The Future of Florida State Basketball

Florida State's top recruit 7-foot-1 Jon Kreft was riding in a car with a buddy driving. His friend failed to stop at a stop sign and the cops pulled them over. The cops saw Kreft reaching under the seat, so they asked if they could search the vehicle. The cops found 15 grams of marijuana and a digital scale. And then the story gets interesting:

"According to the report, ''Kreft then stated to us that he had something else on him, and said it was in the (crevice) of his buttocks. Jonathan was then given permission to retrieve it, at which time he stuck his hands between his buttocks, and a small plastic bag fell to the ground with suspect cocaine in it.''"

I bet Jen Sterger can't wait until he gets to campus.

I Didn't Have the Ball, Bitch

Cool brawl in the Chicago series on Saturday. AJ Pierzynski barreled into Michael Barrett at home plate, then slammed his hand on home plate after he'd sent Barrett flying. Barrett was pissed that AJ hit him so hard because the ball hadn't even arrived. AJ got up and went to retrieve his helmet, Barrett grabbed, said "I didn't have the ball, bitch" the cold cocked him in the mug. As you can see AJ never expected it.

It's Our Town

For now at least the Mets have bragging rights over the Yankees. The Mets came into the series as the better team and won 2 of 3, and had the third game in hand.

I know the Yankees are banged up. Sheffield and Matsui are out, and I guess Posada did have a legitimate injury. But the injuries are part of the game and whiny Yankee fans have to learn to deal with it. It's not like they have a triple A lineup, they still trot out there, Damon, Jeter, Giambi and A-Rod. Those four guys will make about $70 million this year.

A-Rod doesn't earn his though. Have you ever seen a great player who came up so small in the clutch?

But the Mets also have their injury problems. We didn't have to pitch Lima against the Yankees but Jeremi Gonzalez was the 9th option this year.

Randy Johnson is getting old fast. The Yankees are deluding themselves if they think his problems are caused by mechanics. They are caused by age.

Mariano Rivera is no longer the same either. He is still a great pitcher and probably the great reliever era, but hitters don't fear him anymore. And by comparison this season, Billy Wagner himself has 0 losses, Rivera has 3.

So for the next 6 weeks Mets fans can rejoice having won the first installment of the Subway Series. Hopefully there will be another one in Ocotber.

Cool Mention

Paul's Poop got a mention on Deadspin thanks to a tip I sent in. But unfortunately it came in a list of links which was topped by a kick in the onions about Scott Kazmir.

Mets 4 Yankees 3

A win, in a must win game.

Tom Glavine improves to 7-2 even though he didn't have a good game. Runners were constantly on base because he was pitching like the Tom Glavine of old...don't throw strikes because they might hit them. He got himself into a lot of trouble but was lucky in a few situations. He also got unlucky because David Wright could have and should have fielded Jeter's ground ball that ended up being a 2-run single.

But David Wright made up for it with a monster home run into a strong wind.

Delgado of course continues to hit big home runs. There's nothing like giving up 2 runs and getting a 3 run homer in the next inning.

The bullpen was very shaky last night as all three pitchers seemed afraid to throw strikes to the powerful Yankees lineup. The Yankees also got lucky a few times, Bernie Williams double, and singles by Damon and Jeter probably didn't even travel 100 feet combined.

I'll have more on this series and on Alex Rodriguez in future posts.

Valiant Stallion

Saw the doctor who operated on Barbaro on CNN this morning. He said Barbaro got through the night ok. But he still didn't seem optimistic and said it would be months before we'd know for sure if Barbaro can live a full and healthy life, and retire to stud. But he did say that most other horses with these injuries would have been put down. But because of Barbaro's exceptional value at stud they are trying to save him. He also said horses don't do well on three limbs as some dogs and cats can survive on only 3 legs.

Barbaro's Leg

Surgeons inserted 23 screws into Barbaro's leg during a 7 hour surgery. They now give him a 50-50 chance of survival. It all depends on whether antibiotics will prevent infection in the injured leg.

Hazing Pictures

And Chubbs is Playing Left Field

Making his major league debut for the Minnesota Twins today is Beers' favorite player. I think that under his jersey he wears a t-shirt that says "What are you looking at, dicknose?"
It's amazing that for AJ Pierzynski the Twins got him, Joe Nathan and Francisco Liriano.

Former Mets

Scott Kazmir is 7-2 with a 2.37 ERA and 75 strikeouts. He's in the top 2 in the major leagues in all three categories.



Ty Wigginton is batting .250 with 10 homers and 33 RBI.

Edgardo Alfonzo was released by the Los Angeles Angels. He was batting .100 on the season with 5 hits in 50 at bats. It was only a few years ago that Mets fans thought Fonzie was going to be as good as Derek Jeter. In 1999 and 2000 he hit over .300 with 25+ homers and 90+ RBI. He's the only player who got significantly worse after leaving the Mets.

Hockey Players are Real Classy

An old video of Kevin Stevens and Brian Trottier of the Pittsburgh Penguins giving Minnesota North Stars forward Brian Bellows a hard time for allegedly flopping. Listen carefully the last insult is the best.

Horrifying

The Preakness was almost worse than the Mets game. Barbaro (Kentucky Derby champion and favorite) started his day a little early by crashing out of the gate before the race started (do they have false starts in horse racing?). Then once the race started, Barbaro pulled up almost immediately. Turns out Barbaro broke his rear right leg in two places. Jockey Edgar Prado slowed the horse immediately and got off, probably saving him from doing more damage to his leg. His racing career is definitely over but they hope to save him, the problem with horses is you can't put them in bed. The vet said that a human with this injury would be off his feet for 6 weeks. You can't do that with horses, so if there is damage to the blood supply to the foot they will have to euthanize Barbaro. The saddest thing was watching the poor horse struggle to run on 3 legs, protecting the injured one. Just heart breaking. I've seen some serious injuries to human athletes but never anything life-threatening like this. Let's hope they save Barbaro so he can have a productive life knocking up sexy fillies.

Hazing at its Finest

The Northwestern girls soccer team is in some hot water over a hazing incident and the pictures of it that made their way to the internet. Badjocks.com won't let me save the pictures (but I'm working on a way around that). Basically, the younger girls were required to wear t-shirts and their panties. Then they were forced to do crunches and drink beer. Then they were blindfolded and led into some basement where the upperclass women wrote shit on their clothes and bodies (there's a drawing of a penis on one girl's face.) Then they were required to break up into groups and do skits. Pictures show two girls kissing, an act that evidently won the skit competition for them. The losers were taken to the soccer boys house where they are shown giving lap dances. Sounds like a fun night to me.

Stadium Promotions

Prior to the Mets-Yankees game I went to the New Era truck in the parking lot. They had some cool stuff (displays of some of the cooler major league and minor league hats, plus a 22 step look at the way hats are made), but the best part was that you could have your picture taken and put on a card. I know it's designed for kids but I did it so I could post it for my blog readership.

Yankees 5 Mets 4

Kate and I attended the 2nd birthday party of her friend's son this afternoon. We left at about 1:30 so I was able to hear the first inning in the car.

By the time we arrived at the party the Yankees had made two errors allowing Reyes to get on, and advance to third. Then Beltran and Wright doubled and the Mets had a comfortable 2-0 lead.

The game was not on at the party but that was ok, because I had recorded it and would watch when I got home. I didn't want to be rude anyway, so I stayed outside eating and watching the kids play.

About an hour later I got a text message (I had Kate preview it). It was from Derek telling me that "I love you Johnny Cakes" was at the Mets game, wearing a Mets hat sitting in front of Brian Cashman. I checked the tape when I got home and it's true, Vito was sitting one row in front of Yankees GM Brian Cashman, wearing a Mets hat. The funny thing was, Fox didn't take notice of him. He happened to be sitting down as the shot went to Cashman, therefore getting his face on TV for a brief second.

I went inside to go to the bathroom and the hostess' brother had turn on the TV, and the score was now 3-0. He told me Delgado hit a homer. I still decided not to watch, it would be rude, and I thought the lead was comfortable with Pedro on the mound. I started making more frequent trips inside, watching the Yankees bat in the 7th, and 8th but skipping the Mets at bats.

When I came back inside for the top of the 9th it was 4-0. I won't go through the rest of the blow-by-blow account of what happened but needless to say I decided to sit down and watch the rest of the game, and as the Yankees crept closer the crowd grew.

Wagner didn't have it. Some times you just have a bad day, but he is having too many. He is definitely not as good as he was last year. And I no longer trust him to get a big save. In retrospect Willie definitely should not have taken out Sanchez. With a four run lead there was no need to. It left the Mets with no fallback plan. He also should have taken him out before Bernie Williams. Last night Willie left in Heilman for a third inning because he was pitching great. He should have done the same with Sanchez.

This game sums up what it's like to be a Mets fan. I was sitting there in the top of the 9th thinking that they would win, and have Glavine vs. Small tomorrow for a chance at the sweep. Was not to be. No matter how high the Mets take you as a fan, they will always knock you back down. That is what it's like to be a Mets fan.

Another great effort by Pedro wasted. In a stretch where the Mets are basically sacrificing 2 games out of every 5 they have to win every Pedro and Glavine start. They have lost the last 3 times Pedro pitched.

One Year Anniversary

On May 20, 2005 many of you gathered around your TVs to watch Stump the Schwab. That's right, it's been one year since my episode aired. I still haven't gotten over that disappointment but all-in-all it was a great experience and I'm glad I did it.

Mets 7 Yankees 6

What a game! What an incredible game! This is one that I will remember forever. I have a lot to say about it so forgive me if this comes out a little disjointed.

First off, as with most Mets-Yankees games, getting there is half the battle. Thankfully, traffic for me wasn't too bad, it took me about 90 minutes, and I arrived at 6. As for my dad, he likes to get there at 4 and nap in the car. There was a bad accident on the Grand Central Parkway and he was stuck for three hours or more. He had to get off and take some streets. He found his way and actually got to the seats before me.

Jeremi Gonzalez was horrible. They were killing him in the first inning, every ball was hit hard. But the Met fans didn't feel out of it because we know Johnson has struggled this season.

Carlos Beltran's 3-run homer in the first inning was huge. I've talked about this 100 times already, it's so psychologically crucial to come right back after a team gets a few runs on you, and get right back in the game. Thanks to Beltran the Mets were still in the game after the first inning. Everything else that happened can be traced back to that home run.

Interesting goings on for the Yankees after the first inning. Despite having his gear on Jorge Posada developed "back spasms", and Kelly Stinnett replaced him in the 2nd. It's well-known that Johnson hates Posada, and the timing was very suspicious especially since they had to have a coach warm up Johnson between innings while Stinnett suited up. Stinnett ended up getting two hits, one to drive in a run so it didn't work out terribly for the Yankees.

Gonzalez couldn't do anything so Oliver had to come in, he allowed the inherited runner to score but otherwise pitched two good innings.

Huge home run by Nady and a clutch RBI single by Matsui tied the game.

Tying the game was huge because it meant they had to take out Johnson and the Mets bullpen is a strength, especially compared to the Yankees'.

After the 5th inning the game completely changed, it went from a slow slugfest with a lot of walks, to a pitcher's duel.

I thought Willie made the right call going to Heilman in the 6th, and it worked out. He was fantastic. His changeup was unhittable. And he was so effective through his first two innings, that he threw only 17 pitches, and Willie rightfully left him in for a third. But it sort of bolsters the argument that he is too valuable in the bullpen to be moved into the rotation.

Yankees bullpen was good too, Proctor and Farnsworth pitched three perfect innings. The guys next to us were joking about Proctor, calling him proctologist and saying things like "nice pitch, assman" in the Seinfeld inflection.

So now we move on to the 9th, Wagner or Sanchez, tough call, but Willie chose Wagner, since he wouldn't be able to get a save anyway. The place was going nuts during "Enter Sandman." Even I sang "sleep with one eye open." Wagner was awesome. He absolutely blew away Giambi, Gay-Rod and Stinnett. The Mets even had some Sandman graphic on the scoreboard, just to rub a little salt (sand?) in the wounds of the Yankees, their fans and fat Francesa.

Bottom of the 9th, tie game, in comes the best closer in the history of the known universe. Reyes makes out, LoDuca doubles down the line. I really thought they should have brought in Endy Chavez to pinch in case of a weakly hit single, but the Yankees outfield arms are so bad that I guess the Mets had no fear. Beltran strikes out (he gets a pass for his 1st inning heroics) and Delgado is walked. Up comes David Wright.

Earlier in the game I had been arguing with my dad about Wright's Piazza-ness. In the first Wright got up with a man on and no outs with a chance to continue pounding nails into Johnson's coffin, but he struck out. In his next two at bats, he got hits with the bases empty. So now he comes up with a chance to win the game, or send it into extra innings...against Rivera. So either he was going to be exactly like Piazza, or he was gonna be a hero. I'm sure you know what happened, with two strikes (his favorite count) he crushed one over the head of Damon, and the Mets win, thhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee Mets win.

The place went nuts, the upper deck was shaking. Fans were huggging each other, doing the obligatory "Yankees suck!" chant, just a fantastic few minutes. In the crowd of people on the concourse on the way out the merriment continued, the chanting and the taunting of Yankees fans.

A couple of other notes, there was a huge fight in the stands at one point around the 7th inning. Security took a long time to get there, one guy got dragged down about 5 steps by his shirt. Punches were actually thrown and landed, and it took about 30 security guards and 15 minutes to clear it up.

There was a Yankees fan sitting next to my dad, and during the 9th inning he stood up. A Mets fan behind him, probably 20 years older than him wanted him to sit down. So he got right in his face, then for some inexplicable reason he grabbed the guy's arm. The Yankee fan went nuts, slapped his hand away and I really thought they were going to fight. Luckily, they didn't and the older guy's young female companions (daughters?) starting calling the Yankee fan a faggot and a homo.

Between inning entertainment: Some guy traded a clock for waste basket #3 and won 2 Delta Air Lines tickets in "Mets Make a Deal." I didn't see the Kiss Cam because I was trying to track down a hot dog vendor. "Learn Spanish with Professor Reyes" was disappointing. The word was "avion" which means airplane. He gave a one guy a "C for that one" but told another woman "I like your style."

The parking lot was a madhouse, they closed off some exits and it took me over two hours to get home. But it was well worth it. Not only did we beat the Yankees, we did it when we started Jeremi Gonzalez against Randy Johnson. We came back from 4-0 in the first inning. And we beat Mariano Rivera. The best relief pitcher to ever throw a baseball. Pedro and Glavine have to keep this euphoria going.

What's Wrong with Basketball Players?

First Reggie Evans grabs the Kaman Islands, then Jason Terry punches Michael Finley in the stones (although I think he probably got him in the pelvis.) And of course we can't forget George Mason's Tony Skinn punching a guy in the sprouts and getting suspended for the first NCAA Tournament game as a result. I'd rather see a guy pull a Raja Bell than grab for someone's applebag.

Growing Up Too Fast

Danny Almonte, the pitcher who lied about his age to make himself two years younger so he could pitch in the Little League World Series, is now trying to act older. He recently got married to a 30-year old woman. He is currently 19 and hasn't even graduated from High School yet.
They've known each other since his Little League days.
"He always used to tell me things and I was like, 'You're a minor . . . we'd get in trouble," she said.
After he was found out by Sports Illustrated, he went on to become the ace pitcher on the Monroe High School team, was just chosen to play in a nationwide tournament, and is expected to be drafted by a Major League Baseball team next month.

Baby's All Growns Up Part IV

Just how old is Julio Franco? Take this interesting look back at how Julio has changed through the eyes of the video gamer.