On the Right Track
A NASCAR BLOG BY Jeff Gluck
- TEXT SIZE: Increase Text Size Decrease Text Size Reset Text Size
- 1 Comment. Leave a Comment
- Digg This
- Add to Del.icio.us
- RSS Feeds
Montoya takes the microphone over the mound
Jul
10
CHICAGO – Isn’t singing harder than throwing a baseball? Apparently not for Juan Pablo Montoya.
Montoya passed the buck on throwing out the first pitch at Wednesday night’s Chicago Cubs game at Wrigley Field, instead trotting out to the mound and standing by as crew chief Brian Pattie did the honors.
Apparently Montoya didn’t want to risk embarrassment by tossing a baseball 60 feet, which is understandable. But that he later sang to the crowd in the seventh-inning stretch is a head-scratcher.
Messing up on a baseball throw is one thing; but risking a “Take Me Out To The Ballgame” flub at Wrigley – as Jeff Gordon knows – could be quite memorable. If embarrassment was a big concern, I’d take my chances with throwing the pitch instead of being off-pitch.
But Montoya, clad in a No. 42 Cubs jersey with his name stitched on the back (even though the No. 42 is retired all across baseball in honor of Jackie Robinson), led the traditional song rendition and serenaded more than 40,000 jovial fans with his thick Columbian accent.
He may have been a little off, but his voice was drowned out by the crowd – nearly all of which joined in the singing.
It was the second straight year Montoya visited Wrigley to sing, though last year he had teammates who helped. That he is now a solo act is a sign that he’s progressing quite nicely as both a stock-car driver and a singer.
Montoya passed the buck on throwing out the first pitch at Wednesday night’s Chicago Cubs game at Wrigley Field, instead trotting out to the mound and standing by as crew chief Brian Pattie did the honors.
Apparently Montoya didn’t want to risk embarrassment by tossing a baseball 60 feet, which is understandable. But that he later sang to the crowd in the seventh-inning stretch is a head-scratcher.
Messing up on a baseball throw is one thing; but risking a “Take Me Out To The Ballgame” flub at Wrigley – as Jeff Gordon knows – could be quite memorable. If embarrassment was a big concern, I’d take my chances with throwing the pitch instead of being off-pitch.
But Montoya, clad in a No. 42 Cubs jersey with his name stitched on the back (even though the No. 42 is retired all across baseball in honor of Jackie Robinson), led the traditional song rendition and serenaded more than 40,000 jovial fans with his thick Columbian accent.
He may have been a little off, but his voice was drowned out by the crowd – nearly all of which joined in the singing.
It was the second straight year Montoya visited Wrigley to sing, though last year he had teammates who helped. That he is now a solo act is a sign that he’s progressing quite nicely as both a stock-car driver and a singer.
Login
Search
Other Blogs
Recent Blog Postings
- Landon Cassill is just one heck of a friendly guy
by Jeff Gluck | 10/10/2008 - Night time the right time for Sprint Cup Chase races
by Bob Pockrass | 10/09/2008 - It appears, for some NASCAR teams, an experiment has failed
by Steve Waid | 10/09/2008 - Roush Fenway Racing won't let mishap at Talladega ruin season
by Jared Turner | 10/07/2008 - Talladega was rough for Chase For The Sprint Cup drivers
by Rea White | 10/06/2008 - NASCAR needs its own network
by David Exum | 10/05/2008 - NASCAR robbed Regan Smith of Talladega win
by Jeff Owens | 10/05/2008
Poll Position
Who should get credit for the win in Sunday's NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Talladega Superspeedway?
Comments
1 response to "Montoya takes the microphone over the mound"
Anonymous said:
Jul 11, 2008 at 2:12 PMJaun knows how to get it done.
Report as AbuseReport Abuse
This feature is intended to allow you to report comments that are abusive in terms of foul/vulgar language, harassment, racial/religious prejudice and any words/phrases of a related nature. This feature should not be used to report users who simply make a comment about your favorite driver, with which you do not agree. Commenting is a forum in which we can all express our opinions. Reporting abuse of others should be done with this in mind.
» Confirm Abuse Report