The Wrath of God

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This is a devotional I wrote for my church newsletter this month. It’s a brief deviation from baseball, since we’re still in a holding pattern on filling out those ST rosters:

The Wrath of God

When I drive up town to Pulaski, I enjoy reading the various church signs that I pass on the way. Most are at least reasonably funny or clever. Those of you who still follow me on Facebook after the election know that I recently saw one that got me thinking, but probably not in the way the particular church intended. It screamed at passersby, “ARE YOU READY FOR THE COMING WRATH OF GOD?”

I was able to restrain my truck from pulling into the parking lot. But I thought that somebody really needed to take the plastic letters off the sign. First, this message is just bad marketing. Is this an image of God that will bring the unchurched in to learn more? I have my doubts that they saw a single new visitor from this message. Why would I stop in there to worship a God that these people say is out to get me?

Second, the sign seems to imply that there is no way to avoid God’s anger. It’s coming, and you’d just better get ready to deal with it.

Third, it also implies that there is something you can do prepare for all of this impending doom God has planned for you. God is out to get us, but hey, at least we can get ready for annihilation!

The whole thing seemed wrong to me from all of these perspectives. It had a distinctive “Old Testament” ring to it. It seemed to deny the whole idea of God’s grace given to us through Jesus. It seemed to deny that we are “justified by faith”, so we don’t have to prepare for God’s wrath. This sign was not a message of God’s love for us – so much love, in fact, that God offered his own Son for our atonement. It was a message of anger and condemnation, of “hellfire and brimstone”, only meant to scare the unchurched into their pews.

I drove on by feeling sorry for this church’s membership. Despite their sign, I hope their congregation is getting some message about God’s love inside.

To me, a much more compelling message is that of the love of God through Christ. So, I’d suggest a slightly different sign. I’d much rather see them ask, “ARE YOU READY FOR THE COMING LOVE OF GOD?” Is my heart in a place where I can receive God’s blessings? Am I ready to worship? Am I ready to learn? Am I ready for Christian action? His love really is coming! In fact, it’s been here for a long time already! And we can get ready to receive God’s love through Christ every single day.

I might concede that the church with the sign had one thing right. I suppose God is out to get us. But it’s not because he’s angry and vengeful. He is out to get us to bring us into His loving presence. Are you ready? – CR

Where’s My Reds Hooded Sweatshirt?

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I saw an interesting rumor posted by the Reds front office on Facebook yesterday. Apparently Bronson Arroyo has been throwing at GABP, and again this year they are considering adding him back to the team. I know he’s 40 years old, and I know he’s had health issues (including TJ surgery), and I know he hasn’t thrown a pitch in a game in almost three years. But for a team who very nearly traded away all of their entertainment value (“Dat Dude” excepted), this would be a good move. First, we like to watch Arroyo pitch. He’s all-in with the high leg kick and general intense approach to the game. Second, we want to see him partner again with JTM for commercials. There are so few ads on TV worth watching anymore, but his JTM spots were. And third, and this is my real point, he’s going to be a great pitching coach for somebody. It might as well be Cincinnati. Why not start breaking him in now? With all of the new talent (or at least we hope it’s talent…), the team needs somebody who’s been around to be a leader on the pitching staff. And let’s face it. Homer Bailey ain’t that guy.

So excuse me while I go find where I stored my Reds Hooded Sweatshirt. I’m holding out hope that I’ll be needing it when pitchers and catchers report on February 13.

Shifting Gears

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Well, I just found a note from WordPress buried in my email spam folder informing me that their relationship with MLB is over. My baseball theme automagically disappeared on December 21, as did my MLB affiliation. Oh well. Time to re-purpose the ol’ blog, I reckon. This shift in focus is probably overdue, since (sadly) we still have no local minor league team anywhere near the Greater Prospect Metropolitan Area, and if I write about the Reds I just get irritated. So, this blog will now become general-purpose crap, as opposed to the focused MiLB crap I used to write. There will still be baseball, to be sure. However, I will also talk about other things that I think about while sitting on the front porch.

Some of the things I will post will include the blogs I write for my “Education for Ministry”  (EfM) program. These are supposed to summarize main points from my EfM studies each week. They might not make much sense out-of-context, but I’ll try to make them as relevant as possible.

I’m glad to be back on board here. I hope you will like this new incarnation of my blog, and that you find something at the Possum Plantation Post worth considering. – RR

Putting Some Spin On It

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We moved from the Hampton Roads area a year ago, and as a result, it’s been a year since I vacated my seat in section 309 of Harbor Park. That has made it very difficult to keep up with the continuing adventures of the Norfolk Tides and to report on them here in this blog. Recently I found myself really missing writing about baseball here, which I find ridiculous. Nothing has kept me from watching plenty of baseball, and nothing has kept me from writing about what I’ve seen. I just didn’t take the time to figure out how to adapt the blog to my new baseball environment.

Perhaps I should describe this new venue from a baseball standpoint. We live in south central Tennessee, about an hour from the Joe W. Davis stadium in Huntsville, AL. This stadium is the former home of the Huntsville Stars. It’s an older stadium, but a decent one. I enjoyed watching games at this park on past visits to Huntsville. The teams were good and the fans were great. There were lots of them, too. Much to my chagrin, owner Ken Young (also the owner of the Tides, ironically) decided to move this team to Biloxi, MS. We did have the unexpected pleasure of watching the “Biloxi Shuckers” at the stadium in Huntsville for a couple of weeks this May, while they awaited completion of their new stadium next door to the Beau Rivage in Biloxi. It was a bittersweet time. About two dozen hard-core baseball fans sat in a rather lonesome stadium one beautiful spring afternoon, eating old hot dogs and saying our good-byes to our local franchise as they beat up on Mobile.

Now, a month later, Joe W. Davis stadium sits silent, and we minor league fans are left looking elsewhere for our continuing dose of small-town baseball. There are rumors of a new team locating in Huntsville, but I have heard nothing definite. The A’s triple-A affiliate, the Nashville Sounds, is probably the best alternative until that time.

The bottom line of my ramblings here is that, with a dearth of minor league ball here at the moment, I need to refocus the content of this blog somewhat. I will opine on general baseball topics, the ongoing trials and tribulations of the Cincinnati Reds, and whatever minor league news I run across. This approach will let me continue to write about baseball topics that interest me, even if I don’t make it to the ballpark as often.

It’s a different spin on things for me, but hopefully it still makes it home. – RR

Opening Day 2014 is HERE!

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Opening day…for baseball fans, it’s the real first day of spring and New Year’s Day all rolled up into one happy occasion. Norfolk Tides fans have much to celebrate on this first day of our new year. We will have a super roster this year, thanks in part to the return of Kevin Gausman (tonight’s starter) and Henry Urrutia in right. My early prediction is that the Tides will beat last season’s 77-67 record and will see some post-season action. The reason for my optimism lies largely in the speed and experience of this team. Nearly all starters, and sixteen players total, have spent time in the majors (Casilla played eight seasons there) and will be bringing that maturity and leadership to the new field at Harbor Park. Another reason to be hopeful is the current starting rotation of Gausman, Johnson, McFarland, Yoon, and Wright. If you don’t believe they’re good, you didn’t see them keep the parent Orioles in check last Saturday.

Speaking of that game, I was among the crazy people who took up residence in the stands during last Saturday’s exhibition game/deluge and got to see the new field drain. When you arrive at the park, you will see some other improvements. There are new concessions, including a new craft beer stand. The last section in right field has been converted to picnic table seating, which should prove popular in more hospitable weather than we had Saturday.

When you are at the park, be sure to pick up a schedule. Start times Monday through Thursday during April and May will mostly be at 6:35, but there are exceptions (e.g., tonight). Also, the number of home games in April and August seems small, but there are extended homestands in June and July.

First pitch for tonight’s game with the Knights is set for 7:05, but you’ll want to get there early. Unlike Saturday, the weather should hold. I believe there is a 20% chance of showers. And, if you were among the waterlogged sitting in the stands for the exhibition game Saturday, you can redeem your ticket for a free April weekday game! I saw some twitter that several folks got free tickets for the game tonight.

Oh, before I sign off, I just learned that Mike Belfiore, who was put on waivers by the Orioles, has been picked up by Detroit and assigned to Toledo. We’ll have a chance to see him again when the Mud Hens come to town in July.

Okay, I need to get some work done before tonight’s game. I wish you all the happiest of Opening Days and a fun season! – RR

The Great Depression

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I’m sitting here writing on a day when I had planned to go over to Harbor Park for a playoff game. I still am stunned that our Tides didn’t take the wildcard spot last Monday. This was not a team that should have been left behind for the first time since 2005. I think it was one of the better teams during the 2005 – 2013 stretch. The absence of the Tides in the IL Playoffs just makes no logical sense.

All of this gloom and doom has led me to an early onset of “The Great Depression”. It happens every year at some point in the fall, but rarely this early. Part of my baseball life has come to an end. My overwhelming sadness at the Tides’ premature departure from this season is tempered somewhat by the excellent baseball being played right now by my Reds in their quest for playoff glory. That’s a topic for another blog, though.

After the early end to the season, a few Tides players did receive good news from the parent club. The Orioles did call up Schoop, Urrutia, and Stinson on Tuesday. We certainly congratulate them on this opportunity.

I plan to continue writing blog entries during this off-season as player news develops, or maybe in the unlikely event that I have a profound thought about something. I’ll also try to post relevant news about former Tides who are playing in the MLB this fall. Please check in here for ongoing developments as Norfolk winds down after the 2013 season and begins to build the 2014 Tides team. This site will also continue to show the current Twitter feed for @NorfolkTides during the off-season.

Good luck to your major league teams this fall! Stick with ricochetralphy.com during this off-season for all of the news I can dig up on our local IL franchise. – RR

Goodbye to the X-Man

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Just learned that the Orioles have traded Xavier Avery to the Mariners for Michael Morse. The X-Man is going to be missed here at the end of the season, especially next week during the playoffs. (Yes, we’re going to win the wild card slot. I already decided.) -RR

Save the Date

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With the Tides having a strong late-season showing, everybody should mark their calendars for next Wednesday and Thursday. It’s now looking possible, or even likely, that Norfolk will take the wild card spot for the IL playoffs. That means that they will start the playoff series at Harbor Park on September 4 and 5. There may be little point in speculating on the matchups at this point, but at least “save the dates” in your Outlook.

Since I last wrote, we bade farewell to Freddy Garcia who, at 36, left us to try for one last chance in the majors with the Braves. He didn’t have a very good showing when we faced him at Gwinnett, so in a way, he was still playing for us, and we appreciate the thought.

Gausman was recalled to Baltimore yesterday. That’s not much of a surprise, although I was a little surprised that the O’s sent Chen down to GCL to make room on the roster for Gausman.

We also want to congratulate Jairo Ascensio who has been named to the post-season IL all-star team as the top relief pitcher in the IL. As of this writing, he has 24 saves.

I can barely believe that we have only three regular-season home dates left on the schedule for 2013. Only four games remain. The last homestand begins with a doubleheader Saturday. That will be a 5:05 start, so don’t be late. It’ll be a full evening! The first game is a makeup from a rain-out with Durham and will complete eight remaining innings of play. The second game will be a seven-inning contest. Then, after all of that, they’ll have a fireworks show for us. Not bad for the price of admission!

Sunday’s game with Durham starts at 6:05 and will also be followed by a fireworks show. Monday’s game is the last of the regular season. It’ll start at 12:05. Keep an eye on the weather for that one. It’s going to be hot and storms are expected.

That’s it for now…will post again as the playoff picture shapes up. – RR

Valencia Not Suspended

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Thrilled to report that the MLB investigation into the Biogenesis mess “found no violations of the Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program” by Danny Valencia. I didn’t think they would. Now, on with the rest of the season. See all of you at the doubleheader tonight (6:05 start). – RR