Sunday, December 31, 2006

Playoffs? Yes!


This is for my Jet fan fans friends. Altogether now: (cuing Fireman Ed) J-E-T-S, JETS, JETS, JETS!

They could have played the practice squad against the Raiders, who apparently decided to celebrate the New Year a little early. Congrats go out to the Man-genius. The Jets reward? They get to play the Pats at Foxboro on Sunday, which has the potential to be the most dramatic game of the four playoff games. Should be fun to talk about and dissect for the next week.

As for the rest of the playoff picture, Herm Edwards get his Chiefs improbably into playoffs. Chiefs need three (three!) freaking teams to lose: the Bengals, the Titans, and the Broncos. The Bengals are kind of like the AFC's version of the Giants: lots of talent but extremely inconsistent and emotionally unstable. They lose to the Steelers in OT in what could be Cowher's last game. The Titans got stomped on by the Pats, so it left to the Broncos taking care of business at home against the lowly 49ers. And they lost in overtime. That pretty much explains the NFL this season.

In the JV conference, Detroit takes out Dallas in big D. Can we please stop pontificating Tony Romo as the next Troy Aikman? As a result, Dallas heads to Seattle on Saturday night the Giants go to Philly late Sunday afternoon, the Chiefs take on the Colts on Saturday (Larry Johnson is already salivating at a chance at that run defense) and as mentioned before, the Jets head to New England. The Bears have home field throughout in the NFC, the Saints have a first-round bye while the Super-Chargers have home field throughout in the AFC and the Ravens have the bye.

Have a good new year and enjoy the college football tomorrow.

Bittersweet Symphony


I never had the love for Tiki Barber that most Giant fans have had. He's always seemed to me more worried about his image and his next TV gig then on football.

Having said that, he showed tonite why the Giants are never going to be the same. He carried the team on his back and dragged by the scruff of the neck and crying and screaming into the playoffs. The defense nearly folded, Eli was sub-par as usual and you got the feeling of "here we go again down the stretch"

But Tiki was what he is and what he's always has been: Tiki. Three TD's, and a Giant record for rushing yards in a single game. It was marvelous to watch an individual performance of that quality and I can say that the Giants are going to have a huge hole in that backfield without 21 back there.

Still, there's no joy after the victory, no exultation for beating a division rival and basically assuring themselves a playoff spot. The season is probably not going to last much longer, whether they lose this week or the week after. Tom Coughlin's job just got safer and in reality, that's not a good thing. As Bill Parcells once said "They are what their record says they are": an 8-8, inconsistent football team, nothing more than that. They're mentally fragile and it's going to be hard to watch another playoff exit.

Here's why the Giants are pretty much in the playoffs, per ESPN:
• Green Bay clinches strength of victory tiebreaker over N.Y. Giants if: Arizona, Detroit, Miami, Minnesota and San Francisco all win and Carolina, Houston and Tampa Bay all lose.

If you have to rely on the Lions to win to make the playoffs, you're pretty much dead in the water, not to mention all those other teams winning.. The Falcons are done, so expect them to lay down for the Eagles, meaning round 3 of Eagles-Giants down the Turnpike.

As for the Jets, their game against the Raiders is a bit tricky. Sure, Oakland is terrible, but they also have a very underrated defense with some playmakers on that side of the ball. This is going to be a defensive game and as long as the Jets keep it close to the vest, they should win. The Raiders offense is non-existent, especially considering Randy Moss and Jerry Porter won't play, not that they were playing hard to begin with. You would hope the Jets don't fall victim to overconfidence but - I cannot stress this enough - it's the Jets. They made the sports version of tragedy look cool.

Bold predictions: Jets get in, Broncos get in, Eagles win the NFC East. The only things undecided at this point.

Enjoy the regular season finale...

Saturday, December 30, 2006

What's the Unit Price?


In two years, Randy Johnson failed to impress in his time in the Big Apple. Now, he's going back to where once he came from.

According to Dan Graziano of the Newark Star-Ledger, the Yankees and Diamondbacks are concocting a deal that would send a package of pitching prospects for the $16 million dollar grouch.

The guy in the picture is one of the guys rumored to be headed back this way, Brandon Medders, a relief pitcher, along with a couple of throw-win arms. Medders pitched 60 games last year with a 3.64 ERA and a 1.45 WHIP. Not exactly the most impressive numbers, but considering the Yanks are getting anything for Randy, it's a success that they're getting someone who can legitmately be expected to help the bullpen next year. You have the like the strategy of loading the bullpen with arms. How many times last season did Scott Proctor come in? 250 times? That'll certainly go down and the bullpen will be better for it.

But when you think about it, the Yankees have had a smashing off-season. They've gotten rid of Jaret "5 inning" Wright and actually got something back for him, along with dumping his salary. They got rid of Gary Sheffield and got three pretty good young arms from the Tigers. They signed Pettitte, a proven winner in New York. They've added some depth to the rotation with Igawa (still don't think it'll work out well, but we'll see) Right now, the rotation doesn't look too bad: Wang, Mussina, Pettite, Igawa and Pavano with Philip Hughes waiting in the wings when Pavano hurts his fingernail and needs 3 months on the DL. Brian Cashman has done the prudent, smart moves, he's not overpaid for anyone and he's made the team better than it was at this point last season. That's all you can ask for from your general manager.

Be back later with a Giant-Redskin recap and preview the J-E-T-S against the Raiders.

Friday, December 29, 2006

Show Me What You Got

"This...is...a state of emergency" - Jay-Z. I'm down, yo.

For the New York Giants, it is a state of emergency. The season is crumbling before our very eyes and a team that some had in the Super Bowl is on life support, going 1-6 in their last seven games and are beat up, both physically and mentally. They've been left for dead and a lot of Giant fans don't want them to make the playoffs.

One more week of Giants football is better than no weeks of Giants football. Sure, they'll get smoked by either Philly or Dallas, but at least they made the post-season. False hope, for us Giant fans.

Look, it's easy to play Monday Morning Quarterback and say Eli Manning is a bust already. I don't think he is...yet. He's regressed terribly in the second half of the season and there aren't many signs that he'll turn it around. Ever since Amani Toomer went down, Eli's been awful. Worst yet, Jeremy Shockey is out this week and you know he has to be basically immobile for him not to play with their playoff lives at stake. Everywhere you look on the Giants you see problems. Their offensive line hasn't been the same since Pettigout got hurt in that Bears game. Their pass rush hasn't been the same since Strahan went out. Doubly importantly, their pass coverage has been exposed because they can't get a pass rush. It's easy to blame injuries, but the Patriots, who always seem to have Troy Brown playing cornerback in November, always have injuries and yet always are successful.

It comes down to coaching, folks. Wellington Mara's last significant act as Giant owner was to hire Tom Coughlin. I personally wanted everyone else but Coughlin. Nothing really against him, but I thought the candidates at the time: Lovie Smith, Romeo Crenell and Charlie Weis, all had big time credentials as coordinators. Nevertheless, Coughlin was hired and I thought he accomplished what he needed to do in his first year, getting Manning into games and get him ready for the NFL. The second year was that great leap forward, a NFC East title and a home playoff game - only to get smoked.

It's getting really, really hard to cheer for this team. I cannot stand Plaxico Burress or Strahan (despite the fact he's the unquestioned best end in the NFL) or even Tiki with their comments sometimes. Without Shockey, their isn't anyone with any fire on the offensive side of the ball and although Antonio Pierce leads the defense, it's just plain bad.

The Redskins have been playing much better under Jason Campbell and their defense is always dangerous. Giant-Redskin games are always intense and you know the Skins want to knock the Giants out of the playoffs. Ladell Betts has really come on of late and look for him to shred the swiss cheese defense. Somewhere, Lawrence Taylor is shaking his head, looking at that defense.

I'll cheer for the team and even though I picked the Giants on the radio show, I don't think they're going to win. In fact, I think it's going to be a complete no-show. Redskins 27 Giants 7.

After that, let the games begin for a new coach. I hear South Bend is a nice place to visit for a coach these days...

Sporting Goods


For the sake of vanity, the title of this post just so happens to be the title of our WBCR sports radio show on Wednesday from 2-4 p.m. Check it out.

There's also a lot going on in the world of sports, with both local football teams having an opportunity to get into the playoffs, Randy Johnson about to be traded, the continued shellacking the Mets keep getting in the press for not signing Zito to an insane contract and no one really caring about hockey.

Sorry puck heads. It's true.

But I'll start off with a more somber note in that Bobby Murcer, longtime Yankee announcer and player just had surgery for a brain tumor. http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/story/484073p-407474c.html

Murcer has always been a classy guy, a tried-and-true Yankee and really, the only announcer on the television with a real lineage with the team. Thankfully, the surgery was a success and it looks like Bobby could even be back by Spring Training. My favorite moments as a kid was the Channel 11 games with Murcer and Phil Rizzuto, the banter back and forth. Ah, I'm getting old...

Anyway, as everyone should be, we're glad the surgery is a success and can't wait till he's back announcing.

The Zito fallout continues today with Bob Klapisch of the Bergen Record forecasting the Mets better hit:
http://www.northjersey.com/page.php?qstr=eXJpcnk3ZjczN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXkxMTQmZmdiZWw3Zjd2cWVlRUV5eTcwNDY2NTAmeXJpcnk3ZjcxN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXk2

Dan Graziano of the Newark-Star Ledger speculates Omar's next move:
http://www.nj.com/columns/ledger/graziano/index.ssf?/base/columns-0/11673721275920.xml&coll=1&thispage=2

John Harper of the Daily News is one of the voices saying Minaya was right in not paying through the nose for Zito (ignore the misleading headline) :
http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/story/484086p-407481c.html

Finally, Joel Sherman of the NY Post suggest the Mets go after lesser targets, such as Roderigo Lopez (mediocrity be thy name) or Bronson "don't call me Brandon" Arroyo:
http://www.nypost.com/seven/12292006/sports/mets/giants_land_zito_mets_joel_sherman.htm?page=2

One of the names I didn't mention in the Mets 5th starter sweepstakes was Jason Vargas, a guy that Minaya picked up in a lesser known trade from Florida. Got a sneaking feeling this tall, hard throwing lefty is going to be heard from in '07.

As for their crosstown rivals, it looks Randy Johnson is about to be sent back out to the desert where he once came with his 95+ fastball and wicked slider, according to Bill Madden and Anthony McCarron : http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/story/484072p-407473c.html

The Yanks would get more pitching prospects which as a Yankee fan, I'm not complaining. I would like to get one or two position prospects, but alas, beggars cannot be greedy. The Yankees are also front-runners for getting Doug Mientkiewicz as the first baseman and Mark Loretta as a utility infielder, both moves I support completely.

For your viewing pleasure, the streaking Knicks are in Phoenix and the Nets are in Miami on the hardwood. The Rangers are in Ottawa, and the Devils are the only locals playing at home against the Caps and Alexander Ovechkin.

Finally, for the truly bored. (Or bored and pathetic like myself) Youtube might go down as the most important development in human history in the last 30 years. Here are two clips that are comedic gold. Naturally, they involve the Jets and Knicks:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnp-CzonlHY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZxNeFLuY98

Be back tonite analyzing the Giants-Redskins game later.

TGIF Morning


Back after good times with good food and drink. To borrow a line from my good friend Laura, "eat and drink, for tomorrow we shall DIE."

Um, yeah.

Anyway, while I was stuffing my face and drinking, I got to wondering just why the hell we have 4,000 bowl games in Division I-A college football, the only college sport that doesn't decide it's national champion by a playoff system? It's utterly ridiculous. Does anyone care about the Papajohns.com Bowl or the New Mexico Bowl? Who wants to see a 6-6 team against a 7-6 team besides the fans of the two schools? The National Championship Game is determined by computers and coaches poll. Is that what anyone really wants?

Let's look at the title game: Ohio State vs. Florida. Does Ohio State deserve to be there? No question. Does Florida deserve to be there? Good question, and I don't know the answer. Michigan has every right to claim that they should be number two and get another shot at the Buckeyes. If that game back in November is played at the Big House, it's probably a different story.

Fact of the matter is there has to a better way to settle this. But I'm not smart enough to figure out how.

The big story continues to be Barry Zito and the columnists are starting to have a field day already. You can read about the media backlash against, as Ken Davidoff of Newsday loses his marbles in his column. http://www.newsday.com/sports/baseball/mets/ny-spken1229,0,4227767.column?coll=ny-sports-headlines

He suggests that the Mets sign Jeff Weaver. Read that again.

Jeff Weaver. Can you say riot?

Look, I can understand why Met fans have reason to be angry that they didn't get their man. But in three years time, this could have the Mets looking pretty darn good with Zito getting hammered. People calling Fred Wilpon "Freddy Coupon" or saying that Minaya didn't go after Zito because he wasn't Latin are completely off-base. Zito does not deserve $126 million dollars. No one does, unless you find the cure for cancer or AIDS. But especially Zito, a soft-tossing lefty whose numbers, as stated in the previous post, continue to regress. If anyone thinks that Minaya didn't pursue Zito because he isn't Latino, your out of your mind. He only just signed David Wright to a long-term extension instead of trading and went hard after Billy Wagner, two Caucasian players on his team. It doesn't matter if the team is black, white, Asian, Martian or whatever. If you win games at the end of the day, it's all good.

The last thing Omar should do is overpay some bum like Weaver or panic and trade the farm for an overrated starter, such as Danny Haren, Brad Penny (extremely overrated and injury prone) and Jon Garland, like Davidoff suggest. Bold prediction: the Mets will be a playoff team and the best team in the National League, along with being a World Series contender. Their rotation isn't terrible and their bullpen is good, although it's taken a hit with Chad Bradford sidewinding down in Baltimore. They will be a good team and who's to say that Minaya doesn't decide to make a move for a player at the trading deadline in July?

The Cubs have been crowned the winners of the Hot Stove Season. But as the Yankees have found out, you don't win World Series during the Hot Stove. You win them in October. That's a long ways off.

Thursday, December 28, 2006

I left my ace pitcher in San Francisco


For the entire off-season, we've been hearing Barry Zito to the Mets would be a slam freaking dunk. Fast forward to today.

According to the Associated Press and ESPN's Peter Gammons, Zito will sign with the Giants for 7 years, $126 Million dollars. Oh. MY.

You can't really blame Omar Minaya for this one, this isn't like A-Rod a few years back when he's a free agent. Zito is a good pitcher, former Cy Young Award winner in 2002. But his numbers have been regressing since that big year. This year, Zito went 16-10 with a 3.83 ERA, not terrible, especially for the American League, but not exactly numbers that'll make you think he's the next Koufax. His WHIP (Walks, hits per inning) was the highest ever in his career, 1.40. His numbers will be better in the National League, there's no doubt about that. But the Giants got the best pitcher in an extremely weak free agent class. It was expected that Zito and his agent, Scott Boras would at least wait til the new year to sort out of offers. Guess that's not happening.

So how does this affect the locals? For the Mets, who missed out on Daisuke Matzusaka and Zito it puts them in a precarious position. The rotation is Glavine, El Duque, Oliver Perez, John Maine and a brawl for the fifth starter spot between Mike Pelfrey, Philip Humber et al. Perez and Maine impressed during the post-season, but can they do that over a full season? I think Perez is a tremendous talent but he's never put it together consistently. Maine was a mediocre pitcher until he got with the Mets. The advantage for both of them is that they're both young and Rick Peterson is their pitching coaching. The top of the rotation however, to borrow a line from my friend Stephen "is about to play shuffleboard in Del Boca Vista." Who knows about Pedro Martinez. The Mets inquired earlier about trading for Ben Sheets and maybe they can look into a Jake Peavy, but they didn't get the big pitching ace that they wanted. It'll be interesting to see what their plan C will be.

The Yankees position in trading Randy Johnson got somewhat stronger. With Zito off the market, teams like the Rangers and the Angels, who could have been in the Zito sweepstakes could up the ante with a trade package for the Big Unit. Higher demand for a 43-year-old over the hill left handed = more chips for the Yankees to use down the line for a bigger trade. A lot of people are surprised that the Yanks didn't get involve with Zito, but if you look at his numbers against the AL East, you'll see why. Outside of Tampa Bay, he didn't have an ERA of under 4 against any AL East opponent.

This also increases the chances, however slight of the Yankees making a run at Roger Clemens, especially if they get rid of Johnson's contract as reported.

Back here later tonite for more commentary...

This is why we watch


For those who know me, they know my opinion of the Knicks, Stephon Marbury and Isiah Thomas. I've been down on this team since the end of the Ewing-Oakley-Spree-Camby Knicks. Mismanagement and stupid trades have this team unthinkably over the salary cap. Their play was deplorable under Larry Brown last season and parts of this season. I've seen Jim Dolan take the World's Most Famous Arena and turn into a running joke, seen Scott Layden and Isiah Thomas trade for every bad contract in the NBA. Like a parent mad at a child, you're disappointed, hurt and wonder if they'll shape it.

But there are nights like this. Nights when you feel the energy in the Garden, the fans on their feet, chanting, imploring for a defensive stop. Basketball and New York have a bond, a connection that's different from any other sport. Sure, we love football, baseball and hockey, but there's nothing that gets the blood rushing than a good basketball game.

And that's what we saw tonight. A triple overtime thriller that saw the return of something that's been sorely missed around these parts in terms of basketball: intensity. The crowd at the Garden has never been that hyped in a very long time. It's as if the brawl with the Nuggets has resurrected the team's spirit. Marbury has played at a level the last few games that we haven't seen in ages. David Lee might be the hardest working power forward in the game. Jamal Crawford, you hate it when he chucks shots for 25 feet away, but you can't deny the guy has the steel to take the last shot in the game. Eddy Curry is making a leap forward. There is a light at the end of the tunnel, however faint.

Look, it's not like my opinion of them being a terrible basketball has changed. They still have major problems. Rip Hamilton lit them up for 51. If Chauncey Billups hits his foul shots, they lose. They cannot play defense at all and against the elite of the NBA, they'll get exposed. But for one night, one terrific night, I was glad to be a Knick fan again. I got to see them win 151-145 against one of the better basketball teams in the league. It's enough to smile to sleep.

And then wake up to realize how terrible they are again. But it's a start...

Wednesday, December 27, 2006

Take a number...

The baseball off-season has seen some crazy contracts - Gil Meche got $55 million, one million from the Royals (the Royals!) which is a million per for every career win he has currently. Ted Lilly got four years for $40 million, a guy who's never been more than a .500 pitcher. Don't get me started on J.D. Drew getting $70 million dollars or Carlos Lee getting $100 million.

Because free agency has gotten so out of whack, teams are now looking into trades and as said before, teams out west are lining like people at the deli counter for Randy Johnson. The Big Unit has also seemed more like a Grinch to most people, according to Bob Klapisch of the Bergen Record: http://www.northjersey.com/page.php?qstr=eXJpcnk3ZjczN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXkxMTMmZmdiZWw3Zjd2cWVlRUV5eTcwNDU1NTQmeXJpcnk3ZjcxN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXk2

The Newark Star-Ledger, who first reported the story, says the Padres have the inside track and offered the most so far:
http://www.nj.com/yankees/ledger/index.ssf?/base/sports-1/1167201728105740.xml&coll=1

The Daily News says the Yanks want to settle this by the weekend, so this could be a fast moving story. Along with that little nugget, they claim the Mariners and Angels are in on the bidding war:
http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/story/483406p-406909c.html

Finally, Ken Davidoff of Newsday says that trading Mr. Congeniality would be a mistake:
http://www.newsday.com/sports/printedition/ny-spken275030195dec27,0,373804.column?coll=ny-sports-print

Depending on what source you believe, the Yankees are interested in Barry Zito, not interested in Barry Zito, making a push for Clemens, and the Padres and Diamondbacks, along with other teams are bidding. It's weird, as a young sportswriter to see so many unattributed sources, but I guess that's the nature of the business.

Back here later for more. Going to be on www.brooklyncollegeradio.org in about an hour.

First Post

I guess I get to pop the cork on this baby. Yay for me.

Well, as you can see from the title, this is the opinion of the those from the Brooklyn College Media thoughts on sports. It's about freaking time we got to vent on sports items that irk us in a timely fashion.

Let's start off with the two local football teams going into opposite directions. The Jets played in one of the most boring Monday night games ever seen but they get the job done 13-10 over the Dolphins in Miami. You have to give credit to Eric Mangini, the guy has done wonders with limited talent and are on the verge of making the post-season, but only if they beat the Raiders this Sunday. In other words, the Jets will be making the playoffs. Will they go far? Who knows. We saw with the Steelers last year, that a sixth seeded, flawed team from the AFC can go all the way. They've had success against the Colts or the Pats, whoever they play in the first round this year. It would be apropos, however if the Jets spit the bit and fall flat on their faces against arguably the worst team in pro sports on Sunday.

As for the G-Men, they no-showed against the Saints and basically showed little life, getting spanked 30-7. If you go position by position, the Giants are ridiculously more talented than the Jets. This is where the whole coaching thing comes in. Eli Manning has some how regressed, looking more like Dave Brown every single start than Phil Simms. The defense never, ever, ever gets a big stop when it's needed. The special teams, fantastic last year, has been atrocious. There's a saying about business, the customer is always right. When the fans at the game are saying "Fi-re Cough-lin", that's usually a good sign to pull the plug on the guy. There's too many primadonnas and the discipline that Coughlin was suppose to instill in this team, is nowhere to be found. The Post had an article about who I think should be the next coach of the Giants, Charlie Weis, written by Steve Serby which you can read: http://www.nypost.com/seven/12262006/sports/giants/big_bang_theory_fit_for_big_blue_giants_steve_serby.htm Remarkably, they still have a shot at the post-season, which I see as a one and done deal. Time for some new blood in Big Blue

Other sports: Yankees trying to get rid of Randy Johnson. I'm starting to think that you don't need to be too bright to be a baseball GM. (see Phillips, Steve Late 90's-Early 2000's reign NY Mets) Who in their right mind would trade anything of value for an aging Randy Johnson, coming off his worst year as a pro? On top of that, he's owed 16 mil next year and is coming off back surgery. Amazingly, the Diamondbacks, Padres, Giants and Dodgers all show interest in the Big Unit. More info here --->http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2708931
As a Yankee fan, where do I sign? This also opens the possibility of Barry Zito wearing Yankee pinstripes, if the Yankees get rid of Johnson's salary, something Met fans should watch very closely.

The Islanders beat the Rangers 2-0. Give credit to Ted Nolan for getting that team into playoff contention. The Rangers take too many penalties and rely too much on Jagr and Shanahan.

Nets lose to the Pistons. I don't know how this team is so bad, even without Nenad Kristic. You have three of the top 30 players in NBA on a team and somehow, they stink.

Well, I'll sign off with this: I hope I don't forget about this blog in two weeks.