Powered by heavenly tiramisu, here are 10 quick thoughts.
1. Alex stays! Just when I thought the sky was falling following Alex Rodriguez's decision to opt out of his contract, he is now close to a 10-year contract with the Yankees. My despair, which eventually became frustrated acceptance, has turned into outright optimism. Assuming A-Rod remains healthy, the all-time home run leader may not have a federal indictment on his record for all that long.
2. America's Most Wanted? The revelation that Barry Bonds has been indicted for perjury stemming from grand jury testimony about performance-enhancing substances made me realize that the government has joined the majority of baseball fans in making the slugger a major target. Despite the juicy details of his alleged usage in Game of Shadows and often-surly attitude, I've never despised him like many fans of the game do even though one of my best friends is a Dodger fan. At the same time, I've known he was vulnerable to such a charge ever since his testimony clashed with multiple news reports.
3. Apparently, I'm ready for the transition. Don't look now, but I've attended every home regular-season Ducks game so far this year. I actually thought about becoming a season ticket holder prior to last year but got cold feet at the thought of 41 games despite my professed love for the live game. Since January, though, I've gotten accustomed to the Honda Center and enjoy the company of everyone with whom I sit. Now, ten days between their last home game (a shootout win against the rival Kings) and this Friday's contest against Phoenix feels like a gaping void. The spotlight in that game will likely be focused on Ilya Bryzgalov, who was placed on waivers by Anaheim, claimed by the Coyotes, and lauded after shutting out Los Angeles in his debut for coach Wayne Gretzky.
4. Battle for the NFC? From the opinions I read prior to the season, the New York Jets actually had the potential to be better than the Giants. 10 weeks in, the Jets' win against Pittsburgh yesterday was practically a miracle the midst of a 2-8 season while the Giants hold the third-best record in their conference. Aside from Green Bay, only Dallas, which comes the closest to reaching New England's 411 points scored and boasts a 9-1 mark, has been better. I recall Bill Simmons picking the Giants to play his Patriots in the Super Bowl after the G-Men rallied from a poor start. Now, New York's defense may have helped the team shore up a wild card spot by defeating suddenly-strong Detroit at Ford Field. Still, "Fire Millen" isn't such a popular refrain around the Motor City anymore now that the GM has brought home a few wins.
5. Where amazing (and depressing) happens. The NBA's new marketing campaign involves commercials that attempt to bring out the best and most interesting about the league. The slogan "Where amazing happens" was perhaps coined to counteract referee Tim Donaghy's gambling scandal, but it hasn't done a thing to make me feel better about the health of my franchise. The Knicks, who improved to 2-1 after defeating the talented Nuggets at Madison Square Garden, have now lost 6 straight. This includes a 3-point game against the Clippers as I looked on from Section 305 of Staples Center. While my nerves were kept in check owing to New York's win against the Lakers the last time I made the trek to Tinseltown, it was hard not to feel a bit dismayed even as I chatted with a fellow Ducks fan who had accompanied me. Adding Zach Randolph to the frontcourt could have made this team respectable, but uncertain guard roles have contributed to the chaos that has become synonymous with the blue and orange uniforms I used to see in the playoffs perennially. Following this with a double-overtime loss to lowly Sacramento must not have done much for Isiah Thomas' mood.
6. Maybe now I'll learn to have a little more faith. One recent weekend, I told my dad that Ottawa was off to fabulous start in the Eastern Conference. Despite the Rangers' early struggles, I was sure they would eventually bounce back, but conceded that first in the conference (as one ESPN writer predicted) seemed like a long shot. His reply? "It's so early in the season." Since then, the Blueshirts haven't reached the top, but may well be on the biggest roll of any team in the league. Getting four goals from defensemen, including 2 from Michal Roszival, to win in Pittsburgh on Saturday night after trailing 2-0 early was quite the eye-opener. Since I can't stop gushing, I'm not sure if I've seen a more heartwarming goal this season than the one set up by Paul Mara, who fed Jason Strudwick for his shot into the vacant left side of the net in OT.
7. Your move, sir. By all accounts, the Yankees have retained catcher Jorge Posada and closer Mariano Rivera. While the prices were fairly steep, it's hard to fault New York's strategy: catchers are hard to find, and the Yankee bullpen couldn't afford to miss such a key piece with Joba Chamberlain moving into the rotation. What about the moves of some other teams? Edgar Renteria's move to Detroit should aid the Tigers, who are shifting Carlos Guillen and gave up a couple of live but not can't-miss arms in the deal with Atlanta. It's probably true that the Angels have another move in the works, but Orlando Cabrera for the White Sox' Jon Garland feels like an reach. Maybe the Sox' Ken Williams hasn't lost the magic entirely. Also, the Dodgers are said to be looking for a third baseman despite Andy LaRoche's productivity in the minors. Ned Colletti's deadline deals seemed to wake the Dodgers in 2006, but he may have pushed them out of the postseason in '07 with veteran-friendly transactions.
8. This was supposed to be easy. The highly-regarded basketball teams of USC and Kentucky have both lost early games to seemingly inferior opponents. Southern California was defeated by Mercer despite O.J. Mayo's 32 points, and the Wildcats lost 84-68 to Gardner Webb. In my initial band appearance of the year, the UC Irvine men nearly lost their exhibition match to California Baptist before a late run secured the victory for the Anteaters. I know such games are the exception, but in college I've always felt like an early upset can have a greater psychological impact than a comparable game would in the NBA.
9. Is there a champion in the house? Not much more than a month ago, my Bears were staring down a 1 football ranking in the country. It would have been a statement of epic proportions, but a late comeback bid to remain unbeaten was foiled in part due to a late mistake by QB Kevin Riley. While I find it difficult to remove that horror from my mind, the games Cal has played lately have made their brush with being the country's best seem like a dream. The latest indignity? A 37-23 defeat to Washington, who owned just a single conference win coming in. The defense has never been great this season, but now that the offense sputters on occasion (delay of game penalties and interceptions were often the culprit in this one), there's no way to make up for it. Meanwhile, teams like Kansas have their sights set on the title game, which makes me wonder what kind of bizarro world I'm living in when I regard a 6-5 record from a once-laughingstock team as armageddon.
10. Still a master? I had just read the opening chapters to Roland Lazenby's Mindgames, a biography of Phil Jackson. In it, Jackson was described as a 'master manipulator.' Not half a day later, I was reading about comments the Lakers' coach made involving a certain Ang Lee movie to describe the penetration by the Spurs' offense in their game against L.A. "The remarks are in poor taste," said a league spokesman. Agreed, but I shouldn't be shocked at his word choice: during one film session years ago, Jackson is said to have spliced opposing guard Jason Williams' photo next to that of a skinhead.
1. Alex stays! Just when I thought the sky was falling following Alex Rodriguez's decision to opt out of his contract, he is now close to a 10-year contract with the Yankees. My despair, which eventually became frustrated acceptance, has turned into outright optimism. Assuming A-Rod remains healthy, the all-time home run leader may not have a federal indictment on his record for all that long.
2. America's Most Wanted? The revelation that Barry Bonds has been indicted for perjury stemming from grand jury testimony about performance-enhancing substances made me realize that the government has joined the majority of baseball fans in making the slugger a major target. Despite the juicy details of his alleged usage in Game of Shadows and often-surly attitude, I've never despised him like many fans of the game do even though one of my best friends is a Dodger fan. At the same time, I've known he was vulnerable to such a charge ever since his testimony clashed with multiple news reports.
3. Apparently, I'm ready for the transition. Don't look now, but I've attended every home regular-season Ducks game so far this year. I actually thought about becoming a season ticket holder prior to last year but got cold feet at the thought of 41 games despite my professed love for the live game. Since January, though, I've gotten accustomed to the Honda Center and enjoy the company of everyone with whom I sit. Now, ten days between their last home game (a shootout win against the rival Kings) and this Friday's contest against Phoenix feels like a gaping void. The spotlight in that game will likely be focused on Ilya Bryzgalov, who was placed on waivers by Anaheim, claimed by the Coyotes, and lauded after shutting out Los Angeles in his debut for coach Wayne Gretzky.
4. Battle for the NFC? From the opinions I read prior to the season, the New York Jets actually had the potential to be better than the Giants. 10 weeks in, the Jets' win against Pittsburgh yesterday was practically a miracle the midst of a 2-8 season while the Giants hold the third-best record in their conference. Aside from Green Bay, only Dallas, which comes the closest to reaching New England's 411 points scored and boasts a 9-1 mark, has been better. I recall Bill Simmons picking the Giants to play his Patriots in the Super Bowl after the G-Men rallied from a poor start. Now, New York's defense may have helped the team shore up a wild card spot by defeating suddenly-strong Detroit at Ford Field. Still, "Fire Millen" isn't such a popular refrain around the Motor City anymore now that the GM has brought home a few wins.
5. Where amazing (and depressing) happens. The NBA's new marketing campaign involves commercials that attempt to bring out the best and most interesting about the league. The slogan "Where amazing happens" was perhaps coined to counteract referee Tim Donaghy's gambling scandal, but it hasn't done a thing to make me feel better about the health of my franchise. The Knicks, who improved to 2-1 after defeating the talented Nuggets at Madison Square Garden, have now lost 6 straight. This includes a 3-point game against the Clippers as I looked on from Section 305 of Staples Center. While my nerves were kept in check owing to New York's win against the Lakers the last time I made the trek to Tinseltown, it was hard not to feel a bit dismayed even as I chatted with a fellow Ducks fan who had accompanied me. Adding Zach Randolph to the frontcourt could have made this team respectable, but uncertain guard roles have contributed to the chaos that has become synonymous with the blue and orange uniforms I used to see in the playoffs perennially. Following this with a double-overtime loss to lowly Sacramento must not have done much for Isiah Thomas' mood.
6. Maybe now I'll learn to have a little more faith. One recent weekend, I told my dad that Ottawa was off to fabulous start in the Eastern Conference. Despite the Rangers' early struggles, I was sure they would eventually bounce back, but conceded that first in the conference (as one ESPN writer predicted) seemed like a long shot. His reply? "It's so early in the season." Since then, the Blueshirts haven't reached the top, but may well be on the biggest roll of any team in the league. Getting four goals from defensemen, including 2 from Michal Roszival, to win in Pittsburgh on Saturday night after trailing 2-0 early was quite the eye-opener. Since I can't stop gushing, I'm not sure if I've seen a more heartwarming goal this season than the one set up by Paul Mara, who fed Jason Strudwick for his shot into the vacant left side of the net in OT.
7. Your move, sir. By all accounts, the Yankees have retained catcher Jorge Posada and closer Mariano Rivera. While the prices were fairly steep, it's hard to fault New York's strategy: catchers are hard to find, and the Yankee bullpen couldn't afford to miss such a key piece with Joba Chamberlain moving into the rotation. What about the moves of some other teams? Edgar Renteria's move to Detroit should aid the Tigers, who are shifting Carlos Guillen and gave up a couple of live but not can't-miss arms in the deal with Atlanta. It's probably true that the Angels have another move in the works, but Orlando Cabrera for the White Sox' Jon Garland feels like an reach. Maybe the Sox' Ken Williams hasn't lost the magic entirely. Also, the Dodgers are said to be looking for a third baseman despite Andy LaRoche's productivity in the minors. Ned Colletti's deadline deals seemed to wake the Dodgers in 2006, but he may have pushed them out of the postseason in '07 with veteran-friendly transactions.
8. This was supposed to be easy. The highly-regarded basketball teams of USC and Kentucky have both lost early games to seemingly inferior opponents. Southern California was defeated by Mercer despite O.J. Mayo's 32 points, and the Wildcats lost 84-68 to Gardner Webb. In my initial band appearance of the year, the UC Irvine men nearly lost their exhibition match to California Baptist before a late run secured the victory for the Anteaters. I know such games are the exception, but in college I've always felt like an early upset can have a greater psychological impact than a comparable game would in the NBA.
9. Is there a champion in the house? Not much more than a month ago, my Bears were staring down a 1 football ranking in the country. It would have been a statement of epic proportions, but a late comeback bid to remain unbeaten was foiled in part due to a late mistake by QB Kevin Riley. While I find it difficult to remove that horror from my mind, the games Cal has played lately have made their brush with being the country's best seem like a dream. The latest indignity? A 37-23 defeat to Washington, who owned just a single conference win coming in. The defense has never been great this season, but now that the offense sputters on occasion (delay of game penalties and interceptions were often the culprit in this one), there's no way to make up for it. Meanwhile, teams like Kansas have their sights set on the title game, which makes me wonder what kind of bizarro world I'm living in when I regard a 6-5 record from a once-laughingstock team as armageddon.
10. Still a master? I had just read the opening chapters to Roland Lazenby's Mindgames, a biography of Phil Jackson. In it, Jackson was described as a 'master manipulator.' Not half a day later, I was reading about comments the Lakers' coach made involving a certain Ang Lee movie to describe the penetration by the Spurs' offense in their game against L.A. "The remarks are in poor taste," said a league spokesman. Agreed, but I shouldn't be shocked at his word choice: during one film session years ago, Jackson is said to have spliced opposing guard Jason Williams' photo next to that of a skinhead.
Labels: baseball, basketball, football, hockey, sports
posted by Alex at 4:05 PM
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