OKIE DOKIE...Horrible Chile Quake

One of the best acquisitions the Boston Red Sox have ever landed is their premiere lefty, a guy who comes out of the bullpen, Hideki Okajima, Okie for short. I call him THE DARKMAN. I know that nickname came from me but, as he said more than a couple years ago, he will always be in the shadow of teammate Daisuke Matsuzaka. Let me put it this way...his light shines brighter than the sun. He is one of the best lefthanded relievers in all of Major League Baseball. For the last three seasons with the Red Sox, he has had 66 appearances and given up only 155 hits over 192 innings. Okajima allowed only 16 percent of inherited runners to score last season, the third-best mark in the American League. Opponents hit .138 against him with two outs and runners in scoring position. Sox manager Terry "Tito" Francona put it this way...

“He’s been so good. I would have never been able to tell you his first year here that he would be able to handle the responsibility,’’ manager Terry Francona said. “Now we want him to have the ball, sometimes too much.’ His command is flawless with a delivery that you wouldn’t teach people. But somehow that ball goes right where he wants it to.’’

Okie has a unique delivery that makes it almost impossible for opposing batters to pick up the exact moment when he throws the baseball to the plate. At the last moment, he directs his gaze downwards. The hitter he is facing is somewhat helpless unless they guess correctly, in which case anything could happen. It usually does not. Have a great season, Darkman!

There was a horrible earthquake in Chile just a couple of hours ago, a shake 1000 TIMES more powerful than the one in Haiti. Tsunamis are occuring and will occur as I type this at 6:19am EST. Here is the latest from the Associated Press...

"SANTIAGO, Chile – A massive 8.8-magnitude earthquake struck Chile early Saturday, collapsing buildings, killing at least 16 people and downing phone lines. President Michele Bachelet declared a "state of catastrophe" in central Chile and said the death toll was rising.
Tsunami warnings were issued over a wide area, including Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Antarctica and Australia.
"We have had a huge earthquake, with some aftershocks," Bachelet said, appealing from an emergency response center for Chileans to remain calm. "Despite this, the system is functioning. People should remain calm. We're doing everything we can with all the forces we have. Any information we will share immediately."

There are no words I can say. Have a safe weekend and as always, be well. Click on the title of this post for the latest from the BBC. Thanks.