Tue., 12/30 Greg Johnson

[magus]

THEME:   first word of phrase is a storage unit
   
GOOD ONES:     
Moving company service {& theme}   STORAGE   
Troupe for troops: Abbr.   USO [or "Troupe for a troop"]   
   
BTW:   
"Roger that!"   OKEY DOKEY [Ugh!  "Roger that" suggests "I understand" with a possible hint of agreement; OKEY DOKEY means "that's fine with me" or "will do"]   
   
Academically above average   C PLUS [maybe in my generation; today A = above average; B = below average; C = George W.]   
   
Meter reading   USAGE [I think the "Meter" here refers to poetry, and if so, USAGE would be inappropriate since it refers to prose syntax, not poetry, for which "scanning" might do.]   
   
   
RATING:   
Three grins = Loved it; Two grins = Enjoyed it; One grin = A bit bland for my taste; One teardrop = Not much fun   

[uneequeone]

meter, like gas or electric meter

[Thomps2525]

Couldn't a "meter reading" also be 39.37 inches?

Each day's New York Times crossword appears in the Daily News five weeks later. I don't know the reason. I seldom care...except on days such as today when the theme answers relate to a specific date. One clue was "American athlete born 11/25/1914." I wish I had seen this puzzle on November 25 instead of on December 30. The theme answers: JOEDIMAGGIO, YANKEECLIPPER (his nickname), CENTERFIELD, HITTINGSTREAK and FIFTYSIXGAMES.

We could debate which baseball records are least likely to be broken. Cy Young's 511 wins? Barry Bonds' 762 home runs? Pete Rose's 4256 hits? Rickey Henderson's 1406 stolen bases? Cal Ripken Jr.'s 2632 consecutive games? Many records can likely be broken by anyone who plays in enough games, but I think DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak will stand forever.

[magus]

Thanks, UNEEQUEONE.  I thought about a gas meter but USAGE didn't seem to go with it; but, of course, the meter records gas USAGE.  Duh.

Rewind, Barry Bond's record is tainted by his steroid use and should not be mentioned among other great baseball feats.  And Cal's record seems least likely broken for two reasons: no one really tries for it, and management wants to protect their investments by resting players throughout the long season. (Remember, Cal's father was his manager for many years and let him at least enter every game.)

[Thomps2525]

When Barry Bonds was taking steroids and hitting so many home runs, probably a lot of other players, unbeknownst to us, were also taking steroids. And Bonds did not have the big advantage that most people assume he had. Steroid use is not going to benefit anyone when it comes to following the path of the ball and knowing when to swing the bat. Bonds supposedly did not start taking steroids until 2003. (He told investigators he was using "arthritis cream" and a "nutritional supplement.") He hit 33 home runs in 1990, 25 in 1991, 34 in 1992, 46 in 1993, 39 in 1994, 33 in 1995, 40 in 1996 and again in 1997, 37 in 1998, 34 in 1999, 49 in 2000, a record-setting 72 in 2001, and 46 in 2002. After he started taking steroids, his home-run production did not improve. He hit 45 in 2003 and again in 2004. Steroids did not help him any. Just don't ask Hank Aaron for his opinion!

[magus]

 After he started taking steroids, his home-run production did not improve. 

Rewind, it amazes me how little we agree on anything.  However, this is not the place to argue baseball.  You can reach me by email if you would like to be disabused of this this misinformation as well as your erroneous opinions on semantic and syntactical issues.