Horses' Asses and Hoorays

Hank Steinbrenner is a horses' ass. This doesn't come as news to anyone from Boston, but I didn't really realize it until interleague play started up. I really only follow the National League because I think it is the best pure form of baseball you can see. When you have the pitchers hit, it places more strategy into the game and that is all the average fan can really follow. When the average joe sitting next to me in the bleachers and I are watching a game neither of us have any idea how to hit a curveball much less a slider or the knuckleballs the Nattos smacked around the other night. What we do know is that with Willie Harris pinch hitting for the pitcher and getting on base with the leadoff at the plate you probably want to steal him. Steinbrenner's 19 game winner from last year Wang went down running the bases, and he blames the entire NL for not having DHs and "jioning the 21st century." Apparently having pitchers both pitch and hit is "a rule from the 1800s." Which is another reason why it is great. Baseball is tradition. It is still called America's pastime even though the Bills-Browns Monday night game will probably get better ratings then the World Series. The game hasn't changed for over a century, except for a few stupid rules that people have implemented along the way, most notably the DH in the American League. Jerkoffs like Steinbrenner put these rules in place. I am pretty sure every major leaguer was the best athlete in their high schools where most of them were drafted. They are pro athletes making millions of dollars. If you can throw a curveball past Jeter, you should probably figure out how to hit one once every five times or so. Steinbrenner was in his own league and never bothered me until now. Perhaps he is trying to surpass Daniel Snyder and Jerry Jones as the biggest morons in sports who never actually step on a field.
Enough negativity. Congrats to the Great 8 for cleaning up at the NHL awards ceremony. In all honesty Malkin was just as deserving, he is just not as flashy. For Malkin to carry the Pens through the regular season while Sid "the princess" Crosby was napping on the bench to get the two seed that propelled them to the finals was great. However, that final run of games after the Blackhawks drubbed us was unbelievable. While it was only to win the Southeast division, that may have been the greatest comeback in the history of sports other than the Sox comeback over the Yanks in '04. Ovie led the charge, but Boudreau orchestrated it. He was the most deserving of anyone that stepped to the platform that night. To go 37-17 after taking over what was the worst team in the league was unbelievable, and that last month of hockey was the best sports this town has seen since 1991. It takes a lot to get Washingtonians to sell out hockey games, but Boudreau found a way to do it. I can't wait for the puck to drop again in October with Boudreau at the helm and Ovie steering.
Finally congrats to the Nats for sweeping someone on the road. Granted it was the Mariners, who got so mad about it they fired their GM, but a sweep is a sweep. Maybe interleague play is the spark we need to get us on track to the goal of .500. Perhaps having pitchers that aren't afraid of taking a little BP is what will keep it going.