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Politics : Sioux Nation -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: SiouxPal who wrote (149604)	10/23/2008 7:19:46 PM
From: T L Comiskey	1 Recommendation Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 361090

10 ounces of tequila will solve that.... drunkuniversity.com

To: SiouxPal who wrote (149604)	10/23/2008 7:21:01 PM
From: stockman_scott	Respond to of 361090

The Rays play better when their backs are up against the wall...and as I recall the Rays lost Game 1 to Boston in the ALCS too. Tonight the Rays have one of their best pitchers going...gonna need strong defense behind Shields and we need to see more timely hitting -- let's see if the Rays BIG BATS can do some damage...we need to see Upton, Pena and Longoria hit better with runners in scoring position. Game 2 is important and the Rays need to do everything in their power to win this game...gotta regain momentum and even up the series at 1-1 before things move up to the Phillies' home stadium...;-)

To: SiouxPal who wrote (149604)	10/23/2008 7:23:54 PM
From: stockman_scott	Respond to of 361090

Rays try exaggerated defenses vs Phils in Series ap.google.com By BEN WALKER 10/23/08 - ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) - What the Tampa Bay Rays really needed was a guy with a glove in Section 142. Heck, manager Joe Maddon tried most everything else on defense in Game 1 of the World Series. He kept moving around his fielders, from batter to batter and even from pitch to pitch. Third baseman Evan Longoria standing way, way off the line. First baseman Carlos Pena creeping in tight on the turf. Second baseman Akinori Iwamura sent into short right field. Very shifty, indeed. Chase Utley took one look at how the Rays set up Wednesday night and changed his whole approach. "The third baseman was playing shortstop," the Philadelphia bopper said. Utley tried to bunt. He occasionally attempts it, but is rarely successful. True to form, he fouled it off. He then regrouped and hit a drive over the right-field wall for a two-run homer in the first inning that sent the Phillies toward a 3-2 win. "Yes, he was bunting on his own," Philadelphia manager Charlie Manuel said. "If it had been a fair ball, he might have got a double out of it. "The other one, he hit the home run," he said. "Pretty good, wasn't it?" Not for the Rays, except for the fan in Section 142 who wound up with a souvenir. A few hours before Game 2 Thursday night, Maddon was able to joke about the unique strategy. "Wouldn't you prefer he got the bunt down?" Maddon said. Asked how he devised his defenses, Maddon mentioned video and observation. He also pointed at a loose-leaf binder on his desk. "Information," he said. There were all sorts of new sights and sounds as the World Series arrived in Tampa Bay for the first time. Fans clanging cowbells, kids petting cownose rays in the giant fish tank beyond the right-center field wall. A man with a mohawk haircut on a microphone egging on the crowd, synchronized lights on the catwalks above Tropicana Field. A furry mascot dancing on the dugout, team employees dressed as soda bottles running around left field during a break between innings. Not a bad atmosphere, just different from a more traditional October. Think of a Double-A game featuring the Montgomery Biscuits, or a big Florida Gators football weekend in Gainesville. Perhaps the most striking feature was the exaggerated shift the Rays tried against Utley, Ryan Howard and Shane Victorino. Utley saw three infielders on the right side, with Longoria positioned anywhere from a few steps from third base to 50 feet off the bag. Howard got the big lefty slugger's shift that has become more common in baseball, with Iwamura playing in short right. The speedy Victorino watched Pena take three strides onto the artificial turf and move a few feet off first base. Then again, this is classic Maddon, the man with thick-rimmed glasses who listens to Bruce Springsteen while filling out lineup cards and is eager to wander through Europe on his honeymoon once the Series ends. He's ready to try anything to help his team, including exotic defenses. During a game against Boston in 2006, Maddon twice took third baseman B.J. Upton and made him a fourth outfielder when David Ortiz came to bat. Both times, Ortiz homered. The next day, Maddon used the same shift against Ortiz and it worked. Well, sort of. The Red Sox slugger singled — with a bunt. -AP Sports Writer Fred Goodall contributed to this report.