06.30.06
Posted in Baseball
at 7:48 pm
by GC
Yankees 1, Mets 0 (bottom of the 4th, 2 outs, rain delay)
This might not sound particularly sporting, but faced with a choice of a washout and Mike Mussina taking the hill again tonight, I’l pick the former. Save for a Miguel Cairo error in the first, he’s not allowed a Met to reach first.
The Yankees’ clever employ of the Boss’ turgid “Cover Me” (as the grounds crew scrambles with the tarp), “Summertime Blues” and “(I’m Only Happy) When It Rains” (still Jaqui Delaney’s most enduring pop hit) is inoffensive enough, but Supertramp’s “It’s Raining Again”? Sorry, but that’s just irresponsible with a crowd of this size. Or any size. If the ratings for Steve Somers’ rain delay rap just spiked, by all means, lay the credit (or blame) at the feet of Supertramp.
I’ve had a fascinating chat this evening in Tier 6 with a not-so-young woman who could earn a living as a Mercedes Ruhl impersonator. Not a very good living, mind you, but not everyone has to maintain the lifestyle of the Strahans. Or the blogging elite.
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Posted in Baseball
at 6:39 pm
by GC
Dave Winfield threw out the ceremonial first pitch prior to tonight’s Mets/Yanks game. Not to be outdone, Mike Tyson’s mother-in-law has been invited to Flushing next week.
The Yankeesa are up, 1-0, thanks to a first inning solo HR by Jason Giambi. Cliff Floyd is starting in left for the Mets, one night after going hitless in a rehab stint for Brooklyn.
Carlos Delgado was not seen saluting the ghost of Robert Merrill earlier tonight, nor is he in the starting lineup for the second evening in a row. Seems to me that if a guy wants to see the Futureheads at Webster Hall, he should just come clean and drop all this ribcage nonsense.
I checked out Monument Park for the first time in many years earlier today — I could’ve sworn Ken Phelps had a plaque the last time I visited.
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Posted in Baseball
at 2:22 pm
by GC
Apparently, there’s not enough room in Anaheim for two guys that make Jeff Spicolli look postively high energy by comparison. From the LA Times’ Bill Shaikink.
Derek Lowe and Jeff Weaver, friends and teammates on the Dodgers last season, catch up every so often.
“We can talk about our last games and compare notes,” Lowe said.
Lowe got pounded by the Minnesota Twins, giving up nine runs in five innings, an atypical start in a fine season. Weaver got pounded by the Colorado Rockies, giving up six runs in two innings, another dreadful start in a poor season.
They could reunite soon, at little cost to the Dodgers. The Angels might send Weaver to the bullpen ” or release him ” if they cannot trade him. The Dodgers are looking for another pitcher.
“He’s had success here,” Lowe said. “I know he’s happy there. He probably hasn’t pitched the way he’d like to or the way he can.”
Weaver signed a one-year deal with the Angels instead, but he has not pitched well and they have not played well. The Angels would like to make room in their starting rotation for his younger brother, Jered (above)
Jeff Weaver is making $8.3 million this season, but the Angels already have paid half and might pay some of the remaining half in a trade. If they release him and he signs with another team, the Angels would be responsible for all but a prorated part of the $327,000 minimum salary.
Observes Dodger Thoughts’ Jon Wiseman,
An Aaron Sele-like no-harm flyer on (Jeff) Weaver would be a good experiment. It would be worth a shot to see if Weaver can return to the level he showed with the Dodgers at his best, at the risk of finding out he will pitch as poorly as Perez has.
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Posted in Baseball
at 2:03 pm
by GC
….can be summarized thusly,
“With all the great products that are apparently out there that are undetectable, for me to take something like that … when people take things that now aren’t even being tested for, does it make any sense?”
Rafael Palmiero also tells the Baltimore Sun’s Dan Connelly that he has a batting cage at home and he’s ready and willing to come back to the big leagues.
“I love baseball, and the door remains open,” he said. “There may be somebody interested and that would be great. … I don’t see myself as someone that brings a lot of luggage. I’ve never been a problem. I’m a good team guy.”
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Posted in cycling
at 1:36 pm
by GC
Before we start, I’d just like to say that any comparisons between Lance Armstrong and Mark McGwire are totally unfair. McGwire’s crap on a bike.
From DW-World.De :
The Tour de France was thrown into its biggest crisis since the 1998 drugs scandal following the suspension of three of its biggest names on Friday.
Germany’s Jan Ullrich, Spain’s Francisco Mancebo and Italy’s Ivan Basso were all dropped after being implicated in a doping investigation in Spain. Organizers suggested even more riders could also be suspended from their teams.
The 1997 winner Ullrich, and his Spanish teammate Oscar Sevilla, were suspended by T-Mobile when fresh evidence from the ongoing doping probe — which had implicated them among a reported total list of 58 riders — arrived late Thursday.
Spanish allrounder Mancebo was suspended by his French AG2R team because his name appears on the list.
Less than an hour later, the CSC team pulled yellow jersey hopeful Basso out of the race due to the suspicions aroused by his name being on the list.
Ullrich, a hero in his native country since winning the 1997 Tour, was expected to challenge strongly if not win the Tour de France this year.
In even worse news for the Tour, Lars Ullrich (above) is still fully eligible.
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Posted in Football, Racism Corner, Sports TV
at 1:21 pm
by GC
Germany 1, Argentina 1 (after extra time, Germany, 4-2 on penalties)
(there’s no better way to celebrate than by donning yellow vests that make you look like you’re picking up trash on the New Jersey Turnpike)
Surveying the post-match scuffle, Marcelo Balboa (fast becoming the Rick Sutcliffe of international soccer) mused “It’s been a great match….we don’t need this sort of thing, players trying to get in each other’s mouths.”
Hey, he’s the expert.
Back in Bristol, a near breathless Reese Davis declared, “there’s nothing more exciting than a match decided on penalty kicks.” Perhaps there’s a commentator somewhere on earth who thinks the most exciting thing about the Super Bowl is the coin flip. But I hope not.
Prior to the kick-off of this afternoon’s other quarterfinal, Italy v. Ukraine, the latter’s manager, Oleg Blohkin is profiled by the New York Times’ Nathaniel Vinton.
He is respected at home, despite his racist comments about African players competing in Europe. Earlier this year, talking about the development of Ukrainian players, Blokhin told reporters: “The more Ukrainians that play in the national league the more examples for the young generation. Let them learn from Shevchenko or Blokhin and not from some Zumba-Bumba whom they took off a tree, gave him two bananas and now he plays in the Ukrainian league.”
Replies Sam Frank,
I do like the word Zumba-Bumba, though. Couldn’t Ozzie Guillen and Jacques Le Pen be as creative?