Ooh, Wisconsin. First trip to the state. There wasn’t much to see in terms of scenery on the way, unless you like looking at cornfields. We did run into some traffic about 10 minutes away from the venue, which took us almost an hour to get through. But, we finally made it and parked in the venue parking lot. That cost us $10. *grumble*

Anywho, we get out into the brisk, Wisconsin air and hurry inside, up the stairs, and to the box office. Rach and I present our I.D.s to the rather snooty girl, and she tells us we’re not on the list with a sarcastic smirk. Rach tells her to give us a few minutes, we’ll text one of them, and the girl scoffs and says, “What?” Racheal repeats herself slowly and in an obviously rude manner. The girl walks away. I text Ken. We wait. Wait…wait some more. I didn’t email Chris that day because he told me we were all set. I assumed that meant for all 3, and I didn’t want to keep bothering him.

After about a 15-minute wait, I decide to email Chris since Ken hadn’t responded, and as soon as I send it Ken comes walking up the stairs. I immediately send Chris another email, saying, ‘Nevermind!’ Ken smiles at us and says, “Chris didn’t tell me you guys were coming. Sometimes he forgets.” He told the snooty girl he needed to add 2 to their guestlist, and she rudely asked if she could see his pass. He held it up for her, and she handed over the sheet without a word. We thanked him, and after he left, she asked to see our I.D.s again, gave us our tickets, and then we headed up some more stairs where the line to go back downstairs into the main room was waiting.

There, we met Gina. (: Yay, Saokids! We hugged and stood in line chatting until they let us go back downstairs.

I was feeling pretty good that night, so I decided to stand on the front with them. I was far right, last person on the front, but I could still see perfectly, and I wouldn’t have to deal with any moshing or crowdsurfers. At least I wasn’t directly in front of their lights like Racheal was! hahaha

Cove walked out from backstage, and Rach tried to get him to look our way, but he didn’t pay us any attention. A little bit later, she wasn’t paying attention when Chris walked out. He waved and I waved back.

Eye Alaska was first. I love them so much. It’s just total ‘get down’ music. They had some technical difficulties, and their set got cut for time. Boo.

POS didn’t perform at the Milwaukee date.

InnerPartySystem. What can I say? Dance partaaay!

And then Saosin. Luuuv. Racheal kept shielding her eyes when the lights would point in her face, and Beau laughed at her. During ‘You’re Not Alone,’ just as the song started, someone yelled, “MOSH PIT!!” at the top of their lungs, and I started laughing. Cove showed us his best dance moves, and told everybody that instead of moshing, let’s all copy him instead. He mentioned how he was sick and was probably running a fever; so, he wanted to take all his clothes off. “Let’s just get naked.” Chris interrupted, saying all the girls had to leave though, and talked about how their next tour would be dudes only, and they would all get naked and do some anal bleaching. It would be called the Rainbow Tour. Cove added, “And Alex will play blast beats…with his cooock.” hahahaha. Cove also said the ‘devil horns’ sign was overrated, and made a triangle shape with his hands, saying we should all start doing that. Chris said that was the symbol for ‘vagina,’ and that Fall Out Boy did it on one tour. “Bunch of goddamn perverts.” hahaha Cove decided we should do the ‘hang loose’ sign instead, get that popular. After their encore, they played a Metallica riff, and were just goofing off for several minutes.

Once they left the stage, the crowd began to disperse and we headed over to sit down at the tables. I saw my friend I’d met the year before in Chicago, Sikai, and she joined us. As we were sitting there, Cameron from Eye Alaska came up to our group and asked if we wanted to buy a CD, but none of us had any cash. Racheal started talking to him about how she loved them, and that we would be seeing them several more times. He looked at her for a moment, and asked if she was from North Carolina. hahaha

Security started kicking people out who didn’t have wristbands. Cove had mentioned on stage that if you wanted to hang out afterwards, go see Carl and get a wristband. Racheal had already gone to see what the deal with that was while I was catching up with Sikai. Apparently, the deal was you had to buy ISOSG for $10, and you would get a wristband. As I said, none of us had any money. The security guy headed our way just as Chris walked over to us, and Racheal told him we’d have to see him tomorrow, we were about to get kicked out. He told us to hold on, and then went and brought a wristband back for she and I. Sikai asked if he could get her one too, and he returned with 3 more: one for her, Gina, and her friend.

The guys were all lined up at a long bar, and people were going down the line. There weren’t a lot of people there, and when the last person moved on to Beau, we went up to Alex. He was super-stoked to see us, and gave us high-fives. I honestly cannot remember what we talked about, but I think we mentioned how we almost missed them in Des Moines.

After he left, Justin came out from behind the bar and came over to Rach and I. He asked if we’d be hanging out for a while, gave us high fives, and said he’d be back.

Cove had come out from behind the bar too, and was taking pictures with people. When he had finished, he saw Rach and I and said, “My ladies!” He hugged us, and we just talked about random stuff. Gina asked about the Saokid chat, and he told us he wanted to get it going again, only this time he wanted to have the power to kick people out if they were being ridiculous. A guy came up then, and asked him to sign something, and then asked him if he wanted any weed. hahahahaha. Cove politely told him no. The kid looked like he was 14. Racheal laughed and said, “Did that guy just ask you…?” Cove said he got that all the time. Racheal asked for a picture with him then, and Gina took it. He and I took one, and he made an exaggeratedly happy face and gave a thumbs up. Racheal laughed at him and told him he looked really excited. He replied, “I am!”

Later, Rach asked him if we could get a Saokids group picture with him, and he said of course. Some random guy took it, and the kid who’d offered Cove weed was creepin’ in the background.

All the rest of the guys had left, and Cove decided to head out too. He hugged us bye, and since Justin never came back we left as well.

Outside, we stood and chatted with Gina a bit, then me, Rach, and Sikai headed to the car. We saw Cove walking down the sidewalk, and Rach was going to honk at him, but he waved at us before she could.

After a bomb turkey sandwich from Jimmy John’s, we dropped Sikai off at the bus station, headed to our hotel, and slept like rocks.

What is it about success in sports that makes you immediately dumb? Well, not everyone’s successful and dumb; some are successful and smart and really worth our caring about them. Like this guy.

And then there’s the latest candidate for the Wooden Head of the Year, Tiger Woods. More words have been spilled in assessing Tiger’s Thanksgiving weekend ‘accident’ outside his Florida home than on something truly important, like the State Dinner Crashers (Hmmmm, movie idea for Favreau and Wilson). But I’ve got something to say.

“Tiger, talk once and it will end forever!”

I can’t repeat that enough. During my journalism career, I learned quickly and completely that the best way to end a negative story is to talk about it. The press doesn’t want to spend too much time on those that explain as much as possible, and apologize if necessary. Then I spent some years doing PR work and saw that reality from the other side. When we had a story that we weren’t happy about during my time at the NHL–an attempt by a former League exec to fix his election to the Hall of Fame, for example–we got in front as best we could, told what happened, apologized for letting it happen and explained how we were working to make sure it couldn’t happen again. Done. End of story. Do you remember the name of the exec who tried that shenanigan? I didn’t think so. (No fair, googling the answer.)

Instead with Tiger Woods we have this:

Did he drive his car into a fire hydrant and tree by accident? Was he trying to escape his understandably angry wife? Did Tiger leave his shoes under a bed that wasn’t hers? Were his cuts the result of flying glass or a flying five-iron?Are his apparent marital problem going to affect his No. 1 athlete in the world status?

You know, Tiger’s advisors should have sat him down two weeks ago when that titan of American Journalism, The National Enquirer, first told the world about Tiger’s apparent unfaithfulness to his beautiful wife Elin, and said: “Look, this is going to get uglier. Whether you did the deed or not, it’s not going away so be prepared.”

Then in a scenario that even the world’s weakest screenwriter can envision, the story got out of hand right at home. Thanksgiving celebrations rarely end in happy houses at 2:25 in the morning with the head of household tearing ass out into the night in an out of control Cadillac Escalade–with the possible exception of the New Jersey home of Tony and Carmela Soprano.

By the time the news fully leaked out–mid afternoon on Friday–Tiger and his functionaries should have been ready for a statement. Tell what you can; tell what you need; but tell. Don’t let the story–and his wife–swing in the wind for two days.

For good examples of athletes who have come clean and asked forgiveness I refer you to Alex Rodriguez and Andy Pettitte of Jeter’s Yankees. For those that didn’t, I give you Sammy Sosa, Mark McGwire and Roger Clemens.

Now Tiger’s not going to his golf tournament scheduled this week in California, claiming injury but surely not wanting to meet the media. Do they deserve to know more? Does the public? Doesn’t really matter does it? The time for asking those questions has passed.

—-

Can’t let a discussion of wooden heads in sports end without a knock on the noggin of the New York Rangers managing genius Glen Sather. Last season the fan favorite Blair Betts had his season (and Ranger career) ended by a cheap shot by the Washington Capitals Donald Brashear.

So what does brilliant Sather do in the offseason–cuts loose Betts, cuts loose Rangers tough guy who stood up to Brashear many times, Colton Orr, and he signs BRASHEAR. The fact that Brashear can no longer skate and seemingly cannot even fight any more makes this all the more mystifying two months into the NHL season.

With the recent play of the Rangers (someone described them as the Knicks on skates), the fans are getting restless. The last two games have been losses by 6-1 and 8-3. Pretty bad for a team that was supposedly strong on defense. If it continues or gets worse, I suspect Mr. Sather will have some splaining to do to the fans like my friend The Mouth.

För att återknyta till förra inlägget (Jisses! Nästan två månader sedan) och allt prat om Letterman har jag satt ihop en topp 3-lista med ursäkter som givits under programmet. Och för att gottgöra (nästan) två månaders icke-bloggande slänger jag in en till topplista. Jepp, två till priset av ingen!

Topp tre ursäkter (eller skämten som tvingat fram dem) hos Letterman:

3. Palin-skämtet (2009)

Dave drar ett par skämt om Sarah Palins familjeresa till New York. Bland annat ett skämt om att Palins dotter ska ha blivit “knocked up” av spelaren Alex “A-Rod” Rodriguez (som skilt sig från sin fru till stor del på grund av A-Rods otrohetsaffärer) under matchen. Palins äldsta dotter Bristol, 18 år, ska nyligen innan ha fött ett barn. Kanske inte det roligaste skämtet vi hört, men det fungerar.

Om det hade varit Bristol och inte hennes yngre syster Willow, 14 år, som var med på matchen.

2. Colombia Day (2001)

“You know what has really gotten impressive? The talent competition. For example, Miss Colombia, she swallowed 50 balloons full of heroin”. Miss Colombia, Andrea Noceti, uppskattade inte skämtet. Det gjorde inte heller någon annan i Colombia, vilket ledde till att The Late Show dagen efter firade Colombia Day och inredde hela studion med typiskt Colombianska saker, samt att Dave fick lova Noceti att aldrig mer skämta om Colombia och droger igen. Som tack fick han i present en signerad bild av fiktive colombianske kaffeodlaren Juan Valdez. En tom gest möts av en märklig.

Delen av skämtet där Miss Chinas talang visar sig vara att montera ner ett spionplan föll för övrigt i glömska.

1. Michael Richards rasisthärjsursäkt (2006)

Att vara Michael Richards hösten 2006 ligger knappast högt upp på någons önskelista. Att sitta i oändliga 7 minuter och (utan förberedelse?) försöka förklara sig inför ett par miljoner tittare världen över efter att ha gastat rasistiska saker åt afro-amerikaner under en stand up (men visst tusan skrattar publiken åt det första, och möjligen också värsta, Richards skriker när han tappar humöret) är knappt något jag skulle önska åt min värsta fiende. Jerry Seinfeld lyckas dock övertala sin kompis att ta över en god bit av hans segment hos Letterman.

Något jag inte lyckas hitta någonstans på hela internet är det bortklippta klippet från Family Guy där Peter Griffin av någon anledning sitter hos Letterman och väser fram “Stop Laughing. It’s Not Funny.” precis som Jerry gör. Eller har jag bara drömt det?

Topp fem knäppa grejer Bruce Willis haft på sig på The Late Show:

6. Donald Trump-frisyren

5. Sarah Jessica Palin

Republikan som han är (fast han är tydligen mest in it for the tax cuts) klär Bruce ut sig till Sarah Palin och kallar sig Sarah Jessica Palin. Varför han slänger in ett “Jessica” där är hyfsat svårbegripligt, antagligen för att göra en referens till Sex and the City-filmen som var aktuell ett par månader tidigare. Personligen tycker jag det räcker gott med Palin-grejen.

4. Demi Moore i Striptease

Bruce Willis var som bekant gift med Demi Moore ett tag. Demi Moore spelade huvudrollen i filmen Striptease, alltså gör Bruce en plugg för sin frus film på The Late Show.

3. Sanjaya-frisyren

Sanjaya Malakar var en deltagare i den sjätte säsongen av American Idol som gärna jobbade med intressanta frisyrer. Bruce är inte sen att se likheterna dem emellan och kopierar en av hans mest minnesvärda frisyrer.

2. Scanket

Den här har jag ingen aning om vad den refererar till.

1. Mossan

Fantastisk!

According to the Daily News, sources indicate that there is a split between Theo ‘Whiz Kid’ Epstein and owner John Henry about the potential acquisition of Roy Halladay. Apparently Epstein doesn’t want to part with Clay Buchholz, Josh Bard and Casey Kelly while John Henry appears to be the main effort behind the possible completion of such deal. Epstein would prefer to use those players in a possible deal for Adrian Gonzalez or former Red Sox farmhand Hanley Ramirez.

John Henry prefers to load up on star power as opposed to cultivating homegrown players, which really shouldn’t come as a surprise as he used to be a limited partner with George Steinbrenner. Henry is also tired of letting marquee players go the Yankees instead of his Red Sox (See: A-Rod, Contreras, and Teixeira). If I was in Henry’s place, I would feel slightly the same watching the parade of marquee players agreeing to wear pinstripes.

If the Yankees acquire Roy Halladay, this deal could hypothetically provide bigger dividends for the Yankees not only in the short term, but possibly the long term future. In this case, I’m coining ‘long term future’ as 5-10 years from this point on as long as John Henry is the owner of the Red Sox. In reality, Henry can only hold on so long while the Yankees sign or otherwise acquire personnel that Boston desires. If Henry acquiesces to Epstein’s long term plan of developing homegrown players (and doesn’t acquire Halladay), the question that comes to my mind is how many more players will the Yankees acquire that Boston desires before Henry blows up Epstein’s plan?

If Henry does blow of Epstein’s plan and the Red Sox acquire players like the Yankees did earlier in the 2000’s, its possible that a few years down the road, the Red Sox could experience the same heartache the Yankees felt with repeated early playoff exits between 2002-2008 (sans 2003).

Assuming that there will be a split for the short term future, it might actually help the Yankees in the acquisition of Roy Halladay. If the Red Sox hierarchy can’t come up with a proper package that both makes Henry and Epstein happy while meeting Toronto’s demand, it could drive the Blue Jays to make a deal with the Yankees. We already know at this point Halladay would waive his no trade clause to come to the Bronx, so that is one hurdle taken care of. However, it is hard to imagine that the Red Sox, regardless of the issues between Henry and Epstein, would not be involved in Halladay talks. Halladay wearing pinstripes would tip scales fully in the Yankees favor — not that they aren’t already.

While every one is pondering why Roy Halladay is needed on the Yankees (he isn’t), I want to focus on the first free agent deal that Brian Cashman will attempt to get done.

After Johnny Damon finally helped the New York Yankees back to the World Series, and winning their first title since 2001, he is a free agent again. And every time Damon has been a free agent, he has changed teams. He was the good corporate guy who said all the right things before, during and after the big parade down the Canyon of Heroes.

Damon would “love to be a Yankee again,” and he wants “to end my career in New York.”

But after making the defining play of this years World Series with his double steal, smart dash to third base, it appears Damon does want more of the Yankees…more of their money and more years in his contract.  

Before his breakout in the 2009 post season, it was widely thought that the Yankees and Damon would agree to a one year deal with incentives, similar to what Andy Pettitte signed with New York last off season. That type of situation would work well for bothe sides; the Yankees would retain the popular Damon with reasonable dollar figures and Damon would continue to play his usual 150+ games per season.

Damon would play mostly left field and occasionally DH to give his 36 year old legs a rest.

Now Damon (his wife, Michelle and agent Scott Boras) says that many teams are interested in his services, and he has told friends that he will not give the Yankees a discount to stay with the World Champs.

There is no other way to say this – Johnny Damon is a moron. Simply put, if he leaves the Yankees then he is a very stupid individual.

While a member of the Boston Red Sox, Damon was considered one of the “idiots” of their 2004 World Series title team.

That name aptly fits this older version of Damon, too.

After finally experiencing a World Championship in the best city to win a sports title of any kind, Damon wants more money. His agent has bandied about needing a four year deal for the 36 year old outfielder. But Boras’ free agent rants never get his client was he says they deserve.

In separate interviews Boras has said that Damon should get the same type of deal that Yankee catcher Jorge Posada (also 36 at the time) received prior to the 2008 season. Then Boras said that Damon “made Derek Jeter” by hitting behind him this season and his client compares favorably (saber and fantasy stst wisw) to the Yankee captain over the last three seasons. He stated that “whatever the Yankees plan on doing with Jeter long-term, Damon deserves similar consideration.”

Problem for Boras and Damon is that the decision on Johnny will come well before any work on Jeter’s new deal begins.

Also, Boras does not realize (or maybe he does and is just blowing his usual smoke), that the Yankees really needed Posada that off season, as they had nothing in their system at the catching position remotely close to the major leagues and the other choices available in free agency or via trades were terrible.  At that time Francisco Cervelli had finished his first full season in the minors at High A Tampa.

In fact, the Yankees were willing to give Posada a three-year deal, but had to go the extra year because Jorge was being courted by Omar Minaya and the New York Mets, and at that time, the best available catcher was their own backup Jose Molina or free agent Paul LoDuca. Also, Alex Rodriguez had already opted out of his Yankee deal at that time, and the Yankees were in desperate need of  right handed power, something the switch-hitting Posada provided.

Also, Posada plays a more demanding position (although not as well as his younger years) and was a mainstay Yankee from their dynasty years.

Not quite the same situation as with Damon is it Mr. Boras? But when have you ever been reasonable in your free agent demands?

And in regards to comparing Damon to Mr. Jeter, a five-time World Series winner, de facto leader of the Yankees over the last 10 years, this generation’s version of Joe DiMaggio and a sure fire first-ballot Hall of Famer… well I guess I just said all their needs to be said.

As the title of the piece says, Damon needs the Yankees more than the Yankees need him. Their are quite a few left fielders available via free agency (Jason Bay and Matt Holliday) and within the Yankees own system – they can promote Austin Jackson, and have a trio of Jackson, Melky Cabrera and Brett Gardner man center and left field. Lefty power can then be supplied by Juan Miranda or re-signing Eric Hinske.

Or the rumored trade involving the Yankees and Detroit Tigers for center fielder Curtis Granderson would move Cabrera to left field and Granderson in center will supply the lefty power Damon provided last season. While I personally do not like Granderson for the Yankees, it is another option for Brian Cashman.

According to reports Damon has options, too. Remember that even Damon said several teams have shown interest. Those teams include the San Francisco Giants and Chicago White Sox (very early reports). But lefty hitters are a dime a dozen. What most teams need is righty power such as Bay and Holliday. The Red Sox, Rangers, Rays and a dozen other teams fit this category.

And from what I remember, Damon hits left handed. So I do believe some teams are interested in a guy who put up a line of .284/.365/.489 this season with an OPS+ of 126. It is just that those teams are not good and would be in Damon’s worst interest to sign with them.

Damon needs to think about himself first, but not in the monetary sense, but in terms of legacy. It is what every person wonders – how will I be remembered in this game, business, job, family etc? And in major league baseball, legacy is determined by World Series Championships and the Hall of Fame.

According to baseball-reference.com, Damon has made a tick over $97 million in his baseball career. Assuming he hasn’t blown it all (and TMZ is more busy following Tiger Woods’ life), he is pretty well set, as are his children, his future grandchildren AND THEIR future grandchildren!

Unless you are Montgomery Brewster, a person can’t even begin to spend all that cash.

In other words Damon doesn’t need any more money.

What Damon does need is more career hits, runs, doubles,  HR’s and RBI’s. Evidenced by his never being in the Top 10 of any MVP vote, Damon has not been dominating in any aspect of his game during any part of his career.

Damon needs to accumulate stats to even get a whiff of the Hall of Fame. He has two World Series rings, but Damon needs to get 3,000 hits, needs to get to around 1,800 runs scored, needs 600 doubles, needs 300 homers and needs about 1,300 RBI’s.

Is Damon going to get to those numbers hitting second in the White Sox lineup? Will he get there hitting in spacious AT&T Park in San Francisco, hellish for a lefty hitter? No and no. The Red Sox might need a left fielder this year, but Damon can never go back there.

Damon bests interests  for HOF consideration (and a great legacy) in playing for the Yankees where he gets to hit in cozy Yankee Stadium, hitting behind a Hall of Famer in Jeter and in front of Mark Teixeira (potential HOFer) and Alex Rodriguez (lock HOFer). Hitting in that lineup, while in that park will get Damon more of the accumulated stats he needs to get serious Hall of Fame votes somewhere around 2020.

It would be great for Damon if they can work out that two year deal, and a TEAM OPTION for a third, which would keep Damon hungry for more.

Here is what Damon said during the parade, “I want to continue to be on a team that can win and to play in front of great fans – and we know that the Yankees fill both of those,” Damon said. “I think everyone knows my desire to come back. Still, every time I’ve been a free agent, I’ve ended up switching teams. It’s the nature of the beast. If people are interested, I’m going to listen.”

Go ahead and listen to them Johnny because when you take that bigger contract in San Francisco for more money and years, but fall short in career numbers for the Hall of  Fame, you only have yourself to blame. Imagine at age 70 Damon sitting on the front porch answering another reporter’s question about his thoughts on falling short of the Hall of Fame?

Don’t be an “idiot” this time around Johnny, but be a man and tell your agent, Mr. Boras, to get a deal done with the Yankees.

It will be in your legacy’s best interest.

Planeta 51

Animación. Ciencia-ficción. Comedia. Fantástico. Aventuras. Infantil / SINOPSIS: Planet 51 es la historia de una familia de extraterrestres que vive tranquilamente en su planeta hasta la llegada de lo que para ellos es un alienígena: un hombre. El Capitán Charles “Chuck” Baker, astronauta americano, aterriza en Planet 51 pensando que es la primera persona en pisar el planeta. Para su sorpresa, descubre que el planeta está habitado por pequeñas criaturas verdes que viven felizmente en un mundo plagado de cercas blancas, reminiscencia de la alegre inocencia de la América de los años 50, y cuyo único temor es el de ser invadidos por alienígenas… ¡como Chuck! Ayudado por su compañero robot “Rover” y su nuevo amigo Lem, Chuck tendrá que abrirse camino a través del deslumbrante y desconcertante paisaje de Planet 51 para no convertirse en pieza permanente del Museo Espacial de Invasores Alienígenas de Planet 51…

Producción española (en más de un 80%) que ha costado más de 60 millones de dólares -récord del cine español- y que ha sido escrita mayoritariamente por el guionista de Shrek: Joe Stillman, con arreglos de varios guionistas involucrados en Los Simpson. El montaje de la película corre a cargo de Alex Rodríguez, encargado de “Hijos de los hombres”. En USA se ha estrenado el fin de semana del Día de Acción de Gracias, en noviembre, en más de 3.000 salas

 

Para ver en pantalla completa haz click aqui>>http://justintvzapping.blogspot.com/2009/11/planet-51.html

This one is going to be even shorter than the last one! A funny thing happened:

Chris had told me in an email that this show had been moved from People’s Court to House of Bricks. Okay. We assumed it would still be at the same time. We come strolling into the venue, make our way up closer to the stage, and see Ken up there. For a few minutes, both of us were confused, wondering why he was helping Eye Alaska set us, and then we saw the guys coming out of the backstage door. A light came on in our heads, and we realized the time had been changed as well. I would’ve been sooo bummed if I had missed them.

After the guys begin their set, Racheal and I go stand sidestage on Justin’s side. We’re always on the far side from him, in front of Chris and Beau, so she hardly ever gets good pictures of him, but this time she did. Cove was still sick, but he was hilarious on stage. He yelled at the crowd, “I love everybody in this room!” and danced on Beau and Justin. At one point, he put his hand on some guy’s head, and the guy looked super stoked. haha

After their set, the guys all filed out, Chris saying ‘hi’ to us on his way past. They waited by the backstage entrance to do their encore, but the venue said no time because of the curfew.

None of the other guys came out into the crowd, just Cove. He hugged us hello, and when Rach asked him if he felt any better he said no. He took pictures with and talked to other people, and then came back over to us. We talked about our dislike of Des Moines, and I told him about the heater going out last time we were there, when it was -27 degrees. We got pictures with him, and then a guy came up to him and asked if he could shake his hand, he wanted to be able to say he touched Cove Reber. Cove replied, “That’s weird.”

We said goodbye to him, he hugged us again, and told us he loved us and to be careful driving to Milwaukee. “It’s a rough route.”

Racheal and I went outside then, and stood by the venue door to see if we could catch any of the other guys. Cove came out, made a face at us, and shouted, “See you tomorrow. Be careful. I love you guys!” as he hurried down the sidewalk to their bus. Racheal yelled, “Love you too, Cove!” haha

We decided to leave then, and head on our way to Milwaukee.

There are always two sides of an event, no matter how ugly the situation is. The top sports story in the past week was not hyping the World Baseball Classic. It was not the NBA All-Star festivities. It was the fall of Alex Rodriguez, as he admitted to the world he cheated on America’s pastime as a Texas Ranger. Yet, how far did he fall? How much of his reputation has been damaged? Plus, how does this affect the sport and the administrators of the game?

It all started with a leaked report last Sunday. Sports Illustrated reporter Selena Roberts found information on 104 players that took steroids. Rodriguez was on that list and was the only name released to the press. According to her source, Rodriguez took testosterone and primobolan. Primobolan improves strength and maintains lean muscle with minimal bulk development and has few side effects. Rodriguez was looking bad in every possible way. Yet, he decided to tell his story as soon as possible.

Rodriguez was interviewed by ESPN senior reporter Peter Gammons. Some criticized the interview for being a glorified A-Rod show, but this was not the case. Gammons calmly interviewed Rodriguez while coming at him hardball style. Rodriguez answered every question truthfully about his use. He also appeared to hold his emotions in check. Rodriguez told Gammons and the world that he took steroids during his time as a Ranger. He said he did not take steroids as a Yankee or prior to Texas (including Seattle). Rodriguez apologized as he called himself “stupid, naïve.” ESPN and Gammons even showed the interview from 60 Minutes with Katie Couric, where he told her that he did not take steroids. Rodriguez told Gammons, “How can I be honest with her if I wasn’t honest with myself?” The interview seemed to be an immediate victory for Rodriguez.

The day after the interview was when all hell broke loose. Rodriguez criticized Selena Roberts and attacked her, saying that he had proof that she followed him everywhere including the University of Miami and his penthouse. Roberts released a statement saying that these allegations are false. The Miami police also said that they had no record of any incidents involving Roberts and Rodriguez. Rodriguez’s apology was not going to be trusted, but a little luck might ease the pain.

Roberts has a book on Rodriguez that will reveal more information on him and him alone. The book was supposed to be released in stores May 19^th. Yet, HarperCollins (the publisher of the book) bumped up the release date to April 19^th. A representative claimed that the information had to be released as soon as possible. Yet, this does not make Roberts well. The last time a book came out with steroid information cost two reporters to be incarcerated (see Game of Shadows). It also might not make Roberts a credible source for the truth. The scrutiny may not be that bad, but maybe that’s the reason why the other names have not been shown.

Rodriguez has endured the press well after the interview. He has not talked about steroid use, only in his quest for redemption. He seems to be doing well. Rodriguez still wants to do good for the future of this sport. His college alum, the University of Miami, still named their baseball field after him. Rodriguez gave a nice speech about owning up to mistakes, as he knows that he must rebuild his trust with the fans and the world of baseball. He also apologized to Roberts for the accusations against her during the ESPN interview. This is a good start to repairing his image.

In yesterday’s New York Times: Week in Review section, Bill Marsh’s article The Voice Was Lying. The Face May Have Told the Truth revealed a psychologist’s study on Rodriguez’s interview on 60 Minutes. Dr. Paul Ekman has specialized in the meanings of facial expressions and body movements, whether a person has lied or not. He found at least three movements. The first one is the gestural slip, where it is a slight raise of a shoulder that slips out of a full gesture. The second one is called “unilateral” contempt, which is the raising and tightening of the corner of the lip that can indicate arrogance or superiority. The third one is called “microfear,” which is a horizontal stretching of the lips that is used to conceal fearfulness. This brings up an intriguing question: Who knew that Rodriguez lied when the interview just came out?

Now, what have we learned? It turns out that you can’t trust anyone without proof. It also turns out that the people that release certain information aren’t necessarily heroes. It’s also interesting how one act from the past can turn you into public enemy number one. Who can you side with? Do you side with Rodriguez and try to forgive him? Do you side with Roberts and want even more information about his troubles? In my experiences when dealing with lies and deceit, I have learned the best side is to look at it from a “grey” perspective.

It appears that this is only the beginning of this saga. It’s only a matter of time before someone gets burned for this. Rodriguez and Roberts will probably fight over the course of this season. If we pick a side, then we must accept the bad with the good. If you side with Rodriguez, then you must defend him for his lies as well as the truth. If you side with Roberts, then you must defend her for her book and her reasons to attack Rodriguez. If you cannot do any of these things, then look at it from all sides. Nobody is perfect, so pick at your own risk.

Well, that’s it for today. If you disagree, don’t be shy. E-mail me back right here, and I’ll respond. Until then, stay cool you KNUCKLEHEADS!!!

Yours truly,

Sebastian Maldonado

Copyright © 2007 by Sebastian Maldonado

Sources have indicated to Phil Rogers of the Chicago Tribune that Bud Selig will step down after the 2012 season. If this is true, then the next labor agreement, due in 2011, will likely be his high profile impact on the game of baseball will be.

Selig, in 1992 after Fay Vincent resigned became the defacto commissioner until being ‘voted’ in as commissioner in 1998. During his time, Selig will be known for a laundry list of things, some good, some bad. How his legacy after 2012 portrays him, who knows as he still has 3 seasons left to change a few things.

During his tenure, before the 1994 season, Selig realigned the American and National league into three divisions each and instituted the Wild Card playoff berth for both leagues. However, in 1994, baseball for the first time since 1904 did not hold a World Series which was canceled due to the work stoppage. Before baseball would officially recover from the strike, Selig instituted interleague baseball during the summer of 1997, which still stands today with great success.

Baseball would not fully recover from the ‘94 strike until the great HR chase of 1998 which in someways officially welcomed Selig’s greatest battle, performance enhancing drugs. Since 2005, Major League baseball has instituted a tougher performance-enhancing drugs testing policy, but still has some holes (See: HGH testing), however it is much better in a time when it is needed.

Going forward, Bud Selig was further embarrassed when he called the MLB All Star game in 2002, in his hometown of Milwaukee, in the 11th inning of a 7-7 tie. Since then, the winner of the All Star Game would have homefield advantage during the World Series.

In a good move, Bud Selig created the World Baseball Classic (with help from the International Baseball Federation) which for the most part has produced positive results with few drawbacks. The next WBC will be in 2013 and will continue every four years.

In 2008, Selig instituted instant replay for disputed home run calls (Alex Rodriguez thanks you), but nothing else further. With the institution of instant replay for home runs, many people have called for expanded use of replay, especially after the 2009 Postseason. However, Selig still stands against expanding replay, which might stand until he leaves office.

Looking back on everything that has happened, it might be easy to paint Selig’s time in office as slightly bad considering the impact of the 1994 strike and performance enhancing drugs. However, I point to the success of interleague play, the wild card and introduction of revenue sharing. In my honest opinion, Selig will be vilified for things that happened earlier in his tenure (See: ‘94 Strike, PEDs), but will likely be remembered in a good light for items he has done mid to later in his tenure (Instant Replay, Drug Testing, Revenue Sharing).

This one is going to be short; it was so cold, rainy, and most of them were sick. Racheal and I left not too long after the show ended. But let me backtrack several hours.

We got there around 4:00. It was lightly raining, freezing cold, and to top it off, there was a bitter wind. No one else was there yet, so we went into a little pizza place on the same block and ate. About an hour later, we went back out into the wind and rain. There was still no one in line, so we went and stood inside the foyer of a business building right next door to the venue. Rach had to go to the restroom, so she went to a supermarket to use theirs. She ran into Cove on the way out. He waved, hugged her, and said he felt terrible. She didn’t keep him there talking; instead, she let him go inside the supermarket, so she wouldn’t be holding him up outside in the icky weather.

When she got back, we went to wait in line. There were around 8 people there. Fortunately, it had stopped raining. And then an awesome venue worker took all of us and let us wait inside the bar until doors opened. We didn’t stay there though, because other people were lining up outside again, so we went and got back in line. Chris walked by with Ken, and when he saw us he said, “There’s Ashley and Racheal.” He came over and hugged us, and told us they’d almost had to cancel the show; it was snowing in Denver before they left, and it took them 16 hours to get to Kansas City. Ken asked what our last name was, for the other shows we were coming to.

Doors finally opened, and after a mad dash to the car to get our I.D.s and avoid a cover charge, we were inside. Rach went up to the barricade, and I stood on a walkway that went alongside the stage.

Eye Alaska. Wow. I really liked them, and apparently Justin did too. He was standing sidestage during most of their set, bobbing his head along with the music.

POS was also really good.

InnerPartySystem was awesome! Their light show is rad, such a trip.

Saosin. I had a stupid smile on my face their entire set, singing along to all the songs. At one point Cove waved, and I thought he was waving at Racheal, because she turned around and grinned at me. Turns out he was waving at me. Oops. He was coughing a lot during their set, but he still did a good job. I almost cried during ‘Fireflies,’ but I stopped myself. That song just gets me.

Racheal got a setlist. They did every song on it except ‘Bury Me.’ It had to be cut because the venue ran behind on opening the doors when they were supposed to.

We waited around inside a bit, but didn’t see any of them, so we went outside and sat on the railing. Their bus was parked out front. We were sitting and talking when we both looked up and saw Chris come to the front doors of the venue and look out. When he saw us, he came outside and immediately asked, “What’s wrong with you guys?” I guess it did look like I was consoling Racheal or something; we were squished next to each other and I had my arm around her.

Rach replied nothing was wrong, and he hugged us and asked what city we were coming to next. When we said Des Moines, he said it was supposed to snow. He told us we were taken care of, and said if we wanted anything from merch to just let him know. That’s the 3rd time he’s offered free merch, but we always refuse (he practically forced us to take the sunglasses at Warped). He then said he was gonna go take some Nyquil and pass out.

We decided to leave then, so tired from lack of sleep the night before (too excited), and peaced out.

Thanksgiving always causes you to step back, and be thankful for the important things of life. In that spirit, I thought about the things in sports that I’m thankful for.

Brandon Graham

The leader on the field and in the locker room for the Michigan football team in 2009, Graham has instantly become my favorite Michigan football player ever. Yes, that’s right… ever. Not Charles Woodson. Not Mike Hart. Not my childhood favorites of Jerame Tuman and Remy Hamilton. Brandon Graham is the man. The effort and determination he showed on the field in 2009 was truly admirable. Off the field, he said all the right things. He will leave with a degree and a first round selection, but his love for Michigan will always be there. It’s evident both on the field and off. I just wish they could have gotten him a couple more wins in his four year career. Thank you Brandon, you exceeded any possible expectations we had for you.

Alex Rodriguez
Growing up, A-Rod was one of my favorite baseball players. Frankly, I still like him a lot. I liked him even more knowing that Yankee fans didn’t appreciate how great he truly was. He moved positions quietly, produced on the field, didn’t upstage his teammates, yet Yankees fans insisted that he wasn’t a “true” Yankee. Well, now he has the ring. He may not be a true Yankee, but he’s truly one of the greats in baseball history. People don’t appreciate how great he really is. Thank you, A-Rod.

The Salary Cap
On the topic of the Yankees, their victory in the World Series made me appreciate the salary cap in the other three sports even more. In the NFL, to be successful for long periods of time, you have to have a smart management team like the Patriots or Colts. Brian Cashman, on the other hand, can make 3 bad moves an offseason as long and, as long as he keeps bringing in high-paid talent, some of it is bound to work out. It finally worked out. How much did that championship cost again??

Attending a Football School
Sure, I didn’t miss the constant negativity in Ann Arbor. But, attending Marquette, a basketball school with no football team, fall Saturdays just weren’t the same. If you go to a school that loves football like Michigan, Ohio State, Notre Dame, etc, appreciate it. When you leave, you’ll miss it a lot.

Matt Millen
Thank you Matt, for moving to the broadcast booth. Lions fans everywhere appreciate it.

Ben Wallace
A key cog in the Pistons Championship run, Big Ben is back in Detroit. At times, he’s the only guy on the floor that appears to care. Almost always, he’s the only guy in red and blue that can rebound or defend. He left on bad terms, but he’s won me over again. Pro sports needs more Ben Wallace and less Terrell Owens. Thank you, Ben.

As expected, Joe Mauer nearly unanimously won the American League Most Valuable Player with Mark Teixeira and Derek Jeter second and third. Mauer tallied 387 votes, Mark Teixeira came in second with 225 and Derek Jeter pulled in a respectable 193 votes. Other Yankees receiving votes were Alex Rodriguez, Mariano Rivera, CC Sabathia, and Robinson Cano.

This is the third time Derek Jeter has come within the top 3 of MVP voting in his career. Previously he came in second in 2006 to Justin Morneau and in 1998 he came in 3rd behind Juan Gonzalez and Nomar Garciaparra. Overall, Jeter has received votes for MVP 11 times in his career and making the top 10 five times.

For Mark Teixeira, this is the fourth time he has received votes for MVP honors. The closest he has come before was 2005 when he finished seventh in voting to the eventual winner in Alex Rodriguez.

Even though I had a feeling Mauer was going to run away with the MVP, I still held out a little hope for the ‘underdogs’ on the Yankees. There’s always next year, right?

I am a Yankees fan. I support their mindset: win at any costs (taken literally). If you have to spend X dollars to do so, do it. But I do not support acquiring Roy Halladay and subsequently signing him.

I cannot stand it when people speak disparagingly about the Yankees buying players, championships, etc. Didn’t Texas buy Alex Rodriguez with $252 million? Didn’t Boston buy Manny Ramirez with $160 million? Johan Santana and the Mets? Alfonso Soriano and the Cubs? You get the picture.

All that being said, those are isolated incidents. These teams didn’t pay exorbitant sums to multiple players. The Yankees, on the other hand, have four of the five richest contracts in sports history.

Giving the best pitcher in baseball—and he just may be—a contract upwards of $150 million will sway my opinion of the Yankees. Derek Jeter is homegrown and Alex Rodriguez was traded for (and subsequently given the largest contract ever), so I do not mind those actions. But in the wake of signing CC Sabathia and Mark Teixeira, the signing of Roy Halladay would only paint the Yankees in a worse light.

If you’ve read this blog before, you know I support anything the Yankees do. Trading for, and then buying Roy Halladay… that I do not support.

courtesy nytimes.com

Look at all those baseballs.  They’re like little skulls.  The skulls of those whose souls Scott Boras has sucked dry.  Like a devil vampire.  Or a vampire devil.

For the uninitiated, Scott Boras is the biggest agent in all of baseball, if not all sports. In other words he’s the Biggest Dick On Earth.  And this is the time of year he really gets to pitch a tent.  His job basically is to get other Big Dicks as much money as he possibly can.  See, look how happy he makes them:

courtesy AP/Kathy Willens

Adorable.

Look, I know.  Beating a dead horse.  There’s nothing here that hasn’t been said a million times before.  So, I’ll let some more pictures do the talking.

Many Bothans died…to bring us this information.

courtesy twobigboobs

Scott, thinking evil thoughts.  Searching the stands for his next victim.  Feeling the blood hunger rise.

courtesy cnnmoney.com

Scott, getting creepy in the locker room with Alex Rodriguez.  Careful Alex.  In nine years your skull will be on that wall.

courtesy flikr/eloketh

Scott on a Gelfling Hunt.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, Scott Boras’ evil clearly knows no bounds.  His dark presence has arrived on Earth to harvest our souls, collect us as trophies, and destroy our national pastime in the process.  Well, I for one am not going to have it.  For the sake of Major League Baseball, and all Gelflings everywhere, please join me in issuing Scott Boras a one-way pass on the ferry to Exile Island.

Please.  Do it for Jen and Kira.

courtesy wikia

–Cap’n Blackjack

Where I Got Swine Flu From Jager...

Hey all. If it wasn’t brought to your attention, I have been on a blogging hiatus because I’m studying for my LSAT on December 6th. I guess God was smiting me because I contracted Swine Flu. My friends say it’s because I’m a pig. I say it’s because I had sex with your mother. BOOSH! Some say this is karma. Me? Well, I totally agree. Even though dystonia-girl was just looking for attention and is a big fat faker[edit:Not a faker, her symptoms were mostly mental] who turned out to have a speedy recovery. Well lah-dee-dah, your highness. Do cheerleaders just get everything? Grrr.

Well, as we all know swine flu is very serious and I’ve put a lot of thought into it. So here is my last will and testament:

I never was a rich man, basically because I have a slew of terrible habits. What little money I do have though, will go to who ever tracks down Maddox (the self proclaimed famous blogger) and kick him right in his self-serving balls. This guy is funny, sure, but his act is kind of tired and his book sucked. Know what else? He didn’t respond to my email. And I’m not just some kid whining he didn’t meet Maddox. Nope. He called out Swine Flu on his blog, and I was going to sneeze in his face and spit in his ginger ale as he requested.

To Berstreet: I’ve shaved my head and bagged the hair. Now you have costume material for years to come. You’re welcome.

To Tom Coughlin: I leave you my 16 inch retractable knight-stick. After knowing you did not go home and beat your son-in-law or your own blood who married him, I’m sending this for every Giants fan. Either you start laying down the law or I’ll fucking haunt the Meadowlands. Don’t mess with me. I’ll have NOTHING better to do. Hell, you can even use this to hit your wife. I don’t care. Just get mean again. Or I’ll have Deacon from King of Queens check your prostate with the GD thing.

To My Parents: Since I’ve prearranged my passing, I’ve deleted all the pornography from my lap top so you can strip it dry of all my writing and give it to a publisher. I’m sure they’ll either make advances on sociopath studies or at least a decent dick-joke sitcom.

To my Dog Rudy (pictured below):

Don't Laugh. He has a disorder.

Rudy, you’ve been a loyal companion for the 3 short years you’ve been alive with me. I know I’m checking out early and that’s usually the dog’s job but for your remaining years, I leave you…my femur. I decided I’m not going to be an organ donor because of the sole fact that I hate those purple bumper stickers with the pun about “Heaven knows we need them here!,” but I decided I can go to heaven missing a leg so a cute puppy can play for years with the strongest bone in the human body. Well, the 2nd strongest bone in MY body but I need the other one for Marilyn Monroe.

*high fives my attorney named Chaz*

To Brian Westbrook: You ruined my chance at playoffs in fantasy football this year for my money league and I think that’s why my body started shutting down. The fact I had Reggie Bush for 4 weeks and he didn’t crack 7 points and then he pops off for 21 while your career could be over just infuriated me. Just like when I dropped Rashard Mendenhall after the week he was benched and I did it thinking no one could grab him before the game. Well, my opponent did and he had 36 points against me. Ugh. Enough about my fantasy miscues, I feel like Ruxin with Gates from The League. Well, Brian. I leave you my frontal lobe. I’m sure you forgot math by now with all your concussions. Actually, scratch the organ donor idea. You can take all of my body parts when you need them if you just promise to drink some fucking milk once in a while and stop being made out of crackers and loose-leaf paper.

To Gally: I had to put a lot of thought into this one. I left you my toilet paper. Basically because you’re an asshole. ZING!

To LeBron James: I left you my tooth paste for you, because it’s very obvious you put your stupid foot in your stupid millionaire mouth when you said you’d be great at football. It was the next game that you sat out an entire half for banging your wrist on the rim while dunking. Now, I’m just a fan and an amateur blogger but I’m about your age so I can talk down to you…DON’T YOU THINK FOOTBALL IS A LITTLE ROUGHER THAN BASKETBALL? Douche.

To Ashton Kutcher: You get nothing. I’m just letting you know me and Patrick Swayze are going to run a fucking TRAIN on Demi Moore. That bitch must suck the blood of the innocent because she gets hotter as time goes on. Real talk.

To Levi Johnston: I’m leaving you my old bike helmet. Why? Because I’m going to be dropping a lot of pianos on your head. You suck something fierce my friend. You aren’t even funny or attractive yet you get Playgirl spreads? You’re the new K-Fed. Congrats. Taco Bell is awaiting your arrival. Scumbag.

To Business Socks from Style Points: I’m going to leave you my autographed Mickey Mantle rookie card that he signed for me as a kid. I’m also going to send you an autographed picture of myself. You might not know it, but you were the first sports blogger to pay attention to me

To Big Troph: I’m going to leave my sense of humor. God knows you guys need one over there.

To Gimp, I’m going to leave you my set of balls because you haven’t done anything man-worthy in a long time. I’m also leaving your name on Megan’s Law.com for all those 9 year olds doing mediocre things posts.

To Tila Tequila, I left you a muzzle and a dildo. If you don’t put on the muzzle just go fuck yourself. Man, last time I used that joke I had to give my dinosaur a bath. Man, could I be on any more fire?!?

It isn’t commonly known to a lot of people that I have OCD. Like Howard Hughes, I saved all my urine. I also didn’t do many drugs. So I am leaving all my pee bottles to the following: Tim Lincecum, Shawne Merriman, Michael Phelps, Dwayne Bowe, Sean Sherk, Alex Rodriguez, Manny Ramirez, Lattimer from The Program, my uncle Ray, former President Bush and fetish porn directors.

And lastly, my girlfriend. I’ve decided that you’re coming with me. Can’t have you cheating on me when I’m in hell heaven. So I’ve left you cyanide in the tea the lawyer just offered you. You’ll be dead before you can cry. See you soon honey!

Which celebrity couples continue to remain in the spotlight and which are on their way out? What accounts for public fascination with certain power couples?

Keep reading.

By FRANK WARD

Editor, DailyPhiladelphian.com

Lowering your head like a battering ram ready to bust through a brick wall is something all NFL players are trained to do. Get the extra yard on offense. Stop opponents dead in their tracks on defense. That’s the game. It’s a war over territory.

When you get a really good hit on someone, the fans in the upper reaches of stadiums can hear the pop or thud echo throughout the arena.

While the fans love it, and TV spotlights the hits with segments like ESPN’s “Jacked Up,” the results can be devastating for players. Concussions can result and they are no laughing matter as they can impact your quality of life over time.

Philadelphia Eagles running back Brian Westbrook has suffered two concussions in one month.

Eagles running back Brian Westbrook knows all too well what effects of these collisions as he has suffered two concussions in less than one month. Speculation about his career has overtaken talk radio shows, newspaper articles and water cooler conversations. One former player thinks that talk could subside with a specific treatment plan.

Bill Romanowski played for 16 years in the NFL and had 10 documented concussions, which ultimately forced his retirement.

In an exclusive interview with DailyPhiladelphian.com, Romanowski talked openly about how concussions impacted his life. He also offered advice for Westbrook and others across the nation who are dealing with the debilitating side effects common from concussions and brain injuries.

“The last two years I played, these are the things that happened on a daily basis,” said Romanowski. “I would look for my car keys around the house and the keys were in my hand the whole time. I slurred my words; I was mixing words up. I would listen to my all-time favorite song on the radio and not remember who sang it.”

Then he had a couple of scary of moments that ultimately led to the end of his career.

“Two weeks before I left the NFL, I left the Raiders parking lot and couldn’t find my way home,” said Romanowski. “And here’s as scary as it gets. I remember filling out a document that asked if I was male or female and literally, for a split second, I had to think about that.”

The four-time Super Bowl champion says he always continued to play, even when he knew his concussion symptoms were lingering. He lied to trainers just so he could play.

“That is the damage I was up against because of the fear of losing my livelihood, my career, what I thought defined me,” he said. “I would go back on the field knowing I shouldn’t be out there.”

While Westbrook is not at the same point that Romanowski was when he had to retire, Romanowski knows what the Eagles ultimate weapon is going through, the questions people are asking, and the questions he is asking himself.

The two-time All-Pro linebacker has been through the same tests as Westbrook and went to the same concussion experts in Pittsburgh who told him he should end his career.

Former NFL linebacker Bill Romanowski suffered 10 documented concussions during his career and says he can help Brian Westbrook.

“I’ve been through these tests. They’ll put you through tests where they ask you to memorize some words and then have you do something else for five minutes,” says Romanowski. “Then, they’ll ask you, ‘Can you remember the words?’ They’ll also ask you to write down all the words you remember that start with the letter ‘D’ or “F” in one minute.”

Westbrook’s outlook, according to the doctors, is good and they expect him to make a full recovery over time. He will be reevaluated in two or three weeks.

While concussion treatment has come a long way in the last few years, Romanowski says he has the answers for Westbrook’s recovery.

“I can help Brian Westbrook heal very quickly,” says Romanowski.

He says a three-pronged approach will help all athletes dealing with concussion symptoms, and act as a proactive approach to limit concussions before they happen.

First, he says athletes such as Westbrook need Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy such as the one developed by Dr. Paul Harch in New Orleans.

Second, is a chiropractic element. Romanowski, who has worked with doctors and scientists on concussion remedies since his retirement, says years of hits against the head or neck area can throw the neck and occiput out of alignment. The occiput sits at the base of the neck and can impair blood supply to the brain.

“You can get a concussion when the occiput is out of alignment,” says Romanowski.

The third part is nutrition. Romanowski has worked since his retirement with doctors, scientists and others to develop Neuro1, a vitamin product from Romanowski’s own Nutrition53 line. Neuro1 provides neuronutrients to the brain. Essentially, it fuels the brain the way weightlifters might fuel their body with protein to help muscles. He says vitamins with neuronutrients help the brain heal better and more efficiently.

Bill Romanowski has worked since his retirement to develop a nutrient to help with post-concussion symptoms.

He says that while the NFL has made strides in the area of concussion research and treatment, they need to add what they are doing with the three step approach he has learned about since leaving the NFL.

“Combine what they are doing regarding testing with hyperbaric chambers, nutrition and chiropractic elements and really create a documented process, like Dr. Harch has,” says Romanowski.

“Brian Westbrook needs to be on my product or something with the same ingredients as my product,” says Romanowski. “He needs to get in the hyperbaric chamber. Then he needs to see a really good chiropractor.”

Romanowski recommended his former chiropractor Dr. Mark Lindsay, who has also worked with athletes such as Tiger Woods, Payton Manning and Alex Rodriguez.

“When I was in Oakland, I got Oakland to hire him,” says Romanowski.

Romanowski is extremely passionate about getting the best treatment available for athletes, and others around the world.

“I’ll go up against any doctor on this issue,” he says. “Mark my words, in 20 years every NFL team in every stadium across the country will have a hyperbaric chamber. They will all be doing IV treatments of neuronutrients. And, every single team will have a chiropractor on staff.”

Twenty years will be too late to salvage the careers of players like Westbrook. Let’s hope the Eagles at least explore and research this possibility and others as they work to help their stud tailback enjoy the highest quality of life after football.

Frank Ward is a freelance writer from the Philadelphia area. You can reach him at DailyPhiladelphian@gmail.com.

Look, I understand the idea behind creating cards featuring one or more players from the same team. Some collectors dig that kind of stuff, especially when the card features two of the hobby’s heaviest hitters: Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez. But what makes this 2005 Playoff Prestige “Connection” insert set ridiculous is the freakin’ design. Look at the left hand side of this card. Who the hell is Rodri? Maybe the card was supposed to say “A-Rod,” but fact is Playoff had to fill that space with something and they chose Rodri. Boo!

You know, it’s always the blonds that look so innocent. But not Kate Hudson. She’s a bit of a vulture with predatory Moon in Capricorn and as her focal planet. She chooses men who are nice or vulnerable or insecure — Chris Robinson — insecure, Owen Wilson — vulnerable, and now Alex Rodriquez — he’s nice. But what she doesn’t know is that Alex doesn’t have staying power with Mercury as a focal planet (can’t give himself to others for any length of time). And with Saturn as a focal planet (highly ambitious), he’s just using her. And then, there’s the fact, he’s a Leo — never enough spotlight for them and yet another focal planet, the Sun (it’s all about him).

However, Ms. Hudson has my favorite Jupiter progression, progressed Sun trine natal Jupiter, so she can have anything she wants for the next two years — don’t rule out an Oscar nod. Alex has progressed Mars square Venus and love or, I should say, happiness, is just not on his menu. People do find partners on bad aspects, because they are looking for support. But very seldom do they choose the right people. You do something for the wrong reason, you get the wrong result.

So while they may hook up permanently, guess who isn’t going to behave when the spotlight dims? Nice guys don’t always finish last.

Food-issue cards can be fun. They can be a mother-bleeper to chase and they can cost a pretty penny, too, if you’re forced to go onto the secondary market and pick them up. But all in all, they offer a little variety to your collection and are well-worth the cost if you’re a player or team collector.

Recently I uncovered a slew of 2003 Fleer Pepsi cards for an unbelievable price: about a penny an a half per card.These cards aren’t exactly rare, and to buy one of your favorite player one would not have to break the bank. But alas, they are not as common as base cards and I was ecstatic to find a lot of roughly 150 cards for $1.98.

This set is comprised of 30 cards (one player per team) which were issued one card per specially marked 24-pack of Pepsi cans in 2003. The set contains some of the hobby’s biggest names, including semi-early releases of Albert Pujols and Ichiro.

After sifting through the unorganized cards, I wound up with two full sets (one set is pictured below) and a bunch of extras.

Here is the tally for the extra cards I have available if anyone is seeking them:

Troy Glaus (Angels), No. 1 — 2 avail

Chipper Jones (Braves), No. 2 — 3 avail

Randy Johnson (D-Backs), No. 3 — 4 avail

Tony Bautista (Orioles), No. 4 — 7 avail

Magglio Ordonez (White Sox), No. 5 — 7 avail

Ken Griffey Jr. (Reds), No. 6 — 7 avail

Omar Vizquel (Indians), No. 7 — 2 avail

Todd Helton (Rockies), No. 8 — 2 avail

Bobby Higginson (Tigers), No. 9 — 2 avail

Luis Castillo (Marlins), No. 10 — 3 avail

Jeff Bagwell (Astros), No. 11 — 4 avail

Mike Sweeney (Royals), No. 12 — 4 avail

Shawn Green (Dodgers), No. 13 — 5 avail

Richie Sexson (Brewers), No. 14 — 2 avail

Torii Hunter (Twins), No. 15 — 1 avail

Jason Giambi (Yankees), No. 18 — 1 avail

Pat Burrell (Phillies), No. 20 — 2 avail

Brian Giles (Pirates), No. 21 — 1 avail

Trevor Hoffman (Padres), No. 22 — 2 avail

Barry Bonds (Giants), No. 23 — 1 avail

Ichiro (Mariners), No. 24 — 1 avail

Alex Rodriguez (Rangers), No. 27 — 3 avail

Carlos Delgado (Blue Jays), No. 28 — 4 avail

Kerry Wood (Cubs), No. 29 — 3 avail

Pedro Martinez (Red Sox), No. 30 — 3 avail

Jeff Pearlman wrote this blog today that shares a look back at his earliest days as a writer. I can relate. And it’s Jeff’s ability and willingness to prostrate himself for no other reason than for the heck of it, to connect with his readers and maybe help out a young wannabe like me.

Highlights from his blog:  

My first mistake was a big one.  While reporting a story about a chef who cooked exotic meats, I asked—jokingly—whether he’d ever prepared human flesh (my sense of humor wasn’t exactly developed).  He was not amused, calling my editor and demanding an explanation.  Shortly thereafter, I wrote a three-page profile of a local band, Dreaming In English, and identified the lead singer, Tyrone Banks, as Tyrone Brooks.  Over.  And over.  And over.  Again.  The next week, I misspelled the winner of a local road race.  I was asked to cover a Sheryl Crow concert and said she sang “Viva Las Vegas”—not “Leaving Las Vegas.”  In an effort to stir up controversy, I penned an inane opinion piece calling Christian schools “stupid” for reciting prayers that included Jesus Christ’s name before basketball games.  When a news editor asked me to cover a murder, I went to the scene of the crime and, in an effort to get a good look at the damage, ignored the police tape and entered the apartment.  When my editor wanted a piece on condoms, my lede was a graphic (and self-congratulatory!) description of my girlfriend and I having sex.  On and on and on the mistakes went, one bigger than the other.

In the February 15, 1996 edition of the Nashville Scene, the city’s alternative weekly, a media critic named Henry Walker wrote, “If there’s one cow-pie in the field, The Tennessean’s Jeff Pearlman will manage to step in it.”

He was 100 percent correct.

So what happened?  I hit rock bottom.  Fed up by the dizzying buffet of boneheaders, Catherine Mayhew, one of the paper’s managing editors, had me switched to the police beat.  “For a month,” she said, “all we want you to do is focus on getting everything right.  Names, dates, numbers, addresses.  Don’t worry about writing–worry about reporting.  Get the facts down, and everything else will follow.”

It was the worst month of my life.

It was the best month of my life.

I hate making mistakes. I hate feeling like I’m not going to get where I want to go. I hate feeling like I’m eternally stuck at age 22. I hate how I keep wishing that my life were four years in advance, so I could just be doing what it is I’m going to end up doing. That’s pretty much how I look at it. In four years, at age 26, I’ll be right where I’m trying to get right now. Writing for a big magazine, having written a couple of books, one of which became a bestseller, and not hating myself.

OK, I don’t really hate myself. That’s a gross exaggeration of the emotions that I go through after a sub-par performance in whatever it is I’m performing at the moment. The other day it was the GRE. I was totally bummed out I didn’t score a 1550 out of 1600 (well, actually a lot lower than that), but I didn’t hate myself. The day before that it was getting a fact wrong in a story, but I still didn’t hate myself.

I guess where I’m going with this is nowhere. I’m just writing, meandering along to whatever keys my fingers decide to strike next. Thrilling stuff, I tell you. I can only imagine how much more thrilling it must be to read.

Somehow, this was all inspired by reading one of Jeff Pearlman’s latest blogs. The guy writes so many that it’s hard to keep up.

Pearlman is one of the paradoxes of the sportswriting world. Sometimes you think he hates what he does, but you know he must like it somewhat because he’s so darn good at it and he keeps doing it.

Many people, perhaps the majority of people, out there who care enough to critique sportswriters often label Pearlman as one of the most arrogant out there. Sometimes I’m inclined to agree. But then there’s times like when he actually responds to my emails….upon emails….upon emails….asking for advice for my book when I’m like, what’s this dude’s deal? He rips into guys like Tim Tebow for loving Jesus and getting hyped up about it, but then he treats people like how Jesus would treat them? (Yeah, Jesus would respond to emails!)

Pearlman’s no perfect person, but man alive, the guy treats me with respect. Which is unbelievable considering he’s never met me in his life except via email.

Pearlman’s like the Yankees. You either love them or hate them. Unless you’re like me, who doesn’t give a flying fart about sports teams anymore. So I guess to me Pearlman would be like Alex Rodriguez. Arrogant and misguided and aggravating as ARod can be, I pull for the guy. I don’t even know why. But I do.

Maybe ARod would respond to my emails, but he’d probably charge $250 per reply.

Anyway, here’s to Jeff. One day we’re gonna meet, probably while I’m in New York meeting with a book publisher who’s about to make me rich and famous (or so I’ll allow my young mind believe for now) and I’ll buy you a coffee at Cosi or Panera or wherever it is your blogging and writing at that day, and it’ll be great.

It may have taken just under two weeks, but I think I finally got over the fact that the New York Yankees are the current world champions of baseball, as the late Harry Kalas would say.

Before I view it as just water under the bridge, first, a moment of clarity.

As hard as it is to say, the Yankees deserved it. They were the best team in baseball, something that they paid a lot of money to ensure. Nonetheless, they didn’t let the names on the roster define their play, but their performance on the proved it, and A-Rod, Tex, Jeter and company will be sporting some new jewelry come opening day 2010.

Now, onto the Phillies. Tremendous run this year, and that’s not something I would have said moments after Shane Victorino grounded out weakly to first after he was jammed by a historic Mariano Rivera cut-fastball. Plagued by injuries, bullpen issues, and inconsistent play, there were times throughout the season that I truly believed that the Phillies would be watching the playoffs from the bar on the golf course. That obviously wasn’t the case. The credit to get the Phillies two game shy of back-to-back championships goes all around the organization. However, there are two people (besides of course the players) that are mainly responsible for making this past postseason run back to the fall classic possible.

1. Ruben Amaro: Pulling the trigger on a trade that gave the Phillies an ace (Cliff Lee) and a solid utility outfielder (Ben Francisco) for essentially four minor leagues backed up Amaro’s creditability as a general manager. He didn’t let the Blue Jays J.P Richardi bully him into giving up too much for Roy Halladay, and instead “settled” for Lee, who not only was the ace of the Phillies staff down the stretch, but also pitched worlds better than Halladay in the second half of the season. Also, signing Pedro Martinez midway through the season when so many people, even within the organization, questioned the decision, was a good move. Martinez surpassed all his individual expectations, and also bolstered the teams’ pitching staff and overall intimidation level.

2. Charlie Manuel: He will never be the most well-spoken manager in baseball, but based on success and overall approval by his team, Manuel has to be considered among the best skippers in all of baseball after this season. While he may over-manage at times (something that all managers are guilty of), a majority of the major decisions Manuel made over the course of the season were correct. Some of those decisions included benching Jimmy Rollins for a three-game stretch in June, sending both Raul Ibanez and Brad Lidge to the D.L against their will, and sticking with Lidge as a closer in the playoffs (yes, this was the right decision). He’s a tremendous presence in the clubhouse, and should be with this team for a long time. 

As I said before, a great run it was. We got to see Ryan Howard and Chase Utley have tremendous seasons and historic postseasons, solidifying their status as perennial stars in the world of baseball. We got to see the birth of one of arguably the best outfield tandems in all of baseball, as Raul Ibanez, Shane Victorino, and Jayson Werth all had career years, with Victorino and Werth seeming to be just entering their prime. With pitching, we got to see Cliff Lee prove he wasn’t a fluke Cy Young award winner, Pedro Martinez resurrect his career, and a rookie in J.A Happ flourish into one the organizations bright young stars.

Needless to say, the future is bright for the Philadelphia Phillies organization.

Now, the show must go on, as the first step to repeating as NL champs is already about to begin.

Free Agency.

In the next post, we will talk about those who may join the Phillies through free agency, along with those who will surely leave the club because of the process.