Anyone who reads Big League Stew knows that the Fashion Ump is generally a fan of any team that decides to go with the old-school powder blue uniform.

That said, he's never been particularly fond of how the Royals choose to remember the days of Dick Howser, Frank White and Willie Wilson. Instead of going all the way with true throwbacks, the kings of Kauffman have gone with modern and inferior jerseys and haven't shown enough courage to match them with powder blue pants.

Now the Royals are going to wear this powder blue hat with the powder blue jerseys during home day games in 2010 and ol' Fashion Ump can't say he's excited as some. 

After all, the whole point to wearing throwbacks is to summon our warm and fuzzy memories of the past. When the Blue Jays go with their historically-accurate getups, it's easy to squint and think we're watching the glory days of Lloyd Moseby and Rance Mulliniks at Exhibition Stadium instead of the somewhat-depressing bunch that currently inhabits the Rogers Centre. It works.

Contrast that to the Royals, a team that will still only remind us of mail carriers while donning caps that never sat upon George Brett's dome. When they adopted the adapted powder blue jersey in 2008, we told the Royals it wasn't so much the color as it was the memory.

They apparently haven't been listening.   

Fashion Ump ruling: Foul ball

Over the past few postseasons, the wait between rounds has been good for a great number of things: Writing the great American novel, growing a gigantic beard and conceiving children before seeing them off to college.

It has not, however, been good for baseball, a sport that values the rhythm of everyday play and the benefits of a deep pitching staff. Last month, the Yankees and Angels finished their division series on a Monday, but didn't face off until the following Friday. That led Los Angeles manager Mike Scioscia to publicly gripe the league and television networks were threatening the integrity of the game by dragging their feet.

At any rate, Scioscia's words must carry some weight at MLB HQ because Bud Selig spoke on the issue and admitted a problem at the owner's meetings in Chicago on Wednesday. 

Here's what the commissioner told reporters:

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Welcome to 'Duk's Dozen, a streamlined selection of 12 morning-fresh links and items to start your baseball day. It welcomes your email submissions and tips here or via Twitter. 

1. Jim Tracy, manager of the year? That's news to folks in Pittsburgh and L.A. Bugs & Cranks
2. Tyler Kepner speaks for us all when he says manager of the year is an "odd award." NYT
3. It can also be a valuable one, as evidenced by Tracy's contract extension. Denver Post
4. Bud Selig isn't worried about the fighting between Mommy and Daddy Dodger. LA Times
5. "We signed our free agent already. His name is Jake Peavy(notes)." South Side Sox
6. Sandy Alomar Jr.(notes) is back with the Indians as a first base coach. Waiting For Next Year
7. Have J.J. Hardy(notes) and NKOTB shared parallel careers? MPD thinks so. Miller Park Drunk
8. How much does Zack Greinke(notes) really understand about FIP? Fack Youk
9. Tom Hicks is making a last-ditch effort to keep owning the Rangers. Lone Star Ball
10. Loyal Stewie Brandon Cohen predicts the landing spot of each free agent. Pinstriper
11. Pete Rose's girlfriend talks about wanting to appear in Playboy. Sports Radio Interviews
12. Mickey Mouse had better things to do when A-Rod showed up to Disney World. The Onion

It's one of those strange facts I always seem to forget, then act amazed by when reminded of it again.

Back in Oct. 1994, the BBWAA handed out its annual awards as usual — no matter if ballparks had been empty for over two months, the World Series had been canceled or the league's players were striking and  alienating fans across the country.

Frank Thomas and Jeff Bagwell took home MVP honors.

Bob Hamelin and Raul Mondesi, both future Hall of Famers, were named the top rookies in baseball. 

Greg Maddux and David Cone won the Cy Young, while Buck Showalter and Felipe Alou won manager of the year in their respective leagues.

All for an uncompleted season that effectively ended when the strike began on Aug. 12.

The Sports Illustrated Vault contains an excellent Steve Wulf article from that season and it covers most of the questions we'd ask of the writers 15 years later.

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We would usually be totally steamed if an outlet like MTV News completely ripped off one of our trademark Big League Stew photo illustrations — painstakingly crafted with the precision moves of our own mice! — and then another blog incorrectly credited it to the network. 

But when an outlet like MTV News takes Dave Brown's classic photoshop job of Alex Rodriguez(notes) as a centaur, whips it out in front of a clearly peeved Kate Hudson and then asks if the Yankees slugger has something similar hanging above his bed?

Well, then it's almost enough to make us overlook the fact that the entertainment reporter nimbot tells Goldie Hawn Jr. he found it in a "reputable magazine" like US Weekly and not on a "reputable baseball blog" like Big League Stew.

Almost. 

Welcome to 'Duk's Dozen, a streamlined selection of 12 morning-fresh links and items to start your baseball day. It welcomes your email submissions and tips here or via Twitter.

1. Zack Greinke(notes) stays mindful of FIP during games, wins a Cy Young. NYT
2. He also delights and validates stats-minded folks everywhere. USS Mariner
3. Kansas Citians pause to savor a rare professional sports highlight. KC Star
4. For an additional fee, teams can get a negotiating window with Roy Halladay(notes). Drunk Jays Fans
5. Joba Chamberlain(notes) says he wants Andy Pettitte(notes) to return in 2010. NYDN
6. Ernie Harwell sat down with Bob Costas for a memorable interview. True Blue LA
7. Could today's Cy Young slight be tomorrow's Hall of Fame snub?  Amazin' Avenue
8. Jim Riggleman returns the favor, hires John McLaren as coach in Washington. Nats Enquirer
9. The Nats have decided John Lackey(notes) will be the token free agent they won't sign. MLB
10. Cards already crying poor when it comes to resigning Matt Holliday(notes). Post Dispatch
11. Alex Ramirez and Yu Darvish have been named the MVPs in Japan. Associated Press
12. Emma Span ranks the Yankees roster by best dog name. Nothing against Melky, Joba or Wang but I'd simply go classic and choose either Mickey, Yogi or Joe D. Bugs & Cranks

Worry no longer, Kansas City.

After a few months of local fretting that Cy Young voters wouldn't be able to see past a relatively low victory total  or would simply be blinded by the glare from a bigger market ace, the brilliance of Zack Greinke's 2009 season prevailed in dominating fashion.

The Kansas City ace received 25 of 28 first-place votes on Tuesday afternoon to win his first Cy Young award and provide a downtrodden baseball market with something to crow about. Seattle's Felix Hernandez received two first place votes to finish second and was followed by Detroit's Justin Verlander (one first place vote), New York's CC Sabathia and Toronto's Roy Halladay. No previous AL winner had won less than 18 games in a full season (KC's David Cone had 16 in the 1994 strike season) and five of the last six recipients have come from the AL Central.

That Greinke would win in a landslide shouldn't have come as a surprise. Despite playing on a 97-loss team, The Grinch posted eye-popping numbers from the start to finish of a 16-8 season, leading the league in ERA (2.16) and WHIP (1.07) and finishing second in strikeouts (242) and complete games (six). Picked with the sixth selection of the 2002 draft, Greinke finally made the jump into the league's upper echelon of aces in 2009 and that he did it after battling depression and social anxiety disorder makes it all the more impressive.

In recognition of a fantastic campaign, here's a look at five of his more memorable starts:

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Welcome to 'Duk's Dozen, a streamlined selection of 12 morning-fresh links and items to start your baseball day. It welcomes your email submissions and tips here or via Twitter. 

1. First the Chicago Tribune gives some legs to a SoxNet report that the White Sox, Angels and Padres have discussed a three-way deal that would send Adrian Gonzalez(notes) to Chicago and Paul Konerko(notes) to Anaheim ... Chicago Tribune
2. ... then Sun-Times beat writer Joe Cowley blasts the Tribune on Twitter for advancing the possibility, which he reported had already been shot down in early October. Who said the Windy City newspaper war was lifeless? Twitter
3. Now baseball's owners are taking over the O'Hare Hilton for a few meetings. MLB
4. Is there any doubt Derek Jeter(notes) will be named SI's Sportsman of the Year? Bugs & Cranks
5. CC Sabathia(notes) has achieved a lot, but he's still waiting to join the Black Aces. Bronx Baseball Daily
6. The Mets are intrigued by the possibility of overpaying Joel Pineiro(notes). MLBTR
7. Why Tim Lincecum(notes) should be announced as the NL Cy Young on Thursday. McCovey Chronicles
8. Anyone want a guaranteed World Series berth? Eric Hinske(notes) is a free agent again. FanGraphs
9. At what price should the Cubs consider trading for Curtis Granderson(notes)? Desipio
10. Pondering the possibilities of the Tigers moving Miguel Cabrera(notes). Bless You Boys
11. The 10 best Baseball-Reference sponsorships. Baseball Junk Drawer
12. Shane Victorino(notes) wore shorts to his wedding? Of course he did. It was in Hawaii. The 700 Level

The topic of instant replay came up at the general manager meetings today, but conversation was apparently limited to the current system and did not touch upon expanding it past home run calls.

Instead, the stubborn general managers symbolically lined up behind commissioner Bud Selig in a stance that sees no use for making sure the game is called fairly and accurately.

I mean, it's enough to make a baseball fan run toward the nearest cement wall with his or her head lowered.   

Jimmie Lee Solomon, one of Selig's guys, said the GMs were briefed by an umpiring official on training, evaluation and structure. I would guess that means that MLB is looking to make umpires more accountable for their calls.

And after the disasters of the just-passed postseason, I suppose that's good news.

But it's not nearly good enough. Though hell hath no fury like the baseball blogosphere piling on an umpire's blown call, I still believe that no one feels worse in the aftermath than the man in blue himself. Umpires aren't going to get more calls right because they're subject to a harsher penalty; they're already putting enough pressure on themselves as it is.

And since we live in a world of 78 camera angles per game and frame-by-frame replay, there's no way for an umpire to be 100 percent accurate and escape public ridicule.

Look, the technology could easily be there to provide a safety net for the human element on the field. It came through without much lost time during A-Rod's camera home run during Game 3 of the World Series and has been streamlined in almost every other sport.

Why not let it come through in other spots that are just as crucial?

Why must this be so difficult?