Home Runs, All-Stars, and Trades - Bring Them On!

Oh what a week it has been for Major League Baseball!  First was the Home Run Derby at Nationals Park, where hometown-favorite Bryce Harper had a fairytale of a day.  His "Pops" was pitching to him, his bat had the stars and stripes painted on it, and instead of wearing a ballcap, he chose to accessorize his "perfectly coiffed" hair with a headband that had the flag of Washington, DC on it (and is currently flying off store shelves).  While I was happy to see a Nationals player win the Home Run Derby, it was a little bittersweet, because all of us who have watched Bryce grow up in front of our eyes know that he will not be a Nat next year, since he'll be a free agent at the end of this season.  And really - does hitting 45 home runs in one night negate Harper's current .214 batting average?  In the grand scheme of things, he's still in the biggest slump of his career.  And I'm not being a "Negative Nellie" because I'm bitter about not having gone to the Derby or the All-Star Game; I'm just telling it like it is - Harper better improve his hitting, or no one will want him next year (especially for the salary that his agent, Scott Boras, will be asking).

Then there was the All-Star Game.  I didn't dwell too much on the fact that it was being played just an hour's drive away from my comfortable sofa, because I had resigned myself to the fact that I wasn't going way over a year ago.  So I was happy to sit in front of the TV and watch a game in the familiar ballpark that now everyone across the country was going to be able to enjoy.  And my boy, Max Scherzer, was going to be the starting pitcher for the National League for the second year in a row, so of course I was excited.  The player introductions were enjoyable to watch as always (especially since former Nationals players Blake Treinen, now with the A's, and Wilson Ramos, now with the Rays, received such enthusiastic applause), the National Anthem didn't bore me (it was an excellent rendition both vocally and visually), and Scherzer struck out four players in the two innings that he pitched (we'll ignore the home run he gave up to Aaron Judge).  The American League ended up winning the game 8-6 in 10 innings, and it didn't end up raining like they had predicted.  So overall, the All-Star Game was a success and all the players seemed legitimately excited to be there.

Then came the post-ASG trades, the most notable one being the Orioles sending shortstop Manny Machado to the Dodgers for five prospects.  Now, I know I had predicted that Manny would go to the Diamondbacks, but then Corey Seager ended up needing Tommy John surgery (it's not just pitchers who get that done!) and the Dodgers were really in need of a reliable shortstop.  Now, I also wondered if the Dodgers would try to get an outfielder since Yasiel Puig suffered a rib injury (I joked with my husband that the Dodgers should try to get Bryce Harper from the Nationals), but I guess the need for a shortstop was more urgent (because outfielders are a dime a dozen).  So for the next three months, Manny Machado will have Magic Johnson as his boss, will help get the Dodgers to the playoffs, and then will end up with another team as a free agent.  Does this bother me because it makes baseball players seem like cattle being taken to the auction block?  It used to, but then I realized that teams really have to do whatever they can to make it to the playoffs (especially if they're paying a hefty luxury tax, like the Red Sox and Nationals are predicted to this year), and mid-season trades that involve free-agents-to-be only displace a player for a couple of months.  Once the off-season comes and they sign with a new team, they can then move their families and get settled in a new city.  I'm not trying to be heartless; it's just one of those "gazillionnaire problems" athletes have to deal with.  I don't pity them (just their families).

And what about the Orioles?  Who do they get in return for giving up Machado?  They get outfielder Yusniel Díaz (Dodgers No. 4 prospect coming into this season), third baseman Rylan Bannon (Dodgers No. 27 prospect), right-hander Dean Kremer (Dodgers No. 28 prospect), right-hander Zach Pop, and infielder Breyvic Valera.  I don't know anything about these guys other than what's on paper, but when you suck as badly as the Orioles have this year, anything short of a Cal Ripken, Jr. comeback would definitely be an improvement over the current situation.  And if these prospects are as good as they seem to be, the Orioles should be really really good in the next few years (unless their inept owners screw that up, which wouldn't surprise me).

So now what?  Well the Cleveland Indians, who are currently leading the American League Central, just acquired pitchers Brad Hand and Adam Cimber from the San Diego Padres for catcher Francisco Mejía.  And of course there's talk of Mets pitcher Jacob DeGrom being traded as well (maybe he can go to the Dodgers too, since Clayton Kershaw is having an "off" year).  So there is still a lot of wheeling and dealing to be done before the July 31st trade deadline; it will be interesting to see what happens between now and then.  My Nationals may be somewhat out of it at this point (we'll see how the weekend series against the Atlanta Braves goes), but I am still excited about the next few months - lots of trades, expanded rosters, and tons of exciting playoff baseball.  Stay tuned!

A Tale of Two Teams

Baseball fans in the Baltimore/Washington, DC area have not had much to cheer about in the past few years.  In Baltimore, once Cal Ripken retired, sports fans shifted their attention to football and the Baltimore Ravens.  In DC, the team that came over from Montreal had some pretty lousy seasons, and the hopes of glory faded in 2010 when pitching ace Stephen Strasburg required season-ending Tommy John surgery.

But wait!  Who is that team currently tied for first place in the AL East?  It's the Baltimore Orioles, under the leadership of former Yankees manager, Buck Showalter.  With the never-give-up attitude and 28 home runs by Adam Jones and the recent power surge from the previously-slumping Mark Reynolds, the Orioles are playing meaningful baseball for the first time in about 15 years.  The "birds" are filling their cozy ballpark with excited fans and unveiling statues of past Orioles greats like Frank Robinson, Eddie Murray, and their most recent addition, "Iron Man" Cal Ripken.  Orioles fans, born and bred in the suburbs of Baltimore or in the Charm City itself,  grew up cheering for these legends, and their storied past (forget the 1969 World Series!) has had many loyal fans who love to tell "I remember when..." stories about their team.

Then there's the other baseball team just as far from my house - the First-place-in-the-NL-East Washington Nationals.  They have led the National League in ERA all season long, and the team features superstars like Gio Gonzalez (my pick for this year's Cy Young award - forget the Reds' Johnny Cueto), teen phenom Bryce Harper who has hit 17 home runs in his short time in the Majors, and of course that Strasburg guy who has recovered very nicely from that elbow surgery he had 2 years ago.  But the Nationals don't have a storied past - most people like to forget that the team came here from Montreal, so they have no memories of nail-biting games, pennant races, crazy uniforms in the 1970s (those blue things the Expos wore back then don't count), or slug fests in the early 1990s.  While the Nationals do have die-hard fans, we did not grow up following the hometown hero or the long-time franchise player.  Our only "I remember when" moments refer to the few years the Nationals played at RFK Stadium, which are years we'd rather forget.

Another problem that the Nationals have attracting fans is that many residents of the DC area are transplants from somewhere else.  Many government employees end up here because of work - military personnel from Ohio (who follow the Indians or Reds); NIH doctors who were brought up as Yankees or Red Sox fans; Pentagon employees who can't tell you what team they root for or they'd have to kill you; and IRS employees who don't follow any teams (because they don't have any fun doing anything but auditing us baseball fans).

While the Orioles have no trouble selling out their park, the Nationals have had very few sellouts this season. Go to Philadelphia on a Tuesday night and the park will be full.  Do the same thing at Nationals Park and you're lucky if you have 22,000 people there (and the expensive seats are full of uptight government workers who won't take off their ties and spend the entire time texting during the game).  DC is still lukewarm about the Nationals, which is a terrible shame for a team that has been so consistent and is so talented.  When the Orioles play at Nationals Park, half the stadium is wearing red while the other half is in orange and black.  But when the Nats go to Camden Yards, there is only a handful of Nationals fans who choose to make the quick drive into Baltimore.

Yankees and Red Sox fans are known for being passionate and outspoken.  Orioles fans are notoriously excited any time their team wins anything.  Phillies fans - they're just obnoxious.  But Nationals fans seem to be just "there" - we need to get more excited, more united, more animated.  Why?  Because this team is going to the playoffs, and we need to fill the seats with red shirts and loud cheers.  In this case, quantity is more important than quality - I don't care if you're a bandwagon fan who only wants to root for the Nats when they win (us die-hards will still be here in 20 years).  The team's slogan for this season has been "Ignite your Nattitude," and that's something we need to do more of as the playoffs get closer.

You Don't Look a Day Over 99!

Today is a nostalgic and milestone day for baseball fans, as we celebrate the 100th birthday of Boston's Fenway Park.  On April 20, 1912 (just a few days after this one very big ship sank after hitting some sort of large iceberg thing), Fenway Park opened its gates to Boston Red Sox players and fans.  With its manually-operated scoreboard and "Green Monster" wall in left field, Fenway Park has been home to many memorable and historic moments in baseball lore.  Here is my list of the best Fenway moments, in chronological order:

• On September 28, 1960, Ted Williams hit a home run in his last career at-bat.  I wasn't around then, but it must have been very cool to watch.  Ted Williams was just awesome.
• On October 22, 1975, Carlton Fisk hit a walk-off home run in the 12th inning of the sixth game of the World Series against the Cincinnati Reds, forcing a game seven (which the Reds won).  If you can't picture this in your head, it's that home run where Fisk is shown moving his arms to the side, like he's saying "Come on ball, get out of the park!  Come on, move, ball!" while shuffling along the first-base line.  You know what I'm talking about - it's one of the most memorable home runs in baseball history.  If you still don't know what I'm talking about, Google "Carlton Fisk home run" and you can see it on youtube.
• On April 24, 1986, Roger Clemens struck out a record-high 20 batters.  Now, I don't know if this was before, during, or after the steroids, but striking out 20 batters in a nine-inning game is just insane.  I was a Mets fan back then, so I certainly remember Clemens and the Red Sox of '86!
• On October 17, 2004, David Ortiz hit a walk-off home run in the 12th inning to help the Red Sox win game 4 of the American League Championship Series against the New York Yankees.  (This was also the same Series where Curt Schilling ended up with the famous "bloody sock," but that happened when they were playing in New York, so that game did not make my Fenway list)
• On July 13, 1999, Fenway Park played host to the mid-summer classic, the Major League Baseball All-Star Game.  On this night, many of baseball's past greats gathered in the infield to celebrate the game, but the pre-game ceremonies were capped with the appearance of Ted Williams.  This turned out to be one of Williams's last public appearances due to his failing health, and despite having to come out on a cart, it was still a very exciting moment.  I remember getting goose bumps as they showed Williams shaking hands with Derek Jeter and Ichiro Suzuki - and regretting not getting tickets for that game, since I only lived 90 miles from Fenway Park.  Red Sox pitcher Pedro Martinez was the starting pitcher for the American League that evening (and Iván Rodriguez was his starting catcher!), and Pedro ended up striking out the first two batters he faced.  That was a very memorable evening for me, right up there with watching Cal Ripken break Lou Gehrigh's consecutive-game record.

Personally, I have a few good memories of my visits to Fenway Park, back when I lived in Massachusetts.  There was the time when I went with some college friends to see the Red Sox play the Minnesota Twins, and since I was a huge Kirby Puckett fan, I was booed every time I wildly cheered for him (Red Sox fans do not allow you to cheer for any player who is not on their team).  Then there was the time I went with some graduate school friends and my roommate ate her first-ever funner cake.  There was also the time when I took a bunch of kids from the Boys and Girls Club where I used to work; that was fun and we had really good seats.

So as you can see, Fenway Park is full of memories, whether you've been there yourself or are just another baseball fan recalling good times past.  If you're ever in Boston, stop by Yawkey Way and wave to the Green Monster.  Some people may call it a "dump," but I call it a piece of Americana, a baseball shrine, and a place where history was made.