Genny Shawcross Should Be In SI Swimsuit Issue, Mo Vaughn Checks In From Fishing Boat & MLB Nose Picker
Well, I never thought Shohei Ohtani might be a degenerate gambler
But, here we are in 2024 and Shohei's team claims his interpreter is a gambler who stole money from the greatest baseball player in the history of the game to pay off debts.
Here's how the two were interacting the other night just hours before Wednesday's massive gambling debt news dropped. Listen, I'm not up on the inner-workings of Japanese culture. Maybe this is how a guy acts when his interpreter (allegedly) stole millions out of his bank account.
Here's where things will get interesting: How much interest will MLB have in getting to the bottom of this? The sport's new darling. Gambling debts. MLB tied to every gambling company operating in the U.S. Hundreds of millions in gambling revenue. Future gambling revenues.
One thing I know for sure, you can trust Rob Manfred to handle this one perfectly. That guy has it together. Let him go to work.
March Madness TV reminder!
• Alex R. writes:
It’s Wednesday, have you rearranged your YouTube TV channels for the tourney?
Kinsey:
I thought the algorithm would feed the games right into my ‘Live’ lineup. Now I have to scramble over my lunch break to make sure I'm lined up correctly.
With three TVs in the basement, my plan is to use the main TVs for the first two games, then do a double box on the bar TV for the next two, then pivot them to the main TVs when it makes sense.
Then double-box the bar TV with the late starts.
This afternoon, I'll be forced to do a quad-box in the Screencaps HQ.
• David in Baton Rouge, LA writes:
Spot on with UVA basketball being unwatchable. The way they drag ass is like the fool that waits to mow until Saturday afternoon.
For readers who are visiting Indianapolis during March Madness, or Spring Break, and want a place to eat that the kids will like
• Jim H. says:
Tell your guy to consider Arni’s on East 96th if he’s going to be north of town. It’s great for kids, has TVs enough and a wide range of good food served Lafayette IN Style. St Louis style pizza, sandwiches and wings. It’s all good.
Kinsey:
I must say, I don't think I've ever had St. Louis-style pizza. That said, any place named Arni's on a numbered street means it has to be legitimate. Thanks for the recommendation, Jim.
The John Mellencamp emails keep rolling in
• Richard is mad at me for the line where I mention Boomers blowing through the 401ks before they die. I thought that line would loosen up the room. Relax, Richard!
You could have done the crotchety Mellencamp story which was otherwise entertaining, without deriding a whole generation of Americans just for their age. People in their 60's and 70's are blowing their money and waiting to die? That sh*t sounds like what my 20 year old nephew was saying after his first semester at UI. Wtf. I'm a boomer and mofo's younger than me are dying in droves every day, while I burn up the gym, play catch with my son, and work the punching bag every day.
• John G. says:
I've seen him in concert one time, in 2000 in downtown Atlanta in August. It was a free concert that lasted about an hour. It was good. I like his albums Scarecrow, Lonesome Jubilee, and of course his hits like Jack and Diane, etc. I don't think I've listened to any of the stuff he's recorded since the late '80s.
My political views are pretty much polar opposite of his. I understand where he's coming from with some of his views even though I don't agree with them, but he strikes me as a typical leftist. Nasty and bitter with an attitude that he's right and if you don't agree with him, you're stupid. I know some other people like this. They're kind of miserable.
I think if we had a long enough conversation, I'd end up ringing his neck! LOL
• Chris R. emails:
No one wants to hear performers tell stories or get political! Was at a Neil Young concert awhile back and he wouldn’t shut up….lots of fans starting giving him crap and he finally played some hits!
Same with Santana. I wish these so-called stars would realize people are there to hear the hits and not talk or some new creative shit they’ve put together! Half the stupid people there were also supporting the fool Mellenkamp – I’d have yelled at him too – play your music and shut up!
Mellenkamp tells me he wants to see me after the show and it would be his last concert too! He’s a joke!
• Otis in Mobile writes:
Not a fan of the guy, never have been but recognize there are a lot of people out there who are. The stories about the incident made it sound like he was being kind of dick and I just didnt really see that. Personally I do not want to go to ANY concert where the artist is telling me stories (except for Jerry Clower, God rest his soul) and I do think that if that is going to be the case then they shouldn't call it a concert, but something like "A night of storytelling and music" so you know exactly what you are getting.
But......from the video it seems most of the crowd is enjoying whatever the hell he is doing except for the one guy who had to yell out, which obviously did not make the rest of the crowd happy. If you do not like the show, then just get up and leave. It's like we have evolved into a society where the most important thing in life is to have your own singular opinion heard no matter the situation. (And yes, I recognize the irony of me uttering this statement while at the same time giving you my singular opinion.)
My take on social media is that it gives people who have no business speaking to the general public, a broad platform where they can speak to the general public and the worst part is that philosophy seems to have worked its way into everyday life instead of just being limited to social media. If you went back to the 70s or 80s and said some of the nonsense that is not only tolerated, but CHAMPIONED in this era, they would have put your dumbass in the loony bin simply to limit the damage. But everyone has to have their opinions (most of them stupid or at minimum, ill informed) heard. It's really okay to just walk away and not say anything.
• Ray G. writes:
Go see a real American band TOWER OF POWER! 56 years of big band funk the Oakland Back Bay way. NOT A SOCIALIST BAND BUT A PROUD AMERICAN BAND. Need any more info let me know.
TNML sticker USPS drama
I thought I'd sent a sticker to William in 2022 or 2023. He says a sticker never arrived. So last week, I sent him a sticker and wouldn't you know it we spent the last three days of our lives trying to figure out why the piece of mail hadn't arrived at his house WHEN HIS LOCAL POST OFFICE SENT HIM AN EMAIL SCAN OF THE PIECE OF MAIL SITTING IN THE POST OFFICE FACILITY.
William is using Informed Delivery. We had an image of my TNML envelope. I was finally vindicated. Then it took two days for that mail to leave the building.
• William in Reisterstown, MD writes:
IT CAME TODAY~!
IT CAME TODAY~!
This is par for the course for this particular location Joe. When we started noticing that things weren't coming (bills, etc.), we signed up for the Informed Delivery so we'd at least know what made it to the local area to be scanned before going missing. That way we could follow up with the sender and the post office when things went "missing."
This area has also seen an increase in the blue boxes being broken into and relieved of their contents. People are actually robbing the letter carriers that collect from the blue boxes to steal their master keys, so they can go around and liberate the mail from all of the blue boxes in the area. It's a real shit show around here.
Kinsey:
This is why I don't want to pay for a PO Box. William and I have built a bond over this drama. Did I want to live through this drama during one of the busiest times of my work year? Not at all, but I feel like the lawn gods picked William and I to go through this together. The Mowing Gods told us we needed to share this experience with the USPS.
Now we're stronger.
The Travel Ball Schedule is out!
Travel Ball Hardo Chris B. in Houston told me last week that he already had to leave Texas for a tournament in Louisiana. I guess all the talent has left the state.
Here's Mark learning his travel schedule for the summer. No Saturday night patio sessions at home this year!
Let's go to the comment section to see how the moms are handling the new schedule. OMG, they're admitting to hoping their kids lose games so they can go home and flip through TikTok AT HOME:
• Jeff in VA writes:
The travel sports industry and the downfall of sports overall can be traced to the infiltration of soccer into the US sports system.
Growing up in the 80's and 90s travel soccer really took off, I witnessed it first hand with my sister as she traveled up and down the east coast playing soccer from age 9 through college. Other sports realized they could take this money making venture and use it for other sports and a whole new industry was launched where communities built multi million dollar sports complexes to try to woo 9 year old suburban parents to their community for the weekend.
Now with soccer infecting the youth sports industry all of its nasty un-American traits began weakening the traditional US sports. We now see flopping in the NFL, jersey swaps, and fake injuries.
Can you imagine Lawrence Taylor flopping after Joe Jacoby gently grazed him after a play? Can you imagine anyone on the bad boy Pistons trading jerseys with the Celtics or Lakers?
America was built on men using their hands, now we celebrate a sport where it is illegal to use your hands. I'm not sure what the future holds but if its a bunch of soft kids who flop when they don't get their way and don't know the satisfaction of hauling in a touchdown pass or squeezing their mit for the last out of the game then soccer has won and our great country has lost.
Advice for downtown Cleveland with little kids
• Michael C. writes:
A day late on the request for recommendations for the guy who is taking his family to downtown Cleveland and wanted recommendations for his kids.
The Great Lakes Science Center, next to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is great for kids. Also, I would recommend the river/lake cruise on the Goodtime III. We used to take field trips on it in elementary school and I still enjoy taking one occasionally.
• Dan says this one is easy:
Cleveland Zoo is a great place for the kids.
• Kevin Mac writes:
A must for the three year old, maybe the one year old: https://www.cmnh.org/
CLEVELAND MUSEUM
OF NATURAL HISTORY
And the Great Lake Science Center https://greatscience.com/ lots of interactive activities.
There’s the WWII submarine on the lakefront. I’ll see what else I can think of.
The Lionheart
• Rob J. emails:
Watched The Lionheart documentary on HBO/Max over the weekend. Not a big doc guy but this was a story done in 90 minutes.
Your travel ball aspect caught me as the "manager" told the mom she had to move if her 10-12 year old kids were to succeed and in racing.
Read today you had 100s if not 1000s in Indy who read this column. Grew up north of Indy so I thought they may like this doc.
The TNML 70+ club
• Clay in Columbus says he's in:
Retired. No ned to wait for Thursday night. Afternoon is fine. Looking forward to the CubCadet ride soon even with my broken neck. (recent fall in garage). Grass (the lawn kind) and Gas (the fuel kind) are meant to go together along with Good Guys with Good Gals and Great kids.
Well then!
Hell yeah, spend it! You made it, spend it how you'd like. The kids are going to blow it gambling on their phone. Enjoy it before DraftKings investors enjoy it.
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Let's get rolling. The sun is shining. It's March Madness Thursday. May your 8-team parlays hit. May your bracket survive. Enjoy those 10:33 tip-offs. It's time to strap in for hours and hours of basketball.
Enjoy.
Email: joekinsey@gmail.com