Archive for the 'Jordi Scrubbings' Category

Jan 03

Jordi is Afghanistan-bound until 2013

Fans do silly things, Jordi Scrubbings, Nice little offseason, Out of our comfort zone, Sometimes cold isn't that cold, Stupid ideas, They asked us to do what?, Where we're going Jordi Scrubbings 7 Comments »

Here is the latest from our correspondent Jordi Scrubbings. And let me be the first to say, we’ll miss you, be safe, hurry back, and Godspeed…

Dear fellow Rays fans,

I am very sad to say that I won’t be joining you at Tropicana Field this season. I recently got a job working with the military and am going to Afghanistan in late January or early February.

For sure, a year is a long time to be gone. I’ll definitely miss going to see the Rays, watching them on TV, or listening to them on the radio. I’ve averaged going to 20 games a season for the last few years and now I’ll have to wait until 2013 to see live baseball again. For a year there will be no Longoria homers, no Price strikeouts, or no seeing BJ race into the gap for a flyball. There will be no Maddon ejections, no Jennings electricity, or no Shields mastery. No Raymond, no promo videos featuring Network and Rocky 2, and no getting dinner at the Boars Head Spaghetti Bar on the fourth floor.

Most importantly of all, however, and probably what I will miss the most, is the inability to be with other fans for a year. There will be no seeing the friends I go to games with, no seeing the friends I’ve made at the ballpark, and no chatting with other fans through twitter. There will be no meeting new people at Fergs, in the parking lot, or in the stands. No frolicking about with a three-foot afro on my head.

Way back in 1998 when Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa were chasing Roger Maris’s single-season home run record, I was deployed to Bosnia. News of who homered when was a common conversation between baseball fans and even non-baseball fans as it was THE news story and news stories of home are great ways to pass the time. I’m sure following the Rays will serve the same purpose. Two weeks after I leave, by the time I get acquainted to my new environment, pitchers and catchers will be reporting. Two months after I arrive, the season will start and following baseball will carry me through the summer and into the fall.

Bart Giamatti once wrote that the end of the baseball season “leaves you to face the fall alone” and “when you need it most, it stops”. In 2012, however, I will use baseball to Read the rest of this entry »

Dec 16

Dwight Howard and Baseball Labor Etiquette

01. Players, Dwight Howard, Evan Longoria, James Shields, Jordi Scrubbings Jordi Scrubbings 3 Comments »

Here is the latest from our correspondent Jordi Scrubbings…

(It’s a slow time for baseball. It’s almost Christmas and the Rays are only making minor moves. This post might only be 40% Rays-related, but I hope you enjoy it nonetheless.)

Imagine you are a seven year-old boy or girl. Imagine the Orlando Magic are the first professional sports team you ever liked. Imagine your mother or father have taken you to several Magic games and you had the time of your life.

Imagine Dwight Howard is your favorite player. Imagine you have a Dwight Howard jersey or t-shirt and Dwight Howard poster on your wall. You haven’t known an Orlando Magic team without Dwight Howard. He has been there your entire life. He is what got you into the Magic.

Then imagine you woke up one morning and the Magic traded Dwight Howard, perhaps to Los Angeles Lakers, perhaps to the New Jersey Nets, perhaps to the Harlem Globetrotters. It doesn’t matter. Your favorite player is no longer on your favorite team.

Players get traded, get released, and their contracts run out and the sign on other teams. That’s part of sports and every kid has to learn that one day. But what happens to the heart of a child when this conversation occurs:

“Mommy, why is Dwight Howard not on the Magic anymore?”

“He didn’t want to play in Orlando anymore, dear.”

“So, he left?”

“Yes dear, he plays in New Jersey now.”

“So he didn’t like Orlando?”

“I guess not, dear.”

“Why didn’t Dwight like it here, Mommy? I like it here. You and Read the rest of this entry »

Dec 06

The Bus Leagues Experience Volume 2 is now available

Alexander Colome, Book Review, Charlotte Stone Crabs, Jordi Scrubbings, Kes Carter Jordi Scrubbings No Comments »

Cork was kind enough to allow me to make this announcement here, and you folks have been really nice to me since I started here and I’m pretty sure you are all baseball fans, so I hope you don’t mind.

When I am not writing here, I also write for a site called Bus Leagues Baseball. We write about the minor leagues and one of the areas we take the most pride in is our interviews. We have interviewed top prospects, coaches, front office officials, media, and even fans. We try to leave no corner of the minors uncovered.

We have taken the best of our interviews this year and put them in a book. From a Rays perspective, we have interviews with top prospect Alexander Colome, former Devil Ray Mark Hendrickson, recent pick Kes Carter, Jim Donten of the Charlotte Stone Crabs blog Claw Digest.com, and former Devil Rays and Tampa Tarpons employee and current Tampa-area blogger Clark Brooks.

Please check out The Bus Leagues Experience Volume 2.

I’m biased, of course, but I think it would make a great gift for the baseball fan on your holiday list.

Thanks!

Dec 02

The Art of Acquiring Intangibles

01. Players, Andrew Friedman, Cheap is as cheap does, Jordi Scrubbings, Jose Molina, Josh Lueke, Lifestyles of the rich famous and good looking, Things that don't end well Jordi Scrubbings No Comments »

Our correspondent Jordi Scrubbing is back with his latest take on all things Rays…

With the annual baseball winter meetings almost upon us (and no, I am not going this year as I did in 2006 and 2010), the Rays are looking to tweak, twist, and trade their way into a better roster than they had last year. Anyone who watched them last year knows they had problems. Even though they won 91 games, they were far from a perfect team.

But before talking about future acquisitions or who the Rays might part ways with, I want to talked about who the Rays have already added to the team this offseason. It is usually rare for the Rays for pick up players in the early days of the offseason. And the two players the Rays have added to the roster so far couldn’t be more diametrically opposite. One is a pitcher who hopes his personal past doesn’t affect his potential, and the other is a catcher who hopes his on-the-field contributions can merit keeping his knowledge.

The last time I wrote here I wrote a letter to Rays owner Stu Sternberg. I wrote about the need to market the team better. I mentioned how the organization could better use social media, how they could better push their personalities, and a few ideas for theme nights and other brainstorms that I thought may increase ticket sales.

One of the ideas I didn’t mention because I thought it was common sense was to stay away from problem children – those players who have somewhat nefarious backgrounds. I get that some problem children have very good stats or very good potential and they usually come cheap. But one slip up could mar public perception of the team and give the organization a deeper black eye than the same action would for the Yankees or the Cubs or any almost any other team.

So far the Rays have had success with players who might be considered “behaviorally risky”. And they’ve shimmied off players such as Elijah Dukes and Al Reyes after their misdeeds. For example, they took a risk on Matt Bush, he of the infamous drunk police dispute and so far Bush has been a success.

Although each player brings his own set of conditions and drama, I think the organization is playing with fire by taking chances with players with nefarious backgrounds. The Rays have to fight against a very difficult environment. For whatever reason the Tampa area is a hotbed for athlete misbehavior and unfortunately I think it’s just a matter of time before the Rays get burnt.

I’m not saying some players can turn over a Read the rest of this entry »

Oct 07

For Whom the Cowbell Tolls, Time Marches On

Cowbells, Jordi Scrubbings, Tampa Bay Rays, Too early to open a beer?, We need more Cowbell, Your thoughts please Jordi Scrubbings 13 Comments »

Our correspondent Jordi Scrubbings is back with his latest take on all things Rays…

I’ve been mulling over how to eulogize the Rays this year. It’s tough to write about a team that was so inconsistent yet overachieved. One that was so baffling yet pulled out one of the greatest runs in baseball history. How can one accurately summarize the 2011 Rays?

Before the season if you would have asked me if the Rays would have won 90 games, I would have definitely taken the under. If you would have asked me how many games the American League Wild Card team would need to win, I would have said 93 or above. There were too many good teams in the AL. Maybe the fact that the Rays made it into the postseason with 91 wins is a testament to a growing parity borne of front offices catching up in decision making with some of the more traditionally successful franchises. Maybe it was because a few traditionally smart teams made some really bad decisions that equaled lower wins – looking at you, Carl Crawford, John Lackey, and Adam Dunn.

So were the Rays good, magical, or just plain lucky?

Maybe I follow the team too closely, but before September, I would have called them maddening. Of course, we all knew they weren’t going to lose 100 games, but six in a row to begin the season was frustrating. Then Manny, then Longo was Read the rest of this entry »

Sep 29

Joy, Jubilation, and the Sheer Exuberance of Victory

Baltimore Orioles, BJ Upton, Boston Red Sox, Cheap is as cheap does, Chicks dig the longball, Cowbells, Dan Johnson, David Price, Evan Longoria, F*ck the Heck?, Feed your mind, Insane in the membrane, Jake McGee, Joe Maddon, joel peralta, Johnny Damon, Jordi Scrubbings, Karma is a bitch, Lifestyles of the rich famous and good looking, Magic Number, Memories, New York Yankees, Other teams envious of Rays payroll, Pink Hat Nation, Pink Sox Nation, Playoffs?, Putting us in our place, Rays look good in glass slippers, Tampa Bay Rays, there are no rules, Things that make us giddy, Too early to open a beer?, Victory!, Walk-off win, Walk-off wins make us giddy, Your thoughts please Jordi Scrubbings 6 Comments »

Our correspondent Jordi Scrubbings was at the game last night. Here is his report. You can also here Jordi tonight on “The Sully Baseball Show” which can be heard HERE…

When I was a younger, I rooted heart and soul for the New York Mets. My dad was a Mets fan and I followed in his footsteps. One of my fondest memories of my dad and I’s shared fandom was when Mookie Wilson’s grounder rolled through Bill Buckner’s legs in Game 6 of the World Series. Being young and skinny, my dad gave me a big hug and swung my around the living room. Although I was a happy new fan, he was overjoyed. The Mets lived to see another day.

Here I am today the roughly same age my dad was in 1986.  The Rays have in many ways replaced the Mets as my true heart’s desire. The Mets are my first fan love and I will never forget them, but since 2007 day-in and day-out I’ve ridden with the Rays.

Although the Rays have made the Read the rest of this entry »

Sep 20

Jordi Talks Rays With a Red Sox Fan

Blog O War, Boston Red Sox, Exagerated headline, Fans do silly things, Feed your mind, Jordi Scrubbings, Other teams envious of Rays payroll, Out of our comfort zone, Things that make us giddy Jordi Scrubbings 1 Comment »

Jordi Scrubbings is back with a special announcement…

Since I started writing here last year I have noticed something: people actually take me for somewhat of a Rays expert. Ha ha, the joke is on them.

Seriously though, in all honesty, it is always very humbling when someone contacts me to get my opinion on the Rays. It has happened on twitter and now, for the first time, it happened on a podcast.

A few months ago, I started a correspondence with California-based Red Sox fan and comedian, filmmaker, and television producer Paul Francis Sullivan. Being that I consider myself a writer/blogger/comic, I look up to Sully and the things he has done. But anyway, Sully and I started following each other on twitter and reading each others’ blogs – it was all very e-migo-ish and blog-bro-tastic of us.

Yesterday, while watching the Red Sox-Orioles game, I received a message from Sully asking me if I would interested in being interviewed for his podcast. Of course, I said yes. So after a few minor technical difficulties (no podcast I ever done goes 100% smooth), Sully and I connected and talked. And talked. And talked.

We talked for almost an hour about the Rays, the Red Sox, my soft spot for Tim Wakefield (we went to the same high school), the brilliance of Joe Maddon, baseball managers and the Hall of Fame, the 2008 Rays, relief pitching, and this year’s playoffs.

So please check out Sully’s podcast featuring me. We come on at the 60:00 mark. Thanks.

Mike Lortz (aka Jordi Scrubbings) Joins the Sully Show

And a big thanks goes out to Sully for the invite. It was fun talking with a Red Sox fan. They are an interesting breed.

Sep 14

The Chance of Opportunity

01. Players, Andy Sonnanstine, Dirk Hayhurst, Feed your mind, Garfoose!, It Gets Better, James Shields, Jordi Scrubbings, pitching is not crowded, Statistical projection, The Bullpen doesn't suck?, Things that make us giddy, Things that should have never happened Jordi Scrubbings 5 Comments »

Our correspondent Jordi Scrubbings is back with his latest installment…

As we venture deeper into the bowels of September, many Rays fans, announcers, bloggers, and baseball pundits have taken to talking “chances”. We are all looking at the remaining schedule, counting games, evaluating opponents and match-ups, and figuring out what the Rays have to do to make the postseason and prolong our baseball entertainment.

(Yes, we’re selfish. We want the team to win because we tie a piece of our happiness to the outcome of a baseball game. It’s cool. Don’t be embarrassed. That’s why we’re here.)

At its very foundation, baseball and chances go hand and hand. Baseball is a game of percentages and numbers, risks and rewards. We talk about runners taking chances on the basepaths and managers moving defenders around the field to minimizing the chance a batter will get a hit. Many of these chances are mathematical, much like playing dice. And this of course is the origin of statistical analysis, so-called SABRmetrics, and the guiding forces behind the Rays hovel of super secret number-crunching Keebler elves.

But baseball has another type of chance, a more personal “chance of opportunity”. Derived in many cases by mathematical chances, the chance of opportunity is what creates our narratives, our stories, our legends, and our heroes. Kirk Gibson, for example, would never have been a World Series hero if not for the opportunity to bat against Dennis Eckersley in October 1988. Lou Gehrig would never have been able to embark on his legendary career if not for the opportunity to replace then-regular Yankee first baseman Wally Pipp. Even Jackie Robinson’s historic 1947 season wouldn’t have happened if not for the opportunity given to him by Branch Rickey.

The 2011 Rays have been chock full of Read the rest of this entry »

Aug 10

The Guilt of Not Going

11 Questions, Attendance, Cheap is as cheap does, Cutting the Fat, Exagerated headline, Fans do silly things, Jordi Scrubbings, Kool Aid, Meta-laziness, My Baseball Bias, No Excuses Tour, Options, The Trop, Things that shine a little less, Too early to open a beer?, Tweetup, We need more Cowbell, Where we're going, Your thoughts please Jordi Scrubbings 15 Comments »

Our correspondent Jordi Scrubbings is back with another take on all things Rays….

I’ll admit, when reported attendance numbers are below 15,000 at Tropicana Field, I feel kinda guilty. I feel guilty because I think I could make a difference. It’s the same guilt I feel during an election when there is a candidate I support but I don’t bother to get out and vote. And then that candidate doesn’t win. Was it because of me? Or was it because of hundreds of other people like me who figured someone else would carry the burden of voting?

Although the worst a candidate can do is raise my taxes, approve or disapprove of transportation measures, cancel programs, stifle the economy, or generally cause the social fabric of the world around me to fall apart, for some reason I am more concerned about an empty seat at Tropicana Field that my tuckus could have sat in.

I wonder if I am the only one. Am I the only person who thinks if the team moves it would be partially my fault for not supporting them to the utmost of my ability?

I am a huge baseball fan. The fact that I am writing here is evidence enough that I am a huge Rays fan. So why aren’t I at every game contributing my +1 to the attendance total?

First and foremost, I am a partial season ticket holder. I go to Read the rest of this entry »

Jul 25

Waiting for Perfect

Attendance, Fans do silly things, Jordi Scrubbings, State of the Franchise, The Trop, Things that make me want to club a stuffed baby seal, Things that shine a little less, Too early to open a beer?, Your thoughts please Jordi Scrubbings 16 Comments »

The latest from our senior afrologist Jordi Scrubbings…

They don’t play baseball on the beach. And for good reason. It is incredibly tough to run on the beach. And ground balls don’t roll very well in the sand.

But beaches in Florida are quite popular. Outside of the prolific House of the Mouse, I’d guess beaches are the number one tourist destination in Florida. People come from all over the world to the beaches of Florida, and specifically to our local beaches such as Clearwater Beach, St. Pete Beach, and Siesta Key.

Beaches are interesting places. They have to be well-kept, lest you have litter on your landscape. They predominantly have to be kid-friendly, as you don’t want creepers and hoodlums ruining the experience. And beaches need good press, as local areas want to see their beaches listed at the top of any possible category, from most beautiful to best sand to most beautiful bodies. Being a top beach brings a sense of pride, good reputation, and most importantly, it brings visitors and money.

But beaches have an Achilles heel. No matterhow well-kept, no matter how popular, and no matter how great the sunset, hardly any one goes to the beach when it rains.

Baseball in Tampa Bay and Florida in general reminds me a lot of the beach.

For whatever reason, Floridians only Read the rest of this entry »

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