Results tagged ‘ Dodgers ’

Cardinal Girl is Bad Luck

Well, it’s taken me a couple weeks to get around to writing about the games I attended on the Cardinals’ recent ugly West Coast trip. I guess I was just in mourning since they lost all 3 games I attended (2 in LA, 1 in Phoenix).  Maybe I’m bad luck. Or more likely, Dave is bad luck, since the Cardinals lost every game he’s attended with me. But then, I only brought him to 2 out of the 3 games, so I guess the blame falls on me.  

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First, I attended the Cards v Dodgers game on June 8, a pitchers’ duel between Kuroda and Carpenter. It was a tense one, but the Cards came up short. Then I saw them lose to the Dodgers on June 9. Anyway, I still had fun at Dodger Stadium and enjoyed the dodger dogs.  And there were a lot of Cards fans in attendance to commiserate with when the Cards got swept.
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Then, we went to Phoenix for the weekend to celebrate Dave’s birthday with his family, which conveniently coincided with the Cards’ visit to Chase Field.  I picked the June 12 game to attend, which was the worst of the three, with Adam Ottavino getting shelled and Dan Haren pitching like an ace.  
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I enjoyed the visit to Chase Field and was able to score the best tickets I’ve had for a game, other than Spring Training.  We were about 12 rows up from the field, just near the Cards’ dugout and a little beyond first base. Dave brought his camera and I spent a lot of the game shooting pics.  You can check out all my pics here.  It was a nice, surprisingly cool night in Phoenix and they left the roof open.  
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All teams have their slumps, and even the mighty Pujols has one now and again. I just wish the Cardinals’ slump hadn’t coincided with my rare opportunity to see them. My next in-person game will be July 22 in St. Louis against the Phillies, so you might want to place your bet on the Phillies now. 

Game Haiku – 06/09/10 – Dodgers 4, Cardinals 3

Ludwick shows power, 

but Wainwright doesn’t quite have 
his good stuff. Dodgers sweep.

Game Haiku – 06/08/10 – Dodgers 1, Cardinals 0

Tense game. Carp is sharp, 

but Kuroda is bolder.
Broxton shuts the door. 

Game Haiku – 06/07/10 – Dodgers 12, Cardinals 4

Hope Dodgers got all
the scoring done tonight, since
I’ll be at next two. 

The Empire Strikes Out

IMG_4986-1.jpgAllow me to briefly digress from the Cardinals and talk about my trip to Dodger Stadium on Friday for Star Wars night.  They commemorated the 30th anniversary of The Empire Strikes Back with a lot of treats for the fans in the MyTown section.

I have to say the MyTown section is an excellent deal. For $50, we got a ticket, all you can eat food and soda, and a t-shirt.  And not just any t-shirt – a Boba Fett t-shirt! 
There were a lot of fans in costumes milling around outside the MyTown section and posing for photos with the fans. I got my pic with Chewbacca.  Chewie also threw out the first pitch. 
 

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The folks who design the big screen videos did a nice job theming things for the evening (check out Manny Ramirez as Chewbacca). There was a cool montage of the Dodgers hitting where the bats were replaced with light sabers.
I’d say the only weak spots were the weather – cold! And the theme food: Darth Taters (just a bag of potato chips), lightsabers (popsicles).  
It was fun to see an interleague game.  With a dominant performance from pitcher Chad Billingsley, the Dodgers beat the Tigers 4-1 and achieved a share of first place.  Also, the Don’t Stop Believin’ Guy was awesome!


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Jose Lima, RIP

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“It’s better to burn out than to fade away” – Neil Young

Life is fleeting. I was reminded of that yesterday with the news of Jose Lima’s passing away at age 37 from a heart attack. It was eerie to me because I just saw him at the Dodgers game on Friday night.  He was in the crowd, sitting above the Dodgers dugout, and they showed a little video tribute to him on the big screen and he got up to salute the crowd.  This pic is from that night. My boyfriend Dave was with me at the game because it was Star Wars night (post on that coming soon) and he asked me who that was, and I recalled this story for him. 

In the 2004 Division Series, I scrambled for a ticket off craigslist and made my way alone to Dodger Stadium to see the Cardinals take on the Dodgers.  The Cardinals were leading the series 2-0, and I was hoping to see the Dodgers get swept that day.  But Jose Lima took the mound and it was indeed “Lima Time.”  He pitched 5 shut-out innings, and the Dodgers lived to see another day (promptly losing the next game, and the Cardinals advanced). Even though I was unhappy with the outcome of the game, I couldn’t help but be dazzled by Lima’s pitching clinic. I was also impressed by the passion and energy he brought to the game. He got Dodger stadium on fire like I’d never seen it before. The rally towels were swirling, creating a tornado effect as you looked around the stands.  The LA crowd can be somewhat laidback, but they weren’t that day. And Lima was the biggest cheerleader on the mound, firing up the crowd and feeding off their energy.  
Thanks for the memories, Jose. My memory of that game is so vivid I can’t believe it was six years ago.  My condolences to your friends and family. 

On Getting Swept

It hurts – getting swept. It took me days to recover from the emotional loss of Game 2 and from witnessing it in person. I tried to put on a brave face. I even bet $50 on the Cardinals on my way to Vegas before Game 3 started. But the Cardinals couldn’t get anything going in Game 3. I watched most of the game in the Circus Circus sports bar, with cackling Dodger fans hooting and hollering. Fortunately, I won my $50 back on video poker while sitting there. And then I drowned my sorrows with a 100 oz margarita in a guitar-shaped container (OK, I couldn’t drink the whole thing…and it was way more sugar-high-inducing than alcohol-buzz-producing).

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It’s a shame to have such a good season get snuffed out so quickly, but the Cards had not been doing well in the last month and couldn’t seem to regain their championship spirit. And, let’s give credit to the Dodgers – they are a terrific ball club with a great coach.  I will root for them now, because I do live in LA, and plus it’ll make the Cardinals’ defeat sting less if the Dodgers win the World Series ;)

I will be cheering for Notre Dame in their game against USC today from the comfort of my home rather than an LA sports bar. I need a break from the LA fans for a while. Go Irish!

Game Haiku – 10/10/09 – Dodgers 5, Cardinal 1

Cards go out with a
whimper. They can’t produce runs.
Dodgers surge onward.

Game Haiku – 10/08/09 – Dodgers 3, Cardinals 2

Dodger Stadium
ne’er so loud nor my hopes so
still. Holliday woe.

Game Haiku – 10/07/09 – Dodgers 5, Cardinals 3

Carpenter doesn’t
have his best stuff; Pujols gets
no chance to show his.

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