May 14, 2008

No shot at a no-hitter

Tonight is an annual work function that keeps Greg out late. Last year, he missed Cole Hamels take a no-hitter into the 7th.

No need to worry about that this year.

Brett Myers gave up a home run to the first Brave he faced tonight. And the third. And the seventh.

All told, the staff "ace" gave up eight runs, six earned, before leaving the game in an 8-0 hole in the top of the 5th inning. He's now sporting a 5.91 ERA. For comparison, Adam Eaton's ERA is 5.40.

[I got home earlier than expected. Late night guy on WIP had two theories on Myers' struggles, either injury or disgruntled about not relieving.]

The Phils chipped away and had the winning run at the plate in the 9th, but lost 8-6.

Meanwhile, the Red Sox lost their fourth straight today, 6-3 to the Orioles, after Hideki Okajima gave up a grand slam to Jay Payton in the 7th inning. We have Okajima on our fantasy team - lucky for him that he was benched this week.

Too late to change my mind? I struggled when we were making our preseason picks. Should I play it serious, or should I pick the Pirates and the Rangers to win their divisions? I mostly played it straight. But I'm kicking myself over one choice - the Tampa Bay Rays. I did not want to pick either the Yankees or the Red Sox, but in the end I let the spirit of the blog get to me and I chose the Red Sox.

But I'll put this on the record now: I wanted to pick the (Devil) Rays. I always feel bad for their team, their fans, everything about them. They have always been down on their luck. Plus, they're pretty much the only team in baseball that I don't hold a grudge against in some way. (And I guess this little trade endeared me as well.) So I think it's awesome that they have been playing so well lately - actually, the best they have played in their 10-year history. Go Rays - I'll be cheering you on until you face the Phillies in the World Series.

Ottley: Via The 700 Level. Not sure where the typo came from (Politico, the transcriptionist, whoever), but I'm tempted to call Chase Utley "Otter" from now on:

Q: Mr. President, I know you're going to hate this, but I'm hoping that we may twist your arm and talk about baseball for just a moment. (Laughter.) Mr. President, you're a Major League Baseball team owner again. Everyone is a free agent. You have a Yankees-like wallet. Who is your first position player? Who's your pitcher?

THE PRESIDENT: That's a great question. I like Ottley [sic] from the Philadelphia Phillies. He's a middle infielder, which is always -- you know, they say you have strength up the middle -- there's nothing better than having a good person up the middle that can hit. And Roy Halladay from the Toronto Blue Jays is a great pitcher. He's a steady guy, he burns up innings.

Ottley will soon be playing for the Deciders, an expansion team forged by W, who needs something to do after January.

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