This posting a little late, I know. But give me a break. I just now got home since I was stuck in Dodger Stadium parking lot since Tuesday night. Man, $15 to park. That hurts. For $15 I was expecting my car to be washed and waxed when I got out. Instead I had the luxury of spending 45 minutes inching out of Dodger Stadium at a snail’s pace, or as some would say, a Molina’s pace.
This was a great game to go to. The excitement over the possibility of bonds tying or breaking the homerun record created a playoff-like atmosphere. I admit it. I brought my glove. I’d never done that before. Not even as a kid. Can you blame me? I was in the 8th row in the right field pavilion. My chances were as good as anyone’s right? Besides, that’s an opportunity of a lifetime. I didn’t want to be the guy that everyone saw in video replays for the next however many years having the ball hit me in the hand and bounce to someone else. I guess it didn’t really matter in the end anyway. No HR for bonds. No HR for anyone. In fact, no offense from the Dodgers to speak of whatsoever. They don’t want it. They’re not hungry. There’s nothing ‘magical’ about this team right now. The most positive thing about this season so far is that no other team in the National League is running away from the rest of the league. I suppose that if their pitching gets healthy and if they make the playoffs and if they get hot at the right time, the Dodgers could go a few rounds deep this year. Maybe even get a championship. Who knows? I’m just not feeling it from this team right now.
So, I sat in the gluttonous all-you-can-eat section of Dodger Stadium. I went into this game thinking there was no way I’d ever get my money’s worth. Boy was I wrong. Even if this wasn’t a game with the opportunity to see history, the price tag of $30 was well worth it. Here’s why. The seat alone is what, $6? That leaves $24 worth of food value that you have to consume just to “break even”. While a lot of people I know would have no problem reaching that figure, I simply can’t. Rather, I won’t. Instead, I had a hotdog, nachos, a bag of peanuts and a bottle of water. That’s about 15 bucks worth. But here’s where I made up the difference; NO LINES. Oh sure, there’s a bit of a crowd milling around the concession stands where they distribute the food, but the wait might take all of 20 seconds to get what you want. They have it all there. Prepared. Waiting to be thrown at you the second you ask for it. You can leave your seat, get what you want, and be back in plenty of time to see Juan Pierre ground out to lead off the next inning. I would pay $20 easy just to be able to skip the line experience at Dodger Stadium. Hell, I’d probably pay $30 for it. So you see? The $30 ticket bought me a seat, plenty of food, and the opportunity to see the entire game without missing a single pitch. Beautiful. I’ll definitely do it again. I just hope the next time, the Dodgers show up.
Thursday, August 2, 2007
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Dodgers - Braves 5th, July 2007
Ok, so I am a bit late with my blog, so what! What are you gonna do about it? Pitch to Chipper Jones or something??
Sometimes when I see Chipper Jones play I harken back to the days of Dale Murphy and the monster games he used to have against the Dodgers back in the day. It makes me want to do what I wanted to do back than, sneak up behind the guy in the parking lot and give him the old Tomohawk chop right in the back of his head!
Seriously though, this guy seems to just kill the Dodgers for whatever reason and it drives me nuts. Hitting two bombs from each side of the plate? What the hell is that? And to top it off we have to hear and see with the close up camera zoom angle, Vin tell us about how he uses two different colored bats, one for each side of the plate. Jones is one of the game's premier switch-hitters, and decided on this night that he would break old Dale's record becasue he was playing against the Dodggers. The Horror, the sheer horror. Hank Aaron breaks the Babe's record against the Dodgers and now Chipper Jones breaks Dale Murphy's record against the Dodgers. Once again, the horror, the sheer horror.
"When you think about people that are identified with the Atlanta Braves, you think of Hank Aaron and you think of Murph," Jones said. "Just to be in the same breath with those guys -- Hank, Murph, Eddie Mathews, it's a tremendous honor. I've been very blessed."
Screw you Chipper!! Next time you play the Dodgers Gagne is gonna put one right behind you're ear pal! Err, wait, I forgot Neddy let Gagne go, so it will have to be Broxton or Saito, or Stults, or Chi-Hsu Tsao or...ahh crap forget it!!
Injuries are starting to mount up on the starting rotation and the bull-pen, and having to rely on these kids that are called from Triple AAA LAs Vegas is like putting a grip down on black at the roulette wheel - stupid..
Penny had a rare bad outing and you could say it had to do with a blister on his hand, but that would be making excuses and guys from Broken Arrow, Oklahoma don't make excuses, they just git er' done!!
I am worried though about Penny, can he keep up the pace through the second half? We shall see, we shall see..
There were a few other things that were strange about this game, like the smoke that filled the stadium and field on or around the 3rd inning or so.. Vin said it was due to a local fire, but I grew up in H-Town in the 80's and know better, it was Cheech and Chong bobble head night at the Ravine and the faithfull were out in droves...
Doc
Sometimes when I see Chipper Jones play I harken back to the days of Dale Murphy and the monster games he used to have against the Dodgers back in the day. It makes me want to do what I wanted to do back than, sneak up behind the guy in the parking lot and give him the old Tomohawk chop right in the back of his head!
Seriously though, this guy seems to just kill the Dodgers for whatever reason and it drives me nuts. Hitting two bombs from each side of the plate? What the hell is that? And to top it off we have to hear and see with the close up camera zoom angle, Vin tell us about how he uses two different colored bats, one for each side of the plate. Jones is one of the game's premier switch-hitters, and decided on this night that he would break old Dale's record becasue he was playing against the Dodggers. The Horror, the sheer horror. Hank Aaron breaks the Babe's record against the Dodgers and now Chipper Jones breaks Dale Murphy's record against the Dodgers. Once again, the horror, the sheer horror.
"When you think about people that are identified with the Atlanta Braves, you think of Hank Aaron and you think of Murph," Jones said. "Just to be in the same breath with those guys -- Hank, Murph, Eddie Mathews, it's a tremendous honor. I've been very blessed."
Screw you Chipper!! Next time you play the Dodgers Gagne is gonna put one right behind you're ear pal! Err, wait, I forgot Neddy let Gagne go, so it will have to be Broxton or Saito, or Stults, or Chi-Hsu Tsao or...ahh crap forget it!!
Injuries are starting to mount up on the starting rotation and the bull-pen, and having to rely on these kids that are called from Triple AAA LAs Vegas is like putting a grip down on black at the roulette wheel - stupid..
Penny had a rare bad outing and you could say it had to do with a blister on his hand, but that would be making excuses and guys from Broken Arrow, Oklahoma don't make excuses, they just git er' done!!
I am worried though about Penny, can he keep up the pace through the second half? We shall see, we shall see..
There were a few other things that were strange about this game, like the smoke that filled the stadium and field on or around the 3rd inning or so.. Vin said it was due to a local fire, but I grew up in H-Town in the 80's and know better, it was Cheech and Chong bobble head night at the Ravine and the faithfull were out in droves...
Doc
Friday, July 6, 2007
July 5, 2007 - Dodgers v. Braves
What a long game that was! Let’s take a closer look at some of the events that shaped this incredibly long game, inning by inning, shall we?
1st inning - With 2 outs and a 2-1 count on the batter, Brad Penny mysteriously calls a time-out and receives a manicure on the mound. Seizing the opportunity, Nomar Garciaparra gets a Swedish massage. Not wanting to be outdone, Rafael Furcal gets a facial with a seaweed body wrap while James Loney and Russell Martin order mineral waters with lemon.
2nd – While describing the effects of a fire located somewhere outside the stadium, Vin Scully, Hall of Fame Broadcaster and an icon of the Dodgers franchise, utters the phrase “You can really smell it.” The comment makes the wife chuckle a bit.
3rd – The Dodgers make more bad throws than I care to count. The only thing missing from this inning was the circus music. In the bottom of the inning, as if his .200 batting average and one-handed showboat catches don’t already reflect his lackadaisical attitude, Andruw Jones completely misplays a ground ball in the outfield. Nice job Andy. He’ll probably only get $120 million over six years from the Yankees this off-season.
4th – This inning featured my favorite offensive play in baseball; the triple. The Dodgers celebrate Juan Pierre’s leadoff three-bagger by stranding him at third the entire inning.
5th – Bobby Cox makes his 1st appearance of the evening. Amazingly, he is not thrown out of the game. Somewhere back in Georgia his therapist breathes a heavy sigh, relieved at the incredible sign of ‘progress’ his patient just displayed.
6th – Larry Wayne Jones, Jr. (AKA Chipper) ties the Atlanta Braves record for career homeruns. Forget about that Aaron guy. We’re talking Atlanta here. Eric Karros holds the equivalent record for the Los Angeles Dodgers, while Duke Snider holds the all-time franchise record. Sort of makes you wonder who the respective HR record holders are for the Los Angeles Angels, California Angels, Anaheim Angels, and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, doesn’t it?
7th – Vin Scully points out something that has been dreadfully obvious for a couple of hours now – neither side has had a 1-2-3 inning.
8th – Chipper, or as I like to refer to him, L.W.J.J. strikes again, passing Dale Murphy on the Atlanta HR list. Murphy was the best offensive player in the league when I became a baseball fan back in the early 80s. He played for the Braves when Joe Torre was manager. You know, before Torre miraculously became a so-called ‘great’ manager. I guess a $200 million payroll can buy a manager’s over-rated reputation as well as an underachieving baseball team.
9th – In a rather cruel twist of irony, in a first for either team, the Dodgers go down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the 9th to end the game…..FINALLY!
As far as Dodger games go, this one really stunk. I believe Vin Scully said it best when he said, “You can really smell it.”
1st inning - With 2 outs and a 2-1 count on the batter, Brad Penny mysteriously calls a time-out and receives a manicure on the mound. Seizing the opportunity, Nomar Garciaparra gets a Swedish massage. Not wanting to be outdone, Rafael Furcal gets a facial with a seaweed body wrap while James Loney and Russell Martin order mineral waters with lemon.
2nd – While describing the effects of a fire located somewhere outside the stadium, Vin Scully, Hall of Fame Broadcaster and an icon of the Dodgers franchise, utters the phrase “You can really smell it.” The comment makes the wife chuckle a bit.
3rd – The Dodgers make more bad throws than I care to count. The only thing missing from this inning was the circus music. In the bottom of the inning, as if his .200 batting average and one-handed showboat catches don’t already reflect his lackadaisical attitude, Andruw Jones completely misplays a ground ball in the outfield. Nice job Andy. He’ll probably only get $120 million over six years from the Yankees this off-season.
4th – This inning featured my favorite offensive play in baseball; the triple. The Dodgers celebrate Juan Pierre’s leadoff three-bagger by stranding him at third the entire inning.
5th – Bobby Cox makes his 1st appearance of the evening. Amazingly, he is not thrown out of the game. Somewhere back in Georgia his therapist breathes a heavy sigh, relieved at the incredible sign of ‘progress’ his patient just displayed.
6th – Larry Wayne Jones, Jr. (AKA Chipper) ties the Atlanta Braves record for career homeruns. Forget about that Aaron guy. We’re talking Atlanta here. Eric Karros holds the equivalent record for the Los Angeles Dodgers, while Duke Snider holds the all-time franchise record. Sort of makes you wonder who the respective HR record holders are for the Los Angeles Angels, California Angels, Anaheim Angels, and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, doesn’t it?
7th – Vin Scully points out something that has been dreadfully obvious for a couple of hours now – neither side has had a 1-2-3 inning.
8th – Chipper, or as I like to refer to him, L.W.J.J. strikes again, passing Dale Murphy on the Atlanta HR list. Murphy was the best offensive player in the league when I became a baseball fan back in the early 80s. He played for the Braves when Joe Torre was manager. You know, before Torre miraculously became a so-called ‘great’ manager. I guess a $200 million payroll can buy a manager’s over-rated reputation as well as an underachieving baseball team.
9th – In a rather cruel twist of irony, in a first for either team, the Dodgers go down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the 9th to end the game…..FINALLY!
As far as Dodger games go, this one really stunk. I believe Vin Scully said it best when he said, “You can really smell it.”
July 5, 2007 - Dodgers v. Braves
I somehow haven't seen a Braves game in like 10 years, so when I remember Andruw Jones, he looked a lot more like this:
Now he's older, fatter, and acts like he makes millions of dollars. I know it's the last year in his contract, but has anyone told him he could get another one if he plays well? It's almost like he had a rough start, and now figures "I can't get a big payday, but I'm Andruw Jones, someone's going to pay me anyways... Screw it, I'm going to goof around and see just how much my name is worth!" At one point he swung on a strike so hard that his entire body twisted up, cartoon-style and he almost fell to the ground. Later, during a rally by the Dodgers, Andruw botched a play in the outfield. Juan Pierre was crossing the plate at the time and was probably thinking "I can't believe that's not me out there!".I did love the fight in Penny, he made a few mistakes early and was clearly pissed about it. Helping him fuel a couple of "hate pitches" and a 3 RBI(!!!). You know, a guy who can pitch better when he's angry is always a plus. Can someone key his car, or something before his next start? If we do make the playoffs, someone might have to sleep with his girlfriend...
Watching this game, I realized that one of my favorite parts about watching, is listening to the mellifluous flowing narration by Vin Scully. Players change numbers and teams, teams change owners, locations, jerseys, logos and colors, but when you have a treasure like Vin Scully it's soothing to know that he'll never change. We're lucky to have him.
Sunday, June 17, 2007
June 15, 2007 - Dodgers v. Angels
Wait a minute! Reggie Willits is white?! Really? Who would’ve ever guessed? I follow the Angels pretty closely and I had no idea. His first name is Reggie for cryin’ out loud. And his last name rhymes with a certain character’s name on Diff’rent Strokes. In fact, the first thought that went through my head when they showed his very white image on television was “What-chew talkin’ ‘bout, Willits?!”
So, do you like baseball? I mean are you a real fan of the game? If so, this was the game for you. Both pitchers were absolutely dealing. You could just sense that this game was going to come down to a clutch hit, a huge defensive play, or a Juan Pierre botched throw. Luckily for the Dodgers, it was the clutch hit by Gonzo instead of any sort of defensive antics of Pierre that prevailed, though if this game would’ve gone extra innings, that probably would’ve given Pierre the extra time he needed to ‘contribute to the outcome’ so to speak.
I don’t like it when the Dodgers and Angels play each other. I’m a fan of both teams and I have to think long and hard about what I want the series outcome to be before the start of the showdown. For this particular series, there were several factors to consider:
- The Angels have a 5 game lead in their division
- The Dodgers are in a three-team dead heat in their division
- The Angels have the second best record in baseball
- The Angels have won six consecutive series
- The Dodgers are coming off a sweep over the Mets
- The Dodgers have been spinning their wheels a bit as of late
- The Dodgers are my number one team, while the The Angels run a close second.
- It's a Dodgers' home game and an Angels' road game.
Okay, I’ve made up my mind. I’d like the Dodgers to take two of three. However, it has to be the first two. That way, they win the series and continue to build momentum they started against the Mets. The Angels will have their series-winning streak snapped, but they will have won the last game of the series against the Dodgers and can feel good about building on that to start a new winning streak, potentially, without losing too much of the lead they’ve built against the Mariners. Whew! I’m telling you, it’s agonizing when these two teams play. At least, I can always root for the Lakers over the Clippers or the Kings over the Ducks.
It’s not often you hear Vin Scully speak his mind on controversial topics. I think he prefers the objective approach to anything he covers and lets the fans form their own opinion on things. However, his sarcasm was evident and his opinion was very clear regarding Mike Scioscia’s leaving the Dodgers organization during “Kevin Malone’s regime,” as Vinny put it. He’s right though. It is still odd for me to see Mike Scioscia wearing any uniform other than Dodger blue.
When Vin got back to doing what he does best, he did something that we will do on occasion. During a big showdown between Saito and Guerrero in the ninth, he turned the mic off and let the excitement of the moment speak for itself. My question is this: When Vin Scully does that, what do you think he’s eating, a Dodger Dog or Nachos? With all those Farmer John commercials he’s done over the years, he has to be a Dodger Dog guy.
Go Dodgers….and Angels.
Thursday, June 7, 2007
Dodgers v. Padres - June 6, 2007
Well that sucked... I think I'm a jinx for this team. They didn't really look that bad, but there were some problems with the pitching match up...
Coincidentally, Wolf was pitching the last time I watched a game. He looked pretty good last time, and looked brutal this time. It's really disappointing because I was hoping to make "Pulp Fiction" references all season long. I wanted to be able to call him The Wolf and be at ease when he's called into action, but not after this. He just seemed to fall apart, and while I enjoyed watching Jeff Kent, it wasn't enough to salvage the game. In baseball it seems that almost anyone can have a bad game and your team still wins, EXCEPT for the pitcher.
The pitchers really were the difference in this game. Starting with Maddux and ending with Hoffman, (And all the hype and crowd excitement about 500 saves for him) was a pretty tough match up. Baseball is the only game where you can be 41 years old and be freaking dominant like Maddux was. I mean he wasn't amazing, but he just didn't seem to make mistakes. It just got me thinking... You know when you daydream about you somehow getting to play for your favorite dream? Mine goes like this:
Mitch Kupchak somehow ends up seeing me play basketball at a local gym and decides to sign me at the league minimum for a 1-year contract and I work my way into the starting point guard role for the Lakers. I become known as "The Thief" for all my amazing ability to steal the ball... see because at 5'8" my brain says "OK this is the only realistic way I could play in the NBA" If I had some ungodly hand speed and I was faster than light, and could predict other people's moves or something craziness. I should mention that this fictional, irrational and barely coherent dream started when I was a kid and gets less and less likely the older I get. At this point I'm a 32 year old 5'8" 1/2 Chinese, 1/2 White guy with reconstructed ACL, a torn labrum and an extra 20 lbs (My son gave them to me I think)... So the dream, needless to say, is dying.
BUT Seeing 41 year old Maddux there, looking like someone who just stepped out of a PTA meeting in Manhattan Beach gives me hope. My new dream is going to involve me getting picked up by the Dodgers and being a dominant pitcher. Watching him fire pitches around the knees of some of these young 20 something year old athletes was inspiring. I have to say I wish we had kept him. I don't know what it would have cost or if it would have ended up being worth it, but he is definitely something special.
--The Thief
Coincidentally, Wolf was pitching the last time I watched a game. He looked pretty good last time, and looked brutal this time. It's really disappointing because I was hoping to make "Pulp Fiction" references all season long. I wanted to be able to call him The Wolf and be at ease when he's called into action, but not after this. He just seemed to fall apart, and while I enjoyed watching Jeff Kent, it wasn't enough to salvage the game. In baseball it seems that almost anyone can have a bad game and your team still wins, EXCEPT for the pitcher.
The pitchers really were the difference in this game. Starting with Maddux and ending with Hoffman, (And all the hype and crowd excitement about 500 saves for him) was a pretty tough match up. Baseball is the only game where you can be 41 years old and be freaking dominant like Maddux was. I mean he wasn't amazing, but he just didn't seem to make mistakes. It just got me thinking... You know when you daydream about you somehow getting to play for your favorite dream? Mine goes like this:
Mitch Kupchak somehow ends up seeing me play basketball at a local gym and decides to sign me at the league minimum for a 1-year contract and I work my way into the starting point guard role for the Lakers. I become known as "The Thief" for all my amazing ability to steal the ball... see because at 5'8" my brain says "OK this is the only realistic way I could play in the NBA" If I had some ungodly hand speed and I was faster than light, and could predict other people's moves or something craziness. I should mention that this fictional, irrational and barely coherent dream started when I was a kid and gets less and less likely the older I get. At this point I'm a 32 year old 5'8" 1/2 Chinese, 1/2 White guy with reconstructed ACL, a torn labrum and an extra 20 lbs (My son gave them to me I think)... So the dream, needless to say, is dying.
BUT Seeing 41 year old Maddux there, looking like someone who just stepped out of a PTA meeting in Manhattan Beach gives me hope. My new dream is going to involve me getting picked up by the Dodgers and being a dominant pitcher. Watching him fire pitches around the knees of some of these young 20 something year old athletes was inspiring. I have to say I wish we had kept him. I don't know what it would have cost or if it would have ended up being worth it, but he is definitely something special.
--The Thief
June 6, 2007 - Dodgers v. Padres
First of all, a big congrats to all of the Ducks fans (all six of you) on winning your first Stanley Cup. I know it’s been an incredibly long 14 years that you’ve suffered as your team went from an expansion organization to what looks like will be a pretty long string of future Stanley Cup contending seasons. By the way, if 14 years is a long time, what the hell does that make the 40+ years Kings fans are suffering through?
I was pleased to see the starting pitchers for last night’s Dodgers / Padres game. First, Greg Maddux was slated for the Pads and that can mean only one thing; a fast game. Just what I needed too. When I’m watching a game delayed about two hours on the old DVR so that I can watch it after the kids go to bed, I don’t have time to sit around and watch a 4 hour marathon. Let’s get Maddux on the hill and get this sucker over with in a two hour window. I got things to do, damnit. Secondly, it’s always fun to see Randy Wolf’s name as the scheduled starter. It sets up the opportunity to use the famous Jules quote from Pulp Fiction, “You sendin’ the Wolf??! Sheeeeeiiit. That’s all you had to say!”
Wolf sucked. Couldn’t throw a strike early in the game. When he finally found the zone he was very hittable. Naturally, the only guy on the Padres who couldn’t hit the ball (3 Ks in the game) was the one guy on the Padres from my fantasy baseball team. Nice going, Adrian Gonzalez.
After Wolf put the Dodgers in the hole, it looked like they were ready to rally and get back into the game. But then Abreu decided to have a rookie moment, committing one of the biggest sins in the game, making the dreaded third out of the inning at third base. This was actually a double-whammy bonehead play since the Dodgers were down by 4 runs at the time. Not satisfied with just killing the inning, he also cost the Dodgers a run scored, virtually taking the wind out of the sails of the team. Any thoughts the Dodgers had of mounting a comeback after that were quickly dashed when Grady Little performed baseball’s equivalent of waving the white flag by ushering Hendrickson out to the mound to pitch the 8th. Can you imagine the Dodger players thinking to themselves, “Okay, we’re starting to hit. Abreu’s an idiot for killing that last inning, but we’ll get another rally started next inning. Oh, wait a minute. Coach is putting Hendrickson in? Well, I guess we’re done for the day.”
Furcal makes a nifty play every game. We’ve come to expect it from him.
Juan Pierre, however, makes a crappy play every game. We’ve come to expect it from him as well. On a screaming line drive base hit up the middle, Pierre couldn’t even make a strong enough through home (from shallow center field no less) to make a play at the plate. Instead it was cut off at the mound. Weak arm. Very weak.
In closing, I’ll make a confession. I had no idea Cyrus the Virus played second base for the San Diego Padres…
I was pleased to see the starting pitchers for last night’s Dodgers / Padres game. First, Greg Maddux was slated for the Pads and that can mean only one thing; a fast game. Just what I needed too. When I’m watching a game delayed about two hours on the old DVR so that I can watch it after the kids go to bed, I don’t have time to sit around and watch a 4 hour marathon. Let’s get Maddux on the hill and get this sucker over with in a two hour window. I got things to do, damnit. Secondly, it’s always fun to see Randy Wolf’s name as the scheduled starter. It sets up the opportunity to use the famous Jules quote from Pulp Fiction, “You sendin’ the Wolf??! Sheeeeeiiit. That’s all you had to say!”
Wolf sucked. Couldn’t throw a strike early in the game. When he finally found the zone he was very hittable. Naturally, the only guy on the Padres who couldn’t hit the ball (3 Ks in the game) was the one guy on the Padres from my fantasy baseball team. Nice going, Adrian Gonzalez.
After Wolf put the Dodgers in the hole, it looked like they were ready to rally and get back into the game. But then Abreu decided to have a rookie moment, committing one of the biggest sins in the game, making the dreaded third out of the inning at third base. This was actually a double-whammy bonehead play since the Dodgers were down by 4 runs at the time. Not satisfied with just killing the inning, he also cost the Dodgers a run scored, virtually taking the wind out of the sails of the team. Any thoughts the Dodgers had of mounting a comeback after that were quickly dashed when Grady Little performed baseball’s equivalent of waving the white flag by ushering Hendrickson out to the mound to pitch the 8th. Can you imagine the Dodger players thinking to themselves, “Okay, we’re starting to hit. Abreu’s an idiot for killing that last inning, but we’ll get another rally started next inning. Oh, wait a minute. Coach is putting Hendrickson in? Well, I guess we’re done for the day.”
Furcal makes a nifty play every game. We’ve come to expect it from him.
Juan Pierre, however, makes a crappy play every game. We’ve come to expect it from him as well. On a screaming line drive base hit up the middle, Pierre couldn’t even make a strong enough through home (from shallow center field no less) to make a play at the plate. Instead it was cut off at the mound. Weak arm. Very weak.
In closing, I’ll make a confession. I had no idea Cyrus the Virus played second base for the San Diego Padres…
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
May 28, 2007 - Senators v. Ducks
Well, alright! The Stanley Cup Final! Lots of pomp and circumstance surrounding this game. Well, maybe a bit more pomp than circumstance, but whatever. There was a bunch of comedy right off the bat for this one before the puck even dropped. First of all, let me just say that I’m not familiar with Mike Emrick, the play-by-play guy on Versus, because I don’t really ever watch hockey on this channel. However, I will say that he looks exactly like Dana Carvey impersonating Ross Perot from SNL back in the day. So that put me in a good mood right off the bat.
The singing of the national anthem, or in this case, anthems, is always a big deal, but it seems more epic during marquee sporting events, such as opening day, any all-star game, the Super Bowl….err…I mean the “Big Game”, and of course, the Stanley Cup Final. Now, I’ve never been a fan of Crosby Stills Nash and Young, and I always just assumed it was for the same reason nobody else liked them – you know, because of Neil Young. However, after hearing Stephen Stills’ rendition of our beloved anthem, I’m going to reconsider my thinking on the subject. Man, that was just awful. And on Memorial Day no less! Is it un-American for me to think the Canadian anthem was performed better? I certainly hope not.
Another funny moment in the early going was when the Governator, Arnold Schwarzenegger, performed the pre-game ceremonial dropping of the puck. While Arnie posed, holding the puck over the ice, staring at the camera with a plastic smile, someone involved in the ceremony could be heard saying something to the effect of “Okay, go…..go ahead and drop it……DROP THE PUCK!!” All the while, Arnie was just smiling at the camera, not moving. Finally, he dropped it, but obviously not before pissing someone off tremendously. I was absolutely dying.
During the game, the commentators mentioned how they thought there would be period of ‘feeling out’ between the two teams since they didn’t meet during the regular season this year. They were surprised at the physical play early on. Well, I don’t know why they’d be surprised about it. We’re talking about the possibility of this series going as few as four games. I don’t think either team wants to spend a whole lot of time getting a feel for the other. Hell, hit ‘em early and try to score first. That’s what I say. Forget about trying to figure out the other team’s game plan.
When Samuel Pahlsson of the Ducks tried to help J.S. Giguere by flipping his stick to him, it prompted the question “If you’re an NHL goalie and a stick and a puck are both flying at you at the same time, which do you attempt to stop?” The answer, apparently, is neither. Nice job, Pahlsson. Maybe next game you can take your skate off and beat Jiggy over the head with it while Dany Heatley fires the puck at him from point blank.
Unbelieveable stat alert: Has Anton Volchenkov really blocked 273 shots this year? Think about the damage his body must have sustained during the season with that kind of punishment. His torso must look like Edward James Olmos’ cheeks.
So, game one is in the books. And it was a good one. Can’t believe hockey isn’t more popular than it is. Of course, there are millions of soccer fans wondering the same thing about soccer…or is it futbol? Whatever.
The singing of the national anthem, or in this case, anthems, is always a big deal, but it seems more epic during marquee sporting events, such as opening day, any all-star game, the Super Bowl….err…I mean the “Big Game”, and of course, the Stanley Cup Final. Now, I’ve never been a fan of Crosby Stills Nash and Young, and I always just assumed it was for the same reason nobody else liked them – you know, because of Neil Young. However, after hearing Stephen Stills’ rendition of our beloved anthem, I’m going to reconsider my thinking on the subject. Man, that was just awful. And on Memorial Day no less! Is it un-American for me to think the Canadian anthem was performed better? I certainly hope not.
Another funny moment in the early going was when the Governator, Arnold Schwarzenegger, performed the pre-game ceremonial dropping of the puck. While Arnie posed, holding the puck over the ice, staring at the camera with a plastic smile, someone involved in the ceremony could be heard saying something to the effect of “Okay, go…..go ahead and drop it……DROP THE PUCK!!” All the while, Arnie was just smiling at the camera, not moving. Finally, he dropped it, but obviously not before pissing someone off tremendously. I was absolutely dying.
During the game, the commentators mentioned how they thought there would be period of ‘feeling out’ between the two teams since they didn’t meet during the regular season this year. They were surprised at the physical play early on. Well, I don’t know why they’d be surprised about it. We’re talking about the possibility of this series going as few as four games. I don’t think either team wants to spend a whole lot of time getting a feel for the other. Hell, hit ‘em early and try to score first. That’s what I say. Forget about trying to figure out the other team’s game plan.
When Samuel Pahlsson of the Ducks tried to help J.S. Giguere by flipping his stick to him, it prompted the question “If you’re an NHL goalie and a stick and a puck are both flying at you at the same time, which do you attempt to stop?” The answer, apparently, is neither. Nice job, Pahlsson. Maybe next game you can take your skate off and beat Jiggy over the head with it while Dany Heatley fires the puck at him from point blank.
Unbelieveable stat alert: Has Anton Volchenkov really blocked 273 shots this year? Think about the damage his body must have sustained during the season with that kind of punishment. His torso must look like Edward James Olmos’ cheeks.
So, game one is in the books. And it was a good one. Can’t believe hockey isn’t more popular than it is. Of course, there are millions of soccer fans wondering the same thing about soccer…or is it futbol? Whatever.
May 28, 2007 - Ducks v. Senators
Since I don't care a great deal about either of these teams I had to summon up some reasons to root for one or the other and here's what I came up with... USA vs CANADA. Who cares that both these teams have players mostly born in Eastern Uzbeckizatnislav? (I realize that the Ducks actually have more Canadian born players than the Senators, but whatever, they've picked their side) Isn't every team that you're a fan of comprised of players from all over the world in any sport you're a fan of? And then if God forbid, your team moves, who are you really rooting for, the mascot? For the remainder of the column I will be referring to the Ducks as the Americans and the Senators as the Canadians (To avoid confusion with the actual Montreal Canadiens, I will be just referring to them as random Canadian slurs) . U - S - A! U - S - A! U - S - A!
As play begins, it already looks like the Americans seem to have the better team. They're faster, hit harder and generally look as though they're on cruise control. Showing that these aren't your average Celine Dion fans, the Maple Syrup Squad (MSS) attacks the lapse defense of the Americans and scores on a lucky goal. None of this really phases the Americans who still appear to be lacking motivation, until a sweet pass by Teemu leads to a water bottle rattling goal. Smelling blood in the water, the Americans attack relentlessly for a solid 10 minutes going into the next period. Then back to cruise control, until they're down 2 men on a 5-3 power play. Refocused with only 3 men on the ice, the Americans come back and kill the power play. Seriously, they only seemed to really be fired up when they are a man or two down. What's with this team? They really seemed to lack intensity except for those few moments.
This focus lasts only so long before the McKenzie brothers catch "Jiggy" without his stick. Isn't this the equivolent of the old West when a guy is shot in the back? I think they used to chop your hands off if you did it in the old West. I guess the modern day equivalent for a Canadian, would be to chop off his mullet and take away his Molson.
The Americans go on to win it and convincingly so in my opinion. It just seems as though when motivated, they're just too tough to beat. This thing could have been a blood bath and the only reason it wasn't is because they were on cruise control for half the game.
Well this is the last post of the season for me on Hockey. I'm happy to see that the Americans made it to the Stanley Cup Finals. Hopefully the Ducks can keep those Maple Syrup swilling Nanooks of the North from getting their grubby mitts on it. I think they can. U - S - A! U - S - A! U - S - A!
As play begins, it already looks like the Americans seem to have the better team. They're faster, hit harder and generally look as though they're on cruise control. Showing that these aren't your average Celine Dion fans, the Maple Syrup Squad (MSS) attacks the lapse defense of the Americans and scores on a lucky goal. None of this really phases the Americans who still appear to be lacking motivation, until a sweet pass by Teemu leads to a water bottle rattling goal. Smelling blood in the water, the Americans attack relentlessly for a solid 10 minutes going into the next period. Then back to cruise control, until they're down 2 men on a 5-3 power play. Refocused with only 3 men on the ice, the Americans come back and kill the power play. Seriously, they only seemed to really be fired up when they are a man or two down. What's with this team? They really seemed to lack intensity except for those few moments.
This focus lasts only so long before the McKenzie brothers catch "Jiggy" without his stick. Isn't this the equivolent of the old West when a guy is shot in the back? I think they used to chop your hands off if you did it in the old West. I guess the modern day equivalent for a Canadian, would be to chop off his mullet and take away his Molson.
The Americans go on to win it and convincingly so in my opinion. It just seems as though when motivated, they're just too tough to beat. This thing could have been a blood bath and the only reason it wasn't is because they were on cruise control for half the game.
Well this is the last post of the season for me on Hockey. I'm happy to see that the Americans made it to the Stanley Cup Finals. Hopefully the Ducks can keep those Maple Syrup swilling Nanooks of the North from getting their grubby mitts on it. I think they can. U - S - A! U - S - A! U - S - A!
Monday, May 28, 2007
May 28, 2007 - Ducks v. Senators
It's great to finally get a chance to make a contribution here. And what a game! If that wasn't truly the game of the week, I would like to know what was! That is why hockey play-offs are so great. Such intensity! Such excitement! Thank god we don't have to wait every four years for this to happen!
I love the hits in hockey! I love everything about hockey, but I really love the hits. And this game was a hit-fest.
Before I get into the game, I have to mention something about the job Stephen Stills did of singing our national anthem. What happened to this guys voice? I'm not a big Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young fan, but when I did hear their songs on the radio I remember the vocals sounding nice. I don't remember one of the guys sounding like he had just gargled with a rusty anchor! I could have sung the song better than him!
Back to the game. Man the Senators came out strong! They were playing scary strong like the Red Wings did a couple of times against the Sharks and Ducks (before the Ducks sent them fishing). That first goal by the Senators was ugly. It took them nearly an hour to announce the official goal scorer! But a goal is a goal and the Senators going up 1-0 made me nervous, especially the way they were playing.
Now the McDonald goal to tie it up was pretty as they come. And Selanne's pass was also a thing of beauty. But none of it would have happened if Drew Miller had not drilled the hell out of the Senator defender and made him cough up the puck. That was an awesome play!
The Ducks finished the second half of the first period like a monster! Though they did have some dumb penalties. I don't remember who did it, but somebody laid a clothesline on a Senator that was reminiscent of Richard Kiel's scene from The Longest Yard.
I was really impressed with how tough Brad May was playing. I like that guy, and not just because his last name is the name of one of the best horror films to come out in the last five years.
Speaking of dumb penalties, what's with Ryan Getzlaf conducting an experiment to see how many times you can cross-check a guy before the ref will call you on it? He must have cross-checked that guy five times! Four times not enough for you Getzlaf?
Of course that must have really upset Giguere, because he decided to protest by playing goal without a stick! Which didn't work out so good as it didn't take the Senators long to score on a stickless goalie.
I was impressed when the Ducks killed the 5-3 advantage and nearly scored a shortie to boot! What the heck was Emery doing that far out of the goal?!
The Ducks were simply ferocious in the third and I knew that they were at least going to tie it up. Getzlaf's game-tying goal was nice, and Moen's game-winner was nicer! Though Moen owes a lot to a hell of an assist by Rob Niedermayer.
Ducks look scary good! Though it's just one game. I hope this goes seven games. That would be sweet!!!
My favorite shot of the fans in attendance had to go to the guy with the sunglasses who was working the cowbell.
Final comment: Did you notice that Mark Messier looks more and more like Carel Struycken who is the actor that played Lurch in the two Addams Family movies from the '90s.
Faithfully submitted,
Rob
I love the hits in hockey! I love everything about hockey, but I really love the hits. And this game was a hit-fest.
Before I get into the game, I have to mention something about the job Stephen Stills did of singing our national anthem. What happened to this guys voice? I'm not a big Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young fan, but when I did hear their songs on the radio I remember the vocals sounding nice. I don't remember one of the guys sounding like he had just gargled with a rusty anchor! I could have sung the song better than him!
Back to the game. Man the Senators came out strong! They were playing scary strong like the Red Wings did a couple of times against the Sharks and Ducks (before the Ducks sent them fishing). That first goal by the Senators was ugly. It took them nearly an hour to announce the official goal scorer! But a goal is a goal and the Senators going up 1-0 made me nervous, especially the way they were playing.
Now the McDonald goal to tie it up was pretty as they come. And Selanne's pass was also a thing of beauty. But none of it would have happened if Drew Miller had not drilled the hell out of the Senator defender and made him cough up the puck. That was an awesome play!
The Ducks finished the second half of the first period like a monster! Though they did have some dumb penalties. I don't remember who did it, but somebody laid a clothesline on a Senator that was reminiscent of Richard Kiel's scene from The Longest Yard.
I was really impressed with how tough Brad May was playing. I like that guy, and not just because his last name is the name of one of the best horror films to come out in the last five years.
Speaking of dumb penalties, what's with Ryan Getzlaf conducting an experiment to see how many times you can cross-check a guy before the ref will call you on it? He must have cross-checked that guy five times! Four times not enough for you Getzlaf?
Of course that must have really upset Giguere, because he decided to protest by playing goal without a stick! Which didn't work out so good as it didn't take the Senators long to score on a stickless goalie.
I was impressed when the Ducks killed the 5-3 advantage and nearly scored a shortie to boot! What the heck was Emery doing that far out of the goal?!
The Ducks were simply ferocious in the third and I knew that they were at least going to tie it up. Getzlaf's game-tying goal was nice, and Moen's game-winner was nicer! Though Moen owes a lot to a hell of an assist by Rob Niedermayer.
Ducks look scary good! Though it's just one game. I hope this goes seven games. That would be sweet!!!
My favorite shot of the fans in attendance had to go to the guy with the sunglasses who was working the cowbell.
Final comment: Did you notice that Mark Messier looks more and more like Carel Struycken who is the actor that played Lurch in the two Addams Family movies from the '90s.
Faithfully submitted,
Rob
Monday, May 21, 2007
May 20, 2007 - Ducks v. Redwings
….and we’re back.
Alright, so I went into this game with very little enthusiasm about it due to the fact that hockey season, in essence, ended for me back when the Kings finished their annual stumble to the end of the regular season schedule. During the past few weeks I’ve been keeping up with which teams have won which games and series, but I haven’t watched very much post-season hockey at all this year. In fact, I haven’t watched much post-season hockey at all the past several seasons. It’s all just part of being a Kings fan. Anyway, I was completely indifferent as to who I wanted to win this game, let alone the series. At least, I thought I was. It didn’t take long after hearing the same ol’ names being mentioned as far as the Redwings go, for me to realize that I was absolutely, without a doubt, pulling for the Ducks to win this game. How could I call myself a Kings fan and not be rooting against the Lidstroms, Zetterbergs, Haseks, and Drapers of the world? I’ve always wondered why a person thinks they have to hate the Ducks to be a Kings fan. It’s not like the Ducks and Kings have any sort of rivalry built up over the years. They’ve never played each other in the post season (and with the two very different directions the Kings and Ducks organizations have been heading, it doesn’t look like they’ll be doing so anytime soon either). The Ducks and Kings are like the Lakers and Clippers. No rivalry there. Why pretend there is one? However, the Dodgers and giants? Now that’s a different story. There have been many occasions over the years when the Dodgers and giants have played very significant games with post season implications, taking turns playing the role of spoiler against one another, dashing each other's hopes of winning a pennant. Anyway, the Redwings have made a mockery out of most of the Western Conference for about 15 to 20 years running, and every team in the West should consider them public enemy number one, and every fan of their respective team should be rooting against the Wings with every ounce of passion they can muster. I, for one, know that by the middle of the first period of this game, I was.
You know how, as a fan, there are always those famous players in sports that you thought you hated and you rooted against them, but as the years went by you realized that they were pretty special and you grew to respect them and what they had accomplished during their careers? I’ll give an example. Larry Bird. Try to find a Lakers fan back in the 80s who liked this guy. He was the very bane of the Lakers existence. But as his career was winding down, Lakers fans began to appreciate what he lent to the marvelous rivalry that existed (and still does, by the way) between the Lakers and Celtics during that time. Now, I know there was a pretty big rivalry before that, but that’s not my point. Right now, today, I think you’d be pretty hard pressed to find a Laker fan who doesn’t appreciate and respect a Larry Bird. Anyway, more examples of this, for me anyway, would be Tony Gwynn, Mark Messier, Michael Jordan, and Gary Sheffield (just kidding! Shef’s pretty freakin’ far from making that list!). You know what got me thinking about all of this during last night’s game? Chris Chelios. Chris Chelios is a guy who’s had a very long, distinguished career. A man who has consistently been a top performer at the highest level of his trade. A guy who is most likely headed to the hall of fame. A man who is loved and cherished in both Chicago and Detroit. And, I have to tell you, a man who I absolutely can not stand for one instant! He and he alone, could sway my preference when it comes to watching hockey. When I heard his name mentioned and saw his image during warm-ups, I felt my eyes squint and my jaw clench as I looked at the screen in absolute disgust. There he was. Chris Chelios. I’m rooting against you, Chris Chelios! I don’t care about the Ducks. Never have. Most likely, never will. But there is one thing I do care about; Chris Chelios and the rest of the Detroit Redwings getting eliminated from these playoffs. It’s the only thing a self-respecting Kings fan could wish for. After last night’s game, my wish is that much closer to being fulfilled. Go Ducks!
Alright, so I went into this game with very little enthusiasm about it due to the fact that hockey season, in essence, ended for me back when the Kings finished their annual stumble to the end of the regular season schedule. During the past few weeks I’ve been keeping up with which teams have won which games and series, but I haven’t watched very much post-season hockey at all this year. In fact, I haven’t watched much post-season hockey at all the past several seasons. It’s all just part of being a Kings fan. Anyway, I was completely indifferent as to who I wanted to win this game, let alone the series. At least, I thought I was. It didn’t take long after hearing the same ol’ names being mentioned as far as the Redwings go, for me to realize that I was absolutely, without a doubt, pulling for the Ducks to win this game. How could I call myself a Kings fan and not be rooting against the Lidstroms, Zetterbergs, Haseks, and Drapers of the world? I’ve always wondered why a person thinks they have to hate the Ducks to be a Kings fan. It’s not like the Ducks and Kings have any sort of rivalry built up over the years. They’ve never played each other in the post season (and with the two very different directions the Kings and Ducks organizations have been heading, it doesn’t look like they’ll be doing so anytime soon either). The Ducks and Kings are like the Lakers and Clippers. No rivalry there. Why pretend there is one? However, the Dodgers and giants? Now that’s a different story. There have been many occasions over the years when the Dodgers and giants have played very significant games with post season implications, taking turns playing the role of spoiler against one another, dashing each other's hopes of winning a pennant. Anyway, the Redwings have made a mockery out of most of the Western Conference for about 15 to 20 years running, and every team in the West should consider them public enemy number one, and every fan of their respective team should be rooting against the Wings with every ounce of passion they can muster. I, for one, know that by the middle of the first period of this game, I was.
You know how, as a fan, there are always those famous players in sports that you thought you hated and you rooted against them, but as the years went by you realized that they were pretty special and you grew to respect them and what they had accomplished during their careers? I’ll give an example. Larry Bird. Try to find a Lakers fan back in the 80s who liked this guy. He was the very bane of the Lakers existence. But as his career was winding down, Lakers fans began to appreciate what he lent to the marvelous rivalry that existed (and still does, by the way) between the Lakers and Celtics during that time. Now, I know there was a pretty big rivalry before that, but that’s not my point. Right now, today, I think you’d be pretty hard pressed to find a Laker fan who doesn’t appreciate and respect a Larry Bird. Anyway, more examples of this, for me anyway, would be Tony Gwynn, Mark Messier, Michael Jordan, and Gary Sheffield (just kidding! Shef’s pretty freakin’ far from making that list!). You know what got me thinking about all of this during last night’s game? Chris Chelios. Chris Chelios is a guy who’s had a very long, distinguished career. A man who has consistently been a top performer at the highest level of his trade. A guy who is most likely headed to the hall of fame. A man who is loved and cherished in both Chicago and Detroit. And, I have to tell you, a man who I absolutely can not stand for one instant! He and he alone, could sway my preference when it comes to watching hockey. When I heard his name mentioned and saw his image during warm-ups, I felt my eyes squint and my jaw clench as I looked at the screen in absolute disgust. There he was. Chris Chelios. I’m rooting against you, Chris Chelios! I don’t care about the Ducks. Never have. Most likely, never will. But there is one thing I do care about; Chris Chelios and the rest of the Detroit Redwings getting eliminated from these playoffs. It’s the only thing a self-respecting Kings fan could wish for. After last night’s game, my wish is that much closer to being fulfilled. Go Ducks!
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
April 24, 2007 - Lakers v. Suns
Due to the graphic and obscene content of last night’s Lakers game, this piece will be shorter than usual.
That was an absolute ass-beating. No mistake about it. It was ugly early and it just got uglier and uglier as the game went on. Thank goodness Jordan Farmar and Luke Walton showed a little energy in the 3rd quarter. You know, because otherwise this game might’ve gotten out of hand. My stomach actually hurt a little bit in the early going, when the Lakers were still hanging in there within 10 points or so and the Suns were draining shot after shot after shot and the Lakers would struggle just to get a half-way decent look at a shot, only to miss and have the Suns run down and score within seconds again and again. It was dreadful. Horrible. Embarrassing.
I could feel the hatred grow strong in me last night, and I almost went to the dark side, coming just short of wishing injury on the Suns’ star players for remaining in the game in the 4th quarter of a 30-point walloping. Can someone please explain to me why the need for all of the fancy behind the back showboat passes in a game that had been decided two quarters earlier? Barbosa, in particular, was laying it on a little thick. But I suppose that’s alright. Maybe he’ll cry the most when the Suns are eliminated in the next round or two. I hope there are no towels around for him to cover his head when it happens either, because I want to see it for myself. Uh-oh, maybe I have gone to the dark side.
I realize the way I feel about the Suns right now is why there are so many Lakers haters out there. The Suns are just flat out good. They’re fast and exciting to watch. They have confidence and swagger. Aside from the fact that they haven’t won a championship, they’re all the things the Lakers teams throughout history typically are.
I don’t think I can watch Kwame Brown play anymore. It hurts too much. That’s all there is to it.
As dreadful as the game was last night, I found myself getting incredibly annoyed with a fan whose cheers were being picked up by KCAL 9’s audio feed. She had this incredibly high pitched shriek of a cheer that sounded like a dolphin being tortured. It would’ve been tolerable a few times after an exciting play or something, but this woman cheered at EVERY DAMN PLAY the Suns made. I mean it. Layups. Free throws. Everything. The worst part is, she stayed and cheered the entire game. With a 30 point lead in garbage time, the Suns summoned Pat Burke from the deepest, deepest, deep part of their bench. When he finally got into the game and actually touched the basketball, this woman went clinically insane and I thought the speakers on my TV were gonna blow. Luckily, time expired. The game was over and the woman had to be returned to the ocean where she will spend the rest of her life avoiding tuna nets.
That was an absolute ass-beating. No mistake about it. It was ugly early and it just got uglier and uglier as the game went on. Thank goodness Jordan Farmar and Luke Walton showed a little energy in the 3rd quarter. You know, because otherwise this game might’ve gotten out of hand. My stomach actually hurt a little bit in the early going, when the Lakers were still hanging in there within 10 points or so and the Suns were draining shot after shot after shot and the Lakers would struggle just to get a half-way decent look at a shot, only to miss and have the Suns run down and score within seconds again and again. It was dreadful. Horrible. Embarrassing.
I could feel the hatred grow strong in me last night, and I almost went to the dark side, coming just short of wishing injury on the Suns’ star players for remaining in the game in the 4th quarter of a 30-point walloping. Can someone please explain to me why the need for all of the fancy behind the back showboat passes in a game that had been decided two quarters earlier? Barbosa, in particular, was laying it on a little thick. But I suppose that’s alright. Maybe he’ll cry the most when the Suns are eliminated in the next round or two. I hope there are no towels around for him to cover his head when it happens either, because I want to see it for myself. Uh-oh, maybe I have gone to the dark side.
I realize the way I feel about the Suns right now is why there are so many Lakers haters out there. The Suns are just flat out good. They’re fast and exciting to watch. They have confidence and swagger. Aside from the fact that they haven’t won a championship, they’re all the things the Lakers teams throughout history typically are.
I don’t think I can watch Kwame Brown play anymore. It hurts too much. That’s all there is to it.
As dreadful as the game was last night, I found myself getting incredibly annoyed with a fan whose cheers were being picked up by KCAL 9’s audio feed. She had this incredibly high pitched shriek of a cheer that sounded like a dolphin being tortured. It would’ve been tolerable a few times after an exciting play or something, but this woman cheered at EVERY DAMN PLAY the Suns made. I mean it. Layups. Free throws. Everything. The worst part is, she stayed and cheered the entire game. With a 30 point lead in garbage time, the Suns summoned Pat Burke from the deepest, deepest, deep part of their bench. When he finally got into the game and actually touched the basketball, this woman went clinically insane and I thought the speakers on my TV were gonna blow. Luckily, time expired. The game was over and the woman had to be returned to the ocean where she will spend the rest of her life avoiding tuna nets.
April 24, 2007 - Lakers v. Suns
I experienced the five stages of dying last night during the absolute total ass beating that the Lakers took last night at the hands of the Suns.
DENIAL
This is the phase where the person thinks there must have been a mistake, or is defiant of the facts. The natural first reaction is disbelief and shock so great that you just don't believe it's happening.
"Smush is going to get fired up about not starting and he'll come out on defense and lock down Nash." and "We beat them last year in game 2 and went on to go up 3-1. We could have had them last year!"
ANGER
You have always known you would die someday, but coming face to face with it, being hopeless makes you angry. (This phase lasted longer for me than most dying people)
"Who the hell makes a call like that on their end but doesn't make it on ours!?!?!" "Can we get Turiaf in there for Kwame Brown? Kwame looks like he's in some kind of 'walking coma' " "Is Phil Jackson awake?? WTF!?!?!? SOMEONE WAKE HIM UP AND CALL A *#!%$& TIMEOUT!!!!"
BARGAINING
Death is now upon you and you are trying to appeal to your loved ones, and make amends for things you have done. You are appealing to God.
"Should I get another Jersey? Maybe I should sit change seats on the couch..." "What if they're losing because I'm wearing the wrong lucky Lakers shirt?" "I don't care if he's sleeping, put the Lakers hat on the baby!"
DEPRESSION
Mourning, regret, and absolute despair are the hallmarks of this phase. The realization that Smush is our STARTING point Guard, we owe 30 million dollars to Vladmir Radmanovic over the next 5 years, AND Kobe (28 y/o) has played 784 NBA games and Aaron McKie (34 y/o) has played 794 in his career. READ THAT AGAIN! That's like a 5 year old Porche with 200,000 miles on it.
There wasn't much thought during this phase, I was just an ethereal, hollow, shell of a man. Much like Kwame Brown.
ACCEPTANCE
In the end acceptance is brought on by weariness from fighting against the inevitable. There is no pain, there is no sorrow, there is no joy, there is only the acceptance and death. At the final buzzer, there was no miracle last minute comeback, there was no last minute stay of execution by the NBA league front office, and Hulk Hogan did not jump out of the stands with a folding chair and hit Steve Nash in the back... I'm hoping for that last one anyways.
The Suns are just a better team. The Lakers played like crap and could have made different personnel moves (I think the up-tempo style is better suited for Turiaf at the 5 instead of Kwame) but in the end we just didn't have enough time with all the players healthy. I think a lot of these guys are playing hurt and it's showing through...
DENIAL
This is the phase where the person thinks there must have been a mistake, or is defiant of the facts. The natural first reaction is disbelief and shock so great that you just don't believe it's happening.
"Smush is going to get fired up about not starting and he'll come out on defense and lock down Nash." and "We beat them last year in game 2 and went on to go up 3-1. We could have had them last year!"
ANGER
You have always known you would die someday, but coming face to face with it, being hopeless makes you angry. (This phase lasted longer for me than most dying people)
"Who the hell makes a call like that on their end but doesn't make it on ours!?!?!" "Can we get Turiaf in there for Kwame Brown? Kwame looks like he's in some kind of 'walking coma' " "Is Phil Jackson awake?? WTF!?!?!? SOMEONE WAKE HIM UP AND CALL A *#!%$& TIMEOUT!!!!"
BARGAINING
Death is now upon you and you are trying to appeal to your loved ones, and make amends for things you have done. You are appealing to God.
"Should I get another Jersey? Maybe I should sit change seats on the couch..." "What if they're losing because I'm wearing the wrong lucky Lakers shirt?" "I don't care if he's sleeping, put the Lakers hat on the baby!"
DEPRESSION
Mourning, regret, and absolute despair are the hallmarks of this phase. The realization that Smush is our STARTING point Guard, we owe 30 million dollars to Vladmir Radmanovic over the next 5 years, AND Kobe (28 y/o) has played 784 NBA games and Aaron McKie (34 y/o) has played 794 in his career. READ THAT AGAIN! That's like a 5 year old Porche with 200,000 miles on it.
There wasn't much thought during this phase, I was just an ethereal, hollow, shell of a man. Much like Kwame Brown.
ACCEPTANCE
In the end acceptance is brought on by weariness from fighting against the inevitable. There is no pain, there is no sorrow, there is no joy, there is only the acceptance and death. At the final buzzer, there was no miracle last minute comeback, there was no last minute stay of execution by the NBA league front office, and Hulk Hogan did not jump out of the stands with a folding chair and hit Steve Nash in the back... I'm hoping for that last one anyways.
The Suns are just a better team. The Lakers played like crap and could have made different personnel moves (I think the up-tempo style is better suited for Turiaf at the 5 instead of Kwame) but in the end we just didn't have enough time with all the players healthy. I think a lot of these guys are playing hurt and it's showing through...
Sunday, April 22, 2007
April 21, 2007 - Dodgers v. Pirates
Wow!! Now that’s how you finish a game. There’s nothing like an extra inning walk-off grand slam to get the season going in full gear. What turned out to be a pretty sloppy game on both sides finished in fine fashion for sure. Martin wasn’t content with a measly game winning single, a walk, or even a sac fly. He wanted the big one. The grand salami. Jacking that granny to win it in the 10th made up for his botched throw earlier in the game that set up the Pirates’ first run and rattled the emotionally fragile Brad Penny into a mediocre performance. That throw was a rare mental mistake by Martin, who’s always a picture of poise and maturity. Martin’s heroics aside, this game showed the Dodgers’ resiliency and ability to bounce back from a late game deficit, scoring in the 8th and 9th to send the game into extra frames. When the Angels won their title in ’02, they had a lot of victories like the one the Dodgers had last night. Hopefully there’ll be many more like it as the season goes on.
It was pretty obvious what Grady Little’s agenda was when he went to the mound in the 3rd inning last night. Clearly he wasn’t there to advise Penny as he, Martin and Penny all seemed to be standing around in awkward silence, each of them taking turns spitting and looking around the field and crowd, patiently waiting for Umpire, Country Joe West to come to the mound to hurry the meeting along. You could tell by West’s reaction when he arrived that Little wanted to talk about balls and strikes. Obviously West would have none of it and quickly gave Little the heave-ho. Here’s what’s funny about Grady Little getting ejected though. Throughout the entire course of this event, I couldn’t stop thinking about how silly it is that major league managers wear uniforms. What is that all about anyway? There’s no other sport that I can think of that the manager or coach wears the uniform of the team playing. It’s even sillier than NBA coaches wearing ties (is there a more blue-collar job than coaching basketball?). Anyway, this whole major league manager wearing a uniform thing is really outdated and just needs to stop. It must date back to when there were a lot of player-managers in the league and there was a pretty good chance the manager was actually playing in the game. However, I really don’t see Grady Little breaking into this Dodger lineup any time soon. Unless he’s hitting for Wilson Betemit…
It was pretty obvious what Grady Little’s agenda was when he went to the mound in the 3rd inning last night. Clearly he wasn’t there to advise Penny as he, Martin and Penny all seemed to be standing around in awkward silence, each of them taking turns spitting and looking around the field and crowd, patiently waiting for Umpire, Country Joe West to come to the mound to hurry the meeting along. You could tell by West’s reaction when he arrived that Little wanted to talk about balls and strikes. Obviously West would have none of it and quickly gave Little the heave-ho. Here’s what’s funny about Grady Little getting ejected though. Throughout the entire course of this event, I couldn’t stop thinking about how silly it is that major league managers wear uniforms. What is that all about anyway? There’s no other sport that I can think of that the manager or coach wears the uniform of the team playing. It’s even sillier than NBA coaches wearing ties (is there a more blue-collar job than coaching basketball?). Anyway, this whole major league manager wearing a uniform thing is really outdated and just needs to stop. It must date back to when there were a lot of player-managers in the league and there was a pretty good chance the manager was actually playing in the game. However, I really don’t see Grady Little breaking into this Dodger lineup any time soon. Unless he’s hitting for Wilson Betemit…
Saturday, April 21, 2007
April 21, 2007 - Dodgers v. Pirates
Some may frown on watching sports tape delayed or on Tivo. However, when you have a 6 month old baby at home there is simply no other way. I actually was a proponent of watching things live, and never really liked watching baseball because of the all the damn commercials. Combine this with the fact that they actually have rules on how long a pitcher can dick around on the mound before actually throwing a pitch and baseball may be gaining a new fan. This is the first game of the season for me and because I somehow screwed up the recording, I didn't start recording until the 3rd inning when Wolf was striking dudes out. That was followed up by a huge bottom of the 3rd where 6 runs were scored and pretty much put the game away early.
Here's a few things that stand out:
1) Wolf looked pretty good, but since I'm only a casual viewer the only guys I ever see on TV the last couple years have been Mariano Rivera, Clemens, Papelbon, Schilling and now Dice-K it's hard to tell how good he is... Seriously though, I don't know how many times the Yankees and Red Sox play each other but isn't anyone sick of it yet? I mean part of what made the Celtics and Lakers rivalry so great was that they only played a handful of times a year and it was something really special... These guys see each other probably more than their own families.
2) Juan Pierre is fast. Really really fast.
3) This appearance by Wolf broke up my personal 452,846,937,683 game streak of watching a Dodger game with Penny in the lineup... somehow everytime I watched the Dodgers in the last couple years it was Brad Penny. I thought he was the only pitcher they had.
Here's a few things that stand out:
1) Wolf looked pretty good, but since I'm only a casual viewer the only guys I ever see on TV the last couple years have been Mariano Rivera, Clemens, Papelbon, Schilling and now Dice-K it's hard to tell how good he is... Seriously though, I don't know how many times the Yankees and Red Sox play each other but isn't anyone sick of it yet? I mean part of what made the Celtics and Lakers rivalry so great was that they only played a handful of times a year and it was something really special... These guys see each other probably more than their own families.
2) Juan Pierre is fast. Really really fast.
3) This appearance by Wolf broke up my personal 452,846,937,683 game streak of watching a Dodger game with Penny in the lineup... somehow everytime I watched the Dodgers in the last couple years it was Brad Penny. I thought he was the only pitcher they had.
Friday, April 13, 2007
Clippers v. Lakers - April 12, 2007
OUCH! I’ll bet it hurts to be kneed in the…umm....'groin' by a 7 foot tall man jumping directly towards you. Poor Cory Maggette. They would’ve had to cart me off on a stretcher after that collision for sure.
Hey speaking of things that hurt; you know what’s really painful? Watching Smush Parker play. What is going on with this guy? How is it that Smush Parker seems to have a hand in almost every botched play the Lakers have during the course of a game. I know when Smush came on the scene at the beginning of last year a lot of people were excited about him because he had a catchy name and he referred to his car as the Smushcalade, but I think people are over that now. He’s absolutely brutal. That leaping leaner he took from the middle of the key from about 10 feet out without a single defender anywhere near him was downright embarrassing. Hell, I could’ve done that! Man, he can throw up some serious garbage when he wants to. Yet somehow lately he seems to end up with the ball in his hands just as time expires at the end of every quarter. I don’t get it. I just don’t. Is it by design? I seriously doubt it. Everyone knows that Smush has been in Phil Jackson’s doghouse lately, Jackson suggesting that Smush seems a little tired and hasn’t had the energy they’d like to see from him. Well, I decided to watch Smush and only Smush for small blocks of time to see if he indeed ‘lacked energy.’ Turns out he does. So, not only is he an offensive threat, meaning he’s a threat to the Lakers’ offense, but he lacks energy. He hurts the Lakers and does so with remarkable efficiency I might add. Here’s what you should do sometime while watching your next Lakers game; watch Smush Parker for 30 seconds. Then find Kobe on the floor and watch him for 30 seconds. For good measure, go back and find Smush again. He won’t be hard to find. He’s the guy standing still. It’s like night and day. Chances are pretty good that you’ve probably just witnessed yet another Smush turnover during that minute and a half. I know it’s not really fair to compare Smush to Kobe, but regardless of how much talent you have (or in Smush’s case, how much talent you don’t have) the energy level should be the same. It’s no wonder Phil's been riding him lately.
So let's talk about what everyone really wants to know. What were those things on Cuttino Mobley’s arms last night? Does he always wear those? What are they? Are they bridal gloves with the hand portion cut off? They look like leg warmers for the arms. They’re arm warmers. Is there a medical or physical need to wear these arm warmers? Or does he wear them just because they look so damn fashionable? Do they only come in white or can I...err...I mean can one get them in other colors as well? Hmm. I guess Patrick Ewing introduced the under-the-jersey white t-shirt. Michael Jordan made long shorts and a shaved head trendy. And now Cuttino Mobley has brought women's hand wear to the forefront of NBA fashion. Well done, Cuttino. Well done.
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Clippers v. Lakers - April 12, 2007
I don't really know how to describe this game without a heavy dose of expletives. Besides the playoff implications, what really disappoints me is that these last few games are supposed to be about getting a good rhythm, a nice tight rotation, and fine tuning your defense. I really think that there's a lot of talent on this team, we're just not getting them to play together well. Now we're talking about possibly missing the playoffs??? We don't want to miss the playoffs no matter what the idiots on the radio say. This isn't the Celtics, we don't just start throwing games to hope we can get help from a 18 year old kid fresh out of college. Where the hell is our Laker pride? Blowing a 17 point lead always adds up to a couple people screwing up:
1) Smush playing matador defense on Sam Cassell who's the only player in the league to be taking an NBA check AND a social security check. Yes, Smush had some clutch 3's but he failed miserably defending the fire starter of the Clips.
2) Kobe taking crazy shots in the last 8 minutes of the game with tons of time on the clock. Trying to bank it off the glass is a good shot, banking it off Elton Brand's right hand is a bad shot...
3) Refs! It was almost like a flip of the coin what was going to be called and what wasn't. We all know that the NBA has the worst refs of any professional sport. I would like to say they called it too tight, or too loose, but my biggest complaint was that they called it completely without any sort of discernible rhyme or reason.
4) What happened to the Laker defense in general? When the Lakers went on their first big spurt, it was when Maurice Evans replaced Luke guarding Magette. Luke is great, and I love him on offense AND defense, but Magette is a freakish athlete, you need another freakish athlete to put on him on defense, and that's Mo. PJ should have put Mo on Magette in middle of that run the Clips made in the 4th quarter. I love Luke, seriously he's one of my favorite players, but he just doesn't match up well against these genetically engineered super-humans who can palm the hood of my car, crumple it up into a ball and dunk it on a 14 foot rim. Now if Luke was playing defense against a guy like he does in this instructional video I found on Youtube, it would be a different story:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1iDkDsHjyJs
There were some things I did like in the game:
1) Kobe in the first three quarters
Kobe was kinda coasting a little bit and letting the game come to him until he got that T for screaming at the ref. Is there anyone with more of a crazed look in their eye when they feel like they have been wronged by the refs? I mean it's almost an advantage to have a ref T up Kobe early in a game. He was relentless after that. Some of the things he did that were near impossible:
2) Luke Walton talking at the end of the half about mental toughness, winning close games, fading in the second half of games, keeping focus. It didn't seem like this kid from Arizona with the Grateful Dead tats was going to be a focused competitor and he really seems like it. That's got to be part of the effect of Kobe's leadership, really.
3) Vlad Rad making his debut (since snowboarding season is pretty much over) had the headband/hair combo with the bright purple protective undershirt on the gold jersey looked like he came straight off of the cover of "Poison: Look what the cat dragged in". I'm going to start saying "Look what the cat dragged in" every time I see him come off the bench... it's appropriate on so many levels...
1) Smush playing matador defense on Sam Cassell who's the only player in the league to be taking an NBA check AND a social security check. Yes, Smush had some clutch 3's but he failed miserably defending the fire starter of the Clips.
2) Kobe taking crazy shots in the last 8 minutes of the game with tons of time on the clock. Trying to bank it off the glass is a good shot, banking it off Elton Brand's right hand is a bad shot...
3) Refs! It was almost like a flip of the coin what was going to be called and what wasn't. We all know that the NBA has the worst refs of any professional sport. I would like to say they called it too tight, or too loose, but my biggest complaint was that they called it completely without any sort of discernible rhyme or reason.
4) What happened to the Laker defense in general? When the Lakers went on their first big spurt, it was when Maurice Evans replaced Luke guarding Magette. Luke is great, and I love him on offense AND defense, but Magette is a freakish athlete, you need another freakish athlete to put on him on defense, and that's Mo. PJ should have put Mo on Magette in middle of that run the Clips made in the 4th quarter. I love Luke, seriously he's one of my favorite players, but he just doesn't match up well against these genetically engineered super-humans who can palm the hood of my car, crumple it up into a ball and dunk it on a 14 foot rim. Now if Luke was playing defense against a guy like he does in this instructional video I found on Youtube, it would be a different story:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1iDkDsHjyJs
There were some things I did like in the game:
1) Kobe in the first three quarters
Kobe was kinda coasting a little bit and letting the game come to him until he got that T for screaming at the ref. Is there anyone with more of a crazed look in their eye when they feel like they have been wronged by the refs? I mean it's almost an advantage to have a ref T up Kobe early in a game. He was relentless after that. Some of the things he did that were near impossible:
- Started a spin move from the top of the key that ended in a silky smooth finger roll
- Fade-away shot from behind the basket in which he gets fouled for the 3-point play
- Kobe behind the back to dodge Sam Cassell's diving steal attempt and launching a jump shot that led to a Mo dunk (Granted, Sam thought he saw his AARP card on the floor and could have actually been diving for that)
- Fading into the corner with 28 seconds left to end the half to get the 2 for 1... crazy shot
2) Luke Walton talking at the end of the half about mental toughness, winning close games, fading in the second half of games, keeping focus. It didn't seem like this kid from Arizona with the Grateful Dead tats was going to be a focused competitor and he really seems like it. That's got to be part of the effect of Kobe's leadership, really.
3) Vlad Rad making his debut (since snowboarding season is pretty much over) had the headband/hair combo with the bright purple protective undershirt on the gold jersey looked like he came straight off of the cover of "Poison: Look what the cat dragged in". I'm going to start saying "Look what the cat dragged in" every time I see him come off the bench... it's appropriate on so many levels...
Monday, April 9, 2007
Dodger and the Hated Ones April 6th, 2007
"Beat LA, Beat LA, Beat LA"
This was the familiar, if not played out chant that the 43 thousand or so fans were bellowing out Friday night at Candlestick, err I mean AT&T ballpark in fog shrouded San Francisco. Before I get on to my review of the game I just want to make a brief comment on the "Beat LA" chant that LA Teams from the Dodgers, Lakers to the Kings hear all over North America.. Is there any other city in North America that elicits this kind of hatred? I mean come on, you never here "Beat New York" or "Beat Chicago" or "Beat Ottawa"...?? What is it that the rest of the continent finds so contemptfull about LosAngeles?? Oh I know, it must be our weather right? No, maybe it's the Hollywood sign? Wait I got it, it must be a combination of the wether, Hollywood and the fact that no where else in the world can you go surfing, off roading and skiing all in one day!! Ya, that's it, the rest of North America is just jealous and the best way for them to let us Los Angelenos know about it is to start up the old, "Beat LA" chant when ever one of our Teams rolls into their town. Back to the game, a sell out crowd and an all time attendance record no less for the hated ones, that came to see their team exact some measure of revenge on those Boy's in Blue who only 7 months earlier were doing a happy dance on their field and spraying champagne all over each other after clinching a playoff berth. Unfortunately for the locals the Dodgers once again continued their mastery over the hated ones. Penny was dealing, mixing up his off speed pitches and spotting fastballs, probably the best I have ever seen Penny as a Dodger. Russel Martin was not only calling a great came from behind the plate, he was making defensive plays that were reminiscent of Yeager, throwing guys out trying to steal second, blocking home plate with his leg a the last minute preventing the hated ones runner from making a play for the plate, all in all a stellar game from the Dodger battery. There were a few fielding blunders, like the Gonzo miss play on Bond's fly ball, and there wasn't alot of offense in this game. This was a pitcher's duel and these types of games are always decided by the Team that blinks and makes a bonehead play. After Gonzo's gaffe it looked it might be the Dodgers who were going to be them time, but as fate would have it for the hated ones it was them. Again.
This was the familiar, if not played out chant that the 43 thousand or so fans were bellowing out Friday night at Candlestick, err I mean AT&T ballpark in fog shrouded San Francisco. Before I get on to my review of the game I just want to make a brief comment on the "Beat LA" chant that LA Teams from the Dodgers, Lakers to the Kings hear all over North America.. Is there any other city in North America that elicits this kind of hatred? I mean come on, you never here "Beat New York" or "Beat Chicago" or "Beat Ottawa"...?? What is it that the rest of the continent finds so contemptfull about LosAngeles?? Oh I know, it must be our weather right? No, maybe it's the Hollywood sign? Wait I got it, it must be a combination of the wether, Hollywood and the fact that no where else in the world can you go surfing, off roading and skiing all in one day!! Ya, that's it, the rest of North America is just jealous and the best way for them to let us Los Angelenos know about it is to start up the old, "Beat LA" chant when ever one of our Teams rolls into their town. Back to the game, a sell out crowd and an all time attendance record no less for the hated ones, that came to see their team exact some measure of revenge on those Boy's in Blue who only 7 months earlier were doing a happy dance on their field and spraying champagne all over each other after clinching a playoff berth. Unfortunately for the locals the Dodgers once again continued their mastery over the hated ones. Penny was dealing, mixing up his off speed pitches and spotting fastballs, probably the best I have ever seen Penny as a Dodger. Russel Martin was not only calling a great came from behind the plate, he was making defensive plays that were reminiscent of Yeager, throwing guys out trying to steal second, blocking home plate with his leg a the last minute preventing the hated ones runner from making a play for the plate, all in all a stellar game from the Dodger battery. There were a few fielding blunders, like the Gonzo miss play on Bond's fly ball, and there wasn't alot of offense in this game. This was a pitcher's duel and these types of games are always decided by the Team that blinks and makes a bonehead play. After Gonzo's gaffe it looked it might be the Dodgers who were going to be them time, but as fate would have it for the hated ones it was them. Again.
Saturday, April 7, 2007
Dodgers at giants - April 6, 2007
There is no way in hell Ray Durham ever out-jumped Michael Jordan. I don’t care if you cut both of Jordan’s legs off and strap a couple of man-hole covers to his back, he still out jumps Durham any day of the week and twice on Sunday.
There. I had to get that off my chest. Other than relaying that bit of misinformation to the viewing audience, I thought Vin Scully was in mid-season form.
It never feels quite like baseball season has started until the Dodgers and giants square off. Boy, those giants fans sure don’t like the Dodgers, do they? There were plenty of Dodgers fans in the crowd though. You really had to be paying attention to see it, but when they came back from a commercial break they showed a Dodger fan interacting with the giants’ mascot, Lou Seal. I had to go back and watch it a second time to confirm, but the fan actually smacked Lou Seal below the belt before darting off into the crowd. I mean, he smacked him right in the junk. On tv no less. Funny stuff.
If Russell Martin's block of the plate didn’t bring back memories of Iron Mike Scioscia wearing the gear for the Dodgers I don’t know what will. You could actually see Martin’s Canadian heritage break through as he did his best hockey goalie kick save maneuver to deny the runner from ever touching the plate with his foot – even though the runner arrived at the scene well before the ball even did. I’m sorry, but if you’re a runner thinking you’re that close to scoring when all of a sudden the catcher’s leg drops down like an iron door and you’re tagged out, you’ve got feel pretty shocked and a little bit silly. I hope he had plenty of family and friends in the crowd to see it. Yep, that Martin is pretty awesome. He's gonna make a fine manager for the Angels one day, I'm sure.
Ramon Martinez certainly had the kind of inning that I’m sure he’ll remember for a long time. He’ll be old and gray telling his grandkids about that defensive half inning I’m sure. Rightfully so, too. Not bad for a guy who used to pitch for the Dodgers back in the 90s.
One last observation from last night’s game; I noticed Bonds, like the rest of the giants, has his name stenciled on the back of his helmet. Does he really need to do this? Is someone really going to accidentally pick up Bonds’ gargantuan helmet, mistaking it for their own? That thing has got to be absolutely huge to be able to fit on Bonds’ enormously over-sized head. Didn’t Rick Moranis wear Bonds’ helmet while portraying the character Lord Helmet in the movie Space Balls? I thought so.
There. I had to get that off my chest. Other than relaying that bit of misinformation to the viewing audience, I thought Vin Scully was in mid-season form.
It never feels quite like baseball season has started until the Dodgers and giants square off. Boy, those giants fans sure don’t like the Dodgers, do they? There were plenty of Dodgers fans in the crowd though. You really had to be paying attention to see it, but when they came back from a commercial break they showed a Dodger fan interacting with the giants’ mascot, Lou Seal. I had to go back and watch it a second time to confirm, but the fan actually smacked Lou Seal below the belt before darting off into the crowd. I mean, he smacked him right in the junk. On tv no less. Funny stuff.
If Russell Martin's block of the plate didn’t bring back memories of Iron Mike Scioscia wearing the gear for the Dodgers I don’t know what will. You could actually see Martin’s Canadian heritage break through as he did his best hockey goalie kick save maneuver to deny the runner from ever touching the plate with his foot – even though the runner arrived at the scene well before the ball even did. I’m sorry, but if you’re a runner thinking you’re that close to scoring when all of a sudden the catcher’s leg drops down like an iron door and you’re tagged out, you’ve got feel pretty shocked and a little bit silly. I hope he had plenty of family and friends in the crowd to see it. Yep, that Martin is pretty awesome. He's gonna make a fine manager for the Angels one day, I'm sure.
Ramon Martinez certainly had the kind of inning that I’m sure he’ll remember for a long time. He’ll be old and gray telling his grandkids about that defensive half inning I’m sure. Rightfully so, too. Not bad for a guy who used to pitch for the Dodgers back in the 90s.
One last observation from last night’s game; I noticed Bonds, like the rest of the giants, has his name stenciled on the back of his helmet. Does he really need to do this? Is someone really going to accidentally pick up Bonds’ gargantuan helmet, mistaking it for their own? That thing has got to be absolutely huge to be able to fit on Bonds’ enormously over-sized head. Didn’t Rick Moranis wear Bonds’ helmet while portraying the character Lord Helmet in the movie Space Balls? I thought so.
Friday, March 30, 2007
Canucks at Kings - March 29, 2007
Well, well, well. We finally got to see what all this Jack Johnson fuss has been about. In a season that has been absolutely dismal, even for us long-suffering Kings Fans, it was nice to have something that we could all be enthusiastic about here in the spring. That never happens with Kings fans. Jack Johnson got his official welcome to the NHL by being “pin-wheeled” by a Canuck pretty early on in the game. Nice to see Thornton come to his aid, but it was especially nice to see that Johnson was willing to get physical to protect himself as well. I think with all the talk about the tremendous skills that he has, people tend to forget that he’s still a defenseman. He even got into that little shoving episode with a Canuck after receiving what Jim Fox kept referring to as 'the cold shoulder.’ I guess what this means is, he’s no sissy, folks.
All things considered, I was trying not to get too excited about the whole thing. After all, we’re talking about a guy who signed a contract just days ago and was thrown onto the ice to make his NHL debut with all of one practice under his belt. I was surprised to see how much ice time he got, especially on special teams. Anyway, it didn’t take long to realize that he looks like he’s going to be a good one. He definitely looks like what I would call a playmaker, a creator, a facilitator if you will. Anyway, I wonder if the Kings have already determined which Stanley Cup contender they’ll trade him away to in a few years. This will, of course, have to be done if the Kings are going to continue with their “40 year long, 5-year rolling, continuous rebuilding plan.” It’s the only rebuilding plan of its kind in any sport. Nobody does rebuilding like the Kings. Nobody. Maybe that should be their marketing tag line for next season. And the next season. And the season after that….
The future does look bright for the Kings though. They’re going to be a lot of fun to watch next year. Question; is anyone on the Kings as exciting to watch as Dustin Brown? If your answer is anything but ‘yes’ you’re wrong. He’s soooo damn fast. He’s got big-time scoring capability and he’s one of the top hitters in the league. This guy knocks someone on his ass at least once a game. And it’s always a real crowd pleaser of a hit, too. Not one of those grazing hits that Patrick O’Sullivan was dishing out last night. You could almost see the target skate away with a grin on his face after receiving a mighty O’Sullivan blow. Anyway, Camalleri is awesome. Frolov continues to frustrate since he still hasn’t lived up to his potential (he’s the Kings’ answer to Devean George). Yet his numbers have improved. Kopitar has superstar potential, and Visnovsky is one of the good young defensemen in the NHL. All we need is a goalie. Wait a minute! Maybe that should be the Kings marketing tag line for next season and every season going forward.
All things considered, I was trying not to get too excited about the whole thing. After all, we’re talking about a guy who signed a contract just days ago and was thrown onto the ice to make his NHL debut with all of one practice under his belt. I was surprised to see how much ice time he got, especially on special teams. Anyway, it didn’t take long to realize that he looks like he’s going to be a good one. He definitely looks like what I would call a playmaker, a creator, a facilitator if you will. Anyway, I wonder if the Kings have already determined which Stanley Cup contender they’ll trade him away to in a few years. This will, of course, have to be done if the Kings are going to continue with their “40 year long, 5-year rolling, continuous rebuilding plan.” It’s the only rebuilding plan of its kind in any sport. Nobody does rebuilding like the Kings. Nobody. Maybe that should be their marketing tag line for next season. And the next season. And the season after that….
The future does look bright for the Kings though. They’re going to be a lot of fun to watch next year. Question; is anyone on the Kings as exciting to watch as Dustin Brown? If your answer is anything but ‘yes’ you’re wrong. He’s soooo damn fast. He’s got big-time scoring capability and he’s one of the top hitters in the league. This guy knocks someone on his ass at least once a game. And it’s always a real crowd pleaser of a hit, too. Not one of those grazing hits that Patrick O’Sullivan was dishing out last night. You could almost see the target skate away with a grin on his face after receiving a mighty O’Sullivan blow. Anyway, Camalleri is awesome. Frolov continues to frustrate since he still hasn’t lived up to his potential (he’s the Kings’ answer to Devean George). Yet his numbers have improved. Kopitar has superstar potential, and Visnovsky is one of the good young defensemen in the NHL. All we need is a goalie. Wait a minute! Maybe that should be the Kings marketing tag line for next season and every season going forward.
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