Dave James

Well, you're probably right, but it just seems different. Maybe it's that by now, the whole thing has been done to death. The other change is the complete lack of outstanding personalities. While The Rock and Steve Austin had their moments over the last 10 years, the wrestling world right now is littered with nothing but cookie-cutter, roided-up caricatures who simply aren't very interesting. Back in the day, even the second tier guys like Brutus Beefcake, "Hacksaw" Jim Duggan and Greg "The Hammer" Valentine could be a lot of fun to watch.

I thought that this game might have been called just a bit too aggressively by the officials. Penalties like delay of game for shooting the puck over the glass pretty much have to be called, but most of the others are discretionary. Three different 5 on 3's in that sort of time frame is really pushing the envelope. If there's one thing I hate in any sport, it's having penalties or free throws determine the outcome. Let 'em play.

Although the original gravelly voiced pro wrestlers were guys like "Classy" Fred Blassie or Dick "The Bruiser" Afflis, Macho Man took it to a whole new level. Back in the day, his ability to entertain was probably only exceeded by the likes of "Rowdy" Roddy Piper or Bobby "The Brain" Heenan. My brother and I used to eat this stuff up. What passes for professional wrestling now, what with all the manufactured story lines, pales in comparison to Vince McMahan's original WWF concept. What most people don't know about Savage (real name Randy Poffo) was that the played for several years in the St. Louis Cardinal's minor league baseball organization. He had a lifetime B.A. of .254, with 16 home runs and 66 RBI's. R.I.P. Macho Man. Loved your schtick. The mold was broken after they made you.

Wow. Jason Giambi has hit a home run in each of his first three AB's against the Phillies tonight. It's the first time in his career he's dialed 9 three times. Set out a plate of the finest meats and cheeses in all the land for the Giambino.

Finally withdrew after about eight years. Once I figured out how to peel audio off of YouTube videos, I found I no longer had much need or enthusiasm for eMusic. Of course, they're trying to woo me back with great short duration deals, but I'm having none of it and zero withdrawal symptoms. I'm sure I can find someplace else to drop $120 a year in discretionary income without having to look too hard.

I think you and I might deserve to be there given the Amazin's pitching woes. I'm 62, but I still throw a decent knuckler and I'm pretty sure that with a little work. I could get my curve ball in shape.

Makes me wonder if books will become the printing equivalent of the vinyl record, all but disappearing within the next ten years and then making an unanticipated comeback.

Transylvania 6-5000.

Welcome to my world.

Wouldn't that make necessary negativity attractive and uplifting? Correct or otherwise, it's what I'm thinking right now. Wouldn't that make necessary negativity attractive and uplifting? Correct or otherwise, it's what I'm thinking right now. BTW, if you answer "not necessarily", I will sent a large goon to your house.

Game over. Yanks win 4-1. A-Rod goes 4-7 and both Texiera and Jeter get two hits. Is this the start of something big or just another tease? A great, near dominating performance from Bartolo Colon. Only downside was another blown save out of Mariano Rivera. All things considered, I'll take it.

Arthur Blythe: Light Blue

Yanks go up 5-1 and can't hold the lead. The big 3 (Jeter, A-Rod and Texiera) go 0-11. Jeter now hitting .255, A-Rod, .242 and Texiera, .252 Wow! This is just pathetic. Maybe the next time any of these guys stop for a burger and fries, they should order a side of Androstenedione.

For $4.99? Even if you don't wind up liking it that much (and if you're a Blakey fan, what are the odds) it's not like you had to take out a second mortgage. IMO, if there's such a thing as a slam dunk, this is a slam dunk.

A rather ominous article from the pen of ESPN's Buster Olney. Not sure if it was stupidity or just good old garden variety hubris that brought the Yanks to this dark and lonely place. http://bleacherreport.com/tb/b9xxM

Since May 2, the Yankees are 21 for 95 (.221) with runners in scoring position.

Lonesome Dave speaks to what the Yankees need to do. It's probably best that you not read beyond this point if you believe everything will be fine and no changes are necessary. GM: FIre Cashman and make an offer he can't refuse to someone with a proven track record of success in building a farm system and developing and acquiring talent. Someone like Larry Beinfest from Tampa Bay or Andrew Friedman from Florida. Managerial: Fire Joe Girardi and bring in Bobby Valentine. Valentine has already shown that he can handle the 500-watt light bulb that is New York baseball. He's also an ass kicker and that's precisely what this team needs. Position players: Buy out Jeter and A-Rod. Release Posada. Promote Jesus Montero, let him DH and, on occasion, catch a game. Pitching: Garcia, Colon, Nova, Chamberlain: all gone. Bring up Brackman, Betances and Banuelos and let them pitch at this level. Either for purposes of developing them as future starters or as an enticement to other teams as a trade option. The most important thing the Yankees need to acknowledge is that they are in the opening throes of a death spiral. I say, chuck it all and start from scratch. You've had a nice run. Time to restock, use the tremendous resources available to you more wisely and get ready to get back in the game in 2-3 years. That's it. Easy. Really.

Hey, don't sell Mark Texiera short. He's just as lame as the rest of these bozos.

Here's what I'm interested in. How is it that a team with a $200 million payroll stands at 20-16, while Kansas City, a team with a payroll that's just 18% of that, has a record of 20-18? Talk about getting zero bang for your buck. The Yanks have screwed themselves into the ground paying unproductive players and unproductive pitchers salaries that are completely out of line with what they bring to the table. And with an aging team, it's only going to get worse. I'm afraid if you're a Yankee fan, you'd better start laying in enough provisions to survive the kind of extended nuclear winter you've not experienced since the 1980's. I don't think I've been this pessimistic about my team in a long, long time.

No, no. By "all over this", I meant in terms of advice and recommendations.

Needless to say, I'm disappointed that the Wings couldn't pull one out last night. On the other hand, a few positives can be found even in a losing effort. First and foremost amongst those is the possibility that Jimmy Howard has emerged as a top flight goalie in this league. I've not been a fan of his in the past, but how can you not be impressed with the way he played in this series? As I've always said, good goalies stop the shots they should and great goalies stop the shots they shouldn't. Howard turned a lot of heads with his play. I'm hoping that's a harbinger of good things to come from between the pipes. On the downside, I think it's time to start thinking about a rebuild. To what extent will be determined by what Nick Lidstrom decides to do. If he retires, it will free up a load of cash that could pay for some immediate improvements. Brian Rafalski's contract will be up after next season and that's another chunk of money that will become available. We need to dump Kris Draper and Jiri Hudler like the bad habits they are and I'm pretty sure we've seen the last of Mike Modano (wish he's played last night instead of Hudler of Draper). The Wings have some good kids down on the farm, although I'm not sure I've seen the next Datysuk or Zetterberg in their midst. Hope I'm wrong about that. Also need a better back-up for Howard. My sense with Lidstrom is that he plays one more year. If that's the case, then I don't see anything very significant happening in advance of next season. Just some minor tweaking. After that, though, with something like $13 million in salary coming off the books in 2012, I'd look for the beginning of a major rebuild grounded by the acquisition of 2-3 top of the line players. GO WINGS!

Give Lon a moment to collect himself and he'll be all over this.

I'm thinking I'm through watching NHL hockey for the year.

If there's one thing you need from your pitching staff, it's consistency. Even if that means some of your guys are not all that reliable, you at least have a good idea what you can expect when they take the mound. That allows the manager some level of advance planning from a rotation/relief standpoint. Case in point is 3/5th's of the Yankee's current starting staff. After Nova's implosion tonight, in combination with Garcia and Colon, you're really talking about three total mysteries. The idea of New York making any post-season noise this year with that rotation is laughable, especially when your offense appears to be on semi-permanent hiatus. I guess I'd look for Cashman to make a big splash in July, no matter to what extent it denudes the farm system. You hear talk about King Felix, Liriano and other's availability, so I think if you're willing to pay the price, top level talent can be had. As we move closer to July, and things heat up, it should get very interesting.