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Theyhad it in AAA last year, I believe. They widened it a couple inches to incentivize more stealing, since second base would now be an three inches closer to first, and thus more excitement. That's the story I thought I heard, anyway.

Great sign how? Are you still taking Putin at his word? Why? Based on what?

Why do we think the world is reacting so firmly against the invasion of Ukraine when, as pointed out, Russia invaded Georgia and Crimea, and there was barely a peep. What are some of the differences this time?

Whoa, wait, I'm sorry ... Russia lost the war? Is that what this guy is saying? What does he know?

Maybe she thinks the only good soldier is a dead soldier. Or at least the only useful one.

Maybe Isaac Paraedes could float Schoop a loan, since he earned more money in 42 days than most american families make in 2 years.

I can’t believe the players are making the Tigers miss their chance to be good again.

Deflection from escalation?

So it looks like more health providers are layering on yet another announcement between the time you call and the moment they even give you the option to press the right numbers to speak to the right CSR. By now I've gotten used to every health provider's automated phone answering system announcing (very slowly, of course), "if you are experiencing a medical emergency, please hang up and dial 911". And in the past two years, I have also gotten used to hearing an additional (very slowly read) admonishment regarding COVID-19. Lately, thought, it seems they've layered on yet another additional slowly-read announcement, and this one is a promotional announcement: "Did you know that you can now use the MyChart website to schedule appointments, pay your bills, communicate to doctors, blah blah blah. It's a fast and easy way to manage blah blah blah blah blah. Go to (read very slowly) w-w-w-dot-mychart-dot-hospital name-dot-com-slash-your neck wide open out of the frustration of waiting at least two minutes to get through all these announcements. And, of course, if you press "0" or "1" to shortcut your way past the announcements to get to a person immediately, the announcements start all over from the very beginning, and if you try shortcut past it too many times, e.g., twice, the system hangs up on you, and you have to start over. Bonus peeve: After you finally get through all the announcements and they start giving you the numerous numbers to press for specific issues (after very slowly telling you to listen to all options in their entirety as their menu has recently changed--natch!), the first three always seem to be about how to pay your open balance, set up financing, etc. So, in essence: "Press 1 to give us money; press 2 to give us money, press 3 to give us money ..."

They need to stretch it to 60 seconds or shorten it to 30 seconds and start buying spots on Fox News, and maybe even the other two right-wing blowtorch networks. It's not going to do much good if it remains buried deep within a hard-to-spell website with a .gop TLD.

Interesting thought and analogy. There might be something to this. Maybe there's something second-level diplomats can broach with each other that can lead to the kind of kabuki needed to give Putin his exit with honor, as you say. It depends in part on how much the West is willing to forgive the whole misadventure in the first place, in exchange for regaining the known quantity that was the uneasy stability of pre-invasion detente. On the other hand, looking for an honorable exit seems to be the thinking of a conventionally rational person, and there have been a lot of reports that especially since the onset of the pandemic, Putin has been not been that. And if that's true, and in light of the drastic things we're trying to do to basically cut Russia's very legs out from under it, it's hard to imagine our side being willing to go back to the square one that existed before this, since it tacitly gives Putin a chance to plan for another day. The West is going to want significant concessions to set this whole episode aside. I'm thinking that a stalemated opponent is unlikely to grant those. I think you and I both agree that the one thing that's not gonna happen is Putin allowing Russia to slink home with its tail between its legs, having gotten its ass kicked by "an illegitimate state". If he gets backed into a corner and starts lashing out, with the considerable tools at his disposal, then Katy bar the door.

Yeah, I'm coming around to the idea my prediction is wrong and at whatever point they do start, they'll just go all 1972 on the schedule.

March 3, fourth day of no mask mandate here in the city. Went to Walgreen's to pick up a prescription. They still have a "mask required" sign up, although it may be just laziness or hopefulness that they haven't taken it down. Maybe two dozen people in the store. Mask compliance: 100%, expect for one guy. Mask over nose compliance among wearers: maybe 50%.

Because they think it gives them cover to be dicks, because, you know, that's what Jesus would do.

And his vote counts for just as much as any of ours do.

The wild card here, do Republicans get primaried for voting to confirm her?

A reminder that it really is about class and caste. Skin color just happens to be one of the proxy shortcuts for many, but white people can signal their own status through behavior and appearance and get hammered if it's the wrong type of either.

Already do! 👍🏼

This is a funny post, but it is seriously a bad look for him and the league. If Rob Manfred truly can't help himself, he should not be facing the public.

In all the glee to complete destroy the Russian economy, I worry that it will feed right into Putin's long-time declarations that the West is out to destroy Russia, and that mass privation forced on them from outside will radicalize the next several generations of Russians against the West in ways we have not seen in a century, with dire consequences. If we succeed in doing this, I don't see how the Russian people blame Putin for it, because when it comes to that Putin has the people's ear, and we don't. As good as his SOTU was, one thing I wish Biden had done was a better job at reaching out directly to the Russian people. He mentioned them kind of in passing, but did not address directly that I remember. It could have been something like, "To the Russian people: we are not your enemy. We want peace with you, but your leaders do not want peace. We know sanctions against your leaders will hurt you too, and we grieve for that, but it must be done to send the message that countries cannot invade their free, sovereign, democratic neighbors whenever they choose. We look forward to the day when Russia has new leaders, and your Motherland can be welcomed back into the community of peaceful nations." Something along those lines. I think not leaning into that was a missed timely opportunity.

They want to be on the right side when Putin marches on the United States after conquering Europe.

Politicians typically use political leverage for political gain, is all I'm saying here. I don't know if that circumstance clear and present in this particular case, which is why I am speculating rather than declaring. But the potentially-contentious confirmation of a Supreme Court justice strikes me as a perfect opportunity to horse-trade.

A smart public-facing executive would know when to smile publicly and when not to, and would certainly know that a press conference announcing the cancellation of games is clearly a time not to publicly smile. Out of context or not, Manfred is rightfully taking a big hit for it.

It's not just Players who think a raised CBT will drag salaries up across the board. Baseball thinks it wil, too. That's why they are fighting it tooth and nail. It's true that teams have used analytics to be smarter about signing cheap young players who project to be just as good as expensive experienced players, but if that were the main reason they wouldn't feel they have to fight to maintain CBT where it is.

Any word yet from Republicans on how the Democrat Party’s illegitimate committee is using this announcement on Donald Trump to distract the country from how badly Biden is botching the Russo-Ukrainian crisis and much big, strong, manly Putin is pwning him?