BASEBALL!

[Wolfsong]

Originally Posted by Kobi

Hope your Sox have better luck with KC than my Sox did. I mean really, losing 2 of 3 to KC? It was so sad.

Yeah, my guys do good pushing people around early. It's the later innings we seem to lose focus, drop fly balls, forgot how many outs there are, and other mental errors.

Cleveland will push us around some more - getting back at us for stealing Victor Martinez.

Well looks we both have reason to be happy this evening. Good job on the win. It's always better when it isn't a sweep. Detroit and Cleveland lost while the WS picked up a 1/2 game. Good deal

[Kobi]

Originally Posted by Wolfsong

Well looks we both have reason to be happy this evening. Good job on the win. It's always better when it isn't a sweep. Detroit and Cleveland lost while the WS picked up a 1/2 game. Good deal

That was cool. It was our second win at home since mid-April. Kind of sad to think home cooking has motivated only 4 wins this seasons. But a win is a win at this point of the game.

Glad you gained some ground. Still sweeping the cellar here LOL.

[macele]

doing the right thing in sports such as attitude, playing the game fair, giving all players a chance, etc. ... may not lead to a championship. but it leads to winning in the heart.

i don't see this as one of those things. maybe i'm wrong to a certain degree. the lady of sorrows are standing up for what they believe in.

but they are also missing out. they need to do some re scheduling. this isn't mesa's rule. i'm glad mesa is standing up for what they believe in too.

overall, it's very sad.

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/highsc...041333504.html

[Dominique]

We (the Pirates) have been far from perfect thus far, HOWEVER I love the excitement they bring each night. Here's a little bit of what I'm talking about.
filed under Pirates

I am shamed to admit that I have not seen Dude, Where’s My Car?
You would think that like all educated Americans who have taken the time to see the great American classics, I would have seen this masterpiece by now. But I haven’t. I also haven’t seen Glitter. I cannot hang my head any lower.
When Rod Barajas hit a walk-off home run (!!!!!) last night in the bottom of the ninth with the Pirates down two runs with two outs, to send the Pirates over the Nationals, I didn’t get why the Buccos crowded around home plate to welcome him home while making some weird sign with their hands:


But now I know thanks to the Post-Gazette, the origin of sign:

As Barajas rounded third, he found the rest of the team standing with interlocked fingers forming the letter ‘Z,’ a trend that Neil Walker helped start in Atlanta. The sign references Zoltan, a character from the movie “Dude, Where’s My Car?” and a sign now given after a hit.
“We just started doing it, we’ve been raking ever since,” said starter A.J. Burnett, who got Barajas with a shaving-cream pie in the face after his winning homer. “That was my favorite part of the night, seeing 20 guys behind home plate doing that. It shows you what a group we have.”

Here’s the clip!

I’m not gonna lie. I lost my shit a little when he popped a bubble on the one dude’s space suit.
Anyway, if you haven’t seen the home run and the ensuing celebration, watch it here. Watch it all and never let it be said that the Pirates don’t care about winning. These guys care about winning.
When are the Buccos going to break out Blue Steel, is my question. .…

[Dominique]

Thank you Yankees for letting us have Burnett. He's fitting right in.






Jared Wickerham/Getty Images
Rod Barajas gets a shaving cream pie in the face as he celebrates hitting the winning 2-run homer for the Bucs with A.J. Burnett - 5.8.12



#Pittsburgh Pirates #A.J. Burnett

[Ciaran]

Originally Posted by Cajun_dee

Because sometimes a team what keeps things alive. i was a NOLA Saints fan my entire life, Red Sox too, sometimes people need something to believe in. The Saints took over 45 years to just make it past round one of the playoffs, still the were our team. Win or lose we love em.....i'm no fair weather fan.

The Brooklyn Dodgers were the greatest epitome of this ..... their "next year" finally came in 1955 after many years of failure at the final hurdle.

[Wolfsong]

Originally Posted by Kobi

That was cool. It was our second win at home since mid-April. Kind of sad to think home cooking has motivated only 4 wins this seasons. But a win is a win at this point of the game.

Glad you gained some ground. Still sweeping the cellar here LOL.

Let's keep our fingers crossed tonight. I need a Boston win

Originally Posted by macele

doing the right thing in sports such as attitude, playing the game fair, giving all players a chance, etc. ... may not lead to a championship. but it leads to winning in the heart.

i don't see this as one of those things. maybe i'm wrong to a certain degree. the lady of sorrows are standing up for what they believe in.

Pretty insightful of you to recognize that they are simply standing up for what they believe in disregarding that the rest of us find it rather senseless. I had to look up this society and it looks like they went way rouge on the Catholic Church although they clain to obey the pope (they've managed to piss off 2 popes now and gotten themselves excommunicated by the vatican.)

Originally Posted by Ciaran

The Brooklyn Dodgers were the greatest epitome of this ..... their "next year" finally came in 1955 after many years of failure at the final hurdle.

The Brooklyn Dodgers should still be in Brooklyn and you are right. This team was a perfect example of the difference between trying and not trying. They had won several pennants previous to 1953 and never made it all the way. How much more sweet their victory was over the Yankees.

[macele]

i did not say that i agree with the lady of sorrows. i said that they needed to re schedule. play schools with the same rules/beliefs.

[Ciaran]

Originally Posted by Wolfsong

The Brooklyn Dodgers should still be in Brooklyn and you are right. This team was a perfect example of the difference between trying and not trying. They had won several pennants previous to 1953 and never made it all the way. How much more sweet their victory was over the Yankees.

Yes, they had lost to the Yankees in the 1941, 1947, 1949 and 1953 World Series before finally winning in 1955. They'd also lost two World Series in their earlier years, 1916 against the Red Sox (with Babe Ruth in the team) and Cleveland Indians in 1920.

Sad state of affairs that both the Dodgers and Giants moved to the west coast in the late 1950s.

[Wolfsong]

Originally Posted by Ciaran

Sad state of affairs that both the Dodgers and Giants moved to the west coast in the late 1950s.

Well, I believe that the local team is also closely associated with the city/town/neighborhood/fan's identity. If it were not so thousands of joyus fans would not be jumping up and down screaming We Won We Won after clinching a championship. I believe that it takes something away, you lose a little, when a team leaves for another location.

The Mets moved in but it just isn't the same. Just like when a favorite neighbor moves out and another moves into his house. You might like the new guy, but you'll never forget the time that.......with the original neighbor. The new guy will never be the old guy even if you grow to love him.

We could have lost the White Sox to Florida in 1989. Thankfully we did not. The neighborhood that the team is located in, Bridgeport (and the south side of Chicago) would have suffered greatly for it. It's as much a part of us as the churches, the schools, and the locally owned businesses. Even if you weren't AT the game, the sound of fireworks booming in the night meant that someone knocked it out of the park or that our White Sox won.

Pittsburgh is a prime example of a city identifying with their teams. Every one of their sporting teams have the same colors, Black and Yellow. From the Pirates to the Penguins to the Steelers alike........Black and Yellow......the color of the city......the Iron City.

Now I've never been to LA, but I can say I've never met anyone who said they were a die hard Dodgers fan. The city currently is the largest market without a professional football team. They do follow the Lakers but I can't tell if that is fandom or fashion. They just don't seem to have the heart.

[AtLast]

My folks loved it that the "Bums" and the NY Giants moved to CA. They courted & sparked back in the 30's with these teams but moved to CA in 1948.

[AtLast]

Originally Posted by Dominique

We (the Pirates) have been far from perfect thus far, HOWEVER I love the excitement they bring each night. Here's a little bit of what I'm talking about.
filed under Pirates

I am shamed to admit that I have not seen Dude, Where’s My Car?
You would think that like all educated Americans who have taken the time to see the great American classics, I would have seen this masterpiece by now. But I haven’t. I also haven’t seen Glitter. I cannot hang my head any lower.
When Rod Barajas hit a walk-off home run (!!!!!) last night in the bottom of the ninth with the Pirates down two runs with two outs, to send the Pirates over the Nationals, I didn’t get why the Buccos crowded around home plate to welcome him home while making some weird sign with their hands:


But now I know thanks to the Post-Gazette, the origin of sign:

As Barajas rounded third, he found the rest of the team standing with interlocked fingers forming the letter ‘Z,’ a trend that Neil Walker helped start in Atlanta. The sign references Zoltan, a character from the movie “Dude, Where’s My Car?” and a sign now given after a hit.
“We just started doing it, we’ve been raking ever since,” said starter A.J. Burnett, who got Barajas with a shaving-cream pie in the face after his winning homer. “That was my favorite part of the night, seeing 20 guys behind home plate doing that. It shows you what a group we have.”

Here’s the clip.

I’m not gonna lie. I lost my shit a little when he popped a bubble on the one dude’s space suit.
Anyway, if you haven’t seen the home run and the ensuing celebration, watch it here. Watch it all and never let it be said that the Pirates don’t care about winning. These guys care about winning.
When are the Buccos going to break out Blue Steel, is my question. .…

Who knows.... They could get on it- very early. Ugh, the Giants are a mess!

[Ciaran]

Originally Posted by Wolfsong

Now I've never been to LA, but I can say I've never met anyone who said they were a die hard Dodgers fan. The city currently is the largest market without a professional football team. They do follow the Lakers but I can't tell if that is fandom or fashion. They just don't seem to have the heart.

I've been to Southern California often, although until now I've never been to the Dodgers. Ironically, however, I'm actually going to one of their games later this month.

I'll always remember when the Raiders played in Los Angeles. I was a Washington Redskins fan as a young child and cried tremendously when the Raiders won the 1984 Super Bowl.

[Wolfsong]

Originally Posted by Ciaran

I've been to Southern California often, although until now I've never been to the Dodgers. Ironically, however, I'm actually going to one of their games later this month.

I'll always remember when the Raiders played in Los Angeles. I was a Washington Redskins fan as a young child and cried tremendously when the Raiders won the 1984 Super Bowl.

Oh great. Let us know what kind of experiance it is. I'd love to take a summer and do the one game at every ball park thing. I know that won't heppen so I'm going to tailor it to a select few musts like Yankee Stadium and Fenway Park.

[Ciaran]

Originally Posted by Wolfsong

Oh great. Let us know what kind of experiance it is. I'd love to take a summer and do the one game at every ball park thing. I know that won't heppen so I'm going to tailor it to a select few musts like Yankee Stadium and Fenway Park.

I definitely will post here what the experience was like.

I love the Yankees history and love going to Yankee games. I used to travel to New York often but, for some reason, I haven't been back since 2007 so I haven't been to the new Yankee Stadium yet.

I loved going to the old Yankee Stadium - the history and the ghosts were immense - so will be interesting to see what the atmosphere is like in the new stadium. I hope to get there in the summer.

[Wolfsong]

Originally Posted by Ciaran

I loved going to the old Yankee Stadium - the history and the ghosts were immense - so will be interesting to see what the atmosphere is like in the new stadium. I hope to get there in the summer.

I confess to complete and total jealousy right now. I would have loved to see a game in the old stadium. In an earlier post I mentioned that Roger Maris is my all time favorite player, but there are many others that also happen to have been Yankees.





This weekend is going to kind of suck. I had tickets to the White Sox-Cubs game @ Wrigley Field and decided to sell them because all of the out-of-town goons protesting the NATO summit are all over the place. One of them pushed an 80 yr old man down the day before yesterday. I'm not taking my wife down there.

[Wolfsong]

Originally Posted by macele

i did not say that i agree with the lady of sorrows. i said that they needed to re schedule. play schools with the same rules/beliefs.

I know you didn't and I agree with you. Actually it's kind of silly, it isn't like the girl is wanting to play for their team.

[Ciaran]

Originally Posted by Wolfsong

I confess to complete and total jealousy right now. I would have loved to see a game in the old stadium. In an earlier post I mentioned that Roger Maris is my all time favorite player, but there are many others that also happen to have been Yankees. [/FONT]

I actually have an original architect drawing of part of the original Yankee Stadium. It was produced in 1921 by the Osborn Engineering Company of Cleveland who designed the stadium. It ultimately opened in 1923.

My favourite player of all-time is Tony Lazzeri although I also love the story of Lou Gehrig.

[Wolfsong]

Originally Posted by Ciaran

I actually have an original architect drawing of part of the original Yankee Stadium. It was produced in 1921 by the Osborn Engineering Company of Cleveland who designed the stadium. It ultimately opened in 1923.

My favourite player of all-time is Tony Lazzeri although I also love the story of Lou Gehrig.

Lazzeri was a Cub around 38-39ish. (Poor guy, they were 30 years into their slump by then). He did actually play with the Cubs in the World Series....against the Yankees in '38. They lost. An old, classic Yankee, played with both Ruth and Gehrig. Tony once said them;

"They didn't get along. Gehrig thought Ruth was a big-mouth and Ruth thought Gehrig was cheap. They were both right." - Tony Lazzeri

He was a good ballplayer. What made him your favorite all time?

[Ciaran]

Originally Posted by Wolfsong

Lazzeri was a Cub around 38-39ish. (Poor guy, they were 30 years into their slump by then). He did actually play with the Cubs in the World Series....against the Yankees in '38. They lost. An old, classic Yankee, played with both Ruth and Gehrig. Tony once said them;

"They didn't get along. Gehrig thought Ruth was a big-mouth and Ruth thought Gehrig was cheap. They were both right." - Tony Lazzeri

He was a good ballplayer. What made him your favorite all time?

Yes, Lazzeri went to the Cubs in 1938 - it was his only season there. He then went to the Dodgers, New York Giants and ended up in Toronto.

Why is Lazzeri my favourite plaver? It's strange but I'm not really a baseball fan in that it's not my sport. However, I love imagery of the Yankees of the 1920s and 1930s. I collect original Yankees photos from this period and have one of the best collections that exists.

Why do I like Lazzeri? Well, he wasn't as popular as Ruth or Gehrig but a damn good player. Also, I like his being Italian at a time when it wasn't always easy to be high profile and successful as a non-WASP.

However, above all, Lazzeri is my favourite player because he was so photogenic. I have photos of Lazzeri from his first days at the Yankees in 1926 and chart his career through the Yankees. What I find most interesting is that he had such a warm, alluring smile but that seemed to go after he left the Yankees. I've five or six photos of Lazzeri at the Cubs in 1938 but he's not smiling in any of these, same with photos of him at the Dodgers and Giants.

I recently purchased the original negative of a Lazzeri photo taken in the summer of 1946. In this, he was wearing a Yankees shirt as he was at a baseball summer school in San Francisco. He was found dead weeks later. I'm not certain but think that this is probably the last ever photo of him pictured in a Yankees jersey.