Sportsmeat

The FedEx Cup reminds me of an old Far Side comic about the four kinds of people in the world: those who see the cup as half full, those who see it as half empty, those who can't decide, and the guy who grumbles, "I ordered a cheeseburger."

A lot of golf fans seem to be waiting for their cheeseburgers, and it's not hard to see why. It's not just that the system is confusing -- it's unneccesary. The four majors have always measured golf's best. No one remebers who won the Tour's player of the year award, but everyone in the gallery can look at Corey Pavin and say "U.S. Open champ" or point to Mike Wier and remember him in the green jacket. By adding a playoff in a sport that already has four well-spaced meetings of the world's best players, the PGA is basically trying to force feed us a cup of water and act like it's a tasty burger.

I know what you're thinking: Does he really think this analogy is working? Is he just trying to confuse me to simulate the idiotic FedEx Cup points system? Are there any horse socks?

The PGA line has been to just watch and wait -- it'll make sense when you see it in action. You'll like it. Trust us. Well, here's how much sense I gleaned from round one: Steve Stricker won the Barclays, so he's now in first place. (OK.) Tiger skipped the first event and dropped all the way to fourth place. (Er?) Bob Heintz finished tied for 17th at the Barclays, but because he started the playoffs ranked #132, he missed the 120-man cut for round two. (Huh?) Harrison Frazer, who came in ranked #116, will move on, thanks to his impressive 75-75-CUT performance. (Wha?)

I understand that the PGA wants to include as many players as possible in the playoffs so that everyone gets a cut of the cash, and I also can see why they want to give points for the regular season, to reward top players and keep the big names around longer. But nine of the 24 players eliminated after round one made the cut at the Barclays. Where's the reward for playing well IN THE PLAYOFFS? Isn't that the idea? In other sports, top regular season teams get modest advantages like home field, but they still have to win to advance. At the very least, there should be a guarantee that if you make the tournament cut in rounds one or two, you move on to the next round.

Expect much tweaking after this thing wraps up, and a possible penalty for no-shows, if the PGA is feeling bold. Just don't expect to see another cheeseburger until the 2008 Masters.

Tennis has flipped. It used to be that the women’s draw was fairly predictable, while the men’s was thrown into upheaval by the opening of the third round. No longer. The draw for the 2007 US Open was announced yesterday and there is little reason to believe that the top four seeds on the men’s side—Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Nikolay Davydenko—will not be in the semifinals.

Nadal has the cleanest path to the semis and Djokovic, who a lot of people truly believe can win the tournament, has a tough fourth round matchup with a re-born Lleyton Hewitt, but few worries otherwise. Federer is a more interesting case, having drawn 2003 champion and 2006 finalist Andy Roddick in the quarterfinals. Roddick was the No. 4 player in the world heading into a recent tournament in Cincinnati but lost early—and the loss proved costly. A No. 4 seeding would have meant he could have avoided Federer, Nadal and Djokovic until the semis. Now he gets the three-time defending champion in the quarters. Davydenko is the most vulnerable of the bunch, and could face a quarterfinal matchup with either American James Blake, Tommy Haas or Marcos Baghdatis, any of whom are capable of beating him.

Final: Federer over Nadal
Semifinalists: Davydenko, Djokovic
Possible semifinalists in the upset department: Hewitt, Baghdatis, Marat Safin

The women’s side is loaded on the top half, with Justine Henin, Serena and Venus Williams, Ana Ivanovic and Jelena Jankovic all residing there. That means Maria Sharapova should have a relatively clear road to the finals, but this surprisingly isn’t the case. Sharapova faces potential opponents who are due for Grand Slam breakthroughs, Nicole Vaidisova in the fourth round and Anna Chakvetadze in the quarterfinals. Moreover, Sharapova has battled injuries and has suffered three dismal losses in Grand Slams this year, winning a total of 10 games over six sets of her losses (two to Serena, one to Ivanovic). Still, Vaidisova has yet to show nerves of steel in Grand Slams and Chakvetadze (0-5) has not fared well against Sharapova, so the Russian from Florida remains the pick.

The match to watch is the potential quarterfinal matchup between Henin and Serena. Serena hasn’t played since Wimbledon with a thumb injury. If she’s not completely healed, Henin will win this match and, most likely, the title. If Serena is healthy, however, she is still the best player in women’s tennis.

Final: Henin over Sharapova
Semifinalists: Ivanovic, Kuznetsova
Possible semifinalists in the upset department: Vaidisova, Elena Dementieva, Victoria Azarenka


In other news:

My favorite stat from last night’s 30-3 Rangers’ victory over the Orioles? After allowing 30 runs on 29 hits, the Orioles dropped from seventh in AL ERA to 11th.

Why won’t they just leave poor Joey Harrington alone? All he wants to do is carry a clipboard, play some occasional piano and collect a paycheck. So he goes to the Dolphins and Daunte Culpepper gets hurt. Then he goes to the Falcons and Mike Vick goes to jail.

By the way, as Budds and I discussed the other day, who would have thought that Marcus Vick was the good egg in that family. I certainly won’t miss Mike Vick—but I do hope he gets out with a different perspective.

Things are looking up for the Mets. Mota is god-awful, but Beltran is as hot as a non-juiced baseball player gets and they suddenly have the biggest lead of any division leader in baseball.

For your Friday afternoon viewing pleasure, I wanted to post the best and worst of sports star commercials, but I gave up when my first two searches – Fred McGriff’s baseball videos and Ben Roethlisberger’s hi-larious effort to sell life-sized stickers of himself – turned up no results.

On the bright side, I did locate this one from Craig “Ironhead” Heyward:



Does it get any better? May he rest in peace, knowing that his contributions to the world of lather-building will not be forgotten.

The K.G.-to-Boston deal has made the Celtics a far more intriguing team – a team that I might actually be inclined to watch when I’m flipping through TNT on a cold, midseason night. Pre-Garnett, a Celtics game would have had trouble competing with a Colbert Report rerun, but now, it’s a legit, potentially entertaining option. This got me thinking about which teams rank high on the “flip factor.” In basketball, what teams are going to suck me in for a minimum of four possessions? In football, who’s going to keep my groggy arse awake after halftime on Monday Night Football? In baseball, which teams are compelling in August, even when they’re playing Tampa Bay? I’ve come up with my list. Comments encouraged.

NBA: Suns, Lakers, Mavericks, Celtics, Cavaliers, Spurs
NFL: Colts, Eagles, Chargers, Patriots, Bengals
MLB: Red Sox, Yankees, Brewers, Braves, Mets

If Ya won an actual major, I'm sure that phrase would be in his interview at the 18th green, and it would probably make it onto the back cover of the NY Post (hence my use of all caps). Anyway, Y.A. Shoes won the fourth and final major in the Sportsmeat Pride Point Grand Slam behind strong finishes from Tiger, Ernie, and K.J. Choi, who added up to a solid 160 points. Shoes joins Budds (Masters), EJ (US Open), and Snoop (British Open) in the parade of major winners. Snoop, incidentally, was close to going back-to-back (155 points), but losing three of five competitors to the cut line proved costly. Maxipriest (121) and Big Thunder (12) each placed four players in the top 25, while Joseph (102) had three. Your posting prognosticator was 0-for-4-plus-Tiger for 100 points.

To decide the season champ, I propose a showdown for the four major winners using the new PGA playoff series, which starts in two weeks. Stay tuned for details.

The PGA starts tomorrow. And given the lateness of this post, you can count me in the group that hadn't noticed. So 'meaters, pick your five before the first group goes off tomorrow morning and put them in a comment.

Rules are the same with one addition: 15 bonus points to anyone who picks a club pro who makes the cut.

This former Penn State running back was a flop in New York – not with the Jets, but rather with the Mets. The former Viking and Lion, who scored the winning touchdown in the 1987 Fiesta Bowl (securing the national championship for the Nittany Lions), batted a hefty .191 during one season with the Mets. Name him. 8 points.

This former Met, who also graced New York for just one year, once announced in response to news that he was in competition for a starting spot during spring training, that he was “going into Operation Shutdown.” True to his word, he retired during that spring training. The outfielder, who once threw a 47 mph pitch during a pitching stint with the Mets, was arrested for crack possession last year. Name him. 7 points.

This former Met, who is tied for 170th on the all time home run list, played for 11 different teams. He is one of 41 players to hit a home run in his final at bat. This home run was doubly historic in that it was the final round tripper surrendered by a Montreal Expo. I’m sure he mentioned this fact to Kevin James when he guest starred on King of Queens. Twice! Name him. 5 points.

This former Met, who saw limited action as a catcher in 1982, was named NL Manager of the Year in 1996. If telling you that he holds the record for most home runs by a player born in France doesn’t give it away, I’m sure mention of his huge head (cap size 8¾!) will. Name him. 10 points.

This former Met believes that dinosaurs never existed and that the moon landing was staged. Of course its Carl Everett! With what team did Jurassic Carl win his World Series ring? 4 points.

This former Met won an MVP award (before joining the Mets, of course) and was one of the players allowed to wear the number 42 after MLB retired it in honor of Jackie Robinson. I’m sure Jackie would be proud to have this player, whose hobbies include drunkenly flipping pickup trucks on the way home from strip clubs, as a fan. Name him. 5 points.

This former Met is in both the Mets Hall of Fame and the Phillies Wall of Fame. Ya gotta believe he was telling the truth when he said, of his new contract, "Ninety percent it I'll spend on good times, women, and Irish Whiskey. The other ten percent I'll probably waste." Name him. 4 points.

Finally, two players earned the distinction of winning both a 2006 Gold Glove and a 2006 Silver Slugger award. Neither of them are former Mets. Name them. 9 points per correct answer.


Guide:

50 - 61 - Mike Piazza
35 - 50 - Keith Hernandez
20 - 35 - Robin Ventura
9 - 20 - Dave Magaden
4 - 8 - Bobby Bonilla
0 - 4 - Armando Benitez

Labels: Carl Everett, Former Mets, Sportsmeat Trivia

All season long I’ve tried to stay positive—I picked the Mets to win the World Series before the year and relented slightly after the All-Star break, picking them to win he NL but lose to the Tigers. Now, for the first time all year, I’m doubting the postseason altogether.

There gets to be a certain time in the year where your team is not going to make a magical run, and a struggling player is not going to turn it around. This is that time of year. Carlos Delgado is having a bad year—not awful by objective standards, but poor by his own. This is not going to change. Carlos Beltran, since the opening month of the season, has been similarly poor. Mets fans can only hope he will turn it around once he’s healthy, but chances are he’s going to be streaky—not sublime—the rest of the way.

The big flaw with the Mets, however, remains the bullpen. Aaron Heilman is clearly the set-up guy at this point, but he’s not a lock. Scott Schoenweis, the purported seventh inning guy, stinks. The two early season wonders have stumbled—Pedro Feliciano is having a bad stretch and Joe Smith fell all the way to the minors. And Guillermo Mota is looking more and more like the roids were the reason for last year’s success. Jorge Sosa is not going to save them.

I don’t blame Omar Minaya for not making any major trades at the deadline—to me, Humber and another prospect (not the three outfielders of Gomez, Milledge and Martinez, or Mike Pelfrey) seemed like a fair deal for Chad Cordero, but no go. So be it. It’s the right move, but it will cost the Mets this year.

On the upside, the Mets are still in first despite a slew of injuries, particularly to the outfield, and Billy Wagner has been automatic. They can still hold off the Braves, but they are no longer a better team than the Braves (Renteria, Jones, Teixiera, Jones, McCann and Francouer is the best lineup in the NL). One puzzling move was the Braves picking up Octavio Dotel for Kyle Davies. It seems to me the Mets could have topped that offer for Dotel (who would have been the third-best reliever for the Mets after Wagner and Heilman).

Outside the Braves’ pickups, the other big deadline deal was genius for the Red Sox. I know a lot of Sox fans had high hopes for Kason Gabbard, but I think Boston feels good about their starting pitching (plus they kept Jon Lester, who is both a good pitcher and a good story, and don’t think teams don’t way PR when making trades). Eric Gagne will be a lock for the eighth, as will Okajima for the seventh (and obviously Papelbon for the ninth), meaning that, in the postseason, the Red Sox are only looking for six innings out of Schilling, Dice-K, Beckett and Wakefield/Lester. Plus, the Red Sox now have flexibility heading into 2008. If Schilling leaves they can slide Papelbon into a killer rotation and still have a great closer to rely on. Coupled with the absence of moves from Detroit and LA/Anaheim, I think the Sox are now the AL favorite.

I’m not so sure I can say the same about the Mets in the NL. Not anymore.

Joey D. has called us out for slacking, and he's right. You, the loyal readers of Sportsmeat, deserve better. And I promise that sometime in the next week, I will post something more substantial than fifty words and a picture of my puppy. But for now, this is all you get. Enjoy.