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Patriot Games Archives

December 25, 2004
PATRIOT GAMES: Not Just A Fantasy

Eighth in a series of reflections on sports by "Andy Tollhaus," an Army officer currently serving in Iraq.

Thursday, December 23, 2004
FOB Speicher, Iraq

The Red Sox have been World Champions of the World for almost two months. I just keep visualizing Pedro Martinez and Curt Schilling reenacting that scene from the end of Top Gun. You know… the one where Maverick and Ice Man make up and say, “You can be my wingman anytime!” Only this time, they’re on a baseball diamond in St. Louis instead of on an aircraft carrier in the middle of the Indian Ocean. “Petey, you’re still dangerous, but you can be my Ace anytime!” “BS, Curt! You can be mine!”

Ah… if it were only that simple. As it turns out, Pedro would never offer to be the number two starter…anywhere. Oh well… all that really matters is the first sentence I wrote.

Since October, I’ve spent a lot of time realizing that other sports actually do exist. There have been plenty of other sports to follow, sometimes whether you like it or not. Mike Ferlazzo, the satin jacket hater from Long Island, jokingly got upset with himself for knowing that Ty Willingham had been fired. He prides himself in not following sports, but around here, you really can’t help it. Since sports are almost always on TV in the Dining Facility, people who never cared about basketball now know that Ron Artest is producing an R&B album and Peyton Manning has a little brother playing in New York.

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Posted by Baseball Crank at 12:37 AM | Patriot Games | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
November 1, 2004
PATRIOT GAMES: Globe Radio

Our Iraq-based Red Sox correspondent, "Andy Tollhaus" just emailed to let me know he'll be on the radio - I didn't get what station but it's the Boston Globe's radio show - with Mike Barnicle, Dan Shaughnessy and Charlie Sennott at 10:50 a.m. EST this morning.

UPDATE: 96.9 FM Boston, maybe? That's Barnicle's show.

Posted by Baseball Crank at 10:15 AM | Patriot Games | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
October 30, 2004
PATRIOT GAMES: Wait until THIS YEAR!!!

Seventh in a series of reflections on sports by "Andy Tollhaus," an Army officer currently serving in Iraq.

Thursday, October 28, 2004
FOB Speicher, Iraq

If you’re a New England farmer reading this, I have a request for you. Please go outside and check to see if your cows are still producing milk. Have you checked since Thursday morning? Check again. Just to be sure.

ESPN Radio is reporting today that the earth does seem to still be spinning on its axis. So we’ve got that going for us, which is nice.

I read an article a few years ago (maybe 1998 or 1999) with a preseason prediction that the Red Sox would win the World Series. The article opened with several “Armageddon-is-upon-us” scenarios, including all dairy cows in New England ceasing to produce milk. I remember thinking that there was actually a possibility that this one might come true, but, of course, we’d never know.

I didn’t use any milk, but I did do some toasting last night, with my St. Pauli’s (Non-Alcoholic) beer. It was neither the “near-beer” nor the sportsbar like appearance of “Club Boston” that made me feel as if I could be watching the game in a bar near Quincy Market. I could hear about thirty Boston accents talking about their SOX in the WORLD SERIES! Those accents all came from a group of soldiers from the 323rd Maintenance Company, an Army Reserve unit out of Devens, MA.

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October 23, 2004
PATRIOT GAMES: Theeeeeeeeeee…. RED SOX WIN!

Sixth in a series of reflections on sports by "Andy Tollhaus," an Army officer currently serving in Iraq.

Friday, October 22, 2004
FOB Speicher, Iraq

It’s stuck in my head like a song from one of those boy bands that my Yankees fan-brother-in-law Chris loves so much. But I’ve come to embrace it, and I’m actually starting to enjoy it. Sometimes I get creative and switch things up, “Theeeee Red Sox Win!” Usually, though, I just stick to, “Theeeee Yankees Win!” Then I laugh like a little girl. It’s as if a demon has been exorcized, and now I realize that the demon was really just Casper, the Friendly Ghost. The Yankees are now cute to me. Hearing that call from now on will still make me think of Tim Wakefield on the mound at Yankee Stadium at the end of Game 7. But now that vision is from the end of Game 7, this year, when he went out to that mound as a conqueror, looked around at the half-empty stadium and exorcized some of those demons which surely weren’t cute or friendly.

For the past few days, I’ve been approached by a lot of different people, wanting to discuss either the greatest comeback or the greatest choke. It’s kind of funny, too, because a lot of them are congratulating me, as if it were me, not Alan Embree who retired Sheffield for that sweet final out. I think it’s kind of like being a proud father at your child’s wedding. You’re not the one getting married, but you sure invested a lot over the years getting to this point, and you have every right to enjoy the moment. I guess in that case, you just smile and say, “Thanks, we sure are proud.” That’s the way I feel. I am one proud Papi!

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October 20, 2004
PATRIOT GAMES: View of the Sox-Yanks War From Iraq

Fifth in a series of reflections on sports by "Andy Tollhaus," an Army officer currently serving in Iraq.

October 20, 2004, 3:45 AM
FOB Danger
Tikrit, Iraq

I just woke up for Round 14 of the Red Sox-Yankees title fight. I turned on the
TV to find a very comforting image: a close up of Curt Schilling peering in over
his glove with the score across the top showing 0-0 in the 2nd. With all the emotions just conjured up, it’s hard to remind yourself that the Sox are actually trailing in the series two games to three.

It’s been a long, painful, tiring ride, just to get to this point. Not only have the games started at the ludicrous hour of 3 AM here in the Fertile Crescent, but for a while it looked as if the Yankees were just going to steamroll my beloved Sox. This series has been highly anticipated for a year, now. For the first couple of days, though, it seemed as if it was all hype.

The Division Series against the Angels was easy enough -- both for the Red Sox and for me. It started with an early, 11 PM start time and an easy Game 1 win for the good guys. I asked the company I fly with to put me on the late night/early morning schedule, so I’d be able to watch the games when I’m not flying. It backfired for me during Pedro’s 5 AM start in Game 2, though, as I drew a mission with a 6 AM takeoff time. The game was on TV during our mission planning, but it was only the 2nd or 3rd inning when we walked out to the aircraft. Of course at the same time, the Twins had taken a lead in the top half of the 12th in a classic Yankees game. As I took off for the mission I thought that the Yankees were down two games to none with their backs against a wall. The Twins’ loss didn’t really matter all that much, though, since it really was inevitable that we’d have a classic rematch between the two bitter rivals. The Yankees did their usual comeback routine with very little attention from me. In fact, I was having a hard enough time watching the Sox. After missing Game 2 for a mission, David Ortiz hit his walk-off homerun in Game 3 against the Angels while I was walking back from the bathroom. Feeling that this one was in the bag, I took my toothbrush with me to the bathroom during the pitching change so I could go right to bed when the Sox won it. Ortiz wasted no time proving me right, hitting Francisco Rodriguez’s first pitch out of the park.

The sweep gave the Sox a couple of days to get their pitching rotation in order and me a couple of days to make sure I had my sleep schedule down. Still on “deep nights,” as we call it, I’d been going to bed around 8 AM and waking up around 4 or 5 in the evening. I’d maintained this schedule for about a week by the time Game 1 rolled around, so I was primed and ready to roll.

Looking back at what could become one of the greatest series of all time, I realize that I need to record my own personal view of this bit of baseball history. As I sit here and watch Game 6, I’ll create a daily log of personal events during this series. I’ve got to warn you, though, this reflection may be as long and as rambling as the series itself.

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Posted by Baseball Crank at 10:00 AM | Baseball 2004 • | Patriot Games | Comments (12) | TrackBack (0)
October 7, 2004
PATRIOT GAMES: Getting (Almost) Away From It All

Fourth in a series of reflections by "Andy Tollhaus," an Army officer currently serving in Iraq.

July 20, 2004
Delta Flight # 5986,
38,000 feet above the Atlantic,
A few hundred miles west of Tullamore, Ireland

Taking a break from war is an idea that has been around for thousands of years. Along with warfare, this concept has evolved with society and technology. Back in the day, the Romans would allow their armies to rape and pillage captured enemy cities as a way to blow off some steam. In the latter stages of World War II, soldiers in units relieved from the front lines were often allowed passes to Paris. During the Vietnam conflict, a certain amount of time in country would pay dividends with a rest and recuperation trip to places ranging from Saigon to Australia to Hawaii. The R&R program here in Iraq is as different from those R&R programs as this war is different from those past wars.

The program here affords soldiers the opportunity to take 15 days of leave from the war that they’ve been surrounded by for the past several months. It’s a way to relax, recuperate and recharge the batteries. It’s an awesome experience to get to go, but it certainly doesn’t mark the end of the war, not even for that one individual.

I was lucky enough to get my break from Iraq from the 5th to the 19th of July. My wife was able to join me and we decided to split our time between New Orleans and Key West. Sarah joining me for the 15 days was above and beyond any other benefit that two of America’s most unique and enjoyable cities could offer. Coming in the middle of summer, we were in that wonderful period on the sports calendar where baseball is the focus. Sure, the football previews are starting to hit newsstands, but it’s really just about baseball. There are about 15 Major League games a day to watch or read about. The pennant races are heating up and the trade deadline is fast approaching. Sarah and I attended a AAA New Orleans Zephyrs game, where I taught her the art of keeping score. At the game a young Louisiana National Guard soldier was honored for her service in Iraq and allowed to throw out the first pitch. On our way to the Keys, we stopped at a Marlins-Mets game and crossed stadium number 21 off of my list. (Of course, I’ll have to go back to all but the four stadiums that my wife and I visited together, but those are the sacrifices that one makes for love.)

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Posted by Baseball Crank at 12:15 PM | Patriot Games | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)
October 5, 2004
PATRIOT GAMES: Gunfighter Day

Third in a continuing series by our Iraq correspondent, blogging under the pseudonym Andy Tollhaus.

May 13, 2004
Camp Speicher, Iraq

What Gunfighter Day lacked in facilities, it made up for with spirit. Gunfighter Day was an event that we planned to take a break and let our c