January 7, 2009
My daily routine consists of waking up and after checking to make sure I am still breathing I get out of bed and go downstairs. After a quick glance at my email to make sure I didn’t miss anything during the 3 hours I have been asleep; I go to the desk pick up my Arizona Diamondbacks pen and walk to the calendar. There I put a big Sedona Red “X” over the date and once again count how many days before pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training. January is always the hardest month for me.
Continue reading ‘What Do You Need?’ »
January 6, 2009
Trina and the kids had an evening filled with activities. Since I did not get home until late they had already left meaning I would be home alone tonight. I am sure that the thoughts of me being home alone strikes fear in the heart of my wife. Not that she is worried about me; quite the contrary she is worried about what I might do. It seems as though trouble always follows me and tends to jump out from behind a corner to scare the living daylights out of us when we least expect it. It’s kind of like the Home Alone movie with me playing the parts of the little boy Kevin but also the bad guy Marv. Don’t ask me to explain it; it just seems to happen. I can assure you; it’s no cake walk for me either. You try explaining how you hit yourself in the head with a paint can some time.
Continue reading ‘A Trip Down Memory Lane’ »
January 5, 2009
“I feel almost ashamed to admit this but I have not bought a piece of Diamondbacks merchandise all year.” When I spoke these words I fully expected them to be met with a large wave of sympathy and at least a couple of hugs from my family. I mean if anyone would understand the pain I was feeling it should be my family right? Instead of being empathetic they decided this was the perfect time to kick me when I was the lowest I had been all year. “Dad, this year is only 5 days old” and “I was not aware there was a piece of Diamondbacks merchandise you didn’t already own” were the comments that were made. That’s pretty messed up if you ask me. But I am not one to wallow in self pity. Instead I did what any Diamondbacks fan would do.
Continue reading ‘New Man, New Hat’ »
January 4, 2009
Day after day this off-season I have diligently checked all of the Diamondbacks sites and news outlets for any mention of new players the Diamondbacks have signed for the 2009 season. Those announcements have been few and far between as the team has stood pat with most of their roster. Sure there was the signing of Felipe Lopez to take Orlando Hudson’s place at second base and the announcement yesterday that Tony Clark had been resigned but beyond that there has not been a lot of news out of the Diamondbacks of potential moves.
Continue reading ‘Battery Recharged’ »
January 3, 2009
A year ago shortly after the 2007 season ended there were questions whether the Arizona Diamondbacks would retain the services of first baseman and clubhouse sage Tony Clark. All signs pointed to him returning for the 2008 season. There was an offer rumored to be on the table and Clark was contemplating whether to accept it. In the meantime the Diamondbacks went about their business and pulled off a couple of blockbuster trades with the Oakland Athletics and Houston Astros. It was the Astros trade that had the most impact. When Arizona sent Jose Valverde to Houston it received closer Chad Qualls but also received Chris Burke. Burke was a utility player and on paper appeared to be equivalent in job function to what Tony Clark offered. The contract to Tony Clark was pulled from the table and Tony ended up signing a one-year deal with the San Diego Padres.
Continue reading ‘The Diamondbacks Win a Tony’ »
January 2, 2009
My cellphone rang. I picked it up and answered. The voice on the other end asked, “Did you hear the Diamondbacks big news?” I had to admit I wasn’t as connected to the news outlets today as I usually am. My daughter seemed to think that her fifteenth birthday was more important than monitoring some dumb web site in case some silly baseball team made a change. See this is what is wrong with this country; kids just don’t have their priorities set straight. For example based on my experience; a woman is only excited about her birthday up until her mid to late twenties. By the time she reaches the age of 30 a woman’s ability to count stops. By the age of 40 you take your life in your own hands if you even suggest that you know her real age. So obviously my daughter’s priorities are completely messed up; something I hope to remedy before she graduates from High School. I had to sheepishly admit that I had not heard the news.
Continue reading ‘Changing of the Guard’ »
January 1, 2009
New Years Day; this is typically a time when I reflect on the past year and survey what has happened both good and bad. This is usually followed by an exercise where I assess my life and where I am and what changes I can make in the coming year to reach the goals I have set for myself. Everyone in the family goes through a similar exercise and then we come together. We each go around and give our observations followed by our resolutions. By going through this exercise and vocalizing our resolutions it seems to validate them and lets others in the family know what you plan on working on for the upcoming 12 months.
Continue reading ‘I Resolve…’ »
October 23, 2008
I have been eagerly anticipating this day for almost a week. It is one of the few bright spots of the off-season. I’m talking of course about Seat Re-location Day at Chase Field. This is an opportunity for me to once again go inside Chase Field and look around. It also provides me with a chance to select where I will be sitting for the upcoming season. For fans who go to games infrequently this probably seems like a foreign concept. After all, who really cares where your seats are located, it’s just a game. Well when you spend 83 games a year there (81 home games plus 2 spring training games), it matters quite a bit. I was so excited I could hardly sleep. The thoughts of walking through Chase Field and finding the perfect seats for the 2009 season just makes me giddy like a child on Christmas morning.
Continue reading ‘The Relocation Blues’ »
October 21, 2008
After the 1998 season the Arizona Diamondbacks front office decided to accelerate the plans they had for creating a winning franchise. They waded into the free agent pool to sign several players who would become critical pieces of the 2001 World Series championship team. The Diamondbacks weren’t just focused on free agents. They also made several personnel changes through trades. Most of these trades were fairly even but there was one in particular that may go down in Diamondbacks history as the most lop-sided trade every made.
Continue reading ‘What About Gonzo?’ »
