Before you all continue to get bent out of shape with yet another small crowd at the Rogers Centre keep in mind one thing. The two teams with NFL jerseys their names printed on the tickets aren’t playing very good baseball.
The Blue Jays we all know have free fallen through the AL East at a pace not seen in these parts for longer than I care to remember. Not that they were ever expected to be playoff contenders, despite what was hinted at or written. Cito Gaston said as much back before they gathered in Dunedin.
I believed him. Nothing was added, A.J. Burnett was subtracted, so clearly there would be a step back (again). That was what made the giddiness of the first 41 games so enjoyable. We can all say that we knew that part of the schedule was light and that the 27 wins needed to be discounted.
Sure, I guess so, but I remember how well they played in the last four wins of that streak, when the Chicago White Sox rolled on into T-dot and got spanked by the hosts. Their bats roared, pitchers pitched and the four-game sweep left the White Sox -– considered by some to be a contender for the Central crown -– so staggered that their GM decided that he must have Alex Rios at any cost.
After that, the now infamous nine-game losing streak took the Go Train off the tracks. B.J. Ryan was given all the monies owed him and told to leave, clutch hits were harder to come by than a Joe Louis at a diabetics conference, names we never heard of before -– and some we had trouble spelling -– had joined the rotation, Roy Halladay got thrown off his game by a bad groin and some unwarranted trade rumours, and Scott Rolen was the only one allowed to scale the fence.
(Yes, we all know how badly they’ve played. We all said our piece, and you’ve blogged your fingers into bloodied stumps in protest. I’ve read them all, the good, the bad, the insane. I will say this about you Blue Jays fans: your imaginations are seemingly limitless and your venom and vitriol can be quite breathtaking. But that comes with being passionate about any sports team. Believe me, I’ve been known to lose my mind on any given Sunday when the Bears are playing. My wife can attest to that.)
But as bad as they’ve played, with last weekend’s sweep in St. Petersburg providing a solid bedrock, the Blue Jays aren’t even close to being as bad the other fowl in the East: the Baltimore Orioles. Monday night’s 9-2 drubbing of the O’s showed me all that I needed to see. A losing recipe of a bad pitching staff being managed right out of the book of Tosca, an act that we bore witness not so far back in the day. The resulting game took a good half hour longer than it should and guaranteed that a DVD of this game will not be put into a time capsule any time soon.
Two moments stood out for me and will likely stick for a while. The first was when Orioles manager Dave Trembley brought in reliever Cla Meredith to face Mighty John McDonald with no one on and two outs in the bottom of the sixth of a 4-1 game. Johnny Mac whacked the third pitch he saw into the Blue Jays bullpen for an insurance run. It was as if the baseball gods decided to have a little fun. In fact as I looked back over my scorecard, Trembley would make six pitching changes to navigate through the final 20 Blue Jays at-bats. I guess he was worried that Toronto’s flaccid offence had finally remembered where it hid the Viagra. All told his relievers allowed 11 to reach base and the game turned into a laugher; that is if you weren’t already crying.
My second moment involved the fifth reliever Trembley waved in. His name is Bob McCrory and after glancing at his stats since his recall it dawned on me: how is this guy even in the majors? In six appearances, he’d allowed 22 runners to reach base via 15 hits and seven walks. If they are giving this 27-year-old reliever a long look don’t you think they had already seen enough? I know I have, especially after he tacked another five runners onto the stats sheet in just two-thirds of an inning.
Don’t get wrong, the Orioles have several players I’d love to have in Blue Jays blue (or is it silver & black?) Catcher Matt Wieters arrived as advertised, rare in these days of over-hyping on the internet. Nick Markakis and Adam Jones are on the verge of stardom. And Brian Roberts is still one of the top leadoff men in the game. But after those players there’s not much else to like.
And remember, as bad as Blue Jays’ fans like to think they have it, the team doesn’t have the long history of winning like the once-proud Orioles do. Between 1966 and 1997, the O’s were in the playoffs a third of the time, making six World Series appearances, winning three. But since they lost in the ’97 ALCS to the Indians, the Orioles have the fifth-worst record in baseball, finishing under .500 by an average of 20 games per season. And we think times are tough in T.O.
So, I don’t blame you for not trekking down to the Rogers Centre to watch these two bottom feeders compete. If I wasn’t being paid to do so I’m sure I would have enjoyed watching Monday Night Football instead of witnessing the field turf getting worn down between the first base dugout and the mound.
KEEP YOUR QUESTIONS COMING
I’ve thoroughly enjoyed pouring through your questions sent to date. Some have been quite astute while others quite humourous. Just do me a favour and give your name and hometown to make it a little more personal for me and to get a sense as to where Jays fans come from.
2010年5月15日星期六
2010年5月14日星期五
The Natural
In November, while on a NHL road trip in Nashville, doing stats for Sportsnet Pacific’s coverage of the Canucks, I sat and watched my favourite baseball movie, ‘The Natural.’ I always liked that movie. Probably because the name of the scout that signed and sent Roy Hobbs to the New York Knights name was Scotty Carson.
But there is a scene late in the movie that always stayed with me. Before the final game, newspaper man Max Mercy (Robert Duvall) approaches Hobbs (Robert Redford) as the injured slugger suits up for his final game.
"I’m-a tell ya something: I’m gonna be here a lot longer than you or anybody else around here. I’m here to protect this game."
I remembered that piece of dialogue when I received the news on Wednesday that Roberto Alomar, the best all-around player ever to suit up in the history of the Blue Jays, had fallen just short of a first-ballot election into baseball’s Hall of Fame.
I spend a lot of time on planes and in hotels. That means a lot of opportunities to watch movies, both new and favourites of old. It keeps me out of bars, always a good thing after suffering a stroke on Christmas night in 2008. Everything helps, especially because I sure do enjoy ice cold beer.
I say this because I always thought that Duvall’s character still rings true today when I think about the 142 writers who left Alomar off their ballots when they were cast. When you pour over Robbie’s career numbers, comparing them with previous second base inductees, his numbers are, for the most part, slightly better than those kings of the keystone.
So that leaves me to believe that the spitting incident involving umpire John Hirschbeck was the sole reason that it’s "wait ‘til next year" for Alomar.
I spend a lot of time on planes and in hotels. That means a lot of opportunities to watch movies, both new and favourites of old. It keeps me out of bars, always a good thing after suffering a stroke on Christmas night in 2008. Everything helps, especially because I sure do enjoy ice cold beer.
For that Cobb received just 10 games yet is still revered as one of the greatest to have ever played.
After Alomar and Hirschbeck mended that fence, it should have been done with. But that’s not the case in today’s ‘holier-than-thou’ wing of the Baseball Writers Association of America and certainly not during these politically correct times.
This is wrong, especially when Alomar and Hirschbeck have put this behind them and are now good friends. That should be the end of having this come back and be a factor in the balloting. Don’t get me wrong, what Alomar did that September night in 1996 at SkyDome was inexcusable. He should have been suspended a lot longer than the five games he received but, heck, MLB has always been light on their suspensions when it comes to on-field conduct. It goes back to 1912 when Ty Cobb, inducted in the inaugural Hall of Fame class 24 years later, pummelled a heckling fan, beating the man senseless despite the fact that he had no hands.
So Alomar will have to wait because some still live by Duvall’s speech to Redford.
I really don’t have a lot of contact with the Toronto members of the BBWAA, other than a passing "hello" in the bowels of the stadium or in the press dining area.
Some of those member’s always look down their noses at me because I’m not a "journalist" yet I have a forum thanks to new media to espouse my views. That’s fine because I don’t think I’m a journalist nor has sportsnet.ca ever asked me to act like one. I’ve opined on the things I observe and hope that most of you agree.
When you add in my love of industrial heavy metal and you won’t be surprised to learn me and the baseball scribes don’t share many other common interests.
Allowing passage into the hallowed hall should really be left to the players, who might not like an opponent for a variety of reasons, and some may be some petty, but who can still respect another player’s on-field heroics.
This is something that, sadly, some writers can’t wrap their heads around, probably because a lot, like the Max Mercy character, never played the game. That’s also probably why Bert Blyleven inches towards induction every year, garnering 260 votes in 2007 and topping out this year at 400, five short of the 75 per cent needed for induction. Apparently, over the last three years, Blyleven became a better pitcher.
It doesn’t make any sense to me. You?
As for Roberto Alomar, the call will come next year, as it finally will for Bert Blyleven. I have always believed that only the best of the best should make it and that will be the case next January.
This is wrong, especially when Alomar and Hirschbeck have put this behind them and are now good friends. That should be the end of having this come back and be a factor in the balloting. Don’t get me wrong, what Alomar did that September night in 1996 at SkyDome was inexcusable. He should have been suspended a lot longer than the five games he received but, heck, MLB has always been light on their suspensions when it comes to on-field conduct. It goes back to 1912 when Ty Cobb, inducted in the inaugural Hall of Fame class 24 years later, pummelled a heckling fan, beating the man senseless despite the fact that NHL jerseys he had no hands.
But there is a scene late in the movie that always stayed with me. Before the final game, newspaper man Max Mercy (Robert Duvall) approaches Hobbs (Robert Redford) as the injured slugger suits up for his final game.
"I’m-a tell ya something: I’m gonna be here a lot longer than you or anybody else around here. I’m here to protect this game."
I remembered that piece of dialogue when I received the news on Wednesday that Roberto Alomar, the best all-around player ever to suit up in the history of the Blue Jays, had fallen just short of a first-ballot election into baseball’s Hall of Fame.
I spend a lot of time on planes and in hotels. That means a lot of opportunities to watch movies, both new and favourites of old. It keeps me out of bars, always a good thing after suffering a stroke on Christmas night in 2008. Everything helps, especially because I sure do enjoy ice cold beer.
I say this because I always thought that Duvall’s character still rings true today when I think about the 142 writers who left Alomar off their ballots when they were cast. When you pour over Robbie’s career numbers, comparing them with previous second base inductees, his numbers are, for the most part, slightly better than those kings of the keystone.
So that leaves me to believe that the spitting incident involving umpire John Hirschbeck was the sole reason that it’s "wait ‘til next year" for Alomar.
I spend a lot of time on planes and in hotels. That means a lot of opportunities to watch movies, both new and favourites of old. It keeps me out of bars, always a good thing after suffering a stroke on Christmas night in 2008. Everything helps, especially because I sure do enjoy ice cold beer.
For that Cobb received just 10 games yet is still revered as one of the greatest to have ever played.
After Alomar and Hirschbeck mended that fence, it should have been done with. But that’s not the case in today’s ‘holier-than-thou’ wing of the Baseball Writers Association of America and certainly not during these politically correct times.
This is wrong, especially when Alomar and Hirschbeck have put this behind them and are now good friends. That should be the end of having this come back and be a factor in the balloting. Don’t get me wrong, what Alomar did that September night in 1996 at SkyDome was inexcusable. He should have been suspended a lot longer than the five games he received but, heck, MLB has always been light on their suspensions when it comes to on-field conduct. It goes back to 1912 when Ty Cobb, inducted in the inaugural Hall of Fame class 24 years later, pummelled a heckling fan, beating the man senseless despite the fact that he had no hands.
So Alomar will have to wait because some still live by Duvall’s speech to Redford.
I really don’t have a lot of contact with the Toronto members of the BBWAA, other than a passing "hello" in the bowels of the stadium or in the press dining area.
Some of those member’s always look down their noses at me because I’m not a "journalist" yet I have a forum thanks to new media to espouse my views. That’s fine because I don’t think I’m a journalist nor has sportsnet.ca ever asked me to act like one. I’ve opined on the things I observe and hope that most of you agree.
When you add in my love of industrial heavy metal and you won’t be surprised to learn me and the baseball scribes don’t share many other common interests.
Allowing passage into the hallowed hall should really be left to the players, who might not like an opponent for a variety of reasons, and some may be some petty, but who can still respect another player’s on-field heroics.
This is something that, sadly, some writers can’t wrap their heads around, probably because a lot, like the Max Mercy character, never played the game. That’s also probably why Bert Blyleven inches towards induction every year, garnering 260 votes in 2007 and topping out this year at 400, five short of the 75 per cent needed for induction. Apparently, over the last three years, Blyleven became a better pitcher.
It doesn’t make any sense to me. You?
As for Roberto Alomar, the call will come next year, as it finally will for Bert Blyleven. I have always believed that only the best of the best should make it and that will be the case next January.
This is wrong, especially when Alomar and Hirschbeck have put this behind them and are now good friends. That should be the end of having this come back and be a factor in the balloting. Don’t get me wrong, what Alomar did that September night in 1996 at SkyDome was inexcusable. He should have been suspended a lot longer than the five games he received but, heck, MLB has always been light on their suspensions when it comes to on-field conduct. It goes back to 1912 when Ty Cobb, inducted in the inaugural Hall of Fame class 24 years later, pummelled a heckling fan, beating the man senseless despite the fact that NHL jerseys he had no hands.
2010年5月11日星期二
DeBoer Supremacy
I have to say I was a little disappointed in the tabloid headlines today in Ottawa.
"DeBoer Da Man?" was the best the Ottawa Sun could come up with regarding the story that Peter DeBoer is poised to become the Senators next head coach.
I would have liked something with a little more Hollywood pizazz like, "DeBoer Identity or DeBoer Supremacy". (And if Bryan Murray gives him 48 hours to make up his mind, we could have the sequel: "DeBoer Ultimatum.")
Now it remains to be seen whether DeBoer actually gets the job in Ottawa, but I've noticed a lot of grumbling amongst Sens fans once this story broke on Wednesday. Here is a sampling of the comments from posters on our Sportsnet Senators Forum in the past two days(usernames deleted to protect their identity):
- "I wonder if Jeff Hunt has any territorial rights in this market. He might want to keep an eye on this situation as the Senators are clearly working on becoming an OHL team!"
- "If this is true I guess it's safe to say we're no longer a Cup contender. With all the available experienced coaches, Murray chooses a rookie coach. I'm very disappointed."
- This is great! Spezza wants to be coached, so what does Murray do? He brings in a guy with zero NHL experience. I think I'm going to sit out next season and watch the LA Kings."
Clearly, there is a large segment of the population that is unhappy with this potential move. But before you push the panic button in June (which only seems to happen in Canadian markets), there are two things you should consider:
1. Murray has an excellent record in hiring young coaches. Twice in his NHL career, Murray has hired a rookie head coach with no previous NHL experience on his resume. Both times, those teams ended up in the Stanley Cup Finals in the first year.
Doug MacLean guided the Florida Panthers to the Stanley Cup Finals in his first year in 1996. And Mike Babcock took Anaheim to the Finals in 2003, before losing in seven games to the New Jersey Devils.
Murray may not be as gun-shy to hire a young and relatively inexperienced head coach as another general manager, because he's had success going down that road before.
2. Every single candidate who is available right now will come with questions marks. If they didn't have any issues, they wouldn't be unemployed, right?
Even though Bob Hartley has a Stanley Cup on his resume, some people will wonder what went wrong for him in Atlanta. Craig Hartsburg has won two straight world junior gold medals, but he never got past the second round in five seasons as an NHL coach.
Pat Burns (health concerns), Pat Quinn (ability to coach young players) and John Tortorella (candidate to kill a TV reporter) all have terrific track records as head coaches, but have some flaws to consider as well.
The fact that DeBoer hasn't coached the NHL is certainly a drawback. But it's really no different than the concerns the other candidates are bringing to the table.
To make NHL Jerseys a long story short, there is only one coach with a perfect record right now and he just signed a three-year extension in Detroit.
"DeBoer Da Man?" was the best the Ottawa Sun could come up with regarding the story that Peter DeBoer is poised to become the Senators next head coach.
I would have liked something with a little more Hollywood pizazz like, "DeBoer Identity or DeBoer Supremacy". (And if Bryan Murray gives him 48 hours to make up his mind, we could have the sequel: "DeBoer Ultimatum.")
Now it remains to be seen whether DeBoer actually gets the job in Ottawa, but I've noticed a lot of grumbling amongst Sens fans once this story broke on Wednesday. Here is a sampling of the comments from posters on our Sportsnet Senators Forum in the past two days(usernames deleted to protect their identity):
- "I wonder if Jeff Hunt has any territorial rights in this market. He might want to keep an eye on this situation as the Senators are clearly working on becoming an OHL team!"
- "If this is true I guess it's safe to say we're no longer a Cup contender. With all the available experienced coaches, Murray chooses a rookie coach. I'm very disappointed."
- This is great! Spezza wants to be coached, so what does Murray do? He brings in a guy with zero NHL experience. I think I'm going to sit out next season and watch the LA Kings."
Clearly, there is a large segment of the population that is unhappy with this potential move. But before you push the panic button in June (which only seems to happen in Canadian markets), there are two things you should consider:
1. Murray has an excellent record in hiring young coaches. Twice in his NHL career, Murray has hired a rookie head coach with no previous NHL experience on his resume. Both times, those teams ended up in the Stanley Cup Finals in the first year.
Doug MacLean guided the Florida Panthers to the Stanley Cup Finals in his first year in 1996. And Mike Babcock took Anaheim to the Finals in 2003, before losing in seven games to the New Jersey Devils.
Murray may not be as gun-shy to hire a young and relatively inexperienced head coach as another general manager, because he's had success going down that road before.
2. Every single candidate who is available right now will come with questions marks. If they didn't have any issues, they wouldn't be unemployed, right?
Even though Bob Hartley has a Stanley Cup on his resume, some people will wonder what went wrong for him in Atlanta. Craig Hartsburg has won two straight world junior gold medals, but he never got past the second round in five seasons as an NHL coach.
Pat Burns (health concerns), Pat Quinn (ability to coach young players) and John Tortorella (candidate to kill a TV reporter) all have terrific track records as head coaches, but have some flaws to consider as well.
The fact that DeBoer hasn't coached the NHL is certainly a drawback. But it's really no different than the concerns the other candidates are bringing to the table.
To make NHL Jerseys a long story short, there is only one coach with a perfect record right now and he just signed a three-year extension in Detroit.
2010年5月10日星期一
A very dubious anniversary
But more than that, I believe that the Soccer jerseys fall of 1994 killed the passion for sports in this country. And 15 years later, we're still trying to get it back.
To put the 1994 NHL lockout in context, you have to remember that Major League Baseball was on a simultaneous strike that would end up cancelling the World Series. That infamous announcement from Bud Selig came on September 14, cementing those next two weeks as the darkest in professional sports history.
And when both sports emerged from the ashes a few months later, they did so with greatly different images.
The New Jersey Devils won the Stanley Cup in the shortened 1994-95 season, ushering in a dead puck area, where unfortunately, terms like "the trap" and "left-wing lock" became as common as 'hockey in Florida' and 'Fox's glowing puck'.
The post-strike look of baseball also changed dramatically, when shady players like Brady Anderson and Greg Vaughn started belting 50 homers a season like modern-day incarnations of Jimmie Foxx and Willie Mays. Prior to 1994, we only linked steriods to Ben Johnson and East German females at the Olympics. In the years ahead, the steroid era would tarnish the game's reputation, rendering statistical accomplishments meaningless.
Today, we are celebrating a very dubious anniversary in Canadian Sports. On October 1, 1994, NHL owners decided to lock out the players in a work stoppage that would kill half the regular season.
But I truly believe these two events in the fall of 1994 had a more destructive impact on Canadian fans than our American counterparts.
And while most people will tell you that the Expos died that year, the Blue Jays have never had the same prestige in the post-strike era either. They haven't played a playoff game since Joe Carter touched 'em all in October 1993. In fact, I'll go one step further: When was the last time the Blue Jays played a meaningful, can't miss-game in the last 15 years? You remember the ones we used to watch in the pre-1994 era. Septembers for the Blue Jays used to be about pennant races and setting the rotation for the playoffs. (Note to Cito: You still shouldn't have used Tom Candiotti). Now, the final month of the baseball season in Toronto is spent belly-aching about management and avoiding the Rogers Centre as if it's ground zero for the H1N1 virus.
And our hockey teams were hit equally hard, especially Canada's three biggest cities. When the NHL returned for that sham of a regular season in 1994-95, the Toronto Maple Leafs seemed like a shell of the team that went to back-to-back Conference Finals and had restored the passion of a rabid fan base. Somehow, when the lockout ended, the Gilmour-to-Andreychuk magic had disappeared. It's like they had aged three years during that four-month work stoppage.
In Montreal, the Canadiens would miss the playoffs in that shortened season, laying the groundwork for Patrick Roy's stormy departure a few months later and essentially a decade of futility. Meantime, the Vancouver Canucks lost all of their momentum from a magical run to the Stanley Cup Finals in the spring of 1994. They got swept the next year by Chicago in the second round. Vancouver fans never quite embraced Roman Oksiuta and Josef Berenek like they did Greg Adams and Gerald Diduck from the year before. The magic was stolen away from Vancouver too.
In the fall of 1994, I was a 17-year-old student embarking on my first year of journalism school at Carleton University.
Before that time, guys my age regularly bought hockey cards and Rock 'Em Sock 'Em videos like there was no tomorrow. But after that fall, I never bought either of them again. I might have single-handedly plunged Upper Deck into financial peril.
We all know what happened to the Montreal Expos in the aftermath of the cancelled World Series. They traded their big stars and tried to stay competitive with David Segui in a nearly condemned stadium. It was a recipe for disaster.
To put the 1994 NHL lockout in context, you have to remember that Major League Baseball was on a simultaneous strike that would end up cancelling the World Series. That infamous announcement from Bud Selig came on September 14, cementing those next two weeks as the darkest in professional sports history.
And when both sports emerged from the ashes a few months later, they did so with greatly different images.
The New Jersey Devils won the Stanley Cup in the shortened 1994-95 season, ushering in a dead puck area, where unfortunately, terms like "the trap" and "left-wing lock" became as common as 'hockey in Florida' and 'Fox's glowing puck'.
The post-strike look of baseball also changed dramatically, when shady players like Brady Anderson and Greg Vaughn started belting 50 homers a season like modern-day incarnations of Jimmie Foxx and Willie Mays. Prior to 1994, we only linked steriods to Ben Johnson and East German females at the Olympics. In the years ahead, the steroid era would tarnish the game's reputation, rendering statistical accomplishments meaningless.
Today, we are celebrating a very dubious anniversary in Canadian Sports. On October 1, 1994, NHL owners decided to lock out the players in a work stoppage that would kill half the regular season.
But I truly believe these two events in the fall of 1994 had a more destructive impact on Canadian fans than our American counterparts.
And while most people will tell you that the Expos died that year, the Blue Jays have never had the same prestige in the post-strike era either. They haven't played a playoff game since Joe Carter touched 'em all in October 1993. In fact, I'll go one step further: When was the last time the Blue Jays played a meaningful, can't miss-game in the last 15 years? You remember the ones we used to watch in the pre-1994 era. Septembers for the Blue Jays used to be about pennant races and setting the rotation for the playoffs. (Note to Cito: You still shouldn't have used Tom Candiotti). Now, the final month of the baseball season in Toronto is spent belly-aching about management and avoiding the Rogers Centre as if it's ground zero for the H1N1 virus.
And our hockey teams were hit equally hard, especially Canada's three biggest cities. When the NHL returned for that sham of a regular season in 1994-95, the Toronto Maple Leafs seemed like a shell of the team that went to back-to-back Conference Finals and had restored the passion of a rabid fan base. Somehow, when the lockout ended, the Gilmour-to-Andreychuk magic had disappeared. It's like they had aged three years during that four-month work stoppage.
In Montreal, the Canadiens would miss the playoffs in that shortened season, laying the groundwork for Patrick Roy's stormy departure a few months later and essentially a decade of futility. Meantime, the Vancouver Canucks lost all of their momentum from a magical run to the Stanley Cup Finals in the spring of 1994. They got swept the next year by Chicago in the second round. Vancouver fans never quite embraced Roman Oksiuta and Josef Berenek like they did Greg Adams and Gerald Diduck from the year before. The magic was stolen away from Vancouver too.
In the fall of 1994, I was a 17-year-old student embarking on my first year of journalism school at Carleton University.
Before that time, guys my age regularly bought hockey cards and Rock 'Em Sock 'Em videos like there was no tomorrow. But after that fall, I never bought either of them again. I might have single-handedly plunged Upper Deck into financial peril.
We all know what happened to the Montreal Expos in the aftermath of the cancelled World Series. They traded their big stars and tried to stay competitive with David Segui in a nearly condemned stadium. It was a recipe for disaster.
World Series Shenanigans
I'll let you know if Soccer jerseys I end up hanging with Ray Emery on this trip to Philly.
But even if I do connect with the former Sens netminder, it's hard to imagine it could be any more colourful than my three days in New York.
Here’s a look back at some of my shenanigans from the first part of the 2009 World Series:
Tuesday, 1:37 p.m. - I'm standing in prime position in a Derek Jeter scrum when I make eye contact with this other reporter who looks really familiar to me. Turns out it's Arsenio Hall, who is doing work for the Jay Leno Show. I'm not sure if this shows how far I've risen in this industry - or how low Arsenio has fallen.
Tuesday, 2:14 p.m. - Andy Pettitte surprised me when he told us that George Steinbrenner was really positive towards him and even used to quote Bible scripture in little notes he would leave in his locker before big games. However, Pettitte declined to specifically say what any notes said. My guess is it went something like this: "Dear Andy, Good luck today. If you don't win, I suggest you read the book of Revelation to prepare for what will happen. Regards, George (aka The Boss)."
Tuesday, 4:12 p.m. - Perusing the media game notes in the press room. The crazy thing about baseball is how they have the most obscure and bizarre stats. For instance, a direct quote from the MLB pre-series notes: The last eight times the Yankees have won the World Series, there has been a Democrat in the White House. Talk about reaching for an angle. I decided to do some research of my own and I've got a great stat with a Canadian political twist: The Toronto Blue Jays have never lost a World Series when there has been a female Prime Minister.
Thursday, 10:51 p.m. - Chan-Ho Park enters the game in the 7th inning and the TV broadcast in the press room runs a graphic that says he joins Byung-Hyun Kim as just the second South Korean to ever pitch in the World Series. As cool as that is for Park, it's never a good sign when your name is linked to Kim's in the late innings of a World Series game at Yankee Stadium.
Thursday, 11:19 p.m. - George Steinbrenner's limousine is driving through the underground tunnel and right past where all the media is standing. Security guards are upset with us telling us, "Get up against the wall or you're going to get hit by this car!" Ummmmm... just so you know, getting hit by a billionaire's car isn't the worst thing in the world.
Wednesday, 5:19 p.m. - Reggie Jackson is hanging out behind the batting cage and talking to some players before Game 1. With Michelle Obama in the stadium on this night, shouldn't the Secret Service be all over this guy? I mean he tried to kill the Queen at a baseball game 20 years ago.
Wednesday, 5:52 p.m. - Pedro Martinez just called himself the most influential person who ever stepped on the field at the old Yankee Stadium. On a side note, the most influential person who never stepped on the field at the old Yankee Stadium is Jeffrey Maier - that annoying 12-year-old kid who stole the ball from Tony Tarasco in the '96 ALCS.
Wednesday, 7:44 p.m. - Trying to figure out where I should watch the game from. We have no designated seat for Rogers Sportsnet - even in the auxiliary press box. But somehow, The Christian Science Monitor has a dedicated seat. Perhaps the people assigning seats were worried they would be sent straight to hell if they declined their request for a spot.
Wednesday, 11:19 p.m. - Kate Hudson and Kurt Russell just walked right past me in the hallway outside the clubhouse. Having covered the Ottawa Senators for the past couple of years, I don't really get star struck by celebrities. We see Carrie Underwood at the rink all the time.
Thursday, 5:19 p.m. - Fellow reporter Arash Madani is getting set to do his live report in the middle of a media circus. He's got Candy Maldonado on one side (working for ESPN Deportes) and Dave Winfield on the other (working for ESPN). All we needed was Ed Sprague in front of him and we would have had the perfect '92 Jays reunion.
Thursday, 6:42 p.m. - Most awkward press conference moment of the first three days: Derek Jeter is asked if he ever met Roberto Clemente, after receiving a community service award named after the legendary Pirates slugger. Considering Jeter was born a couple of years after Clemente tragically died in a plane crash, I think it's safe to say they never crossed paths.
But even if I do connect with the former Sens netminder, it's hard to imagine it could be any more colourful than my three days in New York.
Here’s a look back at some of my shenanigans from the first part of the 2009 World Series:
Tuesday, 1:37 p.m. - I'm standing in prime position in a Derek Jeter scrum when I make eye contact with this other reporter who looks really familiar to me. Turns out it's Arsenio Hall, who is doing work for the Jay Leno Show. I'm not sure if this shows how far I've risen in this industry - or how low Arsenio has fallen.
Tuesday, 2:14 p.m. - Andy Pettitte surprised me when he told us that George Steinbrenner was really positive towards him and even used to quote Bible scripture in little notes he would leave in his locker before big games. However, Pettitte declined to specifically say what any notes said. My guess is it went something like this: "Dear Andy, Good luck today. If you don't win, I suggest you read the book of Revelation to prepare for what will happen. Regards, George (aka The Boss)."
Tuesday, 4:12 p.m. - Perusing the media game notes in the press room. The crazy thing about baseball is how they have the most obscure and bizarre stats. For instance, a direct quote from the MLB pre-series notes: The last eight times the Yankees have won the World Series, there has been a Democrat in the White House. Talk about reaching for an angle. I decided to do some research of my own and I've got a great stat with a Canadian political twist: The Toronto Blue Jays have never lost a World Series when there has been a female Prime Minister.
Thursday, 10:51 p.m. - Chan-Ho Park enters the game in the 7th inning and the TV broadcast in the press room runs a graphic that says he joins Byung-Hyun Kim as just the second South Korean to ever pitch in the World Series. As cool as that is for Park, it's never a good sign when your name is linked to Kim's in the late innings of a World Series game at Yankee Stadium.
Thursday, 11:19 p.m. - George Steinbrenner's limousine is driving through the underground tunnel and right past where all the media is standing. Security guards are upset with us telling us, "Get up against the wall or you're going to get hit by this car!" Ummmmm... just so you know, getting hit by a billionaire's car isn't the worst thing in the world.
Wednesday, 5:19 p.m. - Reggie Jackson is hanging out behind the batting cage and talking to some players before Game 1. With Michelle Obama in the stadium on this night, shouldn't the Secret Service be all over this guy? I mean he tried to kill the Queen at a baseball game 20 years ago.
Wednesday, 5:52 p.m. - Pedro Martinez just called himself the most influential person who ever stepped on the field at the old Yankee Stadium. On a side note, the most influential person who never stepped on the field at the old Yankee Stadium is Jeffrey Maier - that annoying 12-year-old kid who stole the ball from Tony Tarasco in the '96 ALCS.
Wednesday, 7:44 p.m. - Trying to figure out where I should watch the game from. We have no designated seat for Rogers Sportsnet - even in the auxiliary press box. But somehow, The Christian Science Monitor has a dedicated seat. Perhaps the people assigning seats were worried they would be sent straight to hell if they declined their request for a spot.
Wednesday, 11:19 p.m. - Kate Hudson and Kurt Russell just walked right past me in the hallway outside the clubhouse. Having covered the Ottawa Senators for the past couple of years, I don't really get star struck by celebrities. We see Carrie Underwood at the rink all the time.
Thursday, 5:19 p.m. - Fellow reporter Arash Madani is getting set to do his live report in the middle of a media circus. He's got Candy Maldonado on one side (working for ESPN Deportes) and Dave Winfield on the other (working for ESPN). All we needed was Ed Sprague in front of him and we would have had the perfect '92 Jays reunion.
Thursday, 6:42 p.m. - Most awkward press conference moment of the first three days: Derek Jeter is asked if he ever met Roberto Clemente, after receiving a community service award named after the legendary Pirates slugger. Considering Jeter was born a couple of years after Clemente tragically died in a plane crash, I think it's safe to say they never crossed paths.
2010年5月9日星期日
Rangers score 3 in 1st, bury Maple Leafs 5-1
A loss at Buffalo on Tuesday night dashed the World Cup Soccer Jersey spirits again. New York, however, shook that off one day later and began its final three-game push with a 5-1 victory over the lowly Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday night.
All that is left on the Rangers' schedule is a home-and-home series with Philadelphia _ a team in front of them that can be caught. A pair of wins, with at least one in regulation, guarantees the Rangers a spot in the postseason.
"It's fun to be here," said Henrik Lundqvist, who made 26 saves one night after being pulled from the game. "A couple of weeks ago I thought we were out, but we never gave up and we're back in the race. The whole season comes down to the last two games."
Erik Christensen scored two of New York's three first-period goals that essentially put the game away. The Rangers stormed out and seemed to take away the will of the Maple Leafs _ the last-place team in the Eastern Conference.
"If we can't at least match or be more aggressive than they are, more desperate, there is something wrong," Lundqvist said. "In the first period, we really showed what we're fighting for here. I don't think they were really ready for it."
Christensen gave New York the lead 21 seconds in, then combined with Vinny Prospal for goals 30 seconds apart. Although the Rangers wouldn't have been eliminated with a loss, their realistic prospects for the playoffs would have been all but dashed.
NEW YORK (AP) - When the New York Rangers lost at Boston two Sundays ago, their playoff hopes were all but lost. The deficit was big, the games were few, and a road trip loomed.
But the bumbling Rangers got hot. They routed the New York Islanders at home and raced to a 4-0-1 start on the six-game trip that made believers again that a fifth straight trip to the playoffs was possible.
"It's good to come back after getting spanked," said Christensen, who didn't finish the game after getting his wind knocked out in the third period. "Everyone had a solid effort in a game we had to win."
Olli Jokinen bounced a shot in with 9:09 remaining, and Aaron Voros added a goal 1:44 later for the Rangers to make it 5-1. New York is 6-1-1 in its last eight.
The Rangers, ninth in the East, trail the Boston Bruins by one point, the No. 7 Philadelphia Flyers by two points, and the No. 6 Montreal Canadiens by three. Those teams have two games remaining, except for Boston, which will play three. The Rangers and Flyers will play Friday and Sunday.
"We wanted to make the Philly games count _ and they do now," Rangers coach John Tortorella said. "You don't have to look at the board anymore. It is in front of us now."
Toronto, which lost 2-0 to Philadelphia on Tuesday in its final home game, didn't appear to have any jump or interest during the one-sided first period.
"Some guys didn't play and didn't respond physically when we needed it," Toronto coach Ron Wilson said. "The Rangers were playing with the intensity you need to play with when you're on the outside looking in. They are clawing and doing everything to get in.
"They certainly didn't want to let a team like us take away their only hope."
Christensen got the Rangers rolling. Brandon Dubinsky fed a pass from behind the Toronto net out front to Christensen, who jammed the puck between the pads of Jonas Gustavsson.
New York kept the pressure on Gustavsson, who was why the Maple Leafs weren't blown out early. The Rangers built a 12-1 shots advantage and grabbed a 2-0 lead at 10:26 when Prospal followed up Jokinen's breakaway chance with a rebound goal.
Gustavsson stopped Jokinen, and the puck trickled near the left post toward Maple Leafs defenseman Francois Beauchemin, who made little effort to clear it. Prospal streaked down the middle and got to it _ easily avoiding Beauchemin's halfhearted stick swipe _ and knocked in his 20th goal.
Gustavsson slammed his stick on the net in anger, skated to the blue line while the Rangers celebrated, and then stomped his skates on his return to the crease.
It would soon get worse. Just seconds after Prospal's goal, Christensen netted his eighth of the season on the following shot _ giving the Rangers a 15-5 edge there _ at 10:56.
NOTES: The Rangers are 9-2-2 in the second of back-to-backs _ 6-1-1 following a loss. ... Toronto, which owns the NHL's worst power play, went 0 for 4 with the advantage. The Maple Leafs have scored on just two of their last 52 chances over 13 games.
Lundqvist bounced back from being yanked Tuesday, when he allowed three goals on 16 shots in less than two periods. Maple Leafs defenseman Dion Phaneuf spoiled Lundqvist's bid for his 25th NHL shutout when he scored with 11:51 left.
"It's disappointing that our team didn't come out ready to play," said Phaneuf, who scored his first goal with the Maple Leafs. "It's unacceptable at this time of the year."
All that is left on the Rangers' schedule is a home-and-home series with Philadelphia _ a team in front of them that can be caught. A pair of wins, with at least one in regulation, guarantees the Rangers a spot in the postseason.
"It's fun to be here," said Henrik Lundqvist, who made 26 saves one night after being pulled from the game. "A couple of weeks ago I thought we were out, but we never gave up and we're back in the race. The whole season comes down to the last two games."
Erik Christensen scored two of New York's three first-period goals that essentially put the game away. The Rangers stormed out and seemed to take away the will of the Maple Leafs _ the last-place team in the Eastern Conference.
"If we can't at least match or be more aggressive than they are, more desperate, there is something wrong," Lundqvist said. "In the first period, we really showed what we're fighting for here. I don't think they were really ready for it."
Christensen gave New York the lead 21 seconds in, then combined with Vinny Prospal for goals 30 seconds apart. Although the Rangers wouldn't have been eliminated with a loss, their realistic prospects for the playoffs would have been all but dashed.
NEW YORK (AP) - When the New York Rangers lost at Boston two Sundays ago, their playoff hopes were all but lost. The deficit was big, the games were few, and a road trip loomed.
But the bumbling Rangers got hot. They routed the New York Islanders at home and raced to a 4-0-1 start on the six-game trip that made believers again that a fifth straight trip to the playoffs was possible.
"It's good to come back after getting spanked," said Christensen, who didn't finish the game after getting his wind knocked out in the third period. "Everyone had a solid effort in a game we had to win."
Olli Jokinen bounced a shot in with 9:09 remaining, and Aaron Voros added a goal 1:44 later for the Rangers to make it 5-1. New York is 6-1-1 in its last eight.
The Rangers, ninth in the East, trail the Boston Bruins by one point, the No. 7 Philadelphia Flyers by two points, and the No. 6 Montreal Canadiens by three. Those teams have two games remaining, except for Boston, which will play three. The Rangers and Flyers will play Friday and Sunday.
"We wanted to make the Philly games count _ and they do now," Rangers coach John Tortorella said. "You don't have to look at the board anymore. It is in front of us now."
Toronto, which lost 2-0 to Philadelphia on Tuesday in its final home game, didn't appear to have any jump or interest during the one-sided first period.
"Some guys didn't play and didn't respond physically when we needed it," Toronto coach Ron Wilson said. "The Rangers were playing with the intensity you need to play with when you're on the outside looking in. They are clawing and doing everything to get in.
"They certainly didn't want to let a team like us take away their only hope."
Christensen got the Rangers rolling. Brandon Dubinsky fed a pass from behind the Toronto net out front to Christensen, who jammed the puck between the pads of Jonas Gustavsson.
New York kept the pressure on Gustavsson, who was why the Maple Leafs weren't blown out early. The Rangers built a 12-1 shots advantage and grabbed a 2-0 lead at 10:26 when Prospal followed up Jokinen's breakaway chance with a rebound goal.
Gustavsson stopped Jokinen, and the puck trickled near the left post toward Maple Leafs defenseman Francois Beauchemin, who made little effort to clear it. Prospal streaked down the middle and got to it _ easily avoiding Beauchemin's halfhearted stick swipe _ and knocked in his 20th goal.
Gustavsson slammed his stick on the net in anger, skated to the blue line while the Rangers celebrated, and then stomped his skates on his return to the crease.
It would soon get worse. Just seconds after Prospal's goal, Christensen netted his eighth of the season on the following shot _ giving the Rangers a 15-5 edge there _ at 10:56.
NOTES: The Rangers are 9-2-2 in the second of back-to-backs _ 6-1-1 following a loss. ... Toronto, which owns the NHL's worst power play, went 0 for 4 with the advantage. The Maple Leafs have scored on just two of their last 52 chances over 13 games.
Lundqvist bounced back from being yanked Tuesday, when he allowed three goals on 16 shots in less than two periods. Maple Leafs defenseman Dion Phaneuf spoiled Lundqvist's bid for his 25th NHL shutout when he scored with 11:51 left.
"It's disappointing that our team didn't come out ready to play," said Phaneuf, who scored his first goal with the Maple Leafs. "It's unacceptable at this time of the year."
2010年5月8日星期六
Glendale council OKs Reinsdorf's Coyotes proposal
Attorney John Kaites, a lead player in the World Cup Soccer Jersey Reinsdorf group, said the group's intent is to stay in Glendale.
"What that gives us at the end of that five-year period is an assessment period of where the team is," he said. "That gives us options for the city to retain the team and move forward."
Also under Reinsdorf's plan, the facilities district would pay the NHL up to $65 million over three years. In addition, a reserve account would be set up to cover operating losses of up to $25 million a year with a maximum $100 million over seven years.
The Winnipeg Jets moved to Arizona and became the Phoenix Coyotes in 1996 and the team has never turned a profit in the desert.
Ice Edge chief executive officer Anthony LeBlanc told the council before the vote they should not consider any proposal that isn't 100 percent committed to keeping the team in Glendale for the remaining 24 years of the lease.
He said his group would invest tens of millions of dollars of their own money into the team and that they have already raised between $200 million-$250 million to cover the purchase price of the team, losses and other costs, contingent on council approval.
Vice mayor Manny Martinez questioned whether Ice Edge actually had the capital available.
Ice Edge, which was relying on bank financing for much of its offer, would have Glendale operate the arena and its parking, and Ice Edge would get up to $7.5 million per year to pay bank loans.
Reinsdorf's group was approved 6-0 while Ice Edge was voted down 5-1.
Kaites said he hopes to reach an agreement with the NHL within 60 to 90 days.
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) - The Glendale City Council on Tuesday approved a proposed arena lease agreement submitted by a group headed by Chicago sports mogul Jerry Reinsdorf that is seeking to buy the Phoenix Coyotes.
The council also acted on a second proposal, rejecting a plan submitted by Ice Edge Holdings, a group of Canadian and U.S. investors.
Reinsdorf's group, known as Glendale Hockey, must now reach an agreement with the NHL, which purchased the team in bankruptcy court last year.
Reinsdorf's deal would provide millions of dollars annually to the group through the creation of a "community facilities district." It would change the team name to either the Glendale Coyotes or Arizona Coyotes, with the NHL's approval, and would keep the team in the suburban Phoenix city.
But how long the group would keep the club in Glendale is a matter of debate.
Reinsdorf, the owner of baseball's Chicago White Sox and the NBA's Chicago Bulls, and his partners wouldn't move the team from Glendale for the remaining 24 years of the lease, city officials said.
However, if certain conditions related to the facilities district aren't met, then in the fifth year Reinsdorf's group could give 180-days notice that it intends to sell the team. Glendale would have that 180 days to find a buyer who would keep the team in Arizona, with Reinsdorf guaranteed a minimum purchase price of $103 million, the amount the group will invest in the team.
"What that gives us at the end of that five-year period is an assessment period of where the team is," he said. "That gives us options for the city to retain the team and move forward."
Also under Reinsdorf's plan, the facilities district would pay the NHL up to $65 million over three years. In addition, a reserve account would be set up to cover operating losses of up to $25 million a year with a maximum $100 million over seven years.
The Winnipeg Jets moved to Arizona and became the Phoenix Coyotes in 1996 and the team has never turned a profit in the desert.
Ice Edge chief executive officer Anthony LeBlanc told the council before the vote they should not consider any proposal that isn't 100 percent committed to keeping the team in Glendale for the remaining 24 years of the lease.
He said his group would invest tens of millions of dollars of their own money into the team and that they have already raised between $200 million-$250 million to cover the purchase price of the team, losses and other costs, contingent on council approval.
Vice mayor Manny Martinez questioned whether Ice Edge actually had the capital available.
Ice Edge, which was relying on bank financing for much of its offer, would have Glendale operate the arena and its parking, and Ice Edge would get up to $7.5 million per year to pay bank loans.
Reinsdorf's group was approved 6-0 while Ice Edge was voted down 5-1.
Kaites said he hopes to reach an agreement with the NHL within 60 to 90 days.
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) - The Glendale City Council on Tuesday approved a proposed arena lease agreement submitted by a group headed by Chicago sports mogul Jerry Reinsdorf that is seeking to buy the Phoenix Coyotes.
The council also acted on a second proposal, rejecting a plan submitted by Ice Edge Holdings, a group of Canadian and U.S. investors.
Reinsdorf's group, known as Glendale Hockey, must now reach an agreement with the NHL, which purchased the team in bankruptcy court last year.
Reinsdorf's deal would provide millions of dollars annually to the group through the creation of a "community facilities district." It would change the team name to either the Glendale Coyotes or Arizona Coyotes, with the NHL's approval, and would keep the team in the suburban Phoenix city.
But how long the group would keep the club in Glendale is a matter of debate.
Reinsdorf, the owner of baseball's Chicago White Sox and the NBA's Chicago Bulls, and his partners wouldn't move the team from Glendale for the remaining 24 years of the lease, city officials said.
However, if certain conditions related to the facilities district aren't met, then in the fifth year Reinsdorf's group could give 180-days notice that it intends to sell the team. Glendale would have that 180 days to find a buyer who would keep the team in Arizona, with Reinsdorf guaranteed a minimum purchase price of $103 million, the amount the group will invest in the team.
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