Baseball and Beer

I got a call from the school nurse today saying that my oldest son wasn't feeling well, and could I come to get him. He's been a little sick the last couple of days. On the ride home I told him I bought Pirates tickets for Sunday's game near where his best friend's family will be sitting. That cheered him up. He asked if he could get something to eat and drink at the game. I told him we would be doing a little pre-game tailgating, but I joked that I'd buy him a beer at the game.

"Dad! I can't have beer until I'm like 20 or something," he said.

"Well actually, 21. That's just about 14 years from now. When you're 21 I'll buy you a beer at the ballgame."

"Well", he said, "I might just want some ice cream then!" he laughed.

"It's a deal!" Then I said, "Do you think you'll still want to go to baseball games with me when you're 21?"

"Sure, why not?"

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe you'll say 'Sorry dad, I can't go to the game. My girlfriend wants to go dancing' or 'She says there's a sale on duvets at Pottery Barn'."

"Nooooooo!" he screamed.

"Or maybe you'll say, 'Can't go dad, I'm hanging out with my friends'."

He said, "No dad, I'll always want to go to baseball games with you. Why would I ever want to do anything else?"

I hope that in June of 2024, he and I will be sitting together in PNC Park, and I will buy him that beer... or ice cream.

7 Reasons why being a Pirates fan won't be so bad this year

#7 Suck has a shelf life. Let's hope our expired 10/1/2008.

#6 Bringing back the goofy "pillbox" hat. The other teams won't be laughing at us, they'll be laughing with us. OK, so, they really will be laughing at us.

#5 Since Xavier Nady was traded to the Yankees, we don't have to put up the annoying chick down the first base line who waved her pirate flag and crossed her arms into an "X" every time Nady was on the field.

#4 Won't have to remember how to spell Mientkiewicz.

#3 Still have that 6th Super Bowl "high".

#2 Pirates applied for Federal Disaster Assistance Program and were accepted. President Obama to tour area of devastation (PNC Park) by air this spring. Reportedly will call this "The worst disaster in our nation since the 1977 Tampa Bay Bucs".

#1 If by some miracle; and by miracle I mean a sure sign of the apocalypse; the Buccos make it to the World Series, our boy-Mayor won't have to change his name to "Piratestahl"

Let's Go Bucs!

Clay and I went to our first day game yesterday. It was a double-header. It was 47 degrees; in May. (Global Warming my butt). We bought the cheap seats way behind home plate; there are no bad seats at PNC. I was surprised that there were over 12,000 people there because of the weather, but none cheered louder than Clay. His new favorite player is Freddie Sanchez (sorry Ryan Zimmerman!) and Jason Bay comes in a close second.

Clay charms everyone. He had an intense conversation with the lady in front of us about how she was a Pirates fan and her husband was a Braves fan. He asked why does she still like him if he doesn't like the Pirates. At that point I distracted him and tried to get him to leave them alone. Clay also told one of the ushers every detail of his last T-Ball game and another the three minute synopsis of "Cars". They all thought he was cute. And of course he is; but he talks a lot. Here are some random things I remember him saying yesterday:

"Daddy, I'm cold! I want ice cream!" "Daddy, I'm cold, I want hot chocolate!" "What's a Buccaneer?" "Daddy, it's tooooo hot!" "Where's the ice cream guy?" "Daddy, why does that guy {the catcher} put his glove {his face mask} on his head?" "Is a strike good or bad?" "Why is that man {he points vaguely at the 12,000 in attendance} doing that? Why, daddy?" "Daddy? What does KKK mean?" {OK, this was on the sign that counts how many strikeouts (K's) the Pirates have; they just happened to have three at that point}. "Daddy, where are the fireworks?" "I want a hot dog!" After standing in line for an entire inning for said hot dog, "I don't want a hot dog just french fries and ice cream". "I'm cold, when are we going to get ice cream?" "Why is there a 2 there?", again pointing vaguely. "Can I eat fires that I dropped on the ground?" "Why didn't that guy catch that ball?" "I'm hungry!"

But his favorite thing is at the beginning of every game. The scoreboard shows a video of a computer generated pirate who talks smack about the other team, then shows what is to Clay the single most exciting thing he's ever seen; an animated battle between pirate ships; one with the Pirates logo on the sails and a floatilla of ships with the opponents logo on their sails. The Pirates' ship fires cannonballs that get progressively more bizzare. They turn into rockets, jets, and finally a giant robot octopus that pulls the last remaining ship to a frightening demise to Davey Jones' Locker. After that, Clay's all "OK, daddy, I'm ready to go whenever you are."

That's when I remind him that the game is about to begin. "Oh, yeah. Let's Gooooooo Buuuuuuuuucs!" I love that kid. Can't wait to take him and his brother.

The 10 Best Things About Pittsburgh: #1

#1 PNC Park. When I was a kid, I saw my first big league game in Three Rivers Stadium. It was the stadium of the future; a giant mass of concrete with the fans kept far away from the playing field. But I loved it. For less than $10, I could ride the bus there and back, get a ticket, a coke and a hot dog. Three Rivers was cold and sterile. I went to other horrid stadiums and parks too; the Kingdome in Seattle (Like watching baseball in a bomb shelter), Exhibition Stadium in Toronto (called the Mistake By The Lake), and Municipal Stadium in Baltimore (I think the filth and rust held the iron girders together). I thought this was how baseball was supposed to be.

I must admit that that changed after a game at Oriole Park at Camden Yards (Let me make this clear, I never was an Orioles fan, but I liked Cal Ripken and it was the only game in town). It's a really nice park an the first of the "new' parks. It has personality. After the Nationals came to DC, it was back to the giant concrete monstrosity, RFK Stadium, to watch baseball. It had the architecture of Three Rivers, the cold impersonality of the Kingdome, and the distance from the field of Exhibition Stadium. But at least we had baseball in DC.

It seemed that every summer that we travelled back to Pittsburgh, the Pirates were out of town that week, plus I don't think that Nancy thought that sitting at a ball game for three hours was high on the priority list. Since living in Pittsburgh, I end up driving by PNC Park a couple of times a week. All winter, I'd sneak peeks into it as I drove by trying to get a feel for the place. I was determined to take our older son to a few games this year.

Last week we along with a friend went to our first game. It was beautiful! Our seats were just past 3rd base, probably about 170 feet back from the foul line. The first thing you notice is the view of downtown Pittsburgh laid out behind the outfield wall. Then you notice the light towers which are based on the towers from old Forbes Field, a unique feature of PNC Park. And the players were right there. You are so close, you fell as though you are part of the game. I felt like Robert Redford might walk out of the dugout in his New York Knights uniform at any moment. I imagine that this was how baseball was meant to be watched.

And the Pirates won the game; which I must admit, was a pleasant surprise.

Gilbert & Sullivan? I don't know; Third base.

This blog entry is for my friend, Ed. Ed you are the one person who I know will truly appreciate this mix of hardball and Broadway. There is a blog here in Pittsburgh called "The Burgh Blog: Pittsburgh, Only Cooler" by the anonymous "pittgirl". She is hilarious, has a great take on all things Pittsburgh and hates pigeons. Recently she posted the attached photo as part of her blog with the following comments about the forthcoming pitiful Pittsburgh Pirates season. The caption to the picture reads "Pirates hopeful Josh Wilson -- a Mt. Lebanon graduate -- goes through a sliding drill early in camp."

7. The Buccos of Suckitude continue their futile efforts in Florida. Here’s a look at some of the talent.
Skinny little legs. Poor form. JAZZ HANDS!? We’re screwed.

Here's the comment I posted to her which she thought was pretty funny:

Mt. Lebanon High School presents Josh Wilson in “The Pirates of Bradenton”. Hear Josh sing,
“I am the very model of a modern Major-Leaguer,
I’ve information the Pirates season’s looking even bleaker,
I know the mayor of Piksburgh, and I quote the fights historical
From Tampa Bay to Chicago, in order base-a-ball-ical;
I’m very well acquainted, too, with minor league affiliates,
I understand equations, I’ll probably be lucky to be with the Lynchburg Hill-i-cats,
About pinch-hitting theorem I’m teeming with a lot o’ news –
With many cheerful facts but the Buccos are still a-gonna loose.”

Let's Go Bucs!