I'm Baaack

Well I was away for the past week on vacay in Mexico, enjoying the beautiful weather, relaxation, and activities so I do apologize for the lack of posts recently.

In a somewhat modified version of Cleaning Up the Mess... I am going to run through some of the bigger moves and newsworthy items with my 2 cents attached to each big story.






** The Philadelphia Phillies acquired SP Joe Blanton from the Oakland A's for 3 prospects -- I think this is a solid move for the Phils considering the ever disappearing act of the Starting Pitcher market. With Oswalt and Bedard hitting the DL and Harden and Sabathia already gone, Blanton seems like a reasonable acquisition for not a steep price.

**The Washington Redskins traded 2 picks to the Miami Dolphins for All-Pro DE Jason Taylor -- This was a huge move from the Redskins in what has been a relatively quiet offseason for the Redskins considering their standards. The Redskins did not give up that much considering what they get in return. A great move for the 'skins and a necessary one for the Dolphins.



** The New York Giants traded Jeremy Shockey to the New Orleans Saints for 2 Picks -- Well it seems like this trade has been rumored every since the NFL Draft, but it is a necessary one for both teams. Drew Brees gets another weapon in a good pass catching Tight End in Jeremy Shockey, while the Giants get rid of their headache.


** Paddy Harrington won the British Open for the 2nd year in a row -- Yes, I was pulling for Greg Norman to pull the upset.

** Josh Hamilton stole the show in New York at the 2008 Home Run Derby, but Justin Morneau was the winner at the showcase.

** A classic All-Star game took place this season with the AL winning at about 1:30 in the morning on Wednesday.

** Some Media notes to take care of:


- The ESPYs were last night and Justin Timberlake was very entertaining as the host


- Billy Packer will not be back at CBS for the upcoming College Basketball Season.


- Doug Collins and Mike Breen will anchor the coverage of the Olympics and the US Men's Hoops Team


- Bob Papa: The New York Giants radio voice has been officially named the new play-by-play man for NFL broadcasts on the NFL Network. Papa


Those were some of the bigger stories from the past week, and I will be sure to comment some more of some of the bigger stories that I missed from the past week!

Top 10: Teams I dislike very much...

Coming from a Philadelphia perspective and bias, this list should not be to surprising! Anyway, on with yet another list!

Honorable Mentions: New York Jets, Pittsburgh Steelers, New York Knicks

10. Detroit Pistons

09. Baltimore Ravens

08. Atlanta Braves

07. Washington Redskins

06. Los Angeles Lakers

05. New England Patriots

04. New York Giants

03. New York Yankees

02. Dallas Cowboys

01. New York Mets

Which teams in sports do you hate the most?

A few videos worthy of posting...

TERRELL OWENS CRYING!!

For everyone out there, especially Eagles, 49ers, and Ravens fans (basically teams T.O. has burned in the past) and basically fans of the NFL, here is an epic video of proportions for you to enjoy. After the Giants did everyone a favor and showed how much of fraud Wade Phillips is.

My favorite quote is, "I've always had a great relationship with my quarterback..." PLEASE ask Jeff Garcia and Donovan McNabb about that comment....PLEASE! Hell even ask Drew Bledsoe, who TO was ready to throw under the bus quickly when he wanted Tony out there at Q.

Oh yeah, if Hillary Clinton appeared stronger and more passionate because of her crying performance after winning the projections in New Hampshire, perhaps T.O. will look more passionate as an athlete after this display.

Moving on to my second NEW favorite video...

VOTE FOR CHRIS W. BOSH!

This video is pure genius and it definitely earned a vote from me for Chris Bosh into the All-star game. It will be almost impossible to surpass Lebron and KG to become a starter, but averaging 21.7 ppg and 9.3 rpg, I think he is worthy of an all star nod.

A few other issues of note...

* The Baltimore Ravens hired Eagles secondary and former special teams coach John Harbaugh as the successor to Brian Billick. Interesting hire here to say the least. I have personally seen what Harbaugh can do as he has been with the Eagles organization for a bit of time and I have been impressed with his talents there, however I am not quite sure how this will translate into a head coaching position. It's definitely a gamble for Baltimore and it may pay off going with a youthful coach, IF they are committed to rebuilding in key positions with youth at QB and WR among others.

* Even though the Celtics has slipped up a bit lately, I am beginning to retrack my thoughts on the Celtics not making it to the Finals (and yes since this is my blog, I can change my mind!). KG is one of the most unselfish players in NBA, and it can be said that Pierce and Allen are unselfish as well. They are getting what they need from Rajon Rondo at point and James Posey and Eddie House are the type of role players this team should be content with. My only question about the Celts is if they need a veteran point guard to backup Rondo and step up if he ever becomes hurt. Free Agent PG Gary Payton anyone?

*There are only two remaining coaching vacancies left in the NFL, the Washington Redskins and Atlanta Falcons. Obviously, the Falcons job is not very attractive and with Jason Garrett, Tony Sparano (no no not Tony Soprano) and Pete Carroll essentially out of the picture, I'm not really sure where the Falcons should look next. They better look away from any old timers such as Marty Schottenheimer and avoid knuckleheads like Mike Tice. They need a whole new attitude in there, but perhaps a GM should be hired first. Now for the Redskins, a prediction would be for them to go out there and hire some flashy name like Steve Spurrier or someone from history like Joe Gibbs, but when it comes down to it they were a playoff team, so they should go with someone who could build on the current team and not change the whole team philosophy. The solution: Gregg Williams. P.S. Norm Chow is available and I think a good offensive mind (Dolphins? Ravens? Falcons?)

* Sunday's Conference Championship games should be a lot of fun, not only for the team matchups but for the potential of the weather conditions in both games. I will check back in with predictions before kickoffs.

....til next time

-E