It’s the name of the British game baseball comes from.
So, when I read (reed, not red) to the preschoolers at night, I let them pick their stories–I recite the titles from a book of tales and they stop me when they hear one they want. Last night, the 5-year-old girl picked Casey at the Vat, I mean Bat. Casey at the Vat would be if Casey woulda not whiffed like a Gorman Thomas and the team broke into the Mudville brewery for a throwdown victory drinkfest. Anyway, I considered taking away yer breath with a simple C&P of the classic, and decided that would suck.
I like baseball, but can’t watch a whole game on TV unless I’ve got a rare space of time without family (wife, four kids) and only then if there’s beer and friends. Once me and a buddy invented a drinking game–before every half inning one of us had to drink every time someone did something or something happened. One of my half-innings was every time Lenny Dykstra adjusted something. I was drunk before the count was 2-0, and THEN he got on base! Crotch, helmet, gloves, cell phone; crotch, helmet, gloves, cell phone. I’m still tipsy!
Professionally, my favorite beat was the Class A Kane County Cougars of the Midwest League, which led to a few seasons of being Baseball America’s MWL correspondent. The Cougars started as an Orioles farmteam and switched to Marlins when MLB expanded. The Marlins sent their finest to Kane County, because attendance was great and the kids could get used to playing in front of crowds, calling each other off over the noise, etc. Many eventual major leaguers went through–and many more from opponents–and I won’t name them now, but one of the first was Gregg Zaun, an Orioles employee.
One of those Gregories with two gs at the end of his shortened name, he was a cut-up who loved The Smiths and was a bit of a dick in a cocky 20-year-old way. For the most part fun-loving. He retired yesterday, after 16 years and nine teams. Just didn’t have it anymore, and told the Padres so after a game Sunday. The 39-year-old defensive stalwart finished with a .252 average in 1,232 games. His longest stint was from 2004-2008 with the Torontos. He won a World Series ring with the Marlins in 1997, and made about $18 million all told–not bad for a 17th-round pick. The average career length for catchers is just over 5 years. I’m gonna go ahead and call this a nice little career.
He’s got a very cool website, and if you love fishing, you’ll love Z photos in Z photo gallery (just softening you for the blitz of Z- at his site). I was a catcher when I was 11 and 12, real badass too. Hit .700 and pitched a no-no one season. But this isn’t about me, it’s about Z and you and baseball and dead fish.
The Cougars had other notable catchers: Charles Johnson for some of one season, and a guy named Matt Treanor, a great guy who perservered and made the show and is better known as Mister Misty May-Treanor. Here’s a story on him before he met the skinny sand-covered volleyballer. Anyway, catcher is a tough position, most likely the toughest, with all the squatting and heat of summer and foul tips and coordinating colors of equipment.
Zaun’s website–if you really don’t care, at least check out the flash intro and the action shot of him looking like a Power Ranger. You’ll know which shot I mean.
In honor of Z, here’s a Smiths clip I like:
And here’s a show I liked:
One word: mildewy. Two words: snack cake. Three words: pinky all stinky.
Original Story:
