Detroit Tigers pitching quiz: Four Tiger hurlers have won 25 games in a season since 1940. Name ‘em. Answer below. [I just think one is kind of hard.]
The Kentucky Derby
Ya know, sports fans, forget hubris, sometimes you gotta go with the experts so this year I relied on Johnny Mac to pick the official Bar Chat Pony for the Derby and thus we came up with Orb.
For starters, thanks to longshot Golden Soul finishing second, the exacta paid $981.50! As Ronald Reagan would have said…not bad, not bad at all.
“The weather was chilly and damp yesterday at Churchill Downs, yet the sun shined bright in the old Kentucky home when a brilliant bay colt named Orb fulfilled the lifelong dream of his Hall of Fame trainer, native son Shug McGaughey, with a decisive victory in the 139th Kentucky Derby before a crowd of 151,616.
“The buzz of the backstretch all week, Orb lived up to that billing under a stellar ride to give jockey Joel Rosario his first Derby victory in four tries. Far back in the early going over the sloppy, sealed track, the son of Malibu Moon unleashed a sustained drive around the far turn, circled horses into the stretch and kept on coming with a relentless run to score by 2 ½ lengths over 34-1 shot Golden Soul.
“ ‘It means everything to me,’ said a choked-up McGaughey, 62, who was previously 0-for-6 in the Derby. ‘I always dreamed of this day, and it finally came….
“Now it’s on to Baltimore and Pimlico for the Preakness Stakes on May 18 and a possible shot at the Triple Crown.
“ ‘To tell you the truth, I can’t wait,’ McGaughey said. ‘I think there’s more there. He’s still learning how to run.
“ ‘We’re set up better than anybody, and I can’t wait to get to the Preakness and do it again.’”
Since I started Bar Chat, 14 years ago, you know what I say every spring…how the sport so desperately needs a Triple Crown winner…and how thrilling that would be…and frankly, how great for the country it would be. But lest we get too excited, we’ve learned since the last Triple Crown winner in 1978, Affirmed, these are animals…and boy does this sport break your heart.
Derby Bits
–Good for Rosie Napravnik…a solid fifth-place finisher aboard Mylute. I watched the race at my parents (the traditional Subway sandwiches and beer…Dad drinking bourbon in keeping with the day). Mom wanted Rosie to prevail, Dad went with Calvin Borel because, how can you not?
And for the record, Goldencents, the horse partially owned by Rick Pitino, was a bust down the stretch and finished 17th.
NBA Action…it’s Fann-tastic! [or maybe not]
What a choke job by the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday night vs. the Chicago Bulls, specifically, Joe Johnson and his 2 of 14 shooting from the field in a 99-93 loss at home in Game 7.
And as you all know, this was a Bulls team without Derrick Rose (who we’ll discuss later), Luol Deng, and starting guard Kirk Hinrich.
But as Charles Barkley says, there’s a reason why his favorite player is Joakim Noah; the guy just brings it every night, playing with incredible passion that more than makes up for his limited natural ability.
Noah was brilliant…24 points, 14 rebounds and six blocks (tying a career high, if I heard right). And this is a guy who missed 13 of the last 16 regular-season games with plantar fasciitis (which also, in fairness, impacted Johnson’s play), yet Noah, supposedly on a 20-25 minute time limit, played 43 and 41 minutes in the final two contests.
“It was embarrassing, really, and by the time the Chicago lead ballooned to 17 points for the first time (57-40) on a Nate Robinson jump shot, the boos in the building had become loud and those unsavory words surely rested at the tips of their tongues.
“All the Nets needed to keep their season alive, earn a trip to Miami for a crack at the top-seeded Heat in the Eastern Conference semifinals and make a little bit of history along the way was a complete team effort.
“Considering the game was one of the most important in franchise history, that wasn’t a lot to ask, particularly against the undermanned Bulls.”
Deron Williams, Andray Blatche and Gerald Wallace had their moments as the Nets came back, but as Cannizzaro wrote, “Brook Lopez guarded (Noah) as if he was afraid to catch that flu going around the Chicago locker room.”
“The Nets are no longer a feel-good story, the adopted sons of the old Brooklyn Dodgers. This morning they are just another NBA team that lost a series they shouldn’t have lost, that surrendered all the advantages having Game 7 at home are supposed to bring.
“Starting this morning, bright and early, they are just another NBA team with a flawed roster and salary-cap issues, with max-out players who only occasionally play the part of max-out players and absolutely did not with the season riding on their every move, their every choice, their every decision last night.
“Starting this morning will come some serious questions about the interim coach, and unfortunately for P.J. Carlesimo, a good and decent man, a lot of the answers that follow aren’t going to be pleasing on the ears or on the soul.”
“A tree grew and fell prematurely in Brooklyn.”
Anyway, on Sunday, P.J. was fired. Taking over from Avery Johnson, Carlesimo was 35-19. He did his job well. Just not the man to take ‘em further. And there won’t be a single fan or expert who can truly disagree with the move.
So now the talk is of getting Phil Jackson. But what’s kind of interesting is Jackson agreed to be a consultant for the Pistons in their search for a new coach and Stan Van Gundy’s name has surfaced there, as well as for the Milwaukee opening, but Johnny Mac thinks he’d be perfect for Brooklyn. So where does Stan end up? I’d go with Detroit or Brooklyn, but then where do Jackson’s true allegiances line up? Billy King was just extended as GM for the Nets so it’s not like Phil could become head of basketball operations for Brooklyn.
Would Phil really entertain being coach? I would note that when the Knicks held their 40th reunion for their 1972-73 championship team about a month ago, Jackson loved returning to New York and seemed pleasantly surprised at the warm reception he received.
[For you casual fans, Jackson was a member of that team, but then as coach of the Lakers and Bulls, became hated.]
–As for the Knicks…after blowing a 3-0 series lead against the Celtics, owing in no small part to J.R. Smith reverting to form, acting like a jerk and getting suspended for Game 4, New York finally got its act together in Game 6 in Boston, 88-80, despite Carmelo Anthony’s continuing shooting woes; though he did come up with some very clutch buckets after the Knicks spectacularly blew a 75-49 lead with 9:20 to play.
Yes, had Boston won, they’d be talking forever about the out of nowhere 20-0 run the Celtics went on in the next 3:35 to cut it to 75-69 with 5:44 to play.
The rest of the way seemed like an eternity, with Boston reducing the lead to 79-75 with 3:32 left, but then Anthony and defensive whiz Iman Shumpert took over.
For the record, though, it does need to be pointed out Carmelo shot the following the last three games.
Game 4 (97-90 loss in OT)…10-35 FG (0-7 from three) 7 turnovers
Game 5 (92-86 loss)…8-24 FG (0-5 from three)
Game 6 (88-80 win)…7-23 (1-6 from three…the lone one being the game-clincher…it was also Melo’s first made three after 19 straight misses from downtown!)
So the last three games, Melo was 25-82 from the field and, overall, in the six-game series he shot 61-160 (.381), while running mate J.R. was 28-73 (.384).
–But wait, there’s more! In Game 1 of the Knicks-Indiana series in New York on Sunday, Melo shot 10-28 from the field (and J.R., 4-15) as the Knicks lost 102-95.
–In another series of note, Memphis, down 0-2 to the Los Angeles Clippers, proceeded to win four straight, all by double-digits, including Friday night’s clincher in Memphis, 118-105.
“Bring on the next bunch of disappointing, underachieving, gagging local athletes.
“And so it goes with our Trojans, Lakers, Clippers and even the Bruins losing their last three.
“So much promise, raised expectations and then a quick goodbye to all….
“The Clippers lost four straight to the Grizzlies, never a doubt in any one of them, while throwing away the chance to change the way folks think of the organization.
“It was supposed to be a storybook season, and isn’t that what they were telling us a few weeks ago about the Dodgers and Angels?”
–But Memphis then lost the first game of its second-round series against Oklahoma City, in OKC, 93-91, as Kevin Durant, playing in his shrunk pajamas, still went off for 35 and 15.
–OK, let’s go back to the issue of the Bulls’ Derrick Rose, who suffered a torn ACL the same day last season, April 28, as the Knicks’ Iman Shumpert and has yet to return, while Shumpert came back on Jan. 17 from the identical injury. Granted, it’s taken Shumpert this long to get back into peak form, but he certainly looked to be on Friday night against the Celtics.
Rose is taking a ton of heat. He has been scrimmaging 5-on-5 with his teammates since Feb. 18 and been medically cleared to play for two months, but he still doesn’t feel confident his body is ready for game action.
I mean this is a guy who had the whole summer off and yet this weekend was saying, I’ll come back when I’m able to react.
Shaq commented Saturday night on TNT, “Never before have I heard a star say, ‘I’ll get back on the court when I’m comfortable.’” Shaq added, “The Big Picture is now.”
Charles Barkley was incredulous over Rose’s attitude, pointing to Golden State’s David Lee coming back the other night despite a serious hip injury that no one said would have him available for the rest of the playoffs.
Former Bulls guard and TNT analyst Steve Kerr said Rose owed it to his teammates to play if he’s healthy. Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau defended Rose. Rose’s teammates appear to be supportive of whatever decision he makes.
Rose now says he might come back for the Miami series. But this is a guy who admits he is struggling with the mental part of playing at his best again.
“I’m still thinking,” he said. “I’m still trying to take my time, still the same old thing. If anything changed, trust me I’ll let you all know. It’s the same. It’s still the same. If anything changed, trust me y’all will know.”
—LeBron James won his fourth league MVP award in five years.
“He knew some of his former teammates would have his back, but he didn’t see the litany of support from his NBA peers coming. Kobe and Shaq, tweeting how proud they were. Charles Barkley, calling him a ‘courageous brother.’ Jason Collins also could not have imagined being told, cell phone pressed to his ear, ‘I’m proud of you and I support you,’ by Tim Hardaway, the former player who six years earlier had said, ‘I hate gay people.’
“But the magnitude of what he had done really hit when he picked up the phone twice in 10 minutes in the Southern California home of his agent, Arn Tellem, this past Monday:
“ ‘When back-to-back calls from Oprah Winfrey and President Obama come in, that was the moment where you go, ‘What is going on?’’ Collins said. ‘When you pick up and someone says, ‘Please hold for the president,’ it really sinks in. It’s been a heck of a ride.’….
“As to whether he would be swarmed by endorsement opportunities or that his coming out would in effect help make him more marketable as a 34-year-old veteran several years past his prime – especially by a league that trumpets its inclusiveness and would hate to be viewed as homophobic for not giving a job to the first player courageous enough to take such a stand – Collins didn’t want to speculate.
“Collins’ intensely personal revelation has brought about a dark side. Tweets wishing death on him, for one, and an evangelical Christian backlash affirming their belief, biblically, that homosexuality is a sin.
“But even that has opened doors for conversation, he said….
“Judy Shepard, Matthew’s mother, and former president Bill Clinton called with some of the best advice. ‘Judy said, ‘Let the haters hate,’ and President Clinton just told me, ‘You’re about to enter a whirlwind. Just keep your head held high, your chin up and take deep breaths with each step.’’
I did read Jason Collins’ SI piece. Very well written, but then you’d expect nothing less from a Stanford grad. As I wrote 8 years ago, there is no disagreement on him being a good guy. I just don’t see why any NBA team would sign him given the myriad of better options out there. Jason Collins is just not that good a basketball player.
Ball Bits
–Not for nothing, but did you know Miguel Cabrera is going to win a second straight Triple Crown?
Thru Sunday, he is batting .385 with six home runs and 36 RBI. He’ll pick up the home run pace as the season goes on, just as he did last year. He only had nine through May, before ending up with 44.
–Angels Manager Mike Scioscia held Josh Hamilton out of the lineup Saturday night after Hamilton had more than twice as many strikeouts (13) as hits (6) in his last nine games. Hamilton would fly out as a pinch-hitter later and after Sunday’s game (where he went 1-4 with a double) is hitting .208 with six extra-base hits and 38 strikeouts in 31 games. Wow, that is very productive. And he is going to make $125 million over the next five seasons for play like this…though the Angels hope he performs just a wee bit better than he is currently.
–Boston pitcher Clay Buchholz’ phenomenal start is up to 6-0, 1.01 ERA, but a Toronto Blue Jays radio color commentator believes he knows the right-hander’s secret: He’s cheating.
As reported by the Los Angeles Times’ Matt Wilhalme, former major league pitcher Dirk Hayhurst, who works for 590 CJCL-AM, claimed on Twitter: “I just saw video of Buchholz loading the ball with some Eddie Harris worthy slick’em painted up his left forearm. Wow.”
Buchholz explained he puts rosin on his arm and wets his fingers for improved grip.
“I’m not doing anything wrong, so if I have to answer questions about it, that’s the world we live in.” That’s a stupid statement. Of course some are going to be suspicious. Just roll with it.
–On Sunday, the pathetic Marlins defeated the Phillies, in Philly, 14-2. Roy Halladay was the victim.
So let’s look at Doc Halladay’s bizarre start to 2013.
4/3…3.1 innings, 5 earned runs
4/8…4.0, 7
4/14…8.0, 1
4/19…7.0, 2
4.24…6.0, 1
4/30…3.2, 8
5/5…2.1, 9…8.65 ERA…2-4 W/L
Meanwhile, the opposing starter for Miami on Sunday was Kevin Slowey. Let’s look at his start to 2013.
4/3…5.1, 1
4/8…7.0, 2
4/14…5.1, 1
4/19…6.0, 1
4/25…6.0, 3
4/30…8.0, 1
5/5…7.0, 0…1.81 ERA…but 1-2
But we do note that Miami shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria, whoever he is, had 7 RBIs on Sunday. [No offense to the Hechavarria family. I’m sure they are good people.]
—A.J. Burnett, the now 36-year-old Pittsburgh hurler, is 3-2 with a 2.57 ERA, but also 57 strikeouts in 42 innings. This after he went 16-10 in his initial season with the Buccos.
Back on 2/20/12, upon his acquisition from the Yankees, where he was a total bust, I wrote, “I’m guessing he does pretty well.”
–Not for nothing, but Milwaukee’s Carlos Gomez, a strange guy if there ever was one, and not much of a major league ballplayer thus far, is hitting .368 for the Brewers, with 15 extra-base hits in 106 at-bats. As Nancy Reagan would say….
–Last year’s N.L. Cy Young Award winner, R.A. Dickey, is 2-5 with a 5.36 ERA for Toronto, plus he’s blasting his teammates. Not good, R.A., not good at all.
Golf Balls
–22-year-old rookie Derek Ernst, the fourth alternate, for crying out loud, won this week’s PGA Tour event in Charlotte on the first playoff hole to beat England’s David Lynn, with Phil Mickelson one shot behind. Conditions were beyond awful. Greens sucked.
But…as Phil said, deal with it. The tournament sponsors treat the players and their families terrifically.
Ernst only got in because a bunch of players backed out when they heard the conditions were circa 1960s and your local county course. For Ernst it was just his eighth PGA Tour start (another piece I saw said ninth).
—Vijay Singh, citing a bad back, withdrew from the Wells Fargo Championship, a day after being cleared by Tour commissioner Tim Finchem for admitting to using deer antler spray, which contains a substance that had been banned by the Tour.
–We learned that the viewer who turned in Tiger Woods for his illegal drop at The Masters (a tradition unlike any other…on CBS…) was none other than David Eger, a Champions Tour golfer.
“I could see there was a divot – not a divot, a divot hole – when he played the shot the second time that was not there the first time. I played it (the tape) again and again. I could see that the fairway was spotless the first time he played the shot and there was that divot hole, maybe three or four feet in front of where he played after the drop.”
Eger wanted to alert officials before Tiger had a chance to sign an incorrect scorecard, so he called and texted veteran PGA Tour official Mickey Bradley, who in turn brought the drop violation to the attention of Fred Ridley and Mark Russell (Masters and Tour officials).
But Ridley cleared Woods of any wrongdoing, saying it would be “splitting hairs” in gauging the distance.
Then, after Woods’ comments to ESPN’s Tom Rinaldi following the round, where Woods said he went “two yards” further back to drop his shot on 15, and uproar on Twitter, CBS’ Jim Nantz (“Hello friends…”) notified Ridley that he better check out the situation more closely.
–From a Sports Illustrated poll of some 200 players on the PGA, LPGA and Champions circuits, a few snippets:
Q: Who has the best swing on Tour? Rory McIlroy 17%, Adam Scott 14%.
Q: Do you drink alcohol with dinner the night before a tournament round? Yes 49%, No 51%. [Question for Editor: Do you drink alcohol the night before writing Bar Chat? Yes 100% of the time.]
Q: Who has the hottest wife/girlfriend? Me 68%, Aaron Baddeley 12%, Jason Dufner 7%.
Q: Who has the best swing on the Champions Tour? Tom Purtzer 32%, Steve Elkington 18%, Gary Hallberg 14%.
Q: Should anchored putting be banned on the PGA Tour? Yes 59%, No 41% [among PGA Tour members polled] Yes 63%, No 37% [among Champions Tour members]
Yeah, Me. Your editor. I had the day from hell on Saturday and I’m going to tell you about it.
Saturday morning, I go to Staples to buy a case of paper. I go through a ream of paper every two or three days so over 14 years I’ve picked up quite a few cases, literally lifting them, but this time I felt like I wrenched my back. I was bummed.
Ten minutes later, I’m stopped at an intersection when…BAM!…I was rear-ended. I immediately look in the rearview mirror and a 20ish guy is pulling his ear buds out. Classic. Just like I write about all the time in that other column I do. This is how the world ends. We all get killed by distracted drivers. We pulled over and when I told him I saw he had ear buds, he conceded this.
The damage to the rear bumper appears minimal but you know how it is with bumpers…what’s minimal still generally means replacement of the whole bumper, messing with deductibles, the car is leased, all the little s— you and I don’t need.
I go home, take a little break (my Saturday mornings are incredibly rushed…up by 5:00, reading, podcast…did you ever know I do that one? I try to do a lot of shopping by 9:00 a.m. You get the picture).
Well, my back wasn’t feeling that awful and I’m one who believes you exercise through pain (never fails) so I decide to go to the park for a little 3-mile run. I start my training for the December ½-marathon in Kiawah very slowly, being a slug all winter.
It’s a mile and a half out, then reverse to the parking lot. So I’m about a mile from the lot, heading back, running on a paved path I’ve probably been on 1,000 times, when I stumble and go flying head first into the pavement and gravel on the side.
Boom! My head slams into the ground. Uh oh, I think. I get up, put my hand on my forehead and, err, you know…I’m bleeding a lot.
Luckily, a guy I see all the time running there is approaching me and I ask him to describe my injury and he assures me there is no gash. I then look down at my knees and they are both bloody messes. My left hand is a bloody mess, and I have just a single Kleenex with me.
No, but I also know, what good would that do me? I’m a mile into the woods.
So I start jogging to the car and to make a very long story short, I started to meet lots of female walkers going the other way and asked them all for Kleenex and only like 1 out of 20 said she had any! Geezuz, they were hardly a friendly bunch, too, but then what would you do if you suddenly see this guy bleeding all over the place?!
[To interject something far more serious…I hope you saw in some of the Boston Marathon bombing stories that there were a ton of people who were not heroes…who didn’t help those with limbs blown off or dangling. That side also needs to be told.]
I made it to my car and surveyed the extent of my head injury for the first time. Yes, just loose skin and the bleeding was under control, ditto the legs and hand. I also had Kleenex in the car.
I had a ten-minute drive home and I’m thinking, please, let me sneak into my place without anyone seeing me. [I live in a multi-use property with an underground garage.]
Sure enough, the best looking girl in the building pulls in with me and we ride up the elevator together.
“Sorry you’re seeing me like this, Xena.” [Changed her name…she knows what I do.]
Xena was very sweet. Offered assistance…and, no, this isn’t a straight to video movie, guys. I declined, having enough bandages and such at my place.
But in hours I had to see my parents for the Derby and explain to them why I looked like hell! And boy, you should see me.
Well you can, actually…if you catch my “Nightly Review” video Monday evening (posted around 5:30 ET).
What sucks is I was going to have a series of important business meetings this week, but thankfully hadn’t made the appointments yet. [Attorney friends and other folks that don’t require much notice.] Now it will be over a week before the face crap clears up….and next Saturday I have a big party in town to attend. Ughh….this blows.
Anyway, I went running again today, pain and all, at the same place because I needed to get over the mental hump. And this time, no one got hurt!
—Floyd Mayweather Jr. came back from a year’s absence Saturday night to win a unanimous 12-round decision over Robert Guerrero in their welterweight title fight. All three judges scored the bout 117-111. The AP had it 119-109. Mayweather earned at least $32 million for his night’s work as he remains unbeaten in 44 fights. I’m glad I didn’t waste any money on this one.
–Wow, didn’t realize that for the first time, when the Champions League final is held in London on May 25, two German teams, Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund, will face off. The two trounced Spanish powerhouses Barcelona and Real Madrid in the semifinals to reach what is Europe’s equivalent of the Super Bowl.
Bayern whipped Barcelona, generally acknowledged to be the top team in the world, 4-0 in Munich and 3-0 in Barcelona.
Spain, though, is still top dog, having won the last World Cup and the last two European championships. So it kind of comes down to next year’s World Cup in Brazil to see which country really has bragging rights on the continent, Spain defeating Germany in the 2010 WC.
–Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez didn’t help his cause any the other day, at least with the media, when he showed up at offseason training camp looking like he was coming out of a jazzercise class, as the New York Post’s Brian Costello put it.
“Sanchez spoke to reporters…with his hair slicked back and sporting a thin, green headband set high back on his scalp.
“ ‘It’s my inner soccer player deal,’ Sanchez said when asked about it.”
OK, to be fair, Sanchez has been sporting this look for weeks.
—Asli Cakir Alptekin of Turkey, the Olympic 1,500-meter winner, was charged with doping and could be stripped of her gold medal. This is her second offense, having served a two-year suspension for doping after the 2004 world junior championship, and she could face a lifetime ban. It’s encouraging track’s governing body caught her by using their new biological passport, which tracks variations in a blood profile over time for signs of cheating.
“A campaign against Griffon Vultures gathered pace in France yesterday when it was revealed that the birds had eaten the body of a walker who had fallen to her death off a cliff.
“ ‘There were only bones, clothes and shoes left on the ground,’ said Major Didier Pericou, of the gendarmerie. ‘They took 45 to 50 minutes to eat the body.’
“He said the 52-year-old woman had fallen down a 300-meter slope on the Pic de la Pista in the Pyrenees after taking a short-cut whilst walking with two other people. ‘It is established that she died in the fall,’ said Major Pericou.
“He added: ‘When we first went out in the helicopter looking for the body, we saw numerous vultures without realizing what they were doing.’ The incident comes with Pyrenean farmers demanding the right to shoot Griffon Vultures, a protected species, after a series of attacks on sheep and cows.
“The Griffon Vulture population in south west France has swelled from 60 couples in the 1960s to about 800 couples following the introduction of protection measures.
“But the birds have been deprived of their traditional diet of carcasses by European health and safety regulations, which require breeders to burn dead animals.
Kind of makes you want to hand the Griffon Vulture some of those KFC coupons for their new boneless offering.
“Britain’s trees are facing a potentially deadly new threat from a moth whose caterpillars can strip a tree bare and poison any human who tries to clear them away.
“Larvae of the oak processionary moth have hatched across such a wide area of London over the past few weeks…that scientists say there is no longer any hope of controlling them….
“At Kew Gardens, staff have been ordered to spray all its oak trees, as well as several other species, with a pesticide. The move came after several gardeners were poisoned by the caterpillars’ toxic hairs. These can cause burning of the eyes and skin and, in severe cases, anaphylactic shock.”
These caterpillars have “700,000 toxic hairs…all containing the irritant chemical thaumetopoein.
“These hairs can become detached from the caterpillars, hanging in clouds around the nests or being carried on the wind to land on skin, clothing or drying laundry. Simply sitting beneath an infested tree can present a serious risk while joggers, dog-walkers and others have also been known to suffer severe reactions after passing close to an infected tree.”
–Sunday’s New York Post had a story by Gary Buiso on the exploding number of alligators being found on Long Island…16 in less than a year. 40 since 2003. And as the SPCA chief in the area duly notes, “And these are just the ones we know about.”
All of the ones captured are the same size, about 2 to 3 feet, but could grow to 14 feet, live 50 years and weigh half a ton.
The thing is they need water temps no lower than the 60s so they wouldn’t survive normally more than a year. Those responsible for dumping the gators when they get too big should serve one year in prison.
Clearly, ‘Man’ will never again sniff the top 100 on the All-Species List.
[It doesn’t help when a 17-year-old soccer player in Murray, Utah, punches out a referee because he is upset over a call and the referee dies.]
–The Post also had a story on how bars in the City are ripping beer drinkers off.
“A Post investigation found nine out of 15 bars across the East Village, West Village and Willamsburg poured less than 16 ounces when a pint was ordered.”
Specifically, “pints” of beer are poured in glasses that measure between 12 and 14 ounces, the bastards. Understand, many of these establishments charge $8 for a freakin’ pint. Shut ‘em down, I say! [Just one day…they’ll get the point.]
–So the other day I had a piece on the exploding feral pig population in the U.S. and then the May 4 issue of The Economist highlighted the same topic.
“On the downside, America’s 6m or so feral pigs are dangerous pests armed with sharp tusks, short tempers and large appetites. A single herd, or ‘sounder,’ can wreck a corn crop or leave a meadow looking like a moonscape. They like to wallow in cool water and have fouled fishing rivers and swimming holes in dozens of states since an explosion in their numbers over the past 20 years. The hogs, descendants of colonial-era livestock and, more recently, European wild boars introduced for sport, spread diseases such as brucellosis, can breed twice a year and, when hungry enough, will eat lambs. On the upside, being clever and lean, they make for good hunting and – when cooked with skill – they are tasty.”
Texas has about 2m of the beasts but allows for all kinds of means of killing them, including by helicopter.
What I didn’t know is that 85mph speed limit toll road near Austin that many of you have heard about was the scene of a horrific accident recently caused by a feral pig. Yikes.
–I watched the entire George Jones funeral service from the Grand Ole Opry on Thursday and it was absolutely terrific.
Charlie Daniels had what some said afterwards was the best tribute:
“George Jones’ voice was a rowdy Saturday night uproar at a back-street beer joint, the heartbroken wall of the one who wakes up to find the other side of the bed empty, the far-off lonesome whistle of the midnight train, the look in the eyes of a young bride as that ring is placed on her finger, the memories of a half-asleep old man dreaming about the good old days,” Daniels said. “Lost love, lost innocence, good and bad memories, and experiences that are just too much for a human being to deal with. He sang for us all, the non-stop partiers, the guys who are alone and the girl done wrong, the puppy lovers, the extrovert, the introvert and the guy at the end of the bar who never seems to go home…George had a song for everybody.”
And I do have to note reader Dr. John’s three favorite Jones tunes.
1. Once You’ve Had the Best
2. These Days I Barely Get By
3. The Window Up Above
-Edna Gundersen / USA TODAY…on the Rolling Stones’ performance in L.A. this weekend.
“Anyone expecting nostalgia and flab at a Rolling Stones concert will have to search in the audience. On stage, the legendary band is lean, hungry and unsentimental, rocking with more swagger than a bullfighter and more brute force than the bull.
“Friday’s launch of the 50 and Counting tour at Staples Center served as a persuasive reminder of the band’s undimmed powers, its admirable commitment to roots, the enduring appeal of its music, the magic of its chemistry and the reason it still holds claim to the title ‘world’s greatest rock ‘n’ roll band.’
“Performing 23 songs over 2 ½ hours before an all-ages capacity crowd, the Stones simply ripped the joint.”
Top 3 songs for the week 5/4/68: #1 “Honey” (Bobby Goldsboro) #2 “Cry Like A Baby” (The Box Tops) #3 “Young Girl” (The Union Gap featuring Gary Puckett…very bad hair, very bad…but my boy had some pipes!)…and…#4 “Lady Madonna” (The Beatles) #5 “Tighten Up” (Archie Bell & The Drells…Mets announcer Keith Hernandez’ favorite…refers to this instead of just coming out and saying someone is choking…) #6 “I Got The Feelin’” (James Brown) #7 “Cowboys To Girls” (The Intruders…great tune…) #8 “The Good, The Bad and The Ugly” (Hugo Montenegro…right now, with my face all scraped up…I am definitely The Ugly…put me in that ugliest dog contest…) #9 “A Beautiful Morning” (The Rascals) #10 “The Unicorn” (The Irish Rovers…song has not aged well…unless you are talking for ages 4 and under…)
Detroit Tigers Quiz Answer: 25 wins in a season since 1940.
Denny McLain, 31 (1968)
Hal Newhouser, 29 (1944)
Dizzy Trout, 27 (1944…I always miss him)
Hal Newhouser, 26 (1946)
Mickey Lolich, 25 (1971)
Hal Newhouser, 25 (1945)
Now I’ve mentioned this before, but we have new readers all the time and it bears repeating anyway…just look at the 1944-46 stretch by “Prince Hal.”
1944…29-9, 2.22, A.L. MVP*
1945…25-9, 1.81, A.L. MVP*
1946…26-9, 1.94, MVP-2
And Newhouser was ages 23-25 during this stretch. Sure, you can say with the first two years it was about diminished competition due to the war and all, but he got it done. Unfortunately, his last big year was when he was just 29, though he has his plaque in Cooperstown, a well-deserved one, to say the least. He also hit a respectable .201 for his career.
And regarding 1944, Trout was 27-14, so the two combined were 56-23, but the rest of the pitching staff was 32-43 as the Tigers ended up 88-66, second, a game behind St. Louis.
Next Bar Chat, Thursday.
