MLB Bullets Has A New Twitter Handle

Every year I vow this is going to be the year I ignore football. And right now I've got the Rutgers/Fresno State game on. It's like a car wreck that I just can't avert my eyes from.

• I start collecting news stories the morning after I write the last one. And the fourth one In my folder file was this story published by Reds beat writer C. Trent Rosecrans about Brandon Phillips moving to the number 2 spot in the lineup.
• I fully expected that story to be a filler link in the final quarter of today's bullets, if it made the final cut at all. But then Rosecrans issued a couple of tweets questioning the move and, well, Brandon Phillips was none too pleased about it, and he made his feelings known through an obscenity-filled rant that was captured on video. Unfortunately for Phillips, I'm going to steal the Twitter handle he suggested Rosecrans use.
• Will Leitch writes a long essay about how this incident illustrates the unequal power relationship between the athletes and the reporters that cover them. It's just missing an Antonio Gramsci reference. That's probably a good thing.
• Rob Neyer points out that such tirades have been common throughout baseball history, but no one had video and Twitter in days past. (He also included some awesome video of George Brett clocking Graig Nettles, benches clearing and no one getting ejected from the game. Ahh, the good old days.) His point is that Phillips' behavior is a result of a culture that is entirely too permissive towards the behavior of star athletes. And writers like Rosecrans have no option other than to put up with it.
• Ron Darling, who has been on both sides of the microphone, sums it up nicely: "They think they're going to embarrass the writer in front of others. What happens is they embarrass themselves."
• Speaking of athletes behaving badly, Yasiel Puig got benched again. You probably saw the game as it was against the Cubs. Tim Brown wonders if Puig will ever learn from these punishments. He also has an anecdote to show that Puig can be a really nice guy at times.
• Following up on last time's Forbes report on the Astros profitability, that article's conclusions were disproven by Maury Brown writing in Forbes. So yeah, Forbes is saying that Forbes doesn't know what it's talking about.
• Bryce Harper says the Nationals are still in the postseason hunt. Also, you should stop watching the Redskins. I know which one of those two statements I agree with.
• Agreeing with Harper, Thomas Boswell thinks teams should never give up on the season too soon.
• Marc Normandin argues that for all the talk about the disappointing seasons Albert Pujols and Josh Hamilton are having, it's important to remember that it's their pitching that has done the Angels in. He's got some suggestions on which pitchers they should be pursuing in the offseason.
• Ken Rosenthal argues that firing Angels GM Jerry DiPoto won't solve their problems. He wonders if Mike Scioscia shouldn't be the one to go.
• With the horrible year the Angels are having, it's a good thing they have the lowest beer prices in the league.The Red Sox charge the most. The Cubs are ninth.
• Roy Halladay called Matt Harvey to cheer him up and to talk about when he went through the same situation back in 2006.
• Grant Brisbee says goodbye to Rafael Betancourt, whom he calls "The poor man's Mariano Rivera." The analogy makes sense when you read it. Also, did you know that Betancourt hit a batter in the tenth game him pitched in back in 2003 and never hit another batter the rest of his career?
• Joe Posnanski wonders how many would-have-been great pitchers have been lost to injuries throughout baseball history. He also points out how lucky Harvey is to have modern medicine.
• Jon Paul Morosi thinks something's wrong with Justin Verlander.
• Cliff Corcoran thinks Marlon Byrd is a huge upgrade in right field for the Pirates.
• Jeff Passan thinks Jayson Werth is worth all the money that the Nationals are paying him.
• Was Yovani Gallardo's hamstring injury a good thing for him?
• With Jason Heyward out for the rest of the regular season, Jordan Schafer has stepped up.
• Braves infielder Elliot Johnson pretends he's a NASCAR driver. You mean he wasn't?
• Jeremy Hellickson's problems this season are a result of his poor command and use of his secondary pitches.
• David Price is more excited to see the start of football season than I am.
• The Marlins had two runners sliding into third base at the same time. "I know we're losing, but we've got two men on base" Oh yeah? Which one?
• Jon Heyman breaks down the top 50 free agents this upcoming offseason.
• Jonah Keri profiles the pitcher whose services are likely to be the most in-demand this offseason: Masahiro Tanaka of the Rakuten Golden Eagles.
• Wow. Ryne Sandberg is coming back to Wrigley Field. You think I would have heard something about that before now.
• Former White Sox director of player personnel Dave Wilder was sentenced to two years in prison for a bonus kickback scheme.
• This article is incredible: a list of how much money each team made on their media rights in 1961.
• Finally, if you've been reading this blog for awhile, you know that both Al and I love to keep score at the games. Jim Caple has an appreciation of a dying art.

And tomorrow will be a better day than today, Buster.