Smoke on the Water

Favorite quote: "More than anything, though, I have to ask: How could Bruce really think that one of the biggest cliches of our time -- the blogger in the mother's basement cliche -- was invented by Chipper Jones? This is like suggesting that the knock-knock joke was originated by Dermonti Dawson."

Pretty good read, courtesy of SI.com.

Longtime Niners assistant coach, Jason Tarver, is being touted by several sources as the top potential replacement for Vic Fangio at Stanford. And before you ask, "Who?" consider: Tarver has been a Niners assistant for 10 years. That means two things: 1) Lots of NFL experience, a definite plus, and 2) He managed to survive LOTS of turnover in Santa Clara. That's right, Tarver survived and stuck around (and was even promoted at times) when Steve Mariucci became Dennis Erickson who became Mike Nolan who became Mike Singletary. Three head coaching changes during his run with SF and Tarver survived them all. So either he has some incriminating photos of the Yorks, or he's probably a pretty impressive interview. Given his experiences with the Niners, it's likely he'd continue to run a 3-4 style defense on the Farm...

Joe has a very fun take on how to cut all the riff raff out of the Hall.

They're on to you! "GM Ned Colletti has repeatedly told us his hands are not tied because of the McCourt mess. This makes Colletti a liar. Or, the worst judge of talent in baseball history. Or, a former Giants executive still doing what he can to help the Bay Area team by mucking up the Dodgers." (emphasis mine)

This is a good sign for the future... /sigh. Count me in with the folks who think Pablo's swing and approach were his biggest problems this year, not his weight. That said, the weight certainly isn't helping, and pictures like this are only going to lead to more fans griping about it. No one's going to include the qualifier that "he was with his family" and, presumably, didn't tackle that beast all by himself.

More great stuff from Posnanski. Indeed, if there's one thing these Giants do really well, it's win battles of attrition.

Willis, Vernon, Frank, Aubrayo Franklin, and Andy Lee get some love as being among the top players at their positions. Justin Smith gets snubbed.

Who's the new most despised single player in the division? I feel like Greene took that baton from Gagne... Manny wasn't really around long enough, but I'm sure he was well on his way. My vote goes to Andre Ethier-- I hate how much he kills Cain. Also, just a gut feeling, but I'm betting Peavy is still on his way out too, contrary to the link's speculation.

It's about freaking time somebody over at espn brought this up.