"I set records that will never be equaled. In fact, I hope 90% of them don't even get printed." -Bob Uecker
By the time the Sounds return from this roadtrip, the season will be almost over. Or not. The Sounds are currently on a 13 day 12 game roadtrip to Fresno, Sacramento and Albuquerque. When we return on August 15th, the Sounds will have only 12 home games left and 12 road games. When the Sounds return they will have a different looking roster than they did a month ago. When the Sounds return home (I apologize for hammering home the same sentence again and again but the Pro Football Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony is on the TV in my hotel room and thats how all these induction ceremonies are presented, with constant repetition and over dramatic use of the same phrase over and over again. I also want to thank Tom Landry and Paul Tagliabue, the NFL Commissioner, for allowing me to be here today. And my mom.) they will likely still be in a fight for the Division title.
Last season the Sounds hit a wall at about the same velocity as a bug on a windshield. Hard. The difference being that last years Sounds survived that crash, losing 16 of 19 games yet hanging on to win the division by a game with two days left in t he regular season. The question will be whether this team can survive this years windshield approaching at 85 miles per hour.
I think they can. Triple-A teams lose players, usually the best ones to the big leagues. I'm glad they are gone as it gives players who have worked their butts off for years a chance to succeed at the top level and enjoy the benefits. Teams adjust. Many consider Rickie Weeks, Prince Fielder, Corey Hart and pitchers like Rick Helling and Justin Leher and Jose Capellan to be the core of that championship tem. They did make huge HUGE contributions no doubt, but it was players like Tony Zuniga who drove in the winning run to win the division. It was Bret Evert who threw more than 3 innings of relief in extra innings to win the championship. Nelson Cruz, who started the year in Huntsville, won the PCL Championship Series with three homers including the three run shot in the top of the 13th inning of that final game. In the picture of the Nashville Sounds celebrating on the field it is those players that are holding the trophy high above their heads.
There have been changes to the team. Nelson Cruz was traded to the Rangers as part of the Carlos Lee deal and many Sounds fans including myself let out a collective "Oh....Crap." The Brewers received an A Ball pitcher we may see in a few years in Julian Cordero, outfielder Kevin Mench and reliever Francisco Cordero, big leaguers both. The Brewers also traded for Laynce Nix, an outfielder playing in Oklahoma City for the Redhawks. Nix? Didn't we get him out like....everytime when we played the Redhawks? We traded Cruz for THIS guy? Yeah, we did. Well, actually, Doug Melvin did. And, while Nelson Cruz is doing a fine job for the Rangers (3-for-9, 1 HR, 2 RBI) Laynce Nix is hitting the ball for Nashville like it stole something from him. He's hitting lefties and righties out of the park and as a veteran of 14 years in minor league baseball I can't think of another arm to throw at him. In Fresno alone he has had two late inning homers that have impacted the game and he is batting over .550 in six games with the Sounds and is smack in the middle of a 15 game hit streak. The only constant is change and sometimes that change is for the good.
Fresno. This is only my second time here at Grizzlies Stadium and its a nice facility. Good sightlines, its fairly new and the staff is friendly. And despite the fact the Nashville Sounds current Director of Sales Joe Hart used to be the GM here, the place is still standing. Just kidding Joe, though they do have a 'Glad Your Gone' Party every Thursday at Grizzlies Stadium and its their busiest day of the week. The hotel is pretty good as well. A Raddison nearby the ballpark that is pretty nice and accomodating. The good news about the hotel is that its within walking distance. The bad news is that you have to walk back to the hotel at night through downtown Fresno. Walking the five blocks from the ballpark to the hotel you sometimes feel the need to announce out loud, "Attention! Attention all would be muggers and serial killers! I am armed and I know karate and some other chinese words and if I whistle my combination Rottweiler Pit Bull Raiders fan will come running and he is trained to kill anybody that so much as looks at me funny! And he's flatulent!" Fresno's economy has improved since our last trip here but they have more than their fair share of people who are nuts. My first day here I needed directions to the ballpark and had to ask a man with a homeless sign hung around his neck. He was also apparently drunk. The conversation went something like this:
ME: Excuse me, can tell me how to get to Grizzlies Stadium?
HOMELESS MAN: WALLAPONIFIA! FELGUSPAR! DRAMAKILOGISUBAL!
ME: Grizzlies Stadium? The ballpark?
HOMELESS MAN: SATAN HYJOLOB! WUGGA BUGGA MUGGA ZIPLOC BAG!
ME: Thanks.
HOMELESS MAN: (GRUNTS).....(GRUNTS AGAIN)
Maybe the only constant is change but as equally true is the saying that the more things change the more things stay the same.
After Fresno its off to Sacramento then Albuquerque, a city with way too many Q's in its name and beautiful sunsets, and dust. Losts and lots of dust. You can't swing a dead cat in Albuwhatever with out hitting some dust and if you hit anything else you just cause more dust.
As always you can email me any questions or comments at:
chuck@nashvillesounds.com
