MLB reforms

 Opening Day is less than 2 weeks away and my first game of the year will likely be in Philadelphia on April 17.  I'd like to hit 4 ballparks this year, which will leave me with only 3 remaining.  There is a real possibility of a lengthy lockout in 2027.  The worst case scenario is a canceled season and I'd hate to see it come to that. 

Let's start with recent changes:

Ghost runner on 2nd in extra innings.  

I support that but I think I'd make it 1st for the 10th-11th innings.  With a runner on 2nd, all it takes is a sac bunt and a fly ball to score a run.  The plus side is we won't have any 18 inning marathons, which really tax the bullpen.  I would not be opposed to a game being declared a tie after 15 innings in the regular season.  

Universal DH.

I grew up in a National League market and opposed the DH until recently.  It's more challenging to manage and teams will use their bench players.  I'd probably still oppose the DH if the average pitcher could hit near .200 with an OPS around .500.  As it is, the pitcher is usually almost an automatic out with a BA just over .100 and a 50 percent K rate.  I hope that we see more 2 way players.  I can think of several good hitting pitchers who could have been competent as a part time DH.  This would allow an extra man on the bench if outfield is crowded.

A DH allows a veteran with bad wheels to extend his career if he can still hit and opens up a regular spot for a prospect blocked by a star player.  I support this change.  I also support the pitch clock to keep the time of games reasonable.

Draft Lottery:

Support with further reforms that I will discuss later.  Let's say that there is a consensus once a decade type generational talent available in next year's draft.  In order to get him, a team blatantly tanks by trading their best players for mid-level prospects who are 2-3 years away.  They replace the real MLB talent with D-potential AAA scrubs in order to get the worst record in baseball.  Now, imagine multiple teams doing the same thing.  Players will try to win but management might not use their best relief pitchers in a close game.  Tanking must be discouraged and a lottery is a good first step.

Playoffs- The new format is likely here to stay.  I'm not a big fan. It's rare to see the best team win and a barely above .500 team can win it all by getting hot at the right time.  In hockey and basketball, a sub .500 team made it as far as the Finals but lost in 6 games.  I'd like to see 2 expansion teams to bring the number of teams to 32.  I'd go back to 2 divisions per league.  The division winner is guaranteed a spot then it's the next 2 best records.  You have to be a very good team to make the playoffs.  

That said, the current system is an improvement over the one and done wild card game.  Pittsburgh got screwed 2 years in a row when they had to face a starting pitcher in the midst of one of the most dominant stretches in history.  

Now on to further reforms:

Salary cap and floor- This is the big one and the arguments may not be negotiable on either side.  After what happened this off-season when a very good but not all time great player got a 60 million AAV contract, YES I support a salary cap.  In order to make it more palatable for the players, I would allow existing contracts to be grandfathered in.  Thus, Juan Soto and Shohei's mega deals don't count against the cap but future contracts do.  I'd also set the cap high so that few teams can reach it even with wild spending.  

I'm not thrilled about a payroll floor.  In that case, a 38 year old journeyman who is on his last legs will get one more big pay day just so a team hits the floor.  In doing so, he blocks a prospect with B-potential while performing below league average.  That said, if it's necessary to get a deal on a cap, so be it.  IMO, a better idea is severe penalties for tanking.  How about no 1st round pick and reduced revenue sharing after consecutive 100 loss seasons?  I'd even go as far as to force an owner to sell if the team goes a decade without a winning season.  

Several quality veteran free agents have gone unwanted in recent years.  The attitude is that a $10-15MM signing might be worth maybe 3 extra wins.  Instead of losing 97 games, they'll only lose 94 but still won't be competitive.  That line of thought needs to be discouraged and is a good argument for a payroll floor.  

Guaranteed Contracts:

I'm STRONGLY against that but the union is highly unlikely to budge on this issue.  Two big contracts in Rendon and Bryant have been total wastes and nobody could have predicted that they'd fall off THIS badly at the time of the signing.  I'm willing to meet halfway and allow a player to be released while collecting half of his salary.  

Example: Angels release Pujols after a negative WAR season.  They pay him $15MM instead of 30.  If he's signed by another team for $5MM, Pujols collects $20MM.  If he has a resurgence and a team thinks he's worth $20MM, Pujols still collects 30 but the Angels only have to pay 10.  Fair enough?

Another big reform that I favor has to do with PEDs.  If a player is suspended, their team should have the option to void the remainder of his contract.  It's really not fair to juice up in your contract year, get caught next Spring then come back diminished while getting paid like a superstar.  

Free Agency- As it stands now, teams have 6 years of control over their rookies no matter their age.  I propose reforms favorable to the players here.  Increase pre-arbitration salaries and minor league pay.  If a player debuts after age 24, he gets a shot at free agency after 5 years, maybe even 4.  A 21 year old phenom can get a big pay day when he hits free agency in his prime at 27.  By contrast, a late bloomer is already on the wrong side of 30 probably won't get more than 4-5 years even with superior performances in the past.  

Training 3/9-3/15

 3/9- AM- Interesting.  1 Mile at Vestavia in 11:50 while taking Glutamine after every lap.  Splits were 3:08-3:02-2:56-2:44 and I may have increased the effort slightly on Lap 4.  Yesterday, Glutamine was a game changer on just 1 pill.  Today, the first dose was borderline insignificant and even 3 pills barely got me under 11:00 pace.  

Perhaps, the insatiable need is already fading and the expected adrenal spike has already hit.  Took a Thym Adren at work and felt a discernable improvement but not so much on ADHS.  

PM- Opened with a 1:49 at Montreat (10:54 pace).

1 Thym Adren-1:34 (9:24 pace).  MINUS 90

1 ADHS- 1:25 (8:30 pace). MINUS 54

Exactly what I want to see.  Both forms of adrenal support are working but one is more effective than the other.  I'll probably go with the Thym Adren this week then switch back to ADHS to prevent an over-correction.

Distance-1.5

3/10- Same pattern as yesterday.  Opened with a very poor 1:52.  Yesterday, I already had pills in my system when I opened with a 1:49.  Today, the improvement was greater on Thym Adren but slightly less on ADHS.  1:35 on Thym Adren and 1:28 on ADHS.  Again, both worked but Thym Adren was much more effective.  Tomorrow, I will lead off with ADHS and see if I get the same result.  That's it for today.  Plans for this evening.

Last week, it was ADHS that worked well while Thym Adren was ineffective.  A leaky gut, fixed by Glutamine was likely the reason for that.  Again, it could have been worse.  At least the Thym Adren was tolerated.  

Distance-0.5

3/11-AM- Split decision.  Sprints were much better.  Opener was down to 1:42 (MINUS 60) compared to yesterday.  This time, I led off with ADHS and improved to 1:32 then Thym Adren got me down to 1:19.  Thym Adren remains more effective but the difference is less significant.  It's possible that the first dose has a greater effect.  Thym Adren it is at least for the next week.  New goal is to close the gap.

Unfortunately, the real workout was beyond awful.  1.5 miles in 18:57 (12:38 pace) with even splits.  Not going to panic.  Most likely, my body just wasn't ready for distance work yet.  I should be better tomorrow.  Evening session was rained out.

Distance-2.0

3/12- AM-Went with all Thym Adren and no sprint trials.  MUCH better than yesterday.  1.5 miles in 14:21 (9:34 pace).  Slight negative split too.  Cold, windy and RAW day outside.  One last shot of cold air is coming early next week.

PM- 2 miles in 19:32 (9:46 pace) with splits of 9:52-9:40.  Slightly slower than this morning but added more distance so I will call it a wash.  I was afraid that I would struggle because it's been 12 hours since I last took a pill.  Maybe the extreme need is beginning to fade.

Distance-3.5

3/13- 3 miles in 28:22 (9:27 pace).  Pleased overall as this was better than yesterday but I faded badly down the stretch.  1st half- 13:49.  2nd half- 14:33.  On pace for about 29:30 for 5K.  Below the Mendoza line but too close for comfort.  I'd like to be in the mid-high 27s before I race again.  

Distance-3.0

3/14- Half mile in 5:56 (11:52 pace). Splits were 2:48-3:08. I expected to struggle after yesterday but NOT like this!  

The culprit was lack of Probiotics.  I ordered the pills from Amazon and according to the tracking, it was delivered 2 days ago.  I never received it.  Most probably, the postal worker delivered it to the wrong address and the person who received it never dropped it off at my door.  Other neighbors have had similar issues.  THIS PISSES ME OFF! 

 Fortunately, the local retailer did have it but I got the last one!  Felt better immediately after taking it but I'm still pissed!  I should not be THIS BAD after just 1 missed dose!  I'm taking the rest of the day off and will try again tomorrow on fresh legs.

Got the pills in the mail this afternoon.  I have a spare now.  

Distance 0.5

3/15- 2 miles in 21:36 (10:48 pace) with a slight negative split (10:54-10:42).  Improvement over yesterday but still way behind Friday.  

What I said about the 1 missed pill wasn't completely accurate.  I had to lower the dose this week so the bottle would last until Friday.  I made it about 3 days before I felt ill- effects from the reduced dose.  I was already starting to fade by Friday evening and would have had a poor showing yesterday even if I took 1 Probiotic.  I need at least 3 of those every day but can get by on a lower dose for a few days.  That makes me feel a little better.  

Distance-2.0

Cold weather is coming and so is the sugar withdrawal so I'll likely be out of commission for the next 2 days.

13 miles on the week.

Need for Probiotics

 Here's a synopsis of what I've been up against the past couple of months:

Stand alone Calcium triggered an extreme need for Zinc but without Calcium, Zinc wasn't tolerated.  

Paramin (Cal/Mag combo) allowed for limited tolerance of Zinc.  I needed Zinc but couldn't tolerate more than 1 pill.

Stand alone Magnesium was not tolerated.  

Strong need for adrenal suppressants, but that seems to have diminished over the last 2 or so weeks.  ADHS works better than Thym Adren.

I knew it wasn't related to toxic metals as Malic Acid did nothing.  At least I didn't react badly to it.  I chalked it up to extremely unbalanced chemistry and a 2 front war.  

I figured that my Ca/Mg ratio was very low, while the Na/K was extremely high.  That would make sense.  Since Calcium lowers K, it would make the Na/K ratio worse but since Zinc raises Potassium, I need both.  Why wasn't the Zinc tolerated without the Cal?  The smart money was on the Ca/K ratio, which got worse with extra Zinc.  

I decided to go with the Paramin plus low dose Zinc and hope the sensitivity would diminish with time.  Also, I considered the possibility that sugar abstinence could help.  Within 12 hours of my last sip, withdrawal hit HARD!  I was so overstimulated that I had to drink a Dew to get through the day last Friday.  Surprisingly, I calmed down and felt better after a 16 oz can. 

 Then, the withdrawal hit again Saturday morning.  This time, I stuck it out and began feeling better by evening but went backwards again before bed time.  I got the idea to take Probiotics and felt a difference immediately.  Unfortunately, I woke up Sunday with an extreme need.  No mega doses for a quick fix this time.  I'll go with 2 pills in the morning and 2 in the evening.  

Workouts are going as expected.  Flat out awful without the Probiotics but progressively better with each pill.  Too much did trigger a stomach ache and diarrhea.  Stomach was in pain and it was making chocolate rain!  On the second day, I was not as bad without the Probiotics (6:00 vs 5:20 opener).  The best news is that stand alone Magnesium did NOT trigger a reaction on Probiotics and extra Zinc appears to be tolerated as well.  I'm going with the Probiotics and extra Zinc and will TRY to limit sugar too.

I don't doubt my belief in unbalanced ratios but the sensitivity likely stemmed from lack of Probiotics.  What I described above is NOT normal, even with severe mineral imbalances.

Training 3/2-3/8

 3/2- 3x half mile with Probiotics.  Again, significant improvement with each pill.  More good news is that stand alone Magnesium and extra Zinc appear to be tolerated again.  Splits today were 5:20-4:56-4:33.  Trending in the right direction. Much better on both the floor and ceiling.  Another small test this afternoon.  

PM- Took extra Zinc and it was a non-factor.  86.5 without it.  87-flat with it.  Only fractionally slower and I eased up at the end.  8:40ish pace at basic effort.  

Distance-2.0

3/3- 1 Mile in 11:36.  I knew it before I started.  Culprit was an adrenal spike.   Less horrible after extra ADHS.  Last quarter mile was around 10:30 pace after I popped 2 extra ADHS.  Nothing else made a difference.  I might try Thym Adren tomorrow.

PM- No running but it feels like Thym Adren reversed the adrenal spike and may have over-corrected it.

Distance-1.0

3/4- Adrenal spike is back.  2 miles on Lakeshore in 22:20 (11:10 pace).  Improvement over yesterday but hoped for a little better.  I still want to try Thym Adren tomorrow but will likely stay on this path.

On second thought, this was a significant improvement.  Yesterday, I was headed for an 11:50-55 Mile without extra ADHS.  Today, I passed the first Mile in 11:15 then managed a slight negative split.

PM- Just some quick tests.  Opened with a 96 then popped 1 Thym Adren and matched the opener to the tenth of a second.  Non-factor, which was a surprise.  Took 1 Taurine pill, which is known to deplete Probiotics.  Slipped to 99, which is borderline insignificant.  I'll stick to Probiotics with no Taurine for the time being but soon, I'll be able to take both together.

Distance-2.5

3/5- Took Zinc and Probiotics with no adrenal support.  Opened with a very poor 1:58.  Popped 3 Thym Adren and fared no better.  Actually, I was 1 second slower but that's definitely not significant.  

Popped 2 ADHS and improved to 1:47.  If I had taken the full dose, I likely would have beaten yesterday's time.  Most likely, that's it for today.  

PM- Decided to run 2 miles again to see if I do better in the evening.  The answer may be yes.  Improved to 19:32 (9:46 pace) with perfect pacing.  BIG improvement.  Can I keep it up tomorrow?

Distance-2.5

Very strange!  Feel very overstimulated but the adrenal suppressant is ineffective and caffeine actually helps.  I am glad Thym Adren doesn't make it worse.  Yet, the modulator is a game changer.  I don't understand this at all.  If both were effective but one worked a little better than the other, that's understandable.  I don't know.  

3/6- Good news all around.  Opener is down to 1:42 and I was actually holding back.  Added a short warm and cool.  Real workout was 1.5 miles in 13:15 (8:50 pace) with splits of 6:41-6:34.  YUGE improvement!  This was a morning session.

Distance-2.0

3/7- No, I can't keep this up.  Shooting for 3 miles, I had to settle for 1 in a time of 11:27.  Splits were 5:29-5:58.  My best guess was that I had taken the Probiotic/Taurine balance too far in opposite direction.  Nope.  The culprit was an amino acid called Glutamine that I don't even take regularly. 

 I expected to feel much worse on extra Probiotics.  Surprisingly, I got significantly BETTER.  Hopefully, this will be just a 1 day blip.  Perhaps the intolerance to Glutamine will fade once the Probiotic reserve builds.

Distance-1.0

3/8- Flip flop to EXTREME NEED for Glutamine!  Insatiable need.  Walk jogged 1 Mile.  Did do much better with every pill but the gains were short lived.  Adrenals will spike again but maybe Thym Adren will be effective 

Distance-1.0

12 miles

Training 2/23-3/1

 2/23- Forced rest day.  Too tired and jet lagged.  I didn't run at all in Hawaii and was BAD with the diet.  Time to get back on track now. 

 I was able to discern 2 important things: First,  I can't get by without Zinc but 1 pill is my limit.  I'm functional on 1 pill but if I go with zero or two, it's ugly.  I DO NOT LIKE THAT but it's unlikely that it's an autoimmune issue.  Rather, it's a 2 front war with the unbalanced blood sugar and adrenal/thyroid ratios.  Second, extra Paramin seems to help.  It is possible that increased Paramin and less sugar will improve my tolerance for Zinc.

2/24- 2 miles on Lakeshore in 19:17 (9:38 pace).  Splits were 9:34-9:43.  Surprisingly decent and better than expected all things considered.  Legs were sore but had some life.  Not completely spent at the end.  

Distance-2.0

2/25- Needed extra sleep so no morning workout.  Even with extra Paramin, Thym Adren doesn't work as well as the ADHS.  Cutting the sugar may not change that.

Update: Stand alone Mag is BAD!  Maybe that's why I struggled with extra Zinc and Thym Adren.  Paramin is what I need to take.  NOT Jigsaw Mag 

Distance-0.5

2/26- AM- 1 Mile on Lakeshore in 11 minutes plus.  Not surprised.  Still clearing out the bad stuff from yesterday.

PM- 1 Mile on Montreat in 9:44.  Much better.  Splits were 4:58-4:46.  I'll take it.

Distance-2.0

2/27- I am energy drink free but not caffeine free.  I was horrible this morning.  Very overstimulated.  Calmed down after a Mountain Dew.  Bring on the caffeine withdrawal tomorrow.  That may improve the tolerance for Zinc and Magnesium 

Distance-0.5

2/28- Horrible morning but got better as the day progressed.  Just walk/jogged 1 Mile but I was better a few hours later.

Distance-1.0

3/1- 4xhalf mile with Probiotics.

Opener-6:00.  Took 1 pill every half mile.

Improved to 5:22-5:04-4:47.

Distance-2.0

8 miles 

Maui and Las Vegas Trip Report

 

Maui was the right fit this year.  It's my only  remaining US bucket list trip that is doable in Winter.  Escaping the cold and snow for Hawaii is certainly not a bad idea.  However, for reasons that I will explain later, I recommend visiting Hawaii sometime between April and October.  In Maui, temperatures topped out in the upper 70s with a water temperature around 75.  That's a little cooler than average.  That's fine when it's sunny and calm but it's a little chilly when it's overcast and windy.  I actually needed a light jacket when I went out in the evening.  Also, finding rideable waves can be challenging in the Winter.  There were a few passing showers but nothing to wreck the trip.

2/16- 5AM flight out of Birmingham with a connection in Dallas.  Fortunately, I had enough time for a sit down breakfast.  No complaints about the flight.  I picked up my rental car and arrived at my hotel around 3 PM local time.  The flight and hotel were reasonably priced but the car was a rip off.  If possible, get a car off-site from the airport.  

My hotel was on a beach, but not a great place for swimming as it was near the harbor.  I took a quick dip then had dinner in the hotel and it was mid.  Still adjusting to the time change, I was in bed early.  

2/17- Woke up well before the sun came up and hit the Road to Hana by 6:30.  First stop was Twin Falls followed by the Garden of Eden.  

I arrived in Hana and stopped at a park then eventually found the trail to Red Sand Beach.  I was told that the trail was dangerous.  Not so much.  I've been to others that are much more treacherous.  I was told that the land was considered sacred to the locals and was asked not to post the pics on social media.  I will respect their wishes.  These pics are from the public park.

 

Yes it is possible to do the Road to Hana and back in one day but most people recommend an overnight stay in Hana.  I understand the reasons for that.  There are many one lane bridges with sharp turns.  The 36 mile road will take you nearly 2 hours and the drive is somewhat stressful.  You need reservations for the Black Sand Beach, so I was turned away.   I'm not sure if that beach is good for swimming and surfing and if not, I only would have stayed for maybe 20 minutes.  I do know that there is another beach nearby and I missed out.  Too bad.  My time in the surf was limited anyway as I will explain later. In the end, I had time to take a dip at Baldwin Beach on the way back.  

I HATE KEY FOBS!!  If you get them wet, they are ruined and it's very costly and time consuming to replace them.  This one didn't fit in my dry fob case!  My only options were to leave it on the beach and hope nobody steals it or ask the lifeguard to hold it.  I'd only trust him if it's behind a door because it could still be unattended at times.  Honolulu is a bit suspect but I don't think Maui is a high crime island.  Still, I was NOT chancing it! 

 Normally, I am not one to shy away from big surf but if I see waves taller than me breaking directly on the shore with rip currents, I will stay away.  Nobody else was in the water so that told me enough.  Most beaches were either like that or had no surf at all.  I likely would have had better luck finding rideable surf in the summer.  Still a nice day overall.

2/18- Slept in a bit then embarked on a strenuous hike.  It was a 4.6 mile route and I cut it off at about 2.6 to get more time at the beach.  That proved to be a good call.  On the way to the beach, I stopped at a surf shop and explained my dilemma with the key fob.  They sold me a plastic case with a magnetic seal.  A ziplock sandwich bag won't work but this did keep the fob dry.  Yes!  

From there, I went to Kaanappali Beach, which has sparkling clear water but not much surf.  I still enjoyed it and was still a little gun shy about the key fob.  Next was Highway 340 going north.  I had no idea but it was MUCH MORE DANGEROUS than the Road to Hana.  There was about a 15 mile stretch that was largely one lane with blind curves and no guardrails.  A collision would not do much damage but backing up on that road to let another car get by?  Very dangerous.  Thank God I never had to do that.  It's not worth it.  Turn around and take the long way after this spot.  

2/19- Morning at Fleming Beach.  Yes, there was high surf and rip currents but it was safe enough for a cautious surf session right in front of the lifeguard.  I didn't go after the big ones further out but enjoyed the shore break.  The beaches on the south shore had no surf.  

 

Next stop was the National Park, which reached an elevation of 10,023 feet.  Temp dropped to 40 degrees F and snow has been recorded here.  I was treated to exotic scenery and an epic drive through the clouds.

2/20- A bit more of a chill day.  Went back to Baldwin Beach and found it to be safe enough for a cautious session.  By the afternoon, it was cloudy and breezy.  I was tired so I didn't mind cutting it a little short.  I needed extra sleep anyways.

2/21- 6 AM flight to Vegas with a stop in Honolulu.  With the long flight and 4 hour time change, you can't get back in one day without a red eye.  I decided to break up the jet lag.  I arrived right around sunset at Trump Hotel.  After dinner, I took a walk down the strip with a brief stop at Caesar's Palace.  I bet 2 dollars at the slots and left with nothing.  I've never liked casinos but there is plenty more to do in Vegas.  Just be prepared to spend money. Better than expected.  

2/22- Drive about 1 hour northeast to Valley of Fire State Park with a stop at Lake Mead.  Unfortunately, I had time for nothing else but this was awesome. Incredibly, there was a trace of snow on the mountain tops.

Final thought:

Maui was good but not one of my all time favorites while Vegas was better than expected.  I will go to Kauai in a couple of years to complete the Hawaiian Islands but will shoot for a late Spring trip.  I may go back to Vegas for a baseball game as a stand alone trip rather than a stop over from Hawaii.