Love the Drake

Someone proposed the Braves trade rookie stars AJ Smith Shawver and Drake Baldwin to the Pirates for 2024 rookie of the year pitcher Paul Skenes. Not sure I would make the trade, but if they did, perhaps when AJ and Drake become free agents, the Braves could sign them back, however unlikely that scenario would be.

Baldwin is tearing it up, and needs more playing time. Good when you can ease a rookie in gradually, instead of throwing him into the fire. In May he’s batting .531 (17-32) with 2 doubles, 3 HR, & a 1.406 OPS (on base % + slugging %). Something tells me the line "Love the Drake" will soon be way overused. Shame on me for using it here.

And AJSS hasn’t exactly been a slouch. If AJ keeps it up, they may be talking about him like they do Skenes.

A few weeks ago I went to an event sponsored by one of our fabricators, a family owned business. The CEO of Evans Tool & Die is being featured on the cover of Georgia Trend magazine, the top business magazine in the state. The steel coils that I personally work to supply to Evans are shown in the background. Hard to tell what a tomboy Dee is – she can outshoot the best with her rifle. FYI those open toed shoes could be an OSHA safety violation. I’m sure she usually wears steel-toed boots.

Last night I worked until 6 pm. Matthew ate with us. Baked chicken with onions, cole slaw, peas, fresh organic tomatoes, and a rice dish.

M turned on some shows spotlighting various restaurants in and around NY and NJ, that specialize in fried chicken, burgers, and hot dogs. Then watched Bryson & John Daley attempt to break 50 (they didn’t).

My buddies and I are planning a guys dinner at Kimchi Red on Old Milton Parkway, which was voted the #1 Korean fried chicken restaurant in the nation. Actually looks good. I'll stick to the "mild" sauce, thank you.

Up early to lift weights at the gym. C has her art class today, so I grabbed a burger on the way home.

NEWS: yesterday I was able to start handing off part of my excessive workload, stuff that takes at least an hour a day. Going to take a little bit to train the new guy. I’ll still have to look over his shoulder, to make sure there’s enough inventory in place.

RANDY JOHNSON  [SABR Bio] became a professional photographer after retiring from baseball. He immersed himself in his lifelong passion of photography, founding Randy Johnson Photography.  He has done professional work shooting NCAA football games, concerts & wildlife in Africa. He’s been on the sidelines at the Super Bowl & on tour with acts like Metallica. He finished in the top three in Cy Young Award voting an impressive nine times. Johnson won the CYA five times: 1995 with Seattle then 1999, 2000, 2001, & 2002 for Arizona. He finished 2nd in 1993; 3rd in 1994; and 2nd in 1997 & 2004. He was the first to surrender a home run to a player who used a pink bat, on Mothers’ Day, 14-May-2006. Oakland CF, Mark Kotsay homered with a legal bat colored pink in the 1st inning off Johnson, the Yankees starter. The bat’s color was as part of MLB’s “Go to Bat Against Breast Cancer” promotion. 

Scottie Wins the PGA

Golfers with 15 wins before the age of 29: Jack, Tiger, & now Scottie. Scottie might just have the career that Tiger was supposed to have if he hadn’t have gotten hurt, and changed his swing, and etc etc etc . Look out Jack. You heard it here first.

DID YOU KNOW: the coach who recruited Manute Bol admits he made up his birthday, making Bol seem younger to get him enrolled into college: "Manute Bol was probably 40, 50 years old when he was playing in the NBA". A former NBA teammate confirmed this.

Friday night supper (above). Tasted better than it looked. Saturday breakfast (below).

Met several friends at El Porton, the Mexican restaurant next to the Stinky Kroger. We’re planning on eating at a Korean fried chicken place on Old Milton Parkway in June. Watched the PGA while washing and folding several loads of laundry. Watched the Braves Saturday night. Hamburger patties for sup.

Skipped church Sunday morning to get some work done. Knocked out several work projects. Wore myself out but not sure it made much of a difference. Sunday afternoon C went to a bridal shower in Dunwoody. One of the hostesses was Diane Corbitt. When I finished working I plopped down to watch the last 9 holes of the PGA.

Up early to hit the gym this morning. Boss brought in bacon egg & cheese bagels from Dunkin Donuts. Got a big crisis that we worked on today. No good news on the crisis from the weekend. Did have a couple of miracles later today.

Several Atlanta neighborhoods have flipped from primarily Black residents to White, according to a hard-hitting Atlanta News Firsh story. Grant Park, Kirkwood, Edgewood, the Old Fourth Ward, Reynoldstown, and East Atlanta. Would be interesting to see them report on the demographics of Cobb and Gwinnett and Forsyth.

Former Braves manager CLYDE KING  [SABR Bio] played for the Dodgers from 1944 to 1952, but never played in the postseason. King, a right-handed, switch-hitting alumni of UNC played for Brooklyn in 1944, 1945, 1947, 1948, 1951, & 1952. Though he never pitched in the postseason, he earned a World Series ring as the Yankees general-purpose coach when they beat LA in the WS of 1978. 2 He acknowledged to Yogi Berra that he had been fired as Yankee manager by George Steinbrenner on 28-Apr-1985, telling Berra, “George just fired me.”

Major league managers who were succeeded by Billy Martin…

Yogi Berra......1985 Yankees

Bob Lemon.....1979 Yankees

Bill Virdon.......1974 Yankees

Lou Piniella.....1988 Yankees

Clyde King......1983 Yankees

Jim Marshall...1979 A's

Del Wilber.......1973 Rangers

Cal Ermer.......1968 Twins

Mayo Smith....1969 Tigers

I sure these things so I can remember them. The biggest small talk mistake people make: talking too much about themselves. My pet peeve: I dislike people asking too many probing questions about my personal life.

About killed me to get my degree from Tech. But I enjoyed my life there so much that I didn’t mind sticking around the extra year to finish.

Fortune Cookey sounds good. I usually get sweet and sour chicken.

Sermon Notes: Unshakable Assurance

Clay Smith JFBC

Unshakable Assurance 

Romans 8:26-39

Assurance is different than insurance. Insurance helps recover from loss. Assurance is  not having to worry, confidence based on who God is and what he is doing in our lives.

Today wraps up the first section of Romans, chapters 1-8...

1. not ashamed of the gospel

2. Jew and gentile

5. We are set apart

6-7 who will set me free

8. No condemnation in Christ Jesus

We know:

1. v 26-27 the Spirit of God supports us. When the pressure of life comes, we groan. Also the Holy Spirit groans for us. He helps us and intercedes for us. He bears our load when we pray. Some our optimists, others pessimists. Sometimes we don't know what to pray for. How do we pray for someone who mocks God? For salvation or judgment? The Spirit prays for us, with groaning too deep for words.

2. v 28-30 the will of God sustains us. The pillow on which we rest our weary heads.

A.  all things are not good. Cancer. Things don't go our way.

B. God causes all things to work for his glory, even the consequences of people's sinful actions. God is not the author of sin. God sees the good in our lives. He holds tomorrow.

C. We know why God does these things, to make us more like Him. Paul wasn't trying to complicate things. Calling, predestination, etc are hard to understand. Justification and glorification...the point of these verses is to comfort. We need this reminder.

Randy Alcorn's book "If God is Good". In hindsight we come to understand why bad things happen, and how God works through these things. God's will is perfect and good.

3. v 31-39 the love of God secures us. How do we know? In chapters 9-11 Paul asks...

A. v 31 if God is for me, who can be against me?

B. v 32 God demonstrates his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

C. v 33 who will bring charges against God's elect?

D. Who condemns? Jesus died on a cross for us. We are not condemned.

E. v35 who will separate us from the love of God? Not tribulation? Distress? Persecution? Peril? The love of Christ won't remove us from these things, but in these things we conquer - through Christ.

Parenting can be tougher not when they're little, but when they're older. Likewise God perfectly loves us despite these things. 

More things: powers etc - none will separate us from the love of God. Paul says he is convinced - are you?

Carl Bart - the most profound thought is Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so.

Researchers Claim Radar Scans From Archaeological Site in Turkey is the 'Fully Preserved' Noah's Ark.

BILL VIRDON [SABR Bio] is the only person to appear in uniform for the Pirates at 1.) Forbes Field, 2.) Three Rivers Stadium and 3.) PNC Park. Virdon played for the Pirates in Forbes Field 1956-‘65, 1968;coached there in 1968-‘70; managed for Pittsburgh in Montreal in 1969 and in Three Rivers Stadium 1970-73; coached there in 1970-’71, 1986, 1992-’95, 1997, 2001; coached Pittsburgh at PNC Park 2001-02. He was NL ROY in 1955 for STL. From Murtaugh to McCutchen, he saw it all. Though he first signed with the Yankees, Virdon’s first trade in the majors was engineered by Hall of Famer Rogers Hornsby. A year after winning the NL ROY, the STL GM, Rogers Hornsby, traded Virdon to the Pirates for Bobby Del Greco & Dick Littlefield. Virdon had originally signed with the Yankees in 1950 as a free agent. His last managing gig was for MON 1983-’84. 

I met a guy at Hot Stove who’s dad was best friends with Virdon. Cool that I am just 3 degrees of separation from Rogers Hornsby. Ceil used to read to former major leaguer Van Lingle Mungo, who was a contemporary of Babe Ruth – only 2 degrees of separation.

The Rom-Commers

Finished the novel “The Rom-Commers” by Katherine Center, an author that I’ve read before. She wrote the novel that was turned into the Netflix movie Happiness For Beginners, starring Ellie Kemper.

The great Ronald Acuna played two more rehab games in Gwinnett on Friday and Saturday, launching a 400+ foot home run to dead centerfield, giving the Braves the good problem of determining when to call up Acuna and who to send down, who to DH and play left field and who to catch. Strider will also be back next week as well.

Baseball stars who wore uniform numbers 1-10, but who are neither in the HOF nor has any team retired their uniform number.

1-Fernandez....TOR (12)...45.3

2-Tulowitzki.....COL (9).....44.8

3-Longoria.......TBR (10)...58.9

4-Grich.............CAL (10)...71.0

5-Burrell...........PHI (8)......18.9

6-Hack..............CHC (11)...55.2

7-Lofton............CLE (10)....68.4

8-Elliott.............PIT (9)........50.9

9-Nettles...........NYY (10)....67.9

10-Cey..............LAD (11)....53.7

1-Lou Whitaker DET (18)....75.1

1-Buddy Myer...WSH (16)...48.4

3-Willie Davis....LAD (13)....60.8

6-Sal Bando......OAK (10)...61.5

10-Sheffield.......FLA (6)......60.5

If Donald Trump is the antichrist, you won’t have to worry about me worshipping him as god. But if someone else is the antichrist, I just pray others don't mistakenly follow them. 

In Leichester England the public schools are teaching students in the Islamic call to prayer, on a weekly basis.

How radical Islam and the progressive Left seek to undermine America. These are the exact type of firsthand reports I hear from former Muslim speakers in Sunday School. Women are second class citizens. Those who denounce Islam are rejected by their families, and hunted down and killed. In Muslim countries the age of consent continues to be lowered to 12 and below, so older men can take young girls as their brides. Muslim communities in Michigan, Minnesota, and now Texas seek to enact sharia law, which is in direct opposition to the US Constitution and Bill of Rights. Call it what you will, but Islam is not a religion, but a system of government. Thomas Jefferson warned us about this, some 250 years ago. Not sure how the US will respond to this threat. Too many are focused on comparitively trivial matters.

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God” - Matthew 5:8.

A sales team was recognized for winning an award from a customer, that comprises two company plants, 27 ship locations to 60 processors, including 38 people at our plant in Dallas. Our little six person team coordinates our customer’s supply chain production of more than 500 parts, involving at minimum 6 company plants (sometimes more), and at least 33 material vendors and outside processors. But sometimes flying under the radar is a good thing. Still.

I am realizing more and more just how sensitive I am. It’s not new. Things bother me. I was thinking back to the time when two employees quit because they realized how messed up what they were handling had become. When I took over for them and was working to get the mess straightened out, I was just remembering how stressed out I was. How stressful 2008 was, when I had a terrible boss. Later the stressful time when I was paired with team members who weren’t good at their jobs. Years later I snapped at a coworker who constantly drove me crazy. After covid when we went from 4 team members to three. And it’s been stressful since we’ve gone on SAP. I’d like to think I have good reasons for being stressed. Hopefully the next phase of my life won’t be so stressful.

Part of all that stress is how my company rewards good employees with more and more work. Should I feel good about this? Management knew I could handle it, keeping so many plates spinning at the same time. But man it has stretched me to the limits of my ability, and pretty much wore me out mentally each day.

My company works its employees hard. Nothing wrong with that. Some people get hired and get a taste of the work they have to do, and quickly quit. Some people these days expect a job where they get paid for showing up. Not here

Saw a list of restaurants to try, including Burger Crush on Concord Road in Smyrna. Too far away.

How to eat healthy:

1. Proteins: lean meats, deli meat, Greek yogurt, tuna, whey.

2. Carbs fruit potatoes vegetables oatmeal rice popcorn toast beans pasta

3. Fats: eggs, peanut butter, chocolate, nuts.

Cooler sweepstakes.

The Tortoise & the Hare

Wednesday night on the Braves broadcast the announcers were saying good things about Ronald Acuna. Some fans got upset that Jeff Francoeur didn’t join in the love fest, instead later changing the subject. Some say the slumping Ozzie plays better when Acuna is in the lineup, and the stats may bear that out.

Acuna has great talent, that’s for sure. Perhaps comparable to Mays and Griffey. Exciting to watch. But others with great talent have come along and failed to rack up Hall of Fame numbers. Josh Hamilton. Andruw Jones. Ronald is going to have to get cranking if he is to become worthy of Hall of Fame consideration.  

Freddie Freeman made it to the majors with far fewer accolades. In his first seven seasons he “only” made two All Star teams, half as many as Acuna. But in his first seven seasons Freddie had more hits, doubles, triples, homers, RBI, runs, walks, and struck out at a lesser rate. Sure Freeman played in 300 more games due to Acuna’s injuries, but at least Freddie was in the lineup every day. Tortoise and the Hare.

In his second seven seasons Freeman ramped up his production all the more, becoming a lock for the hall of fame. Can Ronald do the same? If Acuna’s next seven seasons are a repeat of his first seven, would he fall short of Cooperstown? Double his MVPs, silver sluggers, and all star appearances and you’ve got – Dale Murphy, with fewer home runs. Acuna may be better known for stealing bases, but Murphy is also a member of the 30 HR & 30 SB club.

If Ronald doesn’t stay healthy, will the Braves offer him a contact comparable to Freeman’s? Fans will hate it, but the answer is no.

Freddie Freeman’s first 7 seasons compared to Ronald Acuna’s 7 year career. Who would you rather have on your team?

...G….R..…H….2B..3B.HR.RBI.SB CS. BB..SO...PA

0722 581 0815 145 12 165 417 196 49 368 719 3254 RA

1026 591 1084 241 16 166 586 027 15 483 909 4304 FF

AVG.OBP.SLG.OPS.WAR

289  379  525   907 25.6 RA

290  377  499   876 16.0 FF 1st 7 seasons

301  388  514   902 35.1 FF career (WAR=2nd 7 seasons)

RA: one MVP, ROY, 3 silver sluggers, 4X all star

FF 1st 7 seasons: 2X all star

FF 2nd 7 seasons: MVP, 3 silver sluggers, 6X all star, gold glove

Murphy: 2 MVPs, 4 silver sluggers, 7 all stars, 5 gold gloves

Strikeout percentage:

22.1% RA

21.1% FF 1st 7 seasons

18.7% FF career

Average games played per season:

103 Acuna

147 Freddie 1st 7 seasons

144 Feddie career

The Co-owner of an $6 Billion Sports Empire, Grant Hill Flew to North Carolina to Send a Message to 6900 Students.

BOB LEMON [SABR Bio] trails only Wes Ferrell for career home runs by a pitcher. Lemon went deep 34 times while pitching, tying him with Warren Spahn. Wes Farrell leads with 37. Lemon was the first American League pitcher to give up a walk-off home run in the World Series, to pinch-hitter Dusty Rhodes in 1954. Lemon replaced Herb Score after Score was struck in the eye, off Gil McDougald's line drive on 07-May-1957.

 Good Things To Eat At Truist Park

Thursday: up early to lift weights at the gym. A movie crew was filming at the two gas stations just down the block. Hard to see in the morning sun.

Maddios Pizza for lunch. Worked until 6 pm, then scooted home to cut the grass. Dang battery gave out after ten minutes. I think it was some other issue, so I’ll try again this afternoon. Supper was ready anyway: chicken & rice. 

Watched a Hallmark movie set in Georgia, but filmed in Utah.  

Wasn’t feeling good so I skipped the gym. At least seven of us at work wore our Johnny Cash t-shirts today. Two hot issues today. Gang went to CiCis but I passed. Also passed on three fast food deals. Didn't pass on facetiming with Mill Mill, who was out on her back deck waving to passersbys on the Westside BeltLine.