This time of year, most people put on a couple of extra pounds. The term "Holiday Weight" has been coined to explain individuals' lack of exercise/over-eating around Christmas and New Years. Whether you've stuffed your face full of turkey on the 25th or making yet another new years resolution about keeping active, something has to give. It isn't hard work to be lazy, so lets go through some ways to make 2009 different... no more excuses, it's time to get fit.
One of the most basic ways of getting exercise is incorporating it into your daily routine. Think about what you do throughout the day. Is there time to hit up the local gym? Maybe get together with a couple of friends to play a pick-up game of your favourite sport? These are the simplest ways of getting exercise but for some reason are the hardest to commit to. There always seems to be some kind of excuse to miss a workout session or to postpone a game with the buddies. By the end of the night, you end up at a bar sitting around WATCHING the game instead of participating in it.
It doesn't take a lot of will power to say, "I'm going to the gym three times a week"... but it does to actually stick to it for more than one week. How do you stick to a routine? One of the most effective ways is to hire a personal trainer.
The reason being is now you HAVE to exercise. Sure, it may cost a bit of money to hire one but now that you have invested in keeping fit you are more likely to be motivated. There's a guy/girl out there who is getting paid whether you attend the sessions or not. So you might as well attend and get the benefits of working one on one with a certified professional.
Sessions mainly happen at a gym or at your home. I suggest doing them at home just because even if you don't feel like working out that day, once you hear that knock on the door it gets even harder to avoid.
Being the big city it is, Toronto has a vast array of personal trainers for hire. Just typing it into a search engine will give you an overwhelming amount of results. So if you truly want to keep that holiday weight off and are serious about getting in shape, hiring a personal trainer might be the best decision you've ever made.
If you're the type of person who just wants to keep active, recreational sports are a great alternative. All the time we hear about house-league sports for kids but there are many house-league sports for adults too. For example, pick-up games of basketball are easy to organize just by going to your local community centre. By going to a local rink you can find out a schedule for when shinny (pick-up hockey) is being held. The problem with this is that there are so many people that have that exact same mind-set. If you don't show up, it's no big deal because there are so many people that you probably won't be missed.
Boxing is such an under-the-radar type sport that many people don't know how useful it can be in keeping active. There are many different ways to on how to make boxing a part of your daily routine. First, you can head over to the local gym and start working on the punching bag. This is a great way to start and will really help work your upper body. The downside is how many times will you really go to the gym? Secondly, you can get a personal trainer who specializes in boxing to help you out. This would be ideal because you get the advice of someone who knows the art of boxing and you would know that you are doing everything right. Also, the personal trainer would be able to show you how to work different parts of your body while boxing. And of course, it's always a lot safer with the guidance of a professional. Finally, for the real lazy people out there just pick up a Wii and get Wii sports. You do get a workout playing the boxing game but it does get a bit repetitive.
Staying active consistently is extremely hard if you aren't motivated. Keeping in mind these tips will hopefully help in deciding what course of action is right for you. 2009 is here, the question is will you stick through your new years resolution or give up in the middle of February? Lets hope it's not the latter.
DD
-check out Captain Fanatic for more Toronto Sports Blogs and other fun stuff
-also, check out one of toronto's newest sports magazines at Toronto Sports Magazine. My blog entries are also posted there along with many other interesting topics.
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Thursday, December 4, 2008
It's no longer Sam's Club
Seventeen games into an uninspired start to the season, the Raptors brass has fired Sam Mitchell.
8-9 isn't the way I thought this team would start the season, but to fire a head coach this early is kind of surprising... not a very Brian Colangelo like move.
I personally am against the move. There are so many reasons as to why Sam should have stayed, but there are also a lot of reasons he needed to go. But lets start with why I'm against the move.
The first main point that needs to be made is the roster dynamic. Last year the Raptors had one of the best benches in the NBA. Calderon, Delfino, Kapono and Rasho kept the Raps in games and allowed Mitchell to rest his starters. Turn that around to this year and its clear that the Raps depth is one of the worst in the NBA. Joey Graham has been a nice surprise and Roko Ukic is coming along nicely. But in order to win games, Bosh/Calderon need to play 40 minutes a night, something neither of them has done consistently in their short NBA careers. If Mitchell was given a longer look (maybe another 17 games), he might have been able to turn things around.
Injuries have also been a big part of this year. Jose and JO have both had minor injuries that have kept them out of action for some time. You can't blame all 9 losses on just injuries, but without JO the team lacks a sense of toughness. Without Jose, the team lacks a decent ball-handler. Mitchell has had to deal with these injuries by being forced to start Will Solomon (something no coach should ever have to do) and be forced to leave Bosh out there for close to 45 minutes a night. The great thing about Bosh is that he will never complain and he'll always welcome more action but over the stretch of 82 games, it's clear that he needs to get some rest. Playing him this much early in the season will wear on him.
Finally, Mitchell has been with the team since 2004. He's developed a lot of players on the team like Bosh, Jose and Andrea. I think every player in that locker room respects him for what he's done for the organization. Just like the players, he's developed as a coach as well. In his first year, no one talked about his coaching methods. They only talked about his soundbytes... "if you don't want to play, do everyone a favour... quit". His sarcastic way with the media made more headlines than his horrible coaching record. But once he was given some talent to work with, he did a great job. His level of brashness toned down quite a bit and in his last days as the coach, he was extremely relaxed (almost too relaxed). If the 39 point loss to Denver happened 3 years ago, there would have been a 5 minute tirade by Mitchell. When it happened a couple of days ago, he just had a solemn attitude and talked like he would after a 10 point loss.
But this may also be a reason as to why Colangelo let him go. Watching that interview after the Denver loss was kind of disheartening. I wanted to see Mitchell go off on his players. And I think Colangelo wanted to see that kind of fire as well. But the lack of passion from Mitchell and a seemingly lack of passion from the players probably influenced this decision. That and the fact that the Raps have had at least a couple of games in the bag this year and just blew it at the end. The game in Boston and the VC dagger shot and dunk are two things that Colangelo admittedly said bothered him. Maybe a new voice will wake the players up cause it is obvious that the Raps aren't playing with any sense of urgency right now.
With the team up against the salary cap right now, the 8-9 record couldn't be fixed with a trade. A lot of people thought that maybe Al Harrington or Gerald Wallace might be traded here but the Raps would have to give up a major piece in order to get a guy like that. And the only major piece the Raps have that is trade-able is Andrea Bargnani. Colangelo has been adamant that he won't trade him so this move was the only one that could be made.
If I've learned anything in the 3 or so odd years that BC has been here, it's that he hasn't made one bad move. He's the anti-JP so to speak. But it bothers me that the Blue Jays GM has had 8 years of losing seasons and still has a job, whereas Mitchell spent 4 years here, leading the team to the playoffs twice while winning coach of the year and still he gets fired.
I have no doubt that Jay Triano will do a good job because he knows the players that are here. He's already talked about wanting the team to run more so we may be looking at the Phoenix-East team everyone talked about 3 years ago. And only Brian Colangelo could make this move... making a Canadian the coach of Canada's team. Always a crowd pleaser and that's why he's Toronto's most loved GM.
DD
-check out Captain Fanatic for more Toronto Sports Blogs and other fun stuff
-also, check out one of toronto's newest sports magazines at Toronto Sports Magazine. My blog entries are also posted there along with many other interesting topics.
8-9 isn't the way I thought this team would start the season, but to fire a head coach this early is kind of surprising... not a very Brian Colangelo like move.
I personally am against the move. There are so many reasons as to why Sam should have stayed, but there are also a lot of reasons he needed to go. But lets start with why I'm against the move.
The first main point that needs to be made is the roster dynamic. Last year the Raptors had one of the best benches in the NBA. Calderon, Delfino, Kapono and Rasho kept the Raps in games and allowed Mitchell to rest his starters. Turn that around to this year and its clear that the Raps depth is one of the worst in the NBA. Joey Graham has been a nice surprise and Roko Ukic is coming along nicely. But in order to win games, Bosh/Calderon need to play 40 minutes a night, something neither of them has done consistently in their short NBA careers. If Mitchell was given a longer look (maybe another 17 games), he might have been able to turn things around.
Injuries have also been a big part of this year. Jose and JO have both had minor injuries that have kept them out of action for some time. You can't blame all 9 losses on just injuries, but without JO the team lacks a sense of toughness. Without Jose, the team lacks a decent ball-handler. Mitchell has had to deal with these injuries by being forced to start Will Solomon (something no coach should ever have to do) and be forced to leave Bosh out there for close to 45 minutes a night. The great thing about Bosh is that he will never complain and he'll always welcome more action but over the stretch of 82 games, it's clear that he needs to get some rest. Playing him this much early in the season will wear on him.
Finally, Mitchell has been with the team since 2004. He's developed a lot of players on the team like Bosh, Jose and Andrea. I think every player in that locker room respects him for what he's done for the organization. Just like the players, he's developed as a coach as well. In his first year, no one talked about his coaching methods. They only talked about his soundbytes... "if you don't want to play, do everyone a favour... quit". His sarcastic way with the media made more headlines than his horrible coaching record. But once he was given some talent to work with, he did a great job. His level of brashness toned down quite a bit and in his last days as the coach, he was extremely relaxed (almost too relaxed). If the 39 point loss to Denver happened 3 years ago, there would have been a 5 minute tirade by Mitchell. When it happened a couple of days ago, he just had a solemn attitude and talked like he would after a 10 point loss.
But this may also be a reason as to why Colangelo let him go. Watching that interview after the Denver loss was kind of disheartening. I wanted to see Mitchell go off on his players. And I think Colangelo wanted to see that kind of fire as well. But the lack of passion from Mitchell and a seemingly lack of passion from the players probably influenced this decision. That and the fact that the Raps have had at least a couple of games in the bag this year and just blew it at the end. The game in Boston and the VC dagger shot and dunk are two things that Colangelo admittedly said bothered him. Maybe a new voice will wake the players up cause it is obvious that the Raps aren't playing with any sense of urgency right now.
With the team up against the salary cap right now, the 8-9 record couldn't be fixed with a trade. A lot of people thought that maybe Al Harrington or Gerald Wallace might be traded here but the Raps would have to give up a major piece in order to get a guy like that. And the only major piece the Raps have that is trade-able is Andrea Bargnani. Colangelo has been adamant that he won't trade him so this move was the only one that could be made.
If I've learned anything in the 3 or so odd years that BC has been here, it's that he hasn't made one bad move. He's the anti-JP so to speak. But it bothers me that the Blue Jays GM has had 8 years of losing seasons and still has a job, whereas Mitchell spent 4 years here, leading the team to the playoffs twice while winning coach of the year and still he gets fired.
I have no doubt that Jay Triano will do a good job because he knows the players that are here. He's already talked about wanting the team to run more so we may be looking at the Phoenix-East team everyone talked about 3 years ago. And only Brian Colangelo could make this move... making a Canadian the coach of Canada's team. Always a crowd pleaser and that's why he's Toronto's most loved GM.
DD
-check out Captain Fanatic for more Toronto Sports Blogs and other fun stuff
-also, check out one of toronto's newest sports magazines at Toronto Sports Magazine. My blog entries are also posted there along with many other interesting topics.
Monday, October 20, 2008
Rays Win!
And I thought the only magic that happened in Florida took place an hour away from St. Petersburg in Orlando...
The Rays did the impossible Sunday by beating the playoff-tested Boston Red Sox. How could anyone think the Rays could pull this one out tonight? Just one year ago, these same Red Sox (sans Manny) were in the same position down 3 games to 1. Last year they beat an arguably better team in the Cleveland Indians. They had cancer-survivor Jon Lester on the mound, who lost game 3 but hadn't lost 2 straight decisions all season. And of course, the normal cast of characters: Dustin Pedroia, Kevin Youkilis and David Ortiz.
Last year, the Sox faced sinker-baller Jake Westbrook in game 7 of the ALCS. This year, a young kid named Matt Garza took the hill with a pair of earplugs to drown out the ruckus crowd at the Trop. Like Westbrook, Garza features a hard 93 MPH sinking fastball and he had it tonight. Other than an early Dustin Pedroia homer, Garza was lights out the rest of the night. Delmon who?
As for the Rays offense, Evan Almighty got the party started with a double just inside the right field foul line. Willy Aybar provided the pop with a solo HR to stretch the Rays lead to 2 in the bottom of the 7th.
With a 3-1 lead going into the 8th, Garza allowed Alex Cora to reach base on a Jason Bartlett error. Rays skipper Joe Maddon then went to his bullpen... the same bullpen who had a 3-1 SERIES lead and a 7-0 game 5 lead. After Dan Wheeler allowed a Coco Crisp base hit, he got Pedroia to pop out to left. With Papi strolling to the plate, Maddon went to the mound for the 2nd time in the inning to get a lefty-lefty matchup going with JP Howell. Howell got Ortiz to ground into a very close fielder's choice at 2nd base. With runners at 1st and 3rd, Maddon came out once more to get veteran Chad Bradford to pitch to Youkilis. After walking Youk on 5 pitches, Maddon did the unthinkable.
With the 70 million dollar JD Drew coming to the plate, Maddon pulled the veteran submariner for a 23 year old kid just out of Vanderbilt. The first overall pick in the 2007 David Price jogged to the mound from the bullpen. A guy who started the year in A ball in May would pitch to one of the most dangerous hitters in the Boston lineup.
Four pitches later, all the nay-sayers stand corrected. A pumped up Price strikes out Drew on a check-swing call. After an uninspiring bottom of the inning, Maddon does the unthinkable.
He brings out Price to close out the most important game in Rays history. Jason Bay is the first batter up and he draws a walk out of the rookie southpaw. You can hear the critics now, "Price has no experience... Kazmir is available, he's their ace... Balfour was made for this moment." But before you can say "Manny being Manny", the Vandy Dandy stikes out a couple of batter and coaxes a ground ball to the end the game and win the pennant.
How can a manager let a rookie go out into that situation? In my opinion, David Price is arguably every single thing the Rays have stood for this season. All 25 guys that started the season in Tampa didn't have a lot (if any) post-season experience. Sure, Troy Percival had been a closer for the World Series winning Angels in 2002, but the core group of guys (Upton, Crawford, Pena) have never been in a game 7 let alone a post-season game. Entering the 2008 playoffs, all these guys were rookies. And for the longest time, all everyone's heard is you need veteran leadership to make it deep in the playoffs. After all, that's why the Brewers faltered in the first round. In any sport, experience always seems to be a factor. But the Rays are real proof that a team with as little experience as them could grow together in less than a month.
Joe Maddon deserves a lot of credit for his gutsy move. He will get it when the season is over World Series champion or not, but he is one of the few managers out there that KNOWS his team. What he's done this past year with the group of guys he's had is nothing short of unbelievable. I've paid attention to the Rays most of the year and can't tell you how many genius moves he's made, from pitching changes to weird defensive alignments (this one deserves a blog post on it's own). The Phillies may have a bit more talent, but if the World Series comes down to managing, the Rays should sweep the series.
As much as we all most likely hoped for a Dodgers/Sox World Series just to see Manny's return to Boston, you gotta love the storybook ending for the Rays. In just a couple of days, Tropicana Field will be the happiest place on earth.
DD
-check out Captain Fanatic for more Toronto Sports Blogs and other fun stuff
The Rays did the impossible Sunday by beating the playoff-tested Boston Red Sox. How could anyone think the Rays could pull this one out tonight? Just one year ago, these same Red Sox (sans Manny) were in the same position down 3 games to 1. Last year they beat an arguably better team in the Cleveland Indians. They had cancer-survivor Jon Lester on the mound, who lost game 3 but hadn't lost 2 straight decisions all season. And of course, the normal cast of characters: Dustin Pedroia, Kevin Youkilis and David Ortiz.
Last year, the Sox faced sinker-baller Jake Westbrook in game 7 of the ALCS. This year, a young kid named Matt Garza took the hill with a pair of earplugs to drown out the ruckus crowd at the Trop. Like Westbrook, Garza features a hard 93 MPH sinking fastball and he had it tonight. Other than an early Dustin Pedroia homer, Garza was lights out the rest of the night. Delmon who?
As for the Rays offense, Evan Almighty got the party started with a double just inside the right field foul line. Willy Aybar provided the pop with a solo HR to stretch the Rays lead to 2 in the bottom of the 7th.
With a 3-1 lead going into the 8th, Garza allowed Alex Cora to reach base on a Jason Bartlett error. Rays skipper Joe Maddon then went to his bullpen... the same bullpen who had a 3-1 SERIES lead and a 7-0 game 5 lead. After Dan Wheeler allowed a Coco Crisp base hit, he got Pedroia to pop out to left. With Papi strolling to the plate, Maddon went to the mound for the 2nd time in the inning to get a lefty-lefty matchup going with JP Howell. Howell got Ortiz to ground into a very close fielder's choice at 2nd base. With runners at 1st and 3rd, Maddon came out once more to get veteran Chad Bradford to pitch to Youkilis. After walking Youk on 5 pitches, Maddon did the unthinkable.
With the 70 million dollar JD Drew coming to the plate, Maddon pulled the veteran submariner for a 23 year old kid just out of Vanderbilt. The first overall pick in the 2007 David Price jogged to the mound from the bullpen. A guy who started the year in A ball in May would pitch to one of the most dangerous hitters in the Boston lineup.
Four pitches later, all the nay-sayers stand corrected. A pumped up Price strikes out Drew on a check-swing call. After an uninspiring bottom of the inning, Maddon does the unthinkable.
He brings out Price to close out the most important game in Rays history. Jason Bay is the first batter up and he draws a walk out of the rookie southpaw. You can hear the critics now, "Price has no experience... Kazmir is available, he's their ace... Balfour was made for this moment." But before you can say "Manny being Manny", the Vandy Dandy stikes out a couple of batter and coaxes a ground ball to the end the game and win the pennant.
How can a manager let a rookie go out into that situation? In my opinion, David Price is arguably every single thing the Rays have stood for this season. All 25 guys that started the season in Tampa didn't have a lot (if any) post-season experience. Sure, Troy Percival had been a closer for the World Series winning Angels in 2002, but the core group of guys (Upton, Crawford, Pena) have never been in a game 7 let alone a post-season game. Entering the 2008 playoffs, all these guys were rookies. And for the longest time, all everyone's heard is you need veteran leadership to make it deep in the playoffs. After all, that's why the Brewers faltered in the first round. In any sport, experience always seems to be a factor. But the Rays are real proof that a team with as little experience as them could grow together in less than a month.
Joe Maddon deserves a lot of credit for his gutsy move. He will get it when the season is over World Series champion or not, but he is one of the few managers out there that KNOWS his team. What he's done this past year with the group of guys he's had is nothing short of unbelievable. I've paid attention to the Rays most of the year and can't tell you how many genius moves he's made, from pitching changes to weird defensive alignments (this one deserves a blog post on it's own). The Phillies may have a bit more talent, but if the World Series comes down to managing, the Rays should sweep the series.
As much as we all most likely hoped for a Dodgers/Sox World Series just to see Manny's return to Boston, you gotta love the storybook ending for the Rays. In just a couple of days, Tropicana Field will be the happiest place on earth.
DD
-check out Captain Fanatic for more Toronto Sports Blogs and other fun stuff
Sunday, September 21, 2008
The Fenway Faithful
"Sweet Caro..."
The music stops. Jason Bay is already at the plate to start the bottom of eighth while Scott Downs is ready to pitch. But the fans won't let him pitch without finishing the song themselves... without the music.
"...line, BA BA BA. Good times never felt so good, SO GOOD SO GOOD SO GOOD."
After letting the fans finish the 8th inning tradition, the first pitch Jason Bay sees he hits off the green monster for a double. For the Downs and the Jays, their season ended a few moments after that.
Why? Cause of that darn Neil Diamond and the passionate Boston fans.
During the seventh inning stretch at Fenway Park, its a tradition (at least since 2002) to play Diamond's "Sweet Caroline" over the speakers. The fans are encouraged to sing along and I would say 95% of them do. Take last Saturday for example. 40,000 plus were on their feet singing the tune while adding their own little Fenway rendition at some parts. Once the inning was ready to resume, the music abruptly stopped much to the displeasure of the Fenway faithful.
But that didn't stop the fans. Without the music, they continued the song until after the chorus was over. At least 25,000 fans must have sang along because it sounded like the whole stadium was singing... and they sang it pretty well. Everyone let out a big cheer afterwards. I don't know if this has happened before where the song suddenly stops but the fans continue it. But if not, then it was something quite special to witness.
It really shows you how close-knit Red Sox fans are. To chant a song on the fly like that was pretty cool. And it changed the whole dynamic of the baseball game. With the whole Fenway crowd on their feet, Jason Bay smacked a first pitch double to start the Red Sox rally in the 8th. Before you know it, the Red Sox do what they do best... find a way to win. I know that's one of the most overused cliches in sports but I don't think there's a team that better exemplifies that. How do they do it?
Not only do they have speed and power. Sure they have guys like Ortiz, Lowell, Pedroia and Ellsbury. But I think it is the Fenway fans that make a huge difference. Fenway Park has had over 450 straight sellouts! Yes, they only have a capacity of just over 40,000 but we're including weekdays too. 40,000 plus people on a Tuesday? That's unheard of... even when some other teams hold $2 promotions, they don't get 40,000. Now that isn't a knock on Toronto fans, it just shows how loyal and passionate Boston is about their beloved Red Sox.
Don't get me wrong, I hate the Red Sox as much as the next guy (as long as the next guy isn't Hank Steinbrenner). But I have to salute the fans. They cheer their team on whether the Sox are at Fenway or not. Take today's Sox/Jays game for example. The Rogers Centre attendance was just a shade over 40,000. Does anyone really believe that all 40,000 of these fans are from Toronto? Not a chance. I would say at the most, 33,000 fans were Jays fans and that's being generous (and the other 7,000 are the loudest Bostonians I've ever heard). Red Sox Nation goes anywhere and everywhere.
To open the 2008 season, the Sox started an "away" series with Oakland in Tokyo. Even though Oakland was the home team on paper, Boston had a distinct advantage. The first being the fact that they had two Japanese players on their roster in Dice-k and Okajima. Second, Japan has their very own Red Sox Nation. Apparently many Japanese baseball fans are Sox fans. "Sweet Caroline" was actually played during the 7th inning stretches of the games over there! So much for an away game for Boston.
As much as I'd like to take a page out of Hank Steinbrenner's book and say "F*** Red Sox nation!", I really can't. Their fans take it upon themselves to travel where ever the team goes. It's sad this isn't the case everywhere, especially in Toronto. Toronto has a great sports city but as long as the ownership of these teams raise ticket prices to insane levels, the REAL Toronto sports fan has to stay home and watch the game on television. Once hockey season starts up, I'll definitely go into more detail as the Leafs are a prime example of corporations screwing the average fan.
So cheers to you Red Sox fans... your team is about to reach the playoffs once again. Enjoy the success until hockey season starts.
DD
-check out Captain Fanatic for more Toronto Sports Blogs and other fun stuff
The music stops. Jason Bay is already at the plate to start the bottom of eighth while Scott Downs is ready to pitch. But the fans won't let him pitch without finishing the song themselves... without the music.
"...line, BA BA BA. Good times never felt so good, SO GOOD SO GOOD SO GOOD."
After letting the fans finish the 8th inning tradition, the first pitch Jason Bay sees he hits off the green monster for a double. For the Downs and the Jays, their season ended a few moments after that.
Why? Cause of that darn Neil Diamond and the passionate Boston fans.
During the seventh inning stretch at Fenway Park, its a tradition (at least since 2002) to play Diamond's "Sweet Caroline" over the speakers. The fans are encouraged to sing along and I would say 95% of them do. Take last Saturday for example. 40,000 plus were on their feet singing the tune while adding their own little Fenway rendition at some parts. Once the inning was ready to resume, the music abruptly stopped much to the displeasure of the Fenway faithful.
But that didn't stop the fans. Without the music, they continued the song until after the chorus was over. At least 25,000 fans must have sang along because it sounded like the whole stadium was singing... and they sang it pretty well. Everyone let out a big cheer afterwards. I don't know if this has happened before where the song suddenly stops but the fans continue it. But if not, then it was something quite special to witness.
It really shows you how close-knit Red Sox fans are. To chant a song on the fly like that was pretty cool. And it changed the whole dynamic of the baseball game. With the whole Fenway crowd on their feet, Jason Bay smacked a first pitch double to start the Red Sox rally in the 8th. Before you know it, the Red Sox do what they do best... find a way to win. I know that's one of the most overused cliches in sports but I don't think there's a team that better exemplifies that. How do they do it?
Not only do they have speed and power. Sure they have guys like Ortiz, Lowell, Pedroia and Ellsbury. But I think it is the Fenway fans that make a huge difference. Fenway Park has had over 450 straight sellouts! Yes, they only have a capacity of just over 40,000 but we're including weekdays too. 40,000 plus people on a Tuesday? That's unheard of... even when some other teams hold $2 promotions, they don't get 40,000. Now that isn't a knock on Toronto fans, it just shows how loyal and passionate Boston is about their beloved Red Sox.
Don't get me wrong, I hate the Red Sox as much as the next guy (as long as the next guy isn't Hank Steinbrenner). But I have to salute the fans. They cheer their team on whether the Sox are at Fenway or not. Take today's Sox/Jays game for example. The Rogers Centre attendance was just a shade over 40,000. Does anyone really believe that all 40,000 of these fans are from Toronto? Not a chance. I would say at the most, 33,000 fans were Jays fans and that's being generous (and the other 7,000 are the loudest Bostonians I've ever heard). Red Sox Nation goes anywhere and everywhere.
To open the 2008 season, the Sox started an "away" series with Oakland in Tokyo. Even though Oakland was the home team on paper, Boston had a distinct advantage. The first being the fact that they had two Japanese players on their roster in Dice-k and Okajima. Second, Japan has their very own Red Sox Nation. Apparently many Japanese baseball fans are Sox fans. "Sweet Caroline" was actually played during the 7th inning stretches of the games over there! So much for an away game for Boston.
As much as I'd like to take a page out of Hank Steinbrenner's book and say "F*** Red Sox nation!", I really can't. Their fans take it upon themselves to travel where ever the team goes. It's sad this isn't the case everywhere, especially in Toronto. Toronto has a great sports city but as long as the ownership of these teams raise ticket prices to insane levels, the REAL Toronto sports fan has to stay home and watch the game on television. Once hockey season starts up, I'll definitely go into more detail as the Leafs are a prime example of corporations screwing the average fan.
So cheers to you Red Sox fans... your team is about to reach the playoffs once again. Enjoy the success until hockey season starts.
DD
-check out Captain Fanatic for more Toronto Sports Blogs and other fun stuff
Saturday, September 13, 2008
The streak is over
The Jays have finally lost while this is my first post in a long time. A lot has changed in the past 2 months. For one, the Jays actually played exciting/meaningful games in the month of September. The Canadian National Soccer team also played a meaningful game and promptly disappointed many with a loss to Mexico. What looked like a promising year for Canadian soccer took a turn for the worst as Canada's World Cup chances are looking bleak.
Back to the Jays though, who have had an up and down year. On the bright side, fans can have an optimistic view at 2009 seeing the kind of streak this ball-club is capable of. The pessimistic side to this point is that the Jays can only play solid baseball once the pressure is off. I tend to agree with that point to a certain extent. I don't think the whole Jays team is like this, just a few players. Alex Rios for one is one of the most "unclutch" players the Jays have. But it is nice to see him hitting for power again. His SLG% is relatively high this year because he's still hitting extra base-hits. But if he starts off next year the same way he did in 2008, JP is going to hear it every Wednesday.
Speaking of Ricciardi, where does he stand for next year? Some fans support him and some do not. At the beginning of the year, I was extremely against every move he made. Not signing Barry Bonds was at the top of that list. I still believe that if the Jays had Bonds they'd have 7-9 more wins this year. Just look at all the one run games the Jays have been in. But as much as I disagreed with his stance on a lot of things, I think JP should be back in 09. If he is let go, this team will go into semi-rebuilding mode. No one else wants this team to be a success more than Ricciardi. He started to make Toronto a contending team back in late 2005 and has only made improvements since then. Simply put, I do not think there is any other guy who could do a better job then him with the group of guys he has now. Besides, this team will be known as "JP's team" until around 2010, maybe longer with Hill, Rios and Wells signed longterm.
The one thing JP won't do is chase after AJ this off-season. Not including Doc, Burnett is my favourite player on the Jays. His stuff is probably top 3 in the Majors, yes even better than Halladay's. And now in a contract year he finally puts it to good use. The Yankees have flat out said they're interested in Burnett and seeing how things have gone this year, there's no doubt they'll shell out Bronx Bombers money for him. Another top team I see in the Burnett sweepstakes is St. Louis who lost out on Burnett in 2005 because the Jays offered him the opt out clause, something the Cards would not do. If Burnett chooses to stay, the Jays will be EXTREMELY deep with their rotation. JP has said about a million times, "we're prepared either way," in terms of AJ staying/going.
If he leaves, the Jays have an abundance of starting pitching to look at in 09. In addition to Doc, Marcum, McGowan and Litsch, the Jays have to give David Purcey a spot right? Well its not that easy. Remember the guy who was taken right ahead of Troy Tulowitzki? He's pitching fairly well in Syracuse and may get a look in Spring Training. Then there's Brett Cecil. He is easily one of the top prospects pitching wise in all of baseball right now. Being a left-hander, the Jays will definitely give him a shot to take a rotation spot. Casey Janssen will also be returning to the team in Spring of 09 but its likely he'll start out in the bullpen. Because McGowan will start 09 on the DL, it is highly possible one of their top prospects will get a look.
Now that the pitching scene is out of the way, what about the Jays achilles heel? The offense has shown signs of life in September but is this just an illusion? Probably not. Lyle Overbay seems to have finally recovered from a John Danks fastball while V-Dub is hitting the ball like it's 2006. The aforementioned Alex Rios is slowly getting his power back and Aaron Hill may be ready for the start of next season. Rod Barajas is doing as well as you could have hoped for a catcher while Scott Rolen hopefully gets surgery in the offseason. That leaves 3 positions. Left-Field, DH and Shortstop. Currently, Adam Lind, Travis Snider and John McDonald occupy the roles. If JP is smart, he'll leave Lind and Snider alone. These guys are pure hitters and can rack up some big numbers if giving the chance. The Shortstop position is really the only weakness from an offensive standpoint. Defensively Johnny Mac is a wizard. But if AJ does opt out, the Jays will have some money to go after some free agent shortstops.
At the top of the list has to be Rafael Furcal (who also serves as the proto-typical lead off man they have been looking for since JP got here) and Orlando Cabrera (who beat out Johnny Mac for the gold glove last year). Both are extremely capable with the bat and may come cheaper than expected. Furcal has been injured for a huge chunk of the season but was on a tear before he went down. The Dodgers have also said they are very interested in retaining him. As for Cabrera, he's had a somewhat off year in terms of average. A .300 plus hitter for the Angels in 2007, hes been sitting around the .270 mark for most of the year. Cabrera will be cheaper than Furcal because he is 3 years older (Cabrera is 33 while Furcal is 30). Also on the radar will be Edgar Renteria who has a team option with the Tigers for 12 million. If the Tigers let him walk, it'll only cost them 3 million. Renteria is probably hoping for the buy-out so he can get out of the American League. His two years of non-National League baseball have been atrocious. He'd have to get a lot of money from an AL team to stay. From a fan's perspective, you would hope the Jays go after Furcal because of the speed and offense he brings to the position. Just think about him and Hill at the top of the order followed by Rios, Wells and Lind.
So with this all in mind, what do I think the Jays will do? JP has a tendency to trust veteran players over the youth so as much as I hate to say it I think Snider will spend most of 2009 in Triple A honing his skills and developing better strike-zone awareness (that is the only part of his game that needs some polishing). Look for a guy like Raul Ibanez to sign on. Hopefully for only 1 year though. The Jays were offering what was believed to be Brandon League and David Purcey for him at the trade deadline but Seattle declined. At the shortstop position, Furcal may be wishful thinking but I think a platoon similar to earlier this year will work with Scutaro/McDonald taking the reigns. Lind should stay in left-field but would likely split time with Ibanez. On the pitching front, I think JP will sign a pitcher. I've always seen Derek Lowe in a Toronto Blue Jays uniform for some reason and think he might get the money Burnett leaves. Something like a 4 year 45 million dollar deal could be reasonable.
Here's my lineup card for your 2009 Toronto Blue Jays:
SS Scutaro (can see Cabrera here but I see Lowe more likely for JP)
2B Hill
CF Wells
LF Lind
RF Rios
DH Ibanez
C Barajas
1B Overbay
3B Rolen
I tried to stay as "right, left, right" as possible but it probably wont. Say it aint so Joe... I feel really bad for Inglett because he has proven he can start.
1 - Roy Halladay
2 - Derek Lowe
3 - Shaun Marcum
4 - David Purcey
5 - Jesse Litsch
McGowan, Cecil and Romero are going to start in 2009. Knowing the Jays, someone in the starting 5 will get injured and one of these guys will take their place. McGowan will come back in May while I see Cecil and Romero starting in September at the latest.
CL - Ryan
SU - Downs
SU - League
RP - Accardo
RP - Janssen
RP - Carlson
LRP- Tallet
Ah the bullpen. The one thing that can be counted on for next year. As much as I'd like to see BJ traded, it probably wont happen. Maybe he'll turn back into "Bazooka BJ" (credit to Jamie Campbell) of 2006.
Prediction: 1st in AL East, 95-67
Yes, you read that right... as long as everyone can stay healthy *knock on wood*.
DD
-check out Captain Fanatic for more Toronto Sports Blogs and other fun stuff
Back to the Jays though, who have had an up and down year. On the bright side, fans can have an optimistic view at 2009 seeing the kind of streak this ball-club is capable of. The pessimistic side to this point is that the Jays can only play solid baseball once the pressure is off. I tend to agree with that point to a certain extent. I don't think the whole Jays team is like this, just a few players. Alex Rios for one is one of the most "unclutch" players the Jays have. But it is nice to see him hitting for power again. His SLG% is relatively high this year because he's still hitting extra base-hits. But if he starts off next year the same way he did in 2008, JP is going to hear it every Wednesday.
Speaking of Ricciardi, where does he stand for next year? Some fans support him and some do not. At the beginning of the year, I was extremely against every move he made. Not signing Barry Bonds was at the top of that list. I still believe that if the Jays had Bonds they'd have 7-9 more wins this year. Just look at all the one run games the Jays have been in. But as much as I disagreed with his stance on a lot of things, I think JP should be back in 09. If he is let go, this team will go into semi-rebuilding mode. No one else wants this team to be a success more than Ricciardi. He started to make Toronto a contending team back in late 2005 and has only made improvements since then. Simply put, I do not think there is any other guy who could do a better job then him with the group of guys he has now. Besides, this team will be known as "JP's team" until around 2010, maybe longer with Hill, Rios and Wells signed longterm.
The one thing JP won't do is chase after AJ this off-season. Not including Doc, Burnett is my favourite player on the Jays. His stuff is probably top 3 in the Majors, yes even better than Halladay's. And now in a contract year he finally puts it to good use. The Yankees have flat out said they're interested in Burnett and seeing how things have gone this year, there's no doubt they'll shell out Bronx Bombers money for him. Another top team I see in the Burnett sweepstakes is St. Louis who lost out on Burnett in 2005 because the Jays offered him the opt out clause, something the Cards would not do. If Burnett chooses to stay, the Jays will be EXTREMELY deep with their rotation. JP has said about a million times, "we're prepared either way," in terms of AJ staying/going.
If he leaves, the Jays have an abundance of starting pitching to look at in 09. In addition to Doc, Marcum, McGowan and Litsch, the Jays have to give David Purcey a spot right? Well its not that easy. Remember the guy who was taken right ahead of Troy Tulowitzki? He's pitching fairly well in Syracuse and may get a look in Spring Training. Then there's Brett Cecil. He is easily one of the top prospects pitching wise in all of baseball right now. Being a left-hander, the Jays will definitely give him a shot to take a rotation spot. Casey Janssen will also be returning to the team in Spring of 09 but its likely he'll start out in the bullpen. Because McGowan will start 09 on the DL, it is highly possible one of their top prospects will get a look.
Now that the pitching scene is out of the way, what about the Jays achilles heel? The offense has shown signs of life in September but is this just an illusion? Probably not. Lyle Overbay seems to have finally recovered from a John Danks fastball while V-Dub is hitting the ball like it's 2006. The aforementioned Alex Rios is slowly getting his power back and Aaron Hill may be ready for the start of next season. Rod Barajas is doing as well as you could have hoped for a catcher while Scott Rolen hopefully gets surgery in the offseason. That leaves 3 positions. Left-Field, DH and Shortstop. Currently, Adam Lind, Travis Snider and John McDonald occupy the roles. If JP is smart, he'll leave Lind and Snider alone. These guys are pure hitters and can rack up some big numbers if giving the chance. The Shortstop position is really the only weakness from an offensive standpoint. Defensively Johnny Mac is a wizard. But if AJ does opt out, the Jays will have some money to go after some free agent shortstops.
At the top of the list has to be Rafael Furcal (who also serves as the proto-typical lead off man they have been looking for since JP got here) and Orlando Cabrera (who beat out Johnny Mac for the gold glove last year). Both are extremely capable with the bat and may come cheaper than expected. Furcal has been injured for a huge chunk of the season but was on a tear before he went down. The Dodgers have also said they are very interested in retaining him. As for Cabrera, he's had a somewhat off year in terms of average. A .300 plus hitter for the Angels in 2007, hes been sitting around the .270 mark for most of the year. Cabrera will be cheaper than Furcal because he is 3 years older (Cabrera is 33 while Furcal is 30). Also on the radar will be Edgar Renteria who has a team option with the Tigers for 12 million. If the Tigers let him walk, it'll only cost them 3 million. Renteria is probably hoping for the buy-out so he can get out of the American League. His two years of non-National League baseball have been atrocious. He'd have to get a lot of money from an AL team to stay. From a fan's perspective, you would hope the Jays go after Furcal because of the speed and offense he brings to the position. Just think about him and Hill at the top of the order followed by Rios, Wells and Lind.
So with this all in mind, what do I think the Jays will do? JP has a tendency to trust veteran players over the youth so as much as I hate to say it I think Snider will spend most of 2009 in Triple A honing his skills and developing better strike-zone awareness (that is the only part of his game that needs some polishing). Look for a guy like Raul Ibanez to sign on. Hopefully for only 1 year though. The Jays were offering what was believed to be Brandon League and David Purcey for him at the trade deadline but Seattle declined. At the shortstop position, Furcal may be wishful thinking but I think a platoon similar to earlier this year will work with Scutaro/McDonald taking the reigns. Lind should stay in left-field but would likely split time with Ibanez. On the pitching front, I think JP will sign a pitcher. I've always seen Derek Lowe in a Toronto Blue Jays uniform for some reason and think he might get the money Burnett leaves. Something like a 4 year 45 million dollar deal could be reasonable.
Here's my lineup card for your 2009 Toronto Blue Jays:
SS Scutaro (can see Cabrera here but I see Lowe more likely for JP)
2B Hill
CF Wells
LF Lind
RF Rios
DH Ibanez
C Barajas
1B Overbay
3B Rolen
I tried to stay as "right, left, right" as possible but it probably wont. Say it aint so Joe... I feel really bad for Inglett because he has proven he can start.
1 - Roy Halladay
2 - Derek Lowe
3 - Shaun Marcum
4 - David Purcey
5 - Jesse Litsch
McGowan, Cecil and Romero are going to start in 2009. Knowing the Jays, someone in the starting 5 will get injured and one of these guys will take their place. McGowan will come back in May while I see Cecil and Romero starting in September at the latest.
CL - Ryan
SU - Downs
SU - League
RP - Accardo
RP - Janssen
RP - Carlson
LRP- Tallet
Ah the bullpen. The one thing that can be counted on for next year. As much as I'd like to see BJ traded, it probably wont happen. Maybe he'll turn back into "Bazooka BJ" (credit to Jamie Campbell) of 2006.
Prediction: 1st in AL East, 95-67
Yes, you read that right... as long as everyone can stay healthy *knock on wood*.
DD
-check out Captain Fanatic for more Toronto Sports Blogs and other fun stuff
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Party Like It's 1993
When I heard the news that John Gibbons got fired I was relieved. But when The Score ticker continued to let the public know that CITO GASTON would take over as the manager, my jaw dropped. Out of all the people in the world, the guy who it seems baseball has forgotten about.
Mind you, Jays fans really won't party like its 1993. Let me reiterate, this season is over. I would say the turning point happened when BJ blew the save in Anaheim. Its weird because the past 2 years, I'd say the turning point in the Jays' seasons hinged on Ryan as well. In 2007, I really believed that once we lost BJ for the year we were done. In late July 2006, he blew a save in Oakland when Milton Bradley hit a walkoff HR in the bottom of the 9th.
I've heard a lot of analysts and media people say that this move was made so that fans will still come out to the ballgames in August and September. But JP and the Jays regime were never the kind to bring in people for marketing purposes. If they wanted butts in the seats, they would have signed Barry Bonds after Frank Thomas left. I think Cito was the replacement because really there was no one more qualified. How can you argue against Cito? He took this team to back to back World Series (even though many think just about any average joe could have).
More importantly, Cito is an offensive guy. And that is what the Jays need right now. The big problem has been the offense. Gibbons couldn't get the team going and he's had more than enough time. Even though the Jays have only scored 3 runs in 2 games with Cito I am ecstatic to see that he has put together a lineup that makes sense. Jays fans have had enough seeing Rios and Wells batting leadoff for some odd reason. I think even Matt Stairs saw time at the leadoff spot during Gibbons reign. Weird. I still believe that David Eckstein should leadoff but Marco Scutaro has proved himself this year. Overbay fits in the 2 hole nicely while the 6-9 spots cant really be argued with.
My only beef is with the 3,4 and 5 guys. First, let me say that Vernon needs to have a good bat protecting him in the lineup and Rolen makes the most sense to do so other than Stairs. Gibbons for some reason never realized this so kudos to Cito. But I liked what Gibbons did on Thursday. He bumped the slumping Rios all the way down to the 6 spot. I've never liked Rios and with his bat the way it is, the 6 spot is more than generous. I would have the lineup like this:
Eckstein SS
Overbay 1B
Wells CF
Rolen 3B
Stairs DH
Rios RF
Lind LF
Barajas C
Scutaro 2B
Obviously the Jays are playing by NL rules and also they have faced 2 lefties which is why Stairs hasn't seen much time in the lineup. I wouldn't mind swapping Stairs into the cleanup spot but then it exposes back to back slumping hitters. As for Lind, as long as he's up he should get at bats. Barajas really deserves to be higher in the order but keeping him at the 8 spot gives the lineup some balance. I also like to keep the right-left-right-left order in the lineup as it forces the opposing manager to use specialists for 1 batter at a time (eg. Righty comes in to face Rios but then a lefty has to come in to face Lind).
Another thing about Gibbons is that he would change the lineup too often. Changing the lineup every night seems a bit extreme and puts more pressure on the players because they know their manager isn't happy.
On the pitching front, Marcum will be out for 2 starts (since it is soreness in the elbow, I'm going to say he is out 4 weeks. If the Jays continue this tumble down the standings, I wouldn't be surprised if they shut him down altogether). Now the Jays won't need another starter until next week because they have an off-day Monday. Will they bring up Purcey? I think he'll do much better this time around because he'll get more than 1 start before getting sent down.
Having said that, I may be the only one who thinks that Ricky Romero should be called up instead. I doubt the Jays will do it because he really doesn't deserve to be promoted. But since this year is over, I would give him shot and see how he does. Yes, his ERA is in the 5's at Double A New Hampshire but look at Armando Gallaraga of the Tigers. He never had that much success in the minors and he is taking the majors by storm. Give Romero a shot and if he screws up, send him down. This may shatter his confidence even more but how much more can his ego be deflated? Every day he hears how the Jays should have taken Troy Tulowitzki. Give him a couple of starts and see how he does.
Also, the Jays really have to get rid of Burnett. They can get a good prospect in return because teams overpay for pitching (Carlos Silva getting 48 million?). Dumping Burnett now is ideal because its a foregone conclusion that he will opt out. With that vacant spot in the rotation, Purcey could come up and fill it permanently. I think he'll be even better once the Jays let him know he has a job for good and won't be sent down.
I may be a little crazy (we'll get to the World Cup next) but this season can still be promising for the Jays once they admit they're done. JP is too pigheaded though due to the fact he could be next to go if the Jays don't finish well. Either way, it is nice to see a shakeup in Jays land and hopefully they will let the prospects play sooner rather than later.
Predictions
I predict that I will no longer make predictions. But given my track record, I should probably predict the opposite. Turkey and Russia in the semi-finals??? This is just crazy. I honestly have no idea how it will turn out. Could another underdog country win the Euro Cup again?
Moving away from the Euro Cup, lets talk about the World Cup. Canada is now into the third round of qualifying after beating St Vincent and the Grenadines. There are 12 teams remaining split into 3 groups of 4. Canada's group consists of Mexico (or Belize), Honduras and Jamaica. Canada will have a tough time in the group but if they finish in the top 2 (probably with Mexico) then they will advance to the final round of qualifying. The matches will be played from August through November 2008. Canada looked very strong and some are touting this team to be the best yet.
DD
-check out Captain Fanatic for more Toronto Sports Blogs and other fun stuff
Mind you, Jays fans really won't party like its 1993. Let me reiterate, this season is over. I would say the turning point happened when BJ blew the save in Anaheim. Its weird because the past 2 years, I'd say the turning point in the Jays' seasons hinged on Ryan as well. In 2007, I really believed that once we lost BJ for the year we were done. In late July 2006, he blew a save in Oakland when Milton Bradley hit a walkoff HR in the bottom of the 9th.
I've heard a lot of analysts and media people say that this move was made so that fans will still come out to the ballgames in August and September. But JP and the Jays regime were never the kind to bring in people for marketing purposes. If they wanted butts in the seats, they would have signed Barry Bonds after Frank Thomas left. I think Cito was the replacement because really there was no one more qualified. How can you argue against Cito? He took this team to back to back World Series (even though many think just about any average joe could have).
More importantly, Cito is an offensive guy. And that is what the Jays need right now. The big problem has been the offense. Gibbons couldn't get the team going and he's had more than enough time. Even though the Jays have only scored 3 runs in 2 games with Cito I am ecstatic to see that he has put together a lineup that makes sense. Jays fans have had enough seeing Rios and Wells batting leadoff for some odd reason. I think even Matt Stairs saw time at the leadoff spot during Gibbons reign. Weird. I still believe that David Eckstein should leadoff but Marco Scutaro has proved himself this year. Overbay fits in the 2 hole nicely while the 6-9 spots cant really be argued with.
My only beef is with the 3,4 and 5 guys. First, let me say that Vernon needs to have a good bat protecting him in the lineup and Rolen makes the most sense to do so other than Stairs. Gibbons for some reason never realized this so kudos to Cito. But I liked what Gibbons did on Thursday. He bumped the slumping Rios all the way down to the 6 spot. I've never liked Rios and with his bat the way it is, the 6 spot is more than generous. I would have the lineup like this:
Eckstein SS
Overbay 1B
Wells CF
Rolen 3B
Stairs DH
Rios RF
Lind LF
Barajas C
Scutaro 2B
Obviously the Jays are playing by NL rules and also they have faced 2 lefties which is why Stairs hasn't seen much time in the lineup. I wouldn't mind swapping Stairs into the cleanup spot but then it exposes back to back slumping hitters. As for Lind, as long as he's up he should get at bats. Barajas really deserves to be higher in the order but keeping him at the 8 spot gives the lineup some balance. I also like to keep the right-left-right-left order in the lineup as it forces the opposing manager to use specialists for 1 batter at a time (eg. Righty comes in to face Rios but then a lefty has to come in to face Lind).
Another thing about Gibbons is that he would change the lineup too often. Changing the lineup every night seems a bit extreme and puts more pressure on the players because they know their manager isn't happy.
On the pitching front, Marcum will be out for 2 starts (since it is soreness in the elbow, I'm going to say he is out 4 weeks. If the Jays continue this tumble down the standings, I wouldn't be surprised if they shut him down altogether). Now the Jays won't need another starter until next week because they have an off-day Monday. Will they bring up Purcey? I think he'll do much better this time around because he'll get more than 1 start before getting sent down.
Having said that, I may be the only one who thinks that Ricky Romero should be called up instead. I doubt the Jays will do it because he really doesn't deserve to be promoted. But since this year is over, I would give him shot and see how he does. Yes, his ERA is in the 5's at Double A New Hampshire but look at Armando Gallaraga of the Tigers. He never had that much success in the minors and he is taking the majors by storm. Give Romero a shot and if he screws up, send him down. This may shatter his confidence even more but how much more can his ego be deflated? Every day he hears how the Jays should have taken Troy Tulowitzki. Give him a couple of starts and see how he does.
Also, the Jays really have to get rid of Burnett. They can get a good prospect in return because teams overpay for pitching (Carlos Silva getting 48 million?). Dumping Burnett now is ideal because its a foregone conclusion that he will opt out. With that vacant spot in the rotation, Purcey could come up and fill it permanently. I think he'll be even better once the Jays let him know he has a job for good and won't be sent down.
I may be a little crazy (we'll get to the World Cup next) but this season can still be promising for the Jays once they admit they're done. JP is too pigheaded though due to the fact he could be next to go if the Jays don't finish well. Either way, it is nice to see a shakeup in Jays land and hopefully they will let the prospects play sooner rather than later.
Predictions
I predict that I will no longer make predictions. But given my track record, I should probably predict the opposite. Turkey and Russia in the semi-finals??? This is just crazy. I honestly have no idea how it will turn out. Could another underdog country win the Euro Cup again?
Moving away from the Euro Cup, lets talk about the World Cup. Canada is now into the third round of qualifying after beating St Vincent and the Grenadines. There are 12 teams remaining split into 3 groups of 4. Canada's group consists of Mexico (or Belize), Honduras and Jamaica. Canada will have a tough time in the group but if they finish in the top 2 (probably with Mexico) then they will advance to the final round of qualifying. The matches will be played from August through November 2008. Canada looked very strong and some are touting this team to be the best yet.
DD
-check out Captain Fanatic for more Toronto Sports Blogs and other fun stuff
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Hard to Win, Harder to Predict
The Euro Cup has been just that. Another bad round of predictions by me as I went 3 for 8. Lets examine my losses and I'll try to defend my logic the best I can.
Portugal/Switzerland: When I made this pick, I was under the impression that Portugal would at least give its starters half an hour. But with 8 starters out, Portugal couldn't pull it off. I predicted 1-1 but the hosts gained some pride while Portugal is now well rested.
Czech/Turkey: The Turks pulled off one of the greatest comebacks in Euro Cup history. Croatia and Turkey is easily the worst of the quarterfinal matches. But you can't blame me for picking the Czechs.
Netherlands/Romania: Holland benched one of the best goalies in the tournament... and still won. Romania is a lot like Switzerland in that they only have one good player. Mutu can't do it all, but I expected a better effort.
France/Italy: The slow starters find themselves in the quarter-finals. I was rooting for both these teams to go out but Italy is picking up steam. Franck Ribery is the big loser here as the world will have to wait another 2 years before noticing the soccer phenom.
Russia/Sweden: After beating Greece and almost beating Spain, I thought Sweden was the overall better team. But age caught up with them. Ibrahimovic was not completely healthy for the game and Sweden didn't have a supporting cast. This was a toss up and Russia played better. Good luck vs Holland.
Predictions:
Here we go for the quarters:
Portugal vs Germany - Germany has not looked as dominating as the tourney has progressed. Portugal is well rested and should come out of this one victorious. This will be a rematch of the 3rd place game at the World Cup 2 years ago. You can be sure that the Portuguese haven't forgotten about it. 2-1 (goals from Ronaldo, Nuno Gomes and Ballack).
Croatia vs Turkey - If Turkey wins this game, I will stop my predictions altogether for the Euro Cup. Croatia is perfect so far and even though they haven't looked as strong as some of the other teams, they're facing quite arguably the worst of the remaining teams. 2-0 (goals from Modric).
Netherlands vs Russia - If it wasn't for Turkey, I'd suggest that Russia is the worst team remaining. And they're up against the undisputed favourite right now. Holland's fire power is too good and unless the Netherlands have a Czech-like collapse, they'll move on to face Spain or Italy. 2-0 (goals from Robben and Ruud).
Spain vs Italy - Spain is right there with Holland for the best team remaining. While they didn't coast to a first place finish in Group D, they got some bounces in the last 5 minutes of games. Look for this one to go to penalties. Spain and Italy have both been in this kind of situation before. And history tells us that Spain chokes and Italy somehow pulls it off. 1-1 after 120 minutes (goals from Torres and Toni) and Italy wins on penalties thus getting another shot at Holland.
-check out Captain Fanatic for more Toronto Sports Blogs and other fun stuff
Portugal/Switzerland: When I made this pick, I was under the impression that Portugal would at least give its starters half an hour. But with 8 starters out, Portugal couldn't pull it off. I predicted 1-1 but the hosts gained some pride while Portugal is now well rested.
Czech/Turkey: The Turks pulled off one of the greatest comebacks in Euro Cup history. Croatia and Turkey is easily the worst of the quarterfinal matches. But you can't blame me for picking the Czechs.
Netherlands/Romania: Holland benched one of the best goalies in the tournament... and still won. Romania is a lot like Switzerland in that they only have one good player. Mutu can't do it all, but I expected a better effort.
France/Italy: The slow starters find themselves in the quarter-finals. I was rooting for both these teams to go out but Italy is picking up steam. Franck Ribery is the big loser here as the world will have to wait another 2 years before noticing the soccer phenom.
Russia/Sweden: After beating Greece and almost beating Spain, I thought Sweden was the overall better team. But age caught up with them. Ibrahimovic was not completely healthy for the game and Sweden didn't have a supporting cast. This was a toss up and Russia played better. Good luck vs Holland.
Predictions:
Here we go for the quarters:
Portugal vs Germany - Germany has not looked as dominating as the tourney has progressed. Portugal is well rested and should come out of this one victorious. This will be a rematch of the 3rd place game at the World Cup 2 years ago. You can be sure that the Portuguese haven't forgotten about it. 2-1 (goals from Ronaldo, Nuno Gomes and Ballack).
Croatia vs Turkey - If Turkey wins this game, I will stop my predictions altogether for the Euro Cup. Croatia is perfect so far and even though they haven't looked as strong as some of the other teams, they're facing quite arguably the worst of the remaining teams. 2-0 (goals from Modric).
Netherlands vs Russia - If it wasn't for Turkey, I'd suggest that Russia is the worst team remaining. And they're up against the undisputed favourite right now. Holland's fire power is too good and unless the Netherlands have a Czech-like collapse, they'll move on to face Spain or Italy. 2-0 (goals from Robben and Ruud).
Spain vs Italy - Spain is right there with Holland for the best team remaining. While they didn't coast to a first place finish in Group D, they got some bounces in the last 5 minutes of games. Look for this one to go to penalties. Spain and Italy have both been in this kind of situation before. And history tells us that Spain chokes and Italy somehow pulls it off. 1-1 after 120 minutes (goals from Torres and Toni) and Italy wins on penalties thus getting another shot at Holland.
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