The Cleveland Indians first half dissapointment

Since this is the first weekend after Major League Baseball's All-Star game, I thought I would blog about some of the teams that have been major dissapointments so far in 2008. One team that jumps out at me is the Cleveland Indians. Last year the Tribe won the AL Central by 8 games. The lost out to the World Serries Champion Boston Red Sox. Here is a link to my article previewing the Indians in the playoffs last fall.

Currently the Tribe is 42-54 and in the cellar of the AL Central 12.5 games behind the Chicago White Sox. The Tribe did trade away CC Sabathia, who went 19-7 with a 3.21 ERA last season. Fausto Carmona has been battling issues and is 4-2 with a 3.10 ERA but hasn't pitch since May. Last season Carmona went 19-8. Cliff Lee is a bright spot for the Indians returning to form this season with a 12-2 record and 2.31 ERA.

Sizemore's average is down this season batting .272 but his power numbers are up with 23 home runs, he only had 24 last season. Martinez isn't batting .301 this season or having the numbers he hit last season. Travis Hafner also hasn't played since May.

The Tribe are having ac disappointing season due to injuries and management has turned away from this season trading away CC Sabathia. A move the Tribe used to add some talent on the farm. The Indians may not have a winning season this year but they should be in the mix next year with Carmona and Lee in their rotation.

Review of Nationals Park

Last weekend I was able to go to three games at the Washington Nationals new ballpark in Washington. DC. The stadium is nice. Washington has done a wonderful job with the stadium and the area surrounding the ballpark. The first night we had nosebleed seats, the view was good. You could see the whole field. The next two games we had lower level seats and they were even better. They had a fireworks show after the game on Friday. I have to say I have seen nicer firework shows after minor league games but it was a nice diversion. Saturday they showed a movie after the game on the big screen located by the scoreboard opposite the third base side. I thought this was pretty clever idea. It also gave a chance for fans to do something while the crowd thinned out. They also have a playground for children which was closed on Sunday. They also have a shaded playstation area as well. The ballpark is great. Ticket prices are more expensive than at nearby Camden Yards in Baltimore. Also food and drink inside the stadium was very expensive even for stadium food. Beers were $7.50, bottled water was $4, we had a BBQ dinner Friday night that was $34 for two. Saturday we had cheese steaks for $8.50 a piece.
All and all a good place to see a game but bring plenty of cash.

July Update on Beau Torbert

The summer is moving along. I wrote an update of Beau Torbert in June so keeping with that I am writing an update for July. The Sioux Falls Canaries won the first half North Division title in the American Association. So Beau and the Canaries will have playoff baseball! Beau Torbert has played in 52 games and is batting .299. He also has a team high 13 home runs and a team high 46 RBIs. He has also scored 37 runs and hit 9 doubles and a triple.

Beau will probably be named an All-Star in the American Association. Torbert is showing a lot more power than he showed while he was in the Astros organization. Beau also continues to hit the ball very well.

My Fourth of July Weekend

Sorry no late night rendezvous scheduled with any blond, 80's pop topping, sex symbols at their crib. My wife would frown on those arrangements, even if honestly I was just going over there for free food and drinks. Like wise my wife isn't jetting over to visit a rocker in Paris for the weekend. Of course I'm sure my wife would only do that to hook me up with some free concert tickets.

Well my wife and I don't live those kind of lives but if you read the sports pages or the tabloids apparently some people do! I wonder is there a difference between the sport pages and tabloids anymore? Of course, even if I wanted to live that kind of lifestyle, assuming I would be able to get through every one's security, it wouldn't work out. My luck would have me stuck at home with the kids while my wife went on her rendezvous!

No, my real Fourth of July weekend will be a lot quieter. A trip to Washington, D.C. to see the fireworks with my family. A cookout on Saturday and a day of rest on Sunday before another work week. Hopefully, the weekend won't produce any tabloid stories from my family.

June: The Month of Death

Maybe not but it did same to be that way. The month started out with Doug Thomas passing away. Unfortunately, the funeral information was not forwarded to me. I would have liked to attend his funeral, he was a great man. Then a friend of my wife's dad died. Which started our 2 funerals in three days weekend. A small service but a tight family. Then "Bobbie" Miller's memorial service on Monday. There was a large turn out at St. John's for this service, even for a Monday morning service in the middle of vacation time. Bobbie deserved a big turn out. She did so much for so many people and for the church. St. John's kitchen was really her kitchen. It was odd being in the fellowship hall afterwords with the food. I kept sensing she would pop out of the kitchen with another tray of food...

George Carlin R.I.P

George Carlin passed away Sunday. I was able to enjoy his show, in the small but beautiful Maryland Theater in Hagerstown, Maryland a couple of years ago with my wife. Carlin was funny and entertaining. A lot of his material wasn't "kid appropriate" and I'm sure there were some people who didn't like him or found him offended.

None the less one could not argue with his comedic success. "Carlin won four Grammy Awards for best spoken comedy album and was nominated for five Emmys." If awards don't do it maybe the fact he "produced 23 comedy albums, 14 HBO specials, three books, a few TV shows and appeared in several movies."

Please check out the AP article by Keith St. Clair, it is a good obit and appreciation. I did use it for the quotes in this blog.

I am glad I had the chance to see him, as the comedy world lost a talent on Sunday.

Home

Sometimes it is nice just to be home. Especially after a busy week like last week. 45 hours in the office, three trips to Baltimore after work, a trip to the mall on Monday after work to get my oil change. Then I did some volunteer work early in the morning on Saturday. Then Saturday evening we went to a party.

Don't get me wrong the party was fun, the three baseball games were fun, and the volunteer work was rewarding. My car did need an oil change. It is just nice to sleep in a bit and have no where to go. It is just nice to be home.

However, the "honey do" list is growing. My parents will be here in a few hours so another busy week will start. But for a brief moment of calmness at a place call home is nice.