OCTOBER BASEBALL

October baseball without New York. It's like spaghetti without meat balls. If you're hungry, you'll eat it, but it just doesn't satisfy.


I have no idea what to expect in the NL series. I've tried watching some NL games during the past two weeks and its simply too damn hard. The Mets announcers are dreadful, and with the sound off, you're forced to actually watch, and that can't be good for anybody. The Cubs are as complete a team as any in the NL (a compliment?) but if Zambrano can't regain his pre-no-hit form they are left with one competent stater. Philadelphia could be interesting to watch if Jamie Moyer gets a start, but only because he's older than we are and it could be fun to watch Ryan Howard strike out 28 times in a World Series. The Brewers? Basically a bad baseball team with one AL pitcher who carried them for 3 months.


The AL clearly has the stronger teams. On the other hand, so what and who cares. LA has the unique distinction of being both a power house and, at the same time boring. No defending World Series Champion has generated less interest than Boston and the illusory "red sox nation", although, to be fair, the famed "nation" is a bit larger than the Tampa Bay fan base - six season ticket holders in Tampa - St. Pete's, and, as far as I know, I'm it in the greater US north of Orlando. It was amazing, but I actually got congratulations from ushers in the Trop for wearing a Rays hat at a Tampa home game in April.


Oh, I almost forgot, the Dodgers and the Twins. The only interesting thing about the Dodgers is Torre and Manny and we've been watching them for over 10 years in the real league, and the only thing interesting about the Twins is who they don't have. Unlike Tori Hunter, Santana managed to sign his way out of any opportunity to play in the post season for ever. Sucker.


While I have no predictions - why bother - I do have preferences. I would like to see LA at Anaheim on the West Coast of the United States of America on The North American continent Planet Earth the 3rd planet Sol a sun in a solar system in the Milky Way Galaxy in the visible Universe lose early. Same for the other LA team. The last thing we need are baseball games starting at 2 am eastern.


I would like to see Boston play only until Kevin Youkalis takes one off of his butt-ugly pumpkin head. Hey, take a look at Papelbon's puss when he's taking a sign and tell me he's not the most popular guy in after-game showers. And as for the Rays, I like the hat far more than the team.


So, once again, we are left with the inevitable conclusion, what every baseball fan knows deep in their heart, baseball in October without New York isn't.

Vod