Kiddush Hashem

Let's try for two!

I'm listening to the Michael Kay show, and over the past week or two, I've heard a couple of promotional radio commercials for the Kay show during some of the earlier programs (Mike and Mike, Brandon Tierney, Colin Cowherd, etc.). These commercials usually have one or another of the hosts (Michael, Don La Greca, Bonnie Bernstein, etc.) and occasionally a caller saying something interesting, as if to say "our show has intelligent people saying compelling things! Listen to us!" One of the commercials featured a caller named David from Jerusalem. I can't remember what he said that they put on the commercial, but I believe the purpose of using that call in the promo was to demonstrate that their show is so popular that they even have people calling from Israel. Cool.

Anyway, sure enough, David from Jerusalem just called in again today to talk about football and the frustration of cheering for losing teams, and after the sports talk, Michael and Don were chatting with David and asking him about Israel. They asked him what time it was, and David said "it's about 20 minutes to 11 here. We're seven hours ahead." Then they asked him if he ever lived in the states, and David responded "yeah, I lived there for 35 years; I moved here a year and a half ago." They then asked him how it is over there and why he moved, and David said "I moved mostly for religious reasons. It was difficult because I moved without a job and actually spent my first year here unemployed. But I've started working, and every day here is truly a blessing. I think it was the right thing to do for me, my family, and hopefully, ultimately, my people."

I really think it was a huge kiddush Hashem that David spoke so intelligently and eloquently on the radio. There are so many callers who can't speak properly and don't use correct grammar, az for David to represent Israel and Jews the way he did was truly fantastic and inspirational.

Shkoyach.

Some Thoughts for a Busy Sports Week

There are few times when the Jets and Mets dominate the back pages of the papers in New York, az I couldn't let such an opportunity pass me by. Well, I'm not actually gonna talk about the Mets much; there's just not enough about which I can get excited yet. I do like the Jason Bay signing even though it's a bit expensive. In a vacuum, I think it's an excellent move, but not in the sense that you might think. A lot of people in the news and on the radio are saying that it's a waste of money unless the Mets improve in other areas, e.g. pitching. I don't really buy into that; I prefer to suggest that it's an excellent move as long as it portends the future signings of similar-type players. If Omar Minaya is thinking "well, we've got to do SOMETHING, and Jason is either the best or second best hitter on the market, so let's see if we can get him," then it will truly be a waste of money. I hope and pray that Omar is actually thinking "hey, Jason Bay has tons of plate discipline and gets on base all the time, so if I can get him to drive Carlos in and get on base in front of David, then he's a perfect fit. Maybe in the next couple of years I can get a couple more guys who get on base." I'll drink to that.

I'll get to the Jets in a minute (again, I'm not really gonna talk too much about them, except to say something probably ridiculously inappropriate. Stay tuned.), but first I want to take a jab at everybody's favorite ESPN Radio host Colin Cowherd. Now, I do listen to him every day from 12-2, az I submit that his show can be entertaining at times; in fact, I will agree that when it comes to the business of sports he has a lot of intelligent things to say. But when it comes to stats, it's best just to turn him off. Unless you get a gem like this! I forget exactly how it went down, but during the course of an interview, Colin said something like "...but Mike Cameron isn't as good as, say, Torii Hunter. I mean everyone knows that, right? Right??" And as I was just obliquely paying attention to the radio, I found myself nodding my head. But then I thought, wait, Hunter's career OBP can't be much higher than .340, and I know he's over-rated as a defender. Meanwhile, Cameron walks a lot and I know he plays good defense. Let me check this out.

I'm actually going to check baseballprospectus.com and baseball-reference.com this instant to see how they both fare WARP-wise:

Hunter (6,008): OPS: .802, OPS+: 107, EqA: .268, WARP3: 24.9

Cameron (7,435 PA): OPS: .788, OPS+: 107, EqA: .277, WARP3: 50.7

Hmmmmmmm. I win. Colin loses. I am awesome. And oh, by the way, Hunter's career OBP is .330.

And now onto the Jets. I hope they win. Stick to the plan: show different defensive fronts, blitz various defenders on different plays, run the ball hard, don't turn it over, show some tiger-cat, etc.

Anyway, the inappropriate thing I wanted to mention came about as follows. I was on the subway this morning, and someone was reading the Post. I saw on the front page something about the Jets, az I looked closer and saw that the daughter of Jets owner Woody Johnson died. It's really a tragedy for the family, but I could do without the "let's win one for the gipper" nonsense that hopefully won't come. Anyway, az I was walking into the office and suddenly it occurred to me "OhMyGod, Woody Johnson has the worst name of all time!" I'll leave you for today with a quote (thanks imdb.com):

[Noticing Dr. Evil's spaceship on radar]
Radar Operator: Colonel, you better have a look at this radar.
Colonel: What is it, son?
Radar Operator: I don't know, sir, but it looks like a giant...
Jet Pilot: Dick. Dick, take a look out of starboard.
Co-Pilot: Oh my God, it looks like a huge...
Bird-Watching Woman: Pecker.
Bird-Watching Man: [raising binoculars] Ooh, Where?
Bird-Watching Woman: Over there. What sort of bird is that? Wait, it's not a woodpecker, it looks like someone's...
Army Sergeant: Privates. We have reports of an unidentified flying object. It has a long, smooth shaft, complete with...
Baseball Umpire: Two balls.
[looking up from game]
Baseball Umpire: What is that. It looks just like an enormous...
Chinese Teacher: Wang. pay attention.
Wang: I was distracted by that giant flying...
Musician: Willie.
Willie: Yeah?
Musician: What's that?
Willie: [squints] Well, that looks like a huge...
Colonel: Johnson.
Radar Operator: Yes, sir?
Colonel: Get on the horn to British Intelligence and let them know about this.

Basil: Did we get Dr. Evil?
Radar Operator: No, sir, he got away in that big spaceship that looks like a huge...
Teacher: Penis. The male reproductive organ. Also known as tallywhacker, schlong, or...
Friendly Dad: Wiener? Any of your kids want another wiener?
Friendly Son: Dad, what's that?
Friendly Dad: I don't know, son, but it has great big...
Peanut Vendor: Nuts. Hot, salty nuts. Who wants some?...
Peanut Vendor: Lord Almighty!
Woman: That looks just like my husband's...
Circus Barker: ONE-EYED MONSTER. Step right up and see the One-eyed Monster!
Cyclops: RARRR.
Cyclops: Hey, what's that? It looks like a...
Fan: Woody. Woody Harrelson. Could I have your autograph?
Woody: Sure. Oh, my Lord! Look at that thing!
Fan: It's so huge.
Woody: No, I've seen bigger. That's...
Dr. Evil: Just a little prick.