Tis a shame that one of the greatest writers of my era never had the audience to match his talent. In a world where the masses are treated to the likes of TJ Simers and Bill Plaschke, Jon Weisman toiled in near obscurity for over a decade.
Jon was a legend in the baseball blogging world but that is just a pittance of readers compared to those who habitually read whoever is writing worthless drivel for the major newspapers. Jon's Dodger Thoughts blog was the pioneer and paved the way for what we have today. I'm writing this story today because Jon has decided to hang up his blog.
I won't be able to do Jon justice. That will take a skilled writer, and the writer best equipped to handle that task has left the game.
For anyone who was lucky enough to find the Toaster, they stumbled upon a new world of smart writing, and a community who respected opinions. This community had no problems following twelve simple rules. Evidently it was not for everyone. Many felt the rules to confining, some even silly. No matter, for me it was the greatest thing since the first day I heard Vin Scully.
When I found Dodger Thoughts I had my hand slapped by a few members over my rambling grammar. It was a shock at first that a blog expected you to communicate using proper grammar, and at first I was put off. So I sulked but continued to read. Eventually I started to contribute again, but with more effort so that the legendary Bob Timmerman would not be intellectually insulted with my grammatical skills. It was well worth the effort.
Dodger Thoughts became an addiction. I've told Jon a few times, I have no idea if his blog made my life better or worse, but I do know my life changed. For the first time other then with my brothers, I felt I could have an intelligent conversation about the Dodgers. A group who understand how important on base percentage was. A group who did not shy away from statistical analysis but still loved the fundamental beauty of the game. I can't begin to describe the breath of fresh air that Jon blew my way. Not a day has passed since Aug 1st, 2004 that I do not read/comment/write about the Dodgers. Probably not the best way to live a life.
I consider Jon Weisman the father of TBLA, the best of TBLA was spawned from what Jon had created. If Jon does not talk Andrew Grant into taking on the task of TBLA who knows what path it follows. Eventually that path was Andrew-->Phil-->Eric. Ever since I started writing here, I still carried my affinity for Jon and Dodger Thoughts. To the dismay of some, I consider us family, I know my roots, and I will never forget them. The respect I have for Jon has no parallel.
Jon tried to do it all. Insightful writing, game previews, game reviews, prospect updates. He did it every day for over a decade. And he did it well.
Thank you