Cinderella Cards

Hollywood couldn’t have written it any better.

Had the folks at Warner Bros or Twentieth Century Fox gotten a hold of this script, they would’ve thrown it into the garbage right away. After all, no one likes watching a movie where the plot is so unrealistic and unlikely that only a wide eyed young dreamer could’ve possibly thought it up.

Well, it looks like the dreamers finally got their way. After sneaking into the playoffs on the last day of the regular season, the Cardinals fought off elimination not once, but twice in game 6 of the World Series.

On two separate occasions, the Cardinals found themselves with their backs against the wall, two strikes and two outs in their final inning, with their fans at Busch Stadium holding their collective breath. Both times however, the Cardinals hitters delivered, and those held breaths turned into wild cheers.

Whether it was David Freese hitting a game tying, two run triple off the right field wall in the bottom of the ninth inning or Lance Berkman smacking a two out single to tie the game one inning later, the Cardinals showed no quit.

After Freese’s game saving triple, the Texas came right back in the next inning, as Josh Hamilton hit a monster two run home run to give the Rangers the lead once again. As the bottom of the tenth inning began, Texas was once again ready to pop the champagne (or ginger ale, for the sake of Hamilton, a recovering alcoholic). The Rangers seemed poised to take home their first championship in their 40 year history, but alas, that wasn’t the case. The Cardinals weren’t done writing their Cinderella story just yet.

St Louis got a few runners on base to start off the next inning, and before anyone knew it, we were in the same position as the previous inning. Two outs, two strikes, and the Cardinals’ season hanging in the balance. It couldn’t happen again, could it?

It could. Lance Berkman, the 35 year old, supposedly washed up baseball outcast, laced a two strike single up the middle, and the Cardinals were tied yet again. They had done the unthinkable; twice.

In the next inning, the Rangers laid a big ol’ goose egg on the scoreboard, and once that happened, everyone watching the game, whether in attendance or at home in front of their televisions, knew it was over.

David Freese strolled up to the plate yet again, this time in the bottom of the 11^th inning of what would become one of the all time greatest baseball games in the history of the sport, and it happened. With the count full, Rangers pitcher Mark Lowe threw a fastball right up the middle of the plate, and Freese connected. Right off the bat, everybody knew; the ball went sailing into the St Louis sky, landed beyond the fence in centerfield, and the stadium exploded. Game over, Cardinals win.

This was only game 6 though; the Cardinals still had to win the seventh game of the series to win the title. But, after a comeback win like that and the collapse of the Rangers in game 6, the result of game 7 was inevitable. The Cardinals won easily, 6-2, and became the World Series champions.

Roll credits, cue the curtains, the movie has a happy ending.

Oh, by the way, there’s something you should know about David Freese. For those who have already forgotten, he is the man who hit the season saving 9^th inning triple and the game winning 11^th inning homerun for the Cardinals. He was born and raised in St Louis, a diehard Cardinals fan as a kid. Now how’s that for an unbelievable story, and a true one at that.

Why Coaching Matters

It wasn’t supposed to happen this way.

The New York Giants, with a WR corps so decimated that Brandon Stokley had to be called in (yes, the white guy who used to catch passes from Peyton Manning) and a group of CBs that barely grazed the bottom of the depth chart at the end of last year, somehow beat the vaunted Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday.

While the Eagles should never have been called a Dream Team, they do still have a lot of talent. With the Giants injured, playing on a short week (they played Monday night) and coming off two unimpressive showings against the Redskins and Rams, the G-men should have been easy pickings for the Eagles. Except they weren’t.

The Giants beat the Eagles at their own game, making timely stops, rushing the passer with ferocity, and most surprisingly, out-Eagling the Eagles with several big plays. How did the Giants do it, you may ask?

Coaching.

On Sunday, the Giants, and more specifically Tom Coughlin Kevin Gilbride and Perry Fewell (offensive and defensive coordinators) flat outcoached Andy Reid and his staff on the Eagles sideline. 

The easiest way to see this is by looking at the rosters. On paper, this should have been a whitewash, and not in New York’s favor. With Michael Vick throwing to Desean Jackson, Jeremy Maclin and Jason Avant, the Eagles should have had the edge in the passing game. The Eagles have Asante Samuel and Nmandi Asomugha, as well as a strong front four, so the defensive advantage should have been theirs too. According to Darryl Johnston and Kenny Albert, Philly also had the best running back in the NFL, Lesean McCoy.

(Side rant: The fact that Johnston and Albert continuously refered to Lesean McCoy as the best back in the NFL and were never called out on it is preposterous. Actual quote: “The back I can most compare him to is Barry Sanders”. Give me a break. Yes, the kid's great; he’s got quick feet and is extremely dangerous on cutbacks and in the open field. But Barry Sanders? Please.)

On paper, the Eagles had every advantage, on both sides of the ball. Being able to use all of this talent properly, however, is another story.

Time and time again, Philadelphia didn’t capitalize on their opportunities. With 1st and goal at the 2 yard line on two separate occasions, the Eagles settled for field goals both times. They were stuffed on boring running plays, and when they did try to take it to the air, they got way too cute. They tried a play action inside screen to Lesean McCoy, and with the clutter of bodies that come with a goal line stand, the play made no sense, and the Eagles were stopped once again. 

Philly was also shut down on a key late game 4^th and 1 gamble, with another unimaginative, poorly thought out running play. McCoy, in all his Barry Sanders-esque glory (sarcasm intended), was slowed down by one Giant, then promptly wrapped up for a loss by Michael Boley (who, by the way, played a hell of a game). The Eagles were either too creative or not creative enough with their play calling on this day, and it ended up costing them. The Giants' play calling, on the other hand, was exactly the opposite.

Kevin Gilbride, New York’s longtime offensive coordinator, had one of his best games in recent memory. Giants fans often lament at the sometimes predictable play calling of the old coach. On this day though, not a peep could be heard, not even from the brash, no holds barred New York faithful.

That’s because not even a fan base as surly as the Giants can be disappointed with 29 points, three +25 yard TD passes, a 70 % completion percentage and tons of important plays when it mattered most.

As a diehard Giants fan, one of the plays that stood out to me wasn’t even one that netted any points. In the second quarter, with the Giants clinging to an 11 point lead and facing 3^rd and 5 at their own 25, Eli Manning lined up in shotgun. You could hear the groan of Giants fans everywhere from my house in Montreal. Here comes another predictable short 3^rd down pass.

But Kevin surprised us all. Gilbride completely fooled the Eagles by running a draw, and 40 yards and one punishing stiff arm later, the Giants had a first down and then some. This is the kind of play calling that was seen from the Giants throughout the game. Smart, unpredictable, and playing off the Eagles weaknesses.

Gilbride and the Giants continued to use Philadelphia’s aggressiveness against them throughout the game, and especially on the game clinching TD late in the fourth quarter.

With the Giants ahead 22-16, and with memories of Desean Jackson waltzing into the end zone still residing, New York wasn’t taking any chances. A field goal was essential, and a touchdown would all but end it. Facing a 3rd and 11 at the Eagle 18, Kevin Gilbride guessed pressure, and he guessed right. The Eagles brought the heat, hoping for a sack and to perhaps jar the ball loose, but the Giants offensive coordinator cooked up the perfect play: a screen.

When Ahmad Bradshaw caught the ball, the shifty back, who had a stellar game once again, saw nothing but green and blue in front of him. Not the green of the Eagles though; the green of freshly cut grass. Bradshaw went untouched into the end zone, and New Yorkers breathed a sigh of relief.

There was also some great coaching done on the defensive side of the ball, as evidenced by the constant pressure that eventually knocked All-Pro QB Mike Vick out of the game (I could’ve gone with so many prison and felon related names on this one, but decided to go with All Pro. Who says I’m biased? Ok maybe I still am). The Giants attacked Vick all game, and came up with huge red zone stops when they needed them.

Gilbride also started the game off with perhaps his best call, a play action wheel route to Brandon Jacobs that was designed to get the back one on one with a linebacker. The unfortunate linebacker was Casey “Don’t Call Me Clay’s Brother” Matthews, and by the time he realized Jacobs was going deep, the ball was already landing in his overly large hands, and Jacobs was walking into the end zone.

For all the talent the Eagles possessed, they were no match for the Giants’ coaching staff in this one. Tom Coughlin got his team ready to play, and Kevin Gilbride and Perry Fewell called the right plays for the right players. Sounds like a winning combination to me.

Things I Hate: Edition One

 

Survival Football: Not for the Faint of Heart

Well I’m back ladies and gentleman. It’s been almost three months since I last posted, and that’s not acceptable. I did miss the three months during baseball season though, so did you guys really want to read posts about OPS and the Homerun Derby and Brett Lawrie? Probably not. Come to think of it though, I probably should write something about Brett Lawrie. Maybe soon.

Anyways, I’m back, and it’s time to give you faithful readers (all four of you) what you came to see. Here comes another year of interesting, funny and sometimes controversial sports talk, coming straight from yours truly. Hope you enjoy.

I had my first “Survival Football” experience today, and with it, my first “Survival Football” disappointment. I’m now going to explain what “Survival Football” is, so I won’t feel obligated to keep using these annoying brackets.

Survival Football is a form of fantasy football where the goal is to pick one team to win a game each week. You can never pick the same team twice in a season, and you must survive all 17 weeks without picking a loser. Sounds pretty easy, right? I thought so too.

I joined a league this year with three other people, and we decided to put in enough money for two separate teams. We would not pick the same teams each week, and if either of our two teams would end up winning it all, we would split the prize money between the four of us. With two teams and four savvy football minds (if I do say so myself), we were bound to win, or at least stay alive until we could sell one team and win some money back. It seemed like a perfect plan.

Then again, the Titanic seemed like a perfect ship.

Week 1 rolled around, and it was selection time. The four of us talked and talked and analyzed and discussed. We didn’t want to pick a road team, didn’t want to pick anyone with key players injured, and wanted to make sure to pick the surest bet on the board.

It turns out that picking a sure thing is a lot harder than it sounds. We didn’t want to pick the Texans, because they never beat Indy, and we didn’t want to pick the Eagles, because they were on the road. The rest we deemed too close to call. As a Giants fan, I was actually fine with not picking the Eagles, because trying to bear the thought of cheering for Philadelphia makes me physically ill. I actually just had to take a break to lie down.

Anyways, the Eagles throttled the Rams 31-13, the Texans manhandled the Colts 34-7, and so began the chorus of friends asking me, “why didn’t you pick the Eagles or Texans?”

 That’s the thing about Survival Football. Hindsight, especially from those not playing, is the biggest enemy. Of course it’s easy to know who you should’ve picked after the games are over. Picking it beforehand, where a million different factors dance around in your head, is much tougher. After watching the Bills dominate the Chiefs in the most un-Bills way imaginable, it seems like Buffalo should have been everyone’s first choice. Too bad it was the Chiefs who were actually favored, and were even one of the most picked teams to win on almost every Survival Football site I checked.

This just goes to show how hard Survival football really is, and it leads me back to my own story. The two games we picked were Browns over Bengals, and Chargers over Vikings, both at home. The Chargers survived an early scare and escaped with a 24-17 win, but the Browns were a different story.

In order to keep this paragraph free of expletives, I’m going to use a lot of stars and symbols. That’s how angry I am at the Browns. Excluding the Eagles and maybe the Cowboys, there is no team I hate right now more than the f***ing Browns. I know you’re thinking, “Well why did you pick them then, they're not exactly a pillar of success in the NFL,” but let me explain. The Browns were playing at home, against the Bengals, and this pick was much more about the Bengals then it was about the Browns. Maybe that was our mistake, picking a game based on the atrociousness of one team instead of picking on the other team’s talent. But c’mon, it’s the freaking Bengals.

The Bengals were supposed to be (and still might be) catastrophically bad this year. Not just bad, but 0-16 Lions bad, Spiderman 3 bad, maybe even Horacio Caine in CSI Miami bad. The Bengals went 4-12 last year, and lost some of their better players. They were starting a rookie at QB, lost their leading receiver, and didn’t really add anyone in free agency. Analysts everywhere were picking them for two and three win seasons. We figured you really couldn’t go wrong picking against the Bengals, even if it was with the Browns.

You know the rest of the story; The Browns played an awful game, complete with a Bengals-esque fuckup that left A.J green waltzing into the end zone to give Cincinnati the lead while the Browns had barely gotten out of their huddle (http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-game-highlights/09000d5d8222174a/Bengals-go-Green). I actually thought the Bengals were pretty much as bad as advertised; it’s just that the Browns ended up being worse.

Just like that, one of our Survival teams was finished, and 100 bucks went down the drain. I guess it serves us right for picking a team that last won a playoff game in 1994.

It wasn’t all for not though. It was the first and last time I’ll ever willingly watch a Bengals-Browns game, so at least I can scratch that off my to-do list.

My father's journey to basketball fandom, featuring the Dallas Mavericks

All it took was a lanky European and three little gunners.

Countless times I’ve tried to get my dad into basketball, and countless times I’ve failed. There isn’t enough defence. I don’t understand the game well enough. I just can’t watch a full game. Hockey’s so much better. We are Canadian after all, and for a Habs fan growing up in the late sixties and seventies, it was always hockey or nothing for my dad. He did have a a little Montreal Expos break coming every summer until the NHL season came back, but that was pretty much it. Basketball didn’t even measure a blip on his sports radar screen.  

But then, this year, it finally happened. My dad started to enjoy basketball, and enjoy watching it with me. All it took was a little outside shooting and a little Lebron James beat down.

If you know me or have been reading this blog, you know I’m not exactly the biggest Lebron fan in the world. Clearly, it’s genetic. My dad hates him just as much as I do, and whenever I would try to talk to him about basketball (it was so nice that he pretended to care), he would follow up with his trademark “Are the Heat losing at least?”

Even with all this hate though, I still couldn’t really get my dad to enjoy watching basketball. That is, until this year’s finals.

I knew the transformation was complete when I received a text from him that read: GO DALLAS. Not only was he watching the game, but more importantly, he was watching the game without me. He was watching it on his own time, and not just because I happened to be using the big TV and nothing else was on.

I figured the Lebron loathing aspect factored into this a little bit, but I was nonetheless pleased. It wasn’t the only thing.

My dad fell in love with the Mavs shooting.

Time and time again, he would watch in awe as Jason Terry, or Jason Kidd, or J.J Barea (attack of the J’s!) would calmly step up and nail a three ball with the shot clock winding down. My dad’s always been impressed by the outside shooting of NBA players, but this wasn’t just appreciation anymore; it was excitement.  

In reality, I should’ve seen it all along. If there’s one thing my dad loves in sports, it’s the underdog. He loves seeing the little guys take down the big, cocky favourites, and that’s exactly what this series was. For a guy like my dad (or myself for that matter), what could be better than watching 5’9 J.J Barea knock one down in Dwayne Wade’s face, or Jason Kidd hitting a wide open, crowd energy sucking, dagger three pointer on the road.

Moments like these are the reasons that I love basketball, and I probably should have realized that they are probably the same moments that would make my own father love basketball as well.

The day after the famous GO DALLAS text message, we spoke about the previous night’s game. He told me about how incredible those “three little guys” shot the ball, and how amazing Dirk (I guess after enough times of me talking about him, he remembered his name) was.

He talked about how Dallas seemed to have the two best players out there, “Dirk and the little black guy” (that would be Jason Terry). He talked about how Lebron didn’t impress him all that much, and how the Mavericks just looked like the better team.

While watching game six together, my dad said one other thing caught my attention. In the midst of the Mavs fourth quarter barrage, he turned to me and said: “Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t this kind of how the Europeans beat the Dream Team that one time”.

I thought about it for a second and realized that yeah, it kind of was. The Heat were getting beaten the same way the Americans were beaten, and it took a non basketball fan to make me realize it.

Dallas played team oriented ball and shot extremely well, while the Heat’s stars couldn’t find a way to solve the Dallas D. It was 2006 all over again, but this time most of America was cheering for the big, blond European.

My dad was a member of this Dallas cheering section, and a proud member at that. It doesn’t really matter that it might have started as a simple case of Lebron hatred, because it evolved into so much more. It evolved into an admiration and an appreciation of team basketball and shooting that left my dad and I with moments that we will never forget.

So thank you Dirk, Jason (x2) and J.J, and thank you, Lebron, D. Wade and Chris Bosh. You guys gave me the one sports story that not even my hockey loving, basketball indifferent dad could ignore.

Would Jordan ever lose to the Mavs?

I know I haven’t written in a long time, but I’ve been really busy lately, and now I’m going to try to get back into it. Enjoy

A few weeks ago, Scottie Pippen made waves when, live on ESPN, he shared his thoughts on the Lebron-MJ debate. Pippen said that while “Michael Jordan is probably the greatest scorer to ever play the game, I may go as far to say that Lebron James may be the greatest player to ever play the game."

Really, Scottie?

Predictably, these comments have sparked a ton of controversy within the basketball world. From Jeff Van Gundy to Mike Wilbon, educated basketball minds across the NBA landscape are up in arms about Pippen’s assessment.

What Scottie was trying to say was that, while Michael Jordan is the greatest scorer of all time, Lebron James does other things that Jordan did not. Pippen talks about Lebron’s court vision, his passing ability and his defence as factors in his comment.

Well first off, citing Lebron’s defence as an advantage in the MJ-Lebron debate is ludicrous. James is a fantastic defender, capable of guarding multiple positions, but do we forget what Michael did on that side of the ball as well?

Jordan won Defensive Player of the Year honours in ’88 (an award that has recently been changed to the Dwight Howard award), was selected to the NBA All-Defensive First Team nine times, and led the league in steals three times.

Now I don’t want to base the entire defensive aspect of this debate on one play, but roll back the tape and watch what Lebron, standing maybe five feet away, did last night as Dirk drove past for the winning bucket. I’ll give you a hint; it wasn’t much.  

This leads to my next point. Even if you say Lebron is a better passer than Jordan or a better rebounder, there is one thing, one extremely important thing, which you can’t say. Lebron James is definitely not a better winner than Michael Jordan.

Case in point, this series. Now I’ve never seen Michael Jordan live in his prime (the Wizard years do not count), but based on the film I’ve seen and the stories I’ve heard, I will ask you this. Do you think there is any chance that a Michael Jordan led team would ever lose to this year’s Dallas Mavericks?

I thought so.

This isn’t a knock on Dallas, I’m personally one of the biggest Dirk fans in the NBA and I love the way the Mavs play as a team. Dallas just does not have the same talent that the Heat do, and this is an illustration of the difference, at least right now, between Jordan and Lebron.

MJ would never even be tied in a series like this, and there’s absolutely no way he would’ve let his team lose game two, or even game four, for that matter. In Pippen’s quote, he says, in passing, about how Lebron James can also score at will. Well, Heat fans, where was all that “at will” scoring in game two, while the Mavs went on their unforgettable 22-5 run to close out the game?

Where has all that at will scoring been all series, as the Heat have failed to eclipse 95 points, and in three out of the four games, failed to reach 90. I’m not placing the blame solely on Lebron, but again, Jordan would not have let this happen.

In a way, Lebron’s oft touted unselfishness can be seen as a negative in times like these. Jordan would not have let his teams lose in a series like this because he would have taken control. He would’ve put on the You-Can’t-Stop-Me face, stared his man down, stuck his tongue out and gone to work.

If Jordan ever had a guy like Jason Terry on him at the end of an NBA finals game, there would be no more offence. It would be a “give me the goddamn ball right now” iso-fest between Jordan and his man, and you know Jordan would win. He always did.

Again, I’m not trying to discount Lebron as a player. He’s an incredible physical specimen, a great teammate, and he’s great for basketball in general. He’s just not Jordan.

You can bring in all the stats and advanced metrics you want, because in reality, it only comes down to one letter, and that letter is W. Michael Jordan would never allow himself to lose to the Dallas Mavericks; and he wouldn’t even need Wade and Bosh to help him through it.

Out with the old, in with the new

I came home just in time today to catch the end of the Oklahoma City-Memphis Conference semi-finals game seven.

No, you didn’t read that wrong. The Thunder and Grizzlies really did just play for a spot in the Conference Finals.

Although the game wasn’t exactly an ESPN Classic, that really isn’t what is important to me. The mere fact that these two teams are playing at this stage of the playoffs, with so much on the line, is truly remarkable.

Throw in the fact that both 21^st century Western Powers, the Lakers and Spurs, have already bit the dust, and this whole thing feels a little bit like a fiction novel.

These teams didn’t just bite the dust; they bit it hard. The number one seeded Spurs, with their suddenly creaky looking big three (Duncan, Parker, Ginobli), lost in five quick games to the upstart Grizzlies in round one.

The Lakers, expected to reach the Finals for the fourth straight year, suffered a similar fate. They didn’t just lose to the Mavericks, they got annihilated. Dallas took the brooms out against LA, and swept them to another universe in the last game, winning by 36.

A lot of NBA people weren’t happy about this. A lot of NBA people feel the game is all about the stars, and in some ways, they are right. Even casual fans will come out to see the established stars, Kobe Bryant, Lebron James, or Dwight Howard.

People love to see the big names, and associate the game with these players. The NBA does obviously need its stars, but sometimes, at least for me, I think we need a break.

The Western half of the 2011 playoffs has given us that break.

While watching Kobe Bryant go into Mamba mode at the end of the games is nice, sometimes we need a switch. Instead, we now get to watch Zach Randolph bully and bruise his way to the bucket, or Kevin Durant hit a beautiful leaner off a screen.

Instead of watching Tim Duncan’s calming presence and do-whatever-it-takes-to win play, we get to watch Dirk’s sublime scoring and touch. The old guard has been replaced, and it’s nice to see some new faces.

The East is even getting in on the action a little bit, as the Celtics Big three are already on vacation. No more snarling Kevin Garnett; now we get the determined, just-try-and-stop-me look of Derrick Rose.

In most other sports, everyone always talks about how the salary cap is ruining continuity, ruining dynasties. The NBA doesn’t have this problem. The Lakers, Spurs and Celtics have won 10 of the last 12 championships (not counting this year obviously), and some people want to see this sort of dominance in the other major sports.

These folks want to see us go back to olden days, where the Habs and Yankees were winning championships every second year, and the Celtics and Lakers took turns with the trophy.

Not me, though. I love a good underdog story, and I love new faces. People can talk about history and consistency all they want, but sports are about excitement. When I look up and see Dallas-OKC in the conference finals, it puts a smile on my face.

Golden State-Charlotte for the 2012 title, anyone?

Jays lose a tough one at Fenway

Here's an article originally written for Sports Haze. It can be found at http://sportshaze.com/toronto/toronto-blue-jays/jays-lose-a-tough-one-at-fenway-3006'

The Red Sox used a strong start and had an impressive game from Jed Lowrie, and Josh Beckett to beat the
Jays Saturday afternoon in Boston.

Beckett pitched seven impressive innings, giving up only three hits and two walks while striking out nine. Lowrie led the way offensively for the Sox, going 3-5 with a two run bomb in the second inning.

No-No Jo-Jo

Sorry Jays fans, not that kind of no no. Jays starter Jo Jo Reyes struggled again for the Jays, lasting only three innings before getting sent to the showers. Reyes struggled from the get-go, giving up two runs before even recording his first out in the first inning. Reyes was lucky to escape with only two runs against in the first, but it was more of the same in the second.

Lowrie hit a two run homer to give the Sox a 4-1 lead in the second, putting the game out of reach for the Jays. Reyes ended up leaving the game after the third, giving up seven hits and five walks while only recording nine outs. He finished with a pathetic 4.00 WHIP.

Aaron Hill getting off the shnide

In Tim Ziegler’s preview for this series, he mentioned three players who need to up their game from last series, Adam Lind, Aaron Hill and Travis Snider. While both Lind and Hill had strong games last night, Hill really continued his strong play on Saturday at Fenway.

He smacked a double in the first inning, walked once, and had a debateable infield single in the ninth that was eventually marked as an error. Even with that hit taken away, Hill still finished the day 1-3, got on base in three out of his five ABs, and scored a run. He also ran the bases very aggressively, which leads us to the next point...

Running Wild

John Farrell wasn’t kidding when he said he wanted to run more this year. The Jays continued with their running ways against Boston, stealing three bases and getting caught one other time.

Toronto’s aggressiveness on the base paths has been welcomed this year, but John McDonald’s attempted steal in the eighth inning was one example of a time where maybe the Jays should have let the situation play itself out.

McDonald led off the inning with an infield single, and with no outs and the top of the order coming up for Toronto, he was caught stealing, easily, by Jason Varitek.

It wasn’t all bad on the bases for the Jays though, as Aaron Hill’s savvy base running in the second inning produced Toronto’s only run. Hill hit a screamer off the Monster, and instead of watching the ball in flight, immediately began tearing around the bases. He managed to make it in to second with a sliding double.

With one out, Snider came up next and hit a sinking liner to right. Hill read it off the bat, and was off and running right away, allowing him to beat out the throw at the plate.

Golden glove work all around

This game was an absolute clinic for defensive baseball.

For Boston, Adrian Gonzalez robbed Corey Patterson not once, not twice, but three times at first base. Gonzalez made three separate diving stops against the Jays center fielder, giving Patterson a very misleading 0-4 day at the plate. It’s safe to say Patterson will be seeing Gonzo in his nightmares tonight.

John McDonald, the Jays pint sized defenvie dynamo, was even more impressive. He made three fantastic diving plays at third base, two of them coming at key points in the game.

With the Sox already up 4-1 and Mike Cameron having singled to start the third, McDonald made a diving stop on Jason Varitek and managed to complete the 5-4-3 double play, helping the Jays and Jo Jo Reyes stay at a reasonable deficit.

He also robbed Jacoby Ellsbury in the eighth, as the speedy Boston outfielder sliced one hard to third with two outs and runners at second and third. McDonald managed to stop the ball, get up and fire it across the diamond just in time to get Ellsbury at first, allowing the Jays to escape the inning unscathed.

For more news, thoughts, and the odd bit of knowledge, follow Daniel on twitter @SportsDanMTL.
Read more from Daniel Sailofsky:

Jose Bautista: The patient slugger

Is Adam Lind ready to explode?

Jose Bautista; the home run trotting, walk taking slugger

Here's a piece originally written for Sports Haze Toronto. It can be found at http://sportshaze.com/toronto/toronto-blue-jays/patience-is-a-virtue-2901

As everybody knows, Jose Bautista swung his way to a historic breakout season last year for the Jays.

Bautista, with a previous career high of 16 in the home run department, mashed 54 home runs in 2010, to go along with 124 RBIs and a steroid-era like .617 slugging percentage.

(Don’t worry Jays fans; this isn’t a post accusing Bautista of anything of the sort.)

I want to use this article to help identify one of Bautista’s other strengths, one that was all too often overlooked last year.

Many Bautista detractors point to his pedestrian .260 batting average when looking at his sensational 2010 season. People like to say that Bautista’s not that great of a hitter, and he was merely the product of a very high 21.7 percent homerun/fly ball ratio.

This means that 21.7 percent of Bautista’s fly balls left the yard last year. While yes, this number is high, and yes, Bautista’s batting average was not sublime, it still doesn`t justify the Bautista haters.

Why not? I’m glad you asked.

Many of the “anti Jose” baseball observers fail to look at one key stat when evaluating Bautista’s talents. It is something that I’ve always noticed about Jose, even during his average-hitting, utility man days. With a little research, my suspicions were proven correct, yet again by the wonderful FanGraphs.  

Bautista walks. A lot.

Not only did Jose smash 54 homeruns in ’10, but he also finished with an OBP of .378. Bautista walked 100 times in ’10, and finished with a solid BB% of 14.6, which was right about in line with his 2009 percentage of 13. 9.

This year has been more of the same for Bautista, as he’s sporting a ridiculous .538 OBP through eight games this season (he`s missed three for the birth of his daughter), with 10 walks.

As first explained in the famous baseball book, Moneyball, OBP is an extremely important, if often overlooked stat. Baseball is all about getting scoring more runs than the other team, and the best way to score runs is to get men on base. It’s as simple as that.  

In recent years, OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage) has become an even more vital stat. OPS is used to judge both a player’s ability to get on base and his ability to hit for power. These are two statistics that are imperative to success in baseball, and this is where Bautista really earns his stripes.

Bautista finished with a .995 OPS in 2010, putting him fifth in the MLB, behind such illustrious names as Josh Hamilton, Miguel Cabrera, Joey Votto and Albert Pujols. Bautista finished just a hair behind all four of these players, and the fact that he’s in a group with both the NL and AL MVP in this all important stat is truly telling.  

Bautista’s patience at the plate doesn’t only help with his OBP and OPS numbers, but it helps with other, less quantifiable parts of the game.

Bautista’s usually sees a lot of pitches, which tires pitchers out and helps the rest of the team. Also, because of Bautista’s ability to lay off bad pitches and not chase the off speed stuff, pitchers are forced to throw more fastballs to him; and we all know what Bautista does with fastballs.

Bautista finished with a ludicrously high 36.7 runs above average against the heater last year. To put this in perspective, only two players finished with a higher wFB in 2010. Cabrera and Pujols, who were ranked third and fourth last year in this category, finished pretty far behind Bautista at only 31.6 and 31.5, respectively.

Bautista’s ability to hit good pitches and see a lot of fastballs can all be attributed back to his patience at the plate. While most kids will probably grow up trying to hit homers like Jose, maybe, just maybe, they’ll think about working counts as well.

For more news, thoughts, and the odd bit of knowledge, follow Daniel on twitter @SportsDanMTL.

Adam Lind on the comeback trail

Here's a piece orginially written for SportsHaze Toronto which can be found at http://sportshaze.com/toronto/toronto-blue-jays/the-comeback-trail-2790

It’s only seven games into the season, but as of right now, the Toronto Blue Jays' offense is humming.
The Jays are hitting hard and hitting often, and one of the great early season revelations has been the play of newly minted first baseman Adam Lind.

When Lind is on, the Jays' offense becomes a terror for opposing pitchers. He adds power, contact, and the ability to get on base, which is often overlooked in dealing with power hitters. With a strong and healthy Jose Bautista and Lind in the middle of the order, the Jays have one heck of a 3-4 spot.

It’s only seven games in though, so Toronto shouldn’t be planning out the championship parade just yet.
For the Jays, the question remains: Will we see big swinging, walk taking, 2009 Adam Lind? Or will we see the sub .250 hitting, strikeout producing, 2010 Adam Lind?

Lind had a career year in ’09, posting a 305/370/562 (Average, OBP, Slugging), with 35 HRs, 114 RBIs, and a very solid 3.5 WAR. For those not familiar with advanced baseball metrics, WAR stands for wins above replacement. This means that in 2009, Lind gave his team almost 3.5 more wins than an average player would have at his position.

To put this strong year in perspective, Alex Rodriguez, a player universally known as a star in the baseball world, posted a WAR of 4.5 in 2009. This means that in ’09, Lind brought his team only one less win than A-Rod did. Lind also played a position with stronger competition (LF as opposed to 3B), making his WAR all the more impressive.

The next year however, it all went downhill for the Jays' outfielder. His numbers plummeted to 237/287/425, with 23 HRs and 77 RBIs. His WAR also dropped to a horrible -0.3. For all those wondering, this does in fact mean that Lind was actually worse than the average LF in 2010.

For Jays fans everywhere, this came as a shock. What happened to the sweet swinging Adam Lind from just a year earlier?

I decided to try to decipher this very question, using the ultimate baseball statistics encyclopaedia that is FanGraphs.

I made a few interesting discoveries, but they all lead back to one basic aspect of Lind’s game. Obviously Lind’s major stats, like batting average, OBP, and slugging all went down. However, Lind’s line drive percentage, usually a good indicator of the type of contact a hitter is making, stayed about the same from ’09 to ’10.

Most of Lind’s numbers decreased gradually, but in a way that is to be expected when a guy's main stats go down. However, there was one key facet of Lind’s game that decreased, and I think this was the cause of his major decline.

Basically, in 2010, Lind’s plate discipline became less, well, disciplined. Lind swung at ten percent more pitches outside of the zone, struck out 34 more times, and walked 20 less. Lind began swinging at pitches off the plate, stopped working counts as much, and started whiffing more. Definitely seems like a recipe for mediocrity to me.

One of the keys to Lind’s success in 2009 was his ability to see pitches, and with it, take them the other way. This isn’t to say Lind was a model of patience; he only walked 58 times. However, it is more about Lind’s ability not to swing at pitches outside the zone. By being more patient and swinging at quality pitches, Lind was able to drive the ball to all fields while increasing his OBP.

All this comes back to the initial question: Which season was the fluke, 2009 or 2010?

Right now, things look promising. Lind has only struck out once so far this year, while driving the ball all over the field and seeing a lot of strikes. No one can know for sure if this production will continue, but if Jays fans start seeing Lind’s plate discipline return to 2009 form, there will be plenty of reason for optimism.

For more news, musings and the odd bit of knowledge, follow Daniel on Twitter @SportsDanMTL

Butler got Butler'd

There’s probably approximately 20 000 game recaps of last night’s Butler-UConn championship game last night, so I won’t bore you with another one. Anyone who watched the game knows the basics of it. Butler shot like a bunch of Ben Wallace’s, Jeremy Lamb took control in the second half, and the Bulldogs got bullied down low.

Instead of talking about these obvious facts though, I’m going to talk about something else. With about three minutes remaining in the game, when the Huskies had already pretty much locked up the title, a certain thought came to my mind. Butler was getting Butler’d.

Let’s look at how Butler wins games. The Bulldogs play tenacious defence, make clutch shots, and play strong inside. They surprise you with their toughness, make plays when they need them, and just flat out beat you. No funny business.

On Monday night in Texas, this is exactly what one of the teams in the championship game did. The problem was that it wasn’t Butler.

The Huskies completely shut down the Bulldogs offence in this battle of the canines. Their perimeter defence was suffocating, and the length and strength of their bigs down low really disrupted the Butler forwards. UConn played relentless man to man defence all game, giving Butler a taste of the medicine that propelled the Bulldogs to this very championship game.

An even bigger parallel between the way UConn won and the way Butler wins was the presence inside shown by the Huskies Charles Okwandu, Alex Oreaki and Roscoe Smith. Not only did these guys play huge down low, but in a way, they played surprisingly huge. Butler’s bigs have played strong inside all tournament, but for the most part, this facet of the Bulldogs game is usually overlooked.

All the build-up to this game was about Kemba Walker, UConn’s sublime point guard from NYC. While Kemba definitely merited all this attention with his incredible play all year, the Husky bigs were nonetheless overlooked. Oreaki, Okwandu and Smith were not given nearly enough attention coming into this one, at least by the media. However, when it mattered most, these guys really delivered for the Huskies, in a very Butler-esque way.

UConn also made big shots when it mattered most, especially during their 14-1 in the early part of the second half. This run took control of the game for the Huskies, and it came as a result of some clutch offence and strong defence. Jeremy Lamb was especially clutch, hitting a 22 foot, game breaking three that gave UConn the lead that they would never relinquish.

Just like Butler has always done, every game has a different hero. This game was supposed to be all about Kemba Walker slicing and dicing his way to a championship. Instead, the Huskies relied on a heavy dose of Butler related tactics, and the strong play of Lamb, Oreaki, Okwandu and Smith.

When it boils down to it, winning is what the NCAA tournament is all about. UConn might not have won pretty, and Kemba might not have shined like the star he is, but regardless, the Huskies are going home champions. Butler’s winning recipe clearly works very well; next time however, they should try to be the ones using it.

The beauty of the imperfect game: Why we love baseball

One of my favourite times of the year is upon us. Baseball Opening Day has just come and gone, and everyone seems to be a bit, well, happier. The start of baseball coincides with the start of spring, and honestly, I think God intended it this way.

Now I don’t want to start a religious debate. I’m not saying God watches baseball either; based on the violence of the Bible, I always pegged him as a hockey or football kind of guy.

What I’m trying to say is that baseball and spring time go together perfectly. At the start of spring, everyone is hopeful and excited for the summer to come. The snow is gone, the weather’s warming up, and everything’s going to be wonderful.

Then, a few months later, rain starts to fall, the basketball and hockey seasons end, and spring loses its glamour. As with a lot of things, the build up for the warm weather months usually turns out to be a lot better than the actual result.

The same thing goes for the baseball season. Fans everywhere look forward to the baseball season like no other sporting season. And the reason for this anticipation is exactly the same as for spring.

At the beginning of the season, anything is possible. Jays and Royals fans can dream of postseason success. Every up and coming prospect is going to turn into Albert Pujols. The Nats will get over the .500 mark. Every crazy dream like this feels attainable.

Opening day offers endless possibilities, and only once the dog days of summer arrive, reality kicks in. Small market teams get brushed aside by conglomerates known as the Yankees and Red Sox. Bad teams remain bad. Hot starting journeymen fizzle out. We start realizing again, like we do every year, that the baseball season is never really as great as we expect it to be in April.

Now I don’t want you to think of me as a baseball hater; I’m actually the opposite. I love the sport more than most, and would back it up in any argument. Lord knows I’ve had to. Lots of people hate baseball, and I defend the game at any opportunity. But that’s a post for another day.

The important thing is that I’m a huge baseball fan. Do I think expectations are too high at the beginning of the season? Yes. Do I think the season is too long and can get boring in late July and August? Of course I do.

But these are things that can never be changed. They are ingrained in the game just as much as the Green Monster, Wrigley field and Vin Scully are. The high expectations and long season are part of the tradition of baseball, and when it comes down to it; tradition is what baseball is all about.

Yankee Stadium may be a bit too small to be a fair major league park, but it will never be changed. While yes, it was rebuilt very recently, it was built with the exact same dimensions, as to not lose the tradition of the historic park. It may not be perfect, but in baseball more than other sports, it doesn’t have to be.

Tradition remains supreme in the sport, and that’s why, to some, baseball remains the American pastime. Football has taken over as the most popular sport in America, but to the older generation, baseball still holds the number one spot.

The baseball season is far from perfect, and it’s definitely too long. But regardless, it’s our imperfect season. Just like spring, we can count on baseball season returning every year, with the same great unrealistic expectations, the same hopeful enthusiasm. Baseball is and always will be a model of imperfection. Just the way we like it.

NHL: Canadian stars finding a home down south

Here's a piece of mine originally written for http://sportshaze.com/canada. I've recently joined their staff as hockey beat writer, and the site's got some great material you should check out. Hope you enjoy.

While Canadian hockey fans may bemoan the fact that there are still NHL teams in the Sun Belt, it seems that Canadian players sure don’t mind.

The Tampa Bay Lightning and Carolina Hurricanes are set to square off in back-to-back games this weekend, and from the look of the rosters, it may as well be a Team Canada intra-squad game. Both teams are full of Canadian players, and not just of the grind-it-out, third-line variety. These crazy Canucks are some of the most important players on their respective teams, whether it’s scoring goals or stopping pucks.

When people think of the Tampa Bay Lightning, there are usually two names that immediately come to mind: Stamkos and St. Louis. The two offensively gifted linemates lead the Tampa attack and are usually joined by fellow Canadian Simon Gagné on the Lightning’s No. 1 line.

The next big offensive threat for the Bolts comes in the form of second line center and captain Vincent Lecavalier. Lecavalier was once thought of as the next possible superstar in the NHL as the first overall pick in the 1998 entry draft, and hails from Ile Bizard, a small suburb in the Montreal area. Lecavalier hasn’t quite turned into the superstar many thought he could be, but he has grown into a solid two-way player with big-time offensive skills.

The rest of the Lightning offence also benefits from Canadians like Teddy Purcell, Steve Downie, Dominic Moore and Dana Tyrell; all together, Canada accounts for eight of 12 Lightning forwards. The defence corps, although less star studded, is led by Canadians Brett Clark, Eric Brewer, Randy Jones and power-play triggerman Marc André Bergeron.

Flipping to the Carolina side of things, the Canadian depth may not be as strong, but the talent is definitely there.

Captain and Canes’ lifer Eric Staal is a former Olympian and Stanley Cup champion that comes from the Staal Hockey Factory (Brothers Jordan and Marc also play in the NHL, with Jared on his way) in Thunder Bay, Ont.

He’s joined by rookie superstar and next face-of-the-franchise Jeff Skinner, another Canadian. On the other end of the age spectrum, Cory Stillman still plays a key role for the Hurricanes, and hails from Peterborough, Ont.

Perhaps even more important than the offensive talent are the men between the pipes. Both Dwayne Roloson and Cam Ward are proud Canadians, and are both key aspects of their respective teams. Ward won the Conn Smythe trophy in the Canes’ Stanley Cup win in 2006, and Roloson has solidified the Lightning’s shaky goaltending situation this year.

What stands out with these two teams is not just the quantity of Canadian players on each roster, but rather the quality.

The captains, leading scorers and goalies from each team hail from the Great White North, and they are the most recognizable names in the American cities they play in.

They’re also showing American fans the right way to play the game, with the exception of Downie, who’s had a few too many Matt Cooke-like moments in his young career. All these Canadian players play hockey the way it’s meant to be played. They go to the net, hustle, play strong defensively, and are great role models for American kids.

You really can’t blame the players for wanting to play in the Sun Belt either; wearing shorts and flip-flops to the arena does sound pretty nice.

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Blood drips, bodies fly, and the Knicks lose

Here's my Knicks recap from ProSportsBlogging. You can find it here http://prosportsblogging.com/nba-basketball/new-york-knicks-basketball/blood-drips-bodies-fly-and-the-knicks-lose/

I didn’t catch the entire Knicks-Celts game tonight, but from what I saw, this one was not for the faint at heart. This game was reminiscent of those extremely competitive, if a bit bloody, playoff series’ between the Knicks and Heat in the 90’s.

Troy Murphy left with a bloody nose, Big Baby Davis got caught with a Carmelo Anthony elbow to the head, and Ray Allen was forced to briefly leave the game in the third quarter with a bleeding head. Carmelo Anthony also took five stitches above his left eye, but New York still took the bout with a unanimous decision.

However, although the Knicks would’ve definitely taken this game in the ring, on the court it was another story. The real scoreboard, the one that matters in the NBA, showed 96-86 Celtics.

The Knicks started off strong in this one, and were up three after the first. The Beasts of Broadway really turned it on in the second quarter also, and entered the locker room with a 51-37 lead at the half. Sadly for the Knicks however, this was as good as it got. The Celtics outscored the Knicks 59-35 the rest of the way, and showed them why they are still the reigning Easten Conference Champions.

Early in the fourth, the Knicks were still up 82-73, but then Boston took it to a new level, going on a13-0 run to turn that Celtic deficit into a lead. The Knicks never recovered, and the Celts finished the game on a 23-4 run to give New York its third straight loss. 

Boston’s big three (although I think they should now be called a big four, with the emergence of Rondo) combined for 60 points, while the Knicks slightly smaller three (Amare, Melo and Billups) combined for 59. Amare only put up 16 in this game, and if the Knicks hope to go anywhere this postseason, he will need to be more involved then that.

Another player who the Knicks need in these types of games is Landry Fields. Fields shot 1-6 from the floor and put up a goose egg from the three point line. In a game like this, where the star players even out, depth and leadership become even more important. It’s role players like Fields, as well as clutch play down the stretch, that ultimately decide playoff style games like these.

Can Amare and Melo coexist?

Here is a piece I wrote about the Knicks for ProSportsBlogging. It can be found at http://prosportsblogging.com/nba-basketball/new-york-knicks-basketball/can-amare-and-melo-co-exist/

When the Carmelo Anthony mega-deal was finally completed on February 21^st, New York was ready to party. The Knicks had their own “Big Three” in Amare, Melo, and Chauncey Billups, and they were ready to take the East by storm.

The problem is though, this hasn’t been the case. The Knicks have been a model of inconsistency since Melo’s arrival in the Big Apple. They’ve played .500 ball, with a 7-7 record that has included both a three game winning streak and a three game losing streak. They suffered a humbling loss to the woeful Cavs in their second game of the Melo era, only to come back and beat the vaunted Heat two days later in Miami. As I said, inconsistent.

The Knicks haven’t necessarily gotten any worse since Melo came over from Denver; the problem is that they haven’t really gotten any better. They still score at the same high rate, and excluding their 92-79 win over the Hawks, they still can’t really defend. They still rank 28^th in the league in points allowed, and are 22^nd in defensive efficiency. As much as Melo may have brought flash and publicity to New York, he hasn’t exactly brought much in the way of defence.

Another problem with the Melo experiment thus far has been the difficult task of incorporating him into the offence without taking away from the rest of the team. It’s clear D’Antoni is trying extremely hard to run sets that maximize both of his stars talents, but so far, the results haven’t been great. Amare has said that he wants the Knicks to return to their “up tempo” offence, and that the Knicks have become too “predictable” in their half court sets.

These comments might be considered a bit selfish on the part of Amare, but keep in mind that this was Amare’s team first. Amare was the guy who initially came here when no one else wanted to, and it is rightfully his team. If anything, Melo should be option number two, and Amare should remain the alpha dog.

Some people may think that this is exactly what Amare wants. I think it’s actually the opposite though. I think Amare realizes that he’s no longer the only star on Broadway now. Amare knows that in order for this team to reach its true potential, he and Melo need to play together. He knows that they won’t go anywhere without working together, and in addressing the Knicks need to get back to what was working pre-Melo, Amare has underlined an ever growing problem within the Knicks offence.

Just like Lebron and Wade have had and are still having some problems learning to play off each other, Melo and Amare are going to go through the same transition period. If both of these guys start passing the rock around and playing together within the system, the Knicks can become nearly impossible to stop offensively. If D’Antoni and his two stars can’t find a way to play together though, then this team will continue to toil in mediocrity.

Amare and Melo have a choice. They can either be two “me-first” guys on an average team, or two co-existing stars on a championship contender. Seems like a no-brainer to me.

March Madness- Is it really an upset?

I’ll start this off by saying that I’m no bracketologist or March Madness expert. I’ve made some good picks this year (which you’ll read about soon), but I also picked St John’s to go to the Final Four, which didn’t work out too well. My bracket is far from perfect; it’s not even average, for that matter. However, I do have some ideas about how these brackets are analyzed and calculated, and I hope you enjoy.

Everyone knows that the best part of March Madness is, well, the madness of it all. America (that’s North America, not only the Excited States) loves a good underdog story, and there’s nothing better than buzzer beaters and frantic finishes.

Part of the magic of the tournament is the possibility that in any game, some hot shooting, small conference team can unseat a Big East or SEC powerhouse. The David and Goliath story has always been one of humanity’s favourite.

However, diving deeper into the teams and the tournament seeding, this underdog complex becomes a bit muddled. Rankings don’t tell the whole story, and sometimes they can be misleading. How small is David really, and for that matter, how much bigger is Goliath?

To translate for those who don’t understand the biblical reference: What’s the real difference between a 7 seed and a 10, or even a 5 and a 12?

To properly understand the lack of disparity between some teams in the tournament, look no further than this year’s first round matchup between 5^th seeded Vanderbilt and 12^th ranked Richmond. Looking at this game, Richmond must obviously be the underdog, no doubt about it. Vandy’s a five seed and Richmond’s a twelve, the Commodores should take this one no problem, right?

Wrong. Richmond beat Vanderbilt in a nail biter, and supplied the perfect example for this particular post. Most people considered the Spiders’ victory an upset, and based solely on the seeding of the two teams, they would be right. The thing is though, looking at the statistics, this wasn’t really an upset at all. Richmond finished 27-7 on the year, compared to Vanderbilt’s 22-10 mark. Granted, Vanderbilt does play in a stronger conference (SEC) than Richmond (Atlantic-10), but it still shows that the Spiders are no slouches.

Richmond also finished 3-3 against top 50 opponents this season, and four out of their seven losses came against tournament bound teams. Vandy, on the other hand, finished 5-8 against top 50 teams, including an abysmal 2-5 mark against teams in the top 25. Most of their losses were against strong SEC teams, but this only magnifies Vanderbilt’s troubles in dealing with good teams.  

Richmond’s Justin Harper and PG Kevin Anderson also both averaged over 16 ppg this season, and Anderson was on a tear going into the game, scoring 20+ in 5 of his last 6 games. Anderson is also a senior, which is a quality that can’t be overlooked come tournament time, especially with point guards.

Morehead State is another example. Morehead had a strong regular season as well, finishing 24-9. They also have a proven inside monster in senior center Kenneth Faried, and are flat out beastly on the offensive glass. While Morehead’s “upset” of Louisville was much more of an upset then Richmond’s over Vandy, it was nonetheless another case of the NCAA overplaying the whole underdog-favourite obsession.

Now this isn’t to say that Richmond or Morehead State should’ve been the favourite. I’m merely trying to point out the at-times misleading nature of NCAA tournament rankings. In most cases, the higher seed is still the favourite and the lower seed is still the underdog. The difference between the two teams is rarely as big as advertised though.

The NCAA would love to keep this a secret. The Cinderella story is a proven seller, and if people found out that these Cinderella teams aren’t really as Cinderella-ey as they are made out to be, some of the magic may be lost.

The tournament needs this magic though. As long as tiny David keeps trying to dethrone mighty Goliath, the magic of the tournament will live on, and with it, so will the madness.

PS: I picked Richmond and Morehead State in my bracket. Just saying.

Can the Jimmer do it alone?

With the NCAA tournament starting on Thursday (I don’t count the money grabbing play-in games), I think a March Madness post is due. I’ll spare you the generic “here are my bracket and upset picks” article, and instead focus on one specific subject. I’ve always found it’s more interesting to discuss key players and teams, instead of the tournament as a whole.

In this case, I’m talking about one team, and specifically, one player. He’s a player that almost everyone (including non College Basketball fans) knows, and he is one of the few players with the potential to light this tournament up with both his scoring and star profile.

The one, the only, the Jimmer        

In a year where ranked teams dropped like flies and no clear cut favourites emerged, Jimmer mania has taken hold of the nation. From circus layups to near half court three balls, the Jimmer is undoubtedly the most exciting player in basketball. He’s brought BYU into the national spotlight, and has enthralled even the most casual of basketball fans.

In a league where great scorers average 20 points per game, Jimmer averages 28.5. In a league where you’re supposed to play by the book and run specific sets and plays, Jimmer heaves deep treys whenever he feels like it. He takes crazy fall aways, contested midrange J’s, and out of the country threes; and still shoots 45 percent from the field. In the MWC tournament semi finals, BYU won 87-76, and Jimmer scored 52. 52 points, that is not a typo. He scored 60% of his team’s points, and it’s not like BYU had a bad offensive game.

As much as he tries to tell the media otherwise, Jimmer is BYU. Without him, BYU wouldn’t be even half the team they are now. It’s not just his scoring numbers though, it’s so much more. To fully understand Jimmer’s effect on the Cougars, we have to look beyond the statistics.

Jimmer averages 4 assists a game, which is already pretty high for a combo guard in college. But assist totals don’t even begin to explain what kind of effect Jimmer has on his teammates. Jimmer’s “in the building range” (CBS analyst’s words) forces teams to double him most of the time, which creates open shots for his teammates. His primary defender also can’t help on any other BYU player if the play breaks down since he has to stick to Jimmer at all times.  He spaces out the floor, keeps the middle of the lane unclogged, and gives his teammates the opportunity to go one on one with their defenders whenever they want.

Having said all of this, keep in mind that not everything is so rosy in Cougar Land. Since starter and leading rebounder Brandon Davies’ suspension for breaking the Honour Code, Jimmer has taken an insane number of shots, even for him. In the five games since Davies’ suspension, Jimmer has shot over 40% of his team’s shots four times. He’s even had two +50% games, both against New Mexico (51.4% and 54.4%).

Now the big question is: Can the Jimmer do it alone?

I hate to say it, but I don’t think he can. Without Davies, the Cougars are simply not strong enough to battle Pitt and Florida in the Southeast region, and will have trouble with any big, long team that can (to some degree) lock down Jimmer. That may mean holding him to only 30, but I digress.

BYU is way too reliant on Jimmer, and if he’s hoisting up 25-30 shots a game, they’ll be in trouble. Then again, if Jimmer catches fire and starts knocking down shots from different time zones, we could see the Cougars in the Final Four. It probably won’t happen, but it’s always nice to dream; Jimmer Fredette, raining down shots in Houston, continuing to prove all the naysayers wrong.

Jimmerific.

Pacioretty aftermath; without proper discipline, NHL's injury problems will continue

Montreal was a pretty angry city yesterday, and not just because we were on the verge of a snowstorm in March. After news that Zdeno Chara would not be disciplined by the league, the whole city was up in arms; and rightfully so.

I still stand by what I said yesterday about Chara not intending to injure Pacioretty. However, this was nonetheless a horrible incident with horrible consequences, and should be treated as such. Even if Chara had not intended to fracture Pacioretty’s vertebrae, the fact of the matter is, sadly, that he did. The only way for the NHL to get rid of head shots and reduce the amount of life threatening injuries to its players is by taking action. The NHL must show its backbone and put its foot down; no more dirty hits without major consequence.

It’s at the point of becoming a matter of life and death. I can honestly say that there was a point during the aftermath of the hit last night where I thought there was a chance Pacioretty could have died. The force of the hit was that strong.

The health of its players should be reason enough for the NHL to put a heavy price on dangerous hits. However, there is even one more reason why the NHL needs to take control of this situation. These kinds of violent and scary-to-watch plays are awful for the NHL’s reputation. The NHL is all about growing its brand all over the world, and especially in the United States, and this is why it’s so amazing that the league still chooses to do nothing.

Last night, on the front page of ESPN.com, there was one small headline about the Pacioretty hit/injury, and it read “Habs forward fractures neck – No discipline”.

That is the worst possible headline for the NHL.

Tons of Americans will no doubt read this headline, and this is the only thing some of them will hear about this story. Tens of thousands of American non hockey fans will be turned off of hockey forever, and will never know the true beauty of the game. As far as they’re concerned, the NHL is a league full of stick carrying convicts who can nearly kill each other without any sort of punishment.

A simple suspension and fine could have helped with both of these issues. The NHL’s reputation would not take a hit, and the safety of its players would not be put in further jeopardy. The “intention rulebook” should have been thrown out, replaced by the “common sense rulebook”. Yes, maybe Chara didn’t intend to ram Pacioretty into the turnbuckle. Maybe he didn’t intend to injure him either. But none of that matters right now.  

All that matters is that one phenomenal young hockey player is sitting in a hospital bed, unsure if he’ll ever play again; and all most people will hear is that there was “no discipline”.

Max Pacioretty-Zdeno Chara; Was the Intent Really There?

Just as I promised, here are my thoughts about last night’s Max Pacioretty-Zdeno Chara hit. While my friend did bring up some good points, I think he left out some key issues. I can’t really blame him though, he wrote the article only minutes after it had happened, so I’m sure a lot of the post was based strictly on emotion.

I believe, like my friend, that the NHL’s stance on fighting and head shots is one of the main causes of this horrible incident. From Trevor Gillies hit on Cal Clutterbuck  (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hwl85L1E1M) to Matt Cooke’s vicious elbow of Marc Savard (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U-I5m4f0ZXA), head shots have become extremely prevalent in hockey. Savard still hasn’t fully recovered from his hit, and he’s been shut down for the season by the Bruins. Until the NHL does something drastic to curb headshots and other dirty hits (8-15 game suspensions sound about right to me), these things will continue to happen.

My main issue with my friend’s post however, is his intent to injure theory. While yes, there might have been some animosity between Pacioretty and Chara, and yes, the Habs and Bruins aren’t exactly best pals, I still don’t believe this particular hit was intentional. The play happened too quickly. The hit was definitely illegal (Pacioretty didn’t have the puck), but it happened so quickly that there was no way Chara could have planned it this way. With slo-mo instant replay, it is impossible to tell just how fast the play happened, and because of this, the hit looks much worse. Now don’t get me wrong, you’ll never confuse me for a Zdeno Chara fan; however, there is no doubt in my mind that it was not Chara’s intentions to put Max Pacioretty in a stretcher.

The best event that I can compare it to is Todd Bertuzzi’s despicable assault of Steve Moore back in 2004. Bertuzzi was upset that Moore and the Avalanche had taken out Vancouver captain Markus Naslund in the teams’ previous meeting. He took matters into his own hands during their next game; chasing Moore around the ice, grabbing him from behind, and driving him head first into the ice.

Now the main difference between this play and the Chara hit is intent. Bertuzzi clearly went out of his way to take care of Moore, while Chara’s was more of a fast paced (albeit dirty), physical hockey play. I’m not saying Chara should be fully excused; I’m just pointing out the difference between someone who was clearly trying to injure (Bertuzzi) to someone who simply made a dirty play in a bad location (Chara).

There is also another matter for the NHL to consider, the size of the rink. For years, I’ve been saying NHL rinks needs to be expanded. Players are so big and strong that keeping them in a tightly packed area is bound to cause major problems. The area near the benches must also be fixed, as players are incredibly vulnerable to serious injury. If the rinks were expanded and the bench area was made safer, it would heavily decrease the amount of deadly hits and injuries.

I think it’s clear that there are many factors to account for when an issue like this arises; you can’t just point at Zdeno Chara and say that it is completely his fault. While I do think the NHL needs to send a message by handing out a lengthy suspension, I think they must also take a good, hard look at themselves. They need to find a balance; punish the offender, but fix your own policies as well. After all, the NHL isn’t only responsible for its teams and its players; it is responsible for preserving the integrity of the game as well.

Guest Speaker: Max Pacioretty Hit

After Zdeno Chara's vicious hit that left Montreal Canadiens forward Max Pacioretty unconcious, I knew there'd be a lot to talk about. Luckily, a friend of mine, Cory Schneider, was in full on ranting mood, and was very happy to give his opinion on the matter. Below you'll find his thoughts on the hit (edited by me), and I'm sure you'll enjoy.

Also, expect a response post from me within the next day. My opinion of the play differs a bit from the one in this article, and I think it will be good to get multiple viewpoints on this increasingly important topic.

Let me just begin this article by sending my best wishes to Max Pacioretty.

Colin Campbell has the task of handing down a suspension now to one of the league’s biggest stars. I’m stating this as fact, because there is no doubt in my mind that what Chara did to Max Pacioretty was on purpose. I just hope the suspension isn’t lightened because Chara is the captain of a playoff team fighting for first place in a hockey market; execute him for all I care.

Journalists who say that Chara’s hit was just a rub out gone wrong have to look at this in context. Did the last two Montreal-Boston games not end in brawls? On January 8^th Pacioretty won the game in overtime and may have gotten a little carried away by giving Chara a shove on the way by. The latter lead to fights breaking out all over the ice, which eventually led to the battle royale that was the Canadiens-Bruins game on February 9^th.. This shove however, was no excuse for the dirty late neck bending hit Chara gave in return.

Those who still insist Chara was just throwing his weight around in the wrong place at the wrong time have to realize that he must be held responsible anyways. At six-feet nine inches tall and 255 pounds Chara is known as the NHL’s big man, and with great size comes great responsibility. He can’t be carelessly hitting whoever he pleases whenever.

This isn’t some amateur defenseman who has no idea what he’s doing either. We’re talking about a five time all star and Norris Trophy winner; trust me when I say he knows where he is, and what he’s doing when he’s on the ice.

Now we come to the point that angers me most. If Lemieux is hypocrite for having Cooke on his roster then I don’t know what that makes Chara. How can any Boston Bruin go out and take such a cheap shot when you train, travel, play and basically live with teammates Marc Savard and Patrice Bergeron. Both have been the victims of multiple head hits and have their careers put in jeopardy by repeated blows to the head. Then Chara goes out and does what he did to a budding star In Pacioretty, who is finally getting his career on track. If I was either Savard or Bergeron I wouldn’t be able to look Chara in the eye anymore.

It comes to me as no surprise that something like this happened during this game. This game was being marketed on local Boston sports channel NESN by showing a montage of the fights from the previous game. This is what’s wrong with the game as it stands now. I’m all for fighting, but some American fans take it too far; the sport doesn’t revolve around violence, violence is just part of the game.

I wish I could talk about how changing the rules will protect the players and stop these incidents from happening, but the truth is they won’t. More severe punishments after the fact won’t deter players from cheap shots like these in the midst of play. Player have no respect for each other, and it may take an incident even worse than this or countless other head shots to make players think twice. That is the unfortunate reality, until someone gets really hurt, or possible worse, hits like these will keep on coming. 

At least there were some positives; Lars Eller seems to be coming into his own, unfortunately his performance was overshadowed.  Also there was some respect shown when, despite his absence, Habs fans demonstrated their class by voting Pacioretty third star and gave him a minute long ovation. Also, credit must be given to the coaches for keeping the game in check after the incident, especially Claude Julien. Julien avoided further conflict by delegating agitator Shawn Thornton to the box to serve Chara’s five minute penatly.