Diary of a Diehard

Well this has been a pretty interesting series to say the least. After a frustrating loss on Friday night that spoiled Livan’s debut, the Diamondbacks came back and won Saturday’s game scoring six runs in the fourth inning then holding on to win 6-3. Sunday’s game would be the rubber game of the series and given that the Dodgers and Padres are both playing well this was an important game. It’s also been a fun series with the Lucky Jersey Lanyard promotion. At first I thought that was just a one time promotion but the Diamondbacks continued it throughout the weekend. It ended up that I got 25 percent off coupon at the team shop, a hat, a Diamondbacks baseball, a sleeveless t-shirt, and a 40 percent off coupon (which I used for another personalized jersey so I had more than one twenty-first century shirt but don’t tell Trina). Today’s game was the final game of the home stand and for weeks the Diamondbacks had announced that after the game there would be a concert featuring Jo Dee Messina.

Continue reading ‘Funky Jo Messina’ »

Last night was the opening game of the home series with the Florida Marlins. Usually Friday games are a challenge for us as the kids all seem to have something going on that requires a parent act as a taxi service. I usually don’t notice that since I am at the game and Trina becomes the designated taxi parent. I kind of think it works out well but then I am not home to hear about it so what I don’t know usually doesn’t hurt me until I get back from the game. Tonight was no exception. Mallorie was working I think. Tiffany was teaching rock wall climbing. Whitney wanted to spend time at a friend’s house. Dakota should would have been the logical one to go to the game with me but he has been to the last several games and planned to go with my on Sunday so he was getting a little burned out. So it was looking like I might be going to the game solo which doesn’t happen very often. Then at the last moment, Mallorie’s plans changed allowing Trina to go to the game. That usually means that I am going to either listen to her recount what a hassle it is when I am at the game and she is dealing with the kids or I’ll hear about how she just doesn’t understand how I can spend so much time at the ballgame. If she would just stop and think about those two topics, the answer would be crystal clear. When we got to the stadium we made our way to Gate A. I was welcomed as I always am by security (hey they stop everyone not just me) and by the ticket takers. As I slid my ticket into the turnstile I was greeted by a smile and a promotional item. That’s odd, tonight was not a scheduled promotion (by the way I have them all marked and memorized since I never know when someone is going to ask about the give away).

Continue reading ‘Lucky Jersey Lanyard’ »

Since the Diamondbacks pulled the trigger on Monday that sent minor league pitchers Garrett Mock and Matt Chico to the Washington Nationals in exchange for Livan Hernandez, there have been high expectations of the Diamondbacks and of Hernandez. It was pretty clear that Livan was being counted on as the savior of this team. Those expectations may be a little too high as the 2006 Diamondbacks have more issues than one pitcher would be able to overcome. Besides Brandon Webb, none of the other four in the rotation have been models of consistency. At times Miguel Batista has looked brilliant such as his start in Oakland just before the all-star break but then there are times where it didn’t look like he even knew where the plate was (see his start against the Astros on August 4). Beyond that, the pitching staff has been a patchwork quilt for the season. Granted having Livan join the staff will help as he will eat innings and give the bullpen some needed rest but there are still huge question marks on how the other three starters will react and if they will be able to step-up and gain some consistency.

Continue reading ‘Livan to the Rescue?’ »

If you go to enough games during a season, you will see pretty much everything imaginable and some things you would just rather never imagine. Whenever you get 25,000 to 30,000 people in one place you are bound to have situations arise that you never thought possible. These could range from being an inadvertent participant in a domestic argument between fans who sit near you to the uncomfortable situation where someone has what Janet Jackson referred to as a “costume malfunction”. Most of these situations are humorous in nature though that may not be the case when they are actually happening but afterwards make you laugh to yourself or just shake your head. Notice I said most and not all. There are some things that occur that you just don’t ever what to think about and really wish you had never seen in the first place. Wednesday’s game had just that kind of situation.

Continue reading ‘Things You Don’t Want to See at the Ballpark’ »

Poor Barry Bonds, it seems wherever he goes he gets booed. No one seems to give any love to the guy who is now in second place for the all-time home runs in Major League Baseball. It’s incredible the polarization that Bonds brings out in people. There are those who think he can do no wrong and is a victim of some kind of conspiracy that is stopping him from getting the recognition that he deserves for all of his baseball accomplishments. Then there is the other side where people blame Bonds for everything from the decline of the fan’s interest in baseball to global warming. Over the past two nights at Chase Field you could immediately tell when Barry would come to the plate. You didn’t need a scorecard and you didn’t have to wait for the public address announcer to call out his name. As soon as he walked out of the on-deck circle towards the plate the fans would begin to boo and would not stop until his at-bat was over. If he somehow reached base they would boo as he meandered towards first. If he got out the fans would cheer until he reached the dugout. If he recorded an out as a strikeout they would whoop and holler. If it was a strikeout looking, the pitcher received a standing ovation. Barry could not have garnered a more passionate response if his picture was in the post office on the FBI’s ten most wanted list. It’s gotten to the point that I did something I never thought I would; I actually started feeling sorry for Barry Bonds.

Continue reading ‘Trying to Befriend Barry’ »

Major League Baseball announced yesterday that Orlando Hudson of the Arizona Diamondbacks had won the National League Player of the Week award for last week. This was a well deserved honor as Hudson had nearly single-handedly kept the Arizona Diamondbacks in the National League Western Divisional race. Fans at Chase Field have become accustomed to seeing Orlando flash his gold glove style of play making spectacular defensive moves but lately it has not just been his defense but also his offense.

Continue reading ‘Giving a Bone to O-Dog’ »

Barely had the ink dried on my post Help Wanted when the Arizona Diamondbacks made a trade. “How could they make a trade after the trade deadline?” you may ask. Please don’t get me started on the whole waiver versus non-waiver trading rules. Basically, if a team wants to trade a player prior to July 31 they may do so. After the trade deadline you can still trade a player but that player must clear waivers. A team may put any player on waivers but any other team may claim that player. If a team claims a player, the team requesting waivers on said player has the opportunity to take the player off waivers retaining the player’s services. If no team makes a claim on a player then they would “clear waivers” making them eligible to be traded. See, I told you not to get me started. This rule ranks right up there with the infield fly rule, rule 5 draft, and origination of the seventh inning stretch as confusing rules and traditions in baseball.

Continue reading ‘Let’s Make a Deal’ »

The Arizona Diamondbacks have been trying to hang on with the leaders in the National League Western Division. This series with the Houston Astros has shown that they just don’t have the depth to make a strong play-off run this season. That’s not to say that this team doesn’t have heart or talent. It just means that they don’t quite have what it takes to make it to the next level. The hitting and fielding are dramatically improved over last year and you get the impression that they can keep the team in any game. While the errors have risen slightly as the season has gone on, this team still ranks fairly high in fielding percentage and has committed a total of 64 errors ranking them sixth in the NL. Team batting average places them second behind the Dodgers. All of this factors into why the team is a game out of the wild card race and two games out of first in the NL West. So the question becomes, what will it take to make the next step to becoming a play-off contender? The answer is starting pitching.

Continue reading ‘Help Wanted’ »

When Bank One Ballpark opened on March 29, 1998 for the first exhibition game, I was there soaking up everything that the ballpark had to offer. The weather was very unsettled so the roof was closed and I would have to wait another few days for Opening Day to see the skies open as the retractable roof panels slid to allow the stars to shine bright. The JumboTron was at the time the largest one every used in a stadium and gave everyone interactive information about each player. Above the bullpens were boards that displayed what pitcher is warming up in the bullpen. There was also a display that showed the speed of each pitch. There was of course the most novel of items, a pool beyond the fence in right field. Fans could rent the pool for each game and watch baseball while soaking away. When a Diamondbacks player would hit a home run, jets of water would shoot in the air. The stadium was perfect except for one thing, the sound system.

Continue reading ‘The Sounds of Baseball’ »