The World Series is over, the hot stove season has begun and anything that free agent Cliff Lee does or says — no matter how seemingly trivial — will be open for an intense debate.
So let's start the fun, even if it's not warranted!
To wit: Jason Sickles, our Yahoo! local editor in Dallas, passes along news that Lee stopped to buy a couple pairs of cowboy boots at Circle E Western on Tuesday. The store is in Jason's hometown of Sulphur Springs, Texas, and is along the route from Arlington to Lee's home in Benton, Ark.
How'd Jason find out? He heard from his dad, who heard from his friend Harold, who heard from the store's excited employees after he stopped by to fill the store's Coca-Cola machine.
Ah, the wonders of small-town telephone.*
* In related news, my best friend's sister's boyfriend's brother's girlfriend heard from this guy who knows this kid who's going with the girl who saw Cliff pass out at 31 Flavors last night. I guess it's pretty serious.
Anyway, Jason made a few phone calls back home and here's the rest of his report, which includes the above photos (that's Lee with a store employee on the right):
"He was very gracious and didn't mind when we asked for a few autographs," said Kenneth Batteron, the store's manager.
Batteron said Lee ended up buying the special Lucchese boots (described as having a brown base with a white top that features an embroidered royal blue eagle design) and a pair of black Justin boots made of smooth ostrich.
"I told him we'd really like him to come back," Batteron said.
Lee replied that he drives through the town often and would be a customer again.
When Batteron tried to explain he was speaking as a Texas Rangers fan, Lee interrupted and said, "Yeah, I know what you meant."
"He was very nice," Batteron said. "I simply told him, ‘Thank you for a great season.'"
So that settles it. You can stop checking Twitter every two minutes while imagining Lee in a Yankees/Phillies/Angels/(insert team here) jersey. After his cowboy boot purchase, we can safely deduce that Lee will definitely stay with the Texas Rangers after signing a new contract this offseason. Tell your kids, tell your wives, tell your husbands.
What's that? Lee probably just likes cowboy boots to begin with since he's from Arkansas?
And you can wear them in places like New York and California, too?
Well, then. Carry on. Everyone back to Twitter.
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