Month: May 2011 (Page 16 of 35)

      Tempers flair between Cardinals and Reds again

      May 16, 2011 /
      St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols (5) makes the play on a hard hit ground ball off the bat of Cincinnati Reds’ Paul Janish (not pictured) during the fifth inning of play in their MLB baseball game at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati, Ohio, May 15, 2011. REUTERS/John Sommers II (UNITED STATES – Tags: SPORT BASEBALL)

      It wouldn’t be a Cardinals-Reds series if somebody wasn’t yelling at somebody by the end of it.

      On Sunday, Francisco Cordero was the recipient of some backlash from the Cardinals’ dugout after he hit slugger Albert Pujols with a pitch during an 0-2 count in the ninth inning. According to the Cincinnati Enquirer, St. Louis backup catcher Gerald Laird was mainly doing the barking at Cordero.

      “Just a little fun,” Cordero said. “I think it was because I hit Pujols 0-2, Gerald Laird was all loud in the dugout. He was yelling at me and pointing at me and saying a whole bunch of stuff.

      “Out of all the guys that are great hitters, great players, Gerald Laird doesn’t even play. He’s the one yelling at me because I hit Pujols 0-2. 0-2! I wasn’t trying to hit him. I’ve got to face (Matt) Holliday next, who can take the lead with one swing, and he’s yelling at me.

      “All I know is he was loud, so I said something back to him.”

      I don’t blame Laird or any other member of the Cardinals for being upset about Cordero hitting Pujols. Brandon Phillips was the one who threw gasoline on the fire last year by calling the Cardinals “little bitches” so now St. Louis always has its guard up.

      But Laird has to realize the situation. Cordero isn’t going to hit Pujols on purpose when he has him down 0-2 in the count. To put the tying run on base with Matt Holliday and Lance Berkman coming up just doesn’t make sense. One could argue that Cordero chose that moment to hit Pujols because he would have the perfect excuse to claim it was accidental. But even Pujols admitted after the game that he didn’t think Cordero did it on purpose.

      “I’m pretty sure Francisco didn’t try to do that on purpose,” Pujols told the St. Louis Post Dispatch. “He doesn’t want to bring the winning run to the plate with two big hitters, Matt and Berkman (coming up next). It’s probably something that slipped. You turn the page and get ready for tomorrow.”

      What has to be more frustrating for the Cardinals than the situation with Cordero is the fact that they were swept by the Reds. St. Louis went into the weekend with a small lead in the NL Central and came out of it looking up at Cincinnati in the standings.

      External Sports, MLB

      Posada corrects his mistake by apologizing

      May 16, 2011 /
      New York Yankees designated hitter Jorge Posada answers a reporter’s questions after workouts prior to their MLB American League baseball game with the Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium in New York May 15, 2011. REUTERS/Ray Stubblebine (UNITED STATES – Tags: SPORT BASEBALL)

      Yankees’ designated hitter Jorge Posada chalked up his actions on Saturday night when he took himself out of the lineup to frustration. Then he apologized to his teammates, his manager, his GM and his fans.

      “I had a bad day,” Posada said on Sunday. “All the frustration came out. It was just one of those days you wish you could take back.”

      When Posada found out that he was hitting ninth in the Yankees’ order on Saturday night against the Red Sox, he told manager Joe Girardi that he was taking himself out of the lineup. It was a childish act by a stubborn player that clearly put his own emotions ahead of what was best for the club. It’s certainly easy to be a team player when things are going well and no sacrifices have to be made. It’s challenging situations like these when you really learn about what kind of character a player has.

      And the fact that Posada quickly realized the mistake he made and apologized does show what kind of character he has. He’s a prideful guy and sees his career dwindling. He’s struggling right now and his frustrations came the surface. We all get angry from time to time when uncontrollable situations arise and we fight to wrangle our emotions. And we don’t always handle it right either – just like Posada didn’t. But he did the right thing by apologizing and now everyone can move past this.

      “Jorge is loved in our clubhouse,” Girardi said. “Jorge is loved by the fans. Jorge has meant a lot to this organization and I’m not surprised. This has been a great player for a long time.”

      That’s right. Posada has been a great Yankee his entire career and this one regrettable incident won’t subtract from his great days in New York.

      External Sports, MLB

      Where does Hector Lombard rank among middleweights?

      May 16, 2011 /

      Hector Lombard extended his winning streak to 23 on Saturday night, prompting Spencer Kyte of HeavyMMA.com to wonder where the Bellator champ should fall among middleweight rankings.

      How good is Hector Lombard?

      Before you blurt out an answer, think through both sides of things. If you do, you’ll see that arriving at a decision that cannot be debated is a difficult task. Such is the life of the Bellator middleweight champion, and a number of potentially elite fighters competing outside of the Zuffa family.

      There is a case for the Cuban judoka being one of the top middleweights in the sport, a 10-15 guy in the rankings, even maybe making it as high as 8-9 on some lists.

      Lombard hasn’t lost since November 2006, a unanimous decision defeat to a then-unknown 21-year-old named Gegard Mousasi. Since then, the American Top Team product has won 22 of 23 fights, and 18-in-a-row with is victory Saturday night over Falaniko Vitale at Bellator 44. Of those 22 wins, Lombard has finished 17 of them, many in very impressive fashion.

      In a sport where the best in the world lose from time-to-time, Lombard’s string of victories and four-plus-year unbeaten streak stands as evidence that the former Olympic competitor has a case for being considered one of the best 185-pound competitors in the sport.

      Read the full article.

      External Sports, Mixed Martial Arts, UFC

      Taj Gibson throws down…twice. [video]

      May 16, 2011 /

      I’ve seen dunks as good or better than what Taj Gibson had against the Heat, but I’m not sure I’ve seen a single player have TWO dunks of this magnitude in a single game before. I’m sure it has happened — but maybe not in a game of this magnitude.

      First, Gibson posterized Dwyane Wade:

      Then he followed up a C.J. Watson missed to hammer home his point:

      Granted, that second dunk came when the game was basically over and both teams had cleared their benches…but still.

      At what point does Gibson’s play (nine points, seven rebounds, two assists and two blocks) make the Bulls regret signing Carlos Boozer to a huge contract?

      External Sports, NBA, Video

      Bulls take Game 1 in convincing fashion

      May 15, 2011 /
      Chicago Bulls’ Taj Gibson celebrates after a dunk on the Miami Heat during the first half in Game 1 of their NBA Eastern Conference Finals playoff basketball game in Chicago May 15, 2011. REUTERS/John Gress (UNITED STATES – Tags: SPORT BASKETBALL)

      According to the oddsmakers, the Bulls are the series underdog, yet they were favored to win Game 1. (Go figure.) The game was tied at 48-48 at the half, but Chicago’s 24-15 third quarter put them control heading into the final period. A 14-6 run (from the Bulls bench) to start the fourth quarter stretched the lead to 17 and Chicago cruised to a 103-82 win.

      There were two big stats in the Bulls’ favor. First, they outrebounded the Heat on the offensive glass, 19-6, so that’s 13 extra possessions which contributed to 19 additional shots and five additional free throws. Couple that with the Bulls’ stellar shooting from the three point line (10-of-21) and the result is a blowout win.

      Derrick Rose had 28 points and six assists, but the difference in the game was Luol Deng (21 points, seven rebounds, four steals), who absolutely outplayed LeBron James (15 points, six rebounds, six assists). Taj Gibson (nine points, seven rebounds, two blocks) combined with Carlos Boozer (14 points, nine rebounds) to offset a surprisingly good game from Chris Bosh (30 points, nine rebounds).

      Game 2 is on Wednesday.

      External Sports, NBA

      « Older posts Newer posts »

      © 2026 The Scores Report – The National Sports Blog

      Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑