On Second Base, I mean, Thought...

1. My baseball blog is not as POPULAR as I thought it would be, so perhaps another Twitter account wouldn't be sensible.
2. I'm still waiting on my Cervantes jersey. Online, viral internet comedian Brittani Taylor, and "Spreadshirt" gave me an idea: What if I sold custom T-shirts on the customizable fashion shop website? I could sell TROLLS jerseys! To The patent office, AWAAAY!
3. Watching the Cardinals against the Astros online ^_^ This is one of MLB.TV "free game of the week" specials.
4. Giving a special shout out to my buddy Nathan in Oakville, Canada...HEY! Let's wear baseball gear tomorrow! We will be a hit with the ladiez, or get thrown out of the church by Pastor Craig... -_- (I'll wear PIRATES gear!)
   

PIRATES gear

Hi readers, and the Ezarik sisters...(Hi Justine, Breanne, and Jenna)

I know I promised you pictures and/or videos of my Pittsburgh Pirates jerseys. I recently went to the sports store in town, and gave them one of my jerseys to be altered by a tailor in Toronto. Yes, that's the one. Originally, I wanted an alternate authentic Pirates jersey of Lastings Milledge from the online shop for three reasons:

1. PIRATES gear was on sale
2. I have way too much PIRATES gear
3. I like Lastings' name
4. I like Lastings' hair

Yes, I know that was four; just FOCUS!

Anyway, a day after getting it in the mail, I watched Rogers Sportsnet's ticker, which is on the bottom of the screen, and discovered Milledge "signed a minor-league contract with the Chicago White Sox" (Yippee...). From that day forward, I would only personalize jerseys with...

1. My name
2. Joker names
3. Names of players I REALLY like, and will stay with the team they are playing with, instead of going to the Yankees FOR BOATLOADS OF MONEY!
   

Once the tailor finishes my jersey, I should have pictures of all of them uploaded soon.

Originally, I bought the replica jerseys they sold at the store. They are made of double knit fabric, impossible to wear under the blazing sun, and you can't make diving catches in them because your Mom, who spent oodles of money to buy said jersey after you begged in public for hours for her to buy it, would see you with the giant stain and chase you with the tree she ripped out of the backyard! Moms don't care if you made the "game-saving" catch in front of that pretty tech girl you crush on so much to close out the sixth inning (Hi iJustine); nothing gets out grass stains!

I 'graduated' to blank authentic jerseys, which are cheaper, yet lack the famous name and number that make jerseys so expensive. During practice, I would wear them to fool the inquistive kids in the adjacent playground into thinking I was a high rolling baseball player. Sadly, with no name or number on the back, I did not sign any autographs afterward. Making countless errors in the first ten minutes of practice didn't help either...

Eventually, I went with personalized authentic MLB jerseys, and had the blank jerseys fixed as well. As a result, I wound up with twice the number of PIRATES and ROYALS jerseys (Oh, you didn't know I have a crazy ROYALS collection? Maybe I'll post pictures of those, too?).

Here are a couple of teasers...

The Personal Ad of a Baseball Fan

Dear prospective future boss lady living in Mississauga, Ontario or somewhere in Canada... (when you are my age and desperate, it doesn't matter where)

My name is Phil. I am 28, single, and I like baseball. During the week, if I am not working at my full-time job in my Dad's company, I am parked in front of my computer writing about baseball, or watching the Major League Baseball website and its scoreboard for the latest scores and highlights.

I will stare at the screen, with lemonade in hand, and watch for breaking highlights of out-of-market, regular season baseball games. These may occur in the third inning, fifth inning, or the ninth inning. Unless I am watching the boxscore closely, I have no idea; yes, I do like surprises, but I can be patient as well...passionately patient. My parents can attest to that as I would wake them up every Saturday morning from the TV room downstairs as I scream at the millionaire European soccer player that kicked the soccer over the bar and into Saturn's orbit when he couldn't just tap it into the OPEN net to break the nil-nil scoreline...

I also like Starbucks, but not for their coffee; because I don't drink coffee, I go there for atmosphere, and the possibility of meeting someone NEW, which NEVER happens, so I buy some sports magazines, get a Venti Caramel Apple Spice, and leave just as soon as I came in. Hence, I am resorting to the desperation of my baseball blog.

I also like to buy authentic baseball gear, and dress up like a real baseball player would. I even ask for my name and favourite number to be printed on the jersey to add a sense of realism and pride in my fashion choice. Although, I can also put a joke name on the back like "#80 MIRACLE" for you American girls, "SUPERBAD" for you movie lovers out there, or for the Christian, Kansas City Royals loving girls out there "#19 JUDAH". o_O

Call me! ^_^

Support the Dubya...Please?

There is a special place in my heart for the Washington Nationals; they are the only team in Major League Baseball with the letter "W" on their baseball cap. This year, the team took considerable flak from the "fashionable" sect of Nats fans and critics when the team released new uniforms for the 2011 season. I was disappointed because this meant the demise of the Star-spangled "DC" alternate jersey, and the arrival of the "Walgreens" equivalent.

In spite of the wholesale uniform changes, the demise of the "DC" and the all-navy road baseball cap, and the free agent acquisition of Jayson Werth the team is clearly the same old Nats...

Along with the Hairston error, the Phillies went on to score thrice more as Philadelphia blanked Washington 4-0 -_-

Now I can't wear one of my Nationals hats tomorrow...

When the Baseball Hits the Fan

Yankees-Red Sox, Dodgers-Giants, Phillies-Everyone; these are the rivalries baseball fans think of when you start a conversation about baseball rivalries. In the twenty-first century, however, thanks to cellphone cameras, media devices, and programs such as YouTube, the rivalry on the field extends to the ballpark.

Enter "Dodgers" and "Giants" in the YouTube search bar, and the application provides a list of videos, not about great teams and players engaged in the great games, but showing unruly fans taking their frustrations on each other. The video game, road rage, fast food culture extends even to the baseball grandstands as people, who probably passed each other at Disneyland without batting an eye, swing fists at each other because they are wearing different colours. I use the Dodgers-Giants example because recent events forced leaders from both Los Angeles and San Francisco to decry the violence and speak out against the haters.

Cash Kruth of MLB.com blogged about the incident in detail on his blog. The rivalry began with the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants playing in New York City in the National League with the Giants earning world championships and pennants throughout the 20's and 30's. However, when most baseball fans think of the Dodgers' time in Brooklyn they think of the first baseball player to break the game's colour barrier, Jackie Robinson. I admire the Dodgers, general manager Branch Rickey, and Jackie Robinson for what his signing in 1947 meant to the game, in spite of the fact the team won its sole world championship while in Brooklyn in 1955. American expansion into the west forced both clubs to venture to the West Coast in 1958, and both sides carried the rivalry with them. 'The Los Angeles Dodgers of Los Angeles' (Hi Angels fans) continued winning world championships in '59, '63, '65, '81, and '88, while the San Francisco Giants played on without a World Series title until 2010.

Additional information provided by the LA TIMES. Now, if I had to choose between the two teams, I would need to choose the Dodgers because of the historical significance of Jackie Robinson. However, the Giants did field the greatest all-around baseball player of all-time, Willie Mays. After my Blue Jays, I suppose the Dodgers are (tied for) second, but the Giants are right behind. I am not a fan of the 'supporters' that use violence under the guise of sporting contests. It brings the game into disrepute, and sets a poor example for kids that are often times in the middle of the altercations. I hope the haters take this advice, bring their hats, and leave the hate out of the game.

Hey! You want to see Marcus Thames' RBI triple from the Dodgers-Giants series? Here it is! You don't see triples as much anymore ^_^

(Special thanks to ESPN.com for the pictures, and Wikipedia for source data)

I noticed I type "Dodgers" and not "Los Angeles Dodgers". I still hold out hope they will return to Brooklyn o_O Don't ask...

We're LIVE Blogging now?

Yep, I'm typing while watching the Yankees at home against the Minnesota Twins during a Monday night contest in April. The Yanks are leading 4-0 after a pair of two-run homeruns by Alex Rodriguez in the first inning, and Jorge Posada in the second ^_^

My battery pack is still upstairs; I should go get it before...

o_O ...!

Alex Rodriguez sits 14th all-time in the homerun list with 613. Ken Griffey Jr. is next with 614; any chance Griffey can come back? Please?!