Hanley Ramirez hits his first home run as a Dodger. His 15th of the season. Yippee! In the tenth, Dodgers took a 5-3 lead with that little insurance policy.
A girlfriend of mine heard me rambling (again) about Kirk Gibson's walk-off home run (again) in 1988. Game one, World Series, A's v. Dodgers, Dennis Eckersley... many of you know the story. For those who don't, Google it. Some of the links for the video I find don't work.
But I digress.
My friend blankly reviewed my renewed enthusiasm. "I don't know what a walk off home run is," she told me.
I asked her to remind me why we are friends.
Kidding.
A walk off home run is the winning home run at the bottom of the ninth or later. It's what wins the game in a tie situation OR if your team is losing and the runs from that home run win it for you at the last possible second. The phrase was coined after Eckersley gave up that winning home run to Kirk Gibson (who has a bobblehead night coming up soon!) in 1988.
I apologize. It didn't occur to me that not all of you would know certain things. Hence, the link above. Feel free to email me questions as well. The point is to get y'all into this and have some fun.
Back to tonight's game. While it can't be a walk off home run if it's before the bottom of the final inning, (meaning a visiting team isn't gonna hit one by definition) a home run is a home run and it's always exciting.
After more than 38 scoreless innings at AT&T Park, Hairston drives one in. Then Mark Ellis drives in Hairston. Dodgers lead 3-2.
But the fun part for me was when Hanley Ramirez hit his first home run in a Dodger uniform. Lucky #13. See? CHEMISTRY. Told you.
Zsa Zsa Zsu. Ramirez is in the HOUSE!
Giants tie it up in the 8th, but all is well. As I was getting texts from a Giants fan friend of mine, (who can now just sit there and think about what he's done), I was recalling my entry from the other day about instinct.
Remember I said the Dodgers just need to come home to California and they will win? I said it was an instinct.
And what have we learned? Kim was right. No, they were not at Dodger Stadium, and it is still an away game. But Cali is Cali. And there would be Dodger fans in San Fran to be sure. But there's no place like home- even if it is the other end of the state.
My point is this Ladies: we simply perform better, we can jerk one out of the park (aka hit a home run) when we feel safe and loved. We are at our best when we are safe and loved. And that includes loving ourselves. "To thine own self be true." (That famous guy... keeps popping in and out of my head...)
Whether we are loving on ourselves and loving the feel of a new dress or walking with a swagger in new heels or we just got a raise or if that amazing guy finally told you how stunning you look (but you already knew that when you looked in the mirror)...nothing beats that "at home" feeling. It's being comfortable in your own skin, too. Home is where the heart is. And the heart's instinct is never wrong. Everyone is different, but our hearts know what they know. It's embedded from when we are little- we are often a product of our environment. We all want to be loved and accepted. Going from time zone to time zone with little rest is hard on any team. But when we have a chance to catch up with ourselves and what is going on around us, we wake up. And when we wake up and feel the love and support from friends, FANS and teammates, we shine like no other. And there is no better feeling.
And very few things compare to beating the Giants. Especially at AT&T Park.
Game time tomorrow 1:05 p.m. PDT. See you after the game. Go BLUE!
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