I have never been more proud to be a Dodger fan…

I love baseball. I played in little league, high school, a little college and in adult leagues into my 50′s. I also coached in Little League tee-ball, caps, minors, majors, senior majors, in Pony League and Colt league, as well as in high school and adults leagues. I was on the board of directors for Little League, Pony League and Colt Leagues. While coaching, if our team was not playing I was there watching. After my son Jeff was born, we would hang out at the field all the time. He loves baseball as much as I do.

So, why this baseball history? Well, tonight I saw the movie 42 and it made me so proud to be a fan of the team responsible for bringing Jackie Robinson into baseball in 1947. It was Branch Ricky, co-owner of the Dodgers who scouted Jackie Robinson and picked Jackie as the first black player in all-white Major League Baseball.

It would be easy for me to suggest you see the movie 42 if you love baseball like I do. But it would be remiss of me not to recommend you see the movie 42 regardless of what you think of baseball. If you are a parent, take your children. If you are a grandparent, like me, take your grandchildren. After the movie, sit and talk to them about what they saw and how important the events of 1947 were to today. Teach the kids about having tolerance for others, regardless of their skin color or beliefs.

My good friend Loren grew up in So Calif but told me of a trip he took to Texas when he was approaching or in his early teens. He came across places where his race, some called them colored in those days, were not allowed to enter. Loren had not been subjected to those kinds of situations here and he told me they cut the trip short to come back home. When Loren came to our high school, he was the first and only African American for his first year. We didn’t care and Loren became very popular and a great friend. He remains one of my best friends, even though he is forever trying to get me on the TV show The Bachelor.

In the movie there are a few scenes where kids about 12 are at the games sitting next to their fathers who yell terrible things to Jackie. The other teams players and managers were also yelling vial things. One scene in particular made me emotional and reminded me that my own Dad would have been right there yelling with them. Thankfully he never took me to a baseball game because I would have not liked hearing what he had to say. That awful attitude is all my Dad knew growing up and he took it to his death.

Thanks to Jackie Robinson and Branch Ricky, I will be able to sit in my mini-season ticket seat at Dodger Stadium on Saturday and root for Matt Kemp, just like I did for Johnny Roseburo, Jim Gilliam, Willie Davis, Maury Wills and many others before Matt.

You don’t have to be a baseball fan to enjoy the following 3 minute summary about Jackie Robinson. Enjoy…

The secret life of our parents….

My Mom is 84 so she has been around a very long time. Now in her later years she is less active and spends most time at home watching TV and reading. It seems my passion for the Dodgers rubbed off on Mom and now she watches every Dodger game, all 162, on television. She has favorite players, namely Jamey Carroll, and understands much of the game strategy. She will say things during a game that amaze me and make me proud of how well she picked up the best game ever….no, it is not football.

However, I did not write this to be proud of her baseball acumen. I am writing this because I am shocked at her choice of reading material. Here is an excerpt from the book on her coffee table….

Branded as a runaway white slave, golden-haired Caroline Fane had come with her rogue lover Justin from the dangers surrounding them in England to the unknown perils of America. She had put her fate in his powerful hands, made his love more precious to her than life itself. But now she saw this man who possessed her being and intoxicated her with every excitement of spirit and flesh being tempted by the naked lust of an exquisite half-Indian girl, who seductively led him down a path of insatiable desire. And now Caroline herself became helpless captive to a ruthless savage chieftain who forced her to submit to his carnal appetites, plunging her into a degradation far beyond her darkest nightmares.

OMG….how can my dear Mother read this trash…lol. I guess this is the norm for those who love “Romance Novels”. The cover of the book should be rated at least R. The book itself should be rated XXX. She doesn’t seem to blush while reading so I guess it doesn’t bother her to read about “insatiable desires and submitting to carnal appetites”.

I will stick to my mystery crime thrillers while Mom is reading her trashy novels. The neat thing is we both enjoy what we read and that is how it should be! You rock Mom…..

The Dog Days of August

There is a saying in baseball that August are the dog days. Teams have played their first 100 games and the hot summer months are upon them. Road trips that were enjoyable in April and May, now become a pain as the temperature in cities rise above 100 degrees. Some cities, like St. Louis, get so muggy a pitcher has to change his uniform top 4 and 5 times in a game.

However, this posting is not solely about baseball. It is another sad dog story. Faithful readers may remember the postings I made about watching my dog Skipper get hit by the fire chief’s truck while I stood in my front yard and later having to take my Golden Retriever to the vet to be put to sleep. Terrible days in my life.

Yesterday was another terrible day!

Two years ago my son, Jeff, went to the Animal Shelter and came back with a new puppy. He named her Jersey Girl. She was a Terrier mix and a cute little ball of black fur. At the time, he was staying at my moms but later came to live with me and Jersey Girl came along. As sons often do, they rely on the parent to feed and take care of the dog. This fact of life seems to not have any specific age related association. It is just one of those son/parent things that will happen regardless of age.

Eventually Jeff moved back to the San Diego area and Jersey Girl stayed behind with grandpa. Yep, by default I was now the care taker for the now long legged, totally grey-haired dog, a dog who was just 2 but looked 32. Jeff had taught her some basic “tricks,” like sit, lay down and stay. She was very behaved and did those things on command, most of the time.

As time evolved, Jersey somehow made her way to my bed to sleep at night. As a nightly ritual I would call her from her dog bed and she would come running and plop down on the bed. Each night we had to have a talk about her being on my side all night and forcing me to virtually sleep in a stationary space next to falling off the bed. She had decided the entire queen size bed was her new sleeping area.

On most days I am out of the house all day and there are many times when I am away for days at a time. I always felt Jersey needed a home where there were people around during the day, preferably kids included. That way she could be having human contact more often than when I got home, sometimes which was very late. Jeff’s situation did not include any way he could have Jersey Girl with him and we were both unable to find a friend to take Jersey. Once, Jeff took her off for a new home but the friend, who said he wanted Jersey, had forgotten to get his live-in girlfriends A-OK and Jersey came back the next day.

Now the sad part of this story.

Yesterday I decided it was time to take Jersey to find a new home. I had talked to Jeff and, with mixed emotions, we agreed it would be better for her. I called the Animal Shelter the day before to make sure she would stay until adopted. That was a must. They said absolutely and late yesterday afternoon, after we spent the day hanging around, I put Jersey in the car and we headed for the brand new, beautiful Animal Shelter.

We arrived to see hundreds of dogs in line to get free shots. There was a DJ playing tunes and lots of festivities, a carnival-like atmosphere. Jersey was, as usual, well mannered on the leash. We made our way to the area called “turn in.” We walked in, where there was a German Shelter sitting on the floor (he had been found in a man’s garage and was being brought in as a lost dog). We were 4th on the sign-in list so we walked back outside to take in the activities. Actually, I wanted to get out of the room where I knew my emotions would eventually get the best of me.

When our time came, we walked in and sat down. A very nice woman sat on the other side of the table and began the process to help us. The first thing she did was start saying how cute Jersey was. All the staff there came over to see her. Then she pulled up a photo on the computer of Jersey when she was adopted by Jeff. They all compared her puppy photo to now and they just loved her. While all this happened the tears began to well-up and then gravity took hold and they began to roll down my face. The Animal Shelter employee, seeing my breakdown, began to assure me it would be okay, that Jersey would find a home very quickly.

I managed to regroup, but only for a little while. The rest of the time there I was a basket case. I knew what was best and had to stick with it but it was so hard. I didn’t even see the employee who had come up to our side and had put his leash on Jersey. I knew it was about time, the time when I would have to get up and walk out of the door, leaving her behind. It kills me to even type this part but I knew that when I decided to share this story.

When it was time to get up and leave, I decided I would not look back for one last look. I just stared straight ahead and walked out the door, with tears just rushing down my face. I quickly put on my Oakley sunglasses and noticed a bench across the opening. I made my way there and sat down to regroup. I sent a text to Jeff, his mom and my sister. I had no one there to help ease the pain (mom had wanted to go but with her broken ankle, it would have been impossible to maneuver). As fate would have it, none of them were available so I did not get a text back immediately. I just sat there, emotionally drained.

After sitting for 30 minutes I got up and walked toward the car. I could not get in without a walk around the entire parking lot. I just wasn’t ready. When I did get in the car, I decided to drive through the local McDonald’s for a vanilla cone. Yes, a vanilla cone…I am an emotional eater and I needed an emotional treat. As I got off the ramp wouldn’t you know that a homeless woman was at the stop light holding a sign saying she was homeless and hungry. Nothing new right? Wrong. Next to her was a beautiful black Lab puppy, about 4 months old. You can guess what happened then, I lost it again.

I finally got to my mom’s house for my regular afternoon and evening visit to help her while she is still unable to get around on her broken ankle. I told her right away how hard it was and said we should just not talk about it. Well, mom doesn’t hear very well and pretty soon I could hear her crying and asking questions about Jersey. Gee mom, thanks a lot. We both sat there crying when Jeff’s mom replied to my earlier text. Then she called and was as emotional as we were. She loved Jersey too and, if she had a bigger yard, she would have taken her in a heart beat.

We all recovered and mom and I began to watch the Dodger game. Wouldn’t you just know that last night was the first ever Dodger Dog Days promotion. Fans were allowed to bring their dogs to the game, parade them on the field before the game and let them sit in the stands during the game. I found this to be cruel and unusual punishment. How could my Dodgers do this? Of course, they kept showing people holding up their dogs on screen.

I left mom’s at 11:30 and headed home. I had taped a movie earlier and began to watch it after having some “Jersey moments.” Wouldn’t you know there was a dog that played a pretty major part in the movie? Karma? It was the same feeling I had when, after burying Skipper in the back yard, mom and dad took me to see Old Yeller at the Drive-in.

There were more emotional moments but I finally got through the night and am here today to recall it all. I am fighting the urge to go see if Jersey is already at a new happy home. I know she will be a happier dog after she settles in a new home. If dogs have memories, she will have good memories. I also know this is the last time I am having any part of a dog, even though mom is already talking about wanting a new dog. She can’t take care of herself very well and will never be able to take care of a dog. If she gets a Chihuahua it will be easy to not get attached (Chihuahua’s are not really dogs but are over-sized rats).

The Greatest Dodger of Them All

I was at the gym yesterday on the elliptical trainer as I read the book about Vin Scully entitled, “I Saw It on the Radio.” Being a rather sentimental soul, there were parts of it that made me misty. I get misty when Robert Young, as Father Knows Best, gave the episode ending speech to Kitten about some facet of life. Or when Lassie saves Timmy’s bacon again. Or Jack holds Rose on the bow of the Titanic and they sing about the flying machine. So it is no wonder a story about Vin got to me.

But it made me remember 3 days in Dodger history that were very emotional for me. I grew up a Dodger fan, even before they moved to LA in 1958. My grandmother was a Dodger fan for some reason and they were my team when they were in Brooklyn. When they came to LA I became even a bigger fan. Who in the LA area didn’t take to the Dodgers? Not many. Before the Dodgers, we had the PCL Los Angeles Angels with Steve Bilko. My dad took me to a game there once, dropped me off, and I went in to watch the Angels beat the Vancouver Mounties 8 – 0. Every time Steve “Home Run” Bilko came up all the fans would yell, “We want a homer, we want a homer.” But I digress.

While reading about Vin, it reminded me of years past. There have been so many great Dodgers through the years. Gil Hodges, Pee Wee Reese, Duke Snider, Jackie Robinson, Willie Davis, Tommy Davis, Ron Fairly, Sandy Koufax, Don Drysdale, Orel Hershiser, Steve Garvey…the list is endless. I would be asked from time to time who was my favorite Dodger. It kind of depended on the day I guess. How could you not say Sandy Koufax? I had seen him pitch a no-hitter against the Giants (see previous blog post) and I always tried to hit just like Gil Hodges when we played home run derby in Rick’s back yard.

But then the day came when I knew who my favorite Dodger was. It was July 5, 1993. I was driving in my car when a news flash came on the radio. The report was that Don Drysdale had been found dead in his hotel room in Montreal. The story started with: “Don Drysdale, the Hall of Fame pitcher for the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers whose hopping fastball and brush back pitches put fear into batters during 14 major league seasons, was found dead in his hotel room in Montreal on Saturday. He was 56. The cause of death was a heart attack, the Dodgers said.”

I was shocked and immediately began to cry. I had to pull over in fact. The immense sadness came from out of the blue (Dodger blue of course) as I sat on the side of the street crying over, who I then knew, was my favorite Dodger of all time. Periodically, over the next three days, I would think of him and get all misty again. It just hit me so hard. Even as I type this, it is hard to recall it all. What a softy huh.

Here is a quote from Don that sums up his attitude about pitching: “Once the manager came out to the mound and instructed me to walk a batter. I wound up hitting him instead. Why waste four pitches when one will do? Sooner or later you have to say it’s my ball and half the plate is mine. Only I never let on which half of the plate I wanted.”

Drysdale played in five World Series and was a member of the Dodgers’ World Series championship teams in 1959, 1963 and 1965. Drysdale, a right-hander, and Sandy Koufax, a lefty, were regarded as the finest pitching combination then in the game. In 1957, the Dodgers’ final season in Brooklyn, Drysdale was the ace of the staff with a 17-9 record. His best season was 1962, when “Big D” had a won-lost record of 25-9 and received the Cy Young Award as the outstanding pitcher in the major leagues. He led the National League with 41 starts, 314 1/3 innings pitched and 287 strikeouts. He also was 23-12 in 1965. Pitchers now days are lucky to get 200 innings pitched.

Drysdale was selected to 10 National League All-Star teams and set major league records of 6 consecutive shutouts and 58 consecutive scoreless innings in 1968. The scoreless-inning streak stood for 20 years until it was broken by another Dodger pitcher, Orel Hershiser. Drysdale was a pitcher of the old school whose brush back pitches have been curbed by rules and are virtually unknown in today’s game. “I never hit anybody in the head in my life,” he recalled. “But you have to move them off the plate; you have to get them out of there. This was part of the game and everybody accepted it as part of the game.

I still miss “Big D” today. He was a broadcaster after his playing days and I enjoyed listening to him and Vin do Dodger games. As for the Greatest Dodger of all time, it is without doubt, Vin Scully. I dread the day Vinny dies because I may be on the side of a road somewhere crying for days and days.

Sandy throws a no-no…and I was there!

                1  2  3   4  5  6   7  8  9    R  H  E
                -  -  -   -  -  -   -  -  -    -  -  -
Giants          0  0  0   0  0  0   0  0  0    0  0  0
Dodgers         0  1  0   0  0  3   0  4  X    8 12  0

W: Sandy Koufax (4-1), L: Juan Marichal (4-3)

May 11, 1963. Dodger stadium. Night game. There are 49,807 fans in the stands. I am sitting in the loge level near the right field foul pole. It is the Dodgers and Giants, a great rivalry. It should be a classic pitching matchup with 2 future hall of famers pitching. For the San Francisco Giants it is Juan Marichal. For the Dodgers, Sandy Koufax. I have decided to keep score in the little program you could buy for probably 25 cents.

The Dodgers get to Marichal for a run in the 2nd inning. It stayed 1-0 until the 6th when the Dodgers chased Juan Marichal and took a 4-0 lead. So much for the pitching duel. But Sandy is doing his thing. No hits through 6 innings. The crowd begins to get excited. Sandy had already thrown a no-hitter the year before. Could this be #2?

In the bottom of the 8th, the Dodgers score 4 more runs for a commanding 8-0 lead. All Sandy needs now is 3 outs. He had walked 2 so far, so no perfect game. One of my favorite umpires, Jocko Conlon, is ringing them up at first base on ground balls. Sandy is not striking out dozens as he often did. In fact, for the game he only K’s 4 batters. Top of the ninth….3 more outs.

I have lost the box score from that game so I have no idea who made the last 3 outs. All I know is he made them and I was there when Sandy Koufax pitched the 2nd of his 5 no-hitters. It was incredible and so much fun. I will never forget being there and loving every minute, especially since the damn Giants were the victims!!