I watched a few innings of last night's All Star game but grew very tired of listening to Joe and Tim. Both have outlived their usefulness and have never been entertaining. Joe's father was one of the best play-by-play guys in the business and probably turns over in his grave every time he listens to his son broadcast without emotion or conviction. Considering that these guys work for Rupert Murdoch, perhaps they can get pointers on obtaining information that fans really want to hear instead of the pablum puke they currently dispense.
Given that a great many of the "real" all stars didn't play, perhaps they should have called the game "The Almost All Star Game." When I first started watching these games, the stars were all there unless they were really hurt. As an example I'll turn to "The Captain," who was certainly well enough last week when he was attempting to reach the 3,000 hit milestone, but chose to not attend the game in Arizona because he had just come off the DL. The least the guy could have done was to show up like Shane and Placido - after all the fans did vote him the starting SS for the AL squad. The same can be said for Mariano. What is his problem? If selected either by the flawed fan voting or by being chosen by the manager - baseball ought to require that the player at least attend the game. While I don't like to, I'll give A-Roid a pass since he did have surgery. Actually, the guy should have been there in a fucking wheel chair. To be fair, the same can be said about Chipper.
The Home Run Derby was fun, especially watching the Dominican team representing the AL. I've thought that Robinson Cano was the best second baseman for a while now, and he certainly put on a power display in Phoenix - and yes his dad did manage a little smile. The NL squad sucked, and it will probably be quite a while before we see Kemp participating in these events again. My friend Bob asked me if I thought Ryan Howard should have been included in the event. Bob, like many Phillies fans believes that Superstar is the MAN, and is a definite mortal lock to eventually be enshrined in the HOF. This morning he practically threw his copy of the Daily News in my face as he implored me to read Bill Conlin's column about Howard.
I've been reading Conlin for many years and have enjoyed his insights and sarcasm. Many think Bill is too old, too much in love with the way it used to be, and that he should have his laptop taken away from him. Most of the time he is right on, but after reading his effusive praise of the Big Piece I can only wish him a boil on his fat ass. Conlin rages at those of us who believe that Howard steals his paycheck and that he is like the Emperor with no clothes. He also manages to take a shot at those of us who were critical of Michael Jack(off) Schmidt when he was under-performing while strutting around like the best there ever was. Fuck you Conlin - both of these guys did have talent, but neither were or are a complete ballplayer. Sure, Howard is on pace to drive in 140 runs, but until he learns some discipline at the plate he will continue to fail his team when the games are on the line more often than when he comes through in the clutch. Conlin stated that many of us believe that Howard frequently dogs it down the first base line - well we think that because he does dog it down the line, as in whenever he hits a ground ball. Just once I would love to see the first baseman flub the throw, but have enough time to recover and make the put out because Superstar isn't hustling. The guy is in the beginning of a $125,000,000 contract and when you get overpaid that kind of gelt to play a game, YOU OUGHT TO HUSTLE ALL THE FUCKING TIME!!!!
Of course, in the spirit of full disclosure. I don't like Howard even a little - those of you who read this shit on a regular basis already know that. Part of my dislike of the guy is purely visual. He makes me wild with his mannerisms and drama before every pitch. Contrast Howard's act with that of Utley, who steps into the box, takes a couple of swings and is ready to offer at the pitch. Howard has to step out of the box, spit into his batting gloves, step back in, point his bat like Babe Ruth, and do his little squat before he offers at a pitch way out of the strike zone. The guy may be a fan favorite to most Phillies fans, but until he starts to live up to his hype and mannerisms, I will continue to urge the Attorney General to indict him for grand theft paycheck. By the way, on Friday, Superstar will get another of his twice-a-month checks that will be for more than most Americans make in a year, and most Americans who are fortunate enough to still be employed would surely lose their jobs if they under-performed at their jobs like Howard does at his.
Enough on Howard. The second half is about to start and one can only hope that my beloved Pirates can continue to play the kind of ball they played before the break. Who would have thought that the Bucs would have been within striking distance of first place in the NL Central this late in the season - but they are. They are actually making me look bad because when I select a Beloved Team for the season I do so by figuring out which team will be pathetic and I go with them. Shit happens sometimes, and it has happened so far this season in the Steel City.
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