The Gomez Rules

GOMEZ RULE NO. 1: Don’t only talk to players when they do something wrong or hit the game-winning home run. If for example you notice a third baseman making a subtle but excellent play and happen to get a chanceto ask about it, go talk to the guy on the night when everyone is talking to someone else. You do that partly to learn, since usually he’ll explain some aspect of the play you weren’t quite sure about, but also just to establish a dialogue, so that communication does not only come when you need something from him.

GOMEZ RULE NO. 2: Always go talk to the opposing manager, usually before the first game of the series. If you did it regularly, the other managers got to know you a little and usually appreciated the effort you made. We especially loved talking to Joe Torre, Lou Piniella and Phil Garner. Often they would give us scraps of insight that helped us understand the A’s. Plus, it was a blast.

GOMEZ RULE NO. 3: If you rip someone, always show up the next day, even (especially) if it’s your day off. They might want to curse you out. They might want to say you got something wrong—and might even have a point. They might just want to glare at you and make cracks about you from a distance. It doesn’t matter. Always show up.

GOMEZ RULE NO. 4: Keep your eyes open. Odd as it may sound, sportswriters even then often kept their heads down in the pressbox, typing away, checking stats, often muttering about their disgruntlement but not often truly focusing on what was happening on the field of play. They just looked up now and then to keep abreast of the basics. That meant they missed a lot. The fun part was the crazy little sequences you might never write about. Pedro and I both kept our eyes open and talked constantly about what we saw out there.

GOMEZ RULE NO. 5: Start every relationship you make on the assumption that someone is basically good, basically OK, and let them prove you wrong, rather than the opposite. From umpires to moody journeymen infielders to eccentric coaches, Pedro was consistent. His approach rubbed off.

GOMEZ RULE NO. 6: Always have fun out there. Always remember you’ve got a great job and look for ways to enjoy the hell out of it. This included things like leaving the press box for a few innings to watch the game from the front row at old Tiger Stadium, where it felt like the pop of a fastball getting swallowed up by the catcher’s mitt was exploding inside your head.