Well, I am now available to perform wedding ceremonies: no joke. Baptisms, too if you're hearty. Could I say it went off without a hitch? Well, no, but 48 hours later the happy couple is still married so there's that. Also my back is still out having popped about 45 minutes before go-time-- it was even hard to put my socks on. But my shaking - which was apparently so apparent and so pronounced that some in the audience wondered if I had the palsy - made the groom feel better about his own shaking so that is yet another service I can offer.

But the nearly-weds wanted "short and sweet" and that is what I gave them. I won't say there wasn't a dry eye in the house, but it was over and out in five minutes flat and that was what they ordered so -- go team!

Speaking of teams, being here in the Bay Area this weekend did nothing to help the local teams in their playoff series: the A's and Giants both on the brink of elimination rather quickly. But what matters is that the Yankees took down the O's last night on the road behind 8 2/3rds solid innings from their big man, CC Sabathia. And although the final score of 7-2 belies how close this contest actually was. It was tied at 2 in the 8th when a lead-off double put the game in jeopardy as Baltimore's closer, Jim Johnson, lead the world in saves this past season.

But CC got out of trouble and Russell Martin lead off the 9th with a homerun to put the Yanks up 3-2 and then opened the flood gates against their closer who had to be yanked. The strong showing by the Yankee Ace covered up most of the game's worth of lack of clutch-hitting as well as Ichiro making a base running blunder in the top of the 1st, getting nailed in an attempt to steal third base with no outs. Seemingly he was the 2nd run in the 1st, but it wasn't to be.

Tonight I will be on an airplane when the game is played -- even if like last night there's a lengthy rain delay (which nearly messed up my viewing plans and forced me to listen to the lousy O's radio announcers for a couple innings in the car) so anyone even thinking of sending me any spoilers will be shot on sight. I think the MLB package will let me watch the whole broadcast in its entirety when I get back to the Twin Cities later tonight/

I am not even going to mention that I missed both Chuck Prophet AND Lucero this past weekend at Hardly Strictly BlueGrass-- nope not gonna mention that at all...

Andy Pettitte - the best #2 starter in the history of post-season baseball - tries to put the Yanks up 2-zip tonight in Camden Yards.

Cheers
Brian