This weekend I was out with the kids and we were driving past the now silent Minute Maid Park and #2 son looks out the window and says – Mami, I wanna go to a baseball game now. Can we go to the baseball game now? Please can we go to the baseball game? Please? I wanna see a baseball game now Mama. PLEEEEEEEEZZZZZZZZEEEEEEE???
So I told him – we can’t because there’s no baseball in January.
He didn’t like that. It was 68 degrees out, clear, beautiful, not a cloud in the sky, and they had been playing in the park all morning. He looked around, looked at me and said – why not?
I said – because there didn’t used to be baseball in the winter because it was too cold and besides, the players are tired from playing all those months and they need to rest now.
Ohhh, said #1 son. They need to hide-berate. Like bears. Yeah!!! says my 5 year old. They get to come out and play when they see their shadows. And then they be hungry and eat EVERYthing. Mami??? How come they don’t go back to sleep after they eat all that?
Because – I said, then they aren’t tired or hungry and it is the right time to play baseball…
But, you know, I looked at one little nose glued to the window and 2 other little noses leaning as far out of their seats as they could and I thought of Rogers Hornsby 100 years ago telling people that in the winter, he stared out the window and waited for spring so he could go play ball. I feel the same way. It always seems like forever until Spring Training.
There really isn’t any new news – The Astros might could sign Runelvys Hernandez, a very fat righty pitcher who came up with KC, had 2 mediocre years, had Tommy John surgery in 05, had a lousy year in 06, spent last year in 3 minor league organizations and is now playing winter ball and supposedly throwing 97. Shrug. It ain’t the speed, it’s the motion.
Scott Rolen and Tony LaRussa finalized their divorce and Scott went off to show the AL how a real third baseman fields and Troy Glaus is now a Cardinal. It will be interesting to see how Rolen gets along with John Gibbons and JP Ricciardi in Toronto. He might could be missing TLR sooner than he thought. Toronto has a great defensive team, probably the best in the majors BEFORE they got Rolen. It will also be interesting to see how The Pest does with the artificial turf there.
And because I’m lazy and someone else did a great job, let me leave all yall with this link to Birds In The Belfry’s great analysis of the major league hitters at each position. This is ONLY hitting, not fielding. Check it out – and notice how good Luke Scott is…
Tags: Houston Astros, MLB
It isn’t the speed, but the motion? That’s not a sentence you hear associated with Runeylvs….just kidding.
I wonder too about Rolen’s knees on that turf. It can kill you on a day-to-day basis, but with the DH available some he can get at bats there. Good trade for the Blue Jays though, because Rolen will be pumped to prove he isn’t done.
when i think of runelvys i think of allyou can eat buffet doors slamming shut as their owners panic.
what is interesting about the rolen/glaus trade is that it is one of the few trades where the fans of each team think they got the best of the deal. that is pretty unusual. agree that rolen will be pumped. agree that glaus can kill you with his bat.
i can’t figure out what the heck they are doing up there in st louis though. ah well…
From Congress today-
“That 2005 hearing was referenced right away when panel chairman Henry Waxman opened the proceedings by calling on the Justice Department to look into whether former AL MVP Miguel Tejada lied to committee staffers when questioned in connection to Palmeiro’s perjury case”
Nice trade.
JR,
you might could know that i was most definitely NOT happy about getting miguel te-roider. especially because i noticed what had happened to his SLG after roid testing was implemented.
ever since the mitchell report came out, i have wondered if palmeiro told the truth and te-roider DID actually inject him with roid laced B-12. not that i think we’ll ever find out, but if palmeiro has been exiled because of being injected with contaminated B-12, well, the guy deserves to be exonerated.
i also wonder exactly what they can do to a citizen of another country who lies to congress IF he has the sense to stay in that other country…
Here’s the New York Times article on Tejada — if he goes to jail for perjury, we’ll have to find another shortstop:
By DUFF WILSON
Published: January 15, 2008
WASHINGTON
More from that New York Times report, in case you didn’t see it — Tejada is in big trouble, it seems…
Waxman and the committee
i’m not surprised one little bit.
of course, whatever tejada took might could have been legal in the DR – but then again, he bought roids offn adam piatt and that was NOT in the DR