Strasburg Falls Back to Earth

(BOD - Penny Lancaster)

Stephen Strasburg, the most-hyped pitching prospect since God, had his first start last night since coming off the disabled list with what was diagnosed as shoulder inflammation. Young Stephen had the worst outing of his short career against the Florida Marlins, giving up six earned runs, on six hits and two walks, in just over four innings.

Now, I’m sure there will be a plethora of knee-jerk reactions to Strasburg’s rocky outing, but, in the great scheme of things, it’s insignificant. Every pitcher struggles from time to time, especially young ones. And yes, even young pitchers with stuff as filthy as Stephen Strasburg will experience the growing pains of being a major league starter.

I’m more intrigued about the reasoning Strasburg went on the DL in the first place. I’m not exactly sure what shoulder inflammation is, or what it feels like, but I’m assuming that it’s different from ‘dead arm’. Dead arm is an odd phenomenon where your arm doesn’t hurt, but your pitches have zero ‘pop’ or velocity to them. There’s no way to predict when dead arm will strike, or how long it will last for you, but it usually goes away after a week or so.

I was talking about Strasburg with a couple of my baseball friends and we all agreed that, due to the financial commitment the Washington Nationals have given to the fireballer, it was essential that they place the kid on the DL. Better safe than sorry.

However, it also led us to question the severity of the ‘injury’. And this isn’t a condemnation of Strasburg’s testicular fortitude; rather it is a commentary on how professional baseball coddles arms to such an unfathomable degree.

I literally cannot remember the last time I pitched and my arm felt one hundred percent. I’m not saying my arm hurts, but I consistently have little tweaks and twinges in my treasured appendage (no, not that one) throughout the season. However, I have never had a serious arm injury (knock on wood) and throwing with slight aches and pain has never adversely affected my performance.

Professional baseball makes it seem like they shut pitchers down every time they feel the slightest discomfort. If that were truly the case then I would have thrown maybe five innings all season.

Pitchers get enough of a bad rap for being pussies and being soft. It’s time for the entire profession to man up. Surely these guys, the cream of the crop of their profession, can differentiate between an injured arm and one that just feels the residual wear and tear of throwing objects overhand at high velocity.

Addendum: I just read this morning that Brandon Morrow’s next start will be pushed back two days because he threw 137 pitches in his magnificent start on Sunday afternoon. So much for that man up part.

To Bachelor Pad or Not to Bachelor Pad?

(Natalie Portman)

Admittedly, I wasn’t sold on Bachelor Pad being a viable choice to recap each week. However, being a minor celebrity, I have access to certain benefits other bloggers do not. For example, I have my own intern, CSzem. Actually, that’s not true. He’s less of an intern and more my very own ‘Stat Boy’ from Pardon the Interruption. What did we mess up on, CSzem!

Thus, I enlisted him to recap the premiere episode of Bachelor Pad and I will trust CSzem's very educated reality show judgement on whether or not this show deserves the Tewks touch week after week:

Always exciting to be back pinch-blogging here for Tewks. Let me guess what we just read in the pre-amble: “Blah blah blah, strikeout. Blah blah blah, I lead the Ontario C Level-Division 3 Men’s League in blah blah blah.”

Sorry, was that harsh? I’m ornery because of this growing feud with “Anonymous” and “AG”. I’m going to take the high road here. Sorry AG that you think our nicknames are “childish”. It must suck that you don’t have any friends who call you anything other than “Allan”. I probably would be a dick if that was my life too.

OK, on to the show!!

- I feel like I should be watching this in one of those Hazmat suits to avoid getting an STD through my TV.

- Elizabeth’s not going to have to worry about playing hard to get now that she’s a blonde. She looks like hell. Thanks to Mrs. CSzem for the first contribution from the peanut gallery.

- “Will Michelle lose her mind.....again??” Great stuff from Chris Harrison. He’s clearly not taking this spin-off lightly. He’s a real pro.

- Tenley’s really changed. Or she’s the exact same and I need to turn the volume down.

- “This girl’s bangin’” Is that an actual description? I feel so out of touch.

- Why do all these people know each other? I felt like this was built up as the first major reunion, but it sounds like they all take trips together and have hooked up repeatedly. So what’s the point of this show? Feels a little contrived now. What? All of these shows are totally and completely contrived? Oh.

- According to the Weatherman, Craig M. is an out-of-shape alcoholic. Now I know we could be friends.

- “I just see us as friends.” I’m sure she feels the same way, Jesse. Don’t most girls think that way after you hook up with them a few times?

- Pretty sure you’ve got a shot with Gia, Weatherman. Go get ‘em Champ.

- So wait, this is basically The Bachelor crossed with Survivor? It’s like ABC only wants Tewks to have to write about trashy reality TV once.

- Tenley’s the early favourite for this Twister competition. I’ve heard stories about this kid. She’s limber. Too limber.

- Big Twister win for Craig M. Not really sure how he pulled that off, but from the brink of elimination, he’s got himself into a good spot. Originally, I didn’t think he had much of a chance in this game. Now.....the others better watch out.....because he’s dangerous!

- Craig M., applying his cologne: “Now for the ladykiller.” I honestly feel like I’m watching Tewks on TV right now.

- Little All-Canadian alliance brewing with Craig M. and Jessie. She has already talked more on this show than she talked on her entire season.

- Somehow Craig M. has won over Mrs. CSzem. Big time performance from him tonight.

- I hope there’s no chicken wire in the house, because I’m pretty sure Michelle might strangle Tenley in her sleep. I’m not ready to say that this is legitimately dramatic.....but Michelle is legitimately psychotic, so there’s an argument to be made.

- Great strategizing happening here from just about everyone. This really is reminding me of Survivor more and more. I wish Rupert was here. Although the ladies are probably OK with his exclusion.

- I would have loved to have been there for the production meeting when ABC was explaining this show to Chris Harrison. I guarantee more than a few expletives where dropped. There have to be a boatload of 0’s on the end of that cheque.

- Peyton? I have no clue who that is. Survivor-strategy in full effect!

- Nice call by the guys getting rid of the psychopath. That seems like a solid play. I would not want to be the camera guy who has to ride in this limo with her right now.

Talkin' with Tewks Live: The Dog Days of August

(BOD - Helen Hunt)

The original plan for today's podcast was to take an all encompassing look at the baseball season thus far. However, after the weekend the Toronto Blue Jays just had, CSzem and I weren't able to get past Canada's team.

We mostly fawned over JP Arencibia and the Jays phenomenal pitching staff. Although, we still had time to discuss the following:

- David Duchovny and his stint on Red Shoe Diaries
- ARod's manliness or lack thereof
- Getting a date with female celebrities and taking a fastball in the chops
- The Anonymous posters

Talkin' with Tewks: The Dog Days of August

Enjoy.

Ozzie Guillen Has a Point

(BOD - Candice Crawford)

I was fully prepared to spend the Friday columns discussing the trashy greatness that is Jersey Shore Season 2. But after a lacklustre premiere episode, I wasn’t convinced the show had enough substance to recapture the lightning in a bottle magic of last season.

However, I did learn something very important from one of the greatest seers of our time, The Situation. Last night he taught me about the ‘shirt before a shirt.’ Apparently, before going to the club to hit on ugly girls all night, one must wear a wifebeater tank top as the shirt before the shirt. Then, approximately ten minutes before going to the bar, you put on your club-worthy shirt. The shirt before the shirt ensures that your ‘good’ shirt stays ‘fresh’ as long as possible.

And now you know.

Ozzie Guillen is at it again. A few times a season, you can count on the mercurial Chicago White Sox manager to fly off the handle about some issue, while giving his very specific and very controversial opinions on how to ‘fix’ it.

Normally, people don’t take too much heed in what Ozzie says and it’s dismissed pretty much as soon as he opens his mouth. I think he’s not taken seriously because of his charming mix of English and Spanish when speaking (he usually gets so fired up that Spanish starts leaking in to his sentences), his reputation as a ‘speak first, think later’ type person, and his accent. Guillen’s heavy accent makes him sound like the multicultural sidekick in a bad buddy cop movie (cough, The Other Guys, cough).

Interestingly, no one has ignored Ozzie’s latest comments or dismissed them as ludicrous. To paraphrase, Guillen said that it’s unfair that Latin American players are forced to get by without interpreters while Japanese imports receive such help all the time.

His point is salient, but the fix isn’t to provide Latin American players with interpreters as well. The focus should be on teaching players English with regular language classes. To provide these players with interpreters would allow them to just continue speaking Spanish and not learning the language of majority of MLB.

More often that not, Latin players are left to fend for themselves in the minor leagues, far away from home, with no grasp of the language of most of their teammates. They should be given the opportunity to learn the language of their teammates, to socialize with them, and become a part of the family.

However, I do think Asian players should be given interpreters. Why? Because when an Asian import comes to North America, there is a 99% chance he will be the only person on the roster who can speak his language. There are a few Spanish speakers on every major and minor league club, so new Latin imports will still have someone to talk to.

To sum up: Latin interpreters, no, Asian interpreters, yes, English classes for all, a resounding yes.

ARod Hits His Dinger

(BOD - Joanna Krupa)

Admittedly, I look like a genius by forgoing the Alex Rodriguez discussion yesterday and weighing in on his inevitable 600th home run and the media reaction today. For those of you who are unaware, ARod hit his 600th versus Shaun Marcum and the Toronto Blue Jays yesterday afternoon. I was even lucky enough to witness the feat live because I wanted to see how it was handled by the fans and broadcasters.

(Quick aside: after yesterday’s column about Brett Favre and his apparent text messages to teammates telling them of his impending retirement, the King of the Waffle has apparently changed his mind already. He says he never sent any text messages and will probably play if healthy. What an idiot.)

The Yankee Stadium crowd obviously went bonkers immediately after Rodriguez hit his dinger. They serenaded him with resounding cheers and demanded a curtain call from their third baseman. And that’s it. The game wasn’t stopped for an in game presentation; no messages were delivered from any current 600 homer men welcoming ARod to the club.

Congratulations, ARod. I will never remember where I was the day you hit 600 (I would love to take credit for that clever line, but if I do, the person who sent it to me will undergo a breakdown because they are emotionally needy and need to be constantly recognized and encouraged).

Even the fans, while they cheered the team on the front of his jersey, seemed detached from the historical significance of the moment. Just imagine if Derek Jeter had hit his 600th home run. The game probably would have been cancelled and Jeets would have been named the Mayor of New York.

And there lies the problem with ARod. He just isn’t likeable. People respect his talents, but he never has nor will he ever be beloved. I believe that’s the main reason why fans, outside of New York, weren’t getting fired up for this historic moment.

I believe there are two reasons why the media seems subdued around this feat. Of course, steroids are the primary reason. The numbers just don’t seem as impressive when you realize most of the great home run talents of the past generation were on enough chemicals to bring down a rhino.

Baseball is a game about numbers and performance-enhancing drugs have cheapened those numbers, so it’s difficult to place these feats into the proper historical context. I’m sure time will eventually look back at this era favourably (every era has a certain stain on it), but, for right now, people aren’t sure how to handle these accomplishments.

Another reason for the lack of interest, that hasn’t gotten much play in the media, is the fatigue principle. The greater the frequency of an event, the less it’s going to make a memorable dent in the media landscape.

There have been only seven men to ever hit 600 homers and four of them have done it in the past decade (Jim Thome seems a lock to be the fifth). What used to be an unbelievable feat seems almost commonplace after the dust of the steroid era has settled.

The same thing has happened to no-hitters this year. They used to be somewhat rare, stars-aligning games and would be celebrated as such. However, no-nos are being thrown so often this year, that I don’t think anyone bat an eyelash when Matt Garza threw his.

Matt Garza threw a no-hitter?

Exactly.

Two Media Stories Sports Fans Should Care About

(BOD - Emily Deschanel)

In a parallel universe, one where the romanticized notion of sports exists, where sports are the glue that bond fathers and sons, old and young, the (apparent) decision of Brett Favre to retire from the National Football league and Alex Rodriguez’s quest for 600 home runs would captivate the national consciousness. It would cause aging sportswriters to wax poetic for thousands of words, exhausting their thesauruses finding new superlatives for greatness.

Instead, both Favre’s supposed retirement and ARod’s eventual 600th home run are mere blips on our radar screens.

I’m not going to sit here and decry the lack of interest in either story, in fact, I couldn’t care less about either one. My dislike for Favre is well-documented and I’m completely ambivalent towards Rodriguez’s 600th home run.

The real question is why people are disinterested in these stories. Brett Favre used to be the golden boy, the media darling of North America. All we ever heard about Favre was that he played ‘like a kid out of there’, he’d ‘play for free’, and that he’s ‘a gunslinger.’ Plus, he was developing one of the greatest quarterback resumes the sport has ever seen.

Currently, Favre is first all-time in completions, yards, consecutive games started, and touchdown passes. In every measure of quarterback greatness, Favre is at the top of the list (He is also number one in interceptions thrown, which is due to his propensity to stubbornly throw balls into triple coverage under the guise of being a gunslinger, but I digress).

If on-field success was the only component to the Favre saga, then men would be crying in the streets with the announcement of his retirement. Streets and babies would be named after the guy and I’m confident the NFL commissioner Roger Goodell would probably make a motion to just rename the Hall of Fame to Brett Favre’s House.

None of this is happening because Favre completely shattered all of this goodwill and admiration with his wishy-washy ‘retirements’ over the past few years and leaving entire franchises unsure of the most important position on their team well into the first weeks of training camp.

He has said, with unequivocal certainty, that he is one hundred percent retired from the game of football on three previous occasions and has returned to the game weeks later. Yesterday’s announcement was number four. Rumours have it that Favre’s ankle is too busted up to play; what happens when the ankle is healed?

Brett, you can still play the game. You had one of the best seasons of your career last year. I know you hate training camp, so just say you’ll be there when you’re healthy. Enough with the waffling; you sound like a woman.

You’re a joke, a punchline. Everyone is laughing at your latest proclamation: ‘Oh, there goes Brett again.” Unfortunately, this is what you’re going to be remembered for first, not your on-field greatness.

If you’re done, be done. Otherwise suit up and get to 500 touchdown passes.

Tune in tomorrow for my thoughts on ARod’s search for six hundred.

The Bachelorett: Finale

(BOD - Ali)

And we’re back from a terrific long weekend. Baseball left me with mixed emotions, as did the tennis, but all of that is covered in the short podcast CSzem and I recorded on Saturday morning. You can listen to it here: Talkin' with Tewks Live: Tennis Grudge Match.

More importantly, it is the finale of Ali’s season of The Bachelorette. We’ve come a long way and Ali is going to pick a seemingly decent guy at the end. Hopefully this episode doesn’t disappoint like last week. I am joined this week by Rambo, so let’s get to the recap:

8:08 – I have wasted countless minutes of my time watching this show rehash the same footage over and over again. Why do the producers think ardent fans like me (and millions of women and gay men) want to watch the same crap we’ve seen all season? Just give us some new stuff and cut the finale down to an hour.

8:14 – Seeing Ali and her exquisite beauty in Bora Bora makes me horny horny.

8:16 – This is Ali’s biological family? Seriously? She certainly hit the Powerball numbers in that genetic lottery.

8:17 – Why are the ugly sister and brother pulling Roberto away for a chat? Who gives a shit what those wieners think?

8:19 – Ali’s mom is completely smitten with the Latin Lothario. Truthfully, who wouldn’t be? This might be the easiest ‘meet the family’ ever. I’m considering having him to my house to meet the family Tewks.

8:26 – I like how the producers tried to make it seem like Ali’s dad was going to play the bad cop when Roberto asked his permission to propose. Like the guy was going to say no. He probably would have offered some sort of dowry to sweeten the deal for Roberto.

8:32 – Is Chris actually bringing a basket of unwashed fruit as a gift for her family?

8:35 – “I’m a teacher also.” No one cares Ali’s ugly sister. She must absolutely hate Ali. How could you try to compete with that your whole life?

8:36 – Jesus, Ali’s mom needs to refine her bedside manner. So, tell us about your dead mom, Chris. Is that really any of her business?

8:45 – Sister Tewks believes there is an incestuous relationship between Ali’s sister and brother. I’m inclined to agree.

8:47 – What the hell is Chris talking about? The question was: do you love my daughter. How does that turn into a five minute soliloquy? It’s yes or no.

8:49 – I love how Ali is in a bikini and the two mutants are covered up. They must have zero self confidence being around that hotness all of their lives.

8:52 – “Her butt’s dirty” – Rambo. Glad you could be here.

8:57 – The show should really have a disclaimer if they’re going to have an HD close-up of Ali’s brother’s face.

8:58 – Someone shut the sister up.

9:05 – “Oh my God, he’s touching me, he’s touching me” – Ali with a look of disgust. That’s what happens to me every time I go to a bar.

9:09 – “This is completely unrealistic. These dates are too perfect. I bet they don’t even film when Ali’s on her period.” – Rambo

9:14 – “Speak English, girlie. Proper.” – Rambo admonishing Ali on her speaking skills. Ok then.

9:16 – I’m calling bullshit. There’s no way Roberto made that gay picture frame or wrote that speech. I’ll bet a production assistant did it.

9:20 – Wait, is she having sex with Roberto again? Is that even allowed? Chris has a negative chance of winning this thing. Poor guy.

9:23 – So is Ali going to do a walk of shame from Roberto’s room to go see Chris for their date?

9:25 – Holy shit, is she going to break up with Chris right now?

9:26 – Chris knows he’s done. The dude’s heart is breaking.

9:27 – Jesus, this is actually tough to watch.

9:30 – Both of them handled this very well. If I was her, I would have just sent him a text. If I was him, I would have thrown her off the balcony.

9:31 – Wait, I take that back. “Can I have a hug?” No, Ali, you can’t have a hug and don’t tell me to ‘hang in there’. You can go fuck yourself instead.

9:33 – “That’s a fake rainbow” – Rambo. Wow, you are heartless.

9:34 – Chris is just crushing this exit interview. It’s like his Bachelor audition tape. Well played, my man.

9:43 – This is pretty anticlimactic.

9:44 – Oh, we were so close to some Ali full frontal nudity. That would have been the highlight of my summer.

9:47 – That Step Up 3D movie looks like the dumbest thing I’ve ever seen. Although, it has given me a great answer the next time someone says, “Tell me about yourself?” My response: “Everything you need to know about me is in my dancing.”

9:52 – Christ, Roberto looks like he’s going to melt. Someone get the guy a towel.

9:55 – Elton John with Can you Feel the Love Tonight. Now this is a song. Much better than that On the Wings of Love crap from last season.

Now it’s time for the After the Final Rose special. What did you think of the finale? Post thoughts to comments.

The Fun Police Ruins TV Movies

(BOD - Ashley Judd)

In an odd programming decision, both Canadian major sports networks, TSN and Sportsnet, have decided to run sports movies on various nights throughout the latter half of the summer to fill the inevitable dead air that crops up during the dog days of August.

I’m not sure if it’s the best direction for either network to take but, as a huge fan of sports movie, I’m not going to complain.

On Tuesday night, TSN showed possibly the greatest baseball comedy in cinematic history: Bull Durham. It’s been a few years since I’ve seen the movie in its entirety, but I can still recite chunks of dialogue from memory. I was also curious to see how TSN would deal with the sexual content and rampant cursing.

Boy, was I ever disappointed. Every somewhat offensive word was bleeped out and the sex scenes were cut down to a laughable degree.

Now, I understand that regulations forbid TSN from showing the movie in all its uncensored glory, but why would they decide to broadcast the film in the first place. If questionable behaviour and bad language is integral to the movie’s theme, why bother neutering it? Show a cleaner movie instead.

This happens all the time and it drives me crazy. Usually Canadian stations are pretty liberal when it comes to allowing ‘mature’ content, but the US channels get batshit crazy editing movies for television. For example, Peachtree TV always shows movies like American Pie and other films of that ilk. What’s the point? By the time they’re finished cutting and pasting, the movie’s run time is down to 25 minutes.

The most ridiculous scene on Tuesday was when Crash Davis (Kevin Costner) gets run out of the game for arguing a blown call by the umpire. TSN didn’t even bother to bleep the offending words; instead, it was forty seconds of complete silence. Sure, the language is a little rough, but it perfectly encapsulates the game of baseball and that situation and viewers were denied witnessing that pleasure.

Fear not, dear readers, for here is the scene in question in all of its wonderful glory:


This is the last column until Tuesday. I have the provincial baseball championships this weekend, plus my tennis showdown with CSzem, and it’s a long weekend. On Tuesday, I’ll have a short podcast discussing the match, the baseball, and, of course, my final Bachelorette recap of the season.

Have a great weekend.

Everyone Throws No Hitters

(BOD - Kellie Pickler)

Matt Garza, of the Tampa Bay Rays, became the fifth pitcher of the 2010 season to throw a no hitter (truthfully, it should be six as Armando Gallarraga was robbed of perfection by Jim Joyce). Only the 1991 season had more pitchers weave no-nos when seven players turned the trick. It almost seems like no-hitters have become commonplace (Hell, even I threw one this year).

A lot of pundits are asking why the feat has been so prevalent this year. Here are the main reasons currently being argued (I’ll save my own hypothesis till the end, primarily because it’s the correct one):

Hitters aren’t juiced anymore

I don’t really buy this argument because, for some reason, everyone thinks that hitters were the only players to use performance-enhancing drugs. If you believe that, then I have a few jars of snake oil that I’d like to sell you.

The hitters were juicing, the pitchers were juicing, even the ball boys were probably juicing. The playing field was level then and the playing field is level now.

Young pitchers are way more talented

Yes, it does seem like every young pitcher entering the majors over the last three years can throw 95 miles an hour with relative ease. And, not only are these guys throwing such ridiculous gas, but they have movement on their heaters as well. It’s almost unfair to be able to cut or sink a fastball that threatens the sound barrier.

Couple those heat-seeking fastballs with ungodly breaking stuff and today’s hitters are facing a Herculean task every time they step up to the plate.

So that must be the reason, right? Wrong. The best indicator of pitcher dominance is strikeouts. There hasn’t been a pitcher with 300 strikeouts in a season (not named Randy Johnson or Curt Schilling) since the late 1990s. Furthermore, no other pitcher has come close (other than Pedro).

Yes, pitchers are probably more talented these days, but so are the hitters. Which leads me to:

Defences are amazing

If pitching and hitting cancel each other out, then the only explanation for influx in no hitters is better defences. Fielders are more athletic and more talented then ever before. They are getting to balls and making plays that used to be considered amazing and are now deemed to be routine.

Watch any highlights on Sportscentre: there will be 8-10 great plays made each and every night.

Plus, there has been a shift in baseball thinking towards defensive play due to new statistical models that place a premium on defence to win games. Yes, they are the bailiwick of nerds and shut-ins, but the powers that be have decided to listen to these guys and their message, which is: defence equals victories.

With fielders making outs on balls that used to be hits, they are given their pitchers a chance to throw a 0 under the H column every time they step on the bump.

The Bachelorette: The Men Tell All

(BOD - Kelly Preston)

I had a hard time reconciling watching this episode. With The Bachelor, I can maintain a semblance of masculinity by saying I watch to check out the 25 babes vying for one man’s affections. With The Bachelorette, if the titular contestant is smoking hot (e.g. Ali) I can say I’m checking her out as she wades through the dudes. However, in the Men Tell All episode, there are no women in sight for the entire two hours; just guys talking about their feelings.

Nevertheless, Cousin Tewks and I have decided to power through and watch anyway; masculinity be damned.

8:01 – Oh, Ali actually shows up to this gossip session? Now, I can watch it with full immunity.

8:02 – Another clip show? You have to be kidding me. Just cut this baby down to ninety minutes and spare us the replays.

8:04 – Ok, I take that back. The footage of Kasey singing just brought a huge smile to my face.

8:07 – Ali has got some crazy eyes going on when she talks about Frank. I think she legitimately would have picked him had he stayed. And that brings her attractiveness down a few notches on my books.

8:09 – “How do we get tickets to that taping?” – Cousin Tewks. My thoughts exactly.

8:25 – Wow, The Phantom really came to play tonight. Bring Chris N. back next year.

8:26 – That beach shot of Ali captivated our attention to an unknown degree. A tribe of wildebeests could have run through the living room and we wouldn’t have batted an eyelash.

8:29 – Did Harrison just say the testosterone was flowing the first night? He has met these guys before, right?

8:31 – The Weatherman is such a little bitch.

8:32 – Nice move by Harrison with the chirp on Kasey. The guy’s a pro.

8:33 – What’s the over/under on how many women in the audience these guys are going to sleep with after this show wraps? Five? Ten?

8:41 – Is anyone else bored watching this? The recap seems worse than usual.

8:48 – Why are they clapping for Kasey? How can these women be attracted to such ridiculous actions and behaviour?

8:52 – What did Kasey want to do? Guard and protect her what? I didn’t quite catch that.

8:53 – Kasey is literally a moron. I think he’s crazy; he’s officially lost it. He doesn’t realize everyone is laughing at him.

9:02 – I have no idea what the hell Kirk is talking about. This is a terrible episode. This must be what watching The View is like.

9:03 – The broads in the audience are just eating this crap up. Kirk can have an orgy with the entire front row if he wants to.

9:11 – This is stupid to have the Justin bashing session when the guy isn’t even there to defend himself. The looks of disgust on the women in the audience make me laugh.

9:13 - Did Craig R really need to make that soliloquy that he abhors Justin’s behaviour? Don’t worry, Shrek, I’m sure you’ll have the pick of the desperate skanks in the audience.

9:20 – Justin didn’t allow his girlfriend to have a Facebook account? Nothing wrong with that.

9:21 – This is such a convoluted tale by this fame-seeking skank from Oakville. BORRRIIIIINNNGGGG. I don’t buy it.

9:24 – I hate everyone associated with this Men Tell All special. They’re all idiots.

9:29 – Ali, please save me from this lacklustre episode.

9:30 – What kind of moron would cheat on Ali? That’s like turning your back on Jesus.

9:33 – Stop saying that Kasey was stranded on that glacier. I’m fairly certain he didn’t walk back to the States from Iceland.

9:36 – Ok the blooper reel may have redeemed spending the last ninety minutes of my life watching this fiasco. That was funny stuff.

9:45 – Sneak peek of The Bachelor Pad? Don’t mind if I do.

9:53 – I can say the following with unequivocal certainty: The Bachelor Pad looks fantastic.

What did you think? Post thoughts to comments.

Talkin' with Tewks Live: Baseball Hall of Fame

(BOD - Amber Heard)

In the comments section of last week's podcast, it was requested that I change the intro music. I was floored by such an egregious statement. Abosolutely, I will not change the music. That music is part of this blog. And a part of Tewks.

I'm the best around. Nothing's ever gonna keep me down.

And to the author of said comment, I only have this to say: Et tu, Mrs. CSzem?

Today's podcast recaps CSzem and Gretzpo's epic tennis match and we also give a preview of CSzem and I's showdown this upcoming weekend. We then launch into a discussion of the Baseball Hall of Fame and give our picks of players who deserve induction.

Talkin' with Tewks Live: Baseball Hall of Fame

Enjoy.

I'm a Notoriously Slow Starter

(BOD - Gina Gershon)

Yes, regular readers of the blog, this is my third consecutive post about the great game of baseball. I am forced to listen to this country fawn all over hockey for eight months a year, so I think I deserve to talk ball whenever I want.


I watched the New York Yankees play the Kansas City Royals last night (kudos to Sportsnet to broadcasting different MLB games pretty much every night. It’s the next best thing to actually paying for an Extra Innings package).

New York first baseman, Mark Teixera, came to the plate in the early innings and I saw an interesting graphic about the switch hitter. He’s only hitting .260 at this point in the season, but .500 in his past seven games and over .380 for the month of July. That led the announcers to happily discuss that ‘Tex’ is heating up and what it means for the Yankees offence for the rest of the year.

Also, they talked about how Teixera always seems to struggle early in the season, but heats up along with the weather. They called him a ‘notoriously slow starter.’ For some insane reason, no one has a problem with this.

Well I do.

In what other profession are you allowed to start your day/week with very low levels of productivity with the caveat that you will ‘eventually come around’ and start producing to your potential?

This reputation has followed Teixera throughout his entire career. He plays terribly in April and May, but is terrific for the rest of the season. If I’m an owner, why would I want to pay a guy millions of dollars a year for great performances in only 75% of the games? Shouldn’t he only get 75% of his salary?

That would be like an office worker going into his job on Monday, sitting on his ass doing nothing until Wednesday morning and then start working all the way till end of day Friday. Would that worker be employed very long? Doubtful.

The excuses given for Teixera are that he needs time to ‘find his swing.’ Isn’t that the point of spring training? Or maybe start working out in January so you have the ability to play five innings without being winded in early March.

A few years ago, Vernon Wells had an uncharacteristically hot start and it was all apparently due to his commitment to his offseason training and he was applauded for that. Seriously? A professional athlete who works out in the offseason deserves our praise? I would think that should be expected; it’s not like these guys have winter jobs to help make ends meet. What else do they have to do?

Rasheed Wallace took the whole ‘playing into shape’ idea to a new level with the Boston Celtics this season. He was fat and terrible until the playoffs started. He literally took the entire regular season to get himself up to par. Sheed managed to have both a slow start and a slow finish.

He kept telling the media that he would ready to go once the playoffs rolled around? That would be commendable if he wasn’t making millions of dollars turning the regular season into an extended training camp.

How to Fix the Jays

(BOD - Kate Middleton)

I rarely enjoy being told what to do, but last night was a slow news day in the sports world and I couldn’t think of anything else to write. In yesterday’s comments section, AG proposed the following column idea:

For a change of pace say I had an in with the Rogers family and could put forward suggestions on possible changes to the organization what would you want me to say? Assume you were given carte blanche to do what you wanted what would you do?

Let’s hear at least 8 specific actions you would take to turn the team around and I mean specific.

It’s an intriguing idea and it allowed me a few moments of wishful thinking that I, in fact, wield clout over a multi-billion dollar operation, but, to me, the issue of the Jays being terrible cannot be amended by “8 specific actions” to turn the team around.

I have no problem with the Jays not being a good team this year. Truthfully, I thought they were going to be a lot worse and I even said so during our MLB preview podcast. It’s the nature of the game; there are ebbs and flows year in and year out. Some teams have to be at the top of the standings, some teams have to be at the bottom, and some have to be in the middle.

This is a rebuilding process and I think the current Jays management staff has done an excellent job stockpiling for the future and instituting a top notch farm system and scouting staff.

Where is the problem?

The simple fact that the exact same sentence could have been written nine years ago about JP Ricciardi’s regime. A rebuilding process is a necessary part of pro sports for teams that don’t have the capability to write blank cheques. However, Toronto is currently on year 15 of this rebuilding process and its complete bullshit.

In 1992 and 1993, the Blue Jays had the highest payroll in the league. I’m not saying they need to go there again, but it would be nice to throw a $100 million dollar team on the field without the powers that be crying poor.

The inability of the Jays to sign and keep legitimate superstars would be the first specific action I would like to see rectified. I’ve thought of more, but they all can be traced to one, overarching specific action that this franchise needs: a singular owner who loves baseball.

This is especially relevant considering George Steinbrenner recently passed away. Teams cannot be successful when they are run by a corporation whose bottom line is make money. You cannot create a championship team with that philosophy (case in point: The Maple Leafs and the teacher’s pension fund).

To win a title, you need a leader whose hobby is owning the team. He buys the franchise for the cache, and the notoriety, and the chance to bring a title to the city so he can become a legend. Such owners aren’t concerned about the bottom line; they just want to win.

As soon as you start running the team like a business, you have relinquished a competitive advantage because then you’re concerned with how much things costs instead of producing W’s on the scoreboard. An owner should not even buy a team unless they are so financially sound that taking a bath on the team’s end of year financials will not adversely affect their overall bottom line.

Owners should be in the business of winning, not making a buck with their sports team. I suppose you could make the argument that the Jays had such a singular owner in Ted Rogers, but the guy didn’t even like baseball (he’s like Adam Dunn).

Why would he sink money into a product that has no guaranteed rate of return and that he doesn’t truly care about?

In sum, what do the Jays need: a Canadian George Steinbrenner.

Kevin Gregg Sucks

(BOD - Billie Piper)

Truthfully, I haven’t had much time to watch baseball since a few days before the all star break. The summer is just too busy, the MLB season is just too long, and the Toronto Blue Jays just aren’t good enough.

In fact, I completely forgot that the Jays were playing the past week. The only clue I had was the highlights from Monday night’s game that I saw when I got home from baseball.

What did I see? Only another late game meltdown by the human gas can masquerading as the team’s closer, Kevin Gregg. My distaste from Gregg stems from his actions after a game a few weeks ago when he let loose with a typical Kevin Gregg performance: fastballs with no real purpose and no chance of threatening the strike zone, and off-speed pitches that drift lazily into batters’ wheelhouses.

For some reason, Gregg went after the umpire, complaining about balls and strikes, and got himself kicked out of the game. Here’s what I said about Gregg at the time:

There was no need for Gregg to go after the home plate umpire last night. Yes, he may have gotten squeezed on two calls. However, he walked FIVE in the inning and at least one of them was four straight balls. Gregg showed zero command of the strike zone. Why the hell should the umpire give him the benefit of the doubt? I saw at least four pitches that were saved from denting the backstop only by the athleticism of John Buck.

Great pitchers don’t whine to the umpires. They make adjustments. Great pitchers don’t walk five in one inning, blowing a great performance by your team. The honeymoon period with Kevin Gregg is now over. He’s done. Finished.

Then, last week, Cito came out of the dugout to pull Gregg from a game in which he walked three batters in a row to load the bases. Did Gregg sheepishly hand the ball to his manager, embarrassed at such a shoddy performance? No, he slapped the ball into Gaston’s hands and mouthed off to him on his way back to the dugout. He was actually pissed that Gaston was pulling him from the game.

Are you serious? How can a professional athlete have such little self-awareness?

What happened in Monday night’s game made me smile from ear to ear. Gregg entered the game and began pitching like shit as per usual. He gave up a couple of screaming line drives, threw a few balls everywhere but the strike zone, and blew the Jays one run lead.

Did Cito take him out? Absolutely not. He let Gregg hang himself out there to teach the arrogant piece of trash a lesson. Gaston basically told him, “You’re going to show me up on the field, then I’m going to let you blow another game for this team.”

It was fantastic to see an old school manager show an entitled millionaire how to properly conduct himself on the field. Unfortunately, the relationship is irreparably harmed. AA has to trade Gregg and get that bum out of town.

Long live Cito.

The Bachelorette: Nothing Can Go Wrong in Tahiti, Right?

(BOD - Selita Ebanks)

This recap will be a little bit different this morning. I was forced to eschew my regular, minute-by-minute recap due to baseball. We were playing the same team we brawled against a few weeks ago, so I couldn’t pass up the opportunity for another donnybrook.

As so often happens, no extracurricular activities took place in the rematch, but we did destroy those pansies 14-1.

Thus, I will recap sections of the show as I whip through the broadcast on PVR.

Bachelor Packing Montage

- I literally have nothing to say about this segment except I’m pissed off that the producers forced us to rehash past footage as a time-filler. What a joke. Let’s get to Tahiti already. I don’t need to see these guys pack their swimsuits for a three day trip.

- Oh, hold on. Frank has feelings for an ex-girlfriend? And the plot thickens.

- How could he just have these feelings for ‘Nicole’ now? Could it be that he wanted to appear on as many episodes as he can, so people in the industry know who he is and he can pass along his shitty screenplays to them? Actually, that’s probably exactly what I’d do.

- How can Frank have time to fly to Chicago? Is there a Chicago to Tahiti layover I’m not aware of? This seems as contrived and fake as the phone call to Justin’s alleged girlfriend.

- Why isn’t Nicole wondering why Frank is being followed by a camera crew?

- Pile of dog shit: a bed of roses is analogous to Nicole: Ali

- Why does Nicole even give a shit about what Frank is saying? She hasn’t seen this little twerp in months.

- She thought about Frank everyday? We are talking about the same guy, right? He must be hung like a Woolly Mammoth.

- This seems like a bad production of a cheesy soap opera. What a douchebag Frank is. I hope Ali beats the living shit out of him.

- “I miss your kisses.” I already hate Nicole more than anyone else this season and she’s only had five minutes of screen time.

- “I’m going have to go find Ali” is code for “I want to take this free trip to Tahiti and maybe try to bang Ali before I come back to Chicago and your ugly face.”

Ali and Roberto in Tahiti

- So if Frank is taking himself out of the running isn’t this entire episode pretty much pointless?

- “This is mi casa.” Wow, I had no idea that Roberto was Spanish.

- Fuckin’ helicopters.

- The island is in the shape of a heart? Uh, I don’t think so. Maybe a heart drawn by Muhammad Ali.

- Ali’s body is almost as good as Roberto’s. Wait, what? You know what I mean.

- Why is Roberto sweating so much? This feels like a hostage negotiation.

- Roberto’s going to drop an L-bomb.

- I’ve never seen him so awkward before. Aw, that was a genuinely sweet moment. Christ, I’m such a homo.

- Fantasy Suite Date!! Ok, here we go. Roberto is going to rock her world.

- “I want to spend as much time with you as possible.” Nice euphemism, Ali. I guess saying you’ve wanted to fuck his brains out since the first episode would come across a little whorish.

- “You’re soaking wet!” That’s what she said.

Chris and Ali in Tahiti

- Is she going out with Chris the morning after she slept with Roberto? Talk about sloppy seconds.

- Ali still pretending she’s a tour guide. We get it. She can read and memorize a cue card. We’re all very impressed.

- Ali has really hairy arms. I couldn’t tell which arm was hers and which was Chris’. I could have done without that shot in HD.

- I would like to accumulate a few more pearls and give Ali a necklace as a present. Probably on the Fantasy Suite date.

- This is coming from a man who lives and breathes pina coladas in the Caribbean, but those drinks are extremely effeminate.

- Chris is a very nice guy, but he makes for very boring television.

- If Chris is that bad of a kisser, I don’t have high hopes for his skills in the boudoir.

- All the best, Chris, but you have some pretty big shoes to fill after the Latin Lothario laid some pipe the night before. He better be a very, uh, ‘generous’ lover.

Frank the Douchebag Breaking Ali’s Heart

- I hope Frank gets eaten by a shark.

- Harrison should leap across the room and punch Frank square in his beady, little eyes.

- How is Nicole going to feel when she watches Frank fawn all over Ali like a schoolgirl in the first episodes?

- Just man up and tell her. Frank is such a drama queen.

- How could he break the heart of a girl with a beautiful face like that? I just want to console Ali and hold her. And maybe take advantage of her emotional state.

- Frank is actually crying more than Ali. This is pathetic. The guy needs some testosterone injections.

- Ok fine, you both gave up everything to be here. You do realize you’re in fucking Tahiti right now, right? Get over it.

- Harrison is such a great guy. He should end up with one of these broads one season.

- If this was a romantic comedy, Harrison and Ali would be making out right now.

- Frank is everything you’ve wanted in a guy? That is a compete slap in the face to Roberto and Chris.

- They need to stop trying to drum up faux suspense from this forthcoming rose ceremony. Both guys are accepting roses; let’s move on to next week.

What did you think? Post thoughts to comments.

Talkin' with Tewks Live: British Open Review

(BOD - Libby Dibiase)

CSzem and I reviewed the happenings at the 2010 Open Championship. I pat myself on the back for a correct prediction (and ignore a wrong one). We discuss the tournament and links golf as a whole and try to figure out if Tiger Woods will ever win a tournament again.

Plus, we get to know Louis Ooosthuizen.

Talkin' with Tewks Live: British Open

Enjoy.

Rocky Tribute

(BOD - Lauren Pryor)

Those of you who are devoted readers to the blog will recall that Gretzpo and I embarked on a road trip to Philadelphia to watch Roy Halladay throw a gem against the Jays. A true pilgrimmage to Philly cannot be complete without a tribute to the greatest fictional boxer in sports history, Rocky Balboa.

I'm ashamed to admit that Gretzpo and I almost cancelled our visit to the Philadelphia Museum of Art (home of the iconic Rocky steps) due to traffic concerns. Luckily, we decided to soldier on and managed to pay our respects to the true people's champion.

Where most people would be satisfied with a picture from the top of the steps to document their journey, Gretzpo and I aren't most people (as we showed during our recreation of the homoerotic beach run from Rocky III; see it here).

Thus, we decided to create another tribute video, this time to Rocky's training for his first bout with Apollo Creed. We spent a good thirty minutes storyboarding this idea and shooting the various shots you are about to witness. While Gretzpo has embraced Crossfit, he still has a long way to go before he can catch the big dog in the yard (i.e. yours truly).

Therefore, Gretzpo plays the part of Rocky when he's in terrible shape and I play the part of Rocky when he's in great shape.

Enjoy.

British Open Preview

(BOD - Jessica Simpson)

The third major in professional golf’s calendar starts today: The Open Championship at venerable St. Andrews in Scotland, recognized as the birthplace of golf. The tournament has the most history in the sport and many pundits believe that you can’t be considered one of the game’s all time greats without raising the Claret Jug over your head.

Now, with all that being said, I find the Open to be the worst major to watch on TV, especially compared to the Masters. I’m sure CSzem will accuse me of blasphemy at some point today. Why don't I like it?

The time difference. I’m used to golf tournaments ending just before dinner time and ensuring that I have the opportunity to watch some coverage at some point during the afternoon. The Open screws that up. Players are teeing off at 3am Eastern Time, and the television coverage ends just after lunch. If I go out drinking on championship weekend, there’s an excellent chance I’ll be stuck in bed nursing a wicked hangover as the champion approaches the green on eighteen.

The courses. While I do appreciate links golf, the courses are ugly. There are weeds growing everywhere, trees nowhere to be seen, and the greens and fairways are a putrid shade of green and brown. I find it difficult to pick up the ball on TV and it just doesn’t look like anyone would want to pay money to be there.

I do, however, enjoy the style of play. It’s an exciting form of golf, which rewards creativity and ingenuity. It’s not 'hit a big drive, short iron in' that has come to typify North American courses.

I think I would play well in links golf, as I could just bump and run my way to a decent score. I don’t hit long enough to compete on courses over here; how else do you think Tommy Watson almost won the whole damn thing last year at age 59?

Plus, the time difference actually played into my hand this year. I woke up this morning to write the column and realized I could make some predictions with the benefit of most of the first round in the books.

Wow.

The first score I saw was Tiger at five under through 13; that got me jacked up, but then I realized that the on-screen graphic didn’t say he was the leader, which I found odd. The announcers started talking about John Daly shooting a 66. John Daly? Is this 1995?

Next, Rory McIlroy took over my screen at eight under par through sixteen holes. The kid had a legitimate chance to shoot the first 62 in major championship history, before finishing with a ho-hum 63. The golf gods will not allow these low scores to continue and I predict wind and rain to be set forth in a horrific storm on the weekend.

How about the parallels between Rory McIlroy and Roy McAvoy (Kevin Costner in Tin Cup)? Their names sound eerily similar and they both threatened 62 during a major championship. Now, McAvoy shot his 63 in the second round after an 82 in the first. Can we expect McIlroy to shoot 10 over par tomorrow? Yes, we can.

Tiger is not losing this tournament. His highlights from today’s round read like a ‘putting it together’ montage from a Rocky movie (more on that in tomorrow’s column; I have a special treat for all of you). It's only a matter of time before he raises his arms in victory again.

When Does the All Star Game Start?

(BOD - Mary Pickford)

Once the Midsummer Classic actually got started, it was a pretty entertaining and fast-paced affair. The top pitchers in both leagues were absolutely dealing and shredding through the best hitters in Major League Baseball.

The game didn’t get bogged down until the later innings when both managers reverted to the over-management style that plagues today’s game. In what universe does Roy Halladay only throw 2/3 of an inning?

Unfortunately, for young Phillies fans, they didn’t even get to see Doc pitch because they were in bed long before he took the hill. Millions of fans were in the same situation, Tewks included. If you live on the East Coast, the game didn’t start until 8:50pm. That is complete bullshit.

This is a perfect opportunity to showcase the best in the game and MLB organized it so half the population of North America was asleep by the seventh inning stretch. I tuned in at 8pm, figuring I would be right on time for catching the first pitch.

Wrong.

First I had to sit through a tribute to the Yankees enigmatic owner, George Steinbrenner. There is no doubt that Steinbrenner should have been remembered, but it was ridiculous to see the man painted as a hero and hear everyone reminisce about their fond memories of “The Boss.” The guy was a colossal prick; a winner in all facets of life, but a prick nonetheless.

He was terrible to his employees and anyone else who he deemed failing to live up to his impossibly high expectations. Why was he like this? Because his dad was an asshole as well, who never said a nice about young George during his entire life.

His legacy will be as a tremendous owner who won at all costs, but also a mean-spirited egomaniac who would punch his own mother for an American League pennant. However, George was also the King of media quotes. My favourite was when he was discussing Dave Winfield’s anemic playoff performances in his later years with the Yankees:

“Where is Reggie Jackson? We need a Mr. October or a Mr. September . . . Dave Winfield is Mr. May.”

So, after the Steinbrenner tribute, the game should have started immediately, right? Nope. I had to sit through a myriad of celebrities talking about community volunteerism for fifteen minutes. I’m all for altruism, but not at the expense of my baseball watching.

Next, we were forced to watch the fat, black girl from Glee stage an impromptu concert. This is the Major League All Star Game for chrissakes, not Lillith Fair. Why did she sing so many songs? This is how you plan on attracting new fans?

The All Star Game should be about celebrating the sport, not a cross-promotional corporate schmooze fest to see how many commercials and advertisements MLB can assault our senses with in an hour.

So, who won? I have no idea.

I was sleeping.

The Bachelorette: Hometown Dates

(BOD - Bar Refaeli)

The hometown dates are always my favourite episode of the season because it’s always entertaining to see which contestants have the crazy families who just destroy any chance they have at making it to the final two.

8:00 – Cousin Tewks has returned after a two week hiatus. Welcome back to the dark side. Or I guess this would be the pink, fluffy, unicorn side. The first words out of his mouth were, “Isn’t the home run derby on tonight?” My reply: “Don’t be gay.”

8:02 – As soon as the strains of salsa music hit the speakers, I immediately stereotyped this as Roberto’s date. And the producers didn’t let me down.

8:03 – Full disclosure: I may have gotten aroused when they revealed the baseball diamond.

8:04 – I also would like to have my name on Roberto’s jersey.

8:05 – There’s no way I can recap this date without sounding like a fawning fancy boy over Roberto.

8:06 – If Ali got a hit off of me, I would have buzzed her face with an inside fastball. Love be damned, I don’t give up extra base hits. Plus, she was crowding the plate.

8:13 – “Look at her heels” – Cousin Tewks when Ali was approaching Roberto’s house. Wow. I can’t even make fun of him here. I just feel sorry for him.

8:15 – Did Roberto’s dad just say that he was a ‘big prize’? Papa Tewks would be begging Ali to take me away.

8:16 – “I want to own a business and be successful.” Ali has certainly honed in those career aspirations.

8:17 – Did Roberto’s mother just come over on a raft? Can someone check her papers?

8:19 – Roberto’s dad is a PIMP. He’s like a Latino Tom Selleck.

8:27 – The consensus in the Tewks household is that Chris is way more smitten with Ali than she is with him. We are predicting heartbreak for Mr. Cape Cod.

8:30 – “Get a pair” – Cousin Tewks to Chris. I could not agree more.

8:37 – I would eat the entire plate of shrimp.

8:43 – Crestfallen? Demonstrative? Chris’ dad is bringing out the SAT words tonight.

8:44 – The sisters-in-law are just jealous Harpies. Of course they’re going to put Ali down, they’re ugly.

8:45 – Yeah, this isn’t going to work out. There is just too much of a discrepancy between Ali’s level of attractiveness and the frumpy twins. They will never get along.

8:47 – What father asks his son if he’s found his soulmate on reality television? Papa Tewks would just want to know if I’d thrown it to her yet.

8:49 – Did anyone else think that Chris’ mom was buried in that stone rotunda? No? I’m just a terrible person.

8:54 – Please don’t call a grown man Kirky.

8:56 – Kirk’s dad is the epitome of creepy. He’s like Buffalo Bill from Silence of the Lambs.

8:57 – Ali looks like she’s going to throw up.

9:00 – “She’s got a little junk in the trunk going there” – Mama Tewks about Ali. Are you kidding me? I think she may be senile. Time for the retirement home.

9:06 – Kirk’s mom looks like a 16 year old babe from behind and the Wicked Witch of the West from the front.

9:07 – I really need to stop watching this in HD. If I see another close up of Kirk’s mom, I am going to puke.

9:09 – I am out until Kirk’s date is over. I can’t watch this anymore. That face is going to haunt my dreams.

9:11 – Kirk’s dad looks like a genius now: divorcing Kirk’s mom before she got gross. He definitely sold that stock before the market crashed.

9:17 – Can anything that Frank is wearing on this date be considered men’s clothing?

9:19 – What situation are Ali and Frank talking about? The guy from Jersey Shore?

9:21 – Has Frank never seen this show before? He’s like a chick. Enough with the insecurities.

9:26 – Did Frank’s dad just kiss him on the cheek? Is there a testosterone shortage in America that I don’t know about?

9:28 – Ali’s boobs look massive on this date.

9:30 – Frank’s sister has a very strange, halting way of speaking.

9:37 – Harrison showing up to put in his ten minutes of work this week. Good to see him again.

9:49 – Roberto. Of course. I would have given him a rose first as well. If, you know, I was a woman.

9:50 – Poor Kirk. Back to Green Bay.

9:52 – “Can I have a hug?” I can’t believe Ali had the audacity to ask that. I would have given her an elbow to the throat instead.

What did you think? Post thoughts to comments.

Talkin' with Tewks Live: Soccer's Over and LeBron Thoughts

(BOD - Anna Paquin)

Highlights from today's podcast:

- Final World Cup thoughts
- Lots of LeBron talk
- The wooing of a Hollywood starlet

Talkin' with Tewks Live

Enjoy.