Me(ech): Hey, Todd, I appreciate you taking a few minutes out of your busy schedule to talk with The Fightins.

Just curious, where are you originally from?

Todd Zolecki: Born in Milwaukee, but I grew up in the hardscrabble suburbs of West Allis and New Berlin.

Me: Oh, really? Hmmm… I did not know that. I also had no clue Scrabble was any harder in Wisconsin than it is the rest of the country. Smaller dictionaries, I guess.

When you were younger, which baseball team did you root for?

TZ: The Milwaukee Brewers.

Me: The Brewers you say? Huh.

If you don’t mind me asking, where do you currently reside?

TZ: I’ve got a Philly zipcode.

Me: Oh, sweet! Me too!

I hear you work for the most respected newspaper in town, The Philadelphia Inquirer, what is your specific title over there?

TZ: I’m the Phillies beat writer.

Me: Sounds like a blast!

Being that it’s your job to follow the Phillies, I’m sure you’re aware that they are playing your hometown Brewers in the NLDS, correct?

TZ: Correct.

Me: Would you say - as a general rule of thumb - that most baseball fans who grow up following their hometown team continue to do so throughout their life?

TZ: I would say so.

Me: Interesting.

Okay, well, with that being sa- - OUT WITH IT, ZOLECKI - ARE YOU ROOTING FOR THE BREWERS IN THIS SERIES?

TZ: I am not, but I will say I was happy to see the Brewers finally get into the playoffs just because I know how bad Brewers baseball has been since 1982. But I absolutely am not rooting for the Brewers.

Not unless Robin Yount is back in uniform. Wait, isn’t he the new bench coach?

Just kidding.

Me: Close one, Todd.  I was sure my deceptive line of questioning would reveal the truth.  You done good.

Be sure to check out Todd Zolecki’s in-depth playoff coverage for The Philadelphia Inquirer, and read his daily updated blog, Phillies Zone, over at Philly.com.  Or else.

While the Phillies are battling the Rangers in Arlington, Inqy beat reporter Todd Zolecki thought it was an appropriate time to sit down with Texas native, Clay Condrey, and ask him a few questions. The Q&A session started off with a few harmless inquiries where Clay admitted his pickoff move is more of a “balk move” and explained how he managed to be the only guy on his minor league team to avoid suspension when they chased a fan into the stands. But then some inquisitive fella from Hoboken probed into Clay’s hunting habits and he admitted to tracking down — and eating — some abnormal animals such as dove, squirrels, racoons, and the most disturbing, armadillos:

Q: Being an avid outdoorsman, do you, like “Sack Master” in the movie Wedding Crashers, hunt quail? - Greg P., Hoboken, N.J.
A: I don’t hunt quail. I hunt deer, dove, duck. That’s it. Rabbits. Whatever I can eat.

Q: Squirrels?

A: Squirrels, too. It’s good stuff.

Q: Have you had a raccoon?

A: Yeah, I was forced to eat one once. It’s very greasy and very tough. I’ve had armadillo one time. It’s the same type of deal. The armadillo is probably the worst thing I’ve eaten. We ate it because we shot it, and anything we shoot we’re supposed to eat.

Thanks for sharing, Clay.

He’s a proud Texan who loves outdoors | Inquirer

The Fightins’ drew first blood against Boston in front of a raucous, sold-out crowd in South Philadelphia last night. A fired-up Phillies team practically put the game away after the 2nd pitch in the bottom of the 1st when defending NL MVP Jimmy Rollins cleansed a Colon fastball deeeep into right field. Three batters later, Ryan Howard hit the first of his two opposite field homers on the night to make it 3-0, and that would be all they needed. Hamels was sharp as usual, the only blemishes being back-to-back solo shots surrendered to Dustin Pedroia & JD Booo in the fifth.

After the jump, some more game notes…

UPDATE: Per request, more pink ape man at the bottom.

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