Monday, May 07, 2007
Yankees ... Clippers?
Roger Spring Training Dodger
Roger Clemens just totally unsurprised every fantasy baseball player on Earth by revealing that he is returning to baseball in the coming month(s). Seriously, if someone who "retires"
for the first three months of every season comes back to play, I don't consider that "news"; I consider it "olds." And the fact that he's coming back to the star-studded Yanks (14-15 in second place behind the rival Red Sox in the AL East) and not his hapless hometown Houston Astros (13-17 behind three, count 'em, three teams in the NL Central as of this writing) can't shock many.But is it too late? Sure, A-Rod's swinging a bat outta hell and the New York Yankees are in a two-horse race in their division, but if they don't overcome the Sox to win it, there's little chance they'll overcome the Tigers, Indians, Twins and White Sox for the wild card spot. The motivation to not be the first Yankees team to miss the playoffs in approximately 68 million years is surely great, but is it enough, even Rocket powered?
I don't know, but I know that prescient fantasy team owners already would have already worked a clever deal for him a month ago, or picked him up off of waivers. He may not be able to save the Bronx Bombers, but 12 wins, 80 Ks, and a 1.51 ERA when he gets back will probably put a decent fantasy squad over the top.
Labels: baseball, clemens, New York, pitchers, roger, Yankees
Friday, April 06, 2007
"Junior Varsity" or "Just Victorious"?
“We have not been given credit all season,” he said. “We won 61 games in the regular season and people kind of blew it off and said we were playing in like a JV league.”
- Jermaine O'Neal, Indiana Pacers center, May 29, 2004
I'm sick and tired of it.
By "it", I'm referring to the inglorious regard in which the popular sports media holds the NBA's Eastern Conference. This season (in all truth, since well before this season), sports pundits everywhere have been referring to the East as the "J.V."; the pee-wee league; the backward, buck-tooth cousin conference to the mighty, imperious West. "The Mavericks can't lose!" these Westites say; "Phoenix has too much firepower!" My personal favorite: "The Western Conference has better teams than the East from top to bottom." Really? In other news, pigeons explode if you feed them rice, and I saw Elvis and Tupac at a diner with Ashley Flores. Sure, the team with the best record is on that side, but so is the team with the worst. Stats and regular season standings aside, the fact is that a team from the East has won the NBA championship two of the last three years, and Western team that won during that stretch (the Eastern-style San Antonio Spurs) did so in the last quarter of Game 7 in their own arena. In the playoffs, Eastern style basketball wins.
Really, it's all Pheonix's fault. That adorable little circus has convinced the public at large of two Great Fallacies: 1.) Steve Nash may be the greatest point guard of all time, and 2) they have a chance of winning anything. Ever. Now, don't get me wrong; I dig Nash's game. He's fun to watch, much like his Eastern Conference Bizarro version, Gilbert "Injuries: 1, Agent: Zero" Arenas (poor guy). But, if the guy ever averages more than 1.1 steals in a season (or the playoffs, for that matter), I'll chew on my fedora. Seriously, you can be a three-time MVP point guard now and not play better defense than Luke Ridnour? I'm not buying it, but that's not the point. The point is that Nash is a really good offensive player, has a huge impact on his team with his spectacular passing ability, and has court vision that's off the charts ... but Nash's Suns are a gimmick. A cheap party gag, just like his Dallas Mavericks before them. They are categorically unable to win because they can't stop anyone. Not only in the "score on them at will" sense, but they also allow whatever team they play against to dictate the tempo of the ballgame. With a half-man, half-amazing, Isaiah "Magic" Stockton at the one, you'd think that wouldn't happen. But it does - regularly.
As for teams like Utah and Houston, truly respectable squads that have all the makings of great teams one day, they just aren't there yet. Both teams rely on players that just don't have enough experience yet and will have to grow together. Along with T-Mac's back and AK-47's ... whateveriswrongwithhim, they're firmly in the better luck next year category.
The Laker's are the Cavs, meaning they don't have enough.
The Clippers, Nuggets (unbelievably - they should really get better), New Orleans, and Golden State cannot win. Neither can any team below them. The culture of those teams is their biggest communal downfall.
And then there's Dallas, the nouveau riche elite. I think Avery has done a terriffic job with them, and I admit that their new-found committment to defense gives them a shot, much as San Antonio has a shot. But these are the only two legitimate teams in this conference. One could say the same of the East almost, as Detroit, Miami, and Chicago are really the only teams on that side (as cute as Toronto is) that have a legitimate chance. But the overall gist is that the East is equal, not superior.
Pistons: 4, Dallas: 1 ;~)
- Jermaine O'Neal, Indiana Pacers center, May 29, 2004
I'm sick and tired of it.
By "it", I'm referring to the inglorious regard in which the popular sports media holds the NBA's Eastern Conference. This season (in all truth, since well before this season), sports pundits everywhere have been referring to the East as the "J.V."; the pee-wee league; the backward, buck-tooth cousin conference to the mighty, imperious West. "The Mavericks can't lose!" these Westites say; "Phoenix has too much firepower!" My personal favorite: "The Western Conference has better teams than the East from top to bottom." Really? In other news, pigeons explode if you feed them rice, and I saw Elvis and Tupac at a diner with Ashley Flores. Sure, the team with the best record is on that side, but so is the team with the worst. Stats and regular season standings aside, the fact is that a team from the East has won the NBA championship two of the last three years, and Western team that won during that stretch (the Eastern-style San Antonio Spurs) did so in the last quarter of Game 7 in their own arena. In the playoffs, Eastern style basketball wins.
Really, it's all Pheonix's fault. That adorable little circus has convinced the public at large of two Great Fallacies: 1.) Steve Nash may be the greatest point guard of all time, and 2) they have a chance of winning anything. Ever. Now, don't get me wrong; I dig Nash's game. He's fun to watch, much like his Eastern Conference Bizarro version, Gilbert "Injuries: 1, Agent: Zero" Arenas (poor guy). But, if the guy ever averages more than 1.1 steals in a season (or the playoffs, for that matter), I'll chew on my fedora. Seriously, you can be a three-time MVP point guard now and not play better defense than Luke Ridnour? I'm not buying it, but that's not the point. The point is that Nash is a really good offensive player, has a huge impact on his team with his spectacular passing ability, and has court vision that's off the charts ... but Nash's Suns are a gimmick. A cheap party gag, just like his Dallas Mavericks before them. They are categorically unable to win because they can't stop anyone. Not only in the "score on them at will" sense, but they also allow whatever team they play against to dictate the tempo of the ballgame. With a half-man, half-amazing, Isaiah "Magic" Stockton at the one, you'd think that wouldn't happen. But it does - regularly.
As for teams like Utah and Houston, truly respectable squads that have all the makings of great teams one day, they just aren't there yet. Both teams rely on players that just don't have enough experience yet and will have to grow together. Along with T-Mac's back and AK-47's ... whateveriswrongwithhim, they're firmly in the better luck next year category.
The Laker's are the Cavs, meaning they don't have enough.
The Clippers, Nuggets (unbelievably - they should really get better), New Orleans, and Golden State cannot win. Neither can any team below them. The culture of those teams is their biggest communal downfall.
And then there's Dallas, the nouveau riche elite. I think Avery has done a terriffic job with them, and I admit that their new-found committment to defense gives them a shot, much as San Antonio has a shot. But these are the only two legitimate teams in this conference. One could say the same of the East almost, as Detroit, Miami, and Chicago are really the only teams on that side (as cute as Toronto is) that have a legitimate chance. But the overall gist is that the East is equal, not superior.
Pistons: 4, Dallas: 1 ;~)
Monday, September 11, 2006
Trying times
First, we must observe Patriot Day -- one of the most important remembrances this country has to recall. That day still reverberated through my mind as though the passage of time has been meaningless in the face of such an event. I found myself turning off the news in the wake of the footage last night, and I still want to see the movies about that day, but have not. It isn't a case of not being ready yet; there is no ready. It's merely the inevitable forestalled, and I'm aware of that. And yet, I will search my mind and remember that day today, and hopefully find a path of personal peace in so doing.
Well, on with sports.
So, a funny thing happened on the way to our first fantasy weekend: Lito Sheppard. Or should I say, a funny thing didn't happen whatsofreakin'ever? Yes, if there's one thing the first Sunday of NFL football -- which I affectionately gloss Football Day -- teaches any of us, it's that end-of-training-camp "vogue picks" are about as reliable as a Fox News "report." Of course, we've all fallen prey to the trendy-player hosejob and, much like a White House intern self-respect and/or a penis, they're usually pretty useless to the one that picks them.
Let's see a couple of cases in point:
Lito Sheppard
Oh, I hope for your sake that you weren't in a league that values return yards and has IDPs, because you may have walked right into the Lito Sheppard trap. As reports surfaced last week that the Philadelphia Eagles DB would probably be handling injured RB Reno Mahe's return duties, Sheppard started flying off free agent shelves at an alarming rate as savvy owners sought out the elusive can't-miss point production that defensive returners bring, especially those who are starters -- think Terrence McGee, not Allen Rossum. The result? Not only did Lito not return a lick, he didn't get so much as pass defensed. The only thing he returned was to the waiver wire.
Wali Lundy
Wali Lundy, born on Monday ... played on a Sunday ... dropped on a Tuesday if you could find a suitable replacement after watching the MNF game. After a training camp soap opera which ultimately saw FB (fragile back) Dominick Davis go on IR and rookie Lundy emerge as the starter, not only did this poor schmuck only run for 32 yards in Sunday's opener, his owners risk having his valuable touchdowns end up in the fat clutches of VB (vulture back) Ron Dayne. Yeah, and he's splitting carries with Vernand Morency, too. Yeah, and the Texans still suck. Good luck with all that.
Greg Jennings
I'll put it this way: I'd rather draft a Denver Broncos running back than (insert name of any Green Bay wide receiver not named (insert name of primary Packers wide receiver)). Maybe he'll show his potential when (again, you may perpetually insert the name of Green Bay's primary wideout as long as Brett Favre won't effing retire) inevitably gets injured, but on this Football Day, this guy was no Kevin Curtis. Wait ... what the heck happened to Kevin Curtis?
Of course, it wasn't all bad in TrendyPlayerLand. Vernon Davis owners probably hugged themselves to sleep last night, and Reggie Bush made all those "Rookie Rule"-ignoring owners who picked him in the first round look a little more clever -- especially his boy in that commercial. Hope he didn't take T.J. Hoowshamadinga in round three. "Chump-ionship!"
So, keep your fingers crossed, you drafters of Philip Rivers (as your primary QB); hope springs eternal. Just ignore the training camp hype next year, and your blood pressure will fare much better. Now, to find a fish for Kevan Barlow ...
Well, on with sports.
So, a funny thing happened on the way to our first fantasy weekend: Lito Sheppard. Or should I say, a funny thing didn't happen whatsofreakin'ever? Yes, if there's one thing the first Sunday of NFL football -- which I affectionately gloss Football Day -- teaches any of us, it's that end-of-training-camp "vogue picks" are about as reliable as a Fox News "report." Of course, we've all fallen prey to the trendy-player hosejob and, much like a White House intern self-respect and/or a penis, they're usually pretty useless to the one that picks them.
Let's see a couple of cases in point:
Lito Sheppard
Oh, I hope for your sake that you weren't in a league that values return yards and has IDPs, because you may have walked right into the Lito Sheppard trap. As reports surfaced last week that the Philadelphia Eagles DB would probably be handling injured RB Reno Mahe's return duties, Sheppard started flying off free agent shelves at an alarming rate as savvy owners sought out the elusive can't-miss point production that defensive returners bring, especially those who are starters -- think Terrence McGee, not Allen Rossum. The result? Not only did Lito not return a lick, he didn't get so much as pass defensed. The only thing he returned was to the waiver wire.
Wali Lundy
Wali Lundy, born on Monday ... played on a Sunday ... dropped on a Tuesday if you could find a suitable replacement after watching the MNF game. After a training camp soap opera which ultimately saw FB (fragile back) Dominick Davis go on IR and rookie Lundy emerge as the starter, not only did this poor schmuck only run for 32 yards in Sunday's opener, his owners risk having his valuable touchdowns end up in the fat clutches of VB (vulture back) Ron Dayne. Yeah, and he's splitting carries with Vernand Morency, too. Yeah, and the Texans still suck. Good luck with all that.
Greg Jennings
I'll put it this way: I'd rather draft a Denver Broncos running back than (insert name of any Green Bay wide receiver not named (insert name of primary Packers wide receiver)). Maybe he'll show his potential when (again, you may perpetually insert the name of Green Bay's primary wideout as long as Brett Favre won't effing retire) inevitably gets injured, but on this Football Day, this guy was no Kevin Curtis. Wait ... what the heck happened to Kevin Curtis?
Of course, it wasn't all bad in TrendyPlayerLand. Vernon Davis owners probably hugged themselves to sleep last night, and Reggie Bush made all those "Rookie Rule"-ignoring owners who picked him in the first round look a little more clever -- especially his boy in that commercial. Hope he didn't take T.J. Hoowshamadinga in round three. "Chump-ionship!"
So, keep your fingers crossed, you drafters of Philip Rivers (as your primary QB); hope springs eternal. Just ignore the training camp hype next year, and your blood pressure will fare much better. Now, to find a fish for Kevan Barlow ...
Thursday, August 31, 2006
And this one time, back in training camp ...
Did you hear that Chris Simms and some coach have each other's names tattoo'd on their legs? Not quite as shocking as Willow playing the flute, but a bit ... unsavory.
What up, peeps? I officially welcome you to the inaugural best-method-I-could-think-of-to-pimp-my-Web-site-and-not-spend-a-shiny-nickel: The.Fantasy.Sports.Blog. Remember the dots. They're important.
A word about the purpose: I'm Ron, a young dude from Detroit trying to put a kid through college in two years. I also (all caps, underscore) hate working a (quote-unquote) job. So, I decided long ago that I would never work for anyone again. Instead, I became a writer ... which took me about as far from work as humanly possible without changing my last name to Hilton.
Well, a funny thing happened with that. Writing led me on the road to entrepreneurship which led me here. If you care about such things, you can go to my Yahoo! 360 page - http://360.yahoo.com/hunintheraven - which chronicles my travails as a young me. And yeah, I'm updatin' it. (If you read it, you'll probably figure out why I've been away so long.) But anyway, the point is that I decided that I would spend the rest of my working life doing Lifestyle Labor, i.e., integrating my career(s) and my life so that I spend my time living as I choose to and getting paid for it. (I said I hated working A JOB, not working; I put in about 10-14 hours on an average day.)
That, in turn, led me to create www.FantasyChampionNetwork.com because I love fantasy sports and I'm the fraggin' fantasy football/baseball/basketball MACK. Check my profile (http://profiles.sports.yahoo.com/hunintheraven); even with my attention divided, I lay suckas down like a porn star with narcolepsy. Believe it. I'm the realest. I will pwn U, n00b. All your fantasy draft are belong to us --
What was I talkin' about? Right. Fantasy sports. So, look: my hope is that you will come here from time to time, peruse my innane ramblings, and take a shot at joining one of my leagues. Actually, I'm hoping you'll come here every few minutes and buy all my crap, but, y'know, baby steps.
Anyway, that's the jump-off. Get thee to a commentary. I'll catch ya on the flip.
Your friendly neighborhood R-Dog
What up, peeps? I officially welcome you to the inaugural best-method-I-could-think-of-to-pimp-my-Web-site-and-not-spend-a-shiny-nickel: The.Fantasy.Sports.Blog. Remember the dots. They're important.
A word about the purpose: I'm Ron, a young dude from Detroit trying to put a kid through college in two years. I also (all caps, underscore) hate working a (quote-unquote) job. So, I decided long ago that I would never work for anyone again. Instead, I became a writer ... which took me about as far from work as humanly possible without changing my last name to Hilton.
Well, a funny thing happened with that. Writing led me on the road to entrepreneurship which led me here. If you care about such things, you can go to my Yahoo! 360 page - http://360.yahoo.com/hunintheraven - which chronicles my travails as a young me. And yeah, I'm updatin' it. (If you read it, you'll probably figure out why I've been away so long.) But anyway, the point is that I decided that I would spend the rest of my working life doing Lifestyle Labor, i.e., integrating my career(s) and my life so that I spend my time living as I choose to and getting paid for it. (I said I hated working A JOB, not working; I put in about 10-14 hours on an average day.)
That, in turn, led me to create www.FantasyChampionNetwork.com because I love fantasy sports and I'm the fraggin' fantasy football/baseball/basketball MACK. Check my profile (http://profiles.sports.yahoo.com/hunintheraven); even with my attention divided, I lay suckas down like a porn star with narcolepsy. Believe it. I'm the realest. I will pwn U, n00b. All your fantasy draft are belong to us --
What was I talkin' about? Right. Fantasy sports. So, look: my hope is that you will come here from time to time, peruse my innane ramblings, and take a shot at joining one of my leagues. Actually, I'm hoping you'll come here every few minutes and buy all my crap, but, y'know, baby steps.
Anyway, that's the jump-off. Get thee to a commentary. I'll catch ya on the flip.
Your friendly neighborhood R-Dog
