What a game. I was in the pisser for the first goal, which I'm told was preceeded by a non-call icing, but what can you do. The Wings gave it their all and thoroughly dominated the second half of both the second and third periods. Had it not been for Marc-Andre Fleury's consecutive saves in under four seconds in the third, this game would've gone to overtime.
Congratulations are in order to the city of pedophiles, Mario Lemieux, the Penguins franchise, and the Lone Canadian Reader, whose boycott of the House of Georges means we can make fun of him without limit. (photo courtesy of Sports Illustrated; video thanks to the NHL) Read more
Lots and lots and lots of day baseball today, kids, including one game that may have already started. If we're lucky it's raining in Miami--not at all a stretch--and we technically won't miss our deadline.
Grab a glove and a chew and join the action in progress, after the jump... St. Louis @ Florida, 10:10 Mountain It's still really odd to me that Jimmy Buffett bought the naming rights to the stadium the Dolphins and Marlins call home. Today all the Parrotheads will feast on a tilt featuring the reeling Cardinals and the water-treading Fish, headlined by Todd Wellemeyer and big lefty Andrew Miller. I like mine with lettuce and tomato.
Pittsburgh @ Atlanta, 11:00 The two clubs that tangled in that epic 1992 NLCS (nice throw, Barry) wrap up a midweek series at the Ted. Nate McClouth had a few awkward moments, seeing as how he was a Pirate til the Bucs swapped him to the Braves a week ago. Today McClouth gets in his hacks against Paul Maholm, while the young Swashbucklers try to touch up Javier Vazquez.
Detroit @ Chicago White Sox, 12:05 Edwin Jackson has some sort of magic touch. Once the top prospect in the vaunted Dodger farm system, he battled control issues and got himself shipped to Tampa, then a baseball backwater. The desperate Rays put him in the rotation and soon found themselves in the World Series. Then those ungrateful hacks traded Edwin to Detroit and fell back to fourth place, while the Tigers are in first and Edwin is dealing (6-3, 2.16 ERA, 0.98 WHIP). Tinker with the powers of Edwin Jackson at your own peril, Gavin Floyd.
Colorado @ Milwaukee, 12:05 Who's the hottest team in all of baseball? Why, it's the Colorado Rockies, who bagged their seventh straight win last night. Aaron Cook is entrusted with the dirty underwear and other paraphernalia of superstition at Miller Park this afternoon, while Brewers ace Yovanni Gallardo attempts to slump-bust.
Chicago Cubs @ Houston, 12:05 I don't care what you say, or what your stupid "statistics" say, or what Dontrelle Willis does on the mound. Russ Ortiz is the worst pitcher in baseball, bar none. End of debate. Russ Ortiz is so bad that I put Milton Bradley in my starting fantasy lineup today, a move usually reserved for times of war. Ryan Dempster, if you can't beat Russ Ortiz you may want to try badminton.
Minnesota @ Oakland, 1:35 Nick Blackburn and Trevor Cahill get things going in this game, and all of a sudden I wish more ballplayers wore a handlebar moustache.
San Francisco @ Arizona, 1:40 I really like strikeouts. Love 'em. Not for a batter, of course--worst thing you can do--but when I'm watching pitchers pitch there's nothing I love better than generating a whiff. I know, they build up the pitch count and Crash Davis says they're fascist, but fuck Costner, give me the high gas. That's my way of setting up Jonathan Sanchez versus Max Scherzer at Bailed Out Bank Stadium today, both of these kids can rack up those "K" placards on a ballpark railing.
Cincinnati @ Washington, 2:35 You may be asking yourself: Did Old No. 7, hopeless loser baseball nerd that he is, watch the MLB Draft Tuesday night? I did. As television spectacle, it was about the worst thing you could ever imagine. But the two clubs playing here had a good night--DC snared Steven Strasburg, only the GREATEST AMATEUR PITCHER EVER SCOTT BORAS OMG!!! while the Reds selected Mike Leake out of Arizona State. Strasburg throws 103 MPH and has a 27-inch penis and will cost up to $50 million to sign. Leake is a more subdued, Greg Maddux-style, location-and-movement arm. You'll be reading about them in Baseball In The Daytime in 2011 (or sooner), but for today you're stuck with Micah Owings and John Lannan. Sorry. Have a few beers and it'll look like Greinke-Verlander, then Play Ball! Read more
As you may or may not know, the rough focus of this blog is the rivalry between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Denver Broncos. We stray, as cats are prone to do, from time to time, from said focus, but whenst we return to the almighty bin of nuts and bolts, it's about our two football clubs from the occasionally fantastic American Football Conference, Division West. Cecil and Old No. 7 toot the Denver horn, while I raise the Chief roof, and we both do so in hopes of Lombardi trophies and destroying one another's teams en route. Though our fandom has much deeper roots, we started what we call The Tradition, some nine years ago, wherein we visit one another's stadiums, root for our own teams, and crush our livers with many cans of Pabst Blue Ribbon "Welcome to Life" Light. With many variable affecting these occasions, there are always two certainties: The visiting team is all but guranteed to lose, and we, the HoG Iron Triangle, will definitely underestimate the amount of PBR Light we need, and have to switch to the original recipe, which grossly offends all within a 50-mile radius. The Tradition is a grand old time nonetheless, and we plan to keep it going strong, offspring or no. We therefore bring you, fantastic reader(s) Tradition Tuesday, our weekly state-of-the-rivalry address. In the words of Carl Peterson, "to be quite frank with you" we haven't exactly been that consistent with anything this feature, and today we're going to keep that theme alive by talking very little Chiefs and even less Broncos. See, The Iron Triangle celebrated a festivity this past weekend, a rare occasion in which we gather not for a football game or a wedding. It was, brash as we may often sound, an event for a good cause, one that took place in our original place of meeting, Durango, CO. The event was a fundraiser for Durango's Women's Resource Center, and there are but a few tidbits of interest: 1) We treated the event much like a Tradition-al Tailgate, arriving many hours earlier than permitted and swilling grain alcohol for breakfast; 2) there may have been one or two nearby participants that found us obnoxiously stentorian (Editor's Note: That's as nice as it's gonna get, and I can promise you: It won't get that nice again.); and 3) we swept the competition with our savory meats, which we did in fact braise and marinate with various rubs and oils.
But enough about that. You came here to read about sports, and so sports is what I'll give you. What follows, is a top ten-ish list of things discussed/learned over the course of the previous seven days. You may find one or all of them to be a bore, but give us a break -- we haven't posted anything in a week, so you're lucky you're getting this.
10) Earvin "Magic" Johnson was more clutch, and better loaded with a caliber of awesomeness than Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, or LeBron James will ever be (Note: This sentence comes with both an invite to discuss in the comments as well as a disclaimer of non-accuracy.). You may, if you feel so inclined, visit the conveniently linked Pro Reference pages attached to each fella's name.
9) The Kansas City Chiefs, since starting new Head Coach Todd Haley's off-season conditioning program, have lost a collective 340 pounds, which is roughly equivalent to three and-a-half orders of The Cure, from the Durango Diner menu.
8) The Pink Pololikes to draw. (Note: If you're in Durango, and interested in purchasing some brewpub paraphernelia, you can't do it here, because that portion of the Web site is down, so you'll have to do it in person, which is a total clusterfuck of a drag. My recommendation? Get cash. Break in after hours. Break into the display case. Find your items. Leave cash.)
5) Former Boston Red Sox outfielder Mike Greenwell, has hit two inside-the-park grand slams against the same pitcher, Greg Cadaret. The first occasion was on July 9, 1989 against the New York Yankees. The second came 14 months later. Both were balls hit to right field at Fenway Park.
4) I'm pretty sure the name Jake Plummer came up at some point this weekend. I don't recall the circumstances, but whatever. The boys over at BroncoTalk have put together a post in honor of Plummer, a post that has a look at some interesting profile shots on the current Denver Broncos roster. Have a look.
3) I tapped into the logic of Cecil during a quick visit to the carport, and we chatted about the Roger Goodell strategy in suspending Michael Vick before court proceedings for his actions, but not suspending Brandon Marshall. Vick's crimes are largely infamous by now. Allegations against Marshall still fly a touch under the radar in comparison. Let's refresh:
Orlando, Florida, 10/31/04
1) assault on a law enforcement officer, 2) refusal to obey, 3) disorderly conduct 4) resisting an officer
Denver, Colorado, 01/01/07
5) present at a nightclub with then teammates Javon Walker and Darrent Williams, wherein an altercation involving Marshall's cousin and other club patrons allegedly ensued; the alleged retaliation of which resulted in the shooting/death of Williams.
Denver, Colorado, 03/26/07
6) arrested on charges of suspicion of domestic violence
Denver, Colorado, 10/22/07
7) arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol
Atlanta, Georgia, 03/06/08
8) Marshall is booked, then released for a March 3rd incident in which misdemeanor battery charges were later filed against the Bronco in September.
Denver, Colorado, 06/12/08
9) ticketed for an illegal lane change, no proof of insurance or driver license in possession
Atlanta, Georgia, 03/01/09
10) arrested for disorderly conduct
I've heard rumors of 16 charges, etc. against him. Cecil himself claimed 13. The debate, though, remains, why do Vick and Adam Jones get suspended, but not Marshall?
Couple clips for shits and giggles:
2) Naturally, the Iron Triangle had a staggering 30-second conversation about hockey and the NHL. Actually, it was a one-part Q&A between Seven and myself regarding the Stanley Cup Finals schedule. I mentioned what I'd heard, along with the rumors that Conan O'Brien's debut as the host of "The Tonight Show" couldn't be ruined by stupid hockey. And then my wife made fun of me for my pronunciation of Conan, and we got back to talking about old-time baseball. To commemorate, here's a clip with both:
1) Finally, the issue of The Big Lead was briefly addressed. Cecil spoke for all three of us -- and by all three of us, I speak for Seven in typing that -- when he mentioned that Deadspin isn't what it used to be. There were reasons for that, but I'm not going to get into them because the more important issue is that The Big Lead is arguably the best sports blog out there. But, there are two questions that we pose to them, knowing full well that they will never see either: First, why do you publish like five posts on your home page when you have room for about 30 and you're producing roughly a dozen posts a day? For stats? Clicks? Second, who's meatbag do we have to polish to get a link on your page? Christ almighty.
Anyway, that's if for my efforts this week. Tune in tomorrow when Seven promises to deliver two weeks worth of hot chicks, all bundled into one post. Read more
I'm honestly surprised. Sure, they usually announce them early, and the speculation was that the Broncos would hear before the draft if they heard anything, but still--the dude got arrested again, for like the 14th time (seriously), for another incident featuring that good ol' domestic violence.
Also, not really sure what this will even mean in the end. Marshall is avoiding Dove Valley and reportedly asked for a new deal, which was predictably turned down. Will he hold out? Play flat, be a divisive force? Does he tote too much Samsonite for Coach Doogie? He's supposedly a really personable dude; unless, I guess, you're dating him.
No matter what his private persona, his public one could hardly be worse. That ESPN article also correctly pointed out that he only dodged punishment for this last incident with his current fiance, and that he still might have to go to trial for the The Watley Affair, which sounds like a second-string R & B group. If he cops a plea or is found guilty, then he will almost certainly get whacked. Maybe for a full season.
We'll see. The season is closer than we think. Bob Gretz reminded us a few days back that the Chefs open Training Camp in two months. I just saw the Pro Football Weekly 2009 Season Preview on the shelf at Albertson's.
I admit that I failed in spectacular fashion at my most recent HoG-related task, i.e. blogging about the NBA playoffs. So, before I delve into today's topic (teaser: it's Chefs-related!) here's my update: the Nuggets lost to the Lakers in six games. Mark Cuban is still a whiner. LeBron is happy being the Best and Most Marketable Basketballer in History, choreographing dances and hosting Saturday Night Live, as long as he's winning like David Stern promised him--if not, he morphs into a gigantic infant. Kobe Bryant rapes people and scowls. Dwight Howard thinks God wants him to win the Finals and Pau Gasol is seriously ugly.
There you have it. Magic lose to the Lakers in six games; L.A. beat their biggest competition last week.
Anyway. On to the topic at hand. Meet me past Jumptown.
The Kansas City Chefs have emphasized, as part of their rebuilding and rebranding project, bringing in older players, guys who will presumably bring a mix of professionalism and leadership to a locker room that could use it. Guys like Zach Thomas and Mike Vrabel.
I've read a fair amount of internet speculation about this, because I don't have a job and looking for one is hard. There seem to be several theories, among them...
1. He's helping out at some football camp for kids.
2. He's pissed at Belichick for trading him to Kansas City instead of Cleveland, which is in his home state and marginally more prepared to win.
I really have no idea. Sure, the workouts he's missing are only "voluntary," but we all know how "voluntary" works in the NFL. It's bullshit, yes, but coaches and front office types frequently see these offseason training sessions as indicative of a guy's level of commitment. So I throw it out there to the many fans of the KC squad who read/post here, except for The Lone Reader because he took his LeBron James-autographed ball and went home--what's the deal with your new linebacker, the guy who is going to help form the bridge from New England to the City of Fountains?
Brian Waters is also missing these. But I know from previous discussions that you all could give a crap about him. Even though all he's done is play at a borderline HoF level for your team for nearly a decade. Read more
The HiV LOB was intended as a measure for how well the Kansas City Royals can get their baserunners home. This, was of course, assuming that they would have decent numbers in the base-running department, and some success in advancing them. So far, it's not looking as good as some of the very few flashes we've seen this spring from the boys in blue. In fact, things have been lousy enough lately, that we allowed ourselves to get two weeks behind on this feature since it's been as painful as three wins over 14 days, most of which was at home.
But after the jump, we'll still take a look at a few of the numbers and try to make some sense out of the whole mess. Although, sometimes the numbers do all of the talking anyone needs, and it's better to just move forward, to sift through the rubbish later. Much later.
Week Seven
5/19 vs CLE: 5-6 (W); 11 hits, eight left on 5/20 vs CLE: 6-5 (L); eight hits, 22 left on 5/21 vs CLE: 8-3 (L); seven hits, 17 left on 5/22 @ STL: 0-5 (L); five hits, 14 left on 5/23 @ STL: 0-5 (L); five hits, nine left on 5/24 @ STL: 3-2 (W); eight hits, nine left on
For week seven, the totals look like this: 44 hits, 17 runs scored, and for the third straight week, a season-high left-on-base total in 79.
Week Eight
5/25 vs DET: 13-1 (L); seven hits, 11 left on 5/26 vs DET: 1-6 (W); nine hits, 13 left on 5/27 vs DET: 8-3 (L); eight hits, 11 left on 5/29 vs CWS: 11-2 (L); six hits, 11 left on 5/30 vs CWS: 5-3 (L); eight hits, five left on 5/31 vs CWS: 7-4 (L); 10 hits, 22 left on
Week eight doesn't look much different: 48 hits, 73 left on, with 19 plated.
Tally 'em all up and your season totals are: 415 hits, 213 runs scored, and 450 base runners straded. That's an on-pace measure of 639 runs for the season and over 1300 left on, which isn't going to win any division title for anyone anywhere. In addition to putting men on base via hits, the Royals earned 77 walks for the second four-week period of the season, giving them 166 so far for the year. The long and the short is that the Royals offense is struggling. Mightily. I haven't compared their numbers against anyone else's, but I really don't need to. Producing small numbers of runners and getting very few of them home translates to not winning games, which they did plenty of in May, enough to fall to five and-a-half games back, and almost -- yep -- to last place in the Central. Read more
It's the first of June. Training camp in the NFL isn't far away, the Stanley Cup Finals are underway, and baseball's in full effect. It's also Monday, though, and we're out of coffee at the case del Bank, so stay the bleep outta my way. Quick hits of history, after the jump. * Major League Baseball employed the use of a novel idea for the first time today in 1938: helmets.
* Three years later, Mel Ott clubbed career home run number 400. The jack was also career hit number 1500 for him.
* A chap by the name of Nolan Ryan pitched victory number 100 today in 1975. The win was also his fourth career no-hitter.
* Today in 1979 the Seattle Supersonics beat the Washington Bullets four games to one for the National Basketball Association championship.
* The year was 1992 when the Pittsburgh Penguins swept the Chicago Blackhawks for the NHL's Stanley Cup championship.
And your Sports Illustrated quote of the day came from the mouth of...
...NBC commentator Bucky Waters in 1989. Waters, summarizing the role of some assistant coaches during games, said, "They have the same role as the corpse at an Irish wake: Dress well and stay quiet." Read more
