NOT UNLIKE GAZELLES CHASING LIONS: Jeff Sullivan, the funniest baseball writer presently writing about baseball, gives the finger to the National League, to people who trot out the same silly rationalizations for why the National League is supposedly better, and, for good measure, to Mariners designated "hitters."

Not quite as funny as Baseball Players and their Representative Volcanoes, but it demands less working knowledge of both baseball and volcanoes.

RED AND YELLOW AND PINK AND GREEN, PURPLE, AND ORANGE, AND BLUE: A sad day for those of us who grew up in the Delaware Valley -- Patricia Merbreier, known to all of us as "Mrs. Noah" of children's tv, has passed away. Starting in 1967, Captain Noah and His Magical Ark aired for 27 years -- at times daily, sometimes on Saturdays only.  It was the quintessential local morning kid's show, the kind which simply does not exist anymore.

As Glen Weldon tweeted today, as the puppeteer for and co-star of her husband's show "Mrs. Noah did everything Captain Noah did, only crammed under a table & w/a puppet on her arm. RIP, you classy old broad."

NETFLIX IS SUGGESTING THINGS I'VE ALREADY SEEN, AND MY SUIT IS TOO FANCY FOR THE WASHING MACHINE: First World Problems, the rap:

JUST ONE MORE QUESTION: After a long struggle with Alzheimer's Disease, Peter Falk has died at age 83. Unfortunately, the only version of the final scene of Princess Bride I could find on YouTube has cheesy music placed after his final line, but damn if Falk's delivery of that final line isn't absolutely perfect.

STYLE GUIDE QUESTION (CLARK GABLE DIVISION, NOT THE GRAMMAR AND PUNCTUATION WING):  When gentlemen wear polo or other short-sleeved shirts to work during summer business casual days, is it appropriate to have a visible undershirt? Does it depend on one's level of hirsuteness?

ALOTT5MA FRIDAY PLAYLIST:  In honor of the Big Man, Clarence Clemons, suggest a song with a saxophone solo for your fellow readers to enjoy. I've got two below the fold, one Clarence and one non-.

FOR US, 'TIS A LIFE OF HARD KNOCKS: Will Smith and Jay-Z are negotiating with Academy Award-winning screenwriter Emma Thompson to pen the Willow Smith-starring Annie re-remake whose casting we've previously discussed.  (Any objection to her also playing Miss Hannigan?)