The Playoff Picture

Look at it right now. It's ridiculous.

Four of the five teams in the Atlantic Division are in it. I dislike these teams. With a passion. They are the enemies of the New Jersey Devils and because the Islanders lost back-to-back games to the Rangers, the Rangers are now at the #8 slot, when they should have been knocked out of the playoffs a long time ago. The Islanders are at #7 and the Penguins, who are going to remain in the playoffs, are currently at #5.

If it can narrow itself down to just the Pens and the Devils, that would be much better. And it could happen. Carolina and Toronto have the same number of points as the Rangers and no doubt will finish the year on a better note. So the Rangers are probably out. The Islanders are harder to figure out and have gotten better lately, so they might be in. That would be sad.

Another big thing to look out for is Buffalo. They are at 93 and the Devils just joined the 90-club last night. If the Minnesota Wild beat them tonight and the Devils beat them tomorrow night, only 1 point will separate the teams, making the battle for the #1 spot that much more interesting. It's a battle the Devils would like to win, considering they will face, as it stands right now, the winner of Tampa Bay/Atlanta and those teams have had their way with the Devils this year. Not to mention the first round opponent Islanders wouldn't be all that easy either. It would be good for them to get the #1 spot, but Buffalo is dang good. If the Wild take care of them tonight, which will be very difficult, the Devils have a great shot tomorrow.

Devils 4, Penguins 3 (SO)

Goals:
First Period: Evgeni Malkin, Penguins (PPG) (Recchi, Crosby) Second Period: Andy Greene, Devils (PPG) (Elias, Rafalski) (FIRST CAREER GOAL)
Sergei Brylin, Devils (Oduya, Gomez)
Third Period: Sergei Gonchar, Penguins (Short) (Staal)
Travis Zajac, Devils (Langenbrunner, Parise)
Michel Ouellet, Penguins (Malkin)

Shots on Goal: 39-24 Devils

Penalties: Devils - 8 minutes, Penguins - 10 minutes

Hate to give the Penguins a point, but better to take 2 of them yourself and add an extra point between the teams in the standings.

Scrappy, hard-fought game. Emotion was running high in the closing moments of the thid period and overtime. Nice to see these two developing some hatred for each other.

Patrik Elias scores the only goal of the shootout as Brodeur shuts out the high-flying Penguins. Currently from Pittsburgh, but that's about to change it seems.

As much as this game pissed me off at times, it was pretty dang exciting. Devils should have won it in regulation, but a costly error allowed the Pens to tie it up. It's easy to get upset about allowing a shorthanded goal, but Pittsburgh is one of the best at scoring them. Lots of flashy talent.

But like I said, although it got erased and I had to start typing all over again, if you throw enough pucks at Fleury, he is susceptible to let some of those in. For all their offensive superpower, they have no reliable goaltending and it was nice to see the Devils destroy the Pens on shots on goal, shooting a lot and allowing single digits in every period. Well done. Not that the Devils were without their flaws, because they had some, but they were playing with Gionta (get well soon, little guy!) and Colin White (surprise!) but still played a pretty decent game.

Nice to see Martin Brodeur get to 40 wins this year. What a workhorse. Now that the winning is back in order, it's time to win and not let the other team get a point.

Reds 1, Yankees 1 (10) -- Tigers 9, Reds 7

The Reds remained undefeated, against one of the better teams in the league, Spring Training or not. HUGE game by Bobby Livingston, starting and pitching the first 3 innings and allowing 5 hits, but no runs and he even struck out a guy. Very solid outing which is a very big deal for him if he wants to make the team. He mowed down some of the best hitters in the game. Very impressive. The Lizard was also impressive, although allowing the only run.

Reds hitters at the top of the order were 1/12, and Jeff Conine was 2/3. Go figure that out. Votto got the RBI.

----

And then the Reds finally lose. It had to happen, but does that make these tears any more manageable? I argue not, good sir.

Harang gets the loss, and it was well deserved. He sucked it up big time. 3 innings, 7 hits, 4 earned runs, and 2 homers. He did strike out one, though, so I guess he makes the team after all. Nobody else after him pitched all that well, except Billy Bray locked up the ninth inning with 2 K's. I like that kid and sadly, he will be better than Majew, but that's easy these days. He could be something special.

Adam Dunn finally got a homer, but Bubba Crosby one-upped him getting a 3-RBI homer of his own. Hamilton and Gil got triples. Wooo!! I'm all aboard the Hamilton train, and not really because of drugs. But he is playing dang well. He wants it so bad and has earned it as far as I can tell. Let's hope so, because you know the Reds brass is keeping him anyway.

Mock Draft

Yahoo! Rd. 3 says the smart money remains on JaMarcus Russell:

Yet to make a move on adding a new quarterback, although dealing disgruntled former All-Pro wide receiver Randy Moss could open the door for a late move by Calvin Johnson to the top spot. Let's face it: How likely are the Raiders to pass on a 4.3 (40-yard dash) wide receiver with that kind of size and production if quarterback isn't the most pressing need? They still could make a move for a signal caller, especially if Houston's David Carr becomes available.

This is one of the more confusing draft takes thus far. Is he advocating for Russell, as it says, or is he advocating for Johnson, which he seems to be? Hmm.....

Mavericks 102, Nets 89

Here we go again.

Same old story, right? Sort of. It was much closer in the fourth quarter than you are led to believe. Things really weren't decided until about 3 minutes left in the game. The Nets kept it close throughout, and I thought Mikki Moore in particular was very impressive. He got 20 points and his hustle was evident all night. Carter got his, you knew he would. I think I say that about every superstar, but that's the great thing about the Mavs. They don't attempt to clamp down on the superstars, to draw all their energy on stopping one guy. They let the star get his, and figure out other ways to win. Hey, they've won 16 straight using that strategy, so let's not knock it.

The night, though, belonged to Jason Terry. He led the way for the Mavs with 24 points. And not just that, but they were timely shots. They were well thought out and just smart plays. Fun to see. Nowitzki had 22 points and 11 rebounds, accumulating yet another double-double. The other one, Josh Howard, was not as evident, only scoring 10. Four other plays either matched or exceeded Howard's amount (Dampier, Buckner, Stackhouse, Harris), so it was clear that the team was spreading the ball around. Dampier in particular was EVERYWHERE tonight, getting 12 points and 14 rebounds. We need more of this from the guy, he definitely helped keep the edge tonight and made the tough moments of the fourth quarter more manageable. He was the star in that regard, while Terry was the more flamboyant superstar of the night.

Good game and now some time off.

P.S. Is anybody watching the Spurs? They've won 10 straight. Yikes.

Reds 3, Rays 1

Reds win again. The only undefeated team as the Yankees lost. Pretty cool.

NOTABLE THINGS

Pitching: Eric Milton did much better today, going 3 innings allowing 2 hits and an earned run. He even struck a guy out, go figure. Belisle pitched the next 3 innings, allowing 4 hits and a walk, but picking up the win. Shackelford pitched a strong 7th and Santos pitched the final 2 for the save, only allowing 1 hit.

Hitting: Freel led off and was 0-2, but scored a run when he got beaned by Glover. All in all, the offense really slowed down today, as you can see by the fact they didn't score 33,000 runs but only 3. Hatteberg is showing the same consistency that allowed him to almost beat out Aurilia for the best hitter on the team last year. Hopefully that stays, as he goes 2/3. Adam Dunn was also 2/3 and got the only RBI on the day. Conine on his first day went 0/2 with 2 K's. Yuck. Don't need to see that guy. Only 8 hits for the team today, and that's depressing considering the great numbers they've given us lately. Denorfia in particular worries me with his struggles. But still the victory.

Fielding & such: Error was on Hatteberg for dropping a pop fly. That dang guy. Can't blame him though, I did the same thing in Bam Bam ball. Two double plays were turned.

Raiders add Jeremy Newberry

More like Oldberry.

Who knows, could be a good move. And while you have teams like Miami, Tampa Bay, and Denver going ABSOLUTELY CRAZY right now with all the moves they are making, this is the first legitimate move the Raiders have made so far. It's not a big deal. It was clear our offensive line was horrendous, and so we signed a free agent lineman to come in and hopefully help us out. Not sure if he's going to play center or not, because we have Grove for that. Unless Grove is going to guard. Hard to figure out what is going on. To Newberry's credit, he wanted to stay close (being with San Fran) and he had a genuine desire to play for Oakland. So we'll give him a shot, hopefully he can put that determination into hard work and help our younger guys get some nasty streaks.

"In researching and evaluating Jeremy's background and history, it became obvious that he is a perfect fit for the Raiders right now," Raiders coach Lane Kiffin said. "He is an intense competitor and definitely understands what being a team player is all about."

This is what Lane Kiffin said. But is this what Lane Kiffin believes? Sounds like Al Davis to me. Hopefully Kiffin is behind it.

Flyers 5, Devils 4 (OT)

Goals:
First Period: Zach Parise, Devils (Gomez, Gionta)
Second Period: Geoff Sanderson, Flyers (Umberger)
Patrik Elias, Devils (Gomez)
Sami Kapanen, Flyers (PPG) (Pitkanen, Carter)
Sergei Brylin, Devils (Elias, Oduya)
Mike Richards, Flyers (Kapanen, Afanasenkov)
Scottie Upshall, Flyers (Gagne)

Third Period: Brad Lukowich, Devils (Gomez, Elias)

Overtime: Simon Gagne, Flyers (Jones, Richards)

Shots on Goal: 44-41 Flyers

Penalties: Devils - 8 minutes, Flyers - 6 minutes


--FIRST PERIOD--

I don't know why, but this game is boring me. It shouldn't, but it is. Biron, goaltender of the Flyers? Flyers without Forsberg? Devils losing two bad games? Maybe something will happen. AS SOON AS I TYPE IT, Zach Parise scores! He is the man, but where has he been lately? The second line has been pretty quiet, but this is as good a game as any to get back on track, even though the assists were by first-liners, oddly enough. Good to get an early goal, it's been a while. Parise continues to lead the charge. Any word on his brother's progress? That would be interesting to know, just a sidenote there. Also, feel free to get back to me about what the Vs. crew said about Cam Janssen. There is clearly a difference for the Devils in terms of energy and skating tonight though, that much is evident early on. Flyers aren't doing a whole lot, but they have started to pick up the intensity. The Devils are lapsing defensively quite a bit, not sure where that's coming from. It forced Oduya to hold as there was a breakdown on the defensive side, and now the Flyers get the first power play of the night. Brodeur has been making some pretty sweet saves, so he's got his A-game going tonight. Nice to know. The penalty kill was successful, but dangerous. It gave the Flyers the edge they needed as they unloaded on Brodeur for a while. There were plenty of tense moments, but Marty has been up to the challenge so far. Got to do better taking care of that dang puck. Come on now. Not much changes the rest of the way, the Devils don't get anymore shots on goal and the Flyers get a bunch more. Fifteen as it stands right now, and that doesn't count the many many shots that didn't get on goal but were close. Lots of shots in general being launched by the Flyers, but Brodeur is up to the task. He smells 40 wins and he wants it in the worst way. He will not be denied. Time for the defensemen and wingers and centers to pick it up and play with the same determination. Flyers owned this period after the Devils were strong early.

--SECOND PERIOD--

Tom Chorske sums up all the points that I find relevant in how the Devils would be able to keep and build upon their lead. Win faceoffs, contain defense, get some SHOTS on goal. The usual stuff. I just thought he covered it very well. The bad play for the Devils defense continues as the Flyers score IMMEDIATELY after the start of the period. What a joke. Brodeur can't do it all. It's an uphill battle now. Not much going on as the Flyers control the play and the Devils have their moments. It's pretty even, but it's as if when I typed earlier about how the Devils look vastly different and are skating with urgency, they stopped right after that. They still don't have it right now. The Devils have more shots on goal, but still not the better team. An uneventful power play is nothing to get excited about, but the hot topic appears to be that Brian Gionta is not playing anymore. Hope it's not a big deal, we've already missed him enough. Devils are now down a man, hopefully they can keep things tied up or maybe get a shorthanded goal, though those are rare for this team outside of John Madden. Whew, back-to-back penalty kills were successful, and I do mean back-to-back. Mere seconds separating the two penalties. I wouldn't say undisciplined penalties, they happened due to being out of position and not skating well. Well, hopefully the two kills will build some momentum. Consider momentum built!!!! Patrik Elias takes it upon himself to be the captain, to be one of the first-liners and actually act like it. He figured the other two guys got a point, so he might as well. Score!! Gomez gets another assist and it gives the Devils some breathing room. Not the better team, but I'll take the better score. Keep up the pressure, don't stop now. Another penalty on New Jersey, and this time not as lucky as the Flyers score. It's tied up again, but there's been no doubt who's had the mojo. What is with this team? Well, maybe something better than I thought. Lots of scoring this period, as Elias puts another one in the back of the net. Score!!! Goal is under review, and it stands, but it's given to Brylin and Elias registers an assist. Freakin' A, the scoring never stops. The Flyers have tied it up again, that didn't take long at all. This is messed up in the worst way. It's not open ice action, but the scoring seems like it. Well, maybe it is. It just feels like a 1-1 game, but that's not been the case this period. The Devils have been opportunistic or just plain lucky, the Flyers look like they know what they're doing when they're scoring. Interesting. Holy balls, the Flyers score again. Time to put Clemmy in there.

--THIRD PERIOD--

The sloppy defense continues. Hard to understand, but it's not like any team is exempt from a slump. The Devils have started to pick things up, and they will need to keep the pressure on. Can't worry too much about the defense, it's simply not there. Might as well put the energy into offense and the Devils are getting some good chances, it's just not all adding up. This is not how the Devils play hockey. You feel like if they can get even a point out of this win, it will have been a victory. I'm splitting my attention between this game and the Sharks/Wild game. Their game is one of the most exciting 0-0 games I've seen in a long time. But yes, Go Devils(!) and all that. Devils had a golden power play opportunity but Langenbrunner gets flat-out ROBBED. Dang, yo. As an aside, is Rasmussen worth anything? Eh, he'll probably end up scoring the tying or winning goal. The Devils keep trying, narrowing the shots on goal, both teams getting a lot of pucks thrown at the net. It's Brad Lukowich, score!!! Unlikely hero, but a hero as it stands right now. Just five minutes left, can't allow another goal. Not really worth taking unnecessary chances, either. Time to play conservatively. The Devils close out the third period playing pretty well, aided greatly by a bad penalty call on the Flyers. They didn't score, but they played well, and thankfully Carter missed a wide open net at the end of the game. Looks like I got my wish, the Devils are able to take a point with them. Two points? Maybe too much to ask for? We'll see.

Devils lose in overtime.

Nowitzki "Obviously" Watch

"Obviously, we're using it to improve and get better and get great position for the playoffs..."

Lamont Jordan to stay

With Oakland.

Not sure what to think. I didn't expect him to leave the team, but I really didn't expect him to man up and cut down on his roster bonus either. He still has the potential to be a decent running back, but last year was lame and the year before that not great but he got 1000 yards. Just goes to show you how 1000 isn't the same number that it used to be. I still think he could be useful as a third-down back, he's just not a feature back as the Jets rightfully proved and as the Raiders somewhat proved as well. Michael Bush? Bring him on.

Cam Janssen on Vs.?

Hey, anybody watch the Rangers/Islanders game? Can I get some help here?

I went to work out at the YMCA and I was running the treadmill. They have these 12-inch TV's in a row up on the ceiling and I could barely make out the Rangers/Islanders game. In one of the intermissions, the panel discussion was on Cam Jannsen, but the TV was muted and I couldn't read the captions.

Anybody catch the general drift among the experts? Thanks.

Shin splints

The reason why Josh Hamilton couldn't go 8 for 8 today.

The Identity of the Reds

It's Spring Training. I call it meaningless, you all call it meaningless, the world screams "Meaningless!" in unison, and then the commercial is over.

But, to be honest, it's not entirely meaningless. Not for the guys making the team, not for the guys rehabbing injuries, not for the youngsters trying to show their skills, not for the old-timers going to prove they have enough left in the tank, not for the manager to see what his problem spots and his strengths are. There is more meaning here than you realize, it's the results that don't amount to anything.

For right now, you have the Reds as you've known them. Their offense has carried them to 5 wins and 0 losses. Their pitching has been suspect and their defense unamazing, though better.

This is in direct contrast to what Narron and Krivsky are all about this year. They wish to sacrifice offense for pitching and defense, they've said it only so many times before you realize that they mean it. What they've been getting on the field is not quite the opposite, but not what they imagined. This gives me more optimism as I look forward to the season.

I know, I know. I am optimistic about the Reds because they are scoring all these dang runs and they are undefeated and that's stupid and I am stupid for doing so. Probably. But it gives me optimism that I wouldn't have had if they were 0-5 and were having problems scoring runs. That's not the case. I think the offense that we all think is going to be missing from this year's team is still around. It won't be anywhere near as good as we have seen thus far, but it will be there. I hope it will be more opportunistic and daring, but I think it will be there. The pitching is still of concern, and these spring training games are proving some of that. There is a lot of work that needs to be done, but the guys in the middle and late innings and doing pretty well so far. They are taking care of business. Our defense is not where anyone wants it, but we know it will be better up the middle because Gonzalez is playing with Phillips and EdE can't be as bad as he has been the past couple of years. If we keep Conine out (stay bad, back!) and can platoon Hatteberg with Bellhorn instead and keep the outfielders young and fast and offensively solid as well as defensively solid, this team could be pretty dang good.

It doesn't take much to write this as the Reds stand atop the Grapefruit League standings. I mean, come on, grapefruits? That's pretty lame. But they do stand up there, and it's not sheer randomness, they are playing well. None of it really translates into seasonal success, but don't you at least feel better that your team is playing well? I do.

While their current identity may not be what Narron and Krivsky visualized, it's working right now. I think it's more important to accentuate the positives and try and fix the mistakes, rather than turning a team in a direction that it's not equipped to turn.

Reds 9, Phillies 8

As I promise not to cover Spring Training, I find myself doing it. Not a whole lot else to do 'round here.

NOTABLE THINGS

Pitching: Brian Meadows picked up the win, and John Ennis got the loss and a blown save. Paul Wilson started and was shaky at best. 2.1/3 innings, 7 hits, 3 walks, 3 K's, 5 earned runs. Saarloos took over for the final out of the third and pitched another two, allowing 5 hits (including a homer by Carlos Ruiz) and 2 earned runs. Only 1 more run (not earned) would be allowed by the rest of the pitching staff as Bray, Stanton, Meadows, and Ligtenberg went an inning each and looked strong, Bray in particular. Not sure what this means for Wilson. Not much yet, but certainly not a good sign after everyone was so high on him. Saarloos wasn't impressive either, as he had 3 groundball outs but 3 flyouts. I thought this guy was going to keep his pitches down. Ah well, but he's got time. What was impressive was he inherited a bad inning from Wilson and didn't let the guys score.

Hitting: Another great day in this regard. You just knew somebody would hit a 2-run homer as that's how things have gone. Well, Phillips led off and was the 2/4 with the aforementioned 2-run homer, his third so far. Hamilton only had two plate appearances, but he made the most of them by hitting a single and taking a walk. Jerry Gil did a good job as his backup, going 2/3 with a homer that tied it up in the 8th inning. Dunn had a 2-RBI single. Denorfia continues to struggle, as does Norris Hopper, making the rise of stardom to Josh Hamilton that much more likely. Chad Moeller, the man whom no one wishes to see behind the plate, got the game-winning RBI on a well-executed suicide squeeze. Nice way to win the game, a return to "small ball" if you will.

Fielding & such: Crosby stole his first base, as I'm assuming there will be more. Encarnacion had a bad throw.

Bruins 4, Devils 1

Goals:
First Period: Aaron Ward, Bruins (Bochenski, Kessel)
Second Period: Marco Sturm, Bruins (SH) (Bergeron)
Third Period: Mike Rupp, DEVILS (Gionta, Martin)
Brandon Bochenski, Bruins (Kessel, Chistov)

Shots on Goal: 29-27 Bruins

Penalties: Devils - 6 minutes, Bruins - 8 minutes


--FIRST PERIOD--

Devils facing Joey MacDonald in goal tonight. Not sure who the heck that is, but apparently he was just acquired from the Red Wings. Testing him early would be a good idea. Devils have the Chara-killer, Brian Gionta, back tonight. About dang time. This can only help. Devils start out by getting good pressure early, but to no avail and even worse, Paul Martin slashes early to give the Bruins an opportunity right away. Not a big deal, though as the Bruins didn't register a shot on goal with the Devils clamping down on the penalty kill. The Devils don't seem all that motivated ore energized, but they are probably just playing that patient style that pisses everyone off, waiting for opportunities. To their credit, the Bruins don't look much better either. It doesn't seem like they pose much of a threat, but we'll see. A lot of back-and-forth action, with the Devils mostly controlling the flow of the game. The Bruins keep the puck in the Devils zone for quite a while, moving it around and eventually scoring as the captain Aaron Ward throws the puck at Brodeur and it gets in. Disappointing, but I'm not too concerned as it seems the Devils are playing with confidence. That was just not enough pressure in the defensive zone, not enough urgency or collapse on the puck. No time to fret. Ever since the goal, the Bruins have definitely taken the momentum in the period. The action was fairly even, but Boston has the advantage right now. The Devils are somewhat slow to react, but have mounted a couple chances. Nothing too serious, however. Would be good to see some offensive pressure, or at least hanging on to the puck for a while. They haven't had a chance to really set up an offensive scheme. The only highlight for New Jersey was Madden breaking in on MacDonald, but he shot it too high. He was able to draw a hooking call, though. The Bruins were sufficient in killing it off, playing the kill pretty well. It was pretty clear that Boston won the first period, not only in the score but in the general flow of the game. They had twice as many shots on goal, and pretty much every faceoff win. I'll say the Devils will come out strong in the second.

--SECOND PERIOD--

Couldn't be more wrong, as Sturm scores right away on a shorthanded goal. Sickening. The Devils worse than flat right now. Lack of motivation, lack of determination, lack of offense, lack of execution, lack of physicality. LAX. Not much to get excited about. It's as if the Devils, knowing they are good, expect to win. And by expecting to win, they just play with the attitude that they'll win, so why try all that hard? Well, maybe that's too harsh. They have played well all year and that's a pretty big rip. I'm just saying that's how it appears for THIS GAME, it's not a syndrome or anything like that. I'm just getting that vibe as it stands right now, and they are not attempting to prove that notion wrong whatsoever. They are playing like it should be given to them and are not attacking in any way. Devils start picking up the tempo about halfway through, getting some good shots on MacDonald, but not screening well and allowing Joey to see the shots pretty much all the way through. At least something positive is happening. Still turning over the puck and not making sharp passes. If you're MacDonald, you're glad the Devils are not shooting all that much, obviously. But hopefully by picking up the offense, considering it's late, maybe that will throw him off a little bit. We can only hope. Another power play goes awry and the Devils pick up only 2 more shots the final 6 minutes or so. Down by 2 goals with one period left to play - that's not the Devils game. Hard to believe they can come back, but I wouldn't count them out just yet. Their play is attempting to prove me otherwise. Boston is clearly the better team tonight.

--THIRD PERIOD--

The Devils start with some urgency and Parise draws an early penalty. The power play is the best it's been all night with plenty of shots. Problem is the shots aren't on goal, they are all over the place. Not much time to figure things out, but it's not time to panic yet. Just keep firing. As the power play just expires, Paul Martin fires a shot on goal, Gionta tips it, MacDonald saves it, rebound goes right to Mike Rupp who buries it in the empty net. Goal! So basically a power play goal, but it won't stand as one. You can expect the Devils to turn up the heat now. Haha. Get it? If not, you should check your IQ, because it's an easy one to understand. At least MacDonald's shutout bid is history. That would have been embarassing. Bruins still don't have a shot on goal. Good chunk of time left to get another one. We shall see. Sure enough, as soon as something goes right for the Devils, it's back to going wrong as the Bruins score right afterwards and then Jamie Langenbrunner high sticks and draws blood, so he has to sit for 4 minutes. The Devils killed it off, but they're down by 2 goals with not much time left. It's just not their night tonight. Brodeur is pulled and the Bruins throw one in the empty net. It was evident that the Bruins were the better team tonight, but I think the Devils could have been. They didn't seem into it at all, but give the Bruins credit for their solid defensive play tonight. Big loss for the Devils. They better figure things out. On the quick.

Reds 10, Pirates 4

Reds are 4-0 in Spring Training games. Or 5-0, if you count the B Team's 5-0 win today.

NOTABLE THINGS

Pitching: Homer Bailey has an ERA of 13.50. He's off the team. 2 innings, 3 hits, 3 earned runs, 1 walk, 1 K, 2 wild pitches. Eh......Coffey got the win, striking out 2 in his inning. Tom Shearn pitched the final 2 innings, 4 hits, 1 earned run, 1 walk, 2 K's.

Hitting: Josh Hamilton continues to be THE MAN, as he goes 2/3 today with a run scored and an RBI. He's hitting .533. Crosby was 0/3 with a K, but scored twice. ??? Makes limited sense. Hatteberg had another 2-run homer. Janish keeps K'ing it up. Joey Votto had a 2-run blast. Bellhorn has been smart, taking a lot of walks thus far in the year. Denorfia was 3/5 and poor Jeff Keppinger who goes in for the pinch hit and instead takes a pinch shot in the body by the pitcher from Pittsburgh. He's out for a while.

Fielding & such: No errors today, great job. There was a passed ball by Moeller, but Bailey was wild all the way around. Castro had an "SF." Anybody know what that means? Somebody help me out here. Lots of guys left on base again today, many in scoring position. Hard to complain about offense, though.

Mavericks 103, Magic 98

The last time I didn't start with "Mavericks" on the title, that was 15 games ago. 15 straight wins. 50-9. Ridiculous? You be the judge, but only if the answer is yes.

Big 3: Jason Terry led the charge, with 29 points, as well as an astounding 15 points. He was plain aggressive. He was back to his playoff form last year when he went crazy. He was just all over the place, playing a great game. Granted, the guys had to hit their shots for him to get an assist, but he was passing and stroking it well tonight. Nowitzki had his: 24 points and 9 rebounds. Josh Howard rounding out things with 21 points.

For the Magic, you assume Dwight Howard will be the stud and he was, getting 25 and 10. That's points and rebounds.

Nice to know the Mavs can win a gut check game, or back-to-back gut check teams against two good teams from the East. Granted, they beat them both on their home floor, but they played fourth quarters very well against both teams and managed to come out with a lead. This is huge for the playoffs as they are clearly the team to beat and continue to prove so every night.

The retro jerseys looked nice for Orlando, but it just didn't help them.

Maple Leafs 4, Devils 3 (Shootout)

Blah blah, there was a game, blah blah CAM JANSSEN IS T3H 3VIL MAN!!!!

Not that I'm arguing for Cam's behalf. I didn't see the hit, nobody liked the hit, and I can't condone a late hit on a guy who is completely unaware that it's coming. Cam got his 3 game suspension and thousands-buck fine. It works out. Everyone is flipping out about it, because it was bad I'm sure. I can't help but think some of it is due to anti-Devils bias, though. It seems a little too thick, a little too vibrant and passionate and maybe overdone. I don't think the Devils needed any more ammunition, Mr. Janssen. Thanks anyway.

As far as the actual game goes, it was pretty interesting. People told me to beware the Maple Leafs, but I said to them, "Maple Leafs?" I mean, you're talking about the least intimidating mascot of all-time, right? And they punched me. Hard.

They scored 3 goals. And then 3 goals in the shootout. To have them get 4 goals overall. That makes sense, right? Maybe, maybe not. The Devils also got 3 goals. And 2 goals in the shootout. To end up with 3 goals.

Brodeur was doing fine with shootouts until this game. He let in every goal. Every stinkin' one. The Devils had this game, then allowed a collapse and gave away 2 points. At least they hung on to get 1 of them back. The Devils have to play well. It's crunch time. The Penguins are not going away, Tampa Bay is crazy right now, Buffalo keeps winning. The East is going wild, and so is the West, which makes things pretty flippin' exciting.

Get back to winning, fellas.

P.S. How was Marty the second star of the game?

Reds gone CRAZY

What has happened since I stopped paying attention to meaningless spring training baseball games? I've missed THE CRAZINESS, that's what. The Reds swept the Twins in their weekend series with scores of 5-2 and 14-1.

That's FOURTEEN. Runs, not hits. Hits were 25, get real.

First up was Reds 5, Twins 2.

Notable things - Pitching: Lohse sucked it up, and hit Torii Hunter in the head. Didn't last an inning. Brian Meadows cleaned up his junk, finishing the first and pitching the second, only allowing a run. Stanton was fine, Bray was fine, Belisle was a little rusty but got the win, The Lizard was nice, and Kershner walked one but got the save.

Notable things - Hitting: Hopper was not a good leadoff, going 0-for-3. Bubba Crosby had a 2-RBI hit, so maybe he makes the team after all. Votto (single, double) and Encarnacion (single, homer) were the stars of the night, and Moeller, yes, Chad Moeller had an RBI!

Notable things - Fielding & Such: Freel has a competitor in Bellhorn for caught stealing. They both have 1 as it stands. Machado made the error for the Reds.

Second up was Reds 14, Twins 1.

Notable things - Pitching: Starters were winners and losers tonight as Harang got the win and Bonser got the loss. Harang was alright, striking out two in 2, and allowing 5 hits and an earned run. Bonser gave up 3, including a 2-run homer to Hatteberg. Bobby Livingston followed and pitched the same 2 innings (well, they were different) and struck out the same numbe of 2 guys, but allowed only one hit. So he is the new #1 starter, ladies & gents! Victor Santos followed, doing almost the same thing, but striking out one fewer. Ligtenberg went the next two and struck out one, and Shackelford was on for the save (hey, the Reds could give up 12-13 runs in the ninth) and walked one and got the heck outta there.

Notable things - Hitting: Where to begin? Probably with Josh Hamilton, the kid that will probably make the team. And rightfully so, thankfully as he went 3-for-4 today (2 dubs) with a run scored. No ribbies, though. Freel, the true leadoff man, went 2/3 and scored. Hatteberg homered and went 2/2. Crosby was 2/3, Phillips the same (with a homer) and Paul Janish was 3/3 with 2 RBI's. The Reds stranded SEVENTEEN baserunners. Holy wow.

Notable things - Fielding & such: Error on Joey Votto tonight. Not the prospect you thought he'd be? He'll be riding the doghouse for weeks now. Right? I mean, because Narron hates fielding errors, right? And he's done everything in his power to correct them, yeah? Come on.

GO REDS (even in meaningless games)

Raiders in free agency

HUGE goings-on today, primarily just because Tampa Bay is emulating Oakland (which I've said before) but doubling up on them as they acquired TWO of the top veteran QB's in landing Jeff Garcia and trading for Jake Plummer. The deal with Plummer is that he may retire. If not, the Bucs have Plummer, Garcia, and Simms. Ridiculous. I mean, that's all it is.

The Raiders did not do much except cut Tyrone Poole and restructure the contract of Barry Sims. The Sims thing had to be done, and I'm glad it was. I'm glad he was man enough to get it done, he must see some light at the end of the tunnel. Poole was a true vet, but didn't do a whole lot for us. That's how it goes in this business. Langston Walker was lost to free agency today, and not too many people cried about it. Just because of the porous offensive line last year, though I think Walker could be (and has been) good at times. We'll miss his blocked kicks, that's for sure.