Dodgers: done.
BIRGing time.
Baseball is one of my oldest passions. It began the day Steve Garvey came to my second grade class at Franklin Elementary; I would have to guestimate this to be in the winter of 1972/73. History tells me that he was at that time a young first baseman waiting for a chance to play every day for the Dodgers (Wes Parker casts a long shadow, still the only LA Dodger to hit for the cycle). Memory reminds me that he responded to that opportunity in 1974, by becoming the first write-in candidate to win an all star ballot; he was that All Star game's Most Valuable Player, and by being the National League's MVP that year. The Dodgers also appeared in the World Series that year, the first year where I followed the team at all...
So I start watching the Dodgers in 1974, and they make the World Series in '74, '77, and 1978. They lost to the A's in '74, and the Yankees beat them in 2 of the best series in memory in 1977 & '78.
With that kind of success, it isn't hard to understand how a fan could become spoiled.
So, I grow up, and fall away from baseball a little bit. I remember the Dodgers playing the Houston Astros in a one game playoff for the National League West. I don't remember the exact date, but the game was on the radio inside Hollywood Toy & Costume, that early October day, 1980.
What do the Dodgers do? They have an even MORE successful decade. They win the 1981 & 1988 World Series. Between these championships, I come back to a point where I am following them daily. They are considered among the most successful sports franchises of the 1980's. Kirk Gibson's home run in the 9th inning famously propelled the Dodgers into that championship, and provided a glimmer of light in an otherwise bleak time for me personally. Can you say "Warner Gardens Motel?"
Things have been rather dark since then. Dodgers went to the playoffs twice in the 1990's, & both times they were swept out (Cincinnati in '95 and At-fucking-lanta in '96), and nothing since!
Until this season. Let's see, the Dodgers last made the playoffs in 1996, Peter O'Malley's last year as owner of the team. Fucks, excuse me, Fox owns them through 2003...and they return to the playoffs in 2004. Hmmmnnn.
The Dodgers have 1 Adrian Beltre, the St. Louis Cardinals have 3. As a result, the Bums were crushed by the Cards, 3 games to one.
But, for the first time in years, "Wait 'til next year" has some meaning in it. It's nice to be able to say "Go Dodgers!" without an asterisk next to it.
Baseball is one of my oldest passions. It began the day Steve Garvey came to my second grade class at Franklin Elementary; I would have to guestimate this to be in the winter of 1972/73. History tells me that he was at that time a young first baseman waiting for a chance to play every day for the Dodgers (Wes Parker casts a long shadow, still the only LA Dodger to hit for the cycle). Memory reminds me that he responded to that opportunity in 1974, by becoming the first write-in candidate to win an all star ballot; he was that All Star game's Most Valuable Player, and by being the National League's MVP that year. The Dodgers also appeared in the World Series that year, the first year where I followed the team at all...
So I start watching the Dodgers in 1974, and they make the World Series in '74, '77, and 1978. They lost to the A's in '74, and the Yankees beat them in 2 of the best series in memory in 1977 & '78.
With that kind of success, it isn't hard to understand how a fan could become spoiled.
So, I grow up, and fall away from baseball a little bit. I remember the Dodgers playing the Houston Astros in a one game playoff for the National League West. I don't remember the exact date, but the game was on the radio inside Hollywood Toy & Costume, that early October day, 1980.
What do the Dodgers do? They have an even MORE successful decade. They win the 1981 & 1988 World Series. Between these championships, I come back to a point where I am following them daily. They are considered among the most successful sports franchises of the 1980's. Kirk Gibson's home run in the 9th inning famously propelled the Dodgers into that championship, and provided a glimmer of light in an otherwise bleak time for me personally. Can you say "Warner Gardens Motel?"
Things have been rather dark since then. Dodgers went to the playoffs twice in the 1990's, & both times they were swept out (Cincinnati in '95 and At-fucking-lanta in '96), and nothing since!
Until this season. Let's see, the Dodgers last made the playoffs in 1996, Peter O'Malley's last year as owner of the team. Fucks, excuse me, Fox owns them through 2003...and they return to the playoffs in 2004. Hmmmnnn.
The Dodgers have 1 Adrian Beltre, the St. Louis Cardinals have 3. As a result, the Bums were crushed by the Cards, 3 games to one.
But, for the first time in years, "Wait 'til next year" has some meaning in it. It's nice to be able to say "Go Dodgers!" without an asterisk next to it.
posted by TRS at 10/11/2004 08:47:00 PM
5 Comments:
I thought you said this wasn't going to be political, you lying bastard!
Oh, and remember when Wes Parker was on The Brady Bunch? Yeah, man, that was cool.
I really liked the writing in this entry and hearing about your younger days in L.A. Good stuff, TRS.
-jitters
Sorry for the political content. Yes, I remember Wes Parker on THE BRADY BUNCH; he dated Greg's teacher (in the episode dedicated to the evils of date rape and the use of "roofies"); sang "Girl" to Jan, and of course judged the treehouse building competition. I think he also may have lectured Greg on the dangers of holding people to their exact word...
Thanks for the kind words, Doctor. I am trying to "keep it real," (in the realest sense of that expression, which has lost it's meaning) but I am bursting with energy to write about matters political...
Will you have to restore the asterisk now that the Dodgers have fired Ross Porter?
I feel pretty badly about that, I still think Ross is the Dodgers best -ah- announcer. Twenty -ah- eight years is a pretty good run. I still have memories of Ross winning the job. In '76 the Dodgers began looking for a third announcer to back up Vin Scully and the immortal Jerry Doggett, I think because there were increasing demands on Scully's time. I remember Geoff Witcher being one of the other people interviewed. I also remember Ross from his days as the sportscaster at KNBC, channel 4 in Los Angeles.
I am also sure he'll land on his feet. I will never forget his soft Texas drawl: "And the Dodgers WIN!"
If you've ever heard Phil Hendrie call a phony Dodger game (in their leaner years, Phil would call games between the Dodgers and a team of Hollywood's most beloved cross-dressers), you know that his Rick Monday is unnervingly dead-on, but he can't even begin to do Ross, so he doesn't even try. It sounds more like David G.Hall than Ross Porter. Damn that was funny.
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