By Diane Stanley
February 7 2003

This weeks interview is with none other than our webmaster, Gary Spate. Thanks Gary for doing this interview for us so as we can get to know you a little better. So over to Gary!

My name's Gary Spate, I'm 20 years old, I live in Grimsby in the UK and I am the publisher of the biggest and one of the best UK based Major League Baseball web sites on the net. I have been a fan of the Chicago White Sox for about seven years.

First of all I would like to congratulate you on the success of Top Of The Ninth. How did you get started with the site?
Thank you, it's been a fantastic season with plenty of very high points and I'm glad Top Of The Ninth has been there to report it. I have always been a user of Rivals.Net due to my love of Grimsby Town Football Club, the largest GTFC fan site in the world is hosted by Rivals. When I saw that they were looking to expand to sports other than football (soccer) I enquired about setting up a baseball site. My plan was approved almost instantly as one of the producers is a baseball fan. Within two weeks the site was live on the network.

If you could interview any active player for TOTN, who would it be and why?
Most people who are relatively new to baseball would probably pick Barry Bonds as their choice of interviewee but I would have to choose Jose Canseco. He has had such an amazing career spanning sixteen years and in his Major League rookie season posted an impressive .302 average. The original Bash Brother with Mark McGwire in the 1980's and early 1990's were the most powerful offensive partners in the whole of the Majors. A career that's seen him play for the A's, the Rangers, Red Sox, Blue Jays, Devil Rays, Yankees and the Chicago White Sox and in every club he's been successful. Definately one for the Hall of Fame in my opinion.

What do you find the most rewarding part of being site publisher for TOTN, and what is the most frustrating?
The most rewarding part of being the publisher at Top Of The Ninth is having the chance to meet many baseball fans. Living in the UK true baseball fans are few and far between so this site has given me the chance to talk about the second most important sport in my life with other people who receive the same amount of coverage of the sport as me. The most frustrating part of being the publisher is the fact that as most people in this country don't have much of an idea about the game and they therefore tend to believe that baseball isn't worth the airtime on our TV. You will no doubt see many articles coming onto the site throughout the World Series written by newly converted baseball fans.

When did you first get interested in baseball?
Believe it or not it was the movie Field Of Dreams that changed my mind about the game. I think it was around 95 or 96 when I first started liking the game. I am ashamed to admit that before I saw this movie I thought baseball was just a "glorified rounders". I've learned so much about the game since then though.

Are you an avid viewer of the games on channel 5?
I always watched Channel 5's coverage until about two months ago when I started a new evening job, I have been too tired to stay up and watch the games live so now I just set the VCR. Channel 5's coverage has come on in leaps and bounds since the first night of broadcasting about five years ago. I was very sad to see "the Mooseman" leave in the summer but I am pleased to announce that he will be back presenting live from New York and Arizona exclusively for Channel 5 during the World Series.

Are you satisfied with the amount of games shown in the UK or would you change things around?
Ideally I would love to see one baseball game every night of the week on Channel 5 but I cannot fault Channel 5's excellent coverage. With baseball still being a "developing" sport here in the UK I think that the amount of coverage it receives here is justified.

Do you stay up to watch the games live like a lot of British people who write to me or are you a "taper?"
As I said in an earlier question I used to watch the games live on TV until I started my new job so sadly I'm now a "taper".

We all know you are a White Sox fan. How did they become your team?
To be honest I haven't got a clue. I suppose it has to do with Field Of Dreams. Watching this movie was what got be first interested in the game and the movie was based on former White Sox players so this has to be the reason.

How do you feel about the local rivalry between the Cubs and the White Sox?
There are 30 teams (correct at time of going to press) in the Majors so trust me to choose a Cubs fan to be the first person to join the site. In all honesty though, in my few years of being a baseball fan I've never encountered any animosity from any Cubs fans (except for Matt Phillips - nasty piece of work, he is!) Having two teams in one city is great fun and makes an excellent atmosphere in the ballparks.

What is your favorite and worst baseball memories and what are the reasons for these choices?
My favourite baseball memory has to be the 1998 home run race between Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa and Ken Griffey Jr. This was my first season where I've seen live games (all on Channel 5 of course). My worst has to be the week-long break in action following September 11th's events, I don't need to explain the reasons for this.

I know you have never been to the States before, but if you could attend any Major League ballpark which one would it be?
I have always liked the look of Tropicana but I find the historical ballparks the most exciting, Baltimore would probably be my first stop.

Who is your all time baseball hero and why?
"Shoeless" Joe Jackson. I have read all the evidence and I have no doubt that Joe is innocent. He played to win throughout the World Series of 1919 and he always spoke the truth under oath. Shoeless Joe will always be a hero to me even if the Hall of Fame disagree.

We are all agreed that Jackie Robinson has done more than any other player to change the face of baseball, but who else has done his part to change the game and why?
No one could ever compare to the breakthrough that Jackie Robinson made during his Major League career but Babe Ruth has also been an inspirational force in the game. Just when the game was at its lowest ebb following the disasterous 1919 World Series, Babe Ruth came from the ashes and restored baseball to its rightful place as the USA's national pastime.

Do you collect baseball memorabilia?
The only baseball items I collect are "Double Play" magazines that BaseballSoftball UK produce.

We all know the chance of a player strike could happen after the playoffs are over. Do you think this will happen?
If a player strikes over pay then he doesn't deserve to be in the Major Leagues. There are millions of people who earn no money at all to live, ballplayers are on millions of dollars per year and they still have the cheek to complain that they aren't being paid enough. It probably will happen but I hope MLB don't give in to their demands.

It seems like the Florida Marlins and the Montreal Expos will soon be teams of the past. How do you feel about this and what do you think can be done to stop other teams meeting the same fate?
It will be a great shame to see the two teams suffer this kind of fate, especially for the Florida Marlins as they won the World Series only a few years ago. I would like to see MLB change their mind as I am sure that with the right kind of marketing and publicity the two teams can once again become successful clubs who can draw in decent crowds.

Which teams do you think will be trying to make the biggest changes to their roster this coming off season and why?
It probably goes without saying that Tampa Bay will need a serious rethink about their roster. Also teams that seemed to fall at the last hurdle, Seattle and the Cubs for instance. It seems that they lost their edge towards the end of the season and therefore they gave up their chances of progressing to the World Series. I feel the Yankees may alter their offense slightly in the off-season, they haven't performed as good as they are capable of this season.

Who do you think will win the World Series?
All the bookies are predicting another Yankees victory but the D'Backs do have a very strong chance of pulling off magnicient displays. The Yankees will be expected to win, the players themselves will be confident they will win so I believe they may take themselves for granted and slip up. I'm rooting for a D'Backs win this year.

Thanks for your time and helping us get to know the guy behind TOTN.

If you would like to be the next interviewee,
please contact me (Diane Stanley) at greenfan@shawngreen.net