Good Morning....
The Phillies showed 'em whose boss last night....Behind Cliff Lee's third consecutive complete game shutout, Philadelphia bests Boston in the opener of an interesting three game set....Lee was dominating....Red Sox nation travels so well that it was refreshing to see and hear a packed stadium full of hometown fans at a Red Sox away game....Up and coming Dominic Brown provided the offense and Jimmy Rollins flashed some glove to back Lee up....Gio Gonzalez throws eight innings of one-hit ball as the A's nip Florida 1-0 in a late game....What's up with the Marlins?....A stable of young studs (Morrison, Gabby Sanchez, Anibal Sanchez, Stanton and Hanley Ramirez) but they're just not clicking....And now the bad news that ace Josh Johnson has suffered a setback in his comeback and will visit Dr. James Andrews today....Uh-Oh....This is not good for Florida and Fantasy Baseball owners....Jose Reyes hit his 15th triple of the year as he continues his sizzling year....Only Ty Cobb has more triples and stolen bases in his first 1,000 games than the oft-injured Reyes.
Congrats to the Gamecocks of South Carolina as they repeat as College World Series champs....Michael Roth tosses 7 2/3 innings on three days rest and South Carolina leaves an impressive streak of 11 straight College World Series wins.
The Roger Clemens trial starts next Wednesday and I can hardly wait....Fireworks all week, starting on Monday the 4th....Liar,liar pants on fire....This is Must-See TV....I haven't checked but its gotta be on somewhere....And just when you think that arrogant, obnoxious, jerk-off, lie-spewing Clemens will get his comeuppence you remember that O.J. was found not guilty....As Mr. Intense (Kevin Garnett) once said, "anything is possible."
What's up with the Canadien authorities that want to talk to Bruins defensemen Zdeno Chara about his hit on Montreal's Max Pacioretty a while back....He hit the stanchion....It wasn't a "criminal action"....It wasn't even a bad check....It's a safety issue....This is not the first time a player has hit a stanchion (the corner of the glass) and been injured....C'mon....NHL, fix it please....Montreal's justice system must have better things to do....Using their logic I wouldn't want to be a NFL safety.
Mr. "Jiggy, Jiggy" himself, Antoine Walker, has finally pleaded guilty to unpaid gambling debts worth $750,000....Probation....Of course....Another example of an overpaid pro athlete who had the world by the balls and pissed it away.
Former ESPN anchor Brett Haber bet Craig Kilborn "that we could invent a catch phrase that meant absolutely nothing and if we used it a couple of days in a row, it would catch on. Soon after, they were eating Mexican food and someone said, "Salsa!!" Kilborn used it on highlights three consecutive nights, and on the fourth, a fan at a game held up a sign: "Salsa...Sportscenter is Next." - "Those Guys Have all the Fun: Inside the World of ESPN" by James Andrew Miller and Tom Shales
....talk to ya....................
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Twisting The Night Away.......Vol. 25 (June 28, 2011)
Good Morning....
The most unique ceremonial first pitch I've ever seen....Cirque du Soleil at MGM Grand in Las Vegas were participating in the first pitch festivities before the Padres-Royals game at PETCO park in San Diego....Gabryl Nogueira da Silva delivered a strike after completing a twisting, acrobatic 360 degree flip....Wow! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E6qzfbKfiXM&feature=player_embedded
Frank McCourt may be making all kinds of noise off the field but his Dodgers hit all the right notes last night as they smacked a MLB season high 25 hits in a 15-0 romp over Minnesota last night....Matt Kemp for MVP?....Brandon Beachy tosses his second consecutive gem for Atlanta....Keep an eye on this arm....Red Sox and Phillies get together for a three game series in Philly in what could be a 2011 World Series preview....It dosen't get better than Josh Beckett vs. Cliff Lee....Jim Leyland had an animated conversation with the first base umpire last night after the ump blew the play at 1st only to change his call after conferring with the home plate ump....Leyland does his best Earl Weaver impersonation http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2_jtthsqqA
Christian Walker, despite a broken hamate bone in his hand, singles in the 11th inning, steals second and scores on a couple of throwing errors to lead South Carolina to a 2-1 victory and a 1-0 lead in the best 2 out of 3 College World Series.
Sad to hear of the sudden passing of Lorenzo Charles who scored the winning basket for the 1983 NC State Wolfpack in the NCAA Championship Finals....Charles was killed in a bus crash....He collected Dereck Whittingburg's missed Hail Mary from 30 feet and scored as time expired to lead NC State over heavily favored Houston in one of college basketball's finer moments http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puQvU4PBzhI
Don't look now but #24 Jeff Gordon is creeping up the NASCAR standings....My man.
What a week in Fantasy Baseball (MFL) as "DTA 3:16" (SeeMore and The Mailman) get a 1 a.m. save from Brandon League to upset the "Shitbags" (Diamond Dave) and win Week 12...."Hitmen" (Mr. Depot and The Sniper) hold on to first overall with the "Odd Couple" (Felix and Oscar) a close second...."Glassholes" (Jackie Brains) continues to mire in the pitching roulette muck...."49ers" (The Commish) weather Madison Bumgarner's awful performance Tuesday and squeak by "BCDC" (Mr. Class and The Professor) on the back of Bumgarner's career best 11 strikeouts Sunday night.
There's been a lot of discussion about New York and Boston fans out voting everyone else and putting their players in the Mid-Season Classic....In 1957, Cincinnati fans stuffed the ballot boxes and voted 8 Reds in as starters....Here is one man's All-Star team for 2011.
American League...................National League
1B - A. Gonzalez Bos P. Fielder Mil
2B - R. Cano Yanks R . Weeks Mil
SS - A. Cabrera Cle J. Reyes Mets
3B - A. Beltre Tex P. Polanco Phi
C - C. Santana Cle B. McCann Atl
OF - J. Bautista Tor M. Kemp LA
OF - C. Granderson Yanks R. Braun Mil
OF - J. Ellsbury Bos J. Upton AZ
"It's not how many times you get knocked down, it's how many times you get up." - Vince Lombardi
....talk to ya............................
The most unique ceremonial first pitch I've ever seen....Cirque du Soleil at MGM Grand in Las Vegas were participating in the first pitch festivities before the Padres-Royals game at PETCO park in San Diego....Gabryl Nogueira da Silva delivered a strike after completing a twisting, acrobatic 360 degree flip....Wow! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E6qzfbKfiXM&feature=player_embedded
Frank McCourt may be making all kinds of noise off the field but his Dodgers hit all the right notes last night as they smacked a MLB season high 25 hits in a 15-0 romp over Minnesota last night....Matt Kemp for MVP?....Brandon Beachy tosses his second consecutive gem for Atlanta....Keep an eye on this arm....Red Sox and Phillies get together for a three game series in Philly in what could be a 2011 World Series preview....It dosen't get better than Josh Beckett vs. Cliff Lee....Jim Leyland had an animated conversation with the first base umpire last night after the ump blew the play at 1st only to change his call after conferring with the home plate ump....Leyland does his best Earl Weaver impersonation http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2_jtthsqqA
Christian Walker, despite a broken hamate bone in his hand, singles in the 11th inning, steals second and scores on a couple of throwing errors to lead South Carolina to a 2-1 victory and a 1-0 lead in the best 2 out of 3 College World Series.
Sad to hear of the sudden passing of Lorenzo Charles who scored the winning basket for the 1983 NC State Wolfpack in the NCAA Championship Finals....Charles was killed in a bus crash....He collected Dereck Whittingburg's missed Hail Mary from 30 feet and scored as time expired to lead NC State over heavily favored Houston in one of college basketball's finer moments http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puQvU4PBzhI
Don't look now but #24 Jeff Gordon is creeping up the NASCAR standings....My man.
What a week in Fantasy Baseball (MFL) as "DTA 3:16" (SeeMore and The Mailman) get a 1 a.m. save from Brandon League to upset the "Shitbags" (Diamond Dave) and win Week 12...."Hitmen" (Mr. Depot and The Sniper) hold on to first overall with the "Odd Couple" (Felix and Oscar) a close second...."Glassholes" (Jackie Brains) continues to mire in the pitching roulette muck...."49ers" (The Commish) weather Madison Bumgarner's awful performance Tuesday and squeak by "BCDC" (Mr. Class and The Professor) on the back of Bumgarner's career best 11 strikeouts Sunday night.
There's been a lot of discussion about New York and Boston fans out voting everyone else and putting their players in the Mid-Season Classic....In 1957, Cincinnati fans stuffed the ballot boxes and voted 8 Reds in as starters....Here is one man's All-Star team for 2011.
American League...................National League
1B - A. Gonzalez Bos P. Fielder Mil
2B - R. Cano Yanks R . Weeks Mil
SS - A. Cabrera Cle J. Reyes Mets
3B - A. Beltre Tex P. Polanco Phi
C - C. Santana Cle B. McCann Atl
OF - J. Bautista Tor M. Kemp LA
OF - C. Granderson Yanks R. Braun Mil
OF - J. Ellsbury Bos J. Upton AZ
"It's not how many times you get knocked down, it's how many times you get up." - Vince Lombardi
....talk to ya............................
Monday, June 27, 2011
Riggle Room........Vol. 24 (June 27, 2011)
Good Morning....
Trying to make sense of the Jim Riggleman situation....He's in the final year of his contract and as most managers he wants an extension....The Nationals GM Mike Rizzo will not give him one....Yet....Riggleman wants to talk about it....Rizzo refuses....Riggleman resigns....Washington is having it's best season in years, the future looks bright and they bring on inner turmoil....I don't see any winners here....The GM should have taken his manager behind closed doors and kept this from public view....His refusal to talk and Riggleman's subsequent decision to quit comes across as a pissing contest with no regard for the team....The manager had a contract for this season and I understand his frustration on not getting an extentsion BUT he has a contract for this year and he quit on his players....I would think that closes the door on any future mangerial jobs for him....The Nationals dust the mothballs off Davey Johnson.
BREAKING NEWS....LA Dodgers file for bankruptcy in a Delaware court....Just the beginning....Bud Selig is like a landlord trying to get rid of his tenant....Not easy but Selig will prevail....How about that Roy Halladay?....Notches his tenth win and fifth complete game of the season....The Red Sox miss Halladay this week but the Boston-Philly series still promises to showcase the talent that could be the 2011 World Series matchup.....Tonight, Josh Beckett vs. Cliff Lee.
NFL labor talks are still giving off good vibes....Both sides seem to have a blueprint in place for a resolution....NBA labor talks are going the opposite way....Did you see the players in their "stand tall" t-shirts?....Do they have a clue?....Will the league give the players the $160M back that the players have in escrow?....Does anybody really care?....Train wreck written all over it.
Yani Tseng wins the LPGA Championship by 10 strokes....Impressive....Only 22, she completes the Women's Grand Slam, although not in the same year....Rory McIlroy and Yani Tseng at 22 years young leading their respective tours....Tiger who?....Michelle who?....Terrell Owens undergoes ACL surgery....Could retirement be far behind?....Philadelphia Flyers blow their team up by trading captain Mike Richards and leading scorer Jeff Carter....hmmmmmmm....Ron Artest of the Lakers files to have his name legally changed to "Metta World Peace"....My favorite was back in the 70's when Lloyd Free changed his to "World B. Free"....Boy, did he have a scorching jump shot....A Celtics killer.
College Baseball World Series best 2 of 3 starts tonight....Defending champ South Carolina vs. Florida....The SEC is guaranteed it's 9th title in the past 21 years....South Carolina has won nine straight CWS games but Florida has a deeper bullpen and strong offense....Florida is considered to be the favorite but the Gamecocks took two out of three in Gatorland earlier this year....Always a lot of emotion in the Finals....South Carolina in 3.
A guy walks into a bar in South Beach, orders a drink, and asks the barkeep if he'd like to hear a good Miami U joke.
"Listen buddy," he growled. "See those 2 big guys on your left? They were both linemen on the Miami U football team. And that huge fellow on your right was a world-class wrestler at Miami. That guy in the corner was Miami's all-time champion weight-lifter. And I lettered in 3 sports. Now, are you absolutely positive you want to go ahead and tell your joke here?"
"Nah, I guess not," the man replied. "I wouldn't want to explain it 5 times."
....talk to ya................................
Trying to make sense of the Jim Riggleman situation....He's in the final year of his contract and as most managers he wants an extension....The Nationals GM Mike Rizzo will not give him one....Yet....Riggleman wants to talk about it....Rizzo refuses....Riggleman resigns....Washington is having it's best season in years, the future looks bright and they bring on inner turmoil....I don't see any winners here....The GM should have taken his manager behind closed doors and kept this from public view....His refusal to talk and Riggleman's subsequent decision to quit comes across as a pissing contest with no regard for the team....The manager had a contract for this season and I understand his frustration on not getting an extentsion BUT he has a contract for this year and he quit on his players....I would think that closes the door on any future mangerial jobs for him....The Nationals dust the mothballs off Davey Johnson.
BREAKING NEWS....LA Dodgers file for bankruptcy in a Delaware court....Just the beginning....Bud Selig is like a landlord trying to get rid of his tenant....Not easy but Selig will prevail....How about that Roy Halladay?....Notches his tenth win and fifth complete game of the season....The Red Sox miss Halladay this week but the Boston-Philly series still promises to showcase the talent that could be the 2011 World Series matchup.....Tonight, Josh Beckett vs. Cliff Lee.
NFL labor talks are still giving off good vibes....Both sides seem to have a blueprint in place for a resolution....NBA labor talks are going the opposite way....Did you see the players in their "stand tall" t-shirts?....Do they have a clue?....Will the league give the players the $160M back that the players have in escrow?....Does anybody really care?....Train wreck written all over it.
Yani Tseng wins the LPGA Championship by 10 strokes....Impressive....Only 22, she completes the Women's Grand Slam, although not in the same year....Rory McIlroy and Yani Tseng at 22 years young leading their respective tours....Tiger who?....Michelle who?....Terrell Owens undergoes ACL surgery....Could retirement be far behind?....Philadelphia Flyers blow their team up by trading captain Mike Richards and leading scorer Jeff Carter....hmmmmmmm....Ron Artest of the Lakers files to have his name legally changed to "Metta World Peace"....My favorite was back in the 70's when Lloyd Free changed his to "World B. Free"....Boy, did he have a scorching jump shot....A Celtics killer.
College Baseball World Series best 2 of 3 starts tonight....Defending champ South Carolina vs. Florida....The SEC is guaranteed it's 9th title in the past 21 years....South Carolina has won nine straight CWS games but Florida has a deeper bullpen and strong offense....Florida is considered to be the favorite but the Gamecocks took two out of three in Gatorland earlier this year....Always a lot of emotion in the Finals....South Carolina in 3.
A guy walks into a bar in South Beach, orders a drink, and asks the barkeep if he'd like to hear a good Miami U joke.
"Listen buddy," he growled. "See those 2 big guys on your left? They were both linemen on the Miami U football team. And that huge fellow on your right was a world-class wrestler at Miami. That guy in the corner was Miami's all-time champion weight-lifter. And I lettered in 3 sports. Now, are you absolutely positive you want to go ahead and tell your joke here?"
"Nah, I guess not," the man replied. "I wouldn't want to explain it 5 times."
....talk to ya................................
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Love That Dirty Water........Vol. 23 (June 23, 2011)
Good Morning....
The contrasts in Los Angeles and Boston are compelling....Boston's MLB franchise is one of the brightest....John Henry's group has delivered two championships, saved Fenway Park and become a successful business model....Frank McCourt has left Dodger nation in shambles as Bud Selig continues to force him out of the game....Yesterday on an another beautiful Southern California day you could see many empty seats at Dodger Stadium in the first inning of the LA-Det game while in Boston, despite four rain delays and steady rain all day, the Fenway stands were full 'til the end....Blame on the Pink Hats....Cliff Lee tosses back to back shutouts....If the Phillies stay healthy into the playoffs they will have the Halladay, Lee and Hamels trio....Can't think of another team that matches up....Chris Heisey delivers three home runs from the leadoff spot as Cincinnati salvages the back end of a day-nighter....Fans have been clamoring for more playing time for Heisey and manager Dusty Baker has balked....Not any more....Arizona takes the lead in the NL West but as we've seen over the last few years this division will go to the wire....Seattle are only two out in the AL West and the Pittsburgh Pirates hang in the NL Central, only three back.
Frank Laydon, former GM of the Utah Jazz, asked one of his players "What is it with you? Ignorance or apathy? The player replied "Coach, I don't know and I don't care." ........talk to ya.............
The contrasts in Los Angeles and Boston are compelling....Boston's MLB franchise is one of the brightest....John Henry's group has delivered two championships, saved Fenway Park and become a successful business model....Frank McCourt has left Dodger nation in shambles as Bud Selig continues to force him out of the game....Yesterday on an another beautiful Southern California day you could see many empty seats at Dodger Stadium in the first inning of the LA-Det game while in Boston, despite four rain delays and steady rain all day, the Fenway stands were full 'til the end....Blame on the Pink Hats....Cliff Lee tosses back to back shutouts....If the Phillies stay healthy into the playoffs they will have the Halladay, Lee and Hamels trio....Can't think of another team that matches up....Chris Heisey delivers three home runs from the leadoff spot as Cincinnati salvages the back end of a day-nighter....Fans have been clamoring for more playing time for Heisey and manager Dusty Baker has balked....Not any more....Arizona takes the lead in the NL West but as we've seen over the last few years this division will go to the wire....Seattle are only two out in the AL West and the Pittsburgh Pirates hang in the NL Central, only three back.
Frank Laydon, former GM of the Utah Jazz, asked one of his players "What is it with you? Ignorance or apathy? The player replied "Coach, I don't know and I don't care." ........talk to ya.............
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
A Cuban In La-La Land?........Vol. 22 (June 22, 2011)
Good Morning....
Mark Cuban, interested in the Dodgers?....By the time Frank McCourt and Bud Selig finish their square dancing in court the team could be in such a mess that no one wants them....Frank rode into town, threw money around, hired Joe Torre and traded for Manny Ramirez....He was loved....Now, they wouldn't give him the time of day....Bud has got McCourt by the short hairs and he ain't letting go....McCourt is threatening to keep Dodger Stadium and all its assets if baseball forces him to sell....I dunno Frank, a scorned woman and a commisioner trying to drive you out of the game....Not good....And the lawyers get rich....Mark Cuban would be a fantastic baseball owner.
Baseball stat line of the night: Bumgarner (SF) 1/3 inning, 9H, 8ER, 0BB, 1K.....yikes!!....Eight hits to start the game....single, double, single, double, single, double, single, double....Bumgarner struck out the pitcher before the leadoff hitter got his second hit of the first inning and he was FINALLY, mercifully, taken out of the game....Lot of unhappy fantasy owners out there and count me as one as I have him on both my teams....sucks!....Looks like Bryce Harper will be promoted to maybe Double-A....Won't be long....The future looks bright for Washington and it was last night for the Nationals as they rally for five in the ninth to pull out a victory.
Hard to get excited for Thursday's NBA Draft.....I see Kyle Irving and Derrick Williams....Thats it....And I'm not sure about them....Time for the Celtics to jettison Big Baby Davis....The man-child refers to himself in the third person more than Wade Boggs....He says that Doc Rivers talks too much....Way to grease those skids, Glen....Be careful what you wish for.
"The greatest thing in the history of south Florida sports was these guys coming together. With the exception of the (undefeated '72 Dolphins). Maybe." - Pat Riley....hmmmmmmmm....Last time I checked the South Beach Trio hadn't won anything....Yet.
Jaromir Jagr is making noise about returning to the Pittsburgh Penguins after a three year absence....Isn't he a grandfather?
I hope the NBA and its players are paying very close attention to the labor dispute in the NFL....The vibes are positive about reaching a settlement shortly....Both sides will meet this week for a couple of days in the home city of Bob Kraft (Boston)....I have to think that Kraft has been influential in getting a deal done....Who feels bad for Tiki Barber?....Not me.
"I want to rip out his heart and feed it to Lennox Lewis. I want to kill people. I want to rip their stomachs out and eat their children." - Mike Tyson (star of The Hangover and The Hangover II)
....talk to ya..........
Mark Cuban, interested in the Dodgers?....By the time Frank McCourt and Bud Selig finish their square dancing in court the team could be in such a mess that no one wants them....Frank rode into town, threw money around, hired Joe Torre and traded for Manny Ramirez....He was loved....Now, they wouldn't give him the time of day....Bud has got McCourt by the short hairs and he ain't letting go....McCourt is threatening to keep Dodger Stadium and all its assets if baseball forces him to sell....I dunno Frank, a scorned woman and a commisioner trying to drive you out of the game....Not good....And the lawyers get rich....Mark Cuban would be a fantastic baseball owner.
Baseball stat line of the night: Bumgarner (SF) 1/3 inning, 9H, 8ER, 0BB, 1K.....yikes!!....Eight hits to start the game....single, double, single, double, single, double, single, double....Bumgarner struck out the pitcher before the leadoff hitter got his second hit of the first inning and he was FINALLY, mercifully, taken out of the game....Lot of unhappy fantasy owners out there and count me as one as I have him on both my teams....sucks!....Looks like Bryce Harper will be promoted to maybe Double-A....Won't be long....The future looks bright for Washington and it was last night for the Nationals as they rally for five in the ninth to pull out a victory.
Hard to get excited for Thursday's NBA Draft.....I see Kyle Irving and Derrick Williams....Thats it....And I'm not sure about them....Time for the Celtics to jettison Big Baby Davis....The man-child refers to himself in the third person more than Wade Boggs....He says that Doc Rivers talks too much....Way to grease those skids, Glen....Be careful what you wish for.
"The greatest thing in the history of south Florida sports was these guys coming together. With the exception of the (undefeated '72 Dolphins). Maybe." - Pat Riley....hmmmmmmmm....Last time I checked the South Beach Trio hadn't won anything....Yet.
Jaromir Jagr is making noise about returning to the Pittsburgh Penguins after a three year absence....Isn't he a grandfather?
I hope the NBA and its players are paying very close attention to the labor dispute in the NFL....The vibes are positive about reaching a settlement shortly....Both sides will meet this week for a couple of days in the home city of Bob Kraft (Boston)....I have to think that Kraft has been influential in getting a deal done....Who feels bad for Tiki Barber?....Not me.
"I want to rip out his heart and feed it to Lennox Lewis. I want to kill people. I want to rip their stomachs out and eat their children." - Mike Tyson (star of The Hangover and The Hangover II)
....talk to ya..........
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Teardrops On The City..........Vol. 21 (June 21, 2011)
Good Morning....
Fantasy Baseball is real in the sense that if your best player gets hurt it puts your team in a flux....Such is the case with Albert Pujols going down for 4-6 weeks with a broken wrist....Championships are being put on hold....My Fantasy Baseball League (MFL) has been going 25 years strong....Being the defending champ after a whoop-ass year I'm being treated like a pariah....I love it!....Struggling this year in sixth place, trying to hang in and give myself a second half chance....Mr. Depot and The Sniper (Hitmen) have lengthened their lead but they know that there is 14 weeks to go....Last year The Painter and The President (Sluggers) got off to a torrid 12-0 start....They started comparing themselves to the '72 Dolphins but then the wheels came off and they sank to the bottom half....(Glassholes) start Week 12 with a big night as they score with their pitching roulette strategy....That strategy is about picking 2 start pitchers for that week....Costly and dangerous but a chance for a big payout....It was my plan last year and of course monkey-see, monkey-do....Jackie Brains (we call him that because he doesn't have one), manager of the (Glassholes) leads the league in trash-talking and dating big, beautiful women....Some of the guys call him Jackie Legs (he doesn't have any of those either)....He'll find a way to fuck the week up....At this time, The Assasin (Grand Slams) seems to have the top team....Loaded with Adrian Gonzalez, Josh Hamiltion, Michael Morse and a pitching staff to envy he's my pick to win it all....Oscar and Felix (Odd Couple), Dr. Thoroughbred Murr' (Hoop Gurus) and Diamond Dave (Shitbags) are all near the top and can't be counted out....If we could just get Jackie Brains into a Dale Carnegie course.
With the NL Central up for grabs, the Cardinals could ill afford an injury to King Albert....Milwaukee with their impressive lineup and Shaun Marcum back soon has the opening they wanted....Can't discount Cincinnati as Joey Votto hasn't kicked into gear yet....Marlins hire 80 year old Jack McKeon and the first thing he does is bench that slacker Hanley Ramirez....The immature Ramirez is the clubhouse leader for the 2012 Raul Mondesi Award as the biggest dog in baseball....The Red Sox may be 14-2 in their last 16 and putting runs up at an impressive clip but the Evil Empire is right on Boston's heels....New York is banged up, using smoke and mirrors, but might make this a pennant race yet....Have I underestimated Joe Giradi?....The McCourt saga continues with Bud Selig turning the screws a little tighter....No Fox TV money for you, Frank....LA Dodgers are about to go up for auction.
The Stanley Cup is everywhere in Boston....The city delirious with the Cup victory threw a parade celebration unmatched even in the City of Champions....One million plus, Zdeno Chara cruising the streets of Boston on his bicycle, Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron rapping "black and yellow" and Cam Neely raising Lord Stanley over his head as the crowd roared....Top it off at Fenway Park on Sunday as the team took a victory lap in a Duck Boat and all the players took part in the first pitch ceremony....The camaraderie enjoyed by the four Boston franchises is a joy to watch....Me thinks Shaq rubbed off on everyone.
Rory McIlroy is the real deal....After imploding at the Masters he puts up numbers for the ages and takes a victory in the US Open that was never in doubt....Here is a champion worth rooting for....On the downside, Congressional CC played like a lamb....I'm sure the USGA is not happy and the weather didn't help, so God help the players at next year's layout....It's gonna be tough.
And last but not least,
I've seen Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band many times from the cozy Somerville Theatre to the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, Texas and I've never been disappointed....As a matter of fact I've never seen a less than stellar show....It was a sad day to hear of the passing of Clarence Clemons....The sax player of a generation and a beautiful person off the stage, he will be missed....Professor Roy Bittan with his melodic piano playing may drive the band and Mighty Max Weinberg, pounding the drums, is it's engine but The Big Man was it's soul....The end of an era.
"I have seen the future of the whole fucking thing and its Big Man Clarence Clemons" - Bruce Springsteen
....talk to ya..........
Fantasy Baseball is real in the sense that if your best player gets hurt it puts your team in a flux....Such is the case with Albert Pujols going down for 4-6 weeks with a broken wrist....Championships are being put on hold....My Fantasy Baseball League (MFL) has been going 25 years strong....Being the defending champ after a whoop-ass year I'm being treated like a pariah....I love it!....Struggling this year in sixth place, trying to hang in and give myself a second half chance....Mr. Depot and The Sniper (Hitmen) have lengthened their lead but they know that there is 14 weeks to go....Last year The Painter and The President (Sluggers) got off to a torrid 12-0 start....They started comparing themselves to the '72 Dolphins but then the wheels came off and they sank to the bottom half....(Glassholes) start Week 12 with a big night as they score with their pitching roulette strategy....That strategy is about picking 2 start pitchers for that week....Costly and dangerous but a chance for a big payout....It was my plan last year and of course monkey-see, monkey-do....Jackie Brains (we call him that because he doesn't have one), manager of the (Glassholes) leads the league in trash-talking and dating big, beautiful women....Some of the guys call him Jackie Legs (he doesn't have any of those either)....He'll find a way to fuck the week up....At this time, The Assasin (Grand Slams) seems to have the top team....Loaded with Adrian Gonzalez, Josh Hamiltion, Michael Morse and a pitching staff to envy he's my pick to win it all....Oscar and Felix (Odd Couple), Dr. Thoroughbred Murr' (Hoop Gurus) and Diamond Dave (Shitbags) are all near the top and can't be counted out....If we could just get Jackie Brains into a Dale Carnegie course.
With the NL Central up for grabs, the Cardinals could ill afford an injury to King Albert....Milwaukee with their impressive lineup and Shaun Marcum back soon has the opening they wanted....Can't discount Cincinnati as Joey Votto hasn't kicked into gear yet....Marlins hire 80 year old Jack McKeon and the first thing he does is bench that slacker Hanley Ramirez....The immature Ramirez is the clubhouse leader for the 2012 Raul Mondesi Award as the biggest dog in baseball....The Red Sox may be 14-2 in their last 16 and putting runs up at an impressive clip but the Evil Empire is right on Boston's heels....New York is banged up, using smoke and mirrors, but might make this a pennant race yet....Have I underestimated Joe Giradi?....The McCourt saga continues with Bud Selig turning the screws a little tighter....No Fox TV money for you, Frank....LA Dodgers are about to go up for auction.
The Stanley Cup is everywhere in Boston....The city delirious with the Cup victory threw a parade celebration unmatched even in the City of Champions....One million plus, Zdeno Chara cruising the streets of Boston on his bicycle, Brad Marchand and Patrice Bergeron rapping "black and yellow" and Cam Neely raising Lord Stanley over his head as the crowd roared....Top it off at Fenway Park on Sunday as the team took a victory lap in a Duck Boat and all the players took part in the first pitch ceremony....The camaraderie enjoyed by the four Boston franchises is a joy to watch....Me thinks Shaq rubbed off on everyone.
Rory McIlroy is the real deal....After imploding at the Masters he puts up numbers for the ages and takes a victory in the US Open that was never in doubt....Here is a champion worth rooting for....On the downside, Congressional CC played like a lamb....I'm sure the USGA is not happy and the weather didn't help, so God help the players at next year's layout....It's gonna be tough.
And last but not least,
I've seen Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band many times from the cozy Somerville Theatre to the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, Texas and I've never been disappointed....As a matter of fact I've never seen a less than stellar show....It was a sad day to hear of the passing of Clarence Clemons....The sax player of a generation and a beautiful person off the stage, he will be missed....Professor Roy Bittan with his melodic piano playing may drive the band and Mighty Max Weinberg, pounding the drums, is it's engine but The Big Man was it's soul....The end of an era.
"I have seen the future of the whole fucking thing and its Big Man Clarence Clemons" - Bruce Springsteen
....talk to ya..........
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Something's Bruin........Vol. 20 (June 16, 2011)
Good Afternoon....
Boston Bruins, Stanley Cup Champs....In a dominant performance that left no doubt as to who was the best team Boston picks it up a notch to knock off the heavily favored Vancouver Canucks....It started with Nathan Horton dousing the Vancouver ice with water from the ice at Boston Garden....Very funny to watch Horton who looked around to see if anyone was watching at 3:17 yesterday afternoon while the TV cameras caught every move....The Bruins set the tone, dictated the tone and it ended with Tim Thomas tapping the goal posts as the puck was slid to him....Reminder of 1972 as Bobby Orr slid the puck to and jumped into the arms of Gerry Cheevers as time ran out....A treat to watch Zdeno Chara hoist the Cup unable to hide his emotions....He thrust the Cup to the heavens several times, his face breaking into total glee....Right then it hit home to all Boston fans....After 39 years, our Bruins had won the Stanley Cup....Sweet....Brad Marchand may be a rookie and a pest to the other team but his fire and determination, never mind his 11 playoff goals, lit the spark as it seemed the B's won every battle....Chara might be the Captain but Shawn Thornton's return to the lineup in Game 3 and leadership let Vancouver know they were in for a fight....Timmy Terrific was simply magical....Milan Lucic lifts the Cup in his hometown of Vancouver and they love him....Patrice Bergeron....What can you say?....Faceoffs, defense and 2 goals in the deciding game....With Horton out of the series Bergeron picks the team up and was everywhere....Cam Neely, the face of the Boston Bruins, raises the Stanley Cup which he never got to do as a player....The Bruins faced adversity all through the Stanley Cup playoffs....Lost the first two games at home to the Montreal Canadiens but came back to win Game 7 in overtime on a goal by Horton....Revenge last year's horrific collapse to Philadelphia by sweeping the Flyers in four straight....Win a back and forth tough series with the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 7, 1-0, on a goal by Horton....Top it off with a Game 7 win in the Finals on the road....Rolling Duck Boat parade through the cobblestone streets of Boston on Saturday....Should be something....Boston - City of Champions.
"Hockey is a man's game. The team with the most real men win." - Brian Burke
In 1999, then Vancouver GM Brian Burke held the #4 pick in the NHL Entry Draft....Through intimidation and diplomacy he turned that pick into the Sedin twins....Everyone has been patting him on the back since.
Stanley Cup Final Stats:
Daniel Sedin - 1 goal, 3 assists
Henrik Sedin - 1 goal, 0 assists
Josh Beckett throws a complete game shutout, matching James Shields from the night before setting up a Buchholz-Price matchup for the rubber game of the Rays-Red Sox three game series....Mark Teixeira and Michael Morse both smack a couple of Big Fly's last night....I think Ryan Zimmerman is gonna like hitting in front of Morse....Count me as one who likes inter-league play....And there is lots of it coming.
The US Open golf championship is one of my favorite tournaments to watch....Its not target golf....Players must keep their drives in the fairway and put their approach shots to the correct area on the green....You don't want to be in the rough....Par is a winning score and the tourney ends on Father's Day.
"US Open golf is 72 holes of bad breaks with an occasional surprise." - Jack Nicklaus
....talk to ya..................
Boston Bruins, Stanley Cup Champs....In a dominant performance that left no doubt as to who was the best team Boston picks it up a notch to knock off the heavily favored Vancouver Canucks....It started with Nathan Horton dousing the Vancouver ice with water from the ice at Boston Garden....Very funny to watch Horton who looked around to see if anyone was watching at 3:17 yesterday afternoon while the TV cameras caught every move....The Bruins set the tone, dictated the tone and it ended with Tim Thomas tapping the goal posts as the puck was slid to him....Reminder of 1972 as Bobby Orr slid the puck to and jumped into the arms of Gerry Cheevers as time ran out....A treat to watch Zdeno Chara hoist the Cup unable to hide his emotions....He thrust the Cup to the heavens several times, his face breaking into total glee....Right then it hit home to all Boston fans....After 39 years, our Bruins had won the Stanley Cup....Sweet....Brad Marchand may be a rookie and a pest to the other team but his fire and determination, never mind his 11 playoff goals, lit the spark as it seemed the B's won every battle....Chara might be the Captain but Shawn Thornton's return to the lineup in Game 3 and leadership let Vancouver know they were in for a fight....Timmy Terrific was simply magical....Milan Lucic lifts the Cup in his hometown of Vancouver and they love him....Patrice Bergeron....What can you say?....Faceoffs, defense and 2 goals in the deciding game....With Horton out of the series Bergeron picks the team up and was everywhere....Cam Neely, the face of the Boston Bruins, raises the Stanley Cup which he never got to do as a player....The Bruins faced adversity all through the Stanley Cup playoffs....Lost the first two games at home to the Montreal Canadiens but came back to win Game 7 in overtime on a goal by Horton....Revenge last year's horrific collapse to Philadelphia by sweeping the Flyers in four straight....Win a back and forth tough series with the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 7, 1-0, on a goal by Horton....Top it off with a Game 7 win in the Finals on the road....Rolling Duck Boat parade through the cobblestone streets of Boston on Saturday....Should be something....Boston - City of Champions.
"Hockey is a man's game. The team with the most real men win." - Brian Burke
In 1999, then Vancouver GM Brian Burke held the #4 pick in the NHL Entry Draft....Through intimidation and diplomacy he turned that pick into the Sedin twins....Everyone has been patting him on the back since.
Stanley Cup Final Stats:
Daniel Sedin - 1 goal, 3 assists
Henrik Sedin - 1 goal, 0 assists
Josh Beckett throws a complete game shutout, matching James Shields from the night before setting up a Buchholz-Price matchup for the rubber game of the Rays-Red Sox three game series....Mark Teixeira and Michael Morse both smack a couple of Big Fly's last night....I think Ryan Zimmerman is gonna like hitting in front of Morse....Count me as one who likes inter-league play....And there is lots of it coming.
The US Open golf championship is one of my favorite tournaments to watch....Its not target golf....Players must keep their drives in the fairway and put their approach shots to the correct area on the green....You don't want to be in the rough....Par is a winning score and the tourney ends on Father's Day.
"US Open golf is 72 holes of bad breaks with an occasional surprise." - Jack Nicklaus
....talk to ya..................
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Thrill of Victory, Agony of Defeat........Vol. 19 (June 15, 2011)
Good Afternoon....
Boston and Vancouver get ready to do hockey battle in Game 7 out in British Columbia....The Canucks earned home ice advantage with their overall play during the season....Big advantage it seems in this series as the home team has won each game....Though the Bruins were dominant at home while Vancouver kept Boston off the scoreboard and squeezed out victories in all three games in their rink....Who will the Canucks start in goal?....Can Timmy Terrific continue to make outstanding saves for the B's?....Will the Sedin twins make the difference?....The Boston area is nothing but a sea of black and gold and I'm sure its the same in Vancouver with their blue and white....Expect both teams to come out strong and the referees to put the whistles away....Boston has never played in a Stanley Cup Game 7 and haven't won the Cup since 1972 when the great Bobby Orr ruled the hockey world....Vancouver hasn't won the Cup in the entire 40 years of their existence....Milan Lucic and Ryan Kesler are key players tonight....Despite Dan Shaughnessy's love letter in the Boston Globe to coach Claude Julien, the Bruins have stayed in the fight all season because of veteran leadership and Tim Thomas....Tough injury to Vancouver forward Mason Raymond who suffered a fractured vertebrae when he was slammed awkwardly into the boards by Johnny Boychuk....Its been a physical series but I don't think that play was intent to injure....Rome's hit on Horton was a tad too late but I don't agree with the 4 game suspension....Everybody's ready so let's drop the puck.
Time to give Lebron James some room....His team lost....Dallas won the title and to them go the spoils....King James needs to go on vacation in a deserted part of the world and forget about basketball for awhile....He is the best player in the game....Didn't always play that way in the Finals....Miami brought all this negative attention on themselves....It will be interesting to see their mindset going into 2011-2012....Nice to see people like Jason Kidd, Shawn Marion, Jason Terry and Dirk Nowitzki get to the top of the mountain....Eric Spoelstra should be allowed to continue coaching the Heat....Remember Doc Rivers had some lean years before Garnett and Allen came over....The South Beach Trio can't be the easiest team to lead and continuity is a must....With a year under their belt the future looks bright for Spoelstra, Wade, Bosh and James.
Justin Verlander emerges as the front runner for this year's AL Cy Young award....He takes a no-hitter into the eighth inning last night and cruises to a 4-0 win as Detroit takes a one game lead over Cleveland in the AL Central....Jered Weaver follows suit with a complete game shutout win over the Mariners....Jose Reyes is having a sensational start for the Mets....Dodgers gonna have trouble making their payroll, again....What a mess....The McCourt saga is gonna make for a great book....And maybe a movie....Don't look now but the Pittsburgh Pirates are at .500 and 4 games back in the NL Central and the Seattle Mariners are at .500 and 2 games back in the AL West.
The US Open Championship begins Thursday at Congressional CC in Bethesda, Maryland....Count me as one who is glad that Prima Donna Woods is not there....I don't need obnoxious and arrogance....The Mickelson army should be out in full force....The talk around the course is the American golfers lack of major wins lately....I don't know about everyone else but I've enjoyed watching new players come to the forefront....Every tournament seems to come down to the final hole or a playoff....Who needs Tiger?....TV?....My pick for the US Open title goes to Geoff Oglivy.
For Ray:
"The reason the golf pro tells you to keep your head down is so you can't see him laughing."
....talk to ya
Boston and Vancouver get ready to do hockey battle in Game 7 out in British Columbia....The Canucks earned home ice advantage with their overall play during the season....Big advantage it seems in this series as the home team has won each game....Though the Bruins were dominant at home while Vancouver kept Boston off the scoreboard and squeezed out victories in all three games in their rink....Who will the Canucks start in goal?....Can Timmy Terrific continue to make outstanding saves for the B's?....Will the Sedin twins make the difference?....The Boston area is nothing but a sea of black and gold and I'm sure its the same in Vancouver with their blue and white....Expect both teams to come out strong and the referees to put the whistles away....Boston has never played in a Stanley Cup Game 7 and haven't won the Cup since 1972 when the great Bobby Orr ruled the hockey world....Vancouver hasn't won the Cup in the entire 40 years of their existence....Milan Lucic and Ryan Kesler are key players tonight....Despite Dan Shaughnessy's love letter in the Boston Globe to coach Claude Julien, the Bruins have stayed in the fight all season because of veteran leadership and Tim Thomas....Tough injury to Vancouver forward Mason Raymond who suffered a fractured vertebrae when he was slammed awkwardly into the boards by Johnny Boychuk....Its been a physical series but I don't think that play was intent to injure....Rome's hit on Horton was a tad too late but I don't agree with the 4 game suspension....Everybody's ready so let's drop the puck.
Time to give Lebron James some room....His team lost....Dallas won the title and to them go the spoils....King James needs to go on vacation in a deserted part of the world and forget about basketball for awhile....He is the best player in the game....Didn't always play that way in the Finals....Miami brought all this negative attention on themselves....It will be interesting to see their mindset going into 2011-2012....Nice to see people like Jason Kidd, Shawn Marion, Jason Terry and Dirk Nowitzki get to the top of the mountain....Eric Spoelstra should be allowed to continue coaching the Heat....Remember Doc Rivers had some lean years before Garnett and Allen came over....The South Beach Trio can't be the easiest team to lead and continuity is a must....With a year under their belt the future looks bright for Spoelstra, Wade, Bosh and James.
Justin Verlander emerges as the front runner for this year's AL Cy Young award....He takes a no-hitter into the eighth inning last night and cruises to a 4-0 win as Detroit takes a one game lead over Cleveland in the AL Central....Jered Weaver follows suit with a complete game shutout win over the Mariners....Jose Reyes is having a sensational start for the Mets....Dodgers gonna have trouble making their payroll, again....What a mess....The McCourt saga is gonna make for a great book....And maybe a movie....Don't look now but the Pittsburgh Pirates are at .500 and 4 games back in the NL Central and the Seattle Mariners are at .500 and 2 games back in the AL West.
The US Open Championship begins Thursday at Congressional CC in Bethesda, Maryland....Count me as one who is glad that Prima Donna Woods is not there....I don't need obnoxious and arrogance....The Mickelson army should be out in full force....The talk around the course is the American golfers lack of major wins lately....I don't know about everyone else but I've enjoyed watching new players come to the forefront....Every tournament seems to come down to the final hole or a playoff....Who needs Tiger?....TV?....My pick for the US Open title goes to Geoff Oglivy.
For Ray:
"The reason the golf pro tells you to keep your head down is so you can't see him laughing."
....talk to ya
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Send Lawyers, Guns and Money........Vol 18. (June 14, 2011)
Good Afternoon....
The Stanley Cup Finals are going down to wire as Boston fires in four early goals and hang on to force Game 7....The Bruins plan of shooting at Roberto Luongo's glove side paid off as the Canuck goalie gave up a couple of soft goals early from which Vancouver could not recover....Brad Marchand put one over his glove up high and Milan Lucic stuck one in through the five hole as Boston scored four goals in four minutes and change....In a game that felt it could turn into a laugher, Vancouver holds the fort, outscoring the Bruins 2-1 the rest of the way....Game 7 will be a challenge for the Bruins as they've only scored two goals in three games in Vancouver....Canucks have to decide if they keep Luongo in goal or switch to Cory Schneider....Luongo didn't seem too upset when they pulled him last night....Daniel Sedin guarantees a Vancouver win....Thats funny coming from The Flopper....If its intensity you like, Game 7 should provide it.
Some of the Miami Heat allegedly partied with players from the Champion Dallas Mavericks after Game 6....Whats going on?....Imagine the Celtics partying with the Lakers or Heat after losing?....Now that the NBA season has ended, what next?....The NFL seems to be making progress on their new CBA....No doubt thru the effort of owners and players to get the lawyers out of the room and negotiate with each other....And it looks like some kind of agreement will be in place before training camps are scheduled to open next month....Just waiting for the NBA to screw their negotiations up....Both sides meet next week in New York and I can see shots across the bow....Are there owners and players willing to throw the lawyers out of the room and negotiate in good faith?....As I've said before, is there any athlete more overpaid and overprivileged than a National Basketball Association player?
From the "where has he been lately?" department....Vernon Wells hits two home runs for the Angels....Think Toronto is forever grateful that the Angels took on that behemoth contract?....Derek Jeter pulls up lame last night putting his run to 3000 hits on hold....Hunter Pence has a quietly put together a 23 game hitting streak....After a day off, can Boston continue their offensive onslaught?....We will find out as they face David Price and James Shields in Tampa this week.
Sad times in E Street Nation as Clarence Clemons has suffered a stroke....The 69 year old saxophone player suffered paralysis on his left side and has undergone two surgeries....Thoughts and prayers go out to The Baddest Man On The Planet.
"Baseball happens to be a game of cumulative tension but football, basketball and hockey are played with hand grenades and machine guns." - John Leonard.................talk to ya
The Stanley Cup Finals are going down to wire as Boston fires in four early goals and hang on to force Game 7....The Bruins plan of shooting at Roberto Luongo's glove side paid off as the Canuck goalie gave up a couple of soft goals early from which Vancouver could not recover....Brad Marchand put one over his glove up high and Milan Lucic stuck one in through the five hole as Boston scored four goals in four minutes and change....In a game that felt it could turn into a laugher, Vancouver holds the fort, outscoring the Bruins 2-1 the rest of the way....Game 7 will be a challenge for the Bruins as they've only scored two goals in three games in Vancouver....Canucks have to decide if they keep Luongo in goal or switch to Cory Schneider....Luongo didn't seem too upset when they pulled him last night....Daniel Sedin guarantees a Vancouver win....Thats funny coming from The Flopper....If its intensity you like, Game 7 should provide it.
Some of the Miami Heat allegedly partied with players from the Champion Dallas Mavericks after Game 6....Whats going on?....Imagine the Celtics partying with the Lakers or Heat after losing?....Now that the NBA season has ended, what next?....The NFL seems to be making progress on their new CBA....No doubt thru the effort of owners and players to get the lawyers out of the room and negotiate with each other....And it looks like some kind of agreement will be in place before training camps are scheduled to open next month....Just waiting for the NBA to screw their negotiations up....Both sides meet next week in New York and I can see shots across the bow....Are there owners and players willing to throw the lawyers out of the room and negotiate in good faith?....As I've said before, is there any athlete more overpaid and overprivileged than a National Basketball Association player?
From the "where has he been lately?" department....Vernon Wells hits two home runs for the Angels....Think Toronto is forever grateful that the Angels took on that behemoth contract?....Derek Jeter pulls up lame last night putting his run to 3000 hits on hold....Hunter Pence has a quietly put together a 23 game hitting streak....After a day off, can Boston continue their offensive onslaught?....We will find out as they face David Price and James Shields in Tampa this week.
Sad times in E Street Nation as Clarence Clemons has suffered a stroke....The 69 year old saxophone player suffered paralysis on his left side and has undergone two surgeries....Thoughts and prayers go out to The Baddest Man On The Planet.
"Baseball happens to be a game of cumulative tension but football, basketball and hockey are played with hand grenades and machine guns." - John Leonard.................talk to ya
Monday, June 13, 2011
Cavs For Mavs........Vol. 17 (June 13, 2011)
Good Afternoon....
Congrats to the Dallas Mavericks as they win the NBA Championship....Displaying veteran experience and refusing to get rattled they defeat the South Beach Trio who looked shell-shocked at the end of the game....Jason Terry led the way as the Mavs made shots when they needed to....Another superb shooting game from behind the 3pt. stripe by Dallas and another mediocre at best fourth quarter from Lebron James....Dirk Nowitzki shakes off a 1-12 first half to make some clutch baskets in the last few minutes....Miami shows sportsmanship by shaking hands after the game....Great job by Rick Carlisle (another branch of the Celtic tree) and owner Mark Cuban....Gotta make the Heat 2011-2012 favorites.
Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals tonight in the Hub of Hockey....This has turned into a great series....Both teams have a strong dislike for each other....From the finger biting, trash-talking, finger pointing, slashing, late hits and all-around chippiness to the physical hits, offensive chances and outstanding goalie play this has been a great series to watch....Something about playoff hockey that keeps you on the edge of your seat....And the fan support for each team has been off the charts....Bruin diehards will "will" their team to victory for having the Vancouver Canucks hoist the Cup around the Boston Garden is unacceptable....C'mon there's gotta be a Game 7....Just gotta be....I can't understand Claude Julien's decision to keep Tyler Seguin off the Boston power play....Maybe he knows something we don't and he is the Coach....But hmmmmmmmm....I hope the Kid scores the winning goal.
Received a phone call at 6:45pm Saturday, just after the Belmont Stakes ended from a jubilent Dr. Thoroughbred Murr'...."I told ya so, I told ya so" he blabbered....Turns out he had the exacta #3 "Ruler On Ice" and #2 "Stay Thirsty" that paid $928.00 on a $2 ticket....He also had "Stay Thirsty" across the board and that paid $19.40 in the middle and $10.80 on the end....Nice score....His reasoning for his picks, "Ruler On Ice" and "Stay Thirsty" were the only two horses listed at 20-1 in the morning line and Dr. Murr' has a thing for 20-1 longshots....Next time we meet up cocktails are on Dr. Murr'....My selection #6 "Nehro" finished fourth and "Animal Kingdom" battled back from an awful start but ran out of gas down the stretch and crossed the wire sixth.
I know its supposed to the year of the pitcher but I count a number of contenders for the Triple Crown....Like Horse Racing, very difficult to do....This year you've got Jose Bautista, Adrian Gonzalez, Miguel Cabrera, David Ortiz and even Paul Konerko from the AL with a shot....In the NL, keep an eye on Matt Kemp, Joey Votto and Prince Fielder....And always be on the lookout for King Albert....Red Sox have won 9 in a row, Atlanta 6 straight and Milwaukee (8-2 in their last 10) sweeps the Cardinals to take over first place in the NL Central....Boston has been smoking hot and certainly didn't need a day off today....Lots of young talent to watch including Stanton (Fla), Hosmer (KC), Moustakas (KC), Morse (Was), Rizzo (SD) and soon to be coming to a field near you Lawrie (Tor)....Nice to see the young players in Pittsburgh and Kansas City but look out for the Washington Nationals....Drew Storen and Michael Morse....Jordan Zimmermann throwing lights out....With Steven Strasburg on the mend and the already a legend Bryce Harper blowing kisses down in Single-A.
Always great to see #24 Jeff Gordon win another NASCAR race....His 84th time taking the checkered flag....Not a fan favorite but he's number one on this list....He's just plain ol' good....My children are not #24 fans and one of 'em tried to get under my skin before the race by telling me this joke....But remember, he who laughs last, laughs best....
"Did your hear Jeff Gordon is bringing in a new crew chief from China? His name is Win-Won Soon."
the jokes on y'all.........talk to ya
Congrats to the Dallas Mavericks as they win the NBA Championship....Displaying veteran experience and refusing to get rattled they defeat the South Beach Trio who looked shell-shocked at the end of the game....Jason Terry led the way as the Mavs made shots when they needed to....Another superb shooting game from behind the 3pt. stripe by Dallas and another mediocre at best fourth quarter from Lebron James....Dirk Nowitzki shakes off a 1-12 first half to make some clutch baskets in the last few minutes....Miami shows sportsmanship by shaking hands after the game....Great job by Rick Carlisle (another branch of the Celtic tree) and owner Mark Cuban....Gotta make the Heat 2011-2012 favorites.
Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals tonight in the Hub of Hockey....This has turned into a great series....Both teams have a strong dislike for each other....From the finger biting, trash-talking, finger pointing, slashing, late hits and all-around chippiness to the physical hits, offensive chances and outstanding goalie play this has been a great series to watch....Something about playoff hockey that keeps you on the edge of your seat....And the fan support for each team has been off the charts....Bruin diehards will "will" their team to victory for having the Vancouver Canucks hoist the Cup around the Boston Garden is unacceptable....C'mon there's gotta be a Game 7....Just gotta be....I can't understand Claude Julien's decision to keep Tyler Seguin off the Boston power play....Maybe he knows something we don't and he is the Coach....But hmmmmmmmm....I hope the Kid scores the winning goal.
Received a phone call at 6:45pm Saturday, just after the Belmont Stakes ended from a jubilent Dr. Thoroughbred Murr'...."I told ya so, I told ya so" he blabbered....Turns out he had the exacta #3 "Ruler On Ice" and #2 "Stay Thirsty" that paid $928.00 on a $2 ticket....He also had "Stay Thirsty" across the board and that paid $19.40 in the middle and $10.80 on the end....Nice score....His reasoning for his picks, "Ruler On Ice" and "Stay Thirsty" were the only two horses listed at 20-1 in the morning line and Dr. Murr' has a thing for 20-1 longshots....Next time we meet up cocktails are on Dr. Murr'....My selection #6 "Nehro" finished fourth and "Animal Kingdom" battled back from an awful start but ran out of gas down the stretch and crossed the wire sixth.
I know its supposed to the year of the pitcher but I count a number of contenders for the Triple Crown....Like Horse Racing, very difficult to do....This year you've got Jose Bautista, Adrian Gonzalez, Miguel Cabrera, David Ortiz and even Paul Konerko from the AL with a shot....In the NL, keep an eye on Matt Kemp, Joey Votto and Prince Fielder....And always be on the lookout for King Albert....Red Sox have won 9 in a row, Atlanta 6 straight and Milwaukee (8-2 in their last 10) sweeps the Cardinals to take over first place in the NL Central....Boston has been smoking hot and certainly didn't need a day off today....Lots of young talent to watch including Stanton (Fla), Hosmer (KC), Moustakas (KC), Morse (Was), Rizzo (SD) and soon to be coming to a field near you Lawrie (Tor)....Nice to see the young players in Pittsburgh and Kansas City but look out for the Washington Nationals....Drew Storen and Michael Morse....Jordan Zimmermann throwing lights out....With Steven Strasburg on the mend and the already a legend Bryce Harper blowing kisses down in Single-A.
Always great to see #24 Jeff Gordon win another NASCAR race....His 84th time taking the checkered flag....Not a fan favorite but he's number one on this list....He's just plain ol' good....My children are not #24 fans and one of 'em tried to get under my skin before the race by telling me this joke....But remember, he who laughs last, laughs best....
"Did your hear Jeff Gordon is bringing in a new crew chief from China? His name is Win-Won Soon."
the jokes on y'all.........talk to ya
Friday, June 10, 2011
I Must Be In The Front Row........Vol 16. (June 10, 2011)
Good Afternoon....
Well, Miami let Dallas hang around and after a thunderstorm of three pointers the Mavs are one game away from making all Celtic fans very happy....Lebron James has another lousy 4th quarter, Wade is hurt (or so he says) and momentum has shifted to the hungry Mavs....If Dallas wins how hard will it be to live with Mark Cuban?....If Miami loses will they cry like the little bitches that Sir Charles says they are?....If the Heat come back to win, will it matter?....Jason Terry and J.J. Barea start raining long balls and its over....A lot of attention, and rightly so, goes to King James but isn't that Dirk Nowitzki some kind of player?
The Stanley Cup Finals return to Vancouver where the "Green Men" hope to help the Canucks find their mojo....Boston physically dominated Vancouver in games 3 and 4....This is a MUST game for the Canucks 'cause they do NOT want to go back to crazy ass Beantown down 3-2....Can Timmy "Terrific" Thomas get away with his feistiness in British Columbia?....Has anyone seen the Sedin twins?....Brad Marchand (so far) has their number.
Red Sox sweep the Yankees to go 6-0 in Yankee Stadium this year....They also assume a two game lead in the AL East....Sox drill a couple more Yankees and the Bronx Bombers retaliate with a "love tap" (to borrow a phrase from Timmy Terrific) to the thigh of Big Papi....Lets see, Ortiz hits a home run, pirouettes, flips the bat and instead of A.J. Burnett delivering the memo in the 1st inning the next night he grooves one and Ortiz takes him yard....BoSox pitchers hit Jeter and A-Rod....Yanks hit Big Papi with a "love tap"....C'mon, send a message, high and tight.....Sox rally with 7 in the 7th (after a 10:32 pm start) against C.C. Sabathia, sweep the series and send the New Yorkers crawling home with their tails between their legs.
Dustin Pedroia expected to play for Boston tonight in Toronto....Nice surprise....Joba the Hut expected to undergo Tommy John surgery depleting an already suspect bullpen down in the Bronx....Two unexpected things (Not!)....Manager Bob (what we have here is failure to communicate) Geren is fired by the A's and QB Terrelle (I did nuthin' wrong) Pryor is not coming back for his senior year at Ohio State....Shocking.
The 1 1/2 mile Belmont Stakes is being run on Saturday with a strong field....Top seven finishers in the Kentucky Derby will go to post....Rubber match between Derby winner "Animal Kingdom" and Preakness victor "Shackleford"....Just got off the phone with Dr. Thoroughbred Murr' and after making plans to watch the Stanley Cup tonight he offered his selection on Saturday's race...."A longshot is due and thinking about how many beers I'm gonna drink tonight watching the hockey game, I'll go with #2 "Stay Thirsty" at 20-1"....After I hung up I quickly scratched "Stay Thirsty" off any exotic plays I had him on....Dr. Murr' hasn't picked a winner since he had Billie Jean King over Bobby Riggs....I like #6 Nehro and will throw $20 across the board on him....Add #1 "Master of Hounds", #9 "Animal Kingdom", #10 "Mucho Macho Man" and #12 "Shackleford" to round out your Exacta, Trifecta and Superfecta betting....Good luck.
Happened across a "Major League" movie the other day and it reminded me of this....
"The biggest thrill a ballplayer can have is when your son takes after you. That was when my Bobby was in his championship Little League game. He really showed me something. Struck out three times. Made an error that lost the game. Parents were throwing things at the car and swearing at us as we drove off. Gosh, I was proud." - Bob Uecker...............talk to ya
Well, Miami let Dallas hang around and after a thunderstorm of three pointers the Mavs are one game away from making all Celtic fans very happy....Lebron James has another lousy 4th quarter, Wade is hurt (or so he says) and momentum has shifted to the hungry Mavs....If Dallas wins how hard will it be to live with Mark Cuban?....If Miami loses will they cry like the little bitches that Sir Charles says they are?....If the Heat come back to win, will it matter?....Jason Terry and J.J. Barea start raining long balls and its over....A lot of attention, and rightly so, goes to King James but isn't that Dirk Nowitzki some kind of player?
The Stanley Cup Finals return to Vancouver where the "Green Men" hope to help the Canucks find their mojo....Boston physically dominated Vancouver in games 3 and 4....This is a MUST game for the Canucks 'cause they do NOT want to go back to crazy ass Beantown down 3-2....Can Timmy "Terrific" Thomas get away with his feistiness in British Columbia?....Has anyone seen the Sedin twins?....Brad Marchand (so far) has their number.
Red Sox sweep the Yankees to go 6-0 in Yankee Stadium this year....They also assume a two game lead in the AL East....Sox drill a couple more Yankees and the Bronx Bombers retaliate with a "love tap" (to borrow a phrase from Timmy Terrific) to the thigh of Big Papi....Lets see, Ortiz hits a home run, pirouettes, flips the bat and instead of A.J. Burnett delivering the memo in the 1st inning the next night he grooves one and Ortiz takes him yard....BoSox pitchers hit Jeter and A-Rod....Yanks hit Big Papi with a "love tap"....C'mon, send a message, high and tight.....Sox rally with 7 in the 7th (after a 10:32 pm start) against C.C. Sabathia, sweep the series and send the New Yorkers crawling home with their tails between their legs.
Dustin Pedroia expected to play for Boston tonight in Toronto....Nice surprise....Joba the Hut expected to undergo Tommy John surgery depleting an already suspect bullpen down in the Bronx....Two unexpected things (Not!)....Manager Bob (what we have here is failure to communicate) Geren is fired by the A's and QB Terrelle (I did nuthin' wrong) Pryor is not coming back for his senior year at Ohio State....Shocking.
The 1 1/2 mile Belmont Stakes is being run on Saturday with a strong field....Top seven finishers in the Kentucky Derby will go to post....Rubber match between Derby winner "Animal Kingdom" and Preakness victor "Shackleford"....Just got off the phone with Dr. Thoroughbred Murr' and after making plans to watch the Stanley Cup tonight he offered his selection on Saturday's race...."A longshot is due and thinking about how many beers I'm gonna drink tonight watching the hockey game, I'll go with #2 "Stay Thirsty" at 20-1"....After I hung up I quickly scratched "Stay Thirsty" off any exotic plays I had him on....Dr. Murr' hasn't picked a winner since he had Billie Jean King over Bobby Riggs....I like #6 Nehro and will throw $20 across the board on him....Add #1 "Master of Hounds", #9 "Animal Kingdom", #10 "Mucho Macho Man" and #12 "Shackleford" to round out your Exacta, Trifecta and Superfecta betting....Good luck.
Happened across a "Major League" movie the other day and it reminded me of this....
"The biggest thrill a ballplayer can have is when your son takes after you. That was when my Bobby was in his championship Little League game. He really showed me something. Struck out three times. Made an error that lost the game. Parents were throwing things at the car and swearing at us as we drove off. Gosh, I was proud." - Bob Uecker...............talk to ya
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Fit To Be Tied........Vol 15. (June 8, 2011)
Good Afternoon....
All you have to know is Lebron James scored 8 points last night, zero in the 4th quarter....Miami should have won this in four straight....But like a punch drunk boxer the Mavs hang on and even the series....Jason Terry steps up and takes some of the pressure off an ailing Dirk Nowitzki....The Heat have no excuse....As Magic Johnson said, James must bring his "A" game next time out....If he plays Game 5 like the best player in the game that he is, Miami should pull away....Dallas doesn't quit and if Miami only shows up for 3 1/2 quarters again, anything can and will happen.
Just when David Ortiz made it back on my Christmas card list he goes and pulls a stunt like last night....After hitting a home run in the fifth inning last night he flipped his bat towards the Yankee dugout and spun around before his trot around the bases....He doesn't think its a big deal....It was bush league at best and if he doesn't get drilled tonight I'll be wondering what kind of manager is Joe Giradi....At one time "Big Papi" was a big crybaby....The Red Sox went to him in the off season and told him they would do him a favor and pick up his option for $12M...If he insisted on a 2 year deal the Sox were more than willing to let him check out the market and there was no way he was getting close to $12M....Boston told him to shut his mouth, take the money and play for a new contract....To his credit he has said and done all the right things....He's played his way onto the all-star team....Then there is last night's incident....Just admit you were wrong and listen up for the chin music.
Boston Garden should be crazy this evening....The fans know they are the 7th player and the team feeds off its energy....No, I'm not a Claude Julien fan....Take the kid gloves off Tyler Seguin and let him go out and play hockey....He'll more than make up for any mistakes he has....The kid produces points and the Bruins need his speed and scoring touch, especially on the power play....But what do I know?
What did Bobby Knight have to say after his 1980 Olympic team played China?....
"It was fun playing the Chinese, but after an hour, we wanted to play them again." ....talk to ya
All you have to know is Lebron James scored 8 points last night, zero in the 4th quarter....Miami should have won this in four straight....But like a punch drunk boxer the Mavs hang on and even the series....Jason Terry steps up and takes some of the pressure off an ailing Dirk Nowitzki....The Heat have no excuse....As Magic Johnson said, James must bring his "A" game next time out....If he plays Game 5 like the best player in the game that he is, Miami should pull away....Dallas doesn't quit and if Miami only shows up for 3 1/2 quarters again, anything can and will happen.
Just when David Ortiz made it back on my Christmas card list he goes and pulls a stunt like last night....After hitting a home run in the fifth inning last night he flipped his bat towards the Yankee dugout and spun around before his trot around the bases....He doesn't think its a big deal....It was bush league at best and if he doesn't get drilled tonight I'll be wondering what kind of manager is Joe Giradi....At one time "Big Papi" was a big crybaby....The Red Sox went to him in the off season and told him they would do him a favor and pick up his option for $12M...If he insisted on a 2 year deal the Sox were more than willing to let him check out the market and there was no way he was getting close to $12M....Boston told him to shut his mouth, take the money and play for a new contract....To his credit he has said and done all the right things....He's played his way onto the all-star team....Then there is last night's incident....Just admit you were wrong and listen up for the chin music.
Boston Garden should be crazy this evening....The fans know they are the 7th player and the team feeds off its energy....No, I'm not a Claude Julien fan....Take the kid gloves off Tyler Seguin and let him go out and play hockey....He'll more than make up for any mistakes he has....The kid produces points and the Bruins need his speed and scoring touch, especially on the power play....But what do I know?
What did Bobby Knight have to say after his 1980 Olympic team played China?....
"It was fun playing the Chinese, but after an hour, we wanted to play them again." ....talk to ya
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Short Story.......Vol 14. (June 7, 2011)
Good Morning....
Bruins shellack Vancouver 8-1....Toughman Shawn Thornton says nothing will carry over to Game 4....C'mon, the fans are nuts, Horton takes one for the team, Bruins are down 2 games to 1....The Garden will be crazy....If Boston continues to play physical, they win.
Yankees and Red Sox continue their rivalry tonight for the umpteenth time....
Jeter
Granderson
Teixeira
A-Rod
Cano
Thats a scary lineup....
But when you have Carl Crawford hitting sixth....That ain't so bad....I'll be tuned in.
Miami by 20 tonight.
Tyler Seguin.
In 1963, the MVP in the American League, National League, NFL and AFL all wore #32
Who were they?
Answer Wednesday..........talk to ya
Bruins shellack Vancouver 8-1....Toughman Shawn Thornton says nothing will carry over to Game 4....C'mon, the fans are nuts, Horton takes one for the team, Bruins are down 2 games to 1....The Garden will be crazy....If Boston continues to play physical, they win.
Yankees and Red Sox continue their rivalry tonight for the umpteenth time....
Jeter
Granderson
Teixeira
A-Rod
Cano
Thats a scary lineup....
But when you have Carl Crawford hitting sixth....That ain't so bad....I'll be tuned in.
Miami by 20 tonight.
Tyler Seguin.
In 1963, the MVP in the American League, National League, NFL and AFL all wore #32
Who were they?
Answer Wednesday..........talk to ya
Monday, June 6, 2011
Childress KO's Busch......Vol. 13 (June 6, 2011)
Good Morning....
Sounds like Kyle Busch got his this weekend....Kyle has made some enemies over the years and his disregard for common sense (128mph in a 45mph zone?) is legendary....Pissed more than a few drivers off and 65 year old team owner Richard Childress had enough....After Busch bumped one of the Childress' cars after Sunday's race Childress confronted Busch, put him in a headlock and punched him three times....Eerily reminiscent of Nolan Ryan bitchslapping Robin Ventura after the Chicago third baseman had the audacity to come out to the mound after the Hall of Famer....Childress is put on suspension and Busch goes scott free which tells you how many blows Busch got in....At least Pedro got the old man on the ground....Not too many people feeling bad for KyBu.
Am I missing something or are the NBA Finals not quite up to par?....Dallas attempts a last second shot and the crowd is sitting on their hands....Up here in Boston they don't need bells and whistles to shake a building....Dallas needed to steal that one last night....Time for the Heat to wake up and put this away in 5....Vancouver outhustles Boston Saturday night, scoring 11 seconds into overtime and take a commanding 2-0 lead in the Stanley Cup Finals....Great goalie play from both teams but Burrow's wraparound both Chara and Thomas proves to be the difference....Hey Claude, put Shawn Thornton back in the lineup, bang some bodies and a lot more Tyler Seguin on the power play....What do you have to lose?
I could get used to the positive vibes the NFL and the Player's Asscociation are giving off if I didn't know better....Stay at the table and keep the lawyers out of the room....They have about five weeks to get this thing done.
Christy Martin loses her comeback bid in the sixth round Saturday....Despite winning on all the judge's cards, the ring doctor stopped the fight after she broke her right hand.
King Albert is starting to be heard from as Pujols belts two walk off home runs this weekend....Just when you think Jake Peavey might be back to his old self he ends up on the DL....Still hear rumbling from the fallout that was the Posey-Cousins collision....Giants GM Brian Sabean throws Cousins under the bus and now the kid is receiving death threats and Sabean is backtracking....If Cousins played for San Francisco they'd love the play he made....It was unfortunate but it happened....What next?....Outlaw the break up slide at second base on a double play?....Is Michael Morse the next big thing?
Why do the French-Canadiens do it doggy-style?
So they both can watch the hockey game, eh............talk to ya
Sounds like Kyle Busch got his this weekend....Kyle has made some enemies over the years and his disregard for common sense (128mph in a 45mph zone?) is legendary....Pissed more than a few drivers off and 65 year old team owner Richard Childress had enough....After Busch bumped one of the Childress' cars after Sunday's race Childress confronted Busch, put him in a headlock and punched him three times....Eerily reminiscent of Nolan Ryan bitchslapping Robin Ventura after the Chicago third baseman had the audacity to come out to the mound after the Hall of Famer....Childress is put on suspension and Busch goes scott free which tells you how many blows Busch got in....At least Pedro got the old man on the ground....Not too many people feeling bad for KyBu.
Am I missing something or are the NBA Finals not quite up to par?....Dallas attempts a last second shot and the crowd is sitting on their hands....Up here in Boston they don't need bells and whistles to shake a building....Dallas needed to steal that one last night....Time for the Heat to wake up and put this away in 5....Vancouver outhustles Boston Saturday night, scoring 11 seconds into overtime and take a commanding 2-0 lead in the Stanley Cup Finals....Great goalie play from both teams but Burrow's wraparound both Chara and Thomas proves to be the difference....Hey Claude, put Shawn Thornton back in the lineup, bang some bodies and a lot more Tyler Seguin on the power play....What do you have to lose?
I could get used to the positive vibes the NFL and the Player's Asscociation are giving off if I didn't know better....Stay at the table and keep the lawyers out of the room....They have about five weeks to get this thing done.
Christy Martin loses her comeback bid in the sixth round Saturday....Despite winning on all the judge's cards, the ring doctor stopped the fight after she broke her right hand.
King Albert is starting to be heard from as Pujols belts two walk off home runs this weekend....Just when you think Jake Peavey might be back to his old self he ends up on the DL....Still hear rumbling from the fallout that was the Posey-Cousins collision....Giants GM Brian Sabean throws Cousins under the bus and now the kid is receiving death threats and Sabean is backtracking....If Cousins played for San Francisco they'd love the play he made....It was unfortunate but it happened....What next?....Outlaw the break up slide at second base on a double play?....Is Michael Morse the next big thing?
Why do the French-Canadiens do it doggy-style?
So they both can watch the hockey game, eh............talk to ya
Friday, June 3, 2011
It's A Beautiful Day........Vol.12 (June 3, 2011)
Good Morning....
They say ya gotta be in the right place at the right time....On Tuesday, Edmonton Oiler center Gilbert Brule and his girlfriend were in Vancouver to attend Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final....They passed two people hitchhiking and after persuading his girl to circle back and pick them up found that their passengers were Bono and his assistant....Bono was in town for a show in Edmonton the next night....Out for a walk, the U2 frontman found himself in the rain until he flagged down a ride....They chatted about Dublin, Brule's career and Bono's fondness for Vancouver....Bono offered tickets for the U2 show and without hesitation they accepted, later selling their Stanley Cup tickets....Wednesday evening, Bono told his side of the story.... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i14SHfRGc70 ....cool.
So the NFL and the NFLPA met for "secret" meetings outside Chicago this week....Can't be too secretive when the owners are flying into town in their private planes with logos plastered all over them....Can both sides give and take and get something done?....The $64,000 question....Oral arguments before the court today on whether the lockout is legal....I want to know how the NFL is negotiating with a union that is decertified....47 players show at the second day of New England Patriot workouts put together by Tom Brady.
Just as the Miami-Dallas NBA Championship Series was about to put me to sleep, Miami lets their guard (no pun intended) down and the Mav's storm back to tie this one up....The South Beach Trio were having their way with the Texas Twelve with a 15 point lead and 7 minutes to go....After a celebratory timeout, Miami shots began to clang off the rim, Dallas stepped up their defense and Dirk Nowitzki put his team on his shoulders....Nowitzki did it all (with some help from Jason Terry)....Jumpers, layups and 3 pointers....Chris Bosh didn't stand a chance.... http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/video/nba/2011/06/03/0041000402_dirk_9pts.SportsIllustrated/index.html ....But make no mistake....Miami gave this one up....I don't expect it to happen again.
A quiet night on the baseball front....Mets come back to beat the upstart Pirates....New York's signing of Pedro Martinez and Jason Bay should be used as teaching lessons for upcoming General Managers on what NOT to do....Yankees and Red Sox have settled into their customary positions (1+2) in the AL East....Twins need a big dose of Joe Mauer 'cause they are having an awful season....Nice to see the resurgence of Pittsburgh and Kansas City....Both could use pitching but they have some nice young ballplayers....Keep an eye out.
Female boxer Christy Martin makes a comeback this weekend six months after being stabbed, shot and left for dead by her husband last November....At one time Martin (49-5-3, 31 knockouts) was the best female fighter in the world....Martin, 42, was on the cover of Sports Illustrated in '96 and made $500,000 for her fight with Muhammad Ali's daughter, Laila....She fights against Dakota Stone this Saturday at Staples Center in Los Angeles....You go, girl.
"Boxing is the only sport you can get your brain shook, your money took and your name in the undertaker book." - Smokin' Joe Frazier.............talk to ya
They say ya gotta be in the right place at the right time....On Tuesday, Edmonton Oiler center Gilbert Brule and his girlfriend were in Vancouver to attend Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final....They passed two people hitchhiking and after persuading his girl to circle back and pick them up found that their passengers were Bono and his assistant....Bono was in town for a show in Edmonton the next night....Out for a walk, the U2 frontman found himself in the rain until he flagged down a ride....They chatted about Dublin, Brule's career and Bono's fondness for Vancouver....Bono offered tickets for the U2 show and without hesitation they accepted, later selling their Stanley Cup tickets....Wednesday evening, Bono told his side of the story.... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i14SHfRGc70 ....cool.
So the NFL and the NFLPA met for "secret" meetings outside Chicago this week....Can't be too secretive when the owners are flying into town in their private planes with logos plastered all over them....Can both sides give and take and get something done?....The $64,000 question....Oral arguments before the court today on whether the lockout is legal....I want to know how the NFL is negotiating with a union that is decertified....47 players show at the second day of New England Patriot workouts put together by Tom Brady.
Just as the Miami-Dallas NBA Championship Series was about to put me to sleep, Miami lets their guard (no pun intended) down and the Mav's storm back to tie this one up....The South Beach Trio were having their way with the Texas Twelve with a 15 point lead and 7 minutes to go....After a celebratory timeout, Miami shots began to clang off the rim, Dallas stepped up their defense and Dirk Nowitzki put his team on his shoulders....Nowitzki did it all (with some help from Jason Terry)....Jumpers, layups and 3 pointers....Chris Bosh didn't stand a chance.... http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/video/nba/2011/06/03/0041000402_dirk_9pts.SportsIllustrated/index.html ....But make no mistake....Miami gave this one up....I don't expect it to happen again.
A quiet night on the baseball front....Mets come back to beat the upstart Pirates....New York's signing of Pedro Martinez and Jason Bay should be used as teaching lessons for upcoming General Managers on what NOT to do....Yankees and Red Sox have settled into their customary positions (1+2) in the AL East....Twins need a big dose of Joe Mauer 'cause they are having an awful season....Nice to see the resurgence of Pittsburgh and Kansas City....Both could use pitching but they have some nice young ballplayers....Keep an eye out.
Female boxer Christy Martin makes a comeback this weekend six months after being stabbed, shot and left for dead by her husband last November....At one time Martin (49-5-3, 31 knockouts) was the best female fighter in the world....Martin, 42, was on the cover of Sports Illustrated in '96 and made $500,000 for her fight with Muhammad Ali's daughter, Laila....She fights against Dakota Stone this Saturday at Staples Center in Los Angeles....You go, girl.
"Boxing is the only sport you can get your brain shook, your money took and your name in the undertaker book." - Smokin' Joe Frazier.............talk to ya
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Is That Your Dick, Mr. Weiner?........Vol. 11 (June 2, 2011)
Good Morning....
I must start off with a few comments regarding the distraction going on in Washington D. C.....A twitter photo was sent to a young woman in Seattle showing a man from the waist down with bulging underwear from the account of Congressman Anthony Weiner (D)-NY....Mr. Weiner claims someone "hacked" or "pranked" his account....He has taken a page out of the politician playbook and "deny, deny, deny"....He gave out several interviews to say he wasn't the one to send the picture but only proceeded to put his foot in his mouth....Why doesn't he listen to his counsel that he has "the right to remain silent"?....Why woody?....Too funny....His colleagues nicknamed him "Brett".
Jim Tressel resigns as Ohio State football coach....What took him so long?
South Carolina's Steve Spurrier wants to pay players a $300 stipend per game out of his own pocket and six other SEC coaches sign his letter....Say what?
We all know that college atheletes have been receiving payments under the table for ever....Can't blame them....NCAA rules and regulations are a joke....College basketball players have to go to school for one year....Crazy....College football and basketball are just Triple A professional leagues for the NFL and NBA....Let the studs go straight from High School to the Pros....Greed has run rampant.
Vancouver scores with 18 seconds left to edge the Bruins 1-0 in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals....Ryan Kesler's hustle play to keep the puck in the Boston zone ends with Raffi Torres sliding the puck past Tim Thomas.....A chippy game with both teams trying to set a physical tone....Timmy Thomas stood on his head again with more than a few outstanding saves....Alexander Burrows pulls a "Tyson" and bites Patrice Bergeron's finger during a scrum....What's up with that?....Good game.
Word has it that Roger Goodell met secretly with several influential NFL owners....What could they have been discussing?....Maybe they read my piece yesterday....Time to get back to the table and hammer out an agreement before training camps are scheduled to open....Will Rex Ryan go on vacation?....Please....With his guarantee of a Super Bowl victory, a starring role on "Hard Knocks" and his book tour we have been over saturated with the blustery one....And how about Drew Bledsoe being the 18th person voted into the Patriots Hall of Fame....Drew was one of the classiest ballplayers to put on a Boston uniform....Started his career under the demanding Bill Parcells, led the team to a Super Bowl and took on the infamous Boston media straight up....He took out a full page in the Boston newspapers to thank the fans and his team when he left unlike "misremembered" Clemens who trampled all over the paying customers as he hauled his fat ass out of town....Bledsoe has a successful Wine business as he raises his family in Montana....He is scheduled to be inducted into The Hall at Patriot Place in September.
Ubaldo Jimenez flashes his 2010 brillance with a 4-hit shutout of the Dodgers....Colorado needs that big arm....Jay Bruce goes yard again....Great stories, Jay Bruce and Curtis Granderson....Just when you think the Red Sox have become that juggernaut that we thought in spring training along comes the Chicago White Sox to sweep them at home and push their tailspin to four games.
******The Packers Fan******
There was a Packers fan with a lousy seat at Lambeau. Looking down he noticed an unoccupied seat at the 50 yard line. When he sat down he asked the man next to him if the seat was empty. "This was my wife's seat. She passed away. She was a big Packer fan" the man responded. The first man offered "I'm so sorry to hear of your loss. May I ask why you didn't give the ticket to a relative or a friend?"
The man replied, "They're all at the funeral.".........talk to ya
I must start off with a few comments regarding the distraction going on in Washington D. C.....A twitter photo was sent to a young woman in Seattle showing a man from the waist down with bulging underwear from the account of Congressman Anthony Weiner (D)-NY....Mr. Weiner claims someone "hacked" or "pranked" his account....He has taken a page out of the politician playbook and "deny, deny, deny"....He gave out several interviews to say he wasn't the one to send the picture but only proceeded to put his foot in his mouth....Why doesn't he listen to his counsel that he has "the right to remain silent"?....Why woody?....Too funny....His colleagues nicknamed him "Brett".
Jim Tressel resigns as Ohio State football coach....What took him so long?
South Carolina's Steve Spurrier wants to pay players a $300 stipend per game out of his own pocket and six other SEC coaches sign his letter....Say what?
We all know that college atheletes have been receiving payments under the table for ever....Can't blame them....NCAA rules and regulations are a joke....College basketball players have to go to school for one year....Crazy....College football and basketball are just Triple A professional leagues for the NFL and NBA....Let the studs go straight from High School to the Pros....Greed has run rampant.
Vancouver scores with 18 seconds left to edge the Bruins 1-0 in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals....Ryan Kesler's hustle play to keep the puck in the Boston zone ends with Raffi Torres sliding the puck past Tim Thomas.....A chippy game with both teams trying to set a physical tone....Timmy Thomas stood on his head again with more than a few outstanding saves....Alexander Burrows pulls a "Tyson" and bites Patrice Bergeron's finger during a scrum....What's up with that?....Good game.
Word has it that Roger Goodell met secretly with several influential NFL owners....What could they have been discussing?....Maybe they read my piece yesterday....Time to get back to the table and hammer out an agreement before training camps are scheduled to open....Will Rex Ryan go on vacation?....Please....With his guarantee of a Super Bowl victory, a starring role on "Hard Knocks" and his book tour we have been over saturated with the blustery one....And how about Drew Bledsoe being the 18th person voted into the Patriots Hall of Fame....Drew was one of the classiest ballplayers to put on a Boston uniform....Started his career under the demanding Bill Parcells, led the team to a Super Bowl and took on the infamous Boston media straight up....He took out a full page in the Boston newspapers to thank the fans and his team when he left unlike "misremembered" Clemens who trampled all over the paying customers as he hauled his fat ass out of town....Bledsoe has a successful Wine business as he raises his family in Montana....He is scheduled to be inducted into The Hall at Patriot Place in September.
Ubaldo Jimenez flashes his 2010 brillance with a 4-hit shutout of the Dodgers....Colorado needs that big arm....Jay Bruce goes yard again....Great stories, Jay Bruce and Curtis Granderson....Just when you think the Red Sox have become that juggernaut that we thought in spring training along comes the Chicago White Sox to sweep them at home and push their tailspin to four games.
******The Packers Fan******
There was a Packers fan with a lousy seat at Lambeau. Looking down he noticed an unoccupied seat at the 50 yard line. When he sat down he asked the man next to him if the seat was empty. "This was my wife's seat. She passed away. She was a big Packer fan" the man responded. The first man offered "I'm so sorry to hear of your loss. May I ask why you didn't give the ticket to a relative or a friend?"
The man replied, "They're all at the funeral.".........talk to ya
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
NFL Headed For Some Hard Knocks......Vol. 10 (June 1, 2011)
Good Morning....
With the NBA and NHL Finals plus MLB distracting football fans, the NFL lockout has been put on the back burner....But it's there....This ugly fight between millionaires and billionaires....Arguments will be made before the court this Friday and then we sit back and wait for a decision on whether the lockout continues....Great strategy, let the lawyers circle and the judges decide....If this fiasco continues and affects the opening of training camps both sides will begin to feel negative feedback from the paying public....It looks like HBO's "Hard Knocks" will be a casualty this year....Always entertaining to watch, Rex Ryan took it to new heights last year with his colorful commentary and personality....I was hoping to watch Carolina and the Cam Newton experiment....This business of cutting employees pay by NFL teams stinks!....No team has lost any money yet and ticket sales are ahead of 2010 yet teams are slashing assistant coaches and front office employee's salaries or forcing them on unpaid vacations....Just awful....Chris Collinsworth doesn't think this thing gets settled until November....That might be too late....Drew Brees figures the seeds were planted back in 2008 after union boss Gene Upshaw passed away....Upshaw was tough to deal with across the table and some owners feel this is the time to drive a hard bargain....I don't know the answer but DON'T MESS WITH FANTASY FOOTBALL!
In an uneventful Game 1 of the NBA Finals, Miami brings a workingman approach and behind the solid efforts of James, Wade and Bosh defeat Dallas....The Mav's seem Nowitzki one dimensional like....And when King James is throwing line drives in from behind the 3pt. circle, nobody is beating them....Good to see that Kevin McHale is taking the Houston Rockets head coaching job....The NBA has their own labor disaster on the horizon but who cares?....Has there ever been anyone more overpaid and overprivileged than a NBA player?
Stanley Cup Finals begin tonight in Vancouver between the Canucks and Bruins....It promises to be a tight and exciting series....Could come down to the Vancouver power play vs. the acrobatics of Boston goalie Tim Thomas....Another key will be the B's defense pairing of Zdeno Chara and Dennis Seidenberg vs. the outstanding Sedin twins, Daniel and Henrik....Ryan Kesler is the Canucks wild card while it remains to be seen if Boston coach Claude Julien takes the reigns off talented rookie Tyler Seguin to help Boston's power play....Keep an eye on Patrice Bergeron....And somebody tell those moronic Green Men to stay away, far away, from the B's bench....Especially if Mike Milbury is between the benches doing analysis for NBC....We don't want any shoe incidents....Despite the gnawing inside that Julien will mess this up I'll go on record with the Bruins in 7.
It's June 1st and you can look for MLB teams to bring some top prospects up from the minor leagues....For money reasons teams don't bring up prospects until June because they gain another year in the negotiation process....This year teams jumped the gun with prospects such as Eric Hosmer, Michael Pineda and Zach Britton starting early....But Fantasy owners should keep their eyes on these talented players who could have an impact going forward....3B Brett Lawrie (Blue Jays), 1B Anthony Rizzo (Padres), 2B Dustin Ackley (Mariners), C Jesus Montero (Yankees), OF Domonic Brown (Phillies) and OF Desmond Jennings (Rays)....Fantasy stat line of the night, Carlos Marmol RP (Cubs), 1/3 inn, 5 hits, 6 earned runs, 1 walk, 0 strikeouts and a loss....Minus 16 points in my league....Ouch!
Jack Nicklaus counsels Tiger Woods to get healthy before he plays more golf....Yea, because if he contends in the US Open the knee, leg, ankle, whatever is fine....If he plays poorly, then something will be wrong physically....Tiger....He is the world's most ultimate prima donna.
For Ray....
"Don't play too much golf. Two rounds a day are plenty." - Harry Vardon.
....talk to ya.....
With the NBA and NHL Finals plus MLB distracting football fans, the NFL lockout has been put on the back burner....But it's there....This ugly fight between millionaires and billionaires....Arguments will be made before the court this Friday and then we sit back and wait for a decision on whether the lockout continues....Great strategy, let the lawyers circle and the judges decide....If this fiasco continues and affects the opening of training camps both sides will begin to feel negative feedback from the paying public....It looks like HBO's "Hard Knocks" will be a casualty this year....Always entertaining to watch, Rex Ryan took it to new heights last year with his colorful commentary and personality....I was hoping to watch Carolina and the Cam Newton experiment....This business of cutting employees pay by NFL teams stinks!....No team has lost any money yet and ticket sales are ahead of 2010 yet teams are slashing assistant coaches and front office employee's salaries or forcing them on unpaid vacations....Just awful....Chris Collinsworth doesn't think this thing gets settled until November....That might be too late....Drew Brees figures the seeds were planted back in 2008 after union boss Gene Upshaw passed away....Upshaw was tough to deal with across the table and some owners feel this is the time to drive a hard bargain....I don't know the answer but DON'T MESS WITH FANTASY FOOTBALL!
In an uneventful Game 1 of the NBA Finals, Miami brings a workingman approach and behind the solid efforts of James, Wade and Bosh defeat Dallas....The Mav's seem Nowitzki one dimensional like....And when King James is throwing line drives in from behind the 3pt. circle, nobody is beating them....Good to see that Kevin McHale is taking the Houston Rockets head coaching job....The NBA has their own labor disaster on the horizon but who cares?....Has there ever been anyone more overpaid and overprivileged than a NBA player?
Stanley Cup Finals begin tonight in Vancouver between the Canucks and Bruins....It promises to be a tight and exciting series....Could come down to the Vancouver power play vs. the acrobatics of Boston goalie Tim Thomas....Another key will be the B's defense pairing of Zdeno Chara and Dennis Seidenberg vs. the outstanding Sedin twins, Daniel and Henrik....Ryan Kesler is the Canucks wild card while it remains to be seen if Boston coach Claude Julien takes the reigns off talented rookie Tyler Seguin to help Boston's power play....Keep an eye on Patrice Bergeron....And somebody tell those moronic Green Men to stay away, far away, from the B's bench....Especially if Mike Milbury is between the benches doing analysis for NBC....We don't want any shoe incidents....Despite the gnawing inside that Julien will mess this up I'll go on record with the Bruins in 7.
It's June 1st and you can look for MLB teams to bring some top prospects up from the minor leagues....For money reasons teams don't bring up prospects until June because they gain another year in the negotiation process....This year teams jumped the gun with prospects such as Eric Hosmer, Michael Pineda and Zach Britton starting early....But Fantasy owners should keep their eyes on these talented players who could have an impact going forward....3B Brett Lawrie (Blue Jays), 1B Anthony Rizzo (Padres), 2B Dustin Ackley (Mariners), C Jesus Montero (Yankees), OF Domonic Brown (Phillies) and OF Desmond Jennings (Rays)....Fantasy stat line of the night, Carlos Marmol RP (Cubs), 1/3 inn, 5 hits, 6 earned runs, 1 walk, 0 strikeouts and a loss....Minus 16 points in my league....Ouch!
Jack Nicklaus counsels Tiger Woods to get healthy before he plays more golf....Yea, because if he contends in the US Open the knee, leg, ankle, whatever is fine....If he plays poorly, then something will be wrong physically....Tiger....He is the world's most ultimate prima donna.
For Ray....
"Don't play too much golf. Two rounds a day are plenty." - Harry Vardon.
....talk to ya.....
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