I've mentioned my thoughts here on the lame moralistic postition most of the mainstream sports media has taken on the steroid issue, and now I've seen that Hall of Famer Bob Gibson has put my thoughts into words better than I ever could have myself (hat tip to Shysterball):
Guys have always been cheating. Period. It just takes a little different form today. I'm just glad they didn't have steroids when I was playing. I don't know what I would have done. It's very difficult to go out and perform when you know the guy next to you is taking steroids or some kind of drug to make you perform better and not do it yourself, to let this guy get an edge on you . . .
. . . I don't know that I really criticize the guys. Whoever the first guy is that started it, that's the guy I criticize. The rest of the guys just followed suit. I don't think its OK. I'm not sanctioning it, but I understand why it happens.
Bob Gibson just became one of my favorite Hall of Famers.
The international signing period begins today, and now we get to find out how serious the O's were about their interest in Dominican infielder Miguel Angel Sano. The teams rumored to be at the front of the line for Sano continue to be Pittsburgh, Minnesota, and Baltimore, with the Pirates reportedly already making their first offer. Sano is expected to command something in the neighborhood of $3MM, which may work in the Orioles' favor as the Pirates and Twins are notoriously stingy clubs. If Pittsburgh balks at Sano's initial demands, the O's may have an opportunity to snag him. Now that the signing period has officially begun, it will be interesting to see the O's actual level of interest after publicly admitting being impressed by the prospect.
Update 7/7/09: The picture continues to get clearer on where Sano will land. MLBTR relays reports from ESPN's Jorge Arangure that the Twins have all but fallen out of contention, leaving the Pirates and Orioles as the most likely suitors. The Orioles, however, see Sano as a "late-first-round talent", making them unlikely to offer the Dominican his rumored $4MM asking price. Arangure also speculates that the defection of Cuban prospect Aroldis Chapman, who is likely to command a signing bonus over $30MM, makes any last minute offers for Sano unlikely. The thinking here is that the Pirates remain in the lead to sign him. You can bet nothing significant will happen until the investigation into Sano's age by MLB is resolved.
Update II 7/8/09: The O's are reportedly close to making an official offer to Sano. Interestingly, the offer is rumored to be for a larger bonus than they gave first round pick Matt Hobgood. If this is true, an offer more than Matt Hobgood's $2.42MM would likely challenge that of Pittsburgh, who's international signing bonus budget is just $2MM.
Want to pass along this FanGraphs article on the "underrated" Brad Bergesen. Bergy has been something of a surprise because of his 89 mph fastball and lack of a swing-and-miss pitch, but his efficiency at getting ground balls has lead to a 3.76 ERA in 12 starts. The most notable part of the article:
However, the strikeout obsession has led to a lot of missed evaluations on groundball specialists, and Bergesen is proving to be exactly that. Pitch F/x shows that his fastball has similar amounts of vertical movement to some guy named Roy Halladay, so we shouldn’t be terribly surprised that Bergesen has a 54% groundball rate through his first twelve major league starts.
If Bergesen can keep piling on wins and keep that ERA under 4.00, he could be in the running for rookie of the year come September. His biggest competition may be fellow Oriole Nolan Reimold, who smashed his ninth home run last night and now sports a line of .293/.374/.553 in 123 at-bats. Reimold's success has lead to me pulling my hair out about twice a week when Dave Trembley inexplicably has him on the bench. This has been a growing concern for me throughout the season, as Trembley seems to want to get guys playing time like he's a Little League manager. The MASN talking-heads feed this stupidity by saying things like "getting guys at-bats." Well excuse me, but I couldn't care less how many at-bats Ty Wigginton or Oscar Salazar get. Put the lineup out there that gives you the best chance to win every night, with the occasional day off as needed. Rookie status shouldn't matter either, especially in Reimold's case, as he clearly doesn't need to be "eased" into MLB pitching with one of the best triple slash lines on the team. The guy is 25 years old and spent around 1200 at-bats in the minor leagues. He's either ready or he isn't. Then again, nothing Trembley does surprises me these days after he batted Ty Wigginton cleanup. That's Ty Wigginton, he of the .261/.304/.389 line. Guys slugging .389 don't belong in your lineup, much less in the 4 hole. Hopefully Dave cuts that stuff out when the cavalry from the minors comes and this team starts to be relevant again, or MacPhail should find another manager.
Update: Bergesen made those FanGraphs guys look pretty smart, as a day after their article on him he shut down the Red Sox to the tune of 8 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 6 K.
Just when you thought the blog was going exclusively to sports topics, I can't help but chuckle at this Mark Sanford business. At first I was angry at the possibility that Governor Sanford used taxpayer resources for his adulterous trip to Argentina, but the more that comes out about this story the more humorous it is to me.
I am a registered Republican, but I have no personal stake in the success of the party. I'm not getting as worked-up, therefore, as many movement conservatives. I think a lot of the outrage from the Right comes from their hope that he would challenge Obama in 2012, a hope which Sanford has now destroyed. Do I think he is an asshole for lying and deceiving his wife and children? Yes. But come down from the moral high ground for just a minute and read the facts of this story again and see if you can resist cracking a smile. Here, I'll summarize them for you:
1. Mark Sanford is (was) governor of South Carolina.
2. Mark Sanford was unavailable to the media or colleagues for five days, with an explanation from his staff that he was "writing" or "hiking on the Appalachian trail." When asked by the AP if they had had any contact whatsoever with Sanford, his staff replied "no." The media and fellow elected officials openly questioned his absence.
4. After the encounter, the newspaper contacted Sanford's office about the emails, leading to a confession from Sanford...
5. Wait for it...
6. Mark Sanford, the Governor of South Carolina, secretly traveled to Buenos Aires, Argentina, for fivedays where he gallivanted with an Argentinian mistress with whom he had had an extended affair. Emails between the two lovers have been made public.
I can hear Seth Meyers on SNL now: Really Mark Sanford? Really? You thought, as a governor, you could disappear to South America for five days to cheat on your wife and no one would notice? Really? In a time when many people keep the world abreast of their minute to minute activities via "tweets" and status updates you thought you could just, you know, fly down to Argentina for almost a week and get away with it? And then when you're caught red-handed at the airport your excuse is something like "well, I meant to go hiking, but I, err, decided to enjoy the Argentine coast instead." Oh, and didn't you cite "moral legitimacy" when you voted for President Clinton's impeachment as a member of the House?
Some people are calling for Sanford to step down. Uh, yeah?
Update: It turns out Sanford did visit his mistress during official state business during an economic trip to Argentina. That isn't so funny.
Read that timeline and ask yourself if you want the Ravens to trade their 2010 1st round choice (probably more) to acquire him and then commit $9 million a year to extend his contract.
With the rumored price for Marshall being 1st and 3rd round draft choices, this seems like an obvious "no thanks" situation for Ozzie Newsome. There's no doubting Marshall's talent, as he's had over 100 catches his last two seasons, but he would contradict coach Harbaugh's focus on character and accountability from Ravens players. Actually, with Marshall's record, it doesn't matter who the coach is. He's just a bad guy. Lastly, wouldn't 1st and 3rd round picks be better spent on Anquan Boldin? I just can't see this one happening.
Browns WR Donte' Stallworth was sentenced to 30 days in jail after pleading guilty to DUI manslaughter on Tuesday. I don't have any long-winded thoughts on this other than to say that Donte' Stallworth is a scumbag and the way our judicial system works just brings me down. I've seen longer jail time for possession of marijuana. The arrangement allows Stallworth to continue his NFL career uninterrupted. The only way I would allow that if I was the judge would be if I forced him to fork over 90% of his game checks to the Reyes family until the end of his career. At the very least I would make him sign over that $4.5 million roster bonus he got from the Browns the night before the crash.
I hope he can stay healthy enough to be on the field for Ray Lewis or Terrell Suggs to put him on his back.
Wrote here about a week ago that the O's were considering Dominican phenom Miguel Angel Sano. The Pirates, Indians, and Twins are also known to be interested, with Pittsburgh rumored to be the frontrunner to land the 16-year-old infielder. The Pirates are apparently preparing an offer as high as $4 million.
I took the O's interest in Sano as a sign that MacPhail is serious about upgrading the team's presence in the area, but only if they are going to make him a serious offer. What may be considered a serious offer may have just gotten more complicated, as MLBTR reports via ESPN's Jorge Arangure that the Yankees are now interested in Sano. Arangure claimed via Twitter however that the Yankees are not willing to go as high as $4 million if that is indeed the price. Excuse me if I reserve judgment on what the Bombers are willing to spend on a prospect as highly regarded as Sano. If the Pirates end up out-spending NYY to land him, that chill you'll feel will be hell freezing over.
Update: The O's are holding a three-day workout for Sano June 22-24 that will be attended by director of international scouting John Stockstill. Jeff Zrebiec reports that the team is showing "significant" interest in Sano.
Wanted to pass along this FanGraphs article that perfectly articulates my thoughts on 99% of MLB commentary. It's frustrating because baseball is a sport brimming with useful statistics that really make the game interesting, and most of them are completely ignored by broadcasters. Sadly our own Buck Martinez and Gary Thorne are perfect examples of this, making going to the games (and the mute button) all the more valuable.
Well the Lakers won a thrilling game 4 to take a 3-1 series lead and we sold our house today, so needless to say I'm in a pretty good mood. It's also a beautiful day for baseball, and I'll be at Camden Yards tonight to see the O's take on the Braves. I'm looking forward to this game more than most as tonight is floppy hat night (it's reversible!) and I'll get a look at the much hyped Tommy Hanson for Atlanta. Jason Berken goes for Birds, pitting rookie against rookie. Berken got shelled in his last start, lasting just 3.1 innings and allowing 9 earned in the loss. Berken will try to rebound against Chipper Jones and the Braves, who have won 7 of their last 8 against the O's.
Despite getting thoroughly handled at every point in the series (the O's didn't hold a lead for a single inning), there are some positives to dig out the wreckage.
Nolan Reimold continues to hit.
While Matt Wieters is struggling at the plate to start his major league career, fellow rookie Reimold has hit the ground running. Reimold had 2 hits including a 3-run HR in one start and two pinch hit appearances in the series. In his first 72 major league at-bats, the left fielder has hit .280/.325/.556 with 6 home runs. The OBP is low, but figures to improve given his strong OBP numbers in AA and AAA. The encouraging aspect of Reimold's start is the power, homering once every 12 at-bats and compiling the third best SLG on the team behind Luke Scott (.672) and Adam Jones (.597). It's a small sample size but a promising start nonetheless from the 25-year-old outfielder.
The bullpen was lights out.
Mark Hendrickson, Matt Albers, Alberto Castillo, Brian Bass, David Hernandez, Danys Baez, George Sherrill, and Jim Johnson allowed a combined 3 earned runs in 18.1 innings. All three of those runs were allowed by Hendrickson on a 3 run HR by Matt Holliday on Friday. Take out Hendrickson's 3.1 inning appearance, and the bullpen tossed 15 innings of scoreless baseball. It should be noted that the A's have the 28th worst team batting average in MLB, but the bullpen's performance is encouraging nonetheless, especially given the precarious position they were put in by the starters as is detailed later in this post.
The Bad
The offense.
The offense mustered 20 hits in 100 at-bats for a pathetic .200 BA in the series. Two of the games were against rookie starters. Luke Scott, Adam Jones, and Nolan Reimold were the only bats that even remotely showed up. The offense scored 5 runs in 3 games. Perhaps most disturbing was the lineup's lack of patience, as the team walked a total of 3 times in the series. Three. The 2009 Orioles are not a playoff team, or a great team, or even a good team. The one thing they are supposed to be able to do, however, is score runs, with some all-star caliber hitters in the lineup. You wouldn't know that from watching them the last week.
The Ugly
The starting pitching.
Starters Jeremy Guthrie, Jason Berken, and Rich Hill threw a combined 4.2 innings and allowed 18 earned runs in the series. 4.2 innings, 18 ER. No one is going to confuse this rotation with the 1971 version (four 20-game winners). Still, against an Oakland team with a collective .242 BA and playing in one of the most favorable parks to pitchers in the majors, the performances are alarming. It's especially disappointing coming from Guthrie, who is supposed to be team's rock in the rotation, and Hill, who has easily the best stuff of the five starters. Hill was coming off a start in Seattle in which he had pitched 7+ shutout innings. Guthrie's start ballooned his ERA to 5.61, which is going to be a sticking point to potential trade partners if MacPhail ever gets serious about moving him. As a rookie who is not considered a prospect, Berken's performance can be more easily ignored. It's weekends like this that make the arrivals of the Big Three of Tillman, Matusz, and Arietta all the more tantalizing.
Hopefully coming home is the best medicine for the O's, who host Seattle, Atlanta, and the NY Mets in the next ten days.
There is word from the Baltimore Sun's Jeff Zrebiec that the Orioles worked out 16-year-old shortstop Miguel Angel Sano at their baseball academy in the Dominican Republic. Sano is reportedly garnering interest from a number of other clubs, with the Pittsburgh Pirates as the most enthusiastic suitor.
This is yet another subtle indication that the Andy MacPhail era is a marked change from the modusoperandi of the various regimes that have overseen more than a decade of losing baseball in Baltimore. MacPhail has made it a priority to improve the O's dreadful international scouting department, both in Asia and Latin America. We have already begun to see the fruits of the former, as Japanese native KojiUehara has been one of the club's most reliable starters on a staff filled with kids and upstarts. Sano could be the O's first major step forward in Latin America.
The Orioles released lefty reliever Jamie Walker today, and this was an obvious move. Walker is paid to do one thing: get left-handed hitters out. Check out what lefties are hitting against him so far this season: .458/.462/1.042 for a whopping 1.502 OPS. Yikes. Many days Andy MacPhail's job is hard, like deciding what to with Felix Pie, but sometimes the answers are just that easy.
The benefit of Walker's release, other than getting an ineffective pitcher off the roster, is that it makes it easier to keep the likes of Berken, Hernandez, and Bergesen in the big leagues where they belong.
The June 9 MLB Draft is quickly approaching, and Steve Melewski over at MASN had an interesting interview with Andy MacPhail on that topic. Probably the most important thing to take from the interview was MacPhail's assertion that the O's will continue to ignore MLB's asinine slot recommendations for rookie bonuses. Just remember if the O's listened to MLB on draft bonuses, neither top prospect Brian Matusz or Matt Wieters would be Orioles today. With the 5th pick this year the O's have a shot at right-hander Aaron Crow, who was actually the 9th pick of Washington in last year's draft but failed to sign with the management-challenged Nationals. Crow is attractive because he promises to move quickly through the minors and could join Matusz, Tillman, and Arietta in the majors in 2010.
1. Guthrie's value is a little inflated because his salary this season is just $650K, which makes him more attractive to budget-conscious contenders (the Brewers, Reds, Rays, and Twins come to mind).
2. While he is technically the O's staff ace, his future place in the rotation is a bit more murky. In a good rotation he really slots in more as a 4th-5th starter, and as the O's young arms continue to bubble to the surface, he becomes more and more expendable.
My initial reaction to the possibility of trading Guthrie was "no way," if only because he has been the O's lone dependable starter for about two seasons now. A closer look reveals that his value may never be higher to the O's, at a time when his arbitration numbers will continue to increase and he approaches free agency. I think the haul for Guthrie, given what he really is, could be a pleasant surprise. Considering Philadelphia's pitching woes, MacPhail should have Phil's GM Ruben Amaro on speed dial.
From the same article there is word that Danys Baez is more likely to be traded. Personally I think Baez is fool's gold, but he has reestablished some value by having a decent start to the season.
I'll be tweeting from Camden Yards tonight with game updates and commentary on Matt Wieters' at-bats. I'll probably take a few low-quality mobile pictures as well. Really am stoked to see this guy play, even if it's just one game and means nothing in the big picture. I'm equally excited to see another rookie, LF Nolan Reimold, who has homered in three straight games.
This is easily the longest break I've taken from posting anything here, but as summer drags on and I still can't find a job, I guess this is one way I can busy myself in the meantime.
Voting for the MLB All-Star game has begun, and there's been some hooplah over how many votes Manny Ramirez has garnered despite his 50 game suspension for testing positive for PEDs. He currently has the fourth most votes among NL outfielders. Ramirez's suspension is due to end ten games before the All-Star game, and his presence in the game would not techincally violate any MLB rules, as players are chosen for the game based only on fan voting.
Let me just say I hope he gets voted in, if only to stick it to Bud Selig and MLB who never fail to amaze me with how they conduct business, especially in regard to PEDs. Instead of going into a long-winded explanation about why I feel this way, I'll simply say this: I have always felt the moralistic view of steroids promoted by MLB and the media is a complete farce, to say nothing of the fact that the public's view of steroids and how they effect players tends to be far from the reality. Also, baseball "purists" tend to forget that it is the All-Star game, and the fans have the right to see whoeever they want play in it. I encourage you to visit the Vote For Manny website for a more comprehensive reason why some of us baseball fans are hoping he gets voted into the game.
My All-Star votes tend to be a combination of the best players and the guys I'd most like to see in the game, usually Orioles, and yes, I voted for Manny, as you can see above. You can vote for Manny and all your other favorite players here.
I tend to surround myself with other music lovers, many of whom share my preference for guitar-centered classic and alternative rock bands. The debate invariably surfaces among us about who the greatest guitarists of all time are, and the subject tends to bring some strong opinions to the table. I've had the argument so many times now that I think it's time to publish my definitive personal list for the five greatest guitarists who ever lived so that maybe I can stop repeating myself.
The criteria for making my list includes a combination of the following:
1. Technical skill
2. Quality of music (this is biased, but an unavoidable one. Hey, it's MY list)
3. Emotion (kind of subjective, but refer to reasoning above)
4. Influence on other musicians
5. Stage presence
And now, on to the list:
1. Jimi Hendrix(The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Gypsy Sun and Rainbows, Band of Gypsys, Curtis Knight and the Squires, solo)
The man is a legend, and for good reason. His technical skill was off the charts; he could play guitar with his teeth about as well as anyone could play guitar period (see video). He introduced or refined a number of techniques to the electric guitar that have become staples since his time, especially the effects of distortion and feedback. He is revered in the guitar world for his complete lack of fear in trying new things, and his courage lead to the development of amplifier and pedal techniques that are still heavily used today. The quality of his music was similarly incredible; Bob Dylan may have created "All Along the Watchtower," but Hendrix perfected it, and songs like "Voodoo Child," "Fire," "Purple Haze," and "Machine Gun" deserve every bit of popularity they have acquired. Some of Hendrix's solos are boiling over with emotion, especially the anti-war "Machine Gun." It seems cliche, but few guitarists become "one" with their guitars quite like Hendrix did. His expertise had huge ripple effects; his influence casts perhaps the widest net of anyone on this list, with influences in blues, hard rock, heavy metal, and funk. Bands such as The Who and Cream, among many others, have specifically referenced Hendrix as inspiration for their music. As far as stage presence is concerned, few in any genre of music approach him (Freddie Mercury and Robert Plant come to mind). His performance at Woodstock speaks for itself, and his "Live at Fillmore East" album remains in my opinion one of the best live albums ever recorded. Given my criterion for greatness in "guitaritry," Hendrix is an easy choice for number one, as he incredible in every category.
2. Eric Clapton(The Yardbirds, Cream, Derek and the Dominos, solo)
Often times the debate boils down to Hendrix and Clapton, and there is certainly an argument to be made for Slowhand being the best ever (or at least having the coolest nickname). His technical skill is strong, for proof of that just listen to "Layla" or "Crossroads" and prepare to be amazed by what he can do with a guitar. The quality of his music may be even stronger than Hendrix, the man has sold a gazillion albums for a reason, and what might be most impressive is his ability to churn out hits from multiple genres on one album. Clapton's strongest attribute is emotion; some of his songs are just dripping with feeling (watch him play "Tears in Heaven," a ballad about the death of his young son, and try to come up with an artist who injects more emotion into his music. Good luck.). As far as influence goes, the man is a blues legend, and he has effected psychedelic rock, blues-rock, and pop music in similar ways. When Clapton performs, even in collaboration with other bands or artists, his guitar nearly always dominates the stage, and some of his deeper blues songs can send shivers up your spine. Another plus for Clapton is how highly regarded he is among other rock legends; he has played with Jimi Hendrix, The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, and The Allman Brothers Band, among others. It also shouldn't go unsaid that Clapton has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame three different times, once with The Yardbirds, once with Cream, and once as a solo performer.
3. Jimmy Page(The Yardbirds, Led Zeppelin, Page and Plant, The Black Crowes)
(note: that's a young Eric Clapton who joins Page in the middle, he's the one with the cigarette)
Stairway to Heaven, anybody? Yeah, Jimmy Page could shred with the best of them. His technical skill is rivaled only by Hendrix; he made the double-necked guitar famous (which is very difficult to play), sometimes played with a violin bow, and was one of the first to use the "tapping" technique, which is one of my favorite guitar effects. I don't have to say much for the quality of his music, the guy was in Led Zeppelin for cryin' out loud. He certainly had emotion in his music, maybe not to the level of Clapton or Hendrix, but it's certainly there to be heard. His influence on other musicians is off the charts. This Wikipedia entry probably does his influence the most justice:
"Allmusic states that "just about every rock guitarist from the late '60s/early '70s to the present day has been influenced by Page's work with Led Zeppelin".[1] For example, his sped up, downstroke guitar riff in "Communication Breakdown" is cited as guitarist Johnny Ramone's inspiration for his punk-defining, strictly downstroke guitar strumming, while Page's landmark guitar solo from the song "Heartbreaker" has been credited by Eddie Van Halen as the inspiration for his two-hand tapping technique after he saw Led Zeppelin perform in 1971. Page's solo in the famous epic "Stairway to Heaven" has been voted by readers of various guitar magazines, including Guitar World and Total Guitar, as the greatest guitar solo of all time, and he was named 'Guitarist of the Year' five years straight during the 1970s by Creem magazine."
As far as stage presence goes, Robert Plant may have been the face of Led Zeppelin, but Page was its heart and soul, and his solos are legendary. Basically, Jimmy Page is just the man.
4. Eddie Van Halen(Van Halen)
I consider that video above to be one of the greatest solo guitar performances ever, even though parts of it are repetitive and annoying. The finger tapping technique he uses in "Eruption" (above) and "316" is to me one of the coolest sounds anyone has produced from a guitar ever. While he didn't discover the finger tapping effect, he ran the farthest with it, and it is the reason I give him high marks for technichal skill as a guitarist. If you doubt his abilities, just take a gander at the above video around 4:50, 7:10 (!!), and 9:50. Quality of music is O.K., as a band Van Halen was able to put out some pretty good stuff (Panama, Hot for Teacher, You Really Got Me), but would probably be ranked 5/5 of the major bands on this list. Van Halen isn't known for emotional music, but I would contend his connection with his guitar during a solo is one of the more emotional things you're going to see on a stage, especially if you appreciate musical ability. Van Halen popularlized the finger-tapping technique, which is probably the longest reach of his influence, but he was also a model for an entire generation of rock artists. Wiki:
"Edward Van Halen's approach to the guitar involves several distinctive components. His innovative use of two-handed tapping, natural and artificial harmonics, vibrato, and tremolo picking, combined with his rhythmic sensibility and melodic approach, have influenced an entire generation of guitarists...Though rarely discussed, one of the most distinctive aspects of Van Halen's sound was Eddie Van Halen's tuning of the guitar. Before Van Halen, most distorted, metal-oriented rock consciously avoided the use of the major third interval in guitar chords, creating instead the signature power chord of the genre."
Van Halen has incredible stage presence, with the ability to silence crowds during his awesome solos. He is often overlooked because Van Halen was only an above average band, so he was unable to produce some of the singles that have made the guys above him on this list rock icons. Behind the band's relative mediocrity, however, lies an incredbily gifted guitarist.
5. David Gilmour(Pink Floyd)
Speaking of great guitar solos, how about David Gilmour in "Comfortably Numb" and "Another Brick in the Wall pt. 2"? Few will call Gilmour's guitar skill prowess into question. Like Clapton, Gilmour's roots are in the blues, and he has a wide range of skills. He even played bass on some Pink Floyd songs. Gilmour gets four stars for his quality of music, as Pink Floyd produced some incredible records and still sells millions of copies of their albums. With Gilmour at guitar, Floyd's music can be mesmerizing; sometimes their six minute tracks seem to go by instantly because you're so into the song. Floyd's music is also teeming with emotion, largely because of Gilmour's guitar, as this is the criteria where his blues background comes into play. Great blues artists have the ability to convey feeling and meaning, and Gilmour is no exception. In the influence category, they could teach classes on Pink Floyd alone as far as setting a standard for a genre, Gilmour himself even has two "tribute guitars" designed after him. Finally, Gilmour was very good at showcasing his talents on stage. His solos are electrifying, and he makes them look almost effortless.
Honorable mentions: Allen Collins (Lynyrd Skynyrd), Duane Allman (Allman Brothers Band), Slash (Guns N' Roses), Brian May (Queen), Neal Schon (Journey), Kirk Hammett (Metallica), Les Claypool (Primus), Buckethead, Don Felder/Joe Walsh (Eagles), Tom Morello (Rage Against the Machine), Jeff Beck (The Yardbirds), Frank Zappa, Angus Young (AC/DC), Kim Thayil (Soundgarden)
My name is Matthew Jones and I am a student at Elizabethtown College of Pennsylvania. I am majoring in history.
Alas, My age robs me of the benefit of viewing the world through a lens of worldy experience. I concede that my relatively few years will make some ignorance inevitable in my words. Nevertheless, there is nothing wrong with some youthful perspective!
I love politics and especially sports, where I follow MLB, NBA, and NFL. My favorite teams are the Orioles, Lakers, and Ravens respectively. I am a huge music lover, especially the classic and alternative genres. I also have a recently developed interest in astronomy and space. All of these topics and more will be covered in my posts.
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