There is ONE thing in my life that makes me feel American - Baseball. If you know me, you know that baseball is truly intertwined in my life, and there's nothing more American - to me - than baseball. So, I drove to Riverside, picked up Janie & Gary and we went to a ball game.
It was really hazy today. It was in the low 80's and breezy. We all had a moment of silence - the quietest the park has been in a while. It was all reverent and poignant. I needed to be here.
Alas, the day should have been better. Esteban Loaiza was trying for his 20th win. Frank Thomas got his 40th homer of the season in the first, but our defense just flew apart in the third when Carl Everett had a throwing error that eventually allowed 2 then a third run to score when we actually had two runners trapped between the bases if someone was paying attention, and we're down 4-1. In the 4th, A.J. Pierzynski grounds to Brian Daubach at first who throws to second to get the lead runner Torii Hunter and Jose Valentin attempts to complete the double play by throwing back to first... only nobody is there. Daubach never went back to the bag and Loaiza was trying to get there... it was Valentin's 16th error of the season. Loaiza was never getting strikes over the outside corner of the plate for left-handed batters. It was frustrating him. In the meantime the Sox could never seem to get back into it. By the 8th, it starts to feel like Manuel is throwing in the towel... fresh off the DL and rehab, he brings in Billy Koch - who actually strikes out 2 and gives up a hit. Really, that's not bad. Manuel also brings in Jamie Burke to catch and Aaron Miles pinch hits. Jose Valentin hits what is barely a homerun in the 9th with 2 out, but we never get back in. It's over. Brad Radke pitched a complete game.
The Magic Number is still 17 - we are tied with the Twins for first. It should have been so much better...
(Boxscore)
2008
2005- White Sox 1 - Angels 6
- Four Years On
2004- Anniversaries
- 3 Years
2002- You're travelling through another dimension...
- Remembering one year ago