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Freddie Freeman’s Last Game

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Hopefully, Freddie Freeman’s actual last game won’t be for many, many years.

But I can’t get the last Braves game of 2019 out of my head, and largely because of Freddie Freeman.

You may recall (though I try not to) that the St. Louis Cardinals scored 10 runs in the first inning of Game 5 of the NLDS. The Braves lost 13-1.

Mike Foltynewicz pitched a third of an inning and was charged with 7 runs, 6 earned. He had plenty of “help” in that wretched inning. If memory serves (and you’ll forgive me if I forget some of the details, because it was just that miserable), Brian McCann dropped two balls from two different batters that would have been strike three. Max Fried gave up the other three runs that inning.

But I don’t hear much about that. Apart from the sheer ridiculousness of a game that was “over” about 20 minutes after it started, what I hear about is Freddie Freeman’s error in that inning. If he’d made what would ordinarily have been a double play (and an inning-ending one at that), the game would have been 1-0.

Both Foltynewicz and Freeman gave post-game interviews. Foltynewicz’s made me sad. Freeman’s broke my heart.

And it’s stuck with me. He blamed himself for both the loss in Game 5 and for the NLDS series loss.

He didn’t play well. At all (nor did most of his teammates). He was suffering from a bone spur in his elbow, and post-season surgery showed that what was going on with that elbow was worse than even the doctors thought.

His performance in the NLDS didn’t help, but it wasn’t just his fault. By a long shot.

I wondered how Freddie was doing since that Game 5. I was delighted to see him surprising a kid who was dressed as Freddie Freeman for Halloween while taking his son Charlie Trick-or-Treating.

Life does go on, after all.

I attended a Q&A with him, Ozzie Albies and Dansby Swanson at Chop Fest, the Braves’ winter event, this weekend.

Twice he mentioned the St. Louis series.

This bit was particularly interesting (in response to a question about his favorite places to play).

(He actually said “close,” not “tender.” Same difference.)

I’m looking forward to turning the page with the start of a new baseball season. I hope we’ll all be able to.

As for Freddie, I gained a whole new level of respect for him this weekend.

It’s been awhile…

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About a thousand years ago (also known as in 2007), I started a blog. This blog.

I blogged every day in 2008.

I blogged off and on in 2009, 2010, and 2011. In December of 2011, my dog, Toby died. I posted briefly the day he died, and told the story of his death in April 2012. That was the last time I posted.

If you look around, you’ll notice that some of the links are dead, as are many of the photos.

Earlier today, I realized I have some Thoughts I Want to Share about Freddie Freeman. I considered writing a thread on Twitter, but then I remembered this blog.

So, I’m going to reacquaint myself with how to navigate this dashboard and get started.

 

Happy birthday, Leslie! And a story.

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Happy birthday to my dear friend Leslie.

She and I have been friends since 1994. We knew each other (kind of) our freshman year of college, but became best buddies during summer school in 1994 (the summer after our freshman year).

She also met her future husband that summer. I met Bryan before she did, but can’t take any credit for their getting together. I can, however, claim — with most of the other people at summer school that year — knowing he liked her. She was oblivious.

Eleven summers later, I took Ed with me to visit them at the camp they attend for 10 days each year. They loved Ed. As we left, Leslie hugged me and whispered, “I’m so happy for you!” Sarah, their youngest child at the time, lovingly stroked Ed’s beard. We’d been dating for four weeks.

We didn’t make anything “official” for a couple of months, but I, at least, was pretty sure we’d be getting married after our visit with Leslie and her family at camp.

The following summer, 10 months after Ed and I started dating, Leslie was matron of honor at our wedding. (Leslie also spent the night before the wedding with me, another wonderful gift.

Their three children (along with my nephew) were Children of Honor. Bryan said an absolutely amazing prayer. What a blessing it is to have friends you love SO MUCH that you simply must include each family member in your ceremony of marriage!

Another fun aside… When Ed and I got out of the car at the rehearsal (the day before the wedding), Sarah ran to Ed and wrapped her 2 1/2-year-old arms around his legs in a big hug. They hadn’t seen each other since camp almost a year earlier.

Leslie refered to her crew as our non-family family in this year’s Christmas card. We’re not related by blood, but we’re family.

I love you, Leslie, and I miss you. Happy birthday.

Chocolate

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It’s 8:27 a.m. I’ve already started eating chocolate.

It seems like I’ve been here FOREVER, but it’s been less than two hours.

The day is going o.k., but chocolate helps everything be better.

Except for my waistline.

(Oh well…)

Return of the cats?

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In September, I wrote about our cats and the bed. Poor kitties: they never get to sleep in the bed with us.

Well, while Ed and I (and the dogs) were gone this week, the cats had the run of the place. I’m sure many hours were spent curled up on our bed.

Apparently, they’ve remembered how lovely it is to sleep in the bed with a human, especially on cold nights.

So… Thursday night (before the dogs returned) the cats slept in the bed with us. Ed, so surprised at the sight, said, “Is that a cat?” Friday night, Asbury slept with us for a little while, until Fox ran her off.

Last night, Fox ran Asbury off, but they both came BACK! Maybe Fox knew they were there. Maybe he didn’t. But the cats were in the bed with us off and on all night.

Truthfully, 2 humans and 2 dogs in one bed is a bit crowded.

But I’m still rooting for the cats.