The Rockies 2017 Opening Day is here!

Posted on April 3, 2017 by John Kevin Hickey

      The grass in the outfield is a perfect shade of green, the beer is cold, the hot dogs are, well, hot and fans for every team believe that this is the year that their team is going all the way.  Yup, the Boys of Summer are back.  It’s the Rockies Opening Day!

      So, what can we expect from our Boys in their lighter shade of purple this year?  I am cautiously optimistic that the Rockies will have a winning season and may even contend for a wild card spot.  Obviously a lot of things must go right for such a scenario to happen, and all the injuries that have occurred this spring training are the dark clouds in front of the silver lining.

     Still, the Rockies have Nolan Arenado, Charlie Blackmon, DJ LeMahieu and Carlos Gonzales to strike terror in opposing pitchers.  Jon Gray is turning into a legitimate pitching ace.  There are several young players who are starting to make their mark.  So there are reasons for hope.

     It’s the first day of the season and for a few hours all is right with the world. 

 The 5 Keys to a successful Colorado Rockies season

1.    New manager Bud Black gets the most out of his pitchers.

      The knock on Bud Black is that he only had a .477 winning percentage during his 8 years as manager with the San Diego Padres.  The Rockies are hoping that his experience of pitching for 15 years in the Majors, and the fact he was the pitching coach for the S.F. Giants in 2002 when they won the World Series, will translate into better and more reliable pitching at Coors Field.

       Unfortunately, both Chad Bettis and the Rockies pitching staff got thrown a major curveball with the spread of Chad Bettis’s testicular cancer. The Rockies are now forced to find someone to fill his spot in the rotation. Hopefully Chad Bettis can beat his cancer and someday resume his career in the MLB.

     But it’s not just the pitching staff that Bud Black needs to improve. He needs to get better play out of the position players.  They need to make fewer errors, play more consistent defense and stop leaving so many men stranded on base.  It’s a tall order.  Let’s hope Mr. Black is up to the task.

 2.    Greg Holland returns to the form he had in Kansas City:

      Greg Holland was a dominating closer for Kansas City for five seasons.  He missed all of last season after having Tommy John surgery in late 2015.  The Royals let him go and the Rockies picked him up for one season.  Now the big questions facing him this year are how long will it take for him to get back into his old groove and can he hold up for an entire season at Coors Field?

 3.    Trevor Story avoids a sophomore slump:

      Trevor Story was one of the major bright spots for the Rockies last season.  With excellent defense and setting the League on fire with all of his homers, he was in serious contention for Rookie of the Year until he tore a ligament in his thumb and was lost for the season. Now he needs to pick up where he left off.  His biggest weakness last year was that he had too many strikeouts.  He has said he is focused on being more patient at the plate.  From what little I have been able to see of him this spring training, he has made some strides in this area.  He also seems more relaxed and at ease in his second season in the Majors.

 4.     The battle between Dahl and Parra for starting position in left field gets settled:

      One of the biggest surprises last season was David Dahl.  After Gerado Parra was injured Dahl stepped up big time, both as an outfielder and at the plate.  He entered spring training this year favored to win the starting job at left field when he was sidelined with a “stress reaction” to his sixth rib. The current estimate for his return to the starting lineup is late April. 

     I hope he is ready to play by then, because the less I have to see of Parra the better.  Parra is still a very good defenseman, but he swings at everything that comes over the plate and all too often an easy out.   I will admit that so far this spring he has been playing like man trying to keep his job.

 5.    The bullpen doesn’t stink:

      There is no other way to say it.  If the bullpen sucks like it did last year, it will be the Freddy Krueger of the Rockies dreams of a winning season.  One of the most frustrating things for Rockies fans is to watch a winnable ball game be given away by a crappy bullpen.  If Bud Black can’t help the bullpen, then it’s “wait until next year” time again.

 

 

So there you go, my 5 things to keep an eye on as the Rockies season progresses.  I’ll grade the Rockies at mid-season to see how they are performing and revisit things to watch.  But in the meantime, let’s play ball!

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First day of Spring

Posted on March 20, 2017 by John Kevin Hickey

Purple crocuses, blooming in the detritus of last years garden, herald the arrival of Spring in my yard.

     Ah Spring! When a young man’s thoughts turn to fancy, yadda, yadda, yadda.  It’s also a time when a grouchy middle-aged man’s thoughts turn to cleaning up his garden and getting it ready for summer.

     Spring is also the time of year when the gardener begins thinking about what he or she wants to accomplish in the garden this year.  For myself, I plan on removing a dying serviceberry tree and replacing it with a black chokeberry bush.  I also want to fill in a lot of blank spots in the section by the bird feeder and add a few shrubs where the old veggie garden used to be.

     But as the old saying goes: “the best laid plans of mice and overambitious gardeners”.  Every Spring I write down my goals for my yard, and I usually make good headway on them in April and May.  Then June arrives and now I’m more into chilling in my hammock than worrying about finishing projects.  July brings the heat and August turns the thermometer up a notch.  When I work outside in late summer I sweat so much that if I were to shake my head side-to-side I would look like an impulse sprinkler.

     September arrives with cooler temperature, but now it’s time to start putting the garden to bed.  Well, I guess there is always next year.

     Still, today is the first day of Spring.  Time to sharpen the gardening tools, get the lawn mower working and start enjoying the longer, warmer days.  Ladies and gentlemen, let the gardening begin!

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Pacific Northwest beer reviews

Posted on March 14, 2017 by John Kevin Hickey

     Mrs. Vintage and I recently had the opportunity to travel to the Pacific Northwest, specifically the Bremerton area of the state.  The first trip was so we could spend Christmas with our daughter and son-in-law (youngest daughter made the trip as well).  The second trip was in early January so we could welcome Grandchild #1 to the world.  Good times had by all.

     During these visits my son-in-law and I made a determined effort to try several beers from (mostly) local breweries.  Sadly, I was unable to take notes on all of them. I can however make a few recommendations (and one I would advise against) should you ever make the voyage to the Land of Gray Skies and Soggy Yards.

 

Narrows Brewing Co. Galloping Gertie (Golden Ale):  Narrows Brewery is located in Tacoma, Washington and is named for the Tacoma Narrows Strait of Puget Sound.  They have quite a variety of year-round and seasonal beer, but I decided to try their Galloping Gertie Golden Ale.  Oh, historical note: Galloping Gertie is the name of the Tacoma Narrows bridge that tore itself apart in 1940 due to high winds.

Coming in at 5.2% ABV and an IBU rating of 30, Galloping Gertie would seem to be a good choice for my tastes.  Sad to say, I was disappointed.  It’s not a bad beer, but it was pretty bland.  More like a lager than an ale.  Very thin mouth feel and little in the way of flavors.  This is a beer you can have several of in one sitting, but it will not leave much of an impression.  Now, I don’t want to say that ALL of Narrows Brewery beers are bad; I’m just saying I wasn’t too impressed with the Galloping Gertie.

2 Belches: 

 

Silver City Brewery Ridgetop Red (American Amber):  Silver City Brewery is located in Silverdale, Washington.  I’ve had the good luck of trying several of Silver Cities ales, but Ridgetop Red is my absolute favorite.  With an ABV of 6% and an IBU rating of 15, Ridgetop Red is a very smooth yet surprisingly flavorful.  Their website says there’s a hint of caramel, but I can’t say that I noticed it.  This beer does have a pleasant balance of sweet and bitterness.  I would rate the mouthfeel at a medium, with just the right amount of carbonation.  If you are passing through Washington and only have time to try one beer, you can’t go wrong with Ridgetop Red.

I give it 4 belches: 

 

 

Sierra Nevada Sidecar (Orange Pale Ale):  Pretty much found everywhere in the States, Sierra Nevada has two breweries. The original brewery was founded in Chico, California in 1979. Even though this brewery is in California, it’s north of Sacramento, so as far as I am concerned it’s in the Pacific Northwest.

Sidecar comes in at 5.3% ABV and an IBU rating of 35.  It’s a pale ale with moderate bitterness and a bit of orange tartness to round it out.  I found that each swallow started off smooth but ended with a pleasant tang. The flavoring is not so overwhelming that you couldn’t enjoy several Sidecars in one sitting.  Mouthfeel was medium with some carbonation.

I award it 4 belches: 

 

 

Iron Horse Brewery Irish Death Dark Ale:  Iron Horse Brewery resides in Ellensburg, Washington.  My son-in-law introduced me to this ale when he and my daughter drove back to Colorado to visit family.  He thought I might like this ale, so he brought it with him. He was right because I did enjoy it immensely. But I wasn’t into blogging then so I didn’t take notes.  So when we visited them in December I made sure to grab a bottle or two so I could study this beer in more depth.  All in the name of science, of course.

Iron Horse Brewery’s signature beer is Irish Death, an ale that is self-described as a “dark, smooth ale”.  For once, the hype lives up to its description.  Irish Death is an almost black ale, with a strong 7.8% ABV and a very low IBU rating of only 12.  Despite its low IBU, it is in no way, shape or form a bland beer.  However, unlike most porter or stout beers, there is no hint of coffee.  This probably means that the malts used in making this ale are not roasted.

Irish Death has a medium mouth feel, with strong malt flavors and a hint of chocolate.

I really, really enjoy this ale and therefor I’m going to give it my first ever 5 belch rating.

5 belches: 

 

Feather Falls Casino Volcano Mudslide (Sweet Stout): Feather Falls Casino is based out of Oroville, CA.  Volcano Mudslide has a 6% ABV and an IBU of 20.  I have no idea what other beers Feather Falls Casino brews, but I would rather have my balls mashed flat with a wooden mallet  than drink this sludge again.

For one thing, for a sweet stout it’s not really all that sweet.   It’s not bitter, not sweet, not malty, not anything.  It just tastes bad.  I found the taste of this stout offensive, so I am going to give it my dreaded “I’d rather have a stick in the eye-socket than drink this beer again” rating.

1 stick in the eye socket:      

 

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