Links for Breakfast

As we get ready for a late-night series with the A's in the city by the City by the Bay, we thought we'd start the morning with a look around the 'Nets.

• Meech gets us started as only he can with some thought-provoking questions, such as how Ryan Howard got the nickname Big Brown in the locker room, and what's so Magic about So Taguchi? [The Fightins]
• In one helluva response to being suspended by DNL, Bill Conlin shows us again why he's still the man. [Conlin]
• The Phils have been struggling over the past week plus. The Mets have been struggling most of the season, including last night, when Felix Hernandez jacked a grand slam off of Johan Santana. King Felix became the first AL pitcher in like a million years to hit a grand slam. Fortunately for Santana, who had allowed two hits in the inning, David Wright's error with two outs negated the runs from being earned. We're still counting them, but Wright says he'll take the blame. [USS Mariner via WoW] [MetsBlog]
• If you're into the the whole blogging scene thing, chances are by now you've heard about the LA Times report that we're all playing nicer now that more people are reading our dribble. We hadn't really paid much attention to the trend, but we won't argue that it hasn't happened in some places, particularly since the Times directly quotes some Big players in the field. Anyway, we're wide-eyed at the bloody-yet-good-intentioned(?) backlash. With Will Leitch on his way from Deadspin to New York Mag, we can only hope for more blaze-of-glory posts as the week unfolds. Haven't seen Will go off like this in a while, maybe ever. Was McIntyre deserving of that kind of ire though? [Deadspin] Update: Annnnd.. Touché. [Dave Lozo] There's no shortage of opinion on this topic, ranging from who's right and who's wrong, but we're also hearing a lot of "who cares?"

• Stephen Starr is buying the Broad Street Diner [D-Mac]
• The inevitable finally happened—Larry Mendte got axed by CBS for reading Alycia Lane's e-mail. Look at you sitting there passing judgment. Like you wouldn't have searched for the Eisen shots... Can't wait to see which member of the Philly media makes the news next. [Dan Gross]
• Astute reader and Villanovan Carl P. asks, "What’s up with Melrose? Has he not wanted to coach until now, or is this the first offer he’s gotten in a decade?" We honestly have no idea here, but we'll turn it over to Wyshynski. Note to John Stevens: Check Melrose's players' stick blades for legality. He loves that. [Puck Daddy]

That oughtta get you through your coffee and the merciless first hour of daily employ.

Comments

[Joe in Haddonfield]

I hate Bill Conlin.

But what happened is crazy. It wasn't terribly funny, waltzed with cliche as Bill so often does, and played upon a regional stereotype rather than an ethnic one.

Bill is so frozen in time, he isn't aware of the ethnic make-up of the blueberry pickers. Rather than Latin/Hispanics doing the bulk of the labor, he probably thinks it's still Italians and other Europeans.

[johndewar]

Conlin is not everyone's cup of tea, but I still like and read him.

And I thought Will Leitch sort of went overboard in his response yesterday. I like Deadspin and I like Will's work, but his reponse to Jason McIntyre (whom I read regularly) seemed hypocritical in light of Leitch telling Buzz Bissinger it shouldn't be up to a single group to decide what is and what is "palatable" to publish online.

My 2 cents.

[enrico]

Dude, Bill's writing on a Dell.

[theKrisheim]

i like reading about sports blogs' place in the "real" media as much as like watching mel kiper, reading ashley fox and analyzing mock NBA drafts.

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

deadspin is wack anyway, next.........

[ZAS]

I really think this MSM v Blogger bs is naval gazing, pure and simple. The only people who care are Old Journos, Bloggers, and their elitist dork commenters (who are brilliant and hilarious nonetheless). I love Deadspin, TBL, and You guys . . . but I'm glad you generally stay above the self-aggrandizing Fray on this topic.

Also there is NO WAY this is a factual statement:

"COLLEGE AND high school students interested in sports-writing careers contact me from time to time seeking advice on how best to enter an industry in crisis." -BC

Unless by "time to time" he means "not since the mid 90s," then I'm not buying it.

[Joe in Haddonfield]

The main stream media loses points when you have video of Shaq rapping leading off Sports Center then cuts to Stephen A for comment.

[Benjamin]

A blog should be taken for what it is. Mainstream media may not like it, but I get different information from the news than a blog. The news tries to present "facts", if you can say they do, but a blog provides the voice of the people, and its reception of so called "facts". This blog truly reminds me of the 700 level, where you could sit at a game with people you didn't know, and talk about the game and enjoy it together as a group.

I read other blogs of teams we either rival, or are in a huge matchup with, to see what the local character is thinking. They can be informative at times. Personally despise Metsblog and Pensblog. The 1st for being a site with so many contributors full of themselves, that a single snapshot of the screen is exploding with more information about a team than ANYONE needs to know. The 2nd, cuz I swear an 8 year old designed it, and its the penguin fanbase - nuff said. Sorry, I just cant stand those sites.

[Walklett]

Count me in the "who cares" camp.

It's the same argument every couple of months...MSM vs. Bloggers. Get over yourselves.

Add this to the list of things you don't discuss at the dinner table under religion and politics.

[TH]

Man, if you thought Leitch's response was overboard, then you don't wanna read Dan Shanoff's take on the whole thing...

Re: Conlin... the guy who allegedly wrote the e-mail called into the WIP mid-day show the day after it all happened and said he laughed at it and wasn't offended. I'm not sure it was confirmed that the caller and the writer were one in the same, but if it was, then it's a notch on Bill's side of the scoreboard.

[TH]

@ Joe in Haddonfield

EXACTLY

[dupBoadiaDuep]

blog on earnings in the Internet sites and move any other information