The Fall of Atlanta

Late word came in this evening that Skip Caray passed away in his sleep last night.  While Skip wasn’t the best announcer in baseball (nor was he the worst), as a Braves fan, he was OUR announcer.  My formative baseball fan years were spent in front of a TV in Myrtle Beach, SC watching a BAD Braves team led by Dale Murphy, and listening to Skip and Ernie Johnson, Sr. handling the call of the game.  Pete Van Wieren would later replace Ernie, giving us the traditional Braves duo… whom they even have a BBQ joint at Turner Field named after.  My favorite Skip memory is that of most everyone else: Sid Bream improbably beating Barry Bonds’ throw from left field with two outs in the bottom of the ninth to defeat Pittsburgh in Game Seven of the ‘92 NLCS.  Ironically, that was my LAST night in Myrtle Beach (we were leaving for Alabama the following day) and our cable got knocked out in the 7th inning, leaving us only a radio to keep up with the game.  Sid slid and the Braves won, Braves won, Braves won, Braves won, Braves won, Braves won.

My night at the Ted…..

Almost every year since my wife, Jennifer, and I started dating, I have received tickets to a Braves game at Turner Field from my father-in-law. Normally, they are to a Cubs/Braves game since I am a huge Cubs fan. This year, however, the Cubs are only playing in Atlanta once and it is during the week. I can’t afford to take any time off to go see them, so I went to see the Braves play the Oakland A’s last night (Saturday).

Jenn’s dad gets these seats from a vendor that he buys from on a regular basis. They are fantastic seats in the first row down the first base line, right behind the scrolling sign on the brick wall. I took a picture of the view looking towards home plate.

Now, that picture was taken with a cell phone camera, but you get the idea. I also got about 45 minutes of video with my mini-DV cam before the game, so once I get that cut down to some manageable clips, I will post them here. I was hoping to get some game footage, but due to MLB copyright policies, I couldn’t.

A few observations from the game:

• The atmosphere at Turner Field before the game is pretty cool. There are bands out on the concourse. There are trivia games with fans that are shown on the jumbotron. There’s even tailgating in the parking lots.
• Notice I said “before the game”? Once the game starts, it’s a completely different story. For a team with as much success as the Braves, you would think the fans would show some support. WRONG! There were so many empty seats, it was pathetic. And they were good seats, too. Sure the upper deck was almost empty, but so were a lot of seats in the lower levels.
• They couldn’t even seem to show much support during a rally. The Braves went into the bottom of the 9th inning, trailing 5-1 with the A’s normally lights out closer, Huston Street, pitching. With patience at the plate and some timely hitting, the Braves battled back to get within one at 5-4. They were down to their last out, and the tying run on second base, but you wouldn’t even know it. Sure, there was cheering and clapping, but not the unbridled, jump up and down, let your team know you want them to win screaming and yelling. It was sad really. I almost feel sorry for Larry and the other guys on the team……almost.
• And people say the Cubs have the most drunk and obnoxious fans? Well, I’m here to tell you that every team has them. There has not been a year that I have attended a game that there wasn’t a drunk fan near us screaming obscenities at the umpires and/or players. Last night, after Braves second baseman, Kelly Johnson, allowed a ball to get through his legs, one “fan” in particular yelled, “I hope you break your fuckin’ legs!” Now, I have been known to swear on occasion….well, OK, I pretty much curse like a sailor, but I keep it in check when there are families and young children around. At least I have that much common sense.

This isn’t Braves related, but I know it’s going to piss off Solly, so I’m posting it anyway. On the way home, we stopped at an outlet mall to look for a few things for the kids. We stopped at one store in particular that was one of those places with the irregular and discontinued clothes. I’m walking through the section with the athletic t-shirts, and I come across this:

Oops! I really hope the players weren’t wearing any of those shirts during the last two and a half weeks of the ‘07 season. They lost sight of the Playoffs quicker than Moose trying to find the citations for his thesis.

This is the year, though, right Solly?