Out of Left Field: Twitter, baseball and how Ozzie Guillen has got it just right

This column is down with the social network kids, y’know. You can find me on the ol’ twitter here. You’ll find me tweeting away like the little birdy that I am, amongst the myriad baseball tweeters discussing every little thing in 140 character outbursts. Alternatively, if you want someone who knows what they’re talking about then you need to start following Matt, of this here parish. So, in the spirit of these exciting times, here’s an Out of Left Field Special Edition on the world of twitter and baseball.

If you want an insight into the crazy world of Chicago White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen (and believe me, you really do), then you need to haul yourself over to his twitter page.

There you’ll read such gems as:

• Where is my guy arsenio hall my favorite show in the 80s

• Today is the birthday of one of my favorite people ever frank you are the best happy birthday my great friend and is not thomas

• Sean penn defended chavez is easy when you have money and no leave in out country shame on you mr penn

• (and one for all you Spanish speakers) Que payaso el gringuito que vive bien chevre en estados unidos

In years to come, people will return to these pearls of wisdom to guide them through baseball, and indeed, through life. Why the White Sox won’t let him have his own website, we’ll never know. I hope it’s just because they are holding out for a fly-on-the-wall documentary series. Or a book deal. Ozzie, we salute you!

While Guillen is the apparent King of Twitter, he’s not the only baseball personality on there. I guess it’s the ideal time-killer during those lazy, hazy days of spring training.

Nick Swisher certainly seems like a friendly fellow, with his Whats up everyone? How’s your day going? And Hey everyone! Checking in what are you all up to tonight? I guess not all those damn Yankees are evil after all. It’s good to see a player reaching out a little, rather than just navel-gazing.

Mark Teahen appeals to my inner quiz geek with regular questions of the day, asking followers to attribute the quote, such as “Go tell Bruce Bochy to throw his hat on the field so we can play under it and avoid this rain.” Sadly, I haven’t a clue with any of them, and so I’m more and more drawn to his bio: “It’s a bitch bein’ a bitch but I’m making the most of it. When life gives you a bone, chew it.” Er…thanks Mark!

Washington Nationals’ new boy Chien Ming Wang is far more matter-of-fact: I have decided to sign with the Washington Nationals. I am eager to move forward with my career. Thank you for your support! No bizarre attacks on Sean Penn from him, no sir.

Tampa Bay Rays’ Manager, Joe Maddon, is a genuinely good person to follow on twitter, from time to time offering some real insight into how things are going for him and his team, and also offering some nifty advice on wine. I hope he manages to keep it up this year. He may be no Ozzie, but I guess there can only be one Ozzie, right?

While there are plenty of automated feeds, little-used accounts or plain dull ones, twitter does, at least on occasion, offer us a sneaky peek behind the curtain and find out what is actually going on, on the pitch and inside the participants’ heads. As the twitter phenomenon grows it will be interesting to see if MLB and the clubs generally try and curb activity, for fear of scandal and bad PR, or whether they allow players and managers to harness social media to the best effect. It’s easy to feel distant to these multi-millionaire sportsmen. At least twitter brings them a little closer and makes them feel a little more human. And that can’t hurt.

So, folks, who do you cyber-stalk on twitter? Or, perhaps you’ve found some baseballers lurking on Facebook or MySpace or Bebo? Why not save your poor correspondent from doing any actual research and let him know in the comments below?

Have a good week, until next week.