WRAPPING UP THE WEEK

Here's what was happening in Out of Left Field's world this week. Now Garth Snow me a iced cappucino, with skim milk.

SUNDAY: It was high time, someone suggested, to let Bell Globemedia annex Hockey Night in Canada away from the See Bee See; fellow Napaneean Avril Lavigne got married, like seemingly all girls from Napanee do, before turning 22; and there were things that someone had to say about the Middle East.

MONDAY: A Blog Blasts Past retrospective gave a frightening glimpse into what it's like to be a Minnesota Vikings fan; Rogers Sportsnet's Jamie Campbell was taken to task for being a little too apologetic over B.J. Ryan blowing a save.

TUESDAY: Garth Snow had just become general manager of the rogue franchise that is the New York Islanders, and already someone could detect the sickly scent of NBA Commissioner David Stern (this was only half-kiddingly) pulling some strings to make the N.Y. Knicks look good in comparison. Plus: yours truly wondered about new Leafs forward Mike Peca's hat trick and got a little prolix about the Blue Jays: "If the Jays can make the playoffs in the AL East, against the Evil Empires, the U.S. can get out of Iraq." Did I really write that? Guess the spirit moved me.

WEDNESDAY: A night of minor-league baseball made it easier to forgive the Jays when the bullpen failed to lock it up yet again in Tuesday's game against Texas. Which it's since done both of the two games since.

THURSDAY: The Jays seemed to be in disarray after the Shea Hillenbrand incident, but hey, this cooler head noted, "this is baseball, where you're only as good as tomorrow's starting pitcher." Meantime, a new verb was coined: Garth Snow me some coffee, will you?

FRIDAY: It was all about revelling in Vernon Wells' walk-off homer against the Evil Empire -- which even made the Blue Jays the lead item for Deadspin's "The Closer" feature. A friend of mine is really concerned about whether Wells wants to be in Toronto past 2007 and says they should be signing him now. Thing is, Wells is typically such a placid, even-keel kind of player that it's really hard to tell if he's upset or just being his usual toned-down self. The feeling here is the Jays should lock him up long-term and announce it near the end of the regular season.

That's all for now. Off to work, then it's a sleepless night before heading to T-Dot on the early train for the Jays vs. the Evil Empire.

Send your thoughts to neatesager@yahoo.ca, and have an average weekend.