Nice First Pitch

Feel free to compare and contrast with other first pitches.

Girl Friday, 3 APR 09

We're now in that final month before my deployment...yuck. No matter how many times you do this it is always difficult to get your mind around the fact that you're leaving for a year or more...that and the fact that I have to pack all my worldly possessions. Have I ever said how much I HATE packing and moving?

Well, today is Friday and another week has gone by. This week in honor of the MLB season opener on Monday our Girl Friday is Marisa Miller captured throwing out the first pitch last year at a Cubs game.








...and because I know someone will whine if they don't get to see some skin, here she is, sort of in a bikini.




Enjoy the weekend, and play ball!

The Greatest Moment in Texas Rangers Baseball History

Robin Ventura getting his ass whooped by a 40 year old (at the time)man.

Nolan Ryan was and is THE MAN.

Girl Friday, 17 OCT 08

In honor of the Cubs getting bounced from the playoffs in three games, today's Girl Friday is model Marisa Miller, who threw out the first pitch at a Chicago game earlier this season...maybe she's at fault somehow...a Sports Illustrated swimsuit model jinx?!?

It's A Post About Baseball!

Yeah, you get to hear my thoughts about the grand game, our "National Pastime", although I don't have the inside poop like Peter Gammons (he said poop!)and I don't have the vocabulary of George Will, I will attempt to explain why THIS would not be a good idea.

COMMENTARY
Astros should consider bringing in Bonds
By RICHARD JUSTICE Copyright 2008 Houston Chronicle
Aug. 11, 2008, 12:50AM

Hello, Barry, this is Drayton. Are you ready to be a champion?

The Astros need a left fielder. I know the name of a good one. He’s rested and ready. He’ll bring a buzz to the ballpark, too. He would suddenly make the Astros baseball’s most interesting team.

What’s wrong with having a little buzz? Why should the Dallas Cowboys have all the fun?

Barry Lamar Bonds would be a perfect fit for the Astros. Is there one good reason not to sign him?

No, there’s not. Oh sure, some people don’t like him. These are people that don’t know him, but still.

To say such a thing presumes you know the players on the team now. You don’t know them. You can pretend to know them, but you don’t.

Baseball is a bottom-line business. Bonds would make the Astros better. If Drayton McLane really and truly wants to be a champion, he’d bring in the best offensive player on earth.

Our local nine has been winning. Just as the team is closing in on .500, one of its two best players, Carlos Lee, goes down with a broken finger.

Odd that a guy who has the name of Justice would have no sense of that very thing. He proposes the very thing that makes me not want to root for the Dallas Cowboys. The win at all cost, we'd hire Hitler if he would run over the middle routes and catch the damn ball. To believe him, Barry's not a bad guy...you just don't know him, you don't know any of them so what's the dif?

Yeah, we're supposed to ignore everything we "know" about this guy and hire someone "known" to be a cancer in the clubhouse, hoping that he would magically propel the team into the play-offs when the problem all along has been pitching...but since I don't know Barry, he's probably in possession of a split finger fastball that he's been hiding all these years just waiting to pull it out when the 'Stros sign him to a multi-game contract for Lord knows how much.

I guess when you are a baseball writer and you are required to come up with a certain amount of product over the span of a season, you sometimes scrape the bottom of the barrel looking for something to write about...but give me a freaking break you boob. It's a good thing you aren't the GM, since you're obviously into hiring the aged (at least in Baseball terms) you'd probably give me a shot, I mean I had a 90 MPH fastball at one point and a pretty good curve ball...who cares that I haven't played competitively in a few years, at least I'm not a lying ill tempered cheat...and I'm a war vet, I'd bet that'd get butt in the seats, that and the 15 runs I'd give up in the first inning I pitched. But that makes as much sense as hiring Barry Bonds.

A Special Cap

From MLB.com

...Major League Baseball announced on Monday the launch of a national campaign called "Welcome Back Veterans." This is an apolitical series of national fundraising and awareness initiatives over the Fourth of July weekend and Sept. 11 to support the ongoing return of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans, an effort started by a group of citizens led by Mets chairman Fred Wilpon with the full support of MLB, Major League Baseball Advanced Media and the McCormick Foundation.

For games throughout the July 4 weekend and on Sept. 11, all MLB clubs will wear "Stars & Stripes" caps that are available for sale to the public, with a portion of the proceeds going to Welcome Back Veterans. These official New Era caps can be purchased at the MLB.com Shop, a way to help others.

H/T: Some Soldier's Mom, who has extended commentary about MLB and this program.

Order the hat for your favorite ball club HERE!

It's Flag Day!

I love baseball...I also love this country, and that's what makes this video extra special to me.




H/T Ace of Spades

The Little League Big League

I happened to stumble across an article today lamenting the fact that the Little League World Series has lost it's appeal...at least to that observer.

Written by a gentleman who calls himself King Kaufman, the article notes the business-like demeanor with which the young players go about their work in an almost joyless manner. He then says he never watched an inning of any of the games in the entire torunament...how does he know what they are like if he never saw them?

Why am I describing what he wrote? Read for yourself...

This is the first time I can remember not watching a single pitch of the annual tournament. Used to be you could only watch the championship game, but I'd make a point of catching at least some of that. The Little League World Series was the only championship I could watch on network TV and say, "I used to play in that league."

Wherever the champs of the Penmar Park youth basketball league go after clinching, the cameras don't follow.

Now, after growing increasingly uncomfortable with the LLWS over the years, at long last I can't stand it. There's such a lack of fun emanating from these little mini-professional ballplayers, the whole thing's just depressing. I'm with Yahoo's Dan Wetzel: They should pay those kids. They're seriously, stoically, providing a service.

Now I want to say I don't entirely disagree with him. But this situation with little league or any other sport played by children where there are state or national championships has always been this way.

I happened to play in the Waco, Texas Northwest Little League when I was young (I played for the Whataburger team...win a game get a free burger...with incentives like that how could you loose?). It also so happened that the "All Star" team from that very league ended up going to the Little League World Series. I was not on that team. I played on one of the teams that were essentially the practice teams for the team that was supposed to win...the rigged team...the team they put all the "good" players on. It was pretty obvious what was going on in that league even to my 11 year old eyes. Even so, I still had fun and I still enjoyed the game. So much so I kept playing and ended up playing semi-pro ball later in life. I can't say the same for most if any of the guys that played on the team that went to the World Series.

I played on a team back then that lost quite a bit, and while I didn't enjoy that too much, later on I can appreciate the lessons that taught me. Lessons I would say a lot of pro athletes never learned as children. Sometimes to be a good winner, it helps to be a good looser (by the way being a good looser doesn't mean you need to like it, just don't be an ass...there are too many of those around already). And at least that way when you do finally win you can REALLY appreciate it...you looser.

Biggio Gets His 3000th Hit

As a kid every summer we went to see my relatives in Houston and always at least once a year we went to see the Astros. I was going to Astros games before there were Astros...there's a picture somewhere of me as a toddler, in the parking lot of Colt .45 stadium with the Astrodome being built in the background. I was an Astro buddy in later years...the awful melting Popsicle jersey days...the disco years. My summers were spent with my mom most evenings sitting in a lawn chair watching the sun go down listening to the Astros on the radio. Even though they never made the playoffs until I was in college and never made it to the World Series until a few years ago, I have always followed and loved the 'Stros.

For the last twenty years Craig Biggio has been a Houston Astro. While I don't know the man personally, he seems to be a great guy who loves his family and supports the community of Houston. Last night he got his 3000th hit. He's now 26th on the list of major league ballplayers in hits. He should be a shoe-in to the hall of fame. But even though I didn't see it on ESPN over here in Iraq, I'm sure the cynical, hate everything that isn't East/West coast goons had "something" to say about it. They always do...and that's too bad because we could use a few more Craig Biggio's in baseball. Maybe he is past his prime and shouldn't be playing every day, but loyalty is really worth something to some people, and I'm glad the Astros gave him some in return for his. For those of you who might wonder why I blog about this while I'm stuck in Iraq, sweating my butt off...you haven't been listening. Stuff like this is why we fight, but besides that, anything that takes me back to a better time and place can't be all bad.

Congratulations Mr. Biggio. And thanks for the last 20 years.

For the story go HERE
More, better stuff is HERE

Why I'll Never Be A Little League Coach

I was reminded the other day exactly why I never want to get involved with coaching baseball at the little league (8-12 year old) level.

I was sitting in a Mexican restaurant minding my own business when I overheard some people at the next table talking very loudly about baseball. I look over and see a table with 4-5 kids aged around 10-12, they are still dressed in their uniforms so I guess they came to eat after the game. Funny thing is, all I can hear is one of the fathers talking about and critiquing his son's performance. Yeah son, you went 2 for 4 with a walk but you're not really driving the ball the way I would like...when we get home after this we're going to get on the trainer and work on your stride (work on your stride?!?)

First of all I wanted to scream, he went 2 for 4 why don't you let the kid enjoy it?!? Second, he's 10 years old how well do you expect him to "drive" the ball anyway...why don't we just be glad he's making contact. Third, if you want to "coach" the kid why don't you just hold on to all that advice till we get to practice...never letting your kid enjoy the game will more than likely drive him away from it.

I must have had very special parents because after I played a game I only got advice or critique if I asked about it first...usually the only discussion was about where we were going to eat. Somehow I managed to learn how to play well enough to be invited to play college baseball...but I never was a meal ticket for my folks so I guess I failed miserably as a ball player.

Somewhere down the line a lot of people have forgotten that these leagues and games are about the kids...they are not some vehicle for their parents to live out old fantasies or the opportunity for Dad to groom his retirement plan/ college fund. If they put half as much effort into things that really mattered they all be much better off...but what the hell do I know anyway?

Yeah, if I was a coach I am afraid I would be in more arguments with folks like the dad mentioned above than I ever would with the umpire...and that's just sad. Almost makes me want to get deployed to Iraq again so I don't have to listen to crap like that...almost...well not really...but I think it would do that dad a lot of good, perspective wise. :-)

ASTROS LOOSE! ASTROS LOOSE!

Well, as everyone surely knows by now, the Houston Astros were swept in 4 games by the ball club from Chicago.

At least my suffering was short lived except for the 14 inning marathon...thanks for forgetting how to hit guys.

The National League pennant was a great accomplishment...thanks for all the thrills this year! GO STROS!

ASTROS WIN! ASTROS WIN!

I have a picture at my house of me standing in the parking lot of Colt .45 Stadium in Houston TX with my brother before attending a game and in the background you can see the Astrodome being built. I was so young I have no memory of that day, but it at least gives photographic evidence that I was there at the beginning.

As a child I became an Astros fan. There wasn't much to cheer for really except that they were the home team, and aren't we supposed to cheer for our home team? As I had relatives who lived in Houston every year we traveled to Houston and attended games several times a year. I was an Astro Buddy (complete with T-Shirt and newsletter). I attended a coaches clinic where I went on the playing field of the astrodome and received tips from the players. I sat next to my Mom on summer evenings in a lawn chair in the driveway as we listened to the games on the radio (there wasn't 100 TV channels back then) every year always hoping that they would get better that they would get to the playoffs.

In 1980, my boss being an Astros fan, I brought a TV to work and we watched to our disappointment as our beloved Stro's lost to the Phillies.

In 1986 I was in flight school. I snuck downstairs to the day room after lights out and turned to the TV to ESPN to find out the scores of the series with the Mets. Once again disappointment.

Then there were all the losses to the Braves. Last year the fantastic comeback in the League Championship Series only to loose two in St. Louis and see the red birds go to the series.

At the beginning of this year my team was a mess. The big bats in last years line-up had left for big bucks and greener pastures. Jeff Bagwell in the twilight of his career had a bad shoulder that would eventually force him to leave the line-up and have surgery. The team was at one point 15 games under .500. And now here they are in the World Series.

In the grand scheme of things this really means nothing. It's a bunch of professional athletes who play a kids game for big money. We are at war and I have friends in the middle of it. I will be going back to war soon, more than likely next year. So you see baseball shouldn't really matter all that much. So why was I sitting there in the bottom of the ninth Wednesday with my palms sweating? I never had that happen even while flying missions over Sadir City...It shouldn't mean that much to me. I tried to forget about them, it ridiculous to feel this way about a game but here I am an Astros fan, with my team in the World Series. If they can close the deal this next week the 40 years of pain and suffering will almost be worth it...THANKS GUYS and GO 'STROS!

Luckiest Man EVER!

This guy should go out and buy a lottery ticket right NOW. This story is also a refreshing change for the goons that always seem to want to cash in on this sort of thing. He seems like a class act.

For fan, sharing memories beats cashing in on catches
By DALE LEZON
Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle
Three-year-old Tyler Dean came close to having a piece of baseball history in his bedroom. But his father thought better of it. The Astros and the Baseball Hall of Fame are glad Shaun Dean did.

In exchange for handing over two historic home-run baseballs Dean caught in the Astros' nail-biting victory against Atlanta on Sunday, team officials will give him four box seats to Saturday's game against St. Louis and invite him to the Astros' workout Friday, said Astros spokesman Todd Fedewa.

The team also has some surprises it didn't want to reveal to the media, Fedewa said.

Dean caught Chris Burke's game-winning home run in the bottom of the 18th inning of the National League Division Series game against the Braves at Minute Maid Park. Ten innings earlier, he caught Lance Berkman's record-setting grand slam.

A lifelong Astros fan, the 25-year-old Porter resident said he would have put them on a shelf in Tyler's room. Now, he'll present them to a representative of the Baseball Hall of Fame on Friday.

"It's cool to be able to give them back," Dean said. "It's awesome."

Burke's homer ended the longest playoff game in history. It also was the sixth series-ending homer in a postseason tilt. Berkman's grand slam was the second of the game; it was the first time two have been hit in the same postseason game. The Braves' Adam LaRoche hit the first grand slam in the third inning.

"We're grateful he was willing to share these baseballs with the Astros' fans and all baseball fans," Fedewa said.


Expensive souvenirs
Returning the balls seems unusual in an era when some fans have tried to profit from having been in the right place at the right time.

Two fans sued each other because they both claimed to have caught Barry Bonds' record-setting 73rd home run in the outfield stands in 2001. The judge ordered the men to sell the ball and split the proceeds. Each received $225,000.

Mark McGwire's 70th home-run baseball, hit in 1998, that broke the single-season home-run record of 61 set in 1961 by former New York Yankees slugger Roger Maris, was sold for nearly $3 million.

Burke's home-run ball will likely bring no more than $5,000, and Berkman's is probably valued at between $500 and $1,000, said Kent Sessions, owner of Headline Sports, a sports memorabilia company that sells items regularly on the Internet.

Determining the dollar value of either baseball is difficult, said Ted Nelkin, owner of HLT&T, a sports memorabilia store in Houston. Outside the Bayou City, the baseballs may have little, if any, monetary significance, Nelkin added.

"It really is a big deal for the Astros and their history," he said.

The home runs may be footnotes in baseball history, but Dean felt they belonged to the players who hit them. After he caught the home runs, he said, an Astros worker told him the club usually liked to collect such historic baseballs and he left his name and telephone number with officials at the stadium after the game.


Accepting immediately
Astros officials called him Monday morning with their offer for him to return the baseballs. He accepted immediately, he said.

"Without the home runs, these baseballs would mean nothing," Dean said. "They hit them. I just caught them. I've got no interest in cashing in."

One human behavior expert said Dean's desire to connect with the team is common. People often have very selfish motives, but they also have social ones, said Alan Fiske, professor of anthropology at the University of California at Los Angeles.

People often feel connected to a group — or other people — and willingly behave in ways that benefit others, Fiske said. Dean appeared to identify with the Astros and baseball, Fiske said, and put aside selfish gain from the baseballs for the betterment of the team and sport. He connected with them by returning the baseballs.

"He clearly cares about the team and baseball," Fiske said. "I think it's a lovely example that people have a lot of motives and concerns for others."

News about the catches spread quickly. Local television stations interviewed Dean, and he said he's scheduled to be a guest on an ESPN sports show this morning.

A second baseman and outfielder on his high school baseball team, Dean often went to Astros games with his father, Richard Dean, and his brother, Chris Dean. He plans to continue that family tradition with Tyler.

"I love baseball, " Dean said. "I was raised watching it, and I just love the game."

dale.lezon@chron.com

Best Game EVER!

I'm not some kind of baseball scholar or anything like that, but the playoff game yesterday between the Houston Astros and the Atlanta Braves was the best game I've ever heard or seen.

I more than likely wouldn't feel that way if I were an Atlanta fan, but I'm not one so there.

What more could a baseball fan want; two grand slams, a home run with two outs in the ninth to tie it, a future hall of famer pitching on short rest comes in from the bullpen to hold the Braves down for three innings and finally a rookie coming off the bench to hit a home run in the bottom of the eighteenth to win it. I'm tired just typing it. If you didn't get something out of this game you don't like baseball...and you probably didn't even read this.

The Astros Visit Real American Heroes

This is an update on something I posted earlier...

Houston Chronicle
July 30, 2005

The Day The Astros Visited Real American Heroes

By Drayton Mclane

Last week, the Houston Astros players and management visited Walter Reed Army Medical Center and Bethesda Naval Hospital while we were in Washington, D.C., to play the Washington Nationals. Playing baseball in our nation's capitol was a significant event for the franchise because this was the first time in our 43-year history that we have had the opportunity to play there. We had the privilege of visiting with injured soldiers and their families at the hospitals, at a BBQ we hosted and as our guests at the baseball games. When I use the word privilege, I do mean privilege. It was an honor to represent the Houston Astros, the city of Houston and the state of Texas in thanking these courageous young Americans.

When my family and I purchased the Houston Astros franchise in 1992, we did it with two purposes in mind, ideals that still hold true today. I want our team to bring the city of Houston — and all of Texas — its first World Series experience and become champions as well. And I want to be able to use the magic, the excitement, the prestige of a Major League Baseball team to make a positive difference in our community. This is something we work on every day in hundreds of ways with our Community Development Department and the Astros in Action Foundation. Our mission statement reads, "Through the strength of the National Pastime, we will enhance the quality of life in our community through educational, health, and spiritual endeavors," and it remains true today.

The idea for our trips to Walter Reed and Bethesda Naval Hospital was born out of this desire to make a positive difference and out of an encounter we had during our Winter Caravan. On Jan. 25, we had the great honor of visiting with injured soldiers at Fort Hood who had just returned from Iraq and were about to receive the Purple Heart. During the visit, Adam Everett remarked that "People call baseball players heroes, but these soldiers here today are the real heroes."

To me, that spoke volumes about the kind of players, coaches and staff we have at the Astros — decent, hardworking people, full of character. Adam is our starting shortstop and an Olympic Gold Medalist, but he and the other players and staff in attendance were energized by the real heroes in the room that day. Right then, I wanted the entire Astros team to be given an opportunity to experience this moment of introspection and profound patriotism. I realized our scheduled trip to Washington, D.C., in July would provide the perfect occasion for the team to visit these real American heroes.

There is no way to prepare for a visit to these amazing facilities, and I am certain many of our players, coaching staff and front office were somewhat apprehensive on the day of their visit. However, I am proud to say that every one of our people — the entire 25-man roster, as well as coaches and staff — participated and came away a better person for the experience. While President George W. Bush was kind enough to send us a thank you note, we collectively owe a debt of gratitude to the service men and women, doctors, nurses and the staffs of these hospitals for sharing part of their hectic day with us.

During our visits we heard stories of perseverance and courage, of the will to go on despite debilitating injuries and the will to live productive and happy lives. Some of those we talked to had been in Iraq just days before. All of the soldiers we met had upbeat attitudes, and most openly expressed a desire to go back to their units and continue to serve the United States of America.

There was the helicopter pilot who had lost both of her legs when the helicopter she was piloting was shot down in Iraq. She is being fitted with prosthetic legs and wants to fly for the Army again in Iraq. How could we not be moved by the bomb demolition expert who lost his hand trying to disarm a booby-trapped bomb but wants to learn to use an artificial hand so he can return to his unit? Or the Marine who made it his life goal to serve his country for 20 years, but was disappointed he lost his leg just 12 years in? He vows to overcome it and return to active duty. I have no doubt these and the other injured soldiers we met in Washington will be able to achieve anything they want in life.

While we began this journey with the idea of giving back, the irony of our visits is that we were the ones who received a tremendous gift. Our trip gave us perspective on our lives, an uplifted spirit and a sense of patriotism that will never die. I firmly believe each of us have been touched in a way that will not be forgotten. These soldiers each have an amazing outlook on life and, in spite of the difficulties they are currently facing, are positive and upbeat at each turn. These American heroes have taught me an invaluable lesson about heroism and the determination to see a mission through to the end. I don't believe there is any better way to honor their sacrifices than to stop and be thankful each day for the freedoms we enjoy because of their hard work and dedication. There is no doubt the resolve and determination of these military servicemen and women will eliminate the threat of terrorism for our country — and the world.

McLane is owner of the Houston Astros.

Astros Score Off The Field

This is cool because, for one I have been a lifelong Astros fan and It's great when anyone does somthing for those guys in the hospital.

Houston Chronicle
July 23, 2005

Astros Score Off The Field While Visiting Injured Troops

By Samantha Levine

WASHINGTON - The Houston Astros won their game against the Washington Nationals on Friday night, but earlier that morning they scored in an even bigger way.

Several players, along with owner Drayton McLane and a half-dozen members of the Texas congressional delegation, lit up the faces of seriously wounded soldiers when they visited and hosted a barbecue at Washington's Walter Reed Army Medical Center.

"These are the heroes, these are the guys I feel privileged to meet," relief pitcher Brad Lidge said. "They were so optimistic about everything. You don't feel sorry for them at all because they won't let you."

The visit, during the Astros' four-game series against the Nationals this weekend, was McLane's idea. Reporters were not permitted to attend.

McLane sounded like a proud papa as he described the sight of his athletes eating hot dogs and hamburgers with soldiers their own age who are learning how to get by without arms and legs, or the lives they knew before the fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"At first, they were apprehensive because these are soldiers who are badly injured," said McLane, who, visiting on his birthday, shared a surprise cake with a young soldier who lost most of one leg and all of the other. "But when they got here, they just lit up. It lifted my heart."

The Astros also hosted several soldiers from Walter Reed at each game and will visit the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md.

Anyone who meets the soldiers comes away feeling humbled and inspired, said Rep. Gene Green, D-Houston, who was with the Astros and frequently stops by the medical center on his own.

"These young people's frame of mind could teach a lot of us," he said. "We get frustrated if traffic is not moving or if we can't find a parking place. These people have lost one limb, or three, and they have to deal with it."

Green said he plans to talk to McLane and other Major League Baseball officials to encourage all teams to visit wounded troops when they come to Washington for a game.

Rep. Chet Edwards, D-Waco, helped McLane set up the visit and agreed other teams should follow suit.

"It would make all the difference in the world to these soldiers if professional athletes would visit them," he said.

Lidge won't soon forget the troops' positive outlook and undeniable grit.

"We complain about playing in hot weather or something, and then you realize how silly it is when you consider these guys in 130-degree heat and dodging bullets," he said. "These guys are mentally strong like you wouldn't believe. It puts it all in perspective for me."