Hey, Hec. Prior to tonight's game, I was going to ask you if you guys wanted Harden back, but he pitched really well tonight (even if the Cubbies lost in the 13th) so I guess we can hang on to him for awhile longer.

Against Blanton no less! (They're still close friends.)

And we just traded away Sean Gallagher for Hairston.

I have this weird feeling that there's no such thing as a good hitter anymore. I suppose this comes from having been in the Bay Area during the height of the steroids era, but seriously...there's no offense on either the A's or Giants.

I think a crafty buffista needs this.

I haz that shirt. It is awesome. It even got a compliment from a guy I passed on Hollywood Blvd, although to be fair, he was dressed as Captain Jack Sparrow at the time.

My home town had no murders (yay) but 1.21% (25 last year) of the nat'l average of forcible rapes. Boo.

The unattractive copy box top with odd small shapes cut into the side of it that's been lying on my bedroom floor for weeks earned its keep today. The lizard the cat brought in, that he always drops in the same spot, was safely under the lid, albeit with some blood smears on the floor. It would be nice to get through the summer this year without finding lizards in the kitchen, bedroom, or living room. Ah, the wild kingdom.

And we just traded away Sean Gallagher for Hairston.

And Murton's down in the Rockies' minor league system, again, apparently.

Sounds like the trade didn't do much for you guys. (Though it looks like Hairston has better stats then any of the Cubs' current outfielders. Oy.)

Harden has been pretty unreliable for us this year, though apparently Pinella is going to try to pitch him at night, on the road, as much as possible for the rest of the season. Turns out his road ERA and night game ERAs are both in the low 2 range, but his home day game ERA is somewhere in the 7s. Weirdness.

What do you mean by good hitter, Hec? You talking good average, high homer run totals, or is it more of an overall "This guy is dangerous" sort of deal? I mean, on the NL side, Albert Pujols is pretty impressive. (Though there's some grumbling about steroids from some fans, but that could just be sour grapes.) Not sure who the AL equivalent would be, but isn't Mauer on the Twins having a really good year?

I will say I find myself more impressed with the Cubs' pitching staff (with a couple of exceptions) this year than their offense, but I'm not sure how much of that is the pitching and how much is how lousy our offense has been.

Carlos Marmol, on a good night, is incredibly fun to watch (and on a bad night it's just painful) and Angel Guzman is developing into an outstanding reliever. (He threw a fastball against Chipper Jones a couple months ago that was a thing of absolute beauty. Chipper bailed because it seemed to be going for his hip and then it cut across the inside corner to strike him out looking.)

I really miss Wood as the closer, though. I realize he's been struggling this year, but he had great stuff. Gregg just doesn't seem to have any life to his pitches at all.

What do you mean by good hitter, Hec?

Oh, you know, guys like Pujols and Mauer. Seriously the A's don't have anybody with a slugging percentage over .500 and haven't had for a few years. The A's are 29th out of 30 teams in slugging. The Giants are 27th. No pop. No danger. The Giants are 29th in runs scored with 377. The Yankees are first with 512.

At least the Giants are fun to watch with Lincecum and Pablo (Kung Fu Panda) Sandoval and we've got a stud coming up next year with Posey. The A's have just been dispiriting to watch even with some talented young pitching. Too many guys hitting .240 or less. Feh.

eta: To put it another way, the Yankees team slugging percentage (.469) is greater than that of any single A's player. Holiday is closest at .454.

I always find the discussion of US murder rates a little surreal. We have less than 300 murders a year in the entire country (of which less than 50 involve a firearm). We have similar rates of non-violent crime to the US, but murder rates are about a third the US rate.

Yeah, billytea, but Australia isn't the land of opportunity.

Here you have an opportunity to get shot in the head at rates far greater than in the antipodes.

Guess it's the guns. But in my state, there are still morons who want the right to bring guns in bars. Seriously, you don't have to be a pinko(although I totally am) to find that problematic.

Hey Kalshane! I don't see you around these parts much. Hi!

I have no guns. But I would like to learn to shoot one. Just because it seems like one of those things on a life list to check off. Like knowing how to drive a stick shift.

I always find the discussion of US murder rates a little surreal.

Illinois not only has one of the most entertainingly corrupt governors and had this junior Senator we now get to call Mr. President, but in Chicago it also gets to be number one in murder. Last year, it was 510.