Monday, August 16, 2004
Guest post by Luke, links by me
Says Hanger-on Luke, referring to yesterday's Cubs/Dodgers game
Jim: Much better than the guy Matt Bailey and I encountered on L.A.'s Red Line on Sunday who heard us comparing the L.A. subway system with the Chicago 'L', the D.C. Metro, and Atlanta's MARTA, and proceeded to semi-coherently mumble something about taking the subway to other countries. He was speaking quietly, though, and ended up getting off the train at Vermont & Sunset.
Later, a friend of Matt's who was in Chicago called him, and told a tale of woe about his companions who bought tickets to the Cubs game from a scalper for $80...and soon discovered the tickets to be counterfeit.
Levi: According to a couple of reverse directories online, the phone number the guy was shouting doesn't exist. Or if it does, it doesn't turn up a listing.
I suppose I could test by calling it, but Bud Selig might answer the phone, and I wouldn't like to have to be responsible for my behavior in that situation.
Luke, hanger-on: Whoops, I misremembered the phone number, which is remarkable considering how many times it was bellowed into my ear: It's in fact (414) 225-8900.
Steve: Quien es mas retarded? The guy described in the above post or the dudes who bought $80 counterfit tickets?
Levi: Mas retarded? Kyle Farnsworth. Hands down.
Or is that mas estoned?
If I had a baseball blog I'd write about the fan I sat in front of
today. He was a real piece of work, a young man clearly mentally disabled but
both in love with and enraged by his Cubs, sort of a Rain Man with a
mean streak and Cubby-blue blood.
When I got to my seat he was already ranting--to nobody in particular
--about Corey Patterson and how he's not a lead-off batter. Then he was
going off on how Aramis Ramirez should be starting: "Dusty, you are not
a doctor! Aramis is not hurt!" Once the umps took the field, he started
yelling at them, reciting from memory the rule book's description of
the strike zone.
All this from Aisle 534.
He kept a tally of questionable balls and strikes. With each one --
more than 20 of them -- he'd explode: "This is ridiculous! We're going to
replace you with a computer! With QuesTec, Fox Box AND! OR! a fifth
umpire in the booth AND! OR! instant replay! And we're sending you to the eye
doctor! And we're sending you back to umpiring school. AND WE'RE GOING
TO CALL THE COMMISSIONER! 1414! 225! 3900!"
Every. Single. Time. After the fifth time the entire section could
mouth along with him, as not a single word -- nor his intense volume -- would
deviate over the course of the game.
He also was very displeased that the Commissioner was not there as
scheduled for Greg Maddux Day, as he had a few things he needed to tell
Bud. He expressed dismay that Jim Hendry never wants to talk to him.
Another screed: "Dusty is the stupidest manager ever. Why doesn't he
want to win? I have an IQ of 120 -- I am smarter than Dusty! We will always
hate you, Dusty! WE WILL ALWAYS HATE YOU!"
And you should have seen him go nuts when Farnsworth came in and
proceeded to implode.
Since he wasn't swearing or threatening fans, there wasn't really
anything security could do, other than try to get him to calm down. He would
not.
It gets better: When he wasn't yelling at the umps or Dusty, he was
calling up ESPN radio and other sports media on his cell phone and
leaving long messages calmly describing Dusty's many felonies -- occasionally
pausing to scream toward the field. It seemed, however, that every time
he did this, the Cubs would proceed to do something good. Thus, Monday
morning some schlub at ESPN is going to have to listen to all these
messages, and as he listens to this fan moan about Corey Patterson, he
will hear in the background Corey Patterson rapping a single to center.
As he listens to a rant about the bullpen, he will hear in the background
Kent Mercker getting a strikeout to end the inning.
It was nothing short of amazing. I think I was the only one in my
section who appreciated him, even though he was yelling right into my ear. I
had to concede he was one of the best-informed fans in the stadium. Much
better him than some drunk frat boy yelling "You suck, Pujols!"
IT WAS RIDICULOUS!
Original comments...
Jim: Much better than the guy Matt Bailey and I encountered on L.A.'s Red Line on Sunday who heard us comparing the L.A. subway system with the Chicago 'L', the D.C. Metro, and Atlanta's MARTA, and proceeded to semi-coherently mumble something about taking the subway to other countries. He was speaking quietly, though, and ended up getting off the train at Vermont & Sunset.
Later, a friend of Matt's who was in Chicago called him, and told a tale of woe about his companions who bought tickets to the Cubs game from a scalper for $80...and soon discovered the tickets to be counterfeit.
Levi: According to a couple of reverse directories online, the phone number the guy was shouting doesn't exist. Or if it does, it doesn't turn up a listing.
I suppose I could test by calling it, but Bud Selig might answer the phone, and I wouldn't like to have to be responsible for my behavior in that situation.
Luke, hanger-on: Whoops, I misremembered the phone number, which is remarkable considering how many times it was bellowed into my ear: It's in fact (414) 225-8900.
Steve: Quien es mas retarded? The guy described in the above post or the dudes who bought $80 counterfit tickets?
Levi: Mas retarded? Kyle Farnsworth. Hands down.
Or is that mas estoned?
Labels: aramis ramirez, bud selig, corey patterson, cubs, dodgers, dusty baker, greg maddux, jim hendry, kent mercker, kyle farnsworth, radio
Tuesday, July 20, 2004
Cards/Cubs notes
I'm only here at the office half a day today, so all I've got today is a few quick notes from last night's game:
1) Wendell Kim has failed to master any of the three elements of a third-base coach's job. As I see it, those elements are knowing the speed of the runners on your team, knowing the quality of the throwing arm of the opposing outfielders, and knowing, at the very least, how many outs have been made already in an inning. Breaking down last night's Wavin' Wendell moment, we see that Kim sent a slightly hobbled runner, Aramis Ramirez (Element 1), against the great arm of Reggie Sanders (Element 2) when there were no outs in the inning (Element 3). Hilarity ensued.
Kim was apologetic after the game.
2) In the 4th inning, after Jim Edmonds deposited a ball onto Sheffield, he admired his shot too long for Carlos Zambrano's taste. Now, my seatmate, Michelle, and I didn't notice anything, and even as we watched the slow-motion replay on the TV hanging above our heads, we didn't think Edmonds had been out of line. Zambrano thought differently, so he yelled at him, almost precipitated a brawl, and then in the 8th, after giving up another home run, this one to Rolen, he hit Edmonds. I agree with Phil Rogers today (Wow. That's the first time that's happened that I know of. And I thought it was weird when I found myself agreeing with something Pat Buchanan said recently. These are strange days indeed.) in the Tribune: if you're pitching for a team whose superstar does a wiggly little hop every time he homers, you should probably keep quiet about demonstrations by your opponents.
3) Zambrano was ejected immediately after hitting Edmonds--who, to his credit took his base in manly, "I'm above this shit--and we're about to have a 9-game lead" fashion, singlehandedly preventing a brawl--which led Michelle and me to consider the rules. Zambrano knew he would be ejected for hitting Edmonds, as both benches had been warned earlier. Because there was no one getting ready in the bullpen, Mike Remlinger, when called upon, was given all the time he needed to get warmed up.
Michelle and I agreed that that's an understandable policy. After all, it's not in anyone's interest to have pitchers getting injured because they only got eight warm-up tosses. But we also agreed that such a policy could lead to abuse by managers: in this case, Zambrano had just given up the lead. He wasn't going to be lifted from the game, but it's easy to imagine a circumstance in which the manager, his pitcher suddenly falling apart on the mound, has him get ejected from the game in order to avoid having to keep him out there for another batter or two while the reliever gets ready.
But I came up with a solution to this problem. The reliever who enters following an ejection gets all the time he needs to warm up . . . but the opposing manager gets to pick who that reliever is. Jeff Fassero, are you hiding down there behind the tarp? Come on down! Mel Rojas, are you in the clubhouse wrapped in a towel? Tony LaRussa would like to see you!
Next time I harangue the Commish in a dream, I'll suggest that change in the rules.
4) And a quick note on selectivity and patience at the plate. I was tracking pitches while keeping score last night. Cubs leadoff man Mark Grudzielanek saw only eight pitches while making four outs. Meanwhile, Cardinals leadoff man Tony Womack, in the course of going 0-3 with two walks, used up 21 pitches. That lack of patience has dogged nearly all the Cubs all year long, and it goes a long way towards explaining how Chris Carpenter was able to get through eight innings last night on only 97 pitches and four earned runs despite giving up 12 hits. Well, that and point #1 above.
1) Wendell Kim has failed to master any of the three elements of a third-base coach's job. As I see it, those elements are knowing the speed of the runners on your team, knowing the quality of the throwing arm of the opposing outfielders, and knowing, at the very least, how many outs have been made already in an inning. Breaking down last night's Wavin' Wendell moment, we see that Kim sent a slightly hobbled runner, Aramis Ramirez (Element 1), against the great arm of Reggie Sanders (Element 2) when there were no outs in the inning (Element 3). Hilarity ensued.
Kim was apologetic after the game.
2) In the 4th inning, after Jim Edmonds deposited a ball onto Sheffield, he admired his shot too long for Carlos Zambrano's taste. Now, my seatmate, Michelle, and I didn't notice anything, and even as we watched the slow-motion replay on the TV hanging above our heads, we didn't think Edmonds had been out of line. Zambrano thought differently, so he yelled at him, almost precipitated a brawl, and then in the 8th, after giving up another home run, this one to Rolen, he hit Edmonds. I agree with Phil Rogers today (Wow. That's the first time that's happened that I know of. And I thought it was weird when I found myself agreeing with something Pat Buchanan said recently. These are strange days indeed.) in the Tribune: if you're pitching for a team whose superstar does a wiggly little hop every time he homers, you should probably keep quiet about demonstrations by your opponents.
3) Zambrano was ejected immediately after hitting Edmonds--who, to his credit took his base in manly, "I'm above this shit--and we're about to have a 9-game lead" fashion, singlehandedly preventing a brawl--which led Michelle and me to consider the rules. Zambrano knew he would be ejected for hitting Edmonds, as both benches had been warned earlier. Because there was no one getting ready in the bullpen, Mike Remlinger, when called upon, was given all the time he needed to get warmed up.
Michelle and I agreed that that's an understandable policy. After all, it's not in anyone's interest to have pitchers getting injured because they only got eight warm-up tosses. But we also agreed that such a policy could lead to abuse by managers: in this case, Zambrano had just given up the lead. He wasn't going to be lifted from the game, but it's easy to imagine a circumstance in which the manager, his pitcher suddenly falling apart on the mound, has him get ejected from the game in order to avoid having to keep him out there for another batter or two while the reliever gets ready.
But I came up with a solution to this problem. The reliever who enters following an ejection gets all the time he needs to warm up . . . but the opposing manager gets to pick who that reliever is. Jeff Fassero, are you hiding down there behind the tarp? Come on down! Mel Rojas, are you in the clubhouse wrapped in a towel? Tony LaRussa would like to see you!
Next time I harangue the Commish in a dream, I'll suggest that change in the rules.
4) And a quick note on selectivity and patience at the plate. I was tracking pitches while keeping score last night. Cubs leadoff man Mark Grudzielanek saw only eight pitches while making four outs. Meanwhile, Cardinals leadoff man Tony Womack, in the course of going 0-3 with two walks, used up 21 pitches. That lack of patience has dogged nearly all the Cubs all year long, and it goes a long way towards explaining how Chris Carpenter was able to get through eight innings last night on only 97 pitches and four earned runs despite giving up 12 hits. Well, that and point #1 above.
Labels: aramis ramirez, Cardinals, carlos zambrano, chris carpenter, cubs, jim edmonds, mark grudzielanek, mike remlinger, reggie sanders, scott rolen, tony womack, wendell kim
