Dan Gould

Well, its been a long strange trip in the Bronx, but with 40 or so games to go, the Yanks lead the Wild Card and are 3.5 games back in the division. So, can they pull it out? I didn't think they were as bad as they looked earlier, but with the continued injuries and the Unit looking every bit his age, I do think that if Wright and Chacon are effective down the stretch, they could very well make the play-offs, where I am sure all New Yorkers will remind us of the current streak of Wild Card winners taking it all.

Judging from the pictures in the family albums, since at least the age of 3.

Yes, Fisk was appalled at Sanders doodling in the dirt but it was his disrespect for the game and how it is supposed to be played that triggered his outburst, which nearly triggered a brawl after Deion's mindless retort. And I would hope that even among Yankee fans, respect for Fisk increased significantly after that incident.

What do y'all think of Milton Bradley and his comments about Jeff Kent? http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2141482 Apparently it started when Kent hit a double with Bradley on first and he failed to score, and Kent questioned his hustle or whatever. Now its "Jeff Kent doesn't know how to deal with African-Americans". What an ass that guy is. Its the same response that Neon Deion gave to Pudge Fisk when he hit a pop-up and didn't run down the baseline and Fisk told him to move his ass and Deon said, "Slavery ended 100 years ago". They're both jackasses. Turn it into race when its really about how you play the game. And then Bradley says that baseball has a race problem because only 9% of the players are black - as if the problem is that baseball sends out the message "black aren't welcome" rather than the reality, which as anyone with a brain knows, is that young blacks have concentrated on basketball every since Michael Jordan. And what was Bradley's comment a day or two ago? "As long as I'm black, I'm OK."? Was there a risk that his race was going to change? Was he going to pull an Eddie Murphy and see how whites treat each other when they're alone? I'll say it again: Milton Bradley is a total ass.

Obviously I need to get out more. Has she done anything that the public knows her for other than American Pie? ← She was the principal character in Slums of Beverly Hills which, while flawed, is still an entertaining and occasionally very funny movie.

It is of course also Armstrong's self-made image of the dope-free crusader for a clean sport. His little speech against all the cynics and the sceptics at the end of this year's tour somehow lost lots of its impact. He told us to believe in the athletes, that there are no secrets, and that it's all just about hard work. Sure Lance... ← Actually, in this country, Armstrong's self-made image is that of the man who beat cancer and won the Tour. The rest of it means little or nothing.

The fact is Ray that as Armstrong says, he's never failed a drug test. I think there is much to what couw says about Armstrong not being a part of the "true tradition" and when you also consider the apparent depth of Brownie's hatred (comparing Armstrong to Bush, another "lying Texan" is both silly and telling) it is apparent what motivates the reports as well as the European commentary.

Clearly, there are factors that support the internet model for retail sales of jazz records. Thank heaven. The bigger question, IMO, is how reduced inventory at brick and mortar stores may effect overall jazz sales for the major labels. The reduced amount of stock for browsing can only hurt the development of new fans (for instance, liking the Miles Blackhawk recordings but not finding any Wynton Kelly trio releases or only one Hank Mobley CD). I know that when I discovered the music in the late 80s, making connections from one reissue to others was critical, and it was all predicated on stores with large jazz stock. What is likely to happen in my opinion is a self-fulfilling prophecy: Only Miles, Coltrane, Ella, Louis, Getz and assorted compilations sell, and before you know it, the limited space available consists of Miles, Coltrane, Ella, Louis, Getz, and the biggest selling compilation of all-time, Jazz for a Rainy Day When the Boss Says "Condense the Jazz Department into 2 Linear Feet".

Talk about old tapes resurfacing, I'd love to find a recording of that gig.

My copy has Sentimental Lady and Funny Valentine tracked together, along with Wee and Bessie's Blues.

No, but at least you didn't go 0-19, like some teams! Any truth to the rumors about Soriano being claimed by Minnesota and possibly getting traded? That might be the bat that the Twins need to contend in the Wild Card.

Paging Paul Paging Paul PAGING PAUL You predicted 5 of 6 against the Sox and Yanks, and you were nearly right about the split, just wrong about who's on the losing end. I know no team is as bad as it looks on a losing streak and no team is great as it looks on a winning streak, but is anyone concerned about facing the White Sox in the playoffs? Is there any reason to be? Looks to me like the weakest "best" team in the league in many a moon. But I'm sure any day now - maybe after the White Sox break the current losing streak - Paul will set me straight on how they're destined to be swept by the Cards in the World Series. Yeah, right.

Absolutely not - unless you're going to tell me that Rouse was Monk's second cousin, twice removed, or some such b.s.

There are more than a few people here who agree with you but I am surely not one of them. I'd also wager that Monk wouldn't agree either.

I'd say "Classic Quartet" is simply referring to Rouse, without great consideration of drums/bass. The reference really is to Rouse and his long tenure, presence on the "classic" albums, and his great affinity for Monk's musical world. But Dunlop does get the nod here, too.

Well, let's ask him: Jim, do you laugh about that now?

Its true, but I think the Red Sox can fix their pitching problems so long as Foulke returns to being Foulke and Schilling returns to the front of the rotation. There's also significant help on the way from the minors for September and in all likelihood, the playoff roster, from future stars like Jon Papelbon, who's had a couple of impressive starts so far replacing Wade Miller, and Craig Hansen, who I believe will go down as the steal of the 2005 draft, as he was a certain top 5 pick until he signed with Scott Boras. That scared teams away and allowed the Sox to get him at #26, and yet it only took about a month to get him signed. He's got awesome stuff and will probably follow that A's reliever in going from college ball to the majors on the fast track.

There are benefits to joining up as a member of the "Virtual Bartender" fan club: Here is a page with all of the commands for both versions: http://www.beer.com/vb2_commands.html?waveid=1553

Interesting replies; glad this has sparked some discussion

OK, I'm back in this forum to see if a non-musician can spark some interesting discussion/memories. As I listened to the newly found Monk/Coltrane recording, I remembered that Coltrane supposedly said that getting lost in a Monk composition was like 'falling down an elevator shaft', which led me to wonder: Has this ever happened to you? How do you approach Monk tunes? Which are your favorite Monk tunes to blow on?

Clearly a guy who was a fill-in who left when the guy he was filling in for showed up.

What they said!

Well Paul, last time, heading into the last game of the series, you were hoping to pull out a split. Now, after your other ace pitcher got knocked around, you're trying to avoid a sweep. See ya in October. Oh, and one other thing: I've watched plenty of "homer" announcers, but I have never heard a more worthless announce team than "Hawk" and the other guy. Truly nauseating.

{{{{{{{SIGH}}}}}}}}} Indeed, Big Al. We need an "I Feel Your Pain" smilie.

Hey Paul: from today's Boston Globe: You better hope Buerhle doesn't pitch too many times against the Sox in October, or your date with disaster against St Louis might get cancelled in favor of a World Series rematch.