I’m surprised that the 2 campaigns have done so well in online fundraising, yet still don’t quite get the concept of permission marketing. (See Seth Godin for more info on this concept.)

Baseball fans have to endure interruption marketing between innings. But, they expect to see beer commercials and promos for the latest shows on Fox. They tolerate it in exchange for a free couch seat for the Fall Classic.

What they don’t expect, and thus haven’t given permission, is to endure campaign commercials. Even worse, Obama is going to delay game 6 so he can buy 30 minutes of network air time.

I’ve decided that as punishment for last night’s interruption of the World Series by the 2 campaigns, we should interrupt the inauguration with an impromptu Whiffle Ball game. Drop me a note if you would like to play a little Whiffle Ball in D.C. next January.

Carry on, Citizens!

… and 1 Reason to Sign up for Twitter.

1) It’s a nice escape from the election. (Or so I thought until the campaign commercials invaded the WS experience. I’m calling them both Un-American for that, and no I’m not going to apologize or take it back. If Obama and McCain want to mess with baseball and not give us a few hours peace, they’re going to feel my wrath!)

2) The Rays have never been to the World Series.

3) The Phillies have Jamie Moyer. (I got to meet Jamie when he was pitching for the Mariners and he later comped my family tickets for an Inter league game against the Padres. So, I’m a little biased.)

And the reason you should join the Twitter Universe, posts like this by bearcrawling (bearcrawling.com): “Hey my proctologist gave me a whole new meaning to stimulus check.”

Carry on, Citizens!

I am officially calling shenanigans on the Obama Campaign.  I’m asking all baseball fans to unite to defeat the menace that is Barack Obama.  I don’t care about his policies, his associations, or his complete lack of experience. What I do care about, and every American should join me in this, is his willingness to defame an American institution.  Of course, I’m talking about the World Series.

Barack Obama has accumulated more campaign money than any other Presidential candidate in history. It’s obscene enough that this money isn’t going to agencies who could be helping the poor during this economic crisis, but he’s actually buying a half hour in prime time to talk (down) to the American people. And not just during any prime time -if the World Series goes 6 games, it will be delayed by Obama’s speech. They claim it will be delayed only 8 minutes, but it’s the principle not the time that offends me. (more…)

100 years is a long time to wait. For Cubs fans, the wait will be longer. After posting 97 wins and the best record in the National League, the Cubs were swept by the Dodgers last night. Many fans believe that the curse began in 1945 and is related to a billy goat. They’re wrong. I believe they’ve been cursed since the 1918 World Series. Many baseball historians believe the Cubs threw the 1918 Series a year before the south siders did it in the famous Black Sox scandal. Some scholars even believe that some Cubs players may have given the Sox the idea.

Regardless of which version you believe, I can tell you for certain the origin of the 20 year Dodger curse: Me. Yes, I cursed the Dodgers right after the final out of the 1988 World Series. I couldn’t stand the sight of the ball leaving Kirk Gibson’s bat and Dennis Eckersley watching it sail over the wall at Chavez Ravine. Over and over and over again I’ve had to watch that highlight. It was a deep wound.

Three years ago, I made peace with the Dodgers. I even went through the cathartic process of writing a novel about them. So, the curse has been lifted. And the Dodgers just might win the World Series this year. As for the Cubs, there’s no telling when that one will end.

Carry on, Citizens!

I boycotted my usual baseball playoff post last night, in favor of the Druid story.  I had to mount some sort of protest to Bud Selig’s latest bastardization of the game: the Twins/White Sox 1 game playoff. No offense to White Sox fans, but no way that game should have been played in Chicago. In fact it shouldn’t have been played at all. The Twins won the regular season series between the two. They should have been in. At the very least, they should have hosted the game.

It’s been a crazy baseball season. The Rays are in the playoffs and yet the earth didn’t spin off its axis. The Cubs are in the playoffs and Steve Bartman has been ordered by a federal judge to not come within 1000 yards of Wrigley Field. Joe Torre is back in the playoffs, but as the manager of the Dodgers. The Brewers fired their manager 2 weeks ago, and are still in the playoffs!

Anything could happen in October, but I’m still sticking by my mid-season prediction of a Brewers/Angels World Series. I know the Brewers lost today, but they seem to thrive on adversity. I love the playoffs, but I need them to end quickly. I have a baseball novel to finish!

Carry on, Citizens!

The Milwaukee Brewers fired Manager Ned Yost today.  Under Yost, the Brewers enjoyed some of their best seasons since 1992. I can see the Yankees not being satisfied with second place and a shot at the wild card, but the Brewers?  Come on these guys haven’t been in the playoffs since 1982. If you haven’t been to the post season since I was in middle school, you don’t have a winning tradition. You should be counting your blessings.
Anyway, my condolences to Brewers fans. Hey, at least the Packers are 2-0!

Carry on, Citizens!

In a stunning proclamation during his Democratic Convention acceptance speech, Barack Obama promised to end one of America’s greatest injustices. Overlooked by most of the media as they dissect his energy, tax, and foreign policies was a nod to one of the causes I have championed tirelessly for years on this blog. It’s time for the Citizen’s to rejoice, because Obama will overturn the most evil policy faux pas of the previous administration.

That’s right. He’s going to end Interleague play. No longer will fans be subjected to the Reds vs the Royals. No longer will Yankee fans suffer the misery of watching the Nationals. And in San Diego, rejoicing fans are pondering a future without ever having to watch the Orioles bring the their sad product to Petco Park. Now if we can just get Bud Selig tried for crimes against humanity…

Carry on, Citizens!

SI.com has the epilogue from the new paperback version of Game of Shadows.

I love this excerpt because it cofirms the Bobble Head Barry accusations I’ve been making for the past couple of years:

“For his part, Murphy could document Bonds’ physical changes via the changes in his uniform size. Since joining the Giants, Bonds had gone from a size 42 to a size 52 jersey; from size 10 ½ to size 13 cleats; and from a size 7 1/8 to size 7 ¼ cap, even though he had taken to shaving his head.”

See, I told you!

Carry on, Citizens!