Bartman and Both Sides of Forgiveness: Review of Catching Hell

Last night on ESPN was the debut of the documentary movie "Catching Hell".  Initially this movie was to be included last year in the 30 for 30 Series but got bumped.  However, they released it as the first movie in the new "season" of documentaries on ESPN and in my opinion is right up there with some of the best in the 30 for 30 series.

The story of "Catching Hell" essentially one of a scapegoat.  Although the main part of the story is about Steve Bartman, Chicago Cubs fan, there is also the story of Bill Buckner, Red Sox player that bookends the story.  In both instances, the label of scapegoat is placed because fans essentially want someone to blame for the losses that their long suffering teams had to face.

The movie itself was very good.  When it first started and the majority of the first twenty minutes was about Buckner I was kinda eh.  I was like "When are we going to get to Bartman?"  But the director, who's a Red Sox fan, tied it together and it ended up working out using Buckner in that capacity.

As some may know, growing up as a kid in Tennessee in the 80s, my allegiance to a MLB team were fluid.  In 1986, it was the first time I actually kinda kept up with it.  I liked the Red Sox and was pulling for them.  At the time, I was disappointed that they lost but didn't realize until later why I wasn't supposed to like Buckner.  Later on, I found out why and looking back now I understand why part of the blame should go to him but not all of it.  It wasn't just him who caused the team to lose but it was easy to put the full blame on him.  (Side note, in the documentary there was a clip of the postgame interview of the losing pitcher who was more than willing to throw Buckner under the bus, highly disappointed in that guy for not standing up for his teammate).  Red Sox fans for the longest time could not forgive Buckner, so much so that he had to move from Boston.

Fast forward to 2003, both the Red Sox and the Cubs were in the championship series with a chance at the World Series (side note, one of two contentions with the documentary, the movie made it seem in a sense that the Red Sox/Yanks series was over with prior to the Cubs/Marlins series, those two series were going on at the same time).  At the start of the playoffs, I predicted a Red Sox/Cubs World Series....mainly because I thought it'd be an awesome series.  Unfortunately on the AL side that didn't happen thanks to Grady Little and Aaron Boone in Game 7.

On the NL side, the Cubs had the opportunity to clinch a World Series berth in Game 6 of the NLCS.  They had the lead into the 8th inning when an innoculous foul ball hit by Luis Castillo is interferred with by a Cubs fan.  Later on in the inning, an error by Alex Gonzalez extends the inning and from that the Marlins blast open the game and end on winning Game 6 to force a Game 7.

At the time, I thought two things.  One, how in the world could a fan of the home team reach out onto the field when the home team was playing defense?  Second, what was he thinking?

After the fact, was it told who the person was & there was a firestorm from it.  Local media then national media picked up on the story.  Everyone knew about him but no one knew him.  And he wasn't talking, he issued a statement that was read by his brother in law but other than that nothing.  The Cubs ended up losing the series and the long streak of no World Series victories continued.

I had thought that Cubs fans were mad at Bartman more so after Game 7 but watching the documentary it was evident fans in the stadium were mad that night.  Home video from inside the stadium showed how hostile "The Friendly Confines" became.  The documentary does a great job of incorporating that footage into the story.  I think the main things that I picked up from that footage are that from an angle in the upper deck right over the play....it really does look like Bartman interfered with OF Moises Alou in making the catch (there was long dispute whether Alou really had a chance at it) and that people really hated Bartman for that.

Since that incident, there has been no public words from him.  Aside from an ESPN.com reporter trying to track him down in 2005, there has been seemingly no contact with him.  He has seemingly disappeared.  And in some ways, it has made it even easier to keep protraying him as a scapegoat for that series.

What is a scapegoat by the way?  It refers to an Old Testament ritual that was established for the Israelites after they had left Egypt.  As part of the process for atoning for the sins of the people on the Day of Atonement, the high priest would have two goats brought to him.  One of the goats would be sacrificed in response to the need for atonement.  The other goat would be presented in front of the people.  The high priest would then lay hands on the goat and that symbolized the sins of the people being placed on the goat.  The goat was then released out into the wilderness, hence the scapegoat.

(The other point of contention with the documentary was that they had a female Unitarian minister explain what a scapegoat was...could've got someone with a little more authority to speak on that but that's my opinion)

The documentary ends showing Buckner throwing out the first pitch at Opening Day at Fenway Park in 2008 after the Red Sox had won the World Series for the second time in four years.  It was a touching moment because Buckner was shown to have forgiven the media (who he blamed, not the fans for the troubles) and the media and fans forgiving him.  I had forgotten about that scene and was really cool to see.  With Bartman, there is a question mark still left.  The director thinks (and maybe rightly so) that Cubs fans will forgive Bartman when the Cubs win the World Series.

After watching the documentary, there were several things that came to mind that I tweeted about.  One, what would it have been like if Twitter or iPhones had been around?  In 2003, social media wasn't what it was today.  There were blogs but not to the extent there is now.  Texting hadn't really taken off as a means of communication.  Second, how would it have been different if the play had taken place in like the 1st inning or the 3rd inning instead of the 8th inning?

I think the main one was "What if Bartman had spoken up right after it or that offseason?"  I think it's one thing to issue a statement, it's another to speak out.  I wonder in some ways if Bartman hasn't forgiven Chicago and Cubs fans for how they treated him that night.  I wonder if he still holds a grudge and if that isn't a part of why he has never talked about it.  I don't know.  I do know that forgiveness is best when it's both ways.  God calls us to forgive one another.  When situations happen and when we are wronged, we are to forgive as He has forgiven us.  Sometimes the other person will not forgive but we are still to forgive them.  We are to do our part to reconcile.

It would be cool for this story to have a happy resolve.  That would be up to the city of Chicago and Cubs fans and also to Steve Bartman.  There can be a great example of forgiveness and redemption here.  Hopefully, someday that can be seen.

"Bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive."  (Colossians 3:13 ESV)

Predictions for 2011 NFL Season

It has been over a month since my last post.  I really need to write more.  Maybe this will be the start.  Considering that the NFL season starts tomorrow, I guess I should get in my picks (sure to be wrong) for 2011.

NFC East
Philadelphia
Dallas
NY Giants
Washington

NFC North
Green Bay
Detroit
Chicago
Minnesota

NFC South
Atlanta
New Orleans
Tampa Bay
Carolina

NFC West
Seattle
St. Louis
Arizona
San Francisco

Wild Card:  New Orleans, Detroit

AFC East
New England
NY Jets
Buffalo
Miami

AFC North
Pittsburgh
Cleveland
Baltimore
Cincinnati

AFC South
Tennessee
Houston
Indianapolis
Jacksonville

AFC West
San Diego
Kansas City
Oakland
Denver

Wild Card:  Cleveland, Houston

Super Bowl:  Tennessee over Atlanta

CM Punk and The Art of Making an Impact

(First off, let me give this preface.  I know that to say that that professional wrestling is a sport is a bit of a stretch but just go with me on this one.)

I enjoy watching professional wrestling (or sports entertainment as some like to call it) from time to time.  Watching wrestling usually goes in cycles for me.  When I was a kid, I was a huge wrestling fan.  Growing up in the 80s, I was a big fan of Hulk Hogan, "Macho Man" Randy Savage and the Ultimate Warrior.  During my junior high/high school years, it was Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin.  When I was in college, my watching of wrestling was off and on but I kept tabs on it now and then.  Since college, I have went in cycles.  There are times when I watch a lot of it and other times not so much.  To this day, I will still watch old matches in large part due to the nostalgia factor.

Recently (because I've had more access to cable), I've been watching more wrestling.  I would attribute this in due part to the "storyline" of one wrestler.  His name is CM Punk.  For those who don't know who that is, he's a wrestler from Chicago, IL.  Prior to working in the WWE, he wrestled in several wrestling organizations around the world.  He was been world champion in various organization, including several times in the WWE.  His "gimmick" is tied into his real life in that he is straight edge.  The straight edge lifestyle is one in which a person refrains from alcohol, tobacco and recreational drugs.  There are others who hold to this lifestyle in sports including Texas Rangers pitcher C.J. Wilson.

Punk has played both the "face" (good guy) and the "heel" (bad guy) during his time in the WWE.  When he was a "face", his straight edge life was protrayed as a positive thing in which his "drug" was competition and winning.  When he was a "heel", his straight edge life was protrayed as a negative thing in which he was holier than thou with the fans and the "face" wrestlers.

Recently, his character had been kind of floundering and wasn't among the "top card" wrestlers.  However, that changed when he was named the #1 Contender to the WWE title.  This also coincided with the fact that his contract with the company was about to expire in real life.  So on June 27th, CM Punk came out on Monday Night Raw and told the fact that his contract was expiring.  He then went on to say that he was leaving the company and taking the belt with him.

What really stood out was the "shoot" message he gave at the end of the show.  A "shoot" is a real not fake thing.  What he did that night was a "worked shoot", which meant he had permission to say what he said but it was pretty real.  Usually if a worked shoot is done well, people don't know the difference and that night was a clear example of that.

That night onward leading up to the pay-per-view event "Money in the Bank", CM Punk created a buzz that even drew into mainstream media.  By the time of the event in his hometown, it was at a fever pitch.  His entrance to the ring was one of the loudest I have ever heard.  If you get a chance, watch his entrance.  There's no fireworks, nothing super flashy.  But the response of the crowd was loud.  Punk went on to win the match against John Cena and took the belt with him.  This has led to the storyline of there being two champions and will be settled I'm sure at the next PPV.

What got me thinking was about was does this translate into reaching out into a community with the Gospel and if so how?  What lessons (if any) can we learn?

1.) Let the Gospel make an impact.  We, as followers of Jesus, are called to share the Gospel.  We are not responsible for what happens afterwards.  We leave that up to God.  God will use our words and actions to change hearts and minds.  He is the one, through the work of the Holy Spirit, that makes that impact happen.  We are called to be faithful to share.

2) When Christ is at work, there will be a buzz.  When the impact of the Gospel happens in a community, it's hard not to tell others about it.  Word spreads all around.  People talk about it, even those you don't expect to talk about it.  It has an impact in people's lives.

3) Keep the message in the forefront.  After winning the title, Punk kept popping up at various events with the title to let people know he was around and had the belt.  As followers of Jesus, we're to keep the message of the Gospel out there, popping up in various places as we travel along sharing our stories.

It will be interesting to see how the storyline goes with CM Punk and the title.  But it'll be more interesting to see how God uses believers to continue to reach the world with the Gospel in the various contexts that He has placed us.

The "Ricky Bobby" Prayer: Reflecting on the Prayer from Saturday's Nationwide Race

During the summer months, there's not much sports related news taking place.  Baseball is in the middle of their season but it's not to the point of pennant races.  Basketball, football and hockey are in their offseasons.  MLS is quietly going on with little fanfare.  The only other major sporting event going on is racing.  In other words, it's pretty quiet.  So when I heard about what happened a few days ago at a race in Nashville, it caught my attention in several ways.

I had previously blogged (2 years ago) about how NASCAR is the only major sport that has an invocation or prayer prior to their event.  This is the case both at the major circuit (Sprint Cup) and their secondary circuit (Nationwide Series).  Last Saturday, there was a Nationwide Series race at the Nashville Motorspeedway.  Like other races, there was a pre-race invocation prayer.  I personally didn't see the prayer live but I later watched it on replay.

The pastor who led the prayer, Pastor Joe Nelms of Family Baptist Church of Lebanon, TN proceeded to give a prayer that has been talked about on sports talk shows, SportsCenter and newspapers across the country.  In his prayer, he gave thanks for the racing fuel, for some of the car owners providing engines for the cars, the tire company.  He also thanked God for his "smokin’ hot wife tonight, Lisa, and my two children, Eli and Emma, or as we like to call the, ‘The Little E’s".  He finished his prayer by saying "In Jesus’ name, Boogity Boogity Boogity, amen."

Here's the clip from YouTube of the prayer:



Some newspapers rightly described it as the pastor channeling Ricky Bobby in the prayer.  For those who don't know, Ricky Bobby is a fictional character from a movie called Talledega Nights which starred Will Ferrell as a race car driver.  Ferrell's character prayed a somewhat similar prayer saying grace at the dinner table.

To be honest, when I watched this I felt uncomfortable.  After watching it, I thought to myself "Would I pray like that if I was given the opportunity?"  The answer I came up with was "No."  I just wouldn't feel comfortable praying in such a manner as Pastor Nelms did.  It does make me think of how I pray privately with God.  Do I honor God with my prayers?  As a follower of Christ, I should be able to come before God and talk to Him like a child to a father.  Just as a child is comfortable talking to one's father, there is also a level of respect there too.

Did Pastor Nelms get attention?  Yes.  The question is what will he do with this attention?  Will his "Ricky Bobby" prayer help him as he shares the Gospel?  That would be a great question to ask him.  In the meantime, I know for me it has reminded me of how I pray to God and what I pray about to Him.

A Lesson on Selflessness With a Baseball: Derek Jeter's 3000th Hit

There are moments in sports that are special and historic.  There are moments that happen spontaneously and others that build up to the moment.  They are those "where were you?" moments.  One of those happened over the weekend.  Derek Jeter, shortstop and captain of the New York Yankees (a team which I cannot stand but I respect him), had his 3,000 hit.  Going into Saturday's game, he had 2,998 hits so it was only a matter of time before he got to 3,000.

Going against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and starting pitcher David Price (who's originally from Middle Tennessee), Jeter got hit 2,999 in the first inning to set up his next at-bat and a shot at 3,000.  I caught wind of it via Twitter and turned on my PS3 to watch it happen live on MLB.tv  I somehow expected a hit.  What I did not expect was a home run.  Sure enough, Jeter hits a home run into left center field for his 3,000 hit.  That was only the 2nd time out of 28 men to reach the milestone that it was done via home run (the other was Wade Boggs).  Jeter ended up going 5 for 5 and winning the game.

To me, the cool part of the story came out later.  Christian Lopez, a 23 year old cell phone salesman, was the one who ended up with the ball.  He got the tickets for his birthday from his girlfriend.  As soon as he got the ball, he was whisked away by security to the Steinbrenner's suite.  When asked what he wanted in return for the ball, Lopez said nothing and was willing to give the ball to Jeter for free.  Lopez did end up getting stuff, including season tickets in the Legends section (which is some big time stuff) for the rest of the season including playoffs, a couple of signed bats and jerseys from Jeter, spent some time in the YES Network booth and got to meet Jeter in person.

It's a cool act that Lopez did.  There are a lot of people who have said he should have held onto the ball and sold it.  There have been some who have even called him a moron for doing this because he doesn't make a lot of money at his job and has a lot of debt from school.

Personally, I definitely don't think he's a moron.  I think what he did was a pretty stand up act.  He looked out for someone else's interest ahead of his.  It's a good reminder that those of us who follow Jesus should put others' interest ahead of ours.  Lopez was rewarded anyway for his selfless act.  For followers of Jesus, our ultimate reward is in heaven but we also get to enjoy benefits of serving Him now.

Hat's off to you Mr. Lopez.  You made this anti-Yankee fan stand up and salute you.

Sports Analogy: The Draft

I thought about writing this post last month when the NFL draft was going on but it's still appropriate with the upcoming drafts of the other major sports (NBA, MLB, NHL).  When thinking about the draft, it works well with the situation of life that I'm in right now.  I just finished my Master's of Divinity degree and am in the process of looking for a full time ministry position.  In many ways, it is similar to a college athlete who finished his collegiate career and waiting for the time of the draft.

There is the declaration that you are available, the answering of questions, the checking over of one's background and credentials.  And then there is the wait.  We see the players as they wait to hear their name called and find out where they will be going to play.  In a lot of ways, that is how I'm feeling right now.  Sending out resumes, answering questions, and waiting.  Waiting to get a call saying I have been hired, that I've been "drafted".

Just as certain teams look for a particular need to fill for their teams, the same is true in ministry.  God has designed me with gifts and abilities that work well with certain ministries (college/young adult, discipleship).  And I know that He has the right place for me to serve.  I just pray and wait for the call.

Wherever I get "drafted", I'm excited about the next phase of my life and what God has in store for me.  Until then, I wait for the call...

Diamond Club and a Walk Off Win: Sixth Royals Game of 2011....In Review

It was about time for another Royals game.  As my time in Kansas City is coming to the end (because I'm graduating from seminary), I wanted to make sure that I got in at least one more Royals game.  So to celebrate that (and because my friend Kyle came in to visit), we, along with Lane and Tyler, headed out to the K to see the Royals take on the Texas Rangers.

We got some really sweet seats off of Stubhub.  They were Diamond Club tickets (so some of the really sweet seats behind home plate) for almost half off.  The tickets also included premium parking (which was pretty sweet).  When we got to the ballpark, we got to park literally right across from the ballpark (inbetween the K and Arrowhead).  We went through the Home Plate Gate and headed into the Diamond Club section.  It was really cool.  The club section has a suite area that has its own restaurants and seating area.  We sat at a table and someone came up and took our orders.  We could even have started a tab (we didn't).  I had a slice of oven bricked pizza (a BBQ brisket pizza) that was really good and some Dr. Pepper and watched the Rangers do BP.

When the game started, we headed over to our seats.  We were 12 rows back from the field (not counting the BATS section which is directly behind home plate) on the first base side (think where the left handers bat from and that's the section we sat in).  The seats had a cushion built in to them and there was in seat ordering of food as well.  I ended up ordering a foot long hot dog (that was really good too).  The game itself was interesting.  There was a HR by the Rangers in the 2nd inning and for most of the game that was the score.  Luke Hochevar, starting pitcher for the Royals, pitched well aside from the HR he gave up.  He ended up pitching 8 2/3 innings before they went to the bullpen.  The Royals finally got the clutch hit in the bottom of the 9th to tie it up and they went to extra innings.  Then in the bottom of the 10th, Jeff Francoeur came through with the walk off base hit to win the game 2-1 in 10 innings.  The winning pitcher, Greg Holland, was called up that day from Triple A and pitched 1 1/3 innings.

After that win, the Royals were now 5-1 in games that I've attended.  After my time in Kansas City, I've grown to enjoy watching baseball even more.  I will miss watching games at the K.  We'll see where God leads me next.

Buck Night & Fireworks Friday: Fifth Royals Game of 2011...In Review

Yesterday was my second Royals game in a row to attend and fifth of the season.  I went with a couple of guys from church and got to take in another Buck Night/Fireworks Friday.  Buck night is $1 hot dogs, peanuts and small cokes and then Fireworks Friday is a fireworks show after the game.

Yesterday was also a Baseball Equipment drive that the team was doing to collect money and used baseball gear for those who need it.  And for a $20 donation, you could get a brown bag with an autographed baseball inside.  I tried it and ended up with a Jason Kendall autographed ball.  Eh, not who I wanted but it's something.

It was also the debut of superstar prospect 1B Eric Hosmer.  He was called up after Thursday's game and the sports world was buzzing afterwards.  His name became a trending topic on twitter.  People were making up "Hosmer Facts" in the same was as they're "Chuck Norris Facts".  For his first game, he didn't do too bad.  He helped turn a double play in the 1st inning.  He had two walks & a stolen base.  He did strike out looking two times to finish the night 0-2 (I will say at least one of his called third strikes looked like ball four).

The game itself was a good one for the most part.  Alex Gordon hit a home run.  Sean O'Sullivan pitched a pretty good game (a quality start).  Unfortunately one bad inning proved to be the downfall as the Royals lost 3-2.  They now have a record of 4-1 in games I attend.

It was a fun night for the most part and I'll miss going out to the K once I graduate in a few weeks.

School Day at the K: Fourth Royals Game of 2011....In Review

It had been awhile since the last time I had been to the ball park and I was itching to get back out there again.  So me and Lane made the trek out yesterday to the K to see the Royals take on the Baltimore Orioles.  It was School Day at the K which meant lots and lots of little kids.  We learned our lesson and got tickets in a section not in that area.  In fact we got Dugout Box seats for really cheap, they were 4 rows from the field.  They are probably the closest I've ever been to home plate & the field.

We were fortunate as we were late getting to the ballpark because of class (it was a day game, 1:10 scheduled start).  However there was rain that morning and on the way to the ballpark so there was a delay.  When we got inside the ballpark, the rain pretty much ended.  There ended up being about a 45 minute delay to start the game.  Once the game got started, there was no rain until we got back into the car at the end of the game.

The game itself was a good one...for the Royals.  Aside from giving up a run in the 1st inning, starter Bruce Chen pitched a really great game.  And the offense really came through early and often, including a 4 run 1st inning which even included a play when the sun peaked out and it caught the Orioles off guard and it dropped right down.

The scoring got capped off with a home run in the 8th by Melky Cabrera.  The Royals went on to win 9-1.  The cool thing also about the game was that Lane and I got on TV several times, mainly like blink and you miss but if you pause it at certain points you can make us out pretty clearly.  That was cool.

So right now the Royals are 4-0 in games I attend.  I joked with Lane that the Royals should bring me on the payroll in some capacity since they win every time I go to their games....just a thought.  :)

A Flair for the Dramatics: Third Royals Game of 2011...In Review

On Thursday night, I went to my third Royals game of the year.  This time I went with my girlfriend, who is in town for a few days visiting.  It wasn't the best weather for baseball.  It was cold, windy, and rainy (the not raining hard but light rain/mist).  There were only about 9,000+ at the ballpark that night.

It was the first time I had been to a game during the week at night where they really weren't any promotions (except for the all you can eat seats).  The seats that we got were super cheap and were essentially front row in the lower level, third base side near the foul pole.

The Royals were playing division rival Cleveland (alas no Trevor Crowe as he's on the DL).  It was the last game of the series.  It was the second time in as many games I saw Sean O'Sullivan start (he started the game last Saturday too).  It was a pretty uneventful game for the most part.  I think weather played a part in that.

It came down to the 9th inning, Royals down 2-1.  They hadn't led for the entire game.  But they came through on some clutch hitting and ended up with a walk off hit by Melky Cabrera.  They ended up winning 3-2.  It was an exciting ending to say the least.  Aaron Crow picked up his 2nd major league win.

The Royals are now 3-0 in games I've been to this year.  I don't know how many more games I'll be able to make but hopefully it'll be as exciting as the end of this one was.