Long Distance Relationships Kinda Suck

Working in academia does have its benefits. From 5 o' clock yesterday, I'm on Thanksgiving break already. I celebrated last night by watching the Blues beat Nashville in a less than stellar performance, and by drinking a 750ml bottle of Mauadite. (Yes, my night was full of things Canadian.)

So, I'm reading over the sports news online this morning, keeping tabs on the Blues and Cards in St. Louis (as well as the Billiken soccer team - who crashed out of the NCAA's again), DC United in our nations capital, and Notts county across the pond. While I was doing that it dawned on me just how much I miss having a local team to root for. Oh, don't get me wrong. I watch a lot of Twins baseball and Wild hockey. I love baseball and hockey and, hey, they are whats on TV. As a result, I know the players on those teams, and when they play anyone but one of MY teams in the sporting world I prefer them to win. But that is being a fan of the sport, and not a fan of the team.

I've toyed with the idea of adopting one of the NFL teams up here (Vikings or Packers), but it is hard for me to switch brand names to ones so well established as "enemy" in my mind. Were I living in an area with an expansion team it would have been easier. I've also thought about adopting a new college football team to support. Hell, I never attend the University of Missouri, so, in theory, it should be easy to switch. Trouble is I have an old bias against the Big 10, born of a childhood raised in Big 8 country, that will not allow me to cheer for a Wisconsin or a Minnesota. Besides, I've followed Mizzou for decades when they have been no good for anything, so I feel I deserve this era when they look to be a perennial Top 20 team.

I've also toyed with the idea of adopting the Minnesota Thunder, but the prospect of following a fourth soccer team (after DC United, Notts County, SLU Billikens) strikes even me as a little pathetic.

The Timberwolves are not an option as I loathe and despise the NBA. As for the college game, SLU is my team and has been since 1982.

I do follow college hockey, but I have a habit of rooting for teams that have prominent Blues prospects on them. Minnesota has been a good program in this respect since I've been up here. First they had Eric Johnson, and now they feature Jay Barriball and Cade Fairchild. Problem is, when they play another team that also has a Blues prospect, I don't care who wins. Last season, when TJ Oshie would come in with the Fighting Sioux I would be pleased by any result as long as the Blues prospects played well. I don't see that changing.

Now, there is one more option. There is hockey at the university I teach at...Div. III hockey. I've not been to a game yet, but the option is always there. There is a lunatic fringe aspect at play here that I'm not sure I wish to embrace...but I might just do so anyway. (I treat them the same way St. Augustine treated the Lord...I'll embrace them, just not yet.)

So, I'm left with these long distance relationships (LDR's). Granted, it is easier to maintain these affections in an age of cable television and the internet, but I still notice that I didn't see the Blues play a game until November was almost over.

Here is a quick rundown of what my various LDR's are like:

St. Louis Cardinals- By far the easiest relationship to maintain. The Cards are shown at least 20-30 times a season on national television. Listening to the games via XM radio is perfectly satisfying, baseball being far and away the best sport for radio play by play. If the St. Louis Post-Dispatch is still good for anything it is covering the Cardinals.

St. Louis Blues- This is fairly easy to maintain. The Blues have far less exposure on TV however. I'll see the games against the Wild, and Versus will show maybe 3 Blues games a season. That will improve as the Blues improve, I guess. I listen to 30-40 games a year over XM, although hockey is not as radio friendly. The late great Dan Kelly was the best there ever was at giving you a mental picture of a game you couldn't see. We won't hear his like again. However, I really miss going to games. I would only catch 2 or 3 a year when I lived in St. Louis (as I was mostly broke at the time), but I haven't seen a game in the Drinkscotch center in maybe 4 years. Damn.

DC United- OK. This has suffered. My current cable package does not include Fox Soccer Channel, so I am dependent upon ESPN's soccer coverage which will net me 5 games a year. I bought the MLS online video package this season, but found I hardly ever used it. (I watched maybe three games that way.) They do offer an online radio service, which I might opt for next year. Soccer is not horrible on the radio, although soccer announcers tend to be much less experienced broadcasters. The lack of booth time shows. The best option, of course, would be to get the MLS cable package, which is affordable, but would require moving up to digital cable or getting a satellite dish...both things I've been resisting.

As for the college teams, whatever coverage I get is largely dependent upon their national profile. That will wax and wane, so there isn't much one can do about it. It would help if XM beefed up the breadth of their college sports coverage, but that probably won't happen to my satifaction. (Who would invest in expansive Atlantic 10 coverage really?)

Ah well...this is a hell of a lot of writing to reach the conclusion that I'll probably just be listening to the Blues vs. Avalanche tonight over XM. Like always.

So Long Lee

Shit.

Fuck.

Dammit.

Lee Stempniak may be the next piece in Toronto's rebuilding puzzle, and the Maple Leafs gave away two former prospects to get the rugged New York native.

Stempniak, who had 3 goals and 9 assists in his last eight games with the St. Louis Blues, was dealt Monday to Toronto in exchange for center Alex Steen and defenseman Carlo Colaiacovo. The trade is pending the outcome of physicals.

Well, I guess I'll have to pick a new "favorite Blue."

What really sucks is we get nothing back except multiple bodies. (The way Blues players are shattering into tiny pieces these days that isn't entirely a bad thing.) Neither Steen or Colaiacovo offer much upside; they are what they are, although Colaiacovo does have some offensive skill.

At best this move feels like the Blues treading water. At worst we seem to be slipping under the water.

Pujols: I Want My MLS

Watch out Collinsville...uh, I mean St. Louis *wink*... here comes Albert:

National League MVP Albert Pujols is trying to bring Major League Soccer to St. Louis.

St. Louis Soccer United announced Tuesday that the Cardinals first baseman has joined the proposed ownership group, which is committed to bringing an MLS expansion franchise to the area in 2011.

The announcement came one day after Pujols was named the MVP for second time in four years.

“I am very proud and excited to join the effort to bring Major League Soccer to the St. Louis area,” Pujols said. “This means a lot to me and my family, as we all love soccer and we believe in MLS.

“This is something that will be great for our community, especially our youth. I strongly encourage St. Louis business leaders and sports fans to join me in this effort. St. Louis is an unbelievable sports town and we’ll be a great city for Major League Soccer.”

Ha! Take that Miami and Portland! What you got, eh? Nothing I tell you...NOTHING. Because, let's face it, Albert just won the MVP award, and everyone knows that the MVP award is really worth something... uh...

Never mind.

Bad Fucking Joke Wins AL MVP

I never want to hear another fucking word from Red Sux fans bitching about Scooter being in the Hall of Fame when he doesn't deserve it. Talk about not deserving something:

Boston Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia has won the American League Most Valuable Player award.

Pedroia got 16 of the 28 first-place votes and easily beat out Minnesota slugger Justin Morneau.

Pedroia became the first AL second baseman to win the award since Nellie Fox in 1959.

Five players drew first-place votes. Record-setting closer Francisco Rodriguez got one of them and finished sixth overall.

Bullshit. Complete and utter bullshit.

Look at these two lines and tell me who more deserves the MVP:

Avg: .326 .321
OBP: .376 .436
SLG: .493 .563
OPS+: 122 163
HRs: 17 22
RBI: 83 77

Hmm... tough call, eh? Neither look like world beaters, really. But what if you knew the guy in the second column amasses those totals in only 126 games as opposed to 157 games for the guy in column one? Shit. Column two guy had a much better season than column one guy! Right?

Congratulations, you correctly picked Milton Bradley as a more viable MVP candidate than Dustin Pedroia. Bradley actually finished 17th in MVP balloting. When you cannot amass enough stats to differentiate yourself from a guy who missed a whole fucking month of the season, how are you the goddam MVP?

This isn't even one of those times where the choice sparks worthwhile controversy. All this pick does is shit all over everyone who legitimately earned the award. The fact is if Pedroia didn't play for Boston (or the Yankees) he never would have been seriously considered as MVP caliber.

What a fucking joke.

MVP - Updated

Well, well...look at what we have here: Pujols NL MVP

The National League's best player has also been named its most valuable.
Albert Pujols' magnificent season earned him his second NL Most Valuable Player Award. Pujols finished ahead of Philadelphia's Ryan Howard, who beat him out by a narrow margin to win the 2006 MVP.

Pujols has finished in the top 10 in the voting in every one of his eight Major League seasons, and has been fourth or better seven times. He is the 11th player to win two NL MVP awards.

...

Pujols had already been recognized with virtually every other major individual award for which he was eligible. He was named National League or Major League player of the year by the Sporting News, the MLB Players Association and the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, as well as NL MVP in Baseball Prospectus' Internet Baseball Awards.

In the end, the Baseball Writers' Association of America joined the chorus, choosing not to penalize Pujols for his team's fourth-place finish. In fact, it's quite possible that quite the opposite happened -- that Pujols was rewarded for the Cardinals' place in the standings.

Though St. Louis ended the season 11 1/2 games out of first place in the NL Central, the club exceeded many preseason expectations with an 86-win season. And much of the credit must go to Pujols

Considering how consistent Pujols was this season there really should have never been any doubt. Ryan Howard, a player I like immensely, took a bit of time to get rolling this season...and dammit he strikes out a whole hell of a lot. All told, he didn't have a better season than Pujols.

Neither did anyone else in baseball who swings a bat for a living.

Original Post Below:


Should be Pujols this year.

Should have been Pujols twice before when he didn't win it.

Breath not being held.

Announcement in 15 minutes.

Now This Pisses Me Off

Really it does:

Mark Parrish had his sixth career hat trick in his Dallas debut and the Stars beat the Anaheim Ducks 5-2 on Friday night.

Parrish, who signed a one-year deal with Dallas on Wednesday, had two power-play goals and a breakaway tally in the first 26 minutes of play.

And the Blues? Oh, they have decided to play Yan Stasny on their number one line.

Sonofabitch.

Know what else pisses me off? Quotes like these:

"When your team is out there competing the way we did, you like being the coach standing behind them ... it's very gratifying," Blues coach Andy Murray said.

The Blues had leads of 2-0, 3-2, and 4-3 and they lost them all, and the game. That's not "gratifying," that's shitty.

Somebody get Andy a hockey dictionary.

Blues Get Early Start On Late Season Swoon

Ugh. At least the Blues are consistent. If you watched the Blues last season you know it doesn't matter how good they can look at times, a prolonged stumble is only a heartbeat away. There was some optimism that an influx of youthful talent could mitigate this trend somewhat, but a rash of injuries has underscored the lack of NHL ready depth in the organization.

I'm not surprised, but Gordo is:

Remember how the Blues blew out of the gates this fall, looking very much like a playoff contender?

Forget about it. Now this hybrid team -– an interesting mix of kids and hardened veterans -– faces a season-defining challenge.

The Blues lost four of the last five games on a seven-game homestand, then opened a five-game trip by losing in Anaheim.

Some how, some way, they must pull themselves together during the next few weeks and earn some points.

...

The Blues will need to:

* Maintain better defensive position and become stronger on the puck in their own zone. Opponents are converting Blues mistakes into goals, pouncing on loose pucks and picking off errant passes.

Agreed. Running around in your own end has never been a sign of a successful team, but that goes for every team.

* Get better goaltending from Mason. Legace is pushing himself back into the picture, but he played hurt too often last season. He needs to be 100 percent recovered from his hip injury before playing again.

The Blues are paying Mason top dollar and the club is not getting a top return. That must change.

I'll cut Mason some slack as obviously the appendicitis thing threw him off. Plus, when he has played well, the offense hasn't.

* Overcome injuries and generate more scoring at even strength. That means you, Lee Stempniak, and you, David Perron.

This is dead wrong. Both of these players need to work with other skilled players, and as we have had injuries and benchings that hasn't been possible. It is here that the lack of offensive talent is killing the Blues. Injuries are not the exception in the NHL, they are the rule. You need to have a roster that takes their inevitability into account.

That, of course, doesn't mean you have a spare Paul Kariya hanging around, but you need to be able to call on someone other than journeymen role players. Now, the Blues have evidently been waiting on the revival of Rip Van Shanahan, and he certainly could help. However, I'm not sure how long the Blues can stand by and do nothing.

Middle Infield Makeover v.360.0

And so the Cardinals begin their annual attempt to patch together a middle infield with Edgar Renteria on the list of SS possibilities. This will be exciting as hell to follow. Kennedy has his trade request in and Renteria could be returning....oh, who the fuck am I kidding? This has all the boner-inducing potential of Margaret Thatcher in fishnet stockings and pumps. Someone wake me when pitchers and catchers report.

UPDATE BY IM:

What? You are not enthralled by the "The Cards have no chance" Jake Peavey Sweepstakes?