After Kam Loe pitched out of a bases loaded, no-outs jam in the sixth inning and LaTroy Hawkins pitched a scoreless seventh inning, Francisco Rodriguez entered Tuesday night's game against the Cubs to pitch the eighth inning. Our favorite Fox Sports Wisconsin broadcasters described the occasion as follows:
Brian Anderson: This has to be a huge adjustment for Francisco Rodriguez. He's used to coming into games in the ninth inning with the crowd on its feet, with the music blasting in anticipation of a save. And he enters this game in a set-up role with the cap shuffle on the scoreboard and the Benny Hill music. So it's a little bit different setting for K-Rod.
Bill Schroeder: So far he's OK with it. ...All is good in the mind of K-Rod.
Brian Anderson: You can almost see Francisco Rodriguez, he was yelling at himself on the mound. I don't know if he does that all of the time but whatever it takes.
Bill Schroeder: Are you sure that the Benny Hill music isn't what he likes to come into the game to?
Brian Anderson: Maybe it is. [Laughter.]
Tuesday night was the first of three consecutive nights where Milwaukee used K-Rod in the eighth inning and John Axford in the ninth inning. In each game, K-Rod got the hold and Axford the save. It was an important three-game sweep against the Cubs at Miller Park. The wins put Milwaukee back into first place in the division.
Since being acquired from the Mets at the All-Star break, Rodriguez has appeared in seven games and has collected five holds and one win. He has allowed two runs, both coming in a win against the Diamondbacks on July 20. After a shaky start to the season, Axford has been a solid closer. He has now successfully converted his last 27 consecutive save opportunities and has 30 total saves.
As the NL Central heads toward what is shaping up to be a down-to-the-wire finish, it will be interesting to see if Ron Roenicke deviates from the set-up and closer roles. For example, I wonder if Roenicke considered bringing in K-Rod in the sixth inning when the Cubs had loaded the bases and the Brewers had a one run lead. As it turned out, Loe did an amazing job getting out of the jam and preserving the one-run lead but it would seem that that was a golden opportunity to bring in K-Rod for a strikeout.
For now, I guess I'll just be happy that the Brewers have the bullpen to have those type of options.
Brewers 4, Cubs 2
Game played 7-28-11
Friday, July 29, 2011
Thursday, July 28, 2011
'This does not look good'
I feel like puking. And it's not from liquor consumption.
Prince Fielder led off the second inning of Wednesday night's game against the Chicago Cubs with an opposite field home run. It was Prince's first homer since July 5 and his 23rd of the year. Rickie Weeks followed with a grounder to Cubs shortstop Starlin Castro. Castro couldn't get the ball out of his glove and with each tiny millisecond that he tried to get his fingers around the baseball, Rickie Weeks motored closer to first base. Sensing a hit, Weeks put everything he had into one gigantic lunge toward first base. His left foot hit the bag and rolled grotesquely. Weeks took one more step with his right foot, hit the ground, rolled over and didn't get up.
BA: "This does not look good. Rickie Weeks is down in a heap. Hit the bag hard trying for that last stretch to beat out an infield hit."
Rock: "That's the last thing the Brewers need is to have Rickie Weeks down."
You could have heard a pin drop in Miller Park as Ron Roenicke and one of the trainers carried Weeks off the field. After the game Roenicke said that Weeks would be out for awhile. On Thursday, the Brewers put Weeks on the disabled list and called up Eric Farris.
Farris is a 2007 fourth round draft pick, who enjoys playing video games and making music. Farris has a .256/.308/.358 line in AAA Nashville this year. A cursory glance at his minor league stats would seem to indicate that he doesn't strikeout very much and he is fast. He's a threat to steal bases (he had 70 in 76 attempts in 2009 in the Florida State League) and he's a good bunter. He missed a good chunk of the 2010 season with a torn ligament in his right knee. Farris is considered a good defender but he has never appeared in a major league game.
The Brewers would go on to win the game 2-0 behind a brilliant performance by Zack Greinke, who went 6.2 innings and gave up no runs on three hits and three walks, while striking out nine. Takashi Saito got the third out in the seventh inning, Frankie Rodriguez pitched a scoreless eighth inning and John Axford got the save. Axford's save was his 26th in a row.
Despite the win, the injury put a dark cloud over the game. At this point, we only know that the ankle is not broken but ankle sprains can take a long time to heal. Replays showed just how much the ankle rolled. Watching it makes me sick to my stomach.
Weeks' injury comes just one week after centerfielder Carlos Gomez broke his collarbone on a diving catch against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Gomez had surgery to expedite his recovery and is expected to miss about six weeks. It was unfortunate timing as it seemed that Roenicke had just started to use Gomez in a role in which he could excel--against lefties, as a defensive replacement and as a pinch runner. For his part, Gomez played hard and seemed to have a great attitude despite his diminished role.
No doubt, this is a bummer. But the Brewers are now in sole possesion of first place at 56-49, with a .5 game lead over St. Louis and a 1.5 game lead over Pittsburgh. With one more game against the Cubs and then a weekend series with the Astros, the Brewers need to find a way to score runs and beat the bottom of the Central. As Seth always says to me, "Get over it and move on!" because Milwaukee also has six games against the Cardinals. It is no time to feel sorry for yourself.
Brewers 2, Cubs 0
Game played 7-27-11
Brewers 3, Cubs 2
Game played 7-26-11
Prince Fielder led off the second inning of Wednesday night's game against the Chicago Cubs with an opposite field home run. It was Prince's first homer since July 5 and his 23rd of the year. Rickie Weeks followed with a grounder to Cubs shortstop Starlin Castro. Castro couldn't get the ball out of his glove and with each tiny millisecond that he tried to get his fingers around the baseball, Rickie Weeks motored closer to first base. Sensing a hit, Weeks put everything he had into one gigantic lunge toward first base. His left foot hit the bag and rolled grotesquely. Weeks took one more step with his right foot, hit the ground, rolled over and didn't get up.
BA: "This does not look good. Rickie Weeks is down in a heap. Hit the bag hard trying for that last stretch to beat out an infield hit."
Rock: "That's the last thing the Brewers need is to have Rickie Weeks down."
You could have heard a pin drop in Miller Park as Ron Roenicke and one of the trainers carried Weeks off the field. After the game Roenicke said that Weeks would be out for awhile. On Thursday, the Brewers put Weeks on the disabled list and called up Eric Farris.
Farris is a 2007 fourth round draft pick, who enjoys playing video games and making music. Farris has a .256/.308/.358 line in AAA Nashville this year. A cursory glance at his minor league stats would seem to indicate that he doesn't strikeout very much and he is fast. He's a threat to steal bases (he had 70 in 76 attempts in 2009 in the Florida State League) and he's a good bunter. He missed a good chunk of the 2010 season with a torn ligament in his right knee. Farris is considered a good defender but he has never appeared in a major league game.
The Brewers would go on to win the game 2-0 behind a brilliant performance by Zack Greinke, who went 6.2 innings and gave up no runs on three hits and three walks, while striking out nine. Takashi Saito got the third out in the seventh inning, Frankie Rodriguez pitched a scoreless eighth inning and John Axford got the save. Axford's save was his 26th in a row.
Despite the win, the injury put a dark cloud over the game. At this point, we only know that the ankle is not broken but ankle sprains can take a long time to heal. Replays showed just how much the ankle rolled. Watching it makes me sick to my stomach.
Weeks' injury comes just one week after centerfielder Carlos Gomez broke his collarbone on a diving catch against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Gomez had surgery to expedite his recovery and is expected to miss about six weeks. It was unfortunate timing as it seemed that Roenicke had just started to use Gomez in a role in which he could excel--against lefties, as a defensive replacement and as a pinch runner. For his part, Gomez played hard and seemed to have a great attitude despite his diminished role.
No doubt, this is a bummer. But the Brewers are now in sole possesion of first place at 56-49, with a .5 game lead over St. Louis and a 1.5 game lead over Pittsburgh. With one more game against the Cubs and then a weekend series with the Astros, the Brewers need to find a way to score runs and beat the bottom of the Central. As Seth always says to me, "Get over it and move on!" because Milwaukee also has six games against the Cardinals. It is no time to feel sorry for yourself.
Brewers 2, Cubs 0
Game played 7-27-11
Brewers 3, Cubs 2
Game played 7-26-11
Monday, July 25, 2011
El Super Monday
Not only did this week's El Super winner have two solid starts, he also made the most out of his five plate appearances. Yovani Gallardo went 2 for 4 with a double, walk and one run scored. (That's a .500/.600/.750 line, which, if sustained over more than two games would be pretty awesome.) In his two starts, Yo went 1-1, giving up just 3 earned runs (5 total) in 13 IP with 11 strikeouts and only two walks.
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Yuniesky Betancourt and the Red Mercedes
Parking in downtown St. Paul is a pain in the ass but sometimes we get lucky and find a place to park in a free lot. We were meeting some friends at Patrick McGovern's and we began our search for parking in the small lot behind the bar. We drove through once and didn't find a spot but there was a woman who looked to be in her 70s standing at the passenger's side of a red Mercedes talking on a cell phone. We did a lap through the parking lot and then spotted a gentleman who seemed to be walking to the driver's side of the same red Mercedes. This looked promising. We pulled up near the car and put our blinker on to indicate that we planned to take the spot. Only nothing happened. The guy got in the car but the woman continued to use the cell phone. She would talk into the phone and then stare at the phone and push a few buttons and then talk into the phone again. This went on for several minutes. After about five minutes, she got in the car. This looked more promising. But again, nothing happened. After a few more minutes I got out of the car to see what the holdup was. The couple was just sitting there.
I started laughing. Seth said that he was going to continue to wait because, by this time, he was invested in this parking spot. After another minute some other people walked to their car so Seth backed up so that he could take the spot being vacated by the people who had just walked to the lot from the bar. Of course, at the exact moment that the new people staring backing out, the couple in the red Mercedes did the same. Now when something takes longer than it should, Seth and I say that we've been red Mercedes'ed.
Yuniesky Betancourt is a lot like the couple in the red Mercedes. I feel like I've been waiting around a long time for him [to produce]. On the one hand, he's historically been a pretty below average big leaguer, so maybe all he can do is stand by the side of the car and try to use a cell phone. On the other hand, if the Brewers are to win the NL Central, we really need him to get in the red Mercedes, back out of that parking spot and put his foot on the gas.
I think we're seeing Yuni attempting to put his foot on the gas. In Game 2 against Arizona, the Brewers brought out the bats. Corey Hart led off the game with a home run and one batter later, Ryan Braun connected for a long ball. Three batters later, Yuni got into the act with a home run. At the end of the first, Milwaukee led 5-0. Betancourt would go on to hit another homer in the ninth inning. He went 3 for 5 with four RBI in the 11-3 victory. (Game played July 19, 2011)
Jumping ahead to Friday night's game against the Giants at AT&T, Betancourt went 2 for 4 with 2 RBIs in the 4-2 victory. In the second half of the season, Yuni has appeared in eight games, and produced a .423/.444/.731 line. Compare that with .237/.255/.342 line in the first half. Wow, that first half is bad but maybe Yuni can keep his foot on the gas and turn things around.
Maybe. Or maybe we'll watch Doug Melvin pull another rabbit out of his hat and we'll have a new SS before the trade deadline.
I started laughing. Seth said that he was going to continue to wait because, by this time, he was invested in this parking spot. After another minute some other people walked to their car so Seth backed up so that he could take the spot being vacated by the people who had just walked to the lot from the bar. Of course, at the exact moment that the new people staring backing out, the couple in the red Mercedes did the same. Now when something takes longer than it should, Seth and I say that we've been red Mercedes'ed.
Yuniesky Betancourt is a lot like the couple in the red Mercedes. I feel like I've been waiting around a long time for him [to produce]. On the one hand, he's historically been a pretty below average big leaguer, so maybe all he can do is stand by the side of the car and try to use a cell phone. On the other hand, if the Brewers are to win the NL Central, we really need him to get in the red Mercedes, back out of that parking spot and put his foot on the gas.
I think we're seeing Yuni attempting to put his foot on the gas. In Game 2 against Arizona, the Brewers brought out the bats. Corey Hart led off the game with a home run and one batter later, Ryan Braun connected for a long ball. Three batters later, Yuni got into the act with a home run. At the end of the first, Milwaukee led 5-0. Betancourt would go on to hit another homer in the ninth inning. He went 3 for 5 with four RBI in the 11-3 victory. (Game played July 19, 2011)
Jumping ahead to Friday night's game against the Giants at AT&T, Betancourt went 2 for 4 with 2 RBIs in the 4-2 victory. In the second half of the season, Yuni has appeared in eight games, and produced a .423/.444/.731 line. Compare that with .237/.255/.342 line in the first half. Wow, that first half is bad but maybe Yuni can keep his foot on the gas and turn things around.
Maybe. Or maybe we'll watch Doug Melvin pull another rabbit out of his hat and we'll have a new SS before the trade deadline.
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
The El Slacker
It started like a tiny pin prick. I would just take one series off. I was sick as a dog. I lost my voice. My cold moved into my eyes—yes, my EYES—which caused them to crust shut over night. I could open them in the morning only after I splashed hot water on them. I just kept getting sicker. I finally went to the doctor on July 5. I had a cold that turned into bronchitis, a sinus infection and pink eye. Instead of taking time off from work, I convinced the doctor that I’d wash my hands a lot and not infect the rest of my office.
July 4 – After Shaun Marcum’s grand slam, the Brewers led 6-1. Yet, somehow, they managed to squander the lead and lose 8-6 to Arizona. It was the second day in a row that the Brewers gave away a five-run lead.
July 5 – Randy Wolf gave up four first-inning runs and Milwaukee failed to mount much of a comeback in a 7-3 loss to the D'backs.
July 6 – Yovani Gallardo gave up a leadoff home run to Kelly Johnson but then put the clamps on the D’backs offense. Despite Gallardo’s pitching, the Brewers trailed going into the seventh inning. A benched Casey McGehee to the rescue. After back-to-back singles by Kotsay and Lucroy, McGehee hit a pinch-hit, three-run homer to salvage the finale, 3-1.
And then the flood gates started to open. My company was in the midst of a huge project that necessitated me working nights and weekends. I was sick and working a ton. I would take one more day off. Or maybe I’d just take the entire Cincinnati series off. I’d come back strong after the All-Star break, like Ryan Braun. Maybe I’d even write something about the first half of the season or the All-Star game.
July 7 – Milwaukee used a four-run fifth inning that included a three-run homer by Rickie Weeks, to erase a 2-1 deficit, and take the opener against Cincinnati 5-4.
July 8 – This game was all about Mark Kotsay. He went from hero, to goat, to hero again in the course of four innings. Kotsay hit a homer in the sixth inning to give Milwaukee the lead but then let one through his legs in left field that led to three Cincinnati runs. But the Brewers rallied for three runs in the bottom of the ninth to take the game 8-7. Kotsay produced the game winning single that scored the tying and winning runs. “Continue to run, Carlos Gomez.”
July 9 – The Reds broke open a 3-3 ball game with five runs in the top of the tenth inning to win 8-4.
July 10—Craig Counsell hit a sac fly to left field that scored George Kottaras from third base and earned the Brewers a walk-off victory in the final game before the All-Star break. Trailing 3-2 entering the ninth inning, Nyjer Morgan hit a one-out single and stole second base. Kottaras followed with a walk. Morgan scored on a single from Kotsay and the game-winner came on Counsell’s pinch hit fly ball, 4-3. Three out of four against the Reds feels pretty good.
July 12 – Prince Fielder hit a three-run homer in the bottom of the fourth inning to lead the NL All-Stars to a 5-1 victory over the AL. Fielder was named the All-Star game MVP. His kids are really cute.
The All-Star break was over and I was committed to blogging again. Sort of. The problem was I had a family vacation looming (at a very lovely Wisconsin lake). I caught the Thursday night Rockies game but then had to listen to Friday and Saturday’s games on the radio. I had no internet access and little time to sit down and write so I didn’t blog. I watched Sunday’s game when I got home on Tivo. I was tired. I had nothing to say. Does anyone even read my blog anymore?
July 14 – Yikes, this one got ugly. Ryan Spilborghs went 4 for 6 and the Rockies exploded for a 12-3 win.
July 15 – This was not a bad Chris Narveson outing. It was a bad offensive outing. Milwaukee was shut out 4-0.
July 16 – This was a crazy game that I had to finish listening to in my hotel room with a really fuzzy little alarm clock radio. Milwaukee fell behind 3-0 after four innings. Corey Hart finally got the Crew on the board with a two-run homer in the fifth inning. Milwaukee took the lead in the top of the seventh inning, 5-3, after a squeeze play, a sac fly, some ejections, and a HBP. Colorado took the lead back in the bottom of the seventh inning on a Todd Helton double and a Troy Tulowitzki single. Milwaukee tied the game in the eighth inning and took the lead in the ninth on a Rickie Weeks two-run blast. Axford got the save and K-Rod the win, 8-7.
July 17 – Milwaukee got a series split with a 4-3 win on Sunday.
Enough with the self-pity. I could do this. I could write something for my blog. But, by this point, I’d been away for almost two weeks. It had been so long, I was starting to have a mental block about writing again. I’d convinced myself that I had nothing interesting to say, that blogging was a huge waste of time, that I would never be able to finish the season.
El Super Monday. I could do it. Or not.
July 18—Josh Collmenter confounded the Brewers for the second time in the past two weeks and Milwaukee was shut out again on the road, 3-0.
What in the hell is El Super about this game? I’m tired. I need to sleep.
Only I couldn’t sleep. I kept thinking that I should be up blogging. Internal conflict is stupid, especially about something like blogging about the Brewers. What is wrong with me? Just sit down and compare Mark Kotsay to grilling scallops or swimming through algae infested lake water. I’ll get up early and do it before work. [This is laughable to anyone who knows me. I don’t do mornings.] I got to work feeling distraught and overwhelmed. What if I never write again?
And then, with one sentence in his morning email to me, Seth got me to snap out of it. At the end of his email about items he should purchase at Target, came the following: “You need to do El Super, slacker.”
Monday, July 4, 2011
4th of July El Super
This week's El Super goes to Brewers fans and their All-Star voting skills. With 25 votes per email address, Brewers fans made enough mouse clicks to earn Ryan Braun, Prince Fielder and Rickie Weeks starts in the upcoming All-Star game in Arizona. The Brewers are the only team with multiple starters in the NL and just the Yankees in the AL have more starters. Assuming Braun's calf injury doesn't keep him out of the game, it will be the first time in Milwaukee's history that it will have three starters in the game.
Diamondbacks 8, Brewers 6
Game played 7-4-11
Twins 9, Brewers 7
Game played 7-3-11
Sunday, July 3, 2011
A Brewers Fan at Target Field Night 2: There was nothing small-ey about this comeback
For most of the past year, I worked on one huge transaction at work. It was a horrible project involving lots of lawyers, lots of money, and lots of contention. For whatever reason, a lot of the nastiness was directed at me. I ended up working a lot of hours. During one conference call with others from my company, the higher ups joked about how much I was working. They commented that they didn't know how they would make it up to my husband for making me be gone so much.
Umm, wait. What? I'm working a bazillion hours a week and you're worried about Seth?? Seth is perfectly happy sitting at home playing video games and drinking beer while I'm working. In fact, I think he would prefer this to spending time with me.
So, while THUs discussed how they could make it up to Seth with beer, I mentioned that Seth would really like Brewers-Twins tickets (even though Seth would have preferred the beer).
My boss's boss said, "Done."
So, on Saturday night, as we entered Target Field and tried to locate Section H in the Legend's Club, Seth commented, "I don't think you're going to be disappointed with these seats." I nodded and smiled. My voice was gone. The only sound that I could produce was something that sounded like a cross between a whisper and a high pitched whistle. Our seats were in the second row of the second level directly behind home plate. We had our own private food and beverage section and our own waiter to bring drinks to our seats.
Just before the game started, a camera guy came and stood next to us to capture the cute kids in the section next to ours. The camera guy commented to the family in front of us that Bert Blyleven was throwing grapes at him. It was at this point that I realized that we were sitting directly in front of the announcer boxes. I turned around and made eye contact with BA. He waved. Seth then said, "I think the guy sitting in front of you is Roy Smalley." My eyes darted to the woman to Smalley's left. I mouthed, "And that's his wife."
"You need to text Chris. Now." I squeaked.
Years ago Chris (see previous blog about Yankees series) told us a story about attending a game as a 12-year old. I forget the specifics but the just of the story is that a heckler at a near empty Yankee Stadium, in pretty good seats, yelled at Roy Smalley, "Hey Roy, does your wife call you smalley?" It was the kind of thing that would make a 12-year old giggle. Since Chris shared that story with us years ago, it's been a long running joke.
Seth, who was taking advantage of the fact that I was sick and acting as the designated driver, had had a few. He started threatening to tap Mrs. Smalley on the shoulder and say, "Excuse me. There's a question that I have always wanted to ask you." "Noooooo...." I mouthed. "Do not do that. Please do not do that."
Ok, yes, the game. The game sucked. At one point, a bird shit on my nose. Literally. And I was going to use that as the metaphor for the game--that's how bad it was going. Minnesota scored one run in the first inning, two in the third and four in the fourth inning, all off of starter Chris Narveson. Meanwhile, the Brewers managed just two hits in the first four innings. Ryan Braun extended his hitting streak with a double and Prince singled but was erased on a double play. I felt like crying. Partly because the game was frustrating and partly because I couldn't even complain about Yuni because I lost my voice. 7-0 after four innings. That's bird shit on your nose bad.
In the top of the fifth, Yuni hit a seemingly meaningless one out single. For reasons that will never be fully explainable to me, Yuni tagged up on a Kotsay fly ball to center that didn't even make it to the warning track and attempted to advance to second with two outs. The throw beat him but Alexi Casilla caught the ball on the shortstop side of second and when he dived toward Betancourt to make the tag, Betancourt dove over Casilla and was called safe. A very disgusted Roy Smalley turned around, got Blyleven's attention, made the out sign with his fist, nodded and then told his wife that the left field camera had showed that Betancourt was out. Jon Lucroy followed with a single that scored Betancourt. 7-1.
Marco Estrada relieved Narveson and stopped the carnage in the fifth after the Narv-Dog allowed two more base runners that inning. The Twins would score no more runs. In the top of the sixth inning Rickie Weeks reached on an error and TPlush crushed one out in right. I stood up and threw up a "T" just because it's fun to do, not because I was really believing in the comeback yet. Some Brewers fans behind us inquired as to my actions. "Is that for Tony Plush?" they asked. I just nodded. 7-3.
The score would stay that way until the top of the eighth inning, when Morgan came through with a one-out triple. He scored on a Braun ground out. (This ground out would be significant later on as Braun injured his calf running out the ground ball.) 7-4.
Takashi Saito pitched a scoreless eighth inning. Welcome back, Takashi.
Now, what I'm about to write is going to seem crazy and improbable, but it really happened. The Twins brought in Matt Capps to shut 'em down and send Milwaukee to its fifth straight loss. Instead, Yuni lined one up the middle to start the inning. Kotsay followed with a hot grounder that got under the glove of Casilla. Next, Lucroy took an outside pitch and dumped it in right field. Three straight singles. 7-5.
Craig Counsell followed with a popout to Tsuyoshi Nishioka and Weeks flew out to right field. Brewers fans were on their feet but The Crew was down to its last out. TPlush didn't keep us in suspense for long. He unleashed a deep fly ball that Michael Cuddyer (possibly) should have caught but when he didn't, both runs scored and Morgan stood at second. 7-7.
George Kottaras got down 0-2 but hung in there and finally drove one up the middle that scored Morgan. Somehow, the Brewers were now leading this game, 8-7. I was jumping up and down. I was throwing up the T. Silently. I couldn't even produce a sound anymore. John Axford took the Twins down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the ninth, striking out Jim Thome to end the game. Holy shit. What a comeback. What a win. Holy shit. Holy shit.
I jumped around some more. Continued to throw up Ts. Some Twins fans found me amusing and took my picture throwing up the T. Later I got BA's attention and I threw up a T for him, too, and he laughed and pointed at me.
So flipping awesome.
Brewers 8, Twins 7
Game played 7-2-11
Umm, wait. What? I'm working a bazillion hours a week and you're worried about Seth?? Seth is perfectly happy sitting at home playing video games and drinking beer while I'm working. In fact, I think he would prefer this to spending time with me.
So, while THUs discussed how they could make it up to Seth with beer, I mentioned that Seth would really like Brewers-Twins tickets (even though Seth would have preferred the beer).
My boss's boss said, "Done."
So, on Saturday night, as we entered Target Field and tried to locate Section H in the Legend's Club, Seth commented, "I don't think you're going to be disappointed with these seats." I nodded and smiled. My voice was gone. The only sound that I could produce was something that sounded like a cross between a whisper and a high pitched whistle. Our seats were in the second row of the second level directly behind home plate. We had our own private food and beverage section and our own waiter to bring drinks to our seats.
 |
| Target Field with view of Minneapolis. |
Just before the game started, a camera guy came and stood next to us to capture the cute kids in the section next to ours. The camera guy commented to the family in front of us that Bert Blyleven was throwing grapes at him. It was at this point that I realized that we were sitting directly in front of the announcer boxes. I turned around and made eye contact with BA. He waved. Seth then said, "I think the guy sitting in front of you is Roy Smalley." My eyes darted to the woman to Smalley's left. I mouthed, "And that's his wife."
"You need to text Chris. Now." I squeaked.
Years ago Chris (see previous blog about Yankees series) told us a story about attending a game as a 12-year old. I forget the specifics but the just of the story is that a heckler at a near empty Yankee Stadium, in pretty good seats, yelled at Roy Smalley, "Hey Roy, does your wife call you smalley?" It was the kind of thing that would make a 12-year old giggle. Since Chris shared that story with us years ago, it's been a long running joke.
Seth, who was taking advantage of the fact that I was sick and acting as the designated driver, had had a few. He started threatening to tap Mrs. Smalley on the shoulder and say, "Excuse me. There's a question that I have always wanted to ask you." "Noooooo...." I mouthed. "Do not do that. Please do not do that."
 |
| View from my seat. |
In the top of the fifth, Yuni hit a seemingly meaningless one out single. For reasons that will never be fully explainable to me, Yuni tagged up on a Kotsay fly ball to center that didn't even make it to the warning track and attempted to advance to second with two outs. The throw beat him but Alexi Casilla caught the ball on the shortstop side of second and when he dived toward Betancourt to make the tag, Betancourt dove over Casilla and was called safe. A very disgusted Roy Smalley turned around, got Blyleven's attention, made the out sign with his fist, nodded and then told his wife that the left field camera had showed that Betancourt was out. Jon Lucroy followed with a single that scored Betancourt. 7-1.
Marco Estrada relieved Narveson and stopped the carnage in the fifth after the Narv-Dog allowed two more base runners that inning. The Twins would score no more runs. In the top of the sixth inning Rickie Weeks reached on an error and TPlush crushed one out in right. I stood up and threw up a "T" just because it's fun to do, not because I was really believing in the comeback yet. Some Brewers fans behind us inquired as to my actions. "Is that for Tony Plush?" they asked. I just nodded. 7-3.
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| Tony Plush rescued The Crew. He had a 2B, 3B and HR. |
Takashi Saito pitched a scoreless eighth inning. Welcome back, Takashi.
Now, what I'm about to write is going to seem crazy and improbable, but it really happened. The Twins brought in Matt Capps to shut 'em down and send Milwaukee to its fifth straight loss. Instead, Yuni lined one up the middle to start the inning. Kotsay followed with a hot grounder that got under the glove of Casilla. Next, Lucroy took an outside pitch and dumped it in right field. Three straight singles. 7-5.
 |
| Braun would injure his calf running to 1B. |
George Kottaras got down 0-2 but hung in there and finally drove one up the middle that scored Morgan. Somehow, the Brewers were now leading this game, 8-7. I was jumping up and down. I was throwing up the T. Silently. I couldn't even produce a sound anymore. John Axford took the Twins down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the ninth, striking out Jim Thome to end the game. Holy shit. What a comeback. What a win. Holy shit. Holy shit.
I jumped around some more. Continued to throw up Ts. Some Twins fans found me amusing and took my picture throwing up the T. Later I got BA's attention and I threw up a T for him, too, and he laughed and pointed at me.
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| George Kottaras gets ready to win the game. |
So flipping awesome.
 |
| Ax shuttin' the door. |
Brewers 8, Twins 7
Game played 7-2-11
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| I've been told that my "T" looks more like a "Z" in this photo. |
A Brewers fan at Target Field Night 1: Why are we in a weather delay when it's not raining?
The national weather service had predicted severe thunderstorms, but for most of the day Friday it was bright and sunny and 100 degrees. (As I've mentioned many times, I live in Minnesota and work in downtown Minneapolis so when the Brewers come to Target Field it's like a holiday for me--Brewers and baseball without that five plus hour drive.) So on Friday, when it was quitting time, I threw on my shorts and Braun jersey and headed out to do some tailgating Minnesota style--that is, standing on the patio of one of the bars near Target Field. There is no parking lot for Target Field, just parking ramps, so there is no real tailgating. As much as I like tailgating Wisconsin style, I actually enjoy the downtown stadium in Minneapolis. It's a fun and festive atmosphere. Lots of Brewers fans, even more Twins fans, jammed into little beer gardens.
As game time approached, the sky darkened. By the time we reached our seats about 30 minutes before game time, the tarp came out. Tarp? Why not just close the roof? Oh, that's right, there is no roof. My understanding is that the footprint of Target Field was too small to allow for a retractable roof--plus, the money wasn't there. This did not prevent my friend Chad from chanting, "Close the roof. Close the roof. Close the roof." The Twins fans around us did not seem amused.
We were in left field and under an overhang so we just waited it out and soon enough the rain stopped. But the "weather delay" continued. From the radar that my sister's boyfriend pulled up on his phone, there was one last leg of the storm that was set to blow through in an hour. So we waited. (Apparently MLB would prefer for the game to not start and then stop so they try to wait for the entire storm to pass. At least this seems like the current trend.)
Finally at about 8:20, the storm hit.
The game started at 9:10 p.m. Chad commented that Target Field surely set a new record for beer sales what with the Brewers in town and the fact that the seventh inning wasn't until around 11 p.m. The State Fair stand ran out of cheese curds. I asked our cashier how they could run out of cheese curds with a Wisconsin sports team in town and she seemed confused. She told us to get the french fries instead.
When the game finally started, Carlos Gomez hit a first inning home run. I realize that this is a very small sample size but Gomez's numbers against the Twins are pretty crazy. In 8 plate appearances, Gomez has five hits and two home runs. The line looks like this: .625/.625/1.500.
This would be the only lead of the night for the Brewers. Jim Thome hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the first and it just went down hill from there. After getting to within one run at 3-2 on a Rickie Weeks walk, a wild pitch and a Ryan Braun single, the Twins picked up two more runs in the fifth. Milwaukee went down quietly after that.
Speaking of quietly, I have had a cold all week and after a long week at work, a two-hour rain delay and having to let a few Ryan Braun hecklers know that they should "suck it", my voice was gone. Nothing more to say about this one anyway.
Twins 6, Brewers 2
Game played 7-1-11
As game time approached, the sky darkened. By the time we reached our seats about 30 minutes before game time, the tarp came out. Tarp? Why not just close the roof? Oh, that's right, there is no roof. My understanding is that the footprint of Target Field was too small to allow for a retractable roof--plus, the money wasn't there. This did not prevent my friend Chad from chanting, "Close the roof. Close the roof. Close the roof." The Twins fans around us did not seem amused.
We were in left field and under an overhang so we just waited it out and soon enough the rain stopped. But the "weather delay" continued. From the radar that my sister's boyfriend pulled up on his phone, there was one last leg of the storm that was set to blow through in an hour. So we waited. (Apparently MLB would prefer for the game to not start and then stop so they try to wait for the entire storm to pass. At least this seems like the current trend.)
Finally at about 8:20, the storm hit.
 |
| When it finally came down, the rain didn't mess around. |
The game started at 9:10 p.m. Chad commented that Target Field surely set a new record for beer sales what with the Brewers in town and the fact that the seventh inning wasn't until around 11 p.m. The State Fair stand ran out of cheese curds. I asked our cashier how they could run out of cheese curds with a Wisconsin sports team in town and she seemed confused. She told us to get the french fries instead.
When the game finally started, Carlos Gomez hit a first inning home run. I realize that this is a very small sample size but Gomez's numbers against the Twins are pretty crazy. In 8 plate appearances, Gomez has five hits and two home runs. The line looks like this: .625/.625/1.500.
This would be the only lead of the night for the Brewers. Jim Thome hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the first and it just went down hill from there. After getting to within one run at 3-2 on a Rickie Weeks walk, a wild pitch and a Ryan Braun single, the Twins picked up two more runs in the fifth. Milwaukee went down quietly after that.
Speaking of quietly, I have had a cold all week and after a long week at work, a two-hour rain delay and having to let a few Ryan Braun hecklers know that they should "suck it", my voice was gone. Nothing more to say about this one anyway.
Twins 6, Brewers 2
Game played 7-1-11
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| They played some 80s heavy metal during the rain delay. |
Friday, July 1, 2011
My little town blues are not melting away
My friend Chris is a huge Yankees fan. (He grew up in New York.) He's also one of the most knowledgeable baseball people that I know. Sometimes when we go over to his house for dinner, he'll insist that we play a game where he names two teams and you have to name every player you can think of that played for both. (He usually does this with the baseball almanac on his lap to settle any disputes.) A few weeks ago in our softball game, when I was up to bat and the opposing pitcher was also sporting a Brewers cap, he yelled, "Wow. It's like Teddy Higuera against Bill Spiers." That's not a statement too many people would think to make.
He has also made the following two comments this year:
1) While we stood in line at Chipotle, he asked me if this was the year the Yankees got the NL Central in interleague. When I responded in the affirmative, he said simply, "YES!" and did a little fist pump.
2) While discussing the Brewers chances of making the playoffs he said that as long as the Brewers were at about .500 by All-Star break they'd have a great chance of winning the division. Then, just for fun, he threw in, "well, the NL Central is a joke this year." To which I may have gone to the high voice and started yelling, "WHAT? Why would you say that it's a joke." Sensing that I may completely melt down in his living room, he let it go.
So, coming into the series with the Yankees, I wanted to prove that the Brewers were not a joke. I wanted to be competitive and at least win one game. For obvious reasons, I wanted to prove that the team that I love and devote so much time to may not be the Yankees but were certainly worthy of my love.
It didn't happen.
The Brewers looked sloppy and ill-prepared in Tuesday night's game. Zack Greinke got off to a tough start when Nyjer Morgan mis-judged a fly ball and in twisting to get back into position slipped and fell down. It one hopped his glove as he lay helpless on the ground. Helpless. The Yankees got out to a 7-0 lead after two innings and it just continued to get worse. The only good thing about this game was that Mat Gamel, brought up to DH in interleague play, went 2 for 4 with an RBI.
Wednesday's game got off to a better start with the Brewers scoring one run in the first inning. (The bar was pretty low.) I'd like to take just a minute to discuss right field in Yankee Stadium. The way that it is configured, I don't know how anyone hits a double there. There is no doubt that Nick Swisher plays the ball well in the corner, but the Brewers probably hit six balls down the first base line that would have been doubles in any other ball park. Just sort of an odd thing about Yankee Stadium. Ryan Braun shot one down the right field line that scored Morgan from second base but he was held to a single, for example. One run probably isn't going to hold up in Yankee Stadium, and it didn't on Wednesday. The bottom of the Yankees line-up struck for four runs in the fourth and the Brewers never mounted a come back in a 2-5 loss.
In the afternoon finale, Milwaukee faced CC Sabathia. The most sickening thing about this game was how nice CC is about his time in Milwaukee. The Brewers offered Sabathia a great contract after the 2008 season but, just for fun, the Yankees offered $10 million more or something like that. I can't remember. Apparently CC loves Milwaukee, though, so I guess that's some sort of silver lining for the Midwest. He still shut out The Crew 0-5 and had 13 strikeouts. But I think that if I drink enough and re-play some games from the 2008 pennant chase I can probably get over it.
Unfortunately, I did not get to prove that the Brewers are not a joke. My ego's a bit bruised but I guess I'll feel better if the Brewers can beat the Twins this weekend. Hopefully the Brewers will meet the Yankees in the playoffs and, after defeating them, Milwaukee will talk about how they picked up their game after the sweep. Or something inspirational like that.
Yankees 12, Brewers 2
Game played 6-28-11
Yankees 5, Brewers 2
Game played 6-29-11
Yankees 5, Brewers 0
Game played 6-30-11
He has also made the following two comments this year:
1) While we stood in line at Chipotle, he asked me if this was the year the Yankees got the NL Central in interleague. When I responded in the affirmative, he said simply, "YES!" and did a little fist pump.
2) While discussing the Brewers chances of making the playoffs he said that as long as the Brewers were at about .500 by All-Star break they'd have a great chance of winning the division. Then, just for fun, he threw in, "well, the NL Central is a joke this year." To which I may have gone to the high voice and started yelling, "WHAT? Why would you say that it's a joke." Sensing that I may completely melt down in his living room, he let it go.
So, coming into the series with the Yankees, I wanted to prove that the Brewers were not a joke. I wanted to be competitive and at least win one game. For obvious reasons, I wanted to prove that the team that I love and devote so much time to may not be the Yankees but were certainly worthy of my love.
It didn't happen.
The Brewers looked sloppy and ill-prepared in Tuesday night's game. Zack Greinke got off to a tough start when Nyjer Morgan mis-judged a fly ball and in twisting to get back into position slipped and fell down. It one hopped his glove as he lay helpless on the ground. Helpless. The Yankees got out to a 7-0 lead after two innings and it just continued to get worse. The only good thing about this game was that Mat Gamel, brought up to DH in interleague play, went 2 for 4 with an RBI.
Wednesday's game got off to a better start with the Brewers scoring one run in the first inning. (The bar was pretty low.) I'd like to take just a minute to discuss right field in Yankee Stadium. The way that it is configured, I don't know how anyone hits a double there. There is no doubt that Nick Swisher plays the ball well in the corner, but the Brewers probably hit six balls down the first base line that would have been doubles in any other ball park. Just sort of an odd thing about Yankee Stadium. Ryan Braun shot one down the right field line that scored Morgan from second base but he was held to a single, for example. One run probably isn't going to hold up in Yankee Stadium, and it didn't on Wednesday. The bottom of the Yankees line-up struck for four runs in the fourth and the Brewers never mounted a come back in a 2-5 loss.
In the afternoon finale, Milwaukee faced CC Sabathia. The most sickening thing about this game was how nice CC is about his time in Milwaukee. The Brewers offered Sabathia a great contract after the 2008 season but, just for fun, the Yankees offered $10 million more or something like that. I can't remember. Apparently CC loves Milwaukee, though, so I guess that's some sort of silver lining for the Midwest. He still shut out The Crew 0-5 and had 13 strikeouts. But I think that if I drink enough and re-play some games from the 2008 pennant chase I can probably get over it.
Unfortunately, I did not get to prove that the Brewers are not a joke. My ego's a bit bruised but I guess I'll feel better if the Brewers can beat the Twins this weekend. Hopefully the Brewers will meet the Yankees in the playoffs and, after defeating them, Milwaukee will talk about how they picked up their game after the sweep. Or something inspirational like that.
Yankees 12, Brewers 2
Game played 6-28-11
Yankees 5, Brewers 2
Game played 6-29-11
Yankees 5, Brewers 0
Game played 6-30-11
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