Class is in Session
Thursday evening I set out to watch a Dodger game for the first time all season. I had caught bits and pieces of games while channel surfing, but this was the first time all summer I had looked at the baseball schedule and set aside time to watch the entire game from the first pitch.
I have never been much of a baseball fan. You could probably tell as it’s the middle of the summer and this is my first article on baseball. I have flirted with the LA Dodgers, but I have never made a full commitment like I have with the Lakers.
It doesn’t help that baseball has been saddled with the steroid controversy and I was very skeptical of the purchase of the Dodgers by Frank McCourt. My problem with McCourt was that I thought he was more interested in the Boston Red Sox and turning Dodger Stadium into condos than the Dodgers.
And despite the fact that the Dodgers finally won a playoff game in 2004 for the first time since 1988 and this season they signed Nomar Garciaparra, one of my favorite baseball players, I was still staying off the bandwagon because I didn’t think they were a legitimate contender.
All that changed on Monday when the Dodgers traded for The Professor, Greg Maddux. I know Maddux is 40 years old and has struggled this season and the Dodgers are three games behind San Diego in their division. But it was still a breath of fresh air to see the Dodgers make a move at the trading deadline to solidify their chances for the postseason.
So I made it a point to tune in and watch The Professor’s Dodger debut against the Cincinnati Reds Thursday night. Unfortunately, the weather wasn’t cooperating and as I sat down to watch the game I was treated to a pre-emptive rain delay. Even though it apparently wasn’t raining yet, the Reds decided to delay the start of the game.
Eventually the game got started. I missed the top of the first inning with Eric Milton pitching and the homer Olmedo Saenz used to welcome Maddux to the Dodgers for a two-run lead. I also missed the first couple of batters that Maddux faced but I thoroughly enjoyed the rest of his classic performance.
When I tuned in, Maddux was facing Ken Griffey, Jr. Sure this match-up would have been more exciting five or ten years ago, but I was still thrilled to see two of the biggest names in baseball facing off, with one of them in a Dodger uniform. Maddux got the upper hand in this meeting by getting Griffey to hit into a double play with the Professor and his 15 Gold Gloves tagging first base to get Griffey out.
The second inning was more of the same as Maddux continued his masterful pitching. As he’s done his entire career, he doesn’t try to overpower his opponents. He just puts the ball where they can’t get a good hit, even without much help from the umpire Thursday night. Wilson Betemit, another recent Dodger acquisition, gave Maddux the help he needed with some nice fielding on two of the three outs in this inning. Playing with the Dodger defense and in Dodger Stadium should definitely help Maddux turn back the clock the rest of this season.
The next couple of innings brought more of typical Maddux. He only had a couple of strikeouts in the game but he was in complete control of the Reds lineup. By the end of the fourth I started to notice that he hadn’t allowed a hit.
Maddux carried his no-hitter into the sixth. Hollywood couldn’t have scripted a nicer debut and I purchased my ticket on the Dodger bandwagon for the rest of the season. But then Mother Nature decided to go off the script and it started to pour after the top of the seventh inning.
We had ourselves another rain delay. Part of me hoped that the rain wouldn’t stop so Maddux’s no-hitter would be kept intact. Surprisingly, despite his years of dominance, Maddux has never pitched a no-hitter.
Alas, Mother Nature again refused to cooperate and the rain stopped after half an hour. I really didn’t want to see Maddux out there again, despite the potential no-hitter, because I thought the delay had been too long. Much to my relief, I saw Joe Beimel about to take the mound. Maddux placed the team ahead of his own personal glory by not taking risk of coming out after cooling off. Fortunately his new teammates didn’t let him down. Julio Lugo, another new Dodger acquisition, padded the lead in the eighth with a triple that scored Rafael Furcal and the Dodger bullpen completed the shutout.
Despite the rain delays and the aborted no-hitter, I really couldn’t have asked for a better game. The victory was the Dodgers sixth win in a row. Unfortunately, since San Diego also won, the Dodgers didn’t make up any ground. But after Maddux’s performance I’m more confident than ever that the team will make the postseason. There’s no way the Dodgers can fail Making the Playoffs 101 with the Professor teaching.
I have never been much of a baseball fan. You could probably tell as it’s the middle of the summer and this is my first article on baseball. I have flirted with the LA Dodgers, but I have never made a full commitment like I have with the Lakers.
It doesn’t help that baseball has been saddled with the steroid controversy and I was very skeptical of the purchase of the Dodgers by Frank McCourt. My problem with McCourt was that I thought he was more interested in the Boston Red Sox and turning Dodger Stadium into condos than the Dodgers.
And despite the fact that the Dodgers finally won a playoff game in 2004 for the first time since 1988 and this season they signed Nomar Garciaparra, one of my favorite baseball players, I was still staying off the bandwagon because I didn’t think they were a legitimate contender.
All that changed on Monday when the Dodgers traded for The Professor, Greg Maddux. I know Maddux is 40 years old and has struggled this season and the Dodgers are three games behind San Diego in their division. But it was still a breath of fresh air to see the Dodgers make a move at the trading deadline to solidify their chances for the postseason.
So I made it a point to tune in and watch The Professor’s Dodger debut against the Cincinnati Reds Thursday night. Unfortunately, the weather wasn’t cooperating and as I sat down to watch the game I was treated to a pre-emptive rain delay. Even though it apparently wasn’t raining yet, the Reds decided to delay the start of the game.
Eventually the game got started. I missed the top of the first inning with Eric Milton pitching and the homer Olmedo Saenz used to welcome Maddux to the Dodgers for a two-run lead. I also missed the first couple of batters that Maddux faced but I thoroughly enjoyed the rest of his classic performance.
When I tuned in, Maddux was facing Ken Griffey, Jr. Sure this match-up would have been more exciting five or ten years ago, but I was still thrilled to see two of the biggest names in baseball facing off, with one of them in a Dodger uniform. Maddux got the upper hand in this meeting by getting Griffey to hit into a double play with the Professor and his 15 Gold Gloves tagging first base to get Griffey out.
The second inning was more of the same as Maddux continued his masterful pitching. As he’s done his entire career, he doesn’t try to overpower his opponents. He just puts the ball where they can’t get a good hit, even without much help from the umpire Thursday night. Wilson Betemit, another recent Dodger acquisition, gave Maddux the help he needed with some nice fielding on two of the three outs in this inning. Playing with the Dodger defense and in Dodger Stadium should definitely help Maddux turn back the clock the rest of this season.
The next couple of innings brought more of typical Maddux. He only had a couple of strikeouts in the game but he was in complete control of the Reds lineup. By the end of the fourth I started to notice that he hadn’t allowed a hit.
Maddux carried his no-hitter into the sixth. Hollywood couldn’t have scripted a nicer debut and I purchased my ticket on the Dodger bandwagon for the rest of the season. But then Mother Nature decided to go off the script and it started to pour after the top of the seventh inning.
We had ourselves another rain delay. Part of me hoped that the rain wouldn’t stop so Maddux’s no-hitter would be kept intact. Surprisingly, despite his years of dominance, Maddux has never pitched a no-hitter.
Alas, Mother Nature again refused to cooperate and the rain stopped after half an hour. I really didn’t want to see Maddux out there again, despite the potential no-hitter, because I thought the delay had been too long. Much to my relief, I saw Joe Beimel about to take the mound. Maddux placed the team ahead of his own personal glory by not taking risk of coming out after cooling off. Fortunately his new teammates didn’t let him down. Julio Lugo, another new Dodger acquisition, padded the lead in the eighth with a triple that scored Rafael Furcal and the Dodger bullpen completed the shutout.
Despite the rain delays and the aborted no-hitter, I really couldn’t have asked for a better game. The victory was the Dodgers sixth win in a row. Unfortunately, since San Diego also won, the Dodgers didn’t make up any ground. But after Maddux’s performance I’m more confident than ever that the team will make the postseason. There’s no way the Dodgers can fail Making the Playoffs 101 with the Professor teaching.
posted by The Pocho at 11:29 AM
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