Josh Q. Public:I’ve been beat up. I’ve been thrown out. But, I’m not down. I’m not down. I’ve been shown up. But, I’ve grown up. And I’m not down. I’m not down. -Clash
Public Service Announcement: OK, here we go! Just a fast one today. A blast from the past one today. At long last one today. Eric Gagne. Once the greatest closer in all of baseball. But then came the injuries. Then came surgeries. You want to trust the doctors. Their procedure is the best. But the last try was a failure. And the intern was a mess. Gagne was a mess. Gagne was a mess last summer. He thought it might be over last summer. Greer is putting the ball in play. He gets it out deep and Havliceksteals it! Over to Sam Jones! Havlicek stole the ball! It’s all over…It’s all over! Johnny Havlicek stole the ball! The doctors took out eighty-five percent of Gagne’s L-4 and L-5 vertebrae last summer. The doctors performed surgery on his pitching elbow last summer. With all of that, the Texas Rangers still took out a six-million dollar flier on this cat. You can’t beat that with a bat. You can get with this or you can get with that. You can get with this or you can get with that. You should get with this, ’cause this is where its at. Eric Gagne’s where it’s at. Eric Gagne. Closer. A man barely alive. Gentlemen, we can rebuild him. We have the technology. Better than he was before. Better, stronger, faster. Better than he was a before? Now that’s a tough bill to fill. A climb all uphill. But he’s got the skill. The skills to pay the bills. Had the skills to save fifty-two games in his first season as a closer. Had the skills to save fifty-five out of fifty-five the following year. Fifty-five saves lives. That made him the first pitcher to ever record fifty saves in more than one season. It also made him the fastest pitcher to ever reach the 100-save plateau. Faster than a speeding bullet. More powerful than a locomotive. Powerful enough to convert eighty-four consecutive save chances. Another major league record. Powerful enough to convert 161 out of 167 chances. Yowza! Earned himself the Rolaids Relief Man of the Year Award. How do you spell relief? G-a-g-n-e. Became the first relief pitcher in eleven years to win the Cy. Hey hey my my! Rock and roll will never die. It doesn’t look like Eric Gagne’s gonna die either. Not yet. Saddle your ponies you bet! Eric Gagne walked onto a major league mound for the first time in more than ten months last night. Eric Gagne pitched a scoreless ninth inning including a strikeout of Ichiro last night. Eric Gagne earned his second save in twenty-two months last night. Oscar Goldman would have been proud last night.
Public Acknowledgements: The Clash, REM, Johnny Most, Black Sheep, Yahoo Sports, The Associated Press, Steve Austin, Beastie Boys, Wikipedia, Superman, Neil Young and Rowdy Roddie Piper.
Yes Josh. I may be the best ever. LOL. YANKEES YANKEES YANKEES. I can't wait to hear a Bostonian rant about their love for the decrepid Yankees. You expressing love for Jeter, A-Rod and Rivera will be priceless.
By the way, can the Dodgers get Gagne back by some freak accident?
what are you comlaining about? you guys are playing great. gonzales is on fire. you may have the best catcher in bseball no ones heard of. penny and saito have been lights out. you're on top of the world
I have that Neil Young tune on my computer; just listened to it last night. It's great when a pitcher's able to find new life as a closer like that. Nice acknowlement even through your love for Mo.
Gagne looked good in his recent relief appearance. He was clocked at 92 mph on the fastball. Would love to see him make it back. Electric guy with an electric personality.
I watched Gagne pitch the 9th vs. Seattle yesterday.
Man, he looked good. He had velocity, accuracy and movement.
The Rangers held off using him in 07, taking advantage of every day of healing.
Today, no save attempt, since the Rangers pulled a big fat AHOGA and were stomped by the Mariners.
I think his back will be far more of an issue than his elbow will. He is not a little man, and, seen from up close, his abdominal muscles still look a little paunchy. That is bad for a post op laminectomy. He will need to be very careful of his mechanics.
Laminectomy--removal of the bones and lamina (ligaments) that support the spinal column. Without reading the op report, I don't know if they put a titanium cage in or not, but they should have, given his occupation.
If they put the cage in, you could consider that kind of bionic. The purpose is to protect the area where the bones were removed. (And it is a nasty looking little booger, too, with hooks and such to hold it in place until the bone fuses around it).
No, I decided not to go to Harvard Med after watching both of my uncles see 100+ patients a day and turn to nicotine and alcohol to get through the day every day. I'm an RN.
josh q. public. For the public, by The Public. Irreverent sports opinion from a Bostonian in New York. The one blog to read, when you’re reading more than one. Good to the last drop!
failure. And the intern was a mess. Gagne was a mess. Gagne was a mess last summer. He thought it might be over last summer. Greer is putting the ball in play. He gets it out deep and Havlicek steals it! Over to Sam Jones! Havlicek stole the ball! It’s all over…It’s all over! Johnny Havlicek stole the ball! The doctors took out eighty-five percent of Gagne’s L-4 and L-5 vertebrae last summer. The doctors performed surgery on his pitching elbow last summer. With all of that, the Texas Rangers still took out a six-million dollar flier on this cat. You can’t beat that with a bat. You can get with this or you can get with that. You can get with this or you can get with that.
You should get with this, ’cause this is where its at. Eric Gagne’s where it’s at. Eric Gagne. Closer. A man barely alive. Gentlemen, we can rebuild him. We have the technology. Better than he was before. Better, stronger, faster. Better than he was a before? Now that’s a tough bill to fill. A climb all uphill. But he’s got the skill. The skills to pay the bills. Had the skills to save fifty-two games in his first season as a closer. Had the skills to save fifty-five out of fifty-five the following year. Fifty-five saves lives. That made him the first pitcher to ever record fifty saves in more than one season. It also made 
him the fastest pitcher to ever reach the 100-save plateau. Faster than a speeding bullet. More powerful than a locomotive. Powerful enough to convert eighty-four consecutive save chances. Another major league record. Powerful enough to convert 161 out of 167 chances. Yowza! Earned himself the Rolaids Relief Man of the Year Award. How do you spell relief? G-a-g-n-e. Became the first relief pitcher in eleven years to win the Cy. Hey hey my my!
Rock and roll will never die. It doesn’t look like Eric Gagne’s gonna die either. Not yet. Saddle your ponies you bet! Eric Gagne walked onto a major league mound for the first time in more than ten months last night. Eric Gagne pitched a scoreless ninth inning including a strikeout of Ichiro last night. Eric Gagne earned his second save in twenty-two months last night. Oscar Goldman would have been proud last night.
