oblong

If Harris had won do we think Biden would have pardoned Hunter? Hard to say. I am open to the idea that he pardoned him because he feared a Trump Justice department would not play fair. I’m also open to the idea that he was an old man who lost a son and had the power to keep his other son around a big longer for the short amount of time he had left. Not justifying it but understanding it and I can’t say I wouldn’t do the same if I had the power. It’s his son. Not some campaign donor.

I'm not suggesting all pardons are created equal but the issue is essy and face it... when you pardon someone who was convicted of a crime, then it's going to look bad, unless its part of a mass pardon for something that since diminished as a crime, like pot use and draft dodging. The differences are often of degree, not principal. I just don't think crying about them is going to amount to much in terms of public opinion. How can anything Trump does at this point amount to much? It will make us feel better doing it but we're left in the same place.

The 2010, 2012, 2014 Giants say hello. Those are what this current iteration of the Tigers remind me of. Stud pitcher followed by a bunch of quality players who can run, play defense, will not wow you offensively, but somehwere as that lineup turns over, they will get the hit you need.

Going back last year to Aug 11 when the Tigers were 55-63, these are their "bad" stretches. My criteria was to exclude 2 game losing streaks unless they lost 3 of 4. They lost 3 of 4 in early Sep 2024. They lost 3 straight to the Dodgers to start 2025 They lost 3 of 4 in mid April. They lost 3 straight to Cleveland last week. During that stretch they lost 2 or more in a row only 6 times. It's not a fluke.

We can keep this non political. This guy was the subject of great trivia.

yeah... guy's probably facing a bunch of medical bills now. I'm sure the Tigers insurance is crap for that kind of staff.

wounded grounds crew member. Person is awake and all of that but both teams trainers are out there along with an EMT. Wonder why they can't just lift him up? It's not a spinal thing as he's sitting up and talking and moving his arms around. Looks like a leg or foot thing.

Damn.... what a good at bat.

Yesterday Bobcat Bonnies had a facebook post, basically saying that things are hard and they need help with financial management. And today Sister Pie says they are going to close for awhile after June 9 to regroup and figure out what is next. They'll do pop ups and special event catering and classes. Haven't been to Bobcat Bonnie's in Detroit in several years and the one in Wyandotte in about a year. Their menu didn't make it a destination place for us and both Corktown and Wyandotte have a lot of options for when we do end up there. Sister Pie is tougher because we do go regularly and are in that area a lot. On my days off I would often go down there for coffee and a pastry for breakfast.

Sunday lineup

I liked the hockey one because it showed kinship with another local team and I figured it was something they were bonding over. Then I realized "celly" was a thing that all teams were doing and I got kind of annoyed. When did that become a word? I didn't realize it became a thing like sliding mitts and elaborate eye black that has invaded youth baseball and made it's way upwards. Organic and natural is always better with these things. Not manufactured.

the republicans will just say "But Marc Rich...." Anybody remember that? It was a big deal for about 2 weeks. I hate to Both SIdes things but.... both sides have issues with pardons. Our founders figured we'd be smart enough to punish abuse but they thought wrong.

Does Javy send over a bottle of something to Melvin for taking one for the team?

My closed captioning was giving me the play by play.

The Tigers clubhouse sent up a Tigers hat for the guy they interviewed. Now he’s wearing it. Good story.

Right. It’s like complaining the elections are rigged because of the electoral college. It becomes semantics. Rigged or unfair? Those mean different things and one can say it’s unfair but not rigged.

With TV you can do stuff like that because it’s a visual medium so we can see what is or isn’t happening He’s a visitor to Detroit. It’s good PR for the city to make people feel welcome.

Seems like every series they are facing a good team. And by good I mean hovering around .500 I'm still in "this is all very fun and there's no stress" mode. Frankly I have come to accept that I'm happy with players doing well and if they win, all the better. It's fun to watch these guys play. I feel like every player can do something in every at bat. Sure the bullpen is iffy at times but that's all bullpens.

Duggan will hand over the governor's office to the GOP. And I'm sure his grifting took a pause during his mayoral term so he'll continue on with the legacy of the McNamara Machine as the caretaker of that.

The phrase that legend says restarted the relationship between Adams and Jefferson is You and I, ought not to die, before We have explained ourselves to each other The HBO Series on Adams has a great montage of them reading the letters.

Jesus I go to another game with this guy pitching? My third one so far this year.

That's actually higher than I expected.

I knew that piece. MLBAM was a great thing for the league and very valuable and top notch tech. It was a great move by Bud Selig. Their wiki page is interesting.

Today is Friday so are you going Friday or Saturday? I've done the batting practice thing twice. It's fun. They'll give you the lecture on not to address the players or try to get their attention. Just stand and take pictures and all that. Let them work. It's not a junket. At some point you'll find them coming over to sign things or take pictures if they feel like it. If you are into that have something ready for them to sign. I had to quickly borrow a sharpie and I had Miggy sign my lanyard but we're supposed to give those back when you leave as they give you access to the field, luckily the guy let me keep mine. What was fun for me is watching the stats on the board as they hit showing the velocity and launch angle to try to predict what would be a HR. And just overall watching their process to prepare.

This is interesting and I believe most of it. Trying to correct their idiocy just plays into their goals. You can quibble over whether they really are that dumb that's beside the point. It appeals to their base. We've had idiotic reality TV for a generation now and it's been normalized. https://www.salon.com/2025/05/23/kristi-noems-proud-maga-bimbo-act-builds-on-the-legacy-of-sarah-palin/?fbclid=IwY2xjawKdX4dleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBicmlkETFPZnFkVGtzbjBac25uMG0wAR4fT_RsaqNf5yFOF3WEK_FW-7ljh5CmLXsgx22rTlQKYQCfJqj2mgJYhxpsZg_aem_nLQ7yI5WE3-TYwJp6zubmA