With the Baseball Hall Of Fame Inductions today, I will be very curious as to what Rickey Henderson will have to say .    Which leads to this burning question: who would you rather have- Manny being Manny or Rickey being Rickey?  Personally, I'd take Rickey because he offered more overall. I would imagine this would be a very tough call to make.  One thing we know (I think): Rickey was never busted for drugs.  I'm also curious as to whether you think Jim Rice deserves to be inducted?  I hope with Rice in, we see Andre Dawson next year!!

All this BCS talk has gotten me pretty riled.  Plus I've been inspired by the post "Why Not Us?  At work yesterday, I made the bold statement that SEC was overrated.  Yes...you heard me...the SEC is overrated.  I don't think there's any question the Big XII was tops this year.  But look at the SEC closer:

-No question Florida and Alabama were tops.  Although Bama's non conference slate was weak.

-Georgia way under performed this year. LSU tanked this year.  Ole Miss was a pleasant surprise.  South Carolina?  Not impressed.  Vanderbilt?  Not.  Tennesse and Mississippi State stunk.  Auburn tanked their year as well. Arkansas? Ditto.  Kentucky wasn't that great either.  Sure they beat each other up, but there wasn't much meat to me this year.

-Now the Big Ten.  Penn State had a great year.  Say what you want about Ohio State, but they were still 10-2.  Michigan State had a nice year at 9-3.  So did Northwestern.  Iowa is on the brink of being ranked and three of their losses were by a total of 12 points.  Minnesota improved big time this year to 7-5.  Illinois tanked it this year and should have been much better.  Michigan was putrid.  Purdue was 5-7 (I think), but could hang with the bottom feeders of the SEC.  Indiana was bad. Wisconsin...as off as they were this year, still made a bowl game.

I think the Big Ten had a much more ballanced year than the SEC.  The SEC got the press, but I think the Big Ten was better.  And name me any other conference with their own network.  I think we'll see proof in the bowl games this year

 

 

I guess with the BCS, hating it is a given.  But this week sure takes the cake!  I just don't see when you're #6 in all of the human polls and still end up #8 in the BCS.  Frankly, although I think most will disagree, we should be ahead of USC.  I think we all have to do a lot of praying, plus make different deals with the devil as far as rooting interests are concerned.

I feel bad, but we have to root for Okie State, Florida State, perhaps Florida in two weeks, Texas A&M, Missouri, Notre Dame or even UCLA.  I hope that's not too much to ask!!

 

Until I become a real journalist and have to show objectivity, I am going to celebrate in my Penn Stateness for a while. Going into this season, if you asked if that Penn State would be 9-0 and ranked #3, I would have laughed. Hard. I mean I did rank PSU #10 in my preseason poll, but was more of a function of how I felt they would finish the season. If you would have asked me if they would be in this position after all of the off-field distractions, I again would have laughed. And if you asked me if PSU would be in this position after what looked like a murder's row of Wisconsin, Michigan and Ohio State (with Illinois mixed in and two of the three games on the road), I would have thought PSU will be lucky to get out with one loss. All of this with a first year starter at QB and a superstar LB out for the year. And, yet...here we are.
There were no bad starts like last week. This game was a classic Big Ten battle. Both defensive lines were very impressive. During the course of the game I had wondered when the offenses would break out. You had flashes of it. I never felt like Penn State played with much passion or sense of urgency, but they never panicked either. Terrelle Pryor was mostly impressive, but his freshman mistake did cost the Buckeyes the game. Late in the third quarter, after PSU missed a field goal to tie the game, I thought it was lights out for the Nits. When Ohio State subsequently moved down the field and appeared to be in position to possibly put the game away, Pryor fumbled. Instead of merely sneaking in for a first down on third and inches, Pryor went for more. And had the ball punched away. Momentum shifter and game changing moment...
But then something funny happened on the way to the forum. Darryl Clark doesn't come in. Backup QB Pat Devlin enters. What the hell is happening?? But Devlin coolly leads the Nits down the field and scores the only touchdown of the game. A late field goal seals it and Penn State ends thirty years of despair in Columbus. What to make of all of this??

-Even when the offense didn't have their "A" game, PSU found a way to win. Evan Royster redeemed himself in the fourth quarter with some key runs. I'm sure things will be better in November.

-The defensive line had one of their best performances of the year, holding the Buckeye running game in check. I thought an issue the rest of the year would be depth on the defensive line would be an issue. In a game like last night, they played like stars!

-The defensive secondary I feel is the weakness on this team and hopefully this addressed down the stretch. Michigan State could cause this team many problems if last night's lapses continue.

-Will there be QB controversy?? Let's hope not, but I will say this: In year's past, if a backup QB were to come in, we'd all cringe and groan. Last night, I never felt for one second that Pat Devlin could not do the job. And he was terrific when the situation called for it. Hopefully the coaching staff handles this properly. I hope Darryl Clark does too.

-The future? It's so easy to get carried away and say PSU is golden in November. Let's not get crazy here. College football is a wacky sport and you're dealing with kids. Anything can happen. Nothing should be taken for granted. If nothing else, Iowa is a tough road test. Indiana won yesterday. And Michigan State is one tough cookie. One at a time and hopefully fate will (and faith) will take us to the right place.

Here's hoping to a November To Remember!!

With appologies to Jack Buck, the Baseball Gods are truly with the Cubs!!  We have weathered the storm of a bad slump and we get the gift of....a baseball game in Milwaukee....and a no hitter by Carlos Zambrano!! 

Thanks to the technology of my wife's iphone, we followed the game as best we could.  I kept thinking to myself why Zambrano wasn't taken out (to preserve his arm).  But man, he didn't throw many pitches.  It's been 10+ years since we have seen a true gem, but I'm so happy that Zambrano got this done!!

I've been on the nay-sayer side of the recent slump, so maybe this gives us the push needed to finish the Central and then go on from there!!

Go Cubs Go!!!!

 

 

And given what we saw of the bullpen yesterday-who will give up more: The Cubs or The Bears?

I'm so glad the losing streak is over!  But my god, what's up with the bullpen?  Mike Wuertz is the worst pitcher!  Let's hope he's not on the post season roster, if there's one to be had. 

I was really hoping Soriano would get the fourth home run.  Looks like he's on one of those streaks that could carry the Cubs.  Amazing how many homeruns he has in less than 100 games.  Can you imagine what he can do if healhty for all 162 games??

 

Well, even with Lou getting lost yesterday, I still like him a helluva lot better than Dusty.  But I'm very concerned about this slump.  Sure, teams go through them all the time.  But the timing sucks.  They were on such a roll before this current losing streak.  Are they complacent?  Tired?  Lou's decisions seem really odd, but then again, he's been successful, so why challenge it?

I'm really worried about the pitching.  If the Cubs knew before August 31 that there might be issues, why didn't they go after someone?  I know the minor league recalls might help, but wasn't there anyone out there that could have stepped in?  It's not like they're losing close games.  They're getting killed.  Please let's hope they can hang on!  It's been such a great season!!

Let's get some runs!!

 

The following is an excerpt of something I posted from my blog.  I love my Penn State, but what's happened lately is truly sad and disheartening.  I hope someone will learn from this.  I also hope they can somehow put this behind them and win today!

From www.jaredsportsriff.com:

And yes, I'd hate to devote more space to the debacle that is Penn State, but it's a slow news week! I'm very dissappointed the players cannot excercise better judgement. Yes-kids can be kids..we were all kids once and did stupid things (God knows I did!!!). But my goodness, you football players are different...as much as I hate to say it...you are in a position where you are representing the University! As unfair as it is, you are high profile and nowadays, everyone knows everything that you do! Grow up and be smart! As for the coaches, shame on you even more! No, you aren't babysitters. But for God's sake, it's time to treat these kids like babies until they show and prove they are responsible young adults!! Yes, this generation of college students are extremely difficult and don't take direction like they might have 30 years ago. But you have a program (and a coach) to protect. Goshdarnit...just do it!! It's ruining the leagacy of a man who has done so much for the University and the sport he represents!

 

I know, I know.  Individual awards mean nothing in a team sport, but I was thinking crazy thoughts last night.  I know it's been debated that starting pitchers should not warrant MVP consideration because they are not every day players. I think there is the rare occurence that a very special year (Ron Guidry in '78; Denny McLain in '68; Roger Steroid in '86) merits strong consideration.  Granted, Dempster's 15-5 pales in comparison to Brandon Webb's 19-4, but in the spirit of the award, I think Dempster has done more for his team.  He changed roles and certainly has been  one of the best players on one of the best teams.  Where would the Cubs be without Dempster?

Sure, Dempster will merit consideration in the Cy Young.  But how about some MVP support??

Crazy??  I'm almost middle aged..and crazy!

 

 

Maybe I'm working too hard and therefore out of touch with Cub Nation, but I found it shocking to hear about Kerry Wood's back.  I found interesting stuff here: http://www.thebaldesttruth.com/.  So what I want to know: was it the finger or the back that kept Wood out?  I guess I find it frustrating to not know.  Sure, most of us don't have the right, but when Wood was out a long time with a blister, I started to wonder if he had other issues with his arm. 

Anyway, let's hope he can pitch and is okay.  I have really enjoyed how well Wood has done in his new role and I hope he can contribute down the stretch.  We need him if the Cubs are to hang on.

 

 

As I keep reminding myself and others I talk to, the baseball season is a marathon, not a sprint.  As die-hards, it's hard not to have the football (or even college basketball) mentality that every game counts.  I mean, they do, but you do have 162 games.  But the last couple of weeks have been tough; I think it hurts us so much when the Cubs lose games like Friday when they had so many opportunities.  I was listening to the game on my way home on XM and immediately called my wife when Howry gave up the go-ahead homerun. "Why in the hell is Howry in a tie game" I yelled.  And to put in a rookie (Notre Dame no less!!) in the kind of situation he was put in I thought was kinda weird.  Today is a new day and hopfeully the Cubs can get Rich Harden some runs!

I just saw the whole Perioa incident.  Very, very ugly!  I feel bad for Ryno, even though he wasn't there.  I can't imagine what he's going to do once he returns to the team.  I also can't imagine this would have happened if were with the team.

At least Milwaukee lost!  I hope upper management can get us some relief!!

 

 

Just got done listening to today's fiasco.  A win is a win is a win....but as we all know it should not have come down to extra inning heroics.  Sure, Carlos Marmol has issues.  Is it him or Captain Lou's management of him (and the rest of the bullpen)???  I think the true issue on this team right now is the bullpen; but could it be the manager himself?  Where was Bob Howry?  Where was Kerry Wood?  Why wasn't Marmol bailed out?  It's a damn shame Rich Harden's first game was wasted; he should have won.  Makes me scared about the second half.  Hopefully we can fortify by the trade deadline

Glad for the win.  Thank God for the break...

 

I have been mostly pleased with what I have seen of the Cubs so far.  I did not expect us to have baseball's best record at this point, nor did I think I'd see such a style change(their mostly batting patience).  Shoot, Zambrano has kept his head for most of the season!

So, will this all hold up in the second half?  Will Zambrano win 20 games?   Will Kerry Wood be able to last the year without running out of gas?  Will Rich Harden be that key component to the playoffs?  Will DLee stop hitting into so many double plays?  Here's hoping that the Cubs will preform the anti-choke and hold off those pesyk Brewers and Cardinals and that we'll all have something to be proud about come October!

 

Now that we've had a day to let the big trade soak in, were the Cubs right in acquiring Harden?  I am worried about the injuries...and the bad luck we've had with Prior and Wood.  Potentially, the Cubs will be very hard to beat with the starting rotation they now employ.  I think down the road, they match up well with anyone.  If Harden can hold up-look out!!

 

By the way, knock on wood..Zambrano looks pretty good.  And Dempster looked mostly solid.

Okay...considering the flooding in the Midwest, maybe a bit insensitive.  I think the Cubs still need more and I think they should look for some more offense.  Yeah...funny considering the Cubs lead all of baseball with, what, a .284 average?  But I think there's something missing and I wouldn't mind seeing us with another power bat.  Could Brian Giles fit in somewhere??  Sad to see Matt Murton go, but he wasn't really contributing much anyway.  Time will tell if today's trade worked

I wanted to share something that I saw in USA Today today (and something I wrote in my blog).  Did anyone see the feature article on Mark McGwire and the fact that he has been quietly helping hitters in various levels in baseball?  I have very mixed feelings about him.  I hate him for using andro and how he acted in the 2005 hearings in Congress.  I hate him for doing a lot of this for the Cardinals and against the Cubs.  But outside of this, should he be penalized harshly?  Does what he did rank as bad as Pete Rose and Shoeless Joe Jackson?  I'm just throwing this out to see what everyone thinks.  When I see NFL players able to come back from drug suspensions and be successful afterward (Shawne Merriman comes to mind), it made wonder a bit after I read this article.  Check it out at: http://www.usatoday.com/sports/baseball/2008-06-30-mcgwire_N.htm

I write this as I see the WGN poll question asking if Barry Bonds will ever play again?  Let's hope not...

 

Given our recent troubles, should the Cubs start thinking about making some moves? I know we'll get Zambrano back on Friday and Soriano very soon.  I'm concerned the starting pitching won't last the year.  Granted, Ted Lilly is pitching much better than in April, but does Dempster last the year?  Can we handle Marquis and whoever is put in the 5th slot?  I'd like to see us make a run at CC Sabathia.  Wouldn't mind seeing a little more bench help as well.

Any thoughts from anyone regarding Steve Stone as a Sox radio announcer now?

I personally found this shocking, especially after half of the season passing by without knowing.  I also found this interesting considering what happened in 2004 and because it's the second series of the season between the Cubs and Sox.  My wife is a huge Stone fan and felt it was the perfect way to stick it to the Cubs.  I think even FOX mentioned this on yesterday's game.

Just found this interesting....

 

I need some help with somthing I'm doing for my blog.  Every holiday, we get some statisical measurement of teams in first place on Memorial Day, Fourth Of July and Labor Day andthe likelihood they will stay there.  Can anybody out there help me or tell me where I can find this?  I'm not trying to jinx the Cubs; I'm just doing this because it's Memorial Day

Thank You!

 

Jared Prebish

www.sportsriff.com or jaredprebish@yahoo.com

Burke, Virginia