Tuesday, November 29, 2005

Recreated Logos

Ranger Rubish... but I think it looks cool...
and that is all that matters, right?

The line has been drawn in the sand,

but why a Bears logo?

Dig this: A Suped up Rangers Logo.

Pretty electric if you ask me. Why is that?

The Rangers have the Sox chip (below)...

Wednesday, November 16, 2005

NFC after 9 games played

A Look at Football:

NFC East:
Cowboys (6-3)
Giants (6-3)
‘Skins (5-4)

NFC North:
Chicago (6-3)

NFC South:
Carolina (7-2)
Atlanta (6-3)
T Bay (6-3)

NFC West:
Seattle (7-2)

Eagles are pretty much out of the running at this point. Playoffs? I don’t even think they will go post this year.

Cowboys face off against Detroit (4-5), Denver (7-2), NY Giants (6-3), Kansas City (5-4), Washington (5-4), Carolina (7-2), and St. Louis (4-5), so the strength of their opponents schedule is that of a 38-25 mark. If the opponents uphold that winning percentage, the Cowboys will go 3-4 in the last seven and finish 9-7. If the Cowboys maintain their current winning percentage, they will go either 10-6 or 11-5.

The Giants, on the other hand, their remaining opponents have a 34-29 record, and if that holds true, then they should go 3-4 in their last seven, but more likely will win more than that. Realistically, I think the Giants have the upper hand the rest of the way, and the stats don’t lie. They do have the upper hand.

The Redskins pose an interesting thing. Their remaining opponents winning percentage is that of 47.62% or a record of 30-33. They are pretty much a shoe in for 4 games, and realistically, they can go 5-2 the rest of the way.

Chicago is pretty much in ink for the postseason, as is Seattle. Both are tops in their divisions, and no other team is above 5.

Carolina is my favorite for the South, but I am biased. Tampa is overrated. They can beat the bad teams, but no one with punch. For Tampa, numbers say they will win 3 of the last 7, but I think that is optimistic. I look at how they lost to San Francisco and were killed by the Cats; I think that with the strength of their schedule, they will be lucky to win 3. Look for Tampa to finish 8-8.

Carolina is going up against the Bears this coming Sunday. 5 of their last 7 games they play someone with a 6-3 mark. Should they split those, they could go 4-3 or 5-2, so maybe 11-5 or 12-4 at season end. Catch a bye and see them in the Division series? Most likely.

Atlanta is much like Dallas, a hard road ahead of itself. Same schedule strength, in that their opponents hold a 38-25 mark, but unlike Dallas, the records are more lopsided. Look for Atlanta to go 3-4 the rest of the way and finish 9-7, beating Detroit, Tampa once, and New Orleans.

Playoffs for the NFC:
NFC East:
Giants 10-6 (Wildcard)
Redskins 10-6 (Wildcard)
Cowboys 10-6 (Division Winner)

NFC North:
Chicago (In by Default)

NFC West:
Seattle (In by Default)

NFC South:
Carolina 11-5 (Division Winner)
Atlanta 9-7 (Doesn’t Go)
Tampa Bay 8-8 (Doesn’t Go)

Hopefully tomorrow I can do up the AFC. This was fun! Johnny Out.

Thursday, November 10, 2005

A Timeline of the Fallen Raffy

A timeline of former Baltimore Orioles slugger Rafael “I didn’t inhale” Palmeiro's steroids suspension and congressional perjury investigation:

-- Feb. 14: Former baseball slugger Jose Canseco's autobiography, ``Juiced: Wild Times, Rampant 'Roids, Smash Hits, and How Baseball Got Big,'' is released. In the book, Canseco accuses several top baseball players of steroid use, including Palmeiro, a former teammate with the Texas Rangers.

-- March 17: Palmeiro, Canseco, Mark McGwire, Sammy Sosa and other baseball players and officials testify under oath during a House Government Reform Committee hearing on steroids. Palmeiro points a finger in the air for emphasis and tells lawmakers: ``I have never used steroids. Period.''

-- April, exact date unclear: Palmeiro takes a shot of vitamin B-12, given to him by a teammate. Orioles shortstop Miguel Tejada later acknowledges he was the teammate.

-- May 3-4: Palmeiro takes a Major League Baseball drug test; his sample is tested.

-- May 19: Palmeiro is informed his test was positive for the anabolic steroid stanozolol. It's the substance that sprinter Ben Johnson tested positive for at the 1988 Olympics, costing him his gold medal and world record in the 100 meters.

-- May 27: Palmeiro takes a second test -- not administered by Major League Baseball -- which is negative for steroids.

-- June 12: Major League Baseball tells Palmeiro he'll be suspended; he asks the players' association to file a grievance.

-- June 16: At an arbitration panel hearing, Palmeiro says he never knowingly took steroids. He offers a possible explanation for the failed test, saying a teammate gave him a vitamin B-12 vial. The vial was thrown away and never tested.

-- July 15: Palmeiro collects his 3,000th career hit, a double in the fifth inning of Baltimore's 6-3 victory at Seattle. He becomes the fourth player in major league history with 3,000 hits and 500 home runs.

-- Aug. 1: After Shyam Das, baseball's independent arbitrator, denies the grievance, Palmeiro is suspended for 10 days by Major League Baseball, the highest-profile player punished under the sport's new steroids policy. He says he never intentionally took steroids. ``Why would I do this in a year when I went in front of Congress and I testified and I told the truth?'' he says. ``Why would I do this during a season where I was going to get to 3,000 hits? It just makes no sense.''

-- Aug. 2: In a telephone conversation with House Government Reform Committee Chairman Tom Davis, R-Va., Palmeiro agrees to allow Major League Baseball to give Congress documents related to his steroid tests.

-- Aug. 3: Davis says his committee will investigate whether Palmeiro committed perjury during the March 17 hearing. ``If we did nothing,'' Davis tells the AP, ``I think we'd look like idiots.''

-- Aug. 11: Palmeiro returns to the Orioles after serving his suspension.

-- Sept. 5: With two hits in 26 at-bats since the suspension, and hearing boos at home and road games, Palmeiro is sent home to Texas by the Orioles to rehabilitate injuries to his right knee and left ankle.

-- Sept. 23: The Orioles tell Palmeiro not to return to the team.

-- Oct. 28: Palmeiro becomes a free agent.

-- Wednesday: Davis' committee says it will release its report on the Palmeiro case on Thursday. About two hours later, Palmeiro's lawyers release a statement in which he takes responsibility for his failed test and offers the explanation of a tainted B-12 shot for the first time publicly.

-- Thursday: Davis' committee issues its report, which concludes there isn't enough evidence to pursue perjury charges. ``We couldn't find any evidence of steroid use prior to his testimony,'' Davis says. ``That's not a finding of innocence, but it's a finding that we could not substantiate perjury.''

Wednesday, November 09, 2005

Manager of the Year

Manager of the Year!

White Sox skipper Ozzie Guillen has been named the winner of the 2005 American League Manager of the Year Award in voting by the Baseball Writers' Association of America.

In only his second year at the helm, Guillen helped lead the White Sox to the best regular season record in the American League.

He followed up that performance with an impressive 11-1 postseason run to earn the Sox first World Series title since 1917.

Guillen, 41, was a clear-cut winner in the balloting, picking up 17 first-place votes, five second-place votes and five third-place votes to easily outdistance Cleveland's Eric Wedge.

Monday, November 07, 2005

Joke List

Joke #1:
A skydiver is enjoying his free-fall, when he realizes that he has reached the altitude where he must open his parachute, he pulls the ripcord, but nothing happens. “No problem,” he says to himself, “I still have my emergency chute.”

So he pulls the ripcord on his emergency parachute, and once again, nothing happens. Now the man begins to panic. “What am I going to do?” He thinks. “I’m a goner.”

Just then, he sees a man flying up from the earth toward him. He can’t figure out where this man is coming from or what he’s doing, but he says to himself, “I hope he can help me. If he can’t, then I’m in real trouble.”

When the man gets close enough to him, the skydiver cups his hands and shouts, “Hey, do you know anything about parachutes?”

The man coming up cups his hands and yells back, “No! Do you know anything about gas stoves?”

Joke #2:
Dear Dad, $chool i$ really great. I am making lot$ of friend$ and $tudying very hard. With all my $tuff, I $imply can`t think of anything I need. $o if you would like, you can ju$t $end me a card, a$ I would love to hear from you. Love, Your $on

he Reply: Dear Son, I kNOw that astroNOmy, ecoNOmics, and oceaNOgraphy are eNOugh to keep even an hoNOr student busy. Do NOt forget that the pursuit of kNOwledge is a NOble task, and you can never study eNOugh. Love, Dad

Joke #3:
The strong young man at the construction site was bragging that he could outdo anyone in a feat of strength. He made a special case of making fun of one of the older workmen. After several minutes, the older worker had had enough. "Why don't you put your money where your mouth is," he said. "I will bet a week's wages that I can haul something in a wheelbarrow over to that outbuilding that you won't be able to wheel back."

"You're on, old man," the braggart replied. "Let's see what you got."

The old man reached out and grabbed the wheelbarrow by the handles. Then, nodding to the young man, he said, "All right. Get in."

Joke #4:
Son: Dad! Dad! I got a part in the school play! I play a husband.Dad: Too bad they did not give you a speaking role.

Joke #5:
Two boy scouts went on a nature hike in the hills picking hickory nuts. Along the way, they filled their small pails and then started to fill their pockets and shirts. When they could hold no more nuts, they started down the country road until they came across a cemetery. The boys decided that would be a good place to stop and rest and divide out the nuts. The two boys sat in the shade of a large oak tree and unloaded their pockets and buckets by dumping all of the nuts in a large pile. In the process, two of them rolled away and rested near the road. The boys then proceeded to divide out the nuts. "One for you. One for me. One for you. One for me."

As they were doing this, another boy was passing by and happened to hear them. He looked into the cemetery, but could not see the boys, because they were obscured by the tree. He hesitated a moment and then ran back to town.

"Father! Father!" he yelled as he entered his house. "The cemetery. Come quick!"

"What's the matter?" his father asked.

"No time to explain," the boy frantically panted. "Follow me!"

The boy and his father ran up the country road and stopped when they reached the cemetery. They stopped at the side of the road and all fell silent for a few moments. Then the father asked his son what was wrong. "Do you hear that?" he whispered. Both people listened intently and heard the Scouts. "One for me. One for you. One for me. One for you..." The boy then blurted out, "The devil and the Lord are dividing the souls!" The father was skeptical but silent -- until a few moments later as the Scouts completed dividing out the nuts and one Scout said to the other, "Now, as soon as we get those two nuts down by the road, we'll have them all."

Joke #6:
A certain little girl, when asked her name, would reply, "I'm Mr. Sugarbrown's daughter." Her mother told her this was wrong, she must say, "I'm Jane Sugarbrown." The Vicar spoke to her in Sunday school, and said, "Aren't you Mr. Sugarbrown's daughter?" She replied, "I thought I was, but mother says I'm not."

Joke #7:
"How long will be the next bus be, Officer?”“About eight yards, sir.”

Joke #8:
A guy walks up to an aggie and tells him the dreadful news.

"Three Brazilian died in the Iraq war yesterday," he says frowning.

"Oh my gosh, that's horrible," the aggie says. "So tell me, just how much is a Brazilian?"

Joke #9:
A tornado hit a farmhouse just before dawn. It lifted the roof off, picked up the beds on which the farmer and his wife slept, and set them down gently in the next county. The wife began to cry.

“Don’t be scared, Susan,” her husband said. “We are not hurt.”

Susan continued to cry. “I’m not scared,” she said between sobs. “I’m happy ‘cause this is the first time in 15 years we’ve been out together."

Joke #10:
A blonde walks into a store that makes curtains. She says to the clerk, "I would like a curtain the size of my computer screen."

The clerk says, "Why the size of you computer screen?"

The woman replies, "Because I've got windows."

Joke #11:
Q: What is the height of stupidity?
A: 2 men sitting on a motorcycle & fighting for a window seat

Joke #12:
A couple had two little boys, ages 8 and 10, who were excessively mischievous. They were always getting into trouble and their parents knew that, if any mischief occurred in their town, their sons were probably involved.

They boys' mother heard that a clergyman in town had been successful in disciplining children, so she asked if he would speak with her boys. The clergyman agreed, but asked to see them individually. So the mother sent her 8-year-old first, in the morning, with the older boy to see the clergyman in the afternoon.

The clergyman, a huge man with a booming voice, sat the younger boy down and asked him sternly, "Where is God?".

They boy's mouth dropped open, but he made no response, sitting there with his mouth hanging open, wide-eyed. So the clergyman repeated the question in an even sterner tone, "Where is God!!?" Again the boy made no attempt to answer. So the clergyman raised his voice even more and shook his finger in the boy's face and bellowed, "WHERE IS GOD!?"

The boy screamed and bolted from the room, ran directly home and dove into his closet, slamming the door behind him. When his older brother found him in the closet, he asked, "What happened?"

The younger brother, gasping for breath replied, "We are in BIG trouble this time, dude. God is missing - and they think WE did it!"

Joke #13:
Did you hear about the accountant with insomnia? He decided to try counting sheep, but he made a mistake and was up all night trying to find it!

Joke #14:
Note: To get it, read it out loud and in a Texan accent.

Cop pulls over a redneck and walks up and says, "Son, do you have any ID?"

Redneck says, "'bout what?"

Joke #15:
A man and a woman who have never met before find themselves in the same sleeping carriage of a train. After the initial embarrassment, they both manage to get to sleep; the woman on the top bunk, the man on the lower.

In the middle of the night the woman leans over and says, "I'm sorry to bother you, but I'm awfully cold and I was wondering if you could possibly pass me another blanket."

The man leans out and with a glint in his eye said "I've got a better idea ... let's pretend we're married."

"Why not," giggles the woman.

"Good," he replies. "Get your own blanket."

Joke #16:
This guy needs a job and decides to apply at the zoo. As it happened, their star attraction, a gorilla, had passed away the night before and they had carefully preserved his hide. They tell this guy that they'll pay him well if he would dress up in the gorilla’s skin and pretend to be the gorilla so people will keep coming to the zoo. Well, the guy has his doubts, but Hey! He needs the money, so he puts on the skin and goes out into the cage. The people all cheer to see him. He plays up to the audience and they just eat it up. This isn't so bad, he thinks, and he starts really putting on a show, jumping around, beating his chest and roaring, swinging around. During one acrobatic attempt, though, he loses his balance and crashes through some safety netting, landing square in the middle of the lion cage! As he lies there stunned, the lion roars. He's terrified and starts screaming, "Help, Help, Help!" The lion races over to him, places his paws on his chest and hisses, "Shut up or we'll BOTH lose our jobs!"

Joke #17:
A guy is reading his paper when his wife walks up behind him and smacks him on the back of the head with a frying pan.

He asks, "What was that for?"

She says, "I found a piece of paper in your pocket with 'Betty Sue' written on it."

He says, "Jeez, honey, remember last week when I went to the track? 'Betty Sue' was the name of the horse I went there to bet on." She shrugs and walks away.

Three days later he's reading his paper again when she walks up behind him and smacks him on the back of the head again with the frying pan.

He asks, "What was that for?"

She answers, "Your horse called."

Joke #18:
The female dormitory will be out-of-bounds for all male students, so too the male dormitory to the female students. Anybody caught breaking this rule will be fined $20 the first time. Anybody caught breaking this rule the second time will be fined $60. Being caught a third time will incur a hefty fine of $180. Are there any questions?"

At this, a male student in the crowd inquires, "Uh... How much for a season pass?"

Joke #19:
At a recent computer expo (COMDEX), Bill Gates reportedly compared the computer industry with the auto industry and stated "If GM had kept up with technology like the computer industry has, we would all be driving twenty-five dollar cars that got 1000 mi/gal."

Recently General Motors addressed this comment by releasing the statement: "Yes, but would you want your car to crash twice a day?"

Not only that, but....

Every time they repainted the lines on the road you would have to buy a new car.

Occasionally your car would die on the freeway for no reason, and you would just accept this, restart and drive on.

Occasionally, executing a maneuver would cause your car to stop and fail and you would have to re-install the engine. For some strange reason, you would accept this too.

You could only have one person in the car at a time, unless you bought "Car95" or "CarNT". But, then you would have to buy more seats.

Macintosh would make a car that was powered by the sun, was reliable, five times as fast, twice as easy to drive, but would only run on five percent of the roads.

The Macintosh car owners would get expensive Microsoft upgrades to their cars, which would make their cars run much slower.

The oil, gas and alternator warning lights would be replaced by a single "general car default" warning light.

New seats would force everyone to have the same size butt.

The airbag system would say "are you sure?" before going off.

If you were involved in a crash, you would have no idea what happened.

Joke #20:
A man visiting a graveyard saw a tombstone that read: “Here lies John Smith, a lawyer and an honest man.”

“How about that!” he exclaimed. “They’ve got three people buried in one grave.”

Joke #21:
Two drunks are driving down the highway, drinking their beer. All of a sudden the driver notices lights flashing in his mirror; the cops are on his tail. His buddy says, "What are we going to do?" The driver says, "Don't worry. Just do exactly what I tell you and everything will work out perfectly. First, peel the labels off our beer bottles and we'll each stick one on our forehead. Then shove the bottles underneath the seat, and let me do the talking."

They pull over and the cop walks up to the car. He looks at them kind of funny, but asks to see the guy's driver's license. And he asks him, "Have you been drinking?"

"Oh, no, sir." the driver replies.

"I noticed you weaving back and forth across the highway. Are you *sure* you haven't been drinking?" the cop asks.

"Oh, no, sir," the drunk answers. "We haven't had a thing to drink tonight."

"Well, I've got to ask you," says the cop, "What on earth are those things on your forehead?"

"That's easy, Officer," says the drunk. "You see, we're both alcoholics, and we're on the patch."

Joke #22:
When the mother returned from the grocery store, her small son pulled out the box of animal crackers he had begged for. Then he spread the animal-shaped crackers all over the kitchen counter.

"What are you doing?" his mom asked.

"The box says you can't eat them if the seal is broken," the boy explained. "I'm looking for the seal."

Joke #23:
Three men were discussing at a bar about coincidences. The first man said, "My wife was reading a "tale of two cities" and she gave birth to twins."

"That’s funny," the second man remarked, "my wife was reading 'the three musketeers' and she gave birth to triplets."

The third man shouted, "Good God, I have to rush home!" When asked what the problem was, he exclaimed, "When I left the house, my wife was reading Ali baba and the forty Thieves!!!"

Joke #24:
A police officer in a small town stopped a motorist who was speeding down Main Street.

"But officer." the man began, "I can explain,"

"Just be quiet," snapped the officer. "I'm going to let you cool your heels in jail until the chief gets back..."

"But officer, I just wanted to say...."

"And I said to keep quiet! You're going to jail!"

A few hours later the officer looked in on his prisoner and said, "Lucky for you that the chief is at his daughter's wedding. He'll be in a good mood when he gets back."

"Don't count on it," answered the fellow in the cell. "I'm the GROOM."

Joke #25:
"I'll have you know," said the snob to his date, "My father is a famous man in this town. He's a Lion... a Moose, and an Elk."

"Wow!" said his date, "and what do you charge to see him?"

First Woman GM is Possible

LOS ANGELES -- Kim Ng, a vice president and assistant general manager for the Los Angeles Dodgers the past four years, became the first candidate to interview for the team's vacant GM job.

Team spokesman Josh Rawitch said Ng was interviewed Saturday. If hired to succeed Paul DePodesta, she would become major league baseball's first female GM.

Before joining the Dodgers, the 36-year-old Ng served as vice president and assistant general manager for the New York Yankees from 1998-2001.

Ng and Roy Smith, vice president of player development, are handling front-office duties for the Dodgers until a general manager is hired, and will represent the team at the GM meetings, which begin Tuesday in Palm Springs.

The Dodgers received permission last week to interview former Cleveland Indians and Texas Rangers GM John Hart. Rawitch said he didn't know when that interview would take place.

Hart resigned as general manager of the Rangers on Oct. 4 and was succeeded by assistant GM Jon Daniels. Hart remains under contract with Texas as a consultant.

Among other possible candidates are former Boston Red Sox GM Theo Epstein, Washington Nationals GM Jim Bowden and Chicago White Sox special assistant Dennis Gilbert.

The Dodgers' job became vacant Oct. 29 when DePodesta was fired after less than two years on the job. DePodesta signed a five-year contract in February 2004, shortly after Frank McCourt purchased the team from News Corp.

The Dodgers are also without a manager. McCourt said at the time of DePodesta's firing that the search to replace Jim Tracy would be on hold until a GM is in place.

The Dodgers had a 71-91 record this year -- their worst since 1992 and second-poorest since the franchise moved from Brooklyn to Los Angeles in 1958.

Friday, November 04, 2005

Picks to Sunday

Friday, November 4th

NBA
Spurs (1-0) vs. Cavaliers (1-0)
Spurs are awesome. The Cavaliers manhandled the Hornets. Spurs are home. Spurs have Duncan, Finley, Nick at Night, and everybody else who can just do right in the world of basketball. So, the story goes… James will not be enough for the Cavaliers to win. Pure and simple, Spurs are going to take this one. Score: 107-101.

NHL
Stars (6-5-1) vs. Blackhawk’s (4-9-0)
Well, Chicago is just stinking up the ice… If it wasn’t for Vorobiev, would they have any wins at all? If the Stars contain him, they walk away with a win easy. If they don’t, well they still win, it just won’t be as easy. The question I am thinking of this early into the season is will they make the playoffs? Too early to tell, but if Chicago takes them out, then the most likely answer would be ‘NO.’ Dallas over Chicago – Score: 5-2.

Saturday, November 5th

NBA
Mavs (1-1) vs. Spurs (1-0)
The Mavs had some time off, but will rest be enough for the homecoming of Finley? Man, if only the Mavs had Fin and Nick at Night, I would think we could make a strong run again. Not that 50+ wins is something to be ashamed about, but when you are in the same division as the Spurs, what can you do but just lie down and die. I do think they will come out to play and that this game is going to be close, but I have a reality check telling me the Mavs will start 1-2 this season and the Spurs 3-0. Score: 99-97.

Rockets (1-0) vs. Hornets (1-1)
Ming around the rosés, pocket full of poses, ashes – ashes, we all fall down… And so do the Hornets… but, the relocation experiment may do them well. First in Charlotte. Next in New Orleans, and now shacking up in the OK country. But this is not going to be played at “home,” wherever that may be… it’s in a place that is one place closer to you. Houston will win this one, simply because of home court, and the Hornets have impressed me, but let’s be honest. I’m fickle. The Hornets did beat the Rockets by 1 in pre-season, but that was at their house. In Houston, things are different. Score: 92-89.

NHL
Stars (6-5-1) vs. Avalanche (7-4-1)
Denver… a real beautiful area, but hockey players are not known for their looks, are they. Colorado is 5-2-1 at home, and the Stars are 3-1 on the road. But we hate the Avalanche (professionally, not personally). Sour grapes all around. These two teams are going to beat each other senseless. I will take the Avalanche on this one, simply because of home-ice as they call it (and they have won their last 4 games, all at home). Score: 5-4.

Sunday, November 6th

NFL
Panthers (5-2) vs. Buccaneers (5-2)
Are you ready for some football? Me neither. When’s baseball season start again? Cowboys are off… but aren’t they always? Anyway, the mighty-mighty-boss-cats take the stage on Sunday, which will be a great game. Two juggernauts facing off… man, am I using stock lines? Shame on me. Bucs vs. the Cats, should be fun to watch. After a 1-2 start, the Cats have won their last 4, and with the exception of Minnesota, they were close games (4 or less points of victory). They have held opponents under 20 points only twice thus far (New England and Minnesota) and in my opinion, hasn’t really had any victories to truly boast about. I am starting to wonder if the record is more by chance than skill. Tampa Bay on the other hand is a defensive genius. But here is the real concern with them. They were beaten by San Francisco. And right now, that is just outright embarrassment. My 83 year old grandma can beat the 49ers. My six month old can sack their quarterback. The 49ers rank last in 3rd down conversions at 25.9%. In comparison, the Colts, who are a strong favorite to go Supe, have a 51.9%. That’s more than twice as many based on the same chances. I think this may be a close one, the Panthers are better in my mind (they rank second on third downs, behind the Colts). Score: 20-17.

Bears (4-3) vs. Saints (2-6)
Well, I guess I have to look at this one… Saints suck. But let’s look at a few things. Saints have a better offense, statistically, but score less points on average. They have scored over 20 points only twice, and are 1-1 when that happens. They are 0-3 when they score 10 points or less. Green Bay beat them in the embarrass bowl 52-3 on 10/9. Embarrassing the Saints is a common theme this year. I think they should be thinking draft the rest of the way… put defensive linemen who are on crutches into the game and focus off-season. I think Quincy Carter is free right now… Now, the Bears. After starting 1-3, they have won the last 3 and moved into first place in their division. They get less yards than their opponents, but score more points. Do they give them a false sense of security or something? Look for Jones to rush for a million yards (actually, I would say more like 110) and Orton to pass another 200. Bears dominate because Saints don’t show up (again). Score: 21-7.

Wednesday, November 02, 2005

Ranger Stats: 2005

This is something I wrote in HTML, which I am learning on my own... so hopefully it will turn out OK.


Ranger Game Stats 2005
NameJohnnyJennyMack
Record12-610-24-0
Win %0.6670.8331.000
Runs: TX1158423
Runs: Opp885315
ERA: TX4.894.423.75
ERA: Opp6.907.716.47

Mavs Win Opener in Double OT

PHOENIX (AP) -- Coach Avery Johnson saw a bit of himself in his Dallas Mavericks on an opening night that didn't end until Wednesday morning.

Dirk Nowitzki scored 28 points and grabbed 15 rebounds and the Mavericks erased a 17-point fourth-quarter deficit to beat the Phoenix Suns 111-108 in double-overtime.

``If I was out there on that court tonight, I wouldn't quit,'' Johnson said. ``I think this team really wants to have some of my personality. They talk to me a lot about that, and it's kind of flattering. But when you really see it, man, these guys, they battled.''

The late-starting season-opener Tuesday night ended just after midnight, local time.

Nowitzki sank a pair of long jumpers and Keith Van Horn made a 3-pointer in the second overtime. After Van Horn made one of two free throws with 23.7 seconds to play, Steve Nash missed what would have been a game-tying 3-pointer at the final buzzer.

``That was a special game,'' Nowitzki said. ``To lose this one in double OT would have been really, really tough. To grind it out in the end was great.''

Jason Terry added 23 points for Dallas, including the game-tying layup at the end of the first overtime. Josh Howard had 16 points and 11 rebounds. Van Horn scored 15 and Marquis Daniels 13.

Nash scored 30, the same he averaged against his former Dallas team in last season's Western Conference semifinals. He added nine assists and eight rebounds, but had six turnovers.

Raja Bell had 18 points in his first game for the Suns. Shawn Marion had 13 points and 16 rebounds, but was just 4-for-12 shooting overall. James Jones, another Phoenix newcomer, scored 13, including 3-of-6 3-pointers.

Dallas trailed 83-66 with 7 1/2 minutes to play in regulation and 101-96 with 36 seconds left in the first overtime.

``We let them back in it both times, and it hurts,'' Nash said, ``but I think that's going too happen when you have a new team and so little familiarity with that situation. You know, these are growing pains we're going to have to go through to become a good team.''

Phoenix was up 83-66 after a 9-0 run capped by Marion's dunk with 7:44 to play in regulation.

``That's when I started thinking, and that hurt us,'' Suns coach Mike D'Antoni said.

Marion and four reserves had built the big lead, but the coach decided to put Nash back in with the idea of closing it out. Instead, the rally ensued and Nash was weary at the end.

Nowitzki sank three 3-pointers in a row in a 21-3 outburst that forced overtime, then Marquis Daniels sank a 3-pointer with 29 seconds to go in the first overtime, setting up Jason Terry's layup at the buzzer that tied it at 101-101 to force the second OT.

But Van Horn made two free throws and a 3-pointer and the Suns turned cold from outside and sloppy with the ball.

``I think we just took a deep breath at the wrong time,'' Bell said. ``I think we just let our guard down, and they're a team you shouldn't do that against.''

Nowitzki's third 3-pointer of the run cut the lead to 86-85 with 1:44 to play, then Terry's layup put Dallas ahead 87-86 with 1:21 to go. Marion scored inside and was fouled but missed the free throw to give Phoenix an 88-87 lead with a minute remaining in regulation.

Terry followed with another layup to give Dallas a 89-88 lead. Nash missed a fadeaway, then Terry sank one of two free throws to put Dallas up 90-88 with 15.3 seconds to go.

Nash was fouled by Howard on a drive, and made both free throws to tie it at 90-90 with 4.4 seconds left in regulation. Nowitzki missed a tough jumper over Marion at the buzzer to force overtime.

Van Horn and Nowitzki credited the play of Darrell Armstrong, who brought energy to the floor when Terry and Devin Harris were both in foul trouble.

``He was really the key to winning this game,'' Van Horn said. ``He came out and really changed the game defensively. I think we all fed off his energy.''

It was a rematch of the teams that staged the high-scoring Western Conference semifinal series last season. But the Suns had just two starters, and four players overall, back from the team that won an NBA-best 62 regular-season games and lost to San Antonio in the conference finals.

Tuesday, November 01, 2005

Tuesday and Wednesday


Tuesday, November 1st

NBA
Mavs (0-0) vs. Suns (0-0)
Wow-E-Wow! The season begins. This one starts in the land of the hot sun. And with Nash attack, Captain MVP, who is going to take this one? Well, for the NBA title, I don’t there is much doubt that the Spurs are just in wait for the trophy, but getting there could be fun to watch. Stranger things, am I right? So, let’s see. Suns will try to score a ton of points. Dallas is going to try to slow things down. Both went 6-2 in pre. Amare is out for 4 months. That could be the edge Dallas needs, but I am skeptical at best on this one. Amare was the Suns leading scorer last year. And he is gone. Nash is a magician and this is his former team… Dirk is looking for redemption. AJ feels confident, but he is the coach and that is his job. I… will say the intangibles go to Dallas, but I am scared to say it. Mavs take this one on a squeaker, score: 95-92

Spurs (0-0) vs. Nuggets (0-0)
Spurs: doesn’t that say it all? This team could beat any Olympic dream team any day… OK, maybe not the first dream team, but they could give them a run for their money. Spurs win this one: 1,000,000-95. (Reality, 99-92)

Wednesday, November 2nd

NBA
Mavs (1-0) vs. Jazz (0-0)
Well, the Jazz just don’t play. 2-5 in pre is definitely nothing to brag about. In a word: rebuild. For the Mavs: cakewalk. Prediction: Mavs take it, 105-89.

Rockets (0-0) vs. Kings (0-1)
This should be a good game. I like Yo-Yo. I mean, Yao-Yao. Do you get the Ming of what I am saying? I mean the meaning? This is the opener for the Rockets. The Kings second game on the road, so with the Rockets at home against a back to back Kings, it could be interesting. Intangibles definitely go to the Rockets. Well, the Sheriff (Shareef) is going to be in town, and the Kings are picked for tops in their division. I’m not sold on it yet, though. They will make the playoffs, but won’t go far in my book. Being this is the first for Houston, home court, Kings going back to back road nights, Rockets will win this one. Score: 91-87.

NHL
Stars (6-4-1) vs. Kings (8-4-0)
The Kings play hockey, too? OK, let’s do it again… the Sheriff… oh wait, the LA Kings… gotcha. Again, should be a good game between these two, if you like hockey. Not a big fan, but doing this blog, I am gaining interest… LA is 6-3 at home, Stars are 3-1 on the road. Stars are better away from here… interesting. LA and Dallas are first and second, respectfully, in their division. Stars, even with a winning record, have given up more points than scored, whereas LA is killer. They have scored 11 more goals than their opponents. So, I don’t know if I really need to dig for more stats. That tells me pretty much the goods on this game. Kings take this one. Score: 4-2.