Graf's Back
By Karlsie
The other night was a happy new flash: the Sox and Graff agreed to a one-year deal.
I like Graff. His first day in Boston, he stood at the corner of the dugout casually signing autographs while talking to news crews. I was there that day, wearing one of my son's caps, and he signed the cap next to Jim Lonborg's autograph. Later, in canvas alley, Curt Schilling signed and, while my rather sardonic 12 year old who claims to hate the Red Sox but loves Curt Schilling, muttered "whatever" when I handed it to him - he slept with his cap on that night.
Graff is the type of player that I love on the team: you know; that utility guy that isn't a superstar but plugs a lot of holes and can get the job done. He's also a nice guy, which is why it's unfortunate he's on the Cora/Pedroia bubble the way he is. It can't be easy for a guy like him to be sitting there either. He knows he's going to have earn his job at spring training and, if he's on the roster, is prime material for a trade.
Perhaps part of what I like about Graff is he reminds me of one of my favorite players: Nick Esasky, the baseball Ghod. Yes, long before Stephen King dubbed Kevin Youkilis the Greek god of walks, Fenway's infield was blessed by Nick Esasky for one wonderful season. Of course Esasky was on a bubble for years because Pete Rose misplayed him in Cincinnati (hey, Rose had records to break and bets to win) until he sent him to Boston in a "beat it kid, you bother me" move. And what a move it was. The shining star of the '89 Sox made my year only to go home to Atlanta, contract Lyme disease and fade into another summer memory. *sigh*
Graff is that kind of player for me. He's a good, solid and reliable. He may not have Damon's long hair or Papi's muscles, but he has a reassuring presence� a sort of maturity that people like me tend to gravitate towards.
I know that one thing that truly made me feel a connection to him was when his son was at Children's in Boston having a growth on his neck removed and biopsied 10 days after arriving in Boston. I know the waiting room he and his wife sat in too well as I have written about the agony of the slow clock in there while waiting for biopsy results. I know the look, feel, smell and ambience of that room all too well. I know the fear and sadness a parent feels while sitting there waiting as that clock slowly ticks the seconds as loud as your heart beats while you pray that everything's going to be OK. (To this day, I can't listen to Bob Marley's "No Woman, No Cry" without smelling that waiting room because one of the things that kept running through my head was his voice singing "everything's gonna be all right, everything's gonna be all right.")
Like Graff, I received good news after that long, arduous wait. But that connection was made and it inspired me to pursue a project I conceived in that waiting room 10 years ago� just when he was starting his career in Atlanta - where Esasky ended his. How could I not feel connected to this player after that?
When the news came out about Graf's son, my first reaction was, "those poor people." I couldn't imagine going through that in a new city with no family, no support network and still surrounded by boxes and suitcases. While he had me with his casual nature during his first hours at Fenway, he sealed it with his strength 10 days later.
The other night, when the press release came through saying the Sox had worked out a one year deal with him, my 13 year old son (the one who had me sitting in that waiting room) and I rejoiced. The man he identifies as having some of the same characteristics as his mom was staying in Boston for another year and that was a sign for him that this coming year would be a good one for his hometown team.
I'm excited about the Marte-Pedroia combination coming up from Pawtucket. Really, I am - but those are kids with a career ahead of them. At least this spring and early summer, I get to enjoy watching a ten-year veteran with a personality and style that are my speed, play ball the way I like it: smart and consistent.
