Since last offseason's regrettable Twins-Rays trade Matt Garza has a 3.67 ERA in 225 innings and Delmon Young has a .729 OPS in 698 plate appearances, but none of that even seems important after experiencing the sheer randomness of this photo:
That would be Garza in a Hayden Panettiere-Bristol Palinsandwich and there's more where that came from. I'm waiting for someone to send me the pictures of Delmon with Ali Larter and Meghan McCain.
Headline of the Week, courtesy ofReuters: "Chuck Norris sues, says his tears no cancer cure."
If you've ever wondered what it's like to be a longtime newspaper columnist and get fired via phone while in the press box covering an Orioles game, David Steelehas all the details:
[T]he people responsible for giving you the news were a few dozen blocks away, calling you on your cell phone in the middle of a baseball game you thought you were going to write a column about for the next day's paper.
To answer your question: yes, it felt just as bad as you imagine it would. To answer another of your questions: no, I have no real desire to visit the press box at an Orioles game any time soon. Next time, maybe I'll be told that they're foreclosing on my house during the seventh-inning stretch.
On a related note, one of my favorite newspaper beat reporters, Tony Jackson of the Los Angeles Daily News, was also let go last week after doing a great job covering the Dodgers. MLB.com has made an effort this season to beef up its content and move beyond the press release-style articles that were so prevalent in the past, but at the end of the day their writers are still employed by the organization they're covering and newspapers continuing to shed guys like Jackson is simply bad news for baseball fans.
As my MinnPost colleague David Brauerpoints out, Minnesotans are very lucky to have four full-time newspaper reporters (and good ones, at that) covering the team along with MLB.com.
Having become obsessed with Friday Night Lights recently after previously never watching a single episode, I've come to two conclusions: Lyla Garrity is one of the most annoying characters in television history and Minka Kelly is one of the most attractive actresses in television history. Her scenes would be almost unwatchable except for the fact that they're so watchable.
I've been trying to play it cool by telling people that I'm only mildly into Facebook, but the fact that I'm so thoroughly amused by this link from Slate ends the ruse. I'm still avoiding Twitter, though.
In honor of that picture of Garza, this week's AG.com-approved music video is Jeff Healeysinging a cover version of the Stealers Wheel classic "Stuck in the Middle With You":
Once you're done here, check out my "Circling The Bases" blog over at NBCSports.com.
