Marshmallowmilkshake

I can ask! Those giveaways are planned months in advance. But we are tabling there next month and I can give things away at our table!

I started getting texts with screen shots during dinner last night! This still is from the MLB.com video. The wall is a big deal for us. The head of marketing for the Tigers is a Ferris State alum, and we've been working on various things that might make sense for both sides. The wall space was available, and we had some budget in the spring, so we decided to go for it! I'm blessed to have an administration that is supportive of us, especially when we have a big idea. We've done digital things before, those ads that appear on your screen but don't really exist on the field. But one of the selling points was that this ad would be seen during Tigers broadcasts, but also the visiting teams' broadcasts, getting us some national exposure. This was a great example! I did ask the Tigers if they could slip a raccoon or ground hog onto the field tonight. Meanwhile I'm buying a bunch of stuffed black squirrels and little Ferris State t-shirts as giveaways!

A black squirrel interrupted the Tigers-Orioles game last night, running around the outfield and eluding a small army of grounds crew members for a bit. I am very excited that he stopped for a while in front of our sign, and that we are getting some national run out of this!

Here's Piazza's plaque for comparison. I think it's goofy that the Hall feels to need to put common nicknames in quotes. And, it's not even consistent about it. Will anyone really not realize that Michael Piazza and Mike Piazza are the same person? They did it with Jeff Kent's plaque, too., but not with Jeff Bagwell. I get it for people who never used their actual first name, like Sparky Anderson and Yogi Berra. But for Seaver's plaque, they didn't do it, even though the went by his middle name. And it's not like he didn't have cool nicknames. They could have used "The Franchise" or "Tom Terrific."

4-to-6 weeks!

Nice early visit to Detroit! I'll be there!

I know the Lindor error was costly. But Williams can't go walking two batters - one with the bases loaded -- and get off scott free.

Phil was such nice guy. He was from West Michigan, and for a spell was manager of the West Michigan Whitecaps, the then low-A affiliate of the Tigers. It's a high-A team now.. When I was a reporter, he agreed to be part of a "live chat" where we talked in the comments about different issues. Phil was a guest as we where awaiting the Hall of Fame vote, and shared stories about his long and storied career with us and readers. It ended up being one of the years where no one was elected, so it fell a little flat. This was before the comments became a cesspool, and you could have interesting discussions.

You’d think taking two from the Braves would fire up the boys a little. This is disappointing.

This team will be the death of me.

Benge seems to be having himself a game. Giving him a starting job is one of the things that went right!

Weaver is signed through next season. If we hope to be good next season, why would we trade someone who can be an important part? Trade the guys who are leaving anyway. Stearns said we are not rebuilding.

Wasn’t pretty, but a win against the Braves is a win against the Braves.

100 percent he's in.

If Weaver is signed for next season and we hope to be good next season, then by all means hold on to him. Trade the guys who are gone after the season anyway. I'm trying to think of a sell-off trade that brought a prospect who turned into a good player. What did we get from the 2023 fire sale? Pieces we turned into two months of Tyler Rodgers and Luis Robert?

I'm in Denver for a conference, and got up early to walk around the Colorado State Capitol, because I love that kind of stuff. I was very excited to see the official portrait of State Sen. Tom Sullivan. He's wearing a Mets cap! Clearly an American hero. He grew up in Rochester, but I did some searching and found out some interesting things about his background. He started wearing it as a satirical response to fellow lawmakers who wear cowboy hats. The Context Behind the Cap The "City Slickers" Reference: Senator Sullivan, an Air Force veteran and former postal worker, wears the baseball cap as a lighthearted nod to the classic movie City Slickers. Mocking "Phony" Cowboys: He chose the Mets cap specifically to gently mock the large faction of conservative, rural Republicans in the Colorado statehouse. He pointed out that many of them regularly wear full cowboy hats to the chamber despite not being actual working cowboys. A Signature Look: Sullivan is rarely seen without a baseball hat in public, and the Mets cap has seamlessly carried over into his official Colorado General Assembly profile photo, serving as a stark visual contrast to traditional political attire.

Pundits keep talking about dealing Peralta. He’s hurting his value.

That's the Nolan McLane we know and love!

Did you miss 1999, 2000, 2006, 2015, 2016, 2022 and 2024? All great years that fell short but still great.

I would, because the team you are seeing today is not what is going to be here next year. All the injuries and under performance will all be better -- plus an owner that you know is spending and trying to win. It's a good team that is playing like crap for a variety of reasons. That's much better than being on a team that isn't even trying.

This is why this team can be infuriating. It seems like whenever they come off of something good, like the Braves series or the Subway Series, instead of building on that, they suck the wind right out of you.

I think the team went into this signing knowing, if not expecting, this to be the case. Him opting out also doesn't prevent the Mets from signing him, maybe for a longer deal but with less money each year. Or, they can put that $40 million toward Tarik Skubal. We don't know what the collective bargaining agreement will lead to, either. He could be taking a pretty big gamble by opting out.

Great game!!!

Nice work! Thank you, Brock!

No way he's going anywhere, but Buster Olney pointed out yesterday that Steve Cohen could come out and say that to end a lot of speculation. The discussion pointed to insiders saying the team has been unlucky with injuries -- especially Lindor and Soto and Holmes -- and guys who are underperforming, like Bichette and Manaea. Polanco and Robert being injured shouldn't come as a surprise. They were critical of the Polanco signing, saying it was an overpay from the start, and said Robert all along was just a placeholder for whenever Ewing was ready.