Man Up!

Florida Marlins manager Fredi Gonzalez (L), New York Mets Jose Reyes (2nd L), third base coach Sandy Alomar, Marlins third baseman Miguel Cabrera, Dan Uggla (2nd R) and Miguel Olivo (R) scuffle on the field in the fifth inning of their MLB National League baseball game at Shea Stadium in New York September 29, 2007. (Jeff Zelevansky/Reuters)

It took a near no-hitter to do it, (and two brawls) but the Mets managed to live another day as they blanked the Marlins and the Phillies fell to the pesky Nats.

I smell a tie-breaker on Monday. I hope it goes down to that. Hell, I'm hoping for a four-way tie so there's a double elimination scenario -- Met vs. Phillies and Rockies vs. Padres on Monday with the loser of Mets/Philles playing the winner of Roclies/Padres on Tuesday.

I'd like the Phillies to take the East and the Mets to win the Wildcard to set up a HUGE seven game NLCS if they both get past the first round.

BTW, seemingly forgotten in the Mets 13-0 blowout of the Marlins was the fact that in the 3rd inning before Milledge's second homer, Jose Reyes stood at the plate and watched a pop up, failed to run to first, and was called out. With their fucking season on the line! What's in his head? It was only the third inning and the Marlins have already showed in the last ten days that they're perfectly capable of putting a ten-spot on the board.

Unbelievable!

Have we settled the "who's the best shortstop in New York" question yet? Jeter would pull that shit. Hell, what about who's the best shortstop in the NL question, for that matter? Jimmy Rollins wouldn't have done that. They booed Reyes' ass the next time up, and rightly so. In the instant poll the broadcasters set up, 80% of the viewers said Randolph should've benched him. That wasn't going to happen, of course.

Meet The Mess

New York Mets catcher Paul Lo Duca hangs his head in the dugout after after the Mets lost 3-0 to the St. Louis Cardinals in a baseball game, Thursday, Sept. 27, 2007, at Shea Stadium in New York. (AP Photo/Ed Betz)

The Mets (87-72) were ahead by seven games with 17 remaining but have lost 10 of 14 overall and seven straight at home. No major league team has failed to finish first after having at least a seven-game lead with 17 to play.

Whoa! Shit is hitting the fan in Queens.

I can't believe this team is underachieving like this. Actually, the Mets are not unlike the Yankees, but unfortunately for them, they've chosen to bite the big one at the end of the season, not at the beginning.

Metstradamus, who writes a very entertaining Mets blog has been chronicling the agony:

Hope? Not for me. We're done. I'll pray I'm proven wrong. It will be futile. Any team that lets a first inning error by their second baseman, and a journeyman pitcher who was picked up off the scrap heap by a team that's out of the money dictate their night is exhibiting the classic signs of a team that is playing nervous, scared, whatever you want to call it. I'll go so far to say that if you used the C-word in this instance, you wouldn't be wrong. And any fan base that sings the "Jose Jose Jose" like it was a funeral march knows exactly what's going on.

Read more...

Unlike him, I think they'll be fine. It'll probably come down to a one-game tie-breaker on Monday, but they'll be fine.

On another note, I have to say I'm very impressed with the Phillies. Such heart! And the Rockies have won 11 in a row. How. HOW??

Sweet

New York Yankees' Joba Chamberlain, right, and Alex Rodriguez celebrate after the team clinched a playoff berth with a 12-4 win over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays during a baseball game Wednesday, Sept. 26, 2007 in St. Petersburg, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

What a crazy season! I freely admit that I did not think I'd be posting the above picture when we were 14.5 games out on May 29. That's about the time that I stopped doing my podcast. However, I should know by now that you can never count out the "evil empire."

This picture, however, is pushing it:

Link swiped from Can't Stop the Bleeding.

Funny Clemens Commercial

Fall 2007 TV Season

OMG, I can hardly find time to post on this blog any more! :(

Anyway, the new Fall TV season is here, and there are a few shows to catch up on. I spent the weekend watching most of season 3 of Battlestar Galactica. I have about four episodes left.

Man, did that season suck. I stopped watching in November and I didn't miss much. More on that later.

I see that they're remaking the Bionic Woman. I have a bad feeling about that show (that it will be sleazy), but I will watch the pilot.

As for Heroes, I hated the season finale, but I will continue watching just to see if it gets better.

There's a new vampire show, I think on CBS. How can that NOT be terrible?

Looks like a wasteland for fantasy and sci-fi TV this season...

The Machine is Us/ing Us

R.I.P. Scooter

Phil "The Scooter" Rizzuto passed away on August 14, 2007 at the age of 89. He was such a funny, upbeat guy. He made all of those awful Yankees teams of the 80's seem like they were going to win something when I was watching. He was an incredibly humble person, considering he had seven championships and an MVP award under his belt.

The current crop of broadcasters are all about the stats and it’s funny how people who never had the talent to actually play the came come off as so critical. Scooter, on the other hand always had an entertaining anecdote, and he was doing shout-outs before that term existed.

He will be missed.

You know technology is part of your life because...

You know technology is part of your life because:

1. You accidentally enter your password on the microwave.

2. You haven't played solitaire with real cards in years.

3. You have a list of 15 phone numbers to reach your family of three.

4. You e-mail the person who works at the desk next to you.

5. Your reason for not staying in touch with friends and family is that they don't have e-mail addresses.

6. You pull up in your own driveway and use your cell phone to see if anyone is home to help you carry in the groceries.

7. Every commercial on television has a web site at the bottom of the screen.

8. Leaving the house without your cell phone, which you didn't have the first 20 or 30 (or 60) years of your life, is now a cause for panic and you turn around to go and get it.

10. You get up in the morning and go on line before getting your coffee.

11. You start tilting your head sideways to smile. : )

12. You're reading this and nodding and laughing.

13. Even worse, you know exactly to whom you are going to forward this message.

14. You are too busy to notice there was no #9 on this list.

15. You actually scrolled back up to check that there wasn't a #9 on this list.

Who's Your Daddy?

Amazon is doing something cute for Father's Day. If you're unsure what to buy for your dad, compare him to one of these famous dads and vote for your favorite:

I like the write-up for Darth Vader:

People who think of Darth Vader as a father figure often have mixed feelings about their own fathers. You admire strong disciplinarians, yet you tend to rebel against authority. When growing up, you were probably distant from your own imperious father, perhaps cultivating a closer relationship with an aunt or uncle. You still may feel as if you've never really known your father, suspecting that he may be keeping important family secrets from you. This mystery that has always surrounded him leads you to second-guess his motives--you may wonder whether he's trying to steer you down the wrong path.

The suggested gifts are cute too. The Art of Parenting Twins and Woolite Dark Laundry Wash are among the suggestions.

Oh, and there's a hoax item too -- a land cruiser tank you can buy for a mere $19,999.95.

On The Lot

Wow, how could a reality show with such good backing suck so badly?

I really had high hopes for On The Lot. The premise of the Fox show is that 18 undiscovered directors will compete for a $1 million movie deal with Dreamworks pictures. The show is produced by Steven Spielberg and Mark Burnett. The judges are Gary Marshall, Carrie Fisher and a random director of the week.

But it’s bad!

There have been about four episodes so far and they’re down to the final 15 people. Over 12 thousand people supposedly submitted films, but I’m not very impressed by the quality of films that we’re being shown. I’m certain that 18 students from NYU or UCLA would put together better films. I also think 18 kids could be found on YouTube with films with more raw originality.

I’m disturbed at the weak subject matter. Between last week’s shorts and this week’s, we’ve seen a film about vomiting, two films about farting, one about giving birth (while refusing to get off a cell phone) and one about peeing and they were all boring and stupid. And it’s not adolescent boys making these films! Three of the films I mentioned were made by adult females.

I’m wondering what the problem is. Was there something wrong with the selection process? Did they choose photogenic people over creative people? Did they pick people who had worked in the industry before over truly raw talent?

I think Zach is the likely winner, since he has the edge with editing and post production special effects, but I wonder if the show will be canceled before it gets that far?

"Web site" baffles Internet terrorism trial judge

From Reuters:

LONDON (Reuters) - A British judge admitted on Wednesday he was struggling to cope with basic terms like "Web site" in the trial of three men accused of inciting terrorism via the Internet.

Judge Peter Openshaw broke into the questioning of a witness about a Web forum used by alleged Islamist radicals.

"The trouble is I don't understand the language. I don't really understand what a Web site is," he told a London court during the trial of three men charged under anti-terrorism laws.

Prosecutor Mark Ellison briefly set aside his questioning to explain the terms "Web site" and "forum." An exchange followed in which the 59-year-old judge acknowledged: "I haven't quite grasped the concepts."

Violent Islamist material posted on the Internet, including beheadings of Western hostages, is central to the case.

Concluding Wednesday's session and looking ahead to testimony Thursday by a computer expert, the judge told Ellison: "Will you ask him to keep it simple, we've got to start from basics."

Oh my God! How is this man qualified to judge this case?? Why doesn't he do the right thing and excuse himself from this trial?

Read more...

Militant 'Mickey Mouse' pulled off air

From Yahoo News:

RAMALLAH, West Bank - Hamas militants have suspended a TV program that featured a Mickey Mouse lookalike urging Palestinian children to fight Israel and work for global Islamic domination, the Palestinian information minister said Wednesday.

nformation Minister Mustafa Barghouti said the character — a giant black-and-white rodent with a high-pitched voice — represented a "mistaken approach" to the Palestinian struggle against Israeli occupation.

He said that the program was pulled from Hamas-affiliated Al Aqsa TV at his ministry's request and "placed under review."

The character, named "Farfour," or "butterfly," but unmistakably a copy of the Disney character, preached against the U.S. and Israel each Friday on the show called "Tomorrow's Pioneers."

Nuts!

Read more...

Diego "Chico" Corrales Dies in Motorcycle Accident

From Excite.com:

LAS VEGAS (AP) -Diego Corrales, who won titles in two weight classes and was involved in one of the most exciting fights in recent years, died in a motorcycle accident a few miles from the Las Vegas Strip. He was 29.

His promoter, Gary Shaw, said Corrales was driving his motorcycle at a high rate of speed when he ran into the back of a car Monday night. Shaw said Corrales, whose career had faltered the past two years, recently bought a racing motorcycle and apparently was riding it the time he was killed.

"He fought recklessly and he lived recklessly," Shaw said. "That was his style."

Las Vegas police spokesman Jose Montoya said the victim in the accident was wearing a helmet, and police were investigating if drugs or alcohol was involved.

Corrales, who fought most of his career at 130 pounds, was a big puncher best known for getting up after two 10th-round knockdowns to stop Jose Luis Castillo on May 7, 2005, in what the Boxing Writers Association of America and numerous boxing publications called the fight of the year.

Wow, I remember this guy. He was pretty good, up until he lost his first fight to Floyd Mayweather. That was a very memorable fight. Corrales looked like a favorite coming into that fight. He was taller, had a reach advantage and just looked bigger. But Mayweather kicked his ass to the point that Corrales' stepfather, who was working his corner literally threw in the towel to stop the ass-whipping. Corrales burst into tears and cursed at him, but his stepfather shook his head, hugged him and said he didn't want him to get hurt. I've never forgotten that fight.

Read more...

He's Baaaaaack!

Newly signed New York Yankees starting pitcher Roger Clemens speaks at a news conference at Yankee Stadium in New York May 6, 2007. The New York Yankees have signed seven-times Cy Young Award winner Clemens to a minor-league contract, the American League club announced on Sunday. (Jeff Zelevansky/Reuters)

Golden Fraud

I'm so glad I didn't pay to see this fight!

They almost had me. On Saturday I watched a marathon of the reality TV series / pay-per-view promo De La Hoya / Mayweather 24/7, and, hey, it was pretty damn good. I think we can be sure of seeing similar promo "documentaries" whenever another fight comes up that needs the ducats.

The one thing that bothered me is that Mayweather agreed to make himself look bad to promote the fight. The whole series made Oscar look like a saint.

Uh, he has three out of wedlock kids and he had to pay off a girl who accused him of raping her at his condo when she was 15. Big family man.

His carefully crafted image makes me sick, which is why I'm always happy when his ass gets beat. He has a tendency to lose the high-profile fights, too. Trinidad, Hopkins, Moseley. And now Mayweather.

I hope none of you bet on this one...

(Almost) Perfect

New York Yankees’ Chien-Ming Wang delivers against the Seattle Mariners during the first inning in Major League Baseball action Saturday, May 5, 2007 at Yankee Stadium in New York. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson)

Chien-Ming Wang!

Man, he threw down. Remember back in the day when Andy was the stopper and had this incredible winning percentage after a Yankees loss? We’ll that’s Chien-Ming Wang’s role now. Not only was he pitching a shutout, only was he throwing a no-hitter, he had a perfect game going with 5 outs to go!

Again, like with Hughes, it was not to be. At least he didn’t get hurt, except for his feelings, perhaps. The perfect game, no-hitter and shutout were broken up with one swing of the bat by Ben Broussard. It was a hell of a game, nonetheless.

Is a healthy Chien-Ming Wang, a healthy Mussina and a healthy Pettitte enough to win a World Series? My mind says no, but…

Oh, yeah, the final score was 8-1.

From the people who brought you NaNoWriMo...

From the people who brought you NaNoWriMo, comes Script Frenzy:

Script Frenzy is an international writing event in which participants attempt the creatively daring feat of writing an original, full-length screenplay—or stage play—in a single month. Spurred by a wild deadline and buoyed by a community of countless other writers, Script Frenzy participants can't be bothered with self-doubt—or editing. They're too busy writing by the seat of their pants, typing out beautiful, flawed stories that no one else could have dreamt up.

As part of a donation-funded nonprofit, Script Frenzy charges no fee to participate; there are also no valuable prizes awarded or "best" scripts singled out. Every writer who completes the goal of 20,000 words is victorious and awe-inspiring and will get a Script Frenzy Winner's Certificate and web icon proclaiming this fact. Even those who fall short of the word goal will be applauded for making a heroic attempt. Really, you have nothing to lose—except that nagging feeling that there's a script inside you that may never get out.

The 5 Basic Rules of Script Frenzy

1. To be crowned an official Script Frenzy winner, you must write a script of at least 20,000 words and verify this word count on ScriptFrenzy.org.
2. You may write individually or in teams of two. Writer teams will have a 20,000 total word goal for their single co-written script.
3. Script writing may begin no earlier than 12:00:01 AM on June 1 and must cease no later than 11:59:59 PM on June 30, local time.
4. You may write either a screenplay or a stage play.
5. You must, at some point, have ridiculous amounts of fun.

Are you tempted?

Read more...

Number 13

There was an interesting rundown of A-Rod's April stats on ESPN on Sunday. It's still hard to warm up to this guy after he's let the team down in the post season every year, however, these numbers were impressive:

1 Grand Slam
2 Walk-off home runs
3 Multi-home run games
4 [His spot in the order]
5 Home runs when the Yankees were trailing
6 Go-ahead home runs
7 Home runs at home (and 7 on the road)
8 Two-run home runs
9 Home runs with 2 outs
10 Home runs to left field
11 Home runs with runners on
12 Home runs vs. right-handed pitchers
13 [His number]
14 Home runs in April, tying Albert Pujols' record set in 2006.


Hey, Alex -- **PLEASE** repeat this performance in October, okay?

Phil Hughes is Throwing a No-Hitter

Can it happen?? Hughes is no-hitting the Rangers through 5 and two thirds innings.

UPDATE 1: No hitter through six!

UPDATE 2: Noooooo! Hughes has been pulled after one out in the seventh. He pulled his hamstring pitching to Mark Texiera!! Shit! What more can happen to this staff?

I knew it...

I had a hunch that the person in Sylar's painting from last week was really Sylar, not Nathan. It was too demonic a depiction. Nathan has some sleazy ways, but he tends more towards weak morals than outright evil.

BTW, Mohinder really is a brick, isn't he? He was working for Sylar who was masquerading as Nathan for five years and didn't catch on?

I wasn't too impressed with last night's episode of Heroes. I could do without the blatant rip-offs of all too familiar X-Men plots. Hopefully we'll get back on track next week.