Category: OLD SPORT SHORTS (Page 62 of 68)

An old guy’s perspective on all sports

Old Sport Shorts: Sweeps #238

August 31, 2017 / mikeljohnston1 / 0 Comments

The Cubs just pulled off a surprising three-game sweep of the Pirates, offsetting early season Pirates domination. There was a point back in April when I honestly thought that the Pirates were the team to beat in the Central, but that was before the Starling Marte suspension. Currently, Pittsburgh is 10 games behind the Cubs, even though the Pirates had a 7-5 edge going into August. The Cubs now hold a slim one-game margin before next week’s four-game final series of the year. Those games in Pittsburgh will have a big impact on the Central Division in the final month of the regular season.

The Cubs haven’t pulled off as many series sweeps as I thought they would this year. They did not have a single sweep in April, but were swept themselves by the Pirates. The Yankees, Dodgers, and Padres also pulled-off sweeps against the Cubs as part of a disappointing month of May. They did manage to counter with all 3 games against the Reds in May, and have won at least one game in every series since. They started the month of June with a sweep of the Cardinals, followed by consecutive sweeps of the Orioles and Braves just after the All Star Break. The Cubs are now 29-15 since the break. Plus, they took all three against the Blue Jays and now the Pirates in August. There seems to be some consistency that was missing in the first two months the year when they were apparently suffering from that World Series hangover.

The Braves are currently in Chicago for four games, before the team heads to Pittsburgh. Then the Brewers come to Wrigley to try to diminish that 3 1/2 game lead. This is where the season gets exciting, but the Cubs will be hard to catch if they continue playing at their current .659 winning percentage since the break. The Brewers next face the Nationals and Reds before their first of six final shots against the division-leading Cubs. Only 30 games left on the 2017 Cubs schedule, and if they can win 20 that would give them 92 total wins and a ticket to the Playoffs. The red hot Dodgers already have 91 victories to lead the majors, but the dangerous Brewers recently brought their brooms and bats to the ballpark and gave them their first black eye since the Nationals did it back in June.

Can the Cubs continue their 3-game winning streak? It would be comforting to start September with a couple of sweeps and a winning streak. At the very least, they need to maintain that important record of not being swept since May. Let’s Go Cubs.

Retirement is not without Hassles: Honeybucket #236

August 30, 2017 / mikeljohnston1 / 0 Comments

The sun is not out this morning, for the first time in a while. I tend to count the dreaded days of rain, but take for granted the sunshine. Six months of dreariness will start soon, and we’ll all begin to anticipate those brief sun breaks between rain showers. Some of the cloudiness today is apparently attributed to smoke from forest fires in Canada and Washington state. The air quality is suffering, and a downpour would help wash the ashes from the sky. I’m just afraid that when it starts, it won’t stop!

I took the dogs down to Starbucks for some boredom-breaking exercise and a treat. I haven’t been very good to them the past few weeks with all my focus on the relay. I haven’t felt like extra walks with them, but the soreness from training and running is now faint. I got my cup of Tranquility Tea with honey and have settled into my office chair. It’s almost reminiscent of a day at work that hasn’t happened now in 8 months. Friends tease me about having a difficult adjustment, since I haven’t missed the daily grind in the slightest. I enjoy my freedom and make no secret about it. I’ve been able to travel, get in better shape, learn to cook, and keep busy. I would honestly not know what day it is, but my wife mentioned on her way to work this morning that it is “Date Night.” That translates to Wednesday, her hump day, and a new restaurant of her choosing to try tonight for dinner. By the way, my Beer Can Chicken (done with a Diet Coke can instead) that I grilled last night turned out to be the tenderest, most delicious meat we’ve ever had. I’ll enjoy some leftovers for lunch today.

My wife is looking forward to the Labor Day Holiday and the associated three-day weekend for her. She’s provided a couple of movie options for us to go to on that extra day, since movie night is being displaced with a “Bite of Oregon” fundraiser. I’ll have to stray from my retirement uniform (See Post #150) to be socially presentable for this event. I wonder what travel package she’ll bid on? I do plan to help some friends bottle wine from their vineyard this weekend. It will help me keep stocked up on Pinot for the year, and give me a sense of manual labor that I typically tend to avoid. I may have to take my wife to Cracker Barrel (See Post #233) since it’s near their home, if she agrees to help us. It’s a big diversion from her five-star dining tastes, but she’s a big fan of the Hashbrown Casserole. She would also like to visit some other vineyards, and pick-up our membership allotment at Stoller.

My Alma Mater, Indiana University (I.U.), will probably be humiliated by Ohio State in a rare, first-game conference football match-up tomorrow night. Ohio State fans consider it to be just a practice game against a powder-puff squad. I personally can’t wait until basketball season, a game where we can be competitive. In the meantime, the Cubs have pleasantly surprised me by winning their first two games of the series with the Pirates. The Cubbies are definitely not the dominant team they were last year, and will probably struggle to get into the Playoffs. (See Post #231: Old Sport Shorts). I’ll watch this evening as the Cubs go for the sweep. I did my sweeping and dusting yesterday!

I ran three miles this morning, as I continue to internally debate my running future. I should probably do a Half-Marathon since I’ve spent all this time in training. There’s the “Run Like Hell” on October 22nd and the “Holiday Half” on December 10th that are on my radar. I rediscovered that I really don’t like the pressure associated with competitive running, but at least this would not be a team effort. At this point, the more serene Holiday theme seems more appealing than running like hell! As a side note, I just completed day 3,167 of my running streak dating back to December 29, 2008. I also moved up to slot #207 on the international list of running streaks, after four runners apparently vacated their streaks for one reason or another. During the Hood to Coast Relay, I also met the wife of one of my wife’s sales managers who is ranked #333 on this list. It’s the first time I’ve actually met another crazy streak runner like myself in person. Her streak is at 2,052 days. Another woman from her home town of nearby Lake Oswego is just three days behind me on the list. I have been in touch with her through e-mail, and just missed meeting her on race day. Her talented team narrowly missed a first place finish in their division, as an intoxicated participant stole a truck belonging to Honeybucket, a portable restroom company, and drove it into a field of sleeping bags. A woman was injured and the race disrupted at that point. I, too, was in a sleeping bag at that time, already feeling like I’d been run over by a truck, after just completing my second leg.

Old Sport Shorts: Oops #231

August 28, 2017 / mikeljohnston1 / 0 Comments

Just when I thought the Cubs were on a roll (see Post #228), they stumbled and fell instead. They lost the final game of the series to the bottom-dwelling Reds and then proceeded to lose a series at Philadelphia – the worst team in baseball. Although the Cubs outscored them 21-15 in the three games, pitching continued to be their Achilles Heel. What makes matters worse is that the Brewers are starting to play great baseball, winning their series against the Dodgers, who hadn’t lost a series to any team since June. Chicago still maintains a 2-game lead in the Central, but they’ll have to get by the Pirates at home and rely on the Cards to slow the Brewers momentum. It’s frustrating to see that no team in the Central is taking command, especially the Cubbies when the schedule favors them. Oops!

College football started over the weekend, and the Oregon State Beavers fared poorly. I was also disappointed to see that Ohio State had a 95% probability of beating Indiana this week. It’s embarrassing to be an I.U. alumni during football season, when you see an opposing conference team come in to your stadium and literally take-over the stands. I once heard that I.U. takes recruiting pictures of this game, including aerial shots, because it’s the only time the stadium is full and everyone is wearing red. It’s also the only opportunity for some Buckeye fans to see their team play, since a ticket in Columbus is hard to get. I.U. fans are glad to sell their tickets at a premium and avoid the humiliation of another loss. It’s hard to walk by all the temporary concessions selling buckeye necklaces and flags, while nobody is in line to buy Hoosier gear. Once more, the fact that Indiana was chosen as their opening game opponent, like we’re a Division II practice game, makes me feel second-rate LITTLE in the BIG conference. Hopefully, basketball season will be here soon.

Speaking of basketball, Archie Miller, I.U.’s new coach (See Post #35) got his first big-time recruit, 6′ 8″ Race Thompson, out of Minnesota. He’ll red shirt for a year, hoping to bolster his 4-star, #101 ranking in the 247 Sports Composite, before he faces BIG opposition. It’s a great name for a basketball player in Indiana, home of the Indianapolis 500 and Daytona 500, but I hope he’s not slow. I can’t wait until January 30, 2018 when Ohio State is done playing football and I.U. gets to take over Value City Arena, wearing our flashy red-and-white striped warm-up pants. Hopefully, I’ll be proud to be a Hoosier again by that point. At least, there will be no more Thad Motta, just Chris Holtmann, another Butler steal for the Buckeyes.

I’m also excited for the Chicago Bears, who seem surprisingly competitive in the preseason. It turns out they weren’t booing Mitchell Trubisky, just saying TRU…. Former I.U. running back stand-out, Jordan Howard, will be with him in the backfield this year. I had the pleasure of watching Howard dominate the Vikings at Soldier Field last year, just after enjoying the Cubs victory in Game 5 of the World Series at Wrigley. It was quite an eventful Halloween weekend in Chicago. Chances are that the other popular I.U. star, Kyle Schwarber of the Cubs, won’t be getting a chance for a back-to-back World Series victory. The lowly Phillies certainly had their say.

Old Sport Shorts: Cubs on a roll? #228

August 24, 2017 / mikeljohnston1 / 0 Comments

The Cubs are 12-9 in the month of August, including the victory in San Francisco that I got to personally witness. It was the only game the Cubs won against the Giants on another west coast road trip that didn’t go in their favor. They started the month losing back-to-back series to the D-Backs and Nats at Wrigley, causing much concern among the faithful. They got some redemption against the D-Backs, taking a series from them in Arizona, but then fell flat on their faces against the lowly Reds at home, salvaging a 2-2 split. This was the low point of August, watching the team struggle against both Division leaders and now bottom dwellers. Somehow, the Cubs held on to first place in the surprisingly weak Central. The Brewers, Cards, and Pirates have all been losing ground. The Reds have played .500 ball, the Brewers have gone 11-10, the Cardinals 12-9, including an 8-game winning streak, and the Pirates a disappointing 10-12, including a walk-off home run finale in the 10th after suffering through a regulation no hitter by Rich Hill of the Dodgers.

The Cubs are now on a roll, having won their last 6 games and stand 10 games over .500 for the year. Granted they’ve been victories against teams like the Blue Jays and Reds, but they’re 3.5 games up on the Brewers, 4.5 against the Cards, and in contention for a Wild Card. They wrap-up against the Reds today, hopefully keeping that winning streak intact, and then travel to play the worst team in baseball, the Philadelphia Phillies, and wrap up the month with the Pirates and Braves at home. I like their chances of going into September with a 4 or 5 game lead in the Central. There are only 38 games remaining on the schedule, 6 against the Pirates, 7 versus the Brewers, 7 with the Cards, and 4 left with the Reds. The Braves, Mets, and Rays are their only outside-Division opponents remaining, and none of these teams are even Wild Card contenders, so the schedule does favor the Cubs.

The cautious optimism stops there! With regard to the top teams in baseball, the Cubs have struggled. They are 2-5 against Colorado, 2-4 against the Dodgers and even Padres, 3-4 versus the Nationals, and may have some trouble come playoff time. The pitching has improved, but relievers have given up too many runs in clutch situations, and starters have not gone deep enough into games. I’m glad to see that Schwarber and Heyward are becoming better hitters, and that Alex Avila has been able to step-in for the injured Willson Contreras. Ian Happ continues to play well, and Addison Russell is about to rejoin the team for the stretch. Things are looking up for the Cubs, at least until the Playoffs.

Old Sport Shorts: What’s Next #221

August 17, 2017 / mikeljohnston1 / 0 Comments

The Cubs couldn’t take out the lowly Reds and expand their Central Division lead. This sets off a loud alarm, as we head into the home stretch. Cubs hitting has been all-or-nothing, they haven’t dominated individual series, and relief pitching has been atrocious. Today, it was starting pitching, as John Lester gave up 7 earned runs in the second inning. It was part of a 9-run barrage, reminiscent of the Big Red Machine of years long passed. The Cubs were somehow able to rebound from this deficit only to give up more in relief. It was just like yesterday, when the inconsistent Cubbies jumped out to a five-run lead, lost it, and then regained it for victory. At least this series ended in a 2-2 split, with Joe Madden facing a fine for arguing a really bad call.

The only good news in the loss is that Red’s reliever, Drew Storen, got the victory, his fourth of the season. He is the son of a former co-worker that I’ve followed as he moved from Stanford University, to the Washington Nationals, Toronto Blue Jays, Seattle Mariners, and currently the Cincinnati Reds. It’s rare when you know a Major Leaguer, but he’s actually the second that I’ve encountered via friendship in this lifetime. The other was Scott Rolen, the son-in-law of a former boss. Both of my connections actually worked for the same television station in Indianapolis, as I did. Even more remarkably is the fact that Drew Storen and T.J. Yates, currently a back-up QB with the Buffalo Bills, grew up near each other in the Indianapolis area. Drew’s father liked to joke that his son “had the second-best arm in the neighborhood,” even though his fastball approached 100 miles an hour, 410 career strike-outs and 100 career saves. He just pitched an “immaculate inning” earlier this year – nine pitches for three strike-outs. Immaculate is not the word for Cub pitching this year.

Meanwhile on the South Side of Chicago, the White Sox have slipped below 20 games out of first place. Only Philadelphia has fewer wins and no losses. Rookie sensation Yoan Moncado hitting only .185 with two home runs – so much for the future. The Sox lost a tough one to the Dodgers, now 51 games over .500, last night on a walk-off, after leading most of the game. They did recently sweep the Houston Astros before their current four-game losing streak.

Hang in there, Cubs – only a month and a half left in the season before the Playoffs begin. It doesn’t look like St. Louis, Milwaukee, and Pittsburgh “want it” bad enough, as they can’t seem to gain any ground against the struggling Cubs. I’ll be in Chicago for the AL Division series, if they need me, and I’ll be in New York for the World Series. Maybe the Minor League All-Star Game won’t be my last hurrah this year! It’s been a good retirement year, especially if I extend it back to the 2016 World Series at Wrigley. Following that experience, it was spring training in Port Charlotte, Dodger Stadium, AT&T Park, Oregon State, Yankees at White Sox, and both the Minor and Major League All-Star Games. What’s next?

Retirement is not without Hassles: This Land #209

August 10, 2017 / mikeljohnston1 / 0 Comments

The dogs were glad to see me unpacking my bags last night. I’m sure they were disappointed once they figured out that it was just me returning. Their favorite human is in Chicago the rest of this week, so that reunion will have to wait. I takes a while to get reorganized after being away, even though the dog-sitter did her best to keep things in order. Unpacking leads to laundry, and finding space for all the souvenirs you’ve collected. There was a pile of mail awaiting and plants to water. Fortunately, in retirement, there are no work-related messages, unhappy clients, or job-related emergencies.

I’m resting my feet today, after averaging over 21,000 steps a day in touring San Francisco. I have some heel pain, so I did the minimum one-mile run this morning and put an ice bag on my Achilles – to take the “ache” out of the word. All that’s left is “ills,” but more like ills-soothing chills. I’ll continue my training for Hood to Coast tomorrow, and try to stay off my feet as much as possible today. It will give me a chance to catch-up on my writing, that didn’t get a lot of attention while I was being a tourist. My son and his family should be on a plane back to Florida, so my grandfather duties are also officially on hold. It’s just me today – on ice!

It’s about 25,000 miles around the world, and I’m already more than half-way on my second orbit this year. We’ll take a short trip to Seattle in a couple of weeks to see Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, and head back to Indiana in October and December. New York city should be the only other adventure before the New Year, completing the second orbit. We’ll have a new experience this weekend, without traveling far, to see Polo Noir, although it is Bruce Hornsby and the Noisemakers rather than men on horses that is the main attraction for me. I’m not exactly looking forward to replacing divots between chukkas, but the wine, beer, music, and company will be great. Admittedly, I have gone to a polo match before when one of my stations was a sponsor, and did a lot of business with Budweiser in the Midwest. Peter Busch, of the Anheuser-Busch family, was a key participant and financial supporter of the sport that tends to be more popular in Europe. His daughter, Tiffany, is a current star. It is, after all, “The Sport of Kings,” so it’s apropos that the “King of Beers” be closely involved. Budweiser typically sponsors everything, but In this case, it’s the Oregon craft beer brewer, Widmer Brothers, that has the pouring rights. Anheuser-Busch recently bought their competitor, Ten Barrel Brewing, so this Bud is not for you! How about a Hef instead? I’m still struggling on what to wear to the match.

Auto Racing, Baseball, and even Polo will have made this first retirement year memorable, with Soccer, Basketball, and Football yet to go. We have tickets for the Seattle Seahawks, Portland Trailblazers, and the Portland Timbers and will get to games before the year is over, plus the PK80 College Basketball event here in Portland over Thanksgiving weekend. Music has been and will continue to be a big part of 2017. James Blunt, Ed Sheeren, Bruce Hornsby, Tom Petty, The Lumineers, Coldplay, Tadeschi Trucks, Lady Antibellum, Django All-Stars, Flo Rida, Pit Bull, Mick Fleetwood, and Z.Z. Topp will all be a part of the retirement celebration, along with the comedy of Louis C.K. I’m sure that others will be added before the year is over.

Woodie Guthrie can take pleasure in knowing that “This Land is Your Land” is now officially my retirement theme song. I’ve already had the pleasure to travel this year from “the Redwood Forests to the Gulf Stream waters.” I’ve seen “Golden Valleys,” “the Sparkling Sands of her Diamond Deserts,” “Wheat Fields Waving,” and “Fog Lifting.” There are many miles to go on the “Freedom Highway,” and “Nobody Living can ever stop me.” “This Land was made for you and Me.” The retirement tour is coming to a city near you, and T-Shirts will be on sale soon!

Retirement is not without Hassles: Martinis #208

August 9, 2017 / mikeljohnston1 / 0 Comments

It’s the last day of being Grandpa J., as all of us leave San Francisco and return to normal lives. I will miss the kids and even some of their whining. When I get back to Portland, I’ll be totally on my own – a life of retirement, Uncrustables, and seclusion. My wife left for business meetings in Chicago this morning, as well. I’ll have two days to do laundry, clean the house, and resume my dog duties. It should be cooler than the 100 degree temperatures that I left behind last week, but hopefully warmer than it’s been in the City by the Bay.

The city was crowded this morning, as the workforce returned to their offices here in the Financial District. I felt fortunate to be beyond those 8 to 5 responsibilities, and instead enjoyed another day to fill of my own choosing. My flight isn’t until 5, and the rental car will finally be moved from its $62/day parking spot. Our plans got twisted a bit yesterday, and we ended up at the Children’s Creativity Museum, making an animated film with clay-molded characters. In fact, I still have clay under my fingernails this morning. I think we were all a bit burnt-out from the hectic nature of vacation travel, and the fog made the Golden Gate Bridge and any plans to photograph it disappear. My son and his family have been here four days longer, and got got use of the rental car to visit Yosemite Park, but beyond that it has just sat waiting for a clear day to drive over the bridge and into Sausalito. We’ll try again today!

Yesterday’s dining was limited to first names – Carl’s, Jr. and Roy’s. That’s about as wide of gastronomical spectrum as you can get – not-so-fast-food to fine dining. We never did get a table at French Laundry, a restaurant goal that still eludes us. I would never have taken the grand kids along, anyway! Roy’s has always been a favorite of mine, and it was just too close to pass up. Misoyaki butterfish, their delicious chocolate souffle, and a couple of martinis hit the spot. The kids were remarkably well-behaved, but in the background, the Cubs were a disappointment. I’m glad we picked the night before to go to the game, when they won.

It’s time to check-out, pay that $250 fee for rental car storage (what a waste!), and cram-in another day of sight-seeing. Hopefully, the fog will lift, or is that just the after effects of the martinis?

Retirement is not without Hassles: Heart City #207

August 8, 2017 / mikeljohnston1 / 0 Comments

Another cool morning in San Francisco, and I’m enjoying some “my time.” My grand kids are probably in the pool, and my ambitious wife is out making sales calls. She’s off to Chicago tomorrow, while I finish my grandparent duties here in the city. The kids have won my heart, but I won’t see them again for awhile. Also, my wallet has really taken a beating, so it will be good to get home and regroup. We’ll get some Golden Gate pictures today, visit the Presidio (I should have brought along my lifetime senior pass), and maybe go to Muir Woods and/or Sausalito. My wife will join us for dinner tonight.

I just missed another re-connection at the ballpark last night. One of my former co-workers was apparently in the house, but unfortunately didn’t catch his message until this morning. This wasn’t the first time a Face Book connection happened through a post at the ballpark. (See Post #157). I’ll try to catch-up with him today. The Cubs won last night against the Giants – and I saw a first – an inside-the-ballpark home run by Javy Baez. Metallica sang take me out to the Ballpark- another unique experience. There were probably more Cubs fans in the crowd than Giants fans, so it was good to get the “W.”

As usual, we’ll be taking more home than we originally brought. This always accounts for about 10% of our travel budget, but in this case it was closer to 20%. We’ve bought baseball gear. a Limoges box, snow globes, Chinatown junk, jewelry, chocolate (most of that won’t be going home), and souvenirs. We’ll also be taking home a lot of dirty laundry. Major expenses included airfare for 5, rental car, gas, tips, taxis, Uber, two rooms for 5 nights, 6 game tickets, airport/valet parking, and dining for 6, plus admission, trolley, and tour bus tickets for all of us. All in all, it probably cost about 4 months of Social Security for one week of vacation. It is one of the most expensive cities to live-in or visit!

Only 17 days until the Hood to Coast, and I’ve continued to train every day. I’m averaging 4 -5 miles a day on the flat surfaces along the waterfront. When I get back to Portland, I’ll have to do another week of hills before starting to taper-off for race day. I did manage over 26,000 steps yesterday, including the 4.5-mile run, so my legs are tired. I doubt that I’m losing any weight, because ice cream stores keep getting in the way.

Retirement is not without Hassles: Grandpa #206

August 7, 2017 / mikeljohnston1 / 0 Comments

Part of the joy of retirement is having the time to spend with family. I’ve enjoyed being with my grand kids in here San Francisco. They are a bit over two years apart in age, the oldest a boy 10 and the youngest a girl missing her two front teeth. He’s into computers and video games, while she wants everything she sees, and seeks the shiniest objects. My son and his wife went to a Green Day concert at the Oakland Coliseum, so my wife and I got babysitting duty. I think they were excited just to get some time on their own together, while my wife was not so excited to not have some time with just me. The compromises we make in life!

I decided to take the kids to see the classic movie, “Mary Poppins,” starring Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke. It was a “sing-a-long,” so the words to all the songs were in subtitles at the bottom of the screen. I expected the theater would be filled with screaming kids and their parents. Not in San Francisco…and certainly not at the Castro Theater! As my grand daughter astutely mentioned on the way out,” It was mostly adults….and most of them were men!” I had to agree, since the restroom lines were uncharacteristically longer for the Men’s Room. We were all given a prop kit that consisted of a crown, popper, comb, glow-stick, and bubble-maker, and were left to our own to decide what to do with them. My wife, of course, had it all figured out, knew all the songs even without the subtitles, and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. My grand daughter was right with her, wearing her crown, and trying to keep up with the songs, applause, and rhythm cues. My grandson and I watched the spectacle – not quite sure what to think. I thought Dick Van Dyke’s dance performances were amazing, and the glow-stick waving added a lot of pizzazz to the show. I had already promised my grandson some X-Box games if he would just go along with his sister. He patiently played with his bow-and-arrow made from balloons at the Rainforest Cafe, where we all dined before the show.

We then did all the touristy things together, including the Hop-On-Hop-Off bus tour, the Ghirardelli Chocolate Factory, Sea Lion watching, the street performers along Pier 39, Boudin Bakery lunch, Dryer’s Grand Ice Cream (it was national Root Beer Float day), and Alioto’s for dinner. I spent a good chunk of my retirement savings on these adventures, with three more days to go. They had already been to Yosimite for a couple of days before we all met in San Francisco, so this has been quite an adventure for all of them. Tonight it’s the ballpark and the Giants against the Cubs. We’re all Cub fans, looking for a Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious “W!”

My wife and I are enjoying some quiet time while the kids are with their parents at the pool this morning. I get easily exhausted being a grandparent, and don’t know how I ever succeeded as a parent? She has two girls of her own and has somehow eluded being a true grandmother, but does a great job helping me be a grandfather. She walked and I ran through the throng of people trying to get to work this morning. Our hotel is in the Financial District, and so there was a lot of dodging around subway-seekers, bicyclists, and cars, trying to make our way to the waterfront. It was vastly different from my typical morning jog, and to circle back on occasion to join my wife’s slower walk pace allowed me to get some decent training miles in before my grandfather duties start again. We’ll all go to In-N-Out Burger for lunch, a treat-repeat for me from my last trip to L.A. (See Post #41).

Old Sport Shorts: Minor Stars #203

August 2, 2017 / mikeljohnston1 / 0 Comments

It’s been an “All-Star” retirement year for me, so far. Never in my life have I attended one professional All-Star Baseball games, let alone two! The major league event in Miami was all about New York Yankees rookie sensation Aaron Judge and his home run power. Since that time, his batting average is hovering at .300 compared with .329 going into the break, but he still leads the regular season home run race with 34 to go along with a top .632 slugging percentage. All that, despite getting off to a relatively “slow” second half start. The American League won again, and Cubs pitcher Wade Davis let Robinson Cano’ steal the show. It was an exciting first All-Star Game and Home Run Derby for me.

As an encore, I also got to attend the Northwest League (NWL) versus Pioneer Baseball League (PBL) game in Hillsboro, Oregon (Portland). Although it was a “Minor” affair as opposed to a “Major,” I found it to be just as enjoyable. The temperature at Ron Tonkin Field, home of the Hops, was 102 degrees, as opposed to the air conditioned comfort of Marlins Park. I was not familiar with many of the participants, having not yet attended a Hillsboro Hops game. The only name that struck a connection for me was Craig Dedelow of the Great Falls Voyagers (PBL). I knew him from my alma mater, Indiana University, and as a recent 9th round draft choice of the Chicago White Sox. Just like the Futures game in Miami, it was a White Sox connection that drew me to the autograph table. (See post #179) Yoan Moncado was just promoted to the big league club and got his first major league home run the other night on a tough pitch by Jake Arrietta of Cubs. It will be a while, if it all, before Dedelow makes that jump to join college teammates, Kyle Schwarber and Sam Travis. The other White Sox future that I met was Anthony Villa, Dedelow’s current teammate. Villa got a hit in the game in a pinch role, while Dedelow narrowly missed the finals of the Home Run Derby.

There were also a few future Cubs that I enjoyed chatting with at the autograph tables. Gastavo Polanco, Aramis Ademan, and Luis Aquino all represented the Eugene Emeralds (NWL). None of them was a factor in the actual game. The MVP was Luis Asuncion of the Tri-City Dust Devils (Padres PBL), his teammate Henry Henry (signed autograph as H2) was credited for the win, and his other teammate, Jose Galindo got the save. Seven Hops players made the squad, along with the entire coaching staff. The NWL winning runs came in the bottom of the 5th, after the PBL took an early 4 run lead in the 2nd inning. Daniel Jipping of the Boise Hawks (Colorado Rockies NWL) won the Home Run Derby, and the Northwest League (NWL) remains unbeaten in the All-Star Series games.

Next stop on the retirement tour is AT&T Park, where the Giants will host the Cubs in the opening game of a 3-game series. Hopefully, the Cubs can continue to roll, and maintain their lead over the Brewers. The Giants have the worst record in the National League, but the Cubs did manage to lose an entire series to the Padres, who were in that lowly position the last time the Cubs visited California. Please leave the “Anchorman” costumes back in Chicago!” (See Post #101)