Pauley Learns the Pregame Rituals

It's funny how things will just suddenly pop into your mind, just as this artpad idea came into my mind just out of nowhere. Well not necessarily. I wanted to do something involving David Pauley walking in on some strange odd moment, but I was thinking something more Manny related. Then, I remember this picture I saved from 05 of Mike Timlin which makes it look like he was doing the Thriller Dance. And then I re-remembered I had one I saved of Adam Stern looking like he was doing it too. So my thought was "Dude, they probably do that as a pregame ritual" thus sprouted this idea. Okay I picked Manny and Papi because....dude, it's Manny and Papi. I put in Timlin because of that picture. The other three were just random picks. Oh and Youks in the background w/ the radio is a bit of a shoutout to this hilarious Nextel ad. Now I'd pay to see this pregame ritual happening. And you know they do it! :P

*Thriller Dance and Nextel Ad clips courtesy of YouTube....god bless YouTube*

Damon's Regret

I've said it many-a times before but I can't stand Johnny Damon. It's not really because he's a Yankee. Hell I had him down as a Yankee for 06 even back in November of 2005. I just don't like him because he's way too much of a media whore and he cares way too much about his image and is quite full of himself. As a ballplayer, I didn't mind him on my team. Hell I didn't even mind him in really early 04 when that hair fad started. The hair amused me at first, but then it took a life and a cult following of its own and Johnny's ego grew bigger and bigger. And his whining about how the Red Sox didn't re-sign him. well dude, 13 mil/year for 4 years? Yeah fuck that, I'm sorry dude, but I enjoyed your offense and defense(for teh most part since you still throw like my 4 year old cousin) but the Red Sox had their offer adn stuck with it. If you wanted to stay so badly you would've taken the money. However, though, I'm not suprised. Is he a sellout? Yes but he was a sellout before this anyway. He came to Boston as a sellout, IIRC. He was on Oakland for a good season or so and basically came here for 4 years due to more money. So I mean it's pretty fitting but I still kinda feel for the childrens. But I'd rather have Coco any day of the week and twice on Saturday :) Oh and I do believe there are times when Damon looks out at the Red Sox goofing off and sighs, regretting the choice he made.

Baseball in a Nutshell

This is a series based on a quote in the article "Something for Everyone" written by Art Martone from the Providence Journal on 4/2/06. I highly recommend all of you guys to read it. I took the quote and basically broke it down into illustrations.

*Just a random overhead shot thing not really based on anything*



*David Wells* Liner to the knee by Travis Lee

*Jason Varitek, who isn't exactly lighting it up...though it did kinda hurt to draw this one but he's the only one who I can really think of performing lower than expected*

*Mike Lowell, who in any other non-Jim Thome related year would be the Comeback Player of the Year for 2006...at least thus far*

*Matt Clement being skipped over for Wakefield in the NYY series in early May*
*Self explanatory*
*Also self-explanatory*


*Adam Stern's game saving catch on April 18th*

*What we all were probably doing during Loretta's AB vs the Yanks on May 11th*


*Just a random sketch of Schill, Wily Mo and Lowell on the bench**Josh Beckett does it all vs Philly on May 20th*

*Mark Loretta's walkoff HR on April 17th (Patriot's Day)*

Pauley Gets Waked!

This idea actually comes courtesy of one of my main homies, CN. He thought it'd be pretty funny if Ashton Kutcher went up to Pauley and was like "Dude you got Waked!1" And the idea was such a good one that I just had to do it up. To be Waked, you may ask? Well to be 'Waked' is to take a tough loss because while you may have pitched well, your team didn't put up enough runs on the board for you thus you got crapped on and took a loss. that's what happened w/ Pauley.

The Mike Lowell Line

Mike Lowell has been called "Mr. Double" by a few people, like myself. He has a penchant for the 2-bagger and seems to LOOOOVE hitting at Fenway. Thus what brings me to what I've been calling the third base foul line lately. I've been calling it "The Mike Lowell Line" because that's where his doubles are created or where he goes and where doubles go to die from his glove. I once said "If Fenway Park was a woman, Mike Lowell would make sweeet sweeet love to her" and I sitll believe it. And people thought he was washed up....pffft whatev to them....

Embarassing Moments from Red Sox/Yankee Playoff Games

I had a request from somebody at Royal Rooters to do something about the whole "Gerbil Tossing" in the ALCS of 03 and then of course, the Slap. So I took on the challenge and I decided to go and draw it up.



This first one, as we all know, took place in 2003. It was a tense game and Pedro threw at Karim Garcia and then Garcia spiked Todd Walker(which everybody forgets) and then Clemens threw at Manny and then shit went bad and everything went crazy go nuts and resulted in Pedro Martinez grabbing Don Zimmer and throwing him down. I don't blame him for doing it...if a fat man who looke dlike a bowling ball came charging towards me while they were angry, I'd throw his ass down, I don't care how old he is. It's self defense people! And then you had Jeff Nelson and Karim Garcia beating the shit out of some Fenway Park groundskeeper for some reason...I dunno for sure. the drawing is inspired by a quote by Scott Sauerbeck who said "He just kept rolling and rolling and I thought he was gonna roll into the dugout"'


This second one is about the infamous Slap from Game 6 of the ALCS in 2004. I dunno what it is that A-Rod has against Bronson Arroyo. I've been trying to figure it out all this time but I'm still not too sure. I mean maybe he has some ultra angsty mancrush on him or maybe he really just deep down wishes he was Bronson. You know what I mean? Bronson isn't like the best pitcher out there but that's okay and if he fails, its' okay that he does. With A-Rod he has the whole world looking at him and if he fails it's not okay. Also Bronson is well loved by his teammates(in both Boston AND Cincy) and A-Rod...we'll just say I think some teammates thing he tries too hard. So I'm thinking something like that...you know? The funny thing is that with all the A-Rod bashing, Bronson actually took sympathy on him. Kinda funny really....

Trot Nixon in....Risky Business

I don't even know how I got this idea, to be honest. I just was toiling along thinking and shit and just drawing randomly. As we all know Risky Business is the movie w/ the completely batshit insane Tom Cruise in it. And I'm sure we all know the most famous scene. I'm sure we've all re-enacted it once or twice....I could so see Trot Nixon doing this if he was alone. And yes, I used David Riske for ironic purposes. The song of course is "Old Time Rock n' Roll"-Bob Seger

Red Sox' Little Brother

Kevin Youkilis is the embodiment of the 2006 Boston Red Sox, in my opinion. At least the way the team seems to be breaking out of it's shell. He's the little brother whose finally coming into his own after wallowing in the shadows of his predessecors(Bill Mueller and Kevin Millar). He took the lessons learned from those guys(Billy on the way to play the game and Kevin on the clubhouse goodness) and is using those and his own style of play to become his own player and to prove that he does belong here with the team. Sure for a while, Kevin will probably hear the comparisons, but every sibling does, I should know I'm the youngest of 3 and I kept hearing comparisons to my brother and sister all through high school, but if he keeps doing what he's been doing lately, they'll soon just fade away. The 2006 Red Sox are a bit like that. They're the younger brother to the 2004 team, always hearing the comparisons and always hearing people say "why can't you be more like them?" but the thing is they're not nor they never will be, but it doesn't mean they wont be just as good. They've taken on the lessons and influences of that 04 team(like never giving up and the importance of a good camraderie) but they've added their own flair too. They just need a little time and a little luck and they could be just as good, IMO. Nobody ever expects much from the youngest sibling at first, just thinking they're just a knockoff of the older ones, but give them a little time and a chance, and they could suprise you.

And yes, half of this is kinda me angsting about living in my siblings shadows in high school(My sister is 2 years older than me and my brother is 1 year older than me....and we went to a small high school....) My bad :P

Wakefield's Final Straw

Once again, I must say, poor Tim Wakefield. The guy just can't get any form or run support from the bats. Currently, he ranks among the bottom in run support, despite having an ERA of only 4.05. The only one lower than him is Mark Hendrickson who also has a pretty decent ERA. It's kinda unfair in a sense to see guys like them have pretty solid seasons but not much wins to show for it and guys like Randy Johnson sucking it up and being 2nd in the AL. I dunno I just don't see much justice in that, ya know? And I think Wakey could do alright if he had to take matters into his own hands. Can't hurt, since he isn't exactly THAT BAD of a hitter. He's no Josh Beckett or Bronson Arroyo per se but he can hold his own.

Red Sox Catchers

The Red Sox catching tandem is one of the better ones in baseball, IMO. At least in terms of both catchers compared to the ones in other teams, though Detroit's Pudge/Vance tandem isnt' half bad. Jason Varitek is a great catcher and seems to have a great rapport with his pitchers. Defensively, he blocks the plate like nobody's business. His arm? Errr.....no. He's not the best defensively(Bengie Molina and Brian Schneider are two that come to mind that are better defensively) but he can do alright...just don't trust him throwing out runners. Tek's bat isn't half bad either, one of the better hitting catchers out there, well when he's actually hitting. He's ending a brief reign he had of "Best AL Catcher" right now, giving way to Joe Mauer and Victor Martinez. As for Mirabelli, well he is great defensively and is probably one of the only guys who could catch that knuckler. Red Sox fans became grateful for Mirabelli's services after going through the "Josh Bard Experience" which while Bard wasn't a bad catcher, he just wasn't cut out for catching Wakefield. He really tried though and worked hard at it, but it's just one of those things. Mirabelli may occasionally let a passed ball through here and there, but I don't think I want anybody else out there catching Wakefield...at least for now. His bat, when he's hitting, has some major pop in it. I mean he IS a stud who hits bombs after all :)

# 23 Alex Cora

Within the past few months, I have developed a strange attachment to Alex Cora. I dunno what it is about the guy but I freaking love him. I love to watch him play and even though he's not that good, he is smart and plays his hardest when he can. I dunno maybe it's just that he's just a very likeable ballplayer because it seems that everybody that has watched him play seems to like him. Jerry Remy has this huge unabashed mancrush on him(seriously, ever listen to him talk about Cora? It's insane) and Tito seems to be following suit. Actually I remember being irrationally excited when I found out we acquired him in early July of 05. I think that was more about the fact that Ramon Vazquez was gone but who knows. I look forward to more Super Cora Action!

Terry Francona

Terry Francona never gets enough credit with what he does with the teams he's handed. While he has been blessed with some great pitching and the occasional stroke of complete idiocy, all in all he's not a bad manager. He's a guy that even when he does make a stupid move, he'll at least explain himself and make you say "okay I see what he was thinking....but still stupid" It's not like with Grady where he'd make a move and not even explain it. In 2004, Tito showed to his true managerial chops when push came to shove. He made basically all the right moves through out those 14 games in October that the Red Sox played(a few minor lapses here and there but nothing huge). I think that he seems different as a manager now than then is because in the playoffs it's balls-out all the time. You don't need to satisfy anybody's egos and you really don't need to rest your players because they're all gung ho and will play till their arms are falling off or until the end of their run in the playoffs. If not, then they don't belong there. With the regular season, you need to juggle not only the mangerial tactics, but injuries, callups, egos, rest, slumps and streaks...you have a lot of things to factor into your mind and sometimes you're not gonna satisfy everybody. Besides, anybody who helps guide a team like the 05 Red Sox(deeply flawed and injured) to about 95 wins is pretty good in my book.

And now I'll stop blabbing....