SECTION 331

9.30am is too early to get up for baseball, or much of anything else, but I’m a trooper that way. It “helped” that someone in the neighborhood decided to set off a 200-shot Saturn rocket around 10 or so, effectively waking up both the friends I have been staying with and the next door neighbors.

I guess Niehaus is doing alright – I understand he did the radio broadcast in full today. Simms took over on FSN for the full broadcast, so hopefully Dave is feeling better and back to normal by tomorrow.

The game started under blue cloudy skies and sunlight that made the grass in Fenway look a little greener than normal – then again, maybe it was just because it was an early game. JD Drew hit a two-run smash in the 2nd inning to start things off; being ever the pessimist, I figured that was it. But Ichiro was able to make it home on a Russell Branyan hit to the left field corner that was fair by maybe a foot or so. Branyan, however, would not make it to third, even though he dug for it – a brief hesitation on the basepath cost him a safe triple. Ronny Cedeno’s 5th inning at-bat featured him taking another header into first, and the ankle-twisting of Sox first baseman Jeff Bailey. After a brief conference at first, it was determined that Bailey was well enough to stay in the game. After this incident, Branyan would also drive in our second run to tie the game in the 5th on a sac fly, after a long duel with Sox pitcher Brad Penny.

Garrett Olson started off a little shaky over the first few innings, but by the 3rd-5th or so had settled in and started throwing a little more effectively – until the 6th, when the Ms started warming up Roy Corcoran because there were no outs and men on the corners. Rocco Baldelli – my favorite Red Sock, if there can be such a thing – got tagged out in a rundown between third and home, and the 6th inning was defensive gold (in my opinion) with a double play for the last two outs pulled off by Woodward, Lopi, and Branyan.

Justin Masterson showed up to relieve Penny in the 7th, while Hideki Okajima spent some time warming up, presumably for the 8th inning. Masterson did manage to keep us from scoring, but it wasn’t as smooth as I initially thought it would be for him. Olson continued to do well in the 7th, keeping the Sox scoreless, and topping out at 104 pitches before Corcoran was sent in. Corky had a smooth 7th, a good turnaround from the last time he was anywhere near a pitching mound.

Okajima finally came into the game in the top of the 8th to deal to the top of our batting order. Again, we were held hitless and runless, but it took Okajima a little longer to fight us than I would have thought (I’m not complaining). Corcoran was back in in the 8th, and the highlight of that inning was a crusher from David Ortiz that could have easily turned into a base hit, but was snatched out of the sky by Jose Lopez. Corky continued to keep Boston down, and we went into the 9th inning still tied.

Takashi Seito was the Sox reliever for the 9th, and managed to walk Griffey. Wladimir Balentien was sent in to pinch run for Griffs, and as Junior walked back to the dugout, the Boston fans gave him an ovation. Classy, I dig it. Seito walked Langerhans with one out, and dealt some to Kenji. Saito was booed by the Boston fans as he fell behind Kenji in the count, and a brief mound discussion was had. It didn’t help him much, however, as he continued to fall behind, and then walked Kenji, to load the bases. Chris Woodward then beaned one out over the first base area, and Dustin Pedroia was unable to reach it, diving in the process. Balentien ran home, and the bases were still loaded for Ronny Cedeno. After a bit of tension, Cedeno struck out. Saito dealt to Ichiro, but by the time Ichiro popped up, Saito had already thrown 38 pitches. With one run ahead, David Aardsma came out of the bullpen fence to throw against his old team.

Aardsma is awesome, and we are 5-3. That’s all I’m going to say. Beautiful, just beautiful. 3-2, Mariners.

Everyone have a safe and happy 4th of July. If you’re able, I highly recommend traveling to the Bremerton area. Around about 7-8pm, it’s going to turn into quite a spectacle here. Happy 4th of July, and thank you Mariners for setting it off right!

It appears Dave Niehaus has been taken to the hospital this morning with disorientation. Baker’s FaceBook page has a small bit of info; I’m guessing more is elsewhere, but I’m barely awake enough to type properly at this hour.  Feel better, Dave…

EDIT; a little more here.

I was doing holiday food prep for about the first 5 innings or so, but since my friends’ kitchen is open to the living room, had no problem keeping track of the game. With the first 17 pitches Felix threw in the first inning, and the first two runs from Boston scored, I mentally settled in for a loss, back into the comfortable ooze of failure. It’s kind of like slipping into a hot tub full of warm Jell-O.

The error of one Boston fan’s ways was enough to change the game around. Some guy over the third baseline down front decided to go against the unspoken rule of fan participation, and jumped up to catch a foul ball off Ryan Langerhans’ bat, a fould ball that third baseman Kevin Youkilis could have easily caught, if the errant fan had not been in the way. Langerhans wound up with a double on the second of the next two pitches, and Rob Johnson followed him with another double, sending him home. Ronny Cedeno then showed up with a home run which I didn’t see because I was trying not to cut my finger off while chopping salad, but the score was 4-2. The Boston fans spent the better part of that inning chanting “It’s all your fault!” at the interfering fan; I have the feeling he’ll need personal escort out of the park after the game.

Felix was having problems with his pitch count, getting behind Sox hitters, and our fielding seemed a little shoddy tonight, just in general. It also didn’t help that the home plate umpire’s strike zone seemed to change with every at-bat. Both teams fought each other off during the 6th, and then JD Drew hit a shot over center field (way over) to level the playing field a little, 3-4. Felix looked vaguely amused, but I bet he wasn’t. Prior to that hit, I wondered if maybe he might try and pitch a full game, but they mentioned that Sean White was warming up, and Felix had surpassed 100 pitches at this point.

Jose Lopez started off the 8th inning by crushing one over the Monster’s left field, score 5-3. As he came home, he took a longer look at the sky than he does normally after a homer, acknowledging his brother and sister. Having a huge appreciation for my rather close-knit family, I very much approve of this ritual of giving props to one’s passed relatives. Very cool.  That was the only progress we would make, however. Sean White took over for Felix in the bottom of the 8th, and promptly walked Jason Bay. Mark Kotsay got a hit towards Ichiro, and Wakamatsu came in to sub Shawn Kelley for Mr White. Kelley threw to Jacoby Ellsbury, who popped out to Langerhans in left for the second out. But Nick Green smashed one out over left, driving in two runs to tie the game. Kelley was able to secure the final out by getting the next Sox batter to pop up, and Rob Johnson was under it; but the damage had already been done.

The Red Sox reliever (I didn’t catch the name, I was temporarily distracted) went through our order easily enough, and then Chris Jakubauskus took the hill after what looked like a ridiculously fast warm-up in the pen. It didn’t seem to hurt him, however, as he rolled through the Sox easily to send the game into extras. Jonathan Papelbon entered the 10th, and got Branyan to pop up for the first out. Lopez stepped into the batter’s box and grounded to Nick Green, who couldn’t turn the play at first in time, one aboard. Papelbon threw a ball and a strike to Griffey, and then tried to pick off Lopez a few times, stalling. On the third pitch, Griff fouled off the plate/his ankle, advanced to first, halfway, then came back. Papelbon threw another ball, and Griffey struck out swinging – Sox catcher George Kottaras came out of the crouch fast enough to get the tag at second for the final out of the inning. Not our best show.

Jakabauskus remained in the 10th, despite the fact that Mark Lowe had been warming up earlier. His first batter was David Ortiz, and he struggled with it. Ortiz finally grounded to Cedeno, as did Bay. Jak dueled with Kotsay, who again grounded to Cedeno. Into the 11th, and a partly questionable batting lineup. Ramon Ramirez was the reliever for Papelbon, and Gutierrez was the batter. Gutz hit one up the middle for a single, and Langerhans came up to the plate. Langerhans walked. Chris Woodward I wasn’t expecting much of, but he bunted very effectively, advancing both runners, smiling as he trotted back to the dugout. Then, Rob Johnson; I was definitely not prepared what happened next. Johnson hit a low line drive over the first baseline, sending both runners in, and making it to second base. Red Sox Nation was a bit more quiet, as Cedeno struck out, and Ramirez took Ichiro’s bat away in an intentional walk. Branyan grounded to first for the final out of the inning, and Mark Lowe was finally sent in.

Jacoby Ellsbury was Lowe’s first batter. Lowe’s 5th pitch to him clocked in at 100MPH. I can’t remember the last time a Mariners pitcher hit 3 digits. Ellsbury flew out to right, and Ichiro was on it, an easy catch. Nick Green popped up, nearly into the Sox dugout, and Branyan walked over, and lightly ran into the TV camera there (I say “lightly” because he did make contact with it, but no damage was done to either himself or the camera/cameraman). George Kottaras secured his first home run of the season with two outs, and JD Drew came to the plate. The first pitch Lowe threw floated off the side to the plate, but the next was right down the middle, and Drew watched it go past and into Johnson’s glove. Lowe seemed slightly unsettled, as the third pitch was low and outside. Drew swung at the 4th pitch and fouled it off, his second strike. There was another ball thrown for the full count, and Drew hit it into the pocket in right field for a single.

Dustin Pedroia took a strike, then grounded to Chris Woodward, who briefly bobbled it before getting a grip and throwing to second for the final out. Had Woodward continued on what seems to be his present course and actually dropped the ball, this would have been a far different situation. I’m glad he was able to keep things under control.

I’m not sure we should have won this game, but I’m proud of the guys for doing so, they really battled. We had our bad moments, but we fought, and it worked. Had it not been for Johnson’s increasingly improving plate presence, this could have been a very different game. Also, RYAN FREAKING LANGERHANS!!!

Tomorrow morning, I get up early, game is at 10am. I was very much hoping it would be in the evening, so we’d have something to grill during, but I guess that doesn’t make much sense, as there are fireworks and time zones to take into consideration. So we’ll see what happens. Garrett Olson is the man on the mound tomorrow, let’s go Mariners!

*It’s an inside joke, too long to explain, but suffice to say, this game was both.

If there is anyone out there actually subscribed to the RSS feed here,  can you let me know that it’s still working? With the new computer and browser, and the fact that Feedburner has been taken over by Google now, I decided to try and investigate a little more about what Feedburner can do, and wound up signing up for a new account…I think. I replaced the link here, and am hoping that it works. If not, you may have to re-subscribe, if you subscribe at all. Apologies in advance, or, if it still works, never mind.

According to a current rumor, we just signed Guillermo Pimentel. According to FanGraphs (thank you to fellow LookoutLanding-er “Kermit” for reminding me I needed to re-bookmark that- I’m now addicted to it), he was with the Rangers – and they have another guy named Guillermo on their roster, too; what are the chances?*

Today is happy, happy Felix day. He’s going up against Tim Wakefield, who I also kinda dig – knuckleballers and sidearmers are my favorites! But obviously, I hope we blow Wakes away. Raise your glass to the impossible, Go Mariners!

*EDIT; per Jon at ProBallNW (formerly Bleedingblueandteal, see comments for this post), this is a totally different Guillermo Pimentel. What are the chances, I say, that two guys have that same particular first and last name and are playing baseball? I guess the Rangers still have both of their Guillermos. And now we have our very own.

Turns out I have more internet than I thought I was going to this weekend. Thanks, random unprotected wireless provider!

Most of yesterday’s game was listened to while I was standing on the bow of  MV Kalama, enjoying the sun, and watching other commuters chat and their kids play. Just a word to the wise, you can’t get many radio stations in the cafeteria of a WSF boat, and I neglected to realize that the word “wi-fi” doesn’t come with the word “free” before it. I wound up getting a beer, but I sacrificed further beer so I could hear the game. Took some pictures, and for the sake of my fellow passengers, tried hard not to yell when Ichiro made that error, or when both I and the Yankees got “on board” at the same time. Last night was also the debut of the series-awaited (and game-winning!) home run from Russell Branyan. I love when the opposing outfielders just give up running before the warning track and stand there and watch it go. After we got to my friends’ place, my buddy Jesse then proceeded to taunt me by rooting for the Yankees. He’s from the east coast, and is a Mariners fan by location, but a Yankees fan by choice. Aardsma was brought in for the save, but not before allowing two men on base, and causing me some degree of stress. Thankfully, he got Hideki Matsui to pop up, instead of giving him a home run or a hit, or some other thing that would have killed us. And how about that Ryan Langerhans, eh? Talk about overachieving! I’m very much looking forward to seeing more of him,  which I probably will if Balentien continues not to bring the hits.

I’ve come to realize that I’m not a sports fan in the sense that a lot of other people are. I understand rivalry, it’s part of what makes the game entertaining. But I don’t get violence or anger towards fans of other teams, or the teams themselves. I just can’t be that person. I just want to go to a game, support the team I’m there to support, and have fun. Obviously, I have sworn or used the phrase “I hate” such-and-such a player or team, but that phrase is a pretty large part of American vernacular, even when it’s not meant with the sentiment that the word indicates. I mainly use that word in the heat of the game; but it never goes any further than that, and wouldn’t.

There was a Sounders/Timbers game thread on LL the other day that brought this subject to my attention. Someone mentioned that Sounders fans were being turned away from bars because they were visibly Sounders fans. I thought that was silly. I can wear my Ms jersey in a bar full of Red Sox fans, and indeed, every time I go to Pyramid, there are numerous jerseys from the opposing team, and even teams that we don’t happen to be playing that night. At the height of 8th-inning drunk down by the bullpens, the fans still behave accordingly – most of them seem to avoid each other, but I have never seen any fighting or evidence of anything I would refer to as hatred amongst Mariners fans and others – not inside OR outside SafeCo. If anything, people are cordial to each other, and avoid making eye contact, but I’ve never seen anyone verbally or physically fighting with anyone else. And I’ve never heard of anyone being turned away from a bar in Seattle for wearing an opposing team’s jersey. Why would they? Your money’s just as good as mine, and in this economy, I really don’t think a lot of places should be picky. I know others don’t feel that way, and that’s fine, but it’s not for me.

I’m aware that soccer and baseball are two different game cultures, but I abhor violence, and if, in the future, I find myself in any sort of altercation with any Timbers fans, that will be the end of my attending soccer matches. I can say the same thing about baseball. I think people have the tendency to forget that this is a GAME. It’s supposed to be fun. Maybe some people’s idea of “fun” is getting tanked and committing assault, but I personally  prefer to exist outside of that mindset.

If you pray and you’re a Mariners fan, you might want to pray for Jason Vargas, who will be going up against CC Sabathia tonight…with the flu.

Somewhere in the Mariners-to-Sounders game conversion last night on FSN, I thought I heard that Bryan LaHair had been selected for the MILB All-Star team. A check of the Rainiers site shows that there wasn’t anything wrong with my hearing. LaHair seems to have fallen off the radar locally just in general, I’m guessing mainly because they’ve been keeping him as a first baseman, and we already have a first baseman who is more than earning his keep. LaHair was not well-liked by fans last year as far as I can tell, and I figured he’d go quietly into oblivion or be traded, or both. Not quite so. A quick look at his FanGraphs page shows a .283 hitter with an .849 OPS, a .508 SLG, .341 OBP and 13 HR in 240 ABs so far this year (I actually have a grasp of what all that stuff means, too; lookit the big brain on me!) Not too shabby. I guess I’ve been at all his bad games. I’m not in a particular hurry to have him back in SafeCo just yet (he doesn’t seem to be on anyone’s radar, either), but I always like seeing anyone associated with the big club do well. A lot of those guys were forced up here far too early last year because we didn’t have a choice, so it’s nice to see them doing well in a more appropriate setting for their current skill level. And good for Shelton, who also made the team. We’re neck-deep in first base guys. September call-ups should be interesting.

Dave at USSM put up an interesting article on the possibility of trying to get some value for Mark Lowe. As a fan, I would hate to see Lowe go; even though he’s still on notice (which seems to be working, for the most part, as far as I can tell), and would very much like to see that change-up come back if possible. I also feel that Mr Cameron far underestimates the value of a good gladiator helmet.

Some friends are humoring me (I kid, some of them actually do want to go) and we’re all going in on a group ticket purchase for the DVD night on the 10th. I don’t know why I’m so fixated on that – then again, it’s a pretty good promotional. Left field bleachers to see the Rangers, but I figure if we start losing, it will just give me a better opportunity to get some bullpen photos, and it will certainly be a different view of the field, one I haven’t had so far this year.

I’m clock-watching at work something fierce; it’s not helping the day go by any faster. I am also vaguely looking forward to the inevitable sweep tonight. I have nothing metric-y to back this up, but putting Jason Vargas up against CC Sabathia feels like sending a 4-year-old armed with cotton balls out  to fight the Predator. I have resigned myself to a loss already. Beer, meat, and explosions should dull the pain.

I watched the game tonight, and after Alex Rodriguez’s home run – the third of the night from the Yankees – I pretty much had it figured out. And so did Jarrod Washburn. There was a pause in game play where the cameras were on him, and the expression on his face as he stared at the outfield was that of a pitcher who knew that once again, he was going to have to say goodbye to any chance he might have had at a win tally because his guys simply weren’t backing him up. Could he have pitched better? Maybe, maybe not. Perhaps there was a way that he couldn’t have given up the three homers (two of them solo) that sealed our fate, but I’m more frustrated with our offense this evening than I ever have been so far this year. Miguel Batista pitched a nice 8th (yes, I said it), and just like last night, Mariano Rivera came in to put the last nail into our coffin. We are now 2-3 on this trip. Not exactly terrible, but certainly not what I’d prefer (I’m guessing I’m not alone). We have 4 more games to salvage some dignity. Vargas on the hill tomorrow, so who knows what will happen there, and Boston faces…well, not Bedard. I guess Felix and Olson will be thrown in there somehow. I’d go look it up, but I’m too annoyed right now. Better luck to my buddies in the ECS, gearing up for the US Open Cup game in Portland at PGE as we speak. I can hear the singing on FSN already.

AP photo courtesy Rex Arbogast

I won’t be able to watch or probably even post about the game tomorrow night, as I will be taking WSF to Bremerton to chill at a friend’s house for the weekend. But I will be sitting on the upper deck, unwinding from my work week with a beer, listening to the game on headphones as I travel across the Sound, and cursing the day I was born.

“OK, that’s the third out, we’re up next….guys? Guys?!”

Masterson leads the charge.

While listening to 710ESPN at work yesterday afternoon, I heard something on the pre-game show about Yuni not being in any pain anymore from the hamstring he pulled during the Dodger game the other day. Then this morning on KJR, I heard a rumor that not only was he feeling sparky enough to come back, but that there was a Lopez/Cedeno/Betancourt situation being thrown about at third/short/second. I immediately figured that there would be outcry from a lot of people, but after poking around the blogs during lunch, I see that it might not necessarily be the case. I still expect to see some “2B” lineup comments at Lookout Landing (because why not, and also they’re funny), but I also find this to be an interesting idea. I know I shouldn’t get annoyed at the Woodward situation from last night, but I’d be lying if I said I felt he just needed to be given a chance. We can’t afford chances right now, and we need proven players -or as close as we can get to proven players- out there on the field taking care of business. 

In good news, however -or as close to good news as this can come- Mike Lowell has gone to the DL. Don’t get me wrong, I never wish any players harm – not only is it just mean, it’s absolutely terrible karma, and just not in me to do – but if there was ever a time for this to happen, it’s now. I wish Lowell well – he is one of my favorite Red Sox (if I can have such a thing)- but the less the Boston threat is, the better off we are. I know Lowell’s been struggling a lot with injury over the past year, and I have heard random talk of him not being long for the diamond, so I wish him well. We’re going to have enough problems in Fenway over the weekend as it is. Honestly, I’m expecting us to get swept there anyway. At least I’ll have barbecue and cocktails, and if it gets too frustrating, I can go outside and blow something up or set it on fire. God bless America.

Also, no RRS for me tomorrow night. I am not interested in driving around to the peninsula, and am trying to take a nice relaxing extended weekend before the next year or so of school (10+ months of not getting paid! Woo!), this job, the rest of this season, and worrying about how I’m going to get into both DVD games…and how badly I might want the ICANHASCHEEZBURGER t-shirt. Yeah, I know, I’m a giant loser.

After about a good hour’s rain delay, the game finally started. After seeing the lineup, I had no illusions about a win tonight (Sweeney DHing, Griff in left, and of course no Beltre). At least I can take solace in the fact that New Yorkers far overpay for their tickets…

The Ms first inning against Joba Chamberlain was a lot slower than I thought it would be. Chamberlain’s history is similar to Morrow’s, in that they were relievers who were awkwardly handled to become starters. But Morrow’s starts have been a bit shaky, and I’m not familiar with Chamberlain’s, so my faith was low. Morrow struggled in the other half of the first, but managed to accomplish, despite a panicky overthrow to first to nab Teixeira. Replays left me somewhat dubious, but he was called out. I’ll take it. No score for either team in the first.

Sweeney swung to Jeter for the first out in the second, and Chamberlain took Franklin Gutierrez high in the count before Gutz swung and sent one to a spare spot in the field that Johnny Damon couldn’t quite get to. Chris Woodward hit to Jeter again, and Jeter spun around to try for the out at second, but failed, so both Gutz and Woody were safe. Kenji then grounded into a double play at third and first to end our chances. Bottom second, Robinson Cano smacked one up the middle, and it was at that point that I noticed that Morrow had been trying, somewhat actively, to field – he attempted a few other catches in the first as well, and Morrow had been going after them in somewhat more of an aggressive manner than a pitcher might normally. Another hit by Jorge Posada up the middle brought up Hideki Matsui. Morrow at this point in the game had been letting hitters get ahead of him, not a good sign (not that I was expecting anything, but it’s always nice to hope…right? Hello?) Morrow came back to counter with some strikes for a full count, but Matsui swung at it, and it went straight to Chris Woodward, who bobbled it before overthrowing it to Branyan at first, allowing Cano to score, and putting men on the corners with no outs and Nick Swisher up to bat. Swisher struck out, and Melky Cabrera hit a long one out to center, nearly past the warning track, but Gutz killed it – the tag was had, and so was another run. Derek Jeter stepped to the plate, and hit one towards Woodward, and the ball bounced off Woody’s glove and into Cedeno’s, and Cedeno threw to first for the out. Not having Beltre might hurt us a lot more than I thought it would.

Ronny Cedeno led the charge in the 3rd, smacking a good one over the right field wall. Unexpected positive. Ichiro followed him with a single up the middle. Chamberlain, faced with Branyan, stalled. Branyan took the full count and thought he had a walk, but the third base ump said he swung around on the last pitch. Jose Lopez also got ahead of Chamberlain in the count, and wound up walking. A handful of Yankees fans invaded LL gamechat, and I got distracted by the  internet. Meanwhile, Morrow made quick work of the Yanks in the third. The 4th featured no scoring from Seattle, and then a bases-loaded-no-outs situation for the Yankees, which Morrow and company managed to get out of, miraculously allowing only one run.

Branyan was able to drive in Ichiro in the top of the 5th, wound up getting out at second on a hop by Jose Lopez, who singled. Griffey took a walk, then Gutz swung a single that brought Lopez in to tie the game 3-3. The inning was done shortly thereafter. The 6th was scoreless for both teams, and Chris Jakubauskus came in to relieve Morrow, sporting an interesting new facial hair configuration that makes him look just a little bit like Chad Bradford in the Baltimore days…or maybe a pirate on our sinking ship.

Jak gave up a ground rule double over left field to Johnny Damon, and struck Mark Teixeira out. He made a few starts towards Damon to keep him from stealing third while pitching to Alex Rodriguez, who hit a dinger into the left field stands to get both runners home, score 5-3.  Jak looked unrattled and continued to deal to Robinson Cano. I became busy with fighting cats, but not so much so that I failed to see two stellar catches by Gutz in center, way back at the warning track – one of which caused him to run into the back wall.

Gutz started off the top 8th with a single, followed by Woodward, who hit another one. Kenji Johjima, in his second game back from the DL, hit a shallow outfield single, and Gutierrez ran like he meant it  for the Mariners’ 4th run, with no outs and two on. Ronny Cedeno sac bunted the two runners forward, and Yankees manager Joe Girardi made his reliever put Ichiro on to load the bases, with Branyan up next. Branyan mashed a foul, then hit a pop to Damon in left, while Woodward tagged and scored to tie the game again. Lopez grounded into an out at second for the final out.

Sean White pitched the 8th, and immediately gave up a double to Matsui; then Swisher bunted, completely confusing both Woodward and White, who yelled in Woodward’s general direction. Melky Cabrera hit another into the center field gap, driving in a run with no outs.  Jeter drove in two more runs, and it is at this point that I’m going to quit typing. Mariano Rivera is being brought in to shut us down, and there are some hesher fans that are going a little too nuts for a Metallica song that is over 10 years old. There is no way we’re going to survive this one. Yanks win, 8-5.

Tomorrow Washburn is on the hill, and I’m hoping that the lineup is different. I understand that Mr Longhands will be with us tomorrow, but that could just be a rumor. Whatever the case, anything has to be better than today. It wasn’t a terrible loss, so that’s something I guess, and it’s only game one, so there is still some time for my optimism to throw itself off a cliff…

So I am still in the midst of reading Moneyball. I usually read before I fall asleep, and lately falling asleep hasn’t been much of an issue, so I’m reading it literally one or two pages at a time. I’m currently around the chapter(s) talking about the invention of metrics and early SABR in relation to “rotisserie leagues” or what sounds like it eventually became fantasy baseball. It’s funny to read that book and realize that I know more about that stuff than either I like to admit or think I do – the issue is that I just don’t know enough to argue it.

One of the things I struggle with in my daily writing exercises is the ability to explain something I’ve just seen during a game in a way that doesn’t involve “That was awesome!” While pointing out that something was awesome is all very fine and well, it’s not terribly articulate, and it doesn’t fully explain why something was awesome, or why it was any more awesome than the last awesome thing that happened. A lot of the time I feel like most of my posts here are just more in-depth and polite (read; no swearing) versions of my posts on LL gamechat – though I haven’t completely collapsed into just posting “WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!” quite yet. Again, not that there is anything wrong with that, I just prefer sounding like I know what I’m talking about, since I pay for and spend time trying to make this site entertaining for whomever might be reading it (and trying to keep myself busy writing about baseball, because I love it so).

So I get metrics, I get what I see, but it is hard for me to fuse those together into something that anyone who didn’t know about baseball might like to read – it’s hard for me to fuse it into something that I can understand or would even like to read. I have to go over these posts at least once to check for spelling and redundancies, and fear that if I put too many numbers in, I may lose interest in proofreading, and before I know what’s happening, the entire thing will slide downhill, and I’ll find it easier to just go back to arguing with people half my age about whether or not old or new Ministry is better, and if “With Sympathy” even counts as a Ministry album. And nobody wants that, least of all me. So I’ll have to keep on keepin’ on, as they said in the….70s(?)…and maybe eventually I’ll reach a point where numbers will be easy, and fun for me, and it will be fun for me to try and communicate them to others. Until then, you get “That was awesome!”

I’ll keep trying, and I hope people will keep reading, or at least keep stumbling on this site on accident, while searching for seats in Section 331 at Yankee Stadium….

This is crazy. Give the guy a second to warm up, but once he gets going, he flips it sideways a few times in a way that appears to defy physics. Larry Stone posted it a while ago, and I meant to watch the clip, but never got around to it until tonight.

I usually try and make sure I properly spell players’ names. It shouldn’t bother me, but it does when people misspell my name, so  I attempt to not be that person, and am constantly double-checking my spelling.  Thus, apologies to Mr “Langerhands”. Oops.

In further regards to Cap’n LongHands is this post from MLBTR.com. Read the comments at your own peril.  It’s always  interesting to see what people who are far more rabid than I am about trades think about them, but really, one of those guys is a bit overboard.  I just have to sit back and watch the car crash like I did when a lot of these same sorts of people were disappointed in the acquisition of Franklin Gutierrez. All that smacktalk seems funnier now than it was then, certainly in light of Gutierrez’s accomplishments so far this season. Low-to-average outfielder indeed.

I have a new laptop, courtesy of my parents. Tom is pleased, as this means that he can have his Macintosh back for work (and can get rid of all my photos stored on it), and I am pleased because, well, I have a laptop. I have decorated it with Mariners stickers because I’m a giant girl, and this photo is currently residing on the desktop as my wallpaper:

Doesn’t he look like he just found out there’s ice cream in the clubhouse? Said laptop will be used for school in the Fall, and will make the whole blogging/interwebbery thing a lot easier, as I’ll have something that’s mine.

Man, I hate off-days…

So after yesterday’s win and Langerhans acquisition, Jeff Sullivan posted this on Lookout Landing. I didn’t think anything of it at first. I haven’t been wearing my jersey this year, as I’ve been nursing my snit over the JJ trade. I figured I’d leave it off all this year, in a sort of I’m-the-only-one-that-knows-I’m-protesting protest, then wear it next year to whatever games I can afford to go to (I may have to give up the season tickets in 2010 because of school).

But that doesn’t make a whole lot of sense, does it? I mean, I’m the only one that cares, and the more I think about it, the more I don’t think I care that much, not anymore. A suitable replacement has been found for my weirdo closer fetish, and this team has not only players that care about succeeding, but a front office that takes steps that indicate that it does, too. Speaking of which, I’ll see if I can find it and replicate it here, but I (and most likely all the other season ticket holders) recently received another letter in the mail from Zduriencik and Co. It is blatantly obvious to me that our front office cares about the team and the fans – I can count the number of letters I got from the Mariners last year on 0 fingers, and this year, I’ve received two already. The current Mariners organization is obviously into winning  – maybe not winning the World Series, but at the very least being a better team than they were in 2008. And I don’t know about everyone else, but that means something to me. Just wish I’d fully realized it a little sooner.

I am currently sitting at my desk at work, chilly from the central air, but wrapped in my Putz #20 jersey and sweatshirt underneath, and I’m feeling pretty awesome about it. Thanks for the suggestion, Jeff!