Pacman Fever...

Good point about the Bruins needing to begin to play physical but you can't compare hockey to baseball. In baseball if you want to become physical or throw at someone, you get suspended. In hockey you sit in a box for five minutes. The risk/reward in hockey is significantly greater than in baseball. Once again though I like how your too chicken to make any real predictions about the NHL playoffs B Shea. Maybe when your older you'll become a man, and even with time, you might actually be right about something. Or maybe you'll stay in your drought like the Chicago Cubbies.

Anyway, the world is four days away from knowing if Roger Goodell is going to allow Adam (pacman) Jones, cornerback for the Tennessee Titans to return to the NFL. If I was Roger Goodell I would just tell him now instead of waiting that you are not allowed to return to the playing field. It doesn't make sense how this man has been arrested so many times and still doesn't play for the Cinncinatti Bengals. Six arrests in two years is unheard of. I thought OJ Simpson was the worlds luckiest athlete, well up until a few months ago, but Pacman's record is awful. A man is paralyzed after a triple shooting in a Las Vegas strip club because of him. Other arrests include him punching women in the face in Atlanta, starting riots at Strip Clubs, other shootings outside other clubs, and numerous traffic Violations. Last season while appealing his one year suspension in New York City to commisoner Roger Goodell, the night before he was seen in a NYC strip club. Some people just don't learn. Pacman's latest argument is that he's doing good now for the community which is rediculous. He's done charity work in an Atlanta church but with the help of his family. His other charity included buying 1500 TNA wrestling tickets for Atlanta's youth. Pacman shouldn't even have the chance to go back to the NFL because he should be in prison. Everywhere this guy goes, people get shot, riots break out because he throughs thousands of dollars on a stripers stage, or women get punched in the face. This guy is the human version of hurricane Katrina, just a disaster. Even though we all know this, why is Jerry Jones, owner of the Dallas Cowboys trying to get this guy? Has he been taking the short bus into Texas Stadium this past month? You already have Terrell Owens, who is the most outspoken person in the NFL, the same man who turned Quarterback Tony Romo into a girly man who will never win a playoff game. Terrell Owens and Pacman Jones would be hell on earth for the Dallas area. I have faith however because time will catch up with this man, and he will, if not Tuesday, be thrown out of football forever.

v

If somehow he is re-enstated, what is a fair trade. At first a seventh round pick for Pacman was the offer. A few years back he was picked sixth overal from, West Virginia. Tennessee thinks he's worth something and somehow Dallas thinks he is worth something. I think that perhaps a fourth round pick is fair trade value at this point. In the long run however anything is worth it because I am sick of the name Pacman Jones, the team Tennessee Titans, and the sport Football being in the same sentence.

Rare B Shea Hockey Talk

Like I said before, I am not a hockey expert nor do I pretend too be. I was raised on the three main sports, basketball, baseball, and football, and could never really get into hockey. I like to watch a Bruins game every now and then but hockey has never really interested me. But with the Bruins in the playoffs again, I've tried to get myself into it the Bruins. Watching the Bruins continued to get dominated by the Canadiens made me wonder a couple things. How can one team lose 12 times straight to a hated rival? and when is that losing team going to do knock someone down? By knock someone down I mean to finally stand up to someone on the other team and show that you are willing to fight. Someone on the B's has to level a Hab. Can you imagine the Red Sox losing 10 straight to the Yankees without Jeter or A-Rod getting knocked down by Beckett or someone else? It took one blowout in the 1984 NBA Finals for someone (Larry Legend) to say something about and then Mchale took out Rambis and the Lakers were stunned and the Celts won in 7 games. Like I said I am no Puck Guru so I don't know what type of hockey strategy the Bruins can use to finally beat Montreal but if anyone on the Bruins has any pride someone has to go down and go down hard on the Canadiens. Its just in the athletes code. You cant keep getting your ass kicked by a hated rival.


In some other news, if you want to read something hilarious then check out this article from Pat Jordan on what Jose Canseco's life is really like now and how he is such a scumbag. Some graphic details but thoroughly entertaining.

NHL playoff bold predictions

Billy Buckner threw out the first pitch to open the 2008 season at Fenway park. I guess Boston is trying to forget that he blew the 1986 world series. Personally, I don't see it being all his fault because the Red Sox still lost game seven. It doesn't make sense how goats like Bill Buckner are never forgotten yet hero's like Mike Jones are lost within years. Who? Mike Jones tackled Kevin Dyson in the 1999 superbowl at the one yard line to win the game. I think what Boston did yesturday was a great thing for the organization, and especially, for the Buckner family which had moved to Idaho to avoid everyone. Unfortunatly for Buckner and Red Sox fans, I think a new curse has been unleased. Hopefully the curse only lasts a couple of days though so Boston can still win the world series, and get yet another one of my predictions right. Another prediction like picking Tennessee to win the NCAAW basketball championship last night. Not so bold, but right.

Now for my NHL predictions which will be 100% accurate.

East:

1. Montreal

8. Boston

4. New Jersey

5. New York (R)

3. Washington

6. Philadelphia

2. Pittsburgh

7. Ottawa

I expect Boston to play New Jersey, and Washington to play Pittsburgh. In the eastern conference final i expect Boston and Pittsburgh. This series will be won by the Bruins. From there best player, to their worst player Boston is a very even team. There strength is Tim Thomas at goalie, who is having an amazing year. They open against a banged up Canadians squad who will be without captain Saku Koivu. I also like Pittsburgh to beat Washington and prove once and for all that Sydney Crosby is better than Alexander Ovechkin.

West:

1. Detroit

8. Nashville

4. Anaheim

5. Dallas

3. Minnesota

6. Colorado

2. San Jose

7. Calgary

In the Western Conference i like Detroit vs. Anaheim and Minnesota vs San Jose. In the conference finals i like Detroit vs San Jose but I have San Jose winning here because unlike Detroit they play the body.

In Lord Stanley's Cup I like San Jose over Boston, even though I'll be rooting for Boston all the way. The matchup of Joe Thornton verse Scott Thornton playing their old teams will be riveting and they potential return of Bruin great Patrice Bergeron to the ice will light a fire under this team. I do expect however San Jose to win in six games. At 30/1 however Boston is a great pick to win it all.

Rock Chalk Red Sox

Last nights college basketball title game was the best college basketball I have seen in a long time. It had everything you could have asked for in a championship game. Clutch plays, bonehead coaching moves, and the classic "questionable call that is not really a questionable call cause the ref had his head up his ass". Of course the call I am refereeing too is Derrick Rose's bank shot with the shot clock winding down. It should have never come to the refs checking the monitor. The ref was right behind Rose as he is taking the shot! He missed the call but luckily for Kansas and Wizard the refs made the correct call. The bonehead coaching move was Calipari not having his players foul Collins right before Chalmers' 3. Coach Cal says that they were trying to foul but on the replay you can see Rose kind of backing off Collins. I'm surprised that you don't see teams foul in that situation more often. How many times do you see a team not foul and then give up the game tying 3? I see at least 5 times every basketball season. Its too early to decide where Chalmers shot ranks in all time NCCA tourney history. It will be up there with Keith Smart, Christian Laettner, Michael Jordan, and Bryce Drew. Laettner and Drew's shot weren't in the the final but Smart and Jordan's were. The difference between Smart and Jordan was they were wide open and Chalmers had a couple hands in his face. Just an unbelievable shot in and unbelievable game. As for Bill Self, I don't think he'll go to Oklahoma State, even though it is his alma mater. Leaving a great basketball school like Kansas to go to Oklahoma State would be like leaving Notre Dame football to coach Georgia Tech. Its a step down in terms of history and tradition.

Just a beautiful day at Fenway Park today. Not only did the Sox beat the Tigers 5-0 and Dice-K pitched great but with all ring ceremonies the highlight is the pre game festivities. All the Boston sports championship trophies were together today as Bobby Orr led Bruins greats with the Stanley Cup trophy, Bill Russell was with Danny Anige, KC Jones, JoJo White, John Havlicek, and for some reason ML Carr (I was surprised that he wasn't waving a towel). The Pats were led by Tedy Bruschi, Kevin Faulk, Larry Izzo, and long snap expert Lonnie Paxton. The players with the 2004 World Series trophy were a great collection of old friends. Dave McCarty, Curtis Leskanic, and the original dirt dog Brian Daubach (who, if my memory serves me correctly, was only with the team for like the first month of 2004). It was really fun to see all the trophies together but I guess the real highlight was the vindication of Bill Buckner. Buckner came of the Monster and threw out the first pitch. You could tell on his walk to the mound that he was emotional. Buckner was the face of the whole curse business and its too bad because he was a great player and a great hitter but he is always remembered for the ground ball in 1986. People forget that the game was already tied cause the shaky Sox bullpen blew the two run lead but Buckner became the main goat. I suppose that 2 World Series later his is truly vindicated and I'm glad for him and I suppose that Red Sox Nation has forgiven him. It was a great moment to see. Maybe next year Grady Little will throw out the first pitch.

Plus I always love to see how the players interact with Johnny Pesky. Watching him and Big Papi hang up the 2007 World Series banner was great to watch. Seeing Manny give him a little kiss on the cheek and a hug was classic. The whole team just has smiles on their faces when Johnny Pesky is around and for good reason. Johnny Pesky is Mr. Red Sox and his number should be retired with all the others.

College hoops is almost over!

You know i hate agreeing with you B Shea but it's tough to say that that Dennis Johnson shouldn't be in the basketball hall of fame. Usually you are just another biased fool but after looking at the intangables that DJ brought to Boston over the 80's was unreal. I'm not entirely upset with basketball however because a great class just entered. Congrats to the electee's for your hard work and dedication to the game.

The madness has finally ended, yet i still feel mad. Memphis who all year could not hit free throws but got away with it this far lost the championship due to a problem that coach John Calipari stated, wasn't a big concern. Experts tried comparing them to the UConn team of recent years that couldn't hit free throws yet ran away with the title. Unfortunately John Calipari among other experts forget that they play in Conference USA. They snuck by all year without needed to hit clutch free throws as they walked through powerhouses like UAB and Tulsa. That said, even without free throws how does a team blow a nine point lead with less than two minutes left. The game turned around when Sherron Collins stole the inbound from Antonio Anderson, made a few passes, got the ball back, and hit a three to make it a four point game. From there Derrick Rose and especially Chris Douglas-Roberts failed to put the game away missing four of the last five free throws. Even with all this lack of offense, Memphis had a three point lead with under ten to go until a rediculous three pointer with two seconds left was hit by Mario Chalmers. It was only the second three pointer of the game for Kansas but as soon as it went in, everyone knew Memphis stood no chance. They ended up winning 75-68 which is twelve points less than I predicted. I did however predict Kansas would pull away in the end and that free throw shooting would kill Memphis. I also won my bracket for the first time in my life which was pretty awesome. As for the game, Memphis surprised me and played alot better than i gave them credit for. Derrick Rose showed for the most part that in the near future he will be an exellant NBA pro, and i think Mario Chalmers helped his case for the future as well. The refereeing I thought was decent, and went both ways. It was the most compelling chamionship game for the NCAAM tournament that I have ever seen. It really was a perfect ending to a great basketball season. I just hope that Kansas coach Bill Self doesn't sell his soul to the devil and take the Oklahoma State job.

Staying with college, tonight for the NCAAW basketball tournament I have Tennesee winning 73-65 over Stanford. Look for Candace Parker to be the better Candace on the court, even though Candice Wiggins spells it differently. That's it for college ball till next year.

DJ # 3

Yes, the Tigers have got off to a horrific start and yes their pitching is and has been very suspect but their line up is too good to continue to struggle. Pitching is always ahead offense early in the season. Plus once the weather heats up, I think their bats will too. I am still going to stick with the Tigers to win the division. I will not be a flip-flopper.


Today the Basketball Hall of Fame announced its 2008 inductees. The seven new members are Pat Riley, Dick Vitale, Hakeem Olajuwon, Patrick Ewing, Adrian Dantley, Cathy Rush, and William Davidson. However, there is one name that is missing. That name is Dennis Johnson. DJ, as he is known around Boston, was just as important to those 80s Celtics teams as Larry Bird and Kevin McHale. Johnson won 3 NBA titles (2 with the Celtics and 1 with the Sonics), a 5 time All Star, and was also named to an All Defensive team 9 straight years. Johnson didn't have great numbers but he had solid numbers. He averaged 14.1 points per game, 3.9 rebounds, and 5 assits but his numbers didn't speak to what kind of player he actually was. DJ was a unbelievable defender. In the 1984 NBA Finals, he shut down Magic Johnson and completely took him out of that series. When DJ retired, Magic called him "the greatest backcourt defender of all time"

DJ was also tremendously clucth and almost always came up big in the biggest games. In 1985, Johnson hit a game winner in Game 4 of those Finals against the Lakers. In 1979, Johnson was a finals MVP. In that series with the Sonics, DJ put averages of 23, 6, and 6 including 32 points in the game clinching win. He was the definition of a big time, big money player. You know, someone had to be there for Bird's steal vs the Pistons.

People also forget that DJ was a shooting guard when he was with the Sonics. He was known as a above the rim type of guy. A huge contrast compared to what he was later in his career with the Celtics.

Johnson was a very consistent player throughout his career. He was very fundamental and great player to watch. When I was growing up and learning the game, I would like to watch how Johnson played defense and would try to learn the little tricks that he was amazing at. Former Celtic teammate Danny Anige called him "one of the most underrated player of all time and one of the greatest Celtics acquisitions". In my mind he IS the most underrated player of all time.

For DJ not to be inducted into the Hall of Fame is a complete and utter injustice. Joe Dumars is in the Hall and they are similar players but no way did Dumars have the career like Johnson. Dumars has 2 rings, Johnson 3. Dumars averaged 16.1, 2.2, and 4.5 compared to DJ's 14, 3, and 5. Larry Bird said that DJ was the best teammate he ever had. That is pretty much the highest praise that any player can give to any teammate never mind from the greatest player of all time. There is a reason that Bird asked that his "33" be retired next to DJ's "3". Dennis Johnson should have got in this year and hopefully he will in the coming years. Its just too bad that he is not around to see it.

The Detroit Tigers, Along With Other Jokes.

If you want to avoid always being wrong B Shea, don't set yourself up with a "Stupid Idiotic Comment To Make". Thank you to Curt Schilling for that comment. Other than that, for at least one post you didn't sound like a five year old trying to give insight into a big world. I will say about Canseco is that he needs to slow down. I'm not going to say his book is full of lies because he understands the legal side of publishing lies but I am going to say that when the going get tough, Jose get's going. Steroids are a distugsting shadow casted over the 90's over baseball but tremendous steps have been taken to clean up a dirty game. It seems odd to me that the witchhunt is still going on. My only question for Jose is, why wouldn't you just add the big names in your new book to your first one? Does he have blackmail on every player from the 90's? Something isn't right and I personally wouldn't take anything he says in his new book to seriously.

0-6 isn't the way baseball expected the $137,685,196 payroll of the Detroit tigers to start off the 2008 season. There current payroll is 2nd among baseball teams in the MLB only trailing the New York Yankees. So many moves were made this offseason by Detroit, especially picking up Dontrelle Willis and Miguel Cabrera. Edgar Renteria and his ten million per year were also added. This move forced former SS Carlos Guillen to move to first base. All offseason the so called experts said that the tigers had the best offense 1-9 in baseball and most predicted them to at least make the playoffs as a wild card team. One has to imagine there hitting dillema's have to turn around at some point over the 162 game season but the problem will lie with their pitching. Justin Verlander who's no hitter a mere year ago is his only claim to fame but what is missed through his near 100 mile per hour fastball is the fact that in 2007 he led baseball in wild pitches and hit batsmen. Jeremy Bonderman has a career ERA over 4.78 which seems high but not as high as his 8.5 million per seaon he banks. Dontrelle Willis who hasn't pitched a .500 season since 2003 isn't going to hold this starting rotation together. Nate Robertson who has a career ERA of 4.63 is also one of the starting five. The startling fact about him however is the fact that he barely averages more starts than home runs allowed. You can't win games when the ball is in that pesky crowd at Comerica Park. Finally there is tv camera man hating, Dumping booze on police man pitching, eight million per year earning, 43 year young pitcher Kenny Rogers. He was the only pitcher on this team which looked good in there 0-6 start, but only for about four innings. He was lights out, pitching a no hitter threw three innings until the powerhouse Royals got to see him again. It is very tough in this day and age to win games when your starters can't get out of the 5th inning. Unfortunatly for Detroit their bullpen is even worse than there starting pitching. At the back end, closer Todd Jones who I personally guarentee gives up more warning track flyball outs than any two pitchers in baseball. He is a workhorse at 39 years old but over the stretch of an entire season will fade. Getting to Jones is the tricky part however. Fernando Rodney, Bobby Seay, Jason Grilli, Zach Minor, Denny Bautista, Yorman Bazardo, and the always injured Joel Zumaya at any given point make up the bullpen. Keep in mind that out of a 137+ million dollar pay roll, only Fernando Rodney makes over one million per season. Big names all offseason and the only addition to your bullpen is Denny Bautista!


Not to brag but i want to remind everyone from my post on March 28th I said the Detroit would NOT make the postseason, while my counterpart B Shea who seems to enjoy always being wrong has them winning the AL Central. Look for Detroit to finish third in the division as i said so long ago. Finally, watch Kansas tonight beat up on Memphis so I can win my first ever bracket pool. It's too easy being this right all the time!