Goodbye, Junior

                     

Let me just say that this is a good deal for the Reds ... and I am sad to see Griffey go.

Despite the fact that he never brought his greatness with him, I liked the Ken Griffey Jr era in Cincinnati.  I didn't love it because we never made the playoffs, barely even sniffed being in a race and we didn't get what we thought we were.

Since his first season here, he has never been near the top of the stats in home runs, RBIs or average.  We didn't get a steady dose of his gold glove.  He was more Grumpy than Griffey.

All that was evident in his final week in town ... as he was warming up at the plate as well as getting into it with announcer Jeff Brantley.  That's a sad way to part ways.

Still, Griffey was a star (albeit a dimmed one) on a franchise that needed one.

Having said that, the Reds did the right thing by moving him.  Sure, they are paying his salary for the rest of the season ($4 million), but they are getting a couple of pitching prospects for a guy that wouldn't be here after a season where the Reds are out of contention.

I'm also happy for Griffey, who is at the end of his career.  Sure, he may have a few years left of DHing and some outfield duty somewhere ... but his chances to play in a World Series are almost gone.  He is going to the AL Central leading White Sox, who's biggest move could be watching Manny Ramirez traded from Boston (it could happen).

This could be the first in a line of moves for the Reds.  Adam Dunn's name is being bandied about Tampa Bay;  Josh Fogg is rumored to be heading back to Colorado.  Griffey's trade is ... for some, FINALLY ... the first move in an attempt to transition from the Griffey-Dunn Era to the Bruce-Votto Era. 

As I'm sad to see you go, good luck in Chicago, Junior!  I'll be rooting for you.

What If the NFL Divisions Weren't Realigned?

When the Houston Texans joined our little NFL club back in 2002, the NFL decided it was time to realign into four divisions in two conferences (good move).

Still, it is always fun to go back and see how things would shape up had the NFL decided to keep the three division format (and, for arguments sake, putting the Texans in the NFC West).

AFC EAST:  Buffalo, Indianapolis, Miami, New England, NY Jets.
Now this is a division!  The Colts and Pats have been two of the most successful and photogenic teams ... so imagine if they (a) were fighting for a division title every year and (b) we got two games between them ... or maybe three!  Aside from that, everything would look the same ... except for some sad faces in Buffalo, Miami and NYC.

AFC CENTRAL:  Baltimore, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Jacksonville, Pittsburgh, Tennessee
This was the only division with six teams and it had quite a run.  This is essentially the new AFC North with the Jags and Titans thrown in there ... two teams that were very successful right before realignment.  This would be one heck of a division with the Steelers trying to fend off the Jags and Titans (I love that Pitt-Jax rivalry!!!!) ... with Cleveland not too far behind.  Cincinnati and Baltimore both have talent ... but it isn't enough.

AFC WEST:  Denver, Kansas City, Oakland, San Diego, Seattle.
Remember that Seattle was an AFC team ... and judging what's been going on, they'd dominate their West division too.  Would it be any solace to Seahawks fans that if not for realignment ... they wouldn't have had to see their team get screwed over in Super Bowl XL?

NFC EAST:  Arizona, Dallas, NY Giants, Philadelphia, Washington.
The only addition is the Cardinals, who were then ... and still would be ... always trying to be a somebody in this division (or any division).  Still, Cards fans would love seeing the Cowboys come by every year.

NFC CENTRAL:  Chicago, Detroit, Green Bay, Minnesota, Tampa Bay.
Again, the only change is adding the Bucs, who sadly didn't get to strut their stuff as an Black-N-Blue Division beast.  Still, it would be a nice race with the Packers, Bucs and Vikings fighting for the division title.

NFC WEST:  Atlanta, Carolina, Houston, New Orleans, San Francisco, St. Louis
This division had the most changes since, well, most of its teams weren't in the west.  On paper this year, this would be the weakest division.  The Rams have stunk, the Falcons will stink and the Niners have been stinking.  Houston hasn't ever made the playoffs.  The Panthers and Saints are the most likely to have success, but neither can be trusted to do so.

R.I.P. Seattle SuperSonics

               

The city of Seattle is the latest place to get screwed by an owner with an agenda.

No more SuperSonics ... oh, unless another team magically shows up in a few years.  As we've seen in Charlotte, that isn't always a good thing to replace an old franchise with a new one immediately.  And cities like Kansas City, San Diego, Vancouver, Cincinnati and Buffalo haven't seen the NBA come back.

It seems that every time something like this happens, it is the team wanting new digs and the city not wanting to pay for it (or know that their consituents will be mad if they make them).  Forget that smaller market, crap ... Los Angeles lost two NFL teams in the same year. 

I do feel bad for Seattle.  I've seen the Charlotte thing up close and this is one of those heart wrenching things a city can have happen.  These Sonics have been to the Finals and have a NBA Championship, so their mark has been made. 

Shaq Reminds Us What Kind of Child He Is

                                

The blog world is abuzz over this video from TMZ.com that has Shaquille O'Neal doing a freestyle rap at a club and takes shots at one Kobe Bryant. 

Here are some of the lyrics:

"I'm a horse. Kobe ratted me out. That's why I'm getting divorced. He said Shaq gave a bitch a mil. I don't do that 'cause my name's Shaquille. I love 'em, I don't leave 'em. I got a vasectomy, now I can't breed 'em."

That doesn't include him getting the crowd involved in chanting, "Kobe, how's my ass taste!?!?"

In our new world of cameras and the ability to record video darn near everywhere, it doesn't take long for something like that to come to light.  When called out on this, Shaq had this to say:

"I was freestyling. That's all. It was all done in fun. Nothing serious whatsoever. That is what MC's do. They freestyle when called upon. I'm totally cool with Kobe. No issue at all. And by the way, don't forget, six albums, two platinum, two gold. Anybody who knows me knows I'm a funny freestyler. Check the NBA DVD when I was rapping about Vlade Divac during my first championship run. Please tell everybody don't make something out of nothing."

Stuff like that is only "funny" if the other person is there with you ... laughing along.  When it is across the country without the guy there to defend himself, it really isn't.

Even if he is being truthful, what the heck is that?

KOBE BEEF:  We were all led to believe that this beef between Shaq and Kobe was in a cease fire.  Maybe they are cool; maybe not.  But it has been three years since the hatchet was seemingly buried and we could all get along with our own lives. 

So where does this come from? 

Look, we all knew that if Kobe and the Lakers had beaten the Celtics in the NBA Finals last week, he would have had the ultimate stamp on his career.  As of now, Kobe detractors will always point to his three NBA rings and say, "yeah, but Shaq was the reason you got them."  And, yeah, they'd be kinda right.  Of course, Shaq needed a young Kobe and (really needed) a young Dwayne Wade to get him his rings, too.

Still, Kobe just took a team that really isn't molded into anything and won the toughest Western Conference in a long, long, long time.  He has as many MVP awards as Shaq has. 

WHAT DID YOU JUST DO?:  There is also that little issue of talking smack to a guy who led his team to the Finals ... while you sat at home watching. 

This is the same Shaq that was bailed out of Miami (ya know, cuz they really sucked) and went to Phoenix.  Mind you, the Suns had the best record in the conference when they made that trade.  They ended up as the #6 seed, losing to the San Antonio Spurs in the first round.

Kobe's Lakers beat those Spurs in just five games in the WCF. 

To me, it is hard to come at a guy who had a season as Kobe had.  Remember, before the Gasol trade, the Lakers were right there in the mix as one of the best teams in the West.  And that team was playing Kwame Brown a lot. 

I understand there are the people that loathe Kobe Bryant and I understand most of their issues (as a Laker fan, I know he is a first class jerk).  Still, you have to be quite the moron to fault Kobe for not singlehandedly beating a 66-win Celtics team.

HOME WRECKER:  The worst part is Shaq pinning his failed marriage on Kobe.  What?

Sure, maybe Kobe crossed the "code" by squealing on Shaq during his Colorado fiasco of 2004.  Was he lying?  If so, then how could that ruin Shaq's marriage?  If he wasn't, I guess needing a little on the side means your marriage was already ruined.

Plus, it has been several years since this all went down.   Why would what Kobe said affect Shaq's marriage over the last few months? 

Because of the language of this rap, Shaq has lost his crime fightin' badge.

Tiger Woods Touched Me and Walked Away

Last week, I was laid up in my house with kidney stones (uh, don't ever, ever, ever, every get 'em) so sleeping and watching TV were my two hobbies.

The US Open brought me some quiet relief as I got to just chill and listen to the soft sounds of the great game.  DirecTV (you aren't a sports fan unless you have it) had a package of four channels covering the event ... with one of the channels devoted to "the premiere group".

Needless to say, that premiere group included Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and Adam Scott on Thursday and Friday.

I am like many sport-lovin' Americans: I like golf, but don't really sit and watch it like that.  I will admit that I'm more apt to tune in to Sunday's final round if Tiger is involved than if he wasn't.  I hate that I'm like that ... but it is the truth.

So, this weekend was great.  Friday's action was tremendous ... I didn't get to see much of Saturday's play ... but Sunday afternoon I got in Tiger's back 9 and saw some great golf.  Monday's drama was great and -- for once -- all the post-hype around it is very deserved.  If only the people who were hooked in would stick around.

Since Tiger is done for the season, there will be a ton of fans that will be lost for the year too.  They, like me, want to see the Big Bad Tiger and all his greatness dominate (or pull out the tough victory).  Most don't want to see ... well ... those other guys.

That is a shame ... and a reality. 

I just hope that someone or a couple of someones do something extraordinary during this Tiger-free season.  Just as the NBA went a few seasons without Michael Jordan ... we need to see someone else try and take that place near or at the top of the golf world.  Maybe when Tiger comes back, someone will have the cojones and confidence to challenge him on a weekly basis.

As the whole Rocco Mediate Love Fest shows you, fans do long for someone to walk beside Tiger and make him ... at least ... work to win.

Hopefully I will stick around and watch.  I honestly will try to do so.

Lakers Seem to Always Duck Out of the Playoffs in Heartless Fashion

   

I am a Laker fan, and while I'm not surprised the Celtics beat us in the NBA Finals ... it was a bit frustrating to see them get punked in Game 6.  Losing by 39 points when your season (and a championship) is on the line is unbelievable.

However, should I have expected any different from the purple and gold?

To show us the point is a good friend LBerg who threw up some great numbers on the Lakers recent past in exiting playoffs.  Folks, it ain't pretty:

-----------------------------------------------------------

During the other night's debacle, it dawned on me that this was pretty much a rerun of how the last several Lakers playoff runs have ended.  So I went back and had a look at the scores of the last games of our last several playoff appearances:

 

2003 - SA 110 @ Lakers 82

2004 - Det 100 Lakers 87 (game was not as close as score - Lakers were down 30+ in second half)

2006 - Phx 121 Lakers 90

2007 - Phx 119 Lakers 110 (another game not as close as final score iirc)

2008 - Bos 131 Lakers 92

 

With the exception of 2006, all of these were series in which the wheels came off, where we were completely dismantled.  But 2006 of course might have been the worst one of all as we became only the 8th team in the history of the NBA to blow a 3-1 series lead.  And we were also destroyed in Game 5 of that series by a score of 114-97.

 

These playoff meltdowns don't paint a pretty picture for a team that has the best player in the game (and also had the Most Dominant Ever in 2003 and 2004) and the best coach.  It's one thing to lose in the playoffs, it's another to lose while getting humiliated.  Over and over again.

 

We had a great season and the future appears bright.  But Phil's 9th championship and Kobe's 3rd are getting more and more distant in that rear view mirror.  Most troubling is that when we've lost at whatever respective point in the playoffs the past several years, it's been in series in which we couldn't find sustainable answers for what the opposition was doing to us and we basically fell apart and then flat out quit in the final game of these series.  Not a pretty picture.

Junior Hits #600

                            

Congrats to Ken Griffey, Jr and his 600th career home run.  He becomes only the sixth Major Leaguer to do it ... and the first in decades that didn't have a whiff of steroids surrounding the achievement.

I'm one of those people that never want to see Griffey out of a Reds' uniform.  Sure, the past eight seasons haven't been very good for the Red Legs, but it isn't all his fault (yes, he's the highest paid player and has had injury issues).

I just don't want to see the Reds pimp Griffey like the Giants did Bonds:  after Bonds collected the all-time HR record, the team all but wanted to push him out the door.  I don't want to see the same thing happen to Junior, even if his contract is expiring.

One of the great things about the Reds is their ability to embrace their history.  The Big Red Machine is still beloved whenever they get together.  Tom Browning is a hero.  Joe Nuxhall has been a legend.  This is the one city (besides Las Vegas) that Pete Rose can go and people still love him. 

It hasn't been like that for a while, at least not since the end of Barry Larkin's career.  The Reds fans haven't embraced anyone in the manner they used to.  It is a shame, because while he haven't had a front seat for Ken Griffey, Jr's prime ... we have been privileged to have one of the greatest players in baseball history call this town home.

Why would we push him away?

Interesting World Series Info

-The Reds are the only NL team since 1963 to sweep the World Series (1976, 1990)

-The last time two teams were both making their first World Series appearance was in 1906.

-Since 1920, the only time both World Series participants were titleless was 1980.

-We've never had a World Series featuring two 'expansion' teams.

-The 1990s were the first time since the 1930s that we didn't have a Yankees-Dodgers World Series.  It looks like it won't happen this decade, either.

-Since 1975, all World Series have been different matchups.  Meaning that there have been no duplicate series during that time period.

-The Boston Red Sox have played all current non-expansion NL teams in the World Series ... except the Braves.  They've faced the Reds, Cubs, Phillies, Cardinals, Dodgers, Giants and Pirates.

-The Yankees have beaten all eight in a World Series.  They've also lost to six of the eight (not the Cubs or Phillies).

-The Colorado Rockies are the only franchise to face Boston in the World Series, but not the Yankees.

-The last six World Series has featured at least one Wild Card team. 

-The National League hasn't had home field advantage in the World Series since 2001.

-The only current teams to have never made the World Series are the Tampa Rays, Seattle Mariners, Texas Rangers and Washington Nationals.

-The Astros, Brewers, Padres and Rockies are the only franchise that have made the World Series but never won it.  The Padres are the only team to have made it more than once.

-The Florida Marlins own two World Series championships.  They own zero division titles.

-The Florida Marlins have never lost a playoff series.

-The Florida Marlins and Toronto Blue Jays are the only franchises to have made multiple World Series appearances and not lost.

-The Cubs, Giants and Reds are the only NL teams to win back to back World Series.

-The Red Sox, Yankees, A's and Blue Jays are the only AL teams to win back to back World Series.

-The Braves have won World Series in Boston, Milwaukee and Atlanta.

News Flash: The Reds Suck Again!

                    

We have just entered May, but it already seems as if the 2008 season for the Cincinnati Reds will end the same way it has for the last 13 years:  without a playoff appearance.

The Reds are now 12-20 ... which means they are on pace to go 60-102.  All this and the team really hasn't had horrid injury issues, they've spent money and they hired a fairly successful (albeit controversial) new manager.

The GM has already been canned.

In reality, the biggest elephant in the room wears the #600.  When Ken Griffey Jr finally reaches the mighty 600 home run plateau, I fully expect the team to deal him away.  From a purely selfish standpoint, I don't want to see that happen.  However, the only think Griffey has to offer the Reds is the pub (and ticket sales) when he gets to that mark and the prospects he would be worth to a contending franchise. 

Obviously, the Reds would be fools to deal him now.  They can't wait to put the number 600 right into the media guide next to 4192.  Dealing him beforehand would be moronic. 

However, once he gets to the mark ... he's probably gone.

He could be followed out the door by Adam Dunn, who is seemingly always on the trading block.  There are other guys Cincy would surely want to deal away (Arroyo, Gonzalez) ... but would anyone want them?  The only veteran that I could see being off limits is Brandon Phillips. 

In will come those vaunted prospects from Louisville and Chattanooga and we will enter Florida Marlins territory. 

I don't mean disrespect when I say that.  It seems that there are two ways to win in today's baseball:  spend like a mo'fo or trade away your stars for top prospects.

The Marlins have chosen to do the latter.  They develop young talent into a contender for a season or two ... then deal them off (when they are due to get paid) for some more young talent.  Hey.  They've won a World Series doing exactly this.  Oakland and Minnesota have been pretty successful doing the same sorts of things.

There is no middle ground.  You very rarely see a team spend average amounts of money win.

The Reds have been stuck in this middle ground for a decade or so.  There is some good talent in the minors, but not an amazing amount.  There are some big salaries on the roster, but no one who wows you. 

And this is one of the reasons baseball has lost me a bit.  I used to love it but have now grown weary of it all.  While the Yankees, Red Sox, Angels and Mets can make constant trips to the postseason, the Reds, Brewers, Pirates and Royals can't get a sniff.

I'm not getting into all of that, but it does suck to sit here on Cinco de Mayo and know there is no point in the rest of the season.

Great Moments in Sports Video Games: Arch Rivals

Ahhhhh.  Remember Arch Rivals?  The old arcade and NES classic that featured two man teams going at each other with jump shots and right hooks.

You could be:

Blade: A crowd pleaser

Hammer: Rebound king

Lewis: Top shooter

Mohawk: Tough & mean

Moose: A real champ

Reggie: All-American

Tyrone: Defensive giant

Vinnie: A great player

You could play for Chicago, Los Angeles, New York or Denver.  Or how about Natural High and Brawl State? 

Others tried but failed (including Bill Laimbeer's Combat Basketball, pictured below).  Arch Rivals had everything you wanted in a quick, B.S. style hoops game.

                         

Just Because You Struggle in the First Round Doesn't Mean You Still Can't Get There

                  

The Boston Celtics are looking at an embarassing Game 7 against the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday.  Embarrassing because the Celtics were the NBA's best team during the regular season while the Hawks ... making their first postseason appearance in nearly a decade ... entered the playoffs with a losing record.

We all might think this just shows this weakness to other teams which may try to exploit it.  Maybe ... but don't count the Celtics out of winning the whole shabang if they manage to pull out Game 7.

Two teams in the last 20 years have had to go the distance in their first round series only to still go on and win the NBA Championship. 

2000-Los Angeles Lakers.  The Lakers entered the postseason with the NBA's best record.  That still didn't keep them from struggling in the first round against the Sacramento Kings.  The Lakers won two, Kings won two, before LA closed it out in the series' final contest.  Shaq and Kobe would go on to win the NBA title.

1995-Houston Rockets.  The defending champs were actually the 6th seed against Utah in the first round.  Still, the "heart of a champion" came through and Houston won the clinching Game 5 in Salt Lake City.  Houston would go on to repeat as champions ... sweeping Orlando in the NBA Finals.

There have been six other teams in the last 20 years to go the distance in their first round series and gone on to lose the NBA Finals.

2002-New Jersey Nets.  The Nets were pushed to a full five games in their first round series with the Indiana Pacers.  New Jersey would go on to the NBA Finals, where they lost to the Lakers.

2000-Indiana Pacers.  The same year the Lakers struggled with the Kings in the first round, the Pacers got all they wanted from the Milwaukee Bucks.  The series went the full five games with Indiana eeking out a 96-95 win in the final contest.  Indiana would go on to the NBA Finals and lose to the Lakers.

1999-New York Knicks.  This one gets an asterick of sorts, because they were the #8 seed in a strike shortened season.  The Knicks took the #1 seeded Miami Heat to a full five games before disposing of them.  New York would go on an unprobable run to the NBA Finals, where they lost to the Spurs. 

1998-Utah Jazz.  We remember this Jazz team for nearly knocking off the Bulls in the Finals ... but they needed a full five games to beat Houston in the first round.  The Rockets actually had a 2-1 series lead before Stockton-n-Malone soared for the last two wins.

1993-Phoenix Suns.  This was the MVP Charles Barkley season.  The Suns ... who had the NBA's best record ... actually lost their first two games against the Lakers (at home) in their first round matchup.  Suns eeked out elimination in Game 3, won Game 4 and pulled out an overtime victory in Game 5 to keep from being embarassed.

1988-Detroit Pistons.  We all remember the magical Lakers-Pistons NBA Finals of that year.  Well, in nearly didn't happen (and not just because the Lakers needed to win Game 7s against the Jazz and Mavs along the way).  No, Detroit had a heck of a time trying to rid themselves of the Washington Bullets in their first round meeting.  After blowing out the Bullets in the first two games, Washington went home and pulled out two to send it back to the Silverdome for a winner-take-all.  The Pistons won and made their first trip to the NBA Finals.

Two Mo' College Football Bowls

         

The NCAA has decided that we need two more college football bowl games ... bringing up the total to 34 bowls.  That means there will be 68 teams that will see postseason play next year.

Unlike many, I like it.  Not because I think we need two more bowls or that I'll actually watch the games ... but there is nothing wrong with giving these kids one more opportunity to play a game they love.  For many of them, it will be their final game.

The games will be in Washington and St. Petersburg.  That's not so bad.  I'm sure that fans and players will enjoy the sunny St. Pete weather and all the things the Tampa Bay area has to offer.  And how about D.C.?  I'm sure there will be no shortage of stuff to see and do there.

 

Karl Malone is Nasty

       

Karl Malone may be a Hall of Fame basketball player, but he's also in the Hall of Fame of horrible dads.

It's one thing to dismiss your offspring ... it's another thing when his mom was 13 when she had her.

Yeah, Malone is quite disgusting in so many ways.

 

Great Moments in Jets Draft History

New Reality Show: Sports Cheaters

                      

There is a new reality show in the works where the best sports cheaters of all time will be forced to live with each other.

Picture it Big Brother, Survivior and the NBA playoffs rolled into one.   The house will be on 1919 Black Sox Lane.

Danny Almonte: the 20 yr old Little Leaguer
Bill Belichick:  Film auteur
Barry Bonds:  He's got nothing to do right now.
Tonya Harding:  Olympic Skater/Redneck
Ben Johnson:  The Steroid O.G.
Mark McGwire:  But let's talk about the future
Milli Vanilli:  Okay, not sports.  But you need something else in there.
Rosie Ruiz:  Cheated at the Boston Marathon
Stella Walsh:  The dude/chick who won a gold medal

The winner will be picked by the figure skating judges from the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics.