pic courtesy of Bob’s Blitz

No Mets game last night so I tuned into the NY Highlander-Chicago White Stockings game from the South Bronx. I had two options on where to watch the festivities, ESPN or YUCK. The one outlet I wanted to watch it on CSN-Chicago (I know I’m in the minority but I enjoy listening to Hawk Harrelson do White Sox games) was blacked out because MLB Extra Innings feels that since I live in a NYC zip code I enjoy watching the YUCK Network, which could not be further from the truth. In fact, I rarely watch the YUCK Network, but last night I did and all I can say is, whatever SNY is paying Gary Cohen, Ron Darling, Keith Hernandez and Kevin Burkhardt they are getting away cheap, in fact if I were the agents for those gentleman I would use tape of the games on YUCK to get my clients big pay raises.

I started off watching this game on ESPN and was quite happy that Sean McDonough was the play by play man. Then when I heard Rick Sutcliffe and Aaron Boone chiming in, I ducked for cover. Sutcliffe always sounds like he had a few Rob Roy’s before the game and Boone brings nothing of substance to the telecast. In fact these three men in a booth is a disaster on every sporting event except for Mets games on SNY. Gary, Keith and Ron are the gold standard for the three man booth. The Mark Jackson, Jeff Van Gundy duo would work very well as a three man booth if the third man wasn’t Mike Breen.Put Marv Albert with those two and you’d have the basketball version of sports broadcasting nirvana.

So back to YUCK I go and as I tune in Michael Kay brings in Kim Jones to the broadcast. Jones is a very good nuts and bolts reporter having been the Giants beat writer and general NFL correspondent for the Newark Star-Ledger but as a “personality” well she’s lacking in that department . When she fills in on WFAN she comes off at times as a female version of Mike Francesa, but anyway, Kay brought her in to take about Phil Hughes and his “dead arm”. Jones went on a dissertation that made me think Highlanders fans have a problem comprehending information as Jones spoke…….very……..slowly…….and…..accented……some….key…..words……in…..her……report……like….it…..was…..remidial…….tv………watching……….

The fact that she reported that Hughes stopped his throwing session because his arm felt very heavy, to me was a major story and one if I were of the Highlander persuasion would cause me some alarm. When Jones threw it back to Kay, he acted like it wasn’t a big deal. To his credit, Al Leiter, a man we all know who pitched in the big leagues, showed the kind of concern I would have thought the newly wed Mr. Jodi Applegate would have.  As Leiter spoke about the effects of this on the Highlanders and on Hughes himself, Mr Applegate asked “Al did you ever go through a dead arm period”? Now if Leiter and Kay weren’t BFF’s I’m sure Letier would have exposed Kay for the fraud he is. Just about every pitcher deals with a dead arm problem, mostly in spring training but the bounce back after a day or three and Leiter was making it known that this situation with Hughes could be very serious. I guess Kay was more concerned with going home and having some Chicken Parm and then sharing the wedding bed with Madame’ Applegate.

For an extra added attraction, former Met Philip Humber, now a ChiSox pitcher was in the midst of no hitting the Bronx Bastards. It was hard not to know the BB’s were hitless as Kay mentioned it every ten seconds. When Alex Rodriguez got the first Highlander hit in the 7^th    there was a sigh of relief coming from the YUCK booth because not only was the calamity of the Highlanders being no hit averted but now it was time for some good old fashion  Mets bashing, everybody take your pants off WOOOOO-HOOOOOO.

Kay went into full rant about the Mets never having been on the celebratory side on a no-no but of course pitchers who at one time toed the rubber for the Amazin’s have and of course he couldn’t wait to felate  his partner Leiter by bringing up his no hitter against the Colorado Rockies when he was a Marlin.

After ten minutes more of the reading of names of former Mets pitchers who pitched no hitters with clubs other than the Mets I was done.  I watched the rest of the game on ESPN which was more entertaining anyway as Rick Sutcliffe was on his 5^th drink by the time I tuned in.

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