Being wrong has never felt so good. (Yong Kim/Philly.com)
Jon Krakauer’s book, Into Thin Air, details the horrific events of a 1996 commercial expedition on Mount Everest. On that fateful trip, a large party of climbers was surprised by a severe storm while descending from the summit. The book tragically chronicles the appalling deaths of five people. At certain points, it can be a tough read. However, it also tells the amazing story of Beck Weathers.
Weathers, a doctor from Dallas, was one of the few climbers that didn’t reach the summit. The extreme altitude caused unexpected problems with an eye condition and he was left blind. Weathers was forced to stop and wait for the others to climb the mountain and then return back before he could be helped down.
While he was waiting, the mountain was bombarded by an intense blizzard. He began to freeze. As the day turned to night, his fight against the cold became futile. The extreme conditions won out and he slowly slipped into a hypothermic coma.
That night, some fellow climbers had a chance to carry Weathers back with them to camp, but they checked his vitals and decided that he was a lost cause. Even later, a group of Sherpas checked on him and made the same determination. He was left for dead twice.
Beck Weathers is handling the situation surprisingly well.
Everyone was wrong about Beck Weathers. Sometime after it was decided that he was dead, Weathers miraculously awoke. He stood up and slogged all the way back to base camp on frozen feet.** His fellow climbers, delirious from nearly dying themselves, thought they were seeing a ghost. He was blind and in a hypothermic coma for several hours, but he survived for twenty-two hours in the worst winter conditions imaginable.
Jason Giambi pulled a Beck Weathers today. An entire fan base had left him for dead and rightfully so. Recently, his performance has been very comparable to a hypothermic coma. After he struck out to end last night’s game, I trashed the decision to use him in the first place and called for his retirement. When I heard he was in the lineup today, I rolled my eyes. But, on a rainy Philadelphia night, Giambi made me feel dumb for giving up on him.
Tonight, the Giambino awoke from a baseball coma. I doubt I’m as shocked as the guys that gave up on Beck Weathers, but I think I’m close.
**Weathers lost his nose and both hands because of frostbite. Today, he’s a motivational speaker.
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6 comments
Andrew
May 19, 2011 at 9:31 PM (UTC -6)
Logan, love the blog, great insight. Do you think Jon Herrera should be batting leadoff? He has a better OBP than Fowler, strikes out less, and Fowler’s stolen base success rate is pathetic, I don’t know why Tracy insists on continuing to run him. I’m afraid that Fowler (along with Iannetta who is now hitting .220) will soon be back to his poor-hitting self. Would like to see Blackmon and Rosario in there was replacements if they are ready for it, though Iannetta is doing a great job of handling the staff, so that’s tough. With Fowler, Iannetta, and the 3B hole, looks like the Rocks will have a tough time overcoming their offense this season. Thoughts?
Aaron
May 20, 2011 at 2:34 AM (UTC -6)
EY Jr. has been playing well in the Springs. If he could be consistent in the big leagues that would be a great 1-2 start to the lineup with EY and Herrera. We all know EY is a much better base stealer than Dex. Dex has been fairly clutch at times this year so he better keep hitting if he wants to keep his spot. And they definitely need to figure something out at 3rd base, I agree the offense will continue to struggle if we are getting no production from 3/4 of the 9 spots in the lineup.
Logan Burdine
May 20, 2011 at 6:38 AM (UTC -6)
Time-out. Despite his low batting average, Iannetta is having a very productive offensive season. Currently, he is third overall in WAR for catchers. I’m a huge fan of Wilin Rosario. In fact, I think he’s probably the number one prospect, but he won’t be as productive as Iannetta right now. Plus, he needs to stay healthy for a full season before they can ever think about him being a realistic option.
I’ve actually thought about hitting Herrera lead-off. I don’t think I’m against it. Dexter frustrates me as much as any player on this team. I can’t understand how his knowledge about how to appropriately steal a base is so underdeveloped. Either he refuses to try or someone in the Rockies’ minor league system didn’t do their job. He has been walking like crazy though and that’s saving him.
You’ll have to read today’s minor league report for my thoughts on Blackmon.
g
May 20, 2011 at 1:00 PM (UTC -6)
engaging and informative, but did Weathers wear a thong?
T.O. Owens
May 20, 2011 at 1:45 PM (UTC -6)
This one night changes nothing. The minute inter-league is over Giambi has got to go. We would still pay him. Offer him the job of hitting coach if he is so great in the locker room.
Morales is down just Paulino to go. Hopefully we see Bothers in the pin-stripes by June!!!
Logan Burdine
May 20, 2011 at 2:11 PM (UTC -6)
So, TO, you believe we saw his ghost then?
I tell you what it did change. It changed any thoughts the Rockies had about releasing him. Right or wrong, he just cemented his place on this roster for the rest of the season.
I’m not sold either, but I don’t think I’ll be trashing him quite as much as I was.