Jessica Mendoza: Baseball Analyst

The title says it all. Jessica Mendoza. Baseball analyst. At least it should.

There was a big deal made of Mendoza being the first female analyst on ESPN's national baseball broadcast. And it was a big deal. And it wasn't.

You know why it wasn't? Because it sounded just like a baseball broadcast. And that is the best compliment I can provide.  It wasn't schtick. It wasn't a novelty. It was just providing a competent analyst an opportunity.

Did Mendoza ever play Major League Baseballl?  Nope. And neither did you.

Maybe as fan of tennis I'm used to a female voice. Mary Carillo is one the best in the business. Chris McKendry. Martina, Chrissie, Hannah Storm, Mary Jo Fernandez, etc. Nobody questions them calling men's matches. Nor should they,

So why is it a big deal that Jessica Mendoza is calling MLB? Because it's never been done before. Here's hoping to that it's never a big deal again.

What Casual Baseball Fans Are Missing

We are here to help out the casual baseball fan whose head may be spinning a bit with all the non-baseball news surrounding baseball.  And we think you know what we're talking about.

With about six weeks left in the season, here's what we have going on:

-  The Pirates are in first place in the NL Central.  Not a typo.  Yes, those Pirates.  From Pittsburgh. The Pirates currently hold a three game advantage over the St. Louis Cardinals.  And a lot of you thought that franchise had folded years ago, right?

- The Texas Rangers and Oakland Athletics are currently in a dogfight for supremacy of the AL West. Separated by a mere one half game in the standings, and dead even in the loss column, this race could come down to the last day of the season as it did last year.

- The Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays are involved in quite the battle themselves in the AL East.  Just a game between them in the standings with Baltimore lurking around at 5 1/2 games out.

- The LA Dodgers are probably playing the best of anyone in baseball right now, taking a commanding lead in the NL West over Arizona.

- On a lesser note, the Kansas City Royals are above .500.  Might not sound like much, but ask a Royals fan.

It's time for A-Rod to fade away. Disappear forever. That won't happen, so it's time for us to just focus on what is happening between the lines. Some good baseball yet to be played. Let's enjoy the pennant races. That's what it should be all about this time of year.

Sleep Deprived Rangers Fans Would Welcome This

As fans of the Texas Rangers we, here in the Cheap Seats, suffer from sleep deprivation during weekday series on the left coast agaisnt West Division rivals Oakland, Seattle and Anaheim/Los Angeles, California.  We are so happy that Houston has joined the AL West (and not becuase they are horrible).  That means more games in the Central Time Zone.

With the advent of daily interleague play and the inevetible (in the eyes of many) adoption of the DH in both leagues, it may be time for radical realignment in MLB.  We have often pondered a realignment of the West divisions, self-serving as it may be, but Matt Yallof of MLB.com thinks when (not if) both leagues go to the DH, then radical, geographic realignment should be considered.

Mr. Yallof's full article is here, but here's the short version:

Realign geographically.  Here is his proposed realigned divisions:

Eastern Conference

East
Boston
New York Mets
New York Yankees
Philadelphia
Toronto

Midsouth
Atlanta
Tampa Bay
Miami
Baltimore
Washington

Midwest
Cincinnati
Cleveland
Detroit
Pittsburgh
Milwaukee

Western Conference

Northwest
Seattle
San Francisco
Oakland
Minnesota
Colorado

West
Los Angeles Dodgers
Los Angeles Angels
San Diego
Arizona
Texas

Central
Chicago Cubs
Chicago White Sox
St. Louis
Houston
Kansas City

Everything looks good in the Eastern Conference, as far as we're concerned (but we really don't care that much). The problems lie in the Western Conference.  Geographically speaking, it kind of makes sense.  The whole North/South divisions in the Northwest and West Divisions.  But the time zone issues make it a nightmare for fans of the Twins and our Texas Rangers.

With there being six West Coast teams, keeping them all together is an impossiblilty, but if we're going to blow up the whole thing, let's make it more fan-friendly when we put it back together.  Keeping in mind the fine fans of Minnesota and Texas (ok really just Texas because that's what affects us, but Twins fans get the benefit also), here are our proposed divisions for a Western Conference:

Central

• Chicago Cubs
• Chicago White Sox
• Kansas City
• Minnesota
• St. Louis

Southwest

• Arizona
• Colorado
• Houston
• San Diego
• Texas

West

• LA Angels
• LA Dodgers
• Oakland
• Seattle
• San Francisco

This just makes more sense.  And lets us get more sleep.