HEY RUSSELL...WHAT'S COMEDY?

I really wanted to write something clever off the heals of Russell Martin cracking a joke to the umpire Paul Schrieber 2 night’s ago in Tampa Bay (read HERE), but I needed some time to get my head together. Geez, this stuff doesn’t just come to me after all. Who do you think I am, Russell Martin? Wrong… I didn’t stretch today.

So, what’s comedy? What’s funny to some is not funny to all? Comedians have always been around to make us laugh. The top reason I feel like comedy is funny is because delivery is key and of course… the joke needs to be funny. Sometimes you know people at work who just have a knack for being funny. I have a friend Vic who is hilarious. His delivery is down pat. He may cross the line once in a while, but you have to try your material out to see if it’s funny or not and who better than your friends because they’ll be the most honest. Right?

In my lifetime, there are a few comedians that I love. I owned comedy albums when I was a kid. I’m not talking about MP3’s, I’m talking about actual vinyl albums. Anyone know what I’m talking about? Bill Cosby, Lenny Bruce…. and Richard Pryor come to mind immediately. Pryor was a genius because he was filthy, raw and hilarious. If you live under a rock and never heard Richard Pryor comedy, he's dirty so this is a warning. His delivery was perfect:

And just to prove I'm not square, Will Ferrell kills it every time. I actually think he's one of the most talented and gifted comedians out there. He's very very funny and his delivery in every role is gold. I love him in "Old School", "Anchorman", "The Other Guys." Every role he does is Will Ferrell as Will Ferrell in a Will Ferrell movie, but it doesn’t matter, delivery is key and the guy is hilarious. I loved “Eastbound and Down” on HBO and I loved his role as Ashley Schaeffer. Warning, the language in Eastbound and Down is dirty and so is this clip. But I love his delivery and I love this role:

Enter, Russell Martin. Martin’s a pleasant surprise this season. Great behind the dish, he’s a gamer, hits big when you need him and has really helped transformed our Yankee rotation nicely. He has proven he belongs in pinstripes. But one thing he’s not apparently is funny.

Here’s Russell Martin’s best joke from the other night in Tampa Bay to umpire Paul Schreiber:

"Did you stretch before the game tonight? I feel like your kind of tight right now."

cricket - - cricket

There was one thing wrong with this joke… besides it not being funny… the delivery was flat. Maybe his inflection should have been different. Or, better yet, maybe when he delivered the joke, he could have looked at the umpire, maybe he could have smirked alittle. Or, maybe Russell needed to follow it up with… “I’m just breaking your balls!” and punched the ump on the arm.

Russell Martin is not a comedian. Thank God. When everything unfolded, I thought the chain of events that followed was more funny then when I heard what the joke was. Once the umpire realized it was a joke, I'm sure you he told Martin “Well, sorry, I threw you out, I can’t bring you back!”

Look, Martin was feeling good, all the Yankees are, and baseball's supposed to be fun. Right now they are going through the motions until the playoffs begin, but Russell, for the love of God, you’re not funny. Thank God you’re a ballplayer and we’d much rather have you doing that because if the playoffs were the “Baseball Comedian’s Gala”, you’d be out first round. Don’t quit your real job…(smirk) I’m just breaking your balls!

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