The Cold of Winter

And so its done. Another baseball season in the books, and the chill of winter begins to set in. Some random thoughts on the 2007 season....

Its disappointing that the Rockies didn't fare better in the Series. The Red Sox were just too hot.

Speaking of the Sox, I pulled for them in 2004 and even this season I hoped they would hold off the Yankees and win the division. But now I'm done. The Red Sox are moving into Yankee territory as far as Evil Empires go. They've had their fun, now I'm sick of them. Unfortunately, this is not an aging team's last hurrah. It could be the start of a mini-dynasty or worse. And if there's one thing no one outside New England wants, its another Massachusettes based sports dynasty.

A-rod has removed all doubt that he is a tremendous egotist. He's got the "Look-at-me" attitude of a spoiled nine-year old. He wants to be bigger than the game, he thinks he is bigger than the game. Announcing the opt-out halfway through a deciding World Series game? ESPN's Buster Olney is right. Whoever signs this guy better be prepared to have everything else, including winning, be placed on the back burner behind the Alex Rodriguez Show. Though those 50 home runs look pretty good behind Vladdy...hmmmmmm.

Tacos for All! (Maybe)

If any player on the Rockies or Bo Sox steals a base in tonights (10/24/07) game - everybody in America gets a free taco from Taco Bell. This is why I watch baseball!

Didn't I Say That Already?

Tony LaRussa with the Yankees? I believe I said it first.

ALCS Running Diary

No, not from me. This one is actually funny. From Bill Simmons of course. Here's a sample:

8:49: Fox shows the obligatory "Kenny Lofton has played for all these teams" montage, as mandated by its contract with Major League Baseball. All I can say is this: I was making "Cool Papa Bell" jokes about Lofton four years ago, and he's still chugging along and hitting postseason homers. It's amazing. I'm putting him on the sleeper list for my "Mitchell Report Fantasy Draft" next week, along with Ed Hochuli, Carrot Top and Dr. Dre.

And here's the link to the rest.

Rocktober Continues

We have one dance partner now for the World Series. I don't think that the term HOT even comes close to describing the Colorado Rockies. Nuclear maybe, but hot is too light a term for this team. After winning 12 of 13 to force a tie-breaker with the Padres for the Wild Card spot the Rockies swept the "hot" Phillies, and then equally swept the NL West Champ Diamondbacks.

I'm not a betting man but whoever the Rockies play between the Indians and BoSox better be on high alert. This Colorado team has heart, and they want it bad.

Baker Watch... Is my face Red?

Looks like Dusty Baker is going to stay in the NL Central and manage the Reds for the next three years. I think that's great for the Cubs actually. Bronson Arroyo can kiss his arm goodbye after Baker wears it out after having him pitch 300 innings next season. Catch the ESPN report here. On a further note of personal opinion Baker sitting in the Reds dugout with the toothpick and a red jacket is not going to look good.

McCovey Chronicles

There's a good post over on McCovey Chronicles about the dilema Giants fans are/should be feeling about this years NLCS. Funny stuff. Here's a sample:

Since the Rockies came into the league, they've done nothing but torment the Giants. And watching games in pre-humidor Coors was torture - sheer torture. Even at the height of the Coors offensive explosion, the grounds crew would cut the grass short so more ground balls would get through. It was arena baseball, and it sucked away over a hundred hours of my life. I could have used that time to do charity work for sick children. Why do the Colorado Rockies hate sick children? Now that they have the humidor, the games are much more watchable. But it's hard to really trust them. Shenanigans might a been transpirin' this whole time.
Advantage: Diamondbacks

PS

Thanks to Jeremy for spurcing up the place.

Bad Sportsmanship

While I'm thinking about it, the fans at the D-backs vs. Rockies game are classless. Clearly Upton was interfering with the throw to first and should have been called out along with runner to first. However Phoenix's fans throwing objects on the field and the large amount of "boos" that could be heard from a call that was not all that controversial was bush league. Shame on you D-backs fans. I would expect something like that out of Dodgers fans, but not you.

The Highlight of the Playoffs

I have to admit, the best part of the playoffs (and TBS's coverage) so far has been seeing the suits that TBS's Craig Sager wears. Which one has been your favorite so far?

Questions?

Re: League Championship Series

Can Joe Borowski hold a late lead?
Will the long layoff cool the Rockies off?
Can Sabathia and Carmona slow down Manny Ortez?
Will the Diamondbacks succome to the follies of youth?
Will Dice-K continue pitching erraticly?
Can someone other than Brandon Webb pitch a big game for the D-backs?
Can either of the NL teams beat the AL in the World Series?
Will a key reliever injure themselves while playing Guitar Hero like last year?
Who will be the unexpected hero of these series?
Can another long-suffering franchise end its Championship drought, or will it be one of the upstarts?
Does Schilling have another Bloody Sock moment in him at 41?

Anybody else got any questions? Or answers?

The Final Season

This being a baseball blog and all, I thought this trailer of an upcoming film looked great. Could it beat The Natural as the best baseball movie of all time?? We'll see.

Torre's Last Stand

Is this it for the Yankee's manager Joe Torre? It's 5:30pm and the Yankees are down 4-0 in the bottom of the second... we will see.

The Fall

A lot of people enjoy the seasons. They love fall, winter, spring, and summer. That is not how I think of seasons. I think of them as follows: football, basketball, and baseball. When I think of the fall though, I think of the baseball playoffs. Right about the time that the leaves change colors, you know it is time for the playoffs.

Now normally I am all over this, but this year it is a lot harder. It could be that this is true because of my new job, if you can even call it that. It could also be because my team, the Giants is or was horrific this past season. I definitely think that all those things have played an important part in the process. Still though, it could just be that I am sick of the Red Sox and the Yankees and I haven't been able to get my mind around the fact that the Rockies or the Diamondbacks are going to be in the World Series!

Are you kidding me! The team from Colorado and a young Diamondback team. This just sounds crazy, but that is what makes the playoffs so special. The playoffs are what make household names out of Ryan Garko or Chris Young. That is what I love about the playoffs. The tension mounting with each pitch. The mind wandering to see if the batter will hit the game winning single or if the closer will whiff him on 3 pitches. This kind of drama is unmatched in sports in my opinion. All this to say that now that the LCS series are about to kick in, I am hoping to get more into it. That and I need to watch it on a sweet TV with some sweet homies. So, if you're not watching, there is something terribly wrong, terribly wrong!!

Angels/Sox

Ok, I know coming back to win the series is a lot to ask, so I won't ask it. What I do ask is just one victory. Let's at least try to keep things respectable by getting one win. I like the matchup today at home. Vlad's back in right which is a good sign. One win. That's all I want. Good start. Weaver goes 1-2-3 and looked good doing it. Go Halos!

Ummmm....

ALDS Game 2 Angels vs. Red Sox Running Diary

For tonight’s Angels/Red Sox game, I thought I’d take a page (some might say steal a page, but whatever) from the great Bill Simmons and do a running diary as I watch the game. I’ve never done this before, so we’ll see how it goes. Being a Red Sox fan, I wonder if Bill will be doing one of his own tonight. Maybe we’re going head to head. Well, don’t worry Bill, I only have, like, twelve readers. Your seat atop the running-diarist ziggurat is secure. Consider this an homage. Let’s get to the game shall we?

5:38 - I won’t say the Angels have to win this game, but it’s close. They did have the best home record in baseball this year and they have beat on Schilling a little bit this year. But in order to win two at home they’d have to beat Beckett, who’s been channeling ‘01 vintage Schilling of late. So a win tonight is BIG.

5:40 - First pitch to Chone Figgins: strike one.

5:42 - Figgins = K. Not a terrible at-bat, he fouled off several pitches, but certainly not the start I was hoping for.

5:43 - Dice-K does some weird three-mini thrusts of the pelvis thing in his windup. It’s a little unnerving. No, it’s a lot unnerving.

5:45 - Sox fans “Aaaaaah” angrily at a pitch waaaaaay outside on a 1-2 count. Idiots.

5:46 - A shot of Garret Anderson in the Angel dugout. He looks like a pirate. Apparently he has pink-eye or something. Oh, and Cabrera draws a walk. Good AB.

5:47 - Vlad swings at a pitch that almost hit the first base coach. Gotta love this guy.

5:49 - TBS doesn’t have a radar gun reading. How can you not have a radar gun reading? Lame.

5:50 - Angels doing a good job of fouling off some good pitches. They’ve always been a good two-strike hitting team during the Scioscia era and the more pitches they see from Dice-K early the better.

5:51- For the Regulars, remember when I posted a picture from when I had poison oak? That’s what Anderson looks like. Pretty hilarious actually…unless he can’t see. That’ll make it tough to hit, field, and run in the right direction.

5:53 - Seems to be OK, he just ripped a single. Runners at the corners, two outs (Vlad popped up).

5:54 - And now the leagues most feared #5 hitter, Frodo Baggins–I mean Macier Izturis. Only six home runs on the year, but a .406 batting average with runners in scoring position.

5:57 - Full count aaannnd…called strike three. Crap. No runs, but not a total loss of an inning. At least Dice-K threw over thirty pitches.

6:00 - Kelvim Escobar taking the mound for the Angels tonight. Can’t wait for those ultra-tight closeups of his acne. That’s the one time I’m glad I don’t have hi-def. That and whenever I’m watching Mama’s Family.

6:01 - First batter, Dustin Pedroia, grounds out, one away.

6:02 - Escobar goes up 0-2 on Youkilis than walks him. Lackey got a head 0-2 on a lot of batters early on Wednesday but couldn’t put them away and it cost him. Hopefully we’re not developing a pattern.

6:05 - Ugh! There’s the first close-up. Get that guy some Clearasil.

6:06 - Ortiz singles to left. Could really use a double-play here. C’mon Manny, help us out.

6:07 - After he retires, I think Manny has a future as a lead singer for a Bob Marley tribute band.

6:10 -Manny flies out to center, 2 down, Mike Lowell up next.

6:11 - I think Lowell could hold his own in a George Clooney look-a-like contest. He wouldn’t win, but he’d do OK.

6:12 - Lowell walks, bases juiced. [Deep breath]

6:13 - J.D. Drew base hit up the middle, 2-0 Boston. [More deep breaths] Drew is one of those guys who’s been lousy all year, but you just have a feeling he’s going to hurt you. Maybe that’s because he just did, I don’t know.

6:15 - The umpires strike zone seems to have changed already. He was giving the low strike at first, but hasn’t the last few batters. Nothing makes for fun baseball like some inconsistent umpiring, mmmm boy!

6:16 - Varitek lines out, inning over, damage minimized.

6:17 - Flipping over to the Yankee/Indian game, still 1-1 in the 11th. Joba Chamberlain was clearly bothered by the bug infestation in the 8th. Now at last the rest of the league knows his weakness, pestilence!

6:21 - Casey Kotchman leading off the second.

6:22 - Dice-K is definitely having control problems. The Angels aren’t a team that walks a lot, but if they’re smart and play their game they should be able to get to this guy.

6:23 - Kotchman walks, Cuban defector Kendry Morales up. This guys a solid hitter, good to see him in the lineup tonight.

6:24 - Broadcaster bringing up Shea Hillenbran. That guy was a bum for us. An absolute blackhole. Which is little odd when you think about it. He hit 21 home runs last year, but was just terrible for the Angels. What makes a guy go down the crapper so quickly? Wonder if he’ll bounce back.

6:25 - Morales rips a single, Kotchman to third.

6:26 - Good situation for the Angels to get those two runs back immediately. Runners at the corners, no outs, and line drive machine Howie Kendrick up.

6:27 - Or not. Three pitch strike out. Nice AB Howie! Now it’s up to Jeff Mathis, owner of a .211 batting average, and that frightens me.

6:30 - OK, the nerves are kicking in. This is the kind of situation where if you don’t get at least one run in, it can suck the wind right out of your sails for the whole game. We need to get at least one here.

6:31 - We got our one. Morales was on the move to stay out of the DP, Kotchman scores, Mathis out at first.

6:32 - Alright, time to get Figgy wit it!

6:33 - Terrible strike call. Outside and neck high. This ump is not instilling confidence.

6:33 - Figgins slaps one to left, Morales scores, Manny misplays it and Chone is into 2nd. We needed that. Yankees just lost in the bottom of the 11th.

6:34 - Cabrera smokes a double, Figgins scores, 3-2 Angels. Apparently they’re figured out Dice-K. He’s up to almost 60 pitches in the second inning. Eggg-celent!

6:36 - Vladdy up…and out. Inning over.

6:38 - I love this E! True Hollywood Story-style Geico commercial about Jed Clampett. Great stuff. Geico consistently has the best commercials. I’m proud to call them my auto insurance provider.

6:40 - Ok, let’s see how Escobar responds with the lead.

6:41 - Oh, TBS does have a radar gun reading. My bad TBS (Coco Crip strikes out).

6:43 - BTW, if you would like to know more about Kelvim Escobar check out his Myspace (www.myspace.com/kelvim). It’s very…um…revealing. Consider that your warning.

6:44 - Three up, three down. Great inning from Mysapcobar.

6:47 - Pink-eye Anderson leads off with a bloop double to right. And then is promptly thrown out at third on an Izturis grounder to the shortstop. Guess his swollen eyeball didn’t allow him to see that the ball was hit within three feet of him. Awesome.

6:49 - This umpire is starting to squeeze both these guys. The last two pitches sure looked like strikes to me.

6:51 - Izturis steals second then Kotchman bounces out, moving Izzy to third, two out. Another run here to pick up Anderson would be nice.

6:52 - Morales flies out to end the inning. Anderson’s baserunning gaffe didn’t hurt them that much.

6:55 - Sonic trivia question: What four pitchers have an 18 win season and 38 saves in another season? Any guesses?

6:56 -Esco’s starting to look really good. Just made Youkilis look goofy on a strikeout. After the first inning, TBS showed Cabrera talking to Escobar in the dugout and ever since he’s pitched much more aggressively. Cabrera’s an underrated guy for those who don’t follow the Angels. He’s key to this team not only as a gold glove caliber SS and pretty good number two hitter, but as a team leader and a bridge between the English speakers and the Spanish speakers. You could call him the glue of this team. He’s filled that role left by Darin Erstad very nicely. And he hits above .250. He’s not all intangibles, he’s got the tangibles too.

6:59 - Ortiz is up and draws a walk. And another disheartening closeup of Escobar’s pock marks. Shudder.

7:01 - Escobar blows a 97 mph heater past Manny for strike three, two out. Me likey.

7:02 - The broadcasters are talking bout how Mike Lowell was basically a throw-in in the Beckett deal. Lowell’s two year Red Sox totals: 40 home runs, 200 RBI, .300 BA, highest fielding percentage for a third basemen all-time. Not bad.

7:03 - But he grounds out here, inning over. Keep it up Pock Mark!

7:09 - Kendrick leads off with a smash to left and then Mathis immediately pops out to the catcher. Sweet.

7:11 - Big defensive play by Youkilis to get Figgins. Instead of first and third and one out, it’s runner on second with two outs. That could be a killer.

7:12 - It is. Cabrera bounces out, inning over.

7:16 - Sonic trivia answer: Dennis Eckersley, John Smoltz, Derek Lowe, and Kelvim Escobar. I had three out of four, which, according to Meatloaf, ain’t bad. Or was that two out of three?

7:19 - Escobar gets two quick outs before Crisp reaches on a bunt single.

7:24 - Esco strikes out Lugo looking then does some sort of sweet samurai knee dip thing. Now that’s playoff baseball!

7:27 - Vlad grounds out. He can’t seem to figure Dice-K out. We need him to get going, badly.

7:29 - Pausing to eat dinner while I watch. Hold on.

7:40 - I’m back. You didn’t miss much. Izturis singled and stole second, Kotchman almost killed the Angels trainer with a foul ball then singled. Dice-K was lifted for a reliever and Morales grounded out. Exciting stuff.

7:42 - Esco needs to keep this going since the offense…oh, well there’s a double from Pedroia. No matter what happens this inning Escobar doesn’t pitch the next inning. He’s up to almost 100 pitches already.

7:45 - Youkilis moves Pedroia to third with a check swing bunt and the Angels will walk Ortiz to get to Manny. It seems odd to walk anyone to get to pitch to Manny Ramierez, but this is the smart play. Manny hits under .200 against Escobar and it sets up the DP. Plus Ortiz finished up the season batting somewhere around .700.

7:47 - First pitch: foul.

7:47 - Second pitch: popped up behind the plate. Mathis went into the stands and had a play but some stupid fan robbed him. Stupid fan. 0-2 count.

7:48 - Third pitch: foul.

7:50 - Fourth pitch: ball one.

7:50 - Fifth pitch: BARELY a ball. That was close. Dang it.

7:51 - Sixth pitch: almost hit him, ball three.

7:51- Payoff pitch: in the dirt, ball four. I hate that fan.

7:53 - Lowell rips one to CF for a sac fly. Tie game. I really hate that fan.

7:54 - When ever something like that happens, like a stupid fan stealing an out from the visiting team, it seems like something big always happens next. It’s really irritating. Unless you’re rooting for the home team. Which I am not.

7:55 - Ooooh, Fenway Park celebrity sighting! Sitting behind Stupid Interfering Fan is Steven King. He looks like a character from one of his novels. As in, he looks like he is no longer among the living. A very creepy looking fella.

7:58 - Good AB here from J.D. “I sucked all year but still terrify Andy Bauer in the playoffs” Drew. He’s fouled off some tough pitches. I don’t like him.

7:59 - Whew! Bounce out to first. Considering how long and agonizing that inning was, we’re lucky to be tied. Really need to jump star the offense. Right now.

8:02 - Kendrick leading off the sixth. I think he was 50 Cent’s stunt double in Get Rich or Die Tryin’. If he wasn’t, he should’ve been.

8:04 - Apparently Fitty ain’t much of a ball player. Kendrick grounds out.

8:05 - Mathis pops up, two out. [sigh]

8:06 - Looks like Scot Shields will pitch the sixth for the Angels. For the past four years I’ve been very comfortable with this, except that for the past couple of months Scot has really struggled. He makes me a tad nervous these days.

8:08 - Figgins strikes out, inning over. [ppbbbbbt]

8:10 - Is Ernie Johnson the dorkiest looking sports broadcaster of all time? Or is it Joe Buck? I think there should be a contest.

8:12 - Wow! Shields looks good. He just K’d Varitek who looked totally overmatched.

8:13 - Wow! Shields looks bad. He just walked Crisp on five pitches.

8:16 - The broadcasters make a good observation. This years Red Sox are probably the most complete team they’ve had, even more so maybe than 2004. They’ve go the power hitters (Ortiz, Manny, Lowell), they run a little bit, actually much more than they have in the past (Crisp, Lugo) and their bullpen was statistically the best in the league this year, where in the past it’d been an achilles heel before they got to the closer.

8:19 Angels get out of the inning on a baserunning blunder by Crisp. The batter flew out to center as Crisp took off for second. But then Crisp couldn’t find the ball and as he tried to go back to first, he didn’t retouch second base, which he had passed, and was called out. Lucky break.

8:22 - This next inning is huge for the Angels. The heart of the order will be up, probably the best chance to score.

8:24 - Cabrera flies out. Vladdy up…and takes a pitch he could’ve ripped.

8:25 - And now he gets beaned in the shoulder. Oooh, and the stink eye he just gave the pitcher (though it definitely wasn’t on purpose). Vlad’s gotten hit a lot this year, especially lately. I think he’s tired of it. I’m tired of it.

8:27 - Anderson needs to come through right here. He’s facing Hideki Okajima, a crafty lefty. GA hits lefties pretty well, so let’s see what Pink Eye can do.

8:29 - Fans angerly “Aaaaahh” a ball that nearly hit Anderson. Did you really think that was a strike?

8:32 - Fly out, two down. [Deep breath] Now its up to Frodo Izturis to complete the quest for the elusive go ahead run. Godspeed.

8:36 - Quest over. At least for this inning. Mighty Frodo has struck out!

8:37 - Ah, another Geico commercial, geco version. I prefer the cavemen. I give that Cavemen TV show on ABC about six weeks. Love the commercials, but those are thirty seconds long, not thirty minutes. There’s only so many times regular, everyday things done by cavemen men can be funny. “Hey look, the cavemen is doing the laundry! Hysterical!”

8:40 - When they do the “This broadcast is the exclusive property of Major League Baseball…” disclaimer, am I violating it by verbally describing the game to somebody. Does that count as desciminating? What if you do a running diary on the Internet?

8:41 - Shields still in, one out.

8:42 - Two down, Big Papi at the bat and Scioscia is leaving Shields in. Ortiz is a lefty and the Angels have lefty pitcher Darren Oliver ready in the bullpen. Hmmmmm. I’m scared.

8:45 - Result = base on balls. Scoty was down 3-0, got to a full count, then lost him.

8:47 - Now he goes 3-0 on Manny. Nerves…becoming…frayed. Ball four. Like I said before, up until a couple months ago, I would’ve taken my chances with Shields against just about anybody. Now, I’m soiling myself on every pitch.

8:48 - Scioscia leaves Shields in against Lowell. 0-2 count so far.

8:50 - Geez Louise!! Lowell battles back to a full count, then flies out to center. My heart just exploded.

8:55 - Interesting fact: the Red Sox actually have two designated hitters. One of them just happens to play left field. Manny just turned a routine flyball into an adventure, overrunning it and then snatching it off his shoe tops at the last second. I think three elderly Sox fans just had heart attacks.

8:58 - I think Scioscio should have brought Juan Rivera in to pinch hit for Morales here. He hit lefties very well and Morales is having to bat right handed now, which is not his strongest side.

8:59 - I was right. Morales strikes out. And the Sox are bringing in their closer, Jonathan Papelbon to finish off the eigth. This guy is really, really good.

9:02 - Howie Kendrick up aaannnnd…error! He reaches on a bad throw. Is this the break we need?

9:03 - Mathis should be pinch hit for here. I don’t like this non-move at all.

9:04 - Kendrick steals second. Now with him in scoring position, Rivera comes on to pinch hit. We NEED to capitalize on this. We need a hit here badly.

9:07 - FYI, I’m hugging a pillow.

9:08 - Kendrick steals third. Now I’ll settle for a wild pitch.

9:09 - Full count. (Still hugging pillow…)

9:10 - Holy crap!! It was called ball four, but it looked an awful lot like strike three. Reggie Willits to run for Rivera. Figgins at bat. Figgy, don’t fail me now!

9:11 - Willits steals second. (Still hugging pillow…)

9:13 - Called strike three. Big breaking ball on the outside corner. I realize that guys get frozen when their looking for a certain pitch and get something else, but I hate, absolutely hate when they take a called third strike with men in scoring position. Do you think we’re going to get another chance like this against Papelbon in the ninth? Arrrgghh!! (Ripping my pillow to shreds.)

9:15 - I guess the silver lining of that inning is that Papelbon did throw a lot of pitches, almost twenty. So, we’ve got that going for us.

9:20 - Very bad news. Vlad has been pulled. Very, very bad news. Especially since his spot is due up second next inning. Apparently its related to the beanball he took to the shoulder. Very, very, very bad news. I’m starting to feel a little nauseus.

9:22 - On a positive note, Justin Speier just threw a perfect eigth.

9:24 - Ah, that’s reassuring. A closeup of Anderson’s swollen eye. Very encouraging.

9:26 - The umpire just called a pitch a strike that almost hit Cabrera in the face. Neither team can be loving this guy right now.

9:27 - Cabrera pops out, Mike Napoli hitting for Vladdy.

9:28 - Napoli has a fat face. Hopefully that translates into ninth inning home runs.

9:29 - Nope. Ninth inning pop ups. Two outs, here comes cyclops.

9:34 - One Eyed Willy obviously didn’t get the memo that everyone is supposed to pop out in the ninth and draws a walk. Izturis gets things back on plan and pops out to the shortstop. Good work guys.

9:37 - And to keep the streak of good fortune alive, Speier gives up a single to Lugo to start the ninth.

9:38 - Pedroia gets Lugo to second on a broken bat hit-and-run, but is out at first. That’s it for Speier, in comes K-Rod.

9:40 - I’m hugging my pillow again.

9:41 - Lugo almost picked off second. That would have been nice.

9:43 - K-Rod strikes out Youkilis! Now the IBB to Ortiz and we’ll take our chances with Manny.

9:44 - Manny is only 2 for 9 against K-Rod with four strikeou…

9:45 - Now it’s 3 for 10. Including a home run. Game over. 6-3, Red Sox. I have to go cry myself to sleep now.

Understanding Cubs Fans

I promise not make all my posts about the Cubs, but since they are in the playoffs (for one more day) I thought this article on their cursed history was very helpful. Enjoy the games today!

The Cubs Demise... and Nasty Flies

If you saw the Indians vs. Yankees game last night you would have noticed that the star of the game wasn't any player. It was the insects. Millions of little tiny moth-like flies invaded the Jake last night and make quite a mess of the whole baseball atmosphere. But it might have been the most unique natural phenomenon during a baseball game I have ever seen. I kept wondering how many of those little insects were splattered all over the ball as it was hurled from the mound to home.

In other news today is the third game of the Cubs vs. Diamondbacks series in Chicago. It's been four years since Wrigley field had any playoff baseball and no doubt a crucial game for the Cubs in this series. I'm not optimistic. It's not because of any curse, or Bartman or any such history of failure (and I can tell you about Cubs and failure). The reason I am not optimistic is because Arizona is a good team, really good. I am surprised by the NL West this year. I guess I shouldn't be but with the miserable Giants just a few minutes away I suppose reality was skewed and I thought that the West was mediocre. Actually it was Central that was mediocre with the Cubs only 3 games above .500. Arizona was the only team in the NL to win 90 games this season. I don't like the fact that Cubs might go down today but lets be real. Arizona over the long-haul of the season has been the better club, and they are hitting the ball well at just the right time.

Chicago on the other hand has been off and on all season. They almost gave the Central back to Milwaukee at the end, and have looked more like a wild-card team that barely got in than a Division Champion. The bats in spots 2-5 have been very quiet in this series and that's always a problem for a team in October (ask the Yankees and A-Rod). Arizona is the better team.

Let Bartman be served papers, make a Billy Goat day at Wrigley, do whatever you can to cheer for the Cubs, but know that we are going to have to wait until next year.

Prognostications

I, Ando, peering deeply, reverently, into my crystal ball, have witnessed the following conclusions to tonights Major League Baseball playoff games:

#1. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim - 5. Boston Red Sox - 3.

Breakdown- Having never faced Dice-K before, the Angels will struggle at first to get things going and will trail 2-0 early. Finally, in the fourth, Chone Figgins will get on, steal second, and will be subsequently driven in, sparking a scrappy inning where the Angels grind out four runs on a combination of infield hits, a hit-and-run, and at least one Boston error. The Sox will pull within one in the sixth with a home run from J.D. Drew. But the Angels will answer in the top of the seventh with a home run from Juan Rivera. Escobar, having pitched brilliantly for seven innings will yield to the bullpen where Scot Shields, Justin Speier, and Frankie Rodriguez will make things interesting, but ultimately hold down the fort giving the Halos a series tying victory before heading back to the Left Coast.

#2. New York Yankees - 7. Cleveland Indians - 4.

Breakdown- Indians phenom Fausto Carmona will have his hands full with a relentless Yankees lineup. He'll give up at least one run in the first inning, and be gone by the fourth, trailing by four runs. Meanwhile, Yankees pitcher Andy Petite will look like the Petite of old for six solid innings, surrendering only two runs, one unearned. Trailing in the seventh, the Indians will show signs of life, scoring two runs off Yankee middle relief until Joba Chamberlain is brought in to put out the fire. The big offensive contributors for the Yanks will be Jorge Posada and Derek Jeter, each with a pair of RBI and at least one homer between them. Alex Rodriguez will continue to struggle in the postseason.

Baseball Fans Unite!

This blog is dedicated to the best sport man has ever devised...badmitton. Whoops, I mean baseball. It's not team specific, it's not league specific, it's just baseball specific. And what better time to launch a baseball themed weblog than during the postseason.

I'm currently watching Game 1 of the Indians vs. Yankees series, in which the Indians are beating the Evil Empire, as I predicted to Brad earlier this afternoon. Though I missed on the Rockies/Phillies game today (final score Rockies 10 Phillies 5). The Colorado Rockies? What the crap! Good for them. Oh, and the Indians just scored again and now lead 10-3.

So how's that for an intro? I hope to get all my baseball loving buddies to be contributors and maybe we'll get some chatter going. Until next time, Yankees suck!

(Oh, and here's Bill Simmons' 25 people to watch in the AL playoffs column. Good stuff.)