Quote of the day that may miff Iowans

Straying into the world of sports for a moment

If you, too, are a baseball fan, you have been mesmerized this summer by the emergence of Washington Nationals fireballer Stephen Strasburg and are no doubt concerned this morning to learn that young ace has a shoulder problem of yet-to-be-determined severity.

The injury forced Strasburg to be scratched from last night's game at the very last minute, sorely disappointing the 40,000 fans who had already paid for tickets, many of whom were there expressly to see the phenom. Some booed when it was announced that he wouldn't be pitching. And many more booed during the third inning when his picture was showed on the scoreboard with an explanation of why he wasn't playing.

Needlessly harsh, if you ask me, but I didn't shell out big bucks for a ticket.

More forgiving of the razzing was Miguel Batista, Strasburg's teammate who stepped in and pitched quite well. Said Batista of the boos, and, well, himself:

 "Imagine if you go there to see Miss Universe and you end up having Miss Iowa. You might get those kind of boos."

Ouch. Imagine if you're Miguel Batista and find yourself in Des Moines any time soon.

And, personally, I'll take the farm girl next door over Miss Universe any day. (It's the old Ginger or Mary Ann thing.)

(Update: The real Miss Iowa fires back: “I know I can throw a pitch or two!” Katherine Connors, the 20-year-old Bettendorf native said in a statement today. “The question is, can Miguel Batista walk the runway in a swimsuit?” ... Your move, Miguel.)