Patrick

Thome is definitely a class player--still much-loved in Cleveland despite playing for the division foes in Chicago. Got a much warmer welcome back reception than other all-star sluggers pursuing dollars elsewhere (like Manny and Belle). I didn't follow him too closely in Philly, but in Cleveland he would sit there and talk to every single reporter, through good times and bad--no racing to get out of the clubhouse before the media arrived. He married a Cleveland tv reporter, and I think he still lives there in the offseason. Originally from Peoria, IL, he must be happy now to be playing close to his boyhood home (though I think his dream was Wrigley rather than Comiskey). Too bad he has had some health problems.

Watch out for the Reds. During the (ongoing?) Cleveland batting slumber party, Reds took 2 out of 3. Included was a 1-0 game in which Sabathia pitched 9 innings of shutout ball (3 hits, 6 K's), and had 2 of the 7 Indians hits, but came away with a no decision. The recently activated Matt Miller threw only one pitch in the bottom of the 12th--Alex Gonzalez singled home the only run. Ouch. Aaron Harang, starting for the Reds, was similarly impressive: 7 innings, 3 hits, 10 K's.

Added note to you: NO ONE can guard Lebron one on one. Bowen has had to guard the best player every time he steps on the court. Who else does that and does it well?? Not saying Bowen is the MVP but he is certainly not to be left out of the mix for the award. Hey Bruce, I am totally on board with Bowen being a valuable component of the Spurs success, just not the most valuable part. Since no one can guard LeBron one on one, why should one guy get the credit if a team manages to contain him? Answer, one guy should not get the credit. Consider this, if LeBron and Bowen switch uniforms, do Bowen and the Cavs contain LBJ. I seriously doubt it, no matter how well the great Bruce Bowen plays. James would get past him, and dunk on Varajao, Ilgauskus, etc. Bowen should be appreciated for his defensive skills, and the tough assignments he draws. He gets that respect. You're the Spurs GM and you have to let Duncan, Parker, or Bowen go. Who do you choose? While appreciating the loss to the team, I let Bowen go. And to me at least, it's not that close.

Hey Big Al, I applaud the efforts and encourage them to continue. It takes a village. How's Kevin Millwood? 2-6 7.82 ERA. ouch! Is he hurt, or just cashing checks now? Like Millwood (though at the other end of the rotation), Scott Elarton is another pitcher that passed through Cleveland, had a good year, and appears to have gotten overpaid elsewhere (8.54 ERA in KC). And it looks like Bob Wickman is up to his old tricks of putting out fire with gasoline...

This is precisely why anyone thinking that Bruce Bowen is the finals mvp is completely insane! Bowen played very well, but he cannot guard LeBron one-on-one. Spurs contained LeBron with amazing team D. One of those knuckleheads (Van Gundy or Mark Jackson) even suggested Bowen should get the team MVP for the season. ...completely nuts. Parker is the finals mvp (without his amazing play, the series could/would/should easily be 2-2 right now), and Duncan or Parker is the team mvp for the season. Bowen is a key component to their success, but not anyone's most valuable player ('cept for maybe Mrs. Bowen and the recent offspring). Cavs played excellent defense throughout the regular season and post-season, but not as good team D as the Spurs. Coach Brown should get a fair amount of credit for Cavs improved play in this regard. The mere fact that such a poor shooting team could win as many as games as they did (in both conferences) shows that they were excellent defensively. In this series, Spurs were even better defensively. Spurs quietly went about their business during the regular season letting the spotlight shine on Phx and Dallas. And then demonstrated why they are the best team in the league. More later. good night.

...in a (feeble?) attempt to keep this from returning to nyy/bos fulltime Nice start tonight for Tribe by Jason Stanford. Second career win, first game since Apr 2004. Tons of rehab. Getting a spot start before Jake Westbrook (who has been barrutal in several rehab starts) gets activated. For Stanford, 6 innings, 6 hits, 7K, 0BB, 1 ER against Dontrelle and the Marlins. Borowski tried hard to blow the game in the ninth, but managed to "earn" his 19th save (and raised his ERA to 6.58). Tribe bats have been in deep slumber mode for awhile. I am underwhelmed by these platoons that include David Dellucci and Trot Nixon--not that I was expecting a ton, but .240 BA from corner outfielders ain't gettin' it done. Sabathia and Carmona have pitched very well (Unless he has some bad outings in June, Sabathia should be an allstar), Byrd has started to return to his mediocre form (still has only 4BB in 68 innings), while Lee and (recently demoted) Sowers have been brutal. Maybe they give Stanford another start before bringing back Westbrook. At least the Tigers are having their problems, and the Tribe is still only 2 games back of league-leading Bosox.

agree with you Aggie. Big 3 did not win the game for the Spurs. It was their 3-pt shooting from the bench. Parker looked mortal. Duncan was a star but not a superstar. Search party finally located Manu late in the fourth. Gibson and Snow, while not scoring a ton, definitely contributed much more than the injured Hughes. If only Gibson could have hit one or two of those wide open 3's. Coach Brown made that adjustment a game or two too late. And Gooden and Ilgauskus each played as well, or better than, Duncan. Spurs will win the series, with an excellent chance of a sweep. The east will collosally suck for awhile longer, but at least the Cavs were their match in this game. Too bad only some fans in Cleveland will remember...

My J&R unfilled obscurities: Roy Haynes Love Letters, Jason Moran Facing Left, Dexter Gordon Manhattan Symphonie, Duke Ellington And His Mother Called Him Bill, and Art Blakey Night in Tunisia [bluebird].

Yeah. Joe Borowski gift wrapped this one for the Mariners. And Paul Byrd was a lot worse than he was in April when that chump Mike Hargrove started crying about the snow only after it became evident that the Mariners were not going to take the lead in the top of the fifth...

It's that way at least partly because of the disparity between the West and the East. One of the announcers said the top 4 teams in the West could all beat the Cavaliers, and that is probably correct. yup spurs mavs suns jazz? Houston too. Though a Cavs victory is extremely unlikely at this point, this series isn't quite over. Guy I guess this depends on the interpretation of "could all beat". Yes Jazz and Rockets could beat Cleveland (or Detroit or Chicago). Cleveland could beat them too. ...Probably would be a more interesting series than what we have. West is dominant because there are 3 great teams out there. Let's not be having this greatness spillover onto teams like the Jazz and Rockets. Those two are solid teams that can finish in the top four in the east or in the west.

Yes, Clemens may turn out to be pretty darn good. He's had lots of success in the past. He may improve as he goes through his spring training (so to speak). Heck maybe he'll really surprise and be a #2 guy. Either way, I am amused by the hype. Was he great or terrible in the first start? No. Why was espn showing every pitch of his minor league games, and opining about the groin implications of how he walked off the field? Will Kenny Rogers' return be getting this much scrutiny? I don't think so. Will Kenny Rogers be as effective as Clemens this season? If KR is fully recovered, I suspect yes.

Wizards will get the benefit of a talented player with something to prove (that he's back from injury) playing for his next big contract.

I've ordered from them online two or three times, and each time the fill rate (on stuff that is not obscure within the jazz ecosystem) has been fairly low (compared to tower, cduniverse, alldirect, etc). And not just on the OJC blowout they had awhile back. I get the sense, perhaps incorrectly, that they are really thinning the jazz inventory with no plans of restocking. Call me paranoid.

And unless your wheels have a really nice sound system, I'd stay away from subtle stuff that is difficult to appreciate over road noise (ballads, much chamber music, etc). Maybe a jazz recording could be used to break up a parade of pop/rock/folk greatest hits albums--anyone for Malachi Thompson and Africa Brass performing "Lift Every Voice"?

...Not that I think it's a real possibility, but I hope Universal/Impulse! does not acquire any castoffs from Concord or EMI.

No matter what Clemens does (or fails to do), it's going to be overhyped good or bad. His first start was adequate against a weak NL team. He wasn't great, and he didn't stink, he was average. I saw Matt Chico (anyone following that guy?) of the Nationals do as well, or better, against the Pirates on Thursday afternoon (7IP, 4H, 2ER, 5K, 3BB, no decision).

Sounds like the praise for this set is unanimous (or nearly so), and I would join that chorus. For those on the fence or curious about Jazztet, David (Ghost) did a nice program on this set on Night Lights a couple of years ago. http://www.indiana.edu/~wfiu/nl_021905-jazztet.htm

So Larry "Grand-ma-maw" Johnson can make a comeback, perhaps paired with C-Web and Dale Davis?

Definitely a tough game to watch, for everybody besides Spurs fans I suppose. Cavs got outplayed just about the whole game, but weren't really blown out. Bowen plays good D on LeBron, but I think the key is that the help defense (and let's face it Bowen and everyone else needs help on LeBron) was extremely effective. In contrast, Cavs would often send three guys at Duncan on the post when 2 would have sufficed, and not made it really easy for TD to pass out to a shooter (or two). Brown is keeping with his rotation that has the largely ineffective Larry Hughes starting each half. Gibson needs to be on the floor for many more minutes. He probably can't play 48 so LH needs to stay in the rotation. If his foot injury requires him playing at the start of each half, fine--just take him out after 8 minutes or so. And can Steve Javie go on his long summer vacation ASAP...

Do they mean a $25 cover charge with a two-drink minimum in some sloppy, smokey dive with a tiny stage, bad PA, and the people behind you jabbering incessantly over the music? ... That's what I was thinking when I read it.

I cannot imagine an Albert Belle pursuit of Aaron. He got caught with a corked bat. I don't know if he was ever high on anyone's list of likely steroid users (don't recall anything beyond wild speculation). On the positive side (if anyone were to turn to it), I suppose we'd hear more about how extremely well-prepared Belle made himself for every game/AB, keeping an index card for each pitcher's patterns/tendencies. As irritable and irritating as Bonds may be (to some), he's fairly minor league compared to Belle. Interesting comparison to Rice. I haven't studied it closely, figuring that Belle didn't really have a long enough career to be considered a serious HOF candidate (and recognizing that he'd finish dead last in any popularity contest with media). Ten solid years, batting around .295, 381 HRs, 1200+ RBI, during the steroid era. Baseball-reference.com lists the following as similar players: Juan Gonzalez, Carlos Delgado, Jim Edmonds, Jason Giambi, Moises Alou, Vlad Guerrero, Dick Allen, Rocky Colavito, Hank Greenberg, Tim Salmon. Beside Greenberg who is HOFer, who on this list has a solid chance for Cooperstown?

I missed the Belle/Vina replay. AB definitely used his arm which I guess is the big no no, don't know how viscious the hit really was. But that is a bygone era now. Immensely talented slugger (perhaps poor word choice), deeply troubled human. As good as Vaughn's season was, Belle should have been the AL MVP in '95. Vina is indeed employed by ESPN now--wonder if he declined to discuss it. ...I'll confess to not hanging on for every tidbit of news/commentary on NYY/Sawx.

Interesting future purchase possibility (gotta enjoy the Prestige box first). The only Steeplechase title I own is More Than You Know which I have not yet spent a lot of time with. Have the "Dexter in Radioland" live albums (Cheese Cake, King Neptune, Love for Sale, I Want More, It's You or No One, Billie's Bounce) ever been assembled in a package? How do these compare to the rest of the Dexter cannon, to the studio Steeplechase, to the various live recordings?

This reminds of the time during the 1996 season that Albert Belle took out Fernando Vina by running right into him. Vina had the audacity to believe that the baseline between first and second belonged to him . Didn't help that AB was surly and hated by many/most. At least one account now refers to it as Belle decking Vina with a "vicious forearm". I don't remember it that way. Belle was HPB twice that day. Fights ensued that day and the next. Belle, Julian Tavarez, and Mike Matheny each received 5 game suspensions. At the time, I wondered what would have happened if it had been Jr Griffey, Cal, or Mo Vaughan breaking up a double play.

...thought the life savings was on SA???