It's not a bad stadium... but AT&T Park is better

For the first time since the mid 1950s, my dad is a fan of the defending World Series Champs. And who knows? They are in first place by themselves again and there could be another fun October this year.

It's my dad's birthday and everything I wrote a couple of years ago still stands.

The main thing that is different is I got to watch part of the World Series with him last year. We've both had recent World Series winners and for a long time it seemed like NEITHER of us would see our teams win.

I am still curious to see what would happen in a Giants - Red Sox World Series.
Maybe this is the year.

But that is speculation for the future.
For today, all I can say to the man my kids call "Poppy" is Happy Birthday. Let's have a lot more.

Off sync with the Giants and my parents

I called my parents the second Juan Uribe won the game for the Giants last night to get their thoughts on the Giants somehow taking a 3-1 lead.



SULLY:
Some game! Up 3-1!

SULLY'S DAD:
I love it.

SULLY'S MOM:
It's great but watching it out of sync is driving me crazy.

SULLY:
(As confused as you)
Wait. Are you watching it live or on DVR? Do you not know how it ends?

SULLY'S MOM:
Oh we watched the ending. But it's all out of sync because Poppy has the radio on.


SULLY'S DAD:
I have to hear Kruk and Kuip.

(Kruk and Kuip refer to Mike Krukow and Duane Kuiper, the wonderful Giants announcers on KNBR.)

SULLY:
But dad... if you are listening to the radio, you are hearing it before you are seeing it.

SULLY'S DAD:
The delay isn't bad.

SULLY'S MOM:
It's AWFUL. It's 30 seconds.

SULLY'S DAD:
It's NOT 30 seconds. It's about 11 seconds.

SULLY:
11 seconds? It might as well be a minute! You could be hearing "Long drive and it is GONE!" while the visual is the pitcher picking up the rosin bag.

SULLY'S MOM:
It drives me crazy.

SULLY'S DAD:
I just can't take Joe Buck and Tim McCarver.

SULLY:
I know it is rough. I had to hear them call two Red Sox World Series titles. But you've got to bite the bullet on this and watch it live.

SULLY'S MOM:
Thank you!

SULLY'S DAD:
But baseball is basically a lot of talk and a highlight here and there. So most of the time it is fine to be out of sync. It only affects it on the big plays.

SULLY'S MOM:
Yeah, it only is annoying at the most exciting moments of the game.

SULLY:
Dad. Why don't you go into the living room and listen to KNBR and let mom watch the game without her feeling like she is watching a Godzilla movie?

SULLY'S DAD:
Maybe I will.


Today I found out that my dad "figured out how to get the radio in sync with the TV." I am sure it will work fine.

So Poppy... if you want to see the end of the game with the KNBR guys in SYNC... CLICK HERE.

And if you want to share my mom's experience, watch this movie:

The Don of the Phillies

I am rooting for the Giants as is my dad in the NLCS. But I have a soft spot in my heart for the Phillies because of my many relatives who lived most of their lives in the Philadelphia area.

This series is going to be an interesting one because my Uncle Don, my dad’s brother, is the biggest Phillies fan of them all. I wonder what their correspondence will be like during the NLCS.

Now my Uncle Don has had some ups and downs health wise, but I am happy to hear he is doing a lot better now.

I am thinking about you, Uncle Don, and I can’t wait to breakdown the Phillies roster piece by piece and compare them to the 1980 team.

I am no cardiologist, but I always think watching your team in a thrilling October playoff match up is the best thing for your health.

Keep getting better.
And PLAY BALL.

Nobody focuses on the Giants like my dad

My dad (aka Poppy) can tell you anything you want to know about the Giants.
He can casually rattle off the 1954 Giants' roster...
He can give you a scouting report on the current team...
When new players come up from Fresno, he is anticipating their arrival...
When prospects are tearing up San Jose, he has his eye on them.

He is NOT a casual baseball fan. Far from it.

But he is unique.
He has Giants tunnel vision.
I used to think he only knew about the National League.

But he really only knows the Giants and whomever they are playing THAT DAY.

A case in point.
Today the Yankees clinched the Division Series as the Twins did a brilliant impersonation of the Polish Army circa 1939.

The Yankees of course are chocked full of Superstars and many played today.

A-Rod, Jeter, Teixeira, Cano and Rivera all played.

So did All Stars Swisher and Hughes.

And former All Stars Posada and Hughes.

They had a GALAXY of stars... and stormed into the ALCS with the biggest marquee names in the show.

I got an e mail from my dad tonight.

"The Yankees
I hardly know who most of the players are!!
Should I?"

No you shouldn't Poppy... not until they play the Giants in the World Series.
(And if that happens, nobody will be able to tell you more about the Yankees than my dad.)

No person I'd rather watch a clinching with than Poppy

My dad was in town this weekend and we watched a lot of baseball. That wasn't the original plan... the plan was we'd watch his Giants clinch on Friday night and spend the rest of the weekend in L.A. County with my kids.

As it turned out Cain got bombed and Barry Zito blew his chance to redeem his contract in the eyes of Giants fans.

So we were glued to the set today... and watching a game with my dad is an experience.

Sometimes he doesn't move. You wonder if he is asleep. Then when Guillen grounds out you just hear a "JE-sus... swinging on the first pitch." And then you know my dad hasn't missed a pitch.

Or then comes his predictions.
When Miguel Tejada came up in a key spot today, he grumbled "This is it... he's about to hit the home run that will haunt us forever." Then with added emphasis pointed at the screen... as if I were about to miss his seer like abilities.

Tejada grounded out.

Later when Aubrey Huff came up in a critical situation, he said "Watch. He's about to hit the home run that will forever cement his legend."

He also grounded out.

Back when Bonds was with the Giants, every time a pitcher threw to him, my dad would say "Gone."

And when the odds caught up to him and Bonds DID hit a homer, my dad would turn to me and say "I called it."

I would reply "You call EVERY pitch."

My dad would have it off and say "admit it... I called it."

And I couldn't deny it. I am thrilled for my dad this year. He follows the Giants closer than anyone who isn't currently employed by KNBR.

I remember in 2008 I was driving home and listening to a Giants/Dodgers game late in the season. The Giants were 100% out of it and it was a week night. Bengie Molina homered for the Giants and I called my dad.

He picked up the phone. He didn't even say "Hello?" He just said "How about Bengie Molina?"

Dedication to a team... my dad has it.

So I'm glad we could see the Giants win the West.

But today my dad asked me "if I can get World Series tickets, will you fly up?"

He's already past Atlanta, Cincinnati and Philadelphia.

Let's go Giants. My dad has paid enough dues watching this team to finally see another World Series title.

And I have a feeling he has many more predictions to make this post season.

October Collision Course

Two teams had walk off wins today that were thrilling and made me really hope they face off, for many different reasons.

The Giants won this afternoon thanks to a pair of home runs by Pat Burrell, a shot by Sandoval and a walk off by Torres.

I guess all of my begging and pleading for the Giants to sign Johnny Damon wasn't necessary. Torres has done the job just fine.

And Pat Burrell has turned into the best mid season pick up for the Giants that I can remember since Rick Reuschel in 1987.

Meanwhile, across the country, the Giants arch rival Dodgers had their season basically end in a disastrous 9th inning that was partially caused by the spell and hexes cast onto the the L.A. Bullpen from this young Phillies fan.

As gruesome as the 9th inning was for Los Angeles and it seemingly will put a nail in the coffin of the Joe Torre era in Chavez Ravine, it also shows that the Phillies are peaking at a very advantageous time.

Any time you are down 9-2 in the 8th inning and can pull off the win, against a team with a winning record no less, it is time to pay attention.

I think the Phillies and Giants are on a collision course that will meet in October.

Now there is one problem with that prediction... as of this writing, both teams are in second place. The Giants and Phillies are tied in the loss column for the Wild Card.

Maybe that is where the collision will be.

Imagine a Wild Card play in game with Tim Lincecum versus Roy Halladay or Roy Oswalt.

But truth be told, I think both teams are making the post season. It will be only a matter of time before the Phillies leap frog the Braves.

And we'll see what happens with the Giants after this weekend's series with San Diego.

But Holy Cats, I want to see the Giants and the Phillies square off for meaningful games in October.

Not only will there be the intrigue of two teams with multiple aces...

Not only will there be the return of Pat Burrell to Philadelphia...

Not only will there be two passionate fan bases playing in new beautiful ballparks...

But my dad is a huge Giants fan.

And his brother, my uncle Don is a huge Phillies fan.

The potential fireworks between the brothers with meaningful games in October is too wonderful to avoid.

Now a potential Giants/Phillies showdown was thwarted before... in 1993 when the Giants won 103 games and missed the postseason because they were inexplicably in the same geographical division as the Braves.

So once again the Braves could stand in the way of a Giants-Phillies showdown.

Let's go Giants and let's go Phillies... if the Red Sox can't make it in October, I had better experience some other family fireworks!!!

Red Sox vs. Giants was fun... let's do it again in October

Lester came to the rescue today, but Heaven forbid the Red Sox have a game without an injury!!!

So with Dustin Pedroia, Clay Buchholz and Victor Martinez banged up, the Sox leave San Francisco with 2 wins.

I am glad about that... and I will root for the Giants in EVERY game for the rest of the season.

They are my National League team.

I went to high school in the Bay Area and I rooted for Los Gigantes in the 1987 and 1989 post season.

I would cut class from time to time and drive up to Candlestick Park and see Will Clark, Kevin Mitchell, Matt Williams and Big Daddy Reuschel play for the great Hum Baby teams of Roger Craig.

And I also have seen many games with Barry Bonds at both the Stick and on China Basin.

And then there is the matter of my dad and my son.

My dad is the single biggest Giants fan I have ever met in my life.

He is up listening to the post game show when the Giants are 20 games out.

He is the first to call me when a big Giants prospect has been called up.

He was a Giants fan way back when they were in the Polo Grounds and he has cheered them from Coogan's Bluff to Seal's Stadium to Candlestick Point to China Basin.

And his grandson, my son Aidan, whose middle name is also my dad's name, loves his grandpa (or Poppy as he is known) so much that with no prompting he has claimed the Giants as HIS team.

He doesn't know the players yet... but when asked what his favorite team is, with great pride he says "The GIANTS!"

So for the generation before and after me, I hope the Giants go all the way to the World Series.

And I hope the Red Sox are there too.

And I hope the Sox SWEEP!

(Love for family can only go so far)

Happy Birthday, Dad

I hope a new generation enjoys reading the sports section with you...


And playing whiffle ball in the back yard with you.

You are the best.

I'm sorry the Giants got killed tonight.

Make it 19 of 22 starts for the Giants

Another day... another terrific starting pitching performance for the Giants.

Today Matt Cain took a no hitter into the 6th and pitched into the 8th inning.

He gave the Giants 7 innings, 2 runs, 3 walks and 6 K's... and once again the Giants don't need to wear out their pen.

19 of their past 22 starts have been solid starts as I wrote before.

Seriously Giants... this is the best starting rotation since the 1993 Braves.
Find a big bat. Trade for one now.

The Giants misery is underrated. This is a chance to take care of business for Giants fans.

My dad is a Giants fan... and he hasn't seen his team win the World Series since 1954.

And my son Aidan is also a Giants fan.

He was born in 2005... he's never had a champion in his lifetime.
Hasn't he waited enough?

Welcome to Aaron Rowand's house

I had all of the Sully Baseball posts written in my head last night.

A Giants win, a Rockies loss, the Cardinals winning the division on a night they didn't even play, another Brad Penny win...

How inconvenient facts can be!

Jeff Baker's 2 out 2 strike 2 run homer was just what the Giants DIDN'T need...

So I kept watching the game and lo and behold the Giants rallied.

2 on... 1 out... and up stepped my father's favorite whipping boy, Aaron Rowand.

2 strikes on him and I kept thinking "Aaron buddy... if you want my father to ever respect you... don't strike out!"

Not only DID he strike out, he swung at a pitch that was in the dirt.

I don't think the ball was thrown back to the pitcher and my e mail box had an angry Anti Rowand missive from my dad.

Just pack your bags now Aaron...

My dad might be coming after you with a pitchfork.

Is the NL REALLY that much worse than the AL????

Seriously... are the National League hitters just incompetent?

Brad Penny was so awful in a Red Sox uniform that AL hitters were smacking him around for nearly a .300 average.

His ERA, 5.61, was a disgrace.

He went 7-8 and the only thing I can say to that is "He won 7 games????"

The Red Sox, a team in a tight pennant race, CUT HIM!

He goes to San Francisco and BAM! He's 2-0 with a 1.20 ERA and is so cocky that can get upset at individual homers hit off of him. There was no time to glower at all the people rounding the bases against him in a Red Sox uniform.

If I were an agent of ANY pitcher in the AL, I'd be banging the door of any NL team to sign my client.

Yesterday, the Giants jumped out to a 6-0 lead. They were up 9-2 when my dad, the giant Giants fan, drove my family to San Jose airport. When we were parking the car, the Padres were rallying in the 9th, cutting the lead to 9-4.

When my dad stopped the car he just looked at me and said "They're going to lose it. I can feel it."

They didn't... but it's good to see my dad's pessimism towards the Giants can't be tempered even with a 9 run outburst.

Dad! What do you have to worry about? The Giants have the great BRAD PENNY!

2 games... an insurmountable lead

I thought this season couldn't get more predictable for the Giants... and lo and behold we have THIS game.



Sanchez strikes out 9 batters in 6 innings, letting up 1 run.

The Giants pitching lets up 1 run over 11 innings... and of course that is one run too many.



How can a team like the Giants be expected to score TWO runs over 11 innings?



There are too many rallies to kill.



And of course nobody killed them like my dad's favorite whipping boy, Aaron Rowand.



The Giants have had their share of rally killing double plays... but leave it Rowand to raise the bar and hit into a TRIPLE play!



When I came back to my parents house this afternoon after lunch, I saw the game was still on. It was 1-1 in the 12th inning. But my dad wasn't watching the game.



He was outside playing with his grandkids, my kids.



I saw Prince Fielder hit a walk off... but I couldn't tell me dad. He was having too much fun.



Later we discussed the series. The Giants won the series even with today's loss and trail Colorado by only 2 games.



"They are done. The season is over" my dad declared.



There is NO WAY the Giants can make up 2 games in 4 weeks!



Man, could you imagine the Giants record if their hitting ever rose above the level of "Jaw Dropping Incompetence!"?



Come on Giants! A fan who witnessed the 1951 miracle at Coogan's Bluff thinks it is impossible to make up 1 game every other week!



Prove him wrong!

The Joy of Poppy

Poppy is the name my kids gave to my dad... and right now I have the unique perspective of watching the Giants clawing for a post season spot next to Poppy.

I'm up in the Bay Area for Labor Day and if the Giants are playing, rest assured Poppy is watching them.

The Giants have played a bunch of tense 1 run games recently... and they've all been superbly pitched games. Ergo the Giants are being true to form and scoring about 3 runs a week.

And with each pitch, Poppy watches the game with a pessimism that would make Eeyore say "CHEER UP!"

The other day against Milwaukee, Aaron Rowand came to the plate with two outs and a runner on second.

"Oh man here's Roward. This is an automatic out. The Brewers should just walk off the field now!" Poppy would say.

Then Rowand laced a game tying single which made Poppy's jaw literally drop.

Next at bat for Roward, Poppy would be grinding his teeth.

"Here's Roward... he's terrible."

I'd remind Poppy that he tied the game with a single, but Poppy literally shooed me away. And when Rowand grounded out weakly to end the inning, Poppy pointed to the screen as if to say "See!"

And of course when the 9th inning comes around, Poppy leaves. Oh, he will want to have pitch by pitch updates, but he can't be in the same room with the Giants with only a one run lead.

They have won the past two games and are lingering 1 game back of Colorado... and Poppy's mood fluctuates between euphoria and utter despair (sometimes in the same at bat.)

One thing you can say about Poppy is that he is the antidote to the Northeast bias in baseball. If it doesn't happen in the NL West, it doesn't even pass through his radar.

We were talking the other night about other teams in baseball... and whenever the American League would come up, he'd just wave his hand. "I don't know anyone in the American League."

I pressed him and went down team by team.

Sure he knew the big players (Jeter, A-Rod, Ichiro, Vlad, Halladay, Big Papi.)

And he also knew Joe Mauer of the Twins who he thinks should be in the argument for best hitter in the game (and it would be hard to argue with that.)

And he kind of knew the identities of some other players.

The Red Sox have an MVP named Melloya (aka Dustin Pedroia.)

They also got a good player for Manny named Moss (Jason Bay.)

And the Red Sox have that guy Becker (I am assuming Josh Beckett.)

The Rays have that third baseman (I am assuming Evan Longoria.)

They also have the guy stealing all of the bases. (Carl Crawford.)

And the Royals have that guy who is going to win the Cy Young. (Pretty safe to say that meant Zack Grienkie.)

But Miguel Cabrera, who is batting .339 with 28 homers and 84 RBIs for the first place Tigers elicited a "Who?" from Poppy.

Curtis Granderson, the Tigers spark plug, got a "Never heard of him."

Six time All Star and former batting champion Michael Young got a shrug.

And Poppy did not believe that someone named Justin Morneau actually won the American League MVP. "Stop!" he said, as if this were all an elaborate prank.

Yet he rattled off a bunch of players from the Rockies and Diamondbacks and Padres... and of course knows the Giants and Dodgers left and right.

All baseball that is played 

a) East of Denver

and

b) with a Designated Hitter

simply doesn't register.

And Poppy's reasoning for not knowing the American League just shows how entrenched he is in West Coast baseball.

"Well if the A's were better, maybe more people will know about the American League."

That's right. If the team with the worst stadium, TV deal and radio contract I have ever seen got their act together, the AL would be in the nation's spotlight.

Folks, Poppy has passion! Poppy loves his Giants and his NL West ball.

So come on, Giants! Start scoring some runs! Keep winning these games!

Poppy will be there until the end (not that he'll be WATCHING the end, but you know what I mean!)

Red Sox show some fight!

I called my dad last night during the Giants - Dodgers game last night and my dad couldn't resist giving my Red Sox a little dig.

"You root for thugs! Hooligans! The Giants are role models!"

He might be right. But I can tell you one thing... this is NOT a repeat of 2006.

The Red Sox got smacked around in a 5 game sweep by the Yankees in '06 and suddenly the team went limp. Either everyone got hurt or they quit.

This team got swept by the Yankees and are coming out swinging, in EVERY way!

The team is showing some fire, some guts and can even survive and ejection or two.

Youk gets tossed?

Fine, Lowell will come off the bench and hit a pair of bombs.

Seeing Lowell and Bay hit homers was more than heartening.

And the kid Junichi Tazawa let up 3 runs but guess what? It wasn't a do or die inning like the bottom of the 15th in New York!

Just keep winning games, Red Sox.

The Magic Number to make the playoffs is 50.

Cain is able

I wonder how many times Matt Cain has heard that?

Probably daily. Oh well.

I'm just happy that stories about Matt Cain no longer have include the phrase "pitching better than his record would indicate."

In fact he is the walking proof that Win Loss record can be overrated.

He posted sub 4.00 ERAs the last two seasons (3.65 in 2007, 3.76 in 2008.) On a team that could score 4 runs a game, he'd be a 15-16 game winner easily.

But on a team that considered Randy Winn its big run producer, he would put up 7-16 and 8-14 records.

Well now he's a 10 game winner and an All Star. And the Giants, as my dad keeps reminding me, are a playoff team with terrific pitching (throw in this Ryan Sadowski kid who might be for real!) and suddenly Cain might be pitching in October.

My dad said "Cain's the ace of the team."

I reminded him that not only was Lincecum the defending Cy Young award winner but leads the league in strike outs, innings pitched, complete games, shutouts and second in the league in ERA."

My dad said "Cain has more wins."

I let it slide. Cain was underrated because of his win loss record, so I suppose he could be overrated a little for the same reason.

Dusty Rhodes... Rest In Peace

I would argue that James Lamar "Dusty" Rhodes hit the most underrated home run in baseball history.

The 1954 World Series was supposed to be a cakewalk for the Cleveland Indians. They won 111 games, an AL Record, ended the Yankees 5 year reign as World Champs and took on a seemingly overmatched Giants team.

Now any baseball fan worth their weight in tobacco knows that Willie Mays made the amazing back to home plate catch off of Vic Wertz in Game 1.

But the game went into extra innings and without a Giants win, Mays catch would have been an interesting footnote. (See Endy Chavez)

With 1 out and 2 on in the bottom of the 10th, Durocher sent in Dusty Rhodes... a guy who couldn't play the field and seemed like a limited talent... but had a knack for the big hit off the bench.

He got it. Granted it travelled about half the distance as Vic Wertz's out... but it was enough to be the second Walk Off homer in World Series history. And he did it off of future Hall of Famer Bob Lemon.

The Giants won the opener. And then with the Giants trailing in Game 2, Rhodes came off the bench again and tied the game with a pinch hit single off of Early Wynn, another future Hall of Famer.

In Game 3, Rhodes once again came off of the bench and delivered. This time he singled home a run off of Mike Garcia (not a Hall of Famer, but he was an All Star and a 19 game winner in 1954, so he wasn't exactly a slouch.)

The Giants ran up a 7-0 lead in Game 4 and Rhodes wasn't needed off of the bench, but his final numbers were amazing.

He batted .667 with an OPS of 2.381. He finished the series 4-6 homering twice and driving in 7 runs all together without starting a game.

They didn't give out World Series MVPs in 1954, but no doubt he would have won it.

The Giants haven't won the World Series since 1954, but I know one fan who can recite that roster and the events of the World Series as if it were yesterday.

My dad loved and still loves the 1954 team... and with Rhodes' heroics they were not just footnotes!

If not for Rhodes then the Giants would be looking back at 1933 as their last title.

Rest in peace Dusty.

And don't let anyone up there tell you that was a cheap homer!

In honor of Dusty... watch this great World Series film for the '54 series!

If the playoffs started today...

The San Francisco Giants would be tied for the Wild Card.

I don't know how many more days I can say that... but for my dad's sake, I'll keep announcing that on Sully Baseball every day until they fall out of the Wild Card lead.

Happy Birthday to my best friend in all things baseball!

There's one person I have watched more baseball games with than anyone else.



There's one person I have talked about baseball with more times than anyone else.



There's one person I always know is willing to talk about baseball at any time, including during Christmas time.



When a big trade happens, he's the first person I call.



When a great catch is made or a big home run in the playoffs is hit, I need to know his take.



In college we went on baseball trips together where we would see 3 or 4 different stadiums in a weekend.



We cried together watching Ken Burns' Baseball.



We jumped off the couch together when Hendu hit his homer.



We poured over the box scores together



When the insane baseball coverage in 1995 prevented him from seeing the extra innings Red Sox/Indians Game 1 of the Division Series, I gave him the play by play over the phone.



Two days before my wedding (in the picture above) we went to Oakland to see Game 2 of the Division Series between the A's and Red Sox.



Over the years we've seen games together in 17 stadiums.



Fenway Park

Yankee Stadium

Shea Stadium

Stade Olympique in Montreal

Skydome in Toronto

Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh

Cleveland Stadium in Cleveland

Jacobs Field in Cleveland

Tiger Stadium

U.S. Cellular Field in Chicago

Wrigley Field

Milwaukee County Stadium

Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati

Dodger Stadium

Oakland Collesium (before and after the renovation)

AT&T Park

Candlestick Park



And that isn't even counting minor league games in New Haven, New Britain and San Jose.



He's my best friend in all baseball matters.



He also happens to be my dad, but that's just a coincidence.



Happy Birthday dad. One of these days we'll be adding to that list of stadiums, and bringing two new baseball fans with us.

A Twins Post

Four years ago today... March 5, 2005... with spring training underway and the Red Sox defending their first World Series title in 86 years...

My amazing wife gave birth to two beautiful boys and changed my life forever for the better.

I am so happy they were born when they were... if for no other reason that I was able to celebrate a Red Sox World Championship before they were born so I didn't have someone say "Have some dignity! You have children looking up to you!"

Now I want them to be Red Sox fans... my dad wants them to be Giants fans.

They'll probably be Dodger fans.

Well buddies, you are four years old and daddy loves you.
Last year we went to our first pro game, a minor league game. I think this year we need to go to our first big league game.

And I expect you to keep score!!!

MY DAD WAS RIGHT!!!

Tim Lincecum won the Cy Young Award!

Just as my dad said he should earlier this year.

This is a great selection and shows at least sometimes, the voters don't just see who had the highest win total and then pick them to be the Cy Young winner.

Linecum was Brandon Webb's superior in every way this year except in the win department and the award went to the right guy.

Maybe my dad called them.
I wouldn't put it past him.