Tag Archives: MLB

31 bars will be open late for the MLB All-Star Game

7 sushi

These 31 bars and adult venues have a special license to stay open until 4 a.m. on the last day of MLB All-Star Game festivities in anticipation of a baseball-fueled blitz of nighttime business.

The Minnesota Legislature gave the bars (and adult venues, denoted with an *) a special dispensation. The extended hours only apply from noon on July 15 to the wee hours of July 16.

The 508 Bar & Restaurant—508 First Ave. N.
Seven Steakhouse Sushi Ultralounge Skybar—700 Hennepin Ave.
Aqua Nightclub—400 First Ave. N.
Augie’s Cabaret*— 424 Hennepin Ave.
Bar Fly—711 Hennepin Ave.
Brother’s Bar & Grill—430 First Ave. N.
Brave New Workshop Comedy Theatre—824 Hennepin Ave.
The Capital Grille—801 Hennepin Ave.
Cowboy Jacks—126 Fifth St. N.
Club New York—10 Fifth St. S.
Devil’s Advocate—89 10th St. S.
Downtown Cabaret*—115 Fourth St. S.
The Executive Lounge*—418 Third Ave. N.
Firelake Grill House—31 Seventh St. S.
First Avenue—701 First Ave. N.
The Grand Hotel—615 Second Ave. S.
Hyatt Regency Minneapolis—1300 Nicollet Mall
Hubert’s Sports Bar—600 First Ave. N.
Kieran’s Irish Pub—85 Sixth St. N.
The Local—931 Nicollet Mall
The Loon Cafe—500 First Ave. N.
Marin Restaurant & Bar—901 Hennepin Ave.
Millenium Hotel—1313 Nicollet Mall
The Pourhouse—10 Fifth St. S.
Rick’s Cabaret*—300 Third St. S.
The Seville Club*—15 Glenwood Ave.
The Shout House—650 Hennepin Ave.
Solera Restaurant & Event Center—900 Hennepin Ave.
Spades Nightclub—322 First Ave. N.
Uncle Bucks—26 Fifth St. N.

via

Four Year Old with leukemia sings ‘God Bless America’

Darla Holloway, a four-year-old from the Jimmy Fund, sings God Bless America during the seventh-inning stretch at Fenway Park.

Prepare to weep.

Rays baseball sign

Wow. Just wow.

Rays baseball
(via)

Duck Duck Gray Duck Facebook

Play Ball!

baseball
(via MLB)

Foul ball shagging like a boss

Baseball fan effortlessly catches a fly ball at a game while talking on the phone.

fly ball
(via The Whatever)

Other hilarious baseball stuff

R.A. Dickey’s knuckleball in slow motion

I still can’t believe this dude was a Twin and they couldn’t get the best out of him.

RA Dickey

(via)

Related:
Hunter Pence bat breaking in slow motion
Eddie Vedder a Twins Fan?

Toronto Blue Jays close in on R.A. Dickey trade with New York Mets: Griffin (thestar.com)

Strange but True Baseball Injuries

Strange but True Baseball Injuries

These are true injuries suffered by baseball players.

Infielder Chris Brown missed a game because he “slept on his eye funny”.

Pitcher Adam Eaton stabbed himself in the stomach as he was using a knife to open a DVD wrapper.

Sammy Sosa was disabled after a violent sneeze.

Pitcher Jeff Juden missed a start because a tattoo he got prior to the season opener got infected.

Reliever Randy Flores was put on the disabled list – while removing his socks after a game, a large patch of skin also came off.

DH Mickey Tettleton went on the disabled list with athlete’s foot. The story is that he tied his shoes too tight.

Utility infielder Bret Barberie missed a game because he mistakenly rubbed chili juice in his eyes.

Pitcher Ricky Bones injured his lower back getting out of a chair while watching television in the clubhouse.

Outfielder Dustan Mohr strained his groin while trying to get out of the dugout for a celebration for another player’s home run.

(via)

Reliever Larry Anderson strained a rib muscle jumping from the bench to join a brawl.

Shortstop Rey Quinones wasn’t available as a pinch hitter as he was in the clubhouse playing Nintendo.

Pitcher Mark Smith was injured when he stuck his hand into an air conditioner to see why it wasn’t working.

Reliever Joey Eischen broke his arm jumping into the air to field a ground ball.

Shortstop Clint Barmes fell down some stairs and broke his collarbone. He was unable to break his fall because he was cradling a package of venison given to him from teammate Todd Helton.

Pitcher Greg Harris suffered a strained elbow flipping sunflower seeds while sitting in the bullpen.

Pitcher Randy Veres injured his hand pounding on the hotel room wall, trying to get the people in the next room to be quiet.

Third baseman Randy Johnson strained his back putting on his socks.

Pitcher Byron McLaughlin cut his right hand when he was practicing his windup in his hotel room. He was apparently too close to the mirror.

Catcher Brent Mayne missed an entire month in the 2002 season because he turned his head to check traffic as he was crossing the street – and wrenched his back.

Pitcher Steve Foster injured his shoulder at a taping of a segment for “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno”.

Speedster Rickey Henderson allegedly missed several games in August due to frostbite.

Outfielder Ken Griffey Jr. missed a game after his cup slipped and pinched a testicle.

Pitcher Oliver Perez went on the 15 day disabled list after breaking his toe while kicking a laundry cart in the visitor’s clubhouse.

Outfielder Marty Cordova missed a game after he burned his face, spending too much time under a tanning lamp.

Jose Cardenal missed a game because he was kept awake all night by crickets chirping in his hotel room.

Pitcher Kenny Rogers dislocated his pinky finger (on his non-pitching hand) after punching out a water cooler.

Outfielder Glenallen Hill received cuts over much of his body after he fell out of bed onto a glass table. He was having a nightmare about being covered in spiders.

Pitcher Rich Harden strained his shoulder turning off his alarm clock.

Second baseman Jeff Kent claimed he hurt his wrist while washing his truck. Speculation is that he was injured in a motorcycle accident while doing tricks.

Infielder Paul Molitor dislocated a knuckle when it got stuck in another player’s glove.

Pitcher Terry Mulholland scratched his eye on a feather that was sticking out of a pillow.

Hall of Fame pitcher Phil Niekro was injured while shaking hands.

Pitcher Doc Gooden missed a start when a teammate accidentally hit him with a golf club in the locker room.

Shortstop Jason Bartlett tore the nail off his left pinky while sliding his hand under the television in his room at the Ritz Carlton hotel in Detroit.

Shortstop Juan Castro hurt his neck on the pillow at the same Ritz Carlton hotel in Detroit.

Infielder Kent Hrbek sprained an ankle wrestling with a clubhouse attendant, forcing him to miss the final ten days of the season.

Famed outfielder Kevin Mitchell strained a muscle while vomiting.

Kevin Mitchell also was hurt by a microwaved donut. Supposedly eating this led to his needing a root canal.

Pitcher Pascual Perez missed a game in Atlanta because he couldn’t find the correct exit ramp on the freeway. OK, it’s not an injury, but it’s pretty funny!

Wade Boggs hurt his back putting on his cowboy boots.

Pitcher Mike Remlinger missed 15 days because he broke his left pinky in a clubhouse recliner.

Reliever Steve Sparks dislocated his shoulder while trying to tear a phone book in half.

Pitcher Carlos Perez broke his nose in a car accident – he was trying to pass the team bus at the time.

John Smoltz burned his chest while ironing the shirt he was wearing.

Outfielder Oddibe McDowell sliced his hand while buttering a roll at the annual “Welcome Luncheon” held by the Texas Rangers.

Pitcher Charlie Hough broke his finger shaking hands.

Nolan Ryan missed a start after being bitten by a coyote.

Shortstop Bobby Crosby cracked two ribs while swinging the bat during opening day practice.

Outfielder Terry Harper separated a shoulder after high-fiving a teammate.

Outfielder Vince Coleman missed the entire 1985 World Series after being rolled up in the tarp machine at Busch Stadium.

Pitcher David Cone missed a start because his mother-in-law’s Jack Russell Terrier bit him.

Hall of Famer George Brett broke a toe on a chair when he was running from the kitchen to the living room to see baseball on TV.

Future Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn missed several games because he smashed his finger in the door of his luxury car, on the way to the bank.

Pitcher Carlos Zambrano was diagnosed with carpal tunnel syndrome after spending as many as five hours daily on the Internet.

Red Sox rookie Clarence Blethen thought he looked older and meaner if he took his false teeth out when he pitched. He forgot to put them back in his mouth when he was batting. While sliding into second base to break up a double play, his own teeth bit himself in the butt.

(via)

In the news this week

Adam CarollaI was happy to hear Adam Carolla step up and highlight the hypocrisy in the media regarding his recent OWS rant. The sooner we realize it exists on the far right AND the far left, the better off we’ll be in this country.
Korn
Jonathan Davis, lead singer of the band Korn is not known to speak politically about things, but in a recent interview with Billboard.com, he explains his thinking behind the new track “Illuminati.” He believes that Obama is “an Illuminati puppet” and that maybe this One World Government stuff holds some truth. It seems he doesn’t care what other musicians in the industry think about his conspiracy theory thinking. I respect him for speaking his mind on a fear that more and more regular folks in America have. Not just crazies. 🙂
Sat Chair
Live in an apartment or condo that doesn’t allow you to install a satellite dish? Sat+ has created a chair-shaped satellite dish secretly giving you hundreds of channels without being hassled by your landlord. For the time being the Sat Chair looks is only available from European sites for around $325. Maybe Dish or DirectTV will starting making some?


I am finally reading The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and am really looking forward to the film. Here is an 8 minute trailer if you are interested.
A soldier who returned home after serving in Afghanistan surprised her family by popping out of a Christmas gift.
Am I a jerk for being tired of seeing news reports of soldiers return home to surprise a family member? Here’s another one. Like flash mobs of people dancing in the street, these cute (but sappy) reunions are becoming an everyday occurrence.

Albert Pujols

Albert Pujols thanking God for the obscene amount of money he just got paid.


Albert Pujols agreed to a deal that will pay him $254 million over 10 years to play baseball (a game) for the Angels. I love baseball, but am tired of teams trying to buy championships. Can we please just get a salary cap in place???

Jamey Carroll to be Twins new SS

Jamey Carroll to be Twins new SS
Carroll is close to signing a multiyear deal with the Twins according to preliminary reports from Baseball America writer Jerry Crasnick, and would be their everyday shortstop.

Carroll, who will be 38 in February, is coming off a two-year, $3.85-million contract with the Dodgers. Due to team injuries, he played more like a starter, batting .290 in 803 at-bats during his two seasons with the Dodgers.

Fun fact: Jamey Carroll has had a higher on-base percentage than Michael Cuddyer in each of the past four seasons.

If it’s a good price, then I am fine with it. The multiyear deal thing does make me nervous on a guy at his age though. More to come.

**UPDATE: Jamey Carroll getting $7M over two years from #Twins (via @Ken_Rosenthal)

Click here to see his career stats.

 

Bill Smith gets his walking papers

Bill Smith

Photo source: Bruce Kluckhohn

Terry Ryan is returning to the role of Twins GM, the team announced today. Ryan, who has an interim tag on his title this time, replaces Bill Smith. Said owner Jim Pohlad in a statement:

Here is a timeline of terrible moves made by Mr. Smith. Welcome back Terry Ryan. These trades reposted from smithysports.

2007
November 28th – Twins trade starting pitcher Matt Garza , starting shortstop Jason Bartlett and some no name minor league pitcher who has yet to make it to the Big Leagues for Outfielder Delmon Young and in-fielder Brendan Harris.

2008
January 29th – Trade starting pitcher and Cy Young award winning to the Mets for Center Fielder Carlos Gomez and a bunch of no name prospects that are closer to making the Big leagues than Paris Hilton is to practicing abstinence. This is one of the worst trades ever, especially when you consider the Twins could have traded Johan to the Red Sox for Jacoby Ellsburry and some prospects. Bill Smith should be getting more flak for this move than Kahn has for any of his moves
February 12th – Signed Livan Hernandez to a one year deal. This was the first of many moves by Smith making us a team that gets knocked out of the first round.
December 11th – agreed to terms with Nick Punto on a two-year club option.

2009
July 31st – Get Orlando Cabrera for less than half season to make the playoffs and then quickly get ousted in the first round again. We then let him go.
August 28th – traded pitcher Phil Humber for Jon Rauch.
November 6th – traded CF Carlos Gomez to Brewers for SS JJ Hardy, who due to injuries in his first season with the Twins, understandably, played poorly. So what do we do? Get rid and let him go to Orioles where he now has 23 Home runs and batting average of .270. Really Bill Smith?

2010
July 29th – We trade catcher Wilson Ramos for closer Matt Capps.
December 17th – Signed Japanese baseball player Tsuyoshi Nishioka to a three-year contract worth 10 million dollars. But when you consider the Twins paid Nishioka 5 million dollars just to negotiate with they are ending up paying this guy 15 million dollars.

2011
August 15th – Twins trade Delmon Young to the Tigers for two no name, no good minor league pitchers.