Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Donovan McNabb - Geez, Philly Really Hates This Guy

So bad that even teeny tiny trade rumors are going out of control lately.
Frankly I don't blame them for their hatred.

So here's the thing: After the Eagles had another disappointing postseason collapse this year, fans are long awaiting the end of Donovan McNabb's tenure in green. He says that he wants to remain an Eagle for the rest of his career, but do other people want that? Ha ha. No. After watching him for so many years, it's pretty obvious that his career looks like the outline of a Greek tragedy.

For those who aren't familiar with that, here you go:

Exposition - The year was 1999, he was second overall in the NFL Draft that year, and fought to get the Eagles to the postseason for the first time since 1996. Having a decent rookie year, things looked up for Eagles fans.

Rising Action - 2000-2003 - He begins a fanbase around the country while putting up some stellar stats, and even muscling through some injuries (manning up on a ankle broken in three places? yes) and finally reaching the postseason. In the 2002 playoffs, he even faced his QB equal at the time--his own backup QB. (No, not Kevin Kolb, you dolt.)

Climax - 2004 - Hey, look at this! First Super Bowl appearance since 1981?! WOW. 'Nabbers put up some legendary numbers this season, avoided getting injured during the whole season (wow again), and had some good times in touchdown pass form with his 'ole buddy Terrell Owens. I'd get more into that, but TO has enough space on other people's blogs and columns on bigger sites. Anyway, they got there, but Tom Brady shut him down, killing the Eagles' hopes of winning their very first Super Bowl.
(Side note: NFL Championships don't count. If they did, that means the Eagles haven't won a championship in more than 50 years--the last time they won a big one was in 1960.)

Falling Action - 2005-2008 - After a mental recovery from Super Bowl XXXIX, the Eagles went back to the drawing board to make it back to the big dance. Although McNabb put up above average numbers in 2005, a groin injury sidelined him for some of it. This began a massive roller coaster ride for the next few years. 'Nabbers would have excellent numbers one game, and then the next game it looked like he was either half asleep, having a senior moment, or having no idea what was going on. C'mon, don't lie--we'd ALL like to know why he would smile so much after making an incomplete pass on a play that was really important at the time. After this, he was plagued with many injuries, and the Eagles would get breaths of fresh air from QBs like AJ Feeley, Jeff Garcia, and Kevin Kolb. After swirling rumors that he would not be back for the 2008 season, he comes back with a valiant effort, but coming up short in the next postseason appearance.

Conclusion - 2009-present - How you choke on two straight games to the Cowboys certainly beats me. I don't know. It's confusing. Anyway, after having a season of "rebirth" as some people call it, McNabb came back in 2009 for some revenge. He'd have good passing games, but then he'd throw interceptions and start that goofy smiling again. The rest of this is up for you to find out about the end of this. Eagles get knocked out of the first round by Dallas, Vick wants to go elsewhere, and Kolb hardly gets playing time. Who will start next season?


As a Philly resident, I'd like to see McNabb bid farewell after an eleven-year run here. I'd hate to call him a has-been, but he reached the peak of his career years ago, and now he's shown his vulnerability to injury. Would I like to see Vick in his spot? Ehhh, get back to me on that one. He's about as old as McNabb and has been injured as well, but he gave a lot of Eagles fans hope about what he had to offer after being gone from the game for a while. As for the 3rd stringer Kevin Kolb, he deserves a bit more of a chance to spread his wings (no pun intended). If he played more consistently, he'd be a heck of a starting QB. Why did they get him to begin with?

Here's the latest on the McNabb trade rumors.

--AZ

OH, and I figured I would use this edit to make a list of why people want Donovan to go.
1 - He's not Brett Favre
2- His momma Wilma was making money for him at some point
3 - He's not Brett Favre
4 - His QB rating from week to week can be compared to menopause
5 - Eleven years of "there's always next year" for Eagles fans


Any more? Place them in a comment or something. Make me chuckle.

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

No, I'm not dead. Just really, really busy.

Here's a good read for y'all. Proof that the New York Yankees bought their World Series title.
I KNEW IT

I actually find it twice as hilarious because two teams on that list (Real Madrid and Chelsea) both blew all of this money on their teams, and they were both recently eliminated from the UEFA Champions League.
(self-proclaimed FC Barcelona fan)

Check back here for more blogs as the week goes on. I won't be as busy then.
Maybe we'll actually see an NFL OPINIONATED COLUMN. O.O

-AZ

Saturday, March 20, 2010

March Madness: Why NCAA Basketball is Better than the NBA

Alright, so many of you all know what March Madness entails and I don't really have to go into big detail with it. Awesome.
If you guys are so darned smart and all (all 4 of you that read this blog) you should already know that two huge favorites just went down hard in the NCAA Tournament today. Villanova and top-seeded Kansas just suffered huge upsets tonight to two (I shouldn't say this, but it's true) "nobody" teams that had no chance of making it past the second round of play. Yes, Villanova is around the Philadelphia area, and I'll probably be hearing about this upset for the next 3 weeks or so, but it makes me kind of glad. Why? Not only does it give me something to write about, but stuff like this is the stuff that is lacking in the NBA and it needs to be noted.

Let's get things straight. Here in Philly, basketball isn't as huge as it used to be. It did get a bit of a resurgence in '03 when the Sixers made it to the NBA Finals (and failed to beat Shaqzilla and Kobe) but after that, the Sixers organization is practically begging people to come to the games and making the tickets super duper cheap.
I'm not sure, but it might be the same case for other teams. A team that comes to mind is the New Jersey Nets--they're so horrible, it's sad. I think a girls' high school team could beat them. Anyway, the NBA isn't as hugely popular with a whole bunch of people anymore, and if people do watch the game, it's either for the All-Star Game, the NBA Finals, or just to see some popular players like LeBron James kill their hometown team single-handed. Other than that, the players pretty much just show off their skills and get paid money doing it. Do I like it? Not really. I don't see the heart in the game anymore.

On the other hand, NCAA Basketball is nearly the opposite. When it isn't college football season, there's bound to be huge groups of people watching college basketball. It's always been like that it seems. In the Philadelphia area, we're surrounded by hugely-known college teams like St. Joe's, Temple, Villanova, and UPenn. Every time I watch highlights on the news, the courts are packed and there's so much going on at once. See, these guys actually have something to PLAY FOR. They're playing to be known; the guys in the NBA have already gotten there and looking as if they're abusing their privileges to be a professional basketball player. It looks like the college guys are playing with so much more heart. That could just be me. I just feel bad for the guys that went straight from high school to the pros. They never got the privilege to take part in such a huge, nationwide frenzy (not to mention get a good education on the side). Sure, these college guys don't get pay raises for winning the tournament, but they get bragging rights and a big chance to get drafted into a pro team sometime in the near future. Good things comes to those who wait, right?

I don't know, I just find NCAA Basketball to be a bit more realistically exciting than the NBA. I kinda feel the same way with college football and the NFL, but that's another story and another rant that I don't feel like getting into at this moment. It seems like there's more heart involved.

--AZ

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Drink responsibly!!


--AZ

The Tiger is Out of the Woods.... HA HA INNUENDOS ARE EVERYWHERE

Ho-kay so Tiger Woods is stepping out of his naughty hiatus and returning at the Masters this year.

Question is: Will this affect his overall "performance?"

Dr. Ruth says:


"Well of course not! He went to therapy, didn't he? Even though the dirty deed comes up in the male mind more times than you possibly can count in a week, he shouldn't have a problem thinking about what nine iron to use for his big shot."
(DISCLAIMER: She never said this.)




Anyway, if I were Mr. Woods I'd throw my television out the window now. Note how I didn't say computer. Okay, okay, I'm being ridiculous. Now, in a serious manner, he's been endlessly ripped apart by media and most comedic outlets since the incident outside his home. Por ejemplo:

The episode is on tonight, by the way.

If he's going to go back to the way life was before we found out about all of these crazy shenanigans, he's really going to have to show how sorry he is. Remember Michael Vick? Marion Jones (Wait a minute, what did she do again?)? Jose Canseco (Bad example. Scratch this)? It's gonna be hard, but if he throws his back against the wind he's going to fall over and all the publicity is going to get to him. As long as he makes a nice showing at the Masters I'm pretty sure it's safe to say that most of his troubles will be long gone. However, let's just hope that none of his other unknown one-night stands decide to come out of the woodwork and spit on his name again.

Seriously, I am getting pretty tired about the coverage about Tiger Woods, the information that he's a "sex addict," and how he's trying to make a mental (and advertisement) recovery. Okay, I still find it funny that his wife chased him out of the house with one of his golf clubs, but c'mon. Why do we need to care about athletes' personal lives? Don't we have lives of our own to take care of? This might sound like I'm defending Woods, but I'm not. He treated his wife like another one of his golf trophies and basically hid his whole "other life" from her, making her look like the idiot. Frankly, I'm glad she went after him to try and cleave his skull with his own iron. Wives just shouldn't be treated that way.

Something tells me I should make one of those Chris Crocker videos underneath a sheet with my eyes all decked out in eyeliner, crying to everyone to "LEAVE TIGER ALONE! HE'S A HUMAN!" ...Nah, that'll never work.
Or, maybe this all would've been avoided if Tiger Woods had a sassy gay friend. Okay, enough with the Internet humor references. I'm done.

-
-AZ

Monday, March 15, 2010

Unforseen Circumstances/NEW OPENING

I've been sick for the past couple of days, ergo no writing.

AND GUESS WHAT, KIDS????
I'm opening this place up for anyone who would like to join and write their opinions on this site.
Apparently there isn't enough football on here, so I'm opening this up for anyone who is interested and knows enough about football and is willing to write about stuff.

The application is somewhat easy:
-- I'm trying to keep this blog clean, so nothing raunchy and keep the language to a minimum.
-- You must be willing to do at least one blog a week.
-- If you want to specialize in something else, you need to let me know.
-- Writing skills are a plus. If you're a communications/English major, that's a double plus.

To apply, comment to this post.
Thanks, and I hope to hear from you guys soon.

--AZ

Thursday, March 11, 2010

MLS 2010 - To Be Continued....?

Seriously, when I've never been more excited to start watching MLS, they start having financial issues and are threatening to go on strike since their collective bargaining agreement has expired.

Apparently they're nowhere near a new deal for the CBA, and with the season opener on March 25, the players are taking going on strike as an option. When players go on strike, it's never a fun thing. Remember the MLB fallout of '94? The NHL lockdown? When all the little girl soccer fans cried after the WUSA folded? (It's okay, girls, there's still WPS, which I probably won't watch even though Philly has a women's team now too) Anyway, it seems like nobody ever has a clue how to make a deal with money in organizations. C'mon, we've had professional sports teams for 125+ years now, and we still don't know how to manage all player salaries without having this big negotiation and putting the whole league and season into jeopardy? Last time I heard, they were willing to start the season under the old agreement, but supposedly that's no longer the case.

Seriously, this blows. I've got Philadelphia Union tickets for their inaugural home opener at Lincoln Financial Field on April 10. Can we not screw things up now, MLS? I know you guys aren't the strongest league in the United States, but can you at least think like one?

Here's a nice little article to read about it.

--AZ

Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Twitter Page?!

Yes, a Twitter page has been created.

Check it out.

--AZ

Edit: Oh, to clear things up, you might notice that I'll be updating Twitter more often with actual news than the home blog. That doesn't mean I won't be using this blog anymore. This blog is more for random musings and opinions than news. I will be using the Twitter account for random sports news, musings, as well as opinions.

Spring Training 2010: Believe the Hype!!

Okay, here's the info from Strasburg's outing today. If he continues to pitch like this, I don't think he'll be seeing the minors. With 2 IP 2 H 2 K and his fastball topping at 96 along with an 81 mph curve, he's pitching at Randy Johnson-like. Shame the Natinals couldn't back it up. [Now I get why the Phillies traded Tyler Walker...]

More info, yes?

Oh yeah, and Clifton's making a surprise start for the Mariners despite the minor foot surgery.

Why not mention it? He was only involved in a huge trade in December. Sheesh.

--AZ

Big "Bad Boy" Ben. Wow, say that five times fast.

When athletes win, they like to celebrate "the right way" and go out to the latest hotspot. Jeez, not like it's anything new[PS - the page is NSFW, but I'd like to get the point across].

Looks like Super Bowl XLIII champion QB Ben Roethlisberger (<-- His last name should be on the championship word list in the Scripps Howard National Bee) might be in some hot water after an incident while barhopping in Georgia on Friday night. Party girls, they're--well, I think you can pretty much put any adjective in here that you like when it comes to girls who party hard at nightclubs. Not my department.
Anyway, he has been accused of sexually assaulting a college girl (her name hasn't been released) and charges have not been filed on this account. On top of this, he's been accused of several other different things such as rape and whatnot. All of a sudden this all comes out at once. How does that happen, media? You like to throw all this dirty laundry out at once to make the guy sound that much more perverted? This is like the Tiger Woods case, where they decided to throw out information that he's been with all of these women and what have you. I'm not defending them or anything, but don't you notice that when an athlete does something questionable, all of these other allegations start popping up out of nowhere? It's a wonder they didn't bring back the story of Big Ben wrecking his motorcycle back during his rookie NFL season just for kicks (no pun intended). As a side note, these things probably didn't come up all at once in the news in the Pittsburgh area, but in a national spotlight, it always seems to.
Supposedly he will be interrogated about this and hopefully get everything straightened out about this. You kinda have to wonder, what are these guys thinking when they do certain things?

For the full article on NFL.com, go here.

Spring Training 2010 - Pitched, will be pitching, and well, less pitching

Pitched: Aroldis Chapman, the fiesty Cuban rounded up by the Cincy Reds during the offseason, made his ST debut yesterday against the Kansas City Royals. Yesterday showed Chapman hurl 2 scoreless innings with a hit, a walk, and three strikeouts. Believe the hype, my children. If you ever saw the movie Kicking and Screaming, he can be compared to the Italian boys that they get on the team just so they can start winning games. Don't really blame them in all honesty. Considering how Reds starting pitching was in a downward spiral by the second half of the season (Phillies fans will never forget that 22-1 blowout where everyone in the lineup got a hit), they somewhat limped out of the season with a 78-84 record. The Reds deserve a little something special this year. Good starting pitching may do the trick.

Article

Will Be Pitching: Okay kids, you've been waiting for this since the MLB Draft (well, maybe not, but let's make this sound a little more exciting, yes?) Stephen Strasburg will be making his ST debut against the Tigers at 1:05 this afternoon [side note: I'll miss most of it since I'm in school as I write this] and will be expected to pitch about 2 innings.

For more information, go here.

Well, Less Pitching: Ah, the closer. A very crucial position when your team is up by one run in the bottom of the 9th and the heart of the order is coming up to try and pulverize you. Looks like that might not be the case for Twins' closer Joe Nathan. Scar tissue from Nathan's previous elbow surgery suffered a much unwanted tear, and resulted in elbow soreness which ultimately benched him after one batter on Saturday against the Red Sox. With a closer like Nathan in the MLB, it's really sad to see that happen, especially in Spring Training. He had an excellent season last year (statistically doing better than Mariano-saurus, if you can believe that) and now he may not be able to pitch during the 2010 season in case of surgery. That just really blows, and there really isn't anything he can do to avoid it either. It's not like you can let it go. When you're a closer, you need to pump some effective stuff to get your job done, and if your elbow isn't up to that job, you might as well go home.

For the whole story on MLB.com, go here.

--AZ

Monday, March 8, 2010

Blue Screen of Death, Oh MY

Yeah...this is why I haven't updated in a little while....
This is a busy week so don't expect much here.

--AZ

Friday, March 5, 2010

Spring Training 2010 - I Shall Call Him...Doc Roy Toy

[Brief editorial statement alert] Doc isn't enough. You have to make up for the fact that there was such a huge feminine fan uprising after the sex symbol that was Cliff Lee. [End brief editorial statement]

Yesterday afternoon gave baseball fans the show of what's to come in April and beyond. Hugely hyped RHP Roy Halladay made a 2 inning start against the World Series Champion Yankees, and he shut down their offense during his short time on the mound. There was only one baserunner in those two innings, and that was so because of a throwing error by another Phillies acquisition (rather, a returning Phillie) Placido Polanco. Recording three strikeouts, he looked like a monster.

I would like to take this time to tear into a tiny piece of the Phillies' starting rotation. This was a bit of an issue in the 2009 postseason, and I'd like to make some points.


Picture it: Philadelphia, 2006
The Phillies organization announced the name Cole Hamels. With all of the talk of his intimidating pitching style, everyone was indirectly thrown the Hamels Hype and were insanely excited to see this guy pitch in the majors for a team that hadn't made postseason in nearly 15 years. After making it into the majors a few months later, he made an average rookie showing. In 2007 and 2008, he had even promised to work hard enough to win the NL Cy Young award.

Okay, fast forward a little bit. Picture it: Philadelphia, July 31, 2009
Four key prospects from the Phillies farm system were traded to the Cleveland Indians to acquire OF Ben Francisco and LHP Cliff Lee. Lee, a 2008 AL Cy Young award winner, had a load of hype behind him and threw die hard baseball fans into a frenzy. The Phillies were looking for a repeat--the first time a NL team would do so since the Reds in the late 70's. Cole Hamels, having a below-average season along with minor ankle problems (he took a nasty step off the hill to field a ground ball one game...I forget against what team) had a massive flame lit right under his fanny. "Oh no! An ace! B-but that's my job!! Must...impress...morrrre!!!" He didn't actually say that, but a lot of Phillies fans could tell that something was up with him during the last 3 months of the season.

Anyway, let's take a walk through the 2009 postseason. Good 'ole Cliffie, in his very first postseason appearance, practically glowed in his two starts with Philadelphia. For good measure, he actually stole a base in Game 1 of the NLDS. I laughed heartily [correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't he pinch run in Game 2 in the 9th inning as well? We'll find out why now]. Cole, on the other hand, didn't have a clean mind with his start. Should he have been more focused on the game, or more focused with his wife Heidi who went into labor about halfway through the ballgame? Well, anyway, the Phils lost that lone game of the series.

2009 World Series: Remember Game 1, how Cliff Lee made the two nonchalant plays without panicking on the mound? Yeah. They were awesome. Game 5 was almost as fun despite Lee slipping a bit as the game went on. Alright, let's go back a wee bit to Game 3 on Halloween Night. Rainy night, nice and chilly, and those annoying brats from that show Glee sang the National Anthem. Can't really tell you what happened to Hamels that night, but people were pretty angry about his outing. Don't really blame them either. He looked like his head was in an egotistical fog or something. It was thicker than pea soup--no, it was thicker than that. It was thicker than a brick, and that's pretty thick.

Okay, here we are back in the present. Cliff Lee is only a legend now in Philadelphia and now we have the statistically better Roy Halladay in the #1 slot in the Phillies pitching rotation. Wouldn't you think this is a bigger flame under Hamels' behind now? I think so. Frankly, it makes me laugh a little. No, I'm not anti-Cole Hamels, but he's a hardcore whiner. After he won the 2008 NLCS/World Series MVP, he got so many commercial deals and so many public appearances it made some people dizzy. I just feel like he had a massive ego trip throughout 2009 and had to learn the hard way as to why that is never good in a professional sports environment.

I seriously hated the Lee/Halladay trade when it first happened, but it is what it is, and I'm slowly beginning to accept it. Halladay looks like he's in the best shape of his life, and he's going to get a lot of attention in Philadelphia. After all, if you're in Philly, you're clearly going to tell whether you're liked or not. Philly fans just happen to be like that. I mean, look at how they tore into JD Drew, Billy Wagner, and Scott Rolen. The fans are in a world of class on their own.

--AZ

EDIT: I was told about this blog last night by a few friends, and I have to share this with you since it pertains to Halladay. Kudos to Jim and Mike for this link.

It's Hitting the Fan Now, Isn't It?

AP just reported that the Carolina Panthers have released QB Jake Delhomme.

Funny how I recently blogged about how Michael Vick wanted out of Philadelphia and was looking at Carolina. It really looks like "it" is hitting the fan rather quickly. Yes, Vick has something else on his contract with the Eagles, but with McNabb acting like a grazing bull for the next few years alongside his life partner Andy Reid, it doesn't look like Vick is going to be starting many games in green. At some points, he was actually used more as a running back then anything else, and I do feel a little bad for Vick because he wanted to come back as a starter and prove that he hadn't lost any skill amid the whole dogfighting controversy. I will admit that it was different seeing Vick as QB for the Eagles the plays (he sometimes didn't even make one play in a single game, ergo I type 'plays' instead) and seeing a different approach to the running and passing game.

Again, I'll let the actual article speak for itself.

--AZ

Thursday, March 4, 2010

Throwing a Pitch That Few Men Cannot. Now That's What I Call Girl Power!

I've been reading about this Japanese (oh, those Asians) teenager for the past few days. Her baseball idol is the knuckleballer Tim Wakefield. When the titans of the knuckleball clash, crazy things happen.

She's a maniac, maniac on the ...mound.

--AZ

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Blame it on the Bong!!!

Two-time NL Cy Young winner Timmy Lincecum didn't have a fresh first day at the office, now did he?

Article

--AZ

Random Musings and Such

Today was the last day for NHL trades.
Full list is here.

Score links will be posted once the night is up. Or...when I get home tomorrow afternoon. I have a job interview. Wish me luck on that.

--AZ

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

The Crazy Uncle of the Senate...

Yes.... I understand that this is not a political blog, but since Republican Senator Jim Bunning was a MLB Hall of Fame pitcher once upon a time, we should have a little chuckle here. Is he good in politics? Hahahahahaha. Doesn't look like it. From the way things sound, his senility is keeping a much needed bill from being passed. The Senate is probably doing cartwheels that he's retiring next year.

Bunning throws the crazy conservative curveball!!

--AZ

EDIT: The Daily Show covers it quite nicely, if you ask me. :-P
Show 'em who's boss, Jon!!

Michael Vick: Falcon, Former Convict, Eagle, Reality Star...Now What?

With Donovan McNabb's stay in Philadelphia confirmed (much to some Eagles' fans dismay, mind you), QB Michael Vick is kind of looking in another direction. Remember when he was a star quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons? Everything was going fine, and then he got caught in that dogfighting ring. With all that aside, he's shown that he was sorry, and then showed NFL fans that he never really lost his touch as a football player. One last thing, he has some reality show on BET. No idea what it's about. Wiki it or something.

Getting stuck watching Eagles games in my house and seeing the very few plays that Vick was involved in, he was excellent. He was also in excellent shape too. Then again, it was something new not seeing McNabb in the OB role for Philadelphia. According to this NFL blog, he's looking to be a new asset for the Carolina Panthers.

You know how terrible I am about talking football, so read the article here.

--AZ

CARTWHEELS. MORE CARTWHEELS. WHY? I'LL TELL YOU WHY.

Baseball, the love of my life, has unofficially begun. Four teams (and two college teams from Florida) squared off today for their first exhibition games. Here are the scores [from MLB.com]:

Pittsburgh --- 6
Manatee - Sarasota --- 1
F/7 innings

Detroit --- 13
Fla. Southern College --- 1
Final

NY Mets --- 4
Atlanta --- 2
Final

Ah, yes. In 70 degree weather. I would kill for that action right now.
I've always wondered why they would get specific colleges in and around the Florida area to play the pros during spring training exhibitions when they usually get killed. I wouldn't say it looks "degrading," per se, but sort of a mismatch when it comes to level and experience. However, it makes sense that it gets the college kids--err, guys--ready if they plan to continue on with baseball after college. It's like saying, "Thought you were good? Really? Y'think so? Let's see if the Detroit Tigers baseball team thinks so," and then they come in and clean your clock. Is ego deflation fun to watch?
I watched a college team last year (won't say who because God forbid someone from that school reads this, hehehe) that was built solely on power hitting and big, beefy guys. Didn't matter that they could field or pitch every single day or anything as long as they can hit a home run each time they're up. They didn't do so hot last year, if that explains anything. If they faced the Phillies last year and got killed, that would have been the best one-sided battle I'd have ever watched. I would expect the Mortal Kombat "BRUTALITY" animation pop up out of nowhere once the spanking was over too.

With that rant aside, I'll try my best to update with more exhibition scores as it goes on.

--AZ