I like to make fun of the Mariners. It's one of few teams a Mets' fan can look down their nose at.
But for once I actually feel bad for them. On Wednesday night, they lost a game in a way that only the Mets have been accustomed to.
You can check out the video here. If you're at a place of employment that frowns on such things, here's a recap. M's up 5-2 in the 8th. Danny Cortes and Jamie Wright combine to load the bases. Cortes walks Andres Blanco. M's up 5-3. Then he gives up a single to Julio Borbon to cut the lead to 5-4. The tieing run then comes in on wild pitch. In the blink of an eye, a 3-run lead is gone.
Go to bottom of 9th. Runner on first, two outs. Cortes strikes out Nelson Cruz. The pitch gets by the catcher. By the rules, Cruz has the opportunity to get to first. All M's catcher Guillermo Quiroz has to do is thrown him at first. Somehow Quiroz hits Cruz. The ball goes into the outfield and the runner is able to score from first. Texas wins on a swinging strike. Now that is painful.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
A Quick Transition
Michael Fucito sure has gotten the attention of Sounders Nations with his performance in the past two Champions League game. Some bloggers are calling for Fucito to get more playing time. Others are suggesting that he should be starting. While I firmly fall in the more playing time camp, this entry actually isn't meant to debate how many minutes he should be getting, though. Rather, it is to discuss the long term future of the franchise.
Coming into the 2010 season, the Sounders were one of the favorites to win MLS Cup. The experts reasoned that there mix of talented youth and grizzled veterans was enough to separate them from the rest. They also felt that this was the year they had to get it done because the window was quickly closing. Afterall, Montero and Hurtado were likely to leave for Europe. Keller, Marshall and Vagenas had a combined age of 200 years. Levesque, Graham, Scott and Wahl were simply not good enough to play significant minutes.
The Sounders had to win in 2010 or risk having to rebuild without a title to their name. The season started out good as they left the gate with a 2-1-2 record before hitting the skids and going 2-7-1 in their next 10 games. Since then they have been in amazing form, as they have run off a 7-1-3 record. Seeing there recent form, the middle part of the season seems like such an anomaly. In looking back, it wasn't that they were necessarily bad, it was that they had started transitioning to the next phase of their existence. Most thought it would come in the offseason. No one thought it would happen midseason.
Permanently gone from the lineup were Marshall, Vagenas, and Ljungberg replaced by Ianni, Sturgis and Nyassi. Parke replaced an injured Hurtado. Jaqua and Nkufo replaced the revolving door of second forwards. Seamon, Montano, Fucito and Estrada starting getting more minutes. Suddenly the Sounders were a young, inexperienced team. The young guys were hungry to make a statement. They didn't play scared.
Now we are at a point where we have a lot of depth. We have had the good fortune to get younger and yet stay competitive. We have a bright future. Maybe Fucito is part of it. Maybe he's not. Luckily for us, Sigi is getting the opportunity to see who is part of that future. We're in a good spot Sounders Nation.
Coming into the 2010 season, the Sounders were one of the favorites to win MLS Cup. The experts reasoned that there mix of talented youth and grizzled veterans was enough to separate them from the rest. They also felt that this was the year they had to get it done because the window was quickly closing. Afterall, Montero and Hurtado were likely to leave for Europe. Keller, Marshall and Vagenas had a combined age of 200 years. Levesque, Graham, Scott and Wahl were simply not good enough to play significant minutes.
The Sounders had to win in 2010 or risk having to rebuild without a title to their name. The season started out good as they left the gate with a 2-1-2 record before hitting the skids and going 2-7-1 in their next 10 games. Since then they have been in amazing form, as they have run off a 7-1-3 record. Seeing there recent form, the middle part of the season seems like such an anomaly. In looking back, it wasn't that they were necessarily bad, it was that they had started transitioning to the next phase of their existence. Most thought it would come in the offseason. No one thought it would happen midseason.
Permanently gone from the lineup were Marshall, Vagenas, and Ljungberg replaced by Ianni, Sturgis and Nyassi. Parke replaced an injured Hurtado. Jaqua and Nkufo replaced the revolving door of second forwards. Seamon, Montano, Fucito and Estrada starting getting more minutes. Suddenly the Sounders were a young, inexperienced team. The young guys were hungry to make a statement. They didn't play scared.
Now we are at a point where we have a lot of depth. We have had the good fortune to get younger and yet stay competitive. We have a bright future. Maybe Fucito is part of it. Maybe he's not. Luckily for us, Sigi is getting the opportunity to see who is part of that future. We're in a good spot Sounders Nation.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
CCL "Run" Officially Done
When the Sounders lost 2-0 at home to Monterrey on August 25, we all figured they were done in the Champions League. At 0-2 there was no way they could advance to the Knockout Round.
When the Sounders lost 2-0 on the road to Saprissa on September 14, we once again figured they were done in the Champions League. At 0-3 there was no way they could advance to the Knockout Round.
When the Sounders lost 3-2 on the road to Monterrey on September 22, we knew they were done in the Champions League. At 0-4 there was NO way we could advance.
The funny thing about each of these statements is that somehow we kept the faith. The other group results continued to go our way. We were never officially eliminated, even after losing the second time to Monterrey.
The math was simple -if we won our last two games and Monterrey won their last two games, the Sounders, Saprissa and Marathon would all finish tied for second with identical 2-4 records. We would just need to win big to help our goal differential.
I know I bought into it. I mean, all we had to do was hope that a Monterrey side who already clinched first place in the group would beat two hungry teams battling for 2nd place and that a team with 0 wins out of 4 games would miraculously win their final two games. Every time I tried to walk away I got sucked back in.
Then finally last night, Saprissa tied Monterrey. The Sounders are 100% officially eliminated. There is NO way they advance. Now I know I value Champions League more than the average fan, but even I realize this is a blessing in disguise. We can now play our young guys against Marathon, Saprissa and Chivas Guadalajara and have our normal starters finish up MLS play. I know the front office wants to win every tournament we are in. I love it, but being eliminated in Champions League increases our chances of winning the MLS Cup and/or US Open Cup. It also helps us evaluate where we are at for the future as our young back-ups can get quality minutes against opponents who are not wearing the rave green. This represents another great opportunity for the likes of Michael Fucito, Miguel Montano and Michael Seamon, not to mention Brad Evans who may be able to get some time against Saprissa next month.
Getting pummeled in Champions League is not what the team had envisioned. But with championship aspirations in league play, it might not have been the worst thing.
When the Sounders lost 2-0 on the road to Saprissa on September 14, we once again figured they were done in the Champions League. At 0-3 there was no way they could advance to the Knockout Round.
When the Sounders lost 3-2 on the road to Monterrey on September 22, we knew they were done in the Champions League. At 0-4 there was NO way we could advance.
The funny thing about each of these statements is that somehow we kept the faith. The other group results continued to go our way. We were never officially eliminated, even after losing the second time to Monterrey.
The math was simple -if we won our last two games and Monterrey won their last two games, the Sounders, Saprissa and Marathon would all finish tied for second with identical 2-4 records. We would just need to win big to help our goal differential.
I know I bought into it. I mean, all we had to do was hope that a Monterrey side who already clinched first place in the group would beat two hungry teams battling for 2nd place and that a team with 0 wins out of 4 games would miraculously win their final two games. Every time I tried to walk away I got sucked back in.
Then finally last night, Saprissa tied Monterrey. The Sounders are 100% officially eliminated. There is NO way they advance. Now I know I value Champions League more than the average fan, but even I realize this is a blessing in disguise. We can now play our young guys against Marathon, Saprissa and Chivas Guadalajara and have our normal starters finish up MLS play. I know the front office wants to win every tournament we are in. I love it, but being eliminated in Champions League increases our chances of winning the MLS Cup and/or US Open Cup. It also helps us evaluate where we are at for the future as our young back-ups can get quality minutes against opponents who are not wearing the rave green. This represents another great opportunity for the likes of Michael Fucito, Miguel Montano and Michael Seamon, not to mention Brad Evans who may be able to get some time against Saprissa next month.
Getting pummeled in Champions League is not what the team had envisioned. But with championship aspirations in league play, it might not have been the worst thing.
No Super Line
It was a big summer for the Devils. They signed Henrik Tallinder, Anton Volchenkov, Jason Arnott and John Hedberg. Oh, and course, Ilya Kovalchuk. You may or may not be aware of the to-do concerning the Kovalchuk signing, but the bottom line is this: One of the premier goal scorers in the NHL re-signed with the Devils after a mid-season trade for 15 years, $100 million. In doing so, the team is currently over the salary cap by approximately $2-3 million and needs to get under by the beginning of the season. Someone is going to lose their spot on the team. Rumors continue to fly as to who that player will be, but as of today, September 28, the team has made no moves to get under the salary cap. As such, I have tried to stay away from talking about the Devils as I don't have complete information about what this team is going to look like come opening day.
This being said, I do want to address one thing. I don't think the idea of having a Super Line of Zach Parise, Travis Zajac and Kovalchuk is a good idea. I know, I know, it sounds amazing. I mean, Parise and Kovalchuk on one line? That is an amazing idea. But here's the thing - on a team that lacks offense, do we really want one super line or do we want a little more balance?
The obvious choice to me is balance. If new Coach John MacLean keeps the ZZ Pops line of Parise, Zajac and Jamie Langenbrunner together than they can have a second line of Patrick Elias, Arnott and Kovalchuk. To me, that is a huge upgrade over Elias-Arnott-Langenbrunner. Don't get me wrong - those three are quality players, but each is only good for 20-25 goals. With Kovalchuk on the line it is probable that they could see an increase of 5-10 goals each. Then if you Parise and Kovalchuk each with 40 goals and Langenbrunner/Elias/Arnott with 25-30 each we are on to something.
It's no secret - we need goals. Especially come playoff time. In the last two playoffs we have averaged 1.8 and 2.1 goals a game, well down from the regular season average of 2.6 and 2.9 respectively. In neither year did we have more than one strong line. So when they didn't perform, we didn't score any goals. And guess what happened? We lost.
Playing Kovalchuk on the same line as Parise and Zajac in the preseason is a good experiment. I'm sure they will see time together on the Power Play and late in games if they are down a goal. But to keep them together for the entire season is not a good idea. We need some scoring depth if we want to make it past the first round for the first time since 2006-07.
This being said, I do want to address one thing. I don't think the idea of having a Super Line of Zach Parise, Travis Zajac and Kovalchuk is a good idea. I know, I know, it sounds amazing. I mean, Parise and Kovalchuk on one line? That is an amazing idea. But here's the thing - on a team that lacks offense, do we really want one super line or do we want a little more balance?
The obvious choice to me is balance. If new Coach John MacLean keeps the ZZ Pops line of Parise, Zajac and Jamie Langenbrunner together than they can have a second line of Patrick Elias, Arnott and Kovalchuk. To me, that is a huge upgrade over Elias-Arnott-Langenbrunner. Don't get me wrong - those three are quality players, but each is only good for 20-25 goals. With Kovalchuk on the line it is probable that they could see an increase of 5-10 goals each. Then if you Parise and Kovalchuk each with 40 goals and Langenbrunner/Elias/Arnott with 25-30 each we are on to something.
It's no secret - we need goals. Especially come playoff time. In the last two playoffs we have averaged 1.8 and 2.1 goals a game, well down from the regular season average of 2.6 and 2.9 respectively. In neither year did we have more than one strong line. So when they didn't perform, we didn't score any goals. And guess what happened? We lost.
Playing Kovalchuk on the same line as Parise and Zajac in the preseason is a good experiment. I'm sure they will see time together on the Power Play and late in games if they are down a goal. But to keep them together for the entire season is not a good idea. We need some scoring depth if we want to make it past the first round for the first time since 2006-07.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Week 3 NFL Review
Thanks to NFL Red Zone, I can't claim to have watched a full non-Monday night regular season NFL game in over a year. That won't stop me from making a few observations on the season after 3 weeks of action.
- With AJ Hawk, Clay Matthews and Charles Woodson leading the way, I think Green Bay may have the best defense in the league. They were a trendy Super Bowl pick at the beginning of the year and I can certainly see why. Unlike other great defenses (or at least what I consider to be great defenses) in Baltimore, NY and Chicago, the Packers actually had an offense to match. However, the loss of Ryan Grant was HUGE as there run game is plain brutal right now. No way they go deep into the playoffs with Brandon Jackson as their lead back. They need to get Marshawn Lynch out of Buffalo.
- I don't know what to think of the Jets. I think they are a good team, but there is so much off the field stuff with them that it's hard to focus on the on-field product. I'm not sure how long LT can be the go-to back and you never know what you will get out of The Sanchise. They need to be a little more consistent on offense before I name them the AFC favorites
- The Panthers suck. They are just bad. Now I have stuck with them through their 1-15 season with Chris Weinke at the helm, but having Jimmy Claussen as the starter is demoralizing. I just really cannot stand that guy.
- Hindsight is 20-20, but I think we should have all expected the Cowboys to beat Houston. I'm not suggesting that Houston isn't good, because I think they actually have all the pieces to win the conference. No, what I am a suggesting is that Dallas was desparate. Even though it was only week 3, they needed the win more than the Texans did. In a league where most teams all have the same talent level, urgency often is the difference between winning and losing.
- There has been a lot written about the NFC West recently. I am not going to pile on and suggest that the NFL payoff rules be changed because someone will probably make the playoffs at 7-9. Yes, all four teams are terrible. Yes, it may not be fair that the have easier schedules than teams in the NFC East, but the bottom line is this: good teams win games. If you want to make the playoffs, you need to win your games. If a 10-6 misses out on the playoffs because a 7-9 happens to win a weak division, then suck it up and win 11 games next year? The point of the playoffs is to determine a champion. If you are not good enough to make it to the playoffs, how can you be good enough to win the Super Bowl. Just take care of your business and move on.
- Most pleasant surprise this season? Has to be the Kansas City Chiefs. They have a two headed monster at RB (potentially as good if not better than what Carolina had last year), a developing QB and a rapidly improving defense. Oh, and it doesn't hurt that SD and Denver are down this year meaning it is their division to lose.
- I wrote off the Eagles after week 1, saying that the Vick-Kolb controversy would kill the team. Right now there is no controversy -Vick is clearly the best guy for the job. However, I still stick by my statement as I think it is only time before Vick slips up -whether on the field or off - prompting Philly fans to call for his head. I still think it is inevitable.
- Is there a person in the NFL less exciting than Tom Coughlin?
- After 3 weeks, I think we might be looking at a Steelers-Saints Super Bowl. I know most people think the Saints are ripe for the picking, but I think they are just in a little funk right now. Hartley will straighten out his woes and Payton will find the right combination of RB to stay dangerous and balanced on offense. They are battled tested and won't go down that easily. As for the Steelers, if there is one team that can handle a mid-season QB change it is them. While most would agree that Big Ben needs to clean his act up off the field, he is one of the three best leaders in the NFL. The team should have no problem with the transition. Most thought a 2-2 record without Ben would be wonderful - I'm not sure anyone could have predicted 3-0 especially with Charlie Batch as the starter.
Monday, September 27, 2010
Tough Times in Athens
The University of Georgia Athletic Director is going to have a BIG decision to make as the Dawgs sit at 1-3 (0-3 SEC). Considering they still have Tennessee, Florida, Auburn and Ga Tech on their schedule, a 5-7 season is staring them in face. Hell, considering they can't even beat Miss St, games against Vanderbilt and Kentucky aren't even guarantees.
So here's the decision he has to make. Overlook Coach Mark Richt's record of 90-27 (50-22 SEC), his 7-2 record in bowl games and his 2 SEC championships? Remember he has never won a national title and since his first season, LSU(2), Florida(2) and Alabama have all won a national title. Richt on the other hand? He only has won 77% of his games.
This season is already over - even if they were to run the table they still couldn't win the SEC. Who cares if they were without the services of All American WR AJ Green for the first four games? In a world of what have you done for me lately, it is time to get rid of Richt. He certainly has not earned the right to have 1 bad season.
So here's the decision he has to make. Overlook Coach Mark Richt's record of 90-27 (50-22 SEC), his 7-2 record in bowl games and his 2 SEC championships? Remember he has never won a national title and since his first season, LSU(2), Florida(2) and Alabama have all won a national title. Richt on the other hand? He only has won 77% of his games.
This season is already over - even if they were to run the table they still couldn't win the SEC. Who cares if they were without the services of All American WR AJ Green for the first four games? In a world of what have you done for me lately, it is time to get rid of Richt. He certainly has not earned the right to have 1 bad season.
I Hate Fantasy Football
I know you don't want to read about my fantasy football. Just like I don't want to read about yours - it's the one fantasy sports secret that no one is willing to talk about. Tons of men play fantasy football but no one wants to discuss it. It's boring. And no one thinks there friend's team is better than theres.
Unfortunately for you, my readers, I decided to take it easy on my wife this season and not subject her to any of my fantasy football woes. She cares even less than my friends. So I have to take to this blog to voice my frustration.
I am on the verge of being 0-3 in both of my leagues this year. In my keeper league, which start two QB's,I had Kevin Kolb in week 1 and got demolished (although not entirely his fault). Then in week 2 I picked up Vince Young (Seriously, what was I thinking???). He got benched and ended the game with -2.4 points. I lost by 1.2. Now this week I have Vick to go alongside Aaron Rodgers. I had a really great Sunday:
Unfortunately for you, my readers, I decided to take it easy on my wife this season and not subject her to any of my fantasy football woes. She cares even less than my friends. So I have to take to this blog to voice my frustration.
I am on the verge of being 0-3 in both of my leagues this year. In my keeper league, which start two QB's,I had Kevin Kolb in week 1 and got demolished (although not entirely his fault). Then in week 2 I picked up Vince Young (Seriously, what was I thinking???). He got benched and ended the game with -2.4 points. I lost by 1.2. Now this week I have Vick to go alongside Aaron Rodgers. I had a really great Sunday:
- Michael Vick 291 yards, 3 TDs PLUS 30 yards rushing, 1 TD
- Roddy White 69 yards, 1 TD
- Steven Jackson 58 yards, 1 TD
- Darren McFadden 107 yards, 1 TD
- Antonio Gates 109 yards, 1 TD
- Mario Manningham 78 yards
- Jamaal Charles 97 yards rushing, 57 yards receiving
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)