So, my rookie post talked a lot about the Reds. I got many a complaint about this, surprisingly. Some people don't know a lot about baseball, or don't like the Reds. Also, apparently a lot of the ladies were complaining that my blog is about sports, and I have one thing to say (a la Evan Buckley), deal with it. I'm a guy, I like sports as much as you like clothes. If you had a blog about clothes, I wouldn't complain. So anyway I thought that I would try to talk about something with a little more universal appeal, like how good the Cards are right now, and how UK will not make the tournament.
I'll start it off with a tribute to a U of L basketball great: LaBradford Smith, or as I know him personally, "LA."
Wow. What a dunk. Terrance Williams is also good, but not nearly as good as climbing Mt. Everest.
and
I wonder if Bill Raftery would have ripped LA for making his dunk, like he ripped T-Will. Onions!
Anyway, the Cards have looked good lately, with a couple good wins this week, vs. Syracuse on Monday and at Pittsburgh on Sunday. The win over Syracuse showed us another stellar outing from the defense, holding the Orange to a season low output in points. On Sunday, U of L went down in history, as the only team to win twice at Pitt's Petersen Events Center since it opened in 2002. Pitt was able to score some points on U of L. They shot 44% against the Cards, which is the highest percentage against them in a while. They actually had to rely on their offense to win this game, which they haven't had to do for a long time. Edgar Sosa seems to be turning a corner, and playing like he did at this time last year, and David Padgett looked like his usual self, scoring a season high 21 on Sunday.
As I'm writing, the rankings came out. The AP poll has Louisville at 13 and the ESPN poll shows them at 18. They finally seem to be getting a fair amount of respect from the writers, after that early season slide. Right now, Lunardi's Bracketology on espn.com has Louisville a 3-seed with their RPI at a solid 14. U of L has three games left: vs. Notre Dame, vs. Villanova, and at Georgetown. Two wins out of three with a good showing in the Big East tourney should lock up a 3-seed for the Cards.
Speaking of the tournament, you know who won't be there? UK. Their only hope is if they beat Tennessee on the road. If they don't, I find it hard for the selection committee to allow a team in that has losses at home to Gardiner-Webb, San Diego and UAB. The committee also looks for good road wins, and UK has none (don't call LSU of Georgia good wins please). Also, being 9-3 in a bad conference doesn't say much. However, beating Tennesse would change all of this. Even if they lost to Tennessee, I wouldn't be surprised if they made the tournament, since the committee seems to award "tradition" points. This could explain why Duke seems to always get a higher seed than they deserve.
One last thing about March Madness. It's getting closer to being time for the Buckley Basketball Bonanza®. Contact Evan Buckley for more information.
By the way, the Bengals won the Ultra Bowl. They beat the NY Giants 38-6. This makes them the best team ever.
Non-sports related thought of the week: Flight of the Conchords. These guys are from New Zealand and are absolutely hilarious. They have lots of videos on YouTube. I suggest "Business Time" and "Albi, the Racist Dragon".
Monday, February 25, 2008
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
42 Days Until Opening Day
So I’m procrastinating. I started typing an away message about how I felt about the Cincinnati Reds chances this year, since spring training started Saturday. It got too long, and I liked what I had…hence a blog. This blog will be all things sports, focusing on the Reds, the Bengals, and the Louisville Cardinals. I also like soccer, so I’ll mention it from time to time. Anything else of merit that requires attention will probably be mentioned too (like when UK scored only 11 points in a half, that would have been covered). So, with that, I give you the away message that got too long…plus some on soccer.
I am unusually optimistic about the Reds this year. I mean, I'm a fan, so this time every year I am optimistic, but in the back of my head, they were just the same Reds as they were last year; so I never really got my hopes that high. It's different this year though, and I think that for 5 reasons.
1. Dusty Baker. Here's a guy that finally brings credibility to the manager's office in Cincinnati, a credibility that has not been seen since the days of Jack McKeon (and his cigars), and Lou Piniella. The Reds need a guy like this.
2. Homer Bailey. I know, I know. I know what you're thinking: Dusty screwed up Mark Prior and Kerry Wood in Chicago, so it's going to happen to Homer Bailey too. I realize what happened in Chicago; I'm not a moron. But in the mood of being optimistic, I'd like to think that it's just the crazy Cubs fans that blame the unfortunate injuries of these pitchers on the manager (or maybe it's the goat?). Homer looked good last year, not great, but definitely has potential. I'm excited to see what he's got.
3. Johnny Cueto. Much of my reasoning for being excited about Homer Bailey can be applied to Cueto; however Cueto has yet to pitch in the majors. Something has to be said for a guy that the Reds refused to trade in the offseason for a veteran starting pitcher. He worked his way up from A to AAA last year and got better as he as the competition improved. I can only hope this trend continues (and he learns English).
4. Jay Bruce/Joey Votto. Who knew I could be so excited about prospects? Neither of these guys has had any significant time in the big leagues, but like Cueto, the Reds refused to trade these guys for a veteran pitcher. It's been a while since the Reds have had this many good prospects. It seems like Krivsky's scouting background is beginning to pay off for the Reds. Votto did well in his September outing with the Reds last year, hitting over .300. Bruce apparently has the tools to be a great center fielder and hitter. Give these guys a whole season in the bigs, and I think they’ll do well.
5. Ken Griffey, Jr. What? All my excitement stems around young guys (with the exception of the 58 year old dude I mentioned first). But this also ties in with Baker. Baker has a good history of managing superstars with big egos. Not that Griffey is cocky like Barry Bonds, but in the way that Bonds demands respect. Baker and Bonds had a good relationship in San Francisco, and look what happened (when you throw steroids in the mix). Same goes for Sammy Sosa in Chicago. I’m not saying that Griffey is going to hit 73 home runs this year while his head inflates in size. I’m just saying that Baker has an uncanny ability to relate to the superstars and motivate them and get them to produce. Griffey has a great respect for Baker and vice versa, which could mean Griffey having a good year (fingers crossed/knock on wood…any good luck thing I can do).
So that’s it. Five reasons why I like the Reds chances this year to at least put together a winning season and start this organization back in the right direction. Honorable mention: Bob Castellini, Brandon Phillips, Aaron Harang.
One reason why the Reds will continue to be among the league leaders in errors/strike-outs this year: Adam Dunn.
Also, UEFA Champions League is back today. 2:30 on ESPN2. Get excited. Inter Milan (Italy) takes on Liverpool (England). Keep your eye on Liverpool captain, #8 Steven Gerrard. Become versed in the works of Gerrard: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FoxQm4oUhx0. Also, Inter’s Zlatan Ibrahimovic is one of the world’s best strikers. Another required viewing: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRCWJFmsQVU.
For those of you unfamiliar with the UEFA Champions League, here’s a lesson. The Champions League is a World Cup style tournament. Except the main difference is this: the World Cup is countries competing against each other. The Champions League is a tournament of Europe’s (and Russia’s) top club teams, and is the most prestigious trophy a European club team can win. A club team is equivalent to an NFL/NBA/MLB team here, except soccer (football everywhere else in the world; why do we U.S American’s call it something different?).
The soccer season in Europe starts in late August and goes to early May, culminating with the Champions League Final. If you’re so interested now, go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UEFA_Champions_League, or officially http://www.uefa.com/competitions/ucl/format/index.html. If you want to know what I’m talking about in future posts, you may want to read one of these.
Anyway, that’s all the time I can afford procrastinating. I’ll post regularly (probably once a week).
I am unusually optimistic about the Reds this year. I mean, I'm a fan, so this time every year I am optimistic, but in the back of my head, they were just the same Reds as they were last year; so I never really got my hopes that high. It's different this year though, and I think that for 5 reasons.
1. Dusty Baker. Here's a guy that finally brings credibility to the manager's office in Cincinnati, a credibility that has not been seen since the days of Jack McKeon (and his cigars), and Lou Piniella. The Reds need a guy like this.
2. Homer Bailey. I know, I know. I know what you're thinking: Dusty screwed up Mark Prior and Kerry Wood in Chicago, so it's going to happen to Homer Bailey too. I realize what happened in Chicago; I'm not a moron. But in the mood of being optimistic, I'd like to think that it's just the crazy Cubs fans that blame the unfortunate injuries of these pitchers on the manager (or maybe it's the goat?). Homer looked good last year, not great, but definitely has potential. I'm excited to see what he's got.
3. Johnny Cueto. Much of my reasoning for being excited about Homer Bailey can be applied to Cueto; however Cueto has yet to pitch in the majors. Something has to be said for a guy that the Reds refused to trade in the offseason for a veteran starting pitcher. He worked his way up from A to AAA last year and got better as he as the competition improved. I can only hope this trend continues (and he learns English).
4. Jay Bruce/Joey Votto. Who knew I could be so excited about prospects? Neither of these guys has had any significant time in the big leagues, but like Cueto, the Reds refused to trade these guys for a veteran pitcher. It's been a while since the Reds have had this many good prospects. It seems like Krivsky's scouting background is beginning to pay off for the Reds. Votto did well in his September outing with the Reds last year, hitting over .300. Bruce apparently has the tools to be a great center fielder and hitter. Give these guys a whole season in the bigs, and I think they’ll do well.
5. Ken Griffey, Jr. What? All my excitement stems around young guys (with the exception of the 58 year old dude I mentioned first). But this also ties in with Baker. Baker has a good history of managing superstars with big egos. Not that Griffey is cocky like Barry Bonds, but in the way that Bonds demands respect. Baker and Bonds had a good relationship in San Francisco, and look what happened (when you throw steroids in the mix). Same goes for Sammy Sosa in Chicago. I’m not saying that Griffey is going to hit 73 home runs this year while his head inflates in size. I’m just saying that Baker has an uncanny ability to relate to the superstars and motivate them and get them to produce. Griffey has a great respect for Baker and vice versa, which could mean Griffey having a good year (fingers crossed/knock on wood…any good luck thing I can do).
So that’s it. Five reasons why I like the Reds chances this year to at least put together a winning season and start this organization back in the right direction. Honorable mention: Bob Castellini, Brandon Phillips, Aaron Harang.
One reason why the Reds will continue to be among the league leaders in errors/strike-outs this year: Adam Dunn.
Also, UEFA Champions League is back today. 2:30 on ESPN2. Get excited. Inter Milan (Italy) takes on Liverpool (England). Keep your eye on Liverpool captain, #8 Steven Gerrard. Become versed in the works of Gerrard: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FoxQm4oUhx0. Also, Inter’s Zlatan Ibrahimovic is one of the world’s best strikers. Another required viewing: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRCWJFmsQVU.
For those of you unfamiliar with the UEFA Champions League, here’s a lesson. The Champions League is a World Cup style tournament. Except the main difference is this: the World Cup is countries competing against each other. The Champions League is a tournament of Europe’s (and Russia’s) top club teams, and is the most prestigious trophy a European club team can win. A club team is equivalent to an NFL/NBA/MLB team here, except soccer (football everywhere else in the world; why do we U.S American’s call it something different?).
The soccer season in Europe starts in late August and goes to early May, culminating with the Champions League Final. If you’re so interested now, go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UEFA_Champions_League, or officially http://www.uefa.com/competitions/ucl/format/index.html. If you want to know what I’m talking about in future posts, you may want to read one of these.
Anyway, that’s all the time I can afford procrastinating. I’ll post regularly (probably once a week).
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