Dan Gould

I was waiting for someone to mention this. IMO, 8 out of 10 marriages fail when one of the spouses is cheating. Soul-searching or not, odds are your former spouse was porking someone before the marriage went south. I've had some married lovers, but noone divorced because of me, I think. Immoral perhaps, but I was in my early to mid twenties, single and had my own apartment. If anything I was being preyed upon by the unfaithful wives. At least I got to fulfill my "older woman" fantasy. So the women tempted you? Sounds right out of Genesis. It's a total cop-out, Dmitry. Sleeping with someone else's spouse, besides being wrong, is a betrayal of the woman's husband. Where is the brotherhood that men seem to be so proud of having? How would you feel about someone who doesn't care about your wife, or worse, trying to get her to leave you, sleeping with her behind your back? Who would you be most angry at? Its not a cop-out at all. Do you presume that Dmitry even knew the husbands???? Why? As for your question, I don't know but I think I might be most angry at THE WOMAN WHO SWORE SHE WOULD BE FAITHFUL TO ME TIL DEATH DO WE PART. That's who I'd be most angry with.

These are not the days that give you a lot of hope. Wells stinking the joint up; Tek hurt. And the guy who is supposed to start tomorrow is the one who comes in for Wells? WTF is going on? About the only thing to be happy about is Wily Mo Pena who I am convinced is a superstar in the making. That ball he crushed over the monster was hit even harder than Vladi's shot the night before. And he can go Vladi one better if he comes through with a double his next time up: he'll hit for the cycle. I'd love to see Pena hitting behind Papi and Manny next season. Did you see Wily Mo's double last night? The bat shattered at the wrist and he's still strong enough to hit it off the wall.

Well forget what I said about Wells.

You're really going to love Thursday then: 1:05, Yanks and Toronto 7:05, Sox and Cleveland

Well my fear all along was that Theo would give up some of the kids to make an impact trade so I'm glad that all the kids are still with us. I'll feel much better if Wells goes something like 7 innings, giving up 6 hits and two runs. Then he'd be the impact pickup, and he doesn't cost a dime.

Anyone?

Should Sheffield be a free agent (the Yankees don't pick up the option) then there's no issue of "renegotiating the length of his deal" - it starts at one year and can go as long as other teams are willing to give. He doesn't have a no-trade so if the Yankees pick up the option in order to keep him from the Sox and still trade him, then he goes where they send him. He may not want to play and he may be a jerk before it happens, but he won't have any control over it. Now, should Sheffield be the DH next year: Melky is nothing more than an inexpensive sub/pinch runner. But can that do anything for his development? For Melky to produce he has to play. Another Yankee burial of a youngster. I'd bet dollars to donuts that if that is the case, he'll be moved next July for someone else. Bernie goes away - permanently. Giambi has to play first essentially all of the time. the bottom line though is that the Abreu trade became an absolute steal when the Phils paid the 1.5 million on the no-trade clause and the Yankees aren't obligated on the 2008 option year. I think its a slam dunk that Abreu is playing like Bernie Williams circa 2005 in that year, but because the Phils were so desperate and he was so desperate to get out, the Yankees won't be paying him.

Interesting report from a NY Newsday columnist: If that means Sheff does nothing to be back in September, big If that means Sheff takes his clutch bat to Fenway in 2007, extra big Even with the age difference, I would always be more afraid of Sheffield at the plate in a clutch situation than Bobby Abreu, in 2006 or 2007 or even 2008. Sheff is the kind of guy to use "disrespect" as a motivational tool so I have to wonder if he'd be especially interested to go to Boston, just to show them. I'm pretty sure he wouldn't give a crap to get booed at the Stadium.

Now that's a move I'd support if Theo can pull it off. We need help in the set-up corps. All I can say is that until 4 pm, I'm going to keep all digits crossed in hopes that this can somehow be pulled off. That is the kind of move that would make Torre, Cashman and old George crap their pants.

What I find remarkable is how the Phillies ultimately accepted crap and even agreed to be the ones to pay Abreau to waive the no-trade clause. When they started offering Abreu a year ago, they wanted a major league starter. No takers. Then they demand top drawer prospects like Hughes. No deal. Now they accept four guys, the top one (that first round pick shortstop) can't even hit in low A ball right now. Did you see my post about Abreu's hitting chart? He simply does not hit the ball in the air to right field. Period. I'm sure that the porch will beckon him like a siren, as the Monster does to righties who come to the Sox, but you actually have to get it there, and its pretty clear that Abreu lost that stroke. Lidle - yes, he is an innings eater and an upgrade over Ponson. But he also has a 4.75 ERA in the NL, which makes sense since he had a 5.75 ERA his last year in the AL. Will he make a real difference if his ERA goes up to 6, as the current numbers suggest would happen to any NL pitcher with his stats? As for Ponson and Chacon, I'd be surprised if both are on the roster after today. They have to move two people out to make room, and one of those two will probably be DFA'd. Here's something to think about: Nixon may be headed to the DL and is a free agent anyway. The Sox considered Abreu and it was pretty obvious that they probably won't make a big effort to keep Trot. How would you like to see old Sheff swinging at the Monster 81 games a year? You better hope that the Yankees pick up his option (and he accepts being a DH next year) because otherwise I think its inevitable that the Sox would make a major push to sign Sheffield. After the events of yesterday, it is obvious to me that today is the single most important day of the season for the Red Sox. What they do before 4 pm; whether Nixon may be out for a while; and whether Wells shows that he is the equivalent of a major impact pitching addition when he goes tonite will say a lot about how the rest of the season goes. I hate the idea of feeling forced to do something just to respond to the Yankees, particularly if that involves moving any of the youngsters. We've been saying IN THEO WE TRUST and I just hope that he makes smart moves and not over-reaction moves.

Many years ago I stumbled across what I thought was an extra cool item: B.B. King The Rarest King (Blues Boy Records). A cool selection of 50s recording, many with such jazzers as all three Newborns and George Coleman, too. And to top it off, its been autographed by the King himself: Best Wishes, B.B. King So ... I'm looking around ebay last night, and spot another copy of this release. And lo and behold, there is the exact same autograph in the exact same place: So the question is, does anyone know this release or know what B.B.'s signature looks like? I have to say it looks more like ink on top of cover, but maybe this is what the manufacturer did, create the cover with B.B.'s sig? Or did B.B. sign all of the copies before they left the distributor? Or did someone not only fake B.B.'s signature, but do it on many copies of the album and not just one?

Yankee fans who figure Abreu will regain his power stroke at the stadium: take a look at this. Its Abreu's hitting chart for this year. Click on "fly outs": The guy doesn't hit the ball in the air to rightfield anymore. It looks like about 60% of his fly outs are to left, and maybe 90% are to left, center or the infield. Hitting so few home runs this year, at a stadium that is much more of a home run park than Yankee Stadium,, I feel much better that he won't morph into Giambi.

Yeah right. And I'm sure that if the White Sox had sell-outs from a fan base happy to pay the highest ticket prices in the league, and therefore had the revenue for payroll, you'd go looking for another team to root for. I call "bullshit".

Actually its the Red Sox on ESPN and it would be very hard to argue that the Sox vs the Angels isn't a primetime worthy game. And if you hate it when the networks show the same teams, try living in south Florida which the networks think is actually named South New York. If there is a choice, they will pick up the Yankee or Met game every time. And in football season, you'd think the Jets were the local team.

did I catch this correctly and there is an electronic distribution in place? Then please let me in on that. I do not expect to have much time for listening let alone commenting, but I'd be happy to give it a shot. Yes, I plan to upload two zip files of high quality MP3 (320 KBS) files to yousendit.com. I'll send the link to the email we've corresponded on if that's OK. Look for it by the end of next week, and thanks. Anyone else?

Looks like the Yankees have finally "solved" their corner outfield problem: Abreu and Lidle heading to the Bronx I'm curious how my Yankee friends feel about this move. Some random observations: Since it appears the Yanks are "only" giving up their number one selection from last year, plus a 27 year old reliever and one more minor prospect, its a much better deal than if they had given in on Hughes or one of their other blue chippers. If Matsui and Sheffield make it back, some important players will be sitting on the bench a lot (Bernie, Melky, Bubba). Doesn't this have to mean that Sheffield is done in New York? You've got Matsui, Damon, Abreu. Where/when does Melky get his chance again? What's the point of keeping him? If Sheffield comes back, where does he play, especially considering that Giam-balco has to get more than a few at-bats as DH? I heard that the Red Sox were in on Abreu, but possibly only to drive up the price for the Yanks. I got a little scared off by some of the scout comments I was reading - that Abreu loafs; that he pads his stats in meaningless situations (don't they already have A-Rod for that? ); that he's really lost something since last year's All-Star break. As a Sox fan I am inclined to think that the Yanks are once again overpaying (in terms of salary) for someone on the wrong side of 30. My only fear is how the short porch may bring his power back. He's also like Giambi in the way that he gets on base. That will definitely help the offense. Lidle - well he's not the worst pitcher on the block, but I can't see him as being all that different from what they have. If this means the Sox end up with Leiber, well at least we know Leiber can perform in this league. Lidle's performance remains to be seen. so what do you guys think about the big Yankee deal?

In addition to the titles mentioned above, Buck recorded several times for Muse. I don't know how easily they can be found, but each has its charms. Capital Hill features Buck with a Barry Harris led rhythm section. The Buck Stops Here features the under-recorded Johnny Coles in the front line, again with Barry Harris on piano. I'm Beginning to See the Light and Impulse are all Buck, this time with John Ozment on piano. All are well worth tracking down. Its good to see a new recording, as there have been rather big gaps between the chances he's had in the studio.

And what is it that makes you hate the Mets now, too?

I saw it recently. You might try searching completed items, you might find out what it sold for.

Anonymity and being separated from the individual is certainly an important part of this. However there is another element that no one has mentioned, and that is the fact that at websites such as these, you have no control over who you will encounter or how often that may occur. That is to say, there are people in this community who, based on their behavior here, I would never personally interact with (they are not named Chuck or Chris, by the way). We've compared this site to the "neighborhood bar" and the fact is, were these people to enter my neighborhood bar, I would not be present for long. So, the point is that short of using "ignore" options, one can rub up against intensely objectionable people in cyberspace, and that can easily lead to the kind of unpleasant interactions Joel has described.

Well today certainly proved that you never know in baseball. I was pretty much resigned to the Yankees taking over first place, figuring: Young Mr. Weaver would give us fits Beckett was due for a bad start -Plus- RJ has been pitching well for the Yanks the guy going for the D-Rays was 2-9 with a horrible ERA Guess this was a "reverse lock", huh?

Are we comparing summer events to summer events? Doesn't the city empty out this time of year?

I'd be curious, but I'd also hope that it isn't some recording after Basie became a ghost band. I know it was still a pretty good group, but I'd be more interested if this were some sort of a '60s date.

Only 10 people so far? C'mon, its a good BFT, I swear. How about you, Free For All? I picked out a couple of trombone cuts with you in mind ...

I know that debtors have certain rights with collection agencies, like telling them not to contact at work, but what are the rights of individuals getting harrassed by a company that has the wrong person? My wife got a credit card offer in the mail (addressed to "Suzanne" not "Susan"), which turned out to be an offer wherein 1/2 of her "debt" (which they claimed was over $13000) would be forgiven if she opened this credit card account. So she calls the 800 number and they asked for the last four of her social security number to prove that she isn't the person they're looking for, they seem real apologetic and that's that. Til today, a scant two days later when we got a voicemail message insisting that she call immediately to clear up her "account". I swear, if I get one more call from these bozos I'm going to go ballistic on their asses. But in the meantime, does anyone know what the rights of the falsely accused are in this situation? Thanks.