Saturday, June 28th, 2008

Jason Giambi dropped some Just For Men in his 'stache and the results are spectacular, as you can see. The Giambino looks like he should be a motorcycle cop or something...the gravy train is about to be shut down for NFL rookies, if these warning signs by Commissioner Roger Goodell mean anything. Goodell thinks - rightly - that rookies are paid far out of line with what they should be, and pay should be for performance...the three most hit batters in MLB over the last ten years? Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez and Jason Giambi...nice night for the Argos Mike Vanderjagt, going 2 of 5. And he's giving interviews wondering why he was booted from the NFL...the Philadelphia Flyers locked up another of their bevy of young talent in Jeff Carter. They are what the Leafs want to be - young, players under control with reasonable contracts going forward. That said, still not sure about those seven year plus deals...Toronto FC will get a real tough test in the form of the New England Revolution tonight. Not sure I'm liking their chances. Coverage is 7:30 on SportsNet...after trading Richard Jefferson, it is clear the Nets are preparing to make a monster offer for Lebron James when his pact expires. Of course, Lebron is tight with Jay-Z, an owner of the Nets, and would no doubt love to be there when the Nets move to their billion dollar arena in Brooklyn. Strangely, the Nets had the chance to trade Wince Carturd and passed up on it...Toronto Raptors fans, say goodbye to Carlos Delfino, and a big welcome to Croatian Roko Ukic...get your fist pump ready: Ana Ivanovic and her tired act are out of Wimbledon...next up on Dancing With The Stars: Warren Sapp. Dear God, please make that happen...so Michael Strahan spends half his career blasting the media, particularly belittling any female reporter he could find, and now comes out as part of the Fox crew. Shocked? Me neither...have a great Satuday.

Friday June 27th, 2008 - Olé!

Spain dominated Russia virtually start to finish, and found another gear in the second half to cruise to a 3-0 win. Fernando Torres played his best game of the tourney and Cesc Fabregas came on early for David Villa and was the difference, really. Spain wins Sunday. Bank on it. They're better than Germany in every way - goal, defence, midfield, attack, and bench...an impressive week for the Maple Leafs. First, Darcy Tucker, Kyle Welwood and Andrew Raycrap are cleaned out in one fell swoop, but that left the real cancer: Bryan McCabe. And then today comes word that he too has played his last game in Leafs colours. Sure they may not have much in the way of cap room, but they've needed to get worse before they can get better and for the first time - dare I say it? -it seems there is a credible plan being executed...tough day for the beautiful people at Wimbledon: Maria Sharapova and Andy Roddick, out...Shawn Chacon is a Houston Astro no more after attacking his GM...Scott Niedermayer is coming back for one more year with the Anaheim Ducks. Could he have an eye toward the Olympics?...a whole lot of movements at the NBA Draft last night, hilited by an 8 player deal between Memphis and Minnesota...new Raptors Jermaine O'Neal lauded how much his new team plays defence. Not sure what team he's been watching, but the Raptors certainly don't play defence, and even less so with Jose Calderon tabbed to get major minutes...lively debate in yesterday's blog comments on American Football. Check it out if you've got a moment...speaking of American Football, the Canadian Football League kicked off last night. I'd comment but I haven't gotten that deep into the sports section with all these great articles on more important things like Euro 2008, the NBA Draft etc. You know, things the entire world cares about...would be a great day to be in New York today as the Yankees and Mets do a home and home double header. First game goes 2pm at Shea and then they'll pack up their gear and move to Yankee Stadium for the second game at 8...have a great Friday.

Thursday, June 27th, 2008

Get a giant tube of Proactiv and smear it all over Germany, they are seriously a flawed side going into the Euro final. Turkey deserved to win that matchup almost as much as Croatia deserved to beat them the game prior - more chances, more creativity, and just as much Michael Ballack as Germany had (is he invisible?). Germany has a terrible defence, and perhaps the worst goalie in the tourney really in Jens Lehmann, who looks shakier than Michael J. Fox on a case of Red Bull...wonder why Russia is looking fresh where Holland, for example, looked gassed? The Russian league is only half way through its season while the majority of players have played full seasons of domestic and European competition. That said, I think that with the mental hurdle of Italy now behind them, Spain (+114) will play a free flowing game and down them again, albeit closer than the 4-1 score of earlier in the tourney. Apologies to new poster "Russian"! Best line from TSN's Vic Rauter, on the fact that Russia has no official state bird: "they may choose the 'Guus'"...the Pinnacle ledger sits at 14-15 (-$43) for the tourney...good of Novak Djokovic to talk of how vulnerable Roger Federer was going into Wimbledon. Federer survived round two. Nola? Not so much...it looks like long-time Indiana Pacer Jermaine O'Neal is going to the Toronto Raptors for T.J. Ford, Rasho Nesterovic and the #17 pick in tonights draft. Who wins the deal? Everybody, says ESPN...if the talk of Anthony Parker and Carlos Delfino moving is true, that could be five Raptors rotation players gone in one off season. Says much of how Bryan Colangelo assessed the past season...if you're interested in seeing Pachua (Mexico) or Independiente (Argentina) when they come to face Toronto FC in the coming weeks, be sure to post - may have a trio of tickets available in section 114 (aka "The Bunker" or south end)...Vinny Lacavalier is a fantastic hockey player. Top 5 or 10. But a 9 year contract for $77 million by the Tampa Bay Bolts is moronic on their part...Yankees pitcher Joba Chamberlain was throwing 97mph change ups last night and hit 100 on the fastball en route to his first win as a starter. Seems the conversion is complete...one suggestion on how Joe Torre might get his LA Dodgers back in the NL West race: have Andruw Jones eat the competition...have a great Thursday, enjoy the semi-final.

Wednesday, June 25th, 2008 - Germany Will Punish Turkey Today

Couldn't find a solid sports related picture for today, so went with the SunShine Girl. Hope you dig...I've watched a lot of sporting events in my time and had some feelings on who might win a game here or there. But never, EVER have I been more sure of the conclusion of a game than today's first Euro 2008 semi-final. Germany wins (-221), and there's not even a doubt in my mind of it. Turkey is depleted with injuries and cards to the extent their third string keeper could take to the field if needed because of further injury. They're in trouble. Cinderella's time is up, starting at 2:45 Eastern. The record stands at 13-15 (-$88). Drop your caish at Pinnacle, and enjoy. For the record, Croatia would've beat Germany today and that kills me still thinking about it...Real Madrid are feeling confident they'll pick up Cristiano Ronaldo on July 7th. Clever. 7/7 for #7. I can see the t-shirt already. It's so thin it is transparent...the New York Post says three squads are in the hunt for Toronto Raptor T.J. Ford. The Knicks (Eddy Curry or Zach Randolph), Pacers (Jermaine O'Neal) and Suns (Boris Diaw) have had some conversation with the Raptors...one more symbol of the Toronto Maple Leafs mismanagement - Darcy Tucker - will disappear, thanks to a buyout. Kyle Welwood and Andrew Raycrap are on the outs too. Now they need to fix that Bryan McCabe problem. Predition? Last place for the Leafs this year. And that's a good thing, albeit months too late. Had they cleaned house at the trade deadline, they might have set themselves up for a bevy of draft picks in this past weekends draft...the CHL player of the year - Justin Azevedo of the Kitchener Rangers - was finally drafted. The LA Kings took him 153rd, in the 6th round...could Anthony Parker and Carlo Delfino of the Raptors be Europe bound? Somehow, I can't see it happening...have to believe if there are going to be some NBA troop movements, they ought to heat up today with the draft coming tomorrow...loved Motley Crue on David Letterman last night, placing a bunch of strippers on stage just sitting there on monitors, drum risers and so on...no Daily Burn from Jim Rome today, so we'll throw in a little Headlines from PTI instead...have a great Wednesday.

Tuesday, June 24th, 2008 - Another Dinosaur Named Don That Needs To Die

I remain blown away by how much coverage soccer has on this side of the pond. Its now normal to hear SportsCentre types just refer to "Chelsea" without any context, such is how common it has become. I love it...Kansas City has the NFL bottom feeding Chiefs, baseball's perennial loser Royals, the last place Wizards in Major League Soccer, and in the Arena Football League, the last place Brigade led by one Quincy Carter. Tough times in K.C....Mike Mussina's won at least 10 games for 17 years, an AL record...former Oilers owner Peter Pocklington auctioned off his five Stanley Cup rings for $300,000. And I thought selling Gretz was bad. Word is current owner Daryl Katz bought them. Good for Katz...you'd think Don Imus, just back on radio after his ill-advised "nappy headed" comment on the Rutgers women's hoops team, might stay away from race, but nope, once a fool always a fool. Told that Adam Jones is black - as if he didn't know - he responded "there you go, now we know"...Shaquille O'Neal laid out Kobe Bryant in a rap while at a New York club, blaming Kobe for his divorce, and cracking on him for not winning a ring against the Celtics. Catch it below..Russia punked Spain at Euro Basket last year - in Spain - who's to say their soccer team can't punch the Spanish side in the mouth? Me, for one. You don't lose 4-1 a couple weeks back and recover that well...word is the Leafs will pick up a 1st round pick in 2009 if Mats Sundin signs with Montreal by July 1st. Doesn't sound like Sundin will do the Leafs any favours and in that regard, that is most fitting for all the Leafs did for him over the years…the CFL season kicks off this week. My predictions? Some quarterbacks will have changed teams, at least a couple squads will be in financial peril, the single point rule will remain lame, and the Argos will continue to suck. If only Pinnacle offered lines on these items other than the last one, which of course, you can hammer weekly...have a great Tuesday. A trio of vids worth checking out below.

A great vid from the late George Carlin on baseball vs. football, Shaq cracks on Kobe, and in what will likely be a daily addition, Jim Rome's Daily Burn...

Monday, June 23rd, 2008 - Spanish Fly

It wasn't pretty, it was only mildly entertaining, but Spain were a deserving winner in the last quarter-final at Euro 2008, advancing to face Russia on Thursday while Germany will take on Turkey on Wednesday. If it is anything but a Germany-Spain final, I'll be shocked...check out Pat Venditte's - the "switch-pitcher" - glove here...Sports Illustrated's Dr. Z is picking the Minnesota Vikings to win the Super Bowl this year...expect baseball's trade season to fire up soon. Talk of Rich Harden or C.C. Sabathia to the Cubs, and Bronson Arroyo to the Yankees has already begun...of course, now that he's in Boston, Peter Gammons is calling Kevin Garnett one of the 15 best players ever. Is anybody surprised he thinks that now? Me neither. And is there anything more hilarious than Garnett butchering the "Impossible is Nothing" for Adidas by yelling "Anything is possible!" after the Celtics won? What's next, him yelling "I'm going to Dis...where?"...Adam Jones would prefer that he no longer be referred to as "Pacman". Memo to Pacman: that nickname should be the least of the things in your past you are tied to you're worried about. Maybe he was just "being rebellion" again. How weird is it that his mom gave him that nickname?...if my memories of my childhood are accurate, summer is here this week. It always rolls around when Wimbledon starts. Roger Federer has won 59 straight matches at Wimbledon to win the title five straight years, something he's immortalized on his shoes..a nine-year old kid at the Celtics parade held up a sign that said "9 Years Old. 6 Parades". I hate that kid...have a great Monday.

Sunday, June 22nd, 2008 - Dutch To The Ditch

There must be a lot of people losing money on Euro wagering. For the third straight day, the fav went out to the dog and this time, it was Holland losing 3-1 in extra time to Russia. For a team that rested most of their players last game, Holland looked entirely spent while the Russians looked entirely fresh. A stunner, to say the least. Today, Italy aims to be the fourth dog to win, but I'm saying Spain (+155) takes it (Record: 12-15, -$246). I haven't seen them all, but this has to have been the best tournament ever of the big two...JP Ricciardi apologized for his comments about Adam Dunn. Here's hoping Dunn doesn't take his comments back where he called Ricciardi a clown...Toronto FC Manager John Carver would be wise to ditch his policy of keeping the same starting lineup as long as the team wins the game prior. With five players returning from international duty, starting the game yesterday minus Amado Guevara, Jim Brennan and Maurice Edu, among others, could well have cost them a win. Sure, a tie isn't the end of the world, but a win and they're in second place and very much a playoff team. On the plus side, Carver pointedly told CBC post game that "everyone can see" the squad needs a striker...Nick Kypreos, who I generally think is entirely lacking in credibility, says Mats Sundin won't enjoy being boxed in like this with Montreal, and is more likely to go to the New York Rangers. That would give the Big Apple my two fav #13's...things go from bad to worse for the Blue Jays. Shaun Marcum is now on the DL. In other Jays news, former first bag coach Ernie Whitt is not impressed over his dismissal. And seriously, what do you do to get fired as a first base coach? Not take a guys shin pad fast enough? Whitt did a great job laying out JP Ricciardi or as one of the Rando readers glossed him: JP Rittardi. I get that Whitt is sour, but I still haven't forgiven him for Mother's Pizza going under...last nights Ultimate Finale was better than most of the recent UFC pay-per-views, and was free on spike. Diego Sanchez continues to be one of the most exciting fighters anywhere and scored a wild knockout of Luigi Fioravanti, and Amir Sadollah was the Ultimate Fighter 7 champion making quick work of CB Dollaway. Sadollah could be a huge star with his great personality...23 Turks were hurt in celebrations Friday night after their win over Croatia. The cause? "Stray bullets"...have a great Sunday.

Saturday, June 21st, 2008 - Heartbreak

I've watched a lot of sports in my time and not sure I've ever gone from euphoria to despair so fast as the last two minutes of Croatia's loss to Turkey last night. And what is it with Croatia giving up goals in key games immediately after taking a lead? Shades of the World Cup semi-finals in 1998 against France. I still cannot believe it...the Yankees are just smarter than the rest. They drafted a switch-pitcher who made his debut last night for a minor league squad. That's right, the guy can throw with both arms. And word is, he can switch which he throws with - legally - between batters...UEFA is talking about expanding Euro to 20 or 24 teams? Opinion: don't do it...silently, I had vowed to crack on John Gibbons and his bosses daily until somebody was axed and in short order, it was done. Cito Gaston has long deserved a job in the bigs, but this just seems a little odd. Gibbons record as manager was 305-305...the Toronto Maple Leafs have given hated rival Montreal until July 1st to negotiate a deal with Mats Sundin. The New York Rangers are also interested. Good for Sundin if he can get out of that disaster area...oddest draft quote I've ever seen from new Leafs coach Ron Wilson, on first round pick Luke Schenn: "by trading up for him, it sent a message that we are going for youth." Umm, what were they going to do, draft someone who is 35?...Holland is the winner today (-144) in a series of selections gone south (12-14, -$146) after opening 7-3...a survey of 495 MLB players by Sports Illustrated had Derek Jeter win top spot as most overrated player in the bigs...Toronto FC host Kansas City today. Catch it at 3:30 on CBC...have a great Saturday.

Friday, June 20th, 2008 - Time To Cook Some Turkey

Portugal might have played the worst game in a big spot you could imagine. Shoddy defending on at least two German goals (first and last, both "defended" by Paulo Ferreira), and a sophomoric attack in the second half where they tried to attack the Germans down the middle and shoot from a distance. Did they not notice Croatia beat Germany on the flanks at will, and they scored themselves in the first half coming from wide? With Luiz Philipe Scolari off to coach Chelsea now, Manchester United need not fear much if that is the best he can get out of a team...a 12-13 record is shameful at this stage of the Euros. Worse is being in the red for the tourney now too at -$46. Today, a reversal. Croatia wins (-108) and the weekend gets off to a rip roaring start. I'm going to suggest 2-0, because 1-0 would have my heart pounding a little too much...my bad for reporting Evgeni Malkin had re-signed with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Should've had a second source other than SportsNet. Malkin is said to be heading to the LA Kings in a trade for the #2 pick in Saturday's draft. If you're the Kings, that is a no-brainer...I'm not sure they're the best mullets in sports history, but there are some definite beauties here...every team in the NL Central has lost a minimum of three in a row except for the Milwaukee Brewers who have won four straight. Who'd they play last series again?...and very classy of JP Ricciardi to go off on Adam Dunn and question his desire as a player. This from the same guy who brought in AJ Burnett, who makes the Tin Man of the Wizard of Oz look like Rocky Balboa. For his part, Dunn called Ricciardi a clown. Well, he's got some kinda nose anyway...remember Charles Barkley saying he wasn't going to gamble for a few years after his last fiasco, where he owed a casino $400k? Fast forward a couple weeks and he's in a poker tourney in Vegas, albeit a charity event...Joba Chamberlain fanned 9 and is looking better by the start. The Yanks have now won seven straight. With A-Rod having one of those months (7 HR, 20 RBI), maybe there's some life in them bones, even minus Chien-Ming Wang...have a great Friday. G0 Cro!

Best MMA Knockouts of 2008

Thursday, June 19th, 2008 - Cuban Ain't Feelin' The Olympic Spirit

More than a little surprised Sweden was a total no-show in their must-win game against Russia who totally dominated the game. That puts the Russians, coached by Guus Hiddink, up against his homeland Holland on Saturday which completes the final eight...the first quarter-final goes today with Germany facing Portugal. Maybe the most interesting matchup of the quarters. You've got a well rested Portuguese side with loads of skill in the midfield against the traditionally powerful, physical German side who have looked vulnerable, and have that mental midget Jens Lehmann in goal. Who wins? It's always tough to write off Germany as they've practically mastered the art of navigating a tournament but I've got Portugal going through (+145. Yours truly is 12-12 at Pinnacle, +$46). Why not? Nuno Gomes promised a goal after all...so I guess Tiger Woods wasn't just being dramatic when it came to his knee bothering him. He's got an ACL issue and stress fractures in his left leg and is having surgery and done for the year which begs the question, does golf even have a "year"? It never really ends, does it? Of course, that he's won 10 tournies with a torn ACL will do wonders for those that argue golf isn't a sport...Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban got off this gem on the Olympics: "It's not that I don't like the idea of them representing their countries. If the Olympics were truly a nationalistic endeavor built on sport and part of the public domain, I would be willing to take risk and support their playing. What I don't like is that we lie to ourselves and pretend that the Olympians represent our country. They don't. They have taken relatively low paying jobs working for the Olympics, who in turn sell the broadcast and marketing rights for billions of dollars in profits, all the while creating enormous risk for those of us who pay them for their day jobs that support their families. It's amazing how players who are free agents won't participate, but those with guaranteed contracts will. I hate the fact that we lie to ourselves and pretend this is about representing country. It's not. It's about money." Not one part of that do I disagree with...more and more, the similarities between the Leafs and Jays are blowing my mind. In the lead role, you've got Richard Peddie and Paul Godfrey, who think they know sports because they appear on Off The Record every other day. For GM's, you've got well, nothing yet and JP Ricciardi who incidentally has delivered nothing yet. Both have a guy that they vastly overpaid for considering what they've delivered: AJ Burnett? Meet Jason Blake. But at least both have a couple vets and great leaders in Mats Sundin and Roy Halladay. Oh, and the Jays don't have Don Cherry. Advantage Jays...the Yankees signed Sir Sidney Ponson to a minor league deal, his second go-round with the Yankees. Who is next? Boomer Wells?...it just doesn't sound right: Motley Crue, on Larry King Live tonight...have a great Thursday.

Wednesday, June 18th, 2008 - Celtics in six

Has there ever been a better but less inspired collection of talent than France's entry at Euro 2008? Betting that Spain didn't figure their reward for winning Group D would be Italy in the second round, albeit minus Andrea Pirlo and Gennaro Gattuso. Holland dominated play against Romania for the most part with almost all their regular starters on the bench. Only they and Croatia go to the quarters with perfect 3-0 records, with Spain in line to do the same...the final day of roundrobin play goes today as the final qualifier in Group D gets settled in the Sweden/Russia matchup. I've got Sweden (+168) and Spain (-129). Goodbye Greece, here's hoping we don't have to endure you for a long, long time at a major competition. The Pinnacle account is at 11-11 and +$60...is it just me or the deeper the NBA playoffs went, the less you watched and were interested? Not sure I saw more than a couple quarters of the final...over the year plus of writing for this space, there have been repeated nukes dropped on AJ Burnett and JP Ricciardi. Steve Simmons summed up many of those arguments that cannot be argued against in this excellent piece. Of course, Jays President Paul Godfrey, who also needs to meet the sharp end of an axe, disagrees...Manchester City's Paul Dickov to Toronto FC? Now there's a jersey I'd be forced to get...my tea leaves tell me Cristiano Ronaldo is done with Manchester United. Guessing the day Portugal's run at Euro is up is the day we'll hear of his intentions. Not sure how you leave the team that is tops in Europe for the mess that is Real Madrid, particularly when United stayed loyal to you after his debacle with Wayne Rooney, rape charges and the like...it will forever make me smile when I think of Mats Sundin getting in the Hall of Fame the first try and Doug Gilmour needing at least a couple attempts. Fitting, that, for the moronic Leafs fans that buy Don Cherry's "Kingston boys!" garbage and ignore the far better player has been in their roster for far longer. Oh, and Sundin didn't tap his 13-year old babysitter. About time Glenn Anderson got in...Lukas Podolski doubtful with a calf issue. That's a huge loss for Germany if he's out...Willie Randolph is slated to be one of the NL coaches at the All-Star Game next month at his old home of Yankee Stadium. Guessing that won't happen, at least not in a Mets uniform...the Boston Celtics completed one of the most impressive turnarounds in sports as far as I'm concerned, in a single year. They blew the Lakers out of the building in game 6 with a 131-92 win...Dustin McGowan doesn't like road cooking. He's 1-3 with a 6.02 ERA...have a great Wednesday.

Tuesday, June 17th, 2008 - Something's Wang

After Croatia went to England in a meaningless game for them and punched them in the mouth, should've known to take Croatia yesterday. The Croatian B team dominated Poland in a game that was nowhere near as close as the 1-0 suggested...Germany scraped by Austria on a beauty from Michael Ballack...a 1-1 day with Pinnacle, and the account sits at a paltry $22 on a 10-10 record. Today, going to play the Holland draw with Romania (+286) and will be utterly stunned if Italy can't beat France (+148)...guess JP Losman's push for a trade from the Buffalo Bills hasn't exactly progressed…further evidence Leafs fans will go to any length in search of hope: there is talk the Leafs haven't won the Stanley Cup since CBC brought on the famed and overly-discussed-of-late "hockey theme song" and that now that it's off CBC, the curse is gone. Yeah, either it was that or decades of mismanagement encouraged and tolerated by the stupidest group of fans in sport...Johnathan Papelbon says the Red Sox are not done paying the Rays back for the brawl a couple weeks back. Somewhere, Todd Bertuzzi's ears just perked up...Aaron Rodgers told The Jim Rome Show that if Brett Favre is playing this year, it won't be for the Packers. Good for him...after weeks of silence, and after the Yankees lost Chien-Ming Wang, Mt. Steinbrenner Jr. erupted on the subject of pitchers hitting with this gem: "My only message is simple. The National League needs to join the 21st century...that was a rule from the 1800s." On that subject, I tend to agree. There's nothing more painful than watching a pitcher roll up to the batter's box, hitting .180, and go down on three pitches while trying to drop a bunt...Wang, out until September, leads the majors in wins by a pitcher since 2006, with 46. With no Wang, there is no October for the Yankees, not the way things stand at least...Tiger Woods does it again, going into sudden death after he and Rocco Mediate were deadlocked after 18 playoff wholes yesterday. 14 majors and counting...Philadelphia Philly Ryan Howard has four homers in his last four as he starts to heat up. Guessing he's now got more total bases than whiffs?...Chad Johnson is no longer fun. In fact, he might be crazy...the Mets axed Willie Randolph at 3:15am today. Willie deserved better than to be left twisting like that for that long...have a great Tuesday.

Worth a view from the weekend. The Texas Rangers go slip-n-slide at Shea, and win over the fans.

Monday, June 16th, 2008 - Czeching Out

I've seen some impressive choke jobs in my time but with a 2-0 lead and 15 minutes to go in a soccer game, you generally have to figure a team with the reputed best goalie in the game is pretty safe. Nope. The Czechs snatched defeat from the jaws of victory in their game against Turkey as the Turks rallied for a 3-2 thriller. The win earns the Turks a spot in the quarter-finals against Croatia on Friday while the Czech's go home...it's all or nothing of late in the Euro account for yours truly following yesterday's 0-2 day. 9-9 overall but still up at +89. Today on the Pinnacle lines, I'm taking Germany (duh) at -299, and that one could get ugly. Also, am feeling the draw (+258) in the Croatia/Poland tilt, though Croatia will be sitting anyone who has a yellow going into this one...fading fast: the Toronto Blue Jays who have dropped two games further back of Boston in the last week...Tiger Woods needed to sink a birdie putt to force a playoff to be played today against Rocco Mediate...Teemu Selanne might be looking to (no pun intended) finish his career in Montreal...Italian and French players whining about Holland resting players in a game where a Romanian win puts them both out need to look in the mirror for who to blame for their predicament. Holland owes them nothing and has earned the right to rest guys...are the Jays working the official scoring to keep Roy Halladay's ERA down? Lou Piniella thought there was some curious decisions for the home side...when Danny Ainge took the Boston Celtics job, his owner told him if he built a winner, he'd retire his #44. Maybe the lamest thing I've heard in sports in some time...despite the LA Lakers going 7 minutes without scoring in the third quarter to let the Celtics back in it - and haven't they done that enough for one series? - the Lakers won 103-98 to force game 6. Not sure I like their chances of taking both games in Boston, but if anybody is comfortable going into someone else's house and imposing their will, it is Kobe Bryant...good of AJ Burnett to publicly talk of how it'd be nice to go to a place like Chicago where baseball is breakfast, lunch and dinner. Something tells me that Mr. .500 would wilt under the pressure and easily make it 101 years for the Cubbies...have a great Monday.

Sunday, June 15th, 2008 - Ricketts Rocks It

Here come those C.C. Sabathia-to-the-Yankees rumors that this spot mentioned a year back. The Yanks need a guy like C.C. bad, preferably the 2007 edition, however. The injuries to Phil "The Franchise" Hughes and Ian Kennedy will limit their innings into next year now...how big is the scoreboard in the Dallas Cowboys new stadium? The Dallas News says to "imagine four city buses parked in a line. Now imagine another layer of buses stacked on top of them. Add five more layers and hang the 28-bus cluster over a mental football field." So, it's big?...Johnny Damon is hitting an MLB best .443 since May 20th in a nice bounce back year for him. Even more impressive is that Mike Mussina, who couldn't break a pane of glass with his fastball, is sitting at 10 wins in mid-June...perfect day for the Euro account - based on a $100 wager per game on the money line at Pinnacle - which now sits at +$289 on a 9-7 record. Things get a little dicey now with teams that have advanced sure to rest some players, but thems the breaks. Today, I've got Portugal (+151) despite them being sure to rest some notables, and playing the draw in the Turkey/Czech game (+209) which sets up a real mess for tie-breaking purposes...Dennis Green says Greece is who we thought they were. Namely, garbage. The 2004 champions that nobody thought were good have been sent packing...Paul Pierce was asked to compare himself to Carmelo Anthony: "I've never got a DUI." True story...Toronto FC dropped an emphatic 3-1 win on the Colorado Rapids last night at a rocking BMO Field. Rohan Ricketts scored his first and second goals eight minutes apart, with the second perhaps the best goal in TFC history. You can catch it below. TFC is now 5-0-2 at home this year. TFC is also 6-1-3 all time when Danny Dichio scores...had to love the 1978 throwbacks the Cleveland Indians wore last night. The San Diego Padres, not so much...have a great Sunday.

Saturday, June 14th, 2008 - "If you are not from Lesbos..."

Had to go a little off the typical sports path for the pic today, because, well, it is too good not to immortalize...Chicago Cubs manager Lou Piniella has contemplated using Carlos Zambrano (.900 OPS) as his DH in interleague trips to Toronto and Tampa Bay...somehow, FHM managed to get a picture of Ana Ivanovic in which she wasn't pumping her fist...there are more than a few Euro 2008 participants whose WAGs - wives and girflriends - are way, way out of their leagues. Here are your starting 11...Toronto FC host Colorado in what should be an over the top crowd, what with nice weather and a rare Saturday night kickoff. Coverage is on SportsNet at 7pm. Tune in, help push the viewership past 100,000. Brian Edwards is starting in goal for the Reds...Lex Ovech got a key to the city in Washington for his MVP win. In his speech, he declared there was no longer a speed limit in Washington. You've gotta love Ovechkin...Evegeni Malkin, whom Pau Gasol is emulating for disappearing in the final, is about to sign an extension with the Pens that will pay him $9 million per, or more than Sidney Crosby...Peter DeBoer is the new Florida Panthers head coach, making him the third coaching hire this week alongside Ron Wilson (Toronto) and Craig Hartsburg (Ottawa)...Tiger Woods is lurking at the U.S. Open, shooting 30 on the back 9 to get within a shot of the lead...no joke: TSN's Darren Dutyschen referred to Portugal as "Pork Chop" before correcting himself...if you're a fan at all of sport, but not of soccer, you cannot possibly watch Holland and not be blown away by what they're doing in attack at the Euros, smoking the World Cup Champion Italy and finalist France back to back. 4-1 over France yesterday. Gonna be an interesting last day in the Group of Death, as Holland could well rest most of their key guys which could see Romania go through if they beat the Dutch after Romania tied Italy yesterday and sitting ahead of the Italians on goal differential. Most would have had Italy and France going through when the tourney started...tough day in the the Euro account - based on a $100 wager per game on the money line at Pinnacle - which now sits at +$111 on a 7-7 record after a 0-2 day yesterday. Back to winning form today with Spain (-153) to down Sweden in what should be a thriller, and Russia (+113) to down the uninspiring Greeks...two games over .500 for the Yankees, Kyle Farnsworthless got the save, and Derek Jeter homered? Strange days, indeed...have a great Saturday.

Friday, June 13th, 2008 - Croatia Lives

Clearly, it was meant to be for Croatia. Not only did they put in a fantastic performance against Germany, and had far, far more chances, they also had the soccer gods weigh in with a late penalty call - scored by a Croatian from Austria, of course - to help Austria secure a 1-1 draw with Poland, giving Croatia the group. As importantly, Croatia avoids a quarter final date next Friday with Portugal, who have looked the best side over two games in the tourney. If you haven't seen Croatia's first goal or didn't pay attention, it was a thing of beauty that started in their own end, went 15 plays up field and had every player touch the ball at least once in 47 seconds. There were no timeouts, no coaches signaling plays, and no in ear communication devices...going into play list night, the Yankees were .500 for the 23rd time this season...could that NBA championship trophy on the floor be any larger? The NCAA logo during March Madness thinks that thing is garish...I hope Travis Henry, Evander Holyfield and former NBAer Jason Caffey and Shawn Kemp aren't pals that want to get their families together for Fathers Day. Between them, they've got 34 kids with at least 26 women. Caffey leads the parade with 10 kids with 8 ladies...the Celtics are a game away from wrapping up the NBA title after a pretty impressive choke job by the Lakers, who led by 24 at one point. One more win will add another trophy to the city of Boston's impressive haul the last few years. Well, Bruins and Revolution aside. No NBA team has ever led 3-1 in the final and not won the title...tough week for those who like betting chalk, as Tiger Woods is following in the steps of Big Brown and coming up small after the first round of the U.S. Open, where he's 1-over and four off the pace. Who are we kidding, he'll likely close that off and lap the field come Sunday...the Euro account - based on a $100 wager per game on the money line at Pinnacle - sits at +$311 on a 7-5 record after a 0-2 day yesterday. A couple very interesting match-ups today. First up, we're gonna take Italy (-139), who should bounce back strong against Romania, and then we're gonna take France (+200) to turn the Group of Death upside down. They can't well go scoreless again, can they?...no sooner did the Peter DeBoer to Ottawa talk start than it has turned to Craig Hartsburg, says TSN...Lex Ovech was a no-surprise MVP winner. Couldn't he have at least showered for the occasion? He looked greasier than a Jiffy Lube...Separated at Birth: Nicklas Lidstrom and Chris Jericho...Separated at Birth II: Bastian Schweinsteiger and Melissa Etheridge...Jose Calderon is being sought after by the LA Clippers...when I think "For Those About To Rock..." and "Hells Bells" and the band that spawned them, I don't think "available only at Wal-Mart" which the new AC/DC record - which will sound just like the last 10 AC/DC records - will be...have a great Friday.

Sour-Kraut

What a freaking win for Croatia, the giant killers of Europe. Glorious, glorious day. Germany, don't mess with Croatia in any year ending in 8...we own you!

Oh, and have never seen a player mark a ref before but Michael Ballack was right tight with the ref all day. Good thing you've got a taste for second place, Ballack!

Thursday, June 12th, 2008 - Go Cro!

Has Portugal's Simao been living under a rock? Stand aside little man, let Cristiano Ronaldo take the free kicks in and around the box. Portugal looked good for the second straight game in punching their ticket to the quarter finals, Ronaldo was particularly impressive in setting up two and scoring one...Turkey downed the Swiss in the other game, played in a serious downpour…so if the Jays make the playoffs, what three pitchers are you sending out first round? My money says Roy Halladay, Shawn Marcum and Dustin McGowan...Barry Bonds can't even get a sniff despite offering to play for a minimum salary. Take that, Barroid!...I'm not a huge Mike Mussina guy, but have to love these quotes from him on Carl Pavano coming from John Feinstein's latest book...the Euro account - based on a $100 wager per game on the money line at Pinnacle - sits at +$511 on a 7-3 record after a 2-0 day yesterday. While my heart says Croatia to win (+551!) or tie (+238), afraid that Germany is the pick at -137. Praying I lose that one! I'm also tabbing Poland (+130) to knock off Austria in the late game...the toughest part of winning a championship is keeping guys in the mindset that they should and want to sacrifice personal goals for the team. The New York Giants are finding that out first hand with Plaxico Burress now holding out, and repeated rumblings of Jeremy Shockey being sour...Portuguese coach Phil Scolari is the new main man at Chelsea...8 NHL owners have contacted Jim Balsillie about purchasing some or all of their teams. Gary Bettman, do you have a clue? Drive This! Gabe Morency said "Bettman's as a bad a President of the NHL as Bush is of the U.S." Hey, at least he's historic then...looking like Peter DeBoer is in line for the Ottawa Senators job. Now, if he coached in my hometown that last few years and I had lunch with him earlier this year, is that enough to get me out of the hell that is Leafs fandom? DeBoer had an astounding .721 win percentage in the OHL over 13 years...that loose cannon Milton Bradley went after a KC Royals TV guy for comments made about him. Relax, Milty, if it is a Royals broadcast, odds are it was as widely seen as the NHL in the U.S....that "glue guy" Jorge Garbajosa looks like he's off to the glue factory (kudos to B.K. for that line!). The Raps are looking to buy him out. And what says "team first" more than firing your North American agent because you realize you're almost certainly going back to the Raps, so why pay the 6%? The more I hear of Jose Calderon, the more I laugh how much he has snowed people...I love that Terrell Owens is talking about how he knows what he puts into his body. Explains the overdose on painkillers a couple years back...have a great Wednesday.

Wednesday, June 11th, 2008 - Greece deliver an "eff you" to soccer, soccer delivers same in return

I have regained faith that there is karma in soccer. After seeing Greece show zero interest in playing in the first half - they spent minutes passing the ball around the back with no attempt to go forward - Sweden punked them with a pair of goals, one a screamer from Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Here's hoping that Russia and Spain pound them into oblivion...speaking of pounded, Spain got off to a roaring start with a 4-1 win over Russia. Spain is looking like a legitimate threat, but we've all thought that before early in a tourney. Is there anyone better going shoulder to shoulder with a defender than Fernando Torres? Not bad when you can pull off Torres in the 53rd minute and put on Cesc Fabregas as a sub. Oh, and #11 had far more impact than #8...the LA Lakers finally played themselves a solid game, building on the strong close in Game 2, and took Game 3 to make the NBA final a series. 2-1 Celtics, seemingly a long way to go. The Celts big three shot 16 of 48. That's not good...the Spurs Robert Horry has never missed the playoffs in all 16 years he's been in the NBA...I've played soccer for close to 30 years and had no idea that the offside rule says that Ruud Van Nistelrooy of Holland was 100% onside for the first Dutch goal against Italy. I'm shocked the refs knew how to correctly apply this obscure, almost-never-happens element..stop me if you've heard this before: Donovan McNabb is hurting...Tim Donaghy is turning into the Jose Canseco of the NBA, piping up about playoff game fixing in the middle of the NBA final. If I'm Mark Cuban, I'm looking for a refund..the Euro account - based on a $100 wager per game on the money line at Pinnacle - sits at +$175 on a 5-3 record after a 1-1 day. Clearly, the 0-2 picking draws is not panning out, but value is value. Today's picks come from the second Group A games. I've got Portugal (-120) to down the Czech's, and Turkey (+253) to down Switzerland, that's great value there...Mike Milbury called Tiger Woods "Tiger Wuss" for his sideswipe of the NHL when he said nobody watches hockey anymore. Solid quote, really, though he might have mentioned that golf is what hockey players do for a more leisurely pursuit. Milbury might also have done some homework and realized that when it comes to the U.S., despite their ratings spike that still put them about a mile behind darts and bowling, Tiger is right. Of course, Tiger changed his stance now that he's taken some stick...Toronto FC coach John Carver says "no mas" to international duty for his players unless it is for required FIFA release dates. Amen to that!...have a great Wednesday.

Tuesday, June 10th, 2008 - Oranje Crush!

Italy got the old Dutch Oven treatment yesterday in a 3-0 stunner, and Italy's worst ever defeat at the Euros. For my money, the three most impressive sides thus far are Holland, Germany and Portugal, in that order for now...The Boston Red Sox have 16 of their next 22 on the road, where they're playing .411 ball. Mix in David Ortiz and Dice-K being out, Josh Beckett not right, and not exactly a unified squad with Manny Ramirez smacking around Kevin Youkilis and that knock at the door is opportunity knocking for the rest of the AL East...Dominik Hasek and Michael Strahan retired yesterday. For some reason, which I have yet to fully determine, this seems fitting...a whole lot of dull so far at Euro 2008 as too many squads seem to be playing to not lose rather than playing to win...the Euro account - based on a $100 wager per game on the money line at Pinnacle - sits at +$202 on a 4-2 record after an 0-2 day. Today's picks come from Group D action, and going with Spain (-137) over Russia, and going to take the Swedes and Greece to draw (+210)...Cedric Benson is a drunk piloting of a plane from his own DUI trifecta. See his mugshot? Yeah, he definitely had some booze before this pic was taken. Benson was waived by the Bears...what's with those ugly numbers on the Puma unis that Switzerland, Austria and Italy are rocking? Horrible looking...McMahon's Million Dollar Mania looks about as well run as WCW in its last days but loved the one winner of $200,000 who commented "holy shiiiit" on live air, and is it me, or does Shawn Michaels always look high?...Ken Griffey Jr. took nearly four years to go from 500 homers to 600, but he made it last night. Methinks he'd own the all-time record had he been healthy...Bob McCown is off this week so Mike Toth is hosting for Prime Time Sports on Fan590. That's one hour a day of my life I just got back. Cannot stand Toth...speaking of horrible broadcasters, Maxim has a Top 10 of the worst out there. Some curious names on there (Joe Morgan? Love him!) and some very appropriate ones (John Madden, Dick Vitale, Bryant Gumbel) and clearly they've ignored some who spent a lot of time in Canada up until recently (Suck Chwirsky) or an entire category called "Any Blue Jay Play By Play Guy Since Dan Shulman Left"...have a great Tuesday.