Landestoy Luke
By Landestoy Luke
How about Joey T. having to emphasize I wasn’t part of the staff? I think it’s a ploy to make sure he doesn’t have to cover me at the next Mid Valley banquet at the Steer ‘N’ Ale. Whatever gets you through the day, Mr. T.
What gets Dodger fans through the day? Knowing that the Padres are overachieving. Problem is, Blue ilk, it’s not the Padres that should be focused on. The best team in this division is managed by the king of asking himself his own questions at press conferences. I’m talking about Jim Tracy and the Colorado Rockies. They stumbled a little out of the gate, but they’ve got themselves within three games of the Friars in the NL West at 47-38. They’ve done all this despite losing Todd Helton (but he was stinking up the joint anyway), SS Troy Tulowitzki (who wasn’t stinking up the joint), having to demote their starting CF and C (Dexter Fowler and Chris Iannetta) and just getting closer Huston Street back. What’s the secret? Stellar pitching from Cy front-runner Ubaldo Jimenez and unexpected performances from C Miguel Olivo and SP Jhoulys Chacin. LF Carlos Gonzlaez has also shown flashes of being a future star. The bullpen is pretty solid also, including former El Rancho standout Randy Flores (there’s your local stuff, Bonita Alum).
If you want any further proof that batting average is overrated, guess who is leading the AL in batting average: The Kansas City Royals. Guess who is 9th in the AL in runs scored: The Kansas City Royals. ‘Nuff said.
Speaking of the Royals, they haven’t sucked lately. They find themselves 8 games back in a weak division after a 5-1 start to the month. New manager Ned Yost has talked about the Royals making a run at the division. OK, now that we’ve all stopped laughing, eeeeeasy Neddie. This team is horrible. They have the worst everyday player in SS Yuniesky Betencourt, a horrible starting staff outside of reigning Cy Young winner Zach Grienke and a relief staff that’s a disaster outside of All-Star Joakim Soria. Nothing could get this team to contend…not even minor league hurler and Rosemead High alum Henry Barrera (there’s a second local reference Bonita Alum…it’s like freakin’ Christmas for you). I dunno if Neddie is hitting the purple drank with JaMarcus, but the only thing the Royals are contending for is an even more pointless existence in Major League Baseball.
Don’t forget to follow me on Twitter: #LandestoyLuke. It’s the best thing you’ll ever do for yourself.
I’ve done such a great job, I’m taking the next 3 days off. See all of ya on Tuesday.
Landestoy Luke is a former semi-pro baseball player in the California-Nevada Independent League. As a member of the Henderson Florencias, he set the CNIL record for most balks in an inning with 4. After the 4th balk call, he shoved former major league umpire Dave Pallone and served a 31-day suspension. After spending some time as an advance scout in the Mexicali League, Luke now spends his time as a freelance writer.
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