Bowing Out: A Newt And A Bee

What. A. Crock. Newt Gingrich really thought that he could go get "forgiven" by a fellow charlatan and scoundrel like the late Jerry Falwell and then extort the money he needed to run for President? Let me tell you...Newt couldn't be elected to the county commission of the reddest county in the reddest state. Did he not do any focus group studies before going off on this fool's errand? Newt Gingrich is, simply put, still one of the most despised figures in American politics today. Truth is, I'm almost sorry (but not at all surprised) that he punked out of the race because of the joy I would've taken in his inevitable winnowing-out after the Iowa caucuses. Oh, well...At least he's still got his little "non-partisan" think-tank where he can be the big, pale, doughy fish in a small pond. For a good laugh, check out Grift's take on just how non-partisan Newt's little side project really is.

Padres and Rockies for the National League wild card tonight. As crazy as it might be to pick against Jake Peavy, I have to go with the team that's delighted to be playing tonight over the team that led the wild card for weeks and considers this one-game playoff to be a pain in the ass. Plus, the game's in Colorado. I'm not real big on home-field advantages in baseball...but I've got a feeling that something crazy is going to happen at Coors Field tonight and the Rockies will somehow find a way to pull this one out. I'd love to see Todd Helton get a big hit to aid the effort. One of the game's unsung heroes.

Speaking of unsung heroes, how about this guy to the left? I've always had a soft spot for the Astros. I know the Braves always heard all the "choke" talk because they didn't win more world championships...but, thanks in large part to Atlanta, Houston usually never even got far enough to choke in the NLCS. But I came away with the utmost respect for Craig Biggio, Jeff Bagwell, Derek Bell, Brad Ausmus...heck even The Big Unit and Roger Clemens didn't seem like such bad guys when they were Astros. Bags left the stage last year and now Biggio's gone. Those two guys sure did their bit to restore respectablity to the term "Killer Bees." I won't miss his nasty-ass, pine-tar-encrusted batting helmet...but I'll miss Craig's hustle and classy demeanor. It'll be very weird to watch an Astros game next season and not see him out there. [Biggio pic courtesy of AP]