About Last Night....

I think the reason the Josh Hamilton story resonates with so many is that each of us, in some way big or small, are also a kind of prodigal son/daughter looking for redemption, forgiveness or just a pat on the back.

I like what Rick Reilly said: “It [was] a bad night to be an atheist”

Amen! -- Marla Hooch

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Socrates, The Rangers, The Blue Notebook and What To Read During the All Star Break

For those of you who didn’t have to endure the Friday afternoon philosophy classes with Father McMahon, let me give you a crash course in the Socratic Method.

Socrates was a Greek philosopher. He was proclaimed by the Oracle of Delphi as the wisest man in the world – which means that the Oracle never met my brother-in-law Dr. Brad Richards (hope you are recovering quickly Brad!). Socrates didn’t quite buy the Oracle’s assessment either, that lead to his creation of the “Socratic method”. Now I could write a blog entry longer than a Vincente Padilla start on the nature of the Socratic Method – which in very simplistic terms is a Q and A with Socrates asking the tough questions - as well as a fairly complete biography of the man - but I won't because I doubt you want to read about that. But what I’m sure you didn’t know is that Socrates is also a baseball fan and has brought the Socratic Method to Hooch World Headquarters to ask the most important moral and epistemological questions about the Rangers as we head into the All Star Break.

Socrates: What should the Rangers do about Milton Bradley?

Marla: I tend to agree with Jim Reeves in this morning’s Startlegram. And while we're at it let's mention Jeff Wilson's excellent feature on Milton too. Milton’s been productive, he does bring a emotional spark that has been missing for a few years (see the unchanging demeanor of the “face of the franchise”). But more importantly even though the Rangers are in a re-building mode, they probably still need to show they are committed to keeping some productive veteran players. Not only for the (overvalued) clubhouse chemistry aspect – but also to assure future free agents who might be interested in playing for the Rangers that when they sign with Texas on a one or two year deal they are signing on to be part of the team – and not simply a “rental” player that Rangers are planning on using to stock their farm system at the trading deadline. Asking a player that you signed on a free agent contract to accept a trade and then asking them to come back again the following off-season is not a good way to engender good will and loyalty to an organization.

Socrates: Whither Hank Blalock?

Marla: That’s a much easier question for me to answer than it is for Jon Daniels. First of all, I don’t buy into the whole moving Hank Blalock to first base – send Chris Davis back to AAA scenario. Here’s why: it’s obvious the Rangers are showcasing Hank for trade opportunities, fine. Two weeks of Hank at first base isn’t likely to persuade some contender or pretender that Hank is the answer to their first base problems, teams in a pennant race are going to want the sure thing at first, Hank is nowhere near a “sure thing” offensively or defensively at that position right now. I'm not even convinced he can stay healthy for the rest of the season. Hank’s history of poor performances (.263 BA in ’05 and .266 BA in ’06) and injuries the last two seasons (58 games played in ’07, 22 games played so far in ’08) are enormous obstacles that can’t be brushed aside. If it were me, I’d put Hank back at 3rd base, period. It’s the position he is most comfortable playing, and if his offense goes back to where it was before his trip to the DL (.299 BA) –all the better. If a trade partner wants to move him to first – that’s their prerogative. As for Chris Davis he needs to be getting in precious time adjusting to the major leagues – I like what Keith Law wrote during an ESPN chat this week:

"The power is huge, and I think he'll cut the Ks enough to hit .270-.280 when he's fully developed. But that's a few years down the line. He isn't ready to hit major-league pitching consistently - I mean, on a regular enough basis - but leaving him in AAA was pointless. Someone might have gotten hurt."

Socrates: What is the resolution to the Laird/Saltalamacchia/Ramirez triangle at catcher?

Marla: Wow, you really do ask tough questions. I’m not sure, I know that some feel that the Rangers will give up too much defensively by trading Gerald. I think that Max and Salty have proven during the past few weeks that’s not necessarily the case. Yes, they both need more work – regularly – behind the plate to improve their skills (although I think Salty is really, really improving quickly) My opinion is that Ranger fans who’ve been spoiled by the rare combination of stellar defensive play and good enough (to sometimes great) offense from the likes of Jim Sundberg, Ivan Rodriguez and now Gerald Laird need to get used to the fact that most likely their catcher of the future is going to be major league average defensively – but possibly above average offensively for a catcher (think Victor Martinez before he was injured - say 2006-2007).

Socrates: Many were looking at this past week’s homestand as the possible turning point of the season with walk-off home runs, “moral” victories and one player guaranteeing playoffs in Arlington this year – is that a reasonable assumption?

Marla: Nope. Let’s take off the rose colored glasses and deal with some reality: The walk off HR on Wednesday was marvelous – it was water cooler talk for even the most casual fan through the next day. However, that moment was brought to you by an overworked Rangers bullpen serving up a 2 run homer to a .194 hitter earlier in the game. Last week Sunday the Rangers were 3 games over .500 and 7 ½ games behind the Angels in third place in the AL West. As of the time I write this blog (at 8:00 am Sunday morning) the Rangers are 3 games over .500 and 7 ½ games behind the Angels in third place in the AL West: conclusion: moral victories don’t count in the standings. Playoff guarantees from a .243 hitter? Marlon needs to consult the Oracle of Delphi, or just look at the Disabled List and the numbers of innings pitched by the bullpen and tell me what other teams have made it to the post season with the types of problems the Rangers have had so far with their starting pitching and shaky bullpen.

Socrates: Trading Deadline – Buyers or Sellers?

Marla: Neither. Although my answers to some of the questions may appear pessimistic, I happen to really believe in this team. Maybe not as a contender this year, but it’s not far away, not far at all. I believe in the youth, I believe in the veterans (most of them anyway) I believe that by leaving most of this team intact that they will overtake the A’s for second place, make the Angels and all the other contenders they face in the second half work harder than they expected for their playoff spots. I believe they will finish above .500 – and when you consider where they were at the end of last season a 7-10 game improvement is major progress and maybe the beginning of that journey to enlightenment that ends with meaningful games in September and a reason to look forward to October again.

From the Blue Notebook: I went to the White Sox/Rangers game Friday (7/11) nice night because the Rangers won, even nicer because I got to sit with old friends Lorrie and Dennis Masset (Nick’s parents) plus I got to talk to Nick (and say Hi to John Danks) after the game…I see that Brandon McCarthy is pitching in the AZL Rookie league – I’m surprised we didn’t have a press release from the Rangers front office touting the fact that he was striking out 17 year old kids (while John Danks is sporting a 2.67 ERA – fourth best in the AL) I suppose this is good news until Brandon has another blister, hangnail, or stubs his toe and winds up on the DL again… has anyone noticed that German Duran is hitting .290 in the last ten games he's played?....With all the injuries, way to few innings from starters which in turn has caused too many bullpen innings pitched on the major league team, the question has to be asked: is OKC RHP Tommy Hunter (22 1/3 IP, 20 Hits, 2 BB, 12 K – 2.01 ERA) on the radar for a promotion?... Be sure to read Scott Lucas’s eyewitness game report on the Newberg Report about Hunter’s outing at Round Rock from Saturday (7/12) and check out all of the pictures on his blog Rangers Roundup …Kudo’s to our buddy Lisa Winston’s pre-game reports from the Future’s Game in New York: Futures Game To Highlight Young Talent and All-Star Sunday (we are appropriately jealous, hope that you said “Hi” to Elvis and noted his retro/cool hairstyle)...Maybe the Devil Rays aren’t all that – or maybe the All-Star break is coming along at just the right time for them...if the Rangers don't send anymore pitchers to Frisco for re-hab starts Neftali Feliz should start this Thursday night's (7/17) home game (an off day for the Rangers).

Finally: It’s too darn hot to be contemplating philosophy, or whining about a particularly bad trade – the best thing to do the next few days between watching the HR Derby and the All Star Game is to get in some Beach Reading – or in my case the Lounge By Baseball Mom’s Pool Reading. Forget Dostoevsky, this is paperback season,and the paperbacks I’m reading, or should I say devouring , this summer are the Tess Monaghan series by Laura Lippman. My DTFC pal John “Birdy” Sweet mentioned them to me when we visited last month, and the nice kid at Kramer’s Books in DC couldn’t say enough about them – I bought two books on those recommendations – I’m glad I did. Tess is definitely a flawed herione – she’s an accidental detective who makes plenty of mistakes, has family issues and is not exactly the most optimistic person in literature – which is why I just love her – she’s a good companion on these hot afternoons when motivation is a serious issue.

I hope Baseball Mom read this entry, so she’ll know my college education that included all those philosophy courses was not wasted -- Marla Hooch

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Game Report: All Neftali All The Time

It was a big night in Frisco. The Rough Riders front office probably couldn't tell from the normal sparse Monday attendance, but I knew it right away. Normally when I watch a Frisco pitcher throwing in the bullpen before a game there are maybe two, or at the most three, other people who are truly interested and know who is warming up. By my count there were about fifteen people watching number 25 throw, and for once I wasn't the only one taking pictures.

Yes indeed it was a roll call of the big guns sitting in the stands at Dr. Pepper Ballpark: Kevin McBrayer, Jason Cole, Mike Hindman blogging live for the DMN (thanks for mention and link!) Josh Boyd, Jim Sundberg, Nolan Ryan and a whole raft of scouts with radar guns - but the most important ones in attendance: my buddies Jamey and Max Newberg (pictured on the right).

There are excellent game reports on RHP Neftali Feliz's first AA start from Jamey on the Newberg Report website and Mike on the Dallas Morning News blog - there's no reason for me to try and add to that.

Click HERE to see my very short photo gallery of Neftali from Monday night.

There are a few Neftali and non-Neftali related items in the Blue Notebook: After two Travelers stole 3rd and then 2nd at the top the fifth off Feliz, in the bottom of the fifth Riders CF Julio Borbon singled and then promptly stole 2nd and 3rd - as if to say "do unto others" - well you know the rest of the saying - however, Neftali really, really does need to get better at holding runners on... the Rough Riders need to think about a new scoreboard for the radar gun readings in CF - the current one only shows two digits - when Neftali threw 100 and 101 the scoreboard showed 00 and 01 - just a little decieving.... I am so digging this season's Elvis Andrus hairstyle - pictured on the left - it has Oscar Gamble (circa late 1970's) potential - if you click on the pitcure you'll get the large image and the full effect...The big bats may have been called up to the majors from the Riders- but they've been replaced by a track team - even Nolan Ryan stayed for a while after Feliz was done for the night to watch CF Julio Borbon, SS Elvis Andrus and 2B Jose Vallejo at the top of the order - trust me on this one -watching them run - it's worth the price of admission...I actually stayed for most the rest of the game, and it was ugly: throwing errors by Vallejo and pitcher Brennan Garr allowed four runs to score, followed by some painful pitching from Joselo Diaz (single, double, walk, grand slam HR, another walk, two more singles) five more runs scored - Diaz was done for the evening and so was I - the final score Arkansas 12, Frisco 5.

I've learned not to predict the future of the prospects who get a little more ink than others, some of them are successful (Ian Kinsler) some are not (Juan Dominguez). Every summer there are prospects who move up the ladder that create a little more excitement for the hopelessly geeky minor league followers like me - it's just another reason I love baseball

Watch out for Juan Moreno! (Just kidding Jamey) -- Marla Hooch

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Quo Vadimus: Where Are We Going?

“…I’ve failed much more than I’ve succeeded. And each time I fail, I get my people together and say ‘Where are we going?’ and it starts to get better.”



-- Calvin Trager from “SportsNight”


If you remember the last episode of the late and very great “SportsNight” you’ll know their network was sold to young entrepreneur Trager. Their future still uncertain, the CSC network seemed to be heading in the right direction (although we’ll never really know due to the pinheads at ABC). Looking at this Rangers season, which is just a tick past the halfway mark, brought to mind that phrase and that mixed feeling of exhilaration and apprehension.

The season started out simply awful. The painful and too vivid memories of 2007 spurring on talk of front office and dugout overhauls and of yet another “plan”. But instead of the usual knee jerking reaction from ownership – the spirit of Calvin Trager’s maxim prevailed. Led by a patchwork starting pitching staff, a shaky bullpen and maybe the best redemption story in baseball in the past few years, this Ranger team found the answer to Calvin's question: “we are sticking with ‘the plan’ “ and it did indeed start to get better.

The Rangers record on July 4, 2007 was 36-48 (.429) on this July 4th it is 44-42 (.512) a difference of eight games – which may not seem like much. Let’s put in football terms, that seems to be the only ones many local sports fans seem to care about: It is the difference between having a 6-10 or an 8-8 record at the end of the season – a substantial improvement – maybe not enough for the front running DFW fans and talk show wags – but for this stubbornly loyal Rangers fan it is a relief (and proof) that “the plan” is still in place and starting to work.

With that that little sermon out of the way we present the Marla Hooch 2008 First Half Honor Roll:

Summa Cum Laude - Josh Hamilton: Yes, he slowed down in June. But you have to ask this question: Would this team have been able to find its way back to two games over .500 without his spectacular April and May? By the way has anyone noticed that Edinson Volquez has also come back to earth a bit too? His last 3 starts: 16 1/3 IP, 20 Hits, 10 ER, 7 BB, 8 K, 5.40 ERA and the last 2 starts he’s not pitched past the 4th and 5th innings.

Magna Cum Laude - Ian Kinsler: leads all AL second baseman in Runs scored (74) Batting Avg (.323) Home Runs (13) Hits (114) and RBIs (50). Pedroia and Cano will get all the votes – but we know that Ian has the numbers and showed the NY fans Tuesday night why he’s the AL’s best kept secret.

Most Improved - Vincente Padilla: We all knew he had the ability – but after last season, we were left wondering where it went. This season, we didn’t know what to expect and have been pleasantly surprised.

Not so honorable mention - Is he still a Ranger? - Brandon McCarthy: All the excitement over the Hamilton trade should be tempered in equal measure by what appears to be the complete failure of the Danks for Justin Thompson … I mean Brandon McCarthy trade. Jon Daniels and “the plan” have done many, many good things for this team – trading for major league pitching is not one of them.

Less Honorable Mention Part 2 – I Told You So - Kason Gabbard: I wasn’t sold on him last season – being tagged a “crafty” pitcher at age 26 is not a good sign in Marla’s estimation. I saw his re-hab start this season in Frisco which wasn’t all that encouraging, wrote about it and was told that I was wrong. He’s lefthanded, so he’ll get more opportunities than he ought to because this organization is sorely lacking in lefthanded pitching.

In Futuro (or why Marla loves watching the Minor Leaguers) – Brandon Boggs, Chris Davis, German Duran, Eric Hurley, Doug Mathis and Maximus: somewhere in the GDKAB archives on MLB (good luck finding them there) and here at the new place are game reports and pictures of all of these players in AA and AAA. I’ve often said following the minor league players is like being a teacher, you see them learn, grow, get better and then have so much fun watching on graduation day (their first game in the majors).

From the Blue Notebook: Kudos to Josh Lewin and the folks at Fox Sports for showing and talking about the scout who signed Chris Davis during Chris’s first home game in Arlington. Scouting is the backbone of building a superior minor league system – it’s great to see the scouts getting recognition…I just can’t get nostalgic about the end of Yankee Stadium. According to The Blue Notebook – Fenway and Wrigley have far more charisma and character. Frankly, when I read this week that they have started tearing down Tiger Stadium – the place I saw my first major league game – that is the news that brought a tear to my eye…Congrats to Mike Hindman who is now blogging for the DMN. We stopped reading their blog a while ago, but have started perusing it again in deference to our good friend – but with this suggestion to all – skip everything written by Tim McMahon – maybe if we just completely ignore him he’ll go away…meanwhile on another well known Ranger site one the of the self proclaimed expert internet GM’s pontificated that spending money on Ben Broussard kept the Rangers from signing supposed pitching phenom Michel Inoa. We beg to differ, instead one might surmise that in spite of spending money on now released Ben Broussard Ranger ownership was still willing to spend on an international signing – which is good – but the fact that Inoa chose to sign with the A’s because of their reputation for developing pitching – speaks to an area the Rangers really need to work on – and that has nothing to do with spending money.

While lunching with Lisa Winston of MiLB a couple of weeks ago she threw Marla a sharp curveball asking to name my five favorite musical artists – so many names swirled through my brain I couldn’t name them. But it did get me thinking about a my penchant for discussing music and writing lists. So starting this week is the inauguration of an occasional musical list to honor our friend (as well affording the chance to link her MLB blog and latest MiLB story) : The Lisa Winston Music List. This week I found out Steely Dan is coming to Nokia Live in Grand Prairie on August 21st – so it’s my five favorite Steely Dan songs:

1. My Old School – the song that got me hooked on Steely Dan


2. Haitian Divorce – it was worth waiting twenty plus years to see them in concert and hear Walter Becker sing this tune (instead of Donald)


3. Everything Must Go – If you’ve ever been a part of a failing business (as I have) you know how this song hits the mark.


4. Deacon Blues – Cleveland Ohio 1975-1979 – ah the sweet memories


5. Reelin’ In The Years – one of the best guitar intro’s in rock ‘n roll – and those lyrics! "your ever lasting summer you can see it fading fast, so you grab a piece of something that you think is gonna last."

Finally – some prophetic words from Toby’s keeper written this past April:

"There was no Rangers team in history that would be harder to predict than this one and that nobody could accurately predict how this team would do. There were far too many variables. Any prediction was nothing more than a guess...."

Quo vadimus? Obviam benificium discessio. – Marla Hooch

P.S. Obviam beneficium discessio – loosely translated: going in the right direction

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Travels With Marla

“A trip…is an entity, different from all other journeys. It has personality, temperament, individuality and uniqueness. A journey is a person in itself; no two are alike.”

-- John Steinbeck from "Travels With Charley"

Since I appropriated his title for my blog today, it’s probably not a bad idea to quote from Mr. Steinbeck’s book. While my trip didn’t cover the width of his journey and I didn’t have a companion like Charley - I think any trip Washington DC tends to make you reflect on the abundances living in this country affords and the historic sacrifices made by thousands to protect the lifestyle we too often take for granted. Plus watching the Rangers play “the American Game” was a bonus that only made the trip that much better

All this week I kept finding excuses not to write this blog entry: I apparently picked up "summer cold" on the last day of my trip that wore me out (I blame it on the beer at the “Hawk and Dove”) or I had to do laundry, or I had to watch Max Ramirez’s first HR and Chris Davis’s major league debut, or the dog ate my homework (which is not true since I only have a ornery cat - Miss Stella – who did not appreciate me leaving her for five days in the care of Baseball Mom). But the real reason is: that I had such good time on this vacation that putting it into words is almost impossible and somehow by writing it down I’d have to let go of it. I just wasn’t ready to do that – and I’m probably still not, but what is that Latin phrase? Insanabile cacoethes scribendi.

If you want to skip the philosophical musings and over wrought prose, here is the link to my pictures from the sightseeing portion of the trip with commentary at the bottom of each picture.

Marla Meanders Around Washington DC

I have a little blue notebook that I use when I go to baseball games to write down players, pitch counts and other things I don’t want to forget when I actually do write a game report (which I admit have been lacking lately). Fortunately, I decided to put my little blue book in my purse for this trip, writing notes while riding on the metro, sitting on steps of the Jefferson Memorial or waiting for Kason Gabbard to figure out how to get a bunt down. Here are a few notes from a journey to the nation's capitol I would hope everyone who lives in these United States has the opportunity to make.

(By the way - if you click on the pictures I've added to this entry - you'll see the full size version.)

--- The best vignette from the National Zoo: as you can imagine the Giant Pandas are incredibly popular. They were all outside the day I was there with the female Mei Xiang being the most obliging – seemingly posing for photos. There is a refreshment stand called the Panda Café that over looks their enclosure. I stopped there for a lemonade and found a picnic table in the shade. As I was deleting blurry pictures of my fingers off my camera I looked over and there was Tai Shan the “baby” panda wandering out and literally flopping down on a log near where I was sitting. That part of the café was virtually empty except for the family at the picnic table next to mine – we had Tai Shan all to ourselves. Everyone once in a while he’d raise up one of his paws, it looked like he was waving at us. I think he was just batting away insects but the kids at the table next , who were maybe 4 and 5 years old, were beside themselves – “Tai-Shan waived at us!” It was a neat little moment.

--- My new favorite art museum is the Museum of American Art /National Portrait Gallery. Another Smithsonian affiliated institution it’s located in what used to be the Patent Office. In an unusual arrangement the floors of the museum are “shared” by each museum – one side is the American Art Gallery the other is the Portrait Gallery. I loved seeing Thomas Hart Benton’s vivid “Achelous and Hecules” as well as the “American Presidents” - a complete collection of portraits of the Presidents – many paintings by the same artist who painted the official portraits that hang in the White House . There were also three excellent special exhibits: legendary cartoonist Herblock’s send up of Presidents “Puncturing Pomposity” (and if you are old enough to remember Herblock please raise your hand) – Ballyhoo! Posters as Portraiture and Edward Steichen’s portraits for Vanity Fair from the 1920’s and 1930’s. I have to mention the third floor of the building which has been restored to look as it did during the late 1800’s with inlaid floors, tiffany windows, and vaulted ceilings – it’s a work of art in itself.

-- The weather was beautiful – well, at least by Texas standards - for the first four days of my visit, sunny but in the 70’s with a cool breeze. Yes, it’s a little more humid – but it’ also not exactly Miami. Enjoying the fact that I could walk around outside, I decided one day to visit the monuments, all of them. The walking map I carried around like a bible gave me the impression that they were all “close” together – so why not?

I started at the Washington Monument. No, I didn’t go inside and up to the top, did that in high school don’t plan on doing it again.

Directly in front of the Washington Monument is the World War II Memorial. It is majestic, as it should be. I especially liked the bas- relief murals on each side of the monument. According to the Park Ranger there are twelve on each side (Pacific and Atlantic) depicting not just battles but the efforts of all Americans during WWII.

I walked along the reflecting pool to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. This memorial is stunning – but what bothered me was the large group of teenagers who were at the memorial that morning. They obviously had no sense of the solemnity of this place and unfortunately the adults who were with them did absolutely nothing to quiet these kids down and talk to them about those names engraved on “the wall” – it made me sad and a little angry.

The atmosphere at the Korean War Memorial was more appropriate. The weary soldiers climbing the hill are all beautifully sculpted, it’s a moving memorial.

The view from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial looking towards the Washington Monument over the reflecting pool is one that reminded me of significant moments at that spot: Marian Anderson singing, Martin Luther King Jr. speaking, and Bobby Kennedy’s funeral cortège passing in front on its way to Arlington.


I’ll admit it, I wasn’t aware there was memorial for Franklin Delano Roosevelt. I remember reading his quote saying all he wanted was a marble slab with his name near the national archives building. I’m not sure how FDR would feel about the memorial that now honors him – I think it is well done.

The final memorial on my walk was the Jefferson Memorial. Thomas Jefferson is my favorite president, his monument is beautiful – but it has the worst restrooms of any national park I’ve ever visited. My entire monument sojourn took about four and half hours, so I was more than ready for a long lunch at a German deli called Café Mozart.

-- One of the two high points of my trip was lunch with MiLB / MLB writer Lisa Winston. If you aren’t reading her MLBlog “Got MiLB?” – I have to ask why not? The link is on the left side of my blog – and her articles on MiLB should not be missed. She’s a terrific writer, and an absolute joy in to meet in person. We had long lunch, talked baseball, music and everything else under the sun – seriously – you need to check out her blog and especially the music links (you were right Lisa – Mike Viola is terrific!) watch for Lisa at the futures game in NY – you go girl!

-- The other highlight of my trip: The National Air and Space Museum. I can’t begin describe what it is like for a someone who grew a up as a bit of space geek to walk in the door to find John Glenn’s capsule on your right then the Apollo 11 command module on the left. Looking up there was Chuck Yeager’s Glamorous Glennis and the Spirit of St. Louis hanging overhead. I loved the display with the dashboard of the LEM from Apollo 17. As you stood there looking through the window you saw the surface of the moon approaching with the voices of Gene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt describing the descent. There were artifacts of every kind, almost too many to see. The ultimate artifact of flight being the Wright Brothers original flyer – now housed in its own room and on the ground so you can see it close up. Which brought up the question – if the Wright Bothers were in Dayton – why did the first flight take place at Kitty Hawk NC? The answer courtesy of a fellow space geek and blogger extraordinaire – it was chosen because it was “a sandy coastal area for regular breezes and a soft landing surface. They selected Kitty Hawk after scrutinizing Weather Bureau data and writing to the government meteorologist stationed there. The location, although remote, was closer to Dayton. The spot also gave them privacy from reporters”

--There were so many wonderful things that I haven’t even written about: Kramer’s Books, DuPont Circle, the Phillips Collection, the National Archives, the National Gallery of Art, dinner with Alice, dinner with John (aka “Birdy”) strolling in front of the White House, post game libations (and the company) at the “Hawk and Dove”, how cool it was to open the sports page each morning and not only get to read Tom Boswell but also see the Josh Hamilton, Milton Bradley’s and Ian Kinsler’s pictures above the “leaders” category on the AL page of the Washington Post.

Oh Yeah - Baseball

I did watch a little baseball – the link to the pictures from the games are in the photo gallery on the left or by clicking here.

The Nationals new stadium has two things going for it: a metro stop literally in front of the Centerfield Gate and potential. Both nights I rode the Metro to the game, I was impressed with how the DC transit system handled large crowds – everyone and I do mean everyone - rides the train to the game. When you exit the metro walking down Half street towards the ballpark gates, you turn around there is a clear view of the Capitol Dome – at night when the dome is lit, it’s awe inspiring.

The white stone exterior of the ballpark was criticized by some fans – but the designers want it to fit in with the white facades of all the monuments and structures in DC, and the corner with the Nationals offices was designed as a compliment to IM Pei’s East Wing of the National Gallery. The stadium interior is all red, white and blue (what else?) – there is the “red porch” restaraunt (see picture on right) out in LF, and right field is designed as a tribute the original Washington DC ballpark (Griffiths Stadium). The other notable architectural point is the press box and broadcast booths that are located above the third level of seats. I was told that can you see the entire field, and the entire city of Washington and even parts of Maryland and Virginia from that vantage point. The National like most teams (except the Rangers) have a number of refreshment stands run by local eateries My friend John ("Birdy") Sweet recommded the uniquely DC "half smoke" sausage from Ben's Chili Bowl- it was delicious - I had one both nights.

I really hope that all of the Ranger officials who were along for the trip took note of the Nats great video board and really good sound system. My suggestion to Mr. Hicks is: since you are not spending money on “Glory Park” why not use those funds to put in a new video board inside the Ballpark (instead of outside) and please put in a new sound system. The "Presidents Race" is probably the best take off on the "dot race" of all the imitiations that I've watched in other ballparks.

The potential for the Nationals is the area surrounding the ballpark. I took a walk around the entire outside of the park and have to say – there’s not much going on. The new ballpark will be the catalyst for the redevelopment of the Navy Yard area – but right now there isn’t anything around the park except empty buildings waiting for demolition or refurbishment, and lots of dirt being moved for new structures. I’d like to go back in a few years and see the finished product. Unlike the Ballpark in Arlington, the Nationals park is a downtown park that does warrant that kind of development of retail and living space - people in DC actually live and work in the city (unlike the suburban setting in Arlington).

As for the games: had a great time sitting with fellow Ranger fans Mike and Grant Schiller – the best baseball companions you can have. Friday night we sat along the first base line by the right fielder – for all 14 innings. Baseball Mom TIVO’d the brief shot of us that appeared at the top of one of the later innings. Noted from the game: Tim Redding – are you kidding me? Elijah Dukes put on quite a show, that is the best I’ve seen Kevin Milwood pitch in a while, we were nervous when Joaquin Benoit was on the mound – turns out it we should have been more worried about Jamey Wright.

Saturday night the baseball gods smiled on me – I wound up with a seat about 20 rows up behind the Rangers dugout and two empty seats next to me. Of course, I called Grant and Mike who were sitting up on the third level to come on down and we enjoyed the view and the game. Memorable moments: Kason Gabbard’s feeble attempts at bunting, PH German Duran getting two AB’s in the same inning, and Luis Mendoza’s statue like AB – I don’t think I’ve ever seen a relief pitcher actually go to the plate with a bat in his hand.

I am glad I chose this as my Rangers road trip this season. I was reminded of the history and beauty of this country, I got to spend time with old and new friends who I absolutely adore and yes, there was baseball too. It was the best vacation I’ve had in fifteen years.

I’ll close with another quote from "Travels With Charley":

“If I were to prepare one immaculately inspected generality it would be this: For all of our enormous geographic range, for all of our sectionalism, for all of our interwoven breeds drawn from every part of the ethnic world, we are a nation, a new breed. Americans are much more American than they are Northerners, Southerners, Westerners, or Easterners.... It is astonishing that this has happened in less than two hundred years and most of it in the last fifty. The American identity is an exact and provable thing.”


Next Week: Back to Ranger baseball and the mid-season report card --- Marla Hooch

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Hey - I Got To Go To The White House Too!

I was at the While House the same weekend the Rangers players were there - well, actually a couple of days before - and I didn't exactly go in the White House - but I did get my picture taken at the White House. More on DC, monuments, museums, the Hawk and Dove and - oh yeah - baseball too later this week.

Watch this space -- Marla Hooch

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