Fighting Chance's Gut Check Time

This week’s installment of Gut Check Time is brought to you by Miller Lite, who continues to make me check my gut to see how much it has grown.  And now, the week in sports.

From the I Live In A Van Down By The River Dept. Did anyone see the Al Davis press conference?  I only saw the “highlights” on ESPN, but did anyone else think he looked like a homeless person that just found some nice clothes.  Or maybe it is Jigsaw from the Saw movie series.  Did he really need the huge Raiders leather jacket AND that turtleneck thing?  Hey Al, you live in California, it should be warmer than that there.  This circus was so out of control as Davis took shot after shot at Lane Kiffen who was obviously not present to defend himself.  And then the topper was Davis took out a projector to show a letter to the press that he mailed to Kiffen to prove that he was telling the truth and that Kiffen was indeed a liar.   Now look, I don’t know the details of who is telling the truth and who is lying, but was I the only one who thought that the way Davis went about it was completely Bush League.  Who wants to work for this guy?  How long before Tom Cable is fired?  Get those office pools going.  And you can get another one going for the year that the Raiders become relevant again.  I’ll take the year after Al Davis gives up control of the franchise.

From the Someone Probably Got Fired Dept. The baseball playoffs are in full swing now, after it took a couple of extra days of the regular season to figure everything out.  Let’s give a huge shout out to whichever genius in the Mets’ organization decided to have the closing ceremonies for Shea Stadium AFTER the last game.  I’m sure they were planned well in advance, but it’s not like they never blew a big divisional lead with only a couple weeks left in the season before, right?  No way it could happen again!  So, although I stopped watching the game in the 8th inning, I imagine those ceremonies were immensely tainted by the fact that the 55,000 fans in attendance had just watched their team get knocked out of the playoffs by the same Marlins’ team that did it to them last year.  So, A+ for whoever made those plans.

From the Maybe Next Year Dept. It looks like those Cubbies fans will be 100 years and counting towards winning another title.  The Cubs are getting killed by the Dodgers, and will probably go out like lambs in three straight.  They do have Rich Harden going to the mound for them, who could change the momentum of the whole series, but these are the Cubs we are talking about, so let’s be serious.   I have been a Cardinals fan for about 12 years now, so although my beloved Redbirds didn’t make the playoffs this year, it does my heart good to see those bums go out in the first round again.

From the All That Drama For Nothing Dept. For all the good that C.C. Sabathia did for the Brewers to get them into the playoffs was just undone by his latest dump in the postseason.  Sabathia was ridiculous since he came to the National League, and almost singlehandedly pitched a team that was trying to give up at the end into the playoffs.   But as usual, he chokes up in the playoffs as he gave up a grand slam to the Flyin’ Hawaiian, Shane Victorino (a real power hitter!).  The Beer Makers did get one, but it looks like they will go quietly into the night as well.  Good job by the NL Central teams really showing some fight this year!

From the Greatest Stories of All-Time Dept. For all of those who were picking against the Rays all season long are finally having to eat their words as they are on the brink of the ALCS.  For all the bitching Yankee fans did about their injury problems, Tampa was without All-World rookie Evan Longoria for about a month and All-Star OF Carl Crawford for almost two months and they were still able to hold off the vaunted Yanks and Red Sox.  This is a team that finished last in almost ever year of their existence.  They are now one win away from the ALCS.  And as happy as I am to watch the Cubs take the express track out of the playoffs, I am equally happy to see the Yankees not even make it!  For those of you who don’t know, I am an New Yorker (upstate, not NYC), and I really don’t like any NY sports teams, but I really hate the Yankees.  My dad is a Mets’ fan, so I was pretty much groomed from birth to hate the Yankees.  Not sure why we hate them so much, but honestly, watching them lose gives me as much happiness as watching my team win.   Sometimes I feel sick about it, but not really.

From the We’ve Got Your Number Dept. The Red Sox have the Angels’ number, plain and simple.  That is 11 straight wins against the Halos, and as good as the Red Sox are, I can’t understand it.  I though the Angels were the best team in baseball, but sending Joe Saunders against Josh Beckett has all the scent of a sweep to me.

From the Two Times Is A Charm Dept. The Juice won’t be loose much longer.  The phrase “you got away with murder” is pretty overused in this country.  Used whenever someone gets away with something big that they shouldn’t have, you probably hear someone say it at least once a week.  Well, O.J. Simpson actually DID get away with murder!  Literally!  But what did he do?  Did he just fade away and keep quiet?  Noooooo, he and four others rushed into a hotel room in Las Vegas (armed, by the way) to rob some collectors who had some O.J. memorabilia.  Well the clock struck midnight on the Juice this time, and he now faces five years to life after being convicted on all charges stemming from that night.  What a dope!  How many times did he think he could beat the system.  I can see it now…..if he got acquitted again he would spend the rest of his life looking for the real robbers.  Good for you Orenthal, you got what you deserved the first time.

From the Just Give It Up Dept. I can’t believe that I am going to write about the Tour De France so let me just make this quick.  What the $#^@ is the obsession that the French have with catching Lance Armstrong doping?  Armstrong announced recently that he will run in Tour again next year, and of course, the French are saying that he is embarassing the race.  No, he has been embarassing the competition.  It takes amazing stamina to be able to compete in that bike race and is among the more impressive feats in sports, but I’ve watched some of it (the wife watches it, so of course that means I watch it), and I have no idea how it works.  The vast majority of the guys have ABSOLUTELY no chance to win anything.  They are only in the race to help the main guy to win.  Forget that!  I’m not riding a bike for two straight weeks over hundreds of miles so some other dope can get all the props.  And the yellow jersey for the leader, green jersey for the best climber, polka dot jersey for something else.  It’s like watching a bowl of Lucky Charms.    Anyway, good luck to Lance, I have plenty of respect for a guy who beats cancer and comes back to win ANYTHING seven years in a row.  Plus stick it up the French asses, for being so stupid. These riders are tested after every leg of the race.  If Lance was doping, he would have gotten caught by now.

Finally, we have a new section of our site.  If you look down the right hand side you will see the logo for the V Foundation for Cancer Research.  Now, almost all of our lives have been affected in some way by this dreaded disease.  I don’t want to pressure anyone, but if you are financially able to do so, please click on that link and help this world class organization try to find a cure so that hopefully somewhere down the line we don’t have to lose so many good people way too soon.  I would like to thank the entire Jimmy V Foundation, and especially Sherrie Mazur, for being so helpful to me in getting this opportunity for Fighting Chance Fantasy.  We are grateful to be able to help, even if it is in some small way.

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