Strollerderby : Baseball

Morning News - Astronauts Watch Star Trek In Space

Brett Singer — Mon, 18 May 2009 02:01:00 GMT

You are either tired of hearing me talking about "Star Trek", or you can't get enough of it. It's like Kirk vs. Spock in "The Apple", a classic episode of the original series. Actually, it's not really like that very much at all, but saying that it was allowed me to get in another "Trek" mention. Sorry.

Anyway, even if you don't care about "Star Trek", you may still think that this is cool -- Real Live Astronauts are Watching ‘Star Trek’ in Outer Space - Right Now. Actually, it happened on Friday, but perhaps due to a singularity created by red matter, it's possible that the astroanuts are, in fact, watching the movie as you read this. Unlikely. But possible.

Moving on to a topic I don't really understand, how about some international economic news? The Motley Fool tells us Why China's Stimulus Plan Will Change the World. Um, OK. Remember when you thought putting 20 bucks a week into your savings account was a solid method of planning for the future?

Barack Obama spoke at Notre Dame, which was a big deal because he is pro-choice. MSNBC says that he called "for 'fair-minded' abortion debate." So they booed him. Not everybody, of course.

David Geffen may want to buy the New York Times. I hope someone does. The idea of the Times going under is something I have trouble with. It's not just the paper, it's the reporters behind it. Sure, they may have made mistakes. But it's a great institution that should live on. So if selling it to a massively successful music and movie mogul is the way to do that, I say "whoo-hoo."

Swine flu, or H1N1, is still here. CNN reports that a "New York middle school assistant principal who was hospitalized with the H1N1 virus died Sunday. BUT he might not have died of swine flu. They won't tell us. Fun. Keep sanitizing the children, and yourself.

David Wells, who has both pitched a perfect game and attacked someone at a diner while drunk (allegedly), says that any home runs that Alex Rodriguez -- aka "The Rod" -- hit while he was taking steroids shouldn't count. Wells was a great pitcher when he was sober (allegedly) but he's got a big mouth. I never liked The Rod, but Wells just rubs me the wrong way.

OK, getting back to movie news, "Angels & Demons" took the number one spot at the box office this week with $48 million, despite generally bad reviews and a complete lack of facial expressions from Tom Hanks. "Star Trek" was close behind ( like a Klingon Bird of Prey) with $43 million, and "Wolverine" dropped to third with only $14.8 million. I saw "Anvil! The Story of Anvil" this weekend, mostly beacuse it was playing nearby at a convenient time. It wasn't as good as it should have been. It's sort of a real-life "This Is Spinal Tap", except that when you watch actual 50-year-olds who never made it in the music business still trying to make it, it can get a little depressing. Also, the film itself was too long (even though it was only 90 minutes) and didn't dig deep enough to hold my interest. Oh well. At least I got to see a movie in a theater with my wife, which happens far too infrequently. And the sushi we had before the film was really good. So there's that.

More tomorrow...

Image: Wikipedia

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DVD Review - The Sportys

Brett Singer — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 22:00:00 GMT

Baseball season has begun. For those of you looking to teach your kids some of the fundamentals of the game, you could do worse than to watch "The Sportys."

The set up is simple enough for even very young children to follow. A group of kids get together and decide that they want to play baseball. But they don't know how. So a talking ball named "Stitch" (voiced by "The Green Mile"'s Michael Clarke Duncan) shows up to teach them. Then they encounter a rival team who are, at first, much better than our heroes, who themselves tend to strike out while batting and to run into each other on the field. Spoiler alert: despite these overwhelming odds, they come back and win the game. It's completely unrealistic but my almost 4-year-old didn't care one bit. He was right there with it the whole time.

The best thing about "The Sportys" are the baseball tips they throw in. From a storytelling perspective, it's not exactly smooth, but as an instructional-type video aimed at youngish children, it works. Examples include:

- "If you're going to catch a fly ball, say 'I got it!'" (advice that even Big Leaguers forget from time to time.)
http://www.guzer.com/videos/baseball_crash.php

- "Lead off? What's that?" "That means you bat first."
- "If I get four balls, I get a walk, right?" (Something I figured out my first year in Little League. The pitching wasn't exactly great, and even though I didn't get a single hit, I was third on the team in walks. Ah, memories.)

There's even a song with the Obama-esque title "Yes We Can" to keep little ones engaged. It's not going to win a grammy, but it worked on my son, who spent the next three days "batting" with his tinker toys all over our apartment.

A nice bonus feature is the 30 minutes of instructional segments by New York Yankees hitting coach Kevin Long. Each lesson is simple to follow and refreshingly low-key, emphasizing "realistic goals" such as "I want my child to hit the ball today." (As opposed to "That kid better hit a home run or she's walking home!" That would be an unrealistic goal.) Fans of Evan Longoria can enjoy a poster of the 2008 Rookie of the Year, included with the disc. (Fans of Eva Longoria should watch "Desperate Housewives." Rim shot.)

Although the animation is nothing to write home about (the "visiting" team also appears to be made up of clones, since the animator didn't bother to create 9 new characters), and the overall story is ridiculous, young children with an interest in baseball should find plenty to enjoy while they – and their parents – learn a few things about how to play the game.

"The Sportys" DVD is $19.99 and can be ordered at TheSportys.com. A portion of DVD sales will be donated to the RBI Foundation.

Morning News - March Madness or March Sadness?

Brett Singer — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 13:00:00 GMT

Apologies for forgetting St. Patrick's Day yesterday. I could make a culturally insensitive joke and say that I was drunk, but the truth is I just forgot. Apparently everybody was Irish on Tuesday, but today you're back to whatever it is you are the rest of the year.

Speaking of being culturally insensitive, it's a St. Paddy's Day tradition for the current Irish leader to bring the U.S. President a bowl of shamrocks. Faith and begorrah, laddie! Why doesn't he just dress up like the Lucky Charms mascot and dance an Irish jig on the White House lawn?

A group in Boston conducted a survey of local teens and asked them about Chris Brown and Rihanna. The results? Forty-six percent thought the beating Brown allegedly gave Rihanna "was Rihanna's fault, and fifty-two percent said it was both Rihanna and Brown's fault. Fifty-one percent blamed Brown." Wow. This story gets more depressing by the minute. I'm increasingly of the opinion that there are a lot of guys out there who think it's acceptable to hit a woman if she, you know, just doesn't listen or something. Scary thought.

In goofier entertainment news: Wow, Harry Connick Jr. got fat. I know that doesn’t really matter, but women are usually the target of this sort of nonsense, so I thought I'd share a pic of a famous guy who got caught lookin' chunky on the beach.

I'm not sure what it means when Judge Judy makes more sense than most of the people who talk about the state of our world today. It may be a sign of the apocalypse. Granted, anyone can look good next to Larry King, but Judge Judy sounds quite reasonable here.

There's a six-year-old boy out there with a 176 IQ. At that level, shouldn't he be able to move objects with his mind or something? (Oh, and I bet his father was young.) When you see a story like this, do you look at your own kids and say, "Why can't you be that smart?" Yeah, me neither.

February saw an increase in the number of new homes being constructed, aka "housing starts." Here's the headline, which is pretty typical these days: "Housing starts take surprising jump in Feb. / But can gains continue amid all the housing industry's woes?" It’s like giving a child a piece of chocolate cake and then telling him you might have dropped it in the sink. Or that the frosting is actually made with carob. (Remember carob? It was supposed to be healthier than chocolate. I think people stopped using it in the 1970's.) Just once I'd like to get a piece of good news without being told, "hey, it's good, but don't expect it to last."

Alex Rodriguez, whom I refer to as The Rod, has revealed his true talent -- being annoying both on and off the field. I mean, how is it that the highest paid player in baseball isn’t playing and is on the cover of Details magazine with the headline, "A-Rod: Confessions of a Damned Yankee"? Yes, the cover was planned before he had his surgery. But what the hell, dude?

And finally, March Madness has arrived. If you're like me and have no officemates to play with (let's call it March Sadness), you can make a bracket at NYTimes.com and compete against random people for an Amazon Kindle, which is a nice prize. And CNET has a list of several NCAA-related websites to choose from. The tournament starts tomorrow (Thursday March 19), so get your bracket ready if you want to play. It's like the stock market, only more fun and with less sweating.

Image: CNET

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Kitchenista: Salted Caramel Popcorn

KeriF — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 23:05:00 GMT

Pitchers and catchers reported for spring training this weekend! That means it's almost baseball season! Time to sit on a couch for hours, watching the slowest-moving game known to mankind creep and crawl towards an agonizing finish that doesn't even matter anyway since there are so many gosh darned games in a season...

Okay, I'm kidding. Sort of. I don't watch a lot of baseball on television (and even confess that I fell asleep watching my husband's beloved Red Sox in the World Series two years ago), but I love going to the games. Why? Because I'm a glutton. As long as I'm eating, I'm happy.

I used to love Cracker Jack, but either it got really bad or I got really old. So I make this instead, which is how I think Cracker Jack should taste. It's sweet and salty and really delicious. Serve it with hot dogs, beer, cotton candy, soft pretzels, peanuts, ice cream, and nachos, and you can feel like you're really at the game!

Salted Caramel Popcorn

Serves 6

You can pop your own corn, buy a bag of it, or microwave a bag, but try not to use anything that's too heavily coated with artificial butter.

6 cups popped corn

1 cup salted peanuts

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup corn syrup

1/4 cup water

2 tablespoons butter

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon table salt

1. In a large bowl combine the popcorn and peanuts. Set aside.

2. In a medium saucepan combine the sugar, corn syrup, and water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and cook about 10 minutes, or until it turns a light amber color.

3. Off heat add the butter, baking soda, and salt, and stir until smooth (the mixture will foam up; just keep stirring). Pour over the popcorn mixture and stir to coat evenly; work quickly as the caramel will begin to harden. Transfer to a greased cookie sheet and spread in an even layer. Set aside 10 minutes to cool and set.

4. When cool, break into small pieces and serve immediately.

Photo: Good Housekeeping

Is it Time to Give up on Athletes as Child Role Models?

JeanneSager — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 15:24:00 GMT

A-Roid. Stoner Phelps. It's been a bad couple of weeks for our so-called role models.

But Alex Rodriguez was hardly the first star to be caught 'roiding it up and Michael Phelps has a long line of disgraced Olympians ahead of him (including athletes who were doped up DURING the games, not just smoking it up six months after the games).

So is it time we put that old "athletes are our kids' best role models" horse back into the barn?

Because when a player walks out onto a field, court, diamond, pitch . . . they aren't being paid to make kids like them. They're being paid to win a game.

The Yankees don't pick a third baseman based on a history of helping old ladies across the street or even a stellar credit rating. They pick a guy who can hit homeruns, a guy who can whip the ball back to first when pressure's on to keep the tying run off base. In short, they hire an athlete, not a man.

The man - or woman - who plays a professional sport or makes it to the top of the amateur world has something the rest of us don't - talent. It's impressive, sure. And without drive and amibition - both traits we'd like to see in our kids - it would be worth nothing. Still, it's not the answer to making our kids better people. It's inate, something few people are lucky enough to be born with, and few of our kids will ever have.

So why do we push them to focus on athletes? Some of the best in the world were hardly stellar people. Mickey Mantle was an incredible baseball player (and as a die-hard Yankee fan, one of my favorites). But the Mick was also a womanizing alcoholic. By contrast, his dear friend Roger Maris was another stellar athlete, the first to hit sixty-one home runs - without a needle in sight. And he was demonized by the media for his simple, quiet ways, for being the sort of man most of us probably WOULD like our kids to grow up to be - a man who focused on his family, who was honest, who lived a clean life.

The problem with putting athletes on pedestals, is simple. They weren't vetted as child role models. They were vetted as athletes. Anything more is just a bonus.

Image: AllTalkSports

UPDATE: A-Roid Admits It

Brett Singer — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 04:00:00 GMT

UPDATE: A-Rod (A-Roid, A-Fraud - I still like The Rod, but it's not sticking yet) has admitted to ESPN's Peter Gammons that, you know, he did it. Children everywhere are... actually, I don't think children care about this at all.

When I was a young Yankee fan, my guy was Reggie Jackson. All I cared about was how he played. Granted, it was a different time, but despite all of the posturing from commentators I don't think kids care much about whether or not The Rod was juicing. Maybe I'm wrong.

Original post follows:

*-*-*

SI.com is reporting that Alex Rodriguez, whom I usually refer to as "The Rod", tested positive for two different anabolic steroids, Primobolan and testosterone, back in 2003. (Make up your own joke about Alex taking testosterone.)

What does this have to do with parenting? Well, somewhat like the Plaxico Burress gun incident ("Safety? What's a safety?"), kids who are into sports, and even those that aren't, will hear this news. What do you tell them? If you go with the "tut-tut" sanctimony of Major League Baseball and the seemingly endless parade of columnists and talk show hosts, then you have to tell them that The Rod is a big fat cheater. That's the word that has been assigned to steroid users. Cheaters. At least it’s a word that even little kids understand. You know, because it's childish.

If you want to go with a calmer explanation, you could say that The Rod made a mistake and we don't have all the facts yet. (Probably better to call him A-Rod, since I'm the only one that calls him The Rod.) Columnist Chris Ballard says that "All of A-Rod's achievements, past and future, will be tainted." First of all, what if the report was wrong? I'm not saying it was, but sometimes reporters, sources or no, make mistakes. Also, we're slamming the guy for doing something that may not even be against the law because he "tainted" the "purity" of baseball. That seems like a pretty bad message to send to kids, frankly.

Ultimately, baseball is a game. Professional baseball, like all professional sports, is a business. In recent years it has become a huge business, one that allows someone like The Rod to earn almost $30 million in one year. That's just his salary, by the way. He probably made a lot more in endorsements, autograph signings, and other things. Sports figures are no longer on the same playing field as the rest of us, if they ever were. (Pun unintended.) Kids should be allowed to enjoy the game without the braying sanctimony of adults who appear desperate to believe that baseball is more important than it is. Sports can bring great enjoyment to fans young and old. When you try to pretend that these people are something more than human, any fall from grace will be a huge disappointment.

For the record, I am a lifelong Yankee fan and I never liked The Rod. (Give me Scott Brosius any day of the week.) I also don't much care about steroids. I think Major League Baseball helped create this problem by preferring profits to players' health; there were multiple times when guys were obviously juiced up and no one said anything about it, sanctimonious commentators included. And I never thought I'd say this, but I'm a little bit glad that my son isn't a big baseball fan. Explaining Plaxico's gun was easier than this will be.

Image/Source: SI.com

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Alex Rodriguez Writing Love Poems To Madonna

Brett Singer — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 19:00:00 GMT

Ah, The Rod. He makes it almost too easy.

The New York Post, along with every other media outlet on the planet, reports that The Rod has found his muse. No, it's not Derek Jeter. It's Madonna. He's writing her (hang on, I need to stop laughing… OK. OK, I'm back.) love poems.

What must that sound like?

madonna
I am in love with u
I am intrigued by all the things that u do
please teach me how I can be a better jew
madonna

Love, Alex

I've said it before, and I'll say it again – oy vey.

Now, to be serious for a minute, both Madonna and The Rod need to calm down. I don't really care if they're dating. OK, I care a little bit, since I enjoy making fun of The Rod, and as a Yankee fan, I would greatly prefer it if he concentrated more on PLAYING BASEBALL than on whatever the hell he's up to off the field. But both of these people have young children. Madonna's daughter Lourdes is old enough read the papers, and so is her son Rocco. Why would you want to put your kids through this crap?

There's always the chance that Madonna has, in fact, lost her mind. According to various sources (including our very own Famecrawler), Madonna instituted strict rules for when daddy Guy Ritchie has the kids. For example:

Their hands should be regularly cleaned with disinfectant spray if they are in public places.
They should not be bought toys that are spiritually or ethically unsound.
Guy should not discuss the separation with them.
All water they drink, even when it is to dilute organic juice, should be Kabbalah water.

I bet Halloween at her house is real fun. Maybe too much publicity is the least of these kids' problems.

Source: NY Post (also image), Famecrawler

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Rocco Ritchie wears Yankee shirt, Guy Ritchie weeps

Brett Singer — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 21:00:00 GMT

This is just silly.

Us Magazine is reporting that Guy Ritchie, who is divorcing Madonna and had NO PRE-NUP, is freaking out because his son was wearing a Yankee shirt.

"He's actually been crying over it," says the source on the set of Ritchie's upcoming drama 'Sherlock Holmes'. "He's in a terrible state but is doing his best to be on form at work."

The insider tells Us Ritchie "cannot believe" Madonna would let their son wear the shirt, given the fact that her close relationship with the slugger played a role in their contentious divorce.

Look. If it were a Mets shirt, or a (shudder) RED SOX shirt, I could understand Guy getting all worked up. But the Yankees? The most storied franchise in sports history? Come on.

On a slightly more serious note, if this report from an "insider" is true (who are these people who call tabloids at the drop of a hat?), what a self-centered bozo. He's off directing a major film, the Material Mom is on tour screaming about Sarah Palin, and his son is being raised by who knows who. The shirt? That's what he's worrying about?

As for A-Rod – sorry, THE Rod – he apparently attended Yom Kippur services with Madonna and her children. (Aside: next time you are with Madge, ask her what meshugeh ahf toit means. It's important.) This is because the Yankees aren't playing in October. Just wanted to point that out. ALEX. FOCUS.

Source: US

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Do You Let Your Kids Stay Up to Watch the World Series?

JeanneSager — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 20:34:00 GMT

Now that the Red Sox are finally out of contention (yes, I confess, I'm a Yankees fan - pity freely accepted), I'm actually considering watching the World Series. Too bad my daughter won't be watching it with me. Game One will start at 8 p.m. tomorrow night, just as I'm preparing to hurry her into a bath.

I've always wondered why sports championships are played so late - at least for those of us on the East Coast.

Football ends with just one late night for kids, the Super Bowl is over and done after one long, junk-food filled night. Basketball closes out in June, when fewer kids are in school anyway. And unfortunately, soccer has yet to catch enough fans for the MLS Cup to break too many hearts.

When the Yankees won their last championship, I was passed out in bed. As hard as I tried to keep my eyes open, work the next morning beckoned along with my bed. I did a little cheer when my husband woke me up to tell me the news, then I rolled over and went back to sleep. Seven late nights were too much for the adult me, not to mention the little Bronx Bombers out there. Every sappy commercial meant to make moms blubber so hard they forget they don't need the product and buy it anyway features a dad and a kid playing catch in the backyard. Little boys might as well be handed a glove on the way out the door of the hospital in this country. Haven't you heard? It's supposed to be America's game, and games are for kids.

So why don't they split the seven games across the clock the way they split them between stadiums? I mean, I'm happy for the little Phillies fanatics out on the West Coast who are ready to cuddle up on the couch with Mom and Dad this week. And those Rays fans. . . if there are any? (sorry, I'm a fan of anyone who can keep the Red Sox out of the series!).

Maybe when my daughter's a little older, she'll be camped out on the couch with us too. Will you be keeping your kids up to watch the series?

Image: AllPosters

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Parent Coaches: Hardest Job They'll Ever Volunteer For?

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Parent Coaches: Hardest Job They'll Ever Volunteer For?

JeanneSager — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 18:06:00 GMT

Parents who coach their kids get a bad rap. But Iowa football Coach Kirk Ferentz wasn't playing favorites when he suspended his son from all team activities this weekend after the 19-year-old was charged by police for underage drinking.

It's a reminder that the parent coach doesn't always have the easiest row to hoe.

They're accused to playing their kid first, playing their kid longest. If they take the other tack and limit their kid's playing time and focus the discipline on their own child, the other parents start whispering about how hard they're being on that poor kid. Really, they can't win.

Yet, you see a lot of parent coaches. Who else is going to step in? You don't see a lot of down-on-their-luck lawyers mandated by the court to coach a the mighty ducks or former pro baseball players with a pest control business and lack of ethics that will take on a paying gig to lead a bunch of bears out of embarrassment. Even on the high school level, where there is actually pay (however meager) on the line, coaches are generally either school staffers or parents. Sometimes they're both.

They do it because they want to spend time with their child. They do it because they don't want their kid to have to do without the chance - and no one else is stepping up to coach. They do it because they like the sport. And they take it on the chin all season long.

Image: Amazon

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What was your fake baby name?

Brett Singer — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 15:00:00 GMT

The most recent Babble List features 33 of the dumbest celebrity baby names.

This reminded me of something my wife and I had some fun with before our kids were born: fake baby names to torture the grandparents.

While she was pregnant, the wife and I came up with ridiculous choices for names and tried to convince our parents that said names were under consideration for our offspring. Some examples are Butch Huskey Singer, Wade Boggs Singer, and Pincus Tyrone Singer (the latter only if we had a girl, of course). Other not serious choices were Roc Singer or Oprah Singer. (Rock? Opera? Get it? Anyway…)

I'm curious – does anyone else do this? Or are we alone in our attempt to amuse ourselves?

image: checkoutmycards.com

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Man ejected from Yankee Stadium for lack of patriotism

Brett Singer — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 19:00:00 GMT

I tried to come up with something funny to say about this but I was too annoyed. Sorry about that.

The sportsblog Deadspin interviewed one Bradford Campeau-Laurion who was manhandled by the police (or possibly just Yankee Stadium security; it's not entirely clear). His crime? Getting up during the singing of "God Bless America." Apparently staying motionless during the song (usually a recording of Kate Smith, pictured), played during the 7th inning of baseball games after the 9/11 attacks, is a Yankee Stadium rule imposed by George Steinbrenner last year as, "an expression of patriotism."

Here is Bradford's description of what happened to him:

I attempted to get up to use the restroom, rather urgently, during the 7th inning stretch as God Bless America was beginning. As I attempted to walk down the aisle and exit my section into the tunnel, I was stopped by a police officer. He informed me that I had to wait until the song was over. I responded that I had to use the restroom and that I did not care about God Bless America.

As soon as the latter came out of my mouth, my right arm was twisted violenty [sic] behind my back and I was informed that I was being escorted out of the stadium.

In other words, he had the nerve to (a) move during a patriotic song and (b) to state that he didn't care about said song. No matter how patriotic you consider yourself to be, I hope that you find the behavior of the officers/security personnel to be objectionable.

Source: Deadspin

Image: e-musicpedia

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Revenge of the Baseball Gods-Little League Scandal Revisited

Brett Singer — Sat, 23 Aug 2008 17:00:00 GMT

Remember Danny Almonte? How about Matt Cerda?

You'd be forgiven if you didn't remember either one of these names, especially Cerda's. Almonte was a pitcher on the winning team in the 2001 Little League World Series. In a scandal somewhat like what may soon envelop Olympic gymnastics, it turned out that Almonte was 14, 2 years over the allowed age for Little Leaguers. Cerda was barely 11 when he struck out to end the game, leaving the field in tears.

Then 9/11 happened, which of course took the focus away from this story. Still, it is interesting, which is why ESPN's "Outside The Lines" aired a piece on where these two young ballplayers are now. Turns out Almonte, despite his early promise, hasn't managed to make it to the big leagues. But Cerda has – he was drafted by the Chicago Cubs at age 17. Amazingly, Denny Henderson, a scout for the Cubs, remembered Cerda from that game in 2001, when he played catcher. Despite not having played the position since then, the Cubs decided to take him on, moving him from shortstop to behind home plate.

A video report is below; if you like, you can read the (somewhat long) article on ESPN.com.

ESPN - Revenge of the Baseball Gods - E-ticket
"Outside the Lines" revisits the battle between Danny Almonte and Matt Cerda in the 2001 Little League World Series.

image/source: ESPN

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Lourdes and Miley kidnapped?

Brett Singer — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 17:00:00 GMT

Have America's sweethearts been kidnapped? No, silly! Do you really think something like that would happen and you wouldn't hear about it? Here's the truth about these photos:

First, Lourdes Ciccone, daughter of Madonna. Who is that unmasked man holding her hand? Well, that's her dad. Not Guy Ritchie, but her biological dad, Carlos Leon. Carlos was once arrested for smoking pot in Washington Square Park, but as far as we know, he doesn't do that too often. They probably just saw The Rod (note: that's my new name for Alex Rodriguez; he's not just A rod -- he's THE Rod) across the street and wanted to get away before he started talking to them.

As for Miley/Hannah/Whatever (the girl has more names than a Chekhov character), she's just filming a new movie, which I won't see but will likely gross hundreds of millions of dollars. She doesn't look too happy but I'm guessing it was just a bad moment. Either that or The Rod was visiting the set that day.

images: NY Post, Now Magazine

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Who is babysitting the Kid-Rods?

Lou Gehrig Day on July 4th

Jim Abbott is a ballplayer you can look up to

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Jim Abbott is a ballplayer you can look up to

Brett Singer — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 21:00:00 GMT

The other day, out of nowhere, my son asked me if I had ever heard of a pitcher named Jim-something who only had one hand. Sure, I replied. Jim Abbott. Played for the Yankees. Threw a no-hitter. My son was amazed that I (a) knew who he was talking about, and (b) that someone with only one hand could become a major league pitcher, much less a successful one.

He played for the Yankees from 1992-1994, throwing his no-hitter in 1993. (He played for other teams too, but I'm a New York snob.) He also pitched for the gold medal winning 1998 United States Olympic Baseball Team.

So what is he doing now? Well, while Alex Rodriguez is making significantly more news off the field than he is on it, Abbott is retired from baseball, working as a motivational speaker. He also answers letters from disabled kids and their parents. This article from Sports Illustrated updates us on Jim and tells the story of some of the many kids whose lives Abbott has touched. One of them, Blaise Venancio, is eight years old and has Poland's Syndrome, which in his case means he only has the use of one hand. Of course, he wants to play baseball. Rather than giving up, he watched video of Jim Abbott, eventually writing him a letter, which Abbott answered. "To Blaise," reads the note to Blaise Venancio. "I just wanted to wish you the very best of luck with baseball this year. Hopefully you are having a great time playing. I know it is sometimes hard to do things a little differently from other kids. But believe me, if you stick with it, you can be just as good. Always believe. Anything is possible."

It gets better: In May, wearing his glove on his left hand, Blaise ran in from center field to cover second base, making a backhanded pick-up of an in-between-hop throw. When asked how he did it, Blaise said, "Jim Abbott. He's my friend." That gets me right here, y'know?

I'm a sucker for this sort of thing, I admit it. But a guy who has one hand and pitches, pitches really well, and according to Wikipedia, can even hit (even though he didn't often have to)? While every sports media outlet gushes like a teenage girl with a boy-band crush about the All-Star Game, I think it's worth remembering that some ballplayers are good people who want to be helpful in some way.

Here's some video of Abbott. Take that, A-Rod.

Jim Abbott- the legend

Jim Abbott - Rise to Fame

image: Jim Abbott official website

Source: Sports Illustrated

Dad Rod to visit Kid Rod

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Who is babysitting the Kid-Rods?

All-Star Daddy: Joe Girardi

All-Star Daddy: Ryan Dempster

When Cynthia called Cindy

Brett Singer — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 14:00:00 GMT

Cynthia Rodriguez, that is. Called Cindy Adams. Because, you know, that's the first person I would call if I were getting a divorce.

Cindy Adams scored an EXCLUSIVE interview with the woman formerly known as C-Rod. While her hubby (hereafter referred to as "The Rod") was busy striking out with the bases loaded, Cynthia was chatting to Cindy about him.

Apparently the message on her MySpace page (which is probably fake) isn't that far off: "she still loves him," writes Adams in the New York Post.

Ms. Scurtis says that she "wants no publicity." However, when reports came out that she went on a $100,000 spending spree in Paris in order to stick it to The Rod, Cynthia was "urged" by her lawyers to "address these misperceptions," according to the Post article.

Adams also says, referring to both her past as a child psychologist and her two daughters, that "this lady's passion is children," which would explain why she fell in love with The Rod. (Because he's, you know, a big baby.)

The one question I still want answered is: who is taking care of those two kids? Cynthia said she went to Paris for four days to "clear my head." I don't know about you, but spending time with a 3 year old and an 11 month old is not my idea of a head-clearing time. So presumably, she left the kids Stateside. Right? They weren't with The Rod, he was busy striking out and making excuses, plus he hasn't been allowed to see them. (Free advice for Cynthia: if you don't want people to think you're out shopping all the time, maybe the photo accompanying the EXCLUSIVE interivew where you try to set the record straight should be of something other than you shopping.)

We do get to hear that 3 year old Natasha misses her daddy, which is sad. The whole thing is kind of sad, but since I've never been a fan of The Rod, I admit that I'm keeping up on all of the nasty details as they pop up. And there may be more of those, sayeth Cindy: "More bad Alex habits may yet surface. There are coaches on road trips through whom notes and numbers were passed. Much wildlife may yet creep out from under many a stadium." Oy vey.

photo: NY Post

Who is babysitting the Kid-Rods?

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Dad Rod to visit Kid Rod

Brett Singer — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 20:15:00 GMT

The New York Post is reporting that Cynthia Rodriguez, the woman formerly known as C-Rod, will allow her husband-for-now Alex to see the older of their two children. Dad-rod hasn't seen little Natasha (3) or Ella (11 weeks) since Cynthia threw him out of the house, requesting that he… never… return. (Two points to whomever can tell me where that line comes from.)

Natasha will travel to Toronto where the allegedly philandering third baseman is playing baseball, a side gig to his main job as Tabloid Fodder. Cynthia's attorney, Earle Lilly, said that baby Ella is "too young to travel far from Miami," which is where Cynthia is now that she's returned from Paris, where she wasn't sleeping with Lenny Kravitz.

Toronto? Isn't that where Alex was caught dining with a stripper last year? Why, yes. Yes it was. The Post talked to said stripper, one Joslyn Morse, who told reporters that she would be willing to testify at the Rod's divorce trial (although she hasn't been asked yet). According to the dishrag of record: "I don't believe much in life anymore," Morse answered when asked about her former paramour's infatuation with Madonna. She did not elaborate." WELL. All righty then.

image: MySpace

Who is babysitting the Kid-Rods?

Lou Gehrig Day on July 4th

Attack of the Strippers

How Are Madonna's Kids Holding Up?

Jose Canseco: Madonna Begged Me To Impregnate Her

C Rod Files For Divorce

Brett Singer — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 16:45:00 GMT

Cynthia Rodriguez has clearly decided that Madonna is, well, full of it. Or maybe she just doesn't like being called "C Rod". Whatever the reason, she's filed for divorce in Miami, according to ESPN.com/Associated Press. The filing says that A-Rod "emotionally abandoned his wife and children…The marriage of the parties is irretrievably broken because of the husband's extramarital affairs and other marital misconduct." Note that it says "affairs" and not "affair". Assuming Madonna is lying when she says the two are just drinking buddies rather than Kabbalah Kanoodlers, there are at least two (let us not forget his dalliance with stripper Joslyn Noel Morse.)

A-Rod's attorney (Attorney-Rod?), who has the porn movie name of Ira M. Elegant, "said he had not reviewed the divorce petition but added: 'As you know, anyone can pay the filing fee and make allegations.'" I actually didn't know that, so thanks Ira.

Now, since she's single, I want to take a moment to point out her MySpace page! She hasn't logged in since November of 2007, which probably explains why she says, "I am my husbands biggest fan!!" The page is in her maiden name of Cynthia Scurtis. It is, of course, highly possible that the page is fake; we'll have to see if that login date changes in the coming weeks. Since she will likely receive a dump truck full of Major League Cash (A-Rod is the highest paid player in baseball), Cynthia just shot up to the top of the Most Eligible Bachelorette list.

I feel badly for the kid-rods, who are very young. Alex, you're a weenie.

image: MySpace

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Who is babysitting the Kid-Rods?

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Lou Gehrig Day on July 4th

Who is babysitting the Kid-Rods?

Brett Singer — Sat, 05 Jul 2008 16:00:00 GMT

At least some part of the A-Rod/Madonna/C-Rod/Lenny Kravitz bizarre love square is true (C-Rod is the new name for Cynthia Rodriguez, wife of Alex, in case you didn't know). Kravitz denies that he and Mrs. Rod are having an affair, and the fact that he reportedly isn't even in Paris lends some credibility to that claim. But Cynthia is definitely in The City of Light, and the New York Post has the photo to prove it. PLUS she isn’t wearing her $150,000 engagement ring. Also, Cynthia's mom Evangeline told the Post, "We've known about this for a long time. Everyone else is shocked, but we're not shocked…My daughter is a very good girl. She has high values." Not exactly a full-on confirmation, but it's close.

Now, I have a question, one also asked by Boston teacher DeDe White in today's New York Post: um, don't these people have young children?

Normally the phrase "but what about the children?" is used as a club to bludgeon people who have the audacity to schedule golf tournaments involving strippers at the same time that 7 year olds will be hitting the links. In this case, though, I think it's fair to ask who's taking care of the 10 week old bambina, not to mention the 4 year old. Grandpa Rod (actually it was Cynthia's father, John Scurtis, but Grandpa Rod is funnier) told the Post that the Kid-Rods were "being taken care of" but didn't say anything more than that. It's certainly possible that the little ones are in Paris with mom but I sort of doubt it.

(Aside: if you google "a-rod children", the first link that pops up is news from 2007 on his official web site that his children's book is being released. I guess he and Madonna have authorship in common.)

Another thing: I always wonder who these "friends" are that get quoted in gossip stories like these. What kind of "close friend" yaks to the media like that, even off the record?

image: New York Post

A-Rod Asks for Divorce

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Attack of the Strippers

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Lou Gehrig Day on July 4th

Brett Singer — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 20:00:00 GMT

July 4th is also a special day for baseball fans. July 4th, 1939 was "Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day." Gehrig, who earned the nickname "The Iron Horse" for playing in 2,130 consecutive games (a record broken by Cal Ripken, Jr. in 1995), had become seriously ill and was forced to retire from playing. After an emotional series of speeches, Gehrig stepped up to the mic and addressed the crowd, delivering the now immortal line, "I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth." Despite my cynicism when it comes to most things, this video still gets me misty-eyed. Yes, sports are just another form of entertainment, but there are times when certain events just get to you. This is definitely one of them.

A couple of trivia questions to hit people with at your barbeque tonight: Gehrig's record for the most grand slams in a season, 23, still stands. "Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day" was held one week before the All-Star Game was played at Yankee Stadium, which is also where the All-Star Game will be held this year. And after retiring, he took a job as the New York City Parole Commissioner, turning down more lucrative job offers; he then went to visit prisons, asking that the media not follow him. (source) Can you imagine Alex "it's all about me" Rodriquez doing something like that? Um, no.

Bottom line: great player, great Yankee, and by all accounts, a real class act.

Video of the speech is below, or click here for the text.

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image: Wikipedia

George Carlin dies

Brett Singer — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 16:05:00 GMT

Comedy just got a little less funny.

Also, Thomas the Tank Engine needs a new narrator.

George Carlin passed away on Sunday at the age of 71. According to Bloomberg News, the cause was heart failure.

Carlin had, in my opinion, one of the weirder careers in the entertainment business. His most famous routine (video below) is the Seven Dirty Words. I'm not going to bother naming them; watch the video, but not when your kids are around. He continued to make incredible use of language throughout his career, especially with regard to what was considered acceptable speech and what was "offensive." "You can prick your finger, but don't finger your prick." Or "Pete Rose has two balls on him."

And he also did children's television. Yes, that's George Carlin's voice on old Thomas The Tank Engine videos. I remember popping one into the VCR and doing a double-take when I realized that the gravelly voiced narrator was indeed also the man who raged against tomatoes ("I don't eat bicycle tires – why should I eat little pink ones?"), baseball ("you go HOME") and one of my favorites, "Become a Schmuck" ("Don't be a schmuck – be a schmuck!") Other kiddie credits include Mr. Conductor on "Shining Time Station" (a "Thomas" spin-off -- maybe he had a thing for trains?), and voice work in "Cars" and "Tarzan 2." His other film appearances were equally incongruous, including "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure", "Scary Movie 3" and "Jersey Girl."

Several years ago I went to a taping of Carlin's television show in Los Angeles. The show only lasted one season, probably because it wasn't very good. It's very tough to take a comic as brilliant as he is and turn him into a sitcom star, especially when the material is not even close to what you are allowed to do on prime time. (Look at Chris Rock's show, "Everybody Hates Chris" – he had to go back to his childhood to make it work.) It was fun to watch them tape the show, although I would have preferred to see Carlin do some stand-up.

Hopefully future generations will dig a little bit deeper than the Seven Dirty Words. That's what he'll be remembered for, and that's one hell of a legacy. But he also spoke his mind despite having unpopular opinions at times, which is something that we always need more of. And his material wasn't all R-rated; the above lines are all clean, and there are more, such as "Where does the dentist go when he leaves the room?" Funny, funny stuff. There's a scroll of Carlin lines on his website.

We won't be able to hear what his thoughts on the 2008 election, but at least we have video. Here are a collection of classic Carlin clips that are COMPLETELY NOT SAFE FOR WORK OR KIDS. Unless, you know, you want Junior to go to school and ask his teachers what "tits" means. Up to you.

UPDATE: there's a YouTube channel/chat room/something or other that seems to have a continuous stream of Carlin videos. Kinda cool. Check it out here.

RIP, George. You will be missed.

Family Movie Night: Everyone's Hero

Brett Singer — Sun, 15 Jun 2008 17:00:00 GMT

It's Father's Day, so I picked a flick with a daddy-theme.

My oldest son shows little interest in baseball, and I've started to accept the fact that he probably will never join me in rabid Yankee fandom. His love of this film, though, gives me a little bit of hope that he may still develop an interest in America's pastime (which it really isn't anymore, but why spoil a cliché?)

'Everyone's Hero' isn't terribly daring, the animation is only so-so, and the plot is utterly unbelievable in almost every way. But somehow the film works, with plenty of laughs, some tugging at heartstrings in the right places, and a perfectly triumphant sports-movie ending.

Yankee Irving -- his parents named him for the team -- is a lousy baseball player, but that doesn't stop him from being a huge fan of the team his dad works for as a clubhouse attendant. Then Babe Ruth's favorite bat gets stolen, and Yankee's father is blamed, and then fired. This is a real problem for the family -- it's the 1930's, and there are no jobs. Yankee's dad thinks Yankee stole the bat, and, shockingly, he doesn't really buy his son's assertion that all will be cleared up if the team President would only speak to his new friend, the talking ball. Yes, Yankee has found a magical talking ball. Of course, the ball only talks to Yankee (shades of Mr. Ed), but we know Yank's not a loony-tunes since the ball can be seen moving around on its own by everyone. The ball was a foul, and wishes it could have been a homerun, but unlike every DreamWorks movie, this isn't a major plot point; it helps that the ball is an obnoxious New Yorker with a kid-friendly potty mouth. Eventually they find the bat, who also talks and is an egomaniac because of her "relationship" with the Babe. They also, you know, save the day, after some heroics.

The movie shows a teeny bit of depth when Yankee is befriended by a Black girl whose father is a star in the Negro Leagues. Yankee ends up riding on his team bus, and the players show him some ball techniques that make him a better player in the end. It's all presented very matter-of-fact, as a piece of history but without any self-conscious judgment, which serves to make it more poignant in a way. The same is true of a scene with a bunch of hobos, all of whom are just down on their luck as opposed to being drug addicts or something else sinister.

This is also a rare children's film where both parents are alive and well. Dad is unemployed for a little while, and part of Yankee's journey to get the bat back is motivated by a desire to prove to his father that he didn't steal it (it was taken by the owner of the perennially-losing Chicago Cubs). That's about as sad as it gets. All is forgiven, dad even feels bad for not believing in his son, good feelings abound. Even the ball cheers up.

In a field of kiddie films crowded with wacky animals that spew fart and dick jokes, it's nice to see something that, while it doesn't take many chances, just presents a sweet, straightforward story. Oh, and the baseball thing helps, at least for me. Highly recommended.

image: Amazon.com

The Sins of the Mother: Little League edition

Brett Singer — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 20:57:00 GMT

So what do you think of this: the Freetown Youth Athletic Association in Freetown, Massachusetts has a rule that requires parents to staff the concession stand at Little League baseball games. One mother, Jodie Hooper, didn't show up for her shift. As punishment her seven-year-old son was suspended for two games.

Some Freetown residents cried foul, saying the punishment was excessive and misplaced.

I'm all for parental involvement in children's activities, but when you require participation, there has to be some wiggle room. The article doesn't say what the circumstances were that led to Foster not showing up for her shift in snacky goodness, but maybe give her a chance to explain before punishing the kid? And how do you explain to a seven year old that he can't play baseball because of something his mother did, something that he has no control over?

image: mentalfloss.com, doctored by me

Mets player thanks wife by letting her have his baby

Brett Singer — Fri, 16 May 2008 18:00:00 GMT

Ryan Church plays right field for the New York Mets. He's having a great year so far, with a .310 batting average, 8 home runs and 30 RBIs.

One reason is that, despite having just become a father a couple of months ago, he's getting enough sleep.

In an interview with the New York Times, Church seems to be saying that he figures letting his wife have his baby is thanks enough for getting up in the middle of night with the newborn. Maybe I'm interpreting this wrong. Here's the quote:

HOW ABOUT THE SLEEP? Well, I was expecting it, but I didn’t know it was going to be this bad. Actually, sleepwise, it’s been relatively easy for me. She’s been really good. He cries, she gets up and lets me try to stay there and try to sleep. Still, I wake up, and it’s one of those things where you hear a noise and you’re like, O.K., I have to go pick him up.
HOW DO YOU PLAN TO REPAY HER FOR LETTING YOU SLEEP? Having my kid. I’ve gotten her some gifts.

Maybe I'm just jealous. OK, no maybe about it. Because if I said to my wife, "Honey, thanks for getting up with the baby. To show my appreciation, I got you pregnant. Enjoy!" I think I might get a baseball bat upside my head. To be fair, Church is a baseball player, makes $2 million a year, and probably wouldn't be much good at the plate if he couldn't keep his eyes open. (Mets' fans booed Johann Santana, arguably the best pitcher in baseball, the first time he pitched for the Mets this year; I doubt they'd be forgiving of a guy nodding off in the outfield because junior kept him up all night.) Still, his phrasing leaves something to be desired. (Maybe he's been hanging out with Barack Obama.)

Church went on to say that he and the missus were "planning on going on a trip this off-season." When asked if the baby would stay home, he said, "Hopefully. We’ll see how that works."

Excuse me; I think I just fell down from laughing so hard. Okay, I'm back.

Church suffered a concussion during spring training. Maybe he's still a little dopey.

image: Yahoo Sports

Ballpark Perks for Parents Rock (or Rox)

Amy Kuras — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 13:03:00 GMT

There are few things I enjoy as much on a summer afternoon as a good baseball game. I admit to being more of a cultural fan than someone who has the slightest idea what the infield fly rule actually is, as I tend to be there more for the atmosphere and excitement than the actual game play. But sipping a cool drink under the warm sun, watching nine innings go by is one of the best ways I can think of to spend time in the nice weather.
And I have been to exactly two games since my daughter was born.
Part of it is my team actually ceased to suck there for awhile, so my season-ticket-holding connections were avidly seeking more tickets instead of trying to palm off the ones they had. But the major reason is that the nuances of America's pastime are pretty much lost on my three-year-old, and I am sure any three-year-old. And after spending the one game we took her to as a baby in our sunbaked seats terrified of heatstroke and blistering sunburn, this summer doesn’t look good either with a new baby.
Which is why I think the minor league Brockton Rox well, rock for this idea: the team has converted one of its luxury suites to a "Rox-A-Bye Baby" suite where parents can go with their babies and still enjoy the game. Now, this is the most minor of minor leagues, and the team isn't even affliated with a major league team, so the luxury suite might be a room with wall to wall carpeting and a window fan, but still. As insanely expensive as tickets to major leauge games are, I'd like to see more teams adopt this sort of thing. Does your local ballpark do anything special for parents of young kids, and would it make you more likely to go to a game if it did?