You know how I hate to be the turd in the punch bowl, especially on a holiday weekend, but, my God, disappointment seems to lurk at every turn.
Let’s take a look…
Danica Patrick, after crashing at Indy
:: In her last race ever, 36-year-old race car driver Danica Patrick wrecked her car in Turn 2 about a third of the way through today’s Indianapolis 500. Thus ends a long career that made her a sex symbol and undoubtedly made her sponsor, Go Daddy, a lot of money but never got her to the winner’s circle at Indy…On the plus side here, Indy seems to have come up with the answer to who should succeed the late Jim Nabors as pre-race singer of “Back Home Again in Indiana.” For the second year in a row, tenor Jim Cornelison got rave reviews. (For the record, “Back Home Again…” is a pretty good song, but nothing compares to “My Old Kentucky Home” when it comes to songs played at sporting events.)
:: About the weirdest concert-related development I’ve ever heard of took place last night in Charlotte, NC, when 85-year-old Willie Nelson, who was supposed to headline his own Outlaw Music Festival concert, abruptly walked off stage before uttering a note. The video shows him walking haltingly onstage, briefly attaching the guitar strap around his shoulder and just as quickly putting the instrument down and starting to walk off. As the fans cheered — obviously not knowing what Willie was up to — he flung his cowboy hat into the crowd and proceeded out a back door. A voice can be heard on the video saying, “He’s outta here.” Concert producer Live Nation tweeted that he was taken ill, but another Twitter user said, “This is someone p_____ off, not something else.” No word from Willie on why the corncob up his ass, but, in any event, how would you like to be one of the thousands of people who paid $60 and up to witness that?
Choo homers to win Saturday’s game.
:: Let’s turn to our local disappointments now…The Kansas City Royals are appallingly, depressingly bad. I watched yesterday’s game, which they lost 4-3 in Texas when the Rangers’ Shin-Soo Choo hit a walk-off home run in the 10th inning. The most maddening part was the seventh inning when the Royals’ Hunter Dozier smashed a double to deep center field to lead off the inning. At that point, all the Royals had to do to take the lead was move Dozier over to third on a bunt, base hit or even a decently placed ground ball to the first base side and then bring Dozier home on a fly ball, passed ball, wild pitch or, again, a decently placed ground ball. But what happened? Ryan Goins hit a ground ball right to the first baseman, who held Dozier at second and stepped on the bag to record Goins out. Alcides Escobar hit a pop-up, John Jay flied out, and just like that the threat was over…Also, catcher Salvy Perez looked terrible, swinging wildly, as is his wont, at balls about two feet outside the strike zone. I say, trade him. Trade him in July and get some prospects — prospects who either have plate discipline or are willing to learn it. Salvy and his splash have run their course here in Kansas City.
:: The quest to find a way to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. has become a big mess. When this hit the press several weeks ago, I was stoutly against the proposal espoused by a group of black ministers and Freedom Inc. leaders to rename The Paseo as Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. So, I welcomed Mayor Sly James’ move in appointing an advisory commission to make a recommendation on how King’s legacy should be honored…The backdrop here is that James has a contentious relationship with Freedom Inc., and I think that in naming the commission he was trying to pull the rug our from under the ministers and Freedom Inc…James’ gambit backfired, however, after the commission came back with an equivocal recommendation: Either name the new airport after King or rename 63rd Street.
James hadn’t bothered to tell the commission that the Kansas City Aviation Department had voiced strong objections (not publicly but to James) at the possibility of naming the airport after King. Aviation officials said the Kansas City International name needed to be retained for marketing purposes. (There’s also been significant public opposition to naming the airport after Dr. King.) At the same time, a major problem came to light regarding renaming a street or boulevard, when a renaming is proposed at the grass-roots level: A city ordinance requires 75 percent of property owners along a given street to approve a renaming.
That’s a virtual impossibility for any street or boulevard that extends several miles.
With all the misdirection and fumbling, the advantage seems to have turned strongly back toward the ministers and Freedom Inc. They reportedly are proceeding with an initiative petition that could put the proposal to rename The Paseo on the November ballot.
If voters approve a name change, it supersedes the ordinance requirement for 75-percent approval of property owners.
At this point, I’m just about ready to throw in the towel and vote yes…Now, it’s The Paseo that’s dying; long live Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.
JimmyCsays: At the juncture of journalism and daily life in KC 
Salvy is awesome – throws out base runners, brings energy, and has always been a bad pitch slugger. What we need is pitching.
Well, I am the same guy who said several years ago we should get rid of Moustakas…before he found himself and became one of the team’s great stars.
Perez drives me nuts, though. He makes his living by knowing the strike zone when he’s behind the plate, but when he’s on offense, he has no semblance of plate discipline. You can’t walk him if you try.
Perez has 7 BB so far in 2018, so, on pace for 21 – give or take!
Thank you, Lisa — you beat me to it.
No dissing the Salvinator! Who they need to work on is that pitcher today who blew their 5-0 lead with two homers and another run the minute he stepped on the mound.
But, yes, in general they are sucking so far.
I think Salvy’s going to be traded, either right at the July 31 deadline or during the off season. We’ll get some nice young pitchers for him, and you and Lisa will get over it in a year or two. By then, we’ll be back in the hunt!
I would suggest a long hard look at Freedom, Inc’s petition, the ordinance states “property owners” not those leasing or renting. There’s a huge difference ijs!
I’m really out of it; I’ve got to Google every one of those urban acronyms…ijs = “I’m just sayin'”
This blogging is helping me stay young and hip!
I still wish folks would consider the educational benefit of renaming our half of State Line Road the Martin Luther King Jr Road — and challenging our neighbors across the state line to rename their half of the road similarly. King does not belong to one segment of the population here; he is a world figure. I don’t want to keep him identified with one community as if they own him, so I’d settle for 63d Street or a terminal at KCI. I think what the mayor did produced good discussion, and I’d like even more discussion, of the friendly sort.
No way, Vern. No chance whatsoever…I didn’t really understand the ministers’ mindset until I read a column of Steve Kraske’s last week. He interviewed Rev. Vernon Howard, who has been out front for The Paseo.
Howard points out that neither 63rd Street nor the airport in the far distant Northland touches the heart of the African-American community.
Regarding the airport and 63rd Street recommendations, he said, “These two recommendations simply do what the city has a pattern of doing, and that’s simply flying over the inner city.”
I didn’t realize they were dead set on an inner-city solution. If that’s what they want, then by God, I say let ’em have it. I’m not going to wrestle them over dibs on MLK naming rights.
With all due respects the folks who live on much of State Line Road, on either side, would never allow it to be called MLK Road (and they have the power to make sure it doesn’t happen. They, of course, will find some high minded reason for not doing so, but the bottom line is that it will never happen.
P.S. I can’t believe you’re caving on The Paseo, as passionate as you were about it! C’mon, Fitzpatrick, where’s the fight in ‘ya?!
Gettin’ kinda wussy, I guess…
Trade SALVY??!! I think the heat’s getting to you. Remember your prediction about Moose? (Though he hasn’t been the same since Hos left.)