MLB rumblings

Before we get to the meat and potatoes of this post, a few quick hits regarding a busy weekend in San Juan County. And again, a customary disclaimer about our woeful lack of blog updates the past two months. Darren and I remain shorthanded (though for as long as we've been at two people, I'm not sure we can really call it shorthanded anymore ... perhaps just "handed") and we're plugging along while trying to provide ample local coverage in the print edition. But I will attempt to provide more frequent appearances in this blog.

With that out of the way, keep in mind this weekend (June 6-8) offers a wealth of activities. There's a quarter horse show at McGee and, supposedly, a rodeo at McGee (although I'm not sure how they're going to pull off two shows the same weekend, and of course we don't learn of in-town rodeos until roughly three days before they start). Also, there's some rockcrawling at Choke Cherry Canyon, and the Roughnecks vie for a SWFC title Saturday in El Paso. Throw in a few Connie Mack games, the Xterra triathlon, and that's a pretty solid weekend.

Now, the real reason, the aforementioned meat and potatoes, for this whimsical post. I've been off the past few days and have watched approximately 76 hours of baseball with my horrendously overpriced DirecTV MLB Pass (thanks DirecTV, you guys are the best). Anyways, many things have jumped out while spending an inordinate amount of time on my couch. Because I love top-10 lists, let's take that approach.

1. Josh Hamilton is the best player in baseball. Bar-none (well, not quite "bar-none" as Chase Utley is having a stupendous season, but "bar-none" makes it sound much more emphatic and cool). Forget the guy's crazy story about battling back from the depths of crack hell, he can flat-out rake. A former No. 1 pick, the expectations for Hamilton were through the roof, and we're just now seeing why he was widely regarded as a future stud and possibly an all-time great. He's leading the American League in each of the three Triple Crown categories. Good luck to him and his 26 tattoos.

2. I'm beyond sick of Joba Chamberlain. And not because he wore a way-too-colorful cardigan sweater to his postgame press conference Tuesday, but because that's all I've heard about this week. Joba Chamberlain is going to the rotation. Who cares? The Yankees are still a .500 team with an aging and one-dimensional roster.

3. Parity has invaded MLB in recent seasons, which has been kind of fun to watch. It's also pointed out this reality: The gap between good and bad teams isn't as much about talent as it is about culture. Take the Orioles for example. On Tuesday night, they were absolutely brutal on the basepaths. Granted, they still beat my beloved Twins 5-3. But Baltimore was far from fundamentally sound. Early in the game, with nobody out and runners on second and third, a lazy flyball was hit to center field. The guy on third (I believe it was Luke Scott) tagged up to score, while the guy on second (Ramon Hernandez?) inexplicably wandered off the bag and was caught in a rundown when the Twins alertly cut off the relay throw headed home. He would have been in scoring position with one out.
The second baserunning gaffe occurred on a pickoff. With runners on the corners and one out, Baltimore's player on first base was caught leaning and ended up in a lengthy rundown. Adam Jones, on third base, didn't even bother dancing off the bag to (A) either induce a throw home or (B) distract the Twins into a potential error. Nothing. Stayed within about four or five feet of the bag.
The point: Bad teams, with a history of losing, seem to accept their mediocrity while doing little to change the course of a season. The Orioles have some talent, but like a lot of sub-,500 clubs, don't always do the little things to scratch out wins. See: Kansas City Royals.

4. Ken Griffey Jr. is about to become the sixth (?) member of the 600 HR club. I'm just saying.

5. Chipper Jones is still hitting above .400, but his home run and RBI numbers are pretty low. I don't think that matters. Ichiro is always criticized for being a singles hitter, but if a guy gets on base two times every night, that's pretty valuable, right?

6. I can't figure out the Marlins. How is this team competing in a tough NL East? With a payroll of $22 million - by far the lowest in the league? Sure, they're absolutely ripping off baseball fans in Florida, but they look more and more like a bona fide contender.

7. Regardless of how the Yankees fare in the win-loss column, ESPN will show them at least twice a week. It's the law, you know.

8. Ozzie Guillen enjoys sugar and Jim Leyland enjoys cigarettes. Quote, loosely translated, from "The Sporting News" where Leyland made light of MLB's desire to speed up games: "I smoke three packs a day and they want me to run to the mound?"

9. That ticking sound you hear is the clock on Clint Hurdle's managerial career in Denver winding down.

10. The Chicago Cubs have the game's best record in June for the first time since 1908, the last time they won the World Series (I believe this to be true. I've heard something along these times 1,036 times in the past three days, but may have gotten the context wrong). Regardless, they won't win the World Series with that patched-together starting rotation. Pitching wins in the postseason, not home run-hitting left fielders. Of course, the Cubs have the resources to make a midseason trade (CC Sabathia, anyone), so all bets are off.