Space Age Love Song
New wave band from the 80's, A Flock of Seagulls, released this song in 1982. It was the lesser known single to the hit "I Ran (So Far Away)," and is, to this day, one of the best songs to come out of that decade. You can give a listen to that song here. Get your leg warmers and teased hair ready for this one!
It is also the proper way to describe the past week of Houston Astros Spring Training. Of the 6 games played, not including the off day Tuesday, the Astros accumulated 3 more wins, 2 more losses, and a tie. Vastly improved upon the first week of Grapefruit League games, which saw them only have 2 wins, 6 losses and another tie. Things are certainly looking up for the team. Especially, when you consider that Dallas Keuchel and Lance McCullers both got their first starts of spring, and were phenomenal on the mound.
Your people's champion and mine, Evan Gattis, has also been doing his part to make a statement. Though his bat is still trying to wake up, he already has two catching starts in the books. In both outings, he's led pitchers to a total of 10 strikeouts, 2 walks, and only 4 earned runs across 9 innings. And in today's game, he did hit 1-for-3 with a single, so the bat is coming around. Not a bad start for El Oso Blanco, I must say!
However, there was some disturbing developments that came out of the game today against the St. Louis Cardinals. In addition to the team losing another heart breaker of a game 6-3, some random Twitter accounts were talking about how some of the Cardinals commentators were too focused on the wedding band on Evan's finger. Though unconfirmed, one account even said they were talking about wanting to amputate his finger.
Now I assume they were just doing this out of some competitive fun. But if not, they and everyone else reading this needs to be put on notice. Nobody messes with my bear buddy and gets away with it. And I MEAN NOBODY! You mess with him, you mess with me. Pure and simple! Don't think I won't get in touch with my inner bitch and start going off, because she is frequently on a strict diet that starves her. I will allow her to feast if necessary.
But I digress. Gattis also brought a special guest to camp yesterday. Per a report from Brian McTaggart of MLB.com, astronaut Doug Wheelock, who befriended Gattis on Twitter not that long ago, was asked by him and Skipper A.J. Hinch to come and give a guest lecture to the team. His emphasis was, no surprise, teamwork. So an actual spaceman came to talk to the baseball spacemen! Here are some of Evan's quotes from Taggs' article:
"I looked him up and he had the blue checkmark and everything and he was verified, and I was, 'Oh, man,'" Gattis said. "So then I Wikipedia him and I'm like, 'This guy's a rock star.' Through Twitter, we shot some message to each other and kept in contact and found out he was coming, and A.J. asked if he wanted to speak, and I said, 'Yeah, let me ask him.' He was floored and thrilled to be here. It was really cool. It was a good talk for everybody. Cool stuff, man."
Gattis said comparing space travel to baseball is flattering, but maybe a bit unfair. "He's been up in space, man," Gattis said. "It was very cool."
Wheelock even snapped a pic of Gattis with Astros' Legend, and recent Hall of Fame Inductee, Jeff Bagwell:
Give him that multi-year extension, in order to play with Brian McCann through 2019, and then mentor Garrett Stubbs for another few years. Allow him to have a home team he can feel secure and stay with, like he wants to. He's more than earned that right, as well as the money that comes with it. You'll never find as much of a hard working fan favorite as Evan Gattis, and somehow, I think you all know that.
It is also the proper way to describe the past week of Houston Astros Spring Training. Of the 6 games played, not including the off day Tuesday, the Astros accumulated 3 more wins, 2 more losses, and a tie. Vastly improved upon the first week of Grapefruit League games, which saw them only have 2 wins, 6 losses and another tie. Things are certainly looking up for the team. Especially, when you consider that Dallas Keuchel and Lance McCullers both got their first starts of spring, and were phenomenal on the mound.
Your people's champion and mine, Evan Gattis, has also been doing his part to make a statement. Though his bat is still trying to wake up, he already has two catching starts in the books. In both outings, he's led pitchers to a total of 10 strikeouts, 2 walks, and only 4 earned runs across 9 innings. And in today's game, he did hit 1-for-3 with a single, so the bat is coming around. Not a bad start for El Oso Blanco, I must say!
However, there was some disturbing developments that came out of the game today against the St. Louis Cardinals. In addition to the team losing another heart breaker of a game 6-3, some random Twitter accounts were talking about how some of the Cardinals commentators were too focused on the wedding band on Evan's finger. Though unconfirmed, one account even said they were talking about wanting to amputate his finger.
Now I assume they were just doing this out of some competitive fun. But if not, they and everyone else reading this needs to be put on notice. Nobody messes with my bear buddy and gets away with it. And I MEAN NOBODY! You mess with him, you mess with me. Pure and simple! Don't think I won't get in touch with my inner bitch and start going off, because she is frequently on a strict diet that starves her. I will allow her to feast if necessary.
But I digress. Gattis also brought a special guest to camp yesterday. Per a report from Brian McTaggart of MLB.com, astronaut Doug Wheelock, who befriended Gattis on Twitter not that long ago, was asked by him and Skipper A.J. Hinch to come and give a guest lecture to the team. His emphasis was, no surprise, teamwork. So an actual spaceman came to talk to the baseball spacemen! Here are some of Evan's quotes from Taggs' article:
"I looked him up and he had the blue checkmark and everything and he was verified, and I was, 'Oh, man,'" Gattis said. "So then I Wikipedia him and I'm like, 'This guy's a rock star.' Through Twitter, we shot some message to each other and kept in contact and found out he was coming, and A.J. asked if he wanted to speak, and I said, 'Yeah, let me ask him.' He was floored and thrilled to be here. It was really cool. It was a good talk for everybody. Cool stuff, man."
Gattis said comparing space travel to baseball is flattering, but maybe a bit unfair. "He's been up in space, man," Gattis said. "It was very cool."
Wheelock even snapped a pic of Gattis with Astros' Legend, and recent Hall of Fame Inductee, Jeff Bagwell:
Thankfully, Wheelock was not the only fan of the team or Gattis to get to share special moments with the Big White Bear at camp. Here are some others:Amazing #SpringTraining weekend with our beloved #Houston @astros! A favorite moment with @BulldogBeing and Astros #HOF legend Jeff Bagwell. pic.twitter.com/EHzTTOtunB— Doug Wheelock (@Astro_Wheels) March 12, 2017
Brody hanging out with some former Trojans today @BulldogBeing and twitterless Toro pic.twitter.com/PE0nXjjKXF— Brett Case (@BrettCase84) March 12, 2017
— Darek E. (@Aggiefan70) March 12, 2017Pictures and stories like these only reinforce what I have personally believed about Evan Gattis all along. That he is grounded, well-rounded and generous to all of us that love this game of baseball. His presence and accessibility alone makes an impact on Major League Baseball that is not always felt in other sports. Hopefully, this Astros organization is taking heed of this, so as to keep him around for as long as possible.
Give him that multi-year extension, in order to play with Brian McCann through 2019, and then mentor Garrett Stubbs for another few years. Allow him to have a home team he can feel secure and stay with, like he wants to. He's more than earned that right, as well as the money that comes with it. You'll never find as much of a hard working fan favorite as Evan Gattis, and somehow, I think you all know that.
Original Photo Credit: Logan Reever of WEBN News
What's not to love about El Oso Blanco? Honestly!
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