No Rhubarb!

There are times when following a team – any team, but especially a baseball team – can get to be a grind. The Rainiers dropping three in a row to New Orleans and on the verge of getting swept is one of those times. The best news? Our Favorite Rainier - who, seriously needs to be promoted like today – doubled and scored, and Wladimir Balentien hit his 23rd homer. It just wasn't enough.

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Posted by frinklin at 11:27 PM | 0 comments Links to this post    
Labels: Game Results, New Orleans Zephyrs, Tacoma Rainiers

As far as I can tell, absolutely nothing interesting happened during this game.

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Posted by frinklin at 11:17 PM | 0 comments Links to this post    
Labels: Game Results, New Orleans Zephyrs, Tacoma Rainiers

After the weather-induced mess over the past weekend, an extra-inning game following a cross-country flight is exactly what the Rainiers didn't need.

But that is exactly what they got, falling to the Zephyrs 4-2, on a twelfth-inning, walk-off, two-run homer by New Orleans rightfielder Jesus Feliciano. The recently demoted Jason Davis started for Tacoma, giving up two runs over five. No Rhubarb! favorite Kameron Mickolio took the loss.

Same two teams tomorrow at 5 Pacific.

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Posted by frinklin at 11:38 PM | 0 comments Links to this post    
Labels: Game Results, New Orleans Zephyrs, Tacoma Rainiers

The modern-day Pacific Coast League is a massive enterprise consisting of 16 teams stretching from Tacoma and Portland in the Pacific Northwest to New Orleans of the Deep South. These are the teams our hometown nine will face throughout the long season. You must know the enemy!

The Team: New Orleans Zephyrs

The City: Metairie, Louisiana

The Affiliation: New York Mets

The Website: Zephyrsbaseball.com

The Ballpark: Zephyr Field. Built in 1997, the “Shrine on Airline” (yes, the dumbest nickname for a stadium we can recall), appears to be the minor league equivalent of New Comiskey in Chicago: new, shiny and pretty close to soulless. As with most newer minor league stadiums, Zephyr Field features outfield berm seating, the unfortunately named “Da Levee”. In 2005, Zephyr Field was used as FEMA staging area following Hurricane Katrina. Thankfully for New Orleans baseball fans, FEMA managed not to burn the stadium down.

The History: The New Orleans Pelicans were a longtime member of the old Southern Association; one of the crown jewels of Deep South baseball along with such franchises as the Atlanta Crackers, Little Rock Travelers and Nashville Volunteers. The SA collapsed in 1961, either unwilling or simply unable to integrate. In 1977 a new version of the Pelicans played one season in the Superdome, but a lousy stadium lease forced the team to relocate to Springfield, Missouri. In 1993, baseball returned to the Crescent City after the Denver Zephyrs were forced out by the expansion Colorado Rockies.

The Name: After decades as the Bears, the Denver franchise switched to Zephyrs in 1985. The name went with them to New Orleans, missing an opportunity to reclaim a great baseball name and look.

The Prospects: The Zephyrs feature two of the parent Mets' best pitching prospects in Phillip Humber and Mike Pelfrey. In addition, the talented-but-somewhat flakey Lastings Milledge and former Rainier and Mariner Clint Nagoette are on the New Orleans disabled list.

Did You Know? The Zephyrs are the only team in organized baseball with a "Z" on the cap?

Did You Care? Us neither.

Posted by frinklin at 1:05 PM | 0 comments Links to this post    
Labels: Know The Enemy, New Orleans Zephyrs, Tacoma Rainiers

A Zephyr is defined as a “Gentle Breeze.” Just what then, would the New Orleans Zephyrs do for a mascot?

A giant rat-like creature, what else? No, it wouldn't be the Rodents of Unusual Size. That would actually be cool. No, the Zephyrs mascot is a nutria, a large, semi-aquatic rodent initially native to South America.

Sounds appealing, doesn't it?

A special note must be made of the New Orleans logo, which features a very angry looking nutria. Really closer to a psychotic otter than anything else. While Angry Nutria has buckteeth like a beaver, the actual mascot (Boudreaux and his wife Clotile) has more tusk-like appendages.

Yes, of course the mascot is married. Wouldn't want the four mascot children to be born out of wedlock would we? Methinks that New Orleans takes this just a touch to seriously.

Check out Boudreaux and Clotile. And don't forget the wedding photos.

Posted by frinklin at 7:44 AM | 0 comments Links to this post    
Labels: New Orleans Zephyrs, Tacoma Rainiers, Things That Make Us Want to Die