We don't have to play the Yankees anymore

That is the only positive thing we can say about our boys' effort in the Bronx last weekend. Typical ODP game Friday coupled with a disastrous Elarton-esque first inning Saturday by trade acquisition Kyle Davies were much easier to predict than a horrid Meche outing Sunday. Side note: Who couldn't see this coming? The guy had about a 6 ERA in the NL and is immediately plugged into our rotation in Yankee Stadium. Talk about a sure-fire way to kill his confidence and a game at once. Anyone who can tell me they think this was a good deal with a straight face is dillusional.
Bright spot I guess would be Joey Gathright's 4-for-4 performance Sunday(much to Splittorff's shagrin.) It was hilarious watching Joey double off the wall Friday night and stride out of the box to second for a double. Instead of being happy for Joey or praising his ability to slap doubles the other way, Splitt laid into Joey for not hustling out of the box. I don't think he's used to dealing with a natural athlete of Joey's calibur. Not everyone is Mark Teahen on this team and Joey's Eric Dickerson style of running really had the color man steamed. It was the second time this week Splitt went off on our left fielder(I guess I should pay more attention as he surely has to do this to Emil Brown to preserve any kind of credibility.) Funny stuff. Anything to take my mind off of Bobby Davis.
A rare non-Royals topic to this blog has to be discussed on this off day.
This Mike Vick thing obviously sickens the majority of people. Who would purposely choose to cold-bloodedly murder a dog? These four men look to be behind the eight-ball and I feel no sympathy for them. Why would you risk doing anything like this when you're the second-richest player in the NFL? It's just as dumb as it is sick. Who could possibly do this to so many animals? I hope it brings this issue to light as it probably goes on more than people think. It looks bleak for Vick now as one of his defendants has turned on him and will testify for the government. I personally think he had knowledge of this ring and financed it. This is one of the sickest things sports has seen in my lifetime.
The deeper issue of this case is the racial impact it has. I guess everyone needs a support system but what I'm seeing out of the black population in Atlanta is disturbing. Yeah, I'm white and I don't take a lot of pride in my race and I'm sure I would if I was a minority. But I also believe I would know when to draw the line in terms of who I'd publicly support. When a man is buried this far into a corner for being involved in horrific acts like this, it boggles my mind that strangers would come to his aid on television simply because of the color of his skin. The only reason this is a racial case is because the crime in question stems from a mostly black activity. I understand about taking pride in your race but this is just the kind of thing that divides us. People blindly throwing support out to a man who could be one of the darkest humans to ever put on a football uniform. This is obviously the picture television wants to create as the PETA protesters shown have been all white and the picketers for Vick have been all black. If you want to support Vick because you're a Falcons fan or because you think he's been unfairly charged, fine. But don't do it because he's black. And I get the feeling(strictly because of the images showing all ages of black people holding up signs of support) that this is the driving force of most of these people. If this was an assault, burglary, or even a rape case, I could understand the support but we're talking about hundreds of animals being forced to fight or die. Hundreds of dogs being brutally murdered for no reason whatsoever. This is the animal equivelant of the awful Chris Benoit incident. No white person would dare get behind that would they? It's just disgusting to me that these supporters would want to see these men get off the hook. The NAACP's involvement is even weirder to me. Look, race is a big deal in this country and will continue to be forever. Is the system screwed up? Yes. Are far too many black families living below the poverty line? Yes. Does racial profiling exist? Yes. But in a matter of this much severity, skin color is irrelevant. Race can't be blamed for everything. Do people really think that if the police found 63 dead dogs on Tom Brady's property that this would be swept under the rug? Get a clue. Some people are just sick and Americans should not care whether a sick criminal is white or black.