Re: SPORTS OTHER THAN PRO BASKETBALL (AN ONGOING THREAD)

by **bobc33** Wed Apr 27, 2011 10:20 pm

And the Bruins win game 7, in OT of course! cheers

by **celtic fan** Thu Apr 28, 2011 9:32 am

Any MMA fans here?

Big fight on Saturday with Georges St.Pierre facing Jake Shields in Toronto in front of 55K+ fans. Going to be a great fight and Randy Couture is on the card too and the one of the top 5 best fighters in the world, but largely unknown, Jose Aldo.

Hoping to get enough ppl to come over and watch it at my place. The 9pm start time instead of 10pm is a bonus too.

by **NYCelt** Thu Apr 28, 2011 7:52 pm

So here we go again..another year.

NFL draft night.

For us Bills fans, we just hope when the pick is anounced we don't say "Who?"

Cam Newton (probably going to Carolina)?
Blaine Gabbert?
Von Miller?

We shall see. Just no more busts please.

by **NYCelt** Thu Apr 28, 2011 9:11 pm

Marcell Daureus!

Who thought he wouldn't go one or two?

Good start to this years draft.

And now back to basketball.

by **swedeinestonia** Sat May 07, 2011 4:49 pm

I am guessing there is a fair bit of Patriots fans here and so on..

I gotta ask if Ray Lewis (Baltimore Ravens) is one of those players that is "hated" or "respected"? He seems to be sort of the KG of football.

by **LACELTFAN** Fri May 13, 2011 12:07 am

Congrats to the Bruins for getting into the conference finals...I don't follow hockey at all but good luck to their fans.

by **willjr** Tue May 17, 2011 12:58 pm

RIP to baseball HOF'er Harmon Killebrew. As a kid growing up on Long Island I loved it when the Twins, featuring " Killer", Rod Carew, Cesar Tovar and Tony Oliva would come to town. I would be glued to the TV, WPIX channel 11, watching these invaders from the midwest swinging their warclubs at the (then) helpless Yankees. He was truly one of the all-time great sluggers in big league history.
PS. We all know that Jerry West is the silhouette on the NBA logo but did you know that Killebrew is the batter featured on MLB's official logo.

by **Sam** Tue May 17, 2011 3:04 pm

Will, as I recall, the tandem of Harmon and Bob Allison made opposing pitchers' lives miserable. Interesting tidbit about the logo. I certainly didn't know that.

RIP Killer.

Sam

by **beat** Tue May 17, 2011 9:19 pm

To a time when baseball mattered to a kid like me and truly was the Nations Pastime. His kind are all to few in the sport now.

Remember one sports writer quiped after watching another long homer come off his bat. "He can hit one out of any park.........including Yellowstone!"

beat

by **bobc33** Tue May 17, 2011 10:09 pm

LACELTFAN wrote:Congrats to the Bruins for getting into the conference finals...I don't follow hockey at all but good luck to their fans.

The Bruins are playing well, could be our year after a long drought. I'm a big fan of all four major sports, plus golf and bocce. I must say playoff hockey is the most exciting. End to end action with many fewer stoppages in play compared to years ago, and hardly any TV timeouts. The sustained action is awesome.

by **NYCelt** Tue May 17, 2011 10:34 pm

willjr wrote:RIP to baseball HOF'er Harmon Killebrew. As a kid growing up on Long Island I loved it when the Twins, featuring " Killer", Rod Carew, Cesar Tovar and Tony Oliva would come to town. I would be glued to the TV, WPIX channel 11, watching these invaders from the midwest swinging their warclubs at the (then) helpless Yankees. He was truly one of the all-time great sluggers in big league history.
PS. We all know that Jerry West is the silhouette on the NBA logo but did you know that Killebrew is the batter featured on MLB's official logo.

Those Twins used to be one of the main competitors for my Orioles featuring Brooks and Frank Robinson, Boog Powell and Jim Palmer.

A great Saturday afternoon game of the week on NBC would often feature one of those teams, the Reds or Pirates, with some combination of Joe Garagiola, Tony Kubek or Curt Gowdy in the booth.

I remember reading Jim Boughton's controversial book, "Ball Four", and his take on the home run race one year between Killebrew and Reggie Jackson. Boughton said of he and his fellow pitchers "...we didn't care who won the home run race, those guys both killed us."

Indeed, baseball when the grass was real and the World Series games started at 3 so you could get off the school bus, run home and watch the games on TV.

Harmon Killebrew was part of baseball's last, but hopefully not final, golden era.

One more player for the eternal field of dreams. Hit one over Ruth's head Killer, then run and touch 'em all.

by **willjr** Wed May 18, 2011 7:32 am

NYCELT, I lived for those NBC saturday afternoon games. I was a huge Pirate fan and 1970, I was 7 years old, was when I discovered baseball. I saw the Mets and Yankees regularly on local tv but the NBC games back in the pre cable days was like having Christmas once a week to me. I still remember watching my Pirates play their last season in Forbes Field and the Reds playing half the year at Crosley Field. That 1970 postseason brought me both joy and pain, my beloved Pirates were swept by the big red machine but my favorite non pirate, Paul Blair, helped the Robinson brothers, Don Buford and those great Oriole pitchers sweep the Twins in the ALCS on their way to a World Series title. Man, what great memories!

by **NYCelt** Wed May 18, 2011 12:44 pm

willjr wrote:NYCELT, I lived for those NBC saturday afternoon games. I was a huge Pirate fan and 1970, I was 7 years old, was when I discovered baseball. I saw the Mets and Yankees regularly on local tv but the NBC games back in the pre cable days was like having Christmas once a week to me. I still remember watching my Pirates play their last season in Forbes Field and the Reds playing half the year at Crosley Field. That 1970 postseason brought me both joy and pain, my beloved Pirates were swept by the big red machine but my favorite non pirate, Paul Blair, helped the Robinson brothers, Don Buford and those great Oriole pitchers sweep the Twins in the ALCS on their way to a World Series title. Man, what great memories!

Will,

I'm just happy to talk with people who grew up with or remember that era of baseball.

Paul Blair; one of the best defensive center fielders ever in my opinion. Don Buford; OK, if you know him you know your 70's era baseball.

I once got enough extra credit on a statistics exam to ace the test because the prof was a huge Reds fan and asked for the Big Red Machine starting lineup for extra credit. I nailed the question perfectly and it was a good thing because I didn't do all that great on the main part of the exam!

Regards

by **swedeinestonia** Wed May 18, 2011 12:48 pm

Krutov-Larionov-Makarov
Fetisov-Kasatonov

Oh wait, wrong sport Very Happy

by **willjr** Wed May 18, 2011 5:48 pm

Swede, and Vladislav Tretiak in goal! Very Happy

NYCELT, those were great days to be young and in love(with baseball). So how did you feel about the Bobby Tolan, Bernie Carbo, Merv Rettenmund outfield platoon? Tommy Helms was a pretty good 2nd baseman but there was a guy in Houston who would come over in trade and do pretty well for himself and the team.

by **NYCelt** Wed May 18, 2011 10:31 pm

willjr wrote:Swede, and Vladislav Tretiak in goal!
NYCELT, those were great days to be young and in love(with baseball). So how did you feel about the Bobby Tolan, Bernie Carbo, Merv Rettenmund outfield platoon? Tommy Helms was a pretty good 2nd baseman but there was a guy in Houston who would come over in trade and do pretty well for himself and the team.

Swede,

Great shot! I forgot about that Big Red Machine. Maybe the best line ever in international or any competition. Certainly among the best overall lineups to ever skate together.

Will,

Of course to me Rettenmund will always be an Oriole! That right field platoon would have been a great starting outfield. If you put Rettenmund in left, Tolan in center and Carbo in right you would have a good defensive outfield with a high on base percentage. Not a ton of power but who would care?

Joe Morgan did have a heck of a career in Cincinatti, didn't he? I was barely aware he existed in Houston. I was young and just catching on to the game at that time. That wing flap of his was something you would never teach a youngster, but it sure didn't hold him back. Morgan had some serious power for a little guy with such a compact swing too, although I think it was sometimes ovelooked. Well, maybe not by opposing pitchers.

Regards

by **swedeinestonia** Thu May 19, 2011 5:11 am

Speaking of that Big Red Machine (The Soviet one)..

When the World Championship was in Stockholm in 89 my parents and me (10 years old) were walking the dog around the arena where they playoffs were taking place and the dog walked into some guy..

He started petting her with a big smile very happy and then I saw that it Viktor Tikhonov, the coach of the Soviet team. He seemed to like dogs

by **bobc33** Mon May 23, 2011 11:00 pm

Bruins are ahead 3 games to 2 over Tampa Bay in what is proving to be a great series. Tim Thomas made the best save I've ever seen tonight. Been waiting since 1972 for the Bs, could this be the year?

by **Sam** Fri May 27, 2011 11:11 pm

Congratulations to the Boston Bruins for winning the Eastern Conference Title and advancing to the Stanley Cup Finals against the Vancouver Canucks. What a super game! Just pure hockey! Not one fight and not one penalty in the game. Just flying up and down the floor, but with great discipline and outstanding defense.

Go Bruins!

by **RosalieTCeltics** Fri May 27, 2011 11:21 pm

I sat there and watched that game with tears in my eyes. It has been so long for them.

I just couldn't say that there wasn't a tinge of jealousy in me, knowing how much I wanted the Celts to be exactly in the same spot.

Anyway, congratulations to all Bruins fans, and those who invested so much time into making this possible. GO BRUINS!!!

by **bobc33** Fri May 27, 2011 11:38 pm

I am totally spent. The Bs going to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time since 1990, and we haven't won it since 1972. I grew up on hockey, didn't become a hoops fan until the mid 1970s, and must say I had tears in my eyes too Ros.

This takes a little bit of the sting away from the early Cs exit.

by **Sam** Sat May 28, 2011 5:27 pm

You know, it really does take a bit of the sting away. The Bruins are a great youth/experience mix, and they have worked very hard.

This is also a measure of vindication for their coach, Claude Julian, who has really taken his lumps from fans and media. I don't believe I've seen such a well-prepared team. To be a constant aggressor throughout the game and yet to be so disciplined as to not to take a penalty...now that is really amazing. And their defense was uncanny. Just when I thought the Lightning had faked out one Bruin, another was there to back him up.

It should be a very good finals series. For one thing, we get to hear both anthems at every game...one of my favorite parts of the game.

Another thing I like is the traditions of hockey. And none more than the handshakes at the end of a series. That's the way every series in every sport should end.

I just can't say enough about it. (Although I've certainly given it a good shot, haven't I?)

Sam

by **RosalieTCeltics** Sat May 28, 2011 5:59 pm

I totally agree about the handshake. I just read a post by someone on the Celtics Blog chastising Ray for shaking hands with the Heat at the end of game five. He said he had no right to be doing that. He claimed that Ray was sending a message to the Heat that he would be interested in playing for them after next year!!!!!! Where do people come up with these ideas??????
Really, you should read the post, it is sickening.

I love that these guys line up and shake hands, even if they don't want to.
Sportsmanship, whatever, it is a good thing.

by **swedeinestonia** Sat May 28, 2011 7:26 pm

Sounds like the current outspoken "playing philosophy" of the Swedish national team. They are supposed to own the puck and control the game that way. If you lose it, regain it "high".

Classically speaking Swedish hockey has been more based on off the puck defense with controling the red zone, something similar to "the trap" and then counter attacks.

Through the years we have put together some of the most disciplined and effective defensive minded teams but god were they boring to watch.

by **Sam** Sat May 28, 2011 11:36 pm

That's the possible downside of defensive hockey, Swede, as is the sheer lack of scoring. But this game was end-to-end throughout, and it repeatedly produced roller-coaster type reactions from the crowd. I bet they all think they got their money's worth—and then some.

Sam

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