Bruce Springsteen Name Game Part 4: S-Z

You have all been so patient as I take the time to go through all of these lyrics! Bruce has talked about a multitude of women, but there are many more to come! Just for a recap, after Part 3, here is where the name game stands:

1. Mary – 39. In Part 3, Mary added 33 tallies to her name!
2. Jane/Janie/Janey – 20. There were no mentions for these ladies in Part 3, but they still have enough for second place.
3. Candy – 17. Two early songs may just be enough to get on the medal stand for Candy.
4. Linda – 15. Linda looms large with only one song, but many mentions.
5. Rosalita/Rosie – 13. The R’s have it over the Maria/Mary Lou’s by a slim margin.
6. Maria, Mary Lou – 12
7. Cynthia – 11
8. Kitty – 10
9. Ricky – 9
10. Sandy – 8
11. Martha – 5
12. Dinah – 4
13. Juliet, Lynette, Bobby Jean, Wendy, Frankie, Gloria, Sarah, Terry, Polly – 3
14. Wanda, Jackie, Leah, Catherine, Carol – 2
15. Eve, Kate, Cassiopeia, Lena, Pearl (Early-Pearly), Bobbie, Joan, Shaniqua, Theresa, Sally – 1

Santa Ana (Tracks) – Sandy – 1 time. Sandy ties Ricky in 9th with 9 mentions.

Shenandoah (We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions) – Sally – 1 time. Sally breaks free from the bottom slot and moves up a spot! (Don’t tell her she’s only in 14th, this is a big deal to her).

Sherry Darling (The River) – Sherry – 6 times. Sherry takes the 10 spot previously vacated by Sandy (two seconds ago).

I think Bruce had a drinking problem, singing a song to a wine.

So Young and in Love (Tracks) – Missy – 1 time. This is the first showing for Miss Missy, the tenth name with one tally.

Spanish Eyes (The Promise) – Christine – 1 time. Christine is a first as well. It’s not a name I would picture on a woman with Spanish eyes, but that’s Bruce’s call.

Spare Parts (Tunnel of Love) – Jane/Janey – 6 times. Thanks to the girl who started out ditched by her baby daddy and ended up making some good money, the Jane/Janie/Janey squad has 26, 13 behind Mary.

Spirit in the Night (Greetings from Asbury Park) – Janey – 5 times. Well, whaddya know? Janey is storming the proverbial name game castle, now just 8 behind Mary!

There’s Janey, and Janie, and Jane..Janie’s on the right with Jane and Janey.

Stand on It (Tracks) – Mary Beth – 1 time, Isabella – 1 time. Both first time additions to the list! However, my mind is more preoccupied wondering what will happen with the Mary/Janey totals.

Straight Time (Ghost of Tom Joad) – Mary – 1 time. She’s the wife of a former convict and helps boost her name’s total to 40. Is Mary now over the hill?

Terry’s Song (Magic) – Mary – 1 time. Mary gets another notch thanks to the religious context, up to 41.

The E Street Shuffle (The Wild, The Innocent and the E Street Shuffle) – (Little) Angel – 5 times. Say hello to Angel who just loves showing all of the boys on the boardwalk how to do the E Street Shuffle.

I think we’d all pay to watch her do the E Street Shuffle.

The Line (Ghost of Tom Joad) – Louisa – 2 times. Louisa steps on the list as the subject of another story of love lost in the night.

The Rising (The Rising) – Mary – 1 time. Mary is not going away, getting her numbers up to 42.

The River (The River) – Mary – 3 times. In a song inspired by Springsteen’s sister and her husband, Mary now has 45 after another classic tale of blue-collar struggles.

Thunder Road (Born to Run) – Mary – 2 times. The song that (probably) made every woman who heard it want to be named Mary gives her 47 names overall. Mary is mentioned in 5 of the last 7 songs.

One of over 3 and a half billion Google Image results for ‘Mary.’ The name is not only popular in Bruce’s songs! (And her name isn’t even Mary, it’s Mary-Kate)

Wild Billy’s Circus Story (The Wild, The Innocent and the E Street Shuffle) – Missy Bimbo – 2 times, Margarita – 1 time. Thanks to the circus environment, someone with a name like Missy Bimbo jumps ahead of Missy. This is Margarita’s debut.

Circuses would be a lot more fun if there were more of these there, am I right?

With Every Wish (Human Touch) – Doreen – 1 time. Her beauty was a gift and a curse for “Bobby,” so Doreen breaks onto the list.

You Can Look (But You Better Not Touch) (The River) – (Dirty) Annie – 1 time. Another first as the number of songs winds down.

Youngstown (The Ghost of Tom Joad) – Jenny – 4 times. Sweet Jenny hears about Bruce’s trials in Youngstown. My parents grew up in the suburbs of the city and my grandparents worked in those very steel mills Bruce talks about. I also lived near Youngstown for about 5 years. It’s sad to say that even though working in the steel mills sounds bad, since they shut down, the city is even worse.

Zero and Blind Terry (Tracks) – Terry – 12 times. I thought the high numbers were done for, but Terry had something to say about it. She adds 12 to her 3 for a grand total of 15.

Who’s ready for the final tally? I know I am!

1. Mary – 47
2. Jane/Janie/Janey – 31
3. Candy – 17
4. Linda, Terry – 15
5. Rosalita/Rosie – 13
6. Maria, Mary Lou – 12
7. Cynthia – 11
8. Kitty – 10
9. Ricky, Sandy – 9
10. Sherry – 6
11. Martha, Angel – 5
12. Dinah, Jenny – 4
13. Juliet, Lynette, Bobby Jean, Wendy, Frankie, Gloria, Sarah, Polly – 3
14. Wanda, Jackie, Leah, Catherine, Carol, Sally, Louisa, Missy Bimbo – 2
15. Eve, Kate, Cassiopeia, Lena, Pearl (Early-Pearly), Bobbie, Joan, Shaniqua, Theresa, Missy, Christine, Mary Beth, Isabella, Margarita, Doreen, Annie – 1

Those of you who believed you heard Mary’s name a lot in Bruce’s songs, you’re right! Mary is the number one name in his original lyrics. Of course, all of his fans know that no matter what these numbers say, the number one woman in his life is Patti. Like the typical songwriter (except Taylor Swift), he does not mention her name directly.

Thank you all so much for being patient while I slogged through every word. I like to think this process educated me a little more on Springsteen’s work and I hope this has done the same for you. Perhaps later I will go back and order the names based on the time the song was released or even do the men’s names. But, for now I need a break on reading through the words. I will continue to learn about Bruce as I listen to the 66 songs on the Tracks album I just bought.

Thanks again for reading!

Bruce Springsteen Name Study Part 3: L – R

Hello again everyone! I have decided to temporarily put my in-depth Yankees coverage on the back burner until I finish this series. For first-time readers, Bruce Springsteen fans (I am one) know there are many women he mentions in his songs. So, since I have the time and the curiosity, I am going through all of Springsteen’s song lyrics via his official website and counting the woman’s name that appears the most times.

From my last post, the overall numbers for tracks beginning with a number through the letter K.

1. Jane/Janie/Janey (I believe Janie and Janey are variations of Jane) – 20
2. Candy (thanks to Candy’s Boy and Candy’s Room) – 17
3. Cynthia – 11 (all in one song!)
4. Kitty – 10
5. Sandy – 8
6. Mary – 6 (mentioned one time in six different songs)
7. Dinah, Maria – 4
8. Lynette, Bobby Jean, Wendy, Frankie, Gloria, Sarah, Terry, Polly – 3
9. Catherine, Carol, Juliet – 2
10. Lena, Pearl (Early-Pearly), Bobbie, Joan, Mary Lou, Delilah, Shaniqua (the name I least expected), Martha, Theresa, Sally – 1

Thanks for continuing to follow along. For the first entry in the L category, a new name makes its way to the list.

Leah (Devils & Dust) – Leah – 2 times

Linda Let Me Be the One (Tracks) – Linda – 15 times, Mary – 1 time. Linda, like Janey in “Janey, Don’t You Lose Heart,” gets a big bump with her name mentioned four times in three choruses. Linda separates the C’s, jumping to third place behind Candy and above Cynthia. Mary gets another bump (up to 7 times in 7 songs) in a religious context.

Here is a Linda. Linda Cardellini. She played Velma in the Scooby-Doo movies. I know, right? She definitely could have been Daphne.

Long Time Comin’ (Devils & Dust) – Cassiopeia – 1 time (in reference to the constellation), Rosie – 1 time. Rosie makes her first appearance! I am thinking that since Rosalita and Rosie are the same person in “Rosalita,” this Rosie should count toward the Rosalita/Rosie tally as well. Does this make sense to you?

Lost in the Flood (Greetings from Asbury Park) – Maria – 1 time. Maria jumps ahead of Dinah with her fifth tally, taking 7th place to herself.

Maria’s Bed (Devils & Dust) – Maria – 6 times. Maria brings her total to 11, tied with Cynthia in fourth place.

Mary Lou (Tracks) – Mary Lou – 10 times. Bruce can be stingy or generous with ladies’ names when they’re the song title. Here, Mary Lou separates herself from Mary (7 tallies), but is now tied with Maria (and Cynthia) at 11.

Mary Queen of Arkansas (Greetings from Asbury Park) – Mary – 6 times. The M’s are providing a lot of movement on the charts! Mary now shows Maria and Mary Lou who’s boss with 13 total. That’s good enough for third place!

Mary’s Place (The Rising) – Mary – 11 times. One of my favorite Bruce songs has rocketed Mary up to first place with 24 past Jane/Janey/Janie.

My Hometown (Born in the USA) – Kate – 1 time. Kate appears on the list for the first time!

“One mention?!? I’ll make that peasant Bruce write a song with my name in it a million times!”

New York City Serenade (The Wild, The Innocent and the E Street Shuffle) – Jackie – 2 times. Jackie steps into the fold!

O Mary Don’t You Weep (We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions) – Mary – 10 times, Martha – 4 times. Mary has firmly cemented herself in first place with 34. She’s now 14 above Jane/Janey/Janie with another double-digit song in her name after starting with one mention in seven songs. Martha moves out of the pack of 1’s with her name mentioned a more respectable five times total.

Open All Night (Nebraska) – Wanda – 2 times. Wanda and her job at a chicken joint gave Bruce some comfort on his long drive home, so she gets a shout-out for the first time.

Pink Cadillac (Tracks) – Eve – 1 time. Eve debuts in a religious context, like many of Mary’s mentions.

Adam totally just wanted her for her car.

Point Blank (The River) – Juliet – 1 time. After the Mary melee, we have the third different name in a row. Juliet brings her total tally to 3 with another paired reference to Romeo.

Reason to Believe (Nebraska) – Mary Lou – 1 time. Of course, as soon as I comment about the Mary melee, Mary-with-a-middle-name gets a +1 to move ahead of Mary and Cynthia with 12 mentions.

Reno (Devils & Dust) – Maria – 1 time. In this NSFW (not safe for work) song, Maria counters Mary Lou’s mention and levels the score at 12.

Ricky Wants a Man of Her Own (Tracks) – Ricky – 9 times. Ricky bursts onto the list as a woman desperate for a man! Miss Independent, she’s not.

Rockaway the Days (Tracks) – Mary Dove – 1 time, Mary – 4 times. This song presents a new challenge. Mary Dove and Mary are two different names, but reference the same person. Referencing my last post about my stand on this position, Mary Dove goes under Mary and Mary gets five more tallies for a total of 39.

Rosalita (The Wild, The Innocent, and the E Street Shuffle) – Rosalita – 4 times, Rosie – 8 times. Rosalita/Rosie combine for 12 in her eponymous song that is one of my favorites. With the Rosie in Long Time Comin’, that’s lucky 13 overall. I think that’s good enough to be one of the top 5!

After Part 3, here is where the name game stands:

1. Mary – 39. In Part 3, Mary added 33 tallies to her name!
2. Jane/Janie/Janey – 20. There were no mentions for these ladies in this section, but they still have enough for second place.
3. Candy – 17. Two early songs may just be enough to get on the medal stand for Candy.
4. Linda – 15. Linda looms large with only one song, but many mentions.
5. Rosalita/Rosie – 13. The R’s have it over the Maria/Mary Lou’s by a slim margin.
6. Maria, Mary Lou – 12
7. Cynthia – 11
8. Kitty – 10
9. Ricky – 9
10. Sandy – 8
11. Martha – 5
12. Dinah – 4
13. Juliet, Lynette, Bobby Jean, Wendy, Frankie, Gloria, Sarah, Terry, Polly – 3
14. Wanda, Jackie, Leah, Catherine, Carol – 2
15. Eve, Kate, Cassiopeia, Lena, Pearl (Early-Pearly), Bobbie, Joan, Shaniqua, Theresa, Sally – 1

Thanks to the M songs, most of the mobility is with the M names. Linda’s up in 4th with Bruce’s desire for her love. 12 is a large number for names in a song, so the song Rosalita was a game-changer like I thought it would be. Will Maria and Mary Lou end up tied? How many more mentions can Mary and Jane/Janie/Janey count on? We know Mary is the heroine in Thunder Road, so that’s at least one! There are more songs about Terry, so I anticipate her to move from that snarl at 13th place. I’m thinking Mary is too far ahead for the competition. What do you think?

Thanks for reading!

Bruce Springsteen Name Study Part 2: E – K

Moving into Part 2, the leader board for appearances of female names in Bruce Springsteen songs looks like this:

Candy – 17 times

Cynthia – 11 times

Sandy – 8 times

The rest of the names are at 4 tallies or fewer. MOVING ON!

Fire (Live 1975-85) – Juliet – 1 time, Delilah – 1 time

Frankie (Tracks) – Frankie – 3 times

Girls in Their Summer Clothes (Magic) – Shaniqua – 1 time

Gloria’s Eyes (Human Touch) – Gloria – 3 times

Gypsy Biker (Magic) – Mary – 1 time

Which lucky lady are you singing to Bruce? And are you wearing braces?

Highway Patrolman (Nebraska) – Maria – 4 times

How Can a Poor Man Stand Such Times and Live? (We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions) – Martha – 1 time

—> Woof, searching for names in all of Bruce’s songs is a slower moving process than I thought! But, at least by the end of it, I’ll have my answer!

I’ll Work for Your Love (Magic) – Theresa – 1 time

Incident on 57th Street (The Wild, The Innocent and the E Street Shuffle) – Juliet – 1 time, Jane/Janey – 6 times (Jane 5 times, Janey 1 time) Combining this with Janie from “Breakaway”, Jane/Janey/Janie moves up to 8, tied with Sandy.

Independence Day (The River) – Mary (as in St. Mary) – 1 time. Mary is sneaking up with 5 tallies, all in separate songs.

Jacob’s Ladder (We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions) – Sarah – 3 times

Janey Don’t You Lose Heart (Tracks) – Janey – 12 times. Bruce gives Janey/Janie/Jane a big leap above the competition here with four names in each of the three choruses of the song. Janey/Janie/Jane is now leading the pack with 20.

Jesus Was an Only Son (Devils and Dust) – Mary – 1 time. Mary is up to 6 mentions.

John Henry (We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions) – Polly/Polly Ann – 3 times

Kitty’s Back (The Wild, The Innocent and the E Street Shuffle) – Sally – 1 time, Kitty – 10 times. Kitty shoots into double digits with one song!

Me-ow! Bruce mentioned my name TEN times.

To clarify, I am counting names each time they appear in a song, not just looking at a song and giving a name 1 point for being in it at all. For example, in “Kitty’s Back”, instead of Sally and Kitty each counting as 1, Kitty gets 10 because the name is said ten times in the song. I don’t add anything for a name being in the title (maybe that could be bonus points if there’s a tie).

One thing I need to decide on is whether to count names such as Mary Lou and Polly Ann as Mary and Polly, or as their own names. Thanks to Kevin for pointing out this issue. On one hand, Mary Lou is different than Mary, but with Lou as Mary’s middle name, her name is still Mary, and would qualify to be listed as Mary, not as its own name. My position going forward will be to look at the name in the song. If the name is mentioned once, it will be given credit as its own name. If the name is mentioned multiple times, i.e. once as Polly and once as Polly Ann, I consider them the same woman (unless clearly indicated otherwise) and Polly Ann will go under Polly and not register as its own separate name category.

In “Does This Bus Stop at 82nd Street?”, Bruce writes the name Mary in the context of “Broadway Mary, Joan Fontaine, advertiser on a downtown train.” Later, he writes about Mary Lou: “And Mary Lou she found out how to cope, she rides to heaven on a gyroscope.” From my interpretation of the song, Mary and Mary Lou are two different people, and count as two different names. In the song John Henry, this verse appears: “Her name was Polly Ann/She walked down to those tracks, picked up John Henry’s hammer/Polly drove steel like a man, Lord, Lord/Polly drove that steel like a man.” Here, Polly is clearly the same woman, just referred to in two different ways. Here, ‘Polly Ann’ counts under ‘Polly.’

I hope I’ve made that all clear. Now, let’s take a gander at the overall numbers for tracks beginning with a number through the letter K.

1. Jane/Janie/Janey (I believe Janie and Janey are variations of Jane) – 20
2. Candy (thanks to Candy’s Boy and Candy’s Room) – 17
3. Cynthia – 11 (all in one song!)
4. Kitty – 10
5. Sandy – 8
6. Mary – 6 (mentioned one time in six different songs)
7. Dinah, Maria – 4
8. Lynette, Bobby Jean, Wendy, Frankie, Gloria, Sarah, Terry, Polly – 3
9. Catherine, Carol, Juliet – 2
10. Lena, Pearl (Early-Pearly), Bobbie, Joan, Mary Lou, Delilah, Shaniqua (the name I least expected), Martha, Theresa, Sally – 1

I, like all of you, am eagerly awaiting to see what Rosalita/Rosie brings to the table in terms of tallies. I’ve also seen another song about Terry, so (if the person is a woman, sad to say I haven’t heard the song) that could add to Terry’s numbers. Just by going through these songs so far, it seems like Frankie is Bruce’s name of choice for men with Johnny and Billy somewhere behind. I must pry my eyes away from the computer for a while, but I’ll be tallying more soon. Thanks for reading!

The Bruce Springsteen Name Study: Part 1 (# – D)

My mom had an interesting thought while we were listening to Bruce the other day. What girl’s name is the used the most in his songs? We brainstormed about Wendy, Mary, Sandy, Shirley, Bobby Jean and Rosie, but I wanted to know for sure. Thanks to the lyrics available on his official website, the Command-F key (finds the names on my Mac) and my infinite boredom, I can find out! I decided to go in alphabetical order rather than order of discography.

4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy) (The Wild, The Innocent and the E Street Shuffle) – Sandy, 8 times

American Skin (41 Shots) (Live in New York City) – Lena, 1 time

Backstreets (Born to Run) – Terry, 3 times

Bishop Danced (Tracks) – Dinah, 4 times

Black Cowboys (Devils and Dust) – Lynette, 3 times

Blinded by the Light (Greetings from Asbury Park, N. J.) – Early-Pearly, 1 time (I presume her name is Pearl)

Bobby Jean (Born in the USA) – Bobby Jean, 3 times

Born to Run (Born to Run) – Wendy, 3 times

Breakaway (The Promise) – Janie, 2 times (I didn’t think Ronde Ray made sense in the song as a girl’s name, but if you think differently, comment!)

Bring on the Night (Tracks) – Mary – 1 time

Candy’s Boy (The Promise) – Candy – 9 times (Candy overtakes Sandy!)

Candy’s Room (Darkness on the Edge of Town) – Candy – 8 times (Can anyone catch Candy with 17 tallies?)

Car Wash (Tracks) – Catherine – 2 times & Mary – 1 time

County Fair (The Essential Bruce Springsteen) – Carol – 2 times

Cynthia (Tracks) – Cynthia – 11 times (Gaining on Candy! Nothing like a song with the girl’s name in the title to boost numbers!)

Devils & Dust (Devils & Dust) – Bobbie – 1 time

Does This Bus Stop at 82nd Street? (Greetings from Asbury Park) – Mary – 1 time, Joan – 1 time, Mary Lou – 1 time

The saga continues today! Keep checking back for the final tally!

Ups and Downs of the Season

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. Charles Dickens’ quote is the perfect way to describe the Yankees’ situation the past couple of weeks. Since it’s been so long since I’ve blogged about the Yankees, I’m going to backtrack a little bit for this post about some of the ups and downs the Bombers have been facing the past couple of weeks.

This guy knew what would happen with the Yankees the past two weeks. (Photograph: Popperfoto/Getty Images via guardian.co.uk)

Down (Mariano Rivera Part I)

• On May 3, New York’s season took a (relatively) unpredictable turn for the worst when closer Mariano Rivera tore his ACL catching fly balls during batting practice before a game versus the Kansas City Royals. I say this event is “relatively unpredictable” because although the best closer of all time is 42, way past the normal retiring age for ballplayers, he had not been on the disabled list since 2003. Like most ACL tears, it was tough to identify what caused it, one second he’s going on with business as usual and then BAM! he’s down. He did hit the wall, but how many times does that happen per baseball season without incident? His ACL injury will require surgery, which means he will be sidelined for at least the rest of the 2012 season. Staunch, stalwart, reliable, this is not at all what Bombers fans were expecting. But, guess what?

Up (Mariano Rivera Part II)

• Rivera said he’ll be back next year!! May 4, MLB.com’s writer for the Yankees, Bryan Hoch, tweeted about the closer’s statement on returning: “I’m coming back. Write it down in big letters. I’m not going out like this.” As much as I am glad to hear this, I feel bad that he has to work so hard to make a comeback next year. This was supposed to be his swan song, his victory lap around the bigs, when he gets applauded at his last appearance at every stadium (sadly recalling memories of stinky Roger Clemens). Now he has to not only work his body back into shape for baseball, he has to do it in addition to months and months of physical therapy rehab. But, if anyone can do it, Mo can.

Down (then Up) (Mariano Rivera Parts III & IV)

• Monday, May 7, Rivera’s agent, Fernando Cuza said there were “complications” when the pitcher went for an examination on his knee. That doesn’t sound good! Fortunately, the Yankees are more open about injury information that Bill Belichick (or we probably still wouldn’t know the real problem). As the ESPN.com article states, the doctors found a clot in the pitchers’ right calf. Rivera was kept at the hospital overnight, given blood thinners and is expected to make a full recovery. It’s not known whether the clot came as a result of the ACL tear or if it happened over time. With all of this work being done on Mo, he could be like the Bionic Man, stronger and better than ever!

“Oh no, not I! I will survive!” (Ed Zurga/Getty Images via nj.com/yankees)

Down (David Robertson Part I)

• May 9, almost a week after Rivera’s injury, closer-in-training David Robertson came into the ninth inning against the Tampa Bay Rays to protect a 1-0 lead pieced together by four pitchers. He gave up four runs, including a three-run homer to Matt Joyce for the Rays’ 4-1 win. Not a good start for the replacement Mariano.

Up (David Robertson Part II)

• Since the blown save faux pas (just thinking about Everybody Loves Raymond), Robertson pitched 2/3 of scoreless baseball in the Yankees 6-2 victory over the Mariners on May 11. He hasn’t made an appearance since then (as of Mon., May 14), so I’m not too worried.

Up (Andy Pettitte Part I)

• Amazin’ Andy (39 years old) came back from retirement, powered his way up through the minors, and debuted on his old turf in the Bronx on Sunday, May 13 against the Seattle Mariners.

Down (Andy Pettitte Part II)

• Fellow creaky bones pitcher Kevin Millwood (37 years old, debuted in 1997, pitching for his 8th team) stole the spotlight from Mr. Pettitte’s homecoming. Millwood (1-4) hurled 7 innings, gave up 3 hits, one run and struck out 6 in a 6-2 Mariners win. Pettitte (0-1) countered with 6 and 1/3 innings, 7 hits, 4 earned runs, 3 walks and 2 K’s. Hey Pet, you’ll get ’em next time sport!

Up (Derek Jeter Part I)

• Jeter’s average is no longer the sky-high .400 of April (what goes up must come down), but his .372 mark (as of May 14) is still far and away better than the next closest starter’s average (Robinson Cano, .299). Since May 9th, I have favorited so many tweets about his most recent achievements. From @ESPNStatsInfo on May 9: “Elias tells us that Derek Jeter is the first player in Yankees history with at least 50 hits over the Yankees’ first 30 games of a season.” From ESPN reporter John Buccigross @Buccigross on May 13: “Derek Jeter ties Tony Gwynn for 17th on all-time hit list, 3,141.” From the official New York Yankees account @Yankees on May 13: “Derek Jeter now has 924 career multi-hit games, 10 behind Eddie Murray for 7th most since 1918.” The Captain is still earning his stripes, no matter how old he is!

Up (Dr. Derek Jeter Part II)

• On Sunday, May 13, Siena College in Albany, New York honored Jeter with a doctorate in Humane Letters for his work in his Turn 2 charity that works to keep kids off drugs. Ever the loyal player, Jeet had a game on graduation day, so his sister Sharlee went in his place. Jeter’s father Charles, is also a doctor who works as a substance abuse counselor (likely the inspiration for his charity).

Up (Derek Jeter Part III: This Guy Can Do No Wrong)

• Last Sunday was Mother’s Day and to honor moms everywhere, Major League Baseball sent its players to the plate with pink bats. After Jeter’s first at-bat, he walked back to the dugout and gave his bat to a lucky (and very adorable) little girl who was overjoyed with her gift. Here’s the video link on a tweet from @Yankees. Whatta man, whatta man, whatta mighty good man!

“I’m going to marry him!” All the other women in the stadium: “No, we are!!” (via sportsgrid.com)

Last Down (Injuries)

• Wallace Matthews, Yankees beat writer for ESPN New York, gave a brief update on the pressing injuries to the Yankees’ roster. Rivera’s knee swelling needs to go down before surgery on his torn ACL. Meanwhile, outfielder Brett Gardner has a few days before he can swing a bat after straining his right elbow, and pitcher Joba Chamberlain is just playing toss, but looks good according to manager Joe Girardi.
• Update: Starting pitcher Ivan Nova left his start on Monday against the Orioles with a sprain in his right foot and ankle, Wallace Matthews reported. X-rays were negative, which is good. I’m sure after the game Girardi will say he’s not sure of the timetable of Nova’s return, but more will be known soon.

Up (Have to End on a Good Note)

• The Preakness is this weekend at Pimlico in Maryland. Who do you have in this race? Will I’ll Have Another get the second leg of the Triple Crown or will Bodemeister, the favorite as of Monday at 2-to-1, get his revenge?

HA! Bodemeister thinks he can beat me. (Photo: Patrick Semansky / AP via stamfordadvocate.com)

Yours in pinstripes.

The Biggest Day in Horse Racing!: 138th Kentucky Derby (Part 2)

It’s about an hour until post time and I am getting more anxious by the minute. Bob Costas marked the occasion with another one of his signature, spectacular features on why the Kentucky Derby is an event that annually stands out in sports. I hope they put that online somewhere so I can watch it over and over again.

The story on Union Rags owner Phyllis Wyeth made me an immediate fan of the horse because of her story. She broke her neck in a car accident, went into her family’s business of horse breeding after she recovered, sold Union Rags for 125 grand, had a dream that she had to get him back and bought him for $390,000, the highest she would bid. The piece also made me think that I would be a bad horse owner because I would not be able to part with a horse that was born on my farm. I’d have to make sure I didn’t name it.

I’ve never been to another big race like the Preakness or the Haskell, but I like how Churchill Downs extends the post time so there’s a little over an hour to place your bets and feel the anticipation before the Greatest 2 Minutes in Sports. I liked the piece showing the celebrities picks for the Derby winner, but the walk to the paddock interviews with the horse trainers were very informative from a learning journalist’s perspective. The talk with famous trainer Bob Baffert was a challenge for the reporter because Baffert’s son Bode (the family has a thing for B’s) was between them. So there’s the guy asking Baffert questions while trying not to squish the kid holding onto his father’s hand out of the picture too much. He did a good job asking 7-year-old Bode how his time at the Derby was going. Any time you can get a soundbyte from a kid, you’re doing well. I know I would have wanted to switch sides to get closer to Baffert, but after watching the interview, I realize that would have been very distracting.

The call for the riders to mount the horses is a fun tradition that Coach Cal nearly botched like his earlier interview. His wife had to bump him with her hip to incite him to say “Riders Up!”

My pick to win is Dullahan. His jockey Kent Desormeaux has won the Derby 3 times and I love the history behind his name. See you on the other side!!

The Biggest Day in Horse Racing!: 138th Kentucky Derby

A great experience for anyone who loves horse racing, sports, or both!

Last year, I was fortunate enough to be able to go to the Kentucky Derby with my boyfriend Rob. I’ve been a horse racing fan ever since I was in the womb. My parents and their friends spend countless Sundays at Monmouth Park in Oceanport, NJ. On any given summer Sunday from 1991-1997, you could find me at the racetrack, in a pack-and-play, on the playground, climbing the green fence by the track, on the pony rides, getting my face painted, eating the Carvel ice cream, then finally making my own bets. One of my greatest accomplishments was when I could finally see over the green fence. When I went back in the summer of 2009, the green fence was at my waist! The point is, I love the first Saturday in May because horse racing is in the spotlight and gets the chance to gain even more fans. Since I’m watching the NBC Derby coverage, I figured I’d use my blog to comment on it.

NBC is doing a great job of filling the 3+ hours of coverage with information on the track, the horses, the fashion, the celebrities. They have cameras in every nook and cranny of Churchill Downs going to reporters at a desk, Bob Costas in the grandstand, Bob Costas near the winner’s circle in the infield, E! News reporter Catt Sadler on top of the grandstand, Jenna Wolfe near the paddock, reporters on Millionaire’s Row interviewing celebrities and fashion experts. Also, Costas is such a wonderful way with words, he makes any broadcast better.

Sadler’s interview with the fashion expert was quite funny. Sadler asked the expert how she was enjoying her first Derby and she responded by stammering and eventually getting out, “It’s been nothing less than disappointing!” I’m not sure that’s what she meant to say. Later, Sadler spoke to US Ski Champion and rumored Tim Tebow paramour Lindsey Vonn, who mispronounced the name of the horse she was betting on, Dullahan. Even with her large lavender chapeau, she had a little too much sun…or bourbon. Another celeb who made me question his sobriety was Kentucky men’s basketball head coach John Calipari. When asked which horse he was betting on, he blurted “My mom!” The reporter smartly waited for an explanation to which Cal regained composure and talked about his mom’s lucky/favorite numbers that he would be betting even though he didn’t know which horses those numbers belonged to. Coach Cal did make up for his brief blunder by saying he’d box the bet. Way to know your betting terms!

As a journalist, there’s a lot to be learned from these broadcasts in terms of creative ways of filling time, interviews that may not go as planned (thanks mint juleps), feature packages on all aspects of horse racing/the Derby weekend, receiving and tossing to and from your segment, camera angles, going to break, etc., etc. One reporter who has caught my eye in a good way is Jenna Wolfe. I really enjoyed her piece on horse breeding, even though fellow Ohio University alum and GIF master Timothy Burke (@bubbaprog) gave her grief for her reaction to the birth of 2010 Kentucky Derby champion Smart Saver’s foal. It seemed like her package on the personalities of horses was reaching, but she did what she could with it. I understand you can’t watch the horse every second of every day and hope you catch it doing something comical.

Bob Costas did a good job of talking about the troubles that horse racing is going through right now because of drug issues and the lack of a governing body to pass down unifying rules about purses and drugs. With all of the other distractions in society, horse racing is nowhere near it’s peak popularity, but I’m happy to see that the Triple Crown still piques people’s interest. I hope this sport doesn’t die out from scandal and horses being put down at the tracks. I don’t think that will happen any time soon.

Something cool I found on the official Derby website, a 3D look that lets you ride the winner of the Kentucky Derby. The graphics are a little hokey, but hearing the call from last year gave me goosebumps!