Friday Afternoon Grab-Bag

Hey everyone, A Friend of Mr. Glass' here. There's a bunch of things I want to touch on today and I'm pretty positive there's no unifying theme with which to weave them all together.

For that reason you'll be getting a little grab-bag of material today, most of it baseball-related, some of it not. Let's do this.

1. Those pesky Bravos.

Few things inspire fear in a Mets fan like a resurgent Braves team. Most media reports speak of the Braves, winners of 7 straight before a loss on Wednesday, as Wild Card contenders, but in some articles you still hear mention of the Braves making a run at the Mets' seemingly impenetrable division lead.

In fairness, the Braves are legitimately in the hunt for the Wild Card. They're 4.5 games off the pace set by the current leader, the Reds, a margin that's more than surmountable with half a season left to play.

Those 4.5 games, however, are trickier than they appear. There are currently 6 teams bunched between the Braves and the Reds, the Giants being the Reds' closest competition at 1.0 game out.

So things are difficult enough for the Braves when it comes to winning the Wild Card, let alone their own division.

The Braves' 7-game win streak began on July 8 with an innocent 4-1 win over the Reds. Checking the standings from July 8, you see the 39-49 Braves 13 games behind the 52-36 Mets.

Zoom forward to the present. The Comeback Kids from Atlanta are winners of 7 of 8, 45-50 on the year and what do they have to show for it in the NL East? Well, god bless 'em, they're now 12 games back of the Mets!

Apparently winning 7 of 8 isn't what it used to be, what more can you say?

So to those in the media (note: I'm speaking mostly to writers at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution here) who insist a sword of Damacles hangs precariously over the Mets even as we speak -- come back to me when the Braves are at .500. Or better yet, come back to me when the Braves are 10 games over. Then we'll talk.

2. Bob Costas will save us all.

Those of you who read this site consistently know that I despise the great majority of broadcast sports journalists.

Tim McCarver. Stuart Scott. Stephen A. Smith. My god, Stephen A. Smith.

How any of these men earn 7-figure salaries is really beyond me (and I assure you they do). The patience that sports fans have for misinformed blowhards, for catch phrases that disguise real insight, for hyperbole with no end -- all of it truly escapes me.

Me, I'm a Murray Chass kind of guy. Bob Murphy. Mike Lupica -- a legend.

Love these guys though I do, a special place in the Glass' heart is reserved for the man who called the games back when it was a game, Bob Costas.

Now look, he's a little too flowery for some people. I can see that. For some people, baseball is baseball. A chilly night in October isn't late fall's remorse, it's a pain in the ass. Fine. That's you.

Me? I'm with Costas. The man appreciates the gravity of sports, which means a lot to me, however misplaced it may seem to those who cheer heartily along with each "boom-shakalaka!" issued by their commentators.

Annie Savoy wanted poetry in her baseball. Me, I want Shakespeare. And Costas, well, he's a sucker for a big moment just like I am.

With that in mind, I was heartened to read Bob Raissman's column this morning (link available by clicking the title above) suggesting that TBS, former home of the Braves, future home of weekend baseball and the divisional series, may make a run at Costas to anchor their broadcast booth when they begin airing games next year.

Raissman's column is highly speculative, and by any practical measure it's best to take it with a grain of salt. But I don't know, a man can dream, can't he?

A return to the broadcast booth by Costas would do wonders for the world of broadcast sports; it might even be enough for me to ease up a little on the other guys.

3. Human Giant made me promise not to blog about their show last night, so nobody go telling them about this.

I happed upon the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre (yes, theatre, not theater -- this is highbrow shit, people) last night with a couple friends, just in time to catch a performance by Human Giant.

For those not familiar with Human Giant, they're a three-man comedy troupe consisting of two dudes who you'd recognize from VH1's Best Week Ever! (kudos to whoever came up with that name for the show, it's perfect) and an Indian fellow by the name of Aziz.

Their show began with a bit about blogging, which naturally inspired a series of elbow prods from my friends. Calmly, I explained to them that I write for a website, not a blog. When they persisted, I conceded that, yes, fine, I'm a blogger.

So the joke was on me through those first 10 minutes or so, but afterward, they really settled in. I won't give away any of their material (and lord knows it wouldn't translate to this medium), but their sketches on PBs (Potential Bros) and celebrity magazines are quite enjoyable.

If they're coming to a venue near you sometime, check them out.

4. One last thought on those pesky Bravos.

A lot of Mets fans are thrilled, of course, that this year's team is poised to snap the Braves' improbable run of 14 straight division championships. Others though feel a little cheated, like it wasn't supposed to be this easy.

In their mind's eye, these fans always pictured a great pennant chase between Mets and Braves, culminating in the longed-for triumph of the good guys over the forces of evil, naturally.

These are the same fans who probably felt a little dismayed that we made it to the World Series in 2000 without beating the Braves (who had been eliminated in yet another NLDS, that time by the Cardinals).

I, for one, didn't really care about any of that back then, and I don't really care what happens with the Braves the rest of the way so long as the Mets finish first in the NL East and make the playoffs for the first time in 6 years.

All that said, I'll admit that there's a little part of me that wouldn't mind it if the Braves made the playoffs, advanced to the NLCS and promptly got whupped by the Mets. Just a little part.

But do I need it? Do I feel empty or cheated without it? Not at all.

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Anyway, that about does it for today. Have a nice weekend everybody.

- A.F.O.M.G.