Baseball In The Daytime: 9-12-07

Unfortunately, neither the Yankees nor the Red Sox are in action this afternoon. You'll have to wait until this evening to tune in to the only two teams that actually matter. Because the readership of the HoG is clearly attuned to the nothing baseball-related but these two franchises along the I-95 corridor.

Wasting our time today are four games that I'll skim over quickly, so as to give you, the loyal audience, more time to prepare for the AL East competition tonight (and the big weekend showdown at Fenway).

Batting leadoff are the Brewers and Pirates, at 10:35 Mountain on XM 186. Dave Bush and Tom Gorzelanny are your starters, and both throw with the hand opposite their baseball glove. Milwaukee has a one-game lead in the NL Central, which means they're more likely than the Cubs to get swept in the first round by the Mets.

At 11:05, from an empty football coliseum on reclaimed swampland, the Nationals visit the Marlins. Jon Hanrahan toes the slab opposite Byung-Hyun Kim on XM 185. I feel fairly confident in saying that this is the worst baseball game I've ever seen scheduled. Somewhere among the dozens of fans in attendance will be a small child taking in his first major league ballgame, and from this day forward he'll care about nothing but skateboarding.

On the South Side of Chicago, my improbable charge toward a first round fantasy baseball playoff upset continues at noon. My operative in this contest is starting pitcher Javier Vazquez, who is not good. The front office staff of Making Noises For Moises is simply hoping that Javy can keep the ball in the yard. Jake Westbrook, who's had a fine second half, starts for the Indians. Cleveland is still rolling six and a half clear of the Tigers and has all but locked up a playoff spot. Find the audio of this event on XM 180.

Finally, at the Kauff, the Royals host the Twins on XM 179, also at noon. Carlos Silva and Gil Meche will fire fastballs and other assorted pitches, batters will occasionally swing, and water will spurt from various fountains. Hopefully there won't be any tornadoes. Is the plural of tornado spelled with an "e" or not? Call George Bush, and tell him Cheers!