Let's preheat this first blog post with an intro. He was first coined as the "Walk-Off Pie Man" by Ray Fosse, then the "Oakland A's Culinary Captain" by Ben Bolch of the LA Times, a "Walk-Off Wacko" and "A's FANatic" by many fans of the green & gold, and has even been called a "Super Hero" by some young fans at the ballpark even though he wears his cape in front and calls it an apron. He's a die-hard Oakland Athletics fan that is outfitted in baker attire and goes by the name, "Oakland A's Pie Guy".
ENOUGH WITH THIS 3RD PERSON CRAP!!! Whoops! Sorry about the BALFOUR RAGE there... It's me the Oakland A's Pie Guy! Now that this post is all warmed up, I thought it was about time I wrote something more than 140 characters. I want to explain to you all how I cooked up the idea for Pie Guy, how being a fake, bernie-ing baker has blessed me with opportunities that I never thought were possible and just plain and simple "wip" up a blog about the team that I go Banana Cream Pie for, The Oakland A's.
And Here. We. Go! It was the last day of July and the smell of Walk-Off Pie was in the air. It was the night before the A's were going to play the second game of a three game series against Tampa Bay, which my brother, dad and I were planning on making a special appearance for. We watched as Jemile Weeks hit a sac-fly in the 12th inning that scored Brandon Inge for their 12th walk-off of the year. Players were jumping around, fans were screaming and Reddick was ready to pie his next victim. It was the cherry on top of an exciting game and then the idea hit me like a pie to the face, I should do something crazy at the A's game tomorrow! But what should I do? What is the first thing you think of when you think about pie, actually what's your top 3? Walk-Off, Reddick-Wip and.... A BAKER! By the beard of Reddick! I'll dress up as a baker and go to the game! I had no idea that I would need a name for my innovative get-up, that I would get interviewed by MLB.com, do a combination of the Call Me Maybe dance and Bernie Lean in front of thousands of fans or get called out by Fosse and Kuip that if I was a real fan that I would show up the next game, and I did!
It wasn't like I had a bakers hat and apron lying around so I pulled out whatever yellow construction paper I had at my house (fun fact: I live in Sacramento. Big River Cats fan) then I watched a YouTube video of a six-year-old show me how to make a paper bakers hat step-by-step. Heck, if a six year old could do it so could I! It took me three tries until i finished it around 1am... It obviously was my first rodeo. Then I borrowed an apron from my neighbor who I told I was using it to bake a cake or something. I don't remember what i said but it was by far the least believable lie I've ever told. My brother kept shaking his head watching me cut letters out of felt and staple them to the apron that I was supposed to give back to my neighbor the next day.
This is how it turned out with a touch of Reddick-Wip:
It was game day and I parked a few blocks away from the Coliseum. I'm petitioning for Chevy Free Parking Wednesdays. Tuesdays is just not enough. From the moment I walked out of my stylish soccer-momish '92 Volvo station wagon began a recipe of, interviews, pictures with fans, the start of a Twitter account, Facebook page, a mention in an LA Times article about the A's Walk-Off magic (http://articles.latimes.com/2012/aug/06/sports/la-sp-0806-surprising-oakland-athletics-20120806) and a chance to use my voice that has been used at a few karaoke nights at the most to sing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame". I've been living the dream ever since.
But I tell you this not to gloat or add extra wipped cream to my ego pie but to show how much this has and still means to me. Interacting with and meeting fans that share the same passion for this team that runs on a few dollars and players that create more excitement that any one fan ever could has been the best part of this whole journey. I don't consider myself a super fan or more of a fan than any other. I only consider myself another fan that loves to show his passion for the team he's loved since he came out of his mom's oven. Sorry for the 3rd person again. I can feel the BALFOUR RAGE coming on from a lot of you. I don't need or want any special recognition but if I continue to be recognized for this Reddickulous form of fanism (I just made that word up © Oakland A's Pie Guy) I hope that all of the day-in day-outters, the season ticket holders, the Right Field Bleacher crew, the Left Field bleacher FANatics, the drummers, the Banjo Man and all of those who have become such an essential part of Oakland A's baseball know that what I do should never take away from what you all have done and continue to do for this ball club. I can never stand up to what you all do and I am proud to be a part of the best fanbase in baseball. It's not about quantity in Oakland but about quality. You can't find a fan base that cares more or shows more passion for their team than the fans in Oakland and I am proud to a part of it.
Be on the lookout for more blog posts explaining more aspects of the outfit and much more! If you have any questions about the inspiration behind the outfit, what my favorite pie is, when the bakery is open (Hint: All home games) or anything A's baseball I'd love to chat it up!
This is where I Walk-Off... Thanks for reading! Bye!
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