Bronx Banter’s Alex Belth has a pair of interviews to check out. The first is with Jane Leavy, author of the recent biography, Sandy Koufax: A Lefty’s Legacy. The second is with Jim Bouton, author of Foul Ball: My Life and Hard Times Trying to Save an Old Ballpark as well as the classic Ball Four. What with my tech woes (see below) and impending travel day, I haven’t had a chance to read either of the interviews fully, but both look to live up to Alex’s usual high standards, so check them out. Belth even drops Bouton’s appearance in the Robert Altman movie, The Long Goodbye.

Speaking of Bouton, I’m pleased to announce that I’m the new sponsor of his Baseball-Reference page. The coolest website ever, B-R.com runs on user donations in the form of page sponsorships running from $2 to $565 (the Leagues Directory page) based on the amount of traffic they get. Last year I sponsored eight players: Luis Sojo, Mario Mendoza, Ron Gardenhire, Jay Buhner, Pedro Guerrero, Tommy Lasorda, David Cone, and Alfonso Soriano. Sori’s page is up to $100 this year, so that’s out of my budget, as is Coney’s $45 page. But I renewed Sojo, Mendoza, Gardenhire, and Buhner, and haven’t figured out what to do about Pedro and Lasorda. I’ll probably add a couple more futility infielders instead. Anyway, if you use B-R.com one tenth as much as I do, you should spring for a page to help Sean Forman pay his server costs. There’s plenty to be had in the $5-20 range, and it’s a lot of fun to say that you sponsor a player. What the hell are you waiting for?