have fun in hollywood

i still don’t understand fully why the red sox traded manny ramirez. as far as i’m concerned they just took themselves out of the pennant race. but as a yankee fan that doesn’t bother me in the least.

sayonara nomo

hideo nomo, the trailblazing japanese pitcher in major league baseball, has called it quits. i’d argue, along with sammy sosa, he was the most important figure from outside the united states to have had an impact on mlb as well as a key player who buoyed the game after fans were turned off by the 1995 strike. a true pioneer and someone true baseball fans know and admire. many thanks nomo.

papelbon the clown

watching the all star game and jonathan papelbon of the red sox gives up a run and the lead to the nl. this after all the shit he talked. i’m glad he got grilled in the new york papers today.

bobby murcer: class act

bobby murcer passed away over the weekend from complications due to a brain tumor he’d been fighting. i remember my mom always had a crush on him when i was kid growing up watching the yankees. the game against baltimore sticks out in mind, following thurman munson’s funeral where bobby had all the rbi’s for the yankees in their victory that night. a classy, well liked guy and a great yankee on the field and in the broadcast booth. we’ll miss ya bobby.

zito

barry zito cannot pitch anymore. he can’t. i feel as bad for a guy making 12+million a year as much as i can, vis a vis not wanting to see anyone do as horribly at their job as zito has since signing on with the san francisco giants. but i’m really sick of hearing him say his stuff is good, when it clearly wasn’t (you don’t fork over 5 runs with good stuff), that he just needs to get agressive on hitters (dude, you’re guaranteed a job, you can’t fuck it up any worse - pitch the goddamn ball), and that he’s always fired up for next time (cause it doesn’t seem that way).

zito’s a musician. a guitar player in fact. i wanna recommend frank zappa’s “shut up n’ play yer guitar“.

lester hurls no hitter

as a yankee fan, i pretty much find it hard to say anything good about the red sox, especially during these past few years of boston’s ascension to the top team in baseball. however, reading about jon lester’s no hitter last night was impressive. i credit any pitcher who can accomplish that feat and still yearn to witness one live at the yard. lester’s story, as many of you know, is also an encouraging one having beat cancer a little over a year ago or so, and starting to come into his own in the big leagues. so a big ol’ tip o’ the chu hi to you jon lester. congrats on an amazing game.

hang in there harlan

sad news for the family of yankee pitcher joba chamberlain. his father, harlan chamberlain, collapsed last night and is reported to be in critical condition. joba left the team to be with his dad who’s in the hosital in lincoln, nebraska. it’s obvious how much harlan means to joba and how proud he is of joba. nothing but wishes for the best for him and the chamberlain family during this difficult time.

no sign of bonds

i didn’t catch the whole pregame show of the giants game, but what i saw there was no mention of bonds, save for a little joke right before game time from duane kuiper saying barry would be in the line up (zito that is). the giants have reportedly taken away most visible signs at their stadium of the guy. it’ll be interesting to watch the giants home opener and see if they acknowledge him or the home run record in any way. i think it’s small of them if they don’t. like it or not, the giants front office rode that guy all the way to the bank and didn’t care what he was doing as long as he was hitting bombs and putting butts in the seats.

fukodome rocks

kosuke fukodome made his debut with the cubs with a splash. he went 3-3 with a walk, including a 9th inning home run blast off eric gagme…er gagne that sent the crowd into hysterics. the cubs ended up losing, but he was real impressive. guy’s got a nice swing and i wish him the best over here.

another terrible season

 

misery awaits the san francisco giants and barry zito yet again this season. zito, the “ace” of the staff got shelled on opening day against dreaded rivals, the dodgers (looking good in dodger blue joe!). the chronicles gwen knapp breaks down the scenario.