Bad trips and flashbacks
The Pirates’ criminal assault on Italian Sausage has been repaid to the tune of 17 consecutive losses to the Brewers.
Dear Ken,
It must have been nice to return to your hometown — good ol’ Pittsburgh, PA — and come away with another sweep of the Pirates. I could sense in your Tuesday post-game press conference that you were saddened by the dire state of baseball in the Steel City. I too felt bad watching on TV. The sparse attendance (both games drew under 9,000) took me back to the sad, dark days of Milwaukee baseball. That’s right, Ken. Things were pretty bad here at one time, not very long ago. If I close my eyes and focus real hard, I can fight the repression and travel back to when the Brewers were just as shitty, if not worse, than the Pirates …
… The era of Wendy Selig-Prieb low-budget ball. When Bob Wickman was our lone all-star representative because they had to pick somebody. When our best hitter was an Australian catcher. When we’d get excited for Jeff D’Amico’s turn in the rotation. Or Cal Eldred’s. Because Ben McDonald was on the DL. Before the roof, sitting frozen-assed on damp chairs in April, the smell of mildew emitting from the rotting cushions in the “luxury seats;” watching Scott Karl get shelled by the Royals, waiting for Angel Miranda to come in and walk a few batters, as sprinkles turn to drizzle then frozen rain, prompting a walk under the bleachers to visitor’s bullpen with some dudes from the JV baseball team to heckle Mackey Sasser as he warms up Hipolito Pichardo, who then strikes out Jeromy Burnitz (swinging, throws bat) then Jose Hernandez (looking, best pitch of the AB) in the bottom half of the inning. A 162-game cycle of frustration–depression–bargaining–denial–acceptance, halted only by football season …
But it’s better now. Got a nice stadium, an invested ownership, talented ballplayers under contract — things are looking OK. Some of us could use some more reassurance though. Steve at the Decider thinks Ryan Braun is destined to pull a Molitor after his contract is up in 2016. It’s a “High Fidelity” thing — are you a John Cusack fan? He’s probably right, but that’s not to say we can’t pimp him out for some prospects. In the age of Brett Favre, you gotta expect heartbreak, not pine over it. Am I right? Nobody’s got the Robin Yount mentality any more. It’s a bygone just like those plastic-y blue belts from the ’80’s.
Look at that belt: Was there ever a Brewer as triumphant as Rob Deer?
Things are firing on all cylinders for you, Ken. A four-game winning streak. A chain of quality starts from your rotation. A healthy Ryan Braun, and a confident J.J. Hardy breaking out of his slump. You got Rickie Weeks hitting clutch home runs, and Mike Cam’ron is on pace to set career-highs in every offensive category. Aside from a slip by Carlos Villanueva, the pen has been solid — if Trevor Hoffman’s psych-out tactics were any more effective, hitters would be swallowing their tongue on the way back to the dugout. Things couldn’t be much better. Keep it up!
Best Regards,
Adam Lovinus
