Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Sunday, June 12, 2011
CHAMPS!
The Dallas Mavericks are now NBA Champions. Sunday night the Mavs finished off the Heat for a 105-95 victory. There are no words to really express the emotions screaming though Dallas fans right now. To me this is a very emotional win. I want to cry right now. Tears of joy. Its been a long awaited sweet redemption. Im proud to live in Dallas and Im proud to be a Dallas Mavericks fan!
Bring home that trophy safely Mavs! We are all so proud of you guys and look forward to throwing you guys a HUGE welcome home party. See you soon. :)
Bring home that trophy safely Mavs! We are all so proud of you guys and look forward to throwing you guys a HUGE welcome home party. See you soon. :)
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Sports quote of the day.
"Coaching is nothing more than eliminating mistakes mistakes before you get fired." -Lou Holtz
Lou Holz was known for his tenure at Notre Dame as the head football coach who turned the failing program around starting in 1986 and won a National Championship two years later.
Premier pitching
In this day in age, it is no longer about the combustable bat that breaks through with 60 plus homeruns a season. The game has evolved and will be the year of the pitcher, at least for the time being, for years to come. Sure there will always be big bats bringing big results to the plate, but with out those dominating pitchers backing up those bats there won't be any sort of playoffs or World Series for teams to look forward to.
If the Texas Rangers want another shot at the World Series this season they must rely on their pitching to step up its game, in which for the most part it has. At the beginning of the season who knew that Alexi Ogando would be the complete force that he has been. With a second season for C.J. Wilson as the ace, you expect to see premier pitching. For the most part, both pitchers haven't been anything less than spectacular. Both Wilson (3.03 ERA) and Ogando rank amongst the top 25 pitchers sitting with Wilson sitting at a shiny 12 and Ogando (2.10 ERA) with a pretty little number two next to his, resulting from an undefeated performance thus far. This is the type of pitching that hypes World Series contender next to a teams name.
Suggesting Ogando holds true to his numbers and keeps the opposing batting lineup unraveling at the plate, then the Texas Rangers shouldn't have any hesitation in moving Ogando up to at least the number two spot, no offense to Colby Lewis because I have much respect for what he does for this team. But this is about premier pitching and so far both Wilson and Ogando are the two best pitchers on this team. They deserve the two top spots, granted Wilson is already the head honcho.
With Cliff Lee gone, this team needs a bonafide second starter to back up Wilsons performance. Ogando fits the bill, followed by Mr. Lewis, Derek Holland (who has matured into a great performer and starter) and then Matt Harrison, who I feel like has the most to prove out of this rotation when Tommy Hunter returns from the DL.
C.J. has defined the leadership for this rotation. He has come out and pounded the strike zone to lead the team in strikeouts with 82. He sets the example for the rest of the pitchers and applies what he learned from former Ranger Cliff Lee. The movement from his pitches has increased greatly from last season to allow him to fool even the best of hitters. Wilson is sitting at a 3.03 ERA right now and with one more great performance from the mound, could be sitting below three in the coveted 2.0 ERA range.
Regardless of the occasional shaky inning, these are the two dominant types of pitchers any team would love to have in their rotation. So far they are the glue, along with Holland, thats holding this team together. Behind their pitching outings, the bats of Cruz, Hamilton, Beltre, Young, Kinsler, Moreland, Napoli, Andrus, Chaves, Ghentry, and whoever else im missing can thrive. Behind this pitchers the Texas Rangers can start raking in the wins and be one step closer to their post season endeavors.
Saturday, June 4, 2011
From rags to riches.
It wasn't long after the Dallas Mavericks secured the third seed in the West that sports analysts and fans dismissed their presence in the NBA playoffs as any kind of lingering threat. Jokes were made and even other NBA teams were already beating the media to the punch by personally requesting the Mavs as their first opponent (see first round exiters, the Denver Nuggets). Dallas was ridiculed and tormented of their past mistakes. It was a daily and constant reminder of what had been a thorn in the Mavericks side for five LONG years. From painstaking first round exits year after year to the long lasting burden of heartbreaking '06 Finals defeat, the Dallas Mavericks have been the laughing stock of the NBA, even with their multiple 50 plus win seasons.
With the first round against the Portland Trailblazers, it was obvious whom the favorite was to advance to the Western Semi-Conference Finals. But then something happened. In game four, it looked as if the Dallas Mavericks were finally going to do something that hadn't been done in awhile. Up 18 points through three quarters, the Mavs suffered a historic melt down and watched as Portland came back to win a much needed 84-82 victory. Instantly Dallas was back to their old self’s. Fans and players alike resorted to the typical name calling like chokers and being soft. This was a defining moment for the Dallas Mavericks. This would outline a historic path to what could possibly be the most heartfelt playoff/finals run in Dallas history. Instead of crumbling under their own grief and misery, the Mavs came back to Dallas and put their game to play to win game five (93-82) and game six (103-96). The Dallas Mavericks were in the Western Semi-Conference Finals.
Round two was just as unforgiving going into as the first. The LA Lakers defeated the New Orleans Hornets to gain their automatic invitation into the Semi-Finals. The Mavs now had a new threat to handle. As before the clear underdogs were the Mavs, with every sports analyst choosing the defending National Champs to advance to the Finals. Three quarters through and it looked as if Dallas would grant those analysts their wishes. But then, once again, something happened. Dallas came back with their grit, good defense and impressive shooting to steal game one away from the Lakeshow (96-94). While this win was greatly important, there was no way the Mavs could do it again on the champs own turf, could they?...
Oops.
Something that was so unlikely, so unthinkable and yet so blatantly possible unfolded within the enemy territory. Dallas took game one and two of the series away from the Lakers and headed home with a two game lead and home court advantage. Now, at this point, confidence barriers had been broken. J.J. Barea pissed off Ron Artest and concluded the previous game with a forearm in his face, ending with a one-way ticket to Ron’s suspension for game three. With the Mavs at the Lakers throats and the home fans roaring to their every defeating blow, Dallas upped the anty once more with a third straight victory at home (98-92). The Mavs had broken their backs and it was time to inject the killing blow with a sweep of the Lakers. In game four Dallas did just that. At half time Dallas led by 24 and the game was essentially over. With 8:21 remaining in the fourth quarter the Mavs were up 100-68. It was the victory Dallas had longed for to proudly shove into the faces of doubters everywhere thoroughly. And just like that the Mavs were in the Western Conference finals, sending Kobe and company packing and Phil Jackson into retirement.
Even with a crushing sweep of the defending champs, it still wasn’t enough to silence the haters, the doubters and the disbelievers. As the Thunder closed out their series with the Memphis Grizzlies, the Mavs once again found themselves rolling into the same familiar situation as the previous two teams. But all wasn’t as bad; few began to realize that these Mavs were difference. One guy in particular preached it and continued to speak the every telling truth. Sir Charles was the man of continuing faith, but was severely a member of the 10% club.
Game one of the Western conference finals was historic game in which Dirk Nowitzki became the first player to score 24 consecutive free throws in a play off game. He had a whopping 48 points in a high scoring game victory of 121-112. With the momentum clearly in favor of the seven game win streaking Mavs, it was time to take the youthful Thunder to their game. But the boyish youths had something else planned for the aging veterans and hushed the Dallas fans chants of “sweep” throughout.
Heading to the heart and sole of tornado alley, the Dallas Mavericks decided they were going to stomp on the hearts of the Thunder and not let them take a 2-1 lead in the series and they did just that with a 93-87 win. Up 2-1 Dallas went in trying to grasp a thirst quenching lead to try and break the Thunder, but then, yet again, something else transpired. The fourth quarter came-a-calling and the Mavs were down 15 points with less than four minutes to go. It seemed that the Thunder were going to do exactly what Dallas didn’t want to happen and take a series tying 2-2 boost of confidence. As the words “choke” ironically began to choke up through viewer’s sentences everywhere, an unbelievable thing happened. Trailing the Thunder with hardly anytime to narrow the gap, Dallas decided to play a little thing called defense and it prevailed. Tagged as one of the greatest playoff comebacks in history, the Dallas Mavericks went on to tie the game and win it in overtime 112-105.
The momentum once again seemed to favor Dallas, but they couldn’t hold their ground and put themselves in the same similar situation as the previous game. Down as much as 11 at one point during the fourth, the Mavs began their infamous surge and made one of their grand comebacks. Shawn Marion got Dallas within 94-92 off a pass from Jason Kidd and then Dirk Nowitzki stole a pass from Russell Westbrook. Nowitzki actually missed his first 3-point try on that possession and Westbrook got the rebound, but Terry stole it, got the ball to Marion and he fed Nowitzki for the go-ahead 3. Westbrook made a pair of free throws with 39 seconds left to get the Thunder within a basket. Nowitzki missed a shot against skintight defense with 18 seconds left, but Kidd got the rebound and passed back to Dirk who was promptly fouled. Dirk made his pair of free throws with 13.3 left. Kevin Durant and James Harden missed 3-pointers, and that was it. The long awaited arrival of the NBA Finals was here and the Dallas Mavericks were Western Conference Final Champs.
The Dallas Mavericks story has been a heartfelt bowl of emotions all season long. From star players getting injured to history making comebacks, Dallas fans can all agree on one thing, it’s our time. The road to glory has been a rewarding one, filled with agonizing drama and glorifying redemption, but it’s not over however. Dallas is tied 1-1 with the much hated Miami Heat and are looking to score a 2-1 lead Sunday night here at home as they look to score their first ever NBA Championship in the NBA Finals. Its been ups and downs and all arounds, but one thing that is for certain, “we ain’t done yet.”
With the first round against the Portland Trailblazers, it was obvious whom the favorite was to advance to the Western Semi-Conference Finals. But then something happened. In game four, it looked as if the Dallas Mavericks were finally going to do something that hadn't been done in awhile. Up 18 points through three quarters, the Mavs suffered a historic melt down and watched as Portland came back to win a much needed 84-82 victory. Instantly Dallas was back to their old self’s. Fans and players alike resorted to the typical name calling like chokers and being soft. This was a defining moment for the Dallas Mavericks. This would outline a historic path to what could possibly be the most heartfelt playoff/finals run in Dallas history. Instead of crumbling under their own grief and misery, the Mavs came back to Dallas and put their game to play to win game five (93-82) and game six (103-96). The Dallas Mavericks were in the Western Semi-Conference Finals.
Round two was just as unforgiving going into as the first. The LA Lakers defeated the New Orleans Hornets to gain their automatic invitation into the Semi-Finals. The Mavs now had a new threat to handle. As before the clear underdogs were the Mavs, with every sports analyst choosing the defending National Champs to advance to the Finals. Three quarters through and it looked as if Dallas would grant those analysts their wishes. But then, once again, something happened. Dallas came back with their grit, good defense and impressive shooting to steal game one away from the Lakeshow (96-94). While this win was greatly important, there was no way the Mavs could do it again on the champs own turf, could they?...
Oops.
Something that was so unlikely, so unthinkable and yet so blatantly possible unfolded within the enemy territory. Dallas took game one and two of the series away from the Lakers and headed home with a two game lead and home court advantage. Now, at this point, confidence barriers had been broken. J.J. Barea pissed off Ron Artest and concluded the previous game with a forearm in his face, ending with a one-way ticket to Ron’s suspension for game three. With the Mavs at the Lakers throats and the home fans roaring to their every defeating blow, Dallas upped the anty once more with a third straight victory at home (98-92). The Mavs had broken their backs and it was time to inject the killing blow with a sweep of the Lakers. In game four Dallas did just that. At half time Dallas led by 24 and the game was essentially over. With 8:21 remaining in the fourth quarter the Mavs were up 100-68. It was the victory Dallas had longed for to proudly shove into the faces of doubters everywhere thoroughly. And just like that the Mavs were in the Western Conference finals, sending Kobe and company packing and Phil Jackson into retirement.
Even with a crushing sweep of the defending champs, it still wasn’t enough to silence the haters, the doubters and the disbelievers. As the Thunder closed out their series with the Memphis Grizzlies, the Mavs once again found themselves rolling into the same familiar situation as the previous two teams. But all wasn’t as bad; few began to realize that these Mavs were difference. One guy in particular preached it and continued to speak the every telling truth. Sir Charles was the man of continuing faith, but was severely a member of the 10% club.
Game one of the Western conference finals was historic game in which Dirk Nowitzki became the first player to score 24 consecutive free throws in a play off game. He had a whopping 48 points in a high scoring game victory of 121-112. With the momentum clearly in favor of the seven game win streaking Mavs, it was time to take the youthful Thunder to their game. But the boyish youths had something else planned for the aging veterans and hushed the Dallas fans chants of “sweep” throughout.
Heading to the heart and sole of tornado alley, the Dallas Mavericks decided they were going to stomp on the hearts of the Thunder and not let them take a 2-1 lead in the series and they did just that with a 93-87 win. Up 2-1 Dallas went in trying to grasp a thirst quenching lead to try and break the Thunder, but then, yet again, something else transpired. The fourth quarter came-a-calling and the Mavs were down 15 points with less than four minutes to go. It seemed that the Thunder were going to do exactly what Dallas didn’t want to happen and take a series tying 2-2 boost of confidence. As the words “choke” ironically began to choke up through viewer’s sentences everywhere, an unbelievable thing happened. Trailing the Thunder with hardly anytime to narrow the gap, Dallas decided to play a little thing called defense and it prevailed. Tagged as one of the greatest playoff comebacks in history, the Dallas Mavericks went on to tie the game and win it in overtime 112-105.
The momentum once again seemed to favor Dallas, but they couldn’t hold their ground and put themselves in the same similar situation as the previous game. Down as much as 11 at one point during the fourth, the Mavs began their infamous surge and made one of their grand comebacks. Shawn Marion got Dallas within 94-92 off a pass from Jason Kidd and then Dirk Nowitzki stole a pass from Russell Westbrook. Nowitzki actually missed his first 3-point try on that possession and Westbrook got the rebound, but Terry stole it, got the ball to Marion and he fed Nowitzki for the go-ahead 3. Westbrook made a pair of free throws with 39 seconds left to get the Thunder within a basket. Nowitzki missed a shot against skintight defense with 18 seconds left, but Kidd got the rebound and passed back to Dirk who was promptly fouled. Dirk made his pair of free throws with 13.3 left. Kevin Durant and James Harden missed 3-pointers, and that was it. The long awaited arrival of the NBA Finals was here and the Dallas Mavericks were Western Conference Final Champs.
The Dallas Mavericks story has been a heartfelt bowl of emotions all season long. From star players getting injured to history making comebacks, Dallas fans can all agree on one thing, it’s our time. The road to glory has been a rewarding one, filled with agonizing drama and glorifying redemption, but it’s not over however. Dallas is tied 1-1 with the much hated Miami Heat and are looking to score a 2-1 lead Sunday night here at home as they look to score their first ever NBA Championship in the NBA Finals. Its been ups and downs and all arounds, but one thing that is for certain, “we ain’t done yet.”
Friday, June 3, 2011
Why little teams need bandwagoners too...
What do teams like the Yankees, the Lakers and the Boston Red Sox all have in common? Most would agree that contributing to depreciating team fan bases as a whole would be a big start. In this day and age, for certain city’s sports teams, it is hard to feel the drive to cheer on for the same ol’, same ol’. Due to such high demand for bandwagon-esque teams like the three listed above, it seams that its become harder and harder to cheer on the smaller markets, as the more “popular” teams just appear to win it all all the time. Is it due to better talent? Sure. But there is one thing that drives the team. It’s at the center of all teams inner driving soul. A fan base is a team’s most valuable counterpart. It’s the peanut butter to their jelly, the fuel to their gas tank and so on.
Team’s these days need to celebrate the little victories. By appreciating the tiny wins more, they can start their own bandwagons. Fans can and will begin to stand by their team. Fans want something to relate and to celebrate with. They want to be a part of something great that’s a part of their hometown. What ever happened to things like winning the pennant? Now it’s all about getting straight to the big dance, bypassing go and not collecting your $200. Celebrating the little wins such as the very first playoff series, like the AL Champs the Texas Rangers did, is a good start.
With pro sports such as the NBA and MLB, there comes a thing called desensitivity. Generations now days grow up accustomed to this team being the greatest and that team being the best and most popular. Now is where the term “domino-effect” falls into place. As these teams get bigger and bigger, popular and more popular, more and more athletes are saying, “well I want to play for that team” or “I want to play for this team.” Then everything becomes a downward spiral of monopolistic type franchises “buying” their championships.
In order to bypass this inevitable lingering future, fans and the less “popular” franchises need to start small by, like I said before, celebrating the smaller victories; start with a good campaign by rejoicing the little things and before long, teams will find that more and more fans with a sense of pride and an undeniable abundance of faith in their team will be by their side cheering all the way, thus jump starting a better domino effect.
This is the time for fans to take back their sports. This is the time for fans to balance out a lop-sided world of anti-competitive, athletic leisure. What players need are bandwagoners, but not just for that solo dominant team, for all sports worldwide. If fans and franchises spend the time celebrating each win one day at a time, like it’s the biggest win of their life, then I believe the playing field will be even once again.
Team’s these days need to celebrate the little victories. By appreciating the tiny wins more, they can start their own bandwagons. Fans can and will begin to stand by their team. Fans want something to relate and to celebrate with. They want to be a part of something great that’s a part of their hometown. What ever happened to things like winning the pennant? Now it’s all about getting straight to the big dance, bypassing go and not collecting your $200. Celebrating the little wins such as the very first playoff series, like the AL Champs the Texas Rangers did, is a good start.
With pro sports such as the NBA and MLB, there comes a thing called desensitivity. Generations now days grow up accustomed to this team being the greatest and that team being the best and most popular. Now is where the term “domino-effect” falls into place. As these teams get bigger and bigger, popular and more popular, more and more athletes are saying, “well I want to play for that team” or “I want to play for this team.” Then everything becomes a downward spiral of monopolistic type franchises “buying” their championships.
In order to bypass this inevitable lingering future, fans and the less “popular” franchises need to start small by, like I said before, celebrating the smaller victories; start with a good campaign by rejoicing the little things and before long, teams will find that more and more fans with a sense of pride and an undeniable abundance of faith in their team will be by their side cheering all the way, thus jump starting a better domino effect.
This is the time for fans to take back their sports. This is the time for fans to balance out a lop-sided world of anti-competitive, athletic leisure. What players need are bandwagoners, but not just for that solo dominant team, for all sports worldwide. If fans and franchises spend the time celebrating each win one day at a time, like it’s the biggest win of their life, then I believe the playing field will be even once again.
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Best trade commodities: Hot off the press.
With the MLB trade deadline coming up very soon the Texas Rangers will look to use some of their best trading prospects to revamp and restructure their mess-of-a-bullpen situation. Hot of the press are the rumors of Texas throwing around the ideas of the Mets' closer K-Rod (Francisco Rodriguez), the Padres' closer Heath Bell and Pirates' closer Joel Hanrahan.
Quick notes on each player:
K-Rod has been open to the idea of start as a relief pitcher but on his terms. He would be open to relief pitching through the end of the season, only to be placed back at closer the next and if the team were willing to sign him to a contract extension. A clause in K-Rod's deal would guarantee his $17.5MM option for next season, so watch for team's to take careful consideration in this deal. K-Rod has a 1.73 ERA, with 15 saves, 26 strikeouts and is 1-1 so far this season.
San Diego ins't yet interested in dealing Heath Bell, but that doesn't mean the 19-29 Padres won't consider it an option come the deadline. Bell has also stated that he would like to remain in San Diego and has discussed possible contract extensions. Bell will also become a free-agent after the season. He is 2-1 with a current ERA of 1.96, 14 saves and 18 strikeouts.
Joel Hanrahan might be more of a push in the terms of a deal getting done. According to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, if the Pirate's decide to deal Hanrahan, it would be for a significant price. While Hanrahan is just a "low-level inquiry", don't be surprised to see the Pirate's become a team's best friend at the trade deadline with them sitting 6.5 games behind the NL Central first place leader St. Louis. Hanrahan currently sits at 0-1 with a 1.46 ERA, 14 saves and 21 strikeouts.
Look for the Rangers to deal David Murphy and/or Julio Borbon to a needy team looking for some outfielding upgrades. With Endy Chavez producing just as much as, if not more than Borbon, he might find a starting job in center field. All of this, is of course, speculation.
All of these are, of course, just "low-level inquires" that the Rangers have been reported tossing around and stirring up the rumor pot with. All bets aside, Texas will make a deal happen by the July 31st trade deadline. Either three of these pitchers would certainly beef up the Rangers bullpen and further secure their role in leading the AL West and most importantly perhaps the entire AL as the American League Champs. All assumptions aside, Texas NEEDS to make a deal happen by the deadline.
Quick notes on each player:
K-Rod has been open to the idea of start as a relief pitcher but on his terms. He would be open to relief pitching through the end of the season, only to be placed back at closer the next and if the team were willing to sign him to a contract extension. A clause in K-Rod's deal would guarantee his $17.5MM option for next season, so watch for team's to take careful consideration in this deal. K-Rod has a 1.73 ERA, with 15 saves, 26 strikeouts and is 1-1 so far this season.
San Diego ins't yet interested in dealing Heath Bell, but that doesn't mean the 19-29 Padres won't consider it an option come the deadline. Bell has also stated that he would like to remain in San Diego and has discussed possible contract extensions. Bell will also become a free-agent after the season. He is 2-1 with a current ERA of 1.96, 14 saves and 18 strikeouts.
Joel Hanrahan might be more of a push in the terms of a deal getting done. According to Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, if the Pirate's decide to deal Hanrahan, it would be for a significant price. While Hanrahan is just a "low-level inquiry", don't be surprised to see the Pirate's become a team's best friend at the trade deadline with them sitting 6.5 games behind the NL Central first place leader St. Louis. Hanrahan currently sits at 0-1 with a 1.46 ERA, 14 saves and 21 strikeouts.
Look for the Rangers to deal David Murphy and/or Julio Borbon to a needy team looking for some outfielding upgrades. With Endy Chavez producing just as much as, if not more than Borbon, he might find a starting job in center field. All of this, is of course, speculation.
All of these are, of course, just "low-level inquires" that the Rangers have been reported tossing around and stirring up the rumor pot with. All bets aside, Texas will make a deal happen by the July 31st trade deadline. Either three of these pitchers would certainly beef up the Rangers bullpen and further secure their role in leading the AL West and most importantly perhaps the entire AL as the American League Champs. All assumptions aside, Texas NEEDS to make a deal happen by the deadline.
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