3 Up, 3 Down

An interesting week in sports thus far and plenty more to come.  Here's my best and worst of the week that currently is.

3 Up

1. Wimbledon – Not sure why I’ve been so enthralled with a sport I have no past with, but I can’t stop watching.  In the men’s draw, Federer, Nadal, Djokovic, Murray, Tsonga, the top five seeds, are all still alive after straight set wins in Round 1.  As for the women’s draw, Venus Williams has bowed out, further accentuating her fall from grace.  Sharapova, Radwanska, Serena Williams, Kvitova, and Azarenka are all still alive as well.  My favorite part is watching the people along the surface on the back row dodge 100mph serves and returns.
2. New York Yankees – So far June has been a great time to wear pinstripes.  The Yankees are 18-5 this month and have no signs of slowing down.  They enter today percentage points ahead of the Rangers for best record in the MLB.
3. Yu Darvish – He wasn’t great last night against the Tigers, but he was good enough to earn his 10th win of the season on the heels of a 10 strikeout performance.  One of the most anticipated stories leading into the 2012 MLB season has had very few hiccups thus far.

3 Down

1. Aroldis Chapman’s Somersaults – Sure, the Reds fireballer had blown two saves in a row (a two-run go-ahead HR in the 9th by the Twins’ Josh Willingham and a walk-off two-run HR by Asdrubal Cabrera of the Indians), but after fanning the side to earn a save last night, he proceeded to do two somersaults off the mound.  Act the part big fella, please.
2. Dwayne Wise’s “Catch” – On Derek Jeter’s 38th birthday, Dwayne Wise went into the stands to try to make a catch.  Problem was, he never made it, and umpire Mike DiMuro refused to ask to see the ball.  I think that’s protocol when a player winds up in the crowd.  Wise deserves an Oscar.
3. BCS < 4-Team Playoff – College football announced it is moving to a 4-team playoff format beginning in 2015.  Sounds like progress is being made, but they still have a lot of kinks to iron out, namely who is on the decision committee.  I like where their heads are at, but there will be some controversy moving forward.

Fernando Rodney - "Best" Closer in 2012

The final was set and decided just now - Rays pitcher Fernando Rodney is the "best" closer in baseball this season.

Due to the fact that the Braves have hit the skids a little bit of late, Craig Kimbrel's run came to an end.

Chris Perez of the Indians has come on like a ball of fire lately and is currently tied for the Major League lead in saves with 16, but he was eliminated in the Round of Eight, by Rodney.

Here's a look at the final bracket.  Rodney has lowered his ERA 0.11 and his WHIP by 0.10 since the Tournament began and has allowed only two baserunners in that span (4 games).

Time to think of something else to chart about. 

CONGRATULATIONS FERNANDO RODNEY!!!

MLB: By the #'s; Nolan: By the #'s

MLB
It's been a pretty wild and unpredictable beginning to the 2012 MLB season.  I'm going to go through some numbers that might surprise you a little bit, or maybe not at all.

• 14 - teams over the .500 mark.  Those who are not in this group - Phillies, Red Sox, Tigers, Giants, Angels
• 8 - teams over the .500 mark that are from either the AL East or NL East, so don't give me your East Coast bias talk
• .397, .380 - Derek Jeter's and David Ortiz' batting average, respectively - aging rather well it seems
• .196 - Albert Pujols' batting average - can he be a bust?
• 2 - teams from the DC/Baltimore area that are in 1st place - the Orioles and Nationals
• 45 - strikeouts by Adam Dunn (in 106 AB's), which is actually on pace for less K's than last year
• .406/12 - batting average and home run total for Matt Kemp, the early favorite for NL MVP
• 11/10 - HR's allowed by Ervin Santana and Clay Buchholz in 38.2 and 32.2 IP, respectively
• 13.50 - ERA of Philip Humber in his three starts since his Perfect Game against the Mariners
• 3 of 7 - starts in which Jered Weaver has actually let up a run, twice against the Twins, the worst team in baseball
• .156 - BAA for two lefties, both at different stages of their careers - Ted Lilly and Gio Gonzalez
• 0 - teams that have reached the 20 win plateau - the Indians were the first to do it in 2011 (20-8) - although four three teams can get there today/tonight (Tampa Bay, Baltimore or Texas, San Francisco)

NOLAN
We're trying a new sleep method for when we put the little guy down to sleep.  We used to rock him until he was asleep then transfer him to the crib but he's getting a little big to rock for thirty minutes.

We put him in the crib awake, lay him down, and sit beside the crib until he falls asleep.  Gradually, we're going to (I hope) get to the point where we can put him in and leave the room immediately.  I think he's going through a little separation anxiety phase so he gets scared when he can't see us putting him to sleep.

It's only been a year and two weeks but it's time for him to grow up a little bit.

I lied in the header, there are no numbers related to Nolan in this post.

Have a good Tuesday.  It's a dreary but dry day so far here in CT.

Happy 1st Birthday Nolan

Happy Birthday to my little buddy Nolan Oliver.  He celebrated Easter twice and a leap year, all before he turned one. 

all business, all the time

6:36 AM in NYC our lived were changed for ever, for the better.  It went by extremely fast and although his vocabulary is practically non-existent, he's been walking for over three months, which is pretty impressive.  He's a good little dude with an awesome personality.  He's the man.

We're heading out to the Mystic Aquarium for a day with the little dude.  I feel bad leaving Nathan home all day, but he'll be fine, he's the toughest dachshund I've ever met.

Here's some other cool stuff (or uncool, depending on what your opinion is) that happened on April 16 in the history of the world.

• 1941 - Bob Feller of the Cleveland Indians threw the only no-hitter on Opening Day in Major League history, beating the Chicago White Sox 1-0
• Funnyman Jon Cryer turns 47 today.  He's best known for his work on Two and a Half Men and his cameo in Due Date
• Ian MacKaye, frontman for Minor Threat and Fugazi, turns half century this year
• Bob Dylan debuted his song "Blowin' in the Wind" in NY in 1962
• The Rolling Stones debut album was released in 1964, "The Rolling Stones (England's Newest Hitmakers)"
• Bill Belichick turns 60 today and still rocks a ripped hoodie better than any coach in history

We're be having a great day and I hope you'll do the same.

Hello, Newman.

Sorry for the lack of material this weekend - it's been pretty hectic - Saturday I was recruiting all day, Sunday was spent traveling.  Now it's Monday and I'm raring to go.  Got a lot of material to cover so let's hope you're ready to listen.

Saturday started with an 8:13am alarm clock, NIN's "Discipline" was the song of choice, as it is most days.  Some days, it's The Gaslight Anthem's "Boomboxes and Dictionaries", both solid choices to ease me into my day.

Let's start with the backbone of this blog - sports.

1.  Strasburg was dominant again, although he did walk as many guys (5) as he had in his previous 5 starts (1 MLB, 4 AAA).  He improved to 2-0 (Pirates and Indians) but let up his 2nd HR in as many starts, both to lefties, and both on a change up.  Either way, he's got 22 K in 12.1 IP.  The Nationals may make some noise after all.

2.  The Yankees completed a sweep of the Astros and in the process, moved into a tie atop the AL Beast with the Rays.  There's a World Series rematch series, beginning tonight in the Bronx, as CC Sabathia takes on Roy Halladay.  The Phillies are looking to regain their mo-jo (4-6 in their last 10 games) and crawl back into the NL Least race (3.5 behind 1st place Atlanta) while the Yanks look to distance themselves from the rest of baseball.  I hope I get a good pitching match up Thursday when I go with Lindsay and our fathers - I think it's looking like Moyer vs. Pettitte.

3.  Ted Lilly had a no-hit bid into the 9th against the White Sox, but settled for a 1-hitter and a 1-0 Cubs win.  We were in a bar here in Dallas, and there were a few Chicago fans - one guy, who everyone else refused to give pounds to regardless of how many times he tried - was the epitome of what a White Sox fan is (as told to me by another patron from Chicago).  Obnoxious.  A total jackass.  He was whining when they pinch-hit Juan Pierre to lead off the ninth, then after he broke up the no-no, he said he knew he was going to get a hit - douche.  This guy was shouting all night, almost fell off his stool several times, and was almost forcing his girlfriend (so it seemed) into making out with him - sloppy.

On Saturday, I was up at Blind Brook HS for a game after a showcase at Pace.  BBHS has quite possibly the nicest facilities for a high school I've ever seen.  Field turf abounds - football field, baseball field, soccer field, softball field - they might even have field turf in the hallways.  Almost like VCP.  Anyway, the thing that stuck out was a parent who was chirping the whole game.  Similar to a major league game, every pop up was a HR (or so he reacted), every ground ball was "just missed", and every strikeout looking was outside.  Anyway, same game, same guy - the 7 hitter snuck a dribbler between the first- and second-baseman, to which Super-Dad blurted out, "He squecked that one through there!"  Now, I'm no English major, but "squeaked" is a word.  Squecked, not a word.  #1 Dad.

Sunday was filled with air travel and ground transportation.  LaGuardia to Charlotte, Charlotte to Dallas-Ft. Worth.  The tail end of the trip was turbulent, to put it lightly.  I started getting sick from bouncing around in my seat.  Once we got below the clouds (all 3 minutes of it) and landed, it was great.  The landing was the smoothest part of the flights.  Got off the plane, went to find some "Shared Transportation" and got in.  There were 5 others in there, all going to right near where we were going.  The van was full, but the driver was convinced he may be able to pick up another passenger, so he drove around the airport (to every terminal) trying to find someone else to cram in.  Once he realized he had wasted over 25 minutes worth of gas, he decided to take to the roads, and eventually dropped us off at the hotel.  It was like riding on a wooden roller coaster with no seat belt - pretty scary.  Not quite sure if he was legal.

We strolled around Downtown Dallas a little, I of course snapped some photos, and then we went into CVS - the biggest CVS I have ever seen (I guess everything really is bigger in Texas).  While meandering through the aisles, Lindsay saw a guy and said "He looks like the guy from Jurassic Park" so I looked.  Wasn't sure who she meant, I mean it has been over ten years since I've seen the movie.  We were looking through the "Trial Size" stuff, and I saw the man again - NEWMAN!!  I wanted to be sure, so creepily stared at him for a few seconds.  Then I went up and asked if he was Wayne Knight, and that I was a huge fan (which is an exaggeration) but he is freakin' NEWMAN.  If you've never seen Seinfeld and are reading this, welcome to Earth.  Turns out he's in town shooting a show for FOX, The Good Guys.  I got him to take a picture with me - CVS was empty, so I didn't care.  Had it been full of patrons, I probably would have just taken a sneaky photo of him.  I will publish the photo when I get back to the BX.  How cool is that?

FACT:  Dallas's Downtown shuts down on Sunday.  We found a neat little Mexican restaurant for lunch - Sol Irlandes - we didn't stay for the karaoke at night though.

Passed out several times after getting back from lunch, but managed to stay awake long enough to grab a bite at Press Box Grill.  That's where we were blessed with the Chicago fans.  Ate, had a drink, left as soon as Lilly let up the lone hit in the game, and came back to the hotel to pass out.

Today I will venture out and try to find a place to eat some breakfast.  Lindsay is at the conference so I will explore, maybe I'll bump into another celeb.  Probably not, but I can care less.  NEWMAN!

Hello Big D!

Rants, raves, ridicule, and riots

Rant:  Bravo to Yankees OF Brett Gardner.  This little flea has scored more runs (42) than Derek Jeter, Mark Teixeira, and Alex Rodriguez.  He is on pretty often (.395 OBP) and tends to get himself into scoring position by stealing some bags (20 SB/4 CS).  He sees more fastballs than any other hitter in the majors except David Eckstein, he leads the AL in pitches per plate appearance (4.52).  He is the best role player in baseball, bar none.  He can probably hit HR's in the grand scheme of things (he has only 3 in 194 AB) but he knows his job is to get on base, and he's done that very well so far.  He's the kind of guy every team needs, a little pest that is never (or very rarely) an easy out.  He has probably developed his toughness by being told he was too small his whole life - 5'10", 183 lbs. is small by MLB standards.  Don't let nobody hold you down Gardy, you the man!!

Rave:  Here's a sweet Lego rave I found on the internet.  I didn't know LEGO was around and prospering.  The DJ looks like an aviator, and the ravers look like prisoners.  Looks like a good party to me, but I wouldn't show up.  For starters, I hate crowds.  Secondly, I hate loud, base-filled techno.  Third, I hate the Jersey Shore scene and the drug scene, both of which are intrinsic to a rave.  I am a bar guy, and if I walk in and I can't sit down or play Golden Tee, I'm probably leaving after one drink.

Ridicule:  Kansas City Royals, you are a joke.  Your 24 wins are more than only six other teams, and you refuse to score runs for last year's Cy Young Award winner, Zack Greinke.  Surprisingly, you aren't in the cellar in the AL Central, the Indians are two games worse.  Here's the shake down:  Greinke is 1-8 with a 4.05 ERA.  You've won only two of his thirteen starts, and have scored only 40 runs in those games - a dismal average of 3.08 runs per game - give me a break.  You score 4.34 runs a game on average, no wonder there are always rumors that he wants to leave.  If I was him, I'd demand a trade to a contender.  Granted he's not putting up numbers like last year, but who the hell does?  Score some runs for this kid already. 

Riots:  You know what, with all the kids at all these camps and clinics, I'm not sure even half of them want to be there.  I think their parents makke the decision for them to play baseball.  Here's what may go through some of their heads when (and if they ever) get to first base.  Kids don't seem to have the same drive as we had when I was growing up.  I'm not trying to knock the kids or anything, it's just a trend that keeps rearing its ugly head.  Anyway.

He gone!

Wednesday - big day at the ballpark

Got home around 9:15 last night and put in the new A/C, sucker works pretty good, cranking out cold air all night.  Lindsay is still in there sleeping, I was up at the butt-crack taking Nathan out and figured I'd post up.  Lot of stuff happened yesterday all around sports, I'll cover the ones I want.  I'm the boss here.  Flyers got a huge win in OT to cut the series to 2-1.  OK, hot topics:

1. Jim Joyce blew it!  Tigers RHP Armando Galarraga got screwed out of his perfect game, and even Indians SS Jason Donald knew it - as soon as he crossed the bag and was called safe, he put his hands on top of his head, almost signifying, "Holy shit, this umpire blew this kid a perfect game."  He wasn't going to call himself out, but umpires need to make that call and get it right.  There is no excuse.  They get paid huge amounts of money to maintain the integrity of the game.  In all fairness to Jim Joyce, he is human, and although he's been around for 22 years, his latest gaff is further proof that instant replay needs to be adopted at the MLB level.  Not for ball and strikes, but for plays like this, for homeruns that may or may not have been, to determine fair or foul (even though 80% of the time a batter doesn't bust it out of the box).  I'm just saying, these umpires are clearly not cutting it.  There's the play - Galarraga  had the ball and his foot hit the bag a step before Donald go there.  I still am shocked he missed it.  I appreciate the work they do and the fact that the human error still plays a part, but to take history away from this guy isn't right.  And for Galarraga not to have said anything to Joyce is amazing in itself, I would have flown off the handle - but I got a short fuse.  Nice guy, considering he had a perfect game snatched away on the last out of the game.  Instant Replay!!

2. Griffey Jr. hangs 'em  up.  Let's be realistic here, Ken Griffey Jr. was one of the best ever to roam center field, hands down.  There really is no debate that in his prime, he was a freaking beast.  He made more catches over the fence than I can remember.  His Upper Deck rookie card was rare air in the baseball card collecting industry - it was worth upwards of like $150 back in the day at the card shows.  Griffey is a sure fire first ballot hall of famer, and for good reason.  Coming up with the Mariners organization in the early 1990's, there was no other player more synonomous with Seattle than his.  Edgar Martinez, Randy Johnson, Mark Langston, Jay Buhner, Omar Vizquel.  Nobody's compared to Junior.  And to think, he made only $68,000 his first year in the big leagues.  I mean 630 HR's later, he's hanging them up, and at a good time too.  He can't perform like the guy who hit 56 HR in back-to-back season in '97 and '98.  He can't get to double-digit SB's anymore like he did in 1999.  He's a clubhouse guy now, and as much as a team needs guys like that, Griffey has too much pride to go out like a sucker (.184, 7 RBI).  He's a superstar that was never in the steroids debate.  He came in before they were being talked about and dominated as a 19- and 20-year-old.  Thanks Junior, the game needs more guys like you.  Sweetest swing in the game they said, and who am I to argue with that.

3. Robinson Canó en fuego!  If you think otherwise, you better take a good, hard look in the mirror.  Actually, saying he's on fire isn't even enough.  Right now, he's the best hitter in baseball.  He's got a 17-game hitting streak (which will now more than likey end today), has his average up to an MLB-best .373 (.001 higher than Justin Morneau), 78 hits (4 more than Ichiro) - I mean cool him off.  Let's just take a look at his last 8 games - all multi-hit games (3 3-hit games, 5 2-hit games).  During that span, his average has gone from .335 to .373.  He has 9 R, 3 2B, 3 HR, and 15 RBI.  I mean those numbers are staggering.  Here's Yahoo!, clearly confused, telling us who is the hottest player over the last 14 days.  Here's Canó's numbers:  12 R.  5 2B.  3 HR.  14 RBI.  .472 BA.  You tell me Chipper, Cairo, and Ryan have better numbers, you're off your rocker.  Someone at the Yahoo! research department is sleeping on the job.  Stay hot Canó.

OK, that's good for now, it's pretty lengthy and I'm getting hungry, even though I'll probably get an egg sandwich at Han's.  I'll be back!

One week to go

Before the much anticipated ML-debut of Stephen Strasburg.  He will take the hill June 8th for the Nationals, as they play host to the Pirates.  So basically, he will still be pitching against a AAA team, even in his debut.  Sorry, that was too easy to pass up.

He's putting up some sick numbers in the minors though:  between AA and AAA, he's 6-2 with a 1.43 ERA and 60 K in 50.1 IP.  He's only let up 28 hits and walked only 12.  His numbers are nothing short of staggering, and I expect him to dominate in his debut, and possibly his next start (it's looking like the Indians).  We'll see, I can care less about this guy, but I am anxious to see what all this hype is about.  I doubt he'll put up Ubaldo Jiménez numbers right away, but we'll see.

Good luck Stephen.

Almost 30...

...according to Lindsay, I am almost 30 years old.  Tomorrow I am actually 29, but she gets a rise out of saying I'm almost 30.  She's a funny one.  Heading to NYC this evening, for a surprise put on by Nathan, still have no idea what we're doing, but I'll just have to wait and see.

In MLB news, the Yankees are pounding the Indians, 7-1.  Even Chan Ho Park is getting in on the action.  Former Miami (FL) Hurricane great Chris Perez (aka: I Whine Over Bunts) got touched up.  He came in to face A-Rod, who homered to center field on a 3-1 pitch.  He then promptly let up another homer, this one to Robinson Cano (3-2 count), and a double to Nick Swisher (3-2 count).  It is so important to get ahead of hitters and get outs early in counts - the longer an AB goes, the advantage goes to the hitter.  Case.  Point.

Andy was dandy, as Michael Kay would put it, going seven strong innings, allowing only four hits, a run, and racked up five strikeouts.  Pettitte lowered his ERA from 2.62 to 2.48, and is in line for his seventh win of the year, half of his 2009 win total.

The middle of the Yankees order (Teixeira, Rodriguez, Cano, Swisher) are a combined 8-18 with six runs scored and nine RBI.  It's always nice when you get that kind of production from the meat of the order.  Every starter has a hit, Gardner has three (along with 2 SB).

Good game for the Yankees - too bad the same can't be said for the reigning NL-champion Phillies, who are about to lose their grasp on first place in the NL East, as the Braves lead 9-3 in the top of the ninth inning.  Tommy Hanson had a solid outing, going 6.1 IP with only one run allowed.  Joe Blanton was ineffective, as usual, laboring through 6 innings (8 H, 6 R (4ER), 2 K).  It's unreal how his career has been so mediocre since he's left the Bay Area.  Half the problem is that he was hurt early on this season (oblique injury in March 2010) but the other part of the problem is his lack of an out pitch.  He averages well under a K/IP (.67 K/IP in his career).  This season, he's only averaging .50 K/IP - with the exception of Mitch Talbot (CLE), most of the pitchers having success this year have higher K/IP ratios (Talbot has a .40 K/IP).  Blanton has always featured a pretty good change up, but his velocity is/has been nothing like the mythical Joe Blanton from University of Kentucky was like in the Cap Cod Baseball League - low to mid-90's.  He's generally 86-89 on the gun. 

Gotta get ready - it'll take me about three and a half minutes - but I have to take Nathan out.

Fatter-day

Cooked a meal fit for a king tonight for dinner - came to Long Island with Lindsay to get Nathan from my parents house, and wound up cooking some turkey burgers infused with lime zest, cheddar cheese, and cilantro.  Also whipped up some chicken breast marinated in lime juice/lemon juice/soy sauce/garlic/oregano/chili powder/rosemary - pretty damn good.  Grilled some corn on the cob inside the husk, made a little horseradish/lime topping sauce as a condiment - I mean what the hell!?!  Then we walked to Cold Stone and got some ice cream.  Good day of food.

BP's top kill tactic got slayed by the busted oil well - the mud pumping idea seemed to suck.  The beaches in the Gulf of Mexico will ultimately suffer, if they haven't already.  It's a damn shame, because those beaches are some of the nicest in the country.  Destin in particular, those beaches are awesome - white sand, looks like sugar.  Great work BP, you better get your shit together and get this mess stopped.

Yankees (read: Joba) blew a 10-5 lead after 6 innings against the Indians today.  Joba sucks.  Plain and simple.  After several very up and down seasons in the big leagues, he still has yet to nail down a role.  I know it is probably frustrating for him, but how do the fans feel?  We pay our money to go see this garbage can throw baseball towards the plate, hoping he has a good outing.  Figure out a role for this guy already, otherwise just send him and Oliver Perez out of town and get someone useful.

Time for a second dessert.

Walk It Off

Monday night in the MLB featured some great games and some laughers.

We'll narrow it down to the Top 3 - all walk-off wins:

#3 - At "The Trop", the Rays got a walk-off, one out squeeze bunt from Jason Bartlett in the 11th inning, beating the Indians 4-3.  Several weeks ago the Indians go burned by the Angels on a similar play, but there were two outs when Howie Kendrick got his base hit bunt past the pitcher.  Chris Perez was complaining about it being a "stupid play" - listen man, it's the big leagues, you need to get wins when you can.  It ain't Kendricks fault your team sucks.  The Rays improved to an MLB best 27-11.  The Tribe fell to 15-21.

#2 - Aramis Ramirez raised his average all the way to .175 in this one, and hit the walk-off 2R HR in the 9th off Rockies pitcher Matt Belisle to give the Cubs a 4-2 win.  Ramirez singled in the 1st, driving in the Cubs first run of the game.  Ramirez has been on a tear lately - he's raised his average from .148 to .175 over the past 10 games.  The saddest fact is, he only has 3 multi-hit games all year - this guy makes $16.75 million a year.  What is wrong with the Cubs?  Rockies fall to 19-19, Cubs improve to 17-22.

#1 - Poor Papelbon.  Ha.  Not only did he allow A-Rod to tie the game in the 9th with a 2R HR, he allowed a 2R HR by Marcus Thames to lose the game.  After the "A-bomb from A-Rod", Cano flew out to centerfield before Cervelli got drilled in the elbow.  Thames came to the plate and wasted little time - he jumped on the 92 mph fastball and hit a line-drive into the LF seats.  Yes, he pimped it a little out of the box, but you know what, it was his first career walk-off HR.  He threw the bat, and began his sprint around the bases.  Then he got the pie face.  I stayed up for it, and was pissed when the blew the lead, but man, it's always nice walking-off on the Red Sox.  Yankees 25-13, Red Sox 19-20. 

Plenty to do today - 3,600 white folding chairs waiting for me to set them up.  Graduation season is upon us.

MLB Attendance

Well, after looking aimlessly through some stats on ESPN.com it has come to my attention that although the Mets have the largest attendance decrease since last season (over 6,800 less fans a game), the Cleveland Indians have the lowest home attendance in the MLB - 14,660 a night.  Kind of reminds me of a classic 1989 movie, Major League.  Instead of Roger Dorn at the hot corner, these Indians have Jhonny Peralta, hitting a whopping .229 with 2 HR and 13 RBI, but does only have 2 errors (.978 FPCT).

There is no surprise the Phillies and Yankees are the Top 2 on the attendance list, 45,067 and 44,268, respectively.  It is a little more, OK, a lot more expensive to see the WORLD CHAMPION YANKEES play - something to the tune of $9 a beer, $12 popcorn, $5 water.  Save your money before you head to Yankee Stadium.

The Mets, although losing over 6,800 fans a game, are still averaging 31,891 a game, good for 11th on the list.  The lowly Orioles are averaging 22,330 - due largely in part to the Yankees and Red Sox visiting for 6 straight - attendance for these 6 games ranged from 17,284 to 35,164 - the Sox drew better at Camden Yards.

Legendary announcer Harry Doyle said it best: "In case you haven't noticed, and judging by the attendance you haven't, the Indians have managed to win a few here and there, and are threatening to climb out of the cellar."  In fact, they are out of the cellar, 2.5 games better than the lowly Royals, who just axed skipper Trey Hillman and replaced him with Ned Yost - they let him go before last nights game, but let him manage - and they won - beating the Indians 6-4.  Good luck to you in KC.

"Yo, bartender, Jobu needs a refill."