WicketMaiden

No, chap is the same as dude, mate, pal, that sort of thing. No insult there, it's just a broad brush moniker for a guy.

Wouldn't dream of it chap, I don't see the point of lying about anything tbh, I'd rather be accountable whether right or wrong... unless I'm trying to sleep with you of course and then I might fib a bit about my intentions of calling afterwards, but other than that I'm golden.

No, I don't know how you 'know', hence my question. And no, I didn't vote for Brexit, my mindset is too European for that. "Pom" - really, that's the best you can do? Sheesh, yawn. If you're going to try to insult me at least be original hey?

Thanks for the heads up @Tank, you're a kind soul, and yes I figured it was sarcasm or similar.

What makes you assume that @cals? I'm curious to know how your mind makes that particular connection.

I think there's a very real possibility that we will agree on more things than not UtH, thanks for the post, nice to leave things on a good note. You have a fine evening too.

From the little I've experienced tonight I think you may have a propensity to jump to conclusions, but I don't know enough about you and your views to make an assessment about whether you are right or wrong. Goodnight UndertheHalo, peace and love to you my fellow human and Angels fan.

Then don't react when I post a fact. Simple really.

You're making several assumptions there, and you are questioning my integrity by saying I don't really mean the sick and most at risk should be shielded, even though I just wrote that that should indeed be the case. Clearly you aren't open to an even-handed, unemotional, fact-based debate.

The data doesn't back up your stance. Sure, if you're elderly or already sick you should be shielded, absolutely, but if you're in relatively good health and not elderly no data sets anywhere show that covid is a significant risk. The average age of covid deaths here in the UK is 82 years - which is in line with life expectancy here. Being even-handed and unemotional in ones analysis means taking this data into account.

And because of the reaction to covid, not just covid itself. It is a deeply complex problem that requires an even-handed and unemotional analysis of all of the data available.

You're very welcome.

Paradise indeed.

According to Office of National Statistics data, in England and Wales if you are under 50 and do not have a pre-existing serious illness then you are more likely to be a victim of homicide, and are three times more likely to die in a car crash, than you are to die of covid. Make of that what you will.

That song has been rattling around my he'd since you posted this. Think I'm going to break out a few old CDs and have a retro Guns 'n' Roses night.

Hey @Tank, if you've never tried watching cricket try the IPL this year, it's a fun game with lots of action. And if you're not sure then at least consider this - in cricket not only are you allowed to hit the batsmen with a 90mph hard 5oz projectile, but you are actively encouraged to do so.

Now THAT was test cricket at its best. Hoping The Ashes series at the end of the year follows suit. The world 20/20 world cup is in India later this year too, (just before The Ashes) so it's quite a year for top-level cricket. Should be fun to watch. And I'm sure Shilpa will get some media work in the world cup too, very pretty lady indeed.

I really thought I was going to miss Simmons' glove work this year but so far Iglesias has been absolutely outstanding. If he keeps this up over the next few months I will be able to fully embrace my fickle side and start with the Andrelton who stuff. Looking forward to a full season of him and Fletch flashing the leather and filling highlight reels.

Ha ha, sounds very similar to how I got into baseball, one has to be a night owl to follow the Angels over here. You do have to be really into cricket to genuinely enjoy a 5 day test match, it is the best form of the game though, the toughest test for sure. The games need to be a lot closer than the recent debacle England served up in India though. Sheesh, that was men against boys at times. 20/20 is really fun though and has transformed the other forms of the game with bat and ball, some of the innovative shots are fantastic and a real spectacle. The Indian Premier League starts on April 9th and that's probably the highest standard of 20/20 cricket worldwide, possibly even a higher standard than the Internationals. You will need to be an early riser for that though @Lou as most games start at 6am California time. Nice choice of players btw.

Thanks Red'. Fixed it.

@Lou That's a fair opinion. Tendulkar was more difficult to get out, more technically gifted, but Richards had more devastating power and was a lot more attacking. He would take a game away from the opposition in a single session whereas Sachin would just bleed the opposition for runs session after session after session and gave very few chances. Different eras too. It's fun to ruminate over though, a little like comparing Ruth or Williams to Trout and Bonds. As a fan watching I dreaded seeing both at the crease against England, but throughly enjoyed watching them both do their thing against others (my own batting stance mirrors Sachin's high backlift as the ball is played). Would love to see what they would have become in the modern era with all the innovations 20/20 cricket has brought to the game. How did you get into cricket Lou? It's rare to find an American that is knowledgeable on the subject.

Hey guys, actually you are both correct. Viv Richards was the original 'Master Blaster' and the 'Little Master' Tendulkar also gained the nickname 'Master Blaster' later in his career. Both were exceptional, generational talents.

Hello everyone. I started watching baseball on a late night show back in the late 1990’s over here in England, and as I have followed a big football (soccer) team since childhood I wanted to walk a different road and have a different fan experience, so the MFYankees, (Brooklyn) Dodgers, and Red Sucks were out from the beginning. I tried to like the Mets, but hey, it’s the Mets and I didn’t want to be embroiled in a never-ending tragicomedy so that never took hold. Tried to like a couple of others too for various obscure reasons (Braves because of the crowd Tomahawk song for example) but nothing really stuck. I was hoping to like an East Coast team to make it easier to watch games live in England. Now, there’s a saying in football (soccer) that you don’t choose your team, your team chooses you and that’s what happened to me with the Angels in the 2002 ALDS. I’d never heard of Anaheim and had to look it up on a map to see where it was but as they were playing a MFYankees team that had dominated the AL for several years I was rooting for them to win just to see the MFY’s fail, but I didn’t really care too much at the out-set. And then I watched the Angels play! Small-ball baseball with singles and doubles, guys in motion, 1st to 3rd base-running, stolen bases and a never say die hustle epitomised by Eckstein (my first favourite player) with the occasional big-shot from Glaus, GA and Salmon, pitching rookies with attitude like Lackey and KRod, the team was an absolute joy to watch, they just never seemed to quit. Even the rally monkey was fun. I was hooked during that ALDS and the Angels didn’t disappoint thereafter (well, not for a few years anyway): underdogs all the way until Dusty Baker gave the game ball to the starter in Game 6 of the WS and then I witnessed one of the most phenomenal comebacks I’ve ever enjoyed watching sports. I think I’ve re-watched game 6 half a dozen times since (I’ve got in on in the background as I write this - Glaus just doubled in Figgy and GA in the 8th and still nearly 20 years later I’m cheering and fist-pumping). Aside from that I am pretty much a contrarian and occasionally a miserable git, so I’m hoping to fit right in at AW from what I've seen so far.