Tag: Opinion

Fowler Creates More Options, Added Flexbility For Maddon

It was a confusing sequence of events on Thursday, Febuart 25th, 2016.

Kicking it off was the announcement of outfielder Chris Coghlan being traded to Oakland for RHP Aaron Brooks, a seemingly odd move given Coghlan’s value and Brooks’ small career sample size of just 15 games, with unimpressive numbers. This was a head scratcher. Why would the Cubs ship out a key depth guy for an unproven arm they don’t really need? An astute coworker of mine raised an eyebrow at the situation, claiming there had to be more to this deal.

There was. Ten minutes later, it was announced that Dexter Fowler was back.

Now this was a heretofore unfathomable situation that has unfolded. Many Cubs fans, writers and insiders, myself included, had speculated that Jorge Soler could be traded, likely to Cleveland or Tampa Bay, and that maybe Fowler would come back since he had yet to sign elsewhere after rejecting the initial qualifying offer back in November. An entire offseason later and Soler was still a Cub, plus Fowler finally had a multi-year deal on the table in Baltimore. No scenario was possible to have both Fowler and Soler on the same roster again, especially after picking up Jason Heyward, right? Wrong. With Coghlan moved to Oakland, and the Fowler deal with the Orioles incomplete, Theo Epstein, the puzzlemaster extraordinaire that he is, inked Fowler and opened up a world of possibilities for manager Joe Maddon.

Such possibilities include the ability to have Fowler, valuable as a switch-hitting leadoff man with power, start in CF, thus moving Jason Heyward to right, his natural position. Soler, in turn, can platoon in LF with Kyle Schwarber. The genius of that move, is that none of the big bats are sacrificed in the lineup, and there will always be one or more power guys to come off the bench. This also takes some defensive pressure off of Schwarber, and gives Maddon a myriad of lineup options against either left or right-handed opposing starting pitchers. In short, it’s a perfect scenario. On paper, anyway.

As we get the 2016 season underway, this is the most versatile, deep, talented, and potent roster the Cubs have had in many, many years. With division foes St. Louis and Pittsburgh to contend with, a bloodbath in the NL Central will surely ensue. But one thing is for sure: There can be no more excuses for the Cubs. Epstein and Jed Hoyer’s vision is right now.

A Window To the Pasta

“It’s always a hot time in Brooklyn when the Giants come over.”

– Red Barber

By now you’ve likely noticed that I’ve theorized more than once how baseball is a spooky game and has a very haunted history. One of the aspects of this theory that literally manifests itself, is in the sounds of the game. It has been said that the soundtrack to America, is baseball on the radio. Taking a cue from this, I did some poking around and, thanks to YouTube, many old radio broadcasts are available to listen to, including old baseball games. Such records are a window into the treasured past.

One of my favorite examples of this wonderful audible history, is a classic National League rivalry matchup between the Giants and Dodgers, when they were both still in New York, on April 22, 1950. The very first thing you hear is Ebbets Field PA announcer Tex Rickards’ booming voice announcing the batting orders before legendary radio broadcaster Red Barber takes over. The ensuing broadcast is a great snapshot of our pastime, and a wonderful, if not haunting example of the deep, rich history of the game in an important, meaningful moment.

Take a trip back to 1950, and a time when baseball was life in America.

Brookyn Dodgers vs. New York Giants, April 22, 1950. 

Is This Heaven?

“There are only two seasons: Winter and baseball.”

-Bill Veeck

Embark with me on a quick journey to paradise…

Imagine winter’s steely cold veil being rolled back to reveal clear skies of the prettiest electric blue on a warm spring afternoon, with perfectly manicured grass toting gorgeus shades of emerald and shamrock, while the strong and indisputable scents of popcorn, hot dogs, fresh roasted peanuts and ice cold beer tantalize your senses. Classic, peppy organ music and a sometimes overly excited announcer boom from seemingly out of nowhere to direct and dictate the action you’re witnessing. You sit back and become enveloped in a tranquil, yet excited relaxation as you cheer on your heroes in the most graceful chess match ever played, and it becomes infinitely clear why it’s called our national pastime.

That paradise is real.

And in just a few short days, we will see it.

The 2016 baseball season is about to begin.

Connecting the Final Cubs’ Dots

All good things come to an end. Except in this case…

One good (or bad, depending on your preference) thing will be ending soon. As the offseason winds down, so does the once-enormous number of quality free agents available, as well as some long-rumored trade deals that are on the hook for the Cubs.

It’s been a weakly kept secret that the Cubs are looking for another arm in the rotation, while several teams are interested in one of the Cubs’ hot young bats. Many have been the times where IF Javy Baez and/or OF Jorge Soler have been mentioned in potential deals with teams, notably Cleveland and Tampa Bay, both of whom are in love with the young player(s). Among those free agents still available, is CF Dexter Fowler. There is one scenario where resigning Fowler, who initially rejected the Cubs’ qualifying offer in November, would make perfect sense.

Cleveland has been highly interested in Soler for some time, and a deal involving P Carlos Carrasco would be a nice fit. Should the Cubs trade Jorge Soler, the very next move would ideally be to sign Fowler, or vice versa. It’s a simple matter of connecting the dots. With Soler out of RF, the Cubs can move newly acquired Jason Heyward over to right, his natural position, and have Fowler patrol center. In addition, this would effectively load the Cubs lineup (even more than it already is), for with Fowler you have a table setter who scores runs and also has some added power.

Other potential suitors for Soler include Tampa Bay, who have been in pretty regular talks of late, for a deal for P Jake Odorizzi. Should the Cubs not want to move Soler or Baez, there are plenty of big prospect bats available that would be attractive for any number of teams.

In all, these are good problems to have. I for one, believe the Soler-Heyward-Fowler carousel, as long as they’re adding a strong SP in the process, would be the best scenario for the Cubs.

But then, how often do we get to have our cake and eat it too?

Shoeless Joe vs. Field of Dreams

I’ve long maintained that Field of Dreams is not a baseball movie.

It’s really not. It is at it’s core, a story about an Iowa farmer named Ray Kinsella who is long racked by guilt wishing to reconcile his relationship with his deceased father, John, by way of their one mutual love, baseball, as the backdrop. The wonderful novel from which the film is based – Shoeless Joe by W.P. Kinsella, tells a noticeably richer story and like most book to film adaptations, the written version is different than the visual. The changes from book to film, due largely for pacing & budget’s sake, spin a wider and thicker web with many signficant differences. At the risk of sounding overly theoretical and metaphysical, let’s examine the main changes between the novel and film. Which is better – the book or the movie, you ask? Well, that’s entirely up to you. However, if you have not read the book, stop reading now if you wish to avoid spoilers…

Several important characters were in the book but not the film. Most crucially:

Eddie Scissons: An oldtimer who originally owned Ray’s farm. He also claims some fame as the oldest living Chicago Cub (or is he?)

Richard Kinsella: Ray’s identical twin brother. He has a girlfriend named Gypsy and whether by design or by intent, he cannot see the field or the players…

Abner Bluestein: Real estate business partner of Ray’s skeptical brother-in-law Mark.

JD Salinger: The book’s version of Terrence Mann. In real life Salinger threatened to sue if his personage was used in the film, so the fictional character of Mann, brilliantly played by James Earl Jones, was created.

Other important book to film differences:

  • In the book, “the voice” that Ray heard was not a whisper. It was in the form of an old-style PA announcer. (Think Tex Rickards and you’ll get the idea.) This type of voice really puts a spooky charge into the creation of Ray’s leap of faith endeavor.
  • Ray only built one part of the field at a time, not the whole thing like in the movie.
  • The players didn’t disappear into the cornfield. Rather they exited the ballpark through a door in the left field wall. This was historically (at least partially) accurrate as many ballparks in the deadball era didn’t have tunnels through the dugout to the clubhouse. Most parks back then had their clubhouse entrances somewhere in the outfield, and some didn’t even have visitors clubhouses at all.
  • One of the most common questions among fans of the movie is “where do the players go when they disappear?” Well, this question was directly addressed in the book. When Ray asked the players what becomes of them when they leave the field, Sox first baseman Chick Gandil answers “we sleep.” “And wait”, says Happy Felsch. “And dream…oh, how we dream,” adds Shoeless Joe Jackson. Taken literally, this would attest to what Jackson and others alluded to in the film, in that there IS an afterlife and the players are fully conscious of it. Taken figuratively, one can assume the players simply don’t know where they came from, how, or why they are there, which Jackson also hinted at in the film. This whole scene is open for endless debate. (My personal theory is that the Black Sox were in a sort of purgatory, while honest, noble players like Ray’s father, were in heaven—yet all former players got to enjoy their Lazarus-like resurrection to this Edenic field regardless of which afterlife they came from.)
  • When the field is fully built, a semi-transparent mirage of an entire stadium completes the effect, with ghostly players appearing along with the “real” players that first came to Ray’s field, which only Ray and his family can see or talk to. As such, they got to watch entire games and not just practices as were shown for much of the film.

Thus, while not surprising that the novel lays out more detail and enriches the storyline, there is no real wrong answer as to which is better. Both are excellent. Yet the novel, in several ways, delves a bit deeper into the actual baseball angle, with several subtle references and offering tidbits of folklore about the game. While many of these are not present in the film, studying the book gives one that “oh! NOW that makes sense!” feeling when watching the movie.

My advice: Enjoy both the book and film for the full experience of this magical story.

…and go have a catch with someone.

 

 

 

Ode to the ‘Ol Ballpark

My usual jogging route through my neighborhood takes me right up to St. Joe’s Park, the place where I, and my older brothers before me, played little league from ages 7 to 14. Today however, I decided to jog a bit further and actually go into the park itself, the first time I’ve looked at it up close in over 20 years.

Whoosh! The feeling of nostalgia and influx of memories was stronger than I anticipated. Being completely alone on a gray morning in a place where I spent so much of my youth was equally enjoyable and forlorn. Leaning up against the fence and staring out over the field where I logged countless innings that felt like ages ago, and yet not so much. If I imagined hard enough, I could actually see myself out there as a kid, hear the echoes of the old P.A. system, see the lights at old Coaches Corner, and hear the annoying, endless buzzing of the air conditioner at the concession stand. Though the park and league are still in operation (going into it’s 76th year), it’s a ghost of it’s own past – my past. This of course, was the park where:

  • At age 4, I tripped over a curb and went headlong into a fencepost, requiring stitches.
  • My 12 year old All Star team won the Zone tournament title (the hottest doubleheader in the history of earth) to advance to the Bronco World Series in Citrus Heights, California.
  • I once hit my Mom in the stands with a foul ball and still feel guilty about it to this day.
  • I threw a complete game shutout with 14 strikeouts for my team’s only regular-season victory when I was 14.
  • My teammate, Dan Markun and I each hit two homeruns in the same game and were staged to mimic the Canseco/McGwire “Bash Brothers” pose for the local newspaper photo. Beyond cheesy.
  • My second homer from the above story came on a knuckleball at the end of an extremely long at-bat, and right after the catcher promised me I was about to strike out. As I cockily walked down the first base line, I said “nice pitch man!” to the pitcher. The one and only time I ever talked trash on the field.
  • My grade school team, St. Raymond, completely dominated the entire season en route to a State Championship when I was in 8th grade. Many say the greatest team in IESA history.
  • You were a local legend if you put a home run on the roof of Bailey’s, the store in right center field, or hit one over the Greeen Monster in center. I did this twice.
  • I learned to absolutely loathe John Fogerty’s Centerfield, when it was played over the P.A. no less than 6,938 times during my 12-year old All Star season.

I often wish I would’ve viewed the game then the same way I do now…I may have played well after High School. I could go on forever blabbing this anecdotal material and perhaps I will expound upon some in a later post(s), but the essence of what I felt this morning was about the connection to the past and the fond retrospection of youth that baseball, specifically the ballpark itself, can provide. Like no other sport’s field, rink, or court of play, an old ballpark has a hauntingly charming atmosphere that should be revered. I was reminded of this today in full force.

It doesn’t have to have an altar and stained glass windows to be considered a church.