It's not all that often that I get my blood pressure truly spiked watching the games. Comes with having done it so long I suppose. But I assure you I am very human in that regard, I'm not like Spock on Star Trek. My temper will flare as my wife would tell you. Last night was such a night. Had a nice night hitting 2 of 3 but frankly it should have been a sweep. I took Oakland at Texas as a decent priced dog and they blew the two run lead in extra innings. What I mean to say is once again, I watched as a pen did a complete melt down. I remember when Axeford was actually a good reliever. I was griping this morning to my friends some about it. Of course they remember the days when starters were actually expected to go deep into games on a regular basis and yes, if you can imagine, pitch a complete game. Now it is all about getting a quality start and complete games are becoming almost extinct. Bob Gibson must get physically ill watching some of these games. We have a couple of guys at the table who join us that play on our softball team and don't even recall those days. They think this is just the way it's always been. Not quite. Relief pitchers can give us ulcers. Last night when they brought in Rzepczynski and he hit Odor to walk in the winning run I about hurled something at the TV. Unreal.
Other topic this morning was the Olympics and the mens basketball team. Everyone thinks they will roll and I think when push comes to shove they will bring home the gold. Austrailia is no joke guys. One of our buddies used to play pro ball down under, for one year, and said don't be surprised if they are a problem. Lot of americans take the gold for granted here. I just don't take much of anything for granted anymore.
Nice to see the Cardinals win last night in Houston. I'm telling you, they are not done this year. With Marinez taking the ball today they can easily get another one down there. And nice to see the Royals showing some salt. They are being a pain in the ass to the Tigers right now. I think one of the best things that could happen to Ventura was watching Danny Duffy emerge. Ventura is a cocky little twerp and has always been coddled and told he was the future ace of the Royals staff. I think it all went to his head. Now Duffy, who has the opposite personality is getting it all to come together and Ventura is observing and seeing the light. Maybe it's not actually all about him. Interesting to see how they both conclude their seasons.
That was pretty much it for today. I just wonder what reliever where will blow up his team tonight. Have a great day guys and best of luck. If you have any relief pitching thoughts, or lack thereof, feel free to share.