An extremely inadequate summary of the Feed
Hi, Derek, from lovely Sky Harbor International here in Phoenix.
I don’t have anything to say about the feed, because I missed it. Jonah and I had a flat off 51 on our way to the stadium and while I was trying to figure out the byzantine workings of a Dodge Caravan’s spare tire system (which involves a winch), Bavasi was intervening with stadium people to get everyone their tickets.
I want to point out that Bavasi, no matter what we think of the job he’s done, is the kind of guy who not only carved out a chunk of his time to talk to a bunch of fans, but realized something was up, figured out what went wrong, and solved it, making that bunch of fans happy. He’s a good dude. I wish I agreed with him on baseball stuff, I really do, because there are many, many people in baseball’s front offices who are legitimately jerks, and Bavasi’s one of the nicest guys.
So! I understand that, as you’d expect, once he got everyone in, he was fun and engaging in the short time he had left, and Kevin Towers cut short a meeting with ownership to come by, and was quite candid and enlightening in talking about the Padres.
Sorry I don’t have a better write-up, but you have to put together this tool, see, lower the spare tire using an internal winch, jack the van up, pull the spare assembly down, unhitch it (which is no mean feat), swap it for the tire, then winch the assembly back up…. took for-freaking-ever. Ugh.
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(deleted to keep Derek from getting furious)
(deleted to keep Derek from getting furious)
(deleted to keep Derek from getting furious)
That said (last comment in this string), that sucks. Sorry.
gosh, Derek, aren’t you glad Corco wasn’t in the back seat with you?
(deleted to keep Derek from getting furious)
Thanks, whoever did that. Unless it was Derek.
So it works the same as on my Durango, then. My sympathy. (Once you get used to it, it’s really not so bad, but trying to figure it out . . . yeah, my heartfelt sympathy.)
Man! Nothing worse than having a flat in a car you don’t know. I had a car for 6 months, then I had a flat tire on the way to work.
What I didn’t know was that it had locking hubcaps, and the previous owner apparently kept the “key”! Needless to say, the locks don’t work that well as long as you’re willing to bend the crap out of the hubcap with a crowbar to get it off!
Is corco going to sink the good ship again?
I thought Derek used brackets. I think you’re ok, Corco. At least for now.
Nah. What happened was I hadn’t read the whole post and missed the “I missed it” sentence, and then made a bunch of inane comments as to what highway he was taking. It was a deal where I was like “I wish there was a delete post button”
This thread, as it stands right now, is comic genius.
So does the 51 just run right down from McCall, Idaho then?
I suggest that this (my) comment be deleted and no further comments by allowed on this thread to properly preserve it in its current state.
Nah, I am just very familiar with the Phoenix area and I can’t figure out why he would have been on 51 if heading to Peoria, but I’ve said too much.
Corco, you have quite possibly made this the Best. USSM. Thread. Evar. I didn’t think you could improve it from 13, but you managed to.
Wow. This was Deadspin worthy.
I met with Bill in Toronto at Felix’s 3rd or 4th start. I was the only M’s fan there and he sign an autograph and we chatted. He is a nice guy but he shouldn’t have a job.
Saying he shouldn’t have a job is going too far. He shouldn’t have this job.
Maybe he can help navigate DMZ through the Phoenix area. I’m sure he knows it pretty well.
Does anyone know where Bavasi was in the hour prior to your flat tire? Maybe Bavasi went Harding/Gillooly on your tires to keep you from arriving. That’s why he was in such a “nice” way with the fans. Knew he wouldn’t have to face any tough questions.
MMmmm…could be!
He wasn’t on the 51, that’s for sure. There’s no way he would be on what is the ONE freeway that there is no reason to drive on to go to Peoria.
Corco, could you please, just this once, take a cue and shut the fuck up? Seriously.
10-4
DMZ, the 51 runs north south on the east side of the greater Phoenix metropolitan area, Peoria is on the northwest side of the same area. So it does beg the question, Just what were you and Jonah doing so far away from where your destination was?
What I want to know is how many beers did Derek drink once the fiasco was all over?
Wow, 27 comments and not one from someone who was at the feed. Anyone who was there want to write a summary for those who couldn’t or didn’t make it?
DMZ, sorry to hear about your flat tire. I’ve had several; no fun even in the best of circumstances.
No worries, Derek, my buddies and I were out drinking too late in Scottsdale and didn’t make it to the feed either. And yes we took the 51….
Peoria is a great place to watch a game, however the Giants in Scottsdale stadium has much better scenery if you know what I mean.
People sure don’t take hints easily.
Sorry to hear about this, DMZ. Hope you got in some better times while you were down there.
argh…I’m serious. Taking the 51 just takes longer. It always does, unless you are heading from downtown Phoenix to the northwest corner of Scottsdale. But there is no location in which you can be going to Peoria and the fastest way be on the 51.
Wow. If it were someone else, I would say that’s a ballsy post, #31. But I know nothing about you is ballsy.
It’s fact (about the 51)
I’m done with this thread, barring some unforeseen circumstance that absolutely requires my response.
Every indication we have is that Bavasi is indeed an well balanced, thoughtful human being. I am not sure I can say that about Billy Beane. Yet most of us would trade Bavasi for Beane in a heartbeat, and maybe throw in a few players in the bargain (Sexson, anyone?).
#32 – How is it ballsy in any way to post on the internet? Is Derek some maniacal serial killer intent on destroying anyone that says something that upsets him? Because if that were the case I’d say half of the folks who post here would be dead already.
I was at the Feed.
Well I was at the Q&A that Bavasi had in the stands before the game. This is the best that I can remember. Sorry if this sucks.
1) Bavasi talked about Lowe’s elbow. There are lots of problems. Lowe may be back in August, maybe September. (My mom got Lowe’s autograph in the parking lot, after the game.)
2) Bavasi: Soriano was traded because the team had no SP left. Something had to happened. The report Bavasi got from his staff Soriano couldn’t be a SP without further injury.
3) Demanding the hitters to change their approach to raise their walk rate could damage their natural hitting abilities.
4) The M’s organization is made up 175 minor league guys, only a few will make it in the big leagues. Pushing the minor league guys threw the system is to see who can actually handle the harder competition. Some guys are going to fail in the process. Some guys will raise to the top.
5) Scott Boras is handled like every other agent.
Obviously, I am butching this summary. I think I got most of that right, but if I got something wrong, sorry. That is all I remember. I didn’t take notes and there was bad rock in the background drowning everything out.
Well not all the rock was bad, gotta love Mellencamp’s “Pink Houses”
Derek, that really sucks. I do agree with you about Bavasi, too.
And yeah, look on the bright side — you *weren’t* stuck in a car with Corco and a flat tire…
Some elements of this thread could form the premise of a fairly disturbing movie…And yeah, the game, 2 hours, 1-0, Washburn got Sledgehammered. The lemonade stand was a behive, at least a hundred bees…Towers mentioned 2-3 times how he wants but can’t afford Ichiro…thinks Hensley has the potential to be like Webb…
Can someone explain how asking a hitter to ‘change their approach’ to increase their walk rate damages their ‘natural hitting abilities’, but working on a player’s swing doesn’t damage said ability? In addition, didn’t the Ms a few years back have a hitting coach that emphasized taking pitches? Was anyone’s ability damaged during this time?
I feel really bad now about not going. Being a resident down here I could have just picked you up and then dropped you back off to the van after the feed.
Sorry to push this button again, but as a Phoenix local I actually want to support Derek. If he’s in Paradise Valley or in the Biltmore area (for example), it’s fastest to hop on the 51, take it north to the 101, and take the 101 west to the Peoria Sports Complex. Particularly from Paradise Valley there is no faster way to Peoria.
I’m still trying to fathom who at Dodge had the bright idea to attach the spare tire to the underside of the vehicle, so that it has to be winched up & down.
Too bad WFB wasn’t with you. He could have fixed that flat tire in jiffy, using only a rubber band and a paper clip. willie is that gritty.
msb – I have owned several rigs with a similar winch setup for the spare tire. Ford and Toyota engineers apparently think it is a good idea, as well.
Yeah, that spare location was the same on my Explorer. It’s not too bad once you’ve actually changed a tire, but that first time is a bitch. And naturally, the tire is all covered with road slime – dried road slime if you’re lucky (which would be the case in Phx usually, I guess.)
And of course, with a rental, there’s only ever going to be that one time, and you’re extremely lucky if they even have the manual to give you a clue. I think Derek’s lucky he’s not still stuck there changing the tire.
I’m just surprised nobody has made a Bob Dylan reference:
Highway 51 runs right by my baby’s door
Highway 51 runs right by my baby’s door
If I don’t get the girl I’m loving
Won’t go down to Highway 51 no more.
Well, I know that highway like I know my hand
Yes, I know that highway like I know the back of my hand
Running from up Wisconsin way down to no man’s land.
Well, if I should die before my time should come
And if I should die before my time should come
Won’t you bury my body out on the Highway 51.
Highway 51 runs right by my baby’s door
I said, Highway 51 runs right by my baby’s door
If I don’t get the girl I’m loving
Won’t go down to Highway 51 no more.
I used to drive a 1973 Ford 3/4 ton, and I wish it had had a winch. It kept the tire in the same place, but there was no safe way to lower it. If you couldn’t bench the tie, it would fall on your head.
So for all the people who don’t live here if you are anywhere in central Phoenix area there are only two ways you want to go to get to the 101 and therefore Peoria. One is the 51 and one is I-17. You take whichever is closer. Anywhere from the Biltmore to PV, Paradise Valley, the 51 is closer.
Yeah, Toyota 4Runners usually have their spares on the underside, which I like much much better than hanging them on the rear hatch, where they obscure the view out the window.
But for a rental car, yeah bad idea, makes it tough for the renter to change a tire.
And as DMZ said, gotta give major props to Bavasi, who went beyond the call of duty to help out the fans. A lot of people, maybe most people would have waited around a bit, shrugged their shoulders, and gone off to do something else. Especially if one is a GM, there’ve gotta be a zillion other high-priority things that need attending to, they’re not supposed to be ushers or ticket-takers.
But he still should not be in charge of the Mariners.