(Get) A Sporting Life

I'm not holding my breath, especially since we won't be seeing these kids for a while, but it sounds like Weber may have a chance to get the "can't recruit" monkey off his back. ESPN is pretty high on his recruits from the Class o' 2009 . H/T to Chin-Chin for the link.

What the fuck do I know about soccer? Well, actually more than this Southlandish guy. Time for a prediction for the last Euro2008 semi-final. Why not. I'm in a masochistic mood, having just returned from the Disney area of Orlando. In a moment of weakness, I agreed to accompany Mrs. Southlandish to a conference. There are five days of my life I'll never get back. The vile, venomous vitriol I spewed describing the area in e-mails, shocked even some of my hardened friends. The English language is bereft of words to describe just how much I loathe that fucking place.* A single day's experience at Epcot a dozen years ago was enough to tell me that Disney should be avoided at all costs and for 18-plus years I successfully dodged it. As hot, muggy shitholes go, it is worse than in my nightmares. The whole place looks like an architect eating Skittles puked on the plans and some genius declared, BUILD IT! Think of Houston and East St. Louis producing a Technicolor urban love child...

Well...in some ways it went as I expected. The Blues wound up taking one of the highly touted defensemen (and quite clearly the best one available at #4), and, as I had thought they might, the Blues took a goaltender with a second round pick. In neither case did the Blues get the player I would have preferred (I would have liked Bogosian over Pietrangelo, and Pickard over Allen), but I like the approach. The Blues had three third round picks which they used on forwards, which makes a lot of sense for a franchise that is so set on the blueline. If one or more of them turn into useful pros, then the Blues will have something. The one thing missing is that one winger with real goal scoring upside. Maybe this is something the Blues feel they can address in free agency (I doubt), or via the trade route (possibly.) A part of me was pained to see someone in our division pick up Filatov. If he pans out we may have a pain in the ass in Columbus for years to come. Still, on balance the Blues did...

The BBC's That Mitchell & Webb Look is one of my favorites and I've been meaning to post a few videos lately so tonight's the night. Even Mrs. Southlandish stops what she is doing to laugh at these two: And then, just because to me this is the best play-by-play duo since Statler and Waldorf :

Based upon my continued reading leading up to this NHL Entry Draft, I have to make a slight alteration in the GASL Draft Board for the Blues. I listed the probability of Nikita Filatov being around at #4 as 90%, but the more I read from him, the more it becomes clear that he really wants to play in the NHL. If NHL teams are sold on that, then the only issue that comes up with him is if he will ever fill out his skinny six foot frame to survive the rigors of North American hockey. Most scouts believe he will. Given this, I will have to revise my estimate. This will also alter chance that a couple of other players on the GASL board would still be around. The Changes: #2) Zach Bogosian, RD: Was 15%. Now, make that 25%. #3) Nikita Filatov, LW: Was 90%. Now, 50%. #5) Alex Pietrangelo, RD: Was 90%. Now, 100%. #6) Colin Wilson, C: Was 98%. Now, 100%. #7) Drew Doughty, RD: Was 85%. Now 90%. If the Blues don't decide to trade the pick, I increasingly get the feeling Doughty will get select...

Yikes. It's not over yet (its 4-1 KC in the 9th), but it might as well be. Come back Albert.

I am as good at showing my ignorance as the next guy, usually better, in fact. So here goes: Portugal v. Germany - For no good reason, I'm going with the upset. The Germans have been unimpressive and are bickering, but they will get it together enough to win a 2-1 squeaker. Croatia v. Turkey - The Croats are too much for the Turks and will control possession for a 3-1 win. Netherlands v. Russia - The Dutch have been brilliant. I missed yesterday's match against Sweden but read that the Russians were dominant. They'll need it. This could/should be the match to watch in the quarter-finals. In the end I think the Dutch will clip them in a 4-3 thriller. C'mon, a guy can dream, can't he? Spain v. Italy - This one came to pass as I predicted last week, saying Italy would make it through to the semis. I'm not going to back off now, though the absence of Pirlo and Gattuso in the midfield more than gives me pause. Against by better judgment, I'll say a 1-1 draw wit...

This is not the sort of thing you read every day : Now there's word that [Blues prospect Patrik] Berglund has arrived in St. Louis from Europe two weeks before the start of the Blues' development camp, which begins June 23 at Scottrade Center. "He paid his own airfare, his own hotel ... that's telling me that he wants to play," said Davidson, who said Berglund is up nearly 15 pounds to 210. "If he has a good summer and really works, then he's got a chance. So many times when the Blues drafted a European they showed little interest in making the transition to the North American game. It's refreshing to see a Blues European prospect who seems enthused about the possibilities. Hopefully, this attitude will keep the guys from St. Louis Game Time from calling Berglund a pussy.

The best looking blonde I've seen since perusing the crowd at Sweden's opener. A mouth-watering rundown of the beers from participating Euro2008 countries.

Well, as predicted, there was not a lot to learn from playing Barbados. The US scored three in the first half and added five more after the break, while Barbados knocked the ball around a little bit with looks on their faces that said, "I sure hope I don't get hurt." You couldn't even tell what we are doing with our midfield exactly because they moved Beasley around so much, playing him centrally from time to time. I think they were giving him a break as he's just coming back from injury, which makes sense. There is no reason to run your legs off against Barbados. My man of the match would have been Michael Bradley.

Alright, this is not much of a preview because, lets face it, I've no idea what the draft board for the Blues looks like. After all, do I look Finnish to you? That being said, I see no reason why GASL shouldn't have a draft board of their own. Here is how I think the Blues draft board should set up from #1 to #10. #1) Steven Stamkos, C - Unfortunately, the kid probably already has a Florida drivers licence. 0.00% chance he will be around at #4. #2) Zach Bogosian, RD - Probably the best upside of the defensive prospects. Probably won't be around at #4. I'd say maybe a 15% chance he's still around. #3) Nikita Filatov, LW - I'm betting this high potential forward is still around, but I doubt the Blues would take a chance on a Russian player however talented they are. 90% chance he's around at #4. #4) Mikkel Boedker, LW - Oh, he will be there at #4, but will the Blues value another potential number 3 or 4 defenseman over offensive depth? 100% chance he will be a...

We hope.

This is something I'd missed on the rundown of Cards' draft picks : Shane Boras, 2B, Junipero Serra Catholic HS: Yup, he's the son of Scott Boras. I guess it can't hurt to have the devil's kid on the payroll, huh? I can hear the threats now: "Give us a 'hometown' discount or the kid gets sent to the Quad Cities!"

I have loved listening to Andy Gray's commentary during Euro 2008. God knows, he doesn't have much to do during the summers while he's waiting to resume his duties for Sky Sports. So why not have him do some MLS?

Anyone who saw the Croatian effort against Austria has to be shocked to see Croatia beat Germany 2-1 today. The Croats simply let the Austrians come at them for almost the entire second half, and were lucky not to give up an equalizer. Today was completely different, and the Germans were lucky they didn't have 4 goals put on them. Unlike the commentators, I was unimpressed with the German effort against Poland so in a sense this isn't as surprising as it might have been. It does prove that Group B is pretty dire.

Which one is quicker going to his right? The Goat pointed me to this item in the Viewfromthecheapseats blog: Presumably, Duncan will play his original position -- first base -- while the outfield picture remains unchanged. But it's going to be hard to swallow not only the loss of more than 100 points of batting average in the middle of the lineup, but also the subtraction of a Gold Glove from the field to be replaced with a guy who seems to try to catch the ball with a skillet. He has since begun referring to our favorite tortoise humper by a new name. Henceforth, Duncan shall be known as Edward Skillet Hands.

In a generally enjoyable column, Bill McClellan compares our upcoming football stadium troubles to a series of bad marriages . In his analogy, the Football Cardinals were our town's first wife who asked for a new stadium, and left us for Phoenix because we wouldn't give it to her: Big Red was our first wife, and we were a good couple. She wasn't very flashy. In fact, she didn't win a single playoff game in our 27 years of marriage, but then again, we weren't exactly a matinee idol ourself. Nobody was confusing us with San Francisco or New York. We were just a pair of sensible shoes, Big Red and us. She got tired of playing football in a baseball stadium. She wanted her own place. That really wasn't so much to ask after 27 years, was it? But we wouldn't go along with her plan, and she threatened to leave us, and that really set us off. We both said things we shouldn't have. Finally, she left us for Phoenix. The only trouble is, this description leaves ou...

According to Mike Martz, San Francisco 49er's wide receiver Isaac Bruce is as fast as he's ever been : "Most receivers do lose a step at 36 (which Bruce will turn in November)," Martz said, "but I haven't seen that with him. Isaac has always been an exception. If he's lost a step, I don't see it. He's like Jerry Rice; he's always kept himself in impeccable shape." Caveat #1: I love Ike. If not for his late-game heroics, this long-suffering former St. Louis Cardinals fan might never have seen a Super Bowl victory in his lifetime. As it stands, my team, the St. Louis Rams, won the big one, and they can't take that away from me (although given their recent play, they sure seem to be trying hard to do so). Caveat #2: I'm a big Torry Holt fan as well. Heck, I even get nostalgic for Az "slippy fingers" Hakim. Caveat #3: Isaac Bruce should be a hall-of-famer, and I wish him well in all but two games of the upcoming sea...

Despite Southlandish's forebodings I will not be laying waste to his musings on the state of the USMNT. Indeed, if you have watched the last six months worth of US play you should come up with something like the pessimism voiced in his post. However, I do offer some hopeful caveats. 1) The fact we haven't played a meaningful match in some time can mask real development. The last competitive match we played was last July 5th in the Copa, and even that was played with a "B" team of mostly MLS players. You have to go back to the Gold Cup final against Mexico (June 24th, 2007) for the last time the "A" team played for anything. Friendlies play their role, and they are certainly fun for the fans, but you can read way too much into them for good or ill. I was in the crowd that saw the US beat Argentina 1-0 in a friendly back in 1999. How much did that really tell us about the state of American soccer? Not a whole hell of a lot. The next competitive matches we pla...

I look forward to IM laying waste to this post. From an ESPN article on the US-Spain match last week: United States coach Bob Bradley was impressed with Spain during Wednesday night's friendly but believes his counterpart Luis Aragones might have some concerns about the lack of goalscoring chances the Iberian side created. OR NOT. Given the way they dismantled the Russians up top, it looks like the absence of David Villa against the US was the difference. He and Torres were brilliant. On the other hand, Spain's center defense was abysmal today. Russia could easily have easily picked up a couple of garbage goals in front of goal just because the Spanish seemed lead-footed and clueless there. Which leads to this - another ESPN report on the US/Spain match: And therein lies the difference between the Americans and a side like Spain. It's not that the U.S. doesn't have players capable of making a play like that. It's that there simply aren't enough of them who can c...

By the sound of it Albert Pujols may have just ruptured his Achilles tendon. For fuck's sake....

First, beer-swilling eurotrash threatens our hometown brewer. Now, Texas is stealing the Bowling Hall of Fame . Will these indignities never end? The museum's board voted this week to sell its land to their neighbor, the Cardinals, who intend to use it as part of the stalled Ballpark Village development. Yes, 'stalled' is one adjective that can be applied to Ballpark Village. 'Theoretical,' 'imaginary,' or 'invisible' are others. Our good chairman admits as much: The sale "means that the project can expand into that northwest block," DeWitt said. "Exactly when it will do that is a question for future debate." Not only is ballpark village in the nebulous future, but so is the debate about the project. What do they need more space for, anyway? Do they not have enough land to store the putrid, muddy water? Apparently not, and so the Bowling Hall of Fame is on its way to the Lone Star State. Better get down there and bowl a frame whil...

Someone might need to sedate Jeff Gordon: Future looks even brighter for Cards Cardinals manager Tony La Russa never wants to talk about 2009. Neither does general manager John Mozeliak. Both men are convinced the ’08 team could contend. So far, the Cards are doing just that, despite suffering myriad injuries. They are 11 games over .500 and they have staying power. But projections for the ’09 season ARE intriguing. The Cards will have more payroll flexibility next year, due to several expiring contracts. With several key prospects developing at once, Mozeliak will move into an enviable position. The Cards’ success with rookies this season makes the forecast for next season even better. Circumstances are forcing the team to test a lot of kids. OK, fine. This season has been a pleasant surprise so far, but how good could next year look? Infielder Brendan Ryan, Sunday’s hero, is a potential starter at second base or shortstop. Righthanded power hitter Joe Mather looks capable of balancin...

But it sure happened. After a disappointing Romania v. France opener, I was afraid the Italians and Dutch would play cautiously and be content to each take a point. Not so. What a match. A controversial non-offsides call left the Italians reeling and the Dutch counter-attacked, counter-attacked and then counter-attacked some more. Van der Sar was great in goal, creating those opportunities. The Italians will undoubtedly cry foul over the non-call, but the fact is they had their asses handed to them. What I wouldn't give to be in Amsterdam tonight. I was there, purely by chance, during their opening match against the Czechs in Euro2000. It was insane. We were lunching at a café on the Rembrantsplein, when it suddenly erupted in a sea of singing, orange-clad lunatics. This was well before I followed soccer but we had a blast talking to the table of shit-faced fanatics sitting next to us and they delighted in schooling us on that year's European Cup. It was a great afternoon.

The real action of Euro2008 kicks off today with Romania, France, The Netherlands and Italy all playing. This weekend most of the best action was off the pitch (see IM's earlier post). Croatia looked decidedly average, Germany played well and put the recent US defeat of Poland in context, and the Swiss' vaunted defense isn't likely to be enough to get them out of the group stages, especially with the loss of Frei. I'm looking forward to seeing the post-Zidane French and how Ribéry performs. He is a joy to watch. I loved his play in the World Cup and saw several Bayern matches late this season when a German friend was visiting. He was unquestionably their spark plug. His frenzied pace draws a lot of attention and makes you forget sometimes just how balanced and creative he is out there. Finally, Tim Howard was sensational last night in the US friendly against Argentina and single-handedly kept it from being an embarrassment. If he hadn't Hoovered up everything in sig...

Hot off the wires: German supporters arrested after incidents with Poles in Klagenfurt Seven German supporters were arrested in Klagenfurt after incidents with Polish fans late Saturday on the eve of their Euro-2008 encounter, local police said. The first incidents of the tournament involving about 100 supporters took place in the centre of the Carinthian capital. After glasses were thrown the police moved in to separate the two camps. Nearly 25,000 Germans and 20,000 Poles were expected for Sunday's Group B match. Some 2,300 police, including Polish officers, were to be mobilized on Sunday, with 2,000 security agents being held in reserve. The matches in Klagenfurt involving Germany, Poland and Croatia are deemed high-risk because of the fans' reputation for violence. Gee, and the Germans and Poles usually get on so well.

The next three weeks will be a scramble each day to try to fit my work around the twice daily games, which start at 11:45 and 2:30 on ESPN2 (today's matches are on ESPN Classic). No Ireland, England, Scotland or Wales so this is very much a continental affair. The consensus is that Group C with Italy, France, Romania and the Dutch is the Group of Death. The Guardian has full previews up and they have decided to alter to their Football Weekly's twice weekly format to a Football Daily one for the next three weeks, with James Richardson and Barry Glendenning anchoring it from a pub in Vienna. Their daily 2006 World Cup were great and I look forward to more of the same. They have a brief introductory preview clip up today. Now if I can just rush Mrs. Southlandish's ass through the Saturday morning shopping (the number of stores we 'need' to go to grows by the fucking minute) and get my ass back here by 11:30, I'll be happy. Hope to be doing a little bit of bloggi...

Those seem to be the first words out of my mouth every morning as I check the scoreboard. Even though June usually brings hope for Cards fans, I don't see this team succumbing to The Swoon. In the words of the immortal Joe Schultz, ah shitfuck.