USA Upsets #1 Spain

Team USA stuns the top ranked Spain soccer club in the semi-finals of the Confederation Cup today in undoubtedly one of the biggest upsets in U.S. soccer history. After opening the tournament with two losses, it seemed the U.S. was doomed to another embarrassing appearance on the world soccer stage. But once the opening whistle sounded, the U.S. went on the attack and showed the Spaniards that they weren't going to be an easy victory. Jozy Altidore out-muscled Joan Capdevila (above) to score USA's first goal in the 25'. It was a defining moment in U.S. soccer. No longer are we going to be pushed around and looked over. It also personifies the sort of style Team USA is starting to head for. Practically everywhere else in the world, soccer is an incredibly urbanized sport. Kids play soccer growing up in the inner-cities of Italy, Brazil, and Argentina, whereas in America, kids are playing basketball, football, and our other major sports. Soccer in the United States is primarily suburban, and because of this, the raw talent of the U.S. club will never be comparable to the other major teams in the world. What we do have is size and athleticism. Oguchi Onyewu, defender for the U.S. Men’s Team is the type of physical specimen that the team is starting to play with. He’s 6’5”, 216lbs, very physical, athletic, and tough. He’s a type of athlete that could probably play in the NFL or NBA. When they come to attack and play with physical strength and intensity, they play a game that is different from the raw talent and finesse style that is associated with the top teams. It’s a style that can help them win, seen through this huge victory. Congratulations team USA.

We are entering a new era of U.S. soccer. Now, no team in the world is going to be circling us on their calendars like they have for the last 15 years. We are on the verge of becoming one of the elite teams in the world. We'll see what happens on Sunday where the U.S. will face the South American powerhouse, Brazil. They lost to this same team in by an embarrassing 3-0 earlier in this tournament.

NBA 2010: Real Predictions & Excuses for Making Wrong Ones (Part II)

THE BOSTON CELTICS will make it back one last time. We talk about Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett, and Paul Pierce as a bunch of old guys hanging out with the young’uns for one last pick-up game. The problem is, they’re not really that old. Ok, Ray Allen is about to turn 34, which in basketball years is getting up there, but KG is only 33 … wait… and Pierce is about to turn 32… alright you got me, they’re old for the NBA. But they can still play. Hey, Kobe Bryant is about to turn 31 and Derek Fisher is about to turn 35, and if you haven't heard, they just won the title. It may sound unimportant, but an overlooked aspect of the Celtics game is the free throw shooting of Ray Allen. He’s a CAREER 89.3% from the line. Last season (post and regular) he shot 95%. In January, he broke a Celtic record of 72 consecutive free throws. He also had several other streaks of 50 or more in the same season. If the officiating from last year's playoffs is indicative of a new trend, making free throws will be a major part of advancing in years to come. The excuse I have for the Celtics lie in the same reason they didn’t get there this year: can they stay healthy? With a fully functional KG, Celtics lose to the Lakers in 5 games this year, but they still beat Orlando and Cleveland and make it to the Finals. They’ll be the Eastern Conference Champs next year all things considered.

THE ORLANDO MAGIC is probably the least likely of the big three in the east to make it to the dance. Even though Magic Owner Rich DeVos has stated that they’ll go over the salary cap to keep Hedo Turkoglu, we’re all still going to have to wait to see what happens. If the front office follows through, the declaration will have been the defining moment when Orlando joined the big boys. Even though he practically gets away with murder, Hedo Turkoglu is the cornerstone of the Magic. Sorry Dwight Howard, but he is. I’m big on defense and Howard is the best inside defender there is, but the Magic quickly defined themselves as a scrappy team this post-season, and Turkoglu is the scrappiest of the scrappy. The front office knows it and all Magic fans should accept it. In the Laker only loss in the series, Hedo was a big part of the Magic’s first Finals win in franchise history. He had 18 points and 7 assists (most of them to Dwight Howard), and even though Howard had 21 points, he only had 2 blocks. In comparison to game four’s 9 blocks which set a finals record, two is pretty measly. Oh, and did I mention they lost game 4? Turkoglu makes things happen for the Magic. They’ve got to get him back if they want to have a chance. The only thing that will hinder them is a healthy Boston and odd coaching decisions concerning guard play. Getting to the Finals was really neato for them, and like I always say, “no neato without Hedo.”

*Wildcard

*THE CLEVELAND LEBRONS, oh sorry, I mean CAVALIERS. The Cavaliers a wildcard? Hold on, they had the best record in the NBA this last year! Yes, they had a great record in the much weaker east. Judging who gets home court advantage in the Finals by comparing the records in two completely lopsided conferences is almost as bad as giving it to the winner of the All-Star Game. Using John Hollinger’s ranking (which I agree is systematically flawed), the Atlanta Hawks were the East’s 4th best team in comparable to the West’s 4th, San Antonio. The east has three of the top four teams yes, but the next 8 in the listing are not even close, arguably giving the west 9 out of the top 12. If Lebron isn’t on the Cleveland Cavaliers, they’re not even a PLAYOFF TEAM. With Lebron, they make it to the Eastern Conference Finals where they’re outmatched by Dwight Howard in the paint. Here’s where the “wildcard” comes into play, in February of this last year, there was a proposed trade with the Phoenix Suns that never really took wings. Yep, you guessed it, it’s for Shaq. The old switcheroo would have been Shaq for the declining defensive specialist Ben Wallace and the 4.6 PPG Sasha Pavlovic. Some say Shaq is done, but he had a great last season with nearly 18 PPG, plus he’s still 325lbs at 7’1”. If Shaq goes to the Cavs, they now have the inside presence they need to contend with the likes of Boston and Orlando, having a much better shot to make it further in the playoffs. Lebron is phenomenal and won a much deserved MVP this year, but as we saw in the Eastern Conference Finals, he can’t do it alone.

NBA Finals 2010: Real Predictions and Excuses for Making Wrong Ones. (Part I)

As a forewarning, go grab a pen and paper. Write down the date, where you are standing, and what’s going on in your life right now so you can tell your grandchildren where you were when you read this blog, because this is going to be epic. The NBA Draft is this Thursday. If what we all expect the first pick happens, Blake Griffin will be going to the Los Angeles Clippers. Here it is kids, the prediction… … is the anticipation killing you? … Clippers & Bucks in the NBA FINALS! Ha ha, I’m SO funny right? A joke about bad teams. I should be making a joke about bad bloggers, but what would I know about that right?

Real Prediction:
NBA Finals 2010. Lakers vs. Celtics. Lakers win 62 games in the regular season and have home court advantage over Boston in the finals. Lakers win the 2010 Finals at Staples in Game 6. Parade down Figueroa. Looting in the streets. Police cars vandalized. Cats & dogs living together. Mass hysteria.

Real Excuses:
First real excuse: There is of course no real way to know what’s going to happen. For the record, this next section will be me covering my bases and pointing out problems with the teams I expect to make it, and reasons why the teams I don't expect to make it might get there. All aboard the Excuse Train!

Second real excuse: I started writing out the reasons why the favored teams might not make it to the finals, and I realized there is way too much to say about everyone. So I’m making it a two-part whine festival. Check back tomorrow for the cheese and the East. Here’s the West.

THE LOS ANGELES LAKERS were and still are the most talented team in the NBA, proven so by the fancy trophy and new banner hanging up in Staples Center. This makes it pretty hard to point out flaws, but there are some. One in particular: HEART. They finally got around to having some in the last two games against Denver and the Finals, but they constantly rely on their talent during the regular season and occasionally during the post, which is really dangerous. They did it last year against Boston and got walloped in game 6. They did it this year in Game 1, 4, and 6 against Houston. The Lakers can score a lot of points, but someone else besides Kobe Bryant, Trevor Ariza, and Derek Fisher needs to get some attitude on the other side of the court. Which brings me to my next point; there are also some pretty big questions as to who will be back. The big talk now is whether or not the Buss family can afford (or will choose to blow out the windows on the luxury tax) to bring back both Lamar Odom AND Trevor Ariza. In my opinion, if you can only keep one, you’ve got to bring back Ariza (keep your eye out for a later post from me on this issue). Shannon Brown, the new rising star may also not be there. All of these are reasons the Lakers may not make it back, but if they stay healthy, keep everyone, and make the decision that one ring just isn’t enough, they’ll be back.

THE DENVER NUGGETS started to cement themselves as the number 2 team in the west this last season. Will they stay there? It’s possible. Will they stay there for the next 5 years? Not likely. If the Nuggets play with the intensity they had this year, they’re pretty much a shoe in to make it through the first round next May. For a while they’ve been the “Bizarro” Lakers. In the past, their star in Carmello Anthony hasn’t had the “do whatever it takes,” attitude while the rest of his team will fight and claw for every inch, taking Allen Iverson out of the equation of course. Without a doubt in my mind, the Iverson/Billups trade was the best trade of the ‘08-‘09 season. That team needed a leader, and Billups gives them that veteran influence. The understandably nick-named “Thuggets,” play a rough brand of ball that got them all the way to the Western Conference Finals. The Lakers should be writing them a "Thank You Card," because the Nuggets bigs certainly toughened up the Lakers inside players. If Denver continues to play to their strengths, which is their actual physical strength, they’ve got a decent shot to make it back to the Conference Finals. What we have to remember though, is that in the west, it’s the Lakers and everyone else.

THE HOUSTON ROCKETS looked a lot better against the Lakers than they should have. Minus Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady, they play a much more rag tag game which created the perfect storm for the Lakers. Houston would probably be better off benching Yao and McGrady if they get to a 7 game series with LA next year. Well, maybe not Yao. It’s hard to bench a guy who’s 7’6” who shoots 86% from the charity stripe. Oh yeah, Aaron Brooks is really fast.

THE SAN ANTONIO SPURS has the best collection of players past their prime. Duncan will go down as one of the all-time greats, but the Spurs era is over. Who knows though, maybe they’ve got one more in them.

EVERYONE ELSE. Portand, New Orleans, Dallas, and Utah. Nope, nope, nope, and nope. Although all are great. Just not quite in the top tier yet. Although Portland seems to give the Lakers problems… in February. I also like the Jazz, but that may be because I played high school basketball with Ronnie Brewer.

Check back tomorrow for the East.

Bernie is Sad Today

I guess single A was going to be a little too much for Manny Ramirez. Dodgers AAA Affiliate, the Albuquerque Isotopes, are now the rehab destination for Manny. Sorry Bernie. Manny will play tonight in Albuquerque, not Inland Empire. The Isotopes usually draw about 7,000 fans, which is actually a fairly decent draw for AAA minor league, but look for the stadium to hit capacity when Ramirez starts this week. In fact, the staduim seats a total of 9,000, but up to 6,000 can find seats on a grassy lawn outside the gates. Attendance records are expected to break tonight. Believe it or not, each Manny Ramirez at bat will be broadcast on ESPN.com.

I feel for the 66ers club, I feel for the 66ers fans, I feel for Bernie! Sorry guys, I know all you minor league fans and clubs pray for injuries and suspensions so big name players can breeze through your city on the rehab wagon for a few games, but it’s apparently not up to you. LA fans already have Manny in Chavez Ravine for 56 some-odd games this year, so it’s understandable that the McCourts want to spread the Manny love to New Mexico. But I’m sure it’s tough for 66ers fans to have come so close, but no Dominican Republic cigar.

Manny's 50 Game Suspension and "Bernie" the 66ers San Bernardino... Guy? Bear? Muppet?

On May 7th of this year, Manny Ramirez was suspended for 50 games for violating the MLB drug policy. He was tested for abnormally high levels of testosterone and later revealed that Ramirez had used hCG (human chorionic gonadotropin), a female fertility drug commonly used by steroid users to restart their bodies’ natural testosterone production after they’ve come off of a steroid cycle. It’s similar to Clomid, the drug that Barry Bonds got busted for. That's the update, just in case you’d been banished to Siberia for the last few months.

It’s been reported that Manny Ramirez will be bringing his big bat to the mighty Inland Empire 66ers in San Bernardino as early as this Thursday. Wait a minute, you’ve never heard of the 66ers? I live in Southern California and have barely heard their name before now. If you’re living in Arkansas and know them, I commend you. I will be the first to admit that I’m not a “real” baseball guy. I couldn’t tell you who played short stop for the Yankees in 1967, although I’m sure there are plenty of guys out there who could. But I bet you even those guys couldn’t name 2 players on the Inland Empire 66ers.

Regardless of whether you know much about the Dodgers Class “A” Affiliate in San Bernardino, the 5,000 seat Arrowhead Credit Union Park will be packed when Manny Ramirez comes to town. I bet even the high-priced $10 Exclusive Box Seats will be filled, although I don’t really know who could dish out that kind of money in this economy. So set your calendar on your office Outlook, Manny Ramirez is swinging for the Inland Empire 66ers this Thursday, June 25, 2009! But wait a minute, doesn’t his 50 game suspension end on July 3 when the Dodgers are in San Diego?

Apparently when someone in MLB gets a 50 game suspension, it’s really more like a 44 game suspension. Maybe Bud Selig wants Manny ready to go by Independence Day, but to me, if he gets a 50 suspension that ends on July 3, he should miss 50 games and return on July 3. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a Manny hater. In fact, I can easily say that Major League Baseball is more interesting when he’s playing. He’s a transcendental player. There’s a few in every sport. Tiger Woods, Roger Federer, Tom Brady, LeBron James, David Beckham… there are several more. Whether you love ‘em or hate ‘em, your Aunt Agnes in Florida who listens to Glen Miller and watches re-runs of the Honeymooners on Nick at Nite probably knows who these guys are. Even though Manny didn’t test positive for steroids (lets get that clear, hCG is not a steroid), he still violated the MLB drug policy, and shouldn’t be allowed to cut corners.

It is true that Ramirez is permitted to have a 10 game rehabilitation assignment before he’s activated again with the Dodgers. Regardless of that, if we’re playing by the rules, shouldn’t that period start on July 3? It seems pretty simple to me. To all of you baseball guys, I know that’s allowed and that everyone coming back from injuries use that rehab period, but was Manny injured? He’s serving a suspension, not coming back from a torn ACL. He may not be getting paid his gigantic Major League salary during these games with the 66ers, but he is honing in on his game so he’ll be ready when the time comes. That seems like a pretty nice head start to me.

I’ll say it again, baseball will be more interesting when Manny gets back, but whether you’re a Manny lover or hater, this is great for the Inland Empire 66ers. Hooray for their club, hooray for their fans, hooray for Bernie! (pictured above) They couldn’t get this type of press if a UFO landed in center field during one of their games. Hopefully they’ll get some great exposure and will really take advantage of this opportunity that’s fallen in their lap.

The 66ers are currently in third place (out of 5) in the Cal South Division at 32-38, 11 games back of the division leading High Desert Mavericks.

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