Some random thoughts...

We are officially in the sports dead period from now until some pre-season football games and two-a-day practice reports begin. Until then, we are left with some MLB games and some spare time to ponder the meaning of life. Along those lines, I had some random thoughts over the weekend:

1. Admittedly, I am no soccer fan. But I do follow the USMNT and find myself getting caught up in World Cup qualifying and the major international events. The 2-0 victory of Spain was tremendous on its own. However, the two goals scored by the US vs. Spain could hardly be classified as beautiful or technical. They count just the same, but they were more hustle plays than anything else. Still, a tremendous victory over the world's #1 team.

However, that first half yesterday vs. Brazil was something entirely different. Dempsey's first goal was something a Brazilian or Italian would be proud of. And the entire counter attack leading to Donovan's goal was gorgeous. I'm hardly a United States soccer historian, but that was the best goal I've ever seen scored by the USMNT.

It's unfortunate that Brazil scored so quickly to start the 2nd half and things just snowballed from there (i.e., reality set in). Regardless, it was a fun couple of matches. It only enhances my interest in the rest of World Cup qualifying and 2010 in South Africa.

2. Welcome back, Mr. Halladay. Doc toes the rubber tonight vs. Tampa Bay. Please say a quick prayer for Doc's groin to hold up. (You may want to say a silent prayer because it's generally frowned upon to say verbal prayers about another man's groin.)

3. Just about two months until football season. I've been going through some of my 2008 game recordings (for about the millionth time since the Fiesta Bowl). I've come to the following general conclusions heading into 2009:

We are going to miss Quan's consistency on 3rd down and his ability to pick up 5-7 yards every time.
But Malcolm Williams will provide some welcomed big play ability.
Our DT depth really scares me. Roy Miller was such a complete stud last year.
But overall, I am very excited about this defense. I expect Muschamp and Co. to take it to the next level in 2009.
Our RB's will be fine. Fairly surprisingly, I am taking Vondrell as my sleeper to shine in 2009.
Blaine Irby's injury sucks. That kid was on the way to being a star for us last year. Ugh.
I really like Kirkendoll and Collins. Guys who will never play in the NFL, but will end up putting together a heck of a career for us.
I still think we go undefeated through the regular season.

4. You hear the bad news about Yao? Apparently, his foot injury has gotten worse and it looks like he might miss the entire 2009-2010 season (if not the rest of his career). What a horrible blow to the Rockets. It's not going to ruin my day, but I hate to see things like that happen to a good guy/good organization.

5. Mannywood returns on Friday after the 50 game suspension. Take a look back at the May 9 blog entry. My prediction for the Dodgers' record during the Manny-less stretch was 27-23. As of today, the Dodgers are 27-20 with 3 games to play vs. Colorado. If the Rockies go into L.A. and sweep the Dodgers, I look like a f'ing genius. If the Dodgers win a game or two, then they have exceeded even my optimistic expectations. And to think there were SOME Dodger fans who thought anything better than a 20-30 record would be a gift from heaven. Ha!

Game 3

Game 2

Augie is fond of saying that baseball is a game of infinite possibilities. Well that may be correct, but when all is said and done, there is only one possibility for this team tonight: win. Win or go home. The Heart Attack Horns have thrived under pressure so far in this College World Series, which speaks volumes of their character. However, the same team choked last night, proving that LSU is a horrible matchup for our Horns.

How is this a horrible matchup? Texas's strength is starting pitching. However, LSU has a left hand-heavy lineup and all our starters are right handed. Further, we have a power-pitching right handed rotation that likes to pitch off the fastball and that is prone to giving up the home run. Only Dicharry (a non-starter) really relies on a change-of-pace pitch (his nasty change). Assuming Jungmann goes tonight, LSU is going to see more of the same approach as they saw last night -- though hopefully not the same from Jungmann, who was as bad as the diapers I can look forward to in 7 or so months.

Obviously, we are past the point of mere concern and into "all cliches are out the window" land. The Horns' best hope would seem to be playing loose and carefree, having fun, and seeing what happens. If we are close at the end, anything is possible. But we looked tight once the 8th inning rolled around last night, and that doesn't bode well for tonight. I hope I am wrong, and we will end up tomorrow night singing a totally different Queen song.

Better Late Than Never

The title of this entry applies both to my delay in getting up an appropriate posting honoring the purple and gold, as well as the one year delay in the championship parade that should have been held last year. See, that is how Laker fans thought of this trophy, as the natural progression of what started (and should have ended) against the Celtics. This was Kobe's trophy all along, and now he finally got it. I have no doubt, too, that it is exactly that attitude that makes so many people hate Kobe and the Lakers (and the Horns, and the Yankees, etc.).

Another interesting element of this championship to me is how different it feels from the G.M.E. (Greatest Moment Ever). The Lakers championship was not accompanied by the sheer elation of the GME. No raucous celebration, no leaping and hugging. While part of it was just the nature of the clinching game, part of it too was the sheer expectation of victory. There was more a sense of completion than there was a sense of the joy of victory. It makes me think that, no matter what we said going into the GME, I think most of us still didn't expect to win, and so the suprise was as compelling as the victory itself.

And that makes me wonder if that is not how the pro players feel. A sense of completion more than a sense of triumph.

Discuss amongst yourselves. I am feeling a bit veklempt.

The Worst of the Worst

Let me just note, I am not a particular connoisseur of Texas Rangers broadcasts. I am a National League guy in general and, frankly, the Rangers have not been worthy of watching before this year. But with my Dodgers in Arlington, I have been forced to watch Fox Sports Southwest broadcasts (damn you black out rules!).

Where am I going with all this, you ask? I'll tell you. I am just astonished that Fox Sports SW, that proprietor of so many Texas Longhorns games, has decided to take the worst part of Longhorns broadcasts (okay, maybe second worst behind that color commentator whose name I can't remember) and apply it in a venue in which it works even worse. Ladies and gentlemen, let me present the abomination that is Jim Knox! How on Earth does this tool still have a job? He brings nothing to the table, and in fact is both an annoyance and a distraction from the game. Please, PLEASE shut this guy up! His schtick is at least palatable when he is talking to hot looking co-eds on college campuses, but acting retarded with semi-literate fans at Rangers games is just too much.

Its sad too, because a good Member of the Tribe, Josh Lewin, does an admirable job broadcasting.

Finally, we get the break

On the eve of UT's opener in the College World Series and 2 1/2 months before the UT football team starts the season with MNC expectations, we learn that Damion James is returning for his senior year. 2009-2010 shouldn't be a bad year to be a Longhorn fan, eh?

Frankly, it just feels good to finally get that break for the basketball program. We have been so close to putting together the roster of dreams. We had a great year in 2002-2003 and would have had a legit chance at a championship if TJ had returned the following year. Alas, he turned pro and we were left with a solid (but not championship-worthy) team. We had another excellent year in 2005-2006 and would have had a ridiculously-talented team the next year if we had any experience coming back at all. Alas, Gibson, Tucker, and Aldridge all left for the league and we were left with an exciting (but inexperienced and defensively deficient) team. We had another fantastic year in 2007-2008 and would have had a legit chance at a championship if DJ had returned for his junior year. Alas, DJ left for the league and we were left with a...ugh...we sucked ass last year.

But now, finally, everyone is there. Damion is back. Dex is back. It appears that both Jordan and Avery have made it in with no problems. We are absolutely loaded.

Starters:

Balbay
Bradley
Hamilton
James
Pittman

No team in the country will be able to rebound better in the frontcourt than Damo and Dexter. No team will have the scoring ability on the wings that we'll have with Avery, Jordan, and Damo. No team will have the backcourt defense that we'll have with Balbay and Bradley.

Need a shooter at PG? Put in Lucas (once he's eligible). Need an effort guy in the frontcourt off the bench? Put in Gary. Need some experience in the backcourt? Put in Mason. Need another guard to match up defensively? Put in Ward. Want to go small and run like crazy? Sub Lexi in for Dex.

We should be excellent and able to run many different styles depending on who's on the floor. To me, getting it all to work together is really on Barnes. I don't want to see us without an identity when conference play rolls around in January. I don't want to see any of our key guys struggling with confidence and not getting minutes because Barnes wants to send a message. Get these guys to relax and play together from the get go. Barnes has never had a team this deep and talented, that's for sure. I don't really like to put expectations on a team like this, but anything less than an Elite 8 run would be a massive, massive disappointment.

We'll certainly have our chances to build a #1 seed resume next year. UNC, Michigan State, UConn (I think), Pitt (likely in one of those preseason tournaments), and USC (whatever is left of them) all in the non-conference. And then of course, the epic matchup with KU in Austin during conference play. And something tells me we'll see KU again in Kansas City during the Big 12 tournament.

The good thing? If we can get a #1 seed, our road in the tournament will probably start in either New Orleans or Oklahoma City. Then the second weekend returns to Reliant Stadium in Houston. Yes, please.

An Off Night for Some Number 1's

A little pre-NBA Finals baseball tonight, and it appears some of the aces are not quite on their game. Burnett gives up 5 to the Red Sox, Santana gives up back-to-back jacks to Howard and Ibanez (who appears to be an 87-year old stud), and Carpenter does not look sharp against the Marlins (who have all of five people in Joe Robbie...er...Dolphins...er....Land Shark Stadium). Let's hope this doesn't bode poorly for Thunder Thighs going for win number 8 and the Lakers going for win number 3!

Omaha..Somewhere in Middle America

Wow! Who would have thought this team would be back in Omaha and ranked number 1 in the country when we were being swept by Kansas?

Its great to be back in the CWS, one of the most underappreciated sporting events in the country, in my opinion. And this team has the look of a team of destiny, finding ways to win no matter what else is going on with the offense (read: dead bats). Unfortunately, destiny has a way of losing out to good starting pitching, or, in our case, mediocre starting pitching. I am not optimistic that our anemic offense can keep this up for the course of the next two weeks given the staffs that we are going to be facing.

But hey, at the very least the baseball team has shortened the wait until football season starts!

The best player in college football

Our boy Colt was up in Bristol, Connecticut this week to do various ESPN radio and television shows. Colt has turned himself into a pretty damn good interview.

In case you missed it, here is Colt's interview with Colin Cowherd: http://sports.espn.go.com/stations/player?id=4224724

And here is his interview on Tirico & Van Pelt: http://sports.espn.go.com/stations/player?id=4222323

When you step back and really think about it, it's truly amazing how far Colt has come. I mean, the kid was a complete afterthought during the recruiting process. And yes, I was sure he had no chance to beat out Jevan Snead for the starting spot in 2006. Even when he was announced as the starter to open that season, it was just a matter of time before the more talented Snead took over, right?

The fact of the matter is that the kid is just damn good. Colt McCoy should have won the Heisman last year, is a favorite for it this year, and will likely be a 1st round pick in 2010. Seriously, how ridiculous is that? Not only that, but he's a tremendous leader and one badass clutch motherfucker. Who knew?

I think I'm in love

Please tell me you saw Roy Halladay's performance tonight. I am in awe. Aside from former Longhorns, Halladay is BY FAR my favorite professional athlete in any sport. It's not even close. And that's saying something considering there couldn't be a more generic, uninteresting team than the Toronto Blue Jays. But my goodness, Halladay is just a joy to watch perform.

Here's what he did tonight:

W, 9 IP (complete game), 4 ER, 7 hits, 1 BB, 14 K

But that doesn't even tell the story. The dude threw 133 pitches! Who does that in the majors anymore? Nobody - except soft tossers like Livan Hernanez. To truly appreciate this performance, you had to watch it. Basically, the Angels had no chance against Doc tonight.

He cruised through the first six innings while the Jays staked him to a 6-0 lead. Through six innings, he had given up 3 hits and struck out 8 batters. But when he came out for the 7th inning, he clearly wasn't sharp. As is typical for Halladay, he eased up a bit and let the Angels score four runs. (As an aside, he seriously always does that. It's like he conserves energy just so he can pitch the entire game. It messes with his ERA just a bit, but I guess I can't complain.)

So, after giving up 4 runs in the 7th and being past the 100 pitch mark, you figure Cito Gaston goes to the bullpen. That's just what MLB managers do these days. But not with Halladay. He came back out for the 8th inning. And he dominated. He struck out Kendrick, got Figgins to ground out, and then struck out Abreu.

Up 6-4 heading into the top of the 9th, you figure Cito Gaston would go to his closer. Halladay was over 115 pitches. That's just what MLB managers do these days. But not with Halladay. He came back out for the 9th inning. And yes, he dominated. He struck out Vlad Guerrero and then struck out Torii Hunter. After he allowed a bloop single to Kendry Morales, Halladay was at 130 pitches. No big deal. Halladay finished the game by getting a called strike three on Maicer Izturis on a nasty breaking ball.

Game over. Complete game. 14 strikeouts. 133 pitches. Hell, the dude threw 88 strikes! There are so many pitchers these days who can't even throw 88 pitches in an entire game.

Roy, I love you.

Report: Oswalt won't agree to White Sox trade

Who is this more pathetic for, the Chi-Sox, who get turned down without even making an offer, or the disAstros, who 50 or so games into the season are already on "when are we going to trade our marquee starting pitcher" watch?