Quickies

First off, baseball fans in Japan are doing their best to keep manager Bobby Valentine from losing his job. The New York Times details the saga here. Maybe if Baltimore Orioles fans would have done something similar for Davey Johnson, the Orioles would not have sunk to the level they have.

I'm to the point where I can't have a Quickies post that doesn't mention my beloved Washington Nationals. This weeks Sports Illustrated includes this story on Bryce Harper, the 16 year old high school phenom, who is considering dropping out of high school and getting a GED so he can be eligble for next year's baseball draft. Seeing the Nationals are once again on their way to the worst record in baseball, they could very well be in a position where they have to make a decision on whether Harper should be selected with the first overall pick in the draft. Of course, The Washington Times' Thom Loverro is convinced the Nationals' problems can be blamed on The Curse of Teddy Roosevelt. Maybe he is onto something. After all, Teddy was out to a commanding lead during the presidents race on the Saturday of Memorial Day only to lose when the Oriole bird jumped from the stands and leveled him with a tackle that would make Ray Lewis proud. Thus, another loss for Teddy.

Regular readers will remember a post a while back that included info sent in by "J.D." on the Grand View Topless Coffee Shop in Vassalboro, Maine. "J.D." forwarded me this piece last week detailing the destruction of the Grand View due to arson. "J.D." blamed the arson on a right wing conspiracy, while a few readers who left comments on the newspaper website blamed it on feminists. I guess we'll know it was a conspiracy if any Cowgirls Expresso locations are burned to the ground.