NOMAH!!!
March 10, 2010 11:57 pm by Cory
I almost had a heart attack this morning. I woke up and was perusing the latest headlines before I was even full conscious and came across the words, “Nomar Garciaparra resigns with Red Sox.” Now, this headline was a but misleading because while yes, Nomar did sign a contract with the Sox, it was just for one day and so he could retire with the team that he grew up with and had his best years with.
This is a classy move by both Nomar and the Red Sox. During the 90s and early 2000s Nomar was it. He was the hero. Everyone wanted to be Nomar. He was aggressive at the plate, always hustled to first base, had a cannon of an arm, led the league in average, and had speed on the base paths. Just about every Little Leaguer in the state of Massachusetts began pulling on their batting gloves and tapping their toes in the dirt when they stepped up to the plate.
Prior to 2004, Nomar was the perfect player. He never complained about his contract and always gave his full effort. Even Ted Williams said he thought Nomar would be the next player to hit .400. But injuries caught up to our hero and his production began declining. And one day in July sealed Nomar’s fate forever. He was traded to the Cubs in a three-team deal that sent Orlando Cabrera from the Montreal Expos to Boston to take over the shortstop position.
Cabrera was instant hit in Boston, playing a similar type of ball to Nomar. He could hit, run, and field and was a clubhouse dream. Meanwhile Nomar was portrayed as a disgruntled employee, when in reality he was trying to fight as hard as possible despite nagging injuries. Because like many athletes before him, Nomar didn’t like the media and because of that the Boston newspaper people portrayed him as negatively as possible.
But fans don’t care if a player snubs a reporter (especially if it’s Steve Buckley or Dan Shaugnessey.) The fans never turned on Nomar and Nomar never turned on the fans and that was especially evident when Nomar returned to Fenway for the first time as a member of the Oakland Athletics and received one of the loudest ovations ever heard in the Hub.
So thank you Nomar for everything you did in Boston. Thank you Red Sox for bringing in a true Red Sox legend to retire in his rightful place. Nomar was never the same after he left Boston and I hope retiring as a member of the team he loved will help him as he moves on to his new job as a broadcaster and analyst for ESPN. Hopefully Nomar, the next time you’re at Fenway, they’ll be hanging up No. 5 above the right field bleachers.
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Fantasy, shmantasy
March 9, 2010 9:05 am by casey
I’ve never considered myself good a fantasy sports. I participate in them every season like every other sports fan (or non-sports fan for that matter), but a lot of times I’m so bogged down with other things I forget about the draft and end up with whoever Yahoo! has listed highest in my draft spot.
The same is true for my fantasy basketball team this season, but somehow I’ve managed to (knock on wood) hold down first place in the league from early on. With just about 17 games left in the season, I’m still 2.5 games up on BOOMSHAKALAKA. Though I struggled with injuries early on and some of my biggest names are ranked 50 and below, I’m projected to get a bye in the first round of the playoffs.
Hopefully my Irish luck will last me through spring break and down the road to have kazaam be named champions of the NBA Jam league. If not, there’s always baseball season.
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So much for the Big Bad Bruins…
March 8, 2010 5:50 pm by Cory
So, if you haven’t picked up on this already, I’m a Boston fan. Red Sox, Patriots, Celtics, and Bruins. Growing up in southeastern Massachusetts, I have been inundated with the history, pride, and passion of everything Boston. One of my favorite aspects of the Boston sports culture is the history behind the Bruins. Every generation of Bruins fans have had their tough guys to look up to from Terry O’Reilly to P.J. Stock to Milan Lucic. But after what happened to Marc Savard during a Sunday skate with the Pittsburgh Penguins, I’m wondering where these tough guys are.
The Penguins were up 2-1 approximately 15 minutes into the third period when Savard took a flagrant cheap shot to the blind side of his head from Matt Cooke. This type of play is completely unacceptable. For Cooke, a 12-year veteran of the league, to give a high elbow to Savard’s head sends the completely wrong message to young hockey players and to the rest of the league.
But what’s even more upsetting is how little the Bruins reacted to the situation. There was a little bit of pushing and shoving but then that was it. If your most dynamic goal scorer gets completely laid out on a cheap shot, you don’t just stand around and take it. Now, I’m not saying the B’s should have started brawling - I’ll be the first to say that the fighting in hockey is ridiculous, but the fact that Cooke didn’t even get a two-minute roughing penalty is rather disconcerting.
The Bruins and Coach Claude Julien needed to make their point heard, get in the referees faces and the faces of the Penguins and let them know that this type of play is unacceptable. Unfortunately, this happens all too much in the NHL but maybe now they’ll learn their lesson after one of the league’s best players received a concussion as a result of dirty play. Let’s hope Cooke gets a lengthy suspension.<code>
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First spring training game in the books - baseball is around the corner
March 2, 2010 9:54 pm by Cory
A strange thing has been happening recently while I’ve been checking out sports highlights on TV and online. Every once in a while, in between the very important coverage of Lebron’s number change and Tiger’s return to his Florida home, I’ve caught a glimpse of baseball.
There is no better breath of fresh air after living through yet another Central New York winter than seeing the boys of summer taking ground balls and batting practice against the backdrop of Florida’s palm trees or Arizona’s cacti.
Pitchers and catchers reported to spring training weeks ago, but we finally saw some real baseball action between NL East rivals New York Mets and Atlanta Braves. I won’t go into the game to much. The Mets won 4-2 which has to be a good sign for Met fans after last year’s disaster season.
However, today’s starting pitching match up was interesting for a few reasons. Tommy Hanson for the Braves and Nelson Figueroa for the Mets both are pitchers with something to prove and both looked excellent. Hanson is a 23 year old fireballer who could have easily taken home rookie of the year honors last year without any arguments. The Braves have been slipping lately in the division they once dominated, but if Hanson becomes the ace he is destined to become, that could change.
Figueroa on the other hand, is a 35 year old right hander trying to make a comeback to the big leagues. He had shown flashes of his potential talent in the early 2000s posting some decent outings with the Phillies. Figueroa couldn’t keep it up though and has spent time playing internationally in Mexico and Taiwan.
The Mets are taking a chance on the veteran though and he didn’t disappoint today going two innings strong and not giving up any runs for the victory.
So, the first one is in the books and the Grapefruit and Cactus Leagues will be in full swing over the next month. Though March certainly brings its madness to the sports world, us baseball diehards know that our salvation from winter is coming soon.
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There’s always next year…or four years from now
February 28, 2010 6:52 pm by casey
After watching Sid the Kid hit the game-winner for Canada, I decided I needed some cheering up. And who better to turn to than my favorite little guy in the whole world, Josh Sacco. For those of you don’t spend as much time on YouTube as I do, Sacco is a 5-year-old kid whose claim to fame is his impersonation of Kurt Russell as Herb Brooks in the movie Miracle.
While millions of people all over the world discovered the video months ago, it seems that Sacco’s fame has only grown since the start of the Olympics. Before USA defeated Canada in the preliminary round last week, Sacco did his impression for all of Team USA, and later that week, he appeared on SportsCenter.
So though USA only takes home the silver and couldn’t pull off another “Miracle on Ice,” at least we all have Sacco to keep us smiling until 2014.
…unless John Cusack was right.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=raCTHPKrQNU
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Not quite Big League Chew
February 23, 2010 5:45 pm by casey
Last night This morning when I got home from the office, I turned on SportsCenter as I usually do before hitting the hay, and I noticed something odd. Leading off the highlight for the Dallas Mavericks-Indiana Pacers game, ESPN showed cuts of all of the Mavs’ chewing on straws. First I thought I was just delirious, but then I looked into it.
It all started with Caron Butler’s habit of chewing on aglets, the small plastic tip of shoelaces. In an article on fun facts about the Mavericks, the Dallas News reported on Butler’s unusual habit:
I used to chew on, the little, you know how you pull the tag off your shoestring? They said that would chip your tooth, so I just went to this one day. After that, it was easy.
The article said Butler even carries around straws in his suit pockets. Apparently the rest of the Mavs wanted in on the action.
watch?v=7Yv4aI5CagQ&feature=player_embedded
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Sven Kramer demolishes NBC reporter
February 21, 2010 6:31 pm by Cory
After watching this video a few times, it really makes me realize why there is so much disdain for the American media across the world. For those of you who don’t know, the speed skater in the video is Sven Kramer of the Netherlands. He is one of the best skaters in the world and won the gold medal in the 5000 meter event. This man is a national hero in the Netherlands and is by far their most famous and recognizable athlete.
Now when he is approached by an NBC reporter and asked who he is, where he is from and what medal he just won, what is he supposed to say? Of course he’s going to lay into this reporter.
Instead of asking the athlete who he is, maybe she should give an introduction of him to the American audience which is less interested in speed skating than the Dutch.
If the same thing happened and a Dutch reporter approached Apollo Ohno and asked who he was, we’d all be shocked that they didn’t know. But Kramer is just as good and even more famous in his home country.
Honestly NBC, if you’re going to try to be credible in your Olympic broadcasts do your homework before you insult the integrity of a gold medalist.
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Dat is the Underdog
February 17, 2010 3:19 am by shay
When Drew Brees placed his knee to the ground as the final seconds ticked away in Super Bowl XLIV, he completed the most powerful story in sports; the story of the underdog.
A city that was in shambles just five years ago was now on top of the sports world. They had won the Super Bowl; the pinnacle of feats in American sports. No, this wasn’t the 1980 Miracle on Ice. It wasn’t a Buster Douglass knockout of Mike Tyson. It wasn’t even as big an upset as the last time the Colts lost in the Super Bowl back in 1969 in that shocking 16—7 defeat to Namath and the Jets. We are talking about a team that had 15 wins and just three losses all season and who was undefeated through the first thirteen games of the season. They were only five-point underdogs according to Vegas. But what makes this upset, this story, so beautiful is that much like the 1980 Miracle on Ice; this was about much more than simply a team winning in an upset. This was the story of a community, a city, overcoming all sorts of odds to reach the top. (Not to mention the fact that anytime you can defeat Peyton Manning/God in a one game playoff, that is an amazing feat in and of itself)
Will we remember the Saints won Super Bowl XLIV? Of course. Will we remember Drew Brees won Super Bowl MVP just four seasons after he was nearly unemployable following what was thought to be a career ending injury in San Diego? Most of us probably will. But will we remember the nitty gritty breakdowns of the game? How the Saints closed out the first half with a field goal even after the Colts made a late minute fourth down goal-line stand. How the Colts had more first downs, 100 more total yards, were more efficient on third down and still lost by two touchdowns. How the Saints rushed for a total of just 51 yards and still managed to score 31 points. The fact is that a majority of us will likely not remember any of this. What we will remember is the story of a broken city and troubled franchise that was put on the back of a resilient quarterback to achieve the unimaginable.
That is the beauty of sports, its irresistible desire to tell stories and ability to communicate meaningful messages to its fans. Value the concept of team over self… Never give up…. Don’t take no for an answer; Drew Brees didn’t, and now he’s going to Disney World.
So,’who dat’ you ask? Well, ‘dat’ is your classic story of the underdog.
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Goodbye, Wang
February 16, 2010 8:22 pm by casey
Ever since Chien-Ming Wang’s injury at home plate during an interleague game against the Astros in 2008, he hasn’t been the same and it doesn’t seem like he ever will be. So what does he do? He goes and signs a deal with the Washington Nationals, meaning he’ll be running the bases once every five days if he stays healthy when he make his return sometime in the first few months of the season.
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4918836
Pitchers running the bases is just idiotic, especially when they aren’t used to it. I’m sure every National League fan out there hates me for saying it, but I’m completely OK with the designated hitter. If it prevents players like Wang who start out as potential Cy Young candidates from ruining their careers, then why not have a DH?
In Wang’s first five years in the league (all spent with the Yankees), he certainly had his ups and downs. The 29-year-old right hander had back to back 19-win seasons in 2006 and 2007, but in the past two years, he’s been plagued with injuries. Last season Wang went 1–6 with a 9.64 ERA in 12 games.
Wang’s one-year deal with the Nats is worth $2 million, and he could potential earn $3 million in bonuses. But, even though he’s still extremely young, it’s hard to believe he’ll turn it around and go back to where he was in ‘06.
As a Yankee fan, I’m sad to see Wang go, but I’m excited to see Chamberlain possibly fill out the rotation.
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Ken Rosenthal needs to stop right now
February 15, 2010 1:01 pm by Cory
In the fall of 2008 Fox Sports sideline drone baseball reporter Ken Rosenthal wrote a column decrying the Boston Red Sox lineup as too white and claimed that in their off season free agency pursuit, non-white players would shun the Sox and try to sign on with more diverse teams. Now as a Boston native and Red Sox fan myself, I have heard the absurd commentary from people outside New England that Boston is a racist town and its sports teams reflect that. While that notion is absurd to begin with, that is not the point of this blog. The point here is two-fold. The first being that Rosenthal’s column was idiotic to begin with, and that it’s ridiculous to think writing a follow up column after the Red Sox signed three minority free agents makes it ok.
At the time of Rosenthal’s first column the Red Sox only had one African-American player on the team in Coco Crisp. But the team Rosenthal made out to be a haven of white players had two Japanese players, 11 Hispanic players over the course of the season, and the first Navajo Native American to play in the Major Leagues in Jacoby Ellsbury. Clearly, this was a diverse team.
So when Rosenthal last week revisited his original column after the Red Sox signed two African-Americans this offseason in Mike Cameron and Bill Hall, and a Dominican player in Adrian Beltre, he wrote that maybe he shouldn’t have pegged Boston as a racist town and the Sox as a racist organization because Cameron and Hall chose the Red Sox.
What Rosenthal failed to realize the first time around is that this is not the Major League baseball of the 1970’s which was about 30 percent African-American. In this current era of the game that number is down to eight or nine percent. The Red Sox roster looks no different than any other team’s. While it is sad that the number of African-American players has decreased so heavily, that is a whole other topic and has nothing to do with the Red Sox.
Players don’t choose what team they play for and teams don’t choose the players to play for them because of race. It’s all about winning and putting the best team out on the field. Race just has nothing to do with it. So in the future Mr. Rosenthal, leave the racial commentary to someone else. Just tell us about baseball and do some research before you make absurd claims.