Sounds of the Postseason

When you have a game or pastime as long as baseball has been around, you’re bound to come across some prophets. Ok, maybe not prophets, but people who have sounded like them. Or better yet, people who have been quoted so often it becomes a part of everyday culture. We have all heard the Yogi-isms such as “90% of the game is half mental” or “Nobody goes there anymore, it’s too crowded” and of course “It’s déjà vu all over again.” With fall upon us, and when I say fall I mean Fall Classic, I thought it would be fun to look back at some of the greatest quotes regarding baseball’s postseason play. So in no particular order here are a handful of quips that deserve to be mentioned and recognized:

“Don’t let us win this game tonight. Then they get Petey and then they get Schill game 6. And game 7, anything happens” – Kevin Millar, whose team was down three games to none before game 4 of the 2004 ALCS, Yankees vs. Red Sox.

“I’ll have to deal with it. But don’t expect me to curl up and hide from people because I gave up a homerun in the World Series. Life’s a bitch. I could be digging ditches somewhere. Well, I’m not” – Mitch Williams after giving up the World Series clinching homerun to Joe Carter, game 6 of the 1993 World Series, Phillies vs. Blue Jays.

“That’s the guy that killed Donnie Moore” – Dave Henderson, speaking about the whispers he still gets in public regarding his homerun off Moore, game 5 of the 1986 ALCS, Red Sox vs. Angels. Donnie Moore committed suicide three years later.

“Derek Jeter shook my hand. I went right to the clubhouse and like a 12 year old little leaguer I buried my face in the towel and I balled my eyes out” - David Cone, speaking about being lifted after walking in the tying run, game 5 of the 1995 ALDS, Yankees vs. Mariners.

“And now the only question was, could he make it around the base pads unassisted?” - Vin Scully, describing the replay of Kirk Gibson’s game winning homerun, game 1 of the 1988 World Series, A’s vs. Dodgers.

“Mariano’s up and Mariano’s in and my managing decisions are over for this year” – Joe Torre, speaking about putting Mariano Rivera in to protect a 2-1 lead, game 7 of the 2001 World Series, Yankees vs. Diamondbacks. The Diamondbacks came back to win 3-2.

“One thing I remember running around the bases is telling myself to look around and take all of this in –“ Aaron Boone, speaking about his thoughts after his series clinching homerun, game 7 of the 2003 ALCS, Red Sox vs. Yankees.

“So I want Barry (Bonds) to have the best opportunity to throw him out. So when I motion him in, he turned to me and gave me the international peace sign” Andy Van Slyke, speaking about trying to move Barry Bonds in just seconds before Francisco Cabrera’s series clinching single, game 7 of the NLCS, Pirates vs. Braves.

“And these chimes mean it is November. For the first time in the history of Major League Baseball, playing the World Series during the month of November” - Joe Buck, seconds after the clock struck midnight, November 1^st, just seconds before Derek Jeter’s game winning homerun, game 4 of the 2001 World Series, Diamondbacks vs. Yankees.

 

“Let’s make him famous. Let’s make him famous” – Mark Redmond’s comments from the Marlins’ dugout about a fan that interfered with Moises Alou’s attempt to catch a foul ball near the stands, game 6 of the 2003 ALCS, Marlins vs. Cubs. Redmond, wish granted.

With all of these quotes, sometimes you have to hear it to experience the excitement for yourself. Below is a clip that shows some of the greatest moments in baseball history:

Timmy's Christmas Letter

Dr. Mr Pujols,

My name is Timmy Fulton and I am 9 years old. I am in 4^th grade and live in St. Louis. My mom said I should get started on my Christmas list and write to Santa Claus what I want. I am writing to you because you are big and wear red. Plus, I’m not so sure about that Santa guy. And, my mom is also helping me with this letter so if anything on here doesn’t make sense, it’s her fault because she doesn’t know baseball that well.

You are my favorite baseball player of all time. There is no one in Major League Baseball better than you. You hit a homerun the first time I went to a baseball game at Busch Stadium and you tossed me a baseball when you ran into the dugout after the inning ended. I still have that baseball. My brother Matthew tries to hide it from me to make me mad. He’s 13 and I tell him no girl will ever want to kiss him. I can’t believe you beat the Brewers to get to the World Series. A month ago, we stopped watching you on TV. How did you catch up so fast and make the playoffs? I can sort of remember when you won the World Series in 2006, but I was only 4, and it seems that my family has forgotten that. My grandpa says that Stan Musial is the greatest player ever from the St. Louis Cardinals but I know you are better than him and my grandpa is getting pretty old. The homeruns you hit go further than a big airplane. It almost seems like a big shock when you don’t hit a homerun. My friends all say that too. I know that must be a lot of pressure on you, especially in the playoffs, but your shoulders are big enough to carry the hopes of dreams of us kids. My mom says it’s a good thing that your stomach is getting bigger these days because it means you are probably not taking steroids like other players. I Googled steroids and found out that it helps baseball players cheat by making them stronger in a bad way. I don’t know for sure if you have ever taken steroids but I sure hope not. I don’t want to admit this but I think I would cry if I found out your super hero skills and machine-like swing are fake. My dad also thinks you are really good but no one could love you as much as they loved Ozzie Smith. I don’t understand that because he never hit homeruns, but can you have Ozzie teach you how to do a flip?

Ok, that last request doesn’t count. I want so bad for you and the Cardinals to win the World Series. But people on TV are saying that you don’t have to play for the Cardinals next year. They say that you can go to the Cubs or some other team. Why would you want to play for the Cubs? I hate them and they haven’t won anything in my entire life. My mom says I can’t be greedy and that I can only ask for one thing. This is so hard for me. I want the Cardinals to celebrate on the field, hopefully at home. But what if it’s your last game as a Cardinal? If I can only have one thing, I don’t know what I should wish for. I guess I have seen you win a World Series, so please Albert, please stay with the St. Louis Cardinals. I just think it would be so weird to see you in another uniform. I think if you stay with the Cardinals, you can win another World Series someday and my family will soon think you are better than Stan Musial. My family will love you more than Ozzie Smith. If you leave, whose batting stance will I copy when I play my Little League games? I love the way you never get into trouble with the law like other athletes. My mom says I shouldn’t say this but you are my role model. All I want for Christmas and for any other holiday is for you to stay with the Cardinals so I can go to games and see you play forever. Good luck with this tough decision

Your friend,

Timmy Fulton

The Raiduh

“I had a dream of building the finest organization in professional sports.” That’s a pretty big dream. But then again, Al Davis was a big name in football, larger than life for almost fifty years. The man, born on the 4^th of July, has almost done it all in professional football. He was an assistant coach, head coach, general manager, owner, even commissioner. But that’s not telling the whole story. Davis’ road to the top and back down the other side has been like a sailboat that needs a storm, or at least some choppy waters, to get anywhere. He fought with former NFL Commissioners Pete Rozelle and Paul Tagliabue, fought with the owners, fought with anyone who wasn’t a Raider, and even fought with fan favorite Marcus Allen. He built a team up to a near dynasty. Then, when he moved their games to Los Angeles, he still had them practicing in Oakland. Twelve years later the games were moved back to Oakland. I guess in a way, everything he did was contrary to anyone’s belief. And that’s how he liked it. He got enjoyment out of defying everyone. That defying has cost his team much success in recent times. In seven straight years the Raiders recorded double digit losses in a season. Much of that was due to the ideas of Davis. He still believed in stretching the field and drafting speed above all else. He would get rid of a head coach when that coach wanted more control than Davis was willing to relinquish. The game, perhaps, had passed him by.

However, when he took over as head coach on the Raiders in 1963, he led one of the greatest turnarounds in history, posting a 10-4 record just a year after going 1-13. Three years later, at age 36, he was named Commissioner of the AFL. But it wasn’t long before he was bleeding Silver and Black again. He became GM of the Oakland Raiders a year later. In 1970, he was their owner. Al Davis was the face of the franchise that exemplified toughness. In his own words, they weren’t looking to move the chains, they were looking for touchdowns on every play. On defense, he would say “The other team’s quarterback must go down and he must go down hard.” It’s probably not far off to say that he was the first man to use the “Us against the world” attitude. He was a maverick, a renegade, and almost required his coaches and players to take pride in that approach. He hired the first Hispanic head coach in NFL history and also the first African American coach in history. He signed players other teams didn’t want and gave them a so-called second career. Players like George Blanda, Jim Plunkett, Lyle Alzado, Rich Gannon and Jerry Rice, who were cast off by their former teams, were welcomed with open arms. His players didn’t always like him, but they loved him. Loved him so much that Davis was asked by nine different men to present them in to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

In the end Al Davis belongs on the Mount Rushmore of owners of our generation, right next to the likes of George Steinbrenner, Jerry Buss, and the Rooney Family. Although he never played professional football, his career represents most careers of the athletes. He paid his dues, reached and achieved his goals with flamboyancy and flair, but hung on a little too long instead of riding off into the sunset when he should have. That’s the life of a competitor. That’s the life of a man who had a “Commitment to Excellence.” That’s the life of a man who oversaw three Super Bowl wins in eight seasons. After the 3^rd one, his interview with Brent Musburger went like this:

Brent: Al let me ask you something. With all the distractions you have off the field, how are you able to keep focused on winning football games as you do throughout the years?

Al:  Well you have great coaches. Then after you have great coaches you get great players. You have a great organization and you tell them one thing, “Just Win Baby!”

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

For those of you who want to see Major League Baseball’s regular season shortened, tell me you watched the games last Wednesday night. Let’s start with the St. Louis Cardinals, who caught and passed the Atlanta Braves for the National League Wild Card. The Braves once had an 8 ½ game lead for the Wild Card the 1^st week of September and fell flat going 9-18 down the stretch. However, they are not alone. We can’t forget about the American League, baseball’s darlings, the Tampa Bay Rays who came from way back to catch and pass the Boston Red Sox. Boston just fell apart, or should I say Tampa came storming back from being down 9 games on September 3^rd, which is now the greatest September comeback or collapse, depending on how you look at it. Not to go unmentioned is that Tampa trailed 7-0 in the 8^th inning of their last game only to tie it in the 9^th and have Evan Longoria’s homerun in extra innings push them past the Red Sox and into the playoffs. It was not only the wildest finish to a MLB regular season, it also kicked off a time of the year that us sports fans have to love.

To kick of the most wonderful time of the year for sports, let’s try to chronologically explain the weekend my wife and I spent on the road. Friday night, we are watching Game 1 of the AL playoffs between the Rays and the Texas Rangers. We would have watched the entire game at the airport had we not had to catch a plane to Vegas. No, I didn’t place any bets on sports teams. We would have also watched Game 1 between the Detroit Tigers and New York Yankees had it not been postponed due to rain. Saturday was as good at it gets for us sports nuts: a quadruple header with the MLB playoffs, a full day of playoff baseball. Now add to that the first Saturday in October of college football season this year, featuring Nebraska at Wisconsin, Arkansas at Texas A&M and Alabama at Florida. I would have watched parts of those games had my wife and I not had to catch a plane from Vegas, (we did win a couple hundred bucks at the poker tables), to Houston. Once checked into our hotel room in Houston, we did catch the 2^nd half of Stanford beating UCLA. Sunday morning, NFL all day. For us, tailgating at Reliant Stadium for the Steelers/Texans game (Happy early Birthday baby). Loved the stadium, didn’t like the 17-10 Texans win, hated the rules and surroundings of the stadium. Then we headed back to the hotel to watch the rest of the NFL and some baseball, flipping back and forth between the Jets/Ravens game and Game 2 of the NL playoffs between the Cardinals and the Philadelphia Phillies. Then Monday, it was back to Los Angeles, and of course, Monday means Monday Night Football. We watched, but we also flipped back and forth between the Colts/Bucs game and Game 3 of both AL playoffs, Rangers topping the Rays and Tigers outlasting the Yanks. Traveling or not, that is one heck of a sports weekend.

My buddy Tommy and I used to have the argument about what is the best time of year for sports. He used to say that late March/early April was the best time of year. It is pretty good: March Madness and the Final Four along with Opening Day in MLB and both the NHL and NBA winding down the regular season to the playoffs. But, in my opinion, it has never measured up to the amount of excitement of what just went on this past weekend. This year is a little different, since we normally would be getting ready for the NBA season to begin, but we do also have the NHL season beginning. Yesterday, elimination games in three baseball matchups with a tied series in St. Louis. Good thing for me my wife loves sports, although I’m sure even she will get a little tired of all the games on TV. My advice to you wives and girlfriends, make us a deal. Leave us in a room all day to watch these games, and we will pay for almost any spa day/shopping spree, Beverly Hills excluded.