Friday, December 31, 2004 |
Pickoff Moves
In My Day, We (Ab)used Steroids, And We Liked It!
Is Barry Bonds a steroids user? Well, assuming he is, he's only an anachronism -- or will be soon enough. EE Times publishes an article surveying the latest trends in human enhancement technology. On tap for the future: synthetic muscle implants, bionic eyes, and nanotech brain enhancements to improve cognitive skills (that's thinking, duh)."The use of anabolic steroids, in retrospect, will seem almost prehistoric — as well as stupid," said Jerome C. Glenn, executive director of the American Council for the United Nations University (Washington) and co-author of the book 2004: State of the Future. "In the future, we'll be able to enhance ourselves in other ways that won't be so dangerous."Like getting surgery to add pounds of synthetic muscle wouldn't entail some risk.
Thanks to Slashdot for the link.
Jayson Werth, Injury Magnet?
Among Dodger fans, there's a fashionable meme circulating that Jayson Werth is a big injury risk going forward. This stems mainly from several problems he encountered this year:- He missed about half the season this year due to an oblique muscle he pulled in April.
- Making a spectacular catch in Colorado, he banged up his ribcage, an injury which followed him for the rest of the season.
- An injured elbow ligament makes him iffy for spring training.
Games Played
Age Werth Kotchman
====================
19 125 81
20 101 64
21 109 115
Kotchman's considered a real injury risk -- and has the litany of freak injuries to prove it. Whether it's a ground ball to the mouth or repeated hamstring injuries, Kotchman's earned the reputation of being fragile. Those wishing to smear Jayson with the same brush will have to first overcome the fact that he already played in 75 more games at the same age than Kotchman.
For Giants Fans, Murphy's On The Mound
Nobody, it seems, is that interested in looking at what other teams have done or haven't done so far, particularly this Giants fan who's New Year's resolution is to write off the Giants long before September and October dance their way:Resolution #4: Don’t invest what you can’t afford to lose.Sure, it's a lousy division. But, hey, Randy Johnson's no longer a Snake, the Cards just got less than a sure thing as its supposed "ace", and the NL East continues to look like Atlanta's playground -- and we know how effective that club has been in the postseason. The NL continues its descent to mediocrity, while the pantheon of great pitching in the AL (read: Yankees and Red Sox) ages yet another year. Is it really that unrealistic to think another NL team could beat whomsoever ends up with the AL pennant?This is the most important one. If you break the first three, you’re still looking good. Break this one, and you’re hosed.
This is a popular resolution amongst Cubs, Indians, White Sox and Giants fans but it’s one that resurfaces every year without fail in Northern California. (It’s funky not seeing the Red Sox in that list anymore, isn’t it?) Try as they might, Giants fans can’t help themselves by getting too excited when they shouldn’t and excited enough to have it sting whenever the likes of Felix Rodriguez, Dusty Baker, Jose Cruz, Jr., and an assortment of other Giant goons invariably ensconce their heads in their lower intestine at the worst possible moments. And face facts: Owner Pete Magowan proclaimed the day after the regular season concluded that they would NOT be pursuing a big ticket free agent, i.e., Carlos Beltran. Right there, every fan worth their weight in his/her salt should realize that expectations can’t be raised to a World Series level (again). Ninety wins, maybe a division crown and – Brian Sabean’s friggin’ favorite word – competitiveness is about all you can hope to get underneath your Festivus pole this year. How the front office brass that had its team come within 8 outs of public-nakedness-inducing hysteria can remain content with fielding just a “competitive” team is beyond me. Sure, Sabean and Co. are giving us Armando Benitez, Mike Matheny, Omar “At Least It Rhymes with Nomar” Vizquel and Moises Alou, but aren’t they more B-level than true impact players? So don’t get your hopes up unless you’re fully prepared to have your heart treated like that poor sap in the Temple of Doom. Don’t say I didn’t warn you. Trust me, losing is a powerful teacher.
Happy New Year
Happy New Year, everyone. 6-4-2 will be on hiatus tomorrow. I think.
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