Hold the Phone

The Orioles, seemingly, have bad luck when it comes to bullpen phones. Fans may remember this little gem from the 2013 season:

The trend of  phone trouble with AL East opponents has continued. Here’s a story from CBSSports (where they attribute the story to Dan Connoly of the Washington Post, but I digress…) noting that the bullpen phones haven’t been working in Tropicana Field for the first two games of the series.

To be honest, I’m not really sure where to go from here – I could make fun of the Tampa Bay “sell out crowds” for not being loud enough to disturb casual conversation between the dugout and bullpen. I could also point out that the Trop is saved from being the worst stadium in Major League Baseball only by sheer existence of the Oakland Coliseum. Both are too easy, so with apologies, I’m going to phone this one in.

Buck Showalter bought a set of walkie talkies for the for the series finale on Wednesday. Can you imagine being the clerk that sold him the set?

Clerk: Can I help you?

Buck: Yes, I need a set of walkie talkies – can you recommend a good one?

Clerk: Well, what kind do you need, what are you going to use them for?

Buck: I’m going to manage a major league bullpen, and will need a signal to travel indoors, from the dugout to the bullpen at Tropicana Field.

Clerk: uh… [checks manual] uh….

I wonder if the phones were out for both teams or whether it was just the visiting dugout. Maybe Buck should leave the Rays a gift, before heading north for Baltimore.