- 04:48 AM
- 04/20/24
Many apologies. Didn't mean to hurt feelings and ruffle feathers. My predictions would be no better.
posted by Bixby23 at 04:12 AM on October 27, 2006
wow , denver over indy and minnesota over the pats? that's making a statement, hoser. -- posted by lil_brown_bat lbb , i look at it like this -- if you're going to suck in a very public way ... at least do it with some gusto. -- posted by wfrazerjr I think not using a splell chkeker makes you suck in a very public way. Dude needs to proofread those predictions.
posted by Bixby23 at 10:48 PM on October 26, 2006
Over the past week at Athletics Nation (A's blog), lots of fans have been praying for a matchup with the Tigers. Not that playing Detroit would be a ton easier, but at least there's no Santana over there. Now everyone's just saying "We're all gonna die!!!" That said, I pick the A's in 6 over the Padres.
posted by Bixby23 at 04:27 AM on October 02, 2006
I don't share the Tuohys enthusiastically religious attitude, which I find ignorant and largely backwards, nor Sue Mitchell's overly liberal arts-minded attitude (Big Mike is going to somehow relate to the rags-to-riches themes of "Great Expectations" and "Pygmalion"!? Fer cryin' out loud, lady, get a grip!) . . . . . . but I've never considered doing anything as charitable, so before I get too self-righteous and smarmy about all of the things I find wrong with these people, let me just shut up.
posted by Bixby23 at 12:44 AM on September 25, 2006
I've conducted some thorough research (erm, I checked one or two sports-med websites) and it doesn't seem particularly rare for people to be playing sports a week after undergoing an appendectomy. That said, Cowher's gonna look like a Grade-A doofus if Big Ben gets hurt as a result of not forcing him to fully rest up for an additional week. Batch did a decent job with the (mostly) dink & dunk passing game last week. Even though it's MNF, I'd still let Batch take snaps for an additional week.
posted by Bixby23 at 01:48 AM on September 13, 2006
Brilliant quote. Caught him right at that crossroads between, "Gotta push myself harder to be the best" and "Hey, pass me some o' them li'l yeller pills."
posted by Bixby23 at 01:24 PM on October 13, 2005
I don't know if anyone saw yesterday's Financial Times, but Sepp Blatter (president of Fifa) wrote an article claiming that football has fallen victim to "a wild west sort of capitalism." He asks what could be the value in paying "sometimes foul-mouthed" 20 year olds sums that their fathers couldn't have earned in a decade. It's a really good article for those with FT subscriptions or access to Wednesday's print edition. Though it borders on preaching socialism, I think it's worth reading.
posted by Bixby23 at 08:19 PM on October 12, 2005
mcstan, I think the writer was also a bit skeptical about "intimacy" in saying that intimacy is baseball owner-speak for "artificial ticket scarcity." This is different from your point, I know, and good ol' Bud S. has long since declared Oakland a small-market venue, but I do think the "intimate" setting is intended more with an optimistic outlook on demand and is more likely a scheme to gouge fans' wallets than just a realistic take on what the market will bear -- though I've long believed baseball owners actually make all their profit on the $5.00 hot dogs. Whether the final product looks much like this or not, I'm glad the A's will finally be free of McAfee Downs or whatever it's called these days. The "Black Hole" definitely suits the Silver-and-Black-Attack Raider machismo, but it's always seemed to me to be too dark and dank for the cheery gold and green colors of the Athletics.
posted by Bixby23 at 12:53 AM on September 16, 2005
I don't disagree with you at all Stealth_72, but I wonder if there really aren't lots of hard working, community-minded, quiet types -- perhaps not nearly so talented as Rice in his prime -- that simply don't get the accolades they deserve. If so, I suspect it will always be thus. We just can't help but stare at bigmouth, mirror-kissing standouts like T.O., screwups like Ryan Leaf, potheads like Rickey W., and every other walking Jerry Springer show in the NFL. Either way, Rice has earned his spot in history, and not only can nobody catch him -- nobody's even close.
posted by Bixby23 at 05:54 AM on September 06, 2005
A good estimate of his statistical legacy is provided by John Clayton on ESPN: Moss has 574 catches and would have to average 100 catches a year for the next 10 years to catch Rice. That means he would have to play until he was 38. Harrison has 845 catches and he's 33. To catch Rice, he would have to average 101 catches a year the next seven years and retire at the age of 40. Owens, who has 669 catches would have to average 100 receptions for close to nine seasons to get there. Ray Ratto's article on the same topic is, however, a far better read than either the rather stiff Clayton or the way-too-flip-and-clever-for-you Gene (obscure reference) Wojciechowski, who gets a bit tiresome for my taste.
posted by Bixby23 at 09:16 PM on September 05, 2005
I like whichever one screams the loudest.
posted by Bixby23 at 08:31 PM on September 04, 2005
lilnemo, maybe I misunderstood the source of LIONSROAR's ire, but as I read it I'd thought he was referring specifically to that point about the writer changing the by-line from "Chris" to "Christina." Still, there are only two ways for even that to be distracting to a reader of Kahrl's material. If the reader had known Kahrl's original gender somehow (i.e., that Chris originally stood for "Christopher" or whatever), then the sudden appearance of "Christina" would, I agree, be distracting, at least until the reader encountered the article posted above or else convinced himself that, no other explanation seeming probable, the writer's wife or fraternal twin sister had taken over Christopher's job. Given the relative anonymity of most sportswriters, though, it seems unlikely that a reader would have known for a fact that Kahrl was originally male. Conversely, if the reader had no knowledge of the writer's original gender, then the only other way this could be distracting for the reader is if he's just another sexist prick uncomforatble with reading articles and baseball stats not prepared by a man. On the other hand, if LIONSROAR was referring to the article in its entirety and not the mere change in by-line, then I agree that he should have read the article more carefully. For shame... LIONSROAR, regardless of what you were referring to, I think your all-caps posting, criminal misuse of "whom" (should reference an object, not a subject), and blatant misspelling of "acceptance" are at least as distracting as the "Christina" factor. Edit thyself.
posted by Bixby23 at 08:50 PM on August 29, 2005
Love the "Chris Codiroli years" bit. I suffered through those, as did every other A's fan, but had never heard that expression before. Perfect term for that sad era when the most exciting thing the A's could deliver was Shooty Babbit blowing a bubble while rounding third base. And about the sex-change thing... I must respond with an enthusiastic "ho hum." Just keep the stats coming.
posted by Bixby23 at 10:11 PM on August 28, 2005
Maybe Cincy could lure Jerry Tarkanian out of retirement (been done before...)
posted by Bixby23 at 12:13 AM on August 24, 2005
Fernando Valenzuela was a preety beeg dood, no?
posted by Bixby23 at 01:59 AM on July 15, 2003
The Japanese, the Cubans, even the Canadians, for goodness' sake. And the Dominicans! Imagine a team with A. Rod, Sosa, Pedro Martínez, and Vladimir Guerrero, and Felipe Alou to manage—it would be the Brazil of baseball. Excellent post, mert. That article is really worth reading twice, at least. The text above really caught my imagination. I like the idea of giving "true meaning to the World Series," as he says, by inviting Suzuki, Sosa, and all foreign players to "step outside" maybe once every four years, so we can invite them back to play against us. I recognize that this is not the writer's main point, but only an example of how cool it might be if we Americans were not so insular about the sports we love. It may be that we will have to wait for Bud and the greedy players to kill off the Major Leagues before such an internationalization of the sport could be developed.
posted by Bixby23 at 11:14 PM on July 14, 2002
That wasn't a particularly readable comment, now that I look at it, but I hope my point got across somehow anyway...sorry...
posted by Bixby23 at 03:32 AM on July 08, 2002
I remember when, right after the LA Olympics (I think), when Mike Tyson came on the scene as a pro and was consistently winning fights by KO within the first three rounds, and sportswriters everywhere were declaring boxing a dead sport because Tyson had taken all the suspense out of it. Things change.
posted by Bixby23 at 03:30 AM on July 08, 2002
Well, I'd say ol' Dave Carr from the Houston Texans gets my pick because he's a great, young QB with a brand new team that could surprise some people, but really, I'm just saying that because I basically idolize anybody from FSU (that's Fresno, not Florida) that makes it to the pros, and, more importantly, I generally favor the Texans anyway because their cheerleaders are so much better looking than the Cowgirls , who all look like Barbie Dolls to me, or the Raiderettes, who all look like/are? drugged-out prostitutes (this is not a thread hijack, although upon rereading, it really, really looks like one...sorry).
posted by Bixby23 at 03:11 AM on July 08, 2002
Ken Griffey Jr. (I know that isn't exactly what you meant, but his return to Cinci has been less than successful by any measure). And he whines more than an entire Italian football side. Or is that a low blow?
posted by Bixby23 at 02:49 AM on July 05, 2002
I already disagree with the guy, and I can't even get past the first sentence. The Olympics has absolutely nothing on the World Cup. Just our stinking American influence that makes it somehow un-PC to suggest that sum sawkuhr tuhrnamin might be more popular than the Olympics. Okay, I'll shaddup now and go back and read the rest of the story. Sorry...
posted by Bixby23 at 08:49 PM on July 04, 2002
And Korea is largely Baptist...the pattern continues. I, too, am a bit unnerved after reading the ranking procedures. Yikers is right. And what, after all, does "Strenght of the opponent" mean? What's a strenght? You got a strenght? I ain't got no strenght...
posted by Bixby23 at 10:08 PM on July 03, 2002
jnthnjng: Thanks for that. Made me think of this In the last few weeks I've heard lots of people criticize Brazil particularly for having a weak defense, but I sure didn't see anything weak about their D last night against Turkey. Not that the Turks have the strongest finishing side I've ever seen, but they pressed pretty concertedly for the entire match and were beaten at just about every turn. It seems to me that Brazil's defense is average at worst. But then, football fans don't criticize a team in such overwhelming numbers without reason, so I wish someone here would enlighten the dumb 'Mer'cun on just why their play is supposedly so pitiful. I know there's been a lot said here about that, but I still don't get it. They seemed exciting enough to me during the tournament. Also, yet another note about Korea. I'd assumed everyone knew why their fans all held signs that read "Corea" instead of "Korea", but I heard a BBC announcer (shouldn't say that -- he had a Brit accent, so I assume he was BBC) wonder aloud about this during the Portugal match. He suggested that that's how Korea is spelled in Portuguese. I dunno about that, but that definitely is not the reason. You see, C comes before J, whereas K... Folks over there really have a complex about this.
posted by Bixby23 at 09:36 PM on June 26, 2002
By the way, just to give you just some idea of how the co-hosts view one another (as if you didn't already know), this cheap little flash, even though it's all in Japanese, will give you the gist of it. The title translates loosely to something like, "K-Team -- those assholes that bought their way (to the top 4)"
posted by Bixby23 at 02:41 AM on June 26, 2002
Good move, SK. Betting has never been in order during this World Cup. That said, I have whopping 1,000 yen bet with a Nigerian down the street (about $8.00 U.S.) that Turkey will beat Brazil this time around. So my own hobbled prediction now goes like this: 1. Germany 2. Turkey 3. Korea 4. Brazil (betting fool, nay, idiot) My Nigerian buddy's pretty funny though. Just this morning, the guy says, "Y'know, odd thing about that Group of Death...it actually was, wa'n'it?" Oh, nevermind...
posted by Bixby23 at 01:27 AM on June 26, 2002
Second that, grum. It appears to have taken a few days for mass media here in the host countries to get the message that's been rumbling across Europe, quietly since Portugal and much louder with Italy, that certain calls were beyond contraversial and that, just maybe, the fix is in, so to speak. Shock. Horror. In Asia, the Koreans (speaking now of the general culture of the place) are known for their pride, their obnoxious attitudes, their drinking, their fighting, and that dog thing (the bad haircuts, FB, are a Japanese import, actually). I have heard more than one Asian suggest that the Koreans are the Irish of the Orient (I've even heard one say that the Irish are the Koreans of Europe, but they'd probably take offense -- particularly with regard to the dog thing. And the haircuts). Sorry, the point is that the Koreans are now well aware, if they weren't before, that the world believes exactly what each of them wondered when they saw the replay of that line ref's call against Spain. This being the case, I think we can expect the Korean team will want to prove themselves now more than ever, and Kahn is right to expect that Germany will have to give a "superhuman" effort. Korea will run them ragged. That's my prediction, anyway... Korea Brazil Turkey Germany
posted by Bixby23 at 05:18 PM on June 24, 2002
With all the bad calls, Italy has a right to feel gypped. They were not, however, equipped to beat Korea this time. I believe that was due, in equal parts, to Korea's home-team advantage, Italy's defensive strategy, and a strong finishing Korean team. Spain no more dominated the quarterfinals match than did Korea, but in a just world, Spain would still be in the tournament because they scored (and after looking at the play again, it all really happened too quickly for the Korean team to totally stop playing by the time the ball was headed into the net -- that was an earned goal). Bad officiating is just about the only thing a team has no way to prepare for, and I take back what I said in a different thread about Spain not being robbed. They were, and they should feel like it. But I do feel a bit sorry for the team that's still in it. The solid work ethic behind the Korean game is obvious, I think, to everyone who's seen them play in this tournament. The Korean team is the only one I've seen that appears to get stronger as each game nears its final 10 minutes or so. I don't think even Brazil can claim that. Such being the case, I seriously doubt that the Koreans ever wanted to be given a game (or two, depending on your viewpoint). It's a bit sad that the FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan (TM) looks as though it's going to be remembered by many as a sham that was molded from the start by bad refs. And even should Korea win against Germany and in the final match -- let's assume, for the moment, they do this without the refs' generous assistance -- they'll be the first Cup winner, to my knowledge, that will still be left with something to prove to the established football nations before being named as one of the great sides in the sport. And until they prove it, as FB says, away from home, Korea will indeed be remembered as a fluke. That said, I'm still picking Korea over Brazil in Yokohama - 2-0.
posted by Bixby23 at 12:57 AM on June 24, 2002
Absolutely 100% no mistake about it, that ball was in. The two bodies competing for it in between the linesman and the ball were, in my opinion, the cause of the foul up, but the whistle blew just as the cross was taken. By the time the ball was flying from the header toward the goal everyone had stopped playing. Probably would've been a goal anyway, but the fact that the whistle (albeit to a mistaken call) came way before the actual shot was made means that it was bad luck, not robbery. For me, the questionable thing was Spain's blocked penalty kick. Looked like the guy purposefully stumbled before making a very weak shot. Let he with a perfect officiating record sling the first mud.
posted by Bixby23 at 05:30 AM on June 22, 2002
Is it just me, or was the U.S. non-goal a "Hand of God II" or, more accurately I suppose, "Forearm of God"? It looked to me awfully like the player standing at goal blocked the ball with his forearm. Or was it incidental contact with the ball? Or do I need new glasses?
posted by Bixby23 at 08:48 AM on June 21, 2002
Would think so, wouldn't you. Fact is, Japanese TV just won't be showing this on the news for a while at least, I suspect. And if I could chime in on the "on loan" deal, this is what you might call the Japanese/Korean way of doing sports biz. At least, I don't know of any other countries on the globe where this happens. As a J/K athlete, unless you want to go straight to Italy, for example, and try out as an unknown, you first have to sign up with a pro club in the domestic league, prove yourself, and then agree with your club to try to market yourself overseas. Once picked up, the club back home takes a serious cut of your pay for, erm, loaning you out. I don't really know if this is because the club can help with overcoming the language barrier or what, but it certainly seems like nothing but petty money grubbing to me. By the way, you notice I didn't qualify this as the J/K way of doing football biz: Ichiro Suzuki is on loan from the Orix Blue Wave Kazuhisa Ishii is on loan from the Chunichi Dragons Hideo Nomo is on loan from Chunichi also, I think, but it's been so damn long now...
posted by Bixby23 at 06:27 AM on June 20, 2002
Though I believe the point that Ahn was rumored to be let go anyway due to his lackluster play, I think it's a major feather in his cap that the Perugia coach credits him with ruining Italian soccer. That's a pretty darn phenomenal feat. But it's for the best. I think he would probably not be safe in Italy now, seeing as people can't exactly get their hands on the Ecuadoran ref or the FIFA organization. I thought it might also be interesting to note that match wrap-up shows in Japan, pretty much without exception, left out the Totti red card and certain other contraversial moments from the game highlights. I suspect they did this because Hidetoshi Nakata plays for Parma, and they didn't want to do anything that would antagonize Italy and, by really, really distant association, jeopardize his position on the team.
posted by Bixby23 at 02:34 AM on June 20, 2002
According to this thing, I am Freddie Ljungberg, which means, again according to this thing, that although I need a new hairdresser, I'm a class player. I'm not a saint but I'm not a hatchet man either. However, unlike a solid Swedish table, I'm a bit unstable (hey, Eminem could use that line). My temper needs to be controlled. This thing is pretty darn accurate.
posted by Bixby23 at 12:02 AM on June 20, 2002
But more on topic, I'd assumed that all Cup refs had significant international experience. And regardless of how bad Moreno may be, I have to agree that there were no outrageous calls made in the match. Got to see a replay of the already infamous Teetering Totti Red Card Fiasco again last night, and the ref did, as someone pointed out in a different thread, appear to shit himself almost immediately once the Italians got in his face. To my mind, though, this just makes the argument for the justness of the call even stronger. On the other hand, if the ref had really remembered dishing out the first yellow card, he probably would have simply let play continue without calling any sort of foul, Korea would have won anyway, the Italians still would have gone home losers, but they'd definitely have one less thing to whine about...
posted by Bixby23 at 08:34 PM on June 19, 2002
HAHAHAHAHAHA! "chuffing hog roast." Excellent, FB. I agree with the Uefa idea to let teams play out the full 15 minutes of extra time when one team goes ahead. Getting rid of the golden goal will allow players to continue to think strategically about their overall game plan, so to speak, without worrying about having the game ended for them with a single misstep.
posted by Bixby23 at 08:22 PM on June 19, 2002
Hokay, since we've got some time, can I encourage anyone to speculate on this scenario: 1. Korea topples Spain (mostly with better passing + 12th man/ghost/fans/Ecuadoran refs/whatever); 2. either Korea topples U.S. (tied last time, but U.S. looked wore out afterword -- and who hasn't against the Special K -- and Korea knows how to beat them this time) or Korea topples Germany (German D with too many holes for Mr. Ahn to slip through); 3. Korea vs. Turkey final (nobody watches, everyone goes to bed early, Korea wins and becomes the new kingpin team of football & FIFA has to include 6 Asian teams in 2006 -- meanwhile, all the Koreans care about is that they beat the team that beat Japan) Is any of this really possible?
posted by Bixby23 at 03:43 AM on June 19, 2002
"In overtime, key playmaker Francesco Totti fell in the penalty area, and Moreno reached for the yellow, believing Totti dived. But the ref apparently forgot when making that decision that Totti received a yellow earlier and therefore had to be sent off. It was only on the prompting of the Korean players that he pulled out the red." Gleaned from an AP article. Has anyone else read that Ref Moreno "apparently forgot" that he had already given Totti a yellow card? Oh sure, all those Italians look alike, right? And the suggestion that Moreno was not going to pull the red card on Totti until some Koreans came over and...and what? Cajoled? Threatened? Sounds to me like the article may have been written by a bitter AP writer/Italy fan (or maybe he just bet on them). Poor writing in any case. No?
posted by Bixby23 at 12:55 AM on June 19, 2002
Sorry to keep chiming in, but I wanted to thank Armando for the comment about Totti. When a player with his kind of talent feels like he has to draw a foul (and so blatantly, too) to win a free kick, and near-automatic goal, it's like admitting flat out that he doesn't have what it takes to score competitively. It's like Totti was admitting that Korea was the better team. Which, of course, they were.
posted by Bixby23 at 11:08 AM on June 18, 2002
Wait. I have the prediction to end all predictions (and given that predictions -- mine in particular -- have been less than worthless throughout, I figure "what the hey...") Korea over Brazil in Yokohama -- 2-0
posted by Bixby23 at 09:28 AM on June 18, 2002
I think that I shall never see a thing as lovely as A BUNCH OF CHEATING, DIRTY PLAYING, BAD ACTING ITALIANS going home the losers that they are. I'm happy. Or can you tell...
posted by Bixby23 at 09:03 AM on June 18, 2002
Ouch. Well. In the sense that this Cup has been and continues to be the most unpredictable sporting event I have witnessed in my 30something-year lifetime, I'd say the J-T game was pretty much par for the course... drat...
posted by Bixby23 at 03:50 AM on June 18, 2002
Squealy, you do yourself credit. By now, only the bookies still have confidence in their own picks. I had Mexico all the way over the U.S. (here's a positive-thinking American, eh?). My picks are for K over I and absolutely no Turkish delight tonight as well. By the way, for those of you who have a chance to watch the Japan-Turkey match, be sure not to go grab a beer when the camera switches to Coach Troussier on the Japan bench. Japanese fans love him, but they keel over with laughter watching his antics on the bench. Well, that's not exactly correct -- the antics are courtesy of his translator/sidekick/personal longhaired coach impersonator who sits next to Troussier and, whether consciously or not I cannot say, mimics the coach's every gesture. Basically, for the Japanese, Troussier and his translator are considered a great coaching team and vaudville act wrapped in one package.
posted by Bixby23 at 09:08 PM on June 17, 2002
Just by coincidence, I've seen much more of Mexico than I have of the U.S. during the tournament, and they look awfully good. Even with recent matches between the two having gone largely in the U.S.'s favor, I would still consider a U.S. win today a shocker. By the way, Blanco is outstanding, but does he remind anyone else of the Hunchback of Notre Dame?
posted by Bixby23 at 10:36 PM on June 16, 2002
Okay, you guys are gonna hate me for this, but... Downtown Tokyo. All games on the radio at work (office practically shut down for the Japan-Tunisia match and everyone went into the meeting room to watch the game on TV). When not ridiculously busy -- most of the time -- I can run downstairs, across the street, into the British pub, and all the games are on widescreen TV. When no games are in progress, they replay old games. Freakin' foo'ball heaven.
posted by Bixby23 at 10:14 AM on June 16, 2002
Oops. Sorry WC2002 -- timed my post poorly. Incidentally, I agree with your analysis, but your conclusion stinks. Likewise ;-)
posted by Bixby23 at 04:20 AM on June 16, 2002
Their dance routine is very cool, and it would be exciting to see them play Brazil. But they have to play either Turkey or the "We're On A Mission From God" Japan squad first. I love these guys from Senegal, but for their sakes, I hope they play Turkey. Japan will hurt them.
posted by Bixby23 at 04:16 AM on June 16, 2002
I haven't heard ESPN announcing, but even as bad as it sounds, it couldn't be as agonizing as the horrid Japanese announcing I'm forced to sit and listen to. For one thing, they won't shut up. When there happen to be a few seconds in the match where there's really nothing to comment on, BBC announcers keep quiet. Japanese announcers talk about the players or the weather or other matches. Silence is to be avoided at all costs. Ugh. When somebody scores, they do Cantor imitations, like that must be the only appropriate way to announce a goal. Double ugh. But England matches are the worst. You get a fair piece of the match, but a large chunk of it is turned into what I'd call "The Beckham Show." Nevermind that Owen is charging toward the goal, let's give all the Japanese lady fans another shot of Beckham. How about from this angle. Oh, wait! Let's get a close-up of that hair! In discussing, prior to the match, the possibility of England losing, one commentator actually said, and I kid you not, "Rasto [last] Beckham." I almost think if England dropped out at some point, Japan would stop televising matches altogether.
posted by Bixby23 at 09:03 AM on June 15, 2002
I also pick U.S. & Korea. I think Portugal lost because they flat-out underestimated the States' team. Korea, on the whole, is faster, better at passing, and at least no worse at scoring than the U.S. (in my lowly opinion). If it was a bad idea to underestimate the U.S., then to do so against Korea would be disastrous for the Portuguese. And that's what I expect will happen. As an aside, I also love the Korean fans. Japanese fans may want to take the Cup, but for Korean fans, victory means defeating Japan in the final match with all the world watching. Taking the Cup would just be icing on the cake. "Remote" doesn't even begin to describe the chances of that happening, but Korean fans will dream...
posted by Bixby23 at 04:19 AM on June 14, 2002
Fantastic site. I shot around with a red, white, and blue basketball when I was a kid, but had no idea it was the "ABA basketball" -- though it probably said so right on the ball. As a lifetime loser Warriors fan, I suppose this should be irrelevant to me, but I thought it was a great site with a great purpose. Thanks.
posted by Bixby23 at 01:01 AM on April 30, 2002
The Hoser's NFL Picks, Week Eight
wfrazerjr: Thoughtful of you to go to the trouble of making revisions. As for my part, no more offhanded and flippant comments with inflammatory content. Had meant it to be mildly humorous, but it wasn't even vaguely so. I look forward to the next set of predictions.