Read it, don't read it, I don't care...just needed to get some things off my chest.
In no particular order of chronology or importance...
Remember Sammy Jankis.
1) Happy trails to Kerry Wood. You came into the league as probably the highest rated prospect pitcher in a generation. Your career was primarily with the Cubs, with a few spotty times with other teams in the middle. Injuries galore limited you from being the superstar you were meant to be. You leave in style as your last batter faced you strike out, and still are amazingly #2 all time with a pretty amazing stat, strikeouts per 9 innings. All time leader? Randy Johnson at 10.6 per 9 innings. Kerry, very impressive you come in at #2 at 10.3 plus. Pedro Martinez is the only other player above 10 at 10.03 and comes in at 10.03. The all time reliever in this category is Rob Dibble at a stellar 12.17. We will miss you, Kerry, and we wish you had been a little more with those mad skills you had. Bottom line is this. When you WERE healthy mentally and physically, you were straight up throwing heat.
2) Every single sport has the favored team start out at home. Why? Because it makes sense. The fact that the Division Round in MLB will start out with two games hosted by the wild card team is absolutely stupid. I know you are doing it to speed things up with the extra round, but I think you should have thought about this when you even voted to add the extra teams to the playoffs. Dumb all the way around. If you can't prove you are one of the better teams in a 162 freaking games, then when ARE you going to prove so? Sure, the home team gets the last three games at home in the best of five series, but not starting out there and making it 2-2-1 format is idiotic.
3) Bud Selig says that the Oakland A's could be the next team to switch cities. Great. Although none of these teams were ever exactly a dynasty, they all have had their almost time at some point. Sad that the Sonics in basketball (my, aren't THAT franchise's city victims sad these days), the Vikings almost in football, and now the A's in baseball all having problems with their beloved city.
4) I know it is a Super Bowl ring, and a symbol of the ultimate triumph in American football. I know I would want one no matter WHAT the damn thing looked like. But really? All the time and money that goes into these things, and THIS is the result? http://www.google.com/imgres?hl=en&sa=X&biw=1440&bih=799&tbm=isch&prmd=imvnsu&tbnid=ROI24ermNK6tSM:&imgrefurl=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/multimedia/photo_gallery/1104/super.bowl.rings/content.1.html&docid=S7WSoRNIyWYCOM&imgurl=http://i.cdn.turner.com/si/multimedia/photo_gallery/1104/super.bowl.rings/images/Super-Bowl-XLVI.jpg&w=641&h=570&ei=E_26T4rHCMKW2QXOhtjaCQ&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=189&vpy=476&dur=1985&hovh=212&hovw=238&tx=127&ty=137&sig=104051888186679234189&page=1&tbnh=157&tbnw=176&start=0&ndsp=18&ved=1t:429,r:12,s:0,i:109
5) I wish some people would get lives, and if they DON'T have a life, at least stay off of social media. I am talking to you, the people who relayed death threats to Steve Blake because he missed a BASKETBALL shot at the end of the game. He was open. They passed him the ball. He would have been a hero had he made it. But, regardless, you are not out there with that pressure, it IS just a game, and you should just back off using "die" and "basketball" in the same sentence.
6) The Eagles sign LeSean McCoy to a five year, $45 million contract. Great move, I say. Sure, there are people out there totally against giving running backs long term contracts, but this is about as safe as you can get in this scenario, IF you ARE going to give a RB a long term contract. Remember, he has proven relatively durable, totally talented, and he is only 23 years old. That means that when the contract is up, he will be right in that age area where you DON'T give a long term contract to a running back. They caught him pretty early, and have a large enough control group to feel pretty safe on this one, or as safe as you can feel paying a RB.
7) This is awesome. Even though he plays for the champion Spurs, I can't imagine there are a hell of a lot of people who label themselves as diehard Matt Bonner fans. Well, here is at least one. Makes me remember when I patterned my basketball game after a guy who also didn't have a hell of a lot of fans-Tom Chambers. Anyway, here you go. http://content.usatoday.com/communities/gameon/post/2012/05/barber-offers-the-ultimate-haircut-for-spurs-fans/1#.T7r9vNy0xtk
8) What is that freaking date when the world is supposed to end? Wasn't that this year sometime? I don't know, but just saying that Felix Hernandez has a plus 3.0 ERA, Tim Lincecum is over 5.0 ERA, and Derek Jeter is hitting .366. What the hell is going on?
9) It took Ozzie Guillen DAYS to retire from Twitter (which we are all glad about) and still manage to still say something "Ozzie." Dwayne Wade fronts up his coach after a loss, and Ozzie says he would "kick his ass." Dude, be quiet for...like a WEEK, please. I think back a few years ago, and wonder if this world might be more peaceful if Ozzie hadn't gotten the leverage for being an idiot at all times by picking up that little thing we call a championship. Dan Marino and Charles Barkley get nothing, and this asshole gets to call out anyone and everyone for the rest of his days?
10) Talk about trouble waiting to happen. Boston. Philly. 2 sports, 4 teams' fans, and all in the same parking lot in Philly. Yeah, THAT sounds like a safe place to be. Safer than a Dodger game evidently, though.
11) I want to know how the HELL does Sixers Evan Turner think he should be taking FOURTEEN shots in the 1st half of his first playoffs. Sure, you are important to your team's chances, and sure, Philly isn't exactly loaded for bear offensively, but come on. 14? and only make 2? Know your place, listen, learn, and your time will come, bro.
12) Crazy stuff, and VERY smart, if you are the fans of anyone from the Big 12 or SEC. The commissioners locked up a deal to have each champion play each other in football on New Years Day. Genius, and a GREAT sign that this four team playoff could happen sooner rather than later. AND, you give me at least one bowl game on New Years that will have HEAVY implications on everything.
13) Word is that Greg Oden, Mr. Surgery himself, had the same procedure that Kobe had a little while back. Kobe is successful because of it, and broken record or not, with the lack of solid 7 footers in the Association these days, it would be great to see him make it back. I hope he doesn't age anymore than he already has during his 70th straight rehab.
14) I would love to chat with someone from the Staples Center floor crew over the weekend. They must have had like 10 5 Hour Energy's to keep it going during their crazy busy sports weekend with the Kings, Clippers, AND Lakers all active and at home in the playoffs.
15) OK. I won't even PRETEND to know all the rules on that $1million NASCAR All-Star event, but I DID catch ONE thing. People complained, and evidently it was broken into segments, and each of the four segment winners got a chance near the end to line up at the front. So what happened? The guy who wins the first one, then goes to the back and sandbags. Second? Same thing. I am NOT going to look this up to discuss more, but it all sounds shady to me.
16) I don't understand this concept. Why do almost all expensive cars look expensive, and almost all cheap cars look cheap? Stay with me on this. The suspension, the interior, the engine? Ok. You need more expensive parts to make them worth it. That being said, I am talking about the DESIGN. You can even use cheaper material. Why does a Hyundai look like a Hyundai? Why can't they use all cheap shit inside, but then have some killer, sleek design made with cheap material that at first glance LOOKS expensive? There is not ONE designer out there making less dollars than his expensive competitors that can design a good looking car? There is not ONE Terrell Davis or Tom Brady in the car design world? Confused.
17) Good for I'll Have Another, and great horse race. And. All these writers who get paid to make clever headlines get off VERY easy this weekend. Sure, he might do the Triple, but I highly doubt it. Different distance, no overwhelming wins thus far, a quality run each time from Bodemeister, and there is a reason it hasn't been done since 1978. Even though I called I'll Have Another point blank for the Derby, I will probably pick Bodemeister for the last race. Will I ROOT for IHA? Sure. But my official pick for the Belmont is Bodemeister. I know he is a horse, but I assume even horses get pissed off at losing.
18) Nationals Adam LaRoche has been around a while. He has always had a job, meaning he is a pretty good ballplayer. That being said, he truly lets fans know how hard hitting 3,000 hits is. Adam started play in 2004 in the big leagues, and this weekend, what did he do? He just NOW got his 1,000 hit. Wow.
19) The Pacers are giving the Heat all they want and then some. Bosh is hurting. Wade and coach are at odds. Trouble in paradise, and all I know are these two things. Give me OKC OR San Antonio against any team out of the East, and if Rondo keeps trucking on his current assist clinic, and Kevin Garnett keeps playing like he owns a DeLorean and a puffy vest, no one on that side of the bracket is stopping the Celtics.
19a) I know you need to make advertisers money. I KNOW you need to create your own brand. But how much money did LeBron make to allow a cameraman tape him watching Hunger Games before a game? How much? I want to know. I know that MJ didn't have the technology LeBron has, but I can't see him watching Back to the Future II before a game.
20) The Mets get the All-Star game for 2013. It is a good plan, just in case this 10 year rebuilding project up there in the Big Apple continues.
21) To keep his ridiculous streak of being mentioned in my hooks, Andrew Bynum quietly ALSO got fined 15k for avoiding the media. I guess he is trying to do at least CREATIVE ways of doing dumb shit So much athleticism and size, and so little between the ears. Just very creative. Guess he is a left sided brain person, or whatever the creative side is. I am not looking it up.
22) Well, when you have a stud WR graduate to the NFL and then have to suspend three other receivers indefinitely, what do you have to do? Find SOMEONE. The Oklahoma Sooners quietly snagged Jalen Saunders from Fresno State this week. The kid is only 5'9", but he still had 1000 plus yards in an ok conference.
23) Interesting. Sometimes, you don't want TOO much talent. Thad Matta from Ohio State is known as one of the best recruiters in the nation for basketball. Well, he outdid himself. JD Weatherspoon, who amazingly was on the same HIGH SCHOOL team as Jared Sullinger and Trey Burke from Michigan (that team must have been SICK), transfers to Toledo this week. What is interesting is this. Not that Toledo is bad or anything, but kid must not like the big city. The other school he was considering? Up and coming Temple. I find that weird of his choice on this. See you in a year and a half, kid.
24) I couldn't believe they let World Peace come back in the 7th game of the first series against Denver. This weekend, I couldn't believe they didn't kick him out of a game for kneeing Russell Westbrook. Not only that, but it was a DOUBLE technical. In the words of Donna Chang from Seinfeld. That is just plain ridicurous.
25) The Clippers were up TWENTY TWO against the Spurs...in the FIRST quarter. It is beyond ridiculous how easily they allowed them back in the game. Watching Manu, Gregg, and Tony on the sidelines before the second half laughing it up, we can assume two things. One, the Clippers have talent now, but obviously needed a stern lesson about how playoff basketball works. Two, the Spurs are hitting an awesome stride DURING the playoffs AGAINST better teams. AMAZING. Actually, here is a third thing. Hey, Clippers, you are not EVER going to take a series by allowing a 24-0 run at any time in a game. Take some of the flopping out of the mix, and you have a team playing this great sport EXACTLY how you want to play the game. No one wants any of the credit either. They all say in interviews, "it is ALL due to (other player or coach)."
25a) Kobe, stop blaming Pau. Watch the tape again of the game. Maybe Pau blew off ONE important shot, and wasn't assertive for a couple seconds. You might be a little TOO assertive. Putting up some bad shots, bro.
25b) I kind of felt bad for Reggie Evans and DeAndre Jordan, but it is what it is. Popovich was fouling BOTH guys repeatedly mid game. But, they are both HORRIBLE free throw shooters, and if it ain't broke, why fix it? Within the rules and maybe not the fluid type of game fans want to see, but it DID get them back in the game, right? Learn to shoot free throws, guys.
26) I have never seen a show that is still a MONTH away hyped as much as Falling Skies. I am tired of it, and it is not even on the tube yet.
27) UFC Jon Jones was arrested on suspicion of a DUI. I have said it a MILLION times, and here is one more. If you rich athletes want to drive your badass ride THAT much, do it on a Sunday afternoon. DON'T go cruising in it after a boozing night on the town. Pay some dude $50k annually to be at your beck and call with a limo.
28) College lax. Loyola Maryland, Notre Dame, Duke, and Maryland are your final competitors. VERY odd. No Cornell. No UVA. No Syracuse. No Hopkins. Sad to see my team (UVA) out of it, and more weirded out that none of the perennial guys are there.
29) For those of you out there who haven't seen Memento, have heard friends laud the movie, and still plan on catching it someday, please just know this. Color moves one direction, black and white moves the other, and the damn flick is still as confusing to people like me who have seen it multiple times as it will be for you your first time. We only marginally understand it more, and if there was ever a need for a flowchart, it is for this movie. Why don't you newbies do us a favor, make it a double feature, and include Deja Vu in your movie excursion?
30) Drugs are bad. Military academies are good. But this story is still just plain sad. Less than a week away? Wow. http://www.gazette.com/sports/force-138915-asher-smoking.html
31) Wes Welker, please just go to practice and stop talking. We KNOW you wanted to long term contract. We KNOW you got franchised. But saying things, then backtracking, is just getting you pub you don't need. Be the player you are, things will work out, and just stay away from the mics in the meantime. And be good again on my fantasy team, because I ALWAYS seem to land you.
32) Lawrence Taylor's kid auctions dad's SB ring. Osi tries to buy it. Osi fails. I don't need jokes on this story. This is what we can call a "turnkey hook."
33) Thunder center Kendrick Perkins is one of the meanest looking dudes in the NBA. Apparently, Kendrick used to be an altar boy at his church when he was younger. Hey, no jokes needed. ANOTHER turnkey hook. Moving on.
34) I think Steve Kerr and Reggie Miller are a great announcing combo. They are no Hubie Brown, but I enjoy the commentary regardless. It is kind of like when Whitesnake replaced one guy with two right when there Here I Go Again/ Still of the Night tape was taking off. Two guys to replace one. Read the label of the original DVD/ tape case. Fact, and I am still bitter by it. Listen to this song. This is Blue Murder, the band John Sykes started after getting booted from Whitesnake. The guitar is just plain SICK, and you can hear the Whitesnake in it. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ABsBugiyzVQ
34a) This sounds a little less like Whitesnake, but this one is awesome: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmxK9CS3RV0
35) After all the bad mouthing Kobe dissed his way this week, Pau Gasol quietly won the award for community involvement this week. Very impressive, sir, and I am now a semi-fan of yours
36) As tough as shots as Kobe sometimes takes, I am AMAZED how each one actually ends up pretty damn close to the rim. No real bad misses with that guy.
37) Has anyone else noticed that angry guy Russell Westbrook never says his interviewer's name when being interviewed? Girl or guy, he answers the question, and ends it with "man." "I am just playing hard, man." Dude. Class up a little. We know you are on the positive side of street cred. Learn their names, and treat them like someone with a mic, and not some punk you see on the street.
38) The last second shot by Durant the other day was like our "Play 1" at UVA in fraternity ball, which we pretty much ruled. No, I wasn't involved in Play 1. It was pretty much my boys coming down the floor who WERE money pulling up for a 3 pointer. It worked a LOT. Evidently, they were on to something, because it even works in the pros. We always lost to the law school in the University finals, because they were all washed up, big, smart kids who were REALLY good, but not good enough for the Association.
39) Do the Los Angeles Kings even KNOW they are a #8 seed? TOTALLY pulling for those guys from here out with my Flyers out of the mix.
40) I am impressed very much about tow truck technology. I saw someone towed today across the street. It was crazy fast. He pulled up, took a few pics, hooked up like three things without lining his truck up, and then was OUT of there with the car. 90 seconds tops. Scary stuff how fast they can literally ruin someone's day. I have been towed twice since out here. I am not sure if others love their vehicle as much as mine, but it was like someone ripped my heart out of my chest like in Temple of Doom with Indiana Jones.
41) Four people are arrested at a Dodgers game for a beating this week. Those people over there do know that it is the East Coast who gets the bad rap, right? So, either maybe northeast people don't deserve everything they get called out for on a daily basis...or maybe they aren't publicly reporting as much.
42) Djokovic is now a household name in tennis. He has been unbelievable this past year. That being said, guess what time of year it is, people? Clay court season. Which means what? This headline is pretty much a fixture until after the French Open. "Nadal beats (insert anyone here)." Nadal took down his 6th Italian Open this weekend over Djokovic. This is just a warm up for the French, but this is also the month or two where everyone is pretty much Nadal's bitch.
43) John Tortorella ripped the Devils' tactics this week. Shut UP. Every year since 1995, NO one is happy with how the Devils play, but they have two more Cups than you, and they do it within the rules. Figure it out, and stop complaining.
44) This is just plain awesome. It is not sports, but we are within two months of the Tour de France, right? And I like dogs. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22825103/vp/47468061#47468061
45) A drunk golfer decides Cologne, Germany is his driving range. He sounds like a fun guy to hang with. http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/drunk-golfer-uses-city-as-driving-range/story-e6frf7jx-1226362712807
46) While we are on a link roll, check out this sad story of someone thinking he is Charlie Sheen from 2.5 Men. http://msn.foxsports.com/olympics/weightlifting/story/british-man-crushed-to-death-lifting-weights-after-drinking-session-052112
47) I was thinking about getting back into Madden this year, and playing my first video game at home in over 15 years. Then, I saw this headline. "Madden 13 will have Tebowing." Nuff said. Not going to happen.
48) Terrell Owens spoke to the media this week, which is usually not a very smart idea. He says "he would like to sign with the 49ers or Raiders." First of all, those ARE fun matches. You can either play with other oddball Randy Moss, or you can go to the team you were destined to be a part of since you were born. Second, Bubble Boy, when you are washed up and TRYING to get a job, you normally don't get to select your team to go to. They will call you. Wait by the phone and...do whatever you do in your free time.
49) A witness claims to have seen Roger Clemens at a '98 Jose Canseco party. The grass is green, the sky is blue, this story is SO old, and I NEVER saw THAT coming. Right.
50) Jeremy Lin will be signed. Today, Jeremy Lin might not be signed. Just wait until you make your decision, you are out of the playoffs so we don't care, Linsanity is temporarily dead in the water, and we will talk with you in July...when all the teams who DO play defense are done playing.
51) AND finally, Stan Van Gundy is out. We only know about 40% of what actually goes on behind the scenes, but we once again have of a player pretty much getting a coach fired. I loved Stan, and it appeared for a couple years that Dwight loved him, but something was going on that made them clean house. Could be a shortage of healthy 7 footers, or maybe it was a personality dispute. I will say this. I don't think Stan will have trouble finding a job...very soon. There are not a lot of truly seasoned NBA coaches out there presently, and I personally think he did alright with the squad he was dealt. Get your resume up to date, and don't worry about calls not coming in, Stan.
52) That is it. Until Thursday. I have that whole JOB thing, and relaxing without my laptop thing is something I need to do. Plus, I wanted to finish this before the second half of this Lakers/ OKC game, which I have succeeded in doing. Have a good week, may the force be with you, and remember: What did one shepherd say to the other? Let's get the flock out of here.
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