The Twins have been sleepwalking through this homestand with the Royals, but that doesn't mean that we have to as well here at Twinkie Town. Naturally, this means that instead of a super-cool intro to today's B&B post, I'm just going to start with the first bullet point.
- Speaking of sleeping, Mike Francesa of WFAN in New York City had a rough night this week. He didn't get enough sleep, and it started to affect his on-air product during his radio show. In fact, during a long speech being given by WFAN sports reporter Sweeny Murti where I honestly didn't remember a single word, Francesa appeared to take a quick catnap right in the middle of the show. You can see him doze off shortly before his head snaps back up and he's absolutely confused as to what's going on. It's pretty funny to watch, at least more funny than his disbelief that Al Alburquerque was a real name of a baseball player. Oh, and for the record, Francesa says he didn't fall asleep.
- The White Sox have a game on Yom Kippur, which is Sept. 25th this year, and it sounds like they're going to move the game up from a 7:10 pm start to 1:10 pm. Why the change? Well, for one, it will allow fans to observe the holiday and also attend the game. But just as important is that in the middle of a pennant race, the Sox now gain the services of their very own Kevin Youkilis. You may remember Sandy Koufax requesting to avoid pitching Game 1 of the 1965 World Series as it fell on Yom Kippur, so Youkilis would not have had the worst baseball conflict with this holiday in history.
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Stephen Strasburg may be shut down from pitching for the rest of the season, but that doesn't mean that he's completely finished. Nationals manager Davey Johnson hinted at the possibility that Strasburg may be used as a pinch-hitter for the rest of the year. It might not be a bad idea, as Strasburg has hit .273/.333/.426 in 53 plate appearances in 2012, which is basically Ryan Doumit's career numbers (.273/.333/.446). Oh, he's also been shagging fly balls in center field, though really, that's more indicative of his restlessness than the idea that he'll be taking over in the outfield.
- Racism in baseball today? It's more likely than you think. Reds second baseman Brandon Phillips tweeted that he was upset by a racist comment made by a Pirates player earlier this week, and some sleuthing led to the discovery that the comment was made by relief pitcher Jared Hughes. Well, whatever happened between the two, apparently the issue was smoothed over with some help from Andrew McCutchen.
- Finally, it's nice to see Brandon McCarthy out of the hospital shortly after being hit by a line drive in the head, which required brain surgery. It's too bad that a guy that has had his career derailed by injuries in the past gets yet another one on his resume that can be chalked up to little more than bad luck.
I'm at the Twins game this afternoon. Buy some great seats on StubHub and then miss the point of the great purchase by hanging out with me in right field instead!