BS Plaza

Every one has had them. Teachers who convince you that they’re in the business because they hate children and have dedicated their lives to making our lives miserable. (Of course, this is not about the many wonderful teachers over the years who believed in me even when I didn’t believe in myself, not to mention the many dear friends of mine who dedicate their lives to one of the noblest of professions.) In first grade we had a substitute teacher one day and she gave us a very curious assignment; each of us had to write a letter to her son, telling him how great he was, how much we wanted to meet him and any and all other compliments we could come up with. Throughout the assignment many of us we forced to erase what we had written and write exactly what the teacher told us to.

I think about that day every once in a while. Was her son bedridden? Was he stricken with a serious illness? Did he recently have a devastating experience?” She never told us and I’ll never know but if he did, I now look back and think that maybe something I wrote may have helped brighten his day. If that was/is the case, I am all for it. But today, over thirty years later I cringe at the thought of being forced to write what the teacher told us to write; to pay tribute to this boy using someone else’s words; to go along with something because of one person in charge regardless of what we thought about it.

Since that day, I had never had a similar experience.

Until now…

Padres fans have been forced to honor someone who in effect has had no bearing on their existence, no lasting impact and we should not have to show the type of gratitude and lasting tribute as we are with BS Plaza. Rather than whine about how the 1994 MLB Strike was overseen by BS, instead of ranting about how BS was all for contracting franchises in Montreal and Minnesota (The latter of which was curiously close to BS’s market; a matter which brought him racketeering charges that were settled out of court…) and  before I go on a venomous tangent for the ages regarding BS’s flat-out refusal to acknowledge the existence of Tony Gwynn during an All-Star Game less than a month after he was called home to the Big Lineup in the Sky, I give you my top ten suggestions of who would be a much better fit for our new “Hall of Fame” Plaza.

 

      1.      Jack Murphy

Some of us may be “too young to remember” (I am, but fortunately I am old enough to read) but it was Jack Murphy who first brought the Padres to Major League baseball. If it were not for him, we would still be a Triple-A team. The name itself still holds weight in the hearts of fans who still refer to our former home as “The Murph” and nothing else, yours truly included.

 

2.      John Moores

Yeah, I know the Natives are a little restless over Mr. Moores skipping town with 200 million dollars in cable rights money. But hey, that’s business. He didn’t do anything illegal. Furthermore, John Moores was a 90’s version of Ray Kroc. John doesn’t buy the team, we don’t have a 1996 or 1998. Just as important, John hired the next guy on the list.

 

      3.      Larry Lucchino

Need I even explain this one? Without Larry, there is no Petco Park. And while some of you may think this is silly or maybe even creepy, since day one every time I’ve been to the Ballpark for San Diego, I’ve stopped at least once and quietly whispered “Thank you, Larry.”

 

      4.      Tom Werner

Yeah, I know what you’re thinking. But hear me out. Mr. Werner did oversee the fire sale, but after the fire sale he did sell the team to John Moores. So while his actions may not warrant his name being immortalized in our ballpark, his selling the team did indeed save Padres Baseball in San Diego.

 

      5.      Dave Winfield

He was after all, the first player to enter the Hall of Fame as a Padre and as far as I see it, the popular opinion that his decision to enter the HOF as a Padre rather than Yankee stems from his hatred for the Yankee organization rather than his love of the Padres is just that, an opinion. Either way, naming the Padres Hall of Fame after the first official Padres Hall of Famer makes a lot of sense.

 

      6.      Bruce Bochy

Winningest manager in Padres history and a good bet to make the MLB Hall of Fame (Albeit for his successes with the giants), I don’t think there’s a Padre fan out there who would disagree with naming our HOF after The Skipper.

 

      7.      Bob Breitbard

Yes, I know he already has a local Hall of Fame named after him. But it would provide a tie with another of our crown jewels, Balboa Park and would be beneficial to both.

 

       8.      Shamu

No, it doesn’t make much sense. But at least Shamu has a San Diego connection. His likeness is plastered on nearly every generic “San Diego” trinket I’ve ever seen. And since PETA is already pissed off at us for naming our Ballpark after a company that sells dog food, I wouldn’t mind pissing them off a little more.

 

9.      Angus Young

If you don’t know why this would be a more suitable selection, you’re reading the wrong blog and probably listening to the wrong music. Log off, go to iTunes and get turned on to real music, by real musicians.

 

      10.    Jerry Coleman
             
  Yes, the press area at Petco Park is named after the Colonel. And long before he became a    Padres treasure, he was United States Marine; having gone to boot camp just a few miles away at MCRD San Diego. Instead of the Hall of Fame Plaza, we should push to have the left field tribute to MLB players who have also served in the armed forces dating back to the Civil War.

 

Honorable Mentions

 

 

1.      Keith Olberman

He wasn’t always the most liked sports media personality around, but that has changed drastically in 2014 in San Diego. With his heartfelt tributes to Jerry Coleman and Tony Gwynn earlier this year the man has paid much due respect and reverence to our fair team; much more than most…

 

            2.      Luigi

       Except for when he’s an Angels fan or a Red Sox fan, he’s a Padres fan. More than I can say for the name that’s been chosen.

 Notice how I’ve mentioned only two former players? That is because it goes without saying. Any player who has ever donned the brown-gold-blue-orange-sand-camouflage has had and will always have more reason to be honored than BS. I’ve thought much of what has transpired over the past few days, reading articles, comments, listening to interviews and having conversations on the subject. And while very few people have expressed a ‘whatever’ attitude about it, I have found zero people who are for the naming.

 I have two theories regarding the seeming head-where-the-sun-doesn’t-shine decisions made to honor someone at Petco Park who

 One: I spent a summer working in Del Mar, getting something of an insider’s view of the annual meet at the Del Mar Racetrack (here I go, pissing off PETA again!). Throughout the race season, the place where ‘the Surf meets the Turf’ is the hottest ticket in town. Maybe, just maybe the Padres are trying to recreate the smell one might catch coming from the stables when the wind is just right…

 Two: In a revolutionary cost-cutting measure, the Padres are trying to manufacture their own fertilizer; freeing up funs to enable them to hire a better think tank.

 No, those two theories don’t make a whole lot of sense. And neither does naming BS Plaza after someone who has less to do with Padres baseball history than, say, Moe the Bartender from The Simpsons…