So, I didn't do any sort of tribute to Michael Jackson...

I just didn't think it was necessary. I mean, I enjoy his music. I'd even go as far as saying that I think "Don't Stop 'til You Get Enough" is one of my favorite party songs and it was released almost a full year PRIOR to me being born.

It's a great tune. The "Thriller" album was really, really good. I listened to songs like "Bad" and "Black or White" like crazy when I was a pre-teen. So why didn't I fill up a blog post, a Facebook status or hit up Twitter with a fitting tribute to Michael The Artist... well, because he just never profoundly impacted my life, I guess. But I'll tell you who did: Ken Griffey Jr.

Warning: If you don't like Ken Griffey Jr. (and I can't honestly think of why you wouldn't) then I suggest that you go read something else. "The Kid" is my childhood hero. Consider yourself warned.

I watched, what seemed like, every at bat this guy took from about 1990 up through 1998. I distinctly remember begging my mother to let me stay up late on random Wednesday nights to catch ESPN's "Wednesday Night Baseball" game - which always seemed to be random west coast gaes that often featured the Seattle Mariners.

I didn't play basketball but I threw some hard-earned lawnmower money at Nike to pick up some Nike Swingman baseball spikes when I was a kid. Man! Those shoes were sweet.

I know that I had at least a couple posters of the guy plastered to my bedroom wall. I collected his baseball cards (which are stored away somewhere in Mom and Dad's attic I suppose). I was legitimately angry in 1994 when the players' strike happened. Not because players seemed greedy or the owners seemed like jerks but because Junior had hit 40 bombs in 111 games - he had a shot at Maris' long-standing homerun record!

That all aside, I was interested to find out that my idol had decided to grace the patrons of Seattle Mariner baseball with a small, yet fitting, tribute to the King of Pop. He strolled to the plate for his first at-bat Tuesday night with the sound system at Safeco Field groovin' to M.J.'s "Billie Jean." Plus, a closer inspection gave way to the slugger's grip on the bat, which showed a bare left hand and a white batting glove worn on his right. Griffey usually wears dark blue gloves on both hands.

Kind of cool.

He didn't walk up the plate and do a quick Jackson-esque kick in the air or moonwalk his way down to first after his walk. He was subtle yet effective. Classic Junior.

Another One Bites the Dust

So, with all of Hollywood dropping like flies lately...

I stumbled upon this headline that scared the bejeezus out of me at first, until I realized that Casey Kasem wasn’t dead. Whoo! Almost lost another one.

As it turns out, Casey has officially stepped down from his weekly radio countdown show to focus on “other projects.” This brings up two questions for me:
1.) What the hell “other projects” is Casy Kasem working on?
--Surely, he isn’t a part of the Wal-Mart Welcoming committee now. I doubt MTV is calling, considering that they don’t play music anymore. Plus, they only hire people that want to be famous for ten minutes and then live the rest of their lives saying, “But I was on The Gauntlet VIII!!! PART EIGHT I TELL YOU!!!”

2.) Has Ryan Seacrest taken one more step toward taking over the world?
--It appears so. First Dunkleman and now Kasem. I hope that we are all ready to see this guy for the next 50 to 60 years. He will be our generation’s Dick Clark. Hell, it won’t be too much longer and Seacrest will have Clark wiped off the face of the Earth.

Anyhow, I hate to see Kasem go. I always enjoyed him on the radio. He provided just enough insight and just enough cheese to keep me entertained. And how can you not respect a man that made a cameo on Saved by the Bell?! TWICE!

So, here’s a special long-distance dedication for you, Casey. Best of luck in the future. Keep your feet on the ground and keep reaching for the stars!

Cheek, out!

Television and Sports

So, I was stuck somewhere in between a Braves rain delay and the NBA Finals...

While I do enjoy the occasional hoops matchup, I just didn't find Magic-Lakers to be all that intriguing. Despite all the talk about how this was a huge series for Phil and Kobe, I just couldn't get into it. I just couldn't get excited. That all being said, because it was basketball's world championship...I'll took the Lakers in five...they ended up nailling things down in six.

Because of the my lack of interest in Naismith's Game, and Mother Nature's denial of baseball, I was left sifting through the DV-R (which I once described on this very blog as one of the best inventions of my lifetime). This great machine captures all my favorite shows - and a lot of the crap that I really shouln't waste my time with - but it got me thinking. What kinds of shows am I watching? What kinds of shows are you watching? And, frankly, how can I make some sort of sports comparison?

That's when I started jotting down a list of some of the shows that you can find on TV right now and tried to figure out who their athletic counterpart would be. Let me know what you think about this:

30 Rock = Manny Ramirez
They might both be the best out there. People under the age of about 35 LOVE them...people over the age of 35 don't really get them. The "oldies" find them both obnoxious and hard to relate to. You can't argue with the production though. They consistantly give you what you came to get - a couple of awkward moments and bunch of laughs. And sure, an occiasional steriods/female-fertility drug scandal.

The Office = Phil Mikkelson
What's interesting about these two pudgers is that they each have some of the best and worst moments on television. Plus, they need to just do what they do best...rely on the short game. Hour-long episodes of The Office that are "story-driven" just don't work as well as the half-hour episodes that have Jim and Dwight picking on each other. Just put it on the tee, knock it out there, then just give me short little pitches from afew of the tertiary characters and you have yourself a winner.

Heroes = Dontrelle Willis
Nothing has ever started out so hot only to take such a turn for the worse. Both are borderline unwatchable at this point but you gotta keep them in the rotation because you never know when they might catch fire again.
Quick side note: I just don't know if I am okay with Hayden Panettiere being 19 years old...it just makes me feel creepy. Can't she go back to being that little 5-year old girl who draws up high school football plays for her father in Remember The Titans?!

Seinfeld = Ken Griffey Jr.
This is a comparison that I just recently came to terms with. Both, in there time, were unquestionably the best in the business. Both had a long career and have been beloved by almost everyone. Both have become a little dated in the last year or so. Hear me out. I'm not saying that Seinfeld (or Junior for that matter) is done. I'm just saying that neither can really stand with the current players. Sure, every once in a while The Kid goes yard and every now and again you get "The Opposite" and you get that old warm, fuzzy feeling.



That's at least a start...

Fortress of Smooth-itude!

So...

On June 5th, I ventured to Andrews Upstairs to see Yacht Rock Revue. Adorned in a naval captain's hat, I set sail on a voyage the likes of which few get a chance to experience. YRR belted out smooth tunes by, to name a few, the Doobie Brothers, Captain & Tenille and Toto. Which brings me to today's featured tune: Toto's "Africa"



I was simply amazed by how popular this song was amongst the packed house. This song is already good but it becomes exponentially better when you've had a handful of bourbon and cokes.

Hope you enjoy!

Back To The Blogger

I believe that it was either Mary Todd Lincoln or Marty McFly who once asked, "What the hell is a gigawatt?"

Well, a gigawatt is what Jeff Francoeur just put behind a 2-1, Kevin Gregg-delivered fastball in the bottom half of the 9th inning...just a few seconds ago, mind you... to tie things up with the visting Cubbies. It's been a long time since the hometown boy knocked a bomb like that - a menaingful one too. A no-doubter blast!

But I'm not here to talk about Frenchy, or the possibility of moving him away from the Braves. I'll be saving that for another entry.

What I am here to do is welcome myself back to the blog-o-sphere. Back to the creative writing world. Back to commenting on, critiquing and complaining about all the minutia that makes up life. It's been a lengthy hiatus from my regular blogging, which was only ever "regular" during college football season but I'm going to try to get onto a schedule and report on all those big topics that are hitting our world.

My boy Joe, our beloved Suburban Wino, is really my most recent inspiration. He does a spectacular job telling us all that we ever wanted to know about food, wine, beer and music that we haven't thought about in years. Keep it up, Joey!

I've also started a knew life project - went back to school. That's right - me and Thornton Melon. Better start brushing up on my Vonnegut...

The nice thing about this go 'round is rather than studying something lame like English or History or Molecular Biology, I actually get to study sports. Yep, I said sports. I just spent the last three weeks trekking down to a classroom in Georgia State University's Sports Arena to discuss topics like Augusta Natioal Golf Club's membership, fighting in the NHL and about how Manny is...well...simply "being Manny"...

A la Zach Morris, FREEZE IT!

Lou Piniella elected to pitch to Chipper Jones with a runner on second...with first base open...in a tie game...in extra innings. Brian McCann is on deck. Don't you have to walk Chipper here?! I mean, McCann is good but Chipper is a Hall of Famer, for crying out loud. I'll tell you what, I'm not letting a Hall of Famer beat me. Needless to say, Chipper got a base hit and was subsequently tackled in the infield by Kelly Johnson and Jeff Francoeur. Good win for the Bravos!

...anyhow, to shorten it up, grad school is a trip. I just completed a whirlwind of a May-mester and will be starting another 7-week class discussing revenue generation in sports next week. It's wild stuff but it's actually pretty fun.

So, here's what I'm going to try to accomplish: Two to three posts a week (with audience participation in choosing said topics). I'm going to try to step up "The Goods." I'm also going to be looking to spruce this place up - suggestions are definitely welcome.

For the time being, sift around through the old articles and I'll have something new up soon.

The Two Constants

There are two constants in college football. Just two simple truths that you can right down in the book at the beginning of every college football season.

1. Clemson is NOT going to be as good as you (or anyone else for that matter) thinks they are going to be.

2. Any school that had a successful, ambitious head coach leave the program only to have a loyal, devoted assistant take the reigns is doomed for failure.

Constant #1 explained:

Clemson came into the opening weekend ranked #9 in the nation. They were set to battle, yes, a ranked opponent, but a youthful #24 Alabama. I wish I could say that it was a good game, a well fought contest, a game that went down to the fourth quarter with the team who just "wanted it more" rising to the top and claiming victory. But that is not what happened.

Clemson was completely and totally man-handled. They were pushed around from the first play and, frankly, embarrassed in Atlanta's Georgia Dome. The 34-10 Alabama beat down proved once again that Clemson is not the team that they think they are.

Now, I'm not saying that Clemson won't win a bunch of their games and eventually capture an ACC title but are they a top-ten team? Hardly. The part that makes ESPN dub this massacre a "shocker" is that no one expected the Tigers to collapse this early. Many probably felt they would win their seven games and then slip up when playing back-to-back games at Boston College and at Florida State. Instead they trip over their own feet early on and leave, of all teams, Georgia Tech looking like the best team in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Constant #2 explained:

One of the top programs in the country over the past few years has been the West Virginia Mountaineers. They have ended the last three years, respectively, ranked 5, 10 and 6. Rich Rodriguez lead them to a point where they were in the National Championship conversation each year and put them on the map with a marquee win over the, then SEC Champ, Georgia Bulldogs in the 2006 Sugar Bowl. He pushed them into the national spotlight and made them a force to be reckoned with - despite playing in the Big East.

Then Michigan came calling. The glitz and glamour of a big-time, storied program lured Rodriguez away from what he had built. That's going to happen though. In college football, where you find success, you'll also often find poachers.

Enter Bill Stewart. Named the interim head coach prior to the 2008 Fiesta Bowl, Stewart had served, loyally, under Rodriguez as Quarterbacks Coach. He had also accumulated a lengthy resume of other schools and positions where he had served. Yet, never as head coach.

After a meaningless win over Villanova in week one, Stewart found himself traveling down to meet with Skip Holtz's East Carolina Pirates at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium...

...How many of you have EVER asked yourself what East Carolina's stadium was called?...

...and the giant-killing Pirates took care of business, 24-3. East Carolina not only kept the Mountaineers from getting into the endzone but also held them to 251 yards of TOTAL offense.

I'm not going to say that Stewart has lost control of the program but they look bad...really bad. Not to mention that when you look at their schedule you begin to realize that UWV might be a 4-5 loss team. The bad thing is that there may not be anythign that Stewart can do about it. People just aren't going to by into what he's selling adn that will be most noticeable in his recruiting over the next year or so.

Florida State, Penn State...heed this warning. It's right around the corner.

The SEC is Better Than the Big 10

Just a great little ditty by our good pal Ryan Parker. Enjoy...knowing that we are just two short days away from the first Saturday of the college football season.