Miggy for MVP!

Cabrera .330/.397/.591, 34 HR, 114 RBI, 88 R
Trout .333/.396/.568, 25 HR, 75 RBI, 108 R, 43 SB

Meanwhile, the Angels, owners of the # 3 OPS in the AL, grinded their at bats and pushed across a run here, a run there. Jarrod “The Real Deal” Parker had another “tired” start last night. Schil and Kruk talked about rookie pitchers in September, although not specifically about the A’s, the comments were general enough to be valid anywhere, but it’s really showing up with Parker and Milone. Lots of pressure on McCarthy tonight to get one game back for the A’s, since it looks like Baltimore and Tampa have no intention of losing again.

Our teams, Stex are little more than footnotes this season. My boys were good. Real good. But suddenly their pitching arms gave out, their hitters backs became balky, obliques pulled for both hitters and pitchers alike, their bones broke, their wounds infected, their wrists collapsed, they lost the strike zone. Your boys? Well….I’m sorry, brah. Everyone pretty much saw this coming.

What else is there to do but to marvel at the incredible good fortune of the rest of the division and the stunning product that Buck Showalter has managed? We can leave the Red Sox out of this statement, of course. The Sox Management and the Boston media did this to themselves: self inflicted wounds all. I have no sympathy for that franchise. I save it for Tito, who got shafted. For the players in a small measure: seriously this wouldn’t have been half as bad if they’d stopped commenting to the media. Do the Crash Davis at the buggers and close ranks. Alas its hard to close ranks when its Valentine you have to close with. He’s a natural Red Rover of rank busting.

The Rays, O’s & Yankees greatly benefited by having The Sox & Beavers to beat up on. Then they got the pitching and the hitting to carry them just enough against everyone else. The Yankees are fading: that good luck catching up with them as the toll must be paid at the tail end of a long season for an old team. However there’s no other way to describe the Orioles as anything other than well managed, well trained, and talented. They are young and tough, too. Gots the endurance that only youth imparts. Chickens finally coming home to roost, IMO. I’m really pleased for them. I thought I’d see this last season, but I’m glad its happened and better late than never. As for the Rays? Well what else is there to say? Hardly anyone watches them at home and yet they continue to be contenders. Maddon does everything just right enough to get the maximum milk for the minimum moo. The guy’s the Sexy Beast of Major League Managers.

As for you and me and our boys? Better luck, good health, and The Magic that is the AL next season, eh?

Thanks to the Vikings for beating the Bears last night.

BTW, it seems Young Mr. Harper’s comment is becoming part of the English language. The other day, I heard some political pundit use it in discussion of how the presidential candidates should deal with media questions they don’t want to answer. Struck me as quite funny that experienced politicians should be getting advice on dealing with the media from a 19-year old baseball player. Even funnier, I’m not sure the pundit realized that this wisdom came from a 19-year old baseball player.

Oh, and the Nats won again. Watching them tee off against a succession of pitchers named “who he?” was fun. Obviously, not for the young men doing the pitching. The aforementioned LaRoche has 4 homers in 3 games. Christian Garcia (survivor of two Tommy John surgeries) made his debut to retire one batter, and succeeded. Throwing 95-96 mph fastballs. More depth for the Nats bullpen of the future.

The Rockies helped out, allowing the Nats to increase their lead to 7.5 games. Gio goes for his 18th win vs. Chris Volstad (2-9, 6.06). With Garza hurt and Dempster and Maholm gone, guess Volstad is the Cubs’ #2 starter. Which is sad.

Slobbering Ozzie never saw an advantage he couldn’t turn to a disadvantage. Right, Jurassic Cuban former Feesh fans? First, he comes home from the road where the Iron Giant has been pounding the ball and has just been named NL player of the week while batting fifth, and moves him back to the cleanup position where he goes on or two fer twenty or some such thing and after crushing ten home runs in eleven games doesn’t hit one for a week. So last night, the Giant finally figures himself out with his thirtieth homer and a single. So what does Slobbering Ozzie do? With the Feesh clinging to a one run lead in the seventh on the strength of that homer and of Gorkys Hernandez’ first career home run (and by the way, batting the .172 hitting rookie in the leadoff spot was another of Ozzie’s strokes of genius this past week – he must have known the kid would hit one eventually), he sends Ryan Webb out to face the Brooze. Web gets two quick outs and then Nyjer Morgan (oh, so that’s what happened to him) bounces one weakly back to the mound that Ryan deflects but that dribbles behind him for an infield cheapo hit. Slobbering Ozzie is out of the dugout like a singed hamster clapping his hands and calling mindlessly for the lefty-righty sweetch, exit the effective Webb, enter the hapless Mike Dunn. Aoki crushes his first pitch to the warning track. Tie game.

The World Health Organization reports that 90-100,000 people die of snakebite every year. Many of these deaths occur in the tropical hinterlands and go unreported However, thanks to MLB.com and Faux Sports, you can add last night’s Feesh game to that figure with a high degree of certainty. Enter Krazy Karlos – still working with Ryan Webb’s two outs – and a couple of freaky infield dribblers later, it’s now 5-4 Brooze.

We need not recount the disastrous eighth inning of Chad Gaudin, who should not be confused with any of the seventeenth century French or Phleghmish painters he sounds like. They knew what they were doing. Suffice it to say that once you have smacked the Feesh down for a second time – though it usually doesn’t require that much effort – they don’t come back. Unable to mount any resistance to the Brooze boolpen, third worst in the league, they can only shrug and watch the strange attractor dwindle further into the realm of hypothesis, provenance of philosophers and mathematicians.

And contemplate autumnal trout streams.

In related news, the White Sox broadcast produced 3 innings of watchable baseball for maybe the first time all year.

Back to the O’s- unbelievable all around game. 6 hitters with multiple hits. Loved seeing Macho Man go 3-5 with a double (could have been 4-5 with 2 2B if not for an outstand play at 3rd), and Nicky continuing his late season success as well.

Also enjoyable for all? Roof malfunctions. They started closing the roof in the 3rd, and I think it finally closed by the 9th. No I won’t make a multiple things malfunctions for the Jays joke.

LEEGGOOOOO!!!!