SB Nation User Blog: Christina

Goodbye Mi-KEY. Hello, Cooperstown.

Christina — Wed, 21 May 2008 16:48:53 -0000

You guys knew I would have some thoughts on this, right? Well, I cannot disappoint you. Here is the post that will go up on my blog later today. My memories of the Strongest Man In So Cal.

Yesterday, one of the greatest hitting catchers of all time announced his retirement. Mike Piazza. Mi-KEY to me. He started off as an LA Dodger back when I still claimed to be bleeding Dodger Blue. My love of the Dodgers was waning as I had been in San Diego long enough that the Padres were starting to tug at my heart. But I couldn't let go quite yet when this monster hitter appeared on the scene. Oh how I love catchers! Especially good looking, home run hitting catchers :-) Mike has a connection to the first one. #27 - Carlton Fisk for the Red Sox and # 72 for the White Sox. Kinda eerie then that Mike retires with 427 career home runs. Speaking of that - SportsBoy and I were blessed to see him hit #400. Why? Because he was a Padre for one magical season in 2006. Long time blog readers might recall my elation when my home town Padres signed Piazza. There was quite a bit of joy in mudville. Crazy me will always remember where I was when it was announced :-) I was very happy that I had decided to go for one last year of season tickets. Sportsboy and I immediately noted when photo day was scheduled. The opportunity to have our picture taken with Mike? Oh so priceless. Its hard to see but trust me, my knees are *knocking* here:

via farm4.static.flickr.com

Alex and I share a lot of memories of Mike. It all starts back to a time he doesn't remember. The summer of 1998 I was watching a ton of Dodger games still along with following the Padres in their push to a World Series berth. Torn between two teams I was! The Dodger tv broadcasts could still be seen in San Diego and I watched a lot mostly to hear Vin Scully to the broadcasts and to watch Mike. I developed the habit of saying Mi-KEY whenever he would come up to bat. I guess I said it a lot because Alex's first official word was - Mi-KEY! Then it was on 8/11/05 while Mike was still with the Mets that I took Alex to the game for his b-day which was with the Mets in town. He was chosen on that day to be the Play Ball Kid which was a huge thrill and though Mike did not play that day, I still link him to it as he was an additional reason for us to go. Oh gosh, I just remembered another shared moment well before he joined the Padres. Must have been 2003, the Padres last year at the Q. It was the first full game that Alex and I attended together and I got us really good seats on the third base line to see the Mets and Mike. What we saw was the Mets turn a triple play AND Mike hit a grand slam. Bad day for our Padres, but a nice one for Mike and his team and Alex's first look at Mike in person.

2006 - oh we loved it. Sitting in our right field front row seats. Watching Mike warm up the starting pitcher in the bullpen and then walking out, usually having to stop part way to sing the National Anthem. A few times stopping right in front of us :-) Mike swinging that sweet bat and driving a home run in his very first at bat as a Padre right into the seats in front of us. Then there was a game late in the season when Piazza hit a triple. Yes, a 37 year old creaky-kneed catcher hitting a triple. It was damn funny because he was huffing and puffing as he rounded second and from our right field seats we were "pushing" at the air to "help" him get in to third. We laughed a long time over that one. He had a statistically strong season for the Padres in a year that they won their division (though died as always in the first round of the playoffs). I thought it was a great way to end his full-time catching career to be in the mild weather on the west coast where he had a history of very loyal fans. As a Dodger he was known as the Strongest Man in So Cal and for that one year in San Diego he showed flashes of that.

When he moved on to the A's last year so that he could primarily DH and then suffered a shoulder injury, I started saying then, time to retire. Newly married with his first child just born, I thought it would be better for his own legacy to just walk away, so ultimately I am glad no team picked him up this off season.

Ah, so many sweet memories. Our Mi-KEY. Eligible for his first Hall Of Fame ballot 2013. I will be doing everything I can to make sure that is one more memory that Alex and I share with him. Cooperstown, here we come!

OPEN THREAD: You really are a diehard if you are listening to spring training games

Christina — Fri, 02 Mar 2007 21:33:41 -0000

[editor's note, by Dex] AHEM... Consider this an open thread :)

That is the text message I just received from guy the who sits next to me here at work. Yes, I am listening to the game online! Yes, I am wondering why we don't have an open thread for the game! I saw on the A's blog that there were over 300 comments on their first spring training game thread. 300! Yes, I know I am completely insane. Anyone else with me? Game is tied 2-2. PMac hit a HR. CY gave up a 2run HR in the 1st then settled down.

Uncle Barry back in school!

Christina — Tue, 30 Jan 2007 18:29:18 -0000

After weeks of anticipation and complete secrecy, the day finally arrived for Uncle Barry to visit his niece at school.

In case you are new to Gaslamp, my son Alex shares a 5th grade classroom with Barry Zito's niece. Hence the Uncle Barry moniker. About a month ago Alex swore me to secrecy and told me that his class would be getting a special visitor. Yesterday was the day! Alex was ready with our camera. Their teacher had to close the window blinds and logged the hour with Uncle Barry as "Physics" so no other class knew about it. Not an incorrect topic actually since he demonstrated his different pitch grips and talked to them about how/why each one spins and travels differently to the plate. He posed for pictures, signed autographs and answered the kids questions. Come to the pizza party on Feb 10th to hear Alex tell you more!

Season Ticketholder Event Tonight

Christina — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 21:42:53 -0000

Alex and I are going to the Season Ticketholder event tonight at Petco. Obviously this is for 2006 ticket plans! It sounds like a very cool event - my seat neighbor the last three years recommended that I go this time. Parking will be free, concessions will be open of course, but they will also serve us free light food and non-alchoholic beverages. Padres gear will also be on sale 50-60% off tonight just for us.

I just received a phone call from a Padres ticket representative asking if I was going and then asking about renewal for 2007. I had to tell him no, but he was very understanding about my reasons. He filled me in on what to expect tonight and thanked me for supporting the Padres the last three years. Maybe I am a pushover, but I thought it was a nice touch that they are making those calls. Oh! Then he reminded me that I had a credit on my marketplace account and he said he would get a refund check out. Sheesh! I totally forgot and now I have a little more holiday $$ coming. Sweet.

So guys - if they let us ask questions - what should I ask?

Inside source - Zito angling for the Yankees

Christina — Mon, 20 Nov 2006 21:14:20 -0000

I promised you a report from the elementary school playground. Apparently I did not need to urge my son to question his classmate - he was already on top of it!

She is going to have Thanksgiving with Uncle Barry, and Alex has passed on that the Padres fans really really want him here. However, the discouraging news is that the report from the niece is that he wants a World Series contender and has always coveted the Yankee pinstripes. So, if the Yankees make a serious play for him, that is where he will most likely sign. Arrgh!!!

Thank you ABY!

Christina — Mon, 13 Nov 2006 02:07:14 -0000

This was the weekend of the Breast cancer 3-day in San Diego. I was a participant as I shared with everyone awhile ago. When I found out that the closing ceremonies would be at Petco, I invited you guys down and told you to look for a Gaslamp Baller shirt (no way anyone else would be wearing one, right?) Flash forward to today and let me tell you how a fellow Gaslamper absolutely made my day.

I've done 2 other 3-days in '02 and '03. Camped each time and finished with nothing more than stiffness and sore feet. Not one blister or pulled anything. This year I had already decided to go home each night since Sat night I had to see my son's final pop warner game in Murietta. Day 1 on Friday went from the Del Mar Fairgrounds to Crown Point. I was fine until lunch at La Jolla Shores when I felt a blister on the bottom on one toe on my right foot. Funny what that does to you! I must have changed my normal walking gait. In fact, I know I did because I was purpsefully leading with my left leg going up and down curbs. Saturday I returned to the campsite at Crown Point and got myself onto the route when it opened at 6:15. By 7:30 my left knee was barking badly - most likely from changes made due to the blister. A tightened IT band was diagnosed by the medical crew. I walked through it until mile 15 when another blister formed on my right foot and the right knee started having the same pain. I had to take a van back to camp. This depressed me greatly and I felt like a failure and hated giving up. This morning everything was actually worse and I knew I could not even try to do the route today. Still, I had told you guys I would be there! And I had friends still on the walk and I DID raise the money and wanted to be in the closing ceremony. So at 2:00 I went downtown. The knees were cooperating enough to allow me to slowly on level ground and I went in search of the finishing area for the walkers to cheer them on. Then a woman walks up to me and point to my t-shirt and asks if I am looking for Christina. I told her it was me and she introduced herself. It was ABY! I was floored! I had no idea any of you would seriously go down to greet me. AND - she had a gift bag with tissues, soothing bath salts and Absolut Mandarin Vodka!!! Well, she really lifted my spirits because I was seriously wondering if I could even rejoin everyone at the end since I had not been with them all day. So I carried my gift bag from ABY and went through the finish line. The Park at the Park was filled with walkers. All of them cheering as more filed through the line. Music was playing and miraculously every was bouncing along despite the miles on their shoes. At one point we were all waving our arms for the survivors who did the walk and I looked back at the grassy hill where fans usually sit and saw all these arms waving in unison. Our ballpark was a fabulous setting for this event.

Come to Petco Park Nov 12

Christina — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 03:10:32 -0000

As so many of you wonderful Gaslampballers know, I am walking in the Breast Cancer 3-day event in San Diego Nov 10-12. Well, I just found out that I will basically be walking from my main home to my second home!

I live in Carmel Valley and the event starts out from the Del Mar Fairgrounds. It ends at Petco Park :-) With so many of you dropping donations into my fund raising account, I was planning on wearing our t-shirt one day. Now I know which day. I shall proudly wear the numbers shirt on Day 3 as I walk into our stadium. I promise you that I will cry too. Not just for finishing the event and raising money for a cause near and dear to my heart. But also because it will be my first time back there since Trevor's Save.
So if any of you are in the area on the 12th, the closing ceremonies are supposed to be at 4:30 which means the walkers will be entering the area sometime between 2:00-4:00pm. I can probably guarantee that I will be the only one with our shirt! Bring me tissues. And vodka ;->