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>>People Spit and polish >>
Expos clubbie loves cleaning up after jocks by CHRIS BARRY Photo by Jason Felker
Nickname:
Moop
Age: 17
Occupation:
“Clubbie”
Salary: Minimum
wage
Bio: This
boisterous hunk of teenage beefcake is currently in his second season
as a “clubbie” for the Montreal Expos. Recommended for the
position by his high school basketball coach, Philippe is the lucky
individual who gets to clean up the sunflower seeds, spit and various
other sundries left around the S’pos clubhouse and dugout. He also
“does the bucket”—a duty that entails chasing balls around
the infield during pregame batting practice and “putting them in
the bucket.” “The team throws me an extra 20 bucks for doing
bucket.” A superior athlete himself, he lives just up the street
from the Big O and is currently doing make-up courses in math so he
can get his high school diploma at the end of the year. He has yet to
go on the road with the organization.
Did he have
to go through rigorous preseason try-outs before making the team?
No.
Are all his
friends envious of his summer job? “Some of them are. You know,
the ones who work at McDonald’s and do jobs like that. I’m
so happy I don’t have one of those jobs. Clubbie is so much better.”
The vibe inside
the clubhouse of a team that rarely draws more than a few thousand fans
a game and who will most likely be moved at the end of the year:
Good. “These guys just love to play baseball, that’s their
passion. They do often talk about wishing more people would come out
to the games though. But I think they’ve gotten used to it.”
Does he find
a lot of drug paraphernalia lying around the dugout at the end of games,
like there purportedly was during the Expos’ late ’70s glory
years?
“Oh no, never.”
Do any of the
players ever order him around, insisting that he wash the interiors
of their Rolls Royces when he is done mopping up their garbage? “No,
the players are all really good people.”
Is telling chicks
that he picks up Vladimir Guerrero’s dirty socks after baseball
games a good way to get them in the sack? “No, not really.
I never use my job as a trick to pick up girls.”
Best part of
the job: Finishing at the end of the day.
Worst: Cleaning
hair out of the drain in the clubhouse shower.
Childhood ambition:
To become a fireman.
Current ambition:
To get good grades when he goes to study social sciences at CEGEP
next year.
How he spends
a lot of his time: Working out at the Sun Youth gym. He played on
their football team last year.
How often he
gets high: Never. “These things aren’t good for you when
you’re into sports.”
Musical preferences:
Eminem, Limp Bizkit.
A recent film
he thought was pretty rad: Blade 2.
Favourite television
show: Spin City.
Last book read:
Sacred Hoops, by Phil Jackson.
Words of wisdom:
“Learn from your mistakes.” : Comments? dimwit@openface.ca |
Name:
Philippe Labrecque