Monday, July 2, 2007
There's Always Plenty To Talk About In Sports
With the July 4 holiday now upon us, it seems like the perfect time to celebrate those sports that have helped define our country through the years.
And we start, of course, with professional hockey.
Seriously, I'll just touch on a few things that are going on in sports these days; I know we've all got big plans for the holiday, so we'll keep it short and sweet.
-- -- --
As long as we've mentioned the NHL, I just have to say that the first days of free agency have given us some interesting moves, like Paul Kariya to St. Louis and a trade to bring Manny Fernandez to Boston.
But the best move by any team thus far has to be the New York Rangers signing Chris Drury. I remember when Drury was lured away from Colorado and the anchors at ESPN began the story by comparing Drury to Derek Jeter and Robert Horry, two players known to perform at their best in high-pressure situations in their respective sports.
And Drury has lived up to the comparison by providing the anchor for a young Buffalo Sabres team that posted the best record in hockey this past season and went deep into the playoffs. Drury wore the captain's "C" on his sweater for the Sabres, but it could also have stood for "clutch".
Teaming Drury up with Jaromir Jagr and the newly-acquired Scott Gomez looks to make the Rangers the team to beat in the Eastern Conference, while the Stanley Cup Champion Anaheim Ducks look to be even stronger with the addition of defenseman Mathieu Schnieder.
Basically, if you can't get excited about the NHL next season, I just don't know what you're looking for.
-- -- --
Turning to American sports, the Major League Baseball All-Star teams have been selected, which inevitably leads to the sports world bringing up the "snubs" from each league.
Now, I know that these guys play hard and it must be nice to receive recognition, but every year we hear about how horrible it was to leave so-and-so off the All-Star team, when in reality, nobody really remembers from year to year. Honestly, try to think about who was on the American League All-Star team in 2005. I'm drawing a blank beyond the seemingly-obvious names like Manny Ramirez, Alex Rodriguez, and maybe Ivan Rodriguez, and I'm completely guessing on those guys.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that while I understand the need for entertaining topics on sports shows, I would just rather hear more about what's happening in other sports, like NASCAR or something.
At least NASCAR's All-Star event has a million-dollar payout for the winner. Maybe if MLB started throwing cash around like that, we could get a little more excited about who makes the All-Star team and who doesn't.
-- -- --
Well, at least we have the NFL season to look forward to, and specifically, fantasy football.
Oh yes.
Sometime before most fantasy drafts are set to occur, I will provide you, our loyal readers, with a Fantasy Draft Preview that will break down the top players at each position and equip you with the necessary tools to win your league and shove your friends' faces in your superiority for the next year.
Until then, however, we have to keep our collective eye on the situations brewing for players who are threatening to hold out for more money, like Larry Johnson of the Kansas City Chiefs.
We all know that LJ is a top-tier back who could go as high as No. 1 in some leagues -- although if you're in a league where LaDanian Tomlinson is not the first overall pick, you probably need to seriously reconsider your friend-selection process -- but even if he plays, the unresolved contract situation could have some deeper-reaching effects than we may realize later on.
Whatever happens, I just really hope they don't pay him any more money until he agrees to revive the "Grand-ma-ma" commercials that the NBA's Larry Johnson started back in the '90s. That would be worth a contract extension in most everybody's book.
-- -- --
Otherwise, I'm sure there's a lot more going on in sports, like the ongoing home run chase by Barry Bonds, the crazy happenings with NASCAR's "Car Of Tomorrow" and the fact that the Sacramento Kings hired the guy who played the basketball coach on the TV show "Hang Time" to be their real coach for next season. Maybe they can find Anthony Anderson to play point guard as well. That seems like a good idea.
So if you'd like to discuss anything in sports, drop me a line at sports@valleycenter.com, or go to our Web site at www.valleycenter.com and click on the "RR Blogs" link to post a comment. You can also add your thoughts to topics we've discussed previously, and I will take the best responses and post them in future editions of The Roadrunner for all to see.
Until then, enjoy the holiday and feel free to stitch a captain's "C" on a sweater of your own if you can remember the All-Star snubs in September, when baseball actually matters.
And we start, of course, with professional hockey.
Seriously, I'll just touch on a few things that are going on in sports these days; I know we've all got big plans for the holiday, so we'll keep it short and sweet.
-- -- --
As long as we've mentioned the NHL, I just have to say that the first days of free agency have given us some interesting moves, like Paul Kariya to St. Louis and a trade to bring Manny Fernandez to Boston.
But the best move by any team thus far has to be the New York Rangers signing Chris Drury. I remember when Drury was lured away from Colorado and the anchors at ESPN began the story by comparing Drury to Derek Jeter and Robert Horry, two players known to perform at their best in high-pressure situations in their respective sports.
And Drury has lived up to the comparison by providing the anchor for a young Buffalo Sabres team that posted the best record in hockey this past season and went deep into the playoffs. Drury wore the captain's "C" on his sweater for the Sabres, but it could also have stood for "clutch".
Teaming Drury up with Jaromir Jagr and the newly-acquired Scott Gomez looks to make the Rangers the team to beat in the Eastern Conference, while the Stanley Cup Champion Anaheim Ducks look to be even stronger with the addition of defenseman Mathieu Schnieder.
Basically, if you can't get excited about the NHL next season, I just don't know what you're looking for.
-- -- --
Turning to American sports, the Major League Baseball All-Star teams have been selected, which inevitably leads to the sports world bringing up the "snubs" from each league.
Now, I know that these guys play hard and it must be nice to receive recognition, but every year we hear about how horrible it was to leave so-and-so off the All-Star team, when in reality, nobody really remembers from year to year. Honestly, try to think about who was on the American League All-Star team in 2005. I'm drawing a blank beyond the seemingly-obvious names like Manny Ramirez, Alex Rodriguez, and maybe Ivan Rodriguez, and I'm completely guessing on those guys.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that while I understand the need for entertaining topics on sports shows, I would just rather hear more about what's happening in other sports, like NASCAR or something.
At least NASCAR's All-Star event has a million-dollar payout for the winner. Maybe if MLB started throwing cash around like that, we could get a little more excited about who makes the All-Star team and who doesn't.
-- -- --
Well, at least we have the NFL season to look forward to, and specifically, fantasy football.
Oh yes.
Sometime before most fantasy drafts are set to occur, I will provide you, our loyal readers, with a Fantasy Draft Preview that will break down the top players at each position and equip you with the necessary tools to win your league and shove your friends' faces in your superiority for the next year.
Until then, however, we have to keep our collective eye on the situations brewing for players who are threatening to hold out for more money, like Larry Johnson of the Kansas City Chiefs.
We all know that LJ is a top-tier back who could go as high as No. 1 in some leagues -- although if you're in a league where LaDanian Tomlinson is not the first overall pick, you probably need to seriously reconsider your friend-selection process -- but even if he plays, the unresolved contract situation could have some deeper-reaching effects than we may realize later on.
Whatever happens, I just really hope they don't pay him any more money until he agrees to revive the "Grand-ma-ma" commercials that the NBA's Larry Johnson started back in the '90s. That would be worth a contract extension in most everybody's book.
-- -- --
Otherwise, I'm sure there's a lot more going on in sports, like the ongoing home run chase by Barry Bonds, the crazy happenings with NASCAR's "Car Of Tomorrow" and the fact that the Sacramento Kings hired the guy who played the basketball coach on the TV show "Hang Time" to be their real coach for next season. Maybe they can find Anthony Anderson to play point guard as well. That seems like a good idea.
So if you'd like to discuss anything in sports, drop me a line at sports@valleycenter.com, or go to our Web site at www.valleycenter.com and click on the "RR Blogs" link to post a comment. You can also add your thoughts to topics we've discussed previously, and I will take the best responses and post them in future editions of The Roadrunner for all to see.
Until then, enjoy the holiday and feel free to stitch a captain's "C" on a sweater of your own if you can remember the All-Star snubs in September, when baseball actually matters.
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