Harry Kalas passes away at 73

[NOTE] As promised, here is a tribute to the late Harry Kalas in the form of a special guest post from Dave.

"We lost our voice today" - Phillies President, David Montgomery

The Philadelphia Phillies family and the entire baseball world lost a beloved figure today in Harry Kalas, when he was found collapsed in the broadcast booth just after noon. He was rushed to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. Kalas was 73, and in his 38th season of broadcasting Phillies baseball.

While the entire city of Philadelphia is in a state of shock, we must remember that Harry died doing what he loved, which is something that cannot be said for most who have passed on. A man who called over 6,000 games in his career, his voice will always be synonymous with Phillies baseball.

For 38 years Philadelphians welcomed Harry Kalas into their homes whether on TV or radio; many can remember listening on tiny transistor radios when games were not televised. 610 WIP's Anthony Gargano recalled stories of his childhood, when his parents would order him to sleep on a school night, and the Phillies would be playing a 10 p.m. game on the West Coast. He would hide a silver transistor radio and fall asleep to the sweet sounds of Harry The K with the radio under his pillow.

Others in the Philadelphia media echoed these thoughts, affirming that there will never be a classier individual in the business.

"He was just such a genuinely nice guy, and there will never be anyone else like him", said my uncle, KYW 1060's Ed Benkin. "I remember meeting him when I was an intern at 6 ABC in college, and asking him to come on my talk radio show at Rowan. Without hesitation he gave me his home number and agreed. I still have the cassette tape of that show, and will keep it forever."

Baseball is very different from the other three major sports: Because of the downtime between pitchers, you hear stories and anecdotes from the announcers and really get to know them. Harry Kalas was a part of all of our families.

Personally, I know there were times at school or work when I would have a rough day, but come home and put on a Phillies game; things seemed just a little better when Harry was at the mic. He could get you through a tough day, or an entire two-hour drive.

Every kid in this area who played baseball with their friends, or little league, has envisioned in their heads Harry Kalas announcing their at bat. I know I certainly did.

Everyone has done an Harry Kalas impersonation. Some are better than others. But there will never be a voice like Harry's.

We'll always remember the "Long Drives" and the "Outta Heres." The "Can you believe it's" and the "Chase Utley, you are the man's." None of us will forget the nicknames of Mitchie-poo and the Krukker, or Mike Schmidt becoming Mich-ael Jack Schmidt.

I am sure when Harry got to the pearly gates of Heaven, his best friend in the world Richie Ashburn, "Whitey," was waiting there with a cigar, a gin and tonic and a few kind words. While we'll never hear him call another inning of Phillies baseball, somewhere up there, he is calling every pitch with "His Whiteness."

As for this Phillies fan, I know I'll never be able to watch another Phillies home run without the echoes of "Swing and a long drive..." in the back of my head. He'll never be replaced or duplicated. Growing up -- aside from my father's-- his is the most familiar voice of my childhood.

Harry Kalas is a part of every memory I have of Phillies baseball. From Mitch Williams striking out Bill Pecota to win the 1993 Pennant, to the heart break of Joe Carter's home run. From the Brett Myers curve ball to send the Phillies to the post season for the first time in 15 years, to Eric Hinske chasing a Brad Lidge slider low and away. Harry is a part of everything, and watching a Phillies ballgame will never be the same.

Harry, we'll forever love and remember everything about you. You will be deeply missed by all of us.

Baseball!

Tonight marks the start of the greatest time of the year: Baseball season.

The Philadelphia Phillies and Atlanta Braves will open the regular season tonight at Citizen's Bank Park, then the rest of the league will kick off their seasons tomorrow on Opening Day.

Opening night preview

And might I also add that with the beginning of baseball comes the end of my social life -- fantasy baseball is a sad, sad addiction.

(Off topic, but let's also rejoice that the Nova-Nation chants are no more. Haaaa)

...And GO YANKEES!

"World F----ing Champions"

NOTE: I promised a "Yay Philadelphia" post, so here's another special guest post from Dave, my Philadelphia sports fan friend. If you missed Chase Utley's speech at the celebratory parade (from which this post gets its title), click here.

"The Philadelphia Phillies are World Champions."

I truly never thought I would ever get a chance to say those words. From the bottomless pit that was Philadelphia sports for the last 25 years, Philadelphia finally has a world championship to celebrate. And it feels damn good.

After a 46-hour rain delay, the Phillies were able to edge out the Rays 4-3 to win the World Series. We’ll always remember the names of Eric Bruntlett --who scored the winning run-- Pedro Feliz --who got the winning RBI-- and Eric Hinske --who was the last out of the game and was struck out by Brad Lidge.

Words cannot express what I felt when that last strike was recorded. There are no words. Those who are 4-for-4 fans (Eagles, Phillies, Flyers, Sixers) know what that feeling was. It was something special that cannot be replicated. I really wish I had more words, but there aren’t any. If you’re not a part of this fan base, you’re probably thinking I’m crazy, but those who are a part of it know exactly what I mean.

After the game there was joyous celebration throughout the city. Unfortunately, there were certain cases of idiocy. Cars were flipped over, stores encountered vandalism, and even some police officers were assaulted. Keep in mind, that despite the 117 arrests that night, there were literally MILLIONS of people who celebrated responsibly and correctly. Those who wanted to be jackasses were arrested. If the national media chooses to focus only on 117 bad guys, then shame on them. Philadelphia fans should not care how the national media portrays us right now. This is our time to celebrate. This time is about the people of this city who deserve it and pour their hearts out for their sports teams.

There are so many stories that can be heard on talk radio about loved ones who are no longer with us. The last definitive memory I have of my late grandfather was in July of 1993, just three months before he passed away. He picked me up from school and we watched a baseball game. It was Kevin Stocker’s first game as a Phillie. The game was nothing special: Phillies blow a lead in the 9^th, Dykstra wins it in the bottom of the inning, a pretty typical game for that team. The point is that baseball bonded us, as it has bonded many families, particularly in this area.

This was truly a magical group of players. There was just something different about this team that you could feel for a long time. From the moment Shane Victorino hit the grand slam off CC Sabathia, the most dominant pitcher in baseball; it truly felt like this team was writing its own script.

And so the city finally has a championship to celebrate. The Phillies have ended the 25 years of broken hearts. Somewhere, Ronde Barber is still running toward the end zone with that football, and it doesn’t matter. Donovan McNabb may (or may not, depending on who you ask) be throwing up on that last drive in the Super Bowl, and it doesn’t matter. Most importantly, Mitch Williams, you’re forgiven.

The city that was once starved for a world championship can now taste the fruits of victory. From the heart of this sports fan, I can only say thank you, and please Sports Gods, don’t make me wait another 25 years.

In 1975, when the Flyers were one game away from their first Stanley Cup, their coach Fred Shero gave an excellent quote. “Win tonight, walk together forever.”

The 2008 Philadelphia Phillies surely will.

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Another curse broken

Congratulations to the Philadelphia Phillies: Under manager Charlie Manuel, the "Phightins" beat out a young Tampa Bay Rays team to win the World Series, 4 games to 1.

Most of the country didn't really care about this series (as evidenced by a 25% drop in ratings from 2007), but it was still pretty exciting.

...and hopefully I don't have to bail out my friends from jail tonight.

After a 3-2 Philadelphia win in Game One, Tampa Bay struck back Thursday to even the series. The Phils then stormed back after a 90-minute rain delay Saturday, winning in one of the oddest endings to a game I've ever seen [click here to read the recap]. Then came Sunday, when the Rays just basically rolled over and died--even Phil's pitcher Joe Blanton jacked one out of the park.

Then we had the controversial Game Five. On a cold and rainy Monday night, the Phillies struck early, going up 2-0 on a Shane Victorino single in the first. Tampa Bay's slumping stars finally got a little something going in the top of the fourth, making it 2-1. The elements started to take over in the fifth inning, but Commissioner Bud Selig allowed the game to continue long enough for the Rays to manufacture another run off Phillies ace Cole Hamels. The tarps came out and the Phillies fans cried foul.

After rain and snow --yes, snow-- Tuesday, the teams took the field tonight, 46 hours after Game Five's suspension. The 3-inning game, which required an exorbitant amount of strategy, began with a lead-off double by Geoff Jenkins, followed by a sacrifice bunt by Jimmy Rollins and an RBI single from Jayson Werth. Tampa Bay's Rocco Baldelli jacked one over the fence in the top of the 7th, tying the game at 3, but not for long: Pedro Feliz put the Phils back on top in the bottom of the 7th and Brad "Lights Out" Lidge came in in the top of the 9th to shut down the Rays and bring Philadelphia its first championship since 1987.

[NOTE] Before I get into my schpeel and get scathing comments in respone to this post, I have a guest writer on-deck to write a "Yay Philadelphia" post in the coming day, so chill out on the hate messages. Now, on to my rant...

I grudgingly congratulate the Phillies because--being from south Jersey--I've just had it with the bandwagon fans who have come out of the woodwork the last month, and especially the last week. I know it's to be expected, but it's just obnoxious. Philadelphia was a city that was all about "bleeding green" for its Eagles for the last several years, and now that the Eagles are in last place, these people are jumping ship and "painting the town red," as they say. Suddenly everyone remembers that Philadelphia has a baseball team and their clothing, cars, away messages and Facebook statuses are overwrought with Phillies exclamations. You talk about bleeding green--I think I'm vomiting red. (That doesn't sound very healthy, eh?)

But hey, congraulations to all the real fans. Your curse is over. Now you can stop complaining. Hey, now you're just like everyone else. Now you've just gotta win 24 more World Series titles to catch up with the Yankees, haaaa. Oh, and the Eagles still suck.

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Pot-luck taco

I hope you all remembered to visit your local Taco Bell today for a free Crunchy Seasoned Beef Taco. And sorry if you're just seeing this now: The special, offered because Jason Bartlett stole a base in Game One of the World series, was only from 2-6 p.m. today.

But if you did get your taco, I'd be willing to bet it didn't come with the toppings that one Colorado couple got during a recent trip to a Del Taco restaurant...

The couple called local authorities Oct. 16 when they discovered a small baggie of marijuana in their taco order they pick up at Del Taco.

Police said Dennis Klermund, the employee who waited on the husband, initially denied that the pot was his; he later admitted the bag was for his friend when a drug-sniffing dog found marijuana in a locker.

The 26-year-old, who is no longer employed by Del Taco, faces possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia.

Or don't blame it on the rain...

[UPDATE] The remainder of Game Five will be played tomorrow, Wednesday, beginning at 8:37 p.m.

NOTE: This is a special-guest feature from my friend, Dave, who is the biggest Philadelphia sports fan I know. As an anti-Philadelphia sports fan myself, I obviously did not plan to write a sympathetic post in opposition of the events of last night's World Series Game Five, but I know that the suspension is drawing huge criticism and who better to air the grievances than a tortured Philadelphia sports soul?

The stage was set last night. It was supposed to be the night that the so-called curse was lifted, and Philadelphia had a sports championship to celebrate.

God had other plans.

We all know what happened: Delayed after 5 ½ innings; play will resume when "weather conditions permit." [see the logistics surrounding the suspension, below]

No one can be blamed for what happened with the weather. If it’s going to rain, it’s going to rain. Nothing can be done; however, the way it was handled was perhaps the biggest disgrace that Commissioner Bud Selig has ever been apart of. And if you’re a baseball fan, you know there were many--including but not limited to the tie at the all star game in 2002, and the continuous blind eye to blatant use of performance-enhancing drugs.

What the casual fan may not have seen last night was Selig’s post-game press conference, which was an absolute joke. It was an obvious attempt to deflect blame off of himself. You can go back and read the transcript yourself, but he essentially blames the groundskeeper, and then the weatherman at the stadium for letting it get out of hand.

The real problem, however, may not even be Bud Selig; it is rooted in the fact that these games don’t start until about 8:45 pm. There is no reason that these games can’t start at 7:30 or 8:00 on the dot. Major League Baseball wonders why kids aren’t as interested in baseball as they used to be. Perhaps it’s because they’ve never been allowed, or physically able to stay up until 1 am to see a team experience the joy of winning a World Series.

Nevertheless, the city of Philadelphia deserves better. The wait is now on and the worst part is, the fans of this city don’t even have a clue as to when the final 3 ½ innings of this game are going to be played. The anticipation is intense.

Look at it this way Philadelphia: The wait has been 23 years, 6 months, 28 days since the 76ers completed the sweep of the L.A. Lakers in the 1983 NBA finals. What’s one (or two) more days?

And hey, it could be worse: Game Four of the 1911 World Series between the Giants and the Athletics in Philadelphia was postponed for six days due to rain.

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Blame it on the rain

Updated Oct. 28, 2 p.m.

Yeah, you like that Milli Vanilli reference?

Anyway. For the first time in World Series history, a game has been suspended due to the weather. Due to a rain/snow storm hitting the tri-state area (yes, snow in October), the remainder of the game will be played tomorrow (Wednesday), beginning at 8:37 p.m.

Game Five--the potential championship-clinching game for the Philadelphia Phillies--was suspended in the bottom of the sixth inning, after the Tampa Bay Rays scored a run to tie the game at 2.

Thankfully, baseball officials said it was not an option to make the game official after five innings, determining the Fall Classic winner by way of a called game.

When the game does resume, it will be picked up from where it was left off; fans and commentators have criticized the determination, stating that the call should have come at the beginning of the sixth inning (before Cole Hamels gave up the run in poor weather conditions), or that frame should be erased and the game should resume from the top of the inning.

Check back later for a special commentary and updates on the game.

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Taco, taco, taco!

Hey, if you run into Tampa Bay Ray Jason Bartlett anytime soon, make sure to say 'gracias' -- Thanks to the speedy shortstop, we've all got a free taco coming to us!

On Oct. 28 (Tuesday) between 2 and 6 p.m., you can head out to your local Taco Bell and request one free Crunchy Seasoned Beef Taco ala the fast food chain's "Steal a Base, Steal a Taco" promotion.

Jason Bartlett stole second off the Philadelphia Phillies' Carlos Ruiz in the fifth inning of tonight's Game One World Series game. Yum!

Taco Bell ran the same promotion during last year's World Series. Boston Red Sox outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury stole a base in Game Two.

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World Series set to go

On deck for the 2008 World Series: Tampa Bay Rays versus the Philadelphia Phillies. Either way, history will be made.

The Rays beat the Red Sox tonight in dramatic fashion, and I could not be happier. Well, I could be if the Yankees didn't suck so badly this year, but hey -- F Boston!

Rays pitcher Matt Garza kept the Sox to one hit--a Dustin Pedroia HR--through six innings. Rookie Evan Longoria tied the game in the fourth, and in the fifth, Rocco Baldelli singled in Willy Aybar, who subsequently homered in the 7th, putting the Rays up 3-1.

The next four Rays pitchers allowed just one hit total, and September call-up David Price looked to shut down the Sox in the ninth. After walking Jason Bay, Price struck out Mark Kotsay, who broke his bat earlier in the game out of frustration. Sox captain Jason Varitek, batting .053 in the ALCS, embarrassingly whiffed on a slider from Price. Jew Lowrie grounded out to end the game, and the young Rays team dog piled it up in the middle of the field.

After changing their moniker, logo and colors, the Tampa Bay Rays--in their 11th MLB season--set their club record for most wins in a season, landed their first division title, and set a record for most wins by a worst-to-first team.

The Rays will host the Phillies Wednesday night in Game One. I guess it'll be rally towel versus cowbell...?

The Phillies, who clinched a big-show berth last week, have the weight of William Penn on their shoulders. For those of you unaware, "the curse" is allegedly to blame for no major Philadelphia sporting team (arena football does not count) having won a championship since the One Liberty Place skyscraper--which dwarfed the city's statue of founder William Penn--was completed in 1987. The last team to a win a 'chip was the 1983 76ers.

The city, still haunted by Joe Carter's walk-off home run in the 1993 World Series, is hoping this Phillies team will bring a seemingly long overdue parade down the streets of Philadelphia. (And apologies to my friends, but as a New York sports fan living in southern New Jersey, I would love nothing more than to see this curse continue for another 30 years, but that's just me.)


And don't forget - Taco Bell is again offering its "Steal a Base, Steal a Taco" promotion. If a base is stolen during any game of the World Series, the fast food chain will offer a free Crunchy Seasoned Beef Taco to its customers. If the base is stolen during Games 1-4, the deal will take place Oct. 28; if Games 5-7, then Nov. 3. I'll keep you posted. Last year, we said 'gracias' to speedster Jacoby Ellsbury, but I guess we won't be relying on him --or any other BoSox player-- to do that for us this year, haaaaa.


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A fond farewell - take two

As a follow up to my last post, I wanted to get some of my pictures up from Saturday's game. I also just want to say that the tribute to the Stadium that aired on ESPN Sunday night was extremely touching. Praise the Lord that Bernie Williams --my favorite player of all-time-- was in attendance (and he got a bigger ovation than Reg-gie!)

I found close to nothing wrong with the entire thing; my one gripe: WHERE THE HELL WAS JOE TORRE? I understand maybe snubbing Roger Clemens because of his steroid scandal, but to me, Joe Torre is as much of a Yankee legend as Derek Jeter. I know they didn't part on the best terms, but come on...

Anyway, back to happier thoughts...Here are just a few of my pics. (I took like, 110). These were by far the greatest seats I've ever had to any game; we were so close I felt like I was watching a township little league game.

Mo signing autographs

The Captain

Arod

Yankees win, thhhhhhhe YANKEES WIN!

A fond farewell

Sorry I've been MIA this weekend - After an "interesting" Friday night (for lack of better description and to save you all the drama), I spent my entire Saturday in New York, the bulk of which was spent at the Yankee's second to last home game --and last day game-- in Yankee Stadium EVER.

And thanks to my boyfriend (who got me the tickets in July for my birthday), our seats were freaking incredible.

The Bronx Bombers did not disappoint: Robinson Cano with the game-winning single in the bottom of the ninth gave Mariano Rivera the win and had Frank Sinatra crooning, "Start spreading the news..." for the next 45 minutes. On repeat. And I loved every second of it.

Tonight at 8 p.m., you can tune in to ESPN to watch the Yankees play their final game in the House That Ruth Built. The pre-game (going on right now), features Yankee greats like Yogi Berra, Whitey Ford, Joe Girardi, Don Larsen and more.

Pictures from my awesome seats will be up soon!

No-no for Zambrano

[BREAKING NEWS] Chicago Cubs pitcher Carlos Zambrano has just thrown a no-hitter.

Zambrano, who had not pitched since Sept. 2 due to "arm fatigue," struck out 10 and walked one in a 5-0 win over the Houston Astros.

It was the Cubs' first no-hitter since Milt Pappas on Sept. 2, 1972, and the second no-no of the 2008 MLB season: Boston Red Sox pitcher Jon Lester threw a no-hitter back in May.

The Cubs were technically the visiting team, but the event seemed more like a home game as it was played in front of 23,000 fans at Milwaukee's Miller Park after Hurricane Ike forced the series out of Houston.

Guess ESPN picked the wrong game for Sunday Night Baseball tonight, eh?

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The week in sports, kind of...

It's been a week since I last posted - sorry - and a few different sports-related news items have come up that I should probably recap.

Let's just get the Favre news out of the way now...In case you haven't heard (and if you haven't, really? Do you live under a rock?), record-setting quarterback Brett Favre confessed this week that he retired too early and that he would still like to play professional football. Then he got mad that Green Bay told him he'd be a back up quarterback. And now you can't turn on ESPN without hearing about Favre every 30 seconds. Granted, it would seem like blasphemy for Favre to play for another NFL team, but this is his own fault. Everyone knew this might happen. Now the drama remains where --if not Green Bay-- Favre will take the field. It's going to be awkward when his Madden '09 cover comes out and he's not in that uniform, haaa.

***

Next up: Monday's Statefarm Home Run Derby, which drew the largest audience for the event ever as eight All Stars slugged it out for top honors...well, almost eight slugged it out...some of them didn't do so hot. Speaking of Chase Utley, though: If you missed him telling the NY faithful to f-off, check out this video below. Hilarious! Apparently there was only a five second delay in place for the competition, not the introductions.



Anyway, back to the actual derby...The biggest story was Texas Rangers' centerfielder Josh Hamilton destroying Bobby Abreu's single-round HR total, hitting 28 in the first round (four more than Abreu did in 2005). [click here to watch video of the hitting clinic he put on]

Hamilton (left), Morneau (right)

Despite Hamilton's record-breaking performance, the title went to Twins' first baseman Justin Morneau. In total, Hamilton hit 35 homers, while Morneau hit 22 - which begs a re-examination of the way this shindig is run. Regardless, Hamilton's story of breaking records after breaking a drug addiction is the one fans will remember when looking back at the first--and last-- Home Run Derby at Yankee Stadium. (Betcha didn't hear them say that 17,000 times during the telecast!)

***

Hand-in-hand with the derby is last night's All Star Game, which admittedly I watched about three minutes of. The game apparently didn't get exciting until the end (15th inning), which was 4 hours and 5 minutes into the game (or 1:37 a.m. for those of you on the east coast).

Michael Young hit a game-ending sacrifice fly to give the American League a 4-3 victory over the National League (Justin Morneau pictured (left) sliding in to score the winning run). It was the longest All Star Game in major league history (time-wise; it tied the most innings played) and it was the 12th game in a row the American League remained unbeaten (11-0-1).

(Justin Morneau pictured (left) sliding in to score the winning run)

JD Drew was named the MVP after he hit a two-run home run in the seventh to tie the game 2-2. Both teams exhausted their lot of pitchers (11 for the NL and 12 for AL), bringing in aces to pitch innings they should not have been eligible to pitch. There's Uggla's multiple errors at second base; or Nate McLouth's one-hop throw to the plate in the 11th to keep the marathon alive; and AL manager Terry Francona's quote before the game, "Something will happen in this game that people will probably talk about for a long time," and him chugging Red Bulls in the dugout as the game moved into Wednesday morning.

A memorable game indeed --definitely worthy of being played in the House that Ruth Built-- but I think I'm okay with taking Sportscenter's condensed highlights of the game over a 2 a.m. bedtime.

***

And quickly...There may be evidence to prove that Roger Clemens lied under oath about knowingly taking steroids. Convicted steroid distributor Kirk Radomski handed over shipping receipts to federal investigators for a package of human growth hormone that he claims he sent to Roger Clemens' home in Texas in 2002 or 2003, according to The Daily News.

No-no for Lester

From the AP--

BOSTON (AP) — Jon Lester can now add pitching a no-hitter to his already amazing list of accomplishments.

The 24-year-old lefty, who survived cancer to pitch the clincher of Boston's 2007 World Series victory, shut down Kansas City 7-0 Monday night for the first no-hitter in the majors this season.

Don't mess with New York...?

From Reuters:

A New York Yankees' fan was accused on Monday of murdering a Boston Red Sox supporter and injuring another by running both down with a car after a heated argument over one of America's oldest sporting rivalries.

Ivonne Hernandez, 43, pleaded not guilty on Monday to reckless second-degree murder, aggravated driving while intoxicated and two counts of reckless conduct after the incident in a Nashua, New Hampshire parking lot last Friday.

Prosecutors say Hernandez was drunk when she drove her car across a dirt parking lot outside the Nashua City Hall into Matthew Beaudoin, 29, and Maria Hughes, 21, after exchanging words with them about the Yankees and Red Sox baseball teams.

The spat began at a local bar where Hernandez said she was a Yankees fan, according to witnesses quoted by the Nashua Telegraph newspaper.

It then spilled outside where a group that included Beaudoin chanted "Yankees suck!" when they saw a Yankees sticker on the rear window of Hernandez's car, New Hampshire's Assistant Attorney General, Susan Morrell, told Reuters in a telephone interview.

She told Nashua District Court that Hernandez drove directly at the group and did not brake, hitting Beaudoin.

"The forensic evidence at the scene indicates tire tracks going about 200 feet that did not swerve or brake," Morrell said. "He went onto the windshield and then when the car hit the parking meter he was ejected," she added.

Beaudoin died of massive head trauma, she added. Hughes suffered minor injuries.

Hernandez told police she had only wanted to scare the group. She was ordered held without bail.

Even non-sports fans can appreciate this...

I can't help but laughing out loud at this video clip.

This man at today's Boston/Texas baseball game made a spectacular grab on a foul ball hit upper deck. Unfortunately for the silly Bo-Sox fan, his celebration got a little too braggadocious and he made a fool of himself.

I'm a compassionate person, and --at first-- I felt kinda bad for this guy, because, like, what if this were the first time he ever caught a foul ball and he was overjoyed beyond belief? But then I remembered he roots for a garbage baseball team and he deserves anything that happens to him, haaaa.

And PS. these announcers are terrible, but you gotta love the crowd's audible reaction to this guy's antics.

Update: Those Bostonians just don't stop, do they?

The David Ortiz jersey that was buried on-site at the Yankees new stadium this weekend is outta there.

The Red Sox jersey was put there by Gino Castignoli, a construction worker hoping to put a hex on the team.

"We were upset about it and we didn't like the idea. There's enough Yankee fans, enough people on this project that are proud of what they are doing and they knew about it and they knew where it was and they decided to get rid of it right away." - construction worker Frank Gramarossa.

The team is looking to take legal action...Yeah, the Yankees aren't messing around. Eat it Red Sox moron.

Those Bostonians just don't stop, do they?

So about a week after sicking a vicious hawk on an innocent child with the same nickname as the Yankees' star third basemen, construction workers are working to bring a new curse to Ruth's new home.

The New York Post reported today that two construction workers --who are remaining anonymous-- secretly buried a Red Sox t-shirt in the concrete under the future visitor's clubhouse.

Not sure if it's completely true, but the Yankees said it ain't so.

"We noticed that the NY Post wrote a fun and interesting story about a T-shirt today - but it never happened, Yankee fans know that burying something in concrete in the basement is never a good thing. Memo to the Post: You're 10 days late for April Fools' Day."--Yankees spokeswoman Alice McGillion.

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"A-Rod" attacked by evil BoSox hawk

"A-Rod" attacked by evil BoSox hawk

Last week, a hawk at Fenway Park attacked an innocent eighth-grade girl named Alexa Rodriguez.

Yes, that's right. The bird that nests in the home of the Red Sox attacked A-Rod. Couldn't make it up if I tried.


The girl, from Memorial Boulevard Middle School in Bristol, Conn., was on a field trip with classmates when the hawk swooped down and attacked in an apparent attempt to protect its eggs.

"A-Rod" was not seriously injured. She was taken to a nearby hospital and released.

But this just proves that everything about Fenway Park--its players AND its wildlife--is absolutely classless. And that especially goes for you, Manny Ramirez.

Thanks, Dave!

It's the most wonderful time of the year

Happy Opening Day!

While we've had Opening Morning last week with the Japan games and Opening Night last night with the Nationals winning in walk-off fashion for their first game in their new stadium, today is officially the start of the MLB 2008 season. Amen.

...and Go Yankees.