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Home > Jeff Schultz > Archives > 2008 > July > 22
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
The Tuesday Countdown
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
10: Mike Hampton will throw a bullpen session today. It will be immediately followed by the second part of our double feature, “Dawn of the Dead.”
9: Frank Wren has been taking some abuse for the Braves’ implosion this season. But the criticism is borderline baseless. John Smoltz had been a relative iron man the last three seasons since transitioning back to starter. Tom Glavine had never been on the disabled list in his career. There was no way to foresee Jeff Francoeur’s problems or Mark Teixeira’s relative pedestrian season or any of the other injuries that have wrecked this season. In short, everything that could’ve gone wrong did.
8: A leftover quote from Wren Monday on the difficulty of declaring the Braves sellers at the deadline: “It’s certainly one of the toughest decisions [of my tenure]. But it’s also one of those things that you’re going by feel. It’s not like, ‘OK, if we’re a certain number of games out on this date, we’re sellers.’ You’re kind of looking at the club and the way it’s playing, and you’re also thinking, ‘If this is all we’re doing this year, we have to make the ballclub better going forward.’ “
7: Infomercial: For those in the Notorious DOB club of baseball and music junkies, you’re missing something if you haven’t heard, The Baseball Project’s, “Volume One: Frozen Ropes and Dying Quails.” It was partly written and sung by long-time friend Steve Wynn, who collaborated with Scott McCaughey (Minus 5, REM), Peter Buck (REM) and Linda Pitmon. The song about the late Harvey Haddix is so good that his former wife, Marcia, emailed Steve and hoped it would push baseball to further recognize his 12-plus inning perfect game (which ended in the 13th). For what it’s worth, I wrote something on Steve for “Access Atlanta.” The link.
6: I know, it’s not the NBA. But if I’m Josh Childress and I could make $20 million for three years to play basketball in Greece, I’m pretty sure I can get past the fact I’m not in the NBA.
5: It’s common to have rumors about unsigned players going elsewhere. Many are planted by agents. But in the cases of Childress and Josh Smith, are you getting the feeling that they really aren’t that anxious to come back here? And how long ago does that playoff series against the Celtics now seem?
4: The disgraced Marion Jones, who lied in a federal drug investigation and, more importantly, to sports writers, has asked the guy in the White House for a Presidential pardon. She wants her six-month jail term commuted. What a wonderful addition to Bush’s legacy that would be. Is she that deluded?
3: For all the dolts who bashed former Thrashers assistant coach Brad McCrimmon and blamed him even a little bit for the team’s faceplant last season, hear this: He just got hired by the Detroit Red Wings, the NHL’s best team, as an assistant to Mike Babcock. (Credit to pal Craig Custance of The Sporting News, formerly of the AJC, for getting the story before anybody in Detroit. Custance will be moving back to Michigan soon. I believe it was a package deal with McCrimmon and Marian Hossa.)
2: One more hockey note: The signing of Marty Reasoner officially gives the Thrashers 27 fourth-line centers, a franchise record.
1: Madonna. A-Rod. Report of a sex tape. Comment: I’m assuming he didn’t close the deal in October.
