Pics From Spring Training

Tommy and Joe:



New centerfielder Andruw Jones:



Derek Lowe:

One Last Lap Around Dodgertown

With all the off-season crap that pushed real baseball news off of the front page, it is nice to be getting down to actual baseball. One of the most melancholy stories of '08 Spring Training is the final spring in Vero Beach for the Dodgers. After 61 years in what is belovedly known as Dodgertown, the Boys in Blue are moving their spring operations to Glendale, Arizona next year and are effectively ending the final link of the Brooklyn Dodgers 50 years after the team moved to LA. Dodger fan-dom aside, this is one of the must-see spots in all of baseball. Players close enough to reach out and touch (who also walk to the stadium with the fans), a very simple scoreboard with no bells and whistles, it is baseball how it should be played. March 17th looms as the last game, and while another team may move in (Orioles and Reds have been mentioned), it will never be the same place that hosted everyone such icons as Jackie Robinson, Kirk Gibson, and Mike Piazza, through today's stars like Russell Martin and James Loney. It will be missed. For some great pictures, click here.



In happier notes, the Dodgers announced that Dodgers legendary manager Tommy Lasorda will manage 8 games in Spring Training while Joe Torre takes the other half of the team to China for exhibition games. Tommy managed LA for 20 years, and it will nice to see him back in the dugout for the first time since '96.

Drive To Scranton For Under $5000!

Insurance pics from Wednesday's accident. Estimate came in at $4500, of which we have to come up with $1000 out of pocket. Yippee!

Pettitte Outduels Clemens, Nanny Picks Up Save

Amid all the actual important stuff that happened in our lives yesterday, the 83rd episode in the Clemens saga played out on a national stage. And in this fan's opinion, good ol' boy Raj(pictured above in all his 1986 pre-HGH glory) made himself look even worse. His best friend Andy Pettitte told investigators that he did talk to Clemens about HGH and confirmed Brian McNamee's version. His response? "He must have misremembered our conversation." He threw his wife under the bus("she took HGH behind my back."), and his late mother under that same Greyhound("she told me in 1988 to take B-12" even though no trainer or doctor would give a player a shot used for Elderly dementia). Even his nanny from 1998 got involved, as the most famous party outside of the Playboy Mansion was dissected 16 different ways.

So what's next? No one is sure, but Clemens could very possibly be brought up on perjury and witness tampering charges. No one has come out of this looking good, including Congress, Bud Selig, Brian McNamee, Andy Pettitte. But Clemens, for all his OJ-like denials in the face of mounting evidence and testimony, could take the hardest fall of them all.

The Five Greatest Words of Winter

Pitchers and catchers report TODAY!!

Wecome To The Newest Kenney!

After a long day for everyone(but none longer than for sister Colleen), we welcomed the first newborn child into the Kenney clan in nearly 10 years. Alanah Rose is a beautiful & healthy girl, born around 6PM tonight at 8 lbs. 7 oz. Mother and child both doing well and expect to return home on Friday. Congrats to Colleen & Chris, and welcome again to Alanah!

Hallelujah!

It's finally official- the writer's strike ended just a couple hours ago! The rumors have been flying for a few days, but nothing was definite until tonight. What a relief that "real" TV will be coming back after 3 months of utter wasteland. SNL will be the first show back, om February 23rd. Most sitcoms will take 4-6 weeks to get back, and most dramas will take about 8 weeks. Here's how many episodes to expect from some popular shows, according to TVGuide.com:

24
Season 7 likely postponed until January '09.

30 Rock
Expected to shoot 5 to 10 new episodes to air in April/May.

Back to You
Two pre-strike episodes remain. Future TBD.

Desperate Housewives
Expected to shoot 4 to 7 new episodes to air in April/May.

Family Guy
7 episodes are almost done and ready to be finalized. No word on how many more.

House
Expected to shoot 4 to 6 new episodes to air in April/May.

Lost
Six pre-strike episodes remain. Five additional episodes could air this season.

My Name Is Earl
Expected to shoot 8 to 10 new episodes to air in April/May.

The Office
Expected to shoot 6 new episodes to air in April/May.

Scrubs
Four pre-strike episodes remain. Four additional episodes will likely be shot.

Very exciting! April feels far away, but there is now a light at the end of the abyss.

All Those Years Ago...

I heard on the radio this morning that the annual Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue was coming out today. This news caught me by surprise, because who knew they still made this issue? This is a magazine issue that has lost its relevance over the last 15 years. That's really kind of sad to me, as this day used to be a national holiday.

If you ask any male between the ages of 28 and 60 who their favorite SI swimsuit girl was, they will almost assuredly answer you with the same lightning-fast speed as naming their favorite quarterback or favorite pitcher. Kathy Ireland (always my #1). Cheryl Tiegs. Christie Brinkley. Elle MacPherson. There was nothing more exciting for a teenage boy in the '60's through the '80's than getting this issue at the newstand or in the mail. And it was also perfect timing in the sports calendar, the lull right after the Super Bowl and before Spring Training. Nowadays, with Maxim & Stuff sending issues on a monthly basis, and of course, the Internets with their vast "options" of looking at hot women, does a 15-year-old boy even KNOW about this "holiday"? My guess would be that most would not.

So, as I wistfully remember the "good old days," when a teenager had to settle for an annual event instead of a daily diluge of anything imaginable, I give you my favorite issue- the 1989 Kathy Ireland cover. It's almost as good as remembering the '88 Dodgers.

Blue Rocks Press Conference

I had my first "real" baseball day with the team on Wednesday as a press conference was held to announce the new manager, Darryl Kennedy. He seems to be a very personable guy, introducing himself to the front office beforehand. Darryl played for the Giants & Rangers organizations in the minors, and this is his seventh minor league managerial position (unlike the majors, moving around so much is not considered a bad thing, as long as you are moving up, which Kennedy has). I have even gotten to see him manage before, with the Frisco Roughriders in '06 while Staci & I were out in Texas. It's still early February, but at least baseball is somewhat in the air here.

4 Years And Counting...

The Patriots just won the Super Bowl. Janet Jackson showed the world her nipple. Howard Dean melted down as his presidential campaign went ka-plooey. "Hey Ya" by Outkast was #1 on the charts. A-Rod was days from becoming a Yankee. The Montreal Expos were about to begin their final season. Why the reminiscing? These events were on many people's minds on February 6, 2004. A day which will live in infamy, ahem, for me as well. That is the day that Staci and I began our dance of love.

After weeks of flirting at Chili's, we had finally set a time to hang out- a Friday night where we met up at Damon's and later danced at PollyEsther's, where we kissed for the first time. So much has happened in the 1461 days that have followed. We have laughed and cried, moved to another state, and oh yeah, gotten married. We have been to 18 Major League ballparks and countless minor league parks together (the picture above is from our first game in Baltimore on 9/11/04). Through everything, I wouldn't trade our time together for anyhting in the world, and though our "real" anniversary is in September, this will always be the day I look back on with the most fondness- the day that something truly special came to be. Love you babe.