Tourney Time!

The games tip off in a little over an hour. I didn't watch one complete college basketball game this year, and I am wondering how that will affect my bracket this year. We'll find out. I am going to try and post it shortly

For Tommy Boy

The last couple weeks have seen a couple nasty plays on the ice, plays the league needs to do something about. Cam Janssen's hit on Tomas Kaberle .. Definitely was late and Kaberle never saw it coming.

and Chris Simon's Tomahawk
Not to defend Simon, but he did get run from behind. Hits like the one Hollweg put on Simon have become more and more prevalent this year. Guys have no respect for other guys when they are facing the boards. With that said, he didn't deserve to get a stick in the mouth.
People want to debate whether or not fighting should be allowed in the NHL. If fighting is outlawed, you can expect more of this crap coming out as a form of retaliation. So take your pick, two grown ups fighting like for a purpose, or a guy getting a stick lodged in the side of his face. It doesn't really seem like like it could be a relatively close call. At the same time, the role of the fighter in the league is quickly becoming extinct. If that happens, the result will be the same as outlawing fighting. You're gonna have a bunch of cowards swinging sticks like light sabers instead of dropping gloves and settling like gentlemen.

Random Thoughts for The Week

Random thoughts from the last week…..

TV.. Wednesday’s episode of South Park, “With Apologies to Jesse Jackson”, may have been one of the funniest TV shows ever made in the history of the world. Everyone’s reaction to Randy’s appearance on Wheel of Fortune had me laughing for a solid 5 minutes. If you missed it, it is definitely something to look out for on reruns. Survivorman, on Discovery, has become another TV favorite of mine. Canadian Les Stroud strands himself in some of the most desolate and unforgiving places for seven days and finds a way to stay alive using what he has on him and what he can scrounge up in the wild. The guy is out there all by himself with no camera crew, hauling 60 pounds of camera equipment with him. He does all the filming and setting up of the shots by himself. It’s a pretty sweet show, and yet another reason to love Canada. Dateline NBC’s To Catch a Predator continues to be one of the funniest shows on TV

Movies.. I haven’t seen a movie in a theater in a long time, I’m talking months, so new movies to me are ones that have been seen by millions already. Also, I’m not a film critic, and I only categorize films in two ways, either good or bad. I saw two “new” movies this week, The Departed and Borat. The Departed was great, but would you expect anything less from Scorcese and a cast like that? Even though it was a pretty long flick, it was definitely awesome all the way through. Borat was great as well. Nothing beats cringe humor, plus it made the best use I’ve ever heard of the words “wizard’s sleeve”. That’s all I got on that subject, definitely see these if you haven’t already.

Everything else.. I saw a clip online today of a baby duck with four legs. Why when a human or animal is born with an extra appendage or two, they aren’t normal and 100% functioning? The three armed Chinese baby from a while back was as close as I’ve seen, but arm #3 was still a little fucked up…. I saw a picture of new basketball jerseys that a few colleges are going to be trying out during the conference tournament. They are skin tight (like a tiger) like under armour gear. Why? I can’t see one practical reason for this except to arouse your run of the mill, gay, basketball fan. Grrrrr…. Did you hear Anna Nicole Smith died? .... NY Islanders forward Chris Simon probably won’t see the ice for a LONG time… Anthony’s Pizza makes a killer chicken parm sandwich…. Don’t forget, Daylight Savings Time springs us forward this weekend making it that much more difficult to get up for work Monday morning

2007 Rockies Outlook - Take 1

With another Spring Training comes the annual thoughts and predictions on how your favorite team is going to fare in the coming season. Last year the Rockies gave us hope for the first 3 ½ months of the season only to go into their common swoon and finish 12 games back in the division. But this year is different, good things are going to happen.

I like the offensive lineup the Rockies are putting together this year. From everything we’ve seen and heard thus far, the lineup is going to look something like this:

1. Willy Taveras – He has the speed all teams look for at the top of the lineup and has the potential to steal a ton of bases. The problem is that his approach at the plate isn’t what you would like to see at the leadoff spot. He doesn’t take a lot of walks or even pitches for that meaning, and he needs to raise his on base percentage to make better use of his threat as a base stealer and set up the big guns behind him to drive him in.

2. Kaz Matsui – Matsui looked good at the end of last year and proved that he should have a shot to be the everyday second baseman, at least to start the year. He can handle the bat pretty well and should be able to take pitches to let Taveras run or move him over.

3. Garrett Atkins – Atkins was the Rockies’ best overall hitter last year, and there is no reason that he can’t continue that this year. Atkins has the type of swing that is going to produce a lot of singles and doubles, but I think he could show more power than he has in the past couple years

4. Todd Helton – This year Helton is moving into the cleanup spot, and remains the wild card of this offense. I don’t think anybody knows what to expect out of Helton this year. He bulked up in the off-season to try and regain some of the power and strength he lost last year due to injury and illness, but he has been battling a swollen knee this spring. If Helton remains strong, I don’t see how a 30 HR year is out of the question.

5. Matt Holliday – Holliday will again be the Rockies’ biggest power threat and with the potential the guys have in front of him to get on base, he could drive in a lot of runs again this year, and 35-40 home runs is very possible

6. Brad Hawpe – The biggest concern surrounding Hawpe is how much better he will be this year against lefties. He is a good hitter with some pop, but if he continues to struggle against lefties, there is a good chance he will platoon in right field with Jeff Baker

7. Yorvit Torrealba – This is assuming Torrealba wins the starting catching job over Chris Ianetta. Torrealba, before he got hurt, last year hit the ball pretty well and drove in key runs at key times. Production from the bottom half of the order was a major issue last year, and Torrealba is key in trying to change that this year

8. Clint Barmes/Troy Tulowitzki – Who is going to start the year at shortstop? Barmes hasn’t been the same since his injury midway through the 2005 season when he looked like he would be the Rookie of the Year. Last year was brutal, but he was still strong defensively. Tulowitzki is young and has shown power through the minors, but he struggled a little bit, especially with strikeouts, during his callup at the end of last year. I wouldn’t be surprised if Tulowitzki wins the job out of camp, but Barmes will still get his chances.

The Rockies bullpen is focused on depth again, and pretty much has to be at Coors Field. LaTroy Hawkins looks like he will be the main setup main to Brian Fuentes and will probably get a few spot chances to close. Like every year, they have to do a better job of holding leads then they did last year.

The biggest question mark of this team will be the starting rotation, especially since the trade of Jason Jennings. Aaron Cook, Jeff Francis, and Rodrigo Lopez look to be the top three starters and Josh Fogg, Byung-Hyun Kim, Taylor Buchholz, and Jason Hirsh battling for the last two spots. Nobody knows for sure what to expect out of this staff, but with the potential of the offense, the key will be keeping the team in the game and giving the offense a chance to outscore their opponents. That is not going to be an easy task, however, with the strength of the rotations in the NL West. That’s why they play the games, so once again, we will wait and see.

Rushing for 1,000 and Beating Up Baby's Mamas

Your 1,000 yard rusher for the 2007 Broncos will be Travis Henry. While it's not the back many fans were hoping for as rumors of landing Willis McGahee had been floating around the last week or so, Henry fits this running scheme very well, and barring injuries is pretty much guaranteed around a 1200 yard season. This is especially true as the Broncos will continue to let Jay cutler become more accustomed to the league and the offense. Now all they have to do is sign Patrick Kerney.
By the way, Ron Artest was arrested for alleged domestic violence... "I Love This Game!"
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2788871

No More Interceptions

According to a message on Jake Plummer's website, he has decided to retire. Personally, I feel he didn't want to be a backup quarterback, and due to his struggles in recent years with consistency, that was probably going to be his role no matter where he went. The Broncos had been attempting to finalize a trade with the Buccaneers, and I think that trade along with the fact that the Bucs signed Jeff Garcia pretty much sealed Jake's fate. I don't blame Jake for making that decision, I mean who would want to go to Florida, let alone Tampa Bay? The state that brings you hurricanes, Larry the Cable Guy, old people, AIDS and Disney World isn't quite the place for a guy from Idaho.
From the day the Broncos drafted Jay Cutler, Plummer's days with the Broncos were numbered, and any little mistake he made would be magnified, and that was definitely the case. Although he did lead the Broncos to the AFC championship game two years ago, his performance that season wouldn't be classified as amazing. He threw for 18 touchdowns and 9 picks, efficient, but not mind boggling numbers. All of last year, the Broncos offense struggled with Plummer at the helm, and it seemed he was tentative in his decision making and his willingness to use all of his weapons. Just look at the production TE Tony Scheffler had after Cutler took the reigns compared to what he did with Plummer.
By no means was Plummer in the same category as Payton Manning, but he was a terrible quarterback. Just look at some of the other jokers taking snaps around the league. Evidently the time had come where no team felt he had what it takes to be a starting quarterback, and rather than being relegated to holding a clipboard, Plummer opted for retirement.
Now that this saga is over, the Broncos HAVE to sign DE Patrick Kerney. They have to, and more on that is to come.

Ever Wonder Why Stereotypes Exist?

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/6520690

Nothing like going after a dead man's wife and kids to try and pull a profit. I really doubt that Dr. Rosenpenis is out $ 7 million, but he is pulling out that ancient Hebrew tactic of fighting fire with litigation.