Shouldn’t he show some effort for a World Series game?
Head Coach excited for the game………………..
Isn't a head coach supposed to be excited for the season to start?
Stan makes the NBA exciting!
Stan makes the NBA exciting!
GOI Football Predictions: Week Eight
My selections are in bold.
Here are my Picks for this week:
Denver at Baltimore
Houston at Buffalo
Cleveland at Chicago
St. Louis at Detroit
Miami at N.Y. Jets
San Francisco at Indianapolis
Seattle at Dallas
N.Y. Giants at Philadelphia
Jacksonville at Tennessee
Oakland at San Diego
Minnesota at Green Bay
Carolina at Arizona
Atlanta at New Orleans
Here are my Picks for this week:
Denver at Baltimore
Houston at Buffalo
Cleveland at Chicago
St. Louis at Detroit
Miami at N.Y. Jets
San Francisco at Indianapolis
Seattle at Dallas
N.Y. Giants at Philadelphia
Jacksonville at Tennessee
Oakland at San Diego
Minnesota at Green Bay
Carolina at Arizona
Atlanta at New Orleans
Vikings Players Are Dumb
Remember when Brett Favre first came to Minnesota, like last week, and ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter reported there was a "schism" in the Vikings locker room because there was a lot of Purple players who wanted Tavaris Jackson over Brett Favre? Yeah, I bet they feel pretty dumb right now- except for the fact that they're leading the division...
Revisiting DME's Hatred Of Dustin Pedroia
I made a lot of predictions for the 2009 season. Some were correct (see Javier Vasquez, Josh Beckett (May-August), Justin Verlander, Dice-K, et. al). Some were incredibly wrong (see John Lester, Kevin Youkilis, Gavin Floyd, Felix Hernandez, et. al). But one thing that I have adamantly argued, perhaps more than my love for Dan Haren is how overrated I thought Dustin Pedroia was -- both in real life and fantasy -- heading into this season.
I had some harsh things to say about Dustin Pedroia going into 2009:
DeRosa 2009:
.250/.319/.433 (.327 wOBA),23 HR, 78 R, 78 RBI, 3 SB
Pedroia 2009:
.296/.371/.447 (.360 wOBA), 15 HR, 115 R, 72 RBI, 20 SB
Pedroia definitely regressed some this season, but retained most of his value from 2008. Yahoo ranked Pedroia as the 8th best 2B and 49th best fantasy player overall. Pedroia made some gains in his peripherals (increased walk rate, decreased strikeout rate) and regressed in others (Pedroia saw his ISO fall from .167 to .152, he clipped less LD's and his speed score dipped a full point (which can be noticed in the decrease in SB%). Pedroia' .360 wOBA, however, is hardly anything to sneeze at (let alone for a second basemen) and his 2009 level of production is more akin to what I have associated his skill set with. Take note that Pedroia's Yahoo ranking going into 2009 was 23. He was clearly overrated last season, but perhaps after a more "milding" 2009, Pedroia's 2010 fantasy value will be more break-even than loss.
DeRosa, on the other hand, took a nose dive in the batting average department due to a nose dive in line drives (from +22% from 2006-2008 to 16.6% in 2009) and therefore BABIP (.286 BABIP in 2009 [in line with his seasonal xBABIP], despite a career .315 mark). Perhaps much of it has to due with the wrist injury, but DeRosa's ISO fell from .196 to .183, the walk rate dipped from the double digit rates he posted on the Cubs to 8.4% and the strikeout rate also increased. The resulting .327 wOBA was league average and Fangraphs generously valued him at a temperate 1.6 WAR due to the fact that he played only slightly below average defense at 2B last year (see Positional Adjustment). DeRosa was ranked as the 144th player going into 2009 and ended up being #183 by the end of the season (21st best 2B, behind a handful of undrafted players). These are not good signs for a soon-to-be 35 year old 2B coming off of wrist surgery.
So yeah, I was wrong about DeRosa in 2009.
However, if DeRosa was healthy and not playing on the shitty offensive "team" that was the Indians for half of last season, who knows what his numbers would have looked like. Even with the regression in BB%, K%, and ISO, if you were to adjust DeRosa's 2009 batting line for a .315 BABIP (I have to make the assumption that DeRosa's wrist problems hindered his ability to drive the ball in 2009, given his Matt Kemp-like LD% from 2006-2008), DeRosa's 2009 BA would be .282, his OBP would be in the .350 range and, assuming the same ISO for the additional hits, his SLG would be around .533. A .282/.350/.533 batting line (.883 OPS) is nothing to sneeze at and would have provided much more offensive value than Pedroia's .813 OPS.
So what am I saying? Basically, DeRosa, in my opinion got screwed by his wrist injury and bad luck. If I am right and DeRosa can fully recover from his off-season wrist surgery (ask Derrek Lee, it's definitely not something that's easy to come back from), he has the potential to continue to provide much value, wherever his team may play him.
I refuse to apologize for my prediction because although I may have been wrong, I still believe in DeRosa. A 25 HR season with 100 R/RBI was not out of the question if he was on a better team and healthy. Let's hope he gets fixed up for next year and continue to be more than just the clubhouse presence he is well known for (and the Cubs so desperately missed).
On a separate note, A-Rod went 0-4 last night with 3 K's. Let the flurry of "A-Rod is unclutch" headlines begin...
I had some harsh things to say about Dustin Pedroia going into 2009:
"Something about an MVP who can't hit 20 HRs in unsatisfying. While undeniably useful as 5 category 2B last year, his increasing GB/FB ratio and declining BB% are worrisome. With a strong LD% and speed, his high AVG should persist, but don't expect anything above 15 HRs. Considering that all but a few second basemen are second tier, it's not worth wasting a third round pick on a 2B (unless you get Kinlser or Utley at a ridiculous discount) when you can have the negligibly worse Mark DeRosa 12 rounds later."Was I right to hate on Pedroia? Let's look at their comparative batting lines.
DeRosa 2009:
.250/.319/.433 (.327 wOBA),23 HR, 78 R, 78 RBI, 3 SB
Pedroia 2009:
.296/.371/.447 (.360 wOBA), 15 HR, 115 R, 72 RBI, 20 SB
Pedroia definitely regressed some this season, but retained most of his value from 2008. Yahoo ranked Pedroia as the 8th best 2B and 49th best fantasy player overall. Pedroia made some gains in his peripherals (increased walk rate, decreased strikeout rate) and regressed in others (Pedroia saw his ISO fall from .167 to .152, he clipped less LD's and his speed score dipped a full point (which can be noticed in the decrease in SB%). Pedroia' .360 wOBA, however, is hardly anything to sneeze at (let alone for a second basemen) and his 2009 level of production is more akin to what I have associated his skill set with. Take note that Pedroia's Yahoo ranking going into 2009 was 23. He was clearly overrated last season, but perhaps after a more "milding" 2009, Pedroia's 2010 fantasy value will be more break-even than loss.
DeRosa, on the other hand, took a nose dive in the batting average department due to a nose dive in line drives (from +22% from 2006-2008 to 16.6% in 2009) and therefore BABIP (.286 BABIP in 2009 [in line with his seasonal xBABIP], despite a career .315 mark). Perhaps much of it has to due with the wrist injury, but DeRosa's ISO fell from .196 to .183, the walk rate dipped from the double digit rates he posted on the Cubs to 8.4% and the strikeout rate also increased. The resulting .327 wOBA was league average and Fangraphs generously valued him at a temperate 1.6 WAR due to the fact that he played only slightly below average defense at 2B last year (see Positional Adjustment). DeRosa was ranked as the 144th player going into 2009 and ended up being #183 by the end of the season (21st best 2B, behind a handful of undrafted players). These are not good signs for a soon-to-be 35 year old 2B coming off of wrist surgery.
So yeah, I was wrong about DeRosa in 2009.
However, if DeRosa was healthy and not playing on the shitty offensive "team" that was the Indians for half of last season, who knows what his numbers would have looked like. Even with the regression in BB%, K%, and ISO, if you were to adjust DeRosa's 2009 batting line for a .315 BABIP (I have to make the assumption that DeRosa's wrist problems hindered his ability to drive the ball in 2009, given his Matt Kemp-like LD% from 2006-2008), DeRosa's 2009 BA would be .282, his OBP would be in the .350 range and, assuming the same ISO for the additional hits, his SLG would be around .533. A .282/.350/.533 batting line (.883 OPS) is nothing to sneeze at and would have provided much more offensive value than Pedroia's .813 OPS.
So what am I saying? Basically, DeRosa, in my opinion got screwed by his wrist injury and bad luck. If I am right and DeRosa can fully recover from his off-season wrist surgery (ask Derrek Lee, it's definitely not something that's easy to come back from), he has the potential to continue to provide much value, wherever his team may play him.
I refuse to apologize for my prediction because although I may have been wrong, I still believe in DeRosa. A 25 HR season with 100 R/RBI was not out of the question if he was on a better team and healthy. Let's hope he gets fixed up for next year and continue to be more than just the clubhouse presence he is well known for (and the Cubs so desperately missed).
On a separate note, A-Rod went 0-4 last night with 3 K's. Let the flurry of "A-Rod is unclutch" headlines begin...
Curt Schilling knows a thing or two about baseball
It is well documented that I do not particularly like Curt Schilling. However, Schilling had a few insightful words on his blog and on the radio today.
In particular, I have to approve of this comment he made (I've taken the liberty of accentuating the sexually arousing parts):
Funny enough, Fangraphs put up an article earlier today detailing the value that J.D. Drew has provided in a Red Sox uniform. I wonder if Schilling read the article...
In particular, I have to approve of this comment he made (I've taken the liberty of accentuating the sexually arousing parts):
If you read the article, you nonetheless get the feeling that even when Curt Schilling is right, he's still an asshole. Maybe it's the excessive use of the phrase "I'll tell you why"...maybe it's just the fact that he's Curt Schilling.Did you view other power hitters as a bigger threat than [J.D.] Drew?
[Schilling]: Not at all. Not at all. I’ll tell you why.
His career has been built around getting on base. You make that argument, ‘I don’t want a guy taking a walk with a runner in scoring position.’ On-base percentage is what drives … I never wanted to face the guys who were .370-plus percentage on-base guys. Generally, for the most part, those guys don’t strike out a lot. J.D. strikes out more than most. For the most part, those are the guys who, their value isn’t necessarily just getting on base every time. It’s just as much the fact that in their 0-for-2 night, they’re going to draw two walks and make the opposing pitcher throw 24 pitches, as opposed to Vladimir Guerrero, who’s going to go 0-for-4, draw no walks and make me throw five pitches. There’s a deeper value. I promise you that the depth of the statistical analysis that they do on these players to identify their dollar value is far different and far more unique and probably as off the wall as anything you’ve ever heard.
Funny enough, Fangraphs put up an article earlier today detailing the value that J.D. Drew has provided in a Red Sox uniform. I wonder if Schilling read the article...
Stupid Statistics
I love statistics, but I have come across a few instances where subjectivity plays to big of a factor into certain stats.
Stat #1
The Bears rank 14th this year in pass blocking on the O-Line according to footballoutsiders.com
What!? This can not be right. This offense line is fucking garbage! I think that because Jay is able to get the ball off in time and gets tackled after he throws the ball that the offensive line doesn't charged with the shit it should
Stat #2
There is a stat on pro-football reference called "Big Games"
Here's what defines a big game 300 yards passing, 100 yards rushing or receiving, or 4 TDs- what arbitrary shit is this!?
Stat #1
The Bears rank 14th this year in pass blocking on the O-Line according to footballoutsiders.com
What!? This can not be right. This offense line is fucking garbage! I think that because Jay is able to get the ball off in time and gets tackled after he throws the ball that the offensive line doesn't charged with the shit it should
Stat #2
There is a stat on pro-football reference called "Big Games"
Here's what defines a big game 300 yards passing, 100 yards rushing or receiving, or 4 TDs- what arbitrary shit is this!?
GOI Football Prediction Results: Week Seven
Pigskin Pick 'Em
1) Cubsfan4evr
Overall: 68 out of 102
Last Week: 8 out of 13
2) Sexy Rexy
Overall: 65 out of 102
Last Week: 9 out of 13
2) The 'Bright' One
Overall: 65 out of 102
Last Week: 9 out of 13
Fantasy Football League
1) Cubsfan4evr (4-3) 669 points
2) The 'Bright' One (4-3) 656 points
3) Sexy Rexy (4-3) 651 points
4) DME (3-4) 586 points
Eliminator Challenge
1) Sexy Rexy (4) Patriots
1) Cubsfan4evr (4) Green Bay
3) TBO (3) DNP
3) J O'Brien (3) Steelers
1) Cubsfan4evr
Overall: 68 out of 102
Last Week: 8 out of 13
2) Sexy Rexy
Overall: 65 out of 102
Last Week: 9 out of 13
2) The 'Bright' One
Overall: 65 out of 102
Last Week: 9 out of 13
Fantasy Football League
1) Cubsfan4evr (4-3) 669 points
2) The 'Bright' One (4-3) 656 points
3) Sexy Rexy (4-3) 651 points
4) DME (3-4) 586 points
Eliminator Challenge
1) Sexy Rexy (4) Patriots
1) Cubsfan4evr (4) Green Bay
3) TBO (3) DNP
3) J O'Brien (3) Steelers
A-Rod is too unclutch
Alex Rodriguez hit .429 with a .567 OBP, 3 HR, 6 R and 6 RBI over the course of the six game ALCS series against the Angels. His WPA (win probability added) per game was, in order, +.027, +.124, +.061, +.171, +.005, and +.143. That is a weighted average of +.0885 per game (.531 cumulative WPA), meaning A-Rod, as 1/25th of the Yankee's squad, is giving his team just short of a 9% chance of winning each and every game in the ALCS.
Now, granted, C.C. Sabathia pitched two amazing games in which he had WPAs of .365 and .314 and I am not saying that he did not deserve the ALCS MVP award. However, it does go to prove a point that A-Rod's post-season production is undervalued.
Now, granted, C.C. Sabathia pitched two amazing games in which he had WPAs of .365 and .314 and I am not saying that he did not deserve the ALCS MVP award. However, it does go to prove a point that A-Rod's post-season production is undervalued.
FJM: Bill Simmons Edition, Part II
A line Simmons said with Matthew Berry on his podcast
And the Angels, like what the Brewers did last year, got ousted from the playoffs and did not make it to the World Series. Why are "sports experts" allowed to just make up all these intangibles! All these unquantifiable quantities Simmons has assigned all these teams are teams that ended up not going to the World Series. Notice how Simmons didn't assign any intangibles to the Phillies or Yankees? (Well, the Phillies are a NL team so Simmons doesn't even know they exist)
A line Simmons has repeatedly said on his podcast:
Listen, I in no way want to make light of the tragic death of Adenhart, but look how how this "Adenhart factor" has helped the Angels. In a short luck-based series, LA defeated Boston, and in the longer series, they got beat by the Yankees. And did the Angels really ever feel like they were in this series? Did the "Adenhart factor" just help the Angels finally got out of the first round. Does Vlad Guerrero have to die in order for the Angels to the World Series? Or maybe some little kid can wish they win the pennant and that is the "intangible" the Angels will need.
SIDENOTE: How come in all these sports movies, the goal isn't to win the World Series? In "Angels in the Outfield", the Joseph-Gordon Levitt character only wanted the Angels to win the pennant. If you're gonna wish for the Angels to win and be good, why not ask for Angels to help the baseball team win it all, as opposed to just MAKING IT to the World Series. In Major League (I), their goal was just to make it to the playoffs. You know what would have stuck it to the new owner and gain a lot of fans, win a World Series.
This year's Angels are very similar to what the Brewers had last year, that they have a lot of Black players which really helps them with their swagger
And the Angels, like what the Brewers did last year, got ousted from the playoffs and did not make it to the World Series. Why are "sports experts" allowed to just make up all these intangibles! All these unquantifiable quantities Simmons has assigned all these teams are teams that ended up not going to the World Series. Notice how Simmons didn't assign any intangibles to the Phillies or Yankees? (Well, the Phillies are a NL team so Simmons doesn't even know they exist)
A line Simmons has repeatedly said on his podcast:
The Angels scare me, they have the "Nick Adenhart" factor, something all these players can rally around; they want to win it for him
Listen, I in no way want to make light of the tragic death of Adenhart, but look how how this "Adenhart factor" has helped the Angels. In a short luck-based series, LA defeated Boston, and in the longer series, they got beat by the Yankees. And did the Angels really ever feel like they were in this series? Did the "Adenhart factor" just help the Angels finally got out of the first round. Does Vlad Guerrero have to die in order for the Angels to the World Series? Or maybe some little kid can wish they win the pennant and that is the "intangible" the Angels will need.
SIDENOTE: How come in all these sports movies, the goal isn't to win the World Series? In "Angels in the Outfield", the Joseph-Gordon Levitt character only wanted the Angels to win the pennant. If you're gonna wish for the Angels to win and be good, why not ask for Angels to help the baseball team win it all, as opposed to just MAKING IT to the World Series. In Major League (I), their goal was just to make it to the playoffs. You know what would have stuck it to the new owner and gain a lot of fans, win a World Series.
GOI Football Predictions: Week Seven
My selections are in bold.
Here are my Picks for this week Seven:
Indianapolis at St. Louis
New England at Tampa Bay
San Francisco at Houston
Minnesota at Pittsburgh
San Diego at Kansas City
Green Bay at Cleveland
N.Y. Jets at Oakland
Buffalo at Carolina
Chicago at Cincinnati
New Orleans at Miami
Atlanta at Dallas
Arizona at N.Y. Giants
Philadelphia at Washington
Here are my Picks for this week Seven:
Indianapolis at St. Louis
New England at Tampa Bay
San Francisco at Houston
Minnesota at Pittsburgh
San Diego at Kansas City
Green Bay at Cleveland
N.Y. Jets at Oakland
Buffalo at Carolina
Chicago at Cincinnati
New Orleans at Miami
Atlanta at Dallas
Arizona at N.Y. Giants
Philadelphia at Washington
Steve Phillips Secret Lover
So, at first, I thought this was just a pic of some fan with Phillips that my friend labelled as a joke "Steve Phillips Secret Lover" But, NO, this really is Steve Phillips secret lover! (Although I should have been tipped off when Steve Phillips actually had a fan...)
One, the obvious, really!? This girl!? Really!? You're going to risk your marriage over this girl!? Although granted, here's a better photo of her...
But here's the strange thing, Phillip's wife knew about her! This girl, Brooke Hundley, had been stalking Phillips and his son and been coming to the house!
You can listen to a 911 call of Phillips' wife calling the police when Hundley came to the Phillips' house
His wife kept saying she will call Phillips to get her name, what must that conversion be like:
Steve Phillips: Hey Honey, how are you?
Marni Phillips: I'm good, how are you?
SP: I'm fine, what's up?
MP: So you know that girl you've been fucking on the side and that keeps coming and threatening us?
SP: Yeah, what about her?
MP: Well even though she has threatened me several times, I have not found out her name, what is it?
SP: Um, which girl exactly?
MP: The ugly one
SP: Oh, HER, yeah that bitch is fucking crazy, her name is Brooke Hundley
MP: OK great, I'm going to call the cops back so they can chase her down
SP: Great, so what's for dinner?
At least, that's how I pictured that conversation...
Next, had people learned anything from Steve McNair! Really!? People are dumb
Lastly, what does Steve Phillips have to do to get fired!? Jesus, after all his shittiness and you add this scandal on top of it and he's STILL on the network. Michael Irvin had one little DUI
Baseball umpires have hit an all-time low...again
Today's Yankees/Angles game could not have had more drastic umpire errors. You would think these veteran umpires need a lesson on baseball from Tim McCarver; thats how elementary these mistakes are. Fuck, scooter the talking baseball was embarrassed by these calls. Deadspin has the screen shots of the plays
Groundball back to the pitcher. Posada takes off for home and Cano heads to 3rd. Posada gets caught in a run down but cant return to 3rd base because it is now occupied by cano. But as Napoli gets to 3rd base, Cano steps off the bag for some reason, maybe to let Posada take the base, such that both Yankees are off the bad. Napoli tags Cano(out) then he tags Posada(out). Not so much. Tim McClellen calls Posada out but Cano safe. Clearly a mistake of drastic proportions, yet there is no discussion outside of Mike Scoscia shouting at an umpire perplexed for about the 20th time this series. My problem is this. Obviously a mistake was made on the call. Why is an umpire not allowed to change his mind. Is there a rule that the initial, reflex decision is final? Maybe this is why woman should be umpires. They would actually discuss the play with each other and reach an accurate conclusion. Of course, they cannot be trusted because of "that time of the month" hence they cannot be umpires.
Two more plays shown above. A Yankee baserunner(Swisher?) is clearly thrown out at 2nd on a pick off move, yet the play is called safe. Why even have these retards out there. This is not that difficult. Anyone watching on HD could see what happened, why cant these people see in real life. The second play is Nick Swisher scoring on a sac fly in the same inning as the blown pick off call. The Angels protest that Swisher left 3rd before the catch was made, Tim McClellen agrees and calls Swisher out. Replay shows that Swisher actually left after the catch was made, but that wasnt even the worst part. The worst part was replay showing that McClellen was not even looking at Swishers or his feet as the catch was made, but was looking at the outfielder, which is the 2nd base umpires job anyway. So how could McClellen call Swisher out for leaving too soon, if he was not looking at the play? I dont think it even in his peripheral vision. Fucker has some explaining to do. The Yanks are going to win this whole thing cause Arod is god, yeah you heard me McCarver, but sometimes it feels like i'm watching the refs umpire more than the teams play baseball.
Also, last night's baseball games were just horribly officiated behind the plate. The strike zone and the umpires calls were off all the time. Chip Caray even felt the need state that the automated strike zone is an approximation of what the strike zone should be. If by approximation, he actually means completely accurate, then yes it is an approximation. It's still better than what the umpire is doing, which is guessing. And all this goes back to Bud Selig. In 10 years when the games history has been tarnished by horrible calls in playoff games, Selig will hire some dude to run an investigation, purge some clubhouse attendants, and write a 400 page memorandum concluding that Selig is a moron who was specifically hired for his stupidity to maintain the moronic traditions of baseball.
Groundball back to the pitcher. Posada takes off for home and Cano heads to 3rd. Posada gets caught in a run down but cant return to 3rd base because it is now occupied by cano. But as Napoli gets to 3rd base, Cano steps off the bag for some reason, maybe to let Posada take the base, such that both Yankees are off the bad. Napoli tags Cano(out) then he tags Posada(out). Not so much. Tim McClellen calls Posada out but Cano safe. Clearly a mistake of drastic proportions, yet there is no discussion outside of Mike Scoscia shouting at an umpire perplexed for about the 20th time this series. My problem is this. Obviously a mistake was made on the call. Why is an umpire not allowed to change his mind. Is there a rule that the initial, reflex decision is final? Maybe this is why woman should be umpires. They would actually discuss the play with each other and reach an accurate conclusion. Of course, they cannot be trusted because of "that time of the month" hence they cannot be umpires.
Two more plays shown above. A Yankee baserunner(Swisher?) is clearly thrown out at 2nd on a pick off move, yet the play is called safe. Why even have these retards out there. This is not that difficult. Anyone watching on HD could see what happened, why cant these people see in real life. The second play is Nick Swisher scoring on a sac fly in the same inning as the blown pick off call. The Angels protest that Swisher left 3rd before the catch was made, Tim McClellen agrees and calls Swisher out. Replay shows that Swisher actually left after the catch was made, but that wasnt even the worst part. The worst part was replay showing that McClellen was not even looking at Swishers or his feet as the catch was made, but was looking at the outfielder, which is the 2nd base umpires job anyway. So how could McClellen call Swisher out for leaving too soon, if he was not looking at the play? I dont think it even in his peripheral vision. Fucker has some explaining to do. The Yanks are going to win this whole thing cause Arod is god, yeah you heard me McCarver, but sometimes it feels like i'm watching the refs umpire more than the teams play baseball.
Also, last night's baseball games were just horribly officiated behind the plate. The strike zone and the umpires calls were off all the time. Chip Caray even felt the need state that the automated strike zone is an approximation of what the strike zone should be. If by approximation, he actually means completely accurate, then yes it is an approximation. It's still better than what the umpire is doing, which is guessing. And all this goes back to Bud Selig. In 10 years when the games history has been tarnished by horrible calls in playoff games, Selig will hire some dude to run an investigation, purge some clubhouse attendants, and write a 400 page memorandum concluding that Selig is a moron who was specifically hired for his stupidity to maintain the moronic traditions of baseball.
Pod Vader, Matthew Berry, Nate Ravitz, Eric Karabell
Picture #1
From left to right:
Matthew Berry, Pod Vader, Nate Ravitz
Picture #2
Guy on far left: Eric Karabell, guy to his right: Pod Vader
Picture #3
Nate Ravitz
Jay Cutler Gets a Two Year Extension
ESPN.com reports that the Bears have given Cuntler a two year extension that will keep him on the team until 2013. Cutler is scheduled to make $20 million from now until 2011 and gets another $20 millions in guaranteed under the extension. Cutler will make around $50 million over the next five years.
Can we please sign Cutler until he's at LEAST 45? I'm sure he's probably making too much money but I don't care. Hell, give him and Briggs most of the salary cap and give everyone else a dollar for all I care. (That's a popular strategy in fantasy football, I'm sure it'll work in real life, right?)
Either way, I'm happy Cutler gets an extension, but fuck is he making a lot of money
This extension means more love between Cutler and Greg Olson
Can we please sign Cutler until he's at LEAST 45? I'm sure he's probably making too much money but I don't care. Hell, give him and Briggs most of the salary cap and give everyone else a dollar for all I care. (That's a popular strategy in fantasy football, I'm sure it'll work in real life, right?)
Either way, I'm happy Cutler gets an extension, but fuck is he making a lot of money
This extension means more love between Cutler and Greg Olson
More rap sports references
"Have a nigga who smoke Reggie Miller
Coughing and choking constantly"
"I hit the pussy like i'm Andruw Jones"
Quick Rant, then more law homework
TBO and I have been talking about how underrated A-Roid is over the past few weeks, but both of us have been too lazy to do the leg work. Despite a owning a .289/.377/.524 [.901 OPS, .384 wOBA] career postseason slash line with 10 HR, 26 R, 25 RBI in 166 post season AB's (which extrapolates to an incredibly unclutch 36 HR, 94 R, 91 RBI season over the course of 600 ABs), Alex Rodriguez is terrible and unclutch. It doesn't matter that, as Fangraphs pointed out the other day (I have updated the stats), Alex Rodriguez has +0.79 Clutch* rating in the post season since 2002, while Mr. November has a -1.00 Clutch* rating over that same time frame.
God, life is strange.
Also, if Joe Buck mentioned Reggie Willits one more time in last night's Yankees-Angels broadcast, I think I would have thrown a shoe at the TV.
*Clutch is a mathematical formula that determines "[h]ow much better or worse a player does in high leverage situations than he would have done in a context neutral environment." (I feel like Lexis Nexus, posting footnotes in the middle of my documents...)Fuck that fact that Mr. October had a .278/.358/.527 (.885 OPS) career postseason triple slash line. Double fuck the fact that Tim McCarver bases his view of life on Batting Average, which only makes the unclutchiness argument even more bizarre.
God, life is strange.
Also, if Joe Buck mentioned Reggie Willits one more time in last night's Yankees-Angels broadcast, I think I would have thrown a shoe at the TV.
GOI Football Prediction Results: Week Six
Pigskin Pick Em
1) Cubsfan4evr
Overall: 60 out of 89, 67.4%
Last Week: 9 out of 14, 64.3%
2) Sexy Rexy
Overall: 56 out of 89, 62.9%
Last Week: 8 out of 14, 57.1%
2) The 'Bright' One
Overall: 56 out of 89, 62.9%
Last Week: 6 out of 14, 42.9%
Fantasy Football League
1) Cubsfan4evr (4-2), 578 pts
2) Sexy Rexy (3-3), 551 pts
3) The 'Bright' One (3-3), 529 pts
4) David "MVP" Eckstein (3-3), 489 pts
Eliminator Challenge
1) Sexy Rexy, Carolina, (6)
1) Cubsfan4evr, Jacksonville, (6)
3) The 'Bright' One, Philly, (3)
4) J O'Brien, San Diego, (2)
1) Cubsfan4evr
Overall: 60 out of 89, 67.4%
Last Week: 9 out of 14, 64.3%
2) Sexy Rexy
Overall: 56 out of 89, 62.9%
Last Week: 8 out of 14, 57.1%
2) The 'Bright' One
Overall: 56 out of 89, 62.9%
Last Week: 6 out of 14, 42.9%
Fantasy Football League
1) Cubsfan4evr (4-2), 578 pts
2) Sexy Rexy (3-3), 551 pts
3) The 'Bright' One (3-3), 529 pts
4) David "MVP" Eckstein (3-3), 489 pts
Eliminator Challenge
1) Sexy Rexy, Carolina, (6)
1) Cubsfan4evr, Jacksonville, (6)
3) The 'Bright' One, Philly, (3)
4) J O'Brien, San Diego, (2)
Things I'm Sick Of Hearing Football Announcers Saying About The Bears
The Bears not only traded for Cutler for they also got a fifth round pick which they then used on Johnny Knox
First of all, it's a fallacy that the Bears would not have gotten Knox if they hadn't gotten the Broncos draft pick. Second, yes, Knox was a great find in the fifth round, I GET IT, now shut the fuck up about it. Maybe Cutler is making Knox better? I don't know, but think of something else!
Matt Forte was a part of X% of the Bears offense last year
Matt Forte is good. He can run the ball. He can can catch the ball. He's young. I love it. But Jesus Christ we all know Orton kind of sucked last year and all the offense had was Forte. But let's talk about this year, or explain Forte's skills or the Bears shitty O-line or something. Fuck.
This middle linebacker has a chance to play and look what an amazing play/tackle he made
Yes, but Urlacher would have done that better
Bears Give Up Their Second Round Pick in 2010
Tampa Bay Bucs traded former first round pick and bust DE Gaines Adams to the Bears for the Bears 2nd round pick next year. So next year Bears fans again won't pay attention to the draft in the first day again because Denver has their first round pick from the Cutler trade. Although, the draft is boring anyway and no one should ever watch it to begin with...
But seriously, how many DE do the Bears need? The have Wale, Brown, Anderson, the dude they drafted with their first pick last year that can jump out of the water from a swimming pool and now Gaines Adams.
But as a Bears fan, as long as we have Cutler, I could care less what Angelo does.
Tim McCarver hates statisctics...statisticians
Tim McCarver and Joe Buck were back at it again, making sure the baseball enthused youth of America know that statistics are evil. And no conversation about the overratedness of numbers can exclude the underratedness of Derek Jeter. McCarver points out that by every statistical measurement, Jeter rates out as the worst defensive shortstop in the major leagues.
*Update* Derek Jeter committed an error in the 8th inning of a playoff game and followed that with a strike out in the bottom of the same inning. But it wasnt the 7th game of the world series so it doesnt really count.
*Update* Since I initially finished this post, there have been 2 more interesting Derek Jeter references. On a single to right, Jeter went from 1st to 3rd. McCarver mentioned that Abreu got the ball back into the infield fast because he knew Jeter was running the bases. Yep, cause if it was anyone else, Abreu would have jerked off first, and then got the ball back into the infield, cause no one would have the inclination to score outside of Derek Jeter. Second reference was on a ground ball to shortstop. Slo-mo showed that Jeter looked at the runner going to 3rd on the play before throwing to first to make sure he didnt try to score. Because of that, McCarver compared Jeter's vision to that of Larry Bird. Bird is a top 5 basketball player of all time. Possibly the best shooter ever. Jeter is neither, but he has won 4 rings! Yogi Berra won 10 championships, whats your fucking point
I hate you Tim McCarver. Could you please go away and never come back
Love,
TBO
You wont find a single person to say that now. All those people with the numbers are hiding in a cave, under a rock, somewhere.He forgot to mention their mothers basement, too. Then Joe Buck added on, saying any scout that watches Jeter play a single game wouldnt pick any other shortstop to get a ball hit to them in the 7th game of a world series. Huh, let us just forget that the season is 162 games long, plus another 15 or so in the playoffs. Defense in those game does not matter. Only the 7th game of the WS matters. Yeah Joe Buck, these novel baseball fans are retards. Lets set them straight!
*Update* Derek Jeter committed an error in the 8th inning of a playoff game and followed that with a strike out in the bottom of the same inning. But it wasnt the 7th game of the world series so it doesnt really count.
*Update* Since I initially finished this post, there have been 2 more interesting Derek Jeter references. On a single to right, Jeter went from 1st to 3rd. McCarver mentioned that Abreu got the ball back into the infield fast because he knew Jeter was running the bases. Yep, cause if it was anyone else, Abreu would have jerked off first, and then got the ball back into the infield, cause no one would have the inclination to score outside of Derek Jeter. Second reference was on a ground ball to shortstop. Slo-mo showed that Jeter looked at the runner going to 3rd on the play before throwing to first to make sure he didnt try to score. Because of that, McCarver compared Jeter's vision to that of Larry Bird. Bird is a top 5 basketball player of all time. Possibly the best shooter ever. Jeter is neither, but he has won 4 rings! Yogi Berra won 10 championships, whats your fucking point
I hate you Tim McCarver. Could you please go away and never come back
Love,
TBO
Derek Jeter Gets Onionized
Check out this hilarious piece written by The Onion: Derek Jeter honored for having fewer hits than Harold Baines.
Quality journalism.
Quality journalism.
More Football Board Bets
Bet Four:
Johnny Knox and Earl Bennett will get more receiving TDs combined than Terrell Owens between Week 6 and Week 17.
Sexy Rexy: Over- TO is garbage and so is Trent Edwards
The 'Bright' One: Under- I hate betting against the Bears but I love To
Winner: Proof to see if TO would look good in a Bears uniform or not
Bet Five:
Who ends up with fewer fantasy points the rest of the way: LT or Brain Westbrook?
Sexy Rexy: Westbrook. Not only will LeSean McCoy take fantasy points away from Westbrook, but Westbrook will sit on the sidelines more than LT this year
The 'Bright' One: LT. As great of a career as he's had, he's done.
Winner: who cares, this shit isn't for money
Bet Six:
Big Ben will finish the year with a passer rating under 87.0
Sexy Rexy: Under. Yes, I know he's having a fantastic season but he's poised to have a career year in pass attempts. And as I've proven before, when Big Ben is forced to throw a lot, he sucks.
The 'Bright' One: Over, dude's awesome, don't be a hater
Bet Seven:
Who will have more fantasy points the rest of the way- former Bears Kyle Orton, Bernard Berrian, and Cerdirc Benson or current Bears Jay Cutler, Devin Hester, and Matt Forte?
Sexy Rexy: Former Bears- for some reason offensive players seem to do well after they leave the team?
The 'Bright' One: Current Bears- Why do you not have faith in this team!?
Johnny Knox and Earl Bennett will get more receiving TDs combined than Terrell Owens between Week 6 and Week 17.
Sexy Rexy: Over- TO is garbage and so is Trent Edwards
The 'Bright' One: Under- I hate betting against the Bears but I love To
Winner: Proof to see if TO would look good in a Bears uniform or not
Bet Five:
Who ends up with fewer fantasy points the rest of the way: LT or Brain Westbrook?
Sexy Rexy: Westbrook. Not only will LeSean McCoy take fantasy points away from Westbrook, but Westbrook will sit on the sidelines more than LT this year
The 'Bright' One: LT. As great of a career as he's had, he's done.
Winner: who cares, this shit isn't for money
Bet Six:
Big Ben will finish the year with a passer rating under 87.0
Sexy Rexy: Under. Yes, I know he's having a fantastic season but he's poised to have a career year in pass attempts. And as I've proven before, when Big Ben is forced to throw a lot, he sucks.
The 'Bright' One: Over, dude's awesome, don't be a hater
Bet Seven:
Who will have more fantasy points the rest of the way- former Bears Kyle Orton, Bernard Berrian, and Cerdirc Benson or current Bears Jay Cutler, Devin Hester, and Matt Forte?
Sexy Rexy: Former Bears- for some reason offensive players seem to do well after they leave the team?
The 'Bright' One: Current Bears- Why do you not have faith in this team!?
GOI Football Predictions: Week Six
Thanks for realizing that it was late Friday and picking up the slack for me guys...
Houston at Cincinnati
Detroit at Green Bay
Baltimore at Minnesota
NY Giants at New Orleans
Cleveland at Pittsburgh
Carolina at Tampa Bay
Kansas City at Washington
St. Louis at Jacksonville
Arizona at Seattle
Philadelphia at Oakland
Tennessee at New England
Buffalo at NY Jets
Chicago at Atlanta
Denver at San Diego
Houston at Cincinnati
Detroit at Green Bay
Baltimore at Minnesota
NY Giants at New Orleans
Cleveland at Pittsburgh
Carolina at Tampa Bay
Kansas City at Washington
St. Louis at Jacksonville
Arizona at Seattle
Philadelphia at Oakland
Tennessee at New England
Buffalo at NY Jets
Chicago at Atlanta
Denver at San Diego
Recent Bears Offensive Players
Here are some guys that are not on the team anymore:
-Kyle Orton- led Broncos to 5-0 record, shitty and "game manager" in Chicago
-Bernard Berrian- 800 yard receiver in Chicago, 950 yard receiver in Minnesota
-Cedric Benson- back up and annoyance in Chicago, leading the NFL in yards in Cincy
-Marc Columbo- injured in Chicago, starting and doing well in Dallas
-Thomas Jones- actually did well in Chicago, but led the AFC in rushing yard last year on the Jets
-Rex Grossman- awful, awful, awful, awful in Chicago, maybe he'll do well in Houston for the five games Matt Schaub won't play this year?
Have I mentioned that I REALLY hate Ron Turner?
It adds up
I can imagine my HS calc teacher complaining that the equals sign is a real number tester, and obviously these words are not real numbers, hence the statement is meaningless. Fuck it. Transliterate that Mr. Royes.
This is almost as good as my "why do women give birth" joke. See comments for answer
Money or The Ring?
If you are a free agent in sports, I believe you really only have two choices to make: Do I want to go on a team because they offered me a lot of money or Do I want to go on this team because they are competitive and I think I can win it all?
Sometimes you get lucky and you get wooed by the Red Sox or Yankees and the choice is pretty clear- take the money because both teams have the chance to win it all. Mark Texiera choose the 8 year, 180 million dollar deal to play for the Yankees. That way he can make it rain if he so chooses plus will probably win at least one World Series- hell maybe even this year.
Sure, though, other decisions like the ones Curt Schilling wrote about on his blog about the school district his kids will enter and how nice the city is and such and Lamar Odom saying he only wants to play in a warm city like Miami probably factors into a free agent's decision. And sure, we see all the time athletes choosing the money. But why? I think the ability to win it all should play a factor, but I guess it doesn't really. Why?
How many times do you hear a player say, "it doesn't matter what you did in the regular season, it's all about the post season" It's all about the post post seasin, because everyone wants to win it all. How many times did you hear Tom Brady and Randy Moss and Bill Bellichick say, it doesn't matter that we're undeafted, we still haven't won it all. I'm sure if you ask anybody who plays in a professional sport what their goal is in the sport, they'd all say win it all.
Now money is of course important. Even though LeBron would probably love a ring, I'm sure he's not upset that he's being called one of the best basketball players ever and he has millions in endorsement deals and whatnot. Everyone wants to be rich and have millions for doing what they love- it's the American dream. It's why Cubans hop on a shitty raft just to play baseball here. There's nothing wrong with making money and I'm not going to fault anyone for wanting to get paid, but at what point in your career do you say, "I have money, now I want a ring"?
Now most players in major sports become free agents after they've been in the league for five or six years or so. This is most likely the one point in a guy's career where he has the best opportunity to make a shit ton of money. Now it's absolutely a tough call, but is taking a few million more a year really worth playing on a shitty team?
Now obviously, it's extremely difficult to predict which team will win it all. The 2007 and 2008 Cubs looked poised to at least make it to a World Series and ended up getting bounced in the first round both years due to plain bad luck. As good as the Yankees and Red Sox are, only the Red Sox have it won it twice in like the past decade with teams like the Phillies, Cardinals, and White Sox winning it in other years. Nobody would have ever expected the Giants to win it all in 2007. So choosing a team to win it all is extremely risky and unreliable, but you can at least tell teams that are attempting to do so
I'm sure owners and GM and such would not like it if players choose better teams than shitty teams offering them more money. I'm sure it would be hard for Detroit and St. Louis and pre-Drew Brees Saints to get FA's without money. But if you're a player, would you really care?
When Miguel Tejada became a free agent, he choose the money. He played some darn good years on an orioles team that didn't finish higher than 4th place in the division. Now take his steroid usage aside, do you think he's happy he put up some great numbers and made money on a lousy team? In fact, because of his steroid scandal, if he had chosen a better team, he might as least have a World Series ring in his career.
Now sometimes athletes are aware that they don't have a lot of time left and would like a ring. Long time and great Kansas City Chief TE Tony Gonzales wanted out because he knew the Chiefs were shit and wanted out. I'd have to imagine winning it all played a factor into former Padres RHP Jake Peavy's decision. In fact, he was already getting paid no matter what. I think he knows his statistics will take a tumble coming into the AL and into a homer friendly park, but I think he also knows the Sox give him a better chance to win than the shitty Padres will. (Even myself, a ChiSox fan, don't think Peavy will get a ring in Chicago, but I'm saying it was a factor in Peavy's decision). Marion Hossa seems to have this in mind as well. He thought the Red Wings gave him a better chance to win than Pittsburgh and I'm sure he thinks the Blackhawks give him a great chance as well.
It's obvious that same players do care about the ring more than the money. And I have no problem if a player does choose money over the ability to win a championship. But I think when that player's career is said and done, he'll regret that he didn't at least try to win a championship. And I don't always think that a ring should be a player's main goal when signing a contract, but I'd like to see athletes take that into account more instead of them signing a huge contract to play for a team that's last in their division every year. And I think that will be all the more interesting to see what LeBron does next year. He's got a shit ton of money and he's come very very close with the Cavs and they do a lot of things right to make sure LeBron wins. So would it really be worth it for him to make even MORE money to play on a shitty New York team? I don't know.
Sometimes you get lucky and you get wooed by the Red Sox or Yankees and the choice is pretty clear- take the money because both teams have the chance to win it all. Mark Texiera choose the 8 year, 180 million dollar deal to play for the Yankees. That way he can make it rain if he so chooses plus will probably win at least one World Series- hell maybe even this year.
Sure, though, other decisions like the ones Curt Schilling wrote about on his blog about the school district his kids will enter and how nice the city is and such and Lamar Odom saying he only wants to play in a warm city like Miami probably factors into a free agent's decision. And sure, we see all the time athletes choosing the money. But why? I think the ability to win it all should play a factor, but I guess it doesn't really. Why?
How many times do you hear a player say, "it doesn't matter what you did in the regular season, it's all about the post season" It's all about the post post seasin, because everyone wants to win it all. How many times did you hear Tom Brady and Randy Moss and Bill Bellichick say, it doesn't matter that we're undeafted, we still haven't won it all. I'm sure if you ask anybody who plays in a professional sport what their goal is in the sport, they'd all say win it all.
Now money is of course important. Even though LeBron would probably love a ring, I'm sure he's not upset that he's being called one of the best basketball players ever and he has millions in endorsement deals and whatnot. Everyone wants to be rich and have millions for doing what they love- it's the American dream. It's why Cubans hop on a shitty raft just to play baseball here. There's nothing wrong with making money and I'm not going to fault anyone for wanting to get paid, but at what point in your career do you say, "I have money, now I want a ring"?
Now most players in major sports become free agents after they've been in the league for five or six years or so. This is most likely the one point in a guy's career where he has the best opportunity to make a shit ton of money. Now it's absolutely a tough call, but is taking a few million more a year really worth playing on a shitty team?
Now obviously, it's extremely difficult to predict which team will win it all. The 2007 and 2008 Cubs looked poised to at least make it to a World Series and ended up getting bounced in the first round both years due to plain bad luck. As good as the Yankees and Red Sox are, only the Red Sox have it won it twice in like the past decade with teams like the Phillies, Cardinals, and White Sox winning it in other years. Nobody would have ever expected the Giants to win it all in 2007. So choosing a team to win it all is extremely risky and unreliable, but you can at least tell teams that are attempting to do so
I'm sure owners and GM and such would not like it if players choose better teams than shitty teams offering them more money. I'm sure it would be hard for Detroit and St. Louis and pre-Drew Brees Saints to get FA's without money. But if you're a player, would you really care?
When Miguel Tejada became a free agent, he choose the money. He played some darn good years on an orioles team that didn't finish higher than 4th place in the division. Now take his steroid usage aside, do you think he's happy he put up some great numbers and made money on a lousy team? In fact, because of his steroid scandal, if he had chosen a better team, he might as least have a World Series ring in his career.
Now sometimes athletes are aware that they don't have a lot of time left and would like a ring. Long time and great Kansas City Chief TE Tony Gonzales wanted out because he knew the Chiefs were shit and wanted out. I'd have to imagine winning it all played a factor into former Padres RHP Jake Peavy's decision. In fact, he was already getting paid no matter what. I think he knows his statistics will take a tumble coming into the AL and into a homer friendly park, but I think he also knows the Sox give him a better chance to win than the shitty Padres will. (Even myself, a ChiSox fan, don't think Peavy will get a ring in Chicago, but I'm saying it was a factor in Peavy's decision). Marion Hossa seems to have this in mind as well. He thought the Red Wings gave him a better chance to win than Pittsburgh and I'm sure he thinks the Blackhawks give him a great chance as well.
It's obvious that same players do care about the ring more than the money. And I have no problem if a player does choose money over the ability to win a championship. But I think when that player's career is said and done, he'll regret that he didn't at least try to win a championship. And I don't always think that a ring should be a player's main goal when signing a contract, but I'd like to see athletes take that into account more instead of them signing a huge contract to play for a team that's last in their division every year. And I think that will be all the more interesting to see what LeBron does next year. He's got a shit ton of money and he's come very very close with the Cavs and they do a lot of things right to make sure LeBron wins. So would it really be worth it for him to make even MORE money to play on a shitty New York team? I don't know.
Betty Draper Is Fucking Hot
Since, we at GOI are huge Mad Men fans (your welcome), and even though this season sucks, January Jones, the actress who plays Betty Draper is fucking hot. Here are some awesome pics of her from GQ
FJM: Bill Simmons Edition
Here's some excepts from Simmons podcast on 10.13.09 between him and JackO talking about the 2009 Red Sox v Angels ALDS
What about from a "lung" standpoint? How were the Red Sox kidneys this year? I think the need to cut back on the red meat, the Red Sox cholesterol was a bit high. Maybe, that's what was wrong with the Red Sox heart this year
Maybe the Angels should have ate a Snickers before the game or something
Stupid fucking Bill James using statistics to determine which players are good or not. How dare anyone put a team together based on statistics! I mean, who needs shit like OBP, SLG, and UZR to measure how your team does. Let's throw out the shit like 70% of the first round is due to pure luck.
Because you need to have fire to win in the playoffs! That's why the cavemen always did well in the playoffs, all they had was fire! Who needs to plate discipline or a good rotation when you have fire or spirit or a defining characteristic!
Wait, did JackO just admit that everything him and Simmons were talking about were bullshit?
Oh shit, never mind. Sure let's not use Bill James' "outsider perspective", let's use JackO's.
Yeah it wasn't the fact that V-Mart was 2nd among catchers in wOBA that he was good, it was his handshakes. Maybe I should play baseball, I can shake hands!
Stupid fucking Youk who had an OBP over .400 and 20+ HRs. Fuck that guy. I want Pedroia who can barely hit a 365 foot home run. I want his "intangibles"
Did Simmons realize that two of the three players he mentioned have been eliminated? Did Orlando Cabrera's "wackiness" help the Twins gets swept by the Yankees? The Rockies beat the Phillies in the NLCS because of Todd Helton, right?
Jim Thome and Ken Griffey Jr, guys like Helton who "always wanted to make it to a World Series" really helped the White Sox win a World Series last year, right?
Yes, the Red Sox needed Kevin Millar with his .311 OBP, .674 OPS, .302 wOBA, and negative UZR is exactly what the Red Sox needed to beat the Angels!
Wasn't one of the main reason the Sox traded Swisher was because he was pissing people off in the clubhouse? This is the guy who is supposed to build camaraderie?
Oh, and this also helped the 2008 White Sox, right? Because not only did they have the "Todd Helton" guy that Simmons talked about, but they also had Swisher. Do these two guys even check their facts or think before they talk? They're like the Michael Scott of sports podcasts.
Now we realize why the Red Sox lost in the first round of a best of five series. No, it it's not because the Red OSx got unlucky and their best pitchers had so-so games or because of Jonathan Paperlbon, it's because the Red Sox didn't have heart or passion!
BS: I wasn't sold on this Red Sox team from a "heart" standpoint
What about from a "lung" standpoint? How were the Red Sox kidneys this year? I think the need to cut back on the red meat, the Red Sox cholesterol was a bit high. Maybe, that's what was wrong with the Red Sox heart this year
BS: The Angels were hungrier
Maybe the Angels should have ate a Snickers before the game or something
BS: [The 2009 Red Sox team] was the kind of team you would put together in a laboratory with statistics
Stupid fucking Bill James using statistics to determine which players are good or not. How dare anyone put a team together based on statistics! I mean, who needs shit like OBP, SLG, and UZR to measure how your team does. Let's throw out the shit like 70% of the first round is due to pure luck.
JackO: Where they're just like this corporate, soulless, robotic team that just goes about it's business, but has no fire no life, no spirit, no defining characteristics really.
Because you need to have fire to win in the playoffs! That's why the cavemen always did well in the playoffs, all they had was fire! Who needs to plate discipline or a good rotation when you have fire or spirit or a defining characteristic!
JackO: I'm not in the locker room, who knows how much of a difference all of this really makes...
Wait, did JackO just admit that everything him and Simmons were talking about were bullshit?
...but as an outsider viewing it, like, you just would like to see your team with a little, a little, life a little fire...
Oh shit, never mind. Sure let's not use Bill James' "outsider perspective", let's use JackO's.
JackO: Even Victor Martinez with his 27 different handshakes couldn't bring it together
Yeah it wasn't the fact that V-Mart was 2nd among catchers in wOBA that he was good, it was his handshakes. Maybe I should play baseball, I can shake hands!
BS: Yeah, we had Victor Martinez and Pedroia are the two guys that you know seem like they would be pieces on a type of playoff roster that would do something. You look at Youkilis, like every at bat, he's, he looks like he's gonna take a bat to the third base coach and just beat him to death...
Stupid fucking Youk who had an OBP over .400 and 20+ HRs. Fuck that guy. I want Pedroia who can barely hit a 365 foot home run. I want his "intangibles"
We don't have, like, that wacky Orlando Cabrera type, we don't have like Torii Hunter type, you know really passionate fist pump type, we don't have 38 year old veteran like, the Todd Helton type, that guys that's always wanted to make it to the World Series and he's dying, you know, although Todd Helton's made but you know.. the guy that would do anything to make it one time, where are those guys on this Red Sox team?
Did Simmons realize that two of the three players he mentioned have been eliminated? Did Orlando Cabrera's "wackiness" help the Twins gets swept by the Yankees? The Rockies beat the Phillies in the NLCS because of Todd Helton, right?
Jim Thome and Ken Griffey Jr, guys like Helton who "always wanted to make it to a World Series" really helped the White Sox win a World Series last year, right?
JackO: They needed Kevin Millar again, you know, somebody to stir things up...
Yes, the Red Sox needed Kevin Millar with his .311 OBP, .674 OPS, .302 wOBA, and negative UZR is exactly what the Red Sox needed to beat the Angels!
...Like the Yankees have Nick Swisher... a guy to have a little camaraderie, a little chemistry
Wasn't one of the main reason the Sox traded Swisher was because he was pissing people off in the clubhouse? This is the guy who is supposed to build camaraderie?
Oh, and this also helped the 2008 White Sox, right? Because not only did they have the "Todd Helton" guy that Simmons talked about, but they also had Swisher. Do these two guys even check their facts or think before they talk? They're like the Michael Scott of sports podcasts.
Now we realize why the Red Sox lost in the first round of a best of five series. No, it it's not because the Red OSx got unlucky and their best pitchers had so-so games or because of Jonathan Paperlbon, it's because the Red Sox didn't have heart or passion!
Awesome sports rap
No Good - Ballin Boys
"There DBs fast
But McGahee's Fast
So the line find a way to stop Nebraska"
"There DBs fast
But McGahee's Fast
So the line find a way to stop Nebraska"
Sports Referances in Hip Hop Songs
Wale (Chillen): "I remain a Giant and you Jeremy Shockey"
Kanye West (Brand New): "I'm leaving you haters like when Shaq left the Lakes just to Heat it up"
Eminem (I Just Don't Give A Fuck) "Cursin' at you players worse than Marty Schottenheimer"
Nelly Furtado (Promiscuous) "Is your game MVP like Steve Nash?"
Nelly Furtado - Promiscuous Girl
EDGATIC |MySpace Videos
Ludacris (Living the Life) "When it comes to these women, dawg, aint no one f***in’ with me / they runnin’ back, you think I had a T.J. Duckett with me / that’s cause I throw it like Vick from the yard line / menage a trois, it’s safe to say I’m havin’ hard times"
Asher Roth (A Milli) "Rap’s Wayne Gretzky, yes I’m the best and/Only 22, more like Alex Ovechkin"; "they get to the pros and don't do shit like they Reddick"
Asher Roth- A milli (with lyrics)
WESLEY TIBBS |MySpace Videos
Jay-Z (Deja Vu) "I used to run bass like Juan Pierre / now I run bass high-hat with the snare"
Jay-Z (Encore) "When I come back like Jordan, wearin the 4-5/ It ain't to play games witchu"
For a list of general sports lyrics in rap, click here
For a list of the "13 great hockey references in rap", click here
Music Code Provided by MusicVideolife.com
Kanye West (Brand New): "I'm leaving you haters like when Shaq left the Lakes just to Heat it up"
Music Videos by VideoCure
Eminem (I Just Don't Give A Fuck) "Cursin' at you players worse than Marty Schottenheimer"
Nelly Furtado (Promiscuous) "Is your game MVP like Steve Nash?"
Nelly Furtado - Promiscuous Girl
EDGATIC |MySpace Videos
Ludacris (Living the Life) "When it comes to these women, dawg, aint no one f***in’ with me / they runnin’ back, you think I had a T.J. Duckett with me / that’s cause I throw it like Vick from the yard line / menage a trois, it’s safe to say I’m havin’ hard times"
Asher Roth (A Milli) "Rap’s Wayne Gretzky, yes I’m the best and/Only 22, more like Alex Ovechkin"; "they get to the pros and don't do shit like they Reddick"
Asher Roth- A milli (with lyrics)
WESLEY TIBBS |MySpace Videos
Jay-Z (Deja Vu) "I used to run bass like Juan Pierre / now I run bass high-hat with the snare"
Jay-Z (Encore) "When I come back like Jordan, wearin the 4-5/ It ain't to play games witchu"
For a list of general sports lyrics in rap, click here
For a list of the "13 great hockey references in rap", click here
Don't Fire the O-Coordinator!
Bill Simmons has made a pretty observant observation (for once), the three teams that have fired the offensive coordinator right before the season started, have been awful. The teams are the Buffalo Bills, Tampa Bay Bucs, and Kansas City Chiefs. The Bills are (1-4). The Bucs are (0-5). The Chiefs are (0-5). The one win the Bills got- was when they faced Tampa Bay.
Some other fun facts:
-No team had a loss they placed the New England Patriots this year
-No team had a win when they faced the Washington Redskins this year
Some other fun facts:
-No team had a loss they placed the New England Patriots this year
-No team had a win when they faced the Washington Redskins this year
The Disappointing First Round
So far, for fantasy football, the player you drafted in the first round, probably isn't doing as well as you wanted them to. Sure, players like AD- most likely the number one overall- is doing well, but if you didn't have the number one pick (or you were Matthew Berry), is your #1 acted like a number one? Obviously every league is different so the top 12 in my league is probably not the same as yours, but I bet it's pretty darn close. Let's take a look at Yahoo!'s top 12 pre-ranked players
1) AD- obviously been well for you
2) Michael Turner- his 3 TD game last Sunday helps his overall numbers, but he's only the 10th best RB this year. (32rd best RB in Week 1, 10th in Week 2, 23rd in Week 3, bye in Week 4)
3) MJD- I've actually seen him go 2 in a whole bunch leagues and I thought that was dumb. Turns out I was dumb. 5th best RB this year
4) Matt Forte- I could have predicted that he wouldn't be this. Everyone was hatin' on Mark Schlareth for saying Forte would not be good. I guess he's laughing now. 28th best RB overall so far.
5) Brian Westbrook. Really, an old injury prone RB on a team that only runs 40% of the time sucks? Shocking. 39th best RB overall this year
6) DeAngelo Williams. We all forget just how an awful terrible QB can suck down an entire team. 32nd best RB this year.
7) LT. Brian Westbrook lite. Did last year not show you why you shouldn't have drafted him high? 65th best RB overall.
8) Larry Fitzgerald. He's been good, but only the 10th best wide out this year. You could have waited a round later for Andre Johnson or Reggie Wayne though
9) Steven Jackson. See DeAngelo Williams except substitute "QB" with "entire team". 20th best RB this year.
10) Frank Gore. I have a hard time hatin of Gore because he was so good when healthy, but health is a part of fantasy football. Still 15th best RB this year.
11) Brandon Jacobs. Ahmad Bradshaw has more fantasy points this year than Jacobs- and its not even close. 26th best RB this year.
12) Chris Johnson. He went 12 in leagues? No way leagues were this dumb. He's been awesome. 3rd best RB this year.
Value Picks this year:
-Cedric Benson, 7th round, 4th best RB
-Steve Smith (NYG), 7th round, best WR
-Ronnie Brown, 3rd round, 2nd best RB
-Mario Manningham, undrafted, 7th best WR
-Chad Ochocinco, 6th round, 8th best WR (and consistent)
-Vincent Jackson, 5th round, 11th best WR
-Kellen Winslow, 7th round, 2nd best TE
-Vernon Davis, 12th round, 4th best TE
-Ben Roethlisberger (ugh this pains me to say), 10th round, 2nd best QB
-Matt Schaub, 6th round, 3rd best QB
-Eli Manning, 12th round, 4th best QB
Great Production from your Late Round Picks
14th Round
-Tim Hightower: double digit fantasy points 3 out of his four weeks playing
-Brent Celek: 6th best TE this year above guys like Owen Daniels, Tony Gonzalez, Chris Cooley, and Jason Witten
13th Round
-Joe Flacco: 6th best QB this year above guys like Brady, Brees, Farve, Rivers, and Cutler
Why the D you Drafted Sucks:
Here's a list of the top 12 D/ST that weren't drafted in my league:
2) 49ers
3) Denver
4) New Orleans
8) Seattle
9) Cincy
10) Indy
11) Atlanta
7 of the top D/ST this year were not drafted
1) AD- obviously been well for you
2) Michael Turner- his 3 TD game last Sunday helps his overall numbers, but he's only the 10th best RB this year. (32rd best RB in Week 1, 10th in Week 2, 23rd in Week 3, bye in Week 4)
3) MJD- I've actually seen him go 2 in a whole bunch leagues and I thought that was dumb. Turns out I was dumb. 5th best RB this year
4) Matt Forte- I could have predicted that he wouldn't be this. Everyone was hatin' on Mark Schlareth for saying Forte would not be good. I guess he's laughing now. 28th best RB overall so far.
5) Brian Westbrook. Really, an old injury prone RB on a team that only runs 40% of the time sucks? Shocking. 39th best RB overall this year
6) DeAngelo Williams. We all forget just how an awful terrible QB can suck down an entire team. 32nd best RB this year.
7) LT. Brian Westbrook lite. Did last year not show you why you shouldn't have drafted him high? 65th best RB overall.
8) Larry Fitzgerald. He's been good, but only the 10th best wide out this year. You could have waited a round later for Andre Johnson or Reggie Wayne though
9) Steven Jackson. See DeAngelo Williams except substitute "QB" with "entire team". 20th best RB this year.
10) Frank Gore. I have a hard time hatin of Gore because he was so good when healthy, but health is a part of fantasy football. Still 15th best RB this year.
11) Brandon Jacobs. Ahmad Bradshaw has more fantasy points this year than Jacobs- and its not even close. 26th best RB this year.
12) Chris Johnson. He went 12 in leagues? No way leagues were this dumb. He's been awesome. 3rd best RB this year.
Value Picks this year:
-Cedric Benson, 7th round, 4th best RB
-Steve Smith (NYG), 7th round, best WR
-Ronnie Brown, 3rd round, 2nd best RB
-Mario Manningham, undrafted, 7th best WR
-Chad Ochocinco, 6th round, 8th best WR (and consistent)
-Vincent Jackson, 5th round, 11th best WR
-Kellen Winslow, 7th round, 2nd best TE
-Vernon Davis, 12th round, 4th best TE
-Ben Roethlisberger (ugh this pains me to say), 10th round, 2nd best QB
-Matt Schaub, 6th round, 3rd best QB
-Eli Manning, 12th round, 4th best QB
Great Production from your Late Round Picks
14th Round
-Tim Hightower: double digit fantasy points 3 out of his four weeks playing
-Brent Celek: 6th best TE this year above guys like Owen Daniels, Tony Gonzalez, Chris Cooley, and Jason Witten
13th Round
-Joe Flacco: 6th best QB this year above guys like Brady, Brees, Farve, Rivers, and Cutler
Why the D you Drafted Sucks:
Here's a list of the top 12 D/ST that weren't drafted in my league:
2) 49ers
3) Denver
4) New Orleans
8) Seattle
9) Cincy
10) Indy
11) Atlanta
7 of the top D/ST this year were not drafted
Choking, Defined
This is the Phillies/Rockies Win Probability chart from game 4. Houston Street channeled his inner Brad Lidge.
My fantasy football team is better than yours
Pos | Player | Opp | Status | Projected | Actual |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| QB | (Hou - QB)  | @Ari | L, 28-21 | 19.29 | 22.34 |
| WR | (Det - WR) P | Pit | L, 28-20 | 9.22 | 0.20 |
| WR | (Atl - WR) | @SF | W, 45-10 | 8.56 | 33.00 |
| RB | (NYJ - RB) | @Mia | L, 31-27 | 8.49 | 16.20 |
| RB | (NYG - RB) P | Oak | W, 44-7 | 10.02 | 28.50 |
| TE | (NE - TE)  | @Den | L, 20-17 | 4.26 | 7.30 |
| W/R | (Atl - RB) | @SF | W, 45-10 | 10.09 | 27.70 |
| K | (Den - K) | NE | W, 20-17 | 8.06 | 9.00 |
| DEF | (Atl - DEF)  | @SF | W, 45-10 | 7.13 | 13.00 |
| Total | 85.12 | 157.24 |
FML
My plan was to get a nice nap this afternoon after sleeping about 7 hours the past 2 days in preparation for my biochem exam this morning. But as always, people wanted to play some basketball, and I am incapable of saying no to sports. Nearing the end of the 3rd and final 3-3 game I was playing, I collided with someone, not even sure who, went to the ground, and was instantaneously in pain. Being a man, I got up and finished off the game on one leg.
I thought it was just a bone bruise, but as the day progresses, I feel my knee giving out. I cant walk straight, i cant bend my knee, i cant lift my leg. Basically i'm immobile. Yet, I did what every man would do in the situation. I went back to the gym to "stretch" out my knee and literally walk it off on the basketball court. Obviously, this is a stupid rational to use, but thats the type of dumb shit men do.
Being a future doctor, maybe, I made an initial diagnosis of a torn ligament in the knee, possibly a meniscus too. Given the severe symptons, the location, and progression, it seems like a definite ligament tear. I'll give it a couple days and probably go in for an MRI to confirm. Personally, I have never been immobilized for a substantial amount of time, such that I have no clue what i will do if i cant play sports daily. I may go insane for all I know. It's that important to me. Being the arrogant schmuck that I am, I actually thought I was immune to bone breaks and other severe sports related injuries. I've strained more muscles than i can count, but I thought my bones and joints were on the stronger side and I would really have to be in a freak accident to suffer such an injury. But given that I play 2 hours a day, every day, I guess I was due.
The only similar injury occurred to me freshman year of college. I recall the day quick well because that was the day my old druggy roommate was forced to move out of the dorms and go live with his parents. I helped him pack, then went to the hockey rink for a morning skate, and fell at a high speed right on my knee. Now I have fallen the exact same way hundreds of times before, but that specific fall cracked my knee cap. It really sucked because I had to go to an orchestra performance right after, which luckily was on the other side of campus. Lets just say I didnt skip-to-my-loo all the way there. You could see the bone break through the skin. It took nearly 4 months for the knee to completely heal, god I hope this injury doesnt take nearly as long. Damn it, just sitting here writing this post has made my knee stiffen up...thats what she said.
I thought it was just a bone bruise, but as the day progresses, I feel my knee giving out. I cant walk straight, i cant bend my knee, i cant lift my leg. Basically i'm immobile. Yet, I did what every man would do in the situation. I went back to the gym to "stretch" out my knee and literally walk it off on the basketball court. Obviously, this is a stupid rational to use, but thats the type of dumb shit men do.
Being a future doctor, maybe, I made an initial diagnosis of a torn ligament in the knee, possibly a meniscus too. Given the severe symptons, the location, and progression, it seems like a definite ligament tear. I'll give it a couple days and probably go in for an MRI to confirm. Personally, I have never been immobilized for a substantial amount of time, such that I have no clue what i will do if i cant play sports daily. I may go insane for all I know. It's that important to me. Being the arrogant schmuck that I am, I actually thought I was immune to bone breaks and other severe sports related injuries. I've strained more muscles than i can count, but I thought my bones and joints were on the stronger side and I would really have to be in a freak accident to suffer such an injury. But given that I play 2 hours a day, every day, I guess I was due.
The only similar injury occurred to me freshman year of college. I recall the day quick well because that was the day my old druggy roommate was forced to move out of the dorms and go live with his parents. I helped him pack, then went to the hockey rink for a morning skate, and fell at a high speed right on my knee. Now I have fallen the exact same way hundreds of times before, but that specific fall cracked my knee cap. It really sucked because I had to go to an orchestra performance right after, which luckily was on the other side of campus. Lets just say I didnt skip-to-my-loo all the way there. You could see the bone break through the skin. It took nearly 4 months for the knee to completely heal, god I hope this injury doesnt take nearly as long. Damn it, just sitting here writing this post has made my knee stiffen up...thats what she said.
GOI Football Prediction Results: Week FIve
Pigskin Pick ‘Em
1) Cubsfan4evr
Overall: 51 out of 75, 68%
This week: 10 out of 14, 71.43%
2) The ‘Bright’ One
Overall: 50 out of 75, 66.67%
This week: 10 out of 14, 71.43%
3) Sexy Rexy
Overall: 48 out of 75, 64%
This week: 7 out of 14, 50%
Fantasy Football League
Cubsfan4evr (3-2), 475 points
Sexy Rexy (3-2), 467 points
The ‘Bright’ One (3-2), 466 points
David “MVP” Eckstein (2-3), 412 points
Eliminator Challenge
Sexy Rexy, Philadelphia Eagles (5)
Cubsfan4evr, Minnesota Vikings (5)
The ‘Bright’ One, Pittsburgh Steelers (1)
J O’Brien, Buffalo Bills (0)
Richard, DNP (0)
DME, DNP (0)
Salary Cap Football
The ‘Bright’ One: ??? overall points, ??th percentile
Sexy Rexy: 421.66 overall points, 98th percentile
Cubsfan4evr: ??? overall points, ??th percentile
Board Bets
1) Pierre Thomas, 25th best RB
2) Reggie Bush: 1 rushing TD, no receiving
3) Bet void, Fred Taylor injured for rest of year
1) Cubsfan4evr
Overall: 51 out of 75, 68%
This week: 10 out of 14, 71.43%
2) The ‘Bright’ One
Overall: 50 out of 75, 66.67%
This week: 10 out of 14, 71.43%
3) Sexy Rexy
Overall: 48 out of 75, 64%
This week: 7 out of 14, 50%
Fantasy Football League
Cubsfan4evr (3-2), 475 points
Sexy Rexy (3-2), 467 points
The ‘Bright’ One (3-2), 466 points
David “MVP” Eckstein (2-3), 412 points
Eliminator Challenge
Sexy Rexy, Philadelphia Eagles (5)
Cubsfan4evr, Minnesota Vikings (5)
The ‘Bright’ One, Pittsburgh Steelers (1)
J O’Brien, Buffalo Bills (0)
Richard, DNP (0)
DME, DNP (0)
Salary Cap Football
The ‘Bright’ One: ??? overall points, ??th percentile
Sexy Rexy: 421.66 overall points, 98th percentile
Cubsfan4evr: ??? overall points, ??th percentile
Board Bets
1) Pierre Thomas, 25th best RB
2) Reggie Bush: 1 rushing TD, no receiving
3) Bet void, Fred Taylor injured for rest of year
I can't believe what I just heard...
I was peacefully watching the Rams/Vikings game on Fox when I heard the last thing I would ever expect to hear from a color commentator. After a short run by one of the Rams running backs, not that I bother to know any of their names(it wasnt Jackson), Charles Davis, the game analyst, chose the absolute worst analogy to describe the scrub RB fighting for extra yards.
Just like Walter Payton, he does not die easily!!!God I wish I had my tivo set to the game so I could post the video for evidence, but believe me it happened. He may have been referring to Sweatness' toughness on the football field, constantly fighting for extra yards and running over people, but he also died a horrible death from kidney disease. No, I guess he didnt die easily, but still have some decency
Possibly the worst call in baseball history
There is no bigger proponent for an automated strike zone than I am. If we can develop a system to make every call on the baseball diamond automated, I would be in support of that as well. I just feel the quality and talent of major league baseball would be enhanced if the hitter and pitchers actually knew what the strike zone is on a daily basis, instead of having to guess what it will be mid-game. Baseball is the only major sports were there are no subjective calls. There are no fouls or penalties that need to be classified. Everything is binary. Ball/strike, safe/out, fair/foul. The only subjective thing umpires have to do is determine whether to eject the manager after making a horrendous call on the field. Why add extra variables to such a simple system?
In the ALDS series better the Yanks and the Twins, Joe Mauer hit a fly ball down the left field line, that clearly landed fair by a wide margin as seen on the still picture. I say this is the worst call because in the playoffs, there are 2 more umpires down each line to make sure calls like these are accurate. Nice job getting your only call of the entire day wrong.
People are morons
Why does nobody listen to The 'Bright' One? In a previous post, I pointed out a how the best basketball players in the NBA are all at the top 30 list of free throw attempts per game. The correlation between being good at basketball and getting to the free throw line is unfathomably high.
So i'm sitting in my room at 230 in the morning, studying for a crazy biochem exam, watching the Bulls exhibition game on tivo. The announcers bring up a Text Question to the audience. "What stat do you think will be the key for the Bulls in the 1st half?" Simple enough qustion. There is no right or wrong response. You can say, number of times Joakim Noah gets busted for pot, and that would be a fair response. However, the people making the multiple choice list of answers need to include the most relevant stat, and not just the most obvious ones. It's like voting for the MVP based on wins or RBIs. The 4 answer choices provided are FG shooting(yes putting that round thing into the round whole is important), 3-Pt shooting(yes putting that round thing into the round whole from really far away is important), Rebounding(Will be important when you cant put that round thing into that round whole), Steal(never heard of anyone winning a championship because of steals.
The fact that they didnt include FTA is disturbing to me. Yes, it's not flashy, but it's free points. With Ben Gordon gone, i have no clue who will be shooting free throws for us. Derrek Rose only averaged 4.5 last year and no one else has play-making ability. Just another reason the Bulls will probably suck this year. Cant wait for 2010. If Reinsdorf has enough money to buy the Phoenix Coyotes, he has enough money to buy Wade and Amare
So i'm sitting in my room at 230 in the morning, studying for a crazy biochem exam, watching the Bulls exhibition game on tivo. The announcers bring up a Text Question to the audience. "What stat do you think will be the key for the Bulls in the 1st half?" Simple enough qustion. There is no right or wrong response. You can say, number of times Joakim Noah gets busted for pot, and that would be a fair response. However, the people making the multiple choice list of answers need to include the most relevant stat, and not just the most obvious ones. It's like voting for the MVP based on wins or RBIs. The 4 answer choices provided are FG shooting(yes putting that round thing into the round whole is important), 3-Pt shooting(yes putting that round thing into the round whole from really far away is important), Rebounding(Will be important when you cant put that round thing into that round whole), Steal(never heard of anyone winning a championship because of steals.
The fact that they didnt include FTA is disturbing to me. Yes, it's not flashy, but it's free points. With Ben Gordon gone, i have no clue who will be shooting free throws for us. Derrek Rose only averaged 4.5 last year and no one else has play-making ability. Just another reason the Bulls will probably suck this year. Cant wait for 2010. If Reinsdorf has enough money to buy the Phoenix Coyotes, he has enough money to buy Wade and Amare
The snow isn't the only thing white in Colorado
Most people who watch major league baseball on a consistent basis(not DME) notice that some teams tend to be more ethnically diverse than others. The Mariners love their Asian players. The Mets clubhouse only plays salsa and merengue music. While the Colorado Rockies still take the Mason-Dixon line a tad too seriously. They must be the whitest team in all of major league baseball, which makes it surprising that they are in the playoffs yet again. Lets take a look at their roster.
White...........................Not White
Iannetta...............................Torrealba
Helton...................................Gonzalez
Barmes.................................Fowler
Tulowitzki............................Jimenez
Atkins...................................De La Rosa
Stewart.................................Morales
Giambi..................................Betancourt
Hawpe...................................Corpas
Smith
Spilborghs
Murton
Cook
Marquis
Hammel
Francis
Street
Beimel
Herges
18/26 regular players are white. Impressive. Still, they have nothing on the 2004 Astros, who's white supremacy was only exceeded by the cast of Friends. I've seen hockey teams with more racial tolerance
White............................Not White
Ausmus..................................Beltran
Bagwell...................................Viscaino
Kent........................................Hidalgo
Everett...................................Dotel
Ensberg..................................Hernandez
Biggio
Berkman
Lane
Bruntlett
Burke
Oswalt
Clemens
Pettitte
Miller
Redding
Munro
Lidge
Miceli
Backe
Harville
Gallo
Qualls
Weathers
Duckworth
Bullinger
White...........................Not White
Iannetta...............................Torrealba
Helton...................................Gonzalez
Barmes.................................Fowler
Tulowitzki............................Jimenez
Atkins...................................De La Rosa
Stewart.................................Morales
Giambi..................................Betancourt
Hawpe...................................Corpas
Smith
Spilborghs
Murton
Cook
Marquis
Hammel
Francis
Street
Beimel
Herges
18/26 regular players are white. Impressive. Still, they have nothing on the 2004 Astros, who's white supremacy was only exceeded by the cast of Friends. I've seen hockey teams with more racial tolerance
White............................Not White
Ausmus..................................Beltran
Bagwell...................................Viscaino
Kent........................................Hidalgo
Everett...................................Dotel
Ensberg..................................Hernandez
Biggio
Berkman
Lane
Bruntlett
Burke
Oswalt
Clemens
Pettitte
Miller
Redding
Munro
Lidge
Miceli
Backe
Harville
Gallo
Qualls
Weathers
Duckworth
Bullinger
Why Countries Hate America (And Probably The Yankees too)
Daniel Tosh once said that the reason countries hate America is because of reality TV. Specifically the show Survivor, where someone gets paid $1,000,000 to survive in places where people actually live. I can't say I disagree.
However, there is but another reason for countries to hate America -- perhaps specifically the New York Yankees. As enumerated, almost in passing, in the last paragraph of David Golebiewski's most recent article on Fangraphs, this past off season, the New York "Yankees spent more than the gross domestic product of Tonga."
No seriously.
Between the total allocated resources spent on the free agent signings of Andy Pettite ($5.5 M) and Sergio Mitre ($1.25) (oh, and Mark Teixeira ($180 M), C.C. Sabathia ($161 M) and A.J. Burnett ($82.5 M) too, I suppose), the New York Yankees of New York spent approximately $430 million. As Buster Olney points out, the Yankees allocated $441 million on player acquisitions this offseason, when the rest of the AL, combined, spent $176.28 million.
Tonga, by contrast, whose chief export is not home runs, has a GDP of $258 million.
It's a good thing that baseball is recession proof, right Cubsfan4ever? Actually, there's a good piece about how the Yankees are good for the economy that you can read here.
God Bless America.
However, there is but another reason for countries to hate America -- perhaps specifically the New York Yankees. As enumerated, almost in passing, in the last paragraph of David Golebiewski's most recent article on Fangraphs, this past off season, the New York "Yankees spent more than the gross domestic product of Tonga."
No seriously.
Between the total allocated resources spent on the free agent signings of Andy Pettite ($5.5 M) and Sergio Mitre ($1.25) (oh, and Mark Teixeira ($180 M), C.C. Sabathia ($161 M) and A.J. Burnett ($82.5 M) too, I suppose), the New York Yankees of New York spent approximately $430 million. As Buster Olney points out, the Yankees allocated $441 million on player acquisitions this offseason, when the rest of the AL, combined, spent $176.28 million.
Tonga, by contrast, whose chief export is not home runs, has a GDP of $258 million.
It's a good thing that baseball is recession proof, right Cubsfan4ever? Actually, there's a good piece about how the Yankees are good for the economy that you can read here.
God Bless America.
Mitch Mustain wants to be 3rd string closer
Pete Carroll, always on the lookout for another 5 star recruit, got Mustain to transfer to USC, along with his Arkansas WR Damien Williams. Since then, Williams has become one of the top 5 WR in college football, and Mustain hasnt even been allowed to wear a headset or hold a clipboard. He sat behind John David Booty. Was overlooked in favor of Mark Sanchez. Was beaten out by a true freshman in Matt Barkley. And even couldnt get a spot start when barkley was out, and instead Aaron Corp got the start and proceeded to single handedly lose the game to the Washington Huskies. Let me reiterate, the top recruit in all of college football hasnt sniffed a football since getting benched as a true freshman at Arkansas. At least Matt Cassell was never expected to start in college. Mustain was to be the next great Heisman QB for the Trojans.
News reports came out today that Mustain will try to make the USC baseball team in the spring in hopes of playing something, anything. I dont know his pitching history, but i'm pretty sure his arm isnt in game shape for football, let alone baseball. And even if he does make the team, you know with his luck, he will the last guy in the bullpen, only pitching when the team is down 19-2 in the 9th inning against Arizona St.
GOI Football Predictions: Week Five
Cleveland at Buffalo
Dallas at Kansas City
Minnesota at St. Louis
Oakland at NY Giants
Tampa Bay at Philadelphia
Pittsburgh at Detroit
Washington at Carolina
Cincinnati at Baltimore
Atlanta at San Francisco
Jacksonville at Seattle
Houston at Arizona
New England at Denver
Indianapolis at Tennessee
NY Jets at Miami
Dallas at Kansas City
Minnesota at St. Louis
Oakland at NY Giants
Tampa Bay at Philadelphia
Pittsburgh at Detroit
Washington at Carolina
Cincinnati at Baltimore
Atlanta at San Francisco
Jacksonville at Seattle
Houston at Arizona
New England at Denver
Indianapolis at Tennessee
NY Jets at Miami
Fantasy Match-Ups: WR/TE, Week Five
Right now, you can analyze how teams do against #1 wide receivers, #2 wide receivers, other wide outs, the Tight End, and RB (in the passing game). You can go here to see how teams rank. I will how ever make your life easier by telling you which receivers have favorable match ups and which do not based after the top and bottom five defenses against receivers in the league.
Favorable Match Ups:
-Chad Ochocinco
-Brandon Marshall
-DeSean Jackson
-Reggie Wayne
-Dewayne Bowe
-Jeremy Maclin
-Torry Holt
-Mark Clayton
-Nate Washington
-Michael Clayton (I didn't know George Clooney played football?)
-Josh Reed
-Austin Collie
-Mike Wallace
-Dustin Keller
-Derek Fine
-Visanthe Shiancoe
-Dallas Clark
-Dante Rosario/Jeff King (who ever Carolina's TE is)
RB for PPR leagues and have favorable receiving match ups:
-Knowshon Moreno
-Rashard Mendenhall
-Steve Slaton
-Cedric Benson (although Baltimore may not be the greatest at RB receiving yards, they are fantastic against the run and have not allowed a 100 yard rusher in like years)
Unfavorable Match Ups:
-Derrick Mason
-Louis Murphy
-Antonio Bryant
-Donnie Avery
-Joey Galloway
-Darrius Heyword-Bey
-Lav Coles
-Michael Jenkins
-Ted Ginn Jr.
-Mario Manningham
-Josh Cribbs
-Wes Welker
-Marty Booker (although if you were considering starting Booker to begin with you're either dumb or are in a 30 team league, in which case you should probably start Booker anyway)
-Brandon Stokley
-Kevin Boss
-Kellen Winslow
-Alge Crumpler
-Bo Scaife
-Zach Miller
-Anthony Fasano
RB for PPR leagues and have unfavorable receiving match ups:
-Ronnie Brown
-Ricky Williams
-Brian Westbrook
-Brandon Jacobs
-Ahmad Bradshaw
-Jerome Harrison
-Chris Johnson
-Tim Hightower
Favorable Match Ups:
-Chad Ochocinco
-Brandon Marshall
-DeSean Jackson
-Reggie Wayne
-Dewayne Bowe
-Jeremy Maclin
-Torry Holt
-Mark Clayton
-Nate Washington
-Michael Clayton (I didn't know George Clooney played football?)
-Josh Reed
-Austin Collie
-Mike Wallace
-Dustin Keller
-Derek Fine
-Visanthe Shiancoe
-Dallas Clark
-Dante Rosario/Jeff King (who ever Carolina's TE is)
RB for PPR leagues and have favorable receiving match ups:
-Knowshon Moreno
-Rashard Mendenhall
-Steve Slaton
-Cedric Benson (although Baltimore may not be the greatest at RB receiving yards, they are fantastic against the run and have not allowed a 100 yard rusher in like years)
Unfavorable Match Ups:
-Derrick Mason
-Louis Murphy
-Antonio Bryant
-Donnie Avery
-Joey Galloway
-Darrius Heyword-Bey
-Lav Coles
-Michael Jenkins
-Ted Ginn Jr.
-Mario Manningham
-Josh Cribbs
-Wes Welker
-Marty Booker (although if you were considering starting Booker to begin with you're either dumb or are in a 30 team league, in which case you should probably start Booker anyway)
-Brandon Stokley
-Kevin Boss
-Kellen Winslow
-Alge Crumpler
-Bo Scaife
-Zach Miller
-Anthony Fasano
RB for PPR leagues and have unfavorable receiving match ups:
-Ronnie Brown
-Ricky Williams
-Brian Westbrook
-Brandon Jacobs
-Ahmad Bradshaw
-Jerome Harrison
-Chris Johnson
-Tim Hightower
Analyzing the Braylon Edwards Trade
Maybe I'm making a bold prediction similar to what DME did with Alex Rios, but I don't think Braylon Edwards is very good, and I don't think he really boosts the Jets offense.
Edwards had a fantastic season in 2007 when he caught 80 passes for over 1275 yards and 16 TDs. But what has he done since? We've all heard the ESPN stats how he leads the league in drops. His Y/R has gone down this '07 along with his receptions. In fact, in four full seasons, Edwards has only gone over 900 yards once- in '07. To me Edwards is having the Roy E. Williams effect. Williams had one amazing season in Detroit. Then he gets traded to Dallas and is expected to be a superstar, only to be a dud
So let's analyze Edwards and see what we can find.
I think an important stat to look at is catch rate. How often can a receiver catches the ball when it is thrown to him. I like this stat because that's a huge part of all a receiver has to do- catch a ball thrown to him.
In his awesome break out year in 2007, he only caught 52% of the passes that came to him. Sure he had 80 receptions, but 153 targets! The next year his targets dropped to a mere 138, only he only caught 40% of those passes. That means that 3 times out of five, when a pass came towards Edwards, he did not catch it. 40% is an awful catch rate, and I don't care who is throwing you the ball. This year, Edwards has improved his catch rate to 45%. I think we can safely conclude, that Edwards does not have the best hands, and I think it's safe to say Edwards can not do a fundamental skill of being a wide out well.
Even in Edwards amazing season, he has not been very efficient with the ball. In 2007, he ranked 24th in DYAR and 40th in DVOA. The next year he ranked 77th and 73rd respectively. This year, he ranks 47th and 48th respectively. This means, that in the past 2+ seasons, Braylon Edwards per play he has been awful compared to the average receiver in a similar situation (DVOA) and been awful compared to other players in similar situations where he did catch the ball (DYAR).
However, I am a firm believer that a good to great QB can make a wide out better (ala Jay Cutler and Hester, Bennett, and Knox). I was going to make a lofty comparison to how good Derek Anderson has been in '07 compared to how well they are now and Mark Sanchez as well, however I think this year's statistics help prove my point well. Sanchez ranks 2nd to last among all QBs this year according to football sabermetrics (aka efficiency). Two spots ahead of him in Derek Anderson and three spots ahead of him is Brady Quinn. Essentially, Quinn, Anderson, and Sanchez have been awful this year- and essentially are the same player.
So with all this data, I don't see the Braylon Edwards trade a success for the Jets. He has bad hands, he is inefficient trying to make plays and when he has the ball in his hands. Plus, he still has a shitty QB throwing to him. All this hype of the Jets getting a "playmaker" and Edwards helping the Jets seems like it will be a failure.
However, this year, Chansi Stuckey has been one of the few players worse than Edards this year.
Edwards had a fantastic season in 2007 when he caught 80 passes for over 1275 yards and 16 TDs. But what has he done since? We've all heard the ESPN stats how he leads the league in drops. His Y/R has gone down this '07 along with his receptions. In fact, in four full seasons, Edwards has only gone over 900 yards once- in '07. To me Edwards is having the Roy E. Williams effect. Williams had one amazing season in Detroit. Then he gets traded to Dallas and is expected to be a superstar, only to be a dud
So let's analyze Edwards and see what we can find.
I think an important stat to look at is catch rate. How often can a receiver catches the ball when it is thrown to him. I like this stat because that's a huge part of all a receiver has to do- catch a ball thrown to him.
In his awesome break out year in 2007, he only caught 52% of the passes that came to him. Sure he had 80 receptions, but 153 targets! The next year his targets dropped to a mere 138, only he only caught 40% of those passes. That means that 3 times out of five, when a pass came towards Edwards, he did not catch it. 40% is an awful catch rate, and I don't care who is throwing you the ball. This year, Edwards has improved his catch rate to 45%. I think we can safely conclude, that Edwards does not have the best hands, and I think it's safe to say Edwards can not do a fundamental skill of being a wide out well.
Even in Edwards amazing season, he has not been very efficient with the ball. In 2007, he ranked 24th in DYAR and 40th in DVOA. The next year he ranked 77th and 73rd respectively. This year, he ranks 47th and 48th respectively. This means, that in the past 2+ seasons, Braylon Edwards per play he has been awful compared to the average receiver in a similar situation (DVOA) and been awful compared to other players in similar situations where he did catch the ball (DYAR).
However, I am a firm believer that a good to great QB can make a wide out better (ala Jay Cutler and Hester, Bennett, and Knox). I was going to make a lofty comparison to how good Derek Anderson has been in '07 compared to how well they are now and Mark Sanchez as well, however I think this year's statistics help prove my point well. Sanchez ranks 2nd to last among all QBs this year according to football sabermetrics (aka efficiency). Two spots ahead of him in Derek Anderson and three spots ahead of him is Brady Quinn. Essentially, Quinn, Anderson, and Sanchez have been awful this year- and essentially are the same player.
So with all this data, I don't see the Braylon Edwards trade a success for the Jets. He has bad hands, he is inefficient trying to make plays and when he has the ball in his hands. Plus, he still has a shitty QB throwing to him. All this hype of the Jets getting a "playmaker" and Edwards helping the Jets seems like it will be a failure.
However, this year, Chansi Stuckey has been one of the few players worse than Edards this year.
Sports: A Game Of Inches is Officially Worth $27!
Sell! Sell! Sell!
According to this website value calculator, our website is worth $27!
(only $46,039,999,973 behind Google)
We're also one of the top 4,000,000 websites in the world!
Profit in the bank, baby.
(Oh, and we're not exactly kid friendly)
According to this website value calculator, our website is worth $27!
(only $46,039,999,973 behind Google)
We're also one of the top 4,000,000 websites in the world!
Profit in the bank, baby.
(Oh, and we're not exactly kid friendly)
Line drive...base hit...caught...where am I?
Too bad the run doesnt score because it would be awesome if this call lived on for decades to come. Once again Chip Caray gets overexcited and blows the shot prematurely...thats what she said
Is Crabtree as good as he thinks he is?
Michael Crabtree finally signed a 6yr/$32 million dollar contract after threatening to sit out the entire year and re-enter the 2010 draft. Obviously he was not going to do that. Even if the next team to draft him did give him the extra 5 million to match Darius Hayword-Bay money, he would still come out even based on the fact that he sat out a season of football where he could have made those same 5 million. Thankfully it never came down to that scenario and we can all move on with our lives. Wait! Stop! Hammer Time...is Crabtree even an elite wide receiver?
His statistical numbers at Texas Tech are meaningless based on the system he played in. If a QB with the arm of Ken Dorsey can put up 450 yards passing a game in college and not even get a tryout in the NFL, then you know the offensive system put up all those points. Not withstanding, Crabtree is an NFL caliber athlete and deserved to do in the first round. Dude ran a fantastic 4.48 40 yard dash on a bad leg. Not nearly the blazing 4.23 of Bay, but still worthy of a first round pick given his receiving skills. Still, I am not convinced that he is actually as good as he thinks he is. He's tall but not Randy Moss tall. He's fast but not Andre Johnson fast. He's an athlete but not a Calvin Johnson athlete. He's creative after the catch but not Brandon Marshall creative. I just dont see what skills will make him the superstar receiver that he apparently thinks he is.
None of us have seen him in an NFL game, so I have to go based on comparisons. I cant see him as a deep threat in the NFL. Deep threats need to be lightning fast. Bernard Barrian is a deep threat, Crabtree doesnt have those type of wheels to beat Asante Samuel down field. I see him as a dominant possession receiver averaging 10-11 yards per catch as opposed to the 15-16 of pro-bowl WRers. Best comparison I can make is Greg Jennings without the big play ability. And that should be good enough for everyone except for Crabtree
His statistical numbers at Texas Tech are meaningless based on the system he played in. If a QB with the arm of Ken Dorsey can put up 450 yards passing a game in college and not even get a tryout in the NFL, then you know the offensive system put up all those points. Not withstanding, Crabtree is an NFL caliber athlete and deserved to do in the first round. Dude ran a fantastic 4.48 40 yard dash on a bad leg. Not nearly the blazing 4.23 of Bay, but still worthy of a first round pick given his receiving skills. Still, I am not convinced that he is actually as good as he thinks he is. He's tall but not Randy Moss tall. He's fast but not Andre Johnson fast. He's an athlete but not a Calvin Johnson athlete. He's creative after the catch but not Brandon Marshall creative. I just dont see what skills will make him the superstar receiver that he apparently thinks he is.
None of us have seen him in an NFL game, so I have to go based on comparisons. I cant see him as a deep threat in the NFL. Deep threats need to be lightning fast. Bernard Barrian is a deep threat, Crabtree doesnt have those type of wheels to beat Asante Samuel down field. I see him as a dominant possession receiver averaging 10-11 yards per catch as opposed to the 15-16 of pro-bowl WRers. Best comparison I can make is Greg Jennings without the big play ability. And that should be good enough for everyone except for Crabtree
Kevin Youkilis > Carlos Pena
A long long time ago in a galaxy far far away, I predicted at the beginning of the baseball season that Kevin Youkilis would be better than Carlos Pena. I took a lot of shit for this. And now I am vindicated, because even though Pena ended up leading the AL in HRs, Youkilis has been better. Now I also thought Pena would be hurt most of this year thus making Youk better by default, but even still, Youk was better.
I would like to start by saying Youkilis had 588 PA and Pena 570. This is essentially the same amount so you can't really make an argument that so and so was injured for part of the year, because, statistically speaking, the difference in PA is so small, that it's practically negligent.
Our first comparison, and DME's favorite's category- fantasy baseball. This year, Youkilis rated 9th and Pena rated 19th among all first baseman in Yahoo!'s player rater.
But now onto what really matters- on the field performance and using fangraphs statistics. Pena had more homers, a better walk rate, SLG percentage, ISO, and was more clutch than Youk. However, Youk had a better:
-OBP
-BA
-K%
-WAR
-wOBA
-OPS
-LD%
-Spd
-K/BB
-UZR/ UZR/150
Youk was worth $24.9 and Pena was worth $12.3
Now granted, Pena's BABIP was extremely low causing is awful awful awful BA and lowering his OBP and OPS; but over the course of this year
KEVIN YOUKILIS WAS BETTER THAN CARLOS PENA
I would like to start by saying Youkilis had 588 PA and Pena 570. This is essentially the same amount so you can't really make an argument that so and so was injured for part of the year, because, statistically speaking, the difference in PA is so small, that it's practically negligent.
Our first comparison, and DME's favorite's category- fantasy baseball. This year, Youkilis rated 9th and Pena rated 19th among all first baseman in Yahoo!'s player rater.
But now onto what really matters- on the field performance and using fangraphs statistics. Pena had more homers, a better walk rate, SLG percentage, ISO, and was more clutch than Youk. However, Youk had a better:
-OBP
-BA
-K%
-WAR
-wOBA
-OPS
-LD%
-Spd
-K/BB
-UZR/ UZR/150
Youk was worth $24.9 and Pena was worth $12.3
Now granted, Pena's BABIP was extremely low causing is awful awful awful BA and lowering his OBP and OPS; but over the course of this year
KEVIN YOUKILIS WAS BETTER THAN CARLOS PENA
Strikeouts, Groundballs and Vertical Location of Pitches
The Baseball Analysts did some number crunching and definitely proved that there is an inverse relationship between strikeouts and groundballs in proportion to the location of pitches in the zone.
Check it out if you're interested. TBA has cool stuff.
Check it out if you're interested. TBA has cool stuff.
Baseball not affected by the economy
Before the 2009 season everyone was wondering if the bad economy would affect baseball. This affected the last off-season drastically where many players received smaller contracts in length and dollar amount. The question was answered yesterday. Baseball was not affected by this economy. People still went to the games for the fifth highest attendance ever in Major league baseball. This is shocking that is was one of the best attendances ever! It will be interesting how this affects free agency and the arguments that agent's will use with this.
MLB Comeback Player of the Year Awards
Major league Baseball has announced the comeback players of the year award. Chris Carpenter of the St. Louis Cardinals and Aaron Hill of the Toronto Blue Jays were the winners. You can read about the great years they both had. Both are coming off injury plagued seasons, especially Chris Carpenter. Carpenter only made four starts combined in the 2007 and 2008 seasons. He is coming off of major surgery and showed that he still has the stuff which won him the Cy Young a few years ago. He won't win in this year, but had a great season.
Casey McGehee Wins NL Rookie for September
This season Casey McGehee of the Brewers had a good rookie season. He became the starting third basemen for the Brewers beating out Bill Hall who was eventually released. McGehee quietly put together a good rookie season which ended with him winning National League Rookie of the Month Award for September
Casey McGehee had a very good rookie season even though he won't have a chance to win rookie of the year with Chris Coghlan, Pablo Sandoval, and Happ in front of him.
Many people don't realize that Casey McGehee was a Chicago Cub. He was drafted by the Chicago Cubs in the 10th round of the 2003 Major League Baseball Draft out of Fresno State. He spent many years in the minor league system for the Cubs. He was a September call-up for the Cubs in 2008. He made his major league debut on September 2 as a Cub. Following the 2008 season, he was claimed off waivers by the Brewers, and added to the Brewers' 40-man roster. Now he has had a nice season and possibly the beginning of a nice career and the Cubs let him go for nothing.
Casey McGehee had a very good rookie season even though he won't have a chance to win rookie of the year with Chris Coghlan, Pablo Sandoval, and Happ in front of him.
Many people don't realize that Casey McGehee was a Chicago Cub. He was drafted by the Chicago Cubs in the 10th round of the 2003 Major League Baseball Draft out of Fresno State. He spent many years in the minor league system for the Cubs. He was a September call-up for the Cubs in 2008. He made his major league debut on September 2 as a Cub. Following the 2008 season, he was claimed off waivers by the Brewers, and added to the Brewers' 40-man roster. Now he has had a nice season and possibly the beginning of a nice career and the Cubs let him go for nothing.
Lee Wins Player of Month for September
Derek Lee had a disappointing finish to the 2008 season last year becoming known for hitting into the double play. That was the first time he was hitting into the double play ball regularly because he was pulling the ball almost every time he made contact. He started this season picking up where he left off batting .189 for the month of March/April with one homerun, 10 RBI, and a .253 OBP. Things were not looking good. Then he finally came out of it hitting .313 in May and looking like the old Derek Lee. Derek Lee had a great season and a solid finish for the month of September winning Player of Month. Derek Lee was one of the few bright spots of this team this season.
Cubs Approved to Ricketts family
Major League baseball has approved the Ricketts family to take over as the owners of the Chicago Cubs. I was surprised there wasn't more attention to this story. It happened yesterday over a conference call where the other 29 teams approved it. The deal still isn't done because the Tribune is in bankruptcy so it has to go through another bankruptcy hearing next week. The deal should be done by the end of October at the latest. Then the Ricketts family can start making decisions and set the payroll for next season.
Jets and 49ers Get Some Wide Outs
Update:
Braylon Edwards gets traded to the Jets for two drafts picks and a special teamer and WR Chansi Stuckey
Michael Crabtree signs with the 49ers
Braylon Edwards gets traded to the Jets for two drafts picks and a special teamer and WR Chansi Stuckey
Michael Crabtree signs with the 49ers
My Name is Wale and I'm Here To Git It
No, I'm not talking about the shitty D.C. based rapper, I'm talking about Bears DE Adewale Ogunleye. After years of sucking and not living up to his potential, he is having a monster four games. He's ranked 6th in the NFL in sacks- with 4.5. Granted, I think it's only because he was matched up against Packers RT Allan Barbre in the first game of the season who he just owned and a Detroit Lions lineman, but he's been doing very well. And Alex Brown is also doing amazing. According to football sabermetrics, the Bears are the best team against plays behind the LT and 6th best against plays behind the LG. Essentially, this means the right side DE is doing amazing- and that is Alex Brown.
In fact, Rod Marinelli really seems to be doing an amazing job with this defensive line. The Bears rank 4th in run blocking and 5th in pass blocking. That's amazing. Good thing too because out LBs, and most of out defensive sucks.
In fact, Rod Marinelli really seems to be doing an amazing job with this defensive line. The Bears rank 4th in run blocking and 5th in pass blocking. That's amazing. Good thing too because out LBs, and most of out defensive sucks.
Orlando Pace Sucks
In the back of my mind I realized this would happen, but the Chicago media ticked me out of it. Orlando Pace is old and is not good.
This year, Pace ranks 23 our of 32 in blocking among LT. That's awful. Last year Josh Beekman (he was the LT last year right, either him or Garza) ranked 15th. This is pitiful this decline.
Do you know which Bears lineman is the best? No, not Pace (duh!), it's not Olin Kruetz, it's not youngin Chris Williams...
It's Frank Omiyale.
How the fuck did this happen!?
Good thing Jay Cutler is fucking amazing is all I have to say
What's Wrong With Brandon Jacobs?
This year, I drafted Jacobs with my first pick. Last year, in only 13 games, he had 15 TD's. Last year, both Jacobs and Derrick Ward finished top five according to footballoutsiders.com. When two RBs are in the top five, that tells me the production of the RBs is mainly due to the system and the offensive line, more than the talent of the backs. With the Giants having this fantastic O-line, how could I lose with Jacobs.He's the main back, gets a ton of carries, a physical runner, always scoring TDs, and only 27 years old. Yet, in the first four games, Jacobs has been awful, ranking 28th among all RBs in the Yahoo! player rater and only had one TD. So what gives?
We could all listen to the "Matthew Berry" approach. He says that teams are putting eight in the box and daring Eli Manning to throw because of his "no name receivers". While I'm sure that's part of it, that still doesn't explain why Jacobs is doing so shitty considering he's getting a considerable amount of carries. So I decided to look back to see why I liked Jacobs to begin with: the offensive line.
Last year, the Giants ranked 4th in the NFL in run blocking. This year they rank 10th. Well, sure, there's a drop off, but having the 10th best rushing offensive line still seems pretty good to me, so I looked even further.
Last year, C Shaun O'Hara and LT David Diehl ranked #1 in pass blocking. What makes it even more impressive is that these dudes played right next to each other, meaning I'm sure Jacobs and other Giants RB had a fun time running through massive holes created by O'Hara and Diehl. LG Rich Seubert also did his share ranking 5th among LG's. This means the entire left side of the offensive line, was pretty much amazing. I'm going to exclude the right side because RG Chris Snee and RT Kareem McKenzie ranked 20th and 24th respectively among their positions. It seems clear to me that the Giants were able to run so effectively because of the left side of their O-line.
But now let's take a look at that left side. O'Hara is ranked 16th, Diehl is ranked 14th, and Seubert is ranked 24th. This is a drastic decline. Ironically this year, the right has performed well because Snee ranks 7th and McKenzie ranks 9th. But still, this is nowhere near the productivity of last year.
So what explains the drop in productivity from this offense line? That I don't know. Maybe over the course of the season their numbers will even out. Maybe teams realized how good the left side was and how bad the right side was and opponents focused all their energy on the left leaving the right free and making them look better and the left look worse. If you have an answer, please let me know.
All I know is that, as a Brandon Jacobs owner, I'm pissed
Worthless Baseball Postseason Predictions
Now that the baseball has officially ended, it's time now for the post season. Here are my prediction for how I think the playoffs will shake out. Oh, and just like everyone on ESPN, I'm sure to be wrong about this
ALDS
Yankees def. Twins in 3
Red Sox def. Angeles in 4
NLDS
Cardinals def. Dodgers in 4
Phillies def. Rockies in 5
ALCS
Red Sox def. Yankees in 7
NLCS
Cardinals def. Phillies in 6
World Series
Cardinals def. Red Sox in 5
World Series MVP: Mark DeRosa
ALDS
Yankees def. Twins in 3
Red Sox def. Angeles in 4
NLDS
Cardinals def. Dodgers in 4
Phillies def. Rockies in 5
ALCS
Red Sox def. Yankees in 7
NLCS
Cardinals def. Phillies in 6
World Series
Cardinals def. Red Sox in 5
World Series MVP: Mark DeRosa
Joe 'F-ing' Mauer
The Big Lead had a great post on Joe Mauer and why he is better than you in every single way possible. My favorite line is that Mauer has won 3 of the last 4 batting championships (he was hurt in 2007).
Miguel Cabrera Hits Homers (and Women)
Fresh off yet another 30+ HR, 100+ RBI, .300+ season, Miguel Cabrera celebrated perhaps a bit too hard. Miggy got wasted with some White Sox players the other night and then came home and roughed up his wife a bit. You can hear the 9-1-1 call here and if you listen closely, you can hear sort of hear Miggy slurringly yell at the cops in the background (I think he says something about his kids...).
Could be worse, right? At least he didn't run anybody down with an SUV. Speaking of Albert Bell, apparently Mr. "I don't get excited talking about myself" has been pestering a Cleveland beat writer the last few years about how he would run a baseball team (from a golf course, if it was the Yankees) just in case anyone at all cared what he thought (which no one does). He also takes an attempt at being punny by calling Progressive Field "Regressive" Field. If it was up to Belle, however, the Indians would probably be playing at Aggressive Field.
"
In the article's words, "I have no idea why he calls me."
Could be worse, right? At least he didn't run anybody down with an SUV. Speaking of Albert Bell, apparently Mr. "I don't get excited talking about myself" has been pestering a Cleveland beat writer the last few years about how he would run a baseball team (from a golf course, if it was the Yankees) just in case anyone at all cared what he thought (which no one does). He also takes an attempt at being punny by calling Progressive Field "Regressive" Field. If it was up to Belle, however, the Indians would probably be playing at Aggressive Field.
"
In the article's words, "I have no idea why he calls me."
Home run results from 2009
Hittrackeronline.com is the resource most baseball analysts use when they need to know anything related to home runs. Distance, speed, trajectory, wind...it's all provided for you for every home run hit during the entire season. So let's look at some of the fun facts from the season
- The longest home run of the season was hit on the last weekend of the season, by Wladimir Balentien, at an astounding 495 feet. That would barely clear the fence at Citi Field
- Speaking of Citi field, there were 5 stadiums that allowed less homers per game, though dont tell that to David Wright who's average distance went up 3 feet, yet hit 23 fewer home runs
- The most difficult stadium to homer in this year was Busch Stadium, which is strange considering the home run leader, Albert Pujols, plays in that stadium. 414 foot average doesnt care about dimensions.
- Since 2005, David Eckstein has averaged more feet on his home runs than Dustin Pedroia. Sure, Pedroia hits more of them, but most are just over the short green monster. In fact, Pedroia OPSed 133 less points on the road. Maybe this blog needs a new writer named Dustin "MVP" Pedroia
- The new Yankee Stadium was by far the best homer park at nearly 3 per game compared to just 2 last year and 2.3 in 2007.
- Mark Reynolds hit the longest home run in 3 different stadiums and averaged a crazy 420 feet on the season. And he struck out line 220 times
- 2nd straight year no one in the AL hit 40 homers, and no one in baseball has hit 50 since 2007. Bring back the roids!
- Braden Looper gave up 39 homers, but who cares about the pitchers. Wake me up when Eric Milton comes back from surgery and give up back to back 40 homer seasons the way he did in '04 and '05
Fantasy Baseball 2009 Money League Results
With the exception of today's Tigers/Twins game, the 2009 MLB season is over and soon I will have nothing to do for five months (well, except lose fantasy football games and write "Were They For Real?" baseball analysis posts forecasting fantasy advice for 2010). Here are the results of this year's money league (12 team, 5x5 ROTO with 3 OFs).
Teams >> Cumulative Points
Cash Winners
01. David "MVP" Eckstein >> 106
02. Happy's Wallbangers >> 87.5
03. Stavi's Fingers >> 77.5
Non-Placing Participants
04. Cubsfan4ever >> 75
05. Kenny 1 Billy 0 [SexyRexy] >> 73
06. SupDup88 [The 'Bright' One] >> 69
07. The Godfather >> 66.5
08. Salty's Baseballs >> 66.5
09. Clee's Club >> 58.5
10. Schaf's Sluggers >> 40
11. Drew's Machines >> 34
12. Da Monkeys >> 26.5
If you want to see how each player performed in each ROTO category (R, RBI, HR, AVG, SB, W, SV, ERA, K, WHIP), click to enlarge the image below.
Congrats to those who placed, good luck to those who did not next year!
Teams >> Cumulative Points
Cash Winners
01. David "MVP" Eckstein >> 106
02. Happy's Wallbangers >> 87.5
03. Stavi's Fingers >> 77.5
Non-Placing Participants
04. Cubsfan4ever >> 75
05. Kenny 1 Billy 0 [SexyRexy] >> 73
06. SupDup88 [The 'Bright' One] >> 69
07. The Godfather >> 66.5
08. Salty's Baseballs >> 66.5
09. Clee's Club >> 58.5
10. Schaf's Sluggers >> 40
11. Drew's Machines >> 34
12. Da Monkeys >> 26.5
If you want to see how each player performed in each ROTO category (R, RBI, HR, AVG, SB, W, SV, ERA, K, WHIP), click to enlarge the image below.
Congrats to those who placed, good luck to those who did not next year!
GOI Football Prediction Results: Week Four
Pigskin Pick 'Em*
1) Sexy Rexy
Overall: 41 out of 61, 67.2%
Last week: 9 out of 13, 69.2%
1) Cubsfan4evr
Overall: 41 out of 61, 67.2%
Last week: 10 out of 13, 76.9%
3) The "Bright" One
Overall: 40 out of 61, 65.5%
Last week: 8 out of 13, 61.5%
* we all forgot to pick Dallas/Denver
Fantasy Football League
1) Cubsfan4evr (3-1): 402 points
2) The "Bright" One (3-1): 376 points
3) Sexy Rexy (2-2): 372 points
4) David "MVP" Eckstein (2-2): 326 points
Eliminator Challenge
1) Sexy Rexy, Chicago Bears, (4)
1) Cubsfan4evr, San Francisco, (4)
3) J O'Brien, Minnesota, (1)
4) DME, DNP, (0)
4) TBO, DNP, (0) - damn, forgot to play
4) Richard, DNP, (0)
Salary Cap Football
1) The "Bright" One: 292.27 overall points, 84th percentile(prop should have replaced Gore)
2) Sexy Rexy: 317.04 total points, 95th percentile
3) Cubsfan4evr: ??? total points, ???th percentile
Football Board Bets
1) Pierre Thomas, 15th best RB this year
2) Reggie Bush: 1 rushing TD, no receiving TD
3)
Fred Taylor: 31 fantasy points
Ahmad Bradshaw: 26 fantasy points
1) Sexy Rexy
Overall: 41 out of 61, 67.2%
Last week: 9 out of 13, 69.2%
1) Cubsfan4evr
Overall: 41 out of 61, 67.2%
Last week: 10 out of 13, 76.9%
3) The "Bright" One
Overall: 40 out of 61, 65.5%
Last week: 8 out of 13, 61.5%
* we all forgot to pick Dallas/Denver
Fantasy Football League
1) Cubsfan4evr (3-1): 402 points
2) The "Bright" One (3-1): 376 points
3) Sexy Rexy (2-2): 372 points
4) David "MVP" Eckstein (2-2): 326 points
Eliminator Challenge
1) Sexy Rexy, Chicago Bears, (4)
1) Cubsfan4evr, San Francisco, (4)
3) J O'Brien, Minnesota, (1)
4) DME, DNP, (0)
4) TBO, DNP, (0) - damn, forgot to play
4) Richard, DNP, (0)
Salary Cap Football
1) The "Bright" One: 292.27 overall points, 84th percentile(prop should have replaced Gore)
2) Sexy Rexy: 317.04 total points, 95th percentile
3) Cubsfan4evr: ??? total points, ???th percentile
Football Board Bets
1) Pierre Thomas, 15th best RB this year
2) Reggie Bush: 1 rushing TD, no receiving TD
3)
Fred Taylor: 31 fantasy points
Ahmad Bradshaw: 26 fantasy points
You Like-A Da Juice? Nope, and Neither Does Ron Zook
A report came out today that shitty Illinois QB Isiah "Juice" Williams finally is getting benched forthe more talented Eddie McGee. Here is the article:
Funny, this is the exact same way Juice got HIS start. His career is cyclical I guess
After a 1-3 start, Illinois has decided to make a change at quarterback.
Senior Juice Williams has been benched in favor of junior Eddie McGee for this week's game against Michigan State, Fighting Illini head coach Ron Zook announced on his radio show Monday morning. McGee, who has filled in for Williams multiple times during the last three seasons, will make his first career start against the Spartans.
Zook said Sunday on a conference call with reporters that he was considering changes at every position, including quarterback. Williams is a four-year starter and the Big Ten's most experienced quarterback, but he has struggled this season, ranking last in the league in pass efficiency (101) and throwing four interceptions and only one touchdown.
McGee is 19-for-30 for 211 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions on the season. He has appeared in 19 games in his career.
"Believe me, this is not all on Juice," Zook said on his show. "The poor guy has at times played extremely well, but the thing you try to do in athletics is you're trying to get a spark.
"This is not a knee-jerk reaction. This is a lot of thought and what-if, what-if, what-if. But the bottom line is we're in a part of our schedule now where we've got to go play."
McGee led Illinois to its only victory Sept. 12 against Illinois State after Williams went down with an injury early in the first quarter.
Williams became Illinois' career total offense leader last Saturday against Penn State. He led the team to the 2008 Rose Bowl and set total offense records in three stadiums last fall before a steady decline.
Funny, this is the exact same way Juice got HIS start. His career is cyclical I guess
Greg Olson Sucks
Greg Olson was supposed to be an elite TE. He had the size, build, and talent to be in the class of Witten or Gates or Clark or Gonzales, but where has he been. More stats will come, but seriously, just by watching him, why isn't he as good!? It's not the fact he isn't getting thrown to that's the problem (although it is a problem), he's doing well well with the limited targets that he's getting. After seeing him and Cutler become butt buddies this off season, I expected Olson to have a monster season. Yet, this hasn't manifested. I expect Olson is entering Vernon Davis territory, huge expectations and a lot of talent, yet not performing on the field. I've seen Olson drop some key, good catches from both Kyle Orton and Jay Cutler. I'm sorry to say, that if Olson doesn't start performing in the next couple weeks, I'm calling him another offensive Bears bust.
So anyways, here's some stats on Olson. This year, he ranks about 8th to last among all active TE's. In fact, Kellen Davis, the third string Bears TE is technically better than Olson because he so far has done amazing with the limited catches he's gotten. Guys I've never heard of like Stephen Spach, Sean Ryan, Will Heller, and Daniel Fells are all doing better than Olson right now. Detriot, New England, Carolina, Denver, and Tenneessee all have two TE's that have performed better than Olson this year. He only has a 50% catch rate this year and only one TD. Kellen Davis this year has two. Now last year he had 66% catch rate, which sounds good. But most TE last year had a catch rate above 70%. Last year Olson ranked about 23rd among all TE according to football sabermetrics. Guys ahead of him were Viscanthe Shaincoe, Tony Scheffler, Anthony Faisano, Daniel Graham, and Kevin Boss- just to name a few. Now those guys aren't really per se a bad clas of TE to be grouped in with, but Olson is supposed to be better than all of those guys.
I don't buy the "he has a bad QB throwing to him argument" because Schiancoe had an even worse QB throwing to him last year and he was great. Plus, Olson has sucked with both Orton and Cutler throwing to him. I also don't buy the "he hasn't been thrown to enough" argument. While I agree he should get thrown to as much as guys like Gates or Clark, it doesn't matter because the reason Olson sucks is not becaus he hasn't been thrown to enough. First, I believe the best receivers make sure they gte thrown to and make receptions because their good. Secondly, Olson hasn't done shit with the receptions and targets he's gotten.
This year, Olson is 18th among all TE's on the Yahoo! player rater. In 2008, he ranked 11th, and in 2007 he ranked 19th. There's no reason Olson should not be top six.
I think Olson has entered the "he's good solely based on reputaion- and is college one at that." I think there's no reason he can't improve, but I need to see drastic improvements.
So anyways, here's some stats on Olson. This year, he ranks about 8th to last among all active TE's. In fact, Kellen Davis, the third string Bears TE is technically better than Olson because he so far has done amazing with the limited catches he's gotten. Guys I've never heard of like Stephen Spach, Sean Ryan, Will Heller, and Daniel Fells are all doing better than Olson right now. Detriot, New England, Carolina, Denver, and Tenneessee all have two TE's that have performed better than Olson this year. He only has a 50% catch rate this year and only one TD. Kellen Davis this year has two. Now last year he had 66% catch rate, which sounds good. But most TE last year had a catch rate above 70%. Last year Olson ranked about 23rd among all TE according to football sabermetrics. Guys ahead of him were Viscanthe Shaincoe, Tony Scheffler, Anthony Faisano, Daniel Graham, and Kevin Boss- just to name a few. Now those guys aren't really per se a bad clas of TE to be grouped in with, but Olson is supposed to be better than all of those guys.
I don't buy the "he has a bad QB throwing to him argument" because Schiancoe had an even worse QB throwing to him last year and he was great. Plus, Olson has sucked with both Orton and Cutler throwing to him. I also don't buy the "he hasn't been thrown to enough" argument. While I agree he should get thrown to as much as guys like Gates or Clark, it doesn't matter because the reason Olson sucks is not becaus he hasn't been thrown to enough. First, I believe the best receivers make sure they gte thrown to and make receptions because their good. Secondly, Olson hasn't done shit with the receptions and targets he's gotten.
This year, Olson is 18th among all TE's on the Yahoo! player rater. In 2008, he ranked 11th, and in 2007 he ranked 19th. There's no reason Olson should not be top six.
I think Olson has entered the "he's good solely based on reputaion- and is college one at that." I think there's no reason he can't improve, but I need to see drastic improvements.
Why I Liked Tyler Thigpen
I liked Thigpen because he performed in fantasy. Thigpen was 10th out of all QBs last year over guys like Chad Pennington, Tony Romo and shitty Ben Roethlisberger. Based on that I figured he was good. But as a passer he was not. But then I realized why he performed so well, he was the best rushing QB last year. Thigpen ranked first among QBs in rushing yards with 386 and a damn good 6.2 YPC and 3 TDs. He also even caught a 37 yards TD pass!
But I still think he's an awful passer and until he develops those skills, I will continue to now be down on him.
But I still think he's an awful passer and until he develops those skills, I will continue to now be down on him.
Jeff Garcia Gets No Love
I'm not saying Jeff Garcia is a HOFer, but I think he definitely deserves to start in this league. Every where Garcia had gone, the team has had success for the most part (we can exclude Detroit because everyone sucks in Detroit). He performed early in his career in San Francisco with T.O. When Donovan McNabb got hurt in Philly in 2006, Garcia helped bring the team to win a whole bunch of games towards the end of the season to bring the Eagles to the playoffs, and he performed well during his stint in Tampa Bay.
So when Tampa Bay released because he was their 43rd QB in the rooster, I was shocked when no teams wanted to sign him. He ended up in Oakland and I'm sure Raiders fans are just thrilled at how JaMarcus Russel is doing and probably don't have any regrets about Garcia not playing! I'm sure San Fran, Cleveland, Tennessee, St. Louis, and Tampa Bay wish they had Garcia right now vs. the shlub they're throwing out now.
But for some reason teams don't care, and it boggles my mind. Sure Garcia is old, but he's still effective and if teams wants to win now, why not sign Garcia? Here's a look at some of Garcia's stats:
He has a career 87.5 passer rating, which is good for 14th all time, 187 TDs (rushing and passing) to 83 INTs, and a 61.6% completion percentage which makes him have the 19th best all time. He is also very efficient ranking top 26 all time in: net yards per pass attempt, adjusted net yards per pass attempt, adjusted yards per pass attempts, and passes completed per game.
So why is Garcia forced to sit on the bench? I have no idea. But Oakland was dumb not to start him and he's letting them know that now
So when Tampa Bay released because he was their 43rd QB in the rooster, I was shocked when no teams wanted to sign him. He ended up in Oakland and I'm sure Raiders fans are just thrilled at how JaMarcus Russel is doing and probably don't have any regrets about Garcia not playing! I'm sure San Fran, Cleveland, Tennessee, St. Louis, and Tampa Bay wish they had Garcia right now vs. the shlub they're throwing out now.
But for some reason teams don't care, and it boggles my mind. Sure Garcia is old, but he's still effective and if teams wants to win now, why not sign Garcia? Here's a look at some of Garcia's stats:
He has a career 87.5 passer rating, which is good for 14th all time, 187 TDs (rushing and passing) to 83 INTs, and a 61.6% completion percentage which makes him have the 19th best all time. He is also very efficient ranking top 26 all time in: net yards per pass attempt, adjusted net yards per pass attempt, adjusted yards per pass attempts, and passes completed per game.
So why is Garcia forced to sit on the bench? I have no idea. But Oakland was dumb not to start him and he's letting them know that now
I'm On Mad Men!
Click here to Mad Men Yourself
The first one is of me and the second one is of DME (I got bored), and the third one is of TBO(which I was too lazy to create myself)
The first one is of me and the second one is of DME (I got bored), and the third one is of TBO(which I was too lazy to create myself)
Troy Tulowitzki is the next Derek Jeter
My love for Tulo is undeniable. I coveted him in the GOI fantasy pay league draft getting him in the 5th round. After a terribly slow start, I finally dropped him in June because he was hitting in the low .200 and peer pressure from people in the league. I did replace him with Ben Zobrist, but it was never the same. Losing Tulo from my team was like the Cubs losing Wood and Derosa. The leadership, the intangibles, the clutchiness was gone from my team and it was never the same.
Tulo is a true leader on the baseball field and backs it up with great hitting, a decent glove at short, and tremendous knowledge of the game. His 2 full years in the bigs(2007 and 2009) the Rocks have gone to the playoffs, something they had only done once before the Tulo era. I will go as far as to say that he should be the NL MVP this season. Sure Pujols has superior stats, but look at the second half performance of each player. Tulo is OPSing 1.040 since the break leading his team on an amazing 17 of 18 winning streak and a chance to win the NL West. 32 homers, 20 steals, 102 runs, 92 RBI, above average SS, and 73 walks.
I'm starting to think that Baseball Prospectus kinda sucks at predicting things. This being my first day looking at their advanced statistics, I have seen many inconsistencies in the predictive abilities of the system. None of the breakout stars this year were predicted by BP. They had Tulo forcasted at no more than 18 homers in the next 7 years. Given his 32 bombs this year, and a 415 foot home run average, that prediction seems very conservative.
You can bet your savings that I will have Tulo on my team next year, the whole year, cause my predictive abilities tell me that Tulo at just 24 years old is the next big thing. 15 years from now, we may get nauseous at ESPN continually rubbing off Troy Tulowitzki
Tulo is a true leader on the baseball field and backs it up with great hitting, a decent glove at short, and tremendous knowledge of the game. His 2 full years in the bigs(2007 and 2009) the Rocks have gone to the playoffs, something they had only done once before the Tulo era. I will go as far as to say that he should be the NL MVP this season. Sure Pujols has superior stats, but look at the second half performance of each player. Tulo is OPSing 1.040 since the break leading his team on an amazing 17 of 18 winning streak and a chance to win the NL West. 32 homers, 20 steals, 102 runs, 92 RBI, above average SS, and 73 walks.
I'm starting to think that Baseball Prospectus kinda sucks at predicting things. This being my first day looking at their advanced statistics, I have seen many inconsistencies in the predictive abilities of the system. None of the breakout stars this year were predicted by BP. They had Tulo forcasted at no more than 18 homers in the next 7 years. Given his 32 bombs this year, and a 415 foot home run average, that prediction seems very conservative.
You can bet your savings that I will have Tulo on my team next year, the whole year, cause my predictive abilities tell me that Tulo at just 24 years old is the next big thing. 15 years from now, we may get nauseous at ESPN continually rubbing off Troy Tulowitzki
Andrews stalker arrested...You'll never guess his name
The FBI tracked down the dude who followed around Erin Andrew across the country filming peep hole videos of her in hotel rooms. Obviously, none of the GOI writers have ever seen or are currently in possession of such a video. Interesting facts about the arrest. The dude is from Chicago...he was arrested at O'hare airport...his name is Michael Barrett. LOL
Story
Story
Fantasy Match-Ups: WR/TE
So I was looking around footballoutsiders.com and they have a metric breaking down how defenses do against a team's #1 wide receiver, #2 wide receiver, other receivers, TE, and RB (passing). So when planning for which recievers to pick up/ play during the time of bye weeks, I think this advice will help you out. So far, here's the teams that are the best and the worst defending each type of receiver
#1 Receiver
The Best
1) Bengals
2) Giants
3) Eagles
4) Saints
5) Chargers
The Worst
1) Raiders
2) Patriots
3) Ravens
4) Bucs
5) Texans
#2 Receiver
The Best
1) Broncos
2) Raiders
3) Giants
4) Titans
5) Chargers
The Worst
1) Bucs
2) Bengals
3) Seahawks
4) Colts
5) Jaguars
Other Receivers
The Best
1) Bills
2) Seahawks
3) Packers
4) Bears
5) Ravens
The Worst
1) Bucs
2) Lions
3) Titans
4) Browns
5) Redskins
TE
The Best
1) Packers
2) Colts
3) Raiders
4) Giants
5) Ravens
The Worst
1) Browns
2) Dolphins
3) Redskins
4) Lions
5) Titans
RB
The Best
1) Bucs
2) Jets
3) Packers
4) Bills
5) Raiders
The Worst
1) Patriots
2) Rams
3) Detroit
4) 49ers
5) Jaguars
So based off of those numbers here's a list of players we might expect to exceed in week four, or at least have favorable match ups
-Andre Johnson
-Randy Moss
-Derrick Mason
-Santana Moss
-Louis Murphy
-Antwaan Randel El
-Mike Furrey
-Pierre Garcon
-Nate Burrelson
-Nate Washington
-Johnny Knox
-Chris Henry
-Daniel Coats
-Robert Royal
-Kellen Winslow
-Greg Olson
-Marcedes Lewis
Those who have unfavorable Match-Ups:
-Braylon Edwards
-Dwayne Bowe
-Jerricho Cotchery
-Hines Ward
-Patrick Crayton
-Kevin Walter
-Bobby Wade
-Torry Holt
-Santonio Holmes
-Greg Camarillo
-Austin Collie
-Sidney Rice
-Dennis Northcutt
-Joey Galloway
-Julian Edelman (if Wes Welker plays)
-Visanthe Shianco
-John Carlson
-Owen Daniels
-Sean Ryan
-Heath Miller
RB (for PPR leagues)
Favorable Match Ups:
-Ray Rice (gets a lot of targets normally and is facing the worst passing D for RBs this week)
-Willis McGahee
-Glen Coffee
-Matt Forte (if he's going to break out it better damn well be this week)
-Steven Jackson
-Chris Johnson
Unfavorable Match-Ups:
-Clinton Portis
-Pierre Thomas
-Reggie Bush
-Adrian Peterson
-Ronnie Brown
-Steve Slaton
#1 Receiver
The Best
1) Bengals
2) Giants
3) Eagles
4) Saints
5) Chargers
The Worst
1) Raiders
2) Patriots
3) Ravens
4) Bucs
5) Texans
#2 Receiver
The Best
1) Broncos
2) Raiders
3) Giants
4) Titans
5) Chargers
The Worst
1) Bucs
2) Bengals
3) Seahawks
4) Colts
5) Jaguars
Other Receivers
The Best
1) Bills
2) Seahawks
3) Packers
4) Bears
5) Ravens
The Worst
1) Bucs
2) Lions
3) Titans
4) Browns
5) Redskins
TE
The Best
1) Packers
2) Colts
3) Raiders
4) Giants
5) Ravens
The Worst
1) Browns
2) Dolphins
3) Redskins
4) Lions
5) Titans
RB
The Best
1) Bucs
2) Jets
3) Packers
4) Bills
5) Raiders
The Worst
1) Patriots
2) Rams
3) Detroit
4) 49ers
5) Jaguars
So based off of those numbers here's a list of players we might expect to exceed in week four, or at least have favorable match ups
-Andre Johnson
-Randy Moss
-Derrick Mason
-Santana Moss
-Louis Murphy
-Antwaan Randel El
-Mike Furrey
-Pierre Garcon
-Nate Burrelson
-Nate Washington
-Johnny Knox
-Chris Henry
-Daniel Coats
-Robert Royal
-Kellen Winslow
-Greg Olson
-Marcedes Lewis
Those who have unfavorable Match-Ups:
-Braylon Edwards
-Dwayne Bowe
-Jerricho Cotchery
-Hines Ward
-Patrick Crayton
-Kevin Walter
-Bobby Wade
-Torry Holt
-Santonio Holmes
-Greg Camarillo
-Austin Collie
-Sidney Rice
-Dennis Northcutt
-Joey Galloway
-Julian Edelman (if Wes Welker plays)
-Visanthe Shianco
-John Carlson
-Owen Daniels
-Sean Ryan
-Heath Miller
RB (for PPR leagues)
Favorable Match Ups:
-Ray Rice (gets a lot of targets normally and is facing the worst passing D for RBs this week)
-Willis McGahee
-Glen Coffee
-Matt Forte (if he's going to break out it better damn well be this week)
-Steven Jackson
-Chris Johnson
Unfavorable Match-Ups:
-Clinton Portis
-Pierre Thomas
-Reggie Bush
-Adrian Peterson
-Ronnie Brown
-Steve Slaton
GOI Football Predictions: Week Four
Detroit at Chicago
Cincinnati at Cleveland
Seattle at Indianapolis
NY Giants at Kansas City
Baltimore at New England
Tampa Bay at Washington
Tennessee at Jacksonville
Oakland at Houston
NY Jets at New Orleans
Buffalo at Miami
St. Louis at San Francisco
San Diego at Pittsburgh
Green Bay at Minnesota
*Winner in Bold
Cincinnati at Cleveland
Seattle at Indianapolis
NY Giants at Kansas City
Baltimore at New England
Tampa Bay at Washington
Tennessee at Jacksonville
Oakland at Houston
NY Jets at New Orleans
Buffalo at Miami
St. Louis at San Francisco
San Diego at Pittsburgh
Green Bay at Minnesota
*Winner in Bold
Advice for Andre Johnson Owners
I have Johnson in both of my fantasy league and I have been torn on what to do with him this weel. Many "experts" have told me to always start mt studs, so no matter what, Johnson should be in my line up. However, I find this advice to be dumb, because even studs have bad games. In fact, Johnson has been sub par for me in 2 of the three games this year. In fact, one of those games was when Houston played the New York Jets- and Darrell Revis. Revis has shown this year that he is the best or second best cornerback in the game. When he's on a receiver, that receiver will not touch the ball. He's so for shut down my boy Andre Johnson, Pats best receiver Randy Moss, and Titans best receiver Justin Gage (although I'll say that accomplish is not THAT hard to do but still...). Revis has shut down every wide out he's faced.
But let's bring this topic full circle, when I say Revis is top 1 or 2, the other corner I had in mind is Oakland's CB (and apparently a guy that has a made up name) Nnamdi Asomugha. Last year, Asomugha was fantastic, essentially shutting down every receiver he faced. He faced Johnson last year, and shut him down. And this week, being a Johnson owner, I fear he will shut down Johnson again. And if that is the case, why would I start my stud wide out if he's gonna up bad fantasy numbers for me?
So instead of listening to Matthew Berry, I decided to do my own research. I looked up how receivers have done against the Oakland defense in three games. This year Oakland has faced San Diego, Kansas City, and Denver. I first looked to see how each Vincent Jackson, Dwayne Bowe, and Brandon Marshall did in each of those games because these were the best and/or #1 receiver opposing Oakland, respectively. I then decided to see how the best receivers did facing Oakland to see maybe if I should start Houston's #2 receiver, Kevin Walter, instead. Here's the results:
#1 Receiver
Vincent Jackson: 59 yards, 1 TD
Dwayne Bowe: 56 yards, 1 TD
Brandon Marshall: 67 yards, 1 TD
Top Performer (in terms of yards)
San Diego: Vincent Jackson 59 yards (also, excluding TE Gates)
Kansas City: Bobby Wade, 72 yards
Denver: Brandon Marshall 67 yards
In all three games, Oakland's opponent's number one receiver scored at least 11 fantasy points and in two out of the three game, the best receiver in terms of yards was also the teams best receiver.
I would have thought that Nnamdi Asomugha would be all over the opponent's number one wide out like white on rice and thus maybe the team's #2 receiver would be better. However, this has not shown to be the case this year.
Now keep in mind, that past performances mean nothing in predictions like this. Asomugha could be better and guard Johnson. Or, because Johnson is a better receiver than any receiver Oakland has faced this year, that he could go off on another 150 yards, 2 TD game. But either way, I think it's safe to say, Andre Johnson owners should not fear starting him this week.
But let's bring this topic full circle, when I say Revis is top 1 or 2, the other corner I had in mind is Oakland's CB (and apparently a guy that has a made up name) Nnamdi Asomugha. Last year, Asomugha was fantastic, essentially shutting down every receiver he faced. He faced Johnson last year, and shut him down. And this week, being a Johnson owner, I fear he will shut down Johnson again. And if that is the case, why would I start my stud wide out if he's gonna up bad fantasy numbers for me?
So instead of listening to Matthew Berry, I decided to do my own research. I looked up how receivers have done against the Oakland defense in three games. This year Oakland has faced San Diego, Kansas City, and Denver. I first looked to see how each Vincent Jackson, Dwayne Bowe, and Brandon Marshall did in each of those games because these were the best and/or #1 receiver opposing Oakland, respectively. I then decided to see how the best receivers did facing Oakland to see maybe if I should start Houston's #2 receiver, Kevin Walter, instead. Here's the results:
#1 Receiver
Vincent Jackson: 59 yards, 1 TD
Dwayne Bowe: 56 yards, 1 TD
Brandon Marshall: 67 yards, 1 TD
Top Performer (in terms of yards)
San Diego: Vincent Jackson 59 yards (also, excluding TE Gates)
Kansas City: Bobby Wade, 72 yards
Denver: Brandon Marshall 67 yards
In all three games, Oakland's opponent's number one receiver scored at least 11 fantasy points and in two out of the three game, the best receiver in terms of yards was also the teams best receiver.
I would have thought that Nnamdi Asomugha would be all over the opponent's number one wide out like white on rice and thus maybe the team's #2 receiver would be better. However, this has not shown to be the case this year.
Now keep in mind, that past performances mean nothing in predictions like this. Asomugha could be better and guard Johnson. Or, because Johnson is a better receiver than any receiver Oakland has faced this year, that he could go off on another 150 yards, 2 TD game. But either way, I think it's safe to say, Andre Johnson owners should not fear starting him this week.
Billy Beane doesn't just draft baseball players (he also drafts women)
As an avid follower of the Moneyball Movie genesis (there's other posts about it floating around this blog without the proper tags for some reason...), I was absolutely devastated when I found out that the movie was initially canceled. Although the film seemed surreal (Brad Pitt, Steven Soderbergh, Dmitri Martin, Scott Hatteberg...what?) and although Moneyball seemed like it would be the absolutely last book ever turned into a movie, stranger things have been accomplished. Unfilmable movies like Watchmen and A Clockwork Orange became great films.
Alas, I digress. The movie has been re-greenlighted without Soderbergh on board. What shocks me, however, and provides the basis for this post, is that, as an avid Moneyball movie tracker, I missed this amazing article which revealed the existence of a Moneyball sex scene in the film's original draft!
A PDF of the script (which has since been taken down) was floating around the internet at the time, which
"...even includes a scene in which the Oakland GM hits up an Outback Steakhouse in Cleveland with Paul DePodesta and orders a Bloomin' Onion.Classic, right? The best part of The Big League Stew's article is the rationalization of why this scene was probably cut from the rewrite:Later, Zaillian portrays Beane doing the most logical thing after eating a plate of fried onions with tangy sauce ... having sex with the waitress who served it to him."
Perhaps Soderbergh deleted this scene and Pascal thought the absence of chain restaurant-related romance would hurt the film's test scores among women?We wouldn't want a movie about baseball statistics and 30 year old men who live in their mom's basements to alienate the female audience with a sex scene now, would we?
Why You Should Never Punt
Here is an article about a high school coaches who is successful yet never punts. The guy has math and results to back up his plan and if it works for him, right on. However, I don't think this would be helpful in the pro game.
The coach says
First of all, this is a big assumption that the net punt will only be 30 yards. What about for the Bears who have an elite punter and an elite special teams? I would imagine that most the the time, if you were opposing a team like the Chicago Bears that that 77% percent chance of scoring would go down because you wouldn't have as good of a field position as this coach was talking about.
Secondly, even if the net punt was only 30 yards, 13% is a huge amount. Why risk trying to convert when, if you fail, you essentially give your opponent an easier time to score- the last thing you'd ever want to do?
Here's another line that I don't agree with, at least on an NFL level
1) How many offensives are really "explosive"? Sure maybe the Saits, Colts, and Patriots might be able to pull off going for it on 4th down, but not most teams
2) This comment skews 50% as a good thing. Obviously, this means that half the time, you're not converting! Maybe I'm a cynic so I see this 50% is a bad thing, but it doesn't seem worth it to go for 4th down EVERY time, when you can only convert half the time.
I'm sure this strategy works great for high school football and maybe even for some college teams, but I think it's an awful idea for any NFL team
The coach says
If [the coach] has a fourth-and-8 at its own 5-yard line, Kelley said his explosive offense likely will convert a first down at least 50 percent of the time. If it fails to convert, statistical data from the college level shows that an opponent acquiring the ball inside the 10-yard line scores a touchdown 90 percent of the time. If Pulaski punts away (i.e., a 40-yard punt with a 10-yard return) the other team will start with the ball on the 38-yard line and score a touchdown 77 percent of the time. The difference is only 13 percent.
First of all, this is a big assumption that the net punt will only be 30 yards. What about for the Bears who have an elite punter and an elite special teams? I would imagine that most the the time, if you were opposing a team like the Chicago Bears that that 77% percent chance of scoring would go down because you wouldn't have as good of a field position as this coach was talking about.
Secondly, even if the net punt was only 30 yards, 13% is a huge amount. Why risk trying to convert when, if you fail, you essentially give your opponent an easier time to score- the last thing you'd ever want to do?
Here's another line that I don't agree with, at least on an NFL level
Kelley said his explosive offense likely will convert a first down at least 50 percent of the time
1) How many offensives are really "explosive"? Sure maybe the Saits, Colts, and Patriots might be able to pull off going for it on 4th down, but not most teams
2) This comment skews 50% as a good thing. Obviously, this means that half the time, you're not converting! Maybe I'm a cynic so I see this 50% is a bad thing, but it doesn't seem worth it to go for 4th down EVERY time, when you can only convert half the time.
I'm sure this strategy works great for high school football and maybe even for some college teams, but I think it's an awful idea for any NFL team
The Great Floyd-Danks Swap
Last offseason, I repeatedly advised drafters to avoid Gavin Floyd and instead draft John Danks. Although the surface numbers say I was right (Danks has a 3.69 ERA and 13 Ws compared to Floyd's 4.06 ERA and 11 Ws), the peripherals disagree.
Last season, Gavin Floyd struck out a below average 6.32 batters per nine, walked a decent 3.05 per nine and a gave up a sustainable 1.2 longballs per nine (given his neutral GB/FB tendencies) -- good for a 4.77 FIP and one of the largest ERA-FIP splits in the league (going in the bad direction, that is). John Danks, on the other hand struck out a slightly above average 7.34 batters per nine, walked a very quality 2.63 per nine and only gave up 0.69 HR/9 (slightly low, given the 1.20 GB/FB rate) and showed a lot of potential, posting a 3.44 FIP in his age 23 season.
This season, Danks and Floyd have essentially flipped numbers. Floyd's posting a 7.60 K/9, 2.6 BB/9 and 0.98 HR/9 (1.34 GB/FB rate), taking all of the right steps in the right directions. His FIP fell a full run to 3.77. Danks, on the other hand, regressed across the board. The strike out rate fell to 6.82, the walk rate ballooned half a batter per game to 3.18 and he became less groundball oriented (1.06 GB/FB) and saw his HR/9 rate spike up to 1.20. Danks' season FIP currently stands at 4.44
I have to admit I was entirely wrong in my judgment of these two player's abilities. Floyd had the first round pedigree and I was entirely too quick to dismiss him. I still believe in Danks, but looking at his HR/FB rates per season, which have been lucky so far in his career, and his big step back in K/BB this season, I no longer have the strong belief I once did that he was to be, as I once called him, "the future of the White Sox rotation" (especially now that the Sox have Peavy).
Going forward, however, what can we expect? Floyd has posted a sustainable HR/FB rate each of the past two seasons and unless he gets extremely unlucky next season or if it turns out the gains in K and BB per nine he made in 2009 we flukes, Gavin Floyd should be poised to have a big 2010 season. A 1.25 WHIP, sub-4 ERA and double digit wins season are entirely plausible. He may provide great fantasy profit next season if his ADP doesn't balloon too high.
Danks, on the other hand, might be a candidate to avoid. The regressions in GB tendencies, walks and strikeouts are more than a bit concerning. Its not implausible to expect some regression towards his 2008 numbers in these areas, but there is still HR/FB regression looming. The league average HR/FB rate amongst pitchers is 11% and a lot of studies have shown this figure to be beyond the control of the pitcher. Couple this with the home run happy Cell and you may share some of my concerns about what John Danks does going forward.
Regardless, it will be interested to see how the White Sox rotation develops for 2010.
Last season, Gavin Floyd struck out a below average 6.32 batters per nine, walked a decent 3.05 per nine and a gave up a sustainable 1.2 longballs per nine (given his neutral GB/FB tendencies) -- good for a 4.77 FIP and one of the largest ERA-FIP splits in the league (going in the bad direction, that is). John Danks, on the other hand struck out a slightly above average 7.34 batters per nine, walked a very quality 2.63 per nine and only gave up 0.69 HR/9 (slightly low, given the 1.20 GB/FB rate) and showed a lot of potential, posting a 3.44 FIP in his age 23 season.
This season, Danks and Floyd have essentially flipped numbers. Floyd's posting a 7.60 K/9, 2.6 BB/9 and 0.98 HR/9 (1.34 GB/FB rate), taking all of the right steps in the right directions. His FIP fell a full run to 3.77. Danks, on the other hand, regressed across the board. The strike out rate fell to 6.82, the walk rate ballooned half a batter per game to 3.18 and he became less groundball oriented (1.06 GB/FB) and saw his HR/9 rate spike up to 1.20. Danks' season FIP currently stands at 4.44
I have to admit I was entirely wrong in my judgment of these two player's abilities. Floyd had the first round pedigree and I was entirely too quick to dismiss him. I still believe in Danks, but looking at his HR/FB rates per season, which have been lucky so far in his career, and his big step back in K/BB this season, I no longer have the strong belief I once did that he was to be, as I once called him, "the future of the White Sox rotation" (especially now that the Sox have Peavy).
Going forward, however, what can we expect? Floyd has posted a sustainable HR/FB rate each of the past two seasons and unless he gets extremely unlucky next season or if it turns out the gains in K and BB per nine he made in 2009 we flukes, Gavin Floyd should be poised to have a big 2010 season. A 1.25 WHIP, sub-4 ERA and double digit wins season are entirely plausible. He may provide great fantasy profit next season if his ADP doesn't balloon too high.
Danks, on the other hand, might be a candidate to avoid. The regressions in GB tendencies, walks and strikeouts are more than a bit concerning. Its not implausible to expect some regression towards his 2008 numbers in these areas, but there is still HR/FB regression looming. The league average HR/FB rate amongst pitchers is 11% and a lot of studies have shown this figure to be beyond the control of the pitcher. Couple this with the home run happy Cell and you may share some of my concerns about what John Danks does going forward.
Regardless, it will be interested to see how the White Sox rotation develops for 2010.
Adding False Logic To Joe Mauer
Can someone please explain how the fact that just because Joe Mauer is on base and moving that that equates to him telling Jason Kubel what pitches Verlander is throwing?
