Game Four = 3:18

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The Texas Rangers increased their World Series game lead to 3-1, with an eleven to seven win over the Phoenix Diamondbacks in Game Four.

The game was a blowout with the Rangers up 10-1 after three innings.  The D'backs attempted to rally in the eighth and ninth innings but came up short.  The Rangers could win the World Series this evening.

The game was boring and featured 20 at bats when the hitters failed to put the ball into play.  It also featured eleven pitching changes.  I listened to Game Four on the radio while I was in my car and turned it off after the third inning.

Game Three = 2:51

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The Texas Rangers went up two games to one in Game Three of the 2023 World Series.  The Rangers beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 3-1 behind the six hit pitching of five Texas pitchers.

While the game was played in less than three hours, it still had a number of stretches where there was no action.  There were 15 strikeouts and five walks.  And there were eight pitching changes where almost 49 thousand fans in Phoenix had to sit around watching absolutely nothing.

Game Two = 2:59

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Game Two of the 2023 World Series came in about an hour faster than game one.  The Arizona Diamondbacks bounced back to win the game 9-1 over the Texas Rangers in the Fall Classic.

There were "only" seven pitching changes in the game, with 12 strikeouts and five walks.  The game was lopsided as Merrill Kelly dominated Ranger batters through the first seven innings of the game striking out nine and walking no one.

The series is now tied at one game each.  Game three of the World Series will be played Monday night in Phoenix.

World Series Game 1 = 4:02

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For regular readers of this blog you know I've written about the World Series in past years from a different perspective than most writers.

My interest is the time of the game and what I will call the boredom factor.  The boredom factor includes items like walks, strikeouts and pitching changes when there is absolutely nothing happening on the field.  At these times fans in the stands have to fight sleep and those at home have to fight the urge to change the channel.

Major League Baseball will try to feed you some crap about how exciting Game One of the 2023 World Series was.  It was played in Arlington, Texas and the Rangers beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 6-5 in 11 innings.  It was somewhat entertaining but it also seemed to last all night coming in at a whopping four hours and two minutes.  This is in light of MLB's yearlong "hype-fest" telling the public how much better the game is now that a clock is put on the pitcher and hitter.  Yeah, right.

Four hours and two minutes is a joke.  Sure, the game lasted 11 innings but a game played at a snail's pace in which the hitters are dug in like coal miners swinging for the fences is not interesting despite MLB's fascination with the long ball and minutia like "exit velocities".  This is not your father's or grand-fathers sport.

This four hour marathon included eleven pitching changes, eleven walks and 24 strikeouts. 24 strikeouts?  Add a hit batsman and this means there were 47 events in the game where absolutely nothing happened and the ball wasn't put into play.  MLB is proud of itself for speeding up the game, but a faster game without any action is still like watching paint dry.

Morons in Congress

The system is broken.  By the system, I mean the US Congress and the overwhelming lack of cooperation between the two parties.  Instead of working to solve funding issues house Democrats and Republicans seem much more interested in advancing their careers and agendas than representing the people who elected them.

There is no solution in sight.  Instead of coming up with a permanent fix, congress continues to kick the can down the road when it comes to government funding.  And many don't seem to care what their actions do to this nation as long as they remain blindly loyal to their party's leadership.

The woman who represents my family and me in Congress is indicative of the blind loyalty of congressional members.  Ann Wagner, who has been elected to represent her Missouri district six times, has done very little in 12 years.  She has authored insignificant legislation in the house and added her name to more significant bills when it benefits the Republican party.

Wagner's' claim to fame was to co-chair the Missouri Republican party and serve as Ambassador to Luxembourg after being appointed by former President George Bush.  It was the Republican party's way of thanking her for helping it win gains in the early 2000's.

There are too many congress people just like Wagner who are feckless.  It's a wonder Congress gets anything accomplished.  And the Republicans aren't alone.  There are a number of clueless Democrats as well.

What is the solution to this malaise in Congress?  Term limits.  Apparently the American public thinks congress is ineffectual, but doesn't want to throw out its representatives in the House and Senate.  If a constituional ammendment were enacted to limit house members to six two year terms and Senate members to two six year terms, it might help solve the problem.  It would also get rid of some of the fossils in both chambers who have been sucking the tit of the public treasury for far too long.

Term limits would get rid of those who have become entrenched in power.  As an example Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer from New York would be forced to go home and so would Republican Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.  McConnell is 81 years old and the people of Kentucky have sent him back to Washington D.C. through at least 2026.  As a reference, McConnell was first elected to the US Senate in 1984.  That was the same year Americans elected Ronald Reagan to  a second term.  McConnell is showing his age of 81 and on at least two recent occasions has seemed to be disoriented while speaking in public.

It's time for these individuals to let someone else have a chance.  Maybe there are statesmen in this nation who are actually concerned about the future of the United States and would act to work with their colleagues on both sides of the aisle.