Off The Bench Meets Linkage

Off the Bench has been on hiatus, giving Linkage a chance to emerge and shine. Today, the two learn to work together.

John Hughes had died. Wow - just 59 years old. The director of my favorite move, "Ferris Bueller's Day Off." I must watch it, and soon. I think we'll come back to this in a future post.

This can't be good, no? So tell me: how is former Senator George Mitchell, he of the Red Sox conflict of interest, going to deflect this? And don't you think we can probably just throw that little ol' Mitchell Report out the window for being the flawed and biased document that it was?

You know you love it, and you miss it. It's the FCIAC Football Blog. It's revving up the engine and is now launching an e-newsletter.

I have to write nice things about Tim and the blog, lest he not call me a "real" Yankees fan.

As I mentioned, it was a long drive from Baltimore to Carmel on Sunday, and I liked it that way. Thanks to the wonder of XM (wish I had it in my car), I got to listen to the Yankees/White Sox tilt. I enjoy hearing the "other team's" broadcasters, and would have enjoyed it but MERCY! The Chicago broadcasters are some of the biggest homers I've ever heard. Hawk Harrelson is bad enough but Ed Farmer and Darrin Jackson sounded like they needed some No Doze or something.

I think they all needed a hug after Melky Cabrera finished up hitting for the cycle.

I've been away for a few days. Last I knew, the Mets were getting closer in the Wild Card standings. How have things gone since?

Oh. Sorry.

Looks like "The Press Box" has got company. After we depart at 3:00 PM Eastern, Papa Joe Chevalier takes over. That started on Monday.

Any other baseball going on these days?

I just came in from mowing the lawn (like I said, there's no interesting baseball being played). I stepped out to mow Roxy, my niece's dog who's hanging with me for the next month or so. Suddenly, I see a face looking out at me from the window of a storage room in the house. It was a cat - stuck in there for roughly a week. It must have snuck into that room when I wasn't looking.

It's no worse for wear. It - "Oscar" - ran back into my neighbor's yard.

I'm supposed to go to tomorrow night's game at Yankee Stadium. Any idea who they're playing?

I haven't mentioned it here, but we interviewed Marty Appel, the longtime Yankees PR guru who has a new book out: Munson: The Life and Death of a Yankee Captain, published by Doubleday. It was a thrill to talk to Marty, who could score me in Bombers' history, but could the publisher maybe send me a copy of the book? I mean, I did that entire interview on memory.

From the "you can't please everyone department": Yankees fans are currently chanting "Boston sucks" at the Stadium. They've also lustily booed Big Papi. Best as I recall, Sox fans have abused A-Rod (or A-Roid, your choice) and chant "Yankees suck." Isn't that the way it's supposed to go? I don't agree with those chants when the opposing team isn't there, and I won't chant it myself (just not my style) but it's probably fair game otherwise. Hell, "Potvin sucks" still permeates at Madison Square Garden.

So spare me.

That's all I have to say about that. We'll come back to John Hughes and the Dave Matthews Band show shortly.