Bud...Time to Do the Right Thing

First, I consider myself a baseball purist. I don't like messing with the game. I don't particularly like the DH. Pitchers should have to stand in the batters box. If a team wishes to employ a big fat old hitter, then he has to play in the field.

I'm not fond of inter-league play. I hate how MLB has destroyed the All-Star Game for the purpose of home field advantage in the World Series. Best record always wins.

Last night a Detroit Tiger pitcher, Armando Gallarraga, incredibly pitched the third Perfect Game of the year. But on the last out of the game, the first base umpire missed the call. It wasn't close. He blew it and after seeing the replay after the game confirmed as much. He felt horrible and for good reason. A Perfect Game, at least up to this year is a very rare event. Maybe one every 5 or 10 years. It's baseball immortality.

So this is what I want you to do. I want you to evoke the "best interest in Baseball" clause that you alone have power over and reverse the last out and restore this man's accomplishment. All of America has seen and agrees he was robbed. Think of all the good will you can finally gain. But lastly, it's the right thing to do.

Post-Season Picks - Updated (better performance than the umpires)

Off to a good start, picked three of the four division series correctly (what is a "division"?). One shoulda-seen-it-coming stumble. Doing much better than the umpires. What's going on there? They used to be the best of all the referees. I sure hope this doesn't mean replays. Fox-driven baseball takes too long as it is.

Series	Winner	Comments	How I'm doing
Red Sox-Angels	Sox in 5	Home field plus better bullpen. Changing of the guard at catcher for the Red Sox. Ellsbury is the difference. Abreu re-surfaces.	Who saw that coming:  Papelbon giving up his first run and blown save in 26 post-season innings? The end of a (brief) Bosox era. Ironically, Angels sweep is good for the Yankees.
Dodgers - Cards	Dodgers in 4	Torre manages better than LaRussa. Manny shines. Cards' Cy Young candidates are overrated.	LaRussa outmanaged again in the post-season
Phils - Rockies	Phils in 4	Phils have the edge offensively. Rockies are riding their late-season rush (again) and may win one at home. Phils could almost play in the AL East. Almost.	Phillies were the better team.
Yankees- Twins	Yankees in 3	Biggest danger for the Yankees is to finish too soon and then have to wait for the war between Boston and LA to conclude.	True to form. Twins did not have the talent.
League Championship Series
Yankees - Red Sox Angels	Yankees in 6	It's been too long for Derek Jeter and company. This may be the best team he's played on. Girardi goes back to Posada behind the plate for every game, realizing he needs the extra bat. Burnett is on the spot.
Phils - Dodgers	Phils in 6	Manny does all he can. Then gets lost on the way to left field. Phils have too much depth, offense and pitching. And Howard.Interesting match-up. Although the Dodgers have Torre and MANNY.
World Series
Yankees - Phils	Yankees in 5	Phils almost have the power to compete with the Bombers. But not quite enough. Yankees have better pitching and the home field advantage. Sabbathia becomes a Yankee legend.

$15 gets you a ticket, a hot dog, a soda and two All Stars

If you need a reason to go to a minor league game, here's a beauty: former New Britain Rock Cat teammates Tori Hunter and David Ortiz getting ready for the ALDS. Not every minor league player turns out to be an All-Star, but that's true in the majors, too.

Post-Season Picks

Last night went according to form. Here are my picks going forward:

MLB Post-Season Picks

Series	Winner	Comments
Red Sox-Angels	Sox in 5	Home field plus better bullpen. Changing of the guard at catcher for the Red Sox. Ellsbury is the difference. Abreu re-surfaces.
Dodgers - Cards	Dodgers in 4	Torre manages better than LaRussa. Manny shines. Cards' Cy Young candidates are overrated.
Phils - Rockies	Phils in 4	Phils have the edge offensively. Rockies are riding their late-season rush (again) and may win one at home. Phils could almost play in the AL East. Almost.
Yankees- Twins	Yankees in 3	Biggest danger for the Yankees is to finish too soon and then have to wait for the war between Boston and LA to conclude.
League Championship Series
Yankees - Red Sox	Yankees in 5	It's been too long for Derek Jeter and company. This may be the best team he's played on. Girardi goes back to Posada behind the plate for every game, realizing he needs the extra bat. Burnett is on the spot.
Phils - Dodgers	Phils in 6	Manny does all he can. Then gets lost on the way to left field. Phils have too much depth, offense and pitching. And Howard.
World Series
Yankees - Phils	Yankees in 5	Phils almost have the power to compete with the Bombers. But not quite enough. Yankees have better pitching and the home field advantage. Sabbathia becomes a Yankee legend.

What's with NL pitchers in Boston?

John Smoltz and Brad Penny were (relative) bargain signings this year for the Sox. Penny was the better of the two, and while he was never great, he chewed up a lot of innings. In that regard, he fulfilled his end of the bargain.

On the other hand, the pitching-smart Braves had given up on Smoltz, and the Red Sox should have paid closer attention to why.

But now the two pitchers have gone back to the National League. And while Smoltz had a one-game revival for the always-smarter-than-you Tony LaRussa, he may be now reverting to form. Penny on the other hand has had back-to-back solid starts for the Giants. Is this a National League v American League thing, or just an anomaly? The Red Sox have had little luck importing National League pitchers.

Post World Series Headlines

The Phillies beat the Rays, finish fourth in the AL East.

Yankees sign Manny. Joe D rolls over.

Selig makes a decision. He WILL take fries with that burger.

Nomar sighting in Boston. Begs for forgiveness. Theo says nothing.

March Madness Goes October

Major League Baseball needs to re-invent its playoff system... NOW.

Stop praying and use just a little genius Bud and give all us sport crazies a second March Madness. Just thinking of filling out a bracket twice a year sends thrills to parts of my body that have long ago lost feeling. A single elimination tournament, a match race, call it what you want but it sure beats the hell of watching a month long crawl to crown a winner.

If I were Commissioner:

1. These games are played on weekends - Saturday and Sunday. I don't give a rats ass about going up against College Football and the NFL. Baseball is the National Pastime, start acting like it.
   
   
2. These games start at 1:00PM...Period - For the Kids and for all of us you can't stay awake past 10:00PM


3. No Fox - How about asking NBC to get back in the game. They damn well helped to invent the World Series. And we use local team announcers. Let's have a little fun with the local yahoo's in the booth. They know these teams and players a lot better than pretty boys sitting in a booth like Bob Costas.


4. We seed these teams just like they do with the real March Madness. Use HOF's as a selection committee. And it doesn't have to be an even split of AL vs NL. If the AL has six of the best teams one year, so be it. Best teams get to play and bad teams go home.


5. Pitchers hit. And we also use the DH. That's right we are now batting ten. Sort of keeps the lineups humming and at the same time allows managers to tinker.


6. No Replay. If we need to use a dozen or so umpires to get it right then that's what we do
   
   
7. Finals are played at a neutral site. Big doings. This allows us to make this an EVENT, something those bigwigs at the networks drool over. Bet they can even come up with a snappy new name for the World Series. Insures the best pitchers are on the mound.
   
   
8. Here are my seeds: 1.Rays, 2. Angels, 3. Red Sox, 4. Cubs, 5. White Sox, 6. Mets, 7. Brewers, 8. Yankees (did you think for a minute they wouldn't make the cut).

I'm sure there's plenty more that I'm forgetting, so all you bloggers, send me your list of what you'd do if you were commissioner for a day.