From the Worldwide Leader in Sports comes yet another horrible, horrible idea. Baseball Tonight is celebrating the 100th anniversary of “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” by having nine bands (we use the term quite loosely) record their own unique and personal version of the song which will then be put up to a vote to determine the winner of the battle of the bands. On Sunday’s episode of the show, they couldn’t find a real musician, so they just threw Peter Gammons in front of a camera and told him to sing. Don’t believe us? Here’s the old, wrinkled proof.
Links:
[ESPN]: Celebrating 100 years with `Battle of the Bands’
And finally, when you think Father’s Day, there should really be only one man who pops into your head. That’s right, Shawn Kemp. So, from Hugging Harold Reynolds comes this Happy Pappy Day poem about the Reign Man.
“Reignman”
Forty ounces to freedom
he forgets what he’s become
never used the mirror for reflection
the perfect surface for the street confection
got the sniffles nothin’ to blame on the weather
can’t lay off the coke it’s become his new pleasure
had a fan base spread wide like pepper mace
seattle’s ace in the hole, now he holds a sad place
when the drugs wore off his mouth remained open wide
hit the drive thru, couldn’t pick one– ordered every side
took the flack, made a comeback, attacked the rack
couldn’t cut it, didn’t make it, pounded a six pack
so many hi-lites, big dunks to remember, the lobs above all
can someone explain how shawn kemp messed up basketball
the number 40 still hangs in my closet, a middle school relic
yeah he’s a bum give’em one more shot, make’em a celtic
fans wanna see one more two-handed jam
give it up to the coverboy of slam
Remember when kids actually used batting cages as batting cages. Nowadays, these crazy whipper-snappers see the cage as one thing and one thing only: the perfect spot to create their Jackass audition tape.
Some guys are just born lucky, growing up with all the advantages needed to help them become baseball legends, like Ken Griffey Jr. or Barry Bonds. Others kids aren’t so fortunate. In fact, some us couldn’t even afford balls when we aspiring big leaguers, but, hey, that’s what lil’ brothers are for.
We think Erin Andrews is the bee’s knees, baby, and we don’t care if the whole world knows it and apparently, neither does Rick Sutcliffe. During last night’s game between the Braves and the Cubbies, the topic of Andrews’ ensemble hit the booth and we’ll be damned if Sutcliffe just couldn’t contain himself, letting the whole world know exactly what was on his mind during batting practice earlier in the day. And it wasn’t his upcoming cancer surgery.
Links:
[Big League Stew]: Rick Sutcliffe is concerned for Erin Andrews’ skirt in Chicago
What the hell is going on American ball parks these days. First, they drop the legal drinking age to six months and now dads are catching home run balls with one hand while cradling junior in the other! What’s next? Are women are going to start delivering babies in the right field bleachers just to immediately have them signed by the Yankees?!?
Let’s face it, baseball is a sport conducive to fan drunkenness. In reality, all sports promote drinking while watching, but perhaps nobody does it better than baseball. With all the downtime between pitches and innings and the sheer length of the games, alcohol certainly makes the time pass a little swifter. So, it should be no surprise that parents are teaching their kids the proper ballpark etiquette at younger and younger ages.
Baseball players are constantly trying to avoid injuries. Isn’t that right, Pedro? Well, so are the fans. According to a yet to be released book entitled “Death at the Ballpark,” over 75 deaths have been caused by foul balls at all levels of baseball. Yet, nets only protect a portion of patrons behind home plate. And if you ask the MLB, you’re watching at your own risk.
But in the big picture, baseball is ignoring those alarms – the big picture that includes all those fans in unprotected seats near the dugouts and the foul lines where line-drive foul balls can be lethal projectiles.
Baseball is hiding behind the 145-word “warning” on the back of every ticket that reads, in part, “The bearer of the Ticket assumes all risk and danger incidental to the sport of baseball … including specifically (but not exclusively) the danger of being injured by thrown bats, fragments thereof, and thrown or batted balls.” In other words, if you are injured by a ball or a bat, you can’t sue the teams, the players or Major League Baseball (or minor league baseball, for that matter).
You can go to the first-aid room or to a hospital, but you can’t sue. And you cannot know how many fans need first aid from batted or thrown balls. The commissioner’s office has no central file on injured fans.
Of course, there’s a contingency of fans who agree that it’s the individual’s responsibility to be aware of their surroundings, keeping their heads on a swivel at every crack of the bat. And those who are really in know make certain to keep one eye on the ball at all times, even if they’re watching the game on television because nobody is safe from a errant ball to the balls. However, there are plenty of other ways to get hurt at the ballpark without taking a knuckleball to the noggin.
Two fans injured at Camden Yards when a person fell from the club level to the lower deck were released from the hospital Friday, the Orioles said.
The accident happened Thursday night near the end of Baltimore’s 6-5 win over the Chicago White Sox. The fan who fell from the club level landed on another person in the seating area below.
Links:
[IHT.com]: When foul balls become lethal projectiles, fans are mostly unprotected
[SI.com]: Injured fans released from hospital
“Reignman”
