First of November Random Thoughts

[SabresRule]

The end of baseball/football midseason edition!

1. Congratulations to the S.F. Giants. How fitting that, in what some consider a Year of the Pitcher, a team fueled by great ptiching was able to win it all.

2. My gut feeling is that Cliff Lee will return to the Rangers for 2011.

3. Between the Giants, New Orleans Saints, and Chicago Blackhawks, 2010 feels like the year of the long-suffering team finally becoming champion. (That being said, the Lakers, Alabama, and Duke represent the old-school, traditional powerhouses. Very half-and-half!)

4. Salsa in his wildest dreams wouldn't have thought that at midseason, the Raiders would be more relavant this year than the Vikings or Cowboys. Even Wozniak's Lions are looking better!

5. Bill mentioned how the Patriots became more of a finesse team when they had Moss and that they had gotten away from what they used to be when they won Super Bowls. They've reeled off 3 straight wins with what he called "tough, physical football with a lunch pail mentality."

6. Tom Brady has 24 straight regular-season home wins, 1 shy of the NFL record. If he's going to make history, he'll have to do it the hard way, for the Pats' next two home games are no gimmies. The record-tying game would be against his ancient-rivals from Indianapolis, and the potential record-setter would come against the Jets on Monday night (two tough opponents, and the last two teams to beat him at the Razor in the regular season).

7. How was your Halloween?

8. Now that it's November, when is it time to prepare for Turkey Day?

9. I have a feeling the SEC will not be playing in the national title game, and their streak of consecutive championships will stop at four.

10. I took Jimbo's suggestion of putting a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup in the freezer- great advice!

11. When the Jets went for that fake punt, I'm sure Sandra must have had a good laugh. Total facepalm worthy moment!

12. Any of us could do a better job quarterbacking the Arizona Cardinals. Playing musical QB's is going to sink their season.

13. Donovan McNabb, amidst all the hype and trumpeting, has really not lit it up for the Redskins. Their win-loss record is more about the defense, not McNabb. I think he's one of the more overrated QB's in football.

14. HD, I have heard about the Cleveland Polish Boy. Sounds delicious except for the coleslaw (that is not a personal favorite of mine).

15. Finally, your thoughts on the declining baseball ratings for the World Series? There was a time when the Fall Classic was must-see TV. Now, it seems like a ghost of its former Nielsen-topping self.

 

[SamCdbs]

1- Giants. Nice enough. Really never noticed that they had never won one. Great that Bonds was not a part of it.

2 - As you know, I am not an NBA fan, but I think the James deal may be a start of a trend. Rather than a GM assembling a team, which is how every sport has worked forever, top players may start to pick a town where the lifestyle is nice and they think they can engineer a win. Why go to NY for $40M extra dollars that you great-grandchildren won't need?

3 - Nice pick up on a theme. Really when I think of "long suffering" I think of places like Buffalo or Cleveland, where no team has won. After all, Giants fans are probably also 49ers fans, Blackhawks fans also Bears, Sox and/or Bulls, etc.

4 - Weird football year. Football is better when the Cowboys are bad.

5 - I want to know what the true deal on Moss is. His actions this year have got him cut twice, but really cannot be considered all that bad, by Moss standards.

7 - Far less kids than usual. I don't do adult parties or anything like that.

8 - My prep is already made. As always, I will spend the entire weekend in wonderful Las Vegas. Great football every day, town is not really super crowded (especially this year), weather is perfect. Comped for the whole trip. Thanksgiving dinner will be off one of the famous buffets, which, of course, have Thanksgiving type foods. Wife's birthday is Saturday, which means Joe's Stone Crab (a totally different chain from the "Joes Crab Shack" kiddie place, BTW).

9 - Auburn, to return to your theme from #3, will be the national champion. They have I-AA Tennessee-Chattanooga, 4-5 Georgia, Alabama, and an SEC final probably 2 loss USC.

13 - Over-rated from Day One. Typical over-hyped Syracuse player. SU has the best sports journalism school in the country and the media/alumni over-hypes it totally. Nothing in college, nothing in the pros.

15 - We have been down this path before. Three channel world vs. 300 channel world. That has been said. Going against new shows vs the NBA/NHL going against thrice run reruns and the different nature of the NFL's single elimination Super Bowl. That has been said. The explosion of college football every day of the week. That has been said. But, part of the problem is with ESPN and Fox. TBS is less of an offender, but its regular season package (Sunday afternoons against all the other sports that are on, including your local team in most cases). Yanks/Sox, Sox/Yanks, Yanks/Sox, Sox/Yanks. In games shown and then in SC coverage. You see less of baseball as a national sport than any other. Its Sox/Yanks 24/7/365, with your local team on your local RSN. Contrast to football, where you see in an ordinary week almost one-third of the teams play every week, much more in some weeks when the Thrusday/Saturday specials kick in. In baseball, you just don't know the players on the other teams.

 

[HD MM]

14. HD, I have heard about the Cleveland Polish Boy. Sounds delicious except for the coleslaw (that is not a personal favorite of mine).

Just got one a few weeks back. For those that don't know, it's a deep fried hot dog topped with fries, slaw and BBQ sauce! It's huge, it's ugly, it's sloppy, but oh so good!

 

[cosmo_kramer]

Sorry, but that doesn't look appetizing at all. It looks like something I ate once that didn't agree with me and made a sudden reappearance.

 

[riffjim4069]

Sorry, but that doesn't look appetizing at all. It looks like something I ate once that didn't agree with me and made a sudden reappearance.

Agreed...it's that sick feeling I get whenever I hear the name Rich Rodriguez. Speaking of...my only random thought is how soon is before Michigan fires this knothead? None too soon IMO!!! :rant:

 

[SandraC]

11. When the Jets went for that fake punt, I'm sure Sandra must have had a good laugh. Total facepalm worthy moment!

Sounded like a bad idea, but I did not see any of the game, or even highlights for that matter.

Trick or treating with nieces and nephews, and I also volunteered to pick up my 16 year old nephew at soccer practice in the late afternoon. A number of dads did a double take seeing Wonder Woman picking up a player.

A very PG rated version of Wonder Woman, I must add...I was with the kids!

Very strange to go an entire Fall Sunday without Andrew Siciliano...


Sandra

 

[salsadancer7]

The end of baseball/football midseason edition!

1. Congratulations to the S.F. Giants. How fitting that, in what some consider a Year of the Pitcher, a team fueled by great ptiching was able to win it all. Congrats to the Giants and fan favorite when he was down here, Cody Ross...could not have happened to a nicer guy!

2. My gut feeling is that Cliff Lee will return to the Rangers for 2011. I don't know, it sounds like he might have been a rental. I hope he stays, ever champion deservers to defend their title with their team fully intact.

3. Between the Giants, New Orleans Saints, and Chicago Blackhawks, 2010 feels like the year of the long-suffering team finally becoming champion. (That being said, the Lakers, Alabama, and Duke represent the old-school, traditional powerhouses. Very half-and-half!) Ah those Blackhawks...that brought back some fond memories of teams that I was involved in covering that were BETTER...on paper..than the current Lord Stanley's champions...but championships were not won on paper...!

4. Salsa in his wildest dreams wouldn't have thought that at midseason, the Raiders would be more relavant this year than the Vikings or Cowboys. Even Wozniak's Lions are looking better! I thought they would be better, but NEVER...EVER thought that the Vikings and the Cowboys would be EXTREMELY worse...wow!

7. How was your Halloween? GREAT!! Dad dressed up as a Chilenian miner, and my son Batman and my daughter the bumble bee ganther candy after the Raider outcome was just about sealed at the end of the 3rd quarter.

8. Now that it's November, when is it time to prepare for Turkey Day? That is the social planners job...my wife. I just cook and eat.

9. I have a feeling the SEC will not be playing in the national title game, and their streak of consecutive championships will stop at four. I have a strange feeling it will either be Alabama or Auburn playing in the championship against Oregon.

12. Any of us could do a better job quarterbacking the Arizona Cardinals. Playing musical QB's is going to sink their season. Damn Janikowski, IF he hits that damn chipshot 31 yarder...I don't know HOW the Raiders lost that game.

13. Donovan McNabb, amidst all the hype and trumpeting, has really not lit it up for the Redskins. Their win-loss record is more about the defense, not McNabb. I think he's one of the more overrated QB's in football. But what does he have for WR, only my Raiders have less at the skilled positions. Same thing happened in Philly, only ONE year did they have a legit WR and that was when they had TO. He will go down as one of the most clutch QBs in the modern era.

15. Finally, your thoughts on the declining baseball ratings for the World Series? There was a time when the Fall Classic was must-see TV. Now, it seems like a ghost of its former Nielsen-topping self. The OTHER professional leagues markets their TEAMS more, unlike MLB who markets their individuals more. The formula was not in place in the 70s with the Big Red Machine, Oakland A's and NY Yankees. The 80s had the Dodgers, Cardianls, A's. Even in the 90s, you had Braves and Yankees...but things changed with the heavy amount of Home Runs flying and adds like "chicks love the long ball"...