Josh Beckett vs. Kosuke Fukudome (video)

Links (3)

Video: Josh Beckett pitching in high school
Published 1/23/2008 by Dan Lamothe, Red Sox Monster at Red Sox Monster - MassLive.com
With all the Pats-related nonsense to sort through, there's not much to say here this morning at Red Sox Monster. There is, however, this video that Home Run Derby passes along . It's Josh Beckett in high school, facing Japanese phenom Kosuke Fukudome in 1997. I'm not gonna lie: If it wasn't Josh Beckett pitching in this video, my eyes would have started to bleed in boredom after the first 30 seconds. As it stands, it's an interesting piece of culture and a stark reminder that as much as we complain about Joe Buck, things can always be worse.

Baby Josh vs. Fukodome
Published 1/23/2008 by Texas Gal at Center Field
Way back in 1997, back before the Red Sox and the Cubs hoopla, a seventeen year-old Josh Beckett in his junior year of high school pitched against a twenty year-old Kosuke Fukudome. As part of the annual Grand Forks International Baseball Tournament up north of the border in Grand Forks, B.C., the reigning tourney champion Japan national team faced off against the semi-pro Reno Astros out of Reno, Nevada. Fortunately for the Astros, they were able to borrow Beckett from a Texas team just for the tournament. Home Run Derby ...

Video Thursday
Published 1/24/2008 by Rob G. at The Cub Reporter (TCR) | A Chicago Cubs Blog -
Here’s a couple of videos sent to me the last few days. The first comes from Rich at Home Run Derby, who emailed me this video of Kosuke Fukudome versus Josh Beckett circa 1997. Maybe we’ll see a repeat in October… The second video is courtesy of one of our readers who wishes to remain nameless. It’s a clip of Jim Hendry down in the Dominican Republic watching Felix Pie hit a home run. A rather priceless reaction by Hendry; good to see he’s still a fan of the game even though it’s his everyday job. ...