Who Wins in the Manny Trade?

Manny Ramirez got his wish and was traded from the Boston Red Sox today before the trading deadline. I was a bit surprised, because his antics in Boston are not that new, but this time he really got on the nerves of the front office and they made a big deal today. In the three team deal, Los Angeles, the Dodgers, received Manny. In return they sent two prospects to the Pittsburgh Pirates, who also received two prime prospects from the Red Sox. The Pirates sent their best player, Jason Bay, to the Red Sox.

The Dodgers will get a lot of offense from Manny and will probably be in the playoffs. The Pirates got four players for one, two of whom are very highly regarded! The Red Sox got rid of a problem child–who can really hit. But they may not reach the playoffs. The big winner in the deal seems to me to be the Tampa Bay Rays, who should pull away from Boston in the AL East race!

A Day At Dad’s

Dad called early this week to let me know that he had just finished digging the ‘taters in his back yard garden. He harvested 167 pounds of new potatoes. I had to get down to his place, about sixty miles away, before all my siblings and dad’s neighbors had taken them all. So we went today.

Dad loves to dig in the dirt and his yard is a showplace almost all year round. He still has poinsettias as tall as the eaves of his house, which have been blooming since November. The amaryllis, the Confederate roses, the larkspur, the hidden ginger lilies, the esperanza and the gladiolas all are in bloom. But the real jaw dropping beauty is in his day lilies. Dad has over 300 different varieties of day lily. He colors are amazing. People in the community often stop to take pictures. My secretary goes through the town where Dad lives when she is on the way to visit her mother. She loves to take a three block detour to see what is going on in Dad’s garden.

To add to the joy of the day, my grandsons took their ball gloves so they could play while we visited. As we loaded up, I threw in a couple of gloves as well. As I suspected, the boys asked Dad if he would play catch with them. He said he did not have a glove anymore. I told him I had a couple in the car, if he was up to playing. We went out and threw the ball around for a half an hour. Before long Dad was telling the guys how to turn their gloves and to use two hands, and to get right in front of the ball. It sure brought back memories of the thousands of days he said those things to me when I was the age my grandsons are now!

Tejada Has BAAAD Day

I can’t imagine a much worse day than that had by Miguel Tejada on Tuesday. it began with the announcement that Congress wants the Justice Department to investigate whether Tejada had lied to federal investigators in the steroid investigation. Then later came word that Miguel’s older brother, 37, had been killed in a motorcycle/SUV collision.

It must have been hard to accept all that bad news.

Bonds Back?

I am not a Barry Bonds fan, so I was not unhappy last week when I learned that the San Francisco Giants have decided not to bring the slugger back next season. But it would be too good to be true to think that he will not get any offers to become a DH for some AL team. I can always hope!

My Friend’s Grandson

My friend’s grandson is a relief pitcher. He plays the outfield some, but he was not in the line up last night when my wife and I went to see the Bay Area Toros play. The team got beat 8-4, but it was a pleasant night, not too hot, and it reminded me of days gone by when I watched a lot of local baseball. We had a good time.