WWE Interleague Edition

Call me naive, but it took until I was in my mid-20s - OK, last year - when I realized that baseball teams can be done for the season before most of us even start thinking about the All-Star Game.

Fittingly, it was Ryne Sandberg's "autobiography" that gave the Cubs' June swoon more gravity that it had ever had before. I'd always assumed that pure pride would keep a team competitive until at least July, but Ryno set me straight. That, and the Shawon Dunston vs. Nolan Ryan story is the only reason to pick that steaming pile off a used bookshelf.

Something tells me that the 2006 Cubs are done, regardless of what happens with Derek Lee and Kerry Wood. Don't even get me started on Mark Prior.

It's a tough call in the NL Central - if they can stay within striking distance until they get Lee back, they might be able to pull off a miracle, but when have the Cubs ever been known for overcoming the odds?

Exactly.

At least someone jacked AJ Pierzinski in his anti-chin. I think the rest of the season may be a letdown after that. Even before he joined the Southsiders just looking at him made me kind of angry.

I'm just shocked that there was on-field violence not involving a fan - That's got to be some sort of record for the Cell, right?

* I can't think of a funnier tradition than snubbing a guy for his first home run. Boston pitcher Josh Beckett, who looked like a newborn calf for his first few at-bats made contact in the seventh and somehow hit a homer.

He got back to the dugout and the bench held tight for a good 30 seconds before Curt Schilling lost it and the team mobbed him with hugs and high fives.

Pure comedy.

* The Babe has company with Bonds now tied at 714 career home runs. I would have been OK with walking him until his sub-par fielding and elderly knees drove him out, but statistically, it was bound to happen.

Good for you, Barry. Now go away.

* Cripple fight!

The Devil Rays (18-24) and Marlins (11-29) go at it again tomorrow at 12:15 pm CST.

I can only imagine tickets are still available. This is the downside of interleague play. Some don't work (Braves vs. Diamondbacks), some are pretty boring (Twins vs. Brewers) and some just fade into the swampy haze (see above).

* And finally, how funny is interleague play when pitchers who haven't seen live pitches since high school have to pick up a bat and try to not look foolish. It's one thing to be the ninth guy in the order, it's another thing to have to shake off the rust to try and compete.

Second only to this are designated hitters forced into the field at first to get into the lineup. If things didn't go well, I think the Red Sox had instructions to try rolling the ball over to first to help out David Ortiz.

(Image from NBCcableinfo.com)