Spring!

No better way to welcome spring than to have a couple of business meetings, on a park bench, in the shadow of a shiny MLB stadium. Actually, there are probably many better ways to welcome spring, but I went with the park bench thing.

This is Petco Park in San Diego, one of the nicer stadiums I have visited (and the nicest one, in the shadow of which, I ever conducted business)

Ever Wonder How Baseballs are Made?

Milestone Eve

I don't know if it's a big deal for most kids to go to professional baseball game, or if their first glimpse of the field inside a real stadium is magic moment, but it was for me.

I have spoken with other guys my age who can vividly recount their first big league game, so I think it might be worthy of "milestone" status. By that I mean, one of those events that is intensely anticipated, yet still turns out to be every bit as good as expected. Milestones are those experiences that make indelible footprints on the path to a fulfilling life.

Tomorrow, I will visit Angel stadium with Romeo to see them play the Orioles in a game that is all but meaningless for both teams. Meaningless, that is, in terms of the 2010 MLB post-season, but it is not a meaningless game to us. We have planned this for a long time and my 4-year old, baseball-crazy son has been counting down to this day all summer long

I bought two front row tickets behind home plate and two more front row tickets up against the bullpen in left field. We plan to move around, catch a few home run balls during batting practice, chat with the bullpen pitchers, befriend the on-deck hitters, and run the bases. That's right -- it is "run the bases" day for kids under 12 so we will be allowed on the field for a single, glorious lap.

I don't know what Romeo has up his sleeve, but here's my plan: I will sprint to first and make a proper, wide turn in foul ground so that I can accelerate across the inside corner of the bag toward second. I will go hard into second with a pop-up slide, eliminating any chance of an imaginary double-play, before digging hard and low toward third, where I will arrive with a dramatic, head-first slide. Without even spitting the dirt out of my mouth, I will scamper up, head for home, and bowl into any kids awaiting their turn to run, scattering them like tenpins.

Look for me on Sports Center. I'll be the guy covered in dirt, wearing the proud expression of a man who took his son out to achieve a milestone but ended up bagging one of his own.

One of Those Days

There are certain dates that trigger my mind to recall particular events. Today, August 16th, is one of those dates.
I am not sure why I remember that these four events all occurred on the same day but, for some reason, they seem related in my mind and I never seem to forget them.

No need to elaborate extensively; I'll just list them chronologically with a short comment:

August 16, 1920 - Ray Chapman became first and only batter to be killed by a pitched ball in Major League Baseball. This changed the game in many ways including the rule that newer, whiter balls be used. That particular change meant that old, dirty, dead balls could not be used and the newer, more tightly wound replacements ushered in the era of the power hitter. Which leads to...

August 16, 1948 - Babe Ruth died. He was probably the greatest beneficiary of the changes to the game that favored power hitters. His on-field abilities drew attention to his colorful social life and he drove "celebrity status" to a new level for professional athletes and entertainers. Celebrity status brings us to...

August 16, 1958 - Louise Ciccone was born near Detroit and later changed her name to Madonna. Her fame grew to the point where, at the height of her notoriety, she was on a very short list of the most well-known figures on the planet. To that point in history, the only other musical entertainer who had achieved such widespread fame was Elvis, who died on...

August 16, 1977 - That's right. Same day. Heard the news from Joe Nemi. Even though many of us think of "young Elvis" and "old Elvis", the latter term referring to his bloated final years, he was never really old. He died at 42.

August 16th is just one of those days...

Gotta Love Phillies Fans

Sometimes we understand things at the gut level that we cannot describe rationally. This was the case when I wrote about Mets fans last year and, though I could not articulate why the particular predicament was apropos of a Met fan, the post reverberated across the imaginary readership of WWDS and excited the blogosphere.

Similarly, I don't know why this incident, a goofy fan runs on the field and gets knocked out by a rent-a-cop with a tazer gun, seems right for Philadelphia, but I am sure you will all agree that it is:



I know that one point does not a pattern make, and that two posts do not a series make, but keep your eye out for other stories that see seem intuitively befitting of a particular fan base and this might just become a staple of the blog.

Add McGwire to the List

This isn't really surprising in terms of whether or not Big Mac was a user but the announcement and public airing of details was apparently unexpected. He will probably sleep better tonight than he has in years.

You all know where I stand on this. I don't applaud cheating or lying about it but I maintain that steroids cannot help a hitter learn the strike zone, recognize pitches, or make decisions at the plate. As far as I know, there is also no evidence that steroids improve hand-eye coordination or timing. I just don't think they really help hitting much, especially if the hitters are facing juiced pitchers.

I am glad he came clean and we have taken another step toward ending the entire conversation about who did and who did not use banned substances. We still have a ways to go but this was a good step.

Branding 101

The Red-Sox have worn at least nine different jerseys and three different hats on the field this year.

I have never claimed to be a marketing expert but I have been exposed to the basic principles and understand which ones have been tested and proven. I know, for example, that branding is a successful tactic for building an emotional bond with a consumer.

This is important because it has also been well proven that emotionally involved consumers are more loyal and more likely to exchange their money for your product. So how do you stir emotion and create a bond with your consumers? The answer is pretty complicated (translation: got me...) but I know that it starts with recognition.

Your audience must consistently recognize your product among the myriad of consumer messages that bombard them up to 10,000 times per day (according to reliable sources). In this regard, a consistent look is key.

In the corporate world, the term "logo-cop" is commonly attached to the marketing people charged with protecting the integrity of company trademarks to ensure that whenever they are used, they show exactly the right colors, precisely the right type-face, appropriate white space, agreed tag-lines, acceptable associations, and complete adherence to all of the guidelines in what they call a "graphics standards manual". That's right, they have an entire manual about how to use the company's logos.

So why on earth do MLB and the NFL screw with helmets and logos and uniforms on such a regular basis? If every MLB team is wearing a red cap on a certain day to "honor fallen soldiers", it builds emotional distance with the fans and dilutes the impact of the tribute. It's like a bunch of strangers honoring your relative, not your favorite player paying homage. When all teams wear camouflage uniforms to show support for the military, it may be patriotic but it comes at a cost that the league may underestimate.

The NFL is much worse. It seems like they appreciate branding when you read about fines being levied for uniform violations. Then you watch a game and it's all throw-back uniforms and referees dressed in prison garb. Rather than seeing an intra-conference rivalry that resonates with historical context and pulsates with urgency and significance, I feel like I accidentally tuned into an NFL Europe game that means nothing to me.

I guess the owners are the ones who need to get the message: design a uniform that communicates what you want it to say about your team and stick with it. Always. Forever. Don't blow up the connection with your fans and start over every couple of weeks.

A Brilliant Idea for the Baseball Hall of Fame

Of course "brilliant" is a subjective term and my thought on this is so small that it might not qualify as an "idea" but I didn't think anyone would read the more accurate headline of "Here's a nuance the HOF should consider".

Anyway, here is what the Baseball Hall of Fame should do. They should simply clarify and publicly communicate the institution's role in some formal way.

Such clarity is needed because many, like me, see it as a museum about the history of baseball where one can learn about the game's past and see interesting artifacts associated with some of the game's greatest plays, players, and seasons. Others see it as an institution of honor that exists to confer the highest degree of notoriety on the game's most deserving contributors. In reality, it should be and could be both.

The mechanism to cover both roles is simple. As a museum, its content should be broad and comprehensive from the greatest glory to the darkest scandals. It should document the formidable career of Pete Rose, the storied seasons of Barry Bonds, and the sordid affair of the Chicago Black-Sox. For anything that is baseball history and meets a threshold for importance, one should be able to go there and learn about it.

As an institution of honor, it could continue to function in its current subjective, haphazard, whimsical, capricious, debate-stirring, manner of using crotchety, old, liquor-addled, grudge-bearing writers as an induction committee. Those who pass through the "system" (a term I type while rolling my eyes), get included.

The nuance is this: not everyone who might be "included in" the HOF would need to be "inducted into" the HOF. There could be players whose careers would be annotated inside who would not be "members" of the institution. While everyone is eligible to be a part of the historical narrative, only a select few get "enshrined" with a bust and a ceremony commemorating their induction.

I guess it is just a matter of recasting the public perspective and operating as a baseball museum that houses a special inner sanctum (call it the hall of fame) for a select few who played well without steroids and never bet on their team to win.

More Good Baseball Trivia

Here you go imaginary readers -- let's see if anyone can dethrone Pete Dore.

Question: Who is the only pitcher in MLB history to have won 2 "Game 7's" in the world series?

As with the last trivia, the answer is a notable MLB player.

Remember the "answer code"; it is written backwards with a "b" on either side of each letter

Answer: bnbosbbbibgb bbbobbb

NFL Draft: A Major Media Event

Is the NFL a Juggernaut or what? More than 34 million people watched the draft last year and this year the coverage is doubling.

I heard about an ESPN poll showing that, far and away, the most eagerly anticipated sports event of this weekend will be the NFL draft. Sorry NBA play-off fan; sorry NHL play-off fan; college kids are going to find out which team they can try out for and the whole world thinks that's more interesting than the conclusion of your season.

Sorry Red-Sox/Yankees rivalry fan; we know your little hate fest is a good show but not as good as watching Dan Snyder trade the future for his latest man-crush or Al Davis moving up to draft a track star.

I didn't respond to the poll but I guess I am with the masses on this one. There's something about the draft that just can't be ignored.

One more difference (per prior post)....

I should also mention the other visually obvious and good to see difference between players on the WBC Asian teams and the MLB players: relief pitchers run to the mound from the bullpen. I find the leisurely stroll that MLB relievers take to be the height of arrogance and absurdity. You're a professional athlete; you can't jog 300 feet?