Oscar Gamble Society

So last night I finally got to watch Yankees wunderkind Joba Chamberlain pitch. He faced the heart of the Angels’ order and gave up one single while recording three strikeouts. That gives him 14 strikeouts in all of eight innings of big league pitching. His fastball was consistently between 97-100 mph, mixed in with a slider around 86 mph. Watching his delivery one would not think he throws so fast; he doesn’t look like he’s working very hard to do it.

All this raises the obvious question - why is this man still on the Yankees’ roster? Shouldn’t he have been traded for Jeff Conine or Julio Franco? Maybe this is final proof that George Steinbrenner is no longer involved in running the team. Dare I dream?

Today Texas eked out a 30-3 victory over Baltimore (in baseball). According to espn.com, Wes Littleton recorded his first save of the year in the game. My question is this: how the hell can anyone “save” a game their team is winning 14-3 when they enter the game? It seems like a rather damning indictment of the statistic. Am I missing something?

Supply siders will appreciate his reference to the landmark tax reform of 1986.

Jeff Gordon blows a lead with two laps remaining at Watkins Glen, spinning out and allowing Tony Stewart to grab the checkered flag. Meanwhile, Boston blows a lead in Baltimore, allowing New York to pull within four games with 45 remaining. It is well.

Actually, it’s more like reason #1.  Yes, the whole steriod thing is pretty high on the list, but by far the biggest reason I’m such a hater is this:

http://www.timesonline.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=18690364&BRD=2305&PAG=461&dept_id=478568&rfi=6

Guy can’t even sign an autograph or two for a memoriam/fundraiser for two Pirate employees, two guys he knew pretty well from his 7 years there… 

Now in today’s warped society, I might be inclined to be skeptical of autograph situtatoins, where a broker of some sort bribes a kid to approach an athlete and ask for an autograph, athlete signs it thinking it’s for the kid, then the guy gets it, turns around and sells it. 

But CLEARLY this is not the case, yet Bonds won’t sign anyway.  Fucking dickhead….

In the latest of a spree of blog acquisitions, The New York Times (pinko commie rag that I love) is acquiring the Freakonomics blog.  What’s next?  The Boston Globe snapping up OGS?  Meh, that’d be cool, as it would probably net more than the $4.29 of Google AdSense revenue we’ve racked up.  Hehe, aah, the picture of Tank writing articles for the Beantown faithful.

Funny, dim-witted reader… how many times do I have to tell you that much like 1994, there was no MLB post season in 2004.  Quit it already with your fantasies about who did what to whom in four games.

Okay, back from fantasy land now.  Must seriously prep for Mecca.  Alfonso Soriano is out, but still, the Cubbies have the ESPN Sunday Nite Game with the Cardinals.  Stupid Effing Cardinals… one game and the Astros would have had you last year, you pathetic pieces of shite.

Okay, really back from fantasy land now.  Man, I have to start working on my fantasy football drafts…  Meh, I need a beer.

I really enjoy this commercial.

Bud Selig has been roundly castigated for his tepid response to Bonds record-tying HR in San Diego, and rightfully so.  For anyone who’s been living under the proverbial rock the past couple days and has *not* seen the footage, let me see if I can paint you a picture.

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Having been bumped out of his job at Hendricks by Junior, Busch the Younger will now take JJ Yeley’s ride in the number 18 car at Joe Gibbs Racing. Definitely an upgrade for Gibbs, though now Tony Stewart will be only the second biggest head case in his employ. With two very young drivers in Busch and Denny Hamlin, and Tony Stewart likely to drive for at least a few more years, one assumes Gibbs will expand to four cars within a year or two to accomodate either Brad Coleman or, more likely, Joey Logano, at least once Logano is old enough to actually get a driver’s license.

Kurt Busch’s win at Pocono yesterday only serves to highlight the competitive problem in NASCAR. Exhibit A: yesterday was the first time in two years that a Cup race was won by a driver from a team with less than three cars. Exhibit B: just look at Busch’s career since leaving Roush. In 2004 with Roush he was the Cup Champion. His win yesterday though was only his second since leaving Roush for the two-car Penske team.