Comments on: One more thought on Brian Wilson

By: 22gigantes

22gigantes — Sat, 29 Jan 2011 04:08:16 +0000

Yo Craig, had you actually took the time to read my blog TWO WEEKS AGO (Jan 14), you would have seen that this blogger did in fact declared the shark jumped. http://www.22gigantes.com/2011/01/has-brian-wilson-jumped-shark.html

By: Mike Luna

Mike Luna — Sat, 29 Jan 2011 02:41:51 +0000

I don’t live in San Fran and I don’t follow the NL as much, so I was only made aware of Wilson when ESPN started paying attention to him towards the end of last season.

I might have written four paragraphs, but I was trying to make my point thoroughly so I wouldn’t seem like I was trolling.

This post was inspired by Craig talking to someone about whether people might think that Brian Wilson has “jumped the shark” and my whole point is that at least one person thinks so. Me.

I think it’s unfair to assume that I’m joyless just because I don’t find Wilson’s antics entertaining. There’s a lot of joy in my life, but none of it stems from Brian Wilson. That’s just my opinion.

(Yeah. The Nicholas Cage movie.)

By: tomemos

tomemos — Sat, 29 Jan 2011 01:05:12 +0000

You’ve been aware of the guy since, what, August, and you call that “ages ago”? And you wrote four paragraphs on this guy that you apparently don’t care about–four paragraphs that just amount to “he’s not that great”–and yet you don’t understand why you strike people as joyless? Heck, I’m a Giants fan and I didn’t even know he was “into 8mm,” and in fact I don’t even know what that means. Like, the Nicolas Cage movie?

By: Mike Luna

Mike Luna — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 23:26:35 +0000

I’m not sure how having an opinion about the guy is overthinking him. If that’s the case, I’ve been overthinking just about everyone in the national sports scene.

Either way, it wouldn’t have been several years. I only really became aware of Wilson when the ‘Fear the Beard’ stuff started up.

By: tomemos

tomemos — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 22:39:24 +0000

You’re lame because you’ve been overthinking Brian Wilson for, apparently, several years now.

By: natedawg321

natedawg321 — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 22:18:55 +0000

This is correct. Giants beat writer Andy Baggerly described him as someone like Stephen Colbert, a person who acts in character (that goes by the real name) 100% of the time when around other people.

To me, the number one benefit of all of this was watching Chris Rose do the celebration interviews, the look of veiled terror on his face knowing that he interviewing Wilson on live national TV was an all-time highlight.

By: Mike Luna

Mike Luna — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 21:35:39 +0000

You’re right. I’m lame because I’m not infatuated with the guy’s beard.

Thanks for setting me straight.

By: motherscratcher23

motherscratcher23 — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 20:28:34 +0000

You sound like a fun guy to hang out with.

By: feartherallythong

feartherallythong — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 20:25:50 +0000

I am more convinced by the day that this is a combination of 24/7 performance art, ala Andy Kaufman, and daily auditioning for life after baseball. On TV. He’s just doing his “Emmy push” before he gets a role on a sitcom…

By: seeingwhatsticks

seeingwhatsticks — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 20:13:53 +0000

Tough to argue that Wilson’s act, if you want to call it that, is hurting his performance since he’s improved his numbers every year he’s been the closer and has added an effective cutter to his repertoire. Wilson can still bring some heat but he’s not living and dying by his ability to throw the ball past people anymore. Most closers struggle to make that adjustment and so far he has. I’d say he’s got a pretty good chance to be an effective closer longer than most.

By: sosascork

sosascork — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 19:21:46 +0000

And I thought this was the goofiest cloers out there:

By: jhorton83

jhorton83 — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 19:12:36 +0000

Brian Wilson is the baseball version of Zach Galifianakis (the guy from “The Hangover”). Same brand of random non-sequitur oddball comedy (along with the beard thing too). I find his shtick funny personally, so more power to him.

By: Mike Luna

Mike Luna — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 18:42:55 +0000

I thought Brian Wilson “jumped the shark” or whatever ages ago. Maybe I just don’t get him. I don’t think he’s funny and I don’t understand why people are so drawn to him. I think he’s boring and his material is tired.

He’s into 8mm, but so what? He grew a beard, but lots of people grow beards [myself included].

Even if he’s weird, I don’t think he’s as weird as he lets on. There’s no question in my mind that at least some of it is an act and I’ve felt that way for almost as long as I’ve been aware of him.

I’m not trying to be contrary or troll, but wanted you to know what there is at least one person out there that’s not buying what Wilson is selling. Perhaps I’m not alone…but I probably am.

By: baseballisboring

baseballisboring — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 18:34:23 +0000

Brian Wilson’s from my home town…my dad coached him in high school as a freshman. The goofball thing is most definitely not an act. He is a dick, though. His senior yearbook quote was something like “You will all be pumping my gas one day”. I don’t really care though…he’s entertaining.

By: jh0088

jh0088 — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 17:56:18 +0000

Brian Wilson gets to be more Joaquin Pheonix than Joaquin Pheonix.

By: scapistron

scapistron — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 16:29:30 +0000

Your post needs a pozterisc.

Not that this will stop someone — be it a blogger, columnist, radio show host or whoever — from soon declaring the shark jumped. That’s just what we do. Indeed, when Brian Wilson loses effectiveness as a closer — as all closers inevitably do* — I am 100% certain that someone will write the “perhaps Brian Wilson should have been working on his game more than his act” column. And when I read it I’ll die inside a little.

* That guy on the Yankees is not human, therefore this statement does not apply

By: clydeserra

clydeserra — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 16:05:33 +0000

Baseball, I would guess, has less non-conformists because players don’t have an immediate impact of the game from the day they are drafted. They need to percolate through the minors, giving coaches more time to say “hey weirdo, you are not getting to AA with that kind of attitude.” And they believe it.

By: Jonny 5

Jonny 5 — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 16:00:12 +0000

Sometimes people are just plain goofy. You can ask my wife, kid, and my friends. Even the cat knows. Good for him for letting everyone know by being himself no matter the situation. I don’t have that luxury. I work in a professional environment ,and have to put on an act and there are teeth marks in my tounge from biting it. Well after 7 years of being at the same job, some people have seen the true me, and they seem to like it better once over whatever shock I enduced has subsided. Or they’re afraid, very afraid. Maybe I should wear that Marvin the martian costume I created to work one day, it’s getting dusty…