switching over to AM

no joy in mudville

2011-10-28T07:52:00.007-06:00

i've barely slept. i cried all night. i cried on the way to work. i've cried at work this morning. i'm crying right now as i type this. i gave more emotionally to that game than i have in five years of marriage.

“It breaks your heart. Baseball is designed to break your heart."
- A. Bartlett Giamatti

but baseball is still the greatest game, i have love it ever since my father introduced it to me in 1977 at the old arlington stadium, but some days it's the most difficult to take.

the rangers have not lost consecutive games in over two months, they need to be just that good one more time. there is a strong sense [even by me] that you'd rather be the cardinals than the rangers tonight. but i'd rather be the rangers than the other 28 teams NOT here. teams dreams every spring of the opportunity to do what what can be done tonight when pitchers and catchers reported 8 1/2 months ago.

but only two are left.

a new generation of ranger fans [or a big rangers fan base in general] are being built on the foundation of back to back pennants. i took my infant son to his first [of many i hope][pictured above] world series game [rangers won 4-0] all i've ever wanted was to live in a baseball town, it's the only sport that matters to me. it may not be a baseball town but baseball now matters in these parts and will moving forward.

i need the rangers to put me on their back one more time. they've earned my faith. they never quit.

but whatever the baseball gods decide. they decide. i have only so much more i can give.

texas can win the world series tonight.

#wegotthis #onemorehanger #rallybaby

WE GOT THIS

2011-10-27T13:23:00.005-06:00

in 1977 i was five years old and my father took me to my first rangers game at old arlington stadium and for over thirty years i have mostly suffered but sometimes rejoiced on occasion with this organization, tonight something i've always wanted since my first ballgame in 1977 can come true. i sat diligently through all the other octobers of my youth waiting patiently for the chance of what can occur tonight to happen. i'm a big believer in acting like you've been there before. but my emotions haven't. i'm also not going to sit and and try and describe what i'm feeling, if you know me well enough, you know.

at the end of the night tonight i will be either somewhere on the continuum of frustrated, drained and uneasy or somewhere entirely different. i place i've never been.

through 29 spring training games, 162 regular season games and 15 postseason games, a game of the likes of which i've never had to get ready for, i have no idea what to say or feel. because i have NEVER been here before. and if the baseball gods smile down on us for one more victory, i don't know what i'll say or feel. because i HAVEN'T been here before.

the know the scene in star wars where luke shuts his cockpit off and fires the kill shoot to destroy the death star, relying on the force? tonight i'm going to shut off the controls and visualize ian kinsler stepping into the box for the 867th time in 2011 and settle in for the first moment like it of my life.

#wegotthis #onemorehanger

meet me in st. louis

2011-10-17T10:29:00.004-06:00

Meet me in St. Louis

"Meet me in St. Louis, Louis,
Meet me at the fair,
Don’t tell me the lights are shining
any place but there;
We will dance the Hoochee Koochee,
I will be your tootsie wootsie,
If you will meet in St. Louis, Louis,
Meet me at the fair.”

i only have the utmost respect for the history of the st. louis cardinals franchise. i've been to old and new busch stadium. my lovely bride and i spent our first anniversary at new busch. as a christmas gift the following year she bought me old stadium seats from old busch that now sit in my "baseball room." i've met hall of famer lou brock and got his autograph. i have an original saturday evening post, the one where there's the image of stan "the man" musial in front of his locker, autographed. some of my all-time favorite players are cardinals. i have an ozzie smith and bob gibson jersey hanging in my closet.

but for the second year in a row my local nine, the rangers, are fortunate enough to make it back to the world series [you may recall they lost 4-1 last year to the giants, who hadn't won one since moving west to san francisco] but this season i believe they are deeper, stronger and better than last year's rangers team.

it's difficult enough to win back to back pennants [photo above is from saturday night's pennant clinching game celebration over the tigers.] the rangers join the '92-'93 blue jays and the '98-'00 yankees as the only A.L. teams to do it since 1990. and i am very thankful that the rangers have won two A.L. pennants now in my lifetime.

but now it is time to see if they can carry the banner for an entire league.

as it sinks in for me and we are roughly 48 hours away from game one of the fall classic, the texas rangers are happy but not satisfied.

#oneextrahanger

2011 baseball predictions

2011-03-30T09:38:00.009-06:00

i think this season there will be several tight division races. the central and west in both leagues could have one of three or fours teams competing. the AL east could have all teams finishing with a .500 record. and everyone is giving the phillies the NL east crown because of their pitching. but it's a long season so we'll see.

AL WEST
1. athletics- it's their year. best pitching in division, improved offense and the release of the movie version of "moneyball"
2. rangers- pitching issues, but plenty of hitting and talent, could make trade for pitching to push for division.
3. angels- will be better once 1B morales comes back. offense shaky overwise. starting pitching will be there.
4. mariners- king felix and no offense. but watch for 2B rookie dustin ackley should be good for years to come.

AL CENTRAL
1. white sox- fewest questions in division.
2. tigers- good pitching, starting and relief. but white sox have better offense.
3. twins- too many areas of uncertainty- infield, bullpen, injuries. but it is the twins and they've won the last two division titles.
4. royals- transition to moustakas and the rest of the youth movement is set to begin. rated best farm system in the game
5. indians- if sizemore gets healthy, he will be part of selling off of veteran pieces as the season goes on.

AL EAST
1. red sox- even with all the talk of adding carl crawford and adrain gonzales, if beckett and lackey falter flip a coin, the yankees could win it.
2. yankees- they're the yankees even with question marks they will try and get someone at the trade deadline. even if starting pitching shaky at back end. bullpen = great.
3. rays- they will compete, even if they lost a ton of people, especially out of their bullpen. if they get that straightened out they could fight for division.
4. orioles- if young pitching comes around, veteran players stay healthy and help. buck factor. could finish .500
5. blue jays- lost too much talent from last year, but plenty of help on the way.

AL
MVP- alex rodriguez, yankees- it pains me to say it but with a monster spring he just might bring this home.
ROOKIE- desmond jennings, rays- carl crawfords "replacement" will showcase he just may be. could also be teammate jeremy hellickson as well.
CY YOUNG- jon lester, red sox- another good season, will lead sox into playoffs. wouldn't be shocked if it was david price of the rays either.
MANAGER- terry francona, red sox- he could celarly have won it last year almost leading the red sox to the playoffs with all those injuries. so he'll get it this year instead.

NL WEST
1. giants- enough pitching to avoid world series hangover. but rockies and dodgers will be looming.
2. rockies- the big three: tulo, cargo and ubaldo. do they have enough surrounding players to help?
3. dodgers- this team could fall anywhere from first to fourth. they have the talent but can they learn how to win. first year manager don mattingly will help them.
4. padres- better up the middle, but the trade of gonzales to the red sox hurts and their pitching might not be as good.
5. diamondbacks- below average team in all facets of the game.

NL CENTRAL
1. cubs- in a very tight and tough race where any of the top four teams could finish in first, i'm picking the improbable. somewhat weak offense but better pitching than the rest.
2. cards- no wainwright, but larussa will keep them competitive in what could be pujols' last year with team. which could be rallying cry.
3. reds- good club, but thin margin for error if starters get hurt and cueto already is.
4. brewers- greinke, marcum already will miss time. rotation depth, lineup depth, bullpen, defense all concerns.
5. astros- starting pitching will help them compete. overall talent thin this year. youth movement under way with brett wallace and j.a. happ replacing berkman and oswalt.
6. pirates- the hiring of clint hurdle will be good. intriguing young position players, starting pitching, terrible.

NL EAST
1. braves- that's right not the phillies. this team has a better everyday players, youth and a stronger bullpen.
2. phillies- rotation should carry them into the postseason but age and injuries have already hit the everyday players and bullpen plus they may not see chase utley all year.
3. marlins- plenty of upside, could surprise but won't beat out either braves or phillies.
4. nationals- weak rotation but beginning to turn it around. next year with strasberg back and werth and zimmerman hitting could reach .500.
5. mets- santana hurt and among off the field stuff with their owners it probably will be a long season in queens. where's the new york giants when you need them?

NL
MVP- albert pujols, cardinals- will have a monster year with free agency looming for the first time
ROOKIE- craig kimbrel, braves- will be saves leader on division champ
CY YOUNG- cole hamels, phillies- the forgotten fourth guy in a great rotation rises to the challenge.
MANAGER- jim tracey, rockies

WILD CARDS: YANKEES, PHILLIES
ALCS: RED SOX OVER YANKEES
NLCS: BRAVES OVER GIANTS
WORLD SERIES: RED SOX OVER BRAVES

2011 san francisco giants preview

2011-03-10T13:17:00.002-06:00

(via seamheads.com)

San Francisco Giants
(2010 record: 92-70)

Notable additions:
SS Miguel Tejada

Notable subtractions:
SS Edgar Renteria, INF Juan Uribe

The offense:
Catcher: Buster Posey

Infield: Aubrey Huff (1B), Freddie Sanchez (2B), Miguel Tejada (SS) and Pablo Sandoval (3B)

Outfield: Mark DeRosa (LF), Andres Torres (CF), Cody Ross (RF)

This is not a lineup that is going to score an over-abundance of runs. The good thing for the Giants and their fans is that it won’t have to, thanks to a pitching staff that posted the best ERA in the NL last year (3.36) and is likely to compete for the designation as the league’s top staff again this season. That said, it is an offense that should be similar to, or slightly better than, the 2010 edition – which was 9th in the league in runs scored with 697 (just under the league average of 701 runs scored).

The organization signed Miguel Tejada to play shortstop this season in place of the now-departed Juan Uribe. The team will come up a little short on that exchange as Uribe hit 24 HR and drove in 85 runs whereas Tejada hit 15 HR and had 71 ribbies. But the loss will be more than offset by having catcher Buster Posey for a full season (the reigning NL Rookie of the Year hit .305, with 18 HR and 67 RBI in just 406 at-bats last year).

The team appears set to overhaul its outfield. According to reports, it will turn to LF Mark DeRosa (.194/1/10 in an injury-shortened season), CF Andres Torres (.268/16/63) and RF Cody Ross (.269/14/65) to take over for last year’s triad of Pat Burrell (.266/18/51), Aaron Rowand (.230/11/34) and Nate Shierholtz (.242/3/17). The net impact of these changes will be beneficial, especially if DeRosa can stay healthy.

1B Aubrey Huff (.290/26/86) returns to anchor the Giants offense. Aside from a full season from Posey, he would be most helped by a return to form by 3B Pablo Sandoval, who hit just .268, with 13 HR and 63 RBI in 2010.

The pitching staff:

Starting Rotation:
Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain, Jonathan Sanchez, Madison Bumgarner and Barry Zito

Bullpen:
Closer Brian Wilson, Jeremy Affeldt, Santiago Casilla, Javier Lopez, Ramon Ramirez and Sergio Romo

Pitching and defense win championships, and the Giants seem to have the pitching portion of the equation covered. Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain are as good as any 1-2 punch in the game of baseball, so the key to the upcoming season will be whether Jonathan Sanchez and Madison Bumgarner prove to be consistent performers in the rotation. If they struggle, or take a small step backward, they could be in a catfight for the division.

Sanchez has taken a huge step forward in the last two years, finally living up to the potential most scouts assigned to him several years ago. Of particular concern is Bumgarner, who saw his workload increase by 73 IP last season – the kind of increase from year-to-year (for any pitcher under 25 years of age) is problematic and can be a harbinger of exhaustion or injury in the following season.

Of the pitchers in the bullpen listed herein, only Affeldt had what could be considered a sub-par year in 2010. While some of these guys are unlikely to repeat their success of last year, they should be good enough to keep the Giants in position to claim their 2nd consecutive division title.

2011 colorado rockies and milwaukee brewers preview

2011-03-08T18:51:00.004-06:00

continuing the 2011 previews of all 30 teams. additions and subtractions of key players in the off season and their projected starting lineups and rotation candidates.

COLORADO ROCKIES
2010 RECORD (83-79)

ADD:
relief pitcher- matt lindstrom
infielder- jose lopez
catcher- jose morales
infielder / outfielder- ty wiggington

SUB:
second base- clint barmes
relief pitcher- octavio dotel
starting pitcher- jeff francis
third base- melvin mora
catcher- miguel oliva

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP:
center field- dexter fowler
first base- todd helton
left field- carlos gonzelez
short stop- troy tulowitski
right field- seth smith
second base- jose lopez
third base- ian stewart
catcher- chris iannetta

ROTATION CANDIDATES:
ubaldo jimenez
jorge de la rosa
aaron cook
jhoulys chacin
jason hammel

MILWAUKEE BREWERS
2010 RECORD (77-85)

ADD:
starting pitcher- zack greinke
starting pitcher- shaun marcum
short stop- yuniesky betancourt
relief pitcher- takashi saito

SUB:
short stop- alcides escobar
relief pitcher- trevor hoffman
relief pitcher- jeremy jeffress
second base- brett lawrie

PROJECTED LINEUP:
second base- rickie weeks
right field- corey hart
left field- ryan braun
first base- prince fielder
third base- casey mcgehee
short stop- yuniesky betancourt
catcher- jonathan lucroy
center field- carlos gomez

ROTATION CANDIDATES:
shaun marcum
zack greinke
randy wolf
manny parra
chris capuano
chris narveson
yovani gallardo

centro-matic- candidate waltz

2011-03-08T13:32:00.005-06:00

normally i would be disappointed when one of my favorite band's new albums would have less than ten tracks. in my opinion no album should be released with less than ten songs. but when your as prolific as will johnson and centromatic and you basically put out an album a year and they are always great. it's okay. the new album due out in april.

track listing:
Against The Line
All The Talkers
Iso-Residue
Estimate x 3
Only In My Double Mind
Solid States
Shadow, Follow Me
Mercedes Blast
If They Talk You Down

2011 san diego padres and 2011 seattle mariners

2011-03-06T16:06:00.003-06:00

continuing the 2011 previews of all 30 teams. additions and subtractions of key players in the off season and their projected starting lineups and rotation candidates.

SAN DIEGO PADRES
2010 RECORD (90-72)

ADD:
short stop- jason barlett
starting pitcher- aaron harang
first base- brad hawpe
second base- orlando hudson
center field- cameron maybin
starting pitcher- dustin moseley

SUB:
second base- david eckstein
starting pitcher- jon garland
first base- adrain gonzalez
center field- tony gwynn jr.
short stop- miguel tejada
catcher- yorvit torrealba
starting pitcher- chris young

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP:
short stop- jason bartlett
second base- orlando hudson
third base- chase headley
left field- ryan ludwick
first base- brad hawpe
right field- will venable
catcher- nick hundley
center field- cameron maybin

ROTATION CANDIDATES:
mat latos
clayton richards
aaron harang
dustin moseley
tim stauffer
wade lablanc

SEATTLE MARINERS
2010 RECORD (61-101)

ADD:
outfield/ designated hitter- jack cust
second base- adam kennedy
catcher- miguel olivo
short stop- brendan ryan
relief pitcher- chris ray
relief pitcher- royce ring
relief pitcher- manny delcarmen
starting pitcher- nate robertson

SUB:
first base- russell branyan
starting pitcher- ryan rowland-smith
utility- jose lopez
relief pitcher- sean white
first base- casey kotchman
catcher- rob johnson
starting pitcher- ian snell

PROJECTED LINEUP
right field- ichiro suzuki
third base- chone figgins
left field- milton bradley
designated hitter- jack cust
first base- justin smoak
center field- franklin gutierrez
catcher- miguel olivo
short stop- jack wilson
second base- brendan ryan

ROTATION CANDIDATES:
felix hernandez
doug fister
jason vargas
erik bedard
luke french
nate robertson
david pauley
michael pineda

2011 arizona diamondbacks & 2011 kansas city royals

2011-03-05T18:00:00.014-06:00

this is the first of all 30 baseball teams overview for the 2011 season. additions and subtractions of key players in the offseason and their projected starting lineups and rotation candidates.

ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS

2010 RECORD (67-95)

ADD:

starting pitcher- zach duke,

starting pitcher- david hernandez

third baseman- melvin mora

outfielder- xavier nady

relief pitcher- j.j. putz

SUB:

first baseman- adam laroche

third baseman- mark reynolds

starting pitcher- brandon webb

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP:

second base- kelly johnson

shortstop- stephen drew

right field- justin upton

first base- russell branyon

center field- chris young

catcher- miguel montero

left field- xavier nady

third base- melvin mora

ROTATION CANDIDATES:

zach duke

joe saunders

daniel hudson

ian kennedy

armando galarraga

barry enright

aaron heilman

KANSAS CITY ROYALS

2010 RECORD (67-95)

ADD:

outfielder- melky cabrera

outfielder- lorenzo cain

shortstop- alcides escobar

starting pitcher- jeff francis

outfielder- jeff francoeur

starting pitcher- jeremy jeffress

SUB:

starting pitcher- brain bannister

shortstop- yuniesky betancourt

outfielder- david dejesus

starting pitcher- zack greinke

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP:

third base- mike aviles

center field- melky cabrera

first base- billy butler

designated hitter- kila ka'aihue

right field- jeff francoeur

left field- alex gordon

catcher- branyan pena

second base- chris getz

short stop- alcides escobar

ROTATION CANDIDATES:

luke hochevar

kyle davies

vin mazzaro

jeff francis

sean o'sullivan

bruce chen

R.I.P DUKE SNIDER 1926-2011

2011-02-27T16:58:00.006-06:00

when i was a little boy my father let me go through his baseball card collection under his watchful eye. just as he taught me about duke snider i will teach my young son. some of the earliest ones he had were 1956 topps just the year after the brooklyn dodgers had won their only world series they would while in brooklyn. of course a duke snider card was among them. back then the question was always willie, mickey or the duke? who was the best centerfielder in the game. to this day i would take any of them over any one playing today. it's amazing how at that time three of the greatest centerfielders to play the game all played roughly around the same time and all played in new york for a lengthy time before the dodgers and giants headed west. one of my fathers baseball heroes growing up passed away today and the last prominent member of the brooklyn dodgers and the ghosts of flatbush live on.

(via keith olbermann)

It is, as ever, summed up perfectly by Vin Scully:

"Although it's ironic to say it, we have lost a giant."

Beyond the sadness of the passing of The Duke of Flatbush, Edwin
Donald Snider, is the reminder that his career was filled with irony. As the top
Dodger prospect of the late '40s he was considered a temperamental bust. By the
time of his passing today he was considered one of the game's most personally
revered gentlemen, and long before, by the time the Dodgers left Brooklyn, he
was considered one of the elder statesmen of the sport, his prematurely-silver
hair and hint of sadness in the eyes seemingly reflecting the tragedy that was
the move of the franchise.

Therein too lay an irony. Duke Snider was a
Southern Californian through and through. Alone among the key Brooklyn Dodgers,
he was going home to Los Angeles. And yet he expressed only sadness and regret
about that, and during his brief coda season with the Mets in 1963, was welcomed
home to New York more loudly than any other of the "exes" - Casey Stengel
included.

There is also something tremendously ironic about the iconic
status included in Terry Cashman's "Talkin' Baseball" song. Despite the premise
of "Willie, Mickey, and The Duke," the Baseball Writers needed eleven tries to
get his election to the Hall of Fame right. In his first year of eligibility,
Snider got just 51 votes - a stunning 17 percent. As late as 1975 he was under
40%.

The writers dismissed Snider, as they did nearly all the Dodger
offensive stars, because they felt Ebbets Field provided some kind of
extraordinary advantage and because the Dodgers lost so many ultimate games. Gil
Hodges is still - criminally - not in Cooperstown in part because of this
prejudice. In point of fact, Snider hit just 37 more homers in Brooklyn than on
the road in his Ebbets Field years (discounting partial seasons, that's an
average of four or at most five more a year - a meaningless statistical
variable).

Hodges has still not gotten his due; Snider and Pee Wee Reese
struggled for it; Carl Furillo has never been taken seriously. It is amazing to
contemplate that Snider's Dodgers were somehow penalized because between 1946
and 1956 they won only the one World Series, while losing five of them, and
losing two special NL playoffs, and losing yet another year (1950) on the last
day of the season. That was painful stuff to be sure, but what it meant was,
that for every year for a decade (excepting 1948) the Dodgers gave their fans,
at worst, a team that made it to "the final four" - and with key parts of the
Brooklyn franchise still at work in Los Angeles, added World Championships in
1959, 1963, and 1965.

This is a time for condolence and mourning and I
don't mean to at all take away from that. It's just that the passing of a great
and good baseball man like Duke Snider reminds me that the injustice of the
undeserved undermining of the reputation of a player, or a team, should also not
be forgotten.

willie/mickey/the duke/david halberstam

2011-02-24T11:05:00.005-06:00

"accept the lore of the bubble gum card and believe that if the answer to the mays-mantle-snider question is found, the universe will be a simpler and more ordered place."
--david halberstam

baseball quote/ photo

2011-02-23T19:55:00.002-06:00

"baseball is democracy in action: in it all men are "free and equal," regardless of race, nationality or creed. every man is given the rightful opportunity to rise to the top on his own merits... it is the fullest expression of freedom of speech, freedom of the press and freedom of assembly in our national life."

--francis trevelyan miller

ty cobb (left) shoeless joe jackson (right)

justin townes earle covers bruce springsteen's- "racing in the street"

2011-02-23T18:56:00.006-06:00

the decemberists cover REM's "cuyahoga"

2011-02-21T13:37:00.004-06:00

my humble oscar predictions

2011-02-20T10:43:00.006-06:00

with one week to go until this most glorious popularity contest i give you my predictions in the major categories. my winners in BOLD.

BEST PICTURE
1. the fighter
2. toy story 3
3. black swan
4. winter's bone
5. the social network
6. true grit
7. THE KING'S SPEECH
8. the kids are all right
9. 127 hours
10. inception

BEST ACTOR
1. javier bardem- biutiful
2. jeff bridges- true grit
3. jesse eisenberg- the social network
4. james franco- 127 hours
5. COLIN FIRTH- THE KING'S SPEECH

BEST ACTRESS
1. nicole kidman- rabbit hole
2. annette bening- the kids are all right
3. michelle williams- blue valentine
4. NATALIE PORTMAN- BLACK SWAN
5. jennifer lawrence- winter's bone

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
1. john hawkes- winter's bone
2. jeremy renner- the town
3. mark ruffalo- the kids are allright
4. geoffrey rush- the king's speech
5. CHRISTIAN BALE- THE FIGHTER

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
1. amy adams- the fighter
2. helena bonham carter- the king's speech
3. melissa leo- the fighter
4. HAILEE STEINFELD- TRUE GRIT
5. jacki weaver- animal kingdom

BEST DIRECTOR
1. darren aronofsky- black swan
2. joel and ethan coen- true grit
3. tom hooper- the king's speech
4. david o. russell- the fighter
5. DAVID FINCHER- THE SOCIAL NETWORK

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
1. another year
2. the fighter
3. the kids are all right
4. the king's speech
5. INCEPTION

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
1. winter's bone
2. toy story 3
3. 127 hours
4. true grit
5. THE SOCIAL NETWORK

movies. film. cinema.

2011-02-18T13:46:00.008-06:00

with a future kid coming i've been trying to cram as much movie watching in as possible beforehand. here are some i've recently viewed.

1. tiny furniture- 4 out of 5
2. the fighter- 3 out of 5
3. the social network- 3.5 out of five
4. green zone- 3 out of 5
5. youth in revolt- 2.5 out of 5
6. the messenger- 3.5 out of 5

on the nightstand

2011-02-18T13:21:00.005-06:00

recently read books

centro-matic- "love has found me some how"

2011-02-14T12:29:00.001-06:00

best films of natalie portman

2011-02-12T17:07:00.006-06:00

with pitchers and catchers looming tomorrow, i thought i'd sneak a non baseball post in before you get inundated with mostly posts about the great game. she has been cleaning up at the awards shows so far for her role in BLACK SWAN. she has also been nominated for an oscar as well. she also has another one just out called NO STRINGS ATTACHED, with another four due out later this year before she takes a break to have her kid.

TOP TEN: BEST OF NATALIE PORTMAN

HONORABLE MENTION

THE OTHER BOLEYN GIRL (2008)

she plays an ill-fated 2nd wife to henry VII played by eric bana

10. MR. MAGORIUM'S WONDER EMPORIUM (2007)

portman plays the employee of a magical toy store, co-starring with dustin hoffman, who plays the eccentric 243 year old mr. edward magorium (think a version of gene wilder's willy wonk.)

09. WHERE THE HEART IS (2000)

portman plays a 17 year old who, after finding out that she is pregnant, runs away to california with her boyfriend. the film is based on the novel with the same title, which was a national best-seller by billie letts. kudos, natalie for making a pregnant teenager actually look responsible.

08. STAR WARS: EPISODE III-REVENGE OF THE SITH (2005)

yes most people would agree the three star wars movies were her worst but here she displays that she is a strong independent woman, that is filled with love and compassion, not just for her family but for the WHOLE galaxy.

07. COLD MOUNTAIN (2006)

only a small part, she plays a widow trying to protect herself and a baby in this civil war drama but you'll find yourself empathizing with her choice she has to make in the movie.

06. THE PROFESSIONAL (1994)

although this is one of her earliest performances, don't let her age fool you. portman plays a young girl, orphaned from her abusive, drug-addicted family by a corrupt cop (gary oldman). despite his better judgement, an assassin (jean reno) takes her in and protects her. here she proves she has the acting chops at an early age. one minute she's young and innocent, the next she's cold and heartless.

05. V FOR VENDETTA (2006)

in this film version of alan moore's graphic novel , she shaves her head and her character helps destroy the parliament, it still stands as one of the better movie adaptations of a graphic novel. her next movie taken from comics (thor) will have a lot to live up to.

04. CLOSER (2004)

portman plays along side jude law, clive owen and julia roberts. in this rare film about a love rectangle she plays an exotic dancer, she's not that convincing but she holds her own with this impressive cast around her as the movie rolls along in mystery with twists and turns.

03. GARDEN STATE (2004)

written and directed by former scrubs dude, zach braff, who also plays the friend/ love interest of portman. the film leaves you with a fairly open interpretation, but a satisfactory sense of closure and happiness. also after meeting my future lovely bride for the first time when i was out one night, i invited her back to my place to watch this.

02. beatiful girls (1996)

directed by the late ted demme, a star infested cast including matt dillon, lauren holly, timothy hutton, rosie o'donnell, uma thurman, mira sorvino and michael rapaport. portman plays the next door neighbor who is smart and funny and develops a crush on musician timothy hutton when he comes back to visit his family. it's about a group of small-town friends that join up for their first high school reunion. They find themselves evaluating their lives and their relationships. It's about growing up and facing reality.
01. BLACK SWAN (2010)

this movie marks portman's greatest performance to date, it draws her subtlety and innocent charm, but we get something is just not right about her character, and this film is why she will win her first oscar.

david mayfield parade- "breath of love"

2011-02-09T12:30:00.004-06:00

"if you can't decide if you're dead or alive, you just need to feel that way once. then you know there is a breathe in your lungs.

most logical landing spots for micheal young

2011-02-08T10:44:00.004-06:00

young can veto trades to all but eight teams: cardinals, yankees, twins, dodgers, angels, astros, rockies, and padres. besides staying put with the rangers here are the two most logical landing spots. but as we know logic doesn't always prevail. (via t.r. sullivan)

Astros: Want to swap contracts? The Astros are stuck with Carlos Lee, who is owed $37 million over the next two years. He is 34 and can still hit, but needs to be a full-time designated hitter. The Astros have Bill Hall at second base but could move him to left field to make room for Young. This is a deal that could work for both teams, depending on how the Rangers feel about Lee personally after having him for the final two months of the 2006 season.

Angels: The Rangers tried to get the Angels interested in Young even before they signed Beltre. The Angels weren't motivated then and have since traded for outfielder Vernon Wells, pushing their payroll to the limit. They have Maicer Izturis at third base, and Young would be an upgrade. The Rangers would probably have to take either pitcher Scott Kazmir ($12 million) or designated hitter Bobby Abreu ($9 million) in return.

volkswagen & star wars

2011-02-04T10:58:00.003-06:00

this commercial will air sunday during the super bowl. genius.

the day the music died

2011-02-03T15:49:00.005-06:00

in dallas, texas the next evening a seventh grade boy sat at the kitchen table doing his math homework listening to a buddy holly song on the radio. after the song was over the dj remarked holly had died in a plane crash the night before, along with the others. he put his pencil down and looked at the radio in shock and just sat there and cried. that boy was my father.

fastword it's 1981 and a nine year old boy is going through his father's record collection and notices a buddy holly. he proceeds to ask his father who this was and he let the young boy put the album on the record player. it was then and there a father passed on his love for buddy holly to his son.

most if not everyone knows the story. if you don't here is a brief summary. (via fiftiesweb)

On a cold winter's night a small private plane took off from Clear Lake, Iowa
bound for Fargo, N.D. It never made its destination.

When that plane
crashed, it claimed the lives of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, J.P. "Big Bopper"
Richardson and the pilot, Roger Peterson. Three of Rock and Roll's most
promising performers were gone. As Don McLean wrote in his classic music
parable, American Pie, (annotated) it was "the day the music
died."

Performing in concert was very profitable, and Buddy Holly
needed the money it provided. "The Winter Dance Party Tour" was planned to cover
24 cities in a short 3 week time frame (January 23 - February 15) and Holly
would be the biggest headliner. Waylon Jennings, a friend from Lubbock, Texas
and Tommy Allsup would go as backup musicians.

Ritchie Valens, probably
the hottest of the artists at the time, The Big Bopper, and Dion and the
Belmonts would round out the list of performers.

The tour bus developed
heating problems. It was so cold onboard that reportedly one of the drummers
developed frostbite riding in it. When they arrived at the Surf Ballroom in
Clear Lake, Iowa, they were cold, tired and disgusted.

Buddy Holly had
had enough of the unheated bus and decided to charter a plane for himself and
his guys. At least he could get some laundry done before the next performance!

That night at the Surf Ballroom was magical as the fans went wild over
the performers.

Jiles P. Richardson, known as The Big Bopper to his
fans, was a Texas D.J. who found recording success and fame in 1958 with the
song Chantilly Lace.

Richie Valenzuela was only 16 years old when Del-Fi
record producer, Bob Keane, discovered the Pacoima, California singer. Keane
rearranged his name to Ritchie Valens, and in 1958 they recorded Come On, Let's
Go. Far more successful was the song Valens wrote for his girlfriend, Donna, and
its flip side, La Bamba, a Rock and Roll version of an old Mexican standard.
This earned the teenager an appearance on American Bandstand and the prospect of
continued popularity.

Charles Hardin "Buddy" Holley (changed to Holly
due to a misspelling on a contract) and his band, The Crickets, had a number one
hit in 1957 with the tune That'll Be The Day. This success was follwed by Peggy
Sue and an appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show. By 1959, Holly had decided to
move in a new direction. He and the Crickets parted company. Holly married Maria
Elena Santiago and moved to New York with the hope of concentrating on song
writing and producing.

Dwyer Flying Service got the charter. $36 per
person for a single engine Beechcraft Bonanza.

No, the plane wasn't
named American Pie. It only had serial numbers, N3794N.

Waylon Jennings
gave his seat up to Richardson, who was running a fever and had trouble fitting
his stocky frame comfortably into the bus seats.

When Holly learned that
Jennings wasn't going to fly, he said, "Well, I hope your old bus freezes up."
Jennings responded, "Well, I hope your plane crashes." This friendly banter of
friends would haunt Jennings for years.

Allsup told Valens, I'll flip
you for the remaining seat. On the toss of a coin, Valens won the seat and
Allsup the rest of his life.

The plane took off a little after 1 A.M.
from Clear Lake and never got far from the airport before it crashed, killing
all onboard.

A cold N.E wind immediately gave way to a snow which
drastically reduced visibility. The ground was already blanketed in white. The
pilot may have been inexperienced with the instrumentation.

One wing hit the ground and the small plane corkscrewed over and over. The three young stars were thrown clear of the plane, leaving only pilot Roger Peterson inside.

Over the years there has been much speculation as to whether a shot was
fired inside the plane which disabled or killed the pilot. Logic suggests that
encased in a sea of white snow, with only white below, Peterson just flew the
plane into the ground.
don mcclean's "american pie" claimed it "the day the music died." here he is performing it.

buddy holly's "true love ways" was my parents first dance at their wedding and out of respect for my father teaching me about buddy holly and music it was at ours as well.

drive-by truckers documentary

2011-02-02T17:32:00.005-06:00

"the secret to a happy ending" the drive-by truckers documentary will be playing at the texas theatre in oak cliff two weeks from tonight. here's the trailer and i'll be there with cold. beer. in hand.

2011 baseball america's top 31 texas rangers prospect's

2011-02-01T08:48:00.003-06:00

with less than two weeks until pitchers and catchers, two things get me through these last few days, thumbing through baseball america's prospectus and bill james handbook.

Baseball America’s 2011 Prospect Handbook is out, ranking the Rangers farm
system number 15 in baseball, after having judged Texas as the number 4, number
1, and number 2 system the previous three years.

The pipeline is
strongest at the lower levels right now, and the system has been thinned out by
promotions and trades, many of which directly impacted the World Series club in
2010 – an almost predictable outcome. There were four organizations in the last
decade to finish first or second in BA’s rankings in back-to-back seasons: the
Cubs (second in 2001 and first in 2002), the Dodgers (second in 2004, 2005, and
2006), the Rays (first in 2007 and 2008), and the Rangers (first in 2009 and
second in 2010). All four made playoff appearances either during or shortly
after those rankings.

1. Martin Perez, LHP
2. Jurickson Profar, SS
3. Tanner Scheppers, RHP
4. Robbie Erlin, LHP
5. Engel Beltre, OF
6. Michael Kirkman, LHP
7. Mike Olt, 3B
8. Luis Sardinas, SS
9. Jake Skole, OF
10. Miguel De Los Santos, LHP
11. David Perez, RHP
12. Christian Villanueva, 3B
13. Roman Mendez, RHP
14. Wilmer Font, RHP
15. Leury Garcia, SS
16. Kellin Deglan, C
17. Jorge Alfaro, C
18. Justin Grimm, RHP
19. Robbie Ross, LHP
20. Miguel Velazquez, OF
21. Luke Jackson, RHP
22. Joe Wieland, RHP
23. Fabio Castillo, RHP
24. Barret Loux, RHP
25. Jared Hoying, OF
26. Jose Felix, C
27. Neil Ramirez, RHP
28. Cody Buckel, RHP
29. Josh Richmond, OF
30. Jake Brigham, RHP
31. Carlos Melo, RHP

as you can see the rangers farm system is heavy on pitching prospects and thin on outfield ones. but while the Rangers sit at 15 overall in BA’s rankings, they sit ahead of the angels (16, up from 25 a year ago), mariners (18, down from 11), and a’s (28, down from 12).

you could see september call ups for martin perez, tanner scheppers and micheal kirkman (called up last year and pitched in playoffs) as the rangers hopefully are making another push towards october baseball.

2011 anticipated albums

2011-01-27T13:32:00.004-06:00

these bands have and should release albums i'm looking forward to most this year:

1. the decemberists- released
2. iron and wine- released
3. drive-by-truckers- march
4. fleet foxes- TBA
5. my morning jacket- TBA
6. noah and the whale- march
7. bright eyes- february
8. death cab for cutie- TBA
9. centro-matic- april
10. lucinda williams- march
11. wye oak- march
12. middle brother- march
13. apex manor- released
14. john vanderslice- released
15. the shins- TBA
16. bon iver-TBA

also possibilities: new son volt, wilco, arcade fire and jay farrar, anders parker, jim james, will johnson woody guthrie project.

R.I.P charlie louvin 1927-2011

2011-01-26T12:29:00.003-06:00

i will freely admit for someone who prides himself on calling oneself the aging hipster, i didn't know about the louvin brothers music until my favorite band uncle tupelo covered them in the early '90's. many, many other artists covered them as well from willie nelson to jimmy buffett among them. here is charlie singing a classic "i still miss someone" and then the uncle tupelo cover of " great atomic power"

centro-matic, NYE, kessler theatre

2011-01-17T13:28:00.002-06:00

sometimes you just have to wear a tuxedo in dallas.

"fidgeting wildly"

lionel richie cover "all night long"

"fountains of fire"

overmountain men- some place along the river

2011-01-17T11:52:00.002-06:00

lead by david childers along with bob crawford (avett brothers) among others.

2011 baseball hall of fame inductees

2011-01-05T13:43:00.005-06:00

bert blyleven (left) and roberto alomar (above)

baseball hall of fame voting

2011-01-04T13:30:00.004-06:00

tomorrow the announcement of who will get into the baseball hall of fame in july of this year will open once again much debate. there are guaranteed (should be) to be two locks: roberto alomar, who in his second year of being on the ballot, was the best second basemen of his generation and bert blyleven who is in his last year of being on the ballot and SHOULD have been in long ago. if i had a vote it would have been for those two mentioned above plus these worthy candidates:

1. barry larkin
2. jeff bagwell
3. tim raines
4. edgar martinez

2010 albums

2010-12-31T08:43:00.003-06:00

people do love lists, and this is one, but it's not one of the tons of year end best of lists. it is ONLY a list of all the albums (that i can remember) that i bought, been digging on that came out in 2010. some of these have made most peoples i read and respect year end best of list, some are dallas area local favor and some may be a little off the radar but i recommend any of these for a spin if you haven't heard it before. hopeffully i'll turn somebody somewhere on to something new. i always love when that happens to me, so thanks to those i read and found out about through them. in no order:

1. the hold steady- heaven is whenever
2. the national- high violet
3. josh ritter- so runs the world away
4. bruce springsteen- the promise
5. midlake- the courage of others
6. centro-matic- eyas
7. sara jaffee- suburban nature
8. the beaten sea- the beaten sea
9. mumford and sons- sign no more
10. doug burr- o ye devastator
11. elizabeth cook- welder
12. mary gauthier- the foundling
13. ryan adams and the cardinals- 3 & 4
14. vampire weekend- contra
15. local natives- gorilla manor
16. lissie- catching a tiger
17. mavis staples- you are not alone
18. ray wylie hubbard- a. enlightenment b. endarkenment c. hint there is no c
19. catlin rose- dead flowers
20. the walkmen- lisbon
21. dawes- north hills
22. the mynabirds- what we lost in the fire
23. ryan bingham- junky star
24. gaslight anthem- the '59 sound
25. broken bells- broken bells
26. band of horses- infinite arms
27. black prairie- feast of the hunters moon
28. frightened rabbit- the winter of mixed drinks
29. sam amidon- i see the sign
30. bonnie "prince" billy and the cairo gang- wonder show of the world
31. drive-by-truckers- the big to do
32. arcade fire- the suburbs
33. phosphorescent- it's hard to be humble when your from alabama
34. pernice brothers- goodbye killer
35. morning benders- big echo
36. deer tick- the black dirt sessions
37. alejandro escovedo- street songs of love
38. laura veirs- july flame
39. blitzen trapper- destroyer of the void
40. blind pilot- three rounds and a sound
41. freelance whales- weathervanes
42. deer hunter- halcyon digest
43. various- twistable, turnable man: tribute songs of shel silverstein
44. various- broken hearts and dirty windows: tribute to john prine
45. elvis costello- national ransom
46. eels- end times
47. justin townes earl- harlem river blues
48. ray lamontagne- god willin' and the creek don't rise
49. jenny and johnny- i'm having fun now
50. jimmy buffett- encores
51. juniper tar- the howl street
52. sonny and the sunsets- tomorrow is alright
53. april smith and the great picture show- songs for a sinking ship
54. woods- at echo lake
55. phantogram- eyelid movies
56. harlan t. bobo- sucker
57. tallest man on earth- the wild hunt
58. laura marling- i speak because i can
59. she and him- volume 2
60. rocky erickson/ okkervil river- true love cast out all evil
61. mark olsen- many colored kite
62. kris kristofferson- please don't tell me how the story ends: publishing demos '69-'72
63. titus andronicus- the monitor
64. sara harmer- oh little fire

a pirate looks at 64

2010-12-25T09:12:00.002-06:00

happy 64th birthday to the leader of parrothead nation.
just remember margaritaville is anywhere you want it to be.

ballad of forty dollars

2010-12-21T14:02:00.001-06:00

what everyone truly saw last night (lunar eclipse)

2010-12-21T11:45:00.001-06:00

R.I.P phil cavarretta 1916-2010

2010-12-19T09:26:00.003-06:00

Phil Cavarretta, National League M.V.P. in 1945, Dies at 94

By RICHARD GOLDSTEIN
(excerpted from his new york times article)

Phil Cavarretta, who played 20 seasons for the Chicago Cubs and won the National League’s most valuable player award and batting championship in 1945, the last time the Cubs captured a pennant, died Saturday in Lilburn, Ga. He was 94.

Playing first base and outfield at Wrigley Field from 1934 to 1953, and serving as the Cubs’ player-manager for two and a half seasons, Cavarretta was one of the most popular figures in the team’s history.

A left-handed batter with an unremarkable 5-foot-11-inch, 175-pound frame, Cavarretta was hardly a power hitter in the mold of the Cubs stars Hack Wilson, Ernie Banks and Sammy Sosa. He had only 95 career home runs. But he had 1,977 hits and a .293 career batting average.

He played for three Cubs pennant-winners, in 1935 and 1938 and then in baseball’s last wartime season, when he was the league M.V.P., beating out the Boston Braves’ Tommy Holmes by a wide margin, and took the batting title with a .355 average.

Cavarretta was an All-Star from 1944 through 1947 and tied the St. Louis Cardinals’ Stan Musial for the league lead in hits in 1944 with 197, batting .321 that season. His Cubs teams never won a World Series — they lost to the Tigers in 1935, the Yankees in 1938 and the Tigers again in 1945 — but Cavarretta was usually a star at the plate in October. He batted .462 in the 1938 World Series and .423 in the 1945 Series.

Even after he was fired as the Cubs’ manager during spring training of 1954, Cavarretta remained a fixture in Chicago. He was signed by the White Sox and played into the 1955 season on Chicago’s South Side before retiring.

The Cubs called Cavarretta “a local hero and a tremendous player” in a statement Saturday night.

“His 1945 M.V.P. season continues to rank as one of the finest in Cubs lore,” the statement said. “The Cubs extend our deepest condolences to Mr. Cavarretta’s family and his many friends.”

Cavarretta was signed to a minor league contract and made his debut in the major leagues the following September. In 1935, he supplanted Manager Charlie Grimm at first base, and he never returned to the minors.

When Cubs Manager Frankie Frisch was fired in July 1951, Cavarretta replaced him. He had little talent in the lineup except for the slugging outfielder Hank Sauer, and the team finished in last place. Cavarretta’s Cubs finished fifth in 1952 and seventh in 1953, and by spring training 1954, he decided it was time for a talk with the longtime owner Phil Wrigley.

Cavarretta was a coach and a scout for the Tigers, a minor league manager and a batting instructor for the Mets after his 22 seasons as a player.

As Cavarretta told The Sporting News in the Cubs’ pennant-winning 1945 season: “Hustling was just born in me.”

R.I.P walt dropo 1923-2010

2010-12-19T09:17:00.005-06:00

Former Red Sox first baseman Walt Dropo dies at 87
(excerpted from boston.com article)

Walt Dropo, who played 13 seasons in the majors and won the 1950 American League Rookie of the Year award with the Boston Red Sox, has died. He was 87.

In 1950, Mr. Dropo beat out New York Yankees pitcher Whitey Ford to win AL Rookie of the Year honors after batting .322 with 34 home runs and a league-best 144 RBIs in 136 games. He also made his only All-Star team that year.

A broken wrist slowed Mr. Dropo in 1951, and he was never able to match his outstanding rookie numbers. The first baseman batted .270 with 152 homers and 704 RBIs during his career. He was traded by Boston to the Detroit Tigers in 1952, and also played for the Chicago White Sox, Cincinnati Reds, and Baltimore Orioles.

R.I.P. captain beefheart 1941-2010

2010-12-18T08:55:00.000-06:00

nobody could GROOVE like the captain.

R.I.P bob feller 1918-2010

2010-12-17T16:25:00.004-06:00

i'm a little late in posting this but i've been under the weather since learning of this wednesday night. i'm not going to sit here and try and write some fabulous piece on who i believe was one of the top five living americans. i'll leave that up to the great joe posnanski.

but i do have to let you know when browsing a little used book shop some years ago, i found on the shelf his memoir now pitching with bob feller. i opened it to the title page and realized it was signed by the true hall of famer himself. in later years i would come to realize that signed stuff by him was LESS rare than unsigned, but that didn't matter. a baseball nerd had found him a diamond. below is an article from today listing his major accomplishments from the cleveland's plain dealer.

Bob Feller: A timeline of heroic service and a great Cleveland Indians career
Published: Friday, December 17, 2010, 5:28 AM Friday, December 17, 2010
By Mike Peticca, The Plain Dealer

Bob Feller
(above) warming up during the 1940 season, when he went 27-11 as a 21-year-old.
Cleveland, Ohio -- It's all but impossible to catalog all of the landmark
events in Bob Feller's long and eventful life.

Impossible for anyone
except, maybe, Feller himself, whose memory was matchless and story-telling
compelling.

Here, we mention some of the key dates in the life, military
service and baseball career of the legendary Cleveland Indians pitcher.

1886: The red barn where Feller grew up -- it still stands
and is listed on the National Register of Historic Sites -- is built.

Nov. 3, 1918: Born in Van Meter, Iowa.

July 25, 1935: Signed as
a 16-year-old, after his sophomore year in high school, by the Indians for one
dollar and an autographed baseball.

July 19, 1936: Having never played
in the minor leagues, the 17-year-old Feller makes his major league debut,
pitching a scoreless inning in relief during the Indians' 9-5 loss to the
Senators in Washington.

Aug. 23, 1936: Makes his first start after six
relief outings and strikes out 15 St. Louis Browns in a 4-1 victory in
Cleveland's League Park. It's his first win.

Sept. 13, 1936: Feller,
still 17, breaks American League strikeout record by whiffing 17 Philadelphia
A's in a 5-2 win at League Park.

April 19, 1937: As a high school
senior, is on the cover of Time Magazine.

Spring, 1937: Graduation from
Van Meter High School is nationally broadcast on NBC radio.

Aug. 25,
1937: Rapid Robert, 18, strikes out 16 Boston Red Sox in an 8-1 victory at
League Park.

Oct. 2, 1938: Feller, 19, sets major league record by
striking out 18 Tigers but loses, 4-1, at Cleveland Stadium.

Sept. 8,
1939: Feller, 20, becomes youngest pitcher of 20th Century to win 20 games in a
season, beating the St. Louis Browns, 12-1, at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis.

April 16, 1940: Pitches what is still the lone Opening Day no-hitter in
history, beating the White Sox, 1-0, at Chicago's Comiskey Park.

Sept.
22, 1940: Gets what would be his career-high 27th win, topping the Tigers, 10-5,
at Detroit's Briggs Stadium.

Dec. 7, 1941: While driving from Van Meter
to Chicago to talk contract with the Indians, Feller hears on his car radio that
the Japanese have bombed Pearl Harbor.

Dec. 9, 1941: Enlists in the
United States Navy. When the 1941 season ended, Feller was 22 and had a 107-54
career win-loss record. He had led the American League in wins each of the last
three seasons, and would in his next two full seasons after World War II. He had
led the major leagues in strikeouts each of the last four seasons -- his first
full seasons -- and would in his next three full seasons after the war.

APBob Feller (left), shortly after enlisting in the Navy, with Hall
of Famer and Navy air pilot Ted Williams (center), and pitcher Hugh Mulcahy, who
also served in World War II.
Jan. 6, 1942: Reports for duty to Norfolk, Va.

1942: Made a chief petty officer and serves as a physical training
instructor, and wanting to be in combat, trains at a naval gunnery school in
Newport, Rhode Island. Assigned to the battleship USS Alabama as a gun captain.

1943: The USS Alabama, with Feller, escorts convoys in the North
Atlantic, where German U-boats constantly sank allied ships.

Aug., 1943:
The USS Alabama, with Feller, heads for the Central Pacific, where over the next
two years, it engaged in violent battles off Tarawa and in the Marshall Islands,
Caroline Islands and the Phillipines.

March, 1945: Transferred to the
Great Lakes Naval Training Center.

Aug. 21, 1945: Transferred to
inactive duty. Bob Feller earned five campaign ribbons and eight battle stars
for his military service.

Aug. 23, 1945: Rejoins the Indians.

Aug. 24, 1945: Pitching in his first game in 1,428 days, and after 44
months in the military, pitches a complete game six-hitter with 12 strikeouts,
beating the Tigers, 4-2, at Cleveland Stadium.

April 30, 1946: Pitches
his second no-hitter, topping the New York Yankees, 1-0, at Yankee Stadium.
Catcher Frank Hayes slugs the game-winning homer in the top of the ninth inning.

Sept. 29, 1946: Pitches a complete game, 4-1 win over the Tigers in
Detroit's Briggs Stadium. Finishes the season 26-15 with a 2.18 ERA, tied for
the major league lead in wins. The Indians were 42-71 in their other games.
Finished with major league-leading 348 strikeouts, 36 complete games and 10
shutouts, and even had four saves. The 348 strikeouts were then a 20th century
major league record, although record revisions later found that Rube Waddell had
349 strikeouts in 1904. The 36 complete games were the most since 1916, and the
closest a pitcher has been since were Robin Roberts' 33 complete games in 1953.

Sept. 22, 1948: Pitches a three-hitter to beat the Red Sox, 5-2, before
76,772 fans at Cleveland Stadium, putting the Indians in a first-place tie with
Boston, with eight games left for both teams. The teams finished in a
first-place tie, setting up the Tribe's 8-3, one-game playoff win at Fenway Park
to win the American League pennant.

PD historical photoBob Feller
giving youngsters some pitching tips in 1952.
Oct. 6, 1948: Pitches a
two-hitter but loses, 1-0, to the Boston Braves in Game 1 of the World Series.
Boston's Phil Masi scores in the bottom of the eighth inning after he is picked
off second base by Feller -- as films show -- but is called safe. Indians,
though, go on to win the series, four games to two -- their last World Series
championship.

Jan. 18, 1950: Feller suggests to the Indians that his
salary be cut by $20,000, from his contract calling for about $70,000, after
going 15-14 in 1949. The Indians accept.

July 1, 1951: Pitches his third
no-hitter, tying a record held by Cy Young at the time, in a 2-1 victory over
Detroit at Cleveland Stadium. John Lipon scores the Tigers run, reaching first
on an error, stealing second, taking third on an errant throw and scoring on a
fly.

June 12, 1954: Gets his 2,500th career strikeout in a 4-3 win over
the Red Sox in Boston's Fenway Park, putting the Indians alone in first place.
They stay there on the way to a then-AL best-ever record of 111-43. Feller
finished his career with 2,581 strikeouts, trailing just Walter Johnson -- who
pitched 2,087 more career innings than Feller -- and Cy Young -- who pitched
3,529 more career innings than Bob.

May 1, 1955: Pitches his 12th, and
his last, one-hitter, beating the Red Sox, 2-0, in Cleveland Stadium. The 12
one-hitters are still a record, tied by Nolan Ryan in 1993.

Sept. 30,
1956: Pitches his last game, a complete game, 8-4 loss to the Detroit Tigers at
Cleveland Stadium.

Dec. 11, 1956: Elected president of the first
baseball players association.
1957: Feller's uniform No. 19 is retired by
the Indians.

Jan. 23, 1962: Voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in his
first year of eligibility. Feller gets 93.8 percent of the votes cast by the
Baseball Writers Association of America. It's the highest percentage of votes
any player received since baseball's first Hall of Fame vote in 1936, when Ty
Cobb was named on 98.2 percent of the ballots cast and Honus Wagner and Babe
Ruth were both named on 95.1 percent.

APBob Feller acknowledging the
crowd at the 2010 Hall of Fame Classic.
1969: Voted the greatest living
right-handed pitcher in baseball’s centennial celebration.

June 10,
1995: The Bob Feller Museum in Van Meter, Iowa, holds its grand opening.

July 25, 2006: The United States House of Representatives unanimously
passes a measure recognizing Feller for his military service and for the 60th
anniversary of his landmark 1946 season.

Sept. 11, 2006: The United
States Senate unanimously passes a measure recognizing Feller for his military
service and for the 60th anniversary of his landmark 1946 season.

June
21, 2009: At age 90, is a starting pitcher in the inaugural Baseball Hall of
Fame Classic in Cooperstown.

June 20, 2010: At age 91, again pitches in
the Baseball Hall of Fame Classic.

it's time (to move on)

2010-12-14T18:01:00.013-06:00

first, thanks for october 18th (pictured right). wow. no words.

the teams in the race: all along we knew about the rangers & the yankees but the phillies, who seem to have come out of nowhere at the last possible moment. reports of them surfaced only late afternoon.

the lee recent background: lee was a hired gun in 2009 for the phillies & got them to the world series against the yankees. he beat them in both starts that series. he also was a hired gun for the rangers (rangers trading prize prospect justin smoak to seattle in the deal but well worth it, they made the world series) last season guiding them to their first american league pennant (past the yankees) & world series in franchise history. he has never pitched for the yankees ONLY beaten them EVERY time he's faced them, so they badly wanted to sign him & get him on their side.

the contracts: phillies 5 years $120 million ( with a vesting option that could bring it to 6

& 135). yankees 6 years $135 million (with a player option to bring it to 7 & 148). the rangers went 6 years & 138 million (with a vesting option that could have made it 7 & 161).

the winner: the phillies. it wasn't about the money. he went where his heart told him to go. not that he didn't have a great time here. he could have gone to be with his good friend c.c. sabathia in pinstripes. but in the end his heart told him his best chance to win was in a phillies uniform. so the phillies rotation sets up like a murders row of pitching (roy halladay, cliff lee, roy oswalt & cole hamels) their catcher carlos ruiz is the luckiest catcher in baseball next season.

but thanks, clifton.

thanks for the greatest four & a half baseball months of my life. your precision & artistry & the way you pitched.

thanks for october 6.

thanks for october 12. your han solo cool of that walk towards bengie molina & everything that happened in the game that led up to it (first playoff series win in history for rangers.)

thanks for doing your part to make my team, the rangers, a world series team. i wanted you back in a rangers uniform but the dollars & years that the bidding had gone to scared me. but in the end when the offers got as crazy as they did, it became more about the yankees NOT getting you than the rangers GETTING you. you caught everyone looking at strike three as you instigated talks with the phillies because it's there you really wanted to return. despite every indication you loved texas & your teammates, it wasn't enough. i don't blame you & i'm okay with it. really even calm. it stinks, no doubt but some of the rangers brass had to be thinking what a bad contract this would be if you had signed. i'm okay with this until i see what the rangers do next.

now the yankees need to figure out plan b. they tried to get you at the trade deadline & now planning their whole offseason with getting you have whiffed again. but i don't care about that.
the rangers weren't caught unprepared by this & really NO player the rangers besides you have come off the free agent market. zach greinke (pitchers, royals) & matt garza (pitcher, rays) could be had by trade. the rangers will check in on josh johnson (pitcher, marlins) as well. if any trade is made they can replenish the farm system by getting the two picks by losing you to FA.

the rangers will have more money now or at the trade deadline.

i know i love how aggressive the rangers new ownership is going forward.

i love clifton lee. there's never been a pitcher like you in texas, & there's never been a season in texas like 2010, which without you would have ended sooner. it will stand as the greatest baseball reward i've ever had. there's NOTHING like the first trip to the world series, win or lose. i got to go to game three, the rangers only victory of the series, with my father who taught me the great game & my brother.

for that, clifton lee, let me just say, once again:

thank you. it was time.

william eggleston photos

2010-12-09T14:49:00.008-06:00

my lovely bride & i visited some friends in chicago back in may & there was a william eggleston exhibit at the chicago museum of art. this is some of my favorite photos of his.

end of an era

2010-12-08T13:22:00.008-06:00

at the end of the 2010 baseball season the writing was on the wall four these for managerial giants to call it the end of a career & yesterday the ones who hadn't already did. the atlanta braves bobby cox, toronto blue jays cito gaston , los angeles dodgers joe torre & the chicago cubs lou piniella all will step away from their duties & one day will all join each other in cooperstown.

cox (braves, blue jays) managed 29 years, winning 2504 games, 5 pennants & the 1995 world series (braves). gaston (blue jays) managed 12 years, winning 894 games, 2 pennants & the 1992 & 1993 world series. piniella (yankees, reds, mariners, devil rays, cubs) managed 23 years, winning 1835 games, 1 pennant & the 1990 world series (reds) & torre (mets, braves, cardinals, yankees, dodgers) managed 29 years, winning 2326 games, 6 pennants & four world series 1996, 1998-2000 (yankees).

the germans bombed pearl harbor

2010-12-07T14:21:00.000-06:00

happy 61st to the weird & great tom waits

2010-12-07T14:13:00.000-06:00

kris kristofferson publishing demos 1969-1972

2010-12-04T10:33:00.004-06:00

new purchase on limited edition vinyl. the very early recordings of who i think is the greatest living american. case in point: he's fought in vietnam, a pilot, a rhodes scholar, accomplished songwriter & actor & he is one very cool dude. by the way i've shaken the guy's hand.

R.I.P ron santo 1940-2010

2010-12-03T13:41:00.004-06:00

how the baseball hall of fame voting process works, i'll never know. sure i know HOW & WHAT it takes to be a hall of fame player, but what it takes to get the necessary votes i can't comprehend. because how ron santo is not in the baseball hall of fame astounds me. he lead all major league third basemen in home runs & RBI from 1960-1974 & this morning he passed away without ever getting that call. every little boy dreams of getting that call when they play little league. it's possible he could be put in post-humously but that won't matter, the one phone call he'd waited for since his playing days were over never came. in this case it should be called the baseball hall of shame.

here's an excerpt from the article on more of his playing & broadcasting days from mlb.com

Ron Santo played his last of 15 Major League seasons for the crosstown Chicago White Sox, but he was always a Cub. A star third baseman and part of the Cubs teams of the 1960s with Hall of Famers Ernie Banks and Billy Williams and Fergie Jenkins, many believe Santo should be in the Hall himself. Then he became a heartfelt broadcaster who couldn't help cheering his team from the radio booth for 21 more years.

He wasn't Mr. Cub -- that title belongs to Banks -- but Santo was the next best thing. So it was with great sorrow that Cubs fans around the world reacted Friday when they learned Santo had died from complications of bladder cancer. He was 70.

"It certainly is a sad day for everyone who knows and loves Ron Santo," Banks said. "Ronnie has been a friend of mine for more than 50 years and is like a brother to me. Ronnie's entire life was dedicated to his wonderful family, the Chicago Cubs and their outstanding fans.

R.I.P ron santo 1940-2010

2010-12-03T13:41:00.001-06:00

texas rangers 2014 lineup

2010-12-02T13:26:00.001-06:00

always a fun game for me to look ahead as baseball america projects this lineup for the texas rangers in 2014, in the admittedly inconceivable event that no players get traded or acquired in the interim:

Catcher Kellin Deglan
First Base Mitch Moreland
Second Base Jurickson Profar
Third Base Mike Olt
Shortstop Elvis Andrus
Left Field Nelson Cruz
Center Field Josh Hamilton
Right Field Engel Beltre
DH Ian Kinsler
No. 1 Starter Martin Perez
No. 2 Starter Tanner Scheppers
No. 3 Starter Robbie Erlin
No. 4 Starter C.J. Wilson
No. 5 Starter Derek Holland
Closer Neftali Feliz

jay farrar covers tom waits "fannin street"

2010-12-01T14:19:00.002-06:00

on the nightstand

2010-11-20T15:23:00.009-06:00

here's the books i've read over the last couple of months.

R.I.P. dave niehaus 1935-2010

2010-11-11T18:54:00.000-06:00

Sadness, sympathies and stories dominated the afternoon at Safeco Field, where sportscast legend Dave Niehaus was remembered on Saturday.

The Mariners opened up their ballpark for fans who wanted to pay tribute to the man who for so many was the essence of Seattle baseball.

The tribute was supposed to last from noon until 3 p.m., but the outpouring was so huge that the doors were kept open past 4 p.m.

In all, 3,643 people showed up to honor the man they respected and enjoyed so much. And now, three days after Niehaus' death, it's really starting to hit fans how greatly he'll be missed.

A gloomy, gray Saturday fit the mood as a steady pilgrimage by Seattle's baseball faithful came to say goodbye to "Mr. Mariner."

"It was just this homey, consistent feeling that just made me feel like this was my home, and Dave was part of my home, part of my family," said Michael Bishopp of Snoqualmie, who came to pay his respects.

Fans sported team colors like it was game day. They filed in to sign condolence books.

It was a tough moment for people such as Gay Bitts of Whidbey Island.

"Just the flourish of his words were ... you could smell things that he was talking about," Bitts said. "And if I was at home in my back yard, mowing the lawn, I could listen to him. I could really see everything through his eyes. It's amazing."

An older generation was there, teaching a younger one about the loss of Dave Niehaus - a man who called the team's games for 34 years.

His jersey, No. 77, hung from the press box. (See seattlepi.com's photo tour of the press box.)

"I don't think they will ever be an announcer in Mariners baseball history who will capture the game or the essence of the game like he did with his words," said Troy Travis of Mountlake Terrace. "I feel like he'll always be our grand salami."

It was a reference to Niehaus' trademark phrase for describing a grand slam: "Get out the rye bread and mustard, Grandma, it's grand salami time!"

In tribute, the team served up free salami sandwiches.

"He just became one of the family," said John Dyers of Federal Way. "And, you know, when we had the bad teams -- he would just come up with little stories to take your mind off the bad stuff and make you think about something else."

Fans paid their respects at home plate. Niehaus' widow and daughter accepted sympathies, along with Niehaus' radio partner, Rick Rizzs.

Jason Simon proudly wore his "My Oh My" jersey, signed this year by Dave Niehaus. He says he'll always treasure it - and the man who brought him such joy.

"He treats everybody like a friend," said Simon, of Mill Creek. "We were just talking baseball like we knew each other forever. You see the thousands of people here -- it's because he didn't treat anyone like a stranger."

"I think he represents everything good about Seattle. He represents everything good about the Mariners."

The Mariners say a formal, public memorial is still being planned, but it will not happen until after Thanksgiving. It will be on weekend day in early December.

A private service for the Niehaus family is set for Monday.

thanks to seattlepi.com for the story.

R.I.P. george "sparky" anderson 1934-2010

2010-11-05T15:25:00.002-06:00

this has been a tragic year in baseball with several big name, highly regarded people within the great game passing away, & this is another one. my first year of remembering anything about baseball was 1977, so i just missed sparky leading the Cincinnati Reds to the 1975 and 1976 championships, but i do clearly remembering him adding a third title in 1984 with the Detroit Tigers of the American League. He was the first manager to win the World Series in both leagues. His 2,194 career wins are the sixth most for a manager in Major League history. He was named American League Manager of the Year in 1984 and 1987. Anderson was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2000. he will be missed.

if you want to learn more about sparky & "the big red machine" read joe posnanski's "the machine."

WILCO: Ten Best Songs

2010-11-04T17:36:00.000-06:00

the jay bennett years vs. post bennett years

there should be no debate that wilco were at their creative peak when tweedy & bennett hit their stride from 1996-2001, wilco wrapped recordings on being there, summerteeth & yankee hotel foxtrot, not so arguably their three finest records. on july 4th 2001, bennett was dismissed/left the band, & the releases that followed have suffered. hardly throwaways, a ghost is born, sky blue sky & wilco (the album) have some strong songs, but the depth isn't there. with that here's my top ten bennett-era wilco tunes & the ten best after bennetts departure (in no order.) no comparison.

wilco: the bennett years
1. via chicago
2. misunderstood
3. sunken treasure
4. shot in the arm
5. ashes of the american flags
6. poor places
7. i am trying to break your heart
8. she's a jar
9. when you wake up feeling old
10. car's can't escape

they were beautiful together

wilco: post bennett
1. handshake drugs
2. hummingbird
3. sky blue sky
4. the late greats
5. either way
6. you are my face
7. one wing
8. country disappeared
9. you never know
10. wishful thinking

Watch Colin Meloy Play Three Unreleased Decemberists Songs

2010-10-29T14:59:00.002-06:00

"down by the water"

"june hymn"

"rise to me"

funny stuff

2010-10-29T14:27:00.001-06:00

Centro-matic: Bego, la panadera from FREE creativos on Vimeo.

formidable foe

2010-10-24T16:57:00.005-06:00

it is baseball symmetry that in the year bobby thomson, the man who hit "the shot heard around the world," passes away the giants win their national league leading 19th pennant. starting wednesday they will be playing my beloved texas rangers in the 106th world series. the giants will be attempting to bring home their 6th world series title (1905, 1921-22, 1933, 1954) while the rangers (a franchise that moved to texas from washington in 1972) are making their first appearance ever in the fall classic. either team that wins it will be along time celebration coming.

it's time

2010-10-23T11:52:00.003-06:00

a little humor as my beloved texas rangers defeated the new york yankees to advance to their first world series ever.the symmetry to all this is feliz, the rangers closer, struck out former ranger & now fan nemesis, alex rodriguez to end the game. i've waited over 30 years for last night's moment to happen. the world series doesn't start until next wednesday so now i'm going to sit back & reflect the next few days on all those years i sat in the $3 bleacher seats at old arlington stadium rooting for buddy bell, jim sundberg, charlie hough, juilo franco, rusty greer & here's to the ghosts of johnny oates & mark holtz & so many others. it's time.

new music

2010-10-13T19:25:00.005-06:00

frightened rabbit duet with the hold steady on elton john & kiki dee's "don't go breaking my heart"

this will be coming out as the b-side to this new single by frightened rabbit in november. this is the new song & it's called "the loneliness and the scream"

The Loneliness and the Scream- Frightened Rabbit by nursebekki

it's time

2010-10-13T17:51:00.005-06:00

ALDS 2010: texas rangers break 39 year old curse with ALDS win

last night for the first time my beloved rangers advanced beyond the first round of the postseason, by beating the tampa bay rays. if you love something for over thirty years & it continually breaks your heart season after season at some point your supposed to walk away & find something that loves you back. but deep down i always knew that the rangers & baseball loved me. i just had to wait & be patient. i won't sit here & throw you baseball quotes or talk about how baseball & america are interwoven together. i've done that & told you how the early forms of baseball can be traced back all the way to 1791, just a few short years after the declaration of independence was signed. but it is & always will be "the national pastime."

as the rangers advance to play the "evil empire," as a lot of folks like to them, the new york yankees this weekend to see who goes on to play in the world series, no matter what happens it that series i won't forget this moment on october 12, 2010 10:08 PM the rays b.j. upton popped up to rangers shortstop elvis andrus for the final out. my lovely bride & i jumped up & down, ran into each others arms & i thought back all the way to the late '70's when my father introduced me to baseball & took me to my first rangers game.

baseball's final division winners & my end of the year awards

2010-10-05T21:42:00.010-06:00

the end of the baseball regular season is here & the playoffs start wednesday with my beloved texas rangers in it for the first time since 1999. but before then here are my division winner picks & major award winner picks from way back in april & below the actual division winners & my end of the year major award picks. the actual winners will be announced after the season.

AL WEST

texas rangers

AL CENTRAL

minnestoa twins

AL EAST

tampa bay rays

new york yankees (wild card)

AL MANAGER OF THE YEAR

ron gardenhire- minnesota twins

AL ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

netali feliz- texas rangers

AL CY YOUNG

felix hernandez- seattle mariners

AL MVP

josh hamilton- texas rangers

NL WEST

san francisco giants

NL CENTRAL

cincinnati reds

NL EAST

philadelphia phillies

atlanta braves (wild card)

NL MANAGER OF THE YEAR

bud black- san diego padres

NL ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

buster posey- san francisco giants

NL CY YOUNG

roy halliday- philadelphia phillies

NL MVP

joey votto- cincinnati reds

postseason ALCS round predictions

2010-10-05T21:36:00.004-06:00

although i am a rangers fan & will be root, root, rooting for the home team, i do believe the rays will overcome us in a five game series. they didn't have the best record in the american league, in the toughest division for nothing & my other series outcomes.

AMERCIAN LEAGUE
rays over rangers 3-2

twins over yankees 3-2

NATIONAL LEAGUE
giants over braves 3-2

phillies over reds 3-1

october baseball

2010-09-30T17:51:00.011-06:00

my first words as a child were, "play ball boys" well probably not as clear but you get the picture. my parents have a picture of me hanging in their home of me in nothing but diapers holding a baseball & wearing a baseball cap & in 1977 my father took me to my first texas rangers baseball game. i only know this because he told me. i was only five years old. i helped my parents clean out their attic this summer because they were moving & i had a few boxes left from my childhood up there.in those boxes were some baseball cards i had forgotten about. these are some of those cards, mostly rangers cards from my youth. this year marks only the fourth time in their history they will make the postseason. the other years were the "golden age" of rangers baseball as i put it ('96, '98-'99). although they only went 1-9 in those games, they faced a new york yankees team in the middle of their world series victory run ('96, '98-'00) but i have no shame, because those were some very good rangers teams. but this year my beloved local nine return to october playoff baseball for the first time in 11 years. they could face the yankees once again in the first round but that won't be decided until this weekend the last of the regular season. but it won't matter, come next saturday & sunday i'll be sitting at the ballpark rooting the rangers on in october for the first time since i was in my twenties.

nine innings from ground zero

2010-09-11T10:45:00.002-06:00

wilco- "ashes of the american flags" (2002)

2010-09-11T09:03:00.009-06:00

wilco's yankee hotel foxtrot was scheduled to be released on september 11th, 2001, but because of circumstances in the music business it wasn't released until the following summer. if you have followed the band for any length of time you probably already know the story, if not you should rent the documentary "i am trying to break your heart" or read about what happened here. when the cover art of the album was made public, it was thought the two buildings on the cover were of the twin towers, but in reality, it is of the marina city buildings in downtown chicago (pictured on the left). people always have & always will try & read to much into art, that's what makes art beautiful & subjective. on this date in 2001, i was less than a year into a new job (that i'm still at now), i was shacked up my girlfriend at the time & had only one cat (mr. orange, he's still with me) & trying to regroup from about a six year run of destroying my body. i was somewhat lost & confused & so was america that day. it was eerily when this song was heard & would have been even more so if the album had been released on it's intended date, today 2001. i think jeff tweedy said it best, "i would like to salute, the ashes of the american flags."

big star "september gurls" 1974

2010-09-01T17:23:00.001-06:00

next on arrested development

2010-08-23T10:09:00.000-06:00

mavis staples + jeff tweedy

2010-08-23T09:20:00.001-06:00

seventeen years ago today this happened

2010-08-04T10:21:00.006-06:00

sorry about the lack of posts lately, between starting a new position in my company & watching & going to baseball games there has been less time to. but all i can say is, it's been a fun summer so far & the local nine are in first place by 8 games. but here's what happened seventeen years ago today as the great nolan ryan takes exception.

george steinbrenner 1930-2010

2010-07-13T18:05:00.003-06:00

this morning the yankees lost another great, their owner since 1973. the longest tenured owner in baseball. although he stepped out of the limelight to let his two sons run the team since 2006, you still felt he was the master behind the puppets. baseball & the yankees have lost another iconic figure of the sport. steinbrenner over saw 16 divisional titles & 7 world series championships ('77-'78, '96, '98-'00, '09.) his work within the city of new york with charities & benefits were hardly noticed because he kept them private. baseball & the yankees will miss him.

all star break & midseason awards

2010-07-12T20:52:00.007-06:00

the mystical first half of the season is officially over as of last night & needless to say it's been the year of the pitcher with two no-hitters (ubaldo jimenez, edwin jackson) & two perfect games (dallas braden, roy halladay) & some other near misses with those as well. the 81st all-star game slated for tomorrow night in anaheim where the angels play. this is the third time the angels have hosted the midsummer classic. the first time was in 1967 & the other was 1989. the national league will be looking to break a twelve year losing streak against the american league. the first all-star game was held on July 6, 1933 at comiskey park in chicago, the home of the chicago white sox of the american league. the game resulted in the american league defeating the national league 4-2.

it was held during the 1933 chicago world's fair in chicago,illinois. the all-star game was the idea of arch ward,the sports editor of the chicago tribune. it was initially intended to be a one-time event. needless to say he struck gold (1933 program to the left.) and with that here is my midseason awards:

al mvp

miguel cabrera- first base, detroit tigers .346 avg. 22 hr 77 rbi

nl mvp

joey votto- first base, cincinnati reds .314 avg. 22 hr 60 rbi

al cy young

david price- pitcher, tampa bay rays 12-4 2.42 era 100 k's

nl cy young

josh johnson- pitcher, florida marlins 9-3 1.70 era 123 k's

al rookie

brennan boesch- outfield, detroit tigers .343 avg. 12 hr 48 rbi

nl rookie

jamie garcia- pitcher, st. louis cardinals 8-4 2.17 era 80 k's

al manager

terry francona- boston red sox, for keeping them just five games out of first place with 11 different guys on the disabled list in the first half. some have missed most of the season.

nl manager

bud black- san diego padres- everyone had them picked to finish in 4th or 5th place & they are in first place at the break. they have solid pitching (starting & bullpen) to contend all season.

al surprise team

chicago white sox

nl surprise team

san diego

al disappointment

minnesota twins

nl disappointment

st. louis cardinals

bob sheppard 1910-2010

2010-07-11T10:31:00.005-06:00

bob sheppard, the longtime stadium announcer of the new york yankees from 1951-2008, passed away this morning at 99. his first lineup card versus the boston red sox in 1951 consisted of 8 future hall of famers between the yankees & red sox. for the red sox you had, ted williams in left field, bobby doerr 2nd base & lou boudreau at shortstop. on his yankees side you had, phil rizzuto at shortstop, mickey mantle, in his first year, in right field, yogi berra at catcher, johnny mize at first base & joltin' joe dimaggio in centerfield in his last year. what line ups! to this day even after he was unable to get to the stadium to announce the hitters coming to bat, derek jeter asked bob sheppard to record himself announcing jeter coming to the plate to played as long as jeter was a yankee. that's how much he was revered. he will be missed.

unified scene

2010-07-08T17:12:00.004-06:00

i’ve got a little bit of an obsession about The Hold Steady because as anyone will tell you who is part of the unified scene, the great thing about this band is their lyrics & the great hooks, passion, wit and general take on existence. oh yeah & stage presence. saturday night they will play in my natural habitat, meaning the granada theatre, which is about 7 miles from the house. they never roll through dallas, the last time they did was about two years ago. they played to a crowd of about two hundred. since then a buzz as built about this band. they have developed a cult following (unified scene.) here's some video's of some of my favorite songs. for two hours saturday night "we're gonna build something this summer."

on my radar

2010-07-08T16:54:00.000-06:00

down every road

2010-07-06T17:47:00.006-06:00

my three day weekend consisted of a mexican dinner & a movie with some friends on saturday night. then a july fourth shindig with some college friends & their many, many children's on sunday & then finishing a book on monday, another movie & bicycling around the lake near our home. my reviews follows.

1. please give- (3.5 out of 5)

Kate (Catherine Keener) has a lot on her mind. There’s the ethics problem
of
buying furniture on the cheap at estate sales and marking it up at her trendy
Manhattan store (and how much markup can she get away with?). There’s the
materialism problem of not wanting her teenage daughter (Sarah Steele) to want
the expensive things that Kate wants. There’s the marriage problem of sharing a
partnership in parenting, business, and life with her husband Alex (Oliver
Platt) but sensing doubt nibbling at the foundations. And there’s Kate’s
free-floating 21st century malaise—the problem of how to live well and be a good
person when poverty, homelessness, and sadness are always
right outside the door. thanks to ion cinema for synopsis.

2. winter's bone- (4 out of 5)

Written by Debra Granik and based on a 2006 novel of the same name by Daniel
Woodrell, this centers on 16-year-old Ree Dolly (Jennifer Lawrence), who hails
from a large family of Ozark meth cookers. When her no-good,
methamphetamine-cooking father goes missing — after using the family home as
collateral to post bond — Ree must either bring him back alive or prove that
he’s dead. Otherwise the authorities will seize the family’s house, throwing
Ree, her two younger brothers and their mentally ill mother out into the
cold. thanks to ion cinema for synopsis.

the book i read was about woodstock, called back to the garden. here is the author talking about the book.

baseball as america

2010-07-04T09:38:00.004-06:00

on this date in 1939, lou gehrig gave one of the most iconic & memorable speeches of the last century. in his farewell speech at yankee stadium, gehrig was in the later stages of the disease that would later bare his name. he would pass away only two years later at the age of 37, not only was he a great ballplayer & one of my favorites of all-time, off the field he stood for class, character & courage. as you go out & celebrate however you will today just remember moments are fleeting, take a moment to just survey the landscape of friends & family you're possibly gathered around & smile. happy 4th.

first baseball game

2010-06-19T17:37:00.003-06:00

on this date in 1846, the very first officially recorded, first organized baseball game is played at hoboken's elysian fields between alexander cartwright's new york knickerbockers and the new york nine. it is proclaimed to be the very first ever game played in public using cartwright's rules. (cartwright pictured to the left)

great beers & bicycles (for a friend in need)

2010-06-15T20:38:00.002-06:00

updated cantina scene

2010-06-05T08:44:00.001-06:00

if you like adidas, snoop dogg or star wars this is for you.

courage. honor. respect.

2010-06-02T22:39:00.004-06:00

on this date in 1941, lou gehrig, who i feel is the greatest yankee on & off the field & still the greatest first baseman the game has ever seen, passed away from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) better known since then as lou gehrig's disease. gehrig, was better known as the iron horse because he played in 2,130 consecutive games. the streak ended when he took himself out of the lineup. when tragically he was unable to physically play anymore.

useless baseball nugget (end of may)

2010-06-01T18:15:00.003-06:00

historically 67% of those teams leading their respective divisions at the end of may win it. those teams this year are as follows:

AL WEST
oakland athletics

AL CENTRAL
minnesota twins

AL EAST
tampa bay rays

NL WEST
san diego padres

NL CENTRAL
cincinnati reds/ st. louis cardinals tied

NL EAST
atlanta braves

which two teams aren't going to win?

"the stakeout" may 31st, 1990

2010-05-31T16:20:00.004-06:00

seinfeld is i think the greatest sitcom of all time & 20 years ago today, the series launched with the episode "the stakeout. ' originally titled the seinfeld chronicles & had just a four episode commitment after the pilot the previous summer. the show about nothing was really something. here are my top five catchphrases:

1. "no soup for you!"- the soup nazi's hostile dismissal of george when he didn't follow soup line protocol

2. yada yada yada- a way of glossing over part of a story

3. master of your domain- term used for someone showing restraint in a contest to see who can go the longest without....

4. get out!- a retort from elaine that comes with a shove

5. not that there's anything wrong with that.- george & jerry's politically correct addendum after denying that they're gay.

and our lives never would have been the same without them. not that there's anything wrong with that.

holiday

2010-05-31T15:12:00.000-06:00

Vampire Weekend - New Music - More Music Videos

new arcade fire album august 3rd

2010-05-30T19:56:00.002-06:00

now playing bruce springsteen's "open all night" (1982) & son volt (2000)

2010-05-30T11:46:00.008-06:00

PERFECTION

2010-05-30T10:50:00.006-06:00

roy halladay, pitcher for the philadelphia phillies pitched ONLY the 20th perfect game in MLB history last night against the marlins. AND remarkably it was the 2nd one of the season the only other time that happened was in 1880. that's right people 1880. but even more remarkable it was the 3rd one in less than a year. for those that don't know a perfect game is not allowing a runner to reach base via walk, hit, error or hit by pitch. here is the list of all twenty.

Perfect Games
Only 20 pitchers have tossed perfect games in Major League history.

American League
Pitcher Date Result

Dallas Braden 05-09-2010 Oakland 4, Tampa Bay 0

Mark Buehrle 07-23-2009 Chicago 5, Tampa Bay 0

David Cone 07-18-1999 New York 6, Montreal 0

David Wells 05-17-1998 New York 4, Minnesota 0

Kenny Rogers 07-28-1994 Texas 4, California 0

Mike Witt 09-30-1984 California 1, Texas 0

Len Barker 05-15-1981 Cleveland 3, Toronto 0

Catfish Hunter 05-08-1968 Oakland 4, Minnesota 0

Don Larsen 10-08-1956 New York 2, Brooklyn 0* (world series game)

Charlie Robertson 04-30-1922 Chicago 2, Detroit 0

Addie Joss 10-02-1908 Cleveland 1, Chicago 0

Cy Young 05-05-1904 Boston 3, Philadelphia 0

National League
Pitcher Date Result
Roy Halladay 05-29-2010 Philadelphia 1, Florida 0

Randy Johnson 05-18-2004 Arizona 2, Atlanta 0

Dennis Martinez 07-28-1991 Montreal 2, Los Angeles 0

Tom Browning 09-16-1988 Cincinnati 1, Los Angeles 0

Sandy Koufax 09-09-1965 Los Angeles 1, Chicago 0

Jim Bunning 06-21-1964 Philadelphia 6, New York 0

Monte Ward 06-17-1880 Providence 5, Buffalo 0

Lee Richmond 06-12-1880 Worcester 1, Cleveland 0

rest in peace easy rider

2010-05-29T13:36:00.001-06:00

new arcade fire songs

2010-05-26T18:21:00.003-06:00

there's a lot i need to get to but until then, a couple of new arcade fire songs from the upcoming unreleased album. no date announced.

great covers

2010-05-11T10:04:00.002-06:00

the great jay farrar covers the legendary texan doug sham

also covers another legend waylon jennings

R.I.P robin roberts 1926-2010 (phillies hall of fame pitcher)

2010-05-06T10:11:00.005-06:00

this week has been a tough week for the baseball family losing two truly, truly legends of the game. on top of being a hall of famer, roberts was the first player to enlist in the military for WW II services. here's his bio from MLB.com

Hall of Fame pitcher Roberts dies at 83
Member of 'Whiz Kid'
Phillies was six-time 20-game winner By Jonathan Mayo / MLB.com

Hall of Fame pitcher Robin Roberts, who spent 19 years in the big
leagues, mostly with the Phillies, died on Thursday from natural causes in his
Temple Terrace, Fla., home. He was 83.

Roberts broke in with
Philadelphia at the age of 21 in June 1948 and proceeded to spend 14 seasons
with the club. During his tenure there, he was named to seven consecutive
All-Star teams and finished in the top 10 in MVP voting five times. He went
234-199 with the Phillies and finished his career, with the Cubs in 1966, with a
record of 286-245.

Roberts won 20 games for the first time in 1950 as
part of the Phillies' pennant-winning team commonly known as the "Whiz Kids" due
to its collection of young stars. It was the only time Roberts appeared in a
postseason.

While his best years were in Philadelphia, Roberts pitched
for five more seasons, spending parts of four seasons with the Baltimore Orioles
before moving on to the Astros and Cubs. When he called it a career, he had a
3.41 ERA and 2,357 strikeouts.

In addition to the seven All-Star teams
from 1950-56, Roberts led the National League in wins four times and topped the
league in strikeouts twice. He won 20 games six straight seasons, including a
28-victory season in 1952. Roberts had 45 career shutouts, though he had a
reputation for giving up home runs -- his 505 homers allowed are the most given
up by any Major League pitcher.

Roberts was inducted into the Hall of
Fame in 1976 and was a mainstay at the annual induction ceremonies. Roberts
coached the University of South Florida baseball team from 1977-1985.

The Phillies said that there will be a moment of silence in Roberts'
memory prior to Thursday's 1 p.m. ET home game against the Cardinals. They also
said that a No. 36 Roberts jersey will hang in the team's dugout for the
remainder of the season, players will wear No. 36 patches on the right sleeves
of their uniforms beginning on Friday, and that the team's 1950 pennant at
Citizens Bank Park will be hung at half-mast.

"Dad didn't miss a
Phillies game on television, including [Wednesday] night," said his son, Jim.
"He really loved this team and was so thrilled that he was included in the World
Series festivities the last two years.

"He'd sit there and would comment, 'Did you see Jimmy make that play? ... Chase can really play this game
... My man Jayson is some kind of an athlete ... Did you see that change-up from
Cole? ... How strong is Ryan? ... Roy makes pitching look so easy and it isn't
... I wish I had Brad's slider ... Shane can fly, can't he?"

steve earle & emmylou harris

2010-05-05T19:06:00.003-06:00

R.I.P ernie harwell, voice of summer

2010-05-04T19:30:00.005-06:00

ernie harwell the voice of the detroit tigers baseball.

1960-2002 he called play by play.
although having been retired since earlier this decade he was never far
from hearts & minds of people who follow the game. last year he was
diagnosed with inoperable cancer so it's no surprised of his passing, but that
he lived so long after finding out. Ernie said…. he began feeling ill last summer. He had surgery in August 2009….. for an obstructed bile duct. Doctors found a cancerous tumor. They advised him against further surgery.

“Whatever happens, I’m ready to face it,” Ernie said, “I have a great faith in
God… and Jesus.”
Ernie spent 55 glorious years as a broadcaster, and last of the 42 years with the Detroit Tigers. In 1981, he won the Ford C. Frick Award from the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Those whom he knows and those who listened to him…. Will miss him upon his passing. We have great memories. here is his goodbye speech to the tiger fans from last summer:

& here is the end of his hall of fame speech which is one of the best ever given & very touching, his definition of baseball:

"And I'd like to close out my remarks for the next couple of minutes with your indulgence to see if your definition of baseball agrees with mine."

"Baseball is the President tossing out the first ball of the season and a scrubby schoolboy playing catch with his dad on a Mississippi farm. A tall, thin old man waving a scorecard from the corner of his dugout. That's baseball. And so is the big, fat guy with a bulbous nose running home one of his (Babe Ruth's) 714 home runs.

There's a man in Mobile who remembers that Honus Wagner hit a triple in Pittsburgh forty-six years ago. That's baseball. So is the scout reporting that a sixteen year old pitcher in Cheyenne is a coming Walter Johnson. Baseball is a spirited race of man against man, reflex against reflex. A game of inches. Every skill is measured. Every heroic, every failing is seen and cheered, or booed. And then becomes a statistic.

In baseball democracy shines its clearest. The only race that matters is the race to the bag. The creed is the rulebook. Color merely something to distinguish one team's uniform from another.

Baseball is a rookie. His experience no bigger than the lump in his throat as he begins fulfillment of his dream. It's a veteran too, a tired old man of thirty-five hoping that those aching muscles can pull him through another sweltering August and September. Nicknames are baseball, names like Zeke and Pie and Kiki and Home Run and Cracker and Dizzy and Dazzy.

Baseball is the cool, clear eyes of Rogers Hornsby. The flashing spikes of Ty Cobb, an over aged pixie named Rabbit Maranville.

Baseball just a came as simple as a ball and bat. Yet, as complex as the American spirit it symbolizes. A sport, a business and sometimes almost even a religion.

Why the fairy tale of Willie Mays making a brilliant World's Series catch. And then dashing off to play stick ball in the street with his teenage pals. That's baseball. So is the husky voice of a doomed Lou Gehrig saying., "I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of this earth.”

Baseball is cigar smoke, hot roasted peanuts, The Sporting News, ladies day, "Down in Front", Take Me Out to the Ball Game, and the Star Spangled Banner.

Baseball is a tongue tied kid from Georgia growing up to be an announcer and praising the Lord for showing him the way to Cooperstown. This is a game for America. Still a game for America, this baseball! Thank you."

great game things to ponder

2010-05-03T14:39:00.004-06:00

the month of may mean's that baseball season is in full "swing." get it? swing. & with that i offer up a few things i believe in:

- i believe hitting a round ball with a round bat is the hardest thing to do in all of sports.

- i believe that roberto clemente is the patron saint of baseball.

- i believe in the sacrifice bunt.

- i believe that pitchers should buy catchers lunch.

- i believe batting & infield practice makes perfect.

- i believe lou gehrig's birthday should be a national holiday.

- i believe tony gwynn sleeps with his bat.

- i believe the squeeze play should be taught in public schools.

- i believe in a beautifully turned 6-4-3 double play.

summer anthem?

2010-05-03T09:59:00.002-06:00

the new hold steady on letterman friday night.

george movie trailer

2010-04-30T11:51:00.001-06:00

this. is. awesome.

double play

2010-04-30T10:21:00.004-06:00

as you know from this blog two things i love are music & books, well the two have come together in the form of colin meloy doing a children's book series with his partner & artist carson ellis (she did the picture to the left & does all their album covers.) read about it here:

Colin Meloy Nabs Children's Book Deal
Decemberists frontman and his artist wife prep three-book series.
Decemberists frontman Colin Meloy and his wife, illustrator Carson Ellis,
already have one children's book in the works, the small press, limited edition
The Unfortunate Demise of Whitley Rackham. But they're also working on something
on a larger scale: three novels for kids, thanks to a new publishing deal
courtesy of HarperCollins.

The Wildwood series deals with "adventure,
magic, and danger, set in an alternate version of modern-day Portland, Oregon,"
according to a press release. Kinda sounds like that "Mr. Show" sketch "The
Altered State of Druggachusetts" to me, though there will probably be less overt
drug references.

The press release quotes a HarperCollins rep as calling
the series "nothing less than an American Narnia." Meloy himself says, "The germ
of this series goes back a long way. For me, this is the culmination of a
long-term collaboration with Carson, matching words and art. I grew up on a
steady diet of Lloyd Alexander, Roald Dahl, and Tolkien; this is our humble
paean to that grand tradition of epic adventure stories."

The first
Wildwood book is due in Fall 2011. It takes a long time to make a book.
article from paste magazine website.

R.I.P alex chilton revisited

2010-04-28T07:18:00.003-06:00

indie band the antlers pay tribute to the fallen big star alex chilton with a cover of the song thirteen.

may flowers (my version)

2010-04-27T12:02:00.008-06:00

may is a big month for me, my birthday is on the 14th, there's mother's day & baseball is in full swing. with may only a few days away, this year is going to be even better, three of my favorite bands are releasing new albums. but i am lucky to be able to acquire new albums before they are released to the public (i've know the local indie record store owner for years.) this time it's no different. i picked these up last weekend & they are due out the first couple of weeks of may & they have been on heavy rotation the last couple of days.

on the nightstand

2010-04-24T10:10:00.003-06:00

chip kidd's follow up to the cheese monkey's.

two old troubadours pay respect to each other

2010-04-23T17:58:00.001-06:00

bob dylan & joan baez cover jimmy buffett

jimmy buffett covers bob dylan

switching over to AM

no joy in mudville

WE GOT THIS

meet me in st. louis

2011 baseball predictions

2011 san francisco giants preview

2011 colorado rockies and milwaukee brewers preview

centro-matic- candidate waltz

2011 san diego padres and 2011 seattle mariners

2011 arizona diamondbacks & 2011 kansas city royals

R.I.P DUKE SNIDER 1926-2011

willie/mickey/the duke/david halberstam

baseball quote/ photo

justin townes earle covers bruce springsteen's- "racing in the street"

the decemberists cover REM's "cuyahoga"

my humble oscar predictions

movies. film. cinema.

on the nightstand

centro-matic- "love has found me some how"

best films of natalie portman

david mayfield parade- "breath of love"

most logical landing spots for micheal young

volkswagen & star wars

the day the music died

drive-by truckers documentary

2011 baseball america's top 31 texas rangers prospect's

2011 anticipated albums

R.I.P charlie louvin 1927-2011

recently viewed films

centro-matic, NYE, kessler theatre

overmountain men- some place along the river

2011 baseball hall of fame inductees

baseball hall of fame voting

2010 albums

a pirate looks at 64

ballad of forty dollars

what everyone truly saw last night (lunar eclipse)

R.I.P phil cavarretta 1916-2010

R.I.P walt dropo 1923-2010

R.I.P. captain beefheart 1941-2010

R.I.P bob feller 1918-2010

it's time (to move on)

william eggleston photos

end of an era

the germans bombed pearl harbor

happy 61st to the weird & great tom waits

kris kristofferson publishing demos 1969-1972

R.I.P ron santo 1940-2010

R.I.P ron santo 1940-2010

texas rangers 2014 lineup

jay farrar covers tom waits "fannin street"

on the nightstand

R.I.P. dave niehaus 1935-2010

R.I.P. george "sparky" anderson 1934-2010

WILCO: Ten Best Songs

Watch Colin Meloy Play Three Unreleased Decemberists Songs

funny stuff

formidable foe

it's time

new music

it's time

baseball's final division winners & my end of the year awards

postseason ALCS round predictions

october baseball

nine innings from ground zero

wilco- "ashes of the american flags" (2002)

big star "september gurls" 1974

next on arrested development

mavis staples + jeff tweedy

seventeen years ago today this happened

george steinbrenner 1930-2010

all star break & midseason awards

bob sheppard 1910-2010

unified scene

on my radar

down every road

baseball as america

first baseball game

great beers & bicycles (for a friend in need)

updated cantina scene