Memories for a book

[Rhondabee]

Hi, All, I'm collecting the funny and poignant memories of diehard baseball fans for a series of books--one devoted to Met fans; one on Yankee fans; one on Bosox fans. I'm not looking for trivia, but for the stories and memories you have that show your devotion to your team. I've listened to stories having to do with family, friends, pets, church, synogogue, superstitions, school. I've heard about weddings and funerals, b-ball themed baby showers, painted fingernails and "funny hats."
Fans have been putting a very big smile on my face. If you have stories and memories for me, please email me with your phone number and a brief description and I'll call. Thanks ever so much, Rhonda Sonnenberg

[ChrisCary]

Rhonda,

You start.

What's you're favorite personal baseball story?

[Xanadu Dragon]

:loud: Chris - - So, you were the little kid that always used to say "Show me yours first?" ;)

Chris - - I know you have some great stuff to share - - I've heard some of your stories. Let'er rip dude.

All - - I've shared a story with Rhondabee already off-line - - and, in speaking with her, am very excited about her project - - - so much, that, I'm willing to throw a carrot on a stick for ya'll.

All that sincerely respond to this post will be entered into a raffle for a NetShrine T-Shirt. We'll draw the winner from a hat on (this coming) Friday night, say, around 10 PM EST.

Now, let's hear those stories. (If you have one that you've already posted in the forum elsewhere - go ahead and copy and paste, that will still get you in the T-Shirt raffle.)

[TGwynn19]

But I am a Padres fan, and only Mets, Yanks and Sox stories are being sought after.

[Xanadu Dragon]

Originally posted by TGwynn19
But I am a Padres fan, and only Mets, Yanks and Sox stories are being sought after.

OK - good point. For the raffle purpose, I'll take any story (your team) under the conditions R-bee set up. On your mark, get set, go!

[ChrisCary]

Originally posted by Xanadu Dragon
:loud: Chris - - So, you were the little kid that always used to say "Show me yours first?" ;)

Chris - - I know you have some great stuff to share - - I've heard some of your stories. Let'er rip dude.

All - - I've shared a story with Rhondabee already off-line - - and, in speaking with her, am very excited about her project - - - so much, that, I'm willing to throw a carrot on a stick for ya'll.



Since you put the carrot on the stick I'll play but I want to hear your story.

I'll think on which I want to tell overnight

[Ytown Tribe fan]

I saved Angel Salazar's career! Well, okay -- I prolonged it.

It was a dark and stormy night in Cleveland. Spring 1986. The Royals were in town, getting swept by the Tribe, when the rains came.

My dad and I were wandering through the tunnels within the bowels (literally) of old Municipal Stadium, sucking on a warm watery cola and chewing on a warm, watery hotdog with deadly Stadium Mustard.

(Pause for effect)

(Lightning crashes)

Alone we trod when who should loom in the mist but Angel Salazar, erstwhile Royal's shortstop. Buddy "Bam Bam" Biancalana was but a fond memory, as was last year's World Series parade.

As he passed, Angel slipped on the green slime that covered every surface in Muni Stadium. Acting quickly, I caught his arm as he slipped and he struggled to his feet, mumbling a few words of thanks.

Then he was gone.

As we trod onward, I thought I heard a voice, the faint voice of a PA announcer in the distance -- yes, it was Vin Scully, ominously stating "If you save him, it won't matter."

Within a year or two, he was gone.

[Xanadu Dragon]

Awesome Ytown. Chris - you saw my story - counting Yankees to fall asleep. Nothing new there.

I cannot believe we don't have more stories yet - - so many here, so many different teams. Whaddaya say?

[TGwynn19]

In 1996 the Padres came to Miami to play the Marlins. I had just met a young woman that I had been seeing for about 2 weeks. I had not mentioned to her that I would be attending an afternoon game that week to see my beloved Padres. She asked me to go to Ft. Myers the afternoon that I was to go to Miami. I told her I had plans to go see the Pads and asked if she wanted to go. She stated that she hated baseball. She asked who was going with me. "Noone" I replied. That day I chose Padres baseball over a woman.

[BuzzBuzzard]

Many of you have heard this one before, but when Mex and I got married just over a year ago, we invited Turk Wendell. He got the same invitation every one else did sent to him c/o NY Mets, Shea Stadium. Since our wedding was 11/4, it would not have interfered with the season, although the WS loss to the Yanks had just passed. Bastard did not even reply.

I still think about what he would have looked like. Suit and tie with his necklace of teeth hanging around his neck.

[Xanadu Dragon]

To Trevor's point, kinda - - I've watched every All-Star game on TV since 1974 - - maybe I've missed parts of a game; but, 85% of the time, I've watched the whole game. As some of you know, I really enjoy the All-Star game - for some sick reason.

Well, when I say every game, it's not true - - I missed the 1982 game - - because of a girl. I was all of 19. Her name was Jill. Somehow ;) she influenced me to pass on the game and spend the evening with her. In the end, I would have been better off watching the game. To this day, it ticks me that I missed it. (Topical sidebar - - it was the game held in Montreal. :D) This was before the days of VCRs, so, I truly missed all of the game.

To this day, I cannot think of Jill ********* without thinking - damn her, I missed the All-Stars!

[BuzzBuzzard]

So you either didn't get any or it just wasn't that good, huh?

[Xanadu Dragon]

Originally posted by BuzzBuzzard
So you either didn't get any or it just wasn't that good, huh? :stinker: Not streak-breaker worthy. Let's put it that way.

[BuzzBuzzard]

Here is another Met story....my moment of glory.

The Mets have a promotion at most home games where after the end of the top half of the first inning, Mr. Met wanders into the upper deck and gives out a seat upgrade. During the whole thing, the theme from the Jefferson's is playing over the PA. Well, it was the second to last game of the '99 season. Mets vs. Pirates and the Mets were fighting for their playoff lives in a race with the Reds. Me and Mex were seated in like the fifth row of the upper deck directly behind the plate. It was cold.

Well, during top half of the inning I'm looking around for Mr. Met and he was in the neighborhood. I said to Mex that someone around us was getting the upgrade. I kind of lost focus as the Pirates go quietly. We're Movin' On Up starts playing and next thing I know, Mr. Met is right behind me. He puts is big arms around my shoulders and points me towards the jumbo tron. There I am, decked out in my Robin Ventura jersey, arms up in the air over my head for all of Flushing, NY to see. Down to some primo field level seats for the rest of the game we went.

My 30 seconds of fame. Mex does not let me forget how I was transformed from a 29 year old to a 10 year old in the course of a few minutes. Me and Mr. Met, thick as thieves. She said she'd never seen a bigger grin on my face then while I was up on the monitor with Mr. Met presenting me those tickets.

Reed pitched a 13 SO, 1 hit gem to keep the Mets in it.

[SmedIndy]

It was a game between the Indianapolis Indians and the Rochester Red Wings during the championship of the AAA Alliance (the IL and AA) one September. I think it was 1988.

The group I was with was sitting by the visitors bullpen on the first base side. I had a couple of libations during the early innings and soon the Indians were pounding the Red Wings. So there soon was activity in the bullpen.

When I looked up, who was sitting there 10 rows below me but guys like Ken Landreaux, Dale Berra, Jerry Narron, et. al. I started to mention some of their less than stellar stats to others around me, and soon a party of fans, more boistrous than I was, was shouting them to the Red Wing players. (Like asking Dale Berra how his Dad was, things like that, or asking Landreaux how many consecutive games he had a hit in this year).

I was onto something.

Jerry Narron went into the game in the fifth at first during a double switch (like I said, the Red Wings were being throttled). He had been the backup catcher in California in 1986, and was briefly in Seattle the year before but was trying to hang on in Rochester.

Soon, I had all my friends, and those around me start bombing Narron at first, when he was warming up the infielders, with statements like:

"How's Bob Boone doing, Jerry?"
"How's the weather in Seattle this year, Jerry?"
"Is Dave Valle a nice guy, Jerry?"

Normally, players just brush it off. But Narron was clearly bothered. By the eighth inning, he was drawing crop circles in the ground at first base going "I'm not listening to them". I thought it was Richie Allen all over again.

I had free beer all night, but the clincher was a older couple three rows up, who told us once to "pipe down and lower our voice an octave" after we were cheering an Indians home run early in the game, asked a friend of mine.

"Why is he doing this? He doesn't know anything? Those guys out there are making money doing this? Can he just leave them alone?"

My friend says, "Lady, do you even know who Jerry Narron or Ken Landreaux are?"


:p :D

[TGwynn19]

The only time I have ever been to BP before a game was in 1987 in the Metrodome. My HS team went up to take in a Blue Jays/Twins game. We were all in the LF seats and some Blue Jay hit one down the line. One of the younger infielders- who could not get wet if he fell out of a boat- ran down the aisle, stuck up his bare hand and made the running grab. Our coach remarked that if he had a glove on he wouldn't have had a chance.

Then George Bell came up. He absolutely crushed one into the LF alley. It was too far to my left for me to run after it. So I stood there admiring the arc. When it finally came down 17 rows up, it hit a little old lady who had her hands full with a coke and a hot dog. She was wiggling her butt to try to get the seat bottom down and was not even looking up. Just at the moment that she got the seat bottom down it hit her square in the head. The coke went one way and the dog went another and the ball went about 6 rows farther up. Now that I am older and wiser it doesn't seem funny, but back then it was the funniest thing I had ever seen. Ah hell, who am I kidding, I still crack up about that one.

[Xanadu Dragon]

Nice stories guys - but, perhaps a tad :topic: (Boy, haven't had to use that one in a while!)

stories and memories you have that show your devotion to your team

Come on now - - I know there are more out there!

[baseballtodd]

Sorry, this isn't a Yankee, Bosox, or Mets story. But it is a baseball story, none the less. When I was 12, my dad used to buy season tickets in the box seats for the minor league Oklahoma City 89ers - who are now defunct and have been replaced by the Oklahoma Redhawks (I hate the new name but that's a different story in itself.) This was in January 1981, I believe. The 89ers were the Triple A farm club of the Phillies. As we all know, the Phillies won the 1980 World Series with Mike Schmidt, Steve Carlton, Tug McGraw - and a guy named Pete Rose. Anyway, each year the 89ers would have a banquet for season ticket holders and in '81 they had it at the Skirvin Plaza in downtown OKC - a ritzy place. At the banquet, there was Schmidt, Dallas Green, Keith Moreland, and Rose - among others. Behind the long head table was a drape with large, poster-like, black-and-white photos of the various dignitaries in attendance. After the banquet, I ran up next to the drape (at the urging of my dad) and yanked down Rose's poster. He was one of the last people to leave - Schmidt, et al., were long gone. But, Rose stuck around to fraternize with colleagues of the female persuasion and others who just wanted to talk with the eventual all-time hits king. I walked up to Rose and asked him to autograph the poster. He did and was VERY NICE about it - which is contrary somewhat to what you hear about the guy. He kidded me that the poster was his and that I couldn't have it. I think I remember him shaking my dad's hand. My family and I walked away after a few more minutes and got on the elevator. Before the doors to the elevator closed... Rose stepped on to go up to his room. He said hello to all of us and looked down at me. I guess it was my bowl haircut at the time, but I think he took a liking to me at that moment. HE RUFFLED MY HAIR! That's pretty cool, don't you think? Anyway, that was my first real brush with a baseball star. Do I get a nifty T-shirt soon? Sorry for the lack of posts on my part. I get pulled in different directions now and then, but I'll try and visit NetShrine more often.

[Xanadu Dragon]

Todd - that's a great story. You're in the raffle with that one. Good luck!

[BuzzBuzzard]

Originally posted by Xanadu Dragon
Nice stories guys - but, perhaps a tad :topic: (Boy, haven't had to use that one in a while!)Right, and your all-star tale (or is that tail) was on point. :mad:

[Xanadu Dragon]

You're right Buzz. Mea culpa.

[WiredTiger]

My favorite memory of devotion...

Sometime in the early 1990s two friends and I decided that we were sick of studying for College finals and headed to Tiger Stadium. The Tigers were playing the Blue Jays... it was early in the season and it was cold.

The game ended up being, at the time, the longest 9 inning night game in AL history. The two teams must have made 5 pitching changes a piece and the game just seemed to drag on and on. Each time they made a change they played "Hit the Road Jack" and by the end everybody was sick of it.

In order to keep warm we had to run up and down the ramps to the upperdeck and drink coffee instead of beer.

We ate sunflower seeds the whole game and by the end there must have been a layer of sunflower shells three inches thick all around us.

I don't think many people stuck around the whole game but I guess being at the Stadium is better than studying any day of the week.

[Xanadu Dragon]

No such thing as a bad day at the ballpark! ;)

[Xanadu Dragon]

ChrisCary, Luna, HMRSF, Satchel - - nothing from you on this one. I know you all have stories!

[Xanadu Dragon]

So far, we have:

Ytown, TGwynn, Buzz, Smed, BBTodd, and Wiredv in the raffle.

:confuse2: Such a small pool - - come on, I know there are more stores to share! PatHogan, RS617, KC, none of you guys have something?

[ChrisCary]

Coming up, I promise

[Xanadu Dragon]

Originally posted by ChrisCary
Coming up, I promise

Not in time for the raffle 'tho. Nice slogan for Raffy in his new spokesman role - - you should TM it Chris.

OK, the winner from the hat this time was WiredTiger. Congrats! Send me your address and size - to curator@netshrine.com - and the shirt will be on it's way!

[TGwynn19]

I am hiring a Russian lawyer to investigate the 'authenticity' of said 'raffle'. I did not win and I deserved to. I will not be attending closing ceremonies!!! ;)

[Xanadu Dragon]

:loud: - - Next, you'll want an Eric the Red avatar to replace Tony the Padre.

[pathogan]

I am a Mets fan,though the memory I have to share is about the red sox. face it, many Met fans root for the sox as a way to root against the Yankees. Mine is different.I grew up in a polish neighborhood, where Yaz was a god[hell, i remeber the Arnold bread company putting out YAZ BREAD!}I had always wanted to get to fenway, and ,even though I live in NYC{Brooklyn, now],I had not made the journey.Many bad and strange turn had occured,and i found myself newly sober[this is 1982] , and dating this beautiful blonde girl with 10 brothers[some luck]. My birthday is late in the summer, and she and I wanted to get away. In the early 1980's, there were airline wars with local carriers chargin under 60 bucks round trip from LGA to Logan. so we went...she wanted to go the the mueum, fanieul hall market,the commons, etc. It was great...The parker Meridian hotel had recently opened, and we got this absurdlly low rate for the weekend...lovely, and I figured i would catch a game on tv....saturday around 11, as we are walking in the common, she pulls out two tkts for the red sox, angels game that afternoon.we took a cab[ripoff,] and approached on foot what apperaed to be an old factory...the smell was obvious two blocks away,peanuts and something else...baseball ambrosia...we got there early,and saw batting practice...the thrill, literally the thrill of seeing the field for the first time...it was a day like a Monet painting,filled with color and warmth...needless to say, I married her. and that was the best damn decision of my life.

[BuzzBuzzard]

Damn, Pat, you just put a tear in my eye. I'm sure your wife has heard you tell that story before, but I'd let her read it again.

[Xanadu Dragon]

Originally posted by BuzzBuzzard
Damn, Pat, you just put a tear in my eye.

Ditto.

I have a story close to that. In 2000, I found out that I could get tickets to Game 6 of the ALCS (to be played in a few days) - which was also my 8th Wedding Anniversary. Right.

I did mention the opportunity to my wife - - saying it was too bad that we had plans already for that evening. That night, when I got home, she told me that she bought the tickets and that was her gift to me. We went, Yanks won the flag, and had an incredible time at the game. (Yanks came back on a Justice HR and the place was wild.)

I saved the stubs from that one.

[Rhondabee]

Dear Pathogan, That was a great story. I will be collecting memories of Red Sox fans for the third book in my series, however I would love to speak with you about your Met memories. Would you kindly email me at rhondabee@aol.com, so that I may write to you directly. Thanks so much, and thanks for that great story. I can tell your wife is a lucky woman.

[WiredTiger]

Originally posted by pathogan
..needless to say, I married her. and that was the best damn decision of my life.


I would hope you wouldn't let her get away. Great story.

[Max Power]

Attention Red Sox fans!

Rhonda has just finsihed her Yankee book - - due out in June - - and is now working on the "Red Sox Fandemonium" edition.

If you have any stories about you being a diehard and crazed Red Sox fan, please drop her a line at

Rhondabee@aol.com

Tell her that Steve from NetShrine sent you!

I was interviewed for the Yankee book and it was a pleasure. Trust me, this is a fun thing.

[Skip]

Darn East Coast bias. <Grumble> <harumphh> <bah humbug>

[hmrsf]

I sent her an email. I think my husband and I have a few odd stories to tell.:blush:


I have a special someone just like pathogan. I think baseball fans are surrounded by karma. Our teams may not do well but we are blessed with a great spouse!

I think we fit the bill of crazed Red Sox fans!:dizzy:

[pathogan]

Originally posted by hmrsf
I sent her an email. I think my husband and I have a few odd stories to tell.:blush:


I have a special someone just like pathogan. I think baseball fans are surrounded by karma. Our teams may not do well but we are blessed with a great spouse!

I think we fit the bill of crazed Red Sox fans!:dizzy:
...book, and it was fun, Rhonda is a very very nice woman and asks good questions...it was a good expierence, though I wonder how it comes off in print...