Hodge Podge

-Update--Well, I'm having fun predicting...even if I haven't been very good at it. Ace Young pulled the deuce out of the deck in the American Idol game of "high card draw"this week. You might remember, I felt Ace was vulnerable to elimination the last two weeks. But, I thought he rose to a new level this week. Obviously, America felt differently. More shocking to me this week--Chris Daughtry with the second lowest number of votes. Chris regarded lower than Kellie, Elliott, Taylor and Paris?? I guess I might have to start voting. Andrea Bocelli is the guest artist next week. I have no idea how that's going to work...should be interesting.
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-Prediction on who leaves AI tonight. I'm sticking with Elliott..although I think his performance was much better than Kellie's. Kellie just won't be voted off tonight because of her other plusses. Paris may be in some danger...but I thought her performance was good enough to stick around, and she's the only minority contestant left. Chris, Ace, Katharine, Kellie and Taylor should have no problem. I'm sticking with Chris and Katharine as the eventual final two.

In reading reviews of last night's show on the internet today, I see many columnists who somehow still believe this is a singing contest. It's NOT a singing contest. Or, at least, you don't win by being the best singer. That's been proven in the last four seasons. It's a personality contest...with singing as the presentation vehicle. It's about who the public likes and will pick up the phone and vote for.

-Hopefully soon the sports radio talk-show hosts, who have to do so regularly, will figure out how to pronounce the name of the Cardinals' new right-fielder. It's not really that hard if you break it down by syllables. EN--CAR--NAH--SEE--OWN. I'm hearing about every other possible bastardization--
En-ca-NAR-see-own
En-cruh-nar-see-un
En-car-NAY-see-own (I think that came from one of the Post's Cardinals beat writers)
Ena-cuh-nar-see-ahn
You get the idea. Maybe, if they remember that encarnacion translated from Spanish to English is incarnation it would be a little easier.

-There is one sports radio host in the city with whom I have run out of patience and who's show I now refuse to listen to. This guy is knowledgeable...on everything except hockey...in fact admits on the air that he doesn't like hockey. But, that's not the reason I've given up on him. It's his insistence on a speech pattern and delivery that comes across to me as condescending. When he makes a point...he insists on driving it home by repeating it. Verrrryyyyy slowwwwwlllllyyy and emphaticalllllyyyyy... sometimes more than once. For instance he might say... "The Cardinals will not win many games this year without 50 home runs from Albert Pujols....withouuuuuttt Fiffffffteeeee Home Runsssss frommmmmm Allllllbertttt Puuuuuuuuuuujollssssss." It's not even so much that he stretches out the words to make his point. It's the attitude that he has when doing it...as though you either didn't hear him the first time...or you were too stupid to understand him. You get the impression that he's saying...."Hey I said something important....and you might want to write it down, you dumb-ass...so here it is again". If you've heard this man...who's paired up with someone else that I actually enjoy listening to...you probably know who I mean.

-The new ownership of the Blues had better put their personnel in place very quickly. Dave Checketts and his lieutenants likely already have most of their top brass in mind...or under contract. Because, the amateur draft happens in June and the Blues will have either the very first, or the second, overall pick. The NHL won't approve the new owners until probably late May at the earliest. A lot of the leg work on the draft will have to be done well before that....or, they will have to rely on the current collection of scouts that hasn't really been much to shout about.

-Chris Carpenter could easily have 4 wins already. After today's win at Pittsburgh, he's 2-1 with a no decision. The bullpen failed him in the ND at the Cubs. And the other was the 1-0 loss to Cincinnati. His ERA is 1.67.