This writer has probably been in this parking lot if it is near the bars in Santa Monica, CA. When I was young that is.
Most drivers have experienced the downer that is discovering a parking ticket on their windshields.
But a quick burst of four parking tickets? You'll have to ask KTLA reporter Gayle Anderson how that feels.
Anderson was doing a segment on the best cars for summer road trips from a Santa Monica parking lot. The cars were lined up, and, according the folks who work at the lot, the television station hadn't paid for the spaces like they said they would.
So they called in the Santa Monica Police Department, which ticketed the cars, one by one, as the live TV cameras continued to roll.
Bemoaning this heavy-handed treatment, a KTLA station official told Asylum that the news team had "done this type of shot at that parking lot before and always settled up before they left."
He added that the station would have had no problem paying the parking fees -- or the parking tickets -- but was baffled as to why the parking attendant decided to call the cops, and then the police decided to issue the tickets on live television. UC Larry
Friday, May 28, 2010
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Fun Time
Hi folks. Just a little information about the sporting news of Tampa Bay. My Rays, yes my Rays have a 4 game lead in the Eastern division. Over that other team, the New York Yankees My Dodgers got there steak stopped at 9 last night. The Rays hitting attack had been slowed down but seem to have come out of their drought, even thought they have been winning. Pitching and defense. But unless you have been under a rock they whipped up on the Yankees last night 10-6. That was surprising considering that they played at the new Stadium in New York. I have to admit it is a very nice place to play. But for over a billion it should be. Oh yeah the Los Angeles Lakers are up 2-0 in the Western conference finals. Stodimire of the Suns maybe shouldn't have run his mouth so much in calling them "lucky". Who was that who being lucky is just as good as being good. I can't think of anyone who would care but my co-writers team, the Boston Celtics are up 2-0 in the Eastern conference finals. Have a fun day and be careful out there.
Monday, May 17, 2010
Sports update
Low and behold the Dodgers have won 7 in a row and the Rays have retained the best record in baseball (26-11) to go along with the best road record. To the tune of 15-4. Granted the Yankees are only 2 game behind at 24-13 but they suck on the road at 12-10. I was swiching between the Rays game and the Yankees game. When the lights out Revera came in with a 3-1 lead he walked in a run in the 9th. Can you believe the first time this has happened since 2005. No boys and girls that is not a misprint, since 2005. That has to be a record. But than again this is his 16th year. Right along with Jeter and Posada. Andy Pettite was with them but he did like so many do with where the money was with Houston. But Andy came back to the Yankees where the powerhourse is. The Rays haven't been hitting of late, however, they are winning with pitching and defense. Seems like if one guy doesn't have a big hit than someone else will. The only sad part of the weekend was that the Celtics held on for a win Sunday. Nite.
Friday, May 14, 2010
GTMI (get the man in)
This taken from the Rays web site.
ANAHEIM -- Baseball number crunchers have to be scratching their heads these days when examining Rays hitters.
On the one hand, the Rays entered Thursday leading the Major Leagues with a .310 average with runners in scoring position. On the other, they ranked 19th in the Major Leagues in hitting at .253. What gives?
"We seem to be clutch hitting, getting hits when we need them," Carl Crawford said. "When times come up where we have runners in scoring position, we find a way to get it done. Remember how the hitting was in '08? It was all about timely hitting."
In 2008, the Rays never seemed to strand a runner, even though few, if any, players on the team had career seasons. In contrast, several Tampa Bay players experienced career seasons in '09 and the club set a franchise record by scoring 803 runs. So the team didn't have any trouble scoring runs, it just had difficulty bringing the runs home when it mattered most.
"I think [what we are doing this season is] unusual a little bit," Ben Zobrist said. "If you look at our individual stats, a lot of guys were having better years last year at this point. So you look at the ability to be able to score some runs, a lot of that has to do with guys just stepping up.
"A guy like John Jaso for example, coming in here and getting as many hits as he has, as many RBIs as he has very quickly -- that's boosted our offense. And you've always got [Evan Longoria], who comes through in the clutch. I think you need to have the right mindset with guys in scoring position. And that was a decided thing during Spring Training that we were working on."
Zobrist pointed to another facet of this year's team: the selfless style of play.
"I think overall the hitting has really concentrated on doing whatever you need to do to get the run in," Zobrist said. "If you have to give yourself up a little bit, we're willing to do that as a team right now. I don't know necessarily if we did that as much last year."
The Rays wear T-shirts around the clubhouse with the initials "GTMI" written across the front. The meaning is simple, but hardly easy: Get the man in.
The Rays have embraced the concept. And even though several hitters are struggling, they still manage to get the hits when needed. Even Pat Burrell, whose entire tenure with Tampa Bay can be judged a struggle, has come through with two of the team's biggest hits this season, with homers against the Red Sox and A's that gave the Rays the lead.
"We have done a great job with runners in scoring position," manager Joe Maddon said. "That was a major emphasis during Spring Training. Some of the guys just have not hit to their level yet. And the only thing I can really think about that is we've been playing in a lot of cold weather, and that has a lot to do from a hitter's perspective offensively.
"I think as it warms up, you're going to start seeing some of our guys start swinging the bat better in regards to actual batting-average numbers. But I'm more concerned with working good at-bats, seeing pitches, maintaining our slugging percentage, our OPS ... and that's why we've been so successful to this point."
Prior to the start of every series, the Rays conduct what could best be described as a reminder session.
"We throw out the little mantras we created during Spring Training to make sure that all these little things we're trying to emphasize are being kept up on," Maddon said. "[Hitting coach Derek Shelton will] talk about that, and we'll talk about our baserunning issues and different things like that. So that's always addressed prior to the first game of the series."
Count Carlos Pena among those struggling to get into a groove this season, but he isn't panicking and he believes there's a reason why the Rays have become good in the clutch.
"It goes back to that maturity thing," Pena said. "Like [Monday night's 5-4 loss]. We were getting pitched well, we were hitting balls right at people and things weren't going our way. All the way until that last out, we thought we had a chance to win that ballgame."
Even though the Rays lost the game in extra innings, they mounted a successful three-run comeback in the ninth inning to tie the game.
"We kept plugging away and look what happened," Pena said. "And it happened against their closer. That's what we expected to happen. So we weren't surprised. It was like finally we've got it.
"I think all of that goes hand in hand with maturity. When we see a situation, we try to capitalize. We relax and focus on the task at hand to get it done. So it goes back to that maturity level. We're more mature than we were in the past. We try to seize the moment. It goes back to this team growing."
With so many at-bats during the season, the question regarding whether hitters could actually treat one at-bat more importantly than another seemed to hold some significance. Zobrist managed to differentiate between hitting with runners in scoring position and otherwise.
"I think the way you treat it is just with a little more focus [when runners are in scoring position]," Zobrist said. "And the pitcher does, too, because he's trying to bear down.
"If you have a man on third, you want to get it out there to the outfield where he can't throw him out on a sac fly. In that kind of situation, it's more you pull back on your own approach a little bit to get the runner in. Getting the runner in is the most important thing in that situation."
And when nobody's on base?
"It's kind of just between you and the pitcher, where you're battling to drive the ball somewhere," Zobrist said. "Get the ball to the gap, whatever."
Crawford said the Rays seem to focus better in important situations.
"So maybe we need to bring that kind of focus to the other [at-bats]," Crawford said. "Do something like that. Maybe we'll be better off."
Shelton didn't seem too caught up in the odd numbers put up by his hitters, because he is not a big believer in the statistic of batting average.
"I can honestly say statistically, batting average is probably one of the least important stats I look at," Shelton said. "I'm looking at getting on base -- if we're having good at-bats, if we're doing a good job with runners in scoring position. I'm looking at those things.
"I don't place a large emphasis on what the actual batting average on the club is. I honestly think it's kind of an old-school stat. If we're making pitchers work and we're drawing walks and we're getting runners on base -- we're getting runners in -- I think that's what I look at."
However, Shelton does believe in the concept of clutch hitting.
"I think guys can have better at-bats, yes, and I think it's a focus," Shelton said. "And I think it's why you have to talk about it and make it a focus, where they realize that those at-bats are extremely important. And the outcome of those at-bats affect whether you win or lose games."
No matter how the Rays' hitting numbers are interpreted at this juncture, there is one thing everybody can agree on, and that is their reflection on winning.
ANAHEIM -- Baseball number crunchers have to be scratching their heads these days when examining Rays hitters.
On the one hand, the Rays entered Thursday leading the Major Leagues with a .310 average with runners in scoring position. On the other, they ranked 19th in the Major Leagues in hitting at .253. What gives?
"We seem to be clutch hitting, getting hits when we need them," Carl Crawford said. "When times come up where we have runners in scoring position, we find a way to get it done. Remember how the hitting was in '08? It was all about timely hitting."
In 2008, the Rays never seemed to strand a runner, even though few, if any, players on the team had career seasons. In contrast, several Tampa Bay players experienced career seasons in '09 and the club set a franchise record by scoring 803 runs. So the team didn't have any trouble scoring runs, it just had difficulty bringing the runs home when it mattered most.
"I think [what we are doing this season is] unusual a little bit," Ben Zobrist said. "If you look at our individual stats, a lot of guys were having better years last year at this point. So you look at the ability to be able to score some runs, a lot of that has to do with guys just stepping up.
"A guy like John Jaso for example, coming in here and getting as many hits as he has, as many RBIs as he has very quickly -- that's boosted our offense. And you've always got [Evan Longoria], who comes through in the clutch. I think you need to have the right mindset with guys in scoring position. And that was a decided thing during Spring Training that we were working on."
Zobrist pointed to another facet of this year's team: the selfless style of play.
"I think overall the hitting has really concentrated on doing whatever you need to do to get the run in," Zobrist said. "If you have to give yourself up a little bit, we're willing to do that as a team right now. I don't know necessarily if we did that as much last year."
The Rays wear T-shirts around the clubhouse with the initials "GTMI" written across the front. The meaning is simple, but hardly easy: Get the man in.
The Rays have embraced the concept. And even though several hitters are struggling, they still manage to get the hits when needed. Even Pat Burrell, whose entire tenure with Tampa Bay can be judged a struggle, has come through with two of the team's biggest hits this season, with homers against the Red Sox and A's that gave the Rays the lead.
"We have done a great job with runners in scoring position," manager Joe Maddon said. "That was a major emphasis during Spring Training. Some of the guys just have not hit to their level yet. And the only thing I can really think about that is we've been playing in a lot of cold weather, and that has a lot to do from a hitter's perspective offensively.
"I think as it warms up, you're going to start seeing some of our guys start swinging the bat better in regards to actual batting-average numbers. But I'm more concerned with working good at-bats, seeing pitches, maintaining our slugging percentage, our OPS ... and that's why we've been so successful to this point."
Prior to the start of every series, the Rays conduct what could best be described as a reminder session.
"We throw out the little mantras we created during Spring Training to make sure that all these little things we're trying to emphasize are being kept up on," Maddon said. "[Hitting coach Derek Shelton will] talk about that, and we'll talk about our baserunning issues and different things like that. So that's always addressed prior to the first game of the series."
Count Carlos Pena among those struggling to get into a groove this season, but he isn't panicking and he believes there's a reason why the Rays have become good in the clutch.
"It goes back to that maturity thing," Pena said. "Like [Monday night's 5-4 loss]. We were getting pitched well, we were hitting balls right at people and things weren't going our way. All the way until that last out, we thought we had a chance to win that ballgame."
Even though the Rays lost the game in extra innings, they mounted a successful three-run comeback in the ninth inning to tie the game.
"We kept plugging away and look what happened," Pena said. "And it happened against their closer. That's what we expected to happen. So we weren't surprised. It was like finally we've got it.
"I think all of that goes hand in hand with maturity. When we see a situation, we try to capitalize. We relax and focus on the task at hand to get it done. So it goes back to that maturity level. We're more mature than we were in the past. We try to seize the moment. It goes back to this team growing."
With so many at-bats during the season, the question regarding whether hitters could actually treat one at-bat more importantly than another seemed to hold some significance. Zobrist managed to differentiate between hitting with runners in scoring position and otherwise.
"I think the way you treat it is just with a little more focus [when runners are in scoring position]," Zobrist said. "And the pitcher does, too, because he's trying to bear down.
"If you have a man on third, you want to get it out there to the outfield where he can't throw him out on a sac fly. In that kind of situation, it's more you pull back on your own approach a little bit to get the runner in. Getting the runner in is the most important thing in that situation."
And when nobody's on base?
"It's kind of just between you and the pitcher, where you're battling to drive the ball somewhere," Zobrist said. "Get the ball to the gap, whatever."
Crawford said the Rays seem to focus better in important situations.
"So maybe we need to bring that kind of focus to the other [at-bats]," Crawford said. "Do something like that. Maybe we'll be better off."
Shelton didn't seem too caught up in the odd numbers put up by his hitters, because he is not a big believer in the statistic of batting average.
"I can honestly say statistically, batting average is probably one of the least important stats I look at," Shelton said. "I'm looking at getting on base -- if we're having good at-bats, if we're doing a good job with runners in scoring position. I'm looking at those things.
"I don't place a large emphasis on what the actual batting average on the club is. I honestly think it's kind of an old-school stat. If we're making pitchers work and we're drawing walks and we're getting runners on base -- we're getting runners in -- I think that's what I look at."
However, Shelton does believe in the concept of clutch hitting.
"I think guys can have better at-bats, yes, and I think it's a focus," Shelton said. "And I think it's why you have to talk about it and make it a focus, where they realize that those at-bats are extremely important. And the outcome of those at-bats affect whether you win or lose games."
No matter how the Rays' hitting numbers are interpreted at this juncture, there is one thing everybody can agree on, and that is their reflection on winning.
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
This girl could be special
PLANT CITY, Fla. -- As an organ donor, pitching great Joe Niekro left his eyes behind so another man could see. He left his liver, kidneys and heart so three others could live today.
He left a unique and special gift -- his famed knuckleball -- to a precocious little girl who could be on the verge of inspiring a whole new generation of baseball players.
Chelsea Baker, only 12, has learned to make that pitch dance, to magically make it move like a butterfly on its way to home plate, baffling and befuddling young hitters. Like Joe taught her, shortly before his death in 2006 (the two are seen in the photo above).
"Joe would be so proud, so really proud,'' said Debbie Niekro, Joe's widow who has watched Chelsea pitch several times. "He really liked Chelsea. He loved the way she listened, and learned at that age. He knew she was going to be something special.''
Share Niekro was 61 when he died suddenly of a brain aneurysm. At the time, he was helping coach a Little League team on which Chelsea and his own son played in his adopted hometown of Plant City.
Chelsea was 8 when he died, too young to quite understand how final death would be, but old enough to understand the gift that Niekro had left her. It gave her a passion for the game, and specifically for the pitch.
"I bugged him to teach me because I never could hit that knuckleball when he would throw it to me in batting practice. He always said it was a secret, but he finally taught me, and we worked on it a lot,'' Chelsea told FanHouse last week after a game. "I love throwing it. My catcher says it's so nasty.''
And the batters can't touch it. Although there are many young girls peppered across America now playing Little League Baseball with the boys, there are only a few who can dominate as Chelsea does.
She has thrown two perfect games within the past year, including one in an All-Star Game. She is unbeaten this season in nine starts, throwing 54 innings and striking out 103 batters while allowing only four runs. She also is hitting .569, playing third base when she doesn't pitch.
"When she first came to me for instruction, I was thinking 'OK, here is a girl I can help,'' said Keith Maxwell, a hitting instructor who played 12 years of professional baseball, including five with the Pittsburgh Pirates organization. "But after two weeks with her, I was like 'wow.' She has an incredible pop in her bat. She isn't just a pitcher. I thought, 'This is probably going to be the first girl to play Major League Baseball.' And I don't say that lightly.''
She already is being recruited to play for the Sparks, a girls baseball team based in the Northeast that tours nationally playing against the best boys teams in the country.
Chelsea, average size for a 12-year-old girl, is unusually athletic with a powerful arm and a fastball that comes close to 70 mph. Yet it's Niekro's knuckleball, and the passion he sparked, that makes her so special.
It's why in the fall, when her sixth-grade history assignment was to do a project on "Someone Who Changed The World,'' she selected Joe Niekro as her topic. She already had all his old baseball cards. She had several pictures of her and him on the baseball field together.
"I got an A on the project. The teacher told us it had to be about someone you felt strongly about,'' she said. "And I knew how famous Coach Joe was. I miss him. I remember before every game I pitched, I had to give him a kiss on the cheek before he'd give me the ball.''
Niekro pitched 22 seasons in the major leagues for seven different teams. He won 221 games. He and his brother Phil Niekro combined for 539 wins, the most of any brother tandem in history. Chelsea knows all those numbers now.
She is the one who wrote the moving passage that was used as part of Niekro's obituary tribute. It brought friends and family members to tears.
"Coach Joe taught me so much in the few short years I new (sic) him. He taught me how to have pride in myself, and to be humble. Most of all, he taught me to throw his famous knuckle ball. . . . . I miss seeing him . . . . . . and his happy face at the ballpark. I will always remember and love you. – CHELSEA BAKER.''
It was also Chelsea who came to the funeral viewing services and left a baseball in Niekro's open casket. And it wasn't just any baseball, either. It was a scuffed baseball, with four tiny and barely visible fingernail marks along the seams, exactly where he taught her to grip it.
"He taught me how to hold it like this,'' she demonstrated last week. "I usually wait until I have two strikes. They can't hit it. He told me that's how it would be.''
She is merely a seventh-grader, but watching her pitch or watching her play, or hearing her speak about Niekro, she seems much older. For all her accomplishments -- she will make her sixth consecutive All-Star team in Plant City -- she is surprisingly humble.
Some of her teachers at Turkey Creek Middle School don't even know she plays baseball. Most of the boys do, because they've been playing against her for several years, accepting her as one of the best. It's when she travels, as the only girl in her league, that occasionally she hears remarks about her being a girl. Mostly it's from the grandstands, from other parents.
"I still hear parents from other teams say, 'When is she going to start playing softball?' '' said stepfather Rod Mason, who helps coach her team now. "And it kind of ticks me off. So I usually just say, 'When she stops striking out your little Johnny.' ''
Mason and wife Missy have followed Chelsea's baseball from the start. She started with baseball because that's what Mason's sons played. And she just happened to be so good at it.
"I've had other parents tell me now that they couldn't get their girls to practice until they saw Chelsea play,'' Mason said. "I think her success will help other girls. She's just so unbelievably focused. I never ask her to practice. But she always comes to me.''
Home-plate umpires often come to Steve Gude, manager of her team now, and apologize for missing calls when Chelsea pitches. Her knuckleball often darts out and back into the strike zone when she keeps it low -- like Coach Joe taught her.
Joe never taught her this trick, but it's one she can do if you ask. She can stand out in center field -- and her arm is so strong -- she can throw a knuckleball all the way to home plate, giggling as it flutters through the air.
"Joe was really good to her,'' Mason said. "He went out of his way to help her. He was such a giving guy with all the kids, always willing to help. But I think he knew Chelsea was kind of special."
He left a unique and special gift -- his famed knuckleball -- to a precocious little girl who could be on the verge of inspiring a whole new generation of baseball players.
Chelsea Baker, only 12, has learned to make that pitch dance, to magically make it move like a butterfly on its way to home plate, baffling and befuddling young hitters. Like Joe taught her, shortly before his death in 2006 (the two are seen in the photo above).
"Joe would be so proud, so really proud,'' said Debbie Niekro, Joe's widow who has watched Chelsea pitch several times. "He really liked Chelsea. He loved the way she listened, and learned at that age. He knew she was going to be something special.''
Share Niekro was 61 when he died suddenly of a brain aneurysm. At the time, he was helping coach a Little League team on which Chelsea and his own son played in his adopted hometown of Plant City.
Chelsea was 8 when he died, too young to quite understand how final death would be, but old enough to understand the gift that Niekro had left her. It gave her a passion for the game, and specifically for the pitch.
"I bugged him to teach me because I never could hit that knuckleball when he would throw it to me in batting practice. He always said it was a secret, but he finally taught me, and we worked on it a lot,'' Chelsea told FanHouse last week after a game. "I love throwing it. My catcher says it's so nasty.''
And the batters can't touch it. Although there are many young girls peppered across America now playing Little League Baseball with the boys, there are only a few who can dominate as Chelsea does.
She has thrown two perfect games within the past year, including one in an All-Star Game. She is unbeaten this season in nine starts, throwing 54 innings and striking out 103 batters while allowing only four runs. She also is hitting .569, playing third base when she doesn't pitch.
"When she first came to me for instruction, I was thinking 'OK, here is a girl I can help,'' said Keith Maxwell, a hitting instructor who played 12 years of professional baseball, including five with the Pittsburgh Pirates organization. "But after two weeks with her, I was like 'wow.' She has an incredible pop in her bat. She isn't just a pitcher. I thought, 'This is probably going to be the first girl to play Major League Baseball.' And I don't say that lightly.''
She already is being recruited to play for the Sparks, a girls baseball team based in the Northeast that tours nationally playing against the best boys teams in the country.
Chelsea, average size for a 12-year-old girl, is unusually athletic with a powerful arm and a fastball that comes close to 70 mph. Yet it's Niekro's knuckleball, and the passion he sparked, that makes her so special.
It's why in the fall, when her sixth-grade history assignment was to do a project on "Someone Who Changed The World,'' she selected Joe Niekro as her topic. She already had all his old baseball cards. She had several pictures of her and him on the baseball field together.
"I got an A on the project. The teacher told us it had to be about someone you felt strongly about,'' she said. "And I knew how famous Coach Joe was. I miss him. I remember before every game I pitched, I had to give him a kiss on the cheek before he'd give me the ball.''
Niekro pitched 22 seasons in the major leagues for seven different teams. He won 221 games. He and his brother Phil Niekro combined for 539 wins, the most of any brother tandem in history. Chelsea knows all those numbers now.
She is the one who wrote the moving passage that was used as part of Niekro's obituary tribute. It brought friends and family members to tears.
"Coach Joe taught me so much in the few short years I new (sic) him. He taught me how to have pride in myself, and to be humble. Most of all, he taught me to throw his famous knuckle ball. . . . . I miss seeing him . . . . . . and his happy face at the ballpark. I will always remember and love you. – CHELSEA BAKER.''
It was also Chelsea who came to the funeral viewing services and left a baseball in Niekro's open casket. And it wasn't just any baseball, either. It was a scuffed baseball, with four tiny and barely visible fingernail marks along the seams, exactly where he taught her to grip it.
"He taught me how to hold it like this,'' she demonstrated last week. "I usually wait until I have two strikes. They can't hit it. He told me that's how it would be.''
She is merely a seventh-grader, but watching her pitch or watching her play, or hearing her speak about Niekro, she seems much older. For all her accomplishments -- she will make her sixth consecutive All-Star team in Plant City -- she is surprisingly humble.
Some of her teachers at Turkey Creek Middle School don't even know she plays baseball. Most of the boys do, because they've been playing against her for several years, accepting her as one of the best. It's when she travels, as the only girl in her league, that occasionally she hears remarks about her being a girl. Mostly it's from the grandstands, from other parents.
"I still hear parents from other teams say, 'When is she going to start playing softball?' '' said stepfather Rod Mason, who helps coach her team now. "And it kind of ticks me off. So I usually just say, 'When she stops striking out your little Johnny.' ''
Mason and wife Missy have followed Chelsea's baseball from the start. She started with baseball because that's what Mason's sons played. And she just happened to be so good at it.
"I've had other parents tell me now that they couldn't get their girls to practice until they saw Chelsea play,'' Mason said. "I think her success will help other girls. She's just so unbelievably focused. I never ask her to practice. But she always comes to me.''
Home-plate umpires often come to Steve Gude, manager of her team now, and apologize for missing calls when Chelsea pitches. Her knuckleball often darts out and back into the strike zone when she keeps it low -- like Coach Joe taught her.
Joe never taught her this trick, but it's one she can do if you ask. She can stand out in center field -- and her arm is so strong -- she can throw a knuckleball all the way to home plate, giggling as it flutters through the air.
"Joe was really good to her,'' Mason said. "He went out of his way to help her. He was such a giving guy with all the kids, always willing to help. But I think he knew Chelsea was kind of special."
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