USA Soccer beats Spain??

Yeah, I was just as shocked as everyone else. I turned on the TV and saw the 1-0 score in the 50th minute and couldn't believe it. Then Clint Dempsey made it 2-0 and I was beside myself - was this really the U.S. national team handling the mighty Spaniards?

Next up for the Americans is powerhouse Brazil in the final of the Confederations Cup. To be honest, I don't care so much about that game at this point. The Americans showed the other day that they can contend in next summers' World Cup. They proved that they can hang with the big boys on any given day. So if they lose to Brazil, I don't think my opinion of U.S. soccer will diminish that much. That being said, if they can somehow defeat the Brazilians, I will be that much more energized about the United States' chances at the World Cup.

I gotta mention the U.S. Open because I haven't posted since then, but I was saddened to see Phil Mickelson come up short (again). Here's the biggest reason why:

At just about every hole, Phil waves to the crowd. He gives a thumbs up or slaps hands with spectators, showing his true appreciation for their support. Tiger Woods? I haven't ever seen him do that. Sure, maybe on the rare occasion he has waved to the crowd or done something of that nature. I'm not saying Tiger is a bad guy. I'm just saying that because of Phil's obvious appreciation it is much easier to root for him than it is Tiger or anyone else who refuses to acknowledge the fans.

I'm sick and tired of hearing about Manny Ramirez and all of his crap, so I'm not gonna mention anything about him playing four innings for the Dodgers Triple-A affiliate Albuquerque Isotopes yesterday in preparation for his July 3rd return. However, I will mention that the Albuquerque Isotopes have the greatest name in all of minor league baseball. What the hell is an Isotope anyway? Honestly I don't really care, I just think it sounds cool.

I leave you all with this clip of T.O. getting chewed out by some bimbo supermodel. Sure, it was probably all staged, but I still enjoyed it.

Keepin up to date

Quick update today - not alot has been going on, so I've been left to twiddle my thumbs and wait for somethin big to post about. Here's what's on tap for the next couple of days:

- My U.S. Open reactions/opinions/coverage

- Some thoughts on the U.S. national soccer team

- My thoughts on the Sammy Sosa allegations

In the mean time, here's something from video-blogger/insane lacrosse talent Brett Queener that you will find entertaining.

Sid the Man, Cristiano the Rich

Before I dive into my euphoria over the Penguins Stanley Cup title, let me first address the second HUGE deal pulled off by Real Madrid. Sure, they now have Cristiano Ronaldo, arguably the best soccer player in the world. Everyone by now knows that he was transferred for a record $131.6 million. But when I think of this transfer, one saying comes to mind - "don't hate the player, hate the game."

At first, I was mad at Ronaldo. I couldn't believe anyone could be worth that much money (I still can't). But now, after digesting this deal for a few days, I realize it is not his fault at all. Heck, he's not gonna see any of the $131.6 million (all of that is going to Manchester United). So where must I direct my angst and blame for a deal of this proportion?

Real Madrid. That's where. If they have this much money, shouldn't they be using it for something better than signing one single player? Shouldn't they do something to help the economy, or maybe develop their youth program, or possibly sign a couple defenders? (ESPN's Tommy Smyth informs me that their defense is quite porous). 

Ultimately, I'm upset with the spending by Real Madrid. It makes me angry that so many people and companies are struggling right now, and here's a soccer club shoveling out tons of money for one person. Some will say that this deal is just an indicator of how healthy the soccer world is financially, and I suppose that is true. But it still rubs me the wrong way. 

In other news, how 'bout those Penguins? I will sadly admit that I didn't sit on my couch at home and stare at the TV for the duration of Game 7, although I did manage to catch a good

 majority of it at two of my favorite bars in Rochester (Nathaniels and J.D. Oxfords - I highly recommend both).

Here was my scenario during the final five minutes of the game: 

-I'm sitting at Nathaniels. 

-I'm talking to a couple friends whom I haven't seen in quite some time. 

-I'm keeping one eye on the giant TV in back of the bar, which is showing the game.

-I have no idea what the conversation with my friends is about.

-I apologize for being anti-social, "I just really wanna see what's gonna happen in this game" I say.

-I can't help but wonder what happened to Sid in the second period - how severe is the injury?

-Detroit hits the post. I almost barf all over. 

-"JUST CLEAR THE PUCK" I think to myself as Detroit goes on an all out offensive onslaught during the final 3 minutes.

-Marc-Andre makes the save on Lindstrom. The clock strikes zero. I can exhale, and get back to conversing with friends instead of sitting on the edge of my seat about to puke. 

What was so indicative of the series was the reaction of the Penguins players when the clock hit all zeros. It almost seemed as if everyone took a split second to look at the clock, and didn't believe that time had really run out. They couldn't believe that they had completed the journey - that they beat the mighty Red Wings in Detroit, and actually won the Stanley Cup.

What a great series. What an evenly matched series. I'm gonna miss hockey over the next 4 months. 

Pens prevail, Lakers lose, Strasburg goes #1

The Pittsburgh Penguins extended the Stanley Cup final last night by beating the Detroit Red Wings 2-1. Sure, its just one victory, but after suffering a 5-0 beatdown in Game 5, the Penguins looked dead. Now, thanks to some courageous play and good coaching by Danny B (head coach Dan Bylsma, that is) the series comes down to a winner take all Game 7 on Friday night. 

I am provoked to say good coaching on Bylsma's part because of the re-introduction of Petr Sykora into the Penguin lineup for Game 6. Sykora had been absent since the beginning of the Washington series, and the Pens had been cruising without him. However, after the Game 5 inplosion, Pittsburgh needed a spark, or at the very least a change. The Sykora move provided this, and the Pens wound up winning Game 6. Now I'm not saying Sykora is the reason the Pen

s won last night; I'm merely saying that the mental impact of him being on the bench cannot be understated. If I were Jordan Staal, Sid the Kid, or any other Pens player, I would see Sykora on the bench and say "alright, we are not the team that sucked it up in Game 5." That little bit of motivation would play a big role in my mind, and I'm sure it had a factor on the other Pens players last night.

I'm not a huge fan of the NBA. The only entertaining part of the NBA playoffs for me this year has been Dwight Howard's impression of his head coach, Stan Van Gundy (who, by the way, is an alum of SUNY Brockport. Gotta give props to my fellow alumnus). Anyway, all I'm gonna say is that I'm rooting for Orlando. Kobe just kinda rubs me the wrong way, and I can't find myself rooting for him. He's won three titles already - he doesn't need anymore. I hope that the Magic can battle back and even the series tomorrow night. 

Finally, Steven Strasburg was selected by the Washington Nationals with the #1 overall pick in the MLB draft last night. Here are some quick facts about Strasburg: His fastball has been clocked at 103mph. He went 13-1 for San Diego State this past season, and had nearly 200 strikeouts in just over 100 innings pitched. His ERA this past season was 1.32 (don't quote me on that one - I don't remember the exact decimals).

Those are crazy numbers. What is even more crazy is the the contract he may be signing later this summer. Strasburg's agent, the infamous Scott Boras, is already hyping his client and building him up as one-of-a-kind. 

Mark Prior received $10.5 million in 2001, which is currently the highest rookie payout in history. Boras is believed to be looking for several times that amount.

Here is what bothers me: Strasburg has not proven anything in the big leagues. He has not thrown a pitch in Washington. Sure, he has a huge amount of talent. But he's not proven. Why pay a guy millions and millions of dollars if he could potentially end up as a total bust? 

Strasburg SEEMS to be the lowest-risk player to come about in some time. But still, I'm all for a rookie contract cap (not just for baseball, but for all sports). Set a limit as to the amount of money a rookie can make during his first full season in the pros. Then, if he turns out to be the real deal, either give him a new contract, or provide incentive clauses that will reward the player for good performances. It makes more sense than giving an unproven kid millions upon millions of dollars that could potentially be flushed right down the drain.

Thats all for now. Stay tuned.

Big Papi, Kaka, Favre and more

Lemme start today off by offering my two cents regarding the ongoing disappearing act of David Ortiz. The guy cant hit anything right now, has only 2 home runs on the year and at last check was barely slugging over .300 with a batting average of .198. Ahhh, it kills me to read those stats. But what hurts worse is to think that part of it is due to the absence of a certain fertility drug-using dreadlock-waving guy that is currently with the Los Angeles Dodgers (I refuse to say his name). He once protected Big Papi in the Sox lineup, but since his trade to the west coast, Papi's numbers have steadily been on the decline. 

Sure, there are many other factors playing into Ortiz's slump. Like..well...

Maybe he's going blind... 

Maybe he's going insane...

Or maybe Hank Steinbrenner has hired a hitman to poison Papi's water bottles!

Whatever the reason, one thing is for certain: without Jason Bay tearing it up this year, Ortiz would be in far worse shape. I can't help but root for Big Papi to turn things around ASAP. He's too young (33 years old) to be watching his career go down the drain. He has many good years of baseball left in him (or so I hope). So here is my ode to "The Nation" in hoping that Big Papi will discover what's missing sooner than later. 

In other news, Brazilian soccer superstar Kaka was traded 

from the Italian club AC Milan to Real Madrid in a record-breaking deal (the transfer fee exceeded $94 million, which surpassed a deal that sent Zidane from Juventus to Real Madrid in 2001). Once again, the sports world proves to be immune (or ignorant) to the tough global economic times. To be honest, the first time I ever heard the word "Kaka" was when my mom told me it was what her childhood friend used to say when she had to go to the bathroom. So now, instead of going number two, I guess I'll have to interpret "Kaka" as meaning soccer brilliance worth over $94.

Finally, I have a few final words for Brett Favre. GO AWAY. Go farm in Mississippi or something. I already feel bad for the Minnesota Viking players that have to constantly answer questions about you. Gah, I don't wanna spend anymore time talking about you.

Thats all for now. Stay tuned. 

New layout, New laptop, New life

Alright, so it has been a while since I last updated. But with a new look, a new computer, and a college degree, I'm ready to update this thing.

Lets start with Tiger. He's the man. What else is there to say? He comes from 4 back yesterday to win the Memorial and is now everyone's consensus pick to win the U.S. Open (first round begins a week from Thursday). I gotta give Woods credit, even though I'm not one of his biggest fans. He's got that killer closing instinct that Michael Jordan and so many other great athletes have had throughout history. 

The other big story of the weekend was Roger Federer winning the French Open for the first time. He now has 14 grand slam titles, which is tied with Pete Sampras for the most all-time. I was happy to see Roger win, even though his arch nemesis Rafael Nadal wasn't standing across the court in the final (mad props to Robin Soderling for making it to the final and disposing of Nadal along the way). Federer's window of opportunity to be one of the top two tennis players in the world is closing (he's not getting any younger), so it felt good to see him capture a title that had evaded him for so long. Not to mention he had to deal with this wack-job running onto the court midway through the match.

Here are some other tid-bits floating around inside my brain that I may update on in the coming days:

-Brett Favre won't go away

-I have watched a total of 45 seconds of the NBA finals

-The Pittsburgh Penguins have me on a roller coaster of emotion that may or may not crash and burn tomorrow night.

-I'm working on a new song entitled "Where have you gone, David Ortiz? A lonely (Sox) nation turns its eyes to you."

Thats all for now. Stay tuned.