Thursday, October 25, 2007

A Roll of the Dice-K

Forget that the Boston Red Sox thrashed the Colorado Rockies last night, 13-1, and may well be en route to the 2007 World Series championship. The franchise has sunk a huge chunk of its future into Daisuke Matsuzaka—$52 million over six years on top of $51.1 million just for the right to negotiate with “Dice-K.”

Boston has received a modest first return on its $103 million investment: 15-12, 4.40 ERA, 201K, plus three mediocre starts in this postseason.

One cannot blame Boston GM Theo Epstein for dishing out a fortune on a player with, at the time, zero Major League experience—he wanted to beat the rival New York Yankees to the punch in acquiring the next potential phenom.

Personally, had I been the Red Sox GM, I would have signed Dice Clay instead of Dice-K. With little going on in his career these days, Dice Clay could have been signed for a lot less than $103 million, and his array of filthy language would mow down hitters far more effectively than Matsuzaka’s array of filthy pitches.

Hall of Famer Warren Spahn once said, “Hitting is timing. Pitching is upsetting timing.”

Well, nothing could upset a batter’s timing more than hearing the pitcher yell, F*ck you, you stupid muthaf*ckah! You think you’re gonna hit my f*ckin’ fastball, ya fat f*ckin’ pr*ck?! There’ll be martial law in this stadium, ya hear?!

Dice Clay: 20 wins easy.

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Trick or Heat?


October 23. Eight days until Halloween. The temperature today is once again expected to break 80 degrees.

And it's humid.

Indian summer? Global warming? As the pundits battle over the cause, have those air-conditioned fat cats in Washington stopped to realize that America is eight short days from crisis? If this autumnal heat wave does not abate, untold Halloweens will be ruined as trick-or-treaters' chocolatey loot melts in the street, not in their mouth.

I needn't stress the importance of Halloween on the child psyche. We've all experienced the joy and the succulence of costume and candy, the emotional release from the relentless grind of homework and the ever-present dread of pop quiz.

Fistfuls of free candy is all that keeps a kid going. Without it, they may as well quit grade school, get a dead-end job, settle down, and prepare for old age.

If autumn doesn't come soon, we're in for a messy All Hallow's Eve and a long winter of discontent.

Al Gore...where are you???

(Photo of jack o'lantern copyright Encyclopaedia Brittanica Online.)

Monday, September 24, 2007

Everybody Must Get Atoned...











Jacqui's [my girlfriend's] family, who live in Atlanta, were in synagogue Saturday for Yom Kippur services.

And who was also in the congregation?

Bob Dylan.

He had a gig in Duluth, Ga., that evening and attended services earlier in the day at Jacqui's family's shul. The rabbi even had him up to the bimah.

Pray Bobby Pray
Heed what the rabbi said
Until the break of the fast
Pray from your frizzy, yarmulked head

Friday, September 7, 2007

Al Davis: Scarier than the Raiders Logo

There comes a time when every professional sports team must ask itself: "Is our logo instilling more fear in the other team than the face of our owner?" In the case of the Oakland Raiders, the answer is a resounding "no." It is a pity Al Davis does not own the other pirate-oriented NFL franchise, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, because his current facial structure already bears uncanny resemblance to their logo. By simply attaching cross-bones to the back of his head, they would instantly have the best owner/mascot/promotional machine available to the sports franchise.

However, Al Davis owns the Raiders, and while it's not as sure a fit as the Bucs' logo, adding his face to the Raiders emblem will surely be giving opponents nightmares whether they admit it or not. If you can't scare teams with your talent, sometimes you have to look around for new ways of intimidation.....and that intimidation is no further than the skeletor on the sidelines with the bags and bags of money!



It happens every autumn.......

Around this time every year, a new wave of the dreaded Brett Favre–related amnesia sets in. Sports prognosticators from all over the country begin talking about the once-brilliant quarterback as though we have gone back in time to 1996. Sure, he's a Hall of Famer, but how many hopelessly ordinary and average seasons does a player need to have before they stop treating him as the same threat he was 10 years ago? Is there a store where someone can purchase this lifetime pass from ridicule where only your positive actions from the past are remembered? I'm sure Dubya would be first in line.

Wednesday, September 5, 2007

A Strange Encounter, Vol VII

Walking through Suburban Station, a woman standing with a stack of Metro newspapers shouted at me: I LOVE YOU!!! IT'S A BLESSING TO SEE YOU TODAY!!!

I ignored her and kept walking, and from behind comes: I KNOW YOU CAN HEAR ME!!!