De-Deranged, that lineup was sh**. What do I have to do to keep Berg out of the line up.

De-Deranged, that lineup was sh**. What do I have to do to keep Berg out of the line up.

Learn how to hit .300 against major league pitching then sign a contract with the Jays.

I can hit .030, but unfortunately Keith Law is very good with understanding orders of magnitude, so no contract for me. :)

And yes, the song was Prove My Love by the Violent Femmes:

De-derange, we've all been through some shit
And if we're a thing I think this thing's begun
Tell me now what do I have to do

You get 40 million points, plus a one million point bonus for having the first message.

I'll begin my stretching program tonight. How many points and much cuttle fish have been credited to my account?

Thank you but where's the cuttle fish. Man cannot live on points alone.

Thank you but where's the cuttle fish. Man cannot live on points alone.

Here you go. A particularly nice specimen of a Sepioloidea lineolata:

Bah!
I was hoping to claim a legitimate victory today on the song.
Who determined that the cuttle fish's name was Mark Norman? Doesn't look like a Mark to me.

Who determined that the cuttle fish's name was Mark Norman? Doesn't look like a Mark to me.

ROFL. I don't know why I found that so funny, but I now have coffee on my monitor thanks to you!

but I now have coffee on my monitor thanks to you!

What a waste of wonderful black coffee!

http://www.thewolfshack.com
The whole Mondesi story is a little insane.
So he gives up $2 million this year because he owes someone in the DR $640,000 and he wants to spend time with his kids, then two weeks later he signs a deal with Anaheim for less than he was making in Pittsburgh? I wonder if we have all the details.

The whole Mondesi story is a little insane.

I think we can shorten that to just:

Mondesi is a little insane.

Checked out your page.. yes, Chyrsalis for the NES does indeed rock the free world.

The whole Mondesi story is a little insane.

Maybe this is just an overly complicated way of not having to play for Pittsburgh.

http://www.tsn.ca/mlb/standings.asp
Wow, the Pirates are only 4 back.
14-9 on the road.

PaulD, we had a link to a blog about Dominican players a while back. The blog stated that Mondesi was mislead by his agent into believing the contract was worth 8 million (the Pirates option in the second year). Raul has now managed to get $200 000, from the Pirates and the same contract from the Angels. It seems like a lot of hassle but obviously the story that he feared for the safety of family etc was false as those problems didn't go away in 2 weeks.

In deed, sun, more latin players to drink with and $200 000 extra has Mondesi feeling much better.

http://www.dailyherald.com/sports/sox.asp?intID=3813876
Hijack:

I can't understand why GM's handle private issues through public channels. A recent example is Kenny Williams publicly criticizing Jon Rauch for leaving the clubhouse early after getting bombed in his start COMN (or copy and paste from below).

http://www.dailyherald.com/sports/sox.asp?intID=3813876

Rauch is a grown man -- there's no reason to treat him like a baby.

I can hit .030

Mike. I think you'll need about 500 major league at-bats to verify this. Sample size after all. Expect a call from Keith any time now. What's the major league minimum $300,000US. I'm sure you can give at least 110% effort.

In deed, sun, more latin players to drink with and $200 000 extra has Mondesi feeling much better.

Don't mean to besmirch all latin players on the Angels, I'll specifically name Escobar as one man that doesn't need the temptation that Mondesi will provide.

and the "singing" of William Hung

Sadly, I don't think this guy knows that everyone is laughing at him.

Unless of course he does realize it, plays along, and is just laughing his way to the bank.

He's either a moron or a genius.

I think Hung is a university engineering student. He looks slow but I'm sure he knows the score. He's milking his 15 minutes for all it's worth.

Interesting that Ricciardi grades the 2002 draft a C+, and the 2003 draft a B (Fordin article). I would agree. Having produced a couple more dominant (as opposed to decent) players would probably elevate these drafts to a B+ or A.

http://www.thewolfshack.com
Checked out your page.. yes, Chyrsalis for the NES does indeed rock the free world.

Thanks! It was hard to think of old NES games that are underated, as it's pretty hard to remember that far back.

And with being a contributor to my own website, I realize how hard it can be to come up with interesting content. You guys do a great job here.

The blog stated that Mondesi was mislead by his agent into believing the contract was worth 8 million

Ah, okay. That's kind of sad actually, that a man Mondesi's age would think that he's making $8 million a year.

So should Pittsburgh be upset?

http://www.foxsports.com/content/view?contentId=2446534
The latest Rosenthal

David Sloane, agent for Blue Jays 1B Carlos Delgado, says Delgado will waive his no-trade clause only in exchange for a contract extension, a requirement that would add to the price for the Dodgers or any other team wishing to acquire the slugger. "At this point, Carlos intends to play the rest of the year in Toronto," Sloane says. "However, if the Blue Jays call me and say, 'Would Carlos consider a trade?' I would say the only way he would consider it would be if he's able to negotiate an extension. Would he like to play in a pennant race? Of course. But Carlos has no desire to be a rent-a-player." . . .

COMN for the whole article

Thanks! It was hard to think of old NES games that are underated, as it's pretty hard to remember that far back.

Well, there's always emulators... or you can spend years going to garage sales trying to find them all. I've got about 600 different ones. :)

10 Underrated NES Games

1. Mendel Palace
2. Micro Machines
3. M.U.L.E.
4. Toobin
5. American Gladiators
6. Adventures of Lolo
7. Legends of the Diamond
8. Startropics
9. Swords and Serpents
10. Balloon Fight

I could probably name 100 more. A few on the list (Startropics, Lolo) are pretty famous, so they might not belong on an underrated list, but they're still really good.

Ah, okay. That's kind of sad actually, that a man Mondesi's age would think that he's making $8 million a year.

So should Pittsburgh be upset?


No.

They had the chance to hang on to his rights, but instead decided the contract breach was a glorious opportunity to get rid of him. Given how Craig Wilson and Rob Macowiak were playing in his absence, it doesn't surprise me a bit that the Pirates cut him loose.

I think Hung is a university engineering student. He looks slow but I'm sure he knows the score.

Heh heh... when it comes to wisdom and understanding in social matters (like knowing when they're laughing at you and when they're laughing with you) engineering students aren't exactly the first place I'd look. :)

On another note, good for Delgado.

Anybody know the date on which I can run to the store and pick up a copy of Chasing Steinbrenner?

David Sloane, agent for Blue Jays 1B Carlos Delgado, says Delgado will waive his no-trade clause only in exchange for a contract extension, a requirement that would add to the price for the Dodgers or any other team wishing to acquire the slugger.

Pretty much exactly what I expected the situation to be. The no-trade clause isn't so much a guarantee to keep Carlos in Toronto but negotiating hammer to use if a trade is made. If you want to trade for Carlos you have to give him a multi-year extension before the market sets itself and you'll be negotiating off the value of his current contract.

I don't believe DePodesta would go for that unless the price isn't huge. The rumour of James Loney plus a good pitching prospect that actually exists might just get it done. I don't think the Jays would trade their franchise player for any less (especially if the Dodgers will be signing him long term) and I doubt they'll eat a year of Encarnacion either. It would probably be cheaper for them to let Carlos walk at the end of the year.

I'm so conflicted. When LA comes to town do I hope to see hometown hero Eric Gagne trot out of the pen so I can say i've actually seen him pitch in my life, or do I hope for the Blue Jays to actually win the game. Because they most likely wont if Gagne's on the mound. Anyone else feel conflicted?

Pretty much exactly what I expected the situation to be. The no-trade clause isn't so much a guarantee to keep Carlos in Toronto but negotiating hammer to use if a trade is made. If you want to trade for Carlos you have to give him a multi-year extension before the market sets itself and you'll be negotiating off the value of his current contract.

I think the David Ortiz contract has already done a lot to set the market for big lefthanded 1B. Ortiz is not quite as good a hitter as Delgado, but it's close. Especially when you factor in the age difference (Ortiz is 3.5 years younger than Delgado).

I can't see Carlos getting any more than 10MM/year on the open market. An extension of 25MM over three years might be enough get a trade done.

I was thinking Carlos's "market" value would be around $8M, with his value to the Blue Jays being near $10M and the Yankees would sign him for $12-14M.

As Toscas drifts towards a more platoon oriented approach to line-up management, tonight will be an excellent test case to see if Tosca really understands how to do this properly. If we see a line-up like yesterday then he clearly has no clue. Moyer gets killed by left handed hitting. Here are the numbers:

2004:

Right handed batters: .671 OPS
Left handed batters: .936 OPS

For those of you concerned with small sample sizes:

2001-2003:

Right: .619 OPS
Left: .749 OPS

Living on the west coast I see more Mariners games than I do Jays games and its obvious watching his starts that Moyer has more trouble getting left handed hitters out. The reason is pretty simple, his best pitch by far is his change-up which he throws far less frequently to left handed hitters. He uses his curve ball to try and get left handed hitters out. The problem with that is that his fast ball these days sits at around 80 (no that's not a misprint) and his curve is mid-70's so there is almost no speed difference with the curve. Tonight's line-up should not feature Berg and should have Pond and Clark in the game. I would also suggest to Zaun that he hit left handed tonight but that may be a comfort issue for a hitter. Any line-up construction that features Berg makes it clear that Tosca (like with many of his pitching match-up decisions) is simply following the traditional lefty/righty match-ups without truly understanding when to apply platoon advantages and when not to.

I was thinking Carlos's "market" value would be around $8M, with his value to the Blue Jays being near $10M and the Yankees would sign him for $12-14M.

I know the last comment was a bit of a joke, but the Yanks already have enough aging, injury prone slugging first basemen on their roster.

This is the first time I've ever heard of the "home town premium" concept, but it makes sense.

Sloane is also a pretty smart guy. He managed to leverage Carlos' no trade clause without making him come off as sounding greedy. In reality, I seriously doubt Delgado would mind playing for a contender for a few months, especially if the Jays make it clear to him that he's not in their plans for 2004.

Actually... I'm ashamed to say it, but what I've been saying is Carlos is worth 6, 8 and 12 but when I went to type it out I chickened out and added $2Mill...

now that I see Ortiz is making 4.5M, I am going back to it.
$6M on the market(based on expected stats), $8M to the Jays (based on crowd appeal, their positioning for a pennant drive and leadership) and I still think $10-12M to the Yankees.. convert him to DH and let him swing at that short Right Field porch.

of course, yes it IS a bit of a joke, but so is the Yankees payroll.

RE: Moyer

The Jays only have four lefties/switchhitters on the roster right now who are healthy: Zaun, Hinske, Pond, and Howie Clark.

I imagine we'll see:

Zaun C
Phelps 1B/DH
Pond 1B/DH (whichever one Phelps doesn't play)
Frankie M 2B
Gomez SS
Hinske 3B
Clark, Wells, Reed OF

Yankees would sign him for $12-14M

With all their clutter at the far end of the defensive spectrum, I can't see the Yankees being interested. I think that while they inevitably will have to move Giambi into the DH role fulltime and perhaps get a "more real" 1B (i.e., not Clark or Lee, though Clark has been fine so far), I think they need Giambi to be able to play some 1B for the next year or two, giving them flexibility at DH with Bernie Williams (until his contract expires) and perhaps, eventually, Gary Sheffield.

In fact, with Delgado's knee situation, he could regress health-wise like Giambi and suddenly require more and more access to the DH spot himself.

I'm thinking that the Yankees will be smart enough to focus on the other end of the defensive spectrum. Pursuing Beltran as a CF makes sense. Pursuing a 2B makes sense. Pursuing another SP (or two) makes sense.

Certainly many have rightfully made the argument that the team has not spent their $180M as wisely as possible (witness the need for Tanyon Sturtze on the roster and the 600 OPSer starting at 2B). Further, they have been woefully lackadaisical in rounding out the roster with high quality minor league free agents (thus the need for the Travis Lees, Tony Clarks, Homer Bushes, Donovan Osbornes and John Flahertys of the world), but Brian Cashman just has to be smart enough to know which specific problems need addressing ahead of others. I can't see that chasing down a 1B/DH type would rank that high at the moment.

With all their clutter at the far end of the defensive spectrum, I can't see the Yankees being interested. I think that while they inevitably will have to move Giambi into the DH role fulltime and perhaps get a "more real" 1B (i.e., not Clark or Lee, though Clark has been fine so far), I think they need Giambi to be able to play some 1B for the next year or two, giving them flexibility at DH with Bernie Williams (until his contract expires) and perhaps, eventually, Gary Sheffield.


Would this mean the Yankees are candidates to take Doug Mientkiewicz off the Twins' hands? They already tried to sign a "more real" defensive 1B when they inked Travis Lee to a contract. They certainly weren't signing him for his offence :)

Moyer gets killed by left handed hitting.

Anyone who plays Strat-O-Matic (or, presumably, DMB or any of the others), knows all about Moyer's year-in year-out profile of being a reverse skew lefty. In Strat, you see some pretty interesting lineups against him, lineups you'd never see in real life.

Every year there's are a few LHP who are reverse skewed (thanks to random factors, likely), but few have been as consistent (going from memory here) as Moyer. Maybe Pettitte, but to a lesser degree.

Moffat - I would support that line-up. I also could understand putting Clark at second and Rios in RF for better outfield defense in Safeco (I know that sounds strange given Rios' defensive problems this weekend but I do think he's better than Clark in the outfield). Either line-up would be better than seeing Berg in the outfield or at 3rd.

Re the argument that Ortiz's contract is setting the market for first baseman, and can't help but affect Delgado's value...

On the radio last week, JP hemmed and hawed when asked if this was such, perhaps as an indirect way of suggesting it was, but without stirring up the controversy that acknowledging such might entail. Though, in fairness to the man, he didn't actually answer so I could be all wet here.

I think Delgado's camp will use the "arbitration" strategy and argue that Delgado has a much longer track record of proving his worth than does Ortiz, even if Delgado's 2004 figures ultimately fail to even meet his 1996/97 pre-stardom levels. The organization may not choose to use Ortiz as a comp, but rather argue that given Delgado's age and the clear evidence of decline, that he happens to be worth the same as Ortiz, but for entirely different reasons.

Or not.

Chuck,

Someone was claiming last week that the biggest paycut that could be awarded through arbitration was 20%. If that's the case, I don't think the Jays would go through the process.

As for Daryn, though Delgado's value has greatly dimished, more through market correction than Carlos' failures, I don't see him staying with the Jays. Perhaps it's a matter of pride, but rarely do athletes take a pay cut and stay with the same team.

The only way I could see Delgado staying was if he really likes Toronto and wants to be generous. I think there will be too much pressure from his agent and the player's association for that too happen.

It's too bad because overall he has more value, through marketing etc., to Toronto than to other teams. Where there's life, there's hope.

I honestly don't think David Ortiz really affects Delgado's market value that much. This is a guy that was non-tendered (I think) by the Twins and settled for one year at a million bucks to play in Boston. He did very well so the Sox offered him four to five times as much money as the initial contract to stay around. Ortiz wasn't going to reject it given his situation just before coming to the Sox and the quality of the current team there.

Delgado is a different matter altogether. He became a cornerstone by his third full season and has been ever since with his salary escalating dramatically along the way. He's been an All-Star and an MVP candidate on multiple occasions. His profile and situation is just a lot better than Ortiz' right now. And if he does take Ortiz type dollars (which I just don't see happening) then it won't be in Toronto.

http://www.thewolfshack.com
Well, there's always emulators... or you can spend years going to garage sales trying to find them all. I've got about 600 different ones

Wow, that's alot. I can't believe how much used games go for at Microplay. Seems insane. I do understand the love for the NES though. I don't know if it's nostalgia or what, but they seem so much more fun than today's graphics driven games. Which is why the only system I own is a GBA.

Can I post your list on my site?

Wow, that's alot.

It's about eight years worth of collecting. :)

. I don't know if it's nostalgia or what, but they seem so much more fun than today's graphics driven games.

I think they are, but there's also a lot of crap from that era as well. Still, though, there's nothing like getting a few people together and playing M.U.L.E. on the NES, or Horse Racing for the Intellivision, or NHL Hockey '9X for the Genesis, or 4 Player Asteroids for the Atari 400/800/XE, or Bomberman for the Super NES, TG16, etc. etc.

The only recent system I has is a Gamecube, and it's quite a bit of fun. If you like old NES games and/or party games, Wario Ware is a must.

Can I post your list on my site?

Sure!

RE: Delgado. Unless he spends the year hurt, there's no way he signs for under 10 mil per. Ortiz is an abberation.

Someone was claiming last week that the biggest paycut that could be awarded through arbitration was 20%. If that's the case, I don't think the Jays would go through the process.

I agree. My wording was poor. I wasn't intending to suggest that Delgado was arbitration-bound (80% of $18M is still way more than Ricciardi would want to pay, and rightfully so).

Rather, I was just attempting to anticipate the market value assessment arguments that might come up were Ortiz held up as a comp.

The only recent system I has is a Gamecube, and it's quite a bit of fun.

My friends just dismiss it, saying it's a system for 6 year olds. I have one and, yes, it is quite a bit of fun.

And I sold all my NES stuff in 1996 for $30. That's right, 30 dollars. How I miss Bart vs. the Space Mutants or whatever that game was called.

http://me.woot.net

My friends just dismiss it, saying it's a system for 6 year olds.

I wrote about why the GameCube isn't just for kids, and in fact the whole phenomenon of "adult games."

My friends just dismiss it, saying it's a system for 6 year olds.

I hear that a lot too, and I think it's pretty silly. I enjoy the occasional first-person shooter, but I can enjoy other games as well. Plus the XBox seems to be geared more towards online play, but I find I have way more fun playing games with people who are in the room. But to each his own.

And I sold all my NES stuff in 1996 for $30. That's right, 30 dollars.

That's how I've gotten so many games over the years. People just giving away their NES systems. A couple years ago I got 22 games and the system for $20! As far as quantity goes, my best haul ever was 87 Atari 2600 games for $10, which they sold so cheaply because "they're no good without the system".

You can put together a huge collection really quickly for almost no cost by going to a lot of garage sales and selling your doubles on eBay. Five or six years ago you could make a ton of money doing this, but I've found it's a lot more difficult to find stuff nowadays because there's more people who buy old games with the purpose of selling them online later that day.

How I miss Bart vs. the Space Mutants or whatever that game was called.

Great game, but quite difficult. Not 3rd level of Battletoads hard, but still too difficult considering the audience it was marketed at.

I was disappointed when I dug up my Nintendo and a cartridge was still loaded in it. The springs in the loader were shot and I couldn't line up the cartridges to play any games. This is five years ago but I bought Ryan Sandberg's Bases Loaded, a wrestling game (with Fighter Hyabusa)and Punch Out for something like $8.99 each used. Heatbreaking that it ended badly.

I think the a major impediment to adults playing games (I'm only 30) is that they're too dam complex. I don't have time to spend hours playing Age of Empires. I'm also more used to the god-like overhead view. My skill in sports games diminished once you were immersed in the action.

Simple games that you can spend a 1/2 playing with and then drop are hopefully starting to make a come back.

http://www.thewolfshack.com
The great thing about the Gamecube (which I don't own) is that you get all the Nintendo games, and they're the top developer in the world, IMHO.

And I agree about online play versus non online. Shooting someone in the face while playing Goldeneye in my parents basement is way more fun than getting smoked by some 12 year old Korean at Counterstrike or Warcraft.

Not 3rd level of Battletoads hard, but still too difficult considering the audience it was marketed at.

Ahh! You're bringing back Nightmares! Not the speeder bike level!

Chuck, I think you made perfect sense. The Jays will point out what Ortiz makes for similar production, Delgado will point out the various things that make him more valuable than Ortiz.

This "home-town premium" concept is getting overdone. Yes Delgado has a certain value to the Jays that he doesn't have to Team X, but Gord Ash isn't running the show anymore. Carlos will be offered what he is worth to the Blue Jays. If his market value is higher than that, sayonara. J.P. isn't going to hog tie his budget by overspending on Delgado.

Simple games that you can spend a 1/2 playing with and then drop are hopefully starting to make a come back.

It looks that way. I hate games where you need to spend an hour reading the manual just to get started. I'm a big fan of beautiful simplistic instructions like "Insert Coin. Avoid Missing Ball for High Score." (Pong)

Shooting someone in the face while playing Goldeneye in my parents basement is way more fun than getting smoked by some 12 year old Korean at Counterstrike or Warcraft.

Totally.. and I've never been to your parents basement. :)

Some of my fondest memories of childhood are my best friend and I beating the tar out of each other in games like Utopia, NASL Soccer, MLB Baseball, and Horse Racing for the Intellivision. Playing against someone you can't see isn't the same, and you miss all the jockeying that goes on against a face to face oppponent.

Ahh! You're bringing back Nightmares! Not the speeder bike level!

Hahahaha.. yeah. I remember renting that game with a buddy of mine when we were 12 or 13 and spending all afternoon trying to get past that blasted thing!

re. Delgado
The biggest mistake of Delgado's last contract is turning out to be the no trade clause; take that away and the money and length - considering the market at the time - does not seem too ludicrous.

Delgado will nevere again see a market setting contract, nor should he. But I wish he would stay a Jay. I believe that if he wants to stay in TO, and if the jays want to sign him - what alternatives do they have? - then they can get a deal done. It's as simple as that.
jason

Shooting someone in the face while playing Goldeneye in my parents basement is way more fun than getting smoked by some 12 year old Korean at Counterstrike or Warcraft.

So true. It helps that you mention Goldeneye, which is probably my favorite shooter ever. It helps that I spent an entire year when I was nominally in law school playing poker and Goldeneye. (And two non-consecutive years of grad school on Wipeout XL, NHL Faceoff 97 and euchre)

I wrote about why the GameCube isn't just for kids, and in fact the whole phenomenon of "adult games."

His article is exactly what I'm talking about...but I must 'fess up to owning GTA. Hey, it's just a game, and I wanted the PS2 so I didn't have to buy a separate DVD player

Shooting someone in the face while playing Goldeneye in my parents basement is way more fun than getting smoked by some 12 year old Korean at Counterstrike or Warcraft.

Ohh, yeah. Goldeneye. My friends and I never got tired of the multiplayer version. I always lost, though. Damned Oddjob.

I'm way out of the loop on this Battletoads. Should I bother to ask? Or is it one of those "if-you-didn't-try-to-beat-that-one-annoying-level-for-12-hours-straight-you-won't-understand-it" games?

I'm way out of the loop on this Battletoads. Should I bother to ask? Or is it one of those "if-you-didn't-try-to-beat-that-one-annoying-level-for-12-hours-straight-you-won't-understand-it" games?

There was the level on Battletoads where you character(s) zipped down this tunnel on these seadoo type things that went really, really fast. Between the speed of your sled and the small margin of error the game gave you to avoid objects, the level is almost impossible to beat. What made it even more annoying is that the level was fairly early in the game, so if you couldn't beat it, you couldn't continue on to levels which were generally easier than Level 3.

Ohh, yeah. Goldeneye. My friends and I never got tired of the multiplayer version. I always lost, though. Damned Oddjob.

Ha... we had a No Oddjob Allowed rule, he was such a massive advantage.

I'd love to play that again.

What I think was annoying about that level on Battletoads is that it relied on you completely memorizing the path you were on. There were some jumps that you could not survive unless you planned it out ahead of time. Sometimes you just didn't have enough time to make the adjustments.

As for Goldeneye, I don't like shooters either, and yet I love this game. I'm not really sure what it has that other games don't, but it's fantastic.
And my friends and I banned each other from using OddJob. That just wasn't fair.

Wow. I never thought I'd ever find a conversation about Battletoads again.

The only things I remember about that game were the stupid speederbike levels and the fact you could clobber your teammate.

That, and it was just about the coolest thing ever.

I'd love to play that again.

Guess what game I am going to play in about 5 minutes. :)

Homework? No. Killing 20 Russians with one remote mine? Yes.

I think that the best thing to do with Goldeneye would be to hook up 4 tvs in the same room and play it. That way you could still yell at each other and stuff, but you could also sneak up behind someone and snipe them in the head. :)
I don't know if it's even possible to hook up a system like that, but it would be cool.

Craig, I'm glad to hear that you had time in grad school to play video games. I was thinking that I might be so busy I wouldn't have time for any of that.

Speaking of online gaming, does anyone have or is getting the new version of Diamond Mind? I'm thinking of getting it to play online, but if there's no one to play against then it's kind of pointless.

p.s. My favourite NES game is All-Star Softball. Best sports game ever IMO.

Was Goldeneye the game that had the infrared gun that could shoot through walls or was that PerfectDark? Either way, nothing was more fun than catching a glimpse at your friend's screen and seeing that he had you targetted with that gun. You then had to randomly run around so he couldn't get a fix on your location. That gun was a great counter to those who knew the map and would stay in one location to snipe everyone who came his way.

Speaking of online gaming, does anyone have or is getting the new version of Diamond Mind? I'm thinking of getting it to play online, but if there's no one to play against then it's kind of pointless.

Have it, play it, love it.

My advice is to get into a couple of leagues so you never lack for games to play head-to-head.

Do you mean Dusty Diamond All-Star Softball? Diablo, the kid who batted with that spiked hell-club, is just about the coolest videogame character ever.

While we're on old videogames, anyone here play Double Dragon for the Atari 2600? It was outstanding, and wicked hard. Seemingly nobody else bought this game, however. Just me.