jaybird2001wi

One thing that is worth mentioning is in spite of all his accusations, there is no correlation between these allegations and his statistics. Last season, he hit .214 away from Wrigley Field while batting near .300 at home. So it does not seem changes of scenery do this guy any good. His strikeout totals are too shifty year-to-year for any logical conclusion to believe umps dislike him.

Well today I was watching ESPN today and they had a discussion of Milton Bradley and his constant conflicts that follow him wherever he goes. When he is not arguing with umpires, he questions them. A select few sill defend him while pretty much every prior team states he was his own worst enemy. Bradley's blames on previous teams include the following: Blaming the city for his problems, umpires out to get him, management not "getting him," etc. List can go on. But when did all of his tirades begin? I never really recalled any problems back when he started his career with the Expos and it all seemed to begin towards the tail end of his time in Cleveland. His career numbers indicate he has been a solid player since the tail end of his Indians' career posting above .350 OBP in all years since his last season in Cleveland. Despite his constant paranoid statements regarding umpires "out to get him," his strikeout numbers have been fairly manageable with just two seasons of 100 or more strikeouts. It seems to me that he has a lot of manic episodes that lead to physical aggression, paranoia about every umpire and team he ever came into contact with. Unless he has voices that tell him these things, he may have an undiagnosed case of Bi Polar or Schizophrenia (if he does hallucinate). Does anyone think this is the case?

Just wondering if any Major League teams have made any decisions regarding renewing and not renewing their agreements with their affiliates for the 2010 season. For example when the Brewers decided to make the switch to the T-Rats last season after the T-Rattlers longstanding relationship with the Mariners.

ESPN.com just did a comparison of the recent admissions conveyed by Andre Agassi and McGwire's vague testimony before congress. Its actually a decent comparison and the majority of the people participating in the poll stated that McGwire's vague testimony was more damaging than Agassi's admissions. In some ways, it is more commendable for Agassi to come out and be open and honest about his entire career. In some aspects, he showed that even pro athletes are human and have these demons. Whereas, McGwire has always dodged questions about his past. It says a lot that Agassi came right out and admitted to things when he really did not need to and showed courage in doing so, while McGwire seemingly used vague answers in order to dodge any potential perjury charges before congress.

So I drove there to confirm this topic and it was true. I figured the hours would be greatly reduced with a very early closing time and it happened when I pulled into the parking lot at 8:30pm to see the lights inside dimmed. I might check it out in the next day or so and stock up on a ton of stuff that does not go bad right away or essentials like plastic spoons/forks, paper plates and cookies or something. Maybe some pasta as well. When did the official close-out begin? Just wondering so I know what to expect as far as availability.

Well, the MPD may have possibly wiped out 9 of its cold cases with the arrest of a person of interest linked to nine homicides. The suspect was arrested at a seedy Franklin motel Saturday. The first question I have to ask is, why did this guy decide to stay in town? And with him being arrested at a motel, was this guy a transient or something? And panthernick, you are likely right. The guy was in prison roughly between 1986 to 1995.

Former Brewer Ron Belliard is now establishing himself as a journeyman infielder as he was traded from Washington to Los Angeles today in a waiver-wire deal. How our once "promising" future second baseman has now shuttled himself from organization to organization speaks volumes about what could have been had we not drafted Rickie Weeks and stuck with this guy. The guy has now been from Milwaukee then he was non-tendered after he started having a diminished work ethic and gained a ton of weight in his last Brewers' season. Made a one and done season with Colorado before heading to Cleveland followed by a trade from the Indians to St. Louis. Now with this trade from Washington to Los Angeles, it makes it his SEVENTH organization and he is 34. Does anyone think he is going to be in line for setting the record for most uniforms worn in a career set by Mike Morgan with 12 once his career is done?

I have always been fascinated with solving the unsolved and have often wondered what happened to Missing individuals. They don't just disappear in thin air. Somewhere out there are hundreds or thousands of Missing Individuals, dead or alive. Someone has to know something about any of these Missing Children out there. A kidnapper doesn't just keep it to themselves, there has to be someone they have told that is scared to talk. The Dugard case raises hope that even after a nearly 20-year disappearance, someone else can be found alive. This story makes me wonder if neighbors of other areas have made constant reports to their police department about a "strange" neighbor which the police can't do anything without probable cause. But this story is sad to say the least. Here was an 11-year-old girl with all the promise in the world, a girl who never accomplished the dream of even graduating high school and attending her Prom. Never lived the American dream of marrying and enjoying life. Now at the end, she is a brainwashed individual with two children that missed the prime of her life. Her and her children will have a difficult time re-entering, or entering for that matter, society after the torture. The perceptive and quick thinking Campus Police that reported this deserve a lot of praise for identifying unusual behavior. This story gives any Campus Police officer in the country a good name now. I wonder if the two officers will be given some sort of commendation for their keen observations.

As I spent the day watching the lame reality shows during a slow day at work, I have often wondered if there could be a baseball-themed reality show similar to Road Rules. The premise: Diverse range of baseball fans from Coast-to-coast supporting their hometown teams through thick and thin unite for an entire season of visiting all 30 MLB stadiums and minor league stadiums in between each MLB stop. The cast: A high maintenance fan from New York supporting the Mets, a small-town Iowan that is a fan of the Burlington Bees and St. Louis Cardinals and a life-long older fan from Los Angeles that supports the Dodgers, a young ChiSox fan from Chicago's inner-city join up with 10 other varieties of loyal fans. The goal: Each cast member takes turns driving the large-scale RV throughout the night and into the morning hours for their next destination. The diverse range of fans will learn to get along and understand each other's fanaticism upon their teams. So does everyone think this is a cool idea? Imagine a diverse range of people from all different backgrounds and ages uniting together for an entire summer in pursuit of enjoying the game they love.

Just wondering if anyone here knows of any secrets behind finding bargains at the grocery store. I am 6'4" 190, but I love to eat and when I am off work I spend my entire day eating nonstop food (love any type of chicken, bakery items, a couple produce items and chicken/pasta stir fry). Anyone know how to find the best deals out there? The Pig is more expensive than Pick n Save and Sentry Foods are seemingly sporadic anywhere. I have a Pick n Save card but the only food I like that applies to it are any cheese products (yes, I eat cheese and could possibly eat and entire block of sharp cheddar). I just moved to Franklin right off Ryan Rd near 94 and have worked in this area for four years. Whats the secret?

Bill Hall's Profile as a Mariner. As a player who spent his entire career with the Brewers, he looks weird in a dark blue. That and he is wearing Ned Yost's old number. Is that an omen or something?

Its been ten years since this movie came out and the more and more I work at my job, I have begun to have a lot of "Office Space" moments and I don't even work in the white-collar field. I have Upper Management changing certain things without letting us know, I basically am a sucker for working late or on days I don't need to work. And now I am at the point where I feel like Peter Gibbons being interviewed by the guy from "Scrubs" when he says, "I got several guys telling me what to do and I don't need that. I have seven people telling me how to do my job. It's like where is the motivation?" I have an occasional coworker asking me how to refill a fax machine with paper and how to use a computer. Anyone ever have these moments? It is starting to become hilarious that after four plus years I am starting to think like Peter Gibbons. The only thing my work needs is a guy that resembles Samir.

In Buster Olney's latest chat wrap on ESPN.com he officially answered by far the stupidest question ever asked and it is clear that this guy is a Cubs fan: Mike W (Chicago) Buster, you reported earlier that JJ Hardy hasn't passed through waivers yet. When it comes to August trades do both players have to pass through waivers to be included in a trade if their on a manager league roster? I ask because I could see JJ Hardy being the PTBNL in the David Weathers trade. Buster Olney (1:34 PM) Mike W.: I doubt it... but I never would've guessed that they would give up two pitching prospects for Scott Rolen, while absorbing his entire 2010 salary, so what the heck do I know... I'm assuming it would be a younng pitcher... I know Hardy is having a down year, but come on! How in the world did Olney ever decide to post that question of all the other ones that were not picked? Is Olney trying to make Cub fans look dumber or what? But that question is the most blasphemous I have ever seen. David Weathers for JJ Hardy? Pffftttt. After that question, I am at a loss for words at the intellect of anyone working for ESPN or the intellect of anyone south of our border.

One thing I remember as a kid buying those under a dollar packs of cards were the card stores. Back in my neighborhood in the late 80s-early 90s there were two card stores within walking distance. In the same neighborhood today, both are gone. One of the two card store owners gave up on the industry and traded his entire collection inventory for an antique car and called it quits collecting cards and other memorabilia. The other store was basically a card store inside a clock store and the clock store went out of business in the late 90s so the card store went too. I think the beginning of the end of the card industry was when all the newer companies came out with insanely high glossy card packs to "woo" the youngsters away from Topps and other older companies and it drove the prices up. My brother owns a Robin Yount rookie card and during the card heyday, it was worth $100 and now he would be glad to get $20 for it. For some reason the new edition prices have gone up while the legendary card values have gone down. It used to be the other way around.

Thought of an interesting game we can all play. This can be similar to the "Google won't save you" thread on the Off-Topic forum. But instead of a picture, I will throw out five random stats and/or other hints about this Brewer as a clue. The requirements are simple, in order to qualify for this game a player must have played a minimum of three seasons with the Brewers with one of three seasons as a full-time or platoon-type player. Now onto the clues.... 1. I played for six different organizations but did not make my Major League debut until my second organization, the Milwaukee Brewers. 2. My career Brewers-high in home runs was 14. 3. I have a career .318 OBP 4. I played for two of our divisional rivals. 5. My career OPS with the Brewers is the same as my cumulative OPS. Who am I?

Not entirely sure if this has been mentioned elsewhere but with the recent diagnosis of Rangers' Vicente Padilla with the swine flu, Buster Olney thinks it may be an issue that could circulate through the Majors if teams are not careful. In an ESPN Insider article excerpt (the rest was not visible due to me not subscribing), Olney mentions that Rangers Manager Ron Washington has had difficulty finding enough 100 percent healthy bodies to field a lineup. In the first few paragraphs, Olney mentions that the Rangers have seven players with lingering flu-like symptoms. I work in the Health Care Industry and a colleague of mine was diagnosed with it a couple months ago and now we have protective masks in event we need to be prepared for the worst. But a Major League clubhouse can be just as hazardous, as players use the same facilities and other things. Anyone think Olney is creating something out of nothing? For me, I still head to work like it is another day at the office and do my job. Are players showing any vigilance in protecting themselves on the road? Especially when in more deeply infected regions of the United States?

Aside from the Goodwill and charitable efforts associated with ESPNs ESPY awards, can someone tell me why this award show is taken so seriously? Yet the way the voting and Nomination process is set up, its a total joke. The ESPYs will be airing later on ESPN, tape delay, and I took a glimpse of the winners. Clearly the voters should not vote at all. How on Earth did the 2009 Collegiate Female Athlete of the Year, Courtney Kupets, not win the award for Best Female College Athlete? Kupets has accomplished far more than the winner Maya Moore. Has Moore ever won the bronze medal in multiple events in her sport? No. Has Moore ever been part of a National Championship team four years in a row? No. Can Maya Moore say she was an Olympic athlete, Individual All-Around Champion and four-time National title winner in their team sport? No. Maya Moore should not have won. Clearly Kupets should have won. If the voters chose to ignore the fact Kupets won the Best Female College Athlete with Tim Tebow as the Male Counterpart, a Heisman Trophy winner in football... then the voters are dimwitted. Comparing and Nominating Athletes from different sports for ONE SOLE award is comparing apples to oranges. It can't be contested. Everyone knows the voters will always vote for Tiger Woods, always vote for Lance Armstrong, always vote for Brett Favre. ESPN basically plays this award show off as if it is the Sports equivalent of the Emmy Awards. But in reality, it is just an excuse to invite all celebrities and have them show off on the red carpet and basically act like this show is a big deal. How in the world can someone vote for "Best Play" in 2008? The names of these awards are so vague and broad. Why doesn't the Entertainment Industry create an Academy award for "Best Scene" in a movie and then proceed to nominate any scene involving Will Smith, Will Ferrell, etc. and then leave out the "lesser known" or the actors/actresses that do their best work in Independent films. The ESPYs are ludicrous.

I am a sports-loving kind of guy that typically does not come off as an animal lover or anything but anytime I see a puppy or something I suddenly become a totally different person. I am the exact opposite of being a cat person but anytime I see a kitten or something I get all soft. Any of you guys...or gals... get that same feeling anytime you see animals or anything? I realized this when I was at my sister-in-law's softball game a few weeks ago when I saw a puppy and paid more attention to it than the actual game. Anyone get that feeling too?

Talk about a rookie being thrown into the fire early, but this is a story that makes us feel good about newer officers. A rookie NYPD cop makes an arrest minutes after he graduates from the Police Academy in NY. What I like most about this story is that newly minted cops tend to have slight fear when making an arrest but this quote says it all: Firpo's feat "may be the fastest police action upon graduation in department history," said chief police spokesman Paul Browne, who was at the graduation ceremony for the class of 250 new officers. What amazes me the most about NY is that while it still has the reputation of being a high-crime area, the NYPD officers have always shown some class. I remember visiting NY as a college student and the Public Safety officers patrolling the Subway systems were very willing to help me out when I got confused on getting a Subway token/ticket. They went out of their way to help me. I stayed at a hotel in mid-town Manhattan and I actually felt safe walking the streets because there were public safety officers at most street corners. This was post-9/11 and even now they still take time to help people. In addition to this story, I also recall a story of a man that jumped onto the Subway tracks to yank a man that fell, preventing the guy from getting hit by on oncoming train. But what does everyone think, do the NYPD and the NY people get mostly a bad rap based on the large population?

With the NBA Draft being tonight, I will be watching it. Not just because of being a sports fan, but also because it is the most comedic and entertaining draft in all professional sports because of all the weirdness that goes on and emotions. Here are the following as to why I love the NBA Draft: 1) A player gets drafted by a team he did not want to play for and ends up crying while being interviewed (see: Steve Francis) 2) The amount of Mothers at the draft supporting their sons and they end up crying by saying, "My boy is going to (insert city name) and I don't know what to do!" 3) The fashion statements conveyed by the players when smiling with David Stern. 4) Awkward height differences between Stern and the players. 5) The times players get drafted by a team knowing they will only be wearing that hat for about five minutes before being swapped to another team and they must sound excited. 6) The player who declares himself eligible for the draft knowing he will be the last guy in the Green Room; consequently, the cameras will constantly show him in embarrassment until he gets picked. 7) Whenever David Stern announces a trade and the whole crowd goes wild only to find out its a trade involving an obscure player and a second round pick. 8) Whenever the broadcasters bash the Knicks, they get a ton of boos from the MSG crowd. Then, what will likely happen first tonight? 1) The word "upside" is used or a Mother cries because his son is going to a cold winter city. 2) A player cries because he got drafted by a team he hates or an announcer gets booed. 3) A young player asks what state a small market city is located in or this young player getting confused over a "big word" used by the interviewer. 4) The crowd boos a pick because the player came out of nowhere or the broadcast crew acts like they know who the no name player is and throws in random vague statements. 5) A player who slides down the draft ladder for no apparent reason and gets upset when interviewed or the last guy in the Green Room starts to hide himself in shame. 6) A player talks on their cell phone or hugs their Mother. 7) Broadcasters say "raw talent" or "a project player" 8) The broadcast team hears a name they never heard of and stare at each other in confusion or a smart college senior states something intelligent leading to the interviewer in a state of confusion.

Well, I am headed to Akron, Ohio tomorrow morning (Friday) and will be back on Sunday night. I will be attending a conference on the University of Akron campus. I was just wondering if there are any fast food places within walking distance of the campus since I will be going by bus. I won't be doing any night life stuff, but just some information on amenities/convenience type places within walking distance. Also, how is the area around campus? Good area? Bad area?

Ever since the whole Saved by the Bell empire ended (after the dreaded "New Class" series), Screech has gotten more and more bizarre. He appeared on Celebrity Fight Club or something like that where he fought Danny Bonaduce and then he became a total jerk and managed to alienate everyone including Marcia Brady on "Celebrity Fit Club." It actually does not surprise me that Dustin Diamond is the way he is. The guy spent his whole childhood acting career being typecasted as a geek. At least Zack, Jesse and Kelly were able to stretch their acting abilities a bit but Dustin Diamond has always been known as Screech. But the guy is totally weird about everything now.

Discussing how the 40-man roster works and how players are added and subtracted from it has been discussed for quite some time, as are the amount of options a player has. But there have been cases where MLB General Managers have found nice loopholes to manipulatethe 40-man toward the end of the season. Post-July 31st waiver-wire trades and how players can be added to the 40-man roster post-August 31st has been intriguing. I recall the Angels did not have Francisco Rodriguez on the 40-man roster after August 31, but were able to add him due to an injury of one of their players on the 40-man roster. It was later confirmed the guy was pretty much injured the entire season and served as a "decoy" so they can automatically add him to the Disabled List so they can add another player such as Rodriguez, who was a World Series hero that year. As discussed before, most GMs place their entire team on waivers after July 31 to see what players would be bitten. As form of punishment for teams claiming a high salary guy that is wasting space, some GMs just throw the guy on the claiming teams lap and say, "He's your responsibility now" (see: Randy Myers). I have often wondered how many GMs have players who they never intended on actually adding to the active roster let alone sit on the bench once rosters are expanded. I seem to remember some guys on the Brewers 40-man roster that were never seen in September. How often are these occurrences?

This is in no relation to to the Jimmy Fallon thread, but he wants a Saved By the Bell reunion show? Its all over the wire and somehow Mark-Paul Gosselaar appeared on his show as a grown-up Zack Morris the other night. The only holdovers so far are Kelly Kapowski and Screech. All I know is I am wondering what Lisa Turtle looks like these days. She vanished off the face of the Earth after that show. And to see Mr. Belding for the first time since the "New Class" flamed out will be interesting. After all these years I always wondered how its possible that Jesse Spano and Zack Morris knew each other since kindergarten but Jesse was not on the initial show, "Good Morning Miss Bliss." And how was it that Mr. Belding followed Zack, Screech and Lisa to Southern California when they were in the same Indiana school? And what happened to Mikey and that one girl that protested in the episode involving frog disection? I wonder if Miss Bliss has accepted an invite and Tori? Will Jesse's jerk of a stepbrother be in this show? In elementary school, this show was always the first show I watched when it was on TBS. If Jimmy Fallon plans on making this show about grown-up versions of the characters, I have the following questions: 1) Would Zack and Kelly still be married? 2) Will AC Slater be a gym teacher? 3) Did Screech become some sort of computer geek guy? 4) Is Mr. Belding still a Principal or is he on the golf course finding golf balls? And does he still say "Hey, hey, hey! What is going on here!?" 5) What would they make Jesse Spano? 6) Will they continually make fun of Zack's phone? 7) Does Screech still like Lisa? 8) Will they show Bayside High as it is today? 9) Will AC Slater finally say how he managed to letter in five sports? (Football, Basketball, Track, Wrestling and Soccer) 10) Would Zack still play pranks?

The great majority of all of Bill Simmons' columns revolve around the NBA and random pop culture. But his David Ortiz column is intriguing in many ways: Simmons is a BoSox fan and may have surrendered to the idea that maybe Ortiz is done, mentions Ortiz's connections to questioned sluggers and the fact that maybe he may not be in a slump but rather at the end of his line. But Simmons does raise quite a few questions in relation to David Ortiz. Maybe he did lie about his age and the reason it has never really come to the surface is that he does not frequent his Dominican Republic hometown due to his wife living in Northern Wisconsin. The majority of Latin American ballplayers were exposed when they made attempts to gain work visas after the 9/11 incident where Homeland Security made it much harder for these players to receive work visas due to security. Following the beefed up security after 9/11, pretty much a ton of Latin players were exposed. Makes me wonder if Ortiz never quite faced it as much as his fellow Latin ballplayers because he does live in the States pretty much year round. Also, he mentions his DR friends that have long been suggested as using PEDs. Maybe there is some truth to it, maybe there isn't. But really, ever since Manny Ramirez was suspended, Simmons has been feeling extremely ashamed to be a Sox fan. Now he is under the impression his 2004 Sox were a bunch of cheaters, which he has stated before in previous columns.