Top 10 Baseball games I ever attended: #5

June 23, 1993: Astros vs. Dodgers

T1: Biggio K, Finley P6, Bagwell F9
B1: Butler 4-3, Offerman F8, E. Davis E5, Wallach 6-3
(Astros 0, Dodgers 0)

In the summer of our first married year, tbKMD and Dolberry travelled out to the Golden State for our California baseball trip. We flew into Anaheim on a Friday afternoon and caught two White Sox games against the Angels. They lost them both by one run.

T2: Caminiti 1-3, Anthony K, L. Gonzalez HR, Servais 6-3
B2: Snyder F9, Karros F7, C. Hernandez 6-3
(Astros 1, Dodgers 0)

On Sunday morning, we drove up I-5 to Oakland where we took in a 4-1 A's victory over the Royals then we headed back to our hotel which was w/in walking distance of the Oakland Coliseum to watch Game 6 of the NBA Finals which pitted the Suns (tbKMD's favorites) vs. the Bulls. That was the one where John Paxson hit a 3 point shot w/ 3 seconds left to give the Bulls the title. Thankfully, tbKMD is the sort of person who won't let something insignificant ruin a good vacation.

T3: Cedeno F9, Drabek 5-3, Biggio 2B, Finley 1B(2-4)
B3: Harris P4, Candiotti 4-3, Butler 1B(SB), Offerman BB, Davis FC
(Astros 2, Dodgers 0)

We spent Monday walking through the Muir Woods where tbKMD lagged behind alot, but Dolberry patiently waited for her to catch up ... gasping for air ... on the uphills. Dolberry was so cheery on that day I was singing "The Hills are ALIVEEEE w/ the sound of MUUUUUSSSSIIIC", until the park rangers came and asked me to stop. Maybe that was why tbKMD was lagging behind. That night we spent the coldest June night ever in Candlestick Park. You know you're in trouble when they rent blankets at a baseball game. The Giants won that one bringing home teams to 4-0 on our vacation.

T4: Bagwell F7, Caminiti 3U, Anthony F8
B4: Wallach 6-3, Snyder 2B(8-5), Karros F8
(Astros 2, Dodgers 0)

By Wednesday June 23rd, we were back in SoCal and headed over to Chavez Ravine to consume some Dodger Dogs from the upper deck of Dodger Stadium. Dolberry had gotten all the tickets in advance by phone or by mail and we generally went for the cheaper seats. We parked our rental car and we're walking up to the stadium when we were approached by someone leaving the stadium. He didn't look homeless, or scary, or like someone from the cast of Doogie Howser, M.D.; so we stopped. Turns out it was "Beach Towel Night" and he had only come to get his towel and he wasn't planning on actually using his 2nd row seats right down the first base line. So he gave them to us. Sweet.

T5: Gonzalez F8, Servais L5, Cedeno F7.
B5: Hernandez 4-3, Harris 2B, Candiotti E6, Butler SF7, Offerman 6-3
(Astros 2, Dodgers 1)

After a day at Santa Monica Beach, we headed down to San Diego for a 4 game set matching the Padres against the Reds. The Thursday afternoon game was the Padres' first after their infamous fire sale started w/ the trade of Gary Sheffield to the Marlins (for Trevor Hoffman, who worked out pretty well for them). The San Diego fans were not in good spirits on that day. Reds won 3 of 4 and Dolberry got one of his worst sunburns ever. Despite that I think San Diego is my favorite city in the world.

T6: Drabek P5, Biggio 1B, Finley K, Bagwell F8
B6: Davis 4-3, Wallach K, Snyder 2-3
(Astros 2, Dodgers 1)

This trip was the proverbial time of one's life. Too much fun. The Dolberry clan has decided to reprise this trip in the summer of 2010, w/ APD in tow this time. Can't hardly wait. Ideally, we'd be able to spend two weeks doing it and maybe work in Phoenix and Seattle but that might be a little ambitious. See this space for more details as they become available.

T7: Caminiti K, Anthony 4-3, Gonzalez F8
B7: Karros HR, Hernandez 5-3, Harris F8, Candiotti K
(Astros 2, Dodgers 2)

With all the recent new parks, I have only been to 8 still-active MLB stadiums. Here's the countdown w/in the countdown of my Top 5 favorites: 5: Coors Field (Rockies), 4: Safeco Field (Mariners), 3: Camden Yards (Baltimore), 2: Wrigley Field (Cubs), 1: Dodger Stadium (Dodgers). It is just a beautiful place. The sort of place that would be pretty even if there wasn't a baseball field there.

T8: Servais 6-3, Cedeno BB, Drabek Sac, Biggio 5-3
B8: Butler 3U, Offerman 1B (SB), Davis 1B (CS), Wallach HBP, Snyder K
(Dodgers 3, Astros 2)

The five parks I'd like to see most that I haven't been to: 5: Great American Ball Park (Reds), 4: Kaufman Stadium (Royals), 3: Fenway Park (Red Sox), 2: Petco Field (Padres), 1: PNC Park (Pirates). I doubt if any of those would pass Dodger Stadium, though. Watching the sun go down on a warm summer's day from field level w/ your favorite person in the whole world w/ that backdrop is about as good as it gets. And it got even better when the Dodgers blew the game in the 9th.

T9: Finley BB, Bagwell K, Caminiti 1B, Anthony HR, Gonzalez 1B(SB), Servais K, Cedeno F8
B9: Karros BB, Piazza 3-6-3 DP, Harris 4-3

Final: Astros 5, Dodgers 3

Top 10 Baseball games I ever attended: #6

July 19, 1991: Brewers vs. White Sox

T1: Molitor 5-3, Hamilton 3-1, Surhoff 4-3
B1: Raines 1-3, Ventura HR, Thomas 1B, Pasqua 1B, Newson 1-3, Johnson 1B, Karkovice K
(Sox 3, Brewers 0)

This was the first of a 4-game series between the Brewers (then in the AL East) and the Sox. tbKMD and I decided we were going to watch all 4 games of the series from the same seats and pretend like we were season ticket holders. Fun to act like big shots.

T2: Vaughn K, Sheffield 2B, Stubbs P1, Bichette K
B2: Cora 1B, Guillen 4-3, Raines BB(SB), Ventura HR, Thomas K
(Sox 5, Brewers 0)

tbKMD's favorite player at the time ... maybe for all time ... was Robin Ventura. Not sure why, 'cause he was kinda homely, especially when compared to Dolberry. I think maybe she liked that early in his career (the year before) he went through an 0 for 41 slump but overcame it. Even though he was likely the best third baseman in baseball in the 1990s, he's best remembered for being on the receiving end of a noogie from Nolan Ryan when he charged the mound after a HBP.

T3: Gantner 3-1, Spiers 1B, Molitor 2-3, Hamilton F7
B3: Pasqua 2B, Newson BB, Johnson BB, Karkovice FC, Cora FC, Guillen F7.
(Sox 5, Brewers 0)

Jack McDowell was pitching for the Sox in this one. For a four-year stretch (1990-1993), he was one of the best pitchers in baseball. He was a big deal in Chicago, in part because he was in the wave of young talent (Big Hurt, Ventura, Alex Fernandez) that took the Chisox from mediocrity to an AL West pennant in 1993. Another component of his popularity was he was in an alternative rock band in the offseason and one of the early adopters of the goatee. After 4 years of throwing the split finger fastball for 250 innings a season, his career ended too quickly w/ arm trouble.

T4: Surhoff F7, Vaughn 1B(E9), Sheffield BB, Stubbs F8, Bichette 1B, Gantner F8
B4: Raines BB, Ventura 2B, Thomas P6, Pasqua K, Newson K
(Sox 6, Brewers 1)

This was the first year of the new Comiskey Park. It had been going up all 1990 season and it dwarfed the old stadium. As a fan, it was nice to have wide concourses to walk down and clean bathrooms and seats that actually faced home plate w/ no poles to look around. However, most people agreed w/ Mike Veeck that the new park "had everything but a soul". The upper deck where tbKMD and Dolberry were sitting was extremely steep. Not a good place to go if you were scared of heights. I guess it's been significantly renovated since the 90s. Dolberry will have to go back sometime.

T5: Spiers 3B, Molitor 1B, Hamilton F8, Surhoff F7, Vaughn K
B5: Johnson 1B(CS), Karkovice F9, Cora K
(Sox 6, Brewers 2)

There can't be many quieter Hall of Fame players than Paul Molitor. In 1991, at the age of 35 he led the league in hits, runs, and triples. He's 9th on the all time hits list with 3,319. It may be awhile before we see another player get 3,000 hits. It's not gonna happen in 2010 unless Griffey Jr. gets 320 hits. I doubt Junior gets to 3000 even though he's only 39. Unless he can get a cushy DH job for the Mariners or some other subpar AL team and stay reasonably healthy for 2.5 solid years. Gary Sheffield, who got one of his 2,615 hits in this game, has an outside chance to get there. The next to get to 3,000 will likely be Jeter or Pudge Rodriguez sometime in 2012.

T6: Sheffield 5-3, Stubbs P6, Bichette F9
B6: Guillen 1B, Raines BB, Ventura 2B, Thomas BB, Pasqua HR, Sosa 4-3, Johnson 4-3, Karkovice BB, Cora HBP, Guillen 1B, Raines HBP, Ventura F8
(Sox 12, Brewers 2)

So, tbKMD & I were playing the "pick to click" game, a Sox tradition started by their TV announcer Hawk Harrelson. Basically, you pick a player and whoever player has the best game wins. tbKMD's pick of Ventura won going away as by this point in the game he was 4 for 5 w/ two HRs and two doubles. Both Milwaukee's pitcher (Crim) and catcher (Surhoff) got ejected in the bottom of the 6th for the HBPs. They both got frowny faces from tbKMD in the scorebook.

T7: Gantner 1B, Spiers 1B, Molitor BB, Hamilton SF8, Dempsey 1-3, Vaughn K
B7: Thomas BB(PB), Pasqua HBP, Sosa F8, Johnson 1B, Karkovice SF8, Cora P6
(Sox 13, Brewers 3)

Sammy Sosa was in his 3rd and last year w/ the White Sox at this point. He had 33 HRs total in his first three years. In 1998 he would hit twice that many in a single season. He really got a lot better in 1998. His slugging percentage bulged over 150 points. Hmmm ... why did he get so much better. Perhaps a before and after picture would help ...

Before ...

After ...
I can only assume he picked his lawyer on the theory that, comparatively, no one would look like a slimeball when sitting right next to him. There's a segment of the baseball community (mostly younger fans) that say we shouldn't judge Bonds, Clemens, McGwire, Sosa, A-Rod, Palmeiro, ad nauseum ... for a myriad of relativist reasons. Dolberry disagrees. It may not have explicitly been against baseball's rules, but clearly taking illegal supplements is against basic rules of society and really common sense. Maybe there's a whole generation of baseball players that did it and maybe there's a whole lot of Americans now who supplement themselves w/ all sorts of pharmaceutical nonsense that they don't need ... but it's still not right. Play the game right.

T8: Sheffield 4-3, Stubbs F8, Bichette K
B8: Grebeck HR, Huff 1B, Ventura F7, Merullo BB, Pasqua P2, Sosa F9
(Sox 14, Brewers 3)

Fun game. I've only seen one better performance than that and it'll come up later in the countdown. Ventura broke his ankle in a gruesome home plate slide in Sarasota against the Reds in Spring Training. He underwent an ankle transplant a few years back & can now walk w/o a limp.

T9: Ganter 4-3, Spiers 3-1, Molitor 3B, Hamilton 6-3

Final: Sox 14, Brewers 3

Top 10 Baseball games I ever attended: #7

May 22, 1990: Reds vs. Cubs

T1: Sabo F8, Hatcher HBP, O'Neill F7, Davis K
B1: Walton 1B, Sandberg FC, Grace 1B(7-5), Dawson IBB, McClendon F8
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

The Reds are off to a hot start ... 26-9 coming into this game. This great record is apparently in spite of manager Lou Pinella's propensity for intentionally walking guys in the first inning. Guess Lou is expecting a low-scoring game here.

T2: Morris K, Quinones BB, Oliver K, Oester 3U
B2: Salazar P6, Dunston 2B, Wrona K, Bielecki K
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

How about that? Mike Bielecki started two of the best 10 games I ever saw (see #8). Ironically, one was for the Cubs and one was against. I was more excited to see the Reds starter, Tom Browning who was always one of my favorites. He had broken in with the Reds in 1985, finishing 2nd in the Rookie of the Year race and helped turn around the Reds from doormats to contenders.

T3: Browning K, Sabo BB(CS), Hatcher F8
B3: Walton 5-3, Sandberg F9, Grace F8
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

It was a tumultuous time following the Reds back then. The year before, the whole Pete Rose debacle blew up. He was banned from baseball in August 1989. Far worse than that, Marge Schott was "running" the team which of course consisted of: firing all scouts ("Because all they do is sit around all day and watch baseball.") and pinching pennies whereever possible, such as not paying the $200 a game to run the out of town scoreboard ("Why would anyone care about some other game when they're watching this one?")

T4: O'Neill 1B, Davis BB, Morris 4-6-3, Quinones P6
B4: Dawson 6-3, McClendon F7, Salazar F9
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

But 1990 was sort of a sweet spot in between the Rose years and the Schott-induced Geländemarsch to pitifulness ... where they have resided pretty much for the last decade. The 26-9 start had been led by great pitching. Browning and Jose Rijo were the expected studs of the staff, but this was the year of Jack Armstrong. Armstrong had the half-season of his life at the beginning of 1990, being named to start the All-Star game after a 9-3 start. He only won three games after the break, but his first half played a large role in getting the Reds into the playoffs for the first time since 1979.

T5: Oliver 4-3, Oester F7, Browning 1B, Sabo 5-3
B5: Dunston F8, Wrona 6-3, Bielecki 1-3
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

Browning had retired 11 straight at this point. He is, of course, most famous for the time he retired 27 straight as part of the only perfect game thrown by a Reds pitcher. There have only been 17 perfect games in MLB history. Browning got the only one against a team that went on to win the World Series w/ a 1-0 victory over the Dodgers on 9/16/88.

T6: Hatcher 2B, O'Neill 4-3, Davis 5-3, Morris 5-3
B6: Walton 1B, Sandberg FC, Grace F7, Dawson F7
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

tbKMD had joined Dolberry for this game. She won our traditional attendance guess ... only missing the announced crowd of 29,860 by 129 people. We were both grad students at the time, though heading in opposite directions. tbKMD was excelling in the Pharmacology program at prestigious Northwestern University ... Dolberry was flailing though Geophysical Science at U. of Wewillcallyoueverymonthuntilyoudieorgiveusmoney.

T7: Quinones 4-3, Oliver 2B, Oester 3U, Browning K
B7: McClendon P6, Salazar 5-3, Dunston 2B, Wrona IBB, Bielecki K
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

Baseball strategy has changed a lot in the last 18 years. Nowadays, I would think many managers would have pulled Browning for a pinch hitter w/ the go-ahead run in scoring position in the 7th. Thankfully, Sweet Lou let Browning bat. Unfortunately, the gratuitous intentional walk has remained a staple of the game. Pinella bypassed the catcher who hit .172 on the season, and would be sent down to the minors for the rest of the year only one week later, to get to the pitcher who hit .163 on the season. Why Lou? Why?

T8: Sabo 6-3, Hatcher 5-3, O'Neill K
B8: Walton P6, Sandberg 2B, Grace 3-1, Dawson IBB, McClendon 5-3
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

Even though the score was 0-0, the whole park had to sense that the Reds had the Cubs right where they wanted them. 1990 was the year of the Nasty Boys. The triumverate of Randy Myers, Rob Dibble, and Norm Charlton gave the Reds one of the most potent bullpens of all-time. Between the three of them they pitched 339 innings that year, gave up only 261 hits and struck out 351.

T9: Davis K, Morris 4-3, Quinones F7
B9: Salazar F8, Dunston P3, Wrona K
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

Browning came out of the game after 9 innings. (Bielecki stayed in and finished the 10th.) In doing the research for this article, I found out Tom Browning had written a book entitled: Tom Browning's Tales from the Reds Dugout. It was selling for 7 cents (!) on Amazon so I bought it. (Shipping was $3.99 but still ...). Look for a book review on the DCV some time in the future. Hooray!

T10: J. Reed 1B, Oester Sac, Larkin K, Sabo 4-3.
B10: Dascenzo K, Walton F9, Sandberg F9
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

Am guessing that Larkin didn't start this game because the next day was an off day and Barry had played every game so far in 1990. This year and 1999 were the only two years of his career that were injury-free for the Reds great hometown hero. If I had to make a list of my all time favorite Reds it would look like this: 5 - Eric Davis, 4- Ken Griffey Jr., 3 - Johnny Bench, 2 - Barry Larkin, 1 - Joe Morgan.

T11: Hatcher F7, O'Neill K, Davis 1B, Benzinger P4
B11: Grace E5, Dawson 1B, McClendon K, Salazar IBB, Dunston K, D. Smith K
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

Dibble bailed out Charlton w/ the two K's there in the 11th. Sweet Lou put a little extra pressure on him w/ his fourth order of a free pass (to Luis Salazar?!?!?). I listen to Dibble on my XM satellite radio sometimes on the bus ride home. For a guy who broke into the league like a wild stallion ... one time hitting a woman in the upper deck w/ a ball thrown in anger ... he's fairly reasonable to listen to on the radio. Guess he's going to be the color commentator for the Nationals this year ... which is sure to be an exercise in patience.

T12: Quinones 1B, Reed Sac, Oester L5, Roomes K
B12: Wynne K, Walton BB, Sandberg K, Grace BB, Dawson IBB, McClendon 4-6.
(Reds 0, Cubs 0)

Intentional walk #5. Third of the day to Dawson who will tie Roger Maris' mark for most IBB's in a game if he gets another one. Lloyd McClendon had a rough day ... 0 for 6 and he left nine runners stranded. This earned him a frowny face from tbKMD in the scorebook, but it presumably prepared him a bit for the frustration he would face in later life managing the Pirates for five years.

T13: Sabo HR, Hatcher 4-3, O'Neill 1B(8-6), Davis 6-3
B13: Salazar HR, Dunston F8, Girardi K, Wilkerson K
(Reds 1, Cubs 1)

You have got to be kidding me! Randy Myers gives up a HR to Luis Salazar? (Lou, you should have walked him!) DCV Teaser: There's another game coming up in the countdown where Myers gave up a HR at Wrigley and something interesting happens. Stay tuned.

T14: Benzinger F7, Quinones 1B(SB), Reed 4-3, Oester IBB, Griffey Sr. 4-3
B14: Walton 6-3, Sandberg BB(PB), Grace F8, Dawson IBB, D. Clark K
(Reds 1, Cubs 1)

1990 was the year the Reds swept the vaunted Oakland A's in the World Series. Jose Rijo pitched like a madman (15 IP, 1 ER, 2 wins) and Billy Hatcher got 9 hits in 12 at bats; but for me the hero of that series will always be Eric Davis who hit a 2-run HR in Game 1 that propelled the sweep. In Game 4 of that series he lacerated his kidney trying to make a diving catch. While the rest of the Reds were celebrating their title, Davis was in an Oakland hospital. The story goes that the Reds made him pay for his trip home from the hospital, since the season was over.

T15: Sabo 1-3, Hatcher F9, O'Neill 4-3
B15: Salazar BB(SB), Dunston P2, Girardi K, Ramos F8
(Reds 1, Cubs 1)

The game ended up being the third longest game of the entire 1990 season. One of oldest baseball bromides is that "if you go to a game you are sure to see something that you've never seen before". In this game we saw something that had never HAPPENED before and has never happened since ... a player be intentionally walked 5 times in a game. After leaving 20 men on base over 15 innings, the Cubs finally capitalized in the 16th.

T16: Davis F9, Benzinger K, Quinones 1B, Reed 4-6
B16: Walton K, Sandberg 1B, Grace E6, Dawson IBB, Clark 1B

Final: Cubs 2, Reds 1

Top 10 Baseball games I ever attended: #8

August 30, 1996: Braves vs. Cubs

T1: A. Jones 1-3, Mordecai 2B, Chipper 3-1, McGriff K
B1: McRae 1B, Bullett 1B, Grace 4-3, L. Gonzalez P4, Magadan 4-3
(Cubs 1, Braves 0)

If Dolberry was going to draw up his perfect day, there's a good chance it would involve sitting in the warm August Wrigley shade beside the beautiful KMD taking in a doubleheader of baseball.

T2: Klesko 3B, Dye 4-3, J. Lopez 2B, Lemke 4-3, Bielecki K
B2: Houston 6-3, Hernandez 1-3, Haney F7
(Braves 1, Cubs 1)

The Cubs had beaten Tom Glavine 3-2 on a game-winning single by Ryne Sandberg in the first game of the now-rare baseball BOGO. The first game took only 2:13. Dolberry has a lousy memory, but I can distinctly remember holding hands w/ tbKMD while sitting down the 1st base line on this late-summer Friday afternoon.

T3: A. Jones P4, Mordecai 6-3, Chipper K
B3: Bullinger K, McRae HR, Bullett K, Grace 1B, Gonzalez F7
(Cubs 2, Braves 1)

Talking about leadoff guys in yesterday's game, can anyone believe Andruw Jones used to be a leadoff man? In August 1996, he was a slender 19 year old and in his first month in the big leagues and was maybe the biggest prospect of all time. In January 2008, the Dodgers signed him to a two-year, 36 million deal and he responded by hitting .158 in over 200 ABs. In January 2009, the Dodgers released him (gently, presumably, given the tectonic situation in SoCal). One scout said of him, "He looked like he was at a church picnic and could not care less about what was going on." Too much success at the cake wheel it appears.

T4: McGriff E6, Klesko F9, Dye K, Lopez 1B, Lemke E6, Bielecki 1B, A. Jones 4-3
B4: Magadan F9, Houston 1B, Hernandez K, Haney 6-3
(Cubs 2, Braves 2)

The nice thing about old scorecards is all the little notations in the book, some about the game, some not. In this one, tbKMD wrote "tbKMD [heart] Dolberry". (She didn't really use our blog code names, but it was still sweet.)

T5: Mordecai 1B, Chipper 1B, McGriff 4-3, Klesko 6-3, Dye K
B5: Hubbard K, McRae F8, Bullett 1-3
(Braves 3, Cubs 2)

It's worth noting that APD was at this game as well, though his seats were the ultimate "obstructed view". At that time of his life, we called him "Lil' Chipper" after Chipper Jones who was one of my favorite players at the time. (I still like ol' Larry Wayne Jones ... he's a great player.) He was one of my favorites at the time because he was one of my first Rotisserie baseball "finds". A "find" is a guy you identify when he's young and you lock him in at a cheap price before the whole world knows about him. My new "find" for those who care is Pablo Sandoval of the Giants. Let's be thankful we're past childbearing years ... Lil' Pablo doesn't sound quite the same.

T6: Lopez 1B, Lemke 6-3, Bielecki K, A. Jones K
B6: Grace 4-3, Gonzalez 1B, Magadan 1B, Servais F9, Hernandez K
(Braves 3, Cubs 2)

Even if you don't like baseball ... (Be gone heathen!) one can still enjoy the food you can get at the ballpark. I usually keep it simple. In Wrigley, Dolberry usually got a brat (or two) and a soda. On a warm day, that'd usually be followed by ice cream in one of those collectible helmets. Mmmmmmmm .... ice cream helmets .

T7: Mordecai HR, Chipper 5-3, McGriff 1B, Klesko 6-4-3
B7: Haney BB, Kieschnieck 1B, McRae BB, Bullett K, Grace K, Gonzalez 3B, Magadan K.
(Cubs 5, Braves 4)

One of the best traditions about Wrigley Field was Harry Carey singing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" during the 7th inning stretch. Whenever the Cubs were behind he'd close the song w/ a lusty entreaty ... "Let's Get Some Runs!!!". Luis Gonzalez obliged him here w/ the go-ahead, bases-juiced triple.

T8: Dye F9, Lopez K, Lemke 6-3
B8: Servais 1B, Hernandez Sac, Haney 6-3, Gomez 4-3
(Cubs 5, Braves 4)

In Dolberry's opinion (hey it's my blog), there may not be a more overrated position in all of sports than that of the closer in baseball. The Reds are paying Francisco Cordero 48 million just because he's pitched in the 9th inning of games before. Jared Burton would perform just as well for 1/10th the money. That said, the closers decided this game. Check out Bob Patterson (Cubs) vs. Mark Wohlers (Braves) in his prime.

T9: Pendleton 1B, A. Jones E6, Mordecai P2, Chipper 1B, McGriff BB, Grissom SF9, Dye K
B9: McRae K, Bullett K, Grace K!

Final: Braves 6, Cubs 5

Top 10 Baseball games I ever attended: #9

October 12th, 1993: Blue Jays vs. White Sox

T1: Henderson K, D. White 1B, Alomar FC, Carter F9
B1: Raines F7, Cora K, Thomas F8
(Blue Jays 0, White Sox 0)

This game is Game 6 of the ALCS. I remember spending the better part of one Saturday morning calling and calling Ticketmaster trying to get Sox playoff tickets ... in the pre-Internet days ... getting nothing but a busy signal for over an hour before finally getting through. We paid $40 each for two upper box tickets at new Comiskey. I believe this is still the most Dolberry has ever paid for a ticket to any sort of sporting event, though pretty soon Spring Training games will cost that much.

T2: Olerud BB, Molitor HBP, T. Fernandez 1-3, Sprague BB, Borders 1B, Henderson FC, White 4-3.
B2: Ventura BB, Burks P4, Newson 4-3, L Johnson 3U.
(Jays 2, Sox 0)

The starting pitchers for this matchup were superb. Toronto sent Dave Stewart to the hill while Chicago countered with Alex Fernandez. Stewart was a few years removed from his dominating stint w/ the A's in the late 80's, but he had bested Fernandez just 6 days earlier in Game 2 of this ALCS. Alex Fernandez had an awesome 1993, 18-9 w/ a 3.13 ERA, but it was overshadowed somewhat by "Blackjack" McDowell's 22 win Cy Young performance. At the time, as a Sox fan, I remember thinking Fernandez had a really bright career ahead of him. As it turned out, his best season was 1993 as a 24-year old.

T3: Alomar 4-3, Carter P3, Olerud P2
B3: Lavailliere P5, Guillen 2B, Raines 1B, Cora HBP, Thomas BB, Ventura FC, Burks 5-3
(Jays 2, Sox 2)

1993 was probably the year tbKMD and I watched the most baseball games. We lived right downtown in these apartments (where GMa Karen once had popcorn AFTER eating 4 desserts) and it was really simple to get to either Comiskey or Wrigley. tbKMD was just a few months from getting her PhD and Dolberry was working out at LADCO. Those were carefree days ... very few responsibilities ... no kid, no mortgage, didn't even own a car. We got pretty emotionally invested in the Sox that year.

T4: Molitor E5, Fernandez F8, Sprague 1B, Borders FC/E4, Henderson 3-1
B4: Newson 4-3, Johnson L3, Lavalliere 5-3
(Jays 3, Sox 2)

This was the Sox first playoff appearance since 1983 and only their second since 1959, so there were a lot of rabid Sox fans that year. It was a full house despite temperatures in the mid-40s. The Jays had won the first two games of the series in Chicago, but then the "good guys" bounced back to take the next two to even the series. The Jays had beaten McDowell in Game 5, so this was an elimination game for the Sox.

T5: White 1B, Alomar 1B, Carter K, Olerud P5, Molitor BB, Fernandez P4
B5: Guillen P5, Raines BB, Cora F9, Thomas K
(Jays 3, Sox 2)

The top 3 vote getters in the 1993 AL MVP batted that past inning. #3 Olerud, #2 Molitor, #1 The Big Hurt. Frank Thomas was an awesome player in the mid 1990's. In 1994, he had a Barry Bonds like season w/o the bloated perjuring head (.492 on base % and 38 HRs in a park that favored pitchers). The Big Hurt is still trying to catch on w/ someone for 2009 ... he may be forced to retire ... sentimental ol' Dolberry would like to see him get another year.

T6: Sprague K, Borders 2B, Henderson F7, White K
B6: Ventura F9, Burks 1B, Newson K, Johnson 4-3
(Jays 3, Sox 2)

This game featured two of the best leadoff hitters of all time: Rickey Henderson and Tim "Rock" Raines. Both were on the Hall of Fame ballot this year and Henderson got in w/ 95% of the vote, but surprisingly Raines only got 22% support (you need 75% to get in). He'll get in eventually as new guard voters (who appreciate what a lifetime .385 on base percentage means to an offense) replace the ones who only care about HRs.

T7: Alomar F9, Carter F8, Olerud 1B, Molitor K
B7: Lavailliere BB, Guillen Sac, Raines L4 (DP)
(Jays 3, Sox 2)

The Southside fans were getting restless by this point. tbKMD was surprised by the fact that the White Sox supporters were booing their boys after a 94 win season appeared to be coming to end. I guess when you haven't won a single playoff series since 1917, patience & goodwill aren't your strong suits. This was the last year before the current wild-card playoff format came into effect. Unlike interleague play, I correctly tagged that as a bad idea when it happened. Does anybody really get fired up for a divisional series playoff game?

T8: Fernandez F8, Sprague P4, Borders 1-3
B8: Cora F7, Thomas 1B, Ventura K, Burks K
(Jays 3, Sox 2)

By the time the 9th inning ended, tbKMD & Dolberry were one of the few fans left in the stadium. As you will see it didn't end well. The Blue Jays went on to win the World Series over the Phillies on a walkoff Joe Carter HR. The White Sox would get their World Series in 2005 when their 1993 SS (Ozzie Guillen) was their manager. Dolberry and tbKMD went on to live happily ever after, although we haven't been to a playoff game since.

T9: Henderson 1-3, White HR, Alomar F8, Carter 1B, Olerud E4, Molitor 3B, Fernandez F8
B9: Newson HR, Johnson BB, Karkovice K, Guillen F9, Raines F9.

Final: Jays 6, Sox 3

Top 10 Baseball games I ever attended: #10

July 1st, 1997: Royals vs. Cubs

T1: Goodwin 4-3, J. Bell F9, J. Damon K
B1: Glanville 1B, McRae 2B, Grace 1B, Sosa 2B, Dunston 1B, Sandberg SF-7, Hernandez 6-4-3.
(Cubs 4, Royals 0)

In Dolberry's opinion the three best things about Chicago are how pretty Lake Michigan looks on a crisp summer day, Giordano's pizza, and Wrigley Field. So, in our last month in Chicagoland it was time to drag APD out to the Friendly Confines.

T2: J King 6-3, J. Dye 4-3, C. Paquette K
B2: Hubbard F9, F. Castillo 3-1, Glanville PO-2
(Cubs 4, Royals 0)

Remember thinking at the time that it was weird that APD's first game would be an interleague matchup. It seems like there's been interleague play for forever, but 1997 was the first year for it. I remember thinking it was a bad idea at the time, but in retrospect I have to grudgingly admit error on that one. I kind of enjoy interleague games now. From a fantasy baseball perspective, it's nice to have 15 games to track instead of 8.

T3: Fasano K, Howard 1B, Rusch E5, Goodwin 2B, Bell BB, Damon P6, King P5.
B3: McRae F8, Grace 1B, Sosa K, Dunston 1B, Sandberg 2B, Hernandez 6-3
(Cubs 5, Royals 1)

We were excited that Glendon Rusch was pitching for the Royals, because we had "seen" him pitch a no-hitter a few seasons earlier at a Single A game against the Kane County Cougars. It still is the only no-hitter I've ever "seen". Seen is in quotation marks because we were in the standing room section of a huge Sunday crowd for that little ballpark and I actually couldn't see Rusch from where we were, but it was cool to be there. Glendon did not fare as well in this one, lasting only 6 innings.

T4: Dye L5, Paquette 5-3, Fasano 5-3
B4: Hubbard F7, Castillo F9, Glanville HR, McRae F8
(Cubs 6, Royals 1)

Doug Glanville had to be one of the smartest players in MLB. He's one of only 5 Penn graduates to play in the bigs. Seemed like a nice guy.

T5: Howard 1B, Rusch K, Goodwin F9, Bell 6-3
B5: Grace F8, Sosa 6-3, Dunston 1B, Sandberg F8
(Cubs 6, Royals 1)

I remember it being a beautiful Tuesday afternoon. Our scorecard says 80 degrees yet there were only 18,745 in attendance. Nowadays, that's a sure sellout for the Cubs. Attendance in 1997 was 2.1 million. The next year was the steroid-fueled run on Maris' record and no year since 1997 has drawn less than 2.6 mil at Wrigley. The last 5 seasons have all been over 3 million.

T6: Damon 1B, King F9, Dye 3U (DP)
B6: Hernandez BB, Hubbard 4-6-3, Castillo 4-3
(Cubs 6, Royals 1)

You may or may not know this but President Obama is a big White Sox fan. I think this can only help the SouthSiders, although I'm not sure how. Maybe there's money for another starter in the stimulus package.

T7: Paquette 5-3, Fasano K, Howard 2B, S. Cooper P5
B7: Glanville BB, McRae P3, Grace 3-6-1
(Cubs 6, Royals 1)

While this was APD's first baseball game, it was not his first sporting event. He had watched Marquette win the Conference USA basketball tournament that March in St. Louis. As parents of a newborn, I remember we were scared that the loud noise of the bands might hurt his little eardrums.

T8: Goodwin K, Bell K, Damon P6
B8: Sosa 1B, Dunston F9, Sandberg P6, Hernandez 6-3
(Cubs 6, Royals 1)

I can't really remember if APD enjoyed the game or not. As far as games go, there'll be others to come in the countdown that were more interesting from a baseball perspective. Both of these teams went on to lose 94 games this year. But this one will always be special as the first one as the Dolberry family. I'm sure the drive back home to Naperville was traffic-crazy, but it was worth it.

T9: King BB, Dye K, Paquette F8, Nunnally BB, Howard 4-3

Final: Cubs 6, Royals 1

In the Valley of the Frying Sun

(written Monday, posted Wednesday)
APD, the title is for you. I thought you’d like it. Went w/ a HoH theme throughout. I do think you could get a sunburn out here this week if you put your mind to it.

The warm weather is quite dissimilar from the last time I was out here in the winter. I might have to give that the “Life Episode” treatment sometime. (OK. Long story short … tbKMD’s family had Dolberry standing out on a major Phoenix thoroughfare holding a sign in my short sleeves in a 40 degree rain. Considering the downwash & spray created by the cars speeding by at 50 mph, the wind chill wet bulb temperature was probably ~25-30. I think it was some sort of hazing ceremony.) Today it was an easy 70 w/ a satisfying sun.

Conference is fine so far. Seen a number of old colleagues. They’d probably say the same about me.

I’m surprised how many memories I have of Phoenix. They all sort of radiated down riding back on the shuttle bus, gazing out the empty back of the bus at the South Mountains. Warm replays of leaving the Valley the first time, riding back to St. Louis w/ John, Beth, and Bridget … crying silently behind sunglasses halfway to New Mexico dreading a summer away from tbKMD.

(we were children then)

It was the first time I met most of tbKMD’s family. Who knows what they thought of Dolberry, but here’s what I remember thinking about them. They were kind of scary.

(footprints in the sand)

It’s one of the happiest blessings of my life that those scary people accepted me as part of their family. Eventually all of them became less scary. It took Mary the longest. Part of it was her tape player which repeated eight Garth Brooks songs over and over in a first day programmer’s loop. Part of it was her tenacious love for her daughters. It was as obvious then as it is now that tbKMD deserves way more than what she got. (No tradebacks!) Over time though, my relationship w/ Mary became something that I really appreciated. She laughed at all my lousy jokes & I did the same for hers. And it was genuine laughter. Nobody could make more smiles w/ less material than Mary. And during that one Chicago spring where Dolberry kinda lost it … Mary straightened me out w/ a simple reminder that nothing was going to happen that day that God & I couldn’t get through together. Before I knew it, we were good friends.

(and like that sand through our hands go our grandest plans)

The year she was sick went like a blur. There was sudden bad but uncertain news. Then it got worse. For a while the medicine worked, but then it didn’t. And we shared lots of happy times. And there were lots of nice talks and visits. And we took pictures in the fallen leaves and with new puppies. And right after that APD & I were out standing on the driveway under a halo-wrapped moon and she was gone.

(and through the cloud of death we find our way back home)

And sitting here in the Valley of the Sun, I selfishly wish I could go back in time and live it all over again. I’d do some things different (see summer jobs entry) but mostly just to experience it all over again. It's been too fun. Like always, I’m just so grateful for all the people in my life, the ones who are on the other side and the ones still here.

(the end … is not the end)

Shaqtastic!

I think my favorite commercial right now is the ESPN one where Shaq is playing scrabble. Shaq does seem to be an excellent player and I hate to quibble, but in his first play he would have gotten 54 points had he played "quash" on his opening turn instead of "shaqfu" which was just 50 if my math is right.

Speaking of games, my 2009 Sudoku streak over tbKMD ended at eight today. We print out the same "expert" level puzzle from this web site and race to see who can finish it first. Usually takes about 20 minutes, but I got one done in 10:34 this morning. Unfortunately, tbKMD beat me by about 20 seconds in our 3rd match of the day. So, now I'm 8-1 on the year.

Speaking of streaks, I've gotten a lot of questions about my Guitar Hero prowess (well, one ... thx El Cueto). My longest consecutive note streak is in the 400s on easy. I can do pretty much every song at the easy level at least 90%. I've focused on two songs at medium level for now ("Everlong" by Foo Fighters & "The One I Love" by REM). I can do both of them at 90% on medium.

Watched a Josh Hamilton show on ESPN last night. The job he'd want to have if he wasn't a MLB player ... weatherman.

Went running around the lake today (2 miles) & APD whupped me. That kid is a competitive runner. He does not like to lose ... to his Dad anyway.

Probably no blog tomorrow unless there's free wireless somewhere.

Movie "Review": Bedtime Stories

The whole D'Berry clan took in a post-Christmas movie this past weekend. We narrowed it down to Desperaux and Bedtime Stories and let a coin make the final decision. It was fine. A little Adam Sandler goes a long way. I had a really nice ICEE though, so all was good.

Our water heater appears to have failed. I grumbled to tbKMD ... didn't we just get that installed 3 years ago. Turns out it was 9 years ago. Time files.

24 hours: an acrostic

There aren't many things better than an off Friday.
I play Sudoku with tbKMD and win two out of three.
Really no need to go outside; cold front has blasted through.
Even snowed a little bit earlier.
Drive over to church around 7p for annual lock-in.
Board games, loud music, movies, Madden 09, pizza, fun times ...
Unless you like sleep.
The youth at our church are a great group.
Hurry home at 7a for a quick 90 minute snooze,
And then drowsily lace up the running gear for my first 5K in a long long time.
Prepared (cough) for this race by running 6 or 7 times all year.
Picked it up at the 2.5 mile mark and finished feeling good in a not-too-bad 27:34.
Yeah ... life is really great when you feel like you've earned your nap.

Hey, what's up with me?

Not much.

Playing some softball. We lost our first two games, but have stormed back to win 5 straight, including beating both of the teams that beat us. We're currently 3rd of 7, one game back of the leaders. I've been playing very very badly.

Our rotisserie team was horrible this year. 7th of 13. Pitiful. Our widely panned Volquez trade ended up being a net positive for the O'Jimmies, but it wasn't enough.

I'm thinking about doing another "Life Episodes" soon ... if I can think up anything else interesting that's happened to me.

The Reds season is finally over. Anyone who thinks they'll be any better next year than this year needs their optimism levels adjusted.

The beautiful KMD and APD are psyched about the ChiSox.

All this sounds negative but it's not. Things are fine here.

Looking back through old yearbooks ....

Fun day today. APD's team lost again (0-5), but he got his first ever hit to the OF on a fly. He ripped it pretty good. Then yard work. Then went swimming. It was 90 again here today.

We spent the evening looking through some of our old yearbooks. Check this link for more.

Here's APD in 1952:

The beautiful KMD has gotten better looking everyday I've ever known her. Here she was in 1966:

Surprisingly, Dolberry hasn't changed much. Here I was in 1972 in my Grand Funk Railroad days:


Finally, here's Cherish from 1996. Looking stylish.

So, we're driving home this evening ...

... after the beautiful KMD picked me up from the bus stop and we see a guy using a weed eater to trim along his driveway a ways ahead (50 yards top) and tbKMD says:

"That's the littlest dog I've ever seen."

She said this in reference to the weedeater. This was after she said my two choices for dinner were chicken breast sandwiches or turkey breast sandwiches. Wow.

On a more encouraging note ... APD had a baseball scrimmage and played really well. Against much faster pitchers than he'd seen in 4 season of 9-10 yr old baseball, he worked a 8 pitch walk in the first and grounded into a 5-4 FC on his 2nd AB, after hitting a line drive down the LF line that was just a few feet foul. I was impressed.

APD's report card

He got all A's & made the "A" honor roll, which is hard to do in the 1st quarter according to his teacher. She said so many nice things about APD. (All true. All things we know. But nice to hear nonetheless.) I was telling the beautiful KMD, that parent/teacher conference day is one of my favorite of the year.

Friday we're going to see Switchfoot / Relient K in Winston-Salem. Very excited for that.

What else ... still 120+ days 'til softball again.

Work is fine. Busy, but good busy for now.

Kristy sprained her ankle really badly about 10 days ago. It just quit being purple. She's itchin' to run, but it's still too painful. I think she'll need 3-4 weeks off. I actually ran 1.5 miles today which is pretty good for a fat guy.

Halloween snuck up on us this year. APD wanted to be the Silver Surfer or nothing. The nothing option was easier to pull off at the last second. About 12 kids came by our house which is pretty much the usual. We'll be better prepared for Veteran's Day!

Hope all readers are doing GREAT!!!! We'll see family readers in 3 weeks!!! Can't wait.

Rampaging bull loose in Apex!

Yay. Another crazy Apex story. Loose bull last Friday. Eluded capture for some 6 hours. Well done Bone Collector.

It was a draining week at work. A two day weekend was not enough refilling.

Our softball team is in first. 5-1.

APD's team is 2-2. They lost two 1-run games this week (3-2 and 4-3). He pitched three more scoreless innings (6.2 on the season w/ no runs). Plus, he went 2-4 and made three putouts in the field. We have (ahem) an arrangement in which there are benefits if certain milestones are hit. It is working too well. APD came off the field last game & said "You owe me big." We're trying to recommunicate that it's not a job.

Can't believe UL only lost one spot in the rankings.

The ever-increasingly beautiful KMD & I celebrated our 15th (crystal) anniversary this week. I offered to download a Crystal Gayle song from Itunes for her, but she said no thanks.

Hey, I turn 41 tomorrow. Joy! Thanks to all for putting up w/ me, some if not all of those years.

Keep Louisville Weird

Hey all. Hope all is well.

I wore my "Keep Louisville Weird" t-shirt out & about today (an X-mas gift from Uncle Sparky). Interestingly, the ratio of people who asked me what the shirt meant to people who saw the shirt was 1.00.

I patiently explained that it was a campaign by independent Louisville businesses to encourage patronage of non-chain type stores/restaurants/etc. Well, I patiently explained it the first 5 or so times ... after that I made stuff up.

The best response to the shirt ... from the beautiful KMD who said that if I wanted to keep Louisville weird, then I should move back there.

All is fine here ... KMD & Dolberry went out on an actual date on Friday which was nice. Dolberry had a stellar softball game last Wed. 4-4 w/ an HR and 4-5 D plays at 3B. Then APD showed me up on Saturday as his team improved to 2-0. He came in to pitch in the bottom of the first w/ the bases loaded & 1 out. He struck out the next two guys. Then after giving up a hit and a walk in the 2nd, he struck out the next 3 guys including the leadoff & #2 hitters. He's pitched 2.2 innings, struck out 8, 1 hit, 1 walk, and he has a win and a save. Plus, he was 1-2 batting w/ a run scored.

Oh, and I fixed some more stuff this weekend ... installed a 3-way wall switch dimmer (easy) and new TP roll holders (easy, once I quit following the directions)

Have a good week.

APD's report card

I'm about halfway through my tirade re: this past weekend. Had our team softball party tonight though, which took me away from the task. Tomorrow.

Oh, on softball, I feel really fortunate to have such good friends.

APD dominated in the first quarter getting straight A's and making the honor roll. He got A pluses in Science, Spelling, History, Grammar, & Bible; and A's in Reading and Math. His teacher had lots of good things to say about him as well.

Yikes, the beautiful KMD is sick still (nausea).