Hit the Panic Button (for once)

Winston-Salem, NC -- First, Happy Halloween! Second, and the topic of this blog, I found this article very interesting from Rob Neyer's blog on ESPN. I meant to post this topic on Friday, but free time has been difficult to find. Here's the context: it's Friday, October 26th and the Rockies are down two games to none to the Red Sox with the series shifting to Colorado.

I think of this all the time and it's my point: Why does every manager and coach, no matter the sport, always provide the same old answers when their team is trailing in a series: We're going to stay positive; We're going to keep our head's up; I'm not worried, I can only focus on our guys, etc. Why doesn't anyone PANIC and say, "Yes! I'm flat-out worried that we're going to get swept." But that's unacceptable behavior. Further, why do we have to start your #3 pitcher hoping he can get you through 6 innings? Why not go against the norm and piece together your 4 best pitchers? Anyways, here's Neyer's excerpt, which I completely agree with; I'm glad somebody on the national level brought up this idea...

Clint Hurdle has two problems.
Problem 1 is that his Rockies are not nearly as good as the Red Sox.
Problem 2 -- a subset of Problem 1 -- is that his pitchers can't through five innings without throwing 100 pitches, and the last 20-30 of those not necessarily with any particular effectiveness.
Of course there's nothing Hurdle can do about Problem 1. Not on such short notice. But if he doesn't worry about Problem 2 -- if he doesn't panic -- he's not going to win four of those next five games.
If there was ever a time for Hurdle to panic, it's now.
I know he's not going to panic. It's not considered appropriate behavior for a man of his station. But let's just suppose for a moment. Let's suppose that Hurdle panics, and loses. Nobody would hold it against him; everyone thinks he's going to lose anyway. Let's suppose that Hurdle panics, and wins. Wouldn't he immediately be hailed as one of the great managers of our time?
So if Hurdle were to panic, what would he do? He would throw out the standard model -- open the next game with your best available starting pitcher, and use him until he's obviously fatigued -- and replace it with something nobody's ever seen before. It's fairly clear that his starting pitchers are not going to give him more than four or five innings, and that he'll be forced to use his relievers for at least half the game. So why not make that the model?
Why not ask the starting pitcher for three or four innings, and no more? As things stand now, the starting pitcher is the centerpiece of Hurdle's pitching plans. That's necessary during the regular season, when days off are rare and most teams have only two or three reliable relief pitchers. But the next six days of the World Series -- if it goes the distance -- include two days of rest, and this season Hurdle probably enjoyed the services of more reliable relievers than any other manager in the majors. Why not get them into the game when you want to get them into the game, rather than when you have to?" -- Rob Neyer, 10/26/07, ESPN.com.

Now that we know the outcome, I'm not if panicking could have saved the Rockies. But will we ever see an manager or coach call out his team again or are those days long gone? The coaches that have done this (Jim Mora's playoffs?! playoffs?!) were immediately excused from their position. Of course the Colts have been an elite team since Mora's last season at the helm.

B's Bistro asks...

Winston-Salem, NC -- B's Bistro asks...

Who's the coolest muppet?

a. Kermit
b. Yoda
c. Animal
d. Gonzo
e. Elmo

Pet Peeves

Winston-Salem, NC -- With a daily commute spanning across roughly 15 miles of highway, it's easy to get stuck behind a driver who doesn't know the rules. In addition to the numerous driving laws for your safety, there are also several unwritten rules of etiquette. One of those rules, and my personal pet peeve, is violated when a driver hovers around or below the speed limit in the left lane. The left lane should only be used to pass people, not pitching camp. This peeve reaches its boiling point when the right lane(s) is occupied as well, therefore preventing any passing. So people, please, get out of the left lane unless you're passing somebody!

I'm trying to discover the craziest pet peeve among the audience. Other pet peeves of mine include:

• Hair. I can't stand it unless it's on your head and in place.
• Cap off the toothpaste tube. I just picture a bug crawling up there, then when I brush my teeth at night, it's guts are spread over my white pearls.
• Wet armpits. The only thing I hate about playing sports in the summer.
• Turn signals. Not using them on a busy/fast street. I hate the last minute slowdown and turn off when traffic was flowing effortlessly.
• Cell phones in public. People cannot drive when talking on the cell phone. Also, people tend to talk louder than normal for no specific reason.
• Bicyclists in the road. Another annoying driving pet peeve.

As you can see, most of my peeves revolve around the roads. Give me some of yours...

Rox n' Sox

Winston-Salem, NC -- The Red Sox sure are lucky escaping that exciting series with the Indians. The Sox looked dead, trailing 3 games to 1 with Sabathia and Carmona slated to pitch games 5 and 6. There's no denying that Josh Beckett personally lifted the Sox out of the rubble in game five. The Indians have now taken over the ownership of "The Curse" in the American League. It's now been 59 years since The Tribe has won the Series. Who/what can we blame?

• The Tribe's aces: Sabathia and Carmona both layed eggs in the ALCS. If one of these pitchers threw well in ONE of their starts, the Indians would be hosting the World Series.
• Joel Skinner, the 3B Coach, who halted Lofton on the basepaths when he could have easily scored the potential tying run at the time. The momentum definitely would have shifted there. However, it went the other way when the next batter, Casey Blake, bounched into a double play.
• Grady Sizemore, who was a non-factor in the entire series.
• Chief Wahoo! Until the Indians discard this cartoon on their caps, they will be cursed!

At least the Tribe played their best against the Yanks.

Here's my prediction for the World Series -- I want to step out of the box, but I can't. I like the Rox in Colorado, especially with Wakefield pitching there in game four. Beckett and Schilling win in Boston. The Rox proceed to clobber Dice-K and Wakefield in Colorado. Beckett comes back to pitch well in game 5. Then, Schilling closes the door in Boston; Red Sox 4-2.

BTW -- I picked the Red Sox to win the World Series back in March due to their superior starting pitching and bullpen.

The Price of Gold

Winston-Salem, NC -- The weeklong City of Greensboro Kickball Tournament finally came to a close last night with a happy ending. My team, "The Ball Busters" just completed a Colorado Rockies-esque run to become the city champions of kickball! Here's our journey through this 6 team tournament:

• Ball Busters defeated Synergy 8-2 in the Opening Round on Monday.
• Ball Busters defeated top seeded Red Rockets 5-4 in the Quarterfinals on Tuesday.
• Ball Busters defeated the newly top seeded Crush 7-6 in the Semifinals on Wednesday.
• Ball Busters defeated Crush again 9-8 in 11 innings to become the Kickball Champions on Thursday.

It's a double elimination tournament, so Crush was able to knock out Synergy in the losing bracket prior to Thursday's prime time game.

Last night's game was one of the most exciting games that I've ever played in. Here's a short summary of how the runs were scored.

• A 2-2 chessmatch through 6 1/2 innings.
• Crush scored 5 runs in the bottom of the 7th to take a 7-2 lead.
• Ball Busters scored 3 in the 8th to close the lead to 7-5.
• Ball Busters pushed 3 more across the plate in the 9th to take the lead, 8-7.
• With two outs, Crush tacked on a run to make it 8-8.
• In the top of the 10th, Ball Busters put one on the board.
• With the bases loaded and 2 outs, Crush matched that run in the bottom of the 10th. The next play resulted in an extremely close force-out at home plate.
• Ball Busters were able to manage one more run in the top of the 11th, 9-8.
• Crush goes quietly in the bottom of the 11th and a pile of Ball Busters is formed on the pitcher's mound. While jumping up to hug and high five a teammate, I landed awkwardly on my leg, slightly pulling my upper quad. No worries, there's no game tomorrow.

In that dramatic bottom of the 10th with the bases loaded and 1 out, a ball was kicked beyond second base. Already nursing two severely scraped knees and right arm, I dove for the ball and trapped it, preventing the runner on second from scoring. The next play resulted in a pop-up making it two outs. Crush was able to bunt a run in before we were able to get out of the jam. Unfortunately, the scrapes have extended down my legs, down my arm to my elbow, and on a spot on top of my shoulder. Don't forget about the 5 games that I missed due to that left leg contusion. We peaked at the right time and we're going home with a bunch of bruises -- and the gold!

The A-Rod Dilemma

Winston-Salem, NC -- The hottest topic in baseball right now isn't the league championship series taking place in Cleveland tonight. Whether it's the entourage of the New York media or the attraction of numerous dollar signs, A-Rod and his pending "out-clause" have dominated the sports headlines. A-Rod couldn't have had a better regular season before entering the free agent market. He just concluded the 7th year of his whopping 10 year, $252M contract -- still a record seven years later. In this 10 year contract, A-Rod has an "out-clause that allows him to void the contract after the seventh season if he desires. "I read in John Schuerholz's book, "Built To Win" that the Braves were the second highest bidder that winter in the A-Rod sweepstakes. The Braves offer was for 10 years and $126M -- exactly half the amount of money that A-Rod received. The optimal solution, as a Yankees hater, would be for A-Rod to "opt-out" and receive far less (expected) money from another team. The worst solution would be for him to not opt-out and remain with the Yankees. I'm sure that Texas Rangers owner, Tom Hicks, would agree with me on that last statement as he is on the books for a $19M subsidy to the Yankees for the final three years.

The oddest thing that I've heard/read about this scenario is that the Pittsburgh Pirates may be involved in the bidding! If he does opt-out, I think A-Rod will end-up with one of the teams from Los Angeles. The Dodgers really could use a marquee player to market their team around and add some stability to that lineup stuffed with talented rookies. Not to mention, they could use a bat in that weak lineup.

After reading the great Buster Olney's blog this morning, I completely agree with him on how this situation will play out:

"I expect Alex/Boras to present NYY with a figure (Alex will sign for this now without testing the market -- a one-time opportunity for you guys to have exclusive rights -- or he's going to test the market and you can bid like everyone else, but without Texas' subsidy.') Yanks either bite down at that figure, or they don't and Alex is a FA. The real question is whether they can stick to their guns and not bid at that point. A marquee free agent without the Yanks as a buyer is not in the strongest position."

In Need of Some Water

Winston-Salem, NC -- Down South here in North Carolina, spreading to Georgia, we are experiencing a major drought. It's so bad that our personal water usage may be monitored by the state government if we don't receive any rain this week. Although, I heard from a planting expert today that it's still ok to plant shrubs and trees in a drought. You just have to water them yourself. (FYI: The fall season is the best time to plant.) As you can see below, we are in a "severe hydrologic drought" and in some dire need of H2O.



Since I haven't done a music blog in awhile, I thought that it would be appropriate to do "water / drought" songs. Here's a list of songs off-hand that will hopefully bring us some rain this weekend. Otherwise, my office may reek of a naturalist's cave next week.

• Meat Puppets - "Backwater" - This song bleeds the 1990's.
• Elton John - "Madman Across The Water" - Not one of EJ's well-known hits.
• Blind Melon - "No Rain" - Probably a top 10 song from the 1990's and a "1-hit wonder."
• Garbage - "Only Happy When It Rains" - Rockin' the 90's in this countdown; another great band from that era.
• U2 - "Summer Rain" - I paid $1 extra at a music shop in Covington, GA to obtain this "hidden" track on the All That You Can't Leave Behind album.
• Dave Mathews Band - "Don't Drink The Water" - I still classify this song as new DMB.
• Eddie Money - "Give Me Some Water" - The title of this song couldn't fit the message more.
• Melissa Ethridge - "Bring Me Some Water" - Ditto on this one.
• TLC - "Waterfalls" - Quite possibly the worst song in 1990's.
• Van Morrison - "And It Stoned Me" - You need to listen to the song to know how it applies to this list.
• Jars of Clay - "Flood" - A very good song that nobody knows about.

Since your suggestions are always better than mine, see if you can add to this list.

The Schuerholz Effect

Winston-Salem, NC -- Some surprising news occurred yesterday when the Atlanta Braves GM John Schuerholz stepped down from his post after 17 years. During this past summer, I read Schuerholz's autobiography, Built To Win, a neat book that outlines all of the mundane tasks of a baseball general manager. The chapter that I took away from the book featured a segment on how to deal with player agents. Players add their talents and skills to the game and deserve to get paid for them, the front office's job is to place the best product on the field and create the ultimate fan experience and thereby deserve to get paid; what do agents do in order to take from baseball's money pot?

As a Braves' fan, this is a huge loss to the organization. However, while being promoted to "President of Baseball Operations, Schuerholz will still have his fingerprints all over this operation. Prior to Schuerholz's arrival, the Braves were the laughingstock of baseball. Following his departure and 14 division championships later, the Braves are still the class act of the National League.

Here's some evidence showing why Schuerholz was the best GM since (Hank Peters or) Branch Rickey. During his 17 year reign as GM, the Braves won 170 more games than the next best team, the Cardinals. So, if the Braves didn't win a game next year and the Cardinals went undefeated, the Braves would still have a better record than the Cardinals over 18 years!

Schuerholz's successor, Frank Wren, is a familiar name to Mid-Atlantic baseball fans. During the 1999 season, Wren was the GM of the Orioles, only to be fired after the season for clashing with Mr. Angelos. Throughout his book, Schuerholz credits and praises the negotiating skills and talent evaluating ability of Wren (the Assistant GM). I wonder where the O's would be if Wren continued on as their GM?

Schuerholz's reign as GM of the Braves illustrates an important point in all front offices. When you have stability and little turnover from season-to-season, a team is able to foster the principles displayed by its leader. Schuerholz has demonstrated impeccable leadership skills by listening and trusting his scouts, not budging on salary negotiations (it should be a privilege to play for the Braves), by giving up talent to acquire a big talent (see the Salty-Teixeira and Hudson-Meyer trades) and by filling a "need" through the draft and farm system (compared to signing an aging veteran -- see the O's). The Braves and MLB have lost a class act.

An Ode To Big Johnny

Winston-Salem, NC -- The world lost a good man last week in (Big) John(ny) Barnard. Growing up, when you're in those awkward teenage years, interaction between a friend's parent and yourself is pretentious at best. But an awkward situation never arose between "Big Johnny" and me. I think, secretly, he enjoyed hanging out with our group of friends. We could always talk sports -- mostly baseball and football -- probably because we pulled for the same teams; the Orioles, then later on the Nats, and the Redskins. A 7-11 Big Gulp could usually be found in his right hand during the games, on travel, or working at his "home" office, a la the dining room table until 4:00 a.m. Jason and I couldn't pull any pranks because Big Johnny was on the prowl late into the night. Anyway, this short blog doesn't come close to summing up my experiences with Big Johnny. Here are some of my favorite "Big Johnny" moments:

• After us whipper-snappers set off some fireworks during the first trip to the Ocean City beachhouse, Big Johnny trys to show everyone who's boss with some omnipotent fireworks of his own. Trying to one up us, Big Johnny lights the fireworks in the adjacent field, except one firecracker goes astray, setting the entire field on fire. Big Johnny leaps the fence (moving like his pants were on fire), grabs the hose, and begins to stomp and spray the field out.
• I commented to Big Johnny his fondness for hot dogs. When I asked him where you could obtain the ideal, best, juiciest dog, his response was "Oh, that's at that little mobile stand at the Home Depot."
• Big Johnny was helping Jason move out of his dorm at Salisbury (State) University one year. They were able to get most of Jason's belongings packed; however, they ran out of daylight to move them. Big Johnny, not wanting to drive back to Ocean City that night and then return in the morning, simply took Jason's nasty, dirty laundry, sprawled it out over the floor, and lied down on it to sleep.
• This list has to include a golfing story. Big Johnny claimed to be some "expert" golfer. The only time "expert," "golfer," and "Big Johnny" can be in the same sentence should be in reference to his line-drive swings. No matter what the terrain may be, Big Johnny's shot will follow the hills, valleys, and water traveling approximately 3 feet off the ground like a "lazer." Last fall, when we played at Sligo, Big Johnny hit his patent line drive shot that followed a 50 foot valley. The ball went down the valley (in the air), hit a bridge post at the bottom, then shot back toward us and landed 25 feet to the right of the tee box. Big Johnny walked over, picked up the ball, walked back, swatted a line drive down the fairway, and acted like nothing happened. A roar of laughter ensued.
• The first time that we played golf in Ocean City, Big Johnny's tee shot wandered far to the left near the driving range. Big Johnny walked over in pursuit of his golf ball, but it was on the other side of some small pine trees. After 5-10 minutes of being "lost," Big Johnny returned to the edge of the fairway only to find his ball. Only his pair of sweatpant shorts were stuffed with driving range balls.
• After giving me gripe for having my lawn mower settings too high and cutting the lines diagonally in high school, Big Johnny feared that his lawn would "burn out." I later told Big Johnny that somebody called my yard "Camden Yards" as they were driving by. A week later, I became his full-time lawn boy for the front yard. That yard looked exceptional with those diagonal lines.
• I'm not sure if this last one was true, but I'll tell it anyway. Since Big Johnny worked at home, his path often crossed ours during our summers in high school. Everyone who knew Big Johnny knows that he's a big-time talker. Well, that all of that talking (whatever it was about) finally got on Jason's nerves. Jason, plotting to do something to shut Big Johnny up, came up with a plan. Jason snuck a laxative into Big Johnny's spaghetti and meat balls that #5 made. Consequently, Big Johnny spent the rest of the day and night on the toilet, only talking to himself.

There are too many stories for today's blog. I'm sure that the readers who knew "Big Johnny" could add their own arsenal here all day long as well. You the man, Big Johnny!

B's Baseball Awards

Winston-Salem, NC -- It was a good season for baseball; however, it definitely wasn't my favorite. There were too many milestones and one of them in particular was ridiculous. I was crossing my fingers all season that the Yankees wouldn't make the playoffs, then crossing them harder that they wouldn't win the division.

Here are my regular season awards...
NL MVP: Matt Holliday, OF, COL -- When I went to a Rockies' game in Denver 2 years ago, I thought this guy would be a star in a few years. Would the Rockies have won 14 out of 15 and made the playoffs if it weren't for him?
AL MVP: Alex Rodriguez, 3B, NYY -- I hate giving it to a Yankee, but his gaudy numbers propelled the Yanks back into the playoffs for the 13th consecutive season. It was the offense that carried New York this year, not pitching -- the same thing that will haunt them this month in the playoffs.
NL Cy Young: Jake Peavy, SD -- He pitches in a "pitcher park," but having a sub 3.00 ERA with a high win count and a boatload of strikeouts sets him above the pack. Now only if he had one more good start in him last night the Pads would be in Philadelphia tomorrow.
AL Cy Young: C.C. Sabathia, CLE -- With ineffectiveness and injuries to the rest of the staff, Sabathia carried the Tribe to the central division crown. Now let's get another win against the Yanks in game one of the ALDS.
NL ROY: Troy Tulowitzski, SS, COL -- Along with Holliday, his surge in the second half spearheaded the Rocks to punching their ticket to the postseason. Those 24 HR's and 94 RBI's along with solid D can't hurt either.
AL ROY: Dustin Pedroia, 2B, BOS -- He filled in nicely at second for the Sox. That position has been a revolving door for them year-in and year-out.
NL Manager: Manny Acta, WSH -- The Nats were "supposed" to lose 110+ games. They won 4 more than the Orioles, along with a paltry $37M payroll. His upbeat attitude makes him a likely Bobby Cox-like fixture in DC for many years.
AL Manager: Joe Torre, NYY -- The guy looked dead in May and June. He kept his cool when everyone was piling on top of him. I'm not sure any other manager would have been able to handle his situation.

There you have it... agree? disagree?