I'm not pissed about it but can somebody explain how the AL home run leader, Carlos Quentin, isn't in the competition. Was he asked and said "no"? Does anybody know?

I think he would have liked to have done it. It's a nice stage for a young player. Guys like AROD and Puljos say "no" cuz they are long time stars and don't want to do it. They don't need it nor do they enjoy it.

Hey, it might have messed up his swing so maybe it's good. I'm just curious if MLB even asked him.

yeah i wouldn't get too upset over that beardown...sometimes it does mess up their swing and personally i think it's a dumb ass contest anyway.

doesn't promise either way whether CQ will have a good/bad second half but at least there won't be this excuse if it were to affect him at all.

Fuckin' Chris Berman. He's adressing the crowd and says "Is this Yankee stadium's last year?"

You know New Yorkers don't like to be patronized so there was no response.

Then he says "give the home run derby guys your best 'Bronx Cheer'. C'mon fans" There was silence.

Berman, do you know what a Bronx cheer means? It's a sarcastic applause, started by Yankee fans. For example when a team gets rocked in an inning for 10 runs, and they finally get that 3rd out, the fans applaud loudly out of sarcasim?

Who are you guys picking to win?

I am going with Josh Hamilton. Very cool that he picked his legion ball coach to come and throw to him.

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"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

Berman has outlived his HR call shtick. Berkman is my sleeper...

I think it's pretty gracious of MLB to let Urlacher's and Briggs's bastard kids shag fly balls tonight.

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The name's Rockmore. Beef Rockmore

why couldn't he have drown and Tom Mees lived?

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Disclaimer: Most of my posts are not suitable for work or home viewing.

The name's Rockmore. Beef Rockmore

No kidding, its doesn't get much better than that for those who appreciate hockey.

Hamilton is puting on a show.

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Fuck Edwards and Zobrist

This thing is over if he doesnt burn himself out before the finals.

Chris Berman is going to blow Hamilton after the derby is done.

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I usualy don't care for these type of allstar events, slam dunk contest, home run derbys, but this show put on by Hamilton has been fuckin impressive.

That 70 year old dude is gonna have to ice his arm for a month.

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Disclaimer: Most of my posts are not suitable for work or home viewing.

The name's Rockmore. Beef Rockmore

Josh Hamilton - He found a new steroid that can't be detected.

Maybe. That would suck cuz he's a bible thumper and keeps saying how God helped him get off crack and booze. So if it comes out he's on roids he'll look worse than most guys.

It was impressive. But his performance looked like the guys in the steroid era.

Not just the number of HRs but the fuckin' distance he had on a lot of them.

I certainly hope note, maybe it is just the chew he always has tucked in on the right.

It's so dangerous to have that black camera man 7 feet away from the batters behind the plate.

I know it's BP and these guys can always put it in play. But it just takes one missed swing and a ball goes through the camera man's skull. That will be a pretty site for the kids watching. Everybody watching for that matter.

The stupid camera man isn't even wearing a helmet. I'm sure these guys fall balls, during BP, right where that camera guy is sitting. It can happen.

It is my understanding that part of Hamilton's deal to get back into baseball was undergoing all kinds of drug testing. I think he has to be tested a couple times a week. So I highly doubt he is on anything, but I guess in this day and age anything is possible.

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"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

You are right on about AROD, but "Puljos" made it clear that he wanted to participate in the derby this year, so I would hardly say he doesn't enjoy it.

Jeez, Hamilton has a record round, with 28, and doesn't even win the title.

Hey, maybe that proves he's not on steroids. He tired like a normal human.

I say the winner should be allowed to bang Erin Andrews. That should be the prize. That would be more motivation for the guys. Hell, players would beg to be in this competition.

ESPN can make a new network and we can watch the player bang Erin. ESPN Porn.

Man, this ran an hour longer than ESPN thought. They had the softball game scheduled from 9-10 on my menu. I guess Hamilton hitting 28 took about a half hour.

you're right, it's something like ten tests a month. if anyone's clean - as far as anyone can tell, at this time - it's hamilton, which is so fucking awesome. i didn't get to see the derby but i hope mlb or espn will have his clips online.

P.S. DUDE HAS 95 RBI AS OF JULY 14TH. i couldn't care less about RBI as a "stat" except w/r/t fantasy, but holy shit, man.

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If it's one test a month or testing 365 days of the year it doesn't matter if the steroid can't be detected.

I think his pitcher got tired. Old dude threw some bad pitches in that last round, and for some reason Hamilton didn't lay off most of them.

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they're keeping that kind of watch over him, any fluctuation would raise suspicion.

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So they have a guy looking at him 24 hours of every day?

...not what i said / not the point?

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I heard what you said. You said they'd notice any fluctuation.

I'm saying what if there is no fluctuation in some new designer steroid?

I don't know. Somebody is always coming up with new shit.

Look, I'd like to believe he's clean. It's a great story. But any guy that mentions "Jesus Christ" every 30 seconds is always suspect to me. Plus, he was a crack head.

i hear you, especially on the "jesus" tip. i just think calling "ROIDS" on a guy like hamilton is 1. too easy and 2. in a way, gives him too much credit. he'd have to be an incredibly wealthy genius to find something that gives him such a "human" form (compared to dudes like mcgwire, etc.) and goes undetected. as we know, steroids and hgh don't actually hit the homeruns - they allow the body to work itself past normal structural limitations. hamilton's a big guy but he's no freak. that, coupled with the rigorous testing he's already going through, lead me to think he's clean.

re: fluctuations, you can only "cover" doping (of any kind) to a certain degree. due to the sample size (10+ a month), any fluctuation in the liquids they're taking out of him, even minor, would require a pretty solid explanation.

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You make some points.

He does only have 21 homers in the regular season - on pace for a 40-45 HR season. That's not a monster home run year like the steroid guys.

He does take his hits. 97 RBIs, after 90 games, with only 21 homers is fuckin' impresive. He's not just a basher. He'll take singles when guys are in scoring position.

Scouts have said he was the greatest high school talent they have ever seen. It could be legit. You're right. I'll just leave some room for suspision. I think it's always healthy to have a skeptical eye.