Author: billkralovec

My Love of Baseball

billkralovec

As you might tell from my blog, I am a big sports enthusiast. I participate in almost all sports, and follow many closely. One of my loves are the Detroit Tigers and the great game of baseball. Here in Serbia there is one nice baseball diamond on Ada Ciganlija and I have seen a team practicing. I am not sure the extant of Serbs that understand and play the game. I grew up playing and watching a lot of baseball, and later on I coached Little League baseball teams. I am teaching my sons the game and hope to get them to play a bit in this summer. My eldest son Owen is a left hander, and I am already working on his pitching. He is my retirement plan.

The Logo of the MLB Detroit Tigers

Joking aside, the purpose of this blog post is to give my thoughts on my favorite Major League baseball team, the Detroit Tigers. My mother was a fanatical Tigers fan and that is where I get my enthusiasm for following them. In the MLB, every team plays 162 games a season, so it is an everyday rhythm that one needs to follow a team. Unlike other professional US sports, there are no salary caps for teams, so the payrolls for the teams are very unequal. Luckily, the Tigers have the sixth highest payroll out of the 30 teams in the league, but with $122 million, they are still far behind the $206 million of the NY Yankees. Now I know that payrolls don’t necessary determine winners, but it helps to have enough money to get and keep good players.

The Tigers are currently 1.5 games behind the Minnesota Twins in the AL Central division. They lost to the Twins last year in a one-game playoff after both teams finished with identical records after 162 games. The Tigers are on a better pace than last year, and after 48 games this season so far, they are on pace to win 93 games, 7 more than last year. I predict they will win their division this season. Let me tell you why.

They lost a couple of good players to free agency. Two All-Stars, Placido Palanco (Phillies) and Curtis Granderson (Yankees) left for higher salaries. I was concerned in the off season as I really liked these two players. But, they did get Austin Jackson from the Yankees and he is turning out to be just as good as Granderson, and maybe even better. They also have an MVP candidate in Miguel Cabrera, who after a drunken meltdown at the end of last season, is putting up monster numbers this year. Add Johnny Damon from the Yankees and a comeback year from Magglio Ordonez, and the Tigers have more batting power than last season. They also got unknown rookie, Brennan Boesch, who has been very impressive in his debut season.

The pitching has started off shaky, but shows signs of coming around. They always have Cy Young Candidate Justin Verlander, one of the top pitchers in baseball. Rick Porcello will also be a great pitcher. Behind the big two, if they can get a comeback year from Jeremy Bonderman and Dontrelle Willis, they will be tough to beat in the playoffs. One addition that will also help, is that of closer Jose Valverde, who they got from the Houston Astros. He is a huge upgrade from Fernando Rodney, who blew so many save opportunities.

The team also has some good chemistry, with Damon leading the way and improved attitudes of the Venezuelans. I am really keen on this team and hope they can overcome the Twins and make the playoffs. It will be fun following the Tigers all season long! I bought the MLB.com radio package so I listen to some of the games and always watch the highlights of each game.

Serbia: Sports Heaven

billkralovec

 

It is nice to feel like a kid again! Standing next to Vlade I feel like I am ten years old. He was kind enough to pose with me at this weekend’s MS girls volleyball tourney.

Our girls’ team won the tourney easily. We had a tall, athletic front line of Serbian students that the other teams could not handle. As I said many times before, there seems to be a disproportionate percentage of tall, athletic people here in Serbia. That combined with the sports and training focus in the culture, makes this small country a remarkably successful nation in Europe and the world.

Owen Unplugged

billkralovec

Owen’s Guitar Debut, originally uploaded by bill kralovec.

Friday Owen had his first public musical performance. The Lower School held a Talent Show on Friday and Owen showed off his guitar skills by playing versions of “Frere Jacques.” He did quite well and we are proud of him. We need to buy him a smaller guitar this summer. This follows on Oliver’s violin performance this past January. It makes me want to learn to play the piano. I see the start of a Kralovec Family band, ala the Partridge Family.

World Cup Fever

billkralovec

Owen, Ollie and I are playing our version of the World Cup in the back yard. We make a 32-team knockout version of the World Cup, similar to the college basketball championships. Each night we play a game. In photo, Owen holds the Algerian flag, who played the opening game against the USA. Ollie is holding the brackets. It is usually Oliver and I against Owen. Ollie getting quite good!

We are also collecting the Panini World Cup stickers, although with over 600 stickers to complete the album and the only option to buy packs of 4 at a time, I don’t think we’ll complete it. The boys are learning about the world and soccer and we are having a good time.

Latest Reading: “The Czar’s Madman” by Jaan Kross

billkralovec

When I was visiting Estonia earlier this spring, I picked up a copy of one of the most famous Estonian writers, Jaan Kross. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize several times and received numerous awards. He passed away in 2007.

The Czar's Madman

“The Czar’s Madman” is work of historical fiction and it is set in 1800’s Estonia. It is the story of a Livonian noble, Timo Von Bock, who suffers from a slight mental illness. The Livonians are Germans who ruled over the peasant Estonians. At this time, Estonia was ruled by Russia and the Czar is friends with the aristocratic Von Bock. Von Bock writes a letter criticizing the Czar and ends up in prison for nine years. He married an Estonian peasant girl and the book is set in a journal format of the girl’s brother. The book follows the family into the next generation and was an exciting read.

The book helped me understand the plight of the Estonians and small ethnic groups in as a whole. The Estonians have been subjugated by larger groups for most of their existence and were treated as second class citizens. I am amazed that the language and identity survived. I wonder what effect that has on today’s Estonians. Is that why they are so quiet? The book was published in 1978 and it is a metaphor also, of the domination of Soviets. Kross really did his research and the book mirrors actual events with Kross, fleshing out the details and plot twists for us. Not only is it a good story, but it has insights on human nature and the brittle nature of life changes.

Owen Makes His Atacante Debut

billkralovec

Owen Pushes Forward, originally uploaded by bill kralovec.

The biggest game for me this weekend was Sunday’s FK Atacante taking on FK Tempo. My son Owen plays for Atacante and he made his debut yesterday. He started the game very tentative and when the coach told him to play left defensive back, he stayed out too wide and did not get into the game. I was instructing him from the sidelines and he told me not to tell him everything to do. The second time in, he played much more aggressively and did very well. I learned the lesson to film his play and discuss afterwards or find a quiet time instead of shouting during the game.

They lost but the kids had a good time. Oliver played with Mihailo and Ocean kept diving into my arms. It was a great morning and the highlight of my weekend.

I have plenty of video and photos from the game on my flickr.com account.

The Eternal Derby: Partizan Defeats Red Star

billkralovec

Yesterday a group of us attended the Eternal Derby – the soccer game between the two biggest clubs in Serbian soccer. The game between Red Star and Partizan decided this season’s champion of the Jelen Beer Super Liga. Coming into the game, Partizan was 1 point ahead of Red Star atop the table with 2 rounds left in the season. There was a capacity crowd at the game and as you can see in the video, there is no stadium atmosphere like it in the world. Sadly, Partizan dominated play and won a 1-0 victory to most likely, ensure another championship. They looked faster and in better shape than Red Star, who was playing defense most of the game. I say sadly because I am a Red Star supporter. Red Star can take consolation with their victory earlier this week in the Lav Beer, Serbian Cup. The Cup is the knockout tourney that occurs simultaneously as the regular season. Red Star is in rough shape financially as are all of the teams in the Serbian league. The country is too small to have a quality league. I wish they could do the same as basketball, and form a regional league with the countries of the Yugoslavia.

The fans are fanatical, and it made the game better with all of the singing, flags, large banners, and fireworks. I don’t understand the passion however.
I enjoyed the game with my friends, a special thanks to Dan for getting us the tickets!

My Big Fat Montenegrin Wedding

billkralovec

We really enjoyed the wedding we attended last weekend. Balkan cultures have similar traits and the party reminded us of the 2002 film, My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Bojana’s family really treated us well and we ate and drank to the point of bursting. It was a great atmosphere and the Montenegrins really know how to have a good time. There were shots of rakija as toasts and lots of dancing. The party carried on well into the night.

We were made to feel as part of the family and it was an honor to be treated so well. Nadia enjoyed the pork and the lamb melted in my mouth. It really was different from a North American or Australian wedding. We are very subdued compared to the Balkan cultures. It is more Latino than American. We want to thank Bojan and Bojana for their hospitality – it was an experience we’ll never forget.

Pljevlja, Montenegro

billkralovec

The city of Pljevlja, just across the border of Serbia in neighboring Montenegro, reminded me of the Višegrad of the Ivo Andric’ novel, “Bridge over the River Drina.” We visited the city over the Labor Day weekend attending a friend’s wedding. It is the third largest city in Montenegro and is located in a wild, beautiful region of canyons, rivers, and forests.

There was a relaxed, dusty feel to the city. Most impressive were the two Islamic minarets and the old Ottoman cemetery next to our hotel. The Ottoman Turks ruled Pljevlja for centuries and these are their legacy. There name for it Taslidža, which referred to the rocky landscape. Owen thought the country should be called Rock Negro, as they are everywhere. In Andric’s novel, the novel starts in the Ottoman times and ends with the arrival of the Austrians to the dusty river town of Višegrad. Pljevlja felt like that city after the Austrians had left. We visited the large Hussein Pasha’s mosque which dates back to 1569. It had been beautifully restored, but looked abandoned with uncut grass and a street dog sleeping on the front steps. The old Ottoman cemetery next to our hotel also had very long grass and looked like no one ever visited it.

The city today is mostly ethnically Serbian, politically Montenegrin, and it looks Bosnian. It sounds like it should be part of Yugoslavia with this mix.

The renovated but empty - Husein Pasha's Mosque

This is my favorite part of the Balkans, the region of Tara as I call it. It encompasses the Tara River and has snow-capped mountains, river canyons, pine forests, and lots of wildlife. So far we visited Mokra Gora in Serbia and now Durmitor and the Pljevlja municipality. I hope to explore Tara more.

Kralovec Family Hikes Around Black Lake

billkralovec
Jezero Crno - Black Lake

This past weekend we took advantage of Monday’s Labor Day holiday and visited Serbia’s neighbor, Montenegro. We went for my assistant’s wedding. On the first night, we stayed near the Durmitor National Park. This is a mountainous area in the far north of the country. The scenery reminded me of my time in the Rockies. It was a nice day so we decided to hike around Black Lake (jezero crno) which was about 1 kilometer from the town of Zabljak. The lake was full of frogs and there were several trout fishermen. The kids enjoyed catching the frogs and exploring the nearby forests and streams. There were many small waterfalls with spring run-off and it was a challenge to get the family through the streams around the lake.

t

Owen Catches His First Frog

The area was used in World War II by Tito’s Partisan’s to evade and attack the Nazis and Italians. There were several monuments to the places of significance in the Resistance. The park is a long, 6 hour drive from Belgrade, but I thought well worth the views and fresh mountain air.

The land near the Tara River that encompasses southern Serbia, eastern Bosnia, and northern Montenegro is my favorite place so far in the Balkans. Our visit here as well as last fall’s trip to Mokra Gora, has whetted my appetite to explore the region more. You can visit my flickr photo site to see more of the photos of the trip.

Ocean Enjoyed the Sneg One Last Time This Year