This Is L.A. Baseball

March 10, 2005

Forget steroids for a second. The Los Angeles Times distinguished the Dodgers from the Angels in its spring standings with an “L.A.A.” and an “L.A.D.” As if there weren’t enough other ways. A flood of calls to the switchboard forced a quick switch to L.A. and L.A. after just one day, but still. The idea?!

L.A.A. and L.A.D?! L.A.A and L.A.D?! The paper had a little case of temporary insanity. Stark raving vulgar. Obscene. And I thought the FCC was cracking down.

The Dodgers are L.A. baseball. The Angels are a foreign substance. Period, exclamation point. Get used to reading about it here, all year long…

If I hear Bud Selig say “it’s my job to protect the integrity of the game” one more time, I’m gonna hurl. He was discussing steroids, of course, but there really is no context where that statement from that man can possibly be worth a bleep…

Let’s give it up for the Hall of Fame Veterans Committee, huh. Since they reject all types of qualified candidates, at least they’re equal opportunity dweebs. Lamer than the writers could even dream of being. The Vets are zero for two with the weighty responsibility, and ought to have the job given to a group that actually has a clue…

The Steroid Zone : Scroll down to check out our fresh links for 2005. Replacing the criminal Balco Labs outfit is Balco Farms, who “ …only produce hormone induced, steroid fed, and genetically altered chickens…up to five times larger than normal size.” And a serious note from SteroidAbuse.org…

The blockbuster story of the year comes from the Kansas City Star, which reports that “Royals Matt Stairs showed up at camp in improved shape and without his trademark curly mullet.”

‘I like it,’ Stairs said. ‘For 17 years of playing pro ball, I've always had curls or a mullet or whatever you want to call it. I had a big boof back there until Christmas, but then I decided I was going to shave my head for spring training.'” Move over Woodward and Bernstein. Pulitzer Prize material for sure…

Visa problems – they’re everywhere you want to be…

March Madness : Broadcasters and pool participants take note. Key pronunciations include ZZZavier and GonZAAAga as always, and Far-MAR. A reminder for summer; the little tennis event, you know, where they serve strawberries and cream. Wim-bull-DUN…

More importantly, that bizarre-looking, hairy Connecticut mascot is no Husky dog. Not even close. The Washington canine is the real thing. Blue-eyed, proud, majestic. Likes to run. The UConn mutt shouldn’t even be allowed out in public…

Last week, we devoted a sentence to a one-time only mention of Paris Hilton, just to see if we could get a rise out of, uh, the search engines. This week, Martha Stewart…

Dodger Season Tickets : BaseballSavvy.com has a fine middle loge season package to divvy up with the readers. Quarter shares at face price. We’ll throw in a street-smart BaseballSavvy.com t-shirt to boot…

Statue for Sandy : The Koufax in bronze campaign continues, so please scroll down to the photo below and vote yes on 32…

Organ Donor Awareness : As a proud member of the transplant community, I’m happy to recycle an article on the topic. Please spend a minute considering the piece below the fold, and talk to your family about your wishes…

Remember, glove conquers all….