#169 Kenny Rogers

About the Front: Do you see VBL (Visible Boxer Line) bisecting Kenny Rogers' uniform pants, or is it just me?

About the Back: The note about Kenny being named his high school team's defensive player of the year is interesting, as he went on to win five Gold Gloves during his big league career. I guess if you can pick it in center field, you have no excuses when you switch to the mound.

Triple Play:

1. On July 28, 1994, Rogers tossed a perfect game against the Angels. It came exactly three years after Dennis Martinez (then with the Expos) threw MLB's last perfecto against the Dodgers.

2. In an inexplicably boneheaded act, he was charged with misdemeanor assault in 2005 after bullying a pair of cameramen who had been filming his pregame on-field workout. An initial 20-game suspension was reduced to 13 games upon appeal.

3. He pitched in the majors for 20 seasons, retiring after the 2008 campaign with 219 career wins and 156 losses.

11-Year-Old Kevin Says: I was the kind of cool kid who knew of Kenny Rogers the country singer/fried chicken enthusiast long before I knew of Kenny Rogers the southpaw. So I thought it was a silly name for a pitcher to have.

Bill James Said: "He pitched fairly well, and 'won' 16 games because Gonzalez and Palmeiro hit about a hundred home runs for him."

On This Date in 1993: March 5. Larry Bird, who announced his retirement from the NBA's Boston Celtics the previous summer, undergoes back fusion surgery to soothe the sciatic pain that brought an end to his basketball career.