The Trade Game
So it’s been a while since I’ve updated. I’ve been so busy (procrastinating) that I haven’t had time for much other than school. I thought I’d write about the trades so far.
I’m okay with all of them. I think it’s a good opportunity for both Lidge and Bruntlett. Having Bourn will definitely be a great advantage. He’s got speed and power. Lidge had nothing left to prove in Houston.
I’m totally okay with Anderson being traded. He’s amazing, yeah, but we needed pitching. Badly. We still do. Anderson will play great wherever he goes, and that’ll ensure he has a long, productive career.
We’ve made some real progress. The guys we signed, rookies of course, I’m sure weren’t signed just for the fun of it. Blum will be great – it’s exciting to have him back in an Astros uniform. I bet Houston will forgive him really quickly for that 14th inning disaster in Game 3 (2005). I hope they sign Brocail, too. That’ll be good. We need a lot of pitching. A. Lot.
And lastly: Not a trade, but still. I’ll miss Munson. He has potential, but with the way we play ball here in Houston, I’m sorry, but he never had a chance. Garner and Purpura moved players around so quickly – whether it be in the lineup or minor league-majors – that I’m sure more than one guy has whiplash.
Sweet Memories.
I got an e-mail today from a friend, a baseball tribue with pictures from like the last ten years of playoffs. It was pretty cool, but really large pictures and a lot of them, so I had to send it to a few and then delete it. (sad face here)
I’m really already excited for next season…Okay, just a little. I’m more ready for NBA tipoff (tonight!!) because, you know, I’m a little burned-out on baseball. I can’t believe that for the last three years, teams with such strong finishes down the line have rolled over and died so badly…It’s so sad. It’s not like these three teams have completely given up, but to be swept out still stinks. I feel for Colorado fans, I really do.
Hopefully, though, the universe will correct itself soon, and the NL will win the AS game, and hopefully a WS in which the hottest team in baseball doesn’t roll over and die…But that’s all based on hope, and where does that get us 80% of the time?
Anyway. I have a job interview Friday (yeah!) and I didn’t go to school today. That, and Mom’s home, so I gotta run.
Peace!
Playoffs – Houston = Still Entertaining.
I’m bummed that Houston’s not in the playoffs, but I’ve had like six months to adjust to that fact now, so I’m okay with it.
Methinks Colorado’s gonna take it all the way. I hope they do.
Cleveland’s got this series locked – I hope. Silly Isaac, a friend of mine, wasn’t aware that the series is 3-1 Cleveland.
Silly Isaac.
Anyway. That’d be so cool, Colorado and Cleveland. It’d be a really great series with outstanding hitting and really good pitching. I’m worried about Colorado’s 8 days off, though. That could be a killer.
It’s been three weeks (not even!) since my internship ended…I miss it. Haha!
Anyway. Colorado FTW.
Houston = Best City Ever?
No. No. Not by a long shot, I’m sure? But ya know what? I love it. I’m not going anywhere, if I have the choice. I hope I have the choice.
My guys here, these lovely Astros…Career-high stuff, every season, and a lot of times it’s new guys doing that work. Houston must be a really great player environment. Or we have really great fans (I know we do). Or a really great hitters’ park.
Think about it. Lee’s posted career-high home-runs and RBIs. Wigginton just hit his 55th extra-base hit, also a career-high. Towles set a franchise record 8 RBI in one game (for a rookie). Pence is amazing, no explanation needed. Right?
Right.
So…WHY aren’t we going to the playoffs?
Oh, yeah. As great as we are, we still kind of stink.
My bad.
A Title Couldn’t Possibly Convey My Excitement.
Funny how I say that, and then end that sentence with a period instead of an exclamation point.
Wow, I barely got here on time today! Funny how I’m early the entire duration of the internship, and today, I’m just barely on time. What kept me? The same thing that’s made me late all week – school. Lots of drama there, lots of problems. Not passing physics at the moment (thank you physics-teacher-who-can’t-teach-physics). I’ll bring that up though, Mom, I promise!
Check. This. Out. Chelsea (though you can’t tell it from that article) is one of my very best friends, and this summer, we both had amazing opportunities in the form of internships; mine, here, with Alyson Footer; hers, also in downtown Houston, with the lovely folks at NASA. That’s right. Chelsea went to NASA. So we’re both awesome and amazing, and that article’s basically telling you all that, but go read it anyway! We’re psyched about it! I brought a copy of the Kingwood Observer from this week (September 26th, 2007) for Alyson. I have a few copies of the Humble in my car, and our front-office-awesome-lady at school cut out the Atascocita copy. So sweet. So much awesomeness.
They’re playing really good music today, and it’s making me sort of sad. I’m gonna miss this. I know as well as you do that it’s time to kiss tis season goodbye, and leave it behind us. But I’m going to miss this. Being here, at the park, being on the field, hanging around some of the coolest guys. I mean, for me, it doesn’t get any better. This is what I want to do for a living. This. All of this. It amazes me in ways a lot of people can’t even comprehend. I don’t find it monotonus or boring. I find it amazing. Simply, purely, amazing.
And writing. God, writing. Where would I be? It takes you places, ya know? It lets you be someone else – whoever you want – wherever you want to go, it’ll take you. Whoever you want to see, just scan the lines (or between, if that’s your style), and they’re there. You’re there. You’re back at the game, or in it; the hits, the outs, the runs and walks.
It’s there.
There’s a band out there by the Conoco pump. Not bad. Who are they? haha.
More tonight during the game.
Love and stuff.
[Edit: haha. They're the Slags.]
The Humble Observer
is a local newspaper. They sent a reporter to my school today to interview my friend, Chelsea Hall, and I about our internships/summer activities. She worked at NASA over the summer, so her stories are a little better, but they’re interested in the work we did and the intiative we took to get where we are/were. It should be published next week – pick one up!
Astros are done. Done. Done. I’m about done watching.
“I Can’t Stand to See This; Get Me Home!”
They’re playing really good music up here tonight (I’m at MMP!). Of course, the music on my computer is a little more fitting. So…Let me think about this. It’s a well known fact – or at least, it should be – that teenagers live on, thrive on, would die without (I just really, really enjoy it).
Okay. Music. Tonight, they’ve played:
-Hump de Bump – RHCP
-Dance Floor Anthem – Good Charlotte
-The Warrior – Scandal
-Still Rock ‘n Roll to Me – Billy Joel
-Some ZZ Top song I don’t know the name of.
That’s just the good stuff.
Tonight, I’ve played:
-To Be Loved – Papa Roach
-Take Me Away – Plain White T’s (rough second inning for Albers)
-Misery Business – Paramore
-LoveStoned – Justin Timberlake
-Here (In Your Arms) – Hellogoodbye (holadios!yeah)
-Bleed it Out – Linkin Park
-Wake Up Call – Maroon 5
Basically, typical teenager music. I love it. Good, upbeat music that gets ya pumped. Basically, great music.
Hard to feel "pumped" about this team these days, though…Sad to say, but so true. Yep. I said it. We’re done. Stick a fork in these boys.
I love them anyway.
Great basebal music (woo! for getting back on topic):
Anything upbeat and loud. Yep. Even country. Beats. Rock. A little of anything. I don’t care. Something good.
Dang.
Dang. I was really looking forward to seeing Patton pitch tonight. At least we still have a chance with Albers pitching the way he has been lately, but still. It’d be so cool to see Patton pitch in person (try saying that ten times fast). Tonight’s my internship…Hee! Oh, man, I’m so excited (on the other hand, I’m not looking forward to giving a mini-presentation on it tomorrow in class).
"I go around to each one individually and let them know that I appreciate the fact that they go out every day and play hard." – Cecil Cooper.
I love that. I think they need the encouragement. Some people thrive on attention and encouragement – that’s why fans are such a major part of baseball.
I’m still excited to see the call-ups play. It’s an exciting time of year, even if we’re not in it.
It’s exciting to think that we could (and hurtful to know that we probably won’t) spoil the playoffs for someone (coughCardscough).
Imagine That!
Okay, well, I’m watching My Boys on TBS (I love this show!), and the last scene of the first episode tonight showed the boys taking pitches in a batting cage because one of the guys said he could take a pitch in the head and still play the next day. Of course, he claimed it was Christmas day when he took one in the back of the head at 85 mph. And so now I’m thinking about what I always think about: the game is simply amazing.
Baseball is amazing.
I know people think it’s boring and monotonous and I don’t hold that against anyone.
Maybe it’s just me. I tend to think further into things than most people do…But I don’t care. I love the way I think about the game.
It’s amazing that there are men capable of throwing a baseball up to 100 mph. That there are men who can swing a wooden bat and drive said baseball 400 feet.
So anyway. That’s about it for tonight, since the Astros have the night off (please let them be licking their wounds!)…I just wanted to get you thinking.
Go think.
Welcome, Welcome!
Here we go! First off, big thanks to Alyson Footer and her friends here at MLB.com for setting this up for me! Also, thanks, Alyson, for giving me the opportunity to intern/shadow you this season. It’s been an unbelievable, life-changing experience and I’ll never forget it — or you! Okay, so this really shouldn’t be all "Thanks to [name here] because [reason here]," but two more can’t hurt.
Thanks to my parents. Seriously. My mother encouraged me to e-mail the lovely Alyson Footer and randomly ask her about internships, and I’m still not sure if she was kidding that day or not, but I’m so glad I did. My mother and I jumped up and down for about ten minutes the day we found out I was in. My father. Oh, man, my dad. Because of him, I’m able to do all of this. So, Mom and Dad, thanks; I love you.
Okay, now, my facilitators. Mrs. Head, Mrs. Huseman, Mrs. Mitsy, Grimes and Shipp (Miss you!)…Thank you guys. You all have been so super-supportive of me and of all of this. Other teachers, other kids at any other school, would’ve laughed in my face. Not you guys. Thank you.
Alright, so, on to the good stuff. I’ve missed a lot of games in the last week ’cause I’ve been working, which is lame, but I’m still keeping up with my favorite guilty-pleasure team! Who cares if we’re 16 under .500 (okay, so we ALL care, but you get the idea!)?! This time of year, when there’s really nothing we can do, I think that’s the best time for the team. I’m not entirely sure I agree with everything Cooper’s done in the last few games (14-2? Really?), but like I said, I haven’t really caught them all. I’m glad he’s giving the call-ups and some of the guys who didn’t get to play much this year time on the field. It’s all we can do right now to give these kids a chance.
I like what I’m hearing about the GM interviews…Very good candidates, I think. I’m hoping we keep Cooper next year, but somehow, disappointingly, I don’t see that being the deal. I hope it is, don’t get me wrong; I just think that after this embarrassment of a season, Drayton’s going to want a sure-fire winning team. Don’t we all?
Nothing against anyone, really. Especially Cooper. I love what he’s done, mostly, and I love how he speaks to and of his team. The talk of how "[He's] very proud of [Matt Albers]" is probably what some of these young guys need – public encouragement. Nothing wrong with that. A little push like that, a little, "Hey, you did really well today!"…That can go a long way, especially in young adults like we’ve got right now. They’re not as trained, toned, and balanced as these veterans. So, my final thought for this extremely long and tedious post:
Encouragement is key. Give someone something to be proud of. Give someone the silver lining.
Thanks. God bless, guys.
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