Events Calendar
In This Section
Most Read Stories
Blogs:
First Bell - On Education:
No City of Akron basketball tonight
Pets:
Pet telethon re-airs
The Heldenfiles:
Chipmunks "Squeakquel" on DVD/BD March 30
Akron Zips:
Late surge gives Zips ugly road win
Tribe Matters:
Blogmail response on Hafner
Cleveland Browns:
Stallworth's contract terminated
Balanced Ledger:
QB in Browns future: another mock draft
Kent State Sports:
KSU Notes – February 9
Cleveland Cavaliers:
NBA Power Rankings from Around the Internet
Buckeye Blogging:
Buckeyes grab 18 players on signing day
Varsity Letters:
Garfield at Buchtel basketball
All Da King's Men:
Palin At The Tea Party Convention
Blog of Mass Destruction:
Akron Law Café:
Citizens United v. F.E.C. (Part 4): Kennedy's and O'Connor's Basic Approaches to Constitutional Decisionmaking – Top Down and Bottom Up
Car Chase:
Collector Car Hobby Loses One of the Best—Jim Roll
Let's Talk Real Estate:
Decisions Decisions: Credit Cards or Your Mortgage?
Ohio Travels with Betty:
Loucile is looking for a Lake Erie getaway in June for three kids, ages 1, 3, and 5.
Sound Check:
Talk of the Town – Top entertainment picks for the weekend
HRLite House:
Track HR Research
Akron Gamer:
'Tecmo Bowl' recreation of Super Bowl XLIV
See Jane Style:
Do IT this week: Layering
Wedge waxes nostalgic about youthful love of game
By Sheldon Ocker
Beacon Journal sports writer
Published on Saturday, Apr 11, 2009
CLEVELAND: A little nostalgia, a little wistfulness and tributes to the good fans of (fill in your favorite team). All of that is a part of Opening Day in 30 American cities.
So it was in Cleveland on Friday. The weather was uninviting at Progressive Field, 45 degrees with showers that increased in intensity as the game went on, leading to a long rain delay. In other words, for Opening Day in Northeast Ohio, it was pretty average, prompting Indians manager Eric Wedge to pay homage to the fans.
''It feels like Opening Day in Cleveland,'' he said. ''That's all part of it, this kind of weather. The fans are used to it. I know they've sat out there in a lot worse than this.''
Fans aren't fond of exposing themselves to sheets of rain, but sometimes they just don't have a choice.
''I love the fans' passion, I really do,'' Wedge said. ''I don't care if they cheer or boo, as long as they're here.''
The conversation turned to Wedge's youth and his desire to be a catcher almost from the time he put on his first uniform for the Lions Club of Ft. Wayne, Ind.
''I had three posters on my wall: Johnny Bench, Carlton Fisk and Thurman Munson,'' he said. ''But Bench was my favorite.''
Wedge didn't play organized baseball until he was 9 or 10.
''Catcher was my first position,'' Wedge said. ''The coach asked me, 'You want to catch?' I said sure.''
Wedge stayed behind the plate until multiple knee surgeries forced him to quit after he had made it to the big leagues with the Boston Red Sox.
Sheldon Ocker can be reached at socker@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Indians blog at http://www.ohio.com/tribematters. Follow the Indians on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/ABJ_Indians.
CLEVELAND: A little nostalgia, a little wistfulness and tributes to the good fans of (fill in your favorite team). All of that is a part of Opening Day in 30 American cities.
Get the full article here.
Comments
Click here to post your comments
Canton, OH
Posted 09:27 AM, 04/11/2009
Hey, Wedgie, GO BACK TO BOSTON . .U CHOWDERHEAD. . .
