Boston Red Sox @ Tampa Bay Rays, game 4

In the past I've viewed Rays pitcher Jeremy Hellickson as the potential reincarnation (not literally!) of Cubs/Braves great Greg Maddux.

So it's been frustrating watching Hellickson struggle his way to a 12-10 record and an ERA in excess of 5.0 in 2013.  And it causes me to raise an eyebrow or two at the coaches' decision to use rookie pitcher Chris Archer (9-7, 3.22) in relief while using Hellickson as the fourth starter during the playoffs.



GM Joe Maddon and company have to see something in Hellickson at this point in the season that's eluding me.

It's not that I think Hellickson can't pitch well.  I viewed him as the No. 2 starter for the Rays entering the 2013 season.  So far it hasn't panned out that way.  But beating the Red Sox tonight will do a great deal to make his performance this season look good.  I hope Maddon is right on this one.


Go Rays.


Update 12:31 a.m.

Hellickson cruised through the first inning before getting lifted from the game during the 2nd inning jam he helped create.  The bullpen sustained a shutout through the 7th inning, when the Red Sox scored two runs to take a 2-1 lead.  The Rays didn't score after that.

Game over, season over.  And the game was akin to the season.  Boston played consistently well (still hate 'em; this is just respect) and the Rays played spotty.  Pitching wasn't the strength it should have been, and the batting lineup was dotted with severe slumps from key players.

Go A's or some other team I hate less than Boston.  The lower the payroll the better.

Not a Jetpack

I don't care what they call it, this newfangled personal flying device is not a jetpack.  It's a little closer to a jetpack than gluing a big patch of velcro on the back of your t-shirt and then attaching yourself to the Space Shuttle. But only just a little closer.

Music video: "The Storm" by Flying Colors

It's a super group that's super. Prog chops all over radio-friendly hook-filled tunes with excellent singing.

Is Neal Morse raising that one hand in worship at 3:47? You go, Neal.

Music Video: "Excuse" by the Ettes

The Ettes had a pretty good tune on the "Whip It" soundtrack.  "Whip It," for those who remember, was a hip and entertaining movie about a Texas teen who gets hooked on roller derby.  Ellen Page played the teen and Drew Barrymore directed.  Good flick.  But enough about that.

The Ettes:

George Alexander Louis?

George Alexander Louis.

"Seinfeld" would have been shorter.

And maybe it's all a coincidence.

Rays, Tigers, Cabrera, Zobrist (because I can)

The red line is the inside edge of the batting box. Big yellow circle indicates the batter's head. The small yellow circle indicates the baseball.

Yes, the images are potentially misleading because there's no guarantee that both pictures show the baseball at the same point in its approach to the plate.

"I don't care about throwing inside, but I don't like it up there," Leyland said. "We will not tolerate that."

"That's part of baseball. Guys get hit in baseball games," Leyland said.

Pakistan, umbrellas, Jeffrey Osborne and R.E.S.P.E.C.T.

Back in the day, journalists could plausibly stand in awe of President Obama's great attention to detail on foreign policy.  He pronounced Pakistan the way Pakistani natives pronounce it.  It was about respect.

His aides know that this is an area where the president wants to be right. In Obama’s view, pronouncing someone’s name or hometown correctly is a simple way of showing respect, they say. It’s a sort of baseline diplomacy. That’s particularly so in foreign relations, where aides say the president will privately practice pronouncing a leader’s name a number times before saying it publicly.

It's this frame that makes some of the president's actions troublesome.  Take Mr. Obama's decision to direct attending Marines hold hold umbrellas as he and a visiting diplomat spoke on a recent rainy day in Washington D.C.

We have a commander-in-chief concerned about pronouncing Pakistan correctly but not concerned about respecting Marine tradition.  It's about respect.

The president's defenders tried to flip it around:

So what was the grave transgression? It seems that Marines (except, bizarrely and somewhat patronizingly, female Marines) are not supposed to carry umbrellas, according to military tradition. Fine, but in fact, they weren't carrying them in the sense that they weren't holding them over their own heads – they were protecting the president (which, in fact, is part of their job while at the White House). Also, the president is the commander-in-chief, and while that is not strictly a military rank, he does outrank the servicemembers there to protect him. That's the point.

The president outranks the U.S. soldiers attending his functions.  That's the point.  He can have them bend and shine his shoes on the spot if he chooses.

No, that's not the point.  It's about respect.

More recently, Mr. Obama repeatedly referred to British dignitary George Osborne as "Jeffrey."  The president apologized, offering that he was confusing the dignitary with his favorite R&B singer, Jeffrey Osborne.

Pakistan.  Umbrella.  Jeffrey Osborne.

It's about respect.  Who and what does the president respect?  He's either very careful about showing respect or he is not.

One of my favorite tunes by Andy Timmons: "Deliver Us"

Now I'll try to figure out why it took me so long to run across this video.

Gosnell inspired by Galactic Cowboys song?

Kermit Gosnell, the abortion clinic doctor on trial for murder and other charges in Pennsylvania, may be able to blame his behavior on the mass media.  Gosnell could argue he was compelled to act based on the song "If I Were a Killer" by the Galactic Cowboys.

Sample lyrics:

If I were a killer
I'd hide behind a doctor's door
If I were a killer
I'd scrape you off my office floor
If I were a killer

The song contained a scarcely-concealed anti-abortion message, yet garnered some MTV airplay on the Headbanger's Ball program.




No, I don't think Gosnell was inspired by the song. Just in case somebody thinks I'm serious about that.

Nifty Music: Alpha Rev

I became acquainted with the singer for Alpha Rev through his work with the supergroup Flying Colors.  I checked out a few Alpha Rev songs last year and none of them particularly grabbed me.  But then I caught this video version of the new single from the album "Bloom" and Whoa.

Great song.  Enjoy.