The first pitchers and catchers are set to report to spring training on February 12 and the World Baseball Classic is set to begin just a few weeks later. Needless to say, baseball is right around the corner. 

Nearly one quarter into the season...

And it’s over...

In spite of all of his past successes...

He is an abject failure...

Don’t know what happened...

He must have lost it in the offseason...

He must have forgotten everything he knew about hitting...

It’s over...

Good-bye...

Good riddance...

You’ve lost it, Bucko...

I don’t care what Mike Scioscia says...

You are done...

You are toast...

100% your fault...

We blame you...

And only you...

You crushed our high hopes for you this year...

You blew it...

Make no excuses...

Take the blame...

Be a man...

Face the music...

Don’t let the door hit you on the way out...

Mister...

Mister...

Mister...

Mister Mickey Hatcher...

Now that you are gone...

Albert is free...

Free from your stinking advice...

Free from the jinx...

He was doing just fine...

Just fine...

Until he met you...

Now that you’re gone...

Albert can return to his superstar status...

No more P.U.jols...

How could you do this to our hero, Mickey???

You and your Mickey Mouse advice...

Albert listened to you...

But he should have done the opposite...

It would have brought much success...

And now that Jerry DiPoto has kicked you to the curb...

Albert is back...

Two home runs in two days...

No thanks to you, Mickey...

Good thing he was able to recover...

Recover from your lousy coaching...

We should be 40-0...

Even though we’ve only played 39 games...

Thanks for leaving, Mickey...

Come again when you can’t stay so long...

Don't let the door hit you on the tushie on the way out...

Onward and forward...

Another World Series title is right around the corner...

Now that YOU are gone...

Ya big ninny...

dvt

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http://www.latimes.com/media/photo/2012-05/69963169.jpg

An awesome card trick?? Syracuse is sexy?? I hate the NY Rangers and NJ Devils?? All this and lots more in this weeks edition of…

Today I am going to do something I very rarely do and that’s talk about every sport except NASCAR. Okay, Okay. Here is my thing on NASCAR. Why can’t Jeff Burton win a race? I watch racing, but I make it a point to focus on Danica Patrick.

Come-on Man!! What were you thinking?? Then again, if this is true, why did you wait a such a long time to state your case about bounties in the NFL?

I am up a lot during the day, so I tend to watch soccer. There are games played from England and Italy that are more entertaining than soap operas and CNN.

Congrats go out to Phil Mickelson, Sandy Lyle, Hollis Stacy, Sportswriter Dan Jenkins and BBC broadcaster Peter Alliss for their induction into the Golfing Hall of Fame this past Monday.

You ever notice that when your favorite basketball, hockey or baseball team loses a game in the early part of the season, we tend to say don’t worry about it, there’s still a whole season to go. Well, what happens when your team just misses the playoffs by one game, or even a half-a-game? Then the games your team lost at the beginning of the season meant something didn’t it?

I hope the Knicks fall on their faces. Coach Mike Woodson has done a great job getting this dysfunctional team to play together SOME OF THE TIME. They got to get rid of one of their three stars.

This you tube video is making the rounds in Syracuse. It’s called “Syracuse Sexy and I Know It.”

There is a cameo by Jim Boeheim, Derrick Coleman and Floyd Little.

Jarret Eaton (senior track and field), Kelly Saco (senior, softball), Erika Wachter (senior field hockey), Will Watson (junior track and field), Amadou Gueye (junior track and field), Donald Pollitt (sophmore track and field) and Otto were the performers in the video.

Do you think Albert Pujols made a mistake in leaving the Cardinals and moving to the American League? I think he would have been better off staying in the National League where he knows the pitchers.

How would you like to go 0 for 8 as a batter and still be the hero. Well that’s what happen to Baltimore Orioles DH Chris Davis. He struck out 5 times. He came in to pitch in the bottom of the 16^th and went two inning for the win. He gave up two hits, walk one and struck out two, era 0.00, batting average .299.

Hammels is a fool. I’m glad Harper stole home. The only thing I would have done differently, after crossing home plate, if I was Harper, would be pointing at Hammel and smiling. Hammels should have been suspended for more than 5 games. See below.

In MLB, when a player, other than a pitcher, is suspended for 5 days that player misses 5 games. When a pitcher is suspended for 5 games, he only misses one start. That bull. A pitcher should be suspended for 5 starts, not 5 games.

How would you like to have a bad week at the plate and still hit .350. Matt Kemp is on a roll batting .404 for the Dodgers. He is proving that last year was no fluke.

Another person off to a great start is Josh Hamilton who has 14 homeruns and 36 rbi’s with a .406 average. To think he lost the first three years of his career to stupidity. He could have had a Hall of Fame Career. Well he be a HOFer??

I don’t like to use the word hate. But this word voices my opinion of the New York Rangers and New Jersey Devils hockey teams. These are two of the three teams (the other being the Detroit Red Wings) that ruined hockey. Their free wheeling spending caused the league to shut down for a season.

A friend of mine just sent me this card trick video. You have to check it out, it is awesome.

Wow, I think I did it!!!

I hope every has a great week.

Scott

 
In case you haven't been paying attention, "The Avengers" opened this weekend, and this flick is going to bust over $200 Million for the opening weekend...Holy shit!

Oh, and by the way, it was fucking awesome...The Mrs. and I checked it out Sunday evening...They did a great job with it...Great action, great humor, and it was cool seeing shots of Cleveland getting blown the hell up!

And then of course, there's Scarlett Johansson...Hot as hell and kicking ass!


Tonight Mrs. Beeze's name is Scarlett!

Now, onto sports...

-Ohio State got rid of cheater Tressel, and his dirty ways...The brought in Urban Meyer to get things back on track, never mind the dirt that comes with him from Florida...And then this weekend, THIS story broke...Shit is unreal in Columbus!

-Albert Pujols finally finally hit his first home run of the year...I don't really give a shit...I've enjoyed seeing his overrated, overpaid ass struggle...Fuck the Angels for giving him a ten year deal...DOLTS!

-The Kentucky Derby lived up to it's hype of being the most exciting 2 minutes in sports...As "I'll Have Another" (15-1) came from behind and beat out Bodemeister who lead the entire race...He also beat out my horse, Dullahan who was charging hard as well...My oldest daughter had her money on Bodemeister, so she was pretty pissed...

-Sunday I wrote THIS post about struggling Indians pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez...Then the prick goes out there and pitches a good game...

The Indians have been a bit of a hot topic this week...With the Tribe sitting in first place of their division, and the Texas Rangers coming to town for the weekend, all the radio guys could talk about was the poor attendance so far...Some of these guys ranted about how Clevelanders shell out money every year for Browns season tickets, even though they religiously suck, and the front office has made it clear, they couldn't give a fuck about the fans...And if you've read my blog before, you know that pisses me off as well...I refuse to spend a dime on the Browns...

As for people not turning out for the Tribe...Well, shit baseball in Cleveland, during April usually sucks...Most of April is normally cold...even nice days, it gets cold at night...Then of course, we have a shitty economy here right now...People are watching how they spend their money when it comes to entertainment...Families may plan on taking a vacation, and dropping $150-$200 to take the family to a ball game may not be in the budget...

As for the fans who use the Indians' cheap owner as an excuse to not go, I could agree with that, if they weren't dumping money into the Browns...Also, the Indians are winning, and last year they were competitive...So a bad team isn't an excuse...

That said, unlike some of these guys on the radio, I'm not going to rip people for not going to the Indians games...Why? Because fuck it, I don't go...Shit every single game is televised...If that isn't enough, how about this...Tickets cost too much...Beers cost too much...Hot Dogs cost too much...Parking costs too much...And if we aren't taking the kids, a baby sitter costs too much...We've got bills to pay...Tuition for the kids...And just because some ass-hat on the radio says we should go to games, doesn't mean shit to me...

Lastly, I've got a PENNY_FOR_YOUR_THOUGHTS on this topic...

Now, I've gotta go throw it in Scarlett...Have a week...

Later, The Beeze.

With 162 regular season games and now four rounds of playoffs spreading across seven months of the calendar year, the Major League Baseball season is the most arduous marathon in existence. For that very reason, it is rather fruitless for fans to jump to any conclusions after just six games into the 2012 campaign. Still, there are diehard fans and pundits alike that will read into every last grain of information available. And as one of those diehard fans, one of those questions has been chewing at my mind over the last week and a half:

Where is Albert Pujols?

You’d think after a 1-5 start, the Red Sox would be my first priority, but I’m realistic enough to not have the highest of expectations for the boys in Boston this year. However, I can name 254 million reasons why despite only six games being played, Albert Pujols is already a disappointment in Anaheim.

10-year, $254 million contracts are not handed out every day (although they seem to be for first baseman), so when they are, fans expect the players who carry them to explode like gang-busters out of the gate. When they don’t, you begin to question if the player can step up to the pressure that accompanies such a deal. 5 hits in his first 23 at-bats with Anaheim and only a pair of RBI to his name thus far. And does the most dangerous hitter in baseball frighten the opposing pitchers with a .304 slugging percentage that screams more of Nyjer Morgan than it does Babe Ruth?

Prince Fielder scored a similar deal, yet slightly smaller deal, with Detroit. He has responded by hitting .333 with a pair of home runs, 4 RBI, and 5 runs scored. Granted, those two home runs were rung out against the unimpressive and aforementioned Red Sox pitching staff, but he has returned to his home roots in Detroit and ignited the team, fans, and city around him.

Pujols hasn’t done anything of the sort. The Angels take the field and they look beatable. They squander six-run leads in the latter innings of a game against the light-hitting Twins line-up. They drop 2 of 3 against the upstart Royals in their home-opening series. This isn’t a team rallying around the beacon of light brought in to win them a championship.

What was more telling was how Fielder came to Detroit under a last minute windfall and proclaimed that it was always his dream to follow his father’s footsteps and wear the Tigers uniform. On the other foot, the first proclamation from Pujols was that he didn’t like the billboards placed around town. Sure, that was supposedly because he still pays homage to Stan Musial, but that’s more understandable in the Cardinals uniform, when you are identifying with your home town fans.

Like it or not Albert, you are now El Hombre in that clubhouse. You are the leader that this team is looking to. Albert, you are the guy that needs to take this weekend series in New York and put on a hitting exhibition in a ballpark built for your power. The expectations that come with the money the Angels gave you aren’t going to go away, so it is better to step up now and just take over.

The Angels aren’t paying for a brooding, slow-starting Pujols. They are paying for the home runs, the hits, the RBI’s. They made a 10-year commitment because they want the 3000 hits and they want the 763 or more career home runs.  That investment relies on a certain investment of fortitude on your part too, Albert. You have to want it to make it happen. They are paying for the best hitter in baseball, and only six-games or not, it is time to start producing like it.

Otherwise they can start hanging billboards with the nickname “Albertross” strewn across them.

Other Fragments:

-          I questioned the Minnesota Twins decision to let Michael Cuddyer go and replace him with what I viewed as a step down in Josh Willingham. So far in 2012, I’m eating those thoughts, as Willingham is perhaps the hottest hitter in the game, posting a .409 batting average with 4 home runs and 7 RBI. Granted, this is a hitter that has never batted higher than .277 or struck out less than 104 times in a full major league season. However, if he can put that .277 average up this season  and accompany it with 25-30 home runs, the Twins could be a surprise contender in 2012, especially if they can manage to keep Mauer, Morneau, or both healthy all season.

-          Speaking of Albert Pujols, is anyone shocked that the Cardinals don’t appear to miss him on bit? At 5-2, they appear to be fully capable of making another run at the World Series, and they can thank World Series MVP David Freese for that.  Freese is tied with Andre Ethier for the Major League lead with 10 RBI on the young season and looks more than ready to pick up where he left off, even if it means picking up the Pujols slack.

-          Everyone was worried about Roy Halladay coming out of Spring Training. Doc had lost velocity and he was struggling mightily. All he’s done is be the Halladay of old, throwing 15.0 innings across two starts with a 0.62 ERA. Granted, the competition has been the light hitting Pirates and Marlins, but he has surrendered just 7 hits on the season. I think we can put those worries aside.

P.S.

I want to apologize to the other great writers on this site. I have not been around to comment much lately. My job has been extremely stressful of late and when I've been able to manage to get online, the energy just hasn't been there. I've also been trying to get my own side-project, The Baseball Big Brother Project, up and going, so I've been doing a lot more writing than commenting. Anything I have posted there, I have tried to post here if it made sense to do so. Beeze and our newest member, JawsRecliner, have been huge in helping me get that off the ground also. My promise to you all, as it is only fair of me, that I will be more present with my comments in the coming weeks, as things start to settle down with the project I am working on at my "real life" job.