FanHouse Earl Weaver

Our MLB editor provides weekly dispatches from major league games in Notes From the Clubhouse.

Last week, the Orioles celebrated the 25th anniversary of their 1983 World Series title. That was the last time the once-proud franchise won a championship, in case you were wondering, and it's been a decade since they were relevant.

Eight days later GM Andy MacPhail did nothing at the trade deadline despite his club's grim chances in 2008. Closer George Sherrill is still an Oriole. So is second baseman Brian Roberts, first baseman Aubrey Huff, outfielder Jay Payton and starting pitcher Daniel Cabrera.

To an outsider it might look like the latest gaffe from a front office that has been as hapless as they come since the days of the Clinton administration. But spend a few days with the team at Camden Yards and you get an entirely different vibe.

MacPhail has overhauled the organization in such a way that there's very real hope for the very near future. In perfect concert, manager Dave Trembley has changed the clubhouse culture, stressing things like accountability, respect and appreciation. It's enough to make you see the light at the end of the tunnel, if nothing else.

So the White Sox have lost their last three games, and are in danger of losing their spot on top of the AL Central if they lose to the Minnesota Twins tonight. You know what that means don't you? Yep, it's time for another Ozzie Guillen rant complaining about something.

This time Ozzie is getting tired of hearing about Paul Konerko, and to respond he pulled the "your critics" and "don't understand" and "diapers" cards out of his Rant Hat (patent pending), and here's what we ended up with.

"I don't understand the people out there," Guillen said Tuesday night. "I don't get it. I sit with [general manager] Kenny Williams and we try to do stuff, and we get pounded like we don't try or don't care or do good for the fans or for us.

"And I don't get it. I trust my players. I think they're good talent and will play hard for us.

"And hopefully the result will be the right one. Because if we win this thing, Billy Martin, Earl Weaver, all those guys will be in diapers with what I'm going to say, because I'm going to rip a lot of people apart if we win this year, because enough is enough. What are we going to do to satisfy people?"

Earl Weaver is a classic, right? But that doesn't mean that he's also not, you know, still alive. I love Tony Kornheiser's bemused expression at Mike Wilbon's gaffe: "I think he's with us." And as Awful Announcing points out, Weaver is only 77 years old, not 88. AA said that Wilbon laughed off the mistake when informed after the show, but I'm guessing Weaver probably had a completely different reaction (that a few dozen f-bombs) were he watching from home.
Sorry, No Photos Previously on FanHouse:
ESPN Analysts Compare Joe Alexander to Other White Guys, Larry Bird and Jerry West

As part of something ESPN is calling "Cheatwave 07" -- which likely falls somewhere between "Who's Now" and Panda Watch! -- Jerry Crasnick penned this column about the way cheating, or gamesmanship, or whatever you'd like to call it, has mellowed over the years.

But the real gem comes in the form of Earl Weaver (doesn't it always?), when Weaver discusses just how dismayed he was that Alex Rodriguez has taken a skewering, and a shower of high-and-tight fastballs, for his call of "Ha!" against the Blue Jays this year:

Rodriguez might be heartened to know that one old-time ball guy is squarely in his corner. Hall of Famer Earl Weaver, who still follows the game closely from his home in Florida, read the newspaper accounts and was astonished at the bashing Rodriguez took for his actions.

When Weaver was managing in Baltimore, he routinely told his third-base coach to yell "Cut it off!" to confuse opposing fielders when an Orioles baserunner was trying to score. He viewed Rodriguez's ploy in the same light.

"When he hollered at the infielders and they got mad, I don't understand [the criticism]," said Weaver, 76. "I don't care what he yelled; he's helping his team win when he does those kinds of things. That's what I call a ballplayer."

Wooooo, hoo! That's a ballplayer, boy! This ethics lesson brought to you by the man responsible for most consecutive swears ever strung together. Awesome. (Loud swears. Beware.)

On Monday, we watched a video that showed exactly what an umpire should never be caught saying. Today, we're looking at the other side of the coin: watching a manager dig himself into a hole. Instead of picking any number of Lou Piniella tantrums, we're turning back the clock to when Earl Weaver was still managing the Orioles.

Of course, I'd feel horrible if watching this video got you fired, so here's a quite necessary disclaimer: the following video contains a lot -- and I mean a lot -- of f-bombs and other obscenities. Enjoy:

Keeping track of all of these suspensions is getting to be hard work this day. Let's see if I have this right. Lou Piniella got four games for his huge hissy fit in which he maybe kind of touched an umpire. Matt Capps? Awaiting a ruling after being suspended four games for hitting Prince Fielder last month and appealing said suspension. Surely, then, Lance Berkman must have a four gamer waiting for him after being ejected last week and throwing his equipment bag on to the field afterwards, then coming back onto the field during a 9th inning brawl (returning to the field after an ejection is a big no-no). Oh, wait, no, Berkman only gets two games. And of course, he's appealing.

It's really hard to think that they do anything but pick numbers out of hats when it comes to picking suspension lengths. You could make a pretty good case that what Piniella and Capps did wasn't as bad as Berkman's tantrum and subsequent return to the field, but Berkman's suspension is only half as long. Usually appeals see the suspensions knocked down at least a little bit, in which case Berkman might only serve one game. Then again, Bobby Valentine got two games when he came back to the dugout in disguise a few years back, maybe that's the standard penalty for coming back onto the field after being ejected. Honestly, I don't really know.

Maybe the easiest way to deal with this is to, you know, stop suspending every single person who sneezes on a baseball field. It's getting a little ridiculous at this point. Somewhere Earl Weaver is thanking his lucky stars he got out of the game when he did. Not that it would matter, he'd spend most of the season suspended anyways.

Bobby Cox, in his march towards history, is now a mere one ejection away from tying John McGraw's all time record after getting tossed by Ron Kulpa while arguing a fair/foul call.

When I think of managers who constantly and famously berate umpires such as Earl Weaver and Billy Martin, I can't imagine that umpires always thought highly of them. But blue certainly has a deep respect for Cox (either that or they're just being polite for the media):

"I've never had a problem with Bobby," Kulpa said. "This is my ninth year and this is the first time that I've ever ejected him. I don't think any umpire is out there looking to get Bobby. Bobby respects us and we have a lot of respect for him."

So that puts Cox one behind John McGraw, and 127 ahead of John Smoltz, who earned his third career thumb just minutes after Cox's. Smoltz accused Kulpa of having some rabbit ears.

"I didn't say anything that warranted getting thrown out, not one bit," Smoltz said. "I told him he missed the call, and the next thing you know, I'm getting thrown out. It's pretty weak. But maybe he's having a bad day."

An umpire having a bad day? Come on, Smoltzie, that never happens.

Smoltz has to learn to get his money's worth on these ejections like his manager. Cox knows what he's doing in that regard, and that's why he finds himself on the cusp of history. And for whoever starts that pool to try to predict who the umpire who ejects Cox to tie the record, give me Angel Hernandez. Just a guess.

Previously on The Fanhouse:
Bobby Cox Chases History