VITAL
When It Rains, It Pours (27-18)
Dear Ken Macha, Since I last wrote to you, Ken, there’s been a bit of a cloud hanging over the team. First, Rickie Weeks’ wrist injury sidelined our perpetually on the brink — and finally turning the corner — second basemen for the rest of the season, dealing a significant blow to our offense. Then, J.J. Hardy became a prime candidate for a backiotomy. All of a sudden, the marginal reserve players that you thought would be sharing the bench with you all summer long are actually needed in the field, leaving you all alone with Willie Randolph and your handy Palm Pilot 1000. To top it all off, Doug Melvin traded away our beloved Tony Gwynn, Jr. for an outfielder named Jody. It was unfortunate that this wave of injuries occured during a particularly rough road trip through St. Louis, Houston and Minnesota. What started out so promising in St. Louis slowly devolved into an exercise of extreme torment in the TerrorMetrodome. If it’s any consolation, Ken, the Twins scored 20 runs against the White Sox the day before the Crew served up 11 to them. Considering Twins’ phenom Joe Mauer is making Ryan Braun’s hot streak from a few weeks ago look mediocre in comparison, holding them to 6 runs the next two games surely was a moral victory if there ever was one. Nonetheless, you were swept in particularly ugly fashion. Fortunately, the week that was did provide a few rays of sunshine. Mat Gamel was recently called up from Nashville and in his first start provided an impressive 3-run home run and made an amazing play at third. Sure, he followed up that play by making an error on a more routine ground ball, living up to his legend as the second coming of Ryan Braun. Even though he cooled off a bit during the Twins series, his presence on the team gives the Miller Park sound crew a reason to play “Camel Walk” every time he walks. In fact, there hasn’t been a more appropriately related song for a player since the little known “Rixey Jig,” named for Cincinnati Red’s pitcher Eppa Rixey’s provocative (for the 1920’s) strikeout dance*. Yovanni Gallardo also provided a ray of sunshine for your already nicely tanned face. After a very un-Yovanni like outing in Houston, Gallardo once again looked sharp in a Memorial Day pitcher’s duel against the Cardinals, leading to this letter’s deep thought (Ken, imagine The Wonder Years’ Daniel Stern is reading the following): Perhaps the most concerning aspect of the recent losing streak was the poor performance of our usually potent pitchers. Two thirds (10) of the team’s victories (15) in May have been in games where our pitching allowed 3 runs or fewer. This takes pressure off the offense, which tends to push too hard when it’s behind early in games. While it’s unreasonable to assume we’re always going to get a quality start from our starting pitchers, it’s important to realize how beneficial our pitching […]
May 25th, 2009 by Rob Vosters
Dave Fantle discusses film incentives
Following news of the zero-sum game of giant Michael Mann/Johnny Depp production Public Enemies, the budget proposed by Governor Jim Doyle in February would eliminate the Film Wisconsin tax incentives for good, replacing them with a biennial $1 million grant program. Mark Metcalf sits down with Dave Fantle of Visit Milwaukee to get the story.
May 22nd, 2009 by Amy Elliott
Battlestars vs. Paper Dolls
The Brewcity Battlestars, a B-Team of skaters from the four teams that make up the Brewcity Bruisers league, play their first bout in Appleton against the Paper Dolls.
May 21st, 2009 by Tea Krulos
The Motor City Comic Con
In the third and final installment of his Conventions series, Mark Metcalf reunites and reminisces with Carrie Fisher and Julie Newmar and considers the Michigan film incentives -- and how they compare to Wisconsin's.
May 20th, 2009 by Mark Metcalf
What’s In Your Yard?
Anyway, all of this set me wondering: is a modest pink flamingo less or more interesting than one of the gigantic art sculptures visible along N. Lakeshore Drive? You know … the ones that shout “Look! I’m art!” I can envision a gigantic gnome in a conical hat standing near Wisconsin Ave., can’t you? If you go to Burns Park on Prospect Avenue, there is a Beverly Pepper sculpture some claim resembles a giant spade.
May 20th, 2009 by Stella Cretek
Who was that woman in the minivan?
What was it about the driver's morning that made her accelerate so quickly? What was it that made those men crossing the street seem invisible to her? And why would she blame them for making her late to a job she probably doesn't even like? Or was it possible I was just misreading the situation?
May 20th, 2009 by Michelle Sieg
Milwaukee Ballet does “Live and Kicking”
While the Milwaukee Ballet takes its act on the road in St. Louis this weekend for a kind of lollapalooza of dance companies called "Spring to Dance Festival", we look at the final 2008-09 season performance featuring the return of a popular but strange William Shatner-inspired piece.
May 19th, 2009 by Peggy Sue Dunigan
Racine
Photos from our trip to Racine: organic brunch at Blueberries Cafe, meerkats and peacocks at the Zoo, jellyfish at RAM, quirky thrift-store finds, the shanty charm of the Yardarm and more.
May 19th, 2009 by Amy Elliott
Meerkats, sand dollars, 8 tracks and PROM
Our escapades in Racine continue with the zoo, a mad dash for kringle, the best thrift shopping on the I-94 corridor, and the main event: the 2009 Racine Prom.
May 18th, 2009 by Erin Petersen
RACINE: Jellyfish, biscuits and Marvin Gaye
Economic catastrophe got you down? Sad that a luxury vacation to an exotic locale isn't in your cards for at least five years, or possibly eternity? We know how you feel ... but we also know how to have fun, wherever, whenever and however. This summer, TCD and VITAL Source are proud to launch our SUMMER TRAVEL SERIES, featuring regular old people taking exceedingly uncommon day trips, staycations and adventure escapes to unexpected destinations in Wisconsin and (only slightly) beyond. To kick start the series, Racine native and all-around foxy lady Erin Petersen took Senior Editor Amy Elliott and Cultural Zero DJ Hostettler on a whirlwind day trip to Racine, WI, for art, prom and kringle.
May 18th, 2009 by Erin Petersen
May 19 – 25
This week on ThirdCoast Digest's weekly look at highlights in the world of local stage and music:the opening of Skylight Opera's staging of Gilbert and Sullivan's best known comic opera, right before the Florentine Opera concludes a 75th Diamond Anniversary year with a huge concert celebration. Also, Stonefly Brewery plays host for one night to an unusual traveling comedy examing surrealism, and a international pop star of sorts is coming to the Milwaukee Theatre.
May 18th, 2009 by Brian Jacobson
Ransom! (23-14)
Superb job, Ken! The number of losses in the subject line of this letter hasn't changed from 14 all week. That's quite the impressive fact considering the Pirates were the only team you'd swept until the Marlins came to town.
May 18th, 2009 by Rob Vosters
