I figured if he was going to make history--no matter how ambivalent I am about it, or how tainted I presume that history to be--it might be fun to be there. So I went over to The Coliseum last night--(what do we make of a stadium that sells naming rights to a company so unmemorable nobody even thinks to use the new name?)--to root the A's on against the dreaded Giants. I actually thought it might be the night for Bonds. A rain delay, a dark and stormy night, El Diablo in the DH slot--the elements of drama were in place.
Instead we were treated to nothing more or less than a fantastic game. We realized early on that the ball simply wasn't carrying--Big Hurt absolutely crushed a ball that went, um, almost to the warning track--so it wasn't going to be easy for anybody to get a homer through the cool, wet air. But fare more importantly, Dan Haren was ridiculous, throwing a beautiful two-hitter through eight. Obliquely, it's possible to think he might have taken a no-hitter very deep if not for Bonds. Facing Steve Finley with two out and Bonds on deck in the fourth, Haren got ahead 0-2 and threw a series of good breaking balls which Finley kept fouling off until he'd worked the count 3-2 at which point Finley got the fat fastball we all knew was coming and laced a line-drive to right. Yes, even a monster pitcher gives in to a Steve Finley 3-2 with 2 out and Bonds on deck.
But never mind: jump to the bottom of the ninth, 1-0 A's, 2 outs, nobody on and Bonds at the plate facing young closer Huston Street (wicked, sometimes inconsistent stuff). Giants fans are going bananas. A's fans are going bananas. And Street gets Bonds to swing at a great changeup, sinking out of the strike zone. Pandemonium. A genuinely exciting baseball moment. I'm really glad they didn't walk him. "Pitch to Barry!" For one night, anyway, Giants and A's fans agreed it was the right thing to do.
No comments:
Post a Comment