Back to basics

   I am going to come back to my bread-and-butter - baseball.  I just turned off the Yankees-Dodgers game in favor of Discovery: Health (Hoarding:  Buried Alive, Ch. 279 on DirecTV).  Disturbing watching this guy walk around his house knee deep in clothes, garbage, books, and magazines.

   What is even more disturbing is the way Andy Pettitte is fielding his position (or should I say not fielding it).  He has only one error tonight, but should have two (they gave one to Robinson Cano).

   The inning started with a double to right field by Reed Johnson and Kershaw coming up.  Sac bunt.  Pettitte threw it down the left field line, allowing Johnson to score.  The announcers were saying it's the catchers call and A-Rod gestured to go to first base as well, but the ball wound up in left field.  Man on 1st, 1 run in.  Furcal bunt single.  1st and 2nd, 0 out.  Belliard sac bunt to Pettitte, who threw wide of Cano covering first.  Kershaw scored, Furcal to third, Belliard to second.  Sac fly from Ethier scored Furcal, allowed Belliard to go to third.  IBB to Manny-wood, Casey Blake struck out, Loney walked, Martin grounded out to third. 

   3 Runs.  2 Hits.  2 Errors.

   What Pettitte didn't execute is what we like to call in the baseball world PFP's.  Pitcher's Fielding Practice.  Something that is done day after day after day in spring training, in college baseball, and in high school baseball.  The reaction of pitchers after day three or four in a row is usually to roll their eyes, their necks, or just put their heads down.  Truth is, it is something that can win and lose games and add or shave points off the ERA.  So far tonight, it's biting the Yankees in the ass.

   Pettitte had only 29 errors in 15+ year career.  Pretty solid.  Six errors is his season high, in 2003 with the Yankees, when he won 21 games.  Might have been 22 or 23 if he made a few less errors.  Regardless, 29 errors in 15 years is excellent (.954 FLD%).  Greg Maddux, perhaps the best fielding pitcher there ever was, had a .970 FLD% (53 errors) in his 23-year career.

   When it boils down to it, a successful pitcher can repeat his delivery, throw to spots, and can field his position.  Throwing 96-99 MPH helps, but those guys are rare.  PFP's, everyone is on the same level as far as they go.  It's what you do once you get the ball that seperates the winners from the losers.

   Pettitte (.954 FLD%) has a career 238-137 record.  Maddux (.971 FLD%) was 355-227.  Both can field their position.  Both are successful (Maddux was).  Whitey Ford (.961 FLD%) was 236-106.  Bob Gibson (.949) was 251-174. 

   Chuck Finley (.907 FLD%) could have had more wins (200) and a lower ERA (3.85) if he could only field his position.  Randy Johnson (.904 FLD%) would have been less of a pitcher if he hadn't thrown 100 MPH in his prime - he made 5+ errors in a season in 11 of his 22 years on the mound.  Maybe that was his problem, leaving the mound.  When he was bringing the funk, he was nasty.  When he tried to field his position, he was awful.

   Anyway, non-baseball people can probably give two shits about this post, but it resonates with me.  I considered myself an excellent fielding pitcher when I played.  It's something you need to take pride in.  It saves your team, your pitch count, and your ERA.

   Here's a link to a great article on PFP's published on MLB.com earlier this year:  PFP.  Give it a glance, and if you happen to know someone who knows someone who's kid pitches, tell him to take a look.

   Help a young pitcher out, hit him some ground balls.  Trust me.

Bad to Loud to Good

Just got back from a long two days of recruiting and have another day-long event tomorrow to go to.  The first thing I did when I walked in the door was head straight to the fridge.  Not because I'm a fat-ass, but because I was a little parched and I was thirsty. 

I'll preface:

I was sitting in traffic for 35 minutes to go one mile. (admittedly pretty damn frustrating.)  For anyone that knows me, you know how irate I can get when I sit in traffic.  So I calmly began shuffling for CD's to pop in - This is Hell's "Weight of the World" is on heavy rotation.  I proceeded to roll down all my windows, and blasted the record.  I had people looking at me like I was driving a hot pink, hot dog shaped car.  (I drive a 1998 Mercury Mountaineer).

From then on I was shouting, spitting sunflower seeds out the window, and trying to prevent people from using the shoulder as a self-imposed third lane (I've touch on this before regarding people who ride Yamaha/Suzuki crotch-rockets).  I got honked at several times for providing a slow-moving road block, but I just shrugged.  I wasn't the one being impatient (for a change).

Then I got to the problem - four open CASH lanes.  Not sure how many there normally are, but I'm gonna go with eight.  The E-ZPass lanes are side-by-side in the middle.  Well played NJDOT, well played.

I got through it and turned the music louder as I headed for home.

I digress.

I got home and went to the fridge.  Took out the gallon of milk and the chocolate syrup.  Found the biggest glass I could find and mixed myself up an ice cold glass of chocolate milk.

Here's my recipe for chocolate milk:
1.  Pour in 2" of milk
2. Pour in chocolate syrup for 4 seconds
3. Stir it up
4. Top off the glass with milk
5. Re-stir
6. ENJOY!

So good I'm going back for another.  Hooray for chocolate milk!  (and loud music)

Beat it, Z!

The Cubs have suspended struggling, troubled and often over-emotional pitcher Carlos Zambrano indefinitely.

Upon being lifted after the first inning today against the White Sox, Baby Z had an altercation with 1B Derrick Lee (he let up 4 runs in the 1st).  His latest explosion came after he felt Lee and 3B Aramis Ramirez didn't dive for balls he thought they should have.  Well Carlos, maybe if the balls weren't smoked down the line, they'd have had a chance to react.

I mean things are bad in Cub-land.  Lee, a career .282 hitter, is batting a paltry .233 this year with 10 HR and 33 RBI.  Ramirez is struggling as well.  He returned to the lineup for the first time since June 7 at Pittsburgh (left thumb contusion).  He's also a career .282 hitter but is hitting .165 with 5 HR and 22 RBI this year.  They're 9 games under .500 and 4-6 over their past 10.  They have a manageable 3.91 ERA as a staff but are only hitting .257.  That formula won't amount to a good season for Cub fans.

With two big guns in the lineup along with an always excitable Big Z having poor seasons, Lou Piniella doesn't have much going right on the North Side.  I am going to say it ain't his fault, I like Lou.  My guess is old Carlos there doesn't.  But I'm sure the feeling is mutual - Piniella can get a 5.10 ERA and 4.5 BB/9 IP from any shlep in their system.

Zambrano is a baby, plain and simple.  He's a hot-head who has all the ability in the world, but carries the weight of the world on his shoulders (and he probably can, he's 6'5" 260 lbs.) 

The Cubs are 8.5 GB of the Cardinals.  They'll run out Carlos Silva (8-2, 3.01) tomorrow against "The Rock" Freddy Garcia (8-3, 4.85).  Should be a dandy on the South Side.

In the meantime, Carlos, stay home and take a hard look in the mirror, if you haven't thrown it out the window already.  You'll always be a lightning rod.  Grow up.

P.O.D.

Fireworks always have a way of putting people in a good mood, and with July 4th coming quick, why not use this as a little teaser. 

All these pictures for the P.O.D. are taken by me with my camera or my cell phone.

Hope you enjoy the new daily feature.

Shut out and Shutouts

I sincerely apologize to my loyal legion of followers (the three of you) for my lack of posting recently.  I have been busy with work and trying to find a new look for my blog spot.  I hope you can bear with me, I will be sure to make it up to you.

Heading over to the diamond, there has been an awful lot of shutouts lately in the MLB.  Thursday featured three (CWS 2 ATL 0 // MIL 5 MIN 0 // TOR 5 STL 0).  Wednesday night there were four (CIN 3 OAK 0 // KC 1 WSH 0 // STL 1 TOR 0 // NYM 5 DET 0).  Tuesday saw only one shutout (SEA 2 CHC 0).  That's eight shutouts in three days.  There have been 127 shutouts in the big leagues this year already, and we still have just over two weeks before the 2010 Midsummer Classic in Anaheim.

It is shaping up to be the "Year of the Pitcher".  More specifically, it's the year the NL West's pitching staffs are dominating baseball.  Four teams rank in the top 6 in shutouts - Padres and Rockies (9) lead the majors, and the Dodgers and Giants (6) are both tied for 3th. 

Breaking it down, 2009 and 2010, 1st Half statistics:
--2009 - 14 SP's with 80+ IP with ERA < 3.00
--2010 - 23 SP's with 80+ IP with ERA < 3.00

--2009 - 12 pitchers with 10+ wins pre-All-Star break.
--2010 - 23 with 8+ wins (2+ weeks before All-Star break)

--2009 - 24 pitchers with 80+ IP with WHIP < 1.20
--2010 - 30 pitchers with 80+ IP with WHIP < 1.20

--2009 - 32 hitters with 17+ HR (Albert Pujols, 32)
--2010 - 8 hitters with 17+ HR (Jose Bautista, 20)

--2009 - 16 hitters with 60+ RBI (Albert Pujols, 87)
--2010 - 1 hitter with 60+ RBI (Miguel Cabrera, 61)

Call 2010 the "Year of the Pitcher", I know it's still early, but I see no end to this dominance in sight.  The proof is in the numbers.  And with Stephen Strasburg on the scene tearing up opposing lineups like Nathan tears apart napkins, look out.

You think there's a coincidence that HR numbers are down since the Steroid Squad (McGwire, Canseco, Bonds, Sosa) stopped playing?  I think not.  Those guys are dirtbags - and not in a good way.  They ruined the way casual fans look at the game - me, I'm a professional fan.  (If there's such a thing)  These guys should get shut out of the Hall of Fame.  They're losers.  Scumbags.

Time for some dinner, gonna whip something up for LMD, Julia, and myself.  LMD is cleaning, I'm banned because all I do is get in the way.  Gonna go get some prosecco to mix with elder flower for the women, and some beers for myself.  The ladies can pretend they're high class.

Later!

P.O.D.

I'll openly admit I'm guilty of making occasional mistakes on my grammar and punctuation.  There is one thing I make no mistake about, and that is finding flaws when other people do it.  Here's another P.O.D. from Dallas, second one in a row. 

Now I love me some dessert - specifically cheesecake and key lime pie - as long as it ain't dry, like a desert.

Shame on you ROMA EXPRESS, check the work before the damage is done.

P.O.D.

Not sure why I found this so amusing but seeing our waiters name on the check made me laugh.  I didn't make a scene, but I did have to cut myself off from laughing out loud.  I've been looking for what the heck this even means since the day I took this picture, and for the life of me can't get an answer.

BLASITO!!!!

WOW, what a low price!!

I was scouring the web for some new tech toys and gadgets, specifically Sony electronics.  I have been to every comparison shopping website in the history of the World Wide Web, but become.com allows me the widest variety of options to choose from.  In New York City, there always seems be a buzz about sporting events going on (Yanks, Mets, World Cup, etc.) so a television is almost as much of a must have as a MetroCard.  Personally, I'd rather buy a new television, relax in my apartment, and enjoy the game with LMD and Nathan than go out and get bumped into, have beer spilled on me, and have my feet repeatedly stepped on.

One of the televisions that I was checking out happened to be a 40" Sony Bravia I could not find on one of my trusty sites.  Become.com has a huge selection of Sony electronics, namely televisions and television accessories, but the thing with the site is they always lead you to another site that currently has whatever it is you're looking for In Stock.

And if you're a big soccer fan and really want to experience the World Cup 2010 (which just saw the USA advance into the round of 16), then one of these Sony electronics products in your living room may be just what you're looking for.  They even have this Sony surround sound system for $266.00 - something I'll probably invest in once I'm a homeowner.  I mean you can go to your trusted mortar-store or their website (Best Buy, Sears, wherever else) and pay top dollar for this stuff, or you can do your homework, and go to become.com to find yourself a deal.

I don't need a television, but I do need some other things, so I'm gonna go hunting for a deal.

World Cup 2010 - USA advances

We're talking World Cup again - watching the USA struggle through this game with Algeria.  It is really tough to watch.  They got another goal called back (second time in three games.)  It's a conspiracy.

Landon Donovan, the best US-born soccer player ever, just scored in stoppage time - they will be moving on.  1-0 over Algeria.  Algeria went through the group stage without scoring a goal - and we stuggled to get by them.

I actually clapped - it's a sign of my patriotism, not my devotion towards soccer.  I love my country, but this USA team is severely overrated.

People in the stands are crying.  I never see people cry when the Yankees win the World Series!?!

USA! USA! USA!  The rest of the world probably hates us, but who cares.

T$H - Weight of the World

This is Hell is hardcore in it's purest form.  I happened to go to school with Travis, so of course I'm biased, but this album is a must own. 

It rocks like their first full-length, "Sundowning", and in my opinion, "Weight of the World" is their best album.  Their second full-length, "Misfortunes," is a distant third.

The drums are fast, the vocals piercing, the breakdowns are heavy - it's the best hardcore release of the year, hands down.  These guys don't get the respect they deserve, but I don't think they really care.  They just put out music that kicks you in the face.  And it's awesome.

If you have the chance to listen to this gem, you'll be rewarded.

And if you have some more time, check out guitarist Rick Jimenez' band, Soldiers. 

Also, if you want a little lighter listening, give Travis' brother Brandon's band, Nightmare of You, a listen.  You'll be pleasantly surprised what he's evolved into since his late-90's, early-2000's melodic hardcore band The Movielife.  It's the first time he's done vocals, and he kicks ass.

Going to rock out.

We're talkin' NY baseball

Yankees Win.  The-e-e-e-e-e-e Yankees Win!

OK so it wasn't a huge win, but seeing how Boston and Tampa Bay both lost, it gave the Yankees another day to be alone at the top of the AL Beast.

Andy Pettitte was an absolute monster last night, going seven strong innings while scattering seven hits in the Yanks 9-3 win over Arizona.  The ageless one improved to 9-2 on the season and is looking forward to an impending All-Star nod.  His ERA dropped to 2.48, he struck out seven batters, and threw 73 of 113 pitches for strikes.  Unlike previous nights starter AJ Burnett, Pettitte limited the damage with 2-out - allowing only a fluky 2-run single to P Dan Haren in the second inning. (Haren is hitting .452 this  season with 6 RBI.)

The Mets bounced back from their Subway Series loss, pounding out 18 hits in a demolition of the Tigers, 14-6.  Both starters were equally terrible - Justin Verlander (2 IP, 5 R) and Jonathan Niese (4.2 IP, 6 R). (Niese, for whatever reason, went back out after a 90 minute rain delay.  That's no way to treat a young arm Jerry Manuel.)  Verlander's relief was just as bad as he was - Jay Sborz had an MLB-debut to forget - .2 IP, 3 H, 5 R - and left with 67.50 ERA.  It'll get better Jay.  Angel Pagan was huge for Los Mets (4-6, 3 R, 2B, 3B, 4 RBI) and David Wright had a solid game for the Mets (3-3, 3 R, 2B, 2 BB, 2 RBI).

I don't get to watch many Mets games - but from what I remember, they have some lollygaggers.  Maybe I just think they loaf around, or maybe it's from my disdain for the way Carlos Beltran plays the game.  I am not so sure the Mets miss him - Pagan is hitting .304 with 34 RBI and 41 R to go along with 14 SB.  Pretty good production for a guy with a $1,500,000 salary. (Beltran makes $11,000,000 and hasn't stepped on the field.)

Crap, it's late, gotta get ready for work.  T$H's new album Weight of the World is awesome.  I'll discuss later.

"Sorry baby."

Driving through a crowded parking lot often calls for slow speeds and open eyes.  Said parking lot was as packed as I'd ever seen it before, whether it be for the movies (Toy Story 3 or Shrek Forever After) or because of the deals going on over at Barnes and Noble.  In any event, people should drive with caution in crowded parking lots.

Not long after we got out of the car, we were crossing the lanes within the parking lot limits to get to B&N.  We're about half-way through the first lane and a car rips around the corner - I mean she actually accelerated to make a turn - and almost took out LMD.  I mean this car missed using my wife as a speed bump by two feet.


I went ballistic. I called her an series of expletives and pumped a raised my fist at her.  Onlookers were shocked at the language used to address such a driver, but it was instinctive.  I did, however, refrain from flipping this lady off, which is usually my first reaction. (I guess I showed some restraint.)   I was convinced that if I had something in my hand - anything - I would have fired it at the car.  I am not kidding, she accelerated and miss LMD by two feet (2', 24", 2/3 yd.)  There was a lady holding a baby just outside the entrance, who happened to see the whole thing unfold.  "Sorry baby" I said, to which the mother laughed.  She was thinking what I blurted out.


Now it's pouring out, so this aforementioned mad-woman driver is probably tearing up a side road at 65 mph with no wipers and her lights off.

Now I am going to search for new cars - or new used cars.  "Blue" seems to be running out of steam.  I guess for $800, having a car for over two years is a good return on investment.

Happy hunting!

Slim it down

Two pointed topic.

First, I will blabber about my plans to begin a workout regimen, every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday.  I learned in one of the classes I took in college that goals often times do not come to fruition if you do not write them down - well, here it is.  I just typed it down, and that seems to be as close to writing as you're gonna get on a computer. (I wrote down the exercises on a post-it note also.)  I just did a little workout at the apartment, but am going to turn it on when I get into work today.

First stop is the weight room to work out.  Next stop is Dunkin' Donuts for a large iced with milk and sugar.

Second, can the Yankees close out an inning one time?  (Namely A.J. Burnett)  Bad AJ showed up last night in the desert, as the D'Backs pounded the Yankees starter to the tune of 7 runs in 4 innings, including three homers in the first.  Amazing how a guy with such good stuff can be so inconsistent.  Is it a lack of trust? 

I digress.  The reason for this post was to discuss how closing out an inning will severely slim an ERA and keep your team in the game.  The D'Backs scored all 10 of their runs with 2-outs.  That is just a lack of focus and a lack of control of the game.  Frustrating, especially as a pitching guy.

Here's the shake down: 
Bottom 1:  F7, 6-3.  Two quick outs, no one on base, leads to a 5-run inning.  (HR, single, single, HR, HR)
Bottom 2:  3u, 4-3.  Two quick outs, no one on base, leads to a 1-run inning.  (single, double)
Bottom 4:  F7, 4-3.  Two quick outs, no one on base, leads to a 1-run inning.  (2-out BB, SB, single)
Burnett done.  He was done in the first.
Enter Chan Ho Puke.
Bottom 8:  single, K, single, K.  Two out, two on, leads to a 3-run inning. (HR)

Oddly enough, in the 1st, 2nd, and 8th, Justin Upton was the guy to come up with 2-outs.  He did more than enough, going 3-3 with 2 HR, 4 runs, a stolen base, a hit by pitch, and a walk.  He had a hand in 8 of their 10 runs.  Well done young fella.  Maybe the Yankees can figure out this house of horrors and come back to win a series. (they just lost their first game to the Mets and won that series.)

Time to focus up and get ready for work(out).  I'm gonna be jacked!

Guac and Roll

Just got done making my self-proclaimed famous guacamole again tonight, hoping it is as good as it was last night when I made it for my father for Father's Day.

I really have no specific recipe, and I love limes, so it can get lime-y from time to time.  Jalapenos, plum tomatoes, some lemon juice, cilantro, salt, avocados.  Pretty basic, might start getting a little risky and adding in some other ingredients - mango, shrimp, corn- you know, mix it up a little. The one thing I leave out of my guacamole is onions.  I love raw onions, I just forget most of the time.

We got some sweet potato fries going in the oven, and the burgers are gonna go on pretty shortly. 

Guests are here.  Time for a bootleg BBQ in this bastard borough of the Bronx.

When they were picking out boroughs for the city of New York, they figured Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn, Staten Island, and we'll throw the shittiest one as far north as we can and call it the Bronx.  Dump.

Fooooooooood!!

Rants, Raves, Ridicule, and Riots

Rant:  Hello Summer!!  Although it's been hotter than hell for the past several days, today is officially the first day of summer.  Summer Solstice.  Longest day of the year.  Hottest day in recent memory.  Take your pick, but I for one am a fan that technically, summer is finally here.  The forecast looks decent for the foreseeable future - mid-80's every day for at least the next 10.  The hottest day ever in NY State was way back in July of 1926, when it reached 108 on the mercury up in Troy.  It isn't quite that hot here, but it's getting there.  Part of me questions if that is really the hottest it's ever been in NY.  108 degrees?  Maybe, it does seem pretty hot.

Anyway, welcome summer, glad you're finally on board.

Rave:  This rave has nothing to do with sports.  In fact, it has everything to do with Facebook.  People are constantly writing status updates and comments (for which I am guilty) but there seems to be one glaring issue I cannot tolerate - abbreviations.

You just wrote three sentences as a status update, but you refuse to spell out "to" and instead use "2".  2day, 2morrow, happy birthday 2 you.  It's two freaking letters.  Spell it out.  I can deal with the OMG and WTF abbreviations, but how lazy are those who shorten words.  Just spell it out, you can do it.  And the people who leave out vowels on words - come on.  I know there is shorthand, but there is also laziness.  On a CD like the Deftones new Diamond Eyes, there's a song "CMND/CTRL" - I'm good with that, because they rule.  Facebook users, you do not rule.  Spell out the words.

Ridicule:  Alejandro Falla (sounds like "fire") BLEW IT!!  You had a chance to knock the #1 seed out of Wimbledon, and you choked.  Up two sets to none, Roger Federer rallied for a 5-set victory.  I guess for a guy who's never really had much success in tennis tournaments, this is to be expected.  You need to know how to win in order to win a big match.

If a team is constantly losing (like the Pirates), when a tight situation comes about late in a game, chances are they'll find a way to blow it.  Not because they are a bad team, but because they aren't used to closing out that type of game or performing in that type of situation.  Falla has only advanced past the second round once this season (Australian Open).  Maybe it'll be good for the 65th ranked player in the world.  Something to draw upon in the future, when he's up two sets to none again.

Riot:  Good for the French.  I find it hilarious that they blame the coach for their pathetic play.  Coming in to the World Cup, they are the 9th ranked team in the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Rankings.  They are in 3rd place in Group A, 3 points behind Uruguay (16th) and Mexico (17th).  They are tied with host South Africa (83rd) with 1 point.  The two teams will play tomorrow.  The French are looking for their first goal of the 2010 World Cup as well.  Pretty pathetic.  That's like saying the Yankees blaming manager Joe Girardi for their failures - all he does is put the best possible lineup on the field to give his team the best chance of winning.

These French need to take a good, hard look in the mirror and realize they are playing for the price of their country.  Stop bitching and blaming the coach and take accountability for your own actions.  Toughen up sissies.

Time for a toss.  Peace and grease.

Hello, Newman.

All things offensive

1. The Yankees offense is offensive.  After getting owned by Takahashi Okanashi or whatever his name is last night, the Mets took game one, 4-0.  The Yankees have scored a measly FOUR runs in the past three games after lighting up Roy Halladay. 

Those starting pitchers have a combined ERA of 4.21 this season.  I mean that is pretty average by MLB standards.  It's not like they faced three big names either - Jamie (Abe Vigoda) Moyer, Kyle (Don't Call me Howie) Kendrick, and Hisanori Takahashi.  Had it been Cole Hamels, Johan Santana, and Mike Pelfrey, maybe, but those three stooges? 

I guess it really goes to show you how good these guys really are.  Even the guys who you think belong on a club team can beat anyone on any given day.  Rings true with the Yankees.  They get to hit against Mike Pelfrey today, so things aren't getting any easier.  They counter with Phil Hughes, who is having just as good a year as Pelfrey. (Both are 9-1 with a 2.39 and 3.11 ERA, respectively)

Trying to avoid dropping four straight today, and fourth straight to the Mutts.

2. USA World Cup Soccer Team.  This is supposed to be the 14th ranked team in the world, and all they can manage is a 2-2 draw with Slovenia (25th)?  I mean it seems to me that every time there's a World Cup, the US media tries to pump it up and make it a big deal, but the results are always the same.  As my buddy Ralph said to me on Facebook, "what a joke. Every four years its the same over-blown hype about nothing. why do they even bother playing this sport anymore?"

I suppose the USA is fortunate their remaining game in Group C is against Algeria (30th), but they need a point.  Their best match was against the best team they've played, England (8th). 

Truth be told, soccer is an international sport.  Not a national one.  We have our national pastime, BASEBALL.  And if you're looking for "America's Team", that'd be the Dallas Cowboys of the National FOOTBALL League.

3. The oppressively hot temperature in our apartment.  It's only 10:00 am and it's already starting to feel like a sauna in here.  Nathan is moping around because he's so damn hot in here.  Time to crank up the box fan - no we aren't poor, we have an air conditioner in the bedroom.  Immediate relief, although Nathan seems to think it's a good idea to sit behind the fan.  He's not the brightest dog.

The windows in this place allow cold air to pump in during winter, and don't keep the place cool in in the summer.  They might as well be made of clear cellophane.  I am not going to let the curtains and drapes block the windows, because then we'd get less of a breeze than we already get. 

I hate it here.

4. Wayne Knight's role in FOX's new show, The Good Guys.  Rumor has it, he is only going to be in one episode.  What?  Maybe he wanted it that way.  I ran in to him recently in Dallas in a CVS on Main St.  He even took his headphones out of his ears and had a little conversation with me.  Seemed like a really good dude.  I will post the picture in it's own post.

According to givememyremote.com, he plays a low-level clerk at the County Records office.  Read it yourself, I'm not plagiarizing.

Time to get in touch with my brother.  He answers his phone somewhere between very rarely and never.  I hope it's very rarely.

Oh well, at least our seats were good

At least our seats were good.  (Section 106, Row 13, Seat 10) - four rows back, not 13

Andy Pettitte looked awesome early and worked out of some jams late.  Shane Victorino, the "Flyin' Hawaiian", smoked a ball to left field to give the Phillies a 3-0 lead.  Damn Carlos Ruiz was on base all night too - 2-3 with 2 2B's and 2 R.  Nothing like getting beat by the light hitting eight hole hitter.  Oh well, that's the way baseball goes. 

Robinson Cano seemed to be the only Yankee in the lineup to have a halfway decent approach at the plate tonight.  Granderson was taking check swings on 0-0 fastballs, Gardner seems to forget he flies and tries to lift everything.  And don't even get me started on Joba the Hut.  He was awful again - he didn't record an out.  Two hits and a walk, and then he turned it over to Damaso Marte who proceeded to let up Joba's runs - good for him.  Swisher was fed up too, he was in the stands the whole ninth inning.  Damaso Marte threw well I thought - besides the time he threw a 3-2 fastball to Utley to the backstop.  Chan (w)Ho? Park got torched too, but got bailed out when Raul Ibanez got hit with a ball just off second base, otherwise it would have been worse than the 7-1 loss.  Tough to win with only one run on the board. 

They lit up Roy Halladay in game one of the series and got shut down by Abe Vigoda, errr Jamie Moyer and Kyle Kendrick.  Funny game baseball is.  Now Los Mets come in for a three game series.  I hope the Mets get pumped.

Lakers are about to win the NBA Championship, and if they were playing any other team in the league, I couldn't care less.  But I have Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Doc Rivers' raspy-ass voice. 

Paint it purple and gold, Lakers win, theeee-e-e-e-e-e-e-e Lakers win!

Baseball and Birthdays

Well, the Yankees almost pulled it off last night against the Phillies.  Brad Lidge's ERA went up from a 1.12 to a 2.00 and he made the game pretty interesting.  He's been pretty automatic since he's been healthy this season, so it was good that the Yanks showed a little fight.  I was on the flight back from Dallas, so I missed it.  We flew AirTran but I wish I would have gone JetBlue.  AirTran has some of the most cramped seating of any airline I've ever been on.  K, K, BB, 2B, 1B, K.  He struck out the side, but all the drama started with a two-out walk to Mark Teixeira and could have ended with a walk-off. 

The Rays are reeling (7-6 in June), the Yankees have been fairly steady (10-4 in June), as are the Sox (10-5 in June).  The Blue Jays have fallen back down to Earth and the O's are still looking for an answer.  Shaping up to be a three horse race again, for like the fifth straight season. 

I am going to the Yankees game tonight - and am just counting my blessings I don't have to suffer through a Jamie Moyer start.  Kyle Kendrick vs. Andy Pettitte.  Andy is going for win #201 as a Yankee and #238 overall.  He is putting up incredible numbers thus far, with his only real bad outing being against the Rays on May 20th (5 IP, 9 H, 7 R) in am 8-6 loss.  Looking forward to the game - it's always nice seeing a game at the Stadium, freaking thing is awesome.  It's really a sight to be seen.

The Rays are on the docket too, as Big Game James Shields takes on Tim Hudson in Atlanta.  The Yanks could take over first place tonight.  Hudson has been nothing short of dominant this year (6-2, 2.43 ERA).  He's had some command issues (30 BB in 85.1 IP) but has pitched out of the jams for the most part.  His last outing was a 2-1 CG loss to the Twins (8 IP, 7 H, 2 K).  When he's on, he's tough to hit.  Let's go Timmy.

Party at the "Copacabana", Barry Manilow turns 64 years old today.  He's still knocking them dead - I mean he should be, he's probably had a lot of $$ pumped in and out of his face.  He's made quite the transformation - I mean normally, you go from left to right, he went the opposite direction.  Wrinkles be gone, poof!!  I am kind of glad he chose Barry Manilow, seeing how he was born Barry Alan Pincus.  He was raised in Williamsburg Brooklyn.  He started off writing jingles, and his most famous being State Farm Insurance ("Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there...") and Band-Aid's (I am stuck on Band-Aid, 'cause Band-Aid's stuck on me!").  Happy Birthday Barry, and thanks for taking on your mother's last name.

Back at work, gotta do some work.  Going to purchase some chain and lock it down at Gaelic.

Lock it up!

Thanks!!

Just wanted to write a quick post thanking everyone (and anyone) who happens to stick around on my blog long enough to read a few things.  I do it because I like writing and I hope you like reading.

Thanks for visiting and next time you're on, leave me a comment with anything you'd like me to cover.

Cheers!

Not a total wash

Well, all this eating and drinking had me feeling pretty crappy.  I felt like I would need to be rolled out of here by the end of the trip.

Just got back from the hotel gym - awesome set up in there.  Plenty of machines, plenty of bikes, plenty of treadmills, plenty of free weights, plenty of people.  And I was one of them.  Now, repeat the food and beverage portion.  At least I don't feel like a total piece of doo-doo.

Headed to the MAT to meet some former teammates of mine from our days with the Silkworms.  Bottoms up!

Spare some change

Homeless people seem to be rampant in Dallas.  Not that they are anything like the homeless in NYC, they are pretty nonchalant.  They aren't up in your face, they ask for a quarter here and there, and they ask for donations for morning newspapers (the ones you get for free in the plastic containers - real estate, autos, etc.).  All you need to do is walk past them.  Some guy even read me poetry.  I gave him a buck.  I was duped.

There is, however, a large police presence in the downtown area.  They are always around, whether it be on foot, bicycle, motorcycle, car, or van.  They're all over, regulating on the homeless ass.  There was a lady yesterday on a street corner, behind a bench, laying in the grass.  It was brought to my attention by the five police officers who were trying to control the situation.  All they needed was one - the woman wasn't moving and was covered in grass and dirt.  I immediately began looking for blood but there was none.  She was just assed out.

Homeless beware, the cops are out.  In full force.

The homeless are fans of the Lakers/Celtics series though - there was a congregation of about four the other night for Game 5.  They stood outside the bar and peered in through the windows.  I told Lindsay that if I happened to be by myself, I would have invited them in and bought them a beer.  Then I would have left, leaving them to fend for themselves.

They don't really sleep during the day like the ones in NYC, they're pretty active.  They seem to always be crossing the street.

I'm a good soul.

World Cup Fever

I have no ties to the New Zealand or Slovakia.  However, I found myself cheering when "the kiwi's" scored the match-tying goal two minutes into stoppage time to earn a draw with Slovakia. 

Winston Reid scored on a header and I actually gave a fist pump.  Weird.

These guys all have pretty cool names out there - Winston Reid, Rory Fallon, Vladimir Weiss.  Not many Robert's or Mike's.

Good for the little hairy fruits.

Iron Crap-tus

Headed over to the Iron Cactus for dinner.  Third floor seating, outside, nice views.  Fixing to be a good dinner.  Food was good, service sucked.

Maybe it was his first night.  I highly doubt it.  Either way, he was brutal.

AB 1:  Sat down for over 10 minutes before he came over to the table.  No silverware, no napkins, no menu, no drink menu.  "Can I get you a drink?"  I peered over to the bar, 45' away.  Lucky for him, I got pretty good eyes.  Lindsay got a water, I got a Negra Modelo and a Diet Pepsi.  Order taken, waiter gone to get it.  (Lindsay went to get a drink menu at the bar)  Comes back with a water and "What did you want to drink again?"  Told him the order plus a Bud Light Lime for the lady and five minutes later the drinks came.  0-1

AB 2:  Drinks were there, chips and salsa came out, still no menus.  Eventually (5 or 6 minutes) the doofus brought us out some menus.  Took a peek at it, and within the blink of an eye he was there to take an order.  We got the Gulf Coast Crab Cakes - probably not the best choice given the whole BP situation.  He left.  0-1 with a BB

AB 3:  Came back to us after a few minutes, and we told him our meal orders (Yucatan Fish Tacos for me, Spinach Artichoke and Grilled Portobello Enchiladas for Linds), assuming that's why he was back.  It wasn't.  He wanted to see if the chips and salsa were OK.  The drinks were empty, but he wasn't all that concerned with this.  Had he knows that I've been sucking them back pretty quickly lately, he woulda brought me out a bucket.  We had to tell him we wanted another round, even though it was blatently evident based on the two empty bottles on the table.  0-2, BB

AB 4:  He came back and asked us our orders again, after not having written them down to begin with.  Then he brought out the appetizer.  The jícama slaw was pretty damn good though (even though it was spelled "jicima" on the menu).  0-3, BB

AB 5:  Again with the drinks.  Saw empties, didn't collect them.  I thought we were able to turn them in for a cash refund applied directly to the principal of our bill.  This wasn't the case.  Food came out, it was good, a little too close to the appetizer, but at least it came out.  Then he asked if we wanted another drink after staring at our empties on the table.  Duh!  0-4, BB

AB 6:  He got benched.  We got the check and left him a 14% tip because he sucked.  He wished us a great evening, and we were out.  Man I hope that guy gets fired, he sucked.  But given what the manager looked like, his job is safe.  It was like the town of Dorkville up there. 

Post Game:  Back at the hotel, meeting an old colleague at Draft for a quick drink.

In MLB news, the Cardinals are taking it to the M's.  Seattle put up 2 in the top of the first, but St. Louis answered with three of their own, and added six more en route to a 9-3 win.  Luke French and Ian Snell both pitched like crap.  Adam Wainright settled in after a rocky start, and the Cardinals are now 1 game back of the Reds in the NL Central.  For once, it isn't a one-team race in that division.

Draft time.

Monday in Dallas

Today there were no celebrity sightings.  I took plenty of photos, but I feel as if they are of the same damn buildings.  Whatever, it's a good way to remember a trip - I try to find some good perspectives, good shots, and see how they turn out when I get them printed.

Went to lunch today at the Twisted Root Burger Co. - hey, Guy Fieri, if you're reading, I suggest you come here for Diners, Drive-Ins, & Dives - it's the freakin' coolest burger joint I've ever been in.  You walk up to the counter, order whatever you want, and get a name card.  I was Sean Connery and Lindsay was Uma Thurman.  The guy behind the counter calls your "name" over the mic, and you get your food.  I had some of their Twisted Pineapple Root Beer, pretty damn good.  Lindsay had a peanut butter milkshake. 

We then walked around for a while (2 hours) and stumbled upon the Dallas Farmer's Market - nothing as I had envisioned.  I figured it'd be more or less an outdoor flea market, but I was wrong.  It was a snooze fest.  We passed "The Petropolitan" on S. Harwood and went in.  There was a little short-haired dachshund there with very long fingernails, but damn that thing made me want to buy it.  Problem was, we're in Dallas, we have to take a flight home, and it was someone elses dog.  0-3, no deal.  I think it was a doggy day care kind of place.

We were then at a crossroads - go back to the hotel or keep trekking.  We chose the latter, and went back to Sol Irlandes to have a few afternoon cocktails.  I moved on from the Modelo Especial's from yesterday (#3 imported beer in the USA) to the Negra Modelo today.  That is basically what my Monday afternoon consisted of - walking around downtown Dallas and throwing back some short, fat bottles of beer.  Lindsay had a few sangria's.  We were sick to our stomach looking at real estate prices for the apartments/lofts located on Main St. in downtown.  It's sickening - $900 for a loft in the heart of the city.  If I lived here, I'd go to Sol Irlandes every day for a drink at lunch.  It's a pretty cool town, I assume I'd get used to the heat.  As it stands now, I sweat my ass off.

We are now back at the hotel, relaxing for a while before choosing a dinner spot for the evening.  Time for an afternoon, vacation nap.  There is no other time I can actually take a nap but on vacation.  There's really no other time I can actually have beers in the afternoon, either.  I feel like I am in a foreign country.  Minus the foreigners, plus hundreds of homeless dudes.  I tell you what, Dallas has an abundance of homeless people.  There was a guy wearing corduroy pants and a parka - it's 97° out man, lose the parka.

Nap time.  Spirit Airlines pilots are probably taking a nap too.  They sure ain't flying planes.

Hello, Newman.

Sorry for the lack of material this weekend - it's been pretty hectic - Saturday I was recruiting all day, Sunday was spent traveling.  Now it's Monday and I'm raring to go.  Got a lot of material to cover so let's hope you're ready to listen.

Saturday started with an 8:13am alarm clock, NIN's "Discipline" was the song of choice, as it is most days.  Some days, it's The Gaslight Anthem's "Boomboxes and Dictionaries", both solid choices to ease me into my day.

Let's start with the backbone of this blog - sports.

1.  Strasburg was dominant again, although he did walk as many guys (5) as he had in his previous 5 starts (1 MLB, 4 AAA).  He improved to 2-0 (Pirates and Indians) but let up his 2nd HR in as many starts, both to lefties, and both on a change up.  Either way, he's got 22 K in 12.1 IP.  The Nationals may make some noise after all.

2.  The Yankees completed a sweep of the Astros and in the process, moved into a tie atop the AL Beast with the Rays.  There's a World Series rematch series, beginning tonight in the Bronx, as CC Sabathia takes on Roy Halladay.  The Phillies are looking to regain their mo-jo (4-6 in their last 10 games) and crawl back into the NL Least race (3.5 behind 1st place Atlanta) while the Yanks look to distance themselves from the rest of baseball.  I hope I get a good pitching match up Thursday when I go with Lindsay and our fathers - I think it's looking like Moyer vs. Pettitte.

3.  Ted Lilly had a no-hit bid into the 9th against the White Sox, but settled for a 1-hitter and a 1-0 Cubs win.  We were in a bar here in Dallas, and there were a few Chicago fans - one guy, who everyone else refused to give pounds to regardless of how many times he tried - was the epitome of what a White Sox fan is (as told to me by another patron from Chicago).  Obnoxious.  A total jackass.  He was whining when they pinch-hit Juan Pierre to lead off the ninth, then after he broke up the no-no, he said he knew he was going to get a hit - douche.  This guy was shouting all night, almost fell off his stool several times, and was almost forcing his girlfriend (so it seemed) into making out with him - sloppy.

On Saturday, I was up at Blind Brook HS for a game after a showcase at Pace.  BBHS has quite possibly the nicest facilities for a high school I've ever seen.  Field turf abounds - football field, baseball field, soccer field, softball field - they might even have field turf in the hallways.  Almost like VCP.  Anyway, the thing that stuck out was a parent who was chirping the whole game.  Similar to a major league game, every pop up was a HR (or so he reacted), every ground ball was "just missed", and every strikeout looking was outside.  Anyway, same game, same guy - the 7 hitter snuck a dribbler between the first- and second-baseman, to which Super-Dad blurted out, "He squecked that one through there!"  Now, I'm no English major, but "squeaked" is a word.  Squecked, not a word.  #1 Dad.

Sunday was filled with air travel and ground transportation.  LaGuardia to Charlotte, Charlotte to Dallas-Ft. Worth.  The tail end of the trip was turbulent, to put it lightly.  I started getting sick from bouncing around in my seat.  Once we got below the clouds (all 3 minutes of it) and landed, it was great.  The landing was the smoothest part of the flights.  Got off the plane, went to find some "Shared Transportation" and got in.  There were 5 others in there, all going to right near where we were going.  The van was full, but the driver was convinced he may be able to pick up another passenger, so he drove around the airport (to every terminal) trying to find someone else to cram in.  Once he realized he had wasted over 25 minutes worth of gas, he decided to take to the roads, and eventually dropped us off at the hotel.  It was like riding on a wooden roller coaster with no seat belt - pretty scary.  Not quite sure if he was legal.

We strolled around Downtown Dallas a little, I of course snapped some photos, and then we went into CVS - the biggest CVS I have ever seen (I guess everything really is bigger in Texas).  While meandering through the aisles, Lindsay saw a guy and said "He looks like the guy from Jurassic Park" so I looked.  Wasn't sure who she meant, I mean it has been over ten years since I've seen the movie.  We were looking through the "Trial Size" stuff, and I saw the man again - NEWMAN!!  I wanted to be sure, so creepily stared at him for a few seconds.  Then I went up and asked if he was Wayne Knight, and that I was a huge fan (which is an exaggeration) but he is freakin' NEWMAN.  If you've never seen Seinfeld and are reading this, welcome to Earth.  Turns out he's in town shooting a show for FOX, The Good Guys.  I got him to take a picture with me - CVS was empty, so I didn't care.  Had it been full of patrons, I probably would have just taken a sneaky photo of him.  I will publish the photo when I get back to the BX.  How cool is that?

FACT:  Dallas's Downtown shuts down on Sunday.  We found a neat little Mexican restaurant for lunch - Sol Irlandes - we didn't stay for the karaoke at night though.

Passed out several times after getting back from lunch, but managed to stay awake long enough to grab a bite at Press Box Grill.  That's where we were blessed with the Chicago fans.  Ate, had a drink, left as soon as Lilly let up the lone hit in the game, and came back to the hotel to pass out.

Today I will venture out and try to find a place to eat some breakfast.  Lindsay is at the conference so I will explore, maybe I'll bump into another celeb.  Probably not, but I can care less.  NEWMAN!

Hello Big D!

When will a dependence racket the young cathedral?

When will a dependence racket the young cathedral?

not quite sure what that means?!?

Brett Carroll shows how it really feels to strike out

Contrary to the macho fascade hitters put on following a strikeout (A-Rod purses his lips and looks at the big screen), any hitter at any level will tell you it's a crappy feeling.  Florida Marlins OF Brett Carroll has the best reaction I've seen, and most sincere. Too bad it hasn't gotten any easier for poor Brett - he has 29 K in just 76 AB's.  Thanks to Getty Images for this one.

Keep swinging it Brett.  Preferable earlier in the count.

Break out

I was just walking home at lunch and Lindsay said something to me, which I do not recall (sorry Linds), but I do recall one thing - breaking out in song over whatever that statement was.  And this has become a recurring theme lately with me.  Don't get me wrong, I am quite possibly the most tone-deaf person you'll ever meet, but I love me some song.  I will never get up at a karaoke bar and belt out "Living on a Prayer" but I will continue making up my own nonsensical songs and singing them to no one (but myself).

I mean this is something that has no precursor - it just comes out as a blob of words with no end in sight.  I can go on for minutes on random thoughts and ideas.  I don't do it to be funny, that just come naturally, and to be honest, I'm not even sure why I keep going past the first line.

Maybe try it out yourself, you might find yourself releasing all sorts of emotions through your song.  I let it all hang out once my lyrical assault starts.  Next time I break out, I will try to recall some lines from the song and let you have a taste of the stuff I'm putting down.

Keep singing!

((((parentheses))))

MLB:  Former teammate of mine (with the NECBL's Manchester Silkworms) Chris Denorfia had the only hit (a double to right field) for the Padres (in the top of the third inning) as the Mets staved off a double-header sweep with a 3-0 win (Padres won 4-2 in game one).  Mets starter Jonathan Niese faced only one batter over the minimum and poured it in with an 0-0 count (19/28 first pitch strikes).  The game took a neat two hours and eighteen minutes (almost a half hour quicker than the first game).  The Padres did have one bright spot (or two, Denorfia saved them from falling victim to a no-no).  They rolled a 5-4-3 TRIPLE PLAY!!  Jon Garland got Ruben Tejada to hit a one-hopper to 3B Chase Headley, who stepped on the bag, threw to second base (Lance Zawadzki) who then completed the triple play by getting Tejada at first (by a step). 

It was the eighth triple play turned by the Padres, and the tenth the Mets have hit into (not this year, obviously).

NBA:  Lakers lead the Celtics at the half (45-42) and are looking to go up three games to one (I hate Boston).  Pau Gasol is displaying his dominance (13 pts., 3 reb., 2 blk.).  Ray Allen (0-13, 0-8 3pt. FG in Game 3) finally hit a jumper (at the 11:00 mark of the 1st quarter) to give the Celtics the early lead (3-2).  He still only has one FG (1-6, 0-2 3pt. FG).

How in the hell did these Jersey Shore idiots make it on the CMT awards??  I'm watching a repeat of the show last night - Snooki is a little troll, The Situation is kind of funny, and Paula Deal uses way too much butter, but is awesome (she just said she could grate cheese on The Situation's abs).  I'm glad she got TKO'd at the bar.  She reminds me of one of those little good luck trolls (minus the luck).

Sorry my Paint skills are (severely) lacking.

I need a better program to edit pictures (maybe that'll be a gift to me, from me).

(Later world!!)

What You're $$ Gets You: WRT Style

We'll roll through this similar to the HGTV show "Bang For Your Buck".  We will pick a price point and compare similar characteristics for houses in different regions of the country.  For the sake of simplicity, we'll go with a crisp $250,000 price tag with at least 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. 

For the three cities we select, I will pull up a map of the USA and close my eyes and point to the computer screen (sorry, I can't find a globe).  Omaha, NE is city #1.  Lansing, MI is city #2.  Savannah, GA is city #3.  I am going to use http://www.realtor.com/ in order to search for homes. Here we go:

City #1:  Omaha, NE is the largest city in Nebraska, located right on the eastern edge of the state, bordering Iowa.  Over 438,000 people live in Omaha, and the home to the NCAA Baseball College World Series.  The median listing price of a home in Omaha is $150,000, so we are going way over the average here.

2,212 sq./ft. - 4 bedroom - 3 bathroom - 8 total rooms

Stone Exterior - Patio - Porch - Sprinkler System - Fenced Yard

Master Bedroom - 17' x 15'

Pretty nice looking house, interior looks ridiculous (kitchen anyway, which is my big thing).  Backyard lacks some usability, but it looks like a nice place to lounge - not a great place for kids.  I can deal with the lack of yard though, the interior makes up for it's shortcomings.  I would move here, yeah, only drawback is the neighbors right next to you.  No big deal though, growing up in Long Island is the same thing.

OVERALL: A- (better backyard makes this an A)

City #2:  Lansing, MI is located about 80 miles WNW of Detroit.  With just over 113,000 people calling Lansing home, it's the smallest city on our list today, but I'm sure you can get a lot for $250,000 (we'll go to $261,500 here due to lack of homes at our price point).  Lansing may be a little run-down, home prices average under $100,000.  Hmm, maybe I should have picked a different place - no worry, we're sticking with Lansing, home of the Lugnuts (Class A affiliate of the Blue Jays).  OK Lansing, whatta ya got?

1,845 sq./ft. - 4 bedroom - 3 bathroom - 9 total rooms

Basement - Detatched 2.5 car garage

All the bedrooms look small and the backyard is too wide open and there is no fence.  Looks pretty quiet though, no houses looming on top of you.  Not quite sure what there is to do in Lansing, seems like a pretty dead town.  I wouldn't want to move here, unless I was a huge MSU Spartans fan.

OVERALL:  C (not the ideal city, house needs exterior work)

City #3:  Savannah, GA is one of the most quaint cities in the South.  I've visited before and it's awesome.  I think I am biased towards this destination, but let's give it a look.  Very historic and scenic, Savannah has trollies running through town with easy on/easy off access.  There are 22 parklike squares scattered throughout Savannah, so grab a sweet tea and enjoy a moment of relaxation.  Average home price is about $113,000, but trust me, there are homes that go for millions as well.  The water walk is a great spot for an afternoon stroll, but let us visit (10 miles from downtown) Savannah (for $265,000).

2,868 sq./ft. - 4 bedroom - 3 bathroom

Hardwood Floors - Brick Exterior - 2 car garage

Minutes from the water

Backyard is again lacking but you are right near the water, just far enough from the bustling city, and located in a private subdivision.  You also have your own private walkway to the canal, for easy access to your boat (if you have one).  The brick exterior is sweet.  Entry way inside is nice, nice backyard deck.  Looks like a winner to me.

OVERALL:  A- (just outside of the city, backyard leads to water)

So there we have it, Omaha, Lansing, and Savannah.  I know my pick, but it'll cost you a little more than our $250,000 price point.  I think your money goes farthest with the Omaha home, and that house is very spacious, it's just land locked, and I like the water.  Lansing is a college town with a two hour drive to Lake Erie and hour and a half drive to Lake Michigan, but not much else happens up there.  The Savannah home is just outside beautiful downtown, a short walk to your boat slip, and a short drive to the Atlantic Ocean. 

VERDICT:  SAVANNAH, GA is the winner!  I would move there in a heartbeat.  Just would need to find a job.  maybe I can drive a trolley. 

Makes me a little (very) depressed knowing that I pay $1,400 a month for a 2 bedroom apartment that has 1 closet (in the hallway), a leaky roof, and a tiny bathroom.  Renting sucks.  Especially in the Bronx.  I'm going to shed a tear, someone pass me a tissue.

Rants, raves, ridicule, and riots

Rant:  Bravo to Yankees OF Brett Gardner.  This little flea has scored more runs (42) than Derek Jeter, Mark Teixeira, and Alex Rodriguez.  He is on pretty often (.395 OBP) and tends to get himself into scoring position by stealing some bags (20 SB/4 CS).  He sees more fastballs than any other hitter in the majors except David Eckstein, he leads the AL in pitches per plate appearance (4.52).  He is the best role player in baseball, bar none.  He can probably hit HR's in the grand scheme of things (he has only 3 in 194 AB) but he knows his job is to get on base, and he's done that very well so far.  He's the kind of guy every team needs, a little pest that is never (or very rarely) an easy out.  He has probably developed his toughness by being told he was too small his whole life - 5'10", 183 lbs. is small by MLB standards.  Don't let nobody hold you down Gardy, you the man!!

Rave:  Here's a sweet Lego rave I found on the internet.  I didn't know LEGO was around and prospering.  The DJ looks like an aviator, and the ravers look like prisoners.  Looks like a good party to me, but I wouldn't show up.  For starters, I hate crowds.  Secondly, I hate loud, base-filled techno.  Third, I hate the Jersey Shore scene and the drug scene, both of which are intrinsic to a rave.  I am a bar guy, and if I walk in and I can't sit down or play Golden Tee, I'm probably leaving after one drink.

Ridicule:  Kansas City Royals, you are a joke.  Your 24 wins are more than only six other teams, and you refuse to score runs for last year's Cy Young Award winner, Zack Greinke.  Surprisingly, you aren't in the cellar in the AL Central, the Indians are two games worse.  Here's the shake down:  Greinke is 1-8 with a 4.05 ERA.  You've won only two of his thirteen starts, and have scored only 40 runs in those games - a dismal average of 3.08 runs per game - give me a break.  You score 4.34 runs a game on average, no wonder there are always rumors that he wants to leave.  If I was him, I'd demand a trade to a contender.  Granted he's not putting up numbers like last year, but who the hell does?  Score some runs for this kid already. 

Riots:  You know what, with all the kids at all these camps and clinics, I'm not sure even half of them want to be there.  I think their parents makke the decision for them to play baseball.  Here's what may go through some of their heads when (and if they ever) get to first base.  Kids don't seem to have the same drive as we had when I was growing up.  I'm not trying to knock the kids or anything, it's just a trend that keeps rearing its ugly head.  Anyway.

He gone!

10 and 2

People who walk/jog/run with their feet at 10 and 2 really irk me.  Not quite sure why, but chances are, these are people who have never played a sport - and if they did, chances are they weren't very good at it.

Walk with your toes forward.  It's really not that difficult, and it prevents you from looking like a duck when you walk.  Try it out.

Quack, Quack!!

Covering all bases

Despite the best efforts of DirecTV to prevent me from access to the happenings in the sports world, I still am able to access the internet. HAH! They're sending a technician over on Thursday morning to try to fix the problem, even though the lady on the phone told me that "97% of the time, what I'm walking you through now works to fix this issue." Yeah right lady, SIKE! I won't lay into this guy too much, it isn't his fault after all. I just hope he can meander his way through the brush in the yard - it's a jungle back there.

The internet has provided me some information, however: Stephen Strasburg put up a pretty dominant line against the Pittsburgh Pirates tonight: 7 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 14 K. He struck out the side in the 2nd, 6th, and 7th innings, and allowed three of his four hits in the fourth inning (single, single, 6-4-3, HR, P4). 94 pitches, 65 for strikes. Lastings Milledge was his first strikeout victim, to end the first inning - Andy LaRoche was his last, to end the seventh inning. Every Pirates starter struck out at least once. He even handled the bat OK, at least from the box score - two ground outs to SS.

I'm guessing this kid had pretty good stuff tonight.

In other baseball news, Mike McCoy singled in the 6th inning, after the Rays had scored 7 runs, to break up a no-hit bid by TB starter Jeff Niemann. 48 career at-bats coming in to tonights game - hitting 9th. Poor Jeff Niemann.

Yankees are doubling up the O's right now, 6-3 heading into the bottom of the 6th. Swisher and Granderson have hit HR's for the Bombers - Swisher a 2R shot in the first, Grand(slam)erson a deli-job in the third. That's all their runs right there.

Lindsay is out with her friends catching "Sex and the City 2" at a theater somewhere in NYC and Nathan keeps looking out the window waiting for her to come home (right now he's eating, but he's strolling back over to the window sill).

What's the top search trend on Yahoo! you ask? Why it's everyones favorite, Uncle Jesse (John Stamos), who will apparently be joining the cast of Glee next season for an undisclosed amount of episodes. Top search topics on Google, is "lakers celtics" - the #1 annoyance of mine - a lack of proper punctuation. Bing's top search is the 2010 MLB Draft. No Manhattan College player has been taken, and our only hope really is OF Kevin Nieto, but that'll be late if at all. Dogpile fans searched Tom Cruise MTV Awards as their #1, I am not sure if I recall what he did. And finally, the users of Ask.com want to know, "What are the components of blood?" Sounds a little too in depth for me.

NBA news, Lakers were up 26-17 after one quarter and lead by 15 now. LAL 10-12 from the stripe, BOS is 1-4. Pierce and Allen were a combined 0-10 from the floor in the first half. Garnett has 10, Rondo 6. Lakers led by Kobe (10), Odom (6), and Gasol (4). I hope the Lakers roll by 30.

Nathan just fell off the couch, I have to go tend to him. Later world.

Strasburg has landed (and DirecTV blows)

Today's the day. 

Stephen Strasburg makes his ML debut tonight - and the fans in Washington D.C. have taken notice.  It's a sellout with only SRO tickets available at the box office tonight.  I hope the Nats' are able to perform in front of all those fans.  Average attendance this year at a Nationals home game is just under 21,600 a game.  Tonight, Nationals Park will be packed to the gills, with over 41,546 expected to have a seat and who knows how many more standing.

Every time he starts at home, it should be close to a sellout.  I hope it goes well.  I plan on watching this young man dominate the Pirates tonight.  I hope it's on TV here in the NYC area - MLB Network should have it on, but who knows.  First and last time a Nats/Bucs game will be nationally televised. 

My DirecTV was all sorts of screwed up this morning - it was 70 and sunny out but for some reason my satellite had no service.  I paid my bill early.  There is no growth around the dish.  The wiring is sound.  I called this morning and was put on hold and after 30 minutes listening to the worst elevator music imaginable, I hung up, after a profanity-laced tirade at the music - made me feel better.  DirecTV, your technical support service blows!  Maybe it wasn't just my satellite, maybe it took so damn long because everyone was fired up about theirs not working.  Let's hope it's ready to go at lunch, otherwise I'm unleashing fury on whoever answers the call.  They'll probably tell me they can't access the dish because my landlord refuses to do any work on the yard and it looks like a freaking jungle.  I think I actually saw a leopard scampering through the side lot.  Hey, dick, clean up this dump of a yard!

MLB Draft

The MLB Draft is on television tonight (it started at 7pm EST) on MLB Network.  No surprise to see super-douche Bryce Harper go #1.  I got my DraftTracker up on the computer because I can't stand to listen to it.  I like the DT because they give a pretty in depth scouting report on these kids, and it allows me to go back to my d1baseball.com site and scour through the teams to find these guys' stats.  The Mets are on the clock and selected Matt Harvey, a local kid (Mystic, CT) from UNC.  Stud-like numbers this year in Chapel Hill - 8-3, 3.09 ERA, 96 IP, 80 H, 35 BB, 102 K with a miniscule .224 BAA, in the almighty ACC.  Not to mention he throws low- to mid-90's  Good for the Mets, good for Harvey. 

The Astros are on the clock now, I think they can use some help right now.  Astros pick is in:  Delino DeShields Jr., son of former Expos great Delino DeShields.  I think they should have found a stud arm but DD Jr. is probably a stud.  Good bloodlines with plus speed.  Seems like a guy in the Michael Bourn mold.  I played against him in the Cape Cod Baseball League back in the summer of 2002.  I was a Bourn Braves guy and he was a Y-D Red Sox guy.  I'm pretty sure I struck him out - my first appearance was against Y-D and I threw 3 perfect innings with 5 K's.  He had a good summer that year - he was a sophomore at Houston.  He hit .287 with 23 SB's - I was 2-1 with a 3.96 ERA in 36.1 IP with 34 K and 11 BB.  Respectable numbers from a RHP from a small time collee program.

Lindsay and Nathan are here now, she is busting my balls saying they're more interesting, which is true.  They're pretty awesome.  I'm tired of watching this slow-as-shit draft.  It's like the NFL draft, it is taking forever. 

Live well.

Rants, raves, ridicule, and riots

Rant:  Well looky looky who decided to come out of his early season funk, but the cheese-man Javy Vazquez.  For the second straight start, he actually dominated the game the way he can and should.  This is the guy who's 2nd behind Randy Johnson in K's since the start of the 2000 season, and today he had 9 (vs. TOR).  Last Tuesday, he had 7 against the O's.  Today, he passed HOFer Juan Marichal (2,303) to move into 44th all-time in strikeouts with 2,305.  Next on the list is Rube Waddell (2,316).  Keep climbing Javy.

Past two starts:  14 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 5 BB, 16 K - sounds like numbers from a guy who $11.5 million dollars.  Get on a roll for God's sake - you are pretty good, contrary to what you might believe.  Just because you're the Yankees #5 starter doesn't mean you can't pitch like a #2 or #3 starter, I'm sure they wouldn't mind.  Keep doing it, queso!

Rave:  Although a rave is often times thought of as a drug-induced party with fast-paced electronic music, the actual definition is this (according to dictionary.com): 

–verb (used without object):  1.to talk wildly, as in delirium.  2.to talk or write with extravagant enthusiasm. 

3.(of wind, water, storms, etc.) to make a wild or furious sound; rage.

–verb (used with object):  4.to utter as if in madness.

–noun:  5.an act of raving.  6.an extravagantly enthusiastic appraisal or review of something.  7.Chiefly British Slang. a boisterous party, esp. a dance.

–adjective:  8.extravagantly flattering or enthusiastic: rave reviews of a new play.

For this part of the post, I will refer to definition 2.  There is a song out right now, "Magic" by B.o.B. ft. Rivers Cuomo.  For those of you not familiar with music, have no access to a radio, and have no access to a television, this is probably a song you've never heard.  Rivers Cuomo is the lead singer of Weezer, one of the greatest bands from the past 15+ years.  21-year-old rapper/songwriter/producer B.o.B. is coming on strong.  "Magic" may be one of the lesser known songs, but it is hands down my favorite.  "Airplanes" featuring Hayley Williams (Paramore) is #3 on the Billboard Top100.  You might have heard that one, but here is the link: "Magic" - B.o.B. ft. Rivers Cuomo.

Ridicule:  Parents, parents, parents.  I was driving to CT today and was listening to WFAN radio, 660AM and there was a discussion on trophies in youth sports and callers were calling in for around 25 minutes.  I wanted to dial the number and get on the radio, but 1. my terrible memory prevented me from memorizing the number, and 2. I don't have one of those blue tooth ear pieces (because I'm not a tool).  I think trophies up until the age of 10 or 11 is fine, but eventually, enough is enough.  Kids who get trophies for being on a team where they are a non-factors should not get trophies - trophies for everyone should stop in middle school.  I mean the kid who wins 7 games gets the same trophy/varsity letter as the schmuck who kept the book all year?  Kids (and parents) need to realize that there are kids better than them (or their kids) and accept the fact that there is no participation trophy for life.  Kids feel a sense of entitlement because they've been desensitized to failure.  There is more pats on the ass than there should be.  "You made 3 errors, so what, you guys won"  B.S.  "You played well, went 4-4 with 2 doubles.  The rest of the guys sucked, that's why you lost 10-1"  B.S.  If you show  up to work every day and get nothing accomplished, what do you get?  FIRED!  If you show up to college and try to walk-on to a college baseball team and go 0-14 in tryouts, what do you get?  CUT!  There are no awards for participation, and I believe these awards/trophies should cease after the age of 12. 

Parents who coach and play their kid over the rest of the kids because he's his own, take a good hard look in the mirror, and ask yourself this:  is my kid better than the guy starting in front of him?  If he is, then start him, because he's better, not because he's your kid. 

The cream rises to the top, and those guys should be rewarded.  That's why awards in the college and professional ranks are so elite, because only a handful of guys get them, and for good reason.  They showed up and dominated.  They didn't suck.  Those guys tend to get released or traded.  Take it or leave it.  Let's hope kids get tougher.  If my dad ever called a college coach asking why I wasn't pitching, I woulda asked him to stop coming to my games.  And I'd be embarrassed as shit.  Let the kids play, and earn whatever awards or accolades they may receive.  Work hard, practice hard, play hard.  Don't bitch if you don't get a trophy. 

You shouldn't play a sport for a trophy, you should play it because you love it.

Riots:  Just a joke i came across today - Lindsay, I wouldn't golf if this was me:  A man and a friend are playing golf one day at their local golf course. One of the guys is about to chip onto the green when he sees a long funeral procession on the road next to the course. He stops in mid-swing, takes off his golf cap, closes his eyes, and bows down in prayer.

His friend says: “Wow, that is the most thoughtful and touching thing I have ever seen. You truly are a kind man.”
The man then replies: “Yeah, well we were married 35 years.”

It' 6:17, do you know why I'm up?

Nathan needed to go out, that's why.  Yesterday he slept in, which allowed me to sleep in for the first time since like 2003.  I felt like crap yesterday for the most part, so sleeping until 7:25am was nice, although it didn't help how I felt.  Today, 5:57am and he was walking on the wooden floor, my alarm clock.  Might as well be productive for five minutes.

R.I.P. John Wooden - UCLA legend John Wooden passed away at the ripe old age of 99 yesterday.  He was considered a teacher and an innovator.  He led his Bruins squad to 88 consecutive wins between January 1971 and January 1974, including two undefeated National Championships.  No small order.  He was and always will be considered the greatest of all time.

AJ Burnett looked like crap, and the Yankees lost to the Blue Jays 6-1 last night at Rogers Centre.  They didn't even have an RBI - Swisher had a nice GIDP in the 6th to score their only run.  Completely uninspired effort last night, but it was against one of the hottest pitchers in the league, LHP Brett Cecil.  He's improved to 6-2 on the year, winning his last four starts with a 1.21 ERA over that span.  Today, Andy Pettitte will take on another Toronto lefty, Ricky Romero, who actually has better numbers than Cecil this year.  Tall order, Yankees win, Yankeeeeeeeees win!

Back to the A/C - I'm done for now.  And I'm ready to eat brunch at Jesse and Julia's engagement brunch today.  Checked out the menu last night, looks good.  Will give you the rundown when we get back.

Douche O' the Day

Winner is..........Bryce Harper.  After a backwards K, he drew a line in the batter's box showing the umpire where he thought the pitch was.  Chances are, his college playing days are over - he's suspended for two games because it was his second ejection of the year. 

Bryce, there's all sorts of statements going around that you're selfish, you're a prick, but I won't judge the type of person you are based on what others say.  I think you're a douche bag because of your Lattimer-inspired eye-black.  Have a look for yourself - good thing you're still only 17, because you'd get banged out for some bucks in Kangaroo Kourt for that one.  But you'll probably be the guy in the clubhouse flashing his signing bonus, because all the nay-sayers are probably right.  Douche!!