Who is Jason Bay?

Well your new left-fielder, of course.

He's a tick above a league-average left-fielder. A career .280 hitter, with an OPS+ of 130. He had a down-year last year but has been having a nice bounce back so far this season. He's hit twenty-two home runs, with fifty-nine walks, and sixty-four RBI. He's got an OBP of .375 this season. He's also stolen seven bases. In 2005, he played in all 162 games for the Pirates. He's kind of useless against left-handed pitching (hitting only .193) but pretty good against righties (hitting .308, with a .570 SLG.)

The important stuff: In interleague play this year the Pirates went against the Yankees, the Orioles, the White Sox, Toronto, and Tampa Bay. Against the Yankees he went four for ten in three games, with a pair of singles off Joba and Moose, and a pair of doubles off Rasner and Hawkins. Against the Orioles he went five for eleven with a single and a double off Burres, a single of Chad Bradford, a double and a single off Cabrera. Against Toronto he went two for eleven, he didn't fair well against Halladay but did hit a home run off Jesse Litsch and a single off Dustin McGowan. Against Tampa Bay he went three for thirteen with a double off Kazmir, a walk-off home run off Jason Hammel, and a sacrifice fly and a double off Andy Sonnastine. He played in two of the games against Chicago, he went two for eight with a double and a single.

Say It Ain't So.

The thought of Manny leaving the Red Sox really bums me out. I hadn't realized how attached I was to the loon until tonight. The idea of him leaving is ridiculously upsetting. For all his quirks and crappy defense, he is a truly fabulous hitter. I wanted Manny to surpass Ted Williams in Fenway Park. That he might end up playing in a football stadium for a team named after fish is belittling to his cult-hero status. Manny Ramirez deserves better than that. (I know that the Marlins are up there with the Phillies and the Mets this year and that they've won the World Series more recently than either of those teams but come on now, baseball teams aren't supposed to be named after fish.)

Part of me wants to believe that it's not really happening. Theo Epstein seems to work under the radar. You hear nothing and then-boom-it's done; Nomar is gone, Daisuke is in. All of the noise makes me want to believe that it's some kind of ploy. The Pittsburgh press is all over Bay going to the Rays. And yet, I can't convince myself that he'll still be here the day after tomorrow.

And all because of the odious Scott Boras. Flashback to spring training: Happy, go-lucky Manny shows up on time, declares that he's going to get six more years, and have his number retired at Fenway. Jovial Manny has a fabu time in Japan, is on an absolute tear when they get back-getting hits, stealing bases, throwing out runners, says that he intends to win a Gold Glove this season, and when Ortiz is struggling tells everyone: It'll be okay. I'll hit for him. Then he switches agents and it all falls apart. Somewhere along the line his feelings get hurt and Boras is there, poking at the sore spot like a bruise-preventing it from healing. It builds. Manny acts out. And the Manny-haters in the media (and there are a lot of them: practically anyone at the Globe, Peter Gammons, Jerry Remy, Bob Ryan) pile on. The situation goes from bad to worse and as a result, the Red Sox are probably going to let one of the best hitters in the game go for a song. All so that Scott Boras can get his greedy little fingers on some extra cash.

And Then There Were Two.

When JD Drew was drafted out of Florida State in the first round of the 1997 draft by the Phillies, he wasn't the only Drew from Hahira to go in the first round. His younger brother, Tim, was selected by Cleveland, twenty-six picks later. A right-handed pitcher, Tim appeared in thirty-five games before shuffling off to the Atlantic League.

Besides being first-round picks, the brothers have something else in common: a propensity for getting themselves hurt. Two years ago, whatever it is in their make-up that makes them so easily breakable, took it's toll on Tim. He had surgery on a torn labrum and was told he'd be good to go in two years. Two years came and went and he isn't better, so he's calling it quits. On Sunday, he threw the last pitch he's likely to be paid for, ever.

But don't feel sorry for Tim Drew. His wife, while probably not rolling in dough at the moment, will be eventually; she is in the process of becoming an osteopath. Tim, meanwhile, plans to get a degree in physical therapy. More importantly, he sounds content with the decisions he's made.

Serenity Now!

Hmmm. I wish that last night hadn't happened (although, if you could access my inner Pollyanna, she might claim that at least they didn't give up.) I wish that the offense didn't run so hot-and-cold. I wish that they could get on (and stay on) a roll. I wish that there could be some sort of consistency-that wasn't consistently sucking. I wish that I could believe the new trend of being beaten at home would be evened out by a new kick-ass attitude on the road. I wish that they didn't look so tired. I wish that it was August first. I wish that the end of July could be proved to be no more than just a hiccup.

But for now, you know where to find me and my ostrich friend. Hopefully, it won't be too long before we can dig the sand out of our ears.

Fiesta!

Last night Univision sponsored the first annual Tecate Premios Deportes, a Spanish-language awards show for the best Hispanic athletes. From the Charo act it looked to be quite the party.

Unfortunately, for David Ortiz and Manny (both of whom were honored) they had to play a baseball game in Boston and couldn't collect their awards. David Ortiz was awarded the best Designated Hitter award. I imagine that it wasn't much of a competition and that he won in a landslide as his competition was Jose Vidro *blink* and Sammy Sosa *double blink*. Manny, meanwhile, was given the award for best outfielder-which seems to me to be a bit of a stretch. Mike Lowell was the only other Sox player nominated but, once again, he lost out to Alex Rodriguez.

Ask and You Shall Recieve.

Thank you. Also, I may be a little bit in love with Jon Lester right now.

Rain, Rain, Go Away.

Gentlemen: I hope that you take this opportunity, opportunely handed to you by the baseball Gods, to get the suck out of your game for tonight. Thank you.