I saw the St. Louis Cardinals play the Seattle Mariners, Part Three

What I saw: the St. Louis Cardinals play the Seattle Mariners at Safeco Field. The Cardinals hit six solo home runs from the sixth inning on and won 11-6.

 

What I wore: black Nike sneakers (same as the previous day), tan Levi's jeans (same as two days before), light red Arizona Cardinals t-shirt, faded blue Cardinals hat.

What I did beforehand: continued a multi-day conversation/argument on the phone with my older brother about whether St. Louis is the most racist place in the United States and how that impacts rooting for the Cardinals. (My argument, which I'm not sure my brother ultimately agreed with, involved a complicated, lengthy cooking analogy about how the basic ingredients of racism-- political disenfranchisement, economic oppression, threats of or actual violence by the police or white citizens, etc.-- exists everywhere in this country, but that each local area combines them in a slightly different recipe based upon local conditions. So while the racist stew dished out by the white people of St. Louis may be particularly repulsive, it's not necessarily all that different or worse than a similar city such as Cincinnati or Baltimore. My brother's argument involved a lengthy list of all the horrible things that have ever happened in St. Louis.)

Who went with me: my friends Dorothy and Paul, whose daughter went to preschool with my daughter almost twenty years ago.

How I got tickets: Mariners ticket office-- the friendly ticket agent helped me choose different but excellent seats for all three games.

Why I saw this game: I've loved the Cardinals ever since I was a little kid. There were a lot of other Cardinals fans there as well.

Pretty much everybody in red in this picture is a Cardinals fan.

Where I sat: section 245, row 2, seat 12. These seats were in the club section, which has it's own concessions area and padded, slightly-wider seats. There were ushers who would take your order and bring food to your seat if you wanted (we didn't). The bathrooms in our section, though, were some of the dirtiest I've ever seen at Safeco Field.

Things that were sad: one of my all-time favorite Mariners, injury-plagued Franklin Gutierrez, hit a three-run home run in the sixth inning to tie the game at 6-6. 

Things that were funny: the Mariners gave all dads belated Fathers Day barbeque tongs.

If you weren't a dad, you couldn't get one

Things that were not funny: the people behind me had a long conversation with a young man who seemed to be some sort of relative (but maybe not a son) about how to choose a fraternity when he heads off to college.

What it is: a satisfying ending to a weekend spent watching baseball.

Who should see it: me and my friends and the chatty Mariners fan who sat in front of us who once worked for a year-and-a-half in St. Louis for the circulation department of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. 

What I saw on the way home: a lot of people were leaving Seattle Pride at the same time that the game ended, so the light rail was very crowded (but not as crowded as some train riders (who were telling people on the platform not to try to get on) seemed to think). 

(Thanks to How Way Leads On To Way for the inspiration.)

I saw the St. Louis Cardinals play the Seattle Mariners, Part Two

What I saw: the St. Louis Cardinals play the Seattle Mariners at Safeco Field. The Cardinals were down 5-0 after two innings, mounted a comeback, but ultimately lost 5-4.

 

What I wore: black Nike sneakers (comfortable but old), grey Levi's jeans, red Cardinals Busch Stadium 1966-2005 commemorative t-shirt, black Champion warm-up jacket that doesn't fit very well, faded blue Cardinals hat.

What I did beforehand: went for dinner to the Phnom Penh Noodle House in the International District. I had the Tender Duck Noodle Soup and my friend had the Foursome Beef Noodle Soup, both of which we enjoyed. This restaurant is owned by the family of former students at my school, so I spent some time reminiscing and catching up with the mom of two boys who will now be going into 8th and 11th grade.

Who went with me: my friend/fellow teacher/fellow union activist Michael. 

How I got tickets: bought them several weeks ago at the Safeco Field ticket office. Details are here.

Why I saw this game: I have traveled thousands of miles just to see a Cardinals game-- it would be ridiculous to not see every Cardinals game on one of their rare visits to Seattle.

Where I sat: section 116, row 20, seat 1. These seats were in the outfield down the first base side, and, because of that, were in prime foul ball territory. The view was quite good, but it was actually somewhat terrifying-- several line drives came into the general area of where we were sitting, one of which ricocheted and hit a man in the face, giving him a bloody nose. I regretted forgetting to bring my glove.

Things that were sad: the man getting hit in the face by the ball; the Cardinals losing for the second night in a row by a single run; how slow Yadier Molina runs.

Things that were funny: in the middle of the fifth inning, a shoeless fan wearing an American flag draped over his shoulders ran out onto the field and almost interfered with a fly ball being caught. 

The fan being escorted off the field after being tackled by security

Things that were not funny: we were sitting directly in front of a very loud and entertaining older Black Cardinals fan from St. Louis. When the Cardinals did well, she would celebrate very boisterously by dancing, hollering, and waving her Cardinals blanket around. At one point during one of her celebrations, someone in the almost all-white crowd behind us started throwing popcorn at her. She then proceeded to pretty loudly announce to those around us that she's from St. Louis and not to be messed with. The popcorn throwing stopped after that. Remember-- racism is real folks, even out here in "liberal" Seattle.

What it is: an expression of loyalty that I would gladly make again and again to waste this much time and money watching my favorite baseball team lose two nights in a row.

Who should see it: anyone who enjoys sitting outside on a beautiful summer night watching grown men run around playing a game. Also anyone who enjoys remembering 1980s baseball uniforms, movies, music, and computer graphics-- it was Throwback Night and everything was 1980s-related.

What I saw on the way home: a young adult on the light rail with what appeared to be either his mother or his much-older girlfriend returning home from the game; several glum-looking Cardinals fans; junk mail in my mailbox when I got back to my building.

(Thanks to How Way Leads On To Way for inspiration.)

I saw the St. Louis Cardinals play the Seattle Mariners, Part One

What I saw: the St. Louis Cardinals play the Seattle Mariners at Safeco Field in Seattle. The Mariners won, 4-3, on a 9th inning walk-off three run home run by Adam Lind off Trevor Rosenthal.

 

What I wore: newish grey Nike sneakers, tan Levi's jeans (most comfortable pair of pants I own), unremarkable blue polo shirt, black Helly Hansen rain jacket, faded blue Cardinals hat

What I did beforehand: waited at my apartment for my friend Pete to arrive from work on his bike; drove him in my truck over to his house to drop off his bike; drove over to the Beacon Hill light rail station and parked my truck; took light rail to the stadium.

Who went with me: my friend Pete (see above). I took him to the game in honor of his birthday which was the previous week.

How I got tickets: the last time the Cardinals were in Seattle was back in 2002. I had always promised myself that I would go to every game in the series the next time the Redbirds returned. When I saw this three game series on the schedule, I took the light rail down to the Safeco Field ticket office to buy tickets to all three games (to save on service charges and delivery fees which typically add a sizable amount to any online ticket order). At the time that I bought the tickets, I had no idea who would be going with me to each game.

Why I saw this game: I grew up in St. Louis,  where everyone (except one or two crackpots in my family who claimed to originally be Browns fans) roots for the Cardinals pretty much from birth. Many of the most memorably traumatic moments of my life revolve around Cardinals losses, starting in 1974 with the time I cried inconsolably after Cubs catcher Steve Swisher dropped a third strike to allow the Pittsburgh Pirates to clinch the NL East title and knock the Cardinals out of playoff contention. I was six years old.

Where I sat: section 109, row 37, seat 7. One of my favorite places to sit-- easy access from the south-east gate at Safeco Field; on the first level of the outfield so there's a realistic chance of catching a home run ball. The other fans in our section were friendly, rowdy (but not drunk), profane, and knowledgeable-- can't really ask for more (except for fans to refrain from shouting out racist insults-- see below).

Things that were sad: the Cardinals held a 3-1 lead going into the 9th inning but lost.

Things that were funny: from where we were seated, we could not see the Tyranno-Vision screen, so we did not have a lot of information about players and stats (nor were we close enough to see the players faces clearly). I haven't followed the Cardinals quite as closely in the past few years as I have in previous years, so I don't know all the numbers of the players. Because of this, I somehow convinced myself the Cardinals were pitching Michael Wacha instead of Carlos Martinez. It was only in about the sixth inning that I finally figured out my mistake.

 

 Wacha (left) and Martinez (right)

Things that were not funny: at one point early in the game, the Mariner's Dae-Ho Lee, an enormous south Korean slugger who has become something a fan favorite this year, came up to bat. In the section around me, several people made racist comments, most notably the guy behind us who shouted out, "Konnichwa, motherfucker!!!!" Once again, Seattle's self-annointed reputation for open-mindedness and tolerance is shown to not actually be the case. 

What it is: a sport, played by professionals, in front of a crowd of paying customers (and others watching on television).

Who should see it: Cardinals fans, Mariners fans, baseball fans, and even people who aren't baseball fans-- this was a game that almost anyone who have found enthralling.

What I saw on the way home: the most erraticly-driven light rail train I've ever ridden on. 

(Thanks to How Way Leads On To Way for the inspiration.)

The end of the world gets closer every day #1

Friday, July 13, 2012 was EQC Girls Night Out at Safeco Field. In addition to watching the Seattle Mariners lose to the Texas Rangers 3-2, female fans had the opportunity to get manicures, massages, and various beauty treatments. (See photos above and below)

No word yet about when Boys Night Out will be taking place.

What I think I know about this past weekend's Mariners-A's series

The Seattle Mariners were in Oakland this past weekend for a three-game series with the A's. I listened to the last half inning of Friday's game on the radio and saw the last few innings of Sunday's game on television. In addition, I skimmed a few articles on the internet and listened to a couple of minutes of sports talk radio at various points over the weekend. I don't normally follow either club all that closely (although I do live in the same city that the Mariners play in and do have a certain fondness for the A's) and probably could name less than a dozen players who play for the two teams combined. What follows is my report about what happened over the course of this weekend's series. Note-- the spelling of all names is merely an approximation.

• The A's won on Friday night in extra innings. Chris Carter, who I believe is a first baseman, hit a three-run walk-off home run to win the game 4-1. There is no reason to believe that Chris Carter is related to the former Minnesota Vikings wide receiver who has basically the same name. (See photo below)

• The Mariners won 7-1 on Saturday. Vargas pitched well for Seattle. I am pretty sure that his first name is Jason.
• The A's won on Sunday 2-1 in 13 innings (maybe it was 12) on a walk-off double or single (hit by some guy who might have had blond or light-brown hair) that scored Jemil Weeks all the way from first base. I am not actually sure about the spelling of Weeks's first name, but I do wonder if he is related to Ricky Weeks, who might still be playing for the Milwaukee Brewers.
• On Sunday, the starting pitchers were Bartolo Colon and Felix Hernandez. Bartolo Colon is pretty old and doesn't appear to be in the best physical shape, but he apparently still pitches well. Felix Hernandez does pitch well but will someday almost surely leave the Mariners for a far better, far wealthier club. (See photos below)

Above: Bartolo Colon 

Below: Felix Hernandez looking at his glove

• Sunday's game featured an appearance by Mariners reliever Oliver Perez. Some of you may remember Perez from his days as a New York Met, for whom he pitched in the 2006 playoffs.
• Sunday's game was also marked at the end by several visual distractions which made it difficult for the players to field fly balls and pop-ups-- a high sun and a swarm of seagulls flying over the diamond (probably more than a hundred).

Below: An example of seagulls-- not the actual ones from Sunday's game

• On Sunday, both teams wore uniforms different from the ones they normally wear. At first, I took them to be the uniforms of their minor league affiliates, but further research indicates that the teams were wearing throwback uniforms of the Seattle Rainiers and Oakland Oaks of the old Pacific Coast League.
• In each game, the losing team only scored one run.
• The two pitching staffs are ranked first and second in pitching in the American League, but I am not sure which team is first and which is second. I am also not sure what statistics were being used in these rankings. This information comes from the Mariners television announcers during Sunday's game. These announcers also claimed that today's baseball players rarely listen to "oldies music".
• The A's and the Mariners are in 3rd and 4th place respectively in the American League West; the A's are exactly at the .500 mark, and the Mariner's record is around 36-51.

Next up-- the All-Star Game!

For actual, more reliable information about these games, you could start by clicking here, here, or here.

All about bobblehead dolls

The Seattle Weekly website has an interesting article about Seattle Mariners bobbleheads and how they are made.

I have a Franklin Gutierrez bobblehead doll

Last night my wife, daughter, and I went to see the Seattle Mariners lose 9-0 to the Cleveland Indians. It was also Franklin Gutierrez Bobblehead Night (see picture, above). Earlier this week, Manny Ramirez hit a pinch-hit grand slam for the Dodgers at Manny Ramirez Bobblehead Night, and we were hoping for something similar from Franklin Gutierrez. It didn't happen, though-- he went 0-for-2 with a walk (see picture, below).

Gutierrez also tried, but failed, to catch a home run hit by Travis Haffner in the 7th inning. (see picture, below).

Also at the game were such celebrities as Flo Rida and members of the Everton FC squad, including Tim Cahill (below, holding the baseball), who has the same birthday as I do.

Elvis Andrus gets a haircut

Elvis Andrus, shortstop for the Texas Rangers, gets his hair cut. The barber's name apparently is Montro99. For those of you who are interested, here is his website.

For those of you who would like to see Mariners pitcher Felix Hernandez get his hair cut, click here.

Facts you might not know about Kevin Appier

Here are some facts you might not know about Kevin Appier:

• Kevin Appier was a right-handed pitcher for the Royals, Athletics, Mets, Angels, and Royals (again).
• Kevin Appier pitched in the major leagues from 1989 to 2004.
• Kevin Appier had a career record of 169-137 with an ERA of 3.74.
• Kevin Appier's best season was probably 1993, when he went 18-8 with a 2.56 ERA for the Royals.
• Kevin Appier made 5 postseason appearances with the Athletics and Angels, and his record was 0-2.
• Kevin Appier was once traded for Mo Vaughn (2001).
• Kevin Appier briefly attempted a comeback in 2006. He pitched for the Tacoma Rainiers, AAA affiliate of the Seattle Mariners. During that time, I went to a Rainiers game and got to see Kevin Appier hanging out in the bullpen. According to the journal entry I made at the time-- "Tacoma won 1-0 --We mostly watched Kevin Appier in the bullpen-- spewing out sunflower seed shells, spitting large amounts of a clear fluid, leaning back, and once stamping his feet." (See photos below, taken by Jeremy, a friend of my step-brother Justin).

• If you search on the internet, it is possible to find people who believe that Kevin Appier deserves to be in baseball's Hall of Fame.
• Kevin Appier was born on December 6, 1967, the exact same day I was.

Historically significant baseball games I have attended #3

Who was playing? Baltimore Orioles versus Seattle Mariners

Where did they play? Safeco Field, Seattle, WA

When did they play? July 15, 2005

Did I know this game might be significant before it started? Yes. The only reason I wanted to go was to have a chance to see someone get their 3000th hit.

What happened? Rafael Palmeiro, first baseman for the Baltimore Orioles, got his 3000th hit, a double to left field in the 5th inning off Mariners pitcher Joel Pineiro.

What do I remember? The Orioles were in Seattle, and Rafael Palmeiro had 2999 hits. I convinced my daughter that we needed to go see the game. We sat out in the left field bleachers.

In his first two at-bats, Rafael Palmeiro walked and grounded out. At one point, he hit a long foul ball down the right field line, and the crowd groaned in disappointment. Finally, in the 5th inning, Rafael Palmeiro hit a line drive into left field that sliced towards the corner and barely stayed fair. Rafael Palmeiro ended up with a double. Everyone cheered and his team came out onto the field to surround and congratulate him. (Picture below)

One of the important things about sitting in the left field bleachers at Safeco Field is that you can not see the out-of-town scoreboard. At the same time the Orioles were playing the Mariners, the Cardinals were playing the Houston Astros in St. Louis. Throughout the game, my daughter and I took breaks to walk down to where we could get a look at the out-of-town scoreboard. Every time we checked, it seemed like the score was 2-2 - in the 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th. Finally, in the top of the 13th inning, we saw that Houston had gone ahead 3-2, and my daughter and I were very sad. But when we checked a little while later, we saw that the final score was 4-3 and the Cardinals had won. We both were very happy and started screaming and jumping up and down. The Mariners fans around us probably thought that we were crazy. When my daughter and I got home, we found out that Albert Pujols had hit a two-run home run to win the game.

Was there an aftermath? The Orioles won the game 6-3. They finished the season in 4th place in the American League East with a record of 74-88. Rafael Palmeiro had already testified to Congress (in March of 2005) that he had never used steroids. However, in August, 2005, he was suspended for ten days by Major League Baseball for violating the league's policy on performance-enhancing drugs. It is now unlikely that Rafael Palmeiro will be elected to the Hall of Fame, even though, with his career numbers, he certainly deserves it.

Below: Rafael Palmeiro testifying before Congress: "I have never intentionally used steroids."

The St. Louis Cardinals finished in first place in the National League Central with a record of 100-62. They beat the San Diego Padres in the first round of the playoffs but ultimately lost to the Houston Astros in the National League Championship Series. Albert Pujols continues to play first base for the Cardinals. He has not been implicated in any steroids-related scandals.

Albert Pujols watching a home run he hit against the Houston Astros, just not the home run he hit on July 15, 2005.

Historically significant baseball games I have attended #2

Who was playing? Cleveland Indians versus Seattle Mariners

Where did they play? The Kingdome, Seattle, WA

When did they play? May 2, 1996

Did I know this game might be significant before it started? No. I was just looking forward to seeing the Indians play the Mariners, a rematch of the previous year's American League Championship Series.

What happened? Ken Behring, owner of the Seattle Seahawks, had been publicly demanding a new stadium for his football team. If not given one, he threatened to move the Seahawks to some other city where they appreciated and supported football. Behring claimed that the Kingdome would collapse in the event of an earthquake. King County owned the stadium, and their officials and engineers insisted that the Kingdome was completely safe, even though there had already been serious problems back in 1994 - collapsing ceiling tiles, cancelled baseball games, and two deaths during repair work.

On May 2, 1996, in the 7th inning of the Indians-Mariners game, Seattle was struck by an earthquake measuring 5.4 on the Richter scale.

Ken Behring doing charitable work.

What do I remember? My friend Jeremy was visiting from New York, and we wanted to see the Indians play, mostly because they had Albert Belle. (For those of you too young to remember Albert Belle, just imagine Milton Bradley on steroids.)

Jeremy and I had seats pretty high up on the third base side. The box score shows that Albert Belle hit a home run, but I don't remember anything about that. All I remember is that Orel Hershiser pitched well for Cleveland until the 7th inning. Indians manager Mike Hargrove was walking out to the mound to replace Hershiser when the earthquake struck.

I remember how the entire row we were sitting in suddenly started rocking forwards and backwards and a little bit to the right. When I looked around to see what kind of moron was kicking the seats so hard, I saw that all the seats everywhere were doing the same thing. My next thought was that the building was spontaneously collapsing (it happens sometimes). Finally I either heard or thought the magic word - "earthquake" - and figured out what was happening. Jeremy later told me I had a big smile on my face. I remember mostly just wondering who was right - Ken Behring or the King County engineers.

The earthquake was over pretty quickly. It was very quiet, and there was no noticeable damage. Everyone evacuated the Kingdome in a calm and orderly fashion, except for one short, agitated woman who came shoving her way down the exit ramp - "There's an earthquake! Earthquake! Earthquake! Everyone out of my way! Earthquake! Earthquake!" We all stepped aside and let her go through and then continued our own evacuation.

Was there an aftermath? The game was obviously suspended at that point, and the Kingdome was declared safe by the engineers and inspectors in time for the next day's game. The two teams finished the suspended game (the Indians won) before playing their regularly-scheduled game (the Indians won that, too). I didn't go see the ending of the game, but I have enjoyed telling this story for many years.

Albert Belle shows the Boston Red Sox where his power comes from during the 1995 playoffs.