It's funny how we have two days in a row of a guy who left his old team a while ago, and is now back, fittingly. Kerry Wood may not be Jim Thome, or a hall of famer, but he's still had a solid career. His rookie year he was hyped to be the next big thing, fanning batters at the drop of a hat. Injuries quelled his 2000's, and he was left an aging but still merciless closer. It's kinda poetic that Kerry's back with Chicago, although the fans still love him.
Back when I was on my baseball road trip, we stopped at a Nationals game, where they were playing the Cubs. I was waving for batting practice balls over the visiting team's bullpen. A ball flew into the pen, and Kerry Wood went to get it. At the sight of seeing Mr. Wood, a visible Chicago fan came running out of his seat, to try to talk to him. The fan proclaimed that he was there back in 03, and 05, when they were coming close to a victory in the playoffs. And Kerry, almost a full 360 as to what I thought of him, just started talking to the guy. He seems like a fairly affable human being, but I thought he was dead serious before this. And finally, the fan tossed him two baseballs for Kerry to sign, which he did thoughtfully.
The bottom line is that while Kerry Wood might not be destined for Cooperstown like we all thought he'd be, he's still a solid player, and a nice guy. And how can you top that?
Coming Tomorrow- A surprising new reliever prospect that's been making a lot of headlines, from Prospect City, aka Atlanta. And it ain't Jose Costanza.
The whole story of how Kerry ended up back with the Cubs, starting at Ron Santo's funeral, says a lot about him.
ReplyDeleteJose Constanza?
ReplyDelete