Major League Baseball

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MrZoom

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So, since the old baseball thread vanished with the rest of Back Fence, I’m starting a new one here in popular media. I figure it fits since serious baseball fans use popular media (ESPN, MLB.TV, etc) to follow their favorite team(s). If I’m wrong, sue me. 😛

Go D’backs! They had their 13 game winning streak snapped last night, alas. Fell behind 8-0 to the Padres, and tried to come back but fell short.
 
Not a big MLB fan, but Rhys Hoskins has me tuning in to Phillies games again.
 
After a couple of interesting seasons, the Mets have sunk back into irrelevance.
 
Thanks for restarting the column, Mr. Zoom…as a lifelong Indians’ fan, I have a streak of my own to talk about…I’ll probably jinx them, but their historic streak has been/is so phenomenal that I have to mention a few things…7 shutouts…outscoring their opponents by over 100 runs over 20 games…winning an 11-game road trip…and on and on…Go Tribe!!
 
boldlygo said:
Thanks for restarting the column, Mr. Zoom…as a lifelong Indians’ fan, I have a streak of my own to talk about…I’ll probably jinx them, but their historic streak has been/is so phenomenal that I have to mention a few things…7 shutouts…outscoring their opponents by over 100 runs over 20 games…winning an 11-game road trip…and on and on…Go Tribe!!
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You didn’t jinx it. 22 in a row, though they needed extra innings to do it.
 
Go Tribe! I realize the Cubs needed to win probably worse than Cleveland did, but darnit, we’ve been to the World Series three times in my lifetime and have yet to win it. I would love to see them win just once before I die.
 
I’m a bit older [born in '47], so I’ve been there for a World Series win ['48], but I sure don’t remember it…I can still remember cringing and leaving the room when they brought in Mesa in the seventh game in '97…that was hard to take…last year, with three starters out, they were great…
 
My main team is the Tigers. They last won it all my freshman year in high school. Seems like an eternity ago. This year they seem headed for a 90 loss season.
 
I thought you were a West Virginia native…how did you choose the Tigers?

I grew up in a Cleveland suburb, a block and a half from my grandfather, who was an avid baseball, and Indians’, fan…I can’t remember not being an Indians’ fan…a lot of great memories, a lot of great players…maybe this will be the year…
 
Didn’t realize there were so many Tribe fans here… Well our AL record setting consecutive 22G win streak ended last night but it was a fun run and now we can look to October. I didn’t want to continue winning too long anyway and then start losing like the Dodgers as we head into Oct… Last year with the injuries, to make it to extra innings in game 7 was phenomenal even though we blew a 3-1 game lead. And the Cubs had gone even longer without a title. So It didn’t have the feel of 97 for me. But now we have the longest drought and one good omen… I was in Irma and my Tribe #1 fan foam finger car antenna topper didn’t blow off! Go Tribe!
 
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boldlygo said:
I thought you were a West Virginia native…how did you choose the Tigers?
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Native? Nope … born and raised in Detroit. Grew up attending games at old Tiger Stadium with my dad, including Game 3 of the 1984 World Series.

I moved to Ohio to attend college in 1988, at Wright State University, and then got a job here in West Virginia in 1995. Been at that same job ever since, but still follow the Tigers.
 
That explains it…my grandfather took me to old Municipal Stadium in Cleveland many times…we got free tickets from a local newspaper if we got straight A’s in school…they knew what they were doing - I’ve been hooked on baseball ever since…I’m sure that World Series game is something you’ll never forget.
 
Oddly, I don’t remember the details of the game itself. (Hey, it was over 30 years ago.)

One game I do have a clearer memory of is the Pirates’ 2014 home opener. It was my first (and so far, only) time attending Opening Day. The Pirates beat the Cubs 1-0 on a home run by Neil Walker in the 10th.
 
And God bless the folks behind MLB.TV. Makes it SO much easier to follow your team when you live out of market.
 
boldlygo said:
That explains it…my grandfather took me to old Municipal Stadium in Cleveland many times…we got free tickets from a local newspaper if we got straight A’s in school…they knew what they were doing - I’ve been hooked on baseball ever since…I’m sure that World Series game is something you’ll never forget.
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Went to my first game at Municipal in the 60s and still have the program signed by Rapid Robert who was at that game. Went to 13 straight home openers and countless inbetween before The Jake came into being and couldn’t land a ticket for OD that year. But all those losing years in the 70s and 80s sure made the 90s special. And now for the 2nd yr in a row we are on the verge again… Go Tribe!
 
I attended Cleveland State University after my stint in the Air Force, and then worked in Cleveland for a few years…had a streak of five home openers at old Municipal Stadium…the most memorable was in 1971, when they beat your Tigers and Mickey Lolich [remember him?..I sure do…]…a pinch-hitter named Gomer Hodge doubled in the eighth inning, scored their first run, and then singled with runners on second and third in the ninth to win the game, 3-2…the whole place went nuts…

Baseball has to be the best game ever!
 
13 straight openers - wow!! Bob Feller was/is my favorite all-time player…when I was young [not sure of my exact age], my Grandfather gave me a copy of Bob Feller’s ‘Strikeout Story’, which I read cover-to-cover more than once…I saw him pitch, but I was too young to appreciate what I was seeing…the 90’s were special…Alomar and Vizquel were the best middle-infield combo in the history of the game…it was worth the price of admission just to see them in the field…I’d like to see that team with this year’s pitching staff…
 
When I was a kid, our pastor would give free baseball tickets out to students who got really good grades…except he only gave them to the boys. I always had top grades and never got a free ticket 😦 I don’t hold it against Father though, he had his idiosyncrasies and my mother had a big tiff with him once over some parish stuff, but I miss having pastors like him around.

I became a baseball fan anyway because of my dad, except he was an Oakland A’s fan because he used to live and work in the area of Kansas City when they were the Kansas City A’s, and they were the nearest local team. So he had been following them for decades before they became the powerhouse team in the 70s. Every year he’d get me to help him fill out his All Star Game ballot. I remember some contest also where you had to pick which player would make the most memorable play in an upcoming game and he picked Reggie Jackson and that was the game where Reggie hit the ball out of the park, and we won a lot of professional bats and balls and equipment in the contest.

The first time the Indians got in the Series in the 90s, I took my mom to a game. (Dad had passed away before then.) It was a big deal because there were no online Stubhub type places to buy from so I had to telephone a broker and pay a lot of money, but we sure had fun at that game, which the Tribe also won. I went to several of the Series games last year including the last one. On the last plays when it looked like the Indians might pull ahead, I just couldn’t watch. I was praying Hail Marys on my Miraculous Medal and Slider the mascot saw me and started miming praying. LOL. I hope this is our year. We broke an A’s record! That’s pretty exciting to me. Dad would roll over in his grave.
 
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Wonderful memories…glad you were able to take Mom to that game…Cleveland has the best fans in the world…
 
Tis_Bearself said:
When I was a kid, our pastor would give free baseball tickets out to students who got really good grades…except he only gave them to the boys. I always had top grades and never got a free ticket 😦 I don’t hold it against Father though, he had his idiosyncrasies and my mother had a big tiff with him once over some parish stuff, but I miss having pastors like him around.
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This reminded me of the parish priest in my small hometown. My mother coordinated a group of women who took turns cooking suppers for him. I sometimes helped her deliver meals to him and he would come to the door of the rectory in Tribe attire. That was always cool to see. Lol he didn’t cook but was a huge Tribe fan.

My mom and I went to a 97 playoff game vs the Yankees. Sat on the LF line. I remember it was 80 degrees that night!
 
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