Thursday, November 11, 2004
VETERANS' DAY ROUNDUP
Welcome to Thursday, and Veterans' Day, dear readers. There's some light sprinkles around all the sports here, and the Sonics won the back end of a back-to-back set. Enjoy your read.
One tidbit before starting the show -- NASCAR has ended the ban on liquor sponsorship. Juvenile interpretation: kick those cigs to the curb, and get yer drank on! Yes, the Nextel Cup was called the Winston Cup for decades before this year and was (I'm pretty sure) the last tobacco sponsor to bite the dust in NASCAR. I remember the Kodiak/Skoal/Copenhagen/etc. cars of years past. And now that we've seen the liquor advertising ban lifted on TV in recent years, get ready for post-race quotes such as "we had a great car today, but I couldn't have done it without the pit crew, Roush/Jack Daniel's Racing..." I guess there's terms in the sponsorship agreement that say the liquor companies have to also stress responsible drinking, but I just hope if anyone's getting bit after a day of racewatching, it isn't whoever's driving home.
BASEBALL
David Andriesen warns us to beware the Boras. Though I'm glad that Bill Bavasi is receptive and has some rapport with Scott Boras (definitely more than Gillick), the whole "good relationship" with Bavasi (i.e., I think he'll get taken) thing mixed with the obvious Boras motive and results has me a little apprehensive about what could happen. Let's just say that if the Mariners give Boras what he's seeking for Jason Varitek (five years with a no-trade clause, according to the article), I might just bash my head in with a sledgehammer because Varitek will be 38 when the deal runs out. Yuck. Who knows what Boras will command for Derek Lowe, if the Mariners want him? Boras has so many players and so much leverage it's sick. Out of the crop of free agents mentioned in the article (Beltran, Beltre, Drew, Varitek, Ordonez, Lowe), Magglio is probably the one that Boras has the least amount of leverage with. All the other ones will more than likely be makin' bank, or beaucoup bucks, whatever, when they sign their new deals. And here the Mariners sit, with a grip of money (insert your preferred payroll figure here) waiting to be spent.
The Mariners' spring training schedule is at the end of the Andriesen article. The prices have not changed at the ballyard in Peoria, as clarified by the Stone article (next) saying that the low ticket is $6 (grass) and the high ticket is $23.
Larry Stone brings us more on Don Baylor. Here's a quote: "I definitely believe in RBIs. That's the name of the game — driving in runs." Okay, I like the sound of that. Next quote: "You can tell guys all day long to give themselves up and move the runner over. ... Most guys don't trust themselves enough to go ahead and get the guy over the best way they can. That's what I'll try to sell" [emphasis added]. My optimistic side here wants to interpret this as "hey, you don't have to bunt, you can just hit the ball to the right side, work the count and see what happens, whatever. As a fan that got sick and tired of bunting last year, I hope I don't see as much of it next year, though as we know, a hitting coach only matters so much.
As for other things in baseball...
Instant replay? It's a topic on the docket today at the GM meetings. Most indications suggest that if it were instituted, it definitely wouldn't be on balls and strikes, but more along the lines of fair/foul (especially on homers). Mariner manager Mike Hargrove says "it could be a benefit." Something has to be said for umpires conferring (as they did multiple times during the ALCS), however, and whether that renders replays unnecessary. I have to say though, that if they did pull through with it, I'd want a video judge either in the stadium or at the league office like in hockey for questionable goals. I've never agreed with the way the NFL does the instant replays right now, the way the referee goes to the replay machine thing, exposed to the crowd (only matters if it's hostile, I guess). I think all these replay decisions shouldn't be made by anybody on the field after replay resources are summoned. Of course, I'm sure a referees' union would be ticked off if the referees suddenly were asked to forfeit the ability to make decisions after going under the replay thingy, but I just think an independent off-field judge would make it better.
Buck Showalter and Bobby Cox are this year's AL and NL managers of the year.
-- For Bucky, I've trashed him in the past, but I know I picked them to finish behind the Mariners before the season, and while we know how that turned out, who would've thought the Rangers would have been in the playoff hunt until the final week of the season? That's a hittin' team right there. Just think how good they'll be when they get some more decent starting pitching. This is what ticks me off: the Mariners had a few years' worth of a window where not only could they and should they have gone for it all, they could almost guarantee that the Rangers were going to finish last, and therefore only had to worry about leapfrogging Oakland and Anaheim. Not so anymore. Dammit.
-- As for Cox, I've trashed him countless times in the past, and never believed before this year that he was an above-average manager. Then I'd try to back it up with the a-monkey-could-have-managed-a-team-with-Maddux-Glavine-and-Smoltz argument (I use the Johnson-Schilling argument with Bob Brenly too, who was in his first year as a manager when he won his World Series), but this was the first year where the Maddux/Glavine/Smoltz argument didn't apply. That team of Braves this year was without Gary Sheffield, Javy Lopez, and Greg Maddux, sucked out of the gate (33-39) and then played .700 ball (63-27) the rest of the way. Crap, even Jaret Wright was good.
-- Thankfully, Phil Garner finished fourth in the NL voting and was a non-factor. I may have thrown up everywhere if he would have won the award.
Lastly, Roger Clemens won the NL Cy Young Award, and then got beat by the Japanese All-Stars. Granted, it was only a 3-1 loss. In a not-so-related question, how many athletes out there can say that they alienated not one, but two fanbases during a career?
FOOTBALL
It's midseason report card time for the Seahawks, and Greg Bishop and Jose Miguel Romero are the ones handing out the grades. I like how in the blip about for wide receiver/tight end, no name is dropped of any Seahawk tight end, though drops of passes are unsurprisingly mentioned. They come out with a B grade, then say the average is 2.84, which to me is closer to a B-minus (2.7) than a straight B (3.0), but that's just me. There's a part about special teams, and though the blame's not solely on Josh Brown and Donnie Jones, something's got to be done about the fact that opposing teams seem to be getting the ball too much on the wrong side of the 30 yard line (or 25, if you think that's a little harsh). It's Brown and Jones if the kick is short, but it's the punt/kickoff teams too for allowing all these 15-yard returns. I miss Alex Bannister.
Jeremy will love this. Mike Martz done lost his mind. "We don't hold hands and get in a seance and (sing) 'Kumbaya, my Lord.' I'm not into that. We've got a direction we're going, and you're on the train or you're not. Get out. Period." Once again, to reiterate, the Seahawks absolutely have to win on Sunday. This has to happen. Send the Rams into a tailspin, please. I would like nothing more.
That last article also says that Ken Lucas feels fine (doctors still erring toward caution), and that Grant Wistrom will be a Sunday decision.
As for the rest of the NFL...
Imagine you're at training camp last summer for the Denver Broncos. Imagine you coach the DBs and just got Champ Bailey in your backfield. Imagine the anticipation and heightened expectations that brings. Imagine you get fired before Week 10. Ouch.
Clark Judge brings us the Ricky Awards. Yes, they're an homage to Ricky Williams. Semi-hilarity ensues.
SONICS
For my take on the game, scroll down or click here.
Here's the Danny O'Neil wrap. Brad Miller, who was T'd up in the second half, had this to say, "Danny Fortson's physical, but the way Reggie Evans played that's not physical. That's just grabbing and holding, pushing and shoving and hoping they don't call it on you." Chris Webber, held last night to 2-for-13 shooting from the floor, had some assessments as well for this version of the Sonics. Kevin Calabro and Craig Ehlo on the radio thought Webber might have been severely limited in terms of mobility due to his knee.
Here's the Percy Allen wrap. The beginning of the article focuses on setting screens, which Antonio Daniels says the Sonics have bought into. One play in particular comes to mind in the game, and that was the Mike Bibby play where apparently he called timeout, though the crowd, Calabro, Ehlo, and I all wanted a travel to be called. Bibby was bringing the ball up the court, and I think Ridnour backed off a bit from defending him in back court. Then Radmanovic came back the other way after noticing Bibby's head was turned and set a pick on the other side of the halfcourt line. I can't remember if Vlad stayed on Bibby after he set the pick, but Bibby ended up falling all over himself and he apparently called timeout as he was falling toward the floor in front of a Sonic defender.
Upcoming...
Friday: Toronto at Seattle
Sunday: Memphis at Seattle
Tuesday: Seattle at Philadelphia
HOCKEY
Before I get to the one game tonight, let's give some space to the US women's team, who put a hurtin' on Finland by a score 6-1 in first-round play in the Four Nations Cup (Canada and Sweden are the other teams). Team USA outshot Finland 44-14.
Seattle beat Vancouver, 5-0. The Giants returned home from their road trip and got smacked. Despite the score, the shot totals were pretty low for both sides, with the Thunderbirds outshooting the Giants 21-13. Tyler Metcalfe scored twice for the T-Birds, with Aaron Gagnon, Nate Thompson, and Ladislav Scurko accounting for the rest of the goals. Bryan Bridges stopped all 13 shots he faced for his 9th Seattle shutout, and Marek Schwarz stopped 16 for the Giants. Seattle extended their lead over Everett to four points atop the US Division.
But there is some good news for one Giant, as 17-year-old centre Gilbert Brule will be representing the WHL in the 2004 ADT Canada Russia Challenge (because they couldn't just sponsor college football's national championship). Mark Fistric was also named to the WHL team earlier in the month, but is currently out after breaking his jaw for the second time this season. A team of WHL players will be taking on a select team of Russians December 1st and 2nd in Red Deer and Lethbridge. Big fun.
Upcoming...
Tonight: Everett at Brandon, Manitoba at Cleveland
Friday: Everett at Regina, Seattle at Spokane, Portland at Vancouver, Manitoba at Cincinnati, Puget Sound at Tri-City
Saturday: Vancouver at Seattle, Portland at Spokane, Manitoba at Cincinnati, Puget Sound at Tri-City
Sunday: Vancouver at Kootenay
---
I'm watching the Cristina show (I learned in past Spanish classes that she's the Spanish Oprah) right now on Univision, and this episode is kids-oriented, and there are kids sitting on stage, and sharing the stage with Barney, and some beautiful latex-clad dancing woman. I'm not sure where she fits into it, but I've noticed that on Univision, 98% of all females shown are extremely beautiful, and I'm wondering whether that's on purpose or if it's an adequate representation of the Spanish-speaking population at large. I'm leaning toward the former because 98% is astounding. In a related story, look at the time when this was posted.
It's Thursday, everyone. It's also Veterans' Day. Thanks to all the veterans past, and to all the troops and veterans in the making.
One tidbit before starting the show -- NASCAR has ended the ban on liquor sponsorship. Juvenile interpretation: kick those cigs to the curb, and get yer drank on! Yes, the Nextel Cup was called the Winston Cup for decades before this year and was (I'm pretty sure) the last tobacco sponsor to bite the dust in NASCAR. I remember the Kodiak/Skoal/Copenhagen/etc. cars of years past. And now that we've seen the liquor advertising ban lifted on TV in recent years, get ready for post-race quotes such as "we had a great car today, but I couldn't have done it without the pit crew, Roush/Jack Daniel's Racing..." I guess there's terms in the sponsorship agreement that say the liquor companies have to also stress responsible drinking, but I just hope if anyone's getting bit after a day of racewatching, it isn't whoever's driving home.
BASEBALL
David Andriesen warns us to beware the Boras. Though I'm glad that Bill Bavasi is receptive and has some rapport with Scott Boras (definitely more than Gillick), the whole "good relationship" with Bavasi (i.e., I think he'll get taken) thing mixed with the obvious Boras motive and results has me a little apprehensive about what could happen. Let's just say that if the Mariners give Boras what he's seeking for Jason Varitek (five years with a no-trade clause, according to the article), I might just bash my head in with a sledgehammer because Varitek will be 38 when the deal runs out. Yuck. Who knows what Boras will command for Derek Lowe, if the Mariners want him? Boras has so many players and so much leverage it's sick. Out of the crop of free agents mentioned in the article (Beltran, Beltre, Drew, Varitek, Ordonez, Lowe), Magglio is probably the one that Boras has the least amount of leverage with. All the other ones will more than likely be makin' bank, or beaucoup bucks, whatever, when they sign their new deals. And here the Mariners sit, with a grip of money (insert your preferred payroll figure here) waiting to be spent.
The Mariners' spring training schedule is at the end of the Andriesen article. The prices have not changed at the ballyard in Peoria, as clarified by the Stone article (next) saying that the low ticket is $6 (grass) and the high ticket is $23.
Larry Stone brings us more on Don Baylor. Here's a quote: "I definitely believe in RBIs. That's the name of the game — driving in runs." Okay, I like the sound of that. Next quote: "You can tell guys all day long to give themselves up and move the runner over. ... Most guys don't trust themselves enough to go ahead and get the guy over the best way they can. That's what I'll try to sell" [emphasis added]. My optimistic side here wants to interpret this as "hey, you don't have to bunt, you can just hit the ball to the right side, work the count and see what happens, whatever. As a fan that got sick and tired of bunting last year, I hope I don't see as much of it next year, though as we know, a hitting coach only matters so much.
As for other things in baseball...
Instant replay? It's a topic on the docket today at the GM meetings. Most indications suggest that if it were instituted, it definitely wouldn't be on balls and strikes, but more along the lines of fair/foul (especially on homers). Mariner manager Mike Hargrove says "it could be a benefit." Something has to be said for umpires conferring (as they did multiple times during the ALCS), however, and whether that renders replays unnecessary. I have to say though, that if they did pull through with it, I'd want a video judge either in the stadium or at the league office like in hockey for questionable goals. I've never agreed with the way the NFL does the instant replays right now, the way the referee goes to the replay machine thing, exposed to the crowd (only matters if it's hostile, I guess). I think all these replay decisions shouldn't be made by anybody on the field after replay resources are summoned. Of course, I'm sure a referees' union would be ticked off if the referees suddenly were asked to forfeit the ability to make decisions after going under the replay thingy, but I just think an independent off-field judge would make it better.
Buck Showalter and Bobby Cox are this year's AL and NL managers of the year.
-- For Bucky, I've trashed him in the past, but I know I picked them to finish behind the Mariners before the season, and while we know how that turned out, who would've thought the Rangers would have been in the playoff hunt until the final week of the season? That's a hittin' team right there. Just think how good they'll be when they get some more decent starting pitching. This is what ticks me off: the Mariners had a few years' worth of a window where not only could they and should they have gone for it all, they could almost guarantee that the Rangers were going to finish last, and therefore only had to worry about leapfrogging Oakland and Anaheim. Not so anymore. Dammit.
-- As for Cox, I've trashed him countless times in the past, and never believed before this year that he was an above-average manager. Then I'd try to back it up with the a-monkey-could-have-managed-a-team-with-Maddux-Glavine-and-Smoltz argument (I use the Johnson-Schilling argument with Bob Brenly too, who was in his first year as a manager when he won his World Series), but this was the first year where the Maddux/Glavine/Smoltz argument didn't apply. That team of Braves this year was without Gary Sheffield, Javy Lopez, and Greg Maddux, sucked out of the gate (33-39) and then played .700 ball (63-27) the rest of the way. Crap, even Jaret Wright was good.
-- Thankfully, Phil Garner finished fourth in the NL voting and was a non-factor. I may have thrown up everywhere if he would have won the award.
Lastly, Roger Clemens won the NL Cy Young Award, and then got beat by the Japanese All-Stars. Granted, it was only a 3-1 loss. In a not-so-related question, how many athletes out there can say that they alienated not one, but two fanbases during a career?
FOOTBALL
It's midseason report card time for the Seahawks, and Greg Bishop and Jose Miguel Romero are the ones handing out the grades. I like how in the blip about for wide receiver/tight end, no name is dropped of any Seahawk tight end, though drops of passes are unsurprisingly mentioned. They come out with a B grade, then say the average is 2.84, which to me is closer to a B-minus (2.7) than a straight B (3.0), but that's just me. There's a part about special teams, and though the blame's not solely on Josh Brown and Donnie Jones, something's got to be done about the fact that opposing teams seem to be getting the ball too much on the wrong side of the 30 yard line (or 25, if you think that's a little harsh). It's Brown and Jones if the kick is short, but it's the punt/kickoff teams too for allowing all these 15-yard returns. I miss Alex Bannister.
Jeremy will love this. Mike Martz done lost his mind. "We don't hold hands and get in a seance and (sing) 'Kumbaya, my Lord.' I'm not into that. We've got a direction we're going, and you're on the train or you're not. Get out. Period." Once again, to reiterate, the Seahawks absolutely have to win on Sunday. This has to happen. Send the Rams into a tailspin, please. I would like nothing more.
That last article also says that Ken Lucas feels fine (doctors still erring toward caution), and that Grant Wistrom will be a Sunday decision.
As for the rest of the NFL...
Imagine you're at training camp last summer for the Denver Broncos. Imagine you coach the DBs and just got Champ Bailey in your backfield. Imagine the anticipation and heightened expectations that brings. Imagine you get fired before Week 10. Ouch.
Clark Judge brings us the Ricky Awards. Yes, they're an homage to Ricky Williams. Semi-hilarity ensues.
SONICS
For my take on the game, scroll down or click here.
Here's the Danny O'Neil wrap. Brad Miller, who was T'd up in the second half, had this to say, "Danny Fortson's physical, but the way Reggie Evans played that's not physical. That's just grabbing and holding, pushing and shoving and hoping they don't call it on you." Chris Webber, held last night to 2-for-13 shooting from the floor, had some assessments as well for this version of the Sonics. Kevin Calabro and Craig Ehlo on the radio thought Webber might have been severely limited in terms of mobility due to his knee.
Here's the Percy Allen wrap. The beginning of the article focuses on setting screens, which Antonio Daniels says the Sonics have bought into. One play in particular comes to mind in the game, and that was the Mike Bibby play where apparently he called timeout, though the crowd, Calabro, Ehlo, and I all wanted a travel to be called. Bibby was bringing the ball up the court, and I think Ridnour backed off a bit from defending him in back court. Then Radmanovic came back the other way after noticing Bibby's head was turned and set a pick on the other side of the halfcourt line. I can't remember if Vlad stayed on Bibby after he set the pick, but Bibby ended up falling all over himself and he apparently called timeout as he was falling toward the floor in front of a Sonic defender.
Upcoming...
Friday: Toronto at Seattle
Sunday: Memphis at Seattle
Tuesday: Seattle at Philadelphia
HOCKEY
Before I get to the one game tonight, let's give some space to the US women's team, who put a hurtin' on Finland by a score 6-1 in first-round play in the Four Nations Cup (Canada and Sweden are the other teams). Team USA outshot Finland 44-14.
Seattle beat Vancouver, 5-0. The Giants returned home from their road trip and got smacked. Despite the score, the shot totals were pretty low for both sides, with the Thunderbirds outshooting the Giants 21-13. Tyler Metcalfe scored twice for the T-Birds, with Aaron Gagnon, Nate Thompson, and Ladislav Scurko accounting for the rest of the goals. Bryan Bridges stopped all 13 shots he faced for his 9th Seattle shutout, and Marek Schwarz stopped 16 for the Giants. Seattle extended their lead over Everett to four points atop the US Division.
But there is some good news for one Giant, as 17-year-old centre Gilbert Brule will be representing the WHL in the 2004 ADT Canada Russia Challenge (because they couldn't just sponsor college football's national championship). Mark Fistric was also named to the WHL team earlier in the month, but is currently out after breaking his jaw for the second time this season. A team of WHL players will be taking on a select team of Russians December 1st and 2nd in Red Deer and Lethbridge. Big fun.
Upcoming...
Tonight: Everett at Brandon, Manitoba at Cleveland
Friday: Everett at Regina, Seattle at Spokane, Portland at Vancouver, Manitoba at Cincinnati, Puget Sound at Tri-City
Saturday: Vancouver at Seattle, Portland at Spokane, Manitoba at Cincinnati, Puget Sound at Tri-City
Sunday: Vancouver at Kootenay
---
I'm watching the Cristina show (I learned in past Spanish classes that she's the Spanish Oprah) right now on Univision, and this episode is kids-oriented, and there are kids sitting on stage, and sharing the stage with Barney, and some beautiful latex-clad dancing woman. I'm not sure where she fits into it, but I've noticed that on Univision, 98% of all females shown are extremely beautiful, and I'm wondering whether that's on purpose or if it's an adequate representation of the Spanish-speaking population at large. I'm leaning toward the former because 98% is astounding. In a related story, look at the time when this was posted.
It's Thursday, everyone. It's also Veterans' Day. Thanks to all the veterans past, and to all the troops and veterans in the making.
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