I think it's cute that Gardy's own daughter seems to have picked out Doug as her "boyfriend," and that he'd reply to her e-mail even just an hour after the Red Sox had won the World Series. The things he said about Morneau and the Twins fans were nice, too.

Funny how my mind completely glazed over the bit about Jodi being pregnant. I had to go back to read it again just to be sure the article really said that! :)

Oh how great would it be if they were twins?! I love the last line. Congrats to Dougie and Jodi :)

That's our Dougie...fearless!!

Congrats to Doug and Jodi on the baby.

I wish them all the best, and hope they have a copy of that old radio commercial to help the little one learn to spell M-I-E-N-T-K-I-E-W-I-C-Z...

Since I can't edit my previous post, the fearless comment was directed at the part of the article which talked about him signing autographs, getting drilled with a couple of balls, and coming back out to sign again, wearing a catcher's mask.

I will always miss you Dougie.

Always...

Yeah, I never realized the Dougie Defense could be a good solution if the rest of your infield is good hitting/poor fielding. I don't know much, but i think Kaz Matsui was an awful fielding SS. Plus, even when Dougie's bat was silent, he still took his number of walks. Maybe he's found his niche at the Mets.

I always liked him when he was on the Twins, but between this article and the recent NY Times one, I feel sadder than ever that he's gone. It's good to hear his wrist is feeling better, and that he's been batting well in spring training.

Best wishes to you and Jodi, Doug! I hope you know how many Minnesotans are still rooting for you.

I thought it was an awesome article. I really liked his saying he'd be happy to come back when he's fourty and be the defensive back-up to Morneau, mostly because: a) we'd have our Dougie back and b) Justin was still playing for us and hitting well! (Although, quite frankly, Justin has done just fine defensively in my eyes. It would be nice to have a Gold Glove behind him just as a super-bonus, though.)

It was cute to read how he'd write Gardy's daughter. That, my friends, is a gentleman.

I'll admit that I've done some randomly checking on Dougie's offense this spring training and I've been completely elated for him. And, of course, my congratulations to Doug and Jodi on the upcoming Wee One.

Just Beth
(My personal pet peeve: Doug and Jodi are not pregnant. Jodi is pregnant.)

Wow, I guess now Dougie is secure enough financially to have children. (Florida State college tuition being taken care of by that ball.)

YankeeFan

Let me get this straight ... he's signing autographs for the fans and they're drilling him with baseballs? And all the security guard does is bark at them? I must've missed something. Were they tossing the balls to him to sign or ... what? Man, people always say New York fans are a tough crowd but ... sheesh, that's crazy.

Dear Yankee Fan,

I take your comment in same spirit of facetiousness that Doug meant whan he made those remarks about college tuition.

It really is a shame that some Boston fans didn't get the chance to know him well enough to know his sense of humor.
I hope Mets fans appreciate him for it as most of us did.

bubblemint

bubblemint:

you know it was. i still think the balls belong to the league/teams...and can make a slew of arguments as to why (e.g., teams are required to include the "no liability" clause with their seat licenses printed on tickets, not individual players), but i do understand dougie's sense of humor and thought it was funny that he said that, kept the ball and now he's having kids (as if to prove it). funny stuff. i always liked dougie -- at one time i held him as an example of how to be a 'true' teammate (the type of teammate that fosters the 'team' concept necessary to win a championship).

as for new york appreciating him...if he hits .210 and can't contribute enough defensively, they will hate him no matter how funny he is.

YF

Awww...I loved that article. Congrats Dougie and Jodi. So nice to read such a great article about him. I love that man.

Not that I needed validation, and not that anyone is going to look back this far to read this, but here's Piazza talking about Beltran (from Jayson Stark's piece on ESPN.com)...confirming my above snap-judgment on Dougie:

"'There is more responsibility on him now,' Piazza says, the relief of having that weight dumped on someone else's shoulders oozing out of every node, every pore, every syllable. 'But the most important thing you have to remember is that the way they measure success is success on the field. They're not going to write nice things about you because you're a nice guy. I hate to break it to people, but that's the way it is.'"

Let the games begin.
YankeeFan

YF-- I looked! I've got a little thingy that flashes when text is changed on this website, and then it shows you where to go. Anyhow, I didn't think you needed validation. You would know! I hope Dougie has a great year and impresses all you New Yorkers. But as for me, a sense of humor goes a long way. I was sad when David Ortiz was traded. But that's another story...

Pepper,

You mean I don't have to check each post every day 100 times a day?

And to answer the age old question that rings in my head everytime you post: Yes, I would like to be a Pepper too.

YF

Hey YF-- it's a handy little Windows utility called C4U Scout. It monitors websites and flashes for you when they change. Free too. If you're interested, you can check it out at:
http://tucows.mundofree.com/win2k/preview/56752.html

Yeesh, I never meant to remind anyone of that old commercial! Some of those jingles just never go away.

-Pepper

>>I was sad when David Ortiz was traded.

Really? I never thought he was that great when he played for the Twins. I'm not saying he hasn't blossomed with the Red Sox, but .... Plus, is he really THAT great? Or is he just in a good situation and with more media attention? I'm just curious.

Nah, he wasn't great on the Twins. But he was funny! I'd be bad at Fantasy Baseball. I'd also be a bad general manager.

I posted too soon. Mmmarkiep, as to the last part of your post, he sure underwent a big change with the Red Sox. I wonder about that too-- do they have a super great batting coach that gave him some pointers? Or did he just have a career year? I think the next few seasons will tell if he is a great player or an average player that had one outstanding season.

>>I'd also be a bad general manager.

Yeah, me, too, probably. I'd wind up with a mediocre team that was a lot of fun to be around and a bunch of good guys. Or at least, that's what I'd like to think.

Dear Mr. P,

With great butts, I hope.

Love,
BG

Dear BG,

Well, I'm afraid that would eliminate our dear Mr. LeCroy. We could say all the players have to have either a great butt, or a good sense of humor. The two together would earn you an extra million on your contract.

Love,
Ms. P

Dearest Batgirl,

For you, certainly. Great butts all around.

Love always,

mmm