The Trophies, PLURAL!! Part TWO!!

Can't get enough of that shiny stuff? Believe me, brother, I know how you feel.  Luckily we have more pictures from the trophy visit last week in Mt. Shasta.  It was a grand time for all; "shit-eating" grins were everywhere.  Which is as it should be....We are Champions, twice over. I touched them both, just to make sure they were real.

Once again (what an amazing phrase to use in this context) I was struck by the relatively small size of the trophy.  I bet Bochy's head weighs more.

That's the new girl, or could you tell? Here they are together, which I guess is how we will always think of them. Unless we get to think of them as a set of three or four...hey! It could happen!

How about some of those S.E.G.'s I mentioned earlier. It was impossible to keep from smiling as soon as we got within 10 miles of the place!

And here is yours truly. I never dreamed this would happen more than once...dare I dream of more?

How about another look? At the trophies, not me!  Aren't they the sweetest thangs you ever done seen?

I'm not sure about that snowflake...guess it must have been in the window. Anyway, here's one last view of the girls with the entire crew. See you all next year!

The State of Jefferson Rocks the Trophies!

Lots of locals came to Mt. Shasta City yesterday for the Unveiling and subsequent Viewing. It was party time in the North State, and folks were flashing the colors. I really like the look these two sported (note the winter coats--it was cold):

The Deadheads were out with some spiffy swag:

Me and the Missus got our turn. That's 2010 on the left of the photo, 2012 on the right:

You needed four-wheel drive just to navigate the icy parking lot. Here's us posing with the fancy ride that carried the goods:

I forgave my friend Tom for his ridiculous red coat. After all, the 49ers were hosting a playoff game later in the day (way to go, SF!). I'm telling you, it was cold:

It was a happy crowd (sorry it is a little fuzzy, I'm still getting used to the camera):

And then there's the Man of the Hour, the Administrator of the Mt. Shasta Recreation and Parks District, Mike Rodriguez, who put it all together:

GO GIANTS!!

--M.C.

BBWAA Hall of Fame Votes Itself Into Irrelevancy

This is a rant.

As most everyone knows, the BaseBall Writers Association of America decided that none of the eligible candidates, which included first-time eligible candidates Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and Curt Shilling, among others, were worthy of induction.  Everyone who is NOT in the BBWAA who knows anything about baseball responded with a heart-felt "What the Fuck?"

Yes, you've heard the arguments, and they hinge on the "character" clause, which apparently is interpreted to mean any damn thing the BBWAA voter wants it to mean at that moment.  The reason no one, apparently, was inducted into the BBWAA HOF was because of steriods.  That has to assume that steriod, or other PED use, was emblematic of insufficient character to warrant induction.  It takes, of course, no more than a moment of reflection to realize that this line of reasoning is full of holes.

The use of steriods is cheating.  Not always, but at some point the use of steriods and other PED was determined to be illegal under the rules of baseball.  So apparently it is the cheating that has been determined to be emblematic of insufficient character.  Except that, this doesn't seem to be a very constant point against eligible players.  Gaylord Perry was inducted into the HOF in 1991.  Mr. Perry was known to have altered the baseball with which he pitched on numerous occasions.  That clearly is cheating, but he was elected.

Baseball lore, in fact, love cheating.  The game is full of stories about everything from how pitchers doctored baseballs to how players stole signs, to tales of Andre Dawson hiding extra balls in the ivy at Wrigley Field so he could retrieve one if the ball in play bounced into the ivy and he couldn't find it.  Andre Dawson was inducted into the HOF in 2010.  So it is not really cheating that is the problem, apparently, it is the degree of cheating, or perhaps the type of cheating.  But it can't really be the degree of cheating, because no one can tell if PED usage ups your stats, or your competence level, by 5%, 20% or any other number.  So the line of reasoning has to be the type of cheating.  Use of PED is cheating and this specific type of cheating is an indication of specific character (insufficiency?  flaw?) to allow a brilliant player to be inducted into the BBWAA HOF.  That is, even if you really knew, which in many cases, you (BBWAA) do not, no matter how much you think you do.  That is why they have a court system in this country, so that smart-ass members of the public with half-assed information don't get to arrest, judge and execute people.

Here are some of the types of character flaws that are not considered detrimental to induction in the BBWAA HOF:
wife-beating
unrepentant racism
taking other drugs
cheating except for PED
moral turpitude
wearing a uniform six sizes to big.

So, one thing I noticed is that Craig fucking Biggio got about twice as many votes as Barry Bonds.  Is any one of these clowns fucking serious?  [here is the part where I drop any pretense of a structured argument and just bitch]  I know Mr. Biggio had a long and productive career, and he played several positions, but, REALLY?  Wasn't about half his OBP because of uniform shirts HBP?  I suggest that the BBWAA just drop the HOF and dedicate the building to themselves.  That way, they can put "BaseBall Writers Association of America" in bigger letters, because they have decided to make it about them and their silly, old, white notions of what integrity is all about.  They can re-label the part of it that has players in it "Former Baseball Players of Mention, or, at least, that We Like."  Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens, just to name two, were among the greatest ballplayers ever, regardless of whether they took PED or had upstanding moral character.

Some of my fellow blog authors may remember one fine day sitting in the Candlestick bleachers as they put up the line score from a Boston-Seattle game.  Specifically, it was April 29, 1986.  As I recall, the collective sentiment was, "Who the fuck cares about an American league...holy fuck, 20 strikeouts!"  Well, then there's this: http://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2013/1/9/3857262/top-5-barry-bonds-home-runs-where-im-picturing-a-writers-head-as-the.

Locals: Take Notice

Here's the story from the Mt. Shasta Herald. We are talking about NEXT WEEKEND!!

Here's where it will be.

Here's what happened last time:

--M.C.

He Really Does Look Illegal

http://www.tmz.com/2013/01/03/sergio-romo-arrested-las-vegas-airport-san-francisco-giants-pitcher/

This is why I don't (1) go to Las Vegas or (2) travel during the Xmas/New Year holidaze.

Have a great 2013, everyone!!

--M.C.