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Geoff Baker covers the Mariners for The Seattle Times. He provides daily coverage of the team throughout spring training, and during the season.

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September 11, 2007 10:48 AM

Grim anniversary

Posted by Geoff Baker

Around this time of year, talk tends to turn to where people were on Sept. 11, 2001 and what they were doing. I usually stop them cold by saying:

"I was at the Pentagon.''

Not when the plane hit, mind you. But two hours later, standing directly in front of it watching flames and smoke pour out of the enormous hole blasted into its side. I had woken up in Baltimore that morning preparing for a Toronto Blue Jays-Baltimore Orioles series, having flown in the day before. People ask me what I remember most about 9-11 and I tell them it was more about what I did on Sept. 10. Everything after that is a huge blur. I spent two hours chatting with Toronto's third base coach at the time, Terry Bevington, after bumping into him in Baltimore's harborfront area. Spent another hour chatting with relief pitcher Scott Eyre as we both worked out in our hotel's otherwise empty gym. The Blue Jays were going through turmoil at the time and the front office and most coaches -- including Bevington -- were about to be swept aside to launch the J.P. Ricciardi era. So, everyone wanted to talk.

A day later, none of that seemed important.

I was up rather early, for me, and had just arrived at the hotel restaurant for breakfast when I noticed some people staring at a TV set in the lobby. At that point, it was only thought to have been a small plane that had hit one of the World Trade Center towers. Before I'd finished my first plate of buffet fruit, a second plane had hit. Before long, another plane had hit the Pentagon and I realized (not having a cellphone in those days -- don't ask) that I'd better get upstairs to my room. I passed the team's trainer, George Poulis, along the way. He was at a table eating with an assistant and we chatted for a couple of moments about what was goiing on.

My telephone light was flashing up in the room. It was my office back at the Toronto Star and they wanted me to get to Washington any way I could. Our Washingon bureau chief had left for New York right after the first tower was hit and was stuck en route someplace in a grounded plane. I'd covered news for years in Montreal and they wanted me to cover the Washington part of what was going on.

My first thought, funny enough, after hanging up, was about my feet. I'd bought new shoes a few days earlier and they were killing me. So, knowing it could be a long day, I threw on a pair of running shoes, along with my slacks, and headed out. On my way out of the elevator, the late Tom Cheek, the team's great play-by-play man, was heading in.

"This is war,'' he told me.

I passed team trainer Poulis as well. When I told him where I was going, he seemed shocked. "Be careful,'' he said.

I had to pay the hotel concierge a wad of bills to call around the city to find the one rental car left in Baltimore.

Within moments of planes being grounded across the country, rental cars were at a premium. He found one in a neighborhood that could best be described as "The Hood." In Baltimore, that's a nasty place. It took nearly 45 minutes for my cab to get there. All of the office buildings in Baltimore had been evacuated and people sent home, fearing another terrorist strike. At the rental car place, a couple of guys sweating in undershirts tried telling me there were no cars left. I got firm with them, told them we'd just called and where I was headed.

Surprisingly, they became very friendly upon learning my destination. "Well, we have that one out back, if you don't mind a Tempo,'' he said.

I didn't mind. But they didn't have any maps left. Another challenge, since I'd never been to Washington and had no clue where I was going. I crossed my fingers and figured I'd be smart enough to find what I needed. Traffic was non-existent heading from Baltimore to the capitol. The other side of the highway was a parking lot. Everyone was leaving Washington. Nobody was going in.

The first week that I worked in Seattle last year, when the Blue Jays came to town, I went over to chat with trainer Poulis. His first words to me were: "You know, I'll never forget how on 9-11, you were the only one heading into Washington while everyone else was getting as far away as they possibly could.''

I'd never thought of things that way. The magnitude of the day's events didn't really hit me until much later on. At the time, my biggest concern was getting to Washington, finding the Canadian Embassy, talking to folks in charge there and on the street, then getting to the Pentagon. I was worried about where to park my car, knowing all the public garages would likely be shut (they were) and that there are some very bad streets in DC. Fortunately, I had bagged all my extra quarters throughout the year, making it easy to feed parking meters (yes, like a good Canadian, I was worried about paying for my street parking on 9-11).

The hours that went by were, as I said, a blur. I spotted the domed capitol building from the highway and some smoke off in the distance that I figured to be the Pentagon. Found everybody I needed to talk to. Looked for the "color" that newspapers always ask for in big events.

Used my Baseball Writers Association of America card to talk my way past police and national guardsmen to get right up to within feet of the Pentagon. That in itself is pretty amazing, since our cards did not have photographs on them like they do now. Different time, different level of security. In spite of what was going on, the police and guardsmen often tried to talk baseball when I showed them my ID and told them why I'd been sent.

My memories of that day are of the smell of smoke, which was always around. It drifted over to the small Sheraton Four Points where I'd booked a room for the night and could see the Pentagon out my window. That night, my story filed, was the first time I was able to see any television coverage from New York. It hit hard. Two weeks earlier, a buddy and I had flown to New York to take in some jazz for the weekend. We had stayed at the World Trade Center Marriott, checking out on Aug. 28. The hotel was destroyed, obviously. I thought of all our 4 a.m. bedtimes and noon wakeups and kept wondering if we'd have ignored all the alarms going off before the towers collapsed. I wondered about the hotel employees, and the surrounding neighborhood, having spent much of the summer at that hotel while the Blue Jays played the Yankees and Mets.

I thought about all this that night as I sat in the small Sheraton's tiny restaurant lounge, eating cold food, drinking my bottles of beer a little too quickly and trying to ignore the smell of smoke wafting off my clothes.

The next day, at 7 a.m., I got a call from Toronto. Our Washington bureau chief, now back in the capitol, had seen a television interview the night before with the brother of a woman missing from the Pentagon. He'd only caught the tail end of it and remembered the guy's first name and that he lived in Manassas, Va. The office knew I'd done investigative reporting and had ways of tracking people down. Within a few hours, I was in Manassas, the famed Civil War locale for the Battle of the Bull Run (which I'd read up on as a little Canadian kid) and had tracked down the home of Arthur Carver, whose sister, Sharon, had been working at the Pentagon when the plane hit.

Families of dead or missing people react two ways when a reporter knocks at their door. They are either furious for the intrusion, or, more often than you think, very talkative, as if the interest being shown provides a type of catharsis for their grief. Arthur Carver invited me into his home. He was rushing around, trying to arrange a babysitter, as he prepared for the drive to Washington -- back to the emergency resource center for the family of Pentagon victims he'd been interviewed at the night before. We talked about his sister as he got dressed and packed an overnight bag. Talked about her recent family reunion trip to Walt Disney World and how nice it had been for her, even though he'd missed it. He showed me her photo and gave me one to use in the paper. "She's still missing, you know?'' he said, as if showing her picture around might provide a way to locate her.

I followed Carver around that day as he pressed authorities for information about his sister's whereabouts. Ran into other families, grieving and seeking information just like him. The last I saw of him, he gave me his number and told me to call him later to see if there was any updated information.

And that was about it. My third day was spent at the Baltimore-Washington International Airport, trying to get a ticket (at any cost, the paper had said) on to one of the first planes being allowed to fly back out. No deal, I was told. Only existing tickets were being honored on a limited basis. I never thought about the whole thing until afterward. About why I'd want to get on the first plane so soon after such a devastating terror strike. Just for the sake of doing a story. The office had told me it was strictly voluntary. Would I do it today? No, I would not.

I'd had enough. The next day, exhausted and tired of smelling the smoke across the street, I called Toronto and told them I was headed home. There was no way to get a flight home, so we booked a one-way rental car that I, after collecting my things at my Baltimore hotel, drove all the way to the border crossing at Buffalo, NY. I chose the route through Williamsport, Pa., having covered the Little League World Series a couple of times. The greenery and peacefulness of the mountainous area were welcome. My Boz Scaggs CD played in the car. No radio. I was done with 9-11. At least for that day. Dropped the car off in Buffalo and paid a cabbie $200 to drive me over the border to Toronto.

It took 12 hours, Washington to Toronto. I arrived home at midnight and was out having breakfast at my favorite Bloor Street diner the next morning, as usual. Washington seemed a world away. A couple of days later, our paper printed a list of victims from New York and Washington. I scanned the Pentagon's list. Sharon Carver's body had been found.

I visited the WTC site in New York while covering the Mariners in the playoffs that year and wrote a piece on the mood of New York for our paper. I was at Yankee Stadium the night George Bush threw out the first pitch in Game 3 of the World Series. Have never been more nervous covering an event in my life. I visited the WTC site one more time in 2003, finally able to glance around the neighborhood I'd frequented so often in 2001 without smelling the smoke or seeing charred debris at every turn. Was amazed at what a souvenir-hawking, tourist gawking circus it had turned into. Didn't like it.

My only other time back came this past June. My girlfriend and her family were with me in New York and had not been down to the site since 9-11. So, we went. The area around it is a lot more tasteful now. Less gawking, more respectful tourists. Less tacky souvenirs of miniature towers on keychains. They've built something of an information center/museum down there, offering up a fitting tribute to those who have died. They have a memorial wall with the names of all those who perished in New York, Washington and Pennsylvania. I scanned it quickly and found Sharon Carver's name. I said a silent prayer for a woman I'd never met and quickly moved on.

So many lives were changed on that day six years ago. So many continue to be impacted by it daily, both here and overseas. Some of us are lucky enough to cover baseball for a living. We all talk about perspective when something bad happens, but, as with human nature, that lesson is quickly forgotten when things like a Mariners losing streak we describe as "devastating" comes up. That's OK, I guess. It's what humans do to forget something awful.

Life goes on. For better or for worse.

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Posted by ethan

12:14 PM, Sep 11, 2007

http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/world/ny-wocheck0120,0,532599.story?coll=ny-world-big-pix

Posted by M's Fan in CO Exile

12:39 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Great post, Geoff. We are six years removed, and it helps to remember from time to time what that day (and really many months afterward) felt like. We cannot forget, it's too important. A co-worker walked into my office and looked out the window at the top of a building next to ours this morning. "Why is the flag at half-mast?" he asked. Thanks for reminding us all why.

Posted by -k

12:48 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Best piece of writing i've seen on a newpaper website in years. both the quality of the writing, and the quality of the person described by the actions taking on september 11th, is why we are so lucky to have you here in Seattle.

Posted by dave p

12:58 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Awesome, Geoff, just awesome.

Posted by SF Ms Fan

1:04 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Geoff, you're a powerhouse. That's a fantastic article.

Posted by SF Ms Fan

1:04 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Geoff, you're a powerhouse. That's a fantastic article.

Posted by SF Ms Fan

1:05 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Geoff, you're a powerhouse. That's a fantastic article.

Posted by truth

1:10 PM, Sep 11, 2007

5 words ''9/11 was an inside job.''

Posted by Will

1:17 PM, Sep 11, 2007

I hope the Loose Change morons don't start polluting this comment thread.

A great piece of writing, Geoff.

Posted by M's Defender

1:22 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Thank you Geoff for the article and the kind words on this the 6th anniversary of 9/11.
I was and still am in Seattle but may have been stand a block away when Tower #1 fell and I learn my cousin a NYPD sgt was in there trying to save someone love one.
All he ever wanted his whole life was to be a cop so he could help people and stop some the insanity out there.
He dies in Tower #1 doing that very thing and I want Bim Laden's head on pole every time I think of him and all the other inncent ones.
It's bad when Iraq is mention or even the name Al-Quida etc...but on 9/11 til I die will make me cry.

Posted by gigharbordad

1:42 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Geoff, thanks for sharing the personal memory. I couldn't help but think of that morning while driving up I-5 through downtown Seattle on my way to work. I was here in Seattle, but a good friend of mine was in New York at the time (fortunately on the other side of the city). We've talked about it a few times, and as shocking as it felt from here, I'm not sure it matches the emotional impact of being anywhere around New York or Washington that day.

Great piece of writing that puts entertainment like the game of baseball in perspective. It also shows why we need it.

Posted by 116in01

2:02 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Thank you Geoff. It means a lot to have you share your memories of the day that changed life for all of us, Americans and Canadians. We all love baseball, it represents all the good things America offers but we need to keep it in perspective as well. I feel compelled somehow to share today as well so if you want to read my story then continue, if not then scroll down to the next post.

We all remember where we were on that day. It was late afternoon and I was in Athens, Greece just finishing up a three week tour as a contract helicopter pilot working for the Greek Fire Brigade during their fire season. I was having a frappe on the veranda of our company supplied house when my fellow pilot yelled at me through the house that a plane had hit the WTC. We watched the second impact and the Pentagon aftermath live on CNN International. The remainder of our crew, the mechanics and administrative personnel joined us within the hour and we began an eerie television vigil lasting until nearly 1:00 AM. The United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Greece and Italy were all represented among our crew members yet we all felt as though each of us and our home country had been attacked. We all seemed to instinctively know that our lives and our way of life were about to change forever.

My wife was out doing some last minute shopping with a friend that day in Corinth for a week on the island of Santorini that was on the agenda for the two of us starting the next day. I quickly called her and she and her friend returned to join us. Every member of our crew and the spouses that were present were in complete shock that day. We ate a simple meal of spaghetti and fresh local bread that the gals whipped up. Many bottles of Mythos beer were consumed that night. I will never forget the love that was shown to us Americans by the members of our crew that were of other nationalities.

The next morning my wife and I left for Santorini even though neither of us really felt like following through on our vacation plans. We really just wanted to get on a plane and come home but that was impossible, no airline was allowed to fly to the United States. We spent seven days in a daze on that island and we were treated like royalty. The Greek people were so gracious to us. The moment they discovered we were American our money was no longer any good. Meals and drinks were bought for us and in a one case the owner of a restaurant actually wept with us when he discovered who we were. I will never forget the kindness of those we met on that trip.

When we finally left Greece ten days after the attack we flew from Athens to Amsterdam and then on to Seattle on Northwest Airlines. Our fellow passengers were very solemn throughout the ten hour flight but everyone on board broke into cheering and in some cases weeping when the wheels touched down on the runway in Seattle. We were home at last to the country we loved.

Posted by a baseball fan

2:04 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Geoff - now you understand why the Yanks mean so much to us born & raised New Yorkers, even those now living in the Pacific NorthWest

Posted by Fish

2:08 PM, Sep 11, 2007

I remember i woke up that day with my step dad waking me. He said that something was happening in New York. I watched the Today show as they showed the coverage. I remember vividly watching the second plane go into the tower and then watching the tower fall. I had to head to school where all we did was talk about what happened and watch the coverage on TV. I will never forget that day.

Posted by Spokane E-Six

2:29 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Thanks, Geoff.

You've reminded me that baseball's importance is ephemeral, like the summers in Seattle when I was growing up.

Your words have also reminded me that the fleeting thrill of the sport (and all sports) is also one of it's greatest virtues, in that it gives us a break from the Things That Matter, often in the very moments when an escape, however brief, is desperately needed.

During the days following 9/11 when play was finally resumed, baseball was, for me, both Nothing and Everything at the same time.

Posted by Mike (Bellingham, WA)

2:34 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Long time lurker of the blog, first time commenter (sp?). Anyway, amazing piece, Geoff. I think everyone has their own memories of the day, I was actually awake at 6 in morning that day, bizarre for a 17-year-old, but I had an ASB meeting before school. Never forget sitting there in a towel after getting out of the shower, eating my Lucky Charms with my jaw hitting the kitchen floor. Like I said, great piece Geoff, it's a pleasure to read your work - baseball and non-baseball related.

Posted by Cubby

2:40 PM, Sep 11, 2007

My apologies to thewyrm and AKMarinersFan and (grudgingly) to Oregon fans for mistakingly assuming they don't have any emotional investment or loyalty to the Seattle-based Mariners.

Please forgive this lovable Cubs transplant. I am used to seeing loyalty to baseball franchises in terms of North and South boundaries — of the same city! It didn't occur to me that fondness for the local baseball team might reach to far-flung locations beyond the Yukon Territory.

Posted by oregongal

2:41 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Great piece, as always, Geoff. One of those life changing experiences I wouldn't wish anyone to have to live through. Your writing brings it back to life, even after all these years.

Posted by scottM

2:41 PM, Sep 11, 2007

from (supposed) baseball fan: "Geoff - now you understand why the Yanks mean so much to us born & raised New Yorkers"

I loved Geoff's post, but when I lived in New York in the mid-80s, it was the rise and triumph of the Mets that was far more meaningful for the native New Yorkers I met there than the Bronx team was. The Mets appealed more to the regular Joe. Steinbrenner's history of bullying tactics and spend-to-win-at-all-costs shenanigans still keep most baseball fans reviling the Yanks. Starting with buying Reggie Jackson, George's tactics corrupted, not only MLB, but all of pro sports. Don't try to link the Yankees to 9/11. It's just another damn Yankee ploy. And I loved the way the D'backs won it all in 2001!!

Posted by James from VA

3:03 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Thanks for sharing Geoff.

I was in the area on 9/11, and my wife (then my girlfriend) was living about 5 minutes from the Pentagon. At the time of the attack she was working near the State Dept. (which was also rumored to be under attack, as a lot of news was unconfirmed at the time of the attacks) - I can relate to the madness and chaos that you've experienced. And how can I forget the smell around the Pentagon when I drove her home that night?

Baseball after that day helped a little in remembering that we are Americans living in this great country. I'm glad to have experienced the magical season of the 2001 Mariners and the up-and-down playoffs culminating in the D-Back win over the Yankees. Even though baseball is just a game, it is also more than a game - and that is a very American (and Canadian too!) insight, which is why the 2001 season meant so much more to me.

Posted by NickBob

3:14 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Great post, I hope your editors see fit to print it on the dead tree edition.

Posted by Eburg T

3:34 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Thanks Geoff. Definitely puts baseball in perspective, doesn't it?

Posted by Pete In Vancouver

3:36 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Geoff -

A tip of the hat; a wink of the eye: let's go watch some baseball.

Thanks Canook

Pete In Vancouver

Posted by pablocjr

3:38 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Thanks, Geoff. Great post.

Posted by MikeC

4:28 PM, Sep 11, 2007

THANK YOU!

Posted by stealth

4:31 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Geoff,

I'll simply echo the other sentiments and say that your post was very moving and full of resonance. Watching the M's simply fall off the map the last two weeks or so has just been such heartbreak, but this really does put it back into perspective. I was reminded of how everything simply didn't seem to have the value or importance that it once did on that day and in the days immediately afterward. Much like when a loved one dies or some other shocking, massive personal change takes place: the world stops, the "important" things fall aside, and we are forced to take pause at where we are in our lives and shore up exactly what is valuable and meaningful.

Thanks again for a moving, marvelous recollection. And thank you for bringing it all back home and sharing your experience with us all.

Posted by Sioux City Sam

4:33 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Well done, Geoff. But please reject all offers to leave baseball reporting.

Posted by Mike

4:36 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Geoff,
Phenomenal post. Your blog has simply been better than any other I've read before. I hope your bosses take note. Even with the season sadly going down the toilet, I still find myself coming back to the blog daily. Thanks!

Posted by DumpMac

4:36 PM, Sep 11, 2007

WELL DONE!!!

Posted by Nat

5:13 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Excellent, heartfelt article, Geoff- thanks for sharing it!

Posted by MelGibsonSr.

5:46 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Great post Geoff. Great season (for you).

In short, I was a Cruise Director and that day we were in Glacier Bay, AK. One of the most beautiful days there sailing the Glaciers. No one outside, everyone inside looking at CNN over satellite. Never forget the horror of 9/11 and the serenity in the Bay.

Also, our frequencies were knocked out in our Main Show Lounge from all the radio traffic in te area. Crazy.

Posted by Quinault

6:34 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Thanks for sharing. Our little Native Nation was impacted that day as well. We had 2 Quinaults in WaDC - Our President (now former) and Legal Council (Current President). These women had to drive home across the country. Our former President's birthday is 9/11. Being an adult, birthdays are no longer counted. The sad news is that she can never celebrate one ever again. I wish her a long life. May we never forget.

Posted by Tay

6:38 PM, Sep 11, 2007

You know, I'm glad that you and other people who comment on this blog recognize how rare it is these days to truly affect on how AMerican was changed six years ago. For me, in junior high then, I spent hours and hours that day watching the news, trying to understand how someone could justify such horrible acts in the name of religion. Thanks for your words.

Posted by a baseball fan

7:20 PM, Sep 11, 2007

to scottM - Were the sour grapes really necessary? In your haste to criticize, you missed the point. For New Yorkers, the Yanks run to the WS in 2001 was something that helped the healing. You might have appreciated that a bit more had you not been a visitor.

Posted by One Armer

8:56 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Yes! We will give up a certain DP for a wrist!

Give it up team!!!

Posted by Swung On And Belted

10:07 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Geoff, Thanks for sharing that. WOW!

Posted by Anna11

11:01 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Geoff, thank you so much for sharing this with us. I really appreciate your insight and your story. None of us will ever forget where we were that day.

Posted by lascauxcaveman

11:02 PM, Sep 11, 2007

I was in DC on that day too, staying at a hotel in Chevy Chase checking out the Smithsonian and other museums on my way to my cousin's wedding in Bordeaux.

Needless to say, we didn't make the wedding that week, but my wife and I did visit Arlington. I probably never will see France, now.

Weird time, to say the least.

Posted by Marinerboy

11:49 PM, Sep 11, 2007

Geoff! That was EPIC!
On behalf of all your readers here in Vancouver, BC, thank you SO much for sharing!

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