Everyone ready for some football?

The steaks and burgers are being prepped, the barbeque has been dug out of the snow and beer is being consumed (in vast amounts).

Personally i am not a massive football fan, but hey- it's only once a year and if you don't watch it then there's nothing to talk about at work on Monday morning (which hopefully won't make an appearance until maybe Tuesday?).

And at least it brings us one day closer to Spring Training, right?

So go ahead and post any Superbowl/football related stuff ya want here before and after the game.

i'm off to get another cold one. Cheers!

Hi Jays fans. Hope everyone's outside enjoying the sunshine instead of stuck inside feeling sick and downing NyQuil like me.
So this is the first of (i hope) many weekly contributions to this great site. i chose the name "Bird Shit" cuz i thought it was vaguely amusing and in typical fashion i came up with the name and graphics long before i had even the slightest idea what to write about.
So i'm just gonna keep it off-beat, sometimes off-topic and always off-the-top-of-my-head.

Feel free to hijack 'Bird Shit' for your own nefarious purposes.

This week's topic is:

Da Big Hurt

Now, as some of you may know, i am a huge Oakland Athletics fan first and a Jays fan second. When i heard last year that the A's were taking a flyer on the mastadon with the glass ankles, i was elated. With the way the contract was structured, it was pretty much win-win for the Athletics- and a chance for a career resurrection for Frank.
It worked. For both parties.

G   AB  R  H   2B HR RBI BB SO  OBP  SLG  AVG
137 466 77 126 11 39 114 81 81 .381 .545 .270

Now, as nice as these stats are, it's still a long way from the Frank Thomas of the 1990s. Which makes sense given that he's a lot older and years of 275lbs running around will take its toll on the body.
Still, he was the best hitter on the A's team all last season- that is until the Tigers started throwing 100mph at him and he started to look like a bigger, blacker version of myself at the plate (i.e. lost).
But i held out hope that Frank would give the A's a break on another one year deal and hit his 500th in the green and gold.
When i heard other teams were talking to him too i still held onto that hope.

But i gotta say, when i heard the details of the contract with T.O., i was astounded.
http://toronto.bluejays.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20061117&content_id=1742394&vkey=news_t or&fext=.jsp&c_id=tor

i'm no mathematician (in fact, i can barely spell the word), but to me:
275lbs + injury history + artificial turf = BIG RISK.

Frank Thomas may be the Big Hurt but i'm Frankly Dubious that he won't get Hurt Big.

And if anyone wants to get into Chicago Mafioso gambling conspiracy theories i'm game.....

Hey Everyone,

i was messing wis Illustrator this morning and ended up making some kind of flyer (?) for the site. i'm trying to come up with some kind of weekly graphic contribution to the Bluebird Banter and would welcome any suggestions.

Just thought i'd share what i was playing with this morning...

G'Day All,

First off, an introduction. i am a Kiwi living in Ontario who is a rabid Oakland A's fan (why is another story into and of itself).

While i have never been much of a Jays fan, i have, due to location, been exposed to far more Toronto games than any other team over the course of my life in this country.

When JP took over for the Jays, i was extremely excited for the organization's prospects for the future. Naturally, as a 'moneyballer' i was expecting great things for the Blue Jays- in a few years' time that is.

However i have been puzzled by some of the decisions that have been made in the past two years here.

My question is this:

1 a) Do any of you have faith in Ricciardi anymore?

  b) Does suddenly having money mean you HAVE to spend it?

Why are the Jays chasing expensive players instead of developing them internally? It seems to me (uneducated as i may be on the subject) that the Blue Jays are following the Maple Leafs' path and dooming themselves to decades of mediocrity based on trying to win this instant instead of planning for tomorrow and the years afterward.

That's enough ranting and raving. What do you all think of this trend?

Is money hurting this franchise beyond repair?

P.s. what do you folks want from Oakland for Adam Lind?

G'Day All,

So as i get more and more stoked for the coming season i decided to put together a poster for myself (one of the benefits of working in a sign making shop).
i thought i'd post a jpeg of it in case anyone wanted some new wallpaper.
i

And here it is on my wall...

...and here are some shots i took during a dream i had the other night where my son Hudson and i were playing for the A's....

That's all for now. Enjoy.

G'Day All.

i am planning on attending all 3 Oakland games in Toronto May 9-11. i've never managed to see the A's play live before and as i now live a half hour from T-Dot i have made it my mission not to miss this series. If there are any other A's fans out there in the Toronto area, i invite you to join myself and my friends for some baseball fun.

On another note, i work as a graphic designer for a sign manufacturer www.mcguiresigns.com and i am currently looking for a hi-res photo to use for a backdrop to make posters of a local little league baseball team. What i need it a shot taken from the pitcher's mound looking in towards the plate. We want to print this out on vinyl and put it on the wall so the kids can have their photo taken in uniform in front of the backdrop so posters can be made for them.

i have searched extensively online and as of yet i have found nothing suitable so i thought i'd see if any of you wonderful people could help.

Cheers from Canada and i hope to see some AN action at the Dome in May. Go A's!

All alliteration aside, i figure with the A's losing to a teenager, strife at home and abroad, and us dropping out of first AND the wild card, we could all use a boost.
So i'm inviting all the parents of AN to share with me pictures of their respective young ones on this post.
i'll get the ball rolling with a shot of 3 week old Hudson Dash Taylor.

Oh and for folks with fuzzy or feathered or scaly kids, feel free to post pet piccies too.

Anyone who can scroll through baby pictures without smiling better call their plastic surgeon and get some refund action.

Born at 1:32 in the morning of the 17th, weighing in at 8 pounds 10 ounces....

Hudson Dash Taylor.

The first name is of course a tribute to the Bulldog Tim Hudson. My question is, does anyone know how to contact a player?

i would love to get a Tim Hudson signature for my boy to have when he grows up.

Sorry if this diary fails to live up to spec.
i have kinda ceased posting since folks started jumping all over each other over content or length of diaries and stuff. Censorship sucks.

i was just wandering around on the net and jotting down the names of a few guys that might just benefit the A's- guys that i haven't seen mentioned here too much before.

Perhaps the collective intellect of this site will share some thoughts....

Vernon Wells- i've heard recently that he might be on the block. While he's hitting for low average (.238) he DOES have 9 dingers. He hits right and is a gold glove CF. Sure, Kotsay's there, but i am certain either of these gentlemen could play left (why not Kots in right with that arm of his?)

Scott Hairston- converted 2B currently in the minors i think. Has good genes. Looks like he's got some pop (13 HR in 339 ABs in 2004). Right-handed hitter.

Jayson Werth- Right-handed again with some pop (16 HRs in 290 ABs in 2004). Big fella @ 6'5". i think he's chillin' on the bench.

Reed Johnson- good avg, OBP. But i think Toronto is pretty high on him.

Phil Nevin- big RH power. From what i hear SD doesn't much like this guy, and he's pretty much the equivalent of Mike Sweeney, isn't he?

Rafael Furcal- last year of contract i think, and while he has off-field issues, how long has it been since we had a real leadoff hitter (not that he's perfect, but at least he can steal).

Jose Cruz Jr.- has always had nice hustle. i have always enjoyed watching Cruz play, but it's always seemed like his team hasn't believed in him.

** these are just thoughts from a fan far less educated that most of you. Also, i took into consideration teams that might be willing to negotiate with us and my knowledge of the Jays (which is based wholly on proximity and has nothing to do with team loyalty).

Cheers AN.

This is a personal diary.

As an Oakland fan living in Ontario i see VERY FEW games.

But at about $80 USD, i wonder if MLB TV is worth the money.

i got the Pepsi opening day stuff and honestly it was tough to watch with the feed skipping every five minutes.

Mind you, it was a bit more fun than Gameday, so..........

MLB radio is damn cheap. Is THIS a better option?

All i am asking for is the opinions of other displaced Oakland fans. i'm tired of only watching the A's when they come to Toronto.

Anyone living in Ontario, please let me know what YOU do to keep up on the A's- and is it worth it?

Alright so i've only been visiting this site for a few months.
At first, i was silent, seeing as i live in Ontario and am largely unused to speaking with other A's fans.

But wow, what a bunch of disgruntled fans my team has.

Maybe rather than the Opti/Pessi threads Blez oughtta arrange for some boxing matches a-la the Fox Network. Or maybe some Halo death matches?

You are all fantastic people, and i love you all for the common bond we share.

But holy shit, some of you folks should relax.

Unless you have your first-born son wagered on the season- CHILL OUT.

i submit that A's fans have been spoiled over the last few years by teams exceeding expectations and now that gravity has caught on, folks are jumping ship (or at least complaining that this one has a leak).

i think that we need some changes, sure.

But changes can take MANY forms, even if it's nothing but Macha's rehearsed ejection the other day. Who knows- that MIGHT have worked.

i know there are lots of calls for trades recently, but i'm not so sure myself.

Honestly, i think this team was over-performing for several years, and with the Huddy/Mulder trades, all Beane did was hit the 'reset' button.

Give us some time and we'll be over-performing again based on the strength of our staff and BB's ability to find 'diamonds-in-the-rough'.

Being an A's fan means being disappointed (mostly), right up until we blow everyone's minds and win it all.

If you don't wanna stick through this year, go watch the Blue Jays (who hit the 'reset' button a few years ago).

Myself, i'll keep wearing my A's hat even if we go 0-162.

Although, this year has been tough, what with all my Jays-fan buddies laughing at me (for once).

Relax dudes. There is always time (didn't that guy hanging beside Jesus teach us this?).

Sure, this season will hurt a bit.

Have patience.

Keep the faith.

But if you wanna bitch and rant, that's your right as an A's fan. Or ANY sports fan.

No one should be censored.

RANT IT UP.

...Mr Sanders, but i'm afraid you're just not what we're looking for at this time.

i'm looking at your resume, and while it IS impressive, it's just that... ah... how do i put this? There's the matter of how MANY years of service.... umm yes i know we can't dicriminate based on age.... umm well there's the issue of health- looks like you don't often play full seasons... what's that? Religious reasons?
Oh, well it says here you've never managed 100 RBIs. Do you think we need a cleanup hitter that can't drive in 100 runs?
Wait- is this accurate? It says here you hit right-handed! You're hired?
Now let's talk salary, sick time etc. You like direct deposit?

This message was brought to you by "Vote 'NO' on Sanders".

TITLE: Professional Hitter

TERMS OF EMPLOYMENT: Permanent, Full-Time

SALARY: To be negotiated

ANTICIPATED START DATE: As soon as possible

LOCATION: Oakland, California (multiple vacancies)

SKILL REQUIREMENTS:
Education: Completion of High School
Experience: 0-9 years of professional baseball
Languages: Irrelevent
Specific Skills: Ability to hit Major League pitching. Able to play the field at a 10th grade level. High-stress situations.
Essential Skills: Ability to hit with runners in scoring position. Regenerate a stagnant offence. Play for little pay. Acceptance of little-to-no national recognition or press coverage. White shoes.

EMPLOYER: Oakland Athletics

...sort of.

Just for the sake of tooting my own horn,
that was me and my wife that had an email
read to Mr. Kotsay today on MLB radio (Pat & Jasmine from Kingston, Ontario).
They kinda made fun of our email, but really-

the joke's on them cuz Kotsay heard our names.

But once again, they rambled off topic & Mark couldn't answer the second question (what do YOU see your role as being on the A's).

When you write these guys to speak to a player,
you either make a reference to THEM or THEIR SHOW or you kiss the ass of the player they're interviewing.
BOO-YA for national exposure.
Sellin' out never felt so good.

There were many impassioned pleas for the
A's posted here after Mr. Rose made his
comments about Oakland's lack of
attendance.
That was nice.
But the numbers are still there (or not).
i myself live in Ontario and though i've
been a fan for over 17 years i have never
had the pleasure of seeing the A's play @
home.
But i've seen all your reports of 10 000
(if not less) attending these games and it
makes me sad.
For you see, we Canadians have lost our
beloved losers, the Expos. There's no
freakin' hockey either, which does not
help.
i went to Expos games in their falling-
down piece of a stadium. i was one of
the few dozen still there at the end of
a 14-1 thrashing. And you know, those few
fans sounded just as committed and full
of fire for their team as you guys do.

But in the end, a few DON'T make a difference.
The Expos are gone, and try as i might,
i can't seem to care about them as the
Nationals.

So go to those A's games- for all us that
never have and might never will.

i hope the Athletics stay in Oak-town
forever. (or if not, how about Kingston,
Ontario?) nudge, nudge, wink, wink.

Because believe me, it ain't fun losing
games, but it's a LOT nicer than losing
the whole team. NOTE: i don't mean to compare the A's to the lowly Expos, but when you consider the fact that the A's are consistent contenders, it makes the empty seats all the more puzzling. Cheers to Blez and all the Nation!!! i shall pour some good Canadian brew upon the ground for you all.