R.I.P. "Keef"

Still miss you... 30 years later

Keith John Moon

August 23 1946 - September 7 1978

I Live For This!

Erin got up before the sun this morning and send me this picture of Jason Varitek. Looks like my voodoo doll is working. It's a rare treat to open your mailbox and see Tek in his familiar and endearing squat on second base. The side of the base that he is perched on says "I Live For This" Far out... so do I! Thank you Erin. I'm still smiling.
PS... click on the picture for a life size version.

Blackout

I missed the whole series against Baltimore. You know, the one where Tek hit a couple of homers and real nifty double? Uh-huh, that one. I was blacked out. Before you begin to wonder about just how much beer I was enjoying, let me be clear. MLB.COM blacked me out. Why? Because I live close enough to Baltimore to purchase a ticket and put my fanny in a seat. I went to Map quest and fed it the start and end info, this is what it spit out: Estimated Time: 8.0 hours 15 minutes Estimated Distance: 488.87 miles. I currently reside in North {Sweet} Carolina {Ba-Ba-Ba} tho, not by choice*. In fact, I live close enough to South Carolina, I could spit at it, and sometimes do. So, counting NC, Va, and driving through {i.e. all the way around!} D.C. Camden Yards is like 3 States away! 8 hours and 15 minutes, does not include, potty and fuel stops, food stops, detours, road {de}construction and all the the other crap that goes with 8 hour car trips. What it also does not take into consideration is THE TRIP BACK! THE TIME IT TAKES TO PLAY THE GAME AND THE FACT THAT I WILL HAVE TO DO IT 3 DAYS IN A ROW!!! I pay for Internet service, I pay to "watch every game, every day, everywhere" {that's what they say} in fine print it says "subject to black out". I understand that there is money to be made by having fans come out to the park. I understand that stations like FOX and ESPN want exclusivity rights to broadcast games. I'm OK with that. I'm not OK with being blacked out of nearly every game played on the East Coast. Oh yeah, you read that right. The teams I am blacked out for: Baltimore, Cincinnati, Washington DC and Atlanta. That is nearly every team on the Eastern Seaboard. The good news is, all of them but Baltimore are National League and they don't count until October. Here is how it works. MLB.TV takes my money and I get to watch my beloved Red Sox games on a small computer screen. Sometimes, the games are on ESPN, Fox or one of the Big 3 Networks. That is a BONUS! Yeah!! Sox on the big screen! Never mind the irony**

I'm still paying to watch online but it's OK, it's on the TV!! Only sometimes, FOX, ESPN, etc, buys the right to broadcast the game, but they don't air it. Or, they do, just not in my area. This falls under "regional broadcast". So, the last 3 days the Red Sox played in Baltimore and I {got to see preseason football, eeew} could not see it online OR on the TV because I live within driving distance to Camden Yards. :~)

Let's review: I'm paying {through the nose} for cable, Internet service and MLB.COM. I did NOT see the whole Baltimore series that I paid for twice because I was blacked out. Blacked out because Baltimore is within driving distance from where I live. Here, I'll draw you a picture:
Oh yeah, I'm pissed. Wouldn't you be?
*I'm not incarcerated or anything. I can leave when ever I want. It's just that we do, what we do, for those we love. Love brought me here. It could be worse.

** I have a pretty big TV, I have a fairly small monitor. 90% of my visual entertainment is baseball online, 10% is Lost, Grey's and CSI {and soon Fringe} on the television. Please note that all of these shows are on Thursday. WTF is up with that???

Jabba likes head...

Marty Foster is apparently on the Yankee's payroll. The home plate umpire did a bang up job of making sure the Yankees got the win last night. Marty Foster knew full well that Jabba The Hutt {I've noticed some people call him Jabba the Slut. This is inaccurate as NO ONE will have sex with the slug, so technically he is not a slut, but a slut wannabe} would get around to throwing at Kevin Youkilis' head. He should have issued a warning right at the beginning of the game, not after he threw a hard object 90+ mph at Youk's head. To me, it screams premeditated and conspiracy. Jabba should have been ejected as soon as Youk was knocked down. He wasn't but later, Mike Lowell was. Smell that? Stinks, don't it?

This is what Ian Browne wrote, in case you missed it:

BOSTON -- It was a subplot that could have faded quietly into the night, Joba Chamberlain's perplexing habit of throwing baseballs that land high and tight on Red Sox first baseman Kevin Youkilis, or behind him.
But in the bottom of the seventh inning on Friday night at Fenway Park, another chapter unfolded. For the fourth time since last August, Chamberlain fired a pitch that could have done a lot of harm to Youkilis if it had hit him. Instead, the up-and-in offering was dodged by Youkilis, who went sprawling to the dirt.
"Nobody wants the ball right there," said Chamberlain. "Nobody wants the ball in at 90 [mph], whatever it was. But at the end of the day, it's 1-0, and I'm trying to get a win and it's what you have to do. It's a 2-0 count and the game's 1-0, you think I want to lose the lead and put the lead runner on with those guys behind him? No shot."
Chamberlain wound up striking out Youkilis. The Yankees hung on for the 1-0 win.
Accident or not, Youkilis was clearly angered by Chamberlain's latest misfire. He was restrained by home-plate umpire Marty Foster, and both sides received warnings.
"Inside? It was at his head," said Red Sox right-hander Josh Beckett. "Inside is the pitches I was throwing to Alex [Rodriguez]."
Those who wondered if Beckett might retaliate never got an answer, because the right-hander was removed before the top of the eighth.
"It worked out," said Beckett. "I had a lot of adrenaline going anyway. [Manager Terry Francona] had already pulled me from the game."
Youkilis did not speak to reporters after the game. Last August at Yankee Stadium, Chamberlain threw back-to-back pitches that went behind Youkilis. The hard-throwing righty was suspended for two games. Three weeks ago at Yankee Stadium, Chamberlain threw one up and in on Youkilis. All of those encounters brought heightened security to what occurred on Friday.
"It's unfortunate they gave a warning there for both sides," said Yankees manager Joe Girardi. "But I understand why they did it, and I understand why Youkilis is upset about it. But a 1-0 game, you are not going to hit the leadoff guy, that would just be crazy. But I understand why people get emotional."
Red Sox captain Jason Varitek was asked if it bothered the team that Chamberlain continues to throw those type of pitches at Youkilis.
"Of course it does, of course it does," said Varitek.
Sox third baseman Mike Lowell had the most rational view of all.
"I don't know how angry we are," Lowell said. "It could be a coincidence, because I really don't think 2-0 in that situation, up 1-0, you want to hit Youkilis. But it's actually four times. Back-to-back pitches in New York [last year] and another one [this year], and then this time. That guy throws hard. If anything, look at the replay, it's going right at his head. You're more concerned. One of them gets him in the head, it could be something very serious. I think that's more the concern than anger or the rivalry or anything like that."
Considering the type of command Chamberlain has, it is odd that all of his overly inside offerings against Boston seem to occur with Youkilis at the plate.
"He has great command until Youk gets in there," said Francona. "I don't know [if there was intent]. I would not have that that answer."

---Ian Browne

33 Restaurant

Crusin' around the Internet today I came across a restaurant called 33.
The logo is in red, even. Excellent! I encourage you to take a friend and try it out.
The menu rocks!

If someone would like to send me a gift card, this is what I'd like...
From The Bar: Raspberry Sangria
Starter: 1/2 doz Oysters 3 Ways*
Entree: Surf & Turf
Sides: Grilled Asparagus & Sautéed Foraged Mushrooms**
Dessert: Chocolate Beignets***

<---- Here is a map and you are very welcome. Boston is beautiful, but a stinker to get around, unless you know where your going. Even then, I wouldn't place any bets. I get lost just turning around in a circle. I'm serious. I have absolutely no sense of direction. Easiest thing to do is just hail a cab and give an address.



* I could actually make a meal out of just the starters.
**I wonder what the pay rate is for mushroom forager? I like to hunt shrooms, didn't know I could make a living at it.
*** Oh. My. God. I love beignets!
33 Restaurant & Lounge

Pot Calls Kettle Black...

I watched video last night of Youk and Manny being Varitek. They were goofing on Tek and Casey's batting stance. Youk has one of the bounciest and wiggliest batting stances I have seen. So it was really funny to watch him trip on somebody else. Manny too. They mimicked Sean Casey's left leg going up like a stork and Tek's right leg {he was batting lefty} sliding in and out. His bat making circles over his head and the adorable way he takes a deep breath and hopes like hell, he makes contact. I wish they had a dugout cam nestled in the corner of the screen. We miss a lot of really funny stuff, because they always seem to be showing something unrelated to baseball. Or worse, they cut away for some ridiculous interview with a complete nobody. This seems to happen a lot when Jason is at bat. "Let's go to the studio!" Let's not.

Screen Capture Captain...

Say that 3 times fast...


Tek shaves himself out of a hitting slump.


I love the scruff, buy if a shave and a haircut is all it takes.
Sooner is better than later. Tek reached base three times last night. He was 3 of the10 left on base.


He looks sexy in green. And red and blue and...