Tonight's the Night, Wake

I feel pretty bad for Wakefield right now.  He's a resilient guy so I know he'll be able to eventually get to win #200, but this has got to be a painful stretch of time for him.  There's nothing like coming so close to something and then having it fall through time and time again (Right, LeBron?)  

Wake's been stuck on 199 for a little while now.  It's a tough job for pitchers because their success relies not only on their personal performance, but the performance of their teammates too.  Pitchers need run support.  You can pitch a no-hitter, but if your team has put up a goose egg on the scoreboard, you're not going to get that W.  But I think tonight is the night for Wake.  The Sox offense has been on a tear.  He'll get the run support.  The Sox are playing Oakland who just gave up 22 runs to the Yankees yesterday.  They're vulnerable, to say the least.  

So everybody tune in to the game tonight!  You may see one of the all-time best Red Sox pitchers reach an impressive milestone.

Watch out, Josh!

Josh!  No!!  Watch out!!

There's not a chance you watched this play live last night during the game and didn't shout something in a panicked tone.  Impossible not to.  That rope was going straight for Beckett's head.  That doesn't result in the type of injury that sidelines a guy for a start or two.  That's a career-ender potentially.  That's scary.  Thank God he had good reflexes.  I wouldn't peg Josh as the quick-moving type normally.  Yes, he can throw 95 mph and withstand the pressure of World Series pitching.  But let's be honest, he's no Jacoby Ellsbury when it comes to moving fast.  Nonetheless, I'm glad that Beckett surprised me last night.  On my personal list of Favorite Josh Beckett Moments, this has to rank below Joshie hitting a home run against the Phillies a couple years back.

Bring Back Pat!

"I'm coming for you, Peyton."

Listen, I LOVE the New England Patriots.  I'm one of those people that shamelessly uses "we" and "us" whenever discussing the Patriots.  But one thing has really been bothering me for the past few years: Why is the "Flying Elvis" our logo?  I understand that is sort of resembles our mascot, Pat, while also incorporating a bit of the United State's flag feel too.  I'm just not it's biggest fan.

I think Kraft and Co. should strongly consider bringing back the old Patriots' logo (right).  Just Pat the Patriot, playing Center, looking mean, and looking ready to play some tough football.  It's a better logo.  It has more character, more life.  And let's be completely honest here, people.  Tom looks better in the throwback jersey anyways. 

Bringing Back A Hometown Hero

ESPNBoston.com - 

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Ricky Brown played linebacker at Boston College from 2002-2005, and when he looks back at that part of his football life, a victory at Notre Dame stands out. Brown took a brief trip down Memory Lane on Saturday, reflecting on that 2004 game with Paul Peterson at quarterback, as well as his new beginning with the Patriots.

“It’s good to be back on the East Coast,” he said.

Brown signed with the Patriots on Saturday, adding depth to a linebacking corps that has been thinned by injuries. He first started playing the position at BC, making the transition from defensive back. Brown opened his BC career playing behind Brian Flores, who is currently a Patriots assistant coach, and got his first start in the 2003 Diamond Walnut San Francisco Bowl when Flores was injured. Now the two are reunited.

After going undrafted in 2006, Brown hooked on with the Raiders as a free agent.

“Oakland will always have a special place in my heart. It’s where I started my career,” he said. “I made some really good friends there. I have a lot of respect for Mr. Davis and the organization he has set up, but here’s a new chapter in my life and I’m ready to attack it.”

If Brown is to stick, he knows special teams will be crucial. He’s been down this road before.

“Coming in as an undrafted free agent in ’06 with Oakland, you basically have to make your name playing on special teams,” he said. “The first two years, besides playing in goal-line packages and one start here, one start there, it was basically special teams.”

As for his first day with the Patriots, Brown said, “This is a first-class organization through and through. I’m honored just to be on the team and I’m ready to go to work.”

You gotta love seeing a hometown hero coming back to play in New England.  Brown had his fun messing around over in California for a few years but now he's back on the East Coast and ready to actually make a name for himself in the NFL on a respectable team.  It just feels right when college players return home when they reach the next level.  Unfortunately, it doesn't happen as often as we'd like.  I still wish Matty Ryan was Brady's backup and Mark Herzlich was lining up besides Jerod Mayo ....we'd be set for the next decade.  But that just isn't realistic.  I wish Brown the best of luck this year on the Patriots and hope he learns how a real organization is run under Mr. Kraft.  

Patriots Embarrassing the Bucs Last Night

I couldn't tell if the Patriots' dismantling of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last night was more of a testament to the Patriots' hard work and dedication in camp this year, or to the Buccaneers' complete lack of effort and skill.  I don't think the Buccaneers could have beat an injury-depleted Division 3 College team last night with their level of play.  I think Jerod Mayo was even a bit surprised a couple times, when just two seconds after the snap he had two hands around poor Josh Freeman's throat, pulling him to the ground.

Not to take anything away from the Patriots' play, of course.  Brady was Brady.  Throwing ropes to every receiver on the roster, hitting them in stride.  Hernandez had himself a nice (fumble-free!!) game.  Danny Woodhead scampered around the field for huge gains like a lab rat trying to find that damn piece of cheese.    And of course, Mr. Ochocinco had his first taste of life on a team with this MVP quarterback.  What did it get him?  A couple catches, including his first TD as a flying Elvis.  What's scary for other teams?  Brady and Ocho still don't really have their timing down yet, which means only better things to come in the future.

The defense looked amazing all-around too.  I hate to gush too too much because of the Highschool JV type of performance put on by the Bucs' offense.  But, nonetheless, things are looking very promising.  You never want to be in a position to use the excuse, "It's just pre-season."  That is not, and never will be, a reassuring comment.

Delonte Struggling

ESPNBoston.com -


Although he's made over $14 million in the NBA, Delonte West tweeted recently that he is "broke" and has applied for a job at Home Depot. 


"It's official.. Pride 2 the side.. just filled out a application at Home Depot.. Lockout aint a game," the Celtics guard tweeted.

West is on probation for a weapons charge and also tweeted that he wasn't allowed to pursue basketball opportunities overseas.

"Can't even get that over seas money," he tweeted. "Judge said it's a no go on leaving the country."

West has battled bipolar disorder during his career and also posted this to Twitter: "Broke down in the ATM line.. 25 cars behind me and I already reached my daily limit... I'm broke n my cars broke.. Where's my therapist???"

Appearing in only 24 games this past season, the 27-year-old West averaged 5.6 points in his second stint with the Celtics.

This is really sad to hear about Delonte.  I know the guy has had issues in his past and we can't just ignore those issues when bad times arrive, but there's no getting around feeling bad for him.  Basketball is his life.  It's what he excels at.  Being told that he can't play basketball next year because of the lockout cannot be an easy thing to take.  And to make matters worse, he can't even look overseas for opportunities to play, which is what many players in the league have resorted to.  

Now there's nothing wrong with West applying for a job at Home Depot.  In fact, I respect him for it.  He's not being lazy or being pretentious.  He's being realistic and understands that steady income is important for him right now.  I just see him as more of a Sports Authority or Dick's kind of guy, right?  I would want his expertise on which type of basketball to buy or which hoop he recommends.  I think he'd become a tourist attraction and people would flock to his store.  Maybe earn him a nice little bonus.  

I hope everything works out for Delonte in the end.  He started as a Celtic and he found his way back home this past year.  Therefore, I want to see him do well.  Let's just hope we see him, along with all the other hometown heroes, back in green this fall.  

Become A Better Football Fan...

Everyone's experienced this feeling: You're watching a big game on TV with a few of your buddies, and all of a sudden one of your friends starts talking about a player who you've never heard of before.  And he isn't just casually talking about him.  He's giving you the career breakdown of this guy.  His strengths, his weaknesses, where he went to college, his favorite formations, his favorite flavor of Ben and Jerry's...etc.  It's alarming to see someone know so much about a player while you know so little.

So why does your friend know so much about this seemingly random player? The answer to that question is nearly always the same: he's on his fantasy football squad.

Fantasy football changed the way NFL fans watch the game.  Suddenly, every single game on Sunday afternoon is meaningful because the likelihood that either a player on your squad is playing or a player on your opponent's squad is playing is very high.  Fantasy football has created an new breed of football gurus.  Everyday fans turned into statistical savants.

So if you want to stay on par with your friends, join a fantasy football league.  You'll become a better fan of football.  Just watch out for the weeks when your star QB is playing the Patriots.  Talk about tearing your heart in two!  My recommendation: Take the loss in your fantasy matchup...Patriot pride runs deep.

The Pats Love Their Veterans

Exciting news broke this morning in the Patriots universe.  Today the Pats will work out both veteran safety Darren Sharper and veteran wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh.  These two guys are seasoned veterans in the NFL and are widely respected at their positions.

I think Belichick is a genius when it comes to all decisions football.  I think everyone in the NFL would agree with me on that statement, even Rexy in New York.  Therefore, I tend to always look for the genius in every aspect of Belichick's decisions.  It's not too hard too find it here.  By adding veteran depth at as many positions as possible, Belichick is strengthening those positions in two ways.  He's adding an additional player who can be relied upon to play smartly, but he is also adding a mentor for the younger players of that position.  This mentorship makes the other players smarter and wiser.  Belichick uses veterans to groom his younger players into future veterans themselves.  And so the cycle continues.  Genius.

Now none of this is said and done.  It's very possible that Housh and Sharper come into Foxborough today, work out, and go right on home again tomorrow without a new Flying Elvis helmet.  But I have a feeling that Belichick will grab at least one of them.  This late into the preseason, Belichick isn't going to waste his time on unsure opportunities.

Tom Brady: America's Quarterback

When The Onion is creating spoof news stories about how much America loves Tom Brady, America must reallyyyy love Tom Brady.

Click Here To Read: The Onion Tomb Brady Article

Highlights from the Patriots' First Pre-Season Game

Boy it is nice to see some football being played again!  After all the agony with the lockout, it's great to see the players actually out there again.  It's reassuring.  It's final now.  There will be pigskin this Fall.

The first pre-season game is always interesting.  You get to see some new guys out there who may be regulars all season long.  You may be watching a future Hall-of-Famer's first game ever...you never know.

Anyways, here are some things I noticed last night while watching the game:

1) The MHK patches: All of the Patriot jerseys have a new patch this year with the initials "MHK" on the left shoulder in honor of the late Myra Kraft.  I think it's a great gesture by the players.  It's clear how much of an impact she had on the entire organization.

2) Stevan Ridley:  I think RB Ridley was one of the biggest stories of the game last night.  The rookie from LSU had two rushing touchdowns and a receiving touchdown in his first game last night.  Not a shabby first impression if you ask me.  It's premature, but I can picture the small and quick Ridley and the imposing Law Firm becoming an unstoppable duo.

3) Aaron Hernandez:  I was cringing when Hernandez fumbled that first pass of the game.  You know Belichick loves that type of stuff in the preseason games.  He wants fodder to use at practice this month.  And the more he has, the better this team will be.  I guarantee Hernandez doesn't fumble again this season.  It will be the only thing on his mind after last night's game.

4) Tom Brady:  Was he listening to his iPod on the sideline?  I couldn't tell what those headphones were attached to.  I suppose if you're Brady it's not a big deal to listen to some jams during a pre-season game.  What do you think is on Brady's iPod anyways?

5) Chad Ochocinco:  Seeing him on the sideline just felt right.  Am I wrong?

SOX WIN! SOX WIN! SOX WIN!

GREAT game last night at Fenway.  There was suspense, big moments, and classic story lines.  The Sox won in 10 innings on a walk off by budding fan-favorite Josh Reddick.

But to put it simply, this weekend series between the bad guys from New York and the good guys from Boston was for bragging rights.  Just bragging rights.  Neither team was going to take a commanding lead in the division.  3 games was the most a team could pull ahead.  So as high stakes as this series seemed going into it, nothing much has changed coming out of it.  Your Boston Red Sox have a one game lead, that's it.  We're happy about it, don't get me wrong, but this lead can evaporate as quickly as A-Rod's dignity.  However, this series was also a chance for these two teams to test each other out...get a sense of how future meetings this year will go.


The Sox did learn quite a few things.  For one, beating the Yankees is not easy and, realistically, will never be easy.  They're the Yankees.  They're very good.  As much as every Sox fan enjoys the "Yankees SUCK" chant, he also understands that the Yankees will always have talented players and tough teams.  But the Sox also learned something very valuable: that the Yankees aren't scary this year.  Good, but certainly not scary.  C.C.?  Beatable.  Jeter? Aging.  Swisher? Overrated.  


So now these teams know how it's going to be.  It will be a fight to the finish.  A fight that will carry right into the playoffs and very likely end up with a Red Sox-Yankees ALCS showdown.  Here...We...Go...

I Am Jacoby, Hear Me Roar

It must be rough to be a Cleveland fan today.  The Indians stand at 54-54 on the season, second place in a measly AL Central division, and have been sent home packing the last two nights on two walk-off hits by Jacoby.  As if simply losing a game isn't bad enough...

I have a hard time feeling too badly for them though.  The Red Sox were nice about the beatings!  They let the Indians hang around, garner some hope, get a few hits...we let them feel good about themselves!  But, sadly for the Indians, the better team needs to win in the end.  And the Red Sox, my friends, are a much better team.

Jacoby must be on top of the world right now.  He had never hit a walk-off hit before two nights ago and now he has two under his belt.  That's a weight off of his shoulders.  Now he knows he can come through in the clutch when his team's fate lies on his shoulders.  What am I getting at, you ask? The Red Sox just got even better.  Jacoby just got better, making this team even deadlier.  

In other news, A-Rod is giving the country even more reasons to dislike him!!  What's he doing messing around with poker in the middle of the season?  Do the right thing Bud, suspend him.  Give him some time to get his mind off of baseball and to get into a nice slump that'll last through October.

Remembering Randy

Randy Moss has officially retired.  Part of me feels like this will be a "Favre-esque" retirement - a retirement where the word "retire" is used very loosely.  I wouldn't put it past Randy to make a comeback.  But only time will tell for that.

For the moment, however, he has ended his NFL career.  And what a career it was.  Spectacular catches, dozens of touchdowns, and plenty of off-field antics.  All of this characterized Moss and helped him develop into one of the most talented wide-receivers to ever play the game of football.

He started his career as a Viking and with a beautiful afro in 1998.  He got off to a fast start in his rookie season, being named a Pro-Bowl starter and Offensive Rookie of the Year.  He had tremendous success in Minnesota playing alongside strong-armed QB Dante Culpepper.

Moss spent some time in Oakland after being traded from Minnesota in 2005.  His stay in Oakland was largely unsuccessful.  In 2007, he was traded to the New England Patriots and all of us Boston fans began our love story with Moss.

Moss and Brady were an unstoppable duo.  His presence on the team made the Patriots' 2007 season one for the record books.  Brady set all-time records at QB.  Moss set all-time records at WR.  Moss was a machine, blowing past cornerbacks, distracting defenses, and making inhuman catches.  It was spectacular to watch.

Although Moss' career ended on a rocky note, it will not dampen his reputation as a great player.  Yes, he spoke his mind, but he made up for it with his play.  He may not be a perfect role model for the youngsters, but they can learn a lot about the game of football by watching him perform on the field.

Thanks for everything, Randy.  Best of luck.

Ahh Sweet Memories

I was perusing around YouTube and stumbled upon this gem of a video.  It's a Boston sports montage...that almost brought me to tears.  It has the former greats, the future greats, and all the moments in between.  This town has had a tumultuous affair with sports, but these last ten years have made all the past hurt disappear.  Enjoy the look back.