Spmusic Mondays: I Got That Right Temperature ...
(1 Cent): On Second Thought, Vegas Here I Come!
So far, my picks from the MLB playoffs look pretty good. I chose the Detroit Tigers over the A's in 7 games, but it only took 4 ... and I chose the Mets in 6 and at the moment, the series is tied at 2-2.
In last Monday's column I asked someone to "wake up Frank Thomas and tell him it's not 1995 anymore" because he had 2 home runs in Game 1 of the first round and batted .500 in the three games. (Note: I finally feel cool because I was able to quote myself ... good times). Well, someone must have taken my advice because "The Big Hurt" went 0 for 13 with 4 strikeouts for the ALCS. Now that's the Thomas we all know and love! The A's finally showed the offense they were capable of by batting .221 as a team ... but didn't show the pitching they thought they had in having a team ERA of 5.71. That earns a firing of the manager (no, really, he was let go today). Meanwhile, the Tigers are steamrolling through the playoffs and don't look like they're going to slow down. For their sake, I hope the week plus with no games doesn't thwart their momentum.
For the New York Mets and St. Louis Cardinals series, I figured it would be pretty even, but in the end the Mets would out last the Cards because of their bullpen depth and their many bats. I think we're starting to see a glimpse of that, pointing back to Game 4, where the Mets folded the Cards 12-5. While the Cards have Pujols (who's been suprisingly quite, going only 4 for 14) and Edmonds (who has 2 home runs in the series), the Mets have Reyes, Beltran, Delgado, and Wright. Just too much Mets.
I'm still sticking to my Mets in 6 prediction, which would have them against the Detroit Tigers in the World Series. Since the WS might start before next Monday, I'm going to diss the Cards and already make my prediction:
World Series
Detroit Tigers over New York Mets in Game 7
Reason: I've not watched the Tigers play all season, but have watched all their playoff games. They just seemed destined for the crown ... they have a solid pitching staff, solid bullpen, a quality closer, good defense, great offense and timely hitting. Plus, I think the time off will help them more than hurt.
(2 Cent): Old Schoo, Foo
My appologies to ax9 ... he informed me that he wanted to know some really, really old school Hip Hop CD's (1995 and earlier). Although I stand (sit?) by my Ma$e pick for my personal favorite old school CD, I made a list of some essential Hip Hop & Rap CD's that either pioneered what Hip Hop is or that changed the game into what it is today. Enjoy!
-- The Sugarhill Gang: Sugarhill Gang (1979)
-- Kurtis Blow: Kurtis Blow (1980)
-- Run-DMC: Run-DMC (1984)
-- Beastie Boys: Licensed To Ill (1986)
-- Eric B. & Rakim: Paid In Full (1987)
-- Naughty By Nature: Naughty By Nature (1991)
-- Public Enemy: It Takes A Nations Of Millions To Hold Us Back (1988)
-- Too $hort: Life Is ... Too $hort (1989)
-- Dr. Dre: The Chronic (1992)
-- Ice Cube: The Predator (1992)
-- Snoop Dogg: Doggystyle (1993)
-- Wu Tang Clan: Enter The Wu Tang (36 Chambers) (1993)
-- The Notorious B.I.G.: Ready To Die (1994)
-- NaS: Illmatic (1994)
-- Warren G: Regulate ... G Funk Era (1994)
-- OutKast: Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik (1994)
-- 2Pac: Me Against The World (1995)
-- LL Cool J: All World: Greatest Hits (1996) **Songs from 1985-1996**
Again, there are probably some artists or albums that are not on this list, but this should get your early Hip Hop foundation started.
(1/2 Cent): And The Verdict Is ...
My softball playoff game was rained out again last Monday and was played the following day, on Tuesday the 10th. We were up against a team that was in our regular season schedule, whom we went 1-1 against, with them winning the latest game. It was a crazy game, in that our bats seemed to be working and we went up pretty quickly. It looked like destiny.
My favorite story line of the game went a little something like this: my first time up (I was the lead off hitter) I drew a walk ... because that's what lead off hitters do -- work the count, get on so you can score. Okay, saying "drew a walk" is a little nice -- the pitcher was all over the place. During this time, I hear a fan from the other team yell out, "He doesn't want to hit." So, the next time up, the same fan yells out, "Make him a hitter! He doesn't want to hit!" Even the catcher chimes in with, "You're gonna get out." (Note: Ahh, my favorite part of sports ... talking trash ... just makes sports even better). Bases were loaded, and I ask him, "You wanna bet on that?" He just looks up at me. I stare him down and tell him, "I'm not getting out." The pitcher lobs the first pitch and I smack the crap out of it ... the ball looks like it's coming down, but the left field keeps running, keeps running, turns around ... still over his head and off the fence. I barely miss the grand salami! With only one out, no one on base ran ... and it only ended up being a one RBI single. That sucked. I mean, it was a good hit, but since we only had one RBI from it, I was kind of disappointed. My third time up, I looked down and smiled at the catcher and said, "So, you want to make another bet?" He sheepishly smiled back and replied, "Uh, no." I responded, "Good call." I ended up with just a single after that.
Back to the actual game ... we went up pretty quickly on this team and scored 12 runs to their 4. Then, a very bad inning happened where our outfielders forgot how to run, catch, and throw, and they put up 7 runs. With the score 12-11, we ended up putting one more insurance run. While they were at bat, time expired and we advanced to the championship game!
We actually played again that night to face the only team that had beaten us in the playoffs. Our task now was to beat them twice for the championship. Long story short, we had an even bigger let down defensively (meaning, people that usually didn't make errors made them) and we couldn't hit our way out of a wet bag made of tissue paper. I ended up going 3 for 4 but had never reached second base (i.e. no one could hit). We ended up losing 10-4 and that was the season.
We did end up with a pretty big 2nd place trophy and a shirt, so it wasn't all for nothing. I was actually proud of our little team ... the team that I had basically written off after losing the first game. It was good times ... made a friend or two ... yada-yada-yada. So, for the last time ever ... Gooo Wannabees!
Wannabees End of Playoff Record: (3-2) ... Last Game: Championship - L, 10-4
Wannabees Overall Record (Regular Season + Playoffs): (7-5)
HCP Last Game Day Stats (Including Championship): G = 2, AB = 7, R = 2, H = 5, RBI = 1, BB = 1, BA = .714
HCP End of Playoff Stats: G = 5, AB = 15, R = 7, H = 10, 2B = 2, RBI = 7, BB = 4, BA = .667
HCP End of Regular Season Stats: G = 7, AB = 20, R = 5, H = 14, 2B = 2, RBI = 5, BB = 1, SF = 1, BA = .700
HCP Overall Stats (Regular Season + Playoffs): G = 12, AB = 35, R = 12, H = 24, 2B = 4, RBI = 12, BB = 5, SF = 1, BA = .686
Sorry if you weren't able to read this earlier today ... my Internet was down from a storm. Make sure to write all your comments and questions to HCP2007@gmail.com or click the Comments link below. Thanks to all who have done so!
HCP
So far, my picks from the MLB playoffs look pretty good. I chose the Detroit Tigers over the A's in 7 games, but it only took 4 ... and I chose the Mets in 6 and at the moment, the series is tied at 2-2.
In last Monday's column I asked someone to "wake up Frank Thomas and tell him it's not 1995 anymore" because he had 2 home runs in Game 1 of the first round and batted .500 in the three games. (Note: I finally feel cool because I was able to quote myself ... good times). Well, someone must have taken my advice because "The Big Hurt" went 0 for 13 with 4 strikeouts for the ALCS. Now that's the Thomas we all know and love! The A's finally showed the offense they were capable of by batting .221 as a team ... but didn't show the pitching they thought they had in having a team ERA of 5.71. That earns a firing of the manager (no, really, he was let go today). Meanwhile, the Tigers are steamrolling through the playoffs and don't look like they're going to slow down. For their sake, I hope the week plus with no games doesn't thwart their momentum.
For the New York Mets and St. Louis Cardinals series, I figured it would be pretty even, but in the end the Mets would out last the Cards because of their bullpen depth and their many bats. I think we're starting to see a glimpse of that, pointing back to Game 4, where the Mets folded the Cards 12-5. While the Cards have Pujols (who's been suprisingly quite, going only 4 for 14) and Edmonds (who has 2 home runs in the series), the Mets have Reyes, Beltran, Delgado, and Wright. Just too much Mets.
I'm still sticking to my Mets in 6 prediction, which would have them against the Detroit Tigers in the World Series. Since the WS might start before next Monday, I'm going to diss the Cards and already make my prediction:
World Series
Detroit Tigers over New York Mets in Game 7
Reason: I've not watched the Tigers play all season, but have watched all their playoff games. They just seemed destined for the crown ... they have a solid pitching staff, solid bullpen, a quality closer, good defense, great offense and timely hitting. Plus, I think the time off will help them more than hurt.
(2 Cent): Old Schoo, Foo
My appologies to ax9 ... he informed me that he wanted to know some really, really old school Hip Hop CD's (1995 and earlier). Although I stand (sit?) by my Ma$e pick for my personal favorite old school CD, I made a list of some essential Hip Hop & Rap CD's that either pioneered what Hip Hop is or that changed the game into what it is today. Enjoy!
-- The Sugarhill Gang: Sugarhill Gang (1979)
-- Kurtis Blow: Kurtis Blow (1980)
-- Run-DMC: Run-DMC (1984)
-- Beastie Boys: Licensed To Ill (1986)
-- Eric B. & Rakim: Paid In Full (1987)
-- Naughty By Nature: Naughty By Nature (1991)
-- Public Enemy: It Takes A Nations Of Millions To Hold Us Back (1988)
-- Too $hort: Life Is ... Too $hort (1989)
-- Dr. Dre: The Chronic (1992)
-- Ice Cube: The Predator (1992)
-- Snoop Dogg: Doggystyle (1993)
-- Wu Tang Clan: Enter The Wu Tang (36 Chambers) (1993)
-- The Notorious B.I.G.: Ready To Die (1994)
-- NaS: Illmatic (1994)
-- Warren G: Regulate ... G Funk Era (1994)
-- OutKast: Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik (1994)
-- 2Pac: Me Against The World (1995)
-- LL Cool J: All World: Greatest Hits (1996) **Songs from 1985-1996**
Again, there are probably some artists or albums that are not on this list, but this should get your early Hip Hop foundation started.
(1/2 Cent): And The Verdict Is ...
My softball playoff game was rained out again last Monday and was played the following day, on Tuesday the 10th. We were up against a team that was in our regular season schedule, whom we went 1-1 against, with them winning the latest game. It was a crazy game, in that our bats seemed to be working and we went up pretty quickly. It looked like destiny.
My favorite story line of the game went a little something like this: my first time up (I was the lead off hitter) I drew a walk ... because that's what lead off hitters do -- work the count, get on so you can score. Okay, saying "drew a walk" is a little nice -- the pitcher was all over the place. During this time, I hear a fan from the other team yell out, "He doesn't want to hit." So, the next time up, the same fan yells out, "Make him a hitter! He doesn't want to hit!" Even the catcher chimes in with, "You're gonna get out." (Note: Ahh, my favorite part of sports ... talking trash ... just makes sports even better). Bases were loaded, and I ask him, "You wanna bet on that?" He just looks up at me. I stare him down and tell him, "I'm not getting out." The pitcher lobs the first pitch and I smack the crap out of it ... the ball looks like it's coming down, but the left field keeps running, keeps running, turns around ... still over his head and off the fence. I barely miss the grand salami! With only one out, no one on base ran ... and it only ended up being a one RBI single. That sucked. I mean, it was a good hit, but since we only had one RBI from it, I was kind of disappointed. My third time up, I looked down and smiled at the catcher and said, "So, you want to make another bet?" He sheepishly smiled back and replied, "Uh, no." I responded, "Good call." I ended up with just a single after that.
Back to the actual game ... we went up pretty quickly on this team and scored 12 runs to their 4. Then, a very bad inning happened where our outfielders forgot how to run, catch, and throw, and they put up 7 runs. With the score 12-11, we ended up putting one more insurance run. While they were at bat, time expired and we advanced to the championship game!
We actually played again that night to face the only team that had beaten us in the playoffs. Our task now was to beat them twice for the championship. Long story short, we had an even bigger let down defensively (meaning, people that usually didn't make errors made them) and we couldn't hit our way out of a wet bag made of tissue paper. I ended up going 3 for 4 but had never reached second base (i.e. no one could hit). We ended up losing 10-4 and that was the season.
We did end up with a pretty big 2nd place trophy and a shirt, so it wasn't all for nothing. I was actually proud of our little team ... the team that I had basically written off after losing the first game. It was good times ... made a friend or two ... yada-yada-yada. So, for the last time ever ... Gooo Wannabees!
Wannabees End of Playoff Record: (3-2) ... Last Game: Championship - L, 10-4
Wannabees Overall Record (Regular Season + Playoffs): (7-5)
HCP Last Game Day Stats (Including Championship): G = 2, AB = 7, R = 2, H = 5, RBI = 1, BB = 1, BA = .714
HCP End of Playoff Stats: G = 5, AB = 15, R = 7, H = 10, 2B = 2, RBI = 7, BB = 4, BA = .667
HCP End of Regular Season Stats: G = 7, AB = 20, R = 5, H = 14, 2B = 2, RBI = 5, BB = 1, SF = 1, BA = .700
HCP Overall Stats (Regular Season + Playoffs): G = 12, AB = 35, R = 12, H = 24, 2B = 4, RBI = 12, BB = 5, SF = 1, BA = .686
Sorry if you weren't able to read this earlier today ... my Internet was down from a storm. Make sure to write all your comments and questions to HCP2007@gmail.com or click the Comments link below. Thanks to all who have done so!
HCP
posted by HCP @ 10:13 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home