I love this time of year for sports. Tripleheaders all week as baseball kicks in and March Madness comes to a raging climax.
Predictions:
Detroit edges Boston in the ALCS, and the Mets ruin Chicago’s dreams by ousting the Cubs in the NL. The Reds are surprisingly competitive and earn a wild card. The Astros eke out a .500 record, and the Pirates will be pulling a Clinton and pointlessly playing out the string after being mathematically eliminated in June. Detroit wins the WS, and Red State wonders whether the Tigers or Obama winning will lead to riots in the streets.
Cain
Bleah. Baseball. I went to one game.. was totally bored and I was ripped off on beer and hotdogs. Someone told me that’s all the attraction to baseball is. I suppose I should go with a fan next time. It just seems they all get out before hitting first base. It’s either that it’s a home run or something. Bah.
I rather watch cricket. It has more drama. (/flamebait)
Incertus
I predict an Alligator Alley series–the Miami Marlins (the name change goes into effect if the stadium plans come to fruition) versus the Tampa Bay Devil Rays (or whatever they’re being called this year). I figure, if I don’t know anything about what’s going on this year, I ought to make it clear from the beginning.
Bubblegum Tate
Me too. Except for baseball. But then again, baseball isn’t a sport. (That oughtta get the dander flying in this thread.)
J.A.F. Rusty Shackleford
Substitute MLS/soccer for college basketball and with you on loving this time of the year. I’ll watch MLB and MLS, the NBA, NFL and even the NHL. College sports? Not so much. No, it’s not more exciting and the talent level is pretty weak outside of a few top teams.
The Reds will not contend this season. The lack of pitching quality coupled with that launching pad of a ballpark will keep the Redlegs in the second division all season (is “second division” an anachronism?).
Unfortunately my White Sox have two 800-lb Gorillas in their division (now I know how Toronto feels) and will be lucky to finish over .500.
chopper
jesus, you sports fans are a sick bunch.
Zifnab
Dude. Whatever. Straight to the World Series. And this time we’re going to win a game.
J.A.F. Rusty Shackleford
I’ll bet you throw like a girl.
Actually, that is my new criteria for allowing people to “talk baseball” with me. If you throw like a girl, shut yer yap. I don’t care if you really, really like baseball – if you throw like a girl keep your Cubbie-loving mouth shut.
I’m not saying all Cubs fans throw like girls – I’m saying that if you throw like a girl, you’re probably a Cubs fan.
zzyzx
I’m just about getting ready to leave work to go to Opening Day. I don’t have much hope for the M’s (a great 1-2 part of the rotation but little else) but it’s Opening Day so WE’RE GOING TO WIN THE SERIES!!!
joe
What if the Tigers were playing Ditka?
Billy K
Oh – baseball! Took me a while to figure out what you were talking about.
They still play baseball, huh? How quaint…
J.A.F. Rusty Shackleford
Ditka 26, Tigers -3
chopper
what if ditka played bill brasky?
JWeidner
I do love Opening Day. Of course, the Angels are opening on the road in Minnesota, so I’ll have to watch the game on TV, but I’m looking forward to seeing Torii Hunter play against his old teammates.
I think we could have had a very strong chance to go all the way this year, but injuries have dug us a pretty deep hole to start the season in. Oh well, that’s the way the game goes sometimes.
Tim (the Other One)
“Detroit edges Boston in the ALCS”
My son just suggested the same scenario.
Opening Day. Only sex is better than this time of year.March Madness: whatever.
Watch my Angels.
Oh and Ditka.
Tom in Texas
Rusty:
I’m a soccer (specifically Dynamo) fan (Viva Naranja!), but how does your argument with not watching college sports due to the lack of talent jibe with watching MLS? Division I basketball is far closer to the elite level of play than MLS is to major professional soccer.
Tom in Texas
Well… they haven’t in Dallas since Nolan Ryan left, so I could see how you missed it. Ah well, one day Cuban’ll buy the team and all of a sudden the Rangers will be Dallas’ team again.
paradox
Let’s Go A’s!
[It’s a good team to be a fanatic for, anything else and you’re just an Athletic supporter.]
Badda-bing!
Elvis Elvisberg
Even if the Reds did have the talent to make the playoffs, Dusty Baker would do what he could to thwart them.
“Clogging up the basepaths.” Seriously.
Elvis Elvisberg
Even if the Reds did have the talent to make the playoffs, Dusty Baker would do what he could to thwart them.
“Clogging up the basepaths.” Seriously.
ThymeZone
Lifelong baseball fan here. A bad day at the ballpark is better than a good day most anywhere else.
The successful outfield assist at the plate is the most exciting moment in field sports. Bar none.
J.A.F. Rusty Shackleford
Is there an American soccer league better than MLS? Regarding college basketball, the NBA is better by far. Btw, that Western Conference in the NBA is something else. They may have a 50-win team miss the playoffs. The first and eighth place team are only 5 wins apart.
The EPL is my favorite league (Arsenal and Fulh-america) and right now its the Champions League quarterfinals featuring 4 EPL sides.
The Concacaf Champions Cup semifinals featuring your Houston Dynamo and DC United will provide some quality soccer. The Dynamo were outclassed Saturday night in New England (are Mansally and Nyassi for real?) and I hope they’re back in form for their trip to Saprissa. DC will have to face an in-form Pachuca down in Mexico and I think they’re going to stumble.
I only have so much time to watch sports. If I’m going to watch basketball then I will watch the Bulls/NBA. Yes, the EPL and Champions League are the tops in terms of soccer, but all of the matches are completed by 5pm cdt so I can watch MLS without a higher-quality league playing concurrently.
Did you see Cuauhtemoc Blanco save the Fire from dropping all the points to RSL?
Tom in Texas
Blanco was the best superstar the MLS got, far better than Beckham. I’ve also been impressed by Angel. I just hope they develop American soccer and don’t continue to rely on past their prime Eurostars like (shudder) Henry. Club teams are fun to watch, but the real fun is in international play.
AFA basketball, I’m not really a college basketball fan. I saw maybe two games all season until the tournament. I follow the sport online and through my newspaper. I just think March Madness is the greatest tournament in American sport — The FA Cup for America, if you will, or maybe the Koshein of American Sport.
DrDave
Great news:
618. Iran asked for Lastings Milledge as part of a deal to stop enriching uranium.
JWeidner
I’d put a suicide squeeze above that, but that’s just me.
cbear
Yeah, I have always loved Opening Day—until last night when I tuned in to watch my beloved Braves play the Nationals, and was horrified to see the Chimpus Maximus out there throwing the first pitch. I turned off the freaking T.V..
I guess its not enough that that lowlife gutter-rat has ruined everything else about this country…now he’s ruined my baseball too.
Tom in Texas
Now now, cbear — he was roundly booed after all. I thought it was hilarious, although the joshing around in the booth was getting old. I was at work, so at least it was just closed captioning I had to deal with.
Teak111
Well you missed the NL West in your predictions, Tom. Didn’t know the East Coast Bias (ECB) extended down into the Great State Of Texas. What an infestation.
But like it or not, an NL West team gets to go to the playoffs, just like last year when the Rockies went to the WS. Padres, are stuck in neutral and didn’t improve much in the off season, so its one of those…if everything goes right…years and if everything does, we might make the playoffs.
Good luck to all the teams, some of them will need more then others.
cbear
I forgot to mention: I’m just praying he doesn’t show up as the guy who warns you about the “strong sexual content” and “no minors were involved” at the beginning of my porno tapes—if so, I’m killing myself.
ThymeZone
Yes, that’s a tough call. I give it to the assist because …
The assist takes time to develop and has more suspense to it; the squeeze is over in a blink. The throw, the flight of the ball, the catch, the tag. Ahhh!
The assist is more common, the squeeze is pretty rare in today’s game.
The squeeze reminds me of the Triple Play, the rarest Big Thing in baseball. It’s over so fast, you don’t always know what happened at first. The assist is majestic, and everyone in the park is into it in real time.
LBNL, the greatest single play I ever saw was a throw to the plate by Roberto Clemente. To this day, it makes my hair stand on end to think of it. I was sitting in the upper deck looking down on right field, and from up there, it was just a jaw dropper. Clemente made this play look easy, the perfect strike to the plate. Never seen anything like it.
J.A.F. Rusty Shackleford
The American talent pool isn’t deep enough yet to stock the league without the help from Europe and South/Central America. Unfortunately, top talent from Europe is going to want to stay in Europe because of pay and Champions League (and even UEFA Cup) so what MLS is left with are the older stars who are just past the sell-by date by European standards, but more than capable of playing at a high level (with regards to MLS) and mentoring young American players.
If Seattle is successful in signing Thierry Henry I think it would be another coup for the league. Yes, he’s not the Henry he used to be but he’d still be class here in the states. As a Fire fan who was able to watch Piotr Nowak and Hristo Stoitchkov and now Cuauhtemoc Blanco, “past their prime” Euro stars aren’t such a bad deal.
Your Dynamo could use a Claudio Lopez-type scorer up top next to Chingy. There’s still two weeks before the spring transfer window closes…
Totally agree on International soccer. USA-England May 28th, USA-Spain June 4th and USA-Argentina June 8th – does it get any better than that? (and I saw both USA-Mexico and USA-Brazil at Soldier Field last year)
Tom in Texas
Teak:
My full predictions:
NL
E- NYM
C- CHI
W- ARZ
WC- CIN
AL
E- BOS
C- DET
W- ANA
WC- CLE
It’s not an East Coast bias to say that the west divsions are bad this year. It’s not a West Coast bias to point out that the NBA’s Eastern Conference is a joke. I think Arizona might just pull a Schilling/Johnson redux for a round at least. Two top tier starters carry a team a long way.
b. hussein canuckistani
Clearly you aren’t a post-1993 Jays fan. A bad day at the Skydome is pretty much all we get, and it isn’t much better than getting your toes crushed by hammers.
Halteclere
Texas is the best baseball team to play for. Tom Hicks (the owner) throws a bunch of money to the players so that they can suck with impunity, and all the fans say is “How about them Cowboys!”. Hicks even manages to ruin the local affiliated AA team (he owns the Rough Riders also) by making them Major League-lite instead of understanding what a true Minor League game is about – the kids and the fans. This leaves the Ft. Worth Cats as the only good baseball in the Metroplex.
Speaking of the Astros, the greater they suck the more I enjoy Baseball. And I root for the lovable Cubs to find some way to blow it at the end of the season. As for the team I root for, The Cardinals are probably destined to finish in the middle of the N.L. Central. Just as long as they finish better than the Astros I’ll be happy.
J.A.F. Rusty Shackleford
Triples and outfield assists at home plate rock.
Tom in Texas
No more Lidge. So sorry. I’m not sold on Valverde, but at least he won’t collapse into jelly every time the ninth inning starts and someone whispers “Pujols” near him. Also, our ace is able to pitch, which puts us up on certain other teams in our division.
I obviously don’t pull for the Cardinals to win, but I respect their fans more than any other baseball teams’. I went to a game in St. Louis and the people couldn’t have been nicer. I could actually talk the sport without having someone threaten to punch me.
Billy K
Gawd…Rangers are a mess (again). Dunno about Cuban buying them, though. 1) Hicks seems to have a deathgrip on the franchise. 2) Cuban’s got his own problems with The Mavs right now.
But I’m impressed you remembered I’m form around here.
Liberal Masochist
zifnab – Not sure how the Astros get there on the pitching side of things. The lineup should be fine. Good thing the division is weak. They will need to make a move for another arm (or two).
My company has field level tix for the Dynamo. Been to about 8 games over the past year. Pretty fun. My British colleagues compare the overall level to the english second division, but they really like it. They are diehards though about football.
Billy K
Cats rock.
cbear
fixted.
ThymeZone
Chuckle. I feel your pain, I was a fan of the early California Angels, a team that would LOSE to the awful early Jays regularly.
Rooting for the Angels back then was like being a Cubs fan. Just an exercise in pathetic abject hopelessness.
Tom in Texas
Billy:
I remember you talking about the primary in Plano. Plus it’s just fun to know who the Texans are — Liberal Masochist, pleasure to know we have another!
The Cuban jibe was mainly at the multitudes of newfound Mavericks fans I’ve seen. It’s lost a bit now that the team is mediocre and their fans have retreated.
J.A.F. Rusty Shackleford
cbear – a few years ago the White Sox were playing the Yankees when Chuck Knoblauch had one of his famous meltdowns. I think one of his errant throws hit Keith Olbermann’s mother behind the first base dugout.
pharniel
the tigers winning is awesum. we know how to riot all up in d-town, and you don’t riot for a win! you riot when the fuckers choke.
not that there’s anyone left to riot in detroit proper.
i like mlbs, NFL and curling. i played way to much soccor to find it interesting on the old tee vee.
ThymeZone
Oh yeah!
Billy K
Yeah, I consider myself a Mavs fan, but these days – a seriously disaffected Mavs fan. There are definitely rats fleeing the ship now. Cuban’s gonna have some serious problems in the next 2-5 years. I doubt Avery will be coaching, Dirk (who they should’ve traded last year) is going to start getting older, and the entire supporting cast is already past its prime.
I know Cuban wants an MLB franchise, but he’s got to get his own house in order first. BTW – whatever happened with him buying the Cubs?
P.S. I actually live in the bowels of Dallas. I just have the, AHEM, pleasure of working in Plano. ;)
P.P.S. Your coverage of the speech and the Caucus in Houston was much appreciated.
Liberal Masochist
Tom in Tex – been here 7 years, 10 in state (Austin for the first two – sigh…) Generally like the Houston sports scene, the radio guys here are fantastic by the way. I am a NY sports fan at heart (Giants, Mets), but since I live in Houston, I like to see the local teams do well. Makes it much more fun. As an alum, I love the Horns (serious egg laying yesterday though).
As for the comment about D1 hoops not measuring up. You will see probably 10 future NBA players at the Final Four this weekend, so tune in. Sure the level of play in D1 is not NBA level, but the excitement level in the NCAAs beats the NBA IMHO. The diversity of styles due to zone defenses in college makes it better as well. NBA teams almost never play zone, even though after the rule change.
cbear
Probably one of the only times I have ever felt sorry for a Yankee player.
I pitched for 12 years thru high school, played college tennis for 4 years, and now play 20-30 amateur golf tournaments a year—and have seen that particular phenomenom (losing a basic skill under pressure)happen to a lot of guys, in a lot of different sports.
I don’t wish that on my most hated athlete(s).
Halteclere
I’m not really a hater of the Astros, for when I was a kid, Bill Virdon, who was from my small Missouri town (not Springfield where he currently lives) coached in Houston. And I couldn’t be against someone from my hometown!
But since moving to Texas the only NL Central action I am near is the Astros, whom because of proximity I have to root against.
Speaking of the best play in baseball (a topic way up-thread), it isn’t a single item of action but a duel between a great pitcher and a great batter when the game is on the line is the true, best essence of Baseball in my humble opinion.
Tim (the Other One)
W- ANA
Now you’re talkin’. Coupla great put outs from the outfield from the Tigers/Royals game on ESPN.
Liberal Masochist
TZ – lifelong baseball fan here as well. This will be the first year in about 20 I have not been in a roto league. I am fatigued by the game to be honest. The steroid scandal was not that big a deal for me (it was fun seeing Clemens prove himself the ass everyone thought he was).
The economics of the game are what is driving me away, even though it greatly benefits my favorite team. The disparity in the payrolls across MLB is crazy. When the same 5 teams are the only ones that can pay up for talent, something is wrong. The NFL and NBA handle this much better with their cap structures.
Halteclere
Nothing like commuting against traffic! (Dallas to Richardson in the mornings myself.)
ThymeZone
Yes, that’s a big problem. Baseball owners are amazing creatures, they seem to put their equity issues above the game at the drop of a hat. Baseball has to address its structural problems at the ownership level or … it will alienate all the fans. I love the game, I hate the business.
Liberal Masochist
Forget all that crazy talk about income inequality in baseball! Johan Santana is no-hitting the Marlins!!! Right now!!! Through three at this point, but if you are going to dream, dream big…
The best $150 million anyone has ever spent on anything!
Suicidal Zebra
In other sport developments, there’s the current head of Formula 1 ****-storm (front that is):
(possible NSFW)
http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/3003_nazi_orgy.shtml
“The son of infamous British wartime fascist leader Oswald Mosley is filmed romping with five hookers at a depraved NAZI-STYLE orgy in a torture dungeon. Mosley— a friend to F1 big names like Bernie Ecclestone and Lewis Hamilton— barks ORDERS in GERMAN as he lashes girls wearing mock DEATH CAMP uniforms and enjoys being whipped until he BLEEDS. ”
That’s what I love about British Sex Scandals – we just don’t do things by halves. How do you spell schadenfreude in German again? ;)
Teak111
TinT, all is forgiven, although I think the NL West is a little better then people expect. Astros open with the Padres tonight with a 4-game stretch. What happened to the stros anyhow, didn’t they go to the Series awhile back. Must of cost the owner too much money.
Blue Raven
FTFY.
@CBear – Truth.
And yes, there used to be a world-class soccer league in the United States. The women’s pro league was killed off due to low intelligence on the part of the bulk of the country.
J.A.F. Rusty Shackleford
Ahhh crap! I got home from work just in time to see the White Sox blow a game they fought back to tie. It’s going to be like this all year long.
And it gets worse…the Cubs have come back with 3 runs in the 9th to tie the Brew Crew 3-3 on a Fukudome HR. Pure misery.
It’s going to be a very long year.
J.A.F. Rusty Shackleford
Whew! Dodged a bullet. Cubs lose 4-3. Thank you Tony Gwynn Jr.
w vincentz
Noticed the title, opening day. Here in the Catskills, it means only one thing to me….TROUT.
Though the rivers are roaring from the rain and snow melt, I’ll be doing my best to catch a mess for the trusty cast iron skillet.
Sports, to me, mean having something good to eat after the exercise. I’ll have mine with lemon after they’re fried in butter.
PaulW
Rays. Going undefeated. Teams will fall over and play dead to allow Tampa/St. Pete to trick the locals into coughing up 500 million for a new stadium. Once the stadium deal is done the Rays can then lose to the Cubs in the World Series.
zzyzx
I can’t bellieve we got snowed on…
Punchy
Fuck off. I’m sorry the nuances involved with a 4-seam fastball and gunning out a runner at home on a one-hopper by Vlad is lost on you. For the rest of us, baseball is the shit.
Punchy
The Reds hired Baker? REALLY? Die-hard Cubs fan here going hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!!
Good…hahahaha…fuckin…..ha!….luck!!
Punchy
The word “luck” got edited out of the above. Didn’t mean to end with an f-bomb.
Vlad
The Astros are going to finish over .500? With 2/5 of a rotation, Bourn and Matsui combining for ~1100 outs at the top of the lineup, and a farm system that’s been burned to the ground? Really? Maybe they’ll be greeted as liberators, too…
I say this not to be mean, but because it’ll hurt less for you to accept this now than in July. Trust me. I’m a Pirates fan – I know shitty baseball.
Sarcastro
Substitute MLS/soccer for college basketball and with you on loving this time of the year.
MLS? Dude, Man U vs. Roma (in Rome, expect riots!) and Schalke 04 vs. Barcelona are kicking off in like 4 hours! And tomorrow we get Arsenal vs. Liverpool and Chelsea vs. Fenerbahçe. I can’t watch MLS after watching Champions League. It’s just frustrating.
And no racing fans? WRC just wrapped up the Argentine Rally, F1 is in Bahrain this weekend and I’m sure some fat Americans are driving around in circles somewhere as well.
Sarcastro
In other sport developments, there’s the current head of Formula 1 ****-storm (front that is):
Mosely is head of the FIA, the sanctioning group behind not only Formula 1 but a host of other series as well like WRC, WTC, Karting, GT racing and many others. And yea, he’s little tinpot quisling piece of fascist shit.
The head of F1 is Bernie Ecclestone, another douchebag but not as kinky a one apparently.
Katie
I love baseball. I just got back from spending a week in Phoenix going to spring training games. My favorite time of year–it’s always nice to get out of the below zero temperatures here in AK for the sunny warm days in the southwest.
We watched 12 games in 7 days, not counting the Mariners/Cubs game in Las Vegas this past weekend.
The Cubs are an amazingly boring team to watch this year and I’m saying that as a lifelong Cubs fan. btw, I don’t throw like a girl. The Mariners on the other hand were wonderfully fun to watch last year and judging from the games we saw last week, they’re going to be great to watch again this year. That young pitcher, Hernandez is amazing.
Now I’m watching it snow sideways out my office window. Doesn’t seem like spring at all.