Good morning or good evening, wherever you may be, across the nation and across the world. It is just past 6:00 a.m. in "The City", where the current temperature is 52°­ although it feels like 50° with a wind out of the east @ six mph. The skies are more than cloudy, and a glance out the WW shows that a light rain is falling. That rain is expected to continue throughout the day today and into the early evening hours tonight. 

Today's high temperature will only reach 57°, with a low of 49°, quite a change from just a few days ago when we reached the mid-80s for high temperatures, with lows in the upper 70s. In fact, the NWS is forecasting very comfortable temperatures for several more days. We'll take it!

The sun will rise this morning @ 6:18 a.m. and set tonight @ 9:04 p.m.

A quickie update on the vast gardens of the Palatial Estate. Our cucumbers havc sprouted! We planted the seeds last Thursday, so it has been less than one-week. Oh, a side note. Our indoor gardens have now received enough sunlight so that Mary's African violets are finally booming. 

Baseball yesterday was not very good to me. In fact, it was awful. 

The only win came as the 15 - 20 Cubs crushed the 15 - 21 Pirates, 7 - 0 on the strength of great pitching by winner RHP Keegan Thompson, 3 - 0, with relief help from rookie callup LHP Brandon Hughes, who in 2019 was converted from outfielder to pitcher. If he can keep it going, the future looks bright for the 26 yo southpaw. 

In addition, Cubs rookie Christopher Morel was called up from the Iowa Cubs and in his first at bat, he got a home run. I know that the Cubs are a work in progress, but is there another World Series in their future? We'll have to wait and see. The Cubs and the Pirates return to the field tonight @ 7:40 p.m.EDT when LHP Drew Smyly, 1 - 4 tosses for the northsiders.

My beloved 14 - 22 Red Sox were thoroughly trounced by the 24 - 13 Astros last night, 4 - 13. Let's just say that if the Sox don't improve, there may be another fire sale in the near future as the Sox also retool for the future. The Sox and the Astros take the field again tonight in Houston for a game starting @ 6:10 p.m. when RHP Nick Pivetta, 1 - 4 makes his next start for the Sox.

The 13 - 24 Tigers, were also crushed yesterday, as the 22 - 15 Tampa Bay Rays pummeled the Tigers, 1 - 8. The future is not looking good in the Motor City. The Tigers and the Rays square off again today, when LHP Eduardo Rodriguez, 1 - 2, toes the rubber for the Tigers in a game beginning @ 1:10 p.m.

The 14 - 20 Caps lost to the also 14 - 20 TinCaps last night, 4 - 5. Both teams try again tonight @ 6:35 p.m.

Otherwise, not much is on tap here today. More reading, more ear-reading, more crossword solving, and more cross-stitching. We will be traveling to Muskegon for a visit to one of my orthopedists this afternoon. That's enough for one day. Ciao.