Mexican night. Every night should be Mexican night.

Chicken enchiladas, sweet corn with bell pepper and red onion, white rice.
This, if anything, is my signature dish, and it was pretty much perfect last night.

New Uniforms for the Hornets

Today the New Orleans Hornets renovated their uniforms with an all new color pattern. The design scheme of the jerseys has also changed back to a pinstripe look from way back when they were in Charlotte. Overall I like the uniforms. The text stayed the same and they kept the yellow around a little bit. Personally I prefer the colors from the last couple years. I will love to see what their alternate uniforms are, because I absolutely loved the yellow jerseys from last year. The new apparel is sweet too, especially the NOLA shirt with the trumpet.

All of that was really just a primer to say that it was something they absolutely had to do. We all know they had the lowest attendance in the league for a while last year until they sustained the winning. Eventually they sold the games out, made the playoffs, and dispelled any rumors of leaving the city by the great season ticket sales so far. However, they still need revenue to compete on a larger, year in and year out, scale. Switching designs will make people want the new stuff, and buy up jerseys of guys like Chris Paul, Julian Wright, and David West. Coming off of the season they just had, the timing is perfect to make such a move. The excitement is immense and people are more likely to spend for these types of things now.

I'm going to buy a Chris Paul jersey when I get paid I think. White or Blue?
I just checked, they sold out in a day of both.

Chicken Paillard

Just a picture I liked of Chicken Paillard, Potatoes Au Gratin, and a Romaine salad from earlier this week.

Links this week.

Read the Hall of Fame post from today over at FireJoeMorgan. Nothing like people who talk in absolutes when using subjective arguments.

Goodbye Jannero Pargo.

Great article by Joe Sheehan over at Baseball Prospectus. Big surprise. Another big surprise: Josh Hamilton and K-Rod don't stand up to others in the AL MVP debate. Article not free.

I completely disagree with Peter Gammons on this. Soto is not even on my long list of MVP candidates, nor is he the best catcher in his league. Joe Mauer in the AL, I'd listen to that conversation (even if I disagree.) Also have to be an insider.

This one is free and a really good read about curveballs.

Look I can read humanistic baseball stories too.

Shrimp and Grits

Regionally southern foods have always been near and dear to my heart. My parents grew up in the south part of Arkansas, which is steeped in the middle of the traditional South. Growing up, the food that my parents cooked and ate were dishes that had been a part of their diet growing up, and I would imagine that of their parents as well. Southern food isn't any different than the food anywhere else in the world in that way. Regions take what they have and find a way to make good food out of it, then it is passed on from generation to generation and it evolves and gets better. What the southern United States have is lots of different vegetables, starches, and fruits. Rice fields line highways all throughout Louisiana and Arkansas. Farmers who sell fresh tomatoes, peas, and corn often sit on the side of roads. What else they have is a lot of coastline and access to seafood.

No doubt shrimp and grits was once just a porridge of ground corn, liquid and a highly available seafood. However it has evolved into a dish that great chefs have turned into high art. For me it is often a mark of a great southern restaurant to have done it well. Because restaurants who survive on the premise of doing classic southern dishes should be able to do them well, and do them with their own spin.

The best shrimp and grits I've ever had was at a Bistro 1896 in downtown Asheville, NC. It was a delightful twist with large polenta cakes that had been crisped in a pan instead of hominy grits that resemble a gruel. It was served with large wild United States pink shrimp and a remoulade sauce that was not a slave to the traditional Louisiana spicy aioli. It had lots of fresh herbs and still a fairly present flavor of garlic. I still remember this dish years later because it was that unforgettable.

What made me think about this is that I went to Harry's Seafood Bar and Grill here in Tallahassee and ate some shrimp and grits not too long ago. Their take on the dish included a remoulade as well. It was a much more traditional one but good nonetheless. It included hominy grits that were stiff (which is a good thing) and there was Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese inside and finishing the plate. The dishes were far apart on approach and flavor but both hit the mark.

Shrimp and grits is a great regional dish that I have never attempted, but after having it on my mind I'm sure that I will soon. I'll update when I do.

Awards in Baseball.

Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus said something that I've seen from a lot of guys, who know a lot about baseball. Much more than I do might I add. However it is something that I don't exactly agree with. In his chat this question and answer transpired.

jsmoore (dallas): Does Longoria's injury open up the AL rookie of the year race? If so, does Chris Davis have a chance if he keeps raking?

Kevin Goldstein: Chris Davis has been absolutely outstanding, but lets face it and let's talk about how things really work. Longoria could be done for the season and he'd still win the award. That said, the real question is, why do we care? I've never understood people getting worked up about awards.


As far as who is the best player or who has the best production goes, I am all for figuring it out ourselves and finding new ways to define baseball value. Revised Zone Rating is by far a better measure of defense than fielding percentage. Dealing with objective statistics over subjective opinions on what transpired almost always are. At the same time awards still matter. As currently constructed the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) hold a monopoly on all the major off-season awards. MVP, Rookie of the Year, Cy Young, etc. Even if they give the MVP award to Jimmy Rollins when he is not the best player on his team or the best offensive shortsop in his division.

This may seem like a silly reason for it to be important. But, these are the same people who hold votes for the Hall of Fame. THE SAME PEOPLE. When it comes time for the Hall of Fame voting most of these guys aren't looking at OPS, they are looking at accolades and rings and the like. The other reason awards are important is that people still listen to the awards. When I was at a Devil Rays game, one of the people I was with (who I was meeting for the first time through a mutual friend) and I were talking about baseball. I mentioned that batting average wasn't really all that important and I used the word "indicator" in my argument. I guess I was too cliche but I certainly didn't want to start an argument. Apparently he had heard this argument before. He had made the decision to listen to conventional wisdom. Many do.

My point in digressing a little is that most of the general public, which includes a lot of sportswriters who may never see a lot of teams from the other league, still listen to the BBWAA. Perceptions can lead to fan bases who alienate or overrate certain players (Adam Dunn most recently), and lead to big contracts or dismissals. Perceptions can lead to front office types on the hotseat even if they are doing a fine job, and the exact opposite. Perceptions run the Hall of Fame.

Whether we like it or not the awards matter and not for the right reasons. They are awarded by people who think that being "clutch" and "gritty" are measureable statistics, and they change perceptions. Perceptions of people who aren't quite as die hard as some of us who prefer to learn and understand the way our favorite sport works. That happens to be a lot of people.

Appetizer Deliciousness

Figs, Balsamic, and Cheese is a pairing a lot of people have done. I usually see it as a dessert or salad and almost exclusively with blue cheese. This is my savory/sweet play on the dish.

Ingredients
Black Mission Figs
Balsamic Vinegar
Baguette bread
Marscapone cheese
Coarse Kosher Salt
Pepper
Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1. Reduce the balsamic vinegar until it is a thick syrup-like consistency.

2. Cut the bread into 1/2 inch crostinis. Toast them on a baking pan with a light drizzle of olive oil.

3. Mix in salt and pepper in the marscapone cheese to taste.

4. Poach the figs in water until they are hot all the way through but not falling apart. Cut them in half and assemble the dish on the serving plate.

Marlins: Going Forward

On Today August 8th the Florida Marlins are just 1 ½ games back in the hunt for the NL East crown and a birth into the playoffs. To say that this is a surprise is an understatement, especially for anyone who has followed this team on a regular basis.

Let’s take a look at what this team does well, and what it doesn’t to try and figure out if they can compete over the next 47 games.

Pitching

The Marlins starting pitching has been bad all year. Neutral of support the Marlins starting pitching has been last in the National league, and close to the bottom of the entire Major Leagues. But the caveat to this is that the rotation looks a lot different than it has all season, because the Marlins just got Josh Johnson and Anibal Sanchez back from injury. Also they have called up youngster Chris Volstad from the minors. Volstad (2.94 RA, 3.28 FIP) and Johnson (3.34, 4.04) have pitched very well of late. Ricky Nolasco has turned himself into a reliable middle of the rotation starter and if the other guys can continue to help, this staff can be a lot better than what they were running out there in June and July. The other optimistic piece to the rotation being better is that these arms are fresh, with none of the three new pieces having 120 IP yet to date.

Defense

This is where the talks turn ugly. The infield is extremely bad. Jorge Cantu is next to last in John Dewan’s Revised Zone Rating among eligible third basemen. Mike Jacobs is dead last at first base. Dan Uggla is in the bottom third at second base and Hanley Ramirez has been in the middle of the pack at SS. Although Hanley’s track record beyond this year says that could get worse. Teams with defense this bad don’t usually make the playoffs, and this steals some of the optimism from the new rotation because Chris Volstad and Josh Johnson are big guys who create a lot of downhill plane and groundballs. Their continued success somewhat hinges on the defense being better.

Offense

The Marlins can hit a lot of Home Runs. They are second only to the Philadelphia Phillies in that respect among NL teams. The Marlins also strikeout more often than any other team. Both are signs of a young team with a lot of pop in their bats.

They are sixth in OPS and sixth in runs scored among NL teams. We all know about Hanley Ramirez and Dan Uggla but Jorge Cantu is sporting a 24.5 VORP. Jeremy Hermida has been on a tear since the All-Star break albeit in a small sample size but they need him to get on base a lot as long as Fredi Gonzalez has him hitting second. The bottom of the order doesn’t boast a lot of production so the guys at the top are going to have to stay consistent.

Outlook

Going forward it is hard to predict that the Marlins are going to continue their unexpected success. They are still being outscored on the season by 19 runs and that doesn’t bode well for projection over the next 47 games. However, the rotation is a different rotation and if they can be consistent down the stretch that will change some projections. They can still score runs and they did just win a big series in Philadelphia this week. I can’t say I expect them to pull it out over the Phillies and Mets but I expect them to be in the race down to the last couple weeks.

Skip Bayless shouldn't talk.

Caveat to this post: I am no FireJoeMorgan, nor do I try to be.

Home from work today I sat down and caught First Take on ESPN which is something I often like to do. It is a mixture of morning show and sports that is easy to put on in the background while reading, or in the case of this morning while eating a delicious breakfast sandwich I made for myself and my roommate. I also really love to see what Skip Bayless has to say because most of the time it is comical, unintentionally of course (which is the best time of humor sometimes.) After he proclaimed Brett Favre's aura and mystique would take the Jets to 12 wins, the subject turned to baseball. UH-OH!

The question posed to Skip was "Did Steinbrenner ruin the Yankees season by forcing Joba to be a starter?" First things first: starters are much more valuable than relievers. 190 innings of excellent pitching is better than 80 innings, it is really not that difficult to understand. Moving Joba was the right decision.

Skip's response was saying that 1."they reinvented an overpowering reliever; and made him become a starter" and 2."he started becoming curveball happy, throwing one after another, not depending on his overpowering fastball."

As far as reinventing a reliever and making him a starter here are his numbers from college and Minor league Baseball. 50 apperances, 47 starts. Two of those relief appearances coming in his last stop before the majors in AAA. No doubt those two were getting him ready for his relief role with the Yankees. That means his entire professional career before the majors, and his entire amatuer career above high school were as a starter. But was he good in that role? In those Minor league appearances that he started he accumulated a strikeout per 9 rate of 13.79, while walking only 2.76 per 9 innings. He had a WHIP of 1.01. That is really good. They hadn't reinvented a reliever, they merely allowed him to do what he had always done, allowed him to be more valuable to their team. He got tendonitis, relievers get it too. Pitching is a violent motion. Hank Steinbrenner did not give Joba Chamberlain a shoulder injury.

As long as I'm on a roll, The Hardball Times did a study on Joba as a starter versus reliever and how effective he was. They concluded that he threw his curveball at approximately the same rate as when he was a reliever, about 7% of the time. Now, Skip may not know the difference between a curveball and a slider which Joba throws about 25% of the time and is basically unhittable. See, Hardball Times used actual research and Pich f/x identification where Bayless used shoot from the hip assumptions from his living room viewings.

Burger Toppings

Playing around with burger toppings is something that I really enjoy doing. I won't get into how I make my burgers right now (I stick to 80/20 fat content) but just post a couple toppings mixtures that I have made recently that work well.

Burger one:
Caramelized onions (Vidalia)
Roasted eggplant
Fontina cheese
Balsamic-Garlic mayonnaise.

Burger two:
Thick cut bacon
Over medium fried egg
Sharp cheddar cheese
Spinach (sweat it first)

Note on the second burger: keep your patty a little thinner than normal because you really want it to feel like a brunch type sandwich where everything is the star.

A couple Links.

-Marlins host second round games for the world baseball classic. They say it is a step toward growing the baseball market and eventually an All-Star game in the new stadium.

-J.C. Bradbury the Baseball Economist was on Stat Speak talking about deadline and waiver moves.

-Twenty Hornets games to watch, thanks Jim Eichenhofer over at nba.com

-Holy small sample size Batman!

-New FireJoeMorgan gear. Awesome.

The Dodger's Outfield

Everyone from Steve Phillips, to LA Beat writers, to me have assumed they know what to do with the Dodgers. Many say that they have a "crowded" outfield because they have 5 outfielders with the acquisition of Manny Ramirez. I tend to disagree because from what I see they have only three outfielders and two people who are stealing money. Of course I don't have the gift of seeing grittiness, determination, and leadership so I may be missing something. Just for kicks I decided to see what the production has looked like, and what would make the Dodgers the best team going forward. I decided to use WARP as my go to stat for this exercise.WARP (Wins Above Replacement Player) for those who are not familiar is an advanced baseball statistic that judges how many wins a person has earned his team over the average AAA replacement at his position. Many people have heard of VORP or Value Over Replacement Player, WARP is similar but defense is applied where VORP is purely an offensive stat. Here are the lists of WARP for the Dodgers outfielders this season.

Manny:4.9
Kemp:4.2
Eithier:2.4
Pierre:1.3
Jones:-.1

Negative WARP means that Jones is roughly 1/10th of a win worse than the average AAA outfielder that would replace him. Judging by this it is clear that Kemp and Manny should never come out. Eithier is roughly a win better than Pierre, and going forward that gap will undoubtably get larger because he is five years younger than Pierre. By replacing Andruw Jones in the outfield with Manny Ramirez they are getting an above average outfielder to replace basically a AAA player at this point.

There is just under 1/3 of the season left so the numbers need to be prorated over the rest of the season. Manny should contribute about 1.5 wins over Jones the rest of the season, and if they play Eithier and Kemp they should gain 2.19 wins over replacement player the rest of the season. Pierre is expected to contribute about 8/10 of a win.

It should be said as far as Jones goes that a team full of replacement players would be expected to be a horrible team, a last place team. It is clear to me that the acquisition of Manny allows them to play three good outfielders every day and if they do so they will gain about 3 games over playing Pierre and Jones. They are currently 2.5 games back of The Arizona Diamondbacks. Here is hoping for the Dodgers sake that they have someone in the front office who sees it like this.

Managing Baseball for Dummies

In the sixth inning of tonight's game bewtween the Marlins and Phillies Josh Johnson, the Marlins starting pitcher, doubled into the left center gap. The next batter, Hanley Ramirez, is the Marlins best hitter and had two hits tonight. Of course Fredi Gonzalez decides to sacrifice bunt, giving up a precious out in a 2-0 game, and the bunt goes down and the pitcher fields it cleanly getting the slow running pitcher at third. I don't even want to go into how stupid sacrifice bunting is in general, but even if you think it is an acceptable use of an out to do it with your best hitter to move your pitcher to third with zero outs and the heart of the lineup coming up is indefensible.

I watch baseball most every night and it seems that conventional wisdom reigns supreme in almost every clubhouse at least in the National League. Conventional wisdom is wrong almost every time, and cost the Marlins most likely at least one run in this game. It is still going on, so it is yet to be seen if it will play into the final outcome.

EDIT: They did in fact win 8-2, and it did not change my opinion that it was a ridiculous strategy.

Double Battered Curry fried fish.

Fillets of Tilapia
Yellow Curry Powder (or if you are ambitious make your own)
Milk (buttermilk if you have it, I used 1%)
Frying oil
Louisiana hot sauce
Honey
Salt and cracked pepper
All Purpose flour
Eggs

1.Marinate the fish fillets in the milk and curry powder, salt, and pepper for a couple of hours before cooking, eliminating fish taste and allowing the curry to permeate the flesh.

2.Create a breading station of alternating flour, egg wash, and flour. Then double bread the fish with the breading station. Dust with the curry powder lightly afterwards.

3.In a frying pan bring the oil up to temperature around the smoke point (use something with a high smoke point like vegetable oil or grapeseed oil.)

4.Fry the fish until golden brown and crispy on both sides checking for doneness throughout, about 2 minutes per side. Then pat dry of excess oil.

5.Create sauce by using 1 part honey and 2/3 part Louisiana Hot sauce (substitute your favorite hot sauce if you like.)

6.Upon serving lightly drizzle the honey mixture on top of the fish without eliminating the curry fried taste but accenting the spice with the sweetness of the honey.

I served the fish with a boiled cauliflower mash that consisted of cauliflower, chicken stock, salt, course ground black pepper and butter. Adjust the mash to the consistency until it is somewhere between thick mashed potatoes and a puree. Then crisp some medium diced Pancetta and serve on top of cauliflower.

Skip Carey

http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sports/braves/stories/2008/08/03/skip_caray_dies.html?cxntlid=homepage_tab_newstab

Skip Carey passed away this week and there won't be a shortage of people mourning his death. I wanted to write a little bit about it here. My dad was a huge Braves fan growing up, as most Southerners are. He followed the Braves when I was in elementary and middle school everyday, and tried to make me a Braves fan as well. I turned out liking the Marlins who were just starting and were much closer to my Southwest Florida home. However I can remember watching Braves games with my dad back when they were still on TBS every day. I can remember watching day baseball and seeing Maddux move the ball from corner to corner, and David Justice hit the ball what seemed like a mile from the left side of the plate. Skip Carey was a voice of my youth. I couldn't tell you who called Marlins games back then, but even to this day I will watch Braves games to hear Skip Carey sing the praises of Chipper Jones and Bobby Cox. Skip Carey doesn't know the little kids all around the country who became Braves fans during their run of division title, but I can bet that I'm not the only one who is sad about his passing today.

Frustration in Baseball.

The Florida Marlins are a frustrating team to follow. They have only made the postseason twice since I began following them in the year of their inauguration. However they did win the World Series in those two years. This year they are especially frustrating because they are contending with merely smoke and mirrors. I don't want to get my hopes up that they can actually win ballgames down the line to win the division and then be let down. But they keep contending, despite the -23 run differential.

I got worried that they would get rid of Hermida and Mike Stanton for two months of Manny. Being buyers at this point seems a little ridiculous to me, because I think they are the third best team in the division maybe even fourth this year. I know that Josh Johnson is back up, and Anibal Sanchez is back up, and Ricky Nolasco is pitching a little above his head right now. I just don't buy any of those guys as more than a #2 and that only goes to Anibal Sanchez if he pitches like himself coming off the injury. But they are still contending, and I keep watching and rooting.

They are only average at one position defensively where Hanley had made strides to be around the middle of SS in Revised Zone Rating. Everywhere else is bad. They strike out too much. They don't have anyone reliable in the bullpen. Their best overall hitter is somehow still a leadoff guy. But they are still contending.

I guess I'm happy they didn't become bigtime buyers at the trade deadline. I have supreme faith in Larry Beinfest. I think he does more with less better than anyone in baseball except probably Bill Beane. This frustration is okay because at the end of the season even when we have fallen out of the race I will know that we overachieved (currently 59-53, where our adjusted Pyth record has us around 53-59) and we have some pieces to grow on. Cameron Maybin should be coming, Andrew Miller's development, hopefully Jeremy Hermida's continued development (how is he still 24?), etc. I just wish Buster Posey had fallen one more spot, for obvious reasons.

This must be what people feel like that root for regular middle of the payroll teams that contend often feel like. Man the season is long when you are not out of it before the All-Star break.

Kool Beanz Cafe

Recently on my lunch break my friend Jon and I decided to eat somewhere good for lunch instead of the usual sandwich, or burger joint. In Tallahassee this can be difficult, because there aren't that many good, original resturants. Jon's favorite here in town is Kool Beanz Cafe so we headed off.

Kool Beanz is a local resturant that hires locally and tries to shop locally for the most part. I enjoy its eclectic New Orleans Jazz infused art and heavily tattooed staff. Especially because I am moderately tattooed. We sat at the bar to watch the kitchen work, and gawk at all of the meals coming off. Kool Beanz' menu changes almost everytime I have been, however there are staples that don't. Jon goes for the chorizo, rice mojo chicken that is his go to dish if he can't decide. I ordered the lamb burger with goat cheese and cherry pepper relish. This may seem a little redundant because the last post was fajitas with goat cheese but it really is a coincedence.

The burger was a beautiful dish served with eggplant fries that were coated in panko. The lamb was thick and juicy and cooked medium without even asking for a temperature, which to me should be asked for on any ground meat. However I would have ordered medium so I was okay with it. Goat cheese can over power lots of dishes however the lamb stood up to it very well and the cherry pepper relish added a touch of sweetness without playing too far into the sweet/savory dance that can be difficult to pull off. It was one of the best burgers I have ever had, and definately the best "out of the box" burger I have tasted. I would suggest anyone who hasn't eaten there to give it a go. Try it for lunch and it is much more moderately priced.

Goat Cheese Fajitas

Protein
Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast
Fajitas Seasoning (salt, black pepper, white pepper, onion powder, garlic powder)
Salsa
3 Vine Ripened Tomatoes
1/2 Red Onion
1/2 Poblano
1/2 Anehiem chili
1 Jalepeno (with seeds)
2 Limes
Cilantro (to taste)
Spices (1 part salt,1 part pepper,1 part smoked paprika,1/2 part chili powder)
2 cloves garlic
Also
Corn Oil
Goat's cheese
Red Bell Pepper.
2 Pats of butter
Flour or Corn tortillas

1. To make the salsa combine all of the ingredients into a food processor, or half into a blender and add the other half once it is combined. Taste it and adjust for your palette. Put into the fridge immediately.

2. Cut the chicken into large tenders along the bias, about 3-4 per breast depending on size. Season with the spice mixture liberally. Place to the side.

3. Prepare wide julienne of the red bell pepper and begin to cook them in a small saute pan over medium low heat with the butter (which should be lightly browned first.)

4. Saute the chicken in a small amount of corn oil over a very hot pan until golden brown on all sides and it is fully cooked.

5. De-glaze the chicken pan with the chilled salsa to include the cooking liquid, and also to warm the salsa for serving.

6. Combine chicken, bell pepper, salsa in a small tortilla and cover with the goat cheese. Enjoy.

Starting Over

I recently decided that I wanted to write again like I used to, so I went back to this blog. I changed the idea from just sports, to mostly sports and food with a little bit of other things thrown in, like links and such. I hope that I can get some creativity out here even if nobody reads it.