Official Mascot of the World Cup has been revealed

626 days before the start of the first African FIFA World Cup at the Soccer City Stadium in Johannesburg on June 11, 2010, the secrecy of the mascot has been revealed! The Official Mascot, a leopard, has been designed and produced in the host country of South Africa. His name is Zakumi and it has a meaning behind it. The Za stands for South Africa and the Kumi means "10" in various African languages. "Zakumi represents the people, geography and spirit of South Africa, personifying in essence the 2010 FIFA World Cup. We are certain we will have a lot of fun with him in the lead-up to and during the FIFA Confederations Cup and the FIFA World Cup," said FIFA Secretary General Jérôme Valcke.

Personally I do not really understand why they do all of these mascots for all of the major tournaments. Normally I don't even understand what they are and they just scare me a little bit. It is a little satifising that Zakumi is something I can actually recognize and it is kind of fun to say the name. Basically the only thing that I need this mascot to do is hunt down some of the soccer players I do not have a strong liking for, and that also can guarentee that USA might actually make an impact in the World Cup for once.

Playoffs

It's official, after a rocky September, the Milwaukee Brewers have finally secured themselves a place in the 2008 postseason. This will be there first playoff appearance in 26 years. Although seven of the eight postseason slots have been filled, the American League Central Division still doesn't have a champion.

Here is a layout of the 2008 playoffs. The Brewers will be paired up with the Philadelphia Phillies. The series will start out in Philadelphia for two games then move to Milwaukee. The other National League match up will be the Chicago Cubs verse the Los Angeles Dodgers. This series will start off in Chicago on Wednesday. The one American League match up that is determined already is between the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim and the defending world series champion the Boston Red Sox. The Tampa Bay Rays, who made the playoffs for the first time in franchise history, have to wait till tomorrow to find out who their opponent is. The Chicago White Sox, who trail the Minnesota Twins by a half game, have a make up game to play on Monday because of Hurricane Ike earlier in September. If the White Sox lose then the twins will win the AL Central and will be paired up with the Rays. But if the Sox win there will be a one game tie breaker on Tuesday between the Sox and Twins to determine who will move on into October.

This year's playoffs is filled with big stories and big questions. One of the big stories is the Chicago Cubs 100 year drought without a world series. Can they make it happen? Well many people have chosen the Cubs as the favorite to go all the way. Another big story is how the Tampa Bay Rays went from possibly the worst team in baseball to one of the best in baseball. But can they keep their composure as they get deeper into their first postseason ever? Yet another question is how will the Milwaukee Brewers fair as they are entering their first playoff appearance since 1982 when they lost in a seven game world series? One more question is will the Boston Red Soxs be the first team to win back to back world series championships since the 1998- 2000 Yankees?

Only time will reveal the answers to all of these questions. That is why I can't wait until Wednesday when the Playoffs officially begin. I'm not planning on missing a single game because I think this postseason will be filled with histroy and be remmebered for years to come.

UEFA to expand the Euro

For people that do not know what the Euro is it is is the main football competition of the men's national football teams governed by the Union of European Football Associations and it takes place every four years. Franz Beckenbauer's announcement that the European Championship finals will feature 24 teams instead of 16 from 2016 must have been welcomed by fans of countries that have found it difficult to qualify for major tournaments. But I think to the majority of soccer fans, this comes as a really stupid move. This is absolutely crazy, I mean we just saw possibly one of the most entertaining and exciting European Championships in quite a long time and honestly I think it is far more exciting than the world cup. But for UEFA this is a perfect idea. If there are more teams, then they are making more money. In Euro 2008 England did not make it into the tournament, which most likely reduced tv ratings in England so they did not make as much money.

The way the tournament is set up now is that the top two teams from each group advance. So this way the teams have to come out ready and attack right away. Add another four or eight teams and we get into a complicated situation because it is not easy to reduce 24 teams to a 16 team knockout stage. I think now the top 3 will advance from each group, so instead of coming out attacking right away, teams can just sit back and play defensively and not really have to worry too much. Also this system will allow teams such as England who narrowly missed qualiftying be able to qualify much easier. This can also allow teams to slip in who should not be there. I like underdogs upsetting just as the next person, such as Croatia winning their group and almost getting to the championship game in Euro 2008. But they established themselves being there as they beat England twice and winning their group in the qualifying round. Now this new system will allow teams who have not proven themselves to slip in and take out some of the bigger teams and make the tournament a lot less exciting. I really hope UEFA can get this figured out and not expand the tournament, as I can see this watering it down and not making the European Championship not nearly as exciting as it has been in the past.

Football Einstein: Week 4

Another Monday, another big Monday Night Football game. This one is between the Pittsburg Steelers and the Baltimore Ravens. These are two teams that are expected to battle for the AFC North title which makes this week four game a big one.

On offense , you would think that i would automatically pick the Steelers, but they aren't playing too well on offense this year. Ben Roethlisberger is still banged up from last weeks game against the Eagles and Willie Parker is out with a knee injury. That means that rookie Rashard Mendenhall has to step up this week but it might take him some time to get into a groove because he's only touched the ball 10 times so far this year. The Ravens are starting rookie Joe Flacco at QB and he's playing well so far. Also, Willis McGehee is probable after getting kicked in the eye last week and if he plays, he's a big boost to their offense. I think the Ravens have a slight edge on offense just because they are a better rushing team, even when the Steelers have their starter Willie Parker.

Defense is a toss up. They are numbers one and two in the NFL as far as overall defense goes and that's what's going to win this game. Whichever team can force the most turnovers will win and i think that if they can score a defensive touchdown, they will have a great chance of winning. Since it is impossible to pick who has the better defense i won't.

So let's get to the pick. The Ravens defense will give their offense chances and the offense will do just enough to win this game. Don't look for anyone on offense to have a good game though. This is going to be a slugfest. A major defensive battle that won't be over until the clock says it is. I don't expect much scoring and neither should you.

Ravens 10, Steelers 6. Season record: 1-0

The Quest for Futility

Admit it, you all love it when a team goes winless in a season. But that is almost impossible to do nowadays. Look at it. Baseball plays 162 games and everyone is bound to win a few, the basketball season is 82 games long, so that's the same way. But in the NFL, a league with such ridiculously high talent levels, a sixteen game season leaves us the small hope of a team not winning a game in a year.

Every year we get teased. Last year, it was the Miami Dolphins. I really thought they were going to do it and they had to go and win a game on December 16th. I almost cried, and they wouldn't have been tears of joy.

But this year is different. This year, God gave us the St. Louis Rams. Possibly one of the worst looking teams the league has seen in a long time. Look at the year that they have had so far. Week one, they lost 38-3 to the Eagles. Week 2, embarrassed 41-13 by the Giants. You might say, "They've been playing good teams though and losing to them." I would agree with you except I saw their game in week 3. They lost 37-13 against the Seahawks. And the Seahawks aren't very good at all this year. They are just a straight up awful team. There really isn't any other way to put it. They just plain suck.

Another reason they look like the team that could make our dreams come true this year is that they are falling apart from the inside. The team has lost all faith in their coach Scott Linehan. He benched their franchise starting quarterback Marc Bulger and decided to start Trent Green instead. That move drew protest from one of their biggest players, Stephen Jackson. Who knows how many others felt the same as Jackson and just didn't say it. They have just given up on their coach. And if they don't want to play for the coach, what makes you think they want to play there at all?

The Rams are a disaster. They are the worst team in the NFL and they are my 0-16 pick for the 2008 NFL season. Let's just hope they don't go the way of the Dolphins last year and decide to win a game.

Landon Donovan headed to Bayern Munich?

Lets face it, we all know the MLS just cannot even compare to the soccer that is played overseas, which is why a lot of star players in the MLS try to switch overseas. Many try to go to the Premiere League, which is an english league that is considered the best in the world. Landon Donovan first started playing at the U.S. Soccer Residency program at Bradenton with many current international teammates including Oguchi Onyewu, Damarcus Beasley, and Bobby Convey. Then at the age of 16 Donovan signed a professional contract with a German club, Bayer Leverkusen, at the age of 16. Donovan as a young teenager missed home and was upset with the coaching so his club loaned him to the MLS. He was loaned to San Jose Earthquakes where right away he had imediate success. He led the Earthquakes to MLS championships in 2001 and 2003 where he was named US Soccer Athlete of the Year in 2003, as well as being one the most recognizable faces of soccer in America.

Donovan declared in 2004 that he would go back to Bayer Leverkusen. Again things did not work over in Germany, so Donvan stated that he would return to the MLS. Los Angeles was able to snag his rights a week before the season started. In his first season with the Log Angeles Galaxy he was able to win a championship, so apparenly where Landon goes he wins championships, sounds like a pretty good guy to have. Donovan has 80 goals in his MLS career and has been added to the MLS All Time Best. Landon has had a pretty steller season with 19 goals and 8 assists in the 20 games this season, and he has made quite a tandum with David Beckham. Sadly, there season has been less than steller, their record is 7-11-8.

Now there has been talk about Landon Donovan heading back over to Germany. But this time he will not be playing for Bayer Leverkusen, he will be playing for Bayern Munich. Bayern Munich is considerably one of the best clubs in the world, so this is a chance of a lifetime for Landon. Landon states, "That's one of the best teams in the world. As of now, I've got to worry about what's going on here, but if January rolls around and there's interest, and the league is willing to discuss it, I would be excited to talk about it." I really hope he gets the chance to play for Bayern Munich, he has more than enough talent to play over there. I understand that he has already been to Germany twice already and has come back each time, but that was when he was 16. He cannot even be compared to how he used to be. Landon is now faster, tougher, stronger, mentally/physically, and he has matured. If Landon is able to have this opportunity, I can only think that we will do great things over in Germany and I am extremely happy for him.

Top 10 Active Players

In the sport of baseball, if you get a hit three times out of ten then you are considered pretty succesful. This means that your batting average is at least .300. Well there are currently 21 players in the Major Leagues that have a career batting average above .300 which means that they have had a batting average of around .300 every year that they have played. One question that is raised by this statistic is, "Is it enough to get into the Baseball Hall Of Fame?" Well here is a list of the top ten players with at least a lifetime batting average of .300 and their likeliness of making it into the hall of fame. Their chances of making the Hall of Fame is on a scale from 1 to 10 with 10 being the most likely to make it.

First you have Ichiro Suzuki of the Seatle Mariners. His lifetime batting average is .333 and he has scored over 100 runs in each of his seven seasons in the majors. He has also had at least 200 hits in all of his seasons. His hall of fame chance is a 9.Next, there is Todd Helton of the Colorado Rockies. His lifetime batting average is .331 and he has two gold gloves and an NL batting title. His hall of fame chance is a 7.
Then there is Albert Pujols of the St. Louis Cardinals. His lifetime batting average is .330 and he also owns an NL batting title along with a National League MVP. In many people's minds he is a sure thing for the hall of fame. His hall of fame chance is a 10.
Next is Vladimir Guerrero of the Las Angeles Angles of Anaheim. He has a lifetime batting average of .325 and has at least 100 RBIs in 9 of his 12 seasons. He also has an AL MVP under his belt. His hall of fame chance is a 10.
Then of cource there is Derek Jeter of the New York Yankees. He has a career batting average of .317, was a Rookie of the year, is an 8 time all-star, and has three gold gloves. His hall of fame chance is a sure 10.
Next is Nomar Garciaparra of the Los Angeles Dodgers. He has a lifetime batting average of .318 but is steadily sliding down on the list mainly due to some nagging injuries. His hall of fame chance is a rough 3.
Next is Manny Rameriz of the Los Angeles Dodgers. His credentials are a lifetime batting average of .313, a home run title, an RBI crown, and he led the AL in 2002 with a batting average of .349. His hall of fame chance is a 9
8th on the list is Magglio Ordonez of the Detriot Tigers. His lifetime batting average is .310 over 11 years but he had two rough years in 2004 and 2005 where he played little due to injuries. His hall of fame chance is a 6.
9th on the list is Mike Piazza of the Oakland Athletics. His lifetime batting average is .308 despite not hitting better than .286 in the last six seasons. His hall of fame chance is an 8.
Last but not least is Chipper Jones of the Atlanta Braves. Chipper has a career average of .308 and has eight 100 plus RBI seasons along with the NL MVP in 1999. His hall of fame chance is a 6.

Now Think About What You Did

Seriously? We thought that we were done dealing with this stuff. It’s happened again. Plaxico Burress is in trouble again. This time he didn’t show up to practice with the New York Giants on Monday or Tuesday. He says that he was tending to a family matter but the Giants management wasn’t really feeling that story and they put him on time out for two weeks.

It isn’t terrible for the team though because in those two weeks, they have their bye week and then they play the Seattle Seahawks. So they aren’t missing him for any important conference games. Also, they have other good receivers, like Amani Toomer and the man with the sticky helmet David Tyree, that can fill in for Plaxico in a game against the Seahawks and they won’t miss a beat on offense. The Giants are too good of a team to let Burress’ absence hurt them too much.

But Burress and his agent, D-bag agent Drew Rosenhaus disagree with the punishment. And I understand their protest, but come on. Management from the team tried to call him and he never returned any of their calls to say why he wasn’t at work. That’s right, work. It’s his job to show up and play. If I didn’t show up for my job, I would get a lot more than just a two week suspension. I can understand not liking him being out pay for two weeks, but it was work and he didn’t show up. That’s all that it really comes down to. And like I said before, he didn’t even return the team’s calls. That sure doesn’t help them believe your story.

Admit it Plax, you were out doing God knows what, and you didn’t show up. Then you didn’t return any calls from your bosses trying to find out where you were. You messed up. Now you take your punishment and you say sorry sir, it won’t happen again. Grow up about this stuff. You’re a great player and your team needs you in the game if they want back to back Super Bowls. Now work hard for these two weeks, come back in better shape, and burn more corners. It’s your job.

USA wins Ryder Cup

Somehow the young rookies pulled off the upset against the europeans in this weekends Ryder Cup. It was quite an entertaining tournament, with all of the US players getting the crowed into the match. I have not watched a golf match since Tiger Won that ridiculous US Open match. I do watch golf, but without Tiger, it just does not feel the same to me. But this weekend most definitely proved me wrong. You can watch golf without The Tiger Woods, and this was one of the more exciting matches I have watched.

Today marked the first the Americans have the won Ryder cup since 1999. Your final score was 16 ½ to 11 ½ with your Americans coming out on top. This was actually the largest margin of victory since the US beat Europe 18 ½ to 9 ½. Like the majority of the weekend, it was the rookies that dominated and got the crowd going as they went 4-1-1 on Sundays Single's matches. It was the rookie Anthony Kim who got the crowd going first. Both players birdied the first hole for a half and that is as close as it got. Kim handed Garcia a crushing 5 and 4 defeat. Kim was so into the match that after he made the winning putt on No. 14, he began walking to the 15th tee thinking there was more work to be done. When Kim was finally stopped and told he won, he walked back onto the green to take a bow. Boo Weekley, another rookie, played some of the best golf of his career on Sunday. He pounced all over Oliver Wilson like he was absoltuly nothing.

This one of the first times in quite awhile the Americans actually looked like a team. "This Ryder Cup is pretty awesome. This is unreal" "I think the more we're together, the closer we are going to get. I think we actually became a family and that's something we've been missing in the past, a little bit of laughter and cutting up. He gave us ping pong and he gave us foosball and he gave us every opportunity to have fun, and if we couldn't take advantage of it, it was our own damned fault, you know what I mean?"

I am so happy that the americans were able to pull off the upset in such a dominate fashion, but also in such an exciting way. It truely looked like they were having the time of their life and as did the crowd, which is something you rarely see in golf.

Memories at Yankee Stadium

Many loyal Yankee fans filled in the empty seats at Yankee Stadium for the last time today. The Yankees and the Baltimore Orioles are playing in the final game at the famous memory filled stadium. After this season the Yankees will move into their new stadium and begin trying to fill it with as many memories as there were in the old stadium. Many people are just appalled that the old Yankee Stadium is going to be demolished. They think there are just to many great moments in that stadium. Others welcome the new stadium and anticipate the great moments to come. In 2009 Monument Park will be the new Yankee Stadium.

I found some interesting statistics about players from visiting teams that played in Yankee Stadium. Here are some visiting players that will probably miss the old stadium: In 103 games at Yankee Stadium, Manny Ramirez hit .321 with 29 home runs and 77 RBIs. David Ortiz hit .316 with 16 homers and 35 RBIs in 56 games. Chone Figgins hit .342 in 26 games. Johan Santana is undefeated in 4 starts at Yankee Stadium with a record of 3-0 and a 2.05 era.

And here are some players from other teams that might be happy about the destruction of the stadium: J.D. Drew hit .177 in 17 games. Carl Crawford went 1 for 27 in 2008. Jacoby Ellsbury went 8 for 41 this season. Lyle Overbay hit .198 in 26 games with 1 home run in 81 at-bats. Carlos Silva is 0-4 with and era of 10.80.

Many people have many of different feelings towards the Yankees move to a new stadium and the demolishing of the old stadium. I'm going to miss all the history and the big names to go through the old stadium but I'm also excited for the new memories that are yet to come.

Bear Down: Week 3

Hey everybody. I don’t have a lot of time to talk, the Bears and Bucs are in OT right now. I’d like to chat but its pretty much blasphemy to do that now. But how about that game by Brandon Lloyd? 100 yards receiving and it isn’t even over yet. It’s the best game he’s had in a long time, easy. Also, look at the second half by Kyle Orton. A career high for passing yards and it’s still going. Is this the real Kyle Orton? They’re playing a pretty solid game so far. That means a lot coming from a Bears fan that had absolutely no expectations coming into the season. What’s even more surprising is that they’re playing well without “Anytime” Devin Hester, one of the most explosive players in the NFL. Uh-oh, the Bucs just made a field goal in overtime. I have to go buy Kleenex and cry for the next seven days. Bye.

Reds and Blues Draw 1-1

I hate not being able to watch my Manchester United Reds. Especially when they play their rival, Chelsea Blue's. I won't lie, I was not terribly excited for this game. The last years european and premier league champions have not had a perfect season so far. First their opening game ended with a draw to Newcastle, which was horrible to watch. Also the the little capitulation to Zenit St. Petersburg in the Super Cup was an embarrassment, and last weekend’s defeat to the Liverpool team that looked supierior to Manchester United shows the lack of attitude the team has in the opening weeks of the season very well, and the injuries and suspensions they have had just add insult to injury.

But despite all of these factors Manchester United managed to pull off a draw, that could have been very possibly a win. Cristiano Ronaldo, arguably the best player in the world, didn't even start for the Reds, but later came in, and Carlos Tevez did not even play. Then later in the 32 Minute, Goalkeeper Edwin Van Der Sar went up for a 50/50 ball and came down injured so the Red's had to play with their backup keeper for the remainder of the match. Referee Mike Riley made matters worse as he was a little card happy and decided to hand out 7 yellow cards to Manchester United. As Manchester United boss, Sir Alex Ferguson, commented that he did not think any of those tackles were bad.

The Red's could have won after being up 1-0 in the 18th Minute, but Sir Alex Ferguson said that they played to conservative after their goal which allowed Chelsea to regroup and tie it up in the 79th Minute. It's disappointing to see Manchester United draw after being up 1-0, but how the season has been going, I'll gladly take this draw and expect only for the Reds to gain momentum and improve from here on out. Manchester United, as fans can remember last season, had a dismal start to their season and were crowned european and primier league champions, so all is not lost Manchester United Fans.

Underdog USA leads in the Ryder Cup

Today was the kickoff of the Ryder Cup between the USA and Europe. USA comes in somewhat inexperienced except for a few players and they are missing Tiger Woods. Missing Tiger woods? Can they actually win without Tiger Woods? And to add more to that, they come in as underdogs, on our own turf!

Despite all of those factors leaning against the USA, the fans were cheering and screaming "USA!" "USA!", which is a first time in quite awhile that a Ryder Cup has been so electric. A lot of the fan excitement had to do because of Boo Weekley. Every time Boo would step up to tee off, he would only here boos screaming from the crowd. But these were not your normal boo's as you would yell towards an opposing team, these were boo's that not only energized Boo Weekley, but he also encouraged by lifting up his arms to let the crowd know to cheer even more. This also energized the entire American team. He even seemed to charge up Phil Mickelson which all of us have been wondering, where has this been during the PGA?

Also the europeans did not take well to Boo encouraging the crowd to cheer, as they claim that it disrupted the flow of the game. Well, it is a big rival sporting event and not to mention it is here in America. Seriously, come on boys, why would we not want to cheer for the home team? Because you guys do not like it and it disrupts the flow of the game? Man up, you are supossed to be professionals. The best in the world. Deal with it. I am so impressed with Boo Weekely. This guy is not afraid to show emotion and actually get the crowd involved. The only other golfer I have really seen this in would be Tiger Woods. And with him missing, this is absoltuly wonderful to see Boo doing this.

Apparently it is good to be the underdog in this event. USA has been the favorite over the years and have lost. Now they come in as the underdog and lead 5½-2½ after the first day. It was also a pretty historical day. First time the U.S. has led any Ryder Cup at any time, since 1999. First time the U.S. has led after the opening day since 1995. First time since 2002 that Lee Westwood didn't win a Ryder match. First time Sergio Garcia didn't win in foursomes.

It looks good for the USA, even with Weekley and JB Holmes losing on the 18th to let half a point slip away. As long as Boo can keep the team and crowd fired up, I think the USA's chances are looking pretty good.

Football Einstein: Week 3

The slate of NFL games this Sunday is pretty impressive. There is going to be a lot of good matchups but none bigger or more fun to watch than the game between the Steelers and the Eagles. This game will feature two of the best teams in the league. But the bigger question is, who will win? Well lucky for you I, Football Einstein, have the answers.

Too much foreplay, let's get to the game between the Steelers and the Eagles, shall we? Pennsylvania hasn't seen any action this hot since Gettysburg (too soon?). The Steelers come in at 2-0 after rolling over Houston in week 1 and squeaking one out against the struggling Cleveland Browns. Philly enters with a record of 1-1. But they have played very well in both of their games so far. Week one they embarrassed the pathetic St. Louis Rams and last week they lost a great Monday night game against arguably the best team in the NFC, the Cowboys. Well, let's get down to it. The Steelers have been playing good football so far but their offense hasn't convinced me yet. Last week, they only managed to put up 10 points on the Browns. The Browns are a team that is expected to do well but only 10 points from a team that has the weapons that it does concerns me. Willie Parker has been running wild the first two games of the season but the Eagles have only been allowing 52 yards per game on the ground so far. So that should be a fun matchup to watch because it forces Ben Rothlisberger to throw the ball more to Hines Ward and Santonio Holmes against a very talented Philadelphia secondary.

There is also a good matchup on the other side of the ball. The Eagles offense is very high-powered. Donovan McNabb has been unstoppable this year, Brian Westbrook always performs at a ridiculously high level, and to make things worse for Pittsburgh, add in about 100 yards of idiotic yet amazing rookie wide out DeSean Jackson. But Pittsburgh isn't without its stars on D. Troy Polamalu is the face of that defense at safety. He'll hit you so hard it'll knock out your grandma's dentures if you try to take anything his way. They also feature linebacker James Farrior who always brings it.

Special teams are a dead heat. I can't think of too many kickers that can out-kick David Akers. But Jeff Reed could surely hold his own with anybody. Mewelde Moore is a solid guy to have back there returning kicks for Pittsburgh but DeSean Jackson returns punts for the Eagles He did that at Cal where he had 6 career punt return touchdowns. He is a very explosive player and has a chance to score anytime he touches the ball.

So now let's get down to it. I think that the Eagles are going to play very well because they have to prove that they can beat the elite NFL teams. Losing a thrilling game to the Cowboys doesn't matter. Moral victories don't show up in the win column. There are going to come out firing and it's the Eagles, come on, you know that they are going to hit the big plays and make the steel curtain look like the steel drapes. Pittsburgh is going to be tough though. Willie Parker is going to have a pretty good day but i think he's going to have some trouble breaking the big runs against the Eagles especially against strong safety Brian Dawkins. And Ward and Holmes are a very talented wide receiver combo. But playing at home, the Eagles will have the 12th man on their side which always helps and it may just decide this game. If the Eagles get up early, the fans will make it hard for the Steelers to do their thing on offense.

I expect a close, entertaining game but I think that the Eagles are going to be just a little too much for the Steelers. Here's what you've been waiting for: Eagles 24, Steelers 20

The Brew Crew Falling Apart

It's pretty common to see a baseball team fall apart towards the end of the season. But it isn't common for a team to fire their manager at this point in the season when the playoffs are so close. Well that's exactly what is happening in Milwaukee. With a record of 3-11 during September the Milwaukee Brewers are spiraling down in the NL Wild Card race. At one point the Brewers were sitting comfortably on top of the wild card with a five and a half game lead, but now the Brew Crew finds themselves one game behind the New York Mets in the wild card. In what I believe was an act of desperration the general manager, Doug Melvin, fired the Brewer's manager Ned Yost. Yost had already been under a lot of heat from last season when the Brewers started out strong then faded towards the end of the season. But people don't realize how much good Yost has done for the team since he was hired. Before Yost was their manager, the Brewers were not what I consider a good team. But now in the past couple years Milwaukee has been conteding with everyone in the NL Central. Yost has been a major factor in this turn around. So I don't think the Brewer's end of the season skid is the fault of Ned Yost. I think their slump is the result of a crapy bullpen. The Brewers have been having all kinds of trouble with there relief pitchers, I'm talking mainly about the disapointing season that former star closer Eric Gagne is having. This deffinetly isn't the same Gagne that used to close games for the Dodger's. His earned run average this year is a hefty 6.41. The Milwaukee Brewers have problems alright, but I don't think manager Ned Yost was one of them.

Go Cubbies

How many of you out there have herd the phrase, "Just wait till next year." For those of you who have, it probably came from a Chicago Cubs fan didn't it? That's the phrase I've been hearing from Cubs fans all my life and guess what, people have been waiting until next year for one hundred years now and the Cubs still haven't came through with a world series championship. As a die hard St. Louis Cardinals fan, I've been taking loads of crap from Cubs fans all my life. I usually take most of this crap during the first few months of the season and then after the all star break the Cubs fans usually start to quite down. This is because the Cubs usually start the season off doing really well (usually up towards first place). Then around or after the all star break they start to choke and slide down into about third or fourth place. But could this year be different? The Cubs are obviously still going strong into October. Some of the more superstitious Cubs fans out there are sure this is their year mainly because this year is the 100 year anniversary of the Cubs last World Series victory. But fans aren't the only ones who are certain there is a championship on the way. At the beginning of the season Cub's pitcher, Ryan Dempster, assured fans that not only would the Cubs make it to the World Series, they would win it. This is a very bold statement for any player to make, but so far Dempster doesn't look like a fool yet. Whether the Cubs win the world series or not, I just can't wait for this season to be over so all the Cubs fans out there will just shut the heck up.

Who needs band aids?

There's a new trend thats been sweeping the NFL this year. That trend is injuries. Star players have gone down early this year and that is really having a major affect on the league. I'm sure that you've heard about most of the big ones already.

Tom Brady is done for the year with a knee injury leaving behind some Shaq sized shoes for Matt Cassell to fill. Shawn Merriman has been trying to battle through a knee injury but it's showing its effects. But arguably no team has been hurt as bad this year so far by injuries as the Indianapolis Colts. Peyton Manning didn't take one snap in the preseason and it took him about a game and a half to get back into the flow of the game. Too bad that the Colts suffered a blowout loss to the Bears during that time and they just survived a major scare from the Minnesota Vikings last Sunday.

But they were missing more than just a prepared Peyton Manning. Center Jeff Saturday is out for a few weeks and and that leaves them very susceptible to any kind of blitz up the middle. They lost another offensive lineman which forced them to start a rookie. During the bears game, tight end Dallas Clark got injured and he missed the second half of the Bears game and the Vikings game. Him being out eliminates one of the most dynamic and versatile tight ends in the league.

And just this sunday they suffered another big blow, this time on defense. Pro bowl safety Bob Sanders is going to be out for 4 to 6 weeks. Without him, it is going to be much harder for the Colts defense to do its job. Sanders is a key factor on that defense in stuffing the run and in defending the pass. Right now, I don't have confidence in the Colts defense to effectively do its job with out their leader.

Granted, whenever Peyton Manning is in the lineup, there is always a chance they can win. But if your defense can't stop anybody, that puts a lot of pressure on that offense and Peyton Manning, and they are going to have to show the NFL that they can step it up and still convincingly win games before the name "Indianapolis Colts" gives anyone the shivers again.

MLS to expand

Yes there is an MLS league in North America. For those of you that do not know, which I'm sure there are a few, the MLS is the Major League Soccer and it is getting bigger. Currently the ever slow growing MLS has 14 teams, but they plan to expand to 18 by 2011. The Seattle Sounders plan to start next season in 2009, Philidelphia plans to have a team in action by the year 2010, and the New York Mets are interested in buying their own MLS team in the near furture.

Some people may say that it is unfair that New York gets another MLS team when they already do not fully support the one they have. I think this is a great step for the MLS, the New York Mets have a ton of money at their disposal and they choose to spend it on another soccer team. This has to mean that soccer is catching popularity and they are taking notice and are willing to make a large invesment into soccer. Also such a big city gaining popularity in soccer may be able to catch interest in higher talented players, which is the next big step the MLS needs to take.

If the MLS wants to be taken more seriously they need to have more talent. The MLS has shown signs of getting better talent from the signing of David Beckham as well as other players. Also the standout French and Barecelona striker, Thierry Henry, has also taken an interest of one day playing in the MLS. "I always say that one day I can play over there," Henry said. "I would love to. It's still early. " Henry would not be able to play for the MLS for a couple of years as his contract for Barcelona expires in the year 2011. Hopefully with bigger cities and more talented athletes taking interest in the MLS, it will be able to expand more rapidly and allow soccer to become a much more popular sport in America.

Jeter ties Gehrig

When you think of some of the big names to go through Yankee Stadium you probably think of Babe Ruth, Joe Dimaggio, or Lou Gehrig. Well now when you think of some of the great moments at Yankee Stadium you can think of when Derek Jeter tied Lou Gehrig for the most hits at Yankee Stadium. Jeter hit a solo home run today in the fifth inning off of David Price to tie Lou's long standing record. Jeter didn't have a whole lot of time to catch Gehrig because the Yankees are playing in there last homestand before moving into there new stadium across the street next year. After saying good bye to a stadium full of history this year, the Yankees will have to start putting some history into their new stadium.

Diary of a man with DFS

If you guys don’t mind I’d like to talk about a very serious subject today. That would be Displaced Fan Syndrome (DFS). You have all by now probably seen the PSA with the Manning brothers talking about this condition. It affects many Americans every day and it affected me today.
I am a huge Chicago Bears fan. There I said it. But at this point in time I am not currently living in the Chicago area. I tuned in to the Fox pregame show this morning and I waited. I was waiting to see them cut away to the Bears game at the top of the hour, but they didn’t. You know what I got instead? Seinfeld. Now don’t get me wrong Seinfeld is a great show, but it’s Sunday for Christ’s sake! Jerry sure as hell ain’t watchin’ himself on Sunday. He’s watching football. SO GIVE ME MY BEARS! I had to turn on a Colts-Vikings game, which I had less than zero interest in, and just stare at the bottom of the screen so every five minutes I could see the score. I am positive that the Bears lost today because they didn’t have me watching and cheering them on. Last week I didn’t move until the game was over and you all know what happened, a 29-13 rout of the Colts (who I still haven’t forgiven).
It’s awful not knowing if I am going to see my team play on Sunday. If I only get the Sunday and Monday night games I might just die because I can’t survive without my Bears. And don’t try to be smart and tell me to get the NFL Sunday ticket from Direct TV. I don’t have Direct TV and I don’t want to shell out the money to pay for that. Also, don’t tell me to watch dopey little play by play things online. We all know that they suck. I don’t know about you, but watching it happen live on TV is not the same as reading what happened. It’s like listening to a pop-up book on tape. It’s just plain awful.
Please, if you have any suggestions let me know. I am open to all ideas. I need help. I just can’t go on like this. All of you die hard fans know how it is. Every game you miss is like a knife in your team color specific heart. It’s tough, but together, we can make it through this…together.

What would you do with a million dollars?

Well, I would most likely buy myself a new car, a nice big plasma tv, or talent that would allow me to win eight gold medals in an Olympic games. But not the 14 time Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps.

Ever since Phelps has dominated the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, he has been one of the most emerging figures in pop culture, touring places such as Portugal, London, New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Las Vegas and Los Angeles, as well as appearing at the VMA's and hosting Saturday Night Live. And it's great to not see all of this publicity go to the 23 year old's head.

Phelps was awarded a million dollar bonus from Speedo for his record breaking accomplishment of winning 8 gold medals, which I cannot even describe how amazing and difficult that is. But I can tell you what he has done even bigger than that.

On his stop at the Boys and Girls Club of Burbank, which he talked to kids about not putting limits on their goals, he gave a one million dollar donation to the national organization as he begins his own foundation. There, a 7 year old, Javier Silva, approached Michael Phelps with a bracelet which had 8 gold rings on it to represent his 8 medals he won in Beijing, which he was spotted hours later still wearing.

This is absolutely fantastic to see, as a swimmer, I understand how underrated this sport is. But the way Phelps reaches out to the children and tries to promote swimming as much as possible, excites me to see that maybe in the future swimming may be able to grow into a much more popular sport.

Tampa Bay 1st place?

If I asked you at the begging of this years baseball season to name a couple of players from the Tampa Bay Rays, could you do it? For the most of us out there the answer is, "Um...well there is...um. Huh, I guess I can't think of anybody." But of course there are those few die hard Rays fans who can name the whole team in their sleep. So who are these first place Rays and where die they come from? They are led by first baseman Carlos Pena and rookie third baseman Evan Longoria. Another major contributor to the Rays success is second baseman Akinori Iwamura. You also have to give manager Joe Maddon some major props for turning the "bottom of the division every year" Rays into the "1st place ahead of the Red Soxs and Yankees" Rays. I can remember as a little kid my family was vacationing in Florida and we decided to go to a Rays (back then it was Devil Rays) game. I didn't even realize they were a major league team until my dad told me they were playing the New York Yankees. I remember walking in the stadium and seeing hundreds of empty seats everywhere. Now that all the Rays fans are coming out of the closet (not literally) I bet it's hard to find a seat anywhere when the Rays take the field. The big question is can they keep their momentum goin into the postseason and make a world series run? Well I guess only time will tell.

Me llamo Ocho Cinco

It’s finally happened. Chad Johnson has lost his freaking mind. That’s right, in a successful attempt to outdo fellow NFL douchebag Terrell Owens, Chad Johnson, wide receiver for the Cincinnati Bengals, legally changed his last name to Ocho Cinco. I’m serious. He went down to Florida, his home state, and said to a judge, “You know what? I want my last name to be Ocho Cinco.” And even more surprising, the judge said it was ok.
But I guess that it isn’t all good for Johns…I’m sorry, Mr. Ocho Cinco. Reebok doesn’t want Ocho Cinco on the back of his jersey because they have already made thousands of jerseys with “Johnson” on the back. So now Reebok wants him to buy all of the jerseys that they made with Johnson on the back so they don’t get completely screwed out of money. But something tells me that it won’t be too hard for Johnson to pay for those jerseys. Right now he’s in the middle of a 6-year, 35.5 million dollar contract, which certainly isn’t helping stop his progress towards his goal. Once again a Hispanic heritage month joke has gotten out of control.
But what scares me the most is that this might start a trend. What if a Spanish trend just swept through the NFL? Kickers might actually sound cool. Can you imagine instead of Robbie Gould, Senor Zapato. What a badass name. He might actually make friends. And sorry all you kickers (not for what I’m saying but because you’re kickers), we just can’t have that. It’s a rule that kickers will only speak when spoken to, and they may not have any sort of contact with anyone, unless it’s the holder and it’s strictly work-related. It’s in the rulebook, look it up.
Now granted, I do think that this is just absolutely hilarious, don’t get me wrong. I love the crazy antics, on the field and off. And I can’t think of anything funnier than John Madden explaining with a telestrator to a groaning Sunday Night Football audience what Ocho Cinco means. But I’m sorry, Chad Ocho Cinco just doesn’t roll off the tongue.

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