A FEW MO' THINGS, 6/8/12
Not that I plan on ever having one, but if I ever had to pose for a mugshot, this is close to how I'd look.

-Programming Notes: The Mo Egger Show returns to ESPN1530 Monday through Friday of next week, with bonus time on 700WLW both Monday and Thursday night.

-Promotional Notes:  I'll be at the John Morrell Tailgate tomorrow before the Reds/Tigers match.  We'll be at the corner of 3rd and Race with FREE John Morrell hot dogs, grill set giveaways, beer for sale, rally pack prizes, and live music.  Plus, I'll be there. You should too. 

-Personal Notes:  Yesterday afternoon, I made myself a ham, turkey, and salami sandwich while watching a Phillies/Dodgers game.

-Aroldis Chapman, it turns out, is not an infallible, flame-throwing robot after all.  He's allowed to give up an earned run every two months, even if said run costs the Reds a game. 

First place or no, that was a frustrating loss last night, in a game where the Reds switched back and forth between brilliant (Heisey's catch, Ludwick's bomb, and Votto's three hits) and the befuddling (They left nine on base, but it felt like 19.  And Brandon Phillips inability to get the runner over in the tenth trumped his brainfart in the field in the seventh). 

And yes, I would have had Phillips bunt in the tenth.

They're not going to win every series, and you've gotta give the Pirates for hanging in what most of us thought would be a two team race, but losing two of three to rfor the second straight week feels a little deflating.

-I wonder how Dusty Baker feels about not hitting Votto and Bruce back-to-back after watching the Pirates intentionally walk Jay with one out and Joey on second in the tenth inning?  That was a ballsy move by Clint Hurdle, and not one I think he makes if Bruce comes up with no outs.

-Meanwhile, the Detroit Tigers are in town.

-I don't like paying $9 for beer at baseball games.  I'm guessing you don't like having to pay $9 for beers at baseball games.  But the next time we grip about the price of a cold one, let's thank idiots like the dude who allegedly drunk dude who allegedly punched a cop at Tuesday night's Reds game.

-Chad Ochocinco is no longer a Patriot.  Many have wondered how Chad will handle life after football.  I think we're very close to finding out.  Physical skills leave every athlete.  But you can't compensate for the impact of father time if you can't learn the plays. 

-Is 45/15/5 in a must-win, backs-against-the-wall, elimination game considered "clutch?"

Had that been Rajon Rondo's line in game six of the Eastern Finals (which it nearly was in game two), we'd spend today slobbering over his performance.  Same thing with every star in the league, and deservedly so.

I'm on record as being tired of Miami's act, more because their coach made almost no adjustments in the series' first five games and because they've spent large chunks of the playoffs in cruise control, but how can a basketball fan not appreciate what LeBron James did last night?

Of course, he still has to come up big in game seven (By the way, the Celtics fans chanting "Let's Go Celtics" as the clock ticked down the final minutes of last night's blowout loss was one of the cooler things I've seen this season), and he'll still be crucified if the Heat does anything but win the title (And even then, there will be non-stop attempts to diminish the championship, because that's what sports fans do these days), but for a night, a player who carries around an undeserved rep for being unreliable in big moments came through with one of the best performances in recent playoff history, even if it did nothing to change the perceptions of people who really don't even watch the games, or the people who go to games just so they can throw beer on players.

-Maria Menounos probably watched last night's game.  She might've murdered someone afterward.

We get Nick Lachey.  They get Maria.  Life ain't fair.

-There's a really good chance you didn't see this because no one watches Conan O'Brien's show, despite the national uproar when he lost his old TV show.  Nonetheless, this is pretty funny...

-Here's a look back at the career of Norwood's Marc Edwards.

-If this guy who found a prosthetic leg with a UK logo put his find on EBay, I have family members who would bid on it.

-The Reds and Tigers are having a hashtag battle this weekend.  I guess this is the social media version of that horrific show on MTV that Fez from That '70s Show used to host on MTV.  Anyway, I'm not sure what the winning team gets, though I hear it includes never having Tracy Jones claim that he played for them. 

-Also, there's this from the Reds....

For the first time ever, Reds fans will have the opportunity to bid on a “Players Favorite Things” basket auction on Saturday, June 9 before and during the 4:10pm game vs. the Detroit Tigers at Great American Ball Park.

Ten gift baskets have be filled by the players wives with favorite items of the Reds players. 

Items include specialty food and candies, gift cards, DVDs’s and t-shirts along with Reds tickets and autographed memorabilia. 

The Reds Wives will be selling $10 raffle tickets (cash only) from when gates open at 2:40pm to the end of the 8^th inning at the Crosley mosaics near section 127. 

The winners will be drawn at random during the 9^th inning. Fans do not need to be present to claim their baskets. 

All proceeds go to the Ronald McDonald House Charities.

Player baskets are from: Dusty Baker, Joey Votto, Jay Bruce, Chris Heisey, Mat Latos, Zack Cozart, Drew Stubbs, Sam LeCure, Mike Leake and Nick Masset.

Frankly, I think it would be more fun to find out what the wives' favorite things were, but they didn't ask me and probably never will.

-This is going to be a fun sports weekend here in the United States.  We have some interesting MLB interleague matchups, we have the NBA's Eastern Conference Finals heading to a game seven, we have the Stanley Cup Finals continuing tomorrow night, and we have a horse aiming to win the triple crown, even if the owner, trainer, and jockey will get all the credit.

In France, they have the finals of the French Open.

In Great Britain however, they have the national shin-kicking championships....

Advantage: Great Britain.

-In addition to all of that, the Cincinnati Rollergirls in action in a huge rivalry showdown with the Black-n-Bluegrass Rollergirls of Northern Kentucky.  These two foes have never met, but square off in what they're calling the "Crosstown Showdown." Unlike the Crosstown Shootout, I'm hoping for a fight in the Showdown, especially since I have no idea how the sport works when they're not fighting.  Also, I'm getting a tattoo inside my lip.

-"Call Me Maybe" makes me question the continuation of my very existence, but I do like this, from the Miami Dolphins cheerleaders.  Just watch with the audio muted.

-Here's an outstanding headline from some newspaper in Washington....

-Blog done.  There might be one more later.  Keep hitting refresh to find out.  Or follow me on Twitter.  Here's why jockstrap manufacturers will never go under.