24 episode 6.20

One of those bridge episodes tonight where the plot doesn't move forward a whole lot but it starts to set things up for the last few hours.

It appears that Jack and Ricky Schroder are buds now as silver spoon helped Jack escape so he extract info from Audrey in a non-torturing way. A departure from the info at all costs Jack we have come to know and love so well.

You have the writers trying to make the viewers change their opinion on the once slimy Veep Daniels. Ok, he's still slimy, but at least he's a slimy poor sap now after it was revealed that his babe was getting all cuddly with the Russian spy.

Then there's poor Cheng. He has the part he so coveted but alas, it's broken. The question is now, can Morris O'Brien fix this part the way he did the nuke detonator. Is he is easy prey now that he is disgruntled CTU employee and estranged from Chloe. The writers gotta keep the soap opera aspect alive and kicking somehow amongst all the chaos in the world.

Oh and btw, Audrey's daddy tells Jack to stay away from her because he's cursed, circa Day 5 when Jack's daughter kicked him to the curb. This one however seems a bit suspicious to me. Somehow I think he's a bit of a baddie in all of this. In cahoots some way with Papa Bauer? Geez, no thank you at all for saving his daughter's life despite the fact that we're at risk for WWIII.

Either way, looks like there's a showdown between Cheng's boys and CTU about to happen with Jack apparently once again being set free to lead the charge. Cheng will probably need to launch some type of attack on his own to get the component to work. Looks like the fun is about to begin.

Astros week in review

Not much to say other than they stink, they stink really bad right now. Over the last six games they have had six straight quality starts by their pitchers - six innings or more with three runs or less - and they have a 1-5 record to show for it.

They have a much needed day off tomorrow and are probably all too happy to say adios to April.

Like everyone else, I take solace in the fact that they are getting good starting pitching on a consistent basis and if Berkman and Lee can start hitting anywhere close to what they're capable of, then the season is by no means over. Both have shown flashes that tease us that they may be waking up, but they still haven't been able to string together any decent performances. Berkman apparently is only concerned with making sure that Chris Burke doesn't get his feelings hurt, not winning ball games.

Also, when is this team going to get rid of Morgan Ensberg? Loretta and Lamb have delivered when they've played whereas Ensberg just continues to come up short in crucial situations.

It's time for Purpura to turn the page on Ensberg and Lidge. I know he has a special place in his heart for both of these guys, but they are flat out not helping the team right now and have not for a while. If you can get a bucket of balls, a few fungos and some team to absorb the salary for these guys, take that deal and don't look back.

Chandler's New Friend

Big news around the Hughes' household this weekend was Chandler Bess getting her glasses. She apparently got the vision (or lack thereof) gene from her mom and dad, but she doesn't care, she was extremely excited about her new look and is showing off to anyone and everyone.

Clancy and his pals sing (or at least fake it)

Today was the 2007 Spring Sing at St. Thomas More. Clancy and his pals had the audience eating out of their hands.

Last week was just an anomaly

The five straight wins the Astros reeled off last week were clearly a fluke. Or perhaps this is the inconsistency we should expect from the erstwhile Rainbow Warriors this season.

Having Pat Mahomes (yes, everyone altogether now, say "who?") hurl a complete game shutout and limit the team to 3 hits is just plain unacceptable. I'm pretty sure there are a few American Legion teams that would have been able to put up a 3-spot against this guy tonight.

Berkman -- could you possibly look any more lost at the plate?
Lee -- I notice your average has dropped about 100 points since you were chugging along well over .300 last week and knocking in runs every night.

Woody Williams finally had a quality start (1 out of every 5 is basically what you get these days for $6mln a year) but unfortunately for the Astros' SPs the offense is entering one of those stretches where someone forgot to give Jobu his rum because they are not hitting the straightball or curveball very well to borrow a phrase from Major League's Pedro Cerrano.

Oh and btw, it's official, the Pirates OWN us right now. Four in a row the Astros have dropped against the young Buccos.

Astros close out solid week with loss to Brew crew

Wanda Rodriguez and the rest of the boys came back down to earth tonight in Milwaukee. After running off 5 wins in a row with impressive shows of offense and improbable comebacks, the Astros fell short 6-4. When I say they fell short, I mean it literally too as Berkman missed a grand slam that would have tied the game by a couple of feet thanks to the RF foul pole.

Wanda finally pitched like I knew he was capable of - six runs in six innings. Let the Nieve watch begin.

However, it's been nice to see the offense finally showing signs of life over the past week. Of course I have to throw in the proverbial, "wait until Berkman starts hitting above the Mendoza Line" quip to highlight how good the Astros will really be.

Berkman will ultimately hit I'm sure but I will continue to remain cautiously optimistic on this team's chances.