DodgerKramer

I swear this guy could still play first base for the Dodgers

dodgerkramer — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 04:15:35 +0000

Mr. Dodger Steve Garvey in a recent photo. He holds the National League record with 1,207 consecutive games played. Garvey played in four World Series for the Dodgers.

Blast from the past

dodgerkramer — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 03:53:26 +0000

My best buddy Al and I used to listen to this song all the time when we lived on 80th Place in Urbandale …

“Say ‘What?’ “

dodgerkramer — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 15:12:44 +0000

Maisa needed a nap yesterday on the way to daycare. Her exhaustion led to a screaming fit. I ignored it and kept driving. Her reaction to my non-reaction nearly brought me to laughter, though:

DADDDDDY!!!!

DADDDDDY!!!

TALK TO ME!!!

DADDY SAY, ‘WHAT?’ !!!!!

Time for a movie?

dodgerkramer — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 05:55:11 +0000

Jill and I are wondering when we ought to take Maisa to her first movie.

We can’t decide if Maisa would be able to sit still for 75 to 90 minutes while Disney characters sing and dance on the silver screen. Sometimes I think she would, sometimes I don’t.

For now, Maisa’s only movie experiences are on TV. We recorded “Tangled” a couple of months ago, and she absolutely loves that movie. It’s Disney’s take on the Rapunzel fairy tale. She has watched it several times and likes to sing the songs around the house. I have to admit — it’s an entertaining film even for a 35-year-old Dad.

Lakers, Uclans and the President

dodgerkramer — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 21:10:13 +0000

Not that I should be interested in watching them, after their lackluster performance last night in Miami, but the Lakers are on TV again tonight. Seven o’clock on ESPN vs. Orlando.

Isn’t it amazing that this is Kobe Bryant’s 16th season in the NBA? It’s astonishing to think about that. And the guy is averaging 30.4 points per contest this season.

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UCLA also lost last night, against President Obama’s Oregon State Ducks.

OK, OK, they’re not actually Obama’s team. But his brother-in-law is the head coach, so you can bet one of the White House TVs was tuned into the game last night.

Surely they get DirecTV at the White House, right?

It’s the law: If the Lakers are playing, the game must be on TV

dodgerkramer — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 17:18:09 +0000

The best thing about being a Lakers fan is the fact that many (most?) of their games are on national TV. Just like the Yankees.

I watched the Lake Show beat Dallas a few nights ago. And L.A. is on TV again tonight, against Miami.

The UCLA men are on TV tonight, too. So it’s probably a good thing that I’ll be at work. Otherwise, I would just sit in my recliner and watch games and be totally unproductive.

3-pointer at the buzzer

dodgerkramer — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 06:56:18 +0000

A nice victory for the Iowa State men tonight.

Yankees pick up ex-Dodger Kuroda

dodgerkramer — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 23:52:30 +0000

I was somewhat saddened to see the Yankees sign Hiroki Kuroda, who was a very solid pitcher for the Dodgers the last four years.

Kuroda’s 41-46 record in four seasons is not indicative of the kind of pitcher he was for the Bums. His season ERAs were 3.73, 3.76, 3.39 and 3.07.

Kuroda’s teammates just could not score any runs for him, but he never let it bother him. He took the mound every fifth day and almost always kept the Dodgers in the game.

Kuroda was the winning pitcher in the Game 3 clincher of the 2008 NLDS against the Cubs. He threw 6 1/3 scoreless innings that night at Chavez Ravine.

I’ll remember Kuroda for his uncanny command of the strike zone, and his well-above-average sinking fastball.

Godspeed, Hiroki. You were a good soldier.

Maisa-merized

dodgerkramer — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 23:22:41 +0000

Maisa sat in the front row of her cousin’s show choir concert today. She was completely mesmerized by the fun songs, the choreographed dancing and the colorful clothing.

We were worried that Maisa wouldn’t sit still for the concert. But she sat there by herself (one row ahead of us) and watched every second of the singing and dancing. She was a very good girl.

Maisa said she wants to sing and dance when she gets older. Sounds like a good plan to me.

Hoops, library and snow angels

dodgerkramer — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 17:02:16 +0000

I watched most of the Iowa State-Missouri game a couple of nights ago. It was the first time I’d seen the Cyclones play this season. They’re an entertaining bunch, especially Royce White. Scott Christopherson’s half-court shot before halftime was pretty cool — even Maisa enjoyed that play.

White is a big-time pro prospect, although I’m guessing the NBA scouts cringe at his free-throw skills. It’s not a stretch to say White is a worse foul shooter than Shaq. I never thought I’d say that about anyone.

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If Iowa State were an NBA team, I think Don Nelson would enjoy coaching them.

The Cyclones have a lot of skill on the offensive end, but they don’t play much defense. They’re a bit slow getting to loose balls. They don’t rebound very well. And they’re not very good at the free-throw line.

It’s a team only Nellie could love.

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A few weeks ago, I wrote about the absurdity of college basketball coaches getting so hot under the collar. Since then, the national media has made similar observations/criticisms.

One last thought on the subject: I think John Q. Public is less forgiving of coaches’ sideline antics when the economy stinks and we’ve spent a decade fighting two wars overseas.

When coaches lose all sense of perspective and go ballistic on refs and players, it starts to grind on fans who have a lot bigger problems to worry about at home.

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Winter time means more trips to the library for the Little Miss. Brought her there Wednesday night (read about 10 kids’ books) and Thursday morning (attended children’s storytime/arts and crafts).

The Ankeny library has storytime every morning for kids like Maisa, and now that it’s so cold outside we’ll be going weekly.

You wouldn’t believe how many people go to the Ankeny library every day. Kids (and adults) get so much out of it. A tremendous use of tax dollars.

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Maisa keeps asking Mommy if they can go outside and make snow angels. The Little Miss doesn’t understand the concept of “frostbite” yet.