We are now about 5 days away from the release of 'Gimme Fiction', the fifth full length album from Spoon, aka America's Finest Rock Band. If you're not familiar with Spoon, they're a band out of Austin, Texas, which has a pretty thriving local music scene and hosts the annual South by Southwest Festival, and the Austin City Limits festival . They cut their teeth on Pixies style minimalist rock, with loud, crunchy guitars, short songs (many under three minutes), and an aggressive vocal style. Their first album, Telephono, is pretty tough to find, or tough to find cheap. Last I checked, it was going for over 50 bones on ebay.
They were signed to Elektra when they released their second album, A Series of Sneaks. They were dropped by their A&R man, Ron Laffite, just four months after its release, which inspired Britt Daniel to pen two tracks that appear as bonus material at the end of ASoS, "Laffite Don't Fail Me Now", and "the Agony of Laffite". ASoS is similar in style to Telephono, and it contains one of the coolest short rock songs I've ever heard, "Car Radio".
Their style changed with the release of album number three, Girls Can Tell. Less aggressive, smoother, a bit more slickly produced, it was a step in a new direction. More thought out, less spontaneous. Fewer obvious Pixies influences, a bit closer to something you'd expect from R.E.M., but the good R.E.M., before they got crappy.
On their fourth, the incredible Kill the Moonlight, Daniel discovered the piano, used to remarkable effect on "The Way We Get By", one of a number of standout tracks, including Small Stakes, Jonathon Fisk, Back to the Life, Someone Something, and Don't Let it Get You Down. The slick grooves of Girls Can Tell continued to evolve, but they brought back some of the spontaneity of the first two albums. You can find reviews of the most recent three albums, as well as the Love Ways EP from Pitchfork (once again, I've gone above and beyond and done the search for you).
They bring even more energy to the stage than they jam into their studio tracks. You don't realize how hard hitting a short rock song can be until you're pummeled with 12 of them in a half hour. The minimalist style transfers flawlessly to their live performances (at least the one I saw), and Daniel certainly has a charisma that is fairly engaging. Of course, that's pretty much from a two year old memory of their show at the Abbey in May of 2003. They'll be at the Vic in mid-June, and I'll probably post a review at that time. They had this nasty habit of hitting Chicago right about the time I was leaving town last year. They played the day I left for Alaska in June, and the day I left for home in December. This year, I'm planning vacation around their show.
The first six or seven tracks from Gimme Fiction are available for streaming here, and they're worth a listen. Daniel gets into a Tim Burgess circa Wonderland style falsetto on "I Turn My Camera On", and the piano is back "My Mathematical Mind". There also seems to be some dubbing/backing vocals on a couple of tracks, which is the first I've heard of that since Telephono. It's a welcome change and adds some depth.
I don't know that this will make them a commercial success, but FWIW, they're playing the Vic this time around, which probably holds three times as many people as the Abbey, so maybe that's a sign that they're building a fan base. Good and bad, I guess, as I love the Abbey, but I'm lukewarm on the Vic. It's certainly my most anticipated show of the year.
Thursday, May 05, 2005
Wednesday, May 04, 2005
Angels 5; Mariners 2
The crazy 5:30 pm CDT start forced me to miss the first three innings. It was already 2-0 before I left the office, and it was 4-2 before I got off the red line. Some of us have to work, ya know. Actually, the more I think about it, one of the benefits to staying in the Mid-west is that I can pretty much see all of just about every game. The East Coast games start at 6:00, and if I can get out of the office by 5:30, I'm home in time to see the whole thing. That would all change if I moved back home.
Anyway, since I missed most of the scoring, I really don't have a lot to comment on. Vlad was the victim of a simply atrocious call at the plate. Good throw from Ichiro, but Vlad was clearly in before the tag. Once again, the old "tag? what tag? If the throw beats him, he's out" laziness of the umpires strikes again. The only really other notable thing was Chone Figgins being a MAJOR dumbass getting picked off second with nobody out and Vlad at the plate. That cost the Angels a run as Vlad walked, and GA drove one off the right field wall that took a bad carom right to Ichiro.
Solid outing from Paul Byrd, which is another in a string by Angels pitchers. One of the reasons has been how they've handled Beltre and Sexon. They've completely shut those two down. Of course, as I type that, Sexon drills a single to left center. Nice play Geri in center field to hold him to a single.
One crazy thing about this series has been the following stat (brief pause while I look it up): 12 walks for (make that 13 now; oops, 14), 5 walks against. They had none yesterday, but I didn't think I'd see any games this season in which the Angels drew five unintentional walks. They've done it twice in the last three games. Right now, only the White Sox have a better ERA, and the starter ERA is also second. Only the otherwordly 2.82 starter ERA of the Sox is better than the Angels 4.02, which will go down to 3.97 after today's strong effort from Byrd, 3.71 if you take out Kevin Gregg. In 2002 they had better pitching than expected. Of course, they had better everything than expected, but I still think this is a good start.
One thing about D-Mac that's worrying me (and I didn't see him play in the minors, so I could be worried for no reason), he doesn't seem to pull the ball all that much. Don't get me wrong, I like to see him go the other way, but not ALL the time. I think he's still trying to find his swing. That's OK. I'm patient.
Frankie comes on with a three run lead. 17 strike outs, no walks to this point. That's a pretty decent ratio. Jeremy Reed with an awful bunt for out number one. Tough guy to bunt on. Does one - well not even city, but state - does any geographical region have two relief pitchers who are as fun to watch as LA.? Frankie and Gagne (when healthy) are two one inning guys who are worth the price of admission. 18 strike outs, no walks. That's just filthy, filthy, dirty stuff. Dave Hansen to the plate for his first at bat of the season. Is that even fair? Make a guy take his first AB against K-Rod? Add to that, he's got an ump with a flight to catch who just called a strike on a pitch about 8 inches off the ground. And just like that, Hansen grounds out, the Angels sweep, and have won 4 straight.
Time for a day of rest, a good night for me to head to the driving range (it's supposed to be 70 degrees tomorrow), and a day to gear up for the Tigers, who are no longer gimmes.
Anyway, since I missed most of the scoring, I really don't have a lot to comment on. Vlad was the victim of a simply atrocious call at the plate. Good throw from Ichiro, but Vlad was clearly in before the tag. Once again, the old "tag? what tag? If the throw beats him, he's out" laziness of the umpires strikes again. The only really other notable thing was Chone Figgins being a MAJOR dumbass getting picked off second with nobody out and Vlad at the plate. That cost the Angels a run as Vlad walked, and GA drove one off the right field wall that took a bad carom right to Ichiro.
Solid outing from Paul Byrd, which is another in a string by Angels pitchers. One of the reasons has been how they've handled Beltre and Sexon. They've completely shut those two down. Of course, as I type that, Sexon drills a single to left center. Nice play Geri in center field to hold him to a single.
One crazy thing about this series has been the following stat (brief pause while I look it up): 12 walks for (make that 13 now; oops, 14), 5 walks against. They had none yesterday, but I didn't think I'd see any games this season in which the Angels drew five unintentional walks. They've done it twice in the last three games. Right now, only the White Sox have a better ERA, and the starter ERA is also second. Only the otherwordly 2.82 starter ERA of the Sox is better than the Angels 4.02, which will go down to 3.97 after today's strong effort from Byrd, 3.71 if you take out Kevin Gregg. In 2002 they had better pitching than expected. Of course, they had better everything than expected, but I still think this is a good start.
One thing about D-Mac that's worrying me (and I didn't see him play in the minors, so I could be worried for no reason), he doesn't seem to pull the ball all that much. Don't get me wrong, I like to see him go the other way, but not ALL the time. I think he's still trying to find his swing. That's OK. I'm patient.
Frankie comes on with a three run lead. 17 strike outs, no walks to this point. That's a pretty decent ratio. Jeremy Reed with an awful bunt for out number one. Tough guy to bunt on. Does one - well not even city, but state - does any geographical region have two relief pitchers who are as fun to watch as LA.? Frankie and Gagne (when healthy) are two one inning guys who are worth the price of admission. 18 strike outs, no walks. That's just filthy, filthy, dirty stuff. Dave Hansen to the plate for his first at bat of the season. Is that even fair? Make a guy take his first AB against K-Rod? Add to that, he's got an ump with a flight to catch who just called a strike on a pitch about 8 inches off the ground. And just like that, Hansen grounds out, the Angels sweep, and have won 4 straight.
Time for a day of rest, a good night for me to head to the driving range (it's supposed to be 70 degrees tomorrow), and a day to gear up for the Tigers, who are no longer gimmes.
Tuesday, May 03, 2005
Angels 5; Mariners 2
IT'S A MIRACLE!! The Angels have won three in a row!!
The Angels knocked it around in the first inning, got a little help from Olivo and his poor defense behind the plate, and parlayed that into a 3-0 lead which they wouldn't relinquish. The old man of the outfield went deep again, 2nd time in two games and 6th this season, to add a couple of runs to the cushion and Frankie put his jacket back on. Decent work by Shields, giving up only a meaningless run in the bottom of the ninth (and congrats to Shin S00 Choo in his first MLB hit and RBI).
Tex Lackey pitched a pretty solid game, which is (hopefully) becoming a trend for the starters. That's four not-awful starts in a row, and three downright good ones. He almost had his Lackey inning in the fifth (see post below), which was partly Jose's fault. The first runner reached on a strike out/wild pitch. But he got Beltre to look downright McPhersonesque on two straight sliders/curves to end the inning.
Speaking of Dallas, another rough night. 0-4, with two strike outs. Experience, brotha, experience. Just keeping seeing pitches, gaining experience, and getting comfortable at third. Your time will come.
Good night for the Guzzlers, so far. A 1-2-3 ninth with two K's for Mr. Zero netted me some nice points, and if the Dodgers can hang on, it will make a decent/not great start from Jeff Weaver look a hell of a lot better. Burrell went deep in his return to my lineup, and Carlos Lee had a productive night. Blalock is not sucking as much as he did last week, and Jose Uribe is back in the lineup, which is a relief. Of course, he comes back and Chase Utley gets the bench. Whaddya gonna do?
The Angels knocked it around in the first inning, got a little help from Olivo and his poor defense behind the plate, and parlayed that into a 3-0 lead which they wouldn't relinquish. The old man of the outfield went deep again, 2nd time in two games and 6th this season, to add a couple of runs to the cushion and Frankie put his jacket back on. Decent work by Shields, giving up only a meaningless run in the bottom of the ninth (and congrats to Shin S00 Choo in his first MLB hit and RBI).
Tex Lackey pitched a pretty solid game, which is (hopefully) becoming a trend for the starters. That's four not-awful starts in a row, and three downright good ones. He almost had his Lackey inning in the fifth (see post below), which was partly Jose's fault. The first runner reached on a strike out/wild pitch. But he got Beltre to look downright McPhersonesque on two straight sliders/curves to end the inning.
Speaking of Dallas, another rough night. 0-4, with two strike outs. Experience, brotha, experience. Just keeping seeing pitches, gaining experience, and getting comfortable at third. Your time will come.
Good night for the Guzzlers, so far. A 1-2-3 ninth with two K's for Mr. Zero netted me some nice points, and if the Dodgers can hang on, it will make a decent/not great start from Jeff Weaver look a hell of a lot better. Burrell went deep in his return to my lineup, and Carlos Lee had a productive night. Blalock is not sucking as much as he did last week, and Jose Uribe is back in the lineup, which is a relief. Of course, he comes back and Chase Utley gets the bench. Whaddya gonna do?
Bad feeling
3-1 lead in the bottom of the fifth with two out. I don't have a good feeling about this game. I think Reed is about to rip a two run double which will mean the beginning of the end. I hope I'm wrong, but, well, I just hope I'm wrong.
OK, so he walked instead of doubling. Great. That brings Beltre to the plate with the bases juiced. Wonderful. This may serve as my recap for the night if and when the Angels blow this.
Strikeout. Sorry, that was just some of my patented reverse psyochology. Nice of Beltre to look foolish on the same pitch twice in a row.
OK, so he walked instead of doubling. Great. That brings Beltre to the plate with the bases juiced. Wonderful. This may serve as my recap for the night if and when the Angels blow this.
Strikeout. Sorry, that was just some of my patented reverse psyochology. Nice of Beltre to look foolish on the same pitch twice in a row.
It's French, bitch!
According to the San Francisco Chronicle, Ted Hitler, aka Stephen Colbert will be getting his own show. I think this is good news. Sometimes overexposure can hurt your favorite TV characters. As much as we used to long for Simpsons spin-offs (Police Cops with Wiggum, I'm No Longer Illiterate starring Mayor Quimby), sometimes those characters can't carry a whole show. I think if Comedy Central does this right, they can pull it off. Colbert is just that funny. I, for one, will be eagerly anticipating this.
So you should watch it, if you have the balls! Do ya? Do ya have the balls?!
So you should watch it, if you have the balls! Do ya? Do ya have the balls?!
Monday, May 02, 2005
First softball game of the season
Last night was our first tilt in Darien since last summer, and for me it was the first time I'd been on the field since October. Things didn't go too bad, although we lost pretty handily. The wind was blowing out, and each team reached their complement of four homers per. I was one for two (I'm calling that a hit), with a walk and run scored.
Not much going on in the field. I think we only recorded two or three outs in the outfield all night. In left, I basically only a had a few chances on base hits, but they're an agressive running team, so I feel good that no one took an extra base on me. They wore me out in the fourth inning (damn, I'm outta shape), with a homer wayyyy over my head, and few line drive singles, and fly out before I was really ready for the pitch. Pretty routine play, but it's tough there under the lights, so I don't take anything for granted. I need to catch with two hands, though. I don't worry about a lot of fundamentals, but that's one thing that I've always prided myself on. This time I'll blame it on being slightly out of position after coming on to the field after the previous homer.
If we can shore of the left side of the infield, I think we'll be OK. Must have warmed up just right because my arm was sore today. Felt great to be out chucking the ball around again. Looking forward to next week.
Not much going on in the field. I think we only recorded two or three outs in the outfield all night. In left, I basically only a had a few chances on base hits, but they're an agressive running team, so I feel good that no one took an extra base on me. They wore me out in the fourth inning (damn, I'm outta shape), with a homer wayyyy over my head, and few line drive singles, and fly out before I was really ready for the pitch. Pretty routine play, but it's tough there under the lights, so I don't take anything for granted. I need to catch with two hands, though. I don't worry about a lot of fundamentals, but that's one thing that I've always prided myself on. This time I'll blame it on being slightly out of position after coming on to the field after the previous homer.
If we can shore of the left side of the infield, I think we'll be OK. Must have warmed up just right because my arm was sore today. Felt great to be out chucking the ball around again. Looking forward to next week.
Angels 5; Mariners 0
Another interesting start from Washburn, another first inning where the Angels cut a run off at the plate, and another sparkling performance turned in over the rest of the evening. Wash seems to be getting a ton of ground balls this season, which is a great development. If he can keep the ball in the ballpark, he's going to be a MUCH more effective pitcher. Now the Angels will look to do something tomorrow night that they have been unable to do all season: Win three games in a row.
From the believe it or not file, Steve Finley had two hits, both for extra bases (a homer and a double). The home run came on a pretty good pitch, a curveball that Finley took from about a foot off the ground. G.A. absolutely crushed the ball that he hit out, and he hit another one pretty hard, too.
Alright, let's get to the catch. I've already heard it from my dad on this one, but I'm sorry. Great athletic feat? Sure. Great catch? Not hardly. I was instantly reminded of the lay-up that Jordan scored against the Lakers in the 1991 NBA Finals. You know the one. The one where he went up with the right hand, completely unguarded, clear path to the basket, but for some inexplicable reason, he switched to his left hand and layed in a basket that he could have dunked. It's like running 180 feet through traffic crossing three streets at intersection to get to the corner that's 60 feet away when you had a little green man calling you across. Pretty dangerous and impressive? Sure. Pretty stupid? Definitely.
The fact is Ichiro completely misread the ball. He could have caught it at the wall without so much as jumping. But instead he ran back, climbed the wall, spun around, and practically had to jump down before he could catch it. Impressive athletic feat? Sure. Almost botched slightly touhger than routine catch? Definitely. You'll see it all year on the hilight reels, and every time I see it I'll cringe and think how unworthy it was. But enough of that.
Kennedy looked, well, not sharp to start off with. Booted a fairly routine grounder. Made a real dumb-ass play by throwing to second and almost hitting Cabrera in the feet on a play where he had no chance to get Ichiro, and allowed him to get to third. He did make a nice play later in the game to save a run and end the inning. Looked a little overmatched at the plate, but that's to be expected.
D-Mac looked pretty awful at the plate tonight, but he continues to impress in the field. I guess when you look at it, he's not doing much more than making routine plays, but word out of Arkansas and Salt Lake was that he always looked uncomfortable at third. Maybe he was just uncomfortable in Arkansas and Salt Lake. I've never been to Arkansas, but I always feel uncomfortable when I'm in Salt Lake, so I can't blame him.
From the believe it or not file, Steve Finley had two hits, both for extra bases (a homer and a double). The home run came on a pretty good pitch, a curveball that Finley took from about a foot off the ground. G.A. absolutely crushed the ball that he hit out, and he hit another one pretty hard, too.
Alright, let's get to the catch. I've already heard it from my dad on this one, but I'm sorry. Great athletic feat? Sure. Great catch? Not hardly. I was instantly reminded of the lay-up that Jordan scored against the Lakers in the 1991 NBA Finals. You know the one. The one where he went up with the right hand, completely unguarded, clear path to the basket, but for some inexplicable reason, he switched to his left hand and layed in a basket that he could have dunked. It's like running 180 feet through traffic crossing three streets at intersection to get to the corner that's 60 feet away when you had a little green man calling you across. Pretty dangerous and impressive? Sure. Pretty stupid? Definitely.
The fact is Ichiro completely misread the ball. He could have caught it at the wall without so much as jumping. But instead he ran back, climbed the wall, spun around, and practically had to jump down before he could catch it. Impressive athletic feat? Sure. Almost botched slightly touhger than routine catch? Definitely. You'll see it all year on the hilight reels, and every time I see it I'll cringe and think how unworthy it was. But enough of that.
Kennedy looked, well, not sharp to start off with. Booted a fairly routine grounder. Made a real dumb-ass play by throwing to second and almost hitting Cabrera in the feet on a play where he had no chance to get Ichiro, and allowed him to get to third. He did make a nice play later in the game to save a run and end the inning. Looked a little overmatched at the plate, but that's to be expected.
D-Mac looked pretty awful at the plate tonight, but he continues to impress in the field. I guess when you look at it, he's not doing much more than making routine plays, but word out of Arkansas and Salt Lake was that he always looked uncomfortable at third. Maybe he was just uncomfortable in Arkansas and Salt Lake. I've never been to Arkansas, but I always feel uncomfortable when I'm in Salt Lake, so I can't blame him.
Sunday, May 01, 2005
Angels - 2; Twins - 1
I hate games like this. I hate when one of my fantasy pitchers goes against the Angels, which will happen again next week when they face Jeremey Bonderman. But this was a big win for the Angels, coming on the heels of losing two games that they should have won. And just to show how proficient I am at predicting these things, I would have lost money on all three games if I were a betting man. And quite frankly, this is the type of game they usually lose. They're an offense that kills bad pitching, but is usually hopeless against good pitching. They didn't bust out the big lumber, but they did enough to make a great outing from the fat man hold up.
Bartolo was getting some love from the plate umpire, and just kept nailing the corners. When the Twins did put it in play, they were banging it into the carpet for ground out after ground out. The Angels, as expected, didn't do much against Johan Santana, but they did get solo shots from Vlad and Jose Molina, with Vlad's just barely staying fair (off the foul pole/net). Shields had some issues in the 8th, as he left the bases juiced for Frankie, but K-Rod induced the double play ball off the bat of Matthew LeCroy. And a special shout-out to Erstad's glove. He scooped a number of balls today, none bigger than on that double play.
McPherson looked overmatched in one at bat, but hit a nice liner to left field in another that was right at Jacques Jones. He made a terrific defensive play in the bottom of the ninth which kept the tying run off base. It required a strong throw, and it's one that Troy Glaus would have put 15 rows into the seats.
The Angels go to Seattle to start a three game set tomorrow. The division is still very tightly packed, so it would be nice to take at least two of three. They're gonna need to reel off seven or eight straight at some point, but until then if they can keep pace, and pick up an extra game here and there, they should be fine.
Bartolo was getting some love from the plate umpire, and just kept nailing the corners. When the Twins did put it in play, they were banging it into the carpet for ground out after ground out. The Angels, as expected, didn't do much against Johan Santana, but they did get solo shots from Vlad and Jose Molina, with Vlad's just barely staying fair (off the foul pole/net). Shields had some issues in the 8th, as he left the bases juiced for Frankie, but K-Rod induced the double play ball off the bat of Matthew LeCroy. And a special shout-out to Erstad's glove. He scooped a number of balls today, none bigger than on that double play.
McPherson looked overmatched in one at bat, but hit a nice liner to left field in another that was right at Jacques Jones. He made a terrific defensive play in the bottom of the ninth which kept the tying run off base. It required a strong throw, and it's one that Troy Glaus would have put 15 rows into the seats.
The Angels go to Seattle to start a three game set tomorrow. The division is still very tightly packed, so it would be nice to take at least two of three. They're gonna need to reel off seven or eight straight at some point, but until then if they can keep pace, and pick up an extra game here and there, they should be fine.
Saturday, April 30, 2005
Twins - at least four; Angels - probably no more than one
Steve Finley just flat out sucks. I can't say it any more plainly than that. Two balls to the gap, one by noted speedster Justin Morneau, end up going for triples. The guy can't hit, and the guy can't field.
Tomorrow will complete the first sweep of the Angels this season, and probably drop them back into a tie for first with just about everyone else in the division.
Remember that thing I said about feeling like they should win every game? Yeah, that's gone. We're back to "I'd be shocked if they won tonight." This is simply a bad baseball team. And Vlad.
Tomorrow will complete the first sweep of the Angels this season, and probably drop them back into a tie for first with just about everyone else in the division.
Remember that thing I said about feeling like they should win every game? Yeah, that's gone. We're back to "I'd be shocked if they won tonight." This is simply a bad baseball team. And Vlad.
Friday, April 29, 2005
Debacle. Twins - 7; Angels - something less than 7
Probably a term I'll use a lot this year, but let's take care of this one quickly.
So pretty much a pathetic performance all around.
- Steve Finley sucks. That's all that can be said. He can't hit. He can't field. He's essentially worthless.
- Paul Byrd. Well, it's not pretty. He actually wasn't awful tonight, but, well, he wasn't good either. I'll admit, I've been completely wrong about him so far.
- D-Mac. He does a lot of things well, but apparently thinking isn't one of them. A baserunning mistake cost the Angels a run. Another fielding mistake led to a run. Seriously, Dallas, it's freaking Nick Punto. You don't have to play on the outfield grass.
- Estaban Yan. I'd be more concerned about his crappy outing if the game weren't already a fait accomplis.
So pretty much a pathetic performance all around.
Thursday, April 28, 2005
Angels 3; Yankees 1
Fine outing by Lackey, and MAJOR props to Scioscia who didn't make the mistake of leaving him in too long again. He's been burned a couple of times, most notably in Texas a couple of weeks ago. The bullpen is living up to their promise. Excellent for three and two thirds, topped off by Frankie's two strike outs.
Legs Figgins has been on fire lately, and had the average almost up to .300. Vlad is Vlad. D-Mac had another couple of hits, including another double to the opposite field. It hasn't been mentioned much, but his power and willingness to go the other way is very encouraging. He continues to play solid defense, and almost made a terrific catch on a funky little pop-up by Sheffield, which quite honestly, should have been taken by Brendan Donnelly. But Donnelly pitched his way out of it, so no harm done.
Good start to the road trip, and they essentially kept pace with the A's, who took two of the three from what's left of the White Sox earlier in the week.
Next up are the Twins, including a start by Johan Santana on Sunday. I hate when my pitchers go against the Angels. Hopefully I'll have a big enough lead that it won't matter. I honestly don't think the Twins are that good, so I'd settle for another two out of three, which makes Paul Byrd's start tomorrow very important. I think Escobar will be nails on Saturday.
This makes 7 of the last 10 for the Halos, and while they still don't look like they're going to run away with anything yet, I still get the feeling that they should win every game before it starts. Probably just a carry-over from the fabulous season by the Fighting Illini.
Legs Figgins has been on fire lately, and had the average almost up to .300. Vlad is Vlad. D-Mac had another couple of hits, including another double to the opposite field. It hasn't been mentioned much, but his power and willingness to go the other way is very encouraging. He continues to play solid defense, and almost made a terrific catch on a funky little pop-up by Sheffield, which quite honestly, should have been taken by Brendan Donnelly. But Donnelly pitched his way out of it, so no harm done.
Good start to the road trip, and they essentially kept pace with the A's, who took two of the three from what's left of the White Sox earlier in the week.
Next up are the Twins, including a start by Johan Santana on Sunday. I hate when my pitchers go against the Angels. Hopefully I'll have a big enough lead that it won't matter. I honestly don't think the Twins are that good, so I'd settle for another two out of three, which makes Paul Byrd's start tomorrow very important. I think Escobar will be nails on Saturday.
This makes 7 of the last 10 for the Halos, and while they still don't look like they're going to run away with anything yet, I still get the feeling that they should win every game before it starts. Probably just a carry-over from the fabulous season by the Fighting Illini.
Wednesday, April 27, 2005
The Pride of Duke University
As I'm writing this, the Dodgers are threatening in th first inning against the D-Backs, who feature one Quinton McCracken. As he came to the plate for his first inning at bat, the golden throated Vin Scully called him "The Pride of Duke University". I'm going to go out on a limb and assume that this was the first time he had been referred to as such. Why, you ask? Well let's take a look.
Mr. McCracken has played 10 seasons in the majors. In that time he has hit 19 home runs, stolen 83 bases, and is a career .279 hitter. His career OPS is .722, and his career OPS+ is 81, well below average. These are certainly respectable numbers, and let's face it, just making the majors is a hell of an accomplishment. Great job, Q.
But pride of the University? This is a university that has had at least one Nobel Prize winner (per their website). They've had a law grad go on to be president of the United States (in McCracken's defense, it *was* Nixon). They have had four national championships in the last 15 years or so, and bunch of final fours. Christian Laettner, Grant Hill, Elton Brand, Jay Williams. Chris Duhon's rib! And let's not forget Annabeth Gish.
Vin, not everyone who attended a university is the pride of that university. The day I'm the pride of UC Riverside is the day that it's renamed California Men's Correctional Facility at the Riverside Citrus Station.
Of course, this came on the heels of calling Craig Counsell the Pride of Notre Dame. Don't even get me started. He's no more the Pride of Notre Dame than he is the Hunchback of Notre Dame. I love Vin Scully (though I hate the Dodgers), but sometimes I'm reminded that he is in fact an old man. An old man who needs to fill some dead air now and then. Not that I would ever become one of those psychos who used to write to the Times and complain about Chick Hearn or anything. Vin *is* the Dodgers as far as I'm concerned, and I wish him many more years in the booth. It won't be the same when he's gone.
Mr. McCracken has played 10 seasons in the majors. In that time he has hit 19 home runs, stolen 83 bases, and is a career .279 hitter. His career OPS is .722, and his career OPS+ is 81, well below average. These are certainly respectable numbers, and let's face it, just making the majors is a hell of an accomplishment. Great job, Q.
But pride of the University? This is a university that has had at least one Nobel Prize winner (per their website). They've had a law grad go on to be president of the United States (in McCracken's defense, it *was* Nixon). They have had four national championships in the last 15 years or so, and bunch of final fours. Christian Laettner, Grant Hill, Elton Brand, Jay Williams. Chris Duhon's rib! And let's not forget Annabeth Gish.
Vin, not everyone who attended a university is the pride of that university. The day I'm the pride of UC Riverside is the day that it's renamed California Men's Correctional Facility at the Riverside Citrus Station.
Of course, this came on the heels of calling Craig Counsell the Pride of Notre Dame. Don't even get me started. He's no more the Pride of Notre Dame than he is the Hunchback of Notre Dame. I love Vin Scully (though I hate the Dodgers), but sometimes I'm reminded that he is in fact an old man. An old man who needs to fill some dead air now and then. Not that I would ever become one of those psychos who used to write to the Times and complain about Chick Hearn or anything. Vin *is* the Dodgers as far as I'm concerned, and I wish him many more years in the booth. It won't be the same when he's gone.
Angels 5; Yankees 1
Boy, this one looked like big trouble early, but a nice play by GA kept a run off the board with none out in the first, and had the added benefit of causing Jeter pain. I would have settled for the pain, but cutting the run off at the plate was nice too. Anyway, back to back doubles by Vlad and GA plated one, GA drove in two more with a bomb to left center, and Methuselah added a two run shot of his own over the short porch, accounting for all five Angel runs. J-dub was remarkably effective, holding the Yanks to one run, getting a few strikeouts, and inducing a few double plays. If he can keep getting the double play ball, it will be a very big unexpected benefit from a fly ball pitcher.
D-Mac added another double, and made a few very nice plays at third base. Started a double play (maybe two), and made a nice diving stop and quick throw to get a force at second for the third out of whatever inning he did it in. He's not going to gobble the ball up like Glaus did when healthy, but if he make good throws, he might make up for that, considering it was always an adventure when Glaus let loose, or at least it seemed that way.
Big win to keep pace after the White Sox couldn't get it done against Kirk Sarloos, which will keep Dan Meyer in the minors for another week or two. All across America, fantasy baseball players in leagues with lax rules for postition qualification are snatching up Jermaine Dye like hawks picking off defenseless field mice. Speaking of defenseless, they're doing it because he played an inning at short, replacing the already out of position Joe Crede, forced to short by the injuries to Uribe (Guzzlers starting shortstop) and Ozuna.
Speaking of the Guzzlers, big day today. Couple of homers from Derrek Lee, and very nice 90+ point effort out of Jeremy Bonderman. Mind you, I'm writing this before the inevitable "Gasoline-on-fire" performance art piece from Jeff Weaver (who, in all fairness, got out of the first inning without any damage). A nice 6-0 week could make up for some really crappy performances the last two weeks.
D-Mac added another double, and made a few very nice plays at third base. Started a double play (maybe two), and made a nice diving stop and quick throw to get a force at second for the third out of whatever inning he did it in. He's not going to gobble the ball up like Glaus did when healthy, but if he make good throws, he might make up for that, considering it was always an adventure when Glaus let loose, or at least it seemed that way.
Big win to keep pace after the White Sox couldn't get it done against Kirk Sarloos, which will keep Dan Meyer in the minors for another week or two. All across America, fantasy baseball players in leagues with lax rules for postition qualification are snatching up Jermaine Dye like hawks picking off defenseless field mice. Speaking of defenseless, they're doing it because he played an inning at short, replacing the already out of position Joe Crede, forced to short by the injuries to Uribe (Guzzlers starting shortstop) and Ozuna.
Speaking of the Guzzlers, big day today. Couple of homers from Derrek Lee, and very nice 90+ point effort out of Jeremy Bonderman. Mind you, I'm writing this before the inevitable "Gasoline-on-fire" performance art piece from Jeff Weaver (who, in all fairness, got out of the first inning without any damage). A nice 6-0 week could make up for some really crappy performances the last two weeks.
Tuesday, April 26, 2005
Yankees - A lot; Angels - not so much
Not much to say about this one. I think Colon was getting squeezed in the first couple of innings, but he made some really awful pitches to A-Rod, and he paid the price he deserved to pay. On the bright side, the home runs did a good job of rendering Figgins' horrendous defense irrelevant, so let's hope both of them got it out of their systems.
D-Mac with a nice double and a solid walk later in the game was good to see. If he can start to contribute, it would be a big boost to the offense.
Washburn vs. Mussina tomorrow. Wash has been hot and cold, and Moose's numbers are nothing to write home about so far, so it's really anyone's guess as to what will happen.
In Guzzlers news, it looks like the Ace's will both pick up wins today, while decent days at the plate for Estrada, Dunn, and Derek Lee are gonna net me some serious points. I need it after two pretty crappy weeks.
D-Mac with a nice double and a solid walk later in the game was good to see. If he can start to contribute, it would be a big boost to the offense.
Washburn vs. Mussina tomorrow. Wash has been hot and cold, and Moose's numbers are nothing to write home about so far, so it's really anyone's guess as to what will happen.
In Guzzlers news, it looks like the Ace's will both pick up wins today, while decent days at the plate for Estrada, Dunn, and Derek Lee are gonna net me some serious points. I need it after two pretty crappy weeks.
Monday, April 25, 2005
The Raveonettes
I know that sound doesn't travel as fast as light, but did Buddy Holly and the Everly Brothers just recently reach the shores of Scandanavia? I'm somewhat intrigued by their "Jesus and Mary Chain does late '50s American rock and roll" schtick, but the new album is striking me as somewhat pedestrian. I defy you to listen to it a few times and distinguish one track from the next. It's not bad music, and I'll probably sit through most of their show at the Double Door. But I'll be honest, I'm glad that the band that I truly want to see will be playing earlier on the bill. I sort of doubt I'll sit through the encore. And it sucks that Autolux won't be headlining, because it means they'll play a shorter set, and probably won't even get all the way through their album. On the plus side, as an opening act, I'll probably get a pretty good spot to stand. I don't think I've ever bought a ticket solely to see an opening act. Also, it could mean that Carla Azar is hanging around afterwards.
I Am A Fugitive
Today I broke the law. Again. Recently I received a juror summons from Cook County. It was waiting for me in Chicago when I got back from roughly a one month vacation back in L.A. Seeing as how I'd been out of the office forever, and they were expecting me to show up a week later, I ditched. Not long after that, I received another. Fair enough, I guess. Things having slowed down a bit at work, I decided that it was probably unbecoming of an officer of the court (technically, anyway) to keep ditching jury duty. Also, I figure they're probably hard asses here, as opposed to back home. So I drove out to Maywood, hung out for a few hours, and got dismissed. Duty fulfilled.
So what's the problem, you ask? I have shirked my juror responsibilities yet again. Today marked the first day that I was scheduled for jury duty....in East Los Angeles! Mind you, I haven't lived in Los Angeles County in roughly six and half years. I carry an Illinois driver's license. I'm not only registered, but I've voted in two general elections in the state of Illinois (one as a Champaign resident, and one as a Chicago resident). This is about the fourth time I've received a juror summons from L.A. County in that time. The first two I ignored. The last one I finally sent in with an explanation that I no longer live there. Hell, even the hospital to whom I "owed" $3,000 (big misunderstanding, long story) finally admitted as much.
This figures to be SOP for the L.A. County court system. According to my dad, my grandmother received two summons (summonses?) after she was dead. I'm surprised my mom sent them back in. I would have called their bluff and said "come git 'er". Anyway, apparently if everything were legit, then I'd be facing a serious fine.
This time I think I'm going to send them a map.
So what's the problem, you ask? I have shirked my juror responsibilities yet again. Today marked the first day that I was scheduled for jury duty....in East Los Angeles! Mind you, I haven't lived in Los Angeles County in roughly six and half years. I carry an Illinois driver's license. I'm not only registered, but I've voted in two general elections in the state of Illinois (one as a Champaign resident, and one as a Chicago resident). This is about the fourth time I've received a juror summons from L.A. County in that time. The first two I ignored. The last one I finally sent in with an explanation that I no longer live there. Hell, even the hospital to whom I "owed" $3,000 (big misunderstanding, long story) finally admitted as much.
This figures to be SOP for the L.A. County court system. According to my dad, my grandmother received two summons (summonses?) after she was dead. I'm surprised my mom sent them back in. I would have called their bluff and said "come git 'er". Anyway, apparently if everything were legit, then I'd be facing a serious fine.
This time I think I'm going to send them a map.
Sunday, April 24, 2005
The Vulture
Scot Shields is tied for the American League lead in wins. He's on pace for better than 20 wins. Scot Shields for Cy Young!! If he keeps winning games, he may finally get that extra T.
Two Birdies
Played my first semi-real round of the season out at Water's Edge. We didn't start until late in the day, and we were behind a big group, so we sort of jumped around a lot, and got about 20 holes in before it got dark. I hit the irons OK, but struggled off the tee for the first five or six, except for a three wood on 18 that I cranked. Figured out what I was doing on 8 (like I said, we jumped around), then put it into practice on nine, where I smoked one, the knocked it to about 8 feet before missing the birdie putt. On the signature 11th, a par five with a tight fairway and water down the right side, I hammered one down the middle, then knocked a two iron from 230, 215 of carry, to the right edge of the green. Hit the stick on the chip, and knocked in the putt for my first birdie of the year. Played the par 5 15th for the last hole of the day, hit a decent drive, kind of chunked a 3-iron, then knocked pitching wedge to about 5 feet. Made the putt for another birdie.
We didn't keep score because of the jumping around thing, but I figure I was good for an 83-85, and that's including the poor start. If I start hitting the range this month, I'd imagine that I'll be scoring as well as I did two years ago when I routinely breaking 80. If I can get off the tee like I did on Thursday, I should play well. I'd like to fire a low number at Cog Hill this year. I know I can bust the 81 I shot there last year.
We didn't keep score because of the jumping around thing, but I figure I was good for an 83-85, and that's including the poor start. If I start hitting the range this month, I'd imagine that I'll be scoring as well as I did two years ago when I routinely breaking 80. If I can get off the tee like I did on Thursday, I should play well. I'd like to fire a low number at Cog Hill this year. I know I can bust the 81 I shot there last year.
Angels - 1; Athletics - 0
The calendar reads 2005, but the run support for Kelvim Escobar remains the same. The Angels couldn't put one on the board until Kelvim was long gone, but he was outstanding in his first start of the season. Joe Blanton was just as good on the other side, although he needed a bit more help from his defense. Kielty's diving catch in the sixth prevented a run. Steve Finley hit one where no one could defend, and Scot Shields and Frankie made sure that the run held up. Shields was a bit a punching bag, getting hit in the hand and the ass, but recording outs on both balls. Frankie had to pitch out of a bit of a jam, as Maicer Izturis was able to chuck one into what must be the only three feet of the dugout that isn't protected by a short fence, which allowed the A's to put a runner on second with two outs in the ninth.
Two out of three from the A's is nothing to complain about, but the Angels really need to start putting some wins together. The division is still waiting for someone to break from the pack, and right now no one seems to want to. Although, I should note that if not for some late game heroics by the A's on Friday, the Angels would be winners of five in a row. Oh well, it's a marathon, not a sprint.
Two out of three from the A's is nothing to complain about, but the Angels really need to start putting some wins together. The division is still waiting for someone to break from the pack, and right now no one seems to want to. Although, I should note that if not for some late game heroics by the A's on Friday, the Angels would be winners of five in a row. Oh well, it's a marathon, not a sprint.
Thursday, April 14, 2005
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