Introductions Into Games are Beyond Cheesy

Have you heard these introductions to Giant games? Some are clever, darn near spot on. While others are revolting to have to hear more than once (depending on how many times the Giants play the team in that particular series).

What do I mean when I hear the word "cheesy"? What does anyone mean when the mere utterance of the word sounds like a throat lozenge that regurgitates up out of the throat versus sliding down the sore pharynx.

Words like: styleless, tasteless, unfashionable, unbecoming, unseemly, outmoded, inferior, overdone, unrefined, and or inappropriate.

The Padres usually get an obnoxious opening and I think the Padres give the Giants a battle every time. Even if the Giants come out with a winning series record it wasn't like every game was a 9-0 victory (which equates to the losing team forfeiting).

Their current intro for the Philadelphia Phillies makes this Giant's fan wonder, 'What if the Phillies win?' It's so pathetic. And wouldn't you know, the Phillies win the first two games by identical scores of 6-2.

Show a little decorum when you do these introductions, KNBR, 680AM. Don't be so pro-Giant and anti-opponent. It just doesn't sound good. Anything remotely close to "homerism" should be left to those organizations that don't care how pathetic incessant gushing sounds.

Kevin J. Marquez

Some Umpires Just Cannot Call Balls and Strikes

C.B. Bucknor is not very adept at calling balls and strikes. Never was and never has been. You naturally give someone the benefit of the doubt, and in looking at his biography I can see he is a thoughtful person who is socially responsible to where he was born (Jamaica, West Indies). I am not judging him as a person nor do I have the God-given right to do such a thing. But I can judge him as an umpire based on his inconsistencies and inability to stick to the same strike zone from the top of the first inning to the bottom of the ninth.

Yesterday's game between the Giants and the Diamondbacks had C.B. behind the plate. Whenever the Giants' broadcaster tells you who the home plate umpire for that game is, C.B. Bucknor is a name that makes the savvy fan cringe. Unfortunately, Tim Lincecum had the daunting task of having to pitch with C.B. behind Buster calling balls and strikes.

Tim Lincecum throws a batting practice fastball when C.B. is behind the plate because the five-sided slab of whitened rubber set at ground level at the front corner of the diamond doesn't have the corners. It may as well be a pitcher's plate. Whether it's horizontal or vertical depends on the inning, I suppose.

In listening to last night's game, on more than one occasion both Jon Miller and Dave Fleming mentioned how "that's not a call that has been made for most of the game," or "wait a minute, it's coming. Pause. Ball?" Interpretation, from this listener, if you've listened to Jon Miller and became acquainted with his explanations for rules and regulations within the game of baseball and he has nothing further to add it's akin to ammending the current rule book. He doesn't have the authority to do such a thing. But he should because he understands the strike zone much better than a few of these incompetents who don't give fans of baseball the confidence they (the umpires) know a strike from a ball.

I'm not defending Lincecum. His fastball is no longer as intimidating as it once was but if he is not being allowed to do his job to the fullest of his capabilities because the thing he is constantly working with- THE STRIKE ZONE - is varied according to whomever is behind his catcher then there is something to be said about that as well.

Most of us are human, right? We have to cut anyone- giving one hell of an effort- some slack so we go the "consistency" route. It doesn't do the batters and pitchers on that day any good. Their livelihoods are effected tremendously due to their numbers (those that determine their availability for their current team's starting lineup or if their skills are deteriorating to "trade bait" status) not being up to par. Fact is if you can't do the job within the framework of the rulebook, which has to be the game's bible to an umpire, then find another line of work.

How they are grading umpires is suspect at best. Because more umpires have conflicting strike zones than do not. I'm all for individuality but it's head scratching when the Monday umpire's strike zone is worlds apart from Tuesday's, Thursday's, Friday's, Saturday's and Sunday's. Know what I mean?

Kevin J. Marquez

Why Los Angeles Dodgers Fans Hate the San Francisco Giants

I saw this commentary by Nick Ostiller and had to share it with my compadres-San Francisco Giants fans- as food for thought the next time them bums are in the city by the bay.

1. Shot Heard 'Round the World.
Every Dodgers fan has probably heard this and it never sounds good. Cue up the Public Address announcer before the National Anthem. We want to hear Russ Hodges say more than "Bye Bye Baby!"

2. Jackie Robinson.
He got traded to the Giants but refused to show up. All Dodger fans are endeared to the man even though some may have never learned to love him when he was playing. Perhaps only those who were taught the legend that was Robinson by their relatives. (Whatever the case, it's heartfelt so I chose to leave it in.)

3. Marichal vs. Roseboro
My understanding of this story was that Roseboro was barking the good bite. Constantly harrassing the Dominican Dandy. The Dodger catcher was much bigger than Juan so #27 felt the need to knock on Roseboro's door with his bat.
This isn't a reason for Dodger fans to hate the Giants. If it is they weren't told the story in it's entirety. Self-defense, is a situation where you just have to take it for what it is. Fear strikes us all differently and our reactions reflect this behavior.

4. Beyond Baseball
People from Southern California usually find the Northern California folks less appealing due to their being the stereotypical ultra-liberal hippies while the people from the laid back lands of the North consider those who inhabit SoCal as a superficial La La landites, always behaving like there's a camera rolling or a star with their name in it somewhere beneath their feet.

5. End of "Fernandomania"
When 20-year-old Fernando Valenzuela won his first 8 big league games leading to the 1981 World Series title, Fernandomania began. And becoming the first pitcher to win both the Rookie of the Year and Cy Young award, in the same season. But the Dodgers were swept in the final week of 1990 by the San Francisco Giants and Valenzuela would never pitch another game for Los Angeles again. Now thems grounds for some real hatred. No bueno? You better believe it!

6. Juan Uribe
All that he did for the 2010 Giants World Series winning club and all that he has not done since wearing Dodger blue.

7. Brian Johnson
Can you believe there are actually fans miffed at Johnson's game winner in extra innings at Candlestick. Hey, it's baseball. Things happen out of the ordinary when so many innings are played throughout the year. The fact that they cannot get over Johnson's climactic home run is an excellent reason to show this homer (during the 7th inning stretch of any home game versus the Dodgers), after the Bobby Thomson homer with Russ Hodges bellowing "the Giants won the pennant!" over and over (before every game). You cannot NOT play that video of Thomson's blast. Especially Hodges' call. Perhaps it IS rubbing it in. But it feels so good when you are on the winning end. It's the American way!

Have the Dodgers stopped playing Kirk Gibson's homer off of Dennis Eckersley in the 1988 World Series? I don't think so. I don't think that or any great fantastic finish ever goes away. In mind, as a visual, these moments are a part of every day conversation as the memory lives.

(thanks to Nicky Ostiller for the outlandish explanations as to why the fans of the orange and black are disliked. Can never get enough of this stuff. Fuel for the fire works for this rivalry. When you put the 2010 season in perspective it was the comeback win versus the Dodgers when Pat Burrell lost one in the seats as did Juan Uribe that fueled the teams' burst into the playoffs. Last year was "Backs against the wall." That's why more love should be given to Tim Flannery's tune "21 Days." Because that song captures the season so beautifully.)


Kevin J. Marquez

Hitting Really Has a Hold On Me

In an article posted by Carl Steward, 4/8/2013, in the San Jose Mercury, Steward goes on to say that the walk-up music for Marco Scutaro right now would be the Coasters' "Searchin'."

Says Scutaro: "I was fine in spring. I just lost the feeling. It's going to come sooner or later. You just keep playing, keep fighting. That's why hitting is so hard. It's a feeling sometimes, and you have to wait a while for it to get back. You just keep searching."

"I know what I'm doing wrong," Scutaro continued, "I don't want to do it, but my body doesn't want to cooperate. I'm jumping at the ball. Timing-wise, I'm just kind of jumpy at the plate. I don't let the ball travel."

Actually I've been in this very situation. Just couldn't contain myself. Itching to pull the trigger I cannot watch the ball go into the catcher's glove. I'm following the ball and measuring my swing and I just have to murder the darn thing.

I wouldn't say the song is "Searchin'" I'd say it's more like the Smokey Robinson tune, "You've Really Got a Hold on Me."

Baby, I don't want you, but I need you (here's the part where I just have to swing the damned bat)
Don't wanna kiss you, but I need to (like to let the ball go by but I just can't)
You do me wrong now, my love is strong now (the wide one isn't my friend but my hand-eye thinks it has a solution)
You've really got a hold on me
(You really got a hold on me)
You really got a hold on me
(You really got a hold on me) (after I hit a weak grounder to the third baseman. Or even worse, a roller back to the pitcher)

You have to get a feel for how the ball is moving. By watching it into the glove you get a sense of timing as you bend your knees, take a deep breath and await the next pitch. Or as Scutaro says, "I have to get my rhythm back. The student of the game that he is explains himself. "During the season, it's going to happen sooner or later. You're going to get off. (Song is your choice.) That's what you fight the entire year, hitting-wise. You just try to make adjustments every day."

One hundred and sixty-games, from April to October, is a long season. All kinds of things to deal with. But losing and the finding the rhythm can be an uncomfortable one seeing as how we all need a certain amount of balance incorporated in our every day lives. Movements must flow like a boot camp cadence or the shinbone will become a device for finding furniture in a dark room.

(thanks to Carl Steward of San Jose Mercury for his article about Marco Scutaro)

Kevin J. Marquez

Bruce Dreckman: Two Thumbs Down (for his home plate umpiring performance on 4/3/13 in Chavez Ravine)

I listen to the Giants on KNBR 680 AM radio. The play-by-play in last night's 5-3 win over the Dodgers was done by Jon Miller and Dave Fleming. And for the entire game Miller and Fleming remarked how home plate umpire, Bruce Dreckman was not calling the pitch across the knees. To all baseball fans if the pitch is where they said it was THIS IS A STRIKE!

Now, let us go to the pitcher who started the game for the San Francisco Giants. He was Tim Lincecum. A player who struggled mightily in the 2012 season but who raised his game to a new level as a relief pitcher in the post season. And despite all of his woes last year and during the spring training season we are all trying to get a read on this beloved hurler for our esteemed Giants.

After watching him in the Cactus League I determined that if he has an umpire incapable of consistently calling balls and strikes that he would not fare well. Well, last night he got one of those buffoons behind the plate and he managed to make it through five innings (which qualifies a starting pitcher for a "win") with his team leading at his departure and at the end of the game. Tim Lincecum wasn't getting the "across the knees" strike therefore having to raise the zone and putting his pitches in harm's way. Only three hits were allowed. Tim Lincecum proved that he could overcome the adversity of an umpire with a shaky strike zone. And for that, I tip my cap.

Seven walks. Were they? Take away a portion of someone's livelihood and you force that someone to make adjustments on the fly. Heck, most people can't walk and chew gum at the same time. NOW put a pitcher in the unfriendly confines of Chavez Ravine with a heckling crowd and add someone dressed in dark blue, in the vicinity of home plate, misjudging how pitches are crossing the plate or landing in the catcher's glove and you know the man was focused. Throw in a passed ball by Hector Sanchez and a boot by Buster and you know number 55 was bound and determined.

I listened to the game trying to picture what it must have been like in Los Angeles where a major league umpire had the power to determine whether a pitcher had to get the batter out on his skill and guile or whether a batter had a chance to step into the batter's box, grip the stick and rip. And Bruce Dreckman chose the grip it and rip mode. Fortunately, it was the Giants who took advantage by ripping two homers (Panda and Pence).

And to put the cherry on the sundae my cousin's name was selected for the Grand Slam inning (Anita South). Unfortunately, for her, our man Lincecum led off with Angel Pagan and Marco Scutaro following but they went 1-2-3. Earlier in the game Lincecum had a battle with his opposing pitcher, Josh Beckett and was able to hit a grounder up the middle to bring in the tying run. Scutaro made a stellar defensive play with Brandon Crawford following that up with a web gem that I'm sure ESPN played over and over. Anytime you get a player with the blazing speed of Carl Crawford you must get the spotlight. And if they did not, for shame.


Kevin J. Marquez

What Makes the Best Catcher?

I recently read an article with the following (URL: http:/thecutoffman.mlblogs.com/2012/08/24/evaluating-how-catchers-control-their-opponents-running-game/MLB Blogs network) and basically the writer is miffed that Buster Posey is seen in a better light than Yadier Molina.

Here is what he had to say about Buster Posey: Buster Posey still has a lot of work to do on his defense. No catcher has gotten his pocket picked more than the Giants young backstop this season, which may have something to do with his ankle injury from a year ago. He's a little bit slow getting out of his crouch in ordr to make a snap throw to 2nd, and base runners have taken that as a license to run wild. He may just be the best offensive catcher in baseball, but until Posey improves on defense any thoughts of him winning the MVP award are a little far-fetched.

Who won the 2012 MVP? Furthermore, one thing you must understand when you look to the traditional statistics or advanced metrics that something has to be said about a pitcher who is incapable of keeping the runner within a reasonable distance from first and second by the time he lets go of his pitch.

Is this news? We all know that for the most part the Gold Glove Award goes to the most productive player at his position with fielding a close second. A player would have to absolutely stink out loud to win a Gold Glove award and those who voted would have to get called out when made aware of his floundering fielding percentage. But I think the year when Rafael Palmeiro won the Gold Glove award and played no games in the field is appalling. In 1999 Raffy was a designated hitter. Look it up! He has no fielding statistics for that year and yet, he got the Silver Slugger and Golden Glove. Which, once and for all, proves that the Golden Gloves usually goes to the best hitter for that particular position. I feel for those first-basemen who were scooping balls du jour, in 1999, and like Palmeiro's stats it just didn't happen. What those voters- whose duty it was to vote for the gold glove that season- did was shameful. They chose not to vote and presto Palmeiro is handed a Golden Glove award. Why were those cursed with the choice not held accountable?

So I can understand the author's angst. Catcher is a tough position because of all that goes into it. Blocking pitches, blocking the plate as you prepare to get slammed into, the constant up and down, twisting and turning with gear (that you can't go lightweight on because there is a reason for the thickness of the stuff. It is worn to protect you from foul tips or any accidental play where the ball glances off of something into you. Don't wear the hockey mask without the padding or you may end up with a premature exit like Mike Matheny. I contend that Matheny may still be playing if he didn't switch to the less-padded hockey mask.)

AND you have to be on the same page as your pitcher. The two of you (known as the battery) have to be simpatico (being on the same wavelength) so as to not allow the opposing team to perhaps steal your signs due to your body language or communications running amok. You have to give the other team the impression you are ON to their game and you know exactly how to get them out. Those of us who have played the game, at any competitive little league level, know when you get the batter to over-think his/her approach with each at-bat that there is a really good chance he/she will not be at his/her best when stepping up to the plate. Because when you get the opponent to question what they are doing you have WON the battle and that's when you trust your pitcher to do his thing. This is also where the catcher can shoot a little casual conversation into the matter. Some heartfelt stuff like, "You don't seem to be yourself today, is everything okay?" Or to bring a little levity to the situation, because, afterall, you're on the winning side and it's time for laughs. "What do you do if you see an endangered animal eating an endangered plant?" or "Isn't it a bit unnerving that doctors call what they do "practice?" Sometimes it's worth the effort in that he spills the beans. Or he may just as well rip off expletive after expletive taking himself further out of the game to which you and your batterymate go for the jugular. Either way it seems like a win-win to me.


(thanks to MLB Blogs Network for the inspiration for this opinion)

Kevin J. Marquez

All-Time Hits and Home Run Leaders Thoughts

Every now and then a baseball fan needs to take the time to look up the numbers their favorite players put up and compare them to others thought to be great. And with the infusion of the performance enhanced age of baseball you can see how the more current ballplayer surpassed those greats from yesteryear.

To fully appreciate these numbers you have to be a historian because when a World War was taking place chances are your favorite player was serving the country so his numbers won't be a bloated as those thought to have used PEDs. (And unlike former President Bill Clinton, if a ballplayer crossed the Canadian border to dodge-an artful device to evade, deceive, or trick being in the war, Major League baseball would have blackballed that player for life. I am not sure there IS a book on such a topic but if there was a book I would have to log onto Amazon.com and see how much they would be charging for the book. Only I wouldn't know for sure what the contents of the book were because this site doesn't do a decent job on informing you of the book's contents. In the words of Don King, "Only in the United States.")

When you look at the All-Time Hits leader you see Pete Rose in first place with 4,256 and Ty Cobb second with 4,189, and Hammerin' Hank Aaron in third place with 3,771. All three of these players did not miss any time due to military service.

Surveying the All-Time hits list and the All-Time Home Run list I couldn't help but see some of the most heralded names surpassed by players not nearly as decorated (i.e. as legend has it or by awards received). And my initial feeling that maybe the voters of who gets into the Major League Hall of Fame are onto something didn't waver a bit because nobody could ever convince me Barry Bonds wasn't the greatest hitter I ever saw no matter what he did to his body to elevate his game. I never saw Babe Ruth or Ted Williams so I can only go by those accredited writers' words I have read as to their interpretation what the Babe or Ted Williams did. I did see Hank Aaron and let my biased opinion of Willie Mays blur the vision that was Hammerin' Hank. Because when it was all said and done Aaron is right up there with the greatest hitters of all-time, even if he didn't miss a day due to the military service or played in bandboxes his entire career.

Speaking of missing time due to the military service this is something that cannot go unnoticed. Hank Greenberg missed 1941, 1942, 1943, 1944. In 1941 he did play in 19 games. In 1945 he played in 78 games, long enough to drive in 60 runs. Ted "the Splendid Splinter" Williams missed 1943, 1944, 1945. In 1950 he played in 89 games. In 1952 he played in 6 games. In 1953 he played in 37 games. And look up his numbers. He hit .400 three times in his career even if it was during a shortened season you can see that he did not waste any at-bats. Furthermore, when you see that Frank Thomas and Willie McCovey are tied with the Splinter at 521 career homers you must understand why.

You see a player like Joltin' Joe DiMaggio whose numbers appear shrunken you must realize that he too missed 1943, 1944, and 1945 due to WWII. Joltin' Joe ended his career with 2,214 hits just 3 ahead of the beloved Hall of Famer Willie McCovey. Or that one-time Giant Darrell Evans had more hits than DiMaggio with 2,223 all-time hits.

Then I see Louis Henry Gehrig finished his career with 2,721 hits. Fans of baseball know it took a dreadful disease, one named after Larrupin Lou, to get him off the field. You know who is right behind him? Rusty Staub, also known as Le Grande Orange. A player who made his career playing solid baseball on expansion teams. From the Houston Astros to the Montreal Expos. This guy finished his career as a solid pinch-hitter. Nobody ever accused Le Grande Orange of cheating. And if anyone has any dirt on him please don't share it with me.

Currently Albert Pujols is tied with Stan Musial and Willie Stargell with 475 homers. I never read anything about Wilver Stargell supplementing his diet to benefit his performance and recalling his look as a player I'm sure the word diet was used often. But his only obstruction to more stardom was the unfriendly confines of Forbes Field. When the Pirates moved to Three Rivers Stadium that's when #8's career got going. Stan "the Man" Musial did miss the 1945 season but other than that had a stellar career with the St. Louis Cardinals. Pujols, nobody has accused him of using PEDs but can anyone really be sure. I mean because he was the polar opposite of Barry Bonds, a man those with pen and paper abhored, it's hard to say whether he was guilty or not guilty of taking PEDs. I'm not sure a hack would keep such information on someone he/she liked a secret or willingly spill the beans on someone they detest. I, like many other people, can only speculate. I mean what ethnic background is Pujols? Who are the guys getting busted left and right by major league baseball?

(People banned under Commissioner Bowie Kuhn
After Landis died in 1944, there was a long lull before the next banishment; indeed, during Bowie Kuhn's tenure (1969–1984), only three players (or former players) were banned for life.
• Ferguson Jenkins of the Texas Rangers was banned in 1980 after a customs search in Toronto, Ontario, found 3 grams (0.11 oz) of cocaine, 2.2 grams (0.078 oz) of hashish, and 1.75 grams (0.062 oz) of marijuana on his person. (Jenkins missed the rest of the 1980 season, but was reinstated by an independent arbiter, and retired following the 1983 season. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1991.)
• Mickey Mantle and Willie Mays, both retired and both in no way involved in baseball anymore, were banned in 1983 after they were hired by casinos in Atlantic City, New Jersey, as greeters and autograph signers.[3] (Kuhn opined that a casino was "no place for a baseball hero and Hall of Famer"; Mantle and Mays were reinstated by Peter Ueberroth in 1985, and Mantle died in 1995.)

(Although all were reinstated it is interesting to note that with all the talk of baseball and integrity how Ferguson Jenkins who, judging by the goods he was caught with, looked like he was set up for some kind of PAR-TAY! still got the support of those hypocritical writers to make it into Cooperstown.)

(Thanks to ESPN. ESPN.com provided some of the facts for this opinion)

Kevin J. Marquez