Braves Bench Conrad for Game 4

You have to feel for the guy.

Atlanta Braves second baseman Brooks Conrad is not in the starting lineup for Game 4 of what could be his club's final game of the National League Division Series on Monday night against the Giants at Turner Field.

Instead, Troy Glaus was at third base and Omar Infante at second a day after Conrad set two NLDS records by committing three errors in Sunday's 3-2 loss. The Giants lead, 2-1, and can wrap up the best-of-five series with a victory Monday.  Glaus is not known for his defensive prowess either.

Conrad's three errors also tied the overall single-game postseason record shared by 11 other players.

Conrad wasn't available to comment on Monday, but after the game on Sunday, he stood tall and faced the media.

"It's completely embarrassing," Conrad said. "Once again, I felt like I let everybody down. I feel terrible. It's a whole lot to swallow. That last one, I tracked the whole way and tried to stay in front it at least. It seemed to go right through me. Weird feeling, but no excuses. It was a terrible performance tonight.

Glaus has played in 128 games this season for Atlanta, mostly at first base, batting .240 with 16 homers and 71 RBIs. He's played only two innings at third base all season and hasn't started at the hot corner since 2009, when he played for the Cardinals. He did play some third base during a one-week rehab stint at Triple-A Gwinnett the last week of August after recovering from inflammation in his left knee.

Check out Conrad's miscues here: http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=12802465&topic_id=8878972&c_id=mlb

NHRA: Ashley Force-Hood Blows the Body off Her Funny Car

A terrible explosion caused the body to blow off Ashley Force-Hood's Funny Car during qualifying this weekend at the NHRA event at Maple Grove.

She was running in a heat against her father, John Force.  Ashley had a good run going until the explosion.

Now is the time... Instant Replay in Baseball

It's the talk of baseball.  No, not the postseason matchups, everyone is talking about instant replay and the lack of it on certain plays in Major League Baseball.

Last night, San Francisco Giants Buster Posey steals a base, even though replays show he was out, and scores the only run of the Braves/Giants game. 

Even Posey offered up,  "I guess it's a good thing we don't have instant replay right now,” he said after the game.

The umpire that missed the call was Paul Emmel.  He's a good ump, but humans make mistakes.  There have been other missed or blown calls in the other series' as well.  Replay needs to be added, at the very least for the postseason. 

Earlier this season, remember not having instant replay cost Armando Galarraga a perfect game.  Jim Joyce who is an excellent umpire just missed the call.  First base umpire Jim Joyce thought he made the right call. "I thought he beat the throw. I was convinced he beat the throw, until I saw the replay,” Joyce said after the game.

The technology is there, the public wants it, and I believe it will take pressure off the umpires, who already have a lot on their plate.

Phillies Beat Reds, and Halladay Throws a No-No

Phillies ace Roy Halladay threw the second no-hitter in postseason history, leading the Philadelphia Phillies over the Cincinnati Reds 4-0 in Game 1 of the NL division series on Wednesday.

Don Larsen is the only other pitcher to throw a postseason no-hitter. He threw a perfect game for the New York Yankees in the 1956 World Series against Brooklyn. The 54th anniversary of Larsen’s gem is this Friday.

The All-Star right-hander, who tossed a perfect game at Florida on May 29, dominated the Reds with a sharp fastball and a devastating slow curve in his first playoff start.  The Reds were overmatched from the first pitch.  They never even sniffed a hit.

Halladay spent 12 seasons with Toronto, far from the postseason. A trade last offseason brought him to the defending two-time NL champions, and gave him this chance.

The last time a pitcher came close to a no-hitter in the postseason was quite a while ago. Boston’s Jim Lonborg went 7 2-3 innings against St. Louis in the 1967 World Series before Julian Javier broke up it with a double.

The Phillies look like they are going to be tough to beat this October.

It's Not Crazy, It's Sports - Love it

ESPN is known for it's great commercials.  Years ago they even put out a DVD of their best spots and I bought it.

Now they have this one with the Eagles fan.  Hope the band Orleans is making a nice penny for the use of their song.