Year: 2004

Another rant on baseball writers — this one mercifully brief. Baseball writers, like all people, have their own set of beliefs. In order to reconcile actual outcomes with their projected outcomes, they often make the facts “work for them.” Typically this is done by using only the statistics that support […]

Alan Keyes has been described as a master orator, and I must confess that there is something both authoritative and comforting about his voice. Until you pay attention to what he’s saying that is. At that point, he’s either wacky or scary; I haven’t yet been able to decide which. The […]

Remember when you were in 7th grade, thinking to yourself, “Why do we have to learn all this math? I’m never going to use it.” If you indeed tuned out, then perhaps you should take a job in baseball. (You’ll have a hard time working for the A’s, Dodgers, Red […]

I try not to read Jack McDowell’s column. Honest. I’ve long found him irritating, whether he was giving interviews after games or sparring with my father on television. But his columns have been particularly grating. However, with a bit too much free time — and not enough interesting baseball news […]

Don’t Believe the Hype It’s about time…. Somebody (Dayn Perry) finally published something realistic about Ichiro Suzuki. The Mariner’s right fielder is exciting to watch. He gets down the line in a blur, had a seemingly bionic right arm, and plays the game with a certain flair. Despite all of […]

A few days ago, Dodgers GM Paul DePodesta “gutted” (in the words of some journalists) a team that had been among the hottest in baseball, going 20-6 in July. Most of the articles I’ve read have scored this as a big win for the Marlins, the Dodgers’ trading partner. Sure […]

While there has been no shortage of media coverage about the recent release of Michael Moore’s movie, Fahrenheit 9/11, I feel compelled to add my voice to the mix. For those of you who have paged through previous blog entries, you’ll note that I don’t write entries on any sort […]

Harold Reynolds I used to really enjoy listening to HR on ESPN’s Baseball Tonight, but this year, I’ve made the mistake of paying attention to what he’s saying. I think that the problem with many analysts who are former players is that the game came easily and was physically intuitive […]

If there has been anything as controversial as the issue of steroids in baseball, it’s been the reception of Michael Lewis’s book, Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game. It seems that many pundits and self-appointed experts continue to insist that Oakland A’s GM Billy Beane wrote the book. […]

INDIGESTION I’ve seen some funny pictures online, but these pictures of 400+ pound competitive eater Eric “Badlands” Booker at the Second Annual Hebrew Institute of Riverdale Hamentashen Eating Contest were hysterical. DREAM JOB Making fun of the contestants from ESPN’s “Dream Job” is like shooting ducks in a barrel. Or […]