Twins Preview by Brian Felegy

I'm not as hip to the Twins as I should be (more to come on that later this week or next) so I turned to my friend Brian Felegy to provide a Minnesota Twins preview.

2011 Twins Preview (sort of)

I am a huge Twins fan.  I spend a lot of time and money at the games (last year I went to 13, this year will probably be the same).  The most games I’ve been to in a season was 21 in 2002.  Also, I watch almost every game on TV.  Baseball is by far my favorite sport to watch and play, and every year I can’t wait for the season to start.  This year though, I feel a little different.  Don’t get me wrong, I am still really excited, but after the pathetic performance they put up in the ALDS last year against the Yankees, I felt so frustrated.  I know it’s just a game, but I’m getting tired of watching them every year have an amazing season and then lay a goose egg in the playoffs.   I don’t understand how they can have all these great comebacks in August and September, and then play like crap in October.  They haven’t won a playoff game since 2004, even though they were in the playoffs three times since then.  They also haven’t won a playoff series since 2002, but what is even sorrier is they also haven’t won a home playoff game since 2002! (I was at that one).  I will never forget that game - it was game 1 of the ALCS.  We were literally 3 wins away from a World Series appearance.  Needless to say, their playoff performances in the last decade (outside of 2002) has been embarrassing.   Last year’s showing was the worst, though.   They couldn’t hit sand if they fell off a camel.   They showed no life, no guts, no will to win.   So during this offseason, I really haven’t paid that much attention, which is weird for me.   This year though, I’m hoping they get over the hump.  I think Gardy and the players are also frustrated, and really want to prove to people they are more than just a one and done team.  So I don’t have a bunch of stats or numbers or anything, but here are some talking points:

• Justin Morneau’s health:  This is getting scary.   He should be good to go (although as of 3/30 he had not been officially cleared), but it seems like any strike to the head could end his career.   When he got hurt last year, it didn’t look too bad (easy for me to say).  If  you would have told me that after that collision he would have been done for the season, I would have called you crazy.  Thankfully, a strike to the head is not a common occurrence in baseball, but it can  happen.  And if it does to him, well, that could be the end of his career.  Bottom line, it will be like walking on egg shells every time I watch him involved in a play (hopefully that will fade away eventually).
• Joe Mauer as catcher:   I think Mauer gets a bad rap for  the days off he takes (usually on Sundays).  It seems that people think that the more money you make, the stronger it makes your body.  “He is making $23 million a year, he better catch every game”.   Sorry, it’s not that easy.  While I don’t fault Mauer for taking the time off when his body needs it, I do think that the Twins (and him) should consider switching positions in the next few years.  He is a great defensive catcher, but that’s not why we signed him for all that money.  If he keeps catching, he could have major knee issues, at which point he wouldn’t even make a viable outfielder (insert Delmon Young joke here).   I’m no doctor, so I could be wrong, but it’s probably due to the fact that he is pretty tall for a catcher.    
• Starting rotation:  I was a little pissed when the Twins didn’t really do anything about their starting rotation, outside of re-signing Pavano (which I liked).  Do we even have one dominant pitcher?  I’m hoping Liriano finally takes that role this year.   Speaking of, what was up with the Twins shopping him around during the offseason?   We were in need of starting pitching, so why get rid of one of our best?  It’ s not like we are in rebuilding mode.   On top of that, Liriano is a head case, so do they really think it would help his confidence by saying “hey, we might want to trade you”?  The rest of our rotation is solid, but up and down.  The rotation will look like this:  Pavano, Liriano, Duensing, Blackburn, Baker.   It is weird to see Baker at #5, considering he used to be our #1.   I’m hoping he bounces back this year – it seems like he was troubled with some  elbow issues that he got taken care of during the offseason.  Duensing and Blackburn should have solid (but not dominant) years, so we will see.  I am still iffy on this rotation, though.
• Bullpen:   Keeping with the topic of pitching, we lost the following key bullpen pitchers:   Jessie Crain, Matt Gurrier, Jon Rauch and Brian Fuentes.  Ouch.  However, the bullpen may not be as bad as you think.   Mirajes (another head case) can be really good at times, so hopefully another year under his belt (if you can find it – zing!) will be beneficial.   The thing I’m most interested about is the closer role.   Gardenhire has stated that to start the season, he will most likely switch between returning Joe Nathan and Matt Capps, due to Nathan still getting back into pitching shape.  Hopefully, if all goes well, Nathan will return to being a dominant closer, while Capps and Mijares can provide the setup work.  Going back to Jessie Crain (aka “Crain Wreck”), I did not like to see him go.  I know a lot of fans didn’t like him, but he was really good the second half of last year and has one of the nastiest sliders.   It also sucks that he went to the Bitch Sox.   Apparently though the Twins didn’t even show interested in re-signing him. 
• Playoffs:   If the Twins make the playoffs this year (see my predictions below), not only will there be a lot of pressure on them to win the first round, there will also be pressure to win a single game (how sad is that?)  What will happen if they are swept in the first round again?  Would Gardenhire actually get fired?  I don’t think he would, but something would have to be done.   I’m not in the clubhouse so I don’t know who the ‘leader’ is, but naturally you would think Joe Mauer should take on that role.   Or maybe Morneau, or Cuddyer.  I don’t care if it’s Matt Tolbert, somebody needs to step up and convince the rest of the team that they can beat whoever they want.  Hell, they do it during the season, now just do it during the playoffs (for once!)
• Target Field upgrades:  The Twins have added an additional scoreboard in the right field area, so the folks sitting in left field have something to look at.  I really like this addition, it was well needed.   They also added Twins Tower, which I don’t really know what purpose it serves.   I mean, I’m sure it looks nice, but what’s the point?  Especially since the stadium has only been open for one season.  The Twins also are making Target Field wi-fi compatible, which is really nice (and kind of odd that this wasn’t done originally).  More heating and food were added too, and I can’t find a reason to complain about that.  Speaking of complaining about the stadium, they removed the trees beyond the center field wall because it was distracting to batters (and apparently umpires).  I’m sorry, shouldn’t they be watching the ball?  It’s not like the trees have blinking Christmas lights on them.  There are other MLB ballparks with trees behind the fence (like PNC Park), so why is it not an issue there?   On top of that, how does a dark green tree with a dark green background make it hard to see a white ball?   Okay I’m done complaining.

Here are my (half-assed) predictions:

American League

East:  Red Sox

Central:  Twins

West:  Angels

Wild card:  White Sox

ALDS

Twins over Angels

Red Sox over White Sox

LCS

Red Sox over Twins

National League

East:  Phillies

Central:  Reds

West:  Giants

Wild card:  Brewers

NLDS

Giants over Reds

Phillies over Brewers

LCS

Phillies over Giants

World Series:   Phillies over Red Sox

March Madness Winners and Losers

After a crazy two weeks the Final Four is set, and four very surprising teams are about to converge on Houston. Just like the games on the court, the tournament has produced a variety of winners and losers. The Short Hops and Air Balls take on the tourney is below.

Losers:

• Pittsburgh: A #1 seed with one of the easiest draws in tournament history loses in the second round to Butler. They lose in a game where they shoot 57% from the field, and 55% from the three point arc. How is that possible? The sting of the loss is probably lessened by the fact that Butler is in the Final Four and all the other number one seeds lost as well, but in my eyes it still doesn't excuse the early exit.
• The Big East in general. The Big East was widely regarded as the toughest conference throughout the regular season, and they were rewarded with a boatload of teams given bids into the dance. In the end though, only Marquette and UConn advanced to the Sweet 16. UConn making the Final Four after winning 5 games in the Big East tournament is a great run, but overall the conference largely disappointed.
• CBS: Say what you want about how great it is that VCU and Butler made the Final Four and that no number one seeds made it, but I guarantee you that CBS hates it. Kentucky and UConn are major college programs, but they play each other, so I predict the ratings will be down for the Championship game. You have to watch though, and make sure to stay awake for 'One Shining Moment', it's always good.
• The biggest loser of all, my bracket. Go back and read my Sweet Sixteen preview, it's not very good. I can admit when I'm wrong and I missed big time overall, but really blew it with teams like Louisviille, who I predicted would do great, and Arizona, who I predicted would lose in the first round. I didn't get any of the Final Four right, and it's been a long time since that has happened.

Winners:

•  NCAA: Originally the NCAA wanted to extend the tournament field to 96 teams, which is a horrible idea, but they eventually settled on 68. Even only increasing the field by four teams they had some detractors, but one of the last four teams to get in, was VCU. The little engine that could from Richmond, VA punched their ticket all the way to the Final Four, and you can bet that the NCAA is going to use that as ammunition to look to increase the field again in the next few years.
• Brandon "Big Balls" Knight: Kentucky's freshman point guard from Ft. Lauderdale, FL has had an up and down tournament, except at crunch time, when he's been way UP. He didn't have a single basket in their first round game against Princeton, until the last shot that he made on a sweeping, driving layup. Then against Ohio State, he hits the game winner as well. He led the team in points and assists during the regular season, and as a freshman he's carving out a nice legacy in the Kentucky legend.
• Brad Stevens and Shaka Smart: The head coaches from Butler and VCU respectively are two of the youngest coaches from the entire field, and both of them are leading teams without a superstar. Both of them coach with a lot of energy, and the thing I like about both of them is they are fearless. They aren't afraid to follow their instincts and change their strategy at any point during the course of any game. As a coach myself I really admire how they handled themselves and their teams during this three weeks. Plus, his name is SHAKA SMART! Are you kidding me, how great is that name? If VCU wins the whole thing, every baby born in Richmond, VA for the next week should be named Shaka.
• Good vs. Evil: As I mentioned above, I really like how Stevens and Smart have their led teams. As much as I love them, I HATE John Calipari and Jim Calhoun. Both of them are corrupt, cheating coaches, who lie, steal, and cheat their way to success. I honestly don't really care who wins the VCU/Butler game, but whoever wins, I hope they win the whole thing.

Well, I wasn't even close on the Sweet Sixteen, but here's my Final Four predictions. I'll take VCU over Butler in a close game continuing the Cinderella dream. On the other side I think Kentucky beats UConn in a game dominated by guard play. In the final, as much as it pains me to say it, I'll take Kentucky over VCU. The Wildcats are the most talented team remaining, they've got good balance, and they can defend. Unfortunately VCU doesn't get the slipper, but what a magical run.

Mid Week Movie Review (s)

My original idea for this blog was to just do a review blog. I was going to review movies, music, television, video games, restaurants, kids toys, you name I was going to review it. Then I realized there was one big problem, I don't consume enough media, so that would have been a pretty sparse blog. But, with keeping my original intention in mind, WHEN I do actually have something to review, I will be reviewing it. In what can only be considered a minor miracle, I've actually seen three movies that have been released in the last 12 months. So, the reviews in the order I saw them are below:

Love and Other Drugs:

•  Quick film synopsis: Movie stars Jake Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway, directed by Edward Zwick (Blood Diamond, The Last Samurai). Gyllenhaal is a pharmaceutical salesman, specializing in Viagra. Hathaway is an artist with early Parkinsons disease. They meet, and begin a complicated relationship. It's a essential a romantic dramedy.
• I'm  a HUGE Anne Hathaway fan, please know that going in. I've heard a lot of comparisons of Hathaway to Julia Roberts, and I'm not sure that leap should quite be made yet, but I do think she's very good. I feel like she's got good range, and she's quirky in a good way.
• Gyllenhaal is vanilla for me. I don't dislike him, but I've never thought he was out of this world or anything. Having said that, I thought he was good in this film, and I enjoyed his performance.
• Things I disliked: Oliver Platt is in the movie, and I thought he should have had a little bit bigger role. I like Platt, and I liked his character. Hank Azira is in the movie, and I don't like him, and didn't like his character. I've heard and seen a few interviews with Azira in the last couple of years, and in this movie he plays a character similar to how he has portrayed himself in those interviews, a total prick.
• Things I liked: The actor that plays Gyllenhaal's brother, Josh Gad, was very good. Extremely funny, good comedic timing, and a great fit for the role. I did like Hathaway in this movie, I've read and heard some reviews claim it's a career defining role for her, but I'm not sure I agree with that. She was better in Rachel Getting Married, but she's good in this movie.
• Summary: I liked the movie, didn't love it. It follows a pretty common romantic dramedy formula. Two characters headed in opposite directions, fall for one another, tragedy happens, and how does all of that get reconciled? There were no surprises, nothing that knocked my socks off, but I was entertained and at the end of the day, that's pretty much all I want. I give it a B-, and if you catch it on cable in a year or two, or streaming for free on Netflix, I would recommend it.

The Town:

• Of the three movies I saw, this is the one I was most excited to see, and typically in that case I find myself disappointed, so I approached the movie with optimism, but tried not to get too excited for it.
• Movie synopsis: The movie was directed by Ben Affleck, and also stars Affleck, Jeremy Renner, Jon Hamm, and Rebecca Hall. Affleck and Renner are bank/armored car robbers, and in a heist gone somewhat astray, they kidnap Hall. Affleck has to tie up Hall as a loose end, and as luck would have it he falls for her. And of course bank robbers don't change their stripes, so of course they have to pull of another score, all while hiding their identities from Hall.
• I like Ben Affleck. There's no doubt he's made some bad acting decisions in his career, but for the most part I enjoy his work. As a director, I loved Gone Baby Gone, his directorial debut. I think he catches a lot of flack because of his personal life early in his career, but honestly I don't think that criticism is justified.
• Jeremy Renner is very good. He's on a really good career arc right now with The Hurt Locker and now the The Town, but I'm a little concerned with his upcoming films. A Mission Impossible flick, and The Avengers. Hopefully he keeps a good mix of blockbusters, and movies that allow him to demonstrate his acting chops.
• Things I liked: To be honest, most of everything. I thought it was extremely well done, well acted, had a good pace, and was entertaining. Renner was excellent, I though Affleck was very good, it had good action, good dialogue. Chris Cooper has a small part as Affleck's dad, and he's always good, so even in a very small part, that was a good bonus.
• Things I didn't like: I don't watch Mad Men, so I'm not familiar with Jon Hamm, who I understand is top notch in the show. In this movie, not so much. He wasn't horrible, but he wasn't good. He was stiff, and quite frankly I didn't buy him as a FBI agent. There were certain parts of the plot that I thought asked the audience to take a pretty big leap of faith, and one plot point in particular that bugged me, but overall not too bothersome.
• Summary: I really liked this movie. It wasn't as good as The Departed which it is most often compared to, but it was extremely good. I think Affleck is demonstrating a real talent as a director and I look forward to seeing what he does next. One thing I would like to see, it would be nice to see him do a film outside of Boston. This movie was a definite A, and if you haven't seen it, do so as soon as you can.

The Fighter:

• Let's be honest, I'm the target audience for the fighter. I love boxing, I love sports movies, I love true story dramas, it would be pretty hard to screw this one up for me....but there were things I didn't like.
• Synopsis: Mark Wahlberg plays Irish Micky Ward, a Boston boxer struggling to make it in the fight game, trained by his crackhead half brother, Dicky Eklund played by Christian Bale. That should be enough drama, but Ward also has a whole gaggle of sisters, and a crazy mom. David O. Russell (Three Kings) directed the movie, and Amy Adams and Melissa Leo play the two main women characters, Ward's girlfriend, and mother.
• Similar to Affleck, I think Wahlberg gets way too much crap for being a bad actor. Personally, I like him. The dude stays in his lane, and he's never going to be the best actor in his generation, but I think he does a good job.
• Christian Bale might be the best actor of his generation, he's very good. He's excellent in this movie, and definitely deserved the Oscar. Having said all of that, I would like to see him play a part that is maybe just a little understated. 
• Oscar opinion: Between Melissa Leo, and Amy Adams, the academy awarded the statue to the wrong woman. Leo was good, don't get me wrong, but she had the much easier part to play. Ward's mom is a complete over the top nutjob, and Leo pulled off the part well, but to me her part probably could have been done by any number of actresses that fit the character profile. However, Amy Adams was incredible, for me she was the highlight of the movie. I thought her part was much more difficult, and she played it much better, and deserved the Oscar.
• Things I disliked: The movie was very slooooow. I like a movie to keep moving, and this one didn't really deliver. I would have liked more boxing, but for the majority of the people out there that's probably not an issue.
• Things I liked: The movie is pretty historically accurate, and the boxing scenes that were in the movie were shot really well. Nothing will ruin a sports movie quicker for me than not depicting a sport accurately, and this movie gets boxing right. The acting performances in this movie were extremely good, the best overall of the three movies I saw.
• Summary: I liked the movie, but not nearly as much as I anticipated I would. Quite frankly in my opinion Micky Ward is the secondary focus of the movie, and Bale's character Ecklund is much more prominent. I understand that from a drama standpoint that's probably the right equation, but from a personal standpoint I wasn't thrilled with it. Overall, I did enjoy it, I was entertained, and I would recommend it. I give it a solid B, maybe on a second viewing I could see bumping that to a B+.

I enjoyed all three movies, The Town was definitely my favorite, but The Fighter and Love and Other Drugs are definitely worth a watch as well. If you've seen any of them, and agree or disagree with me, let me know or on Facebook.

March Madness Preview

Here it is, my absolute favorite sporting event of the year, the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament. This will be the first annual Short Hops and Air Balls March Madness Preview, and hopefully it's the first of many. I won't bore or annoy you with a game by game breakdown, or how great my bracket is. I'm going to speculate on what I think the Sweet 16 will look like, and then a few random observations.

The Sweet Sixteen:

East Region:

• Ohio State vs. Kentucky; Syracuse vs. Washington. That Washington pick kills me because I think they will beat my Tar Heels in the second round. North Carolina has had a great second half of the season but they are still way too young, and their guard play is still too inconsistent. For that reason, Washington beats them.
• This is easily the toughest region of the four, but Ohio State will beat Kentucky in a really close game, and Syracuse will beat Washington. Syracuse is wildly inconsistent and that scares me a lot, but they'll get it done against Washington.
• Ohio State will carve up the Syracuse 2-3 zone and advance to the Final Four
• Upset special from the East: The aforementioned Washington over North Carolina. Breaks my heart.

• Best Player in the Region. Six-Mix-A-Lot Jared Sullinger, Ohio State. The dude has a huge caboose, and uses it as well as anybody in college basketball in maybe the last 10 years.   

West Region:

• Duke vs. Texas; UConn vs. San Diego St. I hate Duke, but I respect the hell out of them. I have absolutely no idea how they won the tournament last year, but they found a way. Having said that I don't think they will this year. UConn is a one man show with Kemba Walker, SDSU plays as a total team, it will be an interesting matchup.
• I'm taking Texas to beat Duke. Texas defends really well, and Duke is too dependent on outside shooting, the Horns win a close one. I think UConn beats SDSU, but I'm not excited about it. I've watched UConn about three times this year, all wins, and each time I wasn't that thrilled with them.
• I think Texas advances to the Final Four by beating UConn.
• Upset Special: Memphis over Arizona in the first round. That Zona team is not very good, they were fortunate to be the most consistent team in a bad Pac-10 conference.
• Best Player in the Region: Kemba Walker; UConn. It's not even close, the kid can flat out play. He's quick, he can shoot, and he's got that killer instinct.

Southwest Region:

• Kansas vs. Louisville; Georgetown vs. Notre Dame. I think the Kansas/Louisville game will be the best Sweet Sixteen game of the tournament. Both teams are very good, both teams defend really well. G'Town/Notre Dame, two teams that are extremely familiar with one another, it will be a scrap.
• Kansas will beat Louisville in a very tough game. Kansas has a High-Low game that will just be too tough for Louisville. Notre Dame will beat Georgetown in an extremely ugly game.
• Kansas beats Notre Dame, and I think they beat them easily.
• Upset Special: I think this region is pretty chalk (whatever the hell that means, I hate that term, doesn't make any sense) but in another 5/12 upset, I'll take Richmond over Vanderbilt.
• Best Player in the Region: This is a really tough one. I think most people would say Ben Hansborough, but I'll tell you, I think he's very good in the ND system, but I honestly don't think he's that great overall. I really like JaJuan Johnson of Purdue, so I'll go with him. If you get a chance, check out Kenneth Faried of Morehead State, he's averaging 14.5 boards a game.

Southeast Region: 

• First off, soapbox time. What in the blue hell was the NCAA committee doing with this region? What a horrible, horrible region. It may be the weakest region I can remember in five years. What a disgrace. Having said all that, here are the picks. Pitt vs. Kansas State; BYU vs. Florida.
• Pitt beats a very game Kansas State team, that is playing really well down the stretch, but had a horrible beginning of the season. Florida is a horrible #2 seed, and I'm a Jimmer fanatic, so I'll take BYU, but that's my heart making that pick, not usually a good idea.
• Pitt totally outclasses BYU, and gets the easy pass to the Final Four.
• Upset Special: Again, not much in this region, but I'll give Tom Izzo one moment as he's always tough in March. I think Michigan State knocks off UCLA, although a 10 beating a 7 isn't exactly going way out on a limb. And to all of my Badger followers, sorry but if your team loses a game in the Big 10 tournament by only scoring 31 POINTS, umm I just can't pick your team to go anywhere.
• Best Player in the region: How about this, in my opinion the two best players in the tournament are in this region. Jimmer Fredette is ridiculous, he can shoot from anywhere, and is sneaky in getting to the hoop. I just hope in the NBA he doesn't turn into Adam Morrison. Also, Kansas State's Jacob Pullen is really, really good. He is just tough, and will do whatever it takes to win. I'll watch either of those two play anytime I can.

Final Four:

• Ohio State beats Texas in what I think will be a very good game. On the other side, Kansas beats Pitt, in what I think will be a very bad game.
• The Championship game. I think the Big 12 is a much better overall conference, but I think Ohio State is the most complete team in the tourney. Sullinger down low, and with Diebler and Lighty on the perimeter they will just be too much for KU. I like Ohio State wininng 81-74.

There it is, the SHAAB preview, don't fill out your brackets without it! Let me know your thoughts either here or on Facebook.

Review: Fab Five documentary

I watched the Fab Five documentary on ESPN last night, the review is below:

• Jalen Rose was the producer of the doc, and you could tell he was heavily involved. Not really a problem for me because I like Jalen, he speaks his mind and doesn't shy away from the truth. However, you could definitely tell that the doc was a little slanted from his point of view.
• The stuff on Duke was great. I have a very strong dislike of Duke, and I vividly remember the Duke/Michigan games. I thought it was great how candid the Fab Five was about their dislike for them, and what they really thought.
• I would have liked to have seen some perspectives from people other than the Fab Five, and the people who were connected with them. Just taking the Duke stuff for example, I would love to have heard the counter argument from Bobby Hurley, and Christian Laettner. What was their perception of the Michigan guys?
• I do think there has been some revisionist history on the perception of the Fab Five. I could be naive in my personal perspective, but when I was growing up, I, and everyone I knew LOVED the Fab Five. I remember the traditionalist basketball people not loving the group, but for the most part I think they were wildly popular, but the perception given last night was the fact that they were hated. I'm not sure that's the case.
• The last 40 minutes were fantastic. The Michigan/Carolina championship, and the aftermath of the Ed Martin scandal were absolutely fantastic. Really, really good stuff and extremely well covered.
• Overall, I really liked it, I have little gripes, but for the most part I thought it was very good. I commented to my wife how much I remembered all of those games and highlights even though it was almost 20 years ago. Very well done, I'm sure it will be in repeats this week during March Madness, if you get a chance, check it out.

The Weekly Short Hops and Air Balls

Short Hops: My random observations both good and bad in the week of sports and pop culture

• Fennville High School in Michigan winning two basketball games this week was incredible. For those who aren't aware, Wes Leonard was a great athlete at Fennville high school, and after scoring the winning basket in last week's game, he collapsed and died. I can't imagine how difficult it must be to continue to try and help your team complete a perfect season, while dealing with the loss of a friend. Good luck to them the rest of the way. Sports is only a very small portion of this story, the human element and bonding is much more important and inspirational.
• The  Jennifer Aniston viral video is really good. I'm not a huge Aniston fan, because I don't think her talent is anywhere near equal to the amount of hype and publicity she receives, but she's very good in this video.
• Sunday night on ESPN there is going to be a documentary on the legendary Fab 5 basketball team from Michigan. The Fab 5 had an incredible influence on me as a teenager growing up, and I can't wait to check out this documentary. Jalen Rose actually produced it. The only downfall, for some inexplicable reason, Chris Webber decided not to participate.
• An update to my music post from earlier this week. With the help of several of you, it's been correctly pointed out that I'm old, and out of touch with today's music. I cannot do anything about the former, but I've decided to do something about the latter. This week I've been listening to several different alternative radio stations on the internet. So far, reviews are very mixed. I certainly haven't changed my opinion, but I have found a couple of gems. I really like the Black Keys, and look forward to checking more out from them. I can tell you in a relatively small sample size (about 5 songs) I still think Arcade Fire is awful. I don't get it at all. Someone, please tell me what I'm missing.  I will continue my new music experiment for the next several days, maybe forever if I find the fountain of youth.

Air Balls: Those people, events or happenings that completely missed the mark this week.

•  Tiki Barber. In the interest of full disclosure, I can't stand Tiki Barber. He's a scumbag. This clownpuncher decided this week that's hes' coming back to the NFL after being out of the league for four years. Good luck with that. Immediately after retiring he decides to rip his Giants teammates, being especially tough on Eli Manning. The Giants turn around and win the Super Bowl the very next year without him. Karma, baby. Then this wonderful human being leaves his wife, who is eight months pregnant with twins, for a NBC intern. NBC fires him. Karma, baby. I hope the Minnesota Vikings sign him, and he gets knocked ass over teakettle and can't play again. 
• Erik Spolestra. Look, there is no way this guy can succeed as coach of the Miami Heat, the expectations are way too high, and they just aren't good enough. Having said that, you don't come out and announce that after a game your players were crying in the locker room, AND THEN the very next day rip the press for taking your comments out of context, and blowing things out of proportion. Ummm....what? You've got a target on your back because you already aren't performing, please don't make it worse by being an idiot.
• The NFL. If there is a single regular season game missed because billionaires can't agree on a labor deal, that's just pathetic. This lockout has been talked about for almost 18 months now, and the deadline has been extended twice in the last 7 days. How is that not enough time? If there is a work stoppage, it will hurt the image of the league. People will always watch football no matter what, but the popularity will take a hit. I just hope it's a huge hit to deliver the right message to these greedy bastards.

Raising a Rocker...from a rocker.

My four year old son ROCKS, literally. Every morning when I take him to daycare he requests one of two songs to be played, “Welcome to the Jungle” or “Knockin’ on Kevin’s Door” (He likes Kevin better than Heaven, who am I to correct him?) Two weeks ago we are driving somewhere and “Back in Black” comes on the radio. From the back seat I hear, “hey dad, what is this?” I tell  him it is“AC/DC’s ‘Back in Black’”. He doesn't say anything else, but then I peek in the rearview mirror and he’s back there bobbing his head and rocking out.I absolutely love this, I love it for the fact that he’s so cool and gets so animated and into to the songs, but I really love it, because I love the music. I mean, Guns ‘n’ Roses, AC/DC, these are bands that I have loved all my life.This leads me on a whole chain of thoughts, but specifically, that my kid loves music that I love and first became popular 20 years ago.

But then, I can’t get out of my own way, and I start to think, wait, why is my CD player and iPod filled with nothing but music that I consider ‘older’?  So, I make a list of my favorite albums, my favorites from 20, 15, 10 and 5 years ago.

• 20 years ago, 1991, is the easiest choice on the list. My favorite album, by my favorite group of all time came out in 1991. Pearl Jam’s ‘Ten’ is everything I love about music and it is still an album I listen to all the time.

•  Fifteen years ago, 1996, I can’t really pin down an absolute favorite from that year, but there was a TON of good stuff. Rage Against the Machine’s ‘Evil Empire’, Dave Matthews Band’s ‘Crash’ , Tool’s ‘Aenima’, Jay-Z’s ‘Reasonable Doubt’, 2Pac’s ‘All Eyez on Me’, these are albums I really, really loved.

• Ten years ago in 2001, Jay-Z’s ‘Blueprint’ is my favorite rap album of all time, and easily my favorite album of the year. (Should also be noted it was released on 9/11/01) At this point I’m rattling off these albums off the top of my head, coming quicker than a hiccup.

• Then I get to 2006, five years ago. Nothing.  I can’t think of a single album from that year. I head to Google, come upon, http://www.besteveralbums.com/yearstats.php?y=2006. Great site by the way, but of the top 20 albums in 2006, I owned one, ‘Stadium Arcadium’ by Red Hot Chili Peppers. I liked the album, didn’t love it. What the hell is going on here, I don’t have a favorite album from five years ago?

Then I think very hard about what I was listening to five years ago. Not surprisingly, it was Pearl Jam, Aerosmith, Counting Crows, Jay-Z, Eminem, Foo Fighters, Metallica (Black and album and before obviously), basically all bands or artists that came out in the 80’s and 90’s. Then I think about all the new bands I’ve started to love in the last five years, I come up with a very short list, one band, Kings of Leon.  I didn’t start liking them until their FOURTH album. How did this happen, how did I become so uncool? Have I literally lost touch with contemporary music? But, another thought creeps into my head, am I uncool, or does new music suck? I have to tell you, I honestly don’t know the answer, but I have a tendency to believe new music might suck. I watched the Grammys this year, and I was just perplexed that the show ended with something called the Arcade Fire performing two songs, that both sounded horrible too me. It seems this band is somewhat popular with the kids, and for the life of me I can’t figure out how. So to tie this way too long of an explanation together, I’m somewhat concerned that I might be raising my little rocker on songs that by the time he hits his formative teenage years, will be more than 35 years old. The more I think this should bother me, the less it actually does, because I honestly think that it might be the last time music was actually good. So, do I keep rocking to 80’s hair metal and 90’s grunge, or do I go out and befriend a bunch of  hipster kids who can turn me onto the latest garbage being churned out by bands who seem like they are trying way too hard to act cool, but really aren’t. Either way, I’m pretty sure I just officially became old.

A little Cold

I don't think there is any way the Miami Heat win the NBA Championship this year, and I think their game against the Bulls yesterday was a perfect illustration why.

• They have absolutely no post presence at all. Chris Bosh is a 7 foot jump shooting, no rebounding, pile of junk. The dude only operates 13-18 feet from the hoop, and oh by the way, he's not that good of a shooter. Shooting less than 50% for the year as a 7 footer, on a team with two of the best perimeter players in the game? Inexcusable.
• The season is nearly over and the Heat still have absolutely no idea what they are doing on offense. I blame a lot of this on the fact that LeBron has no low post game. They can't go two-man with him and Wade, because LeBron can't go to the block. The play at the end of the game should have been him in the post working with Wade. LeBron can't post up Luol Deng? That's an issue.
• They are not tough at all. Ultimately it's a team of crybabies, especially with Udonis Haslem not playing. Derrick Rose showed 10 times the heart yesterday, and Joakim Noah would eat any of those guys for breakfast if given the chance. I don't even care if they were 'crying' in the locker room as their coach reported, they aren't tough on the court.
• The outside shooting hasn't materialized the way they had hoped with Mike Miller and Mario Chalmers. Chalmers was good in yesterday's game, but he's not consistent enough. The Bulls showed yesterday how you can disrupt LeBron and Wade, and if those guys can't consistently bury jumpers, they can't win.
• They aren't playoff built. I think there is way too much lip service given to 'playoff basketball', but the game does slow down, and it does get more physical. Forcing the Heat to play half-court basketball, and pushing them around looks pretty easy to do right now.
• They don't have the 'switch'. This is their biggest fault. I almost guarantee that LeBron and Wade think that when the playoffs start, they've got this 'switch' they can flip and then all of sudden they are going to be the team they are supposed to be. It will never happen with this team for two huge reasons. Number one, the team is all brand new, they have zero chemistry. How are you going to flip a switch when not everyone is on the same page. That chemistry takes time to develop. But, their biggest issue is the fact, they have no leader. None. LeBron and Wade are constantly deferring to each other, and both of them are alpha males that can't step up right now. Don't even get me started on Bosh. That dude is the epitome of weak. I worshipped Bulls basketball in the 90's, and those teams could flip the switch because of Jordan and Pippen. The Lakers can do it because of Kobe. The Heat have no chance.
• Two random observations from the game. Derrick Rose is a mandingo. The dude can straight play, and now that he has improved his shooting, he should be running the league for the next 8-10 years.
• Changing the team uniforms to EL Heat, and Los Bulls, doesn't it just seem kind of condescending? So just changing the word 'The' for each team is some how honoring the Spanish contingent of NBA fans? Ummmm......okay.

Honor the Code

I'm a big time Jimmer Fredette fan, so consequently that had me following the Cougars a little bit this year. Obviously there was a big set back this week with the dismissal of Brandon Davies violating the school honor code. If you're not familiar with the story, just Google Brandon Davies + Honor Code, and you'll receive about 200,000 results. The obvious commentary this week has been that an Honor Code like BYU's is completely insane for a college kid to follow. I'm inclined to agree, but having said that it's a set of rules that the school has, and it's not like they are new for 2011. BYU is a different culture, one that I'm sure most of us are not and never will be familiar with. Those that are though, like Brandon Davies, take it very seriously. Should he have been kicked off the team for violating the honor code by having premarital sex with his girlfriend? Something I'm sure hundreds of BYU students are participating in every day? Yes, he should have...according to the school, and that's all that matters. I think what is getting lost in this story is how he was removed from the team, not why. It's not like some student from a rival school took shady cell phone pictures of Davies in a compromising position, stuffed them in a manila envelope and mailed them to the dean at BYU or the head of the NCAA. The kid turned HIMSELF in, for no other reason than guilt. That's honor. He knew that he had committed a violation of a code that he agreed to uphold, and decided he should be punished. He made all of those decisions despite knowing that his team was in the midst of a dream season, coming off of their biggest win of the year, staring a number seed in the face, and he still turned himself in. Now, I'm not saying that Davies needs to be nominated for man of the year, or any other similar commendation, but in this world of me first, look at me, tweet me, blah, blah, blah, this kid put himself in a position to be scrutinized in a way that he should not have to endure. For that, I hold a great deal of respect for Davies, and only hope that this experience helps to strengthen him..

The Welcome

I, like the vast majority of the world, wanted to start a blog. I like to write, and I like sports, so Short Hops and Air Balls is born. I don't fancy myself anything more than an average opinionated dude, and this blog will just serve as the outlet for me to express myself, on the world of sports and pop culture. It will be a lot like Bill Simmons new website , minus the financial backing, creative writing, and millions of followers.