Tuesday, December 21, 2004
TENDERIZER
It's a pretty light day, although there was a pulse coming out of the Mariner camp. The Seahawks dealt with the day after yet another loss, and the Sonics don't play until tomorrow. Hockey doesn't come back until the 27th, unless you count the World Junior Championships.
Dive in...
MARINERS
The good news is that there's some rumblings that Odalis Perez and the Mariners have one another on their lists. Even if they need to move Randy Winn and Ryan Franklin to do it, I say get him. Sheesh, the Mariners could have three lefties in their rotation come next season with Jamie Moyer, Bobby Madritsch, and possibly Odalis Perez. Sandwich Joel Pineiro and Gil Meche in there, and you've got a lefty-righty club sandwich, or something like that. If Adrian Beltre can convince him to come up, all the better too. The only bad news in the article? Willie Bloomquist was tendered, as opposed to non-tendered.
He's a former Mariner, but it's never good when Mike Cameron has to get wrist surgery and will miss the start of the season. Boo. It's more cause for Pedro to strike everyone out, or just make sure all the fly balls get pulled down the lines.
SEAHAWKS
The X-ray was negative. The MRI showed no ligament damage. The verdict is that Matt Hasselbeck is expected to start on Sunday even after the hit that Sammy Ellis delivered to his elbow. Hasselbeck said that the elbow "feels like something's not right." Though not with his exact injury, I know I've felt like that before. It'd feel like one muscle is in the wrong place or something, though it wouldn't be painful. It'd be incredibly uncomfortable, and I knew something wasn't right, but it wasn't painful. I think I might have had some type of injury like this in my left foot (I think it was an arch or something) when I was 15 and playing Babe Ruth ball. Basically, my mobility wasn't quite suitable for the outfield, so I was limited to pitching, catching, and playing first base, which I really didn't mind doing. When I got back to full strength, though, it was right back to left and center.
John Levesque hates replay. I don't hate replay, but I do hate that the Ken Hamlin fumble recovery wasn't open to challenge because an official (40 yards away) decided the ball was down. This was discussed on the Fox broadcast, but why couldn't they just put away the whistles for a second and let that go? The touchdown could have been challenged and overturned as necessary. I'm not sure if it comes to whether the whistling down of the ball (and whether it was indeed down) is what should be reviewable, or if it's just down to the officials being able to know better as to when to put away the whistle. Now I'm just rambling.
Here's the column I've been waiting for. Steve Kelley unloads on Ray Rhodes. Rhodes has not talked to the media this season, as per usual. There's tons of questions that go unanswered, both this year and last. Kelley suggests that Rhodes isn't accountable for the bad happenings regarding this year's defense. Kelley says that the fans deserve an explanation because they're investing their time and hard-earned money in watching this so-called defense. Yeah, they've been riddled with injuries, but why isn't anyone sans Boulware stepping up? Also, can anyone out there remember the last point this year where you might have been somewhat convinced that the pass rush may have improved upon last year? I think I can remember some point in those first three games earlier in the year, but it's such a distant memory now. I think it involved Grant Wistrom. The point is, they're fourteen games into the season and have no semblance of a pass rush. The late Fritz Shurmer's name is mentioned in the article, and it's so true; it hasn't been the same for Holmgren since Shurmur left the earth, and Holmgren hasn't been able to get anyone even close to Shurmur in his place.
BASKETBALL
The Marvin Williams Watch
The 8-1 Tar Heels host the Catamounts of Vermont at 4pm today. Marvin Williams is averaging 9.3 points and 6.3 rebounds in 21.6 minutes a game off the bench. After the Vermont game, the Tar Heels get a week off before hosting UNC-Wilmington next Tuesday and Cleveland State next Thursday.
Huskies
Washington hosts Sacred Heart at Montlake on Wednesday night. I might be going on a limb here, but I'm thinking the Huskies win that game. The Huskies also face the Cougars on Christmas Eve at 1pm. That's the Houston Cougars. Pac-10 play doesn't start for the Huskies until New Year's Eve, when they'll host the Cal Bears.
Sonics
"It's a flare." That's allegedly what Vince Carter yelled out as his team was inbounding the ball down seven points late in the fourth quarter of the Sonics' win over the Raptors at the Air Canada Centre. The Sonics aren't saying much about it, and really it doesn't matter. Vince Carter isn't in Toronto anymore, and regarding the play itself, Vlad Radmanovic had the best quote: "[b]ut they scored." Carter went off a Matt Bonner screen, flared into the corner, caught Bonner's pass and fed it back to him, and Bonner sank a jumper. Well said, Vlad Rad. It's Vince Carter, and he plays for the Nets, who play in the Eastern Conference. None of this matters. The Heat are the class of that conference right now.
Ron Murray is taking Nick Collison's minutes. Murray has played in two games since returning from the quad injury. In those two games, he has done barely anything, and worse yet, the offense has a whole hasn't done anything with him out there. Though it seems hard to put him in now, he's got to at least be serviceable for 15 or so minutes (as asserted in the article) so that Ray Allen's legs don't collapse under him in April and May because he's been playing 43 minutes a night. If the Sonics can get optimal minutes out of Murray like they get out of Danny Fortson, then it'll be lethal.
Nobody caught that I'd copied and pasted the incorrect "upcoming" thing yesterday. I had the Phoenix game happening last night.
Upcoming...
Tomorrow vs. Denver
Monday (27th) at Utah
HOCKEY
I think these articles will get to you without having to register, but if not, you know what to do.
They're both articles by David Pollak of the San Jose Mercury-News. One is a reprint, and one is actually from the SJ Merc-News site.
The NHL owners want some sort of salary cap. One reporter asked Gary Bettman about a hypothetical counterpart -- a cap on ticket prices. I don't think I have to tell you how Bettman reacted to this. His reponse isn't totally baseless, but it still leaves a lot to be desired. Bettman also says that whoever leaked the news that the NHL was rejecting the NHLPA's latest proposal would be fired immediately. I was listening to Dan Russell on Sportstalk (Vancouver) last night, and he and his producer once talked with Brian Burke, who said he'd leak stuff all the time. In completely unrelated news, I thought Brian Burke and Sean Burke brought a lot to the World Cup of Hockey telecasts a few months ago.
The other Pollak article has him in Vancouver, seeing how Canadians are dealing without the NHL. The Vancouver Province ran an online poll which found 77% of the voters said it didn't matter if the NHL salvages the rest of its season. So why is there not as much hockey withdrawal as one might think? Junior hockey teams and games, left and right. The Vancouver Giants' season-ticket base went from 2600 to 4500, and they're getting a 68% increase in per-game attendance. Joe Whitman says it best. "It might be difficult in the United States to get the fans back. But at the end of the day, although there will be a pox on both houses, the Canadian fans will come back to the game."
Upcoming...
no WHL or AHL games from the 19th to the 26th, NorPac is off the weekend of the 24th and 25th as well
---
Enjoy your Tuesday, everyone. Enjoy it despite the fact that, as Jeremy let me know last night, the DVDs for the second season as well as the new episodes of the third season of Chappelle's Show will be pushed back two to three months. Sad.
Dive in...
MARINERS
The good news is that there's some rumblings that Odalis Perez and the Mariners have one another on their lists. Even if they need to move Randy Winn and Ryan Franklin to do it, I say get him. Sheesh, the Mariners could have three lefties in their rotation come next season with Jamie Moyer, Bobby Madritsch, and possibly Odalis Perez. Sandwich Joel Pineiro and Gil Meche in there, and you've got a lefty-righty club sandwich, or something like that. If Adrian Beltre can convince him to come up, all the better too. The only bad news in the article? Willie Bloomquist was tendered, as opposed to non-tendered.
He's a former Mariner, but it's never good when Mike Cameron has to get wrist surgery and will miss the start of the season. Boo. It's more cause for Pedro to strike everyone out, or just make sure all the fly balls get pulled down the lines.
SEAHAWKS
The X-ray was negative. The MRI showed no ligament damage. The verdict is that Matt Hasselbeck is expected to start on Sunday even after the hit that Sammy Ellis delivered to his elbow. Hasselbeck said that the elbow "feels like something's not right." Though not with his exact injury, I know I've felt like that before. It'd feel like one muscle is in the wrong place or something, though it wouldn't be painful. It'd be incredibly uncomfortable, and I knew something wasn't right, but it wasn't painful. I think I might have had some type of injury like this in my left foot (I think it was an arch or something) when I was 15 and playing Babe Ruth ball. Basically, my mobility wasn't quite suitable for the outfield, so I was limited to pitching, catching, and playing first base, which I really didn't mind doing. When I got back to full strength, though, it was right back to left and center.
John Levesque hates replay. I don't hate replay, but I do hate that the Ken Hamlin fumble recovery wasn't open to challenge because an official (40 yards away) decided the ball was down. This was discussed on the Fox broadcast, but why couldn't they just put away the whistles for a second and let that go? The touchdown could have been challenged and overturned as necessary. I'm not sure if it comes to whether the whistling down of the ball (and whether it was indeed down) is what should be reviewable, or if it's just down to the officials being able to know better as to when to put away the whistle. Now I'm just rambling.
Here's the column I've been waiting for. Steve Kelley unloads on Ray Rhodes. Rhodes has not talked to the media this season, as per usual. There's tons of questions that go unanswered, both this year and last. Kelley suggests that Rhodes isn't accountable for the bad happenings regarding this year's defense. Kelley says that the fans deserve an explanation because they're investing their time and hard-earned money in watching this so-called defense. Yeah, they've been riddled with injuries, but why isn't anyone sans Boulware stepping up? Also, can anyone out there remember the last point this year where you might have been somewhat convinced that the pass rush may have improved upon last year? I think I can remember some point in those first three games earlier in the year, but it's such a distant memory now. I think it involved Grant Wistrom. The point is, they're fourteen games into the season and have no semblance of a pass rush. The late Fritz Shurmer's name is mentioned in the article, and it's so true; it hasn't been the same for Holmgren since Shurmur left the earth, and Holmgren hasn't been able to get anyone even close to Shurmur in his place.
BASKETBALL
The Marvin Williams Watch
The 8-1 Tar Heels host the Catamounts of Vermont at 4pm today. Marvin Williams is averaging 9.3 points and 6.3 rebounds in 21.6 minutes a game off the bench. After the Vermont game, the Tar Heels get a week off before hosting UNC-Wilmington next Tuesday and Cleveland State next Thursday.
Huskies
Washington hosts Sacred Heart at Montlake on Wednesday night. I might be going on a limb here, but I'm thinking the Huskies win that game. The Huskies also face the Cougars on Christmas Eve at 1pm. That's the Houston Cougars. Pac-10 play doesn't start for the Huskies until New Year's Eve, when they'll host the Cal Bears.
Sonics
"It's a flare." That's allegedly what Vince Carter yelled out as his team was inbounding the ball down seven points late in the fourth quarter of the Sonics' win over the Raptors at the Air Canada Centre. The Sonics aren't saying much about it, and really it doesn't matter. Vince Carter isn't in Toronto anymore, and regarding the play itself, Vlad Radmanovic had the best quote: "[b]ut they scored." Carter went off a Matt Bonner screen, flared into the corner, caught Bonner's pass and fed it back to him, and Bonner sank a jumper. Well said, Vlad Rad. It's Vince Carter, and he plays for the Nets, who play in the Eastern Conference. None of this matters. The Heat are the class of that conference right now.
Ron Murray is taking Nick Collison's minutes. Murray has played in two games since returning from the quad injury. In those two games, he has done barely anything, and worse yet, the offense has a whole hasn't done anything with him out there. Though it seems hard to put him in now, he's got to at least be serviceable for 15 or so minutes (as asserted in the article) so that Ray Allen's legs don't collapse under him in April and May because he's been playing 43 minutes a night. If the Sonics can get optimal minutes out of Murray like they get out of Danny Fortson, then it'll be lethal.
Nobody caught that I'd copied and pasted the incorrect "upcoming" thing yesterday. I had the Phoenix game happening last night.
Upcoming...
Tomorrow vs. Denver
Monday (27th) at Utah
HOCKEY
I think these articles will get to you without having to register, but if not, you know what to do.
They're both articles by David Pollak of the San Jose Mercury-News. One is a reprint, and one is actually from the SJ Merc-News site.
The NHL owners want some sort of salary cap. One reporter asked Gary Bettman about a hypothetical counterpart -- a cap on ticket prices. I don't think I have to tell you how Bettman reacted to this. His reponse isn't totally baseless, but it still leaves a lot to be desired. Bettman also says that whoever leaked the news that the NHL was rejecting the NHLPA's latest proposal would be fired immediately. I was listening to Dan Russell on Sportstalk (Vancouver) last night, and he and his producer once talked with Brian Burke, who said he'd leak stuff all the time. In completely unrelated news, I thought Brian Burke and Sean Burke brought a lot to the World Cup of Hockey telecasts a few months ago.
The other Pollak article has him in Vancouver, seeing how Canadians are dealing without the NHL. The Vancouver Province ran an online poll which found 77% of the voters said it didn't matter if the NHL salvages the rest of its season. So why is there not as much hockey withdrawal as one might think? Junior hockey teams and games, left and right. The Vancouver Giants' season-ticket base went from 2600 to 4500, and they're getting a 68% increase in per-game attendance. Joe Whitman says it best. "It might be difficult in the United States to get the fans back. But at the end of the day, although there will be a pox on both houses, the Canadian fans will come back to the game."
Upcoming...
no WHL or AHL games from the 19th to the 26th, NorPac is off the weekend of the 24th and 25th as well
---
Enjoy your Tuesday, everyone. Enjoy it despite the fact that, as Jeremy let me know last night, the DVDs for the second season as well as the new episodes of the third season of Chappelle's Show will be pushed back two to three months. Sad.
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