Recent Comments by Rock Steady

Boom goes the dynamite.

I'm surprised at how well the Cavs did in this deal. I feel like the first rounder (which Celtics fans have been salivating over for years) puts it way over the top.

posted by Rock Steady at 10:52 AM on August 23, 2017

'So, let’s build a pro soccer team from scratch ...'

Interesting. I really like the idea of sparking promotion/relegation in the US from the bottom up.

posted by Rock Steady at 04:20 PM on May 09, 2016

ESPN attempts to shame Cuba; backfires badly.

That's fantastic. I think it was Roger Clemens that thought his cabbie had dropped him off at a warehouse instead of Fenway Park on his first day with the Sox. Granted, Kenmore has improved a bit since then, but there are still areas around the park that similar to that shot in Cuba.

posted by Rock Steady at 02:48 PM on March 23, 2016

NFL Adds Rule for Automatic Ejections After 2 Personal Fouls

Also, even if they don't formally adopt the showing of cards (they won't), I hope broadcasters attach a little yellow card onto the player's name in any on-screen graphics, so we can keep track of who has been booked.

posted by Rock Steady at 01:56 PM on March 23, 2016

NFL Adds Rule for Automatic Ejections After 2 Personal Fouls

I think it is a good rule, but boy howdy, this is going to put a ton of scrutiny on every single personal foul call, as players will be (perceived or real) forced to play more cautiously after that first yellow card. Even if they don't end up ejected, fans will be furious that their player's hands were tied.

posted by Rock Steady at 01:54 PM on March 23, 2016

The Wow Factor

Fascinating. I'd love to see pictures of that LA Rams office.

posted by Rock Steady at 05:45 PM on February 11, 2016

Peyton Manning Turns Super Bowl Moment into Beer Promotion

He also owns a stake in a couple of Budweiser distributors.

posted by Rock Steady at 08:24 AM on February 08, 2016

NFL Approves Rams Move to Los Angeles, Chargers Invited to Join

In the darkest timeline, the St Louis Stallions are aiming for their 5th Super Bowl victory in the past 15 years, and the New England Rams are heading back to LA.

posted by Rock Steady at 08:44 AM on January 14, 2016

Play SportsFilter's NFL Playoff Pick 'Em Contest

KC over Houston by 4
Cincinnati over Pittsburgh by 10
Seattle over Minnesota by 7 - Lock It In
Washington over Green Bay by 3

posted by Rock Steady at 03:30 PM on January 07, 2016

David Price signs largest pitching contract in MLB history.

or if Dombrowski's press conference included the line, "We know he will suck for the last 4 years relative to his pay, we just don't care, we're so stinking rich."

I feel like that is just taken as read in all megacontracts these days, especially from the super-rich teams.

posted by Rock Steady at 03:52 PM on December 02, 2015

College Football Belt Backlog

Excellent. Fascinating to see that it works out in the end, when it could have become mired somewhere below what is now Division I or even expired by being held by a team that disbanded its football program. I wonder what team has had the most chances at the Belt without ever winning it?

posted by Rock Steady at 04:24 PM on November 25, 2015

SportsFilter: The Tuesday Huddle

I have a question about the ruling on the final play of MNF. My brain tells me that recently (within the last 5-10 years) the out of bounds rule was changed such that the ball carrier has to go out of bounds while attempting to make forward progress in order for the clock to stop. If they just run (or roll, as last night) sideways to get out of bounds, the clock keeps rolling. That makes the call on that final play correct, but neither Steratore nor Blandino explained it that way after the fact. Many people on Twitter last night and a random answers.com post seem to agree with me (and make me think I'm not totally insane), but other than that, I can't find any evidence of that interpretation of the rule. Does this sound familiar to anyone else?

posted by Rock Steady at 08:56 AM on November 24, 2015

Miami Dolphins Fire Coach Joe Philbin

Did they really Lane Kiffin him overseas? That's amazing.

posted by Rock Steady at 12:17 PM on October 05, 2015

Indiana Pacers to Wear "Hoosiers" Inspired Uniform

Love the shiny shorts. I'd like to see that old-school style come back.

posted by Rock Steady at 11:39 AM on July 21, 2015

Hey, NFL, Let Anyone Commentate the Next Super Bowl

ESPN's Megacast of the College Football Playoffs Championship (do we have a short name for that yet? The Championship?) might be an instructive model.

posted by Rock Steady at 12:03 PM on February 03, 2015

New MLB Commissioner: We May Ban Defensive Shifts

Are you really trying to steal the NFL's incompetent thunder, MLB?

posted by Rock Steady at 02:03 PM on January 27, 2015

11 of 12 Patriots' Balls Deflated, ESPN Reports

My understanding is that this sort of thing is like a spitball in baseball. Illegal if you get caught, but done often enough that it's not the sort of shocking scandal some seem to want to make it out to be. Aaron Rodgers said in an interview this week that he routinely asks his crew to overinflate the balls, for example.

posted by Rock Steady at 05:01 PM on January 21, 2015

Alex Torres First Pitcher to Wear Protective Cap

I mean, I'm glad pitchers have this option for protection if they want it, but... Yeah, it's-a me, Mario!

posted by Rock Steady at 11:21 AM on June 22, 2014

U.S. Defeats Ghana with Late Header by John Brooks

That was amazing, but I never ever ever want to play Ghana again. We are going to need better possession going forward.

posted by Rock Steady at 08:54 PM on June 16, 2014

Don Zimmer was truly a baseball man

I'll never forget the time he charged at Pedro Martinez in the 2004 ALCS like a raging bull and Petey judoed him to the ground.

.

posted by Rock Steady at 08:26 AM on June 05, 2014

"The Krafts Are the Worst Owners in the League"

A dedicated soccer stadium in Somerville would be amazing.

posted by Rock Steady at 02:39 PM on March 27, 2014

Českı lakros

How do you say "Wellington Stanwick" in Czech?

posted by Rock Steady at 11:19 AM on January 06, 2014

Nicolas Anelka scored twice this weekend and celebrated in a way only Nicolas Anelka could

Also, if you have a "signature political salute," you should probably be barred from any sort of political office forever.

posted by Rock Steady at 10:48 AM on December 30, 2013

Nicolas Anelka scored twice this weekend and celebrated in a way only Nicolas Anelka could

If you have a buddy who is an anti-Semitic comedian about to be banned in your homeland for anti-Semitism, you may not want to make his signature political salute in front of a worldwide audience if you do not want to be considered anti-Semitic.

posted by Rock Steady at 10:47 AM on December 30, 2013

Former OL Shawn Andrews says Donovan McNabb made Eagles locker room a 'living hell'

The floodgates are going to open on this, for better or worse.

posted by Rock Steady at 09:32 AM on November 21, 2013

Atlanta Braves plan to build new stadium in Cobb County

Deadspin has a pretty good take on this, including a telling map of Braves' season ticket holders.

posted by Rock Steady at 10:14 AM on November 11, 2013

Red Sox Win Game 5, Go Home to Fenway

Ye Gods this series is not good for my heart. If there is a Game 7, I may watch it in the waiting room of a nearby ER, just in case.

posted by Rock Steady at 10:56 AM on October 29, 2013

Jets Told Refs to Look for Patriots' Push

They committed a penalty, the penalty was called, end of story.

Yup, just a routine, never-before-called penalty that resulted in an overtime defeat. Can't imagine why anyone would want to discuss that.

posted by Rock Steady at 12:43 PM on October 23, 2013

Jets Told Refs to Look for Patriots' Push

A couple things I think about this:


    1. It's OK for a team to alert the refs about potential infractions that the other team is prone to.
    2. The Patriots violated the rule.
    3. The Patriots did not think this was against the rules. It sounds like Belichick thought it had something to do with second level defenders pushing first level defenders.
    4. Does this really provide safety improvements?
    5. If so, shouldn't it be the rule on all plays, not just FG attempts?
    6. Like all things involving the Patriots, it is getting blown out of proportion by their critics.

    posted by Rock Steady at 01:18 PM on October 22, 2013

Yankees Out of Playoff Contention

My friend at work who is a Yankees fan is really pessimistic, though it reminds me of my attitude going into this season as a Red Sox fan, so maybe they will come up with some surprises.

posted by Rock Steady at 05:00 PM on September 26, 2013

Tokyo Wins the 2020 Summer Olympics

Before the 2016 Games, wrestling's makeover will include a few tricks borrowed from the MMA world (perhaps no more singlets, the addition of music, lighting, visual effects) to make the sport more entertaining.

It seems silly, but I do think losing the singlet would be a big help. It really makes the sport look dated. Also visual effects? Like a green screen mat, and then you can make it look like they are wrestling on the surface of Mars or in an ancient amphitheater? Awesome.

posted by Rock Steady at 11:59 AM on September 09, 2013

Bruno Mars to Play Super Bowl Halftime

He and his band sure do seem to put on a hell of a show. Interesting to see them go with a younger, more relevant act as opposed to a "Lifetime Achievement Award" type choice. My daughter (12 years old) was watching football with me yesterday for a little bit, and she was very excited about this news.

posted by Rock Steady at 11:46 AM on September 09, 2013

Peyton Manning Throws 7 TDs, Broncos Rout Ravens

Elway throws seven touchdown passes

Hee

posted by Rock Steady at 09:41 AM on September 06, 2013

Peyton Manning Throws 7 TDs, Broncos Rout Ravens

That game was a fun experiment testing the immoveable wall of my hatred of the Baltimore Ravens against the irresistible force of my hatred for Peyton Manning.

posted by Rock Steady at 08:26 AM on September 06, 2013

Tim Tebow's Final Preseason Performance Tebowesque

I was struck by how bad he looked at merely throwing the ball. I guess I've never really watched his mechanics that closely, but he looked like an amateur out there last night. Some of his throws were so far off the target it was inexplicable.

posted by Rock Steady at 02:09 PM on August 30, 2013

NFL Settles with Players for $765 Million for Brain Traumas

Wow. That's an incredible bargain for the NFL. I guess that is a lot of money for most of those guys, but it just seems so pitiful when compared to the massive behemoth that is the NFL these days.

posted by Rock Steady at 02:25 PM on August 29, 2013

Retired NASCAR driver Dick Trickle dies of apparent self-inflicted wound

That's terrible. I'm not a NASCAR fan, so I really only know him thanks to Patrick and Olbermann, but he seemed to be a likeable guy with a good sense of humor.

.

posted by Rock Steady at 11:29 AM on May 17, 2013

Longtime NFL announcer Pat Summerall has died

Oh no, there's a man down.

RIP

posted by Rock Steady at 11:23 AM on April 17, 2013

Adam Scott Wins the Masters

I swear there is a market out there for Vintage Golf, a la Vintage Base Ball. Let people rent knickers and caps and Spoons and Mashie Niblicks and sell them a bucket of repro gutta percha balls and send them out for an afternoon.

posted by Rock Steady at 09:01 AM on April 15, 2013

SportsFilter: The Tuesday Huddle

The Bruins are now the team to beat in NHL '94.

posted by Rock Steady at 04:27 PM on April 02, 2013

Miami Dolphins Change Their Logo

It looks so bland and corporate. Like an airline or shipping company logo.

posted by Rock Steady at 11:29 AM on March 28, 2013

Iggy!! Part deux?

Ugh. I'm not a huge hockey fan, so I didn't hear the rumors about him going to Boston until yesterday, but I was really excited to watch him play for the Bruins. I guess it's good that he's going to a good hockey town like Pittsburgh, but it's a shame he had to leave at all.

posted by Rock Steady at 09:47 AM on March 28, 2013

U.S. Achieves Historic Draw in Mexico

Still think whoever scheduled Friday's game in Denver ought to be fired, that was a terrible decision. Dick's is a great venue, not complaining about them getting a game, but not in March.

I assumed it was to get the team used to playing at altitude for Azteca.

posted by Rock Steady at 09:40 AM on March 28, 2013

U.S. Achieves Historic Draw in Mexico

That was intense. I agree with you about the non-call, but it's shocking Mexico didn't get the benefit of the doubt on that one at home. I was not too worried about the lack of offense. It seemed clear that they were going with a very conservative game plan, largely eschewing counter-attacks to prevent getting caught out by a quick counter-counter-attack, especially with the concerns about the fullbacks going into the match. The US did have some sustained periods of good possession on the Mexican side of the field, especially in the second half.

posted by Rock Steady at 09:10 AM on March 27, 2013

Florida Gulf Coast Makes 15-Seed History

I can't find the tweet now, but my favorite was one that was bemoaning the state of their busted brackets by noting that "FGCU is actually how most students at Florida Gulf Coast spell Fuck You" or something to that effect.

posted by Rock Steady at 11:54 AM on March 25, 2013

Oscar Pistorius Suspected in Girlfriend's Death

Oh no.

posted by Rock Steady at 09:48 AM on February 14, 2013

Olympics drop wrestling for 2020

Huh. I kind of got into Modern Pentathlon at the London Games (#JJGo) so I'm glad to see it's still around, but for me there is not a more Olympic-y sport than wrestling. Maybe the IOC didn't like any of the other sports applying for bids ("baseball and softball, karate, squash, roller sports, sport climbing, wakeboarding and wushu") so they figured they dump a sure thing into that pool? I guess I need to stop assuming the decisions of international sports governing bodies are going to make any kind of sense.

posted by Rock Steady at 01:31 PM on February 12, 2013

Atlanta Braves Abandon Plans to Revive Chief Noc-a-Homa

It's almost inconceivably tone deaf of them to have even considered making a mock-up of that hat. I thought it might have been a hoax when I first saw it on Uni Watch.

posted by Rock Steady at 10:01 AM on February 12, 2013

N.C. State Player Saves Wheelchair-Bound Fan

Dick Vitale and the play-by-play guy (Mike Patrick?) were genuinely concerned, first about their own safety as the fans gathered at courtside, and then were horrified when they saw the guy in the wheelchair being pushed onto the court. Good to know someone was looking after him.

posted by Rock Steady at 11:00 AM on January 15, 2013

Jets fire GM, but Ryan will return

So this is basically an anti-Tebow move, then? At this point I'd be surprised if they don't Photoshop Tebow out of the team photos.

posted by Rock Steady at 11:11 PM on December 31, 2012

Russian Team's Fans Demand All-White, All-Straight Team

At this point in time, were I of colour or gay, and had the mad skills to play that level I wouldn't even consider Zenit St. Pete...

Yeah, I feel like the fans have probably achieved their goal at this point by making it a completely unpleasant place to play.

posted by Rock Steady at 04:40 PM on December 17, 2012

Charles Pierce on Donald Fehr and the NHL lockout

Love Charles Pierce. This lockout is just so unbelievable. You literally would not believe it if it were in a work of fiction.

posted by Rock Steady at 09:51 PM on December 11, 2012

The San Antonio Spurs send some players home

Duncan, T. -- DNP (Commissioner's Decision)

posted by Rock Steady at 12:00 PM on November 30, 2012

The New Baseball Offseason System

James Loney is also ineligible, because he was included in a mid-season trade, and is bad. Bad players are not literally ineligible, but they are effectively ineligible.

Ha!

posted by Rock Steady at 03:22 PM on October 31, 2012

Swisher Knocks 'Negative Attitude' of Yankees Fans

*sniff, sniff* Mmmmm, that's the sweet sweet smell of schadenfreude. Time for chicken and beer in the clubhouse, guys!

posted by Rock Steady at 09:32 AM on October 16, 2012

There's No I in Clemens

What a fucking weasel move. He knows they would only send him out against a non-contender, so he says he only wants to pitch against a contender. That way it seems like they just couldn't get the schedule to work out, not that he sucks. If he knew they'd only start him against a contender, he'd say "I don't want to ruin anyone's season, so I only want to pitch when it won't affect the pennant race." Weaselly bastard.

posted by Rock Steady at 11:47 PM on September 11, 2012

Johnny Pesky, 1920-2012

.

My brother has a cat named Johnny Pesky.

posted by Rock Steady at 05:29 PM on August 13, 2012

Ichiro is now a Yankee.

I think Jesse Thorn said it best. It's like your favorite uncle becoming a Scientologist.

posted by Rock Steady at 09:21 AM on July 24, 2012

Tony Parker Sues Nightclub Over Posse Fight

And as everyone knows, you can't allow people who dislike each other into the same physical space without being legally responsible for all of their actions.

posted by Rock Steady at 01:16 PM on June 25, 2012