My Cup of Morning Mike with extra FRUSTRATION!!!

Good morning fellow bloggers!

It's 7:23 am and I am sitting on my couch feeding my daughter her morning bottle. This a ritual I perform the mornings I am off work. I am also watching Mike and Mike in the Morning, another ritual I usually perform while feeding my daughter. I like catching up on the recent sport stories and after one episode of Sports Center, I can't take it anymore. So I watch M&M who tend to have a broader, yet annoying, selection of sports information. Today's big topic is whether Reggie Bush should get to keep the Heisman Trophy he won in 2005. And should there be a "re-vote" for that year and should Bush be, or not to be, included in the "re-vote."

As we all know by now, Bush was deemed to have been ineligible, by the NCAA, for that season. USC has been given multiple penalties and sanctions for their upcoming seasons. Soooo What does everyone think? Big Mike "I know it all cuz I was a C average lineman in the NFL" Golic thinks he would "re-vote" for Bush because he was the best player that season. Mack Brown (Texas coach and National Champion) thinks Vince Young should get it cuz he was the runner up that year. Lou Holtz thinks they should vacate the trophy for that year and there would not be a winner. Mike "I am a dork and piss my pants around pro athletes" Greenberg" thinks they should "re-vote" without Bush on the list.

Personally, I agree with Lou Holtz. Bush tainted the season and it would be hard to go back 5 years and try to decide another Heisman Trophy winner. True, he may have been the best player that season but he, according to the NCAA, should not have been playing at all. So if you should not have been playing at all... how can you be the best player in college football that season. That would be like USC going 12-0 this season and the BCS letting them play in the National Championship game. They win it and are crowned National Champions even though they are suspended from any BCS games by the NCAA. Let's just give it to them cuz they are the best team regardless of the fact they are deemed ineligible.

The NFL last season even went one step further. They have rule that says you cannot use performance enhancing drugs. Brian Cushing, after winning the defensive rookie of year award, was found to have used PEDs while playing that season. The voters "re-voted" and still chose Cushing who was left on the list as a candidate. I guess the NFL, and the AP voters, are saying you can break the rules, be suspended, yet you are still eligible to win awards.

One thing I do know is that if I test positive for drugs in my profession... I get FIRED!!! If I am ruled ineligible to work for whatever reason.... I don't get paid.

Have a great day!!!

My thoughts, which really mean nothing

I've just logged on after a couple of days away and read through all the Tiger vs Phil debate. Here's my take (what you've all been waiting for)

1. I am not a Phil nor Tiger supporter... I have both cheered them on at times and rooted against them at times.... I will say Sunday golf telecasts are better when 1 or both are in contention.
2. In my heart I do believe Tiger has a little more talent....of course at their level this is all relevant....I do think over the years Tiger has been more mentally strong. Until this year, if I had to pick 1 golfer to make a 5 footer to save my life I would always pick Tiger over Phil.  Right now the way both are playing I think I'd call Jack Nicklaus out of retirement.
3. I thought it was great when Phil won the Masters, but since then I have been very dissapointed in him. He has had the opportunity handed to him to take over the mythical world #1 ranking and has done nothing but shit the bed.  He clearly has shown that he hasn't been able to handle the pressure.  For someone who is supposedly the #2 player in the world, I can't imagine any pro playing worse!  It has almost come to the point of ridiculous how wild he is off the tee....I mean, he has trouble not only hitting a fairway, but even keeping a tee shot in play!  Then, the media wants to make a big deal about his flop shots, pitch shots, etc...for par when I feel they need to say "Hey, if you hadn't hit it 65 yards off target off the tee you wouldn't be in this position to hit shots to save pars."
4. I'm no pro swing coach, but to me Phil's problem are obvious.  Instead of swinging at 100% and trying to pound every tee shot, he would be best served to swing more under control and keep it in play. Maybe he won't hit it 320, but 290-300 yds will do just fine. He seems to concerned with keeping up with the youth on Tour and keeping his name in the long drive stats................Putting..Phil's supposed to be one of the best...I don't see it. Over the years if Phil had made all of the 3 foot putts he has missed he probably has another 1/2 dozen wins.  Maybe it's perception, but he seems to miss more very short putts than any other player I see on TV.   Again, is this mental toughness?
5. Finally, on Phil, somebody please take over as his wardrobe advisor! Maybe they're too afraid to tell Phil he doesn't wear a medium sized shirt anymore!  His shortsleeves shirts almost look cutoff sleeveless compared to Nut Marvel's Golf Shirts!      Plus, Phil your man boobs need more room to breath.     Finally, please get rid of the space age material shiney silver and gold pants.
6. Tiger's turn......we can all agree what Tiger did was indefenseable. No need to rehash that argument. But, what happened has been the shedding of his teflon exterior which gave him an adge over others. He had a capsule to hide within and create a strong mental exterior. Those walls have been broken. I don't wish him bad, nor do I feel bad for him!  He now has to learn to win again when he can't hide behind a mythical image.  Forgetting for a minute the reasons why, I can relate to going through a divorce with a child involved.  Believe me when I say this, It's almost amazing he has shot as well as he has with the thoughts which must go through his head! You may say Tiger was already used to being away from his kids when he would be away for a week at a time playing tournaments or traveling around the world.  That's wrong. There no comparison to choosing to be away for work related issues and helplessly being required or made to be seperated from your kid/s. You don't miss your kids when going to play a round of golf, cuz you know you're going home to see them. It's an all together different scenerio to play that same round knowing you're not going to them afterwards...................................Tiger will learn to cope. Time heals (or at least helps you accept.) I believe when Tiger does start to accept he'll play much better.......(as a side note, I believ Elin's decision to stay living in Florida will help Tiger cope. I give her credit for all she's been through to make the cmment that she has chosen to stay in Orlando so the kids can be near their father. I don't know her but this tells me something about her and solidifies the fact that she probably hasn't deserved what she's gotten.)
7. When you're the best player in the world, why are you going through another swing change? Unless for back or health related issues, what's the point Tiger?  See, here's where I think Tiger's conceitedness is hurting him. After 14 majors what's the point?  Is it because Tiger has pretty much conquered all there is in golf and this is more of a challenge?  To have people talk about how he has undergone some sort of transformation?    Stubbornness?     I think when they're in the middle of the fairway 150yds out Stevie Williams needs to hand Tiger his PW and say "listen, quitting trying a bunch of shit and just hit this damn 150 yd PW like you're capable of! I don't care what it looks like Just Do It Nike boy"!!!!!         Honestly, I think Tiger was a better player when Butch Harmon was his coach be fore Hank Haney.  I do know for a fact the stats say he was a ton more accurate off the tee under Butch.    Ironically, he was also hitting a Titleist driver then. Not Nike equipment.  I'm not engineer, but if you look at Tiger's stats driving, greens, fairways, etc... they were a lot better when he was playing Titleist equipment and not Nike irons and woods...........for thos who play Nike equipment, I'm just saying..................(by the way, I think Nike is raising the salary of their Vietnamese shoe plant from .10 cents and hour to .11.  Phil Knight may have to learn to live on $150 million and year as a result..  Poor guy)
8. Lastly,  Yes, I like John Daly too.  as well as Darren Clarke, Miguel Angel Jiminez.  Everyday guys who like golf, a good steak, cocktail and cigar.

As George said...If the vans a rocking, don't come knocking......

WHY?

I write this with great caution.  There are actually some on this blog who take some satisfaction from what I'm about to write about.....Some who have made fun of me......Some who will have "smart" remarks to my comments......But I do it anyway.

I just heard the news...Stephen Strasburg is not only "shut down" for the rest of the season, but has been diagnosed with a torn tendon and "MAY" require "Tommy John" surgery.   Wow!   What a blow to the Nationals organization and to the potential career of a young man.

Strasburg may be a jerk if you meet him in person.....but so far there have been no reports of jerk behavior or of illegal behavior or drug use.  Tony Gwynn, his former San Diego St coach and MLB Hall of Famer, has never had anything but goo things to say about Strasburg.   And Gwynn has the reputation of one of the best liked men in baseball.  Many thought it was appropriate that Gwynn and Cal Ripken were inducted into the HOF at the same time because of their reputations.

With that said, he, nor any young man, deserve this turn of fate.   I have watched him pitch and he was the best looking young prospect I've seen pitch.  Mark Prior couldn't hold his jock.  Kerry Wood had the speed, but not the menu of pitches.

Why did this happen?   The Nationals did everything along the way to coddle the guy. They never let him be overused in the minors nor in the majors....Maybe he threw too many breaking pitches?   When you throw 95-99 why not move the heater around?    Maybe it's the modern school of thought regarding pitch counts, days of rest, etc...       Only in recent years have pitchers been cut off at 100 pitches....  If you listen to some old timers they actually think this school of thought hurts the physicality of a pitcher.    There are tons of stories of a guy throwing 160 pitches in a game.......hell, Walter Johnson actually pitched BOTH games of a doubleheader!     Jim Palmer regularly threw more than 120 pitches a game....in 1975 Palmer was 23-11 with a 2.09 era....AND out of 38 starts he had  25 COMPLETE GAMES and pitched in another game and got a save! He also pitched 323 innings!   I think he had a pretty good career and a long one...

OK, I'm done.....go ahead throw what you got at me......

More is less....or is less more?

I'm curious as to the general opinion of the NFL's talk about going to an 18 game regular season schedule.

As you all know, the NFL currently plays 4 pre-season (exhibition) games and 16 regular season games.

During current NFL owners' meeting the discussion is being heard about changing to only 2 exhibition games with 18 regular season games.  What do you think?    Before you answer consider this......

Middle school teams play 6 games total.
Most high schools play 10 games total.
Div. 1 college used to only play 11 game seasons, and currently intermingle 12 game season every so often.
The NFL used to only play 12 game regular seasons in the '50's and very early '60's. Then they went to 6 pre-season games with 14 regular season games. This was through the rest of the '60's and all of the '70's. Then sometime in the '80's they went to the current setup.

Who out there has ever gone to a pre-season game?    I hardly watch pre-season games after the 1st half on TV let alone pay regular season prices to go to a game.   Call me sour, but why do people pay $100 a ticket and $8 a beer to go to a pre-season game??   ALso, why do people paint their faces and sport the mean, intense game face during their team's pre-season game?

I'm not sure if I'm a player I'd like it....  Face it, most starters don't play much in the pre-season because the risk of injury is too great.  Now play 18 instead of 16 games and that's a long season to try and get through without injury.........

As a fan, how does it affect the importance of each game?  Right now you can't afford to lose more than 4,5, or 6 games a year and have a chance for the playoffs.  Each game is so important and that's what makes the NFL so good.  Players can't take a game off.   That's what makes the NBA sucky.....too many games, too many teams make the playoffs....and you don't need to play hard every night!     Will 18 games take away from each game's intensity?

What do you think?


"Eat or be eaten"

Give me a home, where the "F"d up people don"t roam...

I'm writing this as an almost sort of therapy.  A sense to release some frustration..

Have you ever thought about buying a home in a place like Wyoming, South Dakota, etc...?  A simple home with a porch overlooking a 2 lane road or an expansive front yard with a dirt road leading back to your house.  To a town with 1 street running through it. A coffee shop and a barber. A place to get away from the majority of fucked up people in the world!!!  

Call me an isolationist if you want, but I'm sure you've all had contact with people who made you just want to go ballistic. Well, for those bloggers with young kids, just wait....there will be more occassions where it won't be your honor in question, but rather the protection of your kids.  And believe you me, even if your kids are wrong you defend them like Godzilla over Tokyo.  No body bothers me.....

My daughter and I just got done getting coffee, the morning paper, a bagel, etc... It's a lovely Saturday morning. The sun is shining and I'm hanging with my child. We're having a great time.   What to do next?????? I know!  There's a car show at 1st State Chev in Gtown.   I placed an ad in the brochure as a favor to an insured who's part of a car club.  Let's go!  Yea daddy, sounds like fun....

We get to the show. Looking at cars.... Pretty cool.  Then, my 12 yr old touches the door handle of a 1965 car of some type.... Immediately I said "Hey!, Don't touch. You can't open these cars"  ......Well, my daughter, not being a veteran of car shows says "OK". .........If you've ever been to one of these events, you know that most of the time the owners of these cars sit on fold outs chairs usually behind or somewhere around their cars....Ususally these old FUCKS didn't raise a finger to restore the ride. They simply bought it from the talented one who did....or you've got old fucks with newer cars like 'Vettes thinking they're some kind of car enthusiast.........I notice some old fuck with his fat old fuck wife giving us the eye.  I try not to look, but can't help it....I keep noticing him. We turn to look at his car.  I point at it. My daughter is about 6 inches away from the car.  Then it happens........old fuck with his cut off sleeve t-shirt walks over to us and starts lecturing on not touching the cars.   I, trying to be a responsible parent, say, "ok". Hey she didn't know. I told her not to touch.  Instead, old fuck wants to keep on.....wants to tell me how I should tell my child better......It was at this point that I could care less if my daughter had "keyed" the whole side of the shitty Chevelle of this guy.....climbed on the roof and jumped up and down until the roof dented in.......poured gasoline inside it and threw a match......I'm not taking this shit!   Told the guy to give it a break....go open another soda and a snack cake and have a seat. Don't tell me how to parent and get out of my face....Then his wife waddles over and wants to get involved. .....Tells me to leave and quit causing trouble....After I tell her that her jerk, viagra infested old fuck husband was the instigator I thought it might be wise for her to roll back to her extra support beach chair with the double cup holders cuz her tasty cake was melting in the sun. Wouldn't want to be responsible for her sugar getting low!......................................Lastly, the fuck asks if I own a car...my response "no, I'm a environmentalist and I ride a bike"

As we're walking away, my daughter wants to know "what's that guy's problem"?  It's at this point as a parent you feel a little embarrassed for taking part in a verbal altercation, but you also want them to know there are jerks in the world and that some people are just mad at the world and asses for no reason.    It's at this point to that you try not to let it, but the idea of walking around the car show is ruined. My blood is boiling.  If not for my daughter, I'd have to go back and have 1 more word..........

Before leaving mankind somewhat redeems itself as we do meet a man trying to sell a restored Bronco who just won't stop talking. Hell, I know every place that Bronco's been....Also met a man with a kit car, Bradley who asked if My daughter would like to sit in the car for a picture....we decline.....

There are good people, but it seems like the assholes have us out numbered....   When I retire you may need to take a plane, get on another small single engine plane to a grass covered runway airport...load up in a SUV until the road ends, then tie your pack to the back of a donkey and travel by foot until you get to a river, at which point your blindfolded and put on a raft. Only after being spun around 20 times after landing can you take off the blind fold and enter through my front gate......

Gimme somthin to talk about

We've had a very uneventful summer, which has led to very low blog activity.

But, now we have sensory overload of activity..   Summer's coming to an end.  (Some of us are going back to work....)

I'm curious to hear views on the following topics:

1. Bret Favre has unretired again.....  this time the Vikes actually sent 3 players to Favre's home to make a show of it......I find it all so boring and I wish Favre a bad year......Even more so, I'm embarrassed for the Minnesota Vikings.  They come across as weak and ball less.

2. Roger Clemens has been indicted by a grand jury for "lying" to Congress...........Are you happy or dissapointed?    I don't like Clemens and I'm sure he, like 90% of the players of his time, took PHDs, but here's my question - with 10% unemployment, BP killing the wildlife, energy costs rising and hurting the spending of the average family....doesn't Congress have more important things to spend their time with?

3. Phil Mickelson has been within a wedge of taking over the world's #1 only to triple bogey at every turn.  I'm not sure who the #1 player in the world is right now, but I do know it's not Phil.  I have never seen a pro player so wild off the tee.  Until Phil understands he doesn't need to hit every drive 310, he'll live in the rough.

4. The O's have been playing well since Showalter has taken over, but it's still hard for me to get excited.  I still see too many positions where there are great needs...and players who I know won't be with the club 2 years from now and some even next year.................Here's my thoughts, you may disagree and that's ok....They need a solid 1st baseman.  Luke Scott and Wiggington are not answers.  Scott can't hit a lefty to save his ass, plus he's 32 yrs old........ Wiggy would be good to keep as a bench player next year because he can play so many positions and plays hard, but every day has got to go.  He's also 32, plus he's fat.
Shortstop......I like Izturis....sometimes......but I want a SS who has a little more offensive game. So far this year he's hitting .241....................We need a 4th outfielder...That assumes "Apple" Pie can stay healty long enough to be considered a starter!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   Where have you gone Mr. Reimold??????
Here's my list of current roster players I would not invite or get rid of before spring training next year:
Mark Hendrickson
Kevin Millwood
Julio Lugo
Alfredo Simon  (I'm tired of seeing 9th inning home runs)

5. Both college football and the NFL will start soon........I'm anxious to see Notre Dame under Brian Kelly. They had one of the strongest recruiting classes (top 20) and so far they have several committments for next year's class..........I hope Kevin Kolb has a good year.......Hope Brett Favre doesn't.......the Raiders look to be much improved......can the Redskins be better?

6. Tiger Woods......don't really have much to say, but how can I not list his name.


Don't forget where you're going, cuz you might end up where you've been!

Who ya got???

PGA Championship starts today. Who do you think will win??? I'll go with Ernie Els. I don't know why.

Thank God, but don't get excited just yet...

I'm working....TV is on in the background.....not much, except ESPN is doing nothing but talking about the apparent rumor that Brett Favre has text messaged that he's not coming back....ESPN 2 same thing.....Can it be true?   Has the end of an era come to a close?    I sure hope so!

Favre is/was a good player. Had his time.  What really has got me tired of him has been Favre himself and ESPN's love affair with him.  God, I hope Lebron or Tiger don't retire soon, or the NFL decides to do away with the draft, because if they did ESPN would have to cut it's programming back to just 2 hours a day!

The talk already is do you think he's really done....could he end up coming back at some point this season?  Herm Edwards on ESPN even said he wasn't counting it yet, there's still time before the 1st game. Matter of fact he went so far as to say the Vikes ought to keep the door open at ANY point this season for Favre to come back. Welcome him with open arms, even if it were the 10th week of the season!  I already think the Vikes are whores and a laughing stock for being held hostage. If they allow him to come back right before the opening week or during the season, i will never have any ounce of respect for them again.

Now, I'm not totally a Peyten Manning fan, but I will give him credit as a leader. He was the last Colt player to leave after the end of last season and he was the 1st Colt player to arrive at camp this season.

If it's true,  great!   

What will ESPN have to talk about?