Max Fried, ladies and gentlemen
Yeah, we remember the Braves' other SoCal superstar.
And if we didn't, Max Fried wanted to offer a sterling reminder.
After former-Braves-turned-Dodgers star Freddie Freeman stole Game 1 of this NLCS reunion with a passionate pregame speech and a first at-bat homer in L.A.'s win Monday, Fried took the ball Tuesday and took over.
And he silenced the Dodgers like Clarice did with the lambs when she capped Buffalo Bill. (Spoiler alert.)
Fried was filthy, which is one of those modern-day words that is the highest of praise for a pitcher but the opposite in terms of hygiene.
Fried's line against a Dodgers line-up that has three former MVPs, two former batting champs and the Wildiling that befriended Jon Snow was eye-popping.
He pitched seven scoreless innings, fanning eight and allowing two singles and no walks. It was as efficient as it was excellent, and maybe more importantly, it was the expected effort from the pitcher every Johnny Braves Fan from Tifton to Tunnel Hill knows must be a bona fide ace.
And Tuesday night, Max Fried was every bit of that.
Villains
Heroes make sports joyous. We talk about Spieth and Freeman and Mahomes and so many others that blend superstardom with super-dudedom. (Yes, Chas, I made up that last word. So it goes. Hope you're well, sir.)
(Side note: Word of caution here gang, tread carefully with the 'hero' tag. There are a lot of big-time sports stars who put out an image of being a super-good dude, but behind the scenes they are really not. I can remember vividly the race to anoint Mickelson as golf's savior after the Tiger infidelity revelations, and well, yeah, about that.)
So yeah, we adore our sports heroes, even if they are fewer and farther between than the days before social media and the 24/7 news cycle. You think Mickey Mantle would have been as beloved if half the country's adolescent boys knew he was hammering back boilermakers until 2 and chasing every woman in the five boroughs?
On the other hand, it could make him even more popular. Look at the Kardashians for Pete Davidson's sake.
But as much as those heroes make us love sports, the villains make sports more fun.
Seriously, heroes break your heart as much as they make your soul smile. Be it leaving for free agency, be it falling short in the AFC title game or whether it's dunking two balls into Rae's Creek on a Sunday in east Georgia.
But the villains draw us in. They captivate us, even if we are not directly part of the team-fan-villain equation. Kyrie Irving is the perfect example. The former Boston point guard who is now on the other side of a first-round series as a Brooklyn Nets star is in the crosshairs of the passionate Celtics supporters.
And Irving was, simply put, the best villain since Hannibal Lector in Game 1, dropping 39 points - including 18 in the fourth, and most of those came directly against NBA defensive player of the year Marcus Smart - and giving the Boston crowd a double finger salute that was almost like the 'No. 1' sign but different.
But here's the thing, obscene words gestures aside - be more creative as a superstar than the bird, and be more creative as a heckler than one of Carlin's seven dirty words - the battle between Irving and the Boston crowd is way more intriguing to me than anything Nets-Celtics related in terms of defending high ball screens or whether Steve Nash can find a third scorer.
It's the best in the biggest moments. On the road, in the epitome of a hostile environment. Is the villain up to the task? Will he buckle in the moment? Because that's what makes sports fun.
As the TV turns
Yes Braves-Dodgers has been fun viewing, but that's far from the only enthralling TV options before us at the moment. And that's not even counting the looming NFL draft that's on the horizon.
(I love the draft. You know this.)
Of the three TV thoughts I'm juggling, we'll start with the sweeping epic that is the two-episode "Better Call Saul" season premiere.
First, it is impeccably filmed. The camera work, the lighting, the angles, it's gasp-worthy time and time again.
Second, the supporting characters are pitch-perfect, both in writing, presentation and acting. Be them the Federales, the Statue of Liberty accountants, Mike (especially Mike), or all of the banditos, criminals and the rest. Nacho is perfect, as is the Chicken Man.
And they all take a back seat to Saul Goodman and Kim Wexler.
Wow, the all-around performances - in front of the camera and behind it - make this some of the finest work ever done on the small screen. Truly.
How good? I thought "Breaking Bad" was right there with "The Sopranos" as the second-best TV production ever behind "The Wire." And I'm not sure Saul and his associates are not better than Walter White and his "Breaking Bad" colleagues.
Elsewhere on the TV dial, Jerry West is ticked about how he is being portrayed in the HBO series "Winning Time" which is about the early days of the dynasty-building crafted by Jerry Buss, Pat Riley, and West, among others. I have enjoyed the series. But I can also understand a man with the public reputation West has crafted through more than six decades in and around the NBA. How off-base is the depiction, well according to this story, the real-life Kareem, who also is prominent in the series, said the HBO version of West is "a Wile E. Coyote cartoon to be laughed at." So there's that.
And speaking of entertaining TV, buckets, the Greg Norman 30-for-30 last night was aces. Aces. It was great, and man the pain that manhandled at Augusta National was breathtaking. The 1986 recap reminded me that Norman went birdie-birdie-birdie-birdie from 14-thru-17 to get even with Nicklaus before making a loose swing with a wayward 4-iron to make 5 on the final hole. And iNorman's quote of "I think my history there is probably more entrenched than some guys who have won a green jacket," is pure gold.
This and that
- Is there a more perfect college NIL going right now than John Daly's son, a college golfer at Arkansas, signing on to be a spokesman for Hooters?
- Yep, we all knew they were doing some dirty deeds up in Columbus, Ohio, right? Well, the NCAA is coming to town and dropped four-year probation on the Buckeyes. In fencing, women's hoops and women's golf. Yep, just as we expected, those seedy fencers.
- So, as America's dealing with soaring inflation and skyrocketing costs at the pump and at Publix, President Biden is making sure to forgive student loans. Yep, way to address the elephant in the room Joe.
- Speaking of villains, so Disney in its less-than-infinite wisdom has announced that Captain Hook is problematic because, and we'll quote the Disney release here, since this is mind-boggling, it could come across as "discrimination or prejudice against individuals with disabilities because he is a villain." So there's that.
- So Jimmy Butler, well done.
- Here's Paschall - rules and all - on the latest UT football commit, this one coming from the state's top-ranked prospect by some services.
Today's questions
Which way Wednesday starts this way, which is your favorite sports villain?
Which 30-for-30 is your personal favorite?
Which golfing collapse is more tragic, Norman in '96 at Augusta or Jean van de Velde at The British Open in 1999?
Which has a more lasting connection to Augusta National, Mike Weir or The Shark? Trevor Immelman or Greg Norman?
As for this day, April 20, let's review. And just because it's 4/20, don't let your day go to pot people. Be productive.Jessica Lange is 73 today. Camren Electra is 50.
James Gammon would have been 82 today. James Gammon was one of 'those guy' actors who you likely know better as Manager Lou Brown from "Major League."
Rushmore of fictional baseball movie managers. Go and remember the mailbag.