June 8, 2008
Quarterly Questions (Part 2: Random Questions)
How many questions can a single person ask?
A single person? One. Married people? Unlimited.
How many times have you gotten a date strictly because you're a well-known blogger?
I stopped counting at zero.
Who's lineup of women wins, Derek Jeter or John Mayer?
Here's a side-by-side comparison of the famous women Derek Jeter and John Mayer have dated, at least according to two impeccable sources:
Derek Jeter John Mayer
Adriana Lima Cameron Diaz
Gabrielle Union Jennifer Aniston
Jessica Alba Jennifer Love Hewitt
Jessica Biel Jessica Simpson
Jordana Brewster Minka Kelly
Mariah Carey Rhona Mitra
Minka Kelly Vanessa Carlton
Scarlett Johansson
Vanessa Minnillo
Vida Guerra
There's surprisingly little overlap between the two lists, with only Minka Kelly being linked to both Jeter and Mayer. Jeter's list has more depth, which makes sense given that he's been famous since 1996 and Mayer didn't make it big until around 2002. In baseball terms, Mayer probably has a higher batting average, but Jeter has more total hits and a better OPS.
What's your second favorite MLB team?
Probably the A's, although technically "whoever is playing the White Sox" is perhaps the correct answer.
How can you still have LaVelle E. Neal III as Official Twins Beat Writer of AG.com? Joe Christensen beats him soundly.
First of all, LaVelle E. Neal III does a good job reporting on the Twins for Minneapolis Star Tribune and has been kind to me personally, which are the two primarily requirements for Official Twins Beat Writer of AG.com status. Beyond that, while Joe Christensen also does a fine job and has been friendly, his job title is actually "national baseball reporter" and not "Twins beat writer." Given the highly technical nature of OTBWoAG.com status, LEN3 and Christensen aren't in direct competition.
Phil Miller of the St. Paul Pioneer Press is LEN3's only true competition. In a relatively short time on the job Miller has also proven himself to be a nice guy who covers the team well--especially compared to his predecessor--but the Pioneer Press' website being a complete mess keeps him from getting more praise in this space. If linking to articles on the Pioneer Press' website wasn't such a headache, Miller would be a much bigger factor in the OTBWoAG.com race and LEN3 might have to step it up a notch.
How long before KFAN gives you a show on the weekends to talk baseball?
Very long.
How long until you ditch those mainstream media folks and open AaronGleeman.tv, your own 24-hour sports news vlogging corner?
Even longer.
Who's your favorite Twins blogger?
It's tough to single one out, so here are my daily reads among non-mainstream Twins blogs:
- Stick and Ball Guy
- Seth Stohs
- Nick Nelson
- Will Young
- Over The Baggy
- Twinkie Town
- John Bonnes
Are you going to add links to any other Twins blogs to the sidebar of your site? I think there are a couple deserving that you're missing.
There are no doubt many Twins blogs that are worth reading despite not having links on my sidebar. Back when this blog started in mid-2002, there were literally only 2-3 other Twins blogs in existence. Now there are dozens, which while a great thing overall makes it tough to keep track of everything. For whatever reason, Over the Baggy is the only "new" Twins blog that I've added to my daily routine this season.
With the number of bloggers (like Batgirl) dwindling, how long will you keep AG.com active?
As mentioned in response to the previous question, any notion of a "dwindling number of bloggers" couldn't be further from the truth. Batgirl retiring last year was a major loss for the Twins blogosphere, but there are more regularly updated Twins blogs now than ever before. Between the ever-growing number of independent blogs and increased amount of online coverage by mainstream outlets, there's never been a better time to be a Twins fan interested in reading about the team.
As for the lifespan of this blog, who knows? August will mark the six-year anniversary of AG.com, which is an incredibly long time in blog years and seems surreal to me given that I was a teenager back then. I still very much enjoy blogging and the readership here continues to grow every month, so there are no plans to stop any time soon.
What kind of income do blogs like yours bring in?
Enough to place the blog somewhere between "hobby" and "job."
Let's go to a dream world for a moment and say that you can replace Bert Blyleven and Dick Bremer with any two people. Who would they be?
I'd pay a month's salary to replace Bert Blyleven and Dick Bremer with Vin Scully, even for a season. Without putting a whole lot of thought into making a complete list, I'm also fond of Jon Sciambi, Matt Vasgergian, Josh Lewin, and Dan Schulman among play-by-play guys, and Orel Hershiser, Steve Stone, and Jerry Remy among color commentators. And if they weren't forced to work with annoying play-by-play man Michael Kay, most of the Yankees' analysts are pretty good too.
Are there any good Timberwolves blogs that you would recommend?
I'm sure there are some good Timberwolves blogs, but unfortunately I'm not aware of them. SBG's blog has some good Wolves-related stuff, particularly during the season.
Who do you think the Timberwolves should take in the NBA draft?
They pick third, so whoever is left from the trio of Derrick Rose, Michael Beasley, and O.J. Mayo.
Can you please just go ahead and name Keely Hazell as Official Fantasy Girl of AG.com? She's as hot or hotter than all of the other candidates and she's frequently nude. Where's the conflict?
Her being "frequently nude" is actually the main conflict, crazy as that sounds. A large percentage of the people reading this site do so at work and another sizable fraction of the audience is under the age of 18, so linking to her latest photo spread is sometimes problematic. With that said, it's probably time to put this thing to a vote and settle on a new title-holder before the throne is completely covered in dust.
What's your favorite perk as a member of the national media now that you've had a chance to settle in at NBCSports.com and Rotoworld?
I've yet to request a press pass for anything and my lone experience with media credentials came at the winter meetings in Orlando a couple offseasons ago, so that wins by default.
How were you able to drop out of school and live at home until your career took off? Most parents would have kicked you out and made you take a job you didn't like.
Luckily my family--and particularly my mom--has always been very supportive of my writing career. With that said, I lived on campus during my four years at the University of Minnesota and upon moving back home already had a steady income between Rotoworld and some other gigs (which played a big part in my dropping out of school to begin with). My mom allowed me to live rent-free for a little while until my bank account and paycheck could support a move to The House That Blog Built in May of 2007.
Will you ever finish the Top 40 Minnesota Twins series?
Definitely, although my inability to regularly produce a new installment has been a major regret. Each write-up requires quite a bit of research and it's tough to find the time during the season, which is why the series has been stuck on No. 16 for far too long. For those of you interested in reading (or perhaps re-reading) the 25 completed write-ups, here they are:
- #16 Corey Koskie
- #17 Earl Battey
- #18 Rick Aguilera
- #19 Dave Goltz
- #20 Camilo Pascual
- #21 Gary Gaetti
- #22 Zoilo Versalles
- #23 Cesar Tovar
- #24 Shane Mack
- #25 Brian Harper
- #26 Eddie Guardado
- #27 Larry Hisle
- #28 Tom Brunansky
- #29 Kevin Tapani
- #30 Jacque Jones
- #31 Butch Wynegar
- #32 Al Worthington
- #33 Greg Gagne
- #34 Matt Lawton
- #35 Steve Braun
- #36 Dave Boswell
- #37 Jimmie Hall
- #38 Eric Milton
- #39 Scott Erickson
- #40 Randy Bush
How do you find enough time to write for multiple media outlets and still keep your blog up to date?
After nearly six years this blog still feels like a hobby to me rather than a job, so it often serves as a much-needed break from my other obligations even if it all falls under the heading of "writing." Beyond that, not wasting more than 5-6 hours per night on sleep helps provide some extra writing time.
Can you convince me that Chris Young of the Diamondbacks is not the next Mike Cameron?
That comparison is a relatively good one, but being "the next Mike Cameron" is a very positive thing. Consider the following career numbers for a pair of center fielders:
PA AVG OBP SLG OPS+
Mike Cameron 6443 .250 .339 .445 105
Torii Hunter 5142 .271 .325 .468 104
Cameron has always been among the most underrated players in baseball because he strikes out a lot and typically hits for sub par batting average, but in terms of overall offensive production he's been nearly identical to Torii Hunter and during his prime Cameron was one of the elite defensive players of this era.
Are you going to the Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) convention this year?
Of course. Even holding the convention in Cleveland couldn't stop me from going.
What is your diet plan and what else are you doing to reduce your weight?
While shedding 90 pounds a couple years ago, my diet plan involved exercising for at least 30 minutes every weekday and establishing a daily calorie limit regardless of food type. Unfortunately, as simple as that sounds I've been slacking off for quite a while and really need to get back on the weight-loss plan before my chins realize that they out-number me and revolt.
Do you still bet on baseball? I remember seeing that you used to post a few plays every day.
I used to post daily baseball picks here and then eventually moved that over to Rotoworld, where I had a remarkably good run of success. However, once NBC purchased Rotoworld a couple years ago any link to gambling was frowned upon and my daily picks ceased in mid-2005.
Do you prefer poker tournaments or cash games?
I'm probably not patient enough to thrive at a cash game long term, so tournaments are my favorite. Unfortunately, I haven't had much time to play any kind of poker for the past year or so.
You're from Minneapolis and you listen to regular, boring, white people music. What's your take on the funk bands from your hometown and why haven't you embraced them?
I'm nothing if not a regular, boring white person, so that's my music of choice even if not loving Prince is sacrilegious for a Minnesotan. A while back someone here accurately described my musical taste as being the same as a teenage girl, although to be fair that mostly covers my taste in contemporary music. Al Green is my favorite musician and some of my other all-time favorites (Otis Redding, Van Morrison, Bill Withers, Stevie Wonder) probably don't show up on the iPods of many 15-year-old girls.
Why do you like St. Paul better than Minneapolis (assuming you do)?
Despite spending the first 17 years of my life in St. Paul my affection for the two cities is relatively equal.
If you could ask Dave St. Peter any question, what would it be?
Isn't that type of thing supposed to be about George Washington or Babe Ruth or some other historic, unavailable figure? Dave St. Peter is seemingly the most publicly available member of the Twins' front office and would surely be willing to answer just about any question if you gave him a call.
What's your Vikings forecast?
As of right now, my prediction would be 10-6.
Since you're now becoming a local personality, any thought to hosting events with you alone or you and another blogger doing Q&A sessions?
There have been a handful of blogger get-togethers in the past and they're always fun, but I've tended to tag along rather than put together my own because a) I'm incredibly lazy when it comes to such things, and b) I'd be afraid that no one would show up if the primary draw was me. I'm almost always willing to show up once someone else does the leg work, though.
What does Tiffany Simons smell like?
She smells like however a very nice, attractive woman smells like. Incidentally, if that question made the decency cut, try to imagine the handful that didn't.
Once you're done here, check out my latest "Daily Dose" column over at Rotoworld.
