Version 2.0

Two basketball players entered the league after storied collegiate careers. They'd tangled in the NCAA Tournament, got a ton of publicity for their battles. One was a flashy playmaker who legitimately changed how the game was played in material ways. The other was a frontcourt player with a robust all-around game. One was a child of the small-town Midwest, the other came up in a tough city. Oh, and one was white, the other black. They didn't much like each other, at least at first, though they came to first respect and then admire the other's skill and competitive fire. Together, they helped catalyze rapid growth of the pro game.

Obviously, we could be talking about Magic and Bird, linked throughout their careers because of an accident of timing, a shared incandescence, and a number of obvious and fascinating contrasts. 

We won't know for a while if we're also talking about Angel and Caitlin, at least in terms of long-term legacy, but the first impressions aren't unkind to the comparison. Reese and Clark don't seem to have a lot in common as people, one with a sophisticated personal style and fierce on-court persona, the other matching the on-court grit but rocking a very different fashion vibe. The media's made a thing of their alleged enmity, though both players have gone out of their way to offer respect, if not necessarily warmth, to the other. And with much due respect to A'ja Wilson, Napheesa Collier, Breanna Stewart, Alyssa Thomas, and Sabrina Ionescu, among many others, the pair are likely to be the brightest lights in the WNBA firmament for the next decade.

All we ask as fans, other than good health for both players, is a remix of this gem:

And maybe someday, this one (h/t to Marls for the find):

Run It Back: Misery Loves Company

From April 1, 2003 to December 31, 2010, Whitney and I (and late in the game a few other blogsmen with good intentions and shark-jump impact) wrote about baseball on a nearly daily basis during the season. Our blog was entitled Misery Loves Company, and for a good 18+ months that moniker was as accurate as it was stolen. October 2004 changed the dynamic a bit, though it didn't really dampen our enthusiasm, at least not right away.

All told, we wrote 1,638 posts about baseball. We mocked David Wheeler (a lot), lauded Pedro Martinez, excoriated Grady Little, pondered Terry Collins, felt for Tim Wakefield (RIP), and worshipped David Wright. Among many, many others. We actually had readers, real, live readers from points all over the globe - one of our regulars was a Mets fan from Japan. The first comment on our valedictory post read, "sayonara!"

It was a blast, even as it got to wear on a fella after damn near seven years of trying to keep up. I loved doing it because it made me feel like a better fan, but also because it made me feel like a better friend - getting to share that experience with Whit was every bit as rewarding as watching the Sox win a World Series. Two, actually. Sorry, man.

So imagine the unexpected glee I felt earlier this afternoon when I got this text from my man. "Red Sox and Mets find themselves 2 games out of the last wild card spot as of right now. We could do sprint to the finish MLC coverage."

Lo there was rejoicing. 

Starting this weekend, G:TB will also be an MLC pop-up, at least once a week. Your proprietors are notoriously inconsistent and shirk most work, so a daily dose is probably out of the question. We can promise snark, overreaction, and the occasionally excellent turn of phrase. Very occasionally. 

Setting the table, the Red Sox are currently 63-56, with 43 games remaining. They trail the division-leading Yankees by 7.5 games, having scuffled to a 10-14 record since the All-Star break. The Royals are a more catchable 2 games ahead of the Sox in the Wild Card race. 

The Mets trail the Phillies by 8 games in the NL East, clocking in at 62-59. New York's other team have also been mediocre of late, their 13-13 post-break record courtesy of a five-game winning streak in late July. As of this writing, they're in the process of blowing a 5-0 lead to the A's that would leave them 2 games behind the hated Braves in the race for the final NL Wild Card. "Winnable Loss", texted Whit, a callback to one of our too-oft-used catchphrases.

Strap in, friends. You'll either get to experience the thrill of the chase vicariously, or you'll have the chance to experience the increasingly bitter mutterings of a pair of aging baseball fans. Fun for all ages, regardless.

As a sage scribe once said, lotta ball left. Stay on target.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

“I like nonsense, it wakes up the brain cells. Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living. It's a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope, which is what I do. And that enables you to laugh at life's realities.” -- Theodore Seuss Geisel
 

Dr. Seuss would have turned 111 on March 2, 2015. Not coincidentally, one of his more obscure but nonetheless beloved characters celebrates the 45th anniversary of his birth this very same day. As the good doctor wrote about this uniquely Seussian character, “Today you are you, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is youer than you.”