Been busy lately...

and I got tickets to the COMPLETE Rays/Twins tilt, including tomorrow and the doubleheader Thursday. On Thursday keep an eye out for the dude in the Durham Bulls jersey near the Rays dugout---I wouldn't know him!

Don't know what ya got...: Part 2, Elliot Johnson

I know I misspelled Chris Richard's last name "Richards" several times in the last post. I had to mention it, or compa would be packing her things.

Like Jonny Gomes, I imagine that your average Rays fan 10 years from now will not know who Elliot Johnson is. This says a lot more about our culture and our preference for the flashy and trendy than these two ball players. Elsewhere I've posted my feelings about Gomes and his instrumental role in serving notice to the rest of the AL that the Rays were no longer doormats, so this post is about Johnson and his role in those same events.

First, Elliot is a super fan friendly guy, like Richard. A friend of mine one complained about how some of the Bulls, especially in the wake of their success over the past few years and the Rays WS run, basically gave up on interacting with the fans. I don't know whether or not that's 100% true, but I do know that I have seen kids standing 20 deep, all screaming "Elliot," waiting to get a sig, and that Elliot has stood there and signed until everyone had an auto. I never asked for one myself, which I now kinda regret, but there you have it. (As an aside, I similarly watched the O's Adam Jones sign for about 30-minutes prior to the Rays/O's double header two seasons ago. Again, no auto for me, but that made quite an impression)

Second, and like Richard, Eliot is no slouch as a player. Elliot has a decent bat for a middle infielder and Rays Index has this play from the Int'l League Championship as the Rays organization's play of the year. Elliot only got a brief cup of coffee with the Rays in 2008, and it looks like this past season will have been his last with the organization (scroll down to the last bullet point). Although he advanced pretty quickly through the Rays' system he has been a victim of organizational depth as much as anything else. I mean, without naming names, there are guys on ML rosters whose stats are far less.

Third, he's another guy who plays all out. The first brawl Gomes was involved in? It came after this play. I'm no unbiased observer, so I'll tell you a different play at the plate story for context. When I was a Little Leaguer I was a pretty fat kid who ate, slept, and drank baseball. I was a solid hitter, but obviously no great runner of the bases. Championship game, I'm on second and the batter hits a soft single to right. The coach sends me home, which I still think is one of the stupider decisions I've ever been a part of. Ball beats me by a bit, OK a lot, catcher is blocking the plate, so I absolutely blew the kid up. Seeing as how the ball beat me I'm initially called out. But the ball is now over in the on-deck circle, so the call is reversed and I'm called safe. UNTIL the other ump comes in from left and re-reverses the call, saying that not only am I out because runners coming home MUST slide, but that technically I should also be tossed from the game. I had no idea about the rule, and let me be square with you: that wasn't the worst thing that ever happened to my fat 13 year old self, but it was up there. Between my teammates and coach calling me out the next few innings things really sucked. Of course we lost and I caught unmentionable Hell for it from all involved. As far as I know no one ever got on the coach for a) sending the fat ass home from second on the play or b) no bothering to inform us we had to slide going in to home.

At any rate, this is all to say I'm totally behind Elliot Johnson on his collision with Cervelli now and forever. My fat 13 year-old self would agree. That is how the game should be played. If not, then don't block the plate, period, or go back to Little League. As for the current narrative, the next day the Yankis retaliated, Gomes clowned several Yankis, and the rest is history.

I hadn't thought too much about that play until I saw this card over at a post at Play at the Plate:

A signed Elliot Johnson depicting the Cervelli play. Improbably enough, his base card is also of the same play:

Both are from the 2008 Stadium Club set, and I'm going to try to get my hands on them ASAP after the first of the year. Hopefully by trade, then by bounty, and finally via flea-bay if all else fails. Not only is this a great card of one Hell of a player, but it also depicts THE moment when the Rays fortunes changed for the better. Who knew that one hard play at the plate could send a team to the World Series?

Thanks for the memories Elliot, loved watching you play.

Have a good one everybody and goodnight Pumpsie Green, wherever you are!

Don't know what ya got...: Part 1, Chris Richard

til it's gone. Cue the hairbands, people.

After the last post I've been thinking about how I miss Minor League ball. I've said it 1000 times, but I follow the Rays because I've lived in/near cities with Rays minor league affiliates, Charleston, SC and Durham, NC. It's always awesome to see the hot prospects come through on their way to the bigs (Price, David) or get stuck going over the basics before making it large in the bigs (Upton, BJ), but you watch the lesser guys over the years to the point you start to look through them. You just assume, like you, they'll ALWAYS be there.

I realized after my last post I left a lot unsaid about Chris Richard and Elliot Johnson, both of whom are professional ballplayers. I know, any dude who gets paid is a pro, but bear with me.

The words "throwback" gets tossed around a lot these days, too much in fact, but these guys are real throw back type players. Two more who come to mind are guys like former Bull Darnell McDonald and his brother Donzell. Darnell made an opening day roster for the first time in his career this year with the Reds at the age of 31. I watched Donzell play for the Leones of the Mexican League a few years ago when they won the championship. A dude who plays in the Bigs for a million plus per is NOT a throwback type guy. Guys like these embody it.

And I'll admit, I now realize that what I miss about watching Minor League ball is these guys, the guys you root for to have September call ups or to make the Opening Day Roster once, or one last time. Hell, they all started as HOT prospects but hit a wall somewhere whether due to injury, ability, or lack of opportunity.

I was doing my MA at Johns Hopkins when Richards came to Baltimore. He had tantalizing 2000, hitting 13 HRs in 221 ABs with the O's, and great things were expected. He had 15 HRs in 542 ABs the following year and was dealt to Colorado in 2003. I remember him coming to Durham a few years ago, and it almost felt like a mini-reunion although dude has no idea who the Hell I am. He didn't see the bigs again until last season when injuries to Carlos Peña pressed him into service. He didn't bat all that well and I remember the game where he made his only error. I was so excited for him to be up I felt sick after watching it. Another Chris Richard fact: he came out to the bar where Bulls fans congregated to watch the WS when the Rays made it a few years ago. How awesome is that?

Part II on Elliot Johnson is coming tomorrow. Feel free to share any stories you've got about players you've enjoyed watching, and beginning now if you have any spare Chris Richards or Elliot Johnsons I'll take them off your hands.

Have a good one and goodnight Pumpsie Green, wherever you are!

Bulls on Parade

We do it like this. Having moved from the Durham area about 7 months ago, compa and I missed out on seeing the Bulls win the International League Championship. And then the Bricktown Showdown for the AAA Championship. Which sucked for us, at least a little, seeing as last year we sat there and watched the Scranton Wilkes-Barre Yankis take to to the Bulls in the International League Championship. Nothing so much against the AAA Yankis as their fans who, despite being AAA Yankis fans, were definitely ready for the bigs in terms of being some of the most....well, I digress.

We missed out on all the post-championship euphoria. We watched the showdown on ESPN2, which was great, but we missed out on being there with our friends and the Bulls. There was even a Bulls event where you got to go into the dugout out onto the field and meet Chris Richard and Elliot Johnson. Well, my former neighbor over at Noboru Aota was kind enough to send me a post card. One signed by the aforementioned Chris Richard and Elliot Johnson. Awesome!

Man Adam, I can't thank you enough. For those of you who don't know that's the old park, the one in Bull Durham, located a few blocks from where the Bulls currently play.

Have a good night everyone and have a good one Pumpsie Green, wherever you are!

Go Bulls!!

AAA Championship games tonight on ESPN2. Nice to see the Bulls again, even if it's on the tele.

9:14 Man, Bulls go to extras. AAA ball forever!

9:52 Bulls win, Bulls win!