Random Thoughts..

The Wife and Kid were out of town this weekend, so I spent most of my time doing things that can't get done when they are around...you know, cleaning the grill, painting a room, cleaning the garage, and of course playing video games. It was a great weekend - one with a lot of sports news. I don't have a long post in me, but rather a lot of random thoughts. As always, let's get to it:

• I can't believe that the Yankees sat back at the trading deadline and didn't upgrade their pitching. Now I know that Bartolo Colon is a surprising 8-6, Freddy Garcia is a surprising 10-7 and Ivan Nova is a surprising 9-4, but I don't think any other GM would feel comfortable knowing that two of them will have to pitch games 3-4, following a would-be Game 2 start by AJ Burnett.
• I think I like Nicki Minaj
• Sounders had a stinker at Houston on Saturday. I am going to chalk it up as 'one of those games' even though they have now lost 3 in row in all competitions. If they fail to advance in CONCACAF Champions League after playing San Francisco of Panama on Wednesday then I might be more worried. But for now, it is only one MLS loss in the last 10. Oh, wait, I just saw that they have to travel to KC over the weekend. They are 2-0 on the road against KC in their history, but KC is undefeated in their new palace. Should be a test of our resolve.
• My men's soccer team played one of the four Emerald City Supporters' teams on Sunday. We walked away with a 1-0 win even though we played the last 15 minutes with only 9 men. After the match, I talked to not only the current president of the ECS, but also the founder. They were really nice dudes and it mae me happy when I learned that I had been a Sounders supporter for longer than the president. Anyways, the guy offers me a cigarette no more than 10 minutes after the game. How did he not die?
• Somebody tell him who the eff I is
• Does anyone care about the X Games still? Is it me or is ESPN putting a lot less into coverage. BTW- this is the 17th edition. Man I am getting old.
• Gotta give ESPN some credit for the amount of soccer they are showing on Sportscenter. I'm still not sold that all the anchors are taking it seriously, but in the last two week I have seen Copa America highlights, Man United-Barca highlights and something like a 5-minute piece on Bob Bradley's firing. We're getting there people.
• Sounders might have lost, but wow did it feel good watching Portland throw away a 2-0 home lead against the worst team in the league. Goals in the 71st and 81st minutes gave Toronto FD a wonder-tie.
• I know the Mets finished their 7 game road trip with a 5-2 record [UPDATE - I was wrong, it was actually 6-4], but I can't help but feel like we missed a golden opportunity in 3-0 and 3-2 losses to Washington. I don't expect them to score 8 runs every night, but those were both winnable games if the offense had shown up.
• The Devils agreed to a 1-year, $6 million contract with Zach Parise on Friday. It is good news for the coming year, but I can't help but wonder what is holding up the long-term contract. I mean, with the gift the Islanders gave us in taking Rolston and his $4 million contract off our hands, they probably have somewhere around $7.5-$8 million in cap space. I have a feeling Lou is trying to lowball him because of his injury last year and the deal was made so Zach can show the team what he has. If that is the case and Parise returns to his normal form, Lou HAS to pay up. The precedent is there in what he did for Kovy and the fact is that Parise is more valuable to this franchise.
• Thanks to my boys Irish Mike and D-Lib (not to mention an empty house for 5 days), I have been playing a lot more of FIFA soccer over the past few days. I have now taken my Northhampton Town FC team from Division 3 to Division in two season and now have my eye on the EPL.
• I learned a great trick for getting oil based paint off your hands - olive oil and salt. Worked like a charm.
• Good drama in the Detroit-Anaheim game. Carlos Guillen hit a home run off of Jered Weaver, admired his shot and threw the bat. Weaver didn't like it, threw (at the head nonetheless) at the next batter and got tossed. In the 8th inning, with the score 3-0, Eric Aybar laid down a bunt in the midst of a Justin Verlander no-hit bid. He got on by error and two batters later, Macier Izturis broke up the no-no. After the game, Verlander was asked if he was surprised or upset by the bunt. He said that there were arguments both ways, but from a pitchers standpoint, it's called bush league. Now I have opined on this in the past so my feelings are well know, but let me say them again: in the words of Herm Edwards, "You Play to Win the Game!" The score was 3-0 at the time, not 8-0. If Anaheim could get two runners on, then they could tie with a home run. They are fighting with Texas for the AL West crown and all games, including those in late July count towards the final standing. Aybar doesn't owe Verland anything - he is there to play the game. In my mind, bunting is absolutely legit in a 3-0 game.
• So Plaxico Burress, after not having played in a competitive NFL game since 2008 is going to get $3 million to play for the Jets? Am I missing something? I mean, do they really think he is the same player after having been in jail? Add in a short pre-season and there is no way he gets more than 600 yards this season.
• The Red Bulls went over to England to compete in the Emirates Cup this weekend. They beat PSG and then tied Arsenal. It was a nice accomplishment, but I can't help think that they continue to have their priorities all mixed up. I mean, here is a team that in 16 years has never won a trophy. I get that with Thierry Henry and Rafa Marquez they want to become a global brand, but wouldn't it be better done if they were to win the CONCACAF Champions League and play competitively against the like of Barcelona and Santos? Winning the US Open Cup would not only get them into the competition next year, but it would give the beleaguered fan base a trophy to carry around. Yet instead, they fielded a C-team in the Open Cup and flew overseas in the middle of the MLS season to play in a pre-season friendly against Arsenal. I get the Henry connection, but it seems sill to me.