Opening Day...

The Boston Red Sox opened up their season this morning against the Oakland Athletics. The two teams kicked things off at 6 a.m. EDT from Tokyo, Japan. It was an extremely exciting game, with the Red Sox eventually winning in ten innings. The score went back and forth the whole game, and there are a few quick points I'd like to mention:

1. Daisuke Matsuzaka- It was good to see how well Dice-K rebounded from a bad first two innings, and was able to finish strong, and pitch 5 innings. Matsuzaka actually left the game with the chance to earn the win, if it were not for Kyle Snyder giving up a 2 run home run in the bottom of the 6th (more on him later). Dice-K couldn't find the strike zone early, especially with his off-speed pitches. Matsuzaka's strength is his ability to be accurate with a variety of pitches, and in the first 2 innings, he wasn't doing it. In the 3rd-5th innings, Daisuke started working both sides of the plate with his change, and two-seem fastball.

2. Manny Ramirez- "Manny being contract year Manny" is going to be a huge piece of the puzzle for the Sox this year. Manny had 4 RBI's today, including the game-winning 2-run double in the 10th inning. Manny should rebound from an "average" season last year (.296 BA, 20 HR, 88 RBI's).

3. The Red Sox Depth- The Red Sox have unbelieveable depth on this year's squad. They have Coco Crisp (last year's starter/ trade bait), Brandon Moss (game tying home run in 9th inning today), and Bobby Kielty (last year's World Series hero) are all reserve outfielders. The Sox also add Sean Casey, and Alex Cora serve as bench infielders. The Red Sox are in great shape to have insurance on the bench to guard against injuries, and to give starters rest this season.

4. The Achilles Heel- The biggest question mark this year's Red Sox team has is the bullpen. Sure, they have All-Stars Papelbon and Okajima anchoring the back end of the bullpen, but the middle relievers and especially the long relievers are a big question mark. Julien Tavarez will eat some innings, but he is not trustworthy, neither is Kyle Snyder. If the Red Sox can move Crisp for some bullpen help, they will be on the fast track to repeating as World Series Champions.

Getting Back to Work

To start off, I would like to congratulate the New York Giants on their Super Bowl victory. It has been over a week since the Super Bowl, and I still don't think I am over it yet. I cannot describe my emotions throughout that game. The only thing I can compare that loss to is the way I felt after Game 7 of thee 2003 ALCS. Pure devastation. Shocked. Depressed. That is the reason why I haven't been able to talk about it until now. The upside is baseball season is just around the corner, and the Celtics have the best record in the NBA (Excuse my bragging, I have to keep telling myself these things to keep from climbing back into bed). In order to get some closure I'd like to take a look at the Super Bowl and give my thoughts. I am excited to put this season behind us, and look forward to other things.

Five Thoughts on the Super Bowl:

1. "The Catch" part deux- There has been so much talk about David Tyree and the amazing catch he made on the Giants' game-winning drive. It was one of the best catches that I have seen, but there are other parts of that play I'd like to bring up. First, Jarvis Green and the rest of the Patriots defensive line, came so close to sacking Eli which would have made the next play a 4th and long. In my opinion, past Patriots teams would have sacked Manning on that play, and then shut their opponent down on 4th down. Maybe that was the Achilles Heal for the Patriots this year, that they were just a step too slow on defense. If Jarvis had been a step faster, he would have wrapped up Eli, if Rodney Harrison was a step faster, he would have knocked Tyree out of the game and jarred the ball lose. That is what makes the game of football so great, that the difference between a win and a loss can depend on one step, or one inch. The Tyree Catch can be seen at http://youtube.com/watch?v=ZHTwYU4syJE .

2. The Drop- Asante Samuel had the Lombardi Trophy, and he let it bounce of his fingertips. I understand he was not expecting that bad of a throw, but he is one of the best cornerbacks in the league, and he should have caught that ball. This is just one of the many plays on that drive that I kept thinking could end the Super Bowl. Being a Patriots fan, we get used to the defense stepping up in clutch moments, especially in the playoffs. It didn't happen. The UCF alumni's drop can be seen at http://youtube.com/watch?v=X6BzVqSu8_g .

3. The Drive...Not.- The Giants took a 3 point lead, but left 35 seconds for Brady and Co. to work with. No big deal right? The Patriots will go down kick a field goal and win in overtime right? No. Not this time. For the first time, Brady was not able to lead a comeback at the end of a Super Bowl. The play calls were questionable on that final drive too. Why throw all deep passes to Moss instead of getting chunks of yardage. It was doomed to begin with. Brady didn't have time to even work his magic. That is credit to the Giants' defensive line. The final "drive" can be seen at http://youtube.com/watch?v=0td1tiuxpsc (If you are a Patriots fan with a weak stomach, or have considered suicide within the last 2 weeks do not watch this clip.)

4. The Decisions- The decisions of Coach Belichick to not challenge the Bradshaw fumble, http://youtube.com/watch?v=smEMWbZiZHc , and to go for it on 4th and 13 instead of kicking a field goal have been questioned by many. The fumble appeared to have been recovered by the Patriots, and would have surely affected the game. I cannot second guess Belichick on the decision to go for it on 4th and 13, because at the time, I agreed. In a game of field position though, it may have been smarter to punt and pin the Giants deep in their own zone. A 50 yard field goal from Gostowski was too risky, but looking back, it was the difference in the game.

5. Waste of a Season?- It is true that the only thing that matters is winning the Super Bowl. Even though the Patriots squandered a perfect season, it still remains one of the best season's ever. I enjoyed this football season more than any other season ever. Following this Patriots team, which everyone hated as just pure fun. Brady surpassing Manning (Peyton) as the league's best quarterback, Randy Moss becoming Randy Moss, the emergence of Wes Welker, watching them run up scores, and being perfect in the regular season made this year one of the best years ever. And you know what? This run at history was amzing, and I wouldn't trade it for anything (except maybe another Super Bowl win).

Despite the Super Bowl let down, the Patriots will still be the team to beat next year. They still have a target on their backs, and everyone still hates them. I am excited for next year, but it will be nice to put this season behind us. After all, the Patriots haven't lost in the regular season since 2006.

Check back in this weekend for an overview of Winter Happenings, and an MLB Preview.

Some Thoughts On Super Bowl XLII

The biggest game in all of sports is now upon us. Super Bowl XLII will kick off Sunday night between the undefeated New England Patriots, and the New York Giants. The Patriots (18-0) come into the game as the first undefeated team since the 1972 Miami Dolphins. The Giants (13-6) come into the game riding a ten game win streak.

Tuesday kicked off Super Bowl Media Day, a day devoted to thousands of reporters asking the same questions over and over to players, with a mix of random non-important questions. That being said lets take a look at the most overdone stories from Super Bowl XLII:

1.Tom Brady’s Injured Ankle- Enough with talking about Brady and his “injury”. If Brady thought that the ankle would be enough of a problem to affect how he was going to play, he would take himself out of the game. We are, after all, talking about the quarterback who has been listed on the injury report for pretty much the last two years straight. When will reporters start understanding that this is all part of Belichick’s plan? He wants other teams to worry about every possible scenario, in hopes of distracting them. He wants his team to have every possible advantage to win the game, which is also the reason for “Spy Gate”. Tom Brady will be the quarterback, come Sunday night, and I am willing to bet he will be the same Tom Brady that has led his team to the most impressive season in history this year.

2. New York vs. Boston- Sure, these are two of the most historic sports cities in the world, but this Giants/Patriots game is no Red Sox/Yankees. The Red Sox/ Yankees rivalry is arguably the best rivalry in all of sports. The Giants aren’t even the Patriots biggest rivals from “Ne w York”. Now that I say it, The Giants are from New Jersey, and the Patriots are from Foxborough, making this storyline completely irrelevant.

3. Plaxico Predicts Score- So Plaxico Burress predicted a Giants’ win by a score of 23-17. So what? Would people rather him say that he doesn’t expect his team to win? My problem is that he is not confident enough to say that the Giants will dominate the Patriots. The worst part of this storyline is that analysts think that the Patriots will use this as “bulletin board material”. Do you think the Patriots need another form of motivation to win this game? I think having the best season in history, and winning a Super Bowl is more than enough motivation.

4. The Giants Almost Beat The Patriots in Week 17- Key word? Almost. It is absurd that I have even had to listen to the argument of who gained the most from that final regular season game. To quote Coach Herm Edwards, “You play to win the games!” Who in their right mind thinks that before the game the Giants players were hoping they would lose in a close, hard fought game? I give the Giants credit for playing their starters the whole game, and I think it helped them in their playoff run, but the Patriots won that game.

5. The Giants Are On a Hot Steak- Yes, the Giants have won ten road straight games, but the Patriots are 18-0. If you were in the Super Bowl, whose momentum would scare you more? The Pats or the Giants? In my opinion, I would rather not play the best team in football history.

The Super Bowl is the greatest spectacle in all of sports, and I cannot wait to see history made. I’ll post more thoughts at the end of the week, and will give my prediction. (Hint- I’m not agreeing with Plax.)

Living The High Life (Debut Post)

I am living the high life. I could not possibly imagine a better situation to be in as a sports fan. What a perfect time to start a blog. My favorite football team has just tied the record for most wins in a season. Three months ago my favorite baseball team won its second World Series championship in three years. My favorite basketball team is off to one of the best starts in NBA history. My home town hockey team looks to be in the thick of the playoff race at the end of the season. I know, Most of you readers probably hate Boston and everyone from there this year, but I had to put my emotions into writing.

This past year, has been too good to be true. I have went from being a fan of one of the most tortured sports cities in the world to possibly the most successful. Now, you would think that my Boston teams would be enough to satisfy me. Well, you would be wrong.

See I am currently a sophomore in college (Yes, I am having a blast and living the ultimate college dream.) But, I am at a University that has also had some success in the sports world the last couple years. I attend USF, no, not the University of San Francisco, but The University of South Florida. I am well aware that USF is not in “South” Florida. And also, with much do respect to our neighboring schools, we do not liked to be linked with the group of up and coming football schools in Florida (FAU and UCF).

See, this year our football team after just eleven years of existence rose as high as #2 in the country. The thrill of getting national recognition completely changed my university. Sure, we lost three straight games after being ranked #2 (I will explain my use of “we” later), but do not try and tell a USF student that was our fifteen minutes of fame. The University of South Florida has arrived, and is here to stay.

As I said earlier, this football season changed an entire university. No longer do people see you wearing a USF shirt and ask, “Where is USF?” You cannot go anywhere in Tampa without seeing something USF, You cannot travel somewhere without hearing a Go Bulls! And, most importantly, you can feel the buzz around campus. The excitement all week before a game is unreal. Going to games, and screaming at the top of our lungs, celebrating a crying with every win and loss makes me honestly believe, as I think many other students do, that we are a part of the team.

When we began the season 6-0, I felt the greatest feeling in the world. It was pure bliss. After the team beat Auburn in Auburn, my friends and I flooded out of apartment and ventured towards campus. It was crazy. All you could hear were cars honking, chants of U-S-F, people yelling Go Bulls, and just pure shrieks of excitement. That is when I knew we had arrived. We went onto the #2 ranking, followed by a three game losing streak, and another three game winning streak. USF earned a trip to The Brut Sun Bowl in El Paso, Texas. The Sun Bowl is the second oldest bowl game, in which we got completely dominated. (I will expand on the bowl in another post).

Anyways, this excitement created by the football team has not left USF. Walking around campus today I noticed, nearly every single person was wearing green or gold. No, today was not a game day or anything special. But, maybe it is special. It is special to be a part of a major university. That combined with the success of my hometown sports teams has me living the high life.