|
Baseball
Brethren:
Let
me
begin
this
issue
by
thanking
Tricko
for
his
splendid
Special
Edition
of
The
Curbside
Chronicles,
which,
as
always,
was
great
reading.
I
think
that
adding
the
Guest
Edition
feature
to
our
website
as a
complement
to
the
league
organ
From
the
Bullpen
was
one
of
the
best
things
that
ever
happened
in
this
league,
because
we
get
the
chance
to
see
in
print
the
thoughts
and
musings
of
some
very
intelligent
and
funny
people,
but
who
don’t
always
reveal
this
side
of
themselves
in
“public”
because
they
are
not
limelight
hoggers
like
Bender
and
others
who
shall
remain
nameless.
It
also
gives
us
all
a
chance
to
learn
more
about
each
other.
For
example,
until
I
saw
Magpie’s
picture
with
Misty,
I
had
no
idea
that
he
was
actually
a
pretty
good-looking
dude
in
his
youth.
I
did
a
double-take
when
I
first
saw
that
picture,
thinking
it
was
a
young
Kevin
Costner
or
possibly
a
Gibb
(Bee
Gees)
brother
of
whom
I
was
heretofore
unaware,
before
realizing
that
it
is
actually
a
youthful
Tricko.
I
also
didn’t
know
that
Curby
was
involved
in
the
theatre
during
his
high
school
years,
although
that
revelation
answers
a
lot
of
questions
that
I
have
had
about
him
over
the
years.
Anyhow,
great
piece
of
work
on
The
Chronicles,
Mitch,
and
thanks
for
taking
the
time
to
make
us
laugh
and
think.
Thanks
also
to
the
rest
of
you
for
doing
likewise
when
your
turn
for
writing
the
guest
article
comes
around.
THE
STANDINGS
Now
on
to
other
matters.
The
league
standings
through
games
of
Sunday,
July
4,
are
as
follows:
|
Week 13
thru 7/4/10 |
|
Upper Division |
|
1. |
Wahoos |
6682.5 |
|
|
2. |
Chiefs |
6365.7 |
|
|
3. |
Cubs |
6324.4 |
|
|
4. |
Highlanders |
6086.9 |
|
|
5. |
Monarchs |
6047.2 |
|
|
6. |
Bombers |
5753.1 |
|
|
Lower Division |
|
7. |
Skipjacks |
5664.0 |
|
|
8. |
Redbirds |
5647.2 |
|
|
9. |
HS Missiles |
5555.7 |
|
|
10. |
Blues |
5506.8 |
|
|
11. |
Tribe |
5467.3 |
|
|
12. |
Senators |
5401.6 |
|
|
13. |
Bears |
5292.2 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
The
best
news,
of
course,
is
that
the
Senators
found
a
way
out
of
the
basement
for
the
first
time
in
about
the
last
month.
The
Lincoln
Bears
have
been
just
bad
enough
to
allow
my
pathetic
Senators
to
pass
them
for
a
brief
few
days
out
of
the
sewer.
However,
while
the
whining
SloPay
blames
all
of
his
bad
fortune
on
the
injury
bugaboo,
I
have
to
confess
that
many
of
my
wounds
are
self-inflicted.
It
is
possible
that
I
have
left
more
pitching
points
in
my
minor
leagues
this
season
than
I
actually
have
achieved
from
my
pitchers
while
in
the
starting
lineup.
Between
my
home
internet
woes
and
my
busier-than-a-one-armed-paper-hanger
personal
life,
I
have
blown
umpteen
quality
starts
by
failing
to
timely
promote
my
players
into
my
starting
lineup.
I’m
thinking
about
asking
Joe
or
Will
to
take
over
the
day-to-day
management
of
my
team,
because
not
a
day
goes
by
when
those
boys
are
not
on
the
internet.
If I
end
up
in
dead
last
this
season,
I
truly
will
only
have
myself
to
blame.
LITTLE
KNOWN
FACTS
TO
DAZE
AND
AMAZE
YOU
(Or
That’s
a
fact,
Jack)
A
new
feature
of
From
the
Bullpen
will
be
the
inclusion
here
of
periodic
little-known
facts
relating
to
baseball,
its
glorious
history
and
perhaps
any
and
all
other
subjects.
For
this
week,
did
you
know
that
the
1968
Chicago
White
Sox
played
nine
of
their
“home”
games
at
County
Stadium
in
Milwaukee?
I
had
never
before
known
of
this
until
reading
it
in a
baseball
book
that
I am
in
the
middle
of
right
now,
and
I
was
surprised
both
that
this
happened
and
that
I
had
never
before
heard
anything
about
this.
Apparently
the
ChiSox
were
drawing
so
poorly
at
the
time
and
Milwaukee
was
trying
to
woo
a
team
to
replace
their
departed
Braves,
so
that
the
powers
that
be
at
each
organization
(Selig
in
Milwaukee,
Arthur
Allyn
in
the
Second
City)
collaborated
to
put
this
deal
together.
The
experiment
was
enormously
successful,
as
the
team
drew
264,297
fans
for
nine
games
in
the
Cream
City,
compared
against
a
total
of
539,478
fans
for
the
72
games
at
Old
Comiskey.
The
following
year,
they
expanded
the
agreement
to
eleven
home
games,
but
the
arrangement
was
scotched
after
the
AL
kyboshed
Selig’s
attempted
purchase
of
the
White
Sox
because
of
the
league’s
refusal
to
abandon
the
country’s
second
largest
city.
As
the
story
goes,
Selig
went
on
to
buy
the
ill-fated
Seattle
Pilots,
and
moved
them
to
Milwaukee
to
become
the
Brewers
after
the
franchise
failed
miserably
in
the
Emerald
City.
One
other
interesting
fact
about
the
White
Sox
is
that
this
team’s
heritage
dates
all
the
way
back
to
the
1890s,
when
the
club
was
known
as
the
Sioux
City
Cornhuskers
and
played
in
the
old
Western
League.
After
the
1894
season,
Ban
Johnson
bought
the
Sioux
City
team
and
transferred
it
to
St.
Paul,
Minnesota,
where
it
remained
for
the
next
five
seasons.
In
1900,
the
Western
League
changed
its
name
to
the
American
League,
and
Comiskey
moved
his
St.
Paul
squad
to
the
near
South
Side
and
renamed
it
the
White
Stockings,
stealing
a
nickname
that
had
once
been
used
by
the
Chicago
Cubs.
After
the
1900
season,
during
which
the
White
Stockings
won
the
American
League
pennant,
the
AL
decided
not
to
renew
its
membership
in
the
prevailing
National
Agreement
as
an
underling
to
the
National
League,
declaring
itself
a
major
league.
MINOR
LEAGUE
REPORT
While
in
the
D.C.
area
on
business
week
before
last,
I
had
a
chance
to
take
in a
baseball
game
at
the
G.
Richard
Pfitzner
Stadium
in
Woodbridge,
Virginia,
between
the
Class
A
Potomac
Nationals
and
the
Myrtle
Beach
Pelicans,
an
affiliate
of
the
Atlanta
Braves
organization.
All
I
can
say
is:
What
a
great
night
at
the
ballpark.
When
I
arrived
at
Pfitzner
Stadium,
there
was
a
small
jazz
band
playing
in
the
entry
plaza
of
the
ballpark,
consisting
of
three
men
who
appeared
to
be
in
their
50s
or
early
60s
and
a
delightful
young
woman,
perhaps
a
daughter
of
one
of
the
trio,
who
appeared
to
be
perhaps
20
to
25
years
of
age,
named
Emma
Bailey
(no
relation
to
Homer,
I am
sure).
Dame
Fortune
smiled
on
me
that
night
as
it
happened
to
be
Dollar
Beer
Night
at
Good
Old
Pfitz
Stadium,
and
after
investing
my
first
Washington
on
the
Longhammer
IPA
beer
stock,
I
sat
down
at a
table
to
listen
to
the
intoxicating
(in
tandem
with
the
Longhammer)
voice
of
young
Ms.
Bailey
as
she
belted
out
the
most
hauntingly
beautiful
rendition
of “Moondance”
(Van
Morrison)
that
I
have
ever
heard.
It
was
love
at
first
sound.
As I
continued
to
fish
crumpled
Washingtons
out
of
my
pocket
to
take
advantage
of
the
bargain
beers,
Ms.
Bailey
continued
to
wow
our
small
crowd
with
one
beautiful
song
after
another,
including
“Proud
Mary,”
“Kansas
City,”
“Mustang
Sally,”
and
“Alley
Cat.”
On a
humid,
95-degree-plus
tidal
basin
night,
I
had
goose
bumps
on
almost
every
part
of
my
body.
After
the
pregame
festivities
concluded,
I
headed
inside
the
ballpark
for
my
seat
in
the
fourth
row,
a
Longhammer
IPA
in
each
fist
and
a
sack
of
salted
peanuts
in
my
shorts
pocket.
To
my
great
good
fortune,
the
National
Anthem
that
evening
was
sung
by
none
other
than
our
beautiful
young
Ms.
Bailey,
and
a
more
beautiful
version
of
the
song
I
have
never
before
heard
––
at a
ballpark
or
elsewhere
––
including
prior
exposures
to
the
Nitty
Gritty
Dirt
Band,
the
great
saxophonist
Branford
Marsalis,
and,
egad,
even
Van
Cliburn.
If
only
my
Hot
Stove
brethren
could
have
been
with
me
to
thrill
to
the
phenomenal
music
that
blessed
all
of
us
at
the
Pfitz
that
evening.
Although
the
Pfitz
is
not
one
of
the
most
handsome
ball
yards
that
I
have
been
to,
there
was
much
about
it
and
the
game
to
commend
it
to
others.
A
few
of
the
highlights
from
the
evening:
|
* |
The P-Nats, as they are called, have a nightly “K Man of the Game” contest, and if the designated player on the opposing team (who is announced to the crowd as he is in the on deck circle) strikes out during the designated at bat, the team gives out free slushies for anyone, not everyone, for as long as they last. On this particular night, young Miles Cole of the Pelicans, all 5-foot-5 of him, was unlucky enough to be picked as the K Man of the Game. Miles seemed quite determined to not strike out during his at-bat, flailing furiously at every pitch that was in the same area code. He must have spoiled off five or six pitches before he finally thrilled the throng by whiffing, which immediately led to a substantial number of loyal fans rocketing from their seats to bullrush the concession stands for their free slushies before supplies gave out. A textbook example of demand exceeding supply.
|
|
* |
The visiting Pelicans had players surnamed Jones batting in the 3, 4 and 5-holes and playing first base, second base and shortstop. This novelty was not lost on the P-Nat crowd, as the heckling rose to a crescendo with each plate visitation by the Jones trio. Collectively, the Jones boys went 2-for-10, with one walk and one RBI in the Pelicans’ loss to the hometown P-Nats.
|
|
* |
The fences at the Pfitz are an inviting 315 400 315. Two P-Nats players took advantage of the bandbox dimensions by depositing Yard balls on hits that probably would have been routine outs in almost any other ballpark. Left fielder Robert Jacobson went Yard in the 6th inning to tie the game at 1 apiece, after which P-Nats first baseman Tyler Moore left the building in the7th inning for his team-leading 10th home run of the season, vesting P-Nats pitcher Brad Peacock with his second win of the season against eight losses.
|
|
* |
I noted in my P-Nats game book that catcher Derek Norris is considered the No. 2 prospect in the Nationals organization. A future Hot Stove Leaguer, no doubt.
|
|
* |
Pfitzner Park alumni include the great Albert Pujols, Magglio Ordonez, and Barry Bonds.
|
|
* |
I was interested to see that there are only two umpires who work games at the A level. A lot of work for a two-man crew. At the game I attended, there was a young pup (Joey Amaral, maybe 25?) behind the plate and a grizzled veteran, Tyler Wilson, working the infield. No doubt trying to impress someone, Amaral demonstrated his no-nonsense approach by ejecting Nationals manager Gary Cathcart in the ninth inning for arguing balls and strikes.
|
|
* |
The owner of the Potomac Nationals is a former Brooklynite by the name of Art Silber, a Jewish fellow who retired from banking in Baltimore at age 55 and has owned the team since 1990. His daughter Lannie Silber Weis, a JAP if ever there was one, is the president of the organization, while son Seth is the treasurer.
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* |
The Potomac Nationals play in the Carolina League, which was established in 1945 and currently is made up of the Nationals, the Pelicans, the Frederick Keys, the Lynchburg Hillcats, the Wilmington Blue Rocks, the Kinston Indians, the Salem Red Sox, and the Winston-Salem Dash. Former Tigers catcher Matt Nokes is the hitting coach for the Nationals.
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* |
I’ve saved the best for last. Of course, I speak of the Nationals lovable mascot, “Uncle Slam.”
As he no doubt learned at mascot college, Uncle Slam kept the crowd of 1,955 people in constant rapture, as we were doubled over in laughter in between every inning at Uncle Slam’s madcap antics and prat balls. Had McJester been present for the game, I have no doubt that Uncle Slam would have been dodging sniper fire from the rooftop of the Pfitz.
|
I
don’t
know
the
“when”
or
“where,”
but
I
can’t
wait
to
attend
the
next
Carolina
League
baseball
game.
This
is
truly
baseball
as
it
is
meant
to
be
played
and
seen.
ON
SKULLS
AND
SNAKES
During
our
recent
trip
to
the
amusement
park/water
park
in
Allentown,
I
had
the
time
and
interest
in
observing
a
whole
host
of
East
Coast
tattoos
on
many
scantily-clad
bodies.
I
have
nothing
against
the
concept
of
people
decorating
themselves
with
tattoos
––
it
is a
free
country,
after
all
––
but
I am
often
surprised
by
the
choices
of
artwork.
There
is a
heavy
preponderance
of
frightening
skulls,
snakes,
skulls
with
snakes
coming
out
of
the
eyeholes,
barbed
wire,
demons,
devils,
and
many
other
seemingly
ugly
or
unpleasant
aspects
or
reminders
of
society.
I
just
wonder
why
people
want
to
be
constantly
reminded
about
these
scary,
ugly,
unpleasant
things.
Instead,
why
don’t
people
adorn
themselves
with
tattoos
of
cute
little
baby
deers,
puppies,
kittens,
cans
of
their
favorite
beer,
baseball
box
scores,
spouses,
children,
and
the
like?
Of
course
I
realize
that
some
do,
but
these
seem
to
be
the
minority.
Just
a
little
bit
of
food
for
thought.
Does
anyone
think
I’m
wrong
here?
QUICK
QUIZ
What
do
the
following
current
and
former
Major
Leaguers
have
in
common?
If
you
know,
or
have
a
guess,
please
put
it
on
the
Message
Board.
I
will
provide
the
answer
either
on
the
Message
Board
or
in
the
next
issue
of
From
the
Bullpen.
Adam
Wainwright
Dustin
Hermanson
Guillermo
Mota
John
Montefusco
Bill
White
Chuck
Tanner
Hoyt
Wilhelm
Whitey
Lockman
Esteban
Yan
Gene
Lamont
NEXT
ISSUE:
PLAYERS
WHO
BELONG
IN
THE
HALL
OF
FAME
THE
TRIP
We
are
a
“go”
for
our
trip
to
the
Twin
Cities
August
20-22.
All
thirteen
league
members
have
committed.
The
league
elitists,
Possum,
Magpie,
Mouse
and
Screech,
and
possibly
Tirebiter,
will
travel
through
the
friendly
skies
because,
frankly,
they
are
simply
too
busy
and
important
to
take
the
time
to
drive
up
with
the
rest
of
us
in
the
Mobile
Sewage
Treatment
vehicle.
The
other
8 or
9 of
us
will
load
up,
starting
in
Lincoln,
continuing
on
to
Omaha,
then
to
Des
Moines,
with
plans
to
arrive
in
the
Twin
Cities
well
oiled
and
in
time
for
that
evening’s
Twins
game
at
Target
Field.
Mouse
has
secured
commodious
accommodations
for
us
at
the
Marriott
City
Center
located
just
two
blocks
away
from
Target
Field.
We
are
still
working
on
game
tickets.
If
anyone
who
is
not
currently
working
on
this
has
any
leads,
please
let
us
know.
That
will
do
it
for
this
issue.
See
you
soon!
Skipper
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|
