Skaldheim

Saturday, August 23, 2003

Bobby Bonds, 1946-2003

I just got back from Pac Bell Park. I hadn't heard of his passing before I arrived. When they played the national anthem, I looked at the flagpoles. They were at half staff. It was chilling--I knew instantly what must have happened. Sure enough, a few minutes later they made the announcement over the PA system. They didn't have to ask for a moment of silence.

I have never, ever, heard that ballpark so completely and utterly quiet. Not during all the post 9/11 ceremonies, never. I think it would have stayed like that forever, if the PA announcer hadn't finally said something.

During the game, between innings, they showed photos and film of Bobby as a player, as a coach, as a dad. They put up some of those statistics of his. The ones that you just don't think about if you're my age (35) or younger. 332 homers. 3 Gold Gloves. 461 stolen bases. Three-time All-Star. Five-time 30/30 man. He was a great player, and a great Giant. I hope people remember that, and not just that he was Barry's father.

The Giants only started two of their regulars today--Cruz and Alfonzo. I suspect everyone else got the day off because Bobby Bonds was close to them all. He was the hitting coach for many of them at one point, at the very least. Somehow (okay, Neifi played his best game of the season), the Giants won anyway. And what started as a sad day ended with a lot of people leaving with smiles on their faces. Somehow, I think that's exactly what Bobby Bonds would have wanted.

Giants official site on Bobby Bonds' passing
Bobby Bonds career statistics
Ray Ratto's outstanding article on Bobby Bonds
American Cancer Society--if you want to make a contribution in his memory

Jefferson 6:22 PM

Friday, August 22, 2003

Whither the Expos?

My fellow Giants fans, forgive me a moment while I toss out a take on my second-favorite team, the Expos.

Now that Oregon has rejected public financing for a stadium for the Expos, where the heck will they go?

Here's a thought. A totally insane thought, but a thought nonetheless.

Bud Selig goes to Montreal and gives a press conference. He publicly apologizes to the city and people of Quebec for allowing the previous owners of the Expos to destroy the franchise. He announces his pledge that the Montreal Expos will remain where they are. He pledges to find new local ownership, and to sell the team to them for $100 million. That $100 million will be used for the down payment on the Expos' new stadium. He pledges to work with the new owners to rebuild the fan base in Montreal, and he acknowledges the tremendous support the team received until the strike.

Then he resigns.

Jefferson 4:01 PM

Thursday, August 21, 2003

Barry Bonds, MVP

Lightning does strike twice.

Barry Bonds did hit walkoff homers in the tenth inning against the Braves. Twice. In three games.

Barry Bonds now has 652 career home runs.

Barry Bonds is absolutely, positively the baddest man on the baseball diamond.

Barry Bonds, if the season ended today, would be the first ever back-to-back-to-back Most Valuable Player of the National League, and the first ever six-time winner of that award.

GIANTS MAGIC NUMBER: 27.

Jefferson 10:41 PM

Tales of T'Regnor Update

I just posted the session log from this week's game.

Jefferson 7:51 PM

Wednesday, August 20, 2003

Giants Defeat Braves 2-1

This just in...Edgardo Alfonzo rips a base hit up the middle with one out in the bottom of the ninth. Pinch runner Neifi Perez scores the winning run. Giants win 2-1. Arizona lost earlier tonight.

GIANTS MAGIC NUMBER: 28.

Jefferson 10:25 PM

He's Baaaaack....

...and for my money, he's your MVP again this year. (Apologies to Mr. Pujols, who would be the runaway MVP in any other league, or even in this one, in most other seasons.) Barry Bonds smashed a splash, and the Giants break their horrific six-game losing streak. I could go on for pages about Bonds' ordeal this year, but frankly, I'm simply speechless at his ability to play, and play so well, considering everything he's going through. Suffice to say, the man has my deepest respect.

Beating the Braves is especially important. The odds are high that these two teams will face enough again in October. Beating the Braves now will give the Giants confidence going into the playoffs. Beating the Braves now, with Durham, Snow, Reuter, and a cast of thousands on the disabled list, tells everyone that the Giants are still one of the National League's elite teams. I'm sure a lot of people looked at the road trip, where the Fresno Grizzlies filled in, as a sign that the Giants had serious problems. But really, it's nothing we didn't already know--lose half your starting lineup, and you won't be very good.

The real question is whether or not the Giants will have everyone back by October. And if they don't, will they still have enough to return to the Fall Classic? The latter question is what this series aganist Atlanta will address.

If anyone had any doubts about the Giants' determination to win it all this year, yesterday's trade for Eric Young should lay those doubts to rest. I'm ecstatic about this trade, if only because it means Neifi Perez, Neifi's horrible swing, Neifi's horribly weak grounders to the right side of the infield, Neifi's utter inability to draw a walk, and Neifi's utter lack of power will be parked in the dugout a lot more.

Let's compare Mr. Young to Mr. Perez, shall we?

Eric Young: .260 AVG, .344 OBP, .421 SLG
Neifi Perez: .254 AVG, .282 OBP, .332 SLG

Just based on those numbers alone, why would you EVER play Neifi if you have a castoff from the Milwaukee Brewers??

Now let's toss out a few other numbers, for other Giants infielders:

Pedro Feliz: .223 AVG, .258 OBP, .457 SLG
Rich Aurilia: .268 AVG, .318 OBP, .399 SLG
Edgardo Alfonzo: .254 AVG, .325 OBP, .360 SLG
J.T. Snow: .272 AVG, .379 OBP, .413 SLG
Andres Gallaraga: .298 AVG, .356 OBP, .505 SLG
Ray Durham: .283 AVG, .369 OBP, .426 SLG

Not only is Eric Young hitting better than Perez, but he's instantly one of the better-hitting infielders the Giants have. And Young's not a great hitter, by any means. The infield has been a weakness on the Giants this year, especially when Durham's been injured. A Brewers castoff is outhitting half the Giants' starting infield, and all but one of their reserves. Sabean is smart to make the trade. October's coming up fast.

GIANTS MAGIC NUMBER: 30

Jefferson 10:37 AM

Monday, August 18, 2003

We Miss You, Barry

The Fresno Grizzlies completed a horrific six-game road trip. They played six games. They lost six games. What do you expect from the Grizzlies?

However, the Giants will begin their reunion tour tomorrow against the Braves. I understand bassist Richie Aurilia will be back, and we might even see the return of legendary drummer Barry Bonds. The rest of the band is still recovering from various ailments, so we'll still have some of the backup singers from Fresno on the stage. Hopefully, they'll be on key for once.

GIANTS MAGIC NUMBER: 31

Jefferson 3:54 PM

Wednesday, August 13, 2003

Steve Jackson Games Responds

As I mentioned yesterday, Paul Chapman, manager of the soon-to-be-closed miniatures division of Steve Jackson Games, responded to my rant from a few days ago. I'm posting his rebuttal here, because, well, it's only fair! I would like to thank Paul Chapman for his kind permission to repost this, which first appeared in the SFBay_OGRE Yahoo! group. Here it is:

Yep, that's a rant all right. Pretty accurate for the most part. I
would like to put a different spin on a couple of things, though.

Point 1) "...SJG couldn't sustain it, despite demand from the
fans...." That demand didn't translate into sales. Had the sales been
higher, the line's overall priority would have risen. Case in point:
Chez Geek. When this little card game was released, sales sucked.
Bad. But over time, the sales picked up, and *bam* the sales drove
the line to produce sequels and spinoffs.

Point 2) Our focus was all over the place. In retrospect, I agree. At
the time, I was searching for the new cow to milk, as Ogre's sales
were telling me that well had largely gone dry (to horribly mix
metaphors). The reasoning for the well going dry isn't something I'm
going to debate at the moment -- ask me again in six months.

Point 3) "...why bother with Hellboy Miniatures?" Because Hellboy is
popular, and sold _very_ well for us. If we hadn't done HB, we'd be
having this conversation about a year earlier.

Point 4) Re: SJ's relationship with third-party miniatures companies.
I can't comment on RP, as I wasn't either here or there at the time.
Armorcast, I caught the tail end of the affair, and I can say with
confidence that casting blame on just one party isn't realistic. As
for the other resin companies, SJ had nothing to do with them. I was
the point man on those interactions, and I feel no shame in saying
that I should have terminated each relationship much sooner than I
did. None of the companies I worked with were able to produce the
quality on the schedule that was agreed upon. Characterizing them as
throwing up their hands "in utter frustration" is completely
inaccurate.

Point 5) "I'm afraid this is the beginning of another long
interregnum." Given the interest I've seen from potential licensees
in the past 24 hours, I'm going to disagree with your fears.

[This has been an official message from Steve Jackson Games'
Miniatures Division.]
Paul Chapman
http://www.sjgames.com/minis
Miniatures Division Manager
Steve Jackson Games
paul@sjgames.com

Jefferson 5:20 PM

Tuesday, August 12, 2003

Bonds Hits 650; Giants Lose Anyway

Tonight was one of those classic, bittersweet Giants losses. The kind of game you really want to enjoy, but you know you shouldn't because, well, they lost. The locals dropped a tough 5-4 decision to the Mets, despite Barry Bonds going 3-for-4 with 3 RBI, 2 HR, 1 BB, and 1 chat with a former President of the United States. Bonds now has 650 homers in his career. He's 39, and he's hitting .341 with an insane .521 OBA and .755 SLG. In a month or so he'll probably tie his godfather for third place on the all-time career home run list. But you know he's not happy tonight, even though he met Bill Clinton. (Reports that the president was offered a job as Bonds' hitting coach could not be confirmed at press time.)

Sir Sidney had a rocky start, giving up four earned runs in the first three innings. He eventually settled down, but not before giving two million Giants fans a peculiar sinking feeling in the pits of their stomachs. That feeling of deja vu. You know what I mean. Big gut. Caribbean. Right-hander. Supposed to be really good, but maddeningly inconsistent...

It's a scary feeling, so let's all take a deep breath and think some happy thoughts. The trade was all about October, not August. Pitchers don't just switch leagues and dominate; they have to learn the hitters, the parks, the things to avoid in the clubhouse spread. The first two starts don't mean anything, do they? Besides, Jason Schmidt's elbow will be all better by October, won't it? And Reuter's shoulder? (Sorry, I don't have time to talk about Durham and Santiago and Aurilia's infection by the creepy thing from Alien....)

So really, we don't have anything to worry about, right? Not for at least a month. Three weeks, soonest. Really.

GIANTS MAGIC NUMBER: 35

Jefferson 8:34 PM

Tales of T'Regnor Updates

I just posted two new session logs for the Tales of T'Regnor D&D campaign; you can now read about Session 21 and Session 22. With luck, we'll have the 23rd session later tonight.

Over Labor Day weekend, at the Conquest convention in Palo Alto, I'll be running a session of Tales of T'Regnor open to all convention registrants. It'll be Saturday, August 30, at 8 pm. Look for event #5415 in your convention programs.

Finally, I have posted a greatly revised and expanded article on the Ardovian pantheon of deities from the T'Regnor campaign.

In other news, Paul Chapman of Steve Jackson Games took the time to reply at length to my previous post. He replied on the SFBay_OGRE Yahoo! group, where many local Ogre/GEV players congregate. If he gives me permission, I'll post his response here, so everyone can read his rebuttal.

Jefferson 8:09 PM

Saturday, August 09, 2003

Steve Jackson Games Breaks My Heart Again

Overnight, Steve Jackson Games announced the following:

At the end of this month, SJ Games will close down its miniatures operation. During that time, we plan to cast enough metal to allow for expected sales through the end of 2003; after that, the lines will probably go out of print.

I say ?probably,? because we would certainly discuss licensing the figures to another company. We will welcome inquiries. (Or if somebody out there has been wanting to set up a small casting operation near Austin, that could be very interesting!)

The reason for the shutdown is simple: the division has been, ever since it was set up, the least profitable of our endeavors. Costs are high, and while some miniatures sets have been modest hits . . . overall, we would be far better off if we put the time, space, thought, and money into our other projects. It really seems that metal casting should be left either to companies which concentrate on that one thing, or which are big enough to create a minis division that is essentially its own independent operation.

I?m personally very proud of the work that we did here. It?s been a great privilege to have Richard Kerr as a sculptor, and the whole team, headed by Paul Chapman, has worked hard to release some really quality stuff. But it?s time to call it quits. Our thanks to those of you who have supported us by buying our figures and telling us you liked them. Ah, if only there had been more of you!

Over the next month we?ll release the last of the figures and vehicles Richard has already sculpted, including:

Doppelsoldner
Ogre Vulcan
Ogre Vulcan Heavy Drone
Ogre Ninja
Ogrethulhu Swimmer
Munchkin Maul Rat
Munchkin Troll
and a great number of Off The Wall Armies figures.

If you represent an established miniatures company, or have a credible startup plan, and you would like to discuss some or all of our figures, please contact Paul Chapman.

-- Steve Jackson

Let's see if I can talk about this without breaking something. First, it's great that SJG is going to try to issue all those figs in the next month. If they actually accomplish it, it would be an all-time record for new figures issued in one month. And that's the problem, in a nutshell--you cannot sustain interest in any line of miniatures if don't release a steady stream of new figures for it. Let's take Ogre, for instance. After its initial rush of figures at the beginning, SJG couldn't sustain it, despite demand from the fans for such models as the Ogre Mark I, Mark II, Mark IV, and Mark VI. They did finally release all of those, but it took years instead of months.

SJG continued to produce a few miniatures during this period, but they allowed their focus to be horribly divided among a number of questionable, one-off product lines. What's the point of putting out a box of giant ants? Or a box of skeletons? EVERYBODY makes skeleton miniatures--why buy SJG's? Or even more dragons? The fantasy miniature market has been saturated with dragon minis for decades. And why, God, why bother with Hellboy Miniatures? I submit that if SJG had concentrated their efforts on one line--ANY line--the miniatures division would have met with greater success. Especially if it was an exclusive, popular line like Ogre/GEV or Off-the-Wall Armies. Instead, they tried to issue something for everyone, and it didn't work.

Fans should take no solace in the promise that a licensee might be found to continue the lines. Steve Jackson has repeatedly proved that he is incapable of working with third-party miniatures companies. He has tried over and over again, with Ral Partha, with Armorcast, and with a couple other resin casters, and all of them threw up their hands and gave up in utter frustration. To put it kindly, Steve Jackson is a difficult man to work with. Brilliant? Hell yes. Imaginative? Absolutely. Pickier than hell? Very much so. We might see a licensing announcement, but I would be shocked if the partnership survived the first year.

After the original Ral Partha/Ogre Miniatures/Space Knights fiasco in the early to mid 1990's, it was nearly a decade before we got any new figures (or even old ones) for the Ogre/GEV line. I'm afraid this is the beginning of another long interregnum. In fact, I would go so far as to say that if Jackson can't work with outside casting companies, and he isn't willing to do it himself, then Ogre Miniatures is dead.

Jefferson 10:35 AM

Friday, August 08, 2003

What do you mean I haven't posted in five days? But it was just...oh never mind, I don't know where the week went either.

Wednesday night Dawn and I were fortunate enough to have tickets for Sir Sidney's San Francisco debut. Great seats, too; section 314, row 4, seats 23 and 24. Directly behind home plate. (Just up a little bit.) So we got a real good look at Ponson's pitching.

He's interesting. He's got a big, easy windup that doesn't look like much, and then bam! He hits 92-93 on the radar gun. He had the Pirates guessing a lot, but when he left a few hanging, the Pirates roped them into the gap in left-center field. Ponson put up seven scoreless innings, including fighting his way out of a bases-loaded jam, before giving up one double too many in the 8th. I was hoping Alou would remove him before that, because he was definitely losing speed and control; unfortunately, he didn't make the move quick enough. Ponson definitely pitched well enough to win, but he was stuck with a tough 2-0 loss.

Even worse, Julian Tavarez got the win. Felipe Alou was quoted later as saying that Tavarez was doctoring the ball; I don't know whether to take him seriously or not. Tavarez still has little control over himself or his fastball. Losing to that pinhead will stick in my craw for an awfully long time.

I was in the city yesterday, and I was tempted to ditch the LinuxWorld Expo for the day game. I didn't, though. Now I wish I had. Felipe Alou managed one of his patented B-lineup games, and won as usual. Tell me--if I had told you in March that in August there'd be a headline saying "Jeffrey Hammonds homer wins it for Giants," would you have had me committed? I would have. I mean, I can't see that name without thinking Jeffrey Hammonds-Hammonds. But he's here, he contributed, and the Giants won. That's the season in a nutshell. I hope the baseball writers give Alou serious consideration for NL Manager of the Year.

(This just in--God Almighty just crushed one of the longest homers I have ever seen. Wow!)

Well. This sounds like a good place to call it a post. Oh, before I forget:

GIANTS MAGIC NUMBER: 36

Jefferson 10:04 PM

Sunday, August 03, 2003

Haven't seen much of the Giants games this weekend, since I've been really busy with social commitments. So I was really surprised to hear that Dustin Hermanson had appeared out of thin air to start tonight's game. After a little confusion, I figured out that that one guy (Devil? Dorian?) was gone, and Sir Sidney wasn't going to start until Wednesday. Thus the need for an instant starter (just add a quick phone call to Fresno). Of course, following this year's tradition, Hermanson pitched a fine game, and got a victory.

The Giants finish the road trip 2-4, which is a bit disappointing considering the 11-1 homestand. On the other hand, the Diamondbacks continue to dissolve into a puddle of goo. I'm sure the Giants will get the upcoming homestand off to a roaring start Tuesday night when Schmidt takes the mound versus his old team, the Pirates. Then it's Sir Sidney Wednesday night, a game for which I have tickets. Perhaps the rotation will get a bit of stability from here on out. Reuter's shoulder problem is a big concern, though. If he can get healthy before the playoff, and if nothing else bad happens to the staff, Giants fans have a lot to be excited about.

On the other hand, Giants fans always have something to bitch about. I'm no exception. Today I have a bone to pick with one Felix Rodriguez. Over the last week, his ERA has been 27. He's probably lost two games, all by himself. The last two years, he's been a shadow of his former self. Last year, he claimed an injured finger as an excuse. This year, it was a virus or something. Whatever it is, his K/BB rate is plummeting, his homer rate is higher than ever. He can no longer be considered a reliable setup man, in my opinion. I'd seriously consider letting Joe Nathan handle that role from here on out.

GIANTS MAGIC NUMBER: 40.

Jefferson 8:33 PM