There could be some history made on Friday night in Buffalo. Johnny Boychuk Jersey . 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! Cheap NHL Jerseys . The All Blacks played their best rugby of recent years when they beat South Africa 38-27 in Johannesburg two weeks ago, clinching the Rugby Championships in a match which has been hailed as one of the best ever played. Nick Leddy Jersey . Pillar is batting .305 with 17 extra-base hits, 19 RBI and five stolen bases in 34 games for Buffalo this season. The right-handed hitter had an International League high, 18-game hitting streak this season and currently owns an IL high 26-game on base streak. http://www.islandersauthority.com/ . -- The Toronto Maple Leafs are tightening the race for second place in the Atlantic Division.BOWLING GREEN, Ky. -- Montrezl Harrells sudden meltdown appeared costly for fourth-ranked Louisville until Terry Rozier stepped up to provide composure for the Cardinals. Not to mention some timely baskets and a career-high 32 points. Rozier took charge after the first-half ejection of Montrezl Harrell to score 26 points in the second half and lead the Cardinals past Western Kentucky 76-67 on Saturday. We knew it was going to be tough playing without Trez, Rozier said after making 9 of 16 from the field and 11 of 13 from the foul line. It was big losing him, so we all had to step up. I wasnt the only one making shots. We all did something. Rozier closed Louisvilles scoring with five free throws down the stretch that followed three 3-pointers to quash the Hilltoppers hopes of seizing momentum following Harrells exit with 38.7 seconds remaining in the first half. The preseason first-team All-American was assessed a flagrant-2 foul for throwing an elbow following a shoving match after a loose ball scramble. After the officials reviewed video, Harrell was assessed a Flagrant 2 foul and ejected. Western Kentuckys D.J. Clayton received a technical foul, along with technicals issued to both benches. Harrell departed with 14 points and six rebounds and apologized to his teammates at halftime. He was remorseful after the game and said his outburst was spur of the moment. It was a heated situation in a dog pile and it took a turn for the worst, honestly. It was just a bad day. ... I know I shouldnt have reacted in that way and Im truly sorry and apologize for the way I reacted. Louisvilles top player then asked Cardinal teammates to pick things up in his absence. Chris Jones added 10 points for Louisville (10-0), which made 5 of 10 from long range in the second half to keep a safe cushion against WKU (5-5). Freshman 7-footer Anas Mahmoud added six points and five rebounds as the Cardinals outrebounded theeir in-state rival 37-35 and made 26 of 30 free throws. Brock Nelson Jersey. We always talk about keeping a level head no matter what the environment may be, Louisville assistant Kenny Johnson said afterward in place of head coach Rick Pitino. Montrezl owned up to his part in the mistake and thats what happens in everyday life as well as in basketball, people make mistakes. Basketball is a game of adverse situations and that was an adverse situation that we had to overcome. T.J. Price scored 24 points and D.J. Clayton 14 for the Hilltoppers, who got within 73-67 with 39 seconds left before Rozier added three free throws to seal the victory in a game was at times ragged and chippy. I dont think it had anything to do with (Louisville missing) Montrezl, WKU coach Ray Harper said. It had to do with us missing free throws on the front end with one-and-ones. You cant beat good teams and shoot 60 per cent from the free-throw line. ------ TIP-INS Louisville: Rozier also had five rebounds and three steals. ... The Cardinals evened the series at 39 wins each. Western Kentucky: The Hilltoppers trailed 29-24 at halftime, their lowest first-half total this season. WKU scored 26 points against Bowling Green on Dec. 3. TEED UP Besides Harrell earning his first career ejection, WKUs Clayton received a technical foul for his part in the first-half tussle. T.J. Price and Louisvilles Mangok Mathiang received second-half technicals. Rumour MILL Jones called crazy a social media buzz this week that the Memphis native would transfer to play for the hometown Tigers. My high school coach called me to ask was I transferring and I was like, What are you talking about? the senior guard said. I havent done anything to get kicked off the team. ... It is what it is, trying to get us off focus. UP NEXT: Louisville: Hosts Cal State Northridge on Tuesday. Western Kentucky: Hosts Brescia (Kentucky) on Saturday. 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