Below are the 10 most recent journal entries recorded in angelsgame's LiveJournal:

Monday, January 29th, 2007
6:45 pm	...Pledging Allegiance to New Banners This past weekend marked 10 years since I moved from Northern to Southern California. Though I didn’t initially plan the move to be a permanent one, within that time a number of events have unfolded that have solidified Southern California as my “home” and Northern California as a place I visit a few times a year. I bought my first, and then second house in the area. I started a Southern California-based small business. I married a Southern California native whose entire family lives here. I had a son born here. But it’s only been recently that I finally embraced the truest test of being a Southern Californian: Rooting for the local sports teams. Sports team loyalty is the oddest thing. In virtually any other situation, we’d ridicule a person for being intensely loyal to a large corporation. I mean, can you imagine how weird you’d think a person was who only used Aquafresh toothpaste; flatly refusing to ever purchase any competing oral care products out of intense, undying, passionate loyalty to GlaxoSmithKline? Or how odd would you find it if someone continued to eat at the same restaurant day after day, despite an ever-decreasing quality of food, service and decor just because they’ve always eaten there and didn’t want to be accused of being a “fair weather diner”? Or would you ever be afraid to buy a different brand of laundry detergent than you’re accustomed to using out of the fear that long-time users of the product would consider you a “bandwagon jumper” or “Johnny Come Lately” to the product? Yet with sports we seem to lose all of our common sense and demand blind, unthinking loyalty to large corporations whose only interest in us is how much money they can separate from us and our wallets. I did my best to remain loyal to the San Francisco Giants and 49ers throughout my time here (not so much the Golden State Warriors, who have struggled just to be mediocre for most of my lifetime so altering my loyalty to an exciting Lakers team with Shaq and Kobe happened more or less immediately upon arrival). I tried to keep up with the 49ers by watching them on those rare Sundays when their games were televised in this area (a rarer and rarer occasion by the year as the Niners became less and less relevant as a playoff contender). I even had the misfortune of being what seemed like the lone Southern Californian rooting for the opposing team during the 2002 World Series between the Anaheim Angels and San Francisco Giants; going through the indignity of having to listen to “my” team ridiculed daily on local radio and having to endure the humiliation of hearing the wild cheers and hollers of my neighbors when the Angels made a miraculous come from behind victory in Game 7 to win their first ever World Series. Ultimately, though, it just didn’t work out. Probably for the same reason most long-distance romantic relationships ultimately don’t end up working out either. Because regardless of how much we try to believe in overly romantic notions like “love will conquer all” or “love knows no bounds”, the truth is we tend to underestimate the importance of physical proximity. Sure, you may feel like you have some sort of deep spiritual and emotional connection to someone who lives 3000 miles away and you may try to believe your love is so incredibly powerful that the distance doesn’t matter. But a phone or IM is just no replacement for a warm body next to you at night or a person to kiss before you leave for work in the morning or a hand to hold at the movies. That’s kind of what I found with sports teams too. I could be a 49er or Giants fan in theory, but really I’d just be rooting for a set of colors. I need a team whose every game I can watch on TV or listen to on the radio, whose players I can be familiar with because I’ve followed every game on local TV and read about them in the local paper and whose games I can attend live without having to arrange a plane flight or long-distance car trip. I’m sure the owners of the San Diego Chargers, Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim don’t care about me any more than the owners of the Warriors, Giants or 49ers did. But at least they’re around. (Comment on this)
Tuesday, December 26th, 2006
5:35 pm	Weekend Update - December 10th Weekend Update It was supposed to rain on Saturday night – Sunday morning. I don’t know if it rained or not. It could have rained when I was asleep. I think we had a storm front come through here today because it was windy this afternoon. Christmas Cards I finished and mailed the last of my Christmas cards on Saturday morning. I think this is the earliest that I have finished the cards in a long time. The only other time that I could recall sending them out earlier was when I was in the United States Navy. I mailed them early because I was on the ship and the ship was at sea. Hard to find a mailbox in the middle of the South China Sea. The one good thing about mailing from the ship was that, if you timed the mailing right, you could mail for free from the combat zone. I did mail a couple of my cards that went overseas right after Thanksgiving. This was also the first year that I put a letter in two of my cards. I’m not sure why I did this but it seemed to be a good thing to do this year. Maybe next year, I’ll include a letter with most of the cards. Of course, there will always be the one that I forgot to send out with the bulk of the cards but mailing out one or two more cards is not much of a task during the next week. El Gringo – Wednesday Night As usual, I went to El Gringo on Wednesday night. I was prepared for my regular discussion with Valerie about what I was going to have for my dinner. I had my logic well thought out and I had plenty of analogy ammunition. I was ready for bear. Valerie was not working in Wednesday because she was studying for her finals. So much for planning ahead and preparing for an argument. Aleesa was the substitute server. I did not recognize her at first because her hair was dyed black instead of the light brown that she had when I first met her. She also had removed the piercing in her nose because some customers where upset with it. I don’t think she liked that. I wasn’t particularly bothered by the piercing that was “U” shaped and went through the middle part of her nose. I was tempted to ask her how her boy friend liked kissing her with the nose piercing. I decided against learning more about Aleesa than I really needed or, perhaps truly, wanted to know. I had a Number Two Combination but I substituted the grilled, blackened mahi mahi for the beef in the soft tacos. I like to think that balanced out the rice and beans and all of the chips and salsa I had with my meal. Visitors We had another good week for foreign visitors. We had visitors from Texas [2], Canada [6], Japan [7], Iran, Taiwan [2], United States Virgin Islands, Hungary, Poland, Costa Rica, Venezuela, France, India, China [3], Mexico, United Kingdom [2], Netherlands, Spain, Macau, Thailand, Korea, and Malaysia. This past week were the first visits to the blog from residents of the Virgin Islands and Macau. I guess I can say the visitor from Iran didn’t come here by mistake. We had fewer curious visitors this week. We had one who stopped by for 14 minutes. There were no looker visitors this week. I do appreciate all of your visits to the blog. Social Me – Part 2 Haven’t gotten an email yet from Jennifer Aniston asking me out. I figure that I’ll give her until the end of the week to make her mind up about us getting together. If she doesn’t email me, then I’ll be moving on to someone else. Don’t take too long with the email Jen. Time Warner Cable It’s been over a week since the TWC representative promised to call me right back. I don’t think she’s going to call me, ever. I can get over the lack of the promised call back. I can even offer a reasonable explanation of why she didn’t call me back. If you recall, she was going to speak to her supervisor and ask the supervisor to make some phone calls to move my service call up on the list of unhappy people. Her supervisor probably said something like, “Look, we got thousands of unhappy people. We can’t go around calling the service people every time we get an unhappy customer.” Then, she was probably afraid to call me back. She didn’t want to have to face an unhappy customer who was calmly assessing the merits of satellite television. She probably didn’t want to say that they tried to improve my service call position but they had no luck immediately but possibly an opening might happen where they could slot me in for service; assuming, of course, that I would be home when they wanted to come out early, an unlikely event. I also have promise for a month’s credit on my service from when I first called in to request a service call. I wonder if TWC will keep that commitment to me. What most customer service people don’t understand is the horrific affect on the company’s business reputation the broken promise has on an unhappy customer. That was the near fatal flaw in her reasoning. In my case, several hundred people have read the blog postings where I ranted and raved about the poor service and the lack of commitment to the customers by Time Warner Cable. That has to be bad for the company’s reputation. How many readers were influenced by my experience? I don’t now and any guess would be purely speculative on my part. I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that some readers may have changed their minds about TWC and opted for video service from their local phone company or considered going with the dish and satellite television. Pop quiz hotshots: How likely I will be to include a positive comment about TWC? Ummmm, the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim will probably play in a freeway World Series before I say anything nice except maybe that I have dumped TWC. For those of you that are not fans of American baseball, hell will ice over first before I say anything nice about TWC. El Gringo – Saturday Night Normally, I swing by Fatburger for a Kingburger with cheese and everything else and fries for a Saturday night meal. It is a fine meal and one that Doug and I will enjoy during the traditional Douguary 2007 and Chuckay 2007 celebrations. Lately though, they have tasted on a blah side and seem to grow pale in comparison to the Original Tommy’s Burgers Double Chili Cheeseburger and fries. That plus the fact the cooking staff seems to have a continuing degree of difficultly in producing a consistent product. Of course, one could certainly argue that when you cover the meal with a full ladle of chili, it is difficult to determine if there was any consistency. All of which explains why I ended up at El Gringo on Saturday night for my meal. I had a blacked, grilled mahi mahi burrito for dinner. It came with no sauce or rice and beans. I had my dinner earlier than normal but I was full for the night. I did meet the Saturday evening server; Jess, which I believe is short for Jessica. Jess was very attentive and friendly. I may end up visiting Fatburger only for Douguary and Chuckay now. Komyo Ga Tsuji I really missed a lot last Saturday when the cable was not functioning. Apparently, the samurai, Lord Yamaguchi, [and I might have misspelled the name] decided to follow his wife’s recommendations and join forces with the Tokugawa clan. The episode revolved around the Battle of Sekigahawa in 1600 when the Tokugawa forces defeated the Regent’s forces decisively. From the show’s depiction, it was a very bloody, five or six hour long battle. Yamaguchi managed to distinguish himself in the battle and can therefore look forward to a reward of a larger castle and fief. The one unusual feature for last night’s episode was a table top explanation of the battle. It was the first time in the series since I started watching that the broadcast was interrupted by a special segment within the primary show. Obviously, the table top display certainly helped me understand the maneuvers and positions. Last night was Episode 48 so the series should be coming to close in the next few episodes. Japan is about to experience almost 260 years of relative peace. Woman of the Moment The blog wouldn’t be complete without a Woman of the Moment posting. This is an excellent location for the feature. El Gringo – Sunday Night The weekend would not be complete without Sunday night at El Gringo for me. This weekend was no exception. I said good bye to Whitney who will be in New York next weekend. She will return by Christmas weekend but I wonder if she will be working then. Plus, I will be suffering from a turkey hangover. Yesterday’s blackened grilled mahi mahi burrito was so good that I decided to have another one tonight. I added some guacamole. For those of you that are not in the United States, mahi mahi is a member of the tuna family and is caught generally in the mid-Pacific waters. Guacamole is avocado beaten into a paste; it was particularly tasty with the burrito. Whitney started as my server and Jess ended as my server. That was a nice combination and a wonderful way to end to day for me. This is me in my University of South Carolina Gamecocks sweatshirt that I got from the Princess. I was enjoying the chips and salsa. That was my weekend gentle readers. I hope you had a great weekend. Be well and stay happy. (Comment on this)
Thursday, November 2nd, 2006
1:11 pm	Possible Free Agents: OF We're now into the window of the free agent filing period, so some of these "possible" free agents are already, in fact, free agents (such as Barry Bonds). Nevertheless, I'm going to continue with the format that I utilized for the previous PFA posts. Moises Alou - San Francisco Giants Moises is 40, but it's hard to argue that he's undeserving of more playing time. This season, he hit .301 (his career average), hit 22 HR, and picked up 74 RBI's. He did all of this for $6 million, which turned out to be a bargain. Alou will find work somewhere, probably on a 2 year deal for around the same $6 million/year. I don't think it will be with the Giants, who let go his father as manager and now are likely to part ways with him as well. Barry Bonds - San Francisco Giants Clearly, this is one of the most intriguing free agent situations in all of baseball. Bonds just made $18 million, and for that money he hit .270 with 26 HR's and 77 RBI's. Those are decent numbers, and normally Bonds would be jumped on by teams who would want him to break Hank Aaron's record in their uniform. But Bonds is nuclear, and it's unclear who will have interest and at what price. I don't think Bonds will return to the Giants (they need to move on and get younger in the outfield), and Bonds is most likely to end up in the American League where he can concentrate on being a DH. My guess is that Bonds ends up in Anaheim, on a 1 year contract for about $8 million. I don't think he'll make more than that, anywhere. Jeromy Burnitz - Pittsburgh Pirates (Mutual Option) Burnitz will turn 38 a couple of weeks into the 2007 season. Last season, he hit .230, with 16 HR's and 49 RBI's. The Pirates are unlikely to pick up the option on Burnitz because $6 million is just too much to spend for a team that needs to get younger and not waste space on declining veterans. In the right situation, Burnitz could help a team - he still has some power, and for a team that needed a left-handed bat off the bench, he could be useful. He's probably not worth more than $3 million, but he'll get work somewhere. Mike Cameron - San Diego Padres (Team Option) Cameron hit .268, with 22 HR's and 83 RBI's. He'll be 34 at the start of next season. The option for 2007 is for $7 million. Add all of this up, and I think Cameron will be staying in San Diego. That price, in this off-season, is a bargain for the kind of production that Cameron can provide (although he is only a career .252 hitter, so he over-produced by quite a bit this season). Frank Catalanotto - Toronto Blue Jays Catalanotto is a pretty good player, hitting .300 with 7 HR's and 56 RBI's for $2.7 million in 2006. He'll be 33 a month into the 2007 season, which is still in the "productive" range of a players career (for the average player). He should get a tidy raise this off-season, because he could be an important player for a contending team. Whether the Blue Jays will pursue him or not, I don't know - but I expect Catalanotto to get a lot of attention and to make at least $4 million per for about 3 years. Jose Cruz, Jr. - Los Angeles Dodgers (Team Option) Cruz has been, mostly, a bust. He'll be 33 a month into the 2007 season, which means he's probably not going to get any better than he's been. Last season, Cruz hit .233 with 5 HR's and 17 RBI's. He's just a .249 career hitter. The Dodgers would need to pay him $4 million if they picked up his option, and I don't see that happening. Cruz will probably continue to get chances, because he does, after all, have 198 career homeruns. However, I don't think he'll get much more than his current salary of $2.91 million per, and probably only a 1 year deal. Dave Dellucci - Philadelphia Phillies Dellucci put together a pretty nice, high value season this past year. He hit .292 with 13 HR's and 39 RBI's over 264 at-bats. Those aren't huge numbers, but considering that he made just under $1 million this year, he was a great value. Dellucci is about to turn 33, and with the numbers he just put up he should get a nice job - his starting days are probably over, but he can still be a very effective platoon player. Mark DeRosa - Texas Rangers DeRosa hit .296 with 13 HR's and 74 RBI's this season, and made just $0.675 million - making him also a pretty solid buy. He's more an infielder than an outfielder (I'm listing him here because this is where he's listed on Cot's Baseball Contracts website), and he'll be just 32 when the season starts. I suspect the Rangers will try to keep him, but he'll find work (for a better salary, likely) whether they do or not. Jim Edmonds - St. Louis Cardinals (Team Option) This is a tough call. The Cardinals have a $10 million option on Edmonds, with a very high $3 million buyout. Edmonds just put together a mediocre .257/19/70 season. He'll turn 37 midway through the season, and is no longer the player he once was. Nevertheless, with the market that will be confronting teams this off-season, I suspect that the Cardinals will pick up this option, recognizing that for all intents and purposes they will be paying Edmonds just $7 million (the buyout is a sunk cost). Edmonds is probably the best they'll get for that price in the coming market. Carl Everett - Free Agent Everett was cut by the Mariners in the middle of the season, and found no takers in the stretch drive. That's probably related to his woeful .227 batting average, although he did hit 11 HR's before being fired. Everett has probably reached the stage in his career where he'll have to sign a minor league contract, and there's no way he'll make the $3.4 million that he made last year. Steve Finley - San Francisco Giants (Team Option) Yep, another San Fran outfielder who is over 40 - Finley will be 42 when the 2007 season starts. The Giants have a $7 million option on Finley, and his .246/6/40 numbers make it hard to justify picking it up (the buyout is $1 million). Of course, this means I've now advocated that the Giants completely turn over their entire starting outfield for 2007, and that may be a difficult task. Nevertheless, I think that's the best route. Finley is close to the age and production level where he should retire. Cliff Floyd - New York Mets Floyd seems to be on the downside of his career. He'll soon be 34, and he struggled even when healthy last season, going .244/11/44. He made $6.5 million last year, and he might get a similar contract for next season (thanks to his past performance and the increasing amount of money out there for teams to spend), but it's unlikely that he'll get more than a 1 year deal. Luis Gonzalez - Arizona Diamondbacks (Team Option) The Diamondbacks already declined the option they held on Gonzalez, and he has already filed for free agency. Despite being 39, and putting up weak .271/15/73 numbers for the $11.5 million he made last year, Gonzalez is still generating interest. Shockingly, the Giants are reported to have already contacted Gonzalez - meaning they don't seem to be interested on getting younger in the outfield. He'll catch on somewhere next year, but he shouldn't make more than $6-7 million even in the inflated market. Jose Guillen - Washington Nationals Guillen had a horrible 2006 season, hitting just .216 with 9 HR and 40 RBI's. He'll be 31 in May, and keeps regressing. He made $4 million last season, and will probably make around the same amount next year somewhere. However, if I were a decent team, I would stay away from Guillen - he doesn't seem worth it at this point in his career. Todd Hollandsworth - Cincinnati Reds Not much to say - he's going to be 34 in April and is just a role player now. He made $900,000 last year, and put up .246/7/35 numbers. He'll find a place as a lefty bat off the bench/role player type, probably with a decent team. Aubrey Huff - Houston Astros Huff had a disappointing 2006, hitting .267/21/66. That didn't stop the Astros from making a move to get him for the playoff stretch, and it probably won't prevent him from attracting interest on the free agent market because he will be just 30 at the start of the 2007 season, and is a career .285 hitter with power. Honestly, if the Twins decided that they wanted a more traditional 3B (rather than Nick Punto), or wanted to have a DH/3B type, Huff would probably be a pretty good choice. The problem is, he'll be expensive. He made $6.75 million this year, and is likely to make $10 million per despite his off-season in 2006. The Twins probably can't afford him. Brian Jordan - Atlanta Braves He'll be 40 when the season starts, he made just $700,000 this year, and he put up .231/3/10 numbers in just 91 at-bats. Jordan is not a sure bet to make a team anywhere, and if he wants to come back it'll probably be under a minor-league contract or as a spring training invite. Gabe Kapler - Boston Red Sox Kapler is just 31, and put up .254/2/12 numbers this season. The Red Sox don't seem interested in bringing him back, and Kapler has already filed for free agency. Kapler isn't going to be a significant presence on any team, but he might make a team in a backup capacity. Ricky Ledee - New York Mets Ledee didn't do much this year, putting up .188/2/9 numbers. Why he continues to find work at the Major League level (and at $1.5 million last season) is beyond me. Carlos Lee - Texas Rangers Talk about someone due for a big raise; Lee hit .300/37/116 this season, and just about every team that's looking for outfield help will be in on the bidding. Lee will probably make $13-15 million per on a 3 or 4 year deal. He'd look good in a Twins uniform, but you can forget about seeing Lee play for the Twins next year - he's just going to cost too much. Kenny Lofton - Los Angeles Dodgers Lofton made $3.85 million last season, and did exactly what you would want from a leadoff guy, hitting .301/3/41 with 32 stolen bases. Lofton will make at least as much as he did last year, despite the fact that he'll turn 40 in the middle of the season. I would guess that he'll stay in LA. John Mabry - Chicago Cubs Mabry just turned 36, and put up bad numbers last year, hitting .205/5/25 in 210 at-bats. He's still useful as a backup player, and will probably make around the $1,075,000 he made last year. Eli Marrero - New York Mets He'll be 33 in November, and hit just .204/6/15 in 93 at-bats. Another expendable player, who will nevertheless find a job as a role-player, and probably for around the $750,000 he made last year. Gary Matthews, Jr. - Texas Rangers This is one of the most intriguing free agent stories of the off-season. Matthews was an All-Star in 2006, hitting .313/19/79, and has the good fortune of being a free agent this off-season. If he was a little younger, I think he'd have significant value, and would get a 4 year deal for $8-10 million. But he's not - he's 32. That's not old, exactly, but it's old enough to give teams pause before they commit to a lengthy deal. Don't forget that Matthews also is a career .263 hitter - that's write, he outperformed his historical average by a full .50 points, which is stunning. In other words, he's probably going to regress significantly next year. I predict a 2 year deal for about $7.5 million per. It's probably lower than he deserves, but with the risks it's also probably the best that he'll get. Trot Nixon - Boston Red Sox Another free agent Red Sox outfielder. Nixon made $7.5 million last year, and put up .268/8/52 numbers. I don't expect the Red Sox to bring him back, and I also don't expect him to end up with a starting job on a front-line team. Still, I think he can help a team in a platoon situation, and at 32 (33 in April) he is still in his prime. Jay Payton - Oakland Athletics Payton made $4 million this season and put up .296/10/59 numbers. He'll be 34 in November, and just isn't productive enough to warrant a big contract. Nevertheless, he should still be useful as a starter for a couple of years, and I think he'll get a 2 year deal for about $5 million per, quite possibly back with Oakland. Eduardo Perez - Seattle Mariners (Team Option) The Mariners could exercise a $1.825 million option on Perez for next season, but I'm not sure he's worth it. He put up .253/9/33 numbers in 186 at-bats, so it looks like he still has a little bit of power. I'm leaning against the option being picked up by Seattle, but I think Perez will get a $1.5 million deal next year to be a bench player. Juan Pierre - Chicago Cubs How much is Pierre worth? He made $5.75 million last year, and hit .292/3/40 with 58 steals. There is going to be a bidding war for his services. At just 29 years old, he's the perfect age to get a max contract. But what exactly is a max contract for a leadoff hitter who, even one with a .303 career average? I'm guessing he's going to get a 4-5 year deal for somewhere in the neighborhood of $9-10 million, but that's completely a guess. I have no idea what teams will think he's actually worth. All I know is that he's going to get a very, very nice contract. Dave Roberts - San Diego Padres Roberts hit .293/2/44 last season and made just $2.25 million. I think the Padres will make a move to keep him, but he'll probably get a decent raise and make somewhere closer to $5 million next year. The difference between him and Juan Pierre comes in just one category - age. Roberts is 34, and will turn 35 during the season. Otherwise, I think there would be a nifty market for him. As it is, he'll get a decent deal despite his age. Tim Salmon - Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim Salmon will probably retire, or at least that's what I've heard (sorry, no cite - this is just information that I picked up somewhere along the way during the course of the season). He made just $400,000 last year, and was actually fairly productive, putting up a .265/9/27. Still, he's 38, and can't get around like he used to. If he wants to come back, someone will give him a shot as a bench player, but I think he'll hang it up. Alfonso Soriano - Washington Nationals Get ready for a bidding war. Soriano hit .277/46/95 last season, with 41 steals. As a second baseman, those would be ridiculous numbers. As an outfielder, they're very good. Soriano is going to make a whole lot of money this off-season (forget about the Nationals re-signing him - I just don't believe that they have the money). I'm guessing he'll get a 4-5 year deal, and probably for somewhere around $15-17 million per. That's a lot of cash, but he's the single biggest prize on the market, and someone will pay - quite possibly the Angels. Shannon Stewart - Minnesota Twins Hard to tell what Stewart will make next year. He made $6.5 million last year, and will be 33 in February. His regular injuries over the last few years make him a gamble. I'm predicting a 1 year deal, probably with a team that has an outside chance of competing (those are the teams most likely to take a chance on Stewart). I can say pretty confidently that he won't be returning to the Twins. Incidentally, Stewart filed for free agency on Saturday. Daryle Ward - Atlanta Braves Ward made just $700,000 last year, and hit .308/7/26 in just 130 at-bats. He'll be just 32 next summer, and probably earned himself a reasonable contract offer next year - a 1 year deal as a role-player/platoon type. Rondell White - Minnesota Twins There are a lot of rumblings that the Twins will at least seriously considering bringing White back in 2007. He made $2.5 million this year, and actually played fairly well in the second half, with .246/7/38 numbers. He'll be 35 years old in February. If he comes back for the same money, I think it would be a reasonable expense - he played well enough to justify a roster spot late in the season, after he seemingly fixed the problems that plagued him earlier in the season. White still has the ability to contribute, whether with the Twins or elsewhere. Bernie Williams - New York Yankees I thought Bernie was going to retire after last season, but he came back for $1.5 million and put together a solid .281/12/61 season. It seems to me like he'll probably return to the Yankees if they're willing to have him, and for that kind of salary, I don't know why they wouldn't. I expect Bernie to come back for one more year. Craig Wilson - New York Yankees Wilson made $3.5 million last year, splitting time between the Pirates and Yankees. He's not a huge average hitter (.251 in '06, .265 career), but he's got some pop, hitting 17 homers in 2006. He'll get a good job, hopefully in the American League where he can play outfield, DH, and maybe a little 1B. Salary-wise, he'll probably get around $5 million per. Preston Wilson - St. Louis Cardinals (Team Option) Wilson hit .263/17/72 last season, and will be 33 in the middle of next summer. The Cardinals have a huge, 3-year/$24 million option. Is Wilson worth $8 million per? Tough call. He can be a solid player, and comparable options will probably cost a lot of money. Nevertheless, committing to Wilson for 3 years is probably too much. The buyout is just $500,000 - a small price to pay for avoiding the obligations of such a daunting option. Wilson will get a decent job next year, and maybe even for $8 million per. I just don't think it will be with the Cardinals, and it definitely won't be on the terms set by this option. Or at least, so I think. (Comment on this)
Friday, September 29th, 2006
7:43 am	Notes on California, the San Andreas Fault and Los Angeles Early morning surfers Originally uploaded by noeltykay. California remains a land of opportunity. It has a world of beauty, wealth, brains and moxie. Here's what wikipedia says about the state: California is a state spanning the southern half of the west coast of the contiguous United States. With a population of 37 million and an area of 158,402 square miles (410,000 km²), California is the largest U.S. state in population and the third largest in area.Historically, California had the highest density and greatest diversity of indigenous peoples in what is now the United States.Although the state's sunny climate has given it a historic reputation for being laid back compared to the East Coast, the $1.55 trillion (as of 2005) California economy is larger than all but the top 7 national economies in the world [1] and is responsible for 13% of the United States' $13 trillion gross domestic product (GDP). The state's predominant industries include agriculture, entertainment, light manufacturing, and tourism. California is also the home of several significant economic regions such as Hollywood (entertainment), the California Central Valley (agriculture), Silicon Valley (computers and high tech), and the Wine Country (wine).It is the third largest state in the U.S and is larger than Germany in size.The hot, fertile Central Valley is California's agricultural heartland and grows a large portion of America's food. The southern part of the valley, which is part desert, is known as the San Joaquin Valley (drained by the San Joaquin River), while the northern half is known as the Sacramento Valley (drained by the Sacramento River).In the center and east of the state are the Sierra Nevada (meaning Snowy Range in Spanish), which include the highest peak in the contiguous 48 states, Mount Whitney, at 14,505 feet (4421 m). Also located in the Sierra are the world-famous Yosemite National Park and a deep freshwater lake, Lake Tahoe,About 35% of the state's total surface area is covered by forests. California's diversity of pine species is unmatched by any other state. Though other states have a higher percentage of their land area covered by forests, in terms of total area, California contains more forestland than any other state except Alaska.Along the densely populated and long California coast are several major metropolitan areas, including San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, Los Angeles-Long Beach, Santa Ana-Irvine-Anaheim, Riverside-San Bernardino, California and San Diego. Climates near the Pacific Ocean are remarkably moderate compared with inland climates. Winter temperatures seldom reach freezing and summer temperatures rarely reach above the high 80's Fahrenheit (low 30's Celsius).California is the most populous state—more than 12 percent of U.S. citizens live in the state. California's population is larger than all but 33 countries. About four million more people live in California than in all of Canada.California has eight of the top 50 US cities in terms of population. Los Angeles is the nation's second largest city with a population of 3,845,541 people, followed by San Diego (8th), San Jose (10th), San Francisco (14th), Long Beach (34th), Fresno (37th), Sacramento (38th) and Oakland (44th).California lacks a majority ethnic group. It is the third minority-majority state, after Hawaii and New Mexico. Non-Hispanic Whites are still the largest group while Hispanics make up over one-third of the population; in order, other groups are Asians, Blacks, and Native Americans.As of 2005, California's economy is larger than all but seven national economies in the world.[3] California is responsible for 13% of the United States gross domestic product (GDP), while the state population constitute only 12% of the United States population. The gross state product (GSP) is about $1.55 trillion ($1,550,000,000,000, as of 2004), making it greater than that of every other U.S. state, and most countries in the world (by Purchasing Power Parity).The predominant industry, more than twice as large as the next, is agriculture, (including fruit, vegetables, dairy, and wine). This is followed by aerospace; entertainment, primarily television by dollar volume, although many movies are still made in California; light manufacturing, including computer hardware and software; and the mining of borax.Per capita personal income was $33,403 as of 2003, ranking 12th in the nation.The giant seaport complex formed by the Port of Los Angeles and the Port of Long Beach in Southern California is the largest in the country and responsible for handling about a fourth of all container cargo traffic in the United States.Major league teamsBaseballLos Angeles Angels of AnaheimLos Angeles DodgersOakland AthleticsSan Diego PadresSan Francisco GiantsNational Basketball AssociationGolden State WarriorsLos Angeles ClippersLos Angeles LakersSacramento KingsNational Football LeagueOakland RaidersSan Diego ChargersSan Francisco 49ersNational Hockey LeagueAnaheim DucksLos Angeles KingsSan Jose SharksMajor League SoccerClub Deportivo Chivas USALos Angeles GalaxyOther teamsNational Lacrosse LeagueSan Jose StealthMajor League LacrosseSan Francisco DragonsLos Angeles RiptideArena Football LeagueSan Jose SabercatsLos Angeles AvengersAmerican Basketball AssociationBeijing Aoshen OlympianCarson BuzzFresno HeatwaveSan Diego WildcatsContinental Basketball AssociationSan Jose SkyRocketsWomen's National Basketball AssociationLos Angeles SparksSacramento Monarchs The San Andreas Fault is a geological fault that runs a length of roughly 800 miles (1287 kilometres) through western and southern California in the United States. The fault, a right-lateral strike-slip fault, marks a transform boundary between the Pacific Plate and the North American Plate. A study completed by Yuri Fialko, an associate professor at the Cecil H. and Ida M. Green Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography (an academic unit of the University of California, San Diego), published in the June 22, 2006 edition of the journal Nature, has demonstrated that the San Andreas fault has been stressed to a level sufficient for the next "big one", as it its commonly called, that is, an earthquake of magnitude 7.0 or greater. The study also concluded that the risk of a large earthquake may be increasing faster than researchers had previously believed. Fialko also emphasized in his study that, while the San Andreas Fault has experienced massive earthquakes in 1857 at its central section and in 1906 at its northern segment (the great San Francisco earthquake), the southern section of the fault has not seen a similar rupture in at least 300 years.If such an earthquake were to occur, Fialko's study stated, it would result in substantial damage to Palm Springs and a number of other cities in San Bernardino, Riverside and Imperial counties in California. Such an event would be felt throughout much of Southern California, including densely populated areas of metropolitan Los Angeles and San Diego."All these data suggest that the fault is ready for the next big earthquake but exactly when the triggering will happen and when the earthquake will occur we cannot tell," Fialko said. "It could be tomorrow or it could be 10 years or more from now," he concludedLos Angeles, known as "L.A." or the "City of Angels", is the largest city in the state of California and the second-largest in the United States. As of the 2005 U.S. Census estimate, the city had a population of 3.8 million. The city is the core cultural and economic center of the Los Angeles–Long Beach–Santa Ana metropolitan area with a population of 12.9 million.[1]Men and women gather around the Plaza Church (Mission Nuestra Señora Reina de los Angeles) sometime between 1890 and 1900. The block building features an arched doorway, ocular windows, and a gazebo-like structure mounted on the roof. Faint impressions of paintings on the exterior of the building are evident.The Mission Nuestra Señora Reina de los Angeles was founded on September 4, 1781 by a group of Mexican pobladeros (settlers). The Hispanic, Asian American, and Caribbean populations are growing particularly quickly — the Asian American population is the largest of any city in the U.S and the city contains the largest concentration of Los Angeles County's 1.4 million Asians. Los Angeles hosts the largest populations of Armenians, Cambodians, Filipinos, Guatemalans, Hungarians, Koreans, Mexicans, Salvadorans, and Thais in the world outside of their respective countries. Los Angeles is also home to the largest populations of Japanese and Persians living in the U.S., and has one of the largest Native American populations in the country.Los Angeles is home to people from more than 140 countries, who speak at least 224 different languages. Ethnic enclaves like Chinatown, Historic Filipinotown, Koreatown, Little Armenia, Little Ethiopia, Little Persia, Little Tokyo, and Thai Town give testimony to the polyglot character of Los Angeles and its unique diversity. (Comment on this)
Tuesday, August 29th, 2006
6:35 pm	Notes on California, the San Andreas Fault and Los Angeles Early morning surfers Originally uploaded by noeltykay. California remains a land of opportunity. It has a world of beauty, wealth, brains and moxie. Here's what wikipedia says about the state: California is a state spanning the southern half of the west coast of the contiguous United States. With a population of 37 million and an area of 158,402 square miles (410,000 km²), California is the largest U.S. state in population and the third largest in area. Historically, California had the highest density and greatest diversity of indigenous peoples in what is now the United States. Although the state's sunny climate has given it a historic reputation for being laid back compared to the East Coast, the $1.55 trillion (as of 2005) California economy is larger than all but the top 7 national economies in the world [1] and is responsible for 13% of the United States' $13 trillion gross domestic product (GDP). The state's predominant industries include agriculture, entertainment, light manufacturing, and tourism. California is also the home of several significant economic regions such as Hollywood (entertainment), the California Central Valley (agriculture), Silicon Valley (computers and high tech), and the Wine Country (wine). It is the third largest state in the U.S and is larger than Germany in size. The hot, fertile Central Valley is California's agricultural heartland and grows a large portion of America's food. The southern part of the valley, which is part desert, is known as the San Joaquin Valley (drained by the San Joaquin River), while the northern half is known as the Sacramento Valley (drained by the Sacramento River). In the center and east of the state are the Sierra Nevada (meaning Snowy Range in Spanish), which include the highest peak in the contiguous 48 states, Mount Whitney, at 14,505 feet (4421 m). Also located in the Sierra are the world-famous Yosemite National Park and a deep freshwater lake, Lake Tahoe, About 35% of the state's total surface area is covered by forests. California's diversity of pine species is unmatched by any other state. Though other states have a higher percentage of their land area covered by forests, in terms of total area, California contains more forestland than any other state except Alaska. Along the densely populated and long California coast are several major metropolitan areas, including San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, Los Angeles-Long Beach, Santa Ana-Irvine-Anaheim, Riverside-San Bernardino, California and San Diego. Climates near the Pacific Ocean are remarkably moderate compared with inland climates. Winter temperatures seldom reach freezing and summer temperatures rarely reach above the high 80's Fahrenheit (low 30's Celsius). California is the most populous state—more than 12 percent of U.S. citizens live in the state. California's population is larger than all but 33 countries. About four million more people live in California than in all of Canada. California has eight of the top 50 US cities in terms of population. Los Angeles is the nation's second largest city with a population of 3,845,541 people, followed by San Diego (8th), San Jose (10th), San Francisco (14th), Long Beach (34th), Fresno (37th), Sacramento (38th) and Oakland (44th). California lacks a majority ethnic group. It is the third minority-majority state, after Hawaii and New Mexico. Non-Hispanic Whites are still the largest group while Hispanics make up over one-third of the population; in order, other groups are Asians, Blacks, and Native Americans. As of 2005, California's economy is larger than all but seven national economies in the world.[3] California is responsible for 13% of the United States gross domestic product (GDP), while the state population constitute only 12% of the United States population. The gross state product (GSP) is about $1.55 trillion ($1,550,000,000,000, as of 2004), making it greater than that of every other U.S. state, and most countries in the world (by Purchasing Power Parity). The predominant industry, more than twice as large as the next, is agriculture, (including fruit, vegetables, dairy, and wine). This is followed by aerospace; entertainment, primarily television by dollar volume, although many movies are still made in California; light manufacturing, including computer hardware and software; and the mining of borax. Per capita personal income was $33,403 as of 2003, ranking 12th in the nation. The giant seaport complex formed by the Port of Los Angeles and the Port of Long Beach in Southern California is the largest in the country and responsible for handling about a fourth of all container cargo traffic in the United States. Major league teams Baseball Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim Los Angeles Dodgers Oakland Athletics San Diego Padres San Francisco Giants National Basketball Association Golden State Warriors Los Angeles Clippers Los Angeles Lakers Sacramento Kings National Football League Oakland Raiders San Diego Chargers San Francisco 49ers National Hockey League Anaheim Ducks Los Angeles Kings San Jose Sharks Major League Soccer Club Deportivo Chivas USA Los Angeles Galaxy Other teams National Lacrosse League San Jose Stealth Major League Lacrosse San Francisco Dragons Los Angeles Riptide Arena Football League San Jose Sabercats Los Angeles Avengers American Basketball Association Beijing Aoshen Olympian Carson Buzz Fresno Heatwave San Diego Wildcats Continental Basketball Association San Jose SkyRockets Women's National Basketball Association Los Angeles Sparks Sacramento Monarchs The San Andreas Fault is a geological fault that runs a length of roughly 800 miles (1287 kilometres) through western and southern California in the United States. The fault, a right-lateral strike-slip fault, marks a transform boundary between the Pacific Plate and the North American Plate. A study completed by Yuri Fialko, an associate professor at the Cecil H. and Ida M. Green Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography (an academic unit of the University of California, San Diego), published in the June 22, 2006 edition of the journal Nature, has demonstrated that the San Andreas fault has been stressed to a level sufficient for the next "big one", as it its commonly called, that is, an earthquake of magnitude 7.0 or greater. The study also concluded that the risk of a large earthquake may be increasing faster than researchers had previously believed. Fialko also emphasized in his study that, while the San Andreas Fault has experienced massive earthquakes in 1857 at its central section and in 1906 at its northern segment (the great San Francisco earthquake), the southern section of the fault has not seen a similar rupture in at least 300 years. If such an earthquake were to occur, Fialko's study stated, it would result in substantial damage to Palm Springs and a number of other cities in San Bernardino, Riverside and Imperial counties in California. Such an event would be felt throughout much of Southern California, including densely populated areas of metropolitan Los Angeles and San Diego. "All these data suggest that the fault is ready for the next big earthquake but exactly when the triggering will happen and when the earthquake will occur we cannot tell," Fialko said. "It could be tomorrow or it could be 10 years or more from now," he concluded Los Angeles, known as "L.A." or the "City of Angels", is the largest city in the state of California and the second-largest in the United States. As of the 2005 U.S. Census estimate, the city had a population of 3.8 million. The city is the core cultural and economic center of the Los Angeles–Long Beach–Santa Ana metropolitan area with a population of 12.9 million.[1] Men and women gather around the Plaza Church (Mission Nuestra Señora Reina de los Angeles) sometime between 1890 and 1900. The block building features an arched doorway, ocular windows, and a gazebo-like structure mounted on the roof. Faint impressions of paintings on the exterior of the building are evident. The Mission Nuestra Señora Reina de los Angeles was founded on September 4, 1781 by a group of Mexican pobladeros (settlers). The Hispanic, Asian American, and Caribbean populations are growing particularly quickly — the Asian American population is the largest of any city in the U.S and the city contains the largest concentration of Los Angeles County's 1.4 million Asians. Los Angeles hosts the largest populations of Armenians, Cambodians, Filipinos, Guatemalans, Hungarians, Koreans, Mexicans, Salvadorans, and Thais in the world outside of their respective countries. Los Angeles is also home to the largest populations of Japanese and Persians living in the U.S., and has one of the largest Native American populations in the country. Los Angeles is home to people from more than 140 countries, who speak at least 224 different languages. Ethnic enclaves like Chinatown, Historic Filipinotown, Koreatown, Little Armenia, Little Ethiopia, Little Persia, Little Tokyo, and Thai Town give testimony to the polyglot character of Los Angeles and its unique diversity. (Comment on this)
Friday, August 18th, 2006
11:39 am	MLB Power Rankings 1. Detroit Tigers (Last week: 1) This past week ... MLB Power Rankings 1. Detroit Tigers (Last week: 1) This past week was a scare for Tigers' fans and finally for all the critics, it appears the Tigers have hit a slide, losing 5 in a row and three to the White Sox. It does not get any easier as they face the Red Sox for three in Boston and that could decide if they are seriously in trouble. 2. Chicago White Sox (Last week: 5) After a sweep of the Tigers, the White Sox took over control of the wild card and showed that they are still one of the best in the league. They know seem to own the tigers going 9-3 this season. 3. New York Mets (Last week: 3) The Mets are holding strong in the National League. They continue to play well and continue to be the class of the NL. With a 15 game lead in the NL east its only a matter of time before they clinch the division. 4. New York Yankees (Last week: 2) The Yankees lost two straight series to the White Sox and Angels but due to the Red Sox slide they remain in control of the AL east with a 1 game lead and two games in hand. 5. Minnesota Twins (Last week: 6) The Twins are hurting with losing Liriano and losing two of three to the Jays with the bottom of their rotation. They are going to need someone to step up to Liriano's place. On the plus side, Justin Morneau is looking more and more like an MVP candidate. 6. Boston Red Sox (Last week: 4) Another team that did not have a great week. They are 4-6 in their last ten after sweeping the hapless Orioles. They have the Tigers and Yankees this week and it will be interesting to see how they play. 7. Los Angeles Dodgers (Last week: 10) The Dodgers are on fire. They finally had their winning streak snapped but then reeled off four straight wins. 15-1 in their last 16 and now have a 1.5 game lead over the Padres. They are pitching amazing. 8. Oakland A's (Last week: 7) The A's continue to play solid ball and increased their lead over the Angels in the West this week. With a 20-9 record since the all-star break, this team is really clicking heading into the end of August and September. 9. Toronto Blue Jays (Last week: NR) The Jays took two of three from the Twins and after their skid seemed to have righted the ship. Burnett has two wins in a row and if he, along with Halladay and Lilly continue to pitch well enough so the middle relievers don't get into the game, they might make this close. 10. St. Louis Cardinals (Last week: 9) The Cards are holding onto the central despite being swept by the Pirates. The Reds are right on their heels and they need to pick it up. Just Missed: Los Angeles Angels, Cincinatti Reds Dropped out: Los Angels Angels (Comment on this)
Thursday, August 3rd, 2006
6:00 pm	I left work early yesterday and took Anonymous Son to the Angels ... I left work early yesterday and took Anonymous Son to the Angels game, way out in Anaheim. I don't know why. I don't know why they call themselves the Los Angeles Angels now. No one in Los Angeles gets on the 5 and drives through that traffic to get out to Anaheim to see the Angels play. They're no more Los Angeles than the valley is. I mentioned to a few associates that I was going to see the game, while I gave them an assignment to keep them in the office all night, and they looked at me like I was crazy. They didn't even know where Anaheim was. Never heard of it. I only knew because I had to do document review out there as an associate once, for some client in the middle of some industrial park out in the sticks. I don't who these people were at the game. They weren't from Los Angeles, and they didn't look like lawyers. Well, some of them were probably from the city. Like Dodgers fans, they left the game in the sixth inning to beat the traffic back, even though there's never any traffic going back, it's just getting out of the city at 5:00. Because Anonymous Son was with me, I didn't even need to use the blow-up doll I have for the passenger seat so I can use the HOV lane and save some time. I love the HOV lanes. Very smart move by the state. The Angels won, although a 9th inning rally from the Indians made it close. Anonymous Son wanted a funnel cake. I didn't let him get one. It's a nice stadium out there. They renovated it a few years ago. Added a waterfall to the outfield, some fireworks when an Angel hits a home run. I think we should have vendors in the office who go around the halls giving away drinks and food. It would be really convenient to not have to get up to get something to eat. I'm going to bring it up at the next partner meeting. Since I got last minute tickets, they were pretty high up, but I gave an usher a $20 to let us sneak into the good seats, so it wasn't like I had to expose Anonymous Son to any poor people. My wife and I are trying to keep him away from those for as long as I can, to keep him unspoiled. Unspoiled may be the wrong word. Untainted. Unspoiled is harder. I sent an e-card to the incoming class of associates, just a week away from the Bar Exam. I hope they appreciated it. You can send one here, from me, to your colleagues taking the bar exam too. I thought it would be a nice service to provide, save you from having to write your own. I'm hoping for some failures this year. Not that it's good for the firm, but it's just so much fun to know. To watch someone wandering the halls, knowing he's thinking about how everyone around him knows he failed the bar. It's one of the highlights of the year. (Comment on this)
Monday, July 31st, 2006
9:57 pm	Fantasy Friday (Mid-Season Fantasy Baseball All-Stars) Greetings Everyone, Welcome to another Fantasy Friday (which might be showing up a little bit late depending on who's been trying to read it). Anyways, just bare with me as I get things together to a more consistent level. Today's topic is very simple...basically, it's my first half Fantasy Baseball All-Stars. I figured that I could make a list for people and it MIGHT help you out in your fantasy leagues. You might see the name of a player that's somehow still available in the Free Agent market of your league. However, if you're in a league with me, then FUGGEDABOUTIT!! I can almost guarantee you that it's too late..LOL. So here are Agent Smith's 2006 Fantasy All-Stars now that we're halfway through the baseball season. Catcher NL 1st Team - Michael Barrett - Chicago Cubs NL 2nd Team - Brian McCann - Atlanta Braves NL Surprise Stud - Johnny Estrada - Arizona Diamondbacks AL 1st Team - Joe Mauer - Minnesota Twins AL 2nd Team - Victor Martinez - Cleveland Indians AL Surprise Stud - Ramon Hernandez - Baltimore Orioles 1st Base NL 1st Team - Albert Pujols - St. Louis Cardinals NL 2nd Team - Lance Berkman - Houston Astros NL Surprise Stud - Nick Johnson - Washinton Nationals AL 1st Team - Jim Thome - Chicago White Sox AL 2nd Team - David Ortiz - Boston Red Sox AL Surprise Stud - Justin Morneau - Minnesota Twins 2nd Base NL 1st Team - Chase Utley - Philadelphia Phillies NL 2nd Team - Rickie Weeks - Milwaukee Brewers NL Surprise Stud - Dan Uggla - Florida Marlins AL 1st Team - Chone Figgins - Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim AL 2nd Team - Tadahito Iguchi - Chicago White Sox AL Surprise Stud - Jose Lopez - Seattle Mariners 3rd Base NL 1st Team - David Wright - New York Mets NL 2nd Team - Miguel Cabrera - Florida Marlins NL Surprise Stud - Scott Rolen - St. Louis Cardinals AL 1st Team - Alex Rodriguez - New York Yankees AL 2nd Team - Troy Glaus - Toronto Blue Jays AL Surprise Stud - Joe Crede - Chicago White Sox Shortstop NL 1st Team - Jose Reyes - New York Mets NL 2nd Team - Hanley Ramirez - Florida Marlins NL Surprise Stud - Nomar Garciaparra - Los Angeles Dodgers AL 1st Team - Miguel Tejada - Baltimore Orioles AL 2nd Team - Derek Jeter - New York Yankees AL Surprise Stud - Orlando Cabrera - Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim Outfield NL 1st Team - Alfonso Soriano - Washington Nationals / Carlos Beltran - New York Mets / Carlos Lee - Milwaukee Brewers NL 2nd Team - Adam Dunn - Cincinnati Reds / Jason Bay - Pittsburgh Pirates / Andruw Jones - Atlanta Braves NL Surprise Stud - Matt Holliday - Colorado Rockies AL 1st Team - Carl Crawford - Tampa Bay Devil Rays / Jermaine Dye - Chicago White Sox / Ichiro Suzuki - Seattle Mariners AL 2nd Team - Grady Sizemore - Cleveland Indians / Vladimir Guerrero - Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim / Manny Ramirez - Boston Red Sox AL Surprise Stud - Raul Ibanez - Seattle Mariners Starting Pitchers NL 1st Team - Brandon Webb - Arizona Diamondbacks / Aaron Harang - Cincinnati Reds / Carlos Zambrano - Chicago Cubs NL 2nd Team - Chris Capuano - Milwaukee Brewers / Chris Carpenter - St. Louis Cardinals / Pedro Martinez - New York Mets NL Surprise Stud - Bronson Arroyo - Cincinnati Reds AL 1st Team - Johan Santana - Minnesota Twins / Francisco Liriano - Minnesota Twins / John Lackey - Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim AL 2nd Team - Curt Schilling - Boston Red Sox / Roy Halladay - Toronto Blue Jays / Scott Kazmir - Tampa Bay Devil Rays AL Surprise Stud - Mike Mussina - New York Yankees Relief Pitchers NL 1st Team - Tom Gordon - Philadelphia Phillies / Trevor Hoffman - San Diego Padres / Billy Wagner - New York Mets NL 2nd Team - Jason Isringhausen - St. Louis Cardinals / Derrick Turnbow - Milwaukee Brewers / Mike Gonzalez - Pittsburgh Pirates NL Surprise Stud - Takashi Saito - Los Angeles Dodgers That's all she wrote, folks. If anyone has any feedback about this, then let me know. Next week, I'll most likely be listing my first half All-Rookie Teams. Excelsior Agent Smith AL 1st Team - Jonathan Papelbon - Boston Red Sox / Joe Nathan - Minnesota Twins / B.J. Ryan - Toronto Blue Jays AL 2nd Team - Mariano Rivera - New York Yankees / Bobby Jenks - Chicago White Sox / Huston Street - Oakland Athletics AL Surprise Stud - J.J. Putz - Seattle Mariners (Comment on this)
Saturday, July 29th, 2006
4:50 pm	I left work early yesterday and took Anonymous Son to the Angels ... I left work early yesterday and took Anonymous Son to the Angels game, way out in Anaheim. I don't know why. I don't know why they call themselves the Los Angeles Angels now. No one in Los Angeles gets on the 5 and drives through that traffic to get out to Anaheim to see the Angels play. They're no more Los Angeles than the valley is. I mentioned to a few associates that I was going to see the game, while I gave them an assignment to keep them in the office all night, and they looked at me like I was crazy. They didn't even know where Anaheim was. Never heard of it. I only knew because I had to do document review out there as an associate once, for some client in the middle of some industrial park out in the sticks. I don't who these people were at the game. They weren't from Los Angeles, and they didn't look like lawyers. Well, some of them were probably from the city. Like Dodgers fans, they left the game in the sixth inning to beat the traffic back, even though there's never any traffic going back, it's just getting out of the city at 5:00. Because Anonymous Son was with me, I didn't even need to use the blow-up doll I have for the passenger seat so I can use the HOV lane and save some time. I love the HOV lanes. Very smart move by the state. The Angels won, although a 9th inning rally from the Indians made it close. Anonymous Son wanted a funnel cake. I didn't let him get one. It's a nice stadium out there. They renovated it a few years ago. Added a waterfall to the outfield, some fireworks when an Angel hits a home run. I think we should have vendors in the office who go around the halls giving away drinks and food. It would be really convenient to not have to get up to get something to eat. I'm going to bring it up at the next partner meeting. Since I got last minute tickets, they were pretty high up, but I gave an usher a $20 to let us sneak into the good seats, so it wasn't like I had to expose Anonymous Son to any poor people. My wife and I are trying to keep him away from those for as long as I can, to keep him unspoiled. Unspoiled may be the wrong word. Untainted. Unspoiled is harder. I sent an e-card to the incoming class of associates, just a week away from the Bar Exam. I hope they appreciated it. You can send one here, from me, to your colleagues taking the bar exam too. I thought it would be a nice service to provide, save you from having to write your own. I'm hoping for some failures this year. Not that it's good for the firm, but it's just so much fun to know. To watch someone wandering the halls, knowing he's thinking about how everyone around him knows he failed the bar. It's one of the highlights of the year. (Comment on this)
Thursday, July 27th, 2006
10:47 am	MLB: Devil Rays Shut Out Red Sox By VOA Sports 04 July 2006 One of baseball's young pitching stars, 22-year-old Scott Kazmir of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, muffled the red-hot Boston Red Sox with a two-hitter Monday. The 3-0 victory by the last-place Devil Rays also was Kazmir's first major-league complete game. He is heading for an appearance in next week's All-Star game in Pittsburgh. Another American League left-handed pitching ace, Erik Bedard of the Baltimore Orioles, also had a sparkling two-hit performance that smothered the Chicago White Sox, 8-1. The other winners on Monday were the Indians, Rangers, Twins, Athletics and Angels. In the National League, the last-place Pirates demolished the league-leading New York Mets, 11-1; other winners were the Brewers, Nationals, Braves, Astros, Giants and Dodgers. In Los Angeles, the Dodgers' Nomar Garciaparra tied a major-league record by getting hit by pitches three times in one game. He also singled and drove in two runs in a 10-4 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks. The Milwaukee Brewers clipped the Cincinnati Reds, 8-7. Here in Washington, the Nationals beat the Florida Marlins, 9-1, with two home runs by Alfonso Soriano. The Atlanta Braves downed the struggling St. Louis Cardinals, 6-3, and the Houston Astros beat the Chicago Cubs, 7-2, with Roger Clemens gaining his first win -- and the 342nd of his career -- in his current comeback attempt. The San Francisco Giants beat the Coplorado Rockies in Denver, 9-6. The Cleveland Indians clubbed the New York Yankees, 5-2, the Texas Rangers downed the Toronto Blue Jays, 6-1, and the Minnesota Twins rallied to nip the Royals in Kansas City, 6-5. The Oakland Athletics edged the Detroit Tigers, 5-3, and the Los Angeles Angels whipped the Seattle Mariners, 7-1. This story originally ran at VOANews.com This story was originally posted here. (Comment on this)