165 thoughts on “September 27, 2011: 99 Problems”

  1. Watching the Twins has made me somewhat sad, but I'll be even more sad in a few days when I can't watch them any more.

    1. I will welcome a respite, but I have a sinking feeling that we'll be watching a Yankee victory in the WS. Not that they are necessarily the best team, but that this has been a tough year, baseball-wise.

      1. I'm still pumped for a Rays/Diamondbacks World Series where I can just enjoy whichever result and just watch some baseball.

        I'm also looking forward to that 13-0 run the Vikings are about to embark on.

          1. I can get on that train. It's definitely the Rays out of the AL for me (if they can fend off Boston). I'm really OK with anyone in the NL winning it this year.

            2. I'm the only baseball fan hoping the Red Sox beat the Rays I think. An almost indefensible position, I know.

          2. If the Diamondbacks sneak into the WS, I might have to get a ticket for that, too. Chase Field is just so close.

            I haven't even really looked into what channels we get here. I'm hoping TBS is one of them. We don't pay for cable here but for some reason we have about 15 channels.

        2. I've said before I have some difficulty rooting for Arizona teams, so I'll have to back the Brewers (whom I don't have any real problems with, despite their junk stadium) or the Braves/Cardinals (both of whom I have familial attachments to) but if the Diamondbacks make it and face anyone but the Rays in the Series I will pull for them.

    1. They had announced that they had released Guillen from his contract but had retained rights to compensation if he signed with someone else for next year. I'm not sure how that works if the guy is not being paid by the Sox. Would that be like a noncompete clause, because my understanding is that those often don't hold up in court, especially when it includes too large of an area, such as all of North America. If Guillen goes to the Marlins, I don't see how the Sox can say he's in competition with them since they don't play each other unless they both get to the World Series (yeah, right).

      1. The "release" aspect probably releases him from a "you can't talk to other potential employers while under contract" clause, and that's about it in this situation. They're more or less agreeing to part ways and it seems to be understood that the Marlins will provide some compensation to the Sox.

  3. I have not seen the results of the USA-Italy match from early this morning. I'm trying to avoid it until it's replayed at 7. Please do not discuss rugby today, thanks.

  5. The Twins have lost their last seven series openers and have lost the first two games of their previous five series with at least two games, meaning they haven't entered the finale of a series with an opportunity to avoid a series loss since Sept. 3. No wonder they have won only one series since winning the first series after the All-Star break.

    1. What's worse is their performance at home of late. Something like 8 or 9 straight home series openers, and the first two in several of those too.

  6. You think you hate the White Sox now:

    And maybe Reinsdorf had become weary of all the dysfunction. Or maybe he wants to hire his other baseball son, Tony La Russa, who might be ready to rotate out of St. Louis.

    Pure speculation, of course, but imagine it.

      1. Not eliminated yet. Maybe the smartest man in the history of the world (just ask him!) will get the Cards another WS Championship.

              1. That article reminds me of another famous head first slider.

                httpv://youtu.be/3JIHAzU5ylc

                edit: Paging Carter Hayes and the "stadium" where that was shot.

                    1. Crap, you're right. I pulled a bad image from Google that looked kinda like the stadium in the video. Combined with the Indians in their home white, I just assumed I had the right photo.

        2. no, I meant that that LaRussa isn't held in real high regard here anymore. this season doesn't help, I'm sure. and I saw that Punto slide on TV last night -- I hope they fine his ass on that.

          1. I got what you meant. I'm just saying that if they squeak in and have a playoff run, he might hold on there.

            1. I'm not sure it matters. He might consider a playoff run a nice way to go out, as well. It's just that if he leaves, one way or another, there won't be an up-tic in hanky sales in the StL area.

    3. Wasn't Buehrle thinking of signing with the Cards a few years back? Now he could get La Russa as a coach without having to move closer to home.

  7. anyone have views they'd like to share about HP Support Assistant? I'm not sure why the hell I need or want it on my machine (a very new HP Pavilion running Windoze 7), but it has been very insistent about me installing updates all the friggin time (I finally shut those alerts off).

    Is there any value there?

      1. Believe it or not, there's a good comment there:

        The real question is why was Nick Punto batting with two outs and two men on in the ninth inning of a tied game? Do they not allow September call ups in the National League?

    3. Pedroia slid into first base in I think the second game of the Red Sox-Yankees doubleheader. At least one of the NESN guys commented on that, wondering how many times Carl Lewis slid across the finish line in his races.

      1. I just saw that today. Defending Pedroia makes me feel a little bit gross, but it did look like at least he took the dive-at-the-bag approach - he never actually slid across the dirt. Not sure if that was on purpose, but whatever.

        1. The only time it makes sense is if the runner is looking to avoid a possible tag. Otherwise, it just slows you down. Avoiding the dirt means it slows you down less, but it still slows you down. The Carl Lewis analogy is perfect. If a sprinter thought it would save a fraction of a second to dive, he would do it.

          3. The Carl Lewis analogy is perfect.

            I don't think the track analogy works. With track, it is whatever part of your body that crosses the finish line, not when your foot hits the finish line.

            It still doesn't mean it makes sense to dive into first base due to friction.

  9. I don't anticipate ever getting back to doing the Trade Trees. I'm just not gonna have the time, nor most likely the inclination, once I get to Prague. Is there anyone here who would like to take over?

  11. Cuddyer on MLB Network:

    httpv://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=19676933&topic_id=7417714&c_id=mlb&tcid=vpp_copy_19676933&v=3

    2. Let me try this one:

      httpv://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=19676933&topic_id=7417714&partnerId=aw-7952274752640884126-1803

  12. breakfast this morning: a fried egg on top of pork adovada. Mmmm, meat, the gift that keeps on giving. I sure hope they have pork in Irishland the Czech Republic, or whatever Land of the King of Foreign you are going to.

    1. I'm pretty sure that I'm going to be eating rice and beans, those are cheap, right?

      Tomorrow, you'll have to cut up some strips of corn tortilla, toss them in a little bit of oil (~tbs or less), pan fry until the edges are crispy with a sprinkle of salt and pepper, and add some onion and poblano cooking until the onion is translucent and the poblano is softened. Meanwhile crack two eggs into a bowl and whisk them together. Push the tortillas and veg to the edges of the pan and increase the heat to med/high, pour the eggs into the center of the pan scrambling / folding them until a soft but done texture is achieved, mix the whole works together and remove from the heat. Top with adovada, a sprinkling of shredded cheddar cheese, and red chili sauce (or, god forbid, salsa if you want to ruin it).

        1. I love me some migas. The Austin Texas version is too heavy on tomato, and not nearly heavy enough on spice.

      1. It was a link to Easterbrook who wrote about a Lions/Bills Super Bowl, so never mind. But, the point is not that I want you to read Easterbrook, but that the Lions are the only team in the NFC with a longer Super Bowl appearance drought than the Vikings. So, OF COURSE they will soon be there.

        1. The fewer page views for Easterbrook the better. But yeah, no question the Vikings are never going to another Super Bowl. I like how this year, they are showing that special, late, heartbreaking disappointment in every game instead of just at the end of the season.

                2. Part of it is I'm a little bit over football as a whole.

                  Yeah, that's #1. It's an extremely slow-moving game with about eight minutes of action spread out over three hours, and yet it still results in life-threatening injuries on a too-regular basis. I don't feel all that good supporting the product.

            2. I'm about to move on. I never expected to change allegiances but this team just hates itself. I'm on the verge of becoming a full-time Titans or Ravens backer, as I've been with them to some degree as long as they've been around. Maybe Texans, too, though the whole Texas thing gives me pause.

              1. My outlook has been one of holding no allegiance to any other than my fantasy team. This gives me something to invest in games to make them more entertaining while significantly reducing the level of emotion involved with Sundays.

                  1. Oh, we were still talking about football.... oh, yeah, um... yeah, I was just talking about Texas in general...

                    4. I really liked Austin.

                      I like Austin as well, but it's not really Texas. I love, l-o-v-e, San Antonio. They have good food, good music, and a few excellent breweries (not to mention one of those places has a license to distill amber colored spirits... awesome). Where I live you need to envision friday night lights times about a bazillionty.

                    5. Yep, those are the two cities I really liked. I was a sucker for the Riverwalk.

                      It's not really Texas

                      This is exactly how I've explained Austin to people who question that I love a city in Texas.

                    6. I love, l-o-v-e, San Antonio.

                      I second that emotion. The last time I was there we ate at a little restaurant off the beaten track that had goat on the menu. And there was a neighborhood carnival going on with rides, a few bands playing, lots of artist booths, etc. Texas Pride Barbecue east of town (near China Grove) was also excellent. And we somehow wandered into a part of town (south side, maybe?) that was pretty much stuck in 1962. We ate at a place there that had a white-haired abuela making tortillas by hand. Fun city.

            3. I cured my Vikings fandom sometime back during the Jerry Burns era. As a kid growing up I lived and died with the Vikings, but I guess I was spoiled, I grew up during the Bud Grant era. After Bud left the whining, underacheiving, metrodome and finger-pointing just started to suck the fun out of the team for me. Plus, as an old fogey I can always say the old days were better. Now get off my Met Stadium lawn.

  15. So, I went to the local grocery store (in G-Town) this morning to pick up a couple of pieces of fruit and a breakfast sandwich. Dude in front of me has filled his car with gas and bought a couple of things. Writes a check to cover the bill. Cashier is having a problem with the check validation machine and calls over the manager. Cashier says, "Me and checks. I can't figure this thing out." Manager comes over and deduces the problem: the check is bad. Meanwhile, dude who wrote it is gone.

    Nice.

    I don't know if I could pick him out of a lineup, but I will say this: he was wearing a UND sweatshirt. Fighting Who?

    1. Went to the grocery store to get lunch. My source there told me that he repeatedly goes in there, writes a check, and bolts. I don't know. It seems like he's gonna run out of gullible cashiers sooner or later. Maybe the grocery store ought to think about prosecuting.

      1. Methinks a big-@ss picture of him plastered on the door of every store in town with appropriate caption would help with the situation.

  16. Hey meat - saw on your link you are in Co. Donegal - I just drove back from a couple day spell in Port-Salon on the west side of Lough Swilly - nice territory.

      1. I mean a debate between members over the three awards that are undecided. Like, should Ellsbury be in the discussion even though his team is acting like the Mets?

        2. Which 3 do you consider undecided? The only one I'm a bit torn on is NL Cy Young, between Kershaw and Halladay. Bautista for AL MVP, Kemp for NL MVP, Verlander for AL Cy.

          1. by fWAR, the top two rookies are Danny Espinosa and Wilson Ramos (both of the Nationals). I just thought I'd share that.

            Dustin Ackley is the AL rookie leader, but I'd guess it will go to Mark Trumbo.

            [correction: if you include pitchers, the runaway NL ROY will be Craig Kimbrel for his King of the Savers ranking; and I'd guess Ivan Nova for his gaudy W-L record for the Yankmes will give Trumbo a run for it]

    2. I still feel like Bautista should be in that discussion somewhere, but it seems like everyone's just sort of forgetting just how ridiculous a season he's having.

      Right now, I'd flip between Bautista, Ellsbury, and Verlander.

      1. Ellsbury is way ahead by fWAR, thanks to +16.8 runs in fielding and Bautista's minus-something in fielding.

  19. I'm so old that I can remember when the Twins had to travel to New York the day after game 163 and play the Yanks in the playoffs.

    "I think we're in a tough position and one of the reasons we're in a tough position is you only got one day off,'' Girardi said. "I think you should have two days off. Then you can manage the last game of the season accordingly.''

    Meow.

    3. Girardi is trying to push Scioscia out of the way for AMR's Most Clemenated Man in Baseball.

      I still think that no-rest thing was a rip-off. The one year they try this "Best Record in the AL gets to pick which series schedule they get" and it goes against a team that has to play a one-game playoff which went to extra innings the night before. I see that Seattle in 1995 and the Mets in 1999 played their first LDS games the day following their tiebreakers. At least in those situations, both LDSs for their league in those years were started on the same day.

      1. Remember, Girardi took number 27 when he took the job as manager of the Yankees, who had won the World Series 26 times previously. When they won in 2009, he changed his number to 28.

  20. In case any of you were looking for a two-word phrase for the meatloaf I made sunday night, here it is: "Awe. Some." But you knew that already -- it was wrapped in bacon.

                1. Indeed. Although I'll take a look at yours for when its winter and I don't want to freeze my nuts off making a meatloaf.

                  I think I would use a bit less beer next time though. It was a little hard to form up into a nice shape.

          4. Groans... That looks awesome. Just found out it's make your own nachos night at the homestead. That sounds fun.

    1. Nice piece. I hope it's largely accurate about Knoblauch's post-career attitude toward life, and I hope he eventually gets his due back in Minnesota with the fans. He was a great player for the Twins.

    2. That was an interesting read, and the comments!

      Mags appealed to the mob to stop hating on ii, and I've tried to let that go, but Chuck broke my heart. I wouldn't have thrown a hot dog at the guy, but the teenager in me is still pissed off with the way he jilted Minnesota.

      1. I hated the way he left too, but I'm also interested in how it changed the way Minnesota sports fans responded to the departures of Johan, Gaborik, ii, Moss, Cuddiier, et al.

    1. I have a nephew who is an engineer with a freshly-minted degree (2009 or 2010). While he has decent social skills, his written communication skills are, umm, less developed. Perhaps they could focus on how to write a cover letter and resume while they are at it.

  23. Before the bottom fell out in August and September, the Twins had climbed back to respectability. They were 20 games under .500 before reeling off a 15-2 stretch in June.
    “Think of where we’d be if it weren’t for that run,” Cuddyer said.
    That’s a staggering thought.

    -JoeC

    1. No. 1 pick! Plus a lot more pieces brought in thanks to trades of Delmon, Thome, Cuddyer and Kubel (if he ever was healthy enough to trade). The reality is, the Twins would have been better off without it in the long run because the Twins would have known not to hang onto impending free agents for a team destined for last place. Delmon would have been traded before the deadline and the Twins would probably have gotten more for him. Same for Thome, unless the Twins were set on keeping him until No. 600.

  24. Unfortunate Rays fan shirts: "Boston..Who's your Daddy NOW?"

    Ugh, seriously? That reference isn't just old; with Pedro being retired for two years, it's way past the due date.

      1. I think hating on the Rays due to attendance should be banned by anyone until they actually have to get to a game while living in Tampa. Everything I've read says it's a painful process at best.

        1. That sounds like a good excuse, until you realize the Buccaneers have the same problem.

          Point is, MLB got too expansion happy and expanded into a bad market. Bud's second biggest mistake is the TB Rays. Maybe third. MLB's slaghter of the Expos was sad.

          1. Do the Bucs have the same problem? Isn't Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, as opposed to the Trop which is in St. Pete?

              1. There are some 2.7 million people in the Tampa Bay area. Does it really matter that the Trop is in St. Pete? Maybe the problem is more with the Trop?

                Granted, it looks like the causeway(s?) are fairly narrow....

                1. My understanding is that the Trop sucks and there is only one bridge nearby that fills up quickly, making the traveling to a dumpy stadium tedious.

        2. Hating on the Rays for their attendance problems is ridiculous, period. The team can be enjoyed or decried completely separately from its fan base.

          1. As someone who is rooting against the Brewers essentially because of their fan base, I half agree and half disagree with this. I know that I'm basing it off of a really small sample size of fans, but its sports so irrational reasons to root for or against teams is part of the territory.

            1. I think there's a pretty big difference between conduct and attendance. If Rays fans were in the stands engaging in white power rallies or something, I'd make an exception (though it still wouldn't reflect on the players on the field). Milt seems to hate the team based on lack of people showing up, and I think it's a little strong (though Milt admits to using exaggeratory language, and I assume that's what he's doing here).

          2. If evaluating the teams based on their respective fan bases we have, in one corner: a primarily apathetic fan base, despite their team being damned good for several years running; and, in the other corner, the most self-absorbed fan base in the history of sport.

            I'm with Dickie V and his Rays. Milt can have Doris Kearns Goodwin and the rest of those despicable navel gazers.

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