Murphy's Law dictates that things go to hell when you are not around to fix them. So, naturally, when I left town on Thursday night, this here place suddenly became the most popular place on the planet and used up 3 weeks worth of bandwidth in a couple of hours.

Everything's back to normal now - although I've been working behind the scenes for some time on some changes around here, so this incident may also add "new host" to the renovation list.

One good thing: I was at Wrigley in Chicago to see the Cubs clinch their playoff berth. I'm hopeful now that I'm back in town I can bring some of that same luck to the local 9... and we'll see the Sox clinch their playoff spot today (or tomorrow).

It has nothing to do with the Red Sox (my favorite subject), or Josh Beckett or Sean Casey or Jason Bay (my favorite sub-subjects) -- but it's my birthday, and so I shall post on it anyway.

Today, of all days, FJM posting something about Vince Young and my beloved Texas Longhorns leaves me no choice but to deduce that it is a personal birthday shout-out. Even if it is linking to Richard "I Hate UT, And Mock It Constantly" Justice.

Thank you, FJM. That is the Most Hyperbolic Thing Anyone Has Ever Shouted-Out To Me About Any Subject in the History of the Universe.

Rick and A.J. over at Deadspin asked me to be a part of their brand spankin' new roundtable feature for women sportsbloggers called "Waxing Off". I said yes, without hesitation. What could be more fun than a group of five sports-minded women digging in-depth into the various issues surrounding sports?

And then I got the topic for the inaugural post: sex at the ballpark. Hilarity ensued.

There once was a girl named Sarah
Who was tired of boys who didn't care(-a)
About girls who liked sports
From backgrounds of all sorts
So she created a new blogging era:

I never said I was a poet. That tortured bit of prose above is my own tiny little homage to Sarah Schorno, my blogging partner here and one of the weekend editors here, who had the fantastic idea to gather together a group of some of the best female sports bloggers on the web... and who happened to ask me to be a part of the wild adventure.

Today's the grand opening of Playing The Field - so stop by, bookmark it, and join in. There will be original content and posts at the blog there, and it will also function as a one-stop-shop highlighting the writing of all the women/girls/gals/ladies/womenfolk. You can find me in the little green box, wearing a Sea Dogs hat and kissing a baseball in front of the Sox bullpen at Fenway. Naturally.

Don't forget: today is the deadline for entering your favorite picture showing your Sox fandom into the Mark Waitkus print contest. I've gotten lots of great entries so far - so don't lose out on your chance to get a beautiful print straight from Mr. Waitkus himself.

Also, you'll get to brag about how awesome you are when your winning entry is posted here. That's a bonus.

As I mentioned in the contest post, Mark's online studio showcases this and other 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.

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?

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".

Foolish, foolish Brewer fans.

If it wasn't bad enough they had to deal with the loss of Bernie Brewer's awesome beer barrel slide**, now the guys behind the Milwaukee Brewers blog Right Field Bleachers challenged me to a surefire losing (for them) wager over the upcoming Sox-Brewers interleague series this weekend. I'm pretty confident that even Gabe Kapler can't help the Brew Crew take 2 of 3 from his beloved Sox.

If the Sox win? They'll send me over five of their original design Papi seeds tshirts (which I can then give away to 5 lucky Center Field readers).

If the Sox lose? UNLIKELY... but I'll send them a sixer of Sam Adams, Boston Baked Beans and some clam chowder.

Either way, they still have to deal with Eric Gagne -- so I think we already know who the real winner is.

** Seriously- how cool was this? Silly Brewers and their need to have a "family friendly" park. I wish we had one of these at Fenway- you could charge drunken Massholes $50 a pop to take a ride down the slide into the giant beer mug:

A quick administrative note: I'll be on the road most of today and Sunday, traveling to and from my brother's graduation. That likely means there won't be much updating on Saturday-- but since I'll be spending hours in the airport today and Sunday, posting on those days should continue as normal. I may end up posting Saturday's open game thread early, at an odd time, because of the scheduling.

There will also be an announcement on Monday of a fun intra-team blog wager on an upcoming series.... so look for that.

And finally, for anyone who's going to this weekend's series in Minnesota, I was asked to write the Red Sox summary for the insert in the Twins' GameDay program- so check that out! (Thanks to Kyle and all the GameDay program staff for that opportunity.)

As a very wise man once said, "HOLY SCHNIKEES!" Last night's gameday open thread blew past the 600 comment benchmark and went straight to 671. 671!   Unbelievably awesome.

I was unsure when I started the first gameday open thread during spring training whether anyone would find any use for them. Well, I should have known better - because this amazing community of commenters have made each and every gameday open thread a laugh riot.

And even though the majority of the participants have been Sox fans (naturally), we've also had Yankees, Mets, Cubs and Blue Jays fans join in as well-- which is extra fun. And, like the regular comment threads, anyone is welcome to participate... provided you do not (a) act like an asshat, or (b) get graphically vulgar. And so far, we've not had anyone come close to doing either one.

So a big fat "HELL YEAH!" and thanks go out to everyone who's joined in one of the gameday open threads. I attempted to collate a list below - but I very likely left someone out, so let me know if your name is not there for all to see and admire.

Things That Happened Since I Last Posted:

1. I caught my first homerun - hit by this guy off of a pitch from this guy.

2. St. Patrick's Day!

3. My computer barfed out on me. Which both prevented me from posting and from checking up on news and happenings. Which was awesomely freeing... and yet scary. But it's all better now.

4. I finally had to leave sunny Florida after 12 days and 9 ballgames. Brought home a tan, a few baseballs tossed to me at games, a motley collection of scorecards and beer cups from the various ballparks, some leftover sand, and an orange baseball. No, seriously - a baseball that looks and feels like an orange. It was the lone souvenir I bought-- commemorating the Indians last year in Florida... because who can pass up an ORANGE BASEBALL?

So I'm finally back and will be putting up catch-up posts on the fun stuff that happened while I was gone... because, it's better late than never, right?

If you're looking for me over the next 11 days, this is where I'll be:

Clearwater, Florida - here I come!

Never fear, I'll be checking in to post regularly-- in between the 9 baseball games. And the beach. And the bars. I'm already dreading coming back... and I haven't even left!

While I'm gone, I'll plan to continue posting open game threads for the televised spring training games. And I'll count on y'all to leave me notes about funny things that happen during the game that you'd like to get video of when I return.

No, I didn't get selected from the Green Monster ticket lottery (of course not!) - but I'm spending another day in futility all the same, courtesy of the Chicago Cubs. This will be the third time in the last three months I've spent an entire day waiting in a VWR (December and January for Sox, now February for Cubs) -- and I expect for the results to be more of the same... meaning, I'll get absolutely no tickets.

After two days waiting in the Rockies VWR for Series tickets, two Sox VWRs, and five Sox lottery draws since September without getting a single ticket, I'm beginning to wonder if my Mac is cursed. Though I suppose if my Mac is cursed, it will be only fitting if the Cubs billy goat can break it. 100 years without a World Series title... and counting!

Good news is... I'll be at the computer, so I can post some fun things while I wait.

Roses are red
Baseball's a sport

On Valentine's Day
Pitchers & catchers report!

It's finally here- the day we've waited for since October 29th, 2007. It's P&C time, y'all! Oh, yeah, and it's also Valentine's Day. But like I said at Ladies..., I'd much rather be treated to the boys of summer than yet another lame box of candy.

I upgraded the calendar display in the sidebar- now instead of displaying the full month (which had a tendency to cut event descriptions off, and there was that annoying mouseover window problem), the calendar now displays all the events happening today.

Thanks to Cubby Blue for the poetry.

I'm headed out the door for the weekend to New Orleans- and given my past experiences in that city, I doubt I'll have any time to update 'round these parts. But never say never- I'm bringing my laptop, so maybe I'll have some time in the airports. I'm way behind on answering emails and getting some planned posts up -- I'll catch up once I'm back home.

If y'all want to use this as a random open thread while I'm gone, to discuss any news - please do!

Now it's off to the Crescent City for some of my favorite food in the whole world- crawfish... yummy. I've got a hankering for a hurricane like you wouldn't believe!

Good morning America how are you?
Don't you know me I'm your native son,
I'm the train they call The City of New Orleans,
I'll be gone five hundred miles when the day is done.

And just because... Wes Welker in a Sox hat!

image credit: Boston Herald

A big fat Happy Mardi Gras to everyone on this big Fat Tuesday. Also, a slice of virtual King Cake for each person (question is: who gets the baby?) - I plan on getting some in person soon, because I'll be back in New Orleans on Friday after several years away. Enjoy this last day of crazy overindulgence before the Lenten season of restraint... and don't forget to vote if you're in a Super Tuesday state!

Joy of Sox is one of my regular stops when I'm catching up on Sox news, and the blog author (Allan Wood) was also one of the very first members of the Sox blogging community to bring me into the circle. Needless to say, I'm a big fan. And now JoS needs some help- it is up for the Best Sports Blog (second year running!) in the Canadian Blog Awards... and the final round of voting is almost complete.

If you could stop by HERE and click to vote for JoS (you don't even need to register or give your name or email), you'd help out a fellow Sox fan, and help make sure the reach of Sox Nation actually covers the Great White North.

Do it... for Canada! And I'd say Canada owes us one, after that giant turd Eric Gagne laid on the Red Sox bullpen mojo.

Here's what passes for hockey in Texas (not Dallas):

I'm headed out to the Toyota Center to watch some awesome (cough) Aeros action. I haven't seen a hockey game since I worked for the Ice Bats in college... no, I am not kidding- the ICE BATS. The team played their games on an iced-over dirt floor in a rodeo arena. No, I am not kidding.

Surely Aeros hockey can't be any worse than hockey played in a rodeo arena, right? RIGHT?

In order to help out with all the hot stove discussion that's sure to heat up over this week- and maybe beyond- I've added a link in the sidebar that will always take you direct to the latest post and thread discussing hot stove and trade matters. That way, it's easy for everyone to find the newest thoughts and conversations-- and everyone can continue discussing any news or rumors they hear even if a new Hot Stove post has not gone up.

Feel free to post in the comments of any hot stove post any links to rumors or articles you run across, or discuss any trade thoughts or possibilities - Red Sox or otherwise. I'm always interested in hearing everyone's takes on the latest developments.

Just a programming note for those of you out there who haven't yet ordered your 2007 World Series DVD set (is there actually anyone who hasn't done this yet?): today is the last day to order the set on that special deal price of $25.00 off - so the set is just $54.95 (31% off the regular $79.95 pricetag) - plus shipping for just $1.

The set includes Games 5-6-7 of the ALCS, and Games 1-2-3-4 of the World Series -- plus a bonus DVD (I'm not sure what'll be on that, but if it's anything like the 2004 set, it'll be great).

click the image to go to the order page

I'm headed out the door again to do some playoff traveling. I'm in Philly for the Wednesday and Thursday Phillies games, then I'll be in Boston for the Friday Sox game, and then back here to Chicago for the Saturday Cubs game. I'm taking my trust Mac along with me, so if I have the chance I'll definitely post from the road. I also promise to bring back plenty of photos from Fenway.

What are everyone's playoff plans? Anyone else going to be at Fenway for the Wednesday or Friday games? Anyone thinking about heading to L.A.?

I know I've been MIA for awhile- and it's not by choice, believe me! Turns out I'm crazy sick, and as soon as my crack medical team sorts me out, I'll be back. Hopefully, in the next couple of days. For now, I'm officially on the DL.

To everyone that I owe a return email or a comment response or anything else, I'll get caught up as soon as I return. See y'all soon!

JOSH WON. PAPYBOO SAVED. Oh, and Josh drilled Hernandez just like I predicted he would. He really rocks my world.

Much, much more from the games (last night's heartbreaking blowout and today's Beckett beauty), including my notes on Joshie and lovely photos, when I'm back in Chicago.

I'm off for Baltimore to catch the Sox-O's games today and tomorrow- I missed one Beckett start, I can't miss another. It should be rowdy after last night's fracas... I'll be sure to bring back pictures.

A quick admin announcement: I've replaced the atom and rss feeds by consolidating them into a feedburner feed- which should work and look beautiful in any newsreader. Any problems with it, just holler- otherwise, if you're viewing this in a newsreader, you should update to the new feed url.

Thank you. And now back to your regularly scheduled programming already in progress...

In which I highlight noteworthy blogs for you to gather reconnaissance on the Red Sox upcoming opponent. Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.

Orioles Insider: beautiful design, concise and informative commentary with a sense of humor Roar From 34: irreverent and timely thoughts on the team and the latest O's developments Camden Chat: SBN site with daily open game threads and up-to-date news The Wayward Oriole: another humorous gem, where no Orioles cow is sacred

Based solely on my referrer logs, there are a lot of people out there who come to Center Field in search of answers... because I get some visitors who arrive here after searching for the weirdest things. So I'm going to try and answer some queries for those out there who need a little help.

Search Request: "papelbon enter music"
For now, Jonathan Papelbon exits the pen to "Wild Thing", and then warms up to "Shipping Up To Boston" by the Dropkick Murphys out on the mound.

Search Request: "joba chamberlain throws at red sox head" / "josh beckett joba video"
I love the simple elegance of that first search request phrasing. In any event, if you're here looking for video of Joba Chamberlain throwing fastballs at the head of Kevin Youkilis (and of Josh Beckett sharing his thoughts on the situation with Joba) look no further.

Search Request: "joba the hutt" shirt buy
Amazingly, it doesn't seem like any enterprising Yanks fan has capitalized on their rookie reliever's built-in awesome nickname with a Joba The Hutt tshirt yet (that I can find)- but you can always get the standard MLB.com player number shirt, or this shirt, which I would totally find cute if I was a Yankees fan. Thank goodness I am not.

Search Request: "how old is dustin pedroia?"
24 years old, as of August 17th.

Search Request: "dustin pedroia balding"
HEY NOW! Sure, his college coach may have called him balding a bunch of times, but I prefer to think of him as having a very close buzz that fades away into awesomeness.

Search Request: "brandon moss tattoo"
Here's a picture- you can see it peeking out. According to SoxNest, "Nobody seems quite sure what it is, but it has five segmented ovals along the bottom of his jersey sleeve, showing just enough ink to prove he's a badass." Rowr.

Search Request: "manny delcarmen tattoo"
I know nothing about this- and the only thing I could find about Manny Delcarmen having a tattoo was here- indicating that he was wearing a temporary ribbon tattoo on his neck for Father's Day to promote cancer awareness. Anyone got the scoop?

Search Request: "milwaukee brewers racing mini-sausages"
I took a picture of the mini-sausages they had racing around with the normal racing sausages at the Milwaukee Brewers game, and posted it here. Are they not the CUTEST THINGS EVER?!?!

Search Request: "josh beckett's girlfriend" / "josh beckett rumors" / "what did leann tweeden say about josh beckett"
I do not know about Josh Beckett's girlfriend. I am not going to repeat any rumors about Josh Beckett's personal life. And I never read the Maxim interview with Leeann Tweeden about Josh Beckett, so I'm not sure what exactly she said. She sure is purty, though.

Search Request: "josh beckett swearing" / "josh throw a fucking pitch beckett"
Now this I can tell you something about. See: Exhibit A and Exhibit B- but the quintessential Josh Beckett cussfest is Exhibit C. And I think I will refer to him as Josh "Throw A Fucking Strike" Beckett from now on.

Search Request: "josh beckett is a dick"
HEY NOW! I don't know about that- but I do know what he said about his own assets.

Search Request: "jonathan papelbon slutter video"
I got your slutter right here. Oh, and right here.

Search Request: "clay buchholz good luck ritual"
This one actually has me intrigued- because I've never written about it, and I'm curious now. Anyone know what kind of superstitions or rituals Clay does before or during pitching?

Search Request: "paul mccartney at yankee stadium"
Paul was sitting front row behind home plate, next to Lorne Michaels (who was in turn sitting next to Alec Baldwin), when I was at Yankee Stadium on August 29th to watch Josh Beckett and Roger Clemens duel it out. They played several Beatles/Wings songs on the PA and then would put him up on the Jumbotron... and without fail, he'd smile and wave or dance around a little for the crowd. He was sitting the next section over from me, so I got a few pictures- you can see one here and one with he and Lorne here.

Search Request: "pictures of kevin youkilis with his girlfriend"
Another stumper. I know nothing about Kevin Youkilis's girlfriend (or whether or not he even has one), and I don't have any pictures of her. But if anyone has any scoop they can share, feel free!

Search Request: "josh beckett sunglasses"

Best. Beckett-in-sunglasses. Photo. Ever. courtesy of sittingstill

Search Request: "canada sucks"
Indeed.

I'm off for the weekend- it's officially September tomorrow and college football is calling, so I'm headed to South Bend for the Notre Dame-Georgia Tech game tomorrow, and then down to lovely Indianapolis for NFL and Labor Day celebrations. Depending on my access to the intarwebs, I may post between now and Tuesday... or I may not.

If I don't get a chance to check with in before then, I'd like to leave you with two thoughts:

1. Go Cubbies! Go Phils! Go Sox!

2. The following, which you may or may not apply to a certain situation involving a certain team from the New England region and a certain relief pitcher from the New York area.

Big thanks to Married To The Sea for the hilarious photo.

That's the sound of a sweep. A clean sweep. A four-game sweep. A sweep of total domination.

I believe that's also the sound of gleeful joy, coming from the vicinity of Comerica Park, from a certain pinstriped third baseman. Why? Because he knows that very soon, a certain someone will become his newest fan. He's awfully excited about that.

And don't forget- I will require photographic proof of the fulfillment of the terms of the wager. Three days PLUS you have to wear your A-Rod shirt the next time you take in a game at the Cell. It's not that I don't trust you- it's that I just don't think the victory is complete without tangible spoils.

Things will be quiet around here for a few days -- I'm shipping up to Boston today (Thursday), and will be at the weekend Red Sox-Angels series (and catching a PawSox game on Sunday as well). That means: yay Buchholz! yay Beckett! and hopefully a little of Papelbon as well.

In the meantime, I'll leave you with this classic piece of Sox video to enjoy while I'm gone.

Change your bookmarks, folks- I've moved to brand new digs: