First Thing Smoking

Randall "Abe Froman" Simon may have taken a beating from bloggers, but you know what? He wants to be here. The Daily Herald has a great article on this guy and his 'tude.

"I said 'Hey, man, will you be here tomorrow? Who's going to pack the stuff up?'" Baker said before Sunday's game. "He said, 'I'll be there. My wife will come in and pack up next week, but I'm on the first thing smoking in the morning and I'll be there ready to play."

"I want to be part of it as soon as I could," (Simon) said. "They told me last night, and I said, 'Let's get a flight today in the morning so I can be here and help my team."

Simon wore a wide smile before Sunday's game as he chatted with Ramirez in the clubhouse. The Pirates are 7 games out of first place, and Simon looks forward to chasing a division title with his new team.

"It's a beautiful thing," Simon said of the Cubs' position. "It's awesome to be here knowing that they want to go with the playoffs. I think we have a very good chance, and I'm looking forward to helping the team get there."

That is a beautiful thing.

Chuck