August 2008
Changing History With A Swing
There are so many great Home Run moments in baseball
history. Some, like Roger Maris’s 61st (I’m happy to report the
infamous “*” that downplayed his record because of a newly extended season never
got officially entered in the record books) or Hank Aaron’s 715th,
marked a changing of the guard for America’s pastime. But one of my very
favorites would have to be the first time a World Series was decided by a home
run, and, in all the years of baseball, has happened only ONCE in Game 7. In
1960, Bill Mazeroski of the Pittsburgh Pirates knocked one deep to win the
Series 4-3; not only was it the defining moment of Maz’s career, it also
informally ushered in a new era for the game: the popularity of the walk-off
home run.
See more of Joe’s L.A.
adventures at www.torrestories.com
He Who is No Longer Car-Free
So I just moved from a
town where nearly three-quarters of the residents don’t own cars to one where
more than three-quarters DO. Welcome to LA. Only about seven percent of LA
residents took public transit in ’06 (yes, I looked all this stuff up), so I’m
thinking the car culture here probably won’t change all that much…which means
I’ll be driving again. It’s gonna be a big adjustment for this former Brooklynite.
-Gas prices haven’t
stopped climbing even after they went through the roof. Who’d have guessed that
a gallon of gas would end up costing as much as a hot dog at your favorite MLB
stadium?
Stay tuned, I’ll let you
know how it goes. Meantime, I’m gonna head to the stadium. For some reason I’m
dying for a hot dog.
See more of Joe’s L.A. adventures at www.torrestories.com
LA and Teeny Dogs
Here’s an interesting
tidbit about LA culture. It’s not just a TV cliché: People really DO carry
pocket dogs around with them wherever they go. I have no idea where you’d put
these little yip-yaps when you go to the restroom, or even why they’re such a hot
accessory; then again, I just moved from a town where people buy color-coordinated
pepper spray cans. But I do know it’s a real phenomenon; I learned about it
first-hand when I found myself walking down Rodeo Drive with this little white
Maltese or Pomeranian named Butch under my arm. The funniest (or saddest) part
was that I didn’t look one bit out of place. Hey, if that’s all it takes to fit
into LA, I’m in–at least the white fur will match my uniform. Maybe I can get a
gray one for my away games.
Okay, gotta run. I need
to get Butch to the groomer’s before his hair starts getting poufy.
See more of Joe’s L.A. adventures at www.torrestories.com
A first time for everything
Well, here’s my first blog entry. I was a little nervous at first, but the guys who blog on MLBlogs said it was sort of like keeping an online diary, so I figured how hard could it be? Aside from the fact that men don’t usually have diaries; even the word “diary” brings to mind a little pink book with a heart-shaped lock and a label that reads “My Secrets” in lavender bubble letters. But that’s not really me, so I think a blog is a more acceptable “dude-like” version.
Some of the guys talk about their team or their swing, their away game trips, some even write restaurant reviews (thanks for the reco, Ethier). Me? I’m just a coach with a new team, a new city, a new life as a West-Coaster, and above all a new outlook on life.
First up, though, I’ll be figuring out this blogging thing since I’m a little behind the times. For example, I saw one of those little candy Valentine’s hearts printed with “LOL” and thought it was a typo right up until I started reading about blogs and Web acronyms. I mean, WTF(udge), right? Then there are “web smileys” like 😉 and 😦 which frankly make me a bit >:-P (I just made that one up). But live and learn.
Until then, I’ll just say BFN, because I have to GBTW, but I’ll BCNU soon. But JFTR, I don’t think I’m going to be using a lot of this Web slang. IMHO, plain old English works just fine. TYVM and TTYL.
AA
mlblogsjoetorre1
Recent Comments