Spring Drags On
Mid-March is about the time when I
begin to find Spring Training dull and get anxious
for the real games to begin. Ok yes, Joe
Blanton had a good outing against the Tigers
today after a shaky spring start. Cole
Hamels looks like he is in good shape with two
solid performances so far. The bats
are jumping and as a team, the Phillies
are hitting at an average of .301 with 7
homers and 36 RBI. And still, I am a bit sleepy
about the whole thing.
In my boredom today, I decided to
scan through this week’s MLB
headlines to see what was going on around the
league.
Here are a few fun tidbits I came across in
my search:
- Yankees shortstop and
baseball God, Derek Jeter, sat out of a Spring
Training game with flu symptoms. And then
an Angel lost its wings :O(
The Mets Jose
Reyes may not be ready to play on Opening
Day.
His thyroid hormone blood levels are
elevated and he is not supposed to do anything
that could raise his heart rate. You know, things like showboating
on the base paths or talking to Federal agents
about his Canadian doctor’s link to
performance-enhancing drugs…stuff like
that.
- At age 39, Brian
Giles, former Padre, has decided to
retire.
It was either that or start taking the same
magical, fountain of youth pills that Jamie
Moyer takes.
- Angels center fielder
Torii
Hunter told USA Today that Latin Americans are
“imposters” in relation to black
ballplayers.
Hunter was then rushed to Jose Reyes’
Canadian doctor and diagnosed with
“foot-in-mouth” disease. He was
given a “special” injection and should
be back to hitting homers in no time.
Red
Sox Nomar Garciaparra also retired this
week.
He now has plenty of free time to write a
memoir about the many baseball adventures of his
gigantic nose. Did it provide shade when
trying to catch a pop fly in the sun? How many
times did the nose save his life by blocking a
high, inside pitch? It will be a
must-read.- Braves
Manager Bobby Cox
reported that Derek Lowe was suffering from a
blister.
“He gutted through it, and it’s
a mess,” Cox said about the blister.
“I don’t know how he pitched at
all.”
I know what he means; last week, I broke a
nail and was not sure if I could go on
typing.
I toughed it out as I could not disappoint
my readers - that is how much I love you
guys.
- In an interview
with ESPN, Milton Bradley whined that he received
hate mail from the Cubs last year. He went on
to note that unless you’re “Superman
or you’re Andre Dawson, Ernie
Banks or [in the] Hall of Fame, then
it’s going to be tough” for
African-American players in Chicago. I
don’t suppose his .257 batting average had
anything to do with his difficulties? Oh, and
wasn’t Superman a white dude? Just
sayin’…
- Going back to the
drug-dealing Canadian doctor, Alex
Rodriguez was treated by this same guy after
hip surgery last year. In response to the
investigation, A-Rod said, “I am aware
of an investigation, and I plan on
cooperating.” The last time he
“cooperated” there were no real
consequences; so hey, no biggie.
Come on Opening Day! Get
here….quick!
Reyes photo by
Jenn
Garciaparra photo by
Al Bello/Getty Images
*Read
more about the Phillies at my other home page,
Phightin’ Phils
Phorum in the My Team Rivals network*
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