Thursday, Nov. 12 2009 @ 2:42PM
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| Here we see Steve Austin training for the next Olympic games. But will he be allowed to compete? |
There's an
outstanding article over at Gizmodo right now everyone, and I do mean everyone, should read. It's an article by
Aimee Mullins, whose name you may not be all that familiar with,
but you should be. She's an athlete slash model slash public speaker slash writer who also just happens to have two prosthetic legs, and therein lies the focus of the article in question.
Friday, Aug. 14 2009 @ 1:21PM
Hey there, everybody! I know I haven't done one of these in a while, since it didn't seem to be all that popular a feature,
but with all the talk recently of Topps' and MLB's exclusive deal and what it may mean to the future of the card collecting industry, I thought now might be a good time to dust the old girl off.
Friday, Aug. 14 2009 @ 12:58PM
Okay, so it looks like
Juan Encarnacion isn't
running for a Senate seat in the Dominican Republic.
So here's where I fall on my sword and apologize for getting the story wrong. I am, in fact, sorry, but I'm actually much more confused by this. I certainly wasn't expecting
the whole thing to be a fabrication. Oh, well. I do truly apologize for the error.
In addition to confusion, I must also admit to a bit of disappointment. Charity work is all well and good, but I was really hoping to get a chance to follow election coverage in a language I don't actually understand this autumn. Sigh.
Well, Mr. Encarnacion, if you ever decide you do wish to run for the Dominican Senate, you can certainly count on my vote. I mean, you could, if I lived in the DR. Which I don't. So maybe that's not as meaningful a gesture as I had planned. How about this: if you ever decide to run for the Senate, I promise to write about it. Hell, I wrote about your political career when it was fake; just think how big a story it'll be when it's true.
Thursday, Jul. 16 2009 @ 1:46PM
So apparently we can all blame
Barack Obama for the crappy non-tribute to Stan the Man. Due to
the increased scheduling pressure Obama's appearance to throw out the first pitch put on everyone, it simply wasn't possible to fit in anything better for Musial.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again, folks. Democracy simply does not work.
Tuesday, Jul. 14 2009 @ 10:14AM
All right, I'll admit it. In spite of
my disdain for the Home Run Derby, I was on the edge of my seat last night when Albert had to win a hit-off to advance to the second round. I just kept thinking, "You have to hit more than
Joe Mauer, Albert. You just have to!"
Nothing against Joe Mauer, of course; in fact, when my friends and I play that game, the one where you're starting a team from scratch and have to come up with what players you would choose, Mauer is always my second position player, right after Pujols himself. But my love for Joe Mauer isn't the point. The point is Joe Mauer has no business ever being in a home run hitting contest, and Albert Pujols most definitely does.
Monday, Jun. 1 2009 @ 12:01PM
Okay. the verdict is in. We finally have an answer.
After much debate, much discussion, and a fair bit of research which made me question my sanity, as well as whether or not the word option actually existed in baseball, the answer finally came from the most obvious, and easiest, option of all: the Cardinals themselves. (Like the option pun there? That's why I make the big bucks.)
According to Brian Bartow, spokesman for the Cardinals, Brad Thompson does, in fact, still have an option remaining. In 2008, he was disabled, then optioned down, but due to injury, he was recalled within the normal ten day period during which an optioned player is ineligible to come back to the majors, and the option itself was waived in this case.
Wednesday, May. 27 2009 @ 7:26AM
Yesterday, I wrote about
the troubles that the Cardinals are having right now, particularly in terms of the offense, and how those issues are directly related to the way that this roster is constructed. Today, I wanted to see if I could come up with some options on how to fix these problems.
First, though, a quick word about the options status of
Brad Thompson. An astute commenter yesterday pointed out that Thompson was already sent to the minors this year (after
the game in which Chris Carpenter got hurt, in fact; that awful loss to Arizona), and then recalled, so he did have options. The thing is, he was sent down, but I'm pretty sure the team had to expose him to waivers to do so. Looking at his status and the transaction log on him, I can't for the life of me figure out any way he would still have any options left. I know for a fact that Thompson was optioned in 2006, '07, and '08, which would be all three years he should have had options. I know there is a fourth option year for certain players (
Anthony Reyes had a fourth option year last season, in fact), but that's only for guys who get to the big leagues really quickly. Thompson does not fall into that category.
Thanks to anyway1102 for pointing out something I was remiss in including, but I'm pretty sure that Thompson would still have to be put through waivers to send him down again. The team got away with it once, while WonderBrad was sporting an ERA somewhere in the mid-6.00 range; I doubt they'll risk it again.
Tuesday, May. 19 2009 @ 11:25AM
The Cards-Cubs rivalry is turning into an arms race of offensive baseball t-shirts. Responding to the "
Zambrano mows my lawn" shirts that sparked the ire of
sports bloggers across the Internetz awhile back, one Wrigleyville shirt vendor has stepped above the fray and come up with this retort:
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| http://sportsdeskspeaks.blogspot.com |
Forget the bigotry, the fact that both teams have several Hispanic players, and the
copyright infringement. What's really offensive about this shirt is the misplaced apostrophe.
Friday, May. 15 2009 @ 2:39PM
You know what? This really sucks.
 |
| Okay, so that is still one funny fucking picture. There, I feel better now. |
Tony was pleasant, funny, even humble. You couldn't come on and pull some sort of Terrell Owens kind of shit? Talk about how the fans were shitty, and Vermeil disrespected you, and how the ladies here weren't worth your time anyway? The guy didn't once refer to himself in the third person, for god's sake!
Banks even laughs at himself, laughs at the bad performances that he and his Rams teams put up while he was here in town. Now, he even works with a company that makes educational software to help kids stay in school!
Sigh. You know what? I don't even have the strength anymore. Are you happy, Tony? You've beaten me. I can't find anything else bad to say about you.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go crawl into a bottle of scotch.
Tuesday, May. 12 2009 @ 2:07PM
Admit it. You love
Matt Vasgersian.
I know I do.
Not because he's a decent human being, mind you, or even because he's all that good at his job. However, the former
San Diego Padres' play-by-play announcer
is pretty much always good for a laugh, and that's really good enough for me.
Mr. Vasgersian is the guest this week on
Deadspin's Deadcast and he's got a lot to say. Including, at long last, the reason that he hates St. Louis so much: "I hate downtown St. Louis... build a friggin' convenience store, somewhere in downtown St. Louis. It's a bad hotel town, in fact it's a really bad hotel town..." He rambles on from there, but raises a good point -- when are they going to build something where Ballpark Village should be?
(To be fair, he may be on to something there.) Skip to the 41-minute mark to hear the St. Louis portion of the interview.
Vasgersian's less-than-complimentary comments about St. Louis first were posted
back in 2007, when he said on-air:
I'm done with this [St. Louis]...I'm so tired of losing here.....It's hotter
than shit......We get our asses kicked every time we come here .....I'm
not coming here next year.
But wait, he was
just joking around with his co-workers in the broadcast booth. Phew.
Then comes the latest round of totally hilarious St. Louis bashing. So get your yucks and enjoy the sound of a Vasgersian being palpated.
Friday, Mar. 27 2009 @ 2:11PM
Yesterday,
I predicted the three things that the Blues had to do in order to beat the Vancouver Canucks last night. I said, in this order:
1. The kids need to do better getting into scoring situations;
2. The Blues have to keep the Canucks' Sedin brothers from being a factor; and
3. They need to play better on the power play, specifically by getting the puck to Brad Boyes or Keith Tkachuk.
Meatloaf will tell you that two out of three ain't bad, but I think two and a half is even better, don't you?
Tuesday, Mar. 24 2009 @ 11:35AM
It looks like the
Detroit Lions, who own the first pick in the NFL draft, may be planning on taking
Jason Smith, the offensive tackle out of Baylor. It's upsetting for Rams fans -- because some want to see them draft him at #2.
I covered Smith not too long ago, when
I previewed the offensive tackles available in the draft that the Rams might consider taking with their top pick. I liked him then, and I like him now. If he's gone, it's really going to hurt my feelings.
But wait, there's more!
Chris Mortenson, the ESPN guy who's always just sort of hanging around in the background of all the shows, is convinced that the Lions are taking
Matt Stafford, the QB out of Georgia. Now we're talking. They take Stafford, the Rams can get whichever of the OT's they prefer, either Smith (my choice), or
Eugene Monroe (also a good pick), from Virginia.
Friday, Feb. 20 2009 @ 12:56PM
Ladies and gentlemen, the dream is over.
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| Todd Owyoung |
| Cardinals manager Tony La Russa enjoying a hilarious moment. |
It was just a small, simple dream that I had;
a dream of a Cardinal rotation without Joel Pineiro. A simple dream for a simple man, with simple tastes. A dream of summer evenings spent on the veranda, listening to the baseball match on the Victrola, sans Joel Pineiro.
Now that dream has been ripped from me, torn asunder by a cruel and uncaring manager. I thought, just for an instant, that my dream might actually come true, that
El Pinata Grande may have managed to piss off the coaching staff enough to punch his ticket out of town, but
it now looks as if that was false hope.
Monday, Feb. 16 2009 @ 2:44PM
Larry Bigbie is mad as hell, and he's not going to take it anymore!
Well, that's not quite true. He's not all that angry, to be honest. He does, however, refuse to take it anymore.
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| americanrhetoric.com |
Okay, okay. I'm still exaggerating. He actually seems fairly resigned to his fate, if truth be told. Jesus, what is it with you guys? Can't just let me have my attention grabber?
Anyhow, what Larry Bigbie is doing is talking to Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun, about the steroids, the investigation into the steroids, the fallout from the investigation into the steroids, and what he's realized from the fallout from the investigation into the steroids.
Thursday, Feb. 5 2009 @ 12:02PM
Okay, I am now officially pissed. Why? Well, I'm glad you asked. I'll tell you.
A couple of days ago, I wrote about Comcast cable company
having some, er, technical issues during the Super Bowl. Well, a suitably large number of people apparently complained, so Comcast came up with the brilliant idea of fixing the problem by throwing some money at it.
Wednesday, Jan. 28 2009 @ 11:51AM
I barely remember the St. Louis football Cardinals. I was only eight years old when they left; the extent of what I really have of them is an old nylon backpack in burgundy and a glass mug with the gridbird logo on the side. Even so, the team has a special little place in my heart. I suppose it probably has a place for most of us, regardless of our actual feelings for the team and its -- ahem -- owners.
In that weird collective way that cities have of assimilating sporting teams, the Cardinals are a part of the St. Louis experience, a part of the unconscious mind of the city. The ending of the story may have been ugly, but the journey to get there was still something special.
Slide Show
Tuesday, Jan. 27 2009 @ 12:03PM
UPDATE: More comments from Chuck Brownson, a blogger at Viva El Birdos, are at the bottom of this post.In July 2007 I wrote an article for the
RFT about
the increasing influence that statistically-minded baseball blogs were starting to have on the day-to-day operations of the teams they cover.
In addition to discussing the remarkable circumstances that led to a Seattle Mariners blog called the
U.S.S. Mariner directly influencing the approach of their star young pitcher Felix Hernandez, I asked
Tony La Russa about his opinion of blogs and advanced statistical analysis, and interviewed
Larry Borowsky, creator of the popular stat-head Cardinals blog
Viva El Birdos.
The take-home message at the time was that while sports blogs are better than ever and wield considerable power in some cities, the Cardinals organization wasn't exactly on the cutting edge of the trend.
Wednesday, Jan. 21 2009 @ 5:16PM
Earlier this afternoon the
Post-Dispatch allowed Cardinals fans to
chat with the team's general manager John Mozeliak.
The resulting dialogue reveals that not only are the Cardinals not going to do much with their roster between now and the start of the season, but that the Internet makes for pure comedy gold when it puts ignorant hecklers in direct, unfiltered contact with the guy who runs their favorite baseball team.
Let's run through a few quick highlights, shall we?
There's the angry:
I Hate Bill Dewitt!!: Mo,
Please describe what it's like living in your little land of make believe where you honestly believe that Cardinal fans should be excited about this team. If you wouldn't mind, go into details, about how in MO's world people are celebrating are three horrible new lefty relievers, and the signing of our awesome new .213 hitting shortstop.
Monday, Jan. 19 2009 @ 1:26PM
It just isn't really sinking in, you know?
Are we really going to see the
Arizona Cardinals play in a Super Bowl?
There are certain things that just don't sound right when you say them; phrases that I've never used in my life and, honestly, never expected to say. "NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals" is certainly high among them.
Thursday, Jan. 15 2009 @ 1:24PM
Friends, I come to you today with a heavy heart. I feel a deep, aching sorrow in my chest, and I fear that nothing in this life will lift this burden from me.
This weekend, I am going to do something I thought I would never do. I am going to watch a football game and root for the Arizona Cardinals.
Wednesday, Jan. 14 2009 @ 11:41AM
Darius Miles' bizarre labor dispute with the Portland Trailblazers is coming to a head.
Last night he scored
13 points in 13 garbage time minutes as his new team, the Memphis Grizzlies, lost to the powerful Cleveland Cavaliers.
As
previously noted, if Miles steps on the court for one more second this season, Portland owes $18 million in luxury tax -- money they were probably hoping would go toward free agents in the off-season.
At the
Seattle Weekly, former
RFT staffer Mike Seely (who profiled
Miles and a young Tommie Liddell back in 2004) writes that the Blazers' claim -- that they shouldn't have pay for Miles because his knee injury was "career ending" -- has effectively been rendered bullshit and their litigious threats are "
pissing in the wind."
Monday, Jan. 12 2009 @ 5:04PM
If you haven't been following the saga of Belleville native and former East St. Louis high school star
Darius Miles and his crazy labor dispute with his former team the Portland Trailblazers, you might want to start now.
Here's the full text of said e-mail:
"Team Presidents and General Managers,
"The Portland Trail Blazers are aware that certain teams may be contemplating signing Darius Miles to a contract for the purpose of adversely impacting the Portland Trail Blazers Salary Cap and tax positions. Such conduct from a team would violate its fiduciary duty as an NBA joint venturer. In addition, persons or entities involved in such conduct may be individually liable to the Portland Trail Blazers for tortuously interfering with the Portland Trail Blazers' contract rights and perspective economic opportunities.
"Please be aware that if a team engages in such conduct, the Portland Trail Blazers will take all necessary steps to safeguard its rights, including, without limitation, litigation."
Turns out if Miles suits up for just two games with another team
the Blazers will be on the hook for $18 million for the NBA's luxury tax, money that is divided among the rest of the league's teams. That's enough to buy at least a few dozen models of Darius' sweet ride:
Friday, Dec. 19 2008 @ 6:47PM
They may not be crackin' him open, but they're cracking into him.
Missourian
Tyler Hansbrough is not liked, he's kind of hated actually, by opponents' fans. Probably by his opponents too. They yell out everything, including the fact that his dear ol' mawm was once, umm,
hot enough to be crowned Miss Missouri. It was a fact not lost on the
RFT in Mike Seely's 2004 story about then-high schooler Hansbrough and his brother Ben (who transferred to Notre Dame in April and will play for the Fighting Irish in 2009-2010.)
Monday, Dec. 15 2008 @ 2:09PM
Just got word from Birmingham, Alabama, that St. Louisans Clayton Braun and Kerri Morgan have once again made the 18-person U.S. farm team for quad rugby. The national "murderball" team represents the U.S. at major world tournaments, including the Paralympics.
Both Braun and Morgan, who play for the St. Louis Rugby Rams, are hoping to make the last round of cuts, next May or June, in order to play for the U.S. at a world tournament next fall.
Morgan, who competed in track at the Paralympics in Beijing this past summer, was the subject of an RFT feature, "Ready to Rumble," in January 2007.
Braun also figured in that piece. His mother explains his injury here.
-Kristen Hinman
Photo: Jennifer Silverberg
Friday, Dec. 12 2008 @ 10:58AM
What can I say? I'm a sucker for punishment. So in the spirit of twisting the knife just a hair more -- and also because there is actual news to report -- I present to you the Remains of
Anthony Reyes Watch.
Why can't I quit you, Anthony?
Tuesday, Dec. 9 2008 @ 11:02AM
From page 44 of the indictment of Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich, about the deal the Tribune Company was seeking on behalf of the Cubs (
via Talking Points Memo):
"During the call, Rod Blagojevich's wife can be heard in the background telling Rod Blagojevich to tell Deputy Governor A 'to hold up that fucking Cubs shit ... fuck them'"
Keep laughing, Aaron Schafer.
-
Keegan Hamilton
Monday, Nov. 10 2008 @ 3:01PM
Back in July, one of St. Louis' largest amateur soccer leagues, La Liga Latino Americana de Futbol, was the subject of "League of Nations," an RFT feature story.
The winning team Necaxa, as photographed in July. Click photo for a high-resolution version.
The league has a rough-and-tumble style and features players from nearly corner of the map:
"Nearly two decades old, the league has grown from a weekend assemblage of 4 teams -- all hailing from the same small town in southwestern Mexico —--to 28 teams, with more than 1,000 players representing nearly every corner of the map: Nigeria, Kenya, Iraq, Brazil and Hungary among them. Virtually every country in Latin America fields at least one player, while two, El Salvador and Honduras, have their own teams."
The season lasted seven months, especially long for an amateur league, with the championship game played Sunday afternoon at DeSoto Park in North St. Louis.
Necaxa defeated C.D. Honduras 2-1 by scoring two goals in the final ten minutes of play.
Tuesday, Oct. 7 2008 @ 5:08PM
Yesterday was draft day for the seven teams of Women's Professional Soccer, including our very own St. Louis squad (which was the subject of a news story in last week's issue. All the action took place at WPS headquarters in San Francisco, and, unlike the drafts for other professional sports leagues, it was a brief affair.
Wendy Larsen | isiphotos.com
Homegrown, home team: Nerinx High grad Lori Chalupny
After four rounds, or about an hour and a half, St. Louis had four more players: defender
India Trotter, forward
Angie Woznukand midfielders Joanna Lohman and
Amanda Cinalli. They will join coach Jorge Barcellos and teammates
Lori Chalupny (a Nerinx Hall grad), Tina Ellertson and Hope Solo, whom St. Louis acquired last month when the U.S. national team divided its 21 players among WPS' seven franchises.
Tuesday, Aug. 5 2008 @ 11:27AM
Like a heaping helping of its signature appetizer Nachos Grande, Chevys Fresh Mex kept piling it on Monday night in a 17 to 8 drubbing of RFT at Legion Ballpark in Overland. Adding to the heartache -- and heartburn -- for the alt-weekly players was the knowledge that for much of the contest the game was theirs to lose.
With temperatures hovering in the upper 90s,
RFT warmed up to a quick lead in the bottom of the first thanks to a two-RBI double from third sacker Chad Garrison. Chevys bounced back in the second inning to take a 4-2 lead before clutch batting on the parts of
RFT outfielders Matt Underwood and Ray "Ray" Richardson reclaimed the lead 5-4. Chevys went on to tie the game 5-5 in the fifth.
Then came the feeding frenzy.
Wednesday, Jun. 11 2008 @ 1:41PM
Vashon High School today was stripped of three state championships in basketball for recruitment violations and use of ineligible players. The school was also forced to forfeit five seasons' worth of games for the years 2000-'01 and 2002 through 2006.
The ruling by the Missouri State High School Activities Association, the state agency that governs high school sports, came during a closed session of the association's board of directors this morning in Columbia.
"It's what I expected," says Sam Dunlap, athletic director of the Public High League, in which Vashon competes. "Violations happened; the rules were applied."
Dunlap declined to say whether he thought the ruling is fair. "Any time you have something like this, it's not a happy day," he says.
"Like Sam said, we had a feeling it was going to happen" adds Keith Northway, Vashon's athletic director the past two years. "I have no other comment."
2 comment(s) / Post a Comment
Are we really going to see the Arizona Cardinals play in a Super Bowl? 
Both Braun and Morgan, who play for the St. Louis Rugby Rams, are hoping to make the last round of cuts, next May or June, in order to play for the U.S. at a world tournament next fall.
