No-No Means Nothing

A pretty amazing thing happened on Saturday night, as the Dodgers won a game without a single hit, beating the ANAHEIM Angels, 1-0. Matt Kemp reached first on an error, stole 2nd and continued to 3rd on a throwing error, then scored on a Blake DeWitt sacrifice fly. What makes it so amazing is that it's only the 5th time in 125 years that this has occurred! To me, this is one of the best things about baseball- on any given day, you may witness something that has never or rarely happened. Chad Billngsley (above) pitched a great game, and has been the most consistent Dodger pitcher the past month.

The Dodgers still stink, with no power and no run-scoring ability. But now that the D-Backs have collapsed, as i knew they would, we are only 2 1/2 out of first. I will be perfectly fine with sneaking into the playoffs with a crappy record.

TWIB Notes- 6/27

- Shawn Chacon has been suspended and released from the Astros for choking and throwing his GM to the ground. He needs to be kept out for at least a full calendar year for such a stupid move.

- The Indians continue to flounder and may get rid of ace CC Sabathia sooner rather than later. Lots of potential destinations, as the Phillies, Dodgers, and Yanks all vie for a rent-a-player. I would personally rather see the Dodgers get a huge bat, but that seems unlikely.

- Interleague play wraps up for the year this weekend, with traditional rivalries such as Yanks-Mets, Dodgers-Angels, and Braves-Blue Jays. Yes, the ridiculous schedule-makers still have no "natural" rivalries to give some teams, so you get ludicrous matchups like Atlanta-Toronto, which are only 16 hours apart. I actually like interleague play, but they must fix some things, like the completely unfair imbalance- the Yankees, for example, got bottom-feeders Reds, Padres, and Mets this year, while their biggest rival Red Sox played good teams like the Phils, Cards and D-Backs. Everyone in a division should play the same basic schedule to ensure a true pennant race. OK, I'm done. :)

- I don't, for a minute, believe that Curt Schilling is done forever. He will come back next year in hopes of boosting stellar, but still borderline, career numbers to help his Hall of Fame case. I think he gets in even if he never throws another pitch, but it will be close.

George Carlin 1937-2008

It was with great sadness this morning that I heard the news of comedic icon George Carlin's passing at age 71. George was one of my Comedy Mt. Rushmore, and he has weaved his way into my life in so many ways, from the first HBO special I saw of him as a teenager; to watching the rerun of the very first "Saturday Night Live" in 1975, with him as the host (the picture above is the promo pic from the show); to hearing his comedy on Dr. Dimento's radio show; to the current time, where I just recently saw his new 14th HBO special and thought, this guy still has it. Carlin was crass, he used too much "bad" language, according to some, but he used it in a way that made you think, that made the words lose their shock, which is all he ever wanted from his audience. He tackled religion, politics, death, and normal everyday life, and no one was safe.

I had the honor of seeing Carlin in Atlanta a few weeks after 9/11, and it was the first time I really laughed during that sad time. I am even happier today that I did have that opportunity to see this wonderful genius who broke barriers, helped you laugh even when you didn't want to, and led the way to a more open and less Puritanical society. You will be missed old friend, but we can take solace in the fact that you are probably telling St Peter a dirty joke as we speak. And we always have 40 years worth of comedy to keep us laughing. Here are some of his best routines, please enjoy, and laugh. That's what George would want.

His most famous, The Seven Words You Can't Say on Television. Audio only, explicit language:



One of my favorites, comparing Baseball and Football:



And finally, a part of his last special from just 3 months ago, "It's Bad For Ya." Mostly, ironically, about death and the afterlife. Explicit language:

Halfway Home

Last night was the 35th home game of the Blue Rocks' season, officially marking the halfway point. In honor of this, I am posting some of my favorite baseball movie scenes.

First up, one of the best from "Bull Durham", which celebrates its 20th (!!) anniversary this week. Warning: language at work.



And of course, the great scene from "Naked Gun."

TWIB Notes- 6/17

- The Mets have taken over the role of the most classless organization in New York, surpassing the Yankees, at least temporarily. Their firing of Manager Willie Randolph at 3:15 AM via press release is absolutely pathetic. This firing may be overdue, but waiting until the team had flown to Anaheim, and the fact that they had finally started doing well, is absolutely disrespectful of a good guy.

- The Seattle Mariners have cemented their place as my (and others') worst pick of the year. Supposedly ready to contend for the World Series, The M's have the worst record in baseball, behind even the lowly Pirates and Nats. So many things have gone wrong for this team, including Ichiro not hitting, Richie Sexson still coming down from his HGH high, and Eric Bedard not being the stud he was billed as.

- Chien-Mien Wang is out till September. Yankee haters everywhere rejoiced just a little.

- The Dodgers stink, stink, stink. Can't pitch, can't hit, and now are only 2 wins ahead of the pace of the '92 Dodgers, who finished with the worst record in LA history. The fact that we're only 7 games out is amazing. I guess they better wait to put Saint Torre's plaque in Cooperstown.

For Lazard's take, go here.

Where's BK?

There is a picture of our tarp pull from last night on the homepage of bluerocks.com. I am on the far left end in the gray shirt & black shorts and blue and white hat. On my way to superstardom...

Dad

Summer '73


Not a big fan of this day, only beacuse it serves as a reminder of my own failed father-dom. But I do have to give a shout-out to my own Dad, who is the most under-rated father in history, in my humble opinion. The man who was there for me from the beginning. The man who gave me my love for reading, video games, and perhaps most importantly, my love for baseball. Watching games and collecting cards with him remains one of my favorite childhood memories. Have a great day Dad, I can only hope my kids have 1/100th of the admiration for me that I have for you.

MU Graduation '97


My Wedding '07

BK35- Greatest Games

The countdown to 35 continues with the greatest baseball games I have been at. Some are for their historic significance, most are for their importance in my life. In chronological order:

June 10, 1979- Veterans Stadium, Philadelphia- Braves 10, Phillies 3

My first game, got to see 2 Hall-of-Famers pitch. Great way to start an obsession. I covered this in detail last year.

July 11, 1982- Veterans Stadium, Philadelphia- Phillies 4, Dodgers 3

First time I got to see the Dodgers, with Pedro Guererro (above), Ron Cey, Steve Sax, et al. Grandma couldn't believe that a 8-year old knew every player's name and screamed at each of them.

August 4, 1985- Yankee Stadium, New York- White Sox 4, Yankees 1

The only huge milestone game I have attended- Tom Seaver got his 300th win that day. Also Phil Rizzuto Day, only time I saw a number retired.

August 28, 1988- Veterans Stadium, Philadelphia- Dodgers 5, Phillies 0

I am sure i am the only one at this point who knew the Dodgers were on their way to the World Championship. Less than 2 months later, I would be proven right.

October 19, 1999- Turner Field, Atlanta- Braves 10, Mets 9 (11 innings)

Only living in Atlanta for 2 days at this point, I got to see Game 6 of the NLCS, and a great one at that. Piazza homered and Hershiser pitched (unfortunately both for the Mets). Still the only playoff game I have been to.

July 11, 2000- Turner Field, Atlanta- American League 6, National League 3

All Star Game! Not only did I get to work at the FanFest this year, but got to enjoy the game as well.

April 2, 2002- Dodger Stadium, LA- Giants 9, Dodgers 2

First time in Dodger Stadium and I was walking on air. I met Odalis Perez and sat in the infamous rowdy bleachers.

September 11, 2002- Turner Field, Atlanta- Mets 5, Braves 0

On the year anniversary of the horrible events of 9/11, It was the most patriotic game I have ever attended. NYFD was in attendance, it was just a surreal event.

March 9, 2003- Holman Stadium, Vero Beach, FL- Dodgers v. Expos

Got to Dodgertown, and it was even more incredible than the first time in Dodger Stadium. Even more meaning now that they've left.

September 11, 2004- Camden Yards, Baltimore- Yankees 5, Orioles 2

Staci and my first game together. WHo knew that 4 years later we'd have been to 20 parks together on our way to all 30?

April 14, 2005- RFK Stadium, DC- Nationals 5, Diamondbacks 3

First game in DC in 34 years, and the atmosphere was electric. It began a magical 3 months where the Nats were really good.

July 4, 2006- RFK Stadium, DC- Nats 6, Marlins 4

Ryan Zimmerman hits a walk-off homerun to win the game! And...oh yeah, got engaged to my beautiful wife. :)

April 9, 2007- Pfitzner Stadium, Woodbridge, VA- Avalanche 8, P-Nats 0

My first game working in baseball. A feeling that was 20 years in the making.

August 31, 2007- Pfitzner Stadium, Woodbridge, VA- P-Nats 4, Hillcats 0

P-Nats win 11th in a row to end the home season, come up just short of a rush to the playoffs. The beginning of our wedding weekend brought 10 of our family down to the game.

Ads From The Past

With the miserable-ness of the heat, impending homestand, gas prices, etc, etc...I'm taking the day off from the blog. But enjoy these messages from a time when life was much, much easier..

Buffy and the BK:



I loved this crappy cereal!



Which is the more realistic baseball game? Ha ha!

Congrats to the P-Nats

My former club clinched the first-half in the Carolina League last night- it was nice to see that, if it couldn't be the Blue Rocks, since most of the staff from last year is still there. Hopefully Wilmington could put it together in the 2nd half and make for a great matchup come September 2nd!

600!

"February 10, 2000, will go down in Reds history and in baseball history as the night when one of the biggest trades in the history of our sport took place, when the Michael Jordan of baseball came home to Cincinnati." - Cincinnati Reds General Manager Jim Bowden

Last night, Ken Griffey Jr. reached a milestone that hasn't been reached legitimately since Hank Aaron did so in 1971- reached 600 home runs (the 2 "juicers" who have done so in recent years do not count in my record books). He became the 4th player ever to do so, to go along with Aaron, Ruth, and Willie Mays.

Instead of the wistfullness of wondering what could have been, if not for multiple injuries the last 8 years, we should celebrate what may be the biggest "clean" moment the sport has seen in a generation. When Griffey was traded from Seattle to the Reds in 2000, he stood at 398 home runs, at age 30. He was the chosen one, the one who would break Aaron's record of 755 homers. But nothing is guaranteed, and Griffey's body broke down, ironically as his contemporaries were illegally using steroids to avoid such a breakdown. He is also the forgotten man of the Summer of '98, as he kept pace until late August with McGwire and Sosa. How big do the 56 homers he hit that year look now, given what we have learned?

When the dust settles from the so-called Steroids Era, gentlemen who did it right, like Griffey, Greg Maddux (350+ clean career wins), Randy Johnson (2nd most K's ever), Frank Thomas and Mike Piazza will be looked at with reverance as the guys who achieved unthinkable numbers the RIGHT way. My sadness lies not with what Griffey didn't accomplish, but missing the good feeling that I felt last night with all the tainted records we have witnessed.

Congrats, Junior. You deserve to be mentioned with the big three.

Hillary's Graduation

We spent the weekend in Dunmore for my youngest sister's high school graduation, and despite worries of certain drama, everything went off without a hitch. The ceremony was nice, providing laughs (This is Dunmore. This is what we do.), along with the realization that you're getting older as you watch someone you knew as a baby reach life's first true milestone.

Thanks to Mary and Jimmy for hosting the "Other Side" grad party on Saturday night. It was alot of fun, and we got to see how big baby Alanah has gotten. Talk about getting old- when she graduates in 2026, we'll all wish we were as young as we are now.

Longest. Four-Game. Homestand. Ever.

This is how the field looked for the last few days when we've had to pull tarp:





OK, not really, but close. I really cannot remember such a hellish 4 game homestand, last year or this year. And the first game on Monday was fine. Since then, everything that could go wrong or against my hope for ever sleeping again has occurred.

Tuesday- game started at the normal 7:05 time. In the bottom of the ninth with the Rocks losing 2-1, they tie it up and the rains came. If they had not tied, the game would have been over. Instead, after it took the semi-retarded umpires over an hour to decide the monsoon was not stopping, it was decided play would pick up at 5PM on Wednesday, followed by the normally-scheduled game at 7(yes, even if suspended game finished in 5 minutes, we would have to wait till 7. Nice).

Wednesday- after getting 4 hours of sleep, I prepare for 3:45 gates that nobody will be here for. The rains continues till 6:30, so the tarp comes off and the suspended game finally gets going. Thankfully, it only lasts one more inning (the Rocks lose 6-2), and the 7PM game gets pushed to 8PM. Sometime during the 6th inning, with the Rocks losing 3-1, the sky looks ominous again. We all gather by the tarp (on the plus side, this is the most of a game I've seen all year- and got to see an inside-the park homer as well). The drizzle turns into a monsoon, and yet they play on. The umpires are trying to squeeze every second in. In the bottom of the 7th, the Rocks score 2 runs and tie it- and then the umpires delay the game. Then they proceed to take 1 1/2 hours to decide that THIS rain is not stopping either. If they had called it one out earlier, the game would be over. Instead, yup, you guessed it, we have another 5PM start today before the 7PM regular game. That is, if the 60% chance of rain doesn't cause more havoc.

This is part of what I do, I accept that, but the ineptitude of 2 guys who have all the power in this situation is mind-numbing. Trying to get the game in is one thing- making horrible errors in judgement 2 nights in a row is quite another. OK, I'm done. :)

*thanks for the pic Ian!

Kinda Like Old Times

NBA Finals start on Thursday, and with a Lakers- Celtics final, this is the first time in 15 years that I have really cared to watch the games and not just check the score the next morning. The reason is simple- nostalgia. There was a time in my life when the NBA was ahead of the NFL for me, when the Lakers were my cure for when winter came around, when I could name the 12th guy on any NBA team. I was even called Kurt Rambis (below), the only white player of note on those Laker teams, when I played basketball in school (though I was never as good as he was, and the white thing didn't fit either since the guys I played with were all white as well. Ah, kids). Those days have long since passed, and the NBA is a tenuous 4th place for me, behind baseball and pro and college football.



But Lakers vs. Celts will bring out the fans like me, who used to love this game, before it was all about 1000 dollar suits and gangsta rap, before tattoo-covered bodies and endless ESPN highlights, before even Michael Jordan. Magic Johnson and Larry Bird literally saved the NBA, a league that still had Finals games on tape-delay in the late '70s. The Celts and Lakers won all but one championship in the 9 years from 1979-88. And their 3 Finals against each other in that span were instant classics. Yes, I will be watching the next few weeks- but more for Worthy, Kareem, Parrish, and Ainge, than KG and Kobe. Maybe they can capture just a little "magic" that made this a once-great league.

For the opinion of someone rooting on the other side please go here.

New York, New York

The end of a busy week for us concluded in the Big Apple. On Saturday, we went to Shea for a Good Riddance visit, as I saw my Dodgers for the first time this year. The best part about it was seeing the magnificent beauty rising up behind it, Citi Field, which will open next year and whose outer fascade looks so similar to my beloved (but never seen) Ebbets Field. You can it below and also beyond the outfield above.



On Sunday, we headed to Yankee Stadium for a tour of the soon-to-be gone old park. It was pretty neat from a baseball perspective, standing on the same field and same dugout (as we are in pic below) where so many greats have played. Again, I think my biggest thrill was seeing the new Stadium going up next door, as it also is paying tribute to the past with its outer fascade looking like Yankee Stadium should look (and hasn't since 1974 remodeling). See below for that. All in all, a fun weekend of baseball past and present.