Barcelona bitch-slap Real Madrid

Barcelona left no doubt who the best side in Spain, if not the world, are after an absolute dominant performance against visiting Real Madrid. Barca shredded the Real defence wide, in the middle, over the top...whatever way they wanted to attack they did, and rendered guys like Mehmet Ozil and Cristiano Ronaldo invisible. Damn impressive. 5-0 final, and could've pushed double that with the odd break.  Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho says Real weren't humiliated says , as the loss is easy to deal with given how emphatic it was. Deadspin has the highlites here if you missed it.

Jon Heyman at SI.com takes a look at MLB's hot stove league, which should heat up considerably in the coming days, and where certain players may end up.

How important is Tom Brady in the New England area?  Important enough that stories about whether he's having hair transplant treatments makes the news.

ESPN Radio's Colin Cowherd says Derek Jeter is the "family values politician who has an affair...selling one thing and doing another".  Presumably he means selling he's all about team?  Cowherd also argues that Jeter has been overpaid his entire career because power hitters and aces make the kind of money he's made, not guys whose numbers compare to Alan Trammell, Barry Larkin and Roberto Alomar historically.  He finished comparing Johnny Damon's 2009 against Jeter's 2010.  Damon hit .283 with 82 RBI and a .365 OBP, Jeter .270, 67 RBI and .340.  The Yankees wouldn't pay Damon, who Cowherd says was still better defensively and more useful at the top of the order, $7 million.  So offering Jeter $15 million is extremely generous.  Interesting take.  Oh, and someone in the Yankees camp says that Jeter needs to take a "reality potion". Remember how sour Jeter was for years after A-Rod's comments about Jeter never having to lead and it being different hitting in the #2 hole?  Have to figure this has him carrying a lifelong grudge by comparison.

NFL jersey's...camouflage style.  No, for real. If you rock one of these, you're a certifiable piece of trash.

The Miami Heat are said to be questioning whether Erik Spoelstra is the right coach for them.  I'm going to guess he's got a few issues with the make-up of his team in response.  So if they move to Pat Riley and they remain a poor team, albeit a better than .500 team, what then?  Here's a damning stat: LeBron James has 11 offensive boards on the entire season.  11.  0.6 per game.  If that isn't the sign of a guy content to put it up from the outside, or watch someone else do the dirty work, I don't know what is.  That average represents a career low.  

I couldn't even count how many versions of the same we've had, but here's the latest look at the top WAG's - wives and girlfriends - in the soccer world.  A top 50, if you will.

If you like your toast in the morning, maybe you'll like it even more with the logo of your favorite team burnt onto it?  Warning: word is the Toronto Blue Jays version sees the toast pop out extra early.

Best interception ever?
 

In a month that has been polluted by creepy 'stache's, it is only fitting that the close of the month sees the ante raised with "Hedo Rick" and his dance below.


The final submission for FIFA Goal of the Year comes from Barcelona's Lionel Messi with this gem against Valencia.

In a move that should surprise nobody after the Tom Brady setback stories surfaced last week, the talk is the New England Patriots will place the franchise tag on quarterback Matt Cassel, giving him a nice raise to $14 million giving the Pats $29 million in two quarterbacks. Seems crazy on the surface, but when your backup can bang off eleven wins in a season, you're crazy not to when Brady is a question mark...if the story I heard is true and that the Toronto Maple Leafs may ship Tomas Kaberle and Vesa Toskala to the Ottawa Senators for a draft pick and Jason Spezza, that is a trade Leafs GM Brian Burke needs to make now...after last night's New York Knicks loss and non-cover, Prime Time Picks sit at 4-2 for the year. Up today, taking Manchester United in Carling Cup play to top Derby at -1 -107. Yes, the Carling Cup is an annoyance in many ways, but United has enough depth to knock off a team from a division lower who set a Premier League record when they were up last year for fewest points in a season. And hey, all world defender Nemanja Vidic insists United are very much interested in winning this one. Mix in Derby is lacking a manager at the moment and United takes this one with ease. This game kicks off at 2:45 Eastern so get over to Pinnacle now. Coverage on Setanta Sports...here's one take on the 20 Hottest TV Sports Personalities "of all da times". Clearly, whoever put this together must not consider UFC a sport - wrong! - because there's no other way to explain how Rachelle Leah isn't top, well, two...wonder where the NHL ranks in the pecking order in the U.S.? In the new set-up at ESPN.com, it is printed furthest to the right of the page, behind soccer and the rest of the sports you'd expect. Now, I'm sure some will brush this off and look for things like alphabetical order and the like but let me assure you, there's no other reason than where it stands in the minds of "the worldwide leader" who know that people read left to right in most places...reading lists of athletes with illegitimate kids never ceases to amuse me. Here's an update...the Boston Celtics lost for the fifth time in seven games, this time to the lowly Charlotte Bobcats...have a great Wednesday.

Tuesday, December 30th, 2008

This marks the 250th RandoMango. My how time flies!...the Detroit Lions have lost 22 of 23 overall going back to last year, when Jon Kitna famously said they'd win 10 games. Wonder if the 1976 Tampa Bay Bucs are popping champagne corks like those miserable curmudgeons from the 1972 Miami Dolphins used to?...add Romeo Crennel (Cleveland), Eric Mangini (NY Jets) and Rod Marinelli (Detroit) to the list of axed NFL coaches. Still to be determined: Dick Jauron (Buffalo), Wade Phillips (Dallas), John Gruden (Tampa Bay) and no doubt a few others. Incredibly, I think Norv Turner may have just saved his job in San Diego with their furious charge in December...one theory on the Dallas December Debacle's of recent years: they're not fit. Former Cowboy Marcellus Wiley says they're simply out of shape come December and have nothing left in the tank, and the blame has to rest on strength and conditioning coach Joe Juraszek who joined the team in 1997, when this string of December failures started. He replaced Mike Woicik who ended up with a team that has done okay down the stretch in the last decade: New England. Another: Tony Romo thinks he has to make a play on every play, much like Brett Favre does and John Elway did early in his career. If he learns less is more, he'll be fine. If he doesn't, he's out of the league in three years...the Washington Capitals are a searing 15-1-1 at home this year...Tom Brady is said to be behind on rehab, so badly that he may in fact miss next season as well. Matt Cassel can stop shopping for luggage immediately, he's going nowhere...Scott Boras has to be starting to sweat the lack of contract offers for Manny Ramirez. The LA Dodgers have now moved on to Adam Dunn for their "great bat, no glove" guy. Considering Boras engineered ManRam's move out of Boston so he could get his cut as his new agent, Manny may yet end up taking a pay cut...sadly, the NHL Winter Classic might not be a go at Wrigley Field, as warm weather is forecast...another narrow 1-0 win for Manchester United has them well in line for second place with a favorable schedule for the second half of the English Premier League season. Bet them to take the title again...have a great Wednesday.

Sunday, December 28th, 2008

A good night to take the underdogs in the big three UFC fights, as Rampage Jackson (+330), Frank Mir (+140) and Rashad Evans (+120) all came through with impressive wins. Mir's win sets up a rematch with heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar for that title, and if Mir fights the way he did tonight, he'll make quicker work of Lesnar than he did the first time, though that was a fight Lesnar should have finished. Evans is now the new light heavyweight champion after finishing Forrest Griffin in the second round, and Rampage is very much back in that title picture after a devastating knockout of the legendary Wanderlei Silva. Great card...less than 48 hours after playing on Boxing Day, the majority of the English Premier League's squads will take the field again today, continuing their busy schedule...in the World Junior Hockey Championship, Canada will pound Kazakhstan today at 3:30. Whether they cover the 7 goal spread at Pinnacle remains the question...the Portland Tribune says that the NBA will be reducing the salary cap in 2009-2010 by at least a million dollars...Joe Posnanski at SI.com writes a great piece on the parity in baseball, noting there have been eight different winners of the World Series in the last ten years, 15 teams have made the World Series in the same ten years, and over the last thirty years, twenty different teams have won the World Series and all but four - the Chicago Cubs, Seattle Mariners, Texas Rangers and the Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals - have at least made the World Series. Over the same 30 years, 10 teams have never made the Super Bowl - yet many would have you believe parity is a thing of the NFL moreso than any other sport...the final Prime Time Pick of the regular season goes tonight, and shooting to finish a solid, solid 22-14 (61.1%) which, if you know anything about gambling and picking national games in particular, is damn impressive. The Denver Broncos visit the San Diego Chargers and the Bolts are looking for a heap of revenge after the Ed Hochuli blown call in September. Given how Phillip Rivers is rolling of late, hard not to like the Bolts to cover the -8, as big a spread as that may be for the occasion. Also a big fan of Arizona at -6, and Miami at +3, and am loving Dallas at +1...for 2009, am going to expand the Prime Time Picks to include one wager per day. As always, get down with Pinnacle...Tom Brady is said to be engaged to Gisele Bundchen. What a guy. He goes and blows his knee out - a big deal to most - but gets to rehab with Gisele nursing him. Tough times...Brett Favre is hinting at retirement. This time, I can't imagine anybody will care or much notice...the Toronto Raptors were outscored 53-32 in the second half last night en route to a 102-89 loss to Portland. Nice work, Craptors...have a great Sunday.

Wednesday, November 26th, 2008

Last year, Lebron James wore a pair of pinstriped shoes in New York for his beloved Yankees when the Cleveland Cavs visited. Last night, he wore another pair of shoes paying tribute to New York. There hasn't been such an overt display of desire since Michael Jackson last went for a ride on the merry-go-round...sounds like turmoil isn't merely restricted to one team in Dallas. Said Boston Bruins Marc Savard to Mike Modano during the chippy game a few weeks back on the subject of Steve Ott and Sean Avery: "too bad you'll be retiring after having to play with these clowns." Said Modano: "I know."...I love coaches - regardless of what level - going beyond the cliche when it comes to media dealings. And here's the latest: South Florida football coach Jim Leavitt. This is a beauty. Warning: you may detect sarcasm from Mr. Leavitt...the Donovan McNabb to the Chicago Bears rumors have started already. If you're the Bears, why do you want McNabb? He's been on a downward spiral for years, incapable of staying healthy, and, well, doesn't know the rules as we saw last week...the Pittsburgh Pirates have signed a pair of pitchers that haven't thrown baseballs before the last year and were discovered after winning a javelin throwing contest. In India. Yeah, that'll reverse years of futility...lost in the shuffle yesterday was another day of Champions League action that saw Manchester United and Real Madrid, among others, advance to the round of 16 when things start to get a lot more serious. Up today is another round of matches. Check out TSN, TSN2 and Setanta at 2:45 for a bevy of games...add the Globe & Mail to the list of Toronto media outlets that is questioning whether Sam Mitchell is long for the Toronto Raptors coaching job. I'll say this much: a loss tonight to the Charlotte Bobcats and it'll be a surprise if Mitchell makes it through the week...double digit underdogs in the NFL this year are 20-5 against the spread...as predicted last week, fading the Carolina Panthers was a good play because those that played the Detroit Lions the week prior were 0-10 against the spread heading into last week. Make that 0-11. Tampa Bay? You're on the clock for 0-12 this week...Bill Romanowski either has some insight, or has been hitting the pharmaceuticals a little too hard: he told Hardcore Sports Radio's "Drive This" that the New England Patriots will trade Tom Brady this off-season and keep Matt Cassell...interesting to learn that the Anaheim Ducks have all of five players signed for next year. While that may mean loads of cap room, it also means that a certain former General Manager of theirs may have some easy pickings for his future team...have a great Wednesday.

Tuesday, November 25th, 2008

It took a few days, but finally found a solid picture of Ricky Hatton post-fight on Saturday with a couple fellow Mancunians who he had carry his belts in. Awesome...while General Motors and the others in the Big Three automakers are busy fighting for a U.S. government bailout - and they showed up in Washington in private jets to underscore how desperate they are - they announced they will not be renewing their endorsement deal with Tiger Woods. I'm sure Tiger is thrilled he'll no longer have to maintain the charade he's a Buick fan and he can now move on to the BMW's of the world...the Arizona Cardinals are complaining because the New York Giants listed Brandon Jacobs as probable and he didn't play? They do know that Jacobs is good, right?...the Pro Bowl looks like it'll move to the week before the Super Bowl which will only make it slightly more relevant...After Tom Brady's first 11 starts in the NFL, his completion percentage was 66.3%. Matt Cassel's over the same time frame? 66.3%...a bad idea: the Philadelphia Eagles, circling the toilet bowl, and a Thursday night Thanksgiving Day game. Expect ugliness...Michael Vick is eyeing an early release once his last charge is resolved, and will be out July 20th, 2009 or sooner it appears. It'll be interesting to see how Roger Goodell handles his status following that...Doug Flutie is being mentioned as a possible Toronto Argos coach. Maybe they can look to see if he still feels at all like playing. With their inability to get a solid QB of late, it couldn't hurt...while completing today's entry, Drew Brees passed for another 300 yards. Wonder if San Diego would like a do-over on that deal that saw them favor Phillip Rivers?...have a great Tuesday.

Thursday, October 23rd, 2008

With their 3-2 win to take a 1-0 series lead, the Philadelphia Phillies are now 87-0 on the year when leading after 8 frames...the Tampa Bay Rays are the first team since the 1991 Atlanta Braves in any sport to go from having the worst record the prior year to making the championship the next year...the Phillies have lost four World Series, each time to AL East opponents...if you're like me, you got another email on buying Bills tickets for their Toronto game. Warms the cockles of my heart every time...good of the Browns to suspend Kellen Winslow for stating, well, the truth about his having a staph infection and being the sixth Brownie to suffer from it. The Browns are a disaster and only last year's weak schedule gave them any appearance of a future and hope...for sale: Carey Price jersey. New. Stitched. Drop me a line for details...true story: I have yet to watch a full period of NHL action this year...Tony Romo will in fact be out until after the bye in Week 9 it seems. So much for optimism...the Tennessee Titans opponents thus far are a combined 12-26, if you care about these things...the Toronto Raptors will have 25 of their games broadcast on TSN2. This isn't a big deal, unless you're a Rogers subscriber, where that channel isn't carried to date. If you're on Bell ExpressVu, you're all set...happened to stumble into one minutes of Knight Rider. Other than the smoking hot Deanna Russo, that show is a horror show based on that one minute...and if you haven't been watching Entourage this season, shame on you. That show is on FIRE this season with non-stop hilarity...Tom Brady ignored the New England Patriots wishes to have the surgery done by doctors of his choosing and - surprise, surprise - he's now got infection problems. Beantown is starting to look like the mojo is gone, no?...check out this survey of NBA GM's on the looming season. Minnesota T-Wolves GM Kevin McHale picked the Raptors to win the Atlantic division this year. There's reason enough to believe it won't happen. 16% of GM's picked Andrea Bargnani as the international most likely to have a breakout year which placed him second in that category. 0% gave Jose Calderon a vote as best international, and only four got votes there. Interesting stuff...have a great Thursday.