Author Archives: chappy81

About chappy81

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I'm a dude that just hit 30 years old. Pretty much like everything that is funny, insightful, and has to do with the Warriors, A's, and Raiders.
December 24, 2010

Doin Lines Week 16

By chappy81
I'm Rick James Bitch!

I'm Rick James Bitch!

4-2 last week has the .500 benchmark more reachable since week 3. Makes me feel all warm and fuzzy finally having back to back winning weeks. Between Christmas shopping, traveling, and all the other holiday stuff I don’t  really have a lot of time to think about and/or look at what is going on with a lot of these games with injuries and kind of stuff, so hopefully I’ve gained enough knowledge over the season to get me through this week without reading any previews, and go on an actual win streak.

3-2 last week, once again above the .500 mark which has been the norm for me as of late.  Like Chappy said, the holiday’s have gotten the best of me time wise, and aside from some news tickers I’ve read, I don’t know what’s going on in football as of late.  Going with the gut instincts again this week.  Happy holidays everyone from the Doin Work crew!

Week 15 (By 3-2, Chap 4-2) Overall (By 38-32-5, Chap 40-42-3)

Minnesota @ Philadelphia (-14.5)

Chappy picks Philadelphia (-14.5). Let’s see. Explosive offense meets a team that just got blown out by the Bears. This game might be a little watchable if Favre was in there. Actually these past few weeks when I’ve seen Favre on the field it was almost painful to watch. I have no idea why Favre is even still trying to play out the season when it looks like it hurts when someone touches him. I guess he’s a football addict. Anyways, this should be a lock for a 28 point win for the Eagles. They do everything better than the Vikes, and if AP is out still, there’s zero chance of them staying close.

Washington @ Jacksonville (-7)

Chappy picks Jacksonville (-7). Regardless of who the Redskins start in this game at QB, one thing has become clear to me. The Redskins are divided. This never bodes well for any team when half of them don’t want to do anything for the coach, and can you really blame them? I’d quit too, which makes me want to take the Jags who still have a chance to make the playoffs if the Colts slip up.

By picks Jacksonville (-7). This was not the season I envisioned for the Redskins after they acquired Donovan McNabb and Mike Shanahan this off-season.  I figured they’d be right in the mix for NFC East supremacy, or at least in the Wild Card hunt.  Instead, with the benching of McNabb and the “Fat” Albert Haynesworth saga, the Redskins have become the ugly siblings of the division.  They’re a train wreck to look at.  The Jags will most likely be without their “Pocket Hercules” this week, but I still they take care of the ‘Skins rather easily.  Bare in mind the Jags are still very much in contention for their division crown.

San Francisco @ St. Louis (-2.5)

By picks San Francisco (+2.5). It’s been a rare occasion this season, when the 49ers were not favorites.  This could be one game in which I wouldn’t be surprised if they were.  The NFC West is so god awful that if you had to place them in a college conference, they’d be in the WAC.  Because that’s what they are, wack.  With that said, the 49ers still have a chance to make the playoffs with a 7-9 record, and at this point, I think it would be funny if they did.  Troy Smith, the better Smith is back at the helm for S.F., which means we have a puncher’s chance.

Seattle @ Tampa Bay (-6)

Chappy picks Tampa Bay -6. Not sure why, but the Seahawks are still in the hunt for the NFC Worst. They probably wont even lose any ground with a bad game this weekend. I’m still not completely sold on Tampa, but they are about 50 times better than Seattle is. I think Pete should look into getting Baloo from Tailspin to check out this seahawk, because it been going downhill.

N.Y. Jets @ Chicago (-1)

By picks the N.Y. Jets (+1). What better way to show your support for your coach’s foot fetish, than to give the Bears a good ass kicking?  And to kick that ass, you need a foot.  All joking aside, this game has bore fest written all over it, unless you’re a fan of low scoring, unimaginative offenses.  The Bears do try to open things up on occasion, but they won’t have success this week.  Not against that stingy Jets’ D.  As far as the Jets offense, Mark Sanchez couldn’t consistently hit an open receiver if they were in a sparring match.  Yet, the Jets find a way to win close ones.  If the spread is -1 for Chicago, the Jets should win by 2.

Indianapolis @ Oakland (+3)

Chappy picks Oakland +3. The Raiders show up more when they are the underdog with less to play for. They can’t seem to play big when it counts. Call this one the shocker of the weekend as Jacksonville gets closer to representing the AFC South. Plus I’m a homer, and when in doubt go with your team when they are getting points at home!

By picks Indianapolis (-3). Sorry Chappy, Matt, and all Raider Nation faithful out there, but I don’t care if this game is being played in Oak Town, the Colts finally find themselves in the driver’s seat in the race for tops of the their division, and I expect them to put the pedal to the metal.  For what it’s worth, I believe the Raiders will put up at least 24 points against the Colts, and Darren McFadden will continue to beast it up.  But Manning and company will drop no less than 35 points against the silver and black.  Sorry buddies 😦

San Diego @ Cincinnati (+7.5)

Chappy picks San Diego -7.5. Easiest pick of the day. The Chargers rule December, and VJ looks like he has his swagger back. Who needs Gates right now the way this offense is moving the ball. Cincy is about as bad as it gets. The team By and I dubbed the most woeful in the league (Carolina) looks better than this bunch right now. TO is out for the year, so I see the whole team mailing it in!

New Orleans @ Atlanta (-2.5)

Chappy picks Atlanta (-2.5). No reason to think Atlanta can be slowed down now with home field on the line. The Saints have had as good a season as you can have coming off a Super Bowl win, but since they couldn’t beat the dirty birds in their own house I don’t see them doing it in Atlanta. I’m hoping for some offensive explosions from both these teams that seem to put up big numbers week in and week out. Is it weird that no body mentions Matt Ryan in the discussion for MVP? Sure his numbers aren’t eye popping, but he’s leading a 12-2 team!

By picks New Orleans (+2.5). I can’t believe I’m going against Matty Ice, but the Saints win this week.  Trust me, it won’t be anything Matty Ice does wrong, he’ll be the smooth, silky assassin he’s been all season.  I just think Drew Brees will be playing like a man possessed this week.  Division title hopes are still on the line, coming off a tough loss in Baltimore, Drew Brees has a lot at stake, and we’ve seen how he plays when a lot’s at stake.  This match will be the opposite of the N.Y. Jets/Chicago game, a high scoring slug fest.  Saints squeak by.

2 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , | posted in Sports

December 23, 2010

Mid-Week Ramblings…

By chappy81

Ohio State just had five of their best players suspended, including QB Terrelle Pryor. Definitely not a Buckeyes fan, nor do I feel that this was all that solid of a punishment. They took a measly $1K to $2.5K, and are all paying for that with a five game suspensions. The main part I don’t understand in this whole suspension is why these players get to play their bowl game this year. If all the evidence is there, shouldn’t the NCAA suspend all of them for the bowl game, and the first four games of next year for the five games?!? Personally I think they should, and that feels like a much stiffer penalty than the one handed down. Missing a bowl game and most likely losing it because you are missing five of your best players seems more fair in my book. Maybe the NCAA is trying to protect itself so if they run across something on Cam Newton, he will still be eligible for the Championship game, and then they could suspend him for next year when he’ll be in the NFL anyways keeping everyone’s pockets fat.

The Bobcats are blowing up the team to start 2011 with fresh outlook, after a season of underachievement. Adrian Wojnarowski wrote a good one on Yahoo about how the Larry Brown-Michael Jordan relationship all broke down starting back in 2008 when Jordan wanted to draft Brook Lopez, but ended up listening to Brown and drafted DJ Augustin. Change was obviously needed. I’m not sure what to make of Paul Silas coming back to coaching after being out of it for awhile. I thought he was a great coach for the Hornets the first time around with BD, Mashburn, Magloire, and Steve Smith, but this Bobcats team is nowhere near them talent wise. Either way, I’m sure he’ll be better than Art Shell was coming out of his hiatus back to coaching. I loved that Jordan brought Charles Oakley in as an assistant coach. Last week Oakley blasted Charles Barkley for being lazy and just getting by with his athletic skills. I won’t argue with Oak, because he’s probably taking mental notes and I don’t want to be on that list. Lebron’s list is fine, but Oak’s isn’t. I was more wondering if he knew what was about to happen and wanted to say “Chuck, stay behind a desk and keep being lazy cracking jokes on TNT instead of trying to coach or be a GM, you just don’t have the work ethic.”

Phil Jackson sounded off about not wanting to play on Christmas saying “I don’t think anybody should play on Christmas Day. Soccer teams don’t play this time of year, they take a break. I don’t understand it… It’s like Christian holidays don’t mean anything to them anymore. We just go out and play and entertain the TV. It’s really weird.”

Ummm, we know Phil is full of head games, but seriously Phil? I know you guys work hard and all, and maybe most don’t want to work on this glorious Christian holiday, but sports is a form of the entertainment industry, and when are the most people watching? When they don’t have work! You and your squad are paid ridiculous millions to play, so give us some damn entertainment. If you want your team to suck and not be one of the marquee match ups on Christmas I’m all for it. I’d love to see the Lakers not be on TV during Christmas because they aren’t relevant, that would almost be as good as any present I could get. I can make a list of the cons of my job a mile long, and I’m sure everyone playing on Christmas would much rather have that be their biggest “problem over a the average citizens problems like even having a job. I’m positive Jeanie will be able to handle giving out the solid gold PS4’s you got the kids this year. Plus, if there were no basketball games on Christmas, how could I parlay my Christmas money on some games to have an even better Christmas?!?

6 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | posted in Sports

December 20, 2010

Doin Hurdling

By chappy81

We haven’t really been on top of giving our readers very many funny clips lately, and when I saw this one today, I couldn’t resist posting it. We are fond of all things that come from Asia since three of us are Asian, and this guy in the clip had the spirit of the Panda with him in this race (literally), because that’s how a Panda would attack these hurdles too. I’m not sure if it was because he couldn’t jump or if it was some kind of special Olympics event, but whatever his reasons were for plowing through the hurdles, he brightened up my otherwise rainy and gloomy Monday. I couldn’t stop laughing when he knocked over the hurdle in the lane next to him right at the end making it so the other guy couldn’t even finish. As far as I can tell from homeboy’s celebration after crossing the finish line he must have won!!

8 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , | posted in Sports

December 20, 2010

Trading Weekend…

By chappy81

Wall Street is closed on the weekends, but there were some major trades being made in the sports world over the weekend. The two biggest trades were undoubtedly the Magic getting Gilbert (a long time favorite of mine) from the Wizards, as well as Hedo Turkoglu, Jason Richardson, and Earl Clark from the Suns. My first reaction to the trade when I saw it flash up on the bottom line on TV was, what an upgrade! They got rid of Rashard, Pietrus and Vince, which is a win my book regardless of who came in. Nothing against Vince or Rashard, but if the Magic really want to be serious contenders they needed to get rid of both of them for the simple reason that they always choke in the playoffs. Here’s a reminder of how they felt last year about the Hedoless team. (NJ and Toronto fans nodding in agreement) Second, they got rid of Michael (I step out of bounds twice a game) Pietrus. I’m not positive how Air France has done this year since I really don’t follow the Magic that closely, but Pietrus is a guy that frustrated me when he was in a Warriors uniform. I can only assume that those are the same type of sentiments that Magic fans have about him, but maybe not. All in all it was like the how the A’s finally rid themselves of Jack Cust. Addition by subtraction.

How will this new look Eastern Conference beast be with all the new parts? I really can’t say for sure that they will be better than the old group, but since they are taking in veterans that have played in multiple systems, I’m sure integrating them into the game plan won’t take as long as many expect. I also believe that Hedo and Arenas want to prove that they are good again, and will have plenty of reasons now that they will be playing for a winning team. I’m sure both want to revive their image, and winning cures that quickly just look at Vick! A lot of people seemed shocked that they’d blow up their team like this with only a quarter of the season gone by, but my thinking is that all of this seeming panic goes back to the summer of Lebron. The Magic are about to find themselves in a similar situation that Cleveland faced last year with Dwight’s contract expiring in 2012. Feels like a do or die move to try and get a championship. If you are the Magic, you definitely should be scared that if they don’t get a championship in the next two years then their chances to re-sign Dwight will be nearly impossible as he looks to take his talents away from central Florida. They already have experience losing a once in a lifetime center seeing Shaq flee to LA. Centers don’t grow on trees as we’ve seen with guys like Oden and Bynum never really making it to their potential level or staying healthy for that matter. The Magic are now deep into the luxury tax, but it will only be worth it if they can appease their big man to stay, and a championship might be the only way to do that. I hope it works out for them, unless of course Dwight has an aching to come to Golden State! Then I wouldn’t mind watching his “Decision” from the Epcot Center.

Zack Greinke was the other big trade of the weekend. I love reading how the Royals got a good deal out of it. Really!?! You can already tell?!? They traded away their best player and have improved greatly?!? I guess they are like the A’s, but simply never win. The Royals have one of the youngest roster known to man. Aside from Vin Mazzaro who the A’s just traded to them, I don’t really recognize many names. I guess they could be like the Padres and sneak up on everyone, but that’s a laughable statement in itself. If they are a contender in two years I will gladly eat those words. I’d put the chances of them getting a Cliff Lee, Brandon Phillips, and Grady Seizmore type haul at 1%.  Personally, I thought the best part about this trade was that the Rangers didn’t end up with Greinke. He was supposedly their second target after they failed to get Cliff Lee. Now it looks like the A’s are still the only team that’s really improved in the AL West, which makes me that much happier. The Brewers get what they were desperately missing with Greinke’s consistent pitching, even if last year he wasn’t as great. Can you blame him? I’d have a hard time getting fired up for starts if I was on the Royals. I think he’s going to tear through the NL lineups and might be somewhat like Halladay was last year for the Phillies, although there’s a huge difference between the AL East and the AL Central. I actually picked the Brewers to win the NL Central last year, maybe I just picked them one year too early! Now that they’ll have Yorvani Gallardo and hopefully a healthy Chris Capuano, so there’s no reason to count this team out. Their young core can put up runs, but now they some pitching to match that powerful lineup. If they can find a way to bridge the gap between their new starters and the Axeman I will be saying I told you so 8 months from now when they are in the playoffs!

10 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , | posted in Sports

December 17, 2010

Doin Lines Week 15

By chappy81

3-2 last week was okay. I guess it’s better than a losing week, but not by much. The season is getting interesting as we head down the home stretch, but after my Raiders lost last week it made me not pay attention to the happenings going on in the NFL during the week. I’ll call it a mini-depression that only comes when your team’s hopes are dashed. I guess there’s a little hope, but not much, so for now I’m hoping they can sweep their divisional games for the first time in decades.

Don’t have much to say as a prelude to my picks but look at that overall record.  I’m smiling from ear to ear considering where I stood in the early part of the season.  The best part about my picks these past few weeks is they’ve actually won me some coin.  Being that we just finished our “Naughty” or “Nice” list, and Christmas is around the corner I think it’s only right I ask Santa for one thing.  No 2011 NFL lock out.  And no 2011-2012 NBA lock out.  O.K. sorry Santa, that’s two things.  I got greedy.

Week 14 (By 3-1-1, Chap 3-2) Overall (By 35-30-5, Chap 36-40-3)

Houston @ Tennessee (-1.5)

By picks Houston (+1.5).  This might be fool’s gold being that Matt Schaub hasn’t exactly been the model of consistency this season, but take away that horrible decision to pass it to the wrong team in extra innings, and Schaub played a spectacular game against the Ravens last Monday, which is why I’ll take Houston this week.  Both teams aren’t going anywhere this season, but the Texans have to do enough for us to believe that next year is “their” year.  And so a good showing on the road versus a division rival should suffice.  For the Titans, my advice to them would be tank the season and hit rock bottom.  That way a mediocre 2011 (if there is a season) would be enough to satisfy the Tennessee fans.  I think they’ll take my advice.

Arizona (-2.5) @ Carolina

Chappy picks Carolina (+2.5). This might be one of the crappiest match ups in recent memory. I haven’t really watched either of these teams much this year, because they haven’t been worthy of three hours of attention. Carolina has been running the ball a little better with Stewart finding some holes, and Steve Smith being back might help the offense a little more. That being said they still suck. The Cardinals are in last place in the NFC Worst, but for some inexplicable reason are still in the playoff hunt. This is the first time all year I’ve picked Carolina, so I had to take them at least once, right!?! Arizona is going across the country to play a morning game, and with bad teams that’s a big deal.

By picks Carolina +2.5. Like Chappy said, this possibly is the worse NFL match up all season.  Scratch that, dare I say, all time?  It’s hard to believe the Arizona Cardinals were one or two plays from hoisting the Lombardy Trophy two years ago.  A lot of things have factored into their down fall since then, but the main reason is obvious.  Cutting Matt Leinhart.  What were the Cards thinking!?  All jokes aside, all this Cardinals losing has strengthen Kurt Warner’s case towards Canton.  I don’t know of one thing the Cards do well besides lose, and so despite the Panthers sucking major balls too, I’ve got to go with Carolina at home here.  I guess Jonathan Stewart’s been running well lately.  There.  That’s a better reason to go with the Panthers.

Jacksonville @ Indianapolis (-5)  Continue reading

13 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , , | posted in Sports

December 15, 2010

Doin Santa’s Naughty and Nice List

By chappy81

We decided to get into the holiday spirit, and help Santa with his list since he’s probably forgetful now that he’s 1,852 years old. Plus we know he checks Doin Work regularly, and if he isn’t listening to our advice, it’s probably the Santa at Macy’s that drank himself into blurry vision that is reading our regular visitor instead.

Naughty

Cali4Dre

Randy Moss – traded twice in one season, some say due to the bad mouth and worse attitude he has decided to display in the twilight of his career

What Randy wants for Xmas – A few more TDs to pad his career stats, another trip to the Pro Bowl to lock up a first ballot HOF vote, and I maybe a SB win, but that’s a team thing so maybe not.

What Randy gets from Santa – the first two 0 target games of his career, a suit case that doesn’t need unpacking, and apparently bad Mexican food in Minny.

Dustin Johnson – Led late in two different Majors this season, and came up short in each, with a major blunder in the PGA that cost him a spot in a playoff.

What DJ wants for Xmas – More  accuracy with that canon driver he has, or maybe the sense to use his 3 wood more often since he hits that 300 yards easy.

What DJ gets from Santa – Lessons learned the hard way for the talented 26 year old, a top 5 on the money list, a top 15 in world rankings, $4.5M in earnings and a RULE BOOK with the bunker section highlighted.

Chappy

Francisco Rodriguez – Assaulting your father-in-law in front of a crowd children and women.

What Frankie wants for Xmas– His pitching arm to heal and reach the 90 MPH range again after injuring the arm throwing heymakers at the father-in-law.

What Frankie gets from Santa – A trip back to the Domincan with no paycheck from the Mets.

Floyd Mayweather –   Continue reading

6 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | posted in Sports

December 14, 2010

A’s Make a Ripple in the Free Agent Pool

By chappy81

The A’s are finally starting to make some moves this offseason. Patience is a virtue I’m told, but I wanted to see waves crashing in the free agent pool early and often with the money they had available to spend. We barely missed out on the Crawford and Lee sweepstakes, and according to my insider information, they were in the running for both players, until someone else put in their first offer that we couldn’t quite match. Oh well, today we got a Japanese guy, but not the one I originally thought we would. Initially it looked like Hisashi Iwakuma would be joining the A’s pitching rotation next year, but the talks hit a stalemate, and he decided to stay in Japan or maybe the A’s were just blocking their division opponents from getting him. Today we found our DH for the upcoming season though in Hideki Matsui or as most know him Godzilla. We paid Matsui just under $5M for the up coming season, which is about double what Cust was making last year as our DH. I can tell you for sure that I’d much rather see Godzilla striking out with runners on base than Cust. Maybe the Asian bias comes in a little, but he is a big upgrade over Cust, which MCeezy already expressed. Who knows since the A’s never say anything that was said behind closed doors. It already feels like a much better buy than last year’s acquisition of Ben Sheets who never really saw the mound that much. Matsui at least has a better health track record, and since DH isn’t exactly a strenuous spot I’m not worried. Am I super excited about this signing? Not to the point of writing 1,000 words, but it’s a step in a direction filling a spot that we really needed filled. If he hits 21 homers again like he did last year, he will easily lead the team in that department. Also, I’ve been reading about his signing a lot today, and found out that Matsui has been a longtime A’s fan, and even had their cap back in the 80’s while he was living in Japan. He was really into the Bash Brothers growing up, and that alone just gave me a million extra reasons to like him. Nihon Gambare Godzilla! (Long live Godzilla in Japanese)

12 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , | posted in Sports

December 13, 2010

Sterling Should Taunt Himself

By chappy81

It’s impossible not to enjoy a good heckler at any kind of game. Whether it’s a realalistic fan spouting off about why someone is or isn’t good or it’s the idiot that doesn’t know anything about the game and 90% of the time is spitting out drunk babble. I have no problem with either as long as they are good at it, and are entertaining. Today it’s been reported that Donald Sterling the owner of the super successful Los Angeles Clippers, has been heckling his players for the last couple of years. All of the heckling reported seemed fairly un-imaginative.  Nobody has received it worse than our former Bay Area hero, Baron Davis. I had mixed feelings about it when I first read it, since BD hasn’t lived up to his contract at all, I can see why Sterling might feel that some of his comments/frustrations were warranted, but how many bad contracts have there been in the NBA? 5,000? 10,000? Way too many for me to count (I can count at least five on the Warriors right now). In this information age, you had to know what you were getting yourself into when you signed Baron. Maybe Sterling wasn’t paying attention to the way Baron left New Orleans or Golden State. Whatever the case for the bad blood between the two just remember Sterling holds the record for largest payout ($300M) in a trial that concluded that he was racist against who he was renting his apartments to.

I feel bad for Baron as he’s fighting against his injuries, a new coach, and even the owner. I guess it is possible that Sterling might have found the single weirdest way to motivate his highest paid player. I doubt that’s what he’s doing, but if you were Baron wouldn’t you want to prove him wrong a little? The weirdest part about all this is I couldn’t see any owner doing this in any sport. Not Dan Gilbert who wrote that ugly letter to Lebron. I can’t see Jerry Jones on the sidelines heckling Roy Williams, with a “get off my billion dollar field comment”. At least Bud Adams flips off the opposing team instead of his own. Even Al Davis loves his players too much to throw them under the bus during a game.

The fallout from this will probably be nothing much from the Baron front, because he’ll get paid whether he performs or not. He might pick up his game a little bit, but looking at it from the bigger perspective they have two amazing stars of the future there in Eric Gordon, and the eventual Rookie of the Year, Blake Griffin that nearly every franchise would kill to have as building blocks. I’ve never been in their locker room or around any of their players, but do know that Baron is a very likeable guy. I’m positive that he’s had some influence on Gordon and Griffin in one way or another, and I feel like they’d feel Sterling is in the wrong. My theory is if Sterling continues to heckle Baron (and he most likely will), does he really expect either of his two young stars to stay when they have a choice of exploring their options? If I were either of them, my first option would either be to switch to purple and gold, or get the hell out of LA. Also how do you build with these guys? Would any free agent in their right mind want to go to the Clippers unless they were going to make an extra $2-3M? Enjoy Griffin and Gordon while you can Clippers fans, because the Sterling and Baron saga just sealed your future of staying in the lottery for years to come, and confirmed why I put you as the worst NBA franchise over a year ago.

10 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | posted in Sports

December 9, 2010

Doin Lines Week 14

By chappy81

A 2-4 week has me thinking I will never crack the .500 mark this season. Luckily I hit a parlay to break even money wise, but I’m sure you all could care less about that. I think everyone has found this season a little strange in that there aren’t a ton of contenders that cover the spread every week, and looking through the lines I was shocked to see that there wasn’t one double digit favorite. What does this mean? Even the odds makers are a little befuddled by this season! The highest spread is New Orleans -9 at home. Speaking of NO, is it just me or are they the least hyped defending champs ever? I don’t hear the morning FOX, CBS, or ESPN gangs raving about anything the Saints are doing, and aren’t they the champs until someone knocks them off? I guess not in this Twitter age. The Patriots and Jets must be the only teams worthy of our attention, so the networks have led me to believe. I just can’t get over how many people were on their bandwagon last year and now, no love at all. What gives?!?

What gives is right!  As in, what gives with a 2-3 record last week!?  Well I am a firm believer in karma, or getting your “just dues”, and the way I was approaching my picks last week, like it was some sort of guaranteed 5-0 event, let’s just say I got what I deserved with those results.  Time to get myself back on the positive side this week.  On a side note, the Bo Sox just signed Carl Crawford!?  Looks like Bean Town’s the new “Evil Empire” in baseball …

Week 13 (By 2-3, Chap 2-4) Overall (By 32-29-4, Chap 33-38-3)

Indianapolis @ Tennessee (+3)

By picks Indy (-3). I will beat this horse dead, but I’m not going to stop riding it.  Wait, does that even make sense?  I guess what I’m trying to say is, I’m not jumping off the Peyton Manning ship just yet, especially in a must win scenario at a division rival.  As horrible as Manning has been these past three weeks, he’s still one of the greatest QB’s to ever play the game, which in my book, means something.  He will right the ship this week and trust his guys more.  On the other side of the ball, Tennessee is a mess.  Vince Young, Randy Moss, need I say more?

Oakland @ Jacksonville (-4) Continue reading

23 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | posted in Sports

December 7, 2010

Mike Tyson Gets His Due

By chappy81

Yes, Mike Tyson was inducted today into Boxing’s HOF. For better or worse Mike Tyson was a force in the sport. He was a crazy ear biter, but I think that’s what made him good like most fighters. It’s rare you meet boxers like Pacquiao or Forman, and it’s much more common to come across bastards with Tyson or Mayweather like attitudes. While I was growing up Tyson WAS boxing even more so than Sylvester Stallone, err, I mean Rocky. He was the most feared man alive, and I barely could beat him in Nintendo’s original Mike Tyson’s Punch Out. Luckily for him he’s stayed away from being broke jumping in a few movies lately, and seems to have a new perspective on life making him look a little sane. Anyways, after hearing he got inducted to the HOF, I had to jump on youtube to relive some of his clips to kill a little of the afternoon, and thought I’d post some for for you to remember just how awesome he was…

9 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , | posted in Sports

December 7, 2010

MLB Winter Meetings

By chappy81

Probably the most exciting time of the MLB offseason is seeing the hundreds of millions of dollars flying around. The winter meetings always produce plenty of rumors, and usually end with at least a few big names traded or signed to new teams. I was especially excited about this year, since I wrote a while back that the A’s actually have some money to spend on some free agents this year. It has just made me follow the winter meetings all that much closer! Here’s a few thoughts on the things I thought that were interesting that have taken place so far.

Adrian Gonzalez to the Red Sox seems like a solid deal for both sides. The Padres lost their best player and fan favorite, but got prospects that they are very familiar with since Jed Hoyer (Padres GM) used to work in Boston’s front office. We won’t know if the trade was all that even until the prospects hit the majors for a couple of years, but if they somehow pulled a Hanley Ramierez type player out of the deal it might not be as lopsided as everyone thinks right now. The Padres knew they couldn’t afford him next year, and I thought that they would give it a run this year after last year’s solid season. I thought they’d wait and see where they were at the All-Star break, but it’s probably better to trade a healthy Gonzalez now, instead of risking that he’ll be injured with diminished value later. Adrian just shot up my draft board for fantasy baseball. Just look how good Beltre did last year moving from the unfriendly hitting confines of Seattle to the playing pepper with the Green Monster.

Jayson Werth’s megadeal of 7 years and $126M seems like a horrible signing to me. Boras gets money for his clients though, and his clients are always happy with the deal. Does Werth have Carlos Beltran written all over it? Don’t get me wrong, I love the way Jayson plays, but for this much money after only two productive years in a hitters park is a head scratcher to me. Why are the Nats bogging down their payroll when they suck? It feels like the same kind of deal Gary Matthews got with the Angels. Just ask them how much they like that guy! Doesn’t signing Adam Dunn seem like a more reasonable option? I’d rather keep Dunn with less years, and maybe struggle for a year or two. When Bryce Harper and Steven Strasburg are playing at the level we all think they will, then would be the time to figure out what you need most and spend all your money. Not now, when you aren’t positive of what your team needs really are. I guess they might have a real plan if they really do throw “huge” money at Cliff Lee, but I’ll believe it when I see it.

Tiger, Frank, and Jaime can all get a good laugh about this divorce stuff!

McCourt Vs. McCourt in court. Jaime and Frank finished up their first trial as they were competing for the rights to own the Dodgers in what has been a very messy divorce. The court ruled that Frank’s document stating he was the sole owner of the team will be thrown out because it was illegally made after the original prenup, so the team is still 50% hers and 50% his. If one of the two can’t buy the team outright, it’s been assumed that they will sell the team, which would make a lot of Dodger fans happy. Unfortunately though that won’t happen soon, and there will be another trial trying to prove that Frank’s original company was the reason they were able to purchase the Dodgers, so he will try to prove that he should have sole ownership. Looks like the Dodgers are going to be battling with Arizona for last place in the division this year.

The A’s offseason started with a bang as they made a couple trades and pickups with David Dejesus and Edwin Encarnacion. They won the rights to talk to Japanese pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma as well. We already dumped Encarnacion, and never really came close to signing Iwakuma, so I guess all that was smoke and mirrors. We may have just been blocking the Rangers and Mariners from Iwakuma since they were the two teams we outbid to have the rights to negotiate with him. It never really felt like a deal was getting done for him, especially for the money he was asking for to be our 5th starter.

I do want the A’s to spend this year, and they have the money to do so, but I think I’m more encouraged on what they haven’t spent their money on! They were rumored to be talking to Lance Berkman, which sounded like bringing back Giambi, Sweeney, or Piazza type in. I’m not a fan of that method anymore, because we’ve only gotten one Frank Thomas, and the rest looked washed up like they were. Now Berkman’s the Cardinals problem, and I still don’t understand why they got him when he has to play in the outfield, unless they want to slot him in instead of Pujols. Another guy they were rumored going after was Adrian Beltre. I was just as happy to see that they withdrew their contract offer to him, because he only plays good in contract years. I hope the Angels end up with him, and he turns into Seattle Beltre that didn’t care. I’d much rather go for a guy like Josh Willingham at a highly discounted price…

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December 3, 2010

Doin Lines Week 13

By chappy81

Another 4-1 week for me?  My confidence is so high though, that I dare call that average.  Chappy and I have had a pretty busy week with *gasp* work (can you believe it?) so we threw around the idea of “Doin One Liners” for the weekly edition of “Doin Lines”.  Basically, we state our reason for taking a team in one or two brief sentences.  I’m actually going to try this …

3-3 wasn’t too bad last week since I was sure I’d have a losing week, either way I’d say it was a better day than the guy pictured up top here. Like By said it was a rough week of work, so sometimes the blogging time suffers. Oh well, gotta make that paper to have some money to bet on these games.

Week 12 (By 4-1, Chap 3-3) Overall (By 30-26, Chap 31-34-3)

Buffalo @ Minnesota (-5.5)

By picks Buffalo (+5.5). Minnesota got their new coach a nice win in his debut, but now it’s back to mediocre football for the Vikes.  The Bills will win so Steve Johnson can start thanking the man upstairs again, instead of blaming him.  

Washington @ NY Giants (-7)

Chappy picks NYG (-7). They lost to Philly and Dallas, so I think they are due to put a hurting on a division foe, if they really are a good team that is. Too bad this stadium is not much of a home field advantage…

Denver @ Kansas City (-8.5) Continue reading

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November 29, 2010

Thanksgiving Weekend Leftovers

By chappy81

Now that the food coma has settled down from the weekend, I realized that there were tons of things that happened that I didn’t get a chance to reflect on. Now that it’s back to the grind, I can collect some thoughts on the weekend that was Thanksgiving, and give you some of my leftover thoughts.

Leslie Neilsen

It was sad to hear this morning that Leslie Neilsen died last night from pneumonia at the tender age of 84. “The Naked Gun” series was easily one of my favorites growing up, and fell slightly behind “Back to the Future” in the times watched category. In my eyes, Leslie started the spoof/making fun of movies that were already made game, and set the bar way too high for the Waynes Brothers to duplicate with one possible exception “Don’t be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Juice in the Hood”. It’s amazing how times have changed, and even though he’s gone now, Frank Drebbin, errr, I mean, Enrique Palazzo will always be the best hometown umpire we’ve ever seen to call a game (too bad it benefitted the Angels). Thanks for the laughs Leslie, you will always be remembered.

The WolfPack Takes Down Boise State

I had mixed emotions about this game. I’m friends with a ton of UNR graduates, so I was happy for them that Nevada won. At the same time, I was also rooting for Boise to have a shot at the title game, but they didn’t come through. I’ve never pretended to understand the BCS rankings, but doesn’t it seem like Nevada should be ranked higher than Boise since they just beat them?!? I guess not… It was a great game if you didn’t see it, it was shocking that the WolfPack came back from such a large deficit. I really felt bad for the Boise State’s kicker, who missed two field goals at the end of the game. He killed off two years, and 24 straight wins of hard work to get that program to the point where they had a shot at being in the National Championship in a span of a mere twenty minutes. It might have been the least forgivable performance since Andres Escobar scored his own goal in the 1994 World Cup, but fortunately for Kyle Brotzman (the Boise kicker), he lives in America instead of Columbia, and I doubt will be killed for it. He might have to do a Bartman type relocation, but in the end, that’s not that bad. Hopefully he doesn’t turn out like Finkle and kidnap Kellen Moore just before their bowl game next year.

Spygate Part Deux Continue reading

11 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , | posted in Movies, News, Sports

November 26, 2010

Jordan Vs. Lebron Parody

By chappy81

Ran across this clip this morning, and have to say it’s awesome! I’m on the fence if it’s actually real or not, since I don’t know why Nike would want MJ to rip on their golden boy Lebron. Either way, I don’t really care if it was doctored, and the words MJ is saying are from a completely different interview, because I bet this is how Jordan actually feels deep down. All I know is if it’s real Lebron might wish he didn’t tell everyone in the league to not wear 23 anymore…

8 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , | posted in Comedy, Sports

November 24, 2010

Doin Lines Week 12

By chappy81

Looks like the trend for my picks is continuing. I went 4-2 last week, and said that I’d have a winning record because I alternate weeks on doing well and then doing bad. That being said, I guess you can safely pick against my picks this weekend as you will be sure to come out a winner if this seven week and counting trend continues. I know we haven’t been putting up a whole lot of posts lately, and for that I apologize. I’m guessing it’s because the W’s and Raiders hit the wall called reality that I always seem to forget exists when they are playing well. If David Lee didn’t get rabies from Wilson Chandler, and Richard Seymour didn’t throw a fit, I’d be a little more motivated. Oh well, at least I won on two parlays this weekend! Money makes up for internal pain a little! Another bright note from last weeks picks, By and I were 2-0 on picks we agreed on. Much better than weeks past!

Never would a 26-25-4 record look, and feel so good, until now.  Being that it’s been a struggle to stay within striking range of .500 all season long, to finally get over the hump after Week 11 has allowed me to breath a big sigh of relief.  This is what Steve Young must have felt like when Super Bowl XXIX was already decided and he told his sideline to get the monkey off his back.  Unfortunately, the one loss last week, came with me foolishly betting on my 49ers after all my other bets had covered, and seeing them not even show up to the game.  Anyway, like I said last week, I ain’t stopping now!  I will chase down that elusive 5-0 week, I promise.  On a side note, congrats to Chaps, he’s closing in on .500 and I know it’s coming soon!  Let the lines begin!

Week 11 (Chap 4-2, By 4-1) Overall (Chap 28-31-3, By 26-25-4)

New England (-6.5) @ Detroit

Been awhile since any Lions took any Turkey pieces for player of the game.

By picks New England (-6.5). Nothing like tradition, and Thanksgiving football in the Motor City is definitely tradition.  You know what else is tradition?  The Detroit Lions getting spanked at home during Thanksgiving brunch.  What better way to keep that tradition alive, than to send the NFL’s best team to 8 Mile Road?  The Lions have talent, there’s no question about that, but for some reason, they can never get it together.  Meanwhile, Tom Brady is in the hunt for his second MVP award, and keeping pace with the NY Jets in the AFC East is of the utmost importance to the Pats.  They’ll stay sharp Thursday and carve up some Lions with ease.

New Orleans (-3.5) @ Dallas

Chappy picks New Orleans -3.5. Let’s start it off with a tough one shall we! The Cowboys are trying to get their third straight win, but this is by far their toughest opponent. They took out a sleepwalking Giants team (who are impossible to figure out), and then went on to beat a so-so Lions team. If there’s one thing that Garrett has done since taking over for the much maligned Phillips, is that he made them look like a real football team again. The Saints are also rolling pretty good winning their last three games including one against a tough Pittsburgh team. I like Sean Peyton and Drew Brees over Jason Garrett and Jon Kitna. Speaking of Kitna, why has this great collection of talented offensive players looked better than when Romo was in the lineup? I don’t have the answer, but maybe you do…

By picks New Orleans (-3.5). Yes I get it, the Cowboys are red hot and rejuvenated by the change at the helm.  But that doesn’t change the fact that the Saints are hotter!  Drew Brees has quietly put together another magnificent season despite a some what of a slow start.  A scary fact, the Saints aren’t even close to hitting their peak stride, and so I see nothing but improvement from here on out from the boys of the bayou.  As for the Cowboys, enjoy your mini streak while it lasts.  Come Thursday, the Saints are going to stuff the Cowboys.  (Hope you guys are sensing a theme here).

Cincinnati @ New York Jets (-9)

Chappy picks Cincinnati (+9). Every analyst is in love with Mark Sanchez and his clutch performances lately. I can’t disagree that he hasn’t been clutch, but why are some of these games even that close to begin with? Seven of their ten games have been closer than a TD, and they were far from shootouts. Sanchez might be playing well at the right times, but would it kill him to throw for 300+ yards and have a 3-4 TD game. When he gets a couple of those under his belt, I’ll start believing. Cincy is the opposite. They seem to get blown out early, and come back only to fall short. The polar opposite dynamic of last year’s team. This is the main reason to take the points!

Minnesota @ Washington (-3.0)

By picks Minnesota (+3). The Vikes got exactly what they wanted, a new coach.  And no, I’m not talking about the interim guy who’s pretending to be the coach, I’m talking about the “texting” guy.  He’s the real coach of this team.  With that said, Favre will rekindle some 2009 magic and unleash a few deep bombs to Sidney Rice.  Rice should have better legs under him after playing in his first game this season.  The Vikings are too talented to be losing these many games, so I expect them to prevail over another dysfunctional team in Washington.  Minnesota 27, Washington 21.

Tennessee @ Houston (-6.5)

Chappy picks Houston -6.5. I think Chris Johnson is going to have a huge day against an awful Houston offense, but in the end if you have a rookie named Rusty making his first NFL start, you can’t like your chances that much. Maybe it won’t feel like a road game for the Oilers, I mean Titans, going back to their birthplace many years ago. It’s amazing how a team can go from contender to pretender in two quick weeks after nabbing Randy Moss off waivers. I wonder when he is going to be back on waivers? My prediction, after this week’s loss and another one catch performance he’s there.

Carolina @ Cleveland (-11)

Chappy picks Cleveland -11. I think the only thing that hasn’t changed over the past four weeks in a season that my opinion changes every week is that Carolina will lose by two scores minimum regardless of who they are playing. Cleveland happens to be on the rise and at home. I like them winning big. I still wish the Raiders used one of their first four picks on McCoy. Hopefully that doesn’t bug me for the next ten years…

Tampa Bay @ Baltimore (-7.5).

By picks Tampa Bay (-7.5). This is the most intriguing match up of the weekend.  I’m pretty high on the Bucs, and I’m really high on the Ravens.  Baltimore is a legit contender, while the Bucs are good pretenders in my eyes, but with that said, Tampa plays every team tough and they’ll bring it this weekend in Baltimore. Joe Flacco has been picking apart defenses consistently all year, but Ray Rice has finally showed up to the party.  That makes this Ravens team that more dangerous.  Ultimately, I don’t see the Ravens winning by more than a touch down, and so I’m going with Ronde Barber and company to cover this week.  Ravens win by 4.

Chappy picks Baltimore -7.5. It’s funny how everyone comes to their conclusion on who is the best team in the league. I’m not sure I can give Baltimore that title, but they are about as close as it gets, and are about as complete as it gets on both sides of the ball. With all due respect to Raheem and the Bucs, they really haven’t beaten any of the “contenders” they’ve faced. They were blown out by Pittsburgh and New Orleans, then lost a sort of close one to Atlanta. Everyone else they played has a losing record. Since I see Baltimore as a true contender, I don’t mind laying the points when they are at home. I see Ed Reed getting down on one of those patent interception TD returns by baiting Freeman into thinking a receiver is open.

Kansas City (-2) @ Seattle

By picks Kansas City (-2). Who would have thought that the AFC West would have been this good, and that Kansas would play a road game this season in which they were favored?  The one two punch of Thomas Jones and Jaamal Charles would normally be enough for me to pick the Chiefs in this spot, but now throw in Dwyane “Not Wade” Bowe!?  Sold!  Dwayne Bowe has been the best wide receiver in the league over these past two or three weeks, maybe with the exception of Roddy White, and so  I don’t expect things to change this week as Bowe will have his TD and 100 yards.  Seattle’s a tough place to play, but I still feel good about KC’s chances in covering.

San Diego @ Indianapolis (-3)

Chappy picks San Diego (+3). These two teams always have good battles, and usually come down to the last play. I took the liberty of flipping a coin, and George Washington told me to take the points. Made sense to me!

4 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , , , , , | posted in Sports