Starting off

We start September with a whimper,but soon things will be heating up.
Just some thoughts on various things and upcoming posts.

This is the time of year that I have the hardest time coming up with things for the Pirates to write about.
The team is usually rotten,the games are not televised as often and other than the September callups there isn't all that much to get excited about.
However,I did like what I saw from Daniel McCutchen yesterday with the exception of allowing a homer to Drew Stubbs early in the first inning.
McCutchen's debut lasted six innings with three runs on five hits and fanned five.

The first game was lost on an ninth inning wild pitch by Jesse Chavez that allowed Darnell McDonald to score.
Two thoughts-Chavez has been pretty ineffective in August as his ERA as gone up by half a run in August.
The other?
Darnell McDonald is still in the league?
Anyone remember when he was drafted by the Orioles and was going to be the next big star.
Of course,most of the same people thought Jeffrey Hammonds was a better prospect than Manny Ramirez as well....

Cincinnati as always had the rep of being a baseball town,but it sure didn't look that way yesterday with a crowd that would have half filled the Muni for Game 1 of the doubleheader yesterday afternoon.
Announced attendance was 2,000 and that might have been very generous.
I can understand it though with kids back to school on a work day and two of the three worst teams in the National League facing off does not make the most viable environment for a big crowd.

The Pirates losing both halves of the twinbill solidified their draft slot at 3rd with a month to go.
Chances of moving to the top spot look distant,but passing Kansas City for second is still very viable.

Look for an Ohio State football preview before Saturday's opener with Navy.
I am hoping to bang that out during the off days and have it ready sometime Friday.

We will have our annual look at the Browns and Seahawks the following week as well.

The Pirate blues are countered though with Buckeye,Brown and Seahawk football on the way and the Devils training camp opening soon,so this is just a short downtime.

Well,Versus is off DirectTV as we speak.
Assuming an agreement is not in place when the puck drops,that would mean five Devils games that I would miss and of course any playoff games that would be beyond the first round.
Of course this would not be an issue if Gary Bettman had stayed with ESPN to being with,but that is another story for another day.

Sorry to hear about Paul James also known as the Gardener Guy losing his show (Gardening by the Yard) on HGTV.
Actually,the old shows will still be around there,but no new shows will be produced.
James is the only man alive that made gardening shows fun to watch and will be missed.
But James does have a new website up for those of you that liked the show or have yard/garden questions can still ask the master about.

One of my fondest memories was when I first started watching the show and realized that every time the bumper music played,Rachel would pull herself up in her playpen and watch along.
Now,that same child becomes a teenager in a month and day.
Where does the time go???

Until later when we talk about the various news with the pigskin,some off the ice Devils news and perhaps either a knives and daggers or forgotten superstar.

Photo Credits
McCutchen and Wild Pitch:David Kohl;AP Photo
Paul James:HGTV.com
Rachel Heimberger:Herself.