Is it just me, or is baseball the most over-celebrating of all sports?
The Rangers did it again last night, beating the Disastros 5-4 and - in what feels like a regular occurrence this month - producing walk-off drama. This time it was Elvis Andrus.
Bailing out a Tanner Scheppers 8th-inning meltdown (a walk, two wild pitches and two hit batters in 20 offerings) that channeled the days of Mitch "Wild Thing" Williams, Elvis cockily, comically flipped his bat at the sight of his 250-foot, can-o'-corn popout that was just enough to drive home Adam Rosales with the head-first, sliding, winning run.
As has become baseball custom -
CLUE #6: "at" - Elvis was absolutely mobbed. Jersey torn off. Pulled around the infield by his undershirt, sliding helplessly on his butt. I'm sure a post-game pie in the face or Gatorade bucket dump punctuated the proceedings.
Granted, there's a lot to celebrate these days for the Rangers.
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They have gained a whopping 8.5 games on the A's in just 23 days, turning a 6-game deficit on July 29 into a 2.5-game lead as you awake this morning.
And, is it too soon to mention magic numbers? Okay, then I won't tell you that Texas' is down to 37.
The Rangers are just plain fun. They lead baseball with 40 come-from-behind wins and I think that's their fifth walk-off version. I admit to being on the edge of my seat as they put the winning run in scoring position in the 9th. Beating the worst team in baseball (history?) is hardly a feat. And a lazy flyball to left is hardly a heroic individual accomplishment.
But the Rangers celebrate wins in mid-August as much as they have victories in early October. Their mobile mosh-pit madness certainly trumps reactions to wins by the Mavs (who play half as many games with double the importance) or the Cowboys (who play only 16).
No doubt the Rangers over-celebrate. And no doubt it's fantastic theater.
That was a great game to be at the ballpark. It looked like about sub 20k crowd, but everybody was really into it. Go Rangers!
ReplyDeleteThat celebration was nuts. Imagine if an NFL team celebrated like that. Roger Goodell would have carpal tunnel syndrome from personally typing up all the fines.
ReplyDeleteRW you hit the nail on the head....162 games and they still treat these wins like they're in the playoffs. I love the turnaround, it won't be complete until the A's are eliminated, a little payback from last year, however hollow of a consolation that may be.
ReplyDeleteHaving just watched the celebrations, they were a little over the top. A recognition of the win, sure, but still... (a) it was the Astros - it shouldn't have required a walk-off really, and (b) with the division still pretty close, it should be more about business done then unleashing their inner kid.
ReplyDeleteThough it won't be thought about if the Rangers go deep into October.
Are we really going to pretend that other sports don't go nuts with last minute victories? The Rangers don't go into hysterics when they complete a 5-2 win with a Joe Nathan Strikeout. Nope its a walk to the mound by the catcher and a high five line at the mound with their teammates. I know I've seen NBA players hit a last second shot and do a lap around the court yelling at the fans with their teammates close behind trying to mob him. And the NFL...well I've watched the Cowboys for so long I'm not sure last minute victories exist anymore. But I certainly don't see David Murphy take his batting gloves off and spike them, then do a little dance after a base hit up the middle, but I know I'll see some spare defensive lineman make a tackle for a one yard loss, get up and do the grave digger and act like he's just been crowned king of the world just for doing his job no less than a dozen times on Sunday. The point is that this happens in ALL sports and often to more extremes than in baseball. I love the excitement and the "Inner Kid" celebration with a walk-off win. It's just plain awesome, especially when its the Rangers.
ReplyDeleteHow dare you say the Cowboys celebrate excessively after a touchdown. Don't you know that this is a Cowboy town and Richie will have none of that.
Deletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gbi8Tnp5OzE
Oh wait...........
This^^^^^^^^
DeleteBetty Bea Getty McClanahan
Sorry Rich, but I can't go with you on this one, claiming the Mavs' games have twice the importance when they play in a league where you only have to finish eighth to make it into the postseason, compared to baseball, where you still need to shoot for first for the most part.
ReplyDeleteI'm good with it. It's nice to see the fire and enthusiasim. I felt like like year they had lost that energy in the dugout that they had in 2010 and 2011. Thye seem alive again, and I see that as a good thing.--whirlybullsnake
ReplyDeleteGo back to watching pre-season football Richie. Plenty of nothing going on in those games for you.
ReplyDeleteI saw RW do the worm at a McDonald's once when he got a free Big Mac. True story.
ReplyDeleteRW has the same problem the guys doing Diamond Talk on The Ticket, Baseball Do Blog, and a whole host of other media and/or wannabe media types around here: They're hypersensitive when it comes to appearing to "look right" for the East Coast media--the same media whom they constantly claim they could give a rip about. Oh, don't do the wave at this or that moment. A "teal baseball town" doesn't do that. Sorry. But I grew up in Boston. I've been to more games at Fenway than in Arlington, and by a mile. And guess what? The fans do the wave. They do it at any moment in the game. Just because the national cameras show the "awwww jeeeeeez" fans with the angst-ridden, pock-marked faces held in their pudgy hands doesn't mean there aren't other things going on. That also goes for over-celebrating walk-offs. Seen it many many many a time. In person. So get over your inferiority complex, and have a good time.
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