Wizards And Capitals Should Stay In Washington

Let's get all of this out of the way before I start the point of this post. I live in Northern Virginia but not in Alexandria or particularly close to the proposed Potomac Yard site for a new arena for the Washington Capitals and Wizards. I've attended concerts, Wizards, Caps, and Georgetown basketball games over the 20+ years I've lived in the DC area, but I haven't been to the Capital One Arena in Washington since the pandemic started. So although the recent announcement about the Wizards and Caps moving from DC to Alexandria doesn't really impact me, why does it bother me so much?

By all accounts, the Gallery Place/Chinatown area of DC was completely revitalized by the building of the Capital One Arena (previously the MCI Center and Verizon Center) in the late 1990s. Between home games for the Wizards and Caps along with Georgetown basketball games, concerts, monster truck shows, etc., there are probably about 150 events at the arena each year. Taking away the Wizards and Caps will be absolutely devastating to the businesses in that neighborhood. Meanwhile, state and local taxpayers are going to be on the hook for $1.35 billion for the building of the new arena and entertainment complex in Alexandria, Virginia. This would be the largest public subsidy of a project of this kind. There is not currently adequate infrastructure in the Potomac Yard area, so we're talking about a significant investment needed in roads, though it's not clear if that's part of the $1.35 billion. In any event, I don't see how this is a good deal for Virginia residents. That's A LOT of money. And it's not like we're going to get free tickets or free parking. Ticket and parking prices aren't going to be cheap. Now all of this is a great deal for Caps and Wizards owner Ted Leonsis. This is a live look at Ted if this deal gets signed. 

The model for Potomac Yard is The Battery area in Cobb County, Georgia. The Atlanta Braves moved about 10 miles outside the city to an area with a new stadium and entertainment district. It's really nice. Several years after opening though, I'd love to know the economic impact on Atlanta, Cobb County, and the Atlanta Braves. Cobb County (and its taxpayers) put significant money into the area. Curious what the return on investment has been. Plus, what's the impact for the city of Atlanta and the area that housed Turner Field? (I don't remember there being much to do before or after a game outside Turner Field which differs from the area outside Capital One.)

To me, it just seems like the Wizards and Caps should play in Washington. Although Potomac Yard is only four miles from Capital One, it's a world away. 

Here are a few more videos about this potential move.

The Sid Bream Curse?

It was time. I’ve managed to avoid one of the most painful moments of my life for the past 18+ years, but it was time to relive game seven of the 1992 National League Championship Series between the Pittsburgh Pirates and Atlanta Braves. The MLB Network created a weekly show counting down the top 50 baseball games of the past 50 years. The Pirates-Braves match-up was #4 on the list.

Instead of airing the entire game, MLB Network showed all the significant moments of the game interspersed with comments from Bob Costas, a guy named Tom (I have no idea of his last name or who he is) and studio guests Andy Van Slyke, Sid Bream and Mark Lemke. I couldn’t have handled watching the entire game start to finish, so I applaud MLB Network for showing the game in this format. Anyway, I truly managed to block out much of this game that took place during my high school senior year, so I thought I would share some thoughts from watching the game again for the first time.

During the telecast, Sid Bream mentioned that some people tell him that the lack the Pirates’ success since the 1992 season is a result of the Bream Curse. I think Sid is making this up. (Seriously, has anyone heard of this Bream Curse?)

What a pitching match-up between Doug Drabek and John Smoltz. I loved Drabek.



Meanwhile, I don’t think John Smoltz has aged. He looked the same in 1992 than he did when he retired a few years ago. Well, at least when he wears a hat.

Things I still hate today: The Tomahawk Chop & Mark Lemke. The chop is just a rip-off from Florida State. As for Lemke, he was annoying as a player and useless on the broadcast. I would have rather heard Francisco Cabrera talk about the hit or David Justice discuss the game while throwing in some commentary about his relationship with Halle Berry.

Wow! Andy Van Slyke really hates Barry Bonds. You would think there would have been some type of reconciliation over the years, but not in this case.

Van Slyke also remains upset about some missed ball-strike calls by the home plate umpire. It’s not much consolation, but at least the Braves also got screwed by bad umpire strike zone recognition several years later in the Livan Hernandez-15 strikeout game.

As a sports fan still bitter about this game, I’m glad that Andy Van Slyke, someone who participated in the game, is still upset about the result as well. For some reason this is comforting that the players care as much or more than the fans. I don’t expect that in most cases, but it seems necessary for this particular game.

Can someone answer this question: why exactly was Francisco Cabrera on the Braves playoff roster?

Atlanta Braves manager Bobby Cox retired at the end last season as one of the winningest managers in baseball history. However, let's play the hypothetical game. Let's say that Barry Bonds threw out Sid Bream at home and the Pirates won the game in extra innings. Cox would have been destroyed in the press and by fans for not using a pinch-runner for Bream and rightfully so. I feel like that could have been Cox's legacy.

I'm shocked (SHOCKED!) that the MLB Network didn't show the Braves' postgame celebration featuring Deion Sanders and Tim McCarver. I couldn't turn away from or turn off the TV 18+ years ago, so I clearly remember watching Sanders stalking McCarver throughout the Braves locker room. This was the end result.



Rod Woodson > Deion Sanders

Now that I watched the special, I’m happy not to see this game again for another 18+ years.

Evening at RFK

I attended the Washington Nationals-Atlanta Braves game on Tuesday night, my first baseball game of the season. What a fantastic evening! Here’s why:

I bought Lower View Outfield seats for $5, but never got close to sitting there. Instead, we sat on the 1st base line in Field MVP seats that sell for $55. I used to do this all the time for Pittsburgh Pirates games at Three Rivers Stadium, although then, we actually sat in the outfield or upper deck seats and moved down to the nice seats later in the game. The one good thing about a losing team in an old, undistinguished stadium is the many open seats. I’m really going to miss RFK for baseball games next year when the Nationals move to a brand new stadium.

I may have mentioned a while back that I used to work as a beer man. I write this now because I think I have a good sense of what makes a good beer man. So when I write that RFK has the greatest beer man I have ever seen, I write that with conviction. First, RFK Beer Man (I don’t know his name) carried three stacks of beer trays. I didn’t get a full count, but my guess is he started with a minimum of 72 cans. That in itself is tough enough to do while walking up and down aisle after aisle and yelling to sell the product. What really distinguished this beer man was how he opened and poured the beer. He had some type of hand-held electric can opener (I searched unsuccessfully online for about 20 minutes trying to find the product) that removed the entire top of the beer cans. He could do this for two beer cans at a time, and then quickly pour the topless cans into plastic cups. Anywhere he went, people would stop watching the game and watch him in amazement as he opened the cans and poured the beer. It was unbelievable!

A foul ball landed two rows in front of us and another two rows behind us. I have never caught a foul ball, and if I ever do, I have a feeling that I won’t be able to keep it. I’ll end up giving the ball to some little kid sitting a row down.

If you are a designated driver or have no intention of drinking beer at a baseball game, I highly recommend signing up at the designated driver booth. Just for pledging that you’re not going to drink, you receive a free pop coupon (soda for some of you) and are entered into a drawing. Tuesday night, the designated driver booth gave away two free pop coupons. I also won two tickets for Busch Gardens as the lucky winner of the drawing.

Anyone who has attended a Nats game this year knows about the President races. This is a complete knock off of the Milwaukee Brewers’ Sausage race and the Pirates’ Pierogi race. Anyway, the big story is that Teddy Roosevelt has never won a race. George Washington, Thomas Jefferson or Abraham Lincoln always win. My guess is that the Nats are saving a Teddy win for a big moment, either the last game at RFK, the first game at the new stadium, or if the Nationals ever sell-out a game, which could happen this weekend against the Baltimore Orioles.

Oh yeah…the Nationals lost 6-2.