May 2010 Archives

The date has finally been set. The Nationals announced that Stephen Strasburg will make his Major League Baseball and Washington debut on June 8, at home facing the Pittsburg Pitrates. It was what everyone had anticipated, and now it's set.

Strasburg's work in the minors have done wonders for the minor league stadiums he's pitched in. They've sold out many of the games. His arrival in Washington comes at a great time. The Nationals are hovering over a .500 record backed by good pitching and offense. There have been down times, like giving up 2 inside the park home runs in back to back series, but even those were wins. Strasburg should further shore up the starting rotation.

The question now asked is can they play this way the rest of the season and make a run at a wild card berth? In all likelihood, it's not going to end that way, but the prospects just look better with Strasburg on the top level. The day prior to his MLB debut, it's expected that the team will be drafting catcher Bryce Harper. The future is now and later for the Nationals. The end of the 2010 season could prove interesting. Even better is the 2011 season. But we shouldn't look that far. Let's just enjoy June 8.

Let me start this article by apologizing to "Big Money Tony," I'm really sorry man, but I'm going to talk about the NBA again.
In fact, you may actually like were I'm going with this one.
I would like to address the joke that has become NBA officiating.
For those who bi-passed game 5 of the Magic and Celtics series let me fill you in. The Magic took game 5 by almost 20 points and made the Celtics look old, again.
The big issue after the game was that Kendrick Perkins was assessed two technical fouls and sent packing. The second technical was Perkins seventh of the playoffs and under the rules of the NBA, he would have to miss game 6.
But, wait! There's more.
The announcers during the game and the analysts after the game assured the viewers that the second technical would have to be looked at by the NBA and most likely rescinded.
Guess what? Today the NBA rescinded the second foul allowing Perkins to play in the next game.
It should be noted that the second technical was very soft and Perkins actually walked away from the situation.
My beef with the NBA is that it's kind of rigged. I mean Perkins was giving the technical and it should have stuck. What power do the referees have? I mean everything they do is put under a microscope and when they have the balls to make a call, it gets overturned.
Prior to game 4 this series was all but done. Now it's a series, but will the NBA let the players play?
They seem to have a death grip on the decision of who gets to advance in the playoffs. Remember the Lakers and Kings series when the refs gave LA a win?
Who can forget when Amare Stoudamire had to sit out a pivotal game because he barely left the bench?
If the NBA wants to know why no one, including Big Money Tony, is watching the NBA, they should look no further than game 5.
The faithful watchers of the NBA, like me, won't stay around forever. I'm tired of having the outcome of important games in history being decided by hot headed refs. I want the game to be played by two teams and have one of those teams triumph over the others.
I guess I'm a dreamer, because I thought sport was one of the most pure things around. I was way off.
That's it and that's all.

After thoroughly disappointing their fan base this past season, the Wizards have worked a little bit of magic by winning the NBA draft lottery.
Irene Polin (widow of the late Abe Polin) was sporting here husband's 1978 championship ring as she accepted the first overall pick, a pick that may have finally ended the curse of "Le Bullet."
It will be the first time the Wizards have picked first since 2001, and we all know how that turned out.
So what do the Wizards do now?
Most experts would tell the Wiz to pick the most talented player in the draft, and few would argue that's Kentucky point guard John Wall. Others would say trade the pick and try to get a player and a pick. Even a select few think Evan Turner or Derrick Favors would be better choices.
That's step one, step two should be the termination of Gilbert Arenas's contract. Get him out of town on a greyhound. Like the wise Tony Kornheiser expressed on his radio show, "he's poison."
Your right Mr. Tony, he is. He's already alienated an entire franchise and now they want him to act as a role model for the number one pick.
Are the Wiz taking crazy pills? I mean this seems like a no-brainer, you already got rid of Jamison and Butler, now get rid of the last stale portion of the big three. Let's start fresh, please.
DC is rapidly becoming the "Gateway to the Future." The Redskins have a new coach and a new quarterback and the Nationals have Stephen Strasburg.
There is optimism in the air, but is that a good thing?
We know how this story usually plays out, as ever NFL off-season is like Christmas, but so far those off-seasons have produced nothing.
So don't be scared DC sports fans, but be cautious. You've just suffered through a crushing exit from the Stanley cup playoffs a horrible NBA season and an unforgettable two years with Jim Zorn, but you have the number one pick. Enjoy.

That's it and that's all.

The ACC/Big Ten Challenge matchups were announced today and the Maryland Terrapins will travel to Penn State on December 1. Penn State did not have a good 2009-2010 campaign so unless things change drastically for them, the Terps will get nothing with a win over them. On the other hand a loss would really be bad for the Terps post-season chances. But it's May, so it's way too early to talk about that.

There was some men's basketball talk in recent days. Or rather, the Big Ten Conference potential expansion. On the potentials list of some analysts was Maryland. I'll state that this is a terrible idea for Maryland basketball. The ACC expansion a few years ago set up the ultimate football conference that fizzled. In the same process, all ACC basketball teams lost the "Home and Home" games. They are relegated to playing some teams just once a season.

The Terps moving to the Big 10 might increase football, but would give a considerable blow to basketball. There would be no Duke or North Carolina or even NC State on the schedule. That is unless the out-of-conference scheduling works out that way for the coaches. But there's no guarantee of that, and it would be stupid to play each other every year when not in the same conference. Worse yet, presuming Maryland is the only ACC team headed to the Big Ten, Penn State would be the closest rival. Virginia and Virginia Tech are only a few hours away by road.

What may be on the Terps side is timing. If the Big Ten is trying to make the change soon, they can try to convince AD Debbie Yow quickly. I'm not sure of the powers required to change conferences, but I'll bet that if the University President is not powered to do so, he or she would at least be consulted. Maryland's current President, Dr CD Mote, is retiring within the month. Certainly he will not authorize such a change and I would venture a guess that the incoming president, when chosen and in office, would hesitate to make a change so early in their administration. Ultimately time will tell, and it's all about money. Maybe this time, we can make it about tradition.

I'm having trouble breathing as I begin this post. The anticipation that the World Cup is only a month away is killing me. I wish I could go to sleep tonight and wake up June 11.

To mark the one month countdown and to further tease me, the US has released their preliminary 30 man roster for the 2010 World Cup.
Much like what free agency has become for the NFL; this is the official start of the World Cup season.
US National team head coach Bob Bradley was given the unflattering task of selecting this year's group, with countless injuries to monitor.
The worst injuries coming in an October car crash that nearly killed promising striker Charlie Davies.
Davies fought valiantly to recover from two broken legs and brain bleeding, but time played a huge factor as the cup was just months away.
The race was on as Davies made a remarkable recovery, but sadly Davies was left off Bradley's preliminary roster.
The exclusion was not only a crushing blow for Davies, but also the US attack. His pace and finishing prowess took a lot of pressure off teammate Jozy Altidore.
As the US moves on, so shall we. Let's take a closer look at the roster:

Goalies: Tim Howard (Everton), Brad Guzan (Aston Villa) and Marcus Hahnemann (Wolves)

By far the easiest decision Bradley faced. Tim Howard has been impressive between the pipes for quite some time now and is considered as one of the top players on the team. Hahnemann should be a good challenge to Guzan for the second string, since Guzan hasn't seen much time backing up retired US keeper Brad Friedel at Aston Villa.

Defenders: Oguchi Onyewu (AC Milan), Carlos Bocanegra (Rennes), Jonathan Borstein (Chivas USA), Steve Cherundalo (Hanover), Jay DeMerit (Watford), Clarence Goodson (IK Start), Chad Marshall (Colombus), Heath Pearce (FC Dallas), Jonathan Spector (West Ham)

Biggest factor for the defense is the health and quality of play that Oguchi Onyewu will display. Onyewu is looking to make amends for a poor showing in 2006.
The rest is a crap shoot really. Bocanegra and Cherundalo give the team experience and poise. Spector and DeMerit played big roles in the Confederations cup. Look for Jonathan Bornstein to challenge for one of the starting spots.

Midfielders: Landon Donavon (Everton/LA Galaxy), DeMarcus Beasley (Rangers), Alejandro Bedoya (Orebrao), Michael Bradley (Mönchengladbach), Ricardo Clark (Eintracht), Clint Dempsey (Fulham), Maurice Edu (Rangers), Benny Feilhaber (AGF), Stuart Holden (Bolton), Sacha Kljestan (Chivas USA), Robbie Rogers (Columbus), Jose Torres (Pachuca)

The midfield is packed with talent and experience. All-time leading US goal scorer Landon Donovan anchors the unit and brings experience, quickness and determination with him.
Michael Bradley will be doing a lot of the dirty work, while Stuart Holden should provide good speed on the flanks.
The guy to watch is Clint Dempsey (the lone goal scorer for the US in 2006), before his injury he was in top form with Fulham and he's had two "goal of the year" worthy goals this season.

Forwards: Jozy Altidore (Hull), Edson Buddle (USA), Brian Ching (Houston), Robbie Findley (Real Salt Lake), Herculez Gomez (Puebla), Eddie Johnson (Aris)

The most intriguing story of this group is the possible redemption song for Eddie Johnson.
Johnson was considered a rising talent during the last world cup, though he never found the pitch in the tournament. He was wildly inconsistent scoring few goals in the games following the 2006 world cup. Johnson was almost buried until he moved to Greek club Aris, where he recently scored three goals in the Greek League playoffs. Davies injuries let Johnson sneak in and now he is playing with house money. Can Johnson finally find his form and write the ultimate redemption story.
Herculez Gomez has found form in Mexican soccer leading the league in scoring, Brian Ching adds a ton of international caps, and Edson Buddle has been solid this season for the LA Galaxy.
Altidore is the key for the attack, and he will be taking on a lot of pressure playing without Davies. Is he ready for the spot light?

Notable exclusions: Freddy Adu, Charlie Davies, Connor Casey

As the beautiful game is inching closer to its climactic four year culmination, my duty is to prepare the reader as best as I can. That's it and that's all, only 30 days 10 hours and 25 minutes until Mexico v South Africa.

Let's start with one of the biggest changes in pro sports in a long time, Tiger Woods' decent.
We find ourselves deeply immersed in a "what have you done for me lately" society.
So the fall of the one time golden boy of golf should really come as no surprise, but the oddity that has become Tiger Woods life and pro golf career is stunning at that.
This past weekend during The Players Championship, Woods was forced to withdraw during his final round complaining about a brand new neck injury. Remember this is the same guy that won a major on one knee.
So what the heck has this past weekend told us? It told us that Tiger has gone from the greatest golfer of our time to the weirdest golfer of our time.
I remember where I was (kind of like how people remember where they were when JFK was shot) when Tiger crashed his car in front of his house. The initial report said that he was ok and only had minor injuries. I turned the TV off on Thanksgiving night assuming that Tiger would be ok. Boy was I wrong.
Since that moment Tigers life has turned in to a 24 circus. Each report gets weirder and weirder. Most of the reports had nothing to do with golf, so in the back of all of our minds we knew Tiger could get redemption on the lynx. That theory has officially hit a wall. Tigers un-expected exit at the Players Championship raises even more questions about a man that was once considered a role model and a champion. Now I see him as a strange, strange man, who was most likely never told he couldn't do something and now when all the chips are down he is finally showing his true colors.

Finally, this weekend told us that I really shouldn't predict NBA playoff series. I did predict the Suns would win, but I had it going seven games. So when Steve Nash triumphantly returned with one eye and swept the aging Spurs out of their misery I wasn't the only one stunned.
So how did they do it? Well going in to the weekend the Suns had a 2-0 series lead. The Spurs had the momentum playing game three at home, but then something strange happened.
THERE WAS A GORAN DRAGIC SIGHTING!! Who? Oh, sorry he's the back up point guard for the Suns, and he one upped Lebron.
After Lebron scored 21 in the first quarter against the Celtics early in the night, Dragic did him two better and scored 23 points in the fourth quarter of game three.
How impressive was it? Well Dragic went 4-4 (5-5 for the game) from three point land in the fourth and drove the ball to the hole at will.
The second team unit for the Suns played the entire fourth as Nash, Amare and Richardson became spectators from the bench. The Spurs, who were facing a must win game had their starting five in during the fourth quarter rout.
So what did this weekend tell us?
I know very little, and apparently so did the Spurs, cause they couldn't figure out the new look Suns, the Suns that finally play defense. That's right, not a typo, the Suns play defense.

That's it and that's all!!

Wake up DC sports fans!
It's time to put the tissues aside, take off your hockey sweaters (It's too hot for them anyways) and put on your NATS cap.
Let's rock the summer red. The Nats are hot and they've giving us a reason to believe this summer might have some sort of relevance.
If you're still lamenting the poor performance of the Caps, you're starting to sound like an emo high school kid, who just got dumped before prom. STEP BACK FROM THE LEDGE!!
Pick up the sports page and look at the National League East Standings, the Nats are not at the very bottom, in fact they're in 3rd place at 14-13.
The Nats haven't been this promising since their inaugural season when they were actually in contention at the all-star break.
It's been the pitching staff that's giving the Nats a chance so far this season; Livan Hernandez has revitalized his career starting the season 4-1. Additions like Ivan Rodriguez, Matt Capps and the emergence of Tyler Clippard have stabilized a Nationals bullpen that was once one of their greatest weaknesses.
And don't forget it gets even better for Nationals fans as most prognosticators have a June call up for phenom Stephen Strasburg.
So show some urgency and get out to that park, baseball is one of the few professional sports most of us can still afford to go to. Remember it's a beautiful park to watch a game and be forever grateful that you don't have to travel to that dump RFK.
That's it and that's all. Oh yea one more thing, and this is totally unrelated. I would like to let ESPN that I DON'T CARE ABOUT LEBRONS ELBOW!!!!

I haven't been a NBA fan for many years. It probably ended when Magic's Lakers and Larry's Celtics stopped being relevant. Yes, I realize in recent years that has changed with Kobe and the Big 3, but they didn't draw me back. Also didn't help that the hapless Wizards (forever and always Les Boulez) suck so bad. Call me a fairweather fan, bandwagoner, whatever, I don't care.

My morning commute always involves listening to the radio. During a news segment, I heard an NBA update. Celtics tie the series up with the Cavaliers 1-1. Great, I'm happy for them. Then I heard "Game 3 will be Friday in Boston." If I cared enough, I may have stopped the car. Yes, Cavs-Celts is taking a 3 day break between games 2 & 3. I guess they are traveling by horse drawn carriage back to Boston?

I apparently cared just enough to think this through. Wait, the Boston Bruins are still in the Stanley Cup hunt. They must be using TD Garden. OK maybe not Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, but one of those nights, right? No, the Bruins will be in Philly on the Flyers' ice.

Maybe I'm overanalyzing it, because it's only a 3 day break, but that seems too long for teams that are only a couple of hours away from each other by plane. What happens if it's a Celtics-Lakers rematch in the Finals? A week between games? This is why I don't care. After the regular season essentially became irrelevant, I settled on watching the playoffs only. Then it became the Conference Finals. A couple of years ago, just the Finals. Now, nothing. I have no need for the NBA. If you want to draw in fans, give them something to watch on a regular basis. Play every other night, except put in a travel day in between when moving from city to city. Otherwise, you'll never get me back. Especially now that there may be an extra 4 games in March Madness.

If you don't want to hear "whining" then you should stop reading now, otherwise continue at your own peril.

So how many times have you watched a game (or even played in one) where the referee or umpire made a bad call that you felt cost a team a real shot at winning? I'm sure all sports fans have gone through it. And what's the typical response to that? It's the old, "Well it wasn't just that one call. They had plenty of other chances to win the game." or "They should be good enough team so that calls like that don't matter." Well, I'm here to say, "Fiddlesticks!" (It's a family friendly blog. I'm trying to keep it clean here.)

Alright haters, it's time to talk about the NBA playoffs, I may have just lost a majority of the readers, but those who stayed are in for a treat.

May be it's the night owl in me or the fact that I find beauty in a game played by overgrown men with more tattoos than degrees, but I love the NBA playoffs.
To me, nothing beats a 10:30 pm tip-off and more importantly nothing beats listen to Charles Barkley at 1:30 in the morning.
Round one already gave us minor upsets as the Jazz and Spurs overtook the underachieving Nuggets and Mavericks. Is there anything easier to predict than the Mavs choking away another 50 win season in the opening round? NO.
Now the fun begins, round two started on Saturday with the Cavaliers taking game one in their series with the aging Celtics and the final team advanced on Sunday when the Hawks punked the ailing Bucks. Tragically that ends the run for the best battle cry in recent years "FEAR THE DEER".

LAKERS V JAZZ: The Lakers took game one of their second round series over the Jazz, who valiantly fought until the bitter end, but in the end IT'S THE LAKERS!! Don't get too happy Jazz fans, you do have the best point guard in the league in Darren Williams, but you don't have the size to rebound with the Lakers.

Prediction: Lakers in 6 (The New dynamic duo in Utah will give the Lakers everything they have, but it wont be enough. Watch for Ron Artest to give Williams fits)

SPURS V SUNS: Possibly the sexiest series on paper is the rivalry between the Spurs and Suns. Who's older than the Spurs? Well the Suns have Grant Hill who's been around since the dawn of time and is finally healthy, but the Spurs have Tim Duncan who is also getting to the end of an all-star career.

Prediction: Suns in 7 (It's going down to the wire, and these two have no love loss for one another. This is no doubt the series to watch, watch for fights, watch to see whose bench will carry the load and watch to see Amare "posterize" Tim Duncan one more time)

MAGIC V HAWKS: Here is what could be the most exciting series packed with amazing athletes and youth. Can Dwight Howard stay out of foul trouble? Can Mike Bibby guard Jameer Nelson? Will this be Josh Smith's coming out party? It's amazing, on paper this has the potential to be some of the most exciting basketball ever played, but games aren't played on paper.

Prediction: Magic in 5 (I know I know, I said this could be one of the best series around, so why not seven games? Simple the Hawks are terrible on the road and the Magic, who I may remind you are defending Eastern Conference Champs, got better in the offseason. The additions of Vince Carter, Matt Barnes, Brandon Bass and Jason Williams puts them way over the top. More importantly Jameer Nelson is the key, if he has a series like he did against the Bobcats then it won't even be close)

CAVALIERS V CELTICS: A difficult series to accurately predict. There are just too many what ifs. Who is a bigger "Drama King" Lebron James and his hurt elbow or Paul Pierce, who once left a game in a wheel chair only to return and win the game? How much of a factor will Shaq and Jamison be? The only thing that is almost sure to happen is that at some point Labron will drive the lane and taste nothing but Hardwood. The Celtics aren't afraid on the Cavaliers, but that wont matter at all if no one can guard the MVP.

Prediction: Cavaliers in 6 (Lebron finally has a decent supporting cast and that in the end will be the game changer in the series. Jamison only has to have 1-2 good games to have a huge impact in this series and if you remember not long ago Jamison played well as a Wizard in Boston. Boston will try their best to compete in this series, but they are just too old in a game league led by young guns, like MVP James.

That's it and that's all for the second round of the NBA playoffs. Try to watch a few games, there's only about a month left.