Os vs. Nationals

My husband isn’t feeling good, so earlier this afternoon I promised to bake him chocolate chip cookies. (At the risk of sounding obnoxious, my cookies are pretty special. My secret that I share with no one, but will share with you because I love my Orioles blogger friends and appreciate you for tolerating me, is that I add macademia nuts and substitute Kahlua for vanilla.)

Around eight o’clock, I was deeply engrossed in the game when my husband came downstairs and asked in both a plaintive and pitiful voice, “So you changed your mind about baking cookies?”

“I’m an awful and selfish wife,” I thought to myself, so I set about making cookies, running back into the living room to rewind when I heard cheering. Thanks to the wonderful invention of the DVR, I saw the important moments including Luke Scott’s homer, but generally missed everything in between. I sat down to watch Jimmy Johnson’s outstanding pitching, and the ninth with Sherrill but completely missed the Orioles batting.

What I loved about tonight’s game is not just that we won. Oh yes, that was nice too, but I was particularly tickled with the whole Nationals/Orioles thing. I had fun flipping between MASN and MASN2 to see the exact same thing. (I’m very easily entertained.) Early in the game, I wondered, “So the Nationals fans will have to listen to Palmer?” but then the Nationals announcers took over the play-by-play. I enjoyed listening to the commentary between the announcers and hearing them take turns in the broadcast booth.

I’m jealous of the fans in Baltimore. How lucky they are to be able to pop downtown to see the Os whenever they want. And if the whim strikes them to see a National League game, they can mix things up by taking the train down to D.C. Being a native Baltimoron, it’s easy to choose the Nationals as my National League team, and for the first time I have an interest in that other league. It’s a brave, new, lovely world.

Here’s one more thing. I think Jim Palmer is one of my readers! Or, I’m just really, really smart. I think we can all agree that’s not the case. Let’s face it, I’ll never provide you the quality, balanced game wrap-up that you can get from those links over there on the left. (Exemplia gratia, this recent Mindpinball post, Dempey’s Army’s letter to Brad Mills or Wayward O’s the hOuse that ruth built (with priceless quotes like, “sprinkle entire body with OLD BAY SEASONING to CHASE AWAY NASTY SPIRITS,” which I have memorized and share with friends of mine from Baltimore because it is so funny.)

Still, Palmer agrees with me. In the ninth, when Sherrill was pitching, Palmer compared him to Don Stanhouse. Now, what have I been saying all season! I feel so brilliant. And special. Yes, I’ve heard that a lot in my life, that I’m “special.”

Perhaps it’s time. I think I’m ready to stage a coup against Amber Theoharis. It should be I who am interviewing the 2008 World Series Orioles.

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