FanHouse http://www.fanhouse.com FanHouse http://www.fanhouse.com/media/feedlogo.gif FanHouse http://www.fanhouse.com en-us Copyright 2008 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/Are The Rays Bad For Baseball?http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/08/are-the-rays-bad-for-baseball/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/08/are-the-rays-bad-for-baseball/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/08/are-the-rays-bad-for-baseball/#commentsEamonn Brennanby Eamonn Brennan

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Millionaire ESPN scribe Rick Reilly -- and likely plenty of others -- think so. Signal To Noise caught this exchange on PTI yesterday:
The Four-Letter's $3 million a year poaching, Rick Reilly, subbed for Tony Kornheiser on PTI yesterday, via satellite from Denver with Michael Wilbon in-studio in D.C., and parroted what I'm fairly sure may be a common impulse among a certain segment of sportswriters regarding the current state of the baseball playoffs: he stated his preference for a Red Sox-Dodgers World Series, proclaiming the Tampa Bay Rays "bad for baseball."
S2N draws that out into distinctions -- whether it's bad for baseball, or bad for the business of baseball. Those are the correct distinctions to make. But it doesn't make Rick Reilly right.

Over the long term, I find it hard to believe a team like the Rays, so consistently horrible at baseball, going worst-to-first in the course of a single year is bad for baseball. If anything, it co-opts one of the things that has made the NFL so popular -- the supposed parity that allows any team, no matter how destitute, to go all Rising Phoenix in one year. This is a good thing for baseball. It creates hope. Sports fans like to have hope.

 

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]]>ESPNRick ReillyRickReillyEamonn Brennan2008-10-08T13:38:00 00:00Kosuke Fukudome Apologizes To Cubs Fanshttp://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/08/kosuke-fukudome-apologizes-to-cubs-fans/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/08/kosuke-fukudome-apologizes-to-cubs-fans/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/08/kosuke-fukudome-apologizes-to-cubs-fans/#commentsEamonn Brennanby Eamonn Brennan

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Kosuke Fukudome seems like he's about to become Cubs outcast No. 1. If Cubs fans have anyone to direct their ire at this year, it might be, say, Ryan Dempster -- his sudden collapse was first among many -- but Fukudome's horrible second half and visibly ugly playoffs, including a derisive quote from Lou Piniella, could make him 2008's unofficial Cubs scapegoat.

But at least he gets it. Instead of giving some unfeelingly jocky quote about better luck next year, Fukudome apologized to Cubs fans, albeit meekly:
Nor did it seem to surprise him that he eventually was booed. ''It's good the fans are honest and straight with us,'' Fukudome said. He even issued an apology. ''I'm sorry that I disappointed some fans who had really high regards for me,'' he said.
Aww. Isn't that nice? Now that's out of the way, Fukudome can get back to figuring out what's wrong with his swing, which, he mentioned, never felt right all year, even when he was hitting the ball. Good news! The one part of the season that Fukudome actually looked like a major league hitter, by his estimation, he was just getting lucky.

What else could go wrong? Next thing you'll tell me Rich Harden is hurt agai -- oh. Right.

 

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]]>Kosuke FukudomeKosukeFukudomeLou PiniellaLouPiniellaRich HardenRichHardenRyan DempsterRyanDempsterEamonn Brennan2008-10-08T12:05:00 00:00Notable Moments In FanHouse Commenting: 'Larry' Thinks You Suckhttp://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/07/notable-moments-in-fanhouse-commenting-larry-thinks-you-suck/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/07/notable-moments-in-fanhouse-commenting-larry-thinks-you-suck/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/07/notable-moments-in-fanhouse-commenting-larry-thinks-you-suck/#commentsEamonn Brennanby Eamonn Brennan

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At FanHouse, one man's trash is another man's treasure. But only the few raise to the level of Notable Moments in FanHouse Commenting.

Are you an angry man? Are you envious? Do you get envious? Are you a Chicago Cub? A Chicago Cubs fan? A resident of Chicago? A fan of Lake Michigan's beautiful shores and scenic vistas and countless recreational opportunities?

Are you the center of the universe? Are you Chicago? (Is it possible that the two things are the same?) Are you ... president George W. Bush? If you answered yes to any of the above, "Larry," today's Notable FanHouse Commenter, believes you suck:
It doesn't matter who the Cubs have of their roster, they will never win the World Series. They lose because they suck and so do their fans. In fact, the city of Chicago sucks also and so does that polluted lake they have. If you wanted to go to the center of the suckiness in universe, that would be in Chicago. I'm surprised that George Bush isn't from Chicago, cause he sucks as well.
I have heard many things in my life "suck." I am 23, prime age for the doctrine of "suck," where everything either "sucks" or "is lame" or, most egregiously, "gay." Never, ever have I heard someone apply these adjectives to Lake Michigan. How dare you, Larry. Apologize, at once.

Or don't; Lake Michigan has been here for millions of years. What have you ever done?

 

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]]>Eamonn Brennan2008-10-07T15:27:00 00:00Brian Roberts Wouldn't Have Helped the Cubshttp://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/07/brian-roberts-would-not-have-helped-the-cubs/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/07/brian-roberts-would-not-have-helped-the-cubs/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/07/brian-roberts-would-not-have-helped-the-cubs/#commentsEamonn Brennanby Eamonn Brennan

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It's a few days after the tragedy of a baseball team not winning the World Series, and Chicago's media is still searching for explanations to this Great and Sudden Collapse. The latest? The crumb-bums should have traded for Brian Roberts!
In the bitter end, the difference might have been Brian Roberts, after all. Maybe he wouldn't have overcome the walks in Game 1 or the errors in Game 2, but the Cubs' woeful lack of playoff hitting comes down to two big deficiencies:
Notice, if you will, the contradiction in the first two sentences. The difference was Brian Roberts! Or maybe not, really, but still!

The reasons given here are: The Cubs have no "true" leadoff hitter (yes, they do: Ryan Theriot, though it doesn't matter because Alfonso Soriano is a terrible, inflexible meanie), and the Cubs need more "respected" left-handed hitters. Maybe. Or maybe the lineup that was arguably the best in all of baseball in the regular season had a bad three games, had them just as easily as they could have had three really good ones. Maybe wishcasting for Brian Roberts sort of misses the simple nature of the playoffs: The Cubs were really good, and then ... weren't. Just like the Angels.

Nahhhhh: It was definitely Brian Roberts.

 

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]]>Alfonso SorianoAlfonsoSorianoBrian RobertsBrianRobertsRyan TheriotRyanTheriotEamonn Brennan2008-10-07T11:51:00 00:00Bobby Jenks Does Not Appreciate Your Cowbell Tacticshttp://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/06/bobby-jenks-does-not-appreciate-your-cowbell-tactics/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/06/bobby-jenks-does-not-appreciate-your-cowbell-tactics/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/06/bobby-jenks-does-not-appreciate-your-cowbell-tactics/#commentsEamonn Brennanby Eamonn Brennan

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In the MLB regular season, "home-field advantage" is less about fans, and their energy, and much more about familiarity and comfort. Fans don't really get too crazy for regular season games, so any intangible little benefit from cheering and whooping is rare.

In the playoffs, though, the props come out. The Brewers and Angels have the thundersticks, the White Sox have their blackout, and the Rays, well, the Rays have cowbells. Not sure how that got started, but if the goal is to irritate rotund opposing closers, Rays fans can consider it a success:
''Dumbest thing I ever saw,'' he said Sunday of the fans' rallying tactic. ''Just annoying. Minor league.'' But the Sox' ''rolling blackout promotion'' for fans Sunday at U.S. Cellular Field? ''Whoever came up with that idea is a genius,'' Jenks said. ''It brings electricity to us and excites 25 players.''
In other words, Jenks's preferred regional team's fans are better than your preferred regional team's fans. I've heard this joke before.

 

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]]>Bobby JenksBobbyJenksEamonn Brennan2008-10-06T14:25:00 00:00The Incredible Shrinking Kosuke Fukudomehttp://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/06/the-incredible-shrinking-kosuke-fukudome/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/06/the-incredible-shrinking-kosuke-fukudome/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/06/the-incredible-shrinking-kosuke-fukudome/#commentsEamonn Brennanby Eamonn Brennan

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It wasn't so long ago that Kosuke Fukudome was the king of Wrigleyville, object of the ultimate in Cubs fandom. His mixture of perceived exoticism, Opening Day heroics, and early-season success propelled to fan favorite status as quickly as one can be so propelled.

No more: After a slump so long it can barely be called a "slump" and an 0-8 postseason, Fukudome is battling the unthinkable: rumors that he'll be traded, sent to the minors, or shipped back to Japan:
But if it were up to Fukudome, would he have preferred to change planes in Los Angeles and continue westward for Tokyo? Does the Cubs' first high-profile Japanese import have the toughness to dig himself out of the hole he has fallen into? Will the Cubs give him the chance? One scout interviewed Saturday suggested a course of action that could be tough to swallow. "He has to go to the minors," the scout said. "He has to get rid of all those habits, pulling out on pitches, collapsing. He'll never hit the way he's hitting now, and this is a tough place to work out your problems. Always has been."
What Fukudome really needs is some sort of intensive swing coach, or something. Or maybe he needs to stop thinking about baseball for a while. Whatever the case may be, he'll have to have a strong spring if he plans on being in Wrigleyville much longer. Jim Hendry isn't one to dawdle when it comes to dealing formerly impressive outcasts.

 

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]]>Jim HendryJimHendryKosuke FukudomeKosukeFukudomeEamonn Brennan2008-10-06T12:22:00 00:00The L.A. Times Does Not Appreciate Kevin Kennedy's Bottle Servicehttp://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/03/the-l-a-times-does-not-appreciate-kevin-kennedys-bottle-servic/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/03/the-l-a-times-does-not-appreciate-kevin-kennedys-bottle-servic/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/03/the-l-a-times-does-not-appreciate-kevin-kennedys-bottle-servic/#commentsEamonn Brennanby Eamonn Brennan

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Local sports media markets are always a fun ride. Why, here in Chicago, we have quite possibly the most gloriously insane homer in all of broadcasting, Hawk Harrelson. In Hawk's mind, there has never been a strike zone that was favorable to the Chicago White Sox, never a close slide play called correctly, never a fair shake from the local media. (Who are, of course, in the tank for the Cubs.) It's actually beyond annoying now; it's just entertaining in that certain "Uncle Hawk's drunk again" sort of way.

Los Angeles is apparently not immune to this phenomenon. When the Dodgers clinched the pennant, the Dodgers TV broadcast team toasted to the accomplishment -- popping bottles of [cider], putting on division champs t-shirts, the whole bit. And the L.A. Times's media critic, Steve Springer, is not amused:
So what's the problem? This is an L.A. team being covered by a locally based outlet. What's wrong with a little hometown loyalty? Nothing, except a loss of credibility. Fans might love being fans, but they want to be informed fans. If they want inspiration, they'll go to a pep rally. If they want information, they go to the media.

But only if they think they'll get balanced analysis. Only if they think they can get an unbiased appraisal of their team. Telling us between gulps how great the Dodgers' chances are to raise the pennant doesn't result in much faith in the prognosis.
Springer's is a fair point, and it was probably a bit much. Kevin Kennedy sudsing all over his analysis -- that was an unfortunate verb, but I'm keeping it -- is not going to engender sober-minded analysis. But ... Springer is being a little too joyless here. Let it ride, Springy. It is possible, after all, to be happy about a team's success and still be able to correctly analyze that team's chances. Fans get that, because they're usually the harshest critics.

I doubt too many Dodgers fans saw Steve Lyons and Co., bottles in hand, and lost faith in America's journalistic institutions.

 

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]]>hawk harrelsonHawkHarrelsonKevin KennedyKevinKennedySteve LyonsSteveLyonsEamonn Brennan2008-10-03T17:19:00 00:00Being a Nationals Fan Seems Depressinghttp://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/03/its-depressing-to-be-a-nationals-fan/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/03/its-depressing-to-be-a-nationals-fan/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/10/03/its-depressing-to-be-a-nationals-fan/#commentsEamonn Brennanby Eamonn Brennan

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Poor Nationals fans. Now, after the 2008 season, the supposed enthusiasm promised at the season's inception -- and the way the new Nationals Park was supposed enliven the D.C. baseball consciousness -- hasn't really done anything of the sort. Instead, fans seem depressed, the park rarely filled up, and the first night of the season, when Ryan Zimmerman hit a raucous walk-off home run, is a distant memory.

What's worse? Even those disillusioned Nats fans, the ones driven toward brazen capitalism and ticket scalping -- even they can't catch a break. They can't ditch their tickets:
Mark Menard, co-owner of the 18th Amendment bar on Pennsylvania Avenue SE, bought season tickets partly so he could give them away to his best customers. When the stadium opened, he had lots of eager takers. But as the season wore on, he says, it got harder and harder to hand off the tickets. "I could not unload to my bar customers who lived literally 10 blocks from the stadium," he says. "Since June, it was painful trying to get rid of them."
There are a few more examples of people not being willing to even take tickets for free, which, though probably exaggerated, is still telling. When you combine a young franchise, a starless team, and an ingrained crosstown team, you get the 2008 Nationals. It should turn around, but not until the team is actually worth watching. Until then, they'll be invisible.

 

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]]>Nationals ParkNationalsParkEamonn Brennan2008-10-03T16:46:00 00:00Torii Hunter Has The Facts And He's Voting Yes (It's Steroids)http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/30/torii-hunter-has-the-facts-and-hes-voting-steroids/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/30/torii-hunter-has-the-facts-and-hes-voting-steroids/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/30/torii-hunter-has-the-facts-and-hes-voting-steroids/#commentsEamonn Brennanby Eamonn Brennan

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There was a bit of perhaps unsurprising news yesterday -- the Associated Press very quickly ran the numbers, and realized that the number of home runs this year was at its lowest point for fifteen years. Then, they asked Torii Hunter about it:
"I think the steroid testing has something to do with it," he said. "If there were any guys who were taking it, they're not taking it anymore. I'd say it's a small percentage, but of course it's going to have an impact."
Well then. Of course that's the obvious answer, and it's the one most people would immediately cite, but is it the only one? Hunter mentions ballpark size, too, which, in the inverse, is one of the steroid era's great unsung causes. But there's also the issue of pitchers. If we assume pitchers were taking steroids at roughly the same rate as hitters, then wouldn't home runs stay relatively steady?

I don't know. And that's the whole point -- without actual calculation, instead of my liberal arts-enabled quasi-scientific ramblings -- we don't know. Until that stuff gets done, neither Hunter nor I nor you really know how much steroids are at work here. That's why steroids suck. Even after all the nonsense, we still don't know what we're talking about.

 

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]]>PEDsSteroidsTorii HunterToriiHunterEamonn Brennan2008-09-30T17:10:00 00:00I Want To Be A Rookie On The Marlinshttp://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/30/i-want-to-be-a-rookie-on-the-marlins/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/30/i-want-to-be-a-rookie-on-the-marlins/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/30/i-want-to-be-a-rookie-on-the-marlins/#commentsEamonn Brennanby Eamonn Brennan

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There's nothing harmless in "hazing", so long as it doesn't turn into capital H, high-school-football-team-with-broomhandles Hazing. While that sort of stuff might still happen in small places among youth athletes, one doubts it ever happens among the pros. One hopes not, anyway.

But even among professional hazing, the Marlins version -- as seen above -- is especially friendly. A few funny costumes, like the Burger King dude, Captain America, and so on, and some wandering around on busy city streets. That barely qualifies as hazing.

Maybe it's just because everybody on the Marlins is so young. Technically, everyone's kind of a rookie. Who hazes the hazers?

 

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]]>Eamonn Brennan2008-09-30T16:15:00 00:00Forgive Steve Bartman Now? You're Too Latehttp://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/30/forgive-steve-bartman-now-youre-too-late/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/30/forgive-steve-bartman-now-youre-too-late/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/30/forgive-steve-bartman-now-youre-too-late/#commentsEamonn Brennanby Eamonn Brennan

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Oh, how generous of you, selected Cubs fans. After merely five years, you've decided to "forgive" Steve Bartman for totally ruining your life with his precocious grabby hands in 2003. Thank goodness you've come finally around to this momentous decision.

Unfortunately, you're way too late.

See, most Cubs fans, the reasonable ones, forgave that poor little turtlenecked guy years ago. Some (like me) did so immediately after the game. Some did so immediately after the play. Anyone able to process cogent thought and reason would have either admitted a) This is baseball, and, while disappointing, not that big of a deal; b) This is a big deal, but it's not Steve Bartman's fault; or c) This is a big deal, but the Cubs lost the game, and curses don't exist.

To forgive the guy now, after he can't reveal his whereabouts, after he got death threats and whatever else goes along with his whole fable, is incredibly disingenuous. If I were Steve Bartman, I wouldn't want Cubs fans' hollow "forgiveness" any more than I would want to sit down the left field line at Wrigley on Thursday. If you couldn't spare empathy for the guy in 2003, you shouldn't spare any for him in 2008. Just keep his name out your mouth, and drink your beer. Do they still say that at Wrigley?

 

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]]>Steve BartmanSteveBartmanEamonn Brennan2008-09-30T12:17:00 00:00Cubs Grant 104-Year-Old His Wish, But Not Reallyhttp://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/18/cubs-grant-104-year-old-his-wish-but-not-really/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/18/cubs-grant-104-year-old-his-wish-but-not-really/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/18/cubs-grant-104-year-old-his-wish-but-not-really/#commentsEamonn Brennanby Eamonn Brennan

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About a month ago, the Chicago Sun-Times released a scathing investigative report into the life and times of one Leo Hildebrand, a 104-year-old Cubs fan with a simple wish: to throw out the first pitch at a Cubs game. Why not, right? Dude's 104. 104-year-olds should be able to get whatever they want, whenever they want it. If you break 100, you should be free from the restrictions of polite public life.

Anyway, after online petitions and the like, Hildebrand is going to get his chance at Wrigley Field. He will not, however, be throwing out the first pitch.

It's disappointing result for the old guy -- he'd been practicing every day for months for his big chance at Wrigley. I assume the Cubs are slightly worried about liability issues; should Leo's arm fly out of its socket during the first pitch, well, that wouldn't be good for anyone. Least of all Leo. Instead? Four free tickets, and a chance to meet all the players. Not a bad haul.

 

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]]>Leo HildebrandLeoHildebrandEamonn Brennan2008-09-18T12:40:00 00:00Baseball Players Really, Really Love 'Major League'http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/17/baseball-players-really-really-love-major-league/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/17/baseball-players-really-really-love-major-league/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/17/baseball-players-really-really-love-major-league/#commentsEamonn Brennanby Eamonn Brennan

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"Major League" -- good movie. Not a great or classic movie in any sense, but for baseball fans, it doesn't get much better than a late-Saturday, darkened-living room viewing of "Major League," especially when one's favorite real-life baseball team is particularly horrendous. Afternoons like that are good for the soul.

Baseball players agree. Emphatically. At least, that's the anecdotal lesson in this blog post by the Seattle PI's John Hickey:
There were literally 19 pairs of eyes transfixed on the screen as almost all other business in the clubhouse was put on hold. The players, most of whom have seen the movie dozen and dozens of times, knew all the dialog and talked along with each of the characters. Catcher Jamie Burke estimated he'd probably seen the movie 250 times, and said it and Bull Durham remain his two favorite baseball movies. Pitcher Jarrod Washburn, also one of those transfixed during the movie's finale said it was his favorite baseball movie, bar none.
The standard-issue question here is whether or not "Bull Durham" is a better movie, which leads me to a confession: I've never seen it. I know, I know. I suck. I've never seen Back to the Future or any of the Indiana Jones movies, either, and I blame my parents and my millenial birthdate. Get off my case, OK?

 

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]]>Bull DurhamBullDurhamMajor LeagueMajorLeagueEamonn Brennan2008-09-17T14:25:00 00:00Ned Yost Is Not a Bitter Manhttp://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/17/ned-yost-is-not-a-bitter-man/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/17/ned-yost-is-not-a-bitter-man/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/17/ned-yost-is-not-a-bitter-man/#commentsEamonn Brennanby Eamonn Brennan

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By now, everyone knows the saga of Ned Yost. Whether one agrees with the firing or not -- and there are reasons to be had on both sides of the debate -- most everyone agrees that Yost was bound to be fired at some point. The choice was not whether to fire Yost, but when; the Brewers just happened to pick a particularly provocative time.

If I was Ned Yost, I'd be furious. I'd be angry. Those words mean the same thing, but I'd somehow manage to be both of them. I'd be wishing that all the worst things in the world happened to the Brewers, and only the Brewers. I would morph into Silky Johnston and let the hate flow. But not Ned. Ned's bigger than that:
"I've got XM Radio, so I'll be able to listen to the Brewers pitch-by-pitch and be rooting Dale on in his first win," Yost said. "If anybody thinks that I've got sour grapes or I don't want this club to succeed, they're crazy. I'll be rooting them on every inch of the way and I hope they can win that wild card and go deep, deep into the playoffs and win the World Series," he said.
That's pretty impressive. Given the base circumstances of the situation -- managing a young team so close to the playoffs, and then getting canned -- Yost is being really big here. Not as big as Prince Fielder's daily intake of tofu ... but big all the same.

 

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]]>dale sveumDaleSveumNed YostNedYostEamonn Brennan2008-09-17T13:00:00 00:00Report Alleges Yankees Cheated For Public Moneyhttp://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/17/report-alleges-yankees-cheated-for-public-money/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/17/report-alleges-yankees-cheated-for-public-money/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/17/report-alleges-yankees-cheated-for-public-money/#commentsEamonn Brennanby Eamonn Brennan

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Another day, another fun story from the New York Daily News about just how sleazy getting a ballpark built in New York can be. The other day, the Yankees were accused of lobbying a Congressman to pressure the IRS at the team's benefit. That was naughty enough. But today, New York Assemblyman Richard Brodsky is alleging the Yankees have cheated the rules at every step to secure as much public financing as possible for the new Yankee Stadium. That's not very nice, either:
The new Yankee stadium got up to $850 million in taxpayer investments but will create just 15 permanent jobs, a scathing new report charges. The city "manipulated" the assessed value of the stadium to meet the need for an IRS tax exemption. The city appraised the value of the new stadium land at $21 million, but told the IRS it was worth $204 million. [...] "Sworn commitments" to the IRS and the National Park Service were not kept. [...] The Industrial Development Agency and the mayor's office "secretly" acquired a luxury suite.
And so on and so forth. Perhaps the most damaging -- and least accurate, if you believe a Yankees spokesperson -- is that the new stadium is merely providing 15 new jobs to the community. At a cost of $850 million in taxpayer funds, that's a really, really ugly number. If it's true.

The takeaway here is not that the Yankees are evil. It's that achieving anything this large in New York, with this much public money at stake, is incredibly dirty business. Well, gee whiz. Who knew?

 

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]]>George SteinbrennerGeorgeSteinbrennerYankee StadiumYankeeStadiumEamonn Brennan2008-09-17T12:15:00 00:00Joba Chamberlain's Long-Lost Mother Foundhttp://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/15/joba-chamberlains-long-lost-mother-found/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/15/joba-chamberlains-long-lost-mother-found/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/15/joba-chamberlains-long-lost-mother-found/#commentsEamonn Brennanby Eamonn Brennan

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Since his rise to fame last year, Joba Chamberlain's personal story is something of minor legend. Raised largely by his father, who suffered through polio and a variety of other obstacles, Joba's tale is one of the power of fathers and sons to thrive under adversity. Thanks to his fastball, Joba's famous and soon-to-be-rich, and Gary Smith, Sports Illustrated's legendary profile-writer, chronicled the whole thing last year.

Missing in that story is what happened to Joba's mother. Colleen Kenney of the Lincoln Journal Star found Jackie Standley -- a former drug and alcohol addict -- and the resulting story is pretty unsettling:
The reporter Googles "Joba Chamberlain," and they figure out together that what she'd read online was a Wikipedia entry, one that got other facts wrong, too. But then they read other profiles of him from major newspaper sites, and most of them repeat the story that Harlan raised Joba alone. "My heart is pounding in my chest, dude. I don't need it. This is worse than drugs. This is going to give me a heart attack. No. I wasn't the greatest mother. But in the bad choices I made, I in turn made good choices. And one was for them to be with their dad a lot."

She wants them to give her yet another chance.
The end result is a portrait of a woman who seems both loving (she has a shrine to her son with both clippings and personal artifacts) and deeply disturbed (she furiously dials reporters to correct errors on Wikipedia, for example). It seems clear why Joba probably doesn't want much to do with her. But it's sad all the same.

 

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]]>Joba ChamberlainJobaChamberlainEamonn Brennan2008-09-15T15:07:00 00:00Joe Crede's Locker Is as Empty as Scott Boras's Soulhttp://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/15/joe-credes-locker-is-as-empty-as-scott-borass-soul/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/15/joe-credes-locker-is-as-empty-as-scott-borass-soul/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/15/joe-credes-locker-is-as-empty-as-scott-borass-soul/#commentsEamonn Brennanby Eamonn Brennan

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Joe Crede's been rehabbing from his back injury for a long time. Longer than a long time, actually; he's been doing some form of injury rehab or recovery for almost a year now. Maybe more. And things don't seem to be getting any better for him or for the White Sox in the interim.

Apparently, the White Sox have had enough. They've cleaned out Crede's locker at U.S. Cellular Field and don't expect him to return (via MLB Trade Rumors):
The space is blank - as empty as the locker itself. Crede's belongings have been removed from the locker. The Sox aren't talking, but word is the organization, sick of the way Scott Boras seems to have his hand in Crede's drawn-out rehab - some believe he would rather see his client sit than have him risk another injury - has severed ties.

"I don't expect him to play [for us]," Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said.
Despite the headline, I'm not actually sure why the White Sox are so worked up about Crede being influenced by Scott Boras. Sure, everyone hates Scottie, often for good reason -- he oozes self-importance. His purpose in life, what has made him a gazillionaire, is essentially screwing over baseball teams as much as possible.

But that's also what makes him a great agent. If he has advised Crede to sit out rather than risk another long-term injury, well, what do you expect? Of course that's what he's going to do. And Crede's going to listen. Anything else would seem intentionally naive.

 

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]]>Joe CredeJoeCredeOzzie GuillenOzzieGuillenScott BorasScottBorasEamonn Brennan2008-09-15T14:43:00 00:00The Yankees Fail At Sleazy Political Excesshttp://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/15/the-yankees-fail-at-sleazy-political-excess/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/15/the-yankees-fail-at-sleazy-political-excess/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/15/the-yankees-fail-at-sleazy-political-excess/#commentsEamonn Brennanby Eamonn Brennan

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As you may or may not know, the New York Yankees are building a new Yankee Stadium that will be a monument to all that is great about the New York Yankees and New York and baseball and America in general. In order to acquire additional government money for that new stadium, the Yankees are engaging in the most American of methods: sleazily influencing politicians to change the law in their favor.

The Yankees used their close ties with New York Representative Charles Rangel to lobby with the IRS. Unfortunately for patriots and baseball lovers everywhere, they failed (via WoW):
"Dan," the e-mail begins, "Happy New Year. Per our discussion, attached is 1) a proposed letter from Congressman Rangel to the IRS and 2) talking points. If you have any questions, please call me. Thank you. Best, Randy." Levine says the letter and accompanying "talking points" were written by the city but "reviewed" by Yankees in-house tax lawyers before being sent to Rangel. Ultimately, the IRS rejected the Rangel letter and requested a letter directly from the city in May, the mayor's office said.
In other words, if the Yankees want that $66 million off their plate, they'll need a letter from the city of New York directly. I'm sure that will be hard to come by.

In the meantime, Rangel has received $45,000 in campaign contributions from the Yankees. And yet he failed to secure America's Team even more of America's money. Which of course begs the question: Why does the IRS hate freedom so much?

This message approved by George Steinbrenner.

 

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]]>George SteinbrennerGeorgeSteinbrennerYankee StadiumYankeeStadiumEamonn Brennan2008-09-15T13:37:00 00:00Ryan Theriot No Fan Of Hurricane Ikehttp://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/11/ryan-theriot-no-fan-of-hurricane-ike/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/11/ryan-theriot-no-fan-of-hurricane-ike/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/11/ryan-theriot-no-fan-of-hurricane-ike/#commentsEamonn Brennanby Eamonn Brennan

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The headline presupposes that there is a situation in which Ryan Theriot would be a fan of a destructive storm. Like, maybe if it didn't have such a lame name. Or maybe if it was a Category 1, instead of a Category 3. But of course that's not true. Theriot would hate a hurricane no matter what, one assumes ... but especially so if it threatens the Cubs and Astros and millions of other people in Houston this weekend:
"I don't want to go," Theriot said Wednesday. "To me, I understand why the Astros want to play those games there. They're right there in the wild card and playing well. That storm is going to turn, and if it does turn, and they evacuate the city, then what are you going to do? Now we're stuck. You hop on a bus and go where -- go with everybody else?" Theriot said. "Take a bus from Houston to Chicago? [Hurricanes] are so hard to predict. The last one was supposed to go west, and it ends up turning and crushing Baton Rouge."
That's about as reasonable as it gets. Hurricane threatens a city; city's residents likely to evacuate; city's visiting baseball players also want to evacuate. Makes sense. But where's the solution? Is there anything the Diamonbacks can do to help?

 

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]]>Ryan TheriotRyanTheriotEamonn Brennan2008-09-11T13:27:00 00:00Ted Lilly Decidedly Not Mediocre At Destroying Catchershttp://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/11/ted-lilly-not-mediocre-at-destroying-catchers/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/11/ted-lilly-not-mediocre-at-destroying-catchers/http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2008/09/11/ted-lilly-not-mediocre-at-destroying-catchers/#commentsEamonn Brennanby Eamonn Brennan

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In 2007, Ted Lilly was surprisingly effective. In 2008, Lilly is a bit more what the Cubs expected when they signed him -- a pretty mediocre third-wheel lefty that can eat innings and occasionally throw a lights-out effort. The unexpected part happened last night, as you'll see below:


Yes, that was Ted Lilly. Yes, that was Yadier Molina. Yes, that was Ted Lilly sending Yadier Molina to la-la-land with the mere shrug of one much-stronger-than-it-looks left shoulder. Where has Lilly been hiding this athleticism? Or are we to assume that Yadier Molina is actually that weak?

The mind boggles.

(HT: The Sporting Blog)

 

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]]>Ted LillyTedLillyYadier MolinaYadierMolinaEamonn Brennan2008-09-11T11:59:00 00:00