Bricked Up

@MLFootball Elite football minds like Kyle Shanahan and Kevin O’Connell saying Rivers is one of the best to ever do it. Belichick compared him to Tom Brady and Peyton Manning on knowledge of the game. Yet casual fans and dumb talking heads act like he was just a good QB. Straight insanity

@JB_Rad619 @yakyucosmo @SergioMQuintero @LADodgersMuse @ShotimeLAD @Bnicklaus7 @brownsonjacob2 @BrandonTeweets Lan-Hong Su has clearly benefited from working with Darvish, and it’s clear to see from his mechanics. Roki got the World Series ring he chased by signing with LA, but may have ruined his career in the process.

@yakyucosmo @SergioMQuintero @LADodgersMuse @ShotimeLAD @Bnicklaus7 @brownsonjacob2 @BrandonTeweets It’s still too early to say for sure but the Padres may be better off with the international class they signed, headlined by Lan-Hong Su, Johan De La Cruz, Deivid Coronil and Carlos Alvarez than if they had signed Roki. Very unexpected.

Roki Sasaki looks like a shell of the pitcher he once was. Sasaki's historic amateur prospect pedigree earned him the nickname “Kaibutsu,” or “Monster,” of Japan’s current imperial era, Reiwa, a title previously bestowed upon all-time greats Suguru Egawa (Showa) and Daisuke Matsuzaka (Heisei). In 2022, the Iwate native sent shockwaves across the baseball world when he threw a 19-strikeout perfect game as a 20-year-old and followed it up with 8 more perfect frames in the very next start. Durability was always Sasaki’s undoing, but that was the only question. When he was on the mound, his dominance was undeniable, drawing comparisons to a young Jacob deGrom. But the former first-round pick saw a steep decline in his dominance after an oblique injury in July 2023. Prior to that, Sasaki was on pace for the best pitching season in NPB history on a per-inning basis. 2023 Stats as of July 24: 13 GS 85.0 IP 1.48 ERA 40.4 K% 4.7 BB% 64.1 GB% 39.1 Whiff% 37.7 CSW% The flamethrower returned from injury in just 7 weeks and looked rusty in a couple of starts, but that could easily be attributed to being rushed back or not yet fully healthy. The more concerning signs emerged early in 2024, when his fastball velocity dropped noticeably, sitting 95-98 mph in starts instead of the 98–101 range seen in previous years. He still produced great results in NPB as his signature splitter remained highly effective, and he started to incorporate the slider more. However, both the shape and command of his fastball had clearly regressed, especially when compared to the gaudy metrics he posted in the 2023 World Baseball Classic. March 2022 - July 2023 (Fastballs Only) Pitches: 1,654 Avg Velo: 98.6 Max Velo: 103 Whiff%: 21.0 Z-Con%: 82.8 Strike%: 73.1 pERA-: 67 September 2023 - October 2024 (Fastballs Only) Pitches: 851 Avg Velo: 96.9 (-1.7) Max Velo: 101 (-2) Whiff%: 12.6 (-8.4) Z-Con%: 91.7 (+8.9) Strike%: 70.7 (-2.4) pERA-: 95 (+28) Then, Sasaki triggered what is believed to be an early posting clause in his contract to pursue a move to Major League Baseball, ultimately signing a minor league deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers. If not for international bonus pool restrictions on players under 25, the right-hander was widely viewed as a talent worth hundreds of millions. His debut campaign stateside was anything but smooth, as Sasaki struggled out of the gates before missing three months with a right shoulder impingement, an issue that also potentially bothered him during his final NPB season. He returned in September and made an impact for LA out of the bullpen in the early stages of the postseason, but looked shaky during the World Series. Still, he was able to reach triple digits on his fastball again, offering some hope that 2026 could be a rebound year. He skipped the WBC to focus on building back up as a starter, but endured a disastrous spring training, walking 29% of batters to the tune of a 15.58 ERA. As of right now, it’s difficult to view Sasaki as starter material. His fastball has lost its power, his mechanics are off, he lacks a true third pitch, and he doesn’t show the confidence to attack the zone, preventing his world-class splitter from really shining. What the Dodgers — but more importantly, Roki Sasaki himself — do from here will define his career. Will the most talented Japanese arm ever be remembered as the injury-prone phenom who set his sights on MLB too early and crumbled in the process, or will he emerge as a force in a dynasty alongside fellow countrymen Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto?

@UnderdogMLB You love to see it

Roki Sasaki's final spring start: 2.0 IP 5 ER 2 K 0 H 6 BB 2 HBP 66 Pitches 15.58 ERA this spring.

@NYKnicks124 @History__Speaks Because he’s a Zionist sellout who’s done nothing with his life. Total scumbag.

@History__Speaks Why do you doubt the son's sincerity? He might get slaughtered but that doesn't mean he doesn't care about the country. He also said he wants to be a transitional leader.

Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was no "monster;" his regime's atrocities, though very real and under-exaggerated by Monarchists (and, weirdly, Wikipedia), were hardly out of the norm in the region & exaggerated by revolutionaries. But if I were Iranian, I'd see him as a national "villain" of sorts. For he sold out the country's independence and sovereignty to secure the patronage of the West. Doubtless his son would do the same thing if he got the chance. There are many examples to cite in this respect: the 1953 coup and the 1954 Oil Consortium Agreement that followed; Savak (not only trained by the CIA, but serving as a vessel of American interests); and the Baghdad Pact of 1955. The most outrageous example was the 1964 Status of Forces Agreement, which literally immunized most Americans in Iran - not merely diplomats, as is normal, but all government employees and their families - from prosecution in Iranian courts. (He did it in exchange for American loans.) This is colonialism. Pahlavi was sort of a tragic villain, insofar as I do believe - unlike his joke of a son - he loved Iran, sought its independence 'one day,' and thought all of this was to the benefit and modernization of Iran. (Which in a direct sense, it of course was.) But for those Iranians - and I suspect it is the large majority, including opponents of the regime - who care about an independent and sovereign Iran, Pahlavi was a disaster. Had the Shah managed to stay in power, Iran becomes another "Gulf State." But in fact the nationalism of the Iranian people ensured he wouldn't keep his throne.

@TooMuchMortons_ @sandiegoeq1 This is why you don’t write off 19-year-old prospects

Ethan Salas today Single Stolen base 108.5 mph groundout 3 run homer 8 pitch walk Throws out 2 runners

@THATCH_ARISES @marekjanous @RnaudBertrand Israel attacked them first, dumbfuck. And there’s ZERO credible evidence that they tried to assassinate Trump.

@marekjanous @RnaudBertrand You left out the part where they sent missiles at Israel, killed and maimed thousands of US soldiers in Iraq, and tried to assassinate a sitting US president multiple times. FFS, it is like you have just landed on Earth and know nothing about what happened previous to last week.

Iran seems to be following a strategy of unveiling more and more impressive military capabilities as the war goes on. They just fired long-range ballistic missiles at Diego Garcia, one of the most strategically significant U.S. military bases in the world (hosting B-52 bombers, nuclear subs, etc.), nearly 5,000km away from them in the middle of the Indian ocean 👇. Diego Garcia has never been hit before in any war in its 5 decades of existence, and no-one knew Iran had these types of capabilities (Iran themselves said their ballistic missile range was limited to 2,000 kilometers). Two days ago, they also took down an "unkillable" F-35 fifth-generation fighter jet, something which has never happened before (militarywatchmagazine.com/article/footag…). They've also managed to take control of the world's most strategic oil chokepoint, and have proven they can hit any strategic target in the wider Middle-East, even the most protected ones (such as Israel's Haifa oil refinery: aljazeera.com/news/2026/3/19…). All in all, it sounds almost unbelievable but Iran appears to have a genuine form of escalation dominance over the United States military, with its trillion dollar budget. In a very real way, it's even more impressive than Vietnam or Afghanistan: those countries resisted a superpower, Iran appears to be competing with one. It also makes you think: what comes next? And that's exactly what escalation dominance is all about: keep raising the stakes until the other side blinks. It's about making Trump think "wait, I thought I was picking a fight with the skinny kid and turns out he's Bruce Lee."

@DarylRobinson23 @DaleDykes5 @ianbremmer Israel is a death cult. Fuck you

@DaleDykes5 @ianbremmer No because they are a fucking death cult. Glad I could enlighten you

turned out the iranian government was lying about not developing any ballistic missiles with range beyond 2000km. hardly surprising, but justification for removing their ballistic missile capability militarily.

@schizoretard18 @AmirAminiMD Iran is the 4th highest IQ nation in the world by some rankings.

@AmirAminiMD Nope, we are a significantly higher IQ people. They are overestimating how much we read & how much we care

“Haven’t forgotten”? The biggest mistake Iranians are making is the absolute overestimation of the average US American’s intellect and ability for critical thinking. Apologies for hurting anyone’s feelings, and I know there are many exceptions, but come on.

@DuckdogPud1 @kjgillenwater @aakashgupta How are leaves filth? Moron

@kjgillenwater @aakashgupta Some folks are adverse to the filth produced by trees, idiots tolerate it.

Let me explain exactly why every new subdivision in America looks like the top photo, because the math is wild. A mature tree increases a home's value by 7 to 19 percent. On a $400,000 house, that's $28,000 to $76,000. A single shade tree produces the cooling equivalent of ten room-size air conditioners running 20 hours a day. One tree on the west side of a house cuts energy bills by 12 percent within 15 years. The bottom photo is worth more, costs less to live in, and sells faster. This has been documented by the University of Washington, Clemson, Michigan State, and the USDA. The data is not in dispute. Removing those trees saves the builder roughly $5,000 per lot. Concrete trucks need twice the dripline radius of every standing tree. Utility trenches need flat ground. A bulldozer flattens 200 lots in an afternoon. Preserving trees adds weeks and thousands per home. So the developer pockets $5,000 in savings and the buyer eats $50,000 in lost value for the next two decades. The person making the decision and the person paying for it have never been in the same room. The Woodlands, Texas is the proof of what happens when they are. George Mitchell bought 28,000 acres of Houston timberland in 1974 and preserved 28% as permanent green space. He forced McDonald's to build behind the tree canopy. That McDonald's became one of the highest-volume locations in Texas. The first office building, designed to reflect the surrounding forest so you couldn't see it from the street, leased completely. The Woodlands median home price today: $615,000. Katy, a comparable Houston suburb that clear-cut: $375,000. Named #1 community to live in America two years running. Fifty years of data. The trees are worth more than removing them saves. Developers clear-cut anyway because they sell the house once and leave. You live in it for 30 years.

@the_dogefish @PinstripeBungle Banger tweet

@PinstripeBungle Americans are more familiar with the work of Alexis de Texas

every Iranian diplomatic interaction with the US is just this meme. it’s just them actually IRL sitting down and doing this over and over.

If Joe Kent gets investigated before the pedophiles from Epstein Files, you'd have no better proof we've been taken over by a foreign country.

@Mwoloz @calvinfroedge Even if the Islamic Republic is overthrown, the new government will almost certainly be anti-Israel. Iranians in Iran aren’t Zionist genocide-lovers like much of the diaspora is.

@calvinfroedge Basij are waiving white flags in Tehran. The end is coming

So today Iran crippled world gas output for years, hit an F35, and knocked the power out in Haifa after hitting Israel's only oil refinery with a ballistic missile I think it might be time to say it - Iran is winning the war

@muntazireimam84 @pati_marins64 Persians are the majority ethnic group though; they comprise 61% of Iran’s population.

@pati_marins64 Great analysis, but Persians isn't a synonym for Iranians Persians are just one of the ethnicities in Iran

My recent Interview 1- t.co/TzuDZn03Lt your analysis of the Strait of Hormuz, you argue that Iran’s geographic and military positioning makes the strait almost impenetrable in the current configuration. From a purely military standpoint, what are the specific capabilities, missiles, mines, drones or terrain advantages, that give Iran such leverage over this chokepoint? The first point to highlight is the local geography and how effectively Iran exploits it. If you look at a photo of the Strait of Hormuz from the Iranian side, you’ll see the strait is flanked by mountains. Coupled with this, bathymetric data shows an average depth of 50–70 meters. This makes large vessels and submarines highly vulnerable, while favoring Iranian midget submarines, fast attack crafts (FACs), mines, USVs, and UUVs. The Iranian arsenal is tailor-made for this type of warfare: ambushing enemies in the strait using midget subs, missile-armed fast boats, surface drones, undersea drones, and anti-ship missiles. Specifically regarding underwater drones, we are talking about modern assets up to 8 meters long, powered by lithium batteries and featuring high-stealth capabilities, such as the Azhdar. In the last five years alone, the Persians have commissioned between 250 and 300 fast boats equipped with missiles ranging from 25 to 300 km, such as the Ghadir missiles found on modern Zulfiqar-class boats. Furthermore, Iran appears to have already mined the strait, leaving only a narrow corridor close to its own territory, rendering any transiting vessel extremely vulnerable. Many of these missile and drone positions are housed in 'mini-bunkers' embedded within the mountain ranges flanking the strait. Imagine everything described above supported by aerial drones and anti-ship missiles. To top it off, in January 2026, the IRGCN revealed a network of undersea missile tunnels and coastal bases designed to deploy fast boats and naval drones from protected shelters. I do not believe any commander would force entry into that strait. 2 - t.co/spHUGxxMr9 suggest that Iran has been able to dictate the tempo of the conflict while continuing to export oil and influence global markets. Do you believe Tehran is deliberately managing escalation to weaponize uncertainty in energy markets without triggering a full closure of Hormuz? Yes, and they do so strategically, planning for a protracted war of attrition. With market volatility and surging oil prices, Iran is ramping up political pressure on Trump, who is also facing pushback from Gulf nations suffering billions in losses and a stifled energy industry. Companies like QatarEnergy have completely halted LNG production, Aramco is operating at half capacity, and Abu Dhabi’s ADNOC has significantly scaled back operations. This is not to mention Big Tech and the financial sector, which have also reduced their footprint in the Gulf following Iranian threats. The Persians are waging an asymmetric war of external and internal politico-economic pressure against their adversaries, to the point where their success is becoming evident. They are managing the generated chaos, biding their time to announce the closure of the other strategic chokepoint, Bab el-Mandeb, via the Houthis.

@Zacbunchanumbrs @YearOfTheKraken You’re a fucking moron

Still very clearly the US and Israel. Iran's attacks on neighboring countries turned the entire region against them in a way their own leadership has shown they did not anticipate and don't understand, even expressing regret that nations they attacked didn't back them. They do not have the capacity to destroy the region's oil capacity, they have likely completely spent their ability to do anything beyond keeping the strait closed. And all of this happened because they took the deeply irrational step of committing suicide rather than jsut not demanding the ability to continue trying to make nukes. There is nothing rational about any of Iran's actions and they are easily the textbook refutation of rational state actors.

Many people wouldn't have liked it when I called Iran a rational actor. But consider their actions so far. -Did not close Strait of Hormuz until there was an existential threat to their country -Did not attack critical energy infrastructure until theirs was targeted -They have once again threatened that they will destroy the regional energy infrastructure if theirs is attacked, prompting Trump to announce no more of Iran's will be targeted -They have demonstrated the capability to destroy the entire energy infrastructure of the Gulf and yet, they are holding themselves back. Compare this with Israel and USA's actions so far: -Decapitation strike against Iran while negotiations were progressing well (Oman confirmed this) and a ceasefire was in place. -Targeted Iran's energy infrastructure knowing fully well that there will be retaliation. -Initiated a war they have no means of winning without plunging the entire world into an apocalypse. Which side is the rational actor here?

For the record, the president of the United States is now simultaneously claiming that he has won the war, is currently winning the war, needs help to win the war, and needs no help to win the war. All to destroy the nuclear program he claims to have already destroyed last year.

If you're a young U.S. soldier I hope you're paying attention to what they did to Joe Kent today. You can fight their wars for decades. You can lose friends or even your wife in the desert. But the minute you say "Hey I don't wanna fight for Israel anymore" they will destroy you.

@TooMuchMortons_ @SergioMQuintero The Pads being an electric reliever factory makes me even more pissed about giving up LDV and Braden Nett for a RP. That trade would have only made sense if they turned Miller into a starter IMO.

In 125.1 major league innings Ron Marinaccio has a 28.3% K%. For reference league avg K rate last year was 22.2%. He has the goods to strike people out. Needs to simply trust that his stuff is good and be on the attack from pitch 1. The walks is the only thing holding him back.

@FleurHassanN @dlLambo @AmrAdelFahmy The likes of you are the reason the state of Israel is viewed as a pariah globally. You evil witch.

@dlLambo @AmrAdelFahmy Oh you mean the Israeli Al Jazeera ? We don’t take then seriously

From Haaretz in Israel. A description of an IDF commander murdering a 4 year old. For fun. It's beyond demonic. haaretz.com/opinion/2024-1…

@tcwink @IranObserver0 The arrogance of American neocons knows no bounds. You’re a disgrace to this country, bitch.

@IranObserver0 lol, is this a joke. USA could level Iran in under an hour if they wanted. That could not be said the other way around, not if they even had 50 years at this point

⚡️BREAKING The United States is deploying 5 E-2D Hawkeye airborne early warning aircraft to the Middle East This indicates that a considerable number of American radar systems have been disabled by Iran

@dustoff_1sg @169Nomis Do you think Jesus will look kindly upon your support for Israel, which has engaged in genocide, ethnic cleansing, and warmongering for over 70 years? Do you know how many innocent civilians (including Palestinian and Lebanese Christians) that they’ve slaughtered?

@169Nomis The ideal of liberty and freedom for me will never change. I fought for the person on my left and right, not the government. Please don’t feel sorry for me. I have Jesus in my corner and I wear the Armor of God everyday.

If you hate Israel or Jewish people please do me a huge favor and fuck off. That also includes all you idiots who think we are bombing the shit out of Iran just because Israel said so. I really don’t care how many of you unfollow me. I am tired of hearing this nonsense. Sincerely fuck off.

@ilangoldenberg Acknowledging the immensely corrupting influence of the Israel Lobby on US foreign policy (and domestic policy through crackdowns on free speech) is not antisemitic Crying wolf on criticism of Israel and its genocidal Jewish supremasict policies ultimately does Jews a disservice

Almost always happy to have senior officials resigning over a war I disagree with. But the antisemitic stuff in here blaming Israel for the Iraq war and a secret conspiracy of the media and Israelis to deceive Trump into going to war with Iran is ugly stuff that plays on the worst antisemitic tropes. Donald Trump is the President of the United States and he is the one ultimately responsible for sending American troops into harms way.