Ready for a lightning round?

I wonder if I'm the only guy who had a Ken Griffey flashback
En route to their 8-4 victory against Boston tonight, the Yankees witnessed a strange and rather humorous play by the Red Sox. After Robinson Cano's single to center, Johnny Damon bobbled the ball, and shortstop Edgar Renteria threw the relay straight into the ground toward second base, as a relieved Jorge Posada scored without a throw to the plate. Aside from making me laugh, this instantly brought to mind a similar occurrence from August 25, when Ken Griffey Jr. attempted to make a hard throw to the infield, and instead saw the ball bounce 15 feet or so in front of him.

Fantasy owners often have mixed emotions watching games
Since I'm a fan of the New York Jets, Thursday's opening NFL game pitted two of my least favorite franchises against each other: the New England Patriots (fierce divisional rivals of the Jets) and the Oakland Raiders (against whom the Jets have had their share of meaningful games in recent years). What's more, I was fresh off my fantasy football league's draft, in which I selected the Patriots defense. So while it would help the Jets if the defending champion Pats were to lose, I hoped they wouldn't allow many points in the process. Almost anyone who has earned league points (and subsequent bragging points) based on the performance of actual athletes knows the inherent dilemma in owning a player of their favorite squad's arch rival. I rationalized my selection of the New England defense with the belief that it was the most intelligent draft choice at that point. As my brother put it, "It may as well be you earning those points."

Bring on the Oilers
I'm excited about the upcoming hockey season, and preseason for the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim begins in about a week. I am a bit frustrated with the new schedule, which provides for division rivals to play each other endlessly, but keeps the New York Rangers out of Southern California for the first time since I've lived out here. That aside, little compares to the excitement of the NHL live, a sentiment which I hope is echoed by people throughout the continent (who am I kidding, the Canadians will never desert the sport). Anyway, I've become accustomed to some surprisingly good games over the years, including an 8-6 win over Detroit last season and tie with the LA Kings, not to mention their Game 6 victory in the 2003 Stanley Cup Finals. Whether or not the team plays up to the hopes of whatever local fans are left is uncertain, but I'm anticipating another fun year at the Pond. I looked over the Ducks' schedule, and highlighted my most anticipated contests of the year.

October 10, Edmonton: The season opener, after a year's layoff. Need I say more?
October 28, St. Louis: I saw hockey regularly for the first time in the Gateway to the West. Given that I've gotten used to rooting for the Ducks to make live games interesting, this is the ultimate "Who do I cheer for?" game. Incidentally, I've learned that Al MacInnis, a longtime Blue who had an amazing slap shot, has recently retired. As Michael Wilbon and Tony Kornheiser of ESPN's Pardon the Interruption would say, "Happy trails, Al!"
November 18, Colorado: I've seen my share of the Avs in the playoffs the last few years, and this one will feature Duck-turned-Avalanche-turned-Duck again Teemu Selanne.
December 14, Tampa Bay: At least one team from the East is playing out here: the (all together now) defending Stanley Cup Champions. Do the Lightning still get to be called this, given the lack of a winner in 2005?
January 9, Los Angeles: I remember how confusing it was the last time I saw these two play live, since the Kings were wearing purple and white (Anaheim's home colors in previous years) and the Ducks were wearing their brand-new black third jerseys (the customary Los Angeles hue). Game on!
March 1, Detroit: I can still remember seeing the Red Wings play postseason games in St. Louis. I really am a Ranger fan first and foremost, but I still hate these guys for what they did to the Blues.

From a live spectator standpoint, I've seen just about every kind of ballgame this season
With under a month left in the regular season, I have attended 16 different baseball games in person so far. Admittedly, this doesn't do much to dispel the rumor that I'm obsessed with the game; as MLB's own commercials say, "I live for this." To me, one of the most fascinating aspects of the sport is the fact that every contest has its own rhythm, and the seemingly impossible surfaces when you least expect it. When a friend and I saw the Angels last week, I thought I was beginning to get a handle on what to expect. We selected this particular game because he figured the local club would get a solid pitching performance. They were sending Bartolo Colon, who has somewhat quietly had an outstanding season, to the mound. Unlike many games I'm used to watching, the pitchers worked extremely efficiently, and the first nine innings were completed in little more than 2 hours. It's always amazing to see two hurlers go at least nine innings in the current era, a point emphasized by players from decades past, when this was far more common. As it turned out, Francisco Rodriguez, the Angels' closer, escaped trouble in the 10th created by Colon. However, he allowed a Bobby Kielty solo homer in the 11th frame to take the loss by a score of 2-1. This prompted many of the remaining fans to stream toward the exits, and one elderly man who was leaving even admonished us to "keep the faith," a gesture that reminded me of a past experience I had with a fellow Yankee fan. Yes, I have learned firsthand how baseball leaves us high one day and low the next, but there is a certain beauty to its unexpectedness.

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