All you other Slim Gradys are just imitating...

Won't the real Slim Grady please stand up? Please stand up? Please stand up?

Seriously. Tribe. What the fuck? Will the real Cleveland Indians please stand up? They are 5-5 in their last ten games, and let's be honest... when I turn a game on, I never know if the starting pitcher is going to go 6 or 7 innings and give up one run, or if the whole team is going to give up 10+ runs. Here are the scores of their last 10 games:

Tribe - Opponents
win, 10-2
win, 15-1
loss, 9-18
loss, 4-9
win, 6-5
loss, 5-11
loss, 1-5
loss, 6-8
win, 7-1
win, 15-3

Seriously, what's going on, here? The offense (with the exception of the 10th game of a 10 day, 10 game road trip in which they only scored 1) has not been the problem. Look at the pitching numbers, though:

5 wins: 12 total runs allowed. 2.4 runs a game. A great number.
5 losses: 46 total runs allows. 9.2 runs a game. NOT a great number.

I know the bullpen has been in flux with Miller, Betancourt, and Cabrera not there. They should be getting Cabrera back soon, and apparently his extended spring has been very beneficial. Betancourt won't be on the DL too terribly long. Miller's done for the year. I also know that C.C. Sabathia is set to come off the DL any day now, and that will only strengthen the starting rotation.

But still... how about a little consistency??


Some other Tribe notes:

• I think it's safe to say you don't ever want to pitch to Ben Broussard with the bases loaded. Last night, he was 2-2 with a grand slam and 6 runs batted in with the bases loaded. That brings his career numbers to: 14-38 (.368) with 4 doubles, 4 grand slams, and a total of 47 RBI. Bases loaded? Call Ben Broussard, that's my name... that name again is Ben Broussard.


• Travis Hafner walked 4 times last night. In his last at bat, he'd been up 4 times previously, but was still 0-0 with 4 BB. How's that for patient, especially when your team is up by 10+ runs?


• Victor Martinez has picked up right where he left off last summer/fall. To have that kind of production in your catcher's spot... wow.


• Paul Byrd has an 8.03 ERA in five starts. If I told you he was above .500, you wouldn't believe me, right? Well, he's 3-2. Mainly, because of the fact that--even though his ERA is north of 8--his run support has been 50 runs in 5 games. Wow.


• Speaking of runs, the Tribe leads baseball in runs scored. They've scored 142 runs in 22 games, good for a clip of 6.45 per game. Only one other team in baseball (Cincinnati, in the NL, with 136) is even over 124 runs. If the Tribe can get any kind of pitching at all, watch out.

In other news, the NFL Draft is tomorrow. Finally, all of the coverage and speculation will end! Some things, to wit:

• The Texans WILL take Reggie Bush at #1. Anyone that tries to convince you otherwise is: a) high, b) completely stupid, or c) the GM of the Texans trying to leverage his contract negotiations with Bush.


• Not being an OSU fan, I'm still not ashamed to say that I support any plan that involves a trade up to get A.J. Hawk, or a trade down to get Bobby Carpenter.


• My gut says the Browns will end up with Haloti Ngata at #12. I have no complaints with that pick. His stock is falling for some unknown reason, and enough people in the top 10 will take guys like Jay Cutler and Mario Williams who inexplicably are the talk of the draft. I'm fine with Ngata at 12.


• My gut also says that if Ngata isn't there, Kamerion Wimbley is our pick.


• My gut (yes, it's getting quite large) also says that if we get Ngata in round 1, we'll take Manny Lawson in round 2, and offensive lineman in round 3, and a change-of-pace running back in round 4.


• Speaking of Lawson (and of Mario Williams) I have this question: if we're to believe that THREE guys from NC State's defense are good enough to be taken in the top 50 or so (Williams is the concensus #2 pick in the draft, Lawson will go in the late 1st/early 2nd, and supposedly John McCargo will as well) HOW THE HELL IS IT THAT I NEVER HEARD ANYTHING ABOUT THEIR DEFENSE LAST COLLEGE FOOTBALL SEASON? They finished 6-5, 3-5 in the ACC. Fourth in their own division. They gave up just under 20 points a game. So, what are the odds that these guys are simply workout-warriors? I personally think that whomever takes Mario Williams in the top 5 will be sadly let down.


• But, then again, that's why douchebags like Mel Kiper make six (hopefully not seven) figures a year and never run out of hair gel.

I'm meeting up with some cronies for the draft tomorrow morning/afternoon, and then House of Cards is rocking Skully's later that evening. Should be an action-packed day.

Parker Out.

As if right on cue...

So, all I wrote was one thing about: "...if the Tribe's pitching continues to be there..." and BOOM! I undercut this team... AGAIN.

The offense hung up 9 more runs last night against the Orioles. Should have been more than enough, right? Well, too bad the pitching staff GAVE UP 18 FUCKING RUNS.

And lost two members of its bullpen.

Perhaps I should just hide myself under a blanket until October.

Flight 23...

OK, so all Michael Reghi bashing aside, Steve recently touched on a very large and pressing sports debate.

I read a very good article this morning about the importance of shining in the playoffs for LeBron with respect to securing his legacy over the years, and the writer made a very good argument (perhaps without intending to) for LBJ to be the MVP of the league:

Will LeBron make a big splash in his postseason debut? Could he dazzle the nation the way Jordan did when he hung up a playoff-record 63 points in the Boston Garden exactly 20 years ago this week? Could he lead his team on a deep run like Magic and Larry did in 1980?

It's possible. As of Tuesday, the Cavs still don't know if they will face the Wizards, the Pacers, the Bucks or the Bulls in the first round. But they are hot right now, and LeBron just might be good enough to win a series on his own.

In the long run, however, it really doesn't matter.

Win or lose in this year's playoffs, he is already well on his way to joining Jordan, Bird, Magic and the all-time greats in some other areas.

James is about to become just the fourth player in NBA history (and the first since Jordan) to average 31 points, seven boards and six assists in a single season. But what really should open eyes is the way he picked up the Cavs and carried them down the stretch this season. James ran off nine straight games of 35 or more points, helping Cleveland win 11 of 12 games to secure the No. 4 seed in the East and home court advantage in the first round. On the night his streak ended, James had "only" 32 points and hit the game-winning jumper to knock out the Hornets in Oklahoma City.

That's the kind of thing Jordan, Bird and Magic did.

That's a pretty glowing endorsement right there, even if he doesn't come right out and endorse him.


In other news, the Tribe hung 15 runs on Baltimore last night, a day after hanging 10 on the new-look Tigers. God help the AL if our pitching continues to get right (4 runs in the last three games). This offense is built to mash.

Browns are drafting defense. No big surprises there. It will be interesting to see how the first 11 picks pan out, as to whether a QB will be there at 12 or not, and whether then the Browns would trade down. Though Savage says he projects Bobby Carpenter as an inside 'backer in the 3-4 (he's either way off, way smarter than everyone else, or playing the best poker face I've ever seen), I still wouldn't mind a trade down to #20 or so and a selection of Carpenter. The next 10 days should be fun and speculative. Mel Kiper, Jr., has come out of his hole, seen his shadow, and put on 6 pounds of hair gel.

Something... anything...

So, I've been so busy with work that I have been putting off updating this blog. I put it off, and put it off some more, and then it's gotten to be a month. Let's do a quick-hitting update, just for the sake of updating:

• If you've got a couple of hours to waste being mesmerized by the simplest thing, then I suggest you go here. Use your mouse to move him if he gets stuck.


• On the subject of that guy, a rhetorical question, if I may: So, we now know that he leaked classified information for personal political gain, and the White House hasn't denied it. We know he's spying on Americans. Clinton got impeached for getting a BJ. Why, exactly, is GWBush still president??


• Browns added Willie McGinnest as their outside pass rushing threat, and will probably draft a linebacker or defensive tackle at #12. Their schedule is fairly favorable this year. Look out, 10 wins.


• Tribe lost on Opening Night, and hasn't lost in 5 games since. Just reporting the facts. Not trying to jinx anything.


• In other baseball news, remember how much I complained about the Coco Crisp trade? He's on the DL. Jason Michaels is hitting .346 so far. Shows you what I know.


• The Cavaliers are in the playoffs. They've secured home-court in the first round. All of the nay-sayers that said LeBron couldn't finish games and couldn't carry his team have had to eat their words repeatedly as he has become (in my opinion, at least) the MVP of the league over the past month. And hey, you bitches, he hit another game-winner last night. Between that and the just fucking sick play he made in ending New Jersey's 14-game win-streak, those nay-sayers can all go to hell. Sure, ESPN's BJ Armstrong... the Wizards can win the first round series. Gotcha.


• House of Cards is in the middle of a jam-packed April. And we re-designed our website. Holla if you love frames... I know I do! I can't take credit for the art design, though.

Other than that, more of the same. Hopefully it doesn't take me another month to update this thing.

So THIS is what it feels like....

...to have hope for one's football team for the coming season.

Free agency started on Saturday, and already the Browns addressed some HUGE holes from a 6-win team:

LeCharles Bentley - Pro Bowl center
No more will we not be able to pick up 3rd and fucking 1's! This moves Jeff Faine either to guard, or to depth. I'm fine with either, as long as Bentley is playing somewhere in the middle of our line. What's more, he's a Cleveland native, and *gets* what it means to be a Browns fan. When he appeared at his press conference and whipped open his suit coat to show off his Browns 00 jersey (I hope he wins his league petition to wear that number!)... man... goosebumps. He wants to play here. Wow, what a concept!

Kevin Shaffer - Left Tackle
Not the best left tackle ever, but a two-year starter on a team that notoriously runs the ball very well. See above. Supposedly he has trouble with speed rushers (i.e., Dwight Freeney), but who doesn't? At 26, he has promising upside, a mean streak, and a notable work ethic. Browns senior vice president and general manager Phil Savage said he feels, at this point, Shaffer is an upgrade at left tackle over last year's starter, L.J. Shelton. He probably cost less, too.

Ted (Mount) Washington - Nose Tackle
This guy redefines "mammoth." He's listed at 6'5", 365 pounds, but I suspect he hasn't sniffed 365 in the last decade. He's easily 380-390. Weakness #1 on the Browns defense last year was at nose tackle. Our nose tackle consistently got driven off the ball at the snap. By the time anyone could make a play on a running back, he had already gained 6-7 yards. No more. Washington COMMANDS a double-team each play. Sitting him next to newly re-signed Orpheus Roye should free up our middle linebackers to actually play the run, instead of trying to shed the guards that blew past the nose tackle and blocked them. Washington is old (37), but he's a 4-time Pro Bowler, which is more than the entire FRANCHISE of the new Browns can say (seven seasons, exactly 1 Pro Bowler).

Joe Jurivicius - Wide Receiver
This guy is not a prototypical #1 receiver, but what he is is consistent and excited to play in Cleveland (his hometown, see Bentley, LeCharles above). He's a true professional, and has played in 3 Super Bowls in the last six seasons. Surely some of that veteran leadership will rub off on a guy like Braylon Edwards. When these two line up together with Northcutt in the slot, this team will have three dangerous receivers, all of them different types of receivers. Put Kellen Winslow in the mix, and look the fuck out.

Dave Zastudil - Punter
Our punter last year was ho-hum with some stretches of HORRIBLE. This kid is young, had a 43+ net punting average, and ALSO is a Cleveland native who loves the Browns and the weather up on Lake Erie. Since this team lost at least two (maybe three) games with its previous two punters that involved kicks of less than 20 yards, this can only help. For a team that needs to play field position to be successful, this can only help. For a team that needs to educate its players about the plight of Browns fans, bringing in as many guys who were die-hard Browns fans and have been dreaming of playing for the Browns can only help.


It's been rumored that they may go for Kalimba Edwards next. He's a smaller defensive end from Detroit. He would not be able to play every-down defensive end in the Browns 3-4 scheme, but that doesn't matter. The Browns would play him at outside linebacker. He's a pass-rushing specialist. The outside 'backer in a 3-4's main job is to rush the passer and to be a down lineman (defensive end) on third down passing situations. The Browns had a deplorable pass rush last season. As Pee Wee Herman used to say, "Connect the dots! Lala Lala La!"


So, let's review:
Cleveland in 2005: 6-10
Holes in Cleveland's team: run defense, pass rush, offensive line depth, receiving depth, field position
Aquisitions: nose tackle, two good offensive linemen, punter, wide receiver (and possibly a pass-rushing specialist line backer)

Is it unreasonable to think that this team could go 10-6 or 11-5? Who knows. Is it unreasonable to expect that they will have a chance to win every game they play this season? Absolutely not.

Color me: excited.

And the draft is still seven weeks away. This team is a good 3-4 DE and a draft of Bobby Carpenter away from being a defensive juggernaut. OK, maybe not. But, still, maybe so.


In other news, the Tribe is having a great Spring Training, which means that their farm system's depth is better than most other teams' farm system depth.

And, as my colleague Lars pointed out today, Time Warner will be picking up the Tribe's home games in HD. I think I might have just passed out.

The Large Elephant in the Room

Wow. I just got done reading an article that basically confirmed everything I basically already knew, but wow. This book is going to make this year's baseball season very interesting. Especially if the Giants win the NL West as many think they will.

Morally Reprehensible: A Sliding Scale

As some of you probably noted yesteday, my esteemed colleague Justin Neme deftly switched out my Built to Spill mp3 file that was streaming with a note about how distribution of copyrighted materials without permission is morally reprehensible.

While I don't disagree that there is some merit to this claim, I think we should keep this in perspective. My take is that, since only 10 (if I'm lucky) people actually read this blog, and since I'm not actually providing a link and encouraging people to download and steal music but instead am simply embedding a file into my code to allow someone to listen to a tune whilst reading my blog, I'm not exactly "distributing" copyrighted material. I think of myself more like a one-song-per-week radio station with a listening area of ten people on the web.

What I DO find morally reprehensible is how our Chimp in Chief can consistently lie to the Ameircan public, and moreso how a chunk of that same public continually buys into the shit that he says simply because of the fact that he's scared them silly or because of some religious belief he claims to practice.

With the possible exception of Harry Truman, I can't think of another president with more innocent blood on his hands than this one. And Truman gets an asterisk because of the whole WWII thing.

As Lars points out here, so many people seem to forget why we sent troops to the Middle East to begin with. For the president to gloat about how the most wanted man in our country's history being still at large helped his re-election bid makes me want to do a combination of cry, vomit, and punch a lot of people in the face.

Now, THAT'S morally reprehensible.

Ten Random

Based on an idea I've read in some other blogs, I turned on my iTunes here at work, went to the complete library (3850 songs), and played it on shuffle. The object is to document the first ten songs that play and, if other blogs have taught me anything, attempt to come up with some witty banter about each. Here goes...

1. "Candy Man" by Vertical Horizon
One of the worst songs off of their otherwise very good album "Running on Ice," this song feels like filler on the album, with Keith Kane doing his "I wish I was David Gray" vocal stylings, instead of the more-soothing Matt Scannell. The harmonies and great acoustic guitar work are still there, however.

2. "Drag Me Down" by God Lives Underwater
Ahh, yes. Two teenagers in 1993 with a Power Mac created a six-song EP of quasi-industrial/electronic music about 5-7 years before recording everything onto a computer/Pro Tools became the norm. Very washed out and crunchy-sounding. Not quite the best thing they ever did, but not quite the worst either.

3. "Heaven Beside You" by Alice in Chains
My best college friend Tyler and I used to argue about whether or not this was a good album/song, with no resolution ever really coming. I was more firmly entrenched in the "Dirt" AiC camp, and he in the "Jar of Flies" camp. That said, we still played a lot of Super Mario Kart (the original, head-to-head, Ghost Valley 1, over and over) and drank a shit-load of beer.

4. "Depends" by Blink-182
Wow. This is ooooooold. From their first ever album "Cheshire Cat" which was when they were actually a real punk band. The thrust of this song is that they truly can't control their bladders/colons, and the chorus is:
voice 1: "Well, I guess it all depends"
beat
voice 2: "Undergarments!"
The song itself is only about 90 seconds long, followed by 70 seconds of banter, including Mark Hoppus doing a version of the jive-talkers from "Airplane!" and ends with the phrase: "Who taught you how to throw the dick down the stairs?" Good times. No wait, bad times. I'm not sure.

5. "Renholder" by A Perfect Circle
Mysterious sounding acoustic riff with eastern-feeling vocals over it, from their first album "Mer de Noms." A great album from top to bottom. Everything Maynard James Keenan touches turns to gold.

6. "Faces in Disguise" by Sunny Day Real Estate
Wow, I'd forgotten how much I used to fucking LOVE this song. The F-major/D-minor/A-major chord progression on the keyboard to begin it just melts me. I used to tell my friend Rob that if I was ever a movie director, this is the song I would use for any and all love-making scenes, because it has the ambiance and also the chorus "Faces in disguise / not a trace of desire" in it. Perfect movie sex scene music, I'd say. In a totally un-related matter, I believe I was single at the time I hatched this theory. Creepy overtures aside, it's still a bad ass song, especially when Jeremy Enigk's super-falsetto kicks in about the 2:45 mark. And, when listening to the album, it leads right into "The Rising Tide," which is the best ending to an album I've ever heard in recent memory. Well, except for the Blink-182 "dick down the stairs" thing I mentioned above.

7. "Big-Eyed Fish" by Dave Matthews Band
Classic "careful what you wish for" song about the grass being greener on the other side of the fence. Except that, in true Dave fashion, once on the other side of the fence, all of his subjects die. "Oh God, under the weight of life / things seem so much brighter on the other side." Indeed. From the "meh"-inspiring "Busted Stuff" album, this is one of those songs that has its moments, but on the whole pales in comparison to what we've come to love about DMB. The live version on "Live at Folsom Field" is a little better, if only because of the extended pan flute solo and the adaptation of the monkey story in which Dave relates to us that "every monkey should know / stay up in your fucking tree." Indeed, Dave. Another second-to-last song on an album that moves seamlessly into "Bartender," which is actually a song I do enjoy from the BS album.

8. "High Hopes" by Pink Floyd
Wow, iTunes must know I'm doing something special with this listening session. When this album came out in the spring of my junior year of high school, I put this song on so many mix tapes for so many people. And, interestingly enough, it continues with the DMB theme of "grass is greener" (although much more explicit). This song is about Pink Floyd's break up, so you can imagine the mix-tape-power I wielded with this song as a 16-17 year old teen-angst sufferer convinced that no girl would ever like/understand me. But, the true Pink Floyd guitar solo at the end always gave me hope. Maybe that's the point of the song.

9. "Best of What's Around" by Dave Matthews Band
It figures that even with 3850 songs, 2 DMB songs would show up. I guess that's what happens when 234 of those songs are DMB songs. This is a good tune, and leads in to one of the best albums of the 90's, in my opinion. It was just the perfect time for DMB to break big when they did, and this album is the reason. There isn't a bad song on the record. And, for once, Dave has a seemingly uplifting message: your friends are important; no matter how much shit comes around, you can make the best of it with the right people. So not about weed, Jesus, sex, or death. So NOT DMB.

10. "Another Know It All" by Chevelle
Finally, something heavy. One has to remember that I listened to a lot of heavy, heavy music as a younger man (I won't say metal, because I can't claim to like the serious metal). This isn't the best Chevelle song ever, but it is on an album ("This Type of Thinking [Could Do Us In]")that has some political overtones here and there, which I dig. Not quite as good a song as "Breach Birth" on the same album, but a nice way to wrap up my 10 Random.


Anyone else want to give it a go?

Be there. Or I will hunt you down.

If you're in Columbus tonight and are not at Scarlet and Grey Cafe to see my show, change your address and phone number. I will hunt you down.

Blogger finishes book; reaches out and hugs own dog

So, I just finished reading Marley & Me by John Grogan. I'd been plugging along through it until last week when I got to the point where the dog started to get older. I had a pretty rough week last week, so I really wasn't ready to go there.

Last night I finished the book, and it made me reach down to the end of the bed and hug my own pooch.

I recommend this book to anyone who is a dog-lover, has had (or currently has) a dog that was (is) the world to them, or really anyone who has a pet in general. It's a beautifully written book that perfectly illustrates how something as small and seemingly unimportant as a pet can really impact your life and really become part of the fabric of a family.

Not good times. Bad times.

Thanks, Sony. Way to get my hopes up and then dash them.

Blogger Stumbles Across Best Blog Ever

Thanks to my friend Rob who writes so maniacally well for the East Bay Express for posting this in one of his articles.

I give you, the best blog ever.

(Takk...) About Excited...

So, we are going to see Sigur Ros tonight here in Columbus at the (formerly known as Promowest) Pavilion. Having never seen them before, I could not be more excited, as I've heard they are simply mind-blowing live. Melissa and I plan to meet up with some guys from my band, and make an evening out of the whole thing. From everything I've heard and read, this should be an amazing evening.

In the meantime, enjoy a little snippet.

A Win and a "Lost"

I believe the Curse of the Blog has been lifted! After giving up a goal 35 seconds into the game, and being down 3-1 at the end of the first period, it looked as though Lars was right: my blog had again cursed a hot sports team. They were headed for a second straight loss.

Five unanswered goals later, the Jackets again emerged victorious. This time, they didn't give the other team the freebie point for the shootout loss. And, they got two points from the team in the 8th playoff spot. They're now 17 points back with two games in hand above the Kings, who are reeling. For the sake of any playoff argument, you have to assume the Jackets win those two games in hand, and thus for all intents and purposes can be 13 points back. That's doable over a two-month span.

We also learned on "Lost" last night that Sawyer, despite all of his experiences with all of the people on the island, is still at his root a bad mothaf-shut yo mouth. Just talkin' bout Sawyer.

Then we can dig it.

And, even though my previous Lost post bashed the Charlie episode, last nights ep at least shed some light on why it was there.

There's a new sheriff in town!

Say hello to hockey, the other white meat!

Seriously, I love hockey, and I love to follow the Blue Jackets. But, until Christmas, they looked content to just roll over and die and have one of the worst seasons ever. But then, my boy Rick Nash (above) came back, and essentially the whole, original roster finally got healthy. Since Christmas, they've played 19 games and have gone 13-5-1 (equalling 27 points in 19 games... not bad for at that time the second worst team in hockey). They've gone from 19 points to 46 points in a little over a month.

Columbus is finally getting behind their team again, and the way the Jackets are playing, they have a legitimate shot at making a run at the #8 spot in the playoffs (and thus, the right to get smoked by Detroit in the first round).

But, I think it was Shakespeare who said, "It's better to get smoked in the first round of the playoffs than never to have been in the playoffs at all." Or something like that.

At any rate, this team is on fire. 8-2 in their last 10, including a 5-game winning streak (4 of which were against playoff teams, the last 2 on the road).

Stay tuned.

Our Big Break + State of the Union Scorecard

So, tonight could be the biggest show my band has ever played. We are again headlining Little Brother's which we first did back in December. That night, we probably had 70 people there.

Well, for the show tonight, we've passed out almost 2000 free tickets all across campus and other parts of the city. Our estimate was that maybe 1 in 10 tickets would show up at the door. Even at that rate, that's at least 200 people, which in this town for a Wednesday night show, is pretty damn good.

Some semi-important people (from some bigger bands in C-bus, one of which is signed I believe), are rumored to be at this show. Godspeed, House of Cards.

On to more pressing matters:

State of the Union Address Scorecard

Number of Minutes Actually Watched: ZERO. That's right. I can't stand to watch that man speak. It makes my blood pressure rise. My wife and I consider ourselves to be steeped in traditional moral values, but I believe at one point she said, "I hate that man with every fiber of my being." And I couldn't agree more.

Best Analysis: Tim Russert. Seriously, I love Tim Russert when it comes to things like this. He seems to be the only reporter these days who doesn't lob softballs at interviewees, and his assessment last night of what will actually be done in Congress in the coming year was fair, and probably accurate. I wish Tim was in the daily White House Press Corps sometimes, because you know he wouldn't let Scott McClellan get away with a quarter of the douchey dodging answers he gives essentially every day.

Brightest Political Future: Barrack Obama. He was only on NBC for about 45 seconds to a minute after the speech, but in that minute he said more of substance than most politicos can do. "He talked about the things that I think need to be talked about. Health care, education, energy independence, but there wasn't any beef there. There didn't seem to be any serious proposals that would call America to action." No spin. Thank heavens. I think it's too early in 2008 for any Presidential aspirations, but good God, they need to get him involved in that campaign.

Number of Times I Would Punch Bill Frist in the Face, Were it Legal: Cannot be Measured by Existing Technology. Seriously. He couldn't even properly recite the bullet points on NBC's post-speech coverage without messing up.

Most Unexpected Democratic Response: Tim Kaine of Virginia. Dude's been governor for all of a month, and he's the choice for Democratic response? At first I was like, "Wha?" but then I came to like the decision. Fresh blood. That's what the Dems need. They need to parade guys like Kaine (who, as Lt. Governor of Virginia has worked with a lot of actual bipartisanship to accomplish good things in that Republican state, and who has connected with white, rural, middle-class America) and Obama (who connects with people unlike any politician I've seen other than Bill Clinton) around early and often going into the 2006 and 2008 elections. To quote Agent Smith from The Matrix: "You've had your time. It's... OUR time... now."

Best Sarcastic Canned Response: The Democrats Giving a Standing-O to Bush's Caustic Remark about Not Passing His Social Security Privatization. Seriously. Brilliant. Hearing about that makes me almost wish I'd watched the speech.

Thing I Missed Most about Not Watching the SotU Address: Ted Kennedy's Eye-Rolling. Ted's always good for at least one big sigh and one big eye-roll while on camera when Bush says something he doesn't like. Melissa and I agreed: that's the only reason we would have watched the actual speech.

All in all, I really don't know exactly what the President said, as admittedly, I didn't watch his speech. But, much like David Letterman, I have a feeling that at least 60% of what he said is crap.

Crisp-for-Marte: The Re-Redux

So, this story just keeps getting better and better. Apparently, because Guillermo Mota's shoulder looked sketchy, the Tribe has asked Boston for *another* player. This one, while still technically a "prospect," has the potential to help the Indians this year. This would make the deal a little easier for me to swallow, in truth.

Boston is balking at this deal, which makes me think that if it happens, it can't be all bad. They'd be giving us three of the top young players in their organization for Coco Crisp. THAT sounds like a trade worth making, especially when one of them (Manny Delcarmen) could help us this season. Plus, it means that with this deal and then the impending deal with the Phillies, we're now swapping players straight up: back-up catcher for back-up catcher, middle relievers for middle relievers, and outfield for outfield. We then get Marte on top of everything. If he pans out like Lars thinks he will, seems like the Tribe wins on this deal, and basically a comparable team takes the field this year to the one that won 93 games last year. I can live with that.

Don't get me wrong: I still don't think I want these deals to go down, but if they do, I could live with it in THIS format better than I could when it was just Marte and Mota that we would be getting (in addition to Michaels, of course).


New Lost last night. Have to say that it left me a bit disappointed. I found it to grind any momentum that the show built (from last week's revelation of Zeke to Jack wanting to plan an army) to a screaching halt. So, you're telling me that all of this stuff happened, and Jack is too busy chatting it up with Ana Lucia about whether or not he's "hitting" Kate to even mention anything about his plans for an army, or the fact that they now have made contact with at least one faction of "Others?" No, instead we get some Charlie backstory time, and a teaser of Sun being kidnapped.

I guess I just didn't like being teased. It's like in the Simpsons, when Poochie made his debut on the Itchy and Scratchy show... they were driving down a road to a fireworks factory, and the signs kept telling of its impending arrival. Then they stop and pick up Poochie and he does his awful, awful thing. Milhouse exclaims, "When are they going to get to the fireworks factory?!?"

Indeed, Milhouse. When are we going to get to that fireworks factory, Lost?

No! Not 'Nice Guy Eddie' Too!

I can't believe Chris Penn died. He was only 40. While not the picture of health given his weight and what-not, this is still somewhat surprising.

Who can forget the image of him learning to "dance" from Kevin Bacon in Footloose, or, quite simply,

If you fucking beat this prick long enough, he'll tell you he started the goddamn Chicago fire, now that don't necessarily make it fucking so!

Hopefully we don't come to find out it was drugs. Selah.

Bob McKenzie: "Take off, eh! He's signin' my jersey!"

Is it me, or does Jhonny Peralta have a gigantic head?

At any rate, the Tribe press junket here in Columbus was fun. Got my jersey signed by Peralta, Ryan Garko, and Fernando Cabrera. For $5 to charity, I'd say it was money well spent.

And, incidentally, he's laughing because I asked him a stupid question.

More on Coco Crisp-for-Andy Marte

Some good debate happening in my comments section, which isn't something I ever thought I'd see on this blog. Wow!

For me, regardless of what Marte does on the field, I think Kokotan's statement sums up why I was/am so pissed about this potential trade:

"So we are planning on taking that final step in 2007 or will Marte need 77 games followed by a year in the minors to adjust (like jhonny) meaning we are planning for 08 or 09? After a season with 90 some wins? What players are we going to have to dump for salary reasons next year so we can plan for 2008? Unless this team plans on keeping some of its good players then they aren't going to compete every year, they will always be planning on next year."

And, while Marte's numbers may track well, unless the Boston GM is pulling a "Giles for Rincon" trade because they feel like CF/leadoff is that huge a deal to their offense, I'm skeptical that someone this good could be traded twice in the same off-season without a red-flag being there. And now on top of Crisp, we have to give up two MORE major-league (or at least AAAA) players to get this kid, when all he was worth to them was Edgar Renteria, who they were obviously so enamored with that they traded him and are willing to replace him with Alex Gonzalez.

In addition, the fact that we're not actually strengthening our bullpen now (if Riske--for Marte--and then Rhodes--for Michaels--go, only to be replaced by Mota, who *might* be injured), when it was the one area of a 93-win team to already take a huge hit in free-agency, I have to question exactly what the fuck Shapiro is doing if he claims he's not taking a step backward and planning for the future.

Fernando Cabrera for a whole year will be nice, but he doesn't replace both of your set-up men. Matt Miller *might* be back to pre-injury form, but he's been nothing if not inconsistent his entire Indians tenure. Mota *could* be good, but his numbers last year were abysmal when compared with his 2004 numbers. And, leaving a bullpen with only one lefthander (Scott Sauerbeck, who CANNOT get right handed hitters out) is not a smart thing. We tried that in 2004, and it was an awful experiment (Scott Stewart anyone?).


I guess I just can't believe the balls Shapiro has. After all the heat he took in 2002 for trading Colon and then to tell everyone, "Wait until 2005. You'll see," to have the balls now after 2005 to pull that shit again...