omar vizquel

did you bay area fans know about omar vizquel's art? i guess you must. jon miller is no slouch, after all.

http://www.skylinepictures.com/La%20Fiesta%20%20full%20%20image%20-%20Vizquel.htm

to see his painting, la fiesta, paste that link into your browser. i understand it adorns his own name brand of salsa back home, (for omar,) in venezuela.

yeah, i am an apologist for vin scully but this is the kind of stuff vin brings to the game of baseball, (so i can google it right in the middle of a slow, 4-0 death for the giants at the hands of one chad billingsley,) that imbues a snaillike exercise in athleticism with a flavor and color worthy of appreciation. omar vizquel paints? what?!

so i google images and i see at least one bad painting. omar peers over the top of his own glove and the painting is called "the look," or some such cheeseball thing. it would be one thing if he was a killer closer or something but shortstops are not exactly known for the stare they issue over the tops of gloves. (nor should they be.) they're about motion and poise, nimble, fleet-footed thieves of glory. omar might have painted a contorted back, diving, parallel to the earth, leather outstretched like the head of a giraffe eating fruit.

still, other paintings were quite good. i saw motion in the paintings, and depth. i saw hidden things to look at and some thoughtfulness in the brushstrokes, even if that aspect lacked meaning for me. ultimately i came away with an appreciation for omar vizquel as a guy who loves sport and plays it at the highest level, (truly the highest level and for a long time,) but is not locked into a stereotype.

these are some of my favorite athletes. this is why i choose kareem abdul jabar, muhammad ali, roberto clemente, wayman tisdale, todd christenson, and yeah, vin scully an artist of a baseball broadcaster.

oh, and my new favorite shortstop from a team despised, omar.