RaReMaDev

Reds fall under .500 for the first time all year

2008-04-14T11:21:00.001-06:00

Two wins, one tie, and no losses so far for the Reds in their series of games against teams. That led them to a 6-4 record, but they managed to come out of PNC Park with a 6-7 record, thanks to a sweep at the hands of the Pirates. The Pirates. Yeah, that happened. So, Dusty is pissed, as are we all. Where are the bats, yo?

Martin Broduer wins the 2007 Vezina Trophy

2007-06-14T22:57:00.000-06:00

As well he should. And also perhaps the MVP of the league, though there was pretty much no doubt Sid the Kid was going to snag that one. But dang, THIRD in MVP voting??? That's just a sin, especially considering Luongo got 2nd, and the only feat he accomplished was eating Brodeur's dust in setting wins for a season. Pssh.

Nice goat, Marty.

2007-06-09T20:18:00.000-06:00

Good to see Majew's ERA above 10.00 again. Isn't it?

HOMER BAILEY = SALVATION

2007-06-08T20:27:00.001-06:00

Weathers gets Hafner looking!!!!!!!!!!!!!

4-3 Reds!!!!!!!

Homer Bailey is the winning pitcher!!!!!! 1-0!!! Retire while you're on top!

Homer Bailey > God? FIFTH INNING

2007-06-08T18:25:00.000-06:00

Someone predicted Bailey would go 5 and give up 3, and they're dang close because you can expect he will not be out there when Inning 6 comes a-calling and he will probably be done before then. He maybe should have already been done, but he's out there now nearing 100 pitches.

Sizemore up and Sizemore figured him out. Early. He's on with a single.

Holy balls, Sizemore has 18 stolen bases this year. And appropriately, Bailey makes his first-ever MLB pickoff move. Doesn't work, though. Casey Blake with a nice pop out. Could use more of those. Anything to cut this half-inning short and get this kid to the dugout with a lead. The only problem with that idea is the next 2 batters are Hafner & V-Mar.

You can tell Hafner just wants to crush one. And he's over 100. Pitches, that is. Instead he walks. Getting into dangerous territory again. Can we call on a sac fly DP? Haha, I doubt it.

V-Mar with 2 on and no sign of Narron coming to the rescue. The kid is on his own. It's his game to win or lose and the odds are looking like a big L right now. Holy bazooka, V-Mar threatened with a 3-run homer but Hopper gets it in his mitt AT THE WALL. That would have been a DEVESTATING way to end his first major league outing, but things are looking a little better for the kid. Just one more to go.

You never know what the wily Trot Nixon is gonna do. Better start him off with 2 balls and get him guessing early, right? Hmm......or 3 balls. Might as well load 'em up to get some real nerves and some real adrenaline flowing.

Delluci is up and crazy things happen when this guy bats. 2 walks, 110 pitches, and he's still in? Hard call to make, but dang, Narron is not only overworking the arms of his trusted vets and aces, but he's overworking The Savior in his first outing! That's Narron for you, though.

Alright Homer, you got into this mess, not get out of it! It's only the top team in the ALC.

AND THE STRIKEOUT SEALS THE DEAL!!!!!!!!!!

You couldn't call it any better than that, folks. The bases loaded, the kid working out of the jam, and he throws the K to Delluci. Unbelieveable stuff. I am sure GABP is going nuts right now. Well done, kid, well done. That's bigtime heat right there and he got through it alright.

A solid outing for The Savior. He's done, right? He has to be.

5 innings, 5 hits, 3 Ks, 4 BBs, 1 HBP, 2 runs.

Homer Bailey > God? FOURTH INNING

2007-06-08T18:00:00.000-06:00

Getting no help from his teammates tonight. In fact, outside of the whack Phillips put on the ball, Bailey probably had the best at-bat of anyone else on the team thus far. Sad or impressive? Both?

The big bad V-Mar up to bat, the RBI man of the night. Bailey is again working his favorite corner, down-and-away. It got him 2 early strikes. Followed up by two high fouls. Sprinkle in 3 balls and you've got yourself a full count. He's all over the zone, where will he go next? Right down the middle for another foul. Martinez knocks one Griffey's way and he's 2/2. That's 70 pitches already, only 3.0 innings in the books. This'll be interesting.

Nixon doubles and we've got trouble brewing my friends. If Bailey escapes this jam, that would be pretty awesome and would give some hope for the future. Not that he will dash hope with his outing tonight, no matter how ugly it ends up. He's still The Savior.

Delluci wastes no time in swinging at the first pitch and it turns into one of the weirdest plays I've ever witnessed. A sacrifice double play??? Who knew that existed???? Anyway, Delluci flies out to bring V-Mar home, and V-Mar scuttles home. Hopper throws to Conine who promptly throws to EdE for the double play, Nixon out at 3rd. What an odd sequence of events. Well, the bases are cleared and only one run scored so we've got that to be thankful for. Not sure what Trotty was thinking.

Barfield takes Bailey long and he's just throwing too many pitches on every batter. Barfield gets beaned and he's on base. One of the many HBP's that Bailey is going to throw in his lifetime. Barfield advances on a balk. Does Homer know all the rules?

Rouse gets the intentional walk, I'm sure he's feeling like a big man now. The pitcher Cliff Lee up next.

Lee puts it in play as Conine throws to Bailey at the bag on first.

Whew, what an inning. An interesting experience.

1 inning, 2 hits, 1 HBP, 1 BB, 1 run. Only 1 run out of that.
4 innings, 4 hits, 2 Ks, 2 BBs, 1 HBP, 2 runs.

Homer Bailey > God? THIRD INNING

2007-06-08T17:47:00.000-06:00

He's already thrown 48 pitches.

2 balls again. At least it's Sizemore this time. Haha and again!!! Sizemore with the 2nd K after there were no more balls to be given. Thanks buddy.

2 balls again. Casey Blake with the groundout. I'm surprised Cleveland is being so aggressive with their swings after the initial 2 balls. I'd sit around and wait for the other 2. But Bailey is getting bailed out a little bit.

Now back to the guys with the hits. Again with 2 outs. We'll see what happens this time around.

Hafner looks at a first-pitch strike. There's something new. Good tactic. Hafner with the groundout to Gonzo. Looking good.

1 inning, 1 K, 0 runs
3 innings, 2 K, 1 BB, 2 hits, 1 run

Homer Bailey > God? SECOND INNING

2007-06-08T17:31:00.000-06:00

The Reds got him a run back so we're all even.

A leadoff walk to Delluci on 5 pitches. Not pretty. If there's one thing you can give Bailey it's that he challenges hitters and goes right at them, throwing strikes. Not in this case, though I guess we can let The Savior allow a guy a base-on-balls every now and then. Would like to see another K, though. Get Sizemore back up here.

Barfield comes precariously close to the wall, but Adam Dunn makes the snag and keeps Delluci at first base.

2 balls to Rouse and it's becoming habitual. Does the strike zone shrink from Triple A to the props? You'd think not. Full count now and Rouse mercifully flies out to Hopper right in the middle of the field.

Bailey is working the down-and-away corner like a madman and he's been throwing a lot of balls because of it, but he throws 3 straight nice looking strikes down in the corner, forcing Lee to swing at a grounder that is played by Gonzo.

1 inning, 1 BB, 0 runs
2 innings, 1 K, 1 BB, 2 hits, 1 run

Homer Bailey > God? FIRST INNING

2007-06-08T17:14:00.000-06:00

Man, I wish I could be there. It must be electric right now. Or at least I wish I could watch it on TV instead of following on the Interwebs. Ah well.

First batter - STRIKEOUT!!! Doesn't get much better than that. He was just fooling with Sizemore, Grady's got no game.

Bailey gets the crafty vet Casey Blake to ground out to EdE after he fools with him a little bit.

Watch out, here comes The Big Hurt2. And a single. I thought Bailey had him, he was doing what he wanted, but Hafner is a heckuva hitter and he drops one in there to spoil the no-hitter. At least we got that out of the way.

Dang, didn't realize the Indians lineup was so STACKED. Any team in the league save the Yanks/BoSox would pay top dollar to have this lineup 1-4. Anyway, Victor Martinez is up and he's looking at 2 balls. Well....alright, never mind. Is Hafner going to steal his first base of the season?

Ouch. V-Mar rips the double, scoring Hafner and sending Bailey's ERA through the roof. It was a likely scenario, but do we really need any more bad news for the Reds? I think we would have been satisfied if Homer would've taken a no-hitter through 7. But it was not meant to be.

Two more balls and now he's just got to get out of the inning. I have a feeling he'll get a standing ovation no matter what happens, unless it's just downright awful. I hope nobody boos the man. And Trot Nixon lines out to Griff.

1 inning, 2 hits, 1 run

Homer "The Savior" Bailey

2007-06-08T17:09:00.001-06:00

He's wearing my number, baby! 34 to the bank!

His miraculous first outing is mere minutes away....

Congratulations to the Anaheim Mighty Ducks

2007-06-07T10:34:00.000-06:00

2007 Stanley Cup Champions

Gotta give it up for Scott Neidermayer, that's for sure. Glad he got the Conn Smythe trophy, but I had him ranked as #3 behind:

#1) J-S Jiggy
#2) Andy Mac

But he was the heart of the team, and there you have it. Blew my prediction out of the water. As Ottawa was shredding the Eastern Conference, it became obvious that they would wipe the mat with the Ducks when it was supposed to be the Red Wings after all. But what became clearer was the fact that the West was the best.

It certainly became hard to cheer for Ottawa when Pronger was suspended but Neil wasn't, and then when there were NO repercussions when Alfredsson shot the puck right at Neidermayer in Game 4. Oh well. The better team won, and that's always fun.

HOMER BAILEY = SALVATION

2007-06-05T20:16:00.001-06:00

Well, no. Not really. But it is clearly the single biggest highlight of the year since Opening Day. I'm pretty excited. Chances are he'll do poorly, he'll do average, or he'll do a dang impressive job. Chances are 50-50-50 across the board. They do add up to 150%, I am aware of this fact.

What's interesting to me is the kid's name is Homer. He's a PITCHER. His name is Homer. Not a great connotation. Better than Grant Balfour, I guess.

Remember when?

2007-06-04T13:31:00.001-06:00

Remember when we thought the Reds were going to be good? Or at least average. Do you remember this? I remember the blogger roundtable, the first one I was part of. The sense of optimism that is only natural every spring. But dang. There go the Reds again. Once again, they are not good. They almost made it to .500 last year, and you have to wonder how they did it, especially coming back with a better team (supposedly) and sucking it up. They might get close to average, but they sure won't be good. Sorry to hear it.

As soon as they drop the "Mighty" from their name, they start acting like it

2007-05-30T21:14:00.000-06:00

Well, my prediction for the Ottawa Senators to be Stanley Cup Champions is looking pretty dire right now, as the Ducks win both games at home, going up 2-0 on the best road team in the playoffs. Did the layoff for the Senators leave ’em rusty? That’s what everyone is talking about at least.

Reds go back-to-back

2007-05-30T12:16:00.001-06:00

Is there any doubt that the actions of the Reds winning two straight and me coming back to blog action are beyond coincedence? You can thank me later. Or now.

The real A-Rod goes down in flames

2007-05-29T22:43:00.000-06:00

Another French Open, another first-round exit for America's Andy Roddick. Time to give up the French? Maybe. Clay certainly ain't his bag, but he hasn't been the same for quite a long time.

The anguish and the agony

2007-05-29T22:36:00.000-06:00

I hear it, a voice from the distance. It's Kelly Clarkson. What the flip? Wait......she's singing. What's the song? I think it's called "Since You've Been Gone." I think, yes, she must be, asking me via song. I think it's a personal message directed towards me. How odd.

Hmm.........what's happened since I've been gone? What's happened in the span of a month?

Well..............

The Mavericks blew one of the best records in the NBA by losing in the first round to the Golden State Warriors. #1 losing to #8 had NEVER happened in the history of a 7-game series. That was painful.

Three days later, the New Jersey Devils lost to the Ottawa Senators, who I proclaimed would be the next Stanley Cup Champions. They got off to a bit of a bumpy road, losing the first game of the Finals to the Anaheim Ducks, but I still believe they are the better team. If Ottawa prevails, it will be the second year in a row that the Devils have lost to the eventual Stanley Cup Champions. Not an encouraging stat, but it does soften the blow a bit.

The Reds, since I posted, have been downright awful and it's a new problem all the time. Hitting goes flat, defense goes awful, pitching goes softball. You name it, it's happened. Sitting at 19-33 is not a pretty sight, that's for sure. They returned basically the same ballteam as 2006, although probably a little improved. Who would have guessed? Well, they are right where many pundits predicted, in dead last. Sad to see it happen like that.

Thankfully, the Raiders haven't played any games, so they haven't had a chance to go awry.

But dang, do I not deserve some love? I'd like to think so, after having 3 of my 4 teams crash and burn so badly in such a short span of time. Being such a diehard fan, I thought I'd be losing my mind, wallowing around in depression, but thankfully I'm doing a lot better than I thought I would be. Not sure how, but that's how it goes. I guess life > sports. Or something like that. That's what we tell the grandkids, anyway.

Ryan Freel brings me back

2007-05-29T18:26:00.004-06:00

Well, if there isn't some good news out of the whole Ryan Freel Tries to Kill Himself thing, it's that Tim Mo is back to blog a little bit. I don't know why, but seeing the story/video of Freel's suicidal dive for the ball all over news outlets (including the almighty Drudge Report) just sort of made me want to blog again.

Not that it really matters. It doesn't. I'll be doing things quite differently this time around. I got caught up in the game too much. Trying to blog a substantial amount for 4 different sports teams is very difficult, that's why you don't see it too much. But it killed me. At the same time, school was getting crazy and I just had to quit whenever it was, at the end of April or so, because I couldn't do it. In coming back, I am blogging more for myself and doing what I want to do. So less news reports, less game recaps, less of everything pretty much. Fewer posts for sure, probably more insight (however inaccurate) and more fun. It won't be journalistic excellence, that's for sure. But it will be something. Although I've probably lost all the readers (all 3 of you!) that I had before, but then again, I'm doing it more for myself this time around.

Glad to see you again. It's only been less than a month. Come on people. Thanks be unto Ryan Freel and his death-defying collision.

2007-04-30T17:42:00.000-06:00

I don't like to do this, but I am taking a break from blogging. Maybe I'll see you around someday.

Devils 3, Senators 2 (2OT)

2007-04-29T21:01:00.000-06:00

Alright I had a huge post but then it got erased, so that blows.

In short, the Devils had to win this game. Not technically, but you don't want to go down 2-0, especially losing both at home. That goal in double overtime by Jamie Langenbrunner may have changed this series around.

The Devils flat-out dominated the first period, leading in shots on goal by 16-5. Then they stopped. The rest of the game, the Senators outshot the Devils 40-17. While it was bad, it wasn't as bad as it seems due to the many missed shots by the Devils, whether due to aim or deflection. So it was a little more even than it appears, but it was pretty bad to put up 4 shots on goal in the 2nd and 3rd periods. The defensive dominance in the first period gave way to goaltending dominance, with Brodeur stopping 43/45 shots for the 3rd star when it probably should have been the first star.

The goal with 3/10ths of a second left in the first period was huge for the Devils. If they don't get that goal, they don't win the game. It helped a lot.

Still annoying that the Devils sat back and waited for the Senators to come at them. They got lucky they only let in 2 goals, but Brodeur was back there making sensational plays. But that's not the way to play the game, as John F. definitely agrees with me over at In Lou We Trust. Go check his blog out every dang day because it blows mine away. Props to Tom Lycan as well for posting within seconds after the victory was completed.

It was a good win, but it could have been a terrible loss due to the fact that the Devils exhibited no offensive pressure throughout the rest of the game. I would imagine that to be fixed come Game 3.

Reds 8, Pirates 1

2007-04-29T12:31:00.000-06:00

This was a fun one to watch. Once again you are reminded of the kinds of things the Reds could do if they were able to put it all together on a consistent basis.

NOTABLE THINGS

Pitching: The starting pitching, even throwing Milton in there, has been dang dang good this far in the season for the Reds, and they can't even remain above .500. When the starers go sour, it will be a long season. Until then, enjoy the 2nd-finest performance by a Reds starter this year (after Lohse's outing against the Cubs). Matt Belisle started and ended for the Reds, giving up 5 hits and a run while K'ing 5. Extremely well done. He had a perfect game going until the 6th inning where he gave up a double and a single which scored the only run. From there, he got a little weaker but still finished out the game. He didn't look as dominating in the lateer innings, giving up more hits but getting fortunate double play balls in the 7th and 8th innings to kill off any threat and then went 1-2-3 in the 9th. What a game. Great stuff. A ton of strikes and just having the attitude, he was very mentally keen.

Hitting: Ryan Freel led off and was 2/4, scoring twice. It was a perfect game pitchers duel through 3 innings but the Reds scored in the 4th on a Hamilton walk and a Conine double. Then Cincinnati does what it does well and that's have the occasional breakout inning, which was the 5th. Belisle started it, oddly enough, with his crazy sac bunt attempt where a lot of weird things happened. Ross & Dunn were on the corners with 1 out and Belisle bunted into the ground. He got tagged out and then the catcher threw to 2nd base when he Ross go there. Wilson tagged the BASE and not the player, so Ross was safe because it was no longer a force out, because Belisle was already out. Dunn saw all that and ran across home plate. Then 2 singles and a double later, the Reds had some more runs and they weren't finished until Gorzelanny mixed in a balk, scoring Phillips from 3rd base. The Reds tacked one on in the 8th on another Conine double and an EdE single. Then Conine threw in 2 more RBI's on a bases-loaded single. Phillips was 2/5, Conine was 3/5, EdE & Ross were both 2/4. On the other end of the totem pole was Hamilton, who had a double but then K'ed 3 times which was pretty nasty. Adam Dunn was 0/3 with a K and a grounder that went for a double play.

Fielding & such: Dunn stole second base in the 5th inning. I think he's 5 for 5 now, a very opportunistic stealer. Did he steal any last year? I think maybe 1 or 2. Good stuff from him. Freel got caught stealing in the 7th. You'll have that with Freel. Not sure if he's given the wrong signals or if he gets bad jumps or reads, but he'll get caught a few times before the year is out and he will have more bases than not, but it's something to improve. Do what Dunn does, dang it. 2 double plays with Phillips in the mix, one from EdE, the other from Gonzo.

The Randy Moss Experiment is over

2007-04-29T11:39:00.000-06:00

Good news I guess. Sort of sad, just remembering back two years ago when I heard the news Randy Moss was leaving Minnesota to come to Oakland. It was huge news, a sensational day. Oddly enough, the first team Moss played against as a Raider is the team he was traded to: the New England Patriots. Hard to imagine Moss as a Patriot, I was getting all set to see him with the Green Bay Packers, but it was New England who swooped in and made the deal. The Raiders received a 4th-round pick that they used to select John Bowie, a cornerback from Cincinnati who just happened to be one of, if not THE, fastest player in the draft.

The experiment began with the Raiders trading their #1 pick, Round 7 pick, and linebacker Napolean Harris to Minnesota for Moss. That was a blockbuster deal. Moss did do some things well in Oakland, but his numbers and production were nowhere near what everyone thought he was capable of doing, and that was due to some injuries as well. It's hard not to scapegoat Randy Moss, more and more people disliked him over time and wanted him out of here. So now he is. It's too bad things didn't work out and it's not all on Moss for that, but a good chunk of it was. It didn't help to have him whine and nag when the team was doing so poorly and the cardinal sin is to admit you're not going 100%, which is what Moss did on more than occasion.

So now we have Mike Williams, Jerry Porter, Ronald Curry, and Doug Gabriel. Williams, in a sense, replacing Moss, though I didn't think that was the case but it looks like it is now. Not that Williams becomes the #1, but here's hoping he can pick up his game with former coach Lane Kiffin. That's the hope and the idea. So Josh McCown throws the balls for a year or half a year and then Russell waits his turn, hopefully trimming some fat off of his body and beefing up his mental attributes and then the Raiders are in business a couple/few years down the road.

Raiders select Michael Bush

2007-04-29T11:35:00.000-06:00

!!!!!!!

This was my pick for the 2nd round way back when before all of that nonsense occurred (and I'm still not sure about all of it) but the Raiders got him, it just happened to be the first pick of the 4th round!! This is very awesome news, I flipped out when I saw the Raiders had him. I had wanted him all along. There were very few running backs I'd prefer to watch in college than Michael Bush. I know I'm going on a limb here, and I don't quite believe it as much as I did a couple years ago, but I thought Michael Bush had the potential to be the best Bush in the NFL. If you get my drift, he could surpass Reggie. That was the idea. Not sure what the status is now, but it was clear Al Davis & Co. could not pass up that talent finding him still hanging around after 3 rounds. Very very good pick right there. Time to get excited about that one.

Mr. Russell

2007-04-28T22:22:00.000-06:00

"I’m ready to go out there and hear the Raiders Anthem and hear things go wild and I’m happy to be a part of that. I’m very fortunate to have the opportunity and chance and now I’m ready to go in and compete. I’m ready to go to work."

Raiders pull off huge trade

2007-04-28T21:42:00.000-06:00

The Oakland Raiders traded their 4th-round selection for the Detroit Lions for Josh McCown AND Mike Williams. Not one of them, but BOTH. McCown, you'll remember, interviewed and was though to have the job last year before he accepted the Lions' offer. Mike Williams still has the potential that made him a 1st-round pick in 2005, though he has underachieved this far. Still a pretty solid move, hard to argue with. You're not getting tremendous playmakers, but you're getting two players who can play pretty dang good ball when they are at their best. For a 4th-round pick, that's not bad at all.

Raiders select Zach Miller

2007-04-28T17:00:00.001-06:00

Tight end from Arizona State. Let's hope he can hang on to the ball.

Raiders select to trade

2007-04-28T16:32:00.000-06:00

With the first pick in the secound round of the 2007 NFL Draft, the Oakland Raiders select..................to swap 2nd-round picks with the Arizona Cardinals and receive a complementary 4th-round pick as well.

Not sure the ins & outs behind the deal as the Raiders drop 6 spots in the 2nd round. Hopefully they will still be guaranteed to get the guy that they want in that spot, and then they would have just picked up another selection. The problem with all that is the fact that I was hoping that the Raiders would pick Alan Branch, seeing to it that he was still hanging around after the completion of the first round. Oddly enough, that's the player that the Cardinals chose with the Raiders' old pick. So that's annoying. Hopefully somebody good is coming our way and hopefully Oakland knows what they are doing.

Dirk Nowitzki "Obviously" Watch

2007-04-28T14:38:00.000-06:00

"Obviously, they've been making it tough for me to score," Nowitzki said.

Reds do some things

2007-04-28T13:18:00.000-06:00

Reds already got one of their 2 PTBNL's in a guy named Marcus McBeth. Looks decent. Hopefully he will have more success than the Shakesperean character.

Also, in a much-anticipated move, Rheal Cormier has been DFA'd. Let's hope we never see him again. Brad Salmon has been called up and we can probably expect to see him pretty soon.

Face of the Franchise

2007-04-28T10:57:00.000-06:00

Raiders select JaMarcus Russell

2007-04-28T09:56:00.000-06:00

End the speculation, there it is. Everyone was right. He's the man now.

Senators 5, Devils 4

2007-04-28T09:36:00.000-06:00

I wasn't around for hardly any of this game, so I won't pretend like I was. And I'm fairly glad I wasn't, to be honest.

Sure, the Devils came back from 4-0 down to get to 4-3, and then from 5-3 to get to 5-4. But it might as well have been 5-0. A loss is a loss. Not that the positives for the Devils are non-existent, they were able to come back to get within striking distance and they do know that they can score on Emery if they try. But, like I say, a loss is a loss.

Everyone talks about how this series will go the distance, how it will be extremely balanced, how it will be a low-scoring affair. None of that really applied to Game 1, and the Devils might not have the firepower to go the distance for they are surely not the better team.

The thing that bothers me the most is Martin Brodeur's performance. I don't know the whole story, I don't know if the defensemen are more to blame than he is or who is to blame, I will leave that up to the other blogs who know a heckuva lot more than I do. What I do know is that 4 goals were scored on Martin Brodeur, in a row, on 9 shots in the period. We cannot afford to have Brodeur "find himself" somewhere in the middle of the series, he needs to find himself right now. Who knows, chances are high that he will bounce back considerably well in the next few games of the series, and that would be incredible if he could do so. But this may the beginning of the end for his postseason dominance. I just don't understand how it happens. Everyone warned about it, Ottawa was much deeper and much better than Tampa Bay. While they didn't have a single best line, they had infinitely better players. And that was proven, as the #1 line went wild in New Jersey. It's just tough when they clawed back with 3 solid goals, to give up another one right away to put it away at 5-3. And that goal made the difference as Parise was able to get a late goal in the game. For nothing, to be sure, but it could have been for something. Brodeur did get better after that first period, but who wouldn't? When I stopped in to check the score, saw it was 4-0 in the first, I was almost positive I would see a different goaltender in net. I realize it's Brodeur, but still, I was a little surprised. He was able to get somewhat of an edge back, but that's hard to deal with. It's nice to know the Devils can score, that's pretty cool. But they need to play extremely better if they are to have a chance with this team, this team that is dang, dang good. They could be gone pretty soon if they don't.

Warriors 109, Mavericks 91

2007-04-28T09:26:00.000-06:00

I really don't know what to say about this one, except for the Golden State Warriors, at least for one night, had the biggest home-court advantage I'd ever seen. That place was simply electric. Wow. You get the impression folks in Dallas are just so dang used to it all, they practically applaud with golf claps compared to the fans in Oakland. There was nothing like it. And it wasn't like the Warriors weren't giving them anything to cheer about, they were amazing yet again. Maybe all the homers in Oakland are right - the Warriors really will wipe the floor with these Mavs. We can hope not, for the sake of all things holy, and the sake of what a truly horrendous offseason these Dallas Mavericks will face, getting the 4th-best record in the NBA to do what with it? Not show up come playoff time? That doesn't make any sense. For a team that was talking about only the playoffs the ENTIRE YEAR with just a shrug about the regular season, as if it was some annoyance they had to trudge through to get to where they want to be, sure are acting like the opposite. It's true the Warriors have their number, that much is evident. It's just sickening how poorly the Mavs are playing. It's clear they understand the trouble that they are in, first #1 seed to go down to a #8 seed in the history of a 7-game series. Losing back-to-back rounds in the playoffs, albeit competely different circumstances but with the same style of chokery that allows them to forget playing defense and missing all their jumpers. Can we say gut-check time? Or should we have said that a long time ago?

Reds woes

2007-04-28T09:11:00.000-06:00

It started with a 7-5 loss to the Cardinals, one of the many losses this year when the Reds had a healthy lead. This time, the bullpen didn't blow it. Lohse blew it, giving up 3 runs in the 5th and two others in different innings. It's a sad feeling when you're pleased by the fact that, well, you lost, but at least the bullpen didn't blow it. But they sort of did because if they don't let 2 more runs score, then Freel's wild pitch run score ties the game. But it wasn't meant to be. A lot of people are getting on Jerry Narron for screwing things up, and that's true to a certain extent. He's having trouble pulling some pitchers too early and letting others stay in when it's too late. Case in point - pull Lohse after his disastrous inning, or maybe even take him out during the 5th. But no, he went in to start the 6th as well. I know he would be cautious about starting the bullpen too early, but at other times he is confident in the bullpen when he pulls the starter (usually Harang or Arroyo) too early. Ah, it just sucks right now. I don't think there's been a time where both cylinders are running at the same time, or when the whole team is in sync. It just doesn't last very long.

After that loss, the Reds extended Coffey's contract out another year. That's not really a woe, but it might be. I like the guy a lot, he's been struggling early, but I think he'll be fine. He better be.

The big news, at least to me, is the Reds letting Chris Denorfia go. For nothing. Nothing at all. Some cash and 2 Players To Be Named Later. We all know how those deals work out. What makes it slightly easier to deal with is the fact that Denorf wasn't going to be able to play at all this year, so we won't see him flourish in Oakland until 2008. But he will do a fine job. What's the rationale? I don't get it. Somebody will need to explain it, and I'm sure they will at least try. When I heard he had been traded, I thought it was for bullpen relief as I always do, but this was for nothing and is hard to comprehend. I'm going to miss the guy because he was good, is good, and will be even better.

Ken Griffey Jr. continues to be as fragile as the wind. Broken bones started it off, then he had some infection of the colon, then he had stomach & chest pains, and now he has been diagnosed with pleurisy, which is an inflammation of some type surrounding the lining of the lungs. Who is this guy? Yikes, man. Let's hope he heals up from all of this nonsense, this is quite ridiculous. So that's a problem we're dealing with right now.

And the latest woe, if we needed any more, was the loss last night to the lowly Pittsburgh Pirates, who aren't all that lowly anymore. Reds lose 3-1. It was a Guaranteed Loss Night, as Milton picked up the tab like he so often faithfully does. You know the story, he wasn't great, he was maybe even mediocre, didn't pitch well enough to inspire confidence, and the Reds' bats didn't want to seem to wake up to prove him wrong at any time. Adam Dunn blasted a solo homer in the 9th, but that was all the fun these Reds have. Let's hope they start learning how to play baseball fairly soon.

Mavericks 112, Warriors 99

2007-04-26T12:23:00.000-06:00

That sound you don't quite hear is a collective sigh of relief coming up from within the bowels of Dallas, Texas. Where the Mavericks could not afford to go down 2 games to n0ne. And thankfully they didn't. Hard to say how much they actually earned it when Golden State's best player, Baron Davis, was ejected at the end of the third quarter and their second-best player, Stephen Jackson, was thrown out with 4 minutes left in the game. Not sure how much they earned it, but what I do know is that they got it. They got the win. I wish they would have gotten it without any question marks, but that's just now how it went. I'll take the win for now.

The Mavs got off to another slow start, though it wasn't nearly as disastrous as Game 1's sluggish beginning. But it wasn't much to get excited about either. I was fairly concerned, the Warriors looked good again and had early sizeable leads while the Mavs looked like they weren't in it a whole lot. That changed over time, thankfully and believeably so. The Mavs eventually took control of the game bit by bit and were helped out enormously by the ejections, though that's no consolation to the Warriors at this point.

Baron Davis, even before he got thrown out the game, was not the same Mavs Killer as he was in Game 1. He left with 13 points on 5-12 shooting, a good testament for the Mavs playing a much better defensive game, even though both teams scored far more than they did in Game 1. Stephen Jackson was the best threat Golden State put on the floor, and he got kicked out. He left with 30 points, but had 8 turnovers. Jason Richardson had 14 and 10 and Monta Ellis threw in 20 points.

Jason Terry was the man in this contest, playing all but 7 minutes of the game. He ended up with 28 points on 23 attempts, shooting barely over 50%, but it was enough. He was ice cold from 3-point land, going 1/7 but was strong when it counted. Nowitzki was next with 23, even though everyone was predicting a 40-point, or even 50-point explosion from him due to his lack of anything in Game 1. I wasn't expecting that and he delivered a solid, unspectacular game. He also chipped in 7 rebounds and 2 blocks. Josh Howard had 22 points and 11 rebounds. Jerry Stackhouse made a complete turnaround from his 0/7 Game 1, with 17 points in this one. He went to the free throw line often, which was great to see. He also ended up with 8 rebounds.

Shooting was fairly even, Mavs had the edge 49%-47%. Nobody could hit a 3, as the Warriors were 4/20 and the Mavs were 1/16. Free throws were 86%-85% in favor of Dallas, and that figure could stand to improve. The Mavs outrebounded 41-34. Assists were very low for both teams, the Mavs with 15, but the Warriors with only 9. That's pretty sickening right there. Especially when you consider the Warriors had 24 turnovers. Turnover-to-assist ratio was 24/9, one of the worst figures of the entire season I would imagine. Dallas had twice as many steals, 14-7, and the Mavs blocked 9 shots. Stats clearly in favor of Dallas, if not even, so it's somewhat a concern that they didn't win by a wider margin, especially considering the Warriors' two hot shots were holed up in the locker room unable to play the late stages of the game. Hopefully the win will be enough to give the Mavs some confidence heading into Oakland.

Cardinals 5, Reds 2

2007-04-26T12:02:00.000-06:00

Guaranteed Loss Night. Just after you witness what a great team the Reds could be after they put a win together like last night, they go out and do the usual: solid starting pitching, not enough hits, shaky defense, and a give-it-up bullpen.

NOTABLE THINGS

Pitching: Bronson Arroyo goes 7 innings, giving up 5 hits and a walk, K'ing 2, and ends up with an earned run, bringing his ERA further down to 2.86. What more do you want from the guy? And yet, you know the Reds will lose when he pitches. It's been done all 5 starts, while Arroyo personally remains at 0-3. Hard to be that man, but hopefully it won't get to him. Just sad is all. A great effort. SaarLOSE came on in the 8th and didn't get anybody out, walking 2 and allowing 2 hits, giving up 4 runs, 2 of them earned. Once again, I ask if you remember how we wanted this guy to be our 5th starter and were pumped up to have him in the bullpen. Do you remember? I do, because I was excited. Not anymore. Coutlangus came on and got his out, then Santos got the remaining two outs, giving up a walk.

Hitting: Hamilton was pretty much the only highligh, leading off and going 1/3 with his 6th homer of the year. Dunn hit a double and Hatteberg knocked him in for a single in the 9th. Alez Gonzalez had the most hits with 2, but they didn't amount to anything. Good to see him doing so well, though. The Reds didn't put up much of a fight offensively, but they leave their fair share of men on base. That's a stat that I haven't looked through. Most times a man has been left on base. I am sure the Reds are pretty dang high in that category, due to a fair amount of hits but not a lot of RBI's. Somebody should check that out.

Fielding & such: Gonzo was the culprit again, and now I'm REALLY not buying into the defense only approach from this guy, just like Narron, who tells people constantly he wasn't signed only for his defense, but you can tell with his offense that Gonzo is a good player. And that's been true, but now he's all about offense, as he makes his 3rd error of the year, and maybe the most costly one of the season. His bad throw allowed a run to score on the actual play and prolonged the inning, adding another run on a sacrifice fly that would not have happened if the throw was made. Score could have been 3-1 Cardinals, and sure the Reds only got one run but maybe mentally they would have been ready to get 2 runs instead of having to get 4. It's hard to get on a guy like Gonzo when he has been swinging the bat very well and had some great moments in defense, but I'm pretty sure we signed him to be flawless defensively and he hasn't been that. Maybe that's a high standard, but he was treated like a god so maybe he should act like one.

Mock Draft

2007-04-26T10:43:00.000-06:00

Yahoo! Sports goes final with Russell:

The Raiders have plenty of options, but this will come down to picking a quarterback or wide receiver. Johnson has the highest grade, Russell has the strongest arm and Quinn is the best fit for the new coaching staff's scheme. With the Browns sitting at No. 3, that could shake things up in any possible deal between the Buccaneers and Raiders. The only real chance for a trade for No. 1 is if the Bucs were to pull the Lions into the mix and have them move down to No. 4. That would allow the Raiders to secure the quarterback at No. 2 and Johnson to land in Tampa Bay. At the end of the day, my gut feeling here is that if the Raiders keep the pick, it will be Russell. But if a deal can be reached, they very well could end up with Quinn a few picks later.

I am getting more and more cautious about picking JaMarcus Russell almost daily. I know it's just sports writers getting into my head, many of them bashing the Raiders, but the Raiders have given them a lot to bash about lately. I just get nervous. Can an athletic freak of nature really turn things around? Will he find himself in an ideal condition, will he eventually flourish or will he never amount to much of anything? I hope he's good. Maybe I want a trade instead.

Stats through first 20 games

2007-04-25T12:28:00.000-06:00

The Reds sit at 10-10, good for 2nd place in the division, three games behind the Milwaukee Brewers at 13-7. The record is the 7th-best in the National League and tied with Toronto & the Los Angeles Dodgers for 14th overall. Most of us expected a .500 season, give or take, and that's exactly what the Reds have given us thus far. The pace will leave them at 80-80.

The rest of the NL Central is as follows:

Houston: 9-10
Pittsburgh: 8-10
St. Louis: 8-11
Chicago Cubs: 7-13

You have to love it when the Cubs & Cardinals are in the bottom of the division.

TEAM STATS

HITTING

The Reds have 84 runs scored, tied with the Arizona Diamondbacks for 9th in the NL and tied with Arizona & the Chicago White Sox for 17th overall. The Florida Marlins lead the NL with 113. The New York Yankees lead the majors with 120.
The Reds have 81 RBIs, once again tied with the Arizona Diamondbacks for 9th in the NL and tied with Arizona & the Chicago White Sox for 17th overall. The Florida Marlins lead the NL with 107. The New York Yankees lead the majors with 116.
The Reds have a collective batting average of .240, tied with the Washington Nationals for 14th in the NL and 25th overall. The New York Mets lead the majors with .294.
The Reds have 157 hits, 12th in the NL and 22nd overall. The New York Mets lead the NL with 198.
The Reds have 20 home runs, tied with the New York Mets and San Diego Padres for 4th in the NL and tied with those teams, along with the Boston Red Sox and Detroit Tigers for 9th overall. The Milwaukee Brewers & Atlanta Braves are tied for the NL lead with 26. The New York Yankees, thanks in large part to A-Rod, lead the majors with 27.
The Reds have drawn 74 walks, good for 9th in the NL and 11th overall. The Atlanta Braves & Philladelphia Phillies are tied for the most in the majors with 93.
The Reds have struck out 138 times, 9th-fewest in the NL and 20th-fewest (bad verbiage) overall. The Los Angeles Dodgers have struck out the least in the NL, K'ing 100 times. The Seattle Mariners have struck out the least in the majors, K'ing 82 times.
The Reds have stolen 17 bases, tied with the Los Angeles Dodgers for 2nd in the NL and. The New York Mets lead the NL with 21.
The Reds success rate of stolen bases to caught stealing compared to overall attempts (17/20) is 2nd in the NL and 5th overall, with an 85% success rate. The San Diegro Padres lead the NL with an 87.5% success rate (7/8). The Baltimore Orioles lead the majors with a 100% success rate (10/10).
The Reds have an on-base percentage of .319, tied with the Arizona Diamondbacks for 11th in the NL and 20th overall. The New York Mets lead the majors with .370.
The Reds have a slugging percentage of .379, good for 10th in the NL and tied with the Los Angeles Angels for 22nd overall. The New York Mets lead the majors with .470.

PITCHING

The Reds have a collective ERA of 3.74, good for 5th in the NL and 7th overall. The New York Mets lead the NL with 2.46.
The Reds have 5 saves, good for 7th in the NL and 17th overall. The Milwaukee Brewers lead the majors with 9.
The Reds have allowed 17 home runs, tied with the Milwaukee Brewers for 8th-fewest in the NL and tied with Milwaukee, the Chicago White Sox and the Los Angeles Angels for 12th-fewest overall. The San Diego Padres have allowed the fewest in the majors with 9.
The Reds have allowed 45 walks, good for 1st in the NL and 1st overall. BEST IN THE MAJORS
The Reds have struck out batters 148 times, 4th in the NL and tied with the Minnesota Twins for 5th overall. The Chicago Cubs lead the majors with 160 K's.
The Reds have a WHIP (walks + hits divided by innings pitched) of 1.22, tied with the New York Mets for 1st in the NL and 4th overall. The Oakland Athletics lead the majors with 1.16. BEST IN THE NATIONAL LEAGUE
The Reds have allowed the opposite team's batting average to be at .306, good for 1st in the NL and 4th overall. The Oakland Athletics lead the majors with .291. BEST IN THE NATIONAL LEAGUE

DEFENSIVE

The Reds have committed 18 errors, 2nd-worst in the NL and 2nd-worst overall. The Washington Nationals lead the majors with 23.
The Reds fielding percentage is .976, 2nd-worst in the NL and 3rd-worst overall. The Washington Nationals have the worst in the majors with .970.
The Reds have turned 14 double plays, 15th in the NL and 27th overall. The New York Mets lead the majors with 26.
The Reds have allowed 10 stolen bases, tied with the Chicago Cubs and Florida Marlins for 9th-fewest in the NL and. The Milwaukee Brewers, St. Louis Cardinals, and San Francisco Giants have allowed 5, fewest in the NL. The Minnesota Twins have allowed 4, leading the majors.
The Reds success rate of catching runners to allowing a steal compared to overall attempts gives them a 28.57% success rate (4/14). The St. Louis Cardinals lead the NL with a 54.55% success rate (6/11). The Minnesota Twins lead the majors with a 63.64% success rate (7/11).

INDIVIDUAL STATS

HITTING

Adam Dunn leads the Reds with 12 runs scored, tied with many people for 44th overall.
Josh Hamilton leads the Reds with 11 RBI's, tied with many people for 67th overall.
Jeff Conine (of all people) leads the Reds with a .303 batting average, tied with Carlos Guillen and Scott Podsednik for 108th overall.
Adam Dunn leads the Reds with 20 hits, tied with many people for 69th overall.
Ken Griffey Jr. leads the Reds with 5 doubles, tied with many people for 51st overall.
Josh Hamilton leads the Reds with 5 home runs, tied with many people for 9th overall.
Adam Dunn & Ken Griffey Jr. lead the Reds with 11 drawn walks, tied with many others for 26th overall.
Adam Dunn once again has an early lead for Strikeout King, leading the Reds and the majors with 27. Four others are tied with 24.
Brandon Phillips leads the Reds in stolen bases with 5, tied with a few others for 10th overall.
Josh Hamilton leads the Reds with an on-base percentage of .404, tied with Geoff Jenkins and Placido Polanco for 67th overall.
Josh Hamilton leads the Reds with a slugging percentage of .682, good for 17th overall.

PITCHING

Aaron Harang leads the Reds in wins with 3, tied with many people for 3rd overall. Only Josh Beckett and Dontrelle Willis have won all 4 of their starts.
Kyle Lohse leads the Reds in ERA (!!!) at 1.91, good for 7th in the NL and 11th overall.
David Weathers leads the Reds in saves with 5, tied with Armando Benitez for 15th overall.
Kyle Loshe has given up the most home runs for the Reds (what, not Milton??!!??) with 3, tied with many people for 37th overall.
Bronson Arroyo leads the Reds in giving up walks with 8, tied with many people for 69th overall.
Aaron Harang leads the Reds in strikeouts with 27, tied with C.C. Sabathia for 10th overall.
Kyle Lohse leads the Reds in WHIP at a rate of 1.02, good for 15th overall.
Kyle Lohse leads the Reds in opposing team batting average with .236, good for 35th overall.

DEFENSIVE

Edwin Encarnacion leads the Reds with 3 errors, tied with many for 22nd overall.
Juan Castro at shortstop & Josh Hamilton lead the Reds in fielding percentage, both at 1.00. The three lowest figures are all for third basemen, with EdE being the worst in regular duty at .930, and Castro & Freel worst overall in spot duty, with both at .750.
Brandon Phillips has been involved in the most double plays for the Reds with 13, tied with many people 28th overall.

Mock Draft

2007-04-25T09:21:00.000-06:00

Kirwan's finale leaves him where he started - with JaMarcus Russell:

The longer you watch him on tape, the more he is the right pick for the Raiders. He is a rare athlete with a great arm and all the throws. He can make the line calls, escape pressure, and end the run of passing on quarterbacks -- which includes Philip Rivers, Ben Roethlisberger, Matt Leinart and Jay Cutler. The plan sounds like getting a veteran like Josh McCown to start off the season and let Russell learn from the sideline for a year. The Raiders still have to fix their offensive line, and there's no reason to put Russell on the field until the supporting cast is in place.

Reds 10, Cardinals 3

2007-04-25T08:54:00.000-06:00

Almost as good as the Reds winning and the Cubs losing is the Reds winning and the Cardinals losing. Did anybody see the same team that played at home? What are they, the ultimate road team?

NOTABLE THINGS

Pitching: The ace back on the mound. Harang pitched very well and got way too much run support, therefore he leads the club with 3 wins. He almost got out of the 8th inning, but had 119 pitches and a man on second base. Stanton allowed that run to score, so Harang was charged with 2 earned runs when it could have been just the solitary 1. As it stood, with those 2 ER's, Harang allowed 5 hits, 1 walk, and 5 K's. Well done. Stanton allowed that run and got a groundout on Edmonds' ball. Todd Coffey came in to do the 9th and was pretty sloppy, allowing 3 singles to lead things off. Bases loaded, nobody out. Only ends up with 1 run out of the deal due to a double play ball and another grounder, so thankfully that was all the damage.

Hitting: Nice to see some bats woken up out there. Interesting how the bats come alive when the pitching is pretty dominant as well. I wish they could figure out when to save the runs for the times they actually need them. Anyway. Did anybody catch Gonzo last night? The man was on fire, starting the scoring off in the 2nd inning with a 2-run homer. Then he did the same in the 5th inning, this time a 3-run blast. He also had a double and a single, going 4/5 with 4 runs scored and 5 RBI's. An awesome display out there. Hamilton & Phillips both got 6 at-bats at the top of the order, and both had 2 singles. None of those scored a run, nor did they score themselves. Adam Dunn seems to have fallen on hard times as of late, going 0/3, but did take 2 more walks. Welcome Back Ken Griffey Jr. He had a 2-run home run for his first of the year, passing Reggie Jackson and taking sole possession of #10 in the all-time homer list. Pretty impressive stuff. EdE was 1/4, but got hit with a ball and scored both times he was on base. Hatteberg was 3/5. Even David Ross got in on the action, going 2/5 with a late RBI. More from this guy would be good. Jeff Conine had a pinch-hit RBI, the guy is a beast, I must admit. Even Harang got in on the action, hacking a flyout just far enough that it counted as a sacrifice fly.

Fielding & such: Phillips got picked off first base, which is worse than getting caught stealing in my opinion, but was also a part of a double play with Gonzo. Rolen got caught stealing on Harang & Ross.

Avery Johnson 3rd in Coach of the Year voting

2007-04-24T10:47:00.000-06:00

Third:

Johnson, who won the award last season then guided the Mavericks to a 67-15 regular-season record in 2006-07, finished third in the voting. Toronto's Sam Mitchell won the award, and Utah's Jerry Sloan finished second in the voting.

This is quite ridiculous. If a coach deserved to win back-to-back awards, it would be Avery Johnson. He took a team that blew a colossal lead in the Finals and turned them into a better team. Sure, they were expected to be good and many expected them to be #1 in the West, if not the NBA. They did those things, but does that mean that we should shrug off his efforts? No. The Mavs could have gone 1 of 2 ways - the NFL way, in which the losing championship team sucks for many years, or the way he did take them, crafting the team in a way that improves their strengths and masks their weaknesses as much as possible. Not only that but they recorded the best record in the league, the best record in franchise history, started 0-4 and still ended up with the 4th-best record in NBA history with many many record-breaking stats, including four 10-game+ winning streaks. Dallas has turned itself into a beast and much of that is because of all the work Avery Johnson puts in.

Hard to understand this one, although everyone goes for the surprises. It's always a vote for the "surprise" which is dumb. Sure, nobody expected Toronto to be as good as they were, but they ended up getting the #3 seed in the East, which means nothing these days. Just because they had the biggest turnaround of any team in the league, does that mean the coach should get the award? Of course not. Turnarounds are nice, but it goes beyond coaching although that plays a great role. If Toronto actually did anything worthwhile, maybe I would reconsider. But they haven't. Sloan was expected to be in the running and there he was, also ahead of Avery Johnson with the Utah Jazz. Another surprise-type move, though not as much. The Jazz were much better than people gave them credit for and I would have given Sloan the award at the halfway point of the year, but not the entire team. The Jazz were the hottest team in the league at the start. They were simply amazing for a while. Now they are #4 in the West, but basically being treated as the #5 since they don't have home-court advantage. They dropped the first 2 games to the Rockets. Sloan has always been a good coach, and he should have been given consideration. But the Jazz didn't pan out the entire year, so it doesn't make sense that he should get more votes than Johnson, as he should have gotten more votes than Mitchell.

1) Johnson
2) Sloan
3) Mitchell

That's how it should have been, folks.

Dirk Nowitzki "Obviously" Watch

2007-04-23T12:18:00.001-06:00

Double dosage.

"Obviously, the pressure's all on us," Nowitzki said. "No one expects them to win. Obviously, shooting 35 percent [as a team] on our home court won't get it done."

Raiders release Badger, Johnstone

2007-04-23T11:42:00.000-06:00

From Scout:

The Oakland Raiders released defensive end Lance Johnstone and offensive lineman Brad Badger on Friday. They also signed defensive back Kris Richard and defensive tackle Josh Shaw.

I know neither one produced as much as the Raiders would have liked, but does this surprise anybody like me? Particuarly Badger, who had been a serviceable backup for a long, long time. Well, I guess Kiffin is making the team his own. Which could be good, but who knows for sure? I think we are all prone to inordinate amounts of optimism for the product we have seen on the field for so many years, but that's just me right now.

Devils 3, Lightning 2 - Devils host Senators

2007-04-23T11:19:00.000-06:00

This one was fun to watch, as it was actually on TV.

Although he let in two goals as opposed to shutting them out, Brodeur was the man in this game. Sure, Gionta got two goals and huge ones at that. But Brodeur made the difference and should have been the first star of the game, stopping 32 of 34 shots. He was dang good. Richards had his number, twice turning 2-goal leads into a single goal difference, both times on the power play. That is one aspect that the Devils will have to clean up. They took way too many penalties, and it cost them twice in this game and it could have been even more times, but thankfully that was all they were allowed. Still, this is a problem area. A lot of the time they were just skating around and poking at pucks instead of attacking the puck or at least the puck-carrier. Way too much time spent in the Devils zone.

As for the positive things, the Devils got a lot of rushes. They were content to play in their zone or in neutral ice, but recognized when they had the opportunity and took advantage of it. Elias had a nice pass to Gionta and Gionta was able to rip it past Holmqvist. Looked like a basic shot, but Holmqvist didn't square it up and he paid the price. That was a power play goal, as was the next one as Rafalski slammed one in there at the beginning of the 2nd period to make it 2-0. Richards came back with a goal. Then Gionta got his second one of the day on an extremely easy play. He and Elias were in front of the net and Kuba crashed into Holmqvist while Gionta was plenty patient with the puck, finally putting it past the goalie when he had no chance to stop it. Richards then got another power play goal and that was it for the scoring. No scoring in the third period, but still intense action. The Devils actually looked better at the end of the game when Tampa pulled the goalie. That was pretty weird. But they were able to control the final few minutes and celebrated the moving on to the Eastern Semis to face the Ottawa Senators.

It's weird because I watched the game, and I've hardly seen any Devils games this year, and I don't have much to write about. It was cool. It was very nerve-wracking at the end of the game, when I was waiting for the inevitable tie game because the Lightning always get 3 goals. But not this time. 12 goals the first 4 games, and 2 goals the next 2.

A winnable, but hard series is coming up with Ottawa. Due to re-seeding, the #1 Sabres will face the #6 Rangers while the #2 Devils will face the #4 Senators. I was very nervous about this series with Tampa Bay and their offense, but the Devils were able to roll off 3 straight wins and they looked decent at times and very good at other times. I am particularly glad to see Brodeur back on top of things, he seems to be in the zone. Ottawa has a very capable offense as well and a goalie who doesn't mind dropping the gloves and decking somebody in the face. Should be a good series. Rock on.

Warriors 97, Mavericks 85

2007-04-23T09:41:00.000-06:00

Wow.

One of two things will happen next.

1) The Mavericks will find themselves in a dog fight, slugging it out until late in the series where they will either barely lose or barely win.

2) They find some motivation, some desire, some sense of shot-making ability and slap themselves in the face and win the next 4 games.

This was a sad state of affairs, but that's why they play a 7-game series, I guess. Though if the Mavs keep playing like this, they won't last that long.

This was a game where everyone was giving little advantage to Golden State. Sure, they had beaten the Mavs 6 out of the past 7 times, and now 6 in a row. Sure that happened, but let's give you some excuses as to why none of it mattered. Well, it mattered last night. This team has figured the Mavs out, and they were the better team the entire way through. Nowitzki was a non-factor at best, nobody could make a shot, they gave up on defense far too quickly, and walked away with a deserving loss. On the other end, the Warriors were flying, grabbing tons of rebounds, making little plays and big plays, scoring like crazy, and letting Baron Davis take over in the late stages of the game. He ended up with 33 points to lead all scorers. He also had 14 rebounds and 8 assists. He could not be stopped. He hit three 3-pointers at the late stages of the third quarter to put just enough distance between the Warriors and the Mavs to allow them to win it. Stephen Jackson had 23 points.

For the Mavs, team shooting was 35%. Howard led the way with 21 points, most of those coming early in the game. He was only 8/21 shooting. He did snag 13 boards, though. He also played a ridiculous 43 minutes. Nowitzki had 14 points and and 12 rebounds, and was 4/16 shooting the ball. The Mavs actually had more success when he was on the bench. Terry and Harris were cold for sure. Stackhouse played 20 minutes and missed all of his shots. Dampier only played 2 minutes.

Stats don't really paint as clear of a picture as watching the actual disaster, but here they are nonetheless. Team shooting for the Warriors was only 43%, so the damage could have been much worse. Both teams were awful at the beginning of the game. The Warriors attempted 11 more 3's than the Mavs and made 4 more. Free throw shooting was about even, Mavs with a slight edge, but misses are a concern. Dallas actually ended up outrebounding Golden State, which is hard to figure out, because it didn't appear that way. Must have been late in the game. Assists were tied up at 16 a piece, Golden State had one more turnover, Dallas had 3 more steals. Blocks were even at 6. So stats paint a better picture for the Mavs, but the paintbrush was sweeping toward Golden State's direction.

You can expect Dallas to come out on fire next game. They better.

Reds lose back-to-back games to Phillies, drop below .500

2007-04-23T09:30:00.000-06:00

Sadness.

First was Guaranteed Loss Night, as Milton dropped his 3rd. Yet again, he pitched like a mediocre pitcher. He's done decent work, but he and other things happen to make sure the Reds lose. Like Cole Hamels, Phillies pitcher, lighting up the scoreboard with 15 K's, most of any pitcher this year. Or David Ross grounding into a triple play, first of the year. Those types of things. Multiple errors by the Reds, small ball and all that. Costly errors. Biggest crowd of the year and first sellout for Cincy and they suck it up. Did the fans know Milton was pitching? What gives? First sellout and Milton is on the mound against the worst team in the majors? Go figure. The game sucked. Conine hit a homer, though.

Second was Ryan Howard Welcome Back Night and Please Don't Forget to Hit a Home Run. Freddy Garcia came over from the White Sox and got the win, Belisle pitched 5 innings, allowing 8 hits, 1 walk and 6 K's for 4 earned runs and the loss. Phillips got hit by pitches twice times. Freel got a triple. Hamilton stole his first base. Little things. A sac fly and an RBI double for some runs, but not nearly enough. Errors killed again in this game.

Devils 3, Lightning 0

2007-04-21T15:29:00.000-06:00

There it was. The game we've all been waiting for.

If you look at the stats, particularly the 31-14 shots on goal in favor of Tampa Bay, you never would have guessed that this was the game the Devils win 3-0. It just didn't look like it. But it was all about Martin Brodeur, and to a lesser extent, about the multitude of blocked shots by the Devils defensemen.

It's hard to complain when you win 3-0, that's for sure. The extremely low shots on goal tally was a nuisance, though. But you can't say the Devils didn't play smart hockey. They did. They contained and were physical. The defense had lapses as they always do, and some of them almost cost the Devils, but Marty was there making 31 saves on 31 shots. It's about dang time. That gets everybody pumped up, and a huge win to push the series in the Devils favor. They will be riding the momentum high tomorrow afternoon as they try to wrap it up in Florida. Andy Greene got the scoring going midway through the first, Gionta had a nice goal on a very nice play midway through the second period, and Gomez threw one into the empty net in the late stages of the game.

Not much else to say, it was beautiful. The energy was definitely there, and the intellect as well. What was annoying happened at the end of the game when Torterella thought it appropriate to rack up as many game misconducts and fighting penalties as possible, sending out the goons to rough up the Devils players. It was a classless act, and one that hopefully not only gets the Lightning revved up, but also gets the Devils ready to deliver some punishment. I understand he needs to send a message to his team, but that was pretty dumb. Other than that, no complaints about the game. A good one, a truly good one.

The Devils are the only team left in the East still battling in a series and that outcome will decide many things in the East due to re-seeding. Either the Devils will host the Senators or the Sabres will host the Lightning.

Reds 2, Phillies 1 (10 innings)

2007-04-21T13:18:00.000-06:00

NOTABLE THINGS

Pitching: Does it get any better from Kyle Lohse? This man is simply a beast, ladies and gents. I have no doubts he'll have a rough outing sooner rather than later, but what a workhorse. I don't think anybody called this, though I may have been the closest. 7 innings, 6 hits, 1 unearned run, mixing in a walk and 4 K's. Beautiful stuff. It almost wasn't enough, either as Lieber on the other side was shutting the Reds down in a similar fashion. Lohse didn't get the win, though. That was given to little ole' Jonny Coutlangus, pitching the top of the 10th for a K, hit batter, and a double play. In between was Stanton with a clean 8th, nearly identical to Coutlangus' inning, with a pop-up, hit batter, and double play. What's up with the Reds pitcher hitting guys? Is that some newfound fetish? Hard to say for sure. Coffey got the 9th and gave up a single, but K'ed 2. Nice effort from top to bottom tonight with 0 earned runs among 4 guys.

Hitting: The good news for the Reds is that, even though they were getting mowed down by Lieber, he left the game in the 6th inning after only throwing 77 pitches. Not sure what the rational behind that was, but it helped though not quite as much as I had been hoping. Lieber gave up a hit and a walk, and that was it. Nothing too dangerous. He was pulled in the 6th after Freel got on and advanced on two different errors. Bases were loaded for the Reds, but EdE grounded out to end the threat. And so the end of the game, or so it seemed. But in the bottom of the 9th, with 2 outs, the legendary comeback scenario, Hatteberg hit a home run off of Tom Gordon and we go to extras. Phillies go 1-2-3. Reds load the bases on a walk, a single, and a walk. Phillips up to bat and he puts a single past the infield. Game over, Reds win.

Fielding & such: Wasn't great for anybody, really. Nunez & Lieber had back-to-back errors that allowed Freel to get to third base and may have taken Lieber out of the game, helpful to the Reds. The only run the Phillies got was on a double error by Hatteberg and Phillips, oddly enough the two guys who would tie and win the game for the Reds. So you roll the bad karma with the good karma and that's what you get on this day. Phillips also stole a base, and was involved in 3 double plays with Gonzo. Good stuff there. Not a bad game, actually. Just this sinking feeling the entire time and then the heroic situation for Hatteberg. Good stuff. Phillies are the worst team in the league, keep in mind.

Astros 8, Reds 6

2007-04-20T11:32:00.000-06:00

Not again.

These losses are the hardest ones to take.

Bronson Arroyo is getting more and more similar to Eric Milton all the time, while at the same time they are growing more and more apart. The similarity exists with the idea of Guaranteed Loss Night, and that's just about where it ends. For whatever reason, when Arroyo pitches, he has a hard time picking up the win and even when he does everything to deserve it, he still doesn't receive. He has clearly been our best pitcher (ahead of Lohse, lest ye forget who is #2) and has nothing to show for it. On a night where the offense is bailing him out, it still doesn't work. Now the bullpen, along with the defense, is out to undo him. I'm sorry, Bronson. It shouldn't have happened this way.

It all started so well. You had another Brandon Phillips homer, Adam Dunn striking out left and right, and Josh Hamilton hitting yet another homer. Before you know it, it's 6-1 Reds and then Arroyo gives up another run before his exit, trotting to the bench, savoring his first victory. And then, much like the other night, it all goes to hell in the 8th inning and another solitary run in the 9th just to rub it in a little bit. Instead of Todd Coffey being the scapegoat, it was much pretty much everybody else. Saarloos (remember when we thought he was good?) started it off and gave up a single and a walk. Couldn't throw a strike. He's out, Stanton is in. Berkman switches from the right side to the left side, Stanton still in. Gives up one of Saarloos' runs on a single. He's out, Weathers is in. 6-3 Reds. Carlos Lee grounds out, NO WAIT, Gonzo bobbles the ball and everybody is safe. Luke Scott doubles to straightaway center, almost a homer, and everybody scores. Phillips makes the error this time and Scott is on third, in perfect position to score on Ensberg's sac fly. Astros 7-6 after that disaster. Then they get one off of Coutlangus in the 9th. And Arroyo just sits there and shakes his head, and everyone gets pissed.

Seriously, what the flip? How annoying, how frustrating. It shouldn't happen like that, especially in back-to-back winnable games. Everyone was all excited about the bullpen, a good mix of young and old, and it was that way the first 10 games or so. It was fly for a white guy. Now there's nobody you can really count on, except probably Stanton.

Maybe next time. Sorry Mr. Arroyo, it shouldn't have gone down like that.

2nd Round Pick Important, Too

2007-04-19T14:27:00.000-06:00

Jon Elliott has a good point:

Amid the rumors circulating and all of the so-called "experts" weighing in with their opinions, it has been lost in the mix that the Raiders will have the first pick of the second round, too. While that choice obviously isn't nearly as dynamic as No. 1 overall, there are several positions that need addressing, and the 33rd pick could certainly help.

Nobody is thinking too much about the first pick of the 2nd round, but they should be. I have selected Michael Bush as the man to pick up there, but wouldn't be surprised if he was taken in the first round, and not surprised if he wasn't picked until the third round. In other words, he could go anywhere. But he would be a great pick there, perhaps not a true needs pick right now, but he will be the man years from now. Also, many people predict Dwayne Jarrett of USC will be taken there, due to needs at wide receiver if Calvin Johnson is not picked as well as the Lane Kiffin ties. Either of those picks would be just fine.

The interesting thing about Elliott's article is that he doesn't advocate either of these positions - instead, he argues for the Raiders to maybe look at QB with that pick, getting a sleeper pick. It's an interesting possibility, but he is clearly in the minority in that regard.

Mock Draft

2007-04-19T14:24:00.000-06:00

Derek Harper (wait, wasn't he jacking up 3's for the Mavs in the 90's?) picks JaMarcus for the 5.0 version of FOX Sports:

Calvin Johnson remains a strong possibility if the Raiders can land a veteran quarterback to compete with Andrew Walter. Josh McCown skipped the Lions' minicamp and reportedly wants out of Detroit. But the Lions are highly unlikely to ship McCown to the Raiders, only to watch Oakland pick Johnson and hurt Detroit's chances of trading out of the No. 2 spot. The Raiders bolstered their offensive line by signing OG Cooper Carlisle last week. The bet is still that they take the big-armed Russell unless they deal WR Randy Moss in the next two weeks.

Devils 4, Lightning 3 (OT)

2007-04-19T14:06:00.000-06:00

With the Devils up 3-1 during the 2nd period, I jokingly made a comment that the game would go into overtime. When that happened, I was a little surprised. When overtime started, I made the comment (again, somewhat jokingly) that the Devils were guaranteed the win since Tampa Bay only scored thrice a game. Once again, I was right. Very weird. There it is again. Tampa Bay scored 3, the Devils just need to find a way to get more goals. They have done that twice out of the four games thus far and hopefully can find two more times in their soul.

Those self-seeking comments aside, just a HUGE sigh of relief right now. With the Devils up 3-1 and looking alright, goals in middle-to-late stages of the second period for Tampa Bay made it seem like the inevitable loss was coming. Brodeur was able to batten down the hatches in the third period and in overtime as the Devils got the overtime goal to even the series. What a huge goal. What a huge game. It just had to happen, and it did. There is quite a difference between a series being at 2-2 as opposed to 3-1. And we find ourselves tied, quite luckily I might add.

Even though they got the win, the Devils still did not inspire me. They just happened to win. They didn't quite accomplish many of the things they set out to do, namely being more physical as well as keeping St. Louis & LeCav in check. But they did win, and that makes it all the more better. If they would have lost, I would be harsher, it's true. As would we all. But I don't see much in the win to get excited about, it was the same story, just ended up with New Jersey scoring more often this time. Not anywhere as promising as Game 1, but that doesn't mean we can't get back there. I think it will help going back home, but maybe not. Nobody goes to watch.

It started off promisingly enough. There was no real fire from the Devils, but they caught a break and Oduya made a sweet play to get Gionta the puck and he was able to score early. Tampa Bay was able to get a goal not long after that, but then Zach Parise scored his 5th late in the period for a 2-1 Devils lead. The second period was just the reverse with 1 Devil goal and 2 Lightning goals. Parise started it off with a power play goal midway through the 2nd for his 6th of the playoffs (most of any skater). That was followed by the inevitable goals from St. Louis & LeCav back-to-back to tie things up. The third period was a stalemate, 10-7 in shots on goal favoring Tampa Bay as Broduer was able to stop them all. Overtime was fairly even, though the Devils finally looked awoken for a moment: realizing they were able to weather the storm through regulation, they knew there was a big difference between a loss and a win and they went after it in overtime. Brodeur stopped all 5 shots he faced, most of which came on an early power play. That could have been disastrous, but Marty was there to answer the call. Holmqvist stopped the first 7 until Gomez caught a nice bounce off a blocked puck and raced down the length of the ice, shooting it past Holmqvist for the win.

Not sure how the Three Stars system works, but Parise is nowhere to be found. In scoring two goals, his 5th & 6th of the playoffs, most of anyone (all things I've already said), his name is nowhere to be found. Gomez is the first star, because he won the game, so you give him that. Martin St. Louis had a goal and an assist, so maybe. And Holmqvist found his name there again, with 33 saves. Sad to see Holmqvist on there twice during the series and Brodeur not once. But that's how it goes sometimes. I think this game, particularly the late stages where Brodeur stopped all 15 late shots, will help him immensely heading into Game 5. That's the idea, anyway. Still didn't see a whole lot to get excited about, though the overtime was pretty decent. More of that mentally would be helpful, as well as even more physicality. And maybe some way to stop the two best shooters in the game? It's a tough task, but it can be done. Go Devils.

Mavericks 106, Sonics 75

2007-04-19T12:39:00.000-06:00

As much as the Warriors game was a meaningless loss, this was as meaningless win against the Supersonics tonight. The Mavs played all their stars in a "tune-up" game for the playoffs and showed their dominance, which I think helps going into the playoffs after playing weak as of late. Good to see this outcome. But also easy to see because the Mavs have dominated the Sonics over recent years, and I doubt much was on the mind for Seattle players except for ending their dang season and taking some vacation.

Apparently there isn't going to be a team in Seattle next year. How did I miss that? Did you miss it? Let me know. If so, sad to see it end after such a horrible season and a horrible final home loss. That won't leave a good taste in the mouths of Seattle's fans, especially since they won't be able to redeem themselves. Better turn to the Mariners or college sports instead.

Hard to understand such domination when the leading scorer for the Mavs had 20 points. That would be Nowitzki, who ends another year without a triple-double, but is leading the pack of MVP candidates according to the world. He also had 5 rebounds and 5 assists. Josh Howard had 15 and will need to pick it up if the Mavs are to have any chance of winning during the playoffs. Nothing else very noticeable, just that the Mavs took 81 shots which is a lot, and made 43 of them, so they were shooting smartly. On the other end, Seattle only shot 69 times and made only 29 of them. Yikes. Superstar Rashard Lewis had a team-high 14 points for Seattle. Team-high. 14. Yuck. They were interested in making free throws, grabbing rebounds, or recording assists. It was pretty obvious.

So there it is, folks. The end of the regular season 2006-07. The Mavericks tied for the sixth-best record in NBA history at 67-15. That's pretty sweet stuff. They will play the Golden State Warriors, and like I said, I'm worried that they will take them lightly. I don't think they will, but there's a chance. It's sort of like the Devils with the Tampa Bay Lightning right now, #2 vs. #7 but the Lightning knew how to beat the Devils up. This could be similar, but let's hope not. It's playoff time, so maybe another first-round sweep is in order, which would be amazing. Clippers are out and the Lakers stay in #7 although they tried desperately to fall to #8. So here we go. Good stuff. See you when it counts.

Astros 7, Reds 2

2007-04-19T12:24:00.000-06:00

The bullpen, oh the bullpen. What has happened to thine bullpen?

NOTABLE THINGS

Pitching: Harang pitched well enough to get the win and was on his way to doing that very thing, but it wasn't meant to be. He went 6 innings, giving up 3 hits, 2 walks, and 8 K's for an earned run. Very well done. He got 2 strikeouts when the bases were loaded in the 4th, that was very awesome. Nothing quite as cool as that, just like Lohse the other day. Then he gave up a run in the 6th, but it was earned through effort on their part. Santos came on in the 7th and did his magical thing, going 1-2-3. Then the trouble started in the late innings and it was Todd Coffey as the culprit again, though not as much as Rheal Cormier. The first guy he hit, and he's been doing that lately. Very odd. He got the next two guys, and then it was an RBI single that tied the game. Coffey then walked Lee and in came Rheal Cormier to give up an RBI single and a 3-run homer to Jason Lane. That about ended it on this day. But then he got the final out of the 8th and did so well that Narron gave him the 9th to work and he gave up another run there as well. Does anybody like Cormier? Does anybody want to see him pitch? He is clearly the weakest link right now and thankfully we haven't seen him that much. This is the most we have seen him and that's about enough for me. Gotta get the guy out of here. Any thoughts on Coffey? Where is his edge? Wasn't he pretty dang good the past couple years? That's what I thought anyway. Tough stuff. He didn't do that badly, and probably would have done a much better job than Cormier in finishing that inning.

Hitting: Freel & Hamilton did not have the type of success they enjoyed last night, but that's to be expected. Freel had a single. Hamilton had a leadoff homer in the bottom of the 4th which was pretty awesome. The guy is just cranking out homers left and right. That was all those guys did though. Dunn was 0/4 with 2 K's. Griffey was 0/3, and I don't know about putting them back-to-back, especially when they become such black holes offensively. Phillips had a home run of his own, and those two homers were the only runs of the day. Hatteberg had 2 singles, and that was all for your hitting, folks. Sampson & Wheeler pretty much shut us down on this night.

Fielding & such: Freel had another error at 3rd, and one that let in a run. Not sure what that means for EdE. Some are speculating that he is on the trading block, but I find that difficult to believe. He does find himself in Narron's doghouse easily, and the big talk is how Narron holds him to a different standard of hustle than anybody else. If Krivsky is a big EdE fan and Narron does something else that displeases him, Narron could be watching his back pretty soon. Phillips & Gonzo turned a nice double play after Freel's error.

Mock Draft

2007-04-19T12:18:00.000-06:00

Murphy goes for 6, comes up with JaMarcus again:

The Raiders will hear plenty of trade proposals in the next 10 days, but they are putting on a strong game face by letting observers believe they are committed to Russell. Any potential deal likely would not occur until teams are on the clock.

You can bet that the closer we get to Draft Day, that the rumors of a trade for the top pick will pick up steam and then go through the roof. Anybody excited to hear, "The Oakland Raiders are on the clock?" I know I am.

Reds with/without Hamilton

2007-04-18T12:28:00.000-06:00

It's early, but here's a key stat:

The Reds are 4-1 when Hamilton starts and 4-5 when he doesn't.

Chew on that for a bit.

Mock Draft

2007-04-18T11:41:00.000-06:00

#8 from Pat Kirwan sticks with Russell:

The Raiders have lots of needs, but as long as quarterback is one of them, they have to respond by selecting the guy with the great deep ball, JaMarcus Russell. As I said previously, the Raiders are pushing forward to trade for Josh McCown. The compensation the Lions rejected was a fifth-round pick, but it appears they could move up a pick in the first round to close the deal. The Lions aren't going to give McCown away, but a quarterback that has one year left on his deal and didn't play a down last year can't be worth more than a fourth-round pick. I'm sure the Raiders would love to have McCown in a Raiders uniform to start the season until Russell is ready. The biggest point about the Raiders' intentions to use the mobile McCown until Russell is ready and then make the switch is that Oakland is not looking to renegotiate McCown's $2 million salary to make the trade happen.

Warriors 111, Mavericks 82

2007-04-18T11:26:00.000-06:00

What did you expect? No Nowitzki, Howard, Stackhouse (or Dampier). Avery was resigned to lose this game, which is sad in a way. I am not so sure it's wise to take the Golden State Warriors lightly. They swept the regular season series, although this game doesn't really count. But this is the team that can give the Mavs problems. I wouldn't much want to see the Lakers in the #8 seed either, but the Warriors are scary and have lights-out shooters that when they get hot are hard to stop. The Warriors could be the #8, that's the most likely case. The Lakers could fall to #8 and the Clippers could rise to #8. We'll know soon enough.

Hard to draw much from this game, though. When the leading floor players are Buckner, George, Ager, and Barea, you know that's not the usual Mavs out there. Moe Ager actually didn't perform all that poorly and ended up with a team-high 20 points, along with 6 rebounds. He made all of his free throws, too. Harris & Barea got 13 points apiece, and little Barea got 10 rebounds somehow. Must have come right to him. Devean George had 12 points.

For the Warriors, just like the Mavs, only one guy scored 20 or more. That guy was Mickael Pietrus of all people, with 22 points. Superstars Richardson & Davis had only 14 and 12, respectively. Barnes got 19. Weird game.

What did it was the poor shooting. The Warriors were consistently better on overall shooting, 3's, and free throws. They also killed on assists and had far fewere turnovers. Nothing to get excited about here.

Reds 11, Brewers 5

2007-04-18T09:45:00.000-06:00

NOTABLE THINGS

Pitching: Belisle started and wasn't terribly effective, starting and getting the first out in the 6th before sitting down. He left with 8 hits, 2 walks, 1 wild pitch, and 2 K's for 5 earned runs and the Brewers lead. He would not end up with the loss on the day, however. The day after the bullpen was the goat, the bullpen was the saving grace. That's how it goes sometimes in baseball, but this was good to watch. Excluding Rheal Cormier, who hit the only batter he faced, the bullpen was quite solid. Saarloos came in and got two groundball outs, one of which scored a runner, but that was attributed to Belisle. Not much Kirk could have done in that situation. It was lights out from there. Stanton pitched the 7th and 8th and was simply the man. Only one man was allowed on base and that was due to error. Stanton had 3 K's. And a good turnaround from Todd Coffey as well, pitching a clean 9th with a strikeout mixed in for effect.

Hitting: Well, it's about dang time. This is what it was supposed to be, let's put it that way. The big story was Freel signing a new 2-year deal with the Reds and how the focus of his press conference wasn't himself but Hamilton as Freel keeps gushing over how incredible Hamilton is and says that he, Freel, needs to play less. So Narron wants to play them both, doesn't want to play EdE, so he moves Freel over to third base for the first time in a while and Hamilton goes to center field. Aside from Freel's error at third, the move works out masterfully as they batted in the top two spots in the order. Freel & Hamilton led off the first inning with singles and scored, and led off the 7th inning with singles and scored. Well done from those lads. Freel ended up being 4/5 with 3 runs scored and his first RBI of the year, clearly one of his best games in a long time. Hamilton followed him with a 2/4 evening, 2 runs scored. Dunn was 1/5, getting an RBI on a fielder's choice and scoring on Griffey's double. Griffey had another double, making him go 2/5 on the day with 2 RBI's. Phillips was also 2/5 with 3 RBI's, one of the hits was a sweet triple, the first of the year for the Redlegs. Gonzo, who everybody counted out because he would be too emotional, was smart enough to go 1/2 along with drawing 2 walks, including an RBI walk. Valentin was 2/4 with a bases-clearing single in the 7th. 15 hits on the day. Great stuff to watch.

Fielding & such: Mentioned in the first two sections is the error on Freel on a routine groundball. It's bound to happen, especially since the guy is new. He made some stops out there as well. Adam Dunn, newschool baserunning phenom, stole his 4th of the year in the 5th inning.

Brewers 10, Reds 6

2007-04-17T12:07:00.000-06:00

Guaranteed Loss Night. Therefore, a loss was to be had.

NOTABLE THINGS

Pitching: Eric Milton was the starter, therefore nobody showed up to watch the Reds lose. And although, yes, he was the losing pitcher, that honor should have gone to Todd Coffey, who blew chunks. Milton would have gotten out of the first inning were it not for Griffey's error. Milton did give up a homer as he is prone to do, but it was a solo job. Then he settled down, gave up a double in the 6th and was pulled. That was enough for the loss. 5 innings, 3 hits, 2 walks and 4 K's for 2 earned runs and the loss. Not that bad, all things considered. Todd Coffey, as mentioned, was the goat today. Was he on crack? It's possible. After Santos was relatively inefficient in the 6th, Coffey got into the 7th inning, hit two batters, and gave up a single to load the bases. Narron played it smartly (not really) by leaving him in there to give up the grand slam to Bill Hall. Coffey then got an out (yay!) and gave up a single to Mench. That was it for him. Coutlangus was in for Coffey, picking up the rest of the 7th, giving up a a run. It was unearned though, on EdE's error. He got out of the 8th, but wasn't all that great. His line looks better than what he pitched: 1.2/3 innings, 1 hit, 2 K's, 0 earned runs. He also hit a guy. Saarloos has lost his edge, as the 9th wasn't great. 2 doubles and a walk for an earned run. Nothing to get excited about today, the bullpen was not ready to play. I almost feel bad for Milton.

Hitting: Freel led off and was 1/5. Phillips was 2/5, Dunn was 3/5 with a double. David Ross got a hit. Reds were making Capuano look like an ace until the 6th inning, when things got interesting. An error and a couple singles and the Reds were in business with no outs. Conine got royally SCREWED as he hit an infield pop fly that went past the 2nd baseman's glove. The umpire somehow called the infield fly rule, even though Freel scored. Narron was rightfully upset on that call. EdE got a 2-RBI single, his only hit of the day but a big one. Score was 4-3 Brewers until Coffey's fateful inning. Griffey hit a nice RBI double. The real story was Josh Hamilton, as it always is. Bottom of the 9th, for those lucky handful of fans that stuck around, saw Hamilton rip a pinch-hit 2-run homer.

Fielding & such: 3 errors, 2 big ones. Griffey misplayed a ball in right field in the first inning, which set the tone for the game. An unearned run for Milton, but a run for all the rest of us. An error on EdE would have saved another run in the 7th inning. The new guy, in for Gonzo, E Cruz had an error in the 9th that could have turned disastrous, but didn't. A double play was turned in the 9th inning, which if not turned, would have turned out far worse for the Reds. Saarloos to Phillips to Hatteberg. Sloppy game overall.

Lightning 3, Devils 2

2007-04-16T19:31:00.000-06:00

The Devils cannot afford to hand the Lightning 3 goals every game.

Have you ever felt so little faith in a goaltender who broke the single-season winning record?
Have you ever felt so little faith in a #2 seed?

Do you remember the Devils teams of old, especially come playoff time? Could you perchance round those Devils up and get them in uniform, preferably before the next game? Thank you, sir/ma'am.

Freel signs 2-year deal with Reds

2007-04-16T12:38:00.000-06:00

That's my guy.

Reds 1, Cubs 0

2007-04-16T12:23:00.000-06:00

What a (weird) game.

NOTABLE THINGS

Pitching: Hats off to Kyle Lohse. What a beast. I knew he was capable of doing something like this, but had all but abandoned hope in the guy. Not for being average or decent, I thought he could do that. But I about gave up on him being a master, and he was simply masterful today. Even when he got into some jams, he got out of it. He actually pitched better when men were on base. The 6th inning was the best, with runners on the corners with 0 outs. Lohse fooled Jacque Jones all around the zone and got him hacking. Derrek Lee didn't even swing the bat, looking at 3 beautiful strikes, and then Barrett flied out to end the threat. All in all, he went 8 innings of shutout baseball, walking 1, giving up 4 hits, and striking out TWELVE batters. Whoo baby! This is the Kyle Lohse I enjoyed watching with the Twins back in 2003. When I was watching, I was getting nervous because the Cincy bats were not swinging well and I was going to be very annoyed if the Cubs pushed across a couple runs and Lohse would get the loss. He deserved the win and thankfully got it. Stanton got a groundball, and Weathers got the save, walking 1 and almost allowing Barrett to rip a double, but thankfully it hooked foul. Weathers likes to be reckless with his chances. It would be nice to see a 1-2-3.

Hitting: What can you say? Same problems every time. I was nervous to see Ted Lilly on the mound, because he has a good chance of being the 2007 Reds Killer. He is certainly the leading candidate thus far. He pitched a pretty dang good game himself, going 6 innings, allowing 2 hits and a walk for a run scored, and K'ing 10. Freel had a bad leadoff day, going 0/4. Phillips walk and stolen base were enough as Jeff Conine got the only RBI today. Hamilton was 0/4, tear tear. Griffey got the other hit. Just two hits. Thankfully it was enough, but it was sad to see. Lilly is good, no doubt. But Cincinnati looks all out of shape up there, they just look flat-out bad, and I am particularly sad about Brandon Phillips as of late, though he did manage that walk that was huge. He just doesn't look good up there, but neither do most people this year. Plate discipline is lacking in the worst way.

Fielding & such: Jackie Robinson Day, which Griffey started and wore #42. It turned into this whole thing where entire teams were wearing the number or only the black players were wearing it. It was supposed to be cool, and I guess it was. I think Griffey's idea was better, though. No errors on the day, which is a bonus. Already mentioned Phillips' stolen base, which was pivotal today. Jeff Conine got his own stolen base, which is beyond ridiculous. Who is this guy? This guy who I hated on for so long is being incredible and thankfully he is because nobody on this team is right now. Good for him.

Mavericks 91, Spurs 86

2007-04-16T09:48:00.000-06:00

Oh, it's always great to beat the Spurs.

This game appeared to be surprisingingly meaningful, as Dallas saw fit to play their superstars as if it were a real game. Not quite sure the logic in that, but it worked as they pulled out the victory. Although the win wasn't quite as meaningful as it could have been since Tim Duncan was out for the entire fourth quarter because he got ejected. That was the story of the day for sure, and rightfully so. I have never liked Tim Duncan. Maybe he's a cool guy, I think he plays basketball pretty well, but he's one of my least favorite guys. He is a constant complainer and everyone calls him otherwise, and so does he. Does it seem like he truly deserved to get quicked out? Not really, but I still choose to enjoy it because it's funny to me. Here's the money quote from official Joey Crawford, who kicked him out:

He's complaining. He was constantly complaining. He was complaining when he was on the court. Then he got on the bench and kept doing the same stuff. So I just ejected him.

Great stuff right there. The only downside is that it's hard to figure out if the Mavericks would have won the game had he stayed in. Chances would have been pretty tough, since they were already down late and went on a 9-0 run to win the game. Odds are likely the Spurs win and the teams finish with yet another split in the series, 2-2. As it stands in the real standings, the Mavericks won the season series 3-1.

Nowitzki & Devin Harris led the way with 21 points. Josh Howard had a poor shooting night and ended up with 15 points. Stackhouse added 14 off the bench.

Shooting was fairly even, 3-point shooting was very low, and the Mavs had the edge in free throws. Spurs barely had the rebounding edge. Not much there of substance, just the big Tim Duncan story. Maybe he didn't deserve it, but it was a long time coming.

Lightning 3, Devils 2

2007-04-14T17:25:00.000-06:00

Goals:
First Period: Filip Kuba, Lightning (shorthanded) (Perrin, Richards)
Zach Parise, DEVILS (PPG) (Rafalski, Langenbrunner)

Second Period: Jamie Langenbrunner, DEVILS (PPG) (Gionta, Elias)
Martin St. Louis, Lightning (Richards, Ward)

Third Period: Vincent Lecavalier, Lightning (Ranger, Prospal)

Shots on Goal: 36-20 DEVILS

Penalties: Devils - 6 minutes, Lightning - 10 minutes

--FIRST PERIOD--

Not a bad pace to start things off. Seems both teams are playing smart and within themselves. Rasmussen takes the early penalty for the Devils tonight, but luckily nothing got going for Tampa Bay. Brodeur got some good saves, but the Lightning don't look like they are shooting much, at least not yet. No more penalties, though. Devils have had some chances but they are playing pretty conservatively right now. Elias draws the first penalty for the Lightning, gotta go for the first goal of the game here. I smell it. Oh wow. I smell it alright, there was indeed a goal. For Tampa Bay. What a joke. This is no fun for anyone, no fun at all. The Devils were known during the year as giving up shorthanded goals, especially to Tampa Bay & Atlanta. Well, they got one here. They couldn't score on their own power play, but they scored on the Devils' power play. Frickin' junk, man. Time to stop playing conservatively. Yes, time to abandon it already. They have shot only 3 times compared to Tampa Bay's 7 already. And that gap is only going to get bigger as the Devils are going to the penalty box again. HELLO!!!!!! Wake up, people. The Devils kill another one, no damage done. Some discipline would be nice. Along with shots. Many shots. Throw the puck at the net and see what happens. It will probably work. They aren't playing very well thus far. Another power play for the Devils and nothing happens. Power play is weak thus far. Another power play for the Devils, and they almost give up another shorthanded goal. Yikes, man. And they get it done!!! Who else but Zach Parise?? The kid is A BEAST!!! That was a big one. Very nice goal right there, especially being only the 6th shot on goal. Holmqvist maybe a little shaken up mentally, that's the hope anyway. The power play wasn't particuarly amazing, but Parise was setting up shop when the rebound went right to him and he just banged it in. That always helps. Always good to get that first goal, and important to get the equalizer before the end of the period. Who is this Zach Parise kid? He's dang good is who. Wow, thankfully the Devils got out of that period as Tampa Bay applies the pressure late amidst Devils turnovers and lack of defensive pressure. Sound familiar? Look at the Game 1 recap. Dang man, I thought we were going to try and WORK on these problems. Ah, maybe not. Oh well. Tampa Bay was for sure the better team, but the scoreboard says we're even. I'll take it.

--SECOND PERIOD--

Devils look a little shaky at the beginning of this period, but nothing too severe. They look like they just need to settle down. But honestly, that should be easy for this team. Why do they look like they haven't done this before? They are having trouble clearing pucks away from the zone, a problem from the first period that is continuing so far into this one. The only thing to really get excited about is the play of Zach Parise right now, as he continues to fly around the ice and do fun things. I think the Devils have had either 3 or 4 offsides penalties in a row. At least they are trying to set things up in Tampa Bay's zone, but these offsides calls are really killing them. They need to get shots on goal and still can't quite figure out how to do that. Maybe soon. Parise registers the first shot in the second period, naturally. Zajac gets his turn and blasts one straight on at Holmqvist for the easy save. Not a bad shot, though. Heck, it was a SHOT. More of those, please. Madden and Pandolfo get in on the action and the Devils appear to have woken up a little bit, thank goodness. Tampa Bay presses and gets some shots of their own, but Broduer sees them all cleany. Brylin gets a miniature breakaway but can't get one past Holmqvist. Next time, buddy. Devils are looking much better this time around, moving the puck around quite well and taking some good shots, the shots are just not falling in the right place. They are doing well keeping things in Tampa Bay's zone, which has been hard to come by in this series. The forecheck has marginally improved, but even a marginal improvement is a big one, if that makes any sense. Holmqvist does look quite a bit different tonight, he's got the edge. Which is annoying, but you gotta figure he's going to bring it this time around. Oh, the Devils had a couple of amazing chances, but Holmqvist denied Parise and then Gionta. Dang. The Devils have really picked it up and they are taking it to the Lightning right now. Just nothing worked out for them. They better not get discouraged, because if they keep doing that, things will fall into place. Weird, no penalties called in this period so far. I don't really mind that too much as it clearly favors the Devils. I guess it makes sense that Tampa Bay was the better team the first period, the Devils are the better team right now, and it's tied. It makes sense. I just think the Devils easily could be up 2-1, but Holmqvist for his part has been handling things pretty well. Shots are 11-2 in favor the Devils, that's just ridiculous. Great stuff, but nothing going on. First penalty called, it's on Tampa Bay. Which could be good or bad, considering goals for both teams were scored on Devils power plays. Devils look decent, but not much going on. Ooh, a PRIME opportunity now as Elias gets taken down. 5-on-3 for a little bit. No excuses now. No excuses at all, as Jamie Langenbrunner puts it home!!!! The Devils are one of the better 5-on-3 teams, but 5-on-3's are nice for everybody. Good movement, good spacing, good puckwork and finally found the wide-open Langebrunner in front of the net. Holmqvist had some nice saves before then, but he missed Jamie L. Very nice work right there. The Devils are doing what everybody wants them to do and that is throwing the puck at the net. 17-2 shots on goal right now, crazy stuff. Not just throwing pucks either, they are being smart about it. Big save Brodeur on LeCav, I almost forgot about Brodeur as Tampa Bay has simply not been shooting the puck this period. You have to be kidding me. Tie game. St. Louis of course. With a rifle. Brodeur might have had a chance, but dang. That's a tough one. New Jersey DOMINATED the period and they get nothing out of it, it's a tie game once more. Late goals have hurt the Devils many times this year and this one really hurts as they should have gotten out of the period with a lead. They better not get too disheartened about it, another period like this one and they win it. It's just a tough thing. Gotta shrug it off. Regroup.

--THIRD PERIOD--

Early goal by LeCav. Is he truly that unstoppable? Fairly even, but sloppy play. Sloppy being the Devils for the most part. What can they do? If they can't play good defense, they have no chance just because the Lightning are one of the best offensive teams in the NHL. They can turn it on at a moment's notice. All of this stuff was said last game, so I hate repeating myself but the same symptoms are showing themselves here. I thought Lou was all about discipline and awesome things, but I am not seeing many awesome things except the many shots in the second period. Devils still own on shots on goal and will no doubt end the game on top. Sadly, that makes Holmqvist the more effective goaltender with a far better save percentage. Brodeur may have had better individual saves, but he has been the 2nd-best goalie tonight. Which is pretty dang sad when you think about it. Credit Holmqvist for most of that, though. Devils are trying, but they are not playing with the sense of urgency they will need. I would imagine that to change as time is flying by and the minutes are winding down. Brodeur has shut down the few Tampa Bay chances, it's up to the offense to get it going now. Not much time left. Gomez with a chance but another offsides. Is anyone keeping a tally on how many times? Absurd. Devils with some good chances late, but not enough. Penalty on the Devils as they turn it over for about the 25th time and that just about seals the deal. No chance now. Brodeur is off and it's 5-on-5 again. Very risky move, but LeCav takes down Gionta and now it's 5-on-4 for 18 seconds. It could happen. Very slim chance, but it's worth hanging around for. Gionta with a nice chance, but it's not enough. We're headed to Florida with the series tied. If the Lightning continue scoring 3 goals every game, the Devils are done for.

Cubs 7, Reds 0

2007-04-14T15:55:00.000-06:00

I stopped following after it was 7-0. No such luck this time, no 8-run 8th inning this time around.

As previously highlighted in the last post about the Reds, the offense is the thing to watch. It's bad. It was plenty bad today. Rich Hill? He's alright, not bad. Looked great today. 7 hits. That's 2 less hits than the Cubs, who had 9. Cubs scored 7 on their 9 hits. Reds scored 0. They still haven't figured out to play smart baseball when guys are on base. It just doesn't work out.

Who do you feel bad for in all of this? Bronson Arroyo should be your answer. The man has done everything asked of him, you think the Reds could figure out some way not to suck when he is pitching. But they don't give him anything to work with, so even a great game turns into a loss. This wasn't a great game for Arroyo. It had the potential to be, but then he stayed in the game too dang long and the Cubs went wild in the 7th inning.

Tough stuff out there today. The only thing I really like about the Cubs is that Soriano gets picked off almost daily. He'll steal his bases, that's for sure. He just sucks at it right now. It's kinda funny, actually. Other than that, the Cubs don't give me much. First win at Wrigley always sucks.

Wake up the bats, boys. If you don't count the Reds 6-run inning from yesterday, they haven't been doing very well. I already said all of that, so I will try not to say it again, but it would be nice if the team would somehow drop the hitting habits of late last year and put some smart moves together. The hits aren't all that bad, but you have to work with what you have out on the basepaths. Make it count. Try again tomorrow.

Why Todd Coffey got the win

2007-04-14T12:44:00.000-06:00

Because Harang didn't go five innings, the official scorer has the discretion to pick the winner based on which pitcher was the most effective. Don Friske, the official scorer at Wrigley Field, picked Coffey, the only reliever to go more than one inning for the Reds.

Poor old Jonny Coutlangus. I could have sworn that the winning pitcher was the one who benefits from the runs advantage in sequential order. So Coutlangus was the next pitcher to pitch after Zambrano blew the lead, therefore he was the winner. But nope, it's a SUBJECTIVE call. Which sucks. By no means did Coffey not deserve the win, he was the man. No doubt. But don't forget about Jonny.

Jazz 104, Mavericks 89

2007-04-14T12:30:00.000-06:00

Not much to see here, folks. Sure Nowitkzki played 29 minutes, though I'm not sure why. He ended up with 23 points. Josh Howard played some. A lot of guys didn't play at all. They didn't really care. Or try. It was sad, but expected. The Jazz played like it was a regular game and pretty much dominated, even when the Mavs threatened to get close. Boozer went nuts, 32 points, 15 rebounds, 7 assists. Really wasn't a good game, but you can expect that to happen. The Jazz were all acting like it was a real game since Josh Howard played some and Nowitzki had some major minutes, but it really wasn't.

Reds 6, Cubs 5

2007-04-13T16:37:00.000-06:00

I have a rule. When the Reds get down by 5 runs, I pause and reflect on life. If I perceive the Reds to be exquisitely sucking, then I stop watching/listening/following and resume my life as regularly planned. If I sense they have some spirit, some drive, some intensity left, I will continue to watch/listen/follow until it is clear they will lose. Today I turned off the television after the fourth inning, the Reds down 5-0. After class, I check online to see what happened. And what happened? Naturally, the very next inning, the Reds put together 6 runs for the win. Silly me. I should have learned from watching Boise State defeat Oklahoma to never turn my back on a game while it is in progress.

Anyway, I turned it off because it appeared that everyone on the Reds had the EdE symptoms from Wednesday night. Since Narron benched him, I thought he might as well bench everybody that was playing for the Reds in the first four innings. It was bad. Zambrano turned into the Reds Killer, as nobody appeared to have plate discipline particularly well. Hamilton lost a ball in the sun (first time at Wrigley, I know) but picked it up nonchalantly. Harang looked like a lethargic monkey out there. What's his deal? And when will people start listening to me to put Arroyo first in the order? He's the #1, will be this year anyway. Not that it matters too much, but Harang has been pretty weak so far. Javier Valentin, who we all know is not going to win Defensive Catcher of the Year, was particularly awful. He let baserunners do whatever they wanted out there, couldn't make a throw for his life, and was calling generally all the wrong pitches. All that bad stuff happened in the first four innings and it was hard to support a team that just looked like it didn't care. So I turned it off and was surprised to find that the Reds got it going in the fifth inning, knocking Zambrano out without an out recorded and making him the losing pitcher on the day. Not sure how Todd Coffey got the win, pitching the 7th, when the Reds went up 6-5 in the 5th. Someone should explain that to me. And good thing the Reds didn't give up anymore runs after the 4th inning, because they barely hung onto the lead. Hard to rip on the Reds after they scored 6 runs in an inning, but to have the bases loaded with no outs and strike out 3 straight times? That just blows right there. Anyway. A win is a win is a win. Is a win? A win. David Weathers for the save, seems like he's the guy. Although he did make it interesting, like he is apt to do.

The Reds had 6 hits on their 6 runs, whereas the Cubs had 15 hits on their 5 runs. Ouch. They were definitely the better team today, just had a worse inning than any of the Reds innings combined. Which is great news, because the Cubs remain winless at Wrigley. Which is awesome. And they lost while the Reds won. You have to love that double bonus, especially when the Reds sucked enough to lose it today. Too bad I missed it, but that's just me. You all have your own demons to deal with. Rock on.

Mavs are #1

2007-04-13T13:29:00.001-06:00

Best record in the NBA. It was inevitable and now it's here.

Time to rest the superstars and we'll see you in the Playoffs.

Reds lose first series of the year

2007-04-13T13:24:00.000-06:00

The Arizona Diamondbacks took 2/3 from the Reds this week, both losing games for the Reds came when they had the lead late in the contest. Come-from-behind wins are hard to take, especially for the hard-luck losers that were pitching - Arroyo and Lohse. The game they won saw Matt Belisle pick up his 2nd win of the year for the Reds, although Weathers thought about losing it for him.

We see a clear picture developing with the 5-4 Reds. Offense is a huge problem. And I don't think it's one that is a beginning of the season problem, this one could last throughout the year. There will be games when the Reds bust out and score a zillion runs and there will be stretches when they are hitting well, but it will be a problem. Combine that with the shaky pitching the Reds will no doubt see, and they may be in for a tougher year than any of us realize. Thankfully, the Reds pitching has been very solid. From pretty much everybody, even Milton's horrible outing wasn't too horrible. But this can't last. The Reds are not yet built to be a pitching & defense team. This is not the team that was an offensive superpower a few years ago, though they will crank out the homers.

This could be problematic, so watch yourself.

Devils 5, Lightning 3

2007-04-12T18:28:00.000-06:00

Goals:
First Period: Zach Parise, DEVILS (no assist)
Patrik Elias, DEVILS, PPG (Gomez, Rafalski)
Martin St. Louis, Lightning, PPG (Richards, Boyle)

Second Period: Brian Rafalski, DEVILS, PPG (Gomez, Langenbrunner)
Vincent Lecavalier, Lightning (no assist)

Third Period: Vincent Lecavalier, Lightning (Prospal, St. Louis)
Zach Parise, DEVILS (Langenbrunner)
Brian Gionta, DEVILS (Gomez, Elias)

Shots on Goal: 26-24 Lightning

Penalties: Devils - 12 minutes, Lightning - 6 minutes

Nice to be back again. School is crazy right now, but I simply must take time out to cover the playoffs. Hockey playoffs are sweet except for the fact that almost all of the games are on some obscure TV station and not one that I actually get on my television. Unfortunately, that also includes Versus. Anyway, here we go.

--FIRST PERIOD--

Not a bad start, would be better if Oduya would get his frickin' act together. Sheesh. Twice times he pulled a holding call when somebody else was already in the box. These are the two best teams in terms of not being penalized, and this has been a parade to the box all night. What a joke. Anyway, Brodeur didn't face many shots, shut most of them down, but couldn't handle a 5-on-3, which is pretty understandable. The Devils got an early goal from Zach Parise, which is awesomebe cause many of the previews said the Devils young blood has to get hot, and that's what happened. Even better though is that Patrik Elias scored. Better for me, because we need all the major players. Gionta, Gomez, Elias, Langenbrunner, Madden - all those guys who you think of as being Devils. He got a nice pass from Gomez and just slammed it in. Two fairly easy goals and they were shutting down Tampa Bay for the most part. Hard to completely shut down such scorers as Brad Richards, Martin St. Louis, and Vincent LeCavalier forever, especially in dealing with penalties. I think if the Devils stick to 5-on-5 hockey, they can do it. They can't let up, though. They need to keep going strong. You can tell they really feel this is the playoffs. If there was one team to bet on for turning on their game come playoff time, it's the New Jersey Devils. That's always a good feeling. Gotta watch out for the Lightning, though. Gotta pound that weak goalie.

--SECOND PERIOD--

Patrik Elias with another power play goal? It's too dang good to be true, my friends. Except this time wasn't really his own doing, he just happened to be in the right place after Ralf let it rip. Ralf gets an assist, but on those shots, I feel like giving him the goal. Just because it touched Elias along the way doesn't mean that Elias scored it. Unless he did. Ah well. Another goal. Good start. Have to do it. Must not stop. Lots of nothing went on, not even any penalties, until somehow LeCavalier got the puck behind the net, wrapped it around, and it went in behind Marty Brodeur. Always. Always with this guy. How does he score those dang goals every time? The scary part about this series is that the Devils aren't known for scoring many goals, and even when they get 3 goals in a period and a half, it's not enough. Tampa Bay can come back from any deficit - they can score at will. It's a scary thought. Defense must dominate here, they need to choke as much life out of the Lightning offense as possible. Can it be done? We can only hope. The radio is randomly alternating between live action and commercials. It's really pissing me off. Well, I'll be darned, they did change the Elias goal to a Rafalski goal. Good for him. Hard to understand how they got it wrong or how they know they got it right. Anyway, I am much more satisfied, maybe Elias will feel that he got screwed over and will want to score another one. That couldn't hurt right now. Elias almost got one, but not quite. Same for Gomez. The Lightning definitely picked it up in this period, with a lot more opportunities and a lot more reckless play. Brodeur came up with two huge stops, one on LeCav and the other on St. Louis. The two guys with the goals. Truly, other than Richards, there is nobody on this team, but they were good enough to almost get #3 in the East, that's just how dang good those 3 players are. Ridiculous. The Devils just need to hold on. They got a couple good chances, but played a little more loose and Tampa Bay was all over the place. Need to find a way to slow down the pace and preserve the lead, maybe even extend it.

--THIRD PERIOD--

Quick flurry of shots by Tampa Bay. Brodeur flat out robs Tarnasky, that was pretty amazing right there. And now the Devils 3-1 lead becomes a tie game at 3-3. Did I not go over this? You can never let up on Tampa Bay. No lead is safe. They can score on a whim. Who can score? Those 3 dang guys. Nobody else matters. Crush them, squeeze them, trap them, hook them, slap them, punch them. Sickening. The Devils cannot afford to get into a scoring match with this team, it just can't be done. Well, consider me wrong momentarily as Zach Parise gets his 2nd goal of the night on a pretty nice play and the Devils regain the lead. We know the Lightning can do this, it's weird for the Devils to do it, but I don't mind. If they want to score a lot of goals, go ahead. They might need it for this series, thank goodness for Zachary Parise, my dear friends. What a kid. Now we need some defense or something crazy like that. For the moment, it seems there might be some reasonable hockey action going on. It would clearly be in the Devils best interest to slow down the pace of the game. The Devils are playing smartly, now. They are still being opportunistic but are being less risky about it. That's how they're going to have to do it if they want to hold onto this lead. It's a dangerous place to be. Tampa Bay is turning on the juice yet again, but Brodeur got big saves on Prospal and St. Louis. Brodeur has allowed 3 goals on 18 shots, not great, but they have been tough shots, and on top of that, he has made some dang tough saves. Not a wonderful start, but he's doing what he can. He needs more help than what he is getting. HUGE TEST for the Devils right as the first penalty is called in the final frame, and they are now on the penalty kill thanks to Parise's slash. Not much time left in the game, a good kill here would be very helpful to icing this one. Not icing in the rulebook way, but on wrapping it up. You know. The power play is over for Tampa Bay, but they remain in control. Scary stuff here, it's getting late. Just hang on, buddies. You can do it. Thanks to that power play, the Lightning now have more shots on goal than the Devils, 23 to 22. The Devils have a great record when they shoot more. Hopefully they can get some more shots in, maybe even an insurance goal. AND AS SOON AS I SAY IT, AN INSURANCE GOAL IS SCORED!!!!!!!! Wow, I am so good. In what may be the worst play of the playoffs, Holmqvist sent the puck out instead of covering it up, turning it over to Elias, who gave it to Gomez who gave it to Gionta who scores! Game over, baby. The Lightning go down swinging, but they go down nonetheless. Very, very nice. I would not be surprised to see Marc Denis in net Saturday night. I would have expected Holmqvist, but after that critical mistake, it's hard to believe he'll be the goalie.

Islanders 3, Devils 2 (SO)

2007-04-08T19:02:00.000-06:00

So, there it is. The Islanders are in, the Maple Leafs are out, the Devils don't change their position, and Brodeur doesn't pick up any more wins. But that's primarly because he didn't play.

Brodeur was rested on the final game of the year in favor of Scott Clemmensen. Clemmy actually played pretty well, but going into the shootout, you didn't feel very good with such an unproven guy out there, and sure enough, he didn't come through. Some guy named Doublewide, who is the 3rd-string goale for the Islanders, won the game and sent them into the playoffs. Yeah, that's right. Dublewizthtchshjz won the game. Why in the world, if this game meant so much to the Islanders, would they start him? Apparently America's Goalie was still hurt and Dunham inspired no confidence. Whatever. It worked. The Islanders were up 2-0 late, but the Devils got 2 very late goals to send it to overtime. Nothing worked there, so it was a shootout. And you know what happens from there.

The Devils didn't need to win, so they didn't. Not a big deal. It would have been nice to end the season with a win, especially at home where the Devils have struggled recently. It's just very annoying because I want to keep the Atlantic Division rivals out of the playoffs as much as possible, and 4 of the 5 teams are in the playoffs. That's a lot. The Flyers had no chance, being the worst team in the league. But the Penguins, Rangers, and Islanders are in. The weird thing is that no team is playing each other. They are #2, #4, #6, and #8. Very, very odd. Oh well. I hope everyone loses but the Devils, that's for sure.

Which brings me up to my next point. Will the Devils win? They play the Tampa Bay Lightning for sure now. It's settled. The Devils haven't been good at home and haven't been good vs. the Lightning. Anything can change come playoff time, and I would expect to see different results against the team. But they are a threat to score at any time. They are a good team. This may very well be the hardest test the Devils may face. If they play the winner of Ottawa/Pittsburgh, they could beat either team. Then they could beat Buffalo, assuming they come out of things. Tampa Bay might be the hardest individual matchup, and that's scary. We'll see how things go. It's playoff time now!

GO DEVILS!!

Mavericks 86, Blazers 74

2007-04-08T18:44:00.000-06:00

Another low scoring affair, this time with the positive result. It was good to be home, albeit without Josh Howard. Maybe Josh Howard should be MVP of the league, the Mavericks look worse without him than without Dirk. That's mostly a joke, but still a weird phenomenon. Anyway.

This game was never really in doubt and the better team won. Not sure what else you want other than that. Howard and Stackhouse didn't play, and didn't need to. Nowitzki played less minutes than ever before, but he was cold anyway. He ended up with a measly 11 points. It was the guard duo of Jason Terry and Devin Harris that took over this night. Terry had 22 at halftime and was simply taking over the game. He was great. He ended up with 29, which was sad because I thought he might just explode, but he tempered things down in the second half. Devin Harris had a lawnmower type game. Scored a little bit here, a little more here, a little bit more here, and then ended on a very solid note with 18 points. They controlled the flow of the game, allowing the reserves to do their thing.

Portland can be beaten even when they have their stars. They didn't have any of their big stars, with Zach Randolph and LaMarcus Aldridge already out, and the rookie of the year Brandon Roy declared inactive for the game. That pretty much seals the deal right there. If you can beat that team with those guys in there, then it shouldn't be a contest when they are out of it. And that's pretty much what happened. Jarrett Jack was really the only guy worth watching for them, he played a smart game and ended up with 18 points.

Kevin Willis made his Mavericks debut and second NBA debut after a few years away from the game. He did nothing but get 2 fouls in less than a minute and then sat back down. Ha. Sad. Moe Ager, the Mavs rookie draft pick, got significant minutes (24), scoring 8 points and getting 3 rebounds. Nothing to write home about.

Portland jacked up a ton of shots, 77 in all, and made only 29 for 38%. The Mavs shot 51%. Finally, the Mavs were able to dominate in free throw shots, 28 to 19 attempts. Problem is, they only made 16 of their 28, which is very bad for the best free-throw shooting team in the league, but it happens every now and then. Still not good. Rebounds were clearly in the Mavs favor, thanks in large part to 10 rebounds snagged by Diop and Croshere.

That's about it, folks. Next game vs. the Clippers tomorrow night. Could be a first-round matchup. More importantly, if the Mavs win, they get #1 in the West. It's practically inevitable, but it would be nice to get out of the way.

Pirates 6, Reds 3

2007-04-08T18:39:00.000-06:00

What do you expect with Eric Milton on the mound? I honestly thought about Milton as a human being today, being Easter and all. I thought I could sit alongside him and offer him support. Seriously, though. It must suck to be him right now. Nobody believes in him and everyone wants him gone. For good reasons, no doubt. And he wasn't awful today, just not very good. Gave up 4 earned runs on 10 hits in his almost 6 innings. The Reds put up a 3-run rally in the 7th, but that was all. The invincible bullpen wasn't to be, as Todd Coffey and Jon Coutlangus gave up homers in their innings. Victor Santos once again was dang good. It just wasn't enough. Jared Burton was placed on the 15-day DL. Maybe that means the Reds will try to deal or get rid of Milton in 15 days. Maybe it doesn't mean that.

I'm back

2007-04-07T19:58:00.000-06:00

What did I miss?

Raiders - Nothing.

Reds - Of course my computer goes down just as the MLB season gets underway. Reds currently stand at 4-1, taking 2/3 from the Cubs and the first 2 from the Pirates. The Cubs series was pretty good; Harang dominated, Arroyo was solid but just got outdeuled by Ted Lilly, Lohse did surprisingly well in the finale and the Reds did just enough to win their games. The freezing cold game yesterday against the Pirates went well. It looked like Belisle was going to be pretty shaky, but he settled down and turned in a great performance. The game today was also freezing cold, and the most back-and-forth the Reds have gone all season, but ultimately coming out on top. The big story this year is the bullpen, they have been simply dominant. I am particularly pleased with Victor Santos who has pitched out of 2 very tough situations so far. But everyone is playing really well, the only exception was Jared Burton, but hopefully he can figure things out. Apparently Milton pitches tomorrow. Happy Easter? We'll see, looks like we'll need the offense rolling on this one.

Mavericks - A bit cold as of late. Lost to Phoenix yet again, that sucked. Also lost to the Nuggets last night in probably their worst loss of the year. It was just painful to watch. What do they say, idiocy is when you try the same thing every time expecting a different result? Something like that. Well, that's what they did. They did beat the Kings in there somewhere, but they had their first losing road trip, 1-2. Hopefully they won't enter the playoffs looking lame, but they haven't looked great lately.

Devils - Well, I missed a ton. Brodeur goes out and beats Bernie Parent's single-season wins record. Parent had 47, Brodeur has 48 and maybe will end up with 49. Parent was extremely gracious about it, as was Brodeur. It was just a good all-around deal. Great for Brodeur! I am so pumped for the guy. As well as the Devils in general, as they locked up #2 in the East and also set the franchise record for wins in a season (49). Just a great year. Awesome stuff. And yet, maybe this is just me, it didn't feel like the Devils best year. This doesn't feel like 1995 or 2000 or 2003. Not just because the Devils ended up winning the Stanley Cup, but they don't seem as dominant. And yet, here they are, with the most wins of any Devils team, and the most wins by Brodeur in his career. So you'd think you could feel great about it. Don't get me wrong, I do feel very good about it. It's just that, something seems to be missing. They don't seem as dominant as many other Devils teams. Maybe I can be proved wrong. Maybe they will steamroll teams in the playoffs. That would be great. Looks like the first-round matchup will be with the Tampa Bay Lightning, though. That could be very, very dangerous. Hopefully things can be better against them than the results we have seen in the regular season. Let's hope.

Major technological difficulties

2007-04-03T08:15:00.000-06:00

My computer fried. I'll try to be around, but I can't guarantee anything.

Go Reds! (and others)

Reds 5, Cubs 1

2007-04-03T08:14:00.000-06:00

The Reds win and the Cubs lose! In the same game!

Milton to DL, 24 players instead of 25

2007-04-01T15:53:00.000-06:00

What is going on in Reds-land?

Plus, who called the Milton move? Hint = he's typing the answer right now. Done.

So that problem is taken care of. Milton is on the DL, whether he has an injury or not. He may be moved. In which case, I really did NOT call it when I said he would hang around this year. But I'd rather be wrong. Sorry, Milty.

In the top post, Rosey Crayons talks about the Reds carrying 24 of their 25 players, which doesn't make too much sense. They'll make a decision later or something like that. Santos hasn't been cut or moved, so it could be him. In fact, it probably is him. Which would be fine with me.

Reds release Hermanson

2007-04-01T15:50:00.000-06:00

Any explanations for this?

Granted, he blew chunks his last time out, but that was YESTERDAY. He appeared to be just fine the rest of the spring. Nobody was going all crazy about bringing him in, but we thought we found a legitimate closer. I don't know what any of it means anymore.

Reds Roundtable Pt. 6

2007-04-01T15:13:00.000-06:00

Participants include Tim Mo (that's me!), shawn weaver of Cincinnati Reds Blog, Blade of The Cutting Edge, daedalus of Church of Baseball, Clint of the 320 Pub, , and Chris of Redleg Nation.

On the Reds chances in the NL Central, as well as Conine vs. Rolen/Edmonds...

daedalus: so how many games are we gonna win this year?

daedalus: 87

Blade: So we need to find someone good

Chris @ RLN: 74

Blade: I say 75

sweaver: I agree with Blade. 75 wins.

320Pub_Clint: 72

Tim Mo: 79

sweaver: I think we were a little lucky last year, and will be a little unlucky this year. Next year will be better.

daedalus: 87 wins. y'all remember that so i can say i told you so. and i'm never this optimistic

Tim Mo: you are the beacon of optimism on this night

sweaver: That is my hope. Because 87 wins takes the Central, I betcha.

Blade: If they win 87 games....eh forget it

daedalus: and you can make fun of me if it's nowhere close

Tim Mo: i agree with shawn, we are in a good position to be pretty dang good next year

320Pub_Clint: i think this season will be similar to last season. i definitely don't see us in last place like SI does

Blade: I mean, if a lot of things go right, 87 isn't that out of the realm. Who thought they'd win 80 last year

daedalus: not i

Blade: I see the Reds in fourth, Pirates are still bad and the Astros are vulnerable

sweaver: Certainly not me, with 80 wins.

Blade: Nor I

daedalus: cardinals rotation - it's simply awful. i think they are a non factor this year

sweaver: I put the Reds fourth as well. Astros are toast, Pirates a bit better but still bad.

Chris @ RLN: I agree w/ Blade. My division pick (at least right now) is Milwaukee (followed by the Cubs, Cards, Reds, Bucs, and Ausmuses).

sweaver: Cards/Cubs/Brewers/Reds/Astros/Pirates

Tim Mo: i doubt the cards are a non-factor

sweaver: But the Brewers are the only team in the division with a good shot at 90 wins.

Tim Mo: the brewers are in the middle of the pack and are the only team with a shot at 90?

daedalus: why? you can't win with one good player and a bunch of aging veterans. why is it that people criticize the acquistion of conine yet think that having rolen and edmonds on a team is a good thing?

sweaver: I think the Brewers are a .500 team, but with breakout potential.

Chris @ RLN: Because Rolen can freakin hit.

Chris @ RLN: And field.

sweaver: Conine isn't a HOFer. I think Rolen and Edmonds are.

320Pub_Clint: I think the Cards win the division with the Cubs in a very close 2nd. I always think the Brewers will do better than they end up doing so I will be a homer and pick Cincy 3rd, MIL 4 HOU 5 and PIT 6

Chris @ RLN: And is only 32.

Chris @ RLN: and had an 887 OPS

320Pub_Clint: yeah Rolen and Conine isn't a very good comparison

Tim Mo: believe it or not, there is such a thing as a good veteran player and a bad one

daedalus: conine isn't exactly an automatic out. he could, of course, be better, but he's not that bad. and rolen and edmonds HOFs? really? you think? rolen is only 32? you're kidding. i thought he was like 37

sweaver: Yes, I think Rolen and Edmonds are deserving of the HOF.

320Pub_Clint: I don't mind having Conine on the team as long as Jerry can fight the urge to play him every day

Blade: I'd take Rolen

Tim Mo: rolen for sure, jury is out on edmonds

Tim Mo: sorry clint, i mind having conine on the team

sweaver: Edmonds may be toast now, but he has been a great player

Chris @ RLN: The good news is that Edmonds' back isn't getting better; Eckstein still can't hit, and they have no pitchers beyond Carpenter and maybe Reyes. Rolen's definitely on the way to Cooperstown, though he might be the Barry Larkin to Wright, Cabrera, Zimmerman, and Gordon's ARod/Jeter/Nomar.

sweaver: Too true, Chris

320Pub_Clint: tim, so I assume you would like Votto up this season?

sweaver: I think Votto will be at 1B by Sept. 1

Chris @ RLN: Conine: .325 OBP last year.

daedalus: votto comes up in july after hatteberg and conine suffer little injuries

Blade: I like Votto too. Hatteberg is decent, but Votto is the future

daedalus: never goes down again

sweaver: Conine has been remarkably durable during his career.

Chris @ RLN: I don't need Votto right now - let him hit AAA. But there are always 1b floating around. Dmitri Young's starting for DC, no?

Tim Mo: yes sir

320Pub_Clint: i will go in the middle of shawn and daedalus and say Votto comes up sometime in august

Tim Mo: and votto will be up there eventually

daedalus: next year is gonna be great, isn't it? bailey and votto and no more milton.

Chris @ RLN: How about Roberto Petagine, for you long-term fans.

Tim Mo: i can MAYBE handle conine at first base, but if he gets in the outfield...

320Pub_Clint: yeah I agree with that Tim

The other sections..............

Pt. 1 - (Hamilton) daedalus' Church of Baseball
Pt. 2 - (#5 starter) Blade's Cutting Edge
Pt. 3 - (Eric Milton) Clint's Olde Pub 320
Pt. 4 - (pitching) Shawn's Reds Blog
Pt. 5 - (Narron) RedLeg Nation
Pt. 6 - Right here!
Pt. 7 - (final send-off) Shawn and Tyler's Redlegs Rundown

Blue Jays 1, Reds 0 -- Marlins 6, Reds 2

2007-04-01T06:36:00.000-06:00

That's it. We're done. Lost them both, but no more of this.

JAYS-REDS NOTABLE THINGS

Pitching: My Man Bobby started and got 3 innings in. It's weird, on Yahoo! Sports right now, it says UNKNOWN for the pitcher. I mean, come on. That was Bobby, folks! Anyway, he did well, allowing 2 hits (one of which was a leadoff double) and a walk, K'ing 2, and leaving with a 0 on the scoreboard. Well done, Bobby. We'll see you up here sooner rather than later, maybe even sooner than we all imagined as it appears Eric Milton has some back problems - he was pulled out of his final spring start. I am never inclined to cheer for a man's injury, so I won't do so here. However, this could significantly affect the Reds pitching for the better. I just hope, if we are to stick with Milton, that he is given every chance to be as good as he can be. I don't want him at anything less than 100%. Anyway, back to the game. After My Man Bobby, it was Tom Shearn pitching the next 4 innings, giving up 3 hits and K'ing 5, but picking up the hard luck loss. Kershner pitched the 9th, giving up a hit.

Hitting: T. Godwin led off and was 1/3. Some guy named Piepkorn got a pinch-hit double. Bellhorn was 0/3 with 2 K's. Joey Votto was 2/3. Jay Bruce was 0/4 with 2 K's.

Fielding & such: No errors, no doubt because Gonzo was out of the lineup. Two double plays were turned, one by Snyder & Bellhorn on a sweet lineout, the other by Herr-Machado-Votto. Votto also got caught stealing.

MARLINS-REDS NOTABLE THINGS

Pitching: Lohse started and went 4 innings. Gave up 2 hits, a solo homer and a triple, K'ed 3 and ended up with 2 earned runs to his name. Dustin Hermanson followed and blew chunks. He blew the dang chunks off the place. Not really what I was wanting to see heading into the season. Yikes. This guy better figure it out. He got 1 out in the fifth, but only after giving up 3 straight doubles, followed by a single, followed by a walk. After a groundout, he was out of there with 4 earned runs to his credit, one of which was allowed by Todd Coffey who got the final 2 outs of the 5th, allowing another hit. After that, it got much better for the Reds. Everyone's favorite, Johnny Coutlangus, pitched another scoreless inning, though allowing 2 hits. Victor Santos pitched the next 2 innings, giving up a hit per inning and K'ing 1. The guy finished the spring with a 0.00 ERA and worked some very impressive innings. Some guy named Webb closed it out with a clean 9th.

Hitting: Freel led off and was 0/2. EdE was 1/2 with a double. He was knocked in by a Gonzo single. Dewayne Wise was 1/2 and scored on a Josh Hamilton single. Hamilton also added a double, going 2/3 on his final exhibition day.

Fielding & such: 3 double plays turned on this day, with Valentin in the middle of all of them, as the first baseman though, not as catcher. Francisco to Turner to Valentin happened twice, and then later it was Turner-Castro-Valentin.

REGULAR SEASON PLAY BEGINS TOMORROW FOR THESE REDS!!!

GO GET 'EM, CINCINNATI!

Devils 3, Flyers 1

2007-03-31T13:53:00.000-06:00

I really should be doing homework.

Anyway, the Devils won. At home. That's good because it hadn't happened for a while. But they beat the worst team in the league and that is that.

It was a true score of 2-1, that's when I mean when I talk about the game being 3-1 but the last goal was by the team that was winning after they threw the puck in the empty net. So yes, the game was 2-1.

It started off bad enough for the Devils. Lack of discipline leading to penalties, not skating well, missing pucks all over the place, missing passes to each other, looking sluggish on offense and failing to get into position on defense. They played a pretty bad first period and didn't play much better for most of the second, but it was about even in the middle of the period and then the Devils took over late in the second, scoring both of their goals in the final 2 minutes of the period. First was Mike Rupp with a nice goal, then it was Zajac on the power play shoving one at the goal with hardly any time remaining and it went in. Brodeur had the shutout going until late in the game when Simon Gagne, of course, slammed one in there. The Devils hung on for the win.

Despite the poor play of the Devils, Broduer only saw 15 shots. That's pretty dang impressive. They went from 8 shots on goal in the first period to only 7 the rest of the game, with a measly 2 shots in the final period. One of which went in, as I recall.

Anyway, good win for the Devils to reassert themselves over a far inferior team. The team got a boost with John Madden's return, but also lost Gomez early in the game and for the rest of the game. So they could have been downhearted about that, but they didn't let it show. I don't know the status of Gomez, but hopefully it's not a big deal.

Interesting note: the Devils dominated the faceoffs, 32 to 15. That might be their best positive differential of the year, since they are usually not a good faceoff time. Not sure what it meant, probably that the Flyers aren't great.

Brodeur for Hart Trophy?

2007-03-31T13:50:00.000-06:00

Kara Yorio says Brodeur beats Crosby by a nose:

Comparing a skater to a goalie is always unfair. There is no way to deny that the goalie has a bigger effect on the game's outcome. With the greatest respect for the amazing season from the 19-year-old Penguin, that's just the way it is, and it takes the trophy out of his hands.
This tight race goes to Brodeur, your 2006-07 Hart Trophy winner.

The best part of this whole thing is that these are two teams battling for the Atlantic Division, currently tied with 100 points apiece. Great stuff. Does the winner of that battle win the MVP? I'd hope not, whether it's the Devils or Penguins. Marty deserves it. He has been a little off his game of late, but what a season he has had. Nice to see some national recognition for it all.

Mavericks 105, Knicks 103

2007-03-31T13:21:00.000-06:00

Whew. Yikes. Again.

Remember almost losing to the Bucks? It happened again, the Knicks are not a team that anyone should lose to. I mean, it happens. Thankfully this time it didn't happen. It blows my mind how one team can both be playing for a lottery pick as well as playing for the playoffs. It doesn't make any sense. That's how bad the Eastern Conference is these days.

The Knicks hung around due to many things, primary among them the Mavs shooting woes. They shot 38.5% from the floor, including an atrocious second quarter where they were 2/19. Other than shooting, the Knicks had the Mavs number in rebounds, though that margin was closed late. Starbury was HUGE for them, scoring a season-high 43 points. He was unstoppable until the end of the game, where he missed both of his late shots and was also forced into a turnover. If it were not for the fourth quarter, the Knicks would have had all the stats in their favor, but the Mavs went wild in the fourth quarter, scratching and clawing their way back in.

The only thing that kept the Mavs close early in the game were free throws. They ended up being 35/39 which was HUGE. Even though they did miss most of the free throws late in the game. That needs to stop. But they did well on free throws, finally having more attempts than the other team, even thought it was only by 2.

Nowitzki was ice cold throughout the game, feeling the effects of his injury. But he turned it on in the fourth quarter, scoring 17 of his 30 points. He also surpassed 15,000 points for his career on this game. Congrats, Dirk. He simply took over the game late in the fourth quarter for these Mavs. Stackhouse, while ending up with only 19 points, scored almost all of them early in the game. He kept the Mavs in it when they were out of it, and he was also 11/12 from the free throw line which was major. Josh Howard had 20 & 8. Jason Terry had 14 points, had a horrendous off-night shooting the ball, but still managed to hit two incredibly big 3-pointers late in the game. Once again, the Mavs got to 20 assists and once again they won. They barely got to 20 though. Also, the 3-point shooting kept the Mavs in it, as they were 10/22 which is pretty dang good.

All in all, the Knicks didn't have this in the bag, but they were staying around and playing better. The Mavs turned on the defensive pressure and made key baskets down the stretch. This is the story of their lives. They should have beaten the Knicks, and they ended up doing so, despite all the adversity going against them. Excellent.

Belisle is #5

2007-03-31T00:06:00.000-06:00

Breaking news:

A spectacular spring earned Belisle a starter's job after he worked out of the bullpen last season.

And there you have it, from the official team site. Not a big surprise, because many people mentioned Saarloos can work from the bullpen. He would have preferred to be the starter, but he can be a good long relief man. Or just anything in relief really, except a closer. Maybe even that. There is no doubt Belisle earned it. I probably would have slightly given him the edge over My Man Bobby, but it's hard to bet against Livingston.

Here's hoping Belisle has a great year, and maybe even moves up a few slots! Due to his own performance, not the subpar performance of others.

Interview with Jerry Narron

2007-03-30T23:59:00.000-06:00

I found this part particularly interesting:

MLB.com: Was having 140 different lineups last season out of necessity because of changes, injuries and having interchangeable or versatile players?

Narron: It was definitely out of necessity. It wasn't that I was trying to do anything special, believe me. I would love to have the same eight guys in there and just write down a different pitcher every night. Players like to know their roles and how they're going to be used. I think they do best when they don't have to worry about being in the lineup or how they're going to be used.

I have a hard time believing in what you're selling, Mr. Narron.

Reds 5, Rays 4

2007-03-30T19:48:00.000-06:00

This is a game I have been known to say "the Reds wanted to lose but didn't." A sort of jest, if you will. It felt like that today, just not as much. They won. Which goes with the saying, I suppose.

NOTABLE THINGS

Pitching: Fitting that the battle for the fifth spot came down to today's game. Hard to say who ended up on top overall, as Saarloos got the better of Belisle on this particular day. Belisle started and got the first 8 outs, giving up 5 hits and a walk, K'ing 4 and letting 3 score, 2 earned. So he was human, shall we say. But he picked up the win, due to the 5 runs scored when he was pitching. Saarloos took the next 7 outs and was much more efficient, allowing only 1 hit and K'ing 1. Cormier (everyone's favorite) took the 6th and gave up a run. Weathers took the 7th and allowed only a hit. Stanton had the 8th, allowing 2 hits but no damage. I'm assuming that's how we'll see the late innings shape up - Weathers followed by Stanton. I'd prefer the other way around, in case Stanton blows it. He has the potential to do so. Anyway, Jared Burton was the closer on this night and got a huge save, with a 1-2-3 inning. Game over.

Hitting: All 5 runs in the first inning. Freel was a surprise play, but he led off and was 1/3 with a run scored. Griff was 1/3 with an RBI single. Castro had a big 2-RBI double. Hatteberg also had an RBI double. Gonzo got another hit, this time getting an RBI. Saarloos was 1/1!!! Moeller was 0/3 while grounding into a double play. Welcome to the team, Chad!

Fielding & such: 2 errors today. One on Gonzo!!!!!!! Seriously, for all the fake hype, I'm getting a little concerned. He made what, 7 errors last year? He's made 3 in spring training. Let's hope he just doesn't really care right now, because c'mon, this is just not right. The other was on Phillips, which is almost as sad. Jay Bruce thought he was cool trying to steal a base, but no, not in the big leagues, my son. He was caught stealing. Bolivar-Janish-Valentin turned a pretty sweet double play. That is all.

Moeller wins by default

2007-03-30T14:45:00.000-06:00

Hey, lookie there! Norris Hopper will start the season on the 15-day DL, meaning that spot that maybe wasn't going to Chad Moeller, 3rd catcher extraordinairre, now becomes his by default! Hard to assume what Narron would have done, we know he loves the 3-catcher system, so maybe Moeller was favored in the first place. Hard to believe that, though, when the other guys were Hopper & Denorfia.

Remember when it was a battle for the last spot between Denorfia & Hopper? And nobody thought much about Chad Moeller? And then they hurt themselves in back-to-back games and we giggled because we thought it was silly and fun. But now, it turns out their injuries were much more serious than we first imagined, particularly in the case of Denorifa who is out for a dang long time. Tough break for the kid.

But anyway, get used to it. Chad Moeller with a Reds uniform on. And playing.

Twins 10, Reds 2

2007-03-30T11:25:00.000-06:00

My Minnesota brethren kinda took care of me right there.

NOTABLE THINGS

Pitching: Arroyo didn't bring his 'A' game, but this was the first time he has shown anything worthy of concern this spring. Still not ideal to head into the season, but knowing Arroyo, he will shrug it off. His line goes something like 5 innings, 7 hits, 1 walk, 1 hit batter and 1 K for 3 earned runs and the loss. Still not all that bad. He was facing a good Twins team (not their full lineup) and they are good, so it's not unexpected. Coutlangus took the 6th and gave up a mere hit. Coffey took the 7th and gave up 2 hits and a run. Hermanson gave up 2 runs in the 8th, neither of them earned. Some guy named Lutz closed it out and gave up 3 hits and 3 earned runs, mixing in a walk and a K. Not a great night for anybody, save Lango.

Hitting: Hamilton led off and was 1/3. Where did that whole 22/44 thing go? Granted, his average is still barely under .400, but it's almost like he has become just a normal guy now. Phillips hit yet another homer, this time a 2-run blast. Let's hope we see more of this during the regular season. Jay Bruce had a hit in his only at-bat. Gonzo got a hit if you can believe that, and a double at that. EdE & Griff went 0/3. Ross went 0/2 and has generally sucked at hiting all spring. Hits were 15-5 in favor of Minnesota, so yeah.

Fielding & such: 3 errors. Gulp. One on Phillips (naughty boy), one on Crosby and one on some guy named Cosme. Hamilton had 2 outfield assists! Yeah, showing off more of that laser arm. Gotta dig that junk. Jay Bruce also threw out Lis at second base. Very nice. Hamilton & Phillips turned a double play on one of his outfield assists, and a regular double play was turned by EdE, Phillips, and Hatteberg.

The Mavs to pick up Kevin Willis?

2007-03-30T11:21:00.000-06:00

Say it ain't so, Joe.

Umm........anbody not feeling this is a great move? I mean, granted, the guy is fit and muscular and has a great work ethic, blah blah. He is a team leader and blah blah. He's also 44 years old. It's true Diop has had a bust year and half the way Dampier is smoking the apathy weed, but do we need this guy? Out of all the candidates we could have, is Kevin Willis, the since-2004 retired Kevin Willis, the answer to the Mavs questions? Sure, you'll tell me he might play 4 minutes in a game or something like that. Alright, fine. Can he do it? Maybe. Could somebody do it better? Most certainly. We'll see what happens, it just seems everyone is so positive about this. I felt I needed to be the voice of negativity, if not the voice of reason.

Reds News

2007-03-29T16:55:00.000-06:00

Go read Fay.

Denorifa needs Tommy John surgery and will miss almost the whole year. That's a huge blow. Did anybody see this coming? At all? Where is this out of, besides left field? Dang, man. So it's down to Norris Hopper vs. Chad Moeller. Probably not many Hopper fans, but I am sure many would prefer to see him over Moeller. Moeller hasn't had a bad spring, though. And you know it's inevitable the spot goes to Moeller, so you might as well deal with it and hope he can be at least adequate.

My Man Bobby & Majew were sent to Triple A. I was sad to see My Man Bobby go, but I have a feeling we'll see him again. He's too good. The race is off for Belisle & Saarloos, who nobody has talked about, seeing that we assumed he would get a bullpen spot. So you have to hope for Belisle, I mean you have to. Or Santos. But supposedly, he might fit in the bullpen. Might. It's him vs. Burton & Coutlangus. I like both of the young guys, and I like young over old, but I would take Santos right now.

Billy Bray & The Lizard will start the season on the DL. Also Gil & Keppinger but nobody is watching those two. I miss Bray already. Gordo, of course, is still on the DL as well.

This is so much to take. Too emotional right now. Where was the info about Milton being dumped?

Sabres 4, Devils 3

2007-03-29T08:52:00.000-06:00

Dang. Tough loss. They all are at this point, let's be honest.

I actually got to listen to the game this team. It had its moments but it just seemed like a hockey game. Wasn't a whole lot going on. I mean, there were plenty of goals, it just wasn't very exciting to me, that's all. The Devils actually played pretty well, which is a good thing I guess, going into the playoffs. I would prefer to have them winning heading into the playoffs, but at least they are playing well. That Clarkson guy sure has been doing pretty good.

The game felt like it was pretty much a two-goal lead throughout, but the Sabres didn't have that actual lead until the beginning of the third period. The game actually ended up being 4-2, but Parise chipped in a meaningless goal with a few seconds remaining. What can you do? They played a better team last night. Paul Martin's goal in the middle of the third made it 3-2 and you could smell that maybe something was in the works, but 2 minutes the Sabres got that tw0-goal lead back up and it was clearly over.

Gotta keep trying. Where's Brodeur these days?

Dirk Nowitzki "Obviously" Watch

2007-03-29T08:50:00.000-06:00

"There's really no need right now to make things worse at this point in the season. Avery told me to sit it out so obviously it was killing me in a close game to sit back and watch."

Mavericks 105, Bucks 103

2007-03-29T08:39:00.000-06:00

6-0 on the road trip, coming home, relax, and almost lose to the Milwaukee Bucks? You've got to be kidding me, right? Wrong. Gut check time. Thankfully the Mavs pulled it off.

It didn't help having Nowitzki out the second half with an ankle injury. It was scary times, though we have seen it before. He just came out late in the second quarter but eventually returned, so people thought it was okay. But he couldn't get it going in the second half, so people were scared again. Apparently where it stands now is that he is fine and ready to go but his ankle is not good. He's going to play on it regardless. We'll see how they handle him for the rest of the season. And he wasn't the only one, Josh Howard tweaked his ankle late in the game. Aaaahhhhh!!!!!

The good news is the first to 60 wins. Both in terms of the Mavericks are the first to 60 wins, and the team that gets to 60 first wins. Maybe.

After Nowitzki was injured out, the Bucks went on a tear to lead the game at halftime. Even though the Mavs struggled at times late, they eventually closed it out thanks in large part to Jason Terry and Jerry Stackhouse. Terry ended up with 27 points. He knew he had to lead this team and he did a dang good job of it making many key baskets down the stretch. Stackhouse's 21 points were also crucial and he was 5/8 on 3's. Howard & Nowitzki ended up with 17 a-piece, Howard also getting 9 rebounds.

For the Bucks, Michael Redd took over and it wasn't hard to see coming. He ended up with 34 points, but the great part of that stat was that he scored 0 points in the fourth quarter. The Mavs made it their top priority to get the dang ball out of his hands and it worked wonders. Thankfully. But he still owned the game for the first three quarters, that's for sure.

Dallas launched a lot of 3's and ended up making 11 of them. The free throws weren't great, especially down the stretch. That could have allowed the Bucks to come back and win it, but thankfully there were strong defensive plays late in the game. The best free throw shooting team will have their off nights, but it's still tough to watch clankers late in the game. Once again the Mavs surpass 20 assists and win the game, this time with 24.

The Mavs got outshot, outrebounded, outassisted, outstealed, and outblocked, but they won the game. 60 wins. The first to 60 wins.

Reds 6, Pirates 4

2007-03-28T17:27:00.000-06:00

NOTABLE THINGS

Pitching: Harang was the starter and did not look sharp. How many times have you heard that one before? Probably as many times as I am going to say what follows: wouldn't it be nice to see Harang have a dominating performance? He hasn't looked like the #1 all spring. Somehow I don't find it reasonable to just believe he will turn back into the ace on April 2. In fact, history says he will completely suck for the first game. As long as it's just the first game, I'm cool with that. He just doesn't look good. Anyway. This game was 5 innings, 10 hits (!), 2 K's, and 3 earned runs. Santos picked up the win as he pitched the 6th and 7th innings. Very well, I might add. I like the guy and have all spring and still feel he is a dark horse to potentially start. He gave up just one hit, walked 2, and K'ed 2. Majew pitched the 8th, walking 1 and K'ing 1 in his scoreless inning. Nice to see him doing well. Jared Burton got the save in the 9th, although he gave up 2 hits and a run.

Hitting: Hamilton led off and was 1/3. Dunn was 2/3, scoring twice and knocking in one. EdE was also 2/3. These men had back-to-back home runs in the 6th inning which was pretty dang exciting. Dewayne Wise had an RBI hit. Griff was 1/2 and got his first RBI of the spring. Castro & Ross were both 0/3, as was Gonzo. Bottom of the order stuff, baby. Chad Moeller, pinch hitter extraordinairre, knocked in a 2-RBI double for Santos in the 7th inning to break the 3-3 tie. Huge hit. Chad Moeller? Looks like he's in.

Fielding & such: Gonzo had another error. What the???? Granted, it's only 2. But it's 2 in 3 games, and that's just weird. No more, Gonzo. Also, Godwin had an error but nobody cares about that. Dewayne Wise got picked off of first base. Yikes. Also, there were supposedly 2 double plays for the Reds, but I can't decipher what any of it means. The people involved were Javier Valentin, Gonzo, Castro, and Conine. Cool.

Phillies 6, Reds 2

2007-03-28T11:46:00.000-06:00

NOTABLE THINGS

Pitching: Lohse went a little over 4 innings and wasn't great. Wasn't too bad either, but nothing to write home about. Gave up 2 homers but only 2 earned runs, so thankfully both homers were solo shots. Still not great. Also mixed in a walk and a hit batter, but had 4 K's. Coutlangus finished out the inning and K'ed both Chase Utley & Ryan Howard. Howard had 3 strikeouts on the day, but still very impressive. I just don't think the kid has a spot on the team. Coffey took the 5th, gave up 2 hits and a walk but managed to escape. Nice to see Rheal Cormier back, but OH NOT REALLY as he took the loss. His inning of damage included 3 hits, 1 walk, and 2 K's for 3 earned runs. Hermanson pitched a useless 8th and looked rusty, giving up 2 hits and a run.

Hitting: Freel led off with a hit, but that was the only at-bat he was going to get as he plated his face into the outfield wall. We know he just got down on himself for not giving it his all thus leading to his latest injury, but how wise is throwing your face into a wall thisclose to Opening Day? Maybe not smart. Hamilton took over and was 1/2. Griffey was 1/3, but you won't believe how he notched his hit. On a bunt. !!!! On a perfectly placed bunt! Haha. It's just unbelievable stuff that you'll only see once in a lifetime. So Griff is on base with a bunt and then EdE comes up and just SMASHES one out of the park, so that's where the runs came from. EdE added another hit later in the game.

Fielding & such: No errors today as Bellhorn was sent down. Ouch! Just kidding...maybe? Two guys caught stealing though. Not great. Freel was a culprit as he is accustomed to. Gonzo was the other guy.

Devils 3, Islanders 2

2007-03-28T09:14:00.000-06:00

Whew. And a big whew. So maybe WHEW. And so forth and so on.

On a night where the Devils needed to win to keep pace with the Penguins, they did so. The teams remain tied at 98 points, each snagging a playoff berth last night with their respective victories. This will be a dogfight until the end folks. For team morale and fan morale, it would make sense for the Devils to be the #2 seed. But, like I've said before, it might work in the Devils favor if they were to lose the Atlantic to the Pens and ended up #4 or #5. Granted, it wouldn't be great to face the hot Ottawa Senators, but do you really want to see a matchup against either the Atlanta Thrashers and Tampa Bay Lightning as the #7 team? I know I don't. Either way, I look forward to the playoffs, although I'm not optimistic.

No doubt it helped to have DiPietro on the shelf for tonight's game. I would much rather face Mike Dunham than America's Goalie, but that doesn't mean the Devils were handed the handicap and the win. They still had to earn it, which they did.

Zach Parise scored a career-high and a team-high 30th goal last night. And it was a power play goal on top of that. And it wasn't the only power play goal of the night for the Devils! David Clarkson, who has been far more impressive than I would have imagined, scored on the power play late in the game as well. Gomez had the other goal, and Elias got the assist on his Welcome Back! tour. Very nice. Goals for the Islanders were Yashin on the power play to make it 2-1 Devils and Jason Blake (of course) late in the game to make it 3-2, which was the final margin. Shots on goal were clearly in the Devils favor, as was the hustle factor.

It was nice to see the Devils play like this. Even the victory against the Panthers was shaky, this one was good. Good to see the Devils still have "it" whatever that may be. Also good to see Langenbrunner back in action and he got 20 minutes. Eric Rasmussen is back and got 16 minutes. Madden & Gionta are still out, but hopefully they will be coming back soon so we can put our complete team together. But the people, such as Clarkson, that don't really play much for the team are filling in admirably well.

Gotta keep up with the Pens, that's for sure. Or make them keep up with the Devils. Should be a good race. At least I'm excited about the Devils again, they looked GOOD.

Dirk Nowitzki "Obviously" Watch

2007-03-28T09:10:00.000-06:00

"It was really a fun trip, obviously. We're trying to work hard offensively moving the ball, and everybody's making shots," said Dallas forward Dirk Nowitzki, who scored 15 points while shaking off an illness. "It was a fun trip."

Mavericks 105, Hornets 89

2007-03-28T08:56:00.000-06:00

The Mavs win again. That makes the Eastern Conference road trip 6-0. 6 wins, no losses. Played some good teams, played some bad teams, all the games were on the road. That's quite a way to turn it around from that heartbreaking loss to Phoenix. But they did it, and they did it well.

As much as it seems the Warriors have the Mavs number, the Mavs REALLY have the Hornets number. As in the number 21. 21 straight victories over the Hornets of Oklahoma City/New Orleans. That's quite a few wins. The last time the Mavs lost to these jokers was back on Nov. 17, 1999. Back when they were the Charlotte Hornets. Oddly enough, the Hornets wore throwback Charlotte uniforms last night. Didn't help. It's also the current longest winning streak of any team against any team in ANY major sport. So, how's that for impressive?

How easy was this one? The Mavs had leads twice of 31 points in the fourth quarter and the Big 3 didn't play any of the fourth quarter. So yeah.

The Warrior Award (not Golden State style) goes to Nowitzki for everyone thinking he wasn't going to play this game due to having the flu. But he played it, he played for 23 minutes and got 15 points. Certainly not typical numbers, but I wasn't expecting his name to be in the box score. Hopefully he gets well soon. Josh Howard was the man last night, scoring 25 points (2/2 on 3's, and making 3/3 free throws) as well as snagging 10 boards. Jason Terry had 19 points, 7 assists, and once again had amazing shot selection. I hope he can keep this up. He is shooting very efficiently right now. Devin Harris was a little sluggish, but had 14 points.

For the Hornets, Chris Paul 2 points. That's right, all of 2 points on 1/10 shooting. Hilarious. Pargo had 23 points, but nobody was a real threat.

The Mavs shot 55% overall to the Hornets 42%. Mavs are still struggling getting to the line, but I'll imagine they will turn that up come playoff time. They need to get to the basket as almost every team, if not every team, this road trip has shot more free throws than the Mavs. When the Mavs get over 20 assists, I think they are undefeated or something this year. They got 22.

Dominating performance in what should have been one, even with Nowitzki at 77% health. Good stuff. Keep the Suns & Spurs away, let them fight it out, and we'll see what we have on the other end.