Pitching is such a vital part of the game, as far as winning is concerned.

On most teams the set up man has become more valuable, on others not so valuable.

Something to keep in mind — it’s raining lightly. The infield could be very wet on ground balls.

What is a drop and drive pitcher? He is a guy who drops and drives. Very simple.

So by guessing right you might have guessed wrong.

Giambi walks too much. He’s always clogging up the bases with all that walking.

As a new day begins in New York, the sun sets in Hawaii.

If football is a game of inches then baseball is a game of inch.

If that ball had more elevation, it would have been a home run.

If the double play is a pitcher’s best friend, what is a fielder’s choice? An acquaintance?

It’s better to have a fast runner on base than a slow one.

One thing about ground balls. They don’t go out of the ball park.

The reason we call that pitch up and in is because the arms are attached to the shoulder.

He wears his hat like a left hander!

Any ball that goes down is much heavier than any ball that stays on the same plane.

The blood on his sock looks exactly like Oklahoma!

You don't want to use too many statistics. The ones that apply to a July or August game won't be relevant on Saturday.

American McCarver

“Why Do People Even Like Hockey?”

By Michele Catalano, June 30, 2011

I was spending some time on Google this morning, doing research for some brilliant, life changing thing I was going to write about hockey but I got distracted by clicking on too many links to Yahoo Answers and I forgot what that brilliant thing was. Reading Yahoo Answers will do that to you.

Yahoo Answers, I discovered, is the same thing as Quora, but without the proper spelling and grammar. There are a bunch of people who answer questions with the sole purpose of dropping their purported knowledge on you without really giving you an answer. 

Some of the questions I’ve been reading include:

“Why do people even like hockey?”
“Is hockey only played in icy regions?”
“How come people who aren’t Canadian watch hockey?”
“Why does ESPN hate hockey?”
“Did Mark Messier cry on television?”
“What’s the best hockey video game?”
“Anyone know where Jaromir Jagr is at?” 

I don’t need the internet to tell me that hockey is a less-loved sport that gets little respect. I see the coverage other sports get. Even in the middle of the Stanley Cup playoffs, off-season football rumors get more press than championship NHL games. It’s like that one episode of Toddlers & Tiaras (What? I only watch it so I can be horrified by it) when the mother treats one daughter like a pretty, pretty princess and the other one gets locked in a closet with a flashlight and a pamphlet titled “Don’t Come Out Of Here Until You’re Beautiful.” I can’t be positive that really happened. This might be one of those “artistic license” moments I’ve heard about.

Hockey is never going to be beautiful. It’s never going to be glamorous. But that’s ok, because most hockey fans aren’t looking for glamour. The things we love about the game aren’t the things that are made for the pageantry other professional sports have come to be about. There are nuances and small moments that pull it all together for us. The sound of a puck banging off the crossbar. A shorthanded goal. The seventh game of the Stanley Cup finals. An 80 mph wrist shot. An open ice hip check. The hold-your-breath moment when you’re not sure if the puck has crossed the line and you wait for that red light to go on. 

It’s an exciting game. Maybe you can’t get that from just watching it on television. It’s a sport that needs to be experienced live just once so you can absorb the energy, so you can see up close how finesse and violence come together to make something that’s exhilarating to watch. 

I’m not going to sit on Yahoo Answers and explain all of this to people who ask questions like “Why do hockey goalies wear masks?” Sure, I could spend all day giving sarcastic answers to stupid questions or make fun of Mark Messier (he’s the only man who has cried more in public than John Boehner) or play Where’s Waldo with Jaromir Jagr. That would be fun for about ten minutes. 

You either get it or you don’t. I’m ok with the fact that my favorite sport is the one that gets made fun of the most, the one that gets the least respect. Hell, I think there are more people who admit to watching the WNBA than admit to being hockey fans. That’s fine. I didn’t want to have to explain offsides to you, anyhow. 

But if you’re ever on Long Island I’ll be happy to take you to a game and show you what you’re missing.

And for the record, the answer to “What’s the best hockey video game?” is always NHL ‘94 for Sega. Always.

[AP Photo/Kathy Willens]

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