Reaching back into the cobwebs of my mind, 1977 was the year I first remember being a baseball fan, and specifically a Texas Rangers fan. Dock Ellis, who died Friday at age 63, was part of that.

It was during the ownership of Fort Worth’s Brad Corbett. That year was one of the best seasons in team history, but not one without turmoil. The Rangers plowed through four managers — Frank Lucchesi, Eddie Stanky, Connie Ryan and Billy Hunter — yet still ended up in second place with a 94-78 record, eight games behind the Kansas City Royals.
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No, not THAT ballpark, THIS one.

Although I haven’t been to a Rangers game in a couple of years, I do remember that there was a woefully inadequate selection of beers, particularly LOCAL beers.

Apparently that situation has been remedied — I just got word from friend of W&C Jamie Brunner that the Rangers have decided finally to acknowledge that they are a participant in the local community and are now carrying local (to Texas, at least) beers.

Breweries featured include our own Rahr & Sons, Houston’s Saint Arnold, and the old standby, Shiner. The stand (according to reports) is outside section 137.

It’s about time! Minute Maid Park/The Astros have been doing this for a couple of years now, even featuring Saint Arnold a few times for special events. It’s nice to see The Rangers take even this small step.

Bring a gas receipt to the Cats ticket office any time today and get two free tickets to tonight’s Cats game against Pensacola!

Ride your bike up there and save some hard-earned money!

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If you’re not going to Wendy Davis’ birthday party tonight, I highly encourage all of you to join me tonight at La Grave Field to watch the Cats take on the Sioux Falls Canaries on Opening Day.

The game starts at 7:05, and there will be fireworks after the game.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: the Cats are the best value in family entertainment in the city, and possibly the entire Metroplex. Tickets start at $4, and the most expensive seats in the house are only $12. You can’t even park at Whatever-the-hell-it’s-called-now Park in Arlington that cheaply, I don’t think. I know $4 won’t even buy a beer there. (Of course it won’t at La Grave, either, but it’s still cheaper.)

Seriously — drag the clan out on a school night for the festivities, you won’t be disappointed.

Ever imagine what it looks like from the cockpit of a passenger jet landing and taking off from DFW? The Airliner blog has the videos, Captain.

No guarantees this is exactly legal or even moral, but this here blog has links to bootleg recordings of Jimi Hendrix at the Memorial Auditorium in Dallas on Feb 16, 1968 and the Will Rogers Auditorium here in Fort Worth on Feb 17, 1968. Tom Huckabee talked at length about Hendrix at Will Rogers in our comments a few months back. I wonder if there was ‘l’amore’ in the bushes that night?

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You’ll probably figure out pretty quickly next spring that I’m a big baseball fan.  I particularly LOVE going to watch the (3 years in a row) American Association Champion Fort Worth Cats up at LaGrave Field.

Now I have a reason to pay attention to the World Series, too!  Did you know that Brad Hawpe, the Rockies’ right fielder, is from good old Fort Worth?  I didn’t know either, but now I’m glad I do!

(I’m still rooting for the BoSox, but I’ll be happy for Brad if the Rockies win in their first appearance in the World Series.)