September 12, 2008
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Friday Quick Bits
Well, this morning I had some idea for a long post, but sometime between eating lunch and now, I’ve forgotten what it was. If I remember it at some point, I’ll post it, but I get the feeling that it was a “sooner-the-better” type post. In the meantime, the Tigers just look…tired, for some reason. At least, more tired than they should be. And I don’t know why. Especially the pitching staff. Well, I guess in the case of the rookie Armando Galarraga, it’s at least understandable. Minor League seasons end in August, so he’s in uncharted waters and he’s never pitched this much before. From what I can tell, it’s only natural for rookie starting pitchers to run into a wall in about late August/early September, and for that reason. The same thing happened to Justin Verlander in ’06. Still, it’s hard to watch him struggle, and I’d like to see him finish strong in his final three starts, which, as it stands right now, would be Texas (very good offense), Kansas City (not a good offense), and Tampa Bay (not-especially-prolific-but-good-enough offense). Speaking of rookies, the Tigers are embarking on their final road trip of the season, which means at some point there’s gonna be that hazing ritual where they make the rookies wear stupid outfits. I’m not sure how it “usually” works (other than knowing that it happens on getaway day and the veteran players steal the rookies’ clothes from the locker room and put the stupid outfits in their place), but apparently last year was somewhat unorthodox and because of that, the FSN camera crew was not there. And judging by their tone last year, I get the feeling that they are there most years. I don’t know when it will happen this year, but I’d just as soon the camera crews NOT be there, because I don’t especially want to see Matt Joyce in drag or Jeff Larish in a Teletubbies costume or anything like that (though, given his dubious position as unofficial team barber, someone with a good sense of humor should make Freddy Dolsi dress up as Sweeney Todd).
I was reading MLB.com today, and I came across their press statement which described their postseason coverage campaign:
The campaign highlights the increasingly popular digital trend, blogging, by featuring players at a computer writing a blog entry about their anticipation and excitement for the postseason. For each unique spot, images of the players blogging are interspersed with video highlights of the featured Club and its rivals.
That’s part of the excerpt. I kinda question the fact that they’ve already chosen the players that will be featured in the ads. Mark Teixera and Torii Hunter are foolproof, since the Angels have already clinched a postseason berth. They’ve also got Evan Longoria and Carlos Peña, which should be okay, as the Rays would have to have a massive collapse to not get in. Same with Kosuke Fukudome and Aramis Ramirez of the Cubs. However, they’ve got A.J. Pierzynski, Jermaine Dye, Jimmy Rollins, and Ryan Howard. The White Sox are still very much in a battle with the Twins, so the postseason is no guarantee for them, and right now, the Phillies aren’t even in position to claim either the NL East or the Wild Card (though if the Brewers continue to fade, that may change). What happens if one of those two don’t make it? Then these ads would look really stupid. I didn’t really like last year’s ads either, mostly cuz they tried to portray the Boston Red Sox as some sort of loveable, scrappy underdog team, when in reality they are one of the most dominant, high payroll teams in all of baseball (I’m not criticizing the fact that they have a high payroll, and even if I wanted to, I am in no position to do so. I just don’t like that they’re pretending to be something they’re not). I actually liked the ads they made two years ago, with Tommy Lasorda coaxing the fans of teams who didn’t make the postseason to come out of hiding (Let’s see…there was a Red Sox fan hiding in the bathroom of her sorority house, a family of Indians fans hiding in kitchen cabinets, and a Cubs fan hiding in a tree) and go “to the TV.” Those were funny.
EDIT: I am sick and tired of everyone saying that Justin Verlander lost on Opening Day. He did NOT lose. He got a no-decision. The game went extra-innings, remember? And it’s not, like, your average fan who’s getting this wrong. It’s news sources like FSN and the Detroit Free Press.
