56 thoughts on “March 19, 2018: Polanc-NO!”

  1. I still like the guy. He did something dumb, sure, but I got no moral outrage in me over PEDs.

    1. For me, it’s simply a head-scratcher about why guys are jeopardizing themselves by procuring supplements outside a supply chain administered by their team or MLBPA. I don’t know where meds prescribed by team doctors or specialists are dispensed from, but I suspect that’s pretty well handled. Where it seems to get dicey is around supplements & other OTC stuff that players are using, particularly in the offseason. I think MLBPA should be saying to members, “Look, this is a matter of accountability for us as your union. We think it’s in the best interest of all members for us to set up a health & wellness plan that ensures everything you get comes from a reputable source. Our union has the means to do this, and we have the incentive to protect all members from loss of wages due to a PED suspension. We also are going to more intentionally engage young players in this plan to ensure they aren’t losing development time due to needless suspensions while they are busy becoming the next generation of big leaguers & MLBPA members.”

      1. There's a healthy dose of skepticism in me on this front, where I think individual players are looking for an edge towards making more money. If there are injuries or you're on the cusp, getting a little boost might be worth it. You try to time it so that your known tests are clean and hopefully you miss the random chance wheel on the other tests. I see it in my cases too: people think they can beat the system. And sometimes they're probably right.

          1. I mean, one is a comedy, the other a drama. Can't we just love both for being the best of their own thing?

            1. Fair point. I'm all in favor of Golden Globesing this.

              As long as the Mariners' eventual ironic, yet touching rendition of Pride of the Yankees doesn't get categorized as "comedy".

  2. I was sick for about four days with a persistent headache, pulled out of it yesterday and woke up with a sore throat. Time to get my co-workers sick, because I’m hoarding sick time for a July vacation...

  3. I have to wake up about 4am tomorrow for primary election judgin'. I early voted on Saturday, told the person checking me in that my first gig was on Tuesday, and asked if there were any secret handshakes I should learn. She looked bewildered and earnestly told me that she didn't know about anything like that.

    1. I've spent all morning looking at my ballot and the various races/candidates, lots of options in our district, not a lot of incumbents. It will be an interesting election cycle, I think.

  4. We’ll soon be getting a new home computer for the first time since I bought my laptop in 2010. I you would’ve told me then that I’d be buying a desktop computer in 2018, I would’ve laughed. The 12.9” iPad Pro I was issued for work is a total laptop replacement as far as I’m concerned.

            1. It's fantastic. I have only the 34" one now but next time I'd probably try the 38" monitor.

              1. So is it pretty simple then to size different windows to what you want? I know with two monitors I'd just drag and maximize the window.

                1. It requires a bit more work. The issue is Windows doesn't have a tiling window manager, but other programs exist that can fill that role. I have things split into three columns, loosely: left secondary, primary thing, right secondary. I can easily send things to either side. The middle is a bit harder but I only ever set up one primary window and leave it be.

      1. True. In this case, we’re probably looking for the equivalent of a station wagon. This machine will replace two laptops — one from early 2008 and another from mid-2010. It’ll be the first “computer” the Poissonnier encounters* It’ll be the unified repository for our family’s digital archives. Like my old Volvo wagon, it’ll be able to haul (the digital equivalent of) 800 lbs of pavers when called upon. Can’t do that with a sedan or a convertible.

        * It’s amazing to see how intuitively she engages with our smartphones pocket supercomputers & the iPad, even in the very limited time gets with them.

  5. Going to DC next week. Other than the normal museum/monument attractions, anything I should be sure to include? Kids ages 11-17.

        1. I recommend the National Portrait Gallery too. If you're going to pick just one of the art places to check out, make it that one. It's a few blocks off the Mall, but the ones on it just aren't as good.

    1. Spy Museum. Costs, but kids would love it.

      I was just in DC, staying in Foggy Bottom. My work event was at the Park Hyatt. Which my wife reminded me was where we had our wedding reception. I did not recognize that fact. Sue me, it will have been 30 years this coming May.

    2. If you are willing to go to Dulles, the Space Museum there blows the one on the mall out of the water.

      1. National Cathedral in Cathedral Heights,
        Fredrick Douglas's house in Anacostia,

        The National Arboretum and Botanical Garden is AMAZING.

        I'm not big on Ben's, but Old Ebbitt Grill is a really good spot for a family dinner.

        1. Old Town Alexandria is a fun place to spend some time.

          Navy Yard is also cool.

          Uh I guess that's probably enough huh?

  6. For the curling fans out there, Rich Ruohonen was practicing next to our match last night. He would have been impressed by the nearly-impossible shot we made that turned a +4 into a -1.

    1. Hey, we did that last week! We had a shot for 5 on a board weight takeout that should have been pretty easy if it weren't for the piece of straw from one of the cleanup brooms that the stone picked up making it go sideways 5 feet from the house.

      Madison raiding your club a couple weekends ago was pretty funny because pretty much half of our Sunday league teams were searching for subs that Saturday.

    2. He's a curler? I only know him for being the R in TSR Time (and for a jury trial he handled when I was a law clerk).

  7. Went to the Kings game tonight. Sat in literally the next-to-last row. Still a good view, albeit of mostly boring and sloppy play.

    Observations:

    Andre Drummond is a large man.
    Everyone hates Blake Griffin
    The worse the matchup, the more inane, amplified crap they subject you to.

  8. Junior pitched 2 innings of a combined no-hitter and Trey got a hit to spark a tiebreaking rally in the final inning, so it was a good day baseball-wise for games that counted, at least.

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