Saturday Bird Droppings

by j.q. higgins on Apr 30, 2011 8:13 AM EDT in Open Threads

Good morning, friends. Everyone get their fill of tea and crumpets yesterday morning? No? Surely, I'm not the only royal watcher in the house? Uh, well, anyways...clips!

Brian Roberts has been playing through a hamstring injury | HardballTalk
Guh. Dude, be careful. Your services are needed.

Orioles Insider: Millwood, Simon, Andino, Wieters, Arrieta - Baltimore Orioles The once and future mentor? An imminent return from Alfredo Simon? Y'know? I'm starting to miss the guy.

Flashback Friday: Putting the "O" in Royal for Queen Elizabeth | Roar From 34 In your face, Ludwig!

Orioles Card "O" the Day: Vintage Fridays: Luis Aparicio, 1966 Topps #90 Exploring a non Kittle-based O's/Sox connection.

Expanding baseball’s postseason would give hope to teams like the Nationals, Orioles - The Washington Post
Count the Boz in the "pro" camp.

Does Roberto Alomar belong in the Hall of Fame? Sort of well-worn turf, here, but what the Hell? I'm still remembering the awkward shots of Robby in the owners box on the big screen at OPACY during the awful game last Saturday.

Jonathan Schoop Scouting Report
Video on Schoop (that's "scope" not "shoop", apparently).

April 30 - BR Bullpen Boogie with Stu.

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Matt Wieters looks like a giant compared to Accardo

by Stacey on Apr 30, 2011 8:36 AM EDT reply actions

I remember seeing him standing next to BriBob at Fanfest.

The difference was stark.

Why the Buck not?!?

by PBR me ASAP! on Apr 30, 2011 8:47 AM EDT up reply actions

He's a giant compared to like half of the team

Only D.Lee looks normal next to Wieters.

I don’t have much tolerance for stupid. Or cheese on food that doesn’t need it. -duck

by twistedlogic on May 1, 2011 10:30 AM EDT up reply actions

Royal wedding? What royal wedding? Oh, okay, THAT royal wedding.

The 10 worst souvenirs on the market so far:

1. "Crown Jewels," the royal wedding condoms. "Crown Jewels condoms promise a royal union of pleasure."
2. The Royal Wedding for Dummies, yet another edition of the Wiley Publishing guide line.
3. The Royal Wedding sick bag, for when you’ve had enough.
4. Royal wedding iPhone apps — at least 10 of them so far.
5. Brass knuckle engagement rings, "for the belligerent bride."
6. A Catherine Middleton doll, another "collector’s item" from The Franklin Mint.
7. The William & Kate fridge, which at least uses the official portrait.
8. Royal wedding beef ‘n’ bacon pie. There’s a dash of brandy in it, too.
9. Royal wedding beer, "Kiss Me Kate" and "Windsor Knot" are two variants.
10.Royal wedding iPhone cover, all in the best possible taste.

http://www.bnet.com/blog/advertising-business/the-10-worst-royal-wedding-souvenirs-currently-on-sale/8164

"Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning." Churchill,1942-- a rebuilding year.

by Titov on Apr 30, 2011 9:21 AM EDT reply actions

For a second there...

I thought the ‘doll’ would be of the blow-up variety.

Why the Buck not?!?

by PBR me ASAP! on Apr 30, 2011 9:38 AM EDT up reply actions

No, that's No. 1, I think. Depends on where you went to h.s., I guess.

"Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning." Churchill,1942-- a rebuilding year.

by Titov on Apr 30, 2011 9:41 AM EDT up reply actions

Although you could be right if the Franklin Mint has finally decided to target a different demographic

"Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning." Churchill,1942-- a rebuilding year.

by Titov on Apr 30, 2011 9:49 AM EDT up reply actions

From a Moscow News photog/designer: "Want to know how to make it look like a princess has a broken nose? Screw up the lighting"

http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5105/5672234290_5e8b940380_o.jpg

"Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning." Churchill,1942-- a rebuilding year.

by Titov on Apr 30, 2011 9:57 AM EDT up reply actions

Caption Time.

“William! Where did all these fucking children come from?!”
“One has no idea, One thought they were with you.”

"Ohhh it's baad" - E. Smith

by mpire on Apr 30, 2011 10:08 AM EDT up reply actions

The kid in the upper left looks like she had to do some Angel Dust to get through the day…and now she’s crashing.

I also like the portrait of King Chandelierhead in the background. I guess they don’t have airbrushing guys working weekends— prolly a union thing.

"Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning." Churchill,1942-- a rebuilding year.

by Titov on Apr 30, 2011 10:27 AM EDT up reply actions

why do people think that another wild card is a good idea.

the one wild card we have no already hurts the regular season so much, just look at last last year’s coulda been pennant race between the Rays and the Yankees.

The stock market will never recover, our armies will never again be #1, and our children will drink filthy water for the rest of their lives - HST

by the fix is in on Apr 30, 2011 10:22 AM EDT reply actions

It's all about making sure PHN and MFY both make the playoffs every year

Nothing more.

"Complacency is your demise." - Kerry King

by duck on Apr 30, 2011 11:59 AM EDT up reply actions

+2 and grind teeth

"Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning." Churchill,1942-- a rebuilding year.

by Titov on Apr 30, 2011 11:27 PM EDT up reply actions

No idea,

It seems like it would just penalize the one team that gets in there.

If you look at those UZR ratings or whatever

by dfa on Apr 30, 2011 12:40 PM EDT up reply actions

I don't hate the idea of more playoff teams

MLB has the lowest ratio of any professional American sports league at 26.666%. While the NBA, NHL, and MLS go too far with more than half the teams qualifying, something closer to the NFL’s 37.5% is a good target.

I do hate, however, the format necessary to have a 10 team playoff. You shouldn’t have more teams getting byes then playing in the first round. A 30 team, 6 division league causes all sorts of scheduling problems. While expansion probably isn’t practical for host of other reasons, a 32 team, 8 divison league that mirrors the NFL would be far easier to work with.

by kba26 on Apr 30, 2011 12:53 PM EDT up reply actions

but no other sport has 162 games in the regular season

the 162 game season is the best part of baseball other than perhaps the scorecard and the three run homerun.

The stock market will never recover, our armies will never again be #1, and our children will drink filthy water for the rest of their lives - HST

by the fix is in on Apr 30, 2011 4:02 PM EDT up reply actions

Eh, honestly I'd cut that down too

Maybe to about 150 games. End the regular season a week earlier and give each team a few extra off-days throughout the season.

by kba26 on Apr 30, 2011 4:38 PM EDT up reply actions

How about 154? How long did that work?

"Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning." Churchill,1942-- a rebuilding year.

by Titov on Apr 30, 2011 11:28 PM EDT up reply actions

To the naysayers who profess it doesn't matter who your manager is....

…. here is one of the myriad ways it does. (Zrebiec):

For all the talk about Buck Showalter’s organization and leadership skills, the people I talked to when he was hired as Orioles manager really felt that he’d help the franchise most in one key area: evaluating its own talent. Let’s face it, the Orioles have mostly failed in that area in the recent past. I thought about that again last night while watching infielder Robert Andino get three hits, draw a walk and pretty much be in the center of every Oriole rally. He’s now hitting .333 and playing a pretty strong shortstop, the error last night notwithstanding. The Orioles had tired of Andino’s attitude and antics last year while he was with Triple-A Norfolk and were prepared to let him go. However, Showalter wanted to take a look at him before they did. A September call-up, Andino finished the 2010 season strong, made this year’s team out of spring training, and he’s really flourished in J.J. Hardy’s absence. All you’d need to do is watch Andino take groundballs for two minutes to determine a lack of talent is not his issue. He has good feet, lightning-quick hands, a good arm and a quick release. He handles the bat pretty well and has decent speed. He also has the type of attitude and swagger- Mark Teixeira found that out last week – that Showalter craves in his players. The problem for Andino has always been staying focused and playing hard. He’s been doing both and it certainly appears that Showalter has his attention. The most memorable interview I’ve done since spring training began was with Andino after he was informed that he had made the Orioles’ Opening Day roster. An emotional Andino talked about how proud he was of himself, and about how he felt it was one of the first times in his life that he didn’t screw up. I know there are a lot of Orioles right now that are real happy that he’s getting an opportunity and doing well.

"I put a pepper rub on the scallops so you have a little contrast. You have sweetness from the coconut oil and a little acidity from the splash of lemon." – Luke Scott

by zknower on Apr 30, 2011 11:19 AM EDT reply actions

maybe...

the o’s should retain demper as an easy focus consultant. andino’s mind tends to wander and his throws are wacky. reynolds, too, it seems.

i’m kidding about demper, of course, and those guys both have good feet, soft hands and strong arms, but the errant throws make me a little crazy. it’s hard to imagine how much worse their error counts would be if wiggles was at first instead of d-lee.

"the secret to a happy ending is knowing when to roll the credits"

by j.q. higgins on Apr 30, 2011 12:32 PM EDT up reply actions

Maybe

Robert Andino’s BABIP in 2011 is .424 (.295 career). In fairness, his LD% is 31.3% (19% career).

I like Andino and if he can play short there’s no reason to keep him and Izturis on the roster. But I also think Andino’s performance has more to do with luck than with Buck being a kingmaker.

If you look at those UZR ratings or whatever

by dfa on Apr 30, 2011 12:46 PM EDT up reply actions

LA Times Festival of Books starts today

on the USC campus.

It’s gonna be nuts. Although I’ll be seeing panels by Larry Flynt and Dan Savage in the same day.

"Girls laughed at me my whole life, doesn't mean I was funny"
-Gary Thorne

by scohen on Apr 30, 2011 11:41 AM EDT reply actions

Wait, books on the USC campus?!?

They’ll, like, come with instructions and everything, right? ;)

"Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning." Churchill,1942-- a rebuilding year.

by Titov on Apr 30, 2011 11:32 PM EDT up reply actions

Anyone catch The Office and Parks and Rec on Thursday?

I just watched both of them. Reactions…

The Office: First time I’ve ever watched an episode of The Office and cried my eyes out. Special props to Steve Carell, John Krasinski, and Jenna Fischer for their brilliant performances.

Parks and Rec: We are inching closer and closer to a Ben-Leslie romance. YAY. That’s all.

"It's like yoga, except I still get to kill something." - Ron Swanson

by DCO'sfan on Apr 30, 2011 1:21 PM EDT reply actions