Monday Moaning

Yeah, Monday kind of snuck up on me too...That mid-week holiday threw things out of whack for me...So how's everyone doing out there? How was your weekend? Why am I doing this Q & A shit?

Let me ask you this...Saturday afternoon I took the Little Beeze to see "Brave"...That's what he wanted see, and really, how can you go wrong with a Pixar production...It was good...He liked it...Then after we got home, the Mrs. took our oldest daughter to see the new "Spiderman" movie...So the boys saw "Brave" about a Scottish princess, and the girls saw "Spiderman"...Does that just sound odd to anyone else?

Shit, I had half a mind to take the boy to see "Ted" but the wife would not have been pleased with the shit he would have learned from that one...




Then Sunday night the wife and I watched "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo"...


You know how people always say the book is better then the movie...Well in this case it has to be true...Holy fucking two and a half hours of my life I wish I could get back! Yeah, it had some good moments, and you can tell the story was good, but fucking shit, that movie was slow...My wife read all the books, and she loved them...She didn't crush the movie like me, but I could tell she was let down a bit...Some people can't stand long movies...I don't mind them, if they're good...But this one just kept me waiting...And now I'm still waiting...Totally unsatisfied!

Moving on to sports...Baseball is heading into the All-Star break...The All-Star game is Tuesday night, and I think I made it clear last week, that is just a steaming pile of shit...But there is a story in Major League Baseball that people better wake up to...


Yep...The Pittsburgh Pirates...They've been flying the Jolly Roger a lot this year, as the Pirates are 48-37 and in first place of the NL Central...How are the Pirates doing it...Well OF Andrew McCutchen is a big reason, batting .362, with 58 runs, 60 RBI, 18 HR's and 14 Stolen Bases...But he's not alone...2B Neil Walker had a horrible, slow start, but has turned it around and gotten his average up to .291, with 42 runs, 6 HR's and 41 RBI...3B Pedro Alverez who has been a disappointing prospect has also turned it around of late, and has 16 HR's and 50 RBI...

But it isn't just hitting with the Pirates...Their pitching has been outstanding as well...Lead by James McDonald and A.J. Burnett...McDonald with 9 wins, 100 Strikeouts, and 2.37 ERA...And Burnett with 10 wins, 79 Strikeouts, and 3.68 ERA...And the best part about Burnett...The Yankees paid the Pirates to take him off their hands...Clearly the best thing to happen to Burnett was to get the hell out of New York...He's not the first guy to do well...Sign for big money with the Yankees...Not do so well...Get out, and find their old self again...

Then there is the Pirates bullpen anchored by closer Joel Hanrahan, with 23 saves, 4 wins, 35 Strikeouts, and a 2.38 ERA...Hanrahan often being set-up by 35 year old Jason Grilli, who has 1 win, 1 save, 21 holds, 54 strikeouts, and a 1.87 ERA...There's also Juan Cruz with 1 win, 3 saves, 13 holds, 32 strikeouts, and a 2.76 ERA...They also have Brad Lincoln doing middle relief, with a 2.98 ERA, 2 holds, 4 wins, and 52 strikeouts...

To recap, a MVP candidate in McCutchen, with the rest of the lineup starting to find their swings...Strong starting pitching...And possibly an even stronger bullpen...Can they continue to keep it up...Can they keep hold of the NL Central...I think so...I think they have a lot of potential to keep people on their toes for awhile...

Yeah, I'm a Cleveland guy rooting for a Pittsburgh team...Wouldn't it be great to see a Indians vs. Pirates World Series!?! Well not for TV ratings maybe, but fuck them...I'd love it!

That's it for now...Have a week...Oh, and check THIS out...Give your input...

Later, The Beeze.