No, that doesn't mean "Play Ball!" or some such thing. Roughly translated, it means "bad, early in the morning". I was all ready to wax poetic this morning, to relay my experience in watching the Red Sox-A's season opener live from the Tokyo Dome. Yes, despite my well documented opposition to this whole trip, I was none the less fascinated to see how the Japanese audience would greet the Sox, and, of course, returning hero Daisuke Matsuzaka. So, even before the Rising Sun, I awoke, ready to catch the 5 AM pre-game on NESN. I turned on the TV, flipped to NESN, and that's when I realized it was going to be fuka asahayaku. Bad, early in the morning.
You see, I have DirecTV. You know, satellite. And this morning, of all mornings, the satellites that support NESN and ESPN2 decided to go dark. I colorfully weathered this Whiskey Tango Foxtrot moment, hoping that by game time, we'd have images. At 5:50, I broke out the radio. No offense to Joe C and Dale Arnold, but I wanted to see this game on TV.
So there you have it, what could have been a literary masterpiece has been reduced to a short column centered on my disgust with DirecTV, for failing me at the worst possible time. It really was fuka asahayaku today.
Oh, by the way, while Dice-K struggled, it has been a hell of a game, going extra innings with a Manny Ramirez double in the top of the 10th giving the Sox a 6-4 lead. And as I am about to click "submit", a strange play gave the A's a run and a two out, nobody on situation against Papelbon. Then a runner on, potential tying run. Okajima in line to get the win. Now runners on first and second. Joe C: "This has not been easy!" Papelbon, quite literally, hold this game in his hand. Doesn't it make sense that Kurt Suzuki is the guy who's up (even if he is Canadian)? But this is Jonathan Papelbon, and you know what that means.
We're 1-0!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Welcome to the 2008 Boston Red Sox regular season.
.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Thursday, March 20, 2008
It's Barstool...Thursday?
Given that I may just not get around to this tomorrow, we're going a day early this week. Lots going on, I'll get right to it!
Well, that's about it for this week. Have a great weekend, and as always, have a few pints for me.
.
- Our Celtics take the floor tonight against the Mavs, looking to sweep their way through Texas. The Celts showed poise in San Antonio on Monday, coming back from 22 down to topple the defending champs. The Celts looked dominant Tuesday as they cruised by the Rockets, squashing Houston's 22 game win-streak in the process. Tonight, look for them to kick Dallas to the curb. Two highlights to look for: the Dirk Nowitzki Face of Disgust and the Mark Cuban "Slowly Dawning On Me That My Team Can't Win Big Games" pout. We then move on to New Orleans before we come back to the Garden. As I pointed out last week, once we return home from this stint, it is a pretty easy row to hoe. With 13 games to go upon the return to Boston, only the home tilts wth Phoenix and the Hornets, and a road game in Washington (who are 34-33) are against teams over .500. By the way, currently the 8 spot inthe East? New Jersey...at 29-39. Yikes.
- Kudos to the Red Sox players for going to bat (pun intended) for the coaches and staff yesterday. We'll ignore the fact that they really didn't want to go to Japan anyway.
- Are you full immersed in the NCAA Tournament yet? There are only two excuses for being here reading this right now that don't involve you sitting in front of the TV with this on your laptop, or toggling back and forth between this and the live stream from CBS Sportsline. One, you're a part of the Red Sox entourage and in Tokyo at the moment, or two, you...actually, there is no 2. You should be watching the greatest weekend of basketball of the year. And for the record, 3 games down, I'm 3-0. Although my mini-upsets picks of Kentucky and Baylor aren't looking so hot right now.
- This will be the first year that I show up to work late because of Opening Day. I'm still struggling with the fact that I won't be enjoying a few beers with the game. Have I mentioned that I'm not in favor of this Japan trip yet?
- Slightly unrelated, but worth mentioning. Had lunch with my buddy Chomper yesterday. And we have a consenus. A beer-battered, deep-fried burger stuffed with jalapenos and cheddar is almost as good as a burger can get. As good as a burger can get is when you add blue cheese dressing on top. So Packard's in Northampton, Mass wins my inaugural Homer Simpson "mmmmm..." Award for Burger of the Century. I like this idea. Stay tuned for future awards.
- Tiger tackles Doral this weekend. So, anybody got a pick for second place?
Well, that's about it for this week. Have a great weekend, and as always, have a few pints for me.
.
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
How To Win Your March Madness Bracket Challenge
It's that time of year again, where for a few weeks, NCAA Basketball reigns supreme in the world of sports, providing a helpful bridge to Opening Day and the NBA Playoffs. That's right, it's March Madness!!!! Clinically proven to reduce productivity already, the NCAA ands CBS have gone a step further and you can now watch every game, live, right from your computer! That's right, you can suck up all of your office's bandwidth and not miss a second of action!
I have been participating in various office/bar March Madness pools for over 20 years. In that time, I've been an outright winner at least 6 times, including last year. That's a pretty high percentage in something as random as the NCAA Tournament. With that in mind, and being quite confident that no one actually reads the stuff I put on here (so I don't have to worry about the competition), I'm offering up 10 tips to help you win your March Madness Bracket Challenge. And away we go!
10. Don't Be A Homer!!! Look, I'm the biggest Homer of them all, but if you want to win, you've got let it go. Unless you live on Tobacco Road, face it, most years picking your hometown team to get past the first couple of rounds is bracket suicide. Sport your team colors, root hard for them in every game, but DON'T pick them to go to the Final Four. Trust me here.
9. Live By The 1 Seed, Die By the 1 Seed While we all know that all 4 #1 seeds never make it to the Final Four, they also never lose to a 16. Look, the single most important thing you can do to win your bracket is to get those 4 teams right. If you don't, you're toast. Keep the 1s till the Sweet 16, and your chances of taking it all improve dramatically.
8. The 5 to 12 Slot Here's where you can up your Games Won stats dramatically. It is where the so-called upsets happen. Your 5/12, 6/11, 7/10 and 8/9 match-ups are the biggest crap shoots of the Tourney. These games are where you need to do your homework. Look at the match-ups carefully. Just because one team has a higher seed, doesn't necessarily mean they are the most likely team to win. These are the games where a deadly 3 point shooting team that averages 90 points a game in a weak conference will take out a mediocre team from an elite conference. These are the games where a team that is only in the Tournament due to an unexpected win in their conference tourney giving them an automatic bid falls to a team you've never heard of. They are also the games where a great team's late season skid dropped them to an 11 seed, but their starting point guard is back and they are a much better team when he's on the floor. These games are what seperates the basketball geeks from the people who fill out their brackets based on uniform color or mascot.
7. The Sleeper The Sleeper usually comes from the 8 to 12 Slot. The Sleeper is usually a young team with a budding Superstar. It is a team that has shown flashes of brilliance all season long, as well as occasionally looking like they ought to be playing intramural ball instead. But the budding Superstar comes up big in the Tourney, cementing his Stud Status. He doesn't take the team to the promised land, but they go to the Sweet 16 or Elite 8. Look for the team that has a freshman or sophmore who is going to be high on the NBA draft boards in June, even though he's raw and not quite ready.
6. Don't Put Cinderella On The Dance Card Every few years, some 12 or 14 seed stuns the world and makes an improbable run deep into the Tournament, causing a backlash of poor Bracket choices for years. Here's the thing, remember I said earlier that the most important thing you can do is pick the Final Four, right? Well, Cinderella doesn't make the Final Four. She might look good in that prom gown, but we all know she's going back to mopping floors, and it's happening at about 8:30, not midnight.
5. Defense Wins Championships Things are different when you make it to the Dance. If you've got a team that put up 88 PPG during the regular season, but gave up 85, if you've got them going deep, you're not going to be crowned Champ. Remember, chances are all those high scoring games were against teams that are at home watching on TV right now.
4. Except When It Doesn't There are, of course, exceptions to every rule. Every year, there are few teams that can score at will, inside and out. Those rare teams that aren't defensive stoppers but have a balanced attack that can burn you on the break or eat clock and crush you with 3 point daggers stand a good chance. But do your homework. These teams have to have dominated all season long. They can't have any serious flaws and they have to be painfully consistent. We have one of these teams this year. I'll let you figure out who. I can't give away ALL of my secrets.
3. The 8-Ball The Elite Eight is where things start to get dangerous. It is where the giants fall. This is where you can expect to lose some of those vaunted 1 seeds. Like the 5 to 12 Slot, this is where the hoops geeks need to do their work. Carefully analyze your potential match-ups, looking at the how the strengths of the lower seeds stand up against the weaknesses of the higher seeds. There's a 2, 3, or 4 waiting to pounce now, they've got momentum on their side and will look to exploit holes in Number One's armor. Here is where you seal the deal. Pick right here and you've got the Final Four locked down, and your competition has fallen by the wayside.
2. Go With The Gut(s) So you've narrowed it down to your Final Four predicitions. There is no science now, every one of these teams deserves to be here, and every one could win it all. Now you take everything you know about hoops, and knock out two teams. You're at the National Championship Game. Which team has the Will To Win??? That's what it comes down to, and you've just got to go with your gut and their guts to pick a winner.
1. The Magic Number Finally, you've got to remember to not ignore the tie-breaker. Picking the total points scored is easy. It will be in the 130s. Trust me here. You don't get high scoring games at this point in the tournament, for several reasons, not the least of which is that the teams went from having tons of games in quick succession to having a week off, then an emotionally charged game two days prior. They come out a little cold, a little flat, and eveybody steps up the defensive pressure. Don't pick too high, or too low, you'll be fine, and you'll be the 2008 NCAA March Madness Champion.
There you have it, a sure fire way to put yourself in contention for a year of bragging rights. You can thank me later.
.
I have been participating in various office/bar March Madness pools for over 20 years. In that time, I've been an outright winner at least 6 times, including last year. That's a pretty high percentage in something as random as the NCAA Tournament. With that in mind, and being quite confident that no one actually reads the stuff I put on here (so I don't have to worry about the competition), I'm offering up 10 tips to help you win your March Madness Bracket Challenge. And away we go!
10. Don't Be A Homer!!! Look, I'm the biggest Homer of them all, but if you want to win, you've got let it go. Unless you live on Tobacco Road, face it, most years picking your hometown team to get past the first couple of rounds is bracket suicide. Sport your team colors, root hard for them in every game, but DON'T pick them to go to the Final Four. Trust me here.
9. Live By The 1 Seed, Die By the 1 Seed While we all know that all 4 #1 seeds never make it to the Final Four, they also never lose to a 16. Look, the single most important thing you can do to win your bracket is to get those 4 teams right. If you don't, you're toast. Keep the 1s till the Sweet 16, and your chances of taking it all improve dramatically.
8. The 5 to 12 Slot Here's where you can up your Games Won stats dramatically. It is where the so-called upsets happen. Your 5/12, 6/11, 7/10 and 8/9 match-ups are the biggest crap shoots of the Tourney. These games are where you need to do your homework. Look at the match-ups carefully. Just because one team has a higher seed, doesn't necessarily mean they are the most likely team to win. These are the games where a deadly 3 point shooting team that averages 90 points a game in a weak conference will take out a mediocre team from an elite conference. These are the games where a team that is only in the Tournament due to an unexpected win in their conference tourney giving them an automatic bid falls to a team you've never heard of. They are also the games where a great team's late season skid dropped them to an 11 seed, but their starting point guard is back and they are a much better team when he's on the floor. These games are what seperates the basketball geeks from the people who fill out their brackets based on uniform color or mascot.
7. The Sleeper The Sleeper usually comes from the 8 to 12 Slot. The Sleeper is usually a young team with a budding Superstar. It is a team that has shown flashes of brilliance all season long, as well as occasionally looking like they ought to be playing intramural ball instead. But the budding Superstar comes up big in the Tourney, cementing his Stud Status. He doesn't take the team to the promised land, but they go to the Sweet 16 or Elite 8. Look for the team that has a freshman or sophmore who is going to be high on the NBA draft boards in June, even though he's raw and not quite ready.
6. Don't Put Cinderella On The Dance Card Every few years, some 12 or 14 seed stuns the world and makes an improbable run deep into the Tournament, causing a backlash of poor Bracket choices for years. Here's the thing, remember I said earlier that the most important thing you can do is pick the Final Four, right? Well, Cinderella doesn't make the Final Four. She might look good in that prom gown, but we all know she's going back to mopping floors, and it's happening at about 8:30, not midnight.
5. Defense Wins Championships Things are different when you make it to the Dance. If you've got a team that put up 88 PPG during the regular season, but gave up 85, if you've got them going deep, you're not going to be crowned Champ. Remember, chances are all those high scoring games were against teams that are at home watching on TV right now.
4. Except When It Doesn't There are, of course, exceptions to every rule. Every year, there are few teams that can score at will, inside and out. Those rare teams that aren't defensive stoppers but have a balanced attack that can burn you on the break or eat clock and crush you with 3 point daggers stand a good chance. But do your homework. These teams have to have dominated all season long. They can't have any serious flaws and they have to be painfully consistent. We have one of these teams this year. I'll let you figure out who. I can't give away ALL of my secrets.
3. The 8-Ball The Elite Eight is where things start to get dangerous. It is where the giants fall. This is where you can expect to lose some of those vaunted 1 seeds. Like the 5 to 12 Slot, this is where the hoops geeks need to do their work. Carefully analyze your potential match-ups, looking at the how the strengths of the lower seeds stand up against the weaknesses of the higher seeds. There's a 2, 3, or 4 waiting to pounce now, they've got momentum on their side and will look to exploit holes in Number One's armor. Here is where you seal the deal. Pick right here and you've got the Final Four locked down, and your competition has fallen by the wayside.
2. Go With The Gut(s) So you've narrowed it down to your Final Four predicitions. There is no science now, every one of these teams deserves to be here, and every one could win it all. Now you take everything you know about hoops, and knock out two teams. You're at the National Championship Game. Which team has the Will To Win??? That's what it comes down to, and you've just got to go with your gut and their guts to pick a winner.
1. The Magic Number Finally, you've got to remember to not ignore the tie-breaker. Picking the total points scored is easy. It will be in the 130s. Trust me here. You don't get high scoring games at this point in the tournament, for several reasons, not the least of which is that the teams went from having tons of games in quick succession to having a week off, then an emotionally charged game two days prior. They come out a little cold, a little flat, and eveybody steps up the defensive pressure. Don't pick too high, or too low, you'll be fine, and you'll be the 2008 NCAA March Madness Champion.
There you have it, a sure fire way to put yourself in contention for a year of bragging rights. You can thank me later.
.
Monday, March 17, 2008
He's G-R-R-R-R-R-EAT!!!!!!
It being St. Patrick's Day, the one day that everyone in America somehow is Irish and drinks stout, I had planned on devoting today's column to the Celtics. Right up until about 5:45 yesterday afternoon. That's when I watched Tiger Woods sink a 25-footer for birdie on the 72nd hole to take Bay Hill. To avoid a playoff. To Win. It was a defining moment in a career of defining moments. It was something no one does. It was simply Tiger Being Tiger (sorry Manny).
As any golfer, no matter weekend duffer or the Greatest Player to Ever Play The Game, can tell you, there are shots that define you, shots that you never forget. And the best tend to be the putts that shouldn't go in, but do. Sure, driving the green on a Par 4, setting up my first ever eagle, 10 years ago, was a great moment. But I 2-putt from 8 feet to secure it, and to be fair, it was a 285 yard Par 4 playing about 250. Sure, the 300+ yard drive I hit on the 18th hole of a tournament last year, setting up a birdie and a T-4 finish for my team (gotta love best ball) felt great. But these still aren't the strongest memories I have on the golf course. No, those come on the greens. You know, the old "Drive for Show, Putt for Dough" thing. My defining moment as a golfer? Father's Day 2006, 6th Hole of Beaver Brook Country Club. I sank a 30-footer for birdie, after hitting a pretty sweet approach from about 150. But it is the putt that sticks with you. Hell, it sticks with my buddies JonO and Ed. They still say "hey, remember that putt you sank on Father's Day a few years back? That was great."
And that is the story of Tiger Woods life. The shots, the putts in particular, that make people say "remember when Tiger did that? That was great." And to make this one all that much more poignant (as if it needed help)? It was basically the EXACT SAME PUTT he sank at Bay Hill back in 2001 to beat Lefty on the last hole of the tourney with a birdie, which was also the last time Tiger made birdie on the 72nd hole to win a tourney. See what I mean? These things define you. Tiger is 7 of his last 8 in PGA Tour events (finishing second in the other), and 8 of his last 9 over-all. He hasn't lost a tournament he's entered this season. And remember this: Tiger was 7 strokes back at the end of the day Friday. SEVEN STROKES!
In a career defined by defining moments, we may be watching the Most Defining Moment Of Them All. We may be watching the early steps of the most dominant year in the History of Golf. Earlier this year, we saw Tiger pass this weekend's host, the great Arnold Palmer, on the career PGA Tour victories list. Yesterday, he tied Mr. Ben Hogan for third on the all-time list at 64. At this point, it is no longer hard to imagine that he will catch the Golden Bear at 73...this season!
We are witnessing something that happens rarely in sports, we are witnessing the Greatest Ever. And there is really no argument. Those of us fortunate enough to have watched Jordan, we can say we saw "arguably" the best ever. But there is still an argument. You can make a case for Bird, Magic, Russell, Wilt, a few others. In baseball, you can argue who was the greatest ever, by position even, but you'll never have consensus. Same with football, the Greatest Quarterback of All-Time is a debate that will rage forever. Try another individual sport. Boxing? Go ahead, try to get 10 guys to agree that it was Ali. You might get 7 of 10. Maybe.
In golf, until recently, a solid case could be made that Tiger was "one of", but not "the" best. But since the death of his father, Tiger has been gaining steam. And since Bridgestone last year, he's been like a fully-loaded freight train heading downhill. Only the conducter has the train under full control, everybody else just needs to step out of its way. A few months ago, Tiger said that winning all four majors this year was "within reason". Jack Nicklaus said "I wouldn't put it past him." At this point, I don't think any one would argue with them.
I wonder what will become of Tiger Woods when he closes the records books, with his name at the top of every list. I wonder if he will carry on, playing till his body won't let him any more, like Arnie and Jack. I wonder if 30 years from now, we'll be watching an aging Tiger make his last trip around Amen Corner, or over the bridge at St. Andrew's. I wonder if he'll gracefully move on when he has etched his name firmly atop the world of golf, going out at the top of his game. With Tiger, it's hard to say. But in the meantime, I'm going to enjoy every moment, knowing that for what may be the only time in my life, I'm watching The Best Ever.
And yes, I know I didn't mention March Madness. I'm still bitter, leave me alone. We'll tackle that later in the week.
As any golfer, no matter weekend duffer or the Greatest Player to Ever Play The Game, can tell you, there are shots that define you, shots that you never forget. And the best tend to be the putts that shouldn't go in, but do. Sure, driving the green on a Par 4, setting up my first ever eagle, 10 years ago, was a great moment. But I 2-putt from 8 feet to secure it, and to be fair, it was a 285 yard Par 4 playing about 250. Sure, the 300+ yard drive I hit on the 18th hole of a tournament last year, setting up a birdie and a T-4 finish for my team (gotta love best ball) felt great. But these still aren't the strongest memories I have on the golf course. No, those come on the greens. You know, the old "Drive for Show, Putt for Dough" thing. My defining moment as a golfer? Father's Day 2006, 6th Hole of Beaver Brook Country Club. I sank a 30-footer for birdie, after hitting a pretty sweet approach from about 150. But it is the putt that sticks with you. Hell, it sticks with my buddies JonO and Ed. They still say "hey, remember that putt you sank on Father's Day a few years back? That was great."
And that is the story of Tiger Woods life. The shots, the putts in particular, that make people say "remember when Tiger did that? That was great." And to make this one all that much more poignant (as if it needed help)? It was basically the EXACT SAME PUTT he sank at Bay Hill back in 2001 to beat Lefty on the last hole of the tourney with a birdie, which was also the last time Tiger made birdie on the 72nd hole to win a tourney. See what I mean? These things define you. Tiger is 7 of his last 8 in PGA Tour events (finishing second in the other), and 8 of his last 9 over-all. He hasn't lost a tournament he's entered this season. And remember this: Tiger was 7 strokes back at the end of the day Friday. SEVEN STROKES!
In a career defined by defining moments, we may be watching the Most Defining Moment Of Them All. We may be watching the early steps of the most dominant year in the History of Golf. Earlier this year, we saw Tiger pass this weekend's host, the great Arnold Palmer, on the career PGA Tour victories list. Yesterday, he tied Mr. Ben Hogan for third on the all-time list at 64. At this point, it is no longer hard to imagine that he will catch the Golden Bear at 73...this season!
We are witnessing something that happens rarely in sports, we are witnessing the Greatest Ever. And there is really no argument. Those of us fortunate enough to have watched Jordan, we can say we saw "arguably" the best ever. But there is still an argument. You can make a case for Bird, Magic, Russell, Wilt, a few others. In baseball, you can argue who was the greatest ever, by position even, but you'll never have consensus. Same with football, the Greatest Quarterback of All-Time is a debate that will rage forever. Try another individual sport. Boxing? Go ahead, try to get 10 guys to agree that it was Ali. You might get 7 of 10. Maybe.
In golf, until recently, a solid case could be made that Tiger was "one of", but not "the" best. But since the death of his father, Tiger has been gaining steam. And since Bridgestone last year, he's been like a fully-loaded freight train heading downhill. Only the conducter has the train under full control, everybody else just needs to step out of its way. A few months ago, Tiger said that winning all four majors this year was "within reason". Jack Nicklaus said "I wouldn't put it past him." At this point, I don't think any one would argue with them.
I wonder what will become of Tiger Woods when he closes the records books, with his name at the top of every list. I wonder if he will carry on, playing till his body won't let him any more, like Arnie and Jack. I wonder if 30 years from now, we'll be watching an aging Tiger make his last trip around Amen Corner, or over the bridge at St. Andrew's. I wonder if he'll gracefully move on when he has etched his name firmly atop the world of golf, going out at the top of his game. With Tiger, it's hard to say. But in the meantime, I'm going to enjoy every moment, knowing that for what may be the only time in my life, I'm watching The Best Ever.
And yes, I know I didn't mention March Madness. I'm still bitter, leave me alone. We'll tackle that later in the week.
Friday, March 14, 2008
It's Barstool Friday!!!!!!!!
Yeah, it's Barstool Friday. This was supposed to be a triumphant return, but UMass blew it in their first game of the A-10 tourney last night, pissing away a 17 point lead over Charlotte and in the process, popping the bubble on which they had firmly sat. A trip to the NCAA tournament is now extremely unlikely, barring some really strange happenings in other conference tourneys. The only saving grace being that with UMass out, I don't have to contend with my loyalty, thereby increasing my chances of defending my HCBF March Madness Bracket Challenge Championship. So I'll try to muster a little enthusiasm for the following barstool talking points...
Alright, let me go back to wallowing in self-pity. Have a great weekend folks, have a pint or 3 for me. See you next week.
- Good-bye Doug Mirabelli. The Red Sox cut ol' Doug yesterday, giving the Tim Wakefield Personal Catcher role to Kevin Cash. Cash caught Wake admirably last season when Dougy was out, so I think he'll be fine. In a way, its sad to see Mirabelli go, even though his plate appearances make Billy Crystal look like David Ortiz. So thanks Doug, for all the passed balls that didn't happen. Best of luck. Although I'm not ruling out another State Police escort later this season if Cash can't cut it.
- I promised to talk about that lose Arlen Specter. But I'm in a bad mood, so forget it. If anybody brings it up at the bar this weekend, I recommend just telling them to eff off.
- The Celtics are riding their longest winning streak in over 20 years. They should take care of business tonight when the Jazz come to the Garden, and then a tough road swing against Milwaukee (OK, this one's not tough), the Spurs, Rockets, Mavs and Hornets. After that, aside from the SUns and NOLA at home, it's cruise control till the playoffs. Other than those two games, I think we only meet a couple of other teams that are even over .500 before the regular season ends. I love this team! The Green Is Back On!
- Great weekend of college hoops ahead, with all of the conference tourneys. I'll watch some, but it just won't be the same. Friggin' UMass!!!! grrrrrr.....
Alright, let me go back to wallowing in self-pity. Have a great weekend folks, have a pint or 3 for me. See you next week.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Nation Vexation?
A couple of weeks ago, my friend Mike from Cambridge, a.k.a. "Boston Mike" (a quick aside, the older you get, the more people you meet with certain names, like John/Jon, Steve, and of course Mike. Hence, you have to give them qualifiers, like I've done here, to distinguish Boston Mike from Mike'n'Vickie Mike, Mike the Russian, MadDog Mike, Mike the Builder, etc. All these people have last names, but somehow, this makes more sense. Don't ask me why. Anyhow...), sent me a message entitled "Nation Vexation". Here's what he said:
Ignoring the fact that Mike used "sated" and "apoplectic" and yet still summed up his feeling with "meh", he had a point. In a Red Sox off-season relatively devoid of controversy, we were able to sit back and soak it all in, perhaps for the first time in our lives. The news of Schilling's woes was largely greeted with a collective "kinda saw that one coming" and "hopefully he'll be back for the play-offs". OK, two things of note here. First off, when have you ever known Red Sox Nation to not panic at news like this? Second, we now regard the play-offs as a given. It wasn't that way after 2004. We were jubilant, yet there was a strange feeling of "what's going to go wrong now?". And it was a well-founded fear. Pedro left. D-Lowe and Cabrera, too. Schill and Foulke showed the wear and tear of the previous season, spending large chunks of the year on the DL. And Bellhorn, Millar and Embree all sucked in '05. The Caveman Johnny Damon would defect to the Yankees at the end of the season.
But that was then, and this is now. 2007 showed us what Baseball Ops and ownership really were building. 2004, for all of it's greatness, for all of its history, was a bit of a fluke. Or a miracle, more accurately. We were, to quote Manny, a team of destination. But in 2007, and now heading into 2008, we are a team built for the long haul. A perfect balance of young talent, veteran guile, consistent hitting, complete pitching. In essence, the team that won the World Series last year looks like the team that will win it this year. If anything changed, we got a bit better, Bartolo "Never Met a Chalupa I Didn't Eat" Colon not withstanding.
So it wasn't really a surprise this week when the news of Josh Beckett's back problems was met with little concern in Red Sox Nation. Even the usually fear-mongering sports talk radio hosts went so far as to dismiss it as a "phantom injury", a minor pain elevated in the inner circles to provide a plausible excuse to keep them from having to subject Beckett to the Japan trip- one that clearly doesn't sit well with players or management. Why put your ace through that? While there will be many smiles and "it will be a great experience" comments from Sox players and coaches in the days to come, I'll guarantee you that there isn't a soul in that clubhouse who is looking forward to this trip, Matsuzaka and Okajima included. These guys thrive on routine, especially in Spring Training and as they get their feet wet in the opening weeks of the season. And this folly for MLB is anything but routine. I was against it from Day 1, and remain so. I have no doubt the Sox will rebound from the trip and live up to expectations, but I still think it is an unfair burden to place on two teams out of thirty.
28 Days until I pass through the Gates of Fenway for the first time this season. Barstool Fridays return this week, I'll have more on the Sox and Celtics, March Madness stuff, and I'll break my silence on the never ending Arlen Specter Affair.
.
"Is it just me or are all Sox fans somewhat sated by success? In years past I would have been apoplectic about signing a washed up bum like Colon. Now its just like "meh" "
Ignoring the fact that Mike used "sated" and "apoplectic" and yet still summed up his feeling with "meh", he had a point. In a Red Sox off-season relatively devoid of controversy, we were able to sit back and soak it all in, perhaps for the first time in our lives. The news of Schilling's woes was largely greeted with a collective "kinda saw that one coming" and "hopefully he'll be back for the play-offs". OK, two things of note here. First off, when have you ever known Red Sox Nation to not panic at news like this? Second, we now regard the play-offs as a given. It wasn't that way after 2004. We were jubilant, yet there was a strange feeling of "what's going to go wrong now?". And it was a well-founded fear. Pedro left. D-Lowe and Cabrera, too. Schill and Foulke showed the wear and tear of the previous season, spending large chunks of the year on the DL. And Bellhorn, Millar and Embree all sucked in '05. The Caveman Johnny Damon would defect to the Yankees at the end of the season.
But that was then, and this is now. 2007 showed us what Baseball Ops and ownership really were building. 2004, for all of it's greatness, for all of its history, was a bit of a fluke. Or a miracle, more accurately. We were, to quote Manny, a team of destination. But in 2007, and now heading into 2008, we are a team built for the long haul. A perfect balance of young talent, veteran guile, consistent hitting, complete pitching. In essence, the team that won the World Series last year looks like the team that will win it this year. If anything changed, we got a bit better, Bartolo "Never Met a Chalupa I Didn't Eat" Colon not withstanding.
So it wasn't really a surprise this week when the news of Josh Beckett's back problems was met with little concern in Red Sox Nation. Even the usually fear-mongering sports talk radio hosts went so far as to dismiss it as a "phantom injury", a minor pain elevated in the inner circles to provide a plausible excuse to keep them from having to subject Beckett to the Japan trip- one that clearly doesn't sit well with players or management. Why put your ace through that? While there will be many smiles and "it will be a great experience" comments from Sox players and coaches in the days to come, I'll guarantee you that there isn't a soul in that clubhouse who is looking forward to this trip, Matsuzaka and Okajima included. These guys thrive on routine, especially in Spring Training and as they get their feet wet in the opening weeks of the season. And this folly for MLB is anything but routine. I was against it from Day 1, and remain so. I have no doubt the Sox will rebound from the trip and live up to expectations, but I still think it is an unfair burden to place on two teams out of thirty.
28 Days until I pass through the Gates of Fenway for the first time this season. Barstool Fridays return this week, I'll have more on the Sox and Celtics, March Madness stuff, and I'll break my silence on the never ending Arlen Specter Affair.
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Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Get Up, Stand Up!!!
I was up in Burlington, Vermont this past weekend on business. Thanks to a wicked ice storm Saturday, I hunkered down in my room at the lovely Sheraton with a bottle of Shiraz and the newly installed flat screen TV. After watching ESPN's preview of the UNC/Duke game for the 15th consecutive time (great game by the way, especially since Duke lost, as they are part of my triumervate of "Teams I Love To Watch Lose", along with BC and UConn), I decided to do a little light reading before tip-off. When you go to these things, you've got to take light reading, you only get to read in short spurts, so it can't be anything that demands too much attention. As one might expect, I filled my backpack with my usual topics: fishing, beer, the Grateful Dead, and baseball. My choice that night was to start re-reading Bill Simmons' Now I Can Die In Peace. I'm often struck when I read his stuff by the similarities in our lives. We're basically the same age, and have the same addiction to our local sports teams. Although no one in my family ever had season tickets to the Celtics. I will, however, bet that I saw more Celtics games at the Hartford Civic Center than Bill did, including one where my grandmother (the sweetest and most honest person you'll ever meet) conned the box office people into giving us better seats. I still can't believe that. I did get to see Bird and Parrish and company up close and personal, and I even got M.L. Carr's autograph that night. I thought about mentioning this to Kevin McHale when I met him at a Bob Dylan concert several years later, but I figured he wouldn't remember me. Anyhow, my point here is that there are a lot of similarities between Bill Simmons and myself, except he somehow managed to get somebody to PAY him to do this. I'm available at a much better rate, if anybody out there is interested.
OK, somehow I've gotten off track here. At one point early in the book, the Sports Guy is referring back to the heyday of the Celtics. I was thinking fondly back on those great teams, and trying to figure how this current incarnation of the Green are bringing that passion back to the "Garden". Last week the C's became the first team in the league to clinch a play-off spot. Wow. Last night, with 20 games still to be played this season, they became the first team in the NBA to win 50 games this year. FIFTY GAMES!!!!!! Do you know the last time the Celtics won 50 games?
1992.
That's right, our Celtics haven't won 50 games in 16 years. For the record, although I expect you've already made this connection, 1992 was the last year of the Larry Bird Era. Larry Legend. The Basketball Jesus. His back failed him, and pretty much ever since, the Celts have failed us. Until this year. Larry's running mate Danny Ainge brought us back to relevance (helped in no small part by the ghost of Red Auerbach, I'm sure). It is remarkable. Click on the NBA page of ESPN.com and nearly every day you'll see KG, or Paul, or Ray, or Rajon. They are ever-present. Not even the 2002 team that went (read: snuck in) to the Eastern Conference Finals had this kind of presence. But maybe the best thing about these guys is that they are a team. Unlike the Antoine Walker Ill-Advised 3-Pointer Show, these guys all contribute, they are all focused on one thing...hoisting a trophy. They make each other better. They've turned a second year point guard into one of the elite floor generals in the game. They have a bench that doesn't just hold on, they elevate the team. They've just added two quality veterans to solidify them for the playoffs. And they are fun, man are they fun. Just watch this team pass the ball, it is poetry in motion. Like a perfectly executed 6-4-3 double play, they move the ball gracefully around the court until the perfect moment, and then drive home the dagger.
So Get Up, Stand Up people! These are OUR BOSTON CELTICS!!!! It has been a long time since we could say that with Pride, with conviction, with joy. It's been 16 years, it's been since the last time we won 50 games, the last time Larry Legend graced the parquet. Some may say Boston sports these days are an embarrassment of riches, but I'm not embarrassed. I couldn't be happier.
.
OK, somehow I've gotten off track here. At one point early in the book, the Sports Guy is referring back to the heyday of the Celtics. I was thinking fondly back on those great teams, and trying to figure how this current incarnation of the Green are bringing that passion back to the "Garden". Last week the C's became the first team in the league to clinch a play-off spot. Wow. Last night, with 20 games still to be played this season, they became the first team in the NBA to win 50 games this year. FIFTY GAMES!!!!!! Do you know the last time the Celtics won 50 games?
1992.
That's right, our Celtics haven't won 50 games in 16 years. For the record, although I expect you've already made this connection, 1992 was the last year of the Larry Bird Era. Larry Legend. The Basketball Jesus. His back failed him, and pretty much ever since, the Celts have failed us. Until this year. Larry's running mate Danny Ainge brought us back to relevance (helped in no small part by the ghost of Red Auerbach, I'm sure). It is remarkable. Click on the NBA page of ESPN.com and nearly every day you'll see KG, or Paul, or Ray, or Rajon. They are ever-present. Not even the 2002 team that went (read: snuck in) to the Eastern Conference Finals had this kind of presence. But maybe the best thing about these guys is that they are a team. Unlike the Antoine Walker Ill-Advised 3-Pointer Show, these guys all contribute, they are all focused on one thing...hoisting a trophy. They make each other better. They've turned a second year point guard into one of the elite floor generals in the game. They have a bench that doesn't just hold on, they elevate the team. They've just added two quality veterans to solidify them for the playoffs. And they are fun, man are they fun. Just watch this team pass the ball, it is poetry in motion. Like a perfectly executed 6-4-3 double play, they move the ball gracefully around the court until the perfect moment, and then drive home the dagger.
So Get Up, Stand Up people! These are OUR BOSTON CELTICS!!!! It has been a long time since we could say that with Pride, with conviction, with joy. It's been 16 years, it's been since the last time we won 50 games, the last time Larry Legend graced the parquet. Some may say Boston sports these days are an embarrassment of riches, but I'm not embarrassed. I couldn't be happier.
.
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