“It still feels like a dream,”
October 1, 2015 7:27 AM Subscribe
Toronto Blue Jays win first American League East division championship in 22 years with victory over Baltimore Orioles [National Post]
When the Blue Jays last played in the post-season, Alex Anthopoulos was 16 years old. Marcus Stroman was two. Late Wednesday afternoon, the young general manager and the young pitcher embraced on the field at Camden Yards as a jubilant collection of long-suffering Jays’ fans whooped it up in their seats behind the third-base dugout, cheering for a champion for the first time in many of their lifetimes.Two improbable sagas – Anthopoulos, after an epiphany, and Stroman, after knee surgery – came together on a dreary day in Baltimore when the Jays clinched their first division championship in 22 years with a 15-2 rout of the Orioles. [YouTube]Time-line of How the Toronto Blue Jays Won the AL East Division Championship [Sportsnet]
I still remember when the Blue Jays won the World Series in 1993... from the perspective of a Phillies fan. Poor Mitch Williams. Guy had death threats against him, for goodness sake. (He still shouldn't have been put in. He was a legendary closer, but wildly inconsistent.)
posted by SansPoint at 7:33 AM on October 1, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by SansPoint at 7:33 AM on October 1, 2015 [3 favorites]
It's nice to see the bandwagon happening -- it's been a while. Yesterday, I saw some guy walking around wearing an Alomar shirt which had clearly just been taken out of a frame. Good luck, Jays! Enjoy your moment!
Go Bucs!
posted by Capt. Renault at 7:44 AM on October 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
Go Bucs!
posted by Capt. Renault at 7:44 AM on October 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
My mum watches every Bluejays game. I asked her how the season was going in July and she said she didn't care so much who won the division, as long as it wasn't the Yankees.
posted by bonobothegreat at 7:52 AM on October 1, 2015 [5 favorites]
posted by bonobothegreat at 7:52 AM on October 1, 2015 [5 favorites]
I'm really excited for the Blue Jays; that looks like a fun bandwagon! I'm a Nationals fan so I'm mostly sulking, but still, looks like fun!
*stops thinking about baseball, because seriously fuck everything about this season except Bryce Harper*
posted by Bulgaroktonos at 7:52 AM on October 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
*stops thinking about baseball, because seriously fuck everything about this season except Bryce Harper*
posted by Bulgaroktonos at 7:52 AM on October 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
what's with the goggles?
posted by bitteroldman at 7:53 AM on October 1, 2015
posted by bitteroldman at 7:53 AM on October 1, 2015
I'm a Nationals fan
I need to go buy an Expos hat, I keep forgetting to do it.
Anyway, Toronto does have a base of loyal Jays fans, but they're not exactly LA or SF, so I'm happy to see bandwagoning going on. It beats Toronto not giving a shit. And lord knows that Toronto loves to see a sports team win for once.
posted by GuyZero at 7:54 AM on October 1, 2015
I need to go buy an Expos hat, I keep forgetting to do it.
Anyway, Toronto does have a base of loyal Jays fans, but they're not exactly LA or SF, so I'm happy to see bandwagoning going on. It beats Toronto not giving a shit. And lord knows that Toronto loves to see a sports team win for once.
posted by GuyZero at 7:54 AM on October 1, 2015
what's with the goggles?
Beer/champagne/whatever in the eyes is no good for business.
posted by davros42 at 7:57 AM on October 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
Beer/champagne/whatever in the eyes is no good for business.
posted by davros42 at 7:57 AM on October 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
also the fifth picture down ("Toronto Blue Jays fans in attendance at Camden Yards") is hilarious because 99% of them have both their arms raised in some strange ritualistic salutation.
posted by bitteroldman at 7:58 AM on October 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by bitteroldman at 7:58 AM on October 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
I still remember when the Blue Jays won the World Series in 1993... from the perspective of a Phillies fan. Poor Mitch Williams. Guy had death threats against him, for goodness sake. (He still shouldn't have been put in. He was a legendary closer, but wildly inconsistent.)
Mitch was just broken at that point. I felt sorry for him by the end of the season, because even when he was getting saves he was cringeworthy on the mound.
When they put him into Game 6 of that WS it was like a flag of surrender on Fregosi's part -- there was nobody better who was available, but you could sing along with what happened next. Game 4, on the other hand, went down in our local lexicon as The Night of Shitty Pitching and was the one that made me kick my dorm room desk apart.
As for this year's model, good for them. They won the East and they're not the Yankees. It'll be tough but there's still a chance to keep the Yankees out of the playoffs altogether.
posted by delfin at 7:59 AM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
Mitch was just broken at that point. I felt sorry for him by the end of the season, because even when he was getting saves he was cringeworthy on the mound.
When they put him into Game 6 of that WS it was like a flag of surrender on Fregosi's part -- there was nobody better who was available, but you could sing along with what happened next. Game 4, on the other hand, went down in our local lexicon as The Night of Shitty Pitching and was the one that made me kick my dorm room desk apart.
As for this year's model, good for them. They won the East and they're not the Yankees. It'll be tough but there's still a chance to keep the Yankees out of the playoffs altogether.
posted by delfin at 7:59 AM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
My boss is a die-hard Toronto Blue Jays fan. He watched me make this post and then looked at me and said, “Seems work-related to me. I approve.” He's good people.
posted by Fizz at 7:59 AM on October 1, 2015 [20 favorites]
posted by Fizz at 7:59 AM on October 1, 2015 [20 favorites]
I was in a Kingston, Ontario bar the night they won in 1993; I had grown up a Tigers fan, so just to be a dick I was making a point of loudly cheering for the Phillies. People were giving me the stink eye and yelling at me to shut up, so if it weren't for Joe Carter I probably would have wound up in a dumpster that night.
posted by The Card Cheat at 8:01 AM on October 1, 2015
posted by The Card Cheat at 8:01 AM on October 1, 2015
I was in a Kingston... I probably would have wound up in a dumpster that night
The middle part of your story really isn't relevant to the beginning and end.
posted by GuyZero at 8:04 AM on October 1, 2015 [9 favorites]
The middle part of your story really isn't relevant to the beginning and end.
posted by GuyZero at 8:04 AM on October 1, 2015 [9 favorites]
For whatever reason, I developed an interest in the Blue Jays as a youngster (probably from baseball cards). That, along with my interest in baseball in general, waned during my teenage years, but I visited Toronto when I was 17 and bought a Jays t-shirt. This is rambling, but what I'm trying to say is, good for them. I'm happy to see them succeed.
posted by kevinbelt at 8:05 AM on October 1, 2015
posted by kevinbelt at 8:05 AM on October 1, 2015
I like the teams named after songbirds – those names seem like throwbacks to a more innocent era.
posted by The Nutmeg of Consolation at 8:13 AM on October 1, 2015 [5 favorites]
posted by The Nutmeg of Consolation at 8:13 AM on October 1, 2015 [5 favorites]
Beauty playing, eh?
posted by octobersurprise at 8:14 AM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by octobersurprise at 8:14 AM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
The middle part of your story really isn't relevant to the beginning and end.
Whoa there! K-town has come a long way!
posted by Kitteh at 8:14 AM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
Whoa there! K-town has come a long way!
posted by Kitteh at 8:14 AM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
It's not just that the Jays haven't been in the post-season since their last world-series winning 1993 season...they haven't even been close since then. No pennant races, no magic number watches, nothing. I can't think of a season where they've had a meaningful game in the month of September.
And it ends the longest current playoff drought in major North-American sports...a spot now held by the Buffalo Bills.
posted by rocket88 at 8:15 AM on October 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
And it ends the longest current playoff drought in major North-American sports...a spot now held by the Buffalo Bills.
posted by rocket88 at 8:15 AM on October 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
Okay, recycling bin then.
posted by Kabanos at 8:15 AM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Kabanos at 8:15 AM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
And, in the NL Central, they'd be...fourth place!
Because this is a screwy year and the Cubs weren't supposed to be good yet and the Cardinals were supposed to fail because of injuries and let's not even talk about how mad the Pirates are because again they're going to have to play in the wild card game, and they're going to face possibly the best pitcher in MLB when they play -- a pitcher that just threw an 7-inning one hit shutout on them.
Baseball. Because baseball.
posted by eriko at 8:20 AM on October 1, 2015 [12 favorites]
Because this is a screwy year and the Cubs weren't supposed to be good yet and the Cardinals were supposed to fail because of injuries and let's not even talk about how mad the Pirates are because again they're going to have to play in the wild card game, and they're going to face possibly the best pitcher in MLB when they play -- a pitcher that just threw an 7-inning one hit shutout on them.
Baseball. Because baseball.
posted by eriko at 8:20 AM on October 1, 2015 [12 favorites]
As a longtime Jays fan - at the Dome to watch 'em get clobbered in both the '89 and '91 ALCS - I really can't overstate how much fun this season has been. Not just because the Jays are winning, but because of how they are and who's doing it.
The majority of Josh Donaldson's 41 home runs have tied games or given the Jays the lead. Kevin Pillar went from a question-mark fourth outfielder into a human highlight reel. Chris Colabello spent seven years in the Independent League desert, got brought in to fill a temporary hole in an injury-riddled team early in the season, and has hit well over .300 as an everyday player ever since. Damn near the worst bullpen in baseball in April and May has been the best in the AL since the All-Star Break, led by Brett Cecil, who was a walking tire fire until June 21 and has not allowed a single earned run since. Marcus Stroman, the emerging ace of the preseason starting rotation, was sidelined seemingly for the season by a freak knee injury, went off to Duke University to finish his degree, and came back miraculously at the start of September to dominate (he got the win in yesterday's clincher).
All that before you get to the usual heroics of Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion and the transfomative arrival of David Price and Troy Tulowitzki.
This is a team that's never out of any game, no matter the score, and repeatedly wins in the most spectacular fashion. The final homegame win - which felt more like the clincher than yesterday's game - featured a late-innings comeback, yet another dominant performance from an unexpected source (Justin Smoak this time), and a two-out, walkoff Josh Donaldson home run that would've seemed too scripted for a remake of The Natural.
Most fun I've had watching baseball since I was a kid. Love this team.
posted by gompa at 8:22 AM on October 1, 2015 [6 favorites]
The majority of Josh Donaldson's 41 home runs have tied games or given the Jays the lead. Kevin Pillar went from a question-mark fourth outfielder into a human highlight reel. Chris Colabello spent seven years in the Independent League desert, got brought in to fill a temporary hole in an injury-riddled team early in the season, and has hit well over .300 as an everyday player ever since. Damn near the worst bullpen in baseball in April and May has been the best in the AL since the All-Star Break, led by Brett Cecil, who was a walking tire fire until June 21 and has not allowed a single earned run since. Marcus Stroman, the emerging ace of the preseason starting rotation, was sidelined seemingly for the season by a freak knee injury, went off to Duke University to finish his degree, and came back miraculously at the start of September to dominate (he got the win in yesterday's clincher).
All that before you get to the usual heroics of Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion and the transfomative arrival of David Price and Troy Tulowitzki.
This is a team that's never out of any game, no matter the score, and repeatedly wins in the most spectacular fashion. The final homegame win - which felt more like the clincher than yesterday's game - featured a late-innings comeback, yet another dominant performance from an unexpected source (Justin Smoak this time), and a two-out, walkoff Josh Donaldson home run that would've seemed too scripted for a remake of The Natural.
Most fun I've had watching baseball since I was a kid. Love this team.
posted by gompa at 8:22 AM on October 1, 2015 [6 favorites]
Congratz, Jays. Soon the Mets will be kicking your asses.
posted by jonmc at 8:25 AM on October 1, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by jonmc at 8:25 AM on October 1, 2015 [3 favorites]
And, in the NL Central, they'd be...fourth place!
And the bucs will probably not make the full playoffs despite having the second best record in the major league.
Not that I'm mad about that or anything.
posted by octothorpe at 8:26 AM on October 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
And the bucs will probably not make the full playoffs despite having the second best record in the major league.
Not that I'm mad about that or anything.
posted by octothorpe at 8:26 AM on October 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
And it ends the longest current playoff drought in major North-American sports...a spot now held by the Buffalo Bills.
As someone who grew up as a die-hard Dallas Cowboys fan, this is a great statistic to know and should be mentioned in passing conversation as much as possible.
posted by Fizz at 8:26 AM on October 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
As someone who grew up as a die-hard Dallas Cowboys fan, this is a great statistic to know and should be mentioned in passing conversation as much as possible.
posted by Fizz at 8:26 AM on October 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
Mod note: Couple comments deleted. Sorry, point well taken and all, but 'the name World Series is inaccurate' is a tree we've been around many times before and it will take us too far afield in this thread.
posted by LobsterMitten (staff) at 8:32 AM on October 1, 2015 [4 favorites]
posted by LobsterMitten (staff) at 8:32 AM on October 1, 2015 [4 favorites]
I'm really excited for the Blue Jays; that looks like a fun bandwagon!
I was living in downtown Toronto when they won the Series in the early '90s (Ryerson residence, between Church and Sherbourne and Dundas & College). I worked at the Red Lobster in the Atrium On Bay (which is still there, surprisingly).
I was working during one of the lead-up nights and had to go back to the residence after; had the night off on the night they actually clinched it.
Seriously, those were two of the most... magical... nights of my life. Literally hundreds and hundreds of thousands of people on the street; no traffic and shoulder-to-shoulder pedestrians on Yonge from Bay Street down to the water. We're talking like a couple of miles of just a sea of humanity.
No riots, no hassles; just tons of people of every race/creed/gender laughing and high-fiving and being super good humans.
I'm not a Sports Guy; I think I've watched one whole hockey game in the last decade, and that's because I was visiting relatives and we went to see the local AAA team. But they were both just incredible nights. It's hard to explain how it felt. Magical, again. It was something else.
posted by Shepherd at 8:35 AM on October 1, 2015 [6 favorites]
I was living in downtown Toronto when they won the Series in the early '90s (Ryerson residence, between Church and Sherbourne and Dundas & College). I worked at the Red Lobster in the Atrium On Bay (which is still there, surprisingly).
I was working during one of the lead-up nights and had to go back to the residence after; had the night off on the night they actually clinched it.
Seriously, those were two of the most... magical... nights of my life. Literally hundreds and hundreds of thousands of people on the street; no traffic and shoulder-to-shoulder pedestrians on Yonge from Bay Street down to the water. We're talking like a couple of miles of just a sea of humanity.
No riots, no hassles; just tons of people of every race/creed/gender laughing and high-fiving and being super good humans.
I'm not a Sports Guy; I think I've watched one whole hockey game in the last decade, and that's because I was visiting relatives and we went to see the local AAA team. But they were both just incredible nights. It's hard to explain how it felt. Magical, again. It was something else.
posted by Shepherd at 8:35 AM on October 1, 2015 [6 favorites]
Yay hometown laundry!
posted by srboisvert at 8:41 AM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by srboisvert at 8:41 AM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
I'm just happy for Marco Estrada (and still ticked at the Blue Jays because the 1992 Brewers were a better team the '92 Blue Jays, jerks).
posted by drezdn at 8:43 AM on October 1, 2015
posted by drezdn at 8:43 AM on October 1, 2015
And it ends the longest current playoff drought in major North-American sports...a spot now held by the Buffalo Bills.
Yep the Bills were last in the playoffs in 1999, aka when I was a freshman in high school. I am 30 years old and, probably related to the sentence before this one, a katamari for playoff drought ephemera. The Bengals and Chiefs, playing each other this week, both had their last playoff victory against the Houston Oilers in 1992 and 93, respectively. The Oilers don't even exist in that form anymore! But the Oakland Raiders, third longest playoff drought in major North American sports, have a much more Jaysesque feel, as their last appearance was Super Bowl XXXVII in 2003. There is something so charming about a team that makes it to the big game, then craps out for a decade plus.
posted by everybody had matching towels at 8:44 AM on October 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
Yep the Bills were last in the playoffs in 1999, aka when I was a freshman in high school. I am 30 years old and, probably related to the sentence before this one, a katamari for playoff drought ephemera. The Bengals and Chiefs, playing each other this week, both had their last playoff victory against the Houston Oilers in 1992 and 93, respectively. The Oilers don't even exist in that form anymore! But the Oakland Raiders, third longest playoff drought in major North American sports, have a much more Jaysesque feel, as their last appearance was Super Bowl XXXVII in 2003. There is something so charming about a team that makes it to the big game, then craps out for a decade plus.
posted by everybody had matching towels at 8:44 AM on October 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
After watching the Orioles implode this season, I'm still happy to see the Jays take it. Partially in solidarity to Bird teams, partially out of disgust for the BOS/NY machine.
posted by codacorolla at 8:48 AM on October 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by codacorolla at 8:48 AM on October 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
Seriously, those were two of the most... magical... nights of my life. Literally hundreds and hundreds of thousands of people on the street; no traffic and shoulder-to-shoulder pedestrians on Yonge from Bay Street down to the water. We're talking like a couple of miles of just a sea of humanity.
Ohwow yes, those were awesome nights! I felt sorry for a friend of my dad's though...she was in Baltimore with Ontario plates when the Jays won the first one.
posted by feckless fecal fear mongering at 8:49 AM on October 1, 2015
Ohwow yes, those were awesome nights! I felt sorry for a friend of my dad's though...she was in Baltimore with Ontario plates when the Jays won the first one.
posted by feckless fecal fear mongering at 8:49 AM on October 1, 2015
...she was in Baltimore with Ontario plates when the Jays won the first one.
I'd be surprised if anyone put it together. In the U.S. media, it's always been just Toronto, Canada.
posted by bonobothegreat at 9:05 AM on October 1, 2015
I'd be surprised if anyone put it together. In the U.S. media, it's always been just Toronto, Canada.
posted by bonobothegreat at 9:05 AM on October 1, 2015
There is something so charming about a team that makes it to the big game, then craps out for a decade plus.
It's not as long a playoff drought, but for playoff win droughts I'm fond of the fact that the last Lions playoff win was in 1991 and the win before than was in 1957, when they won it all.
posted by Bulgaroktonos at 9:15 AM on October 1, 2015
It's not as long a playoff drought, but for playoff win droughts I'm fond of the fact that the last Lions playoff win was in 1991 and the win before than was in 1957, when they won it all.
posted by Bulgaroktonos at 9:15 AM on October 1, 2015
1993 wasn't 22 years ago come on. Is that in Canadian years? Preposterous. Do not @ me.
posted by Potomac Avenue at 9:20 AM on October 1, 2015 [4 favorites]
posted by Potomac Avenue at 9:20 AM on October 1, 2015 [4 favorites]
As a San Francisco Giants fan, I can appreciate the joy that Toronto fans must be feeling right now, and I'm channeling that excitement to help me overcome my odd-number-year sadness.
posted by janey47 at 9:34 AM on October 1, 2015
posted by janey47 at 9:34 AM on October 1, 2015
Card Cheat I gotta ask, which bar? I was in Kingston then too.
posted by sauril at 9:48 AM on October 1, 2015
posted by sauril at 9:48 AM on October 1, 2015
I still remember when the Blue Jays won the World Series in 1993...
as do I all too well. I was watching TSN's live coverage of the Japanese Grand Prix (Senna leading, less than twenty laps to go) when they suddenly cut to a live feed of loogans celebrating in downtown Toronto.
posted by philip-random at 9:49 AM on October 1, 2015
as do I all too well. I was watching TSN's live coverage of the Japanese Grand Prix (Senna leading, less than twenty laps to go) when they suddenly cut to a live feed of loogans celebrating in downtown Toronto.
posted by philip-random at 9:49 AM on October 1, 2015
Well, sure. Twenty-two years between World Series appearances is a long road.
The night before last, an amorphophallus titanum, aka "corpse flower" bloomed at the Chicago Botanical Garden. Our family, along with hundreds, if not thousands of others, went out late to see this extraordinarily rare Sumatran flower--which stands nearly as tall as a human being, blooms maybe once every seven to ten years and smells of rotting flesh. While waiting in line, I read up on the flower and found that for most of the last century, blooms were rare. And even while improved horticultural techniques and increased attempts to cultivate the flower have now made it such that there are more of the flowers than at any point in recent history, it's still a banner year when as many as five bloom in the entire world.
I did some research and found that the blooming of this flower, one of the rarest events in the world, a phenomenon so special that thousands will drive out to see it and brave its stench at all hours, has occurred 210 motherfucking times since the last time the Cubs won the World Series.
22 years? COOL STORY, BRO.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 9:55 AM on October 1, 2015 [19 favorites]
The night before last, an amorphophallus titanum, aka "corpse flower" bloomed at the Chicago Botanical Garden. Our family, along with hundreds, if not thousands of others, went out late to see this extraordinarily rare Sumatran flower--which stands nearly as tall as a human being, blooms maybe once every seven to ten years and smells of rotting flesh. While waiting in line, I read up on the flower and found that for most of the last century, blooms were rare. And even while improved horticultural techniques and increased attempts to cultivate the flower have now made it such that there are more of the flowers than at any point in recent history, it's still a banner year when as many as five bloom in the entire world.
I did some research and found that the blooming of this flower, one of the rarest events in the world, a phenomenon so special that thousands will drive out to see it and brave its stench at all hours, has occurred 210 motherfucking times since the last time the Cubs won the World Series.
22 years? COOL STORY, BRO.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 9:55 AM on October 1, 2015 [19 favorites]
I like the teams named after songbirds – those names seem like throwbacks to a more innocent era.
As a kid, the first MLB game I ever saw live was Jays vs Orioles, sitting on a bench in the stands of ye olde Exhibition Stadium (hallowed be thy full-sized affordable food options). So, yeah.
posted by Kabanos at 10:05 AM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
As a kid, the first MLB game I ever saw live was Jays vs Orioles, sitting on a bench in the stands of ye olde Exhibition Stadium (hallowed be thy full-sized affordable food options). So, yeah.
posted by Kabanos at 10:05 AM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
400,000 Blue Jays fans injured as bandwagon crashes outside stadium.
posted by TheWhiteSkull at 10:37 AM on October 1, 2015 [4 favorites]
posted by TheWhiteSkull at 10:37 AM on October 1, 2015 [4 favorites]
After watching the Orioles implode this season
Codacorolla, can I just say thank you for the Feldman/Arrieta trade? Jake is going down a treat in Chicago.
posted by C.A.S. at 11:01 AM on October 1, 2015
Codacorolla, can I just say thank you for the Feldman/Arrieta trade? Jake is going down a treat in Chicago.
posted by C.A.S. at 11:01 AM on October 1, 2015
As a Red Sox fan, I'm happy to see the Jays clinch the East given that we had no chance this year (and happy we could hasten the process by beating the Yankees the last 3 nights).
posted by A dead Quaker at 11:09 AM on October 1, 2015 [5 favorites]
posted by A dead Quaker at 11:09 AM on October 1, 2015 [5 favorites]
I like the teams named after songbirds – those names seem like throwbacks to a more innocent era.
It has often been said that the then owner of the team, Labatts, were hoping that the nickname would become the Blues, instead of the Jays.
posted by rakish_yet_centered at 11:54 AM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
It has often been said that the then owner of the team, Labatts, were hoping that the nickname would become the Blues, instead of the Jays.
posted by rakish_yet_centered at 11:54 AM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
Do you know what drives me insane? The one baseball player - and there is only ONE - that I actively dislike with a religious type fervor has had the world's longest career and is now headed to the playoffs.
Fuckin' LaTroy Hawkins, man. I can't stand the guy. When he was a pitcher for the Twins I would writhe and scream and wail in agony when he would ascend the mound. It was because he would take FOREVER to throw a pitch. It was like the guy would get up there, glance at the batter, forget what he was doing, go into a fugue state, and then after about 5 minutes he would come back to reality and throw a pitch. I think it's because of him that MLB instituted the pitch timer. All because LaTroy Innings were interminable.
I can't believe the dude is still pitching.
Ben Revere on the other hand: I thought that kid had so much promise during his short time with Minnesota. I'm glad to see him getting in on the fun.
posted by Elly Vortex at 12:21 PM on October 1, 2015
Fuckin' LaTroy Hawkins, man. I can't stand the guy. When he was a pitcher for the Twins I would writhe and scream and wail in agony when he would ascend the mound. It was because he would take FOREVER to throw a pitch. It was like the guy would get up there, glance at the batter, forget what he was doing, go into a fugue state, and then after about 5 minutes he would come back to reality and throw a pitch. I think it's because of him that MLB instituted the pitch timer. All because LaTroy Innings were interminable.
I can't believe the dude is still pitching.
Ben Revere on the other hand: I thought that kid had so much promise during his short time with Minnesota. I'm glad to see him getting in on the fun.
posted by Elly Vortex at 12:21 PM on October 1, 2015
Are you kidding? LaTroy Hawkins is great. So is R.A. Dickey. And Bartolo Colon. And Ichiro Suzuki. I am exceedingly fond of each of these guys... the remaining MLB players who are still older than I am. When the last of those guys retires, a small part of me will die.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 12:41 PM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by DirtyOldTown at 12:41 PM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
Elly Vortex: When he was a pitcher for the Twins I would writhe and scream and wail in agony when he would ascend the mound.
Bat Girl, is that you?!
posted by wenestvedt at 12:42 PM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
Bat Girl, is that you?!
posted by wenestvedt at 12:42 PM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
When the last of those guys retires, a small part of me will die.
Keep your chin up -- Julio Franco is still playing.
posted by Etrigan at 12:49 PM on October 1, 2015
Keep your chin up -- Julio Franco is still playing.
posted by Etrigan at 12:49 PM on October 1, 2015
Don't forget Torii Hunter and Joe Nathan, they're still kicking around, and Hunter even came on home for his sunset seasons. Also, did you guys realize A Rod is 40? Old baseball players are the best.
posted by neonrev at 12:57 PM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by neonrev at 12:57 PM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
My brother and 2 of his friends apparently snuck into one of the world series games against the Phillies at the Skydome. It wasn't a big risk at the time because if they were caught they would probably just have been kicked out, and the reward was getting to see a world series game. Somehow I don't think three twenty-something brown guys would have as much luck if they got caught sneaking into a major sporting event in 2015.
In case you're wondering it involved getting into the underground parking garage for the hotel but that is the extent of what I remember.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 1:10 PM on October 1, 2015
In case you're wondering it involved getting into the underground parking garage for the hotel but that is the extent of what I remember.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 1:10 PM on October 1, 2015
I still have just the fondest memories of illegally drunk 16-year-old me nearly freezing to death as I was hanging from the rollbar in the back of my buddies lifted pick-up truck, roaring up and down Queen street after the second WC win, screaming and cheering with thousands of other fans who poured into the street that night.
Earlier this year I was back in Ontario visiting my parents, and I got to bring my son to the Skydome for the first time. I bought him a Bautista Jersey before we left for the trip and grabbed a Donaldson one for myself. I had managed to pick up great seats right over third base before the buzz had really started, and the ladies next to me paid almost four times the face value for their seats earlier that day. We watched Drew Hutchinson, of all people, pitch a gem against the A's. They had opened the dome mid-game and the CN tower was lit up by the time that Osuna was busy fanning batters in the top of ninth to earn the save. Jays win 4-2, and it was pretty damn magical.
Since that game, my son has watched them all with me, and even though he's only six he already wants to play baseball next year and is brushing up on the rules. If the game runs late, he asks me first thing in the morning if the Jays won, and lately I've been giving him a lot of good news on those mornings.
posted by WinnipegDragon at 1:18 PM on October 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
Earlier this year I was back in Ontario visiting my parents, and I got to bring my son to the Skydome for the first time. I bought him a Bautista Jersey before we left for the trip and grabbed a Donaldson one for myself. I had managed to pick up great seats right over third base before the buzz had really started, and the ladies next to me paid almost four times the face value for their seats earlier that day. We watched Drew Hutchinson, of all people, pitch a gem against the A's. They had opened the dome mid-game and the CN tower was lit up by the time that Osuna was busy fanning batters in the top of ninth to earn the save. Jays win 4-2, and it was pretty damn magical.
Since that game, my son has watched them all with me, and even though he's only six he already wants to play baseball next year and is brushing up on the rules. If the game runs late, he asks me first thing in the morning if the Jays won, and lately I've been giving him a lot of good news on those mornings.
posted by WinnipegDragon at 1:18 PM on October 1, 2015 [2 favorites]
Also, the early/mid 90s were such a fun time for sports fans in Toronto. I remember driving downtown and then walking down Yonge Street after the Jays won one of their world series as well as for a couple of the Leafs playoff victories (yes Toronto treated the Leafs getting past the Red Wings in the first round of the playoffs the same as the Jays winning the world series), and it was just like Shepherd said, just a bunch of people being happy and nice. I have hopes that it would be the same if they won this year.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 1:25 PM on October 1, 2015
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 1:25 PM on October 1, 2015
I love that story, WinnipegDragon.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 1:26 PM on October 1, 2015
posted by DirtyOldTown at 1:26 PM on October 1, 2015
With my team out of it (RIP 2015 Oakland A's), I'm glad I'll be getting some bonus use from my Jays hat collection, a decidedly mixed bag.
posted by clorox at 1:33 PM on October 1, 2015
posted by clorox at 1:33 PM on October 1, 2015
Hey, I don't have any qualms with him being old. I have a problem with him standing up on the mound like a statue. I would not have been surprised if a pigeon landed on his hat. If anything, he's sped up his delivery since he was a spry youngster back in the 90's. Like, doubled the speed.
There's only one Twin older than me - Torii. He turned 40 this year and his teammates gave him a walker. I love him and hope he's around next year as well. He's still a great player and a fantastic mentor to the young guys in the clubhouse.
posted by Elly Vortex at 1:57 PM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
There's only one Twin older than me - Torii. He turned 40 this year and his teammates gave him a walker. I love him and hope he's around next year as well. He's still a great player and a fantastic mentor to the young guys in the clubhouse.
posted by Elly Vortex at 1:57 PM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
The two things I have distinct memories of watching on television in 1993 in Toronto (I was eight) are the final World Series game, and Kim Campbell becoming Prime Minister. I was very excited about the way Canada was turning out. A woman as Prime Minister! The Jays winning the series! Yay Jays!
Of course, Campbell was a Conservative and was out in six months, and the Jays never won again.
Here's hoping for another win, and better politics. (And that nobody gets hit in the head by a baseball in the TD Family Fun Zone, which happened twice in the last Jays game I went to.)
posted by ilana at 2:38 PM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
Of course, Campbell was a Conservative and was out in six months, and the Jays never won again.
Here's hoping for another win, and better politics. (And that nobody gets hit in the head by a baseball in the TD Family Fun Zone, which happened twice in the last Jays game I went to.)
posted by ilana at 2:38 PM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
Partially in solidarity to Bird teams, partially out of disgust for the BOS/NY machine.
Codacorolla, that may be true, but bitter memories from high school oblige to me to shout "Cito sucks!" in the Blue Jays' direction.
posted by TwoStride at 2:52 PM on October 1, 2015
Codacorolla, that may be true, but bitter memories from high school oblige to me to shout "Cito sucks!" in the Blue Jays' direction.
posted by TwoStride at 2:52 PM on October 1, 2015
There was a massive street party in Kingston after the second WS win, too. After I left the bar I stumbled home to my house on Union Street and was greeted by hundreds if not a couple thousand kids partying right outside my front door. Which was cool and all, but I was ready to pass out. It was a long night.
posted by The Card Cheat at 3:09 PM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by The Card Cheat at 3:09 PM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
You know what I want to see more than anything? Munenori Kawasaki driving in the winning run to clinch the WS. There could be no happier moment in baseball.
posted by mwhybark at 4:02 PM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by mwhybark at 4:02 PM on October 1, 2015 [1 favorite]
In the years before their first two world series wins, I watched every game. Back then every game was on TV. But then I moved away and it's harder to follow a team when you don't live in their city, so I stopped following, and when I returned to TO I never started again, partly because I knew it would be an exercise in frustration.
So yeah, I'm jumping on the bandwagon, and I don't know who any of the current players are, though I could still tell you the lineup from 93. I was at the Skydome when they won in 93. That game was in Philly and they played in on the jumbotron at Skydome. The price of admission was a donation of canned goods for the foodbank. I went online they day they went on sale to try to get World Series tickets this year, but they're $600 each, which is too rich for me. So i'm hoping they win away again and that I can watch it at the Skydome, on the jumbotron, with all the benefits of group/mass hysteria and none of the $600 price.
posted by If only I had a penguin... at 7:07 AM on October 2, 2015
So yeah, I'm jumping on the bandwagon, and I don't know who any of the current players are, though I could still tell you the lineup from 93. I was at the Skydome when they won in 93. That game was in Philly and they played in on the jumbotron at Skydome. The price of admission was a donation of canned goods for the foodbank. I went online they day they went on sale to try to get World Series tickets this year, but they're $600 each, which is too rich for me. So i'm hoping they win away again and that I can watch it at the Skydome, on the jumbotron, with all the benefits of group/mass hysteria and none of the $600 price.
posted by If only I had a penguin... at 7:07 AM on October 2, 2015
In playoff news. Three games left to play.
NL first because it's easy. LAD/STL/NYM are your division winners, and STL has locked the best record in baseball, so they'll face the wildcard. The wildcards are PIT and omg omg omg CHC.
The only questions are home fields. NYM and LAD are currently tied, and they can't catch STL (or PIT, or CHC for that matter....) NYM holds the tiebreaker, so the Dodgers need to pass the Mets to get home field in the NLDS. But that's the two in that half of the bracket.
In the wildcard, PIT is up two, so they've almost, but not quite locked home field for the wild card game. If they lose two of the next three, and the Cubs sweep the Brewers, or all three and the Cubs win two, then the Cubs will get the home field*. Regardless, the winner play STL in the NLDS and the loser plays golf.
The AL is harder. KC and TOR have won the divisions, and they're tied, so we don't know who plays the wildcard and who plays the other division winner, but we do know they won't play each other in the ALDS. NYY has locked a wildcard slot. Texas has locked a playoff spot -- they'll either win the division, or they'll get caught by Houston, play a tiebreaker game (AKA Game 163), and get the division if they win or the other WC if they lose. TEX magic number is 1, any win or HOU loss gives them the division.
Still in the hunt are LAA and MIN, one game behind Houston for WC2. If Houston keeps losing, and they've had an epically bad September, they could be caught by either or both. We could, in fact, see a three way tie for WC2.
In which case, we'll need Game 163 and Game 164. They run the tiebreaks between the three, the two losers play Game 163. The winner plays the third in Game 164. The winner of that is WC2 and plays KC or TOR, depending.
So, the AL race is down to the wire, and the NL race is down to picky details.
* Cubs have the tiebreaker here, and you don't play Game 163 for home field, you just use the tiebreakers. I'm really hoping because I have tickets to that game. Cubs are playing the Brewers, whom they've beat up all year. Pirates, however, are playing Cincinnati, who are making a run for Worst Record In MLB, just one game ahead of PHI, but they're on a 12 game losing streak, so signs are "good".
posted by eriko at 7:35 AM on October 2, 2015 [2 favorites]
NL first because it's easy. LAD/STL/NYM are your division winners, and STL has locked the best record in baseball, so they'll face the wildcard. The wildcards are PIT and omg omg omg CHC.
The only questions are home fields. NYM and LAD are currently tied, and they can't catch STL (or PIT, or CHC for that matter....) NYM holds the tiebreaker, so the Dodgers need to pass the Mets to get home field in the NLDS. But that's the two in that half of the bracket.
In the wildcard, PIT is up two, so they've almost, but not quite locked home field for the wild card game. If they lose two of the next three, and the Cubs sweep the Brewers, or all three and the Cubs win two, then the Cubs will get the home field*. Regardless, the winner play STL in the NLDS and the loser plays golf.
The AL is harder. KC and TOR have won the divisions, and they're tied, so we don't know who plays the wildcard and who plays the other division winner, but we do know they won't play each other in the ALDS. NYY has locked a wildcard slot. Texas has locked a playoff spot -- they'll either win the division, or they'll get caught by Houston, play a tiebreaker game (AKA Game 163), and get the division if they win or the other WC if they lose. TEX magic number is 1, any win or HOU loss gives them the division.
Still in the hunt are LAA and MIN, one game behind Houston for WC2. If Houston keeps losing, and they've had an epically bad September, they could be caught by either or both. We could, in fact, see a three way tie for WC2.
In which case, we'll need Game 163 and Game 164. They run the tiebreaks between the three, the two losers play Game 163. The winner plays the third in Game 164. The winner of that is WC2 and plays KC or TOR, depending.
So, the AL race is down to the wire, and the NL race is down to picky details.
* Cubs have the tiebreaker here, and you don't play Game 163 for home field, you just use the tiebreakers. I'm really hoping because I have tickets to that game. Cubs are playing the Brewers, whom they've beat up all year. Pirates, however, are playing Cincinnati, who are making a run for Worst Record In MLB, just one game ahead of PHI, but they're on a 12 game losing streak, so signs are "good".
posted by eriko at 7:35 AM on October 2, 2015 [2 favorites]
Best Metafilter thread ever. :-)
I have been following the Blue Jays for all of their existence. 2013 and 2014 were so disheartening that I nearly gave up. I have never seen a team like the post-All Star 2015 Jays. It was like a dream, especially in August.
It seems cruel that the post-season series are so short and are such a crapshoot.
posted by tallmiddleagedgeek at 9:39 AM on October 2, 2015
I have been following the Blue Jays for all of their existence. 2013 and 2014 were so disheartening that I nearly gave up. I have never seen a team like the post-All Star 2015 Jays. It was like a dream, especially in August.
It seems cruel that the post-season series are so short and are such a crapshoot.
posted by tallmiddleagedgeek at 9:39 AM on October 2, 2015
Dear Blue Jays, if you make it to the World Series, please do not let the Cardinals win. Thank you, drezdn.
posted by drezdn at 10:56 AM on October 2, 2015 [3 favorites]
posted by drezdn at 10:56 AM on October 2, 2015 [3 favorites]
Joey Bats with the flip heard around the... continent, at least.
posted by tonycpsu at 5:53 PM on October 14, 2015 [4 favorites]
posted by tonycpsu at 5:53 PM on October 14, 2015 [4 favorites]
That was the best bat flip since the discovery of fire.
posted by delfin at 6:45 PM on October 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by delfin at 6:45 PM on October 14, 2015 [1 favorite]
The photo on the Deadspin page taken a split second before he tossed the bat, with Bautista standing just watching the ball, with the crowd all going crazy behind him, that's a great image in itself. But that flip was one of the greatest sporting gestures I've ever seen. After that inning it was just so necessary, so appropriate.
posted by Flashman at 9:03 PM on October 14, 2015
posted by Flashman at 9:03 PM on October 14, 2015
I figured this insane Game 5 (and especially the 7th inning) merited a new thread. Kudos, Torontofolk.
posted by Rhaomi at 6:17 AM on October 15, 2015
posted by Rhaomi at 6:17 AM on October 15, 2015
Is it just me or does Bautista look like Drake? Maybe it's just the beard but I imagine them hanging out and getting into The-Parent-trap-esque antics as they switch places and hilarity ensues.
posted by GuyZero at 7:36 AM on October 15, 2015
posted by GuyZero at 7:36 AM on October 15, 2015
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posted by Etrigan at 7:32 AM on October 1, 2015 [15 favorites]