Comments

Thanks to everyone commenting. I am glad that you guys are enjoying this enough to comment on it.

• Apologies to Cjeazy....Leinies is ur boy, but the nickname is gunna stick so get used to it!
• Alex J...Lemme guess, since your AFC pick at this point is the Colts, then ur NFC pick must be the Bears?? Go out on a limb! The Falcons are in prime position to have a bye, and while I am not saying they are a top 5 team, Michael Vick can effect a game like no other player. If his passing is for real, then they can make a run. They have the fastest defense in the NFC and weapons on offense. As for the Bengals, they are 4-3 in a tough division. I don't know what your expectations were of them, but considering they were 5-2 at this point last year, their star QB is coming off reconstructive knee surgery and they has more offseason off the field problems than the rest of the league, I would say they are doin alright.
• Darth Vader....Have a relaxing bye week.
• Rambone...Same to you, hopefully there is something to talk about for the Eagles soon...
• MVP at midseason...Tom Brady.

Knicks/Celtics

I originally intended to write an NBA preview for all 30 teams. I then realized that I am only one man and in order to write a decent one I may have to quit my job. Maybe I can do that at some point, but not just yet. I also realized that readers of this blog mainly care just about two teams. The New York Knicks and the Boston Celtics. The only two original NBA franchises that still reside in their original city and are still in the League. Both teams are synonymous with legendary buildings and two guys names Red. While the Celtics have had much more success over the years, both franchises have a tremendous history. I will start with the Celtics and finish with my New York Knicks.

Boston Celtics

The franchise and its fan base are starting the season with heavy hearts following the passing of Red Auerbach. His handprints are all over the franchise from the numerous Hall of Fame players he acquired to the logo of the leprechaun with his umbrella. He coached the Celtics to eight straight NBA Chamionships and nine overall. He was responsible for either drafting or trading for almost every Celtic great from Bill Russell, to Bob Cousy, to John Havlicek, to Larry Bird. In addition, he hired his brother to design the Celtic logo upon joining the franchise. He was not only a Celtic legend, but one of the NBA pioneers. Besides commissioners, Auerbach is probably the most important non-player in NBA history. His loss will be felt by the Celtic family for this season and for years to come.

As far as this years' team, lets just say it does not resemble anything close to Red's standards. It has been since 1986 that the Celtics have won an NBA title. This years team does not appear to have the ability to bring them their next. They have one of the top ten or 15 players in the League in Paul Pierce. He seems to be happy in a Celtic uniform having just signed an extension in the off-season. There is a good chance that he will once again score 25 ppg or more and make the East All Star team. Chances are that he will not be joined on that team by any other Celtic as his supporting cast is not very impressive.T

he rest of the Celtic roster is made up mostly by young players. The point guard position is going to be split between Delonte West (incumbent), Rajon Rondo (rookie), and Sebastian Telfair (acquired by trade). It will be interesting to see how this rotation plays out. Coach Doc Rivers has already said the West would come off the bench and often play off the ball. Telfair is the most explosive of the three, but the most inconsistent as well. He already had an off the court problem in the preseason and will often look to shoot before pass when he is on the court. Rondo has been the talk of the team in the preseason. He is a player that likes to play defense, get others involved and rebound the basketball. He is also a player that has a poor jump shot and other teams will definitely look to exploit that.

I feel that the point guard position is one where you need a veteran in the rotation. Having three guys under 25 as the Celtics do is a major problem. The PG is the guy with the ball in his hands the most on the floor and you need a veteran to provide stability. This situation reminiscent of the Knicks of the late 1980's when they had Mark Jackson and drafted Rod Strickland. Tension developed between the players and both of there careers were stunted until they were traded elsewhere. The Celtics need to find out which player they like least and trade him for a veteran. On a side note, the player the Knicks traded Mark Jackson for back in 1992 was the present Celtic coach, Doc Rivers.

The Celtic wing players include Pierce, Wally Sczcerbiak, and Tony Allen. While Pierce will carry most of the offensive load, Sczerbiak is a proven 18 PPG player in the League. He is not known for any sort of defense though, and has had run-ins with teammates in the past, ie Kevin Garnett. The Celtics are looking for Allen to be a strong defensive player on the perimeter and be able to rebound and run the floor. A wild card is Gerald Green, a rookie out of high school last season. He has unbelievable athleticism, but is still learning the fundamentals of the game. He spent most of last season in the NBDL so his impact on this upcoming season is still a question mark.

Up front, the Celtics will rely on a couple of youngsters in Al Jefferson and Kendrick Perkins as well as a couple of veterans in Michael Olawakandi and Theo Ratliff. Not sure how the minutes and production will break down amongst these four, but the Celtics hope that Jefferson can develop into a 20-10 guy in the future, and that this can be his break-out year. Ratliff and Olawakandi are both in the latter stages of their careers and they won't provide much on the offensive end. Perkins is in his fourth year in the league at only 21, but he needs noticeable improvement for the Celtics to keep him in their long-term plans.

Doc Rivers and Danny Ainge are both big time NBA names from the 1980's as players. Neither has shown much in their stints as coach and GM respectively. Rivers has become notorious with not have a set rotation and blowing leads late in games. Ainge seems to change his philosophy on the team constantly between winning now and building for the future.

Best Case: Celtics make the playoffs, a starting PG develops, big players show noticeable improvement and Pierce is an MVP cannidate.

Worst Case: Lottery and a top five pick in the draft. Pierce grumbles, young players stagnate and fanbase continues to whine.

Realistic: Some improvement over last year, but not a smooth season and battle to etsy out of last in the Atlantic Division.

New York Knicks

Where do I begin? This franchise has been through so much over the past three seasons. First Isiah Thomas was the savior, then Stephon Marbury, then Larry Brown and now it is Isiah once again. The fans are in disarray, the ownership is a joke and the payroll is astronomical. The roster has a lot of both talent and young players, but it is built more like a fantasy team than a professional.

To talk about this team you must first start with Isiah. He is the President/GM and Head Coach. He brought in every player, went through three head coaches in three years and now has the responsibility himself. It is clear that he is not a proven NBA executive or Head Coach, but he will definitely communicate with these players better than his predecessor, Larry Brown. His players will play hard early on, but he needs early wins to keep their ears.

The Knicks have a big name backcourt in Marbury and Steve Francis. Both are former All Stars, but they also both need the ball in their hands a lot. If they both start then there will be serious match-up problems on the defensive end, considering they are both 6'3" or less. Jamal Crawford and Nate Robinson will provide energy and shot making ability off the bench, but it is unclear if these players are capable of playing a team game and sharing the ball.

The Knick front court includes two first round picks from last year (David Lee and Channing Frye) and big salary salary acquisitions (Eddie Curry, Quentin Richardson and Jarred Jefferies). The hope is that Frye and Curry can become bigtime scorers and compliment each other with their different styles of play. Lee can be a rebounder and finisher and that Richardson and Jefferies can be defensive stoppers. A lot to ask, but the ability is definitely there.

The biggest problem for the Knicks is the tremendous anger and distrust from the fans. We have seen the Knicks refuse to rebuild and continue to add to a ridiculous payroll with either unproven youngsters or overrated veterans. The condescending attitude of everyone from the ownership, to the players, to the MSG Network has only fueled the resentment from the fanbase. The worst part of it all is that I truly believe that a Knick playoff run would electrify this city like no other team. This is a place where basketball is played in every playground from Brooklyn, to Harlem, to Madison Square Garden itself. This game was built in New York City and for its team to be such an embarrassment has hurt the fans greatly. If the Knicks do not get it right soon, they will realize how much trouble they are in when the Nets move to Brooklyn and fight the Knicks to bring back New York pride.

Best Case: Isiah finds a rotation that works, Francis and Marbury are modern Monroe and Frazier, Crawford is Vinnie Johnson and guys up front play hard, defend and rebound. The Knicks make a playoff run and the fanbase is energized once again.

Worst Case: Isiah is out of a job by January, the fire sale/rebuilding project is in effect by the trading deadline and the Garden is half full consistently.

Realistic: Who knows? I like them to make the playoffs and win a round, but I can see them exploding as well. My bitterness towards the entire franchise will make it tough to root for them so it is even tougher to predict them..

Hard Hitters

• Comment form my boy concerning Peyton Manning, "Best ever at running the two minute drill and driving his team down the field at the end of a close game." While I am not sure I would go that far to say he is the best ever, he is as good as there is in the game today. You knew the minute he got the ball with 2:00 to play that he was gunna put the Colts in position to kick a GW field goal. He made an excellent and very fast Bronco defense look slow yesterday.
• Two games in a row for Michael Vick. Not sure if he can keep this up, but by far the best back to back passing games of his career.
• Speaking of the Falcons, since that embarrassing loss to the Giants at home they have two very impressive wins against the Steelers at home and Bengals on the road. They were my Super Bowl pick the beginning of the season. Right now they are looking as dangerous as anyone in the league.
• Ladanian Tomlinson is the best RB in the game today. Great TD catch to go along with two rushing TDs. He has a legit chance at breaking 200 TDs in his career. He is closing in on 100 and he is only 27 years old.
• Huge win for Dallas last night. Everybody was writing them off after their loss to the Giants last Monday night. They are still in pretty good shape to make the playoffs in the NFC, with a very dangerous defense and interesting QB.
• Can anyone figure out the Carolina Panthers? Lose two, win four, lose two...Consistently the most inconsistent good team in the NFL over the last three seasons.
• Two rookie QBs Vince Young and Matty Leinart....Everyone was all over Leinies following his showing versus the Bears, but it is Young who has lead his team to consecutive victories...
• Difference between Tennessee and Arizona is won team quitting on its coach (Arizona) and the other continuing to compete and fight (Tennessee)...
• Seattle is going to have to continue treading water until Alexander and Hasselback return from injury. Luckily for them, St. Louis has lost two straight games, keeping them in a tie for first in the NFC West.
• Horrible end to the Jet game. Terrible call by the officials on a game tying catch in the end zone. Tough break for the Jets that the play is not allowed to be replayed since it is a judgment call. The NFL needs to do something about the officials. Every week there is some blown call. How is the one league with instant replay also the one with consistently controversial officiating?
• Gotta give a lot of credit to Herm Edwards and the job he has done with the Chiefs. He was all but run out of New York and then lost his starting QB in the first game of the season. Since then he has gone 4-2 and has his team in the thick of the playoff race.
• Hey Relaxo....At least the Dolphins didn't lose yesterday!!
• Two fun divisions to watch the rest of the year play out....NFC South and the AFC West. The NFC South has some big time offenses and we will see some exciting shoot outs in big games between those teams. The NFC West has tremendous rivalries, and will go down to the wire with San Diego and Denver.
• The Raiders??? Not bad....
• Are the Steelers done? If not, then they are on life support...

Was in Boston for the weekend. Saw a lot of friends from college. Best costume? Not sure, nothing really stood out. My boy Chops' Steve Irwin costume with a sting ray attached got plenty of attention though. Worst costume? Relaxo's "Dr. Acula" without a doubt. Always have a good time in that town, but the cab system at the end of the night is a joke. Lastly a small question concerning an event that happened in Boston...

How do you know that you are gay? When you are in bed with a girl at her place and your boy calls to tell you that he is crashing in your bed. Instead of spending the night with the girl you leave her and race home so you can sleep in a bed with two dudes.

Standard Procedure?

The Giants did what they were supposed to do on Sunday. They won a game at home against a clearly inferior team. It was not a blow out, but the outcome was never in doubt. They controlled the clock and did not turn the ball over. There was nothing exciting or intriguing from an average fans' perspective except for the outcome. This is exactly the kind of win though that big time teams make routine. This game had serious danger that the Giants avoided without a hitch. As a fan of this team for 17 years you never take anything for granted though, especially in a game that had "trap" written all over it.

The Giants have and will continue to play a very hard schedule. This was the first game they played this season in that they were considerable favorites. In addition, they were coming off their biggest victory of the season last Monday night in Dallas. Following that win they were three straight games at home. First Tampa, then Houston, and lastly the undefeated Chicago Bears. It would be very easy for the Giants to overlook the two games leading up to the Bears. They focused on Tampa and earned a very smooth victory.

Another reason this game was dangerous was the recent play of the Tampa Bucs. This team looks very poor on paper, but they were coming off an improbable victory last week versus the Eagles, and have been competing very hard. Their young quarterback has been improving and have a ball-hawking defense. Jon Gruden is a Super Bowl coach who gets the maximum out of his plays on a week to week basis. The Giants had to fight off complacency and match Tampa's effort from the first quarter on.

The last major reason this was such a potentially dangerous game for the Giants was the health of the defense. Sam Madison, Osi Umenyiora, and Lavar Arrington all did not play. All have been to Pro Bowls and are very important to this team. While Arrington is out for the season, the others need to get healthy for the Giants to contend. They can beat the Tampas and Houstons of the league with a banged up defense, but the Bears will be a much tougher task.

After watching the game I talked to a couple of my friends concerning the Giants play and the game itself. Adjectives such as boring and uninteresting were used. In the position the Giants were in that's exactly the type of game they were looking to play. No big stories, just fundamental and confident football. Looking around the league this is the type of game teams like the Patriots, Broncos and Colts have made their staple. If the Giants want to be on the level of those franchises and compete for a Super Bowl they need to make this a habit of theirs as well. Sunday was a start and we will see how they play in trap game number two next Sunday.

• I will have a quick hitters post later today. Probably a serious bite of Peter King's Monday Morning Quarterback, but that's all good by me.

Quick Hitters

• Saw my boy Ill on the train this mornin. He goes to law school somewhere near my office, so every once in a while I will run into him on the way. Everyday goin to work I see so many of the same faces. Most days I have my work mode in full effect, everything from my outfit to my demeanor. When I run into him though its so different when he are just messin around and laughing at random shit. Definitely more fun to go to work like that than my usual grump face.
• As per Ill's request I will try to talk about more than just straight up sports today...
• Last night went out wit a couple dudes. Didn't do much, but on the way home me and my boy who lives upstairs decided to buy a six-pack, a carton of eggs and a pack of bacon. This is at 1 AM mind you. We proceed to cook up half the carton and the entire pack of bacon and drink a couple beers as we wind down. It was a good time just bullshitting with him, but I gotta tell you that I am still feelin that grub right now..
• Anybody remember a week when there were this many good NFL games? Saints/Ravens, Eagles/Jaguars, Bengals/Falcons, Chargers/Rams, Broncos/Colts, Panthers/Cowboys, and Pats/Vikings....All of these teams are in decent shape to make the playoffs right now. A lot of teams' fortunes could be changed this week...
• Not surprisingly the Yankees decided to can one of Joe Torres' coaches. Even less surprising that it is Lee Mazzilli. He is the one coach that was one of Torres "guys." Now he is gone as well, along with the rest of the old guard such as Zimmer, Sottlemyre and Randolph. This is an underrated dynamic of the clubhouse of the Yankee Dynasty from 1996-2000. Smart move to make Mattingly bench coach though since all signs are pointing to him being the successor to Torre.
• I love the New York Football Giants and Tiki Barber has been their best player for the past five years, but I am so sick of him speaking out in the media. He should not have let his retirement desires leak out so clearly. We have all heard rumbling in the past couple of years. Why not just leave them at that? Why does he need to start a big story out of nothing? In addition why does he need to call out ESPN personalities that are just doing their job by providing their opinions on the matter? Can Tiki just play ball and shut up for once?? I don't care how "articulate" he sounds. In addition I don't need to hear his agent coming out saying he has all of these offers on the table from numerous media outlets. Just play out the season, and worry about all that stuff when its over.
• Standard procedure on work elevators? If the door is closing you let it go and wait for the next am I right?
• Goin to Boston for the weekend. The Boston delegation is having a little Halloween party. Should be a lot of fun gettin the entire crew back together.
• Lastly, thanks for all the positive feedback this first week. I am just havin fun with this and hopefully it will continue to get better and more creative over time....If I think of anything I will write more later...

Ya Boy....The Captain

I was going to write something this morning comparing Bill Cowher and Tony LaRussa. That was until I was on the subway this morning and saw the back page of the Daily News. Who was it that I saw on it but none other than The Yankee Captain himself....DJ. That's right Derek Jeter. First of all, what is the story with Jeters' lack of a nickname? The Yankee history is filled with memorable nicknames. The Yankee Clipper, Yogi, Whitey, Mr. October, The Iron Horse, Donnie Baseball and of course the Bambino. Even the team itself has a nickname, "The Bronx Bombers." Meanwhile the man himself, best and most popular Yankee of this generation has got nothing? Don't give me Mr. November. Mr. November was a one time event, and DJ is just his initials. It is not a cool nickname. Can anybody get on this, whether it is Chris Berman, John Sterling or whomever??

Anyway, that was not the point of this post. The point I want to make is Jeters' uncanny ability to perform in New York. First off, we all know the stats. Among the leaders in hits, runs and steals year in and year out, two Gold Gloves (albeit undeserved), an All Star MVP, a World Series MVP and soon a Regular Season MVP. He always seems to be in the middle of any memorable rally that that Yankees mount and if he is not, he is on the top step, ready to be the first one to mob a teammate. While all of this is evident it is not what impresses me the most about him.

This guy manages to play great ball, while dating hot chick after hot chick, going out in New York, and never manages to say something inappropriate or do something to embarrass himself or the franchise. In a town like New York every one is bound to put their foot in their mouth at some point. What made me think of this were his comments concerning AROD from yesterday.

"You're there, you support him. Everyone supports your teammates at all times. I don't know if there's anything else I can do. Maybe I'm not that smart (to think of something else)."

Asked if Torre and AROD need to clear the air he replied, "Clear what air? I haven't heard that there's any air that needs to be cleared."

This guy is the master at playing dumb and making vanilla statements. We all know him and AROD have their differences. We also know that Torre and Jeter are aligned on the same side. Jeter has never reached out to AROD, yet whenever he comments he says the right thing. That AROD is just another one of the guys and they all support each other. Jeters' number one priority is winning, but I do not think it minds him one bit that AROD has come to New York and has clearly not been able to handle the media pressure. In some roundabout way this is Jeter getting back at AROD for calling him "just a number two hitter" and saying that "teams don't focus on trying to stop Jeter when they play the Yankees." Jeter has had chance after chance to help AROD and has chosen to continue doing what he has done his entire career which is saying only what he has to and not providing the media anything that could come back to haunt him. He continues to back off and let AROD fend for himself. Lastly, I think it is quite telling that all the Yankee heavy hitters (Cashman, Torre, Jeter, Giambi, Reggie Jackson) attended Cory Lidles' funeral, while AROD did not.

On to Cowher and LaRussa. Both have been coaching for a long time. Obviously LaRussa has been around longer but they both have had unusually long tenures with their current franchises. They are both known as coaches that drive their players hard and squeeze the most out of them that they can. As a result of this, both have been accused of burning their players out when they had playoff collapses. Look at the numbers of each guy since they have been with their respective franchise and see the similarities.

Bill Cowher became Head Coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1992. In his first 12 years he made four AFC title games (all at home) and lost three. The year he won, he lost Super Bowl XXX to Dallas. People began to wonder aloud if he could not win the big game, if he wore down if players, or if he was just uncomfortable being the favorite. Well, in 2005 he was not the favorite. In order for the Steelers to win the Super Bowl they would have to beat three teams on the road. That is exactly what they did before beating the Seahawks in Super Bowl XL. They were the first team in history to accomplish that feat. It was poetic justric in a way. After year in and year out of being the favorite and losing playoff games at home he finally won it all with a team that was an underdog through out.

LaRussa has had a similar career in St. Louis. He was the losing NLCS manager in 1996, 2000, 2002, and 2005. He lost the Division Series in 2001 to Arizona and got swept by the Red Sox in the 2004 World Series. The past two seasons his team has had the best combined record in baseball and came up empty. This year he led an 83 win team into the post season after nearly choking away the division late in the season. At this point he has the Cards up 2-1 in the World Series with his most unlikely World Series team. Could LaRussa find the same poetic justice in this season that Cowher did back in January? It just might be...

*I understand that a major difference between LaRussa and Cowher is that LaRussa actually won a World Series prior to joining the Cards. In the same respect though he was heavy favorites in all three World Series he managed with the A's and only won once.

**Lastly, I received a comment yesterday from "Relaxo" concerning my quip about how could anyone think the Tigers would just murder any NL team. I stand by my statement, but I understand that the Tigers were favorites coming in. My point was that the Tigers are not THAT good to act as if they would roll over anyone. It is not like they are the Yankees of 1998-2000 or something. I just feel like predictors got caught up in what happened the past two years with the Red and White Sox getting on a roll and sweeping the World Series and assumed the Tigers would do the same especially considering the weak NL. Every year is different and they should be treated as such, especially when different teams are competing.

Killers and Stuff

• The concert was sick. Saw them at the Theatre @ Madison Square Garden. Great place to watch a show. Small, with no balcony. I had seen Kanye there as well and felt the same way. We got in the venue (after purchasing our drinks) right as the Killers were comin out. A lot of energy on stage. Brandon Flowers (lead singer) had some dialogue with the crowd which is always fun. Wished that they would have jammed out the songs more. A lot of uptempo stuff and the crowd singing lyrics. They don't have a ton of material so it was shorter than I would have liked, but good closing with "All These Things That I've Done." About 60-40 song selection of more from the new album..
• The new album got a lot of bad reviews as everyone knows. I don't fully understand it. They made a change in approach to more straightforward, grimy songs. At the same time though there are still great guitar rifts (Sams Town, When You Were Young) and harmonies (Read My Mind). The first album (Hot Fuss) definitely had bigger hits, and is a better album, but this one is still very satisfying. Every album can't be as good or better than the last, but this one still has a few jams on it.
• Remind me again why everyone thought the Tigers would murder the NL representative in the World Series? This was a team that was horrible over the last two months of the season, got hot in the first two rounds and then had a week to sit around. We are seeing a horrible performance by those Tiger hitters..
• I don't always go by the theory that if you have the best player on the field/court than your team should win. This theory is most applicable in basketball, and probably least in baseball. The fact is though that the Cardinals have the best hitter (Pujols) and the best pitcher (Carpenter) and their influence is all over this World Series so far..
• Big Ben, Eli, or Rivers?? I see this debate goin on for many years to come...
• Interesting that when Michael Vick gets four TDs and leads his team to victory is huge news. Peyton Manning did the same thing and its almost boring. I guess that's what happens when you perform that well every week and not once ever 3-4 games...
• Can the NHL get back on ESPN please? Right now its as if no one knows the season started yet.
• Anyone notice that Marbury sat out of last nights game with a sore foot? No way it has anything to do with those $15 kicks hes wearin....No chance!!!
• There is a NYTimes article this week about fantasy Congress instead of fantasy sports....These are probably the same clowns that collected Magic cards instead of baseball cards.

Postseason Pitching Greats

As a result of the MLB postseason format change to three rounds, all postseason statistics have become skewed. Names like Jeter, Justice and Williams are near the top of all postseason hitting categories. The pitching categories are ruled by Pettitte, Glavine, and Smoltz. This obviously does not mean that these players are better than those of previous generations, just that they had more opportunities. They had more chances to both be great and to fail.

We all know the legendary players of the past who are entrenched in postseason lore. Guys like Mickey Mantle, Bob Gibson, Sandy Koufax and Brooks Robinson. While they have been passed in the record books, their images are still clear. Obviously both pitchers and position players have had great numbers in the playoffs. I find it more interesting though to examine the starting pitchers. They are the ones where the pressure lies at the beginning of a big game. They are the ones who can bury a team with a poor performance. I like to call that getting "Trachseled". They are also the ones who can carry their team to a title. Watching Chris Carpenter last night made me think of the great postseason pitchers of my generation. I will define this as guys who have pitched in the playoffs in the new format (three rounds).

There are certain criteria that I will use. Consistency in the postseason. A signature pitching performance. Lack of burying your team with horrific performances. Winning on the road.

Curt Schilling: This is the most obvious choice. A career record of 8-2 with an ERA of 2.06. His strikeout to walk ratio is about 5 to 1. Numerous signature moments, with the most famous being Game 6 of the 2004 ALCS in Yankee Stadium where he pitched seven innings giving up one run while he had blood seeming through his right sock from switches holding his ankle tendons together. He is the ultimate big game pitcher of our generation, and probably still the guy you want on the mound in a big game.

John Smoltz: An interesting postseason career considering he had a three year period as a closer. Before looking at his stats I would assume that the won-loss record would be underwhelming considering how poorly the Braves have done in the postseason over the years. That is not the case. A 15-4 record with an ERA of 2.65 and four saves. His best pitching performance though may have been in a game his team lost. He pitched nine scoreless innings in Game 7 of the 1991 World Series. Unfortunately he was outdueled by Jack Morris who pitched 10 scoreless and the Twins won when a run was scored in the 10th inning when Smoltz was out of the ballgame.

David Cone: A guy who never backed down even when it was obvious he did not have his best stuff. A impressive record of 8-3 with an 3.80 ERA. He pitched a sterling Game 3 of the 1996 World Series in Atlanta when the Yankees where down two games to none. He pitched well in the playoffs in three different uniforms (Mets, Blue Jays, Yankees). His last postseason out was one of his most special. In Game 4 of the 2000 World "Subway" Series he was called on to get one batter. With runners on base and two outs Mike Piazza, who had already homered in the game, came to the plate. He got Piazza to fly out and kept the momentum on the Yankees side.

Pedro Martinez: This one may receive some objection (Yankee fans). The fact is that Pedro pitched lights out early in his postseason career and had minor struggles later on when it was well known that he had major rotator cuff problems. He still has a 6-2 record with a 3.40 ERA. He came into Game 5 of the 1999 Division Series in Cleveland and pitched six hitless innings with a bum shoulder. He did not have a ability to throw his good fastball, but used his secondary pitched to baffle the Indians and carry the Red Sox into the ALCS. Most people remember Game 7 of the 2003 ALCS (Grady Little, Aaron Boone, etc). The fact is though that he pitched a tremendous game up until the 8th inning and he ran out of gas. It was the managers responsibility to take him out. All things being equal though, he has been a tremendous big game pitcher.

Honorable Mentions:

Andy Pettitte: Postseason ERA over four and buried the Yankees in Game 6 of the 2001 World Series. Won a lot of big games for the Yanks though.

Randy Johnson: Postseason record under .500, but teamed with Curt Schilling to win the 2001 World Series, including a gutsy Game 7 performance.

Tom Glavine: Also a postseason record under .500, but pitched the clinching Game 6 of the 1995 World Series and gave up only one hit in eight innings.

Chris Carpenter??? Not yet, but with a postseason record of 5-1 and an ERA under 3.00 he is definitely on his way. He does not have that "signature" performance yet, but that could come in either Game 6 or 7 of this World Series......


I will post something later on with stuff on The Killers and random thoughts...

To Cheer or Not to Cheer

One of the most difficult times of being a fan is when your team loses in their conference or league final. After being really into your team for the entire postseason, you are left with a dilemma. Who do you cheer for in the next round? This is different than getting eliminated earlier in the playoffs because you do not have time to cope with your loss before the start of the final (World Series, Super Bowl, etc). Should you root against the team that just elminated yours? Would that just be sour grapes? The other side of that is to root for the team that eliminated yours so you can know they at least lost to the best. This is the quagmire I am facing. My New York Mets were just eliminated in an excruciating seven game series by the St. Louis Cardinals. Do I hope that the National League team wins, or do I want to see them get taken out?

Before answering that I need to address the three former New York pitchers that have roles in this World Series:

1. Kenny Rogers

Where did this come from??? This guy has had a very nice career built on solid regular seasons in low pressure environments. He has thrived in places such as Oakland and Texas and had historic meltdowns pitching for both the Mets and Yankees in big postseason spots. In the 1996 World Series as a member of the Yankees he was the pitcher who started Game Four. The Yanks fell behind 5-0 after three innings. He ended up getting bailed out by Jim Leyritzs' three run homer in the 8th inning off of Mark Wohlers, but Yankee fans remember how he almost single handedly buried the team with that pitiful start. He was shipped off to Oakland a year later after two sub par years in the Bronx, postseason failures and a poor relationship with Joe Torre.

In the middle of the 1999 season he was traded back to New York, this time to the Mets. He helped them win the Wildcard that year by going 5-1 down the stretch. The postseason was a different story though. He lost both Game 2 of the Division Series to the D'Backs and Game Two of the League Championship Series to the Braves. Then, in Game 6 with the Mets down 3-2 in the series, he walked in the game-winning run with the bases loaded in the bottom of the 11th inning. Following that, his fate was sealed as someone who would always be looked at by New Yorkers as coming up small in a big spot.

How is this 41 year old lefty suddenly doing so well this postseason? I've heard talk of everything from doctoring the ball (ie, dirtgate) to possible use of steroids (which pitchers don't get accused of nearly enough compared to hitters). I don't think anyone has a real answer considering the drastic change from his failures of past playoffs to the dominance of 23 scoreless innings in this postseason. It is one of the biggest shocks in recent playoff memory.

2. Jeff Weaver

Weaver is probably best known for being the poster child for the pitching issues that have plagued the Yankees in recent years (others include Carl Pavano, Javier Vazquez and Jaret Wright). He was acquired in the middle of the 2002 season from the Tigers. He was a big 26 year old right-hander that the Yankees were hoping to build their rotation around for years to come. He became plagued by inconsistency and by the middle of 2003 he had lost his spot in the starting rotation. He had a minimal role in the 2003 playoffs, but still made the World Series roster. With game four of the World Series tied against the Florida Marlins he gave up a walk off home run to the light hitting shortstop, Alex Gonzalez.

Following the season he was traded to the LA Dodgers where he had two decent seasons. He signed with the Angels in the off-season and was released midseason due to poor performance.

Coming into the postseason the Cardinals did not know what they would get from him, but so far he has been as reliable as their other top pitchers. It appears that he has better control of his emotions. In the past he might give up a hard his ball, or a teammate would make an error and he would unravel. This postseason he appears much more mentally tough on the mound.

3. Braden Looper

Looper does not have quite the history in New York of the others. He signed with the Mets as a free agent following the 2003 season. He had a good 2004 season in an otherwise forgettable year for the Mets. The 2005 season for the Mets was somewhat of a resurgence with the acquisitions of both Carlos Beltran and Pedro Martinez. The Mets did not end up making it to the playoffs due in large part to Loopers' decreased velocity and inability to close games. By the end of the season, Mets fans could not wait to have him leave.

He spent this past season with the Cardinals where he has been a integral part of their bullpen while throwing back around 95 MPH. He seems to be much more comfortable in a role where he is not in a large market and he is not counted on to close games.

Prior to the post-season, all the talk was of an "inevitable" subway series. Not only did neither team make the World Series, but both are now relegated to watch former members of their organization star on the big stage.

Back to my initial question of who to root for. I will definitely root against these three pitchers who could not cut it in New York. That is the tough part of rooting for New York teams. You never know which guys are going to be able to handle the intensity of playing here. As for the teams in this years World Series, part of me wishes I didn't want to watch at all. Unfortunately I enjoy watching the World Series so I must pick a team. While it is tough to do, I am going to have to stick with the Cardinals. It comes down to the National League alliance. Hopefully I will be sitting here next year at this time not worrying about this dilemma, cheering my team through the World Series, while fans of other teams are wondering these same thoughts.

Side Note....Going to see the Killers tonight at MSG. I intend to have some sort of an album and concert review later in the week. We'll have to see how much of the show I am able to remember the next morning...

Final Note concerning Tigers manager Jim Leyland...Below is a short story on him from my good friends at Deadspin.com:

He was being interviewed by then-ESPNer Chris Myers, who was asking him about his well-publicized tendency to smoke cigarettes in the dugout. Leyland paused for a moment, put his head down and delivered the obligatory platitudes about how bad smoking is for you, how children should avoid smoking, how he knows it's unhealthy. Then he looked directly into the camera, his eyes very wide, and said, "Still. Smokers out there, you know what I'm talking about. That moment, after you've had a huge meal, say at Thanksgiving, when you step outside in the cold, light up a cigarette and take a deep inhale ... that's about the best moment in the world, you know? All the smokers out there, you know that feeling. Sometimes, smoking is fantastic." Myers quickly cut to commercial, and Leyland has never been on the show since.

IT'S MY FIRST TIME!

Why am I doing this? I am not the greatest writer in the world that's for sure. I never did well in my college English courses, and never even tried out for the school newspaper. I actually did write for my high school newspaper, but that was a joke. Growing up I was never really into reading and I never kept a journal of my thoughts and experiences. One thing I did do was read the New York Times sports section every day. It started back in kindergarten when I would only look at the box scores and pictures to see if my favorite teams had won or lost. This developed into reading some of the articles and columns, and further to knowing who my favorite columnists were and making sure to search right away if they had a column in that days issue.

As far back as I could remember my father always urged my sisters and I to read the newspaper every day. My oldest sister B was an obsessive reader, but made sure to resist my fathers newspaper demands. My other sister J was a master at ignoring things my father would tell her, and reading the newspaper was number one on her list. As for me, I would always make sure he knew that I was following his advise on how to improve my vocabulary and become a great writer. Little did he know that all I was interested in was reading about sports. Once I hit high school though he was on to my scheme. He would treat my sports section viewings with little acknowledgment.

It took me a long time to change my ways. I had other priorities in high school than reading the current events of the world. College was more of the same. At some points it didn't feel like there was anything else in the world going on other than that on my Union College campus. It wasn't until I graduated and felt a need be in tune with current events. I began to feel an obligation to myself to be able to carry on conversations on an array of subjects. I began to try and have an informed opinion on topics ranging from politics, to entertainment, to alternate energy sources, to the latest NYC happenings. Even with this now being the case, one thing has stayed constant. I find it almost impossible to resist turning directly to the sports section every time I open the paper.

There are two prominent blog/blog style websites I read quite often. The first is Bill Simmons (Sports Guy) on ESPN.com. While he is an insiration, I will not make this blog a rip-off of him. I am my own man and I will do things my own way. The other is my sister B's blog*. Her blog is such a totally different form. I will be much less personal and emotional, with also much worse writing. In any event I doubt I would have the desire to start something like this if it wasn't for those two.

I hope this blog keeps people interested and is a lot of fun. I hope you enjoy it and I will do my best to be creative and not suck!

*http://brianabrianabrianabriana.blogspot.com.....check it out!!