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As an out-of-market Yankee fan, I don't get to watch as many games as I'd like to during the year. I realize I don't have much to complain about, as ESPN/FOX love to show the Bombers whenever they can. However, I don't get to see my team play nearly all their games like I would if I rooted for the Cubs, White Sox, or Reds here in Indiana. (My thanks again to Jake's for their satellite TV.)
What did I get to witness during this game against the Royals? I got to see that 36 year old Andy Pettite is still able to throw good stuff and record outs like he did during the Dynasty run.
But can we really look ahead to a whole season based on a single start? If I were to behave like every other Yankee fan and baseball analyst, then of course I would. You see, Pettite was amazing in his season debut. His line (7IP, 3H, 6SO, 1.29ERA) was amazing and to be honest if Nick Swisher is a half step faster and plays that pop-up in the second inning better, Pettite likely gets a 2 hit shutout. If he pitches every game of the year like this, ESPN has him projected to start 41 times, winning all of them, throw 243 strikeouts, and keep his ERA below 2.00. What?!? Obviously, Pettite nor any other player this season is going to live up to those projected stats. This is what happens when you project that far forward based on one game.
As ridiculous as this example with Andy Pettite is, people have had no problem doing the exact same thing with CC Sabathia and believing his horrible projected numbers. CC pitched a terrible game on April 6th. His Yankee debut was atrocious (4.1IP, 8H, 6ER, zeroSO, 12.46ERA). I hope that CC never pitches another game like that again. But to think that this one bad start means his season is a failure and that he is going to be a bust is idiotic. His one bad start is no more evidence of a potentially bad year than Pettite's gem is an indicator that he'll defy the odds and his age and put up Cy Young-caliber numbers.
What will happen? I'm no psychic (see below for the real deal) but I'm guessing that Andy Pettite won't start 41 games and that CC will bounce back. Is he going to be a bust? No one knows, but it is too early to make that decision. If he's still stinking it up in July, then we've got a problem. However, I'm guessing that when that time comes and he's leading the league in strikeouts and the Yanks are in first place everyone will magically forget his bad debut and how they wrote him off for the rest of the season.
March Madness is in full swing. The NBA regular season is winding down, headed for the playoffs. Baseball is also ready to get underway. While you watch the lack of underdogs in the Dance, notice the lack of parity in the NBA this year, and warm up to a long summer of scandal-ridden baseball here are some great links from around the web to keep you satisfied.
Alyssa Milano, Author and Scholar: Friend of the Cartel, Alyssa Milano, has decided to take her love of the game of baseball and her love of its stars and turn it into a book. [Moon Dog Sports]
Brilliant Speech, But To No Avail What if the coach from Hoosiers had spoken to the Boilermakers prior to Thursday's game against Connecticut? [Boiled Sports]
Bulls Finally Get Sidekick for Rose John Salmons hasn't been in Chicago long after being traded from the Kings, but he has made the most of it so far and is putting up some solid numbers. [Pippen Ain't Easy]
Durant is a Beast, Says He Likes Oklahoma Superstud Kevin Durant is pleased with the direction that the OKC franchise is taking. He sees a bright future, and as long as he wears one of those atrocious OKC unis, the Thunder could be dangerous.[The Boston Globe]
This past week has been a roller coaster for the Purdue Boilermakers. They've had stellar first half performances, that end with late game meltdowns and they've won their last two games by only a combined score of 7 points (after a combined halftime lead of 23). Now, they face UCONN and must deal with the most athletic team they've faced all year.
But should Purdue even be in this situation? Should they be going up against the giants from Storrs? I say no, if only they could get a little respect.
Other than the Arizona Wildcats (a 12 seed), the Boilermakers are the lowest seed left in the dance. This might not seem like such a bad deal, other than you have to look at their resume. Not only did they compile a 25-9 record in one of the major BCS conferences, but they won the league's tournament. Though I'm a purist and don't consider the end-of-year tourney to be the championship, in some leagues Purdue would be considered that. And what did the Boilers get out of all this success? They received a 5 seed and had to go clear to the west coast to play in Portland.
This might not seem too bad. All teams have to travel great distances, especially if they're not a top seed, right? Nope.
Purdue's second opponent in the dance was Washington (located in Seattle, not too far from Portland). Neutral site, I think not. Well, at least the Huskies were a 4 seed. It makes sense that they might get preferential treatment, but how does that explain 8-seeded Ohio State (defeated by Purdue in the conference tourney) getting to play in their own state?
Geographic anomalies aside, seeding makes a huge difference of who you even have to face on your way to the Final Four. Let's face it, you don't have to be the best team in the country to win it all. All you have to do is win 6 games in a row. What teams wind up in your quadrant/side of the bracket make a huge difference. Now is UCONN the highest rated and most dangerous team in the tourney? I'd say no. But they are still a force to be reckoned with and quite a match up for a team that did as well during the season as Purdue did. Let's compare the Boilers' Sweet 16 draw with a similar squad. Kansas (25-7) only won one version of the Big 12 championship, but wound up with a 3 seed. Only being 2 seeds higher than the Boilers, the Jayhawks get to ride in the bottom side of the Midwest bracket and match up against a very beatable Michigan State squad. Meanwhile by virtue of being a 5, the boilers are forced to play the 1 seed a round earlier than teams like Kansas and Villanova.
I realize that as a Purdue fan I should just be ecstatic that they are in the Sweet 16 and leave it at that. But I can't help but feel that Purdue is rarely thought of amongst the nation's elite basketball programs, despite its great history, and often it appears to get little respect.
Billynho writes the truth. My lack of commitment to the Cartel has brought down its quality over the last month or so. Besides my sporadic posting, I've even been neglecting some of the webmaster duties. For all of this, loyal fans, I apologize. Though I feel I must set the record straight since my honor has been called into question by that roguish Billy & Ho (AKA Tony Kornheiser?).
Billynho writes about how he wishes to "settle back into a pattern". Yet what he fails to mention is that this "pattern" is him MOVING! Yeah, that's right. The man who talks of commitment to a project and of the unity of the Cartel is leaving beatiful central Indiana for California.
It is indeed a sad day, sports fans. It looks like The Siets will be your only source for level-headed Midwestern takes on all the big sports issues. Billynho will probably be too busy driving his Prius and selling crack to orphans (or building microscopes) to care about our loyal readers. I can just see it now; he'll be attending Lakers games with Jacko, rooting for the Galaxy, and just generally promoting a solid West-Coast bias on this site. Heck he might even try the newspaper gig again. I hear Bill Plaschke is looking to take on an apprentice.
In all honesty though, I wish my good friend Billynho the best as he looks to start a new chapter out west. To our readers, the site may still be crazy for a brief time, but we will return in full strength soon. Thanks to all who take time to read this site and we hope you've enjoyed our work so far.
After being called out for the 20th time and even receiving a few data entries asking what up (try it sometime!), I'll bend at the whim of public pressure and explain what's been going on around here.
"A whole lot of nothing, loser," all some of you are probably saying, and you'd be right. But there's a perfectly good explanation for the lack of posts.
It'd be easy to say that it's The Siets's (King's English around here) fault and leave it at that. And it'd be fair. Hell, that sounds 100% right to me.
As for me, I've been really busy doing things you wouldn't believe if I told you. I can't really believe it myself. And there will probably be a few more weeks of turmoil (or lack thereof) on this site, but I do plan to settle back into a pattern of openly lusting for overglorifying Drew Brees, Ricky Rubio, and Anfernee Hardaway again soon. So bear with Billynho, and he'll be back with you before you noticed he was gone. Assuming you did. Which you probably didn't. Because you thought he was Tony Kornheiser, didn't you? You think this is Tony Kornheiser right now, don't you? You know who I blame for that?
The Siets.
Until then, we appreciate you reading our site. Or at least I do. I can't speak for The Siets except to say The Siets doesn't care about anyone. Except beating the guy in the picture above at what that guy and The Siets do best. To think, I would've backed The Siets in that battle at one time. Ha, that was before I remembered that THAT DUDE would've definitely posted more than once in the past 29 days.
I'll be thinking of you when I'm doing what I've been doing and will soon be doing again.
Somebody has to, because it's clear The Siets won't.
Butthurt (adj) 1. An inappropriately strong negative emotional response from a perceived personal insult. Characterized by strong feelings of shame. Frequently associated with a cessation of communication and overt hostility towards the "aggressor." 2. Jay Cutler
Aha, did you see that? Michael Irvin got all full of butthurt when PacMan went to the bathroom to do a line without him.
By now, everyone has got their shots in on Jay Cutler. It's actually gotten out of hand a bit, with some "experts" alleging that Cutler is a below-average NFL quarterback. That's ridiculous, but he's handled the Broncos courting of Matt Cassel with the aplomb of Terrell Owens.
Cutler's not the first young franchise quarterback to receive perplexing treatment from the team that drafted him in recent years. That's right, I think the Broncos are in the wrong.
But I also think Cutler is way butthurt.
He could learn a thing or two by looking back at how a quarterback who has become one of the most respected men in NFL history handled nearly identical treament... After the San Diego Chargers took Philip Rivers with the fourth pick of the 2004 NFL Draft, Drew Brees was fed up. Despite an impressive second season, Brees had been forced to compete and share reps with Doug Flutie going into the 2003 NFL season. With the selection of Rivers, it seemed Brees' destiny was to become a journeyman backup quarterback after one last year in San Diego.
Brees didn't see it that way. Fueled by the insult delivered to his doorstep in the form of Rivers and fortunate that Philip became a training camp holdout, Brees turned 12 hour offseason work days into the NFL Comeback Player of the Year award, a 104.8 quarterback rating and Pro Bowl appearance. This left A.J. Smith with just one option after splashing out on Rivers: Franchise Brees.
Once again, Brees felt slighted. He wanted to commit to San Diego long-term, he'd proven to be one of the top five quarterbacks in the NFL, he was loved by head coach Marty Schottenheimer, and he felt he deserved a fat signing bonus and job security. So, of course, he held out, pouted, skipped mini-camps, leaked information about the Chargers to ESPN reporters, and declared his career over in San Diego, right?
Erm, no. He put his head down, worked just as hard as he did the previous offseason, held off Rivers for the starting job in 2005, and produced another great season on the field. Unfortunately, in the last game of the season he suffered a torn labrum and rotator cuff.
Even after the injury, he was much-coveted in free agency. Despite how he'd be treated the last few seasons, he badly wanted to stay in San Diego. He even offered to give the Chargers a hometown discount. But in the end, they were ready to move on and so did Brees.
He was determined to once again prove A.J. Smith wrong, this time in New Orleans. Some doubted whether he'd ever throw a football more than 20 yards again due to the severity of his injury. He did that and more in finishing runner-up to best friend LaDainian Tomlinson for league MVP and sharing the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award with LT.
Cutler likely won't sniff one of those during his career if his character is as weak as it's seemed through the standoff. But if he starts acting more like Brees, his reputation with the public is still salvageable to some extent.
He should be thankful that he still is the starter in Denver and come back in 2009 more driven than ever to prove that he can win playoff games for the Broncos. If he does that, Josh McDaniels will look just as foolish as A.J. Smith does in retrospect.
And his name may no longer be the second best definition of butthurt.
Like Charles Barkley at a poker table, SEC athletic directors don’t seem to know when to tighten their purse strings. As a result, operating in the high-stakes world of college football has become more expensive for the rest of the nation.
From a notorious 23 year streak with at least one program on probation (and as many as five at one time), to the $200,000 payment indiscreetly made by a Crimson Tide booster to Alabama’s prized defensive tackle recruit Albert Means in 1999, to Auburn’s failed pursuit of prospective coach Bobby Petrino a year before Tommy Tuberville, the under-contract coach they tried to replace, led the Tigers to an undefeated season, accusations of impropriety, illicit cabals and wantonness are nothing new to the conference.
Don't be shocked to see Urban Meyer paraded out of the locker room atop a bejeweled palanquin or read about LSU's players dining on foie gras and bluefin tuna in their pregame meal this fall.
But the outlay splashed in constructing Tennessee’s supposed “Super Staff” may be the most damaging example of the SEC’s desperation for championship football. After buying out national championship winner Phillip Fulmer for $6 million in November, Tennessee threw $2 million on the doorstep of Oakland Raiders failure Lane Kiffin. What do you get for $2 million these days? According to his last boss, Raiders owner Al Davis, it will buy you a “flat-out liar.” For an extra $1.2 million, the Volunteers bought the nation’s highest paid assistant coach, Kiffin’s dad Monte.
The spending didn’t stop there.
New defensive line coach Ed Orgeron will make $650,000 in 2009, over three times more than recently departed Purdue defensive coordinator Brock Spack made in 2008. Mississippi endured their first winless conference season in 25 years under Orgeron in 2007. The Rebels ranked 14th in the nation at the conclusion of the 2008 season without him.
Alleged offensive genius Jim Chaney was named coordinator and awarded the princely sum of $380,000. Chaney, most will remember, was gently shoved out of his office in Mollenkopf Athletic Center in 2005. Few Boilermakers fans considered him a candidate for MENSA at the time.
Linebackers coach Lance Thompson, said to be a recruiting whiz, was poached for $350,000 a year from Alabama. The Tide didn’t seem to miss him while landing the nation’s top recruiting class last week.
Peering into the situation from the outside, one would guess the state and University of Tennessee must be waltzing through a fiscal purple patch. Not so, says the state’s own governor.
“… it does pain me to see the athletic department living so high while some of the academic departments are facing some very tough times,” said Gov. Phil Bredesen. “I would hope they would be a little sensitive to that fact.”
Academics?
Mr. Bredesen, as Chairman of the Board of Trustees at Tennessee, should know that football will always precede mere trivial concerns such as education down South.
The regular season is almost here and I have seen some sweetDodgers Tickets for sale.
I have been buying tickets to the Dodgers for years online and every year I cannot find the right tickets at the right price. However, this year I came across the website Citrus Tickets and found exactly what I am looking for. It is run by a local company that specializes on tickets to events in Southern California. It made me realize how I hate buying tickets from these big nationwide sites.
I just got 2 Dodgers tickets to the home opener against the San Francisco Giants for a great price! I am very excited to go see Manny!
The regular season is approaching and now is the best time to buy LA Angels Tickets.
I have been buying tickets to the Angels for years online and every year I cannot find the right tickets at the right price. However, this year I came across the website Citrus Tickets and found exactly what I am looking for. It is run by a local company that specializes on tickets to events in Southern California. It made me realize how I hate buying tickets from these big nationwide sites.
I just bought 4 Angels tickets to the home opener against the Oakland A's for a great price! I can hardly wait to go!
I don’t know how AP Sports Columnist Jim Litke snuck this gem by me since I was pulling for Edgerrin in Super Bowl XLIII, but combine the 168 hours of week-long coverage the world managed prior to the big game with the bottle of rut-gut I had for lunch, and maybe I shouldn’t be surprised.
What’s your halfback done for the economy in your neck of the woods? Speaking of “brother can you spare a dime”, somebody please hand Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo some sense. On the No. 5 Spartans’ third loss of the Big Ten season at the hands of the Boilermakers: “Does Purdue deserve credit? Probably. Are we to blame? Probably.” Probably, Tommy?
Purdue didn’t have the most stellar offensive game either, not even managing half their shots on the night. Though the highlight reel will show Robbie Hummel coming back from the stress fracture in his back, he did only go 3-9 from the floor in 25 minutes of work.
How’s about instead of probably—as in there’s a likelihood for the grounds of believing—we’ll just go ahead a say definitively Purdue’s defense stifled the Spartans, holding them to a season-low 32.7 percent shooting from the floor and only 54 points—the second time this season they’ve been held under 60. But don’t worry East Lansing, you’re in good company: Only three squads have managed 60 points on Keady Court this season, and six teams couldn't even reach 50.
And before everyone gets up in arms, I get what Izzo’s trying to say: Was the Boiler D (10 steals, 8 blocks) great or was Michigan State having an off night? That must be the reason the ‘ol ball coach is unable to praise a defense which held his leading scorer (and turn-over artist with six), Kalin Lucus, to a horrendous 2-11 from the floor. But look at the big picture; how’d your boy eek out 14 points on such an poor night? Maybe by knocking down a not-so-off-night 10 of 12 in six trips to the charity stripe? Probably.
I finally got to watch a game on the YES network.
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