It's a shame. Baseball writers have had my support muchly for these 25 or so years I've walked the Earth. I've read them. I've thought about them. I've bought their wares. There was that month last summer when they needed an air conditioner, and although I was having money concerns of my own, I put in for a new air conditioner and...and I haven't been invited over since.

I say this largely because Ryne Sandberg is my favorite player of all time. How can you not elect simply the dominant second-baseman in the league for over a decade? Offensively, you can put him into a category only with Joe "The Greatest Player in His Own Mind" Morgan and (of late) Jeff Kent. Defensively, he was in a class by himself, surpassed in Gold Gloves and Consecutive Errorless Games at his position only by Roberto Alomar, and then only recently.

And to get as few votes as he did. That's just surprising.

I remember asking Jophes Thomas upon Ryno's retirement if he thought Ryno would make it to the Hall. If I remember the e-mail conversation correctly, Joe agreed with me that he would, but that he might have trouble initially.

I think coming out of retirement tarnished Ryno in the eyes of many voters.

Today was not a good day. The Ryne Sandberg No Getting in the HOF was bad enough, but on the whole, today was simply one of those days when I should have just stayed in bed.

No, I should have gotten out of bed, picked the bed up and crawled under it.

I need one of those deus-ex-machina devices where I can just push a button, and a big magical superhero/deity would come in and lay the smackdown on whomever or whatever is thwarting me.

Are you there Aquaman? It's Me, Big Stupid Tommy.

Mostly likely, though, the thwarting being done would probably be this:

I say something dumb. Magical God comes from Sky, punches me in the mouth.

Says "Shut Up!"

And flitters back up to the Justice League Satellite on the Moon. He points a warning, menacing finger at me as he goes.

My grasp of the theological is astounding, if I say so myself.

Quote of the Day:
"Politics is like the Montreal Expos playing the Cincinnati Bengals....at soccer." --Pat Dixon