Bulls, Sox, Cubs, and Bears... OH MY!!

It's Been Real

2007-12-08T15:55:00.000-05:00

So I've decided that there's nothing better than forcing other people to read your opinions and viewpoints on various issues of the world. I haven't had this much power since I could control my little sister's every move. And I have to say, that I have enjoyed it. Sadly, the semester is coming to an end and so must my portion of this blog. I could continue writing, but I think that the world has had enough of me and my Cubs.

All I, and other Cubs fans, can do now is look towards next year. Before we know it, baseball will be upon us once more and the drama and excitement will unfold like it always does. This year was very productive for the Cubs and if they play like they did (minus the post-season) it should be another great year for them. There is no doubt that Lou Piniella will learn from his mistakes, that Derek Lee will be more aggressive at the plate in the post-season, the injuries will fade, and the various trades will enhance the team. The Cubs are a team of tradition and struggle but their time will come. I have every bit of faith that if we continue to support them, our dream of a World Series Title will come true.

Since this is my last post, I guess I'd just like to say thanks to those of you who actually read what I had to write. I know it was never easy and I know that some of the readers disagreed intensely with what I had to say. Thanks to the other contributors to this blog and if they are planning to keep on writing, good luck! If I have learned anything from starting a blog, it's that you have a responsibility to your readers to provide interesting information, develop a voice and character that people can relate to, and be relatively recent with your posts. Writing has always been fun but being able to write things that reach so many different people has certainly been a thrill. Even if you hated everything I wrote, I don't really care because I had fun.

So, this is it. So long. Peace, Love, Crabs. (Like Joe's Crabshack)

GO CUBBIES!

Top 5 Reasons to LOVE Chicago Baseball

2007-12-07T12:08:00.000-05:00

1. The Cross-Town Classic
Probably the most obvious one. Chicago is the only place left with two chartered MLB teams in the same city. We wait all year to see the Cubbies and the White Sox battle it out in a two-weekend rivalry.

2. It all started here.
Did you know that the American League started here in Chicago? Well if not here is a little history lesson. The AL was created by Charles A. Comiskey in Chicago’s Fisher Building.

3. Some amazing baseball legends came from the Cubs and the White Sox
Ernie Banks, Ryne Sandberg, Frank Thomas, Billy Williams, and Carlton Fisk just to name a few.

4. There’s always something to do after a game.
Chicago is a city with many attractions.
Wrigley Field is known for their bars and restaurants, as the whole city is.
Navy Pier is always a good thing to do when you are in Chicago.
Baseball =summer=hot=swimming in Lake Michigan. You can always take a swim in Lake Michigan after an exciting game.
Shopping on Michigan Ave. is always a good time
Or you can go to one of the many museums in Chicago.
Bottom line, if you go to Chicago for a baseball game, make it an all day affair. There is something for everyone to do.

5. Baseball is historical at Wrigley Field
Wrigley Field, which was built in 1914, is the 2nd oldest baseball park in the Major League. He has hosted my historical events including:
Ernie Banks' 500th career home run May 12, 1970
Pete Rose's 4,191st career hit in which he tied Ty Cobb for the most hits in baseball history.
Sammy Sosa's 60th home run
The All-Star Games in 1947, 1962 and 1990.

I think he has missed the south side... don't you?

2007-12-06T18:43:00.000-05:00

So how will the Chicago White Sox solve the problem with not having a center fielder for the 2008 season? I mean we attempted to sign Torii Hunter, but that fell through and was a big shocker to all of us when Hunter signed with the Angels instead of us. Well I don’t know… how about possibly signing Aaron Rowand, a Gold Glove center fielder. Now Rowand is probably not a new face to most of the White Sox fans, since he had previously played for the White Sox for 5 seasons. So let’s bring him back to Chicago White Sox organization!

Just two years ago the Sox traded Rowand in order to get Jim Thome. But now Rowand is a free agent and the White Sox are taking a particular interest in him. Rowand had commented that he wants “to weigh all my options before making a decision. Hopefully that team will make the decision for me."

So how possible is it that the White Sox could have Rowand at center field again? Well very possible I think if the price is right. Plus I think that he has missed the south side, who wouldn’t right?

Whether the White Sox’s main interest is in Aaron Rowand or someone else, they need to sign a center fielder for next season very soon. They are hurting greatly in this defensive area. Let’s hope that this is their number one priority right now!

Special Delivery

2007-12-04T21:52:00.000-05:00

It's been almost two weeks since my birthday and I've still gotten nothing from my boyfriend. It's not that he didn't get me anything, it just hasn't come in yet. And I have to say, that it just might be one of my favorite gifts ever.

Mike Fontenot isn't the greatest player in the MLB or even on the Cubs team, but if you know anything about me by now, it's that I love him. So, that's what I'm getting in the mail. A Fontenot jersey. I'm very excited to support my team as well as my favorite player. It's just killing me having to wait for it. Don't be surprised it I wear it every day. Ok, I definitely won't, but it's exciting none-the-less. It was ordered a month ago and it still hasn't been shipped. At first, my boyfriend complained to the company but then it was explained to him that they don't have Fontenot jerseys in stock and it had to be manufactured somewhere else. My question is, why don't they have his jerseys in stock? That fact was shocking to me. Shocking.

So once I get my jersey, I'll be walking around campus in style. On game days, I'll wear Fontenot proudly along with my ball cap. Hopefully it will bring just enough luck to the Cubs to push them through the playoffs and into the World Series. That's what I'd like to think anyway.

Top 10 Reasons Why I Love Baseball

2007-11-29T19:49:00.000-05:00

Baseball is called America's greatest past-time and there are many reasons why people feel this way. It can be something small like the hot dogs at their favorite stadium or something big like being the Tigers' #1 fan. Let me give you my reasons.

10. Baseball means summer. There's nothing better than looking forward to Spring Training. Not only is winter almost over but you can now put away your football jersey and break out the baseball cap.

9. The players. In baseball, you have to have skill. This is true in every sport, but you can be pushing 50 and still playing baseball...if you've got what it takes. Hitting a tiny ball going 98 MPH is far more impressive to me than making a layup.

8. The players. Yeah, this is also #9, but now I'm talking about really looking at the players. Football players may have huge muscles and soccer players have nice legs, but in baseball uniforms, a guy can look attractive with hardly anything at all. You can't be scrawny by any means, but show me some pinstripes and some tight pants, and I'll cheer for you.

7. It's in our blood. Americans have been infatuated with baseball for over one hundred years and the love affair shows no signs of stopping. USA=baseball.

6. Big League Chew. Hands down, this is the best brand of bubble gum out there. If there was no baseball, we would have never discovered such a wonderful treat. By chewing it, you feel like you could keep up with the pros and maybe even blow a bigger bubble.

5. The drama. You can't tell me that a brawl that clears both benches isn't one of the greatest things you can witness at a sporting event. It's not always pretty or dignified but when the pitcher is kicking the crap out of the hitter, you're bound to get excited. And don't even get me started on pitchers turning on their own catchers. Cough, cough, Zambrano.

4. "Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jacks..." This song, sung in the 7th inning stretch, represents all that is good and holy in baseball. Everyone knows it and everyone can sing it, which means that everyone knows something about the great game of baseball. Our grandparents can sing it, while our parents hum it, and our own children will be trying to learn it on the piano. "Cuz it's one, two, three strikes you're out, at the ole' BALL GAME!"

3. The atmosphere. I went to a Dodgers game this year and although I'm not a huge fan, it was the best game I've ever gone to. Why? Simply because of the atmosphere. The sun had just set, it was about 55 degrees, and everyone was geared up in their favorite players' jersey. The stadium is one of the oldest in the country and I'm not even going to go into how wonderful a Dodger Dog is. What I'm trying to say is, the atmosphere of a baseball game is something that you can't take for granted and that you can't duplicate. If you've never been to a MLB game, please do yourself a favor and go.

2. You can be a baseball fan from the age of 4 up to 100. You start off playing tee ball, and then Little League. Soon you're on a middle school traveling team and your high school is winning regionals. You might play in college and you could be lucky enough to make it to the MLB, but the main thing is, you're in it for life. Baseball gets into your body and soul and without it, you are nothing. As Jimmy Dugan says in the movie A League of Their Own, "Baseball is what gets inside you. It's what lights you up, you can't deny that."

1. The loyalty and love you have for your team. For me of course, it's always been the Cubs. No matter what, if they haven't won a game all season or if they've just won the World Series, you stick with them. You follow the transactions, you feel for the pitcher when he has to get surgery, and you leap with joy when someone breaks a record. Your team and your fellow fans are what makes baseball great.

So there it is. My top 10 reasons why I love this sport. Stupid me, I've forgotten one. There's no crying in baseball.

Goodbye Cintron and Posednik, Hello Linebrink

2007-11-29T15:07:00.000-05:00

So we finally have had some excitement in the off season trading industry this week. Its about time. The White Sox signed reliever Scott Linebrink on Wednesday, which was a four year, $19 million deal. However when you gain one, you normally have to lose one in order to make some room. The White Sox chose to make room by waiving their infielder Alex Cintron. The Sox were hesitant to give Cintron a raise, especially since he hadn’t made a complete recovery from a surgery he had on his throwing elbow. Another downfall that Cintron had was that he had a batting average of only .243 last season. So the White Sox obviously thought he was the one that needed to go. But I think that they made a very good choice.

The White Sox have commented that they also think that they made a good choice and are confident in their decision to sign Linebrink. The only consquence that came with signing Linebrink was that the White Sox ended up losing their second round draft pick. However, I think that they were willing to make the sacrafice. I’m sure they think it is worth it since Linebrink was 5-6 with a 3.71 ERA when he was with San Diego and Milwaukee last season. He will come to Chicago White Sox with a 30-16 record and a 3.21 ERA over the course of eight seasons with San Diego, Milwaukee, San Francisco and Houston.

The White Sox also decided to release outfielder Scott Posednik who signed the waivers last week and officially became a free agent. Posednik was out for a majority of the 2007 season with an injury.

And yet we still haven’t heard anything about what the White Sox plan on doing with Josh Fields and Joe Crede. I am surprised that they haven’t traded either of them yet, but maybe we will all be even more surprised if they decide to keep both of them. I have a feeling that there is a potential for more amazements in the very near future. Wouldn’t it be nice to see Aaron Rowand back on the south side?!?

I sure hope we don't choke in the off season....

2007-11-28T12:50:00.000-05:00

Well it’s a new week, but it’s the same story. The White Sox are wasting another valuable week of off season moves with doing absolutely nothing. They have not resigned anyone nor are they showing any interest in anyone. I’m just wondering what is going through Kenny William’s head.

Like I stated in my last blog, the White Sox didn’t really make an intelligent move with the whole Orlando Cabrera and Juan Uribe ordeal. There are reports that we are not done with trading moves yet, (at least I hope so because we still need a centerfielder) but I’m just wondering when we are going to make some kind of move. Time is running out and it doesn’t appear that the White Sox are showing interest in anyone who is in the free market. The only one that they are really showed interest in was Torii Hunter and if you can recall, that number one target fell through miserably when he signed with the Angels.

I really hope Kenny Williams will make another off season move; however, I don’t really have high hopes of that actually happening. There will probably be the excuses of too much money, but we need to produce a promising 2008 season and the only way we can do that is with some good off season trading. And from the looks of things, I really don’t know if the “big” move is on the horizon. This is not the time to choke.

10 Reasons Why the Chicago Bulls are 3-10

2007-11-27T19:56:00.000-05:00

Not only is Scott Skiles speechless about the performance of his team, but so is all of Chicago. In an NBA preseason power ranking, Topupsidepotential.com ranked the Chicago Bulls as the number three team in the East and the number seven team in the NBA. So far, the Bulls are last in the East and are third to last in the NBA. Sad to say, this is not what anyone was expecting. Most people thought that once the Kobe Bryant trade talk ended, the Bulls would be able to focus more on their game. But this was easier said than done. So here is a countdown of the ten reasons why Chicago is playing like "bullshit."

10. Bulls are still lacking a power forward. Tyrus Thomas started the season as Chicago's power forward. After little production, except in Chicago's first win over Detroit, Tyrus was replaced by small forward Andres Nocioni as the starting power forward, even while Luol Deng was injured. Joe Smith has provided a good spark from the bench, but he isn't capable of putting up big numbers or double-doubles. I say just keep on working with Tyrus until he mans up because a smaller line-up is not what the Bulls need.

9. Chicago's rookies aren't adding much depth to bench. Joakim Noah started off the season with an injury, Aaron Gray's surprising preseason performance did not carry on into the regular season, and JamesOn Curry ended up being shipped off to the D-league. Not that we were expecting much, but we want to send one of them to the Rookie Challenge in New Orleans during All-star weekend. All we ask is to do what they did in college...whenever they get the chance to play.

8. Charity stripe is not so generous for the Bulls. The Chicago Bulls are averaging 78% from the free throw line. Chicago shouldn't be surprised by Ben Wallace's 33% free throw percentage, but when Luol Deng is shooting 68% and Andres Nocioni is shooting 66%, who are two of the team's best shooters, then there is a little problem. I sometimes have trouble understanding how someone can shoot a jumper with a hand in your face so easily, but there is only about a 70% chance that you will make an uncontested free throw.

7. Is Big Ben running out of time? John Paxson brought Ben Wallace to Chicago hoping he might fill Chicago's void of a big man. This 4-time Defensive Player of the Year might have reached his peak. At the age of 33, he is only averaging 7.4 rebounds, 1.6 steals, and 1.3 blocks, as well as 4.5 points. So is Chicago back to where they started 2 years ago?

6. Still waiting for Tyrus and Thabo to emerge. The upside of both Tyrus Thomas and Thabo Sefolosha is so immense that it may be years until we get to see some real game come from them. With Tyrus being replaced by Nocioni in the starting line-up and Thabo not getting as much playing time as undrafted rookie Thomas Gardner, there is not much Chicago has seen from these two...except for the usual sick nasty dunks by Tyrus. Together, they average only 11.1 points.

5. They aren't winning the games they should be. Basically, Chicago should have won their first four games but somehow did not. It's sad that their first 4 games of the season (New Jersey Nets, Philadelphia 76ers, Milwaukee Bucks, Los Angeles Clippers), were also some of the easiest of the season. They can't beat them, but they manage to pull off their first win against the then undefeated Detroit Pistons. What's up with that?

4. Umm...they are not playing good basketball?? What more can I say? They just suck at the moment. The past two years, Chicago has gotten off to a slow start, but this time is different. The inconsistency of the Bulls' play is beginning to worry all of Chicago, especially now that they're on their crazy Western conference road tour.

3. Chicago's three-headed bull is being taken by the horns. Luol Deng, Ben Gordon, and Kirk Hinrich are averaging a combined 42 points, which is considerably lower than last year's 56.8 points. These are the guys who must carry the offensive. If they can get their game together, they will receive more help on offense from Nocioni, Duhon, and Thomas.

2. The Bulls can't shoot for shit...at the moment. I'll just give you cold hard statistics. The Bulls have a field goal percentage of 44%, and they are also shooting 37% percent from the 3-point line. They are only averaging 86.5 points per game, while their opponents are averaging 96.5 points per game.

1. Let's face it...Chicago needs Kobe. With trade talks involving Kobe being thrown out the window, so were Chicago's hopes of being one of the greats of the Eastern conference once again. Everyone figured Chicago's emerging talent would be enough, but their record says otherwise. Kobe is currently the NBA's second leading scoring, averaging 27.9 points per game. I'm sure he will continue to be unhappy in Los Angeles, but at least the Lakers have him.

I will continue to cheer for my Chicago Bulls. All I can say is that they have to start getting their shit together.

Wood Is Sticking Around

2007-11-27T14:25:00.000-05:00

It's amazing what $4.2 million will get you. If you're a baseball General Manager, that money can help guarantee that a player will decide to stay with your team. In the case of the Cubs, that's exactly what happened.

Kerry Wood agreed to stay with the Cubs for a $4.2 million one-year deal. When free agents started to look into him, the Cubs put more money on the table to keep him around.

"Chicago's my home," Wood said during a conference call. "Chicago's been great to me. There's no better place to play, especially if you're winning."

Of course the word "winning" is in Chicago Cubs terms. This doesn't mean a World Series Title, it just means that with the NL Central victory, the team is on the right track to actually getting through the postseason. Heck, I would stick around to if my salary went from $1.7 million to $4.2 million in just a year.

It's most likely that Wood will pitch from the bullpen along with Marmol and Howry. He's had some elbow and shoulder problems in the past but that hasn't stopped him from being an important aspect to the Cubs' pitching. Wood has a 72-57 career record with 3.67 ERA in part of nine seasons with the Cubs.

"Physically, I feel like I can do it," he said. "But I know what it takes to go out and eat up 200-plus innings. I know what kind of toll it takes on your body. With what I've been through, I don't know if it's wise of me to take that chance again right away."

Hopefully this decision to keep Wood around for at least one more year will benefit the Chicago team. I see Wood doing great things next year, boosting fans' confidence in the bullpen and possibly becoming a great closer. The $4.2 million was well spent on Kerry Wood.

What are they thinking?

2007-11-24T21:23:00.000-05:00

So another week has past and the White Sox have finally made an off season move! One that I would personally rank as absolutely horrible! They traded Jon Garland, one of the White Sox’s most consistent starting pitcher for a shortstop. The shortstop that they received is Orlando Cabrera from the Anaheim Angels. Yes he is one of the best defensive shortstops in the game, but the guy is 33 years old and the White Sox really need to improve their bullpen. The White Sox did receive cash in the trade, but like I just said, they really need pitching. I honestly don’t know what they were thinking! They said away one of their best in a position that needs some help all around, for a position that they already have. Within the last two weeks of this trade, the White Sox signed their shortstop Juan Uribe to a one year deal. Now my question is, why would they sign a guy for one year and then go out and trade one of our best players (Jon Garland) for a guy who they don’t have a spot for and who is getting a little old. Now granted, Cabrera will start over Uribe or should at least, but what do you do with Uribe? He really isn’t that good, so you wouldn’t get much of a trade out of him. What I think the White Sox should do is trade one of their two shortstops. I would personally keep Cabrera because he is an awesome shortstop and is much better than Uribe. Like I stated before, the only bad thing about trading Uribe is that you won’t get much for him. It would have been smart for the White Sox to just have released Juan Uribe rather than take on his salary and just hope that someone is willing to trade for him. So my next question is, if the White Sox can not trade Uribe what he is he going to do? He is not a player who I would think that you would want to put him in to pinch hit because he is not the best hitter to say the least. I mean they could use him once every so often to give Orlando Cabrera a break, but I honestly think that it would be just a waste of a salary. I hope that Kenny Williams knows what he is doing and is hopefully getting ready to make a blockbuster trade in the up and coming off-season months. Hopefully it can be for a great centerfielder, since the Torii Hunter deal fell through, when Hunter unexpectedly signed with the Anaheim Angels.

Thank Goodness for Thanksgiving

2007-11-20T14:06:00.000-05:00

In a couple of days, it will be the wonderful holiday of Thanksgiving. This is when you head home, eat too much food, and watch as the members of your family fall asleep while watching football. It doesn't really get much better than that. Unless of course all you care about is baseball.

The Cubs have recently released their spring schedule which begins with a game in Scottsdale on February 28 against the Giants. Check out the full schedule. So if you are sitting at home not caring about the Detroit game, you can fantasize about the Cubs upcoming season and the success that they are sure to have.

There will be another member of the Cubs family missing next season: team President John McDonough. He has been associated with the Cubs for 24 years and became the President in October 2006. He replaced Andy MacPhail after a 96-loss season.

"The purpose of why I've been asked to do this job is for the Cubs to win the World Series -- not win the Wild Card or win the division or win the pennant," McDonough said when introduced as interim president last year. "It's time to win. It's time to win the World Series."

Under his reign, the Cubs didn't make it to the World Series but by winning the NL League, they greatly improved their performance during regular season. McDonough will now become the President to the NHL Chicago Blackhawks.

So just because football dominates the Thanksgiving holiday, it doesn't mean that there aren't happenings in baseball. Go home, have a great meal and visit with family, and don't forget about baseball.

Now Hiring

2007-11-19T10:29:00.000-05:00

Wanted:
Right Fielder who can hit, stop baserunners from gaining extra bases, and costs between $120-$125 million.

If Cubs' general manager, Jim Hendry, took out a want ad for a player his team needs, it might look like the above. Last week, Craig Monroe was traded to Minnesota and now, Hendry is in the market for a new outfielder. He's looking for someone more athletic and who can do the job at the plate and by raising the amount of money he's willing to pay for such a player, there are bound to be some who are interested.

"We certainly have a fair situation no matter what the final number is," Hendry said. "And we feel confident we can add two or three pieces to the puzzle."

Getting rid of Monroe was a good decision the way I see it. He hit .204 with one home run and four RBIs after being acquired from Detroit in August. He was even left off the postseason roster. The Cubs need another outfielder like Alfonso Soriano. He's not perfect by any means, but he's fast as a defensive player and can usually squeeze out a hit or even home run when it's needed.

Hopefully Hendry can find someone to fulfill the open position soon. I would think that the main priority would be to find someone who can hit. Of course, they need to be a good defensive player as well, but we all know that the Cubs could use another power hitter. Or even someone who can squeeze out some hits in the clutch. For $125 million, I'm sure the GM will find someone suitable.

America v. A-Rod

2007-11-14T14:36:00.001-05:00

Why Does America Hate A-Rod?

This is the name of the survey-type quiz on ESPN.com that I just took. The people from the sports website are trying to understand why fans just don't want Alex Rodriguez. On Tuesday, ESPN.com asked, "Would you want your favorite team to sign Alex Rodriguez?" and the results were that a 2-to-1 margin said "No." So why are people hatin'?

Here's the quiz with my answers in bold and the percentage of people who chose which answer. 91,999 people have taken the quiz so far.

1) If you don't want Alex Rodriguez on your team, what is your primary reason?

34.9% Costs too much money
26.5% I'd want him on my team
15.6% He's just not a winner
12.4% Clubhouse cancer
10.5% Just don't care for his personality

2) What has most shaped your opinion of A-Rod?

43.1% He just seems greedy
23.9% His recent poor play in the postseason
21.6% Who cares? He's a great player
11.4% The media portrays him in a negative light

3) Who do you dislike more?

66.9% Barry Bonds
20.5% Rodriguez
12.6% I like them both

4) At what price would you be willing to have A-Rod on your team?

36.7% $20 million per season
24.8% $15 million per season
15.8% $10 million per season
13.2% Wouldn't want him if he played for free
9.4% Whatever it takes

5) Who would you rather have your team spend $25 million on?

38.4% Do I have to answer this question?
34.9% Alex Rodriguez
26.7% Torii Hunter and Kyle Lohse

6) How does signing A-Rod affect a team's budget?

71.4% He eats up too much payroll to field a winning team
28.6% He's talented enough to justify the big salary

7) Would you want A-Rod and Bonds your team for 2008?

75.3% No
24.7% Yes

8) Which player would you most want on your team?

23.2% Johan Santana
15.7% David Ortiz
14.2% Alex Rodriguez
14.1% Albert Pujols
7.5% Ichiro Suzuki
5.2% Matt Holliday
4.5% David Wright
3.5% Grady Sizemore
3.4% Miguel Cabrera
3.1% Ryan Howard
3.1% Hanley Ramirez
2.7% Jimmy Rollins

9) Which player would you rather have?

69.3% Alex Rodriguez
30.7% David Eckstein

Where do you fall on the scale between tolerating, loving, and despising A-Rod? I can't explain why I chose not to care for A-Rod. It's not that I hate him but he's no where near to being one of my favorite players or even players I follow. Maybe the distaste is pure jealously or maybe it's because he's a Yankee. Like the experts at ESPN.com says, "...this is arguably the best player in baseball, a guy who has averaged 45 home runs and 128 RBIs the past 10 seasons. He plays hard, he plays every day and he puts up those huge numbers." So again, what's the problem with Rodriguez?

If you want to help them make sense of this situation, head to ESPN and take the quiz. Who knows, maybe my opinion of him will change if by some freak accident, the Cubs snatch him. And then again...

Making room for Mr. Hunter

2007-11-14T12:20:00.000-05:00

The White Sox still have not gotten center fielder Torii Hunter to officially commit to them; however their efforts will increase dramatically from now on. This is due to the fact that yesterday was the first day that teams were allowed to make financial offers to the free agents. The White Sox are probably going to spend a good amount of their budget on Torii Hunter and try to convince him to play for the White Sox. Well how much you might be wondering? According to ChicagoSports.com, the White Sox may need to offer Hunter $15 million or more a year in order for him to sign with them, and the contract will probably have to be for at least five years. But we never know. Hunter has recently turned down a $45 million, 3 year offer from the Minnesota Twins. Hunter has also stated that the contract he will sign this year could possibly be his last because Hunter is currently 32 years old.

Ken Williams has stated numerous times that he has large enough finances to sign an all-star player, but now there are some doubts. There has been talk that the White Sox may need to trade starting pitcher Jon Garland and either Joe Crede or Josh Fields, in order to sign Torii Hunter or any good player at that. They need to make room for Hunter financially, and this is how they can do that. It is a possibility that they are going to trade Joe Crede because he will be eligible for the free agency after the 2008 season anyways. But again, there is always the possibility that Josh Fields can go also. I really don’t think it would be a good idea to trade Garland because the White Sox really depend on him as their starting pitcher.

It's a Win

2007-11-12T20:16:00.000-05:00

Sexy Rexy Report: Hell yeah, it feels good to put up a Sexy Rexy Report again. Brian Griese got injured late in the first half and Grossman was put in. He went 7 of 14 for 142 yards and a TD to win the game. I'm glad Grossman got another chance and I'm hoping that if Griese looks like shit for another game that they give Grossman another chance.

The Good: We won, and the defense played well. We'll take what we can from the defense since they have been playing rather poorly as of late.

The Bad: Cedric Benson. He has continually looked like shit this season. I'm up for having Hester put in as a running back and see if he could perform something like Minnesota's Adrian Peterson. I realize he won't be that good, but I think he would be better than Benson.

The Ugly: Grossman had two fumbles, one of which came from his first snap.

The Red Flag Is Flying

2007-11-12T09:46:00.000-05:00

When a red flag is dropped on the field, we all know what is coming next. The TV screen splits into two, revealing both teams' coaches and their reaction, the head referee goes into his little box, watching the play over and over, and the fans hold their breathes. What if I told you that in this instance, we're not talking about football? Instead, this flag had been thrown on the baseball diamond.

Last week, the General Managers of the MLB voted 25-5 in favor of recommending instant replay to Commissioner Bud Selig. Could you imagine this in baseball? Strike one! Oh wait, the White Sox are throwing the flag for an instant replay. Looks like the ruling on the field will stand, still strike one. Here comes the next pitch, ball one. Oh, here comes Lou Piniella and we're going to have another look at it...

Ok, it probably wouldn't really happen like that. At the GM meeting, it was said that instant replay will only be used on "contested home run calls." I could see where this might be helpful, especially in important, life changing games. Check out another baseball fan's opinion here. However, this might all be in vain. In the past, Selig has opposed the use of electronic replays during games to help assist call making. Also, Cubs GM Jim Hendry was among the few that voted against the proposal. I'm guessing that those who opposed instant replay felt that it would be used too much and and used for plays such as foul balls, if someone was safe or out, and even whether or not a pitch was a strike or a ball.

It's not that instant replay is necessarily a bad thing but I just don't see it being used effectively in baseball. Heck, it isn't used effectively in football half the time. Ok, that might be an exaggeration, but let's take the Colts game last night. However much I don't want to talk about it, a point must be made. It was late in the fourth quarter and the Colts appeared to have the 1st down far in Charger territory. Then, officials in the replay booth challenged the spot which reversed the call on the field making it fourth-and-1. Following this catastrophe, the Colts false started, Vinatieri missed a field goal, and all hope was lost. Needless to say, Indianapolis suffered because of this instant replay call. Of course, not all instant replay calls are bad but I still can't see this being used in baseball.

Dempster Is No Dumpster

2007-11-07T19:11:00.000-05:00

Maybe the Cubs have found a key to another successful season. No, they are not planning to start Mike Fontenot but there has been talk of using Ryan Dempster as a starting pitcher. Dempster was the Cubs' main closer these past three seasons and while he didn't do a bad job at the position, he let some games slip away. Would this switch in the pitching department actually help the Cubs? The plan is to move Kerry Wood to the closing position while moving Dempster to a starting position. I don't really see any harm in at least trying this switch.

"We've talked to Dempster about starting," Hendry said Tuesday at the general managers meeting. "Lou [Piniella] talked to him at the end of the year about it. I think Dempster prefers to be a starter. We're talking about a guy who won 15 games as a starter and went to an All-Star Game in that role. We think he will be able to contribute to our rotation."

I think many fans would have better faith in the Cubs bull pen if Dempster was taken out of it. Just take a look at what Cubs' fan, Rob has to say. Personally, I have nothing against Dempster, but fellow bull pen mates Howry and Marmol usually pitch more effectively and in my opinion, could be trusted more with closing duties. And with Wood being added to the pen, this could only mean good things. Last season, Wood allowed .207 average against him. Compare this with Dempster's 4.73 earned-run average in 66 games. If numbers show anything, Wood would be a better closer and help the Cubs hold on to close victories. This move might be one of the smartest things that the team could do at this point.

Hopefully Wood doesn't decide to let go of the Cubs and become a free-agent instead of re-signing. He is obviously an important aspect to the team's pitching and if he left, the Cubs would be forced to find another bull pen arm. Wood has the numbers and the experience which means that Chicago should try very hard to keep him on board for next season. Could this switch between Dempster and Wood be the key to next seasons' success and ultimate victory over every other team in the nation? In my mind I refuse to think otherwise but in reality, it could be a total disaster. But I trust Lou Piniella with the Cubs and am willing to see how this plays out.

Here's some offensive evaluations

2007-11-06T13:57:00.000-05:00

Since the White Sox are in the off-season and there is obviously not too much going on with the trading, I think that it is a great time to evaluate the team and see where we could use some possible improvements.

So let’s start off at first base. The White Sox have Paul Konerko there and he is one of the best hitters, it not the best, on the team. He is also a very good defensive player and to be honest, I really think that we need to build the team around him.

At second base, we have Danny Richar. Richar’s first year in the pros was last year and the White Sox had a lot of expectations for him, and at times he showed us why. He contributes to the team with his speed for the top of the order and he is also a pretty good defensive player. However, I really think that second base could improve. He didn’t really show anything too spectacular last year, but it was his rookie year. Like I stated in a previous post, I think that the White Sox really need to work on improving their middle infield, and hopefully we can take a step towards that with a trade this week or one in the near future.

Now let’s move to shortstop. Juan Uribe played shortstop for the Sox last year and he has a good arm, but it really lacks talent offensively. He is a poor hitter and I think the White Sox could definitely get someone better to help improve the middle infield. Uribe had some off-the-field issues last year and is a free agent at the end of next year.

Like I have said in numerous posts, the White Sox have a dilemma at third base. They have two really good players, Crede and Fields, that will be fighting for the position. I really think that Crede will be the starter next year. He is one of the best all around player s that the White Sox have. Without a doubt he will win a gold glove in his career and he is the best clutch hitter for the White Sox. I am pretty confident that the Sox will end up trading Fields. There is no way that he could replace Joe Crede. So third base is a really solid position, and it doesn’t need any improvements at all.

Now let’s take a look at the outfield. In right field we have Jermaine Dye. Two years ago he made a run at the MVP for the American League. This year he struggled and he definitely had his low and high points. As for fielding, he is an average fielder, but he has a pretty good arm. If the White Sox can find a player that is a better power hitter then they could really use it. But if they can’t, the Dye is a good enough player to stay in right field.

Centerfield is in dire need of an improvement. Last season the White Sox had a variety of players there with not one being really that impressive. Rumor has it that the Sox are trying to acquire Tori Hunter from the free agent market. He would be a huge improvement and asset both offensively and defensively.

In left field for part of the 2007 season we had Scott Podsednik. He is another player for the White Sox who was hurt a lot. He is a decent left fielder, but he is a really, really good offensive player. He steals a lot of bases and does a good job scoring runs. If he can stay healthy then the White Sox will be just fine with left field.

Well I think that is enough for now. I will be sure to write a post in the near future that will evaluate the White Sox bullpen.

Monday After

2007-11-05T20:01:00.000-05:00

It's the Monday after the bye, and things are looking up a little. We've got the Raiders coming up, who shouldn't be a tough task. The Bears are reporting that they're getting Hester involved in the offense. But in that same article they're making excuses for players, which I hate to see, especially since it's for Benson. He's a sorry excuse for a player.

The playoff hopes are gone. The packers have a good lead in the division, and the Lions keep winning. Even the Vikings are playing pretty well. It seems to be a classic case of first to last, or Super Bowl hangover.

The defense should play well against Oakland. They have had time to heal, and hopefully to get some things straightened out.

I Take It Back

2007-11-05T16:43:00.000-05:00

I've been thinking and I hope you all are as terrified as I am. Don't worry, it's not that big of deal. I do it all of the time, I swear. In case you are worrying, I'll let you in on some of the things that have been mulling around in my brain. Mainly, I have been wondering if I would be considered a hypocrite in the eyes of my peers.

This revelation has to do with one of my former posts when I, well, condemned bandwagon fans and those who purchase teams' clothing just because everyone else has them. What, you might ask, does this have to do with me? Well, my birthday is coming up (November 24 in case anyone cares) and of course Christmas so I've been thinking about some stuff I would like. Obviously I am a Cubs fan seeing as I write about the Chicago team and so I asked for a Fontenot jersey. I realized that I don't own any Cubs shirts and that I should probably start a collection sometime soon and what better time to start than my birthday.

And then it hit me. Could I be as bad as those fans who buy jerseys and hats because everyone else has them? The way I answered that question was "mostly no". I do own a Cubs hat and I wear it from time to time when my hair isn't cooperating or on the off chance that a shower was missed. Granted, I do not own any other Cubs merchandise and by asking for some for my birthday, it sort of puts me in the group I expressed my dislike for in my former post. But maybe by declaring my love for the team before I receive my jersey, it will exempt me from the harsh brutalities that other sports followers, including myself, inflict on such "pretend fans". At least I'm hoping that's the case.

So please, if you see me walking around campus in a brand new Fontenot jersey, have mercy. I am now taking back some of the things I said in my earlier post 1. to me more fair and less judgmental and 2. to save my own skin from the hawk-like eyes of fellow sports fans. Hey, I don't want to be called a hypocrite or a fake fan and so I'm saying sorry. Not everyone who goes out and buys new sports apparel are untrue fans or just simply jumping on the bandwagon. It was unfair for me to generalize all fans and I realize that now. So don't call me a hypocrite and don't judge me for wanting a new Cubs jersey. Yes it will be my first one, yes I have loved the Cubs for a while now, and no, I don't think that all Yankees fans are bandwagon riders.

And by I don't, I mean I do.

Aw, I'm just kidding.

I will trade you ..... for ......

2007-11-05T13:43:00.000-05:00

So yes, the deal making has started, and like I stated before, the White Sox are off to a pretty slow start. But,according to Chicagosports.com, the White Sox could possibly make a trade as soon as today. Ken Williams stated that he believes he is in a position to do so, especially with the annual general managers’ meetings starting today in Orlando.

The White Sox main concern in my opinion, is to look for players who can help with center field, the middle infield, and pitching. It would also be nice if we could find some players to help with the top of the batting order too.

Some other news that could possibly come out this week are the answers that will ultimately solve the dilemma between third basemens Josh Fields and Joe Crede. We might finally get the answer to question most people have been wondering about. “Who will play third base next season?” The question will probably be solved with either trading Fields or Crede, and probably not keeping both of them. Yes keeping both of them is a possibility, by putting Fields in the outfield and leaving Crede on third, but is unlikely. Since Crede has been cleared to start playing again, team’s who are looking for a third baseman will more than likely come to the Sox because they have two great ones. So hopefully we will have some exciting trades this week and hopefully get some answers.

Lights, Camera, Action

2007-11-03T17:49:00.000-04:00

Saturday afternoons are the perfect opportunities to catch some great movies on television and today has been no different. While flipping through the channels, I got glimpses of Jurassic Park III, Jaws, Blow, and the ND and Navy football game. Ok, the last one isn't a movie but it might as well be for as many times as they scan the Navy student section. There could not be a stadium filled with better looking men. But even those fellas in uniforms couldn't contain my itchy finger from changing the channel. I eventually ended up on Major League and have concluded that there needs to be a movie involving the Cubs. I don't have a story line, but that can be thought of later. We should probably focus on actors before anything.

I'm not going to run through the entire team but I'll just give you an idea about the kind of actors I'm thinking should be in the movie. To start off, for Piniella, I was thinking along the lines of Jack Nicholson. He's got that charm and yet could have the same fury that Lou brings to the field. Now, Mike Fontenot is going to be played by none other than Owen Wilson. Similar hair, the much loved nose, and of course that boyish, charming personality. Matt Dameon should play Ryan Theriot. Did you see him in The Bourne Ultimatum? Then you know why he should be in this movie. For my first choice to play Derrek Lee, I would choose Denzel Washington. But then I was thinking, would he be able to play baseball or give the illusion that he can? Washington is probably the most hardcore actor in terms of characters he's played, so he could undoubtedly handle this role. But for safety's sake, we'll go with a backup...Taye Diggs. And how about Benjamin Bratt to play Aramis Ramirez? Silent but deadly.

So, I've got the actors. Now we just need to think of a plot. I'll leave that to the skilled writers that will be hired. Maybe we can get writers from hits such as The Lion King, Field of Dreams, and Billy Madison. All three movies have a great story with adventure and a sense of accomplishment at the end. If we get writers from all three films, I think we could create some magic on the big screen.

If Major League can become such a great movie than surely a movie about the Chicago Cubs can do just as well. Everyone likes a story about an underdog and heck, maybe it will help them win. No one thought Boston would win the World Series when they started making Fever Pitch and look what happened. This movie needs to be realized. And maybe in a couple of years, I'll be watching Saturday afternoon flicks and come across a classic about the Cubs and remember that on such a Saturday, the movie began with one girl's dream.

It could happen.

A Pretty Inexpensive Free Agency for the White Sox

2007-11-02T14:30:00.000-04:00

The Chicago White Sox claimed that they would like to have a competitive team through the free agency for the 2008 season. Well lucky for them, this is a inexpensive decision due to their poor 2007 season.

According to ChicagoSports.com, two free agent center-fielders, Torii Hunter and Aaron Rowand, who are on the Sox list, were classified as Type A free agents this past week. This is good for the Sox because they are in need of a center-fielder. If the White Sox decide to sign either of these players, it will result in them only losing a second-round pick because they finished with one of the 15 worst seasons in 2007 (although we really don’t like to be reminded of it.) Whereas, if we finished with one of the top 15 records, we would have lost a first-round pick. And in case you were wondering, in the 2008 draft, the White Sox will have eight overall selection.

The Sox are still facing their dilemma with what they should do with Juan Uribe. They will need to decide by next Wednesday whether or not they are going to pick up Juan Uribe’s $5 million option.

We are just getting our feet wet.... a little

2007-11-02T08:55:00.000-04:00

Another week has gone by and the Chicago White Sox have yet to really test the free agency market. Although, they have recently decided to decline their option on Darin Erstad, who was the White Sox first baseman and outfielder this past 2007 season. And if you remember, he was the guy that the Sox picked up in the off-season who was SUPPOSE TO give them depth in the outfield and infield. He was also also SUPPOSE TO help the Sox with the top of their batting order. I think that it was a good choice to get rid of Erstad and here is why:

This past season he did not really play many games for the White Sox. He was hurt for about half of the season. When he did have a chance to come back into the lineup, he would either re-injure something or injure a new body part. And as for batting, I don’t think that he really ever found his swing. I don’t think he was exactly what the White Sox thought they were getting. But so far he is the only player that the White Sox have decided to release.

Everyone is now probably wondering what the Sox will want to do with their start third baseman Joe Crede. He had his 2007 season cut short because of a serious back injury, which actually resulted in him getting a season ending back surgery. He is entering the final year of his contract and no one really knows what the White Sox are going to do with him. His 2007 season replacement was Josh Fields. It would be an understatement to say that Fields had a good season, he actually had an outstanding rookie season and brought a lot to the team both offensively and defensively. The White Sox have been waiting for their chance to bring Fields into the big leagues. Granted, he had sort of a slow start, but by the end of the season, he was one of the White Sox power hitters.

So this is where the White Sox are in a little bit of a dilemma. What should they do with Crede and Fields and who deserves third base? They have two really good player and essentially only one spot to put them. There has been talk about possibly converting Fields into an outfielder, but there is no definite answer as of right now.

In my opinion, I think they should give the spot to Joe Crede. I think that all around, he is a better player than Fields. He is a great hitter and probably one of the best defensive third baseman in the league.
I think that Fields’s downfall would be his batting average. Yes he is a good power hitter, but he does not have a consistently good batting average. And like I said above, Fields is a good defensive player, but I think that Crede is better than him on that aspect.
However, you have to take into consideration that this is the first year that Fields played in the big leagues. So in my opinion, I think that the White Sox should keep Crede and either figure out a way to convert Fields into a position that they need (possibly a center fielder) or they need to trade him.

So this pretty much raps up another disappointing week for the White Sox and the trading industry. Hopefully next week the Sox will make a move that is a little more exciting and will give us some insight into what the 2008 season might be like.

Bye Week

2007-11-01T21:40:00.000-04:00

The Bears have the bye this week, which they should use to prepare themselves for the rest of the season. Here's my list of what the Bears need to do to improve:

1. Get Orton ready to start. Griese looked good at first, but last game he looked like Grossman on a bad day. Although he didn't fumble any snaps, he still threw four interceptions. Some people are still thinking playoffs, and our best chance for that is to put Orton in at QB.

2. Heal Urlacher. He has been having some sort of strange back pain, but he is playing through it. He needs to get some relief and start playing to a level he's capable of.

3. Revive the Defense. Adam Archuleta is a terrible safety. He needs to go. Something is wrong with the defense; they aren't playing like they should be. I don't know how to fix it, but then again I don't get paid to fix it either.

4. Find a way to involve Hester in the offense that in some way that isn't a trick play. He would make a better running back than Benson. Benson is ass-awful and he needs traded after this year, although I doubt they could get anything for him.

Exchange Uribe for A-Rod?

2007-11-01T20:58:00.000-04:00

Once the World Series was over, the White Sox needed to decide what they wanted to do with Juan Uribe along with a few others (Darin Erstad and Mike Myers). An option could be A-Rod? Yes, Alex Rodriguez is a third baseman, but according to the LA Times, A-Rod’s agent Scott Boras is trying to market him as not only a third baseman but also as a shortstop. Well we know that we aren’t going to get rid of Crede or Fields, so what about Uribe? Uribe has made his fair share of mess-ups this season, but he has 20+ homeruns and didn’t completely suck. So this could be a possibility. The fact that he was a Gold Glove shortstop in 2002 is a definite plus. They question is however, are we willing to pay for Alex Rodriquez? I mean the guy is going for about $30 million a year. Anyone would want A-Rod, but teams like the White Sox and the Cubs are especially attracted to him because of his shortstop capabilities.

It is sort of unlikely that the White Sox will sign A-Rod, mainly because of the financial situation. But according to the LA Times, some baseball sources stated that the Angels are currently the front-runners. So there are many possibilities to where A-Rod might play next. We just know that he wants to get away from the Yankees. We’ll just have to wait and see to find out how everything will play out.

Chicago has a lake. Why not get a Laker to go with it?

2007-10-31T22:05:00.000-04:00

Have you heard the one about how Kobe Bryant wants to be traded? Oh...you have. Then this won't be news for you, unless you're a Chicago Bulls' fan. The only difference is that now the Lakers are willing to let him go so Kobe would no longer be a distraction to the team, as well as the Lakers organization. Kobe has mentioned that his team of choice is the Chicago Bulls, due to their rising talent. Kobe also realizes that the Bulls are based upon teamwork and role playing, but they are still missing that one final piece. Kobe figures he is that Jordan-esque player that can bring some glory back to Chicago.

John Paxson has been willing to listen to the different trade offers, but none of them sound good at the moment. These rumors range from giving up Deng, Gordon, Noah, and Thomas, to Gordon, Hinrich, and Wallace, to Gordon, Hinrich, and Nocioni. Basically, Ben Gordon was involved in every trade aspect. The Bulls organization is having trouble do not want to give up Luol Deng, since he is the Bulls most consistent player and shows the biggest upside of the baby Bulls.

BullsCentral.com listed 5 reasons why Kobe will not go to the Chicago Bulls. Some reasons are that Jerry Buss doesn't want to let Kobe go and how Scott Skiles has limitations as a coach. With the deadline for Deng's and Gordon's contract deadlines coming up, this only adds more pressure to the Bulls organization. Deng and Gordon were the Bulls' two leading scorers last season and for Chicago and for Chicago to lose one of them would be a major loss.

Another trade rumor that came up was that there would be a third team involved. One team that was willing to get in on the trade action would be the Sacramento Kings, who are willing to give up Ron Artest and try to pick up a point guard, such as Hinrich or Gordon, to replace the injured Mike Bibby. In this trade, Sacremento would acquire a Bulls' guard. Sacremento would acquire Ron Artest and possible Ben Wallace. And then of course Chicago would get Kobe.

I know that this whole Kobe Bryant trade drama has been on and off for I don't even know how long, but this is the closest that Chicago has been to getting Kobe. He may not play the same team ball Chicago does, but the fact of the matter is that Kobe is the best player in the NBA, hands down. On the Lakers opening night game, Kobe dropped 45 points, 18 of which came in the 4th quarter, in a loss against the Houston Rockets.

All in all, I think Chicago would benefit tremendously if they acquired Kobe, even if it means the loss of Ben Gordon. I doubt that any of these trade rumors will happen, but I guarantee these rumors will come up many times in the future. Until then, the Bulls will be just fine without Kobe. Chicago will continue to play the same team basketball that they have played these few years, and they will continue to get better with or without a true star player.

Here are some of the few Kobe Bryant highlights.

The 30 Million Dollar Man

2007-10-31T16:31:00.000-04:00

As the World Series wrapped up, many baseball players and fans are now looking towards the off season and the transactions that are sure to make a difference. For the Cubs, there is one man that everyone is wondering whether or not will join the team. A-Rod is known to want to play for his former manager, Lou Piniella, but the likelihood of him joining the team is not that great. Basically, it comes down to money. The Cubs spent $300 million last season acquiring various players and it would be unwise to make another big purchase. Rodriguez costs $30 million a year. THIRTY MILLION! At this point, unless there is a price reduction, it is doubtful that A-Rod will be playing for the Cubs next season. As upsetting as this might be to fans, it's not the end of the world.

I am satisfied with Aramis Ramirez playing at third base. If A-Rod came, where would he go? He played exceptionally well for the Cubs and if anyone deserves a spot on the team, it's him. So is it Alex Rodriguez or Aramis Ramirez? If A-Rod came, it would undoubtedly help the team out but would it bring too much media attention? Would everyone be happy with this purchase?

As rumors are spread and Rodriguez continues to look around at other teams, all fans can do is wait. It might work out for the Cubs and Piniella may get to manage a former player. But again, is it wise for the Cubs to make any major purchases with the $300 spending spree that took place last year? It's not like the team doesn't have the money but the real issue is whether or not they should be spending that money on one person. I think this comes down to Ramirez being a perfect fit for the Cubs and A-Rod being too much of a distraction, for the most part. I suppose we'll see how these events unfold and how much money the Cubs are willing to spend on one player soon enough.

Pizza Hut is for Winners

2007-10-29T16:45:00.000-04:00

Remember after your big Little League Championship when you, your teammates, and the adults would gather at Pizza Hut to celebrate? The evening would be filled with toasts, too much pizza, and random items (salt, bread sticks, straw wrappers) being placed in drinks. There was nothing better than this celebratory dinner and the tradition continued throughout your sporting career. Heck, my sister, who is a senior in high school, just won volleyball sectionals last week and where did everyone go after the big win? Pizza Hut. So where, I wonder, did Boston go to celebrate their World Series win?

Surely they didn't gather their families and head to the local pizza place. Did they just do a lot of yelling, champagne opening, and slapping of the butt in the locker room and call it a night? Or could they have ditched their wives and all made their way downtown to a popular bar? I hope they didn't just shower and go home. That's anticlimactic. This is the World Series! We need some serious celebrating to go on after a team sweeps another team in the World Series.

How will we ever know how professional teams celebrate? And how cool would it be if you were enjoying your team's victory in a pub and in walked in your favorite players? I'm telling you, go to a Pizza Hut. Maybe they'll still remember the Little League games with the all-you-can-eat pizza buffet and want to relive it. Sports and pizza are often seen together but Pizza Hut and Victory go hand in hand with no chance of ever separating.

Think about it. If you lost a game, what did you eat? Stuff from the night before, cereal, or anything you can round up from your refrigerator. I'd say close to never did your parents take you for pizza when you lost. "You obviously didn't play hard enough to eat Pizza Hut so why should we indulge you?" is what your (and my) parents were thinking. And I guess it makes sense. If Boston players didn't remember those tearful nights of losing and not getting to eat pizza, they might have never swept Colorado. But they kept those memories of victory fresh in their minds and look what happened...World Champions.

So don't tell me that you don't like pizza. And don't go further to tell me you don't care for Pizza Hut because all I will infer is that you don't like winning. Will I call you a loser? No. You would have already done that yourself.

It Hurts

2007-10-28T19:44:00.000-04:00

Griese Chicken Report: His performance this week may be enough to get the quarterback controversy started again, but this time it will involve Kyle Orton. He threw for 4 interceptions today, and only one touchdown. He went from NFC Player of the Week last week to playing like Sexy Rexy this week.

The Good: Pissed Off at Da' Bears Blog was right that getting Olsen involved in the offense is good. Otherwise there wasn't a whole lot of good to be found. The defense held Detroit to 16 points which is a lot better than their first meeting where they let them score 34 points in the 4th quarter which was enough for an NFL record.

The Bad: The offense has looked terrible for almost this entire season. Benson has looked awful. He ran for a meager 50 yards and had a 3.8 yard average. The Bears aren't being able to force turnovers this season, which was one of their biggest keys to success last year. They're also having a hard time getting Hester involved in the offense, which could be the spark the offense needs.

The Ugly: The Bears are 0-3 following a victory, meaning they don't have any back to back wins this season.

Injury Report

2007-10-26T14:25:00.000-04:00

The Bears continue to be plagued by injuries, and this week is no different than the rest. Tommie Harris's hamstring is likely made out of the same old rubber bands as Mike Brown's tendons are. He did have full participation on Thursday though, so we should see him Sunday. Defensive backs Vasher and McGowan did not participate in Thursday's practice, which could mean bad news for the Bears against Kitna. Offensive linemen Fred Miller and Ruben Brown are both injured, but Brown was good to go as of Thursday, and Miller had some participation. The Bears are going to have to get healthy if they want to be competitive.

I got some rumors for ya....

2007-10-25T22:58:00.000-04:00

After a horrible season, the Chicago White Sox are hoping to make some off-season moves. Their ultimate goal: improve and to not have a repeat of the 2007 season.
The first thing on my list would be to hopefully improve the relief pitching. Let’s face it, the White Sox bullpen is very inconsistent and unreliable. But they are going to try and fix that real soon. There have been rumors circling that the White Sox are going to try and get the famous, future Hall of Famer Marian Rivera. However, with this excitement there comes some problems:

1.Where would they put him?

2.How much would they have to pay him? And more importantly, how much are they willing to pay him?

My Answers:

Q1: The White Sox already have an unbelievable closer, Bobby Jenks, and we all know that we certainly don’t want to get rid of him. So actually I don’t have an certain answer for that question. It will be a toss-up and a hard decision for the Sox.

Q2: Well we all know every extremely valuable player comes with a high price. So Riveria will not be cheap by any means. In my opinion, I think he might be a little to pricey for the White Sox.

The second aspect of the White Sox team that I think will need improvement is centerfield and I think that the White Sox agree. There have been rumors about the Sox being interested in Carl Crawford from the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. I believe that this would be a great fit for our South Siders. Crawford is an awesome leadoff man and an even better centerfielder. He can be considered a threat both offensively and defensively. However, with this proposal also comes some problems.

1.They White Sox will need to give up a few players in order to get Crawford.

2.Also, there is always the possibility that Tampa Bay might not be interested.

Other than some possible player changes, the White Sox have also made some coaching changes. They have recently added Jeff Cox as the new 3rd base coach. And hopefully the bullpen will improve under the new command of Juan Nieves, who was also just appointed the position. Both of these positions weren’t coached very well last year at all. I think that these moves will be good for the team and the upcoming 2008 season. The White Sox need to step it up next season and hopefully these new changes will help them achieve their goals and lead them to a successful season.

Like I stated the possible trades are just rumors. But, I hope that we can turn these rumors in facts in the near future.

So the trading talk is beginning, but soon enough we will have some definite answers. Let’s just hope that the White Sox can make some wise trades and we can almost guarantee that the will have a better 2008 season.

Baseball Shenanigans

2007-10-24T15:35:00.000-04:00

I've always wanted to get arrested for running out on a baseball field, you know, like in the movies. Except they seem to never get arrested or in trouble at all. But in reality, if you mess with the cops at a professional baseball game, you're going to get in trouble. Period. Just ask seven Red Sox fans.

They were ordered by a judge to write a 5-page essay explaining to the court what they have learned about being arrested after a Red Sox game. This wasn't just any game, it was the one to win the American League Championship so there were bound to be some rowdy, overexcited fans in Fenway. If you're going to get arrested, make sure it's for disorderly conduct at a baseball game. That will make a good story for the children someday. You can read the whole story here.

At least no one was killed after this particular game. Apparently, a young woman was killed in 2004 by a pepper pellet fired by a cop after Boston won the AL pennant. Hopefully, cops will keep everything in line for tonight's Game 1 of the World Series. If the movie Fever Pitch told us anything about Red Sox fans, it's that they're crazy. Or maybe it's just Jimmy Fallon.

I can't help but think of the World Series and how the Cubs should be battling it out. No, I'm not saying that they deserve to be in it more than the Rockies or Red Sox, it would just be nice to have Chicago in there. I would have something to look forward to at least. You know, something to get excited about, other than my two exams and the mound of laundry staring me in the face. Oh well. Do I dare to say it? Should I even root for a team? I'll keep it inside so I don't ruin it for either teams' fans. No one needs my jinx on them tonight.

2 for 1: Bulls branded by Mavericks in loss; Chicago Bulls shut Milwaukee the 'Buck' up

2007-10-24T00:19:00.000-04:00

The Dallas Mavericks decided to end their preseason on a high note with a victory over the Chicago Bulls Tuesday night. Chicago was glad to finally have Gordon back, but they were still without Luol Deng. Chicago was down two more players the Chicago Bulls waived free agents Andre Barrett and Justin Homan. Rookie Aaron Gray once again started in the line-up since he has been impressively consistent. Gray started the game off well by scoring 6 of the Bulls first 8 points. Then Josh Howard decided to answer back by scoring 10 points in a row for the Mavericks. By the end of the second quarter, the Mavericks had taken a 57-45 lead over Chicago.

By the beginning of the second half, the Bulls were desperate for some sort of offensive spark. However, they were not able to find one. Chicago only managed 16 points in the third quarter, while Dallas was led once again by Josh Howard, who helped extend their lead. Josh Howard had already dropped a game high 19 points before he left in third quarter due to a wrist injury.

In the fourth quarter, Chicago finally picked it up on offense. Benchwarmers Thabo Sefolosha, Thomas Gardner, and Joakim Noah carried the offensive load for Chicago. All three finished the game with 12 points each. However, this was not enough to catch back up to the Dallas Mavericks, and the Bulls fell to the Mavericks, 88-96.

Dallas received strong contributions from guards Jason Terry, who finished with 16 points and shot 6-for-6 from the field, and Devin Harris, who finished with 13 points and 4 assists. Chicago and Dallas tied their preseason series by winning a game apiece.

Box Score of the Game
Video Recap of the Game

Thursday night was the Chicago Bulls preseason closer against the Milwaukee Bucks. The Bulls started the game with their regular season projected starting line-up, which consisted of Kirk Hinrich, Ben Gordon, Luol Deng, Tyrus Thomas, and Ben Wallace. Milwaukee was without star shooting guard Michael Redd and center Andrew Bogut. Chicago took advantage of their absences by running the ball up and down the court. Luol Deng led the first quarter charge by scoring 8 of his 12 game points. Every starter scored in the first quarter.

The second quarter was pretty stagnant for both teams. Both teams only managed to score 22 points each. Chicago finished off the first half with a 52-43 lead. Ben Wallace left the second quarter due to a sprained left ankle. This would be the beginning of a string of injuries of Chicago big men during the game.

Ben Gordon opened the second by draining a 3-pointer. Ben Gordon even worked on his passing game by dishing out 3 assists. Joe Smith went on a tear at the end of the third quarter by scoring Chicago's final 8 points. This was by far Joe Smith's best performance of the preseason. Chicago opened up a 13 point lead going into the final quarter. However, Tyrus Thomas left the game in the third quarter due to a right foot injury.

Thomas Gardner put away the Bucks by scoring all of his 9 points in the fourth quarter. Mailwaukee's Yi Jianlian lead the Bucks in fourth quarter scoring by scoring 7 points. Joakim Noah was taken out of the game in the final quarter due to a right ankle injury. Despite the losses of Wallace, Thomas, and Noah, Chicago was able to hold on to their lead and finish off the preseason with a 97-81 victory over Milwaukee.

The Bulls finished off the preseason with a 4-3 record, but the damage had been done in the final game. According to "Blog-a-bull," Wallace and Thomas should be fine, but Noah could miss the season opener. Chicago will open its season on Halloween night in New Jersey against the Nets. New Jersey better have their candy bags ready because Chicago is going to be dishing out a lot of special treats for them, as well as some tricks.

Box Score of the Game
Video Recap of the Game

1 Under .500

2007-10-22T19:37:00.000-04:00

Griese Chicken Report: He threw for over 300 yards and didn't throw an interception. He only threw one touchdown, but it came at a vital time; an end of the game touchdown drive to win. His communication device in his helmet before the last drive, which means he called all the plays himself to go 97 yards and throw a touchdown pass. I have to agree with Jeff at Da' Bears Blog that Brian Griese is the Bears quarterback. I was skeptical at first of him, and thought that they should have given Grossman another chance, but after Sunday I have to say Griese has earned his chance.

The Good: The Bears earned their first victory over McNabb. McNabb had never lost to the Bears before this game. Brian Urlacher looked like his self of old, recording 8 tackles and 4 assists. Russ at Bears Gab points out that the Bears are back in the playoff hunt for now. The NFC North isn't looking that great, and the Bears may even have a shot of winning the division.

The Bad: The running game still hasn't picked up, even with Griese throwing for over 300 yards. Benson had 46 yards on 17 attempts, which is awful (this week's rushing leader was Watson with Cincinnati, who had 130 yards on 31 attempts). Peterson had 21 yards on 4 rushes, which makes me question why he didn't get the ball more.

The Ugly: Redzone percentages for both teams. Chicago went 1/3 and Philly went 1/4. The Bears really need to improve this, although it was nice to see the Bears D hold Philly to 1/4 in the redzone.

Cleveland Doesn't Rock

2007-10-22T09:43:00.000-04:00

Apparently any team I root for is bound to lose. Example: the Cubs, Purdue, and now the Indians. I am very sorry to all Cleveland fans because I feel like I am somewhat responsible for they're loss to Boston last night. Maybe if I hadn't promoted them, they would have hung on to their 3-1 series lead and made it into the World Series. I really wish they had. This World Series is going to be worthless for me to watch. I could really care less about both teams. I suppose Colorado fans as well as Boston fans are incredibly thrilled that their teams are in the final series but where does that leave me? A Cubs fan? Oh that's right, exactly where I'm used to. Watching my team fall out into the land of nothingness while other teams, that I have no interest in, continue dominating and finally make it into the World Series. Just tell me when it's over.

Now that I think about it, it wasn't my fault Cleveland lost. They never put in Rick "Wild Thing" Vaughn.

Cubs fans can still hope for something. Maybe Alex Rodriguez, the talented Yankee third basemen, will opt out of his contract and become a free agent. And maybe, A-Rod will want to play for Lou Piniella once again. And quite possibly, he'll stop wearing pinstripes and put on the 'ole white and blue. Hey, the Cubs have just as good a chance at acquiring Rodriguez than any other MLB team. That would definitely excite many Chicago fans, including me. I could learn to forget that he played for the Yankees.

2 for 1: Raptors go Jurassic on the Bulls; Pacers, ironically, can't keep up with the running Bulls

2007-10-21T15:36:00.000-04:00

Friday night, the Chicago Bulls took on the Toronto Raptors. The Raptors had just completed part of their preseason play in Europe and were now back in the U.S. to place Chicago. With star Chris Bosh sitting out, the Raptors had to find another way to tear away at the Chicago Bulls. So Toronto turned to 2nd-year player Andrea Bargnani. This 7 ft. shooting wonder scored a game high 21 points for the Toronto Raptors.

Chicago lacked the scoring abilities of Ben Gordon after rumors of him playing didn't fall through. Chicago also lost the defensive play of Ben Wallace. Chicago was led by the big man scoring rookie Aaron Gray who dropped 14 points. Andres Nocioni contributed with 12 points. The Bulls' record is now at 2-2 in preseason play.

The Toronto Raptors was one of the surprise teams of last season. Coach Sam Mitchell was awarded the NBA's Coach of the Year Award last year for his contribution to the much improved play of the Toronto Raptors. With last year's additions of Andrea Bargnani and Jorge Garbajosa, Toronto was able to establish a big man shooting touch from the perimeter. Look for Toronto to be even more improved this year with the acquisition of sharp shooter Jason Kapono.

Video Recap of the Game

Due to difficulty with NBA.com, games stats could not be provided.

The next night, the Bulls bounced back with a victory over the Indiana Pacers. With both Luol Deng and Ben Gordon sitting out, Chicago had to figure out some sort of offense. So Chicago found a passing a game from guards Kirk Hinrich, Thabo Sefolosha, and Chris Duhon. These three combined for 18 of the teams 29 assists. Thabo made his first home appearance for the Bulls.

The Bulls decided to go with a different starting line-up for this game. Hinrich remained the starting point guard, and Ben Wallace remained the starting center. Sefalosha, Nocioni, and Gray all found their way into the starting rotation. Nocioni finished with a team high 20 points. Tyrus Thomas added 15 points from off the bench, and Hinrich and Gray contributed 10 points respectively. Noah came off the bench to have a near double-double with 9 points and 10 rebounds. The Bulls improved to 3-2 in preseason play.

You can't blame the Pacers' poor play for everything since they were missing their two main big men, Jermaine O'Neal and Troy Murphy. Indiana's Shawne Williams finished with a game high 22 points, while Mike Dunleavy and Danny Granger finished with 18 points and 17 points respectively. The Pacers fall to 4-2 in preseason action.

The Bulls play the Mavericks at Dallas on Tuesday night in hope of improving their overall preseason record to 4-2.

Box Score of the Game
Video Recap of the Game

Bears vs Eagles

2007-10-20T17:58:00.000-04:00

Griese Chicken Report: It's a strange day, a Bears quarterback actually looked good. He looked really good, and not just good for a Bears quarterback. He's starting to get new weapons too, like Olsen and Berrian. Berrian has 30 receptions for 408 yards, and Olsen is tough to cover. He only has 11 catches 148 yards but he can block, which is confusing for linebackers. Jeff at Da' Bears Blog gets it right. Theres no need to cover your eyes when Griese drops back.

Key Matchup: Bears D vs themselves. The Bears defense has been terrible the last couple of games. Philly doesn't have a great offense, but the Vikings really didn't either until Adrian Peterson had a break out game last week. Urlacher looks terrible this season, and the secondary is falling apart. They're going to have to toughen up and stop McNabb this week.

The Secondary

2007-10-18T19:18:00.000-04:00

The defense as a whole sucked against the Vikings, but the secondary really looked like shit. The secondary should be playing better than they are. They aren't composed of super-stars, but they are capable of playing better than they have been. Here's a rundown of this group who played terrible.

1. Ricky Manning Jr., #24-Corner Back. He's in for the injured Nate Vasher, who is a badass. Ricky Manning Jr. has 12 tackles this season, which is one less than the league average 13, but he hasn't started every game so this stat is a little deceiving. All of his tackles have been solo tackles this year though, and he should be coming up to assist the linebackers on running players.

2. Charles Tillman, #33-Corner Back. I don't have much complaint with Tillman. He was injured in week 4 against the Lions, but he has 23 tackles and 3 forced fumbles. 2 of those forced fumbles came against the packers, and basically won the game for the Bears because those 2 forced fumbles ended scoring drives for the packers.

3. Daniel Manning, #38-Safety. 2nd year player out of Abilene Christian, he has 22 tackles and an interception on the year. He's getting better as the year goes on, but he still has problems with letting receivers get behind him.

4. Adam Archuleta, #20-Safety. I saved the worst for last. You know a player has fucked up when Lovie Smith gives the old "Adam Archuleta is our safety" bit. Archuleta is a household name for what he did with the Rams, but he sucked in Washington last season, eventually getting benched, and hasn't been playing very well for the Bears this season. He has 26 tackles, but he has more tackles than the rest because quarterbacks pick on him. He does have one interception but the Bears expected him to be a leader in the secondary (I'm not really sure why since fucking Washington benched him) but the Bears benched him after he stood around and watched Adrian Peterson past him several times in the game against the Vikings. To his defense somewhat is the fact that Adrian Peterson looks like he could be the most impressive back in the league.

Joe Smith debuts in preseason win over Wizards

2007-10-17T21:04:00.000-04:00

All of Chicago was waiting to see what Joe Smith had to bring to the table. Last night, Chicago got their first glimpse. In his 13 minutes of play, Joe Smith scored 7 points and grabbed 1 rebound. One of his baskets was a jumper from the top of the key. This showed that he possesses somewhat of a mid-range jumpshot.

As a team, Chicago's stifling defense was able to shut down Washington's offense and give them their first preseason loss. Not only did the Bulls beat the Wizards, but they basically laid the smackdown on their candy asses. Chicago held Washington's shooting to 32%. With Caron Butler sitting out, Gilbert Arenas and Antawn Jamison were expected to lead the Wizards to victory, but Chicago had other plans in mind. The only major offense for Washington was done at the free throw line, where they shot 34 for 41. Washington even had twice as many blocks as Chicago, but it was not enough to contain Chicago's momentum.

The first quarter was all Bulls and all defense. Chicago held Washington to only 11 points. Granted the Bulls weren't exactly shooting lights out, but their offense wasn't nearly as disastrous as Washington's. Tyrus Thomas added some major momentum after slamming down a putback dunk, which also granted him the NBA.com Dunk of the Night honors.

In the second quarter, Washington's offense began to pick up due to the up tempo play of rookie Nick Young. But the Bulls kept right up with Washington. Chicago was once again led off the bench by Chris Duhon, who had 6 points and 3 assists in the second quarter. To go along with Chicago's outstanding defense, rookie Aaron Gray earned the NBA.com Block of the Night honors after stuffing Nick Young as he was going up for a dunk. Chicago's 10 point lead diminished, but at the end of the half, they still had a 39-34 lead over the Wizards.

The third quarter was just a continuation of the ass whooping Chicago gave Washington in the first half. The Bulls' passing game was in motion with 12 of their 14 made field goals coming off of assists. Seven different Bulls players scored in the 3rd quarter. The offensive onslaught was started by Deng and Gardner, and then it was finished by Nocioni, Smith, and Hinrich. By the end of the quarter, the Bulls had gained a comfortable 75-54 lead.

In the fourth quarter, both teams emptied the benches and let them go at it. Offensively there wasn't much to see. Both teams finished the quarter with only 22 points each. However, there was one highlight. Chicago's Andre Barrett had a perfect pass through traffic in the line to a wide open Joakim Noah. Noah capped this pass off with a dunk. This assist earned Andre Barrett with the NBA.com Assist of the Night. After the damage had been done, the final score of the game was Chicago over Washington, 97-76.

In my previous post, I said that the keys to the game were:

(1)Contain Arenas and Jamison- They shot a combined 1-12 from the field. Washington went 0-14 from 3-point range.

(2) Battle of the benches-Chicago's bench out-shot Washington's bench 60 to 52.

Chicago's highest scorer was Luol Deng, who finished with 11 points. This goes to show that Chicago can win without a prolific scorer as long as Chicago can continue to play team basketball.

Chicago improves their preseason record to 2-1. Chicago will face the Toronto Raptors on Friday. In order to win and make these Raptors extinct, Chicago must be all over defensive rebounds, and they must stop Toronto's 3-point shooting.

Chicago has continued to improve throughout preseason play, and I know that all of Chicago is looking forward to how much better the Bulls will be once Ben Gordon returns to the line-up. Just a warning for Toronto: Ben Gordon expects to play on Friday.

Box Score of the Game

Video Recap of the Game

It's Dusty in Cincinni

2007-10-17T10:38:00.000-04:00

Playoff News: The Rockies are heading to the World Series after they completed a sweep of Arizona this week. Did anyone predict this? To me, the Rockies came out of left field, so to speak, and have been on a run that no one could have imagined. For as easily as the D'backs rolled over the Cubs, the Rockies did the same to them. I was rooting for Arizona so I could say that the Cubs lost to a team who made it into the World Series, making me feel better about my team being kicked out of the playoffs. Sadly, this didn't happen and now all I can do is root for Cleveland. Why? Why not.

Transactions: If anyone cares, the Cubs promoted Jay Blunk to vice president of marketing and broadcasting, Oneri Fleita to vice president of player personnel, Mark O'Neal to director of athletic training, Carl Rice to senior director of information systems and Jenny Surma to senior director of human resources. If you know who any of those people are, then great, I hope you are happy about the changes. I'm more interested in the Reds making Dusty Baker their new manager.

Of course, Baker was once the manager for the Cubs. The Chicago Cubs were 67-95 in 2002, and with Baker at the helm the next season compiled an 88-74 record, winning the National League Central and getting within five outs of the World Series. Does his appointment mean that the Reds will become a force to be reckoned with next season? Cincinnati hasn't had a winning season since 2000 and Baker is ready to turn this around.

"I'm excited about coming here to try to re-establish the winning attitude and winning feeling I've always known Cincinnati to have," said Baker. "I'm in a situation where I wanted to get back on the field, I wanted to be in a situation where I had a chance to win, losing eats me up on the inside like you wouldn't believe. I'm used to winning and being on top. We're going to try to change things," said Baker.

I know this sounds blasphemous but I like the Reds. They are in the NL Central, like the Cubs, and I should hate them with enough passion to make me red in the face. But they are a respectable ball club with distinguished players (Freel, Dunn, Griffey, Jr.) and their fans are always behind them 100%. I've even been to the Great American Ball Park and have seen first hand the energy and devotion that fills the stadium. I even own a Ryan Freel t-shirt. Call me crazy or call me stupid, but I like the Reds. If the appointment of Dusty Baker means that the Reds will begin to rebuild their program and develop into a team that can win games consistently, than I'm all for it. I'd rather watch Cincinnati and Chicago battling for first place in the NL Central than I would any other two teams. But lets not get carried away. My loyalties continue to be with the Cubbies and that fact will never change. I just hope, for the fans' sake, that D. Baker can turn things around for Cincinnati.

Robinson Legacy Award is presented to Minnie Minoso

2007-10-16T15:10:00.000-04:00

History Lession:

Minnie Minoso played for the Chicago White Sox for the first time on May 1, 1951 for a home game against the Yankees. He was the first man of “color” to ever play for the White Sox. Over a 17 season career, Minoso had a .298 average including 186 career home runs and he stole 205 bases.

Minoso was considered to be a big aspect to the White Sox organization, and still is. Reinsdorf stated recently, “"Minnie is probably the most popular player in the history of the [White Sox] franchise. People who never saw him play love him. He has an amazing magnetic personality. He draws people to him….”

Minoso played during seven different decades, which is pretty amazing. His most recent appearance was on June 30, 1993, where he set the record with the St. Paul Saints Independent League.

Present Time:

Minnie Minoso was recently presented the Robinson Legacy Award, which is sponsored by the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum. This organization recognizes baseball’s most outstanding players by giving them bronzed statues.
All of these exceptional athletes will be honored in Kansa City during a gala that will be help on January 12, 2008.

**Quote from Chicago White Sox’s official website**

Damn Loan Sharks

2007-10-15T23:11:00.000-04:00

Griese Chicken Report: For a Bears quarterback, Brian Griese was exceptional yesterday. He threw for 381 yards and 3 touchdowns. Throwing 2 interceptions is something he could improve on, but the numbers he put up give the Bears a chance to win. He has steadily improved since he first started, and I think the more he plays the less mistakes he is going to make. I have to agree with Jeff at Da' Bears Blog that it's too early to throw the towel in. No, we aren't going to win the Super Bowl, but to see the Bears go 8-8 would be nice.

The Good: ChiTownBluesFan at Mega Bears got it right. Hester was once again a freak. Olsen is starting to become a weapon. The problem is that they don't get the ball enough. With Clark, the other tight end, the Bears should have no problem throwing the ball to the tight ends. We also saw that Olsen can block. They lined him up one on one against an enormous defensive end and Olsen held his own.

The Bad: The Vikings Adrian Peterson ran all over the Bears defense. He ran for 224 yards. If the Vikings coach wasn't retarded, Peterson could of had around 320 yards easily. The Bears couldn't stop him. He's the only player I've seen this year that is more explosive than Hester.

The Ugly: Benson is terrible. His defenders talk about about how he's equal to Thomas Jones of last year. Thomas Jones ran for 130 yards for the Jets yesterday. The fucking Jets. They are terrible. Archuleta is ass awful. He got his ass handed to him several times. Also, I owe quite a bit of money to unsavory characters because the Bears lost, maybe I should bet against the Bears next week...

Bulls win preseason home opener against Mavericks

2007-10-15T19:43:00.000-04:00

The Bulls needed a little redemption after dropping their first preseason game to Milwaukee. So the Bulls decided to put a smile on the face of Chicago after taking down Dallas by a score of 100-92. Luol Deng had a much better offensive game by putting down a team-high 18 points. In 20 minutes, Deng shot 6-7 from the field and 6-8 from the free throw line. With Gordon not playing for the second consecutive game, Deng had to step up his game from last week after only contributing 10 points in the last game.

The Bulls squad gained some solid input from rookies Noah, who put up 11 points and 7 rebounds, and Gray, who put up his first double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Tyrus Thomas also contributed by adding 13 points and 7 rebounds. Thomas has found himself going to the line much more, along with Noah, Gray, and Deng. Big men free throw shooting has always been a burden of the Chicago Bulls, especially since the acquisition of Ben Wallace. But it seems the big men have been improving majorly in free throw attempts and percentage. Deng, Thomas, Noah, and Gray shot for a combined 24 for 31 from the free throw line. If these big men can continue to contribute from the line, then Chicago can gain the upper-hand on most teams with poor big men free throw shooting. But back to the game....

Thomas Gardner got the start again since Gordon is still sitting out. His style of play was more controlled and was able to make a minor, but effective contribution in his 12 minutes of play. Luol Deng scored 11 of his 18 points in the first quarter. Victor Kryapa capped of the end of the first quarter to take a 32-30 lead by putting up a quick lay-up off of a Chris Duhon dish.

In the second quarter, Gray carried the scoring load by scoring 8 of his 14 points, as well as grabbing 5 of his 10 rebounds. Chris Duhon has become a terrific leader of the bench and was able to lead the Kryapa and the rookies to consistent quarter to keep up with Dallas. Chicago had a 53-49 lead at the half.

Hinrich has been said to be the leader of this squad, and he showed it in the third quarter. He was able to push the ball in transition, and dish out some assists, including one that led to a Gardner dunk. Hinrich finished with 7 points and 6 assists.

The fourth quarter was pretty stagnant, and Chicago was able to maintain their lead. Noah, Gray, and Nocioni were the main point contributors in the final quarter. Nocioni played limited minutes due to foul trouble. Nocioni finished the game with 5 points and 4 fouls. Rookie free agent Jared Homan scored the final five points for Chicago.

Dallas was lead by F Josh Howard with 18 points, G Jose Barea with 17 points, and star F Dirk Nowitzki with 11 points.

Chicago will host the undefeated Washington Wizards on Tuesday. I believe this game will be a battle of the benches. If Chicago's starting line-up can contain Washington stars Gilbert Arenas, Caron Butler, and Antawn Jamison, then I believe that the rookie big men will be able to add some offense from off the bench.

Box Score of the Game

Sweet Lou

2007-10-15T17:29:00.000-04:00

I am starting to hate the Cubs. I find myself sitting here for longer than I should, trying to find something to write about. I loved them when there were things to write about. Even if they lost, at least I could write something. I wrote about Ben Affleck in my last post for goodness sake. I hope that my contribution to this blog will not diminish simply because my team cannot pull through the post season. No, I refuse to submit myself to failure.

Let's talk about Lou.

Mr. Piniella is of course the fearless leader of the Chicago Cubs and in my opinion, has been doing an above average job in his managerial skills. For those of you who blame the Cubs losing the first game in their post season series with the D'backs, shame on you. Lou was doing what he thought best, keeping Zambrano rested, and that's all there is to it. Granted, he was being saved for Game 4; a game that ended up not even being played. But that whole situation is in the past.

Piniella has been managing baseball for 20 years now. He was named Manager of the Year in 1995 and 2001. He came to Chicago from Florida on October 17, 2006 when he signed a three-year deal. He has managed 3,100 games, has won 1,604 of them, and has 23 post season wins. I think that the Cubs are extremely lucky to have Lou Piniella as their manager. Sure, he may be a little grumpy or hot-headed at times, but he's skilled in the game of baseball and at the end of the day, you want someone like that to lead your team.

If you don't like the man, watch the Aquafina commercial. If you've already seen it, watch it again.

Not only is Piniella a great manager, he was once a great ballplayer. Some of his career highlights include the following: All-star in 1972, 1969 AL Rookie of the Year, and he led the AL in doubles in 1972 with 33. He's played for the Orioles, Indians, Seattle Pilots, Royals, and the Yankees. He was a Yankee for 11 years but I'm not going to hold that against him. I'll try not to at least.

Although he can be incredibly angry at times and seems to have several meltdowns on and off the field, there is no doubting that Piniella can manage a team. I feel very confident with him at the helm that the Cubs can continue to win and hopefully make it to the World Series. Lou "Sweet Lou" Piniella is the man.

Bears Vikings Preview

2007-10-13T20:01:00.000-04:00

Griese Chicken Report: Griese played a decent game last Sunday against the packers. The Vikings are 30th overall on pass defense this year allowing an average 266.8 yards per game on the pass. If Berian decides to catch the ball this week, Griese ought to have a stand out game. His tight ends are playing excellent, and Olsen has showed that he can be a serious problem to defenses. Jeff at Da' Bears Blog puts it best. Griese needs to throw the ball to the flats. Throwing the ball in the flats will exploit a week secondary, and open up the opportunity to go deep.

Key Matchup: Bears Running Backs vs. Vikings Defense. The Vikings run defense is first in the NFL allowing only 62 rushing yards a game. The Bears running game has been poor at best this season. They're only averaging 82.6 running yards a game. They need to pick it up this week to give Griese a chance to pick apart the Vikings pass defense.

2008 Already?

2007-10-13T11:09:00.001-04:00

Although I'm ready for spring training and the beginning of a new Cubs season, I can wait a little while. Football is in full swing and it will be good to get my mind off of baseball, if only for the winter. Of course, baseball is hardly over but as a Cubs fan whose team is down and out, there is no reason to celebrate every Rockie victory or cheer when the Indians defeated the Yankees. Ok, that last one deserves at least a round of applause.

The 2007 season was one of ups and downs for the Cubs. But that season is over and fans are looking toward the future. The '08 Cubs schedule was released this week and if you want to check it out, go here. The Cubs are starting off at Wrigley against the Brewers and it will be the first time to start off at home since 2001. Not that this really matters of course, but maybe they can start a little magic at the beginning of the season rather than at the end.

Time Out.

You might be wondering why there is a picture of a handsome movie star at the beginning of this post. Well, I came across a video of Ben Affleck (yes, the hunk from Pearl Harbor) saying he was supporting the Cubs. A die-hard Boston fan rooting for the Cubs. I guess it's not unheard of but it made me admire the man even more. Ok, not admire but oogle at anyway. A girl can dream, can't she?

Time In.

Will next season be better than the '07 season? Will the Cubs even make it into the playoffs? Yes and yes. The Cubs are a good team. They now remember what it's like to be in the playoffs. But they'll also remember being swept in the NLDS. I think next year will be it for the Cubs. They may not win the World Series but they'll get there. All fans can do now is recover from this season, watch some football, and wait for March 2008 when the Cubs begin their march to the big show.

Something to look forward to….

2007-10-11T17:21:00.000-04:00

The Chicago White Sox have recently declared their tentative 2008 season schedule.

Here’s a brief overview:

The Chicago White Sox will open their 2008 season at Cleveland. First game against Cleveland, sound familiar? It’s because it is very familiar. This will be the fourth season in a row that the Sox will start their regular season against the Indians. After that, the White Sox will travel to Detriot and play a series against the Tigers before they will finally head home. F.Y.I: This will be the first time since 2004 that they will open their season on the road.

The White Sox will play the U.S. Cellular season opener against Minnesota . This will take place on April 7th.

But most importantly, when will the Cross-Town Classic be? Well the White Sox will play at Wrigley Field from June 20th to the 22nd. Then the White Sox will have their turn at home-field advantage when this infamous dual will be hosted at U.S. Cellular Field from June 27th to the 29th. Both of these legendary series match-ups will be on the weekend. This rival is what I look forward to every year and I know a lot of people do too, so I know I will be looking forward to June coming real soon!!
Some other home games of interest are when the White Sox will host the Yankees, which is always a popular one. This will occur on at the end of April, starting on the 22nd. Another exciting series hosted at home will be against the Red Sox, which will be August 8th through the 11th.

The White Sox will end their regular season at home on September 28th against Cleveland. (They will start with them and end with them) But that will not be the end of the 2008 season for the Sox. We will not have a repeat of this year!

Bringing in a Royal Treatment

2007-10-11T14:52:00.000-04:00

So what does Buddy Bell have in common with the Chicago White Sox?

Well to start, Buddy Bell, the former Kansas City Royal coach, was recently hired by the White Sox as the director of Minor League Instruction. Bell officially declared that he would be leaving the Royals on August 1st of this year. This transition to the Minor League world will become effective for Bell as of November 1, 2007.
Bell who took over as the Royals manager in 2005, was actually a candidate for the job to become the White Sox manager in 2003, although we all know that he was beat out by Ozzie. Bell has, however, held this position with the Chicago White Sox before. He was the director of Minor League Instruction in 1991, and remained there until 1993.

Ozzie is of course excited about this new change and welcomes Bell, “He did a lot of great stuff for baseball. I think he's a great baseball man, an unbelievably great man in baseball." Like I stated before, Ozzie is trying to take the team in a new “direction.” (Which I think is needed after this disappointing 2007 season). Hopefully this new “direction” will lead to a more promising 2008 season.

**chicagowhitesox.com

Injury Report

2007-10-11T12:30:00.000-04:00

The Bears have been plagued by injuries this season, and these injuries have contributed to the poor performance seen this season. Thank God Lance Briggs is healthy again. Chicago Bears Daily Blog explains just how important he has become to the defense. Dallas and Detroit ran up the score with out Briggs. Bernard Berrian is out with a toe injury. He did not practice on Wednesday. I would be embarrassed if i was him. He has dropped a lot of passes, and to be out with a toe injury is weak sauce. Tommie Harris did not practice Wednesday because of a knee injury, but he hasn't been practicing much lately because of injuries. It's fine though because he has been playing in games. Neither Tillman or Vasher practiced Wednesday. Tillman has an ankle injury, and Vasher has a groin injury. It will be nice to get both of these guys back. They make a hell of a defensive back pair. It's a lot harder for teams to run or pass when they're in. The line and the linebackers can run more stunts and run defenses designed to stop the run when they have competent guys to stop the pass behind them.

Cuban Invades

2007-10-11T10:44:00.000-04:00

"If all this goes down ... if you cut any part of my body, you can see Mavs blood and you can see Cubbies blood coming out." --Mark Cuban

Now, does that really make sense? Can a person have two different types of blood in their body? I grew up thinking Jane had AB positive and John had B negative and that they could never bleed two different types. Apparently this is not the case with Mark Cuban.

Mr. Cuban currently owns the Dallas Mavericks and is looking to make another major purchase. You got it, he wants the Cubs all to himself. He made it to a Cubs game last month and has said that the experience has made him a Cubs fan. Wow, just one game. And he's not even from Chicago. I'm not saying that you have to be from Chicago to be a Cubs fan (I'm not) but when you are promoting yourself as the No. 1 Die Hard Fan and you're from Pittsburgh, it looks a little silly. Insert blood quote.

I don't know if Cuban would be the best choice to own the team. He is known for bugging officials and creating scenes at the Mavericks games. Would he be any different in Chicago?

"Everybody thinks I'm going to be on the sidelines, in the dugout, jumping up and down. That's not where I'll be," he said on the Mike North Morning Show on radio station WSCR. "When I went to the Cubs game a couple weeks ago, I sat in the bleachers, and I'll have a seat marked out for me and my friends. We'll be out in the right-field bleachers -- that's the best place to watch a game."

Ok, ok. So, he won't be all in Piniella's face or screwing with the umpires. So he says. Can we trust this rowdy Pittsburgh native who bleeds Mav blood and now Cubbie blood? I guess we'll just have to wait and see. The sale of the team isn't expected to be completed until 2008, so we have some time. And it's not like he's the only one wanting to buy the Chicago team. Maybe he'll buy them and maybe he'll get outbid. Will he still bleed Cubbie blood if he loses the team?

This has nothing to do with Mark Cuban or anyone who is wanting to buy the Cubs but I had to give it to you. It's the Aquafina commercial with Lou Piniella that aired during the Cubs/D'backs series and it's quite comical.

A miracle

2007-10-10T23:33:00.000-04:00

Griese Chicken Report: Enough to win. While 15 of 25 for 214 yards with 2 TDs and 1 pick aren't Pro Bowl numbers, they were enough to beat the packers. No that's not a mistake, I refuse to capitalize the p in packers anymore since coming in undefeated they got beat by a team that lost the Lions. The Bears lost to the fucking Lions, and the only thing worse than losing to the Lions is losing to a team that lost to the Lions. Anyways, Griese didn't make any terrible mistakes which is the reason they brought him in, so he did his job.

The Good: We beat the packers. Any time we beat the packers it's a good day for Chicago. It's Wednesday night and I'm still happy. As ChiTownBluesFan at Mega Bears writes, we finally got Olsen involved in the offense, and he looked like he could be a big part in the offense. Also Clark is a key TE, because he can block, so defenses don't suspect him of catching passes, but he does that very well.

The Bad: The offense was slow in the first half, and the defense was getting pounded by the run. But since we won, I can't bitch much.

The Ugly: The packers showed they had absolutely no balls and wouldn't kick off to Hester. It's an odd situation. You have to have huge balls to go on national tv and show that you have a slit in the front. The packers kick off team is now collectively Hester's bitch. And so is Mike McCarthy for allowing his players to play scared.

New Directions

2007-10-10T13:41:00.000-04:00

Both coaches, Razor Shines and Art Kusnyer, are off the Chicago White Sox major league coaching staff for the 2008 season. Shines, the White Sox third-base coach was recently let go when his contract wasn’t renewed. Ozzie Guillen said that he simply just wants to go in a new direction with his coaching staff. Guillen stated, “I don't think he's the right guy for that situation…. It's just time we have different ideas for next year.” Guillen assures the public that it wasn’t because Shines wasn’t doing his job “I don't have any complaints about Razor Shines whatsoever…. Razor did a tremendous job, and I have a lot of respect for him as a baseball man.” So who will become Shines’ replacement? Guillen and the Sox aren’t sure yet, however they are looking for a multitasker who can work on both base running and possible offensive situations.

On the other hand, Art Kusnyer is not completely shunned for the Chicago White Sox. He was just simply reassigned within the Sox organization. So he will still be working with the White Sox, it will just be with the Minor Leaguers. This might have been difficult to hear, especially since Kusnyer has held his position for the last 11 years. There are plenty of candidates willing to take over Kusnyer’s previous job, four of them being current minor league pitching coaches. These four possible candidates are Juan Nieves , Richard Dotson, and Curt Hasler , and Omer Munoz (who by the way, has worked with the White Sox in the past.)

These two position changes were the only two within the White Sox coaching staff for the upcoming 2008 season. Maybe these changes were exactly what the White Sox needed in order to make the 2008 season a successful one. Let’s all hope so!

*chicagowhitesox.com

Three Teams. Two Losses. One Sad Girl.

2007-10-10T09:08:00.001-04:00

The last couple of days have been, well, intense. I have been laying in my bed, stuffing my face with Oatmeal Cream Pies, watching Jerry Springer, and wondering if anything in my life matters any more. Don't judge me. You would be doing the same thing if 2 out of your 3 teams lost this past week. The Cubs didn't just lose, they are now done for the year. Purdue didn't just lose, they practically got ran over by Ohio State. Luckily, the Colts pulled through (as usual) and kept me from doing something terrible like breaking up with my boyfriend or kicking my dog.

The Cubs lost the series to Arizona in just three games, none of which were close nail biters. I was mad. I am mad. But then I think to myself about how the Cubs started off slow and how they picked up the pace and started winning. Then, to everyone's surprise, how they actually made it to the playoffs. So they didn't make it any further than three games into the first series, but how many teams didn't even make it that far? I'm not going to sit here and pretend that I'm not upset the Cubs aren't playing anymore this season, but I'm also going to say that they had a good year.

I love the Cubs and I love Purdue. And my love isn't something that can just evaporate. I'm in it for the long haul. Next season, the Cubs are going to remember how it feels to be a winning team who made it into the playoffs. They are not going to disappoint. I've only lost one team...the Boilermakers are 6-1 and in prime position to do something great. I hope. Look, I can't go back to eating Oatmeal Cream Pies for every meal, it's just not healthy. Or attractive.

GO BOILERS!

Preseason Game 1 against Milwaukee

2007-10-10T02:22:00.000-04:00

Well the Bulls lost, but it's only preseason. Besides, the only reason why they lost was because Scott Skiles reached to the bottom of the bench in the final 4:29. Despite the loss, the Bulls showed some major bright spots in the game.

Tyrus Thomas got the starting power forward position, and rookie Thomas Gardner replaced Ben Gordon, who did not even play, in the starting line-up. Ben Wallace scored the first two points for Bulls. Wallace finished the quarter with 6 points, 2 of which came from a dunk. Noah came in as Wallace's replacement and within 51 seconds, Noah had his first dunk which was then followed by a block on Milwaukee center Andrew Bogut. Passing in the first quarter was very solid for the Bulls. 7 of the 9 first quarter field goals came off of assists. Nocioni seemed healthy during his time of play. He scored 5 first quarter points from off the bench, including a 3-pointer.

The bench did a pretty good job of staying with Milwaukee in the 2nd quarter. Chris Duhon shot a pair of 3-pointers, and rookie JamesOn Curry even got into the mix by knocking down his first 3-pointer. Chicago trailed at the end of the half, 47-46.

In the start of the 3rd quarter, Chicago wasted no time to score 7 unanswered points. Thomas's offense began to finally shine a little. 6 of his 8 points came in the 3rd quarter. Luol Deng ended his playing time in the third quarter. He finished the game with 10 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists in about 19 minutes of play.

Andres Nocioni, finished with a team high 13 points, and rookie Aaron Gray, who finished with 10 points and 6 rebounds, carried the offensive load for Bulls in the fourth quarter. In the final 4:29, the Milwaukee Bucks went on a 12-3 run and capped off the game with a 93-88 victory over Chicago.

Milwaukee rookie forward Yi Jialian had a sub-par performance, only finishing with 3 points and fouling out in 15 minutes of play. In comparison, Chicago rookie Joakim Noah finished with 6 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, and 1 block.

Chicago shot a disappointing 60% from the charity stripe. So obviously they are picking up where they left off last year in that area. Rookie Joseph Blair shot 1 for 6 from the free throw line.

Other Bulls players who did not play due to injury were Thabo Sefolosha, Joe Smith, and Adrian Griffin.

All in all, the Bulls had a decent game with many flashes of goodness. With Joseph Cage already being waived by the Bulls, the competition continues for the final spots on the roster. The next preseason game is Friday, October 12, against the Dallas Mavericks in Chicago.

Box Score of the Game

Video Recap of the Game

Sunday Night Showdown

2007-10-06T15:11:00.000-04:00

Griese Chicken Report: I'm hoping he's shaken the rust off. He looked ok last game against the Lions, but he will be going against a better team this week. While Green Bay's defense has been playing good enough for them to win, they haven't been playing that great. Griese should be able to pass against the inexperienced defense of the Packers. The problem will be all the injuries on the offensive line. If they can get healthy and give Griese time, he should have a decent game.

Key Matchup: Bear's Defense vs. Brett Favre. Brett Favre is looking like the Favre of old. He's breaking all kinds of records this year and he seems unstoppable. The only problem for him is is that he doesn't have much of a running game so far. If the Bear's can stop the pass and force them to run, Favre will have problems. I agree with Russ over at Bears Gab that Bears are going to get better.

It's Not Over

2007-10-05T15:40:00.000-04:00

Every devoted fan goes through the "change" some time in their following of a team. And no, in case you are wondering, it's not the one 40-year-old women go through...although it does have some of the same aspects: hot flashes, bursting into tears at the drop of a pin, angry outbursts. Of course, I can only be talking about frustration. The art of frustration is known to all fans in every sport around the globe. It kills your mood but it does not kill your love for your team. I have to admit, last night was one full of frustration for me. The Cubs dropped Game 2 losing 8-4 to the Diamondbacks. Ted Lilly struggled, the Cubs failed to hit well, and I was frustrated.

I know we still have another game to turn this series around but it's hard to have the faith. There is, of course, no doubt that if the Cubs play the way they have the past two games, they're going down. Arizona is capitalizing on their hits whereas the Cubs are hitting the ball every couple of batters only to leave them stranded on base. It seems the only way we can get runs is to hit home runs and since there has only been one in the two games, that isn't something to rely on. The two loses have nothing to do with having bad luck or the curse of the billy goat...we're losing because Arizona is out playing us. Either it stops in Game 3 or the Cubs are done for another disappointing season.

Don't get me wrong. I'm going to watch Game 3 and cheer my little heart out. I still think, deep, deep down that we can take this thing into five games and make a great comeback.

Game 3 is going to be played at Wrigley Field (Yay for home games!) at 5:00 p.m. and hopefully the Cubs will start playing like they have all year long. GO CUBBIES!

While I'm cheering on the Cubs, might as well add something about my favorite college football team. Just to let you all know, a major upset will be taking place tomorrow night in West Lafayette, Indiana where the Boilermakers are going to defeat Ohio State. Tomorrow is going to be a great day for Cub fans and Purdue fans alike. Let's just hope frustration doesn't set in.

Pitchers Domintate Game 1

2007-10-04T14:39:00.001-04:00

Last night wasn’t so pretty. I was tired, in sweat pants, stuffing pizza into my mouth…it just wasn’t a good sight to see. Oh yeah, and the Cubs lost to Arizona 3-1. It wasn’t even close to being the best game ever watched or even anything I was expecting. After Derek Lee struck out in the first inning, I figured we had our work cut out for us. However, I’m refusing to blame Lee for this slow start. I blame it on a jinx my friend Ryan put on him before he even stepped up to the plate.

“Lee is probably going to strike out.”

I was too much in shock to knock on the coffee table. No one was even in the room to help me. When Lee was walking toward his dugout with his head down, I was shaking mine at Ryan. After that, things didn’t improve much. I couldn’t very well blame multiple Cubs’ strikeouts on Ryan, as much as I tried.

There is no doubt that the pitchers, from both teams, dominated the game. Zambrano was solid in his six innings on the mound, giving up one run on four hits, striking out eight, and walking only one. Piniella pulled him out of the game in the sixth inning, though fans weren’t sure as to why, putting in Marmol who gave up a home run in the seventh to push the D’backs ahead. As I watched Mark Reynolds’ ball fly over the outfield into the stands, I couldn’t help but think, “Why is Zambrano being taken out?”

"I took a shot with my bullpen, it didn't work today," he said. "We've done it all year. I have confidence in them. Period. End of the story."

Also, the Cubs’ manager wanted to save Zambrano for a potential start in Game 4 on Sunday. Ok, so Piniella knows what he’s doing…right? Big Z only pitched 85 pitches and seemed fairly capable to finish off the game. Would the Cubs have pulled off the game if the team's ace was left in? The world will never know.

What it comes down to is Arizona’s pitcher, Brandon Webb, earned the victory last night. He threw seven innings, allowed one run on four hits, and striking out nine. Webb pitched well and the Cubs did not hit. Soriano, who fans can usually count on to get on base, went 0-for-5. Lee went 1-for-4. When you only capitalize one run on four hits, you’re usually not going to come out on top.

That first game is now out of our minds and hopefully out of the Cubs’ system. We can only look forward to the rest of the series and the missed opportunities of last night will be fulfilled tonight. Or the next game. Or by the fifth game at least.

There was one benefit of staying up late to watch the game: the Aquafina commercial with Lou Piniella in it. I wish I could supply you with the actual clip, but sadly, I could not find it anywhere. Maybe it will run again tonight. If so, I’m staying up for sure.

Maybe the Cubs have gotten used to the desert air, and maybe the bullpen will come through tonight, and maybe the Cubs will win Game 2. Maybe? Nah, they will.

Start The DAMN Season Already

2007-10-04T00:19:00.001-04:00

So I have been waiting for some sort of actual "playing of basketball" to happen, and it is finally almost here. Training camp started on October 1st. The roster was completed with the signing of Andre Barret, Joseph Blair, Justin Cage, Thomas Gardner, and Jared Homan. Obviously not all of these players will make the final roster. Of these five players, Andre Barrett was the only player to have previously played with the Bulls. With the addition of these five players, the roster is now set at 19...for now.

The first preseason game will FINALLY take place on October 9th, which is less than a week away, against the Milwaukee Bucks. Thankfully, I will finally get some actual basketball action to talk about and begin my first player and team reviews. The Bulls will face-off against Milwaukee, Dallas, Washington, Toronto, and Indiana during the preseason. The first official regular season tip-off for the Bulls will occur on October 31st against New Jersey. Chicago's first home opener will be on November 2nd against Philadelphia. But until then, I will continue to talk about random shit involving the Bulls.

Random Shit #1

My projected starting line-up for the Bulls will be as follows: PG-Kirk Hinrich, SG-Ben Gordon, SF-Luol Deng, PF-Tyrus Thomas, C-Ben Wallace. The power forward position will be tossed around a lot this season. Scott Skiles has thrown Joakim Noah into the starting five at practices hoping that he would get the feel of the fast pace play. I predict Coach Scott Skiles will utilize Joe Smith, Joakim Noah, and even Andres Nocioni in the starting poward forward position sometime throughout the season as well. I am looking forward to finding out which of these players earns the permanent starting power forward position, but I doubt that it will be figured out until at least the all-star break.

Random Shit #2

I'm glad that those five players mentioned in the first paragraph are getting a chance to actually play and possibly be signed with the Bulls. The sad thing is that during the regular season, they will be lucky if their feet will touch the floor more than ten times. Last season, Andre Barrett only made six appearances during the regular season, but he did have a remarkable preseason. He had a few buzzer beaters that iced off victories for the Chicago Bulls in preseason. Andre Barrett, 5'10" on a good day, then beat out Luke Schenscher, 7'0", for the final spot on the Bulls roster.

Random Shit #3

Coach Scott Skiles is one bad dude. Bulls Executive John Paxson credits much of the Bulls success and improvement to this man. Scott Skiles has a very firm way of playing the game. He is happy with the young talent that he has that can go along with his somewhat up-tempo playing style, but he isn't afraid to get on the rookies' asses if he feels that they aren't keeping up. Skiles has also been working a lot with Tyrus Thomas in hopes that he can be Chicago's starting power forward. He has turned this team into a single unit that always makes that one extra pass. Skiles has been credited by many coaches about the ball movement he has taught his team. I believe passing the ball more conserves the energy of the Bulls but wears down the defense. I know Scott Skiles will get the job done doing it the only way he knows...the Scott Skiles way.

Once again, I look forward to next week because I will finally be able to get to see the Bulls in some action. Until then...enjoy my random shit.

Top 5

2007-10-03T20:28:00.000-04:00

The Bears are obviously in need of a new quarterback, and with the way they have been playing they'll get the opportunity to draft high and get a franchise quality quarterback. Chances are that they'll just go with someone who wasn't good enough to be a back up somewhere else. It seems even if the Bears do draft a quarterback in the first round he'll be a bust, like Sexy Rexy. Here's my top 5 list of college quarterbacks who should be on the Bear's top 5 list.

5. Chad Henne-Michigan-While Michigan has looked like absolute shit at the beginning of this year, it still takes skill to be a 4 year starter there. Even in their 2 losses to start the season Henne had a rating of over 100 in both games and against Northwestern he threw for 3 touchdowns and no picks. He's not a running quarterback but he's a hell of a passer.

4. JD Booty-USC-He's only lost two games as a starter and each of those were by less than 4 points. The Bears can almost be sure he has skill just by the fact that he starts for USC. And as much as it pains me, they can be sure he's had quality coaching under Pete Carroll. In 4 games this season he's already thrown for 875 yards.

3. Andre Woodson-Kentucky-A beast of a quarterback at 6'5", 230 pounds, he's this years equivalent of Jamarcus Russell. He's thrown for 1,309 yards, 16 touchdowns, and only one interception which would make for a breath of fresh air in Chicago.

2. Tim Tebow-Florida-Another massive quarterback at 6'3", 235 pounds, but with the ability to run like a running back, and not in the fashion of McNabb or McNair. They get hyped up about their ability to run but generally can't. Tebow's rushed for a touchdown in every game this season. He's also thrown for 11 touchdowns with only two picks against the toughest conference, the SEC. And with the picture at the top of the page how could he not make the list?

1. Pat White-WV-Not the biggest guy on my list at 6'2", 185 pounds, but he is an elusive runner, which Chicago will need because of it's aging line. His stats aren't as good as others, 717 yards passing and 6 passing and 6 rushing touchdowns, but his rushing ability sets him apart and makes him a good fit for the Bear's offense.

A year full of excitements, but also a year full of disappointments

2007-10-03T10:07:00.000-04:00

Ok, so it was mainly a year full of disappointments. But the Chicago White Sox’s 2007 season wasn’t a complete bust. There were many incredible highlights. So I just thought I would take some time out to sort of do a recap of the 2007 season.
I always like to start with the negative and then the positives because then you leave with a more optimistic state of mind. So that is what I am going to do.

You might be asking yourself “What exactly went wrong?” I know I am because the White Sox were expected to have a very successful year. Well like I said in my previous post, the Sox didn’t exactly start the season off on a good note. In their first game they lost to Cleveland 12-5. That was in a way, a map of the future. The two biggest reasons that I think the Sox didn’t have a successful season were pitching and injuries. Injuries played a key role because the ones we lost to injuries were major players like Joe Crede and Pablo Ozuna, who were both out for most of the season. Another answer to “What went wrong?” question would probably be the Sox pitching. Yes we did have some pitchers who had awesome seasons (mainly Bobby Jenks and Mark Buehrle), but the pitching staff as a whole wasn’t up to par.

Ok so enough with the disappointing stuff. I got that out of the way. Now, to the White Sox’s 2007 season highlights. I think we all know at least one. Yes, I am talking about Jim Thome hitting his 500th career home run. Mark Buehrle also threw a no-hitter on April 18. And this season Bobby Jenks retired 41 straight batters to tie the current record. Lastly, Josh Field’s amazing rookie season (I’m definitely glad he is coming back next year!)

So as you can see, the season wasn’t a complete dissatisfaction. Yes the results as a whole were, but individually, the players did awesome. Some tied records, while others broke them. So I think 72-90 is just a number. Not a very pleasant number, but a number to re-build on.

In conclusion, for those of you who might be curious about the statistical information, here are some players who lead the Sox in offensive stats:

Best Batting Average: Jim Thome, with a .275 batting average
Most Doubles: This was tied between Jermaine Dye and Paul Konerko, who each had 34.
Most Triples: Scott Podsednik with 4
Most Home Runs: Obviously Jim Thome, who had 35 home runs this season
Most Runs: Jim Thome, with 79
Most RBIs: Jim Thome, again, who ended the season with 96 RBIs
Most Stolen Bases: Jerry Owens, who had 32

Here are just a few pitching stats:

Most Wins: Javier Vazquez with 15
Most Losses: Jose Contreras with 17 total losses in the 2007 season
Best ERA (for a starting pitcher): Mark Buehrle, with a 3.63 ERA
Most Saves: Bobby Jenks with 40

The Chicken

2007-10-02T20:02:00.001-04:00

In case you haven’t heard, the Cubs are in the playoffs. You might have thought it was a rumor or maybe just some crazy fan ranting about his latest dream, but it’s true. Tomorrow, at this time, the Cubbies will be warming up at Chase Field for the beginning of a best-of-five game set against the Diamondbacks. With the Chicago winning the NL Central (85-77) and Arizona’s success in the NL West (90-72), it’s bound to be a good playoff series.

Of course, you’ll have Lee, Zambrano, DeRosa, Soriano, and other veterans leading the way for the Cubs, but what about the boys who are not as well known? The ones who will come off the bench when they’re needed the most. Boys like, my favorite Cubs player, Mike Fontenot.

Michael Eugene Fontenot is 27 years old, bats left handed, throws right, plays second base, has one years’ experience in the major leagues, and is heading to the playoffs with the Chicago Cubs. It looked like Fontenot might not even play in the MLB this year as he was overlooked for spring training. But when the Cubs were short an infielder, they turned to the Triple A and found their man. When Fontenot joined the Cubs in June, he was given a shot at second base. He then hit .397 in that month with three homeruns and 15 RBIs. Since then, he hasn’t seen much playing time while Mark DeRosa is playing at second. However, Fontenot is still keeping his swing up to standard and is ready to help whenever he’s needed.

"Sometimes it's tough, but I'm still working every day and every time I get a chance to start, I feel normal," he said. "Just trying to do whatever I can here to stay ready."

In the playoffs, Fontenot will give the Cubs a powerful left-handed bat off the bench. And don’t be fooled by his nickname, the “Chicken”. Some believe he’s called this because of his 5 feet 8 inches but Fontenot believes otherwise.

"I had my hands in my back pockets and I started doing a little dance," Fontenot said. "They started calling me 'Chicken,' and it kind of stuck."

It doesn’t matter if it’s because he’s shorter in stature or because he can dance, the “Chicken” doesn’t have to prove himself. He might not be starting against the Diamondbacks in this upcoming series, but if Piniella needs a powerful hitter or a sound second-basemen, he’s going to know who to turn to. My man, Mike Fontenot.

The Rollercoaster Ride is Now Over

2007-10-02T08:35:00.000-04:00

On Sunday night the Chicago White Sox’s season came to an end. The result of their last game was pretty much a summary of their whole 2007 season. Basically, the outcome was not good.

Attendance at U.S. Cellular Field totaled 33,154 fans. I’m sure the outcome was one they were hoping wouldn’t happen. It would have been nice to end the season on a good note, especially after the very roller-coaster like season the Sox had this year (most of the time they were going down the hill instead of up.)

As a result, the White Sox players headed home with a 13-3 loss to the Detroit Tigers sitting on their shoulders. It was almost an exact replica of the season opener when they lost of Cleveland 12-5. So they started the season off bad and ended it bad. Maybe we should start the 2008 season off good so it will end well. Sounds like a pretty good plan to me.

You’re probably wondering exactly how the game went. Well there were four reliefs for Contreras, all of them gave up at least one run to the Tigers. So you can see that the bullpen struggled. But so did the offense. But let’s be honest. Most of the South Siders’ fans sort of became immune to this kind of showing.

With the season now officially over, the White Sox finished the season with a losing record. This was the first time since 1989 that they finished below third place in the AL Central. And I hate being the one to deliver the bad news to you, but they also had their worst regular season record ever this year. They finished 72-90.
But all this information means is that it can only go up from here. Next year will be a better season for them and we are going to consider this a rebuilding year. We have a lot of great players coming back and I’m sure this was a learning experience to all, coaches and players.

I’m sure Ozzie is glad that this season is over. Actually I know he is glad because he told us that. “Thank God we're done with this nightmare. For the rest of my career, hopefully this is going to be the last one that feels this way.” So to sum it up, Ozzie wants the Sox to improve, but hey, what coach wouldn’t after an almost embarrassing season.

This loss doesn’t necessary mean that the White Sox players are pessimistic about the season or the seasons to come. I have to admit, we did see a lot of pretty remarkable things happen this year. Matt Thorton makes that clear when he made the statement on Sunday night, "We saw some great things, with [Mark] Buehrle's no-hitter, pretty much Thome's entire season and Bobby [Jenks'] streak [of 41 straight batters retired]. Just awesome things, but it doesn't make the season better. It's been a rough year, but that's why you come back next year ready to go."

Deep Shit

2007-10-01T21:32:00.000-04:00

Griese Chicken Report: Sadly, as of now, the Griese Chicken Report will replace the Sexy Rexy Report. That's right fans, no more Sexy Rexy, probably ever. As I mentioned earlier, I don't think this is the right move, but anyways. I'm just wondering if Lovie will be able to swallow his pride and put Rex back if Griese gives them less than a chance to win. Many people want to see Orton put in, but from the looks of the pictures floating around the Internet, I'm not sure he can stay sober long enough to play. Back to Griese. He was in typical Bear's quarterback form, which seems to be some sort of fuck-up-at-the-worst-possible-moment retarded interception throwing machine. Griese isn't entirely to blame as I agree with Da' Bears Blog that Bernard Berian looked like an elementary school lineman trying to catch the ball.

The Good: Even with the secondary that started the season completely out, the defense performed well through the first three quarters. They kind of fell apart in the 4th, but the defense not playing horribly the entire game is all the good I could find. That and Hester was a manimal again.

The Bad: For starters, we lost. And it was to the Lions, which is embarrassing enough, but them having Jon Kitna as their quarterback makes it worse. The Bears fumbled the ball 5 fucking times, but were lucky enough to not lose it. That probably won't happen again. Griese looked Rusty throwing for 3 interceptions.

The Ugly: Besides Kyle Ortons beard, the 4th quarter. The Bears gave up 34 points in the 4th quarter to lose the game. Bad teams generally don't give up that many points in the 2nd half. I get chills just thinking about how bad it was, and that it doesn't look any better. Also, Benson's 50 yard rushing performance is terrible. Give the ball to Peterson, because he actually tries. Benson gives a half assed performance every week so far, but they haven't benched him like they did Grossman. Why? Because Lovie Smith is a sorry excuse for a coach. And for no reason in particular, Orton gets a plaque this week.

October: Halloween and Playoffs

2007-10-01T20:22:00.001-04:00

Wednesday is the start of what is sure to be an interesting playoff season. Of course this is true for every game, but here I’m focused on the Cubs and the Diamondbacks. Arizona has a 50-31 record at home and a 4-2 record against the Cubs this season. Impressive numbers but nothing to be extremely intimidated by. Chicago seems to struggle every time they fly out there and all fans can do is hope that they have more success than in previous games. Looks like it’s going to be a late night.

What’s the schedule look like for the rest of the series?

Game 2: Thursday at 9 p.m. (at Arizona)
Game 3: Saturday at 5 p.m. (at Wrigley)
Game 4: Sunday at noon (at Wrigley)
Game 5: Tuesday at 9 p.m. (at Arizona)

Piniella plans to start Carlos Zambrano (18-13) in Game 1 and hopes to possibly have him pitch one more game if necessary. Big Z hasn't faced Arizona this season.

''They're a good young ballclub that plays hard, similar to the way the Marlins play, with a lot of energy,'' shortstop Ryan Theriot said. ''And you know what you're going to get with their pitching: good starting pitching and a great bullpen.''

But, Theriot added, ''I like this matchup. This one's good for us. We'll see what happens. We've got Big Z going, and we feel real confident with him on the mound and everyone else coming behind him.''

Remember when I asked about Cubs playoff tickets? Well, I’d still love some as would many Cubbies fans. Postseason tickets are going on sale at cubs.com starting at 10:00 a.m. Thursday, October 4. Now all I need is $275 for a dugout box and a car to get to Wrigley Field. I guess I could take a bus and only spend $90 for the bleacher box. But hey, it’s the playoffs and the Cubs are playing! Might as well go all out.

Speaking of going all out, the downtown rally honoring the Cubs was held this afternoon. Hundreds of fans gathered, even in the rain, to celebrate the Cubs making it into the playoffs. All who attended agreed on one thing: this is our year.

The Pride of Argentina...No, not Manu Ginobli

2007-09-30T22:12:00.000-04:00

I'm talking about the guy on the left. That man is Bulls forward Andres Nocioni. Argentina has produced a number of other talented players that are in the NBA, such as Carlos Delfino (Toronto Raptors), Walter Herrmann (Charlotte Bobcats), Luis Scola (Houston Rockets), and Fabricio Oberto (San Antonio Spurs). Manu Ginobli and Andres Nocioni are the two knock-around guys of Argentina. Playing physical is a very big part of both of their games. Both have a similar style of play. Manu would win the 'driving the lane' battle, but Andres would win the 'shooting' battle. But being a Bulls fan, I have come to love Andres Nocioni. I love him so much that I am writing a blog entry solely on him.

Nocioni was picked up by the Chicago Bulls at the start of the 2004-2005 season, which was right after Argentina won the gold in the 2004 Olympics in Athens. No one knew how good he would be in the NBA, but he began playing as if he was a veteran. He even began to make a name for himself among the NBA. Everyone refers to this Nocioni as someone you hate to play against, but someone who'd you lo ve to have on your team. There's no doubt that this guy is a human charge machine. If there was an NBA Best Actor Award, it would easily go to Andres Nocioni. This guy gets laid out more than Rex Grossman, but he does it willingly. Rex Grossman just sucks.

But anyways...I realized that most teams have at least two primary defensive stoppers: one to protect the lane and one to frustrate the opposing team. San Antonio has Tim Duncan and Bruce Bowen, Phoenix has Amare Stoudamire and Raja Bell, and the Pacers have...oh wait, nevermind. Chicago's down low enforcer is obviously Ben Wallace. Andres Nocioni fits the description of the second defensive stopper. Even though he is not in the starting line-up, Nocioni is one of the guys on the bench that comes into the game to charge up the defense, and even the offense. At only 6'7", he was the team's 3rd leading rebounding. He averaged 5.7 boards while coming off the bench. Offensively, he averaged 14.1 points while shooting a .467 field goal percentage and a .383 3-point percentage.

In the 2006 playoffs, Nocioni was a firecracker averaging 22.3 points in 38.3 minutes. Unfortunately, the Bulls only lasted 6 games. In the 2007 playoffs, Nocioni averaged only 8.8 points in 19.7 minutes. I know that was a significant drop, but at least the Bulls made it to the second round. I believe his limited playing time was due to his right foot injury. During the 2006-2007 regular season, he only played in 53 games due to plantar fasciitis. His injury still remains, which is why he skipped out on the 2007 FIBA World Championships. After receiving a new 38 million dollar 5-year deal, Nocioni is glad to be returning to Chicago. If Chicago would not have signed Nocioni, he would likely be on the Memphis Grizzlies. Nocioni, Chicago, and John Paxson's wallet is hoping that Nocioni will make a healthy recovery just in time for the beginning of the 2007-2008 season. In my opinion, Nocioni possesses as Kukoc-esque way of playing basketball. He may not have the same moves as Kukoc, but he is an international sensation that has already made a mark on the city of Chicago. Nocioni will continue to shoot well, grad rebounds, draw charges, and piss off opposing players. We can only hope that the hard-nosed Nocioni will continue his game IMPROVEMENT (AHH! It's the secret word!) and will have to do a better job of protecting his family jewels because they will be taking another beating this year.

Bears vs. Lions

2007-09-29T22:59:00.000-04:00

Sexy Rexy Report: As of right now there will be no more Sexy Rexy Report as he has been benched. Griese will now be the quarterback for the Bears. I have to agree with the Chicago Bears Daily Blog that putting Griese in right now isn't the right thing. He won't make the line block better, he can't make recievers catch the ball. He might help Benson some if he can complete more passes and make the offense potent, but thats a big if. I'm not sure Grossman is the long term answer for the Bears, but I know Griese isn't.

Key Matchup: Bear's D vs. Lion's O. The Bears defense is pretty banged up. Tillman and Vasher are out for sure. Harris and Briggs are both hurt but may play Sunday, and Archuleta has a broken hand but has been practicing. The Lion's offense has been playing pretty well. Kitna is the league leader with 980 pass yards. The defense has been playing well though, and I don't think Kitna will have such luck this weekend.

This Dream is Real

2007-09-29T10:55:00.000-04:00

Just one quick word. CUBS WIN!! Ok, that's two. Two very powerful words that every Cubs fan has been waiting to hear all season.

With a 6-0 victory over Cincinnati and the Brewer's 6-3 loss to San Diego, the Cubs clinched the NL Central Division last night. Chicago is playing in October.

"These kids deserve it," manager Lou Piniella said. "They really let loose. I mean, let loose. It's good to see. They let loose a lot of emotion."

If the players let out all that emotion, just imagine what Cubs fans all over the country are feeling. I can tell you that as a fan, I could not be more excited. The Cubs in the playoffs is something that occurs in my dreams. But when I woke up this morning, the dream did not fade away to simply a fond memory. The dream is real and the Cubs are still playing. Hallelujah!

Making it with Broadway

2007-09-28T13:00:00.000-04:00

Let’s pretend that you are Lance Broadway. It is a Thursday night in Chicago at the end of September. You are playing for the Chicago White Sox and it is your first Major League career start. How would you like it to go?
I think it went exactly how Lance Broadway would have wanted it to go, if not better. This 24-year-old had a reason to smile after the White Sox 10-0 victory over the Kansas City Royals. Why should he have been so happy? Well I don’t know… maybe because this right-handed pitcher had six shutout innings in his first Major League start. Broadway barely ran into any trouble, but when he did, like in the 2nd inning, for instance when he had two runners on base and no out, he immediately got out of trouble by striking out the next three batters.
He pitched just 97 pitches over the course of those six remarkable innings, striking out eight Royals and allowing just two hits. Not too bad, huh? I think not. And for those of you who are interested in an even more impressive fact, those eight strikeouts were the most any White Sox pitcher has made in his first start since 1988.
Lance Broadway, who came from Texas Christian University, was the White Sox top pick in 2005 and the White Sox plan on him being a big contribution to the team in the following seasons.
Broadway’s shutout was the 2nd straight by the White Sox pitchers. The previous one came from Jon Garland on Wednesday. In the last 9 games, the South Siders’ pitching staff has a record of 6-3 with an ERA of 2.79.
Since the White Sox season is nearing a close very quickly, predictions for next year? I have a feeling that the Sox’s pitching will do just fine, if they continue from where they left off (especially if its anything like what they have shown over the last few weeks!)

Au Revoir, Gopher

2007-09-28T10:01:00.000-04:00

Thank goodness the Cubs are getting out of Florida. Yesterday marked the last game of the three game series with the Marlins sweeping Chicago. Today, the Cubbies are flying to Cincinnati to try to get on a winning streak before they, hopefully, start playoff games. Fans can only pray that they play better in Ohio than they did in Florida.

There was one good thing about watching the game yesterday. Bill Murray.

The funny man who stars in classic movies such as Caddyshack, What About Bob, and Groundhog Day was there in Florida rooting on the Cubbies. This might have been the one thing that got me excited while watching the game. My love for Bill Murray overshadowed my love for the Cubs. Until the sixth inning at least.

After Marlins third basemen Cabrera made a throwing error to second base, it opened the door to a three-run inning. Soriano then came up big with an RBI double that pulled the Cubs within one. But this would be the closest they would get to victory. In the seventh, Jacque Jones struck out with bases loaded and Theriot grounded out into a double play that ended the eighth inning. Is this how a championship team plays?

"It happens," losing pitcher Steve Trachsel said. "It's not like we didn't try. They're going to say what they're going to say, no matter what. We can't worry about that. We have three more games to worry about."

At least fans could count on San Diego. The Padres won 9-5 last night and the Cubs still are holding on to a two game lead in the NL Central. Hopefully the Cubs can clinch their three remaining games in Cincinnati and fans can be relieved. Somewhat. We’ve still got the playoffs to sweat through. One game at a time. One, slow, painful, worrisome game at a time.

One Ugly Inning

2007-09-27T13:57:00.000-04:00

Ok, so the Cubs didn’t get the job done on Wednesday but St. Louis came through with a helping hand. While Chicago fell to Florida 7-4, The Cardinals came alive to defeat Milwaukee 7-3. Luckily for the Cubs, they still hold a two game lead in the NL Central. However, if they don’t start using their bats, the lead might slip away as well as the hope of making the playoffs. Some might consider the fan support the reason for the loss. Going from the huge fan base at Wrigley to a lesser Cub-friendly crowd in Florida could have been a reason for the loss. Manager Lou Piniella disagrees.

"Look, you're a professional, you have to adjust," Piniella said. "Whether there are 50,000 people in the ballpark or 5,000. I don't see that as an excuse. We didn't make any excuses. We just didn't hit tonight."

That’s right Lou. The Cubs didn’t hit and pitcher Ted Lilly struggled. Well, he had one bad inning that made a huge impact on the rest of the game. Lilly made one bad pitch that cost him. Two Marlin’s started with back-to-back singles, with the third hitter hitting a popup to right field that ended up dropping in front of Murton to load the bases. Another popup that deflected off the glove of DeRosa allowed the first run to score. By the end of the inning, Florida was up 4-0.

"That's one of the things you can't do — give up a big inning — and I did that, “ Lilly said.

At least he knows he did wrong. Of course, the blame doesn’t lay with him completely. The Cubs failed to make clutch hits which is something they have to work on if they’re planning on making the playoffs.

Speaking of playoffs, in anticipation of the Cubs returning to Chicago to continue the race toward the big show, Wrigley Field is undergoing some maintenance. The famous field has begun the process of re-sodding. It began Tuesday and is expected to be completed by Friday night.

Why the need for new grass?

Several players from Pittsburgh as well as the team’s manager criticized Wrigley’s outfield for having holes. This is most likely due to the two concerts by the Police during the summer.

"It's basically the whole outfield, some of the places around home plate and a patch in front of the mound," said Mark McGuire, executive vice president, business operations. "Our feeling is we wanted the field in good condition, and the best thing was to do it for the playoffs," McGuire said.

So the field is being prepared, the fans are more than ready, and now all that has to happen is for the Cubs to win these last couple of games. Easier said than done.

NFC North

2007-09-26T20:23:00.000-04:00

The Bears play in the NFC North, a conference that hasn't been that great as of late, but is starting to turn things around. Here's a rundown, as of week 4, of the NFC North.

1. Green Bay Packers (3-0) - Brett Favre is back to a version close to his former self, except of course that he looks like a geriatric. Of course I'm just jealous because he's a badass, and the Bears have nothing at QB. Their running game isn't that great, but their passing game is close to the top in the league. They beat the Chargers, who beat the Bears, but if the Bears can get healthy I think the Bears will beat them.

2. Detroit Lions (2-1) - I can't think of a team I hate more than the Detroit Lions. This team ruined the career of Barry Sanders. Anyways the Bears play them this Sunday and I'm a little worried with Griese not having played a game in a while and with the defense having so many injuries. But the Lions got pounded by the Eagles last week, and their two wins came against the Raiders and the Vikings (who they beat in O.T.). They aren't as good as their record or that loud mouthed bitch Jon Kitna would have you believe.

3. Chicago Bears (1-2) - Started off shaky, but they'll get their act together. They're just suffering from Super Bowl loser syndrome (where they should be good since they have pretty much the same team as last year, but every one keeps getting hurt. Just look at the Steelers last year.)

4. Minnesota Vikings (1-2) - Vikings fans seem to think very highly of their team, which is good because I don't believe anyone else does. It seems the Vikings are destined to be bad again this year. Believe it or not, their QBs have looked almost as bad as Grossman, but to be fair they've gone against the leagues best defenses those games. The Falcons, Lions, and Chiefs. Nevermind, those teams suck.

My Rookie of the Year

2007-09-26T09:47:00.000-04:00

If I was a rookie, I would want to be like Josh Fields and have a season like he is having. This 24-year-old has had a pretty extraordinary season for the White Sox. He has also had a very impressive week. Just how impressive you might ask? Well the rookie was hitting .525 (11-for-21) and had three homers and six RBIs. So did all that hard work pay off? Yes, yes it did. Just when it couldn’t get any better, (or at least we thought it couldn’t) he was named AL player of the week.

Here’s some impressive rookie stats:
He has had 91 career hits, 88 of them being in 2007. He also has 23 home runs under his belt, including the 22 he has hit in 2007. This year he has 65 RBIs and 67 total career RBIs.

Biography and some extra information:
Prior to the 2004 season, Fields was named First-Team All- American, was rated as the draft’s Second-Best Collegiate Athlete and Third-Best Power Hitter among college player by Baseball America.
Not only did he play baseball for Oklahoma State, but he was also the quarterback of the Cowboys football team (which he also has impressive stats in).
He married his wife Ashleigh in 2006. So sorry for all you ladies who were hoping he was still single! I didn’t mean to burst your bubble.
In 2007, he was ranked No. 2 Prospect and the Best Power Hitter for the White Sox by Baseball America.

For those of you who didn’t know…This former Oklahoma State Cowboy whose MLB debut was on 9/13/2006, was brought up this year to replace Joe Crede, who was out with an injury. Well guess what? Joe Crede is coming back next season And there is actual talk of trying Fields out in right field next season. Why not? I think he will be a big contribution to the White Sox next year and for years to come. Well whatever they decided to do with Fields, I’m pretty sure we can count on him being in the lineup for the White Sox next season.

How Predicta-Bull

2007-09-25T21:39:00.000-04:00

When "Big" Ben Wallace was signed by the Bulls in 2006 for 60 MILLION DOLLARS, the entire country had high hopes for Chicago to do well and go far in the playoffs. How did the season end? The Bulls finished 49 and 33; this was good enough to get the 5th seed in the Eastern playoffs. They were then defeated in the Eastern Conference semi-finals by Detroit. That was an improvement from the year before when the Bulls were defeated in the first round by Washington. With this information at hand, along with the recent player additions, there will be even more improvement in Chicago. 'Improvement' has been the word to describe the Bulls over the past 3 or 4 years. Impatience is beginning to settle a little more in Chicago, and fans are beginning to demand AT LEAST an Eastern Conference Championship. Now let me first say that the Bulls are completely capable of achieving the Eastern Conference title. But because of that one missing piece, it will be a difficult road to get there.

Hoopsworld.com put out an article predicting the ups and downs of the 2007-2008 season for the Chicago Bulls. High hopes are always going to be in store for the Bulls. A true Bull fan, such as myself, already knows that the Bulls will live up to the hype as they did last year, regardless that they fell just short of the Eastern Conference finals. Whenever the Bulls lost last season, I would really be upset. I admit that there were many games that they should have won, particularly the one involving that last second game winning 3-pointer put up by the Phoenix's Leandro Barbosa. That one really pissed me off. But then I just said to hell with it because I knew most teams in the East wouldn't even come that close to beating Phoenix.

Chicago always found a way to bounce back. After blowing the 2 seed in the playoffs last year, the Bulls were on the brink of another first round failure, but this time it would be against the defending champions, the Miami Heat. I remember that my buddies and I called the sweep, but even we had trouble believing ourselves. Then it happened, and we almost pissed our pants.

So I made a list of three things about the Bulls that no one can ever forget:

1. The 1995-1996 Chicago Bulls were the best team in NBA history. The 72 and 10 record speaks for itself.

2. The Chicago Bulls had the privilege of possessing basketball's greatest legacy, Michael Jordan.

3. Don't fuck with Toni Kukoc. We will be remembered as a Chicago Bull and not as a Milwaukee 'Suck'.

So let's get some things straight about this upcoming season. Yes, the Bulls will be one of the best teams in the East. No, they will not be as good as the 1995-1996 Chicago Bulls. Yes, there is a very good possibility that the Bulls could win the East. No, the Bulls still don't have a scoring big man. Yes, the Bulls will do better than last season. No, the road to the top still won't be easy.

To all the Bulls fans out there, please understand the No's I have mentioned. I want the Bulls to kick some ass and take some names too, but for the love of God, show some patience and have a little more faith.

Griese

2007-09-25T20:12:00.000-04:00

It seems I was wrong. Reports are that Brian Griese will be the starter this week against the Lions. I hope he wins, not for his sake but because I hate the Lions.

War Makes Strange Allies

2007-09-25T11:03:00.000-04:00

In the regular season, you would never find a Cubs fan rooting for the Atlanta Braves let alone the dreaded St. Louis Cardinals. However, drastic times call for drastic measures. Take for instance the Pirates vs. Cubs game this past Sunday at Wrigley Field.

It wasn’t a close game by any means. The Cubs defeated the Pirates 8-0 with Zambrano reaching a career high of 17 victories. But the fans weren’t paying any attention to the game at hand; they were more focused on the scoreboard. When the number 4 went up signifying that Atlanta was beating Milwaukee, the stadium broke into cheers. With every bit of news out of Atlanta, the fans began doing the “tomahawk chop” as an acknowledgment to the Braves. It would seem that it was forgotten that the Cubs faced the Braves the last two times they made the playoffs. And we all know how that turned out. Not good.

If cheering for Atlanta seems strange, rooting for the Cardinals is just plain bizarre. It seems like Cubs fans everywhere can put their hatred for St. Louis aside for at least the three games against the Brewers. Cardinals catcher Gary Bennett was saying Monday how he was talking to his dad about the situation.

“I was driving up today and talking to my dad at work. He goes, 'All those Cub fans I've been fighting with all year are my best friends now.' "

Hey, what can you do? When it’s this close, strange things can happen. However, I wouldn’t expect both teams’ fans to become best friends any time soon. Especially when the Cards don’t come through for the Cubs. Last night, Milwaukee crushed St. Louis 13-5. Ok, so Chicago is still 3 games up but COME ON ST. LOUIS!

And what’s coming up for the Cubs? They start their three game series against Florida tonight and on Friday head to Cincinnati. While they are so close, they still have a long way to go. Manager Piniella knows that this thing is not in the bag.

“But let me tell you this: We've still got some work to do. This is a tough little trip to South Florida and then to Cincinnati, two teams that are playing well and scoring runs. "We've got to take care of business. I am excited. I'll be more excited if and when we clinch. We're in a good position, but again, there's baseball to be played."

I don’t want to count my chickens before they hatch but if anyone has any Cubs playoff tickets available, contact me. I just have a feeling…

Ouch

2007-09-24T20:05:00.000-04:00

Sexy Rexy Report: 3 interceptions and no touchdowns. 15 for 32 for 195 yards. Let's compare that with the unquestionably the best quarterback in the game right now, Tom Brady (doesn't have the highest stats in the league, but is going to win another Super Bowl). Brady was 23 for 29 for 311 yards. There is a quite a bit of speculation that Sexy Rexy will lose his job, but I'll venture to say that he will start next week.

The Good: Urlacher had two sacks. Oh, and it looks like we're going to be getting a high draft pick this year.

The Bad: Grossman, but that's a given. The Cowboys put up over 400 yards of offense. The Bear's defense is better than that, but they are on the field way too often. They also didn't force turnovers. Hester looked totally lost out there returning the ball.

The Ugly: Injuries. Tommie Haris, Lance Briggs, and Nate Vasher all left the game injured. It hasn't been reported whether they will be available to play on Sunday. Anyways, most people are hoping Griese gets to start this week. That might fix us for a little while, but he isn't the quarterback we need. I don't believe we have the quarterback we need. None of them are the caliber of quarterback you want to base a franchise around.

Sox conquer Santana

2007-09-23T18:19:00.000-04:00

It was a Chicago White Sox victory Friday night, thanks to Josh Fields and yes, once again Jim Thome. Thome had one home run, while the rookie, Fields, added two homers in the victory against the Minnesota Twins. The Sox did an overall good job offensively, especially considering last Thursday’s game against the Royals where their bats were a little cold.

On Friday night the Sox faced Johan Santana, which wasn’t an easy task since Santana is considered to be one of the best pitchers in the league. Josh Fields stated it pretty well when he said, “"Honestly, against that guy, you just close your eyes and swing.” Well that puts it pretty bluntly don’t you think? Close your eyes and just pray that you make contact. So Santana wasn’t any easy obstacle to overcome, but the Sox did it. As a matter of fact, the last time the Sox won against Santana was in April of 2006. (Which I should probably mention that the Sox were also #1 in the AL Central at that time) So it wasn’t any easy task and it doesn’t happen often.

So how did Buehrle do? Well not too bad I might say. He picked up his 10th victory, which also made this the seventh straight season that Buehrle will ended the season with a double-digit winning record.

Any finally it came down to Bobby Jenks, who received his 39th save this season with a perfect 9th inning.

The win put the Sox back in 4th place in the AL Central.

The Tricks of the Trade

2007-09-22T21:36:00.000-04:00

I have trouble believing trade rumors nowadays. I think trade rumor credibility was recently tarnished thanks to Kobe Bryant. At the end of the 2006-2007 season, Bryant declared that he wanted to be traded and did not wish to be a Laker anymore. He also mentioned that the Chicago Bulls was one of the teams on his list that he would like to be traded to. Bulls fans knew that in order for this trade to happen, this meant that Chicago would have to give up either Deng or Gordon, as well as other players. But then Mr. Raperman Bryant decided to just stick with the Lakers. Regardless, It's so hard to know what the Bulls should do in times like these because everyone knows that practically every player on the Bulls has a tremendous upside and still has time to grow into an all-star caliber player.

It seems that every major trade rumor has involved the Chicago Bulls. Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett, Zach Randolph, Pau Gasol, etc...why does it seem like Chicago is the best place for one of these players? What is so great about the Chicago Bulls??? I'll tell you what...FUCKING EVERYTHING! This shows that I'm not the only one who has noticed that Chicago is consistently getting better and all the NBA is taking notice of it. And the lack of a true all-star has the major players looking to Chicago as a place where they can make an immediate impact, and even eventually bring a championship back to the windy city.

But I don't know if they understand that the reason why the Bulls keep improving every year is because they already have the basic role players, besides a scoring big man. In order to bring one of these all-stars to Chicago, this would mean that Chicago would have to sacrifice Deng, Gordon, Nocioni, Duhon, or someone else that still has time to get better and has already made a major contribution to the success of the team. With the acquisition of Ben Wallace, the Bulls did not lose anything, except maybe a little too much money. Since Wallace was acquired through free agency, no core players were lost from the year before. However, Tyson Chandler was traded to New Orleans for P.J. Brown.

The reason why I bring up this trade talk is because I recently read a blog speaking of how Utah F Andrei Kirilenko requested to be traded. Kirilenko declared this only a few days after he helped Russia win the gold in the European championships. Andrei has sorta been on a downward spiral. This past year, he only average 8.3 points, which is the lowest of his career. Injuries have whooped his ass the last three seasons. But after his showing in the European championships, where he averaged 18 points and 8.3 rebounds, there is no doubt that Kirilenko still has game. Mainly known for his defense, Kirilenko would be able to contribute to the the high powered defense already covered by the Bulls. But I doubt anything will become of this trade because I doubt that Chicago's salary cap can cover Kirilenko. But I think we'll be fine without Kirilenko.

But I'll leave you with some skills that Andrei Kirilenko could bring to Chicago.

The Final Series

2007-09-21T17:13:00.000-04:00

If you are wondering what Piniella has up his sleeve for these last series, you’re in luck. He pretty much has his pitching rotation set for the rest of the season and I’m about to lay it on you.

Pittsburgh: Marquis will go Friday, Rich Hill is on for Saturday, and Big Z comes in to work on Sunday.

Florida: Ted Lilly will pitch Tuesday after the Cubs have Monday off, followed by Marquis and Piniella is undecided for Thursday.

Cincinnati: Hill will come in first, then Zambrano, followed by Lilly.

Don’t worry about the pitching in these final games because it’s solid. There doesn’t seem to be a lot of depth on the Cubs roaster, but Piniella has it all figured out.

"I know there have been people concerned about us going with a three-man rotation, but if they looked at the entire schedule and a possible playoff, they'd see why we did it,” he said.

These guys have been working hard all season and I don’t see why they won’t continue to pull through for the Cubs. All we can really do is pray that the Cubs do well through these last series and hope that the Brewers have the same luck that they did with Atlanta. In case you didn’t see, Milwaukee lost 3-1 to the Braves earlier this week propelling the Cubs to a 1 ½ game lead in the NL Central.

So Cubs fans, hold on to your hats, stay glued to the television, and trust that these pitchers will do their jobs.

Please don’t let him go!

2007-09-21T16:15:00.000-04:00

Rumors have been circling the baseball-trading world a lot lately. Rumors about what? Trading. Who in particular you might ask? Jon Garland. Hopefully this won’t happen, because I think that Garland is a solid starting pitcher for the Sox.

Yes, he didn’t win his game last night, and yes, it is his 3rd straight loss, but he is a big contribution to the Sox defense. Garland is just one win shy to finishing this season with at least ten wins, which will make this his 6th straight season of doing just that.

So how did the last game of the series go with the Royals you might be wondering? Well, Garland pitched eight solid innings, but falling short to Kansas City allowing three runs in the 3-0 (the teams ended up splitting the series). But in the 1st 5 innings, he allowed no runs and finished them off with just 49 pitches. He finished the game with throwing 78 pitches, however 55 of those were strikes. Pretty impressive if you ask me.

The White Sox start the series with the Twins tonight at Minnesota. Mark Buehrle will be the starting pitcher for the Sox and the South Siders will face Johan Santana. Buehrle is going through some rough times right now, but he has a pretty impressive record against the Twins going into tonight’s game. He will start the game with a record on 19-10 against the Twins. The White Sox however, currently are batting .197 (71-for-367) against Santana, collectively. Lets hope they can get that average up and that we also finish the night with a win.

Bears vs. 'Boys

2007-09-21T11:31:00.000-04:00

Sexy Rexy Report: Rex is due to have one of his good games this week. He was terrible the first week and bad the second week. Russ over at BearsGab thinks Dallas will win because they have the QB advantage. I have to disagree. While it is true that Romo is a better quarterback in general, Chicago's defense is going to give him problems, a lot of problems in fact. Rex actually has more completed passes this season than Romo does. Romo does lead Rex in nearly every other stat, but look at who they've played, the Giants and Dolphins. Neither of those teams have won a game.

Key Matchup: Chicago's Defense vs. Running Game. Russ thinks it's just Marion Barber, but the Cowboys have two running backs who are both good. While Barber is their main back, Julius Jones can run. The Bears have done a good job so far at shutting down two of the premiere backs in the league, LT and LJ, but neither team had as an explosive reciever as TO, so the Bear's have to worry about more than just the run game this week.

Let’s Keep It Going

2007-09-20T15:17:00.000-04:00

Thome hit No. 501 and 502 last night in the game against Kansas City. Which were his 29th and 30th of the season. Why stop now right? I just wish he could have hit 2 home runs in the game that he hit his No. 500th. Why you ask? Well for those of you who don’t know, it would have made him the only baseball player to hit two home runs in the same game that he hit the big 500… ever. But beggars can’t be choosers right?
So with Thome’s two homers and one home run addition from Juan Uribe (all of which were within the 5th innings) the Sox beat the Royals 7-0. The White Sox received much help from Jose Contreras, who got the shut-out. (F.Y.I. : This was his first since May 10th).
So yay for the Sox. Our offense in finally coming around. Even though it is essentially too late, we can always hope that it will continue into the start of next season. I have high, high hopes.

They’re awake again!

2007-09-19T13:14:00.000-04:00

It looks like the Chicago White Sox offensive game has finally risen from a deep, deep sleep; however a think they overslept just a tad bit.

With less than two weeks left in the regular season, the Sox put on a show against Kansas City Monday night. The Sox, who have been waiting for something like this all year, had an 11-run inning, which came in the top of the 5th. There was a showcase of 10 hits and 3 homers in addition to the 11 wonderful runs. Another noteworthy stat is that this was the 2nd time this season that the Sox hit 3+ homers in the same inning. Pretty impressive.

Even though the Sox scored nothing in the rest of the game, this win put them back in fourth place. This, by the way, is a place that we haven’t seen since August 21st.

It would have been nice if this is how the whole season went, huh?

However, Monday night’s excitement was extinguished Tuesday. The Sox fell short against Kansas City, 3-2. Why couldn’t Monday night’s game carry over into Tuesday too? I wouldn’t have minded that at all. But, the 1st inning on Tuesday started off pretty unfortunate with KC scoring 3 runs off of Floyd. But look on the bright side, since August 6th, this was the first time a homer wasn’t hit off of him and he walked the fewest amount of batters since August 11th. Positive thinking.

When will the T-n-T explode?

2007-09-18T23:53:00.000-04:00

Last season, rookies Tyrus Thomas and Thabo Sefolosha were able to dip their feet into the NBA waters. Scouts and analysts said that these two players possessed the most potential out of the top fifteen players drafted last year. Both of these players had limited minutes, but somewhere during the season, they showed sparks of greatness. The question that Chicago has been asking is "How long will it be before Tyrus and Thabo break out of their shells?" No one knows...not even me surprisingly. But there is no doubt that star potential is there. But fuck...how much longer does Chicago have to wait???
Thomas wowed everyone with his hops incorporated into unbelievable blocks and sick-nasty dunks. This LSU freshman came into the NBA as the overall 4th pick by Portland but was traded to Chicago, along with Victor Kryapa, for Texas Longhorn LaMarcus Aldridge. Tyrus was the guy of the draft that everyone had high hopes for. He was 2006 SEC Freshman of the Year and Co-defensive player of the year. In one season, he had 99 blocks...what a freak! However his post game doesn't go much more beyond dunking. Tyrus is a guy where as soon as you give him the ball, all he thinks about is dunking it. He will throw in a post move every so often, but it is usually unset and out of control. He has tried to develop a short-range jumper. If he did develop any type of shot with the hops that he has, Tyrus would be that one step closer to being unstoppable.

Sefolosha was one of those rookies that was under the radar. Being apart of the Swiss National Team, Thabo's game was unknown to many, and no one knew if his game would fit into the NBA. The first half of the season started slow for Sefolosha. He would usually only come into the game if a guard was in foul trouble. The second half brought forth the Sefolosha that everyone had heard about but no one saw. He eventually found himself as a key player off the bench during Andres Nocioni's injury. His 6'7" height and even longer wingspan allowed him to shoot over defenders and even slip by through the lane. His defense is another story. At practices, he usually works with Ben Gordon in order to teach Gordon how to shoot over taller defenders. In the playoffs, Thabo was the key to locking down Dwyane Wade. He brought down Wade's playoff scoring average from 28.4 points per game from 2006 to 23.4 points per game in 2007. When his game was on, people realized that experience was not a factor with this guy.

All in all, defense is taken care of by Tyrus and Thabo. But last time I checked, the Bulls were already leading the NBA in defense. It's time for some offense. It's time for some buckets. As Happy Gilmore would say..."Time to go home there ball." So here's what will happen this coming up season. Thomas and Sefolosha will definitely see more playing time, and Thomas might even find his way into the starting line-up if Joe Smith doesn't show up. For now, they will be the fire off the most feared bench in the NBA.

I leave you with some sick-ass shit from my two boys.

Yankees > Suck

2007-09-18T21:59:00.000-04:00

Can I just rant for a minute?

Never mind, I don’t need anyone’s permission.

If you like a team just because they are winning, you annoy me. If you like a team just because everyone around you does, you annoy me. If you know nothing about baseball and you tell me that your favorite team is the Yankees, you annoy me to no end.

Last year, you could not walk around Purdue University without seeing new Detroit ball caps or St. Louis t-shirts. People who were in my classes every day suddenly turned up with new apparel supporting either team conveniently right around October. And I swear to you, if you ask someone who doesn’t follow baseball who they would say their favorite team was they would say the New York Yankees. Maybe this is one of the reasons I cannot stand the team. Or maybe it’s because they are completely overrated. Who really knows at this point?

Speaking of point, mine is this: pick a team and stick with them through it all. If you were a Cubs fan ten years ago then I salute you. If you have been watching ESPN and have seen that hey, the Cubs are in first place, and went and bought yourself a ball cap in red, white, and blue, just hope that I don’t run into you. Because if you’ve learned anything at all about me in this short, angry outburst of a post, it’s that I don’t like bandwagon fans. And also, that the Yankees are greater than or equal to suck. Sorry to all of you NY fans out there, but it had to be said. Compliments to my fellow Cubs fan and bud, Clay.

This is what a true fan looks like.

Flashes of Brilliance

2007-09-18T20:14:00.000-04:00

Occasionally the Bears management will make flashes of brilliance, but that's only occasionally. They don't generally make the best decision with their first round draft pick, but here is my list of their best first round draft picks.

5. Mike Ditka - TE drafted in 1961. Revolutionized the tight end position from a blocker to a receiver. In his first season with the Bears he had 56 receptions, which was unheard of for a tight end at that time and is still impressive by today's standards. He was inducted into the hall of fame in 1988, the first tight end ever. He was also the coach of the 1985 Bears who won the Super Bowl.

4. Brian Urlacher - LB drafted in 2000. Not only the best line backer in the league, the best defensive player in the league. Won Defensive Rookie of the Year Award in 2000, and the Defensive Player of the Year Award in 2005. He is often considered over rated, but these claims are baseless. Just ask TO. Urlacher made TO his bitch after TO caught a pass but then fumbled it because he saw Urlacher coming across the middle to fuck him up. Also, on a Monday night in 2006, Urlacher had 18 total tackles and stripped the ball from Edgerrin James setting the Bears up to score and win the game, inspiring this memorable meltdown.

3. Jim McMahon - QB drafted 1982. Cocky badass from BYU. Quarterback of the 1985 Super Bowl Champion Bears. He threw for over 18,000 yards during his NFL career. He was the NFC Offensive Rookie of the Year. In his first public event with the Bears, he came out with a beer in his hand. He was in constant conflict with the commissioner Pete Rozelle about his headbands.

2. Dick Butkus - LB drafted in 1965. Scarred the shit out of everyone, players, coaches, refs. No one fucked with him. As a rookie he led the team in tackles, interceptions, forced fumbles, and fumble recoveries. Sports Illustrated named him "The Most Feared Man in the Game" in 1970.

1. Rex Grossman - QB drafted in 2003. Just kidding.

1. Walter Payton - RB drafted in 1975. The greatest running ever. Running backs today have wet dreams about running the ball like Sweetness. During his career he amassed 16726 yards rushing and 110 touchdowns. He was a classy fucker too. When President Reagan called him to congratulate him on breaking Jim Brown's rushing record, he thanked him and told him to give his best to Nancy.

Closing Up Shop

2007-09-17T21:17:00.001-04:00

Ok, so you’re a pitcher and you’re good enough to play in the majors. But can you handle the pressure of being your team’s closer? The Cubs’ go-to man is feeling the strain of that job title this season.

With Ryan Dempster practically blowing the Cubs game on Sep. 6 against the Dodgers and then taking a loss in Houston after entering a tied game, some fans want him replaced. They want Piniella to have Carlos Marmol closing instead.

I have to agree with the fans on this one. Dempster does have 28 saves in 31 chances this season but with each game becoming closer and closer, the Cubs can’t afford to lose because the bullpen can’t seal the deal. It’s not that Dempster isn’t a swell guy or that he’s a terrible pitcher, it’s just the plain fact that, as of late, he’s letting the opponents get awfully close to winning or actually accomplishing this feat.

On the other hand, since the loss against Houston, he has earned three saves with no blown saves. But on the other, other hand, Bob Howry was asked to finish off an outing against St. Louis on Friday. What is Piniella getting at here?

''Our bullpen, especially our short people, have really done a yeoman's job out there,'' Piniella said. ''I would like to get to the point where we give them a little more of a lead.''

Ok, he’s not anti-Dempster or pro-Marmol. He’s just out to win. And to be fair, if the Cubs would just score more runs, it wouldn't put as much pressure on the bullpen to finish off the game. I guess as long as Dempster doesn’t pull a repeat of the Dodger game, I can live with him closing.

''I feel like when I'm going right, I can get the job done every time," says Dempster.

Let's hope so.

Put it on the board… YES!

2007-09-16T20:23:00.000-04:00

Yes, please put it on the board for Mr. Jim Thome.

A crack of his bat and there it went, soaring 426 feet, right into the left-center bleachers. Yes, Jim Thome finally hit his 500th career home run this afternoon, with 29,010 fans in attendance. The historical walk-off home run sealed the Chicago White Sox’s win over the Los Angeles Angels. So add him to the list of famous major league sluggers. He may be the 23rd player to reach the 500 mark, (the 3rd this season) but he is the only player out of those 23, who generated a walk-off win for his team (ironically on Jim Thome Bobblehead Day).

After Thome struck out in what seemed to be his last at bat, there was the thought, “There is always tomorrow against Kansas City.” But the game wasn’t over. Thome was given one last chance, much thanks to Josh Fields and Danny Richar, who each had two huge blasts to help the Sox recover from an early 7-1 deficit. A rally was needed and Thome produced it.

Thome had been 0-4 for the day, and between his 499th and 500th home run, he had been a disappointing 2-13. He was just grateful, however, that the fans and his teammates stuck with him and he appreciated the support. “Just can't believe it, I really can't. The crowd and just the way they hung in there all weekend long, kind of the downs, they had a lot of downs all weekend, I would never have imagined doing that as a walk-off. Just amazing to see your teammates standing there. It's like a movie script."

A Glimpse of Hope?

2007-09-16T20:02:00.000-04:00

Sexy Rexy Report: He looked better than he did last week, but that isn't saying much. He went 20-34 for 160 yards with a touchdown and two picks. In comparison, Derek Anderson of the Cleveland Browns went 20-33 for 328 yards, threw 5 touchdowns and only one interception, and he plays for fucking Cleveland. Didn't their fans used to wear brown bags over their face at games so no one could recognize them? Rex did better in the first half than the second, making me believe he needs to work on his conditioning.

The Good: Devin Hester was a manimal out there. If I had a choice between Devin Hester and Reggie Bush I would take Hester any day. Hester was drafted 57th overall and has made more of an impact than any other player taken in the 2006 draft. Also, the Bears defense held LJ to 55 yards rushing. People keep attributing LJ's poor performance to him holding out and skipping camp, but it is obvious the Bears defense is one of the top in the league. Urlacher recorded his first sack since the 2005 season, but to expect to see him getting to the quarterback more as he will be blitzing more this season.

The Bad: The offense. 239 yards on 66 plays is bad, really bad. Grossman has flashes of brilliance but he's leading the offense down the toilet. The offense has a strong, experienced offensive line, good running backs, and good receivers but they can't seem to get their act together. The only thing that saves them is the defense and Hester.

The Ugly: The only touchdown pass for the Bears was made to John St. Clair. For those of you who don't know, John St. Clair is 6'5", 315 pound tackle. I expect to see trick plays like this in elementary and high school football, but not in the NFL. I can't complain much since it worked, but it was definitely ugly.

Chicago's Three-Headed Bull

2007-09-15T22:19:00.000-04:00

The Bulls were the only winning team in the Eastern Conference not to have an all-star on their roster. In the Western Conference, the Golden State Warriors did not have an all-star either. Can anyone recall how they did in the playoffs this past season? Just like the Warriors took down the Mavericks, the Bulls find a way to do this as well. Known mainly for their defense, the Bulls depend on these three players to carry the offensive load.
Luol Deng- Why the hell was he not an all-star last year?? Everyone was saying he should be. Somehow Washington's Caron Butler made it just because of a short first half of the season burst. But whatever...everyone knows the game of Deng. Deng is one of the best inside spot-up shooters, as well as a deadly slasher. Second on the team in rebounding and third in steals, Deng knows how to play a little defense as well. Averaging the most minutes for the Bulls with 37.5 a game, Deng will play every game like it's his last. Deng will come back this season stronger, faster, and even better.

Ben Gordon- If the Bulls could have one go-to guy, Ben Gordon would be the closest thing. Chicago gets a lot of criticism for not having a game finisher who the Bulls could turn to in a time when the game is on the line. But Gordon has gotten it done before. Ray Allen gets a lot of credit for being one of the premiere shooters in the NBA, but Ben Gordon actually had a better field goal and 3-point percentage than Allen. Gordon has improved majorly at driving and drawing the foul. Whether he's in the starting line up or coming off the bench, Gordon will be getting down to business.

Kirk Hinrich- Kirk has a tendency to be a hot-cold, as well as foul-prone, but Coach Scott Skiles turns to him to be the leader of this team. Kirk has come a long way since he was drafted in 2003. Over the years, his stats have remained consistent, but he helps his team improve. Whether he is dropping the 3-ball, dishing out the assist, or locking down on defense, Hinrich is never dorment. His love of the game and his team are all a part of his tremendous attitude. Hinrich, in my opinion, is one of the most under-rated point guards in the NBA.

These are the heads that make up this Chicago monster. These are the guys who walk into any game with no fear in their eyes. Deng, Gordon, and Hinrich all depend on one another to carry their load every game and to help each other out along the way. All I have to say about these guys is that the size of their wallets is no match for the size of their hearts.

Not quite yet….

2007-09-15T08:11:00.000-04:00

So Jim Thome didn’t hit his 500th career home run last night, but look on the bright side, the Sox won! The score was 5-3 in the South Siders victory over the Angels.

Many were involved in the win, although Thome was not one of them, surprisingly. He went 0-4, not what many would have suspected. The key players however, were probably Konerko and Dye, both who finished the game with hits and a few RBIs. Another contributor is Jose Contreras, who led the Sox to the victory. This was a good game from Contreras, especially compared to what we have seen this past season.

Despite a hitless game, Thome has brought excitement back to U.S. Cellular Field. With the Sox officially eliminated from the postseason, they haven’t really given the fans anything to cheer about or a reason to be excited, until now.

It’s not over yet. Thome still has two more home games before the Sox take it on the road for another seven. So he’s got time. My guess is that he will probably hit 500th career home run off a right-handed pitcher, since 411 of them have been off right-handed pitchers and only 88 were off left-handers.

Hopefully the best is yet to come, and hopefully the best will happen at U.S. Cellular Field. But, if our wishes don’t come true, Thome still has a couple more chances to make this the best season he has ever played. We’ll have to wait until the Sox game tonight against the Angels to see.

The Windy City Is Going To Blow Over Bean Town

2007-09-14T19:35:00.000-04:00

I'm calling it right now. The Chicago Bulls will win the season series against the Boston Celtics. I don't care if they have Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, or Paul Pierce. These players have never been on a team where someone else was in the spotlight. There points per game averages last year come to a combined 71.9, and the average of that is 23.9 points per game. There is no way in hell that team basketball will be played in Boston. Somewhere along the season, one of these guys will get ball greedy, but then again...you never know.

Paul Pierce missed 35 games last year due to injury and Ray Allen missed 27 games from injury, where as Kevin Garnett only missed 5 games. The aging veterans don't expect for good health to be on their side the whole season. There will never be a Cal Ripken Jr. of basketball. For crying out loud, the season hasn't even started and Portland already lost Greg Oden for the season due to anthroscopy and microfracture surgery on his knee. Boston is counting on a 32 year old KG, a 31 year old Allen, and a soon to be 30 year old Pierce. The average age of the Chicago Bulls is 25.1 years old. But it's okay because Boston acquired Bull-killer F James Posey, who can plow over any Bull on a fast break and get the occasional ejection.

I say the fresh legs of the Bulls and the all-around team play will be too much for the aging Celtics to keep with. I believe our front court defense will be key, and Kirk Hinrich will more than likely be designated to guard Ray Allen. The Bulls believe in that little word called "sharing". KG still has "MVP" ringing in his ears from almost 5 years ago. So before "championship" can be spoken by Boston once again, how about they just focus on on word: playoffs.

Here is a brief recap of a game from last year. Let's see what the Bulls do to the Celtics. Enjoy!

Thome launches No. 499, but will tonight be the BIG 500?

2007-09-14T19:29:00.001-04:00

Jim Thome is just one blast away from becoming the 23rd major league player to hit 500+ career home runs. The 37-year old smacked a 366-foot solo home run in the 4th inning during the last game against the Indians on Wednesday. But Thome was not in it for himself. He also singled twice and had 3 RBIs. That doesn’t necessary mean that he wasn’t trying though… “The one, I almost fouled it out of the stadium. I got a little quick on it. But there's a lot of emotion, there's a lot of emotion that goes through you. That's what makes it so tough to do, trying to control that emotion and keep those emotions in, but be ready to hit." Thome could have been the first major league player to hit No. 499 and No. 500 in the same game… ever. Pretty amazing, huh? He will, however, be the third player this season to reach the big 500. That is, if he makes it (which we all know he will).

Well let’s all hope that Thome can smack No. 500 in the next three games, which will be his last of the season to make the historical milestone at U.S. Cellular Field. Who knows… maybe that special night will be tonight, when the Sox host the Angels. We’ll just all have to wait and see and hope…

Bears vs Chiefs

2007-09-14T16:59:00.000-04:00

Sexy Rexy Report: Looked terrible last week, we can only hope he has one of his good games this week. The Chief's defense allowed the Texans to score 20 points. Maybe Rex can at least lead his offense to score this time. I'm not calling for his replacement by Griese because I don't believe Griese is that good of a quarterback. I'm calling for them to get rid of Orton and give Leak a chance.

Key Matchup: Bear's Linebackers vs LJ
After the Bears completely LT, I'm hoping they can do the same with LJ. LJ only had 43 yards against the Texans, but he did that on 10 carries giving him a 4.3 yards per rush which is pretty decent. I don't really see Kansas City's passing game as much of a threat, considering Damon Huard had a worse game last week then Grossman did (hard to believe, I know).

Other News: It seems Ron Rivera is running his mouth about Grossman, but when called out on it he denies it. The funny thing is that it's Rivera's own linebackers who are telling people Rivera is talking shit. Rivera was a Bears coach before this season, and is now a coach for the Chargers. Somebody needs to get their story straight.

Oh, They Want It

2007-09-14T16:00:00.001-04:00

Just because baseball players earn more money than anyone of us could ever dream of doesn’t mean that they don’t care when they lose. In the case of the Cubs, they show their frustration.

When it came to losing two of three games to Pittsburgh, the boys weren’t at all happy. Lou Piniella was actually pleased when he heard the news.

“The guys were upset," Piniella said. "That's good. Look, our players want it. They just have to go out and grab it, but they do want it.

What do they say? That sports are 90% mental? Or is it 99%? No, that can't be right. You can't just play with 1% of talent. That means I could be playing professional baseball and I know the world isn't ready for that. Anyway, I don’t know the exact percentage but it’s more mental than physical is what I’m getting at. And if a team wants it bad enough, can see every run scored and every game won, that’s more than half the battle. This is clear. The Chicago Cubs want it.

And in that yearning for success, big guys are delivering. We all know that Derrek Lee is one of the best first base players out there. He’s at the top of the list in the fielding category with only four errors in 132 games played. But he’s also 13th on the overall batting average list with a .312. There can be no denying that Lee has come up with some fantastic hits when it’s needed the most. And what about Aramis Ramirez? He’s 10th on the batting average list with a .315. Let’s not forget about Alfonso Soriano. Even though he was injured while base running, he’s come back and helped Chicago win. He’s 28th on the list with an average of .289. Some people are worrying about the Cubs pitching heading into the middle of September, but Ted Lilly is going to be there for the team. He’s 33rd in pitching with an ERA of 3.85. And of course the other players, Zambrano, Theriot, DeRosa, etc. are going to be key factors as well.

I don’t know about you, but I feel pretty good about the rest of September. It’s not going to be easy and it’s probably not going to be pretty (at times), but these guys and the rest of the team are going to pull through. The Cubs are now .5 games ahead of Milwaukee and I can only hope that they are going to keep extending this lead. If Lee, Ramirez, Soriano, and Lilly have anything to say about it, I’m betting they have a pretty good chance at doing just that.

The Worst of the Terrible

2007-09-12T21:11:00.000-04:00

The Story: The Bears have never had much success in choosing a quarterback. You would think that they would learn, or at least try to get a decent quarterback, but they don't. Why don't they bring in someone who has had some success at choosing a quarterback? Who knows, I certainly don't, but here is my list of the 5 Chicago Bears quarterbacks that I remember who have sucked the most:

5. Jim Miller. The best I can say about him is that he was the first quarterback to be suspended for violating the league's substance abuse policies. Oh, that and he had 55 rushes for 4 yards during his career. While having a not completely awful quarterback rating of 75.2, he lost his starting spot to another Bear's quarterback which doesn't say much for him. He did give the Bears the middle finger in 2004 when he won a Super Bowl ring as the back up for Tom Brady.

4. Chris Chandler. If the NFL were a reproductive organ, Chris Chandler would most likely be an STD (my guess is Syphilis, because Syphilis's symptoms are indistinguishable from other STDs, just like Chandler). He played for 17 seasons in the NFL, which makes you think he is tough, but his nickname of "Crystal Chandelier" tells the real story. When not being injured or standing on the sidelines injured, Chandler enjoys poodles, long walks on the beach, and anal.

3. Jonathan Quinn. I realize he only played 5 games for the Bears, but even they were smart enough not to keep his lousy ass around. He put up some amazing stats during his five games. 1 touchdown pass and 3 interceptions. He seems like Rex Grossman's idol to me. Had he played more games for the Bears, he would have made it higher on the list.

2. Craig Krenzel. Very promising player from Ohio State, turned out to be a piece of shit. In his unpleasantly short NFL career with the Bears, he threw for 6 interceptions and 3 touchdowns. His 52.5 quarterback rating says it all. He also had a debilitating skin condition which caused deposits of dark melanin to form on his face, more commonly known as freckles.

1. Cade McNown. Drafted 12th overall in 1999, he was the highest drafted quarterback for the Bears since Jim McMahon. That says a lot about how much the Bear's management thinks of getting a decent quarterback. Anyways, back to Cade. In two seasons he had 19 interceptions and 16 touchdowns and a beautiful 67.7 quarterback rating. He ranks as the worst Bears quarterback because of all the faith we had in him. Instead of being our savior, he turned out to be shit in our cuts. The highlight of his career was getting inside of these two Playmates.

A four year extension for Guillen

2007-09-12T16:51:00.000-04:00

So Ozzie Guillen will continue to coach the White Sox until 2012 with the newly signed four year extension. Good Idea?? I’m not quite sure. With the Sox currently being in last place and having a real sucky 2007 season, is it the right choice to renew the contract? Obviously the Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf and general manager Ken Williams thought so. Williams stated, “It has never not been in my mind that he would not be the guy…. The problems that we are having right now, I simply do not believe that they are problems that are with our coaching staff or with our manager.” Ok… well that means he is doing what? Blaming the disappointing season solely on the players??

During Guillen’s four years with the White Sox, he has a record of 333-297 and is the 11th manager in Sox history to reach the 300-win level (which one might not believe after this year’s showings). Nonetheless, Ozzie Guillen will continue to be with the White Sox for another four years and general manager Ken Williams believes in Guillen. Williams declared, “He's got to know, the players need to know, the fans need to know that this thing -- we're far from done here. We've had a very disappointing year, but my coaching staff is getting better as the days go by.”

So I guess the Chicago White Sox’s following four seasons rest in the hands of Ozzie. We’ll just have to see what the next four years will entail.

References:
http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070911&content_id=2201951&vkey=news_cws&fext=.jsp&c_id=cws

Green Day Had it Right

2007-09-11T22:19:00.000-04:00

Wake me up when September ends. Please. I can’t take any more of this losing to the Dodgers and then beating St. Louis and then having to watch Milwaukee cream Pittsburg. I mean, a person can only take so much. You might be saying, “That’s the best part of the sport; the upsets, the surprises.” Well, you are obviously not a Cubs fan. We’ve seen this happen all too often. We’re up, we’re up, and then we’re down and out. It’s not that I don’t have faith because I do. I wake up in the morning and look towards Chicago and think to myself how 2007 is our year. The year of the Cubbies.

We still have a long way to go until October and the big show. But as of right now, we’re .5 games behind the Brewers and my heart is racing. We’ve spent the last 24 of the past 25 days in first place. I can’t help but to think what would happen if we would lose this thing now. We need to beat Houston, we need the Brewers to fall off the face of the earth, and we need Cincinnati to keep up the good work.

We’re going to play 16 of our final 19 games against NL Central teams and I can’t decide if this is a good thing or a bad thing. All I know is that the rest of September better be good to us Cubs fans. I don’t know if we can take any more of this up and down thing.

But at least we’re not the Cardinals who have lost their past five games. Too bad, boys.

Who the hell is Joe Smith??

2007-09-11T21:10:00.000-04:00

Apparently he's this guy. This is the guy Chicago picked up to replace PF P.J. Brown. Chicago lucked out on opportunities to retrieve such power forwards as Kevin Garnett, now in Boston, Zach Randolph, now in New York, and Jermaine O'Neal, still sadly in Indiana. I guess Joe Smith was the next best thing. I have heard of him though. He was that guy who came to the New World and fell in love with Pocahontas, right? I don't know...so I did some research on Joe Smith.

Drafted out of Maryland in 1995 by the Golden State Warriors as the number one pick, Joe Smith made an instant impact by putting up solid double figures in scoring, along with the occasional double digit rebounding. He averaged 17.1 points in three years while playing for Golden State. I found it interesting that he started all 211 games he played for Golden State. Once he was settled, Smith was shipped to Philadelphia in 1997. This is where he met the injury bug, as well as the bench. Almost every stat in the book went down, especially points, minutes played, and games played. Although there was a solid increase in personal fouls per game.

Smith is an avid traveler and loves touring the country. He has been all over the country in the last ten years. He spent one year in Philly, two years in Minnesota, and one year in Detroit. Smith decided to revisit Minnesota for two more years, and then settled in Milwaukee for three years. This past season, Smith started in Denver, but then ended up back in Philly as part of the Iverson trade. Now he wishes to find a home in Chicago.

<-This picture just screams irony. Thank God we have them both (I'm debating whether I'm being sarcastic or not).

There's no doubt that the Bulls need an offensive big man. After Chicago C Eddy Curry was sent to New York in 2005, the Bulls really never recovered their post game. The Bulls have relied mostly on the streaky shooting of Luol Deng, Ben Gordon, and Kirk Hinrich. These guys have done a great job, but something has to be wrong when your big man leader in scoring is Ben Wallace, who averaged 6.4 points in the 2006-2007 season. When Chicago traded Tyson Chandler to New Orleans for P.J. Brown at the beginning of this past season, Chicago was hoping that some sort of post game would be resurrected out of Brown that the Bulls have lacked for so long. What ended up happening? Basically, P.J. Brown flopped. There were some streaks of offense, but nothing that lasted long. He only averaged 6.1 points per game and was fourth in rebounding on the team. And to top it off, Tyson Chandler all of sudden decided to be good. He finished the season 2nd in the league in rebounding, averaged a career high 9.5 points, was one the candidates considered for Most Improved Player, and made the USA Men's National basketball team. What the hell?!

I'll tell you what the Bulls need. This is exactly what the Chicago Bulls need...

Just ignore the foreign language in this clip.