Month: April 2009 (Page 34 of 53)

      Cavs blow out C’s for 39th home win

      April 13, 2009 /

      LeBron posted 29 points (including 5 of 8 from long range — take that, Bill Simmons), seven assists and four rebounds as the Cavs rolled over the Celtics, 107-76. They’re one win away from matching the 1985-86 Celtics for the best regular season home record in league history.

      Chris Sheridan comments on the state of the Celtics…

      The defending champs will be there when it counts, once they have Kevin Garnett back at 100 percent, right?

      Problem is, Boston coach Doc Rivers is keeping No. 5 under wraps until Wednesday night, meaning he’ll have seen Garnett play about 80 minutes of total floor time over the final 26 games to get himself prepared for the postseason.

      Or: The Orlando Magic are going to be a heckuva matchup for someone, especially the Cavs, with their deadly inside-outside game anchored by Dwight Howard and all those shooters. The problem with that one (aside from Jameer Nelson’s absence) is that the school of thought that produced those kinds of pronouncements underwent a curriculum change when Hedo Turkoglu’s ankle crumpled Saturday in East Rutherford, N.J. on the same night that Brook Lopez was outplaying Howard. This came one night after David Lee of the Knicks outplayed Howard, and the Magic’s dreams of the No. 2 seed began to die a quick death.

      Anyone want to buy into the premise that the Cavs might have their hands full if they meet up with the Chicago Bulls in the first round? That’s about the only pre-weekend thought that endures even a little.

      “The teams at the bottom, that’s where you have to look who’s surging,” Boston coach Doc Rivers said. “Chicago is playing really well, and if that’s who you have to face, so be it.”

      As good as the Cavs have played this season, it would have been nice to see LeBron and Co. seize the bragging rights in the Eastern Conference instead of having it handed to them on a platter. Sure, they still have to go out and win games, but what was shaping up as a really interesting Eastern Conference playoffs is looking more and more like the Cavs’ tuneup for the Lakers in the Finals. Kevin Garnett’s knee is bad, Jameer Nelson is out for the rest of the season with a shoulder injury and Hedo Turkoglu just sprained his ankle. Barring a semi-miraculous return for KG, I just don’t think there’s anyone in the East that can upend the Cavs right now.

      NBA, NBA Finals

      Tiger Woods plays in Masters. Angel Cabrera wins Masters.

      April 12, 2009 /

      It’s official. I don’t have to write an article about Tiger Woods. Oh wait, what have I done? My apologies Mr. Cabrera, now that Tiger’s back, it’s impossible to keep him out of a golf conversation.

      But let’s not take away from Cabrera’s accomplishment, after all, he played better than Tiger and of course better than everyone else on the course. His green jacket is also an important first as posted on Golf.com:

      Cabrera, who won the U.S. Open at Oakmont two years ago, finally earned a green jacket for Argentina.
      …
      “This is a great moment, the dream of any golfer to win the Masters,” Cabrera said through an interpreter during the green jacket ceremony. “I’m so emotional I can barely talk.”

      Sweet. Awesome. I can really get behind a player like that, bringing home a major award, and being the first from his country to do so. But, I’m still reading all about how Tiger also played, and how Tiger also might have won.

      Is it wrong that I’m so happy that Tiger didn’t win? When I was living in South Korea I heard that certain pop stars there had something called, “anti-fans.” These were people who were obsessed with certain celebrities just because they didn’t like them. I wonder if I’ve become something of an anti-fan for anybody at the top for too long. I admit to getting much more interested in tennis after Sampras started losing, and again after Federer lost the number one spot.

      I suppose it’s only natural that we have a certain amount of enmity towards people dominating their respective fields. I think my particular problem though, is when a sport becomes more-or-less a one man show. It’s hard to care when there’s no competition in the competitions I’m watching. Growing up a Bulls fan was great until their final season with Jordan. It seemed they couldn’t lose, and they hardly ever did. I barely paid any attention at all.

      But it’s not any athlete’s fault if they’re too good, if anything it should motivate others to work harder to improve themselves. Should we make Michael Phelps swim an extra lap just to make it more interesting? We can’t handi-cap people for being too good, but I wonder if we can’t focus on them slightly less than we do. Maybe the reason I’m tired of Tiger Woods is because I’m constantly hearing about him. How often was Michael Phelps shoved in front of me last summer?

      There’s only so much anyone can take of the same thing. Perhaps we should focus more on what happened and what’s important, and less on the A-list also-rans. I can understand that it’s necessary to grab people’s attention, and using a big name to get that attention is an easy way to chalk up hits on a web page. But there’s got to be a better way. Of course, this article was supposed to be about Angel Cabrera wasn’t it? Not Tiger Woods, Tiger Woods. I’ll try harder (Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan) next time.

      Golf, Rumors & Gossip

      Glavine pitches but leaves game early

      April 12, 2009 /

      Glavine

      Glavine seems a bit wider than I remember.

      Here’s a little news Yahoo! Sports picked up from The Associated Press:

      PEARL, Miss. (AP)—Atlanta Braves left-hander Tom Glavine ended his minor league start with Double-A Mississippi early on Sunday after experiencing shoulder discomfort.

      The 43-year-old Glavine had expected to throw 50 to 60 pitches, but left after only 36 in two innings. He gave up three hits, including a solo home run, with one walk and no strikeouts against Carolina.

      Glavine earned a spot in the Braves’ rotation in spring training but began the season on the disabled list until the Braves need a fifth starter.

      He’s returning from offseason surgery to repair a torn tendon in his left elbow. He also had what was regarded as a less serious surgery to clean out his left shoulder.

      The Braves said Glavine’s condition would be evaluated following his return to Atlanta.

      While this would appear to be a pretty mundane story, I think it again opens up the long-running debate over whether players should retire at the height of their career, wait until a downward trend is obvious, or continue playing until the last of their dignity has been eaten away by injuries and poor performances.

      Here we’ve got Tom Glavine, a guy I grew up watching pitch for the Braves, back when I was eight. Don’t get me wrong, I loved him growing up, but watching (or at least reading, since they don’t televise Mississippi minor leagues in Los Angeles) him now feels like going to a Van Halen concert. Who the heck is that guy up front? Something’s wrong.

      Now let’s be honest, who am I to tell someone to stop playing the sport they love? Would I be any different in the same situation? Probably not. If a team is willing to start the guy, let him start. But we should also consider his legacy. Glavine’s not going to do anything now that he’s going to be remembered for later. He’s already going to be a hall-of-famer after he retires and plenty of people like me will remember him fondly.

      Baseball has lots of stories of players throwing themselves at whatever team will have them, just so they can stay in the game. Ricky Henderson is a recent example of that. It’s sad to see these men playing past their prime for fractions of their previous salaries, but perhaps my knee-jerk reaction to hearing this story is misplaced.

      If they still have enough skill to contribute positively to the sport, there’s no reason we shouldn’t let them. Perhaps instead of viewing people like Brett Favre as foolish codgers stealing jobs from newer, younger stars, we should see men fighting against the passage of time. Athletes not looking necessarily for one last shot at glory, but simply one more year before they have to give up the ghost and unlace their cleats for the last time. Joy and regret mixed in equal parts.

      Fantasy Baseball, MLB, News

      Columnist thinks the Angels should have banned beer for one game

      April 12, 2009 /

      beer

      Jeff Miller over at the OC Register feels that, in addition to the touching ceremony conducted by the Angels, the organization should have also banned alcohol during the game following Nick Adenhart’s death.

      They have his image on their outfield wall, his number on a patch over their hearts and his memory inscribed in a place even deeper.

      But if the Angels really want to honor the life of Nick Adenhart, really want to attempt to make an impact, really want to emphasis the lesson from his loss, their next tribute is obvious:

      Ban beer.

      For one game, don’t promote alcohol, celebrate drinking or, most importantly, sell a single bottle of Lite, glass of red or Jack and Coke.

      Just one game, only one day. Nine innings of nothing but beautiful, simple, sober baseball.

      This is about preaching the evils of drinking and driving, reminding everyone that this is a crime that can not be tolerated, that it was a drunk driver who killed Adenhart, Courtney Stewart and Henry Pearson and left Jon Wilhite in critical condition.

      This is about repeating to everyone in a shouted voice what’s right. It is a lesson that can’t be learned enough.

      Listen, of the 40,000 or so who attended the game Saturday, nearly all had to be fit to drive home afterward. But, we all know, there were some who weren’t. Happens every game, in every major league park.

      It would be a magnificent gesture, Arte, and a beautiful tribute, one all of baseball and beyond would notice. And that’s the most important thing, re-spreading the message that we can not tolerate drunk driving.

      Those could be the final words of Nick Adenhart, and what a fantastic way to remember him.

      For one home game, let’s allow the bases to be loaded … the bases and nothing else. Here’s to none for the road.

      Get real. I might get some flack for saying this, but I think this idea is incredibly sophomoric. Miller can’t decide if this gesture would pay tribute to Nick Adenhart or serve as a punishment to baseball fans who may or may not have been drinking and driving in the past.

      Banning beer at a stadium because of fans’ decisions to fight, throw alcoholic beverages on the field, or vandalize property are grounds to monitor consumption. But banning beer at a stadium because an athlete was a victim of drunk driving bears no connection. That Miller thinks this act could represent the “final words of Nick Adenhart” screams of disgusting platitudes.

      Jeff Miller, get over yourself. The Angels had a beautiful ceremony in memory of this young and talented man. They’ve handled it with both poise and the urgency you are stressing. We as fans do not need to be “punished” because of something that happened off the field.

      Look, the facts and feelings associated with the misdeed of drunk driving are as plain as day. California has responded to these horrendous numbers by making the penalties for drunk driving harsher and harsher each year. The glaring reality that Nick Adenhart is dead because of this law-breaking is the strict reminder of why these penalties are in place. Removing alcohol sales for a game to “commemorate” this individual would be the equivalent of giving everyone 21 years of age or older at Angels stadium a spanking.

      MLB

      Diamondbacks place Webb on the DL

      April 12, 2009 /

      webb

      After missing his second start, Brandon Webb has officially been placed on the 15-day DL. Though the move is retroactive to April 7th, Webb will still miss his next start.

      Brandon Webb still is not concerned about his right shoulder, but the D-backs ace is on the 15-day disabled list.

      The team elected to put him on the DL, retroactive to April 7, after he still felt some soreness in his shoulder while playing catch Sunday morning.

      “I want to make sure we’re 100 percent when I go back out there,” Webb said.
      The right-hander began feeling some stiffness following his final start of the spring. He was roughed up a bit on Opening Day, as he allowed six runs in four innings to the Rockies.

      Webb was scratched from his next start, which would have been Saturday against the Dodgers, and a precautionary MRI showed no structural damage. The diagnosis from team physician Michael Lee was that Webb was suffering from bursitis, and some fluid in the shoulder might not be allowing for full range of motion.

      The Diamondbacks kicked off the 2009 season in their usual mediocre fashion. Webb, who has only once been placed on the DL in his entire career, did not look his usual self in the D-backs opener against the Rockies. The former Cy Young winner doesn’t seem too concerned, however, which is great for Arizona’s flimsy pitching staff.

      Still — come on Brandon! I took you in the second round of my fantasy league based on the fact that you’re a 20-win pitcher who never gets hurt. Pair that with Geovany Soto’s recent ailments and I’m getting killed. Come back soon — if not for the Arizona Diamondbacks, then for me.

      MLB

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