HERE AND THERE

## MLB has instituted replays in the game, but can't agree on the wording prohibiting plate collisions with the Players Union. So they want to get the calls right but are still arguing over keeping the players safe. Which will lead to calls like, "The catcher is still down, Pete. Yeah, but they got the call right, Jack."

## I thought we were done with this guy, but no. Tim McCarver will be broadcasting baseball again this summer, this time locally for the St. Louis Cards. Take heart Missouri residents, it's only for 30 games. He's like a bad back: it only hurts when you breathe.

## In the aftermath of the Clayton Kershaw signing ($215 million for 7 years), the Dodgers announced they are cutting their scouting department by 50%. GM Ned Colletti was overheard to say, "We don't need more scouts, we need more accountants." (It's not true but you have to wonder)

## While being interviewed, Yankee's owner Hal Steinbrenner said he considers A-Rod  "an asset." In the Jason Bourne series, an asset was a hired killer. I guess Hal knew what he was talking about.

## This is new. Opposing teams often engage in friendly banter before a playoff game, with mayors betting each other with local products as the wager. But now, the "banter" between San Francisco and Seattle, doesn't seem so friendly. 49er fans bought a billboard outside the Seahawks stadium ribbing the Seahawks. The Seahawks front office refuses to sell tickets to anyone with a California address.  Seattle's cornerback, Richard Sherman, says, "There's no love lost and there's no love found."  You're telling me. I hope the game is half as good as the pre-game shenanigans.

## Speaking of shenanigans, what was the purpose of Peyton Manning's yelling. "Omaha! Omaha!" before each snap last week. I wonder what bet he lost.

***THEY SAID IT***
"Jerry Jones and Tony Romo walk into a bar...to watch the playoffs."  -- Bob Chavez
"Things are going so bad for N.J. Gov. Chris Christie, he called A-Rod and offered to swap scandals."  -- Brad Dickson
"Mahiouba has been crowned Most Beautiful Camel in the annual Abu Dhabi pageant. To some, Most beautiful camel is an oxymoron, like most outstanding Houston Astro."  -- RJ Currie
" Congress passed a $1.1 trillion spending bill: “As a side note, the House will now be known as the Yankees."  -- Mike Hart, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
"Seattle and Denver — whose states legalized recreational marijuana on Jan. 1 — will host the NFC and AFC title games on Sunday. Defensive coordinators are bracing for a bevy of second-hand smoke screens."  -- Dwight Perry
"A B.C. study says individuals who experience a lot of failure have greater appreciation for life's little moments. When Tony Romo heard this he said, "Look! A rainbow." -- RJ Currie
"Never doubt the power of prayers by comedians, I used to ask God that someday I’d make as much money as Alex Rodriguez, and today that dream came true."  -- Argus Hamilton
Avalanche winger  Ryan O'Reill injured his shoulder in a team hug. My wife, an R.N, says it's common for a man to get hurt that way — especially if he's hugging another woman."  -- RJ Currie
" Much controversy over the Seahawks not selling playoff tickets to Californians. Actually after watching him on the sidelines last weekend it would make more sense for Seattle to ban coffee shops from selling to Jim Harbaugh."  --  Janice Hough

"The Canucks have lost 7 of their last 8 games. Their best on ice plus-minus rating to date is 0, held jointly by the national anthem singer and the Zamboni driver."  -- TC Chong

"Manning is using “Omaha” as an play call at the line of scrimmage because the league would not allow him to use “Papa Johns”.  -- TC Chong

CP-