TWIN FALLS, Idaho - We'll be bouncing around the Potato Capital of the World for the next couple of days. Beautiful country.
And they are well aware of it. Three towns in succession as we headed out of Boise were Paradise Falls, Bliss and Magic Falls. That's some high quality branding.
As for those who shared difficult times with recent air travel, our flight out of the A-T-L was smooth as predawn lake water.
Let's roll.
Can see it across the country
OK, so Jules and JTC have been banging the "Max Fried is a No. 1 started, Jay" drum beat for a while now.
And Fried continues to do his part to make me find new and tasty ways to eat crow. (Two words: Hot sauce. Lots and lots of hot sauce.)
Fried went six scoreless Wednesday as the Braves continued to batter the Cardinals. Atlanta's 3-0 win was its third in a row over the visiting Red Birds, and Fried was impressive, even without his A-level stuff.
Mixing pitches and staying in the zone - he walked but one and needed just 82 pitches to get through those six innings - he lowered his ERA to 2.52 and his WHiP to a smidge over 1 at 1.02.
Those are No. 1 numbers, and certainly something to crow about.
Baker dealt
I thought Baker Mayfield was going to be a QB1 for a while.
Now, after the former No. 1 overall pick was dealt to Carolina on Wednesday, Mayfield is staring at the quarterback crossroads.
His option year on his rookie deal has been activated, but the big-money second contract - like the one that Mahomes signed that could be worth half a billion (yes, billion with a 'B') will depend on how he performs this year.
Make some plays, win some games and the Panthers could decide Mayfield can still be a QB1.Flounder on your second team in five years and he's likely looking at one-year back-up deals.
Simply put, that's a nine-figure difference.
Long gone
I've written it for more than a week now, but with each passing story, it sure feels like the Lookouts Stadium is a done deal. And like so many other debates and divides around us these days, the oversimplification of each side is kind of disingenuous to me. I know Jim Coppinger, and I know him to be fiscally responsible.
He wants this thing to happen and is pushing all his buttons in his final six weeks or so in office.
But simply saying, "The project will pay for itself" is not the full story. Because this project will make the Lookouts owners tens of millions of dollars too, and they are not going to have to front a single dime to get in front of this cash spigot.
And the posturing about "education" is more than a little hollow since the projections are this stadium and its 30-year lease will contribute $40 million to education. Over 30 years that's coins under the couch cushion for a system that has an annual budget of $400-plus million.
The other side - as Vader and BD have noted from the start - is not being factual with "taxpayers picking up the tab" conversations either. But why in the world is no one asking the Lookouts ownership to put skin in the game on the front end? Heck, Lookouts president Rich Mozingo told Paschall on the radio last week that the city and county budget folks wanted it that way?
Doesn't make sense to me, but no one said it needed to I suppose.
But does anyone at this point not think this Wheland deal is already done?
This and that
- One more thing on the Lookouts: The only 'defeat' I can recall in Coppinger's 11-year run as County Mayor - as in something he supported and stumped for and it did not happen - was a tax increase to help the school system. Yes, a TIF bond structure and a tax increase are not apples to apples - more apples to pineapples, maybe - but the relative ease with which the stadium is getting done compared to the schools debate is striking.
- Shohei Ohtani is amazing. He is the seventh pitcher in the last half century to go four straight starts with 40 or more combined Ks and no earned runs allowed. Ohtani is 8-4 and has not allowed an earned run in his last 28.2 innings. That's some legit ace stuff there. Oh yeah the 27-year-old sensation also is hitting .259 with 18 homers, 51 RBIs, 47 runs scored and nine steals. When his contract comes up, is he a six-year, $360-million deal kind of talent? Heck, is $60 million even enough considering that as a hitter Francisco Lindor is getting $34.1 million and Shohei's offensive numbers are better than his, and pitcher Trevor Bauer is making $35.333 million as a pitcher, and Shohei is light years more valuable than that guy.
- Hayden Panettiere, 32, opened up about her addictions in this story. When you remember she was Coach's Yoast's daughter in "Remember the Titans," you realize how long she's been famous.
- Chet Holmgren was great in his NBA summer camp debut, finishing with 23 points on just nine shots and stuffing a stat sheet to the tune of seven boards, six blocks and four assists. But let's remember that it was against undrafted Kofi Cockburn and Tacko Fall, which makes it akin to hitting three spring training homers against some cat wearing 82 and who will be bagging groceries before the season starts.
- Did you know there is a Nathan's lemonade chugging contest too? It's the sister competition to the hot dog eating deal. Eric "Badlands" Booker won the event by downing a gallon of lemonade in less than 30 seconds and then unloaded a 'Booger' Dawson-from-"Revenge of the Nerds"-level belch.
Today's questions
Fire away, it's an open mic Thursday.
And we have a spot or two for Friday's mailbag.
As for today, let's review.
On this day in 1928, sliced bread was sold for the first time. Did either of your parents - or do you - use the 'best thing since sliced bread' comparison cliché?
The first comic book was published on this day in 1802. It was titled "The Wasp" and it made fun of Republicans.
Ralph Sampson is 62 today. Wow, what a stud that dude was at Virginia.
Rushmore of the best college basketball players since 1980, because I think Sampson has a for sure spot.
Go and remember the mailbag.