The High Heat

Let me clarify: Brien Taylor was not in a bar fight during the offseason of his second profession year in the minors. His brother was, though, and came home bloodied. Brien went to the assailant's mobile home to even the score. He swung wildly at a dude, missed, and destroyed the contents of his pitching shoulder. Dr. Jobe said he'd never seen such a violent injury on an athlete. This guy is from about an hour from where I reside and is a year younger than me (though graduated two years after I did). During the local hype leading up to the '91 draft I remember seeing his pitching highlights

http://www.witn.com/home/headlines/Former_MLB_Draft_Pick_Busted_On_Cocaine_Charges_141100363.html Former #1 overall draft pick Brien Taylor (Yankees) busted on drug dealing charges. And I thought breaking his pitching shoulder in a bar fight was stupid!

A.J. Burnett claimed to his new teammates that he could teach them all how to properly bunt. The newly acquired Pirates pitcher promptly fouled the ball off his face, breaking his orbital bone. He's having surgery today.

Deeper Down is the only song I've ever seen completely bomb at a Wilco show, so I'd vote to retire the tune.

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20120229&content_id=26916438&vkey=news_mlb&c_id=mlb Ladies and gentlemen, Giancarlo Stanton. Call him "Young Stud" either way.

When a new album comes out I'll play it to death, getting to know all the songs. While I'll occasionally play whole albums, mostly I play Wilco mixes on cd in the car or just shuffle the iPod at work. I make several mixed CDs a year to mix up the mix-ups.

He's a member, sometimes.

You just want him to say he has herpes, don't you? Braun is supposed to hold a press conference today to tell his story.

How about a story about Wilco's top 10 radio hit? You said fiction.

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20120223&content_id=26813960&vkey=news_mlb&c_id=mlb Ryan Braun exonerated, will not be suspended.

The grand olde thread hit 1000! Should we send something to the Hall of Fame to celebrate?

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20120220&content_id=26764090&vkey=news_mlb&c_id=mlb Mo Rivera likely to retire at season's end.

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20120218&content_id=26744182&vkey=news_mlb&c_id=mlb A's to sign Manny. Also Yanks traded Burnett to the Pirates and signed Ibanez to DH.

Bush paid $600K ($500K borrowed) for 2% ownership of the Rangers and later sold it for almost $15M.

Do you ever reminisce about shoe laces and lucky pennies?

It's not quite time, but the only place I'd check out in L.A. would be Dodger Stadium.

They come off? Really? 'Cause I've pulled and tugged and rubbed and no matter how much they move, they've never come off for me! I'll have to try more moisture next time.

http://espn.go.com/m...making-comeback Dmitri Young has dedicated himself to being healthy, has dropped over 70 pounds, and is attempting a comeback at age 38. If he could hit at nearly 300 lbs, he damn sure can hit at 230. 2008 2012

Dang! I must have missed that or completely forgot, but thanks. I just looked it up. Wily Mo will earn $2.5M plus incentives per season. Smart move!

On top of having a movie made about him, Beane just received a contract extension. If he made a mistake on Cespedes, then the only sequel he'll need to worry about is how he can work around it. If Cespedes pans out, most likely he's a trade piece after two years. And Wily Mo hit one into the waterfall in Kansas City last summer. He tears up AAA, but can't handle MLB. At this point he ought to try Japan. He could get at least one year big money year out of it, more than one if he can handle it (which I doubt since it's a breaking ball league).

From John Sickels of The Baseball Prospect Book: What are the Athletics getting with Cespedes? He's a 26-year-old right-handed hitter and thrower, born October 10, 1985, listed at 5-11, 215 pounds. He's rated as a complete talent: power, speed, glove: he has it all, at least in raw form. He has been a Serie Nacional star in Cuba for the last eight seasons, and owns the single-season home run record. Scouts on the international circuit have been following him for years, so he's not an unknown quantity who came out of nowhere. Power is his best hitting attribute: rated 70 on the 20/80 scouti

Maybe it's not his hat, but one from the Grammy coat closet for "those in need."

Making contact.

Have you seen his hair "styles" the past year or two?

http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/7570918/yoenis-cespedes-agrees-4-year-36-million-deal-oakland-athletics The A's sign Cuban sensation Cespedes. Also, the Yankees are trying trade A.J. Burnett to the Pirates.