PCL Champions!
It was fun. Sorry, no time for a full write-up – we’ve got a bus to catch, to Oklahoma City for the Triple-A National Championship Game on Tuesday, at 5:05, against the International League champion Columbus Clippers.
After the game, two Tacoma players were told to go to the majors instead of Oklahoma City. I’ll wait and let the Mariners announce who they are – but I can tell you that one of them celebrated by running shirtless around the concourse at an empty AutoZone Park after hearing the news. Tacoma will add perennial West Tennessee first baseman Johan Limonta to the roster for Tuesday’s game.
We were up pretty late afterwards. Rainiers owners Kirby and Nick did something that they are really good at: they hosted a team party a few blocks from the ballpark, down on Beale Street, and it went deep into the morning.
Here are the stories:
- Game story from The News Tribune. Not in the story: Mike Wilson was named series MVP. PCL President Branch Rickey gave a speech to the team and presented the trophy in the locker room, and he gave Wilson his individual award.*
- Here’s another story, from Minor League Baseball’s website.
- The sad version of the game story – from the Memphis Commercial-Appeal.
- The Mariners honored Jose Castro, Michael Pineda, and class-A first baseman Rich Poythress.
Congratulations to the 2010 Tacoma Rainiers. I’ll type-up my thoughts on this season at some point over the next two days – once it all sinks in Postponed until later this week.
Now, it’s time for a minor league institution: a long, long bus ride.
* Branch is a veteran of these presentations – he stayed remarkably dry.
Booth, Justice and the American Pastime 
Not only are the Rainiers champions, it was an amazing game to listen to in its own right. Thank you and your crew for that.
Thanks!
Thanks for this blog, too – it’s been really great to follow the Rainiers this year, and a lot of that was reading your thoughts after the games. Thanks for a great year, Mike!
Thanks Michael
Mike, is the championship game on September 21st against Columbus being televised — and if so, when and on what channel?
Thank you so mic for all your efforts — my son and I really love listening to you — that is, when we’re not at Cheney.
It’s televised on Versus. I’ll have more on the broadcast on this blog before the game.
And, hey, no pressure or anything, but I hope you do this again next year! (Keep up the blog, I mean, not win the PCL. Although having both again would be nice, too!)
More encouragement to do the blog again next year. I never posted, but I did check it and read it every day. With the Mariners and Brewers both having bad years, I even got my family in Milwaukee following the Rainiers and reading your blog the past month or so. It’s been alot of fun. Thank you.