If I was an upstanding member of the BBWAA and allowed to submit a hall of fame ballot…

Pretty sure I got the original “ballot” photo from MLB’s Twitter account. The e-highlighter…..that’s all me.

Look, I don’t have time to pour over pages of data. I also have no interest in explaining myself. The names I selected are based on memories, feelings, emotions, bias and a little bit of Baseball-Reference.com. There’s also this picture I took inside the Baseball Hall of Fame when my friend and I visited Cooperstown in 2012. It justifies certain players being elected.

Anyway, this will likely be my last post for 2018. If you have a chance, check out this collection of microstories I wrote for Ari Shapiro’s website. I hope you had a great holiday season and wish you the very best in 2019! Thanks for putting up with me. 😉

ER

Rejoice!!! $1 hot dogs are coming to Skydome in 2019 and we shouldn’t be wieners about it

Recently, the Blue Jays announced their promotions schedule for the upcoming season. There are shirts, hats, collectibles and theme nights. But there was one promotion that had me relishing in excitement: Loonie Dogs Night

At the first Tuesday home game of every month, fans can purchase hot dogs for the low price of $1. There is one stipulation: You can only buy a maximum of four hot dogs. Not sure how they’ll enforce that, unless there’s a bratwurst version of the AGCO.

Not surprisingly, nobody is doing cartwheels. I’m sure some automatically hate the promotion because it comes from an office led by Mark Shaprio. If AA and Paul Beeston were still here and came up with the idea, there’d probably be a parade in their honour.

But I’m getting off topic.

Honestly, I LOVE the idea for the sheer nostalgia. When I was a kid, the hot dogs at Skydome were 99¢ and footlongs were $1.99. How could anyone not take advantage of that?! To help advertise the prices, the jumbotron would play a video of two hot dogs dancing to a mashup of bagpipes and techno music. It left quite the impression on me. If the marketing team was hoping Loonie Dogs Night would reach certain Xennials on an emotional level, then I guess I’m a real sucker.

Besides, I don’t need to remind you about the exorbitant fees for certain food items at the ball park. To their credit though, the Jays don’t have the most expensive hot dogs in MLB. Still, it does seem ridiculous paying $4-$5 for something that won’t rock your world. We’re talking about hot dogs after all.

Funny enough, I actually won’t be able to take advantage of this promotion. None of the games I plan on attending in 2019 occur on Tuesdays. But I wouldn’t label this as sad irony. I’ll still have my favourite vendor at the corner of Front and John. For $2.50, you get a hot dog that’s bigger than anything sold inside the stadium, grilled with a phenomenal amount of attention and detail. Worth every penny.

Nevertheless, if you find yourself at the first Tuesday home game of the month, have one dog (or four) for me.

ER

Troy Tulowitzki was the turning point and worth every penny, gosh darn it!

So I wasn’t surprised Tulo was released. Mark Shapiro and Russ Atkins are forging their own path, even if it means scorched earth and paying a 34-year-old $38 million over the next few seasons to not show up to Dunedin.

Whatever. I’d still pull the trigger on that trade.

Tulo’s arrival midway through 2015 – along with David Price’s arrival a few days later – was the turning point. His mere presence gave the Jays an incredible boost. Before the trade, the team was hanging by a thread. Tulo put on the uniform and that Jays team took off like a rocket!

Not going to get into his numbers or the injuries. I’m perfectly content with the 2015-16 playoff banners and the memories.

If you’re into the whole “what has he done latley” argument, that’s cool. You’re entitled to feel that way. I just prefer to put more heart and emotion into my fandom.

Thank you, Tulo.

ER