I saw maybe my 4th game last night at the Coliseum. Not to be a ballpark snob, but it really makes you appreciate the greatness of Mays Field when you go to other parks. Each park is unique and interesting but the Coliseum doesn’t have much going for it. Between wire fences and massive amounts of concrete, the park looks old and grey with dashes of Athletic Green. I hope the A’s finally get the new park they’ve been after.
I met some nice people in my section, most noted was George, an older gentleman who looked like a retired Veteran. He had on a faded army jacket and a ballcap that read ‘USS Kitty Hawk’ across the front. He told me that he’d been a Giants fan since he was this little, holding his hand out just a few feet above the ground, and that he once sold beer in the Coliseum in the ’70′s. It was great he told me, because he got to see a lot of baseball. I had to agree. Having a day job with baseball as the backdrop has to be fun. Escpecially in the ’70s when the A’s were a powerhouse team, winning three straight World Series between ’72 and ’74. We cheered for the Giants between pitches and he eventually left during the 5th inning.
Even though both the A’s and Giants have strong roots in the Bay, I was a little surprised by how much Giant Orange I saw at the park. My section had a large portion of orange among the green and gold. The game was a blow out, the Giants scored 11 runs and Jonathan Sanchez pitched 7 strong innings of 1-run ball. Usually my personal record when seeing the Giants play isn’t so hot, this game was a welcome change.
Some thoughts from the game
~ Sanchez looked good, despite a HR to Jack Cust — who tends to do that sort of thing — he pitched smoothly and effectively. Is Sanchez the 2nd best pitcher on the Giants right now? I think you can make that case. He might not have the ultimate upside of Matt Cain but it’s hard to argue against what he’s been doing this year. Gold star for Mr. Sanchez.
~ The offense was in top form, spraying doubles and hitting the ball all over the park. Vintage 2001 Rich Aurilia showed up to the game and knocked in 5 runs. Does he have any trade value? John Bowker, who might have my favorite hack on the team, went 3-4 including a double and 2 RBI’s. Durham looked good but had to leave the game early after what the Chronicle was calling a “leg contusion”. He hit 2 doubles and you could tell he wasn’t running well. Each time he stopped at second, he did so very slowly and carefully. When Fred Lewis runs he glides. Durham looks like he’s tippy toeing everywhere when he runs.
~ When will Bochy start sitting Omar? He went 0-4 in the game and hasn’t looked good at the plate in a month now. His OPS in June is .304. Three hundred and four. This year, in 122 AB’s, his slash-stats look like (.156/.234/.180). I understand why he was starting in all three Cleveland games, it was his homecoming, but it’s time to let Burriss get at least 3-4 starts a week at short. Burriss got some playing time in yesterdays game when Durham had to leave, so he might start playing 2B for now, but he should have been starting in the first place. I like Omar as much as the next guy, and he was a damn good Giant in his first two years, but it’s time for him to sit.
~ I got see Sergio Romo pitch. I’m a Romo fan and I’m hoping he does well at the major league level. I could see him taking the 8th inning eventually if Walker starts to slip again, which he most likely will. Romo might not have the best stuff but he can pitch.
~ Around the 8th inning the A’s fans started doing the wave. I tried to explain to my fiancee that the wave was pretty much dead but she disagreed “Look, everyone is doing it” she said. I tried to explain to her that it was the same thing as playing the Macerena really loudly in your car when driving down the street. It’s extremely tacky and no one does it anymore. Leave it to you Oakland fans to prove me wrong. I was amazed because I’ve never seen a wave get started at a baseball game before and I’ve been to probably a hundred or more games in my lifetime. This was an actual wave going. The A’s fans had it going all the way around the stadium. -1 for A’s fans. I’ve heard the wave originated in Oakland but do fans really still do it like this? Or did I step into the Twilight Zone?
Tonight we’ll head to Mays Field and watch the Giants take on the Cubs. I wonder how many Cubs fans will show up? They seem to be everywhere. Oh, and Barry Zito is pitching.
What can I say, Giants fans can be rabid. But, the same can be said about other teams, I recall seeing a lot of the other teams, particularly big city teams like Cubs and Mets, at the games I went to.
I used to see the wave done at Candlestick all the time. I did them once or twice, but after that was just annoyed. Much like the beach ball bouncing around, please, stop the madness.
I would have to say that Sanchez might not have Cain’s hype coming up, as a prospect, but a lefty with his velocity is always a rarity and thus a lot of potential. I think the problem has been that he has been so unfulfilling of his potential that not much thought was given his full potential. Still, looking at his numbers, you can see that he has the stuff to strike out batters consistently, even more so than Cain has ever shown, so it was whether he can get everything else together that would determine how far he goes.
The problem with Omar is that he is obviously still hampered by his knee problems, at least offensively. He just had his brace removed, so Bochy will probably let him have a week free of the brace to see if that makes a differnce. But Bochy ha already noted publicly that Omar could face reduced time if he doesn’t start producing soon, so I expect Omar to start sitting, perhaps after the end of his homestand, if he continues to hit poorly.
Lastly, don’t recall if I did this already, but congrats on your engagement. Wedding day set yet?
Good luck with everything! As long as you don’t stress over each and every detail, you will survive fine, because no wedding goes off without some sort of hitch somewhere. Just remember the most important things are your soul-mate at your side and that ring on your finger showing your commitment to each other.
Hey Martin,
Sorry I’m so late in replying to you but it’s been a hectic week.
Thanks for the congrats! Our big day is October 4th and we’re pretty excited. That’s sage advice on not stressing out too much. I’ll be honest and tell you that I’ll be happy when it’s all said and done. But, I guess part of the experience with a wedding is all the planning that goes into the thing.
Again, thanks for the good wishes, I’m a lucky man.