Random Idea I'm Throwing Out There: Ump Tourney

Ironically, this was used on insidesocal.com last April. April! It's not from this postseason, but from APRIL! Then again, umps get villainized regardless of month.  

Well, the MLB playoffs aren't going too well. And not just because my Red Sox got swept and the hated Yankees are in the World Series (and on that note, Go Phils!). There have been a lot of blown calls this postseason, and the issue has gotten a lot of media attention. Everyone knows (and has to accept) that umps are human and thus not perfect, but there do seem to have been a relatively high number of bad calls lately. With something as important as a championship on the line (as well as all the media coverage and scrutiny that comes along with the playoffs), Major League Baseball has taken action- they've changed the World Series umpiring crew to have umps with more experience.

This brings up an idea- what about having the best umps in the regular season call playoff games, the same way that the best teams make the postseason? Instant replay and strike zone technologies can be used to evaluate umps, so how 'bout sending the most consistent/accurate regular season umpires to the postseason crews? (Of course, it's not that simple, but the main idea sounds okay in theory) And it doesn't even have to stop there- the best umps during a particular round of the playoffs could go on to call the next round (except that 3-7 games is a way too small sample size for umps).

Do these ideas sound ridiculous? Or does this seem like it could be plausible after necessary minor (and major) details are worked out? And why am I asking questions on a blog that hardly anyone reads?  

Fun With Baseball Reference: Sox Hitters

B-R is a great source for interesting* (and most likely, true) facts about baseball players. Without further ado, here are some things you may not have known about the Red Sox:

Jacoby Ellsbury: He's (usually) our leadoff hitter, so he might as well be first. Fun facts: his middle name is McCabe, some Yankees fans sponsor his page with the message "Almost as good as Brett Gardner.", and he was originally drafted by Tampa. WHAT? It's true- he was their 23rd round pick in '02, but didn't sign. And it worked out well- he went from 23rd round to 23rd overall (and his uniform # is 46, which is twice that. COINCIDENCE? Almost certainly.)
Dustin Pedroia: There aren't too many obscure facts on his page, except that his middle name is Luis. (I didn't know that)
Kevin Youkilis: Not much to be found here, either.
David Ortiz: Was a PTBNL in a trade between the Mariners and Twins in '96. One of his nicknames is apparently "Cookie Monster", and his full name is David Americo (Arias) Ortiz.
Jason Bay: He's been traded a lot, but I don't think that counts as an obscure fact. Middle name=Raymond.
J.D. Drew: Was once traded for Jason Marquis and Adam Wainwright. J.D. actually stands for David Jonathan.
Jason Varitek: Has been as high as 21st in AL MVP voting. Middle name Andrew. Batted 1.000 in 1997 (take that, Mauer!) in one plate appearence (never mind).
Victor Martinez: Middle name is Jesus, and he's from Ciudad Bolivar (A city named after Simon Bolivar, a historical figure that I started [but didn't finish] a school project on last year), Venezuela.
Mike Lowell: I don't feel like looking it up, but he might possibly be the most famous FIU alum. Was originally drafted by the Yankees and played in 8 games for them.

I didn't include any shortstops- perhaps that's a topic for a different post.....(maybe).....

*or not

Wishing Aaron Boone Well

I don't hate Aaron Boone. Maybe it's because he played for my NL team, the Nats last year. But it's probably because I was just an innocent eight-year-old who didn't follow sports back in October of 2003. At the time, I wasn't even aware of what had happened. Now, I'm a die-hard Sox fan. I understand how heartbreaking that walkoff was to Red Sox Nation (Joffrey Lupul, anyone?), but nothing can give me the experience of having lived through it. (Though that also means that I'll never feel the full joy of those who were Sox fans in '04).

I've always felt that Boone was a guy who was in the right place at the right time (or wrong place, from the perspective of the Sox). Not a superstar, but just some player on the Yanks who made a name for himself in baseball history with his walk-off homer. And on the positive side, he helped make the '04 World Series win all the more sweeter. (Okay, that was bad grammar, but I don't have school until Monday. Cut me some slack.) Aaron Boone had no control over the events that led up to his home run, and anyone else (on either team) could have won the game. He was just a baseball player doing his job.

And now, despite many odds against him, he's coming back. He's been on a minor league rehab stint, and he'll join the Astros when rosters expand. Boone had open-heart surgery before the season because of a condition he had that had gotten to the point where it was too risky to not operate. His overcoming of obstacles should be an inspiration to us all. Walkoffs aside, he's a guy from a great baseball family whose love of the game keeps him coming back, and he's had a pretty decent career (with more to come, if all goes well). Red Sox fans, Yankees fans, Astros fans, and baseball fans and people in general should respect his determination. Love him or hate him, he's back. Again. Good luck, Aaron.

(MLB.com- Boone excited for return to big leagues)