Wednesday, Oct. 20, 2004
Baseball is life, the rest is just details, posted at 4:16 p.m.
Epiphany in Baltimore has moved to epiphanyinbaltimore.blogspot.com Quick facts:1. Why in the world would I get a google hit today for "Detroit Tigers English Baltimore blog"? How freaky.
2. I found the blog of a parent of a kid at my school. I'm pretty sure I've narrowed down the kid to a girl I had two years ago. It's a really good blog, too.
Onto regularly scheduled programming...
When I coach my high school varsity team, I like to stand a little bit outside the third base coaches box. I edge myself back and up the third base line little, so I can see the signals of the catcher. When he puts down a "2," I yell to my player, "Be a hitter up there, Mario," which is an automatic signal to him that it's a curveball. It usually doesn't do a lick of good, since high school kids can't really hit a good curveball, but I try. If I was called on it, I'd accept it because, after all, I was trying to get an edge in a slightly underhanded way.
My point? More power to A-Rod for trying to slap the ball out of the glove on that tag play yesterday. I see no problem with what he was trying to do. He didn't take a shot at hurting the guy and was trying to get away with anything that would get him on base. He was called on it and deserved to be, but there's no reason to crucify him.
It's going to be a good game tonight. My two least favorite teams in all of baseball battle it out to be the team I want to lose the World Series. Who am I rooting for? I'm rooting for Tony Clark first and, second, a brawl.
There are plenty of jerks on the Yankees - I hate Derek Jeter with a passion, Sheffield's an asshole, so is Hideki because he only wanted to play for the Yankees when he came over - but I still can't find a way to root for the Red Sox and their whines. I was accused of being a contrarian today at work, because I "rooting for the Yankees" (I'm really not, I'm rooting for Tony Clark) and because I thought Bush did a good job in the third debate. But I'm really not trying to start arguments. Really.
I'm trying to find a Red Sock I can connect with. Probably no one will beat Tony Clark because of his status as one of the players who helped me to love baseball (it's funny, but every time I justify this, the effect that Tony Clark had on my childhood exponentially increases. Really, he was a good player who I always liked, but nothing more), but I just can't seem to like Johnny Damon and his dorky Jesus do or Doug Mencieweiczdafefe and his stupid last name. I don't like Bill Mueller because he takes playing time away from Kevin Youkilis. I used to like Gabe Kaplar when he was with the Tigers, but then he forgot how to take a walk. I guess David Ortiz is pretty cool - as one of the kids said today, he loves those "big, fat" players. It's hard not to root for knuckleballing Tim Wakeland or underrated BB-king Mark Bellhorn. But does it all add up to more than Tony Clark? I don't know. I hope he hits a Grand Slam tonight off of Livonia native Derek Lowe to convince the Tigers that signing Lowe (as is rumored) would be a mistake since he's not better than any of the guys we've already got in the rotation.
Even in October, it's all about the Tigers. I don't think my heart will be able to stand it when they actually are in the ALCS themselves.
Next October.
By the way, my friends have dis-invited me to watch the game with them tonight. Seriously.