R.I.P. Duke Snider

The 'Duke Of Flatbush' passed away this weekend. Snider was a big part of Baseball's Golden Age, patrolling center field for the Brooklyn Dodgers.


Here's his 'other' nickname:

Unflattering, yes. Tasteless, maybe.

Here's another major leaguer who had an unfortunate nickname. Don't worry, this guy's loooooooong since dead.

Is It Almost Time? I'm Getting Giddy!

YESSSS! Spring has sprung in Florida! Pitchers and catchers reported a couple of weeks ago, and everybody's trickled in after.

QUICKLY:

JoBau and the explanation of WAR

What the fuck is goddamn WAR?! It is a measure of how good a player is compared to his less-than-able, average player. And then, the probability of wins this player can potentially garner(and it beats the fuck out of me how they get this number, since it IS a team sport) is factored in his Wins Above Replacement number.

Your average player would be like a Joe Inglett or a Craig Grebeck. Nobody special. You might as well get a sack of potatoes out on that field. But those players maybe have a WAR of 1.00, which is not bad, but not good by any means. If your player has a WAR in the negatives, chances are he's out of the major leagues, or he's playing for the Washington Nationals. HEYO!

And each increment of WAR determines your standing as a major leaguer. The high 7's or 8's, means you are an A-Rod or Jeter, or Pujols-type player, meaning he's REALLY good.

If you clicked on to www.fangraphs.com, Jose Bautista's WAR value for the year 2010, his number is at 6.9, meaning he is almost 7 times better that the acumen of a Mench-erson or an Ing-beck. No disrespect to those player combos, because I love them(not really!)

JoBau's WAR actually provides great insight on his value in regards to the contract extension that he signed. 5 years, $64 Million, ain't nothing to sneeze at, but it shows the number craftiness that Jays GM Alex Anthoupulos possesses, especially when it comes to metrics.

I don't have the break down details, but I'm under the impression that the dollar amounts get smaller as Bautista's age gets higher and his skills begin to diminish.

I'm no fan of JoBau by any means, but I enjoy the value of this deal because in a free market, he could have garnered maybe Pujols kind of dollars, but stayed in TO for less money.

Is this a sign of things to come? Is Toronto becoming a desirable destination for superstars one again? We'll have to wait and see.

We just got rid of one big money contract in Vernon Wells. Who's to say that this will be any different?

Speaking of which, my daughter is selling her Vernon Wells lunchbox. She wants a ton of money for it, and has been trying to get rid of the thing since she got it. Takers?


I lost my "Keep the Dodgers In Brooklyn," button a little while back. I last saw it when I was at The Zanzibar for a 'businessman's lunch.' A modest reward to the person who brings it back to me. It has sentimental value.

(Make sure you click on the upper right hand button to BUY ME A COFFEE! An XL at Horton's is $1.74. I know you rich fuckers can afford that!)

Download This! Disc 2: Why Don't You Dance?

why don't you dance?

01 Senor Stereo ft. Louisahh! - I Am the Beat (Treasure Fingers remix)
02 Maximum Balloon ft. Theophilus London - Groove Me
03 Thomas Bangalter - Spinal Scratch (TJR Bang Bus remix)
04 Glitterium - Why Don't You Dance?
05 Yelawolf ft. Gucci Maine - Wanna Party
06 Aeroplane - Without Lies (Breakbot remix)
07 Holy Ghost! - Do It Again
08 Yelle - La Musique (Tepr remix)
09 Chromeo - Hot Mess (Duck Sauce remix)
10 Stardust - Music Sounds Better With You (12" Club mix)
11 Death From Above 1979 - Black History Month (Fred Falke remix)
12 Cut Copy vs. Deadmau5 - Ghost On Fire (Redlight remix)
13 Human Life - Wherever We Are (GRUM remix)
14 Bloc Party - Hunting For Witches (Coucheron remix)
15 PUNCHES - Let Go
16 Bloc Party - Two More Years (MSTRKRFT remix)


download link below:
why don't you dance?

Bots . . .

- How about we turn your car, your one-bedroom apartment, your little cubicle, your classroom, whatever, into the sweatiest facsimile of a basement dance club ever! Road Tested!

- The title is from the Glitterium track which is offered up, free to download on a french disco-haus comp called millenium disco. It's fab! I'm sure all the Serato DJs have this already, in the queue.


- To celebrate Black History Month and their upcoming reunion, I've included a remix of Death From Above 1979's track of the same title. Enjoy.

- That Holy Ghost! track is new, but totally reminds me of a bad single from the 80's.


- Speaking of the 80's. I just recently ran into that GRUM remix of the Human Life track. I just love hearing the same instrumentation that flooded my ears in my childhood. GRUM's Heartbeats, was a very close second for 2010's Record Of the Year. Now if only he'd tour this album this way . . .

- The Coucheron remix of Bloc Party is blow-away amazing. I think the kid is only 17! When I was at that age, the only thing I did well was jacking off! Keep an eye out for this guy!

(Make sure you click on the upper right hand button to BUY ME A COFFEE! An XL at Horton's is $1.74. I know you rich fuckers can afford that!)

Download This! Disc 1: Don't Be Afraid To Crack A Smile

don't be afraid to crack a smile.

01 The Super Friendz - 10 Lbs.
02 Girls - Lust For Life
03 Keane - This Is The Last Time
04 The National - Sorrow
05 Ra Ra Riot - Too Dramatic
06 a-Ha - The Swing Of Things
07 Goldfrapp - Believer
08 Junior Boys - In the Morning
09 Kisses - Bermuda
10 Gustavo Santaolalla - Chipi Chipi
11 Marina And the Diamonds - Shampain
12 Prince - I Wish U Heaven
13 Theophilus London ft. Solonge Knowles & Devonte Hynes - Flying Overseas
14 Tricky Woo - Living In the Danger Zone
15 Matt And Kim - Where You're Coming From
16 The Drums - It Will All End In Tears
17 White Lies - The Power And the Glory
18 Europe - The Time Has Come
19 The Rheostatics - Alomar
20 Local Natives - Who Knows Who Cares
21 Dinosaur Jr. - Thumb

download below:
don't be afraid to crack a smile


Some Bits . . .
- You gotta love The Super Friendz! Matt Murphy went on to form The Flashing Lights, bringing crappy revivalist cock rock to the clubs. It wasn't to my taste, so I'm rooting for the Friendz. They have a blog over here:
http://www.superfriendzsite.blogspot.com/


- The a-Ha song was from their ill-fated Scoundrel Days album. It was the album after their big smash Hunting High And Low. I had awful high expectations for this record, but no matter what, I can't get into it. It was a slight departure from pop-sensible songwriting, to say the least.


- To cheer me up, my brother took me to see Tricky Woo at the Rivoli the day after I got my hand crushed by a machine in the factory. I was all drugged up, and my hand mummified. In the middle of one of their encores, the lead singer went into the crowd and started a rock-and-roll-clap-a-thon, making sure everybody was in participation. When he got to me, he tried his hardest to get me to slam my hands together. I showed him my bandaged hand, he shrugged a 'fuck it,' shrug and moved on.

- Dave Bidini from The Rheostatics is my FB friend! Check them out over here:
www.rheostatics.ca and buy their albums! This song is to celebrate Roberto Alomar's induction to Cooperstown.

- The title is from the Theophilus London track. I like how that Prince song and his tie together. I like how that title encourages joy. We all get sad from time to time, but the best strategy to bounce out of it is to find any little thing that makes you happy, and hold on to it dearly. Then celebrate it often.

- The new White Lies album is okay. I was ready to say that they make a better Tears For Fears record than Tears For Fears ever could, but really can't. Harry McVeigh's vocal delivery is almost the same as Roland Orzabal's, but that's about it. TFF has more dimensions. Whoever made that initial comparison is retarded.


- The Europe song is one of my favourites. You can hear The Final Countdown album revisited in the Hot Rod soundtrack. John Norum's beautifully executed guitar work is all over it. Oh yeah, he's easy on the eyes as well.

- Oh, J. Mascis and Dinosaur Jr. There was a point in time there in the early 90's where I made sure I saw these 'alter-NATIVE,' bands while they were around. I feel that I caught all of the important ones: Sonic Youth, Eric's Trip, PJ Harvey, FUGAZI, Lush, Ministry, Pearl Jam, Redd Kross, Belly, etc, etc. The only bands I regret not seeing are The Pixies (who have reunited, and for some reason provide no incentive to see them) and Dinosaur Jr. I don't think my ears can take it, unless I want my inner woofers blown.

(Make sure you click on the upper right hand button to BUY ME A COFFEE! An XL at Horton's is $1.74. I know you rich fuckers can afford that!)

Ebbet's Field Renderred!

Remember that one post recalling my visit to the tenement version of Ebbet's Field, wondering where everything would've been? I did a whole lot of imagining for a very long time, until I stumbled upon this rendering.

Thanks, internet!