Cup of Coffee

June 15, 2011: The Ides

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Is it called the ides of June, or is that just a May um, March thing? (Oh, all months that start with M are the same) Anyway, if you haven't noticed yet, the Lexicon is above and as of yet has just a handful of entries. If you'd like to add to it and don't have the permissions, email me.

106 thoughts on “June 15, 2011: The Ides”

  1. my dictionary says that Ides are the 15th of March, May, July, or October and the 13th of every other month

      1. Among other things going on in the state, our chancellor quit yesterday because her failed end run around the regents effectively cut her off at the knees.

  3. Omaha area looked even worse last night than it did Sunday evening. A large stretch of I29 near the airport was a waterfall, and they don't even have their crest until Thursday, last I heard. I wouldn't be surprised if the airport parking lots begin flooding, and maybe even the access street. It's going to be a challenging CWS this year.

    1. Mrs. Hayes' dad and stepmom live in the Council Bluffs area. Their house is on a bluffside and should remain high and dry, but my stepmother-in-law is in her seventies and has some pretty serious heart problems, which makes me nervous about their access to emergency services (her heart doc is in Omerha).

    2. Yesterday they were pumping water out of the parking lots near the ballpark, but they keep insisting that everything will be fine for the CWS. The ballpark might be dry, but I think it's going to be a mess in some parking lots and access to and from the airport is might get iffy.

    1. First an adaptation of Game of Thrones and now six seasons of American Gods and its sequel.. fantastic.

  5. Rick Reilly just now on sportscenter after being asked what Lebron can do to prepare for next season

    "Get rid of his twitter account!"

    1. You see Reilly and you realize how far Top Jimmy has to go to reach "most smug, least incisive, and generally worst big-time sportswriter in America".

        1. still though, that's a pretty strong accusation to just "hear" somewhere. if nick nelson is disseminating this, and it still hasn't been "reported anywhere" (this was posted 3 days ago), then i would tend to doubt its veracity.

            1. does he really work for the strib in the same capacity as LENIII, or does he just send in the occasional article from his mom's basement? i don't think they're held to the same standard by the paper's editors.

              i'm not trying to start anything, nor am i saying the information is untrue, i'm just saying i doubt its veracity.

              1. As they continue to cut Shecky cheques, I was unaware the Strib had standards. Said more seriously, I think the difference in standards between contemporary journalistic "standards" and a responsible blogger (Nick's been around long enough that I feel comfortable with that label) is much smaller than any journalist would ever admit.

                1. heh. i definitely can't argue with that. anyway, my main point is he came out with this three days ago. other than a link from gleeman, no one else has brought this up again, including nick himself. i honestly wouldn't be surprised if he's right (the explanations coming from morneau and the team are pretty vague), but i wouldn't put much stock in it until i see a couple more confirmations.

  8. Did anyone else see this tweet that was directed at Aaron & LaVelle last night?

    Jim Palmer just said on Orioles broadcast that "JJ Hardy said poking the ball to RF was all the Twins wanted him to do"

    Le sigh.

      1. It's extremely frustrating. Extremely. He's 3rd in MLB in OPS for shortstops. That trade just gets worse and worse. I just can't fathom getting rid of him, especially with the extremely thin ranks of quality middle infielders in the upper minor leagues.

        I guess he wasn't (s)crappy enough to stick at short.

      1. The Jays told everybody to do that last year. Twins and Jays finished with same OPS+. Twins averaged more runs (+.2 per game) despite having Target Field for a home park instead of the SkyDome. J.J. Hardy had a wrist injury he was trying to play through for a while. We don't know when he was told to "poke it to right field" but that would seem pretty good advice if his power is hurt by injury but he continues to pull the ball anyways. When he was playing hurt between DL stints, he batted .132 with one extra-base hit in 12 games. His OPS on the season was .599 at that point. After the second DL stint, he batted .302/.356/.436, so if he was taking their advice to heart at that point, then I would say he did pretty well with it. It also seems like the Twins have been trying to get Delmon to pull the ball and hit it with more authority instead of just "poking it to right field," so maybe they just tell that to middle infielders. Even Jason Kubel said he was trying to pull too much last year and has been trying to take what the pitcher gives him, so I think that has worked out well for him as well. I've been begging for Morneau to stop trying to pull everything this year as well.

        1. The point of the link was to read about Bautista's long journey to being who he is now. I think the right response to the make-everyone-pull argument is that it has to fit the hitter. Bautista can generate a lot of torque and has a good eye at the plate, so it makes sense. For Revere right now, and probably always, it doesn't.

      2. He was going to be a winning-type player.

        Looks like Dave Clark's got a case of the Blylevens.

    3. From the feature on Ben Revere at the STrib:

      He has been working on his swing to get the bat head out quicker and make better contact (only one of his 22 hits are for extra bases).

      If there's one guy you are going to tell to just poke it the other way, it would be Revere, but they're not. They're working on him hitting with more power. So, I wouldn't be too quick to say the Twins are trying to shove every hitter into a slap-hitting mode. If a guy is struggling to even hit for a decent average, I would be telling him to go up the middle or the opposite way as well just to get him to see the ball longer and keep his eyes on it. It's pretty basic hitting instruction.

      1. unless their subpar average is coupled with a ton of walks and immense power.

        Bill James has lamented that Willie Wilson was a potential hall-of-famer until he got obsessed with homers, which made all of his other stats decline, including slugging percentage.

        1. That thing is the prime stuff: pure speculation, not cut with even the slightest hint of a fact.

          1. But I would love it if Dwane Casey was named the new coach. Besides the pure soap opera aspect of bringing him back, I think the man knows defense - and is one reason I turned on KG, who basically threw Casey under the bus.

    4. I'm not sure I understand the hype about Kyrie Irving. I suppose it's possible he measures up to the great NBA careers of William Avery, Bobby Hurley, Chris Duhon, and Jay Williams, but those Dookies have set such a high standard that he might just be a disappointment. Of course, the last two Dookie-Wolf first rounders worked out well (Avery and Laettner), so what do I know?

      1. Yah. The best two point guards the Wolves have drafted recently have been from UNC and Kansas.... DOH!

    1. May, March what's the difference. I thought I was the only one that noticed that.

  11. I just did the math, and at $3.50/gallon of gas, I need to ride 1320 miles on my bike for it to start paying for itself. A 5 mile daily commute means that'll take 264 working days. At $4/gal that drops to 1155 miles and 231 days. That of course does not take into account any wear & tear I'm saving my not driving as much.

      1. Of course there's all sorts of secondary benefits. My legs already feel stronger. My morning ride is much less stressful than driving, which I'm sure will help with the blood pressure and mental well-being. I was just doing a bit of math on the more tangible stuff.

        1. Do you have to pay for parking when you drive to work? Deduct that, too. And if you're getting rid of a car completely, you can deduct insurance and maintenance costs. I remember years ago when the kids were very little and both the wife and I were working full time. Mrs. Twayn wanted to stay home with the kids, so we ran the numbers and after deducting the costs of full time day care for a toddler and infant, a supplemental part-time nanny, transportation, etc. from her salary, it only amounted to a couple of hundred dollars a month that she was netting from her job. So she quit, with my blessing. A small price to pay to raise your own kids instead of letting strangers do it.

          1. Yeah, when our first was born, we did the math similarly and discovered that my wife's work would have negligible effects on our net income but huge effects on our lifestyle. (For one thing, I would have needed to buy a car and drive it, rather than take the employer-subsidized bus.) We were already biased that way, but it was an incredibly easy decision once we put it down in red and black.

              1. Thanks. I'm pretty sure that I'm pulling ahead of you now, but if my memory is wrong, I'm just catching up.

                1. I think I retake the lead August 2, but if you go to 5, I concede. We are done at 4.

        2. You have to add in the additional calories you will burn, plus account for the net change in commuting time in some fashion, too.

          the flip side, of course, is that you are getting exercise time that you probably would have used otherwise.

            2. But the cost/benefit analysis could have happened even if he never bought the bike. So I don't think it should apply to either side of the ledger. Unless, had he not bought the bike, he'd continually go back to re-consider the decision.

              In which case, add to the costs of driving any lingering contemplation of whether to go get a bike, pricing them, etc.
              With several mid-range purchases I've made ($40-$200, of trivial utility, like an iPod or Twins jersey), once I've actually made the purchase, it's like I can relax because I had been obsessing about it, and trying to determine what would be the best time to get it (not right before Christmas! or my birthday! or vacation!), etc. So just getting it increases my enjoyment in two ways.

              But really, this seems substitute for other time-wasting. Much like the $1.5 Trillion of lost wages based on NCAA tournament related lollygagging, it's just deciding the subject of spare thoughts and discussions.

              1. Surely no one has spare thoughts or discussions outside of the NCAA tournament.

    2. That assumes that riding the bike is cost-neutral, which probably isn't quite the case. I assume you'll be purchasing some bike-appropriate attire to extend your riding as far into the autumn as possible, or that you bought some kind of lock, safety gear, etc.

      1. Savings on health-club fees, and on the stress resulting from trying to quit a health club later.

    3. Don't forget to adjust your insurance so that the estimated mileage on your car is reduced even if you don't get rid of it. That can save some money right there. Also, oil changes and replacing tires, brakes, etc. happens less often.

    1. On a semi-related note, I recently learned where the term "hoser" comes from.

      Another possible origin is derived from hockey slang. Before ice resurfacers, the losing team in a hockey game would have to hose down the rink after a game. Thus the term "hoser" being synonymous with "loser".

    2. Yeah, like someone's gonna claim him. He'll go to Rochester and be the first person added to the 40-man roster again when someone else needs a 60-day vacation. (Or gets hurt with 20-odd days left in the season.)

      1. Someone might. He's left-handed and had a good ERA last year. The Twins fell for that; someone else might, too.

    3. Note to Twins: basing personnel decisions on how well a player did against your star in nine plate appearances isn't the best strategy. (Hint: the Royals let him go for a reason.)

    4. That one sure hasn't worked out well. Fortunately for Rochester, he's already cleared waivers, at least according to MLB Trade Rumors. He's been pitching great since being sent down. SSS, and all, but 16 Ks and just 3 BBs in 12 1/3 innings, 3.65 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, so we may be seeing him again, especially when reality strikes for Dumatrait and his 2/6 K/BB rate.

      1. I'd say let's cross our fingers that some combination of Mijares/Superman Chuck James/a healthy Perkins can hold down the left side for the rest of the season rather than recycle through that dreck.

        2. Yeah, I would hope so, plus it sounds like Joe Nathan is close to returning. The way the bullpen was performing earlier, I doubt it would matter what arm they threw with as long as they were pitching well to be given a try. Somehow, the way the Twins were talking about Hughes before the season, I doubt we've seen the last of him.

  18. Nishi activated but not starting. Seriously? No Span, Mauer, Morneau, Kubel or Thome and we still have to have Tolbert starting over Nishi? I suppose they want him to rest a day before starting tomorrow, but it would be nice to get one of our players back tonight.

    1. Knowing Gardy and his irrational love of middle infiedlers who suck at hitting, Nishioka will likely be a backup with Tolbert being the starter. "He's swinging it real good out there," etc.

      I'm hoping he gets an appearance in the game tonight. I imagine the White Sox fans, etc. will loathe him. It will be glorious.

  19. Another update from LEN3:

    Looks like Joe Mauer will be ready to play for the Twins on Friday. He will travel to the Twin Cities on Thursday and play Friday against the Padres. He hit off Joe Nathan today and everything went well.

    Joe Nathan tried to get himself activated too, but he will go to Rochester on a rehab assignment first.

  20. From the AP:

    “I took some time off to break up some scar tissue,” Nathan said. “Ever since that, it has been night and day with how the ball has been coming out of my hand. The ball felt like it was coming out of my hand a lot better than what I’ve been used to. I think I’m starting to finish my pitches a lot better. I’m seeing more life on the ball now.”

    Nathan will also travel to Minnesota on Thursday and be re-evaluated by team doctors, but Gardenhire said he prefers the right-hander to pitch in Triple-A for a few days before he rejoins the roster.

    “We want game situations. There’ll be an argument. I think I’ll win,” the manager said.

    Mauer said Nathan looked more like the All-Star closer he is used to catching.

    “He looked really good,” Mauer said. “The ball was coming out of his hand. I got a lot out of it, just seeing the break on his pitches, how fast they were. You don’t normally see that down here. Joe is one of the best pitchers in the game, and he looked good today.”

  22. boston scores 4th goal. luongo, on the bench for the extra attacker, still blamed.

          1. The way I see it:

            Vancouver had Bertuzzi.
            Boston has Boston fans.

            Therefore, Boston winning is the worst possible outcome. (especially after a long Stanley Cup drought. and as if my point was to magically appear on the internet as I was typing, I went over to KSK and saw this...)

    2. Watched the video now. Well, Gophers fans should be embarrassed. Look how Canucks fans riot when they lose!

      Also, it would really suck to own a Boston Market in Vancouver right now.

      Check out the second video at 2:30.
      As a bunch of officers with sheilds marches forward, one picks up his sheild and clobbers a rioter who is slow in retreating on the neck. That seems brutal and unnecessary.

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