tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post1282964700512277876..comments2023-11-03T06:02:02.128-07:00Comments on By Ken Levine: Who are these guys?By Ken Levinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17305293821975250420noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-67759667577478315802009-03-20T15:26:00.000-07:002009-03-20T15:26:00.000-07:00Kevin Cremin Dave NiehausKev, I think you pocketed...Kevin Cremin <BR/>Dave Niehaus<BR/><BR/>Kev, I think you pocketed some of that guy's change.By Ken Levinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17305293821975250420noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-46157288324082096732009-03-20T15:21:00.000-07:002009-03-20T15:21:00.000-07:00ou engineer! my broadcast partner! we don't have n...ou engineer! my broadcast partner! we don't have names?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-81897621291792961302009-03-20T07:58:00.000-07:002009-03-20T07:58:00.000-07:00The rough equivalent must be the September call-up...The rough equivalent must be the September call-ups. Bob Prince was doing a Pirates game and the Astros sent up a pinch-hitter whose number was nowhere on the roster and his name wasn't on the back. Prince was trying to figure out what to do when he heard the press box announcer--not the PA man--say, "Will Rab Mungee please report to the press gate?" Prince shrugged and said, "The hitter is Rab Mungee." Nobody cared.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-85783701112695219482009-03-20T06:06:00.000-07:002009-03-20T06:06:00.000-07:00Ken, great story. I can vouch for its authenticity...Ken, great story. <BR/><BR/>I can vouch for its authenticity. I went to a lot of games in that ballpark during my youth. I remember spotting Rick Monday in the stands a couple times and thought it was odd that he worked from their. After one of the games I was able to get his autograph which was a thrill for me, being a Dodgers fan in an Angels park.<BR/><BR/>I watched a ton of Angels games. The Padres, Brewers, Cubs, Giants, and A's were the regular rotation of visitors. I got my first baseball player autograph there - Wayne Gross from the visiting Athletics. When the Cubs came, the place was always sold out but you could generally get a game day ticket for pretty cheap for the other teams.<BR/><BR/>Man, the list of players I met is so extensive. Some were great, some not so much. I still have many memories all these years later. George Hendrick sitting outside the stadium in a lawn chair reading a newspaper, ignoring autograph requests. Brian Downing signing for about an hour after a game once while his family waited patiently in his Jeep. Wally Joyner getting absolutely mauled every time he tried to walk to his car after a game. Cory Snyder looking at the card I handed to him for an autograph and asking if I had an extra because he was missing that one in his own collection. Bob Welch hanging out under a tree smoking a cigarette and me being naively shocked that a pro athlete would do anything that could cause harm to harm his body. Hey, I was 10.Fite Clubhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06036381273805590268noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-29597947194833796102009-03-19T22:34:00.000-07:002009-03-19T22:34:00.000-07:00Great story and so describes spring training where...Great story and so describes spring training where goofy things are the rule. Am a lifelong Dodger fan and always wanted to visit Vero Beach in the spring, and never got around to it. Now I guess I can at least tell myself that Arizona is closer to CA when I do finally go.blueskyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14324943599417954934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-14441497841683040072009-03-19T22:02:00.000-07:002009-03-19T22:02:00.000-07:00Heard today on the Reds/Rays game: "This is the se...Heard today on the Reds/Rays game: "This is the second left-handed Tampa pitcher today wearing the number 19."Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-80281984979117555462009-03-19T16:31:00.000-07:002009-03-19T16:31:00.000-07:00It is a true story. In fact, I was talking to Ric...It is a true story. In fact, I was talking to Rick Monday about it. He said when we was announcing for the Padres the exact same thing happened to him.By Ken Levinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17305293821975250420noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-92111972175380628062009-03-19T16:26:00.000-07:002009-03-19T16:26:00.000-07:00Ken,I would have thought you were making the "pass...Ken,<BR/>I would have thought you were making the "passing the change" story up, but it must have happened, 'cause if you were making it up you wouldn't have passed up the opportunity to have a beer spilled on the microphone.(and maybe cause a chain reaction that fries all the lights in the stadium?..where have I seen that before?)<BR/>Great story. <BR/>Thanks!<BR/>KarenKaren from Mentorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03685540761526680384noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-47010475832113615192009-03-19T12:01:00.000-07:002009-03-19T12:01:00.000-07:00I used to time my visits to mom's in Sarasota-Brad...I used to time my visits to mom's in Sarasota-Bradenton to coincide with ST. But somewhere along the way, I stopped wanting to pay major league prices for games that don't count.<BR/><BR/>But I loved going out to the White Sox training complex early in the day just to watch some of the workouts. Back in '90, the players were striking, so many of the younger prospects were out there, and it was the first time I saw "The Big Hurt", Frank Thomas. I guess he was a TE in college, and dear gawd, in BP especially, what a physical specimen.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-16020945326306860232009-03-19T09:37:00.000-07:002009-03-19T09:37:00.000-07:00I'm a neighbor of the Big Unit. You haven't lived ...I'm a neighbor of the Big Unit. You haven't lived until you do Little League snack shack duty with Randy Johnson, LOL. I love Spring Training. Europeans, skip Florida and come to Arizona. Germans love it here. It's a dry warmth!<BR/><BR/>Was at Brewers/Dbacks down in Tucson yesterday. People next to me were Red Soxers military family from Fort Huachuca. Could not stop raving about how kind Brewers' Bill Hall was to their kids. The nice thing about ST now is that when you go to a Giants game, there's no more Mr. Arrogant Steroids (whose mistress conveniently lives in Scottsdale) doing little jogs along the sidelines. Bye bye Barry.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-57638931126515242462009-03-19T09:10:00.000-07:002009-03-19T09:10:00.000-07:00There was a time there in the late 90s and early 0...There was a time there in the late 90s and early 00s that just about anyone who wore a Brewer uniform preferred to be "unidentified!"Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-31390244045470409512009-03-19T08:50:00.000-07:002009-03-19T08:50:00.000-07:00What a great story. Now... put it in a road game ...What a great story. Now... put it in a road game in the low minors and you have a sitcom pilot... an up and coming 20-something wannabe Bob Costas is the centerpiece. His broadcast partner: An aging local baseball hero who provides the color commentary, when he's available -- he's now the pro at the local country club and customers paying for golf lessons takes priority. Our hero is not an athlete but he has to interact with the bonus babies and lifers and players who can't speak English... now there's a great pre-game interview scene....<BR/><BR/>The team's owner might be a movie star -- Bill Murray has owned a team; Kevin Costner is starting up an Independent team in Zion, Illinois -- or the owner might be a hotshot lawyer -- a well-known trial lawyer just bought the Gary franchise in the Northern League....The Curmudgeonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14723009641287783218noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-86110310845401998092009-03-19T08:07:00.000-07:002009-03-19T08:07:00.000-07:00Spring training is joyous, especially when you sti...Spring training is joyous, especially when you still can get close to the ballplayers, which becomes harder every year.<BR/><BR/>Once in ST, I saw Andre Dawson win a staredown with a pitching machine. <BR/><BR/>No one else could handle him that year either; he hit 49 HRs and won MVP.<BR/><BR/>V-word: daccupe, an Italian roadster.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-54524460210268485902009-03-19T08:06:00.000-07:002009-03-19T08:06:00.000-07:00I remember the 1995 spring training, when MLB used...I remember the 1995 spring training, when MLB used "replacement players." Listening to Harry Kalas and Rich Ashburn call those games, largely involving players who'd had no prior connection to the Phillies and never would again, it was if they were calling games off a script with generic ballplayers. Strange.<BR/><BR/>wv: "restrowl" -- a rather perverse nocturnal bird that nests near interstate rest stops. Its hoot sounds very much like a flush.<BR/><BR/>wv2: "medly" -- an abridged version of one of the Righteous Brothers.VP81955https://www.blogger.com/profile/11792390726196611188noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-79663661906715572572009-03-18T23:41:00.000-07:002009-03-18T23:41:00.000-07:00I'm psyched to go to the new facility new year for...I'm psyched to go to the new facility new year for ST. Just couldn't swing it this year. I'm looking forward to the 2nd when I'll be in Dodger Stadium for the first time of the season!<BR/>Unidentified Milwaukee Brewer - heh.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com