Man alive, those poor airlines are so miserly these days. Anyway, lots to consider while I was away. Stroll on over to any of the AAA-approved Nationals weblogs on the sidebar for more extensive coverage, because I don't really know what's going on here. I think that extra hour waiting at O'Hare for my connecting flight sapped my will to live, or at least reason. But we'll soldier on:
- Something about Gandhi, the ballpark, and Kwame Brown. I don't know. Leave it to the Wizards to trade a guy on the city council.
- Well well well, our boy Bodes is a spicy little commodity, isn't he? Months ago on my old site, I suggested that Bodes and the D-Bucks were a match made in heaven, and I'm glad to see that the Snakes are running the EHarmony.com report as we speak. Previously, I also suggested that, sure, Jimbo should listen if the Devil Rays called. Maybe they will and maybe they won't, but let it be said that I only want what is best for Jim Bowden. (I can't help it if I think he'd be best served in places other than DC!) Meanwhile, Capitol Punishment notes that some assistant named Tony (not Kornheiser, thankfully) might be interested in filling the error (uh, air) chair. Fret not about scouting director Dana Brown, who was the object of ex-Expos' GM Omar Minaya's dirty stalking compulsion; Brown is staying put.
- What a time to leave town! I step out for a few days, and I miss my chance to say farewell to dismissed farm director Adam Wogan. Maybe it's better that way, though, since Nationals Farm Authority places some blame on Wogan's feet for the ridiculous Instructional League fiasco.
- So Wogan's gone, and Bodes might be gone? Well, at least Dana Brown escaped Minaya's crazed clutches! Oh, and Bob Boone keeps on angling himself into the organization's future. Hey, great . . .
- Harry Jaffe of the DC Examiner thinks Mayor Baseball should skip his annual "go to China, watch the stadium deal fizzle" trip this fall. Jaffe takes this position because he fears the stadium deal really will fizzle, but I think he just lacks a sensation-seeking predisposition.
- Hey, remember back in the spring when MLB announced that it would provide all Nats games free on teh internets, only to retract that announcement hours later? The Philly Inquirer (nice name!) reminisces.
- Our own August sensation (shelf-life: four days) Brandon Watson is a Sam Watson All-Star. While I strongly suspect some nepotism here, I'll also note that it seems like he involved himself in a worthy cause.
- Last, and certainly least, Bud Selig said something about doing something. Or something. Who knows? Anyway, the article is interesting in that it seems to depict Jeff Smulyan (d/b/a Emmis Communications) as the third contender for the Nats, behind Teams Malek and Lerner. I guess my dreams of a Franklin Haney, Sr. "crazy Southern owner" are all but dead. That's probably fitting because, I have no idea what Frankie's like, much less seen a picture of him.