Saturday, October 6, 2012

Atlanta Braves - Until Next Year!

 

The Atlanta Braves baseball season is over.  In the Wild-Card playoff last night, the Braves lost to the St. Louis Cardinals.  The final score was 6-3 and possibly could have been closer.  In the 8th inning with two on base, Andrelton Simmons hit what should have been an easy pop-up, instead the ball fell between the shortstop and the left fielder, which should have been ruled an error, in my opinion.  Instead, it was ruled an infield-fly and the batter was out.  The Braves manager, Freddie Gonzalez, came out to argue the call and later, he filed that the game was now being played under protest, which was denied.  The really bad thing about it: just after the call, SOME fans started throwing things upon the baseball field,  cans, bottles, cups, and most likely, anything these people could get their hands on. There was a delay of game for 19 minutes while the ground crew picked it all up.  Such an awful thing, and Joe Simpson, who is one of the Atlanta announcers was appalled and let us know that not only was this debris on the field, but it was also hitting the people sitting on the first few rows of the stadium.  A true fan of baseball would never do this.  You always want your team to win and you hate it when a bad call might possibly affect the outcome of the game but one should never use violence and I call throwing things onto the field a violent act. Someone could have been seriously hurt.  I would like to point out that I remember games at Shea Stadium when the Braves would play the Mets, that debris would sometimes be thrown on the field but other than that, I have never seen anything like this.  (And the Mets fans would chant "Larry, Larry" in a very jeering and mocking way when Chipper Jones would come up to bat, Larry being Chipper's real name, and what did Chipper do?  He named one of his sons "Shea"!
That's Chipper for you!)

 
It was sad to end the baseball season this way in Atlanta.  It was the last season for Chipper Jones, who has been with the Braves for his entire career which is most unusual in the major leagues.  Typically, Chipper Jones did not blame the loss of the game on the infield fly rule call. "That one play didn't cost us the game.  Three errors cost us the game".  Exactly so. I will miss not only his excellent playing but also his straight talk and knowledge of baseball.
 It has been a wonderful season and the Braves have had some amazing come-from-behind victories.  Last night, it was not meant to be.  You win some, you lose some...and some get rained out!  Until next Spring when I can hear that wonderful sound of the bat hitting the ball and you know in your heart it is a home run, until I can cheer the manager while he is arguing a call with "Freddy, Freddy, Freddy", until I can chop along with the crowd, until I can call my Dad and we can watch the game together on TV, until then I will be waiting with great anticipation for a new baseball season with the Atlanta Braves!  GO BRAVES!

18 comments:

  1. Go Braves!

    It sounds like it was an exciting season, and i hope next year sees your team in the World Series!

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    1. Thanks, Mimi! That's the great thing about sports, there's always hope for next year! :-)

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  2. Good luck next year....

    (Too bad about the rude fans. What do they think they're accomplishing?)

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    1. Hey Sue!
      I was very surprised to see that but then again, I am surprised a lot these days...

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  3. It was a bad call, but if they'd played well enough they would have won. Sorry to see Chipper go, wish it were Uggla instead. Hurry up April.

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    1. I know what you mean. And what is up with Brian McCann these days? My Dad says he needs a new eye doctor! Roll on April! (My mother-in-law in England says "Roll-on" to hurry things along!)

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  4. Thank-you for your kind comment on my blog, Kay. Although I have been known to criticize the US, (and England, Germany and most of all Canada), I wasn't actually bad mouthing your colourful history. We consider the Puritans and Pilgrims a part of our histroy too simply because our countries didn't exist in 1620. You have a great blog, but I must tell you that I laughed when I saw baseball was the topic. I was once invited to a baby shower in Buffalo and it was lovely, friendly women, great food - they made us so welcome. The only problem was that they couldn't take their eyes off the Buffalo Bills football game!! Ha ha! I guess sports are truly a national passtime south of the border.

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    1. Hey Francine!
      Can't remember what I typed as a comment to you (and my computer is stopping me from looking at your blog just now) but I didn't think you were bad mouthing anybody or anything, just stating facts of history and I certainly have no problem with that! We are just given snippits of history, it takes some real reading to get to the truth of any country's history.
      I hardly ever write about sports but I do quite enjoy baseball and always have. I think I like sports more than my husband does, but after all, he is English!
      Ha! Did they have BUFFALO wings at that baby shower? You knew I would have to ask!
      Happy Thanksgiving for you in Canada tomorrow.

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  5. I loved baseball growing up but I'm not that into it now. But then I do live in Ohio about 60 miles from Cleveland. Need I say more? Sorry your season ended like that but next year may prove better. In answer to your question on my blog...Oh yeah, I'm a freaking hilarious YaYa! Mostly it's me laughing at me!

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    1. I love sports, I love the here and now of it, and the excitement of anything happening, and the crowds cheering, and...well, you get the idea!
      "Me laughing at me", HA HA, we must be a lot alike!!

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  6. Why thank-you Kay, we intend to have a wonderful Thanksgiving. So pleased that my comments were not taken as criticism! Ah, Buffalo wings, drool, drool. Can't remember if we had them at the shower but there just isn't anything better than Buffalo's Buffalo wings!!!

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    1. Interesting story behind Buffalo wings, isn't it? I love how someone makes something really good out of just a few things. (Only having this left in the restaurant-wings, celery and ranch dressing- and making them into a hit!)

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  7. Sorry your teram lost, Kay, but then there's always next year. We are not big sports fans, but have been to watch several minor league games when we've been traveling.

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    1. I can watch any sport but baseball is my favorite. When we were in England, I watched the World Cup and loved the coverage on TV. England last won the World Cup in 1966! Talk about waiting until next time, but they have to wait every FOUR years!
      Thanks for your comment!

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  8. I have to tell you, I was happy to see my Red Sox season come to and end . . . what a miserable season we had!

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    1. Oh dear, I am sorry, I did see that the Red Sox had a lousy season. Such a shame, I know how crazy all of New England is about the Red Sox. I know that from the days of reading Stephen King's novels! :-)

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  9. I feel for you! We Seattleites have been saying that ever since the Mariners came to town in what? about 1980?

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    1. My son really got into baseball in the year 2001 and I think the Mariners had a very good season then. (I just looked it up and my memory is correct! YAY! They won 116 games which set the American League record for most wins in a season.)
      Hang in there with your hometeam! We had years of years of bad seasons before the Braves started winning. They still have a tough time in the post-season, winning one World Series in 1995.

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