The plan for tonight had been to do a full-blown live blog for the all-star game, but there’s a bit too much chaos at chez Gross (involving an ink stain; don’t ask) for that to be practical. So we’ll just watch the game and jump in from time to time.
Meanwhile, in other news:
One of the many excellent writers on the Penn State beat, Cory Giger of the Altoona Mirror, has some breakdown of the “Spread HD” offense the Lions are reportedly working on. Like most spread attacks, it involves running the ball a lot, probably more than Penn State’s been running it lately.
”It’s a run offense,” Jay Paterno told Giger. ”It’s really a glorified wishbone offense.”
With two very quick tailbacks (Stephfon Green, Evan Royster) plus the trio of senior wideouts and and running QB in the Tim Tebow mold (Daryll Clark), the Lions will probabnly have more speed and explosiveness on the field, on offense, than they ever have.
(No, I’m not saying Clark is as good as Tebow, just that they’re similar in style. Relax.)
At least in theory, the HD is about firing all the weapons.
”It helps immensely because we can move them around and do things because they all know the other positions,” Paterno said. ”You’re not going to necessarily know where Deon Butler is every time. You’re not going to necessarily know where Derrick [Williams] is or Jordan [Norwood] is or any of those guys. We’re going to be able to move them around and put them in different places.”
No matter what’s in the playbook, of course, it’s up to Jay’s dad to turn the thing loose. We didn’t really see any spread in the Blue-White game, and may not see it in the opener against Coastal Carolina, which is not a real opponent.
Why “HD”?
”It could stand for ‘high definition’ or ‘highly diverse,”’ JayPa said. ”As long as it doesn’t stand for ‘huge dud.”’
8:24 p.m., opening ceremonies/player introductions - Seriously, how cool was that? I mean- Bob Feller? Ralph Kiner? Freakin’ Yogi! The non-ironic truth is no American sport dwarfs any of its individuals or teams or even team histories, and no sport connects us warmly with our past, the way baseball does. Just one high-voltage moment after another, and no schmaltzy dumbness. Never thought I’d say this about anything Fox had its hands in, but bravo. Very cool.
8:28 - The anthem. Nothing special. Wonder if Derek Jeter is out there thinking, “hmmm, Sheryl Crow…. did I ever….”
The only thing I’d add to the Yankee Stadium farewell hype is how much non-baseball history the place has. The Joe Louis-Max Schmeling fight was there. Muhammed Ali and Sugar Ray Robinson fought for titles there. It was the scene of Knute’s Rockne’s “Win one for the Gipper,” speech. Three Popes conducted mass there. Bono, Pink Floyd and Nelson Mandela had signature moments there.
Not to get sappy, but when they knock that thing down, a lot of American culture goes with it.
9:39: As Joe Buck just said, we’ve played four innings in about six-and-a-half minutes. If you wanted to make the age-old argument that good pitching always beats good hitting, this all-star game would be exhibit A. I mean, Albert Pujols, of all people, buckling and even bailing on a Roy Halladay curve. How about in the first inning, when TV was just getting the Josh Hamilton inspirational-saga machinery warmed up and he’s walking back to the dugout, courtesy of two hellacious Ben Sheetz breaking balls. Sheetz, I thought, looked just insanely tough. It goes to show how dominant great pitchers can be when they don’t have to pace themselves.
