It was nice of everyone to honor the Dead Ball Era like that. Some thoughts on what we saw (or didn't, if you go by the TV ratings):

• Houston can now go back to doing what it does best. Instead of vying for baseball supremacy against Chicago, it can return to battling the likes of Philadelphia and Detroit for the title of Fattest City in America.

• It's one thing to have a low-scoring series defined by dominating pitching. Guys like Bob Gibson, Sandy Koufax, Jack Morris and Randy Johnson cementing their legends in the October chill. It's another thing when you're calling the cops on these hitters for impersonating major-leaguers. I saw Matt Damon fail to get the ball of of the infield at the celebrity Home Run Derby at the 1999 All-Star Game at Fenway Park, and I think he could have batted seventh for the Astros.

• Instead of being astonished at how the Astros were shut out in nine of Roger Clemens' 32 regular-season starts in 2005, I'm wondering how they scored at all in the other 23.

• With the White Sox holding a 1-0 lead and facing a man on second with one out in the bottom of the eighth inning of Game 4, Ozzie Guillen elected to intentionally walk Lance Berkman to get to Morgan Ensberg. He put the potential go-ahead run on base with one out to face the Astros' clean-up hitter, who batted .111 for the series. That right there defined the World Seriezzzzzz.

• Overheard in the FOX booth after the game: "We paid how much for the rights to broadcast that shit?"

• When FOX went to shots of that Chicago bar during the ninth inning of Game 4, I couldn't help thinking, "Oh, so that's where the 24 White Sox fans are hanging out tonight." Feel free to show some emotion, people. With one out to go, they looked as anxious as I am in the fifth inning of a Yanks-Royals affair in May. Did they think the series was best-of-nine?

• How much does it suck to be a Cubs fan right now? First the whole Bartman thing, then the tarnishing of the entire Sammy Sosa era, then the Red Sux beat them to the curse-busting punch, and now they have to take shit from fans of the White Sox, whose greatest moments in history include a most infamous gambling scandal, outfielder Al Smith having an entire beer dumped on him in the 1959 World Series, some ugly ass uniforms (with shorts!), the doomed Disco Demolition Night, Lamar Hoyt's cocaine use and the building of the worst modern ballpark in all of sports.

• Who did Barbara Bush have to blow to get those choice seats? I guess her husband. After the game, son Dubya presented the Astros with a "MISSION ACCOMPLISHED" banner.

• Besides guys who couldn't hit a beach ball off a tee, this series lacked a villain. So A.J. Pierzynski ticks people off by running across the mound after making an out. Have you noticed he makes outs a lot, batting .257 with 23 walks in 2005? That's like hating a third-option wide receiver because he celebrated after converting two first downs all year. Damn you, Ricky Proehl!

• Thank god for FOX's animated pitching instructor, Scooter, or else I don't think anyone would be able to figure out what a curveball does.

• Who had money on Brad Lidge going 0-3 in the postseason? Wow. That's why I thought people who placed Eric Gagne over Mariano Rivera as the game's best closer needed to see Danny Bonaduce's shrink. Let those guys pitch over 111 postseason innings, with an 0.81 ERA, and then we can have a discussion.

• I love how people bash the Yanks for "letting" Andy Pettitte leave. We didn't offer enough money, they say. But when other players switch teams for money — like, um, that A-Rod guy and a zillion others — they get crucified. Or maybe Andy just wanted to pitch for Houston no matter what, in which case we couldn't do anything about it.

Other Sports Thoughts:

• Screw Air Force athletic director Hans Mueh for saying football coach Fisher DeBerry made a "seriously, seriously inappropriate comment" when he said, "Afro-American kids can run very well. That doesn't mean that Caucasian kids and other descents can't run, but it's very obvious to me that they run extremely well."

This stuff drives me nuts. People not only pretending the elephant isn't sitting in the living room, but reprimanding those who note the obvious.

The last time a white running back led either the AFC or NFC in rushing was Oakland's Mark van Eeghen in 1977. The last white wide receiver to lead the AFC or NFC in receptions was San Francisco's Dwight Clark in 1982.

White kids make up a certain percentage of starting cornerbacks, tailbacks and wide receivers in high school. They make up a far smaller percentage of those starters on the major college level, and have almost no representation in the NFL.

Now you tell me what the explanation is. It's not that whites don't try to move up a level at those positions; I seriously doubt they're all getting outworked to the point of self-inflicted extinction. It's not racism; coaches ain't keeping the white man down as they may have with black quarterbacks in the past. So, until proven wrong, I'm going to believe the reasoning for such a statistically significant differential between the races is physiological.

And I'm open to alternative viewpoints. Too bad no one in mainstream media is allowed to talk about it.

• When I read that WNBA star Sheryl Swoopes was gay, I was as shocked as that time a Wall Street guy told me he did coke. In all seriousness, may all the people who contribute to a culture where law-abiding homosexuals have to think twice about being open find their peace in heaven and a nice view of Peter, Paul and the rest of the Apostles fucking each other in the ass.

• The Internet needs more pictures of ESPN reporter Colleen Dominguez. Damn she's hot.

• I love those commercials selling the Ripken brothers' baseball instructional DVDs. The announcer boasts their 33 years of combined experience at the highest level. What he doesn't tell you is that Cal Ripken is a first-ballot Hall of Fame icon, while Billy Ripken is most famous for being pictured on a 1989 Fleer baseball card holding a bat with the words "Fuck Face" on the knob.

Someone wanna check these stats and tell me how Billy lasted a dozen seasons in the majors in the first place?

• All this love for Jerome Bettis (stats) these days. I'm a big Bus guy, really, but isn't Curtis Martin (stats) an equally durable yet more complete back who's racked up better stats for plenty of playoffs teams in two less seasons than Bettis?

• Syracuse hoops recruit Eric Devendorf was recently voted on media day to be the Big East's Preseason Rookie of the Year. Is there a more pointless distinction in all of sports? "Yeah, we haven't seen you play a minute of college ball yet, but congratulations on your award!"

• If I ran in a marathon, the front of my T-shirt would read, "Go CZUTHAYCH Go!" just to watch people try to pronounce that name while cheering me on.

• Did anyone actually read the entirety of this post?