- 06:09 AM
- 04/20/24
. A specific childhood memory is brought to my mind today. Being about 10 years old, at grandma's house in Mamaroneck, watching the Yankees on WPIX. Scooter was announcing. My Uncle Eddie, who, like Rizzuto, served in WWII, had the volume to 11. His hearing was shot from being near artillary. All the while, Eddie jingled loose change in his pocket mindlessly. Now, the three people important to this memory have passed on.
posted by msacheson at 02:49 PM on August 14, 2007
...this is the Yankees' year. After all they are overdue. Yeah, it's been, like, forever since they won the title. But I am a Yankees fan so I hope it happens this year. (I really thought 2001 was their year.)
posted by msacheson at 10:42 PM on September 26, 2006
Send Good Wishes to Barbaro... Because scrappy horses can read. Sorry for the snark. I actually do wish Barbaro well.
posted by msacheson at 09:38 AM on July 14, 2006
The story was interesting and well-written, but how is Maier more likely to be drafted by the Orioles than any other team? The fact that some say it's 50-50 whether he'll be drafted at all means that all teams will have plenty of chances to draft him. Me says the story is just grist for the mill.
posted by msacheson at 10:41 PM on June 02, 2006
Do you think Bonds knew he would miss the season when he got the Giants to guarantee his contracts for 2005 and 2006?
posted by msacheson at 11:28 AM on August 02, 2005
As an aside, I met Jeff Thomason at a wedding a few years ago. He's a really nice guy. He was happy to talk about being a pro football player, but he also did not make a big deal about it. I checked the Eagles roster earlier this year and noticed he wasn't playing anymore; I'm happy to see this story about him.
posted by msacheson at 12:26 PM on January 29, 2005
The Chargers were fortunate to even have a chance at a game-winnning gield goal. The penalty for a late hit on Brees on a fourth-down, last gasp of life play gave the Chargers fresh opportunities to send it into OT. And don't blame the loss entirely on the kicker. Schottenheimer ran on the field protesting a call and received a penalty that helped the Jets to a touchdown before halftime, and late in the game (4th quarter? OT?), the Chargers had 12 men on the field for a Jets punt that kept a drive alive for New York. A sloppy game by both sides. The Jets just took better advantage of the other team's miscues.
posted by msacheson at 12:40 PM on January 09, 2005
Some friends and I run a fantasy golf league which has a unique format: we draft players onto teams with salary caps like some football/baseball/basketball leagues. (Established web fantasy golf sites do it differently: players such as Tiger can be on multiple teams; in our league, someone owns him.) We need to have a draft online this time, and we envision a chat/IM session. Do you know of a site that can host a chat room for us?
posted by msacheson at 12:08 PM on December 23, 2004
Interesting thoughts about an event I don't normally care about. I agree with the argument that today's horses are not used to racing so hard in such a short time frame. It doesn't seem fair to have the last two winners of the Derby and Preakness lose the Belmont to horses that sat out the Preakness. I suggest not allowing a horse into the Belmont if it didn't run the Derby and Preakness, so as to have horses running the Belmont on equal terms.
posted by msacheson at 08:56 AM on August 28, 2004
wait, there's a "Gladiators Association?"
posted by msacheson at 11:30 AM on August 11, 2004
*I* wish Ernie had won, simply for the sake of my fantasy team, but Hamilton played solidly. Ernie didn't putt well from the 18th in regulation through the playoff, and Hamilton handled the pressure from World # 2 down the stretch. Maybe it helped him to play with Els, to see how calm Ernie is, and they fed off each other. No, it's not a good thing for golf. Ernie's nipping at Tiger's heels in the world rankings (through last week) and could have used the boost of winning the Open Championship. What's good for golf is for stars like Phil, Tiger, Ernie, Vijay to win majors. Mickelson is definitely the leader in Player of the Year honors, with his majors record (1, 2, 3) and other wins.
posted by msacheson at 10:20 PM on July 18, 2004
Here's the ebay auction for the ball (from ebay Spain). On the U.S. ebay, there's an auction for the contact info of the person who has the ball. Approximately $29 will get you Pablo Carral's 411.
posted by msacheson at 11:48 AM on July 14, 2004
As the story linked above puts it, the 100 is Marion Jones's "signature event," but she may still qualify for Athens in the 200 or long jump (or be picked for a relay, but that's unlikely).
posted by msacheson at 01:55 AM on July 12, 2004
That's a good link, kirkaracha. I've read this year's issue already, cover to cover, and my favorite one is the Hoop Dreams guys. They've turned out to be about what I might have guessed. William Gates saw he wasn't making the pros, but got a college degree out of it, and has a career in the ministry. Arthur Agee is still ballin', sort of, in exhibitions and 'Slam Ball,' which is dunking off trampolines. Each has four kids, but William is married to the mother of his children. Arthur fathered his out of wedlock.
posted by msacheson at 12:42 AM on July 12, 2004
He had much to say: The books of Ralph Wiley
posted by msacheson at 09:40 AM on June 15, 2004
(following last two comments) ... and it costs a lot of money to watch sports these days, so the two things are connected. I just hope Larry doesn't say the same lame thing that Parcells and many others have said after controversial remarks, "I'm sorry if I offended anyone." Don't say "if". The fact that what was said got blown back in the face of Parcells shows that it offended someone. To say "if" shows arrogance and ignorance.
posted by msacheson at 11:23 PM on June 09, 2004
It should have been ruled a goal, but it wasn't exactly a "shot". As Gelinas turned to stop, the puck appeared to deflect off his right skate toward the goal-line as Bolts netminder Nikolai Khabibulin flicked out his right foot to make the save. I watched games 5 and 6 in their entirety (except for a nap bridging period 1-intermission-period 2 in game 6), and I have enjoyed the hockey. I think it is really cool that the crowd is awash in a single color (red in Calgary, white in TB). Reminds me of something a European football crowd would do. Here's hoping the Canadian team wins. The Cup doesn't belong south of the Mason-Dixon line.
posted by msacheson at 06:57 PM on June 06, 2004
Hmmm...to announce news like this on Saturday of a long holiday weekend is a classic "let's bury this negative publicity" maneuver. Sadly ironic (if I'm using ironic correctly) that this news comes out on Memorial Day weekend.
posted by msacheson at 11:43 PM on May 31, 2004
This Yanks fan has to admit, between Manny Ramirez getting U.S. citizenship and Damon's caveman look getting shaved off for charity and Curt Schilling's comments, I think it would be more fun to root for the Sox than for the Yankees. The Red Sox are like a light-hearted sitcom while the Yankees are a tense soap opera. But rings are all that matter.
posted by msacheson at 08:42 PM on May 21, 2004
I strongly dislike Skip Bayless, just for his overall tone and yelling when on KNBR 680.
posted by msacheson at 08:30 PM on May 20, 2004
I started to read it and liked the format, but I have never liked Wiley. Maybe it's because too many of my students speka in the same ebonics way.
posted by msacheson at 07:50 PM on May 17, 2004
I wonder what Cooperstown's reaction to this is? And why didn't the article mention that the Pittsfield nine could not afford the star players employed by the "New Amsterdam Jankees"?
posted by msacheson at 08:19 PM on May 11, 2004
Couldn't happen to a nicer bunch. This phrase is always used sarcastically. Is that how you meant it, salmacis?
posted by msacheson at 01:19 PM on May 03, 2004
Yeah, I laughed at Daniels-as-Shilling, but I also liked Kilmer-as-Damon. I was expecting Caviazel (sp?). When I first saw Terry Francona this year, I thought of Bruno Kirby, in "Good Morning, Vietnam".
posted by msacheson at 05:13 PM on April 30, 2004
I second that 'go leetch go'. I am a heartbroken NY Rangers fan. While I am sad to see Leetch wear a sweater other than that of the Rangers, I'd love to see him get another cup.
posted by msacheson at 09:51 PM on April 20, 2004
'Scooter' is a computer graphic-driven talking baseball which in this case was used to try to explain the action of a knuckleball. From a home-plate perspective, you saw a strobe-effect of a knuckleball pitch, darting down, out, up, and all the while an annoying cartoon voice (I guess it's the guy who does SpongeBob SquarePants) says stupid stuff like, "I'm a knuckleball. I go in, out, and all about. I don't know where I'm going, but either do the batters. Heh-heh-heh-heh." During the first run of the Scooter feature, the sound was barely audible. They tried it again a second time, only, when the feature, which runs maybe 15 seconds, was over, viewers saw Wakefield throwing to first to complete a ground ball out. Covering live action with anything on tape is annoying to veiwers, but even worse when it was a stupid talking baseball. Before we bury Fox, I do want to say the flight-path for pitches trick was way kewl. I would agree, except that the flight path was the same for the five-or-so times a pitch is shown during each run of "scooter". It would have been better to have different flight paths, thus accentuating the unpredictable nature of a knuckleball, and it wouldn't have been that hard. Scooter who is Fox's flaming hockey puck redux Great observation, yerfatma. That flaming puck was as annoying and insulting to hockey fans as 'Scooter' will become to baseball fans. Here's a link to a CNN/SI story with more about Scooter, but it's really not that important. I hope it goes the way of the dodo bird, and fast. the 2nd inning opening with a 5-1 1 out ticker up top Yeah, I noticed that, too, and was very confused. I thought maybe we had missed a lead-off HR or something during commercial. It would have been a perfect time for the crew to bring up the absurdity of arod playing 3rd after jeter's error, but of course, nothing. You're right, but also keep Jeter's nice dive to his right in mind. That was shortly before his through-the-wicket error. Posada doing the Mattingly impersonation against Wakefield was kind of cool though, and it worked... I must admit I missed what you're talking about. Someone please explain. I was wholly unaware the other 27 teams had no bearing on baseball. There are 27 other teams? I know, I know. Just trying to stir the pot a little.
posted by msacheson at 09:37 AM on April 17, 2004
Even par, first rattle out of the can. Great link, corpse!
posted by msacheson at 03:19 PM on April 16, 2004
I just watched the highlights of this. (Thanks for the link, kokaku) Yeah, Kovalev's actions look circumspect and wimpy, but I want to make 2 points. One, the Habs were caught changing defensemen when Kovalev gave away the puck, and that's why there was nobody behind Kovalev (a forward handling the puck in neutral zone; probably preparing to dump it in). Two, Kovalev's name was called in virtually every clip of that highlight reel. He was all over the ice, scored the second goal for Montreal, and the Habs wouldn't have made it OT without him.
posted by msacheson at 12:49 AM on April 15, 2004
Good on ya, Phil. Great tuhnahment. I loved watching it today, though my bladder is killing me. No commercial breaks is great in concept, tough in reality. I was also rooting against him early (he's not on my fantasy golf team), but was happy to see him win, especially in such a strong way. He definitely 'won'; nobody lost and handed it to him. It was sweet to see his joy and celebration with his family.
posted by msacheson at 11:10 PM on April 11, 2004
Good on ya, Phil. Great tuhnahment. I loved watching it today, though my bladder is killing me. No commercial breaks is great in concept, tough in reality.
posted by msacheson at 05:35 PM on April 11, 2004
DiMarco could play David Toms' part in Mickelson's Greek tragedy this year, stealing his first major out from under Phil's nose. I resisted picking Phil before the Masters (seemed like everyone else was tipping him), but I did mention DiMarco in my shotgun approach to naming a favorite. My pick to win today: DiMarco. Gotta love some Phil quotes I read today: How does it feel to go into a final round at the Masters with Tiger, essentially, nowhere in sight? Mickelson flashed a sheepish grin, waited a beat and said: "Well, it doesn't suck." ----- "The difference now is, I'm putting it in play," Mickelson said. "My decision-making has improved for the simple reason I'm driving it in play. I don't have the decisions that I had when I was off in the trees. "It's like a whole different game. So much easier." Here he paused again and quipped: "I wish somebody would have told me this earlier."
posted by msacheson at 11:22 AM on April 11, 2004
Eye can't believe the receiver of that thumbing won the match.
posted by msacheson at 11:12 PM on April 10, 2004
ufez: From the menu: and British Columbia mushrooms Duuuuuuuuude. Kind. Is Ross Rebagliati going to be there? OK, Masters picks: Padraig Harrington, David Toms (sleeper; recovered fully?), Tiger Woods (T-5 at least), Chris DiMarco, Stuart Appleby. I'm going with guys hit do well in ball-striking. Straight drives will roll a long way in firm, fast conditions, and accurate irons will set up more makeable putts (and 2-putts). Experience at Augusta counts, and these guys have at least a few years each. Whoever puts the ball in the right places and pours it in will win.
posted by msacheson at 02:56 AM on April 07, 2004
"Getting a tie is like kissing your sister." - Vince Lombardi (according to this) "If a tie is like kissing your sister, losing is like kissing your grandmother with her teeth out." - George Brett More sports quotes
posted by msacheson at 07:07 PM on March 25, 2004
a little off-topic of the owners fighting, but this is from SI's story of how the A-Rod to Yankees deal went down: On Feb. 8 Scott Boras, Rodriguez's agent, called Yankees general manager Brian Cashman about another client, free-agent first baseman Travis Lee. Cashman mentioned how much trouble he was having trying to replace Boone. He had failed to get Adrian Beltre from the Los Angeles Dodgers, for instance. Then it hit Boras: Why not Rodriguez? ... On Feb. 10 the Rangers conducted an internal conference call with Rodriguez, Boras, Hicks, G.M. John Hart and manager Buck Showalter regarding the direction of the club. Boras just happened to mention that Rodriguez might reconsider a trade to the Yankees. Hicks scoffed at the idea. "Alex isn't going to play third base," the owner said. "He's always said that." "Alex," Boras said, "what do you think about third base?" "I wouldn't rule it out," Rodriguez said. Silence fell over the line. Said Boras on Sunday, "Frankly, Tom Hicks was stunned."
posted by msacheson at 03:18 PM on February 19, 2004
More Elle pictures here (NSFW: Not Safe For Wives).
posted by msacheson at 02:46 PM on February 19, 2004
re: This year's swimsuit issue. What does it say that my wife was more interested in it than me? And that after skimming some photos, I was most interested in the Jimmy Buffett story and CD. My favorite feature of the SI SI these days is the section of athletes & spouses.
posted by msacheson at 02:45 PM on February 19, 2004
The halo rule is the rule that says the player who is set to catch a punt has a three (?) yard space around him which cannot be intruded on by a player from the other team. The point is to disallow tacklers from standing in the face of a punt-catcher before he catches the punt. God, that was an awful explanation. You're entitled to still be confused.
posted by msacheson at 06:55 PM on February 07, 2004
Update, Downhill results: Austria's Eberharter wins Hahnenkamm by over a second over USA's Rahlves. Maier 9th, Miller 16th.
posted by msacheson at 10:00 AM on January 24, 2004
Thanks for posting this, lil_brown_bat. This week's New Yorker has a good story on Hermann Maier and Bode Miller (not online, unfortunately). Maier's brute strength and technique is lauded, as is Miller's aggressiveness and use of carving-edge ski technology.
posted by msacheson at 01:18 PM on January 23, 2004
great link, 86. I love this meaningless crap, too. Does anyone here know if it used to be a rule in basketball for uni numbers to use only digits 1-5? (for example: 3, 12, 23...but not 17) Maybe because refs used to call fouls with fingers on each hand, and each could only go to five. Any validation to that? AskSpoFi
posted by msacheson at 11:36 AM on January 20, 2004
JJ, hate to backseat edit, but I would have headlined this link: Kiss me, I'm Irish now. Will Nick Price do the same? Maybe he doesn't have family ties to another country as McNulty does. I think it's great when an athlete uses his/her celebrity to stand for or against something, as the American runners Tommie Smith and John Carlos did in Mexico City in '68.
posted by msacheson at 11:22 AM on January 09, 2004
Anderson is so old he went to Syracuse before they built the Carrier Dome.
posted by msacheson at 06:35 PM on January 08, 2004
it's Petitte & Clemens vs. Brown & Vazquez. And I think that's a clearer decision. Yup, to this Yankees fan, it's a clear decision to wish we still had Pettitte and Clemens ("known") over Brown & Vazquez ("unknown"). Pettitte and Clemens were solid, durable and would be a 1-2 on many teams. Brown & Vazquez may be better OR may be worse OR may be on DL a lot.
posted by msacheson at 04:14 PM on December 12, 2003
Well, that would pretty much guarantee that the Yankees won't finish first in the division. I'll be a very disappointed Yankees fan if this goes through. Pettitte just looks like a Yankee to me. Him and Posada.
posted by msacheson at 03:49 PM on December 10, 2003
jbou, that's an interesting point, and I'm surprised it's never been done. Catchers are moved to first in the twilight of their years because their mobility is usually deficient. Understandable after squatting for so long. But catchers, positionally, need to have good, accurate throwing arms, which should be considered in the field. Third base, on a team with a wide-ranging shortstop, could work. But no MLB manager would be ballsy enough to try it. Managers are more risk-averse than casino pit-bosses.
posted by msacheson at 02:51 PM on December 08, 2003
goddamn, DON'T DO IT! DON'T DO THE INTERVIEW! Step AWAY from the keyboard. Trust me. :) Guys, you'd be amazed at what a little nice dressing will do. As JerseyGirl said, it doesn't mean that the baseball cap and jeans isn't nice, but it means a lot to see a guy acually put some thought into what they look like. We put way too much thought into it all the time and it's a "given" that we look put together-but guys can look like shit and it's the norm (See all the fat slobby guy/hot wife shows on TV these days.) Hey Garfield, maybe dressing nicely occasionally would put you over into the "hot" field! It's a thought...it can't hurt. Never underestimate a nice pair of tailored pants.....
posted by msacheson at 12:19 PM on December 02, 2003
Another archer babe...and a great target. Okay, so I got a little off-track there. Goddam, I blame you. Thanks!
posted by msacheson at 10:27 PM on December 01, 2003
jerseygirl, good eye: Elin Nordegren and Gena Lee Nolan ... separated at birth?
posted by msacheson at 11:29 AM on November 29, 2003
I like Curt Schilling, even though he is a big reason the Yankees lost the World Series in 2001. His open letter following the 9/11 attacks was impressive and unique in the world of sports. And now I like him more for being so open with fans. Only thing I don't like him for is his choice of teams. The Yankees, while I feel they need to dedicate their dollars to younger pitchers, could've used Schilling to fill Clemens' role. Guy's a competitor, and his matchups with the Yanks will be great to watch. This is a cool excerpt from his post to the fans: 6) And yes, the one rumour that is true is that Mr Epstein and his assistant did have Thanksgiving dinner at our home. Shonda and I were a bit concerned, and impressed, that they would spend Thanksgiving away from their families, so we invited them on Wednesday night to have dinner with us on Thanksgiving, I am pretty sure they enjoyed the food.
posted by msacheson at 06:14 PM on November 28, 2003
Jaquandor, why didn't you link to the actual TMQ column on nfl.com?
posted by msacheson at 02:41 PM on November 25, 2003
jerseygirl: I LOVE that one...with the organist keeling over at the end!
posted by msacheson at 01:21 PM on November 19, 2003
see thread posted already.
posted by msacheson at 06:39 PM on November 18, 2003
Peter King from SI had this to say about the Cowboys in his MMQB column today: Tampa Bay 16, Dallas 0. New England 12, Dallas 0. Carolina, Miami, Philadelphia the next three weeks. Uh-oh. In other words, two shutouts against good defenses, with three straight coming up against defenses ranked 17, 11 and 19 respectively. At least the 'Boys defense is ranked #1. These 3 games should make the difference in Dallas' season.
posted by msacheson at 12:08 PM on November 17, 2003
I'd say that support for Mike Tice's candidacy for CotY is dropping fast. In fact, I guarantee it.
posted by msacheson at 09:56 AM on November 17, 2003
gee, fork, I dunno about this post. It's pretty tasteless, but I guess it's just a gimmick for marketing condoms to sports fans. That said, I do like the pic of the female weightlifter competitor slapping chalk on her butt before "lift". (looks over shoulder to see if wifee is around)
posted by msacheson at 01:24 AM on November 15, 2003
Indy Driver Milka Duno 'Dangerously Slow'
yeah, but she's hot.