Well, last Friday we took in a River Cats game in Sacramento. I thought that Sonny Gray was pitching, so I decided to spend a little cash, and get us good seats behind he plate. The River Cats have seats which give you a little more room--counter space to be exact. The are called the Raley's Diamond Club seats. They looked like the seats that newspaper writers would use back in the day, with long counters. They were actually very nice, a little pricey for AAA, but a nice treat none the less.
I really, really wanted to see Gray, as he is having a solid season, and appears headed to A's starting rotation in the near future. Well, as fate would have it, he actually pitched the night before! The curve ball to my plans did take an interesting break, as on this night Dan Strailey would take the hill for the River Cats. My interest had been rekindled. I was curious what it would look like to watch Strailey from behind the plats. Simply, I was not impressed at all. There wasn't much sizzle or movement on his pitches--in fact on this night, the Reno Aces (Diamondbacks) would knock him around pretty good. His line for the evening stood at 6 ip's., 6 runs, 2 earned runs, 9 hits and 6 strikeouts. OK I guess, but not what you would expect for a guy who was in recently in the A's rotation until a scheduling quirk had him make a start in Sacramento. I would love to talk with Strailey, because on the 4th, he was very effective against the Cubs, allowing only a single hit in one inning. I have to surmise that when he was in Sac on that hot June evening, he was working on his offspeed pitches. Strailey draws those loveable and top-of-the world Pirates on Monday, thus I will be very curios how he follows up his one-hit performance from the 4th.
On this night, the Heat was very un Sacramento-like, as the cooling Delta Breezes were missing. Maybe the players were a little wilty too, because really there wasn't a player who stuck out in a good way, but here were some general observations:
*Hiro Nakijima looks like a knock-off version of Jed Lowrie. He looks like a decent hitter with good hands at short, but not a lot of speed and not a lot of range.
*Michael Taylor needs a body language makeover. He lumbers, at the plate and in the field. He could use a pep-in-the-step retreat with Adam Rosales. Taylor has struggled in his brief appearances in the Show, but I believe he has a chance to be a late-bloomer, like Brandon Moss. It will probably happen with another club, but please Big Mike, put a little bounce in your step!
*Grant Green. Lean and long, I wonder if he can be a first basemen? His glove keeps holding him back, but every time I see him, I just marvel in how athletic and long he looks--he should have played basketball.
*Jemile Weeks. What a trip his story is--he essentially move steady Mark Ellis out, then has proceeded to slowly fade away. I remember hearing an interview with him where he remarked he would be back to the bigs in a big way, but still believe he must have said something to Beane and Co.? There is story around Weeks somewhere.
*The Aces closer, Kevin Munson, on this night, his ball was really moving
* I fondly recall the time I watched Rich Harden pitch for the River Cats in Fresno years ago. Man his arm defined electric! You could literally hear the laces humming when he pitched! I loved Harden, and envisioned a game where he struck out 27 in a row. He is the bar I use for all pitchers to follow. So where ever you are Rich, you were my favorite!
*Raley's Field is overall a very nice venue. It is very similar in style to the Grizzlies Park in Fresno. What these parks don't quite capture is the old school charm of baseball.....again, they are really nice little venues, but to me they are missing that little something. The fireworks show by the way, AAA plus!
*The best $13 spend was one of those spray bottles with the fans. My son loved it, and so did everybody else he came in contact with. Hey single guys out there, if you want to meet the ladies, buy one of those spray bottle fan gizmos. (I am not sure if have a cute little one doing the spraying will help, but I am thinking it might!)
To the Grass Area
Taking in a Wimbledon Final now moving up on my Bucket List. I didn't quite make it at 6 a.m., today, but I did wake by 7 a.m. to catch the second set. The true emotion shared by Ladies finalists Marion Bartoli and Sabine Lisicki was truly remarkable. Lisicki had played Giant Killer the past two weeks, and at one point after missing her serve, she started to cry. She held it back, barely, sort of, but man, you could feel her sensing her moment in the sun just slipping away--for today anyway. Anyone who has ever been close to a dream, and have it slip away, well, you can relate. On the other side, Bartoli too showed great emotion. After losing 3 match points, her cushy 5-1 lead in the second set was trimmed to an not-so-comfortable 5-3 lead. Putting a great opponent away, one of the most difficult and under appreciated tasks of being a champion. There is point, when a worthy opponent literally just throws haymaker after haymaker. If to many land--like the Heat in Game 6--momentum can drastically swing, and Championships slip so heart-ripped-out through the throat style.
When it was finally over, the first time Grand Slam Champion was all class. She was class the way she responded to her family and friends, and she was classy the way she treated Lisicki. Bartoli cherished, shared, and appreciated the moment. Perhaps it was her finest moment ever?! It was brutal for Lisicki to have to sit through the awards ceremony, and she always seemed just a breath away from losing it. Chris Evert is very insightful as an analyst, especially on what it takes and feels like to be a Champion. I do not feel however she captured the essence of the person in the #2 chair. NBC, I will make myself available next summer! Wimbledon can be a tad stuffy, but some of that tradition really cool. I may have to put attending a Wimbledon Final on my bucket list. Donations will be accepted!
So, you want to wake up early tomorrow morning, and catch the Men's Final. One of greatest players ever, Novak Djokovic, will be dueling the local guy, Andy Murray. When it comes to tennis on TV, it is OK to be like Dodger fan and tune in a third of the way through!
To Bartoli and Lisicki I raise my glass to you!
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