First off, great win by the Twins. Baker struggled, but the Twins got
the runs later to make up for it. The runs by Morneau and Kubel
were real treats for the fans last night.

Secondly, the dust up over the umps blown call, Gardy's reaction,
and the fans reaction is way overblown. It wasn't a big deal. A few
fans threw their hats on the field after Gardy threw his when he was
ejected. Can't blame Gardy, Span was clearly hit by the pitch. The
few fans that threw hats onto the field were boneheads, and I heard
that someone threw a baseball out there, too...although I didn't see
it. That is really lame, if it happened.

But, Ozzie overreacted, as usual. He was yelling at the fans
and just being Ozzie, so he definitely didn't help the situation, IMO.

In any case, the 'incident' certainly shifted the momentum to the
Twins, who were energized by Gardy's ejection and the fans
emotions. And they gave the fans exactly what they wanted...a
series win over the ChiSox.

On to the Indians series, which should be another series win for
the Twins!

Go Twins!





- Scott Smith: scott.smith@iphouse.com
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/choppersmith

On Aug 1, 9:39 am, S. Smith <scott.sm...@iphouse.com> wrote:
>
> Secondly, the dust up over the umps blown call, Gardy's reaction,
> and the fans reaction is way overblown. It wasn't a big deal. A few
> fans threw their hats on the field after Gardy threw his when he was
> ejected.

Not condoning it, but it was actually pretty funny, at least at first.
For those first 5-10 seconds after Gardy punted his hat, the rain of
hats was hilarious. But after that, it just became lemming behavior.

Matt

> On Aug 1, 9:39�am, S. Smith <scott.sm...@iphouse.com> wrote:

> Secondly, the dust up over the umps blown call, Gardy's reaction,
> and the fans reaction is way overblown. It wasn't a big deal. A few
> fans threw their hats on the field after Gardy threw his when he was
> ejected. Can't blame Gardy, Span was clearly hit by the pitch. The
> few fans that threw hats onto the field were boneheads, and I heard
> that someone threw a baseball out there, too...although I didn't see
> it. That is really lame, if it happened.

I was at the game. Scott, I didn't know I was going until about 4:00
yesterday so I couldn't make arrangements to meet. Sorry about that.

Yep, the incident was really overblown by the press. Here's how Yahoo
Sports reported it:

"The game was stopped for several minutes when fans threw hats and
baseballs onto the turf and had the White Sox running for the shelter
of the dugout."

That isn't what happened. If you hadn't seen, and after reading this,
I imagine you'd think the White Sox were hustling into the dugout with
their hands over their heads sheltering themselves from being pelted.
That's not how it was at all.

After some fans threw their hats out there a couple of fans (lemmings,
as Matt says) threw baseballs out there. They landed in foul territory
near the Twins dugout and near the Twins bullpen. Someone even threw
out a kids mini-football that landed near the backstop on the Twins
side of home plate. That's when Ozzie leisurely strolled out there and
beckoned his team to come into the dugout. The White Sox players
walked or casually jogged into the dugout.

> But, Ozzie overreacted, as usual. �He was yelling at the fans
> and just being Ozzie, so he definitely didn't help the situation, IMO.

Yes, Ozzie mismanaged the bullpen again. Ozzie yelled at some fans
sitting above his dugout.

On Aug 1, 12:15�pm, powrwrap <powrw...@aol.com> wrote:
> > On Aug 1, 9:39 am, S. Smith <scott.sm...@iphouse.com> wrote:
> > But, Ozzie overreacted, as usual. He was yelling at the fans
> > and just being Ozzie, so he definitely didn't help the situation, IMO.
>
> Yes, Ozzie mismanaged the bullpen again. Ozzie yelled at some fans
> sitting above his dugout.



I've come to the conclusion that Ozzie is an idiot. He's more volatile
than a manager should be. The one thing an opposing player or manager
should never do is acknowledge the home town fans. It just fires them
up and makes them want to get under your skin. But if Ozzie wants to
give the Minnesota fans a reason to get fired up, that's his decision,
I guess. As long as the White Sox lose :)


DES
From many... One.

On Fri, 1 Aug 2008 10:15:24 -0700 (PDT), powrwrap <powrwrap@aol.com>
wrote:

>> On Aug 1, 9:39?am, S. Smith <scott.sm...@iphouse.com> wrote:
>
>> Secondly, the dust up over the umps blown call, Gardy's reaction,
>> and the fans reaction is way overblown. It wasn't a big deal. A few
>> fans threw their hats on the field after Gardy threw his when he was
>> ejected. Can't blame Gardy, Span was clearly hit by the pitch. The
>> few fans that threw hats onto the field were boneheads, and I heard
>> that someone threw a baseball out there, too...although I didn't see
>> it. That is really lame, if it happened.
>
>I was at the game. Scott, I didn't know I was going until about 4:00
>yesterday so I couldn't make arrangements to meet. Sorry about that.

Maybe next time.

>Yep, the incident was really overblown by the press. Here's how Yahoo
>Sports reported it:
>
>"The game was stopped for several minutes when fans threw hats and
>baseballs onto the turf and had the White Sox running for the shelter
>of the dugout."
>
>That isn't what happened. If you hadn't seen, and after reading this,
>I imagine you'd think the White Sox were hustling into the dugout with
>their hands over their heads sheltering themselves from being pelted.
>That's not how it was at all.

No, it wasn't like that at all. In fact, I really didn't see any real
reason for Ozzie to call his team in.

>After some fans threw their hats out there a couple of fans (lemmings,
>as Matt says) threw baseballs out there. They landed in foul territory
>near the Twins dugout and near the Twins bullpen. Someone even threw
>out a kids mini-football that landed near the backstop on the Twins
>side of home plate. That's when Ozzie leisurely strolled out there and
>beckoned his team to come into the dugout. The White Sox players
>walked or casually jogged into the dugout.

Yes, there was really no need for them to leave the field. Well,
other that Ozzie trying to add to the drama.

>> But, Ozzie overreacted, as usual. ?He was yelling at the fans
>> and just being Ozzie, so he definitely didn't help the situation, IMO.
>
>Yes, Ozzie mismanaged the bullpen again. Ozzie yelled at some fans
>sitting above his dugout.

From where we were sitting, you could see Ozzie yelling at the
fan(s) and beckoning for them to come get him on the field. Not
very smart.




- Scott Smith: scott.smith@iphouse.com
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/choppersmith

On Aug 1, 12:22 pm, "DeeEs...@aol.com" <DeeEs...@aol.com> wrote:
> On Aug 1, 12:15 pm, powrwrap <powrw...@aol.com> wrote:
>
> > > On Aug 1, 9:39 am, S. Smith <scott.sm...@iphouse.com> wrote:
> > > But, Ozzie overreacted, as usual. He was yelling at the fans
> > > and just being Ozzie, so he definitely didn't help the situation, IMO..
>
> > Yes, Ozzie mismanaged the bullpen again. Ozzie yelled at some fans
> > sitting above his dugout.
>
> I've come to the conclusion that Ozzie is an idiot. He's more volatile
> than a manager should be.  The one thing an opposing player or manager
> should never do is acknowledge the home town fans. It just fires them
> up and makes them want to get under your skin. But if Ozzie wants to
> give the Minnesota fans a reason to get fired up, that's his decision,
> I guess. As long as the White Sox lose  :)
>
> DES
> From many... One.

Do you remember when he gave the "Piranhas" their name? He has done
the Twins a few favors over the years. I think you are right. His
volatility and strangeness have served to fire up the opposition.
Gardy wants to claim to be real emotional. That's what he said in his
apology for last night. But I see his tirades as completely staged
and strategic. He is actually kind of good at it.

brianj

> On Aug 1, 2:04 pm, brianj <firstp...@turtlecreek.net> wrote:

> But I see his tirades as completely staged
> and strategic.  He is actually kind of good at it.

Agreed. He had to know he would be ejected for arguing balls and
strikes yet he went out there and threw a hissy fit. I loved the bit
when he put his palms together, fingers pointing toward the roof, as
if imploring in prayer to be heard by the umpire.

On Fri, 1 Aug 2008 10:22:04 -0700 (PDT), "DeeEss57@aol.com"
<DeeEss57@aol.com> wrote:

>On Aug 1, 12:15?pm, powrwrap <powrw...@aol.com> wrote:
>> > On Aug 1, 9:39 am, S. Smith <scott.sm...@iphouse.com> wrote:
>> >
>> > But, Ozzie overreacted, as usual. He was yelling at the fans
>> > and just being Ozzie, so he definitely didn't help the situation, IMO.
>>
>> Yes, Ozzie mismanaged the bullpen again. Ozzie yelled at some fans
>> sitting above his dugout.
>
>
>
>I've come to the conclusion that Ozzie is an idiot. He's more volatile
>than a manager should be. The one thing an opposing player or manager
>should never do is acknowledge the home town fans. It just fires them
>up and makes them want to get under your skin. But if Ozzie wants to
>give the Minnesota fans a reason to get fired up, that's his decision,
>I guess. As long as the White Sox lose :)


Ozzie is typically considered a "players manager", meaning that he
acts more like a player than a manager a lot of the time. He likes to
joke and hang out with his players, acting more like their buddy than
their leader. And that's fine....but it often gets him into trouble
with the way he talks to the press, or conducts himself at games.

I was surprised how calm and relaxed Ozzie was after the game. He was
even joking about how he and Gardy keep the league rich with all
of the money in fines they pay out for ejections. He seemed to find
it all pretty amusing, really.





- Scott Smith: scott.smith@iphouse.com
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/choppersmith

S. Smith wrote:
> On Fri, 1 Aug 2008 10:15:24 -0700 (PDT), powrwrap <powrwrap@aol.com>
> wrote:
>
>>> On Aug 1, 9:39?am, S. Smith <scott.sm...@iphouse.com> wrote:
>>
>>> Secondly, the dust up over the umps blown call, Gardy's reaction,
>>> and the fans reaction is way overblown. It wasn't a big deal. A few
>>> fans threw their hats on the field after Gardy threw his when he was
>>> ejected. Can't blame Gardy, Span was clearly hit by the pitch. The
>>> few fans that threw hats onto the field were boneheads, and I heard
>>> that someone threw a baseball out there, too...although I didn't see
>>> it. That is really lame, if it happened.
>>
>> I was at the game. Scott, I didn't know I was going until about 4:00
>> yesterday so I couldn't make arrangements to meet. Sorry about that.
>
> Maybe next time.
>
>> Yep, the incident was really overblown by the press. Here's how Yahoo
>> Sports reported it:
>>
>> "The game was stopped for several minutes when fans threw hats and
>> baseballs onto the turf and had the White Sox running for the shelter
>> of the dugout."
>>
>> That isn't what happened. If you hadn't seen, and after reading this,
>> I imagine you'd think the White Sox were hustling into the dugout
>> with their hands over their heads sheltering themselves from being
>> pelted. That's not how it was at all.
>
> No, it wasn't like that at all. In fact, I really didn't see any real
> reason for Ozzie to call his team in.
>
>> After some fans threw their hats out there a couple of fans
>> (lemmings, as Matt says) threw baseballs out there. They landed in
>> foul territory near the Twins dugout and near the Twins bullpen.
>> Someone even threw out a kids mini-football that landed near the
>> backstop on the Twins side of home plate. That's when Ozzie
>> leisurely strolled out there and beckoned his team to come into the
>> dugout. The White Sox players walked or casually jogged into the
>> dugout.
>
> Yes, there was really no need for them to leave the field. Well,
> other that Ozzie trying to add to the drama.
>
>>> But, Ozzie overreacted, as usual. ?He was yelling at the fans
>>> and just being Ozzie, so he definitely didn't help the situation,
>>> IMO.
>>
>> Yes, Ozzie mismanaged the bullpen again. Ozzie yelled at some fans
>> sitting above his dugout.
>
> From where we were sitting, you could see Ozzie yelling at the
> fan(s) and beckoning for them to come get him on the field. Not
> very smart.

Call me strange, but I like this about Ozzie... I am so sick of boorish
fans playing "tough guy" with players knowing full well that fans are pretty
much always safe from repercussions. I love to see a guy like Ozzie with
the guts to stand up to those guys and he can give it back to them better...
IMO loudmouth fans need to be put in their place much more than most
players/coaches...

brink

On Fri, 1 Aug 2008 13:28:33 -0700, "brink" <brinknospam@hotmail.com>
wrote:

>S. Smith wrote:
>> On Fri, 1 Aug 2008 10:15:24 -0700 (PDT), powrwrap <powrwrap@aol.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>>>> On Aug 1, 9:39?am, S. Smith <scott.sm...@iphouse.com> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Secondly, the dust up over the umps blown call, Gardy's reaction,
>>>> and the fans reaction is way overblown. It wasn't a big deal. A few
>>>> fans threw their hats on the field after Gardy threw his when he was
>>>> ejected. Can't blame Gardy, Span was clearly hit by the pitch. The
>>>> few fans that threw hats onto the field were boneheads, and I heard
>>>> that someone threw a baseball out there, too...although I didn't see
>>>> it. That is really lame, if it happened.
>>>
>>> I was at the game. Scott, I didn't know I was going until about 4:00
>>> yesterday so I couldn't make arrangements to meet. Sorry about that.
>>
>> Maybe next time.
>>
>>> Yep, the incident was really overblown by the press. Here's how Yahoo
>>> Sports reported it:
>>>
>>> "The game was stopped for several minutes when fans threw hats and
>>> baseballs onto the turf and had the White Sox running for the shelter
>>> of the dugout."
>>>
>>> That isn't what happened. If you hadn't seen, and after reading this,
>>> I imagine you'd think the White Sox were hustling into the dugout
>>> with their hands over their heads sheltering themselves from being
>>> pelted. That's not how it was at all.
>>
>> No, it wasn't like that at all. In fact, I really didn't see any real
>> reason for Ozzie to call his team in.
>>
>>> After some fans threw their hats out there a couple of fans
>>> (lemmings, as Matt says) threw baseballs out there. They landed in
>>> foul territory near the Twins dugout and near the Twins bullpen.
>>> Someone even threw out a kids mini-football that landed near the
>>> backstop on the Twins side of home plate. That's when Ozzie
>>> leisurely strolled out there and beckoned his team to come into the
>>> dugout. The White Sox players walked or casually jogged into the
>>> dugout.
>>
>> Yes, there was really no need for them to leave the field. Well,
>> other that Ozzie trying to add to the drama.
>>
>>>> But, Ozzie overreacted, as usual. ?He was yelling at the fans
>>>> and just being Ozzie, so he definitely didn't help the situation,
>>>> IMO.
>>>
>>> Yes, Ozzie mismanaged the bullpen again. Ozzie yelled at some fans
>>> sitting above his dugout.
>>
>> From where we were sitting, you could see Ozzie yelling at the
>> fan(s) and beckoning for them to come get him on the field. Not
>> very smart.
>
>Call me strange, but I like this about Ozzie... I am so sick of boorish
>fans playing "tough guy" with players knowing full well that fans are pretty
>much always safe from repercussions. I love to see a guy like Ozzie with
>the guts to stand up to those guys and he can give it back to them better...
>IMO loudmouth fans need to be put in their place much more than most
>players/coaches...

True, and I essentially agree with you. If there are too many
loudmouthed idiots at a game it's like being at a Tigers or ChiSox
game. ;-)

Still, it's not a very wise idea for Ozzie to taunt fans like that.
Some of those loudmouthed idiots might be willing to take
it to the next level. Remember these two idiots?

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/baseball/news/2002/09/19/royals_whitesox_ap/





- Scott Smith: scott.smith@iphouse.com
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/choppersmith