08/12/2004 8:00 AM ET
Ask the Giants: Brotherly love
By Chris Shuttlesworth / MLB.com
Got a question for Ask the Giants? Submit your queries of general interest for a Giants player, coach, staff or front-office member and see if your question gets answered in a future edition of Giants Jottings.
Matt Herges mentioned (in a Giants commercial) he has to get his brother-in-law out. Who is his brother-in-law and what team does he play with? -- Sandy L., Alameda
Herges: Todd Hollandsworth. He is with the Cubs, and he's currently on the DL. I introduced him to my sister in 2000 when we were teammates on the Dodgers. Our next road trip was St. Louis and then Chicago, and I grew up in between St. Louis and Chicago, about two hours from both. We were just talking in the outfield, and I think highly of him, obviously, and it just came to me. I said, "Have you ever met my sister?" and he said, "No, I'd love to." I said, "OK, I'll call her tonight and see if she's interested in meeting you."
So that first night in St. Louis, my whole family's there and I introduced them in the lobby. That was May, and that December, they were married.
That night, she came back to my parents' room and said, "He's unbelievable. He's it." He went back to his room and called his brother and said, "I just met my wife tonight." If you believe in love at first sight, that was definitely it.
What is Dustan Mohr's entrance music called? -- Mike B., Berkeley
Bryan Srabian, director of marketing and entertainment: "Play that Funky Music," by Wild Cherry. That was his request.
I am mystified by what "sold out" means (at SBC Park). How many tickets can be sold, and what defines "sold out"? It seems to be anywhere beyond 41,000, but isn't there a real number? -- Bonnie F., San Francisco
Russ Stanley, vice president, ticket services/client relations: Technically a sellout is when every seat except obstructed view and standing room have been sold. The reason the number can be a sellout yet always be different is based on SRO sales and the mix of complimentary tickets. The rule of thumb we use is any time we distributed 41,500 or more tickets, it's considered a sellout.
I always see Dustin Hermanson with different styles of facial hair, and I was wondering how long it takes him to shave and style his facial hair? -- Liz V., San Francisco
Hermanson: No longer than anybody else, since I've been doing it for so many years. Maybe an added 25 seconds.
Hey, Scott Eyre, whenever a pitcher allows a runner on first, why do the pitchers point at shortstop or second? -- Tiffany W., San Diego
Eyre: We think he's cute. No, it's just to let them know who's covering (second base) -- sometimes it's the shortstop, sometimes it's the second baseman. A lot of times with me, it's the second baseman. There's a lot of things that determine who covers. The hitter determines it, the pitcher does, and (bench coach) Ron Wotus does, because he positions the position players. If he's got the second baseman playing way over, then the shortstop has to cover. If he's got the shortstop playing way in the hole, the second baseman will have to get there.
J.T. Snow came back from knee surgery really quick. What were the main rehab exercises that helped to strengthen his knee? -- Dave R., Oakley
Stan Conte, head trainer: J.T. came back in about four weeks, and the general time frame is four to six weeks for that type of surgery. The surgery itself wasn't major. It was a cleanup procedure, so that's one of the reasons he came back so quickly. It was a little bit on the quicker side. We did a basic knee rehabilitation program, but as soon as he was able to anything baseball-wise, hitting and throwing, we started him doing that. That was within about a week to 10 days, so that helped him get back a lot quicker. But everything else was a basic knee rehab, a strengthening and stretching program with a lot of leg-press type exercises.
A question for Kruk and Kuip: Do you guys ever notice anything during the game like a pitcher tipping pitches or other aspects of the game and then maybe sneak your observations down to the dugout? -- Mark J., Sebastopol
Mike Krukow, broadcaster: Absolutely. We'd never, ever, ever point them out if we thought the Giants would gain an advantage with it, so yeah, if we see something, we pass it on to the Giants.
What does "designated for assignment" mean, and where have the players such as Brian Cooper, Chad Zerbe and Luis Estrella who have been designated for assignment this season gone? -- Zach M., Lakewood, Colo.
Matt Hodson, media relations coordinator: When a player is designated for assignment, it opens up that player's roster spot for 10 days while the team waits for the player to clear waivers. If the player is not claimed by another club within two business days, then the team retains the player and may either send him to the minors outright or trade him to another team.
Brian Cooper was designated for assignment, cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Fresno, but has since been released. Chad Zerbe and Leo Estrella were designated for assignment, cleared waivers and then were outrighted to Triple-A Fresno.
Inside SBC Park, hanging on the facade near section 233 is a pennant with '51 on it. What is this, and what does it mean? -- Ken D., San Jose
Mario Alioto, senior vice president, corporate marketing: The "Remember '51" sign in the left-field corner is to remember the 1951 season when Bobby Thomson hit the "Shot Heard 'Round the World" (that gave the Giants the National League pennant over the Dodgers). This is for fans to always keep in mind that it's not over 'til it's over, and in 1951, the Giants came back from being quite a bit out of the pennant race to win with Thomson's homer.
Chris Shuttlesworth is an editorial producer for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
