Sunday, April 23, 2006

Do We Have Any Fruitcake?

The best way to start my columns from here on out will be to do some house cleaning from my previous post. It was my very first post, and the response I got was quite good. There were several more people reading it than I had originally anticipated which goes to show you that by building a simple link in an AOL profile, they will come. And you did. However, I have a bone to pick with some of you.

I have only one comment from my first post, and it is from some company trying to sell me something. I don't get it. I have been getting IM's, facebook wall postings, and actual face to face conversations all telling me about my post. That's all fine and whatnot, and it did bolster my wall postings to an even 100, but post a comment or two at the end of the actual post next time. Let me know why you hated the column or you can let me know what you had for dinner. Either way, comments would be appreciated. To facilitate this, I called up blogspot and asked them to allow anyone to post a comment. You no longer need to register to anything, so type till your hearts content. I digress.

As for myself, I found from my first post, that I need to proofread these columns. I have been in the habit the past 8 years that once I'm done writing anything all I need is a simple spelling check on Microsoft Word, and we are good to go. Not the case. I'll try to brush up on my grammar skills and edit these things beforehand. That's my promise to you. You're welcome.

I decided to write two columns a week. My first one probably on Wednesday, and then a weekend wrap-up on Sunday. The best way for me to keep this going is to find at least a dozen comments on this post. Come on, let's make this dream a reality. If not, then I can blame my family and friends for my own laziness. You don't want that to happen.

Allright, lots to talk about, so let's do it to it.

I bought a notebook the other day, just for this website. I have been writing in it since my first post to remind myself of what I want to talk about in my next one. Well, I have written down a lot of things, so this might be one of my lengthier columns. If it is too much for one read, then make it a two-nighter. And besides, for you readers who aren't in college yet, look to me as more of an educated scholar who is preparing you for your soon to be rigorous college studies. Now if this was a reading assignment for me, I would have read the title, the first and last paragraphs, and then started playing Tiger Woods.

Everyone is playing fantasy sports these days. Fantasy football is by far the biggest, but that is no surprise due to professional football being the most popular sport. Fantasy sports give the fans a rooting interest in each and every game. You will still root for your team, but when the other games are on, you root for individuals. The main part is that you are still watching all the games. I do not like to pay for my playing of fantasy sports, unless I have a group of friends who all decide to join a league. Web services are making a fortune off these things by not rewarding the winners with the majority of the money. My friend recently paid 100 dollars for a 12-team fantasy football league. 100 X 12 = $1200. It was a winner takes all league. He won. $600. That's it. CBSportsline took in the other half. That is ridiculous, and I will not take part in such a scam unless I am the one operating it. All the business aside, I still enjoy taking part in free public leagues. This year, in my four football leagues, I made the playoffs in two, and won one. Not the greatest of track records. However, I also joined just one public basketball league. My history with fantasy basketball is simply awful. I don't keep up with the day to day operations, and end up near the bottom of the pack. Well this year with my team "Bron Over Wade," I grabbed the fifth spot in the playoffs. My team got hot, and I won the entire thing. Not gonna lie, I'm pretty damn proud of that accomplishment. My draft was mediocre but I made some good mid-season pickups, and got hot at the right time. I was planning on talking about the players on my team, but I rambled on a little too much about it already, so that will wait until a slow week.

Staying with the NBA, the playoffs are underway, but with them going all the way until June, I'll hold off on my comments. I would like to talk about who deserves to win the MVP trophy. The candidates are Lebron James, Kobe Bryant, and Steve Nash. Dirk and Chauncey are nice players, but I don't believe have a realistic shot to win. If it was my decision, the voting would look like this.
Third Place - Kobe Bryant. If I were a gambling man, (those who know me are laughing at this) would put good money on Kobe winning. However, I will be upset if this does happen. Sure, he led the league in scoring. Sure, he scored 800 points in a game. Sure, without him, the Lakers don't even sniff the playoffs. I just don't like him. Everything that is Kobe Bryant, I don't like. I think he shoots too much, gets angry at teammates when he is not shooting, and gets way way too many comparisons with Michael Jordan. There are some huge differences between these two players. First off all, when Michael won his championships, he was obviously the best player on the team. Kobe, not the case. Kobe had Shaq. Shaq was better. Those who say, "Well, Michael had Scottie," are idiots. Did Michael win a championship without Scottie? No. Could he have? Absolutely. Could Kobe have won those rings without Shaq? The answer lies in front of us right now. He can't. He won't. I guarantee it.
Second Place - Lebron James. King James had a great season. He led a horrible Cavs team to fourth place in the East, single-handedly. He is all the Cavs have, but it was enough for a fourth place finish and probably a first round win in the playoffs. James put up good numbers this year, and will continue to do so for years to come. Lebron will end his career with at least three MVP's, so don't get upset with him not winning it this year. For this year belongs to a Canadian.
First Place - Steve Nash. Without a doubt, he deserves this award. He won it last year, and should win it again this year. He has put up better numbers than last year and he has done it with less. How he doesn't win it is because of two things. One, affirmative action. And two, he's from Canada. Are the Phoenix Suns w/o Nash better than the Lakers w/o Kobe? Without a doubt. Doesn't mean anything. You put Steve Nash on the Lakers and not only do the Lakers have a better record than they do now, but, the rest of the Lakers would enjoy life much much more. Nash makes everyone else play better. Lebron does as well, but not to the same extent of Nash. If you would look at this race from an outsider's perception, you would agree with me too. Don't lie to yourself.

Off of the NBA, and onto some baseball. Why? Because I can.

I went to the Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati a couple of weeks ago. I like the place. Stadium is really nice, and unlike Jacobs Field in Cleveland, there is plenty of space on the inside of the stadium to walk around. One problem. You decide to name it "The Great American Ballpark," yet, your American flag can barely be seen. I have star and stripes boxer shorts that are bigger than the flag the Reds have up in centerfield. That is a joke. It also gives the NBA another reason to give a Canadian the MVP award.

The Reds picked up Brandon Phillips this past week, and all he has done is hit. Rumors had it that Barry Bonds was sighted taking notes of Phillips' swing, trying to figure out the old-fashioned way to get it done. Phillips was a prized talent in the Indians farm system, which is why he gets mentioned today. The Indians had no place for him to go, so they traded him to the Reds for a number two on Wendys value meal. Bob Wickman was delighted. Phillips never panned out because Cleveland said he couldn't field very well. I say, they never gave Phillips a chance. Why Brandon was not the utility infielder this year just bugs me. Instead we have Ramon Vasquez and his career .192 average in there again. If you give Brandon the spot, he at least has a chance. Phillips will become a good player. The Indians are going to miss him badly next year when Ronnie leaves us at second base. Shapiro and Wedge missed this one.

Did anyone else see Todd Hollandsworth rob a home run in Detroit last weekend? It was his very first start in left field this season. You think Jason Michaels would have caught that one? Ha. Laughable at just the thought of him trying. With one catch, Hollandsworth has done more with his defensive life than Michaels can even dream about doing.

Is it wrong that even though the Indians were up 15-1 on Baltimore, I still felt uneasy to see Danny Graves start to warm up? Just the thought of shaggy running in there made me think the Indians needed more runs.

Casey Blake is hitting .400. Let me repeat. Casey Blake is hitting .400. I still don't believe it. If Aaron Boone and Ben Broussard get their lives together too, all I will have left to make fun of will be Bob Wickman. I guess it's not that bad. You can always rely on the Wickster for some comedy relief.

On a lighter side, Love Monkey made its return this Tuesday on VH1. About time. I was pretty angry when CBS pulled the plug. Just because it is not a reality show or have cops solving the world's problems doesn't mean its a bad show. The only reason I like it is because it reminds me of how good "Ed" used to be. That's really it.

That about wraps it up for me today. Our softball team Cool Runnings hits the field tonight. Hopefully with all eligible players. Next time you can look forward to why OUIM is dumb, Notre Dame football, and a preview of my Top 25 sports figures of all time. Read it. Roll it. Hole it.

Tuesday, April 18, 2006

STARTING OFF

Not gonna lie, I've seen two of my friends bust these "blogs" out and I thought I would tag along and see what this is all about. What will I talk about?? How many times will I write a new post?? Both are legitimate questions but I'm not sure what the answers will be. As of right now, I should be studying for a mid-term; however, I deem this more important than anything related to my studies. Yesterday I deemed watching an entire episode of Bryant Gumble and Real Sports, so this has to tell you something. I also just noticed that in my very first paragraph I've used the word deem twice, now make it three times. Wow.

The title of this whole thing is "King of Arguments." The only reason I chose that is because my roommate and I seem to get in an argument every day. Not always related to sports, but they usually are. I guess what makes the most sense is to just write about my thoughts on sports for the week. The goal is one post a week, but I'll hold on to that dream just like I did with keeping up with all my reading for the quarter.

I'm going to start with the Cleveland Indians, it's a good as place as any. Last year I caught Indian fever for the first time since Jose Mesa was actually good at life. They came on strong, posting the best 2nd half record in baseball. However, it was all for not as they folded the last week of the season to the improved Devil Rays and eventual champion White Sox. They did get 93 wins, which if you told me at the beginning of the season would be the Tribe's total, I would have taken the under and put at least a c-note (that’s some good banking terminology for everyone) on it. Playoffs or not, us Indian fans had to be excited about the start of the 2006 season. Even though Kevin Millwood, Bob Howry and the delicious cereal known as CoCo Crisp was traded, everyone else was coming back.

I'm going to break off track for a second and talk about the Crisp trade that got everyone talking this off-season. We all know the story, so I'll skip that and say we traded David Riske, Arthur Rhodes, and Crisp for Jason Michaels, G-something Mota, and prospect Andy Marte. My first impression was "awful." I've never heard of Michaels or Marte, and Mota hasn't been good since he pitched against Matt Williams and the Indians in the 97 World Series. I must admit, I was ignorant of the latter two. My opinion has since changed slightly.

Mr. Crisp and his Boston Red Sox uniform are both currently on the DL, but that is not the reason for me swaying my line of thinking. Starting off, this Mota guy, whatever his first name is or isn't, can flat out throw the ball. Hard. His fastball and slider combination will make for a very good set-up guy out of the bullpen. The only possible problem that could arise is his health, but, all you can do is hope he doesn't train with C.C. Next, this Michaels guy, not the greatest outfielder. I've seen him misplay several balls off the outfield wall. Absolutely horrible. I'm sure he is a nice guy and all, but he can't field. He's obviously less capable in the field than Crisp and just a bit better than Manny. Barely. I do like his ability at the plate though. He can make good contact, and should be right around that .290 line the entire season. Last but not least, the hot young prospect Andy Marte. Don't be scared by that "P" word, this guy can play. He could not miss in spring training, and do not be surprised at all to see him slightly after the all-star break playing in the Jake. All in all, not awful. Not yet.

Okay, after that little rant, I'll try to bring you back to the Indians as a whole. I like this team. They got off to a decent start, 8-5 soon to be 9-5, as I type. This is very important for Cleveland. After last years disappointment in the final week, a bad April could have killed their season. Not the case so far. My prediction is that the Indians will indeed win the AL Central. They will get 95 wins but then get bounced from the playoffs before they reach the World Series. 2007 will be their year. Guaranteed. Andy Marte, Fausto Carmona, and Franklin G-something (no relation to Mota), all will take over in 2007, and the championship will be theirs. Go ahead and write it down. Seriously, right now. I'm not kidding. I speak the truth.

Onto the Chicago Bulls. Sorry, I mean the Baby Bulls. Whoops, let’s try Da Bulls. There, much better. Even though I'm a huge Indians and Browns fan, I missed the bus with the Cavs. See, God does care about me. I fell in love with Michael Jordan (another guarantee, he will be in every post, if not every paragraph) when he hit the game and series winning shot back in 1988 against some punk named Craig Ehlo. I was only three, but I remember it nonetheless. I don't lie about these things. After the 1998 season when the Bulls won for the title for the umpteenth time, things went downhill and much more afterwards. Everyone who could dribble with both hands and their heads up left. They were beyond bad. They were Cincinnati Bengal bad (every year besides last). For about 6 years "next year" was already over before the draft took place. Things have changed since then. Ben Gordon, Kirk Heinrich, and dare I say, Andres Nocinoninon (or something like that) have brought the Bulls back. Just this past week they clinched the playoffs for the second year in a row. Will they win it all?? Ha, no. But neither will the Cavs. Not having a draft pick killed the Bulls this year, but good news is in the future. Apparently the New York Knicks lost a bunch, and thanks in part to Eddie Curry, the Bulls own New York's first round pick this year. Thank you Larry Brown, better yet, thank you Isaiah Thomas. I really want them to draft Adam Morrison, but I'm not going to hold my breath. They need a big guy, and once they get that, watch out, they have one of the best coaches in the league, and a very talented backcourt. The future is bright for them, and it makes me happy.

Well, I believe that is enough for my first post. I mean, at most 3 people will read it. Okay 4 if you count my mom. But doesn't she have to read it?? And then like it on top of that?? The answers to those are yes and yes. Anyways, you can expect me to talk about Notre Dame, Andre Agassi, and golf among other things in the future. As for right now, I have a test to study for ... but, Love Monkey is on at nine, so ... it'll have to wait until 10. I'll leave you with a quote that is starting to become my motto, "Read it, roll it, hole it."