Only once (2002) before this year have the Mets visited the White Sox for games in Chicago, so their return to the South Side this week was a chance for Mets radio broadcasters Howie Rose and Josh Lewin to discuss an organization and ballpark they hardly get to see in their current roles. During both games, Lewin and Rose discussed a wide range of Sox subjects including Bill Veeck, the South Side Hitmen period, and Chicago’s initial unhappiness with the ballpark that replaced old Comiskey. The only misstep in an otherwise well-informed commentary came when Lewin mentioned the temporary closure of the CTA’s Red line train from the Cermak-Chinatown stop all the way south to 95th and the Ryan. Lewin blamed this season’s woeful White Sox home attendance in part on the Red line shutdown which impacts the stop near the ballpark at 35th and the Ryan. He equated impact of the Red line’s closure south of downtown to a halt of 7 train service to Citi Field in Queens. While the five month project in Chicago will likely keep some Sox fans away, comparing reliance on the Red line to the 7 train is absurd. At least one in three Met fans take the train to the game according to a report I saw on Bloomberg News. I don’t have data on public transit usage by Sox fans, but I’d say the number is one in ten at best. What Lewin also failed to mention is that people who board southbound Red line trains north of Chinatown can stay on them and get off at the I-I-T station. The Red runs on the Green south of the Loop and I’m told the Sox are beefing up security at I-I-T for the three block walk to the ballpark.
-One other transit note related to Chicago. The commuter rail network there (known as Metra) is selling one-day unlimited-use $5 tickets on Friday. It’s an outstanding idea to get people from the burbs in and out of the city for the parade and downtown rally celebrating the Cup win by the Blackhawks. For its part, the CTA is adding frequency on the Blue and Red lines and lengthening trains on the Brown, Green and Orange.
-I haven’t been to the 4Knots Music Festival since it transitioned away from Coney Island but I’ll be curious to hear the reports from this year’s gathering at the Seaport. The Babies have a slot on the bill and the Voice did a story on the band to help promote an event it first sponsored as Siren and now as 4Knots. Under the sub-headline: “The Babies probably won’t be cooing much longer,” the seven paragraph piece written by Harley Oliver Brown lacks concrete info to back the assertion about the band’s future. Brown closes the piece with a somewhat vague quote from Kevin Morby about the tug of his responsibilities. The only Babies gig scheduled after 4Knots is weekend two of Woodsist Fest in Pioneertown the last Saturday in September. Says Morby: “Maybe at the end of this year we’ll try and do something, but I really don’t know.” Brown closes the piece with this statement: “These Babies, then, may never grow up. Best to catch them now.” I don’t know for sure what’s happening with the band but as a big fan, I’d hope they make another record. And then another one after that. That said, I’m always ready as a fan for the prospect of any creative endeavor that involves multiple young people with varying levels of aspiration to abruptly go in a new direction. Whatever happens, happens. I’m just glad for all the great shows and great songs.
-New York City is six days into a stretch of hot, muggy weather. I don’t enjoy it. It slows me down and dulls my senses. I’d trade it for another month or two of extreme cold. The only aspect of it that makes it tolerable is that the masses here mostly seem to welcome it. Their joy rubs off a bit.
-Passage into summer always seems to bring a new song I associate with the season. It’s still early, but the tune “The Spins” by the Northampton, Mass band Potty Mouth has already become TSR’s official Summer Song of 2013. It can be heard here. It’s hard to say no to this one.
-I joined a large group of co-workers at Belmont Park’s backyard last Friday afternoon for a nine race card of live racing. We had about 25 people out there with a bunch of food and beer set up on concrete picnic tables near the duck pond. A few of the guys had never been to the races before. What made it especially fun was a large group pick-four wager that ended up paying a few bucks north of what we put into it. We had to hold our breaths during the last two races of the sequence but that’s what made it exciting, especially for the newcomers. In race 8 (leg 3 of the pick four), the four-year-old NY-bred Image of Disco sprinted out to a huge lead that appeared insurmountable. Disco danced a full fifteen lengths ahead of the pack as he turned off the back straight. We didn’t have Disco on our ticket and we all looked at each other ready to concede. But then Disco retreated from fatigue and came back to the field. Royal Blessing (a son of Kitten’s Joy) won the race and we were alive with one leg to go. In that race (the finale), our play looked dead a second time. Love is Key Kaz won by a nose over Snit Fit but hold all tickets. A head-on replay of the finish showed Kaz drifting recklessly and sharply into the path of Snit Fit shy of the wire. The chart writer watching the race for Equibase says Kaz’s rider Guillermo Rodriguez elbowed Snit Fit’s jock Rajiv Maragh “for good measure.” Maragh claimed foul and Snit Fit was declared the winner after a lengthy review by the track’s stewards. Our group laughed and high-fived after getting our money back plus a little extra. Those who had never been to the races saw a little bit of everything. A Bon Jovi cover band played in the far rear of the backyard. Attendance was 5058.