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      UFC 102 Picks and Predictions

      August 29, 2009 /

      UFC 102: Couture vs. Nogueira takes place tonight from the Rose Garden Arena in Portland, Ore. The fight card is filled with interesting matchups, headlined by the main event of heavyweight legends Randy Couture and Antonio Minotauro Nogeuira. Here are my thoughts on the fights.

      Heavyweights (265 lbs. max) – Randy Couture (16-9) vs. Antonio Nogueira (31-5-1): This fight is crucial for both fighters to win to keep their career meaningful and to stay in the heavyweight title picture. Both are coming off second round TKO losses, and both look to be on the downsides of their career. Couture is in his mid-40’s and though he is in great shape, his body has to be wearing down. Nogueira is only 33, but looks like he is in his 50’s because of all the wars he has been in through his life. Essentially I see Couture having the edge in this fight because his striking seems to be more advanced than Nogueira. Nogueira can only win by submission, and Couture is very good at avoiding submissions. I see Couture out-striking Nogueira on the feet and in the clinch and scoring some occasional takedowns to earn the decision victory.

      Light Heavyweights (205 lbs. max) – Keith Jardine (14-6-1) vs. Thiago Silva (13-1): This co-headline fight is also a crucial fight for both athletes. Each is coming off a loss and both are trying to stay relevant in the light heavyweight contender picture. I think Jardine has the edge in this fight because of his experience against other top fighters. Silva has just one marquee fight, and that was a first round KO loss to Lyoto Machida. That was Silva’s first loss and many times you see fighters come out more tentative after getting knocked out for the first time. Silva can’t do that in this fight or else he will certainly lose. Jardine does have a suspect chin that Silva could connect on, but ultimately I see Jardine using his kicks and unorthodox striking to pick up the decision win.

      Continue reading »

      Mixed Martial Arts

      Rays trade Kazmir to Angels

      August 29, 2009 /

      The Los Angeles Angels gave their starting rotation a boost on Friday night, acquiring Tampa Bay Rays left-hander Scott Kazmir for third baseman Matt Sweeney, left-hander Alex Torres and a player to be named later.

      While Kazmir has been solid in his last three starts, his velocity is down and he’s always an injury risk. Still, this move gives the Halos much-needed depth in their starting rotation and they also net a pitcher who has plenty of experience against the Yankees and Red Sox. (Two teams the Angels could face in the postseason.)

      For the Rays, Kazmir never panned out to be the ace the club thought he would become when they acquired him from the Mets earlier this decade. Injuries have limited his effectiveness, although he still owns a career ERA of 3.92. He’s also the club’s career leader in wins, strikeouts and innings pitched.

      Overall, Tampa gets significant salary reliever in the trade by shedding most of the three-year, $28.5 million extension Kazmir signed in May of last year.

      They also get a solid strikeout prospect in Torres, who can pitch for the groundout and has been largely overlooked in the Halos’ organization. Sweeney has 25-30 home run potential, but an ankle injury cost him virtually his entire ’08 season and he’ll have to work his way up from High-A ball.

      MLB

      Bud Light “Fan Can” taking some heat

      August 29, 2009 /

      tailgate

      Despite pissing off countless representatives from some of our nation’s top college, Anheuser-Busch InBev still plans on releasing their “Fan Can” for those campuses that are cool with it. The Bud Light packaging will use a particular college’s colors on the label, though the logo or mascot is absent. Nevertheless, the FTC quickly jumped on this issue.

      But the campaign drew criticism from Janet Evans, a senior attorney with the Federal Trade Commission who oversees alcohol advertising, and from certain colleges because the cans could encourage underage drinking on their campuses.

      “We’ve told them we don’t ever want to see a campaign like this again,” Evans said Wednesday. “We’re concerned about the promotion because it’s targeted to college campuses where there are a large number of binge drinkers and underage persons in the audience.”

      “This is a voluntary program made available to all wholesalers nationwide, and roughly half of our wholesalers are participating,” Carol Clark, Anheuser-Busch’s vice president for corporate social responsibility, said in a statement.

      Fan Can, she said, was “expressly timed to coincide with the beginning of the football season and baseball playoffs.”

      But some universities in the targeted regions, such as Boston College and the University of Colorado, argued that the colored cans infringe on their trademarks and incorrectly hinted that the colleges were endorsing the program, even though the colleges’ names and logos are not on the cans.

      Michigan, Oklahoma State, Wisconsin, Iowa State and Minnesota also objected, according to published reports.

      As a result, Anheuser-Busch has told those schools that complained that it would drop the program in their areas, Dunn said.

      You have to laugh a little reading this, sensing the angered tone of the college and FTC reps compared with the cool demeanor of those from Anheuser-Busch. I understand where the resentment is coming from, but to think that this type of promotion is geared towards underage drinkers is a bit off. I doubt I’m the only one who doesn’t think that a label’s colors entice a college student to drink more than they normally would. When I was in college, I wanted a beer because I was in college, not because of the look of the can. Thinking of the type of swill I drank back then, the labels often flaunted the color combination of a sports teams that I despised. Hey, I still like to have a Budweiser every now and then. What colors do they use on their can? Red and white. Well, I’m not too keen on the Red Sox, or the Cavaliers for that matter. Oh yeah, I like beer.

      If the colors on a label are an actual cause of the rampant drinking in college, then things are much worse than I thought.

      College Football

      Saturday MMA Review: 8/29

      August 29, 2009 /

      Here’s a weekly rundown of MMA content from Ben Goldstein of CagePotato.com:

      – Strikeforce announced that Fedor Emelianenko’s first opponent in their organization would be undefeated brawler Brett Rogers. Fedor responded to the news with a piss-poor jump-rope display.

      – Gina Carano came out of hiding to thank her fans and give props to the woman who wrecked her two weeks ago. Speaking of Cris Cyborg, the Strikeforce women’s champ will be helping to revive the once-fearsome Chute Boxe name with her own gym in California.

      – Shane Carwin doesn’t like Brock Lesnar’s attitude, *or* his taste in light beer.

      – Could the UFC have a network television deal in the works?

      – We watched the fastest knockout in MMA history, a kickass DREAM highlight reel, and Tito Ortiz’s latest lunkheaded video blog.

      – New UFC Octagon Girl Natasha Wicks hasn’t given up her day job as a golf-caddy.

      – Chuck Liddell began his training for “Dancing With the Stars.” God help us.

      – UFC 102 goes down Saturday night in Portland. Check out our analysis of the card here and here, and come back to CagePotato.com at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT for our liveblog of the pay-per-view broadcast.

      Mixed Martial Arts

      Is Geovany Soto this season’s biggest disappointment?

      August 29, 2009 /

      Soto

      Answer: yes. After the best rookie season posted by a catcher since Mike Piazza hit 35 home runs in 1993, Geovany Soto has mutated into a bench player making a B line straight for the minors. This isn’t just a sophomore slump — this is Puff Daddy’s Forever, “Caddyshack II,” season 2 of “Heroes.” This is Daniel Baldwin.

      In 2009, Soto played in 141 games, hitting .285 and racking up 23 dingers, 86 RBIs, and 66 runs. He quickly established himself as the fourth offensive threat on the Cubs behind Derek Lee, Aramis Ramirez, and Alfonso Soriano. As of this writing, Soto is hitting .218 with nine long balls, 31 RBIs, and 21 runs. He’s also losing playing time to a guy named “Koyie,” who has a career batting average of .211 and had never played over 36 games in a season before 2009. Sweet Lou has even lost faith in young Geo, sitting him every other game.

      So what’s wrong? Is it a nagging oblique strain? Is it all that pot he was smoking? Even the fantasy experts are at a loss, citing that Soto is still hitting for contact and working better counts. Personally, I think it’s a confidence issue. Chicago is a tough place to play. Though Cubs fans are affectionate to those who earn it, they can be ruthless if you are currently the definition of “suck.” I specifically remember them booing Kosuke Fukudome in last year’s NLCS. (Yet, this year they love him, despite putting up mediocre numbers. Beats me.) Milton Bradley is another fine example. However, it seems like Cubs fans want Soto to succeed and are holding out hope that he can get it going down the stretch. After all, it’s damn hard to come by a consistent, young catcher who’s skilled both offensively and defensively. Look at how many teams employ a rotating duo of catchers based on their opponent that day. That irritates me and it’s a pain in the ass for fantasy owners. Even though Russell Martin is working through some struggles this year, the kid has the genuine talent that will carry him through. He, Joe Mauer, Jorge Posada, and Brian McCann are the definition of what a premier catcher should be in the MLB. I like Soto, and I want him to get back to this level.

      For the record, there’s a big difference between “disappointment” and “bust.” People had high expectations for Soto and he’s not meeting them. Milton Bradley and Pat Burrell are inconsistent, overpaid busts.

      I apologize to Daniel Baldwin. He was cool in “The Sopranos.”

      MLB

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