Friday, September 08, 2006

Friday A.M. Wrap

Too much other stuff to get to...


Clinton Portis unlikely
for Week 1: If "MNF" wanted a brilliant start to the season, they'd bring him up to the booth as Coach Janky Spanky.

Steve Smith potentially out for Week 1, too: Even if it only might take the Panthers 14 points to beat the Falcons, this is still a hit.

Ryan Howard hits No. 54: Only 8 away from topping Maris and claiming the status as baseball's REAL Home Run Champ.

Federer defeats Blake at US Open: I like the joy that Blake brings, but when "I took a set!" is your moral victory, Fed's still The Man.

Is Frank Robinson retiring after the season? All that does is drive up Joe Girardi's price with the Cubs.

Joe Cullen: 1-game suspension. So he reportedly gives a peep show to the drive-thru worker at a Wendy's and all he gets is one game?

Hoops Hall: Barkley et al inducted today. For all of Barkley's bluster, do you think he'd trade his Hall status for a ring? I don't, and that's why I think his "all I ever wanted was a ring" is b.s.

Uecker stalker banned from Miller Park for 4 years. I'm sure that makes Uecker feel better, but not entirely great.

New charges for Clarett: Go figure...

More coming today: Steelers-Dolphins reax, CFB Weekend Preview and NFL Week 1 Picks (after my TERRIBLE start last night!)

-- D.S.

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

One gets the feeling that Federer's still not firing on all cylinders, which is scary, given that he took a 6-0 set off Blake, the 5th seed, and has only dropped one set in the whole tournament. Still, this could be Roddick's best shot at him, considering how well he's played for the last few weeks.

Anonymous said...

Dan,

Glad to see your prognosticating skills are as awful as always. Your already 0-1. The Quickie Curse lives.

Anonymous said...

Cmon Dan, let go of that "real home run champ" business. 73 is the number. In 25 years, noone will remember or care about the steroids, they'll remember Bonds 73.

Of course, I doubt the record stays up that long. If Howard doesn't get 74 this year, he seems capable of it another year.

Jon said...

It's too bad that Blake didn't win that first set. Would have been much more exciting to watch, but it still wasn't that bad.

Why would somebody want to stalk Ueker??

Brien said...

Re: Barkley's ring

Dan,

What would you have any athlete say who enters a Hall of Fame without a championship ring? Would you have him get up on the podium and say:

"I know I didn't win a championship. But, you know what? At least my career and stats were good enough to get me into the Hall of Fame. Thank you."

If he actually said *anything* similar to that at his induction speech, you, and every other pundit, would be calling him Most. Selfish. Ever.

Even if Barkley really, deep down inside, could care less about no ring, does anyone think he would ever admit that to anyone? Of course, not.

Because, if he did, it would call into question every athlete (a la A-Rod) who tells the press, "I came here to win a championship".

Admitting you really aren't upset that you played your whole, Hall of Fame career, and never grasped the brass ring would be tantamount to a professional athlete coming out of the closet.

Ain't. Gonna. Happen.

Brien

Jake C said...

You're forgetting Jose Reyes hitting his first career inside-the-park homerun. Is there a more exciting player in MLB than Reyes? I think not.

I'm actually rooting for Roddick to make it to face Federer at this point. As punky and Roddick has been, I can see the same possible transformation in him that Agassi once had. Speaking of which, anyone else watching the quarterfinals thinking that even if Agassi made it, he would have been destroyed?

Barkley, himself, is just plain nonsense. You expect the guy who is switching to an "Independent" party for his "possible election" just to get more votes to be honest? Barkley has never been more than a side show entertainer, and that's what he'll always be. He doesn't care about a ring or championship or anything else besides Charles.

Brien said...

Hey Dan,

How did you miss commenting on Michelle Wie's obvious lack of intelligence?

In an interview, she defended her desire to play in men's events (she mentioned the British Open, specifically) and on the PGA Tour by saying, in effect, that because it's not the "Men's British Open", or the "Men's Professional Golf Association", there's no bar against women.

However, she then says that men shouldn't compete in the Women's British Open, or on the LPGA Tour because those events/organizations have the words "Women's" or "Ladies" in them.

Does Wie completely not understand that the reason that the men's events/tours don't say "Men's" is because, at the time they were started, women didn't have much standing in the community?

She's using mere semantics and the fear of the PGA being labelled as mysogynists to bully her way onto the Tour.

I don't doubt her abilities as a golfer ... it's her reasoning and logic that need a better workout.

Brien

Anonymous said...

why does everyone immediately think that Howard is clean just because he's a "nice guy?" Haven't we learned anything?!?! When I see a negative test from him I'll believe it.

Anonymous said...

Anonymous said...
why does everyone immediately think that Howard is clean just because he's a "nice guy?" Haven't we learned anything?!?! When I see a negative test from him I'll believe it.


Could not agree more.. in my mind, everyone is a suspect these days....

Michelle Wie needs to learn to keep her mouth shut. Not to sound completely sexist, but the only thing that allows ANY woman to compete in a mens event and not get blown off the course is technology. Flip the script on this debate and let Tiger go bomb 325 yard drives at the Nabisco classic and see if he doesn't win by 20 strokes. I don't watch Tennis.. so thats all I got

Zach said...

Dan, I echo the sentiments of several of the other comments. I'm not sure how anyone can be so damn sure that Ryan Howard isn't using PEDs, not in this day and age. Look, we know that a sizable portion of players (you clearly think more than 50%) are using steroids or other PEDs. Thus, it's a better than even money chance that Howard is. Plus, why wouldn't a guy use HGH? He's not gonna get caught, and he's gonna make a whole lot more money that way.

In all honesty, I don't really care if professional athletes use PEDs. They're getting very well compensated for the health risks they're taking. The problem is that every kid who wants to be a pro is going to take PEDs, and only a select few will ever see any financial return on their health risk.

Until someone hits 74 homers in a season, or until we can be absolutely sure that a player hitting 62 wasn't on PEDs (aka never), Bonds and his 73 have to be the record.

Anonymous said...

Shanoff,

No mention of Verlander picking up his 16th win?

This guy has the sickest stuff in the Bigs and he bares a striking resemblance to my older brother.

The fact that he is even still playing at this point in the season (see Papelbon and Liriano) seals the deal as the AL ROY. Second in the League in wins and ERA and playing for the best team in the Majors? Game Over.

Brien said...

I cannot say that Ryan Howard is "clean", but, at age 26, and having spent so many years in the minors, where there has always been some kind of testing, I'd say that he's fairly free of the stuff you can test for.

Also, given his size, and he's *always* been a big guy, even in high school ... and given that he's always had great power, even in high school (I know, he could be "dirty" that far back) ... I'm as confident as I can be that what we're seeing is all-natural.

(Disclosure: I am a Phillies fan.)

The disappointing thing about the whole steroid issue is that we can't bring ourselves to believe that a guy like Howard comes by his skills and power naturally. It's a shame, because we can no longer enjoy the power display for what it is ... because we fear of what it might be.

I really feel bad for Howard, and I feel bad for fans who can't bring themselves to enjoy the 54 homers thus far ... safe in the knowledge that those 54 are legit.

Thanks, Mac, Sammy, and Barry ... my team finally gets a basher of their own ... and no one believes he's really that good.

Brien

Nateusmoore said...

THE IRISH WILL WIN!!!! Oh yeah, and my college, Montana State, will improve to 2-0.

Anonymous said...

the idea for coach janky spanky to be in the booth is brilliant. although, i'd bring him in for halftime and have him breakdown the first half. we need southeast jerome and sheriff gonna getcha in the booth too. anyone has to be better than joey t. no disrespect joe, loved you on the skins...