Looking at the Game of Baseball from all ends of the Spectrum
There are obvious perks to being a manager of a Chicago major league team in Chicago. You’re famous and you have the respect and adoration of at least half the town. You get to hang with people like Derrick Lee and umm.. Nick Swisher.
Ozzie gettin’ his groove on for a Chevy dealer
But then there those days where you throw all your self-respect out the window. All for an ad for a two-bit Chevy dealership.
C’mon Lou… was this in your contract or are you really that hard up for money??
Fresno State has defeated the University of Georgia 6-1 in game three to take the best of three series 2-1. They are the lowest seed ever to win the College World Series. 33 losses is the most ever by a championship team. But this team would not be denied, beating Georgia two out of three games, after Georgia hadn’t lost a single game in the tournament before this series.
Steve Detwiler the rightfielder for Fresno State was the difference in this one at the plate. Detwiler hit a two run homer just out of the rightfielder’s leaping grasp in his first at bat. His second time up he doubled home a run. Then he capped off his night with a three run no doubt about it blast to left, to account for all the Fresno State runs. The most amazing thing about Steve’s heroics is that he needs surgery to replace a completely torn ligament in his left thumb. This sophomore was in agony whenever he swung & missed, maybe that was motivation for him to connect.
Meanwhile lefthanded starter Justin Wilson had the game completely in hand, with pinpoint control, he dominated Georgia, allowing only a solo home run to Gordon Beckham in the 8th inning. A defining moment happened in the first inning when Wilson was forced to pitch out of a bases loaded jam in which his defense let him down, two errors. I shouldn’t be surprised to see the Pirates drafted Justin, especially because of their tendancy to draft lefthanded pitchers. This kid has alot of moxy and it’s good to see he can pitch around errors, seeing he might be with the Buccos. Wilson reminded everyone of a young David Wells.
As a freshman Gordon Beckham grounded into a doubleplay to end his tournament dreams. This time he hit his 28th homer in his final trip to the dish, but it didn’t matter as Georgia lost to Fresno State. Still Beckham had a great year and I look forward to seeing him on the Southside of Chicago, maybe as early as next year.
MLB is pushing their apps for not just the iPhone it seems.
I was in Chicago over the weekend and ran across these creepy looking walking advertisements for Blackberry’s application for MLB.com so I took a photo of one of them with my cell phone.
There were two of them doing their thing by Watertower Place and they had the web address for MLB’s app for the Blackberry plastered on the front.
Arroyo 1 IP, 11 H, 10 R, 10 ER, 1 BB, 1 SO, 3 HR, 6.52 ERA (L, 4-7)
Marco Scutaro singles, Joe Inglett walks, Alex Rios singles, bases loaded, nobody out. Vernon Wells strikes out, how embarrassing! A sacfly by Matt Stairs scores Scutaro. Scott Rolen launches a three run home run. Lyle Overbay doubles, Gregg Zaun rips a two run bomb. Mound visit results in a force play by Inglett, after Adam Lind & Scutaro singled. End of first inning 6-0 Blue Jays.
Reds score one in the top of the 2nd, there is hope, no there’s not. Rios homers to left, Wells singles, Stairs doubles home Vernon. Another trip to the mound, a wild pitch moves Stairs to 3rd, Rolen doubles Matt home. Coach comes out and takes ball from Arroyo. Overbay singles Rolen to third off new pitcher Gary Majewski. Zaun pops out, Lind’s singles plates Rolen to close the book on Bronson. Scutaro singles to load the bases, Overbay scores on Inglett’s groundout, and then Rios strikes out, 11-1 after two.
I suppose I could have given the Linescore of the Day to the Toronto Blue Jays O-ffense, but decided Arroyo had as much to do for the outburst as anyone. It should be noted that this was the first game back for new/old Blue Jays skipper Cito Gaston. Manager John Gibbons & hitting coach Gary Denbo lost their jobs in part due to a lack of offense. Before the game new hitting coach told the club, “don’t think, just go up there & swing the bats”. Nice coaching Gino!
Fresno State was down 5-0 in game 2 of the best of three game series, after losing the opener the night before. Although Georgia might’ve thought it was over, Tommy Mendonca had other ideas as he blasted a three run shot deep over the rightfield wall in the bottom of the 3rd with two aboard to make it 6-5 Fresno State. In the top of the 4th Gordon Beckham singled home the tying run from 2nd to knot the game at 6.
The wheels came off for Georgia in the bottom of the 4th as Fresno State exploded for five more runs, and then added four more in the bottom of the 5th to make it 15-6. Georgia scored four times in the top of the 7th, but when Fresno State tacked on another three in the bottom of the 7th, it was pretty much over 18-10, after seven. The final score ended up being 19-11. Can’t wait to see the finale tonight.
One thing that was kind of frustrating was when Georgia had runners on 1st & 2nd, one out, and the batter popped up a bunt, Orel Hershiser said, “The umpire should’ve called the infield fly rule”. The infield fly cannot be called on a bunt. Come on Orel, know your rules!
I’m watching the 2008 NCAA Baseball World Series in part because of Gordon Beckham. The White Sox drafted the University of Georgia SS Beckham with the 8th pick in the draft. Although he hasn’t yet signed with Chicago, not until after the College World Series is over, I still consider Gordon a member of my Southside club. Can’t wait till he’s playing SS at the Cell.
Even if there wasn’t a future White Sox star playing I’d probably be tuned in, my dream is to one day go to Nebraska, and watch the World Series in person. This one would have been a good one to be at. Kind of a weird twist to an old dream, Chicago boy goes to Nebraska, to make dream come true. Anyway I’m a baseball geek, what can I say?
So I’m up in Waupaca and turned the game on TV in the living room at our cottage. The Fresno State Bulldogs (I can’t believe they made it to the finals) jump out to a 6-3 lead in game one of the best two out of three series. It’s already the 7th inning, things aren’t looking good for the Dawgs, as the wounded Fresno State players are coming up with some big blasts. Anyway a bloop & a blast later in the 8th inning, and it’s 6-5.
Following the bloop hit, Beckham greeted Fresno State closer Brandon Burke with the blast. Maybe if Burke had been brought in before the bloop, things might’ve been different, but MO was on Georgia’s side now. Before the dust had settled the Bulldawgs from Georgia were leading 7-6, Joshua Fields closed out the 9th, and the series stands at 1-0 the University of Georgia.
But don’t count Fresno State out, they are fighters, who will not give up. They have left many good ballclubs along the side of the road on their way to this Championship Series.
The Chicago Cubs have completed the Crosstown Classic at Wrigley Field why the Chicago Cubs are in first place. It has nothing to do with anything, but a mighty fine baseball club. The White Sox dropped all three games this past weekend playing at the un-Friendly Confines. Friday’s game was close, maybe with a bunt, following a leadoff 9th inning double, and the outcome could’ve been different. That’s like saying if IFs, ANDs, & BUTs were CANDY & NUTS everyday would be Christmas.
Aramis Ramirez was the star of the series, hitting two out Friday (including the game winner), knocking a three run blast that put Saturday’s game on ice, and hitting his 4th of the three game series was just the cherry on top of a Delicious Cubbie Sundae! The Cubs have the best record in baseball and are unbeatable at Wrigley.
Of course I’m a White Sox fan, but I’m willing to give the Cubbies their do. I’ll be at the Cell this coming Friday & Sunday to see the Southside version of the Crosstown Classic. I’ll be rooting for the Sox to return in the favor this weekend. My winning streak is at ten, hopefully I can increase it to twelve, and maybe the Sox can win one without me on Saturday. LET’S GO WHITE SOX!
Way to go Cubs!
Midway through the Cubs-Sox game today, A.J. Pierzynski had his mug on the on the front of mlb.com’s website. This was due to his fifth homer of the season which put the Sox ahead 3-1 in the third inning. Meanwhile, Aramis Ramirez was just getting warmed up.
Aram followed up a Derrick Lee solo shot with one of his own to tie the game in the seventh. Two innings later, hit a walk-off homer against Scott Linebrink to win it all 4-3.
A.J. KOed by Wood!
A.J did have a chance with a runner in scoring position in the top of the ninth. But AJ Pie got called on a swinging strike going just a little too far. AJ wasn’t none too happy about that, throwing his helmet to the ground and neither was Sox manager Ozzie Guillen who threw up a dismissive hand.
A tough no-decision by John Danks who allowed just one run in six frames for the Sox. On the other hand, the bullpen (this time Howry and Wood, who got the win) came through for the Cubs something they haven’t done in a few games.
Let’s get them tomorrow!!
Some thoughts about the first play of his Mets managerial Debut:
Former Sox manager Jerry Manuel gets another managerial job. Should be interesting to see if the Mets put on a second half charge.
I wonder if Jerry Manuel lost control of the team on the FIRST PLAY of his first game Wednesday night against the Angels. Did you guys see it?
First batter of the game. Jose Reyes beat out an infield hit, but pulled a muscle (had a cramp, something) while running to first. He limped around for a while, but wanted to stay in the game. Manuel pulled him, and he had a spectacular, equipment throwing tantrum on the way into the dugout. Manuel took it “like Ghandi.” I thought it was a direct challenge to Manuel’s authority.
So did the guys I was watching the game with. One of them asked me, “If that happened to you when you were managing, what would you do?”
I said, “It did. And Tara got her butt chewed so bad after the game that I made her cry. And she didn’t play for several games after that. She came back a chastened 16-year-old. And never did that again. Not to me, anyway.”
In 2005, Mike Scioscia threw Jose Guillen (a 100-RBI guy that year) completely off the team forever for a similar display of showing up his manager. With a week to go and the Angels one game behind the first place A’s in the standings. It would have been easy for Mike to let it go. Or deal with it later. Or fine him. Or something. If the Angels hadn’t caught the A’s and finished first that year, Mike would have had some serious explaining to do to Upper Management.
In the Mets’ case, Jose Reyes played the next night. I like Jose Reyes, but we shall see.
DonS
After watching a seven game winning streak homestand against the Royals & Twins it was time for me to chill. The White Sox had a three game series in Motown and then the Rox were coming to Chicago over the weekend. While Tade, Anthony, Mike, & Dan went to Detroit, I was going to be enjoying some family time celebrating my Grandmother’s 97th birthday and then spending the weekend in Waupaca. Well things didn’t go so well for the Southsiders as they got swept in Detroit and lost five of six overall.
Things were much better this past week with the Bucs coming in, I was ready to hop the Redline to the Cell. 16-5, 8-2, & 13-8 were the scores in the three mismatches. I felt pretty confident about the first game against hardthrowing righthander Ian Snell, but was a little anxious about the two soft throwing lefties opposing the Sox in the 2nd & 3rd games. Surprisingly a vodka lemonade before the games eased my anxiousness. The third game was closer than it should have been as Pablo Ozuna’s two out bases loaded error allowed the Bucs to jump out to a 6-0 lead. But the White Sox hitters were dialed in against the hapless Pirate pitchers(?).
There is a big asterisk with this Pittsburgh series, as the Pirates SUCK, not just a little bit, but alot! And it’s not like they’re young or anything, or hurt, they’re just BAD!
Speaking of BAD, the Crosstown Series at Wrigley Field is this weekend. This is a three game series between two first place teams that have been playing pretty good baseball. But it’s more important to many Chicago baseball fans, some think it’s like the World Series. It’s not really the World Series as Southside fans can look back to 2005 to what it’s like to win it all, while Northsiders need to put their longterm memory to the test, and remember all the way back to 1908 & the last time the jinxed Cubbies won it all. Oh no, is that a goat, a black cat, or Bartman? No, it’s just almost 100 years of bad baseball.
I’m off to Waupaca, hopefully my boys can win without me. I’ll be at the 2nd Crosstown Series next weekend at the Cell, Friday & Sunday, Saturday is the Lindskoog Family Reunion.
