Nice Guys... Nearing First?

While the adage goes "nice guys finish last", the Cleveland Indians are nearing first place in the AL Central. But a nice bonus as an Indians fan is that they are truly nice guys. In a really incredible story, utility infielder Jack Hannahan found out that his wife was going into a very premature labor - beginning of the third trimester. The Indians were playing in Boston at the time, and there were no night flights out of Logan Airport in Boston to Cleveland. The best the Indians' traveling secretary could find was a 6am flight which would definitely be too late, but at least he would be there soon after the birth. They looked into charter jets, but a charter jet would run $35,000 - no small sum even for a major league baseball player, especially a journeyman free agent to be who is 31 years old as Hannahan is.

That's where the rest of the Indians, led by stud Justin Masterson, stepped in:

But then Masterson came over and asked what was happening. He had a thought, and wasn't taking no for an answer.

Walters recounted the conversation:

"Book it," Masterson told Hannahan.

"I can't. It costs too much," Hannahan replied.

"Book it!" Masterson said.

Then Masterson passed a hat around the clubhouse. Teammates immediately contributed $35,000.

Hannahan took the private plane, arrived in Cleveland about 3 a.m. and reconnected with his wife just 15 minutes before John Joseph Hannahan V was born. Though he weighed just 2 pounds, 11 ounces at birth and hasn't come home from the NICU yet, baby reportedly is doing fine. As are mom and dad.

Read the whole story on Yahoo (via WFNY), and read and watch Hannahan talk about it on MLB (and see the other video on the page where the Tribe announcers tell over some more information as well). Such a classy story and team.

Go Tribe!

Best Prediction Ever

This is well worth the two minutes. Ridiculous(ly lucky), and the call is hilarious. Hat tip: OD.



Mike Blowers calls Matt Tuiasosopo's HR... before the game. The pitch, the count, the place... crazy.

Carlos & Gabby's Review

Carlos & Gabby's opened up in Kew Gardens Hills in Queens*, and since a countless number of friends had been hyping the one in the Five Towns, we decided to do takeout. We split the Honey BBQ Zingers, Serach got The Texas Wrangler, Elianna got a hot dog, and I got the Boneless BBQ Rib Platter.

The hot dog was good (I took a bite), Serach said the Wrangler was great, which many friends had said, the Zingers were excellent, and the BBQ ribs weren't amazing, but they were pretty good. Others have suggested the regular Zinger and the Cedarhurst sub as excellent choices.

Shortly afterward, iPay tells me she's picking up food from there (after saying how amazing it is), and then GS calls and asks if I could pick up for him and bring it over, since I'm watching the HR Derby at his apartment. We're going to count how many HRs go over the SpongeTech sign in right-center field for Rea, who loves that they're in just about every Major League stadium. Elianna is obsessed with the SpongeBob sponge, which makes baths a whole lot easier. Meanwhile, I'll snack on more C&G's. :)

* UPDATE: It's located on Main Street past Supersol, at 67-11 Main Street. The phone number is (718) 575-8226.

EZ Reads 7/10/09: Pinchas

Ezzie: Please have in mind Chaya bas Pesel. Thank you.

With thanks to Reb Abe, YSF, Justine, and others who sent some interesting pieces in... and yes, Stam is correct: I have a ton of pieces that I post randomly when they occur to me or when I get around to them. :)

• The Jewish Press has an important piece this week by R' Yakov Horowitz and Eliot Pasik called Let The System Work, showing how going to and using the courts provide for proper outcomes in cases of abuse. Please pass this piece around.
  
• An interesting piece in the Forward on gays in the military, citing Israel's acceptance and lack of issues because of it. Thought that comes to mind: Better to accept it than risk "Don't ask, Don't tell", where a high ranking member can be blackmailed for their relationship because of concern over losing their job.
• ProfK discusses whether breast exam signs should be placed in a mikvah. Personally, what caught my eye was the NY/OOT line in the beginning... which happened when a NYer came to town. Interesting.
• More OTML cool finds: How they kept Shabbos in the 1800s (rounding to the nearest 1/2 hour or so - even though they cared about zmanim).
  

A great story and message on Parshas Pinchas and the Jewish community, reminiscent of my favorite R' Salanter quote:

Parashat Pinchas: Fix Yourself and Then Fix Others

[Tal Chermon, p. 448 based on the book "Nivi Zahav" of Ha-Rav Zev Gold]

When Maran Ha-Rav Kook visited America to raise money for the yeshivot in Eretz Yisrael and Europe, one of the Rabbis asked during a reception: Why doesn't Ha-Rav follow the path of zealousness? Maran Ha-Rav Kook answered at length and told a story about a great Torah scholar and ethical person: "He once came to his Rabbi and said to him that he wants to perfect the world through the Almighty's kingdom. His Rabbi said to him: Go, my son and may Hashem help you. He went and tried, but was unsuccessful. The world remained as it was. He came to his Rabbi a second time to lament the lack of blessing in his actions. His Rabbi asked him: My son, have you already spiritually repaired your country and homeland that you are concerning about repairing the entire world? He took the hint and attempted to fix his country. But he also failed; no one listened to his voice. He returned to his Rabbi and related his new failure. His Rabbi said to him: My son, have you spiritually repaired your city? Why should you begin with a whole country? This wise man listened to him and turned to repairing his city, but the residents of his city also do not obey him. His Rabbi said to him: My son, have you already fixed your household? He realized that he was correct, and so he attempted to repair the members of his household. But they also did not listen to him. When he returned to lament before his Rabbi, the Rabbi said: My son, perhaps you did not fix yourself. Go and worry – first and foremost – about your soul, and after you are certain that you repaired everything that you could and you have no blemish – then the members of your household will see and learn from your ways, and they will be an example for the city, and the city for the country and the country for the entire world. This needs to be the path of a person who desires to spiritually repair others."

Finally, for fun:

• Microsoft Office 2010 has its own movie trailer - surprisingly good, actually; someone asks Microsoft if the files they've added is causing their computer to get fat - real or not, hilarious thread; while I'm not a Borat/Bruno fan, this Letterman clip of Sasha Baron Cohen (as himself for once) discussing interviewing a terrorist is quite funny; and in the most confusing finish I've seen, the winning pitcher in a baseball game no longer plays with the team who won and the winning run was scored by a guy who wasn't on the team when the game started. Now *that* is Major League Baseball.
  

Have a great Shabbos!

EZ Reads 6/29/09: Super Cool Sports

Just some fun sports stuff today:

• This guy is going to play (new Cav) Shaq in HORSE: My favorites are the off the slanted roof catch in air behind-the-back 45-footer and the full-speed behind-the-back off the telephone pole pass.
• Via Deadspin also, this site, FlipFlopFlyBall is funky (and you don't necessarily need to like sports).
• An article on how the Tribe fell apart in the last year and a half. Interesting, actually.
  

Enjoy!

Idiots Ruin Things

...for everyone else. What a jerk: (emphasis added)

The Oakland A's have reached a $510,000 settlement with a male attorney suing them because he wasn't given a commemorative cap being handed out to women at an A's game on Mother's Day 2004.

Attorney Alfred G. Rava initiated a class-action lawsuit against the A's because, as a biological male, he was not given a plaid sun hat being handed out to the first 7,500 ladies arriving at the Mother's Day game.

He sued over a commemorative Mother's Day cap? He could have at least held out for the Giambi bobblehead.

The whole context of the promotion make Mr. Rava's legal efforts even more deplorable. The Mother's Day promotion in question was the day of an A's-Twins contest that followed a 5k "Race For a Cure" event, a fundraiser for breast cancer research and support of breast cancer sufferers. The first 7,500 female fans entering McAfee Coliseum for the A's game were given the commemorative hat.

Rava, who has initiated similar lawsuits against the Padres and Angels and was perhaps only attending the game in order to sue, claimed gender discrimination and filed a lawsuit.

I'd love someone to sue the guy for being a shmuck and have a judge award back the money.

EZ Reads 6/18/09: Irony

It's always nice to get the breaks you were looking for to help push a project forward... when it'll be much harder to take advantage of them. Not that they are any less appreciated, it just makes them a bit trickier to take advantage of.

• Freakonomics discusses morality, economics, and Jewish leap years.
• A really fantastic piece questioning Warren Buffet's methods and morals. Important to keep in mind when thinking about the approaches the Obama administration are trying to take.
• Daled Amos discusses the WaPo's attempts to present the shaping of President Obama's views on Israel as coming exclusively from Jews, as opposed to Arabs.
• It's always crazy to read the offers Israeli leaders have made to the Palestinians - in this case, Olmert's offer to Abbas, via Jewlicious. Geez:

  At the end of Olmert’s term he tried one last maneuver in an effort to secure a legacy. Olmert told me he met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in September 2008 and unfurled a map of Israel and the Palestinian territories. He says he offered Abbas 93.5 to 93.7 percent of the Palestinian territories, along with a land swap of 5.8 percent and a safe-passage corridor from Gaza to the West Bank that he says would make up the rest. The Holy Basin of Jerusalem would be under no sovereignty at all and administered by a consortium of Saudis, Jordanians, Israelis, Palestinians and Americans. Regarding refugees, Olmert says he rejected the right of return and instead offered, as a “humanitarian gesture,” a small number of returnees, although “smaller than the Palestinians wanted—a very, very limited number.”

• Cool piece on the speed of baseballs coming off of bats in Major League Baseball.
• Funny rap video on Material Maidel about Jews abroad's opinions on Israeli policy.
• Interesting article about how a brain tumor has turned a painter into a Picasso.
  

Check them out.

No Shields For Errors

Today was our fantasy baseball draft, and Rea is walking away pretty happy, having come away with a very good draft. I'm slightly more concerned, but overall I'm in better shape than most teams, coming away with four closers in a 14-team league and a very solid lineup. I had the third pick in the draft, and not being a fan of Reyes, took David Wright; here's my entire team, with round and pick:

Pos. /Pos. Player TEAM [Round/Pick]

C Victor Martinez CLE [7/87]
1B Lance Berkman HOU [2/26]
2B /SS Mike Aviles KC [9/115]
SS Michael Young TEX [8/110]
3B David Wright NYM [1/3]
OF Jason Bay BOS [3/31], Alex Rios TOR [5/59], Andre Ethier LAD [11/143]
Util 1B-3B Jorge Cantu FLA [12/166], OF David Murphy TEX [20/278]

CL Brad Lidge PHI [4/54], Carlos Marmol CHC [6/82], Frank Francisco TEX [10/138], Troy Percival TB [13/171]
RP Hong-Chi Kuo LAD [17/227], Jensen Lewis CLE [18/250], Grant Balfour TB [19/255]
SP Fausto Carmona CLE [14/194], John Maine NYM [15/199], Jeremy Guthrie BAL [16/222], Carl Pavano CLE [21/283], and Jesse Litsch TOR (undrafted - replaced Asdrubal Cabrera [22/306])

Before I get slammed for the lack of starting pitching... I knew I'd be getting Wright at #3, and thought I'd have a chance to take Cole Hamels at 26. He was taken early in the second round, however, and with Berkman on the board, I couldn't pass him up. Unfortunately Manny and Brandon Phillips were picked on the turn, so I took Jason Bay, giving me a nice hitting core of Wright, Berkman, and Bay.

Weirdly, people started taking closers near the end of the third round. I'd been hoping to start a run with my 4th round pick by taking Papelbon at 54 and Lidge at 59. Instead, I took Lidge at 54 and with no other top-line closers left, took Rios at 59. That's about when things started to get a little nuts, with marginal SSs like Jeter and Peralta getting taken through the 5th and 6th rounds. I took Marmol near the end of the 6th and, after being forced to decide when the guy on the end passed on Mauer, decided to take Martinez (who should play more and have more power) over Mauer. I also knew I had plenty of time to get the pitchers I was targeting or thinking about: Kazmir perhaps not, but certainly Shields, Cliff Lee, even Oswalt was still there. Right? RIGHT?

Wrong! Kazmir was the next pick. Two picks after that, to my shock and dismay, went Shields. Gallardo, Oswalt, and Lee were taken later in the round. By the time we got back to my 8th round pick, I had nobody worth picking besides Michael Young (as I needed a SS), and then took Aviles to start the 9th to finish my infield. The next set of pitchers I had any interest in I still had plenty of time to get - most drafts had them going between Rounds 14 and 18 - so I took a third closer in Francisco and chose Ethier (with Manny in the lineup) over Hawpe (without Holliday) in the 11th. Then, halfway into Round 12, Rea - already with Santana AND Peavy - takes Chris Young, the pitcher. A couple of players later goes Ricky Nolasco. My next two picks were gone, and I still had NO starting pitchers.

By now I was screwed, so there was no point in reaching for unwanted starters - I took Cantu and Percival, giving me a strong utility and good insurance at 1b and 3b, and putting me ahead of the league with four closers. After that, it was just finding possible steals and relievers with low WHIPs and high K rates or people who could close potentially. Lastly, I wanted a 4th OF to be my other Util and I wanted Kelly Shoppach as insurance for Martinez. Of course, Yahoo glitched right at my pick and automatically took Pavano, and Rea picked up Shoppach a few picks later.

All in all, my hitting is probably among the most solid in the league, and my bullpen is far and away the strongest. My starting pitching is on the weaker side, though with selectivity it can be good enough to get by until people need to trade for a closer or two or until an up-and-comer appears. Last year I had some of the best pitching despite injuries to Carmona and Young by picking up guys to spot start (Cliff Lee, Jorge Campillo, etc.) and then trading those for other players. As we've seen many times in our league, the draft is far less meaningful than the in-season moves, so we'll see what happens...! It'd be nice to take first this year after coming in a distant second last year.

Getting Ready

...for this year's fantasy baseball draft. Our draft is next Sunday, and I don't even know what teams people have moved to outside of the Indians, let alone who's closing for more than a few teams. Last year, I followed a pitcher-heavy theory which was moderately successful, coming in second place, but well behind the first-place finisher in a league of 14 teams. This year we're down to 13 teams [unless a 14th person is suddenly interested - anyone?], and I have the #3 pick in a typical 5x5 league. One twist we've added (OBP instead of AVG didn't get enough votes) is to allow people to "draft" unlisted prospects by taking an inactive P or something like it and announcing who it is representing. If/when the rookie makes it, the team can then drop the no-name for the rookie.

So: Who are your top three players that you must take whichever is there at #3: Hanley Ramirez, Chase Utley, and Albert Pujols? (How they stack up against their positional counterparts is important.) And what prospects would you consider, whether in the majors already or not? Who are your "steals"?

It's an 'odd' year, so that means all my Indians are worth picking, right? :)

One Last Curtain Call

One Last Curtain Call
Aryeh Love

Likely before midnight tonight, the last single will be hit at Yankee Stadium. The last home run will sail over the wall. The last fly ball, the last ground ball, the last strikeout. Someone will hit the final foul ball into the upper deck, someone will be the last to cross home plate. And in about 4 hours, give or take, the final pitch will be thrown from the Yankee Stadium mound. When that last out is caught it will symbolize the end of an era. Not just for a franchise, not just for a city. It will be the end for a sport and for a country.

Critics have said that it is unfortunate that the 2008 Yankees won’t give the Stadium a proper October sendoff. I disagree. If the last game at the Stadium had been played in October, the game would be about the team. It would be about the Yankees’ quest for a 27^th championship and its success of failure. Instead, tonight’s game will be about the stadium. It will be about everyone who saw their first baseball game at the House that Ruth Built. It will be about the legends who roamed the field. It will be about the ghosts of the 26 championships already won. Tonight’s game will be about the past, not the present.

Critics have said that the current Yankee Stadium hasn’t been the same since the renovations in the mid-70’s. I disagree. Would anybody say the same about a Wrigley Field that now has lights installed for night games? What about a Fenway Park with seats above the Green Monster? Is the Stadium exactly the same as it was in 1923 when it opened? Of course not, but is anything that old the same? Besides, the pieces likely change from game to game and season to season. The home plate used tonight won’t be the same one Reggie stepped on 3 times in 1977. The pitching rubber used in Don Larsen’s prefect game is long gone. Derek Jeter will play between two bases that Phil Rizzutto never saw. The pieces may be different, but the whole remains the same.

Critics have said that it is ridiculous for the Yankees to close Yankee Stadium. “How can you shut down a place with that much history?” they have said. “The ghosts of Yankee Stadium won’t move across the street with the team” they have complained. “How can you close down an American icon?” Again, I disagree. The closing of Yankee Stadium will allow a new generation to make new history, to welcome new ghosts, and to create a new American icon. We won’t have Babe Ruth’s record setting home run numbers of the 20’s and 30’s. Instead we’ll witness the record setting numbers of Alex Rodriguez. We won’t get to see Lou Gehrig rapping base hits through the infield, but we’ll likely see Derek Jeter become the first Yankee to join the 3,000 hit club. (Dave Winfield, Wade Boggs, Paul Waner and Rickey Henderson all wore pinstripes, but none had 3,000 hits as a Yankee). We may even see Mike Mussina become the last 300 game winner in baseball history and Mariano Rivera become the all time career saves leader if they both last long enough in pinstripes to do so. While we’ll no longer have the field where so many people took in their first baseball game (myself included), we’ll have a new field to take our kids to their first baseball game.

While critics may voice opposition about the future plan, tonight’s game is not about the future. While tonight may be the night the Yankees are mathematically eliminated from playoff contention, tonight’s game is not about the present. Tonight’s game is about Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak, a streak unlikely to ever be broken. It’s about Babe Ruth’s 60 home run season, an unheard of number in 1927. It’s about Reggie’s 3 home run game in the ’77 World Series. It’s about Lou Gehrig’s farewell speech. It’s about Aaron Boone’s shot in 2003. It’s about the countless historic baseball moments that took place at Yankee Stadium, not to mention the non-baseball moments the Stadium hosted.

One of the non-baseball related moments that people have written about is the night President George Bush threw out the first pitch of Game 3 in the 2001 World Series. It was our (America’s) way of telling our enemies that you may have destroyed our buildings, but you didn’t destroy our spirit, our will, or our way of life. The President could have thrown out the first pitch of Game 1 in Phoenix to open the 2001 World Series. Chase Field in Arizona would likely have been less of a target than Yankee Stadium would have been. But Bush knew that if he wanted the statement to have the right impact, it had to be in New York. It had to be in the same city that was attacked just a few weeks earlier. It had to be in the same city that saw its buildings fall, and, as Bush put it on this year’s 9/11, its Heroes rise. It had to be in the capital of American Baseball, in its Cathedral, in Yankee Stadium.

That ceremonial first pitch was a message to the world. While things may be different, things are still very much the same. Similarly, when the first pitch is thrown at the new Yankee Stadium it will be a be a message to the Yankee world as well as the entire baseball world that while the surroundings may be different, things will still be very much the same. The Yankees will begin a 9^th quest for their 27^th world championship, the same quest they have been on for the last 8 years. The pinstripes will be the same, the players will be the same (some of them at least), the short right field porch will be the same. But like I said, tonight isn’t about the future, nor is it about the team. It’s about the Stadium and about the past.

Maybe something extra special will happen tonight. Maybe Andy Pettite throws a perfect game, Alex Rodriguez hits 5 home runs, or Derek Jeter wins it in the bottom of the 9^th, keeping the Yankees mathematically alive and by some miracle they make the playoffs. But in all likelihood, tonight’s game will be like most of the other 6,500 plus games played there. When the last out of tonight’s game nestles into someone’s glove, the 55,000 plus fans will give the Stadium its’ first, and last, standing ovation. Likely to be standing for a lot of the game already, there will no full seats after that last catch as every person in the ballpark will rise and finally give the Stadium its due. They will cheer for the pitcher’s mound where Larsen threw the only perfect game in World Series history. They’ll cheer for the infield dirt where Gehrig played most of his 2,130 consecutive games. They’ll cheer the outfield grass where Mantle, DiMaggio and Ruth once roamed. They’ll cheer home plate, behind which Yogi Berra won 10 World Series rings. They’ll call out all the ghosts of Yankee Stadium for one last curtain call. And then they’ll ask for another. And another…… And another…

Baseball & Excel

97% of y'all will probably want to stop reading... here.

For my job, it often comes in handy to have certain skills with Microsoft Excel. Excel is quite possibly the least utilized program that exists; a good understanding of Excel and its functions can make life incredibly simpler, particularly in most businesses, and for anyone who tries to budget their money. A friend of mine from Cleveland actually designed what is essentially an ugly but advanced version of Quicken, and it didn't take him all that long, using Excel; I learned how to utilize pivot tables, "vlookups", and the "indirect" functions and used them for something far more interesting: Fantasy baseball.

I actually started the idea when I was first learning how to use the pivot tables and other functions; practicing on my baseball league's statistics was just giving me something interesting to look at as I learned how to utilize Excel better. But from that, and with a couple of tips from friends in similar fields, I created an extensive file that tracks everyone in my fantasy league's numbers - by day, week, month... however I want to see it. What's particularly interesting in our league is that we have a cap of 1,250 innings pitched - meaning that it's not about what stats you can compile, but what stats you can compile on average per inning pitched. [Note: We play in a typical 5x5 league - R/HR/RBI/SB/Avg & W/S/K/ERA/WHIP.] This means that you don't want to be leading the league in strikeouts; you want to be leading in K rate (strikeouts/per IP). You also want to make sure you hit all your innings, or even the best rate might not get you the best score for that category (14).

In the end, pitching statistics are very easy to quantify, calculate, and predict - as wins are predominantly (but not always!) a "luck" statistic, and ERA can be fluky, an owner wants to focus on pitchers with a low WHIP, high K rate, and have about 3 closers. Hitting statistics are a little harder; while average is generally easier to measure, most of the other statistics are not - and without an average to work into with no cap except 162 games played, it is simply a matter of compiling the most stats per game played without messing up. It is partially for this reason that my friend Rea (the commissioner of the league who is getting married in a week) and I have a debate over what makes the most sense - to draft more pitchers or hitters early on. He feels that as it's easier to analyze the pitching numbers, and there are usually more "finds" on the free agent market during the year, a person should draft hitting and get pitching later on. I feel that drafting what you know makes more sense, and then after gathering a big lead in those categories, trading some of it away for hitting.

Interestingly, both have worked, though admittedly both of us ended up taking a somewhat balanced approach thanks to how the draft was already going. As of this moment, first place in the league has 112 points; second place is 103; and Rea is at 100, while I am at 99. (Note: A few days ago we were all within three points of one another between 104 and 107.)

While my Excel file is still limited in terms of projections (I lazily set it up to simply calculate what a person's statistics will be based on a 162-game season; for hitting stats, it divides by games played and multiplies by 162, while pitching it takes the person's /IP rates and extrapolates them over 1,250 IP, but only if they'll hit their innings - it adjusts for people who are low on innings by using the 162-game formula based on their /IP rates.), it's fascinating in terms of looking at the past and seeing trends. For instance, despite injuries to Carmona and Young, my pitching still had the best win rate in the league; trading Bedard and Cliff Lee for CC Sabathia and Fuentes helped me have the best K rate; and my Saves rate was second by a slim margin. Meanwhile, the added flexibility of holding extra hitters and subbing in based on matchups let me lead the league in Runs, HRs, and RBIs - and by a large margin over the league leaders, some of whom have traded hitting for pitching recently.

At this point, I'm actually pretty happy with my team and think that I can ride it to a nice finish. The only moves I'd like to make are possibly picking up a fourth closer; consolidating good players into better ones, though most people aren't interested at this point; and if I need to pick up innings, finding another starter, though I doubt I'll need to do that (especially if I can get another closer). The only statistic I'm "low" in is SBs, but I'm pretty much accepting of a 5 in that category, barring a truly worthwhile trade that nets me some more. It does devalue a couple of my own players somewhat, but they're still worth more than what I could get back for them. Here's my current roster, though some of the hitters are merely pickups for a short time while hot/for matchups:

• C Russell Martin
  
• 1B James Loney
  
• 2B Kelly Johnson
  
• SS Hanley Ramirez
• 3B Mark Reynolds
  
• OF Cory Hart
  
• OF Brad Hawpe
  
• OF Aaron Rowand
• UT 1B-3B Jorge Cantu
  
• UT 2B Alexei Casilla
  
• Bench OF Jack Cust
• Bench OF Ben Francisco
• Bench OF Luke Scott
• Bench 3B Brian Buscher
  
• Bench 1B-2B-OF Jeff Baker
  
• SP C.C. Sabathia
  
• SP Chris Young - DL
• SP Fausto Carmona - DL
  
• SP James Shields
• CL Francisco Cordero
  
• CL Brian Fuentes
  
• CL Brad Lidge
  
• RP Masa Koboyashi
  
• RP Heath Bell
  

At just past the halfway mark, my average has slipped this past week to .278, with 440 R, 109 HR, 421 RBI, and 56 SB. Note that I had .275/167/52/157/16 in June, so the hitting is clearly improved (trading Dana Eveland and Hank Blalock for Mark Reynolds helped). My ERA is steady despite Fuentes blowing up last night, holding at 3.36 with a 1.25 WHIP; I have 47 wins and 46 saves with 540 strikeouts in 651-1/3 innings. It's safe to say that about 110 points is what someone needs to shoot for to win the league; I'm 19 runs, 5 RBIs, and a few batting points from having 109. It's safe to project pitching points of 14 (W), 9+ (S), 10+ (K), 12+ (ERA), and 12+ (WHIP) at this point for 57+ (possibly more) pitching points; that means I'd need 53 hitting points or so. With a 5 in SBs, I need to average about a 12 in the other four categories - I currently have 9 (R), 10 (HR), 9 (RBI), and 9.5 (Avg).

Curious if anyone made it far enough and can still follow enough of it to have any comments. :)

Obligatory Sports Post

Sorry folks, it's that time of year. I'm going to assume that only people who care about such things will read this, so excuse the lack of explanations.

Figure it's a 14-team, rotisserie-style league with the basic 10 categories (R/HR/RBI/SB/AVG., W/S/K/ERA/WHIP), maximum 162 games at any position and 1,250 combined IP. The league allows moves daily and you can have 7 active pitchers, one player at every position, and two Utility players every day on a 22-player roster (plus two DL spots). I got stuck with the 3rd overall pick. [Pos. Player (Round/Overall)]

• C R. Martin (3/31)
  
• 1B J. Loney (13/171)
  
• 2B K. Johnson (14/194)
  
• SS H. Ramirez (1/3)
• 3B H. Blalock (20/278)
• OF C. Hart (7/87)
  
• OF B. Hawpe (8/110)
  
• OF A. Rowand (12/166)
• UT (OF) M. Diaz (22/306)
• UT (OF) J. Guillen (19/255)
• Bench 1B/3B/OF C. Blake (16/222)
• Bench 2B/SS A. Cabrera (21/283)
• Bench C K. Suzuki *FA pickup
  
• SP E. Bedard (2/26)
• SP C. Young (5/59)
• SP F. Carmona (6/82)
• SP J. Shields (10/138)
• CL F. Cordero (4/54)
• CL M. Corpas (9/115)
  
• CL B. Lidge (11/143) *on DL
  
• RP M. Koboyashi (17/227)
  
• RP R. Perez (18/250)
  

I seem to have the best overall pitching staff, according to another guy in the league who ran some numbers, and my hitting - which I thought was average - is up there. What do you think/who do you like?

The Stupidity of Sports

...scheduling, that is. (What, did you really think I'd write about the stupidity of sports?!) I couldn't agree more with this article, which details how baseball has really blown up its own fan base in the quest for the almighty dollar - a way of doing business that has come back to hurt them, or will, when FOX et al are no longer willing to pay outrageous prices to show games.

Along the way, the game lost a generation who couldn't stay up at night. In the chase for the almighty dollar, baseball gave up its youngest fans.

No need to look any further than the second game of the NL championship series for proof. The game didn't begin until after 10 p.m. ET and by the time it mercifully ended nearly five hours later, people not only had fallen asleep at the game but some early risers had awakened to it.

It's only logical that the later a game goes, the fewer the people watching. And the longer a game takes to be played, the more people will get bored watching it. It's a pretty simple equation: Late and long is killing the postseason.

You would think someday baseball folks would figure it out.

It's pathetic. One person just told me that they couldn't help but enjoy watching their daughter be so elated when Damon hit that HR in Game 3 of the ALDS... only to have her go to sleep soon after. And she certainly couldn't watch Game 4.

As a note, basketball is the worst offender, dragging the postseason out for months on end. One of the reasons the NCAA tournament is so popular is that it happens awfully fast - 3 weekend to turn 65 teams into 1 champion. The NBA can't finish a single series in that time period. The NFL has it the best, where their games are already a week apart; as it is, they get criticized for the week extra between the Conference Championships and the Super Bowl, though I don't think those are all that bad.

All Over the Place

As can be imagined, I'm a bit all over the place today. Life is both very exciting and very nerve-wracking at the moment. So... here are a few tidbits I found interesting in a wide array of topics, along with some of my own thoughts. (Occasionally, I do post my own thoughts, too, ya know...)

• The controversy over the telecommunication industry's helping out the government with eavesdropping on terrorists. I understand why Congress wants to know what was done before giving immunity for past cases, but this is not just or even primarily a terror issue; only about 10% of the instances were requested by the White House (et al). Most had to do with mafia or other crime issues, from what I can tell from the statistics. [I saw them yesterday in an article, but cannot find it now.]
• Imagine if Rush Limbaugh or Sean Hannity had made an outrageous claim like this - would he not be looking for a new job by now? Making up stories that the "right-wing hate machine" mugged an Air America host to "silence" her - when her own lawyer says she fell while walking her dog?! Gotta love this apology:

  Host Jon Elliott issued a written retraction of his remarkable on-air charge, saying: "I shouldn't have speculated based on hearsay that Randi Rhodes had been mugged and that it may have been an attack from a right wing hate machine. [Ez: Ya think?] I apologize for jumping to conclusions based on an emotional reaction."

  What does it say about the left that their "emotional reactions" make them jump to such insane conclusions against the right so quickly? Yes, all talk-show hosts jump to extreme interpretations of events - it's what gets them ratings - but this is way beyond the pale.
  
• I'm sure James Taranto will write about this far better than I later on, but I'm not sure what to think about this media shield law. There are a nice amount of common-sense exceptions, which is a good thing, but wouldn't it behoove this country to force reporters and media outlets to use a little more common sense and care in their reporting in the first place?! The largest problems that caused reporters to be jailed stemmed from completely false reports, such as Joe Wilson's infamous and false editorial that the NY Times printed that set off the firestorm about Wilson's wife, Valerie Plame. Moreover, this is an important note, too:

  The Justice Department, in questioning the need for the legislation, said it had approved the issuances of subpoenas to reporters seeking confidential source information in only 19 cases between 1992 and 2006.

  It sounds like this will shield law will simply encourage people with political agendas to constantly leak information without worry of it coming back to bite them. This will only hurt the country in the long run, because administrations will be incredibly secretive about everything they do to avoid leaks.
• Obama & Cheney are distant cousins. It's just funny.
• An Israeli Bedouin Arab who has 67 (!!!) kids from 8 wives is looking for wife #9.
• This was fascinating and very smart:

  Two key RBI singles in the inning came from second baseman Asdrubal Cabrera and first baseman Victor Martinez, each switch-hitters, both of whom were notably batting right-handed against the right-handed Wakefield. As Cabrera explained, Wakefield's knuckler more often that not breaks in on right-handed hitters and away from lefties. So the more effective way to attack it, if you have the choice that a switch-hitter does, is to go right-handed.

  Nice. Note that the left-handed hitting Travis Hafner struck out three times against Wakefield; Sizemore was 0/2 with a walk to lead off the game; and Lofton grounded out twice, for a combined 0/8 with a walk. Righties were 0/5 with a BB and 4K's the first time around, 3/5 with a 2B, HR, and HBP the second time around, and 2/2 the third time around.
• Finally, I don't get why everyone was this down on Westbrook and Byrd. Yes, they're not amazing pitchers, but they are both very consistent - Byrd throws strikes [fewest BB/9 in baseball], Westbrook keeps the ball down and gets ground balls and double plays. That has been their modus operandi for a few years, which is why they pick up 15 wins a year. Westbrook hasn't given up more than 4 runs in his last 15 starts; he only gave up 4 twice. Last year, when he was healthy all year, he led the league in ground-ball DPs.

Go Tribe!

Thoughts from a Sports Guy Reader

This was an e-mail I sent in to Bill Simmons (the very funny and actually intelligent sportswriter known as the "Sports Guy") at 3:45am after reading his latest column... I decided it was good enough to post.

I'm an Indians fan currently living in NYC (yes, the ALDS rocked), and I thought you'd enjoy a few tidbits from the Indians' announcers and an Indians fan in light of your latest article.

• 1) Tom Hamilton announced as Blood Pressure Borowski came in that "Indians fans might be shocked to learn that he had more 1-2-3 innings this year than Mariano Rivera." My brother called me up to tell me this and say "Yep, I was shocked."
• 2) Every ex-Clevelander I know has come up to me this postseason and said "You know, this year feels different. I'm not waiting for something horrible to happen that ends it all... I feel like they actually might win!" I'm sure that until 2004, you could appreciate that one.
• 3) Then again, as I listened online to Game 2, when Youkilis hit that liner on the 11th pitch in the bottom of the 9th, I almost had a heart attack. (I'm 24.) Within 60 seconds of that moment, I'd spoken to my brother in NY, my sister in Baltimore, and my father in Cleveland. And amazingly, we'd all survived.
• 3a) Indians' announcer Hamilton about 2 seconds after pausing after that catch said "Cleveland, you can breathe again."
• 3b) I hadn't been breathing.
• 4) You haven't seen enough Browns games. That's the only way you can think that Indians' fans won't stay loud in the freezing cold. I've been to subzero Browns games at the end of the year when they're WAY out of it, and you'd think they were still in the playoff hunt. 40 degrees?! That's like a sauna to Cleveland fans.
• 4a) The Indians' announcers in Game 2 noted in about the 4th or 5th inning that the Sox fans didn't seem as loud as the Indians or Yankees fans had been in the first series. It could be because it's a smaller park, but Hegan thought that they seemed like they were waiting for the World Series to get really into it.
• 4b) As a total throw-in, Bill Belichik is an *******. He completely sucked when he coached the Browns, and while he's not at Jordan/Elway/Modell/Jose Mesa/Steelers level of hatred in Cleveland, that's only because everyone thought he was too boring to listen to to even hate.
• 4b2) I think the only reason Romeo Crennel didn't get fired as the Browns' head coach after Week 1 is because people are afraid he'll be the next Belichik: Supposed defensive genius, clueless-looking head coach, sounds like he's going through the motions in press conferences, never looks like he cares about anything, spends a couple of years squandering great offensive talents (Kosar/Metcalf; Winslow/Edwards), brings in semi-washed up but decent LBs from his old team (Pepper Johnson;Willie McGinest)... it would be typical Browns to let him go and then watch as he somehow turns up in 7 years in his 2nd Super Bowl, citing what he "learned" in those "hard times" as a Browns head coach.
• 5) Whenever Joe Borowski enters a game, I have terrible Jose Mesa flashbacks, thinking "NO! Leave in Mike Jackson!!" (Betancourt)
• 6) You know that if the Indians keep winning these games, there's a strong possibility there will be no good ALCS MVP choice. If Borowski has 4 scoreless innings and 3 saves, would it not be the funniest thing ever if he's standing up there, receiving the award? Wouldn't you (in between tears and yelling) crack up at your TV screen? This could really happen.

Quote of the Night

"Cleveland, you can breathe now."

WTAM's Tom Hamilton, after Grady Sizemore made a diving catch of Kevin Youkilis' line drive on the 11th pitch of his bottom of the 9th, 2 out, runner on second at bat against Rafael Betancourt.

As a note, I wasn't breathing at the time. I also spoke to: My sister (in Baltimore), my father (in Cleveland), and my brother (in New York), all within 60 seconds of that happening.

Geez.

UPDATE

Holy. Freaking. Crap. This is the strangest and most amazing game I've listened to in a LONG, long time.

Current thoughts:

• 13-6 in the 11th!?
• I think even Joe Borowski can hold a 7-run lead. I think.
• I agree with TheApple - too bad baseball doesn't go by sudden death! On the other hand, scoring 7 is SO much more fun... and really kills the Sox bullpen.
• Eric Wedge has incredible guts.
• Trot Nixon must be the happiest man in Boston.
• I wonder if Manny knows they lost... Manny Ramirez is one of the best players to ever play the game. He waited until the last possible moment to swing at that Perez pitch... and took it DEEP out of the park to the opposite field. That's insane.
  
• CC Sabathia, Fausto Carmona, and Rafael Perez ALL got rocked... and the Indians still split in Boston. If I'm a Sox fan, I'm shaking so hard right now. As an Indians fan, I'm beyond thrilled.
• As a Clevelander, all these good things happening is just strange. I'm not even worried about using the Browns as my survivor pick tomorrow. Is that crazy?!
• Geez. YES! I don't even know what to say. This is craziness. It's only 1-1!! AAAH!!! I just hope I don't have a heart attack over the next 3 weeks.
• GO TRIBE!!
  

A Little Bit of Everything

Whenever people ask me what SerandEz is about, my most common answer is either that it's really about anything, or that it's a little bit of everything. So here's a little bit of everything, from Sukkos to Cleveland to Pobody's Nerfect to G to Las Vegas to LA to Holy Hyrax; from Red Sox-Tribe to Milk 'n Honey to Google to LeBron:

SerandEz Sukkos

• Traveling by plane all over the country with an 18-month old who suffers from motion sickness: Not fun.
  
• Traveling holding a lulav in your hand: Not normal.
  
• Traveling for 11 days, 6 of which are Shabbos or Yom Tov, and realizing when you arrive at destination one that you left your garment bag (holding all of your suits) on your bed in New York: Not good.
• Not being stuck in the middle of two hours of traffic in Delaware with less than an hour and 60 miles to go to Baltimore: Actually... not as fun.
  

So, while the lulav held up fine, and Elianna made it through the flight okay, my suits were living it up in NYC. Next, Elianna threw up during the 45-minute car ride from Akron to my parents' house in Cleveland. Luckily, Macy's had a nice pair of dress pants for $15 that I wore all of the first days; and thankfully, my sister- and brother-in-law were able to bring the suits when they came to LA.

Cleveland: The weather was surprisingly gorgeous (and didn't suddenly switch from gorgeous to snowing like it did on Pesach); SIL and OD and the -ens were there; and all in all, it was nice, calm, and the Indians were the talk of the town. At least they were when people weren't talking about the Browns beating up on the Ravens. Elianna enjoyed playing with her "big" cousins Ben & Hen, and of course started saying a whole bunch of new words: "OW" (right before she tries to hit at someone - learned from accidentally hitting Serach who said it); "NO!" (from Hen, who didn't want her to steal the car from her); "Dai!" [enough], which she seems to have simply picked up; and "Yesth!", which we taught her to offset 'No'.

We were kept entertained on Yom Tov itself by Pobody's Nerfect and her brother S[-]oner, who visited and even hosted us at their sukkah (minus Elianna) for a meal. On motzei Shabbos, we joined them and their family and a friend at laser tag, a bit of 'Dance Revolution', air hockey, etc. Note: Serach is not just tone-deaf, but lacks any sense of musical rhythm whatsoever. We also got to see G, whose conversation with my Dad bears repeating. My brother OD, who is 5 inches shorter and 100 pounds lighter than me, was not around. {note that that used to be a 50-pound difference...}

Dad: Hey G, you look good... you lose weight?
G: Yeah, I did.
Dad: I think I gained what you lost.
G: No, I think that Ezzie did. [pause] Actually, I think Ezzie ate OD.

Throughout the chag, we had some delicious Shannon Road Ice Cream that Dan (the Ice Cream Man) had dropped off at my parents' home - more on that another time. It was so good that Pobody's family bought some after she tasted a drop by our house.

On Sunday, we had a really nice time, heading out with OD & family and my parents to one of the coolest places I've seen in a long time - the LakeFarm Metroparks. They had this amazing place that had trains that hobbyists had made... mini-trains that people can ride on, that are as real as any train in make, from blowing steam to burning coal to smoke. They've built 3 miles of track over 14 acres with dozens of switch-tracks, about a dozen trains... it's amazing. After about a 40-minute wait in the long line of kids and parents, we got on... and I'm not sure who enjoyed it the most. Elianna LOVED it (despite the constant cloud of smoke that was puffing from the front of the train), crying "Maw! Maw!" when it finally slowed to a stop.

After that, we headed to LakeFarm Park and enjoyed the Corn Maze (Elianna loved this, too) and then seeing all the animals, where Elianna quickly learned what sound each animal made. She wanted to pet them all, but only a few got close enough for her to have a shot; she had an amazing time petting the sheep inside one of the buildings. The next day, after visiting Great-Grandma, she had even more fun at the zoo, seeing all the elephants, monkeys, fish, and of course, a ton of Jews.

Los Angeles: After that, it was off to LA. On the drive from the zoo to the airport, Elianna threw up, resulting in a quick cleanup in the trunk as I checked our bags in. Thankfully, there was enough room on the first leg to Vegas for her carseat, so we didn't have to hold her... but she threw up right as we landed, and we had about 15 minutes until our next flight to LA. We were so rushed I didn't even have a chance to gamble in the airport - nebach. She was fine on the flight to Burbank, and we had a nice relaxing night in the guest wing of Serach's sister's in-laws. (Gotta love LA.)

Yom tov in the Valley was really nice - pretty much spent the whole time with family and family friends, just rushing into the city one evening to meet a friend, until motzei Shabbos. On that night, we drove to meet another good friend whom Serach had never met - the one, the only, the famous: Holy Hyrax! We had some great Chinese, and ended up sitting there shmoozing with the Hyraxes until about 2:30 in the morning while Elianna slept in the (really cute) kids' room. Unsurprisingly, Mrs. Hyrax is much more fun than Holy, and got along almost too well with Serach, particularly in their opinions on subjects such as blogging. She's also going to closely monitor anything he says on the blog from now on. Hehe.

On our last day in the City of Angels, I'd been hoping to meet up with Jack (of the infamous Shack), but when he was available we got a bit bogged down with packing and the like and it didn't end up happening. I also missed a friend's engagement party and we couldn't go out with Ser's aunt and uncle, either - not the best ending to our trip, but okay. At least Elianna slept the whole way to New York - two flights holding her in our arms, though at least the first showed Evan Almighty which was somewhat funny.

There's definitely something nice about traveling through Cleveland to New York and seeing how everyone just seemed to calmly feel that there was no way the Indians were blowing the series. It's quite a change from what Clevelanders are used to. Sweet.

Indians vs. Red Sox

What a series this is going to be. Of course, the first two games will be on Shabbos, meaning we will miss what might be two of the best pitching duels in an LCS game in years. What's interesting is that the Indians are really given a boost by the 2-3-2 format due to the makeup of their team: The Indians, led by CC & Carmona in Games 1 & 2, have a legitimate shot in both games in Boston. They can come back to Cleveland 1-1... maybe even UP 2-0. Even 1-1 puts a ton of pressure on the Sox, who would need to win at least one in Cleveland, and even then could easily be in a 3-2 hole by the time they head home with Carmona pitching Game 6. I do think that the Sox are an amazing team - all-around, probably slightly better than the Indians - but the Indians' pitching may actually put them at an advantage in a series like this. Whatever happens, I think this will be an amazing series to remember. Indians in 6.

I don't know why people were pushing the D-backs to pitch Brandon Webb three times against the Rockies. He's given up 4+ runs to them four times this season, with his ONLY good start against them their only loss in the last 3 weeks. And, unsurprisingly, he got hit again today and gave up four runs. People would have been wiser to suggest Livan Hernandez, who had a number of really good starts against the Rockies this year. Rockies in 7.

Milk 'n Honey

I was eating at Milk 'n Honey in Manhattan today, and their pizza is actually very good. When I started working a little over a year ago, it cost $2.25/slice - expensive, but not crazy by NYC standards. A short time later it was at $2.50; soon after, it hit $2.95. Somewhat outrageous, but hey, what can ya do, right? Today I bought 2 slices and a can of soda ($1.25) and was surprised to see the bill was $8.94 including tax. I asked the cashier how much a slice was, and she responded immediately:

"Three-fifty"

WHAT!? $3.50 for a SLICE OF PIZZA!? Is that not insane?! I know the price of milk [and therefore cheese] is up, but has it gone up 56% in one year like the price of this pizza? I know that rent in Manhattan is high, but this is absolutely crazy. Am I wrong for thinking so? Please tell me if there's justification for price hikes like this - I just don't see how it's possible.

Google

Google scares me. I've said this for a while, but now it's starting to become a lot more obvious. People forget that Google is a for-profit corporation run by people who have their own beliefs and agendas; it's not some purely automated search engine with no human touch. Google's GoogleNews has often been accused of severe left-wing bias, taking information from far-left sources but ignoring mainstream right-wing ones. They allowed the Chinese government to censor all information coming through Google in China. They're not concerned with "truth", they're concerned with money and what they believe... and they have every right to do so. The problem is that people have become too reliant on Google: This blog, for example, is on Blogger, a service owned by Google, and they could theoretically delete it at any time. I use Picasa for my pictures... and that's owned by Google, too. I upload videos on YouTube, owned by... you got it. Google. Now, they're banning ads that attack MoveOn.org, the far-left group infamous recently for their "General Betray Us" ad scandal involving the New York Times.

The flow of information is likely the single most important factor that affects the future of this country. When one group that is not checked in any way, that has this much money and power, that has absolutely nothing that stops them from doing what they want, and can control that flow of information at will in very subtle ways [by simply not showing the information which they don't like, for example], it can be a very dangerous power. [Note: While Google leans strongly left, this would be true of ANY similar company or organization on either side of the spectrum.]

LeBron

I don't get the big deal over LeBron rooting for the Yankees, though flaunting it at the Jake may have been pushing it a bit. He's a Yankee fan - he should have to change as a player for Cleveland in a different sport? Give the guy a break - he was honest, not playing dumb games and making false claims. It's more troubling that he was a huge front-runner: I mean come on... Bulls, Cowboys, Yankees? I used to hate guys like that. Bill Simmons has a good piece on ESPN basically saying the same things.

PostScript

I think that the only thing this post is missing is a roundup. Chana tagged me with a meme that asks the writer to link to five posts that show the evolution of their blog. I'm not sure I can do that - this blog has definitely changed a lot in many ways since it began, but overall, it really has stuck to the About This Site blurb in the sidebar, which is that it's about just about everything. SerandEz is really centered around the 'community', so to speak, and not just me and my opinions; a lot of were or have become good friends of ours, both on the blog and off. I'll consider doing the meme for real later, but in all honesty, I think that this post symbolizes a lot of what this blog is all about and always has been.

Why the Yankees Lost

The most important and obvious reason: The Indians simply beat them.

In Moneyball, Billy Beane was quoted as saying that all a team can really do is get to the playoffs; everything after that is basically luck, with perhaps having a couple of great starting pitchers making a difference. I think that's basically true. (Nephtuli? NoyG? G?) Managing actually plays a small role in the playoffs - when to make moves, whom to start, etc. - and in that aspect, I think Wedge had a clear edge, helped a lot by Torre's terrible decisions, such as starting Wang.

The Indians hit about .500 with RISP in the series. That's astounding, and pretty lucky. The Yankees hit .100. That's unlucky. But the number of chances each team had to hit with RISP (27[!] to 10 with two outs) is a lot of the difference, and that comes back to simple things like walks and OBP. The Indians had a .417 OBP; the Yankees were at .300. The Indians walked 20 times, the Yankees 14. The Indians constantly had runners on base and IN scoring position, helped by 10 doubles; the Yankees didn't (just 3 doubles), and perhaps pitching out of the stretch affected things as well. Certainly the worry about wild pitches was justified after Chamberlin's.

While there's no real "clutch" in baseball, there is "choke". I don't think the Yankees really choked, though Joba might have when the bugs were flying around his head; Carmona had the same problem in the 9th yet never stepped off the mound.

Torre starting Wang was idiotic. "Let's throw out a guy who got shelled against the same team on short rest, even though guys on short rest are 12-30 since 1999 and Mussina is perfectly fine." If he were truly concerned about Mussina, he should have started him but had Wang available to come in as a reliever. I don't get why he wouldn't put (LH) Giambi up against Byrd. Wedge starting Nixon against Clemens was good. The only two players who really didn't play well in the series are two starters who are hard to replace at their positions - 3B Casey Blake and 2B Asdrubal Cabrera - and both play the field well. Wedge using his bullpen properly was great, though putting in Borowski was the only time I was nervous last night. As I discussed with the friends I was watching with last night, having Borowski as the closer who only really pitches in save situations is brilliant from a different standpoint: It means that the Indians' best relievers can be put in when you really need them, such as with runners on or to get past a rough part of the lineup, etc. Betancourt and Perez faced 70 inherited runners this year; just 9 scored. Using them and Jensen Lewis just to place more pressure on the Yankees by having them chew up those 6th-8th innings is great.

I have to admit to rooting against the Indians for one AB - hoping ARod would HR off Perez. It just stuck it more to Yankees fans who whine about ARod not being 'clutch'. I also couldn't help but enjoy the constant camera panning to ARod, as if he were at fault for Jeter grounding into double plays or Posada whiffing. Anyone else notice how ARod seems to be the only player on the Yankees (maybe Matsui, Giambi do it sometimes) who goes back to the dugout and advises his teammates what to look for, who listens to coaches telling him little things before the AB, etc.? Meanwhile, if you watch Indians' games, you see just about the whole team doing it (especially Casey Blake, Victor Martinez, and Hafner)?

There's plenty more, but that's good enough for the post. Whomever is interested is welcome to join in in the comments. :)

GO TRIBE!

Oh - Indians in 7, because I have to. Can CC/Carmona pitch 1-2, 4-5, and both be available in 7? Or at least CC in Game 7?

WAHOO!!!!

THE INDIANS WIN! THE INDIANS WIN!!!!!!

And it was by really beating the Yankees. I don't think anything but a World Series victory could be better at this point.

Ahhhhh....

Indians in Five

...in case you were wondering. I actually think they can do it in less [see below], but five is a safer bet.

I'm actually a bit surprised: I thought the Red Sox would choose the Thursday start to keep the Angels from starting Lackey and Escobar twice and to stick it to the Yankees; a Wednesday start would have been great for the Tribe. Even so, I don't think Yankees fans appreciate just how good CC and Sabathia are - I expect a dominating Game 1 from CC, and as long as Carmona stays calm, a very good Game 2 out of him. He'd also be available in

The Yankees haven't seen CC since 2004; he's a power lefty with amazing control. That's pretty much all the Yanks' biggest problems in one... and it's on the road. Then comes Carmona, who has improved drastically on his own control, and who throws that amazing power sinker. He shut them down in his first start until Borowski blew his 6-2 lead, and that was in Yankee stadium.

I don't see any Yankees pitcher having a great start. Okay, maybe even good - but not enough to win a game if the Yankees aren't hitting. People get caught up in the Yankees' lineup and their 6-0 record against the Tribe that they forget who they actually beat and that the Indians are one of the best hitting teams in baseball, too - and they've only gotten better with guys like Asdrubal Cabrera, Franklin Gutierrez, etc. The Indians also have the best and deepest bench in the playoffs.

Hafner is finally hitting, which will be huge - he was a real hole in the middle of the lineup until the past couple of weeks.

People think the Yankees are the hottest team in baseball... even though the Indians have been hotter. Since August 13th: 31-13 vs. 28-17.

I can't say I love Westbrook or Byrd in Games 3 & 4, though Westbrook always keeps the ball down and has been very good lately, while Byrd at least doesn't walk anybody. I still think the Indians should throw a wrench at the Yankees if they're up 2-0, start Aaron Laffey in Game 3, have him pitch 4-5 innings (once or twice through the order), get a small lead, then have Westbrook come in for 2 innings. It would completely throw off the Yankees, who - like the Indians - have trouble with pitchers they haven't seen before. Then they could finish them off with Perez, Betancourt... and maybe even Joe Borowski (gulp). But doing so could seriously cause clubhouse rifts, which does play a role in October baseball.

So... elsewhere: Rockies in four, unless Hamels can pitch every other day. Diamondbacks in four, with Micah Owings hitting a HR to win Game Two for himself. Red Sox-Angels will be fascinating - I wonder if the Angels can surprise everyone, beat Beckett in Game One, and take out the Sox in four or even in a sweep. But if it goes back to Boston for Game Five, you have to give it to Boston.

And of course, Indians in five. GO TRIBE!!

Chag Sameach to all!