Saturday, October 19, 2013

I'M NOT INTERESTED IN THE GAME, BUT THE SIDE STORIES ARE FUN

St Louis Cardinals - 9, Los Angeles Dodgers - 0. End of story, right? Not really. There were more interesting stories than just the final score.

## Carlos Beltran continues post-season victory tour with three more hits and two more RBIs. He's hitting .337 with 16 homers and 37 RBIs in 45 games. He's so hot right now, I think they're making his uniform out of asbestos.
## The Dodger starter was Clayton Kershaw, arguably the best pitcher on the planet. He lasted 4 innings after the Cards lit him up for 10 hits, 2 walks and 7 runs.
## Don Mattingly failed again in his attempt to view a World Series game from a dugout instead of  from his favorite chair back home.
## The ebullient Yasiel Puig proved once again that enthusiasm isn't enough to make a good ballplayer. He made two more errors, including one more overthrow to the wrong base. He needs work and the Dodgers would be well-advised to start his instruction this afternoon.
## Dodger Joe Kelly and the Cards Scott VanSlyke had a 12-minute standoff in front of their respective dugouts for reasons unknown and were finally asked by the home plate umpire to return to their dugouts. When Kelly finally turned and went back in, the Dodger bench exploded, waving their arms and cheering. Unfortunately, it was the last battle they would win that night.
 So, now it's on to Boston (?) for the Cardinals.

Speaking of which, I can't see the ALCS going past tonight. Max Scherzer goes for Detroit and he's been overpowering, but the Tiger bullpen poses no problem for the Red Sox. As for the Detroit offense: Cabrera can't run - or even walk fast - Prince Fielder can't hit and there's no one to pick up the slack. And the game is in the friendly (for Boston) confines of Fenway Park.
I think Prince Fielder's struggles at the plate have gotten into his head. He's really pressing to point where he's swinging at the first pitch no matter where it is. And he's wondering why he's getting booed. Welcome to A-Rod's world, Prince.

Shane Victorino, a 10-year career switch-hitter, isn't anymore, at least for the rest of this season. He had to stop hitting left handed back in September because of an injury, but he tried again last night and then abandoned it, saying he, "...wasn't comfortable from the left side."

The New York papers are talking about the Yankees organizational meetings, which start on Monday. Rumors, theories and wild guesses are rampant. For the first time in a long while, the subtractions seem to outweigh the additions. Rivera, Pettitte, Hughes, Chamberlain, Youkilis and Overbay are gone. So are Granderson and Kuroda, although the Yanks are rumored to be making offers to both. If A-Rod's suspension is upheld, there is a potential $31 million in salary that becomes available.
The Yankee targets include the Braves catcher Brian McCann, Japanese star pitcher Tanaka, the Cardinal's Carlos Beltran (finally) and, of course, Robinson Cano. Good luck with all that and the $189 million salary ceiling.

***THEY SAID IT***
"Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has been found not guilty of insider trading. This is a good thing because, in Texas, I'm pretty sure they send you to death row for that. Cuban was found not guilty by a jury of his peers: 12 loudmouths in T-shirts and jeans."  -- Brad Dickson
"Former NFL wide receiver Irving Fryar has been indicted in a mortgage scam.In other words, prosecutors say, he was taking it from the house."  -- Dwight Perry
"Archie Manning, the father of Eli and Peyton, held a press conference earlier today and announced Eli was actually the son of Frank Sinatra."  -- David Letterman
"FOX has announced that all World Series games this year will take place at 8:07pm EST, except for Sunday night’s game which will start at 815p. Way to pull in children as lifelong fans…. kids on the East Coast will be lucky to make it up for 3 innings."  -- Janice Hough
"The Washington Redskins are changing their name because of all the negativity, shame, humiliation, dissent, polarity, adversity, defiance, hatred, animosity, contempt, discrimination, division, violence, counter-productivity, ill-spirit, un-Godliness, and hostility associated with their name.From now on they will be known simply as the Redskins."  -- Thank you John Roberts
"The Minnesota Vikings play the NY Giants next Monday night. Think it’s time for fans to take their annual Bye Week"  -- TC Chong "Reuters reports an Australian pig drank 18 cans of beer, got into a fight with a cow, then passed out. On the bright side, it's been made the official mascot of the NHL."  -- RJ Currie
"Creighton University has unveiled a new logo. It's a fan talking on a cellphone while sipping a latte"  -- Brad Dickson
"The Ravens-Packers game featured what some are calling the longest explanation ever by an NFL official. Halfway through, Sen. Ted Cruz shouted, “get to the point."  -- Brad Dickson

CP-




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