→ January 4, 2016
→ By

Paladin of Souls.

Lois McMaster Bujold has won four Hugo Awards for Best Novel, matching Robert Heinlein for the most wins by any author, winning for both works of science fiction and of fantasy. Her most recent win was for her 2004 novel Paladin of Souls, a high fantasy work that seemed to me to have an extraordinarily strong religious or spiritual component, but one that was fully integrated into the story rather than one that beats you about the head like a certain large feline, sorceress, and armoire may have done.

Paladin of Souls starts about as slowly as any fantasy book I’ve read (disclaimer: I haven’t read that many) and appears to be another one of them ol’ “let’s take a long long time to get from one place to another” sort of books, which has to be the most overused plot device in fantasy or sci-fi. Ista, the dowager and former queen (royina, in the book’s vernacular) of Chalion, is bored with her fate as shut-in, having recovered from the curse that inflicted madness upon her for many years (apparently covered in the preceding book, The Curse of Chalion), and sets off on a journey with the requisite motley crew of associates, with no particular destination in mind. The group includes the portly and slightly fatuous divine dy Cabon, the courier turned lady’s maid Liss (who was the most interesting character by a mile), the warrior brothers Ferda and Foix, and a bunch of guards. The group first runs into a raiding party from the neighboring state of Jokona, then takes shelter in the town/castle of Porifors, only to find that entity fall under siege by an incredibly powerful Jokonian contingent. But there’s a mystery afoot in Porifors, and it turns out that the gods are not done with Ista – one god, the Bastard, in particular seems to have further plans to use her as the vessel to save Porifors and stop the Jokonians’ Hitlerian plans for expansion.

Ista’s madness does not return but she regains some of the powers she held during that earlier period, including her “second sight” that allows her to see souls as light and shadows on their possessors – including demons, who figure heavily in the plot, and souls damaged by the ill usage of others. Ista must learn how to utilize this ability and its related power to manipulate souls so that she can save Porifors, and Chalion by extension, while also granting salvation to several of the people around her, including those posssessed by the novel’s many demonic forces. While I know nothing of Bujold’s religious beliefs, I found it impossible to read this as anything other than a metaphor for the Christian notions of dualism, redemption, and salvation through Ista/Christ. Ista becomes the only means of saving one character whose soul is otherwise doomed to damnation because of a demon’s trick that has given him physical life beyond death – I’m being ambiguous on purpose here to avoid fully spoiling it – and also must find ways to save the various characters directly possessed by demons, a sort of absolution by exorcism that comes at the end of personal battles between man (or woman) and demon for ultimate control of that person’s soul. Whether you find that angle compelling may depend on your views of religion or of dualism; I think it works on two levels, one a spiritual one, but the other a compelling way to give a story a climactic battle scene with somewhat less bloodshed than normal and without relying on ill-defined “magic” the way so many fantasy stories do. And, unlike George R.R. Martin’s Game of Thrones novel, there’s no gratuitous violence toward the women to try to up the plot ante or otherwise depict the world as brutal and dark.

Ista herself is a less than stellar protagonist, however, because she’s strong but plain: She wishes to fight her role as Chosen One, accepts it, and powers through the final showdown on her intelligence and her strength of will, but there’s little or nothing inherently interesting about her persona. Her handmaiden, Liss, appears less frequently on the page but has more depth to her character: A well-born courier who chose that career for its potential for adventure, she spends more time helping execute Ista’s plans for battle than helping her lady dress or fix her hair, and her generally badass nature reminded me of the character Medea from Atlantis, played by Amy Manson, who now portrays Merida (with a silly wig) in Once Upon a Time. Manson’s Medea was indeed badass in several ways, and gloriously conflicted between Pasiphäe and Jason while fighting like you’d expect a stock male warrior to fight. Bujold injected Liss with that fierceness, and with that anti-feminine nature, but then gave us far too little of the character while embroiling her in an out-of-character flirtation with Foix.

The weak characterization of Ista combined with the slow start to the apparent journey plotline meant that the first third or so of Paladin of Souls plodded along without much promise, made worse by my lack of familiarity with the backstory. Once Ista reaches Porifors and the mystery starts up, followed by the intense siege and subsequent battle, the pacing was much more satisfactory and in line with better genre works (which I always find read faster than more literary and/or hifalutin works), but it didn’t leave me with the same wonder as better Hugo winners like Hyperion or Among Others, or even novels that were more clever but a bit less successful in plot like The City and the City.

Next up: Graham Greene’s England Made Me.

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→ January 3, 2016
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December 2015 music update.

I published my rankings of the top 100 songs of 2015 and top 15 albums of 2015 in mid-December, which is nearly always a dead month for new releases anyway, so in past years I haven’t even bothered with a new playlist until the end of January. This time, however, there were about a half-dozen tracks I wanted to mention before we got too far along in the calendar, so I’ve put together this shorter-than-normal playlist to tide everyone over.

Animal Collective – FloriDada. This song reached me in time to make my top 100 for 2015, and it’s one of my favorites from Animal Collective alongside “My Girls,” but even more accessible. I’m still trying to piece together some of the lyrics, but I love the way the music, including the layered vocals, seems like it’s always about to veer off the road into the wild grass.

School Of Seven Bells – Open Your Eyes. SVIIB’s final album is due out in February, their first and thus only release since the death of co-founder Ben Curtis from cancer in 2013, including parts he recorded before his passing. I found their music beautifully melancholy to begin with, so I can only imagine how this record will feel knowing that Curtis is gone and the band is finished.

Bloc Party – The Good News. I’m mixed on this song; it seems a bit too much like Four, but after the promise of the first single from their upcoming album I’m willing to give them the benefit of the doubt.

Wild Nothing – TV Queen. Good Wild Nothing tracks manage to sound upbeat and depressing at the same time, kind of like Joy Division and early New Order. This isn’t on par with “To Know You,” which I still say was practically lifted from Talk Talk’s “It’s My Life,” but still would have fit well on 2012’s Nocturne.

St. Lucia – Physical. Included because it’s St. Lucia and I have liked just about everything he’s released to date, but I don’t like this track anywhere near as much as “Dancing on Glass” or the bulk of his first album.

DIIV – Under the Sun. Zachary Cole Smith, who records as DIIV, is putting out a double album on February 5th, which seems to have a lot of the music press excited, but I’ve yet to see evidence Smith can fill a single album with enough worthwhile and non-repetitive material. Part of the problem is that every DIIV song I’ve ever heard sounds like it’s just a clone of the one original DIIV track, so if there were some sort of Panama disease that affected that one song his entire catalogue would be wiped out. This track is pretty good, though.

Conrad Keely – In Words of a Not so Famous Man. This quiet, pensive track is about the last thing I expected from the lead singer of …And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead. There’s still a hidden tension in the song, as we get from most Trail of Dead material, but where his main project creates huge shimmering walls of sound, this track is almost intimate by comparison.

(The London) Suede – Outsiders. They’re never going to make another “Metal Mickey” or even another “Beautiful Ones,” but Suede have settled into something comfortable for their middle age, with this track, released in late September, continuing in the same vein as their solid 2013 comeback album Bloodsports.

Killing Joke – Euphoria. I whiffed on Killing Joke’s album Pylon – I didn’t hear it until I’d already gotten well into writing my year-end posts and didn’t get to spend any time with it until after Christmas, but it should have slipped into the last spot on my top albums list. It’s not quite vintage Killing Joke, which was more punk than anything else, with many of their best-known songs (“The Wait,” “Eighties”) running long for punk but about the norm for radio-friendly rock; it’s more like an album full of longer, dark songs like “Love Like Blood,” six minutes and up, heavier, driving music that I’d call metal but might only qualify as “hard rock” by today’s standards. Whatever you call it, it’s fucking boss.

pop. 1280 – Pyramids on Mars. I admit I knew nothing of this band before hearing this track, and still don’t know much about them other than that they’re named after a great noir crime novel; this song is sort of noise-rock experimentalism with hints of early gothic new wave stuff like Bauhaus.

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→ January 2, 2016
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Stick to baseball, 1/2/16.

Happy New Year! I’d say it’ll be a great one, but there’s an election coming up so damn it all to hell.

I wrote two Insider pieces this week, one on the ethically-challenged Yankees trading for Aroldis Chapman and one on how obvious it should be that Trevor Hoffman is not a Hall of Famer.

My latest boardgame review for Paste covers the complex strategy game Orleans, which was one of two runners-up for the 2015 Kennerspiel des Jahres award.

And now, the links…

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→ December 30, 2015
→ By

Beyond Einstein.

Some great boardgame apps still on sale, including Splendor for $0.99 (iOS or android) and Ticket to Ride for $2.99 (iOS or android).

I enjoyed physicist Michio Kaku’s book Einstein’s Cosmos, a biography of the founder of relativity theory that didn’t skimp on details of Einstein’s work, so when I spotted another of Kaku’s books, the 1995 work Beyond Einstein: The Cosmic Quest for the Theory of the Universe (co-authored by Jennifer Thompson) for half price at Changing Hands in Tempe during my annual AFL trip, I picked it up without a second thought. The book covers a little of the same ground as the Einstein bio, but is primarily a history of superstring theory and the search for a “grand unified theory” (up to 1995, of course) that would bring together the four fundamental forces of physics, building the reader up from the mid-19th century forward through various stops and starts that included the proposal, discarding, and resurrection of string theory from the 1950s to the 1980s.

Strings, in particle physics, are theoretical subparticles that would constitute all types of matter and energy in the universe: the hundreds (or more) types of subatomic particles known to physics may all be manifestations of strings, with different vibrations of the strings showing up to our devices as different subatomic particles. String theory would solve a large number of problems with our current understanding of the nature of matter and energy, from the existence of the aforementioned four forces (gravity, the strong nuclear force, the weak nuclear force, and electromagnetism, although the last two have been shown to be the same thing) to the origins of the universe itself. Most theoretical physics has rested on the assumption that the universe is orderly; the complexity involved in having hundreds of fundamental particles, or even in having four independent forces, has in and of itself led physicists to try to unite these under a single umbrella, with string theory the leading candidate and quite possibly the only game in town.

Where Kaku and Thompson succeed is in guiding the reader to a basic understanding of string theory by gradually working their way through the various milestones in physics research over the 120 or so years before string theory became widely accepted as a serious candidate for the “theory of everything.” That means we get our fill of Maxwell and Einstein, but we also get Feynman diagrams (which apparently are rather a big deal, but were new to me as a lay reader) and the best concise explanation of Schrodinger’s cat paradox I’ve come across. Kaku also explains symmetry and supersymmetry, the suspected nature of dark matter, and the connection between Lie groups (from group theory) and quantum field theory, without ever drowning readers in math unless you go to the footnotes. I wouldn’t say that the book taught me enough about string theory – I think I’ll have to get Brian Greene’s best-selling The Elegant Universe for that – but it gave me more than just a superficial explanation along with plenty of the mind-bending stuff that makes theoretical physics seem fun to someone like me.

There are some sections at the end of the book that seemed to me to go beyond science and into the highly speculative, although some of you may be able to tell me that my impression is wrong. Some of it is just strange, like the argument that the universe was originally in ten dimensions but collapsed into two separate universes, ours with four dimensions and another, minuscule universe that held the other six (are dimensions really additive?). Some seemed borderline metaphysical, like the argument that the universe came from nothing in a sort of quantum leap, even though sudden state shifts like that don’t occur … well, ever, or wouldn’t we stand in constant risk of winking out of existence (or perhaps into another, parallel universe)? Kaku’s book leaves lots of questions unanswered, but I suppose it fits, since theoretical physics has yet to answer many of those same questions.

Next up: Lois McMaster Bujold’s Paladin of Souls, another Hugo Award winner.

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→ December 29, 2015
→ By

Hyperion.

I reviewed the boardgame Orleans for Paste this week, and my latest Insider post breaks down the Aroldis Chapman trade, including my disdain for the Yankees’ decision to trade for someone with an unresolved domestic assault accusation attached to him.

I decided last year to start working my way through the list of winners of the Hugo Award for Best Novel (there are now 64 winners, and I’m through 27) because I’m obsessed with lists, but more importantly, because it seemed like a good way to find the kind of big, immersive, ambitious novels I enjoy most, works that stick with me long after they’re done. The Left Hand of Darkness was one such discovery; To Say Nothing of the Dog was another; Among Others totally blew me away. There are duds, like Red Mars, but I’ll take a couple of those along the way when some of the winners are as amazing as Dan Simmons’ 1989 novel Hyperion, winner of the Hugo in 1989.

Hyperion is one of the most remarkable sci-fi books I’ve ever read – a highly literate, ambitious novel with an unusual structure and a delightful habit of defying reader expectations at multiple turns. Modeled after Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales and presaging the very similar structure used by David Mitchell in his nested novel Cloud Atlas, Hyperion follows seven pilgrims on a journey to the planet of the book’s title, where they go to meet the mysterious creature known as the Shrike, a trek from which most pilgrims do not return. The fate of their requests of the Shrike may connect to the fate of humanity, which has spread itself around the galaxy and spun off a splinter group of violent rebels called the Ousters as well as an independent entity powered by artificial intelligences that became sentient and seceded from man.

The meat of the novel is those pilgrims’ stories, each told in a different voice and different style (as in Mitchell’s novel), from the priest who reads from the diary of his friend who died on Hyperion to the private investigator whose story unfurls like a detective novel to the Consul whose paramour, Siri, is the original time traveler’s wife. Simmons infuses each of these characters, some of whom are, shall we say, less than entirely sympathetic, with depth and complexity, enough that any one of them could have carried an entire novel by him/herself. The story of the father who makes the journey with his infant daughter is just heartbreaking, and while Simmons probably pushes one sorrow button too many, his description of that father’s experience watching his daughter’s pain is stunning and never forced.

Simmons has also created, in one book, a literary universe the size and scope of that in Isaac Asimov’s Foundation series, one that Simmons revisited in three subsequent novels (about which I’ve gotten mixed reviews from all of you over the last ten days). His vision of a distant future is bleak in spots, but he hasn’t given up on humanity entirely, while his incorporation of unrealistic or impossible scientific advances (such as interstellar travel using “farcasters”) at least brings the veneer of realism – and many of these technologies are critical to the book’s stories. Simmons created a mind-boggling world, then put his characters through grueling life tests within it, showing us their reactions and their development in response to these trials.

However, Hyperion doesn’t deliver what I expected most from it: an ending. The journey is the story; the pilgrims do not reach the Shrike at the end of the book, and the resolutions of their various stories come in the sequel, Fall of Hyperion, which I understand departs from this book’s narrative technique. Simmons leaves so many questions unanswered, from Rachel’s fate to Hoyt’s real purpose to the Consul’s ability to achieve his goal, that even though Hyperion is an immensely satisfying work on its own, the ending felt too much like a cliffhanger to think of it as a completely self-contained work. “All Prologue” is fine and good up to a point, but giving us all back story and virtually no present works against the power of the book as a whole.

Next up: I’ve finished Michio Kaku’s Beyond Einstein, a 1995 book on the history of superstrings, and just started another Hugo winner, Lois McMaster Bujold’s Paladin of Souls.

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→ December 28, 2015
→ By

Klawchat 12/28/15.

I reviewed the boardgame Orleans for Paste this week, and my latest Insider post explains why Trevor Hoffman is not a Hall of Famer (but Curt Schilling is).

Klaw: Once again it’s another chat bandit. Klawchat.

BK: If you were Carlos Correa, how much would it cost for you to sign a lifetime deal with the Astros? Essentially, what sum of money could buy you out of ever signing another contract?
Klaw: A lifetime deal would need a term – ten years? Fifteen? I’d be looking for something in the $40 million a year range for him, Harper, etc. Salaries are clearly headed that way anyway, and if owners have the cash, then the players should get it since they’re the product.

Dana: Do you believe that Brian Cashman is one of the best GM’s in the game? Joel Sherman noted that the Yanks have been competitive for 23 straight seasons. That’s impressive regardless of market size.
Klaw: “Competitive” is a bit of an arbitrary standard, no? I think Cashman has done some things very well, some less so, and he operates under some constraints that aren’t immediately visible to those of us on the outside.

Charlie: I’m a Nats fan and while I totally get why the Nats don’t want to go into the season with a possibly-not-ready Trea Turner and an unpredictable Espinosa, I don’t love the Murphy deal. However, if they used him to spell Werth, Rendon, and Zim once a week, I might like it more? What are your thoughts on Daniel Murphy as a part-time 2B, part-time supersub? Could it work? Or, now that he’s been signed, are they better just sticking him at second?
Klaw: If they use Murphy to spell Rendon for any reason other than injury, they should send the entire coaching staff down the Potomac in a leaky rowboat. Also, the contract was way beyond what Murphy is likely to be worth even factoring in further salary inflation.

bruce: Best Sabbath album?
Klaw: Has to be Paranoid, no? Title track, Iron Man, War Pigs.

Alex in Austin: Dave Stewart won’t be in Arizona in 3 years when Swanson is ready. Isn’t this a problem of aligning incentives? How do you fix short and long term vision? Seems like the only constant is the owner, is the onus on him?
Klaw: Swanson is likely to be ready by Opening Day 2017, if not sooner. It’s not a question of misaligned incentives; it’s a question of mishiring your general manager.

KlawFan: Higher Upside: Benentendi or AJ Reed?
Klaw: Benintendi. CF with speed as well as power. Reed is 1b only, has power and great approach, no speed and bat might be a tick slow for better velocity.

Pat: Aaron Judge’s struggles at triple A: small sample or very concerning?
Klaw: He has a specific approach issue – he hasn’t learned to cover the outside corner while he’s also covering the inner third – that explained the AAA struggles and even the AA strikeouts. I think he’s still got some work to do in the minors.

Shaun: Any restaurant recommendations for Walt Disney World? Went to Raglan Road on your suggestion and loved it.
Klaw: Jiko at Animal Kingdom Lodge is probably the best restaurant I’ve been to anywhere on the property. Via Napoli at Italy in Epcot is very good, but like most restaurants in the parks, very expensive for what you get.

Adam: Keith, do you think the trade for Jedd Gyorko signals the Cardinals frustration with Kolten Wongs progression, or do you see Gyorko as a backup at 2B/3B as well as a power bat off the bench? I would hate to see Wong not get another full season to see what he can be. What do you see happening in St Louis?
Klaw: Gyorko is a good UT who can handle 2b or 3b and fake SS. They needed a RHB off the bench anyway and Wong has been a cipher vs lefties so far, so platooning them right now is a good idea.

Craig: David Stearns has really focused on acquiring talent at the rookie/A ball level in trades. Has Stearns found a market inefficiency (teams don’t properly value prospects who are several years away from the majors) or is this just a function of starting a rebuilding process that is likely to last several seasons?
Klaw: I think the latter. Teams value those kids properly – they’re very high risk and a long way away, so the present value of their likely production is really low. Stearns can afford to wait. He might be able to rent a car by himself when they reach the majors. (Sorry, Dave…)

Bill G.: Hi Keith. You have stated that OPS is too simplistic a metric, and it undervalues OBP (I agree). If you were to uplift OBP over SLG, what sort of uplift would you apply to make this a more realistic metric. Thanks.
Klaw: I wouldn’t. Keep them separate. Combining them only obscures valuable information.

Bradley: Any thoughts on the Padres Rule 5 Draft additions. Sounds like they may give Perdomo a shot at the rotation. Do you think Blash makes enough contact for his power to show?
Klaw: Never been a Blash fan. Perdomo should stick as a reliever. Two pitch guy, doubt he can start right now.

Delvin Perez: Hi Mr.Law, do you think I have a chance to be a top 3 pick in next year draft?, I’m a huge Braves Fan…..
Klaw: That’s a stretch right now, but possible. You’re just 17 and very toolsy.

Archie: Do you think the Murphy signing affects Trea Turner’s Opening Day status?
Klaw: I think it shouldn’t but I bet it does.

PS: What do you think Rob Refsnyder’s ceiling is? Is it Daniel Murphy?
Klaw: Less. Can’t play 2b at all and really doesn’t even have Murphy’s hit tool.

Mikey: Thoughts on the whole Al-Jazeera doping debacle?
Klaw: I don’t see why we’re doubting the story. People questioning Al-Jazeera’s credibility as a news organization have been living under a rock for the last five years. No one covered the Arab Spring as well as they did – and they are hated by many dictators in the Arab world, which is as good a sign of integrity as you can have as a news organization.

Dave: Thoughts on Albert Almora’s improved second half?
Klaw: SSS until proven otherwise. Minor leaguers should improve in the second half if they don’t move up, since their competition is getting younger due to promotions. As for Almora, I don’t see any reason to think it’s not just BABIP-related; he didn’t hit for any power in the second half.

Roy: Of all the CF’s the Red Sox have, who do you think actually ends up in the position in a couple of years. (Assuming no moves.)
Klaw: Betts is the most likely to still be on the roster. Benintendi may actually be the CF, but Betts isn’t going anywhere.

Philly: Most industry analysts seem to be on board with the Phillies rebuilding efforts. I believe they have the correct course of action, but I am somewhat apprehensive that their returns on trades will yield more quantity than quality. Other than Crawford, do you really see anyone in their system with all star upside?
Klaw: Quantity isn’t a bad thing when the system is light on both. Randolph has star upside if he can find a position and they had a few arms in short-season ball with that kind of potential.

Andrew: Finally read Moneyball by Michael Lewis after years of reading you, baseballprospectus, and fangraphs. Thought it was nice of Lewis to mention you as JP’s pet sabermetrician and mini-rain man. Anyway, I found your review of the movie but do you have anything on the book? Would love to hear your thoughts? How things have changed since it was written? Was shocked by how little defense was valued to the point where Beane would have traded Jason Varitek.
Klaw: Book is a must-read, despite some factual issues. (The story with me never happened, and Lewis never corrected it even though I told him so after the hardcover edition. The quote about Voros from Depodesta actually came from me, and the story about a player seeing Mattingly at Legends Field is also untrue.) But for a general view of the industry at the time that avoids too much math and emphasizes the impact on specific players, it’s outstanding. Lewis is a fantastic storyteller and I could read his prose all day long.

Anonymous: 10 years from now, which current SS prospect is the better player? Dansby or Brendan Rodgers?
Klaw: Rodgers, for me at least.

greg p: How is the trade for Giles going to look two years down the road? A total heist for Phillies?
Klaw: I think both sides end up very happy with it but we will say the Phillies did better in the end.

Alex in Austin: In the next 30 years, do you see this antiquated arbitration system and underpaying younger players getting resolved? What if a new 4 team league is created that pays players under 27 their true value and attracted guys like Correa, Bryant, Fernandez, etc.?
Klaw: Who funds that league? Not that I dislike the idea, but the barrier to entry for a rival league today is probably a dealbreaker for any of the four major sports.

Anonymous: Can the Braves realistically compete in 2017 with the new stadium opening? It seems like they are loading up on pitching prospects but will have no offense besides Freeman and Olivera
Klaw: And Olivera may not even be that good. I don’t think they can compete next year but they’ll be sneaky good, and I bet they go spend some money next winter, or even on a late signing this winter if they see some value.

Anonymous: Re: Opt Outs from last time. There’s also the PR positive from the team perspective. We signed this guy to this huge contract, look we’re trying to win! Then if he opts out in a couple of years before he gets expensive, our fans (government) will hopefully have been stupid enough to build us a stadium to fill with less expensive ball players. #Profit
Klaw: I laughed. You’re not wrong about the PR benefit. No one realizes the opt-outs are there on signing day.

Arin: What are reasonable number to expect from Hector Olivera? 4th OF, Average, Above Average, All-star?
Klaw: I think extra guy. Questions on the hit tool and athleticism, and of course him bailing on Caguas (at least, not putting in the required level of effort) doesn’t look good.

Bryan: Just curious about your thoughts on Sam Travis. Seems to be trending in the right direction.
Klaw: I’m a fan. Can absolutely hit. Just not sure what the final power output is, and whether he’s just a good regular at first or something more.

PS: I know some teams are spending more on coaching staffs in the minors these days, but their pay is still well short of MLB coaches. Couldn’t you argue they are more important than MLB coaches based on the impact they have on developing players?
Klaw: Best coaches end up promoted out of the area where they can do the most good.

tw: How do you feel about your colleague’s piece accusing the phillies of tanking? Indefensible, I assume, given the numerous contradictions of his prior writings? Also the absurd recommendations essentially demanding they give out bad contracts again…
Klaw: Accusing? Is this even a question? They’re doing what the Astros did and I don’t see the problem with it. The system more or less forces bad teams to go that route. I only disagreed with Buster on the need for them to spend some money in the short term. F that. If the CBA incentivizes (I hate that word) tanking, then tank the shit out of it, my man.

Matt: Do you think college educated people truly think evolution is false and that creationism is true? Even if you take a class like biology or anatomy, it’s clear evolution is true. I just don’t understand how law makers can deny evolution. You had mentioned cognitive dissonance on Twitter, but I think there has to be a bigger reason.
Klaw: I think, like many science and even social issues, it’s about undermining the confidence some people might have in their religious beliefs. If evolution is true, does that mean Christianity is false? I don’t happen to think that’s the case, but if your religion tells you evolution is false, and the evidence says that it’s true (it is, absolutely, 100%, no doubt about it true), then you may reject the evidence because it could force you to question your faith, or your belief in God or an afterlife. I think the fight against marriage equality came down to the same reason. Even climate change has a whiff of that – how could a just deity allow our planet to go to hell like that? (I’m reminded of the old Robin Williams quote from God: “I gave you a nice planet, and you fucked it up.”)

Urban: Starlin Castro was not s good defensive SS, at least by the scouting side. Advanced metrics seemed to be kinder than the eye test. What’s his projection as s defender at 2B?
Klaw: I bet he’s above-average to plus there.

Josh: Is kyler Murray eligible for the next draft?
Klaw: Not as long as he’s at a four-year school in the spring. Next eligibility would be in 2018.

PS: Who do you suspect the Yankees will target at 19th pick this year (obviously way too early)? Quantrill?
Klaw: Zero idea. Teams don’t do that this far in advance. You can’t “target” anyone before the season has even started.

Stephen: No question. Just a thanks. Every question I ask you on Twitter you seem to answer despite what has to be endless mentions. Just appreciate it.
Klaw: You’re quite welcome. Thank you for bearing with me as I tweet a lot and some of it probably isn’t very good.

Jeff: Do you think Tyler Jay will become a successful starter?
Klaw: I’d give him every chance to do so.

Josh: Who would be your guess to be the number 1 overall pick right now?
Klaw: Dunno. Hansen, Groome, maybe Benson? I have no conviction on this topic at the moment.

Ryan: What’s your favorite way to prepare/cook a Pork Tenderloin?
Klaw: Ruhlman’s sear-roasting with lots of butter. Pork tenderloin has very little taste and is awful if cooked past medium-rare. It needs a rich sauce and a good crust on the outside.

Scherzer’s Blue Eye: Reason we’re doubting could possibly be Charlie Sly has recanted his testimony? Maybe that hits at the credibility a bit…
Klaw: Maybe a lawyer or two got to him. Testimony was awfully specific the first time around.

Dennis: Can Tomlinson be a super utility guy for the Giants, or is the bat just not good enough?
Klaw: I’d say probably not, but I’m much more confident that he’s not a regular than I am that he’s not a 400 AB UT.

Ryan: Why can’t I make mayo taste as good as bottled? tips?
Klaw: Use really good eggs and some fresh lemon juice. Try olive oil for the fat, or add another flavor like white miso or chipotle peppers.

Michael: What do pro scouts do during the winter?
Klaw: Sit home, stare out the window, and wait for spring?

Macon: Your thoughts on the ending of “A Farewell to Arms”??
Klaw: No joke, I threw the book against the wall in high school when I got to the end. Silver Linings Playbook hadn’t even been written yet.

Mike: Al Jazeera is great…the only people questioning the report on that basis are morons. I think the issue is more that the documentary isn’t all that great, and the allegations are based entirely on hearsay.
Klaw: Fair. Although people had no problems believing hearsay allegations against Clemens.

JP: did you see the new Star Wars? thoughts?
Klaw: Nope, probably won’t see it for a while.

Aaron: You were quite bullish on Amed Rosario’s tools last winter. What, if anything, has change 10 months later?
Klaw: Nothing. Tools are the same.

Elton: With Parks and Rec gone, what’s the next best successor in that line of comedy? Have you watched Master of None?
Klaw: That would be my pick. Watched the whole season. Last 5-6 episodes they really hit their stride, and some of the stuff on long-term relationships was expertly written. I was incredibly impressed.

Pat: How many SS prospects do you have ahead of Mateo?
Klaw: Quite a few. He’s a good prospect but getting a bit overhyped because of his parent org.

Anonymous: How likely is Moncada to stick at 2b?
Klaw: I see no reason he won’t.

Tyler: If you had to be a writer for any other sport, which would you choose?
Klaw: Is food a sport?

Dan: Hey Keith, my wife is having a brain tumor removed next month and I’m distracting myself by figuring out what to read during the hospital stay. I can’t decide if I should go with something lighthearted/easy to read, something harder (since I’ll have the time), something more bleak (since I’ll be in that mood anyways), or something more educational (ie The Sixth Extinction). What do you recommend?
Klaw: Good grief, that’s not good news and I hope everything goes well for her. In situations like that, I stick to lighter fare that I can truly get lost in – authors I love, or the type of immersive book where I’ll zone out a bit and feel completely “in” the pages. I don’t read bleak stuff when I’m down or when I’m away from home for a long time.

JP: will you see The Hateful Eight, or not a Tarantino fan?
Klaw: I loved Django but TH8 reviews are not calling to me. I don’t see many movies anyway.

Andy: How awesome would it be for Mike Piazza or Jeff Bagwell (or I guess Griffey) to be elected to the Hall of Fame and in their acceptance speech, admit to steroid use. Like, HA, you just inducted a steroid user. Now let’s ditch the stigma.
Klaw: It would be hilarious, although I doubt either would risk the immediate backlash that would follow.

Ryan: I grew up Roman Catholic, but am now Athiest. I’m conflicted on the direction I’d like to bring up my children. I’m thinking it might be good to bring them up Roman Catholic until they are old enough to decide the route that best fits their belief. Any thoughts or Advice? Thanks!
Klaw: Entirely up to you and your spouse/partner. The most important thing is for the two of you to agree on the choice.

Andy: How far along are you on the top 100? Like do you have all the info you just need to combine all of the things?
Klaw: I have done maybe 5% of the work. I start after New Year’s.

Pat: When Lazarito gets signed, where do you think he’ll pop up on your rankings?
Klaw: At 16, he’s a stretch to even hit the top 100. In all the top 100s I’ve done I’ve only had three players that young on the list, I think. One was Sano, one was Ynoa (who blew out and really hasn’t panned out anyway), and one was Villalona (whom I rated way too high and then he killed a guy).

Ridley Kemp: At the risk of getting into dangerous territory…What’s your favorite sci-fi book of the year, and do you plan on voting on the Hugo Awards this year? Last year was a bit of a mess as you may have heard.
Klaw: I didn’t know the public could vote, and I don’t think I’ve read any 2015 titles. I did hear about the voting last year and all the misogyny involved. Ugly.

FItz: Any thoughts on the Matt Bush signing? Does he deserve another opportunity (he did pay the price of his actions imo) and does he have a chance to be anything for Texas?
Klaw: I have no problem with it, as long as he stays sober and of course doesn’t drive (he has no license and won’t for many years).

keithlaw disciple: If you were a betting man, which player from the 2014 Draft, who struggled in 2015, could turn it around in 2016 (thinking guys like Gatewood, Harrison, Gettys, other)? Thanks!
Klaw: Derek Hill. Didn’t even get the full season to start to turn things around.

Andrew: You get to replace one major league owner, no questions asked. Who is it? Loria? Wilpon? Other?
Klaw: Loria/Samson. As much as I despise seeing Jeffy Wilson – you know, the one who allegedly harassed a pregnant employee because she was unmarried? – in a FO, Loria’s bleeding of the team is a problem for the entire sport, whereas the Wilpons’ antics are more of a problem for that one team. Sorry, Mets fans.

Nils: Hi Keith, did you get a chance to see Anthony Alford this year? Has he become a top 100 guy?
Klaw: He was on my midseason top 50.

Chris: Is jp Crawford more of a defensive or offensive SS? What is Appel’s ceiling? 1, 2, 3?
Klaw: Appel is a potential 2, but has specific and not insignificant adjustments to make. Crawford is more of an everything SS.

Scott in TX: Hear a lot on TV about LH power hitters teeing off on the low-and-inside pitch. Why just lefties?
Klaw: I do think there’s something to LH power hitters liking the ball down, but I don’t know why. It would stand to reason that this is actually selection bias in how such players are scouted and promoted, rather than some genetic fluke that makes lefties like the low pitch.

Tyler: Sorry if you have answered this before, but how exactly did you get into the baseball writing business after college?
Klaw: I didn’t become a full-time writer until 12 years after college, and didn’t work in baseball at all until 8 years after college.

Joe: Could Mike Shawaryn of Maryland be a first rounder this year?
Klaw: Area guys tell me more like 2nd round but I’ll go see him in the spring.

Jeff: From what I’ve read on the Frazier trade most seem to think Peraza wasn’t enough return. But if you look at top 100 lists, he would rank as their new #1 prospect in a fairly deep system. Do you think the negative reports might be overstated??
Klaw: He was not enough return. Not sure he’s really their #1 prospect either.

Ryan: Have you seen any of Making a Murderer? Thoughts?
Klaw: No. Next series for me will be finishing Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell then Man in the High Castle.

Toad: What’s one book everyone should read? Also which QO rejecting player is gonna end signing a one year deal?
Klaw: Non-fiction, something like Thinking Fast and Slow, or perhaps the more accessible The Invisible Gorilla, because they teach us about how we think and how we need to think differently to make better decisions. Fiction is a tougher call; my all-time favorite novel is The Master and Margarita, but if you’re thinking about some kind of imperative (“you should read this because it’ll teach you something”), readers would probably get more out of Beloved or To Kill a Mockingbird.

Michael: What do you think about Max Pentecost now? He’s basically been hurt his entire pro career.
Klaw: I think what you think. Got to play to develop, and he had a couple of real questions even before that.

Jeff: Your opinion on Smoltz joining Buck in the booth?
Klaw: I think it’s a positive. He will be an exponential improvement over Reynolds, who does not know the players well enough for that job. Color commentary isn’t easy and Reynolds did the job as if he hadn’t done any prep work. (Perhaps he did, but I can only comment on the results.)

Mike: Thoughts on Trey Ball of the Red Sox? I never see him mentioned amongst their top 10 prospects. What is his ceiling or did the Sox strike out on him?
Klaw: Too early to give up on him. Athletic LHP with some stuff, was much more raw when drafted than I think the Sox realized. Not a bust.

JP: how many of the 2016 draftees do you think will crack your midseason top 50? just 1 or 2?
Klaw: History says more. Depends a lot on promotions too.

JP: did Severino show you anything in 2015 that would make you believe he can stick in the rotation?
Klaw: He stayed healthy all year, so that’s a good thing. But the delivery issue is unchanged. I can’t name any long-term starter who used his lower half that little.

Rob: A few weeks ago in the chat you said that Paul Goldschmidt has caused you to re-consider how you evaluate a player like Rhys Hoskins. Can you say more about that? I’m less interested in Hoskins per se than the type he represents or the changes in your process. Thanks.
Klaw: I think the bar I set for that kind of player was too high. Granted, Goldschmidt has a grade 80 work ethic and no one knew it except perhaps the Dbacks’ area guy who took him, but still, I should have been more open to a player with the skills he did show and a swing that was mechanically sound and produced enough power even before he reached his peak. Also, I’m just trying to be less dogmatic in opinions and clearer about probabilities, so that it doesn’t become “oh, you said he’d be X, you’re wrong!” when really I’m trying to say I think there’s a 60% chance he’s this and a 40% chance he’s that.

Nils: Does Eduardo Rodriguez have the stuff to become a decent #2 behind Price in Boston’s rotation?
Klaw: I think he has ace upside but wouldn’t pin that on him for 2016.

Michael: Does Chris Davis have a market anymore? Pretty much has to go to an AL team. He may have given up a lot of money.
Klaw: I don’t see who pays him. As you said, what’s his market now? What teams still have 1b open and that kind of money available? Maybe Texas, but didn’t they see that movie before?

Matt: Corbin’s nasty slider showed the type of bite it once had towards the end of the season, with that in mind safe to say he wins at least 15 next year behind Greinke/Miller?
Klaw: Pitcher-wins are a horrible stat and I would never predict anything about them. Also, Corbin has what, half a year back from TJ? You think he’s ready to throw 200 innings or make 33 starts?

Scotty G: Any chance Davis goes to the Cards on a shorter deal – he would seem to fit PERFECTLY with them with Piscotty/Moss playing RF?
Klaw: Only if it’s February 1st and he hasn’t signed somewhere else.

Chris: I can’t help but feel like the top phillies prospects with the exception of Crawford, are overrated. Am i wrong?
Klaw: Without giving me some basis for the complaint, I find it hard to respond. Is someone saying Jake Thompson is the next Bob Gibson? Then yes, that would be overrating him.

JC: Are the Dbax being wise to consider Hudson for the rotation? I don’t think he should be anywhere but the pen.
Klaw: Reliever all the way. Double TJ, arm action is long, has had some success in relief, and they could use him in the 7th/8th innings. Good outcome for him and team.

Craig: There has been talk of Milwaukee trading Lucroy. Even if Lucroy won’t be part of the next contending Brewers team, is there sufficient value in keeping him around to work with/develop the young pitching staff that would outweigh any return in a trade?
Klaw: You could weigh that value against the return. If no one is blowing you away, you keep him. I think you only deal him if you’re getting back some major-league pieces in return. It’s hard to realize sufficient value otherwise.

Dan: Re: Brain Tumor – Thanks (for the well wishes and recommendation), was leaning in that direction. The good news is that the tumor is benign and we’ve had a lot of time to prep for it, as well as two very good families offering any support we need. Could definitely be a lot worse.
Klaw: That’s good to hear. I know recovery can be long, though; a classmate of mine at Tepper had similar surgery not long after we graduated, and if I remember correctly she had to have a second operation to deal with a recurrence. (She’s fine now, with two kids.) So I wish you all the best. As for reading, don’t be a weirdo like me, reading Lolita at the hospital while my wife was in labor.

Chris: Thoughts on Mets “let’s lengthen lineup and pray SP stays healthy” offseason? They’re putting a ton of pressure on Conforto to be the guy.
Klaw: Sandy etc may just have no money to spend to get a legit bat, and even so, I’m not sure where they’d put such a player – if they were to sign Upton or Cespedes, neither is really a CF, and the corners are taken. Zobrist sort of fit, but four years for him is too much, especially with Herrera right freaking there. They’re in a bit of a weird spot in terms of the roster – they don’t have a black hole to fill so spending big on a veteran requires a better return.

Bevan: How would you rate Stephen King? Is he an all star, average regular, bench bat or AAAA player?
Klaw: Never read any of his stuff.

Charlie: Re: The Murphy/Rendon thing – do you think injury-prone guys benefit from a day of rest a week? That was my assumption with the question – they have 3 guys with bad injury histories who play positions I’d rather see Murphy playing that 2B. If you think it doesn’t help, that’s fair, just wondering
Klaw: Platooning him with Werth makes some sense, and giving Zimmerman some time off might too. Rendon’s injuries seem to be acute rather than chronic, so days off for him seem to have less benefit.

DO: Bill James’ projection for Swihart this year : 287 Avg., .335 OBP, .758 OPS . This, to me, looks both pessimistic AND hugely valuable for a catcher. What part of his offensive game to you see developing first (power or patience)?
Klaw: Patience well before power and hell yeah I’d take that output. What does ZiPS say?

Chris: Does Hansel Robles have closer stuff? After seeing what Philadelphia got for Giles, I would listen on Familia if I were Mets given their, um, financial situation.
Klaw: Not sure he really has closer command, but he has closer stuff.

Bevan: Have you ever read anything by Carlos Ruiz Zafon? I’m currently reading The Shadow of the Wind and it’s incredible…
Klaw: I really didn’t like that book. The resolution was very pulpy and over the top for me.

Gabe: Long term: Confoto or Schwarber? Thanks!
Klaw: You really can’t go wrong with either. Last winter I said Conforto. Right now I’d say Schwarber. I reserve the right to change my mind another half-dozen times before we’re debating their Hall of Fame merits.

Andy: Do any of the draft pick compensation players make it to June? It certainly didn’t go well for the couple of players that did that a few years ago.
Klaw: Don’t think so although Davis’ market would concern me right now.

Nils: Hi Keith, no question just a thanks for continuing your chats here and wish you and your family a happy 2016.
Klaw: You’re quite welcome. Thank you all for reading and chatting with me even as I brought the chats here this year. My next chat will be some time in January. Until then, I hope you all have a safe and happy New Year’s celebration and look forward to doing this again many times in 2016.

Michael: Would you recommend a player sign with Boras as his agent? He obviously gets a lot of money for some of his clients, but he seems to really screw others. I imagine his day-to-day stuff is top notch, but it must be kind of risky to sign with him.
Klaw: I think the net result is a big positive. Yes, a few players fare poorly with him but the majority do very well, from draft day to free agency.

DO: ZiPS is more pessimistic on Swihart: .252/.297/.371 It’s definitely not out of the question for him, but that would assume little to no development in 2016.
Klaw: I’d take the over on the implied walk rate.

Alex: Did you have a chance to see Tim Anderson in person last year? If so, any thoughts on his development?
Klaw: Yes. Approach needs to improve. Tools are all there. He’s just in such a hurry to get out of the batter’s box.

Chris: The philly local media makes them out to be the next World Series core. I wonder if they’re even starters in the MLB.
Klaw: Lot of everyday talent/mid- to back-of-the-rotation types in the system. Crawford is the only guy I’d tab as very likely to be above-average.

Sam: Greg Bird upside? Was his call up performance legit (despite the small sample)? Were there any parts of his game you noticed improved? Thanks!
Klaw: SSS and I’d bet the under going forward but I do think he’s an everyday DH for somebody.

Craig: Do you ever read “pulpy” fiction books (i.e. Harlan Coben, Lee Child, James Patterson, etc.). Any that you particularly enjoy?
Klaw: When I go for that I go more for classics – Christie, Wodehouse, Stout, Le Carre (a bit better than pulp, but same general idea). I’ve liked the few Richard Stark “Parker” novels I’ve read too.

Mike: I smoked a brisket for Christmas. Do you ever use a smoker (I use the traditional offset with the firebox) and do you enjoy BBQ? Took about 14 hours.
Klaw: I smoke meats on my Weber kettle using fire bricks but have never done a brisket. Longest smoke was a pork shoulder, around 8 hours I think. Love to use it for my own bacon. Can’t beat it.

Matt: Keith What type of player do you see in Jamie Westbrook long term? I keep hearing his name a lot in Dbacks system
Klaw: I’d be surprised if he’s any kind of big leaguer. Not a shortstop, doesn’t walk, and got a big boost from the Cal League this year.

Al: Aaron Nola did well for the Phillies, but is he more of a mid rotation starter as opposed to the ace that Phillie fans want him to be?
Klaw: Maybe a 2. Not a 1 – meaning I don’t think he ends up top 15 or so in baseball.

Chris: Do you ever see yourself back with a mlb club?
Klaw: I never rule anything out but I don’t expect so.

Eric: Long term outlook for Joe Ross?
Klaw: I’m all in. Number 2 upside.

Mike: Do you think Erik Johnson will be an above average 4th starter for the white sox? Other than 1 injured year the minor league numbers are great.
Klaw: Agreed. 2014 was unfortunate but understandable with the shoulder injury.

Chris: thoughts on royals signing of Dillon gee?
Klaw: Minor league deal, right? Great pickup.

Matt: Do you see Tanner Roark re-establishing himself as a starter now that he will be back in nats rotation?
Klaw: Yes, I do. They have good starter depth right now.

Chris: Re: Gee-yes, minor lg deal w incentives. After Colon mets really lack rotation depth.
Klaw: They traded much of it away in July.

Rich: Did you take your daughter to see the Good Dinosaur? Where does it fall on the Pixar scale? Seems like a relative dud for them (comparatively at least)
Klaw: Technically Disney, not Pixar, right? Separate studios under the same head. Pixar’s movie this year was Inside Out and if that doesn’t get a Best Picture nod just fire the entire Oscar voting into the sun. Also, I haven’t seen the Good Dinosaur.

Frank: What do you make of Alex Jackson? If I recall correctly (which I often don’t), I believe you were pretty high on him before the 2014 draft. He’s been atrocious. Do you think he can figure things out and be an OF in the majors?
Klaw: He’s been atrocious but I am not giving up on him. He’s been working with a hitting guy I know pretty well this winter, which doesn’t hurt, and even if that weren’t the case I still wouldn’t give up on a 19-year-old with a good swing and real power.

Len Denver: Jonathan Gray upside? Can he still be a #2?
Klaw: Take the under. I don’t like what’s happened to his delivery since he signed.

Zach: Why hasn’t Fister been signed? Big problem or something along lines of wanting too much?
Klaw: Lots of good FA still out there. Kazmir hasn’t signed either. It’s just happening more slowly this winter.

Alex: Devon Travis, if healthy, a good bet for the long-term? Seems to have underrated skills…another undersized guy not getting respect (e.g. Betts, Pedroia, etc.)
Klaw: Not a fan. When did Betts not get respect? That seems revisionist to me.

Jake: Do you think Pierce Johnson can become a 4/5?
Klaw: I think he’s a reliever. Guy has never stayed healthy for a full season as a starter, his delivery is very hard on the elbow, and I don’t know if he has the out pitch to start anyway, although I am much more concerned about the first two points than the third.

Bill: What’s your thoughts on the increase of fact checking articles that come about after debates? They largely just some like clickbate to me.
Klaw: Pointing out where the candidates lied? I’m all for it.

John in MN: The Good Dinosaur is Pixar, was slated for 2014, underwent massive rewrites which delayed it to this year.
Klaw: Ah, my mistake. That explains why it might not have lived up to the Pixar standard then.

Nils: Hi Keith, no question just a thanks for continuing your chats here and wish you and your family a happy 2016.
Klaw: You’re quite welcome. Thank you all for reading and chatting with me even as I brought the chats here this year. My next chat will be some time in January. Until then, I hope you all have a safe and happy New Year’s celebration and look forward to doing this again many times in 2016.

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→ December 26, 2015
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Stick to baseball, 12/26/15.

I only wrote one new Insider piece this week, on Mike Leake contract with St. Louis, although I got a nice response from readers on my 2009 article on the shameful, insidious exclusion of Tim Raines from the Hall of Fame.

And now, the links…

  • Lots of vaccine-denier bullshit out there this week, like the mom in Texas who hosted an infection “party” for unvaccinated kids and said the illness is “meant to eliminate the weak.” Aside from how callous this is – one would presume she thinks her own kids are not among the weak – meant by whom, exactly? Did God send us the measles to wipe out a bunch of toddlers?
  • Meanwhile, a nurse and other vaccine-deniers in Australia have been ripping down vaccination posters in hospitals. If you catch someone doing this, stop them. Report them to security. Do whatever it takes. Idiocy like this breeds faster when rational people stay silent.
  • Some vaccine-denier tried to “argue” with me by citing the so-called “fourteen studies” on vaccine safety, a site and claim that originates with Jenny McCarthy. Well, as you might have guessed, it’s science-denying doggerel.
  • The Washington Post tried to name the country’s ten best food cities by sending its food critic to 30 20 13 cities this year. Yeah, I get that travel is expensive, but this would be like me listening to 108 songs and then giving you my top 100 for the year. Also, the list itself has a lot of very dubious opinions in it – the author goes out of his way to dump on New York City, which has about 8.5 million people in it, and dwarfs almost every other good food town in the country on sheer quantity. I asked the author on Twitter what he had at the amazing Cosme that didn’t impress him, but he hasn’t responded. If you don’t like Cosme’s food – the prices are another matter, but that’s Manhattan for you – I absolutely question your taste.
  • Iceland has an awesome Christmas tradition: giving and reading books.
  • The title of this thinkpiece, “We Are All Martin Shrkeli,” is rather clickbaity, but the message within, about how the modern pharmaceutical industry and its pricing structure deny critical medications to the poor and sick around the world.
  • The new Netflix series Master of None, starring Aziz Ansari and co-created by Ansari and Alan Yang (“Junior” of FireJoeMorgan fame, and MouseRat’s bass player), is phenomenal: funny, sweet, insightful, and different. One episode dealt with racism in Hollywood, and Ansari penned an editorial last month expounding on the same topic.
  • Slate has a somewhat scary piece on the evolution of creationism bills in state legislatures. If you live in a state where this garbage is legal, get active. Creationism and its Trojan horse of intelligent design are not science, and teaching them in any fashion in a public school violates the Establishment and Free Exercise clauses of the Constitution.
  • Boy does the Guardian ever do a number on Sepp Blatter and his corrupt fiefdom.
  • Speaking of corruption, the Las Vegas Review-Journal is embroiled in a scandal that combines plagiarism and a conflict of interest, which has led to more than one situation like this, where a longtime reporter has quit over these ethical violations.
  • Another thinkpiece, but a worthwhile one: What the Mast Brothers scandal really means to those of us reveling in it. I’m only in agreement with the author to a point; even if the victims are rich, or stupid, or both, does that make a particular fraud any less of a crime? It may color our opinions of the people who perpetrated it, but the nature of the fraud itself – in this case, Mast Brothers’ likely lie about how and where they sourced their chocolate – is unchanged.
  • The Atlantic discusses the schism within the Republican Party in a balanced way, without exulting in the party’s potential for self-immolation.
  • The New Yorker looks at the rise and ongoing fall of for-profit colleges, which takes advantage of our already horribly broken student-loan system.
  • Via a reader, Quartz gives us (and fixes) the most misleading charts and graphs of 2015.
  • My adopted hometown of Wilmington called in the CDC to help stem the gun violence epidemic. Of course, the CDC’s ability to help is limited because the NRA has essentially bought budget clauses that prevent the CDC from researching this topic too heavily or promoting anything that might lead to tighter gun control.
  • Tweet of the week – enjoy these fake yet highly credible thinkpiece titles:

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→ December 22, 2015
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Double Star.

My latest Insider post covers Mike Leake’s contract with St. Louis. I don’t think I’ll be able to chat this week, but will get the word out if that changes.

I picked up Robert Heinlein’s short 1956 novel Double Star just before Thanksgiving when the e-book was on sale for $1.99, but it was already on my to-do list since it won Heinlein the first of his four Hugo Awards for Best Novel. While it wasn’t among his first novels, Double Star was only his third novel geared toward the adult audience rather than the juvenile readers of most of his early work, and presaged his turn around 1959’s Starship Troopers toward this sort of more serious literature.

Double Star is the fictional memoir of the actor Lawrence Smith, a.k.a. Lorenzo Smythe, who is coerced or tricked into a job – or perhaps he just took it because he was desperate, and concocted the reasons later – that involves serving as a stand-in for a major opposition politician in the solar system-wide government, a constitutional monarchy similar to that of the United Kingdom. The politician is indisposed for at least a few days, and Smythe needs to stand in for him at a major function on Mars, after which he’s to be paid and sent back to wherever he wants, but as you can easily predict, the job lasts longer than Smythe expects.

Although Heinlein’s milieu was science fiction, with Double Star taking place on Mars, the Moon, and various ships, the science aspects of the novel are almost irrelevant to the plot itself, and often serve as a distraction. The only meaningful addition from the sci-fi setting is the hostility between humans and Martians (described in the book as an intelligent if rather horrifying-looking species), which seems like a strong metaphor for ethnocentric policies in the racially and politically divided human world, such as the nascent civil rights movement in the United States at the time Heinlein was writing the book. Most of the other science fiction elements could go by the wayside without affecting the core story; some seem patently ridiculous now (Heinlein loved to depict settlement and/or native life on Venus) or incongruous (he was fine writing about travel as far as Pluto, but has characters doing tabulations by hand rather than on computers).

Instead, Double Star is a character study that happens to have a sci-fi backdrop. Smythe/Smith is a fatuous, egotistical actor of only modest success, down on his luck when he’s first approached about the job, yet playing the prima donna in all negotiations with his employers/captors. He’s the stereotypical method actor, inhabiting the part rather than just playing it, but also manages to grow somewhat even as he’s spending less and less time being himself. The fool we laugh at in the book’s first half becomes a modest hero in the second half, as he’s asked to do things that would stretch even the strongest personalities. With Heinlein often saying that readers shouldn’t look for metaphor or subtext in his work – I don’t buy that, but hey, it’s his writing – I do think his own argument for Double Star would have been built around the character first and the story second. Here’s a cleverly crafted individual, well-rounded, capable of growth, put in a situation that starts out as difficult and ends up nearly impossible.

It’s only about 140 pages, barely even novel-length, and since most of the sci-fi stuff feels tacked on or superfluous I’m not sure about this as Hugo-worthy, although I’d guess the competition at the time was mostly pulp anyway. I’m not terribly fit to judge the book in Heinlein’s canon, though, since I still have two more of his Hugo winners, the more widely acclaimed The Moon is a Harsh Mistress and Stranger in a Strange Land, left to read.

Next up: Almost done with Dan Simmons’ Hyperion.

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→ December 19, 2015
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Stand on Zanzibar.

John Brunner’s 1968 dystopian novel Stand on Zanzibar – still just $5 for the kindle through that link, or on iBooks – goes much farther than most preceding entries in the dystopian genre, with a rich, multithreaded plot and a vision of a world headed for collapse rather than one already there. It foresaw the rising power of multinational corporations and the widening gap between developed and developing nations, as well as offering a particularly prescient take on the importance and use of big data and machine-learning techniques decades before such things were even feasible.

The core plot of Stand on Zanzibar involves the effort by General Technics, one of the world’s largest companies, to execute a de facto takeover of the economy of the small, neutral (and fictional) west African nation of Beninia, which is caught geographically and politically between two unions of neighboring countries, Dahomalia and RUNG (a union of Nigeria and Ghana). Beninia is poor but in its own way paradisical, a sort of third-world Switzerland that has managed to assimilate various invaders over the preceding millennium. GT’s effort involves help from the U.S. government via their ambassador to Beninia, Elihu, and the GT executive Norman House, an “afram” man who feels he’s abandoned his racial identity to play white so he can move up the corporate ladder.

Meanwhile, Norman’s roommate, Donald Hogan, is a synthesist – a sleeper agent of the U.S. government paid simply to learn: he reads everything he can in selected subject areas and looks for connections and patterns that only he might pick up. Yet he’s “activated” after ten years on the job and “eptified” (retrained) as an assassin so he can go to the southeast Asian power Yatakang to see if the country’s claimed ability to genetically engineer their children to create a generation of supermen has any merit.

These two plots are intertwined on the page but not in fact, as there’s no practical connection between the two stories other than their shared setting in an overpopulated 21st-century Earth where everything’s gone a bit backwards. Most of the world limits reproduction (like China’s now-discarded “one child” rule), and most U.S. states have laws prohibiting reproduction by anyone with harmful or merely undesirable traits in their genotype, from diabetes to colorblindness. Many women (called “shiggies” in the strange lexicon of the book) live without permanent addresses, living with sexual partners and moving from one apartment to the next. Technology is pervasive, although Brunner’s vision of a future fifty years hence was a bit further off in this department. And entire neighborhoods, mostly non-white ones, are unsafe to walk in, with riots breaking out frequently when the mostly-white police officers (in “prowlies”) come through.

The structure of the book follows John Dos Passos’ U.S.A. Trilogy in feel and structure, with mini-chapters between the narrative chapters that offer us headlines or snippets from news stories, or vignettes of side characters whose lives are unrelated to the main plots but still reflect the declining world of the novel. Some of them are simply unreadable, coming as lists or stream-of-consciousness nonsense, while others provide useful context for the events in the narrative chapters to follow. But the constant interruptions break the flow of the overall narrative and add to the disjointed feel of a novel with two unrelated core plots that are merely set in the same world.

The one exception to everything I just wrote is the introduction of Chad Mulligan, a sociologist and commentator who, in this novel, is a successful author of popular, anti-establishment books that argue in favor of mostly libertarian values, showing very little trust of government or corporations. Mulligan’s Hipcrime Vocab is an updated Devil’s Dictionary for this fictional universe, and like Bierce’s work the entries are often very funny.

Brunner created his own vocabulary for this book, mostly to its detriment, in part because it feels very derivative of the Russian-English hybrid Anthony Burgess used in A Clockwork Orange. Terms like “shiggy,” “biv” (a bisexual person), “mucker” (someone who runs amok – a domestic terrorist, in modern parlance) are distracting enough, but his replacements for a.m. and p.m., “anti-matter” and “poppa-momma,” reek of an attempt to sound contemporary to late 1960s readers. Most sci-fi novels attempt to incorporate some sort of new vernacular, but it’s far more effective when the neologisms represent new things or ideas, rather than simply renaming something for which we already have multiple terms.

Where Brunner succeeds, however, is with the two stories; either one would have stood well on its own as a shorter novel, and together they do at least present a more complete picture of this world toward which Brunner likely saw us descending. The novel would be a sociology student’s dream, as Brunner’s focus was less on characterization (it’s not weak, but hardly a strength) than on painting this world and moving the forces within it to explore the effects. That produced a novel that is certainly readable but is even more one to ponder long after finishing.

Next up: Still working on Hugo winners, so I knocked off Robert Heinlein’s Double Star last week and have now started Dan Simmons’s Hyperion.

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→ December 19, 2015
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Stick to baseball, 12/19/15.

For Insiders this week, I wrote about the Giants signing Johnny Cueto and the Todd Frazier three-team trade. I also held my usual weekly Klawchat.

Here on the dish, I compiled lists of my top 100 songs of 2015 and my top 15 albums of 2015.

Folks have been asking about my year-end gift guides, so here they are, once more:

• Top 80 boardgames of all time
• My 2015 gift guide for cooks
• My updated cookbook recommendations
• My all-time top 100 novels (from February 2013)

And now, the links…

  • That $10 Mast Brothers chocolate bar you bought along with your single-origin pour-over coffee at Blue Bottle? Well, it’s bad chocolate and might not even be what they claim it is.
  • Restaurant chain Fig & Olive, which had a salmonella outbreak in the fall, was caught using previously frozen food prepared at a central “commissary” and shipped to their individual locations.
  • What kind of person calls a mass shooting a hoax? Fortunately, Florida Atlantic has moved to terminate that nutjob professor, who has to be suffering from some kind of mental illness to so thoroughly believe these delusions he preaches.
  • Ah, the National Review‘s climate change graph was a big joke, and the Washington Post gives a concise explanation of why. I reviewed a book called Proofiness in June that talks about how organizations like NRO distort and manipulate stats to mislead the public.
  • Meanwhile, the New Yorker talks about how not to talk about nuclear power and climate change. Nuclear power can be a big part of the solution to both climate change and ocean acidification, but it’s already under a renewed attack from people who should probably know better.
  • Hate crimes against Muslims are surging over the past few weeks. It would be nice if we didn’t have an entire traveling circus competing to demonize this entire demographic group.
  • This Times review of the new book Lactivism by Courtney Jung details how unscientific and aggressive the anti-formula movement has become. There are even “ban the bag” movements to try to force hospitals to stop supplying bottles and other free equipment to new mothers – even though there’s little to no evidence to say breast-feeding is better for the baby.
  • A wonderful piece from the Times on the founder of the company behind the Hinge dating app going after the one who got away before it’s too late. (I’m also fairly sure I went to college with the author’s sisters.)
  • CTE isn’t just a problem affecting NFL players – Vice has the story of a D2 college player who died of it at age 26. This is the crux of my argument over Brandon McIlwain’s decision to enroll early at South Carolina: Not only did he pass up a guaranteed payday in June – actually, he passed up the mere chance to have someone offer it to him – but he’s entering an extremely dangerous profession for which he will not be paid for the next three years of his labor.
  • This isn’t new, but I just came across it this week: McSweeney’s imagined letter from Comic Sans.
  • My former residence of Arizona may be shifting from red to blue, thanks to the Latino vote – although I imagine the influx of engineers to work at Intel will contribute as well.
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