Fashionably late

Lynx line of defense

Anyone who knows us knows that we’re always late. Always. Both Saturday and Sunday we showed up in the bottom of the second inning, but we didn’t miss anything on either occasion. It’s funny that the person most infuriated by our lack of “timeliness” is Zak – he hates being late for anything he cares about.

Sal Rende, working third base.

Another nice win yesterday in even nicer weather conditions giving me the chance to continue working on my sunburn from Kids Opening Day. I’m getting more and more
impressed with John Russell’s managerial philosophy – leaving pitchers in to work out of a jam rather than bailing for the bullpen, as well as having players rotate as first base coaches on their off-days.

Coach of the future?

It was also great to see the return of the kids running the basepaths – both Zak and Bekah love getting out on the field. Bekah, still a bit of a neophyte, got a little confused at home plate and made a left turn before we could grab her. I watched as DJ, who was directing traffic at first base, stopped to talk with her (DJ’s Bekah’s all time favorite). As she prepared to run off to second, he reached over and grabbed the back of her sweater; confused, she came to a sudden stop. From my vantage point, I could see DJ feigning ignorance; she tried to run off again. Sudden stop. At this point I was laughing and fumbling for my camera. It went on for a while at first, but not long enough for me to capture the moment.

Bekah, making the rounds.


Memo to me: There are a lot of great, unscripted moments at the park. Don’t put your camera down.



Gary Burnham, taking time...

Still loving that rail....

On victories, heckling and pop-culture obscurities.

That's more like it. The Lynx put together a solid win against the Indians today under mostly sunny skies. Matt Childers was strong out of the gate, allowing no runs on only five hits. Ottawa's bats were hefty enough to win the contest four runs to two. This is probably the strongest team Ottawa has fielded in several years. I always enjoy myself at Lynx Stadium but this season, well, there seems to be some extra bang for my baseball buck. Our boys in the red socks and helmets seem to never say die. They pitch well and perform all the right moves where it is needed offensively. Clutch situations are nothing to fret over, it seems, which adds to the drama and the overall excitement at the yard. I hope that the rest of the city will pay attention and come out to watch a really cool sporting event. These fellows are certainly top notch athletes. The 2007 Ottawa Lynx are off to a fine start. Let's keep cheering them on. This team looks fine and dandy to me. I'll surely be spending a lot of time at Lynx Stadium this year, hoping for the best. Why not?

I was joined today, over on the first base side, by my pals Michael and Jessica Crammit and their friends Jamie and Justin. Good ol' regulars Bruce, Ryan and Tatiana showed up as well. My row was full of baseball fanciers and it felt pretty sweet. We cheered and heckled and joked and snacked. The Crammits are the ultimate champions of the 'Obscure Heckle'. Try and follow this one: Brian Bixler plays shortstop for Indianapolis. His name kind of sounds like 1980's Incredible Hulk alter-ego actor Bill Bixby, which sounds similar to the name of actor Bill Paxton, who Jessica often confuses with actor Bill Pullman. Therefore, whenever Mr. Bixler appeared at the plate, the bewildered fans in our section would hear the unlikely and confusing cheer: "BILL PUUULLMAN!!" Yeah, yeah. I told you it was obscure. Read on.

Gary Burnham worked as first base coach today. In his baseball uniform some say he looks a little bit like Ray Liotta's Shoeless Joe character from the film Field of Dreams. The Crammits often confuse Ray Liotta with Cuban born actor Andy Garcia. (Huh? Okay, whatever...) So Mr. Burnham probably paid no mind to the taunts of "ANDY! Whoo! Let's go ANDY!" as he jogged out to first. Eventually, Jessica got Gary's attention by hollering his proper name. Mr. Burnham, a good sport, smiled and waved and hurled bubble gum in our direction. Cool! Way to go Andy! Um... I mean, Gary!

These kinds of capers tend to happen when the local Mechanicsville bohemians attend the ball game. We filled almost an entire row of the stands today with hilarious unlikely people performing hilarious unlikely shenanigans all while the Lynx performed some serious and brilliant baseball plays. What more do you want, eh?

I have rambled enough here. Please enjoy these photographs from todays victorious game:


Joe Thurston makes a sweet twin killing.

Chris Roberson gets gunned.

Lou Collier swings.

Is Dusty Wathan out? Probably...

Gary Burnham, he's forever blowing bubbles...

Carlos Leon makes great play.

The Lynx finish their series versus the Indianapolis Indians on Monday, a getaway day matinee at 1:05 PM. Tuesday through Friday will find the Louisville Bats in town. We'll see you there.

Click an image for a larger view. The rest of the game photos can be found here.

Drizzle

The weather and some tough Indians pitching rained on the Lynx parade Saturday afternoon. Indianapolis handcuffed Ottawa, allowing only three runs on their way to a 10-0 shutout. Here's some of the soggy action:


Rajai Davis went 4 for 4. Stellar!


Action on the hot corner.


Chris Coste.


Damp but dedicated Lynx fans.


Joe Thurston.


Carlos Leon turns two.

The Lynx play the Indians Sunday and Monday, both 1:05 PM starts.

Click an image for a larger view. The rest of the game photos can be found here.

Quick updates

Rough day yesterday. Triple whammy for Zak - the Lynx, Blue Jays and Senators all falling to the competition. Not goin' to dwell on that...

Doug Bird has posted his weekly Ottawa Lynx report over on PhuturePhillies; it's certainly worth taking a look at.

Looks like we're in for more rain today - at least it'll be reasonably warm with a high in the mid 60s. Yesterday's game wasn't too bad from a fan's perspective, but I'd certainly prefer a repeat of last week's weather.

Finally (for now), I took great pride in the blog's 1000th hit which took place back in November of 2006. It took the better part of three months to get to 1000. By contrast, this month alone we'll exceed 2000 hits! An encouraging sign to be sure. Thanks for dropping by - I hope that you're enjoying your visit to the blog.

I could get used to this

I was going to write that this team had "swagger", but to most people I think that implies a level of arrogance. Certainly this team has confidence, and that showed last night. I commented to Patrick last night, and with no disrespect to the 2006 iteration of the Lynx, this was a game that likely would not have been won last season. These 2007 Lynx look like the real deal. Having said that (and in fairness to the 2006 team), with the addition of the rail in front of the dugout we're getting a much better look at the chemistry of this year's team; being able to see the players during the entire game gives a much better sense of who this team is and what they're about. Last night, Brian Mazone, Dusty Wathan, Gary Burnham and a few others spent almost the entire game on the top step of the dugout, occasionally shouting encouragement to John Ennis, Yoel Hernandez and Joe Bisenius. Gary in particular, seems to enjoy attempting Flying Walenda type moves, leaving his feet as he flips over the rail diving for foul balls. And how cool was it to see the bench reaction when the winning run was pushed across by Jim Rushford's bloop single to left?

I'm digging that rail.

Not from last night, but you get the idea.

I'm no meteorologist

Clearly, my meteorological prognostications must be called into question. Like Opening Day, I didn't think that they would get that one in last night. Word to the wise: Basically, take whatever I think is going to happen, and expect the exact opposite. And it really wasn't that bad last night - we've sat through much worse (I also had the benefit of a sleeping Bekah in my lap - she kicks out enough warmth to heat the dugout). Don't be a "girly man" - come out to the game even if it's raining a little!

Here are today's Environment Canada and The Weather Network forecasts - who ya' got?

By the numbers

With the win last night, Ottawa moves to 6-1 at home - tops in the IL. Their record over the last ten games, 8-2, is also a league best. Other bits of good news: The Phillies are also picking it up, winning six of their last seven, and beating Florida last night in a similar fashion as the Lynx win over Indy. What happens in Philadelphia only interests me insofar as it's impact on Ottawa. My hope is that as long as the Phillies keep winning, they'll be less inclined to start picking apart the Lynx.

"A multimedia machine"

Internet radio broadcaster Dan Carle, invited me up to sit in with him during the third inning. I'm no Tony Kubek or Jerry Howarth, but man, that's a lot of fun. It's a lot less intimidating than I expected. Here's a shot of Dan "Hey, wait till I fix my hair!" Carle from last night:



All of the internet broadcasts are archived here. Last night's game is here.

Here's Dan's call of the winning run (edit: Dan, you're really going to have to be a little more enthusiastic, 'kay?)



In the spirit of "being a man", I'm going to gut it out and go for a long pre-game ride. Catch you at 1.05!!!

Swingin' in the rain

A damp evening at Lynx stadium but a sunshine and lollipops kind of finish. The visiting Indianapolis Indians held the Lynx at bay for most of the game. Indianapolis kept on top 1-0 for the bulk of the contest. Some excellent pitching performances all around moved the game along quickly. It was great to have National League rules back at the park, for the first time in 5 years we watched pitchers swinging away at the plate. Indians starter John Van Benshoten threw a very solid game and notched two hits, but, unfortunately for him, didn't get the win as the Lynx, in dramatic style, rallied against the bullpen in the bottom of the 9th. Final score Lynx 2 Indians 1.

These are somewhat blurry but please enjoy them anyway.


Starter Rick Bauer.


Brian Bixler fires to first, nails the runner.


Joe Thurston gets his man.


Joe Thurston makes another fine play.


Run down! Yurendell DeCaster gets tagged.


John Ennis - Flingin' in the rain?

Okay, enough with the old Gene Kelly movie references. See you this weekend for a pair of afternoon games against the Indianapolis Indians.

Click on a photo for a larger view. The rest of the games images can be found here.

Keeping my fingers crossed

A quick glance at the Environment Canada radar shows the heaviest showers moving out of the area. With 2.5 hours to game time, will we get a long enough break to get the game in? I'm guessing that it won't happen tonight, but I'm still hesitant enough that I'll load up the kids and head out to Lynx Stadium - just in case.

Fans hoping to catch a glimpse of Eddy Garabito tonight will be disappointed - he was released by the Pittsburgh organization some time ago. I haven't been able to find out if he was picked up by another team afterward. Lynx fans will get their first glimpse of the returning Rick Bauer, who's slated to start tonight for the good guys. Rick last appeared in an Ottawa Lynx uniform in 2005 - making 30 appearances, 10 of those as a starter. Rick's stats are here. Hopefully he can hit - the Indians are a National League affiliate, there'll be no DH tonight. It will be interesting to see whether Gary Burnham will get the start at 1B over Chris Coste.

Hope to see you at the park this evening!

Technical difficulties are temporary

I've been far too preoccupied with potential blog format changes (and possible hosting moves) today - I was really hoping to get this done before the next homestand begins, but that doesn't look like it's going to happen. Hopefully, I won't accidentally delete the 374 posts that make up the blog (and a good chunk of the last eight months of my life!) in the process...

First, the good news: It looks like they'll get tonight's game in. While the weather will be chilly by Ottawa standards (only 55F at game time), at least it won't be raining. It'll be nice for the fellas to get back to Canada for some warm weather. Second - the Sens won't be playing tomorrow night for the first game of the homestand.

Unfortunately, it looks like it will be raining here tomorrow and on Saturday - although Saturday seems to be a bit more promising. By Monday, we'll be back in the sunshine and the low 70s for the afternoon start. Ottawa's next victims are the Indianapolis Indians who are in town for four games (including three consecutive 1:05 starts). Indy's currently in first in the IL West with a record of 11-7. With an off-day today, they'll be in town waiting for the Lynx's return from SWB.

Roster moves

Philadelphia, who have been on a bit of a roll of late (although they fell to the Nationals this afternoon), have recalled Fabio Castro and sent down Matt Smith. Smith, 27, apparently was struggling with control and had posted an 11.25 ERA over nine innings of work. Ouch. Fabio will take his place in the bullpen - in six games with the Lynx, Fabio held opponents to a .194 average and picked up a couple of wins.

Who cares if chicks dig the long ball.

Tuesday, Brennan King hit one out as part of the 9-2 rout over SWB. The Lynx were the last team in the IL to pick up a home-run. I've said it before - I absolutely couldn't care less. With a 5-1 home record, Ottawa has the best home winning percentage of all the teams in the league.

Just win baby.

Housekeeping stuff

Just a quick note to welcome readers from PhuturePhillies. In an effort to make things easier to find, I'll be adding a link in the "Links" section to all of Patrick's photos, and moving videos over to the "Instant Replay" section of the blog.

I'm also mulling over some possible design changes to the blog including a move to a web page.

Heads I win....

You know the rest. What is it with the people in this city? I was, I believe, justifiably encouraged by the week's results - both on the field and in the stands. Sunday was a banner day. Or was it? Most people I talked with grudgingly admitted that the crowds were good, but then attributed it to (a) the fact that the Senators weren't playing or (b) the perfect April weather or (c) the fact that it was Kids Day or (d) a combination of any or all of the above.

Here's my take on each point:

(a) The Sens weren't playing. Fair enough. Perhaps this helped, and maybe not just a little. Maybe a lot. But if history has shown us anything, the Sens might only be playing for another couple of weeks. These "only if the Sens aren't playing" fans were treated to a great game. They should be back.

(b) Perfect April summer-like weather. Again, fair enough. But it's not like the weather gets worse after April, is it? It gets pretty "summer-like" around Ottawa in the summer!

(c) The fact that it was "Kids Day". Reasonable conclusion. Credit the promotions people then - obviously people are buying what they're selling.

(d) A combination of the above. A valid position and probably one that I subscribe to. But all of these "conditions" are readily duplicated; what was a "perfect storm" by April standards, is a cake walk in July. The Sens will finish the season sooner or later. Better weather is here/coming. The promotions people continue to do solid work.

It all begs the question, though. Why should this year be any different than the last few? My answer: The team itself and improved media coverage. The team has a different dynamic to it; they have both a winning personality and a winning record. And in the spirit of giving credit where it's due, Darren Desaulniers of The Citizen and Erin Nicks and (to a certain extent) Don Brennan from The Ottawa Sun, have been doing yeoman's work when the team is in town.

I remain, I believe, justifiably optimistic.

Roster update

Aw, rats. Pedro Swann's been sent to Reading - our loss is truly their gain. Here's Mike Drago's take from Monday's Reading Eagle:

Berks County, PA - Eastern League pitchers, you have been warned: Pedro Swann may not have gotten many plate appearances this season but he feels like he’s in midseason form.

“I’m good and ready to go,” said the newest Reading Phillies outfielder, assigned from Triple-A Ottawa Monday to take the place of injured Branden Florence. “I’m not feeling rusty. I’m feeling as soon as I get in there I’ll be able to get a couple hits.”

Swann, 36, is far from new to Reading. He put on a Phillies uniform early last July and went on a 25-game rampage, batting .365 and driving in 25 runs to help jump-start Reading’s big second-half turnaround.

He began this season with the Lynx, expecting to be a big contributor. But Ottawa manager John Russell couldn’t find playing time for Swann in an outfielder that features Chris Roberson (.222) in center field and veterans Jim Rushford (.265), Lou Collier (.302) and Ron Cal-loway (.244) on the corners.

Swann played just three games, went 3-for-9, had a pair of doubles and drove in three runs.

Monday's other moves included Jim Crowell's outright release and the addition of pitcher Rick Bauer and catcher Dusty Wathan who'd been moved to Reading.

With Dusty Wathan back in the mix, the Lynx are now carrying three catchers - J.J., Chris Coste (C.C.?) and Dusty. I'm going to make a "bold" prediction here and say that C.C. will be leaving Ottawa's frigid climate and sub-standard facilities sooner rather than later.

And yes. The stuff in italics is intended as sarcasm.

"These small hours" - UPDATED

Miss a week, and you'll miss a lot!



For those of you who weren't able to get out to the park this week, here's a taste of what you missed. I'm working on a higher resolution version of it, but it takes just a little short of forever to upload. Maybe by the end of today...

*** UPDATE ***

Just a quick note about the vid. First up, "hat tip" to Patrick for most of the "still" shots. Second, to give some context for our out of town viewers, the young man in the Lynx jacket throwing from the mound is Sam Muise. Having gone through cancer, for Sam, "the hardest part is over".

This weekend in baseball

Impressed? You bet your sweet bippy we are. The Lynx win five of six games this opening home series. Good news! To say that I am enjoying myself at the yard this season is an understatement. This team is looking not too shabby, eh? Sunday afternoon was a perfect day for baseball and it seemed that the 3000 plus fans agreed. The boys are back on Friday versus Indianapolis. Here are some shots from yesterday's game.


Jason Jaramillo and Brennan King.


Gary Burnham. He's having a good week.


Take me out with the crowd. Way to go, Ottawa.


Dancin' Danny Sandoval.


Which way is up? Joe Thurston turning two.


Chris Roberson.

Click on a photo for a larger image. View the rest of the game pics here.

Off Day - UPDATED

After going 5 of 6 on the opening homestand, the Lynx can take a well deserved day off. Blog favorite Gary Burnham has quietly extended his hitting streak to nine games and is hitting an amazing .405 over the first eleven games. His on base percentage + slugging (abbreviated "OPS") is an equally amazing 1.028.

Sometimes, the only thing worse than people talkin' about you, is people not talkin' about you. Thanks to the Ottawa Sun for going into the clubhouse and coming back with this [cough], feel good story. All I'm asking for is balance.

Here's a little something from yesterday to brighten the day - I particularly enjoyed the "throat slash" gesture the Phanatic made to the PA announcer upon finding out he hadn't won the trip to Hawaii. I apologize for the quality - I could have gone with a higher quality, but it was taking too long to upload. I may update with a better quality version later. The giggling in the background is from Doris...

The Phanatic!

*** UPDATE ***

The appreciation I noted for the "throat slash" was NOT sarcasm. Politically incorrect as it may be, I really did find it funny. What does that say about me? Don't know, don't care.

Phantastic

Sorry - I know these "ph" substitution get a little tired after a while, but it's Opening Week so I'm going to cut myself a little slack. Lynx employees were beaming today, and with good reason - the weather was spectacular, the crowd was solid and the Phanatic was in town. With the Senators first round series long since finished, the "Perfect Storm" that was brewing all week, blew into Lynx Stadium with a vengeance. Weather, crowds, Phanatic, and a home-side win. Beautiful. I've never been so happy to be stuck in post-game traffic, or have to "thread the needle" between people crowding the concourse. I'm especially glad that everyone's hard work was rewarded today - Lynx staff should be very proud of their Opening Week accomplishments - from the grounds crew "miracle" to today's "Kid's Opening Day", I would think the last six days can go in the books as a success. The team taking five of six doesn't hurt either.

Gary Burnham, tossing bubble gum - "getting to know the people"

Thumbs up for the crowd

Bekah the "cat"

Don't go too far - more multimedia is coming shortly.

Demolition.

The Lynx blow the roof off the place!

Ottawa 17, Scranton Wilkes-Barre 4. Holy cow. What a game. The first inning alone took over half an hour. I bit my tongue during the top of the first as the Yankees ran up three runs, I held back from yelling "Stop sucking!" No worries as the Lynx answered back with six big ones on a couple of hits and Scranton errors to put us all at ease.

The 8th was a big blow-out, with Ottawa knocking in eight runs. Holy Hannah. Good times. Here's some action:


Scranton scores on a close play at home.


Chris Roberson.


Lou Collier.


Carlos Leon. The runs keep adding up.


Carlos is congratulated by Bat-Boy Zak.

Off to today's afternoon contest now. A day off and a three game stretch on the road will allow my camera to cool down a little bit.

Click on a photo for a larger image. View the rest here.

Late night

After last night's marathon football game (17-4!) which took around four hours to play, it's unlikely that I'll get back to the blog until later this evening (gotta ride, get to church and then back to the park).

Until then, I suppose I should give The Ottawa Sun a "mulligan" - this is a big improvement from yesterday.

Finally, when and who will give Gary Burnham his first Major League shot? I'd like to stick around to make the case for him, but his stats should really suffice - besides, I've gotta "bounce"....

Jeopardy

I'll take "Burying the lede" for $200, Alex.

Answer:

Obviously, we're not going to get 10,000 fans here. But maybe this is a chance for us to get a little more personal and start to know some of these people.

Question:

What is "Beating a dead" horse?

It's far too nice a day to waste too much time on this one, but of all the things to talk to Gary Burnham about, was attendance the most compelling? Come on. The guy's flirting with .400, the weather's been beautiful, and the team was on a roll.

So let's talk about attendance.

Honestly, I'm starting to feel like Allen Iverson - "I mean, we talking about "attendance". Not the team. Attendance. Not a game, not a game. Attendance...



Seriously though, I'm in too good a mood to dwell on Ottawa Sun reporting. Zak's "bat-boying" tonight, and looks to improve on a fairly decent first outing. The Phanatics coming tomorrow and the weather will be beautiful. Spring is truly here now; I went out for 120 kilometres in the Gatineau Hills this morning. Notwithstanding the crash on a section of black ice, it was a stellar four hours.

Let the weekend begin!

At weeks end.

It was too good to last, I guess. The boys had a nifty four game streak going into tonight's contest. Charlotte managed to salvage one game in the four game series outlasting Ottawa with a 3-1 win. The end result aside, I had no complaints. There was plenty of action on the base paths and some fine pitching performances from both teams. Here are a few of the plays (and sideshows) I managed to capture:


Joe Thurston throws to Chris Coste from his knees. Runner out!


Ron Calloway dances off second.


Lou Collier gets gunned down on a steal attempt.


Casey Rogowski nailed in a run down. Nice double, though.


The Lynx lead-off men, synchronizing on deck.

Click each photo for a larger image. The rest can be found here.

Next games are Saturday at 6:05 PM and Sunday at 1:05 PM versus the Scranton Wilkes-Barre Yankees. See you there.

Priorities

The first home stand began three days ago and conspicuous by its absence is any discussion of the results; there's been very little on my part about the on-field action. This really shouldn't come as a surprise though - I've said many times that I find the experience of being at the park every bit as compelling, if not more so than the game itself.

Having said that, I'd much rather be at the park when the boys are winning, and they are winning. Yesterday made it four in a row, three of those coming at home. My theory? Since they've escaped the cold northeastern US winter and made their way home to the much warmer Canadian climate (60F yesterday, 70F today, 70+F Saturday and Sunday) the team has really hit its stride.

It's also really nice to see a local business step up and support the team. I was really impressed with the Junior Lynx Club last year, but didn't realize that they didn't have a sponsor. That's changed this year due to the support of Pathway Hyundai, who I'm now adding as a "Friend of the Lynx". With my wife's car giving us more and more trouble lately, we're at the point where we may cut our losses and look at another one - we'll definitely head out there to look at their showroom.

It looks to be a fantastic weekend - both the weather and the schedule look great. Warm spring evening games Friday and Saturday, and a beautiful Sunday afternoon ahead for Kids Opening Day and the Philly Phanatic. We plan to get as many kids as we can into the van and out to the game Sunday. With the Senators now idle until next week, I'm labelling this the "No Excuses" weekend for even lukewarm local baseball fans.

It's gotta be action packed.

Another Opening Day. Brilliant. I was ready for this. The weather worked out although I am sure that the possibility of soggy sod kept some fans away. That and a hockey game on the television. Kudos to the ground crew for the exceptional job of clearing snow and moisture from the yard. Go team. I walked from my workplace, downtown near the Parliament buildings to the ballpark, enjoying the new pedestrian bridge at Somerset and watching the ducks and muskrats burling around the canal waters. My hike took just under an hour. I will be knocking ten or twenty minutes off that time as the season progresses. Music selection in my walkman also influences my hustle to the park. Neil Young and Crazy Horse? Slow stoned groove. But The Equals? They put some pep in my step.

I arrived at the stadium with time to scarf down a snack and run around snapping photos of the team's warm-ups, attempting to match faces to jersey numbers. I was greeted warmly by the staff who were all wearing fresh cut flowers on their lapels. "Great to see you again!" "How was your off-season?" "Hey, man." "Yeah, I like the new red socks too!" Fun! I fell into my old familiar surroundings with ease. It felt very nice to camp out in my section again. More familiar smiling fan faces. Rebecca showed up just as the last notes of the anthems were fading. "You made it just in time for the first pitch!" I said. "Baseball. BASEBALL!" She replied, all explodey. Bruce and young Ryan, keeping with tradition, arrived at the top of the third. "Yeah, these six o'clock starts, eh?" was Bruce's reply. They are busy men but they were really stoked, too. We jumped into the action on the field, discussing the new players and the new additions to the park between at-bats, and checking out the umpires. "Is that Adrian? No. No, but he's cool too!" Bruce and Ryan kept a close eye on Rebecca's score-book, asking questions, leaning over and learning who was who and how they had batted or pitched in the early innings. Watching for little batting (or strike-out) streaks. We joked and capered a lot and had a grand time, just behind the visitors dug-out, all in warm sweaters and blankets.

As an added bonus, the Lynx won! How cool is that? It was a squeaker but the boys did everything right where it was needed. Yes, it is very early in the season but I sure like our chances. Ever the optimist, I like the look and the feel of this team. They seem to play well together. Someone gets on base, someone else tries to move him along. Often with success, as is displayed in the box scores. Our pitchers arms look fine. There seems to be an air of fun at the yard. Fun! So I say: Go Lynx, Go! Everything seems to be off to a good start. The big hole in my schedule that existed all Winterlong* is now being filled.

I am taking many photographs. Enjoy these snap-shots. Click on an image for a larger view. Play Ball!

* I mentioned Neil Young and Crazy Horse, didn't I? Ha ha.


The new Hitching-Post at Ottawa Stadium.


J.A. Happ fires in the first pitch of the game.


Lou Collier in action!


Chris Coste corners it.

To view more Ottawa Lynx photos, please view my Flickr account by clicking here. Your feedback is welcome.

Unforgettable

Actually, unless you were at all interested, Zechariah's rookie game as a bat-boy was entirely forgettable - which, of course is perfect. You don't want to have an evening where everone remembers a bat-boy because, as I explained to Zak, if the bat-boy stands out, it's probably not because he did something good.

Co-blogger Patrick bailed us out, big time; we didn't get to the game until the national anthem finished, so we missed all of his pre-game "activities". Patrick documented everything with photos for us. Thanks Patrick - without you we would have missed so much. Huge thanks also from us to John and Mike in the Lynx clubhouse for looking out for "the boy" last night.

Someone from Charlotte pulling the old, "keys to the batter's box" routine.

Arguing balls and strikes. Actually, I have no idea what's going on here.

Joking around with the players from Charlotte during pre-game.

The present (Chris Coste) and the future, cross paths.

Zak's "game" face.

"Let me get that for you, Mr. Swann."

"Okay, kid. Just get on, and let J.J. do the rest."

What a night. Zak "debriefed" us on the car ride home and I'd love to give you all the details, but (and I don't mean to sound coy) what goes on in the locker room, "stays in the locker room". Don't feel shut out - I think he held back with me too. One moment that will stick with me though was Jason Jaramillo tapping Zak on his helmet for luck on the way to the on-deck circle. Zak was puzzled at first, and looked up to see J.J. smiling at him reassuringly from the top stair of the dugout. Zakky's smile conveyed everything; in that instant he "got it". For those wonderful, "forgettable" nine innings, he was part of the team.

Which, of course, is perfect.

Miracle? UPDATED

Not a chance. Chalk this one up in the "hard work" column - didn't I tell you that these guys were relentless? In yesterday's Citizen, Darren Desaulniers (a Citizen reporter that I'm beginning to take a positive view of) wrote that the Lynx needed a "miracle" to get last night's game in. Cue Josh Teuscher and the grounds crew - the field looked amazing last night. Everyone says that the stadium "drains well" - fair enough. But how did they get rid of the snow in time? Great work, guys. Unfortunately, I think attendance was hurt a bit last night because most people (including me, but not Patrick) believed it was impossible that the field would be ready. Don't ever sell these guys short. And here's a bit of insider information for you: forget the groundhog as a meterological prognosticator. Last night, the direction from Josh was to leave the infield uncovered. This apparently means that good weather is on the way. Environment Canada has modified their short and long term forecasts accordingly - the weather this week looks fantastic.

Speaking of fantastic, last night was a lot of fun. I got the kids signed up for the Junior Lynx Club again (more on that later), ran into M+M (Mark and Mimi) fellow bloggers Patrick and Neate Sager (where was abaseballgeek though?), and caught some of the baseball game too. The Lynx staff "brought it" again last night - I'm now convinced that they jet Mr. Rourke in for the pregame pep talk ("Smiles, everyone, smiles!"). I just dated myself, didn't I? It was great to catch up with D.J., Francois, Derek, Lorraine (thanks again for all your help, Mrs. Charrette), Melissa, Riley and Kyle. In the third, I found my way to the Press Box and sat in with Dan Carle for a couple of innings of the internet broadcast. Dan did a masterful job at putting me at ease in front of a microphone; I didn't clam up. I actually enjoyed it. Thanks Dan.

All said, last night had the feel of one of those parties that you go to that you just don't want to end. Dave, from the security team, very politely broke up a group of us that were speaking after the game - you think we would have gotten the hint when they shut the field lights off.

I'm going to have to finish this post later, but for now, here's a few photos from last night.


Chris Coste taking his cuts.


Skratch and the Trash Monster were bringin' it.


Zak enjoying some post-game wings.


Bekah was, clearly, not impressed with her big brother.


Or the guy with the camera.

*** UPDATE ***

One of the changes you may notice in the ballpark is the "fence" or barrier in front of each dugout - according to the Lynx, the players love it. The thing I noticed last night was that for most of the evening, both teams hung out on the top step and used the fence to lean on. The added bonus was the constant interaction they had with the fans. And while I realize it's pretty much a cliche to talk about the "character" of a team and how it's different or better than last year's team, I think it's absolutely true of this year's roster. There's a different vibe about them - they seem a bit looser, but very serious about winning. Gary Burnham was focussed enough to go 2-3 with an intentional walk, but not so driven that he didn't respond to a fan's comment on his short sleeves in decidedly less than short-sleeves weather.

"Dude. I'm from Connecticut".

These guys are going to be a lot of fun to watch this year, especially when you get a group of people out like the one that came from the US Embassy. They had every one in our section laughing last night - cheering Lou Collier on with a Ted Baxter cry of "Loouuu-hoo-hoo-hoo". Trying explaining why that one's funny to a 10 year old though.

Mary Tyler Moore. Google it.

As will be the case often this year, I've gotta run. Zak's inaugural bat-boy appearance is tonight, home dugout. We've got our fingers crossed. Check in tomorrow for more photos.

Blog temporarily suspended

Because we ARE GOING TO THE BALLGAME TONIGHT!!!!!!!!

Video, photos and report to follow.

Day 1

Certain things begin to happen in the Northern hemisphere after December 21. The days get longer, the sun's rays more direct; eventually, things begin to warm up as cold air is inexorably forced out. Albeit, some years it takes spring a little longer to get here, but eventually the higher angle of the sun always wins out and spring arrives. Eventually the geese return, the flowers bloom and the breeze turns balmy. Spring can't be stopped.

Once again today, baseball arrives in Ottawa. And regardless of whether the game is played today or tomorrow, or the day after, today is Opening Day. Rain delays, postponements, tarps getting frozen to the infield - it makes no difference; at some point - soon, the game will be played. Important to remember on a day like yesterday when it really did feel like Christmas again - a Christmas where I felt sick to my stomach, but Christmas nonetheless.

But that was yesterday. Today is Day 1. The "new" team has been well documented, the majority of its players profiled, their exploits to date chronicled. The "old" team has not. Well, not sufficiently, in my opinion. Hats off to the Lynx organization for all their efforts this past winter, probably the toughest since Mr. Pecor purchased the franchise. But like the sun, once again they've prevailed. Heartfelt congratulations and our gratitude to all of you on Coventry Road, together you've brought baseball back.

This morning when I leaned out the front door at 4.30 to check on the progress of the snow melt, I heard the birds singing for the first time in a very long time. It truly is day one.

HOPEning Day.

Fingers crossed and slush be damned. I've packed my knapsack.

I'll be toting the usual: camera, raincoat, blanket, score-book, toque, extra socks, umbrella, water bottle, and tickets (EE - Row D - Seats 1 & 2.)

You can't discourage a baseball fan. Here's the pose I'm hoping for, Tuesday afternoon. 'Round about 5:30...



Hope (I hope) to see you there!

Week 1

PhuturePhillies has posted a recap of Ottawa's opening week (as well as the other minor league affiliates). Some of you may recognize the author, Doug Bird - last year he posted Lynx reports over at The Orioles Hangout.

The Ottawa Sun covered Phillipe Aumont's visit to Toronto in today's edition.

"The 18-year-old Aumont will catch plenty of looks today when he starts for the Academie du Baseball Canada this afternoon against the Ontario Blue Jays at 1 p.m. at Rogers Centre.

The 6-foot-8, 225-lb. right-hander is projected as a first-round pick in the free-agent draft of high schoolers and collegians June 7."

Speculation is that he may go as high as sixth overall. And speaking of speculating - my fearless prediction is that OD will be pushed back to Thursday (and I'm afraid that might be optimistic).

T minus 1

You know I'm upset, right? I don't have to tell you how upset I am right now.

I've gotta believe we're in a "holding" pattern here - I would think that it's highly unlikely that we're going to be able to lift off tomorrow at 6.05; not because the snow will still be around, but because the field will be too wet. If it's any consolation, it's snowing in Philadelphia too (or at least it was). Okay, it isn't any consolation - somebody just punch me. Punch me right in the face!

But I digress.

I wonder if the Lynx will get to do what MiLB permitted in Syracuse over the weekend and quickly schedule a double header with Charlotte. Although I'm not entirely sure that that's what the team would prefer - e.g. the effect on the starting rotation, a relatively late night after a few days off, etc. And here's something that I had not been aware of until just last week: home games lost to the weather when Charlotte is here are permanently lost, they don't make a return visit this season, not even to make up games that have been postponed. Rochester will lose two home games as a result (Sunday's was postponed, and I'm sure today will be as well) - revenue that can't be recovered. Makes you question the wisdom of the schedule maker just a little, no? Why have Charlotte start the year in the northeast? Pawtucket, Syracuse, Rochester, Ottawa... I'm just sayin'.

On the brighter side of things, I began blogging this recent storm last Thursday or Friday. Hopefully the weather guys are as accurate with their forecasts for this week - starting Wednesday, we should be in for sunny, relatively warm weather.

Or not.

It's T minus 2

And I'm entirely preoccupied with meteorological events (to see the animated version of the maps, just click on them). For all the updates on the storm, check back from time to time. Hey - it's not like I can ride my bike, or play catch, or go for a walk in the sunshine. Can you detect the bitterness/cabin fever?



Getting back to baseball for a moment, the Lynx split a hastily arranged double header with Syracuse yesterday. They were meant to play it today, but Sunday and Monday's games were postponed due to the weather - I presume in order to let the Lynx get out of Dodge while they still could. In a nice bit of timing, Adam Lind was called up on Friday by the Jays, preventing the Jays #1 prospect from lining up against the Lynx.

More Media Day stuff

For those of you without satellite dishes, or in case you missed it, here's how A-Channel covered Media Day on April 4.



I received a bit of clarification on the Citizen coverage of the team on their first road trip. The reports likely aren't being filed by a Citizen staffer travelling with the team - they're probably contracting with a local journalist. HT: Ottawa Sports Blog.

The last item for this morning is from over at the Lynx website - the club's made the decision to go "Trans-fat free".

I'll try to post more later today - right now I'm off on the bike, riding outside for a change. Hopefully the high pressure system in Canada holds this storm at bay, at least locally:

Weather Forecast | Weather Maps | Weather Radar

That sinking feeling

I've gotta stop looking at the weather forecast. Unfortunately (and believe me, that's a very restrained characterization of what appears to be about to happen), the northeast is about to get absolutely slammed - again. The forecast for Monday calls for snow, but doesn't give any totals. According to several meteorological sites I look at, there's a powerful weather "bomb" poised to hit the northeastern United States which will spill over into Ontario and southern Quebec.

I've more than had enough of this winter. Having said that, I was wrong about Buffalo's weather yesterday; the Lynx got their game in, but a strong showing by Brian Mazone went for naught when they could only muster one run. We'll see what happens in Syracuse, but if the weather pattern continues to hold I don't think we'll be making a road trip south.

Last quick thoughts for this morning - I'm really pleasantly surprised with the Citizen's coverage of the team so far. It would appear that they've got a reporter (Dave Ricci) travelling with the team. Finally, the team announced who would throw out the first pitch - a very good choice.

Win number 1

Nice "character" type win in Buffalo yesterday. I followed a bit of it on "Gameday" and was really happy to see the bullpen and the hitting come through and pick up starter Jim Crowell who had a rough outing.

"That shows the character of our team -- nobody really panicked," said Lynx left-fielder Lou Collier, who went 4-for-5 with two runs scored and drove in two more.

"We understand that baseball is a game of ups and downs. The team that executes is the team that is going to win. It's just good to see everybody fight to the end."

So far, in the first four games Gary Burnham's hitting .300, Lou Collier an impressive .526 and Brennan King's chipping in at .333. I know. It's early - you'll have to forgive me though, it's been a long off-season and it's nice to blog current information.

Speaking of current, it would seem unlikely that Brian Mazone will get a shot at his first win today - the forecast in Buffalo is for rain/snow showers this afternoon. And while it's not as bad locally as they were predicting, if I see anything that even resembles a groundhog today, it won't be pretty. The weather forecast for Tuesday (Opening Day) still looks promising.

Case in point

I spent a good deal of time this past winter searching the internet for stories about the Lynx that were worthy of blogging. With all the news about Chris Coste these last few days, this one came to mind:

"Affiliation also means minor league teams have no control over their rosters. Player movements are determined by the parent club and it is difficult for a local team to develop the type of player brand equity that is common in sports such as hockey.

"That's why we don't market the players, although it might help if we had some Canadian players on the team," Bostwick says."

Up until recently, I wondered if maybe they should revisit that policy. Now, I'm glad that they didn't. This story is just awful - at least in the short term:

"Coste was optioned back to Triple A over the weekend. Yesterday he played his first game for the Lynx against the Buffalo Bisons.

"It's easily the lowest moment of my career. Easily," he said quietly, sitting in a room off the visitors' clubhouse after Ottawa lost, 5-3. Coste started at first base, batted cleanup and went 0-for-3 with two walks. "I'll tell you what, when I got sent down at the end of last year's spring training [after batting .463], it hurt. But I had never been in the big leagues. I hadn't proven anything. Didn't necessarily deserve anything."

But it's not just awful for Chris Coste, his family and his many supporters - at one point earlier today, the headline read: "Life Stynx" (follow the link and check the address bar in your browser - it's still there). In the eyes of the press, playing for a AAA affiliate has now been equated with a life of misery. Nice. The headline was improved somewhat later in the day: it now reads "Folk hero in exile". I feel so much better now. Geez. What the heck did we do?

Don't get me wrong - I'm not necessarily buying what the Inky's selling, but from a PR standpoint, this would take a whole lot of work to spin into something positive.

Memo to me: Head office - any head office, usually knows what its doing.

Liar.

Sorry.

FREAKIN' liar.

Where credit is due

Fair's fair. I've taken The Citizen to task on a frequent basis, but at least they're following the team.

Hopefully things will settle down a bit in the bullpen for today's game - Jim Crowell's scheduled to get the start. Yesterday was another tough one weather-wise, with temperatures hovering near or just above freezing for most of the game. According to the article, the crowd numbered around 500.

And speaking of credit, just how addictive is "Gameday"? It reminds me of one of those video gambling machines. Sitting there yesterday, I felt as if it was conspiring against me as a series of strikes appeared when Calloway was up with the bases loaded. Damn machine, ripped me off.

Just a few quick updates - is it only the catchers in the organization that have websites? And Brian Ross, a senior editor at MLN Sports dropped by yesterday and left a link to his piece on Joe Thurston. Thanks Brian.

More firepower

In the person of Joe Thurston:

From the Reading Eagle:

The biggest surprise on the Reading Phillies’ Opening Day roster might very well be the late addition of former Scranton/Wilkes-Barre second baseman Joe Thurston, who wasn’t even in camp with the Phillies until the final days of spring training.

Thurston was an International League All-Star in 2006 and ended the season in the big leagues with the Phillies. He went to major league spring training camp with the Washington Nationals. When he was reassigned to the minor leagues March 25 he asked for his release.

The Phillies quickly re-signed him and, with no space on their crowded Triple-A roster, stashed him in Reading. He appeared in the big leagues with the Los Angeles Dodgers briefly in 2002, 2003 and 2004, and hasn’t played at the Double-A level since 2001 with the Dodgers’ club in Jacksonville, Fla.

“He’s a great addition, in terms of the professionalism and leadership he brings,” said Reading manager P.J. Forbes, who was at FirstEnergy Stadium Monday to greet his players, who flew to Philadelphia from Clearwater earlier in the day.

Forbes came north a day earlier.

His Reading roster is stacked with experienced players who have had success at this level, but it got a lot better when Thurston — just 26, but entering his ninth pro season — was added.

Thurston batted .282 with nine homers, 55 RBIs and 20 stolen bases last season for the Red Barons. He was named a midseason and postseason All-Star. He batted .222 in 18 big league games for the Phils.

He has a .292 career minor league average in 954 games.

“Even our veteran guys can take something from how he plays the game, how he runs the bases, how he goes about it,” Forbes said of Thurston. “Besides being a great player on the field, he brings a lot more than that to the team.”

Reading’s second base slot became a real guessing game during the spring.

The Phillies had hoped Tim Moss would win back the job, but the former second-round pick was released late last week. Peeter Ramos did a solid job in Reading late last year but visa problems delayed his arrival in spring training, and he’s not on an active roster at this point.

It appeared that free agent Juan Francia, who swung a hot bat in spring training, would come north as Reading’s second baseman. Then Thurston became available and Francia was sent to Clearwater.

And a little more background from Scout.com last summer:

This season (2006), Thurston has been anchoring second base at AAA Scranton, earning himself a spot on the International League's roster for Wednesday night's AAA All-Star Game in Toledo. The 26 year old is hitting .286 and waiting for a shot at returning to the majors. "I'm happy to be a part of this (the AAA all-star game) and all, but there's no doubt that I want another shot at playing in the majors," said Thurston before Wednesday's game. There have been a couple of times this season when he thought the chances of returning were good, but the call simply never came. "You can't control that. If you let it change how you approach the game then you'll just wind up hurting yourself. I'm happy for the guys that did get the call, but I'm just going to do all I can to be the next one called up."

Since he's still pretty young, Thurston certainly has a chance at returning to the majors and has the right approach to how to get there. He also has a desire to make things happen wherever he is. "It's all about doing what you can to win. Whether it's in Scranton or Los Angeles or Philadelphia or here for this game, you do what you can to win and help your team," explained Thurston.

One of Thurston's former teammates, Chris Coste, did get the call to the majors and Thurston was happy to see him get his shot. "Having been in the majors at a young age, I can't really appreciate everything that he (Coste) went through to get there. I have a lot of respect for him and I hope the next time I see him, it's in Philadelphia and not back in Scranton," said Thurston with a big smile on his face. That smile comes from getting to play a game that he loves and has a great passion for. Not reaching his true goal with the Dodgers didn't dampen his spirits - at least not for long. "I think it took a little while for me to regroup, but now, there's no animosity. I also believe that when I get my next shot, I'll be better prepared," said Thurston. The fact that he would return to the majors in a different situation than when he first hit the show also isn't lost on Thurston. "Maybe I listened to the hype a little too much, but whatever it was, I just wasn't ready and prepared for everything that hit me. That won't be the case next time."


And coincidentally, the Scout.com piece had a nice segue to Chris Coste. Coste caught up with Ottawa and is, as we speak, playing 1B. I hope that they can find a way to keep Gary Burnham, Jason Jaramillo and Chris Coste in the lineup at the same time...

Roster moves

That didn't take long.

Lynx infielder Brent Abernathy was traded to the Washington Nationals by the Lynx Major League affiliate, the Philadelphia Phillies. Replacing Abernathy on the Lynx roster is Joe Thurston, who has been called up from Double-A Reading.

The Lynx will also welcome pitcher Joe Bisenius, who was optioned to Ottawa from Philadelphia. Catcher Dusty Wathan has been put on the Temporarily Inactive List.


I'll have more later... gotta find information on Joe Thurston.

T minus 7

We're a scant seven days out now from Opening Day. Hard to believe that it's finally this close after starting this blog last September. A few random thoughts for this morning before I get on the bike. First, yesterday was the busiest day in blog history, thanks in no small part to this very kind post over at PhuturePhillies. Thanks James. Once the team gets back home, you'll definitely find more photos, the occasional video and (hopefully) more player interviews. Second up, the team took a tough loss yesterday in Buffalo - after the longest delay of Opening Day in Buffalo franchise history, the Bisons took the field yesterday in tough conditions, beating the Lynx 8-3. How tough was it? Only 300 fans braved the elements. That's tough. A quick look at the box score shows that the majority of the damage, 4 runs, was done in the first inning with the pitching settling down after. Chris Coste didn't make it into the lineup but I expect we'll see him in today's action. According to the Lynx website, he's listed as a catcher - I'll have to do a more complete review of roster changes in the next few days (when did Matt Childers show up?)

Finally (for 5:00 a.m. anyway), I'm wondering what kind of impact the Phillies struggles will have on Ottawa. With the team off to a 1-6 start, you might expect a major shakeup before they fall too far out of a division they were supposed to contend for. One of many things which may have a positive impact here in Ottawa is the success of the Blue Jays in Toronto - currently leading the AL East, they opened yesterday to a sellout crowd of over 50,000. With the Leafs gone, expect less distracted coverage of baseball in Canada in April.

The other shoe finally drops - UPDATED

Chris Coste was optioned to Ottawa today. While this is great news for Ottawa, this is tough news for Chris personally. Before people jump all over me, I understand that this is "all part of the game", I really do. From my perspective (limited) though, he'd done enough to warrant sticking with the big club. But then, I'm really not in a position to second guess someone like Pat Gillick, and certainly wouldn't suggest substituting my judgment for his.

Switching hats again and speaking as a fan, look at this Ottawa line-up now! And will he be here in a catching role?

*** UPDATE ***

Along with Chris Coste, Joe Bisenius and Zack Segovia have been optioned to Ottawa.

Compare and contrast

Friend of the Lynx, Erin Nicks (who also blogs over at The Universal Cynic) also interviewed Gary Burnham on Media Day, last Wednesday. Her piece appeared in yesterday's Ottawa Sun.

Ms. Nicks noted many of the same things that I did - notably the competitive fire still burning in Gary. However (and not surprisingly), as a professional writer, her thoughts were expressed more eloquently than mine.

One of several "money quotes":

Despite all his travels, at-bats and accolades, this seasoned player has yet to take a swing in the majors. Other minor-league veterans might be content to rest on their laurels, as bitterness slowly gnawed away at their psyche, and hope slipped away.

Not Burnham. Not now, not ever. The Connecticut native's geniality comes with a strong underlying sense of determination and the refusal to give up on his ultimate dream.

Coming soon to Lynx Stadium

My first video of the 2007 season. Shot last Wednesday, it highlights Eude Brito and Fabio Castro, warming up in pretty terrible conditions.



Note the red which will be more dominant than in years past due to the current Philadelphia affiliation.

I didn't want to do this,

But here I am, live-blogging the season opener for the Lynx. Just got back from Lynx Stadium (more on that later) - when we left for the park it was 1-0 in favor of the Lynx. When we got back it was the top of the 9th and the good guys were losing 9-4.

They've put up a 5 spot in the top to knot it up at 9-9!

4:48

It's now 10-9, Lynx! Go Cats! (Can I call them "Cats"?)

4:49

Check that. 11-9! What a start....

4:52

Over to Brian Sanches. Gets Rabe swinging, but he takes first on a WP.

4:55

No!!!! A double scores Rabe. 11-10 with no outs.

4:56

Pitching change. In comes Kane Davis. I gotta stop....

5:05

11-11. One out. Come on, DP!

5:10

OK. Now I'm gonna stop. Bases loaded, one out. Justin Miller pitching.

5:15

Game over. Ugh.

No comment

First game of the season, IN ROCHESTER, postponed due to SNOW. In case I didn't mention it, the postponed game was IN ROCHESTER. R-O-C-H-E-S-T-E-R.

I'm just sayin'....

ROCHESTER.
NEW YORK.

Looking for a place to happen

Gary Burnham was the last interview I got on Wednesday, it truly was amazing how fast the time flew by. Gary was extremely easy to interview; he shook my hand and motioned to the chair beside him as I pulled out my pen and MP3 recorder. I picked up the conversation with a point that he'd made to Mike Drago of the Reading Eagle ("a good dude"), that someday he'd like to coach.

"Yeah, of course, I mean you've got to think up something."

Was he at that point yet?

"No. You've got to think up something when you're all done with this. I mean, obviously baseball's been my life, so maybe you want to think about coaching at some point down the road."


Something that had interested me during my conversation with Brian Mazone was his comment about the difficulty of breaking out of the Independent Leagues. Gary spent one year in Bridgeport in the Atlantic League.

"It's impossible. You have to be proactive, because the teams don't scout those leagues. You have to make phone calls, and you have to say 'Hey, I see you guys are struggling, I know you need offensive help, I'm hitting the ball, these are my numbers and I want to help you' - and that's how I got the job with the Phillies. I saw this kid that was actually the mascot, Matt Jackson, and he came to see me play in Camden and he said 'Gary, call the Reading Phillies, they need offensive help.' So I called Mike Arbuckle and I told him 'Mike, I know you guys know what I can do', because I was with this organization for five years. I said 'I'm stuck here in the Independent League, I want to get out, and I know you guys need some offensive help and I'd love to help you. This is my number, this is my agent's number'."

As he spoke, it really began to sink in how difficult it was just to get to the level he was at now.

"How hard is it?" He paused and gazed around the room, clearly struggling to give me some perspective. "Well, put it this way. For me, it depends how mentally tough a person is, how much can you possibly take until you switch... Let me put it to you like this: I've never made more than ten thousand dollars a year my first six years in minor league baseball. And then when you consistently do well, you make the All Star team in Single A, you make the All Star team in Double A, you're Triple A MVP, you're Double A MVP, and still we can't bring you to Major League Spring Training. Are you tough enough to continue to say 'All right, I'm going to show you guys again'?

His last point didn't sound like a question, though. It was a pointed statement. And what about his classification as a AAAA player?

"I know what you're saying, I'm an above average Triple A hitter, just not a Major League starter. They call that a AAAA player; a guy in between AAA and the big leagues. But I can help the team on the Major League side, I know I can. It's just that transaction wise, it's never lined up. You have to continue to produce, you have to have guys pulling for you, and you have to have the timing right."

Does he watch what's going on at the big league level?

"I don't pay much attention to it. You know why? Because it's none of my business. I'm just not going to do that to myself, it's not smart emotionally to do that to yourself. I'm driving in runs, helping this ballclub, period. That's all I can do." He pointed to the floor of the locker room, emphasizing each point as he went along.

I was curious about what he did outside of baseball - is it just ballpark, home, back to the ballpark?

"Yeah, you gotta be committed man, you gotta be committed. You gotta come down here... I mean, this is the top of the line, man. You've gotta compete with guys that are trying for the same damn thing."

At this point, I noticed that the room had suddenly become very quiet. It was 1:30 -time for me to leave.

"You gotta bounce? Okay, nice meeting you man."

I'm not quite 40, but it quickly became evident how far removed I am from pop culture. "Bounce"? And he offered me the non-traditional, hip variation of the handshake, which I botched entirely (Carl! You are such a loser!). I fumbled my way out of the locker room as John Russell began his player meeting. I think I was the last one out.

I was totally psyched as I walked through the tunnels with Riley.

"That was a lot of fun. Can you set another one up for next week? Same time works for me."

The secret of his success

2005 found Brian Mazone pitching at AA Norwich, of the Eastern League - he finished the season with an 11-8 record and an ERA over 3. In 2006, after finding his way to Reading via minor league free agency, something clicked: after six starts for the R-Phils, the tall left hander was promoted to the Scranton Wilkes-Barre Red Barons where he really lit the things up. Brian finished the season leading the International League in ERA (2.03) and finished tied for second in wins (13). The catalyst? Family.

"It's hard being away from your family, but they're coming up (from California) and will be staying here with me starting in May. They stayed with me last season too, and having them around, close by, I think that's why I had the success I did."

How did he stay in touch with the family when they weren't living with him?

"A lot of phone calls, a lot of phone calls. I try to talk to my kids, my youngest obviously isn't ready to talk yet, but I try to talk to my oldest every morning and every night for sure, and if he's not in preschool, sometimes in the afternoon. On average it's probably three or four phone calls a day."

We talked a bit about his time in the Independent League and how hard it was to get noticed.

"Hard. Really hard. You could be doing better than anybody else out there, but if no one needs you... you're not going to get picked up... a lot of it is just "need". If they don't need you, they're not going to sign you. They're not going to sign someone out of Indpendent ball to release someone that's already in the organization. It's a battle. You've got to get in, get signed and do well right away - you've got to really grind to get to the top when you're in that position."

But during those years in the Independent Leagues, he never lost site of his goal: to pitch in the major leagues. And he came so very close to the pinnacle last season - he was called up to Philadelphia as an emergency starter in September. When the game was postponed due to rain, he lost his start and was returned to Scranton as the Red Barons continued their playoff run. You could forgive him if you catch him keeping an eye on the scoreboard this year.

"It's hard not to, I'd be lying if I said "no", but on the other hand, regardless of what's going on up there you have to take care of yourself down here. If you get too caught up in what's going on up there, you're not going to do yourself any good down here. The biggest thing that I think we all know and have to understand is with whatever you're doing down here, the call up there is kind of out of your control. And that's the hard part, I mean you can't beat yourself up about who goes up before you and who doesn't. That kind of stuff's out of your control, what you can control is what you do on the field here."

Welcome to Ottawa Mazone family, here's hoping for your and Brian's continued success.

Leading off, Dusty Wathan

Just to clarify again, I'm not a journalist or a reporter - my confidence level was not exactly at its highest point when I approached Dusty Wathan yesterday afternoon. Dusty was sitting alone, quietly going through his catcher's gear when I asked for a moment of his time. He looked up.
"Who are you with?" he asked me quietly.
This was the second time I'd been asked that question; the first was when I signed in and picked up my media guide. On the line for "affiliate", I'd written "ottawalynx.blogspot.com", or "blogger", I can't remember which. This time I simply responded that I was a local blogger, writing about the team in my spare time. He nodded.
"Okay".
I decided to open things up with a question inspired by my son. Last season, Zak had noticed how badly beaten up Eli Whiteside's shins and hands were - so I asked him what had been the worst injury he'd sustained as a catcher. He's been surprisingly lucky: a broken left hand in 1998 with six screws as a reminder (although that happened when he was in the batters box), a slight concussion in 1998, but apart from those two injuries, nothing "major" in his fourteen years. He smiled when I asked him how many games he thought he'd appear in this year.
"I'm here to help J.J (Jason Jaramillo) and give him some rest - he'll be the every day catcher." He nodded towards Jason's locker and the group of reporters that I'd already seen over there. I didn't look over; I knew that J.J was the starter and would have plenty of media attention. He paused and in hindsight, I think he expected me to pack up my stuff, say thanks and head over to the "every day catcher's" locker. And yet, there wasn't even the slightest hint of envy when he spoke. "I'll probably get in a couple of games a week," he went on. "It's funny, but toward the end of the season, it seems like I'm playing just about every day."

I'd planned on asking unconventional type questions, just to change things up a bit and give the guys a chance to talk about other things, but I couldn't help feeling that it was inappropriate. I didn't have the kind of rapport to ask trivial stuff like what was playing on his iPod, so we talked about family, kids and work. Dusty met his wife, a Canadian girl from Port Dover, Ontario, in 1997 while he was playing in California. His future wife had been brought in to fill in during a state shortage of qualified school teachers and the rest is history. They have three children, ages 6, 4 and 16 months. We talked a bit about the strain of being away from family during the season (his family will stay in their off-season home in Rochester) and how he stays in touch with them - "a lot of phone calls". I mentioned that they were likely in for snow during his upcoming visit to his home (i.e. the Lynx first road trip), and he didn't seem the least bit phased by it. "It's cold everywhere right now. Take Buffalo. Buffalo's one of the coldest places to play, the location of that park, right by the lake, but you get used to it."

As far as media is concerned, Dusty pays very little attention to his press. "Some of the guys get really upset, you know? But it all depends how it's written... If you've gone 0-4 and left guys on base, it's kind of tough to argue when a reporter says something negative about you..." And he doesn't pay too much attention to what's happening in Philadelphia - "I don't scoreboard watch. Nah, you're either going to get that call, or you're not."

We talked a bit more about kids and I mentioned to him that my son was going to try out to be a bat boy. The worst prank played on a batboy that he'd witnessed?
"We taped one to the trainer's table one time and left him there for a half-hour. Nothing serious though..."

And then the tables were turned. Where are you from, he asked. I explained that I was born in Toronto, but my parents were from the States, my mom it turns out was from an area not far from where he grew up. He shook my hand as I got up to leave, apologizing for monopolizing his time.

"What was your name again? Will we see you around the park?"

Absolutely, Dusty. Absolutely.

Surreal

Absolutely surreal. It's the best way of describing the two hours I spent at the park this afternoon. Before I get too far into this, I have to thank Riley Denver and Kyle Bostwick of the Lynx for inviting me and taking the risk. Once I calmed down a little, I had an absolute blast. Helping to calm me down was The Universal Cynic, Erin Nicks, who gave me extremely helpful advice and answered my questions in the days leading up to Media Day. Thanks Erin. I had the opportunity to meet Peter Toms of abaseballgeek fame and Neate Sager who came in from left field - the blogosphere was well represented. I also had the pleasure of meeting Dan Carle who will be calling the internet radio play by play for the team this year. Lorraine Charrette from the Lynx front office introduced herself and we had a nice, albeit too brief, talk. I was also able to catch up with Francois Marchand, the new Director of Sales, Jody Kingsbury, the new Media Relations Assistant, and said hello to "Mr". Bostwick himself.

Riley Denver was very accomodating and did his best to put everyone at ease - it must have worked because I was able to relax enough to introduce myself to Dusty Wathan, Brian Mazone, and Gary Burnham. And, as I explained to Riley later, I did it all without completely falling apart or getting myself beaten up - without sounding patronizing, Mr. Denver commented, "In my book, any day I don't get beaten up is a good day".

I'll have more on my player interviews (did you catch that? My player interviews) later after I go through the MP3 record and my notes.

Quite a day.

It's "go" time

It is not without a great deal of trepidation that I will make my way to the friendly confines of Lynx Stadium early this afternoon. Today of course, is Media Day. It should come as no surprise for blog readers to learn that I am not a professional journalist, nor am I a reporter - this explains the tightening knot in my stomach. My primary objectives today? Avoid throwing out the literary equivalent of a "bean ball" and trying not to be a wallflower. I should send my son - he's either too young, or too much like his mother to be the least bit intimidated by these situations. I could send my little girl; she'd talk their ears off, but likely about Disney World and princesses. Which isn't to say that professional baseball players don't want to talk about these things - I shouldn't prejudge.

"What questions would you ask, Zak?" I asked yesterday.
"What does the first baseman talk to the base runner about?"
Good question.
He fired off about a half dozen more in between mouthfulls at dinner last night. Later, on the walk over to the park, he peppered me with a few more and as he lined up to hit my unhittable curve, he smiled.
"Tell Carlos Leon I'm sorry."
Huh?
"When he was here last year with Scranton, I yelled at him to strike out...", he laughed and then proceeded to tatoo the curve.

In other non-cowardly blogger news, I was saddened to see that Eddy Garabito was released by Pittsburgh. Too bad.

I'm still looking for updates on Keith Reed and Brandon Marsters.

I could deal with this

For those that don't know me, this is the time of year where I absolutely live and die with the long range weather forecast. It's right about now where a season of riding on an indoor trainer has me absolutely climbing the walls. Today marks the first day that April 17 shows up on the long range forecast, and as the title indicates, I can deal.

First, the good:



The bad?

The accuracy of the long range forecast is notoriously poor. I'm keeping my fingers crossed - if not for the Lynx, then for my sanity. The Gatineau parkway beckons.

Nice!

This is a major coup - the Phanatic's coming to town on April 22!

Great work guys!

(Follow the link for a list of the promotions for this season)

It may get a little quiet

Around here between now and Thursday - I'm not abandoning ship though, quite the opposite. In an extremely gracious move, some time ago the Lynx invited this blog to attend Media Day on April 4. I wasted no time in accepting the offer. The problem now? Trying to find a way to avoid making them regret their decision.

So, for the first time since mid-September, I may not get to "a post a day" - every spare minute will be spent getting ready for Wednesday.

Quick note though: it looks like Joe Bisenius will be starting the season with Philadelphia. Conventional wisdom (read: speculation) is that both he and Zack Segovia will be back in Ottawa when Garcia and Lieber come off the DL.

Something to see here - UPDATED

A nice article in today's Citizen.

More later on the roster which was announced yesterday.

*** UPDATED ***

Beerleaguer has the lowdown on Ottawa's 2007 roster, plus his thoughts about an interview he had with Kyle over the winter.

My quick, un-baseball-educated 2 cents? This looks like a very good squad. By all accounts, J.A. Happ and Joe Bisenius were seriously considered to make the Phillies after ST. Presuming Zack Segovia is sent down, the starting rotation gets that much stronger.

Hitting looks to be solid and consistent, and notwithstanding the absence of Michael Bourn, speed will still be a factor (read: Chris Roberson).

For what its worth - I was right on 15 of 24 picks on my projected roster. A solid C- at 62.5%. I also wavered on Jim Rushford so I'll ask for credit in at least recognizing the possibility.