The Bullpen Gospels

I just finished reading Dirk Hayhurst's The Bullpen Gospels. It chronicles a year in the life of a career minor leaguer and is a really unique read. Hayhurst struggles through pitching in the lower levels of the Padres organization despite being several years older than the young studs he joins in the bullpen. After the year of ups and downs in baseball and life, he teaches the reader some valuable lessons about life and the place that baseball can hold in it. The book was incredibly honest and provided insight that we just couldn't get anywhere else into the lives of professional athletes. I'll admit that it was a little corny, but I'd call it corny in a good way. I've already passed this one on to my dad, but I'm sure it's one I'll end up reading several times. Go read it and let me know what you think!

All Stars

As of Monday, May 24th, Mark Teixeira is leading the AL first basemen in all-star voting. The two guys behind him, Justin Morneau and Miguel Cabrera, have arguably the best numbers in the junior circuit. Let's take a look at where the three of them stand in the league in some offensive categories. The number on the left is their rank in the league.

Batting Average
1. J. Morneau .381
7. M. Cabrera .331
80. M. Teixeira .207

Homeruns
5. J. Morneau 11
8. M. Cabrera 10
23. M. Teixeira 7

Runs Batted In
2. M. Cabrera 40
5. J. Morneau 34
14. M. Teixeira 30

On Base Percentage
1. J. Morneau .497
4. M. Cabrera .415
54. M. Teixeira .324

Slugging Percentage
1. J. Morneau .697
3. M. Cabrera .598
56. M. Teixeira .374

I don't think I even really have to say much here. Morneau and Cabrera are in the top ten in just about everything, and Teixeira's numbers in HR and RBIs are adequate, but he certainly shouldn't be the starting first baseman in the all-star game. Just a little bit of the Yankees bias...

By the way, I watched ESPN news all the way through a couple times last night. The Yankees had a squirrel run on the field and that got more press than all of the national league games except one. But we've grown to expect that from ESPN. What bothers me is that we're seeing it in fan voting. I guess I shouldn't have high expectations for fan voting in the first place, but when a former MVP is hitting .380, I expect him to get a little more attention than an underproducing Yankee who hasn't even been with the team long. Yes, fans should have a little leeway to vote for the guys they like, but this is just a joke.

I read the other day that the voting tends to shake out more to the best players and less to the Yankees as the break approaches. Let's hope we see a major change. Teixeira is currently leading Morneau by about 154%. Each email address is allowed 20 votes for the all-star game. I enourage you to take a few minutes to vote for Morneau, Cabrera, Youkilis, or any other first baseman who isn't hitting around the Mendoza line.

all stats from mlb.com

Mighty Joe Espresso

If you're in Tucker, GA, check this place out. It is a family owned and operated alternative to Starbucks, and it serves only the best. The coffee is far superior to anything you'll get at one of the big chains, and I'll personally gauruntee great customer service. Add a great atmosphere, a build your own sandwich menu, cake from Southern Sweets, and free wireless internet, and this place is a can't miss. Try their Mighty Brrr, a frozen blended drink that can be made with any flavor you can think of, on a hot day this summer.

If the season ended today...

AL East Tampa Bay
AL Central Minnesota
AL West Texas
AL Wild Card New York

NL East Philadelphia
NL Central Cincinnati
NL West Los Angeles
NL Wild Card San Diego

AL Cy Young David Price
AL MVP Justin Morneau

NL Cy Young Ubaldo Jiminez
AL MVP Andre Ethier

Dallas Braden

Dallas Braden was recently introduced to the baseball world at large when he chastised Alex Rodriguez for breaking an unwritten rule. The veteran third baseman circled back to first after a foul ball, passing directly over the pitcher's mound on his way there. Braden took offense, yelled across the field at A-Rod, and went on to comment after the game that he was shocked that a player of such caliber wouldn't respect one of baseball's unwritten rules. Most of us thought the whole thing was a little funny, as even some major league managers had never heard of the supposed tradition. Rodriguez had similar thoughts, saying he thought that the outburst was pretty funny coming from a guy with just a handful of wins in his career.

A few weeks later, Dallas Braden throws a perfect game against one of the better offenses in the league. Let me be clear about this. He accomplished the single most impressive individual feat in sports. He was perfect through nine innings, not allowing a single baserunner. This has happened only nineteen times in the history of baseball.

Just minutes after I watched Braden get his twenty-seventh consecutive out on a groundball to short, I started hearing about how now he had some credibility, and even A-Rod would admit it. It seemed that Braden's achievement was overshadowed by his oddly public embarrasment from earlier this year.

Today the big story is that Evan Longoria, one of the best hitters in the major leagues, tried to bunt his way on base. Many consider this an unwritten rule, and it's certainly more widely accepted than the idea that the mound is off limits to all position players. Longoria's manager came out and said that he supports Longoria's decision. They weren't trying to keep Braden from the record books. They were trying to score runs and win the game.

Braden, however, wasn't part of the group criticizing the Ray's third baseman. I saw him interviewed after the game and he didn't mention it. Still, the sports media seems determined to make his perfect game about the controversy from early in the season. They suggest that this game revolved around an unwritten rule and almost have us believe that Braden felt this way.

I say shame on you, baseball world. Braden threw an incredible game and made no attempt to go after Longoria. Let's focus on his accomplishment and not drag any bad blood into it.

The Craziest Dream(s) I've ever had

Today in an hour long nap I had the following four part dream. Or maybe it was three dreams including one with two parts. I don't know. Anyway...

Part 1:
My dad and I were at Ronald Reagan park, except there was a lake and more nature. Some zoo employees were at the park with a trained duck. It didn't do any crazy tricks or anything, but you could tell it was a well behaved duck.


Part 2:
I'm working for Dr. House at his hospital. I realize something and come running outside to where he's talking to a patient. It ends up that he's saying the same thing I was. He tells me "I just said the same thing, except I didn't try to put a fake big-boy voice on!" Then we told the patient that the pharmacy companies were trying to cheat them. We glared over at the lemonade stand style pharmacy behind us in which pills were kept in pizza boxes. Then I joked that with his saved money, the patient could buy some donuts at the donut stand behind the pill stand.

Part 3
This was the most vivid part of the dream and possibly the most vivid dream I've ever had. I started panicking because I couldn't figure otu if my english class was this semester or last semester (it ended up being senior year in high school). I didn't remember taking a final or writing any papers for a while, so I started thinking that I had forgotten about the class. The most realistic part was when I realized that this meant that I would have seven classes on my grade report. Anyway, I go to the teacher's website and realized that it was from last year. The syllabus was very realistic as it had some of the same assignments we had had, some new ones, and some that she had changed slightly. At this point my roommate Austin walked into our dorm. I shook my head and told him about the English class panic. We talked about how everything was pretty surreal here at the end of the semester and had a little heart to heart. We agreed on some pretty reasonable things, like that I should have gotten breakfast before my first class instead of after so that I would be more awake than if I just woke up and went straight to class.

Part 4
I'm walking on a narrow path to get to my car and talking on my phone. I see the same duck and when I get close to it it turns toward me and stood up. I saw that it was wearing blue shorts and a yellow shirt. I vaguely remembered Psyduck from Pokemon. Anyway, I ignore my phone call and say, "Hey! I saw you at the park!" I clap twice and put my hand up. The duck realizes that this is an obvious sign for a high five, claps once, and grabs my hand with his webbed hand. Then he shocks me by talking to me. He says in an excited, high pitched voice "Haha sometime it's fun when I go to the park! Ha!" Then we both start jumping around excitedly. I continued walking and matter of factly said into my phone, "Sorry, I was high fiving a duck."

Check out Tiffany's blog!

Sorry about the long writing drought. Finals have been crazy...expect to hear from me more starting Saturday. In the meantime, check out Tiffany's Wilson's blog, http://soitiswithchrist.blogspot.com/

She's starting a cool project for the summer and she just posted a video getting a bunch of people to answer the simple question "I love God because..." It turned out really well and I'm excited to see how the rest of her project goes.