PKBadger

Concerning a replacement for/alternative to Weeks... The other day in Jayson Stark's chat on ESPN.com, he mentioned that the Giants might move Ray Durham and that they "wouldn't get much back for him". After an abysmal (and out-of-character) 2007 season, Durham has returned to form, hitting .294/.377/.406 (.783 OPS) in 68 games. Career OBP of .351. That would look really nice in the #1 or #2 slots in the batting order. To me, Durham seems like the ideal candidate to shore up 2B (more so than Mark Grudzielanek, for certain). If Stark's assessment of his trade value is on point, would this be a guy the Brewers should be targeting? Durham's contract expires after the 2008 season, so we don't need to worry about budget. I see that he did leave yesterday's game with a mild ankle sprain - doesn't sound too serious.

Some balls are held for charity, and some for fancy dress. But when they're held for no-no's, they're the balls that I like best.

Gonna echo JoeHova here and suggest Dragonforce.

Did anyone else notice on the Father's Day telecast, that Branyan has a son named Cash? He said that it was in honor of Johnny Cash, but I choose to believe that it was supposed to be spelled Ca$h because Russ is such a high rollin' son of a gun.

Crocs should only be worn with jorts and one of those "Big Johnson" t-shirts with a soft pack of Winstons rolled up in the sleeve.

What's the story near Milwaukee? I'm supposed to land at Mitchell around 1:30pm tomorrow....wondering if I should expect delays. Is there flooding in SE Wisconsin?

Big Mike's Super Subs (now Milio's) on Regent St. in Madison is 233-3233. I remember that from when I lived at College Park Apts.

Artificial Gills - "What Can't Be Done" http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3113/2555049538_805f580cd0.jpg?v=1212711951 http://l.yimg.com/g/images/spaceball.gifhttp://images.yuku.com/image/gif/d283588f47e7966ed1cca67b6e34abe8a5f5865.gifhttp://images.yuku.com/image/gif/d283588f47e7966ed1cca67b6e34abe8a5f5865.gifhttp://images.yuku.com/image/gif/d283588f47e7966ed1cca67b6e34abe8a5f5865.gifhttp://images.yuku.com/image/gif/d283588f47e7966ed1cca67b6e34abe8a5f5865.gifhttp://images.yuku.com/image/gif/d283588f47e7966ed1cca67b6e34abe8a5f5865.gifhttp://images.yuku.com/image/gif/d283588f47e7966ed1cca67b6e34abe8a5f5865.gifhttp://images.yuku.com/image/gif/d283588f47e7966ed1cca67b6e34abe8a5f5865.gif

I think (hope?) what Al was trying to say is that the NBA has always had problems trying to sell their product to a predominantly white audience. This is a topic that Bill Simmons has touched on a number of times in his columns, especially during the debacle that was the Las Vegas edition of the NBA All-Star Game. http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/blog/index?name=simmons&entryDate=20070302 So who gets blamed? Naturally, the NBA. The league's fundamental issue has remained the same for four decades: It's a league of mostly black players marketing itself to a mostly white audience and a mostly white media. That delicate balance was the premise of David Halberstam's watershed sports book "The Breaks of the Game," which was published 25 years ago, back when MJ was playing for Carolina and Michael Jackson was on his second nose. Nothing has really changed. Just look at the way Iverson's credentials were belittled when Philly shopped him last December, or the comically skewed reaction to a Nuggets-Knicks brawl that wasn't one-tenth as violent as the Senators-Sabres brawl last week. Certain media members will always delight in sticking it to the NBA, with the underlying theme being, "Sorry, I just can't identify with those black guys."

Now, I am not a lawyer, but would someone explain how this is NOT a trademark issue? (from Wikipedia) Infringement may occur when one party, the "infringer", uses a trademark which is identical or confusingly similar to a trademark owned by another party, in relation to products or services which are identical or similar to the products or services which the registration covers. Where the respective marks or products or services are not identical, similarity will generally be assessed by reference to whether there is a likelihood of confusion that consumers will believe the products or services originated from the trademark owner. The Court there announced eight specific elements to measure likelihood of confusion: Strength of the mark Proximity of the goods Similarity of the marks Evidence of actual confusion Marketing channels used Type of goods and the degree of care likely to be exercised by the purchaser Defendant's intent in selecting the mark Likelihood of expansion of the product lines Proximity of the goods? They're being sold across the street from Wrigley Field. Similarity of the marks? That's pretty clear. Defendant's intent in selecting the mark? Pretty obvious - profit off the Cubs intellectual property. I could certainly see how a consumer might assume that the Chicago Cubs are selling these shirts or licensed their sale. And the Cubs could suffer damages if their brand is associated with racism or intolerance (how to quantify those damages is another story). Again, not a lawyer. In my grad school program for marketing, we recently took a law class that just covered the basics, and I'm legitimately curious about this case because given what I had been taught, it would seem that the Cubs have legal standing. So if anyone can lend more insight, please post!

? There's only one Hardcastle that I'm down with, and he rides with McCormick. (Did I have the Hot Wheels version of the Coyote X?? You're damn right I did.)

The worst is when you're at a red light and the bicyclist decides it's OK for him to cross the intersection because there's no car coming. Hey jerkwad, I have to wait for the light to turn green, and so do you.

I would guess that TD = Technical Director and CG = computer generated (like the stat overlays, etc.)? If the Brewers pitchers would throw more strikes, that's one less button that the guy has to press. Every count should be 0-0, 0-1, or 0-2.

The Nationals' pitching coach is named Randy St. Clair? I think I saw her in an adult film once.

Branhyan. Hall only gets to have one letter.

I believe it is we, the fans, who have been Melvined. The news definitely gave me a painful feeling not unlike someone giving me an atomic wedgie.

Looks like you jump from the Brewers franchise start right to the 1982 team. Maybe a slide about the "Bambi's Bombers" teams from 78-81 that began the team's ascent to glory? I might also go with "Team Streak" where you could do the 13-game winning streak, Nieves, and Molitor's hitting streak all in 1 slide.

Branyan: "I don't know quite how to put this, but...I'm kind of a big deal. People at Brewerfan.net know me." Trenni Kusnierek: "Well, I'm very happy for you." Branyan: "I'm very important. I have many leather-bound infielder's gloves and my bats smell of rich mahogany."

Yeah, what bothers me the most about this is the idea that I somehow "owe it" to the rest of the table to play a certain way. I have free will, sir/ma'am, and I'm damn sure going to exercise it toward MY best interests before I think about you. (That said, I understand the "book" well enough to avoid scorn 98% of the time.) Also, often times I'm in a somewhat "altered" state when sitting at a blackjack table due to the consumption of alcohol. You've seen me drink 4 or 5 Jack & Coke's, so expect a couple mistakes along the way. It also doesn't help when the dealers are impatient and get ornery if you want to take a second to assess the situation - I've felt rushed a couple of times in Vegas and made a wrong play as a result.

Sampson was bad enough - if they draft Gordon, I think I'll take a pass on the 2008-09 season.

If bashing Ned Yost is cool....then consider me Miles Davis.

Now on Deadspin: http://deadspin.com/5009711/are-the-brewers-going-to-fire-ned-yost-today-one-fiesty-little-blog-says-yes

http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/trackandfield/news/story?id=3398915 I wanted to start a thread about this to get others' reactions. Obviously, I feel bad for the guy. But I don't think he should be allowed to compete if he's running on carbon-fiber blades instead of human legs. The story refers to independent tests run by MIT professors that prove there is no biomechanical advantage provided by the running blades. However, doesn't the fact that this man has no legs below the knee automatically prevent him from suffering an injury (like a calf strain), which IS possible for the other participants? That in itself is an "advantage", in my view. Frankly, this is why the Paralympics were developed in the first place. This man was dealt a bad hand in life - that really sucks, and believe me, I sympathize. I just feel that this sets a very dangerous precedent for the integrity of the Olympic Games going forward. Agree/disagree?

Somebody mentioned Tim Hudson. As a Hudson fantasy owner, let me say that I wholeheartedly approve of this idea. He's owed $13 million in 2008 and 2009 (comparable to Sheets' value) and there's a $12 mil option for 2010 with a buyout of $1 mil. Let's hope Atlanta tanks.

Wild Wild West...Joe West. Desperado. Rough rider - no, you don't want nada. (My most embarrassing post ever)