By Steve Rhodes
I hate the White Sox but some of the hand-wringing over the acquisition of Manny Ramirez is driving me crazy. Bottom line: The team is better with him than without him.
So what’s the problem?
Posted on August 31, 2010
SportsMonday: Bears Not Safe For Work
By Jim Coffman
So I guess we’ll have to make an exception to our “preseason games don’t matter” mantra.
Because late Saturday it was the Bears themselves (and even Lovie, kind of, after the head coach tried to blame it all on a couple botched field goals) who were acknowledging their concerns after this season’s third such game, the game that many believe is slightly less inconsequential than the rest of the preseason.
After all, this is traditionally the one where the starters play longer and try to execute at least a little bit of regular-season type game-planning.
So in the spirit of this game mattering a tiny bit more than not at all, I have a few observations.
Posted on August 30, 2010
Q Ball
By Marty Gangler
The Cubs still stink, but they seem to stink a little less in the Mike Quade era.
It’s nice to have someone managing the team again.
And I must admit I was impressed during his pregame interview on Sunday with Ron Santo he called Jeff Baker “Bakes” and James Russell “Russ.”
I mean, Lou Pinella has been calling these guys, “that other second baseman we have that I don’t play much” and “that one kid in the bullpen.”
Here are some improvements we’ve noticed under Quade:
Posted on August 30, 2010
Cleveland West
By Andrew Reilly
How ironic that we can only now finally say the Kotsay/Jones experiment ever amounted to anything significant, even if its greatest contributions were in its dismantling and abandonment in favor of yet another chance to win the 1996 World Series for the city of Cleveland. From Albert Belle to Kenny Lofton to Bartolo Colon to Jim Thome and now to Manny Ramirez, the South Side is littered with the remains of former Cleveland Indian superstars; here’s hoping the new guy can do more for us then he did for them.
Week in Review: Even. Take two of three from the terrible O’s, but drop two of three to the goddamned Yankees for a week of .500 ball.
Week in Preview: Earning. Three for the taking at Cleveland followed by three for the money in Boston.
Posted on August 30, 2010
TrackNotes: The Mid-Summer Derby
By Thomas Chambers
As the dog days of summer evaporate, we – or at least I – begin the buildup to the Breeders’ Cup.
If nothing else, its prevents overdosing on the NFL – good medicine in these parts – and provides an opportunity to fine-tune handicapping on horses we’ve seen most of the year.
This week, we have what I think is annually one of the top races, The Travers Stakes at Saratoga. Saturday, it’s the 141st edition of the “Mid-Summer Derby.”
Posted on August 27, 2010
The College Football Report: Coach Joker, Correspondent Kardashian & Coed Hostess Hotness
By Mike Luce
With the September 2 season kickoff just around the corner, the College Football Report welcomes you to our two-part Preseason Special. Break out the books, sharpen your pencils and for godssakes wipe that barbecue sauce off your face. We’re going to back to school!
First, we will take a look at the offseason – the stories, the coaching changes and the controversies that have kept college football in the news since January. In the second half of our kickoff coverage, we will offer up the Beachwood Sports predictions for the upcoming season. Should we be able to call him home from his summer mating grounds, we’ll also welcome the return of the Beachwood Sports Seal.
In this issue: a head coach named Joker, the BCA, FBS, USC, the UAAA, the Big Ten Plus Two, Big Five-Sixths, Pac-(10*1.2), Correspondent Kardashian, the vindication of Al Davis, Coach Sark vs. Coach Smirk, hot coeds, a Golden Hurricane, a seventh BCS conference and a slew of NCAA investigations.
Posted on August 27, 2010
Fantasy Fix: Greg Olsen vs. Johnny Knox
By Dan O’Shea
The age of the do-it-all tight end began about five years ago with the rise of guys like Alge Crumpler, Antonio Gates, Tony Gonzalez, Randy McMichael and Todd Heap. Jason Witten and Dallas Clark followed. Last year’s discoveries were Vernon Davis and Visanthe Shiancoe, who led TEs in TDs with 13 and 11, respectively. This year’s star will be Jermichael Finley.
TE is a position where you can’t expect a ton of receiving yards or a lot of TDs, so why not gamble on who you think will be the next big thing. Here’s how I’d pick TEs this season:
Posted on August 25, 2010
What To Expect In The Mike Quade Era
By The Beachwood Interim Affairs Desk
* Brisker trips to the mound.
* Batting leadoff, Starlin Qastro!
* An end to waiting for the manager to kick dirt on an umpire in order to change the team’s fortunes.
* Seventh-inning stretch will always be sung by Joel Quenneville.
* The party’s over, Soriano.
* Your new right fielder, Carlos Quentin!
Posted on August 23, 2010
Why Lou Left Early
By Steve Rhodes
The Cub Factor has learned that – with all due respect to Lou Piniella’s ailing mother – the Cubs skipper called it a career early for a host of other reasons:
* Got a better offer from the Shady Oaks Retirement Home’s softball team in Tampa.
* He’s finally going into labor.
* He can’t believe Jim Hendry still has his job either.
* Coma patients who awaken often make rash decisions.
Posted on August 23, 2010
SportsMonday: Young Girls Seeing Stars
By Jim Coffman
We had my daughter Alana’s small ninth birthday party at the Red Stars women’s soccer game at Toyota Park on Sunday. Taking a page from the Blackhawk book, the team started the game at 5 p.m. (a few years ago, the Blackhawks decided to move up the start time on many Sunday evening games to 6 p.m. – and parents everywhere thanked them for it).
Most of the park was closed for the contest, which the home team lost 3-2 to a squad actually called FC Pride. Before games, boring soccer teams who can’t think for themselves parade their players onto their home pitch holding hands with kids because that’s what teams do in the top leagues and at the World Cup. I’m thinking pre-game FC Pride parades have to be far more entertaining.
Posted on August 23, 2010