As I was saying ...

This blog interruption was brought to you by The Kansas City Star baseball section which will be coming out this Sunday. Every year, I write several long stories for our baseball section, and this always takes me out for several days. It's usually worth it, though, because the Star's special sections are usually quite amazing -- I believe we've won the big Associated Press Sports Editors award for our special sections each of the last nine years.

(OK, like you care. But next year, if you are in an APSE office pool, pick the Star special section).

Anyway, this year's section focuses on pitching aces, and I team up with Bill James on a couple of fun things, including his latest list of Top 25 starting pitchers ever (he uses a new system that I don't understand, so don't ask) and our combined look at 20 elements to create the perfect pitcher. I would love to unveil all that for you now, but that would ruin the surprise.

Instead, while decompressing, I'll provide a few links. Hey, I've seen other people take this lazy way out before ... I'll be back writing tomorrow.

-- Royals fans, you will want to click on the HF Royals Show.

-- Barry Bonds 756*#!f

-- A Buy The Soul of Baseball link ... how did that get in there?

-- I didn't know this before, but the director's cut of "The Natural" is coming out on Monday. We might add a few home runs to his season. Here is something to get the blood pumping.

-- Vac on Doc. You can't do much better than that.

-- Buster on Ryan Howard. One of my favorite stories in the book is when Kenny Lofton walks over to Buck O'Neil and says, "Buck, I want you to meet the left-handed Josh Gibson." And then he ran off and retrieved a shy Ryan Howard.
"Pleased to meet you sir," Howard said as he stares at the ground.
"You got some power, young man?" Buck asked.
"A little bit sir," Howard said, and he kept staring at the ground. Buck barked, "Don't be ashamed of your power, son," and then he offered a Haiku. He said:

If you got power
Don't hide it for nobody
Swing the bat hard, son

I'm wondering now, have I told that story on this blog already? Man, you do enough radio interviews and you wonder if you will ever again say anything original.

-- Speaking of The Natural, how about this Josh Hamilton story? They better watch the lights at the Great American Ballpark. I couldn't find any good Hamilton stories (Editor's note written 14 hours later: I realize now this makes it sound like there were no good Hamilton stories out there -- that's not at all what I meant. It was late at night, and I coudn't find any good ones. I have since read four excellent Hamilton stories). I did see this Meet the Reds page that amused me. Yowzah, could that photo of Jeff Conine be any bigger? And I love the fact it has a button where you can "Zoom." Does that take you inside his nose?