20 Things I Love About Kevin Kouzmanoff

January 19, 2010

I got #20 in the 2009 Leaders list, which is so cool! To start off, I want to thank every single one of my readers. It means so much to me! Thank you so much for supporting me through everything. Without you guys, I would not have been able to get through losing Trevor Hoffman and Jake Peavy and I won’t be able to get over losing Kouz without you guys. Thank you so much!! I know I haven’t been blogging much lately, but things are definitely going to pick up with the millions of tributes I have to write for Kouz. Here’s the first of many.

If you’ve been reading this blog for any amount of time, you know that Kevin Kouzmanoff is my all-time favorite baseball. He still is, and always will be. I was devastated when I found out that he got traded. The worst part of it was that the trade talks had died down completely and it actually looked like he would be hanging around here for a while. This came out of the blue.

When I realized that the arbitration deadline was coming up, and that Heath Bell got a contract, I got really nervous. I’d been dying for the Padres to sign Kouz for weeks. I just wanted him safely locked up!

I was on a retreat all weekend, and my best friend’s brother had to tell me the bad news. It was not good. He told me not to let it ruin my day, but it was too late. I lost my favorite baseball player, my baby. I’m grieving for him.

Though he is not playing for the Padres anymore, I am still Kouz’s biggest fan. He may be wearing an A’s uniform, but he will forever be a Padre in my heart. Just because he’s with another team doesn’t mean I have to stop being a fan of his. I can’t wait to watch his new chance with Oakland. I’m going to be watching him and cheering for him as usual.

It’s going to be super weird without him here in San Diego, though. A highlight for going to a Padres game for me is getting to see him, to watch him play. This year, when I go to Petco for a few games, he’s not going to be there. We won’t get to “Kooooz” when he comes up to the plate or makes an incredible defensive play. I’m going to miss him like crazy!! 

It’s going to be hard to cope with, but I will get over it…someday.

I give you 20 things I love about my dear Kevin Kouzmanoff.

1. His smile.

2. His passion for the game of baseball.

3. His commitment to being the best that he can be.

4. His baldness.

5. His defense.

6. The way he dives and snags a ball that you thought was going through.

7. The way he pops up, hurling the ball all the way across the infield.

8. His humor.

9. The way he interacts with the fans.

10. How casual he is. He’ll got to a formal occasion in a t-shirt and jeans.

11. How he goofs off on radio interviews.

12. His leadership in the clubhouse.

13. His love for San Diego and its fans.

14. How he hit a grand slam on the very first pitch he saw in the majors.

15. How he came up to four girls and gave us autographs and how I fell in love with him right there.

16. The tons of walk-offs and huge hits he’s given us over the past three years.

17. How excited he would get when a teammate got a huge walk-off.

18. The way he loves to do crazy things, like flying with the Blue Angels.

19. The way he went about his business quietly, never putting too much attention on himself.

20. The way he played Padres baseball.

I know I could go on and on with this list but I’ll stop here. He’s just an amazing guy, and he is going to be very missed here in San Diego.

Love you Kouz 🙂

Thank you all so much for your support. There were a bunch of questions in the comments in my Q&A entry, and I just wanted to let you guys know that I will be getting to those sometime this week. Also, I have a question about baseball statistics that will be adressed later in the week as well. Thank you so much for your interest in my opinion in these subjects!

GO PADRES!! GO KOUZ!!! 

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Written by Kaity Bergquist Posted in Dailies Tagged with #20, kevin kouzmanoff, kooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooz, kooz, kouz, kouzmanoff, padres