See, this is exactly why the Pittsburgh Pirates brought in VCU alum Brandon Inge (stats), because he can play third, second, first, right field and left wing. But seriously, Inge may not be an All-Star, but he’s a veteran presence in the clubhouse a young team like Pittsburgh, which is trying to break an MLB-record string of 20 straight losing seasons, desperately needs. Pittsburgh is currently 11 games over .500 and in second place in the NL Central Division. The difference, as always, is the VCU blood, obviously.
If you’re familiar with “Lethal Weapon”, you’ll remember Mel Gibson’s character, Riggs, is a little off. During one famous scene, he dislocates his shoulder, and then induces cringes when he resets it himself. That’s cute and all, but I know one former Ram who can top that.
On Saturday, VCU alum Brandon Inge dislocated his right (throwing) shoulder diving for a ball down the line against the Chicago White Sox. After resetting the shoulder himself, he could’ve and probably should’ve come out of the game. Nobody would begrudge him for that. But let’s ask ourselves, what would this kid do?
That’s right. Little League mullet Brandon Inge would stay in the game and deliver the game winning hit like a boss. He later said that he’s dislocated his shoulder “16 or 17 times”. Um, what? Can we start a petition to just start calling Inge “Riggs” from here on out? Good.
You can click on the video links within the game story HERE.
I wouldn’t normally do this, posting about Charles Brandon Inge on three consecutive days, but when a guy hits a walk-off grand slam in his first home game with a new team, you sort of have to do it. Here’s the link to that.If anybody can solve the mystery of embedding MLB video into WordPress, I’ll be forever greatful.
Inge is now hitting .179 in seven games with the A’s, but he’s homered in two of his last three games and has been playing his usual solid third base. After starting the year on the disabled list, his bat appears to be coming around.
In an unrelated/related note. Is there any doubt after looking at the picture on the right that if Inge had grown up about 10-15 years earlier, he’d be driving a Camaro and blasting Whitesnake 24/7? Let’s move on.
Bonus video. It appears the Oakland fans are taking to Inge just fine.
Bonus Bonus Video. Josh Hamilton confirmed good at baseball. Enjoy this as long as the MLB Youtube police allow it to exist.
Yesterday we showed you former Ram Brandon Inge’s first homerun as a member of the Oakland Athletics. But now we’re finding out a little more about that baseball Inge sent into oblivion. This video proves without a doubt that there was just one hitter on that grassy knoll. Two victims, one baseball, one grainy video.
1-VCU senior runner Tyler Simmons and his crew are entering the final fundraising stages of “Ride for Ricky”. If you’re late to this party, know that Simmons and two others are putting together a cross country bike ride to raise money for a friend who was paralyzed during a bike accident a few years ago. For more info, check here.
Meanwhile, abundant VCU alumni news over the weekend:
3-VCU alum Brandon Inge seems to be adjusting to Oakland well. He hit his first home run as a member of the A’s yesterday:
4-Don’t know if you missed it, but VCU alum Cody Eppley was recalled by the New York Yankeesover the weekend. Eppley takes the roster spot made available by Mariano Rivera’s injury. It’s too bad it happened that way, but such is sports.
Here’s Rollins chipping in from the fringe during the tournament’s opening round, also known as “a golf pipe dream” for me.
6-The VCU Baseball Team scored a couple of come-from-behind victories to take two of three from Georgia State this weekend. The wins vaulted the Rams from fifth to eighth in the CAA standings. The top six earn CAA Tournament bids. Meatloaf would approve of the Rams’ work this weekend.
VCU alum Brandon Inge is hitting .300 at AAA Toledo.
For most of 2011, former Ram Brandon Inge suffered through an abysmal season with the Detroit Tigers, hitting .177 with one dinger. A few weeks ago, the Tigers designated Inge for assignment. He could’ve asked for his outright release (the most common outcome in this situation), but instead opted to stay with the only Major League organization he’s ever known and accepted a demotion to AAA Toledo. This recent update from Fox Detroit makes it look like Inge is starting to find his swing again.
Here’s another story I found interesting. I hope some of this does come to pass. Panel Mulls Simplifying NCAA Rule Book (ESPN.com). If you’ve ever seen an NCAA rule manual, you know it looks like an encyclopedia.
I hope that Brandon Inge is a forgiving man because posting this photo essentially guarantees that he won’t ever agree to an interview with me, ever. But sometimes they say it’s better to ask forgiveness than to ask permission. Plus, it’s just so good, how could I not use it? Anyway, here’s Inge’s spectacular little league photo. Brandon, if you want, I’d be more than happy to dig up some of my awkward little league photos and post them here. In addition to a one-time pseudo-mullet, I also had big, ugly glasses (that were sometimes broken).
AROUND THE HORNS 