Thursday, May 19, 2005

Quick Thoughts - May 19th '05

Wow, what the hell have I been doing for the last eight days? Somehow I completely neglected to update this site – my apologies. I’ve just been mired in a slump of epic proportions over the last week or so – work, sports, family, dogs - life in general is starting to wear me down. Ever get the feeling that it’s just not meant to be? Yeah – me neither…

Quick Thoughts while trying to remember where I put the Prozac…

(Sorry for the downer of an intro. I’m just riding a ridiculous string of bad luck, bad health, long days, and no sleep. I’ll try to make it up to you as we go along.)

n Thank you Jason Giambi! Striking out with the bases loaded in the ninth inning last night to finally put a stop to the Yankees’ 10-game winning streak. Phew – it was getting scary there for a while. Now all of us Red Sox fans can turn our attention to where it really belongs - complaining about the team, the management, the philosophy, the stadium, the fans, oh wait a sec…

n Thanks to all of you who clicked the link to my Super Bowl early season lines article with www.docsports.com. My next article will be sometime next week on the Over/Under for team wins in 2005. I was surprised to hear that I had received a huge number of hits for a first time writer with the site, and I would have to assume that most of them came from those of you who either read my post with the link, or my AIM away message. Either way – thanks.

n So, is David Wells just unable to pitch in the first game after a long layoff? You know, like Opening Day, the first game off the DL, etc…

n More examples of bad things happening to bad people – good to see Barry Bonds might never play again.

n Wow. I’m not sure how to react right now. I’m listening to “Dennis & Callahan” on WEEI radio, and they saw fit to allow longtime caller Frank From Gloucester to speak directly to Larry Lucchino. This is an absolute train wreck…

n Gee, Pedro Martinez has to have a start pushed back a couple days? I never would have expected this from a guy with a history of shoulder and hip problems, coming off statistically his worst season ever – a season in which he never missed a start and threw more innings than in any of the previous five years… Boy, who saw this coming? (Trying not to laugh…)

n The NBA is headed straight for another lock-out, and I can’t say that I’m surprised by it. The league needs to address a lot of issues – most notably an age limit and the new era of stars pouting their way out of town (see Vince Carter & Tracy McGrady). David Stern has never actually lost a labor dispute, but if he sticks to his guns on the age limit, he might be in for a heck of a fight, and it’s not one that he’s going to win.

n I’m still working on getting a short 13minute video project that I created up on the web. My web host isn’t exactly friendly, but they control my domain, so I have to abide by their rules. One of their rules is “Don’t put 300MB files up on your site for streaming or download”, and I can’t say as I argue with that. I’m working on a way around it – as soon as I know, you’ll know.

n MLB Trade rumors are flying around Roger Clemens returning to either Boston or New York. Everyone says it’s not happening, but I’ve got to think that if Houston could get a good young prospect (preferably a first baseman) in return, that Roger could be shipped. Interestingly enough, Philadelphia has one of the best first base prospects in all of baseball (Ryan Howard) being held back by Jim Thome. They’ve got the payroll space, and they could really use some more pitching… No, this isn’t happening. But maybe in a 3-way deal…

§ Here’s what I think could happen (and I don’t think it’s a good deal for Boston, but what the hell – it’s all speculation and conjecture until Jayson Stark breaks the story anyway…) Clemens and his albatross of a contract to the Sox, Hanley Ramirez to Philadelphia (Jimmy Rollins’ contract expires after this year) and Ryan Howard to Houston to replace Jeff Bagwell, who’s shoulder is probably going to end his career. Sure, it’s only a 3-month rental for Boston. But if it means A) Keeping Clemens out of New York, and B) giving Boston the inside track to back-to-back World Series titles, then I’d look past the loss of Ramirez. The Yankees could offer 2B Robinson Cano to Houston (Craig Biggio is just about done, too), but I think Howard is a better prospect. The Astros don’t need a shortstop – otherwise they could deal directly with Boston.

n I’m preparing for my NFL Season Preview post, which I hope to get posted before I leave for Las Vegas in July. Otherwise, it’s going to get pushed to early August, which might not be such a bad thing either. Posting once training camp starts could help me to stay away from predictions like “If Barry Bonds, Jason Schmidt, and the great new closer Armando Benitez can stay healthy, the Giants can make it to the World Series this year”. Oops.

n Anybody want to sponsor my trip out to Vegas in July (or my return trip in August)? I plan to play in the poker rooms in town when I’m not playing in the WSOP – might not be a bad investment for you. Here’s how I see it working out – you invest in me with cash (say, $100). I play poker with it. Anything I win, you get your $100 back and we split the profits 60-40. If I lose – oh well, it’s no worse than the stock market anyway. I think this could work out well…

n Star Wars update – I’m amazed at how smooth my ride into work was this morning… guess everybody’s sleeping in or calling out entirely after Star Wars’ debut at 12:00AM…