First Place and the British Open

It may be a short stay, but the Pittsburgh Pirates moved into first place with a 4-0 win over the Houston Astros in Houston.
Jeff Karstens (8-4) went the distance for his first complete game of the season and threw just 83 pitches in the game.
I did not see the game, so I don't have Pirate hooks, but the numbers look terrific for Karstens on the day.

The Pirates activated Joe Beimel from the DL and sent Daniel Moskos to Indianapolis before the game. It was a formality that either Moskos or Tony Watson was going to be the player that made space for Beimel on the roster...

Paul Maholm (6-9 2.96 ERA) faces Bud Norris (5-6 3.46 ERA) at 7:05 tonight, so with some luck, I'll get to see this one!

I love to watch Major tournament golf.
There I said it.
Especially the Masters and the British Open for different reasons.
The Masters has the fortune of being the official bridge to springtime and the lush course that is Augusta National along with being the only major that uses the same site every year.

However, in some ways, I enjoy the British Open even more.
One can almost imagine golfers 100 years ago hacking their way around the various courses in Great Britain, it is somewhat difficult to think of things in the same way with the well-manicured American courses.
The weather is always fun to see too as one watches players muddle through weather that would have them inside their homes on similar days in the USA.

The British Open also seems (along with the PGA) seems to have the unlikely winner pop up more than the other majors, perhaps that is due to the lack of time that many have playing links golf, which basically boils down to playing golf along the ground more than through the air.
 But I suppose the main reason is that the British Open coverage starts at three or four in the morning and I can watch at work, which often costs me getting to watch events.
Something kinda nice about watching a nice quiet event in the cool of the summer darkness.