Food for Thought 9-4-2012

Photo courtesy of zimbio.com. Stephen Strasburg (pictured above) looked pretty sharp on Sunday against St. Louis. Sadly, his season will end on September 12th due to an innings limit placed on him by Washington Nationals GM Mike Rizzo.

By Josh Kramer

“Operation Shutdown Strasburg” is an utter embarrassment.  Many MLB players go through an entire career and never make the playoffs once, much less contend for a playoff spot.  The Washington Nationals have failed to post a record better than .500 since making the move to the nation’s capital in 2005 (until yesterday).  There is only one way to describe Nationals GM Mike Rizzo’s September 12th expiration date on the Nationals star pitcher: A simple ego struggle.

That’s right, Washington is willing to risk a deep playoff run due to their General Manager’s ego.  I really have no other logical way to explain it.  Health concerns are are fine by me, but within reason.  There are always exceptions though.  Stephen Strasburg is a 24-year-old prized prospect who is in good health.  I realize that he had Tommy John surgery towards the end of the 2010 season.  But how many pitchers go through an entire career without a surgery such as Tommy John in this day and age?  Not many.

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Weekly Nickel 9-3-2012

Photo courtesy of zimbio.com. Adam Jones (pictured above) has been a main reason why the Baltimore Orioles are in contention for their first AL East title since 1997.

By Josh Kramer

Labor Day typically means two things other than a day off of work.  First of all, the dog days of August are over.  Secondly, America’s favorite sport is back.  College football took over this weekend and guess what?  The NFL is right around the corner.  Last week was a whole lot of fun, but this week will be good in its own right.  Here are the events to keep an eye on.

5.  Richmond International Speedway will be the place to be next Saturday in terms of NASCAR.  This is the final race before the Chase for the Cup begins at Chicagoland Speedway on the 16th.  In other words, Richmond is for all of the marbles.  Find a way into the top ten, or pray that you nab one of the two wild card spots.  I am looking at you Jeff Gordon, Kyle Busch, and Carl Edwards.

4.  The dog days are finally over.  Players are smiling from ear to ear due to the dog days finally ending, the expanded rosters, and of course the home stretch to the regular season.  We have learned a few things along the way.  The Baltimore Orioles are the real deal.  Crazy, I know.  Much of this is thanks to their star center fielder Adam Jones.

Food for Thought 7-10-2012

Photo courtesy of zimbio.com. Andy Murray (pictured above) was brought to tears on Sunday. Just call him the “Heartbreak Kid.”

By Josh Kramer

Since the beginning of time, sports have been filled with loveable losers.  Sports are generally a zero-sum game.  There are winners and losers (occasional ties such as the 2002 All-Star Game ten years ago).  It is a part of life.  On Sunday, watching the tears stream down Andy Murray’s face and the heartbreak of an entire country got me thinking about some of the loveable losers in sports.

No I am not going to talk about the 86-year Curse of the Bambino and the rebels out of Beantown.  Also, don’t hold your breath in regards to Wrigleyville’s finest (the 105-year streak isn’t ending any time soon).  Today, is Andy Murray’s day.  God knows if this guy will ever take home a Grand Slam title.  As I have stated many times before, Andy Murray is quickly becoming the “Greatest Of All Time (GOAT)” to never win a Grand Slam.

Andy Murray has won over 375 professional matches.  He has won 22 tournaments.  Murray has been ranked in the top ten in the world for over five years and spent the majority of that time ranked in the top four.  And he has made four appearances in the finals of a Grand Slam tournament (Australian Open twice, Wimbledon, US Open).  If Murray can somehow get over the hump and avoid Rafael Nadal until the finals at Roland Garros next May, he will complete the career Grand Slam.  The career Grand Slam of finishing second that is.  Not exactly as good as the real thing I guess.

Food for Thought 12-6-2011

Photo courtesy of eye-on-baseball.blogs.cbssports.com. Jose Reyes (right) will join Hanley Ramirez (left) to round out the Miami Marlins left side of the infield.

By Josh Kramer

I am in a much better mood than I was last week at this time in regards to sports.  No new controversies.  The focus is on actual sports related actions on and off the field.  The way things are supposed to be.  It was a wild weekend though (in a good way).  Here are the items that have caught my attention.

A second “MonStars” in Miami?

Food for Thought 9-6-2011

Photo courtesy of crackbillionair.wordpress.com. Donald Young (pictured above) seems to finally be living up to the hype this year in Flushing.

By Josh Kramer

The sporting world has been going wild the past couple of days, and it is about to get even crazier with the beginning of the NFL Regular season.  Now we have football, baseball, and tennis all going at once.  Not a bad time to be a sports fan.

Here is what has caught my attention.

American Tennis Awakes

It is common knowledge for even the most casual of tennis fans that American tennis has been struggling for years now.  No man has brought home a Grand Slam title since the 2003 US Open.  This is the longest drought in the history of American Men’s tennis.  Well over the course of the past week, all eyes in the tennis world have been focused on the Big Apple.  Flushing Meadows has taken center stage hosting the 4th and Final Grand Slam of the year.

Guess how many American made it to the round of 16?

Weekly Nickel 7-11-2011

Photo courtesy of mets636.glogster.com. The Home Run Derby is one of the big events going on this week. We all remember Josh Hamilton's (pictured above) memorable first round in 2008.

By Josh Kramer

On to the next one.  Last week was an epic week full of wild finishes, big time milestones, and a great conclusion to the first half of the MLB season.  This week should be another great one.

Here is what you should be watching for.

5.  The NFL lockout progresses with “cautious optimism.”  The end is near though.  Or so it seems.  We are getting to the point where matters need to be solved, or training camp and preseason games will be missed.  I firmly believe that the League will not let any games be missed, preseason or not.  Look for a conclusion to this ridiculous fiasco at some point within the next two weeks.

“Food for Thought 2-22-11”

In the big news of the day, the New York Knicks just added the likes of Chauncey Billups (left), Carmelo Anthony (right), and others to their team. New York appears to finally be relevant again for the first time since the Ewing days.

“You had me at Melo.”  That is what the whole city of New York is saying today in light of recent developments where their beloved Knickerbockers picked up scoring machine, Carmelo Anthony.  The former Syracuse star is finally heading to play in the Mecca.  Its about time.  There is so much going on in the sporting world.  There is so much to talk about. 

So lets jump right into the day’s main headlines.

You Had Me at Melo

“Food for Thought”

It is almost a foregone conclusion that Carmelo Anthony (pictured above) will not be wearing a Nugget's jersey at this time next year. Could he be wearing a Laker's jersey?

It is yet another jam-packed Tuesday in the sporting world. And all of you know what that means. Lets jump into another round of “Food for Thought.”

Here are some of the major headlines today.

Melo to LA?