Posted on 10/08/2014 11:01:01 AM PDT by JennysCool
Baseball games aren't won or lost on one catch, are they? The game between the Nationals and Giants last night just may have been. Hunter Pence of the Giants made a spectacular catch to rob Jayson Werth of the Nationals of an extra-base hit, and this photo became an instant classic. But it's more than a great sports shot. The crowd behind the chain-link watching the catch is pure Norman Rockwell. I think this photo captures the America we love, and would like to have back someday.
I like the little kid in the corner.
The G-Men, a mix of skill, pure luck, and uncanny managing. On paper, they’re never the best team in baseball, but they somehow manage to win. I think it all comes down to Bruce Bochy. He keeps them grounded, but lets them be a little crazy. They’re just a terrific bunch to watch, and their announcers, Kruk and Kuip, are the best and most entertaining in baseball, I think.
I think baseball fans are all, a little bit, that kid in the corner.
that was great
Wow - baseball and Norman Rockwell. Seems like so long ago. It really does feel like it’s part of the past. Scary.
Thanks so much for posting that!
Especially now that there is instant replay.
Slight correction - does any sport lend itself better to overly melodramatic writing/speechifying by dweebs that have never played said sport at any type of decent level (if at all) - Giamatti/Costas/Will/Olberdork/Lupica and on and on.....
Sorry, in that kind of mood today (but it's true).
On a somewhat related note ...
I have spent years looking for a digital version of what I remember as THE best baseball photo I've ever seen. It was taken at the old Tiger Stadium from beyond the left field fence during a night game. For fans who don't remember that old stadium, it had a short outfield wall with a "cage" or chain-link fence on top of it. The photo showed a small kid -- maybe 7-8 years old -- from behind ... standing on top of the wall with his right hand grasping the fence to hold him in place, and an oversized baseball glove on his left hand.
I don't remember if it was a color photo, but it may as well have been a black & white photo because it was taken at a night game and the combination of the dark sky and brilliant stadium lights gave it great contrasts that diminished the colors on the field. Because the photo was taken towards the field from 1-2 rows behind the kid, all you could see was a silhouette of the kid and a tiny halo effect around his head and body from all the light in the background.
I seem to remember the photo was titled "Waiting for Cecil" -- a reference to Detroit's right-handed slugger Cecil Fielder at the time, who had hit many a home run over that left field fence into those bleachers. The photo was featured in one of the major sports publications as its "Photo of the Year" in the early 1990s (maybe Baseball Weekly).
Now THAT was a "Norman Rockwell" baseball photo if I ever saw one!
Being of Scottish ancestry, the name 'Royals' invokes imagery of oppression by the British crown. As such, I am offended by the use of that word as a nickname for a sports team and insist that it be changed. In lieu of a name change, 1% of all Kansas City Royal royalties (a word which is not offensive) can be forwarded to tnlibertarian to be used to console my poor, offended sensitivities.
Next to the Giants, the Royals were my pick.
Not anymore.
Next to the Giants, the Royals were my pick.
Not anymore.
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nbc-yahoo-sports/giants-continue-to-win-in-bizarre--unimaginable-ways-140414222.html
"The mutant product of the Insane Clown Posse and a gathering of warlocks.
There are forces here that neither they nor we fully understand, but take care to wear rubbed-soled shoes to prevent electrical shocks. This is way more than Torture. This is the occult with cleats."
Just win, baby.
Amazing catch. Pence looks like he is in the middle of a seizure with everything he does, but boy it works for him. I mean who wears socks above the knees?!! Giants sure handed it to the Nats, they played great and deserved to win. I actually thought the Buccos were more dangerous to the Nats chances, Nostradamus I’m not.
Freegards
I am totally biased here as a hockey fan, but one of the things that really sets it apart from a lot of other sports is that its most eloquent writer about hockey-related subjects was a former player (Montreal's Hall of Fame goaltender, Ken Dryden).
In fact, I'd even go so far as to say that his two best-selling books, The Game and Home Game: Hockey and Life in Canada were among the biggest factors in cultivating a love of hockey in me. I was a baseball/football/basketball/soccer fan (in that order of interest) at one time, but my interest in those sports has diminished considerably in the last 15-20 years.
P.S. I think The Game is the best sports book I've ever read -- hands down. Even if you're not a hockey fan you might find it enjoyable. It's written in an interesting autobiographical format, with Dryden alternating between a chronological reflection on his life in hockey, and almost a day-by-day chronicling of his last season playing for Montreal. The insight he gives (on a wide range of subjects), and the look he gives into the daily life of an NHL player in Montreal, are amazing.
I have a similar photo of a flaming sunset at Fenway Park. I haven't uploaded it to a server, but I'll see if I can figure out how to post it.
I agree. And the older style throw-back to earlier uniforms makes you think it could have been a Rockwell.
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