Matthew

Returned from a couple of days in Tucson on business, and the Mulligan set was waiting for me. Playing it now, and it sounds great.

Are there any good Dylan/Dead shows? The ones I've heard are not too good. Any recommendations of what I should try?

Well, since you're bringing it up, here's some more analysis, by professionals: Dan, who are you going to trust, some "professional" or a real fan? Hey, I played baseball until I was eighteen, Jeesh!!!

Can' tsay I'm too impressed with Matz stats: Matsuzaka's Career With Seibu W-L ERA SO IP 2006 17-5 2.13 200 186.3 2005 14-13 2.30 226 215.0 2004 10-6 2.90 127 146.0 2003 16-7 2.83 215 194.0 2002 6-2 3.68 78 73.3 2001 15-14 3.60 214 240.3 2000 14-7 3.97 144 167.6 1999 16-5 2.60 151 180.0 I mean, this guy is no workhorse for a no. 1 starter. Curve ball guys fron Japan go great guns the first year, but after that, they're not all that. To my mind, Jason Schmidt would be a much better pitcher, right out of the mold of St. Schilling. Then again, I think Schmidt is a great pitcher, and someone who could do very well in the AL.

Well, clearly Matthew signed up now knowing what bit-torrent is, or what type of file is being downloaded. Yeah, I knew, but it was only this morning, after two months of trying, that I finally was able to get the download/upload thing going. Lord, the things I do for Bob Dylan...

I don't get this. Why is Theo spending so much money on this guy? Why not use that money a get a couple of solid starters? Over 50 million? Since when has a pitcher from Japan been dominate for more than his first seson? Plus, this guy has Boras as his agent.

More stupid questions, this time about bit-torrents. It looks like I'm finally getting a download+upload on Dime-a-Dozen. Does it always take so long to download? Right now I'm doing about 10KBs? Do I need a program to convert from bit-torrent to MP3? Thanks for any help.

Thanks for the reply -- it never hurts to ask.

I have today off, so I'll treat myself and watch this afternoons Sonics/Nets game. Wait a minute, did I actually say watching Seattle vs. Jersery would be treat?? I need to get a life....

Hey, Mr. Moose: On the remote chance that one of these cds is Bill Evans: The Complete Verve Recordings, PM me and we might come to a mutually beneficial arrangement.

Oh gosh, that was the one I was thinking about. Maybe it wasn't TKAAR, could've been some other movie about the Who. What I remember the most is how shocked I was to see Keith Moon, before my very eyes, go from a young man to a very old man -- it was just flat-out scary/sad to see that happen over the course of the movie.

In the movie The Kids Are All Right wasn't there a surfing tune in that? I thought I read somewhere where Keith Moon was a big fan of surf-music. It was long ago, in the 70s, the one and only time I saw that movie, but man, was that weird.

Another thought I had last night: I wonder if J.D. Drew is english for Juan Gonzalez

Last night I had a scary thought: Drew, on paper, would be a perfect fit for the Mariners I mean, they sign Drew, which moves Ichiro back to right, takes care of center, and adds a big bat to the line up. Thankfully, I don't think the Mariners can afford Drew, who would probably ask for 15 million. Scary though....

Brad Mehldua Trio: House on Hill.

Nice article on JD Drew that explains why Dan should be scared, very scared of Drew in Boston, After two years of floating transparently through Chavez Ravine summers, J.D. Ghost has finally done something with passion, with strength, with heart. He quit. He ordered his agent to tell the Dodgers on Thursday that he was opting out of a contract that was undeservedly lucrative and generously long. He walked away from a stunningly guaranteed $33 million because it wasn't enough. He walked away from a team that spent two years coddling and protecting him because a supportive clubhouse wasn't enough. He walked away from a city that blindly embraced and supported him because Dodgers fans weren't enough. He did all of this only a few weeks after publicly saying he wasn't going anywhere, because his word wasn't enough. In a flourish never before seen from the softest player on the planet, J.D. Drew flat quit. The move was legal, fair, Scott Boras-brilliant, and stunningly brash. Who knew the Ghost had it in him? "He wants out. He can have out," said Ned Colletti, Dodgers general manager. "If he's moving on, we're moving on." Boras, Drew's agent, was surprised at Colletti's anger, saying this was just business. "I never said anything like that when he didn't exercise the option on Eric Gagne, it works both ways," Boras said. I'll confess, I'm having a hard time writing this while doing a butter-churn dance, high-fiving strangers and digging up Christmas music. Losing J.D. Drew is the best thing to happen to the Dodgers since they lost Milton Bradley. His disappearing act was as disruptive as Bradley's disturbances. Keeping him in the lineup was as difficult as keeping Bradley out of trouble. Sure, he led the team with 100 runs batted in last season, but do you remember more than a handful of them? In two years he averaged 109 games, 18 homers, 68 RBIs and dozens of funny looks from teammates who never quite understood. He missed games with strange pains and hidden soreness. He missed games simply because the manager didn't want to push him. Never once did he express anger that he wasn't in the lineup, even in the final week of this season's playoff push. Never once, it seemed, did he fight to get on the field. The Dodgers will not miss a presence they never had, a power they never felt. They can take the $33 million that he just dropped in their pockets — $11 million annually — and use it to get stronger and tougher and better. A couple of days from now, Colletti will realize that giving up the Ghost is the best thing that could have happened. But he's angry now because the Dodgers did back flips to keep this guy happy. He's angry because the Dodgers were caught by surprise. He's angry because if he had known this earlier, he could have planned better for an off-season that will now be as nuts as last winter. "You don't just go to the Rotisserie room basement and pull another guy off the table," Colletti said. So the question remains, why did he leave? He didn't return The Times' phone calls Thursday night, so we'll have to guess. Everyone, including Drew, thought he was happy here. Late in the season, he told the Orange County Register's Bill Plunkett he was staying. "At some point, you make those commitments, and you stick to them," he told Plunkett. Colletti referred to that story with a sigh. "I'm surprised how it came down," he said. "Everything that we had heard … indicated that the player loved being here." Boras publicly agreed with that. "There's no question he was happy in L.A.," he said. So was it all about the money? Considering Drew instantly becomes the third-most attractive free-agent outfielder for teams that will gladly ignore his issues, much of it is. "If you have a five-tool outfielder who drove in 100 runs in a rather weak center-field free agency market, that matters," Boras said. But apparently it was also about the warm fuzzies. Insiders are saying that Drew truly did it love it here, until the season ended and he realized that not everyone in the organization loved him. He heard the rumblings that the front office was tired of the coddling. He grew weary of media that kept applying the heat. Drew is the sort of player who hates the hassles that come with being a star. He wanted to go somewhere and do what he does best — disappear. By the end of the season, he apparently realized that the longer he was here, the more impossible this disappearing act would become. Increasingly, the Dodgers weren't afraid of no Ghost. So Drew climbed on Boras' back and took the leap, while Colletti rubbed his eyes in shock that such a mild player could act so maddeningly. In the end, there's no reason for anger by anyone. Drew was just exercising his rights. Boras is just doing his job. The Dodgers eventually will get what they want. None of this was illegal or unethical. If you want to be upset, be upset at former general manager Paul DePodesta for giving Drew such a misguided quit clause in the first place. On second thought, give DePodesta a standing ovation. The Dodgers have finally rid themselves of … what's his name again? Bill Plaschke can be reached at bill.plaschke@latimes.com. To read previous columns by Plaschke, go to latimes.com/plaschke.

Young whipper-snappers

AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB HBP SO SB CS AVG OBP SLG OPS Home 290 65 87 11 0 19 75 35 5 39 7 0 .300 .381 .534 .915 Away 294 39 83 16 0 15 48 43 3 37 3 2 .282 .377 .490 .867 Sheffield's stats from 2005. Surprising he did so much better at home then on the road. At Detroit, he was 13 for 3, no HR & 3 RBI, which works out to a .230 BA (I think, math isn't one of my strong points ) So, who knows, he might not be all that for the Tigers. Edit: Sorry, can't seem to line up the top row too well....

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

I hope the good reports are true, I have some Bill Evans/Coltrane lined up for the next couple of months.

That could be true. I'm purely a Senior Circuit guy, so I don't follow this new league that recently formed

Ex-zack-ta-mundo on this one. I don't see Sheff add too many positives to a club that had very good chemistry, (if that means anything nowadays) and his power might not transfer too well in his new home.

Holy moly, I still miss Carson . Went to a couple of tapings and wasn't too impressed with Leno. Johnny was one of a kind.

Thanks. I just pulled the trigger! I just pulled the trigger also. This board is EVIL

Drew usually batted fifth in the lineup, behind Kent. I can't believe that Drew thought there was too much pressure in L.A., which is Cakewalk City in terms of the press. With Boston, I would imagine he would bat behind Manny to give him some protection. I just don't see Drew surviving the Boston press though, he's too use to hands-off teatment from his days in St. Louis, Atlanta, and L.A., none of which is noted for an agressive press.