Octoberfest

We are about to enter the greatest sports month we have all year. MLB postseason, NFL, college football, NBA and even NHL (assuming the lockout ends) all going on at the same time! The MLB postseason really intrigues me this year because there really isnt a clear favorite to win it all. With what the Cardinals and Giants did the last 2 years Im expecting the unexpected, if thats actually possible. There are so many new teams in it this year that I have been waiting for them to collapse but it just hasnt happened. Who would have thought that the Nationals, Reds, Orioles and A's all have a legitimate shot to make the World Series? Im not a betting man but if I was it would be hard for me to bet on a scenario that wasnt Yankees/Rangers and Giants/Cardinals in their respective Championship Series. Those teams have the experience and the loaded rosters. But hopefully one of the other 4 teams wins it all because I think it would be great for baseball. In the NFL we are going to start to see in the next month which teams are for real and which arent. Its been a crazy start to the season, but still a little too early to decifer that. The regular refs are going to be back which everyone will be happy about. We'll see if the Saints can actually win a game and if the Cardinals are going to stay hot. Hopefully there wont be too many more season ending injuries to star players or key injuries at all for that matter. The race for Rookie of the Year will be a good one assuming that RG3 and Luck are the two top dogs. I feel like they are off to a good start for what they have. Neither team has a lot of talent, but the pair seems to look pretty comfortable already running the offense and being the leaders. The more the season goes on the better they are going to get and hopefully they can win some games. I dont think Luck has any chance to make the playoffs but RG3 and the Skins definitely have a shot. Im probably the most excited for college football, mainly because the season is so intense and that every game is huge and one loss can ruin your National Championship hopes. Im pleased so far with how the Ducks have played, but there is still a lot of room for improvement. The Pac-12 is a lot better than everyone thought and our schedule is definitely not easy anymore. We've got to stop turning the ball over especially when we start playing better teams that WILL take advantage of them unlike Arizona. The offense in general though, is looking good and we have to keep doing what we do best. As long as our lineman and recievers stay on their blocks and we get the ball to DAT and Kenjon in space we are cash money. Im still wating for a receiver to step up. We dont really have a go to guy. We have a good amount of guys that can make plays but when we get into those 3rd and 7/8's we need someone to step up and make that catch every time. Its been awesome to see our defense play huge so far especially with losing Boyett. Guys have been flying around and making plays with people like Clay and Kiko really stepping up. It does help that we have the best defensive coordinator who when he sees something he doesnt like he can immediately make the right adjustment. Its an exciting year to be a Duck and hopefully we can put it all together and make a run for the Natty! The Blazers might not have a great year again but this team is going to be exciting thats for sure. With a new coach (FINALLY!) and the PG of our future, we're back to being a very young and raw team. We had a very good offseason and Im excited about the new players we have. Between Lillard, Leonard, Barton and Freeland we definitely are young and are going to run a lot. Im also looking forward to a full season of Hickson and Aldridge in the frontcourt together. They had some good chemistry going last year before Lamarcus got hurt. Rebounding is going to be more important than ever this year without a true center so those 2 have got to play big. With Batum getting that huge contract he has to step in to that #2 scoring roll. He has the talent to do it so hopefully with this new offense that Stotts is going to bring Nic can get a lot of good looks. I kinda have a feeling though that Lillard is gonna be our second leading scorer this year. He is going have field days against some of the older guards in the league and is going to be a fastbreak machine. I think right off the bat when we host LA on Halloween he is going to run circles around Nash. Now defensively however, Nash is for sure gonna get his still but as athletic as Lillard is I think he will do fine defensively. October, here we come!!!

FAIL MARY

What the whole nation witnessed last night was utter horror. Not even just the last play, but the entire game. Im pretty sure everyone is getting sick of the replacement refs, especially the Packers. That game was one of the worst officiated games in sports history. Both teams were getting called for ridiculous penalties. The "Fail Mary" as Im calling it, wasn't actually the worst call of the game but it is the call that has the entire fanhood of the NFL wondering just how much longer these refs are going to be calling games. Now if you know me, you know that I do not root for the Packers or the Seahawks, but I am a realist. I was hearing a lot of Seahawk fans today calling in to Canzano's show complaining about how nobody is giving the Seahawks any credit for how well they played and blah blah blah. First of all, their offense was terrible. Green Bay does not have an elite defense and still Seattle couldnt put points on the board. 257 total yards isnt anything to brag about and if the refs would have gotten the call correct they would have still only had 7 points. Second, I will give Seattle some credit for their pass rush but lets be honest, Green Bay's offensive line is straight garbage. Portland State probably could have gotten 8 sacks on them. Rodgers still completed 66% of his passes even though he couldnt get them in the endzone either. That game was about as entertaining as the terrible Alabama LSU championship game last year. Another thing that got under my skin was how annoying Pete Carroll and Golden Tate were in their interviews after the game. They are full of crap and unrealistic. Im not suggesting that they come out and say, "oh yeah it was the wrong call we got lucky" but to say that it was a "good call" and for Tate to say he didnt push off and that he caught the ball was a blatent lie. Clearly, Jennings had both hands on the ball and Tate had only one of his hands touching the ball, which obviously isnt possesion. Im really not trying to sit here and bash on the Seahawks but what happened last night just makes me sick. Hopefully we can get the regular refs back asap, even though they are not perfect, at least there wont be games blown by an obvious call like that. I mean, the refs that were in the endzone didnt even colaberate for a second the side judge immediately threw his hands up and signaled touchdown. In every close call whether it has to do with a receiver getting his feet in bounds, or whether or not a ball was trapped on a catch you always see the refs come together and ask each other what the other saw. Thats the best way to get the call right. One ref cant see every angle of every play. The season is still young, so im praying that the NFL and the regular refs can come to a settlement soon so it can at least make us fans feel better that they are going to get "most" of the calls right. And lets be honest, refs are refs so they are going to get booed anyway!

Blazers

Im getting very curious about what the Blazers front end office is going to do this offseason. Are we even gonna hire a GM or what? I think there are a couple must do's. Batum and Hickson need to be signed. Batum is so versitale because he can play and guard multiple postitions, he is great in the open court and he can create his shot when he needs too. He's only 23 years old too so he hasn't even reached his prime yet. Hickson is a freakin horse. We've needed a player like this for awhile. No offense to LA, (because they are different players) Hickson can take the ball to the rack hard and finish. He will straight shit on you (Ala DeAndre Jordan). Not to mention he can hit jumpers and play pretty good D. I don't want Crawford to leave, but I think him and Felton will go so we can have some cap room to sign a better PG. Don't forget about the good draft picks we are going to have. The Blazers don't look like they are going to make the playoffs so the chances of 2 lottery picks could look good. Even though I don't want to admit it, the Blazers probably need a couple rebuilding years unless we somehow get a superstar alongside Aldridge. There is no better way to do that then drafting a couple solid young players and developing them. We also need a coach. My guess is we will end up signing an assistant from some other team that I've never heard of. Caleb Kanales is doing ok and I think the players like him but Im not sure if he's ready for a full season of it yet. We need someone who is defensive minded because thats when I think we are at our best. When we started off this season so hot I think we were in the top 3 in defensive PPG. If we can get out in transition with guys like Batum, Hickson and LA we are a pretty good team. Defense always leads to offense. The Blazers of lately have had trouble scoring the ball in the half court offense so any help we can get in the transition game is a plus. One guy who has surprised me lately has been Babbitt. He is starting to play with some confidence and he can seriously shoot the ball. He's got good size too so hopefully he keeps getting better if he is going to be getting minutes. His defense is skeptical but what the hell, you can't expect every player to be good on both sides of the ball. All in all I just hope the Blazers don't do anything stupid because we are bound to get some good luck soon right???? RIPCITY!!

Masters: Peter Hanson??

Ill be honest, I had no idea who Peter Hanson was until today. This is what I love about the Masters. Every year there is a newcomer that not alot of people know about who makes a good run. This year the 34 year old Swede is that guy. Playing in only his 18th major, his 9 under score after 54 holes is pretty impressive, especially with the talent close behind him. Will he win? Maybe, but I doubt it. With Phil right on his tail and other great players such as Bubba Watson, Matt Kuchar, Padraig Harrington and even Lee Westwood, Im not sure if Hanson can outlast them. It all is going to come down to who has the hot hand. You can make up 4 or 5 strokes in just a few holes. I think Phil will end up winning because he is playing with tons of confidence and he can smell that 4th jacket which would tie him with Tiger and Arnold Palmer. Phil also has the crowd with him which can add some momentum to his game. Also, think about the lead he could have if he didnt have such an awful first round! Tiger however, is playing absolutely terrible. Like Charles Barkley "turrable". In fact, Sir Charles might as well finish tomorrows round for Tiger, who is 12 shots back and barring a miracle is one ball in the water away from snapping a club in half. I thought it was very childish of Tiger to be throwing clubs and kicking them after poor shots. I mean come on man you still make hundreds of millions of dollars and yet instead of maybe cursing under your breath, you throw a temper tantrum on national television. I had very high expectations coming into this tournament for Tiger after winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Then again, I always have high expectations for him because I know that at his best, he is still the best in the game. He's having a very hard time proving that though and we'll see what direction he starts heading after the Masters.

Blazers

Great win tonight on the road for us in Dallas! Aldridge did his thing including a buzzer beater and Felton dropped 30. No thats not a misprint Felton had 30! Which brings me to my question to all Blazer fans, do we keep him or do we can him? Im not just saying this because of his game tonight but if we cant get an obvious upgrade (which I dont think we will get the opportunity) we HAVE to keep him. This has been his worst statistical season of his career. Top that with him not getting along with Nate and I say there is no way he has a repeat of this terrible season. With no lockout to deal with he has no excuses about working out and I truly believe he will be back to form next year. Obviously we would love to get Deron Williams, but we have to be realistic. The chances of that are slim. With the possible great draft picks we have coming to us we should be able to get a good front court player and a good guard. This draft is going to be pretty deep and with the way things are looking we have a good chance to have 2 lottery picks. Now dont get me wrong I do want to make the playoffs. Especially if we can get a first round matchup with San Antonio. If that happens I do believe we can get out of the first round. If we get matched up with the Thunder, that might be a different story. As much as I dislike them, and question their style of basketball they continue to win games. I give them no shot to win a title but they definitely could get to the championship. For the Blazers Im hoping we finish the season strong, but regardless on if we make the playoffs or not I just hope that management is smart with these picks we have, and in my opinion I think we should keep them and draft 2 quality players instead of trading picks for veterans. Its time we build through the draft and develop these young players. I dont care if it takes 10 years I want the Blazers to bring a championship back to Portland. We deserve it! #Ripcity

First blog ever so lets give it a try. I live and breathe for sports. I really dont know what I would do without them. Enough about me, Im just gonna get right into it. First of all I'm so glad its baseball season again. Like I said, I love all sports but baseball is my favorite. I think this year is going to be an awesome year. So many great storylines. Manny Ramirez is back. Not sure how well he will perform but I applaud Billy Bean for this signing. Yes he has to sit out the first 50 games, but they only had to pay 500,000 grrr (as Rome would say) for him. Thats a steal. The risk/reward factor is perfect. If Manny comes out and just lays eggs everywhere, oh well. 500,000 grrr is nothing to an MLB team. But if Manny comes out and hits even 15 or 20 bombs with 50, 60 RBI's, Bean looks like a genius. I think Manny still has a little something left in the tank I just dont think Oakland is going to be able to compete with the Angels or the Rangers in that division. They've got a couple nice players in Coco Crisp, Jonny Gomes and hopefully Yoenis Cespedes can live up to the hype but all in all I see a sub par 500 team here. We all though should be looking forward to see Manny being Manny! Ozzie Guillen goes to the new and improved Miami Marlins. Im very excited for this. Ozzie is arguably the most entertaining manager along with Lou Piniella. He joins the Marlins as they have a new stadium along with a new star player in Jose Reyes. If Hanley Ramirez can play a solid third base they might have the best left side of the infield in the MLB, offensively and defensively. Also, its about time that the Marlins finally start getting some people to come to their games. Their attendance in previous years has been outright pitiful. Im talking like less than a state HS girls basketball championship game. The Marlins also added the controversial Carlos Zambrano from my Chicago Cubs (I was glad to see him go). Him and Ozzie are going to make a great pair. As long as they take their anger management classes they should be fine (joke!). But seriously, Ive got an over/under of 18 games that Ozzie gets toss and Im taking the over. What do you think? With Albert Puljos gone from the Cards and on to the Angels Im interested in seeing how these 2 teams will do. I feel like the last few years the Angels have had very high expectations, but havent really amounted to much. This year their roster is stacked, pitching and hitting. They should win the division and I would think could make a deep run in the playoffs. Will they? Only time will tell. The Cardinals however I think are in a good position. Yes, they lost their Mr. Everything, but if they have a terrible season can't they just blame Puljos? I think, however, that they are going to have a good year. In a semi-weak division they don't really have a best player but up and down their lineup is still pretty damn good. Furcal is still a solid leadoff/shortstop, the middle of the lineup has Holliday, Berkman, Freese and even Yadier Molina is a solid option at catcher. Oh yeah and I forgot to mention they still have Chris Carpenter who when healthy is one of the best pitchers in the league. Not sure yet if it will be a surprise or not but I expect to see the Cards past the first round of the playoffs. Last but not least, for now, can my Cubbies finally make the playoffs? Probably not, but I really feel like we do have a good roster. As depressing as they have been for the last 103 years, we do have some good young talent mixed with some veterans. Starlin Castro has quickly become a name people know and OSU star Darwin Barney isnt too shabby himself. Both young studs hit around .300 (Castro was at .307) last year and even though Castro had way too many errors last year they make a good up the middle combo. What sucks for the Cubs is that we dont have consistency anywhere. With the lineup we have, scoring runs should not be a problem, but when we do score it seems like our pitching goes to crap. Hopefully Kerry Wood and Carlos Marmol can have solid years out of the bullpen and also Im waiting for Randy Wells to have a breakout year. With being in a pretty competitive division the Cubs are gonna need at least 85 to 90 wins to have a chance at the playoffs. If you're a big baseball fan like I am, we're hoping for a healthy and exciting season with plenty of late game drama and nail biting playoff races. Maybe someone will hit 60 home runs or get to 30 wins. Im also hoping for a couple perfect games and even some bench clearing brawls. Most importantly, go Cubs and booooooo Yanks (yes I am a Yankee hater).