NorthSideSox72

I wasn't sure where to put this. Its not pro-Obama, nor is it anti-Obama, but it is about Obama. Apparently (I wasn't aware), Chris Wallace of Fox News has been keeping an Obama Watch, waiting for Barack to fulfill a promise of an interview. Well, apparently, the waiting will soon be over. Obama to appear in an "exclusive" one-on-one interview with Mr. Wallace this coming Sunday.

I didn't see this posted, but, it may have been and I missed it. Joe Cowley, Sox beat reporter for the Sun Times, was dogging AJ about throwing out only 16% of basestealers in 2007. Cowley said he wasn't sure he could throw that many out, but that he could sure steal 50% of the time on AJ. AJ challenged Cowley to prove it. To Cowley's credit, he gave it a try - 10 steal attempts on AJ. Here is the video. Its awesome. You need the audio, but be aware, some NSFW language.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Apr 24, 2008 -> 01:14 PM) Masochist Seriously. I mean, who wants to watch the best pitcher in the Sox rotation so far this year face off against a premier foe? Nothing of value there.

1. If you've seen dugouts where they use bottled water, you'd know the real reason they have this rule. Its a hazard. This article is someone taking a fact, adding some suspicion, and creating a theory. 2. As I understand it, one of the giant jugs in the dugout IS water. They use cups, which the players won't then break an ankle on while walking around the dugout. 3. City water from the fountain is probably better for them anyway, and doesn't create nearly as much waste.

Charlotte is off. Montgommery (7-13) @ B-Ham (11-9), 7:05pm CDT, Richard (2-2, 3.38) going for the Barons Winston-Salem is off. Lake County (13-7) @ Kanny (10-10), underway, the surprising Charles Shirek (1-1, 0.38, 16 K's and 0 BB's in last 3 games) starts for the Intimidators --- Shirek looks like a very interesting guy to watch. He was drafted in the 23rd round in 2007, and was mentioned as being a nice late round pickup. Pretty impressive for a guy who was just drafted to be doing this well, so far. He's 22, which isn't super-young, but its not old either for A-ball. In fact I'd say that puts him near the middle for that level.

QUOTE (Steve9347 @ Apr 24, 2008 -> 08:05 AM) I didn't say they were better. But when your team's not playing very well, skipping a game would be a good thing. If the Sox were hot I'd say it couldn't come at a worse time. Yeah, I know what you mean. I just think that with this team's personality, they want to get back out there. Just my take.

QUOTE (Steve9347 @ Apr 24, 2008 -> 08:52 AM) That story is why I come to Soxtalk. Good stuff. It's not a rattler at that size though... bull snake. Rattlesnakes can get awfully big - some can be 5 feet long. Heck, just look at the picture I took, that snake is bigger than the one in Tex's picture, and its definitely a rattler of one kind or another.

QUOTE (Steve9347 @ Apr 24, 2008 -> 07:06 AM) If it happens, it couldn't come at a better time for the Sox. I disagree. This team is not the 2007 team. They got down 6-1 last night but still came back, and they will be better off if they can take one game in the series. Its not as if the Yanks are a far better team than the Sox - I am not sure they are better at all.

QUOTE (WilliamTell @ Apr 22, 2008 -> 05:43 PM) For me Minnesota is the choice. Chicago deals with the Twins and the Vikings. Instead of picking Other, I picked anything Canada just for fun and since Minnesota is next to Cananda. In my experiences at the Cell, I have usually found Twins fans to be the most reasonable and least obnoxious.

I plan to run for office at some point a little later in life.

One could also tie together the Broadway and Wass discussions here, in a way. Wassermann tops out around 89 or 90 as well, but has shown to be quite effective. He's got good control, has a lot of funky movement on his pitches, and in his case add in that weird motion. If Broadway could have a high level of control, good moving pitches and some good secondary stuff, then I'd think 89 mph isn't really much of a problem.

Wassermann has still yet to give up a run or a hit in his 7 apperances in Charlotte. He's also striking out just over 1 per inning.

QUOTE (FlaSoxxJim @ Apr 23, 2008 -> 09:33 PM) If it's from southern NM, then no, probably not a Baja. But, knowing that, I do think that's an image of a Mojave rattlesnake, and not a western diamondback. Here's a Mojave (Crotalus scutulatus): All that aside, the snake from the shot Tex posted is certainly long enough that it would have had rattles if it was a rattlesnake. Bull snake is still my best guess for a rattler mimic, even with the pit-viperish head. Hm. Mojave is a desert scrub snake as I understand it, more common further to the west and at lower altitudes, in the Mojave and Sonoran deserts - less so in Chihuahuan areas like NM and TX. Looking at the range map in Wiki (which shows the range only in the very SW bootheel of NM), as well as seeing the entry about "up to 2500m" (this was found somewhere around 2800 or 3000m in a forested area), make it seemingly outside of its range. But you are right, it sure as heck looks like that. Then again, that pattern is pretty darn close to a diamondback's, so... I just can't tell.

Seems like an OK idea for a Spanish class exercise.

QUOTE (FlaSoxxJim @ Apr 23, 2008 -> 08:10 PM) Where were you when you saw that rattlesnake? It looks almost more like a Baja rattler than a western diamondback. Gila Wilderness in southwest New Mexico, at about 8000' ASL, on a closed forest service road reverting to a trail. I'm pretty sure its not a Baja rattler. And I don't know of a rattlesnake in that part of the country other than a d-back that looks like that.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Apr 23, 2008 -> 05:49 PM) Just randomly thinking off the top of my head here...would it be possible to structure a windfall tax such that a company had to either choose to invest some of its profits in a particular sector of the economy (i.e. renewable energy) or give it to the government? Sure, but it would be near-impossible to effectively enforce. I think the interested party method is just easier... the government won't force the oil companies to invest in certain things - they just won't reward them for not doing so.

QUOTE (vandy125 @ Apr 23, 2008 -> 04:19 PM) Not buying it when we keep hearing about record profits that they are making (not just for themselves, but records as far as any company is considered). Exactly. I don't favor any sort of "windfall tax", because you should never penalize businesses for succeeding. But, the government sure as hell doesn't need to be giving them more money, when they have tens of billions in profits they could plow back into infrastructure if they so desired.

QUOTE (FlaSoxxJim @ Apr 23, 2008 -> 02:57 PM) Seems awful big to be so immature as to not have any rattles. There's also a lot of white space in between the dark blotches, more than is typical of a western diamondback. I think it may be a bull snake (aka gopher snake). Not a herpatologist either, though. kyyle is pretty up on his herps though (insert STD joke here. . . ), so maybe he'll wander by and chime in. I had a run-in with a Sonoran King Gopher snake once - a subspecies with a habit of imitating rattlesnakes. They will feint a strike, swish their tail around, and sometimes have those diamond-like patterns. But the head shape is usually the best ID, and from what I can tell in that picture, that's a pit viper's head. Of course, its not exactly a great close-up. see here the sonoran king I mentioned, which I came inches from stepping on: Then see here, a pic I took of a western diamondback: You decide.

QUOTE (BigSqwert @ Apr 23, 2008 -> 03:22 PM) I'm typically the last person to stick up for GWB but what power does a president really have with regards to the price of oil? Isn't it all about supply and demand? Well, this administration definitely could have done some things about it, but didn't. And they did indeed take some actions and back some policies that had a worsening effect.

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Apr 23, 2008 -> 04:01 PM) Logan Johnson may be 4'2" with maybe no real ceiling, but since I saw him play college ball, I've really like the way this little guy hits. Pushing a .917 OPS Its always fun to watch guys like that - the ones who are given near-zero shot, but manage to succeed at each level anyway, and then eventually, some actually make it. The Ehren Wassermanns of the world. Most won't make it of course, but its fun to root for them, and once in a while they defy the experts and succeed anyway.

QUOTE (Steve9347 @ Apr 23, 2008 -> 03:19 PM) f*** George W. Bush and f*** everyone who voted for him for a SECOND TERM. Let's take it down a notch, k? Bush's policies (and really, Cheney's) have certainly exacerbated the problem, no doubt. But the dependence on oil and other fossil fuels has been an issue for decades now.

QUOTE (Gregory Pratt @ Apr 23, 2008 -> 02:57 PM) Those states will be overwhelmingly Republican states in the general, either way. Not all. IA, CO, NM, MT and maybe SD, NE, KS and ID are in play.

Speaking of which, oil is now around $118/bbl, and average price for a gallon of regular unleaded is over $3.50 nationally.

Charlotte (8-9) @ Durham (8-10), 6:05pm CDT, Broadway (2-1, 0.82 ERA) goes for Charlotte West Tennesee defeated B-Ham 8-4. Of note for the Barons: --Nanita: 2-4, HR, 2 R, RBI, SB (hitting .319 now) --Castillo: 3-4, 2 RBI --Valido 0-4 (he's hitting .123, has a .309 OPS, and has 13 K's versus 2 BB) --Omogrosso (ND): 5 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 5 K --Santeliz (L): 3 IP, 4 H, 5 ER, 5 BB, 0 K Winston-Salem beat Potomac 7-5. Highlights: --Colina: 2-4, 2 2B --Allen: 1-4, HR, 2 RBI, R --Retherford: 3-4, HR, 2 RBI, R --Dubee (W): 6 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 K Kanny beat Greensboro 3-1. Highlights: --Mead: 1-4, HR, RBI, R, BB, SB (has 6 stolen bases) --Martinez: 1-4, 2 R, SB --L Johnson: 1-3, RBI, BB, E --Jones (ND): started, went 4 IP, 1 ER --Maxwell (W): 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K --Mabee (Sv): 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 K (ERA is not 0.82)

QUOTE (Athomeboy_2000 @ Apr 23, 2008 -> 02:16 PM) Smart People Support Obama Lemmings and Dumbasses Support Clinton JUST KIDDING! smart and educated are not always in concert.