STRATEGY CENTRAL

Too close.  Lakers pull it out!

Assignment #1: Write a poem about Baseball and God
by Philip E. Burnham, Jr.

And on the ninth day, God
In His infinite playfulness
Grass green grass, sky blue sky,
Separated the infield from the outfield,
Formed a skin of clay,
Assigned bases of safety
On cardinal points of the compass
Circling the mountain of deliverance,
Fashioned a wandering moon
From a horse, a string and a gum tree,
Tempered weapons of ash,
Made gloves from the golden skin of sacrificial bulls,
Set stars alight in the Milky Way,
Divided the descendants of Cain and Abel into contenders,
Declared time out, time in, stepped back,
And thundered over all of creation:
                                       "Play ball!"

On Saturday, October 15th, 1988, I was having dinner at Debbie’s apartment.  We would be married about two months later.  That night we saw Kirk Gibson hit a homerun to win game 1 of the 1988 World Series against the Oakland Athletics. 

It’s early…but they are back!  See you in June baby!

If you didn’t catch the trade news…Pau Gasol to the Lakers!  As my son said…for a bag of balls!

There were a lot of great lines in the news over the weekend.  I thought the best one was from Mark Heisler’s article in the Times.

"In 28 NBA cities, there’s reluctant admiration and/or consternation as
the great preening purple-and-gold darling-of-La-La Land arises once
more."

Read ‘em and weep baby!

The picture says it all: USC Trojans in the Rose Bowl!

Well…you can always hope…but sometimes when you hope, you’re only postponing the inevitable.  Lakers down 3 to 1 to Phoenix.  It would be awesome if somehow they could come from behind like last year’s Suns.  But should I hold my breath?  No.   I CAN hope though.  Why should I hope?  Because, as Molly Irvins says, "I still believe in Hope – mostly because there’s no such place as Fingers Crossed, Arkansas."

One consolation?  Shaq is out already.

LAKERS!  Didn’t see it live…but saw it on ESPN’s video recap.  Here’s a great shot of Kobe capping off a drive to the hoop with a jam over Yao Ming.  Boo Yau!

I’ve been watching the Dodgers for a long time.  And I’ve seen lots of great games over the years.  It’s totally a treat to get to listen to Vin Scully’s golden voice as he describes what is happening.  But there’s been nothing sweeter than Vin’s satisfied silence as Monday’s record Chavez Ravine crowd roared.  Trailing 10 to 9 in the bottom of the 10th, Nomar Garciaparra’s homer (the Dodger’s 5th in two innings!) reignited the capacity crowd.  I REALLY wanted to call my dad (who’s a Padre fan), but it was a few minutes after 11:00 pm and I knew he was asleep.  Still the thought…

If you didn’t see the game you’ve got to check out the ESPN recap: Homer-happy Dodgers show anything’s possible.  For a Dodger fan…it just doesn’t get any better.  Awesome!

Ok, I have to put these two pictures.  One of Kobe’s game winner.  And one of the sweet moments that followed.  And they were sweet!  Trust me, Kobe is in the middle of that group hug.  I wish you could’ve seen the car behind me on the 605 as Kobe’s shot swished.  The crowd went wild…even in the crowded confines of the car in my rearview mirror!  Here’s a link to Bill Plaschke’s story: A Split Second Caps Bryant’s Finest Hour.