A sports blog by and for Midwest Sports Fans
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When I go out and play golf, double digit scores on one hole are routine. But for PGA Tour golfers, they are a rarity. Not only are the pros much more adept at keeping their balls out of harm’s way in the first place, but they are remarkably good at getting out of trouble once they get into it.
So with that in mind, surely no professional golfer could ever card a score as high as, say, 16 on a single hole right?
Na.
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The playoffs are here, and we are sure in for a ride. With stars joining forces, a three-peat at stake, and young MVPs rising, there are many storylines as we enter the playoffs this year!
So don’t you want to catch it all?
Well, I’ve got you covered NBA fans!
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Yesterday, I showed you this video of a dad outsmarting his son the “old fashioned way” as part of our Sports Are Kind of Slow This Week So Let’s Find Fun Non-Sports Stuff to Amuse Ourselves With initiative. You all seemed to enjoy that video, which is cool.
I have a feeling you will greatly enjoy the video below as well. It features a drummer named Adam Gray (Facebook him here) who has achieved moderate Internet fame for, I’m assuming, his ability to perform impressive tricks like what you’re about to see.
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Longtime readers of MSF know that we give the Chicago Cubs a lot of crap around here. There are two reasons for this: 1) the Cubs suck; 2) I hate them. Add those two elements up and it creates an atmosphere ripe for incessant, probably annoying, and often unncessary lampooning.
But today I’m actually not here to make fun of the Cubs – well at least not directly. Rather, I simply want to point you in the direction of a fascinating article by Chuck Garfein of CSNChicago.com that examines the growing body of evidence suggesting that the Chicago Cubs threw the 1918 World Series.
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We are only 11 games into the 2011 season and the Minnesota Twins have already turned me into Bill Simmons.
You know what I mean. That guy who calls overreacts to every single little thing and claims the season is over when Tsuyoshi Nishioka can’t figure out the strike zone and doesn’t know how to avoid a base runner trying to break up a double play.
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[Editor's note: I am very pleased to introduce a new column here at MSF, which will be written by new Minnesota Twins fan and MSF author Amanda Lawson. (Follow her on Twitter here.) What makes this column unique is that, unlike every other column you've ever read here at our little corner of sports blogosphere, this one is written by someone who is not only writing about her subject for the first time, but also experiencing it for the first time in real life.
A lifelong football fan, Lawson recently decided to become a fan of our National Pastime, and she chose the most consistent AL Central team of the past decade to be object of her attention and affection. This column will describe her first year of immersion in the great game of baseball.]
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Recently, I’ve decided to become a baseball follower.
After a few weeks of research and lots of discussions with my very opinionated friends, I decided that the Minnesota Twins were the team to cheer for. Easy to say before a season starts.
“Spring training is nothing to get excited or worked-up about,” is what I was told. “Just wait until the season starts.”
Right.
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The time has come once again my NBA friends!
The NBA playoffs are about to begin, and surely this is one of the most exciting playoffs I have seen in recent years. With new-look teams like Miami and New York on the prowl, we are sure to be in for a treat almost every night.
Then there are the young rising talents such as Derrick Rose and Kevin Durant, guys who are ready to prove to the NBA world that they are ready for the big show!
And let’s not forget the usual contenders like Los Angeles, San Antonio, Boston and the many other powerful teams seeking a ring!
Yes, the time has come!
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All I have heard discussed on the radio and TV this morning is the unfortunate Josh Hamilton injury and the inevitable should-he-or-shouldn’t-he have gone home. Yes, it’s a worthy debate…for about five minutes; but then let’s move on.
However, since this is a 24-36 hour sports dead zone – March Madness over, no football, end of NBA regular season, April baseball – the Hamilton injury is the story of the day and all anyone is talking about, because it really is all there is to talk about.
Rather than pile on, I’ll take this opportunity to post some random entertainment while we await Devon’s sure-to-be-badass NBA Playoffs Preview (to be posted later today).
Here is the first bit of random entertainment, a funny video teaching all of the parents out there how to outsmart their children…the old-fashioned way.
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And that headline is me trying to be kind.
I could have said a lot worse after reading the mind-bogglingly awful drivel that John Stegerwald — name misspelled out of principle, not idiocy or laziness — wrote today for Observer-Reporter.com (Washington, PA).
Steigerwald tries to present a contrarian take on the tragic story of Bryan Stow, the San Francisco Giants fan who was savagely beaten at a recent Giants-Dodgers game in LA and now lies in a coma. Steigerwald’s take? That Stow is somehow at fault for his current plight because he dared to wear the jersey of his favorite team in a rival’s stadium.
Seriously.
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As you may or may not now, Pia was recently voted off of American Idol. I do not watch Idol, and only know this because of the outrage I saw on Twitter and other assorted Interweb locations. Apparently she was really, really, ridiculously good at singing…or something; but for whatever reason, she did not capture the ears, minds, and spirits of the voteratti that determines who stays and goes on Idol.
Just look at NFL quarterback Tom Brady. He can barely discuss that awful night without choking up.
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The 2011 NHL Stanley Cup Finals start Wednesday night, kicking off an almost three month long battle between the league’s top 16 teams.
The defending champions — the Chicago Blackhawks — barely scrapped into the playoffs, earning the 8th seed in the playoff. They will play the #1 seed and President trophy winner the Vancouver Canucks.
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It’s NHL playoff time again.
I’m taking a break from bringing you forgotten baseball players to preview the Sweet 16 of the National Hockey League. This year looks to provide some intriguing match-ups to go along with the standard blow-outs.
Let’s get to it, with previews and predictions of each 1st round series.
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The Thunder have proven now that they can run with the big dogs.
They showed us that they had a chance at upsetting any big team last season, when they gave the Lakers a run for their money in the West’s first round. The athleticism, the desire to prove, and the hunger for a chance at an NBA Finals berth — it was all there. You saw it in the eyes of Durant, Westbrook, Harden, head coach Scott Brooks, and former Thunder Jeff Green. It was there.
This season, the Thunder had a slow start and didn’t seem to have shown too much improvement from the former season. That is, until February 22nd came along, and the Thunder front-office pulled a shocker by acquiring longtime Celtics center Kendrick Perkins.
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After two straight disappointing seasons with less then 70 wins, the Cleveland Indians have gotten off to an excellent start this year. Cleveland is currently 7-2 and has won seven straight.
A huge reason why the Tribe had two straight seasons with less than 70 wins was of lack of power in the middle of the line-up. From 2009-2010 Cleveland had only two players that hit more then 20 home runs in a season.
DH Travis Hafner’s absence from the line-up was the major reason for the lack of power. From 2004-2006, (Hafner’s prime) he played in 406 games, hit 103 home runs, and had .303 batting average. Over the last three years he had only played 269 games, hit 34 home runs, and batted .259.
Hafner, just like the Indians is having a tremendous start.
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Fortunately, they are still talking about the magnificent final round at the Masters yesterday — and not the brief controversy that flared up afterwards, when a female reporter was mistakenly denied access to the players locker room – which re-ignited some old controversies about Augusta National Golf Club and some of their long-standing policies.
Even for the casual fans that do not watch most of the PGA Tour season, the Masters is a perfect storm and often a must-see.
