June 28
Houston Chronicle
columnist Richard Justice
"
Got some bad news for you, Roy O. You're not going anywhere. Tough luck, buddy.
You didn't really want to pitch for the Yankees. I mean, think of the traffic hassles and housing costs. No way you can find a decent chicken-fried steak in the Bronx anyway.
Sure the playoffs would be nice, but you can spend the fall on that bulldozer and maybe it won't be so bad.
Anyway, that's the message from Drayton McLane this week. There'll be no blowing up the roster and starting over.
Never mind that the glass appears to be broken. Drayton is relentlessly optimistic, and there are worse things you can say about a man."
June 11
Houston Chronicle
columnist Richard Justice
"
Remember this Roy
Oswalt? Sure you do. He was once among the best hardball throwers in the land.
At his very best, he's not fancy. Far from it. That 95 mph heater will shatter your bat. That big, screaming curveball will buckle your knees.
One of his current teammates, Geoff Blum, sat in the Montreal dugout and watched Oswalt's big league debut in 2001. He decided then and there that he hated Roy Oswalt.
"I'm thinking, 'Who does this guy think he is?' " Blum remembered. "Pretty cocky."
Yep. Was then. Is now. Thank goodness."