We've got a new home on the web! Check out the new Sports Forum blog over at our bouncing baby website, mattallen.info.
It's got all the particulars of our show, the blog, and guest lists for upcoming shows. It will also in the near future be the home of our podcast center.
Check it out and we'll see you at mattallen.info.
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Home on the Web?
Didn't post today--working on our very own website for the show. Details to follow.
I should be back tomorrow.
Remember--NO SHOW Saturday. We'll be back live on the 21st.
I should be back tomorrow.
Remember--NO SHOW Saturday. We'll be back live on the 21st.
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
I Stayed Awake For This?
I'm really glad I missed the 11th inning last night in Arizona. That's right, Yours Truly, officially hit old-fogy status by falling asleep in the middle of an extra-inning game, because dagnabbit, it's just too late! What on Earth is wrong with me? These West Coast games are always fun. It feels a little bit like vacation--a vacation from your early bed time. A fun reason to be tired the next day--but maybe that's just me.
I'll attempt to stay awake once again tonight as the Reds will now try to avoid the sweep, but I've got to tell you, I'm not getting enough baseball right now. Yep, I'm probably watching around 3 games a day and I'm still not getting enough. Thank you, DirecTV.
Loved seeing Josh Hamilton hitting that homer last night. Great story.
Let's do the BSO for Reds/D-Backs:
Balls: Kyle Lohse had a decent start but got crushed on a couple mistake pitches. Can't do that, despite how well he pitched otherwise. On the Chad Tracy bomb, he said he shook off Javier Valentin twice. KL, my man, your catcher calls the pitches for a reason. You're not savvy enough to be shaking him off all day. See the fingers, throw the pitch. Next question.
Todd Coffey is a monster. Next question.
Strikes: I've got the engineer cap and everything for the Josh Hamilton Fan Train. All aboard! What's so amazing about this guy is that he's come so far, wanted to get back so badly, had all this media attention and pressure to perform, and in his first 8 plate appearances, he's had the patience to walk 3 times. As a green rookie. As a baseball stat guy, I love it. Oh, and when Adam Dunn (HR #4), squares a ball, it's mind-(and gravity)shattering.
Out (of the Ordinary): All 5 D-Back runs came with 2 outs. Gotta finish innings. For the Sedona and Black, Orlando Cabrera has looked good this year (.395, 2 HR, 6 RBI, 11 R). His stats have shown some improvement, if only the guy had some power. Yeah, I know 2 HR already, but his PX (Power Rating--see BBHQ) is well below league average. It's just bad. Still, if he can get on base for Arizona, he could help score a lot of runs with his speed and the bats behind him.
_________________
Deal of No Deal?
I'm probably an idiot for not drafting A-Rod in the first round of my fantasy baseball draft. I had pick 6 and took Carl Crawford. CC will be great, but A-Rod is absolutely mashing the ball. Those 6 bombs sure would've looked good on my roster.
Help!
Can you believe this blowout? 57-1! Someone should've stopped the insanity. I can't believe that there wasn't a way to avoid this embarrassment. Surely a team couldn't be that bad. And you'd have to hope that winning team's equipment manager was in by the end--anything to get an out.
And The Thunder Rolls
We'll talk about this on the show, I'm sure, but Hank Aaron sounded off again about how he won't be around when Barry smacks 756. It's going to happen, but don't you wish there was some way it could be stopped? Doesn't Barry realize that pretty much no one wants him to break this record? He can't be that oblivious.
Hank is saying everything that he wants to say with his "non-statements". Gotta wonder how Barry likes being totally snubbed by the Hammer. He says he doesn't care in that article, and I know Barry is a habitual curmudgeon, but I think he cares about public opinion (and certainly peer opinion) way more than he ever lets on.
The good news is that I see this like Bob Knight breaking Dean Smith's all-time wins in men's college basketball. Sure, it's a milestone and credit to Knight, but a lot of fans probably didn't want Knight at the top--and he won't be for long. If you think Coach K won't run him down in a few years, you're out of your mind.
A-Rod's 6th of the season was number 470 for his career. Give A-Rod 7 more years and Barry will #2 again--just like he is right now.
I'll attempt to stay awake once again tonight as the Reds will now try to avoid the sweep, but I've got to tell you, I'm not getting enough baseball right now. Yep, I'm probably watching around 3 games a day and I'm still not getting enough. Thank you, DirecTV.
Loved seeing Josh Hamilton hitting that homer last night. Great story.
Let's do the BSO for Reds/D-Backs:
Balls: Kyle Lohse had a decent start but got crushed on a couple mistake pitches. Can't do that, despite how well he pitched otherwise. On the Chad Tracy bomb, he said he shook off Javier Valentin twice. KL, my man, your catcher calls the pitches for a reason. You're not savvy enough to be shaking him off all day. See the fingers, throw the pitch. Next question.
Todd Coffey is a monster. Next question.
Strikes: I've got the engineer cap and everything for the Josh Hamilton Fan Train. All aboard! What's so amazing about this guy is that he's come so far, wanted to get back so badly, had all this media attention and pressure to perform, and in his first 8 plate appearances, he's had the patience to walk 3 times. As a green rookie. As a baseball stat guy, I love it. Oh, and when Adam Dunn (HR #4), squares a ball, it's mind-(and gravity)shattering.
Out (of the Ordinary): All 5 D-Back runs came with 2 outs. Gotta finish innings. For the Sedona and Black, Orlando Cabrera has looked good this year (.395, 2 HR, 6 RBI, 11 R). His stats have shown some improvement, if only the guy had some power. Yeah, I know 2 HR already, but his PX (Power Rating--see BBHQ) is well below league average. It's just bad. Still, if he can get on base for Arizona, he could help score a lot of runs with his speed and the bats behind him.
_________________
Deal of No Deal?
I'm probably an idiot for not drafting A-Rod in the first round of my fantasy baseball draft. I had pick 6 and took Carl Crawford. CC will be great, but A-Rod is absolutely mashing the ball. Those 6 bombs sure would've looked good on my roster.
Help!
Can you believe this blowout? 57-1! Someone should've stopped the insanity. I can't believe that there wasn't a way to avoid this embarrassment. Surely a team couldn't be that bad. And you'd have to hope that winning team's equipment manager was in by the end--anything to get an out.
And The Thunder Rolls
We'll talk about this on the show, I'm sure, but Hank Aaron sounded off again about how he won't be around when Barry smacks 756. It's going to happen, but don't you wish there was some way it could be stopped? Doesn't Barry realize that pretty much no one wants him to break this record? He can't be that oblivious.
Hank is saying everything that he wants to say with his "non-statements". Gotta wonder how Barry likes being totally snubbed by the Hammer. He says he doesn't care in that article, and I know Barry is a habitual curmudgeon, but I think he cares about public opinion (and certainly peer opinion) way more than he ever lets on.
The good news is that I see this like Bob Knight breaking Dean Smith's all-time wins in men's college basketball. Sure, it's a milestone and credit to Knight, but a lot of fans probably didn't want Knight at the top--and he won't be for long. If you think Coach K won't run him down in a few years, you're out of your mind.
A-Rod's 6th of the season was number 470 for his career. Give A-Rod 7 more years and Barry will #2 again--just like he is right now.
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Reds 3, D-Backs 2 + Notes
No show this week. Just a reminder. We'll be back on the 21st with 2 more Whose Line DVD giveaways in the Spring Sprang Extravaganza. Plus, MLB, NBA Playoffs, and more.
I stayed up and watched the first of 3 the in Reds V. D-Backs series at Chase Field. Disappointing.
Balls: Solid start from Arroyo. Not much more you could ask him to do. On the other side, when the opposing pitcher walks 3 in 6 IP, you've got to cash in. None of the walked batters scored. Kirk Saarloos said of the Orlando Hudson HR in the 8th that he was just trying not to walk him. Can't fault him for that, he'll just have to make a better pitch next time.
Strikes: Phillips and Conine both walked twice. Nice to see that patience, especially from Phillips in the 2 hole. I like that a lot. Dunn had an 0-4 but did not whiff once. That's also encouraging. Don't look now but Alex Gonzalez is hitting .391. Actually, do look now because it probably won't last.
Out (of the ordinary): The Reds team BB/K ratio at the plate is 0.72--I can live with that definitely. Some timely hitting and this team could really start to score a little bit.
Looking forward to watching Game 2 tonight. Kyle Lohse will go again and Edgar Gonzalez will face the Reds lineup. Gonzalez could probably throw a ball through a needlehead. It will be interesting to see how they handle his precise control.
______________
Is Scott Hatteberg a "Wimp"?
All-around coverage on Scott Hatteberg telling Jerry Narron he can't hit a guy when he doesn't have the confidence. Is this an athlete is who, to use a basketball metaphor, "doesn't want the ball at the end of the game" or is this a guy who wants to win even he doesn't get the credit for coming through to do it? I vote the latter. He's a vet and he knows his game.
It's interesting though--if a child were to say something along these lines to a parent, no doubt the parent would say, "Yes, you can do it, Scotty. Now you get right back in there and strikeout." Food for thought.
Homer Bailey Is NOT Ready
Fans and the media are whizzing all over themselves after Homer Bailey's first AAA start--1 hit in 5.2 IP. Oooooooooh. Aaaaaahhhhhhhh.
Yes, that's great. You're right. But that's not the whole story. Here's the whole story.
4.8 vs. Toledo: 5.2 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 4 K
also
83 Pitches: 42 Strikes, 41 Balls
This does not show a mastery of AAA. I realize he's on a pitch count, as Bats pitching coach Ted Power (yes, that Ted Power) has said he doesn't like his guys to throw more than 90 pitches a start. So, I suppose the lack of pitching deep into the game could be blamed on that. But notice 3 walks in only 5.2 IP. If you're walking that many (and you shouldn't be), you should be fanning at least 7 in the same amount of time. Also, 42 strikes against 41 balls? Not mastery. And 83 pitches in 5.2 IP could also be improved upon as well. Power also mentioned that Bailey has some delivery flaws that need to be corrected. He's great, he's gonna be even better, but he's not ready for Cincinnati.
Uniform Approval
Got our first looks at both the Reds road and D-Back home unis. Both outstanding and prove that these uni sets are the ones both franchises have been waiting for--for a long time. Very nice--classic, clean, and quality.
Only 1 set of batting helmets for the Reds this season, it appears--the all-red helmet both and home and on the road despite the different on-field hats. I like that. Solid. Makes me wonder if eventually the black-billed hat becomes phased out. We'll see. I'm a huge fan of the all red, but I think the black-billed hat on the road is probably a good idea.
Saturday, March 31, 2007
Forum Recommended Reading
Here are some stories I thought you might enjoy. Good stuff.
SI's 2007 MLB Preview. Angels win World Series. Print that off and then laugh at it in October.
School credit for the Final Four? Interesting. And expensive.
SI write Tom Verducci gets to be ump-for-a-day. This is a good piece.
Ryan Howard and his highschool sweetheart. Don't worry--not a romantic novel.
SI's 2007 MLB Preview. Angels win World Series. Print that off and then laugh at it in October.
School credit for the Final Four? Interesting. And expensive.
SI write Tom Verducci gets to be ump-for-a-day. This is a good piece.
Ryan Howard and his highschool sweetheart. Don't worry--not a romantic novel.
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
Hold Your Horses
Well, just about every media outlet out there is having an absolute hernia trying to figure out whether or not Billy Donovan will be the next coach at the University of Kentucky.
Honestly, I can see why. Since Tubby left the Bluegrass for The Gopher State, a line of dominoes that has encompassed the entire college basketball nation has been felled and it's an overwhelming set of events that lends itself to what could be one of the biggest college basketball stories a few years on either side of it.
Add that to the fact that we are in what "they" call an Information Now society, and it's easy to see why we all want answers now. No, we want them yesterday. Or even the day before.
I would say to all of us--
Slow your roll.
Extract those panties from your crack.
Er, take a chill pill.
You get the idea.
There's a little performance this weekend in Atlanta call the Final…Something…and it seems to me that one Billy Donovan will partaking in that festival of basketball for a second year in a row. He'll be attempting to do something that no one has done except Mike (hold a sec while I
research the spelling) Krzyzewski has done since the Days of Wooden--and that's repeat as national champions in college basketball.
It seems to me Billy might have a tad on his mind.
Forget the fact that he's employed by Florida. Forget the fact that he's a professional and would never say, "Yeah, you know what, I will be taking that job in Lexington" at any point before the Gators are officially eliminated or until the victory parade is over. Forget the fact that he's finally going through this procedure by doing what we all want coaches to do and that's say absolutely nothing either way if he's not sure what he'll do about a coaching opportunity elsewhere.
People can talk about their sources. People can say, "My friend, ******, said that Billy stayed the night at his house and between braiding each other's hair and watching My Little Pony, he told me that he'd love to take the Kentucky job and that those Big Blue fans were just "dreamy". People can say whatever they want to say between now and this weekend and the masses will pounce on every shred of news and take it as Gospel.
Want to know why?
Because Billy won't disagree with them. Billy can't disagree with them. And neither will the University of Kentucky.
Billy's got a job to do. And no matter what so-and-so's friend "******" may say, UK can't really talk to Billy until the job is finished.
That's the bottom line.
So let's just all wait--it's an excellent story. No doubt about it. But this story has a few more chapters before it reaches its conclusion. Yeah, I know you (and I) want to know the ending, but you can't jump to the end of a book without reading the middle unless you don't care if you ruin the story.
And even if you do want to ruin the story by jumping to the end, you impatient booger, you can't--the ending hasn't been written yet. And right now, it looks like only Billy holds the pen to finish our story, but we all know where he is right now.
Doing his job.
____________________
Fair or Fault?
Did anyone see the highlights of the Serena Williams' match Monday where apparently someone was heckling her? Sending racial slurs onto the court like Serena smashes her serves over the net?
ESPN was running this raw footage of the match during SportsCenter and we could hear and see Serena complaining to the umpire and the umpire talking with stadium officials and fans pointing at the guy in question and eventually the guy is ejected from the stadium.
ESPN fuzzed out this guy's face. You know, where they make it blurry like when 60 Minutes or some news show won't show a victim and alters their voice? Why would they do that?
If you go to a sporting event, make an absolute fool of yourself, that's just tough luck, you're gonna look like a fool. We don't fuzz the faces of the guilty. That's why someone always has a coat or a bedsheet handy at the courthouse steps. Otherwise, everyone is going to know what you look like on the news. Including your boss. Your friends. And your wife.
Why would ESPN fuzz this guy's face? That makes absolutely no sense to me.
Then comes this report this morning that the guy, Donald Winton, denies saying anything racial. Sure, he may have said other mean things like "lazy", etc., but he did not use the N-word, according to him.
Is that why ESPN fuzzed out his face? Why would Serena make that up? Does ESPN know something we don't? Is it possible that Serena just got mad and served up the racial card so she could focus on the rest of the match? Doesn't seem likely, but impossible?
This is remotely interesting. Keep an eye on that. May be that we've read the final chapter on this, but if this guy really didn't do anything other than say she was lazy, he's absolutely doing the right thing and that’s screaming to the press that's she's a liar.
If he's lying, though, he's an even bigger idiot than I thought he was after he got kicked out.
Honestly, I can see why. Since Tubby left the Bluegrass for The Gopher State, a line of dominoes that has encompassed the entire college basketball nation has been felled and it's an overwhelming set of events that lends itself to what could be one of the biggest college basketball stories a few years on either side of it.
Add that to the fact that we are in what "they" call an Information Now society, and it's easy to see why we all want answers now. No, we want them yesterday. Or even the day before.
I would say to all of us--
Slow your roll.
Extract those panties from your crack.
Er, take a chill pill.
You get the idea.
There's a little performance this weekend in Atlanta call the Final…Something…and it seems to me that one Billy Donovan will partaking in that festival of basketball for a second year in a row. He'll be attempting to do something that no one has done except Mike (hold a sec while I
research the spelling) Krzyzewski has done since the Days of Wooden--and that's repeat as national champions in college basketball.It seems to me Billy might have a tad on his mind.
Forget the fact that he's employed by Florida. Forget the fact that he's a professional and would never say, "Yeah, you know what, I will be taking that job in Lexington" at any point before the Gators are officially eliminated or until the victory parade is over. Forget the fact that he's finally going through this procedure by doing what we all want coaches to do and that's say absolutely nothing either way if he's not sure what he'll do about a coaching opportunity elsewhere.
People can talk about their sources. People can say, "My friend, ******, said that Billy stayed the night at his house and between braiding each other's hair and watching My Little Pony, he told me that he'd love to take the Kentucky job and that those Big Blue fans were just "dreamy". People can say whatever they want to say between now and this weekend and the masses will pounce on every shred of news and take it as Gospel.
Want to know why?
Because Billy won't disagree with them. Billy can't disagree with them. And neither will the University of Kentucky.
Billy's got a job to do. And no matter what so-and-so's friend "******" may say, UK can't really talk to Billy until the job is finished.
That's the bottom line.
So let's just all wait--it's an excellent story. No doubt about it. But this story has a few more chapters before it reaches its conclusion. Yeah, I know you (and I) want to know the ending, but you can't jump to the end of a book without reading the middle unless you don't care if you ruin the story.
And even if you do want to ruin the story by jumping to the end, you impatient booger, you can't--the ending hasn't been written yet. And right now, it looks like only Billy holds the pen to finish our story, but we all know where he is right now.
Doing his job.
____________________
Fair or Fault?
Did anyone see the highlights of the Serena Williams' match Monday where apparently someone was heckling her? Sending racial slurs onto the court like Serena smashes her serves over the net?
ESPN was running this raw footage of the match during SportsCenter and we could hear and see Serena complaining to the umpire and the umpire talking with stadium officials and fans pointing at the guy in question and eventually the guy is ejected from the stadium.
ESPN fuzzed out this guy's face. You know, where they make it blurry like when 60 Minutes or some news show won't show a victim and alters their voice? Why would they do that?
If you go to a sporting event, make an absolute fool of yourself, that's just tough luck, you're gonna look like a fool. We don't fuzz the faces of the guilty. That's why someone always has a coat or a bedsheet handy at the courthouse steps. Otherwise, everyone is going to know what you look like on the news. Including your boss. Your friends. And your wife.
Why would ESPN fuzz this guy's face? That makes absolutely no sense to me.
Then comes this report this morning that the guy, Donald Winton, denies saying anything racial. Sure, he may have said other mean things like "lazy", etc., but he did not use the N-word, according to him.
Is that why ESPN fuzzed out his face? Why would Serena make that up? Does ESPN know something we don't? Is it possible that Serena just got mad and served up the racial card so she could focus on the rest of the match? Doesn't seem likely, but impossible?
This is remotely interesting. Keep an eye on that. May be that we've read the final chapter on this, but if this guy really didn't do anything other than say she was lazy, he's absolutely doing the right thing and that’s screaming to the press that's she's a liar.
If he's lying, though, he's an even bigger idiot than I thought he was after he got kicked out.
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
The Birth of the Blog
Welcome to the The Sports Forum Blog. It's here where our listeners can connect with the show (and I can connect with you) throughout the week.
Unfortunately, we only have 2 hours together on the air, which isn't a lot of time to cover an entire week of sports. Hopefully, one day soon that time will increase, but for now, we're finally able to do something that I've wanted to for a while--have a web presence for the show.
It came down like this--I've been the ESPN Fantasy Games Correspondent for the Cincinnati Reds for the last 3 seasons (and 1 season with the Angels before that). That blog takes up a lot of time, as you can imagine. Today, I get the word that ESPN will be disbanding correspondents for the 2007 season. No real reason why, and they were more than a little secretive as to why they made that decision. Nonetheless, their loss is our gain--more time for The Sports Forum Blog!
Just like our show on the air, we'll probably take a bit to get our feet under us and see exactly how we'll use this space. Also, just like the show, I make the promise to you that this blog will shoot for and achieve the 3 primary goals of The Sports Forum:
Put us on your favorites or the bookmarks for your browser just as I hope that TalkRadio 1080 has become a button on your radio presets so you can tune into the show.
The Blog Begins...
Unfortunately, we only have 2 hours together on the air, which isn't a lot of time to cover an entire week of sports. Hopefully, one day soon that time will increase, but for now, we're finally able to do something that I've wanted to for a while--have a web presence for the show.
It came down like this--I've been the ESPN Fantasy Games Correspondent for the Cincinnati Reds for the last 3 seasons (and 1 season with the Angels before that). That blog takes up a lot of time, as you can imagine. Today, I get the word that ESPN will be disbanding correspondents for the 2007 season. No real reason why, and they were more than a little secretive as to why they made that decision. Nonetheless, their loss is our gain--more time for The Sports Forum Blog!
Just like our show on the air, we'll probably take a bit to get our feet under us and see exactly how we'll use this space. Also, just like the show, I make the promise to you that this blog will shoot for and achieve the 3 primary goals of The Sports Forum:
- Be entertaining.
- Be informative.
- Be interactive.
Put us on your favorites or the bookmarks for your browser just as I hope that TalkRadio 1080 has become a button on your radio presets so you can tune into the show.
The Blog Begins...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)