twilightdawning

A writer's thoughts – mainly about music, sport and theatre. Shakespeare, Bob Dylan, live shows, New York Yankees

Questions…. always questions

Posted on July 11, 2008 by twilightdawning

It’s been a good month for getting to talking to some of my favourite musicians. As I have mentioned before I’ve been working hard on an interview project with Richie Furay (Buffalo Springfield, Poco, Souther-Hillman-Furay Band, solo career etc. etc.) We had just about finished this when I mentioned to Richie, it would be nice to get an alternative view on some of the key periods in his life. We came up with the idea of getting Bernie Leadon (Hearts and Flowers, Flying Burrito Brothers, Eagles, Bernie Leadon-Michael Georgiades Band, solo career etc. etc.) to comment on rivalry and admiration between Poco and the early Eagles. I was expecting a few words, enough to mould into a paragraph of the article. Bernie went to town and has written an article of his own about his admiration of Poco. Great stuff!
I’m also hoping for a contribution from Al Perkins who played a particularly important role in developing Richie’s musical and spiritual life.

Next up to the plate is Michael Georgiades who was Bernie’s partner-in-crime in the aforementioned Bernie Leadon-Michael Georgiades band and in the short-lived spin-off, Zoe. I’m going to be speaking to him next Saturday. His album, Natural Progressions, is a particular favourite of mine and interviewing him is the realisation of a long-held ambition.

Looks likely then that the next stage in the on-going project that I have rolling with Mr Leadon will be in August as we talk about his period with Hearts & Flowers.

These articles will appear in Cross Rhythms magazine and Natural Progressions Magazine. The first of these can be located on the web, subscription information on the second can be obtained from me.

The rain doesn’t have to hurry in the city……

Posted on July 10, 2008 by twilightdawning

Joyce lived on her own. She’d pretty much given her life caring for her aging Mum. When Mum died, Joyce lived on her own. Each Sunday, her friends from the local church would come and collect her to take her to a service. Her neighbours avoided her. Joyce lived on her own.

Joyce died on her own. One Sunday, her friends from the local church came to collect her to take her to a service and there was no answer. Her friends from the local church called around the hospitals. The strain of life had given Joyce some mental health problems and it wasn’t unusual for her to need to go away for a week or two. But the hospitals didn’t know. Her friends from the local church called the police. They came and opened the door to Joyce’s lonely house and found her in her bed. The coroner said that she had stopped breathing. Her heart wasn’t in it. He said it was good that her friends from the local church noticed. Joyce died on her own.

When you’re poor and you die on your own, you become less important than you were in life. The local authority had to wait “for a convenient slot” for Joyce to be buried. There was no money in this departure. It was a little inconvenient. Nobody wanted to know. Her friends from the local church felt that this wasn’t right. So they told the local authority so. It didn’t make a lot of difference. They offered to pay for the funeral. The money was declined. But slowly, because they were a nuisance, things began to change. Finally six weeks after her death, Joyce was allowed to be buried. Joyce was not buried unnoticed. Her friends from the local church saw to that.

Some tell me that religion divides and cause war. I think they’re right. But a true faith in God and the proper understanding of the nature and worth of humanity – now that can be something else. It brings dignity and respect in a society that fast seems to be losing those things.

Dark Days at Yankee Stadium – Part 2

Posted on July 8, 2008 by twilightdawning

So now to look at the pitching in June.

Not much to say that is positive here either. However, given the scope of the injuries with both starters (Wang, Hughes, Kennedy) and relievers (Bruney, Britton) out, there is scope for improvement after the All-Star break.

Here’s the figures for the month. I’ve removed a couple of columns that proved confusing for some folks last month.

New York Yankees – Pitching – June

Name GP IP H RA ER BB SO W L Sv ERA OBA

Ponson, Sidney         1  6.0  5  0  0  4  4 1 0  0   0.00  .238

Igawa, Kei             1  1.0  2  0  0  0  0 0 0  0   0.00  .500

Britton, Chris         2  2.1  2  0  0  0  2 0 0  0   0.00  .222

Rivera, Mariano       11 11.1  6  2  2  1 18 1 1  7   1.59  .154

Chamberlain, Joba      5 25.0 22  7  5 13 26 1 0  0   1.80  .239

Veras, Jose           13 13.2 12  3  3  7 14 2 0  0   1.98  .235

Mussina, Mike          5 34.0 33 12 12  5 25 2 2  0   3.18  .258

Giese, Dan             6 19.0 15 10  7  6 12 1 3  0   3.32  .208

Farnsworth, Kyle      11 10.2 11  4  4  4 12 1 1  1   3.38  .282

Pettitte, Andy         6 40.2 39 18 17  9 28 4 0  0   3.76  .255

Wang, Chien-Ming       3 16.2 18  8  7  6  9 2 0  0   3.78  .286

Hawkins, LaTroy        7 10.1 11  5  5  5  3 0 0  0   4.35  .289

Robertson, David       1  2.0  4  1  1  0  1 0 0  0   4.50  .500

Rasner, Darrell        6 32.0 47 24 23 11 24 1 5  0   6.47  .341

Patterson, Scott       1  1.1  1  1  1  2  2 0 0  0   6.75  .200

Ramirez, Edwar        11 11.0 10  9  9  6 13 0 0  0   7.36  .244

Ohlendorf, Ross        8  8.1 12  8  8  5  5 0 0  0   8.64  .333

Traber, Billy          3  1.2  2  2  2  0  1 0 0  0  10.80  .286

Pluses

Mariano Rivera. His worst month of the year and he’s still weighing in a 1.59 ERA and the best OBA on the team. Hall of Fame, Monument Park beckons. The best reliever I’ve ever seen.

Jose Veras. His ERA improves to 2.54 on the season as he produced a spartan 1.98 in June. Also took two wins on the month. He has become a vital cog in the machine that leads to Rivera.

Mike Mussina. It can no longer be described as a surprise but Moose is having a helluva comeback year. 2-2 on the month with 3.18 ERA puts him on track for a possible 20 win season. I would have settled for 10 after 2007.

Minuses

Ross Ohlendorf. Simply fell apart in June to the extent that he has had to go back to the minors to work on his pitches. Don’t know what this implies about the coaching staff at the major league level.

Darrell Rasner. In less injury-troubled times, Darrell would have been allowed a break from the starting rotation and gone to long relief. Again, it is troubling that the coaching staff in the Bronx are not able to help him with his confidence and his mechanics.

Edwar Ramirez. For the second season running, Ramirez looks the business on call-up and then wilts visibly as the batters get used to facing him. His 7.36 ERA on the month (compare to 2.90 on the season) is a little unlucky but even bad fortune can’t account for that bloating.

Surprises

Sidney Ponson. Well, he produced a great second debut. We all know that it is all downhill from here but he gave us one good game.

Kyle Farnsworth. Continues to survive the odd bad outing and bounced back from minor injuries to be a good part of a suffering staff. 3.38 ERA on the month.

Joba Chamberlain. Achieved his first win as a starter but the jury is still out on this transition. He only average five innings an outing in the month and most of the time was good enough to keep the Yankees in the game but not much more than that.

Dark Days at Yankee Stadium

Posted on July 6, 2008 by twilightdawning

So after the inter-league play thrust them back into contention, the Yankees have found it tough again against their regular American League opponents. The younger Steinbrenners are now unhappy with their offense and this time they’re right:

New York Yankees – Batting – Month – June

Name AB R H RBI 2B 3B HR BB SO SH SF SB BA SLG

Duncan, Shelley 1 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.000 2.000

Rodriguez, Alex 101 24 37 23 6 0 9 17 19 0 2 5 .366 .693

Damon, Johnny 102 12 37 10 4 2 0 11 15 0 0 5 .363 .441

Giambi, Jason 82 16 25 19 3 1 6 12 18 0 0 1 .305 .585

Jeter, Derek 110 20 33 10 8 0 2 12 13 2 0 1 .300 .427

Cano, Robinson 101 13 29 14 7 0 2 2 6 0 2 0 .287 .416

Matsui, Hideki 61 6 17 8 1 0 1 8 8 0 0 0 .279 .344

Moeller, Chad 11 2 3 0 3 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 .273 .545

Posada, Jorge 63 5 17 9 5 0 2 13 13 0 1 0 .270 .444

Betemit, Wilson 45 9 12 9 4 0 3 1 14 0 1 0 .267 .556

Molina, Jose 35 4 9 4 2 0 0 3 8 2 1 0 .257 .314

Abreu, Bobby 103 15 26 17 6 0 3 12 14 0 0 6 .252 .398

Cabrera, Melky 102 8 21 8 2 0 1 12 16 1 0 3 .206 .255

Christian, Justin 15 2 3 2 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 .200 .267

Rasner, Darrell 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 .000 .000

Pettitte, Andy 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 .000 .000

Ohlendorf, Ross 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000

Chamberlain, Joba 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 .000 .000

Wang, Chien-Ming 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 .000 .000

Gonzalez, Alberto 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 .000 .000

Mussina, Mike 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 .000

Ponson, Sidney 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 .000 .000

Gardner, Brett 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 .000 .000

Pluses

Alex Rodriguez. With the bat he is once again the best player on the staff. He has hit 9 home runs in June well ahead of everyone on the team including:

Jason Giambi. No longer a surprise. Whether it was the mustache or just the right moment, Giambi broke out of the funk he was in and has become one of the best players on the team. .305 on the month with 6 home runs

Johnny Damon. Mr Damon has proved his ability and his commitment to the team over and over again this 
season. .363 batting average on the month even if his power numbers haven’t really been there.

Minuses

Melky Cabrera. Defensively solid but not pulling his weight with the bat. On the month, .206 batting, .255 slugging. It has to improve.

Alberto Gonzalez. Alberto’s time has almost passed. It’s hard for the Yankees to keep him around. He’s solid enough on defence but with Jeter and Rodriguez ahead of him, he needs to be able to pinch hit. 0 for 9 on the month settles the argument.

Jose Molina. Simply hasn’t repeated his performance of last year. If they decided to reduce the staff to two catchers, they would keep him but it would seem a little unfair on Moeller.

Surprises

Justin Christian. He came, he went. He did well on his debut but then he was gone too quickly. Gardner, his replacement, is not exactly setting the league alight. Thankfully but regrettably, injuries means that one or both of them is going to a real chance to prove himself.

Robinson Cano. Don’t how it became the case that Cano hitting is a surprise but the slump had gone on a long time. Now he’s collecting multi-hit games.

Bobby Abreu. It’s all gone quiet. With Matsui and maybe Damon injured, Abreu needs to rise above that .252 he’s produced on the month.

Song to see you through – or Song to See Through You – or This one’s for you

Posted on July 5, 2008 by twilightdawning

Bye and bye now
We’ll get over
The things we’ve done and the things we said
But not just now when
I can t remember
Exactly what it was I thought we had
’cause I waited so long, girl, and I came so far
To find out you’re not always who you say you are

And there’s a star in the book of liars by your name

Santa Claus came in late last night
Drunk on christmas wine
Fell down hard in the driveway
Hung his bag out on the laundry line
There’s a cobra gunship for his golden boy
And there’s a hello kitty for his pride and joy

And a silver star in the book of liars by your name
They hung a star in the book of liars by your name

Stars imploding
The long night passing
Electrons dancing in the frozen crystal dawn
Here’s one left stranded at the zero crossing
With a hole in its half-life, left to carry on
But now the world’s much larger than it looks today
And if my bad luck ever blows me back this way

Then I’ll just look in my book of liars for your name
I’ll just look in the book of liars for your name

What I do……

Posted on July 1, 2008 by twilightdawning

I’ve mentioned before that I write about music. In a way the internet has made it much more simple to produce articles. It’s way easier to do research. On the other hand there is something about the tone of pieces on the internet which I find very strange. Too much writing is not about the music anymore. I’m glad that some of the musicians feel the same. This from Donald Fagen of Steely Dan:

“I don’t like to visit the fan sites because there’s something creepy about the whole thing to me. I remember when I was a kid I was a big jazz fan and later on there were a few popular singers and groups I liked but I was always interested in the music; I never made a fetish out of their personal lives. I never really got that, you know? I appreciate whatever they do to keep the interest in the band and all that sort of thing but it’s really not part of my world.”

Couldn’t have said it better myself.

The poor remainder of the Andronici*

Posted on June 30, 2008 by twilightdawning

*quote from Act 5 Scene 3 Line 130

When I started reading and studying Titus Andronicus I thought I would spend about a month with it – in the end I’ve been working with it for more than double that time. When I started life seemed in a reasonable, steady place. At the moment life seems as bad as it can get. Time moves on but it is now time to put the book to bed.

In Titus Andronicus, Shakespeare has produced a play in which the themes and ideas are timeless. This is remarkable given that at times it has all but lost its audience. Moreover, he seems to have conceived that the themes should have a timeless applicability. I have already talked much in previous journal entries about the fact that the play shows that empires and nations rise and fall with the quality and morality of its people. They are not eternal. Consequently, the pattern of the play casts clear links between ancient Greek myth and the events which it sets in ancient Rome. However, the speakers constantly remind us that they are actors in a later day by the allusions to more contemporary events. This is Shakespeare’s way of showing that any society can fall as its people lose their way. Therefore, the players speak in the manner of people living in Reformation times even though they are ostensibly Romans watching their empire fall to the enemy they have defeated and brought within their walls.
Aaron, the villain of the piece, accuses Lucius (the coming emperor) of having a conscience which carries with it “twenty popish tricks and ceremonies” (5.1.76), a clear allusion to the vanquished Catholicism of Shakespeare’s time. At another point, a Goth explains his late arrival by saying that he “stray’d to gaze upon a ruinous monastery” (5.1.21). The “Romans and Goths” are walking in 16th century England and their fall is one that Shakespeare’s generation is also in danger of.

But what is the nature of this fall? As I mentioned in an earlier entry, the Romans have defeated the Goths at the beginning of the play but only by becoming like them. When Tamora (the Queen of the Goths) begs Titus for the life of her sons, he is deaf to her pleas. They are taken away to be sacrificed to the gods. Rome has lost its humanity and its compassion.

But life is not simple, the Goth leaders are as bad as they seem. Rome as indeed become like them. Rule cannot simply pass to them. Tamora and her remaining children and fellows are lost in a web of concealment. She loves the evil Aaron but has married Saturninus and proclaimed love for him in order to gain influence in Rome. When her offspring, Chiron and Demetrius are schooled by Aaron (and by extension by Tamora herself) in the idea of raping and molesting Lavinia, they are taught to cover their actions by the cutting out of Lavinia’s tongue and the cutting off of her hands.
But the plotters have overstepped themselves and Tamora gives birth to a baby who is clearly not Saturninus’ but rather Aaron’s. She describes it to her Nurse as a “dismal, black and sorrowful issue” (4.2.66) and the Nurse repeats her words to her lover, Aaron. She suggests that Aaron should “christen it with thy dagger’s point” (4.2.70). There is a lack of humanity in anyone who can speak like this of anyone especially their own child and even the vile Aaron cannot co-operate.

Consequently, the playwright must find a third party to pass the throne to at the play’s conclusion. After an orgy of death in Act 5 Scene 3 (the plays least convincing scene – all the remaining issues of the play are settled just a little too quickly by too many deaths), it passes to Lucius, the surviving son of Titus, who is watched from above by “the poor remainder of the Andronici” as he takes the crown. Ominously, he is watched also by the Goth army who remain silent – perhaps watching how things develop before deciding whether to support or overthrow him.

Ironically, whether the Empire of Rome will stand depends on whether the prominent leaders can regain their humanity and their compassion. Titus’ family departed from this when they sacrificed prisoners from among the Goths foolishly believing that the gods would be pleased with them (again, there are echoes of this in our own day). The new generation must now choose whether or not to hear the plea which Tamora gave at the outset of the tragedy: “Wilt thou draw near the nature of the gods? Draw near them in being merciful”. (1.1.120-121).

People are crazy, times are strange…….

Posted on June 28, 2008 by twilightdawning

When I’m going through difficult times (like now) I tend to rely on music to get me through. One album that’s carrying me along at the moment is a Bob Dylan cd which has had a limited circulation. Although released as recently as 2001, it was only made for the Japanese market at the time that Dylan was about to tour there. Entitled Bob Dylan Live 1961-2000 – Thirty Nine Years of Great Concert Performances, it culls tracks, many that have not been on cd elsewhere, from all across his career.

So what’s on here?

Somebody Touched Me. Country gospel hymn recorded in 2000. His current set list could do with some of this kind of innovation to break it up a little.

Wade in the Water. More traditional gospel but this time recorded in 1961 – a long, long time before anyone was asking about his religious beliefs. Acoustic folk.

Handsome Molly. From 1962. The lyrics have echoes from something from Modern Times. Part of the Gaslight Tapes.

To Ramona. From 1965. Dylan works words like no-one else and this has him at his youthful best.

I Don’t Believe You. 1966. It used to sound like this…….. Dylan has gone electric and one of my favourite songs from the 1964 period is reworked and sent soaring.

Grand Coulee Dam. 1968. Recorded as a tribute to his mentor, Woody Guthrie.

Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door. 1974. One from an album that has been available forever. It was originally on “Before the Flood”. Along with the version on the “Hard to Handle” video performance this is my favourite of the live recordings of this classic track.

It Ain’t Me, Babe. Recorded during the filming of Renaldo and Clara and filled with all the ramshackle glory and energy that dominated the Rolling Thunder Revue.

Shelter From the Storm. 1976. Again commonly available on Hard Rain but let’s face it that’s an album you’re never going to need all of. This is one of the better moments from that album. I’d have gone for “I Threw it all Away” or “Idiot Wind” but this will do.

Dead Man, Dead Man. 1981. Everybody now realises that for an established artist to go on stage with a setlist made up entirely of new songs virtually never happens. We have realised too late that Dylan live during the Slow Train / Saved period was simply amazing. It’s time for a full release of one of those shows in the Bootleg Series. Until that happens, then a performance of this song from Shot of Love from the following tour will have to do. Very cool indeed.

Slow Train. 1987. Originally released on “Dylan and the Dead”, the live album from his tour with the Grateful Dead. No-one needs that whole album but this proves that if you dig deep enough there are golden nuggets even there.

Dignity. 1994. From “Unplugged” which is another album that you don’t really need. This song was originally left off “Oh Mercy”. Now for a song to be left off a Dylan album is the recipe for it to be regarded as a work of genius. For someone that his fans call a genius, they sure don’t trust his judgement. Indeed, this is a very good song but I’m not sure it would have added to the album. Great performance here.

Cold Irons Bound. 1997. The studio version was on “Time Out of Mind”. Here, it seems a little rootless but it is still a fine reading of this vital song.

Born in Time. 1998. “Under the Red Sky” is a neglected album which whilst some songs were under-realised, is still a very worthwhile record which Dylan obviously rates. This is a fine performance of a great song.

Country Pie. 2000. Just proves that Dylan songs don’t have to be profound and mean something. Originally on “Nashville Skyline”, this song just argues for the virtues of country music. You don’t have to agree with him to enjoy hearing the old guy having fun for once.

Things have Changed. 2000. Classic song. Like on the 1979 album, Dylan is waiting on the last train. Like in 1980 he tells us what is going to happen if the Bible is right. But times as well as things have changed by now and so this time we gave him an award. The song deserves it. The live performance shows Dylan working out the truth in his own words.

This Japanese album is difficult to find. You can get all the songs on iTunes but only if you buy all their Dylan collection. I can only say that, even so, they are well worth seeking out.

Reason to Believe

Posted on June 24, 2008 by twilightdawning

Music plays a fairly substantial part in my life in all kinds of shapes and forms. I listen to it, I write about it. Amongst the cds on fairly regular rotation over the last few days have been discs by Tom Scott, Danilo Perez, JD Souther, Rubicks and Mark Colby. A fair percentage of jazz mixed in there. All this while doing the final re-writes on my interview project with Richie Furay which has come together really well and about which various editors are proving very enthusiastic.

However, the album which has really been catching my attention today is an obscure disc by a band called Hearts and Flowers who had their moment in the sun in 1967-68 and are best remembered for being the second stopping point for Bernie Leadon. I think this was the second band of his illustrious career. He joined them for their second album “Of Horses, Children and Forgotten Women”. The band couldn’t decide whether they wanted to be The Byrds, early Simon & Garfunkel (think Wednesday Morning Three A.M.) or straight country. Folk-rock, then. Consequently, the albums are eclectic and a lot of fun with great harmonies and bags of energy and youthful enthusiasm. The songs include a cover of the Tim Hardin song I’ve used for the title of this journey entry, and bizarrely a version of “Two Little Boys” which was made famous a few years later here in the UK by wobble-board-playing Australian, Rolf Harris. Eclectic indeed.

Mostly the albums have been making me sit up and listen for all the right reasons but there are a couple of moments which have touched my funny bone. The guitar on the track “Now is the Time for Hearts & Flowers” and the backing vocals on “The View From Ward 3” (both on their first album) put me very much in mind of the vocals and guitar on that other forgotten classic of the ’60s “(Listen to) the Flower People” by the quite wonderful Spinal Tap. It’s hard to keep a straight face. I seem to have that clip from the rockumentary on regular playback in my head.

I’m a Yankee Doodle Dandy – Baseball update

Posted on June 21, 2008 by twilightdawning

Team	W	L	PCT	GB
Boston	46	30	.605	–
Tampa Bay	43	30	.589	1.5
NY Yankees	40	34	.541	5.0
Baltimore	38	34	.528	6.0
Toronto	35	40	.467	10.5

The Yankees are enjoying their best run of the season. They’ve simultaneously put themselves in the reckoning for the division title and the wild card. So who has made the difference?

Pluses

Johnny Damon. I’m still reeling from the day that Damon went six-for-six. He was the first Yankee to do this since 1934. He’s batting .331 on the season and .434 on the month. Last year, he seemed to be fading. This year he has bounced right back.

Alex Rodriguez. 14 home runs on the season. Batting .431 on the month. Slugging .629 on the season, .831 on the month. He’s on a real tear.

Jorge Posada. He’s back. He’s more than holding his own. He’s lifted the weight off Molina. He’s being patient at the plate. ‘Nuff said.

Mariano Rivera. Early in June, he encountered his first wobbles of the season. Two home runs in consecutive games. He’s overcome that problem. His ERA on the month is now back down to 2.00. He’s just picked up his twentieth save of the season.

Jose Veras. Prone to injuries and inconsistent since he joined the Yankees, I’d placed him down amongst the also-rans and was looking forward to the day when the Yankees could consider letting him go. 2 wins and a 1.93 ERA on the month so far has turned all that around.

Mike Mussina. Despite yesterday’s defeat against the Reds, you have to acknowledge that the aging Moose has exceeded all expectations. Like Damon, there were real doubts about him coming into the season. That he has 10 wins prior to All Star day is simply outstanding.

Minuses

Melky Cabrera. He’s still inconsistent at the plate. .215 on the month. His fielding makes him a regular but he’s number 4 of the regular outfielders at the moment.

Bobby Abreu. He’s had a pretty good year but the last two weeks have been his worst – just when the team are at their best.

Alberto Gonzalez. He was called up to replace Shelley Duncan who was not getting any playing time and must be fast running out of chances. Shame is the same can be said for Gonzalez. 5 at-bats since his call up and he’s just swinging at air.

Edwar Ramirez. He has gone from a plus to a minus very quickly. In 6 games in June, he has produced a 9.00 ERA. Fortunately, the rest of the bullpen is more than holding its own but he needs to turn it around.

Surprises

Jason Giambi. He has consistently hit for power since he pulled himself out of his early season funk but now he’s boosting his average too. .314 average in June so far.

Chad Moeller. The big surprise is that he is giving Cashman a reason to keep him in the Bronx and to carry three catchers. He’s proving a good pinch-hitter and it seems that until we’re 100% sure that Posada is going to have no more problems, then we’re not going to risk losing him entirely.

Wilson Betemit. He’s bounced back from injury and he’s holding his own. At the start of the year, given the choice between Duncan, Gonzalez and Betemit for the utility infielder, I would have placed Betemit third. Now, he is showing he is the most useful by some distance.

LaTroy Hawkins. He is doing well in June but the surprise is that the Yankees aren’t trusting him with the ball. So early in his time at the Yankees, this doesn’t bode well for a long term future in the Bronx.

Chris Britton. Like Bruney, he achieved more than expected and then got injured. His 1.29 ERA (0.00 in June) would hopefully have led to a regular spot but he’ll have to prove himself all over again, now.

Dan Giese. Where did this guy come from? Patterson was called up for one day and then replaced by Giese. It seemed like Giese wasn’t going to stay but he had just been called up to allow Patterson time to rest without relying on the relatively small number of pitchers we’re carrying. However Giese did better than Patterson had and just kept over-performing. Tonight, he has a start because of the injury to Chien-Ming Wang. I’m surprised.

Joba Chamberlain. Well, he still not making wins but he’s adapting quicker than I’d anticipated and he’s not losing. It’s enough for now.

Darrell Rasner. Seems to have lost his consistency. Hasn’t had the run support that Mussina has had but his head is beginning to drop a little and we need to take care of this guy if the rotation is going to hold together.

Billy Traber. I thought we’d seen the last of Traber but because of the injury situation, he’s got another chance. We need him to take that chance.