57-58-1
My long, slow march to losing the vig continues.
Jags -6.5 Chiefs (argh - look, I would have told you a week ago that Jags +3 Titans was my favorite NFL line of the year, and that went against me by 4 scores, so laying this much wood seems like error, but there you go) (loss)
Ravens -3 Bengals (loss)
Indy -9 Tex (loss)
Redskins +10 Falcons (loss)
GBay -10 TB (loss)
Arizona +3 Bears (win)
NE -10 Miami (push)
Saints -13.5 Panthers (loss)
Seattle -10 Lions (I'm leaning toward taking Seattle in the two suicide pools I'm in; yes, I'm aware.)(win)
Niners -4 Tennessee (loss)
San Diego +4.5 NYG (win)
Philly -3 Dallas (loss)
Denver +3 Pittsburgh (this is the line I like this week; do with that what you will) (loss - that's what you should have done with it)
3-9-1
60-67-2
AFraud - The Choking Dog/Why Boo Brett?
Monday, November 2, 2009
Alex Rodriguez you may have read somewhere is the 27th greatest regular season performer in the history of major league baseball.
Probably, you've also spent years reading about how he suffered from some fatal spasm of self doubt during pressure situations that made him not as valuable a post season performer as the guy who plays next to him (the guy that carves the gravestones was more right than not - and Larry did kill that swan).
After last night, here is Alex Rodriguez's career postseason batting line: .295/.402/.560.
Derek Jeter's is .311/.383/.479.
It's not that he unburdened himself by admitting his steroid use (because, after all, virtually no one thinks he told the entire truth). And it's not that Kate Hudson has somehow refocused him (if Goldie's girl's ladyparts were magic, wouldn't the Black Crowes have sold a helluva lot more records?)- it's this:
Alex Rodriguez is a better postseason hitter than Derek Jeter. Not just this second, for the totality of their careers.
And of course, at .305/.390/.576 to .317/.388/.459 - ARod's a better regular season hitter than Derek Jeter.
Not to mention that while ARod is still 7 runs above position with the glove for his career, despite giving back value now as a slightly below average third baseman - Jeter is 181 runs below position at shortstop, his lack of range making him an all-time bad glove, costing the Yankees games virtually every season of his career.
(listen to the guy who carves the gravestones - he is very, very wise).
They're both going to the Hall of Fame and perfectly reasonably so - but this idea, birthed by the mainstream media and embedded in our collective sports consciousness, that Jeter is Captain Clutch while ARod (until the ninth inning last night) somehow got the yips in the big moments, just isn't borne out by the facts.
Unrelated, save for their iconographic status, the Favre booing was interesting to me yesterday. I had an inexact, but reasonably close parallel in my own sports fandom - my quarterback was Joe Montana, and after a very public squabble with the 49ers, despite his past heroics he was pushed aside for a younger model. I very distinctly recall my reaction when the Niners - the team of my boyhood, who remain, along with the baseball Giants, the biggest allegiances to any institution I have in my life (no school, church, country or employer is even in the same conversation) went to Kansas City in 1994 to play Joe's Chiefs.
I rooted for Joe.
And it wasn't that hard; Joe was my guy; he had won me 4 Super Bowls. There would be a whole lifetime left of Niner football (unless we move to LA; I've been saying this all decade, until there is a new stadium built you really can't feel confident that team isn't going to skip town) but Joe Montana had a very specific expiration date. And I didn't make a utilitarian calculation - I did what sports fans do and I operated from my gut (which is why you think Jeter's clutch and ARod chokes; why you think Jeter's a good fielder - it just feels that way to you - but you're wrong) I wanted Joe to win. And I was mad at my team for sending him away.
Over the years, some of that feeling (most of it) has softened - at the time, I thought the organization was making a mistake - Steve Young ran too much, not waiting for plays to develop - and the team didn't have confidence in him and, even in his state of decline, Joe was still more likely to win us titles.
Yeah, that was wrong. Steve Young's the 7th greatest regular season quarterback in NFL history; and no, he wasn't Montana - but in 1994, he was the better player. Young wasn't the bad guy; the organization wasn't the bad guy; there was no bad guy - two objects can't be in the same place at the same time; and the 49ers had two Hall of Famers at quarterback, one of them had to leave.
But 15 years later, despite that, I'm still glad Joe won that game, and still glad I was on the right side that day.
Sure, the Chiefs aren't the Vikings - had Joe gone to Dallas, perhaps to replace an injured Troy Aikman - it would have been incredibly painful; and I get that Favre's "will he or won't he" shtick may have worn some Packer faithful down (I wrote this in the summer of 2008).
But the booing...I am unsure I get that. I get not making my choice and instead rooting for your team over your guy. I do. Reasonable minds can differ. I get feeling a little betrayed. I get wishing he would just go away and certainly get hoping he doesn't win a Super Bowl in a uniform that isn't yours.
But I have to say, I legitimately do not get the booing.
Probably, you've also spent years reading about how he suffered from some fatal spasm of self doubt during pressure situations that made him not as valuable a post season performer as the guy who plays next to him (the guy that carves the gravestones was more right than not - and Larry did kill that swan).
After last night, here is Alex Rodriguez's career postseason batting line: .295/.402/.560.
Derek Jeter's is .311/.383/.479.
It's not that he unburdened himself by admitting his steroid use (because, after all, virtually no one thinks he told the entire truth). And it's not that Kate Hudson has somehow refocused him (if Goldie's girl's ladyparts were magic, wouldn't the Black Crowes have sold a helluva lot more records?)- it's this:
Alex Rodriguez is a better postseason hitter than Derek Jeter. Not just this second, for the totality of their careers.
And of course, at .305/.390/.576 to .317/.388/.459 - ARod's a better regular season hitter than Derek Jeter.
Not to mention that while ARod is still 7 runs above position with the glove for his career, despite giving back value now as a slightly below average third baseman - Jeter is 181 runs below position at shortstop, his lack of range making him an all-time bad glove, costing the Yankees games virtually every season of his career.
(listen to the guy who carves the gravestones - he is very, very wise).
They're both going to the Hall of Fame and perfectly reasonably so - but this idea, birthed by the mainstream media and embedded in our collective sports consciousness, that Jeter is Captain Clutch while ARod (until the ninth inning last night) somehow got the yips in the big moments, just isn't borne out by the facts.
Unrelated, save for their iconographic status, the Favre booing was interesting to me yesterday. I had an inexact, but reasonably close parallel in my own sports fandom - my quarterback was Joe Montana, and after a very public squabble with the 49ers, despite his past heroics he was pushed aside for a younger model. I very distinctly recall my reaction when the Niners - the team of my boyhood, who remain, along with the baseball Giants, the biggest allegiances to any institution I have in my life (no school, church, country or employer is even in the same conversation) went to Kansas City in 1994 to play Joe's Chiefs.
I rooted for Joe.
And it wasn't that hard; Joe was my guy; he had won me 4 Super Bowls. There would be a whole lifetime left of Niner football (unless we move to LA; I've been saying this all decade, until there is a new stadium built you really can't feel confident that team isn't going to skip town) but Joe Montana had a very specific expiration date. And I didn't make a utilitarian calculation - I did what sports fans do and I operated from my gut (which is why you think Jeter's clutch and ARod chokes; why you think Jeter's a good fielder - it just feels that way to you - but you're wrong) I wanted Joe to win. And I was mad at my team for sending him away.
Over the years, some of that feeling (most of it) has softened - at the time, I thought the organization was making a mistake - Steve Young ran too much, not waiting for plays to develop - and the team didn't have confidence in him and, even in his state of decline, Joe was still more likely to win us titles.
Yeah, that was wrong. Steve Young's the 7th greatest regular season quarterback in NFL history; and no, he wasn't Montana - but in 1994, he was the better player. Young wasn't the bad guy; the organization wasn't the bad guy; there was no bad guy - two objects can't be in the same place at the same time; and the 49ers had two Hall of Famers at quarterback, one of them had to leave.
But 15 years later, despite that, I'm still glad Joe won that game, and still glad I was on the right side that day.
Sure, the Chiefs aren't the Vikings - had Joe gone to Dallas, perhaps to replace an injured Troy Aikman - it would have been incredibly painful; and I get that Favre's "will he or won't he" shtick may have worn some Packer faithful down (I wrote this in the summer of 2008).
But the booing...I am unsure I get that. I get not making my choice and instead rooting for your team over your guy. I do. Reasonable minds can differ. I get feeling a little betrayed. I get wishing he would just go away and certainly get hoping he doesn't win a Super Bowl in a uniform that isn't yours.
But I have to say, I legitimately do not get the booing.
2009 Wrestling Matches of the Year
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Edit - I've watched the full year; December will go on the 2010 list. These are the best 42 professional wrestling matches from 2009
I've seen everything from WWE and TNA through October, the first DGUSA PPV, and the occasional wayward match or even card from the second half of the year for other organizations. Beyond that - I'm through June; I've got all the first half of 2009 watched that I'm likely to watch. It is possible a significant workrate match from the first half of the year (non Mexico, I watch almost no Mexico) has slipped by me, but I've endeavored to see everything. This being the end of the cultural decade; a wrestling MOTD list will also pop up at some point.
There are two five star matches that I've seen so far this year:
Kenta v. Nakajima (Feb Noah) 5 stars
Kenta v. Akiyama (May Noah) 5 stars
I'm leaning Kenta/Akiyama as my current MOTY choice, but I wouldn't tell you it was wrong to prefer the other.
The remaining matches are all of the matches that I've rated at 4 3/4, 4 1/2 thusfar. Half of the matches on this page are Kenta matches. Which, perhaps, is one of the reasons he's just blown out his knee. Regardless, he's the wrestler of the year by a zillion miles.
Kenta v. Nakajima (Mar Noah)
Kenta v. Kotaro (Jan Noah)
Doi v. Kanemoto (Mar Dragon's Gate)
Akiyama v. Go (April Noah)
Ishii v. Inoue (Apr NJ)
Tanahashi v. Goto (May NJ)
Tanaka/Sekimoto v. Miyamoto/TSasaki (Apr Zero One)
Nigel v. Marufuji (ROH - Dec 08)
Nigel v. Kenta (Mar -ROH)
Kenta v. Davey (Apr -ROH)
Danielson v. Black (May - ROH)
Sekimoto v. Sai (May - Zero1)
Kenta v. Marvin (June - NOAH)
Kenta/Go v. Nakajima/Kensuke (June - NOAH)
Marvin v. Ishimori (May - probably Kensuke Office)
Tanaka v. Hidaka (May - Zero 1)
Kodaka/Takeda v. Miyamoto/TSasaki (May - Big Japan)
Kanemoto v. Devitt (June - New Japan)
Kenta/Go v. Nakajima/Kensuke (June - NOAH)
Kenta v. Go (May - NOAH)
Ultimate X (Oct - TNA Bound for Glory)
Yoshino/Hulk/Pac v. Dragon Kid/Iwasa/Tozawa (July - DGate)
Danielson/Strong v. Kenta/Ishimori (July NOAH)
Danielson v. Doi (Nov DGUSA)
Richards v. Shingo (aired Nov DGUSA)
Joe v. AJ v. Daniels (Nov TNA Turning Point)
Hero v. Ryan (July - PWG Threemendous)
Miyamoto v. Takeda (July - BJapan)
Kenta/Ishimori v. Danielson/Strong (July - Noah)
Ibushi v. Harashima (Aug - DDT)
Kaz v. Kondo (Aug - All Japan)
Danielson v. Hero (Sep - ROH)
Danielson v. Hero (Sep - PWG)
Kotaro v. Nakajima (Oct - NOAH)
Miyamoto v. TSasaki (April BJapan)
Richards v. Aries (Nov ROH)
Doi v. Hulk (Nov DGate)
Ibushi v. Ishikawa (Nov DDT)
Davey v. Danielson (Sept ROH)
Danielson v. Nigel (Sept ROH)
Your Athlete of the Month - October, 2009
Cliff Lee.
Runners Up - Jared Allen, Andre Eithier, Alex Rodriguez.
Lee joins previous months' winners Fitzgerald, Holmes, Moore, James, Messi, Federer, Buehrle, Bolt, Brees in the race for Athlete of the Year for 2009. That winner will join the decade's previous athlete of the year winners: Woods, Bonds, Armstrong, P. Manning, Bush, Federer, Brady, and Bolt - one of which will be named Athlete of the Decade.
In Praise of Mike Singletary
Saturday, October 31, 2009
I'm an unhinged Bay Area sports fan; Brian Sabean would lump me into a group he, without a hint of affection, once referred to as the "lunatic fringe". I believe the issue at that point was signing Vlad Guerrero. The lunatics wanted Vlad; Sabean wisely realized that JT Snow and a half dozen guys named Vizcaino was a more appealing package.
I do not care for much of the way in which my chosen teams have been run over the past several years; there's a doctrinal divide in much of sports between those who have embraced what is stastically understood (you know, facts) and those who rely primarily on wisdom handed down through the generations by ancient men named Skeeter and Red (you know, crap).
The Moneyball fight shifts shape throughout the culture - Inherit the Wind posited that the death blow to epistemology primarily based on stories was in a Dayton, Tennessee courtroom over 80 years ago, but this century saw the rise of truthiness - Stephen Colbert's coined word meaning that how things felt, in one's gut, carried a veneer of truth that made actual facts irrelevant. Facts had a "liberal bias", was the punchline to another joke, and when Ron Suskind quoted a Bush Administration official as saying the problem with newspapers like the New York Times was that its journalists and readers lived in the "reality based community" that "tell your statistics to shut up" mentality had gone far beyond the locker room.
But it's really only the locker room that I care about. My Kingdom for one World Series and whatnot. Unfortunately, the teams which have my allegiance are the sports equivalent of Sean Hannity and Karl Rove; I would argue that the inability of SFG to win a world title despite 3 decades of service from the two greatest players in National League history is a crime against humanity driven not by dumb luck (no, Dusty shouldn't have handed the ball back to Ortiz {and if you don't know what that means you can probably safely stop reading this post} - and no, I shouldn't have then moved location; I had been watching the entire game upstairs on my small bedroom television for no good reason other than it seemed...in my gut...like the right thing to do - and then took the opportunity of the pitching change to go down to the living room - chaos immediately ensued and it began raining Thunderstick fury all over my ass - but neither of us really jinxed SFG that night. Right? Right? Help a brother out.) but instead by a disinclination to put even replacement level talent next to them. It is my contention that the hundreds of plate appearances given to the Family Alou (particularly Jesus and Zeppo) were the proximate cause of our losing out on at least a couple of 1960s era chips - and Brian Sabean's oft stated disinterest in on base percentage (all conceivable metric wisdom to the contrary) has manifested itself time and time again in our choosing "character" guys with mythical leadership properties over guys who could, what's the word, play baseball.
Just today, right now, comes this. The Giants have re-signed Freddy Sanchez to a 2 year, 12 million dollar deal.
Freddy Sanchez's SFG line: .284/.295/.324.
A guy comes over in a deadline deal for a highly rated prospect, puts up a sub .300 OBP (unmentioned in this story, btw) and we're grateful to get him back. What a great guy he is! Professional hitter! Good in the clubhouse! Plays the game the right way - the Giants way! (Note, I love Mike Krukow, as all good people do; and I specifically seek out the games on the baseball package I purchase every year to hear he and Kuip do the broadcasts - but he's done a healthy amount of damage as a spreader of the "we heart small ball; lets get some productive outs" wisdom; I don't want to start a blog entitled Fire Mike Krukow but I'd understand the sentiment if someone did).
This is everything that's wrong with the Giants. This is why we've never won a WS. A 32 year old sub .300 OBP second baseman and we hungrily say "please give us two years more of that."
By the way, he's not good with the glove, seventeen runs below position for his career at second base. In 2010 his career year will be four years in the rear view. But he's good in the clubhouse, just like Aaron Rowand, and when we continue not to win we'll wonder why (or find a way to blame Barry Bonds) and then go out and sign another past his prime guy who can't get on base. We are a dumb organization. I have given my baseball fan life to SFG and we never, ever learn.
Mike Singletary would not be my choice as head coach of my football team. Too much Oklahoma Drill mentality in that dude. And that giant "you never know when I'll have to stake a Vamp" cross that hangs around his neck during games is a bit of a barrier to those who don't have any version of magical thinking. But in the second half of our game against the Texans last week - he essentially recognized that our 1950s offense was not working; he put in Alex Smith and spent 30 minutes throwing the ball around the field.
Now - it could be that we go back to running the ball into the line all game long Sunday, and the Sunday after that, and the Sunday after that - consigning ourselves to, at the very, very, very ceiling, going 9-7 one year and losing in the playoffs to a team that takes advantage of every single rule of modern football (if you haven't noticed, the NFL begs you to throw the ball - the rules prohibiting contact with receivers downfield, types of striking and tackling of receivers, and the limits on any contact with the quarterback have led to an amazing 21st century inflation of passing statistics - teams that don't take advantage of it just aren't paying attention).
It could be the Niners will effectively just keep re-signing versions of Freddy Sanchez (don't get me started on GSW, firing Mitch Richmond via text message; fortunately when I was 7 I chose USC as my college program of choice instead of Berkeley) my dark nightmare remains that we'll draft Tim Tebow (proven winner!) and ride that righteousness into oblivion for another half dozen years (but all the lower income boys in Santa Clara will be circumcised).
But right now I've decided to view the future through rose colored glasses. We'll spend the back half of this NFL season throwing the football. Seeing what we have with Alex Smith and Michael Crabtree. That we'll take whatever results come and draft the best offensive linemen possible in 2010. That whereas the Giants will presumably just keep signing guys who can't get on base and the Warriors will bench Anthony Randolph, the Niners will build a team that can compete in the 21st century.
So - provisionally - thank you Mike Singletary. The Colts are going to smack us around Sunday. That's okay. Just throw the football.
I do not care for much of the way in which my chosen teams have been run over the past several years; there's a doctrinal divide in much of sports between those who have embraced what is stastically understood (you know, facts) and those who rely primarily on wisdom handed down through the generations by ancient men named Skeeter and Red (you know, crap).
The Moneyball fight shifts shape throughout the culture - Inherit the Wind posited that the death blow to epistemology primarily based on stories was in a Dayton, Tennessee courtroom over 80 years ago, but this century saw the rise of truthiness - Stephen Colbert's coined word meaning that how things felt, in one's gut, carried a veneer of truth that made actual facts irrelevant. Facts had a "liberal bias", was the punchline to another joke, and when Ron Suskind quoted a Bush Administration official as saying the problem with newspapers like the New York Times was that its journalists and readers lived in the "reality based community" that "tell your statistics to shut up" mentality had gone far beyond the locker room.
But it's really only the locker room that I care about. My Kingdom for one World Series and whatnot. Unfortunately, the teams which have my allegiance are the sports equivalent of Sean Hannity and Karl Rove; I would argue that the inability of SFG to win a world title despite 3 decades of service from the two greatest players in National League history is a crime against humanity driven not by dumb luck (no, Dusty shouldn't have handed the ball back to Ortiz {and if you don't know what that means you can probably safely stop reading this post} - and no, I shouldn't have then moved location; I had been watching the entire game upstairs on my small bedroom television for no good reason other than it seemed...in my gut...like the right thing to do - and then took the opportunity of the pitching change to go down to the living room - chaos immediately ensued and it began raining Thunderstick fury all over my ass - but neither of us really jinxed SFG that night. Right? Right? Help a brother out.) but instead by a disinclination to put even replacement level talent next to them. It is my contention that the hundreds of plate appearances given to the Family Alou (particularly Jesus and Zeppo) were the proximate cause of our losing out on at least a couple of 1960s era chips - and Brian Sabean's oft stated disinterest in on base percentage (all conceivable metric wisdom to the contrary) has manifested itself time and time again in our choosing "character" guys with mythical leadership properties over guys who could, what's the word, play baseball.
Just today, right now, comes this. The Giants have re-signed Freddy Sanchez to a 2 year, 12 million dollar deal.
Freddy Sanchez's SFG line: .284/.295/.324.
A guy comes over in a deadline deal for a highly rated prospect, puts up a sub .300 OBP (unmentioned in this story, btw) and we're grateful to get him back. What a great guy he is! Professional hitter! Good in the clubhouse! Plays the game the right way - the Giants way! (Note, I love Mike Krukow, as all good people do; and I specifically seek out the games on the baseball package I purchase every year to hear he and Kuip do the broadcasts - but he's done a healthy amount of damage as a spreader of the "we heart small ball; lets get some productive outs" wisdom; I don't want to start a blog entitled Fire Mike Krukow but I'd understand the sentiment if someone did).
This is everything that's wrong with the Giants. This is why we've never won a WS. A 32 year old sub .300 OBP second baseman and we hungrily say "please give us two years more of that."
By the way, he's not good with the glove, seventeen runs below position for his career at second base. In 2010 his career year will be four years in the rear view. But he's good in the clubhouse, just like Aaron Rowand, and when we continue not to win we'll wonder why (or find a way to blame Barry Bonds) and then go out and sign another past his prime guy who can't get on base. We are a dumb organization. I have given my baseball fan life to SFG and we never, ever learn.
Mike Singletary would not be my choice as head coach of my football team. Too much Oklahoma Drill mentality in that dude. And that giant "you never know when I'll have to stake a Vamp" cross that hangs around his neck during games is a bit of a barrier to those who don't have any version of magical thinking. But in the second half of our game against the Texans last week - he essentially recognized that our 1950s offense was not working; he put in Alex Smith and spent 30 minutes throwing the ball around the field.
Now - it could be that we go back to running the ball into the line all game long Sunday, and the Sunday after that, and the Sunday after that - consigning ourselves to, at the very, very, very ceiling, going 9-7 one year and losing in the playoffs to a team that takes advantage of every single rule of modern football (if you haven't noticed, the NFL begs you to throw the ball - the rules prohibiting contact with receivers downfield, types of striking and tackling of receivers, and the limits on any contact with the quarterback have led to an amazing 21st century inflation of passing statistics - teams that don't take advantage of it just aren't paying attention).
It could be the Niners will effectively just keep re-signing versions of Freddy Sanchez (don't get me started on GSW, firing Mitch Richmond via text message; fortunately when I was 7 I chose USC as my college program of choice instead of Berkeley) my dark nightmare remains that we'll draft Tim Tebow (proven winner!) and ride that righteousness into oblivion for another half dozen years (but all the lower income boys in Santa Clara will be circumcised).
But right now I've decided to view the future through rose colored glasses. We'll spend the back half of this NFL season throwing the football. Seeing what we have with Alex Smith and Michael Crabtree. That we'll take whatever results come and draft the best offensive linemen possible in 2010. That whereas the Giants will presumably just keep signing guys who can't get on base and the Warriors will bench Anthony Randolph, the Niners will build a team that can compete in the 21st century.
So - provisionally - thank you Mike Singletary. The Colts are going to smack us around Sunday. That's okay. Just throw the football.
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