Well, it finally happened. The Boston front office and the media sharks succeeded in making it an absolute necessity to deal away the best hitter in baseball.
It was obvious the last few days that the suit didn't fit anymore. Manny would be gone after the season if not before. I kept holding on to a shred of hope that this, like all those other MBM moments, would just go away, that he would get back to being the most feared hitter in the game, and that by the end of the season he would be talking about finishing his career in the Red Sox uniform. But as Wednesday wore on the talk got worse, and then Manny himself started to show signs that he was ready to move on. Even then I held on to the fact that he had acted like he wanted out before, but had always come around to a "I like it here and want to stay" stance after the spat.
But this time the vitriol was just too sour. And as much as I would have loved for Manny to Be Manny in Boston for the remainder of his career, I'm also glad that this whole affair is behind us now. I still blame the FO and the media MUCH more than I blame Manny, (although he certainly made his contribution to the fuel supply on the fire), and I think the idea that it was "necessary" to move him was created and sold to the public by those entities.
Did he sit out a couple of games recently complaining of a sore knee? Yes, but Manny actually had played in more games than any other player this year. Go back through the game logs. Practically every person on the team, and every other team too, has sat out here and there just because they were sore and needed to recupe a bit.
Did he occasionally not hustle out a ground ball? Sure, but watch the games. The same can be said for almost every other player in the game. And yes, it drives me mad when they do that, especially as I try to teach my younger Little League players how important it is to ALWAYS beat it down the line. But as I said, they ALL do it. At least all of the veterans.
Did he occasionally make a gaff in the field? Sure he did, but there are quite a few outfielders in the game , not to mention some first basemen and even third basemen, who are not there because of their defense. And Manny would sometimes make a spectacular play. It was obvious he was not the most accomplished defensive player when he arrived in Boston. But to his credit, he took his position there very seriously and worked very hard at making himself better there. He took countless reps in the outfield, often long before his teammates had even showed up at the stadium. He learned something every time a ball came off of that wall, and in the last few years it has paid off in an almost uncanny ability to be at the right spot when it happens. It will take Mr. Bay a while to replicate that experience.
Did he occasionally come out with some completely knee-jerk comment or action? Sure, but this is what I'll miss more than anything. Jason Bay will probably come close enough to Manny's numbers to keep us in contention for a repeat title. Who knows? He may even end up with better numbers by the end of the season. And if not this season, maybe next year he'll just break things wide open. I certainly hope so. But I doubt he'll ever be the character that Manny is. And I just LOVE a good character. Give me Bill Veek and his midget, Wade Boggs and his chicken, Ozzie Smith and his gymnastics. I love a colorful character, and that's what we've lost. The most colorful character in the game today, AND one who could produce like no one else as well. That's a rare combination. Not to mention he was the MVP of the team's first victorious World Series appearance in 86 years for God's sake.
Having said all that, the trade itself was not as bad a deal as it could have been. I wouldn't rank it as a fire sale or anything. Bay's an accomplished major league hitter with quite a few good years in front of him, probably more than Manny. I think this was better than just letting Manny go after the year, although being in the thick of a pennant chase kind of trumps that normally. But this wasn't normal, was it? Losing Hansen was certainly no big deal, given the way he's been pitching lately. I do kind of regret not having Moss around to use as trade fodder for some bullpen help, but we certainly don't need another outfielder at the moment.
In all of this, I also hope that Jason Bay makes out all right. I can't help but think that he'll end up being compared to Manny in every move and every stat possible. Manny's stats will be hard to replace. I hope that those who felt like I did, and wanted to keep Manny, will not be too hard on Bay if he doesn't match those lofty numbers.
Best of luck to Manny in LA. I've never disliked the Dodgers, which is something I can't say about many teams. I always liked Lasorda, and Gibson's gimpy homer in, what, '88 wasn't it, is still one of my all time favorite moments. A "colorful" moment I guess. I'll probably follow them a little closer now that Manny is there. May he tear up the NL, and only suffer letdowns if and when he plays against the Red Sox. And may the fans at Fenway always cheer him when he comes back there. As a matter of fact, if it was a meaningless game, it wouldn't bother me a bit to see him single-handedly rip us apart one game. Kind of a F-You to the management.
If Jason Bay ends up a flop, we will certainly hear someone say "well it's better than having that misfit out there".
I kinda like misfits. Let the conformists pull for the Yankees
Adios Manny, buena suerte
Showing posts with label Red Sox. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Red Sox. Show all posts
Friday, August 1, 2008
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Sox End Road Woes - by Leaving the Road
The Sox ended up their road trip with a dismal 3 - 7 record after dropping the last 2 games against the Evil Empire.
I really felt they would take 3 of those 4 even though they have been a much weaker team it seems every time they leave Fenway Park. So much for my prognostic abilities.
Paps blew the last game at the Toilet Bowl, allowing a damn rookie to get a hit and drive in the winning run in the 10th inning. This after a pretty good showing by Wakefield, who once again got absolutely no run support to speak of. On JoS the joke (although it's not really funny) is that Wake always gets the weak line-up. It's time to rest somebody key every time he pitches, and this time it was Manny. Tito did bring Manny in as a pinch-hitter in the 9th inning, but Manny has never been particularily effective as a PH and this time he sat and watched 3 straight strikes go by. Three straight strikes, and never moved his bat. That's effective! Even worse was Francona's move right before that one. He brought in Varitek to pinch-hit for Lugo with the go-ahead run at 2nd base. Now I love Tek to death, I have a real soft spot for veteran catchers, actually for catchers in general, but Tek has been crapping the bed lately, badly. To put him in that spot if there was ANYONE else sitting over there to try was absolutely nuts. We'd have been better off with Lugo himself.
At least we did win last night on our first night back home. A 1 - 0 victory over the Twins. Once again I missed the game because of Little League. I keep getting home right after the last out is made, and pull up Joy of Sox just in time to catch the end-game comments. Wouldn't you know the only game I get to watch in the last 2 or 3 weeks is the one they lose to the Damn Yankees, of all teams.
Oh well, time for mini hot streak before the All-Star break, and then a smoking second half to catch those pesky DEVIL Rays.
I really felt they would take 3 of those 4 even though they have been a much weaker team it seems every time they leave Fenway Park. So much for my prognostic abilities.
Paps blew the last game at the Toilet Bowl, allowing a damn rookie to get a hit and drive in the winning run in the 10th inning. This after a pretty good showing by Wakefield, who once again got absolutely no run support to speak of. On JoS the joke (although it's not really funny) is that Wake always gets the weak line-up. It's time to rest somebody key every time he pitches, and this time it was Manny. Tito did bring Manny in as a pinch-hitter in the 9th inning, but Manny has never been particularily effective as a PH and this time he sat and watched 3 straight strikes go by. Three straight strikes, and never moved his bat. That's effective! Even worse was Francona's move right before that one. He brought in Varitek to pinch-hit for Lugo with the go-ahead run at 2nd base. Now I love Tek to death, I have a real soft spot for veteran catchers, actually for catchers in general, but Tek has been crapping the bed lately, badly. To put him in that spot if there was ANYONE else sitting over there to try was absolutely nuts. We'd have been better off with Lugo himself.
At least we did win last night on our first night back home. A 1 - 0 victory over the Twins. Once again I missed the game because of Little League. I keep getting home right after the last out is made, and pull up Joy of Sox just in time to catch the end-game comments. Wouldn't you know the only game I get to watch in the last 2 or 3 weeks is the one they lose to the Damn Yankees, of all teams.
Oh well, time for mini hot streak before the All-Star break, and then a smoking second half to catch those pesky DEVIL Rays.
Monday, April 14, 2008
Red Sox take 2 out of 3 from Yanks! - updated
I don't have time to write a damn thing this morning, but I just had to write THAT!
I will elaborate later.
Update - 4/19
Beckett whipped the Yanks last night, going 8! First time all season a Sox pitcher has made it past 6. Manny hit TWO dongs!
We are up 3 - 2 on the season and in 1st place, like that really matters at this point. Beating them at their place DOES matter though.
Taxes, Little League, Granddaughter's Softball, Work, and Joy of Sox Game-threading.
All conspiring to keep me away from my blog.
Next week things should loosen up a little and I'll get back to writing.
(As if anyone cares) :)
I will elaborate later.
Update - 4/19
Beckett whipped the Yanks last night, going 8! First time all season a Sox pitcher has made it past 6. Manny hit TWO dongs!
We are up 3 - 2 on the season and in 1st place, like that really matters at this point. Beating them at their place DOES matter though.
Taxes, Little League, Granddaughter's Softball, Work, and Joy of Sox Game-threading.
All conspiring to keep me away from my blog.
Next week things should loosen up a little and I'll get back to writing.
(As if anyone cares) :)
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Slack, eh?
Wow, I've been very slack. At least about blogging.
Last week was a whirl, with the 1st full week of Little League practices, and a big job going on at the same time. I never had the time to sit down and write.
I'll make up for it now. A week full of Sports!
My grandson Gage had his 1st Tee-ball practice last Saturday. I have been asked to help out with the team by the manager, an energetic man named Comacho. I like it! He's probably not a whole lot over half my age, and he's obviously much more accustomed to working with 5 and 6 yr-olds than I am. However, having Gage live with us has kept me better prepared than I might be otherwise. It was fun just watching the interactions and the oh-so-different personalities and levels of development. While Coach Comacho talked with the parents, I took the kids off to one side and had them just roll whiffle balls back and forth to each other. Then I started having them try to use both hands and "alligator crunch" the ball. What a blast!
I missed today's tee-ball practice because my own team, the Junior Rockies, had a morning practice. Had to schedule it early so I could get home to watch the Heels in the ACC Semis. I'll get back to that!
My Rockies will probably struggle a bit this season, but then, I think all 3 teams in our league will struggle, so hopefully we'll at least be competitive within the league. We interleague with 3 other area leagues, though, and we'll have our hands full with those teams. Last year we dominated against the teams from the other 3 leagues, but I don't see that happening this year. The biggest problem is sheer numbers. We only have 10 players rostered right now, and one of them has a broken wrist and won't be able to throw a ball until halfway through the season. There are also new pitching restrictions this year which will have a huge impact on us. Of course, all of the teams have these restrictions, but we may be the shallowest team from a pitching standpoint, so it will affect us more. Having said that, I also have full confidence in my own ability to teach almost any kid to pitch, at least adequately. To that end I have shocked my team by announcing that every one of them is going to learn to pitch! I have already had every one on the mound, at least for a short session. This is a vast turnaround from the usual process. Usually I have kids begging to get their chance to try pitching, and can't hardly find time to work with all of them, leaving some of them feeling disappointed. This year I've actually had to convince a couple of them to give it a shot. That's never happened before! Interestingly enough, one of the kids who has not pitched since he was 10, and who said he had no real interest in doing so, is looking like he might be my number 3 man. Love those kinds of surprises!
The Red Sox are moving towards opening day. I can't wait! Wife-K (of Dice-K) had a baby boy yesterday, which means Dice will probably make the trip to Japan and can pitch on opening day. Of course, Josh Beckett is the team "ace" and as such is supposed to make the Opening Day Start, but he is still recupping from back spasms and won't be going with the team to Japan.
Now to My Heels -
HOLY COW!
After avenging their earlier loss to Duke by storming back last Sunday and beating them on their own court - for the 3rd time in as many years - the Heels are in the ACC Championship Game on this Sunday by virtue of a great comeback victory over Va. Tech today. They managed to go from about halfway through the first half until the 3 or 4 minute mark of the 2nd half without leading once. That's 3 or 4 minutes LEFT. At one point late in the 2nd half they were still down by 6. But Wayne Ellington hit 2 big 3-pointers and the team suddenly sucked it up defensively and next thing you know - score tied with under a minute to go. The Heels made a good defensive stop, got the ball back with about 25 to go and Roy called a timeout. Tie game, #1 ranking and a virtual lock on a #1 seed in the NCAAs on the line? No problem. 5 seconds to go, still tied? No problem. Ginyard misses a close in running shot with 2 seconds left? No problem. We have Tyler! Hansbrough muscles down the rebound, takes a half step back and buries a short game-winning jumper as the buzzer sounds. Just Tyler being Tyler!
Once again, I had to go change into "game-gear" in the second half. Once again I had to get out the magic Tarheel fight song bottle-opener and start setting it off every time we scored in our run to get back in the game. I had done the same thing during the come-back against Clemson a couple of weeks ago. Once again, it worked and we pulled off the huge win. And once again, the oblivious TV announcers failed to mention even once that "this amazing run started when Tim got the bottle-opener out of the kitchen, Mike. What a clutch player HE is!" Oh well, I battle on in obscurity.
The Heels will play Clemson, who shocked the world (but not me) by beating Duke in the other semi-final. This will be a tough game. Both of our games against Clemson this year have been overtime games, one of them a double OT! They match up well with us and it's hard to beat a good team three times in a season. But I'm confident that, although it won't be easy, the Heels will take the tournament trophy home again this year.
GO HEELS, GO SOX, and GO ROCKIES !!
Last week was a whirl, with the 1st full week of Little League practices, and a big job going on at the same time. I never had the time to sit down and write.
I'll make up for it now. A week full of Sports!
My grandson Gage had his 1st Tee-ball practice last Saturday. I have been asked to help out with the team by the manager, an energetic man named Comacho. I like it! He's probably not a whole lot over half my age, and he's obviously much more accustomed to working with 5 and 6 yr-olds than I am. However, having Gage live with us has kept me better prepared than I might be otherwise. It was fun just watching the interactions and the oh-so-different personalities and levels of development. While Coach Comacho talked with the parents, I took the kids off to one side and had them just roll whiffle balls back and forth to each other. Then I started having them try to use both hands and "alligator crunch" the ball. What a blast!
I missed today's tee-ball practice because my own team, the Junior Rockies, had a morning practice. Had to schedule it early so I could get home to watch the Heels in the ACC Semis. I'll get back to that!
My Rockies will probably struggle a bit this season, but then, I think all 3 teams in our league will struggle, so hopefully we'll at least be competitive within the league. We interleague with 3 other area leagues, though, and we'll have our hands full with those teams. Last year we dominated against the teams from the other 3 leagues, but I don't see that happening this year. The biggest problem is sheer numbers. We only have 10 players rostered right now, and one of them has a broken wrist and won't be able to throw a ball until halfway through the season. There are also new pitching restrictions this year which will have a huge impact on us. Of course, all of the teams have these restrictions, but we may be the shallowest team from a pitching standpoint, so it will affect us more. Having said that, I also have full confidence in my own ability to teach almost any kid to pitch, at least adequately. To that end I have shocked my team by announcing that every one of them is going to learn to pitch! I have already had every one on the mound, at least for a short session. This is a vast turnaround from the usual process. Usually I have kids begging to get their chance to try pitching, and can't hardly find time to work with all of them, leaving some of them feeling disappointed. This year I've actually had to convince a couple of them to give it a shot. That's never happened before! Interestingly enough, one of the kids who has not pitched since he was 10, and who said he had no real interest in doing so, is looking like he might be my number 3 man. Love those kinds of surprises!
The Red Sox are moving towards opening day. I can't wait! Wife-K (of Dice-K) had a baby boy yesterday, which means Dice will probably make the trip to Japan and can pitch on opening day. Of course, Josh Beckett is the team "ace" and as such is supposed to make the Opening Day Start, but he is still recupping from back spasms and won't be going with the team to Japan.
Now to My Heels -
HOLY COW!
After avenging their earlier loss to Duke by storming back last Sunday and beating them on their own court - for the 3rd time in as many years - the Heels are in the ACC Championship Game on this Sunday by virtue of a great comeback victory over Va. Tech today. They managed to go from about halfway through the first half until the 3 or 4 minute mark of the 2nd half without leading once. That's 3 or 4 minutes LEFT. At one point late in the 2nd half they were still down by 6. But Wayne Ellington hit 2 big 3-pointers and the team suddenly sucked it up defensively and next thing you know - score tied with under a minute to go. The Heels made a good defensive stop, got the ball back with about 25 to go and Roy called a timeout. Tie game, #1 ranking and a virtual lock on a #1 seed in the NCAAs on the line? No problem. 5 seconds to go, still tied? No problem. Ginyard misses a close in running shot with 2 seconds left? No problem. We have Tyler! Hansbrough muscles down the rebound, takes a half step back and buries a short game-winning jumper as the buzzer sounds. Just Tyler being Tyler!
Once again, I had to go change into "game-gear" in the second half. Once again I had to get out the magic Tarheel fight song bottle-opener and start setting it off every time we scored in our run to get back in the game. I had done the same thing during the come-back against Clemson a couple of weeks ago. Once again, it worked and we pulled off the huge win. And once again, the oblivious TV announcers failed to mention even once that "this amazing run started when Tim got the bottle-opener out of the kitchen, Mike. What a clutch player HE is!" Oh well, I battle on in obscurity.
The Heels will play Clemson, who shocked the world (but not me) by beating Duke in the other semi-final. This will be a tough game. Both of our games against Clemson this year have been overtime games, one of them a double OT! They match up well with us and it's hard to beat a good team three times in a season. But I'm confident that, although it won't be easy, the Heels will take the tournament trophy home again this year.
GO HEELS, GO SOX, and GO ROCKIES !!
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Tuesday Talk
Sheez, has it really been 2 weeks since I wrote last?
Little League is getting ready to crank up so I know it will be further between posts. I believe the thing to do is to start a weekly catch-all post so I'm not so concerned about covering any given thing in depth, although I will be finishing up a couple of pieces in the next week or so that I've been piddling with for a while. One is about Ernie Shore, a historic figure in Red Sox history and in Winston-Salem history. The other is about my First Red Sox game.
For now, let's start with this past week.
The Red Sox are in full swing in Fort Myers. Manny is looking buff and Papelbot is already talking trash, so it's going to be a great season. Seriously, Manny is working out like a banshee and the results are obvious. He's definitely looking to up his value for that free agent off-season coming up. The team traveled to DC to meet the president this week. Manny didn't make the trip, way to "be Manny"!
First exhibition game is tomorrow. Can't wait to see highlights when I get home!
Down in Blue Heaven, the Heels are looking as good as they have all year right now, and they're still doing it without Lawson. If Ty comes back to full strength, which may be harder to do than say, he'll be coming back to a better team than it was when he went out. They should be damn near unstoppable!
The time Q (Quentin Thomas) has put in as the only true point guard left has been incredibly beneficial. He's playing like a true senior leader. Ty had to carry all the weight when we lost Frazor for the season because every time Q came in, things seemed to disintegrate. That apparently was just the result of not enough time out there, and maybe too much self-inflicted pressure trying to "be" Ty. With 6 full games under his belt now, Q is doing better than anyone could have hoped, and will be a bonafide 2nd option at PG, capable of spelling Lawson for plenty of minutes, which will probably be necessary as Lawson workd his way back into game condition.
Hansborough is STILL the hardest worker in basketball, and it is becoming almost routine for him to have games that would qualify as "once in a lifetime" for most people. Wake Forest threw MacFarland at him, State threw Grant and McCauley at him, no matter. He just keeps "being Tyler". (sorry Manny)
As I mentioned, Little League is just around the corner. We have enough kids for a 3rd team in the Jr's division (13 - 14) this year, so we're scrambling to find another manager. We actually are only 6 or 7 late sign-ups away from having enough for 4 teams and needing 2 more coaches. I and one other guy have been the only two for a couple of years now, and it's been several years since we've had a player's father as a head coach at that level. That's been kind of nice, but to my knowledge we don't have any other options. Maybe the coaches committee has someone tucked away I'm not aware of. If so, they'd better speak up fast, Bo (the other returning manager) and I hope to split up the teams and get started practicing in the next 4 or 5 days.
On the Home Front - had to run Sockette to the hospital yesterday. Seems she got dizzy and fell while heading to the bathroom. Probably nothing to get anxious about, but when you know all this shit is going on inside you, you just have to worry about what might be happening. They did a quick heart test and sent her home. Why would they look for anything more when she doesn't have insurance? I know, they might have done the same to anyone else, but I kind of doubt it. People don't just fall down for no reason, or maybe they do, but it would be nice to confirm that it was for no reason. There are plenty of perfectly good reasons for someone to fall down unexpectedly, most of which are not actually good.
She gets the week off from chemo this week, so maybe by next weekend she'll be up for riding down to Charlotte for the "Intergalactic Bead Show" that's coming! Yippeee! Actually, I fuss about it and am usually bored within minutes, but it sure is nice see her enjoy something for a while, and every time there are actually a few pretty damn cool things to see. It's a shame it's not this weekend, though. The Diamond Heels (UNC's baseball team) are in Rock Hill just south of town for a weekend tournament. We could do Beads and Balls.
All of these subjects include issues that are well worth delving into deeper - Family health and Health Care ; Little League and youth sports in general ; My Red Sox and the beautiful history of baseball ; those fabulous Heels, their female counterparts, and the Diamond Heels too - and I will....soon.
For now, Gotta go!
Little League is getting ready to crank up so I know it will be further between posts. I believe the thing to do is to start a weekly catch-all post so I'm not so concerned about covering any given thing in depth, although I will be finishing up a couple of pieces in the next week or so that I've been piddling with for a while. One is about Ernie Shore, a historic figure in Red Sox history and in Winston-Salem history. The other is about my First Red Sox game.
For now, let's start with this past week.
The Red Sox are in full swing in Fort Myers. Manny is looking buff and Papelbot is already talking trash, so it's going to be a great season. Seriously, Manny is working out like a banshee and the results are obvious. He's definitely looking to up his value for that free agent off-season coming up. The team traveled to DC to meet the president this week. Manny didn't make the trip, way to "be Manny"!
First exhibition game is tomorrow. Can't wait to see highlights when I get home!
Down in Blue Heaven, the Heels are looking as good as they have all year right now, and they're still doing it without Lawson. If Ty comes back to full strength, which may be harder to do than say, he'll be coming back to a better team than it was when he went out. They should be damn near unstoppable!
The time Q (Quentin Thomas) has put in as the only true point guard left has been incredibly beneficial. He's playing like a true senior leader. Ty had to carry all the weight when we lost Frazor for the season because every time Q came in, things seemed to disintegrate. That apparently was just the result of not enough time out there, and maybe too much self-inflicted pressure trying to "be" Ty. With 6 full games under his belt now, Q is doing better than anyone could have hoped, and will be a bonafide 2nd option at PG, capable of spelling Lawson for plenty of minutes, which will probably be necessary as Lawson workd his way back into game condition.
Hansborough is STILL the hardest worker in basketball, and it is becoming almost routine for him to have games that would qualify as "once in a lifetime" for most people. Wake Forest threw MacFarland at him, State threw Grant and McCauley at him, no matter. He just keeps "being Tyler". (sorry Manny)
As I mentioned, Little League is just around the corner. We have enough kids for a 3rd team in the Jr's division (13 - 14) this year, so we're scrambling to find another manager. We actually are only 6 or 7 late sign-ups away from having enough for 4 teams and needing 2 more coaches. I and one other guy have been the only two for a couple of years now, and it's been several years since we've had a player's father as a head coach at that level. That's been kind of nice, but to my knowledge we don't have any other options. Maybe the coaches committee has someone tucked away I'm not aware of. If so, they'd better speak up fast, Bo (the other returning manager) and I hope to split up the teams and get started practicing in the next 4 or 5 days.
On the Home Front - had to run Sockette to the hospital yesterday. Seems she got dizzy and fell while heading to the bathroom. Probably nothing to get anxious about, but when you know all this shit is going on inside you, you just have to worry about what might be happening. They did a quick heart test and sent her home. Why would they look for anything more when she doesn't have insurance? I know, they might have done the same to anyone else, but I kind of doubt it. People don't just fall down for no reason, or maybe they do, but it would be nice to confirm that it was for no reason. There are plenty of perfectly good reasons for someone to fall down unexpectedly, most of which are not actually good.
She gets the week off from chemo this week, so maybe by next weekend she'll be up for riding down to Charlotte for the "Intergalactic Bead Show" that's coming! Yippeee! Actually, I fuss about it and am usually bored within minutes, but it sure is nice see her enjoy something for a while, and every time there are actually a few pretty damn cool things to see. It's a shame it's not this weekend, though. The Diamond Heels (UNC's baseball team) are in Rock Hill just south of town for a weekend tournament. We could do Beads and Balls.
All of these subjects include issues that are well worth delving into deeper - Family health and Health Care ; Little League and youth sports in general ; My Red Sox and the beautiful history of baseball ; those fabulous Heels, their female counterparts, and the Diamond Heels too - and I will....soon.
For now, Gotta go!
Sunday, January 13, 2008
A Southern Sox Fan?
I'm a Red Sox fan. In North Carolina. From North Carolina, even. It's actually a pretty serious part of my identity. It takes up way too much of my time, just ask my wife. During the season I get very far behind in paperwork, especially since I discovered "GameDay" on my computer (it's not like we actually get to watch Red Sox games here) and even more so since I found "The Joy of Sox". I got a call from a friend just last week who actually said "Hi, I just passed a car a lot like yours in a bad wreck, and it had a Red Sox sticker on the back. I instantly thought of you, and just wanted to make sure......Swear.
When I tell people who don't know me well I'm a Red Sox fan, or sometimes just when they see my hat, I inevitably get one of two reactions
A - What part of New England are you from...or
B - (if they've heard me speak) Oh, how long you been a Sox fan?, with that look - the one implying that I climbed on the magic bus in or around 2004.
My love for all things Sox actually goes back to my early childhood.
No, I wasn't born there. I was born right here in Winston-Salem, NC, and have never lived more than 8 or 10 miles from the city limits.
No, I didn't go to school there. I attended a tech school here.
No, my parents aren't from the Northeast. My mother is from northern Indiana, and my father grew up in very rural Tennessee, south of Memphis, near the Mississippi line.
My fanatic enthusiasm is the result of a confluence of circumstances, memories, and a lack of obvious other choices.
I guess one reason I am a Red Sox fan is that my parents never had, nor do they have, any affectation for any particular sports team. Neither of them went to college, so there was no loyalty to grow up with there. There were not any pro teams anywhere near either of their hometowns, so nothing there either. Not only that, but before I was born they moved to an area that was a barren wasteland for pro sports fans. When I was a child, college sports was the only game here in NC, and even though we have the NFL, NBA, and NHL here now, college still rules.
So it's no surprise that my dad was not all that into watching sports, although he liked to play. He played softball for the commercial league team at Piedmont Airlines, where he worked. I used to go to a lot of his games. He was a pretty darn good pitcher, actually. He also bowled in the company league.
He did take us on numerous occasions down to the local ball park, Historic Ernie Shore Field. (A post on Ernie is forthcoming!) I also went at least once a year with the Cub Scout pack I was in, and also with the families of various friends. One of the years in Cub Scouts, our den mother was Mrs. Cardwell. Her son Gary was in my class at school and his dad, Don, pitched in the Major Leagues! We went to several games that year. I loved the ball park. There we watched the Winston-Salem Red Sox play in the single A Carolina League. My local pride insists that I must add here that the Carolina League, while just A ball, was and still is considered the top single A league around. The team was the Red Sox A affiliate from 1961 to 1983. I was born in 1958, so I don't remember the prior years, when they were a Cardinals team. And I was too young to realize they were a "Minor League " team. I don't remember going to watch "A" ball.
This is what I remember.
We sat in the stands with our Red Sox mini-bats, waving our Red Sox banners, cheering for the Red Sox. I was too young to grasp minors vs. majors. I just knew the Red Sox were the good guys. They were the ones who were always in the 1st base dugout we sat behind. We got their autographs. We chanted "Let's Go Red Sox" and "Charge!" with the organ and the PA announcer. One great thing about it being single A is that we sat practically on top of the dugout almost every game. If the game got tight, and it wasn't late in a good season, you could always go find some empty seats right against the backstop behind home plate and razz the opposing batters.
In my youth, I didn't recognize the difference between a city 700 miles away (Boston) and a city 300 miles away (Atlanta). Heck, I even played little league ball for the Clemmons Red Sox! Why wouldn't I be a fan? Most of my friends were Braves fans. This was because their parents were Braves fans. Later I would realize why their parents were Braves fans. The Braves were from the South, as were they. My mom's Indiana roots kept that from ever being a real issue to me. The Braves had Hank Aaron. The Braves were the team they might actually drive to see a couple of times a year, even though the Senators were actually about the same distance away. But why would anyone go to DC when they could go to Atlanta cheaper, and stay in the South? Of course, we never did either one.
Another big reason for my devotion to the Sox was just me. I was not particularly athletic, so the rather laid-back pace of vacant lot baseball suited me just fine. If the kids on the Little League teams I coach now knew just how abysmal my batting was, they wouldn't put a moment's trust in anything I say! And my fielding was worse. But I loved the game, and baseball was the one sport where even over-sized guys like Babe Ruth or Brooks Robinson could be a star, so my fantasies could remain alive. Therefore I grew up more of a baseball fan than football or basketball, although as I got older I was drawn into the very rabid world of college basketball in North Carolina, and am now every bit as much a fan of UNC's Tarheels as I am of my beloved Sox.
Since athletics were not my strong suit, and I never experienced much success on the field, I felt a real attraction to the underdog in all things. I always felt like I was that underdog. Underdog was even one of my favorite cartoons! (God bless Sweet Polly Purebred) As I grew older and learned about the "real" Red Sox that "my" Red Sox were related to, I relished in the fact that they had not won a World Series since around the time my grandfather was born. That was a badge I could relate to! That's not to say I didn't want them to win that ultimate prize. I pinned my own hopes on them. I probably would have been better served to work on making myself better, but I just watched and rooted and bought heaps of Topps cards. I scoured the backs of the Red Sox players' cards to see which ones had played in Winston-Salem. I compared stats, and argued with all the Braves fans about Yaz vs. Aaron. I read about the Greatest - Ted Williams, and anointed him almost a god because he had gone to fight the Germans, just like my own Daddy! I adopted Yaz as my personal hero in the 60's, the savior who would bring the ring back to Boston and break the curse. I felt the crush as a 9-year-old when he won the Triple Crown, led us to a pennant, but fell short to Gibson's Cardinals.
By the time I was old enough to grasp the things that made all those around me fans of whatever teams they were fans of - family roots, schools, proximity, etc. - it didn't matter. I was a Red Sox fan, a defiant one, and damn proud of it. I remained a Red Sox fan, although I did go through an extended leave of absence. Not just from the Red Sox, but from practically all sports. By the early '70s I was completely distracted by...well, by the 1970s! If you couldn't strum it, smoke it, or lust after it, I wasn't that interested.
But I still followed from a distance. I watched them in the World Series in '75, and I revived my despisal of the Yankees as they won back to back in '77 & '78. I came back to baseball through individual heroes more than through my Sox. I loved Nolan Ryan, Carlton Fisk, George Brett, Ozzie Smith, and Andre Dawson. When Wade Boggs came on the scene, I was back. After all, he had played in Winston-Salem. By the mid-80s I had 2 sons of my own, I was thinking T-Ball, Greenwell and Boggs were lighting it up, and Red Sox baseball ruled once again.
That passion came back even though I never got to see them play a game in person until 1999. (A post on that game is also forthcoming! It was VERY special) I remain one to this day, despite the fact that in 2004 the team changed my identity forever. I had always referred to myself as the "long-suffering Red Sox fan". You have to be a real die-hard to pull for a team with the history of the Sox for as long as I had before that year, especially when you're not even from there. Now I'm just another guy in a Red Sox cap, and most people assume I've been a fan for all of 3 or 4 years now. I must say - that really hurts.
However, I'll take that hurt as long as the Red Sox keep winning!
When I tell people who don't know me well I'm a Red Sox fan, or sometimes just when they see my hat, I inevitably get one of two reactions
A - What part of New England are you from...or
B - (if they've heard me speak) Oh, how long you been a Sox fan?, with that look - the one implying that I climbed on the magic bus in or around 2004.
My love for all things Sox actually goes back to my early childhood.
No, I wasn't born there. I was born right here in Winston-Salem, NC, and have never lived more than 8 or 10 miles from the city limits.
No, I didn't go to school there. I attended a tech school here.
No, my parents aren't from the Northeast. My mother is from northern Indiana, and my father grew up in very rural Tennessee, south of Memphis, near the Mississippi line.
My fanatic enthusiasm is the result of a confluence of circumstances, memories, and a lack of obvious other choices.
I guess one reason I am a Red Sox fan is that my parents never had, nor do they have, any affectation for any particular sports team. Neither of them went to college, so there was no loyalty to grow up with there. There were not any pro teams anywhere near either of their hometowns, so nothing there either. Not only that, but before I was born they moved to an area that was a barren wasteland for pro sports fans. When I was a child, college sports was the only game here in NC, and even though we have the NFL, NBA, and NHL here now, college still rules.
So it's no surprise that my dad was not all that into watching sports, although he liked to play. He played softball for the commercial league team at Piedmont Airlines, where he worked. I used to go to a lot of his games. He was a pretty darn good pitcher, actually. He also bowled in the company league.
He did take us on numerous occasions down to the local ball park, Historic Ernie Shore Field. (A post on Ernie is forthcoming!) I also went at least once a year with the Cub Scout pack I was in, and also with the families of various friends. One of the years in Cub Scouts, our den mother was Mrs. Cardwell. Her son Gary was in my class at school and his dad, Don, pitched in the Major Leagues! We went to several games that year. I loved the ball park. There we watched the Winston-Salem Red Sox play in the single A Carolina League. My local pride insists that I must add here that the Carolina League, while just A ball, was and still is considered the top single A league around. The team was the Red Sox A affiliate from 1961 to 1983. I was born in 1958, so I don't remember the prior years, when they were a Cardinals team. And I was too young to realize they were a "Minor League " team. I don't remember going to watch "A" ball.
This is what I remember.
We sat in the stands with our Red Sox mini-bats, waving our Red Sox banners, cheering for the Red Sox. I was too young to grasp minors vs. majors. I just knew the Red Sox were the good guys. They were the ones who were always in the 1st base dugout we sat behind. We got their autographs. We chanted "Let's Go Red Sox" and "Charge!" with the organ and the PA announcer. One great thing about it being single A is that we sat practically on top of the dugout almost every game. If the game got tight, and it wasn't late in a good season, you could always go find some empty seats right against the backstop behind home plate and razz the opposing batters.
In my youth, I didn't recognize the difference between a city 700 miles away (Boston) and a city 300 miles away (Atlanta). Heck, I even played little league ball for the Clemmons Red Sox! Why wouldn't I be a fan? Most of my friends were Braves fans. This was because their parents were Braves fans. Later I would realize why their parents were Braves fans. The Braves were from the South, as were they. My mom's Indiana roots kept that from ever being a real issue to me. The Braves had Hank Aaron. The Braves were the team they might actually drive to see a couple of times a year, even though the Senators were actually about the same distance away. But why would anyone go to DC when they could go to Atlanta cheaper, and stay in the South? Of course, we never did either one.
Another big reason for my devotion to the Sox was just me. I was not particularly athletic, so the rather laid-back pace of vacant lot baseball suited me just fine. If the kids on the Little League teams I coach now knew just how abysmal my batting was, they wouldn't put a moment's trust in anything I say! And my fielding was worse. But I loved the game, and baseball was the one sport where even over-sized guys like Babe Ruth or Brooks Robinson could be a star, so my fantasies could remain alive. Therefore I grew up more of a baseball fan than football or basketball, although as I got older I was drawn into the very rabid world of college basketball in North Carolina, and am now every bit as much a fan of UNC's Tarheels as I am of my beloved Sox.
Since athletics were not my strong suit, and I never experienced much success on the field, I felt a real attraction to the underdog in all things. I always felt like I was that underdog. Underdog was even one of my favorite cartoons! (God bless Sweet Polly Purebred) As I grew older and learned about the "real" Red Sox that "my" Red Sox were related to, I relished in the fact that they had not won a World Series since around the time my grandfather was born. That was a badge I could relate to! That's not to say I didn't want them to win that ultimate prize. I pinned my own hopes on them. I probably would have been better served to work on making myself better, but I just watched and rooted and bought heaps of Topps cards. I scoured the backs of the Red Sox players' cards to see which ones had played in Winston-Salem. I compared stats, and argued with all the Braves fans about Yaz vs. Aaron. I read about the Greatest - Ted Williams, and anointed him almost a god because he had gone to fight the Germans, just like my own Daddy! I adopted Yaz as my personal hero in the 60's, the savior who would bring the ring back to Boston and break the curse. I felt the crush as a 9-year-old when he won the Triple Crown, led us to a pennant, but fell short to Gibson's Cardinals.
By the time I was old enough to grasp the things that made all those around me fans of whatever teams they were fans of - family roots, schools, proximity, etc. - it didn't matter. I was a Red Sox fan, a defiant one, and damn proud of it. I remained a Red Sox fan, although I did go through an extended leave of absence. Not just from the Red Sox, but from practically all sports. By the early '70s I was completely distracted by...well, by the 1970s! If you couldn't strum it, smoke it, or lust after it, I wasn't that interested.
But I still followed from a distance. I watched them in the World Series in '75, and I revived my despisal of the Yankees as they won back to back in '77 & '78. I came back to baseball through individual heroes more than through my Sox. I loved Nolan Ryan, Carlton Fisk, George Brett, Ozzie Smith, and Andre Dawson. When Wade Boggs came on the scene, I was back. After all, he had played in Winston-Salem. By the mid-80s I had 2 sons of my own, I was thinking T-Ball, Greenwell and Boggs were lighting it up, and Red Sox baseball ruled once again.
That passion came back even though I never got to see them play a game in person until 1999. (A post on that game is also forthcoming! It was VERY special) I remain one to this day, despite the fact that in 2004 the team changed my identity forever. I had always referred to myself as the "long-suffering Red Sox fan". You have to be a real die-hard to pull for a team with the history of the Sox for as long as I had before that year, especially when you're not even from there. Now I'm just another guy in a Red Sox cap, and most people assume I've been a fan for all of 3 or 4 years now. I must say - that really hurts.
However, I'll take that hurt as long as the Red Sox keep winning!
Thursday, January 3, 2008
2008
Wow - it's now January 3rd, 2008. I opened this blog on August 25, 2007, just to get access to a blogger identity so I could post on another bloggers site. I quickly decided that I too could use the internet to spout a few viewpoints and put some things down on "paper" that I had been meaning to share. However life, work, the Red Sox, and my Little League addiction have consumed my existence since then. I have now resolved that, although I will always have something more important and more pressing to do, I WILL make the time to sit and write.
I will start with myself........tomorrow.
1st story will be - How the HELL does a guy born in Winston-Salem, NC end up a die-hard, love 'em or bite me, there is no other team, Boston Red Sox fan.
Stay tuned
I will start with myself........tomorrow.
1st story will be - How the HELL does a guy born in Winston-Salem, NC end up a die-hard, love 'em or bite me, there is no other team, Boston Red Sox fan.
Stay tuned
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