Diary of a Diehard

Although the calendar shows mid-January, it definitely feels like spring is in the air. Ignore the fact that the thermometer shows 42 degrees or the fact that it is cloudy with a chance to rain; this is definitely spring. How you ask could I say that? It’s simple; today Spring Training tickets for the Arizona Diamondbacks go on sale. I have been anticipating this day for the past three months. I have two whiteboards at work, one whiteboard at home, and a notebook filled with papers identifying which games are of interest to me. I started off by making a list of all the games that looked good. I presented that list to Trina of potential games I wanted to attend. She then compared that list against the calendar to see whether they might be a conflict. She immediately handed the list back to me stating that just copying the schedule for the Arizona Diamondbacks did not constitute a list. I assured her that there were not any extraneous games on my list but I could tell from her stern look that I was going to have to revise my list. I therefore took out the weekend games but she then reminded me that most of the games were afternoon affairs and that my employer may have an issue with me being gone every afternoon at 1:00 PM. That’s a good point that I had not taken into consideration. Trina also reminded me that I had made a New Years resolution that I would only go to one game per week. I reminded her that I had already crossed out that resolution as unobtainable so we were at a stalemate. I finally got her to agree to a schedule where I would be able to see every team in the Cactus League but her criteria was that I could not go to any stadium to see the same team more than one once.

Continue reading ‘Spring is in the Air’ »

At approximately 4:19 PM on Sunday October 1, 2006 the dust was beginning to settle on a controversial play that saw the Arizona Diamondbacks season end with a 7-6 defeat by the play-off bound San Diego Padres. At approximately 4:20 PM on Sunday October 1, 2006 I began to make plans for the 2007 baseball season. There was so much to do. For the previous two weeks I had been visiting different sections of the ballpark with my camera and notebook in hand making notes so that when season ticket renewal and seat relocation packages arrived I would be ready. I was initially concerned when I hadn’t heard from the Diamondbacks but finally my envelope arrived and it was time to begin. I went through the packet with a fine tooth comb reading each word over and over. I then made a trip to Chase Field to make sure that I had accurately decided on my choices. Finally I went to the Diamondbacks web site and renewed my season tickets. I then rushed to the fax machine to send my relocation form. Not wanting to take any chances I also sent an email to season ticket services where I attached my form, the receipt from the online transaction and a plea to the baseball powers that I would be able to successfully relocate. All that was left to do was patiently wait to see what the outcome would be. It has been a struggle with me not knowing where exactly I would be sitting for the 2007 season. According to the forms, the seat relocation process should be completed by the holidays. Since Christmas though I have eagerly been checking my mailbox (much to the disdain of my mail carrier) waiting for the big announcement. As of Monday this week I still had not heard from the Diamondbacks and my impatience grew to the point that I had to do something about it. I picked up the phone and hit the emergency services speed dial number on my phone which has been reprogrammed and no longer dials “911” but now dials the offices of the Arizona Diamondbacks. On the other end a polite young lady asked how she could assist me. I inquired when the seat relocation process would be complete. Puzzled she answered that it had been finished for a few weeks. My heart leaped to my throat and I barely could form the words. “Could you please tell me where I will be sitting for the upcoming season?” I asked. She looked up my account number and returned to state I was sitting in the same seats as last season. How could that be? Were season tickets so popular that none of the 20 choices of the 106 rows and 25,120 seats I had identified were available? The young lady then stated that they had not received a seat relocation form from me. Actual panic began to take control of me.

Continue reading ‘Change of Address Forms’ »

I am a baseball fan. I will gladly admit that and wear that title proudly. Trina on the other hand believes that is some kind of admission and the first step to recovery. While Trina and I may disagree on the level of commitment that is healthy for a fan to exhibit, we do both agree that baseball is America’s pastime and the greatest game ever invented. Sure I may occasionally watch some football, 1991 was the last time I think I stayed awake for an entire half of a football game, I just can’t seem to get into that game. It’s hard to be enthusiastic about a sport where they only play once a week for 17 weeks and during that time they have to have a week off. Basketball likewise is not a game I normally get into. I follow the Phoenix Suns as a matter of civic pride and because they too wore Purple but I have been to one Suns game since I moved to Phoenix 13 years ago. That leaves hockey. I went to one Coyotes game but we sat in the upper deck with an obstructed view so it was hard to follow the game. No, baseball is my game and I am comfortable with that. When my friend Andre asked this week if I would be interested in his tickets to the Phoenix Roadrunners minor league hockey game I gratefully accepted. I thought I would take Trina and Dakota to their first hockey game and since the Phoenix Roadrunners play at US Airways Center we would be right next to Chase Field and I could see how the progress was coming on migrating from purple to Sedona Red. Minor League hockey does not appear to be a big draw in town based on the attendance of me and 500 of my closest friends but I was going in with an open mind that perhaps I could learn to enjoy another sport. What I had not expected was that by the end of the night I would uncover a deep dark secret that impacted not only hockey but my beloved Diamondbacks as well.

Continue reading ‘The Curse of Rally Sally’ »

Have you ever had one of those days where just the most bizarre things happen for absolutely no explanation? Welcome to my world. I have come to the misguided conclusion that I have a magnetic personality and I am polar opposite of normal. Yesterday just happened to be one of those days where at the end you just sort of scratch your head and say, “well that’s interesting.” I was living large hanging around just waiting for the Hall of Fame vote to be announced when I thought I should probably check my email. Like most Sedona Red Blooded Americans I have about a million different email addresses. I’m not sure why I have that many other than the fact that every time I create a site or log into something I get asked if I want an email address. My mom always taught me to politely accept a gift so I took it. Now I find I have more mail addresses than I actually have mail. That in and of itself is not the weird part, it is what I found when I started checking the accounts that gets weird.

Continue reading ‘Signs of the Apocalypse’ »

Like baseball fans everywhere, I eagerly awaited the press conference at 11 AM Arizona time when the newest inductees to the Hall of Fame would be announced. It has been reported as a foregone conclusion that Cal Ripken Jr. and Tony Gwynn would be included in the 2007 class. The bigger question on everyone’s mind would be whether candidates such as Mark McGwire and Jose Canseco could garner enough votes to be included. Personally, I want to meet the guy who thought Jose Canseco would get enough votes to get in. Maybe if we were talking about tabloid journalism author hall of fame he had a chance but seriously what 10 year baseball writer would honestly mark the box next to Jose Canseco’s name giving his Hall of Fame candidacy validity? When the vote tally was announced, Canseco had 6 votes which I think is just shy of the 75 percent needed for all induction unless of course there were only 8 voters then I stand corrected and congratulate him on his accomplishments.

Continue reading ‘Boys in the Hall’ »

Today has to be one of the most nerve wracking days that a retired player has to endure. This is the eve of the announcement of who has made the Hall of Fame. When ballots were provided to the Baseball Writers in November, we talked about what the vote potentially meant from the perspective of steroid usage. ESPN has done further research and conducted a poll of baseball writers to try and get a feel for how many of them took this into account when they voted. Based upon this poll, it would appear that Mark McGwire should probably not plan his day around waiting for the phone to ring telling him he has been elected. A player must receive a seventy-five percent vote to be inducted and given the results from ESPN McGwire should expect to receive no more than twenty-five. It will be interesting to see whether this figure holds true. I’ll be curious to see if the voters are making a one-time statement or if this is indicative of what players from this era can expect when they become eligible. We may be on the cusp of the Hall of Fame Dark Age when players find it especially difficult to be elected.

Continue reading ‘The Eve of Something Special’ »

The timeline of the Randy Johnson saga would mercifully come to an end today. There was a 3:00 PM deadline for the Diamondbacks to work out a deal with Johnson’s agents to allow him to waive his no trade clause to become a member of the Arizona Diamondbacks. Everyone fully expected the deal to be completed within the time allotted. After all, Johnson had been negotiating through back channels letting everyone who was anyone know that he desired to play closer to home and what it would take for him to sign on the dotted line. Once financial parameters could be worked out it would come down to Johnson passing a physical. Some wondered whether his health and recovery from back surgery would be a detriment to passing the physical. What people did not understand was that Johnson has been working with Dr. Michael Lee on his recovery from surgery. Lee is the team physician for the Arizona Diamondbacks. I am sure that the Diamondbacks have been closely monitoring the progress Randy is making and relied heavily on the medical opinions of Dr. Lee during these negotiations. There is little doubt that Johnson will pass the physical with flying colors. Randy is still insisting he will be ready for opening day 2007 and no one at this moment is contradicting that statement.

Continue reading ‘Does Anybody Know What Time It Is?’ »

Timing is everything. On Thursday during the monthly Diamondbacks chat a lot of the discussion revolved around the rumored trade with the New York Yankees to bring Randy Johnson back to Arizona. During the chat Major League Baseball dot com announced that the structure of a deal had been completed between the two teams and that the commissioner’s office had been notified of a potential deal. The commissioner’s office then granted a 72 hour window in which representatives of the Arizona Diamondbacks could negotiate with Randy Johnson’s agents to work out a deal for an extension and/or for Randy to waive his no trade clause which would allow the deal to be completed. The posted story provided some details of the players who would be involved in the trade and made me wonder, what is the unit of measure we would use to determine if this trade was appropriate for the Diamondbacks?

Continue reading ‘Unit of Measure’ »

Yesterday during the monthly on-line chat with the Diamondbacks, the fans in attendance seemed to be just a tad bit fired up and not necessarily in a good way. New Diamondbacks president Derrick Hall was very good and attempted to diffuse the chatters by providing as much detail as he could in answering their questions. It’s always interesting to hang out during these chats just to get a read on the pulse of the fan base. It is also interesting to see what kinds of questions are asked. What I have found is that a lot of the fans who attend these sessions do not completely understand the definitions of duties between the baseball side and the business side of the team. There are countless questions that discuss on-field player personnel both at the major league and minor league levels. These types of questions fall under the jurisdiction of player development and are managed by the General Manager and scouting departments. The club president is typically responsible for managing the day-to-day operations of the team including things such as fan comfort, loyalty, promotions, etc. So asking the team president about player moves would be akin to calling the plumber to ask him why your electrical outlets suddenly stopped working. While the plumber may be working side-by-side with the electrician and may have overheard there was a wiring problem, it is not usually within his job duties to troubleshoot electrical problems.

Continue reading ‘Just Hanging and Chatting’ »