Sports News

Mauer @ 3rd!

2010-07-22T14:16:00.003-05:00

Just heard a rumor from a baseball insider that Minnesota's Joe Mauer has been taking ground balls at third base. IT'S ABOUT TIME!

Joe has been really struggling this year. Best example would be his choice to try and lay down a bunt with one out and runners at first and second. A confident Joe Mauer would have stepped in and hit an opposite field line-drive base hit. But his confidence is at an all-time low. There could be many reasons for this. It could have something to do with the new contract and an inevitable letdown. Maybe the added pressure of the contract is getting to him a little bit. It's possible that last year was a complete mirage and he'll never have a season like that again. Or, the stress of being a giant playing a position that will wear down any player, especially a player his size, is starting to take it's tole physically on him.

It appears the Twins are hoping the later is the reason for his struggles this year. If they can successfully convert him to third base, a position the Twins have been trying to fill for years, he could take a lot of stress off his body and extend his career. Another benefit would be that the Twins would no longer need to sit him every third game, he could finally be an everyday player.

Here's one Twins fan that hopes he'll be able to make the transition either this year or during the off-season.

NO MORE BUNTS JOE, PLEASE SWING AWAY!

P90X

2010-07-21T20:51:00.000-05:00

Get ripped with this extreme home workout. I have spent years going to the gym and after those years doing nothing but finally bringing me to a never ending plateau i bucked up and purchased Insanity (same creators of P90X) I then lost the weight I wanted but then i needed the muscle. I gain a ton of muscle and continued to lose fat after starting this program, I have about 30 days left and am sitting in the best shape of my life. Cant wait until day 90!

SPORTS ILLUSTRATED

2010-07-21T19:19:00.000-05:00

Get you SI here, best deal around!!!

Hey all, we know Football season is coming and if you are a betting man like myself I would reccomend you purchase SI here, very cheap year subscribtion that will give you run downs on the teams to watch this season, help your bets here!

Amazon.com

2010-07-19T16:40:00.000-05:00

You have got to check out all of these deals on AMAZON, now from this site you can research and purchase right from updatedsportstalk.blogspot.com just use the link on this page to find the real deals!

NL WINS!!!

2010-07-14T11:59:00.003-05:00

Hey everyone we’re back!!! After a long break from the Sports News Blog we finally came back… very similar to the National League All-Star team. Last night 7-13-10 the NL won the All-Star game for the first time since 1996, when Catcher Mike Piazza was the MVP of the game, and last night Catcher McCann wins the MVP. Interesting huh? Does that mean that the NL is going to have another 13 year winless streak? Now that the NL has home field advantage for the World Series now, who do you think will win? Who do you think will play in the World Series?

My Prediction:
AL- NY Yankees
NL- Atlanta Braves

Home field advantage will seem to matter as the Braves will win the first game and possibly the second but I think the Yankees will win 6!
Please share your prediction!

Canadian Rube Burns Wild

2009-12-19T10:30:00.005-06:00

Follow the link to a story today on espn.com, essentially after practicing at a local rink the van carrying all of the Minnesota Wild's equipment caught fire. The fire was detected after a 5 minute drive to the arena they play tonight, Scotiabank Place. The fire destroyed almost everything according to another story from the Star Tribune, including all of goaltender Backstrom's gear.

To people who don't play hockey this may not seam like a big deal, but your skates alone take a few weeks of heavy skating to break in. Until they are broken in they can be very uncomfortable and will affect how you play. Skates are the biggest problem but there are others, goalie helmets are custom poured for a perfect fit, a few guys have custom made braces, every player has made tweaks to equipment to make it feel better or protect better.

There's also a psychological aspect to this, many players have equipment they've played in since high school or earlier, usually shoulder pads. Many hockey players are also very superstitious, this much change could affect a player's head.

Pretty convenient that this fire would take place a day before playing The Ottawa Senators, this whole things stinks of a cover-up at the highest level. We all know how much hockey means to Canadian society, they're crazy for it. Three days ago the Wild went to Montreal and handed a loss to the Canadians that had their fans booing by the end of the third. I think the Canadian government is behind this fire in an all-out effort to make sure The Wild don't beat The Senators tonight.

I demand some kind of Congressional hearing or something to look into this, we can't allow these Canucks to push us around! USA! USA! USA!

That's Unfortunate

2009-12-18T07:45:00.004-06:00

University of Minnesota women's v-ball got beat last night by Texas, but that's not the real story. Texas has an apparently dominant player named Destinee Hooker, gasp! As if having Hooker as a last name wasn't bad enough, he first name literally means it's in her future and there's nothing she can do about it.

Why has she not changed her name, it makes no sense. Although such a unique name will definitely get you more attention in top media sites such as this one.

Who 'dat?

2009-12-11T07:57:00.003-06:00

Click on the title to follow the link to a hilarious YouTube video. This video is proof that not only does god exist, but he (or she) was wise to send hurricane Katrina to wipe out New Orleans.

I can only hope that the cold weather we're loving here in the upper Midwest will prevent these drunk gun-toting idiots from coming up.

TBS has the worst commercials

2009-12-10T12:13:00.005-06:00

Anyone else love watching TBS on Tuesday nights for the Office marathons? I know I'm not the only one who'll watch the same episode time after time. There's only one problem, these terrible commercials for TBS's original shows

Lopez Tonight: George Lopez is not funny, his old sitcom wasn't funny, and his new late night talk show isn't funny. But far worse than any show or stand up he's done are these new commercials for his late night show.

"Recommended by 4 out of 5 dentists who like to party" - C'mon, there must be focus groups or something where they show these commercials to people before they are aired. There's no a way a room of people, even one or two people would think that's funny.

If this show makes it past New Year's I'll be shocked.

Meet the Browns/House of Payne - I thought maybe it was because I'm white that I don't get it and get very annoyed by these interchangeable terrible comedies (it pains me to call them comedies). But after doing a quick google check I feel better, Spike Lee totally agrees with me.

Again though, the commercials for these shows are much worse than the actual shows. I don't know how many more stupid high-pitched comments I can handle from the Meet the Browns guy.

Live from Lambeau!

2009-12-07T20:03:00.002-06:00

Hey all! We made it here, surrounded by drunk Packer fans. This place is crazy, the mood is pretty good with the Pack up with a quick field goal. I'll try to keep sending updates.

With $$ on Baltimore and a Vikes fan, I need to continue to quietly continue rooting for the Ravens. If I get found out that I'm wearing a purple Favre jersey under this blaze orange parka I may not make it out alive.

Tell my family I love them!

NFC Championship Prediciton

2009-12-07T09:14:00.003-06:00

Sorry Vikings fans!!! Well at about 3:00 pm central time it looked like things were falling in place for the Minnesota Vikings and they weren’t even playing. The New Orleans Saints were looking like they were going to lose to the Redskins when the score was 30-20 with 1:54 left in the game with the Skins holding the lead. So this explains why things were starting to look up for the Vikings and their fans, if the Saints were to lose that game Sunday afternoon it would have put the Vikings in a great situation if they could have beat Arizona, but wait, the Saints came marching in and right into OT, now what do you think happens next? Yep you guessed it, Saints won! Too bad because if the Skins could have held on and the Vikes could have pulled out a win both Saints and Vikings would have the same 12-1 record and if the two teams would have both finished at 15-1 home field advantage would have fallen in Minnesota if the two teams were to meet in the NFC Championship game. Hang in their Minni fans your beloved Vikes will make the NFC Championship game still, it just might be more of a challenge because they will be playing in New Orleans. Both Saints and Vikings showed major weaknesses on Sunday, so it will be Indy vs MN or NO in the Super Bowl.

Wild Building Plan

2009-12-04T13:40:00.004-06:00

In the NHL more than any other league except the NBA the key to building a championship team seems to be that you have to be terrible for three or four years in a row. Don't believe me? Check out the Chicago Blackhawks, they were awful for years, now may be the most talented team in the league with a very younge core, see also the Penguins. Or build your team through free-agency and getting lucky in late rounds of the draft, however you'll only get the best players if they think there's a good chance the team can take the cup. This would be how the Detroit Red Wings have done it. They've picked up some nice free agents and done a fantastic job finding gems in late rounds of the draft, see Henrik Zetterberg.

With these thoughts in mind I'm getting increasingly frustrated with my favorite team, the Minnesota Wild. At the start of the season the team looked terrible, their worst start in the team's long and storied history. I was already looking ahead to who could be the number one or two pick in the draft, get them in a Wild jersey and let's play!

Then for a while they started playing better yet continued to lose games, which was nice. To take a line from Lou Nanne, the best case senario for the Wild is to look good losing every night. A team that is very close to being good, just needing that final piece of the puzzle.

However now the Wild have won three in a row and starting to climb out of the basement of the Western Conference. I'm worried that the Wild will once again finish around 9th or 10th in the Western Conference, missing the playoffs, yet doing well enough to not get a real top-notch talent in the draft. The Wild have shown no ability to evaluate talent, the last player worth a dime they drafted was Patrick O'Sullivan, who the unfortunately traded to the Kings for a year or two of Pavol Demitra. I have no confidence in the Wild finding a gem and then coaching him into an NHL star.

I think it's time for the Wild to trade Backstrom, get a couple picks and prospects. Then we can plug Josh Harding in for goalie, hopefully losing many games while he goes through the learning curve. Then we draft the next Ovechkin and bust out the trophy polish home-boy!

Go Wild, wait no, go whoever is playing the Wild.

Tiger Woods Story

2009-12-04T11:11:00.001-06:00

What do you all think of Tiger and Elin now? How do you feel about him asking for all of the privacy, do his fans have the right to know what’s going on? How do you feel about Tiger no making the tournament he is hosting?

Well to answer question 1, I would have to say Tiger Woods is human and same goes for Elin Nordegren. We as fans or maybe some of us are not fans need to remember that was all live personally lives we typically surround our selves with loved ones which automatically brings more intimacy and passion into our words and actions, although many of those words and actions are not ideal to use. I would totally have a problem with continuing to be a fan if this was a common situation in the Woods household, not one person can say they have heard of Tiger Woods being in the media for a negative reason, at least a legitimate reason.

Now for question 2, first of all we all have the right to privacy, although we would all love to know what really happened early that morning we need to quit being ridiculous human being and give the celeb a break and worry about our own lives and not his when privacy is exactly what he deserves. I would go postal if every time I did something stupid it was all over the news, mainly because it would be weekly or maybe daily… so think about what I just said, we have only heard about something stupid for Tiger and Elin Woods one time.

Question 3, this is my issue, make the damn tourney! C’mon Man! I think if Tiger Woods truly wants to see these issues disappear quickly he needs to put it past him and get to that tourney and not just for him but now it’s for his fans. He is such a personal person and after this incident even though I don’t think he is a bad guy, many do and if he wants to keep his fans and the huge support he receives he needed to be at that tourney.

Thanks for reading the Tiger Woods Story.

How do you like Minnesota now?

2009-12-01T15:28:00.003-06:00

I just finished posting a post predicting the Vikings as the Super Bowl champions and I got to thinking why stop there? Who's to say the other terrible franchises in Minnesota can't take a page out of the Vikings playbook and bring some hardware home. So let's do it, let's dive right into that pool of delusion. Get your cups ready, we're about to serve some kool-aid!

Twins: Of the other teams in this market the Twins could be the closest to making a legitimate title run. Here's how it'll go down:

The Twins start off the off-season by signing Joe Mauer to a 10 year contract, locking him down for essentially his entire career. Then someone brainwashes the Pohlad family into opening up the wallet a little bit, (watch out for spider webs). We pick up a free agent starting pitcher, maybe an Erik Bedard or Jon Garland, and a little help for the bullpen. Francisco Liriano returns to his pre-Tommy John form and is a dominant #1 starter, Slowey, Baker and Blackburn put in career years. Danny Valencia (rookie) is plugged in as the starting third baseman and wins rookie of the year honors, J. J. Hardy returns to his All-Star form. Mauer and Morneau duke it out for MVP and bating champ trophies, and Nick Punto is the greatest second baseman in the league. Span in center is an All-Star, no need to stretch here, Cuddy has another career year and oh yeah the secret weapon Delmond Young finally figures it out (120 RBI, 40 HR, 0 errors). Don't forget about the Beef (Kubel), in the DH, cleaning up the bases.

That's all it would take for the Twins to win it all next year.........I think the kool-aid is wearing off.

Wild:

The Wild finish the 2009-2010 season in last place to lock up next year's Crosby in the draft. They start the 2010-2011 season on fire winning 25 in a row, conference is clinched by the all-star break. We roll through the playoffs to sweep the Pens in the cup finals, avenging the North Stars loss back in 1991 (I think).

I think the Wild are actually much closer than other teams in this market to make a run, they've got great goal tending, just need to shore up the defense and pick up Heatley and Crosby in a monster trade for Harding. That was easy.

T-Wolves:

Even a creative/insane mind like mine can't find a scenario that sends the T-Wolves to a championship, sorry.

Gophers Football:

See T-Wolves explanation, although with a new stadium they look much better loosing than the T-Wolves.

Gophers Hockey:

This would actually be the best bet for another championship, since other than the Twins the Gopher hockey team is the only franchise with any hardware in the case. We already get all of the top recruits, I think we just need to bring in a couple foreigners, maybe a Russian and a couple Canadians, and a Fin for goalie. Final move is replacing Don Lucia with Kevin Gord as head coach, done.

NFL Predictions

2009-12-01T12:48:00.006-06:00

Afternoon football fans. I know, I know, it's a little late and should be pretty easy to make predictions on the NFL playoffs. Shut up, I'm doing it anyway.

NFC:

Division Winners:

NFC East: Philadelphia

NFC North: Minnesota (that was tough)

NFC South: New Orleans (may be clinched already)

NFC West: Arizona

Wild Card:

Dallas

Green Bay

NFC Champions: Minnesota upsets New Orleans at the Superdome

AFC:

Division Winners:

AFC East: New England

AFC North: Cincinnati

AFC South: Indianapolis (already clinched)

AFC West: San Diego

Wild Card:

Baltimore

Jacksonville

AFC Champions: Indianapolis beats San Diego, in Indy.

Super Bowl Champions: Minnesota Vikings

Super Bowl MVP: Adrian Peterson

Regular Season MVP: Drew Brees

What does the picture have to do with this post you may be asking. If so, take a good long look in the mirror, you have some real problems dude.

Hanson Brothers

2009-12-01T12:32:00.003-06:00

Anyone who considers themselves a hockey fan undoubtedly is a huge fan of the movie Slapshot. For those who aren't it's an awesome movie from the 1977 about a minor league hockey team and their struggles to avoid bankruptcy and disbanding. It stars Paul Newman as the captain and coach.

Although the most memorable characters are these three goon brothers, the Hanson Brothers. Essentially a trio of cheap, dirty fighters and caused mayhem any time they were allowed on the ice. Much to the delight of an ever-growing fan following.

It turns out that the son of one of the brothers, Dave, has made it to the NHL with the Toronto Maple Leafs. His name is Christian Hanson and is actually pretty good, thankfully he didn't follow in his goony dad's footsteps. Now just let me make sure my profile doesn't list a home address for Dave to pummel me with some foiled up knuckles.

Dave's a killer!

Scary Hockey Injury

2009-12-01T12:18:00.002-06:00

Wow, follow the link to a scary video of last night's Florida Panthers vs. Atlanta Thrashers game. Keith Ballard accidentaly hits his own goaltender (Vokoun) when frustration gets the best of him. That has to be about the hardest thing to stand on the bench and watch as your goalie is stretchered off the ice and you caused it in a stupid, juvinile moment of frustration.

It turns out to be just a cut, no internal ear or brain damage luckily, the 'koon should be back between the pipes in couple days.

Hot Surfer Chick

2009-11-18T09:45:00.004-06:00

Yeah baby!

In a totally non-sport related post, check out this advertisement for some god knows what website. This could possibly be the most attractive female I've ever seen (not including Amy if you're reading this). I figure since this is a sports news site we've got a male majority readership and the occasional attractive female certainly couldn't hurt. I challenge you, our loyal reader, to find a more attractive female with a surf board.

I would buy whatever she is selling untill my credit card melted from going throught the reader too many times. To steal a line from Tommy Boy, she could sell me a ketchup popsickle with me wearing white gloves.

Happy hump day to all!

NFL Line and Spread Week 10

2009-11-13T14:46:00.002-06:00

Date & Time/Favorite/Line/Underdog/Total
11/15 1:00 ET At NY Jets -7 Jacksonville 40.5
11/15 1:00 ET Denver -3.5 At Washington 37
11/15 1:00 ET At Pittsburgh -7 Cincinnati 41.5
11/15 1:00 ET At Tennessee -7 Buffalo 41
11/15 1:00 ET At Minnesota -17 Detroit 47
11/15 1:00 ET New Orleans -14 At St. Louis 50
11/15 1:00 ET Atlanta -1.5 At Carolina 43.5
11/15 1:00 ET At Miami -10 Tampa Bay 43.5
11/15 4:05 ET At Oakland -2 Kansas City 36.5
11/15 4:15 ET At Arizona -8.5 Seattle 46.5
11/15 4:15 ET At San Diego -1 Philadelphia 47
11/15 4:15 ET Dallas -3 At Green Bay 47.5
11/15 8:20 ET At Indianapolis -3 New England 49.5
Monday Night Football Line

11/16 8:35 ET Baltimore -11 At Cleveland 40.5

NFL Weekly Betting Tips

2009-11-13T14:44:00.000-06:00

Whoa the most boring game in the history of the NFL last night, yes some tight D and I hope nobody took the over. Really not much of an offensive performance from anyone but are the defenses good? Ah no… interceptions are easy when the quarter back throws into your arms! Well let’s hope that Sunday is more action packed which it should be. The NFL has had interesting weeks and if you want to make some serious money betting on the NFL it’s going to be a tough rest of the year, although there are a few teams where you will consistently have safe bets, but watch out for the teams that just linger, such as San Fran, San Diego, Seattle and Carolina in my opinion these teams wont make it too far but they can beat any team on any given Sunday!

NFL Predictions

2009-11-09T13:08:00.002-06:00

The NFL has been fairly interesting this year. The NFL has had a few teams dominate such as Denver, New Orleans, Minnesota and Indianapolis. Now the Philadelphia Eagles have been coming on strong as of late. After this week although we still have one game to play some serious upsets have hit the NFL betters pretty hard. Who in their right mind is going to figure the Green Bay and Tampa game would have ended up like it did? The NFL Predictions might be fairly wacky from here on out but if you continue to review this site the weekly NFL Predictions will be posted by Friday of each week right here on http://updatedsportstalk.blogspot.com/ This will give you time to place your bets. We have many successful former athletes picking on these games and all of them hash it out but in the end a pick has to be made and these are not just picks from one mind but many great NFL minds.

MLB News

2009-11-06T17:02:00.004-06:00

Not so breaking news....the Twins have traded Carlos Gomez (OF, bench) to the Brewers for J. J. Harvy (SS).

I think with this trade we can wrap up the Santana trade as possibly the worst Twins trade in recent memory. Worse even than the Rays trade where the Twins shipped Garza and Bartlett for Delmond Young. The Twins don't even have a starter to show for it, Harvy played some AAA ball last year after getting demoted.

These trades combined should even us up with the baseball gods for the fleecing the Twins handed the Giants in the A. J. Pierzynski trade. The Twins received Boof Bonzer, Lariano, and Nathan in that gem. A trade which looked even more lop-sided a couple years ago.

Enough venting, I think this deal actually makes sense for both teams. The Twins needed to get rid of an outfielder and Gomez makes the most sense. In the process we may have acquired a solid shortstop, if J. J. can return to 2008 form.

Now throw the farm at Mauer and hope he'll sign, and pick up some pitching help. Make these moves and the Twins could be contenders.

NFL Week 9 Predictions

2009-11-06T08:47:00.004-06:00

2009/10 Hockey Season

2009-11-05T16:53:00.001-06:00

National Hockey League-

The World Series is over we can now shift our attention to the action packed game of Hockey. CAUTION: Going from religiously watching Baseball to now watching Hockey may cause whiplash!!! Finally!!! That’s really all I have to say! I get so tired of Baseball come middle of September but we all know we can’t give up on it because now we are hooked and have to follow it to the end which is always in November! Its just like a gay show similar to American Idol, you watch it with the girlfriend and after about 2 minutes in you are thinking to yourself “wow, who the hell in their right mind could ever watch a whole episode of this garbage?” Then you talk the woman into changing the channel and now all you think of is the damn outcome of that lame show! So I hope you see my point. We love Baseball but when it does get lame we still have to hang in there to see the end. But when we can move on to other sports there is an unexplained excitement, at least for some of us. Seasons changing, new activities along with new hopes and dreams for your beloved sports teams. See I am from Minnesota so I have become numb of this felling but I have friends all over the country and I see it in them, that’s how I know the feeling still exists. Well I am getting pretty excited to watch this action packed game called Hockey once every two weeks because that’s about the rate its on TV. On a serious note this season should be spectacular, we are used to seeing San Jose, Detroit and Pittsburg dominate each of their divisions, but just wait there are going to be some upsetting fireworks this season! Get excited Hockey fans… My prediction is that we are in for an unbelievable season with the Washington Capitals coming out on top, and by May we are gonna have to hang in there before we can change the channel to the Baseball game!

Joe Mauer Contract

2009-11-05T14:08:00.004-06:00

The baseball season is finally over, leading us to the start of the always exciting off-season. This year there's only one question on my mind.

What are we going to do with you Joe?

As anyone in the greater Minnesota area is aware, our golden boy Joe Mauer has a contract that is set to expire at the end of next year. The Twins will no doubt be negotiating a long-term contract with Joe and his agent, hopefully wrapping up a record-setting (for the Twins) new contract before spring.

The problem is that everyone knows the Yankees and Red Sox have old catchers and would be willing to pay every penny the Twins offer to get Joe. He's a franchise player and could instantly cement that position for 5-10 years if he stays healthy. Imagine Mauer going the other way putting double after double off the Green Monster at Fenway, it would be almost automatic. With either team he would have a legitimate title chance every year, something the Twins can't offer.

Especially after this playoff run for the Yankees where we saw Posada struggle mightily behind the plate, and I can't remember his doing anything with the bat. That first round of the playoffs this year may turn out to be a tryout of sorts for Joe to be a Yankee. There can't be a Yankee fan in the world that wouldn't have loved to trade catchers with the Twins.

If the Twins can't re-sign Joe in this off-season they need to trade him. The Twins should be able to start a bidding war of sorts between the Yankees and Red Sox, coming away with a king's ransom. Although I'm not convinced the Twins can pull off such a deal, remember the gems the Twins got from the Mets in the Johan Santana trade........one center fielder who wasn't even a started by the end of the season.

Let's end on a positive. Maybe Joe really does like it here, maybe he'll play here for a massive amount of money, maybe he'll sacrifice a better chance to win championships for the small market, low pressure environment here in Minnesota. Maybe the Twins make a couple other big moves this off season (in addition to re-signing Mauer), a top end starting pitcher, a shortstop, maybe a second baseman, help for the bullpen.

Idling where they are will only hurt the Twins, now is the time to make a couple big moves and bring that trophy to Minneapolis. Or trade Mauer, Nathan, Cuddyer, Morneau and hit the reset button.

NFL Predictions - Results

2009-11-05T12:29:00.003-06:00

Here's our expert picks and results from last week's NFL action:

Final Score Line Pick Result

Texans 31 3.5 Texans WIN
Bills 10

Browns 6 WIN
Bears 30 12.5 Bears

Seahawks 17
Cowboys 38 10 Cowboys WIN

Rams 17
Lions 10 3.5 Lions LOSS

49er's 14 49er's WIN
Colts 18 13.5

Dolphins 30 Dolphins WIN
Jets 25 3.5

Giants 17 1.5
Eagles 40 Eagles WIN

Broncos 7
Ravens 30 3.5 Broncos LOSS

Jaguars 13 Jag's LOSS
Titans 30 3

Raiders 16 LOSS
Chargers 24 16.5 Chargers

Panthers 34 Panthers WIN
Cardinals 21 10.5

Vikings 38 Vikings WIN
Packers 26 3

Falcons 27 Falcons WIN
Saints 35 12

Record 9 Wins 4 Losses

Week 9 picks posted Friday Nov. 5th

Vikings defeat Packers

2009-11-03T12:33:00.002-06:00

Vikings 38 - Packers 26

Wow, another fun, exciting week to be a Vikings fan. I can only imagine what the mentality is in Green Bay right now, hopefully the sharp objects have been hidden.

The Vikings were definitely the better team out there, but they also got lucky on numerous plays.

Jolly's personal foul - that was about as dumb as it gets, allowed us to continue a drive that was deep in GB territory. Turned what would have been a field goal into a touchdown, if you want to point to one play that lost the Pack the game, I'd suggest that one.

Favre's Gunsliging - Favre had a few very questionable throws. The one that really stands out was the TD pass to Harvin. He threw it into triple coverage with defenders coming from above and one below. It turned out great, Harvin caught it, the Packer guys fell all over themselves allowing Harvin to trot in for the touchdown. Don't complain about results I guess, but that was a very high risk pass.

Deflected passes - I counted two passes where Favre's arm was hit during the throwing motion and another pass deflected up by a receiver (A.P.?). On all three the ball fluttered up in the air like someone had set a volleyball. The Vikings were extremely fortunate none were picked off. Kudos for Favre getting rid of the ball, both were very nearly fumbles.

Maybe I'm just being pessimistic but it feels like we're getting all of the best of Brett Favre with none of the worst. I can't help but think eventually some of these close calls will go against Favre and the Vikings. Will the Vikings be able to continue winning at that point? Thankfully they get an off week to get healthy (Winfield), then have three very winnable games to start the second half of the Super Bowl run, homeboy!

Phillies Win

2009-11-03T11:07:00.004-06:00

On Monday night the Philadelphia Phillies pulled away early beating up on AJ Burnett. Like said in an earlier post Burnett was never going to beat the Phillies again although Burnett has showed signs of greatness he has not pitched like he did in game 2 of the World Series at all this year. The right hander was not going to be able to shut down the potent lefties in the middle of the line-up for the Phils. Utley has tied a World Series record with 5 homers already in 5 games. For the prediction on game 6 the smart choice would be to bet on the Bronx Bombers, because in their new ballpark that’s what they truly are… Bombers!

Yankees 27th World Series Title

2009-11-02T09:28:00.001-06:00

World Series game 4 and on...

Okay so the previous prediction was way off. It obvious to most Baseball fans who will most likely take the Series. The Yankees have pretty much sealed the deal. Phillies have given away a great opportunity to take a series lead especially while at their home ball park. After winning game one many would have thought Phillies definitely took control, but why do we always think this way? We all know deep down the Yankees aren’t going to lose! Well now after the Yankees hold a 3-1 series lead I am going to state the obvious… IT’S OVER!!!

Yankees win the World Series in Game 6.

World Series Game 3 Predictions

2009-10-30T12:52:00.002-05:00

Yankees vs Phillies Game 3: Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, PA.

Game 3 of the World Series is sure to display fireworks. With two more dominate pitchers hitting the rubber anyone is up for the taking. Pettitte vs. Hamels could truly be the series breaker here in the 2009 World Series. Lee took control in game 1 and will most likely do it again when the opportunity is presented, although Sabathia may be a sleeping giant next time around when facing Lee. Now lets look at the next match-up between Burnett vs Martinez… will game 2 repeat itself if these two hard throwing right-handers face each other again? I would bet everything I own against it. Burnett although can show signs of greatness he will never shut down the Phillies again in this 2009 World Series like he did in game 2. Hell will freeze over before Howard will strike out 4 times in one game, again. You wait once that tattooed right hander hits the mound again for the Yankees; it’s a sure win for the Phillies, which may just be the turning point in the series paving a nice path for Philadelphia right to the wonderful land of a World Series Title!!!

Vikings Stadium

2009-10-28T14:38:00.005-05:00

In case anyone hasn't heard, the Vikings have been pushing for a new stadium. So far, there has been no progress in the MN legislature to get the ball rolling on a public funded stadium.

Until now there wasn't a lot of pressure being put on the legislature. But now a couple factors have come up to bring this back in the news. The Vikings are almost up on their lease at the Metrodome (expires after 2011 season), they are claiming they will not renew this lease. In itself this is a pretty weak bluff, where else are they going to play, TCF Bank Stadium? I doubt it. However, in the last week California announced they were ready to begin construction on a new stadium in an effort to attract an NFL team to L.A. On their short list of team they're interested in is no other than the Vikes. I think the Wilfs would move the team to L.A. in a heartbeat if they are allowed to develop the surrounding areas.

The opposition reaction to a publicly funded stadium would be, how can they expect us to pay for a new stadium when we're in a recession and shutting down some social services. This is valid, but you have to look a little deeper. They Vikings are not going to continue playing at the Metrodome forever, and could leave very quickly. If we don't want to lose them, we need to invest in the team.

This would actually be an ideal time to build a stadium. The cost of construction in both materials and cost of labor is low, and will only go up. The construction would provide many jobs in a time that too many are out of work. What do businesses do during a downturn? They dig deep and invest in their company. This is exactly what Minnesota needs to do with the Vikings. They should tear down the dome, play a couple years at TCF Bank Stadium then open up an open air stadium where the dome currently sits. Make a stadium for football, do it right and it should be a great football stadium for decades, see Lambeau Field. Then get some development around the new stadium, like should have happened with the dome.

Let's face it, if the Vikings leave we'll all bitch and moan for years about the lack of pro football, some will revert back to being Packers fans. Eventually we'll have to pay a lot more to attract a new team than it would cost to keep the Vikings here now. Some of us remember a similar scenario playing out with the North Stars, it took 8 long years to get a hockey team back into Minnesota.

I will not cheer for the Packers!

MLB World Series

2009-10-28T12:21:00.003-05:00

Yankees are obviously favored to win the series but I believe it really comes down to the first game. No team yet has even put up a decent game against Sabathia! The Minnesota Twins probably had the best chance. In the show down tonight between Sabathia and Lee my prediction is that the winning pitcher tonight (game 1) will end up with a ring.

To see more predictions click on post title.

Please feel free to write your thoughts as well.

Vikings Remaining Schedule

2009-10-27T15:46:00.002-05:00

Minnesota Vikings have a great start to be proud of. But can they keep it together after the heartbreaker from last Sunday? There are realistically 6-7 games that Minnesota could lose. The big question is if they do get by and make it to the playoffs are they going to be ready for a real match-up?

Nov 01
MIN @ GB

Nov 15
DET @ MIN

Nov 22
SEA @ MIN

Nov 29
CHI @ MIN

Dec 06
MIN @ ARI

Dec 13
CIN @ MIN

Dec 20
MIN @ CAR

Dec 28
MIN @ CHI

Jan 03
NYG @ MIN

Don't jump Minnesotans!

2009-10-26T12:36:00.003-05:00

It's a blue Monday morning here in the land of lakes and frostbite. Our precious Vikings lost a game they should have won (we should be happy Favre lived through it), the Gopher football got embarrassed by an average Ohio State team, Gopher hockey got swept at home, and don't look now but the T-Wolves are about to start their run at getting another failed lottery pick. Our Wild did manage to eek one out in a shootout on Saturday, I guess we can hang our hats on that if we want to.

I'm going to try and talk everyone off the ledge, tomorrow is a new day for some of these teams. The Vikings looked great yesterday, if it weren't for a couple improbable plays crippling us the Vikes would have won. I feel much better about this loss than the win against the Ravens. Winning next week in Green Bay then the bye week, I think we can all be happy with that.

The Gopher hockey team doesn't look great right now, but fear not, they have the talent to turn it around. They should be able to regain a little swagger this week with Alaska coming to town. However, if they don't play well it could be panic button pressing time.

Gopher football. Hmmm....well I guess they kept it close for the first part of the game, that's encouraging. The only real positive we should take from the game is that backup QB Gray got into the game. Whether he really has the goods to be a quality quarterback remains to be seen, but at least he may be getting more playing time.

The Wild are improving, they may have played their best game of the young season on Saturday. They were much better defensively and created more scoring opportunities than in previous games. They've got a big game tonight in Chicago on national T.V., would be a very nice night to get that first road win.

And the Wolves...I don't have a great basketball mind, but I know bad, dysfunctional teams when I see one. There may be no better example than the T-Wolves. Wake me up for the draft lottery so I can see the Wolves drop in the order again.

It's not all dark clouds in the forecast for loser-sota, we've got a couple rays of sunshine to forward to. So c'mon off that ledge and save your seats for the Vikings parade route after they take down the Pats to win the Super Bowl homeboy!

The Greatest Fight Video Ever!

2009-10-25T20:44:00.001-05:00

Follow the link to the greatest fight video ever.

Vikings vs. Steelers Preview

2009-10-22T11:54:00.004-05:00

Vikes vs. Steelers

The Vikings look like they are about to run into a buzz saw named the Steelers. This will be the best team the Vikings have played, and to play in Pitt will be a huge challenge. Here's what I see as the two keys to the game for Minnesota to win this game.

1) Vikings Offensive Line. For the Vikings to win they are going to need a superb game from their fat bottom boys up front. I think they're going to need a big game from AP, which will require some solid blocking to open up holes for him to run through. If they can get AP going early, Pitt will be forced to stack at least 8 in the box, this should open up opportunities for the passing game.

More important than blocking for AP, the line needs to protect Farve like he's an 85 year old grandma this week. The Steelers are going to blitz Favre consistently this week. They know it's the only way to beat him. Also, he's not able to run away from the blitz and will go down as soon as someone lays a hand on him. If the line can pick up the blitz and give Favre a couple seconds in the pocket he should be able to exploit it for some big plays.

2) Vikings Secondary. The Steelers haven't had a lot of success running the ball this year, and have been nicked up at the running back position with neither Mendenhal or Parker at 100%. The Steelers will likely be throwing early and often. With Winfield likely not playing this week the secondary is going to need to really step up. Big Ben is an underrated quarterback, something that sounds strange for a guy already with two rings. If our secondary bites on his pump fakes we'll be in big trouble. Ben is also very difficult to bring down, meaning even if we have pressure on him he can get away and find an open receiver.

If the Vikings can find a way to win this one they will have proven themselves as one of the best in the league, right behind New Orleans.

However against an AFC opponent like this in their house, I'd be happy just getting out of there healthy. This could be a very dangerous game for Favre, if he goes down so do the hopes of the Vikings making a playoff run. Not to mention AP, who already tweaked an ankle last week. Hopefully the Vikes can run away with it and sit our franchise players.

Pessimistic Prediction: Steelers 31 Vikings 24

Boogaard Fight

2009-10-22T08:54:00.000-05:00

Sorry, now follow the link to fight night St. Paul!

Wild pull one out of their......

2009-10-22T08:25:00.002-05:00

The Wild managed to win last night despite playing an ugly second period where they lost the lead and fell behind by a goal. It wasn't pretty, but you have to give them credit for digging hard and tying it up in the third. Koivu got lucky on that shootout goal that the puck snuck under the Avs goalie. Sloppy play and an inability to hit the hit almost cost the Wild the game but all's well that ends well they say. Click on the title to check out Boogard's fight from last night, pretty good.

Phillies - World Series???

2009-10-21T16:41:00.005-05:00

Can the Phillies take the series tonight?

Many would say absolutely the Phillies can! About 4 days ago I would have said those people are crazy! With the Dodgers having the best record in all of National League Baseball, Hall of Fame Coach, playoff hitting stud Manny Ramirez and not to ignore their amazing young talent I just figured this would be the year for the Dodgers to do something special. Also with the Yankees playing like they are (not really fair… but unbelievable) I would have bet on destiny having the Yanks and their former (arguably the best) skipper meet in the big show! Now if I was going to risk my hard earned money I would have to say the Dodgers won’t even make it out of game 5. Lets hope I am wrong, huh LA?

The MN Wild should sell, sell, sell!

2009-10-19T12:24:00.003-05:00

What is going on with our favorite hockey team? It has been a very ugly start to the season for the Wild. They have only been competitive in a couple games, and far too often are down by two or more after the first period.

It's hard to tell what is really wrong with the team. We have a coach/system that is built around controlling the puck and maintaining pressure in the offensive zone with the forecheck. I think the problem is we don't have Detroit's or Pittsburgh's level of talent to make this work. However, they are a much better team than they have shown so far. I'd like to give them a chance to get healthy and understand what the coach and system are looking for before hitting the panic button.

But the hand should be hovering over the panic button right now. I don't have much confidence that the Wild are a playoff team, maybe an 8 seed, but that feels very optimistic. I'm starting to think the best option is to start selling. We have a team without much for young talent that is ready to play in the NHL.

Our most valuable asset is Backstrom, and we should be able to get a king's ransom for him. This move would be better to do sooner than later, before his stats drag down his value. There are some teams that are a goalie away from being a contender (Detroit). The Wild should be able to get a top prospect and high draft picks for Backstrom.

I really don't want to trade a Burns or Koivu, they are young and should be the base this team is built around. The timing of signing Havlat sucks if we're going to sell and re-build, but it may be required.

It doesn't really look like there is much else with trade value on this team, they may as well stick with Bouchard, he doesn't have a lot of value. I think moving Backstrom could be a quick way to re-stock the cub bard and get the Wild on track towards being a contender in a couple years. The other bright spot about trading Backstrom is that it would likely result in fewer wins and a better draft position. We need some top-shelf talent to jump start this franchise.

crazy sports fights

2009-10-18T20:59:00.000-05:00

WOW!!!!!!!

Crazy Sports Fights

2009-10-18T20:50:00.000-05:00

Balloon boy faked it!

2009-10-16T13:56:00.002-05:00

Hey dudes, anyone who's had their head stuck in the sand should follow the link to check out this story about this wacky family and the Reynolds Wrap balloon they made. The whole world was riveted yesterday thinking the kid was up in the balloon at 7,000 feet. Turns out the kid was just hiding in the attic the whole time.

It looks like the whole thing was just a publicity stunt. The first sign is obviously the kid saying "You guys said we did this for the show" when asked why he didn't respond while hiding up in the attic. This could be a case of a kid saying something weird, but the way his father responds, getting instantly defensive makes them look like they're hiding something.

The more incriminating wrinkle in the story is that the kid had toys and snacks up in his attic hiding spot. I could see a kid grabbing a toy or two to bring with him, but not a snack. It seems like this was the parents, or maybe just the dad, trying to keep the kid quiet and occupied up there in the attic.

I won't say the family needs to pay for the expenses that went into the search and rescue operation (including helicopters, numerous law enforcement agencies, shutting down the Denver Airport temporarily) until all the facts come out. However it will be very frustrating if they start raking in money hand over fist while taxpayers get stuck with the bill.

What do you guys think? Hoax or heartwarming story?

PICS

2009-10-16T13:25:00.001-05:00

Ready for some spooky shit? No? That's what I thought!

2009-10-16T10:59:00.004-05:00

Check out this website, especially the history and pictures. I'm totally spooked by it and worried I'm now going to see this unibrowed creep.

I'm suspicious that this is actually a hoax for a movie coming out or something. It feels like a marketing ploy.

I really hope it is a movie that comes out soon, because I'm getting increasingly freaked out.

What was that? Who's there? No....stay back....ahhhhhh!

BAND OF THE MONTH

2009-10-15T12:52:00.001-05:00

BETHANY BRAWL - Again for you Mezz

2009-10-15T11:09:00.000-05:00

Couple of good shots

BETHANY -JUST FOR YOU MEZZ

2009-10-13T16:53:00.002-05:00

CHECK OUT THE VIDEOS

NLCS

2009-10-13T10:54:00.000-05:00

Dodgers or Phillies?

Dodgers

ALCS

2009-10-13T10:53:00.000-05:00

Who will win? Yankees or Angels???

I say Angels

Chicago Comeback

2009-10-13T10:50:00.000-05:00

Best comeback ever lastnight

Hitting at any level

2009-10-12T21:31:00.000-05:00

The main key to success to hitting a baseball at any level is patience and confidence.