ith a 3.55 ERA in 2015 but was just 10-1 | Forum

I wasnt even due to play. Discount Air Max . I was having Christmas dinner with my family when the phone rang. It was Bob Simpson. Merv Hughes was injured and he wanted me to get on a plane, 90 minutes later, and get down to Melbourne to play against New Zealand, 1987-88. We ended up with me and Billy [Craig McDermott] having to bat out the last five overs to draw the game Danny Morrison bowled a really good penultimate over, two lbw shouts, one of them really close. New Zealand werent happy that it was given not out.I love playing Breakdown by Tom Petty with the Mike Whitney band. Weve just started playing it this year. Its got a couple of really good musical hooks.We played our first game at the 1992 World Cup in Auckland, and we just expected to win that game. But we lost. Martin Crowe got a hundred. It was one of those Martin Crowe innings where you just sat there and said, Can people bat better than this? It was just phenomenal to watch him manipulate the field and put the bad ball away.Id had a few nets with Steve Waugh and Greg Matthews at New South Wales, and Steve Rixon, our coach, was always throwing a few down. Those guys were always saying that if I couldnt get any runs, at least I should try and hold an end up so if a top-order player was batting with me at the end, I could do a job for him.It was a 1992 World Cup game against Pakistan in Perth. Bruce Reid and I were batting. We were nine down and needed 30 to win off three overs. Mushtaq Ahmed bowled a beautiful turning legspinner. There was a little nick on the pad. They appealed for a catch. Umpire gave me not out. Moin started calling me a cheat. You are cheating, Whitney. Cheating. I slapped Moin across the glove and the paper said that Id hit him. Some of the reports said Id actually hit him across the face. Wasim Akram ran in and said, If youre going to hit someone, hit me. I said, Dont take another step, because youll be next. Ill cop anything but dont call me a cheat.One time, a bloke tried to jump up on stage. The boys I play with are serious musos. Theres a hundred grands worth of equipment up there. I said, Dont get up on stage, we havent got insurance. He had a bit of a go. Puffed his chest out. Listen, mate. If you fall over on stage, youre going to sue us and then Ive got to sue the pub. And I dont want to do that. Thats probably the only drama Ive had in ten years.I love the way Kevin Pietersen goes about his game. I reckon hes a lot deeper than people think he is. The big moments are his theatre. And hes done that so many times. Hed have no problems getting up on stage and strapping a guitar on.I thought: how the *@!* had I managed to get myself down the strikers end for Hadlees last over? Thats the 1987 Boxing Day Test against New Zealand and Richard Hadlee. Faced the entire last over, one of the all-time greats. He couldnt get me out. And everyone could get me out, I only averaged 6 in Tests. I batted 18 balls in all to save the game.There arent enough characters in modern-day cricket. Social media is to blame for that. Players today are stifled. If they do anything funny on the ground, its not looked at like it was.I used to love watching Dennis Lillee take on Viv Richards. Viv with no helmet. Tipping his hat to DK. You knew another bouncer would come. And at the end of the game, theyd all be great mates. Theres a lot more money in the game now and its a very serious business. Theyre still having fun. But I think we had a little bit more fun, on and off the field.I still run into Hadlee every other year, usually when hes over in Australia. I wave, smile, and he drops his head, pretends he hasnt seen me.Australian cricketers are still tough, but players see each other so much that the rivalry doesnt seem to be as intense.If you went out for a drink with Ian Botham, you definitely had a drink, thats for sure. He loved a drink, a big cigar, loved going out. You could do that in those days. There was no social media, no iPhones.The match referee [for the match against Pakistan in Perth in 1992] was an ex high court judge. He had to come back to the ground and he was not happy. He asked me what had happened and I told him with a few expletives thrown in. He said: Stop swearing. I said, Well, you asked me what he said. He called me a f*****g cheat. Intikhab Alam, the Pakistan manager, was there with Moin. Ill have to speak for Moin, he told the referee. Moin doesnt speak very good English. I got fined. Moin got away with it.I was 22. Had played four first-class games for New South Wales, and was in England playing for Fleetwood Cricket Club in Lancashire. Gloucestershire called me down for a trial. Id played one Championship game for Gloucestershire and got called up to play for Australia when Rodney Hogg and Geoff Lawson got injured.Id like to see cricketers speak their mind in interviews. Theyre hamstrung by contractual agreements with boards. Cant criticise anything, really. You cant have people taking the game apart, but itd be nice to see them speak their mind on certain situations.I got 11 wickets against India in Perth in 1992. It was one of those days. Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath, Richard Hadlee, Jimmy Anderson - theyve had 50 of those days. But I had a couple and that was one of them. Everything was perfect. The ball was right in the slot, run-up felt right. I was swinging it in, jagging it away. Every bouncer I bowled was perfect. I go out in the bush when I can. Its hectic in Sydney with all the traffic. I like getting away from the noise.We didnt gain any momentum at the 1992 World Cup. There was so much expectation. Before we knew it, we were playing catch up.Andre Nel would make a great gladiator. [Whitney hosted the Australian version of the Gladiators TV show]. Youd dress him up in the gear, point him in the direction youd wanted him to charge in and say, Take him out.I was doing some commentary at the Indian Cricket League. Theres Moin coaching one of the sides. We kissed and made up.Sanjay Manjrekar was batting [in Perth]. I was walking back to my mark. I had this vision in my head that I was going to run in, pitch it on middle and off, run it across him and he was going to get a feather through to Ian Healy. And it happened. Next ball. Exactly as Id seen it in my head. UnbelievableAt a one-day game at the MCG, 1992-93, Desmond Haynes is batting and I hit him right in the box and he went down. Everybody laughs. Are you all right, Des? Yeah man, yeah man. I ran in the next ball. Straight in the box again. Des staggered five metres to the off side, pulled the box out. Merv Hughes picked up the box and flung it up in the air and it hit AB on the head. Allan looks down as if to say, where the **** has that come from? Des, in the meantime, is looking for the box. He sees AB with it, 20 metres away and starts going at him. AB, whatre you doing with my box? Give me my box back. And wheres Merv? Hes already jogged halfway back to the fence at fine leg, laughing at the whole situation.On the way back from the West Indies tour in 1991, we had to spend two weeks in Bermuda, because apparently, Bermuda voted for us to have the 1992 World Cup. Part of the deal was that wed play a couple of one-dayers against Bermuda. We stayed at Elbow beach resort. It was magnificent. We were feted like superstars. Bermuda is such a magnificent place. The water, the grounds were unreal. It was like the plane has crashed, were all dead and were in heaven.It was a wonderful moment to see our boys win here, 18 months ago, when the World Cup finally came back to Australia. Air Max Free Shipping Online . Artturi Lehkonen, Joni Nikko and Ville Leskinen had the other goals for Finland (1-0) while Juuse Saros stopped 28 shots. Tim Robin Johnsgard had the lone goal for Norway (0-2). Cheap Air Max China . - Goaltender Philippe Desrosiers of the Rimouski Oceanic has broken a shutout record that was only three months old in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. http://www.cheapairmaxshoesfreeshipping.com/ . Its the second straight game Bell has scored in extra time for Kelowna, which beat the Brandon Wheat Kings 6-5 on Friday, and he now has four game-winning goals on the season. KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The Royals exercised club options on All-Star closer Wade Davis and shortstop Alcides Escobar on Friday, while designated hitter Kendrys Morales and starter Edinson Volquez declined their mutual options.Davis will make $10 million next season and Escobar will earn $6.5 million.The Royals also declined their mutual option on Kris Medlen after the right-hander exercised his portion of it. Medlen will join Morales and Volquez in free agency beginning Tuesday.In other procedural moves, the Royals reinstated pitchers Tim Collins and Mike Minor and third baseman Mike Moustakas from the 60-day disabled list. That leaves their 40-man roster at 39 players.The decision to retain Davis was expected despite two trips to the disabled list in July for a flexor strain in his right forearm. But the two-time All-Star was still among the most dominant closers in baseball, going 2-1 with a 1.87 ERA and 27 saves in 45 appearances.Davis will be eligible for free agency next season.Escobars option also expected, though its possible he couldd be traded away. Wholesale Air Max Shoes. Hes a solid defensive shortstop and hit .261 with seven homers and 55 RBIs, but the Royals are also keen on Raul Mondesi Jr.?at the position and have several other needs with a payroll that is already close to being maxed out.Morales will leave a gaping hole in the lineup if the Royals are unable to lure him back in free agency. His average dipped to .263 in part because of a slow start last season, but he still showcased his power with 30 homers and 93 RBIs while playing in expansive Kauffman Stadium.Eric Hosmer and Salvador Perez were the only other Royals with at least 20 homers last season.Volquez, who helped pitch the Royals to the World Series title last season, also seemed to backtrack this season. He went 13-9 with a 3.55 ERA in 2015 but was just 10-11 with 5.37 ERA this season.Medlen was 1-3 with a 7.77 ERA in six starts, spending the bulk of the year on the disabled list. ' ' '