Archive for July, 2011

WATERCOOLER CHAT: MORE TRADES IN NFL, TIGER RETURNS TO TOUR, US MEN’S SOCCER TEAM LOST HEAD COACH

FOOTBALL

Teams are racing to get deals done and sign players to fill out their roster and fulfill the new restrictions in the new collective bargaining agreement. Thursday, Titans quarterback Vince Young was released after the signing of Matt Hasselbeck. Former Jets wide receiver Brad Smith signed with the Buffalo Bills and Reggie Bush will play for the Miami Dolphins. The New England Patriots also made a huge splash by acquiring veteran wide receiver Chad Ochocinco, as well as once dominant defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth. The Arizona Cardinals traded for quarterback Kevin Kolb from the Eagles. And the NFL has finally reinstated Plaxico Burress after serving two years in prison.

GOLF

In Golf, Tiger Woods announced that he will return back to the tour. His first event will be next week’s, WGC-Bridgestone Invitational. The announcement came via Twitter. Tiger has always had success at this tournament with exception of last year. In the past, he has won this event seven times and looks to make it his eighth win after his extended leave from the tour.

SOCCER

In Soccer, the US Men’s National Team has lost its head coach Bob Bradley. He was fired from his position after multiple heart wrenching losses in the past few months including Mexico winning the Gold Cup over the US in the US. There is no word on who the new coach will be, but many will be vying for the position as the next World Cup takes place in Brazil in 2014.

 

In College Basketball, the Oklahoma Sooners have admitted to two major violations. They admitted that the men’s basketball program committed two major violations in the past five years and have asked the NCAA for leniency, but because the Sooners are repeat offenders, the NCAA sanctions may be harsh. One of the violations includes a former assistant coach knowing that former center Keith “Tiny” Gallon received $3,000 from a Florida financial advisor for high school transcripts to attend The University of Oklahoma. With a new head coach in Lon Kruger, the former regime of Jeff Capel and co. is not around anymore, when these violations took place.

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WATERCOOLER CHAT: KOLB TO AZ, TITANS GRAB HASSELBECK, BELTRAN SHIPPED TO GIANTS

FOOTBALL

In the NFL, the free agency/trade machine was in full swing again yesterday.

First up, the Arizona Cardinals finally shored up their hole at the quarterback position.  They didn’t draft a QB in the draft, and yesterday they brought now former Eagle Kevin Kolb to town.  Going into the 2010 season, Kolb was projected to have a strong, break-out season.  But he didn’t play well in pre-season, then got hurt midway through the first game and barely saw any action after that.  In Arizona, he will be instantly praised as ‘the man’, and will have secured the starting job the second he arrives in town.  This guy will be motivated, and is already playing with one of the best receivers in the league:  Larry Fitzgerald.  This could be a turn around year for the Cardinals.

And, just one day after Matt Hasselbeck essentially lost his job, another squad decided to sign him up.  The Tennessee Titans have agreed to terms with Hasselbeck, which will most likely make him their starter in 2011.  Hasselbeck is still relatively healthy and able.  He has an arm and precision passing, and could be a perfect presence to simply run the Tennessee offense.  Remember, the Titans main weapon is their superstar running back Chris Johnson.  Having a capable guy like Hasselbeck at QB who can pick up the 3rd and 4th possessions, which in turn enables the Titans to keep running — well, that’s a great thing.  Plus, the Titans drafted Washington Huskies quarterback Jake Locker with the 8th overall pack as their QB of the future.  Hasselbeck will act as a mentor.  This, by the way, pretty much guarantees that the Vince Young era in Tennessee is over.

BASEBALL

Finally, a major trade in baseball.  Carlos Beltran was one of baseball’s rising superstars this past decade.  He began his career in Kansas City, rising up through their farm system.  Then, he headed to Houston, where he absolutely crushed it in the post-season and almost single-handedly won the World Series for the Astros (they fell to the White Sox).  Beltran then signed with baseball super agent Scott Boras and demanded a gigantic contract.  The New York Mets came calling and gave Beltran the money he wanted.  Unfortunately for the Mets, Beltran was injury prone over the past few seasons, preventing him from doing anything close to the brilliance he showed in Houston.  Now, Beltran is being shipped to the San Francisco Giants.  The Giants are currently sitting in first place in the NL West, and are betting on Beltran’s potential to help them  if they go to the post season again.  Remember, they’re defending their crown.

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WATERCOOLER CHAT: MCNABB GOOD FIT FOR VIKINGS, SEAHAWKS WANT JACKSON, PLAXICO MAY BE IN NY

FOOTBALL

With the NFL back open for business, teams started making moves right away.  First up, the Minnesota Vikings.  They drafted Christian Ponder from Florida State to be the heir apparent to the Brett Favre era.  However, given that they have a pretty solid defense, arguably the best running-back in football, and an above average offensive line, it might be wise not to squander those years on a rookie quarterback’s adjustment years.  That’s why they are in thick contract negotiations with all-pro Donovan McNabb.  We’re all familiar with his impressive body of work in Philadelphia, but his one-year stint with the Redskins was a complete failure.  This, however, does not mean he’s done.  McNabb certainly has gas left in the tank and would be a great fit to simply execute the Vikings offense (which is basically what Favre did).  Plus McNabb has those same ‘Wow!’ moments as Favre, when he’ll miraculously pick up the first down on 3rd and 13.  This could be very good for Minnesota… if the contract goes through.

Next up, the Seattle Seahawks.  Yesterday, they decided to pull the curtain closed on an era, allowing their franchise quarterback of the past decade, Matt Hasselbeck, to become a free agent.  They needed a replacement, and based on the above news from Minnesota, that basically freed up Tavaris Jackson to switch teams.  According to reports, the Seahawks are looking to land Jackson for $8million per year.  Jackson has critics, but remember he’s been a perpetual backup the last few seasons, and never really got a chance to shine in Minnesota.  He’ll have something to prove going to Seattle.  However, there are also reports that Seattle is looking to bring in Matt Leinart, which would reunite Leinart with his USC coach Pete Carroll.  The Seahawks made the playoffs last year, and are hoping to continue that success this season.

Finally, the Plaxico Burress era in New York may not be over.  According to reports, Burress is in negotiations to sign with the Giants.  That would give them that tall, superstar wide receiving threat they need.  Sure, Burress has been out of the league 2 full years, but sources say he’s in great shape and ready to play.  He most likely has a few more great seasons in him.  And in Carolina camp, the Panthers have signed their hyped defensive end Charles Johnson to a 6-year deal worth around $72 million.  They couldn’t take a chance letting this guy go, as he is a key component to their defensive rebuilding efforts.  Carolina is a team in flux right now, and this will be a ‘growth’ year for them, but they might just surprise you with Cam Newton at the helm and a motivated team behind him.

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WATERCOOLER CHAT: NFL LOCKOUT OVER!

It’s over. It’s over!  The NFL lockout is officially complete. Yesterday, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell took the podium and first apologized to football fans everywhere for the 4 month drawn-out lockout. The two facesof teh end of this lockout were New England patriots ownder Robert Kraft and Indianapolis Colts lineman Jeff Saturday. They represented the waring factions: Owners and players respectively. Yesterday they embraced in a hug representing that both sides were happy with the distribution of wealth over the next 10 years and that we would have football in the fall. Now, expect to see a race to nab the top free agents in the market.

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WATERCOOLER CHAT: NFL LOCKOUT MAY BE OVER SOON, PISTONS NEW COACH, MARION JONES CUT

FOOTBALL

The NFL Lockout is a complicated scenario which deals with collective bargaining agreements, rookie salaries, television money, owner vs. player payments, and many other confusing issues.  However, with all that, it appears that this lockout may be close to finally being over.  Yesterday, NFL Owners agreed to a proposed collective bargaining agreement, which is primarily the key issue of the lockout.  In short, easy-to-understand terms, it determines how much money everyone is going to make going forward.  However, the players did not sign off on the deal yesterday.  Many experts believe that the players association will sign the deal today and that will be that.  But of course, there are other sources saying that the media has it all wrong and the players are nowhere close to agreeing to terms.  Let’s just hope they settle this soon so we can have our football on Sundays.

BASKETBALL

In the NBA, the Detroit Pistons have been a pretty hapless franchise for the past few years.  In the middle of the previous decade they won a championship and took the San Antonio Spurs to 7 games before falling.  They got rid of Chauncey Billups for Allen Iverson, Rasheed Wallace retired, and Ben Wallace went to Chicago, and that basically destroyed their nucleus.  Since then it’s been a very discombobulated team.  Last year, they even practically went on strike, as they had given up on their coach John Kuester.  Kuester was fired mid-season, and the Pistons were a team looking for a direction.  Now, they have found their new captain:  Lawrence Frank.  Frank comes from Boston as an assistant coach, but Frank was also responsible for turning the New Jersey Nets into a competitive franchise in the early part of the decade.  He’s a sharp young coach that has a chip on his shoulder to win.  Detroit has a bunch of talented young rookies looking to prove themselves, so, assuming we have a season, they might just turn things around.

And in some news from the WNBA, the Tulsa Shock made headlines when they cut a former Olympic Gold Medalist.  We all remember Marion Jones three gold medals at the 2000 Olympic Games. It was an exciting accomplishment at the time.  However, it was later revealed that she took steroids during that period AND lied to federal investigators about the matter.  This led to 6 months in prison and she was forced to return the medals.  Cheating is cheating.  Recently she tried to revive her career as a professional basketball player.  After all, she’s still an amazing athlete and does have basketball skills.  But, her 14 appearances in the WNBA didn’t yield much.  In fact, she averaged less than a point per game.  Now the Shock have decided to party ways with Jones to simply make room for somebody else.  She got a shot, but the Shock have to put themselves in the best position to win and thus entertain the fans.

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WATERCOOLER CHAT: TIGER FIRES CADDIE, NFL PLAYERS MAY BE GETTING SOFT, ABBY WAMBACH POSTER GIRL

GOLF

Tiger Woods is trying to create a new beginning.  Ever since his scandalous affair broke in Christmas of 2009, he has been on a skid of being simply ‘above average’.   And as we all know, that’s not good enough for Tiger.  Now he is shedding another part of his past to begin anew.  Tiger has decided to let go of his caddie Steve Williams after 13 years of service.  With Williams by his side, Tiger won an astounding 13 majors from 1999 – 2011.  For those that don’t know, having a trustworthy caddie can make the difference between winning and losing.  The golfer requires a second opinion on the course and the caddie is the guy that offers the best club or recommends an idea for how to hit a shot.  It’s like having a coach out there.  And not only was Williams Tiger’s caddie, he was his buddy.  Williams also wasn’t afraid to disagree with Tiger, which is quite risky because if you’re wrong, you could get blamed.  That could be very costly with a very high salary on the line.  We’ll see where Tiger goes from here.

FOOTBALL

In the NFL, New York Jets linebacker Bart Scott’s biggest problem with the NFL negotiations is that it may void the idea of two-a-day practices.  Players absolutely hate two-a-day practices which could require the players to go through 5 grueling hours of intense cardiovascular and hard-hitting workouts in the hot sun.  But, Bart Scott feels that avoiding these practices will make the players soft.  That once they get out there and play games, they will be more prone to injuries because they’re in less than tip-top condition.  Scott said that a smart coach knows how to work his players to the grind during the summer and knows just when to pull back so that the player’s body can rest before the season starts.  Scott is just voicing his opinion, but he probably won’t get much support as most guys dread two-a-days.

SOCCER

Finally, Abby Wambach was scheduled to play in her first soccer game back for her home team magicJack.  Unfortunately, she couldn’t play in the game as she’s still recovering from an injury.  But, during halftime, Abby walked to midfield and took the microphone to not only thank the crowd for their support, but also to apologize for not playing in the game.  She said that her body just needed to rest.  A good point considering she played her heart out to reach the U.S. World Cup Finals, then hit the daytime and late night talk show circuit over the next few days.  Abby is now the poster girl for not only women’s soccer, but women’s sports.

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WATERCOOLER CHAT: RANGERS FIRED UP, PIRATES JELLING, TRAGEDY IN NY

BASEBALL

The Texas Rangers are red-hot!  They started off the season scorching as well, but then cooled down a bit due to injuries.  Now… they’re sitting atop the AL west and, last night, they were in search of their 12th straight win against the Los Angeles Angels.  The Texas bats have been a force of nature lately, and they got a brilliant performance from Josh Hamilton, Endy Chavez, and Adrian Beltre — all of whom homered last night.  Alexi Ogando gave another phenomenal trip to the mound, pitching 8 innings and allowing just 4 hits and ZERO runs.  This team is firing on all cylinders right now.  This is good news for the Rangers who, along with their fan base, are all mourning the death of a fan who fell over a railing trying to catch a foul ball.  This season is now dedicated to him and his son.  Texas 7, LA Angels 0.

And in the National League, there is a very suspicious team sitting in first place in the NL Central.  Who?  None other than unanimously agreed upon worst franchise in sports… the Pittsburgh Pirates.  The Pirates have been abominable ever since their post season run in the late 80s.  That’s essentially 20+ years of sitting in last place and doing absolutely nothing to improve their team.  Now something is jelling because they’re in first place.  Yesterday they looked to hold on against the Cincinnati Reds.  It didn’t come from their bats, however, because their pitching staff cleanly pitched a six-hit shutout. When your pitching staff is clicking, you have a chance to get a post-season birth.  Nobody expects the Pirates to hold on and make the playoffs, but, right now, they certainly believe they are capable.  Pittsburgh 1, Cincinnati 0.

BASKETBALL

And, in some sad news, an accident involving the Lakers Lamar Odom.  Odom was in Queens, NY this weekend visiting his family when the private car he was riding in hit a motorcycle which then struck a 15-year old pedestrian.  It was all an accident, but the young boy, Awsaf Alvi Islam, died yesterday from injuries due to the accident.  This is awfully sad news, and those close to Odom said he is extremely shaken up by the event.  There are no words he could say to comfort the family, but he tweeted that his thoughts and prayers are with them.  It was said that Awsaf was an avid soccer player and had become more active in his mosque recently.  Just an unfortunate accident that Odom must cope with for the rest of his life.

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WATERCOOLER CHAT: KOBE WANTS 1 MILL PER MONTH FROM TURKEY, USC RB IN TROUBLE

BASKETBALL

In the NBA, with the lockout hovering large over the immediate future of the league, overseas teams are looking to capitalize.  The Nets‘ Deron Williams has already signed a deal agreeing to play for Turkey’s Besiktas.  These teams view this as an opportunity to bring the best basketball players in the world to play with their clubs LIVE in front of an adoring public.  That same team had shown interest in also bringing NBA superstar Kobe Bryant to town if the lockout persists.  It was reported that they were willing to pay Bryant $500,000 a month to play there, but now it’s being reported that Bryant wants $1 million per month to play.  However, it looks like this may not happen because of the current financial situation that Besiktas finds itself in.  Their basketball funds are tied up in a soccer match-fixing scandal that is the major sports story in Turkey right now.  Either way, if teams like Besiktas can bring over the best and brightest from the NBA, if even for just a short time, this could do wonders for the future of international basketball.

FOOTBALL

In college football, another USC running back is in hot water.  No, not Reggie Bush this time, but rather current USC running back Marc Tyler.  Tyler was asked by a TMZ news crew if players got paid more at USC or in the pros (clearly a joke, as you are not supposed to get paid as a college athlete).  But, an intoxicated Tyler responded, “They breakin’ bread”, while making a hand gesture that the money is flowing to USC athletes.  Nobody is taking him too seriously, but USC has decided to ban their running-back Marc Tyler from the opening game of the season against Minnesota.  Head coach Lane Kiffin said this is the best way for players to learn that player conduct matters off the field.  USC is constantly under suspicion for illegal activity in the form of player payments.  Tyler may have just reopened another investigation against them.

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WATERCOOLER CHAT: JAPAN WINS WORLD CUP, CLARKE WINS BRITISH OPEN, SOX AND RAYS CAN PITCH

SOCCER

In the Women’s World Cup Japan edged out the United States 3 – 1 in penalty kicks after ending regulation in a 2 – 2 tie. The finals provided riveting competition; ultimately ending in Japan winning the World Cup for the country that over the past year has been ravaged by natural disasters. The US goalie Hope Solo, swept the awards for top goalkeeper throughout the world cup, while Abby Wambach won the Silver Ball for the tournament, proclaiming her the second best player in the World Cup. And one of the most interesting facts about the Women’s World Cup Final was that it set a record for the most number of recorded tweets about one topic with in seconds of the match ending.

GOLF

In the world of Golf, Darren Clarke walked away for the British open with nearly 1.5 million dollars in earnings and the Claret Jug after shooting -5 for the tournament. And even though Sunday was his worst day of the tournament, he still shot only 70. Phil Mickelson made a strong run to get in the lead Sunday, by having the best day on the course of any golfer, but fell just short and finished at -2 for the tournament. He shot 68 on the day. Rory McIlroy disappointed many coming off his dominating major tournament win by only shooting one day under 71, he finished the Open with +7.

BASEBALL

The Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays showed they both could pitch. The two teams went 15 innings last night without scoring. In the top of the 16th inning, Red Sox second basemen, Dustin Pedroia snapped the scoreless tie. The game winning hit was only the 8th total hit in the game. Both starting pitchers went eight innings of shutout ball. Red Sox starter, Josh Beckett only allowed one hit, while Rays starter, Jeff Niemann only allowed two.

 

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WATERCOOLER CHAT: BAUTISTA ANKLE INJURY, SOX-ORIOLES BENCH CLEARING, CLEMENS MISTRIAL

BASEBALL

And the second half of the baseball season is underway. After people criticized Derek Jeter for not showing up to the All-Star game, his first game back after the break left a little to be desired for the New York Yankees. Toronto scored 8 runs in the first inning and ended up winning the game 16 – 7. But, the biggest news for the Blue Jays Thursday night was that the Major League home run leader, Jose Bautista left the game with an ankle injury in the fourth inning. If Toronto plans to make any push this year for the playoff, they need to have Bautista in the lineup.

 

Before the All-Star Break, the Boston Red Sox and Baltimore Orioles got into a couple heated, benches clearing incidents. And one even had punches thrown. David Ortiz and Kevin Gregg were each given four game suspensions for their parts in the brawl. Orioles‘ reliever Mike Gonzalez was given a three game suspension and his manager, Buck Showalter, was given a one game suspension. This went along with the numerous fines that were handed out by the league to both teams.

Roger Clemens’ perjury trial ended Thursday, after the judge ruled  a mistrial. The judge said that the prosecutors, were given explicit instructions not to show a certain piece of evidence in the trial, but they did not listen. The prosecution showed the jury the inadmissible evidence, and U.S. District Judge Reggie Walton, ruled a mistrial. The new date everyone will look toward in this trial is September 2nd. That is the date that Walton will hold a hearing to settle on whether or not to retry Clemens for perjury.

 

 

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