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Rock stars usually look out of place on NHS hospital wards. But opening Scotland's first specialist teenage cancer unit yesterday, The Who frontman Roger Daltrey appeared at home. "This isn't much different from some of the hotels I stay in," he said...
With the new year only days away, everyone is looking ahead to 2007. But while others look, I see. I've got next year's key events in the world of TV (or at least my version of them) sharply in focus...
But if these songs don't make you want to buy more of her music, nothing will. Soul Sides ( ) offers the lovelorn ballad So Long, which was the first song Brown recorded, in 1949...
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Now, it's Dodger catcher . Via the , fans can go to the Dodgers official site and vote for one of around twenty songs that Russell Martin may be using when he goes to the plate. Keep in mind, you must be at least 13 year old to vote (I'm not sure why a 12 year old wouldn't qualify, but that's not up to me).
I'm getting the feeling that Martin pre-screened and selected some of his favorites that he would deem acceptable. The site says that the most popular three or four selected songs will be rotated every time Martin's at the plate. You can choose from a selection of Whitesnake, Bon Jovi, Van Halen, Outkast, Daddy Yankee, Bush, Evanescence, Green Day, and many more.
Unfortunately, the whole gimmick could be short-lived; to his standard "Touch the Sky" by Kanye West if he starts slumping, which via the math at Dodger Thoughts, . Until that point, Martin needs to be considered one of the best all-around catchers in the league. Even .
Sometimes, the starting pitching matchup doesn't bear expected results.
On Friday night at Shea, however, it was. Tim Hudson, who is enjoying a renaissance season for the Atlanta Braves, clearly out-pitched rookie Mike Pelfrey, as most people would have expected coming in, as the Braves beat the Mets 7-3 in the first of a three game set between the two top teams in the N.L.
East.
But what wasn't expected was Hudson's domination of a Mets lineup that came into the game hitting over .300 as a team.
He shut them down over the course of eight innings only giving up five hits, and his season ERA is about as bloated as a field mouse at 0.62.
"There's really not much of a break in that lineup," Hudson said.
"They can go up there and really hurt you. I was able to go out there and make some pitches, set a tone early. We got a nice lead early, thanks to Chipper.
"
"Chipper" refers to Chipper Jones (duh) and his first inning home run off of Pelfrey, who gave up four runs in five innings of work. (It's worth a reminder that Chipper Jones loves hitting at Shea Stadium so much that he named his son Shea), and that pretty much set the tone for the whole evening.
"I thought the secondary stuff was OK," Pelfrey said.
"The fastball command was kind of off. Facing Chipper Jones in the first inning, the fastball, I left it right in the middle. You don't want to miss with that guy.
"
The Mets best chance came in the bottom of the fifth with Jose Reyes up with the sacks full and two outs, but Kelly Johnson made a nice sliding play on a hard hit ball up the middle to get the force and end the threat.
David Wright went hitless in three at bats to end his hitting streak at 26 games over two seasons.
OK, so he might not be at , nor , but Rich Aurilia is doing pretty well in his own right. Check this out: Aurilia is enjoying a 12-game hitting streak, during which he's batted .
388. In the last five games he has nine hits and six RBI, but most of all, he's been clutch. On Thursday he delivered a two out two-run tiebreaking double in the sixth inning which helped spark the .
On Wednesday, Aurilia delivered the game-winning RBI single in the bottom of the 12th to give the over the Cardinals. In his second stint with the Giants, Aurilia is concerned with more than just himself:
"It's a good feeling. It's nice to be able to come back home and contribute like this .
.. Now, if we can just get on a roll and win a few more in a row and get back to .
500, that'd be great."
The Giants have rallied from a 1-6 start to win five of their last seven games, thanks in large part to Aurilia. It's a positive sign for Giants fans who starting getting seriously concerned early in the year, .
Fredi Gonzalez's team has just lost five in a row, including two blowout losses at the hands of the New York Mets, but they may be as well:
"We're not playing very good right now," said Florida slugger Miguel Cabrera, whose team has lost five in a row. To make matters worse for the Marlins, Cabrera left in the third inning with an injury to his right oblique and declined to predict when he'll be back in the lineup.
Neither the Mets broadcasting team nor I knew what Miguel was doing when he laid down a sac bunt in the third inning.
Now we know that it was probably injury related:
He gave a hint that he was hurting came when he bunted with a runner on second in the first inning - his first sacrifice since his rookie year in 2003. "When I swing and miss a ball, I feel something," he said.
Oblique injuries .
.. .
.. are no joke.
It probably cost Albert Pujols the MVP award last season. But there's a lot more at stake here than that, where a team like Florida needs their big hitter ..
. now more than ever ..
. just to stay afloat.
As for the Mets, they enter a big series against the Braves with the bats smoking.
As of right now, the Mets are hitting .303 as a team, and that includes a .357 average by, of all people, Ramon Castro who had a two-hit, three RBI night.
David Wright extended his two-season hitting streak to 26 games, and Carlos Beltran was a triple away from the cycle when he doubled in his final at-bat, but never did he think of going for third to get the cycle. Why? Because he's .
"With the score of the game, I don't think it would have been good if I had tried to go to third and was thrown out," Beltran said. "That would have looked like I was trying to show them up -- not a good thing." He shrugged.
"Maybe I'll be able to hit for the cycle before I quit playing," he said. Posted Apr 17th 2007 12:30PM by Filed under: , ,
When a tragedy like the one at Virginia Tech happens, it hits so many people in some way, some harder than others. It hit too close to home for David Wright, who's brother is a :
Wright repeatedly tried to call Stephen on his cellphone, but the lines were tied up. He did not know whether Stephen was all right until another brother, Matthew, a freshman at James Madison, called him.
Wright finally spoke to Stephen around 2 this afternoon. Wright said he wasn't sure where his brother was at the time of the shootings, but that Stephen lives off campus and is an engineering major. He probably had classes at Norris Hall, a science and engineering classroom where several of the killings took place.
"He was obviously shaken up," Wright said.
There's no telling how many people went through the same thing that Wright did on Monday ..
. people with family and friends at the school who were left wondering if their loved ones were all right. Wright is no doubt shaken up, thinking of how close tragedy could have hit for him and his family.
Thankfully, the Wright family comes out of this lucky. So many are not, and are grieving. We grieve along with them, and with the Virginia Tech community.
Previously on The Fanhouse:
| | [4]
Posted Apr 2nd 2007 3:45PM by Filed under: , , ,
The Mets and Cards , but today they're already enjoying an off-day.
So what's a guy with time on his hands to do in St. Louis? Personally I'd swing up to for a couple of talls ones and a Big Elwood, but :
With the International Bowling Museum and Hall of Fame across the street from Busch Stadium and little else to do on today's day off, David Wright brought along his bowling ball.
"I'll get some inspiration from the Hall and go hit the lanes," the third baseman said.
I've heard of guys traveling with their golf clubs, but this is a first for me. But hey, why not -- I wouldn't expect a millionaire to use a house ball, right?
If you're in town and want to roll a few frames and or three with an All-Star third baseman, head on up and see if you can catch him. I'm guessing you'll have an easier time beating him than, say, Jose Canseco or Mark McGwire.
(via )
| | [0]
Posted Apr 2nd 2007 1:03AM by Filed under: , ,
No, it's not going to lessen the sting of losing Game Seven of the 2006 NLCS, but beating Chris Carpenter is always a good way to get your season off on the right foot, which the Mets did on by a score of 6-1.
Of course, the Mets had to start the night by watching ceremonies which honored past Cardinal World Series champions (with Mets announcer and World Series hero Keith Hernandez representing the '82 Cards) and present ones too .
.. punctuated with a motorcade featuring the World Series trophy, and the raising of the Cards' 2007 World Series banner.
Mets starter Tom Glavine couldn't help but notice.
"There's no question for us as a group that it was a little bit of a disappointment that it wasn't us," Glavine said. "It could have very easily been us, but it wasn't.
Maybe it's the kind of thing that you watch and know that when the season is over for us, that's what we want to be doing."
David Wright noticed as well.
"Hopefully, we have that in the back of our minds and that gives us that extra motivation," Wright said.
If the final score was indicative of motivation the Mets might have been feeling, then that's a good sign for their next game on Tuesday, when the Cardinals are presented with their World Series rings in a separate ceremony. As far as the Mets are concerned, the Cards can keep that motivation coming. Perhaps the Braves can have ceremonies commemorating their 14 straight division titles when the Mets hit town over the weekend (with Glavine throwing out the ceremonial first pitch).
Motivation is a good thing.
| | [0]
Posted Mar 29th 2007 3:15AM by Filed under: , , ,
David Wright gave us the opportunity to . Well if you voted and your song is chosen, you had better make sure you get to the park earlier than normal if you normally arrive late (and if you do, what are you, a Dodger fan?) .
.. because Wright may be in the batting order.
While he acknowledged that he isn't a "prototypical" No. 2 hitter, David Wright believes the Mets' high-octane offense won't miss a beat if he's assigned the role by manager Willie Randolph. Wright filled the No.
5 slot in the Mets' lineup in 2006, but with several Mets mired in early spring training slumps, he's found himself penciled into the top of the pregame lineup card with greater consistency. "We have an American League lineup in the National League," Wright said after the team's 8-3 loss to the Braves yesterday. "Whether I hit (No.
2) or (No. 5), or if I hit (No. 6) I'm going to go up there with the same approach.
"
Of course the downside is that you move Paul Lo Duca out of the two spot, where he rarely struck out and did a good job moving Jose Reyes to third base to set up the heart of the order. If you move Lo Duca down, you waste his strengths while creating a top heavy batting order. And Wright may say his approach isn't going to change, but if Jose Reyes is on base, it has to change at least a little bit.
The Mets set franchise records in most offensive categories in '06. Why fix what ain't broke?
Previously on The Fanhouse:
| | [0]
Posted Mar 28th 2007 12:50AM by Filed under: , , , ,
A light-hearted poke at baseball players' custom of hiding their mouth with their glove while they talk?
Or a deep rooted hatred of Wake Forest by Virginia native David Wright stemming from a ruined NCAA bracket in 1995, when Tim Duncan and the one seed Demon Deacons were ousted in the round of 16 by Oklahoma State? You decide in Wright's new Sportscenter commercial featuring Neil Everett, Scott Van Pelt, and the Wake Forest Demon Deacon:
| | [0]
Posted Mar 23rd 2007 3:40PM by Filed under: , , ,
Yes, David Wright sure does.
Want some details? Me too!
Fans can log on to Mets.
com and select from the 50 songs listed below whose genres range from classic rock, to hip hop, to alternative. The first round of voting will conclude Wednesday, March 28 at 5 p.m.
when the top votes will be pared down to 20. Fans will have the opportunity to vote April 2-6 to determine the final four songs that will be played throughout the season when Wright comes to bat at Shea.
A few observations on his song list:
- "A Day in the Life" The Beatles.
Seriously? A historical, amazing song, no doubt. But unless he decides to play McCartney's part, this doesn't make any sense.
- "That Was A Crazy Game of Poker" O.A.R.
Worst. Song. Ever.
- "Yeah!" Usher featuring Lil' John and Ludacris. Um, 2004 called.
They want their overplayed hits back.
Other than that, the list is pretty solid in my opinion. After the jump, you can peep his full list of songs.
Punch your tickets early and often, folks.
(Via )
| | [6]
Posted Mar 9th 2007 2:30PM by Filed under: , , ,
Willie Randolph, like most bosses, are .
"If you want get on my bad side real quick," Randolph said, "be late. I don't have a lot of rules, but that's one that easy to follow.
"
Apparently, that's not so easy for Duaner Sanchez. Sanchez was warned about promptness after repeatedly being late for throwing sessions to rehab his right shoulder. Yet he got another tardy slip on Thursday, and was told to go home.
It was originally going to be a one day suspension, but Sanchez was told, once again, to .
Randolph's decision was applauded by Sanchez's teammates, including third baseman David Wright, who said, "As much as I love Duaner, he's an incredible talent, this shows a message that this isn't a one-man circus, this is about 25 guys. When you're somebody coming off that kind of surgery and you have 24 guys relying on you as heavily as we are Duaner, it's not too much to ask to be on time, to come in here and get your work done.
"
Randolph has also been less than satisfied with Sanchez's conditioning coming into, and during spring training. So he has no choice but to make an example out of Sanchez. (Or maybe Randolph is just puzzled that a guy could repeatedly be late while staying in Port St.
Lucie ...
not exactly known for its nightlife.)
In any event, it's time for Duaner to get his head together, and perhaps consider sending Randolph a bouquet of flowers and perhaps a specialty teddy bear, just to say he's sorry. You can't rehab your shoulder if you're not in camp to throw, right?
| | [0]
Posted Mar 7th 2007 2:50PM by Filed under: ,
If you watched any part of last year's playoffs, then you know: the Mets, as presently constructed, are well worth viewing no matter who the opponent.
Sure, Pedro Martinez might be past his raucous Red Sox days, days when we could all collectively ask "Who are you, Kareem Garcia?" and "What's the deal with that little midget?" Sad times, indeed.
But what the Mets lack in Martinez sideshow they more than make up for in sheer baseball talent, both at the corners in the infield (3B David Wright and 1B Carlos Delgado) and in SS Jose Reyes, perhaps the breakout player of the year in 2006. Reyes dazzles, whether at the plate or in the field, and is young enough to make Mets fans hope there's still room for improvement.
Despite the successes of Wright and Reyes, though, the Mets aren't exactly the youngest team in the majors.
Rather, meeting the Mets means meeting six players 40 years or older, including the still-effective Tom Glavine and Orlando Hernandez. That's the most plus-40 players of any roster in the bigs, but it's that experience - and the dynamic talent of Mr. Wright and Mr.
Reyes - that make the Mets an NL favorite this year ...
and a team well worth the price of admission.
| | [1]
Posted Mar 4th 2007 5:50PM by Filed under: , , , , ,
Alex Rodriguez by Yankees fans, which has led to a lot of outside speculation that he might take advantage of an out-clause in his mega-contract at the end of the year to move to a more hospitable climate. Some people think he might want to re-unite with Lou Piniella, whom A-Rod recently said .
But what about the cross-town Mets, the team Rodriguez grew up cheering for?
At least one notable Met would welcome A-Rod with open arms. From Bob Klapisch in the :
The idea of A-Rod crossing enemy lines has strong support from none other than David Wright ndash; who says he'd give up his position to make room for the Yankee third baseman.
"Are you kidding me?
As great a hitter as Alex is, I'd definitely do it," Wright said. "Tell him to come over, tell him to do it." .
..
When told of Wright's comments by Record beat writer Pete Caldera, Rodriguez seemed stunned.
"Did he really say that?" A-Rod said of Wright. "Wow, tell him I'm flattered.
"
If the Mets ownership stepped up to the plate and offered the $25 million per season A-Rod would likely command, Klapisch thinks Wright would have to move to left field, while the fans at suggest a switch to second base might make more sense. Either way, were it to happen the Mets would undeniably have one of the most fearsome lineups in all of baseball, not to mention one of the most intriguing storylines of 2008.
| | [5]
Posted Feb 23rd 2007 9:53AM by Filed under: ,
Sure, they have some great young talent in David Wright and Jose Reyes in the infield, but they also have , including one that was .
A few hours later, they learned through a magnetic resonance imaging exam that Hern a ndez only had arthritis, an ailment that fits in perfectly with the theme of the spring. The Mets have not one, not two, not three, not four and not five, but six 40-somethings in camp, making the need to check for gout, diabetes and high blood pressure standard procedure during physical exams. "Is that what we've become?
" Manager Willie Randolph said the other day when asked whether the Mets had become a haven for 40-year-olds. "I don't know if it's a haven for them, but if they can play and help us win, we can bring them all down if they can help us win games." The Mets have nearly one third of the current active major league players over age 40, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.
There is an obvious peril in depending on so many older players, with Hern a ndez serving as Exhibit A. But their presence adds a richer dimension to a team that integrated players young and old with great success last season on its way to winning a division title. Concerned with team chemistry, the Mets coaching staff recently asked the team to vote on their travel preferences (i.
e. what movies they'd like to watch, what time they'd like to go to bed, etc.).
Here's what they came up with: Favorite Movies: , , Favorite TV Shows: , , Favorite Ways to Kill Time While Traveling: Bridge, Knitting, Reading AARP, "None of those damned portable video machines!", Checking Blood Pressure Favorite Foods: "Anything on my approved dentures list will be just fine." Bed Time: 7 p.
to watch Kanye West's video "The New Workout Plan," featuring the late Anna Nicole Smith A court hearing in the Bahamas over custody of Anna Nicole Smith's daughter Dannielynn is underway, according to MSNBC...
As I was walking down the street today, I was suddenly seized by very real and overpowering pangs of intense self-loathing upon realizing that I was humming the chorus to the song, “This Ain’t a Scene, It’s an Arms Race,” by those MTV icons/flaming-minio...
First, it was Mets third baseman .
Sometimes, the starting pitching matchup doesn't bear expected results.
OK, so he might not be at , nor , but Rich Aurilia is doing pretty well in his own right. Check this out: Aurilia is enjoying a 12-game hitting streak, during which he's batted .
Not a good time to be a Marlin right now.
When a tragedy like the one at Virginia Tech happens, it hits so many people in some way, some harder than others. It hit too close to home for David Wright, who's brother is a :
The Mets and Cards , but today they're already enjoying an off-day.
No, it's not going to lessen the sting of losing Game Seven of the 2006 NLCS, but beating Chris Carpenter is always a good way to get your season off on the right foot, which the Mets did on by a score of 6-1.
David Wright gave us the opportunity to . Well if you voted and your song is chosen, you had better make sure you get to the park earlier than normal if you normally arrive late (and if you do, what are you, a Dodger fan?) .
Yes, David Wright sure does.
Willie Randolph, like most bosses, are .
If you watched any part of last year's playoffs, then you know: the Mets, as presently constructed, are well worth viewing no matter who the opponent.
Alex Rodriguez by Yankees fans, which has led to a lot of outside speculation that he might take advantage of an out-clause in his mega-contract at the end of the year to move to a more hospitable climate. Some people think he might want to re-unite with Lou Piniella, whom A-Rod recently said . 
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