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May 6, 2021
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He's always been an overrated micromanager. It just superficially looks better when you're managing a bunch of HOFers.

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::Inigo Montoya voice::

“Davey Martinez - You keep using that intentional walk; I do not think you understand what it means.”

Heading to the Nats game with my dad this afternoon… Wonder which Atlanta batter will hit a grand slam today?

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In his last 1,121 plate appearances Billy Hamilton has exactly 2 GIDP. The decision to steal with him at the plate takes away one of the only justifications for sending him up in the first place. Absolute god-tier managing.

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If we’re in the bottom of the sixth, at least we know it’s an official pandemic.

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Bottom of the sixth in a scheduled double header? We may be near the end!

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Is it a day-night doubleheader? Or would the next pandemic start 20 minutes after this one ends?

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MATT?

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Disturbing implications either way.

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YOWCH

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You all know I dislike the Yankees as much as any normal person, but I have to give them kudos for getting behind this vaccination effort. I wish more organizations would follow their lead in this regard.

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I saw Cleveland has a $5 discount on upper deck seats if you're vaccinated. It's better than nothing?

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My local brewery - the one now selling Sabrometrics IPA for the discerning baseball fan - was (is?) offering a free beer for those getting vaccinated. Combined with Krispy Kreme's free donut and my day is made.

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Eh the "workers have it too good now" line is as old as time, they've just updated the details for the current situation. I'm reminded of one of my favorite San Diego places that closed down before the pandemic using the same sentiment with different details (a four year old law!):

"But one annual release, regardless of how desirable, can’t overcome what Black alludes to as crippling government interference—specifically, the minimum wage increase.

“It started January 1, 2016,” he explains. “I lost all the profit that I would make for the year in one day, just to pay my employees. You can make the argument that better compensated employees are happy employees, but I went from paying $200,000 a year to $250,000 a year. And we were never able to make that back.”"

https://www.sandiegomagazine.com/food-drink/the-tap/toronado-set-to-close-in-north-park/article_478f7808-5364-11ea-9e02-572ff3dc8c88.html

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May 6, 2021
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We're finding out that what was keeping a lot of employees at their jobs was inertia, and the layoff/rehire cycle was disruptive and caused a bunch to rethink things.

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Agreed. To be very clear I agree that the owner is being dumb/disingenuous here. Just noting that they've pulled this kind of stuff since long before the pandemic.

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The Atlanta game yesterday combined with a comment from Craig recently put me in mind of the late, great Mac Thomason: hibernation mode. The Home Towne Nine jumped out to a big lead then the bats went silent as the opposition chipped away. The angst that would spill from Mac's keyboard when that happened was matched only by his angst at the failure to promote and play Marcus Giles since Keith Lockhart clearly had the pictures!

...

As someone well to Craig's right on economic issues, I think he has the 2+2=5 analogy exactly wrong. It is the Democratic Party that believes that 2+2=5. Wrong, but wrong in an understandable and explainable way and one with which people of good faith can debate and find common ground. (See for example, today's discussion that assumes that adding the government via increased unemployment as a competitor for employees won't have a direct impact on wages.)

The GOP doesn't believe in 2+2=5; it instead believes that 2+2=space ship. Not only wrong, but fully and completely delusional with the purported response being absolutely non-responsive to the question. Policy not only takes a back seat to personality but is fully and completely unimportant. Allegiance isn't owed to ideals, but to idols.

And the Cheney v. Stefanik tilt is just the icing on the cake. The WY Congresswoman has an impeccable conservative voting record and just so happens to believe in democracy; the opposing NY Congresswoman voted against GOP (and DJT) proposals with great frequency with a bottom five rating from Club for Growth, but is willing to sell the Big Lie. Yesterday, she said that over 140,000 votes in Fulton County were from underage, deceased or unauthorized voters - that is more than 20% of all votes cast in the county. Infuckingsane.

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I don’t think anybody’s saying it won’t have an impact on wages. Democrats are counting on it, in fact. Craig’s attitude seems more along the lines of “suck it up, buttercup,” which I wholeheartedly endorse here.

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Oh, I wouldn't trust the party of the Lafferble Curve with math, but you're right about the Trump/Newsmax wing doubling down on 2 + 2 = spaceship. That a good line! I've heard a variation also that Democrats and Republicans used to argue over what to have for dinner - a chicken salad or chicken-friend steak. But now, it's a chicken salad versus a plastic bag filled with oil and razorblades.

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Chicken-fried steak? Sounds good. Chicken-friend steak? Now I'm worried.

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Hahaha! I'd complain about "no edit" but that's just funny

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If a restuarant increases employee pay, the added cost gets passed on to the costumer. Restaurants run on tight margins. Will the smaller number of costumers be willing to directly subsidize the extra pay? I would -- but I live in the San Francisco Bay Area which already has a very high cost of living and it's assumed people can afford premium prices. Restaurants in my area added an extra pandemic charge for their employees -- hazard pay.

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The restaurant was not great, either.

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This is why migrant labor is valuable to small business owners. They provide a relatively cheap source of labor. This increases the wealth of owners.

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Wait, we're supposed to be costumers? That explains why the bartender asked me if I could do a peg leg pirate. Probably.

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So employee pay raises prices, but not CEO pay? Hmm...The restaurant owner may have to downgrade to a Lexus from a BMW. My thoughts & prayers in this difficult time.

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I absolutely hate to agree with Tony La Russa on ANYTHING, but I didn’t know that was the rule with extra runners, either. (It doesn’t feel like baseball to me, the idea that someone taken out of a game can come back in.)

Granted, I’m not the manager of a major league team, so my not knowing that until now is just me going “huh” rather than it adversely affecting my job duties.

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I just realized I misread the rule. It’s not the player that was in the spot before Hendriks—it’s the player in the spot before Hendriks.

I still don’t like it, but that makes more sense.

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May 6, 2021
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It’s really just another data point in favor of going to the universal DH.

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Or dumping the runner on two. Forever!

Still can’t believe no one in the Sox dugout caught that mistake. Doesn't anyone read any more??

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Proby comes into the firehouse as, obviously, low man on the totem pole.

During a drill proby stands around with his hands in his pockets.

Mulvey, he who bestows the nicknames, dubs proby "Pockets," which sticks.

About two weeks later proby says to another fireman, "I really don't like my nickname, can you ask the guys to stop calling me 'Pockets?' "

When I hear the Astros complain about booing I remember being at a racket 10 years later and someone mentioning the guy's name and another guy saying, "Oh, Pockets. Yeah, I remember him."

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Sahlen Field in Buffalo?

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Pilot got renamed

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About 5 times lol

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haven't been there since the early 90s. I'm not surprised.

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Finally, some much needed Trenton Thunder coverage. I used to work in the office park that shares a parking lot with their stadium (which is very nice, if anyone is wondering). Jersey being Jersey, it's on Thunder Road.

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Wasn’t Stefanik considered a moderate Republican not too long ago? She was just an absolute bad faith Trump shill during the first impeachment hearing. It was blatant the GOP were having her be intentionally disruptive with her dumbass arguments so she could have her “nevertheless, she persisted” moment against Schiff.

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May 6, 2021
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May 6, 2021
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May 6, 2021
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Of COVID? Tis a consummation devoutly to be wished.

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But is it waning amongst the constituency that votes in primaries? So many districts are hopelessly gerrymandered, so the real election is winning the 5-10% of the electorate that will show up to vote in a primary. If something is popular amongst that subset, then they need to lean into it.

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Have to shout out the deep cut from Willow. What should we do with this Daikini child??

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The Drew Robinson story is really incredible. The E:60 doc that pairs with Passan's piece is really a tough watch, but also pretty amazing. I've been waiting to see if he made the roster and I'm genuinely thrilled for him and I really hope he plays well.

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I do not appreciate the dig on my man Dobnak, and besides he was sent out to AAA St. Paul to be stretched out.

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Yeah, ain't nothin' wrong with Dobnak! A fine middle innings guy, plus he could've said Colome.

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I appreciated the Vonnegut and Fitzgerald drops today. Maybe there were a couple more that I missed. But I f they can get you asking the wrong questions, they don't have to worry about answers.

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I was just thinking that I need to re read Slaughterhouse-5, and truly appreciated these timely references.

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