Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

I hope that during the Super Bowl Media Day at least one player answers every question by simply saying, "I am Groot"... The US jobs picture without Texas is not pretty... Good advice often comes from unexpected places at unexpected times... Stephen Strasburg for Mookie Betts? I think a Tanner Roark for Betts works better (no pun intended) or how about Shane Victorino (and prospect) for Doug Fister?... Heh heh - Star Wars (Age of Ultron Style)... Its been pointed out elsewhere but President Obama's foreign policy can be explained in a nutshell by pointing out he plans to attend the funeral of Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah but he skipped the funeral of Margaret Thatcher... Heh heh... If you've been anywhere on the Internet the past five days you probably already seen the video of this incredible archer... Forget the Legion of Boom - how will the Seahawks score against the Patriots?...

Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

Last night the Penguins lost their game 7 tilt against the Canadians. Not a good way to end the history of the Igloo. I have fond memories of the Igloo. I saw a Penguins game there (completely forget who they played) and I also saw Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band play there. Both events were last minute deals where I just happened to be traveling for work and staying at the Marriott across the street. Fond memories... Speaking of travel - I'm in Syracuse and I'm pissed at myself. I love going to minor league baseball games in different towns and cities and last night I missed a great opportunity to see phenom Stephen Strasburg pitch for the Syracuse Chiefs. Pissed at myself I am... So the Red Sox have had Bruce Springsteen, Jimmy Buffett, The Rolling Stones and The Dave Matthews Band play at Fenway. Meanwhile the Yankees just announced that Jay-Z and Eminem will play at the New Yankee Stadium. I think that explains much about the difference between the two team's fan bases... Who knew? The last battle of the Civil War - the Battle of Palmito Ranch - was a Confederate victory... Note to LeBron James - you haven't won anything in your career and unless you change your mindset you never will... Can you believe that Harvey Keitel turned 71 today? The movie City of Industry is one of his more underrated movies...

Baseball Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous baseball thoughts and observations.

I'm amazed that some people still debate whether Ichiro Suzuki is a Hall of Fame Player or not. Ichiro has been in the league for 8 years and each year he's been an All-Star and won a Gold Glove. He's also had over 200 hits in each of his seasons and won 2 batting titles. This year Ichiro is batting .342 and shows no sign of slowing down. To top it off - when you see him play in person he's simply mesmerizing. I've seen him play a few times and you can't take your eyes off him... Bobby Abreu's batting average dropped 65 points in May. He hit just .221 for the month (not including today's game). I just don't seem to like Bobby Abreu... Speaking of Bobby Abreu - of the minor leaguers that Philly got back as part of the Cory Lidle/Abreu trade - only Matt Smith made an impact. Too bad for the Phillies that the impact was to have an 11.25 ERA in 9 games back in 2007. That trade between the Phillies and Yankees will go down in history as a textbook salary dump trade... I'm not a fan of collusion but I'd be willing to set aside my scruples for a minute to get the MLB owners to agree to block the Washington Nationals from drafting San Diego State pitcher Stephen Strasburg. Scott Boras is going to have a field day with the mess that is the Nationals front office and the money Strasburg will get will unbalance the pay scale an unprecedented amount. Then again - this could be the perfect storm that leads to a rookie pay scale... In Nick Carfardo's notes column today - he asks, "How about Omar Vizquel as a fill-in shortstop for the Red Sox until Jed Lowrie comes back?" I love that idea but there are two problems - Jed Lowrie is almost back and why would the Rangers give up the versatile Vizquel?