Spaceman hits the big screen

I had the opportunity to clear out the DVR recently and finished off Spaceman: A Baseball Odyssey.

I liked it even though it didn't blaze any new ground on one of the game's greatest characters - especially for anyone who has read Bill Lee's autobiography, The Wrong Stuff.

I read that book several years ago. I've always admired Lee's honesty and willingness to be himself even though it meant less opportunity to play the game he loves. And watching the movie gave me the sense that it was a "documentary based on the book."

One major difference was Lee's aunt stealing the show in her commentary, especially punctuating how he probably pitched while high but that it didn't affect him.

There was also a part about a barnstorming tour Lee took in Cuba a few years ago. That was some fascinating stuff, especially the bit in which he's walking around cow fields in full uniform trying to find a stadium. You had the feeling he would bump into Fidel Castro and they would have a catch. That wouldn't surprise anyone with the Spaceman.

I did gain a greater appreciation for just how much Lee loves playing baseball and how that love gives him an instant connection to so many people no matter their background.

It was definitely an enjoyable movie, and I hope MLB Network continues to show things like this. I'd rather be riding Space Mountain, but if that's not possible, I'll take a good baseball movie like Spaceman.

Baseball's crazy past and scary future

For the first time since the Phillies won the World Series, a gift-giving occasion passed without me getting Christine any championship garb or trinket. I wonder if that trend will hold true for her birthday next weekend.

But Christine did go baseball for my Valentine's Day gift, getting me the latest version of Baseball Mogul, my favorite sports simulation game. This year, for some strange reason, the game is endorsed by former Red Sox great Bill "Spaceman" Lee.

This isn't just a name-on-the-box run-of-the-mill sports endorsement. No, no, no, that wouldn't do for the Spaceman. The game comes with a separate DVD containing three ... three ... hours of interviews with Lee. Christine was quite amused when she saw that the interviews got the game a T for Teen rating because of sex and drug references. We still don't understand the point of the interview, but I'll watch every minute of it.

The first 10 minutes or so provides no insight. It's Bill Lee talking to the camera while a guy talks to him off-screen. The guy (I'm pretty sure he's a Canadian) doesn't know that Pete Rose is banned from major league ballparks, that Fidel Castro is out of power or that Ronald Reagan is dead. So far, I've learned that Bill Lee liked the drugs his dad got to treat pneumonia and is very fond of Cuba. I'm sure I'll share more as I watch in the coming days.

Since we're talking about crazy Red Sox pitchers from long ago, Nick Cafardo says Dennis "Oil Can" Boyd wants a chance to make a comeback. He wants to emulate his idol, Satchel Paige, and pitch into his 60s. He says his shoulder is stronger than ever:

I have nothing to lose, and all a major league team has to lose is 15 minutes. Give me 15 minutes and I'll show I can still pitch. That's all I want.

If the Pirates took a chance with those guys from India, why not give Oil Can a looksie? He's only three years older than Jamie Moyer.

Speaking of whom ... you know how when you got in trouble as a kid, it was always worse when your parents sat in quiet disappointment than if they just yelled and screamed at you? I bet that's the equivalent of being taken to the woodshed by baseball's elder statesman, who chimed in on Alex Rodriguez:

"It's about respecting the game," Moyer said. "I'd be disappointed in anybody in that situation. "When people have had an impact on your life, you want to feel for them. But how can I feel for him? To me, if you're doing it, you know it's illegal. I commend him for coming out and saying it, but why didn't he say it seven years ago?"

Asked if his sons, now teenagers, were disappointed in Rodriguez, Moyer said: "I'm sure they are. We've talked a little about it. It's also a lesson. One day he's a Hall of Famer, and in a 24-hour period he's not because of a poor decision. That's a shame."

Scary thought: Nick Cafardo's Sunday column muses how baseball is getting "creepy" again. I thought it was going to be another steroids theme, and parts were, but it was an encompassing look at all the storm clouds appearing between players and owners, with the implication that the resolve not to let the 1994 strike recur could be forgotten. Creepy, indeed.

[Cover shot: Strategy First]

Antiquated Red Sox garb III

Next up in my occasional series is one you've already seen. It's an oldie but goodie: Maurice Vaughn.

I got this shirt in the mid-1990s at Fenway. While waiting in line, I almost changed my mind to a Jose Canseco model (I think he had a big game or something). I got some good, surprisingly sincere advice from a Yankees fan who said I should stick with Mo because he'd stick around longer; Canseco was just a mercenary.

I think about that when I wear my faded blue shirt with crumbling letters and No. 42.

Mo was back in the news this week. (The first time since the Mitchell report.) Congrats, I guess, though I don't understand why the Sox would induct a roider this year, even though he didn't start using until after he left the Sox. Ironic, though, that joining him in the Red Sox Hall of Fame is Mike Greenwell, who pointed out years ago that he should be declared the 1988 MVP since Canseco admitted using steroids.

Glad to see Bill Lee inducted too. What took so long?