Beijing 2008

This is a political cartoon I’m working on which I’m going to be using for a couple articles on the upcoming Olympic Games.

 

On Astros and Fissures…

We knew that Kaz was an injury risk coming into this season, but my god – we live in a world of far too much information!

All that I needed to know about Kaz Matsui going on the disabled list is that he had surgery on his groin-area.  I did not need to know that he is out due to anal fissures that required surgery.  My god – that just sounds painful!  The simple concept of anal fissures is bad enough, but to think that they can get so bad that it requires surgery?  Ow! OW! OW!!!!

I guess that this means that we’ll start the season with Mark Loretta at second, so I have to figure that the batting order may change up a bit.  Perhaps now it will be:

1.  Michael Bourn
2. JR Towles
3. Lance Berkman
4. Miguel Tejada
5. Carlos Lee
6. Hunter Pence
7. Ty Wigginton
8. Mark Loretta

So, I moved Towles to #2, and put Loretta in at #8.  I’m not sure how married the Astros are to moving the catcher out of the 8-spot, but he’s definately got some pop in that bat.  I could see them wanting to keep him for late RBI help at the bottom of the lineup.  Loretta can get on base, so he may be the better candidate with Berkman, Tejada, Lee and Pence behind him and Bourn, but I’d like to see Towles get a chance to get us some quick offense.

The season is getting closer and my hopes remain low for this squad.  This remains the most relaxing preseason I can think of in recent memory for me as a fan.  Every negative is accepted and every positive is just a nice bonus!

 Go Rockets!!!!

What?  The Rockets are Rocking.  I’ll cheer for the Astros when the season starts.

I don’t care for pre-season Baseball

I don’t care for pre-season Baseball.  That’s how I know that I’m just a fan, and not a rabid fan.

As much as I enjoy Baseball, there are some aspects of the game which I have never been able to get into that seem to be the glass ceiling preventing me from being considered a “true” fan of the game.  Pre-season baseball is one, and stats are the other.

I am not against pre-season baseball, I just feel that it, like most other sport pre-seasons, goes on far too long.  I understand the need to evaluate talent, and to get a look at the prospects against current major leaguers to gauge their progress…I just don’t need to watch it.  Actually – watching it isn’t the issue: it is listening to it.  I spend far too much time in the car to have one of my sports talk radio options taken away for several hours to broadcast a meaningless game.

I’ll follow pre-season baseball…to a degree.  I’ll read the Chronicle reports on players and activities; but I don’t follow it on a daily basis.  When the season gets closer I’ll pay attention a bit more, but with the length of pre-season, that won’t be for a while.  A lot of my fellow Astros fans are paying close attention this pre-season like to point out that we’re a club of unfamiliar faces, and that they want to know what to expect when the season starts.  More power to them, but I’ll start learning on Opening Day!

 One thing I won’t be learning on opening day are Stats.  Not the mathematics behind statistics, I understand that quite well: it’s just the application to baseball which loses me.  Don’t get me wrong, I’ll follow Batting Average, ERA and Slugging Percentage over the course of the season; but I will not be able to cross-reference the number of home runs a player has hit on a Tuesday with their batting average in AA ball during away games in June.  I have never understood the appeal of such things.

I guess that I do understand how some can find number-crunching interesting.  Personally, I find forensic accounting to be fascinating…but knowing who hit the most triples under a full moon in August in domed stadiums?  Escapes me.

I do marvel at the fans who seem to have this inate ability to calculate and cross-reference statistics.  I look at fans talking on message boards, or I’ll be out at the sports pub listening to people comparing these numbers and it is just a wonder that they can keep everything straight in their own mind while still being able to formulate counter-arguments with contradictory stats.  It is amazing, but it is beyond me.

I’m more of a beer and a hot dog guy when it comes to baseball.

Nooooo!!!!!! (the Yao post)

We’ll return to our Hawkmanology shortly.  Got to address the big sports story in Houston first. 

Typical for our snake-bitten franchise.  Yao Ming – the best center in the game and the heart of this team, has gone on the shelf for the year.  Stress fracture in his foot.  Damn….

Picking up win #13 in a row was bittersweet.  I did like how everyone stepped up, particularly Dikembe Mutumbo.  Of course, ever the stoic man on the court, I couldn’t tell, but I think that he disagreed with that Technical Foul early in the game.

Basketball is the secondary issue here.  I truly hope that Yao takes all of the time he needs to fully recover from this injury.  If that means missing the playoffs, missing the Olympics or even missing training camp, then so be it.  The man has always done what has been asked of him and more, but he’s got to take better care of himself.  After the initial shock, addition of gray hairs and loss of years on my life upon hearing the news, I quickly put this one into perspective: a healthy Yao for the long-term is more important to Houston than selfishly yearning for him to press this injury in the short term.

Get better, Big Man – we’ll be patiently awaiting your return.

Rockets – step it up!  Win one for the Wall!!!

Rockets Make another trade…

This one I like. 

 The Rockets give up Kirk Snyder and a 2nd round pick for hometown kid, Gerald Green.  The guy has a bit of a surly reputation around the league, but I am of the opinion that he will find his place in this system.  That, coupled with coming home, will hopefully be a recipe for success.

I like Snyder, but he wasn’t a rotation guy, and he had no chance of becoming one.  I can at least see Green offering more to this team at this time.  Hopefully he can acclimate well and quickly so that he will be ready for the playoffs along with our other newcomer, Bobby Jackson.

I’m still not terribly happy about giving up Bonzi; and I just recently found out that we gave up the rights for that banger, Badiane, who we were developing at Center, so I’m just hoping that our two acquisitions will pay off.

Rockets Make a Trade…not sure how I feel about it, yet

OK, I get the financial/business reasons for the Rockets trade today which sent Bonzi Wells and Mike James to New Orleans for Bobby Jackson, Matt Haluska and a 2nd round pick (with Memphis somehow involved).  The Rockets get under the luxury tax threshold; they don’t risk Bonzi walking for nothing; and they pick up a solid backup Point Guard to help address last year’s problem of having to rely too heavily on Rafer in the post-season.

But beyond all of that, I can’t help but feel that the Rockets may have just made a mistake.  Yes, Bonzi has been inconsistant, but there have been many games where he was the only player on the floor to show any heart.  He seemed to be perfectly happy here in this system in the role asked of him; but of course we don’t know what was going on behind the scenes.  Maybe things in the Locker Room were not as happy as I was thinking.

Mike James just didn’t work out for us, so getting rid of that salary obligation was a good move.  I can’t help but think that James did not pan out because he felt somewhat slighted by not being given a larger role (possibly even the starting PG job) right off the bat and was instead asked to compete for it.  I know that at the beginning of the season, and all over the past summer, a lot of Rockets fans had Rafer Alston as the #3 PG on the roster behind James and Steve Francis; but Rafer outplayed them both, showed more heart and determination, and made the biggest effort to learn the system.  It became obvious early on, at least to me, that Rafer was by far and away the man for the PG job, and that the Francis and James signings were not going to pan out.  The emergence of the rookie, Aaron Brooks, sealed James’ trip out of town.

So why pick up another Point Guard?  Rafer is playing very well, and Brooks (our Point Guard of the future) is doing well for a rookie.  Bobby Jackson is a quality veteran presence who knows Adelman’s system; but I hope that people aren’t really thinking that he’s being brought in to start ahead of Alston.  A big problem I’ve seen with NBA fans is that they all too often rate players by their own preconceived notions rather than what they are currently doing: hence many fans thinking that Rafer is not a good PG; or that the Rockets are desperate for help at the Power Forward slot.  It is obvious to most Rockets fans that neither of those things are the case now, tho they seemed to be over the summer.  Jackson will not be brought in as a replacement for Alston, but rather to take some of the load off of him so that he is not worn down and relied upon too heavily in the playoffs.

My real concern in the above situation is that Brooks will see diminished playing time; but he is young and he’ll get his chances in the future.  Judging from what we’ve seen of him so far he’ll take this time to continue to improve his game and stand ready to contribute whenever he is needed.

Now, back to Bonzi – I can’t help but look at the trade like this: we just traded a pissed-off, slighted Bonzi Wells to a team whom we may very well be facing in the first round of these upcoming playoffs.  This one is going to bite us in the ass before the season is over.

Long run – this makes sense, but I’m not completely sold on it yet.  I truly hope that Bonzi and Mike James do very well with their new teams, as I am a fan of both players and will continue to be so.  I just hope, like I said, that we are not hurt too badly by this one in the near future.

 Well…time to see if we can win our 10th in a row with the chemistry shaken up.

Gearing up for Astros 2008!

You know what?  I’m actually looking forward to this upcoming baseball season now.   The big reason for that is that I am expecting little-to-nothing from my beloved Astros, so any success they have will be a pleasant surprise!  I’m looking forward to seeing how our new pieces mesh with the few remaining vets, and how the kids will step up this season.  We’ll have a very interesting lineup at the very least. 

 Our projected Batting Order:

1. Michael Bourn – CF
2. Kazuo Matsui – 2B
3. Miguel Tejada – SS
4. Lance Berkman – 1B
5. Carlos Lee – LF
6. Hunter Pence – RF
7. Ty Wigginton – 3B
8. J.R. Towles – C

It will be fun to see what Bourn, Pence and Towles will do in their first full seasons.  We already know that Pence has what it takes in the bigs, and Bourn and Towles have shown promise (especially that huge, 8 RBI game Towles had).  It is just too exciting that we may actually have an offensive presence in the 7 & 8 spots for the first time in years.

Now…our pitching.  Oy vey….this will be interesting, but in an entirely different way:

1. Roy Oswalt
2. Wandy Rodriguez
3. Brandon Backe
4. Woody Williams
5. Chris Sampson

That’s what I’m thinking that it will be.  Backe may move down a spot, and Felipe Paulino may creep in at #5; but for all intents and purposes, the above five are what I’m going with.  Beyond Oswalt, that staff inspires questions more than it does fear.  I like Wandy, but more as a #3 than a #2 at this point.  I think that he’ll have a fine season with some run support, tho.  Backe – I am a fan of this guy, but the big question is how will he do after being out for so long?  No doubt that he’s rested, but is he rusty; and how long will it take him to shake it off?  Woody – I am cheering for him, and I actually think that he is going to have a good season – not a great season, but one that will make people consider bringing him on the roster as a smart move.  As for Sampson – he’ll be a solid #5 – if he fails, that’s tolerable, but if he succeeds then it’s gravy.  Personally, after Oswalt I have the most faith in Sampson going into this season when considering the role being asked of him.

I don’t see a pennant in our 2008 future, but this team could definately play the role of the spoiler.  Whatever happens, I’m just going to enjoy this season for baseball totally free of expectations.

An athlete killed and the fate of General Butt Naked

Funny nickname.

Nothing funny about this guy. 

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/world/5473005.html

Liberia is just one of the many war-torn regions of modern Africa.  Their decades-long Civil War saw the deaths of approximately 250,000 people…and considering that this was a nation of only around 3 million people that number becomes more staggering.

Liberia, of course, started off as a colony founded by freed American slaves who wished to return to the land of their birth.   Most of those people never were able to go back to their original homes as many of them did not exist as before, and thus the colony was born.  Founded in 1847, the country has had anything but a tranquil existence.

One of the many characters found in this country’s sorrows is named Joshua Milton Blahyi.  He was a rebel leader – one of many – but what made him stand out from others was his penchant to lead his troops into battle wearing only his boots, earning him the nickname of “Gen. Butt Naked.”

Laugh at the nickname if you must, but it is a name associated with horror for many.  He has recently surrendered himself to the Liberian “Truth and Reconciliation Commission” which encourages those on all sides of this war to admit to what they’ve done so that the country can move forth.  Blahyi has admitted to him and his followers being responsible for 20,000 deaths.  His crimes do not end there, but you can read the rest in the link above.  After reading that it becomes hard to laugh at that name, doesn’t it?

I did mention the multiple areas of conflict in Africa.  A trendy source of “outrage” amongst people in this country is the situation in the Sudan.  I am not trying to trivialize that travesty, but it needs to be pointed out that violence in Africa exists outside of that region.  One of those regions produced a story which hit close to home for me today.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/sports/5472795.html

I remember Wesley Ngetich.  He was the talk of the 2006 Houston Marathon, which I participated in.  His finish was incredible – taking second place by just a few feet.  Originally he had been the #1 seeded runner in the Half-Marathon that day, but at the last minute he switched to the full race.  The fact that he finished so highly after not preparing for that race was nothing short of amazing.

He was no stranger to Marathons all across this country, and a week ago he was supposed to run in Phoenix, but he missed it due to the troubles in his home country of Kenya.  He couldn’t get a flight out, and during the time in which he was supposed to be gone, Wesley Ngetich was killed.  Shot in the chest with an arrow in what some are calling fallout from election chaos, and others are calling a revenge killing in which he may have been an innocent bystander.

David Cheruiyot, the winner of this year’s Houston Marathon as well as last years in which he staved off the furious rally from the now-deceased Wesley Ngetich had commented on the tribal violence sweeping his country not even two weeks ago, prior to his Houston Marathon win.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/sports/5448560.html

I remember reading this story when it came out and it didn’t resonate that much with me.  Now it’s words are haunting in their prescience.

Next Year…a.k.a. – the Houston Rockets Motto

Is there a more disappointing team in the NBA this season than my beloved Houston Rockets?

We came in with a team which won 52 games and went 7 games in a tough first-round playoff matchup.  By the end of that our guys were tired and couldn’t keep up…so in the offseason they added depth to what was considered to be a very good, but shallow team.

What happened?

Steve Francis, Mike James, Luthor Head…none have particulary stepped up this season.  Bonzi has been inconsistant.  McGrady has been hurt.  Battier is having an off year.  Yao can’t do it alone.

We’ve had our bright spots: specifically the fantastic play of rookies, Aaron Brooks and Luis Scola.  Brooks spent time in the NBDL this season and wasn’t expected to get much time.  He has proven that he deserves more minutes in his play.  Scola has shown that he acclimated to the NBA game much quicker than anyone expected. but he is still prone to silly fouls.  That will be remedied by seasoning and experience.  In his few appearances, Carl Landry has shown why he is the coaching staff darling.  The kid needs to see more time.

Of our veterans, the oft-maligned Rafer Alston has picked up the Adelman system better than any other guard, but once again we’re asking too many minutes of him.  Chuck Hayes continues to be one of the most underrated players in the game, but at this point we have to start thinking about giving more time to Luis Scola.  This is not a knock on Hayes, but rather recognition that Scola is our future at that spot.

Yao, of course, is Yao.

 So, where does the team go from here?  There are rumors that McGrady wants out of town, but count me amongst the possible gullible types who aren’t buying that.  He will never find a city where he’ll be treated with such kid gloves by media and fans as he finds here.  Some may be frustrated with him, but they will always accept him.  If he does want to go; however, then I won’t be too upset or feel betrayed in any way.  We’ve given this Yao-McGrady combo several years, and if he wants a change then I think that the Rockets should accomodate him, but only if we get back something of value.  I know that it is difficult for a team to get true value for a superstar (if he’s still considered that), but I see no reason to believe that we’ll get lowballed for McGrady.

Personally, I’d like to see him stay here so that he and Yao can finish what they started; but, if they decide to make a change then I’d only rank McGrady as #5 on the list of Rockets that I would consider “untradable.” 

This is how I see the Rockets in terms of being “untradable:”

1. Yao Ming – you do not trade a big man of his talent who brings so much to the team and city, on and off the court.
2. Luis Scola – this guy is the real deal.  He’s a taller Manu Ginobli with tremendous upside.
3. Aaron Brooks – He is our point guard of the future, and he can actually get the ball in to Yao, which is apparantly difficult at times for other players.
4. Shane Battier – I know that he’s having an off year, but I would not trade Mr. Glue for anything short of an absolute blockbuster.
5. Tracy McGrady  – it is time for him to step up, tho.

 I know that I have taken the best possible trading pieces off of the board, but I am of the belief that this team, despite underperforming now, is still capable of greatness; and that they should not change just for the sake of change.  I don’t want to see us give up anything of value for a half-year rental (and unpredictable headcase) like Ron Artest; and I don’t think that bringing in a point guard is the best idea, seeing as how Alston is playing reasonably well and Brooks is progressing nicely.

That said, I wouldn’t mind seeing Sam-I-Am back to finish his career where he started it.  Hell, adding him could be good just to try to light the fire of competition in McGrady, who seems to lack it at times.  He would also provide enough of an offensive punch to allow guys like Battier to get back on track by concentrating on defense.

Whatever happens, one thing is certain: it is going to be a long second half of the season in Houston…

The Astros Off-season gets better and better!

Lovely.

 So now Congress is asking for an investigation into whether or not hasn’t-played-a-game-in-an-Astros-Uniform-yet Short-stop, Miguel Tejada, lied to a federal investigator during the investigation into Raphael “I never used steroids” Palmeiro.  What does this mean?  If he’s found guilty he can be charged with filing false statements with a Federal Prosecutor…which is a felony.

OK – we all know that the jackasses in Congress are just doing this because this is an election year and a lot of them need those wonderful, fist-shaking soundbites to show their constituancy that they aren’t just up there taking bribes and jerking each other off all day…but Federal Prosecutors – they don’t fool around.  If they attack, it is usually because they have the scent of blood.  You can call into question their motives for the selection of their targets, but once they decide to attack they usually do not stop until they get the throat and hang on til the fight is done.

Bottom line: what free agent short-stops are available?  I’m getting a bad feeling that we’re about to really, really miss Adam Everett.  He may not have had a bat, but at least we didn’t have to worry about Federal Prosecutors coming after him.

This whole steroids thing is kind of a joke.  I do not deny that it is a horrible health concern (mostly for kids), and as we’re seeing with the hip-hop crackdown, it’s not limited to the world of sports…but lets face it: no one is going to actually do a damned thing about it.  Congressmen Waxman and Davis?  Yeah – soundbites, make a good show, garner public support, and then when people aren’t paying attention…………forget all about it until they need it again to look good in the eyes of their voters.

Yes, I realize that I may sound jaded, but in this case I think that I am right.  Everyone is talking about how awful steroids are; but why bother with the hard work and sacrifice to do something about it when they get just as many bonus points for talking and doing nothing?

This will be all the rage for a couple months and then it will go away again.  It will leave the steps of Congress and be relegated to the sports section of the paper again by Opening Day in April.  We’ll all show our righteous indignation against these superstar athletes, and no one will do a damned thing about trying to prevent the usage of steroids (which has become a “Coke” term for performance enhancers) in college, in high school or in any walk of life outside of the professional ballparks and fields.  It’s kind of hard to take it seriously when you think of it like that.

For the Astros…well, nice job on that trade, Ed Wade!  Way to trade for a guy rumored to be up to his backne in steroid rumors the day before the freaking Mitchell Report hit.  I don’t buy for a moment the claims from Ed and Uncle Drayton that “we had no idea that Tejada would be mentioned.”  Not for a moment.

Oh well…this must be how the Falcons felt after giving us Schaub right before Mike Vick turned out to be Cujo’s worst nightmare.