Sports

[jayson]

But wasn't fighting more prevalent in previous eras, when hockey was more popular? I was watching the conference finals between The Flyers and The Rangers on one of these classic sports shows that air from time to time, and I saw three or four players being brought out on stretchers before the third period even began.

It was a little more prevalent in earlier eras because more guys were capable of protecting themselves. The game has become a bit more specialized now. The fights are still there, it's just mostly relegated to one or two guys on each team. It's why I respected guys like Gordie Howe or Clark Gilles. The could score at will and few people were willing to tangle with them because they could fight. In his first season, Gilles laid out more than his share of Flyers who thought they could intimidate the rookie. After that, there were a lot less guys willing to go into the corner with Gilles. It was one thing I respected about Eric Lindros. He was willing and able to fight his own fights.

What bothers me now is that it seems that more players who can't fight resort to swinging their sticks at or cross-checking one another instead of dropping the gloves. Regular hockey fist fights are unlikely to result in any serious injuries, not to mention that they are between two consenting participants. When they start using their sticks, someone is going to get maimed. Unfortunately, the league doesn't seem to realize that their efforts to eliminate fighting are actually creating more of these incidents. Stick swinging was pretty damn rare in the old NHL.

[jayson]

Ok, it's official, let's take the C out of the BCS and it will have a more apt name.

I cannot believe the idiocy in the Bowl matchups announced yesterday, particularly these...

Sugar Bowl
No. 6 Utah vs. No. 4 Alabama
January 2, 2009

Fiesta Bowl
No. 3 Texas vs. No. 10 Ohio St.
January 5, 2009

Is it just me, or is it obvious that Texas/Alabama would be a MUCH better game than either of these games? Not to mention that Alabama and Texas both had spectacular seasons and deserve to play better games as a reward for it than this. No offense to Utah, undefeated seasons are impressive, but c'mon, they didn't exactly play the kind of competition Texas did. And other than Penn St., Ohio St didn't play anyone at all. The Big 10 is a joke. If anyone deserves to play Alabama, it's Texas.

Let Utah play Ohio St. in a battle of teams that didn't play against all that much real competition this season and let's have Texas v Alabama. Given the Florida/Oklahoma matchup for the championship, it'd be intriguing to me to see another major game of SEC vs Big 12 as they are clearly the dominant conferences in college football.

Note, I am not counting out Utah or the exceptionally over-rated Ohio State in these games, anything is possible, but I'd entertain any arguments as to how Texas v Alabama is not a more interesting game. The BCS remains a complete joke.

[jayson]

The Mets issues with not having a reliable closer are now over, at least for the next three years. There's no closer in the sport better than Rodriguez. He's worth every penny. Now they just need some middle relievers and a real set-up man. I still think the starting rotation will be just fine.

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/ba...driguez-5.html

Mets sign closer Francisco Rodriguez

BY ADAM RUBIN AND BILL MADDEN
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITERS

Updated Tuesday, December 9th 2008, 4:38 PM

LAS VEGAS - Talk about an Amazin' deal.

The Mets agreed to financial terms with free-agent closer Francisco Rodriguez at the winter meetings on Tuesday, signing the record-setting former Angel to a three-year, $37 million deal, sources told the Daily News.

GM Omar Minaya, speaking at the Bellagio, declined to confirm an agreement had been reached with the 26-year-old closer.

Rodriguez went 2-3 with a 2.24 ERA and an MLB single-season-record 62 saves for the Angels in 2008.

Agent Paul Kinzer had suggested a deal was close about 12 hours earlier, when he told a handful of New York reporters about K-Rod and the Mets: "I think we're at a point where there could be something happening before we leave."

"He'll be relieved when it's over," Kinzer continued. "This isn't a good thing for anybody when you go through it. Everybody looks forward to it, but when they get there it's a lot more stressful than people realized."

The need for the Mets to obtain a closer this offseason arose when Billy Wagner required Tommy John elbow surgery on Sept. 10.

Wagner is owed $10.5 million next season. As a result, at the time of Wagner's injury, high-ranking Mets officials all but ruled out pursuing K-Rod this winter, claiming they wouldn't allot $25 million to the closer position. However, a lack of big-market bidders for Rodriguez and a weak economy drove his asking price down to a palatable range for the Mets, who also met with Brian Fuentes and Trevor Hoffman at the meetings.

Incidentally, a friend of Wagner said Tuesday that Wagner is recovering so well from the elbow procedure, he may return to the Mets in September '09.

[Ruthful]

The best match-up is Hawaii vs. Notre Dame...ON CHRISTMAS EVE!



Once you start creating things like the Papajohns.com Bowl you know that things have gotten out of hand.

They need to do away with the BCS and just go back to the old system.

[jayson]

They need to do away with the BCS and just go back to the old system.

Well the old system wasn't any better at determining a true national champion (see 1996 and how Penn St. got jobbed) but at least it provided better bowl game matchups than the BCS does.

I still don't see why a playoff system can't be created. It seems to work just fine in Division II and III.

[Ruthful]

Epic Fail:

http://dallascowboysweakness.ytmnd.com/

[jayson]

Ok, let's temper this forthcoming rant with the disclosure that I am a Yankees fan. Now that we have established that, let me say this...

I am sick and tired of the boo-hooing and whining from the sports-writers, the management of other teams, and the fans of other teams which has flooded the airwaves since the announcement yesterday that the Yankees signed Mark Teixeira to an 8yr/$180M deal a few weeks after spending nearly a quarter of a million on CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett. All the crying seems to center on the notion that somehow the Yankees have bought themselves a guaranteed title. That pisses me off to no end. Yes, I think the Yankees have put themselves in a position to compete in the AL East, but there are no guarantees in sports.

Let's look at this most recent season. Who went to the World Series? Was it the Yankees and the Mets, the two teams with the highest payrolls? Nope. Embarassingly enough for me as a fan of both teams, neither one even made the playoffs. The World Series was played between the Phillies, with the 13th highest payroll, and the Tampa Bay Rays, who have the 29th highest payroll (29 out of 30 teams). Do we need any further evidence that high-priced free agents don't automatically equate to success? The Rays built a team with young players they drafted over the last few years. There are no high-priced off-season acquisitions on that team.

As far as I'm concerned, the Steinbrenners have every right to spend as much of their money as they wish to build a baseball team. It's their money to spend. If the other owners don't have as much money, quite frankly, tough shit for them. The Rays mgmt proved there are other ways to build a successful franchise. Crying about how much the Yankees are spending just makes people sound like bitter short-sighted whiners. Demanding a salary cap is not going to change a damn thing. There are ways around the cap in the sports that have them, and since baseball is immune to anti-trust legislation, I'm sure baseball owners will find a way around any cap the league imposes should that come to pass.

Rant over.

[fernandito]

From 2nd and goal to an interception + 100 yd touchdown?!??! Are you f'n kidding me?!?!

Horrible decision to go for the pass in the red-zone knowing Pittsburgh's defensive capabilities.

[jayson]

From 2nd and goal to an interception + 100 yd touchdown?!??! Are you f'n kidding me?!?!

Horrible decision to go for the pass in the red-zone knowing Pittsburgh's defensive capabilities.

It's the only play they could call. You cannot run against the Steelers' D. It's the best in football. A run would have been stuffed. Also credit to Dick Lebeau (the Steelers' Def. Coordinator) for calling such a clever coverage play for Harrison and more credit to Harrison for not being tackled in that 100 yard dash bc if he were the half would have ended and no points.

[Ruthful]

Not that it matters, since he's team ultimately won, but some of Tomlin's calls were horrible, esp. that decision not to go for it on fourth down inside of the red zone on Pittsburgh's first drive.

I wish Arizona had won, because Docket deserved the MVP, and I would have loved to have seen it awarded to a defensive player.

I ALSO WANT ANQUAN BOLDIN ON THE GIANTS, I DON'T CARE IF HE HAS TWO YEARS LEFT ON HIS CONTRACT!!!

[jayson]

Boldin would be a great fit for the Giants. All the talent of Plaxico and none of the off-the-field insanity. Plus, the guy plays hurt. The Jets literally cracked his head open and the guy was back in a few weeks.

Docket would have been MVP if they'd have won. I think he was MVP regardless. I'd like to see the NFL do what I've only seen done in the NHL, which is to award the MVP to the guy who is actually the MVP not the MVP for the team that won. Twice in the NHL the Conn Smythe trophy (awarded to the MVP of the Stanley Cup playoffs) has gone to a player for the team that lost in the finals. Now that's an acknowledgment of a true MVP not just "ok, which guy played best on the winning team".

And I agree, Tomlin is far too conservative an offensive play caller.

[Ruthful]

Boldin would be a great fit for the Giants. All the talent of Plaxico and none of the off-the-field insanity. Plus, the guy plays hurt. The Jets literally cracked his head open and the guy was back in a few weeks.

I know, that was amazing!

He was all Hannibal Lecter, then saying "give me the damn ball!"

The guy's one tough bastard.

[jayson]

He definitely proved he's no prima donna. I think the Giants would be well served by trying to acquire him. He doesn't get a lot of attention because of how spectacular Fitzgerald is, but he could easily be a major threat with another team.

[Spencer]

Despite the outcome, I think Kurt Warner made his case for a Hall of Fame spot quite well. On the all time list for passing yards in a Super Bowl game, #1 is Kurt Warner, #2 is Kurt Warner, and #3 is ... Kurt Warner.

[jayson]

I don't think Warner is a Hall of Famer at all. Big numbers in two Super Bowls that he lost are meaningless.

His overall career W/L record is a few wins over mediocre. He's spent as many years fighting for a backup job as he did as a starter.

He is a great big game QB, that I will give him, but over the course of his full career he is completely average in the regular season and doesn't get teams to the big game so he can shine in the spotlight. The big numbers are not there for the entirety of his career which shows that he has no consistency whatsoever. Not the hallmark of a Hall of Famer.

Take away Holt & Bruce as receivers in St. Louis and Fitzgerald and Boldin in Arizona and let's see how good Kurt really is. When he was on the Giants he couldn't even land a starting job. He only got the starting job in Arizona because Leinart was a bust. He wasn't brought in to be the starter. The job was Leinart's to lose and he lost it.

Doesn't really make Kurt sound like he's due for enshrinement in Canton to me.

[Ruthful]

So what?

Without Jerry Rice and Roger Craig Joe Montana would be Vinny Testaverde.

He sucked with The Giants, but Joe Namath's career, beyond a few great years with The Jets, was worse.

The only substantive difference between Warner and Favre is that the latter never got injured, or played through injuries. Also, Warner is more clutch. To me that counts in Warner's favor, he didn't burden his team when he realized he would be more of a detriment than a benefit.

[jayson]

So what?

Without Jerry Rice and Roger Craig Joe Montana would be Vinny Testaverde.

He sucked with The Giants, but Joe Namath's career, beyond a few great years with The Jets, was worse.

The only substantive difference between Warner and Favre is that the latter never got injured, or played through injuries. Also, Warner is more clutch. To me that counts in Warner's favor, he didn't burden his team when he realized he would be more of a detriment than a benefit.

On what do you base more clutch? Favre won more championships. Seems more clutch to me. Ditto Montana. Warner won one title. If one title gets you into the Hall of Fame then make room for Jeff Hostetler and Trent Dilfer in Canton.

The difference between Favre and Warner is vast and it goes to consistency. Ignoring this past year when Favre should have retired, his stats are consistent and aside from a few years with Sterling Sharpe, Brett never had a tandem like Warner or Montana had to throw to. He did more with less. And again, for me clutch has as much to do with getting your team to the big games as it does winning them. Once more, I'd put Favre ahead of Warner in that category.

I can't see a reasonable argument that Brett is not a Hall of Famer but I see several about Warner. If you can't land a starting job year in and year out, then you did not dominate your position in your era, which is the real criterion for being in Canton.

As for Namath, I agree with you, though as a Jets fan it pains me to do so.

[SpaceMaN]

Is anyone else pissed they didn't review that "fumble" and give LarryZona a chance at a Hail Mary? Didn't even look at it? Went all NASCAR and gave the game to who they wanted to win?

[jayson]

Is anyone else pissed they didn't review that "fumble" and give LarryZona a chance at a Hail Mary? Didn't even look at it? Went all NASCAR and gave the game to who they wanted to win?

No I'm not pissed at all because it was reported today that the officials in the booth DID review it several times and concluded that it was a fumble. This is in line with the replay rules as written regarding the last two minutes of a half.

I certainly don't buy into any conspiracy theory about who the NFL "wanted to win" either because if there were a team they'd have wanted to win it'd have been the Cards because that would have made for a better story.

[jayson]

So do any Portland Trail Blazers fans still think drafting Oden over Durant was a good idea?

Currently, Durant is the 5th highest scorer in the league and Oden is injured, yet again. It always appeared to me that the Blazers drafted Oden for exactly one reason, he's 7 feet tall. There's so much more to being a presence in the low post than being tall. He may be a 7 footer, but he's a stick figure. There's no bulk on him at all. Sure he can possibly add some bulk as time goes on, but the more injuries he sustains now, the tougher it's going to be on his body (especially his knees) if and when he does add any weight.

I won't go so far as to call Oden a bust just yet because he is moderately productive when he does play, but he's nowhere near productive enough to have justified a number one overall pick. Durant, on the other hand, stepped right into the league and became the star everyone knew he was going to be. I know which one I'd have built a franchise around.

[Ruthful]

BWEEEEEE!

http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2009/02...ally_trul.html

After so many false reports of Stephon Marbury’s imminent departure from the Knicks, it’s almost hard to believe that the team has finally, officially parted ways with the former superstar. But it really is true: As part of a settlement reached yesterday, in which Marbury dropped his grievance over a $400,000 fine from earlier this season, Marbury is finally free to sign elsewhere, almost certainly in Boston.

There were only two possible reasons to keep Marbury any longer: One would be to keep him off the roster of a team (like Boston) that the Knicks might face in the playoffs. But if he’s so terrible that the Knicks won’t even let him dress for games, we doubt they cared about potentially having to play him — even if he’ll be insanely motivated to show them up. The other would have been out of pure spite, and to be honest, that wouldn’t really be fair to Marbury, who’s handled his benching pretty well, all things considered. Sure, there are monetary considerations, but this always seemed like an awfully pointless punishment for what he’d done as a Knick, and it was always unclear whether they were simply punishing him or proving a point about Isiah Thomas’s bad acquisitions...

[Rjeso]

Twins over Boston in the first ST game. Sweeeeet.

[jayson]

So the free agency/trade season has started in the NFL and already there has been a move for a veteran QB. Who is it? Kurt Warner? No. Kerry Collins? Nope. Jeff Garcia? Nope. The first QB to officially change teams is Sage Rosenfels who has been traded from the Texans to the Vikings for a 4th round pick. I can see where the Texans would rather have a pick than Sage Rosenfels, but what does Minnesota gain?

Also, on the free agency topic... $100 million for Albert Haynesworth? Washington overpaid for that one. Yes, he is the most dominant defensive lineman in the NFL. He's also only injury prone, having played only one full 16 game season in his career.

It is also now being reported that the Jets are trying to sign Ravens' linebacker Bart Scott. I can't tell you how happy that makes me. If there was a single free agent I wanted, it was Scott. He's the kind of LB you build a defense around. I hope it works out.

[Ruthful]

I don't know why everyone's ragging on Rosenfels. The only reason he looked bad on The Texans was because he was compared to Matt Schaub, who was the fourth-best QB in a draft loaded with QB talent.

Once he learns how to stop throwing picks he'll be pretty good. Even if he doesn't, he's still Bret Favre compared to T-Jack and Gus Frerotte. I think this was a score for Minnesota.

[jayson]

We shall see. I'm just looking at Minnesota and seeing a playoff team that thinks it Sage Rosenfels away from a shot at a championship. Anything can happen I suppose, but there are other QB options I'd be looking at. Don' the Viking also have John-David Booty? Not that he's the answer either, but I just remembered that he is there. So who's odd man out now, Frerotte?