Dave James

A number of pretty knowledgeable baseball people have said for some time that Cano has the talent to be an AL batting champion. Looks like this could be the year. I remember a couple of years back when he was struggling at the plate, there was a fair amount of talk about moving him. Sure glad that didn't happen. I did not realize that he was one of the pieces Texas had available to them in the A-Rod swap. Sure glad they chose otherwise. Wonder if Big Al would agree?

The website now says August/September, 2010. Looks like this is still a moving target.

Ovechkin is a cherry picker. When I played, we called guys like him blue line cruisers. They didn't play much defense and were basically just looking for an outlet pass or to be part of an odd man rush. Good for their own stats, not so good for the team. With respect to good game plans, the Red Wings game seven approach to the Coyotes was something to see. Their forechecking was so tenacious it took Phoenix completely out of their game. No matter what they did, they couldn't get their engine to turn over. I can't recall seeing one team dominate another to that extent. I agree that Datsyuk may be the best all around player in the league. He's a proven offensive force but he's also won the Frank Selke trophy as the leagues best defensive forward for the last two years. He is among the three finalists this year as well along with Ryan Kesler and Jordan Staal. Datsyuk had 132 takeaways during the 2009-10 regular season, The next highest number was 83. That's two way hockey at its best.

Yes, very cool. Thanks for posting it.

Somewhere in the offices of the National Hockey League, Gary Bettman is wiping the tears from his eyes and wondering "why me"? His dream match-up, Cindy and Alex, is not to be. A PR disaster for the league and a personal disaster for the Commish. Wish I could share in his disappointment, but I've had Crosby and Ovechkin rammed down my throat for so long that I couldn't be happier. At some point, the NHL has to start acting like there are more than two players in the league.

Too bad they couldn't have included his one other album, 42nd Street, as part of this compilation. I'd have gladly paid for a second CD. BTW, this new release is currently available from CD Universe. Levitt is something of an acquired taste, but well worth the effort.

Both Ellington and Pepperoni have nine letters?

PM sent on the Donaldson Mosaic.

If Oakland buzzes A-Rod's tower the next time the two teams play, they're the bush leaguers, not him. I'm guessing that before that game, the umpiring crew will specifically address the ramifications of a deliberate beaning. This is as it should be. In the meantime, I hope Mr. Braden has a chance to watch the video of his overreaction, so he can see just how stupid he looks.

Does the expression "tempest in a teapot" ring any bells? BFD, indeed. Time to move on.

I'll take just about any Harrison album over anything from either Lennon or McCartney.

The smartest thing you can do is have your insurance guy add a rider to your policy that specifically addresses your collection. I think it's called a schedule or something like that. As to value, at best that's going to be an estimate, but you would be wise to take pictures of the really valuable stuff and keep them someplace other than your primary residence. That way, should should ever have a claim, you'll have what they call in the insurance game, proof of loss.

Dan, Is there any way to be sure that the pillow is not programmed to talk? I don't want to get all comfy and then have it ask why I didn't mow the lawn. Also, I can't help but notice the yellow glove. What's up with this? Does the pillow come with a supply of yellow gloves? You know, in case it wants to get busy. Lastly, I couldn't let this go without a baseball comment. I'm sure you can see this one coming like a Wakefield knuckleball: I notice that the pillow only has one arm. That's one more than the entire Red Sox pitching staff.

Marginal goaltending and no offense. The combination of these two will rarely get you out of the first round. So much for the addition of Ilya Kovalchuk.

I listened from the start to just after the Lonnie Donegan recording. Fun stuff. Reminiscing in tempo as it were. Both you guys have fantastic memories and fantastic memories if you get my drift. Who'd have thought Yoko Ono once worked at WBAI filing music. That's too funny.

For anyone who hasn't seen the movie Sexy Beast, Don Logan, the character played by Ben Kingsley, is, without a doubt, the scariest man on the planet. In his presence, well known nasty boys like Hannibal Lechter or Hans Gruber would be found quivering in the nearest corner. Trust me on this.

Nor McCartney. I can remember waiting with absolutely baited breath for McCartney to be released. The first post-Beatle Beatle album, How much better can it get than this? Well, unfortunately, a lot better. Maybe I was so amped up that realization couldn't possibly have matched my expectations, but, in a word, I was disappointed. The first of many such let downs when it comes to Sir Paul. I stopped taking him seriously after Ram.

I don't know, do you think some of these guys who openly talk about killing cops and smacking women around are just cases of arrested development? I wouldn't be so sure. IMO, comparing the lyrics of old R&B tunes to those of gansta rap is an apples to oranges argument. Times change and so does intent.

I'll call you and raise. Is there any good McCartney music other than what he made with The Beatles?

More bad news for the Red Sox. Mike Cameron has an abdominal tear, better known as a sports hernia. He'll be out anywhere from a month to six weeks. Not that he was playing all that well, but Boston doesn't appear to be in a position at the moment to absorb an injury to one of their core group of starters.

I know I'm swimming against the tide, but I kind of like some of this stuff. There's no doubt the majority of rap music is a waste of time, or in the case of the violent, misogynistic stuff, much worse, but every now and then you stumble onto something that's a little more, shall we say, refined. A good example is the piece David just posted. Here's another one I found on a YouTube cruise the other day by a band called Stetsasonic that's a little bit better than most. One thing for sure, you can't ignore the beat.

Wouldn't you know it, just when the band parts ways, the publicity starts to roll in. In his regular feature Sunday Wax Bits, blogger Marc Myers has a nice review of Alive & Kickin'. Here's a link: http://www.jazzwax.com./ Also contrats to Marc for the nomination of his Jazz Wax column by by the Jazz Journalists of America as blog of year. If you aren't a regular reader, you're missing out on a very knowledgeable and well written daily dose of jazz information and interviews.

I think Dan's a good guy. He just gets a little wound up from time to time.

If I was a Caps fan, I would be very concerned about goaltending. Theodore is notoriously inconsistent and tends to struggle when the going gets tough. If you have to rely on him to get you to the promised land, you'd better plan on scoring goals in bunches. Not that the Caps aren't capable of doing just that, but as they move deeper into the playoffs, that isn't going to be as easy as it's been against the Canadians. I also think the Blackhawks are going to have problems between the pipes and out West, Evgeni Nobokov has looked decidedly ordinary, if not worse. Usually by now some team's keeper has started standing people on their heads. That hasn't happened. Not even close. I'll tell you one thing. There is some terrific, extremely competitive and entertaining hockey being played right now. The games have been way more wide open than usual considering that the SCP's tend to put a premium on tight checking and lockdown defense. It would be tough to pick a favorite at this point. There are probably at least six team that have a legitimate shot at winning the whole thing. I'm just glad to see my Red Wings completely healthy and playing at the highest level they have all year right at the right time. I love the Stanley Cup. Honestly, I haven't the foggiest notion as to how anyone could choose NBA basketball over NHL hockey. There is no comparison.

I can understand why Dan is pissed off. The Red Sox are looking like they might drop a deuce to the Rays today. In the first of two, Manny Delcarmen got his bell rung so badly in the late innings that the Tower of London would probably like him to start making relief appearances on their behalf. And In the nightcap, Clay Bucholltz surendered a four spot in the first inning. No hitting and no pitching make for a lethal combination in the AL East. On a more positive note., Ubaldo Jimenez just pitched the first no-hitter in the history of the Colorado Rockies tonight against the Braves. He gave up six walks, so it's not exactly a perfect game, but a no-no is still a no-no. Congrats to him and to the Rockies.