On occasion I’m going to read some mail and respond to you, my readers. Remember, nothing is too much or too little to discuss, and keep the feedback coming!
Hey Busdriva, how awesome would it be if J.P. Arenciba wins Rookie Of The Year this year, and Brett Lawrie wins it next year? Has that ever happened? And what do you think the chances are? First of all that would be amazing. But it’s not going to happen, for a couple of reasons. Primarily, that average (.222) is too low. While the homeruns (23) and the RBI’s (78) are great and fine, and he has worked tremendously on getting better at both calling games, and keeping baserunners in check, he’s at this point, an all or nothing hitter. Had he come in around at atleast the .250-.270 range, I would have thought he would get a lot more ROY recognition, but as it stands, I think he will garner a handful of second or third place nominations, but not many firsts. Besides if you look back at the last few years, the only position players to win ROY have been Dustin Pedroia, and Evan Longoria, and while I am a firm J.P. supporter, and I think he will bloom into an amazing catcher, hopefully for the jays for a long time, I wouldn’t go as far as to say he is in either one of those previous winners category (yet). If I got a vote, and sadly I don’t, I would say Ivan Nova, at 16-4 with a 3.62 ERA, playing on a Yankees Team that is under the spotlight every day, every game, and constantly in playoff contention since opening day, should get the award. As much as it pains me to vote for any Yankee, for any reason, especially one with the audacity to throw at Jose Bautista’s head (payback for that was sweet thought, wasn’t it), Nova stepped in, and some would say rose to number two in that rotation, behind Biggie, oops, I mean C.C. Sabathia.
As for Lawrie, well, truth be told, as fun as it has been, A.A. didn’t really do him any favours bringing him up at the point of the season that he did, from a hardware perspective that is. I believe the minimum at bats for a full season is 110-125, somewhere around there, and Lawrie had that up in late August, early September, which will make this his rookie season, as opposed to next year. Lawrie should have been up here opening day, except that we needed a spot for a guy named Bautista, so we could finally get to see the real Travis Snyder, whom for the record I am over. Rest assured though, if Lawrie, as stated in a previous blog, by a very intelligent, and good looking man, can maintain at atleast a 75% clip of what he has done, and the Jays continue to build around him the way they should, and have, then number 13’s trophy case will fill, just won’t contain the “you only get one chance at this one” Rookie Of The Year. As far as it having happened before, the only time I can really think of, off the top of my head, would be Bobby Crosby (04) and Houston Street (05) both with the Oakland athletics. I don’t know if it has happened before that, or in any other sport, and quite frankly, I don’t put enough stock in the award to even bother looking it up. You can feel free to, and let me know though…..
Wait, I actually got curious, and found something I should have known, but for some reason didn’t, the Oakland Athletics from ’86 to ’88 had three Rookies of the Year. Drum roll please………………… Jose Canseco, Mark McGwire, and Walt Weiss. I’m not going to lie, that is pretty impressive. But looking back, who would have thought Weiss would have finished up as the most reputable. That’s all the research im prepared to do on this subject.
"Busdriva, I enjoyed the PAC post. Always thought the Outlawz were some guys who worked at a Carwash and Pac let them be on Hit Em Up so they wouldn't steal the change out of his ashtray. In the end, Pac's anger is what made that track, you are right But, FYI, Dear Mamma is officially in the Library of Congress at D.C. as an example of modern music." "Busdriva, are you prepared to handle all the death threats you are going to receive after making a statement that Pac wouldn’t make your top 20 list?"
I will address both these at once since they are related. For starters, I did not know that Pac’s Dear Mama was in the library of congress, that’s actually really interesting, but I did know that they study some of his work at the University of Berkeley. I believe there is actually a course dedicated to him, as part of another course dedicated to creating your own curriculum. When last I read about it, it started off as a dream for some foreign kid, no disrespect, I just don’t remember where dude was from, and after a short period of time, they were above capacity in enrollment. But I don’t think it’s about him poetically, as much as it’s about him poetically and sociologically. Again though, that will require some additional research, that I’m not prepared to do at this point, and will possibly investigate further and blog about independently in the future. Now, as for the death threats, lol, this is the movement I spoke briefly about on that blog. Only Pac fans would even think about death threats based solely on one man’s view of a rhetorical all-time top 20 lyricist list. But that’s what he was about, and that’s how you feel. I respect and appreciate both. I’ve actually had this debate with a few people personally, since that blog went up. And after some thought, and work, I could adequately provide them with a list of 20 rappers who belong on that list, ahead of our beloved Shakur. Some of them suspect some of them no brainers. And while I’m not in the business of rescinding anything I say, it’s just not what I do. I will go on record with an amendment, so as to appease the faithful, and so I don’t have to look over my shoulder more than I already have to. Pac could be in the top 20, he had the ability to maybe even reach the low teens. Had he been more diverse, and concentrated more on the lyrical delivery he displayed on occasion, as opposed to constant anger and, dare I say, shock value, he would have been on that level. And that’s enough said on that subject, let the man rest in peace, or in Mexico, depending on what you believe.
"Busdriva, I love your blogs, I look forward to reading them every time you write them. I also creep you on facebook and twitter, although I’m not on either one as a follower (you should really up your privacy levels). I think your adorable, and smart and funny as hell. Can I have your mailing address, I want to send you a pair of my panties……" Where to begin here? I know neither why you would want to send me your panties, nor why I would want them. But since I am the peoples blogger, who am I to say no? Email me, I’ll give you the info you desire, unless of course this is the I.T team screwing around again, in which case, well played, retaliation for this one will not be minimal……
And that’s the mailbag folks, what fun we had. I assure you we will do this again, and soon. I love the feedback, and love hearing from everyone. I have to honestly say, I didn’t think it was going to get as big as it has as quickly as it has, but my promise to you has and always will be, you keep reading, I’ll keep writing. Feel free to send questions, comments, fodder, and musings to busdriva23@slamit.ca, and follow me on the twitter @busdriva23. 
