I am rethinking my calling Shea Stadium a dump on the pre game show. The building itself is indeed a dump (I am scared to death that I could see a rat run by my feet as I am typing this, no joke, it has happened here) but it is probably wrong to call any building that houses a green field and four bases a dump.

The almost completed new stadium is backed up into the left and center fields here. All I can see is a lot of brick and some cool light stanchions. It looks like it will be nice. I actually came to this park a few times when I was very young. Living in Connecticut we would come here or Fenway a couple of times a summer. I really don’t remember it though as I was too young.

My actual first memory of going to a baseball game is at the Kingdome. My grandparents lived in Puyallup and we would make it a point to visit them every summer from wherever we were living. My grandpa got us tickets to go see the new baseball team at the new fangled Kingdome. He actually caught a foul ball while holding me during the game. Funny, I grew up a Red Sox and Cubs fan but my first memory is of a M’s game at the Kingdome.

Back to Shea. So apparently it is Broadway night at the Stadium. We were just subjected to a couple of numbers from Grease by the new cast. I was surprised that they left in a couple of words that I cannot say on radio. The cast from Spamalot sang the National Anthem. Not bad. I am always surprised when we go to Yankee Stadium and the anthem is always a recording. It’s not like there is any lack of vocal talent in this town!

Got to the park with no problems. 2 quick subway rides, no incidents and no breakdowns! Quite a bit of excitement for this one. You are not going to see a much better match up than Felix and Santana. I am told that this game will be broadcast in Venezuela. I know Felix is excited. He was aware of it when his game against Matsuzaka was shown back home and I have no doubt he knows about this one. While Freddy Garcia was Felix’s idol growing up, he has a lot of respect for Santana who he has faced once before.

I talked to Carlos Silva who knows both pitchers very well before the game. He told me that he was going to be a fan today, rooting for Felix of course, but a fan of good pitching. “Both are outstanding pitchers,” Silva explained. “Santana is a veteran and Felix is a young guy but a superstar. If Santana pitches his best, I don’t want to see that. When he has his best you are not going to see a baseball game, you are going to see someone playing a video game. If Felix pitches his game, you are going to see the same thing. When those guys pitch it is like us playing Playstation. They make some pitches that are unreal”

As for similarities Silva said their makeup is what they share in common. “They are two different pitchers. They both know how two pitch and have outstanding pitches. Both guys are very much emotion guys and when they go to the mound, they are going to war. They don’t go to throw the ball to home plate, they go to war.”

I am looking forward to this one tonight.

Some fun before the game as members of Pearl Jam who are in town for concerts Tuesday and Wednesday were early guests of the team and took batting practice. Always funny to see little skinny longhaired rock stars out there taking their hacks. The cool thing is, they are rock stars! I mean as cool as they are, and as fun as their lives may be, what do they pull strings to do? Go hit with major leaguers.

Wow. I just cheered in the press box. Very much not allowed, but warranted. Are you kidding me!!!!!Felix just hit a grand slam! First pitch from Santana. He pumped both fists in the air as he rounded first and then slowed to a very slow home run trot. As Adrian, Clement and Willie stood at home plate to wait for him I saw Adrian put his hands out and shrug his shoulders. A media member asked if Felix could play first base. Lopez greeted him at the top of the dugout steps with a big hug and you could see the excitement in the M’s dugout. Easily the highlight of the year.

Back to pre game. The M’s who are Pearl Jam fans got a huge break when it was announced Dickey would pitch tomorrow and Batista Wednesday. Batista is probably the slowest in the league and a bunch of the guys are hoping to make it to at least part of the show tomorrow. They have done this before, most recently two years ago in Toronto.
There are a lot of fans on this team, with Raul Ibanez, Ryan Rowland-Smith and Richie Sexson being three of the biggest.

All three incidentally play the guitar. Richie’s speaking voice has always made me think that he may have an Eddie Vedderish singing voice, but he assures me that is not the case. Raul has been playing the guitar for a few years now and from what I am told (he never plays in the clubhouse like former teammates Ben Broussard and Dave Hansen did) has become quite good. RRS has recently taken up bass guitar.

I asked Raul that since Eddie Vedder seemed to have no problem swinging a bat in front of him, if he (Vedder) handed him his guitar and asked him to play in front of him, would he do it? “Yes, but not in front of 50,000 people.” He replied. He’s braver than I am. I played the trumpet through college but froze when Wynton Marsalis handed me his horn after a concert when told that I played. Absolutely no chance that was going to happen.

What else today. Vidro looks like a chipmunk after fouling a ball off his cheek yesterday. Says he is fine…Getting used to seeing Dan Wilson in a suit. He has become a regular broadcaster for the Northeast games. He is always welcome. I kind of wonder that with his mind (he is very smart) if maybe he is feeling things out right now in regard to a possible front office job. Not the GM position yet, but maybe something that could put him on that track...these notes on Felix’s slam just in. It is the first home run ever for a Mariners pitcher, the first ever interleague grand slam by an American League pitcher and the first slam by an AL pitcher since Steve Dunning in 1971…I’m going to post and enjoy the rest of the game. Yes, I said enjoy the game! Wow again, right up to the point where Felix gets hurt. Can’t tell if it is a knee or an ankle, but it is not good. Will have more after the game.