This is my first chance to write about Lou Pinella’s situation. As a lifelong Mariners fan, I’m sad to see him go. He brought credibility to a team that sorely lacked it. He made Randy Johnson a household name. He resurrected the career of Jamie Moyer. He formed young talent, such as Alex Rodriguez, Freddy Garcia, and Dan Wilson, into all-stars (yes, Dan Wilson was an all-star). Lou made Seattle into a baseball town. The Mariners made the playoffs for the first time in 1995 under his tutoring and made history with 116 wins in the 2001 season. Even with his faults, such as a quick temper and destroying the confidences and careers of such players as Bobby Ayala and Ken Cloude, Lou is a fantastic leader.
Now that I live in Florida, and with the Devil Rays being the closest major league team, I’m excited that Lou is back home. All the talk about him really wanting to be in New York were overblown. When Lou said that he wanted to be closer to home, I believed him. This was not Griffey Jr who said that he wanted to be closer to his home in Orlando. Last time I checked, Cincinatti is still three hours from Orlando by plane. That doesn’t seem “close to home.”
Coaching the Devil Rays will not be an easy task. When Lou took over in Seattle, he already had Griffey, Buhner, Tino, Chris Bosio, Erik Hanson and Randy to work with. In comparison, Lou gets to work with Carl Crawford, Aubrey Huff, Jared Sandberg, Greg Vaughn, Ben Grieve, and a less than desirable pitching staff anchored by Tanyon Sturtze and Ryan Rupe. Lou, break out the Tums and your favorite antacid because you’ll need it.
The Devil Rays were smart in hiring Lou. People are excited about the Rays for once. The message boards for the Tampa Bay official site are full of anxious fans who are talking about baseball…in November. If the Rays were trying to get more fannies in the stands, they’ve at least succeeded with this baseball fan who lives 2 ½ hours away. I plan on not only going to Tampa Bay this season to see my Mariners, I plan on going to Tampa Bay to see the new Lou’s team a few more times against other teams besides Seattle.
And that is why Lou is a perfect fit for Tampa Bay.
| Bob Melvin in as Mariners Manager |
The Mariners finally have hired their man in former major league catcher Bob Melvin. With the success of former catchers like Bob Brenly and this year with Mike Scioscia, Pat Gillick’s choice is interesting. My philosophy is always to give someone the benefit of the doubt so I won’t make any predictions or badmouth the organization for their choice or their lack of pursuing arguably the best skipper in baseball, namely Dusty Baker.
I found the following quote from Seattle P-I columnist, Larry Stone, amusing and sums up why the M’s chose Melvin instead of Dusty Baker:
“In the end, it seemed, the Mariners simply found Baker — with his messy divorce from San Francisco, his day-care dugout and apparent high-maintenance, hands-on ways (a little too Lou-like, perhaps) — to be too much of a load to warrant the $15 million or so they knew he sought.”
‘Nuf said.
| The Demise of Frank Thomas |
I’ve been a huge Frank Thomas fan. I spent many dollars collecting his rookie cards and one of my trips to Las Vegas for Big League Weekend was based on the fact that Frankie would be in attendance with his White Sox. But what has transpired over the last few years and his dwindling ability to play the field (which, he wasn’t that great of a first baseman anyway) and now his inability to hit the baseball has been sad to watch. Now to hear that the White Sox have invoked a “diminishing skills” clause in his contract which basically gives the majority of his contract BACK to the White Sox is especially disheartening.
Which brings me to the point about Frank’s agent. Here’s how I picture the agent addressing Frank that a “diminishing skills” clause is a good idea.
Agent: Frank, this is a good contract. There is a ‘diminishing skills’ clause that if you show signs of wearing down, you'll have to defer over ten million dollars back to the team. But we know that won’t happen because, believe it or not Frank, you are getting younger instead of older.
Frank: Playing baseball is turning me into a fine wine. I get better with time.
Agent: And with all the injuries you’ve had, that only means that your muscles, ligaments, and physical health in general will improve, not diminish.
Frank: Well, I have been working out.
Agent: And you look great Frank. Besides, that Paul Konerko will never be an all-star. Who would want a first baseman that averages 30 homers, 95 RBIs, and is a leader in the clubhouse?
Frank: You just described what I used to be…
Agent: And I doubt that a major league owner, or any shrewd businessman in general, would ever invoke a clause in a contract that would save them money, especially in this economy, that would allow them to defer over ten million dollars over an extended period of time.
Frank: That sounds great! Where’s the pen so I can sign this contract!
First agenda for Frank: fire your agent. Second agenda for Frank: shut up and play baseball instead of moping because Konerko and Magglio are now the stars for the Chi Sox. I still want to see Frank in the Hall of Fame but it’s not going to happen unless he gets back to the basics of hitting the ball. With 376 homers, he could easily get 500 before he hangs up his cleats.
I’ll admit that I am not a WNBA fan. But, I did enjoy getting WNBA autographs purely for a financial standpoint. Most of the ladies were gracious about signing, especially doubles, and the loyal WNBA fans out there typically bid more for WNBA autographed photos than NBA photos. Plus, the NBA players typically don’t sign doubles which means that those photos never get listed…instead, they are in my collection never to see the light of day on eBay.
That’s why I’m sad to see the Orlando Miracle go. It really came without any warning that the DeVos family, who own the Magic, decided that the Miracle was not a money making enterprise and “returned” the team back to the NBA for relocation.
Had I known that they were thinking of dumping the team, I may have attended a few games just to keep my “investment” in Orlando. So, look for a sale of unsigned WNBA photos on eBay, listed by yours truly, in the upcoming weeks.
| Why I Dislike Heathcliff Slocumb |
Shall I count the ways? Do I dislike Heath Slocumb because he couldn’t pitch in a Mariners uniform? Do I dislike Heath Slocumb because he was a part of the worst trade the Mariners ever orchestrated (Derek Lowe and Jason Varitek for Slocumb…ouch)? I now have an additional reason why I dislike Mr. Slocumb.
A few months ago I volunteered for the Doc Rivers golf tournament, only to find out the day of the tourney that Heath was going to be one of the “celebrity” golfers. When he approached the hole that I was at, I told him how I had a Seattle newspaper signed by Dan Wilson on the day they clinched the West for the 1997 season. The only thing missing on it was his autograph. He gave me his business card and said to send it to him and he’d sign it.
That was July. It is now November and I have yet to see my newspaper returned, signed or unsigned.
I even sent him a nice email, thanking him again and inquiring if he had a chance to sign my newspaper yet. That was over a week ago and I have still not heard from him.
So, add this to my reasons why I dislike Heath Slocumb. I could be really uncivil now and say bad things about him and his mother but I’ll refrain. I can say this: he golfs like he pitched.
| A Quick Note about Sarcasm |
I hope that you all who read my random thoughts understand that I typically use sarcasm and humor (or, my attempt at humor) to make my point. I still can be serious when I need to be but some people, or organizations, open themselves up for my sarcastic barbs. Here's a recent message board post to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays web site:
First user: Correct me if i'm wrong but did they change the uniforms to not have the world devil ray???
My response: Don't you guys know...there's no "Devil" in the uni's because Russ Johnson said so!
From Seattle Times: Tampa Bay infielder Russ Johnson believes the organization is making a fateful mistake by leaving the word "Devil" in its name. The Rays already have achieved their second consecutive 100-loss season, and Johnson believes their nominal association with Beelzebub could be a contributing factor.
"It's a concern," Johnson told the St. Petersburg Times. "It definitely would help if we got rid of it. There's no use honoring that part of the spirit. There ain't nothing good about it. All it does is destroy the soul. (The devil) ain't into saving souls, he's into bringing them with him. I just don't think he needs to be put up on a pedestal by any means."
And here's the stuffy response from the second user: Except he didn't mention it before the uniform was changed, and it was only the uniform not the name of the team that was changed. He made those statements just a few months ago and besides Johnson doesn't have that much pull. The name and uniform change was a marketing strategy nothing more nothing less.
I can understand that losing sometimes makes one lose their sense of humor and it apparently did with this individual. If we can't laugh at ourselves, who can we laugh at?
And, before you send me an actual list of "people we can laugh at," please understand that I once again was employing the writing technique called sarcasm.
One of the easiest NBA autographing experiences I’ve ever had was with the Sonics. Maybe I’m a little biased since I grew up watching the Supes, but I was escatic with how well they signed. Here’s my haul:
Gary Payton: signed SI
Kenny Anderson: signed a Blazers poster for me (already signed by Rider and Sabonis…now I just need Rasheed to finish it. Who knows when I’ll get that finished)
Ansu Sesay: printout
Jerome James: printout
Reggie Evans: printout
Calvin Booth: printout
Brent Barry: photo
Desmond Mason: 2 photos
Rashard Lewis: 1 card
Vlad Radmanovic: 2 cards
Bob Weiss: 2 cards, 1 printout
Dean Demopoulos: printout
Dwane Casey: printout
Nate McMillan: 1 card, 1 printout
Vitaly Potapenko: 1 card
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| |
Raptors: Vince, Lamond Murray, Nate Huffman, and Eric Montross all didn’t make the trip with the team.
Antonio Davis: photo
Morris Peterson: printout
Michael Bradley: printout
Chris Jeffries: printout
Lenny Wilkens: printout
Craig Neal (asst coach): printout
Greg Foster: photo, magazine
Voshon Lenard: card
Next morning:
Mamadou N’diaye: printout
Jay Triano & Walker D. Russell: coaches printout
Jerome Williams: card
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Tried to get Lindsey Hunter & Alvin Williams to stop…no luck. Could have tried to get Jeffries, Bradley, and Mo Pete but I try to avoid “double dipping.” Don’t want to screw up the chances for their next trip when hopefully Vince will be back.
Jeff Bower: Head Football Coach of Southern Mississippi. He signed the photo "Greg" which is interesting because my name
is "Ben."
I'm sure someone named "Greg" is looking at his Jeff Bower photo and
asking himself, "Who the hey is Ben?"
June Jones: Head football coach at Hawaii. Previously coached in the NFL with the Chargers. Judging on the photo he sent, June has really embraced the whole Hawaiian experience (he was wearing a lai in the photo).
Barry Alvarez: Head football coach at Wisconsin.
Rick Sweet: Rick was one of the Mariners catchers in 1982 and 1983.
Most recently he is a coach for the Portland Beavers. Took 8 months
for this success which was sent to the Portland address.
Marc Hill: Primarily a backup catcher, Marc had his best days as the
everyday catcher for the Giants (77 and 78). Marc played 29 games
for the Mariners in 1980. Used Smallings address.
Woody Woodward: 2/2 items. Woody was a major league infielder for
the Braves and the Reds in the 60s and early 70s. He became a GM for
the Yankees and most recently with the Mariners. He is most known as
the person who traded Randy Johnson and traded Jason Varitek and
Derek Lowe for Heathcliff Slocumb (worst trade ever for Seattle).
Big Head Todd and the Monsters: Nice surprise. I emailed BHTM's
manager to express my displeasure with one of my favorite groups not
coming to Florida on their recent tour. Here's my email exchange with
them:
BHTM: sorry, FL has not been friendly to BHTM in the past. We
have a difficult time getting booked, and an even more difficult
selling tix--sorry,
Me: I understand...I rely on Internet radio to get my fill of
good music. Radio here in Florida is rather pathetic and most
Florida radio listeners wouldn't know good music if it was biting
their bum.
I doubt I'll be able to get to Atlanta, or Myrtle Beach for that
matter, for BHTM's date up there. Any chance to get an autographed
photo? My address is below. It would mean the world to me. I'll
mark that day on my calendar, and only play BHTM in my car, computer,
and home stereo all day. I'll even put a lighter in the air when I
hear "Broken Hearted Savior."
And, was that really Todd who hooked up the Real World's Cara?
signed,
Disgruntled in FL
BHTM: Photo on the way. We did hang with MTV, but no
improprieties occurred. They just make it all up. It's bull****.
Got the signed photo in the mail over the weekend. Very nice success.
Kudos to Matt Williams for vetoing the trade to Colorado to remain in Arizona to be near his children.
''Being there for my kids is everything in my life,'' Williams said. ''This responsibility outweighs anything in my baseball career. I must and will be with my kids.''
Here’s a player that really gets it. Priorities.
As we approach the holiday season, I wish you and yours a happy holiday season, whatever holidays you celebrate. May our mailboxes be full (not with credit card offers or pointless catalogs) and your autographing experiences be memorable.
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