Biggio Farewell - Missed Opportunity

Craig Biggio announced that his retirement would be at the end of this season. With the diluted schedule, Houston's only trip to San Francisco already happened. We won't be able to say goodbye unless we travel somewhere else.

I love seeing players on their last go-arounds. There's an anticipation and a special feeling form knowing I saw their careers. I really appreciate the moment. Notable in-attendance good-byes from my past include Carl Yastrzemski, Reggie Jackson and Tony Gwynn. I was in attendance at Mike Schmidt's last game, but he announced his retirement suddenly right after that game. If I only knew.

Updated Resume

I have updated my Baseball Resume as a result of attending the All-Star game, and a new Busch Stadium being built, and a few other minor tweaks.

View it here.

Yo, Commish! Get With The Program!

Baseball commissioner Bud Selig decides to show up in Milwaukee to watch Barry Bonds chase the home run record, because it's "the right thing to do," according to an article on mlb.com. Selig has been weaseling around this subject for months. The right thing to do?

So, you have a day job, do you Mr. Commish? So do I. I took the day off to see the All-Star game. I also took a week and a half off so my wife could deliver a baby and bring him home. I've flown all over two countries to watch otherwise meaningless games. Business travel not a part of your day job? You're not promoting the breaking of the single most revered record in all of sports? You are commissioner, aren't you?

"This is a big game and I understand all the history," said Selig, who hails from Milwaukee and owned the Brewers in the waning days of Aaron's career. "I don't want to be trite about it. In fact, I'm glad to be here."

Trite? That's all you've been. A commissioner who understands baseball, is a big fan, who used to own the team that Aaron played for should say nothing other than, "Damned right I want to be there. I'm going to try everything I can to be there." But you didn't. You need a different day job.

Baseball's Worst Uniforms

In my opinion, the worst uniforms in baseball are those of the Toronto Blue Jays. Or is it just plain Jays? Whatever. Their uniforms have always been among the worst. For me it's the combination of bad font choice and some dumb picture on their hats. Their numbers have always looked stupid and so has everything to do with their hats.


I've never been thrilled with anything the Diamondbacks have done either. Their recent change of team colors to red just makes things confusing when trying to watch on TV. The Brewers, although not horrible, are not among the best. Their choice of fonts also detracts from readability of names and numbers. The revealed uni's of the Nationals were also a major disappointment. They kept their classic "W" hats of the late 60's, but ruined them with bad logos and fonts. That "W" doesn't match anything else they wear.


This topic can't go without naming some of the worst uni's of all time. Many of the colors of the 70's were bad, no matter what team. The Astros rainblow uni's were grotesque. The Padres taco uni's were similarly wild. Or the White Sox bermuda shorts and collared shirts. The Indians blood red tops. The Cardinals baby blue road jammies were also vile. Polyester double knit pullovers and beltless pants with the elastic waste bands. Barf. I do like Oscar Gamble's 'fro, though.

This Blog Is Rated NC-17

Look at the words below that got me the rating. Just everyday baseball slang. Who's running this rating site, a bunch of fundamentalists?

Mingle² - Free Online Dating

This rating was determined based on the presence of the following words:

death (7x) bomb (5x) suck (4x) viagra (3x) drugs (2x) crack (1x)

Bad Vlad Wears Orange and Black

Okay, it happened for only a day and a half, but Vladimir Guerrero actually wore orange and black during the home run derby and the All-Star game BP. Woulda, coulda, shoulda. Dang.

All-Star Wrap Up

The All-Star game on Tuesday was a spectacular event. I was struck by all the talent gathered together in one place. I have seats behind the visitor's bullpen (the American League for this game) and saw all the AL players. We saw each AL pitcher warm up, and there wasn't an inning where somebody wasn't warming up. A favorite moment of mine was seeing Ivan Rodriguez and Jorge Posada, two of baseball's best catchers, gather to watch Oakland's Dan Haren warm up before the game. They were discussing observation.

Willie Mays was honored in a graceful first pitch ceremony. He threw out the first pitch from center field, a fitting gesture to a great career. A really good game followed, with the level of play matching the level of talent. The home-town Giants fans never missed an opportunity to cheer for Barry Bonds, and likewise never missed an opportunity to passionately and lustily boo any announcement or performance of a player from their long time, bitter rival, the Dodgers.

The game had its share of bizarre moments, too. During the 7th inning stretch, an unknown to me pop singer named Paula Cole (Mrs. Scott is the entertainment buff in the family and never heard of her either) came out to sing "God Bless America." Technical difficulties - which were the norm rather than the exception at old Candlestick Park - prevented her from starting. The sarcastic San Franciscan crowd started singing it for her, as if urging her on from forgetting the words. Part way through I couldn't resist a sarcastic one-upish reaction of my own, and started singing "Take Me Out To The Ballgame", the real 7th inning song, at the top of my lungs. The clashing melody drew quite a bit of attention, and a number of people joined me, creating a cacophony of confusion. Say what you will about San Francisco, but this is one thing I've always loved about Giants fans. They have the best sense of humor of any fans in baseball by a mile.

The singer then whined out a sappy, drawn out chick-music love song version (search for it here under the heading "more game highlights". The technical difficulties were edited out and you can hear the announcer at the end say the wait was well worth it. Huh?). Gag. It was horrible, and really took the fun out of the 7th inning stretch. I think baseball should do away with this song during the 7th inning stretch. We should make "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" our national anthem. Anyway...

Also bizarre was Tony LaRussa's brain freeze managerial non-move in not pinch-hitting Albert Pujols in the bottom of the 9th with the bases loaded and the game on the line. Whassup wit dat, Tony? The last hurrah was commish Bud Selig presenting Ichiro Suzuki with MVP honors. Selig is no fan favorite in SF with his waffling on the Bonds home run record issue. Selig's name wasn't announced as the one presenting the award. His voice simply started with "Ichiro Suzuki..." I'm guessing that was a political move designed to spare the commish the embarrassment of the loudest booing of the evening.

All in all, it was a night to remember, and I'll never forget it. I plan to be there in Fremont when the A's host the game in their new stadium.

What An All-Star Game

I was at last night's All-Star game. It was a great time of seeing all the great baseball players in one place. The game didn't disappoint, either, as the National League mounted a rally in the bottom of the 9th that brought the winning run into scoring position. More later.

Baseball's Best Uniforms

Which team has baseball's best uniform? Well, it's hard for me to decide the best, but I can say that there are six (home) uni's that set themselves apart from the other 24. Those are, in no particular order, the Giants, Dodgers, Yankees, Red Sox, Cardinals and Tigers. It's interesting that, aside from the Tigers, the first five are the five teams with the most colorful and storied pasts, rich traditions and most famed of all teams in history.

The Yankees and Dodgers have had their home uni's for the longest without change, followed by the Tigers, if I'm not mistaken. The Cards have had their theme for a long time, but they succumbed to the double-knit pullover pajama tops for a few decades. That style really killed a traditional look.

Road uni's are a different matter. I like the current Giants roadies the best. The tall, skinny lettering resulting from cramming "SAN FRANCISCO" in to such a limited space really makes the look classic. The classic Yankee roadies from years past, with the solid gray, no piping and block letters, "NEW YORK" are among the all-time best. Their current roadies with the piping and black band just don't make the cut. The Tigers' roadies stink, and not many good ones come off well with the gray shirts.

New Busch Stadium

The Giants are playing a three game series in St. Louis. The new Busch Stadium opened in 2006. I need to add it to my list of parks to see. It looks cool on TV, and I'm sure it would be a good place to visit, especially since they were able to build in much of the stuff surrounding the Cardinals' rich tradition.

Bonds Voted All-Star-ter

Barry Bonds was voted in as a starter for the All-Star game to be held in his own yard. Say what you want about his stats as compared with those others around the league, but Bonds is a clear fan favorite to be seen playing in this game. Bonds has had a fairly good year, with the first month and a half simply amazing. He hit over .350 with 11 homers. Not bad for an old guy.

I have a ticket for next Tuesday's game, and can't wait to see him bat against whoever will be the AL starter. How storybook is this that in what may be his final year, the All-Star game is in his own yard, he's voted in as a starter, and he's within five homers of the all time record? Will he hit a home run?

Welcome Newest Baseball Fan

The youngest baseball fan is now here. Mrs. Scott and I welcome our youngest little slugger, born Friday morning.