Tuesday, July 24, 2007
He Hears the Ticking of the clocks; And walks along with a parrot that talks...
(author's note): There was a recent update on the website The Progress of Trooper Doyle, which deserves top billing.
"Just when you think you've heard the most amazing things about Brendan, there's another update that makes you take a step back and be impressed yet again. Today the physical therapists decided to take Buzzy on a little ride - on the Charles River. He went on a two mile canoe ride and he did most of the rowing. He was a little tired when it was over, but, hey, wouldn't we all be?
On Saturday PT wanted Brendan to do some stairs. So he did. Nine flights! The nurse could hardly keep up. Now who's kicking whose butt? ;)
Brendan is expected to be released from rehab late this week. He will begin outpatient rehab in Rhode Island immediately following his release.
He still has the feeding tube in, and it will remain in for at least two weeks as he continues to work hard to eat more solid food, but he is improving every day. The thinner the consistency, the more difficult it is to swallow (water just goes down too fast!) but today he was allowed to have some soup and drink some milk with the therapist watching closely and that went well, so that's a good sign that he is gaining better control of the muscles in his throat. He still has awhile to wait before he can eat more solid foods, but today he also had some ziti with red sauce."
Between Jon Lester (see post and original blog entry below) and Buzzy, a coyote could gnaw on my leg for an hour and I wouldn't care. Good news is the best medicine.
First of all, it doesn't matter which baseball team that you fancy as your favorite - you should be happy for Jon Lester.
The 23-year old southpaw returned to the mound just over 11 months after being diagnosed with cancer. From then to now, he'd gone through six cycles of chemo, spring training, rehab starts, and took the hill versus one of the top teams in all of baseball.
Lester threw 96 pitches over six innings, yielding just five hits - including a two-run homer from Grady Sizemore - while striking out six.
In the newspaper, the agate box will simply read: W - Lester (1-0); L - Westbrook (1-6).
But a sign held up by a fan, aired midway through the game on NESN, summed it up well, no matter the score: W - Lester; L- Cancer.
-----
The Yankees are on a tear right now. They scored about 180 runs vs. the Devil Rays this past weekend and have won four straight, 9-of-11, and 11-of-15. They're at six-games over .500 (52-46) - the best record of the season and are just 5.5 out of the wild card (not to say they're 7.5 out of the AL East race).
I'm happy about this.
No, I'm ecstatic.
And before you send a doctor to my office to check my sanity, allow me to explain.
There's a meeting going on today in Tampa, with George Steinbrenner, the Tampa brass, and Brian Cashman. And with the Yanks within shouting distance of the playoffs - and let's not forget, the NYY build playoff revenues into their operating budget every single year - the Yankee braintrust (yeah, I just giggled a little bit typing that) is going to determine if they need to make any deals.
And they do.
They need to replace three starters who are 37-years old or more. They need to figure out how to re-sign their All-Star catcher. And the best closer in the game. They also need to figure out how to get to that closer, with a variety of lefties and righties in the right spots. Their 3B is also set to test the waters of free agency and make more professional sports history with his contract. The CF is old and broken down. The 1B/DH guy is broken. The LF and RF show signs of a little bit of rust under the fresh coat of paint (a.k.a. - Shea Stadium "renovations").
So other than that, they're good to go.
The Yankees traded a young pitcher for an older backup catcher. The names aren't important. The principle of it is.
If the Yankees continue that trend - young arm for old bat - and you know they will, then as much as 2007 seems to be a long-shot, 2008, 2009 and beyond will be even longer.
Nice to have Shelley Long or whatever his/her name is belting balls around the park soon after his callup. (Sam Horn says hi. He has a website named after him now.)
But here's hoping that after a meal at Malio's, they decide it's time to re-mortgage the future and trade for Torii Hunter, Mark Teixeira, and every other star player being dangled prior to the July 31 trading deadline.
Actually, it would probably be a reverse mortgage - a term I learned by watching NESN, with the infomercial talking about how old people can supplement their income. A perfect foil in the case of the too-old Yanks.
Joel Sherman summed it up nicely, as well
-----
Lindsay Lohan busted again for cocaine and DUI?
No... C'mon. She went to rehab. She wears a bracelet.
Horsefeathers.
-----
And Roger Goodell told Mike Vick what he thought about #7 heading to training camp (n the lazy, hazy dog days of summer (sorry...couldn't resist) : "Don't."
Good move, Rog.
On an aside, ESPN.com had a poll question: which commissioner of a major league has it the worst, Goodell (NFL), Bud Selig (MLB), or David Stern (NBA).
Of course the answer is pretty obvious: Gary Bettman (NHL).
Why?
Because, thanks to his leadership, the NHL is no longer considered a major league. I'd argue MLS and NASCAR have both overtaken it.
As for David Stern (the right answer to the aforementioned question), he has some ‘splaining to do.
If he truly felt that it was necessary to send a PI after Tim Donaghy, to investigate his off-court behavior and whether or not it affected his actions on-the-court, then I believe it warranted some action.
That’s not a sometimes/maybe kind of question and answer session. It requires precaution at the very least, and termination at the end of the spectrum.
Due process? Yeah, later. Shoot first, ask later, I say.
-----
This might not lead SportsCenter, but to me...it's pretty "now."
Nice to see U.S. distance running making a strong comeback. It would never happen overnight, but to get two medals at the Pan-Am Games, along with news of Alan Webb's new U.S. mile record, it's happening.
-----
Ok, that's all from here.
Enjoy your day.
yh&os,
"Just when you think you've heard the most amazing things about Brendan, there's another update that makes you take a step back and be impressed yet again. Today the physical therapists decided to take Buzzy on a little ride - on the Charles River. He went on a two mile canoe ride and he did most of the rowing. He was a little tired when it was over, but, hey, wouldn't we all be?
On Saturday PT wanted Brendan to do some stairs. So he did. Nine flights! The nurse could hardly keep up. Now who's kicking whose butt? ;)
Brendan is expected to be released from rehab late this week. He will begin outpatient rehab in Rhode Island immediately following his release.
He still has the feeding tube in, and it will remain in for at least two weeks as he continues to work hard to eat more solid food, but he is improving every day. The thinner the consistency, the more difficult it is to swallow (water just goes down too fast!) but today he was allowed to have some soup and drink some milk with the therapist watching closely and that went well, so that's a good sign that he is gaining better control of the muscles in his throat. He still has awhile to wait before he can eat more solid foods, but today he also had some ziti with red sauce."
Between Jon Lester (see post and original blog entry below) and Buzzy, a coyote could gnaw on my leg for an hour and I wouldn't care. Good news is the best medicine.
First of all, it doesn't matter which baseball team that you fancy as your favorite - you should be happy for Jon Lester.
The 23-year old southpaw returned to the mound just over 11 months after being diagnosed with cancer. From then to now, he'd gone through six cycles of chemo, spring training, rehab starts, and took the hill versus one of the top teams in all of baseball.
Lester threw 96 pitches over six innings, yielding just five hits - including a two-run homer from Grady Sizemore - while striking out six.
In the newspaper, the agate box will simply read: W - Lester (1-0); L - Westbrook (1-6).
But a sign held up by a fan, aired midway through the game on NESN, summed it up well, no matter the score: W - Lester; L- Cancer.
-----
The Yankees are on a tear right now. They scored about 180 runs vs. the Devil Rays this past weekend and have won four straight, 9-of-11, and 11-of-15. They're at six-games over .500 (52-46) - the best record of the season and are just 5.5 out of the wild card (not to say they're 7.5 out of the AL East race).
I'm happy about this.
No, I'm ecstatic.
And before you send a doctor to my office to check my sanity, allow me to explain.
There's a meeting going on today in Tampa, with George Steinbrenner, the Tampa brass, and Brian Cashman. And with the Yanks within shouting distance of the playoffs - and let's not forget, the NYY build playoff revenues into their operating budget every single year - the Yankee braintrust (yeah, I just giggled a little bit typing that) is going to determine if they need to make any deals.
And they do.
They need to replace three starters who are 37-years old or more. They need to figure out how to re-sign their All-Star catcher. And the best closer in the game. They also need to figure out how to get to that closer, with a variety of lefties and righties in the right spots. Their 3B is also set to test the waters of free agency and make more professional sports history with his contract. The CF is old and broken down. The 1B/DH guy is broken. The LF and RF show signs of a little bit of rust under the fresh coat of paint (a.k.a. - Shea Stadium "renovations").
So other than that, they're good to go.
The Yankees traded a young pitcher for an older backup catcher. The names aren't important. The principle of it is.
If the Yankees continue that trend - young arm for old bat - and you know they will, then as much as 2007 seems to be a long-shot, 2008, 2009 and beyond will be even longer.
Nice to have Shelley Long or whatever his/her name is belting balls around the park soon after his callup. (Sam Horn says hi. He has a website named after him now.)
But here's hoping that after a meal at Malio's, they decide it's time to re-mortgage the future and trade for Torii Hunter, Mark Teixeira, and every other star player being dangled prior to the July 31 trading deadline.
Actually, it would probably be a reverse mortgage - a term I learned by watching NESN, with the infomercial talking about how old people can supplement their income. A perfect foil in the case of the too-old Yanks.
Joel Sherman summed it up nicely, as well
-----
Lindsay Lohan busted again for cocaine and DUI?
No... C'mon. She went to rehab. She wears a bracelet.
Horsefeathers.
-----
And Roger Goodell told Mike Vick what he thought about #7 heading to training camp (n the lazy, hazy dog days of summer (sorry...couldn't resist) : "Don't."
Good move, Rog.
On an aside, ESPN.com had a poll question: which commissioner of a major league has it the worst, Goodell (NFL), Bud Selig (MLB), or David Stern (NBA).
Of course the answer is pretty obvious: Gary Bettman (NHL).
Why?
Because, thanks to his leadership, the NHL is no longer considered a major league. I'd argue MLS and NASCAR have both overtaken it.
As for David Stern (the right answer to the aforementioned question), he has some ‘splaining to do.
If he truly felt that it was necessary to send a PI after Tim Donaghy, to investigate his off-court behavior and whether or not it affected his actions on-the-court, then I believe it warranted some action.
That’s not a sometimes/maybe kind of question and answer session. It requires precaution at the very least, and termination at the end of the spectrum.
Due process? Yeah, later. Shoot first, ask later, I say.
-----
This might not lead SportsCenter, but to me...it's pretty "now."
Nice to see U.S. distance running making a strong comeback. It would never happen overnight, but to get two medals at the Pan-Am Games, along with news of Alan Webb's new U.S. mile record, it's happening.
-----
Ok, that's all from here.
Enjoy your day.
yh&os,
