Saturday, July 26, 2008

Hiatus

Yep I am going on hiatus...check back frequently to see when I return.

P.S. more comments will bring me back faster

Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Boy, am I full...


After the veritable baseball buffet that was the All-Star game I find that I have had my hunger for baseball satiated. This is not to say that I am no longer looking forward to the up coming pennant races, but I do not think that we will see a game of last nights quality again for a while. The All-Star game had it all drama, suspense, and Fox even did a fair job of reflecting on the history of Yankee Stadium as a nationwide audience said goodbye to one of Baseball’s most hallowed grounds for perhaps the last time.

Call me sentimental, but I am already morning the passing of “the house that Ruth built”. Yankee Stadium over the last 85 years has been the site of the most championships (26) of any American sport. Yankee Stadium has seen the best player who has ever played the game, and the luckiest man in the world. It has seen the good and the bad of George Steinbrenner, and it has seen 15 different presidents come to office. I am sorry that I have never had a chance to go there, and I am even sorrier that I never will get that chance.

But, now back to the game from last night. Even though the National League lost, I thoroughly enjoyed every second. I felt terrible for Dan Uggla who, in spite of how he looked last night, deserved to be an All-Star. I loved the strategy and the honor that both managers employed as they marshaled the players in and out. I loved the quality of the pitching and the battling and I love the level playing field that the teams met on.

Last night was everything that is right with baseball and made me feel like a little kid again. It was like watching Ryan Sandberg, Andre Dawson, and the Cubs play on the WGN super station in the middle of the afternoon after playing a hard game of baseball in the morning. I felt the pure joy of sport, the pure joy of the game.

Now if only we could do something about the All Star winners getting home field advantage in the World Series…

Thursday, July 10, 2008

How could you leave without saying goodbye…

So after an eventful week I have returned. I went home to the Chicagoland area for a weekend of pampering at the hands of my parents. It was awesome. Then I came back home and decided to get engaged. So that is where I have been.

And what a week to ten days it has been in the meantime. Two major trades in Baseball, Brett Favre may be un-retiring, and the NBA free agent shuffle has gone off to a roaring start.

So here is my take…Who Cares!

What? The sports guy doesn’t care about these huge sports stories? That’s right I don’t. Nor do I care about Jason Giambi’s mustache, all star voting, or A-Rod violating his vows of marriage for the hundredth time. (Allegedly)

The only stories that should have any buzz are the two baseball trades, but even those lack the luster of your typical midseason blockbuster because the counteract each other and therefore maintain the balance of power that already existed in the NL Central.

[And I don’t care what you say…the St. Louis Cardinals never were a real contender in the division…they were merely keeping the Brewers seat warm.]

The real story is that baseball is back and the games are better than ever.

Look at the divisions and some of the races that are shaping up.
AL East traditional powerhouses Red Sox and Yankees battle each other and the upstart division leading Rays.
AL Central the White Sox holding a slim lead over a charging Twins team with the Tigers as a wild card contender.
NL West does anyone want to win it?
NL Central will have the best pennant race in the national league between the Brewers and the Cubs.
NL East features the Mets and the Phillies, two good teams.

The game itself is the story not the away from the field madness that clogs up Sportscenter these days. [Although I do want to give them kudos for the My Wish segments]

Please watch the games, enjoy the games, and teach your friends and family about the games.

…Unless you really enjoy ESPN’s coverage of the Teddy Roosevelt Mascot’s losing streak in New National Park.