Friday Thoughts

Well, I haven't done this for a while. But it's a Friday, my first week back in the office full-time since getting sick, and I'm feeling good. So why the hike not?

For starters I saw today that Julkeus won the Riverchasers this week. I am not familiar with this person but I do recognize the name from a number of our tournaments so far, so that's always cool to see someone who's taken a number of cracks win their way in to the upcoming BBT3 Tournament of Champions on June 7. Congrats to this guy.

Inter-league play in baseball starts up again in New York City this weekend with the annual Subway Series, the last such series to ever be played in old Yankee Stadium. I have to tell you, as a Philly guy this is an awesome time to be watching baseball in New York. The Yankees were dropped to last place in the AL East with Thursday night's loss, while the Mets come off of losing 3 out of 4 at the hands of the last-place Washington Nationals, including a 1-0 shutout on Thursday evening as well. If there's one thing to be said about this weekend's Subway Series, it is that neither of these teams really possibly comes out of this thing as a winner, almost no matter what happens between the two teams this weekend.

Mets coach Willie Randolph is basically coaching (and then talking) himself right out of a job, right before our eyes. Just look at Thursday night's 1-0 loss, where Carlos Beltran was on third base, with one out, in the bottom of the ninth. The Nationals actually play the shift on Delgado, essentially giving the Mets the tying run. Deglado lines a ball right at Boone at first base, and Boone fires the ball back to Zimmerman at third, doubling off Beltran and ending the game.

Now I am all for a coach defending one's players, but Willie needs to understand that you really can take that business too far, and that sometimes it is ok -- if not downright necessary -- to say "We screwed up, we have to work on it, and it won't happen again." But no. Instead, Randolph goes into the post-game press conference and stated that Beltran was "running on contact", a play Randolph himself had called.

Ahhhh, the old "running on contact" from third base play, huh? Called by Coach Willie Randolph himself, you say? This despite the fact that anyone who's played baseball at any level above teeball knows that the baserunner on frigging third base in the bottom of the 9th inning in a 1-0 game absolutely, positively must wait on a line drive, and see it get through the infield before trotting home. On a slow-rolling grounder or high bouncing ball to the infield, maybe you're breaking as soon as you see it. But "running on contact" with one out from third base in a 1-0 game in the 9th inning? Coach, you better watch what you say or you won't be coaching 'round these parts anymore come summer. Take it from me.

Running on contact. From third base with one out. I'm still trying to figure out what the phuck this guy is possibly saying this for. I mean, there is defending your players, and then there's not saying idiotic things that make you seem like you must be fired immediately for your complete lack of knowledge about the basic nature of the game you are supposed to be leading this team in. Sick.

Oh, one more thing -- we had some interesting discussion yesterday in the comments here about the true merits of the full tilt write-in prize for the BBT3, and I would be interested in getting any of your thoughts out there on the issue. A few of the more professional writer types out there have voiced their objections over being paid just $1000 for a week of blogging for full tilt, and this is an opinion that I can relate to, coming from their perspectives. But my suspicion, basically from having talked to a number of you over the past few days about this write-in contest, is that for most of us, we would view the entire offer to blog for full tilt, let alone the free airfare and hotel out in Vegas, let doubly alone the $1000 of spending money, to be each awesome prizes in and of themselves. As I said I suspect this is just a matter of perspective. But I would love to hear anyone's thoughts on the topic that has not yet weighed in. For me, I think that is a really great prize. I've been out in Vegas now a few times during the WSOP, and let me tell you, just being there at the Rio while the biggest tournament series of the year is going on with all those pros you know and love from tv, to me that is the absolute shit. As I've said I've been out there now multiple times but I still look forward just to the experience of being there at this time of year almost from the time I come home to the Hoy household every summer. So to me, to get to do that again, free of expense with my airfare and hotel being paid for by full tilt, and to get to blog on the Full Tilt website and receiving $1000 to boot, to me this is a no-brainer prize.

But I guess we will see by how many people decide to enter the write-in competition. That's the best thing about these write-in contests -- if you don't like the prize, you don't have to enter. My guess is we get 40 or 50 entrants as in past years, but I could be wrong, it could be less if more people share the view that some of the most prominent writers in our group clearly feel, that free room and air does not come close to justifying doing hard PR work for full tilt over a week, all in exchange for a measly thousand bucks. No doubt a week of blog posts on the WSOP Main Event from a truly awesome writer like Change or Speaker or Goat is worth more than a thou, I would not even try to argue otherwise. But for most of us donkeys with little to no actual writing ability (and questionable poker ability at that), I suspect that the value of the BBT3 write-in prize will be clear, as it is in my eyes.

I guess that's all the fun I have for today. But tonight for a change I declare that I will definitely be playing in the donkament at 9pm ET on full tilt (password as always is "donkarama"). And remember, I am also slated to play the 9pm ET FTOPS #20 in 6-max limit holdem, although I suspect I will be checking out the schedule for the night's poker activity before making the decision of whether to play in that event or rather to unregister and keep the $T for something else more fun. Guess I'll have to wait and see how things go tonight. I should be getting an earlyish start on the poker today though, as Hammer Wife is out with her mother this evening at a Broadway show that I got them tickets for for Mothers' Day last weekend. What a guy I am.