When I was in college, I not only wrote sports for our student paper, The Red & Black, but I also served as an entertainment writer and for one quarter the entertainment editor and I loved it.
I loved talking to musicians and getting a ton of free CDs. Remember CDs? They were awesome. Seriously, I still have one of the finest collections of mid-90s music you can find.
Since I'm the boss 'round here, I got myself a plum assignment this week -- talking to Scott McCaughey of, oh, let's see, the Minus 5, the Baseball Project, the Young Fresh Fellows and a little band called R.E.M. We talked mostly about the The Baseball Project
, because, after all we are a sports site.
Anyway, it was pretty cool. Last year when their album came out I talked to Steve Wynn, also from the group (and also The Dream Syndicate and Steve Wynn and the Miracle Three) and we had a long discussion about sportswriting and rock 'n' roll. Steve said he was a failed sportswriter -- he'd written in school and after college too. We even have a mutual friend in Atlanta Journal Constitution columnist Jeff Schultz. Scott and I talked about some of the same things.
One of the biggest was that most people think all sportswriters do is show up and watch the game and that's it. And most people think musicians just show up and play their show and that's it. The other hours inbetween are what are lost -- and both sportswriters and musicians know what it's like to have their dream job, know they're the luckiest people in the world and most people would kill for their jobs, even if they don't understand it.
I also got to share my theory that rock musicians like baseball because as they travel, it's a constant and a touchstone -- and that the grind of the baseball season is similar to a tour. But yeah, not too exciting.
Scott did say he tries to get to as many games as possible when he's on the road, but hadn't been able to make any on this, the first tour with the Baseball Project. Their only game of the tour will be Sunday's Reds-Marlins tilt, which the entire band is looking forward to taking in. They'll also get a tour of the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum.
It was also cool to note, like Steve, Scott and I have mutual friends and share the same favorite bar in Athens, the Manhattan. Crazy small world sometimes.
* Ernie Harwell is the best. His speech from Wednesday night. And I don't know why, but for some reason the guy at the end sticking out a ball and pen for Harwell to autograph just rubs me the wrong way.
* Jeff Passan has less faith in the BBWAA than I do. He doesn't seem to think Zack Greinke will win the AL Cy Young. I don't see that there's any way he doesn't.
I can't speak for all voters, just myself. I had the honor of voting for the NL Cy Young Award twice. I seriously studied for that award like nothing I ever did in college. In the end, I believe all the voters take their votes seriously and do their homework. You can disagree, but I believe that most people do put in their work and vote their honest opinion. And if their honest opinion is someone other than Greinke, they're dead wrong.
Poz agrees.
* Oh, the fun times at Wrigley.
* Hang around baseball long enough and you'll hear some great Mark Grace stories. I need to ask Thom about this one.
* While blackouts are still on the mind -- think about this: the Cowboys could sell more than 100,000 tickets and still be blacked out. It's unlikely, but it happens.
* The New York Times is unimpressed with the new Cowboys Stadium.
* If a punt hits the scoreboard, there's free food in it for people in Texas.
* ESPN might as well put the Steelers in the same category as the Cowboys, Patriots, Yankees and Red Sox.
Listen, I think the Steelers are an incredible organization and are well-deserving of much of the love they get. Pittsburgh also has one of my favorite sports venues in America -- but it ain't Heinz Field. I usually not that I think Cincinnati has the better football stadium, but Pittsburgh has the better baseball stadium. Not sure what criteria ESPN used (some they talk about design, some they talk about fans, others, well, I dunno) or if they used any.
* Reason No. 1,204,194,104,002 I love college football. And No. 1,204,194,104,003.
* A good story from my college friend Travis Fain on someone who deserves to be remembered.
* A new banner is up at Goggin Ice Arena in Oxford.
* Steve Nash does his best Gob Bluth. And it's good.
* An interesting interview with former WWE wrestler Chris Nowinski about concussions. Nowinski is a Harvard grad studying concussions.
* Jay Farrar will take up the Mermaid Avenue project.
* Paste asks an interesting question I've heard before -- is Pearl Jam the modern Grateful Dead?
* Pavement really is reuniting!
* The new Tron movie will come out Dec. 2010.
I loved talking to musicians and getting a ton of free CDs. Remember CDs? They were awesome. Seriously, I still have one of the finest collections of mid-90s music you can find.
Since I'm the boss 'round here, I got myself a plum assignment this week -- talking to Scott McCaughey of, oh, let's see, the Minus 5, the Baseball Project, the Young Fresh Fellows and a little band called R.E.M. We talked mostly about the The Baseball Project
, because, after all we are a sports site.Anyway, it was pretty cool. Last year when their album came out I talked to Steve Wynn, also from the group (and also The Dream Syndicate and Steve Wynn and the Miracle Three) and we had a long discussion about sportswriting and rock 'n' roll. Steve said he was a failed sportswriter -- he'd written in school and after college too. We even have a mutual friend in Atlanta Journal Constitution columnist Jeff Schultz. Scott and I talked about some of the same things.
One of the biggest was that most people think all sportswriters do is show up and watch the game and that's it. And most people think musicians just show up and play their show and that's it. The other hours inbetween are what are lost -- and both sportswriters and musicians know what it's like to have their dream job, know they're the luckiest people in the world and most people would kill for their jobs, even if they don't understand it.
I also got to share my theory that rock musicians like baseball because as they travel, it's a constant and a touchstone -- and that the grind of the baseball season is similar to a tour. But yeah, not too exciting.
Scott did say he tries to get to as many games as possible when he's on the road, but hadn't been able to make any on this, the first tour with the Baseball Project. Their only game of the tour will be Sunday's Reds-Marlins tilt, which the entire band is looking forward to taking in. They'll also get a tour of the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum.
It was also cool to note, like Steve, Scott and I have mutual friends and share the same favorite bar in Athens, the Manhattan. Crazy small world sometimes.
* Ernie Harwell is the best. His speech from Wednesday night. And I don't know why, but for some reason the guy at the end sticking out a ball and pen for Harwell to autograph just rubs me the wrong way.
* Jeff Passan has less faith in the BBWAA than I do. He doesn't seem to think Zack Greinke will win the AL Cy Young. I don't see that there's any way he doesn't.
I can't speak for all voters, just myself. I had the honor of voting for the NL Cy Young Award twice. I seriously studied for that award like nothing I ever did in college. In the end, I believe all the voters take their votes seriously and do their homework. You can disagree, but I believe that most people do put in their work and vote their honest opinion. And if their honest opinion is someone other than Greinke, they're dead wrong.
Poz agrees.
* Oh, the fun times at Wrigley.
* Hang around baseball long enough and you'll hear some great Mark Grace stories. I need to ask Thom about this one.
* While blackouts are still on the mind -- think about this: the Cowboys could sell more than 100,000 tickets and still be blacked out. It's unlikely, but it happens.
* The New York Times is unimpressed with the new Cowboys Stadium.
* If a punt hits the scoreboard, there's free food in it for people in Texas.
* ESPN might as well put the Steelers in the same category as the Cowboys, Patriots, Yankees and Red Sox.
Listen, I think the Steelers are an incredible organization and are well-deserving of much of the love they get. Pittsburgh also has one of my favorite sports venues in America -- but it ain't Heinz Field. I usually not that I think Cincinnati has the better football stadium, but Pittsburgh has the better baseball stadium. Not sure what criteria ESPN used (some they talk about design, some they talk about fans, others, well, I dunno) or if they used any.
* Reason No. 1,204,194,104,002 I love college football. And No. 1,204,194,104,003.
* A good story from my college friend Travis Fain on someone who deserves to be remembered.
* A new banner is up at Goggin Ice Arena in Oxford.
* Steve Nash does his best Gob Bluth. And it's good.
* An interesting interview with former WWE wrestler Chris Nowinski about concussions. Nowinski is a Harvard grad studying concussions.
* Jay Farrar will take up the Mermaid Avenue project.
* Paste asks an interesting question I've heard before -- is Pearl Jam the modern Grateful Dead?
* Pavement really is reuniting!
* The new Tron movie will come out Dec. 2010.
awesome news about pavement
now if only adult swim would bring back space ghost coast to coast
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJplZscUO-4
(pavement/sgc2c reese's cup moment)
I saw the speech by Ernie Halwell the other night, and it was great. I think about it and Marty has been doing Red's games my whole life. It's really eerie when I tune in and he's on Vacation and you have Kent Merker and the Cowboy doing the game. It'll be really different when he's gone.
College fans are the most creative with signs, shirts, and other crazy things they do. My favorite sign said.
TEBO LOVES:
Coach
Urban
Meryer
Is anyone else glad that the yankees and cowboys misread the financial outlook and dumped all this money into these stadiums that they can't fill. Could you think of two other sports franchises that you would rather have this happen too?
The Cowboys stadium is overdone, like Jerry's face. Sometimes less is more, especially with plastic surgery and stadiums.
The onion, once again, caused me to laugh out loud and get strange looks from my students:
"Sports: John Stockton Assists Hall Of Fame Officials In Setting Up Induction Ceremony
SPRINGFIELD, MA—Saying he just wanted to do whatever he could to make it a great event, all-time NBA assists leader John Stockton arrived several hours early to the NBA Hall of Fame induction ceremony Friday in order to help set up the PA system, construct the stage, and hang banners and posters throughout the room."
Oh yeah, and I was watching ESPN the other day and they were showing Grenke's stats. He should be a lock for Cy Young. However, I dont' know if he will. I remember the year Zito won it with the A's. Pedro Martinez had the most strikeouts, the lowest ERA and the lowest opponents batting average but Zito gets the Cy Young because of wins, I guess that's why he got it anyway. Also, I feel like Harang had a strong case a few years ago I think he was 1rst and 2nd in most of the major categories, but not sure where he came in the voting.
One more comment, and I'm done, for now. The fact that the Cowboys cheapest seat is 239 bucks is ridiculous. I would love it if they had blackouts this year. I know they are popular,but man I really hope they have a terrible season and can't give away tickets.
Thanks for the love! Love the nods to The Young Fresh Fellows and Pavement...takes back to a simple place in time. Beer money, beer money!