Rickey don't like no wasps or movies!
A few thoughts after a day of a little work, some Everybody Loves Raymond, and "saving" the family from a wasp that got in the house:
- In case you've never had the privelege of killing a wasp, it's quite the chore, as they'd probably make for a good way to fight the terrorists. My weapon of choice? So many rolled up newspapers that it resembled a club. I hit the wasp once after it landed on a wall, which did absolutely nothing; it flew away and landed on a recliner. I think I pounded the bug (which was apparently wearing body armor and an FBI bulletproof vest) three times while it was on the chair (four times total) and at that point I'd only severely wounded the damn thing to where I could shovel it onto a sheet of the newspaper and toss it outside to go bother somebody else. Sick enough of those on Osama Bin Laden, and Captain Turban wouldn't have a chance in hell of escaping.
- I watched Saw on Sunday afternoon, and it's one hell of a good movie. The acting's a little cheesy and the plot has plenty of holes in it (If you're chained to a pipe and have a gun and one bullet, why don't you shoot the chain?), but the story is original and the plot takes a severe right turn in the final 30 seconds. Some people don't like films that make them think they have everything figured out and then take a twist, but I love 'em. And if you're like me, the ending will leave you shocked and generally terrified. It's a solid flick, and a must-buy for me when it hits DVD.
- While I was watching Saw, the Chiefs and Colts were busy putting the finishing touches on arguably the most exciting game of this still-young NFL season, a track meet that yielded a combined 80 points and 1,095 yards. Fortunately, this time the Chiefs came out on top, although a regular season win definitely doesn't atone for the 38-31 playoff loss at the hands of the Colts in January. Both games were a lot of fun to watch, mostly because of the incredible Peyton Manning. I continue to be amazed at how the Colts' offense almost never huddles up, which maintains their momentum and prevents the defense from making very many substitutions. It's a strategy that makes sense if your quarterback, linemen, backs and receivers communicate well with each other, and I have to wonder why more teams don't use the hurry-up offense like Indy does.
One interesting note from the game: The Chiefs racked up 590 yards of total offense, which means they essentially covered the football field six times. They put six touchdowns on the board along with one Lawrence Tynes field goal. The Colts picked up the remainder, which would be 505 yards, or roughly five times covering the entire field. They scored five touchdowns. I don't know if there's anything to this trend in particular, but it'd be something interesting to research. We know that yards allowed and scores allowed are generally related, which is why Greg Robinson's defensive strategies were so flawed. It isn't okay to give up a lot of yards in between the 20s "as long as you stop them from scoring." If a football team's giving up a lot of yards but no points, they've either been lucky or extremely opportunistic by creating turnovers. Either way, the floodgates are bound to open, just as they did with last year's Chiefs team.
- Believe it or not, Rickey Henderson's still playing professional, organized baseball, and at last report didn't even need a walker (Rickey don't need no walker!) or be fed applesauce by a nurse at the seventh inning stretch (If Rickey's gonna be fed by a nurse, Rickey's nurse had better be a hot nurse!). But all jokes aside, Henderson played 91 games for the Newark Bears in the independent Northern League, and tore stuff up to the tune of a .281/.462/.436 hitting line. In addition, Rickey stole 37 bases and was caught only twice, a success rate that would make Carlos Beltran proud.
Rickey's going to be 46 years old on Christmas Day, and while I admire his perseverance and desire to keep playing baseball at some level, I wish he'd just hang 'em up so baseball can put him in the Hall of Fame as soon as possible. Sure, that .462 on-base percentage he put up last year is incredible, but check out his batting averages in MLB since 1998:
Year AVG 1998 .236 1999 .315 2000 .233 2001 .227 2002 .223 2003 .208
Many of you who're reading this either know me personally or know me through my writing, so you're undoubtedly familiar with the fact that I just don't use batting averages as a tool to evaluate the abilities of hitters. However, it's pretty clear what's happened to Rickey's ability to make contact, and 1999 sticks out like a sore thumb. The only value Rickey provides a major league team with is his ability to draw walks (which he still does very well) which has essentially been negated by his inability to avoid outs. He has 3,000 hits, the all-time runs scored record, and is second all-time in walks. That's a great career by one of the most special talents anyone's ever seen. My hope is that he doesn't completely embarass himself so baseball fans can remember him as the great player he was, not the washed-up has-been who didn't know when to quit.