Baseball DIY

It's been very hard to pull myself away from the 24 hour a day Katrina coverage on cable - not that I love seeing the Third World level suffering going on in America but I can't seem to separate myself from the drama. It is so compelling and heartbreaking and unbelievable; who has time for baseball?

But this isn't a blog for politics or weather or shock, although hopefully I'll be back in a day or so with a way for readers to help some folks I've met via the internet who were affected by the storm. In the meantime though, there are always baseball books on the horizon and a few upcoming titles have caught my eye:

ESPN's Sportsguy, Bill Simmons has a title coming out, Now I Can Die in Peace. It is, of course, about the 2004 season from the perspective of diehard Red Sox fan. I would say that we have waaaay too many of these books out (plus a movie) but Simmons seems to be writing with a certain amount of tongue in cheek and it could be a fun read.

I love books from the Smithsonian and this one, highlighting the best private collections of baseball memorabilia in the world is pretty much a no-brainer for me. There are so many things that the Smithsonian does well in their books and I can only imagine what they are going to reveal this time. I'm sure I will be jealous for days after reading it, but still, who can resist?

Wrecking Crew is about a bunch of washed up punk rockers and ex drug addicts (and some comparatively dull folks I imagine as well) who join an amature baseball league in LA. It sounds - well, it sounds different. The point of course is that these guys are playing strictly to have a good time and the book seems to be written in the spirit of celebrating baseball as truly America's game. Take a look, it's out now.

And then there's Juicy - would you believe. Yes, written by Jessica Canseco, the ex-wife of everyone's favorite steriod addict. Poor girl, she was addicted to Jose, and could not break away! She loved him inspite of his cheating ways and even invited the girls back to the house for threesomes to keep her husband happy, but he just didn't love her enough!!! Oh the humanity!

Someone please, put the Cansecos out of their collective misery. Better yet, make the world a better place and don't buy their books, instead, donate to folks who are making a difference. Save New Orleans, it's a far worthier cause.

And hey, congratulate Lance Armstrong while you're at it. He's going to make an honest woman out of Sheryl Crow. Let's hope that marriage doesn't make the music suffer.