HERE AND THERE...AGAIN

A new kind of balk call
Umpire "Balking" Bob Davidson threw a guy out this week and it was a fan. This was a good thing. The fan had been riding Davidson hard but then he went over the line and started cursing. Davidson had security evict him. "There were women and children around and no one should have to put up with that kind of behavior." Good for you, Bob. (I never thought I'd write that sentence)

Does this make sense?  
The Yankees are paying A-Rod $21 million to sit on the bench - and another $21 million next year. This is classic, "Play me or pay me." A-Rod is not is the starting lineup today.

Oh yeah, the Olympics.
An American won the first medal in the 2016 Olympic Games. Ginny Thrasher won the gold in the Air Rifle competition. Air rifle? It's a good thing she didn't shoot her eye out.

Another A-Rod story 
The Yankees are supposed to have a press conference this morning and said that A-Rod and Joe Girardi would be available for questions afterward. I wonder what this is going to be about. Maybe...

[ The Yankees announced that A-Rod Would be taking over the team but that Girardi would still be the manager. A-Rod was quoted as saying, "Joe is still a member of the coaching staff. I can't tell you when he will actually manage a game, I have to look at the match-ups, but he's still a valuable member of the staff and we have the utmost confidence in him."  ]
 This is one of those statements that can fit any circumstance. 

Who has time for the games?
The Brazilian Olympic committee has made 450,000 condoms available to the athletes.  What sport is that? I would love to see the image they put on the medal for that one.

Back and forth 
When you walk into a ball park, you often hear the phrase, "You can't tell the players without a scorecard."  This was never truer than in the case of this years Yankees. The Yankees have shuttled so many players, so many times the 110 miles from Scranton, PA, to the stadium, that some of them never bother to change uniforms. I understand that some of the players are asking for mileage

We lost a good one 
Mark Teixeira has announced his retirement. He will definitely be missed. Power from both sides of the plate and a glove that must have had stick-um in the pocket. I will always remember the way Michael Kay described Tex's arrival at one of the bases: "...and Teixeira chugs into 2nd." Chug is the only way to describe his running form with his cheeks puffed out and his mouth in an oval shape. But he always went all out. I don't believe he will be elected to the Hall of Fame, but he deserves a spot in Monument Park. Goodbye, Tex, and thank you.

Where is Billy Martin when you need him?
Paul Clemens of the San Diego Padres was forced by the umpires to change uniform tops before he was allowed to pitch because he had pine tar all over it. "Before he went up, he put more pine tar on his bat than a lot of guys use in a year," Padres manager Andy Green said. "He managed to get it all over his uniform." He had to wear a generic top that had the name "Player" on the back. Not to be out done, Teammate Jon Edwards taped over his name with the name "Player #2." 
George Brett would be so proud.

***THEY SAID IT*** 

"Drug dealers in Rio are selling cocaine in Olympic packaging, HuffPost Brasil reported. Don’t know about faster or stronger, but they’ve got higher covered."  -- Dwight Perry

"Loved watching ‪#‎Olympics‬ as a child in all kinds of time zones. Waiting to see a world record 4 hr later just doesn’t compare. @NBC sucks."  -- Janice Hough
"UNRio Olympics bumper sticker we’d like to see: We’re up to our waist in human waste!"  -- TC Chong
"Victoria’s Secret model Alessandra Ambrosio will be an NBC correspondent during the Olympics. For goings-on in Brazil, she’ll keep you abreast."  -- RJ Curry

"Body parts floating in the Olympic water venues? Well, critics warned it’d cost an arm and a leg to get there."  --  Dwight Perry

" He's not fazed by the exorbitant World Series expectations put on the team: “I didn’t come here for a haircut ... I came here for jewelry.” -- Cubs pitcher Jon Lester

"The Australian delegation complained about blocked toilets, leaking pipes and exposed wiring in the Olympic Village. Then, after evacuating their rooms due to fire, they were robbed. During opening ceremonies, they were the athletes flipping off the crowd."  -- Brad Dickson

" Mark Teixeira announces retirement from disabled list.”  -- Fark.com

"Brett Favre said he wanted his induction speech at Saturday’s Pro Football Hall of Fame enshrinement to mirror his career. Which explains why he quit speaking and then re-started three times." --  Dwight Perry 

"Tom Brady’s suspension is so restrictive, he’s basically forced to stay home with his wife. That’s four weeks with supermodel Gisele Bundchen. Tell me when to start crying."  -- RJ Curry

"Dateline New York: John McEnroe throws out ceremonial first pitch for Mets, says “You cannot be serious” when no one calls it a strike."  -- Dwight Perry  [Must be D. Perry day at the Picasner home.]
 "Ahead of the Summer Olympic Games, USAToday.com had an article titled “Everything you need to know about rhythmic gymnastics.” Nothing. I need to know absolutely nothing about rhythmic gymnastics."  -- Brad Dickson
 
 CP--