I have to be the luckiest SOB around. For some odd reason, I woke up Thursday morning thinking, "You know what? A gorgeous day, I've got nothing planned this afternoon. Let's go to the Sox game today. Oh wait a minute, Buehrle is pitching? It'll be done in two hours! All the more reason to go."
So as I'm rollin' down to the game with Righthand Man Jim, we started talking about our experience at the no-hitter the Sox lefty threw back in 2007. We stumbled into that game by random chance and all of a sudden history was in front of us. 5th inning goes by we noticed the Rangers "have yet to get a hit" off Buehrle (thats our way of avoid the phrase "no-hitter"). As we watch, more people catch on. Folks are buzzing in the 7th and 8th. Then standing the entire 9th inning when a ground ball to Joe Crede and sealed the deal.
Yesterday, we watched and Jim caught on in the 3rd. I figured it out in the 4th. Why so early? Well, after seeing one in person you tend to look for it. So sure enough, Buehrle is rolling. He's striking guys out on 3-2 curve balls, Gordon Beckham is handling in between hops at 3rd base like a 6-time all-star. No mistakes, no flaws. Buehrle spent 32 minutes on the mound for the whole day. If that's not remarkable, Rays All-Star infielder Evan Longoria (no relation) saw seven pitches at the plate the whole day. Seven, that's it.
When the ball left Gabe Kapler's bat, I thought it was gone. It sailed and carried towards left-center on its way. DeWayne Wise first had to make one of the longest runs to the ball at the wall. Then, he made the greatest defensive play in Chicago sports history. Think about another play under those circumstances with any Chicago sports team that you consider better and I'll mention your name on here next week.
To sum it up, it was a wonderful experience. Grown men were crying, young kids were confused, teenage boys were in a state of disbelieve and here I was hugging a grown man like I was the one that just threw the perfect game.
**At least our website got the headline right. As for one of our competitors? Not so much. Just make sure you roll to the bottom of the page.
**Traffic was boring today, so Mike Lorber made sure he had his Sox gear on today in Sky Cinco. Lookin' sharp, but more so with the glasses. Future's so bright...
I think I walked him down a path he didn't expect to go. When asking him if he was a "Redneck Woman" in reference to Gretchen Wilson's appearance at (wait for it) Bridgeview Country MusicFest, he responded with the following:
"Well...I might have dated one or two in my day. And my fiancee's big country music fan..."
Then trailed off into a traffic report after hitting TV hell. I could finish travel times with a straight face. Oops, he didn't mean it!
**Dance Friday featured one of the catchiest dance songs of my generation. Dee-Lite with "Groove is in the Heart" became a Top 5 hit in 1990 and we brought it back today. Cassidy and Whit joined Jim and I in our weekly ballyhoo of rug-cutting. I even heard someone in the control room yell out: "Those guys are nuts!"
See for yourself right here!
**Finally I'm still looking for donations for next Tuesday July 28th. We're going to Rundown Alzheimers at US Cellular Field and I hope you all can give as your heart leads!
Have a great weekend!!
