You are currently browsing the category archive for the 'sports' category.
Sports media blows more often than not.
The casual sports fan may not have known of Hamilton’s past struggles with drugs and alcohol, but The Media will certainly not let that piece of info get past you.
Rick Reilly blows. You’re a great fit for The Ocho.
Erin Andrews, you’re still hot.
But the real story is Josh Hamilton. You hit 28 home runs in the first round of the home run derby. and you still lost to Morneau, who hit half the HRs you racked up. And we were reminded you drank and got high a lot a few years back. That’s two L’s for you, my friend. But next time you come to Yankee Stadium, you will get booed, which is a W, unless you some time in the future come back in Pinstripes and get booed, which is another L.
i’m sure there are tons of ESPN-connected clips all around the internet that prove many times over how foolish their content can be. for example:
-
stories about Dana Jacobson and her “drinking tirade”
-
the doucehbaggery of Stephen A. Smith
-
Merrill Hodge’s constant attacks on Vince Young’s rookie year
-
the “point-counterpoint” segments with John Clayton and Sean Salisbury
-
Skip Bayless
the list goes on…and on…
But now the crowning achievement of all ESPN clips, quite possibly the greatest ever. Thanks, Chris. You fuckhead.
there’s something miserably appropriate regarding today’s glum weather. it’s as if we used up all our happy points for the entire month of February just to see the Giants win the only game that matters.
i’d gladly trade an extra week just to have that same feeling I felt last night. it was palpable. all you ever ask for as a fan is that two-minute offense scenario where your team controls their own destiny - not missed or made field goals from the other team, not penalties, certainly not bad referreeing.
wait, did Eli really just escape that sack…hold up how did Tyree hold possession of that football…his helmet? WTF?
It sounds silly to say, especially rearding this is sports we’re talking about, but Eli had absolutely no intention of losing this game. They beat the best team in the NFL, no questions asked. we are now entitled to talk shit until next September, when they do this all over again. That’s why they play the game, that’s why we watch.
As for me, i’ll gladly bask in this peculiar afterglow for maybe a week. Maybe I’ll go to their ticker tape parade. after that, it’s time to retire the Giants cap, t-shirt, and whatever regalia I drape myself in every Sunday, sometimes Mondays, and every once in while on Thursdays and Saturdays. Baseball is coming up, and the Yankees have to take care of that other New England franchise. being a fan is having to put yourself through annual misery, just like today’s weather. At least the sun shines in the summer.
PS. Fuck Boston.
as predicted, the Giants did indeed score a late field goal, overtime at that, to overcome the heavily favored Green Bay Packers. although the game featured more touchdowns than I had anticipated.
I will not mention That Other Team Whose Name We Dare Not Utter until gameday.
The New York tackle football Giants overcome the elements to win 16-13 with a late game field goal. oh yeah it will be an exciting game, the kind only a city as frigid as Green Bay can provide.
i’ll come back sunday night to gloat or cry.
-
in case you’re wondering, the weather in Green Bay come kickoff time will be cold as a bastard; some Giants pretend not to care.
-
Green Bay hasnt heard of DVD players.
-
angry GB Packers fans starts a new pre-game tradition with his son.
-
two rich white men place worthless bet on the game.
-
wife mistakenly shreds pastor’s NFC Championship tickets, quickly summoned to eternity in hell.
-
nobody seems to care about Michael Strahan’s preseason holdout anymore, still has the most recognizable gaptooth in the history of sports.
-
America still loves Brett Favre, even “progressive” New York media.
-
unstoppable, Eli Manning is (nevermind the fact he was football’s favorite whipping boy, the white version, just a month ago.
and because people are already talking Packers/Patriots SuperBowl, and how much Joe Buck is going to fawn over his crushes/starting QBs on that media wet dream.
just because we need to take games one at a time.
just because Eli obviously admires Bret Favre.
last week’s NY Giants victory was for your trash-talking brother Ronde. This week is dedicated to you.
You probably dont care too much, you have a cushy job at NBC and will probably say the Giants deserved yesterday’s victory.but you did yap your mouth re: Eli not being a leader. the verdicts out on that, i admit, but i couldnt help but think about your lack of class for those preseason comments.
the Giants are in the NFC Championship game. how about that? i myself didnt think it was possible early on in the season.
Hopefully next week they’ll show up again. Win or loss, it is still a remarkable turnaround for their late-season slump, up until that New England game. just the thought of a postseason game at Lambeau Field seems appropriate. what an atmosphere that will be.
Oh by the way, you picked the dullest outfit on Project Runway, Tiki. you should’ve gone with the 3-piece suit.
random notes:
-it’s a bootleg show with late 90s gameshow production ala Who wants to be a Millionaire (purple lighting, mysteriuos horns/synth, myriad moving spotlights). too many commercials stiple the action.
-the Hulkster bringing his unique style of douschyness as expected, and Layla Ali with absolutely no on-stage presence. maybe she should be a gladiator herself?
-powerball, i cant seem to recall the camera styles of the original program, but this just looked bad. not to mention one of the contestants injured herself right away, leaving the other girl to essentially play one-on-two basketball with the gladiators. the guys (or at least the red-uniformed one), however, was leaving the gladiators in the dust; just too much speed.
-Wolf proving to be the biggest jerk right off the bat with (you guessed it) his signature howl. at least he’s funny. Crush so far is my favorite female gladiator.
-ahh the classic Joust, but this time above a giant pool. they should probably make the water smelly to give the contestants extra incentive. or add some pirahnas. i dont like the pool idea at all. it reminds me of the show Dog Eat Dog that used the same tactic to very predictable and plain-old-bad results. the quick-editing camera cuts ruined this otherwise good matchup.
-so far not a good start. bring Larry Czonka back.
-Earthquake, new competition, wrestling on an elevated circle, and trying not to be thrown off, or throw out the gladiator. not bad really
-Hit and Run is just plain dumb. why incorporate Frogger to this kind of competition?
-Pyramid was cool. pretty much “king of the mountain” logic.
-it feels rigged. i cant explain it, but it just does.
-wow 2 hours of this shit? forget it. its a wrap for this show. the Elimanator was fun, though.
Joe “that’s disgusting” Buck is pretty much hated on mostly (c) Crime Mob, and there’s good reason for it. as the self annointed morality leader of sports broadcasters, he’s brought the profession to major lows that dont add up to his constant exposure. admittedly, i can tolerate small portions of his banter during baseball season, but all bets are off during tackle football.
deadspin linked a clip of the joe buck show (featuring one of my favorites, the actor Paul Rudd) that was undergoing production. as a betting man, i would say this hasnt a shot in hell of making the airwaves. but knowing how bad i am at gambling, this may see the light of day aftert all.
i smelled victory in my fantasy football league. i was convinced my opponent was not on my level; our cumulative point totals indicated i was the clear favorite. i debated such intricacies as whether to start Santonio Holmes instead of Chris Chambers, or the upside of starting Bet the hitman Favre in a dome game.
I paid attention to the weather. but the weather screwed me.
I was jumping for joy when i saw my opponent had two players playing in Foxboro this weekend, convinced that Tom Brady would do just enough to win the game. he did. but my opponent subbed Benjamin Watson in favor of someone else. he still had mike nugent kicking field goals and that paind off for me.
i benched Roethlesberger and apparently wasnt having a good game until the end when he started racking up stats and TDs in a losing effort against the Jags. he had 3 TDs, i believe.
Favre threw 2 picks and his total yards were not as impressive.
and for whatever reason, i didnt check the weather update for Bufallo’s game at Cleveland, and that bit me in the dick. Lee Evans doing next to nothing.
So I hear Tom Brady adn Tony Romo screwed their owners this week. well, that’s the breaks.
what i cant understand is how Reggie Wayne and Joe Addai didnt fare well agains the Raiders! Both players carried me this year; even when one didnt do well, the other would make up for the lack of stats. Sadly for me, they both came up with below average numbers in a week that truly mattered.
oh yeah, MY competition had LaDanian Tomlinson on his team. he’s a beast.
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3149919&campaign=rss&source=MLBHeadlines
Padres, Cubs, White Sox interested in Fukudome
NAGOYA, Japan — Japanese outfielder Kosuke Fukudome told the Chunichi Dragons he will not return next season, saying he wants to make a move to the major leagues.
Fukudome, who became a free agent last month, informed the Central League club of his decision Tuesday.
“I won’t be playing for a Japanese club next season, I’ll play in the majors,” Fukudome said. “I appreciate the fans who supported me for nine years. I hope that the fans continue to root for me when they see me playing in the United States.”
Fukudome is regarded as one of the best outfielders in Japanese professional baseball. The 30-year-old was a key member of the Japan team that won the inaugural World Baseball Classic in March 2006.
FUKUDOME!
FUK-U-DO-ME!
FUK-U-DO-ME!!!!!!
(i’ve made very little mental progress since the 6th grade)
obviously i’ m likely waaaaaay off on the pronunciation, but i’m a postmodern boy, and I can deconstruct explanations as i see fit.
i might cop a Fukudome t-shirt if he goes to the Cubbies.
my previous favorite sports name is of course the one and only Houston Nutt; which reminds me i’ve been meaning to make a shirt with his name on it. also on the list is TJ Houshmanzadeh. and Chris Leak. and Dick Butkus. and Kaka. and a couple of times on the NorthEast Corridor train one of the attendants had a last name Woodcock, but he wasn’t a professional ballplayer as far as I knew.
Other awesome names are Cruncy Black, Young Leak, Old Dirty Bastard, and Brotha Lynch Hung. they are rappers, of course. and Karl Hungus, who is a fictional porno actor in the movie The Big Lebowski.
- i crashed the party in our fantasy football league. My team scored a lot of points this season, but my record did not reflect it. nonetheless, i barely made it into the playoffs and won my first round game in convincing fashion. off to the final four round, i’m headed.
- just in time to get my soccer fix comes the last round of Champions League group play. Yes. Barca, Lazio, Inter, Bremen, Lyon, PSV, and others will be in action today and tomorrow, and I’m putting my game face on (read: sitting on my ass with some junkfood and getting ready to yell “holy shit”, with pipe dreams that i’ll be heading to the gym after the games are over).
- What a game that was between Real Madrid and Athletic Bilbao last weekend. 1-0 los blancos, but Bilbao played one hell of a match.
- The NY tackle football Giants seemed to have clinched the wildcard, albeit with some sloppy plays in between. i’ll take what i can get. i honestly thought we would be a bottom 10 team this year, but they always find a way to surprise. now if we could only beat a good team…
- if you have Gol TV, then you know Ray Hudson, a God among mere mortals. whether if its passionate brown-nosing, erratic behaviour, alcohol-and-sex related outbursts, or what appears to be the sound of him choking on live television, it’s hard to hate the man. Hudsonia chronicles the spectacle, in his very own words. and if you ever wanted to play a Ray Hudson drinking game, well look no further.
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3140668
the rumors coming from Nashville are becoming concrete by the hour, and it looks like baseball behemoth Johan Santana is headed to Boston.
the deal seems to be Coco Crisp and either John Lester of Jacoby Elsbury, along with one or two highly regarded prospects to swap for the most feared pitcher in the ML.
For the Yankees, as the article points out, this either means they go after Dan Haren or remain content with their current rotation of Mussina, Pettite, Phil Hughes, Ian Kennedy, while we wait and see what the organization has in store for Joba (starter or bullpen). That’s not a bad outlook for the Yankee future, unless they bvecome desperate for Haren in light of the Santana situation. and you know Oakland will try to squeeze all they can if such a trade is a possibilty.
but enough with facts. the funniest part is some cowardly National League exec who pointed out what has been obvious to just about everyone who recognizes the Yankees arent the only money spending pimps in the big leagues:
“If the Red Sox get Santana,” said an executive of one NL team that’s grateful to be in the other league, “they might be the best team in the history of the frigging universe.”
no shit, Sherlock. they already are for the most part. one doesn’t become champions by getting lucky.
i only assume he’s cowardly because its obvious his identity is, well, not identified. it’s fun to guess what team signs his paychecks.
jesus.
surely if you follow the NFL and if you’re the type of fan that can’t follow any other sport during the offseason, then your familiar with junior Reids’ fiascos. On the same day last January, they were both busted on separate traffic violations. Andy Reid made it public he was taking a sabbatical to deal with this situation re: his family. Very commendable on his part. As a fan of the Giants, even I had to respect the way a rival coach attempted to deal with his personal trials.
But unfortunately, his sons are on some other shit.
That judge came down on them, and he criticized the Reid household, calling it a “drug emporium.” OUCH!
“There isn’t any structure there that this court can depend upon,” Montgomery County Judge Steven O’Neill said before sentencing Reid’s son Britt to up to 23 months in jail plus probation.
“I’m saying this is a family in crisis,” O’Neill said.
Earlier Thursday, O’Neill sentenced Garrett Reid, a drug addict and dealer who said he got a thrill out of selling drugs in “the ‘hood,” to up to 23 months in jail for smashing into another motorist’s car while high on heroin.
It gets worse. Especially for Garret.
His addiction persists, according to authorities, who found 89 prescription drug pills in Reid’s jail cell Thursday morning. They believe he smuggled them in his rectum when he was jailed earlier this week.
Selling drugs “in the hood” and smuggling product up his ass? The Reid brothers probably watch too much The Wire (but who can blame them, it’s the best show in TV history, right next to I love Lucy.) Those dubasses are like a dumberer version of Ziggy from season 2, but privilaged. SMH.
South Florida certainly came to play in The Banks, but Rutgers got the best of them. the difference: two special teams plays; one for first down on a fake punt, the other for a TD on a fake FG. wild stuff, cetainly what college football is all about.
Bu there is a part of me that cant be entirely happy no matter how much school pride I have.
Seriously, THERE WAS NO NEED TO RUSH THE FIELD. This is not 2006. If we want to be treated like a program thats come a long way, than we better start acting like it. Yes, it was a great victory, but c’mon.
I feel bad for South Florida. All their hard work is now for nothing. They are a Big East team with hopes for a national championship, and unfortunately one loss will put an end to that. Ever since three of the top programs in the nation left the conference for the ACC, we are just not considered at all for such positions. They had an impressive resume, but losing to Rutgers, no matter how respectable they are, will only get them a chance for conference champs. USF played tougher teams than Ohio State U, but because they are a traditional big time program, they will always get the benefit of the doubt.
Well, one has to figure all the talking heads are happy about last night’s results. They can pretend their observations of USF just being “pretenders” were onpoint all along. They’ll probably get the BCS championship game they wanted all year, some Pac-10 team vs. LSU (or whatever SCC team comes out of that vicious pack).
They may be right about one thing it seems. The SEC Championship game might as well be the National Championship. I’m not a believer in the playoff format for Bowl Sub-division teams, but unless all teams get a FAIR evaluation, the playoff format is the way to go. and I’m talking about more than 4 teams, BCS gatekeepers.
i believe in jinxing in sports. Athletics (professional, collegiate, or otherwise) summon the superstition in me. i’m not religious or psychotic by any definition, but i swear i sometimes put a hex out on my teams.
take for example, Rutgers. I made a post after they started out 3-0. They went on to lose their next two matches, and winning their following one. I think to myself if I hadnt made that post, things wouldve turned out differently.
well, now I’m back to it. RU has an important match against the numero dos in the country, South Florida. We win, we’re back in the Top 25, we get back in the running for top dogs in the Big East, and we set up for another important match against West Virginia next week. We lose, then we could still have a good season, still try to be bowl eligible, but otherwise all our preseasonhopes and optimism are erased.
in an effort to throw a big F*ck You to the “jinx” I’m making this post to wish all the best to the Scarlet Knights on thursday night. should be an exciting one, and i cant wait till kickoff. best believe i’ll be in a bar wearinng some sort of Rutgers aparell.
other times i jinxed my teams.
I made a post about the Yanks making it to the playoffs. they lost in in 4 games against the Indians.
i was rooting for LSU against Kentucky only because i wanted more lower tier top 25 teams to drop out, making it easier for RU to get back in the pack. they lost.
I predicted Cal to go undefeated, and they messed up.
another example of the opposite game. I was sure the NY Giants would do crappy all year, but they have a ounted a 4-2 record. is this the week we come back to earth.
I talked a lot of smack in fantasy football, but now my record in 2-4. i’m one of the two bottom teams in my division.
he’s certainly reaped the benefits of his media-respected image. unfortunately, his become quite the egotistic maniac.
http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/2007/10/08/tiki-barber-i-miss-football-i-still-have-a-lot-left/
in a recent interview with Chauncey of Steppin Out Mag/Howard Stern fame, Tiki expressed his regret of early retirement:
“I miss football. I want to be out there playing on Sunday afternoons. I miss the stage. I also miss the guys a little bit because they were my close friends for so many years. In fact, I ran into Jeremy Shockey on the street the other day and I said to him, ‘Damn, I forgot how big you are!’ He gave me a big hug and said he missed me too. It was great. If I wanted to come back and play football next year I could. I know I still have a lot left.”
Of no coincidence is the Giants are riding a three game win streak. Not too long ago when the Jints were losing he was trashing Tom Coughlin, citing his retirement on his lack of desire to play for him. He also questioned Eli Manning’s leadership (which I happen to slightly agree with, but he was way out of line considering he no longer plays for the team).
Last year, he explained his intention to retire on the weekly punishment his body endured during th football season.
As a fan, I certainly respected his decision to retire if he was looking out for his well-being. He has a family to live for, and his post-football options were looking good for him, especially in the media field. He had spots in Fox and Friends, the Today Show, and a cohost gig for Football Night in America (or whatever that show i refuse to watch is called). But these new “revelations” look totally bitchmade. If he wanted to skip training camp, he should have done it the Strahan way; we all know he has enough clout for that.
I hope he goes to the Eagles. Wouldnt surprise me one bit. Good luck to him.
- The Mets are on some serious shit. I’m not gonna lie, there is a part of me that’s very happy, if only to have some fire for those bastards who want to talk shit about the Yanks, and who happen to be Met fans. If they dont make the playoffs, there’s gonna be some grown men around here crying for about a week.
- I need a new job like yesterday.
- i think my favorite food of all time is Eggs Benedict Florentine, and that gives me a guilty feeling. i’ve been consuming more eggs than usual in the last couple of moNths; i need to cut that shit out.
- can someone in New Jersey point to a good bartending job? I might be trying out for one in a latin club in Elizabeth NJ, but anything in Jersey City or Hoboken would be ideal (i know, too much to ask for.)
- 2nd favorite food of all time, Chile Relleno.
- it took me forever to publish this post, and now the Mets are officially not in the playoffs. A heartfelt fuck you goes to all their fans and their shitty attitudes toward my Yankee fandom. better luck next year!
so, the “people” have decided. Barry Bonds number 756 will have an asterik and donated to the Hall of Fame as such.
I’m upset because it makes a mockery of the Hall of Fame. If you want to rip Barry, that’s fine. Even his skin is not as tough as he may project himself to be. Eventually all the naysayers may succeed in breaking him down to nothing. It has happened before, and it will keep happening.
But after that ball left the park, it became a baseball artifact whether you like it or not. it belongs in the Hall unmarked, or in Barry’s hands unmarked. If Marc Ecko wanted to brand it or grafitti it, he can do so, but he also had the right to keep it then.
It is no longer the Barry Bonds ball, but the Marc Ecko ball.
Will the same reaction occur when he approaches 3000 hits? Probably not, but I guarantee some other jackasses will try to gain exposure by trying to bring Barry down.
Joba Chamberlain played such a key role in the Yank’s 2007 campaign for the post-season. It is far from over, but the Bombers have reason to celebrate.
I made a total of two Yankee-related posts: one where I proclaimed A-Rod a god among men, and one where I chronicled the kind of season the Yanks were having, the infamous stolen home plate game.
Since then things took a turn. If memory serves me correct, a game or two later, A-Rod involved himself in the now notorious incident while rounding third base against the Blue Jays. He yelled something at Howie Clark, causing the third baseman to drop a routine pop out, and adding to the fuel for the remainder of the season.
The Yankees would climb from the hole they dug for themselves. They reached .500 by the All Star Game, and would have the best record in baseball since the midseason classic. Not bad. As a matter of fact, pretty, pretty, pretty good.
But how can you not love this guy? Any time a young guy makes valuable contributions to your team, everyone takes notice. Best of all, it becomes infectious. Melky and Cano did it before, and Joba followed suit. We’ll see far this momentum takes us.
The MLB playoffs start next week.
so espn is running some article in their homepage regarding overboard fan reaction to the early season. i didnt bother to read it for fear of being even more depressed by my NY Giants, and for lack of caring of articles that have more to do with opinion than sports fact/numbers.
The drawing above is attached to the headline.
now i know GB Packer fans should be excited for their 2-0 team, but the illustration the artist made for their region is too funny/odd to ignore.
I mean, i do figure the Lombardi-trophy-as-phallus idea is plausible in a psychoanalytic form, but the cheese-dick picture seems over the top. Somebody obviously loved the movie “Superbad.”
go to their home page if you wanna read. i’m not gonna link it.
marc ecko purchased Barry Bail Bonds # 756.
marc ecko, whose clothes used to be cool when i was 16, thinks he’s funny.
marc ecko, a former Rutgers School of Pharmacy student (maybe drop-out? i think he left school to make clothes, which was a great move), started a poll. What should he do with a ball he paid like $750K ? Should he donate it to the Hall of Fame, brand an asterik on it, or launch it into outer space?
marc ecko, his bitterness reeks of a Mets fan.
marc ecko, who’s obsessed with the rhino, maybe should have donated all that money to the preservation of the beautiful animal.
yep, they’ve been winning their games convingcingly like they’re supposed to. This is the easy part of their schedule, and it’s looking like other Big East teams like Cincinatti and (specially) South Florida are a tougher match.
RU moved up in the AP polls this week, taking the 11 spot, two spots from last week and four (i believe) from the preseason polls. Currently the 2nd highest-ranked Big East team due to Lousville’s loss this past weekend, Rutgers are looking forward to their off week and gearing up for their match against Maryland, a game many RU faithful have been looking forward to since the school revealed the 2007 season schedule.
Likely, they will fall off one spot for not playing a game this week. But in my opinion, 11 (or 10, if possible) seems like where they should peak, barring any total collapse by the tealms rounding out the Top 10. I just dont see LSU, USC, Oklahoma, and Florida, shuffling around at all. Penn St. and Ohio St. will have a key matchup later on in the season, but whoever loses shouldnt fall too much. And Cal U is playing awesome football. But here’s to hoping!
The West Virginia game keeps looking more important as the weeks go by.
you’d think he’d know better than to get himself in trouble with the law, let alone completely immerse himself in a casino break-in.
Paraphrasing from the LA Times:
O.J. Simpson was under investigation today in an alleged armed robbery at a casino hotel room involving sports memorabilia, but the former football star denied breaking into the room or carrying a weapon…
…Simpson said he was conducting a sting operation to collect his belongings when he was led to the room at the Palace Station casino. Police said he was a suspect in a break-in at the hotel…
…Many of Simpson’s sports collectibles, including his Heisman Trophy, were seized under court order and auctioned to pay some of the $33.5 million judgment awarded to the Goldman family and the estate of Nicole Brown Simpson…
…Simpson said he was accompanied by several men he met at a wedding cocktail party and they took the collectibles, which included his Hall of Fame certificate and a picture of the running back with J. Edgar Hoover.
If he got away with that, it would have been incredible. and LMAO that he calls it a sting operation. And that J Edgar’s name gets dropped in this scandal makes this more slightly over the top.
I dont feel like posting a pic of the Juice, but here’s his well-circulated, very hilarious “interview” from a month back:
Ecuador - they really blew it. I mean they sucked major bolsa. It’s so amazing to see a team falter so bad in a tournament. my brother insists that copa america is not really important - he’s probably right considering brasil didnt have their big guns in the pitch - but you still have to show up ready to play. nevertheless i am eager to see what they bring for the eliminatorias, which should sooner than we may expect, or ready for. the 2010 world cup is just under 2 years away! can’t wait.
Argentina - wow were they dominant, almost. all the stars made their presence felt, including inspiring performances by Messi and Riquelme, who caried on their respective great seasons into the tournament. unfortunately they fell short. which lead me to…
Brasil - Dunga was heavily criticized for the team he took to Venezuela, and for a couple opf their early pefomances, but it seems this team was destined to beat the Argentines. It wasnt the brand of pretty football we’re all accustomed to watching, but their midfield defence was on point, not allowing any effective balls for the Argentine front. Congratulations.
___________________
I attended the Latin Alternative Music Conference last week and I must admit to being a bit underwhelmed. I understand that the budget cant possibly compare to that of a CMJ or Austin City Limits, but the number of shows is something that has to be worked out better. I tried to show up to 3 shows with some success: the SOBs acoustic showcase, the MTV3 sponsored show in the Bowery Ballroom, and Cafe Tacuba in Central Park.
The SOBs show was a total mess. Some bands are just not equipped to strip down their sound and come off more “intimate.” Worst of all, each of the many, many acts were restricted to two songs, bringing other problems to the forefriont: 1) you can’t soundcheck all bands; this wouldnt be a problem knowing this is an acoustic show, but every act thinks they can bring their own flare with different instruments they cant possibly tune in the short time, and 2) even if you build momentum after 2 songs, you are cut off. They have to increase the set list to 4 songs and decrease the number of bands to showcase. Pinker Tones were the marquee band but after 2+ hours of being there, i had to leave.
The Bowery show was alright. The space is better, beer cost about the same, but the atmosphere wasnt as stuffy. Rock band Panda started it off and they had a young fanbase starting a mosh-pit, which was startling, considering how poppy their sound is. they were good though, specially compared to The Dey, the following group. They come accross like the latin version of the Fugees, except everyone sucked. Totally forgettable stuff. I saw a bit of the very attractive (IMO) Mala Rodriguez, but it was getting late and I had to leave. She’s cool.
As for Cafe Tacuba, through a series of unfortunate events I arrived at Central Park as soon as they were announced, but the line to enter was so long and Summerstage reached heir max capacity. So we just sat outside the venue like everyone else. They played great from the parts we heard. Me and my cuz left for a bit to get beer in between.
_________________________________
I got tickets to see M.I.A. !!! She’s playing this Saturday for free at the Siren Festival in Brooklyn but i’m not really down to go. And I dont mind forking over $20 to see her in Studio B. Whoo hooo it will (hopefully) rock. This will be my first time seing Maya in concert so I’m all sorts of excited. Just on week away. Party on!
Just days after that will be Rock the Bells in New York. Rage and Wu-Tang together, so i’ll make up for the concert i didnt attend when i was like16 y.o. Two concert in one week will help make up for the fact thaat I couldn’t attend the Long Blondes show i paid for, and the Morrissey show that was cancelled. There, indeed, is a light that never goes out.
Ecuador vs. Chile, 2-3
I’ll keep this brief. Ecuador pretty much dominated most of the game despite a couple of players in midfield playing sub-par soccer and an aging defensive line. Unfortunately, they could not hold the 2-1 lead for long.
On offense, Ecuador was efficient. They worked their passes well and created many opportunities for scoring and came up short a few times. On defense, however, they were slow and static. They never attacked the ball and Chile made them pay with some good strikes. Hats off to Chile for not letting up despite some signs of giving up in the first half.
Mexico vs. Brasil, 2-0
Admittedly I didn’t watch much of the game, still in disbelief of Ecuador’s deserved loss. The second Mexico goal was nice. Brasil played their brand of beautiful futbol, but were unable to penetrate the Mexican backs.
Overall, two surprising results in the Group B opener.
peru vs uruguay, 3-0
Peru played one of their best games in recent memory in their tournament opener against a Uruguayen squad that just couldnt get it together. They were hitting on all cylinders: their short-pass game was excellent, they had some nice execution on the defensive side, and took advantage of their opportunities on offense.
My peruvian friend Joe’s main complaint of the last 10+ years of the Peru national team was that they only played for personal glory; individuals had the skills but never meshed well as a unit purely for selfish reasons. None of that showed tonight. Some of the players had opportunities to take selfish shots, but opted for some well timed passes leading to the victory.
Uruguay didnt help themselves, however. For a lot of the game they just played futbol with frustration, which was mirrored appropriately enough by Diego Forlan. He played lackadaisical for the first 15 minutes of the first half. When they gave up the first goal, he took some errant shots rather than letting the pay develop a bit more. His teammates were no help; for a player that’s better suited with a ground attack, it seemed that most of the passes in his direction came from the long air strike.
venezuela vs. bolivia, 2-2
It’s a bit astounding that my complaint of this game is how unispired it was, considering there were four scores. But that’s about the size of it. It seemed Venezuela was content with trying to hold their early lead and dropping their men back for defense, only to give up the advantage on an own-goal in the 39th minute of the first half.
To Venezuela’s credit they scored two impressive goals. Both were the brainchild of Giancarlo Maldonado, scoring the first one and setting up the second goal to give them the lead in the second half. He was the only player from both teams with any intelligence on the field. Unfortunately for him, his team often would not play in the same pace, leading to a visible fatigue and consequent substitution with about 15 minutes left in the match. It was again on the 39th minute of the second half that Bolivia scored the equalizer.
i haven’t posted anyting in weeks, life sort of gets on the way of free time. so in order to feel e-productive i’m doing preliminary documentation of this year’s Copa America hosted by Venezuela.
Ecuador is in a tough group, rounded out by Brasil, Mexico and Chile. I can honestly say i have no idea how the national team will perform. Lucky for us the tournament will start on Tuesday, with Ecuador playing their first match on Wednesday.
One look at the Argentine squad and there is no doubt they are the faves. Even la brujita Veron is in the team! Not enough can be said about Messi. And Riquelme’s recent performance in the Copa Libertadores makes him one to look for.
here’s the Ecuador call ups for the Copa America:
Goalkeepers:
Cristian Mora (Liga de Quito), Marcelo Elizaga (Emelec).
Defenders:
Ulises De la Cruz (Reading), Neicer Reasco (Sao Paulo), Oscar Bagui (Olmedo), Ivan Hurtado (Atletico Nacional), Giovanni Espinoza (Vitesse Arnhem), Jorge Guagua (Colon de Santa Fe), Renan Calle (Liga de Quito).
Midfielders:
Edison Mendez (PSV Eindhoven), Luis Antonio Valencia (Wigan Athletic), Segundo Castillo (Red Star Belgrade), Edwin Tenorio (Liga de Quito), Patricio Urrutia (Liga de Quito), David Quiroz (El Nacional), Walter Ayovi (El Nacional), Luis Caicedo (Olmedo).
Forwards:
Carlos Tenorio (Al Saad), Felix Borja (Olympiakos), Cristian Benitez (El Nacional), Felipe Caicedo (Basel), Pablo Palacios (Deportivo Quito).
If I’m as lazy as i plan to be, I should be able to catch every game, with hopes that I will be commenting on all matches.
Good luck to Ecuador and all nations involved!
So with that heading I’ve fulfilled my “ass-kissing of Lebron James post-Game 5″ internet quota. Other equally funny statements have been:
We have liftoff on the LeBron era; even MJ never quite did anything just like James did to Pistons in Game 5 from MSNBC. Jordan comparisons are too easy and they show how little writers have progressed since the nineties, living with the false pretense that the league never moved on talent-wise post-MJ.
It was the only time he looked human all night from ESPN, referring to his post-game press conference. Not true, His fatigue really showed throughout the game, even shooting an errant airball in OT.
LeBron: I Questioned You, Thanks for Responding from a Fox Sports Blogger who goes on to rant about LeBron having a grip on the league for years to come and how he has always known this would happen. The header just reeks of self importance.
Simply marvelous from the Sporting News. Pretty accurate, really. He went on to be called “LeBron Roget” due to his far-from-limited description of his physically hurt state. Nice touch.
And that is why you, dear fan, shouldn’t have given up on the NBA playoffs from AOL Sports columnists. This, without a single mL of cynicism on my part, is the winner.
After the Cavs finished off the Nets, I was convinced Motown would have no problem disposing of Cleveland. In my mind NJ was the better match-up basketball-wise. Detroit came away with two home wins that I thought for sure would hurt the Cavs psyche; two very close encountersin which LeBron’s leadership ability was criticized and dissected in papers and sports shows nationwide. I tuned out of the seriesfor that reason (and just life in general), even though the Pistons never did win those games convincingly. So I had a “woah-is-me” moment when I learned The Cavs tied it up. So I started watching from the fourth quarter last night only to find (surprise!) it was another tight game. And things really unfolded.
I always felt Jordan was full of it in his infamous fever game, where he played with a temperature of over 100 degrees against the Jazz. I know he felt ill, but we already knew what he was capable of. LeBron, however, has never come across as hyperhuman; he was never a copy of a copy of a copy. He was always LeBron, with his superb games that lacked the dominance of a Kobe. His playing through fatigue is reminiscent of playground full court games; the kind of game where everyone seems equally tired except one person stands above the rest. LeBron was he/she.
He scored the last 25 Cav points through both OTs and some of the fourth. Twenty-nine of the last thirty Cavalier points. And he was tired as hell. If every other sports star shows superhuman Clark Kent qualities in their historic performances, Lebron showed traces of anti-hero Batman: beaten down, facing more than many adversaries, simply not stopping, sometimes messing up, refusing to let go, totally in-your-face. And it was an awesome sight.
For the sake of the playoffs, I hope the Cavaliers finish the Pistons off for good at home. The last thing we (me, actually) want is a Detroit appearance in the Finals. And hopefully he can screw the West for good measure.
(photo taken from ESPN.com)
