Wanted: Dead or Alive -- A Baseball Thief



Greedy, good-for-nothing baseball thief

 A great night at the ballpark, but then I rarely have any other kind.

The goodness started when I heard Carlos Maldonado was in the starting line-up. At one point, he fouled off a ball directly at Section 207. Anthony was there with his glove. The ball bounced a few seats past Sandee, down to the aisle between Sections 107 and 207. The ushers aren't allowed to touch foul balls. I tried to get to the ball, but a GREEDY, GOOD-FOR-NOTHING BASEBALL THIEF swooped out of nowhere and scooped up the ball. Hello????? Did Carlos not hit that ball to his cheering section? That ball should have been mine or Sandee's ball.

Valbuena's torn pants (right leg)

Brad Peacock was in fine form tonight. In fact, he had a no hitter going until the 8th inning, when Corey Brown missed a catch in center field. After last night's perfect game against them, the Chiefs really needed a night like tonight. When Peacock left the game after Brown missed the catch, he received a well-deserved standing ovation.

What I saw: Valbuena (Columbus Clipper) came to bat in the first inning with torn pants.

 Jersey Raffle: Throw-back Thursday

First Base Coach Wave:

• Jeff Frazier finally acknowledged us in the 2nd inning
• Steve Lombardozzi ignored us all night. ALL NIGHT. And we like him, because he's staying with his grandmother in Auburn while he plays in Syracuse. Plus he's a good player. But if he continues to ignore us, that could change. The liking part, not the good player part.

Interesting trivia of the night: I asked the Maven why the Chiefs use a Designated Hitter when we're a National League ball park. Here's what he told me: The Major Leagues and the Pacific Coast League (the other Triple A league) each use the rule of the home team's league (i.e. no DH in National League parks, DH in American League parks). The International League, however, states that a DH is available except when two National League teams play each other. So the choice is up to the Chiefs as to whether or not they want to use a DH, and they opt to use one. Thank goodness. Although Tom Milone can hit.