Pete Rose

A lot of people are interested in whether the all-time hits leader Pete Rose should be allowed induction into the Hall of Fame.  Some think Rose should be given a second chance in baseball.  Rose was accused of betting on his Cincinnati Reds team, while managing.  Rose won't admit and apologize for the fact that he bet on the game.  If Rose was to apologize, commissioner Selig could overturn commissioner Bart Giamatti's lifetime ban.  I am with those who believe we have to protect the integrity of the game.  Overturning this ban wold be saying that if you break the rules and throw enough of a PR (public relations) fire storm, well everything can be corrected.  Rules are rules and they are posted on every clubhouse door and like breaking any rule there are consequences.  On the one hand Pete Rose is being his own worst enemy, by not admitting whether this document which said he bet on the game is right or Wong.  By not speaking the truth Pete is wrong, if Pete wants a second chance he has to become a team player.  At the time of his lifetime ban a lot MLB stars, such as Nolan Ryan stood up for commissioner Giamatti and said thank you for protecting the integrity of this great game.  Pete Rose's accomplishments are still celebrated, he has bats and jersey's in the Hall of Fame and his records are still in the books, he just ha sent been inducted.  The pete Rose figure has been banned, his accomplishments have not                

conference Championship Weekend: wrap

We had eight straight hours of really good football yesterday.  Both games were decided by field goals, one was made and one was missed.  In the AFC game, the Baltimore Ravens were ready for the New England Patriots.  Quarterback, Joe Flacco showed how good he can be and was able to go shot for shot with Tom Brady (NE/QB) who did not have his offense clicking on all cylinders.  Baltimore had a few chances to win the game, they seemed to come unraveled when the sideline didn't have a firm grasp on what they were doing on the final drive, including not having, kicker Billy Cundiff ready to send the game to overtime, he missed and the Patriots won.  Brady got bailed out by his defense yesterday, by his own admission.  Maybe they we're lucky, but its football and the New England Patriots are going back to the Super Bowl.  In the NFC game, we had an old fashioned game played in wind and rain between the San Francisco 49ers and New York Giants.  This game had a few key turnovers that swung the momentum back towards the Giants.  This was a defensive battle for most of the game, Alex Smith (QB/SF) wasn't doing much out side of a a couple long passes to Vernon Davis and Eli Manning got knocked down a lot, between making some key passes to Bradshaw, Cruz, Manningham, and Pascoe. (among others) Towards the end of the game both offenses were going three and out, neither defense was giving up anything.  The Giants got two big breaks from the niners special teams, on a punt Kyle Williams, who was receiving punts for San Francisco heisted and tried to field a bouncing ball that was live when he touched it, which led to the first Giant touchdown of the game.  In overtime Williams fumbled another punt which lead to a Lawrence Tynes field goal for the NFC Championship.  For the second time in four years we'll have a NY Giant and NE Patriot matchup in the Super Bowl.               

Conference Championship Weekend: picks

Its time to crown the two conference champions in the NFL and see who moves on to Super Bowl XLVI in Indianapolis.  These playoffs have been interesting as we've had teams get hot and others who we though were super loose, some very good football games.
Championship Game: Picks
1) In the AFC, the Baltimore Ravens will travel to New England.  The Ravens have a solid defense and a  probably a more complete team overall, although their offense can be hit or miss at times.  The Patriots lack much of a defense but can put up a record number of touchdowns.  I don't see the Ravens being able to stop the Patriots and Tom Brady long enough to score, their own points.  I'll pick the New England Patriots (-7) to beat the Baltimore Ravens at home and punch their ticket to Indy. NE Patriots -7
2) In the NFC, the New York Giants travel to San Francisco to face the 49ers.  Both teams are very complete and will be healthy for this game.  The last time these teams played it came down to a batted ball when Eli Manning was trying to drive the Giants down to tie the score.  Alex Smith (SF/QB) has grown up a lot now that he is in the right offense, but he is after all young and in basically the first year of the Jim Harbaugh offense.  This game may come down to the last play again but I think the veteran Eli Manning and his explosive wide receivers, will make more plays then the younger Smith.  Both teams have defenses that will bend, but not break.  I'll pick the NY Giants (+2.5) on the road to beat the San Francisco 49ers and punch a ticket to Indy.  NY Giants +2.5          

Divisional weekend-wrap

After an interesting and in some ways exciting divisional weekend, we can now begin to get set for conference championship games.  This week the AFC games went, pretty much as we though they would and the NFC games provided most of the fireworks.  In the AFC the home teams won and they were the better teams, but in the NFC only one of the two home teams that were playing won, maybe the bye week isn't all it's cracked up to be.
In the first game the New Orleans Saints who are not the same team on the road that they are at home in their dome, went down to the wire but lost to the San Francisco 49ers.  for the most part both of these teams traded shots for about 3 and a half quarters. when Drew Brees drove his team down the field for the tying touchdown he left too much time on the clock for Alex smith.  The Saints got caught with the wrong coverage, near the 49er end zone and Alex smith threw for the win.  John Harbaugh has brought confidence back to San Francisco, and Alex Smith after going through 7 defensive coordinators has found a coach who has confidence in him.  In the night cap the New England Patriots offenese proved to much for Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos.  If you're the Patriots, you don't need a great defense if it's going to be on the sideline while your offense scores 40+ points in 30+ minutes.            
On Sunday the Houston Texans rookie quarterback, T.J Yates made some mistakes which cost his team the game against the Baltimore Ravens.  The Ravens team is not stellar but they have some playmakers on that team.  Houston will be back they have a rookie quarterback who grew up a lot in his last 7 starts.  The New York Giants came out and beat the heavily favored Green Bay Packers.  Eli Manning has achieved elite status, I think its safe to say now.  Eli connected with his receiving core (Hakeem Nicks, Mario Mannigham, and Victor Cruz) (Manningham on a big catch and run and Nicks on a hail mary right before the half) and the defense came up big when it counted.  It helped the Giant cause, that Aaron Rodgers (Packers quarterback) missed a couple of wide open receivers.  The refs did not help as they overturned a fumble call which should have given the Giants the ball and they called a bogus ruffing the passer penalty which extended a Packer drive.                
In one of the Conference Championship games, on Sunday the NY Giants will be in San Francisco the Giants have been installed as a slight underdog but they should have won earlier in the season, so us fans can be confident.  In the AFC the Baltimore Ravens will be in Foxboro to face the Patriots, the Ravens are the more complete team but will they be able to stop the Patriots offense.    

Divisional weekend picks (NFL)

We've made it to the last big weekend of football for the season.  The no.1's and 2's will be back in action this week.  Having the week off can de both good and bad, it can get your team healthy and some rest or time off can get you out of your rhythm.
Divisional Weekend Picks:
1) The New Orleans Saints head west to take on the surprise team in the San Francisco 49ers.  San Francisco is back in the thick of things, under their new coach.  The Saints are not the same team on the road that they are at home, (in the dome) but the Saints have a lot of weapons.  I'll pick the New Orleans  Saints (-3.5) on the road in San Francisco.  Saints -3.5
2)  The Denver Broncos travel to New England to play the Patriots.  Its been a long time since the Patriots won a playoff game and even though the defense can be scary at times, the Patriots don't loose much at home this season.  Denver has a good team but on the road in the playoffs, I think Tim Tebow has run out of lack.  I'll pick the New England Patriots (-13.5) at home over the Denver Broncos.  Patroits -13.5
3) The Houston Texans who got a win last weekend, travel to Baltimore to take on the Ravens.  The Texans are a young team with a rookie quarterback and the Raven team should prove to much for them to handle.  I'll pick the Baltimore Ravens (-7.5) at home over the Houston Texans.   Ravens -7.5
4) The NY Giants travel to Green Bay to take on the Packers. I think the Giants are prepared to have a good game on Sunday (the pass rush will have to be there), although the key will be to control the ball and limit Aaron Rodgers and the Packers possessions.  Aaron Rodgers and the Packers are very good at spreading the wealth on offense, I think its kind of a perfect storm for the Packers having a bye, (their all healthy) having a funeral to rally around, and their home.  I'll pick the Green Bay Packers at home over the giants (+7.5).  Packers win, Giants +7.5 get the spread                          

Divisional Weekend picks (NFL)

Its almost time for divisional weekend football.  We've been previewing all of these match-ups, all week and it's almost game time.  We have the winners from last weekend playing those teams with byes, into this round.    
Divisional Weekend: Picks
1) The New Orleans Saints head west to play the San Francisco 49ers.  The 49ers have played very well this season but they may not be ready for prime time yet.  the Saints are going to be on the grass in San Francisco, at times they have looked like a different team on the road. (on grass as opposed to the dome)  Unless we get some bad weather in San Francisco, the Saints should be fine.  I'll Pick the Saints to come away with the victory in San Francisco against the 49ers.  
2) The Denver Broncos are in New England for a rematch with the Patriots.  Denver got a nice win in overtime last week, this week the Tebow magic might be over.  The Patriots have a real good offense and don't loose at home.  The Broncos couldn't beat them in Denver and won't this time either, I'll pick Tom Brady and the Patriots over Tim Tebow and the Broncos in New England.  

Jorge Posada

In the near feature, longtime Yankee catcher Jorge Posada will announce his retirement.  He was drafted as a second baseman before moving behind the plate.  Jorge made his major League Debut in September of 1995, as a back up to current Yankee Manager Joe Girardi, eventually becoming the primary catcher himself.  Last season his role on the team was significantly reduced as he became the full time designated hitter (DH) before loosing playing time to Andruw Jones.  His highlight moment of last season came when he won the AL East with a single, and continued his hot hitting into the playoffs.  After making only one emergency catching appearance in the final year of his contract, last season he could have singed with another team, but chose to retire a Yankee.  Posada leaves with a .275 career batting average, an .374 OPS, 5 World Series titles and is in the top 10 among Yankees in most categories including xtra base hits, games played, home runs, and doubles.  He is third in games played behind fellow catchers Yogi Berra and Bill Dickey.  He will leave behind a great Yankee legacy in which he cared about his teammates, while having a lot of heat himself and did it all with out complaining.  This season he was on the bench as teammates Derek Jeter achieved 3,000 hits and Marino Riviera reached 600 saves.  Jorge was a great power hitting, switch hitting catcher for 19 years.  He will probably be on the outside looking in although borderline, in terms of the hall of fame, since he was aways a good player (great Yankee) but not a star player.  As the second member of the core 4 retires (Andy Pettitte already hung them up) (Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera are left), the Yankees move on without someone who won 5 world titles, with the team.                            

Baseball Hall of Fame: 2012

The Baseball writers association voted Barry Larkin into the Baseball Hall of Fame, in Cooperstown NY today.  Larkin was a great all around player, you could argue he was a better all around player than Cal Ripken and Ozzie Smith.  He hit a respectable .295 and had an on base percentage (ops) of .815 for his career.  He wasn't going to blow you out of the water with gaudy numbers but he was very consistent for his entire 19 year career, which was all played at Shortstop.  It will be an emotional day in late July, in upstate New York, when Barry Larkin (CIN) and Ron Santo (veterans comitte voted him in a couple month ago) (CHC) are welcomed into the Hall of Fame.
         

Wild Card weekend wrap up

After an interesting weekend of football, the divisional round is set.  In the wide open AFC that still anyone can win, I picked wrong in both games.  The Houston Texans defeated the Cincinnati Bengals, in this game both teams came in with rookie quarterbacks but Houston utilized all of their weapons better as they were able to use both tight ends and a running back to take pressure of the young T.J Yates.  The Bengals made to many mistakes and Houston won their wild card game and now have a date in Baltimore, next Saturday.  The Bengals will be back since they have a young team, a rookie quarterback, and a stockpile of draft picks.  In the next game, New Orleans was slow to get started but after allowing Detroit to hang around for a half, they came out in the second half and let their offensive show what its made of.  The Saints have a good offensive line to protect drew Brees and then they can give the ball to a trio or running backs.  The New Orleans Saints will be out west, in San Francisco next week.  The NY Giants sent the Atlanta Falcons to their third straight playoff loss.  Mike Smith had his Falcon team go for it twice on fourth down, instead of getting the much needed points on the road.  Victor Cruz had a quiet day catching the ball, as he drew a lot of double coverage.  The Giants were able to find a running game and Eli connected with Hakeem Nicks for a couple big catches.  Now the New York Giants travel to lambeau to face the Green Bay Packers next week.  Tim Tebow found a little more magic, as the Denver Broncos beat the Pittsburgh Steelers.  The Steelers came into this game a little banged up and the Injuries mounted throughout the game, even Roethlisberger re-injured his ankle.  Tim Tebow threw the ball well and he will now lead his team into Foxboro for a rematch with the Patriots.                  

Penn State

Who is Bill O'Brien, Penn State has hired the New England Patriots offensive coordinator for their head coaching position.  This guy was a virtual unknown to some people and on nobodies short list for head coaching gigs, anywhere.  O'Brien has no head coaching experience and is currently on the pro level.  He has been the offensive coordinator at Duke University (not known for football) and Georgia Tech, both teams did not do very well while he was their.  I agree that the University had to clean house, but a guy in the college ranks may have been a better choice.  O'Brien has to rebuild this program and that won't be easy with out any head coaching experience, he's going to try and replace a legend in Paterno as well.  O'Brien should be able to hire his own staff, since he doesn't know anyone their and no one on the current staff should be brought back unless they can prove that they didn't know anything.  He better assemble a good staff that can do recruiting for him because the Patriots are in the playoffs, (he might be with them awhile) the school has no top one hundred recruits left and he might miss national singing day.                

Wild Card Weekend

We now get ready for another year of playoffs in the NFL, and a number of teams (12) can be come Super Bowl champions.  This time of year, things rarely go according to plan as, number one seeds hardly ever win the whole thing.  A team just needs to get hot and it won't matter what seed you are, anything can happen in the NFL's, one and done playoffs.  Although there are favorites in every game, they don't always win.
Wild Card Picks:
1)  First up, the #3 Houston Texans who are led by a rookie quarterback host the #6 Cincinnati Bengals who are also by a rookie quarterback.  The Bengals have more talent but might be a little ahead of their time.  I don't see many points being put up by either team in this one.  I'll pick the Bengals (+3) on the road in Houston, to put up more points than their opponent.  Cincinnati Bengals +3         
2)  Saturday night, the #6 Detroit Lions go into the Super dome to face the #3 New Orleans Saints.  Their will be a lot of points scored in this game, the Lions are vulnerable to the stupid penalities and the Saint offense is very potent.  I'll pick the New Orleans Saints (-10.5), who don't loose at home to stop the Detroit Lions.  New Orleans Saints -10.5
3)  First up on Sunday afternoon, the #4 New York Giants host the #5 Atlanta Falcons.  The Falcons are a very different team on the road as opposed to their dome and even though they have a good team, I don't discount the fact that they are out side and possibly in cold weather.  The Giants great pass rush is back, and don't forget they have a quarterback and a head coach who has done it before.  I'll pick the NY Giants (-3) at home over the Atlanta Falcons.  NY Giants -3    
4) The second game on Sunday will set up the divisional round match ups, the #4 Denver Broncos welcome the #5 Pittsburgh Steelers to the Mile High City.  the Broncos have some good players on defense, especially on the edge but I think teams have figured out how to play against the Tim Tebow, Option.  Although the Steelers come in with some injuries, Troy Polamalu and company may be to much.  I'll pick the Pittsburgh Steelers (-8.5) on the road in Denver, over the Broncos.  Pittsburgh Steelers -8.5  

NFL Playoffs

The NFL Playoffs are set and in the AFC, the New England Patriots and Baltimore Ravens will get byes into the next round of the playoffs.  The other four teams will be playing on Wild Card Weekend.  The Cincinnati Bengals who have been playing well behind rookie quarterback Andy Dalton, the Bengals time will come but I think its in a a year or two.  The Houston Texans will be playing the Bengals, Houston is on something like their fourth quarterback, I don't expect the Texans to be around for long.  Is their any Tim Tebow magic left, they'll have to rely on it, even though their defense isn't bad.  The Pittsburgh Steelers and quarterback Ben Roethlisberger know how to win come playoff time.  Baltimore has a good defense and a decent offense.  The Patriots have a great offense, but that defense scares me.  In what is a wide open AFC, which I can see any of these teams win.  I'll go with a New England, Baltimore Conference Championship, with Baltimore coming out on top.  In the NFC Green Bay, who has looked beatable at times although quarterback Aaron Rodgers does a great job distributing the ball, will get a bye along with San Francisco who coach Jim Harbaugh has turned around in only a few months.  The Atlanta Falcons are a different team on the road, may be in for a short stay play the NY Giants who after beating Dallas to win the division has the pass rush (Jason Pierre-paul, Tuck, and Kinwinaka) and the quarterback receiver duo (manning to Cruz) to make some noise.  Detroit has to stop taking stupid penalties and play some football or they'll be eaten up by Drew Brees and the Saints.  I believe the teams in the NFC are the Green Bay Packers, New Orleans Saints, and New York Giants.  I believe the last two teams standing in the Conference will be the Packer and Saints with the Saints coming out on top.            
            

The Jet Collapse

Its playoff time, some teams are still alive and on the road to Super Bowl XLVI and some went packing.  The Jets and coach Rex Ryan were one of the teams sent packing.  Santonio Holmes had an on field disagreement and was benched by (should be out going) offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer.  My issue here is Rex Ryan and his constant talk.  Rex's talk and guarantees were cute and fun when he got here, (3 years ago) now its old and cheap.  The Jets collapsed (8-8) this year, after Rex guaranteed a Super Bowl.  Rex has to take a more active role in this team, not knowing whats happening with your team (Santonio Holmes) is not acceptable, he's the head coach. (the Head coach is supposed to know every thing about his team, every player, every play call, and rout run)