Hello… you play to TIE the game. Ok so they did not beat England, but as a USA fan, you should be happy walking away from the game with at least one point. England deserved to win outplaying the Americans especially in the second half. The game was a tale of two goal keepers. One was remarkable, making his World Cup debut {and just happens to be from the same great state as Tony Soprano and Bruce Springsteen} the other was as dreadful as watching Celebrity Rehab. Tim Howard led the Red White and Blue with 6 crucial saves while playing with injured ribs. The Brits Robert Green on the other hand as I am sure you have seen, will most likely receive a lifetime V.I.P. pass into the Sports Center Not Top Ten. The goal he allowed to Clint Dempsey was pathetic. England is a world class team yet there goalie proved otherwise. Better to be lucky than good sure explains the USA game against England.
Slovenia and Algeria are the next two opponents on tap for USA with both being winnable games. No disrespect to either club, but results of a tie or loss would be considered a vast disappointment. Look for the 20 year old striker Jozy Altidore to get his name in the scoring column with Landon Donovan continuing to impress providing speed out of the midfield. There is no reason why the USA should not be able to get out of their group. After that, it is anybody’s guess as to how far they will go, but I am expecting a trip to the quarterfinals. The one thing that remains a question mark for this team though is their defense. A positive you can take out of their last game is that after giving up a quick goal, the U.S. was able to shutout 3rd ranked England for the remaining 85 minutes of action. If the Americans are to advance in the World Cup, it will be on the shoulders or rather ribs of Tim Howard who without a doubt is one of the best goalies in the world.
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
LBJ to NYK
Everyone has their own spin on the Lebron James saga. Rumors have surfaced such as John Calipari or Phil Jackson leaving their respective organizations to coach the King. Other stories consist of Lebron following his friend Jay-Z to play in New Jersey or the web which has a ridiculous soap opera of Lebron’s current teammate Delonte West apparently sleeping with his mother. {Google this if you don’t believe me} His zip code will remain unknown for at least another month, but the answer to the million or rather billion dollar question should be New York. Of course I am biased here and do not dispute this for one minute, HAVING SAID THAT it makes the most sense from all perspectives to live in the city that never sleeps.
Besides winning titles like he ultimately will accomplish, he also wants to become the global icon and richest athlete in the world. New York is the destination where that becomes a reality. Lebron would surpass Tiger Woods as the most famous active sports star thanks to Tiger’s Hugh Hefner like impersonation. Living in the city is an attractive proposition and too tempting for him to pass up. Now I know your saying he already is a worldwide star and does not need New York, but putting on a nightly show at the Garden is different than anything he has ever done. The entire city would shine with Lebron being at the center of the spotlight. New York not only provides celebrities at courtside but arguably the most passionate basketball fans. New York was 5th in total attendance last year after another horrible season. Imagine if they were actually winning?
In addition to being the biggest act in town, he also wants to win multiple championships and New York can surprisingly now provide that thanks to their league leading cap space. Other teams have superstars to pair along with Lebron, but their remains serious questions regarding these potential suitors. Let us take in-depth look into some of these scenarios:
The Chicago Bulls
They are becoming the emerging favorite in this sweepstakes, but I am not sold. Chicago has Derrick Rose but can two players who demand the ball in their hands constantly be effective alongside each other? They also have Joakim Noah a nice young player, but last time I checked isn’t he a clone of Anderson Varejao. {Strong defender, yet terrible when it comes to having offensive skills or decent looking hair} It is difficult to imagine a team with its starting lineup of Lebron James, Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah, Luol Deng, and Taj Gibson being that much better than the current Cavaliers roster. This does not sound like a team of legit title contenders considering they will not have additional cap space to sign another significant player.
Also there is another major reason Chicago is not the answer and it is because of a guy named Michael Jordan. If you think the New York Media is bad which it is, Chicago and the national coverage would be even worse. Even if it is not fair, James will directly be compared to Jordan for the rest of his career. No matter what he achieves with the Bulls, anything less than 6 titles will be considered a failure. Winning two rings for example in any other market is a success except in the Windy City. Playing in Jordan’s shadow is not the ideal circumstance for a free agent of James’ caliber.
The New Jersey Nets
Since they lost the draft lottery and the rights to John Wall, this seems to be less realistic. Remember they had a grand total of just 12 wins this season and were the worst team in the league. To make the argument that by going to the Nets he will become a champion seems about as ridiculous as Lindsay Lohan cleaning up her act. They have young talent, a rich Russian owner, and cap space which are all appealing characteristics; however they are still missing the skill and glamour to be competitive instantly. Playing in Newark for two or three years before moving to Brooklyn and never even being the most famous team in your own state seems quite undesirable as well.
The Miami Heat
They could make a serious run at James pairing him with another star in Wade. A move to Miami offers great weather, a chance to win, and the possibility of bringing the Hall-of-Fame coach Pat Riley out of retirement. The question then becomes is James that unselfish? Meaning would Lebron accept the role of co-star. He would still be an all-star but never a legit MVP candidate. Since James would be joining Wade’s team after all, he would never be considered the most valuable player on his own Heat squad let alone in the entire league.
This is the ultimate battle over alter egos. While they genuinely like each other, it is hard to imagine Lebron being able to accept that Miami would never solely be his team. If he truly wants to win putting aside everything else, South Beach might be the answer. Although, a stay in Florida also means making less money than his team mate Dwayne Wade. While on the surface this could work, I do not see the premier free agent of the NBA taking less money than he is worth. He surrounds himself with a team of smart business men and they will convince him he should at least be the highest paid player on his respective team. Rightfully so, Lebron will feel he deserves to be treated like royalty since after all he is a king.
The Cleveland Cavaliers
Lebron’s heart is probably telling him to remain in his home state; on the other hand his brain should be screaming to get out. He must be tired of having a team with the best regular season record only to get knocked out early in the post-season. It is not like the Cavs are improving anytime soon. They have no real cap space to make significant improvements and are only getting older. Shaq is no longer the dominant force he once was. Antawn Jamison, Moe Williams, and the Big Z are all nice complimentary pieces, but not overwhelming reasons to convince a superstar of James stature to stay. Other than JJ Hickson, there are no young exciting players on the Cavs roster. They are a solid team and will remain that way for an extended period of time, but they have not proven to be champions. Any team Lebron plays for will be an instant playoff contender, which is what Cleveland has now become. I understand he wants to be loyal to his fan base, but at some point he has to look at his legacy and realize there are better options to win now.
So that brings me back to the Knicks, the only team that can provide the combination of everything valuable to him which includes winning, the glamour of being a superstar in a super market, and developing talent. It may be ironic, but out of all the teams previously mentioned only the Knicks provide stability in their head coach. Mike D’antoni was his assistant coach during the Olympics who he enjoyed playing for. Lebron’s criticism towards former Cavaliers Coach Mike Brown was that their offense was not creative enough during the playoffs, something D’antoni could never be accused of. The other teams James is linked with all have coaching vacancies or question marks about their current coach. {If it meant getting Lebron or keeping Dwayne happy, the Heat would dump their current coach by the wayside} Some suggest this is tempting for James to have to ability to pick his new coach, but I look at this as a weakness of the other franchises. It is important to have an established coach and philosophy that a team has on a nightly basis with Lebron already being on record for admiring Coach D’antoni’s style of play.
Besides the coach, the players surrounding James are obviously important in his decision. Since he is after all the marquee player, other free agents will be attracted to him and not the other way around. If Lebron signs with the Knicks, don’t you think Chris Bosh, Joe Johnson, Amare Stoudemire, or another free agent will want to join him in New York? The Knicks compared to the rest of the league are the only team that can afford to sign not one but two max free agents this summer. The Knicks are hoping to follow the similar blueprint laid out by the Boston Celtics; bring together a group of stars that have never won a title and collectively achieve greatness.
Role players such as the sharp shooting Danilo Gallinari and the slashing forward Wilson Chandler would be great complimentary players to play off of James. While not as popular as other teams’ stars, they are better fits to play alongside him. What also is not being talked about is that Eddy Curry will come off the Knicks payroll the following year. This means the Knicks would be allowed to spend an extra 10 million on free agents in the 2011-2012 season. So, if they do struggle, they would have the necessary cap room to once again improve their roster and sign a free agent to be like Carmelo Anthony or Tony Parker.
At the end of the day, arguably the best basketball player in the world deserves nothing less than the best stage to perform on and supporting cast. As Lebron’s buddy Jay-Z put it, New York is the, “concrete jungle where dreams are made of. There’s nothing you can’t do, now you’re in New York.”
Besides winning titles like he ultimately will accomplish, he also wants to become the global icon and richest athlete in the world. New York is the destination where that becomes a reality. Lebron would surpass Tiger Woods as the most famous active sports star thanks to Tiger’s Hugh Hefner like impersonation. Living in the city is an attractive proposition and too tempting for him to pass up. Now I know your saying he already is a worldwide star and does not need New York, but putting on a nightly show at the Garden is different than anything he has ever done. The entire city would shine with Lebron being at the center of the spotlight. New York not only provides celebrities at courtside but arguably the most passionate basketball fans. New York was 5th in total attendance last year after another horrible season. Imagine if they were actually winning?
In addition to being the biggest act in town, he also wants to win multiple championships and New York can surprisingly now provide that thanks to their league leading cap space. Other teams have superstars to pair along with Lebron, but their remains serious questions regarding these potential suitors. Let us take in-depth look into some of these scenarios:
The Chicago Bulls
They are becoming the emerging favorite in this sweepstakes, but I am not sold. Chicago has Derrick Rose but can two players who demand the ball in their hands constantly be effective alongside each other? They also have Joakim Noah a nice young player, but last time I checked isn’t he a clone of Anderson Varejao. {Strong defender, yet terrible when it comes to having offensive skills or decent looking hair} It is difficult to imagine a team with its starting lineup of Lebron James, Derrick Rose, Joakim Noah, Luol Deng, and Taj Gibson being that much better than the current Cavaliers roster. This does not sound like a team of legit title contenders considering they will not have additional cap space to sign another significant player.
Also there is another major reason Chicago is not the answer and it is because of a guy named Michael Jordan. If you think the New York Media is bad which it is, Chicago and the national coverage would be even worse. Even if it is not fair, James will directly be compared to Jordan for the rest of his career. No matter what he achieves with the Bulls, anything less than 6 titles will be considered a failure. Winning two rings for example in any other market is a success except in the Windy City. Playing in Jordan’s shadow is not the ideal circumstance for a free agent of James’ caliber.
The New Jersey Nets
Since they lost the draft lottery and the rights to John Wall, this seems to be less realistic. Remember they had a grand total of just 12 wins this season and were the worst team in the league. To make the argument that by going to the Nets he will become a champion seems about as ridiculous as Lindsay Lohan cleaning up her act. They have young talent, a rich Russian owner, and cap space which are all appealing characteristics; however they are still missing the skill and glamour to be competitive instantly. Playing in Newark for two or three years before moving to Brooklyn and never even being the most famous team in your own state seems quite undesirable as well.
The Miami Heat
They could make a serious run at James pairing him with another star in Wade. A move to Miami offers great weather, a chance to win, and the possibility of bringing the Hall-of-Fame coach Pat Riley out of retirement. The question then becomes is James that unselfish? Meaning would Lebron accept the role of co-star. He would still be an all-star but never a legit MVP candidate. Since James would be joining Wade’s team after all, he would never be considered the most valuable player on his own Heat squad let alone in the entire league.
This is the ultimate battle over alter egos. While they genuinely like each other, it is hard to imagine Lebron being able to accept that Miami would never solely be his team. If he truly wants to win putting aside everything else, South Beach might be the answer. Although, a stay in Florida also means making less money than his team mate Dwayne Wade. While on the surface this could work, I do not see the premier free agent of the NBA taking less money than he is worth. He surrounds himself with a team of smart business men and they will convince him he should at least be the highest paid player on his respective team. Rightfully so, Lebron will feel he deserves to be treated like royalty since after all he is a king.
The Cleveland Cavaliers
Lebron’s heart is probably telling him to remain in his home state; on the other hand his brain should be screaming to get out. He must be tired of having a team with the best regular season record only to get knocked out early in the post-season. It is not like the Cavs are improving anytime soon. They have no real cap space to make significant improvements and are only getting older. Shaq is no longer the dominant force he once was. Antawn Jamison, Moe Williams, and the Big Z are all nice complimentary pieces, but not overwhelming reasons to convince a superstar of James stature to stay. Other than JJ Hickson, there are no young exciting players on the Cavs roster. They are a solid team and will remain that way for an extended period of time, but they have not proven to be champions. Any team Lebron plays for will be an instant playoff contender, which is what Cleveland has now become. I understand he wants to be loyal to his fan base, but at some point he has to look at his legacy and realize there are better options to win now.
So that brings me back to the Knicks, the only team that can provide the combination of everything valuable to him which includes winning, the glamour of being a superstar in a super market, and developing talent. It may be ironic, but out of all the teams previously mentioned only the Knicks provide stability in their head coach. Mike D’antoni was his assistant coach during the Olympics who he enjoyed playing for. Lebron’s criticism towards former Cavaliers Coach Mike Brown was that their offense was not creative enough during the playoffs, something D’antoni could never be accused of. The other teams James is linked with all have coaching vacancies or question marks about their current coach. {If it meant getting Lebron or keeping Dwayne happy, the Heat would dump their current coach by the wayside} Some suggest this is tempting for James to have to ability to pick his new coach, but I look at this as a weakness of the other franchises. It is important to have an established coach and philosophy that a team has on a nightly basis with Lebron already being on record for admiring Coach D’antoni’s style of play.
Besides the coach, the players surrounding James are obviously important in his decision. Since he is after all the marquee player, other free agents will be attracted to him and not the other way around. If Lebron signs with the Knicks, don’t you think Chris Bosh, Joe Johnson, Amare Stoudemire, or another free agent will want to join him in New York? The Knicks compared to the rest of the league are the only team that can afford to sign not one but two max free agents this summer. The Knicks are hoping to follow the similar blueprint laid out by the Boston Celtics; bring together a group of stars that have never won a title and collectively achieve greatness.
Role players such as the sharp shooting Danilo Gallinari and the slashing forward Wilson Chandler would be great complimentary players to play off of James. While not as popular as other teams’ stars, they are better fits to play alongside him. What also is not being talked about is that Eddy Curry will come off the Knicks payroll the following year. This means the Knicks would be allowed to spend an extra 10 million on free agents in the 2011-2012 season. So, if they do struggle, they would have the necessary cap room to once again improve their roster and sign a free agent to be like Carmelo Anthony or Tony Parker.
At the end of the day, arguably the best basketball player in the world deserves nothing less than the best stage to perform on and supporting cast. As Lebron’s buddy Jay-Z put it, New York is the, “concrete jungle where dreams are made of. There’s nothing you can’t do, now you’re in New York.”
Sunday, April 4, 2010
Baseball's Back
2010 is the start of a new decade, and possibly another dynasty. The Yankees are the champs, yet they were able to improve through their off-season acquisitions. Adding a centerfielder with Curtis Granderson’s caliber adds a new element to an already powerful team. He improves their offensive lineup, and their weakness {if they had} gets a boost with his defensive intangibles. They also brought back the former Yankee in Javier Vasquez for the fan favorite the “Melk Man.” Cabrera was a role player, now they have quality starting pitcher who was the ace of the Atlanta Braves. He gives the Yankees an amazing rotation that also includes C.C. Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, Andy Pettitte, and Phil Hughes. You have to think the Yanks cannot go another season with both Burnett and Pettitte avoiding the DL at some point in the season, which is why Vasquez’s role will become even more important. The Pinstripes did lose the MVP of the World Series in Hideki Matsui though they did sign veteran Nick Johnson who can fill in adequately at DH. Brett Gardner shows great speed on the bases and will split time with the veteran and underrated Randy Winn to replace Johnny Damon. This Yankee team seems to have no real holes and looks again like the cream of the crop.
If the Yankees remain the best team in baseball, then the Seattle Mariners remain the luckiest. They received the best pitcher in last season’s post season Cliff Lee, for prospects. Cliff Lee alongside Felix Hernandez is as good as a 1-2 punch there is. If Eric Bedard can remain healthy, {big if} then it is a great 1-2-3 tandem. They also brought in the versatile Chone Figgins who they literally stole from their rival Angels. He is an underappreciated player who at the top of the order can work nicely with Ichiro Suzuki. Defensively this team will be one of the best in the game. If this is not the season that the Halos lose the AL West Division then I do not know when it is. Losing Jon Lackey to the Red Sox and Vlad to the Texas Rangers takes away the heart and soul of this team, which is why I see Seattle winning the division.
The AL Central is a complete coin flip. Any team in any given year can win this division, with the most dramatic regular season finishes usually occurring. The Twins always seem to be the safest pick, except they lost their dominant closer Joe Nathan. Without him, I look for the White Sox to emerge from this competitive group. Maybe the least publicized move of the offseason was getting Jake Peavy. I know they technically got him in the middle of last year, but he was not healthy and now we truly get to see him at his best. Their pitching is good enough with a mixture of veterans like Mark Buehrle and young guns like Gavin Floyd and John Danks. Their hitting is fine as well, with bounce back years expected from both outfielders Carlos Quentin and Alex Rios. Juan Pierre is a nice addition who will play the role that Scott Podsednik used to have when they won a world series. They aren’t superior in any one category but are solid in all areas across the board to win the division.
The Wildcard spot belongs to The Redsox. They signed Jon Lackey who is a great pitcher especially in the post-season. He does particularly well against the hated Yankees. Their major question remains can they replace the HR and RBI productivity lost with Jason Bay gone? They added Adrian Beltre who defensively helps, but his best offensive years are in the past. They also inexplicitly brought in Mike Cameron to play centerfield, who is about as old as Betty White. Overall though their pitching rotation could be the best in the majors, and you know if they struggle early with the bat, a mid season trade is more than likely. {Early prediction; they trade for Adrian Gonzalez} Look for them to once again be in the post-season.
The other team that made it to the World Series may have made the most news this offseason by shipping away their best pitcher Cliff Lee for ace Roy Halladay. It is not an everyday occurrence to see two CY Young award winners being traded for one another. Prospects were dealt along the way and it is tough to guess if any of them will ever become stars, but Halladay will have more pressure than the average pitcher coming to an already proven winner in Philadelphia. {Remember this is the city that booed Santa Claus.} Halladay not only has to be dominant, but he has to be better than the guy whose numbers include a 4-0 record, 33 strikeouts, and 1.56 ERA in the post-season. If he is not better than Cliff Lee, it will be difficult to argue they made a great trade even though they are bringing back a stellar pitcher in return. If they were able to keep Cliff Lee along with Roy Halladay rather than immediately trading Lee for more prospects, then I would have said World Series Lock. Instead they went the safe route and did not want to jeopardize their future. While I understand why, is still tempting to imagine a pitching rotation of Lee, Halladay, Hamels, Happ and Blanton. Nevertheless, this is the easiest division to predict. The Phillies are still on top, with teams like the Mets and Braves chasing them during the course of the season.
The Cardinals also had a good offseason, nothing spectacular but that’s what they manage to do. They resigned arguably the best free agent in Matt Holiday who with Albert Pujols is as frightening for opponents to see as Keith Richards on a good day. Adding Brad Penny to the rotation is also a silent but effective move. While terrible with the Red Sox, he improved tremendously when he bounced back to the NL and finished last season on the Giants. Plus Pitching Coach Dave Duncan can get the most out of his veterans, so I look for him to have a nice season. Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright are two of the finest pitchers in the game. The Cardinals balance of great pitching and hitting should allow them to be considered the favorites to repeat as NL Central champs.
San Fran will be the NL West winners this year. While runs will come at a bare minimum, they now have more bats than last year to at least score some runs to support their amazing pitching staff. They brought in veterans like Aubrey Huff and Mark DeRosa who should help their new superstar Pablo Sandoval. Sandoval reminds us of a young Guerrero who has a legitimate chance at NL MVP or at the very least to be in the discussion. The real key to this team though is the starting rotation. Tim Lincecum is the reigning NL CY Young and should once again pitch well. Matt Cain is also in his prime and will be a nice source for strikeouts. This is a team on the rise, and can capture its first division title since the days of Barry Bonds.
I look for the Dodgers to capture the Wild Card slot in a real tight race. The Mets, Braves, Rockies, and Brewers will all be in the hunt, but at the end of the day look for Joe Torre’s team to rise above the rest. Their hitting is potent with rising talents like Matt Kemp, James Loney, and Andre Ethier. Don’t count out Manny either. Even though he may be off steroids or fertility drugs, he still is dangerous with the bat in his hands. Although, the best thing they have going is their bull pen. It is one of the strongest in baseball with Jonathan Broxton as the closer. This give them the edge to make it to the playoffs.
If the Yankees remain the best team in baseball, then the Seattle Mariners remain the luckiest. They received the best pitcher in last season’s post season Cliff Lee, for prospects. Cliff Lee alongside Felix Hernandez is as good as a 1-2 punch there is. If Eric Bedard can remain healthy, {big if} then it is a great 1-2-3 tandem. They also brought in the versatile Chone Figgins who they literally stole from their rival Angels. He is an underappreciated player who at the top of the order can work nicely with Ichiro Suzuki. Defensively this team will be one of the best in the game. If this is not the season that the Halos lose the AL West Division then I do not know when it is. Losing Jon Lackey to the Red Sox and Vlad to the Texas Rangers takes away the heart and soul of this team, which is why I see Seattle winning the division.
The AL Central is a complete coin flip. Any team in any given year can win this division, with the most dramatic regular season finishes usually occurring. The Twins always seem to be the safest pick, except they lost their dominant closer Joe Nathan. Without him, I look for the White Sox to emerge from this competitive group. Maybe the least publicized move of the offseason was getting Jake Peavy. I know they technically got him in the middle of last year, but he was not healthy and now we truly get to see him at his best. Their pitching is good enough with a mixture of veterans like Mark Buehrle and young guns like Gavin Floyd and John Danks. Their hitting is fine as well, with bounce back years expected from both outfielders Carlos Quentin and Alex Rios. Juan Pierre is a nice addition who will play the role that Scott Podsednik used to have when they won a world series. They aren’t superior in any one category but are solid in all areas across the board to win the division.
The Wildcard spot belongs to The Redsox. They signed Jon Lackey who is a great pitcher especially in the post-season. He does particularly well against the hated Yankees. Their major question remains can they replace the HR and RBI productivity lost with Jason Bay gone? They added Adrian Beltre who defensively helps, but his best offensive years are in the past. They also inexplicitly brought in Mike Cameron to play centerfield, who is about as old as Betty White. Overall though their pitching rotation could be the best in the majors, and you know if they struggle early with the bat, a mid season trade is more than likely. {Early prediction; they trade for Adrian Gonzalez} Look for them to once again be in the post-season.
The other team that made it to the World Series may have made the most news this offseason by shipping away their best pitcher Cliff Lee for ace Roy Halladay. It is not an everyday occurrence to see two CY Young award winners being traded for one another. Prospects were dealt along the way and it is tough to guess if any of them will ever become stars, but Halladay will have more pressure than the average pitcher coming to an already proven winner in Philadelphia. {Remember this is the city that booed Santa Claus.} Halladay not only has to be dominant, but he has to be better than the guy whose numbers include a 4-0 record, 33 strikeouts, and 1.56 ERA in the post-season. If he is not better than Cliff Lee, it will be difficult to argue they made a great trade even though they are bringing back a stellar pitcher in return. If they were able to keep Cliff Lee along with Roy Halladay rather than immediately trading Lee for more prospects, then I would have said World Series Lock. Instead they went the safe route and did not want to jeopardize their future. While I understand why, is still tempting to imagine a pitching rotation of Lee, Halladay, Hamels, Happ and Blanton. Nevertheless, this is the easiest division to predict. The Phillies are still on top, with teams like the Mets and Braves chasing them during the course of the season.
The Cardinals also had a good offseason, nothing spectacular but that’s what they manage to do. They resigned arguably the best free agent in Matt Holiday who with Albert Pujols is as frightening for opponents to see as Keith Richards on a good day. Adding Brad Penny to the rotation is also a silent but effective move. While terrible with the Red Sox, he improved tremendously when he bounced back to the NL and finished last season on the Giants. Plus Pitching Coach Dave Duncan can get the most out of his veterans, so I look for him to have a nice season. Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright are two of the finest pitchers in the game. The Cardinals balance of great pitching and hitting should allow them to be considered the favorites to repeat as NL Central champs.
San Fran will be the NL West winners this year. While runs will come at a bare minimum, they now have more bats than last year to at least score some runs to support their amazing pitching staff. They brought in veterans like Aubrey Huff and Mark DeRosa who should help their new superstar Pablo Sandoval. Sandoval reminds us of a young Guerrero who has a legitimate chance at NL MVP or at the very least to be in the discussion. The real key to this team though is the starting rotation. Tim Lincecum is the reigning NL CY Young and should once again pitch well. Matt Cain is also in his prime and will be a nice source for strikeouts. This is a team on the rise, and can capture its first division title since the days of Barry Bonds.
I look for the Dodgers to capture the Wild Card slot in a real tight race. The Mets, Braves, Rockies, and Brewers will all be in the hunt, but at the end of the day look for Joe Torre’s team to rise above the rest. Their hitting is potent with rising talents like Matt Kemp, James Loney, and Andre Ethier. Don’t count out Manny either. Even though he may be off steroids or fertility drugs, he still is dangerous with the bat in his hands. Although, the best thing they have going is their bull pen. It is one of the strongest in baseball with Jonathan Broxton as the closer. This give them the edge to make it to the playoffs.
Sunday, February 21, 2010
ESPN Entertainment Sports Programming Nonsense
I think it is a fair assumption to make that pretty much every guy has watched Sports Center at some point in their life and most watch it on a regular basis. Whether it is the first channel you turn to when waking up, the channel you put on out of pure boredom, or the last channel you watch before going to bed, everyone knows the sound of da da da da da da. So what I am about to write may seem like blasphemy, criticizing the very channel that gets us by throughout the week, but I believe it is well deserved. This latest coverage of Tiger Woods is what put me over the edge. His 13 minute press conference on Friday did not deserve the amount of attention it received. ESPN discussed way too many specifics of his speech that were simply not important. Sports fans had to deal with many of these pointless topics such as why Tiger Woods did not take questions, the amount of people in the actual room, why his wife was not there, and the camera angle in which he was speaking at. The only question people should care about is when he will be back on the golf course. {and this was not even answered} His news footage was running for close to 24 hours on the network and the bottom line of ESPN had its own segment devoted to Tiger Woods. It got to the point where you literally had to change the channel.
I am not arguing that Tiger Woods did not deserve coverage because he clearly is the world’s greatest athlete, but there are other stories worth paying attention to that were overshadowed by Tiger’s Press Conference. USA Olympians winning gold such as Apolo Ohno, Lindsey Vonn, and Shaun White, the start of Spring Training for baseball clubs, NBA trades made at the deadline, and bubble teams trying to make the March Madness Tournament.
Now ESPN has done this before, over killing stories similar to the radio over playing Lady Gaga songs. Do any of these annoying topics ring a bell; Brett Favre, baseball players admitting to Steroids, the summer Free Agent Class of 2010, and Danica Patrick? The average fan cares about the news of many of these topics, but not to the point that ESPN commits to these stories. Sure they want to know where Brett Favre will be next year or if Lebron James is leaving Cleveland, but speculative stories with little reporting does nobody any good. To guess where one will play next season months before the start of their respective seasons or to overanalyze the responses’ after Mark McGwire and A-Rod gave interviews seems tiresome for fans.
I still love ESPN and always will. Sports Center has made the slightest changes which try to keep the show as fresh as possible such as switching to new anchors at noon, and moving to Los Angles. We as fans still watch and do not really care about their gimmicks, but as an audience all we are asking for is more highlights and less gossip. The Entertainment Sports Programming Network {ESPN} spends way too much time looking at the “E”ntertainment when they should do a better job at focusing on the “S”ports, since after all their target audience last time I checked are sports fans.
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