The Morning Offering - April 21, 2005

Written by Worm on April 21, 2005

Don’t believe the hype
Take a look at the calendar. The fantasy baseball season is only two-and-a-half weeks old. Your place in the standings means nothing. Evaluate your team’s needs based on real changes in your players’ situations, not a hot or cold start. Early trades can buttfuck your team’s chances. Often a team in last place at this point in the season will finish in first, so don’t freak just because your starters aren’t getting any wins.

Summer in the city
It hit 80 degrees in New York City yesterday, and it felt and smelt like summer for the first time in a long time. It’s a beautiful spring, with flowers blooming in all the trees and hedges, but the aroma yesterday was distinctly summery. Walking the streets, the muck was getting ripe and the alleys and gutters smelled like burgeoning garbage dumps. Stepping into the subway after work, I was greeted by that nearly forgotten summer scent: pungent, sweaty BO. Ah, summer, how we’ve missed ya.

Injured stars
Nomar hurt himself last night, and it may be another long season for Garciaparra owners. I’ve been mourning the loss of Eric Gagne since the start of the season, and, although I’ve been doing okay for saves, I have definitely missed his strikeouts. The fact that Gagne remains without a return timetable is especially distressing.

But this in no way compares to the plight of owners of Magglio Ordonez, who apparently is this year’s version of Jason Giambi. What happened to Ordonez? They say he has a hernia, but they can’t really find it, and it’s been causing all of his other problems? Right. Be very afraid.

Scrabble word of the day
UINTAITE

NBA playoffs
Hats off to the Nets, who used a second half push to take the final playoff spot in the East. Of course, I didn’t watch the game last night, since there was a Yankees game on, but a huge 3rd quarter got them where they needed to be. Now that it’s playoff time, I might even start watching some basketball. How’s Kobe’s team doing?

Final thought

And I do mean final. After filing this offering, I will be a vegetable until this evening. I’m playing in a head-to-head baseball league this year for the first time, and this week I’m matched up against Xach. The past two weeks, my offense has been very solid, and last week it absolutely blew my opponent away. So far this week, in three days, my entire 12-man lineup has produced just above a .100 average each day. I wouldn’t have thought this possible, especially given the big names in that lineup. Helton, Pudge, Giles, Sheffield? Hello?

Oh well, time to enter vegetable mode. Have a nice day. Duh…

-- Written by Worm on April 21, 2005