Truly One Rarity!

For over 40 years I have fervently followed the game of baseball. For over 40 years I have been blessed ( or maybe cursed?) to always live in an American League City. In the 80′s it was the O.C. and Anaheim. Witnessed the heartbreak of 1982 and 1986. In the late 90′s I saw Seattle become a baseball town with the trio of Randy Johnson, Ken Griffey Jr. and Alex Rodriguez. Fun times in the Emerald City. From 2001 onward close to 450 trips to Rangers Ballpark.

For all the live trips to ballparks it has been rare to see my favorite kind of baseball . Yes, even with the designated about to turn 40 years old I am an old school fool. Give me a 1-0 pitchers duel and I’ll die a happy guy! You talk about a fast game, strategies to be employed and the added duty of knowing where to place your fielders. Remember that baseball is the only sport where the defense controls the tempo of the game.

Ian Goes Deep!

Earlier tonight I was at a driving range and getting my golf swings in when out of the corner of my eye I saw Ian Kinsler trotting around the base paths as a crowd around me cheered. The score read 1-0. In a battle between Yu Darvish (ten whiffs) and James Shields one swing was the difference in a great pitchers duel for teams who have faced off in the ALDS the last two years.

Rangers fans will tell you how rare it is to see a 1-0 game in Arlington. I remember seeing one thrown in September of 2008 on the heels of Hurricane Ike when Taylor Teagarden went yard in a 1-0 win for Dustin Nippert over the Mariners.

Saw the same thing in 2010 when C.J. Wilson won a 1-0 thriller in August on an overcast day. I even remember a 1-0 game in 2004 when Ryan Drese was on the losing end against Roy Oswalt and the Astros. It always made me laugh when I’d hear little kids say, ‘What a boring game…no fireworks at all! Waaaah!’ Those kids have no clue about a good baseball game.

Do fans really want to see a 5 hour 16-15 game on a given night? Life comes at you pretty fast. A 2 hour game saves you three hours to do a multitude of things, including sleep! While marveling at how well the Rays pitching staff has been I wonder how tough they might become if the bats would start to warm up. A rotten record for 1 run games in Tampa Bay.

Great win for Texas. Great performances by Shields and Darvish. Still the Athletics lurk nearby…

Over and out in Big D.

Mr. Will