Huh. That's odd.

Nomar Kent sounds like a psychedelic rock band or something. Maybe 70's progressive rock instead, I can't decide

2 I thought it was Colletti's great experiment somehow to combine veteran chemistry and a good attitude... with a former Giant.

http://img242.imageshack.us/img242/4424/ohoq9.jpg

I think Wilson Schmidt did my taxes last year.

Is Nomar Kent Verbal's brother?

For a minute there I thought Pierre got benched for Clark as I just scanned the last names. Just had to get my hopes up.

pierre's first missed game since 2002

7 He was.

What's with all the postponed games this year? Two more today means there's gonna be a bunch of twin-bills later in the year.

On the same note, has it been colder in LA recently than in the past? I keep waiting for it to be warm enough to go up on my roof and get a tan, but it hasn't reached that point yet.

from last thread

Nate, did you send an e-mail to the guy who did that first round draft projection, asking him to expand on what he knows about the Dodgers and McGeary?

yes i did, earlier today. hopefully he'll respond.

greg miller on the mound for the 51s today. Megrew and meloan went for jax today. pretty good results from both

megrew
5IP 4H 0ER 2bb 4K

meloan
2IP 2H 0ER 0BB 4K

quick question: shouldn't there be a stat that functions like slugging percentage but figures in stolen bases? it occurs to me that a single plus a stolen base nets the team as many bases as a double. likewise, shouldn't there be a stat that operates like batting average/on-base percentage that figures in caught stealing because getting on and then getting caught stealing is essentially the same as making an out without getting on.

i think it's unfair to judge players like pierre by the same rubric that we judge guys like pujols. i'm not defending pierre's signing; i just think adjusted numbers for players like him would give a more accurate gauge for players like him. to take the pierre controversy out of the question, think about how much players like jose reyes and rafael furcal get minimized by numbers that reward home runs but not stolen bases.

oops, meloan only had 2 strikeouts, my bad.

Let's see if Schmidt comes anywhere close to 90 mph

crap.

thats what happens when you toss 81mph BP balls.

Bad start

Well. That was 81 MPH. So, not close yet.

I'm guessing it got to 90 after Giles hit it.

is schmidt serious?

Nate, who would be your top choices for our pick at #20, excluding guys you think will be off the board by then? Depending on whether scouts think Kentrail Davis can stick in centerfield, I'm really interested in him. If we want a pitcher, I would go with Neil Ramirez.

13 I'm not sure, but doesn't EQA take stolen bases into account?

Something's gotta be wrong with Schmidt if he's barely reaching the mid-80's with his fastball. My best guess would be something in his shoulder.

13 - EQA

from now on I'm referring to Schmidt's fastball as a straightball

23- Yes. So Does VORP.

Bill James's RC does too, I'm pretty sure. That's the one ToyCannon likes, if I remember.

22

Kentrail Davis is intriging but he seems a bit raw for a first round pick. I also like neil ramirez alot but ive read some a couple of reports now stating he hasnt looked the same this spring.

I really like Josh Vitters but hes going to be gone. Matt Dominguez and Mike Moustakas both intrigue me alot. Mcgeary I like more then most people here. Beau Mills, the college bat from lewis and clark is someone i like too.

13 And linear weights.

I was out all day, but does anyone know why Derek Lowe has a "C" on his uniform like a hockey team captain?

Oops. I'm wrong about VORP, aren't I? Shucks.

If I had my pick of anyone in the draft, it would be Josh Vitters (david price doesnt count).

29 Heh, I remember watching Beau Mills play little league back in the day. His dad was a staple at the baseball camps in Visalia back in the day.

also canuck, kentrail davis is a boras client. I dont know if you factored that in.

I just said back in the day twice, I feel like an idiot

Did we waste $47 million on the right-handed Jamie Moyer?

Schmidt's throwing in the mid 80's.

I hope he's not going all Hideo Nomo circa 2004.

we paid 47 million for a BP pitcher.

In Vegas, after half an inning, Miller has 2 K's, no walks or hits. 18 pitches, 13 strikes. Abreu is playing 3B and LaRoche is in LF. With the Dodgers' current 3B woes, and with LaRoche as cold as ice right now, wouldn't it be interesting if the Dodgers are thinking of bring up Abreu as our MLB 3B for this year? That would be quite a turn of events.

This is not the same guy who used to dominate us

Might be time to give Wilson Hendrickson a call.

Schmidt's throwing in the mid 80's.

hes not even sitting mid 80s!

bp, absolute BP

Not good.
MLB hitters can apparently hit the soft stuff.

32 No, you aren't. VORP incorporates steals I believe.

86! Woo hoo!

31 - It's not in scarlet, is it?

That was a horrible call on Jeff Kent. All 2nd basemen come off the bag on that play early.
They always get the out though.

how do you lose 10mph in velocity over one winter without being hurt?

Jasons got a dead arm. Wonder Why?
As usual the Giants always seem to make good judgements about pitchers. Of course some pitchers get through this.

Well--on 2nd look he did juggle the ball. Probably the right call.

and imagine if we had traded penny.

35 -- Davis is a Boras client? Okay, that takes him off my list. I don't think we will go for an outfielder anyway, as much as I might want a centerfielder in the system with a high ceiling. We'll probably go for a HS pitcher first. The old Logan White special. I just want a harder thrower than McGeary. And I think we are left-handed enough with Kuo, Miller, Elbert, Kershaw and Megrew.

thanks everybody! i've always seen you boys refer to eqa, but i never knew what it was.

Why is Chad not in this game yet?

This is getting cruel.

Hoo boy, the fun Jon will have if it turns out the Dodgers hid a Schmidt injury or allowed him to talk his way out of treatment for one.

Meet the new training staff, same as the old training staff?

canuck, is kentrail davis sort of like Andrew McCutchen?

the dodgers and schmidt better figure out this loss of veloicty and find out quick.

after in vegas, millers line

2IP 0H 0ER 1BB 4K

1 pick off.

apparently hes reaching back to 95-96 to K some hitters.

How is it possible to throw all of your pitches at the same speed? Straightball, curve, and change are all coming in the 78-84 range. shouldn't grip alone get you 5 miles on a fastball?

and just like that- woo hoo 87!

Ha Canuck, I just got an email from todd morgan in regard to Mcgeary and the dodgers.

this is what he said..

*I can't elaborate because the conversations surrounding McGeary were conducted under a
promise of anonymity. All I can say is yes, there is a definite connection there.*

I guess we might be getting another lefty in the system.

So I go to grab Chinese food and the game explodes. Wonderful.

53 Yes, Penny's doing OK now. That doesn't make me feel all that secure! But we have starting arms and relievers aplenty in the system. If this makes us trade for middle relievers I'll hold my breath until I turn red.

Schmidt's 86 MPH fastball isnt going to work all year.

Im really tempted to just send Mcgeary a message on facebook and ask him myself.

maybe an 88mph sighting next inning?

Man, I step outside to play with the dogs and it's 6-0 when I come back.

70 Meet 65

So, that's like 90 Million for two guys who can't throw the ball?

Didn't Peavy start the 4+1 game?

They actually signed three guys this winter who can't throw the ball.

But one of them's not starting tonight.

i dont understand how schmidt see his lack of velocity as a non issue after he has been one of the premier power pitchers in baseball the last 5-6 years, does that make sense to anyone.

73 So you're sayin' theres a chance!

I go outside to feed my dog Chinese food and ...

I blame Greg Brock and Marty for Schmidt's lack of velocity

With Jason Schmidt just having pitched to Khalil Greene twice in the same inning, it reminds me of a story that I heard about the time that Tommy Lasorda went out to the mound to remove a struggling Doug Rau. Rau supposedly told Tommy that he could get the next batter out, and he should be allowed to stay in. To which Lasorda is said to have replied (with more than dash of profanity), "Well, you didn't get him out the first time you faced him in this inning, now did you?"

73

Yes. It was Penny vs. Peavy. I think we could use Mariano Duncan saying something to Peavy as well.

bad news in LA, great news in vegas.

is greg mniller back? Ks the side in the 3rd.

3IP 0H 0ER 1bb 7K

*crosses fingers!*

Between Marty's excuse, my excuse, and Bob's post, there is a tremendous opportunity for a Don Imus moment.

Which I will not touch.

We need Mariano Duncan to rattle Peavy again.

80 beat me to it. I'm slow on the draw tonight.

82- I had to stop myself as well.

81 - Interesting.

81 Doing it in Vegas is very encouraging.

These two games are making Vin pull every story out of his hat that he can come up with.

I think we'll be up to Koufax by the fourth inning, then a segue to Gil Hodges, and then finally some Jackie Robinson stuff.

Is Vin going to take Sunday off because it's an ESPN game or are the Dodgers going to have him work radio because of the Jackie Robinson festivities?

Don Imus should have been one of Scott Long's "Please Explain" segments

87 You shouldn't set jokes up like that.

This is game time, not Dodger Thoughts After Dark...

At least Betemit's batting average didn't just drop much -- from .050 to .048.

88- If I don't get a Pete Reiser mention tonight, I'm going to be pretty disappointed.

75 When Vin says he's having trouble distinguishing Schmidt's fastball from his change-up I have to believe it's a serious problem.

I hope whatever Miller's doing in Vegas doesn't stay in Vegas.

Does Pierre "Lead off" by pinch-hitting for Schmidt?

we can talk about miller all we want hes not going to come and take schmits spot in the rotation.

69- 88 mph!

59 -- Kentrail Davis is not much like McCutchen. McCutchen's body is much more like that of a conventional CF, and Davis probably has better power potential. Davis is built like Kirby Puckett -- a short but wide frame. Like Puckett, Davis runs surprisingly fast for a guy with his body type, and right now he covers good ground in CF, but I don't know what scouts think are his chances of STAYING in CF as he gets a little older.

Have you read the interview with Jack McGeary at RedSoxNation.net? If you haven't, just google McGeary's name. He says he tops out at 91 MPH, and is skeptical that he has reached higher. He seems intelligent, so I will give him that.

Maddox throws harder than Schmidt.

Gameday Retro! shows Schmidt is missing badly when he misses. Is this actually the case?

I would say that Schmidt's performance tonight is a bit distressing.

The lack of velocity and control is not good. Arm trouble?

I'm waiting to hear he hurt his arm in the last inning "muscling" it up there at 88.

Arm trouble?

Maybe he's still dehydrated

100- I wouldn't call it "missing badly" because Martin is calling for the corners. The problem is that when he doesn't miss, the pitch goes for a double.

101 I'm not sure what else could explain such a drastic drop-off in velocity. Suddenly I'm not so eager to trade off some of our surplus pitching.

A few days ago I started a new Dodger blog.

http://dodgerama.blogspot.com/

I have four entries up, including a first-hand account of the parking situation at Dodger Stadium on Friday, and a perspective on Juan Pierre.

I hope anyone reading this will give it a shot. :-)

did the dodgers make a double switch and take about betemit?

This may sound incredibly Polyanna-ish, but Schmidt doesn't exactly make or break this team. Yeah, we paid a ton for him, and yeah, he should be a frontline guy, but Lowe, Penny, Wolf, Billingsley, Kuo, Tomdrickson, Miller...

Just throwing that out there. The offense will always be the biggest concern.

101- every time I see an 85 mph straightball, I think, "the Giants didn't even TRY to keep him."

108- the problem (as with Pierre) is, how long he gets sent out there because of that contract?

109 I just googled your handle. Bunions! Great name.

With all due respect Vinny, you told the Giles brother story last night

schmidts performance today reminded me painfully of orel hershiser last game for the dodgers.

Credit where credit is due: Hendrickson pitched well to get out of that mess.

(And he didn't fall down one time.)

106 - I like it.

112 - That's nothing new. Vin acknowledges he repeats stories. He'd rather someone not miss it, at the cost of someone hearing it twice,

98
when i see someone listed as 5'9, i automatically think punch and judy CFer. If Davis has power potential then he intrigues me. I need to read up more on him.

I don't mind Vin singing me the same lullaby over and over. His voice alone is theraputic.

Spotting Jake Peavy six runs is tough. Knowing the Dodgers will lose for six more innings isn't quite as appealing as watching "The Prestige" again tonight.

Hmm...I'll give it another inning or two. You're on the clock, Dodgers!

109- thank you! but I can't take credit for it. I got it from a book character. After I googled it, I liked it even more.

120 Yes, I may go return to catching up on the last season of "The Shield"

Forrest Whitaker is terrific in that.

Go ahead, splitters. But Nomar just beat out an infield single, and that's an omen.

If Schmidt has an arm injury from last season that is resulting in less velocity, wouldn't Dodger management have consulted Stan Conte?

Or did we just ignore the warning signs?

123 When everything is an omen, nothing is...

I have a lot more respect for Little benching Pierre tonight.

I'm really concerned about Schmidt. If he and Pierre continue to stink we got ourselves another Dreifort/Green anchor on our payroll.

Seeing as how it seems ok to post about new Dodger websites, here's mine:

http://www.thembums.com

It deals more with Dodgers past than Dodgers present. Hope you all like it. I am just getting started so please do have some patience.

I've read about LA losing to Chicago to be the US entry in the 2016 Olympics derby and I didn't know that Lou Zamperini was still alive.

So does anyone have a guess on who UCLA is playing in this photo?

http://tinyurl.com/2yqe6r

128 90 Years old and going strong.

Quite an amazing life for the pride of Torrance High.

I thought this was coming with Schmidt. At the home opener he was throwing 78-83 mph in the first inning (the scoreboard was calling his pitches change ups) and by the 4th inning he was only throwing around 85 mph.

He is not right.

129- judging by the attendance, I'm guessing Long Beach State.

Am I crazy, or did Schmidt used to throw up to 96 or 97?

I know he had elbow trouble, but a 10-12 mph drop?

Oh well, time to find out how Christian Bale does that darn Transported Man trick!

133 - You are not crazy. From what I remember he was throwing in the low 90's last year.

134
He can do it because ... he's Batman!

nice pla by betemit but down to .045

Well, this is ugly.

Hey, don't a few of these Padres hitters have a history of doing well against Schmidt? Anyway, I'm a little concerned, too, but not quite ready to let this game alone freak me out. I also had a feeling they were gonna lose this one, given their history vs. Peavy and all.

Plus, y'know, Pierre wasn;t in the line-up and stuff.

Hopefully, we'll get 'em tomorrow.

Todd Morgan clarified some things for me in a follow up email. Interesting info!

He's 6'3, 200 and likely still growing. Scouts are big on how easily he generates 90-92MPH velocity and he's touched 94 several times this year (95 if you believe a non-scout'sgun), working at hitters' knees and getting tons of ground balls. On top of that he's got a plus curve and a plus change, which means he's probably the most polished prep pitcher in the draft. Great makeup and feel for setting hitters up too. There's also a personal connection with the Dodgers. A lot can change in six weeks (and there's always the chance that the Dodgers are using him as a smokescreen), but if I had to put money on it right now, this is the first round pick I'm most certain about.

I'm wondering if the Dodgers and Padres will finish before Oakland and the Yankees which are just in the top of the 9th and started an hour earlier.

129 My guess would be Stanford, but what do I know?

I hope we score at least one AGAINST PEAVY.

Look at the bright side... Grady switching Wolf and Schmidt's turns kept Schmidt from ruining Jackie Robinson Day.

Thank you baseball gods!

141
I was thinking it was a Stanford photo too.

Too small of a crowd for USC and both teams wore dark uniforms then too. The jersey Robinson is wearing is actually a royal blue with bright yellow numbers.

However, the opponents are all white which means it could be USC which didn't use black players for football at the time. USC did before, but Howard Jones was from the South and he wasn't having any black players on his team.

Did Stanford or Cal have integrated teams in that time period?

I don't mean to beat a dead horse here (violation of rule #8) but Schmidt has been throwing in the low to mid 80's in all 3 of his starts. Either this is the new Jason Schmidt or he is hurt. Both scenarios are not good.

145 Oof, that is a toughy. Got me! Good luck figuring it out :)

Stanford didn't have a black football player until 1954.

I'm glad I mist the beginning judging from the score board.

146 That was Wilson Schmidt pitching, not Jason. See top post.

Schmidt said on Opening Day that he's throwing as hard as he expected to:

http://tinyurl.com/2yjfpe

116--Thanks!

SANJAYA !

150 - Phew. I thought we had a problem on our hands. We are just in Bizarro World for the night.

Was that Sanjaya from AI singing take me out to the ball game? I'm pretty sure it was.

139 -- Nate, if it is true that McGeary's velocity has increased, that he is now sitting at 90-92 MPH and touching 94, to go along with a plus curve and plus change-up, while I can understand now why the Dodgers are interested, I doubt he would even LAST to #20. A hard-throwing McGeary certainly has a lot more going for him than the raw Bumgarner, whom Morgan has being taken before McGeary.

In Robinson's two years at UCLA (1939 and 1940) they played almost all of their games at the Coliseum.
In 1939 UCLA had two road games (Washington and Stanford) and played at the Coliseum against:
TCU, Montana, Oregon, California, Santa Clara, Oregon State, Washington State, and USC.

The 1939 USC-UCLA game drew over 100,000 people and finished 0-0. UCLA went 6-0-4 that year.

In 1940, UCLA traveled only to Berkeley and Eugene and hosted SMU, Santa Clara, Texas A&M, Oregon State, Stanford, Washington State, Washington, and USC. UCLA went 1-9.

I doubt he would even LAST to #20. A hard-throwing McGeary certainly has a lot more going for him than the raw Bumgarner, whom Morgan has being taken before McGeary.

I think thats where the strong stanford commit + dodger connection + predraft deal comes into effect.

im crossing my fingers.

eh, i guess im already crossing my fingers for greg miller. I'll just cross my toes for Mcgeary.

155 Yeah, that was Sanjaya. Behind him on the right of the screen was the bald guy (Phil), and LaKisha was next to him on the right.

Rudy Seanez is dealing. It truly is bizarro world tonight.

Wouldn't this be a great time to give Martin break?

My wife said it looked like Sanjaya was in the pavillion. Is that right. Is he looking to bulk up in the AYCE pavillion

The D'backs caught up to the Rockies, and now have the bases loaded with one out in the bottom of the eighth.

Vin and the JP streak. We better get used to it.

wow. Brocail's on the Todd Helton/ Kevin Youkalis facial hair program, apparently

wow. Brocail's on the Todd Helton/ Kevin Youkalis facial hair program, apparently

calm down Vin, Greene misplayed it to start with.

first time pierre and furcal have been on base together this year.

163 It looked like they had some bad seats. I was thinking Outer Reserve. You would think Fox could get them some better tickets.

I just got home. Is there a reason why is Nomar out?

All your bases are belong to Russ.

It is so fun to watch Martin play.

171- No, it's just the second string being brought in for the rest of the blowout.

it's just the second string being brought in for the rest of the blowout

See: Pierre, Juan

Lucas May is turning himself into a prospect again.

at catcher, hes absolutely ranking in the california league. Hes launched two homeruns tonight, giving him 5 on the season and hes hitting .350 in 40ABs with a 4-6 BB-K ratio.

175- There you are. So, when shall we expect your measured but cogent response to 50?

when shall we expect your measured but cogent response to 50?

When you least expect it.

Ken Singleton, on the YES broadcast, said that Bob Geren was trying to put Lenny DiNardo into the game where he "was in a position to succeed."

Ok, it is time for 5 in a row this time.

Five-in-a-row time?

180 Ha. Got me by four seconds.

betiMEAT

Pierre really is brain dead at the plate. I cant think of even a baseball 'purist' that would enjoy watching him play.

184- Down 5 runs and swinging at the first pitch. Pretty ridiculous

176 -- Unfortunately, the "catcher" May is spending more time, so far in the season, as a DH than as a catcher, which tells us something about how good he is as a catcher.

Speaking of guys we hope turn themselves into prospects, Jordan Pratt is doing a decent job in long relief tonight in San Bernardino. He throws hard and gets K's, but cutting down on the walks is the last frontier for him to cross to turn himself into a real relief prospect. The 2003 draft was quite something. Outside of the big three of Billingsley, Kemp, and LaRoche, we have Xavier Paul, Jordan Pratt, Wesley Wright, Lucas May, Cody White, and Travis Denker lurking on the perimeter of prospectdom, just needing to make more progress in 2007.

186- You don't know how long I've been waiting for you to open the floor to requests. I'd like you review R.V. please. Thanks!

Well, now that the Dodgers got blown out, and Andrew felt like dropping a five-year-old internet meme (all your bases? Really?), I will report that "The Prestige" gets better every time I've seen it.

Oh, and Jason Schmidt is a serious problem. I expect the Philospher King to have something to say about the velocity/location very soon. This is a troubling situation.

Winning percentage with Pierre in the starting lineup: 70%

Winning percentage without Pierre in the starting lineup: 0%

This is a troubling situation

Everyone knows that what older pitchers lose in velocity they gain in Guile, Savvy, and Crafty

191 That proves it...

Giambi took DiNardo deep to put the Yankees ahead. One on two outs in the top of the thirteenth, and my man Melky steps to the plate.

Is Milton Bradley injured...?

190- Look, if you've got a problem with Russ Martin's base acquisition, take it up with him.

Melky was, sadly, unsilky.

Four-pitch walk for Chavez to lead off the inning.

What a lack of hear. You swing!

195- Slight hamstring pull. I don't think he's been DL'd.

Yes, it's a lack of hear, and a lack of heart.

The man has no ears, and not heart.

As much as I would prefer Milton to Juan, Milton sure seems to get hurt a lot

The Dodgers have six home runs this year. Bad.

One of them is from Jason Schmidt. Badder.

Some brain-dead hacking up in Oakland, tonight. Because, when you swing and don't get a hit, it's wrong.

Alex Rodriguez has seven home runs this year. Good.

203 Yes, but those are some mighty heartless home runs. They almost don't even count.

Except for the fact that they do count. But if heart mattered, they wouldn't. So I don't count them.

Heart.

ARod hits HRs, and his team is 5-5.

If Jeter had hit them instead, they'd be 10-0.

Update on the parking situation: It's still as bad as Sanjaya's singing voice.

I exited the stadium parkway exit off the 5 freeway at 6 o'clock (my usual time of arrival for the past seven years), and I SLOWLY made my way to the stadium. I didn't arrive at the stadium and park my car until 45 minutes later, a good 35 minutes later than usual for that same distance.

Fortunately I was able to get my food and to my seat in time for Jason Schmidt's first pitch. Turns out that was also bad news. If Jason's arm is shot, maybe he can help direct traffic into the stadium with his left arm.

P.S. Giving the driver an assigned parking space is a horrible idea. The only thing worse than that is the sparse number of gates that are open when you leave the stadium; if I didn't leave in the eighth, I'd probably still be in my car waiting to exit the premises. I'm a Dodger fan for life, but I may be going to fewer games if something isn't done to ease this fiasco.

204 You're forgetting about soul. Heart is nothing without soul.

209- I was sorry to hear about your having to quit your job.

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20070413/D8OG0HO00.html

By the way, who gets a DVD from an anonymous sender and sticks the thing in their player? Stories like this make me wonder, sometimes, what I'm missing by throwing out most of my mail unopened.

210 I would never get in trouble for that. When my spec script gets sold (it's great, really....It's about a guy who hates everybody, but late in life, he realizes he loves the people around him, and he changes his ways, and it's mostly because of his granddaughter, because she's really cheerful, in a kind of "Little Miss Sunshine Way", and so he becomes a better person, but in the end he gets cancer, so he passes on his experience before he dies, but he turns out to be a really great influence on people), and I've made lots of money, I'll tell you about the dark side of teaching.

Until then...

"It made me sick," Grivakis said. "It's very graphic." Grivakis went on to say he was speaking about tonight's Dodger game, not the random dvd sent to him.

On a serious note, I can't believe how many teachers are doing this kind of crap. Most of these teachers should be sent to prison for ten years. Especially the male teachers, who make life twenty times more difficult for those of us who are working our tales off, and doing so with the most noble of intentions.

On a not-serious note, I can't believe how they're wasting their careers on students that arent' even that hot.

213- It wasn't a student. It's a Skinner/Krabappel situation. And, unless they put the camera there (in which case, they're dumb as dumb can be), there were shenanigans afoot.

I always thought Skinner got the best of that relationship. Honestly, Krabappel isn't that bad looking, and she's pretty well put together. What does Skinner have to offer? Middle aged guy, living with his mom, zero social skills, wears the same bad tie everyday, lets 12 year old kids walk all over him.

214 I would bet that a staff member, probably a secretary, knew what was going on, and put a camera in there.

It's not like everybody has access to the Principal's office.

So I just turned on the TV, flipped to ESPN2 and saw that the World Hamburger Eating Championships are on.

Huh, wazzat?

How can ESPN2 call itself a legitimate TV channel with this as an offering? It's like a cable epicac. Where's Mr. Creosote and his bucket when you need him?

215- Well, objectively, sure. But think about her other options. Barney, Moe, Willy? Mr. Berstrom left town. It is a good reason to think about moving to Capitol City, though.

For what it's worth here's my parking situation report:
We stayed 'till the end which left us alone with about 15,000 people. Most left at the end of the 8th. That said, I got out as quickly as I can ever remember. Once again though, not sure it was a fair test since people left steadily from 3rd inning on.
Here's the really bad news story though... My friend that I took to the game is somewhat handicapped and has a placard. We went to the handicapped lot (which is the located behind the pavilion) but were told "lot's full" despite the fact that there were literally dozens of open spaces right in plain sight. When I pointed this out the attendant said "sorry, nothing I can do". If I were truly handicapped or if my friend was more handicapped, we'd have been screwed. This is the sort of thing that should be Don Imus caliber scandal in my opinion. Seems to border on the illegal. Definitely shameful.

215- And he is in a position of authority over her and women often find that sexy.

The Skinner/Krabappel relationship would be prohibited in a lot of organizations.

Similar to the Levinson/Scott relationship.

Either Skinner or Krabappel would have to change schools.

We need to give some praise to Mark Hendrickson and his 11k's in 11 innings and sub 2 era. Maybe Colletti can do what suckered him into getting him in the first place and sell high on a first half fluke.

If the Skinner/Krabappel relationship matured, Edna would have to head out to Shelbyville. Or West Springield.

We've never been privy to the inner workings of the Simpsons schools systems.

Maybe others here knew this but I just discovered they are making a Speed Racer movie. I can't imagine this will work. However, Emile Hirsh as Speed and John Goodman as Pops are pretty good casts.
But Susan Sarandon as Mom Racer--bad call. First, there is no such character and second, she'snot very Mom like. Who will be racer X? They need someone strong like Russel Crowe. And Spridle? Maybe, Minnie Me. But what I really want to know is whether there will be a Kimba the White Lion cartoon before the movie.

http://movies.yahoo.com/mv/news/va/20070414/117658103100.html

Moe would be much better for Edna, at least better than Skinner. C'mon, he owns his own business, which has over the years hosted the chili peppers, aerosmith and spinal tap, among others.

224 Don't forget Cristina Ricci as Trixie (!), which was just announced today.

As for me, I'm more upset at the idea of an Underdog movie, which is coming out this year and will probably be awful.

225 May be true, although Skinner could give Edna a wonderful evening of theater and picking up after themselves.

227 - lol, that's funny

Where have you gone John Tudor?.............we could've used you tonight.

226. Yup I just looked it up. It does'nt look very good which is too bad cause it was a pretty cool cartoon. Actually, Undersog was cooler than Speed. He could fly and did'nt need no stinkin car. He didn't have emotional issues about his lost brother and his girlfriend wasn't a potential beard.

Tommy Lasorda had a thing with soft tossing left handed pitchers. I wonder why???

Ralph: "Mrs. Krabappel and Principal Skinner were in the closet making babies and I saw one of the babies and the baby looked at me."

Clancy: "The baby looked at you? Sarah, get me Superintendant Chalmers!"

Ralph: "The hidden camera tastes like cat food."

Not to discount the problems others have had w/parking at all, but my experience was quite different...

FWIW, I bought a preferred pass in lot G (the old 8/10 lot) from a broker for less than GA parking, got to the game with little traffic (105 to 110) and stayed to the right to pass all the regular parking folk.
A few minutes after entering Chavez Ravine I parked my car parked in a nice big undingable space just steps from the stadium. Leaving the game was just as easy, although we left early as the D's were done and I was still wary of a fiasco in the parking lot.
Leave for the game a little early, buy a G pass if possible, all is well.

As for the lack of velocity on Schmidt's fastball, which was 10 mph faster in recent memory, (Russ) Martin said, "You guys don't ask Greg Maddux when he's throwing 80 -- and he used to throw 90."

Yep. Guile, Savvy, and Crafty.

Juan Pierre: "I can only imagine how bad it must have been when people didn't want you to play."

Err, don't quite know how to tell you this, Juan...

New post up top.