At the "golden rope" presentation this morning I had a nomination for going 3-for-5 yesterday with a double. I don't think much about my batting stats because this is a game where some of the greatest to play it actually fail 70% of the time. That's why it is said that hitting a baseball is one of the hardest things to do in sports. I am more concerned about my defensive stats and helping my team keep our opponents from scoring if at all possible. I had my success yesterday mostly with a bat which says "Brent Gates- Oakland Athletics" on the end. It is a product of my employment with the Minnesota Twins. Brent finished his career with the Twins, but the bat I have was actually inside of an equipment bag left behind by the Seattle Mariners for whom Gates played in 1997. The bag contained four of Gates' bats and one from some guy named Alex Rodriguez. Apparently this Rodriguez fellow played for the M's at one time as well. I know not what ever became of his career, however. Maybe I should Google it.
So this bat that I'm using would have to be at least 21 years old in that Gates last played for the A's in 1996. It has served me well to this point, and hopefully it will continue to do just that.
Our opening game today was against Mookie's Monsters, coached by Mookie Wilson, a member of the 1986 World Champs. The game was going to mean absolutely nothing in the respect of who would make the playoffs and so we played it with that lack of intensity foremost in our collective minds. After the their inning we were once again trailing by (any guesses? Anyone? Bueller? Anyone?) yes, FIVE BLOODY RUNS! We fixed that by first scoring two to be down by three, and then finishing the game with the Monsters winning by a 13-9 score. But like I said earlier, this game meant virtually nothing to the overall scheme of things.
After lunch we found out who our first round opponents in the playoffs would be. It turned out to be the Saber Met-Tricks whom we'd beaten 9-8 after scoring 6 in the bottom of the 7th inning.
The game was tight from the opening pitch. Phil Forman, currently in his 5th year and 7th week of camp was on the mound and he pitched a gem. Not only did he allow only 5 hits but he drove in the only run of the game in the fourth inning on a double to the left field corner. I played left field today and I will be the first to tell you that what I know about left field is how to get there from the dugout and how to get back to the dugout from there. But I''m a "gamer" and will do whatever it takes for this team to finish on top. I had two fly balls make their way out to my immediate vicinity and made the catch on both. I singled in my second at bat and a made it to third with one out. My coach instructed me that I was "going on contact" when the ball was hit. Unfortunately it was hit to the third baseman who threw home to the catcher who make the tag on me. I boldly predict that that play will show up in a highlight reel from this week somewhere soon.
The Kangaroo Court session was held tonight at the Island Club with Doug Flynn and Nelson Figueroa serving as our judges. As always, it was a laugh riot with everyone enjoying themselves. The fines collected for various offenses, such as going to bat without a batting helmet on one's head, wearing the wrong uniform to the team photo session and showing up late for your game because you went back to the hotel to take a nap and overslept during the lunch break all go, this year, to a veteran's group which assists soldiers after they arrive back home from deployment. Someone join the group even pledged that if they collected $2,500 tonight that they would match it for the charity. Previous years have seen monies go to the Michael J. Fox foundation and the Gary Carter Foundation.
So tomorrow will see us take the field at 9:30 am with a chance to go to the championship game at stake. Sure, we'll be nervous, but so will they. It should be a very good game to say the least. Heck, after today, I'm not sure how much more some of us can take. But it's right where we want to be. And when it comes right down to it, isn't being "right where we want to be" one of the coolest things in the world?
I knew you'd agree.
With the Super Bowl only 11 days away and it's being played in the city in which I reside, Minneapolis, I leave you with this quote from former pitcher Jim Bouton:
"You want proof that baseball players are smarter than football players? How often do you see a baseball team penalized for too many men on the field?"
It's a great game. It truly is.
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