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There could be some history made on Friday night in Buffalo. Mike Hessman of the Toledo Mudhens needs one more homer to break the all-time International League career home run mark. Before you say "big deal" as I was tempted to do, you should know who Mike Hessman is and how he made this journey over a long and varied career. First off he was born in Fountain Valley, California, and grew into the dimensions of a true slugger. He is 65" and 215 pounds. He was chosen in the 15th round of the 1996 MLB draft by Atlanta. He made it to the "Show" with the Braves in 2003. He had a long looping swing and struck out too much and generally over a short-lived big league career, the 3B/1B also seemed to be stuck behind better players such as Chipper Jones. Besides Atlanta, Hessman also made pit stops in Detroit and with the New York Mets between 2003 and 2010, hitting .188 with 14 home runs. Over time Hessman became a fixture in the International League. Now 36, he has slugged 258 homers in the "I" to tie the late Ollie Carnegie, who spent the bulk of his career playing in Buffalo. Carnegie played his final season with the Bisons in 1945. These two were a study in physical contrasts. While Hessman is 65", Carnegie was only 57" and weighed 175 pounds. Surely the Major League home run record is more impressive and more prestigious. Babe Ruth broke Roger Connors career mark of 138 back in 1921. The Bambino ran that total up to 714 by 1935, and that mark endured until Hank Aaron broke it on April 8, 1974 at Atlanta against Al Downing and the Dodgers. So Babe Ruth held the career home run record for 53 years. Carnegies mark of 258 has stood since the year he retired as a player in 1945. If you do the math, thats 69 years. Oddly enough Carnegie never played in the Majors, largely because he didnt start playing pro ball on a regular basis until he joined Buffalo at age 32 in 1931. Before that he played mainly semi-pro or amateur ball and held down a regular job. Nowadays 258 home runs doesnt sound like all that imposing a number. But remember today, its all about player development. If you dont make the Majors by your mid-20s or maybe late 20s if youre lucky, youre going to be out of a job. You have to have a special talent and be a unique individual, as Mike Hessman must be to stick around until the age of 36. Hessman had a bit of a scare about a week ago. He had to have some tissue removed from his nose and his forehead. Luckily it proved to be non-cancerous. He missed three games this week waiting for the swelling on his face to go down, then went 0-for-3 at Coca-Cola Field on Thursday afternoon. Friday night is the series finale at Buffalo and it would only seem fitting that he would hit his 259th homer in the city where Ollie Carnegie spent the bulk of his career and is enshrined in the Buffalo Sports Hall of Fame. When Hessman ultimately does break this record, he has other mountains to climb. He is also third on the all-time list of homers hit in the minors. Buzz Arlett is number one with 432, Nick Cullop has 420 and Hessman checks in with 403. Scoring Big Pitching and defence may win championships, but you cant deny the fact that the Blue Jays offence could carry them a long way. Theyve scored 311 runs in 61 games and slugged 87 homers, tops in the American League in both categories. You can add the total home runs for the Royals and Yankees and get 77, 10 fewer than the Jays, or the Rangers and Red Sox and get 85, still two less than the Blue Jays. In the runs scored category, the Jays have rung up 57 more than the second-best team in their division - Baltimore (254) - and then you drop off to Boston and the Yankees at 240 and Tampa Bay at a paltry 228. Boston was the runaway leader in runs scored in the American League last season with 853 and ultimately won the World Series. Im just saying. Unusual Moments This is something that happens so rarely in baseball, yet it happened twice in the last week. The Angels Garrett Richards and Clevelands Justin Masterson both struck out the side on nine pitches. Another oddity came on Wednesday when the Phillies 35-year-old shortstop Jimmy Rollins struck out four times in a game for the first time in his career, earning the famed "Golden Sombrero". The opposing pitcher though was Washingtons Stephen Strasburg, so well cut Rollins some slack. Rollins incidently is up to 2,226 hits now for his career. He needs nine more to pass Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt as the Phillies all-time hits leader. Since the Phils are having such a dismal season, the feeling is growing that Rollins will waive his 10-and-5 rights and will agree to a trade once the record is broken. The Tigers would be a perfect fit. The Atlanta Braves lead the National League East. Yet strangely enough, they have been held to 0 or 1 runs in a game a Major League-high 18 times. At the Draft If youre wondering why the Blue Jays used their ninth-overall pick in the Draft Thursday night to take a pitcher who just had Tommy John surgery in May, consider this. Veteran baseball writer Danny Knobler has seen Jeff Hoffman out of East Carolina pitch and said this of him: "He could be Justin Verlanders brother". Say no more! Shin-Soo Choo Rangers Jersey . He just didnt expect them to be this good. Darrun Hilliard scored 19 points to lead No. 6 Villanova to a dominating 77-59 victory over Georgetown on Saturday, preserving the Wildcats hopes of a No. Hunter Pence Rangers Jersey . The Incheon-based tea, of the Korea Baseball Organization said the deal for the 35-year-old Scott included a $50,000 signing bonus. Scott reached the major leagues with Houston in 2005 and hit 23 homers or more for Baltimore each year from 2008-10. https://www.cheaprangersbaseball.com/612...ey-rangers.html. The Union looked to have grabbed a big win in the 88th minute when Amobi Okugo finally put the hosts in front. But a terrible giveaway by Union goalkeeper Rais Mbolhi handed Earnshaw the equalizer in the second minute of stoppage time, keeping the Union two points back of fifth-place Red Bull New York for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Ruben Sierra Rangers Jersey . The 17-time Grand Slam champion, who lose three straight finals in Monte Carlo to Rafael Nadal from 2006-08, has not played in the tournament since 2011, when he lost to Jurgen Melzer in the quarterfinals. Wholesale Rangers Jerseys . - Aaron Rodgers makes tough throws that can leave fans of the Green Bay Packers speechless.CORTLAND, N.Y. -- Geno Smith threw one interception, and then another. And then, two more. It wasnt a good performance by the New York Jets rookie quarterback. At all. "It was brutal," coach Rex Ryan said flatly on Wednesday. "That was Genos worst day." Smith, competing with Mark Sanchez for the starting job, was intercepted four times, including three in 11-on-11 team drills. He is still dealing with a sprained right ankle, that he has looked less hobbled by in practice the last few days. But Ryan said it is clearly affecting his performance, as well as his fundamentals and being late on some throws. "Obviously, the ankle is part of it, but way too many picks," Ryan said. "He did not look comfortable today. Obviously, he has to come back from it, and he will come back from it. But it was a bad day." "Guys have bad days, but this was a really bad day." It was also an unseasonably cold day in Cortland -- the temperature at the start of practice was a mere 52 degrees with occasional rain. "It was a beautiful December day today," Ryan quipped. "That, without question, had to be the coldest training camp day Ive ever been a part of. Thats about 30 years. "Man, that was chilly. Almost as chilly as the offensive performance today." And that included Smiths performance. The second-round pick, however, insisted the ankle has not been a factor. "I havent really been trying to use it as an excuse," he said. "Ive been going out there and giving it my all, and I think Ive done a good job of just pushing through this week." Ryan agreed that Smith hasnt been using the injury an excuse for his performances lately, but added that its "bravado" by the quarterback saying its not affecting him. "Guys, you see it out there," Ryan said. "Hes not able to move like he normally does. Hes not able to drive the ball like he normally does with his velocity. That doesnt mean he still cant get out there. Hes competing. Hes been out there every day. "But is he 100 per cent? I would say that hes not 100 per cent." The Jets have still not decided on a starter for the teams preseason game Saturday night against Jacksonville, but Sanchez has outperformed Smith this week. When asked if he wants to start Saturday, Smith curiously said: "No comment." Ryan acknowledged that its a "possibility" Smith woont play against the Jaguars, but added that theres still plenty of time for the injury to heal.dddddddddddd Smith, meanwhile, remained positive about his camp so far -- as well as the injury. "The ankles feeling good," Smith said. "Its getting progressively better." Smith was injured in the teams preseason opener at Detroit last Friday night, but has not missed any practice time. He worked mostly with the first-team offence Wednesday, and appeared to move around the field with only a slight limp at times. With both quarterbacks facing the scout-team defences as the Jets prepare for Jacksonville, Smith was not sharp. He was intercepted by Rontez Miles on a pass that went off the hands of Ryan Spadola in 7-on-7 drills, and also picked off by Royce Adams, Jacquies Smith and Bret Lockett in 11-on-11 drills. "It was a bad day today," Ryan said. "Theres no other way to put it. It was a bad day. Was I disappointed he had the day he did today? Absolutely. These days happen, but you dont expect them to happen." When asked what happened on the interceptions, Smith got slightly testy. "I dont know," he said. "Youve got to watch the tape man, Im pretty sure you all got it. Just go ahead and watch it." Ryan indicated that he and his staff need to see more of both Smith and Sanchez before they consider who will win the competition and start in Week 1 against Tampa Bay. "Will it become more of a sense of urgency probably after this game? I would say so," Ryan said. "I thought this was going to be a real competition and it wouldnt be just solved after one week of a preseason game. I dont know that many are really decided after one preseason game. So I dont think its a surprise that theres not clarity at a number of positions." NOTES: RB-KR Joe McKnight (head injury) missed practice for a second straight day after needing to be carted off the field and needing oxygen Monday. He declined comment when approached by reporters. ... RB Chris Ivory was a full participant for the third straight practice, and appears on pace to make his Jets game debut Saturday. ... WR Clyde Gates (head injury) returned to practice after missing two days. NT Kenrick Ellis, P Robert Malone and LB Josh Mauga were all out with back issues. ... The Jets have one more practice at Cortland on Thursday, but it is closed to the public and there is no media availability. ' ' '