Most of you should know that Jim Bouton's Ball Four ranks with my favorite books of all time.
I've mentioned it (and Bouton) here many times and my fondness for the book goes back to childhood through current day.
I have the book,the audiobook and the first book that I bought for my Kindle on Christmas Day was Ball Four,so I'm a big fan.
The soon to be 78 year old Bouton has suffered a stroke in recent years and isn't as strong as he used to be,so interviews with him of late are somewhat rare,but the family has decided to auction off the original notes and cassettes that Bouton used to compile Ball Four.
The best part of this collection is that there is so much that didn't make it into the book!
Think of it as the Director's Cut!!
Now,these will fetch a large amount,but I'm hoping someone will buy and donate to an organization that will make them available to the baseball public or even somewhere that allows baseball researchers access to them.
The New York Times talks about the sale and items here,while the Los Angeles Daily News takes a swing at things here.
Former Devil David Clarkson was always one of my favorite Devils and I never held it against him that he left the Devils via free agency after his career year (and a half) that saw Clarkson score 45 goals in that span.
A player has the right to cash in,especially when the numbers appear to be an aberration and the team that signs him is the player's hometown team,so I had no problems with Clarkson leaving.
Clarkson never even approached those Devils numbers after leaving and has been inactive with back problems that likely have ended his career.
A sad ending for a hard nosed player that loved the game as the Columbus Dispatch writes....
Here is my favorite Clarky commercial from his Devils days!
Politico writes about South Carolina congressman Mark Sanford and his political future,which surprisingly is still around.
Sanford is most remembered by non-residents of the Palmetto State for being their Governor and disappearing for a bit while he cheated on his wife outside the country.
Sanford was elected after that to congress and looks to be one of the main members of the GOP to be willing to take on Donald Trump,which considering the baggage of Sanford might not be the easiest water-carrier inside the party..
Why do Americans refrigerate their eggs?
The New York Times writes about why the Europeans prohibit washing eggs,while here in the U.S.washing eggs are mandatory.
Turns out the reason is that eggs have a natural cuticle that protect the inside of the egg from bacteria that gets washed away when they are washed.
The Europeans think the cuticle is more important and the Americans think the washing away is better.
In any event,once the egg is washed,it then needs to be refrigerated...
Five Thirty Eight discusses the Marshall basketball program under coach Dan D'Antoni,the older brother of the more famous Mike and a former NBA assistant.
D'Antoni is bringing the fire up the three offense to the mid-major circuit and this article takes a look at the analytical side of the game with values for where each shot is taken and how many should be taken.
I'm not sure how much that I agree with some of this,but it's a very interesting read on basketball...
