sportsblogger

   With Halloween here today, it got me thinking of what would scare the daylight out of every sports fan. There is easily the thought of your top player on your favorite team going down with a season ending injury, but let’s try and steer clear of that subject.

   Easily, one of the scariest things to happen for MLB is a rematch of this seasons World Series between the Phillies and Rays. Ratings are, and have been, a big problem for MLB with the World Series in the past years and this year did not help ease that pain.

   Things could be worse, the MLB has its own ghosts that haunt certain franchises. The Boston Red Sox were amongst the most haunted teams with their curse of Babe Ruth who haunted the team until they won the World Series in 2004 and broke the curse forever.

   Another team that has been haunted for 100 years, that is right 100 years, is the Chicago Cubs who are haunted by everything from billie-goats to bartmans. Their curse is still running strong after being the best team in th NL this year only to be swept by the Los Angeles Dodgers.

   Los Angeles has its own ghosts as well; Los Angeles is haunted by the Rams and the Raiders and the void left by not having an NFL franchise. It seems that every few years, the rumors grow strong of the potential teams for this market, then it comes crashing down faster than it started.

   Of the NFL teams with curses, besides the teams that curse themselves, the Cleveland Browns are easily the winner of being that team in the NFL. The Browns have been involved in ”The Drive”, ”The Fumble”, and then simply “The Move” that took the franchise out of the NFL and changed the team to the Baltimore Ravens who then won a Championship.

   Closing out our haunt is the NBA, who has just one haunted or haunting franchise in the Los Angeles Clippers. The Clippers are simply lost in the NBA world. You can make all the excuses you want but that team is cursed with being terrible.

   With that being said, I wish everyone a happy and safe Halloween. 

J.M.Saucedo 

   Today, and every Thursday Sportsblogger will host small stories based on the top stories of the day called “Shocking, Not So Shocking”, so give some feedback and lets hear what you think.

Shocking: The Philadelphia Phillies won their first World Series since 1980 last night by defeating the Tampa Bay Rays 4 games to 1.

Not So Shocking: The Philadelphia Phillies won their first World Series since 1980, come on the game was suspended longer then it should have been. Why can’t all baseball games be 3 innings?

Not So Shocking: Michael Vick is going to plead guilty to State dogfighting charges in Virginia.

Shocking: The State will not allow him to plead guilty from a video conference and wants him to make an appearance in person. Who foots the bill for his transportation from Kansas to Virginia?

Shocking: David Beckham of the Los Angeles Galaxy will compete in the Champions League with A.C.Milan in January as part of a loan by the Galaxy.

Not So Shocking: The Loan becomes a rent to own situation. Look, Beckham you tried to make soccer big in the States, it just doesn’t work here, sorry.

Shocking: The Lakers signed C Andrew Bynum to a 4-year contract extension worth $58 million. Where on earth are they getting this money from? With Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, and Lamar Odom all with big contracts.

Not So Shocking: The Lakers made the move after back-to-back blow-out victories in the teams first two games. Kudos Lakers, spend away.

Shocking: The New York Knicks won their first game under Mike D’Antoni 120-115 over the Miami Heat.

Not So Shocking: The Knicks victory is ofcourse going to picked apart, as they won, but they still can’t play any defense. Then again, you do not hire Mike D’Antoni for his defensive expertise.

J.M.Saucedo

   What ever happened to Peyton Manning: The MVP of the NFL, Mr. Colt, and one of the best passing Quarterbacks the NFL has ever seen. He is still the Field General of the Indianapolis Colts, but since the middle of last season he has faltered tremendously.

   We have seen this story before, does the name Brett Favre ring a bell? Favre was once a big-armed gunslinger that could win a football game with his arm, but had to switch his typecast to a game manager to help prevent costly turnovers in games.

   Peyton Manning has become that kind of player now seemingly out of the blue, he needs to learn that the big plays are the small ones. Then again, there are rumors that Mannings troubles stem from 2 knee surgeries he underwent during the offseason.

   The drop off this year is noticable to the naked eye, that is why there is much speculation as to what is wrong with Peyton. As I sat and watched him struggle in his previous two games throwing 2 touchdowns and 4 interceptions, it looked as though I was watching Brett Favre 3 years ago.

   WR Marvin Harrison, Peytons Number 1 Receiver for quite some time has also dropped off in production after an injury last year. Perhaps it is just the Colts aging that is making this season hard to understand, but I will not write them off yet.

   Only the Colts know what they have left in the tank and when or if they can pull things back together and be the Colts again. Maybe managing a football game isn’t such a bad idea for Peyton, or maybe Peyton just has to get over some injuries, still at 32 years old he needs to recover fast.

J.M.Saucedo

   As Sportsblogger continues the NBA Season preview, we will highlight the Western Conference that was won last season by the Los Angeles Lakers. This year, the usual top teams are either headlined by new coaches or an injured star player.

   So here is the much anticipated part two of the NBA Season preview:

Western Conference

1.) Los Angeles Lakers- No one, including Kobe Bryant last season, believed the Lakers would make it to the NBA Finals last year and they made it. The Lakers walked right through the Western Conference Playoffs, but could not beat the Boston Celtics. What now? Well they are the favorites to win the Championship this season, what a difference a season makes.

2.) New Orleans Hornets- Chris Paul is the best Point Guard in the NBA. With that said, the Hornets came out of left field last year and were very close to facing the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals. This year, New Orleans may get their chance to face the Lakers in the Conference Finals.

3.) San Antonio Spurs- The Spurs are aging very fast and it showed last year. They are too dependent on Manu Ginobili who is often injured and will sit out the beginning of the season with an ankle injury. With that, it’s still hard to write off the Spurs.

4.) Houston Rockets- The Rockets can not get out of the first round of the Playoffs. They traded for Ron Artest in the off season and hope that he can take them to the promised land or at least the second round.

5.) Utah Jazz- Deron Williams will miss the first 2-4 weeks this year. The Jazz will struggle without him, but once he returns we will all get to see the second best Point Guard in the NBA.

6.) Dallas Mavericks- Dallas brought in a new coach to try and re-inspire this once Western Conference power-house. The truth is that it will take more than a good coach for that. Mavericks players need to want to be better and play harder around Dirk Nowitzki.

7.) Phoenix Suns- Just like the Mavericks, the Suns are hoping a new Head Coach will re-inspire them to the top of the Western Conference. The truth, the trade of Shawn Marion will come back to haunt them for years to come.

8.) Portland Trail Blazers- The Trail Blazers are the one team in the NBA with the best young talent and a Head Coach that can manage that talent into production. This will vault them into the last playoff spot or maybe better.

9.) Denver Nuggets- Aging talent, no Marcus Camby, plain and simple means no playoffs. The Nuggets need to rebuild around Carmelo Anthony if they hope to stay as a top team in the Western Conference.

10.) Sacramento Kings- The Kings are once again moving forward as they were in the Chris Weber/Mike Bibby days. This will take some time to crack the top eight but they will get there in time.

11.) Golden State Warriors- Two years ago this team pulled off the biggest upset in the NBA when they defeated the number 1 team in the league and eliminated the Mavericks from the Playoffs. Why they let Baron Davis leave is a mystery to everyone, including their fans.

12.) Los Angeles Clippers- Well, there is too much to stay about the Clippers so I will keep it short, “What are you doing!!”

13.) Memphis Grizzlies- They traded Pau Gasol for a package of Big League Chew and hope that Gasols brother, Marc, can make somewhat of an impact.

14.) Minnesota Timberwolves- Kevin Love will have a tough time trying to will this team to wins. Think of it this way, once you hit the bottom, you can’t go any lower than that.

15.) Oklahoma City Thunder- It is very intriguing to call this an expansion team, but they are just rebuilding and re-tooling. Kevin Durant will be a Kobe-esque scorer, but it takes time and the Thunder will get there.

J.M.Saucedo

   The NBA season tips-off tuesday night with a double-header featuring the two teams that played against eachother in the NBA Finals. The Boston Celtics will begin their title-defense against the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Los Angeles Lakers will play the Portland Trail Blazers.

   With that said here is the Sportsblogger NBA Preview:

Eastern Conference

1.) Boston Celtics- The defending Champions are still the favorite to win the Eastern Conference this season. No team in the East, with the exception the Cavaliers, can realy compete with Celtics’ big three. Expect the Celtics to return to the NBA Finals.

2.) Cleveland Cavaliers- Put any players around LeBron James, and he will take you to the Playoffs. Thats exactly the Cavaliers plan this season as once again the weight of the franchise is on the shoulders of the Cavs star. Expect LeBron to be this seasons MVP.

3.) Detroit Pistons- Every season we expect the Pistons to have a great season, and every year they disappoint. With a new Head Coach, the Pistons should be revitalized and ready to return to form. But as always, there is a huge “if” for Detroit.

4.) Orlando Magic- Dwight Howard is huge, dominant, and one of the best Centers in the NBA. The Magic should be one of the top teams in the NBA this year and are a dark horse favorite to win the Eastern Conference.

5.) Washington Wizards- No Gilbert Arenas to start the season? No Problem. Caron Butler is one of the NBA’s young stars and he proved that he carry the Wizards last year when Arenas was hurt.

6.) Philadelphia 76ers- The free-agent acquisition of Elton Brand will bolster this team to a contender title. Will it help them win the Eastern Conference? Maybe not this year, but in time this can be a new Beast in the East.

7.) Miami Heat- Dwyane Wade, Shawn Marion, and Michael Beasley. Once they learn how to play together as a unit may be able to tople the Big Three in Boston. That will take some time, but for now they will be a good team.

8.) Toronto Raptors- Maybe they should be ranked higher in these rankings, but the Chris Bosh/Jermaine O’Neal experiment has a long way to go. Just like the Heat, it may take some time to get adjusted.

9.) Chicago Bulls- At one point not to long ago, the Bulls seemed like they were ready to be contenders. Now the look to a Rookie Point Guard to lead the team. They should be back to those high expectations in a bit, just not now.

10.) Atlanta Hawks- The Hawks took the Celtics to 7 games last year in the first round of the Playoffs. Do you expect the same effort this year? Well I don’t, but then again I didn’t believe the Hawks could win 3 games against the Celtics either.

11.) New Jersey Nets- The Nets look different this year after the trades of Jason Kidd and Richard Jefferson. For some reason the Nets kept often injured Vince Carter. Well maybe next season they could keep this team in tact.

12.)Milwaukee Bucks- The Bucks traded for Richard Jefferson and added a new Head Coach. Will they turn things around this season? No. But soon they will be in the top 10 of the Eastern Conference, just not this season.

13.) Indiana Pacers- What ever happened to the Pacers? After Reggie Miller retired, the Pacer forgot how to compete as a basketball team. Maybe Brandon Rush is the answer, or maybe not.

14.) Charlotte Bobcats- It has been 4 years since the Bobcats entered the NBA, and they have yet to shed the feel of them still being an expansion team. This year is not going to be different. Maybe Year 5 will hold better luck for the Bobcats.

15.) New York Knicks- The Knicks are just terrible. They will return to being a proud organization sometime in the future, just not now.

Western Conference Preview Tomorrow

J.M.Saucedo

   For quite some time now, many MMA fans wanted to see UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva fight someone who could mix it up with him. On Saturday night we were all given that chance as Silva faced a very game Patrick Cote in Chicago for UFC 90.

   The fight, which was being won by Silva, had a different approach for the Champion because Cote is as heavy-handed as Silva. Silva had to be very cautious with Cote, which was very obvious because Cote made it farther then anyone ever in the Octogon with Silva.

   In the Third round, the fight had to be stopped because Cote suffered a knee injury that was not the result of Silva, but just a freak accident. There has been plenty of speculation that Silva was not ready for the fight and that he hoped to walk right through Cote.

   That would leave everyone to believe that Cote should have just let Silva walk over him in fear, but he stood in the ring and threw blows with Silva. Cote was a game fighter from the start of the first round and Silva knew that he would have to be cautious.

   Silva is the best pound for pound MMA fighter in the world and he got that title for winning his fights the way he felt he could win them. Just because everyone wants to see him knock out every fighter in spectacular fashion does not mean he has to.

   So now, due to the fact that everyone is crying foul, he is going to be the bad guy in all of this because Cote had an accidental injury? Well if you want to see a cool brawl or knockout, check out Kimbo Slice on you tube because there is a lot more to MMA then just highlight reel knock-outs.

   Expect Silva to make a second jump back up to the Light-Heavyweight Division to fight former Champion Chuck Liddell. Silva, if he wins, will likely need to defeat one more opponent in that division in order to receive a title shot, but kudos to Silva and Cote for a good competitive fight.

J.M.Saucedo

   The World Series has hit a bit of a snag in Philadelphia as Mother Nature has intervened and left us with a potential rain delay. As of 5 p.m. p.s.t, the likely-hood of getting Game 3 on today does not seem like a strong possibility.

   There have been many critics of late that have made the case for having the Fall Classic at a neutral warm weather site. This of course would be a direct failure and spit on the face of baseballs history which goes back to the 1800’s and maybe further.

   How can you host a World Series featuring an East-Coast team at Dodger Stadium here in Los Angeles? The Diehard fans of Baseball teams might consider a flight out for one game but how would they be able to watch seven along with keeping their jobs?

   That is why it is best to leave the World Series alone and deal with the occasional weather delay or freezing temperatures that the East-Coast has to offer. The World Series is still affective although it has seen its share of hard times lately.

   Every now and then a team from a warm weather state like here in California will have a team in the World Series, for instance the Anaheim Angels, San Francisco Giants series. Philadelphia is not known for warm weather (or warm fans) but when/if this series kicks off in Philadelphia that city is going to rock no matter how cold it is.

   Either way, the first two games of the Series went off with out a hitch due to the Tampa Bay Rays Dome covered Stadium. So every now and then Mother Nature will say “No” to a baseball game and we can all oblige.

J.M.Saucedo

   With just days before the 2008 Presidential Election, the World awaits the outcome of the Obama and McCain Presidential race. The One thing Sportsblogger won’t do is voice my pick or support any single candidate, but suggest that voting is very important.

   It seems like this is one of the biggest elections in recent history, or at least has some of the biggest names in the United States involved one way or another. The candidates have their choice of big name athletes that are in support of them.

   Everyone rushes to the side of a candidate to give their political thumbs up for the man they deem acceptable for the job. Prominent sports figure like a LeBron James or a Kobe Bryant (is LeBron James old enough to vote yet?) could give a candidate the young voters he or she strives for.

   The voting process got me thinking of different types of voting that many young sports fans would love to be a part of. Young voters would love to be able to cast their vote for the Heisman Trophy winner or any other MVP type of vote in other Professional Leagues.

   The voting process that catches the eye of so many sports fans is the voting for the top 25 polls in both College Basketball and College Football. More often it is the College Football voting process that catches the intrigue of sports fans.

   The process of the votes is 2 seperate polls, the A.P. and Coaches polls, which all tally up along with strength of schedule to give you the BCS. The BCS is basically a computer that includes the polls to give you a sort of super-computerized-poll, which always upsets the voters and fans.

   Lets just be thankful that the BCS is not incharge of the Presidential Election because we would end up second guessing how we ended up with a third Party President (No disrespect to any Third Party Candidates). Use your right to vote, and show the rest of the World that the greatest thing about being a citizen of the United States is your right to choose.

J.M.Saucedo

   Game one of the World Series was kicked off with a bang on Wednesday when the Philadelphia Phillies 2B Chase Utley hit a 2-run Homerun in the 1st inning. The Phillies would go on to win Game One 3-2 and take the first game of the World Series on the road.

   The Tampa Bay Rays were not disappointed at the end of the game but as a young team on the biggest stage, they finally showed their slight inexperience. Rays young stars Evan Longoria, B.J. Upton, and Carlos Pena were not very affective in this game but it is just game one.

   Not to mention the Rays had to face the Phillies Ace Cole Hamels who only allowed 2 runs then he turned the game over to the dominant bull-pen. Brad Lidge would then come in the 9th inning and close out the Rays in Tampa Bay and continue his streak of consecutive saves.

   One interesting fact that caught my attention at the end of the game is the score 3-2, which was the same exact score of the Phillies first NLCS win over the Dodgers in game one. The other, is that the Rays also were defeated at home in the first game of the ALCS against the Red Sox.

   Both the Rays and Phillies went on to win their next game in the series and eventually the League Championship so who knows what is going to happen tonight. The Series, although  it does not have any historic rivalry, seems to be building its own identity.

   The World Series has excited most baseball fans, but will fall short of expectations in normal ratings charts for baseballs showcase. Those expectations really mean nothing because game one was very entertaining and the series will be exciting from pitch-to-pitch.

J.M.Saucedo  

   In the come and go world of the NFL, the first person to be blamed for on-the-field failures is always going to be the Head Coach. Thus the firing of Scott Linehan, Lane Kiffin, and now Mike Nolan of the San Francisco 49ers after starting the 2008 season 2-5.

   It is true that the coach is responsible for the teams efforts on the field, but who is responsible coming through with the plan the coach puts together, the players. So many times when a coach is fired, the overpaid players come away scott-free when it comes to the blame.

   Not to mention the overpaid General Managers and Assistant Coaches that always just hide their faces against the media firestorms the Head Coach gets blasted with. What happened to the team effort mentality, for instance you win as a team and lose as a team.

   It is not very often when a Coach is fired that you hear a player or top executive step up and say “Our Coach was fired because we did not execute his plan”. In truth, it takes a whole team to get a Head Coach fired and that is what we are never told.

   The guy doing the hiring and firing is definately not doing his job correctly which has caused a guy who is probably doing a good job to look as if he is lost. That seems to be the case in San Francisco, where they drafted QB Alex Smith with the first pick in the draft and topped that off with 4 Offensive Coordinators in 4 years.

   Not to take any blame off of Nolan, who never really appeared to have the 49ers where they wanted to be, but they are now a lot better than when Nolan took over the team. Now the job falls into the hands of former NFL Great Linebacker Mike Singletary who will get his first chance at being a Head Coach.

J.M.Saucedo