Randy Johnson sneaks into the Mariners' All-Star picture
ALL STAR MOMENTS AND MEMORIES
July 10, 2001
Randy Johnson sneaks into the Mariners' All-Star picture
(L-R Ichiro, Kazuhiro Sasaki, Bret Boone, Mike Cameron, Lou Piniella, Randy, John Olerud, Jeff Nelson, Freddy Garcia and Edgar Martinez)
So let me start with the Homerun Derby from the night before, so I can mention the monstrous ovation that Bret Boone got and I am really mad that I didn't get to see it because I was on my way home from a doctor's appointment and I guess A-Rod got a nice ovation too and I'll just politely not comment on that.
"Even Alex Rodriguez was greeted warmly. As if baseball here needed to get more remarkable." -Art Thiel, sportswriter
So anyway, I totally miss Todd Helton's at bat and I literally run in my house and turn on the TV just in time to see Jason Giambi step to the plate and my-oh-my but what a show that was and like 14 homeruns later I have to say I'm mighty impressed and at one point they flashed to A-Rod who was chewing away on his gum and was all "WOW" and maybe that convinced him that you really CAN hit homeruns here and then Harold Reynolds was interviewing him and totally put him on the spot which I thought was hilarious and he's all "I heard you didn't want to do the Homerun Derby because you were scared of all the booing" or something like that and then Alex gets his shorts in a knot about it and is all "I'm not scared of anything!" which made me laugh out loud because he was so indignant and then he blathered on about how the Homerun Derby wasn't "conducive to [his] type of swing" and I evidently wasn't the only one who snorted at that because TV critic John Levesque cited that line as one of his favorites of the night and added "Presumably that would be his anywhere-but-Safeco swing" and anyway Bret hit as many as Sammy Sosa did (3) and A-Rod only hit 2 and the crowd went wild when he made his tenth out and evidently 252 million dollars is not enough because A-Rod is now plugging Radio Shack and I discovered that because of these two different commercials that they aired repeatedly through all the All-Star stuff, and it starts with the traditionally annoying banter between that Lois-Lane-Woman from the Superman TV show and her husband Howie who is either a football player or announcer or something and I think those two must plug everything under the sun because they are constantly in ads and then there is Daisy Fuentes and maybe a couple other people, I forget, and right in the middle of it all is Alex and there are two different ones that he's in, one where he turns around and delivers some line about their products and another one where he is autographing a baseball in his hideous Texas Rangers uniform and all I can say is I am never shopping at Radio Shack again AS LONG AS I LIVE.
But rather than make the Homerun Derby all about an ex-Mariner, I'd much rather talk about how excited our current Mariners were, I mean nobody could've exemplified the excitement of the All-Star events any better than Mike Cameron, who was just in awe that he was even there and then there were Freddy Garcia and Ichiro, who was signing about 9000 autographs and Jeff Nelson who brought his whole family.
So anyway, long story short, Sammy Sosa, Jason Giambi, Luis Gonzalez and Barry Bonds advance to the second round and because the rules are stupid, Giambi is knocked out even though he hit 6 more to bring his grand total up to 20 which is more than any of them did and Luis Gonzalez ends up winning the whole thing which I didn't mind because he seemed like a pretty cool guy and now I'll just be moving to the actual All-Star Game itself and I apologize that this is so late getting up here, but I had to tape the game and go buy a new car this evening, so better late than never and my new car is SO CUTE.
So the day is finally here, and prior to this one, I hadn't even really been that big of a fan of the All-Star Game but this one was different because it was in our house and we had 8 representatives and Mike Cameron ALONE was so excited that I couldn't help but be anyway, and there was some pre-game stuff with Phil Nevin of the San Diego Padres getting interviewed and talking about Bret Boone and how they went to school together and how Bret hasn't changed a bit and then Tony Gwynn was interviewed and Gwynn is one of the classiest guys you could ever hope to meet in baseball and I start getting all emotional thinking about him and Cal Ripken Jr. retiring at the end of the year, I mean those are two of the greatest EVER, both on AND off the field and anyway, we get to the announcements and everybody gets a warm round of cheering, the loudest of which going to our boys and Alex got a little booing and all I can say is that's what he gets for breaking my heart and what I'd really like to know is who is that woman that gets to stand by the American League dugout and hug the players as they take the field because that's the job I want. So anyway, all the guys are out on the field and Jorge Pasada, the catcher for the New York Yankees, has his little boy out there with him and what a little doll this kid is in his tiny little Yankee uniform and then the announcers are all blathering away about how Seattle has been on this incredible STREAK and it's like, EXCUSE ME but an ENTIRE HALF OF THE SEASON is NOT a STREAK, you guys.
"I think this was great for what's going on in the city this year, for how well we've done in the first half. What epitomized it was to see the look on Mike Cameron's face, and how excited he was." -Bret Boone, on having the All Star Game in Seattle
"With his little son, Dazmon, in tow during the workout, Cameron was spinning around the field and clubhouse in such a froth that he was a mild threat to nearby innocents." -Art Thiel
"(Cleveland second baseman) Robby Alomar told me to take it easy. I'm trying to keep my cool. But I may never get back here again. This is the best thing that's ever happened to me." -Mike Cameron
"Cameron is the antithesis of the superstar syndrome, which makes him not only a symbol for this season's Mariners, but a reason to know that the All-Star Game experience is more than a TV show or a multimedia corporate billboard." -Art Thiel
So first inning and Alex makes Cal play shortstop as he takes over third for the first inning and that kind of choked me up and the announcers, talking about Alex, were all "classy gesture from a classy man" which I will just politely not comment on and anyway, Alex almost dropped a pop fly in his new position, and Roger Clemens retires the side in order and I have to object to the announcers again who were going on and on about how we were going to see a lot of sweet swings, "none sweeter than Todd Helton's", and while Todd is great and all, his swing cannot POSSIBLY be sweeter than that of Edgar Martinez's. So anyway, leading off against Randy Johnson, who ended up starting for the National League because Curt Schilling couldn't get loose, is Ichiro, and in grand Ichiro-All-Star fashion, he knocked the second pitch for an infield single as Helton made a great stop, but he beat Randy, trying to cover first, to the bag and that was pretty magnificent if you ask me.
"Rather than (concentrate on) the fact I got a hit off him, I think that he wore No. 51 before me. The one thing I keep in my mind is to keep No. 51 with great dignity." -Ichiro
"Helton, I thought, made a great play and I was just late getting over there. He (Ichiro) got to the base so fast." -Randy Johnson
"It was fitting, with the season we've had, that Ichiro leads off with the first hit." -Bret Boone
"I thought that was kind of weird, because I think he wanted to leave. I never wanted to leave." -Alex Rodriguez, puzzled over the difference in reactions from the crowd at Safeco towards him and former Mariner Randy Johnson
"We cheer Randy because we never even offered him a contract, we TRADED him. That was our bad, not his. We made YOU a fair offer and took you at your word that you'd stay if we gave you a winner, which we did. You promptly signed with the highest bidder, after insisting you'd take less money for a team that was committed to winning, and then made such insultingly patronizing statements as (AND I QUOTE) 'They should be commended for not wanting me. Really. Obviously, their record shows they're a better team without me. So that should be the story. Not that I didn't pick them. They didn't pick me.' when everybody, including YOU, deep down in the blackened recesses of what's left of your heart, knows we made a very legitimate offer and you have nobody to blame but yourself, your agent and your owner for being stuck on the team that YOU CHOSE. YOU. ALEX RODRIGUEZ, former Mariner-turned-ungrateful- parsimonious-sellout. Hope that clears things up."-Laura
So anyway, next up was Alex who, though beyond redemption at this point, made the funny statement, "I'm excited. I get to play with my old teammates -- almost the whole team.", and he struck out and Ichiro stole second and the announcers were wondering if Mike Piazza (the National League catcher) was bothered by A-Rod, who was kind of in the way as he tried to make his throw and I say out loud "I was bothered by A-Rod" and cracked myself up and Boston's Manny Ramirez also struck out and then with Bret Boone at the dish, they pan into the dugout and there's Lou Piniella and Manny and Lou is all "C'mon Boonie!" which made me smile, but Boone popped up and we head to the second inning without scoring.
So Cal goes back to third and Alex goes back to shortstop and Clemens retires the side in order again, the last out being Mike Piazza and there was all this drama about it since they have such a history what with Clemens beaning him in the head and throwing jagged pieces of bats at him and all and I was hoping that instead of pitching to him, Clemens would run over and dye his hair back to normal for him because that blonde dye job that Piazza's sporting is really quite dreadful but the at-bat passes without incident as Clemens pitches him away and gets him to fly out and I have to say that the commercial for Pepsi with Ken Griffey Jr. and Sammy Sosa was kind of funny. So American League up again and they are interviewing Bobby Valentine in the dugout and he uses the non-word "incidentses" when talking about all that has passed between Clemens and Piazza and Randy retires the side in order, the last two outs being John Olerud (groundout) and Edgar Martinez (strikeout), who were both greeted with huge cheers when they stepped to the plate.
So third inning and Freddy Garcia has taken over and he and Ivan "Pudge" Rodriguez are conversing and he retired Chipper Jones, Jeff Kent and Rich Aurilia in order and it's been a mighty long time since Freddy's let a run score when you take into account his last two starts which were both complete game shutouts.
So then bottom of the third, and Chan Ho Park of the Los Angeles Dodgers relieved Randy Johnson and Cal Ripken Jr. leads off for our half and the crowd is going so wild that Cal has to step out of the batter's box and acknowledge them and I get kind of choked up because I'm such a dweeb and then as if that weren't enough, Cal WENT YARD and the crowd REALLY went wild and I actually DID start crying at that point because it was just so moving and even the National League players were clapping, I mean there was Chipper Jones at third base as Cal rounded the bags and he is clapping into his glove and the dugout is cheering and the crowd is STILL standing and Cal had to do a curtain call.
"The ovation, the people standing up; I tried to acknowledge them very quickly. I didn't want the game to kind of be delayed for that. I got back in and just saw the first pitch." -Cal Ripken Jr.
"He now has more homers this year in Seattle than Rodriguez. And Ripken never asked that the ballpark fences be moved in." -Art Thiel
"I turned to Curt Schilling and said, 'Are we allowed to clap?' It was exciting for everyone when he hit that home run." -Sean Casey, first baseman for the Cincinnati Reds
So everyone finally settles down and Pudge grounded out and Ichiro grounded out and Alex struck out again to end the inning.
So fourth inning and Andy Pettitte relieved Freddy and Ichiro, who started in center, moved to rightfield to replace Juan Gonzalez, and Magglio Ordonez took over in left for Manny Ramirez and Mike Cameron came in to play center and Mike was the highlight of the game for me because he was just SO HAPPY to be there, and he is just the epitome of what the All-Star Game should be about when it gets right down to it.
"The tangle of All-Star Game story lines is thick. Ichiro and two-nation idolatry. Clemens and Piazza. Root of all Evil and A-Rod. Thompson vs. Branca, plus 50. The Mariners and 114, Bonds and 70, scalpers and 3,000. Ripken and Gwynn vs. gravity. Valentine vs. himself. Then there is this one. Mike Cameron is here as an All-Star outfielder. Ken Griffey Jr. is not." -Art Thiel
"People don't know how big a part he's been of our success. When he was named an All-Star, we couldn't have been happier, because we knew what it meant to him." -Bret Boone
"I'm not like Junior or A-Rod. I know you can't replace people like that. I just wanted people to know that, if nothing else, they got a pretty good center fielder." -Mike Cameron
And anyway, Luis Gonzalez singled, but Helton, Barry Bonds and Sammy Sosa couldn't score him and we head to the bottom half where John Burkett of the Atlanta Braves relieved Chan Ho Park and Ryan Klesko takes over at first and - okay, I can't keep track of all the changes going on here because there are so many and suffice to say that they're rotating the starters out and putting in the reserves so everybody gets a chance to play and Ordonez and Boone grounded out and Cammie K'd.
So fifth inning and Joe Mays of the Minnesota Twins relieved Pettitte (of the New York Yankees) and he retired the side in order but not before they zoom in on Mike Piazza picking his nose in the dugout and we head to the bottom half and Mike Hampton of the Colorado Rockies relieved Burkett and Charles Johnson of the Florida Marlins took over for Piazza behind the dish and there were other changes but I lost track and anyway John Olerud is safe at second base after Jeff Kent (second baseman for the San Francisco Giants) threw the ball away and Jason Giambi (first baseman for the Oakland Athletics) came in to run for Ole and then Edgar stepped to the plate and one of the announcers was talking about how Edgar's "easily overlooked, but that's a mistake" and the other announcer was all "overlooked by everyone but American League pitchers" and that makes me beam all proud of Edgar and how much do I love Edgar Martinez anyway and then Edgar grounded out and then Cal grounded out and then Pudge singled which scored Giambi and Ichiro grounded out to end it and we get to see a highlight tape of Cal Ripken Jr.'s and I start crying again like a big dork.
So sixth inning and Troy Glaus of the Anaheim Angels goes out to replace Cal and we stop the game for a ceremony where they present Cal and Tony Gwynn with awards for their career achievements and it would've been a lot better without Bud Selig screwing up Cal's numbers and droning on and on but it was moving nonetheless, and we start playing ball again and Paul Quantrill of the Toronto Blue Jays relieved Mays and Bernie Williams took over in center as Cammie moved to right and Alomar took over at second and Jorge Posada was catching and Derek Jeter took over and short and Jeff Kent doubled to lead things off and Rich Aurilia grounded out and meanwhile they are interviewing Cal and A-Rod in the dugout and then Lance Berkman singled and Mike Stanton relieved Quantrill and Klesko hit a sac fly to score him and they flash to the dugout where Alex and Lou are talking and it was pretty weird to see that, I mean talk about your flashbacks there, and just as I'm about to get nostalgic, which would've made me cranky, Guerroro, pinch hitting for Bonds, hits a foul ball, which broke his bat, and the bat went careening down the third base line where it hit third base coach Tommy Lasorda, who did a rather comical backwards somersault and the second he got up smiling, the National League dugout erupted into laughter and they flash to the American League dugout and Don Zimmer, one of the Yankees coaches, is just dying and Barry Bonds tried to put catcher's gear on Lasorda while Guerroro was getting his hand taped up and Lasorda gets a standing ovation.
"In the sixth inning, Lasorda, an honorary coach/mascot for the Nationals, was minding nobody's business, including his own, in the third base coach's box." -Art Thiel
So anyway, Guerroro flew out and we head to the bottom half, American League 2, National League 1, and Jon Lieber relieved Hampton and Jimmy Rollins took over at short and there were about 500 other changes and Derek Jeter of the New York Yankees leads off with a big old homerun and Ordonez followed that with ANOTHER big old homerun, and an out later, Mike Cameron stretched a single into a double but third base is as far as we get him, and we leave the inning leading 4-1.
"I had no chance to stop. I was way too excited. We had the biggest party at our house (Safeco Field) this weekend. I was glad I was able to be here." -Mike Cameron
So seventh inning and Jeff Nelson relieved Stanton and Mike Sweeney of the Kansas City Royals took over at first and a strikeout and fly out later, Pujols coaxed a walk, but Charles Johnson flew out to end the threat and we head to the bottom half.
"You had to start thinking of something else or you'd start crying on the mound. It was just incredible.'' -Jeff Nelson
Okay, so bottom of the seventh and Matt Morris relieved Lieber and Glaus flew out and Jorge Posada doubled and as he gets in to second base you can HEAR him asking the umpires if he can have that ball and they flash to Jeter laughing in the dugout and the announcers go on and on about he was Posada's best man at his wedding and how they're the very best of friends which probably hurt Alex's feelings since he thought he was Jeter's best friend just kidding and that was as exciting as it got and all I can say is that it is incredibly disconcerting to see Alex in our dugout again.
So eighth inning and Troy Percival relieved Nelson and Phil Nevin hit for Kent and made an out and then Rollins walked and stole second but they don't score and we head to the bottom half and Jeff Shaw relieved Morris and gave up a single to Ordonez and then got an out, and Billy Wagner relieved him and got Cammie to foul out and then Ben Sheets relieved HIM and got Sweeney to fly out.
So ninth inning and enter Kazuhiro Sasaki who retired the side in order, and the American League wins it, 4-1 and Lou Piniella is out there looking proud of all his players and Kirby Puckett is out there hugging everybody and I think my favorite sign of the whole game was one for Kazu that said "we love to see you smile" like that old McDonald's jingle because everybody knows that a smile from Kazuhiro Sasaki means victory.
"At that level (All-Star), it was a Mariner-style game. Garcia got a win. Sasaki got a save. And Ichiro Suzuki opened the game with a hit off Randy Johnson." -John Hickey, sportswriter
"Of course, the "locals" won, 4-1. The winners were called the American League All-Stars, but Mariners fans know who they were. The only thing the 72nd version of the major league All-Star Game lacked was drama. Much like the American League West." -Art Thiel
"It has worked for the Mariners all season. It worked for the American League All-Stars last night. Ichiro Suzuki got the game rolling, and Kazuhiro Sasaki wrapped it up." -Holly Cain, sportswriter
"The whole world got a chance to see what it's like to be at Safeco. It's kind a dream come true for me." -Mike Cameron
"If you'd asked me before the season if I'd be in the All-Star Game, I'd have laughed. I'm still laughing right now. I came into a great situation (with the Mariners) hitting fifth with several great hitters around me. I've had a lot of opportunities. I wouldn't have the RBIs I have without a great team around me." -Bret Boone
"Maybe all of the combinations came together, but I just thought it was a great baseball environment. It was a great celebration for baseball. It's one memory that I will cherish forever." -Cal Ripken Jr.
And of course everybody had nice things to say about the phenomenal 2001 Seattle Mariners...
"I'm a Ranger, but I love baseball, (note from Laura: stop and think about that for a minute) and I love watching good baseball. When I watch the Mariners, I'm watching great baseball." -Alex Rodriguez
"The Mariners have played as a team better than any team I've ever seen. Whatever it takes to win, they do it. In one game against us, John Olerud bunted in the first inning. Here's a guy hitting .350 and hitting cleanup, and he's bunting to set up an RBI for Bret Boone. That's something to watch. Every day, they do the little things you have to do to win games. They move runners along. They get fly balls with runners at third base. They keep hitting. It's teamwork. Everybody does it. When you watch them go at it, you see how the game should be played. It's something all teams should try to do." -Anaheim Angels' closer, Troy Percival
"I think when they had Griffey, A-Rod and Randy Johnson, they had three superstars, but that doesn't necessarily make them a good team. Once they left, the Seattle Mariners really jelled as a team. They don't have three head guys; they have 25 equal guys, and I think that's what makes them a great team." -Kansas City Royals' first baseman, Mike Sweeney
"You can't replace, necessarily, Hall of Famers, but the way they're doing it is a testament to how important the team game. I don't think it necessarily underscores having a superstar on your ballclub - look at Chicago (with Sammy Sosa) - but as much as anything else, they've got contributions from top to bottom from a lot of different guys." -Detroit Tigers' first baseman, Tony Clark
"They pretty much can't do anything wrong right now. Their starting pitching is wonderful, and whenever they falter, their lineup and bullpen picks them up. Whenever their lineup is struggling one night, their pitching picks them up. Their situation is like us in '98. It's a whole lot of fun coming to the park every day knowing you're going to win." -New York Yankees' reliever, Mike Stanton
"Edgar is a professional, quiet, humble giant. He's one of best right-handed hitters ever seen. I told Lou that when he took the job, and then Edgar immediately got hurt. I said to Lou, `Wait until you see him.' Edgar doesn't showboat. He's old school." -San Francisco Giants' manager, Dusty Baker
"It's gotten so incredible that you just kind of tip your cap and go, 'OK.' There's nothing you can do about it now. When you look and see what they've done, how can you not be impressed with that, and with how they've done it? You look at what we've done in Oakland, we started slow. But you can only talk about that for so long. As well as the Mariners have played, I think that even if we'd played good coming out of spring training, we'd still be 10 games out. That's how good they've been. Their bullpen has been playing so well that you're playing seven-inning games. Once you get to the seventh, that bullpen can close it out." -Oakland Athletics' first baseman Jason Giambi
"Edgar Martinez and Jay Buhner, those are two of my favorite guys. I love to watch those guys play. They play hard and they respect the game. That's what I love about coming to a place like this." -Kirby Puckett
"I'm glad they're doing well. I'm very proud of those guys. I just hope they don't do this every year; that way they keep me out of (the playoffs)." -Alex Rodriguez
"I'll bet you 252 million dollars that you aren't REALLY glad, Alex." -Laura
And then there were a few things from sportswriter Kirby Arnold that I had to include; this was before Curt Schilling was replaced with Randy Johnson and was scheduled to start for the National League...
"Asked by a Japanese reporter if he would like to strike out Seattle Mariners star Ichiro Suzuki, Schilling delivered an honest answer with the brute force of a chin-high fastball. 'One thing a veteran pitcher told me a long time ago is that as an opposing pitcher, you have the ability to shut up a stadium,' Schilling said. 'I have the ability to shut up a country for a few minutes.' With a comment like that, he already might have. Even if Schilling shuts up Japan, he'll still have to silence Seattle tonight. It's not just Schilling vs. the Japanese. It's Schilling and the National League against the Mariners and a few of their invited friends in the 72nd All-Star Game."
"[Edgar] Martinez, who hits third for the Mariners, will bat seventh for the AL, which makes a person wonder how closely [manager] Torre consulted the book on Martinez vs. Schilling. 'I faced him once in the All-Star Game in Cleveland (1997) and once in spring training,' Martinez said without offering the results of those at-bats. So someone asked. 'I got a base hit off him in Cleveland,' Martinez said. And in spring training? 'A home run. It was two good at-bats.' Not bad for a No. 7 hitter."
And finally... just a few odds and ends and various mumblings that were picked up during the course of the last few days pertaining to past games...
"I think that first day, that Monday [his first visit back to the Safe], it was hatred. Everything else has been pretty cool, everything else has been normal boos. But that first day there were a lot of angry people here who wanted to convey their message to me, and it was very well conveyed." -Alex Rodriguez
"I stole the show. I was showing off. They're not used to seeing kids catch balls behind their back in the outfield. I remember it. I was so excited because it was the first time my dad was taking me to the All-Star Game." -Bret Boone, on the 1979 All-Star Game batting practice at the Kingdome
"He looked like a little Tarzan when he came to camp." -Lou Piniella, on Bret Boone
"Jay Buhner told me to tip my cap. I said, 'I did, three or four times.' But they won't stop." -Mike Cameron, on the first of many outstanding plays he made, to rob Derek Jeter of a homerun last year