No witty insight or well-researched commentary today (“or ever!” the readership cry), but just some fun video footage, of baseball way back in the mists of time. Funny to spot the differences with today’s sport, and to spot the similarities – baseball is more aware of its history and heritage than most sports, after all. Enjoy!
…or so says his old team-mate Carlos Tevez, who made quite the attack on him via a radio interview for ESPN Argentina. Gary Neville had stated that Tevez wasn’t worth the money, following his move from Manchester United to Manchester City.
In Tuesday night’s Carling Cup semi-final, first leg, Tevez gestured to Neville, after scoring his first goal. Neville wittily responded by raising his middle finger. In a radio interview Tevez explained:
“My celebration was directed at Gary Neville. He acted like a complete sock-sucker [boot-licker] when he said I wasn’t worth £25m, just to suck up to the manager. I don’t know what the hell that idiot is talking about me for. I never said anything about him.”
Well, I think Tevez will have won himself a fair few new fans for sticking it to Gary Neville, not one of the most popular players in the UK. He may well have some unexpected fans in the red half of Merseyside, who have been known to call Gary Neville far worse things than a ‘sock-sucker’.
While this is a case of ‘handbags at dawn’, it is good to see a little bit of proper antagonism between the two sides. It certainly sets things up for a lively return leg at Old Trafford next week.
In the meantime, let’s hope ‘sock sucker’ enters common use. It’s handy as it sounds like something else that is quite a bit ruder. Just like when they dubbed a TV version of Beverly Hills Cop, so that ‘motherf***er’ became ‘melon farmer’. Great stuff.
Generally football is a fluid game, continually in motion. It does not pause for any length of time. It is also a team activity. There are, of course, moments of individual skill, but rarely do we see a one against one situation, like we might see between a batsman and bowler in cricket.
But here is the waiting. That rare, dramatic waiting. Here is that one-on-one.
A penalty has been given. Manchester City can equalise. Carlos Tevez stands passively. And waits.
His former Manchester United team-mates argue with the referee, but as always with these matters, the decision stands. Tevez’s soon-to-be-opponent, Edwin van der Sar, slowly takes a drink and deliberately wipes his gloves, anything to stall proceedings. Anything to knock Tevez’s concentration, or nerve. The referee waves a yellow card in the goalkeeper’s direction.
The referee signals – let battle commence. City’s new hero against his old colleagues. The spurned sportsman with a chance to show United what they are missing. To bring one side of the city joy, the other agony.
Van der Sar stands tall. A lot less of the target is visible. He stretches his arms out, much more a crucifix pose than an open welcome to shoot.
Tevez stands passively. He then hears the referee’s whistle.
A hop, skip, shuffle to the side. Wayne Rooney, his old striking partner, speaks, another attempt at distraction. Tevez refuses to listen. He begins his run-up, an arch towards the ball. Not too fast, but steady, determined.
And then.
THWACK.
Straight down the middle. Straight past van der Sar. Never stood a chance. Never any doubt. Emphatic.
Tevez reels away. His clenched fists reveal only controlled emotion – not release, not relief. Not yet.
One apiece. Manchester City are back in the game.
My baseball winter hasn’t been as chronicled as closely as I might have initially hoped. Apologies dear readers. I’ve been trying to keep up, but failing miserably to actually record anything. Oh, the woe of a lazy blogger, eh? Still, I’ve been reading, online and off, and as mentioned previously even had a go at scoring a game or two. If I actually get around to scanning the scoresheets I’ll finally write about that soon. But what can I say? I’ve been busy, writing silly posts about hot toddies and in real-life making my annual pantomime appearance. But that’s another story for another time.
So, baseball. That’s what you thought you’d be reading about, right? Rather than all this waffling? Still here? Wow.
One super-duper obvious way of immersing myself in baseball is the myriad sites that pervade this here internet. There’s a wealth of information, insight and commentary. But sometimes, I’d like a little less statistics and seriousness and a little more silliness. Because (and keep this under your hat), I’m a little silly. And a great way into a sport’s soul is to explore its silliness. Like with people, you learn a lot when their guard is down. When it comes to sport, and people, if there’s no fun, it ain’t worth it.
First off, there’s this great video, of Dock Ellis explaining how he pitched a no-hitter, whilst under the influence of LSD, with some wacky accompanying visuals. But remember, don’t try this at home kids! This has been all over the web, but I’ll thank BaseballGB and The Daily Something, in particular, for flagging it up, and being two of my “go to” sites this Winter.
And secondly, something rather special. Compiling statistics may be engrossing, enlightening and all those things, but essentially they can be pretty dry. And rarely silly. Until now, where the Wezen-Ball blog has combined two of my favourite things, baseball and the Peanuts cartoons, to calculate Charlie Brown’s wins, losses and other stats. Now that is my kind of statistical analysis. A real treat.
I shall continue my exploration of the absurd, the comical and the strange in baseball, and may well even keep you abreast of developments. I should be a little more reliable, right? Anyway, what silly stuff have you come across (baseball or not) recently?
Yesterday I advocated feasting, not fasting this chilly January. And I thought I’d continue on my crusade to make my readers a little more cosy by discussing the King of all hot drinks…the hot toddy.
Last week my Significant Other was feeling a little poorly, and so the kind man that I am, I offered to fix her drink to soothe her throat and fight off the cold. To make sure she was fully at ease with the concoction, I made myself one too. I’m good like that.
What a drink. So good, it’s probably worth catching a cold for. The perfect warming, calming drink when you retreat from the cold outside. And that is a key element – this is very much a drink for when you return, not for when you head out. Mainly because, if made right, you’ll be in no state of mind to venture out to brave the elements.
There are a multitude of recipes for a hot toddy, of course, but I try to keep it simple. Cinnamon and cloves are fantastic if you get it right, horrid if not. So, let’s play it safe. Here’s the quick and easy toddy recipe. In fact, calling it a recipe is a little grand. It’s just stuff to make a drink. Ready?
Ingredients:
Method:
Er, stick all the ingredients in, hot water last, and give it a good stir. Drink. Repeat as necessary. Or until you fall asleep. Sleep is good if you’ve got a cold, multiplying the benefits of this drink further. Hell, it’s good to sleep anyway. I don’t buy all that “eight hours a night will kill you” bunk. It’s cold out. I want a good night’s sleep.
Anyway, give it a try. Any alternatives for a good drink on a cold night most welcome!
Wait until next year 