Triumph

Yesterday I turned in the final, official copies of my dissertation.  I'll be busy this summer trying to get a couple papers published before I start teaching full-time in the fall, but at least I can finally make a little time for other fun things like blogging and closely following the baseball season.

Aggie baseball has been on a roll: only one loss (to Rice) in the last 21 games.  We've swept Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma, Baylor and previously 4th-ranked Missouri and now lead the Big 12 with an 18-3 record.  The coaches' poll has us at 5th, just ahead of Rice.  A return to the College World Series would be sweet . . .

Faceball

I successfully defended my doctoral dissertation last week and will turn in official copies of the dissertation next week, so my blog will get back on track soon.  In the meantime, enjoy Smile If You Bunt.  I think Bob Geren looks close to perfect—he varies the lineup and gets the platoon advantage often, but he rarely does the little things that throw away valuable outs, like bunting and stealing bases.  Another former Athletics coach, Ron Washington, is similar but bunts and steals much more often than I would have guessed.  (Too bad there's no way to compare managers from past years—I'd like to see the faces for Ken Macha and my favorite manager, Davey Johnson.)  John Gibbons and Bobby Cox probably pinch-hit too much but otherwise look good; the Red Sox are obviously better off with Francona than Little.  Who would you hire to manage your team?