were the first to play professional b-ball in Manhattan at Polo Grounds.

Who knew 99 years after the 'original Mets' that a post-modern Mets would win the world series in 1986?

The totem of a National and a Met is rather intangible. It's not an animal, vegetable, mineral, place, or thing. Essentially they are political states of mind in a category of ones community. If you live in the Los Angeles Metropolitan Area then you are a LA Met. Thus every large city has its own Metropolitan Community. There are LA Mets, Savannah Mets, Buffalo Mets, Tokyo Mets, and belive it or not...Jerusalem Mets! Basically the people who live around a large city that has sky scrapers or million plus population with a surrounding business community that commutes downtown is a metropolitan zone.


On the other hand there is the nation. Usually only one city - the capital city is allowed to adopt this totem as a title. Thus for Canada it would be Ottawa Nationals - other examples could be Tokyo Nationals, Berlin Nationals, Rome Nationals, Tehran Nationals, Moscow Nationals, or my favorite capital city name - the Ouagadougou Nationals.

But the most harmonious link between these 'geographic political-totems' are that all capital cities come with a metropolitan community. Thus the Mets are an appropriate baseball team partner as the shadow of the Nationals.


On top of that, NYC was the first National Capital of the United States - under the Constitution. Before Washington DC was a twinkle in the eye of America - the first official president of the USA was inaugurated in downtown Manhattan.

So back in 1788, Washington was a bonna fide resident of NYC. You can also extrapolate that G.W. would always pick the Mets over the Nationals, why? G.W. was a humble man, and he'd be uncomfortable rooting for a team with his own name.

Link to NY Mets^
Link to Washington Nationals^

Link to Part 8 - on the quantum baseball field of imagination!

Baseball Team Symmetry - Rays & Marilins, part 6

Florida is the harbinger of each new baseball season with its association with spring training. Florida became the it spot for major league baseball in about 100 years ago in 1913. When the two foundational teams played there - the Cubs and Indians.

80 years afterwards of being a proverbial pro-baseball kindergarten Florida gave birth to the Marlins in 1993. Five years later a second Florida team was established with another fish as its totem - the Devil Ray.

The Manata Ray is still an
official 'secondary' symbol of the Rays

But names in baseball shift every so often and in 2007 the Devil Rays dropped the 'Devil' and retooled the core meaning of Ray as being a Ray of Light rather of than a Manta Ray. But the Manta Ray is still a 'secondary' mascot. Likewise next year the Florida Marlins will no longer tap the state name - it will go metropolitan-city local. They will be called the Miami Marlins next year in 2012. Maybe they will include hot pink their colors?

A yin and yang comparison between a Marlin and Manta Ray is that that both fish have deadly points - but at opposite ends. Marlins have the pointed snouts, while rays have pointed stingers on the tails.


Link to the Florida-Miami Marlins^
Link to the Tampa Bay 'Devil' Rays^

Link to Part 7 - Whats more important you the Nation or you local community?

Baseball Team Symmetry - Mariners & Pirates, part 5

From East to West one of America's favorite games is played. By amazing coincidence the mascots of professional baseball teams align in an amazing and serendipitous way.


The Seattle Mariners align with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Both of these totems are related to ocean. Pirates are mariners but not all mariners are pirates.

The baseball bat of the Pirates match to the baseball of Mariners. On the Pirates logo behind the pirate head are two crossed baseball bats, while the baseball of the Mariners logo has a baseball that is merged with a navigators compass.

Current Logo of the Pittsburgh Pirates

'Spiked Ball' of
Seattle Mariners

Maybe one day in the future these teams may meet up in a 'Sailor World Series.'


Link to Part 6 - Underwater World Baseball!?


Link to Seattle Mariners Official Site
Link to Pittsburgh Pirates Official Site

Baseball Team Symmetry - Indians & Braves, part 4

Major League Baseball has two teams named after the original inhabitants of North America - the Atlanta Braves and Cleveland Indians.

Coincidentally the oldest team, legally, in major league baseball uses the icons of the oldest and original inhabitants of America - Native Americans via the Atlanta Braves. They were originally called the Boston Red Stockings back 1876 but became the Braves in 1912. They were transferred to Milwaukee after the Korean War and finally settled in Atlanta in 1966.


The other team that maintains a Native American totem for baseball mojo is the Cleveland Indians.

The Indians and Braves have clashed in two 'World Redskin Series.' Most recently in 1995 the Braves defeated the Indians 4-2. But in a 'previous life' back in 1948 the Cleveland Indians toppled Braves of Boston 4-2.



Link to Part 5 - Ahoy! They be playin' Baseball on the High Seas!

Link to official Cleveland Indians^
Link to official Atlanta Braves^

Baseball Team Symmetry - Yankess & Royals, part 3

Logo of the NY Yankees
Stars and Stripes pattern taken from US Flag design

The names Yankee and Royal are related to Genesis of the United States of America. During the original Anglo-American Civil War of 1776 the term Yankee was used to describe the rebellious colonists who sought to break from from England and the Royal Crown.

Yankee was a pejorative label to all rebellious colonists in the South as well as the North. In 1776, Rebs living in Georgia, the Carolinas, and Virginia were all dammed Yankees in the eyes of London and Royalist Colonists.

On the other hand a good percentage of American Colonists totally resisted the idea of forming a new nation. History books refers to these people as Loyalists - many of whom later became the founding fathers of Canada after Yankees had won in 1783.

These teams are based in two radically different parts of America. The NY Yankees are a city slicker team from the largest metropolis of the USA, while the Royals play in the heartland of America. The dichotomy of country vs urban hits a key note when these to teams of the American League are compared.

Logo of Kansas City Royals
Design similar to shield of Heraldry

Note the Logo of the Kansas City Royals uses a heraldic shield device, while the NY Yankees has a stars and stripes pattern reflective of the national flag.

When combined these two teams echo the title of my blog with elements of flags and heraldry. On top of that, they both uses devices that tops our heads. The Kansas City Royals Logo has a golden crown topped with four 'golden baseballs.' While the NY Yankees logo has a patriotic 'Uncle Sam Top Hat.'

Both logos incorporate baseball gear - the NY Yankee Logo has a red bat that supports the patriotic top hap, while the Kansas City Royal's 'shield' looks like a home plate.

These combined logos essentially show us that baseball is home.... somewhere over the rainbow the heart of America can be found, from the golden fields of Kansas too the bright lights and soaring heights of New York City.

Link to Part 4 - First Nation Teams, American Style

Link to official New York Yankees^
Link to official Kansas City Royals^

^ external link
no symbol = internal link