Flotsam and Jetsam

Miscellaneous thoughts and observations.

You just know that Danny Woodhead's thoughts about Osama bin Laden are 180 degrees opposite to Steelers running back Rashard Mendenhall's. Advantage Patriots... Buddy Bell's nephew was a Marine killed by roadside bomb. Some enterprising MLB writer should get his reaction to the news of Osama bin Laden's death... I've come to the conclusion that Chris Moneymaker was to poker what Chumbawumba was to pop music... WTF? "It's Osama bin Laden!" scream US journalists in Islamabad in 2002... Just an observation but is seems like if an opposing player hits a HR you are supposed to throw the ball back but if it is a ground rule double it's OK to keep the ball. That just seems strange... Back in Colonial days a slang expression for being drunk was "getting half-way to Concord." I like that and will add it to my list of expressions... 10 Obscure Disney Characters... I wish a drug company would hire Tim McCarver for a genital herpes commercial just so I could hear him say "I'm Tim McCarver and I have genital herpes"

Red Sox Going to the World Series!

Here are some observations from last night's game 7 clinching victory over the Indians.

- Going into the game I expected big things from Daisuke Matsuzaka and I'll admit that in the 3rd inning I started to think that Dice-K may just pitch a no-hitter. Dice-K is a competitor and he has "Wa" to spare (the Japanese term for team spirit).

- I still can't stand Kevin Millar.

- By the sixth inning I stopped thinking about "Wa" and started thinking about Chinese water torture because that's what the drip, drip, drip of single runs seemed like. Fans from both sides were getting anxious because it seemed like it could go either way.

- I can't stand Kevin Millar but I really can't stand Kenny Lofton. Am I alone in thinking the ump got that call at second right? Yes, Lofton's hand beat Manny's throw but his hands and his whole body skipped over the base while Pedroia's glove was touching Lofton's face. Being tagged while off the base made Lofton out. I feel bad for the Indians 3rd base coach Joel Skinner. He'll have to live with not sending Kenny Lofton home in the 7th inning but I think it was the fear of Manny's quick release and accurate throws from left that made him put up the stop sign.

- When I was in college I had a friend Pete who had a strange sense of humor. He would start saying something and just leaving you hanging. When he knew you were waiting for him to say something else - he'd chuckle. Pete would say something like, "in my hometown there's a cemetery." You'd wait for him to continue and then Pete would laugh knowing you were waiting on him. Tim McCarver is like Pete except he doesn't do it on purpose. How often does McCarver make a statement that just hangs there? "The Red Sox have scored on a double play and a sacrifice fly." And? There has to be more behind that thought right? When Pete did it - I laughed because I knew Pete was just having fun. With McCarver I cringe because he's either having the onset of dementia or he just sucks.

- Watching the game on TV - I was distracted by a guy behind the plate towards the first base side. Did you see this guy? He had a humongous forehead. I mean it was just huge. This guy could have sold billboard space above his eyebrows.

- Dustin Pedroia has all the confidence in the world. You can tell that just by seeing him flip his bat after hitting that HR in the 7th.

- If you saw the Red Sox celebrating after the game you would have seen a bunch of players smoking cigars. Those cigars came from Louie Tiant who has a cigar business.

All-Star Game Ratings

This year's baseball All-Star game ratings were down 10% against the numbers from last year's game. I think there was three main reasons for the drop in ratings.

1. It was way to slow a production. The player introductions took forever. It was boring. The game didn't start until almost 9:00 EST and by that time a number of people had tuned out.

2. ESPN had new episodes of the 2007 WSOP. Don't think that a number of people (like me) didn't turn on the WSOP and just tune in to the All-Star game during commercials just to check the score. I made a conscious decision that I could check out the highlights after the game because it was moving too slow and because of reason #3.

3. TIM MCCARVER!