It's already been eight - er, seven and a half - long year since the beginning of the new millennium, and so naturally VH1 has already put together a retrospective called "I Love The New Millennium". Thank goodness - it's been so long, I'd forgotten what happened... in 2007.

In any event, VH1 wisely saw that the Red Sox' World Series victory was one of the biggest stories of 2004 - and so that got its own segment on the "2004" episode. As a special Tuesday morning treat, here's video of the segment.

The ESPYs are yet another in a long line of award shows, that seemed to be created in attempt to Hollywood-ize every industry possible... or at least those industries that people will tune in to watch awards shows for on television.

But just because they're meaningless doesn't mean they're not fun to win. And the Red Sox are nominated in a bunch of the categories for the 2008 ESPY Awards later this month. As I posted before, David Ortiz will also be one of the presenters.

Best Team
Boston Red Sox
New York Giants
Boston Celtics
Kansas Men's Basketball
Tennessee Women's Basketball
Detroit Red Wings

Best Moment
Central Washington Vs. Western Oregon Softball
Jon Lester's No-Hitter
Danica Patrick Wins

Best Coach-Manager
Terry Francona, Boston Red Sox
Tom Coughlin, New York Giants
Pat Summitt, Tennessee Women's Basketball
Doc Rivers, Boston Celtics

Best Championship Performance
Venus Williams, 2007 Wimbledon
Josh Beckett, 2007 Baseball Playoffs
Rafael Nadal, 2008 French Open
Tiger Woods, 2008 U.S. Open

Best Baseball Player
Alex Rodriguez, New York Yankees
Josh Beckett, Boston Red Sox
Jimmy Rollins, Philadelphia Phillies
Jake Peavy, San Diego Padres
C.C. Sabathia, Cleveland Indians

Hummer "Like Nothing Else Award"
Manny Ramirez
Sidney Crosby
Ashley Force
George Martin

Obviously the Hummer "Like Nothing Else" Award is clearly the most vaunted award of the bunch - how could you not be honored to be nominated in that category? The prestigious "we needed to name an award after our sponsor, so how about this one for general sports excellence in one particular situation judging based on random criteria?". Manny was nominated because of that single high-five double-play... George Martin, the former NFL player, walked over 3,200 miles and raised over $2 million dollars for the Ground Zero efforts in NYC. Those two achievements are totally compatible and definitely belong in the same category!

Tim Wakefield is looking a liiiiiiiitle rough these days.

Either that, or the ESPN crew last week made an error with their graphics. But surely that can't be the case.

Happy 34th Birthday to the Mayor!

The happy, happy, joy, joy clown party hat just seemed appropriate for Sean.

Peter Bendix at Beyond the Box Score posted an interesting look at the strength of schedule of the top AL East contenders (Sox, Yanks, Rays). With the Rays sitting atop the division standings, they obviously have the best W-L record in the East -- but Peter found that they've also arguably played the toughest schedule along the way. The Sox have also played a comparably tough schedule -- and the Yankees lucked out with a relatively easy schedule of opponents during the first half of the season.

Tampa Bay Rays: 51-32 / .614% (68 games against clubs with .500+ record)
Boston Red Sox: 50-36 / .581% (65 games against clubs with .500+ record)
New York Yankees: 44-40 / .524% (41 games against clubs with .500+ record)

Looking forward to the second half of the season, the tables will turn -- the Rays will gain the benefit of a much easier schedule, the Yankees will face a significantly tougher slate of opponents, and the Red Sox can look forward to a slightly easier run.

Perhaps most telling: the Yankees have already played out their series with the Royals, Mariners and Indians, and will no longer have those opponents to feast on. Of course this also means that the surging Rays are on the downhill slope, and will be looking to cruise on through to the postseason.

Now this is how you do a Rays-Sox rivalry article. Concise. Witty. Slightly mean, yet not douchebaggy. But most of all... funny. "Proudly Affleck-free since 1998"? Hilarious. The Varitek jab stings, but it's true... so they got us there. And I definitely support anything that is anti-Fever Pitch. That, my friends, is how it is done.

Are you paying attention, St. Petersburg Times? When even the title of your article in a major print newspaper is unprofessional - not to mention lame and not at all humorous - you need to go back to the drawing board.

Baseball's biggest popularity contest is right around the corner. No, not the ESPYs (although those are fast approaching on the July calendar as well)... the All-Star Game. You might also know it as the annual arbitrary recognition of the player at each position who can shoehorn the most votes out of the general public based on no stated criteria, and featuring a selection process influenced by blatant campaigning from the ballclubs. It's the Homecoming Court for ballplayers, except largely chosen by "the fans" - people bored and/or inebriated enough to bother filling out the ballot... always an accurate barometer for sorting baseball's wheat from the chaff.

Today marks the final day that Joe Q. Public can vote for the 2008 MLB All-Star Game roster. And despite the fact that All-Star selection process is often nothing short of a dog and pony show, there are still plenty of good reasons to get involved and vote - ranging from the logical to the juvenile. There's something for everyone!

So here they are, the Top 5 Reasons Why You Should Vote For The All-Stars:

1. Counteract The Masses
There are plenty of folks out there who believe that All-Star appearances bear some kind of statistical relevancy to a ballplayer's legacy, and help conclusively prove any given player's dominating skill at his position. Even with an ASG selection system based on popularity (and one that mandates every club must have someone on the team, no matter how mediocre), pundits and fans alike continue to cite All-Star appearances as a criteria for Cooperstown. So long as those people exist, it is the right - nay, the duty - of every logical and right-thinking baseball fan to vote based on actual skill and merit to counteract the drunken frat boy ballots.

2. Rage Against the Machine
If helping the All-Star voting process to become more legitimate doesn't motivate fans to vote, how about the complete opposite reasoning? Voting nonsensically to exploit the ridiculousness of the whole thing. See how many different alternate personas you can create, each with their own hotmail or gmail account. Foil the sponsors dastardly plans to fool voters into forgetting to check the "do not contact me over email" box on the balloting form, and load them up with useless email addresses. Vote to get Julio Lugo the starting shortstop roster slot. You know, general insanity like that.

3. Relive Your Childhood
Remember what it was like to snag a ballot at the ballpark, and punch out the little circles next to the names of your favorite players? If you were lucky, you'd get a nice usher who would slip you several ballots, and you could go town - punching out a whole bunch of ballots, and making it rain with paper chads. The 2008 version of that unforunately involves clicking buttons on a computer keyboard... but you could always concoct your own homemade ballot out of notebook paper, complete with hanging chads.

4. Or Just Act Like A Child
Go all out with the ridiculousness, and vote based on whatever random criteria you please. Vote for the All-Stink Team. Vote for the roster of guys all born in the state of Florida. Vote for the players with the cutest smiles. Vote for guys whose names all start with the letter "C"... Coco Crisp is finally a shoo-in!

5. Blatant Homerism
If the other four reasons aren't compelling, why not vote based on the simplest reason of all: blatant homerism. If I'm going to be forced to watch two teams of ballplayers duke it out in a largely meaningless exhibition game, with a roster selected based on popularity and not particularly based on merit, I'd much rather watch the guys from the Red Sox. Plus, if there's any chance I could somehow, in some small way, contribute to denying players I dislike (or players from teams I dislike) a spot on the All-Star roster, that's just an added (alebeit admittedly juvenile) bonus. Is it too late to band together and keep A-Rod off the roster?

As my Dad always said: close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades.

Almost holding on to a 3-run lead? Doesn't count.
Almost hitting for the cycle? Doesn't count.
Almost getting 3 outs, instead of earning 3 runs? Doesn't count.
Almost coming from behind to win the ballgame in the 9th? Doesn't count.
Almost keeping the Rays from sweeping? Doesn't count.

Somebody needs to post a giant, posterboard-sized calendar on the wall of the visitor's clubhouse tonight in the Bronx to remind the guys that we've officially entered July, and there's no more June swoon allowed. (I'm looking at you, BA/OBP of certain members of the lineup... and you, majority of the bullpen.)

Oh, and one more observation...

Almost winning with class and walking away with dignity? Doesn't count.

Everything is all wonky and turned-around. Up is down. Right is left. Black is white. Day is night. The baseball world for Sox fans feels just plain out-of-sorts.

The Sox were embarrassed in Tampa, but turned it around 180 degrees and win the first two against the Yankees in New York... only to then do an about face and drop the second two. The team held on to a sizable lead in the AL East throughout most of the season, despite a rough schedule, starting overseas, and numerous injuries.... only to fall apart in June, and fall to second place, 5 games back. To the RAYS. The freakin' DEVIL RAYS. I know, I know- they're the story of baseball so far, and have a ton of young talent, and phenomenal bats and pitching, etc. But they're still a team that didn't even exist over ten years ago, that can't even make up their mind what their mascot and name is, that hand out cowbells to "fans", and that have an honest-to-god aquarium in the outfield. That is just all kinds of wrong.

Just when we think we've sorted Julio "E6" Lugo out, and written him off entirely... he makes a spectacular catch or two, and a couple of hits. Not to mention, Lugo's OBP isn't the worst on the team, either- it's better than Cora, Ellsbury, Crisp. Cash... and Varitek. Don't get me wrong: Lugo's still laying up goose eggs instead of hits with regularity, and he's a long ways from an OPS and defense that warrants his salary-- but he's not even close to being the biggest liability in the lineup. And on the flip side, the bullpen went from the Lights-Out Heroes of '07... to the Nightmare Fuel of '08. Remember back when games would reach the 7th or 8th inning, and everyone would sort of kick back and relax and wait for Auto-Awesome to kick in? Those days are gone. (I feel like I should start singing "Dust In The Wind" or something.) Now it seems like everyone just covers their eyes and braces for impact when the door to the 'pen opens.

The All-Star break could not come at a more opportune time.

Congratulations to all seven Red Sox players who made the 2008 All-Star team - either by fan vote or player vote:

Kevin Youkilis - 1B
Dustin Pedroia - 2B
Manny Ramirez - OF
J.D. Drew - OF
Jason Varitek - C
David Ortiz - DH
Jonathan Papelbon - RP

With those (heartfelt) congrats out of the way, I can now get to the serious business. Namely:

(1) Chuckling at the fact that there are only three Yankees on the roster in their own stadium (and, more importantly, that Girardi's begging didn't land Mike Mussina a roster spot). This is petty and juvenile and slightly ridiculous of me, but I cannot help it. It's funny. Also: four Texas Rangers on the roster! And, again, only three Yankees! Still funny!

(2) Pissing off all of my readers who are Varitek fans... because I flat out don't believe he has played All-Star caliber baseball this year. He is a fantastic leader, a great game caller, and a pretty amazing dude. He's been an integral part of the Sox championships, and absolutely deserves the "C" on his chest. But so long as All-Star Team selection is still (wrongly) used by HOF voters when deciding whether to put a player in Cooperstown, a .218/.300/.358 stat line should not earn you a spot in the ASG. That's a .658 OPS! No, just... no.

If, however, the All-Star selections were treated by voters (and sportswriters and commentators) like the popularity contest/career reward they actually are, I would have absolutely no problem with the public and the players voting Wally, Raymond, the Phanatic and Mr. Met onto the All-Star Team. Sadly, with the likes of Joe Morgan and Tim McCarver around, I have a feeling it will be awhile before that happens.

Every Tuesday, I'll post a discussion topic or question for everyone to think about and then discuss in the comments section. Tuesday is always one of the most difficult days of the week to get through - you don't have the afterglow of the previous weekend's fun any more, and yet you're still days away from the next weekend. This should give us something fun to do to pass the time.

Tuesday Curveball - Week Eight It's been awhile since we've had one of these, but I thought it was time to kick them off again. With the July 31st trade deadline fast approaching, there have been rumors that the Red Sox front office has taken a look at adding Barry Bonds to the roster. Would you want Bonda to join the Red Sox- and why (or why not)?

As always, you don't have to be a fan of the Red Sox to get in on the discussion. All baseball fans- even Yankee fans- are welcome.

Another addition to the Red Sox Baby Album, courtesy of Topps baseball cards:

Per the Orlando Sentinel:

Starting on July 1, fans who purchase MLB themed Team Baby Entertainment titles at Toys R' Us or Babies R' Us will receive the limited edition Topps baby card packaged with the DVD.

An all star list of MLB players have signed on to have their baby portraits plastered on these new collectible Topps Cards, which are only being made available at Toys R' Us and Babies R' Us in limited quantities. In New York, fans who purchase the New York Yankees Baby or the New York Mets Baby DVD will also get the exclusive cards featuring Johnny Damon and David Wright respectively. Fans of the World Series Championship team, the Red Sox, will also get a Topps card with David Ortiz (image attached) as a "Little Papi" when they purchase the Red Sox Baby DVD. Last but not least, the newest Team Baby title, the L.A. Dodgers Baby DVD will be released in August and will include a card featuring a babyface Russ Martin.

hat tip: Ian at Sox & Dawgs

Joe Posnanski is a fantastic baseball writer and a brilliant student of the game. But that's not why I love Joe today. The reason I love Joe today is that he has brought the awesomeness of a new dastardly villain into my life.

Quake in fear, friends, as you behold the evil of... DR. STAT!

Apparently, the Devil Rays decided that the biggest scourge facing baseball today isn't steroids, or inflated salaries, or the designated hitter, or even Joe Morgan. The horror against which the Rays and their manager must fight is statistics. BOO, numbers! And rational thought! And logic! And the absence of hyperbole!

Naturally, they made a cartoon about it. Of course they did.

[I]t's a cartoon where the Tampa Bay Rays are superheroes. Yeah. I wasn't able to get the entire plot line, but apparently Joe Maddon is some sort of superhero mastermind, kind of like a baseball superhero Charlie, and he has the power to turn his Rays players into superheroes. One becomes really fast -- so fast his feet look like a tornado. One I guess can throw stuff at bad guys -- sort of a Roger Clemens for kids. The other one seems to be able to destroy bad guys by hitting them with a bat. Good lesson for the kids.

But, believe it or not, that's not the hilarious part. No, the hilarious part is this: The villain they were trying to catch was someone named "Dr. Stat." No, really. It seems that Dr. Stat -- and I'm quoting from the cartoon now -- wants to "use his knowledge of useless statistics to destroy the game." [...] He says as punishment he will point his stat ray direction at Tropicana Field in order to make it impossible for people to enjoy the games.

OK, timeout here -- what is a stat ray? How would that work? I should ask the guys at Baseball Prospectus if they have one. A stat ray. How great is that? I wonder what would happen if we would point the stat ray at some of my baseball writing friends. I'd love to aim it at my buddy Rick Morrissey up in Chicago, just to see what happened. Would he explode? Would he start talking about VORP and Eqa? I need to get me one of them

Catching up on the randomness of the last few days...

The very awesome Dan at Red Sox Monster has apparently gotten in the good graces of the folks who are making the Kevin Youkilis SlumpBuster energy drink, and they gave him an exclusive look at the new, redesigned can (which will go on-sale online tomorrow). I notice that SlumpBuster wisely decided that a half-naked girl and the slogan "TAKE ONE DOWN" didn't exactly go over well with a lot of folks. Don't try to distract us with a shiny, new can, Youk! We already know the real story on this, thanks to Mark Grace.

For reference, a before and after below:

 

Happy Fun Pitching Change Time! Justin Masterson is back with the AAA PawSox so that he can be molded into a relief pitcher... and hopefully help spell the ailing (and/or failing) bullpen. At the same time, Clay Buchholz will be returning to the Big Boy Sox to take back a starting spot in the rotation-- and will pitch tomorrow night against the Orioles.

And if you've ever wanted to cram yourself into a giant, swelteringly-hot green fur costume and dance around for the amusement of yadoods and screaming children, then the Red Sox have the job for you! The dubious honor of becoming Wally the green monster. Of course, you'd still have a long way to go before you could rack up a drunken party record like Mr. Met.

Hat tip: Sox & Dawgs!

News Flash! Connecticut Folks Overreact!

Some kids in Greenwich, deep in the heart of Yankee territory, decided to build a wiffle ball field in tribute to Fenway Park. And, naturally, the easygoing and laid-back denizens of that fine city decided to sue them. Of course they did!

I think the lawsuit is the least of their problems - take a look at that field. Who knew Fenway had Green Monster in center field?

It's good to know that the Red Sox find ways of keeping themselves amused when things get boring on the diamond. Namely, they like to talk on the phone. It's like a scene from Bye Bye Birdie out there lately, a regular "Telephone Hour".

On Monday night, Mike Lowell chased a routine fly ball out near the stands along the third baseline... and decided while he was there he might as well steal away a fan's cell phone he saw sitting on the top of the short wall, and carry it back with him onto the field. From Dan Roche:

"I always just look to see if there's like peanuts or nachos... and no one ever on the third base side... I think they banned like nachos, peanuts and popcorn there... because no one ever eats them," Lowell said.

"I kinda just want to take one from them to see their reaction. I guess a cell phone could have been good. If it was his wallet it would have been better."

"If it was his wallet I would have kept it in my pocket until the end of the game and then I would have given it back to him. I think that one would have been good."

And then during last night's game, Manny Ramirez took another patented Manny Being Manny scoreboard break in the Green Monster -- and took the opportunity to make a phone call during a pitching change in the sixth inning.

I can't wait for the day that Dustin Pedroia tells the pitcher to hold up for a minute and wait while he takes a very important cell phone call out at second base.

Congratulations go out to Jon Lester, who revealed to Dan Roche tonight on WBZ (from Beckett Bowl out in Malden) that he got engaged yesterday to his girlfriend of more than a year, Farah Johnson.

Here's video of Jon talking about Beckett Bowl and his engagement - he just can't keep the goofy grin off his face.

Through a great stroke of luck and generosity, sports watercolorist extraordinaire (and West Boylston-ite) Mark Waitkus has given me a print of one of his most recent watercolors commemorating the 2007 World Championship and banner unveiling at Fenway -- all so that I can give it away to one lucky reader!

I'm a big fan of Mark's work, so naturally I'm super excited he offered to let me give away one of his prints. His online studio showcases Red Sox prints, but also prints commemorating the Boston Marathon, the Patriots and the Celtics '08 championship... and you can buy all of those there direct from him.

The print I'm fortunate enough to give away is gorgeous - it's 11x16, and comes wrapped in plastic and sealed with an MLB hologram. It's also in my hot little hands, and ready to be sent out to a deserving Sox fan.

So here's the deal: after seeing the success of the recent contest at my other home, Babes Loves Baseball, I've decided to do something similar to give away Mark's gorgeous watercolor print.

HOW TO WIN: Email me a picture of yourself at a Red Sox game - Fenway Park or on the road. Can be from when you were little, or last weekend. Can be just you, or you and a bunch of friends or family. Whatever photo you think exhibits your love of the game and the team the best -- just nothing vulgar, and make sure you're in the shot somewhere.

WHO WINS: The neatest photo? Wins the Waitkus print. Yes, I realize "neatest" is vague - it's deliberately so. I have a feeling I'm going to get all kinds of cool photos from my awesome readers... so I want to leave the criteria open.

DEADLINE: July 25th, two weeks from today.

QUESTIONS: I'm a little flexible on what photos can be entered - I just want to avoid shots of just the ballpark or just the players. If you want to know if your photo will work, you can post in the comments or send me an email.

And don't be shy - I won't share names and email addresses... and the coolest photos will be featured here as well. So get creative!

If the fantastic work showcased at Mark's online studio wasn't enough to convert you to a fan, how about some of these tidbits about the artist?

He studied at Worcester Technical Institute and Worcester Art Museum - he's local!

Mark's ties with the Red Sox started via Baltimore back in 1991 -- when he painted the Baltimore Orioles' last game at Memorial Stadium for (now Sox VP) Dr. Charles Steinberg -- and his paintings now hang throughout Fenway's executive offices and luxury suites.

He was commissioned to do watercolors of Tony Gwynn and Cal Ripken Jr., which were featured as part of their induction ceremonies into Cooperstown last year.

Mark even painted the commemorative home plate for Major League Baseball's All-Star Game last year. The plate, with its rendering of San Francisco's AT&T Park, was used for the ceremonial first pitch by Giants legend Willie Mays.

Coolest of all? He's a descendent of Eddie Waitkus, the Cambridge-born baseball player who inspired the movie, "The Natural".

This is the one and only time you'll see most post anything here about all the nonsense, hoopla and gossip flurry surrounding a certain ballplayer these days -- because he does not play for the Red Sox, and the constant news stories about his personal life only make him more famous, and I quite honestly do not give a shit. But this was too funny to pass up...

Toronto, you are awesome.

First, there was the Bullpen Band of pirates.
Then, there was Jason Varitek kickin' it Captain Hook-style.
Now David Ortiz is joining in on the pirate family.

Big Papi was a co-host (with Maria Menounos ) of the 2008 Captain Morgan All-Star Pose Off Party in New York City last night -- which presented the public with this golden photo opportunity.

This also gives me the opportunity to point out that despite the dire warnings from Mike Timlin about the consequences, Jonathan Papelbon revealed the pirate names of his bullpen mates:

Papelbon - The Cannonballer or The Lost Boy
Lopez - The Bootstrap
Timlin - Admiral Blackbeard
Delcarmen - El Tattoo
Aardsma - The Dutchman
Okajima - The Eastern Wizard
Hansen - cannot be revealed

I have a feeling Craig Hansen's name couldn't be revealed not because it was super secret, but because Jonathan either (a) forgot, or (b) made all these up himself and ran out of ideas.

Hat tip on photo: Larry Brown Sports

What. In. The. Sam. Hill. Just. Happened??

That guy? OTHERWORLDLY. As I said in the open thread, the Rangers just picked up thousands of new fans thanks to the fireworks provided by one Mr. Josh Hamilton.

And thanks to Big Papi for being Johnny-on-the-spot with his patented Papi Hugs, because it gives me the perfect excuse to post this photo:

Justin Morneau may have won the Derby in the end, but all anyone's going to remember (and be talking about) is Josh Hamilton's 28 dingers in the first round.

I think Josh Beckett just found himself a new baseball boyfriend.

Chase Utley earns a gold star not only for dropping the f-bomb on live TV on ESPN, but for dropping it on New York fans. In Yankee Stadium.

Thank goodness the ever-crafty Phillies fans jumped on this golden merchandising opportunity.

Every Tuesday, I'll post a discussion topic or question for everyone to think about and then discuss in the comments section. Tuesday is always one of the most difficult days of the week to get through - you don't have the afterglow of the previous weekend's fun any more, and yet you're still days away from the next weekend. This should give us something fun to do to pass the time.

Tuesday Curveball - Week Nine Even though there's no real baseball on, tonight will bring the All-Star Game and all the surrounding pageantry and hoopla. David Neal of the Miami Herald wrote a very interesting article filled with ways that MLB could shake up the ASG and make it more exciting. What, if anything, would you change about the All-Star Game? How would you change the selection process? The event itself? Not this year, but overall.

As discussion starters, here were some of David Neal's thoughts:

* Not only make all fan voting online, but limit it to one vote per e-mail address. Also, this way, you could require each voter to pass a poll test. I know this has bad precedent in this country, but it would be nice if voters demonstrated more knowledge about the current season than ``Hey, Derek Jeter! I've heard of him!''

* The fan voting wouldn't decide the starters -- it would decide, hopefully, who will decide the game. Fan favorites would play the last three innings after managers figure out how to get everyone else in the previous innings.

* Here's another way to liven up those late innings. There's little riveting about the winning league getting the home-field advantage in the World Series. Give the winning league's fans 10 percent off on all stadium food, beer and programs for the next month and you better believe there will be some serious fan energy off which the players will feed. Folk heroes, which the All-Star Game doesn't make anymore, could be born.

* I'm also for changing the American League vs. the National League format. With so much talk about money in the game today, how about breaking up the teams by salary? Select the players then split them into teams that are economically equal one year, then, the next season, Richer Men vs. Not Quite As Rich Men.

Congratulations to Jonathan and Ashley Papelbon!

Per the Hartford Courant, Ashley is expecting the couple's first child -- no word on the due date yet.

And what better congratulatory gift than a giant media firestorm and the back page of the New York Daily News branding you a "Papelbum"? From the same Courant story:

Jonathan Papelbon was upset over a NY Daily News account of his remarks yesterday. During his 50 minutes of press availability he was asked many times, in many ways, about the who-should-close controversy, and at one point, asked who would close if he was the manager, he said, well, him.

Later in the session, he said if he had to step aside for Rivera, it was okay with him.

Anyway, Papelbon and his wife, who is expecting a baby, were booed during the Red Carpet Parade Monday. "How would you feel?" he said. "I understand it, but my wife didn't feel comfortable."

Just because it's fun to think about all seven of the Red Sox taking over a huge chunk of the Yankees' clubhouse...

From the Hartford Courant:

In case you were wondering: Kevin Youkilis is using Johnny Damon's locker.

Manny Ramirez has a corner locker last used by Carl Pavano.

Jonathan Papelbon has Brian Bruney's.

David Ortiz has Brett Gardner's

Dustin Pedroia has Wilson Betamit's

Jason Varitek has Kyle Farnsworth.

Anyone else out there weirdly excited about the prospect of the Home Run Derby and All Star Game, despite all logic and reason? Yeah, me, too.

We can all use this thread tonight and tomorrow as an open thread to talk about all the festivities going on at Yankee Stadium.

J.D. Drew: MVP.

At this time last year, that's a sentence I thought I'd never utter.

Hacks With Haggs has an interesting Q&A up that he did with Julio Lugo a short time ago, before Lugo landed himself on the DL. It's a great introspective look by Julio back at his early days of baseball - and even more interesting, it's got some great tidbits about Manny Ramirez.

Did you ever, as a kid, watch Manny play when he was with the Indians?

JL: I never went to Yankee Stadium, but I went to go watch him play at Double-A and he was with the Indians and he hit a home run to straightaway centerfield. The crowd starting going crazy. I remember that, and I still have the bats at my house.

One day when I was in the minor leagues I went to go watch Manny play in spring training, and I saw him before the game. I went 'Oh Manny...how are you' and he was like 'Oh...how are you.' We didn't really know each other well, but he told me he was going to give me some bats after the game. And I told all my friends. I was like 'Oh [expletive], Manny is gonna give me some bats.' And I was waiting outside after the game, and I thought that Manny forgot. I was like 'man...', but then Manny showed up a while later and he had the bats with him. I remember that and I still have the bats in my house. It felt so good, and to this day that was one of the best moments in my baseball career.

What's it been like to play with him...a guy you always looked up to?

JL: Everybody knows about Manny and how good a hitter he is. But nobody knows about how good a person Manny is. You've got to be there to understand. When I was struggling last year I didn't want to talk to anybody. But I would check my voice messages and he would leave me messages like 'Hey don't worry about it. You're going to be fine. Tomorrow is your day.' That kept me up all the time. That kept me up. It was amazing. Every time I made a play, I would turn around and he would be like pointing at me. He stole my heart, man. People don't see it on the outside, but he really cares about me. He cares about everyone.

Does that perception about him surprise you given how he is with you?

JL: It's surprising because he don't say much and he doesn't express his feelings that much. You've got to be real close to him for him to express his feelings. But I never hear Manny say anything negative. If something negative happens, he'll be like 'don't waste your energy on it.'

My friends and family know I'm not one to get all googly over babies... but these pictures of the soon-to-be Daddy and Mommy Papelbon are too cute not to share. These were taken at Vitaminwater's MLB All-Star week celebration at Hudson Terrace on July 14, 2008 in New York City.

Ashley looks positively radiant, and Jonathan looks downright proud of himself. "ME MAN. ME MAKE BABY. ME AWESOME."

Nike's just about to unleash their new ad campaign on the world. Entitled "Courage", the video spot features quick shots of a wide variety of professional and Olympic athletes set against the sounds of the Killers song "All These Things That I've Done". And alongside all-time greats like Michael Jordan, Lance Armstrong, Arthur Ashe, Carl Lewis, Mary Lou Retton and John McEnroe, the Red Sox own Jon Lester makes an appearance.

The accompanying Nike website says of Jon:

On August 31, 2006 , doctors discovered Jon Lester had enlarged lymph nodes, and a few days later he was diagnosed with anaplastic large cell lymphoma. On October 27, 2007, Lester clinched the World Series for the Boston Red Sox. On May 19, 2008, he threw his first career no-hitter.

So I realized late last night, in those dwindling half-lucid moments just before I fell asleep, that I had forgotten something.

My train of thought went from planning my budget for the next few weeks, to picturing the July calendar in my mind's eye, to realizing it was already July 17th, and then thinking back on what I was doing this time last year (in Chicago! quit my job! going to baseball games every week!). And then I realized... it had been over a year since I started this here lil' blog adventure. And I had completely forgotten.

It all started with Deadspin, and its patented irreverent, sarcastic and sometimes delightfully crass way of examining sports and the athletes who play them. A group of eight women commenters decided that while the KSK boys were more than adequately representing the ultra-male voice of fans, there wasn't really a group of women out there to counterbalance them. So we dreamed up our own little spot where we could drool over eyeblack and forearms, but also drool over VORP, an alley oop and the nickel defense. From there, it was only a matter of months before I discovered I was overrunning the place with baseball talk, and rather than dial it back... I decided just to create my own place where I could go on and on (and on) about baseball to my heart's content. And so I worked on the design and making the place all pretty and shiny for a month...

And then on July 7, 2007, Center Field made its grand debut. With a post about what an old-school hottie Yaz was. Of course.

Things were a little up-in-the-air for that first month or so, but CF pretty quickly settled down into all Red Sox, all the time. Second post? Papelbon kicking over a water cooler. Third post? Stating the obvious truth about Dusty Baker's amazing ability to suck. See, things haven't really changed that much after all. Mostly because Dusty Baker will always suck - it's a constant.

Since that time, I've been fortunate to enough to join the illustrious Babes Love Baseball team, co-manage the 1986 Toronto Blue Jays to third place in the AL East, and somehow manage to keep this place going for over a year.

Now comes the time when I get to thank everyone who's helped me out along the way. And so I should start with Will (now here) - who was really the catalyst that started this whole chain of dominoes way back when. Huge thanks to my posse of fellow Sox writers, who have been nothing short of phenomenal with support, and links, and laughs - Ian, Dan, Beth, Red & Denton, Kristen, Dan D., Erin, Sarah, Tex, Caroline & Jennifer and Allan. Thanks and undying affection also go out to my pals who don't happen to be Sox fans, but do all happen to be fantastic baseball writers and great supporters: Caryn, Tim, Kevin, Michael, David, Bernadette, Rob & CTC, Tuffy, Enrico, Jon and Eric. I'd also like to pay homage to other sports-obsessed folks who provided assistance, inspired me with their wit, and became trusted confidantes and friends: Orson, Holly, Peter, Jimmy, T. Kyle, J-Money, Jebus, Sarah, Brian, the cabal, Margaret, Francine, the Ladies, Sooze, Lizzy & Sarah, and Clare. I can't say thanks enough to Janelle, Gwen, Kat, Amiee, Greg, Laura, Clint and Angela for all the memories of endless days spent at a ballpark or football field, and the memories of countless nights filled with whiskey-soaked sports rants. And last, this whole thing is thanks to my dad and brother, who I blame in equal parts for making me a sports fan.... hook 'em.

Same time, next year?