# Opening Day



## moderan (Apr 1, 2013)

Ahhh...one of my favorite days of the year. The smells of sunshine hitting fresh-mown grass, hot dogs, the taste of cold beer, the thwack of the ball hitting leather.
Baseball!
The very game means living poetry and a wealth of tradition to me. I can forget about all of the big business aspect, the inane politics, and the competitive drug abuse nightmares when I watch the game unfold. I know many folks cannot.
It is still my favorite professional sport, though not the country's anymore.
This is made somewhat more compliacted by the fact that I am a Chicago Cubs fan. The Cubs have a wealth of traditions of their own--unfortunately, most of it involves losing.
I got to see a game a few days ago, here in southern Arizona. The Cubs played the Dodgers. They lost.
But my team is young and developing, and may well make a playoff run starting next year. It's a real "Wait 'til next year situation".
The game starts in four hours. I already have on my jersey and one of my several hats.
Play ball!


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## Arcopitcairn (Apr 1, 2013)

Go Reds!


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## Gumby (Apr 1, 2013)

Have fun, mod.


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## moderan (Apr 1, 2013)

Arcopitcairn said:


> Go Reds!


May Dusty choke on his toothpick!


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## Arcopitcairn (Apr 1, 2013)

moderan said:


> May Dusty choke on his toothpick!



Nooooooo! Hopefully Votto is back in top form this season, and the Reds still have Chapman as closer. They might just have a nice shot this year


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## moderan (Apr 1, 2013)

Cards are old, Pirates are bad, Brewers are meh, Cubs are too young and need a third baseman and a couple of outfielders with power. Reds probably have it if they can keep their arms on. Dusty has a habit of overusing his starters. Ask Mark Prior/Kerry Wood.
My wife hates him. I merely dislike him. I have video of him picking his nose and eating them. That's gross.
Votto is a splendid player. I hope Rizzo develops just like him-that's a decent bet. Game's about to start. Shark for the W!


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## Lewdog (Apr 1, 2013)

My dad and I used to have a tradition where he would come get me from school early, and we would either go to opening day, or stop and get peanuts, kracker jacks, and Gold Star chili dogs.  We would sit on the couch and watch every pitch.  For the longest time I carried on the tradition without my dad, but I did none of that today except I'm watching the game.


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## moderan (Apr 1, 2013)

I used to ride the bus and the el up to Wrigley from the south side. Shark got the W, Rizzo with the blast.


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## Lewdog (Apr 1, 2013)

It's 1-1 in the top of the 8th.  Cueto's only run was a solo homer which is pretty darn good for the Angel's line up.  The Angel's had the bases loaded with one out in the 7th and Cueto struck out two to end the inning.


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## Lewdog (Apr 1, 2013)

12th inning.


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## ppsage (Apr 1, 2013)

Tigers win!


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## JosephB (Apr 1, 2013)

Braves win too!


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## WhitakerRStanton (Apr 1, 2013)

~


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## ppsage (Apr 1, 2013)

WhitakerRStanton said:


> Alright, another Tigers fan.


Very new, only my second year. 30 years with Braves but Sutton finally gagged me away.


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## Morkonan (Apr 2, 2013)

moderan said:


> ...The very game means living poetry and a wealth of tradition to me. I can forget about all of the big business aspect, the inane politics, and the competitive drug abuse nightmares when I watch the game unfold. I know many folks cannot.
> It is still my favorite professional sport, though not the country's anymore....



It's pure... Well, I know that with all the hullabaloo revolving around sports ethics, doping, drugs and the like, it's been tainted. But, the game itself, out on the field, is pure. Each player is alone at bat, but on the field, they must work as a team. Even at bat, once the challenge has been conquered, they're working as part of a team.

When I was a kid, my father used to sneak me a small, handheld radio at night. I'd put it under my pillow and listen to the baseball game.  My mother wouldn't have approved, of course, but my father understood. My father wasn't much of one, but in this, he did the right thing. 

GO BRAVES!


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## JosephB (Apr 2, 2013)

ppsage said:


> Very new, only my second year. 30 years with Braves but Sutton finally gagged me away.



I didn't miss Sutton at all when he was gone and was sorry to see him come back. His play-by-play is mediocre at best. He goes off on these long tangents and forgets there's a game going on. And when he's doing color, he won't shut up and let anybody call the game. And he's not a bit funny -- but he really thinks he is. Yes, he knows the game, but he's too much of a blowhard about it. I got called for jury duty once a few years ago and we all sat in this big room waiting to be called. I heard this big, loud obnoxious voice droning on and on -- and I was like, who the hell thinks he's so important that he thinks everyone needs to hear what he's saying? Yeah -- you guessed it.


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## moderan (Apr 2, 2013)

He should retire and sit around with McCarver.


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## ppsage (Apr 2, 2013)

The Portland Beavers were my heritage team, transistor radio in a pup tent, but baseball around here got screwed over starting in the '70s. When csble finally came to my villiage, WTBS was the superstation and I got the Braves. When broadband came about twelve years later, we switched the bill to dsl and I followed the audio stream. ($20 bucks a year for every MLB game. And archived, if you can do that.) Spring training last year I just got fed up on Don 'Bickermouth' Sutton. Even my not sporty wife complained. I didn't know if I could change, but I started auditioning the eastern time zone. Jim Price turned out to be my guy. An aquired taste, I'm sure. He's really not Sutton. Not even NL. But I'm cruising with the Tigers now. Totally. They even turned out to be sort of good, in a stop your heart every game sort of way.


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## moderan (Apr 5, 2013)

I'll forever stick with my original fandom. I used to hate their broadcasters though-Lou Boudreau, Jack Brickhouse and then Harry Caray. Awful. Caray before his stroke was a hopeless happy drunk with all the baseball acumen of an albatross, and after was simply hopeless. His grandson is a waste of space as well. Fortunately they seem to have wised up and the last two sets of tv talkers have been decent and relatively unobtrusive.
I don't mind the Tigers, especially when they beat the White Sox. They're one of my AL teams.


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## ppsage (Apr 5, 2013)

I thought Skip Caray (I mean Harry's son, think that was his name?) was okay in small doses, when he was doing the Braves. He got more contentious and non-baseball toward the end. Harry put me clear off the Cubs, even though I like the early broadcast day-game deal. When I was auditioning, I was quite surprised how bad a lot of the (radio) broadcasters seemed. I know where to get preaching if I want it and I don't during ball games. 

I think my real allegience is to the game, but recognizing that due dilligence requires following a specific team. But I know how Cubs' fans are. So far this year, Tigers might as well be Cubs. The White Sox scare me, but one thing about this team, they usually play up or down to the competition. Sheesh.


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## moderan (Apr 5, 2013)

Skip was okay-I dislike Chip. Having done some broadcasting myself, I am eternally nonthrilled at the ability of the announcers to actually communicate. The ex-jocks generally lack the articulation to make themselves clear and instead spend their time preening and the fanboys spend their time kissing the advertisers' bottoms. In most cases, I turn the sound off and watch. I gave up on radio broadcasts years ago.


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## Lewdog (Apr 5, 2013)

14 to zilch Reds against the Nationals right now.  :champagne: 

Six home runs so far tonight including a pinch hit grand slam.


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## Arcopitcairn (Apr 6, 2013)

Blow-out!


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## JosephB (Apr 6, 2013)

I liked Skip Caray a lot. He had a very dry wit and could be pretty sarcastic at times. A lot people liked that, but some didn't, and saw him as a bit of grouch. He didn't suffer fools, and when people would call into his show and second guess Cox or the players or ask dumb question and generally show their ignorance, he could be pretty acerbic -- but I always got a kick out that. He had a lot of funny running gags too -- like the one I mentioned where he'd tell you the home town of the person who caught a foul ball. I grew up listening to him -- and always associated his voice with good memories -- so I miss him quite a bit.


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## moderan (Apr 6, 2013)

There'll be some of those. I wish I could wish the Reds luck, but I loathe their manager. I didn't like him when he was in Chicago. Hell, I didn't like him when he was an outfielder with the Dodgers.
And it's odd considering that I grew up with the Big Red Machine and didn't resent their greatness, even though their existence probably kept a really good Cub team out of contention during their heyday. The road to the World Sseries definitely ran through Cincinnati in the late 60s and early 70s.
Don't pop the cork yet. There's a lot of baseball to be played still.


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## moderan (Apr 8, 2013)

You Braves fans are probably in for a lot of treats this season. Impressive three-game sweep of the hapless Cubs. Anyone want Carlos Marmol?


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## ppsage (Apr 28, 2013)

Tigers sweep Braves. Detroit twirlers walk 5, fan 39; Jim Price calls Atlanta bats 'pitchable'.


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## moderan (Apr 28, 2013)

Braves have hit a skid since their hot start. Well, except for Mr. Solo Homer himself. 11 dingers, 18 rbi. OBP much?


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## ppsage (Apr 29, 2013)

> OBP much?


??


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## moderan (Apr 29, 2013)

ppsage said:


> ??


The lack of baserunners would account for the lack of rbi by J. Upton. 11 out of 12 roundtrippers being solo jobs is unusual in the extreme. Points to innefficiencies in the lineup. The closest comp over a full season would be A. Soriano, 2006. 46/95. Had 31 solo jobs.


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## Lewdog (Apr 29, 2013)

Out of Bonds 762 homers, 450 were solo shots.  His year of 73 homers, he only had 137 RBIs.  If I counted correctly, 46 were solo shots.  
Barry Bonds 73 Home Run Season & Home Run Logs by Baseball Almanac

So that would be a percentage of 63% solo homers.  Wow that's pretty pitiful for a clean up hitter.  Soriano is a tad higher at 67% but most of the time he hits lead off so it's more often to be expected.  Soriano holds the two highest totals of lead off homers in MLB history with 13 in 2003 with NY and 12 in 2007 with the Cubs.  

Upton bats third, so yes he should have more RBIs, it doesn't help that his brother is hitting .151 in front of him.


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## moderan (Apr 29, 2013)

OBP much?


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## ppsage (Apr 29, 2013)

In series:
Jason Upton  2 for 9  2R 2RBI 1BB 2K 1HR
Omar Infante 6 for 12 5R 4RBI 0BB 0K 2HR


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## moderan (Apr 29, 2013)

Jason Upton, the Christian rocker? I didn't know he was playing  That's a pretty good line for someone like that. Justin Upton has had very little lineup help since the series with the Cubs, whose pitchers have become less good at hitting the bat since then. Detroit looks good, but I wouldn't count on Infante sporting a line like that for long-he's a .276 hitter lifetime, and a punch and judy hitter with a sometimes-suspect glove. Upton's swinging from the heels every at-bat.


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## ppsage (Apr 29, 2013)

> Jason Upton, the Christian rocker?


oops. trying to juggle too many windows. I just want to put ALL Braves out of mind. Compared to recent Tiger 2 baggers, Infante is a miracle. He's doing great in the nine hole, almost like lead off #2. Wait a minute, baseball players are supposed to use gloves? Somebody better tell Leyland.


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## moderan (Apr 29, 2013)

Leyland was successful with noted clankmeister Bobby Bonilla at third. He's an adept clubhouse-juggler but not the best in-game manager I've ever seen. 
Cubs in Petco tonight. Padres look as bad as the Marlins. Too bad the rest of the league will come callin' eventually. That Cub bullpen is awful.


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## ppsage (Apr 29, 2013)

In-game managing is a crapshoot anyway, but Leyland doesn't even look at the dice. Seems like he gets the most out of the 40 man though, over a season. Maybe I'll give the Cubs a listen, on a day game. I've sort of let the whole NL fall into a black hole. Never thought that would happen.


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## moderan (Apr 29, 2013)

Heh. I let the AL fall into a black hole many years ago, about the time of Ron Fairly. I loathe the DH with every fiber of my being. And its inevitability in both leagues saddens me.
Cubs are actually at home against the Padres. My bad. But the radio cast is abysmal. Keith Moreland is the color man, and he is monochrome. I have MLBtv so it doesn't matter.


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## ppsage (Apr 29, 2013)

Well, I haven't found my antipathy to DH to be wholly unfounded, but think I can live with it okay. I don't really notice it as much as I though I would. Except Martinez didn't hit a lick until this weekend. (And Leyland stuck with him every game.) Still, it's gotta be wrong. Might give NL a slight inter-league advantage half the time. It'll come to the NL eventually. My big anti-AL thing used to be rugs but they're all gone now. --- What I want in a color man is somebody who doesn't contradict himself from batter to batter. A slow talking old coot with consistant banality which relates to the greater game. And shuts up long enough for the pitch call. I mostly work in my studio during games, so never get tv since streaming became the thing. But maybe I'm retired enough now.


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## moderan (Apr 29, 2013)

MLBtv_ is_ streaming. I have but one tv--however, I have three computers. Len Kasper and Jim DeShaies are good enough to just listen to while I screw around with whatever I'm doing in my office, and max the window when something is happening.
Moreland doesn't contradict himself from batter to batter-he's no McCarver in that respect. It's just that he's not extremely articulate, and I value that in a radio voice. But play-by-play man Pat Hughes is excellent in the Scully mold.
I played on some rugs in college;they're bad news. My knees remember.


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## ppsage (Apr 29, 2013)

I meant streaming tv (MLBtz?) I started out 'listening' to the superstation broadcasts on cable, but when streaming started, I just got audio, since that's all I used. --- I'm going to give Pat a chance on a day game at Wriggly when the Tigers are playing somewhere at night. Detroit's not coming west again this season, thankfully. I'm partial to mid-day baseball. Which has gone the way of rugs and notDH.


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## moderan (Apr 29, 2013)

Oh, MLB Extra Innings is what they call that. I getcha now.
I like the day ball too. Fortunately I can indulge. The advantage to the MLBtv stream is that you can get games any time you want them if you have the premium package, and also minor-league games, which I enjoy. I also get the U of A games, Dbacks, and Padres here on the tv. It's a small wonder I do anything else.


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## ppsage (Apr 29, 2013)

Hmmmm... Listening to archived games makes as much sense as having the second-baseman wear a glove. Guess I'm as habitual as Leyland.


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## moderan (Apr 29, 2013)

I grew up with Glenn Beckert, Manny Trillo, Ryne Sandberg. Glove love first, then bring the bat. Now young Darwin Barney, Gold Glove, below average except in the clutch. Those guys might not have been on the best teams but they could pick em.
I'm a fan of the game first, and then the team. I like the atmosphere of the ballyard where I work. If I could just pipe in the crowd noise and the smells, I could probably do without the playing.


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## moderan (May 3, 2013)

Well, my favorite team managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory once again, turning a near no-hitter by the starting pitcher into a 4-2 loss. I can't dislike the hustle the team shows-there were several astounding plays, from Anthony Rizzo braving the tarp and the brick to catch a foul ball, to Starlin Castro catching the ball on one bounce behind his back and throwing the runner out at first. But a texas leaguer fell between a Gold Glove second baseman and the right fielder and ignited an improbable rally that meant the Cubs had to send out their disaster area of a bullpen. Even the normally reliable James Russell gave up a run-scoring hit.
This team lost 101 games last year. The pitching staff seems determined to lose more than that, despite the starting pitching ranking second in the entire league. The nucleus of the team-The starters, Rizzo, Castro, Darwin Barney, et al, cannot maintain with a collection of spare-parts outfielders, a third baseman whose switch-hitting skills are only theoretical and the leakiest bullpen I've seen in many years. Disabled starter Matt Garza is said to be close to returning, which would bump inconsistent starter Scott Feldman to the pen and maybe shore that up some.
But they're coming up against perennial-contender Cincinnati, with head nosepicker and former Cub manager Dusty Baker and a collection of superior talent, for a weekend series. I fear the sweep.


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## ppsage (May 3, 2013)

Well today is sister-in-law visitation day so I'm going downstairs and listen to the Cubs/Reds. Maybe they'll play over their heads. I don't have anything against her mind, but with the two of them together, I define superfluous. Not to mention the decibels. Tigers played another 14 inning game last night, against the Astros this time. This is mostly a measure of how long it takes them to remember how to swing the bat. The much maligned Kelly finally got the winning rally started with a lead-off double. Extra innings should be death for Detroit, whose bullpen probably makes the Cubs relievers look like stars (I think we were trying to trade for one before opening day?) but the two latest Toledo call-ups, Ortega and Putkonen, did good.


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## moderan (May 3, 2013)

Yeah, but the Tigers were trying to get James Russell, the one good lefty the Cubs have. That wasn't gonna happen. The Astros must have gotten way better with a DH or something cuz they were just gawdawful last year.


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## ppsage (May 3, 2013)

They're still awful (8/21). Tigers just have these lapses at the plate. Alright, it was 14 innings, but 18 K's? For each team no less. Detroit's about K's this year, giving and taking. They save them up for special games.


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## moderan (May 3, 2013)

As long as they beat the White Sox, I'm happy.


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## ppsage (May 30, 2013)

Just to cheer up Mod a bit, if he can listen in; the Cubbies have torched the White Sox in the interleague rival series. 7 zip Monday, rain Tuesday, 9-3 Wednesday and they're ahead right now 7-2 in the seventh. Justice might be possible in the long run.


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