Molly, that's one of those jokes you throw out there and hope somebody gets, so thanks a lot: apparently The Man from U.N.C.L.E. TV show made a big impression on both of us.
Thanks so much for explaining these concepts. Sure wish I would have received these various gems of advice growing up.
Come to think of it, maybe not knowing or understanding these concepts explain why I don't have a plaque in the Hall of Fame. I have always wondered why I never made it to Cooperstown.
Anyway, now that I am wise to these principles I am going to put them to immediate use and start trying easier to forget that unmitigated disaster in the Oval Office.
I got to hang around professional ballplayers when it was too late to make use of any of their wisdom, which is OK because I didn't have enough physical talent to make use of any of it.
Although learning to keep an even keel as much as possible comes in handy no matter how old you are.
1. Exactly what muscles extend? I've never heard of a muscle doing that. You may be thinking of something else. Ahem.
2. How could you leave out Al Hrabosky? 64-35 lifetime. 95 mph fastball. Helluva reliever. He tried so hard that batters passed out from pure terror. I tried to watch him on TV once and almost wet myself when he took the mound. Just sayin'.
1. If you straighten your arm, didn't you use a muscle? Here's the Google answer on which ones you used:
"The primary muscle for elbow extension (straightening the arm) is the triceps brachii, a three-headed muscle located on the posterior upper arm. It is assisted by the anconeus, a small muscle at the elbow. For wrist and finger extension, the posterior forearm extensors are responsible."
Your triceps, and all other muscles, are only capable of contracting. Your biceps makes your arm bend, your triceps, which oppose the biceps, pulls to straighten it. Not that anyone really cares.
As Ed McMahon used to say when he was sucking up to Johnny Carson, "You are correct, sir!" All muscles contract, and here's what the internet says about that:
"Muscles generally work in pairs known as antagonistic pairs to move bones at joints. Because muscles can only pull (contract) and cannot push, one muscle (the flexor) contracts to bend a joint, while its partner (the extensor) relaxes to allow extension. For example, the biceps contract to bend the elbow, while the triceps relax; to straighten it, the triceps contract, and the biceps relax."
But the point was: trying too hard can make both sets of muscles tense, and yeah, I think we're down to two people giving a shit and that number is dwindling.
OK, now I'm confused which is not unusual. Assuming we still believe things we see on the internet: David McCallum (who was actually Scottish) played Illya Kuryakin on Man From U.N.C.L.E. and Dr. Donald "Ducky" Mallard on NCIS.
Oh Lee, this was so good. I’ve been lucky enough to be around successful ball players but never asked these questions. It makes perfect sense, though. Do what you always do to be successful. The WS—or the Olympics—is not the time to do something different.
And why why why why is Snoop Dogg all over the Olympics? Why?
I was incredibly lucky and none of it was planned: I got interested in playing baseball in my late 30s, knew some players, they took pity on me and I got the best instruction in the world. The fact that I at least attempted play helped me enormously when I started covering the game because I knew how hard some seemingly routine plays actually were. Players appreciated being asked about catching pop flies in the sun or breaking up double plays or the correct mindset at the plate.
Once I started writing about baseball I wanted to share what I was learning with other fans, because if you know what you're watching it gets way more interesting. Glad you enjoyed it.
Speaking of which...
I've got a piece in the works about spring training and what you can see by paying attention to practices. I'll try to get that posted before you go.
And I have no idea why Snoop Dogg is at the Olympics, but my guess is some clueless producer thought Snoop Dogg would attract younger viewers. Generally speaking those of us in the media aren't locked in on what's currently hip.
Or maybe he's just sharing weed with the athletes.
Just watched Dave Roberts give his speech to the team in Camelback Ranch. Talked about playing for “something bigger than ourselves.” I hope he takes his advice.
So I was writing this eloquent and powerful reply, but jumped over to the internet to find out how many championship sports teams have refused a White House invitation (10! and mostly during the last trump administration) and when I came back my eloquent and powerful response was gone. It was so good it would have made you cry!
Anyway, the black and brown team members who don’t want to go can stand up for their black and brown fan base and be heros, or they can go along to get along like the “it’s not that bad” weinies who make up most of the population right now. Here’s a short clip from our subtle friend Jeff Tiedrich:
heroes, that’s what we’re in desperate need of.
no one ever went to bed with fascism and came up smelling like roses.
no one ever said gee, I’m so glad that faceless corporation partnered with Nazis.
fascist regimes come, and fascist regimes go. when this current nightmare finally runs its course, no one is going to say ‘wasn’t it awesome how Paramount slobbered all over Dear Leader’s ass?’
the people we’re going to look back on with admiration are the ones who stood up said ‘take your tinpot authoritarian bullshit and stick it where the sun don’t shine.’
_______________
Mookie Betts or Miguel Rojas, or for that matter, Freddie Freeman or Max Muncy, could stand up for their fans—and the rest of the country—and say they’re not honoring that POS with our presence.
When they went to the White House last year just weeks after Jackie Robinson’s military history had been scrubbed from the government websites in that ridiculous DEI purge, I watched the faces of the people in the room. Many players had pinched, jaw-clenched expressions. Owners, staff had big grins. It was embarrassing.
Yes, I support the players, but it’s the owners and front office who benefit most from the dollars fans pay to support the team. They get to decide what to do with those dollars—pay players or invest elsewhere, or buy a yacht, etc. I can’t give my dollars to Mark Walter and Stan Kasten knowing they support this pustule in the White House. And for crying out loud, where is Magic Johnson and Billie Jean King in all of this?
Sucks to lose something you've written and if you don't already know this one "Control Z" undoes the last thing you did (and in some cases you can just keep hitting it and going further back), but your reply was still powerful and eloquent and if it makes any difference when the political cartoonists were invited to the White House to meet the president (pretty sure it was Reagan) I didn't go for some of the reasons in your reply.
I thought it made us look like assholes to go shake his hand and take pictures with him and it undercut the work we'd been doing that was critical of him.
You've got a good point and I'll be interested to see if any players decline.
Doesn’t anyone remember those vile videos he did in the 80s? Triple ugh.
I attended some Dodger fantasy camps 15-20 years ago and was enthralled by the former players’ instruction. I played a little softball but there is nothing like having Bill Russell teach you how to turn a double play. Wonderful, wonderful memories. And a huge appreciation for how hard this game is.
I look forward to the spring training article. Although this year is going to be bittersweet. I’m not sure I can be a Dodger fan anymore. The team that broke the baseball color barrier is going—with pomp and circumstance—to shake the hand of the biggest racist in the western hemisphere. Turns my stomach. What would Branch Rickey say?
Your comment about Bill Russell teaching you how to turn two brings up a good point: after I talked to a player and repeated what he said, some reader who had never played an inning of baseball would want to argue with me. As I pointed out repeatedly, those readers were not disagreeing with me, they were disagreeing with the players and did they really think they knew more about hitting than George Brett or more about catching than Jason Kendall?
Unfortunately, in way too many cases the answer was yes.
And if this helps: the players are the game and what we love about baseball, not the owners, not the GMs, and when I get around to it I've got a piece about why I generally support the players in any labor dispute.
I'm guessing you're a fan of the players, but they're not the ones deciding to go to the White House; that decision is made by management. And I'm guessing a bunch of the Black and Latin players would prefer not to go.
About your comment that regular Joes argued with you about what real ball players had to say: At my first camp, I was thrilled to meet some of the Brooklyn players including Duke Snider who took me into the cages one day and tried to teach me how to hit. I took zero away from that session because the whole time my head was screaming “It’s Duke Snider! Duke Snider!” Anyway, I was telling this story to a friend at work when I got back and he said, “Oh, Duke Snider can’t teach you how to hit. He’s a natural hitter.” What an idiot. Those Brooklyn guys were terrific and I’m tremendously lucky to have been able to meet them.
Saying someone has a natural swing dismisses all the work they had to put in to make it look "natural."
And while we're talking about idiots: George Brett's son was playing on some kids' team and George was coaching him, went on vacation, came back and his son's swing was all jacked-up. George asked what happened and one of the other coaches "fixed" his son's swing.
Getting instruction from Duke Snider is freaking awesome and I hope you got a picture with him.
You had me at Ilya Kuryakin.
Molly, that's one of those jokes you throw out there and hope somebody gets, so thanks a lot: apparently The Man from U.N.C.L.E. TV show made a big impression on both of us.
Oh yes. My first crush.
I'm assuming you mean Illya, not Napoleon, but both were pretty cool.
Oh yes. Loved me some Illya. (And not the skater)
Thanks so much for explaining these concepts. Sure wish I would have received these various gems of advice growing up.
Come to think of it, maybe not knowing or understanding these concepts explain why I don't have a plaque in the Hall of Fame. I have always wondered why I never made it to Cooperstown.
Anyway, now that I am wise to these principles I am going to put them to immediate use and start trying easier to forget that unmitigated disaster in the Oval Office.
I got to hang around professional ballplayers when it was too late to make use of any of their wisdom, which is OK because I didn't have enough physical talent to make use of any of it.
Although learning to keep an even keel as much as possible comes in handy no matter how old you are.
Okay. I have questions . . .
1. Exactly what muscles extend? I've never heard of a muscle doing that. You may be thinking of something else. Ahem.
2. How could you leave out Al Hrabosky? 64-35 lifetime. 95 mph fastball. Helluva reliever. He tried so hard that batters passed out from pure terror. I tried to watch him on TV once and almost wet myself when he took the mound. Just sayin'.
1. If you straighten your arm, didn't you use a muscle? Here's the Google answer on which ones you used:
"The primary muscle for elbow extension (straightening the arm) is the triceps brachii, a three-headed muscle located on the posterior upper arm. It is assisted by the anconeus, a small muscle at the elbow. For wrist and finger extension, the posterior forearm extensors are responsible."
2. I had to stop somewhere.
Your triceps, and all other muscles, are only capable of contracting. Your biceps makes your arm bend, your triceps, which oppose the biceps, pulls to straighten it. Not that anyone really cares.
As Ed McMahon used to say when he was sucking up to Johnny Carson, "You are correct, sir!" All muscles contract, and here's what the internet says about that:
"Muscles generally work in pairs known as antagonistic pairs to move bones at joints. Because muscles can only pull (contract) and cannot push, one muscle (the flexor) contracts to bend a joint, while its partner (the extensor) relaxes to allow extension. For example, the biceps contract to bend the elbow, while the triceps relax; to straighten it, the triceps contract, and the biceps relax."
But the point was: trying too hard can make both sets of muscles tense, and yeah, I think we're down to two people giving a shit and that number is dwindling.
No you have the wrong Ilya. He was the coroner on NCIS. (Actually same actor.)
OK, now I'm confused which is not unusual. Assuming we still believe things we see on the internet: David McCallum (who was actually Scottish) played Illya Kuryakin on Man From U.N.C.L.E. and Dr. Donald "Ducky" Mallard on NCIS.
Ilia (one "L") Malinin is the skater.
Feel free to have a crush on all three of them.
I’m sad that Ducky is gone
Loved that show!
Glad I brought back a happy memory.
Oh Lee, this was so good. I’ve been lucky enough to be around successful ball players but never asked these questions. It makes perfect sense, though. Do what you always do to be successful. The WS—or the Olympics—is not the time to do something different.
And why why why why is Snoop Dogg all over the Olympics? Why?
I was incredibly lucky and none of it was planned: I got interested in playing baseball in my late 30s, knew some players, they took pity on me and I got the best instruction in the world. The fact that I at least attempted play helped me enormously when I started covering the game because I knew how hard some seemingly routine plays actually were. Players appreciated being asked about catching pop flies in the sun or breaking up double plays or the correct mindset at the plate.
Once I started writing about baseball I wanted to share what I was learning with other fans, because if you know what you're watching it gets way more interesting. Glad you enjoyed it.
Speaking of which...
I've got a piece in the works about spring training and what you can see by paying attention to practices. I'll try to get that posted before you go.
And I have no idea why Snoop Dogg is at the Olympics, but my guess is some clueless producer thought Snoop Dogg would attract younger viewers. Generally speaking those of us in the media aren't locked in on what's currently hip.
Or maybe he's just sharing weed with the athletes.
Seahawks decline invite to White House. That’s what I’m talking about.
Just watched Dave Roberts give his speech to the team in Camelback Ranch. Talked about playing for “something bigger than ourselves.” I hope he takes his advice.
So I was writing this eloquent and powerful reply, but jumped over to the internet to find out how many championship sports teams have refused a White House invitation (10! and mostly during the last trump administration) and when I came back my eloquent and powerful response was gone. It was so good it would have made you cry!
Anyway, the black and brown team members who don’t want to go can stand up for their black and brown fan base and be heros, or they can go along to get along like the “it’s not that bad” weinies who make up most of the population right now. Here’s a short clip from our subtle friend Jeff Tiedrich:
heroes, that’s what we’re in desperate need of.
no one ever went to bed with fascism and came up smelling like roses.
no one ever said gee, I’m so glad that faceless corporation partnered with Nazis.
fascist regimes come, and fascist regimes go. when this current nightmare finally runs its course, no one is going to say ‘wasn’t it awesome how Paramount slobbered all over Dear Leader’s ass?’
the people we’re going to look back on with admiration are the ones who stood up said ‘take your tinpot authoritarian bullshit and stick it where the sun don’t shine.’
_______________
Mookie Betts or Miguel Rojas, or for that matter, Freddie Freeman or Max Muncy, could stand up for their fans—and the rest of the country—and say they’re not honoring that POS with our presence.
When they went to the White House last year just weeks after Jackie Robinson’s military history had been scrubbed from the government websites in that ridiculous DEI purge, I watched the faces of the people in the room. Many players had pinched, jaw-clenched expressions. Owners, staff had big grins. It was embarrassing.
Yes, I support the players, but it’s the owners and front office who benefit most from the dollars fans pay to support the team. They get to decide what to do with those dollars—pay players or invest elsewhere, or buy a yacht, etc. I can’t give my dollars to Mark Walter and Stan Kasten knowing they support this pustule in the White House. And for crying out loud, where is Magic Johnson and Billie Jean King in all of this?
I swear, the first reply was better.
Sucks to lose something you've written and if you don't already know this one "Control Z" undoes the last thing you did (and in some cases you can just keep hitting it and going further back), but your reply was still powerful and eloquent and if it makes any difference when the political cartoonists were invited to the White House to meet the president (pretty sure it was Reagan) I didn't go for some of the reasons in your reply.
I thought it made us look like assholes to go shake his hand and take pictures with him and it undercut the work we'd been doing that was critical of him.
You've got a good point and I'll be interested to see if any players decline.
I love Jeff, nothing is left to one's imagination!
Doesn’t anyone remember those vile videos he did in the 80s? Triple ugh.
I attended some Dodger fantasy camps 15-20 years ago and was enthralled by the former players’ instruction. I played a little softball but there is nothing like having Bill Russell teach you how to turn a double play. Wonderful, wonderful memories. And a huge appreciation for how hard this game is.
I look forward to the spring training article. Although this year is going to be bittersweet. I’m not sure I can be a Dodger fan anymore. The team that broke the baseball color barrier is going—with pomp and circumstance—to shake the hand of the biggest racist in the western hemisphere. Turns my stomach. What would Branch Rickey say?
Your comment about Bill Russell teaching you how to turn two brings up a good point: after I talked to a player and repeated what he said, some reader who had never played an inning of baseball would want to argue with me. As I pointed out repeatedly, those readers were not disagreeing with me, they were disagreeing with the players and did they really think they knew more about hitting than George Brett or more about catching than Jason Kendall?
Unfortunately, in way too many cases the answer was yes.
And if this helps: the players are the game and what we love about baseball, not the owners, not the GMs, and when I get around to it I've got a piece about why I generally support the players in any labor dispute.
I'm guessing you're a fan of the players, but they're not the ones deciding to go to the White House; that decision is made by management. And I'm guessing a bunch of the Black and Latin players would prefer not to go.
Time will tell.
About your comment that regular Joes argued with you about what real ball players had to say: At my first camp, I was thrilled to meet some of the Brooklyn players including Duke Snider who took me into the cages one day and tried to teach me how to hit. I took zero away from that session because the whole time my head was screaming “It’s Duke Snider! Duke Snider!” Anyway, I was telling this story to a friend at work when I got back and he said, “Oh, Duke Snider can’t teach you how to hit. He’s a natural hitter.” What an idiot. Those Brooklyn guys were terrific and I’m tremendously lucky to have been able to meet them.
Saying someone has a natural swing dismisses all the work they had to put in to make it look "natural."
And while we're talking about idiots: George Brett's son was playing on some kids' team and George was coaching him, went on vacation, came back and his son's swing was all jacked-up. George asked what happened and one of the other coaches "fixed" his son's swing.
Getting instruction from Duke Snider is freaking awesome and I hope you got a picture with him.