(Rizzo gives the Cubs the early lead.  Boo.)

(Gonzalez drives in a run on a gound out.  Yay.)

(Gah!  Why did the Braun homer have to be the blurriest one?  I got the timing right and everything.  Rats.)

(Barney grounds out to end the game.)

Only 14 games left against the Cubs in 2013.  Too bad.

Introduction -

I've made an alternate guide to enjoying the latest Jean Segura moment* (GIFs provided by Grant Brisbee) for members of various Jean Segura fan clubs.

*Here's the definition of Macroscopic Scale - keep this definition in mind as you go through this.

To me, it seems as though Jean Segura may or may not have been on the macroscopic scale. Or, maybe the umpire was not on it. If they were on it, I hope this is still of value to some people.

(end of introduction)

- Here are 3 separate reactions to the Jean Segura moment. Reaction 3 is mine, and I've chosen to use a soundtrack in place of words.

1) A tweet from Dianagram:

                                                                     -  -  -  -  -  -  - 

2) Ron Roenicke post-game interview:

                                                                        -  -  -  -  -  -  -

3) The Soundtrack: If this had not been composed by Ligeti, and published in 1994 - and if he were still alive, he could have written this after watching the bottom of the 8th inning from this Cubs @ Brewers game.

 György Ligeti: Sonata for Viola

conclusion - this was fun. I'm pretty sure I could have just left the macroscopic scale out of this, though.

For reference, if you didn't see it...and I'd personally hope you did already see it - - here is a video of Milwaukee Brewers Shortstop Jean Segura's 6 unassisted double play.

- - - - - -

(Source: Amazon.com)

This past week MLB commemorated Jackie Robinson’s ground-breaking career, with all players wearing his number 42 during Monday’s and Tuesday’s games.  Robinson passed away in 1972, well before I was born (well, a few years anyway) so like a lot of “younger” fans, I only know of his historic contributions to the game and civil rights through second hand accounts.  Since I didn’t live through the 40’s and 50’s, I can appreciate what Robinson represents, but only at a distance – on some level, I can never really “get” Robinson, what he went through, and what that time in history was like.

A couple of days ago, I read about a book that Robinson wrote in 1964 that might help someone like me gain a deeper understanding of him, as well as other ballplayers of color that worked during the desegregation era.  Here is a snippet from the Amazon description:

“Baseball Has Done It is an oral history of baseball and racial integration as told by its greatest players to the man who broke the color line, Jackie Robinson. This one-of-a-kind classic features rare and candid interviews conducted by Robinson with ballplayers who played and lived through the first generation of racial integration in baseball. A who’s who of baseball legends—Hank Aaron, Ernie Banks, Roy Campanella, Alvin Dark, Larry Doby, Carl Erskine, Elston Howard, Monte Irvin, Don Newcombe, Frank Robinson and Bill White—share the spotlight with players from the Negro Leagues, baseball executives like Branch Rickey and Ford Frick and Jackie Robinson himself to create a diverse look at the effects of integration on baseball and society.”

Given the subject matter, it’s surprising Baseball Has Done It hasn’t gotten wider attention.  I happened to find out about it thanks to this column by Matt Welch, who describes his experience reading the book relatively recently, which is to say fairly late in his life and almost fifty years after it was first published.

One interesting point Welch makes is that our popular understanding of Robinson may not be accurate.  A movie like the recently released 42 might portray Robinson as more of a “turn the other cheek” guy than he actually was.  The well-known story is that Brooklyn Dodgers president and general manager Branch Rickey told Robinson he was looking for a player “with guts enough not to fight back.”  But Robinson went through a court martial in 1944 for confronting racism in the military, which doesn’t sound like a guy who wouldn’t fight back.

Welch poses the question: “Are we doing Jackie Robinson an injustice by portraying him more as saint than fighter?”

It’s an interesting question, and one wonders if Baseball Has Done It includes any insight into Robinson the fighter.  I just ordered it from Amazon, so I guess I’ll find out soon.

I wanted to acknowledge Craig Counsell, since he's supposed to be in the FSN broadcast booth, at some point. I drew this in June, but it's got a nifty-looking border that looks sort of like an old portfolio...or some sort of sheet music folder. The picture of the cheese was in the original version, as well. Craig Counsell will be a GM, someday. One who won't spend a significant amount of money on a LOOGY right away.

Anyhow, here's hoping he shows up in the booth.

(Illustration - Craig Counsell, Future GM)