Game 2 NLDS Running Diary Column

Thought you all might be interested in this column published in the UC Irvine student newspaper today.

Behind Enemy Lines: My Trip to Dodger Stadium as a Cardinal Fan

Even though I moved away from St. Louis when I was 14, my diehard fandom of the Cardinals has not diminished whatsoever. Whether it’s because we have been blessed with the greatest player in the game, Albert Pujols, or because they have been in the playoffs seven times in the decade, or maybe just because we have been known as the best fans in baseball, I proudly wear the Birds on the Bat around Southern Cal.

Going to high school in San Diego, this never really had many consequences. A few of my friends would scoff or act annoyed, but I always ran into plenty of fellow St. Louis fans at Padre games.

So when the Cardinals were matched up with the Dodgers of Los Angeles in the first round of this year’s National League Division Series (first round of the playoffs), I knew I had to go. I called up the only other Cardinal fan I knew at UCI, Luigi, bought tickets for Game 2, and got the OK from kind Professor Wasserstrom for missing his class. Here is a running diary of what transpired.

1:20: Armed with my Pujols jersey, Luigi and I depart for the land of the smog. As this is the first ever playoff game for both of us, spirits are high.

2:58: As we get settled into our sun faded, now light turquoise seats, LA flashes its movie star personality, as Slash of Guns N’ Roses and George Lopez make appearances.

3:10: You can’t beat today’s pitching matchup. Clayton Kershaw, a 21-year-old kid among men, and Adam Wainwright, who has the dirtiest curveball I have ever seen, will be standouts for their respective teams for years to come.

3:28: Matt Holliday seemingly lunges toward a ball and somehow knocks it out of the park. Luigi remarks that Holliday was the best acquisition ever. The five other Cardinal fans in our section, Luigi, and I are the only ones left standing and cheering. Immediately, the entire section starts booing us and demanding that we sit our behinds down … in slightly different language.

3:34: For no apparent reason, the left field pavilion seats in the outfield start booing voraciously. Upon further inspection, I realize the target of their jeers: A pair of lonely Cardinal fans are making their way up the stairs, two specks of red in a sea of blue.

4:15: Dodger fan next to me: “Wow, we still haven’t gotten anyone on base. This guy has got a no-hit-” “CRACK!” Home run Andre Ethier. The whole time the fan was coming to the no-hitter realization, I was wishing he would just stop talking. Everyone knows the most sure-fire way to break up a no-hitter is to talk about it. Although I suppose if you’re rooting for the team being no-hit, then talking about it would make perfect sense.

4:23: The upper deck of Dodger Stadium has one exit — at the top of the section. So, anytime you leave the section, anyone in rows above you get a great view. Cardinals fans leaving the section are booed and heckled, all the way up those long stairs. Luigi deems this “the walk of shame.”

4:55: Mark DeRosa and Colby Rasmus help the Cardinals take a 2-1 lead. Unfortunately, Rasmus gets greedy gunning for third and is thrown out by a perfect relay. This makes for the first out of the inning, and instead of him being on second with no out, there is now no one on with an out. Fiddlesticks.

5:42: The Dodgers load the bases with 2 outs in the 8th. The energy is really pumping through the stadium. Standing and towel waving is in full force. The count runs to 3-2, and this is what it’s all about.

5:43: Exhale. Matt Kemp grounds out, and Wainwright has successfully completed a gem of an outing.

6:04: Trevor Miller gets Ethier to pop out, and Ryan Franklin retires Manny on a fly out to center. Cardinals are up 2-1, with two outs!

6:05: Line drive out to left field … Holliday is going to be able to get to it! … and disaster strikes. Holliday loses the ball in the lights and drops the ball. James Loney is on at second, and instead of game over, it’s runner in scoring position.

6:11: Casey Blake works a walk, which is what I wanted. Ronnie Belliard, the next batter, has looked terrible all game.

6:13: Of course, Belliard gets a base hit to tie the game. Dodgers fans go crazy, literally. A guy behind us jumps down into our row and pushes me as if I had just insulted him on the playground.

6:15: Trying to stay calm, I reason that we can still go into extra innings. It comes down to pinch-hitter Mark Loretta, who has to be nearing 60, with the bases loaded.

6:16: At this point, my gut is just losing hope. I can feel the momentum swinging like a carnival pirate ship towards the Dodgers. My confidence in Franklin has all but evaporated. All I can do is keep hoping.

6:17: Loretta drives in the winning run, and Chavez Ravine spontaneously bursts into pandemonium while I feel like someone just punched me in the stomach. Several Dodger fans immediately scream taunts and jeers, while others take pictures of our dejected faces. The worst part now is the dreaded walk of shame.

6:18: Walking up the stairs stone-faced, I’ve been whipped by those stupid towels at least four times.

In the end, the Dodgers swept the Cardinals, who looked like a team ready for the World Series for most of the season. Baseball, more so than any other sport, is a complete crapshoot come playoff time. It all depends on who is on the hot streak, and who the baseball gods decide to smile down upon. No matter what though, I will never regret my foray behind enemy lines. The atmosphere of playoff baseball is something special — towel whipping, insult hurling, taunts and all.