I've never really cared that much for Bobby Valentine, but I did appreciate his calling attention to umpire Joe Brinkman squeezing the strike zone on Twins pitcher Kyle Lohse last night. I've noticed Brinkman before. And that's bad if you actually notice the umpire. The umpire should be invisible. Except that I always noticed Eric Gregg. But that's because Eric Gregg took up most of the television screen. But I've noticed Brinkman for his inconsistency, especially when it pertains to established pitchers vs. younger pitchers.

I understand that you want to establish a strike zone. But typically, all you need to do is prove you can put the ball in the same place a couple or three times, and that should be enough.

I know this, of course, from all my Major League Umpiring experience. (Big Laughs here.)

I've never cared for Brinkman, though. He puts himself above the action sometimes.

The home plate umpire for the Pirates-Cubs game yesterday was likewise squeezing the strike zone, but I think mostly it was in response to Sammy Sosa's getting beaned early on.