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

Risk and Return

I don’t ever think I’ve seen a ballsier return than Djokovic’s against Federer in this afternoon’s men’s semis. Djokovic had come back from two sets down, but Federer was serving for the match in the 5th. Fed kicks a serve wide and Nole absolutely crushes his forehand return cross-court, and it lands barely in. The crowd, who had been loudly rooting for Fed, was stunned…and then Nole turned to them, arms outstretched, looking for the approval and support he so clearly deserved.

The match turned; Djokovic went on to win 6-7 (7), 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 7-5.

Djokovic, in the press conference afterwards, acknowledged the risk he was taking with that shot.

“If it comes in, it comes in,” he said. “It’s a risk. Last year, I was in a very similar situation. He was two match points up. I was hitting a forehand as hard as I can. You’re gambling. If it’s out, you lose. If it’s in, maybe you have a chance. I got lucky today.”

For his part, Federer wondered if Djokovic had grown up making those shots, taking those risks.

“I did all the right things in so many tournaments,” Federer said. “But like I said, sometimes in sports it just goes the other way. Maybe you’ve already won so much that it evens it out a bit sometimes. I don’t know.”

We don’t know either. But it’s amazing to watch.

Tennis

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