Rocky

Indeed, I did. I guess I had a bit of ADHD, since the Cards have been playing the Dodgers more recently. And without a doubt the Ankiel situation would make the Cards games more exciting to watch.

Don't you mean the Dodgers? Indeed, I'm thankful for that... though (as our good friend Hiway29 will attest) those Trolley Dodgers don't seem to be playing very well lately against anyone. And to the degree your Cards have beaten the Padres, I'm also thankful for that. Either way, Dbacks got several games against each of their division rivals before the end of the season... lots of baseball still to be played... And how about that Rick Ankiel!? What a story that is... no doubt the fans at the stadium get really worked up when he comes to bat!

Sounds like fun.... I guess the Angels' Rally Monkey has become part of the culture of the team. Beats the heck out of "the wave" (which I find absolutely repulsive). I can relate to your view of relief pitching/pitchers. I don't believe Melvin and the Dbacks just change pitchers for the sake of maintaining some arbitrary pattern. Their primary relief guys (the ones that work innings 7-9 when the team is ahead) have done an outstanding job. And given the number of wins earned by the bullpen staff, I'd say they haven't come in prematurely in most cases. It's always good when the starter can go longer than anticipated and still hold a lead. Webb's last two outings have been complete game shutouts. I hope the Angels hold on to their division lead and you can get to some of their playoff games. I wouldn't mind seeing an Angels/Dbacks WS... but I won't hold my breath.

Okay.... Webb's thrown 33 consecutive scoreless innings... breaking his own team record of 30 set last year. AND... Chandler National beat Solano Beach (CA) to earn their trip to Williamsport...

I guess so! Last year's NL Cy Young winner needed no relief tonight... extending his scoreless inning streak to something like 30 innings. Dbacks 1, Nationals 0. Padres lost. Dodgers lost. Dbacks extend division lead. :)

Yes... Mike Benjamin. I kept thinking Mark Belanger, but knew that was wrong. I had the position right, but not the age or the team(s). Might be others also. perhaps Ankiel's wildness had to happen, or else he would have been doomed to playing only once every five days! ;) I can't imagine it took Babe Ruth getting wild for the power that be (or, were) figured he needed to play everyday. Ankiel threw what, 5 wild pitches in an inning once?

Well, they have some former major leaguers for coaches/dads... yes, it was just a couple of years ago they were in the LLWS also. Before that, it had been about 40 years since any Arizona team had gone to Williamsport. btw, anyone here following the latest on Rick Ankiel? I guess it was just the other day he made his return to the Cards... as a position player. He hit a HR last night and did it again this afternoon with one runner on base in the bottom of the first against Hiway's team, the Dodgers. Correction, Ankiel has TWO HRs in today's game... so far.

The Dbacks continue to play well. And JD's little brother is in the middle of it. But if the Dbacks had to count on Stephen Drew to be the big bat in the line up, they'd be in a world of hurt. The young Drew plays a mean SS and occasionally gets some key hits. But his avg. still is less than .250. Also, the young Mr. Drew, personality wise, is just as low-key as JD. He won't provide team leadership anytime soon. But, again, he plays SS very well. As you guys may have heard by now, the Dbacks appear to be overachieving these days. I'd have to attribute it mainly to smart moves (last winter) to strengthen the bullpen as well as some key coaching that's doing a great job getting these kids to play very well. Bob Melvin's pretty low key, but his bench coach is Kirk Gibson. That, by itself, almost says it all. Melvin's learned from mistakes regarding in game pitching moves and his pitching coach (Brian Price) has obviously done a fine job. Gibson provides intensity and his player experience commands respect without him having to flaunt it. The team KNOWS he knows how to win. They listen and he holds them accountable. During last night's game against the Nationals, the play by play and color guys (Daron Sutton and Joe Garagiola Sr.) were talking about how Gibson keeps a stop watch in his hands at all times during the game. And how Gibby times just about everything. He'll get on players if they're not playing all out. Of course, Eric Byrnes is a tremendous example of someone who plays all out... and leaves it all on the field every night. And this new "phenom" Justin Upton (age 19) seems to be ready to live up to the hype that has preceeded him. He's played less than 10 major league games and teams are already (Pirates AND Nationals) intentionally walking him to get at the next guy (usually Mark Reynolds, another rookie, who hits well but strikes out a lot). In Upton's first home game with the Dbacks, he came up only a single shy of hitting for the cycle. However, because the Dbacks are so young overall, the sports pundits seem to think they'll not really contend this year... but to me, it looks like they have an excellent chance of making the playoffs. But getting past the Mets will be pretty tough. ------------ On another baseball topic... I just read the following article in the NY Times about Bonds and Aaron. Bonds/Aaron story in the NYTimes August 12, 2007An Appreciation Bonds Chased a Record, but Aaron Chased Justice By MIKE TOLLINHenry Louis Aaron is a man of few words. But on the edge of his wooded tennis court in suburban Atlanta, he gave me two that would raise some eyebrows. “No asterisk,” said Aaron, who reigned as baseball’s home run king for 33 years and 121 days. “I’m not interested in the controversy. Let’s just congratulate Barry and give him his due.” For months, people wondered how Aaron was really feeling about Barry Bonds’s relentless assault on No. 755. “Fine, just fine,” he said. “I’m happy for him.” He was clearly leaving something out, but it was not ambivalence about whether the record was tainted, nor was it sadness at losing his claim to fame. (continued) -------- The writer is a filmmaker and a co-founder of Aaron's Chasing the Dream Foundation He made a documentary about Aaron's chase to overtake the Babe. Besides the fact that Aaron is happy for Bonds, the article has some interesting and poignant insight on what it all meant back in the 1970s when Aaron was on the verge of taking the HR crown.

I know the feeling. I did pretty much the same thing just over 2 years ago... and got the highest price for a house in that neighborhood. The buyer remodeled and sold it a couple months later for about $70K more than they bought it from me for... THAT was at the peak of the housing boom here in AZ... Now I have no mortgage and live a modest life... I'm VERY thankful. I rejoice with you. :)

Thanks... that's certainly more than I asked for, but I appreciate the additional info also. Indeed, where I live, we get 100+ degree weather as much as 6 months out of the year. I freeze a 1.5 litre bottle of water to take with me everytime I go to my local community college to work out... and whenever I exercise outside (which would be riding a recumbent bicycle in temps lower than 90, which is currently my personal heat limit). and as Dave Miller also provided the link, I will explain one way to do so. simply copy the entire URL from the top of the browser page and paste it into your post. The difference is that it will include the http:// and look like this http://www.wqa.org There is also a button on top of the posting box, the second one to the right of the smilie and directly underneath the font title being used in your post. And I didn't see doojable's suggestion until after I made this post.

Love him, hate him, or not be so sure, but Barry just hit number 756.

For reference, I looked here at snopes.com

Please clarify. Are you saying that there IS a problem with freezing bottled water in plastic bottles or that there is NOT a problem with doing so?

But the runner was left on base, so no harm done ... ;)

That's easy... "chicks dig the long ball!" Of course, so do guys. I do agree on your point regarding Glavine. It's hard to believe he's been pitching for 20 years... as well as his buddy Maddux. No doubt Glavine had his ticket to Cooperstown validated Sunday. I like how Maddux has done it... mainly because Maddux can't even buy a win against the Dbacks... the ONLY team that gives (or has given) him such trouble. And let's not forget Randy Johnson. One of only two possible reasons he hasn't retired yet is that he feels the need to get his 300 wins. I personally think he's done, but heck, let him try to do it... (oh, the other reason... to squirrel away even more acorns than he already has... the guy's got more money than God (but not as much as Bill Gates I suppose)).

ESPN2 will be broadcasting the Bonds game tonight, (coverage) starting at 10pm eastern (Giants games... first pitch... usually at :15 after the hour) And the Cards are whippin up on the Padres, 10-3 last I checked... of course, I'm rooting for the Cards in that game.

I knew he wore the "armor" but had no idea it could be anything other than protection from being hit by pitches. I guess I would want to know what Bud Selig both knows (or doesn't know) and thinks about this armor. Intriguing article.

You STILL CAN register your cell phone on the "do not call" list. Then, if you get telemarketing calls, you can file a complaint to get the caller fined. However, the "circulating email", on the surface sounded like a hoax. Another recent hoax has to do with freezing bottled water in the plastic bottle. I had someone at the gym tell me she had gotten an email and therefore now only drinks room temp bottled water. It sounded weird to me and I checked it out. It's documented in several places, including snopes.com (which investigates potential internet hoaxes). The email says the plastic bottle gives off "dioxins" when frozen. This is insane. Scientists have indicated there are NO dioxins IN plastic bottles and therefore cannot be "given off."

Indeed. How about a wheat field in Kansas? :blink: Just kidding.

Indeed.

And maybe one before that too.... :)

Your son is correct. He did it on the same day that Barry Bonds tied Hank Aaron for the all time HR record. And THAT (those two milestones for Bonds and A-Rod happening on the same day) will live on for all of baseball eternity as part of the lore of the game. As will the * asterisk that many baseball fans will hold in their minds, even if it doesn't get posted into the record books, for Bonds. And at 32 years of age, A-Rod is widely thought of as being the favorite to overtake Aaron and (ultimately, because it's almost a certainty that Bonds will hit at least one more HR in his career) Bonds. A-Rod, staying healthy and maintaining even close to his current pace will hit more than 800 before he turns 40.

No big deal... I only pay attention to the AL when something big is in the news (A-Rod's 500th) or Sunday Night Baseball on ESPN HD is an AL game... oh, and interleague games too... but that's over for this season... until October! Looks like the Yankers are staying close to the RedSox and/or looking to get the wild card spot... It was a big night for baseball in SoCal tonight... Hank Aaron is no longer the undisputed HR king. Not that Barry will be UNdisputed after his next one. And the Dbacks now lead the Dodgers by 3 games... and I haven't seen which team won in San Diego tonight (it's gone at least 11 innings).

I've heard from Dougie... he and his family are fine. :)

Undeclared? I dunno, it seems to me like it's been declared... perhaps the title of that book is just a figure of speech?