Update: False Alarm, I think this was the coming out party for 40th Round pick Stephen Marek's signing
HALOS HEAVEN EXCLUSIVE
Okay, I watched Arte's box extensively thru my binoculars during the game.
Arte is in there with Dennis Kuhl and John Carpino, each wearing a red polo shirt. Shemp couldn't make it. There is a butler in the back of the suite.
Next to their suite is the brain trust, two rows of gamewatching execs, Assistant GM Ken Forsch is in the front row, GM Bill Stoneman is in the back row. Again, all in red polo shirts. First inning they are all chowing down, fierce. Stoneman has a laptop in front of him. As the game progresses Bill has his reading glasses on and is really getting into something on the computer.
By about the 5th inning, everyone has some papers in their hands, in both suites. Lots of activity, some buzz - then there are two guys in the suite with management, not in red shirts. I could swear it is Boras and another guy. One even reaches over from Arte's suite and shakes Stoneman's hand.
If I had to guess or bet, i'd say we signed Jared Weaver. Thursday's L.A. Times will tell you we are still far apart, and I watched pregame as Arte held court by the dugout with a geeky crew of pad-n-paper Ring Lardners. But that was about two hours before the mimeograph backslapping suarez got underway at Arte's pad.
As Joel Peralta makes his major league debut, i watch Stoneman engrossed in the laptop, skipping Peralta's first few pitches. Forsch has to get Bill's attention to alert him to watch a replay on the suite monitor at one point. Oak Park Billy's body language is stifled, preoccupied, exhausted.
Now, I could be wrong, but it was a boring game, we lost in the first inning when Washburn gave up a three run jack, and i did watch it all the suite activity quite a bit. I always nose in on the activity there during games and tonight the whole vibe was different.