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Notes and thoughts compiled at the breakfast table:
* When my son asked yesterday who the Texas Rangers were playing, I told him, "Baltimore." He said, "I like Oreos."
* Here's another reason why it's so fun to have the Rangers as the local team: On a six-game trip, they allowed double-digit runs three times and still won four games.
* That was some feast-or-famine pitching we enjoyed/endured on that road trip. In those six games, the run totals allowed were 1, 2, 3, 10, 10 and 18.
* With four games, starting tonight, against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim and the Rangers 7 1/2 games out, I'm not so sure we'll know in four days whether the Rangers are buyers or sellers this year, but we could know they're sellers.
* Did you see where the Seattle Mariners put backup catcher Jamie Burke on the mound for the 15th inning of yesterday's 2-1 loss to the Detroit Tigers? Burke lost, giving up a run and giving him an ERA of 9.00. Still, Burke has a better ERA this season than two current Rangers pitchers.
-- David Thomas
"Take Me Out to the Ball Game" turned 100 years old this season. Along with our story in Friday's section on 100 things to know about the song, here are links to more than 30 renditions of the classic. Some of these are classics, some are far from it.
Feel free to make your picks for best and worst in the Comments section.
CLASSICS
* Harry Caray
* Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra, singing the song's second version, from the 1949 movie
* Buck O'Neil
* Frank Caliendo as George Bush, John Madden, Jack Nicholson and others
* Harpo Marx, playing his harp on “I Love Lucy”
* Jerry Lee Lewis and Neil Sedaka
WORTH A CLICK
* John Fogerty
* David Cook of American Idol
* Jack Black
* The Budweiser Lizards
* Bob and Larry from Veggie Tales
* An America's Got Talent duet, including a burping girl
* Camille Abordo
* ESPN's Battle of the Bands (Branford Marsalis, Candlebox, Gretchen Wilson, John Pizzarelli, Lloyd, Ozomatli, Peter Gammons, Punch Brothers, REO Speedwagon and The Cab)
TRAIN WRECKS (DEFINITELY WORTH A CLICK)
* Lance Briggs
* Mike Ditka
* Devin Hester
* Jeff Gordon
* Mark Grace
* William Hung
* Ozzy Osbourne
* Danica Patrick
* Kellie Pickler
* Tony Romo
* Eddie Vedder
-- David Thomas
A.) Jason Giambi of the New York Yankees takes a curtain call to acknowledge Yankee Stadium fans' standing ovation after Giambi hit a grand slam off the Texas Rangers' Luis Mendoza.
B.) Jason Giambi of the New York Yankees takes a curtain call to acknowledge Yankee Stadium fans' standing ovation after Giambi announced he would shave off his hideous 1970s-style mustache.
(Photo: Kathy Willens, The Associated Press)
-- David Thomas
Notes and thoughts compiled at the breakfast table ...
* Even though the Texas Rangers took two out of three from the New York Yankees, I don't think everyone up there was overly impressed. Mike Puma of the New York Post wrote that yesterday's Yankees rout came "against a starting pitcher with a 5.40 ERA, backed by the worst defense in the major leagues and a dreadful bullpen."
* After getting shelled in his major-league debut yesterday, Rangers reliever Warner Madrigal sports a career ERA of 162.00. And I thought that 30.38 ERA that Elizardo Ramirez took back to the minors after his one-game stint looked dreadful.
* Funny, but I made the rounds through the New York papers and couldn't find one mention of Yankees starter Sidney Ponson being upset that he got pulled in the sixth inning.
* And while we're speaking of the New York papers, the A-Rod mess included in yesterday's Crumbs gets even messier.
-- David Thomas
A.) PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem poses for a photograph with baseball Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. at the AT&T National at Congressional Country Club.
B.) In an attempt to boost TV ratings in Tiger Woods' absence, PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem introduces baseball Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. as the Tour's newest member. "Most people don't know that the real reason they called Cal 'Iron Man,'" Finchem said, "is because of how well he hits his irons."
(Photo: Hunter Martin, Getty Images)
-- David Thomas
Notes and thoughts compiled at the breakfast table ...
* Three games over .500 for the Texas Rangers and climbing. This is getting kind of fun. It's like I woke up this morning in Tampa or something!
* Ladies and gentlemen, your leading hitter in the American League this morning is Mr. Ian Kinsler.
* Not to get the cart ahead of the Ponson, but the last time the Rangers swept a series at Yankee Stadium: 2003.
* We'll know what kind of personality you have by which story you click on first: Alex Rodriguez spent most of Tuesday with an 18-year-old cancer patient or Us Weekly is reporting that A-Rod has been making late-night visits to Madonna's apartment.
-- David Thomas
A.) Serena Williams puts on her jacket after defeating Agnieszka Radwanska in the Wimbledon quarterfinals.
B.) Serena Williams flashes a surprise gesture to Wimbledon fans that would make Dick Enberg exclaim, "Oh, my!!!"
(Photo: Anja Niedringhaus, The Associated Press)
-- David Thomas
Notes and thoughts compiled at the breakfast table ...
* See that ping pong table to the left in the living room of FC Dallas players Brek Shea and Josh Lambo? Now that's my kind of living room. I definitely need to get the number of their interior decorator.
* Finally, finally, finally -- the Texas Rangers are two games over .500. To update the stat from last week's Crumbs, the Rangers had spent 39 of 40 days either one game under .500, at .500 or one game over .500.
* Baseball's a funny game. Josh Hamilton crashes awkwardly into the right-field wall and Chris Davis tumbles into the first-base seats. Neither gets hurt. Then Eddie Guardado simply warms up to pitch and gets injured.
* Thanks to Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News for pointing this out: The New York Yankees had four hits last night against the Rangers and hit for the team cycle. They had one single, one double, one triple and one home run.
* Here's a Sporting News blog that lists the top 10 NFL coaches on the hot seat before training camps commence. No. 1 on the list? Our own Wade Phillips.
-- David Thomas
A.) An algae bloom snuggles up against the coastline of Qingdao, China, where sailing events are scheduled to be held during the 2008 Summer Games.
B.) Beijing Games officials say they are "right on pace" in their effort to become the greenest Olympics held to date.
C.) Sailing competitors say air pollution is no longer their biggest concern heading into the Summer Games.
(Photo: The Associated Press/EyePress)
-- David Thomas
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