Making quick work of the Diamondbacks
It's nice work if you can get it.
Daryle Ward's 2008 salary is $1.2 million. Sunday he earned it by working one minute. If anything he was underpaid.
"Was it even a minute?" the Cubs' 60-second slugger asked.
Let's just call the time span an approximation. But please, don't call it a cameo. Ward definitely was a leading man.
"I probably took that long walking to the batter's box," Ward said of his minute on the job. "I took my time. I'll give it two minutes (total)."
Time well spent by Ward, and money well spent by the Cubs.
During his brief appearance, he recorded a 2-run double that became the winning runs in their 6-4 victory over Arizona.
Ward's job description is pinch hitter, but his business card could read: "Professional hitter: Have bat, will travel."
On this day the temperature in Wrigley Field was 46 degrees at game time and dipped from there. The winds blasted from the north at 18 mph and gusted from there.
Not exactly a climate for clout. Nobody would have stuck around unless they were being paid to do so (like the Cubs and the Diamondbacks were) or had paid for tickets (as 39,740 fans did).
Ward is no dummy. He carried a pink Mother's Day bat to the plate, hit Tony Pena's first pitch into the right-center-field gap, and left for a pinch runner before his nose froze.
Not that Ward was in danger of frostbite. He warmed up for his big moment -- or minute or two -- by stretching in the clubhouse and taking a few swings into a makeshift batting net.
Then Ward provided his own version of hit and run. That's what a professional hit man does, isn't it? He fulfills his obligation and flees the scene before anybody can get his license number.
"Not a lot of guys can do it," Cubs manager Lou Piniella said of pinch-hitting.
Nobody comes to the majors aspiring to be a pinch hitter, either. Ward adapted to it well and accepts it willingly.
Saturday, Ward singled in the tying run in a victory over Arizona. Sunday, it was the 2-run double. Tonight his homer might beat the Padres.
"This is his specialty," Piniella said. "He's experienced and been up in those situations. He gives you good at-bats."
The Cubs had other contributors against the D'backs. Like, Reed Johnson played nine innings and two outfield positions, tying the score at 4-4 with a 2-run homer.
But the Cubs' minuteman drew the most attention, like a place-kicker whose field goal wins the game in the final, you know, minute.
Ward was my favorite Cubs player even before his boffo weekend. He leads this team and maybe the entire National League in smiles.
This is a professional hitter who clearly appreciates being a professional baseball player. It's what he always wanted to be and doesn't carry himself as if he takes it for granted.
"I just love the game of baseball," said Ward, the son of two-time major-league all-star Gary Ward. "I grew up watching my dad play. When I was 3 years old I told somebody I was going to play major-league baseball. I even practiced my signature."
If Daryle Ward continues his pinch-hitting prowess, it'll take more than a minute to fill all the autograph requests he receives.