Remember the other day, when Ryne Stanek pitched to 5 batters with a 7-4 lead, allowing 5 runs to score while giving up three home runs in that span of those five batters? Some called it a train wreck. Others referenced a dumpster fire (hence the lead in picture, which is NOT a parody of the Cardinal bullpen in the background). Many saw it as a tough, demoralizing loss and went looking for answers and people to blame, in what we call “accountability” in today’s speech patterns of choosing words that no
one can really object to, even if they aren’t used the way they are meant to be used.
So, Stanek was sent out there in the eighth. Really? A fireballer prone to a high number of walks and Oli waits until two runners are on to bring him in? I get it, though. The options were limited, and the outcome unfortunate.
Sometimes, though, instead of looking for “accountability” (really meaning we want someone to blame and then punish, but we can’t say THAT!), I got to thinking that even with the best laid plans (and I by no means intend to imply that using Stanek there was the best laid plan), sometimes things just go W.R.O.N.g. They just do.
All that got me in a story telling mood. Who knows why? Strap in!
Speaking of things going wrong, not so long ago (3 weeks if you need details), I and a young FireFighter were touring our Fire District. A call was dispatched to us as a cross-over vehicle accident on I-5, with up to five vehicles involved. Don’t know if you’ve ever seen a highway speed cross-over accident, but in the business we call them “grinders”. It’s a different kind of grinder than Nootbaar uses when he gets a double, but same word. Totally different meaning. Kind of like “accountability”. Cross over accidents along I-5 are rare since the Oregon Department of Transportation put cable barriers between the north and southbound lanes. Turns out, they don’t hold back beer trucks very well (see below). Maybe if it was lite beer, but this was premium lager. But, still, those cables are a rare case of our tax dollars being well spent.
Since we were already out and about, we were the first unit on scene. Here is the mess we rolled up to. This truck was originally travelling in the southbound lanes but is shown where it came to rest in the northbound lanes. If you zoom in, you can see the truck tangled in the cable wires. When we first got there, those cables were a taut as could possibly be, as they stretched but didn’t break. They were so tight they were humming like a guitar string. It was the weirdest sound, like a beehive just broke into.
We though we had a truck driver to rescue from the cab….
Then a few feet away, we discovered we had a driver in a car (yes, that was a car) who was somewhat miraculously still alive to rescue. This is what a car looks like when it is travelling northbound at about 70 mph and meets a beer truck that is not. The Incident Commander was worried about those cables giving way and decapitating everyone. Enough so that he parked a million-dollar engine in between that car and the cables for protection. Thankfully, ODOT has a mechanism to release tension without killing anyone. Whew!
I was able to break the rear passenger window with a window punch (they come in handy), open the door and made contact with the driver. Head injuries where the roof and front post came down on top of her and some tough leg injuries where the dashboard and engine were driven into her legs. If you remember e = mc^2 from physics, do the math on 100 mph closure and 120,000 pounds of metal colliding. We never did find the front left wheel, you will notice in the pic that there isn’t as much as an inch of skid marks, so she hadn’t hit the brakes when the collision occurred. Jolting, for sure.
In the background (upper right) you can see the extrication tools (literally, the Jaws of Life) the crew that followed us in used to open up that car and get her out while young firefighter and I provided patient care. Our crew got that car open and her out of it in ten minutes. They teach us that trauma patients have a golden hour, so time is crucial. Not shown in the picture is a LifeFlight helicopter that landed on the freeway, scooped her up and took her to the nearby (6 miles away) trauma center. She lived. She has a very long rehab path she will travel. I was so focused on the patient in the car I couldn’t for the life of me tell you about the truck driver. I’m pretty sure he survived, too.
I try not to get too excited about these blown games and view them in the perspective that sometimes things just go wrong, and it feels like a train wreck, but my mind reminds me of what a train wreck really looks like and the lasting effects it has on those involved. In baseball, they come right back out and play again the next day (and they won!). It is a wonderful game and underscores our human plight of struggle and renewal.
And sometimes things go right
This morning (or really, really last last night), a young baby girl entered this world, being born on the asphalt pavement that is our fire station parking lot. Apparently, a young couple waited a bit too long to leave for the hospital after mom’s water broke but had the good fortune to be passing our station when baby crowned. I had the honor of being present and assisting first one (mom) and then a second (baby girl) patient. Mom, dad and child finished their journey to the hospital after the medics arrived and the placenta delivered and are all doing fine. Our young firefighter/EMTs handled themselves exceptionally well in their first ever exposure to childbirth, although they had little idea what to do with the 6-pound ball of joy that rolled out. I got that job, happily so.
There are days when luck finds you. This was one. Similar to when guys get their shot at the majors, it can be said that luck is simply a function where preparation and opportunity intersect.
Also, today, my five year-old grandson played his first Tee-ball game and called me to share that baseball is his favorite game. I think I primed that pump when I took him to a Rockies’ game last year and bought him his first bat, which I believe he still sleeps with. The two of us will return to Coors Field on Labor Day weekend to renew our joy with the game we love, in spite of the burdens it imparts.
The end.
