Weekly Random Thoughts: 6/11/10

1. How many times does something truly live up to the hype? Think about all those sporting events, movies, vacations, birthdays, dates, sexual experiences…anything that you were looking forward to. Nine times out of ten, you end up disappointed or at least dissatisfied. Which is why Stephen Strasburg is such an incredible story. The man had ridiculous amounts of hype and expectation going into his first major league start. And I joked beforehand, that the only way he could meet they hype and those expectations was if he threw a no-hitter or perfect game. Well seven innings later, two earned runs on four hits (including one home run), and fourteen strikeouts later…dare I say…he surpassed what anyone could have imagined. WOW!!!

I mean how many things actually lived up to the hype?

Off the top of my head…Avatar? The Iphone? LeBron James? Seriously…it’s not a long list.

What happens now will only add to the legend of Stephen Strasburg. All I know is he’s arguably the #1 fantasy player in a keeper league.

2. Is this the weekend that finally excites movie audiences? You have to go back to the first weekend of May, to Iron Man 2, to find a movie that excited audiences and had people lining up outside movie theaters. And to be honest, even that movie wasn’t loved and definitely fell short of expectations. Over a month later and the audiences are sitting around waiting for a movie to spend their money on. They want a crowd pleaser (see ‘Up’, ‘The Hangover’, and ‘Star Trek’ from last year). Could it be ‘The Karate Kid’ or “The A-Team’? I think it might. Both have a chance to do well and make up for a weak May/June slate so far. Early reviews are good (not great). If not this weekend, then soon…there will be one movie that blows past every conceivable expectation. And the movies that are expected to do well - might do even better…because people want to see movies this summer. Just not crap like ‘Robin Hood’, “Prince of Persia’, and ‘Killers’.

Again…off the top of the head. Movies that fall under this category: Toy Story 3, Inception, Twilight: Eclipse, The Last Airbender, The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, and Salt.

3. Right now is a bad time to travel. Flights and hotels are all marked up higher than last year’s prices. Where are the recession specials?

I think it’s just a dirty trick played by the airlines (also not being helped out by the upcoming merger of Delta and Northwest Airlines); because people are flying more…yet, the airlines have not increased seat capacity. Thus allowing them to charge more for airfare. Chalk it up to just another case of supply doesn’t meet demand, so you have to pay more for it.

4. The NBA finals have a chance to be an all time classic. If you were like me, then you just finished watching a thrilling game four. The series is all tied up at two a piece. Home court is thrown out the window…tensions and emotions are at an all time high (I predict a fight happening soon – or at least an ejection)…and each game features a surprise hero (Game two it was Ray Allen, game three it was Derek Fisher, game four it was ‘Big Baby’ David). I honestly have no idea what to expect for game five. But I do believe this series will be going seven and be a fixture on NBA classics for years to come.

5. Who’s excited for World Cup? I know I am. For the first time ever, I’ve read up on the teams. I know the players by name (and more importantly…the WAG’s). And I’m genuinely interested in the games. Seeing the passion that people feel for the game makes me wish people in this country appreciated soccer more. It is the global game. Of course it would help if the US team were better.

Unfortunately, I won’t be able to catch the US vs. England match on Saturday. I have plans…

6. Bathroom story of the week:

In this week’s ‘Tales for the Stall #2’.

You know how you go to sporting events or family friendly restaurants and you see children using the urinals, except they haven’t quite mastered the unzip and pee routine, so they drop trou (lower one’s pants to one’s ankles) and go pee. Well the other day, I saw someone at work do this. And there was just something wrong about seeing a middle aged man with his pants down to his ankles, in tighty whities, standing there with his dress shirt hanging out…and taking a piss. I mean I’m all for not wrinkling your shirt, but you don’t place wrinkle free over pissing so people can’t see you ass.

7. In sad economic news, the ESPN Zone in Times Square will be closing down on Tuesday. This was a frequent meeting spot for me and my college buddies and I’m sad to see it go. I might have to make one more visit before they shut the doors and close the lights.

That’s all for this week folks. Thanks for reading. Have a great weekend!!!

Weekly Random Thoughts: 5/14/10

Many of my female readers tell me that they can’t relate to what I write about. They don’t get the sports aspect of it, some don’t get the movie stuff either, and so they don’t want to read through for the one time I write about a broad topic. In an effort to combat that problem I’ve decided to mix up my thoughts and try to jump from one sport related thought to a non-sport related though. Here goes:

1. In a surprising turn of events, the Boston Celtics handily beat the Cleveland Cavaliers in games 5 and 6 to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals. So we all know what that means, right? The question on everyone’s mind will now become “What will LeBron do?”My buddy Brock wrote up a good piece about this (http://brockangeles.tumblr.com/). I agree with most everything he says, but as an NBA die hard I really hope LeBron stays in Cleveland (and I’m a Knicks fan). Why? Because I think it sends the wrong message to all the people who look up to him. Nowadays, so many athletes/famous people do what is in their best interest. Rarely do you see someone who recognizes that with that talent and god given ability comes a certain responsibility to those who root for you and look up to you. And while my buddy Brock might reference Kevin Garnett (and what happened to him when he stayed too long and was too loyal to Minnesota) when arguing why LeBron should leave, I would say look at MJ. Everything worked out for him, but there was a point in time during the late 80’s when people doubted him. Maybe it was a different time, and if MJ were playing today, he’d pack his bags and sign with the team with the most money or the biggest market (then again Chicago is a bigger market than Cleveland – but that aside). But MJ didn’t do that. MJ pushed through and had to wait for his turn. And he had to work for it and earn it. The key for him was finding the right supporting cast (coach, management, and players to play with). LeBron arguably has none of that. Management might be trying, but they aren’t doing a good job. For example, I think they made the first wrong move in keeping Coach Mike Brown and the Shaq pickup was a horrible one. LeBron needs his Pippen and he needs his Phil Jackson.

Now; most people would say, “That’s a stupid argument to make.” - go for the money or go to the bigger market. There is no room for loyalty, being a nice guy, or worrying about anything but your legacy, your money, and your glory. In my opinion, these people are what is wrong with this world. They are the greedy, disloyal, and uncaring few. Because you know what, Lebron’s got plenty of money, a few million more won’t matter (and Cleveland can offer the largest contract). A championship is not guaranteed whether he stays or leaves, so who is to say he’ll win in Chicago, Miami, Dallas, or New York. And he’ll gain some more “home” fans, but lose Cleveland fans just like Brett Favre lost many Green Bay fans when he left. But what do I know…maybe I argue this because I’d like to believe I am a loyal person: Loyal to my friends, family, and loved ones. So maybe it’s a good thing, I don’t have to make the decision. And I’m kind of glad I don’t have to.

Another thought…nobody has an idea what Lebron will do. And maybe he wants it that way. Because if you don’t know who Lebron James is by now, you will know who he is over the course of the summer.

Lastly, in trying to think of the proper comparisons for what Cleveland and LeBron will go through I could only think of a few examples of current players:

If Derek Jeter left New York before winning a world series. Jeter grew up in New York, was drafted by New York, and is the embodiment of home grown. Say he came close a few years and then decided to bolt for another team (say the Boston Red Sox).

If Tim Tebow was drafted by Jacksonville, became a great QB, went to many playoff games, but never won a super bowl…and then leaves for New England.

If Sidney Crosby were drafted by a Canadian team (Calgary, Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, or Edmonton), didn’t lead them to a championship before leaving for Detroit or Chicago.

2. Twice I’ve bought gifts for my girlfriend where the counter person said something in the form of, “Women would die/kill for this!” Seriously…I better watch my back. Otherwise you all might see a front page story that says, “Yeung man killed for pair of shoes and luxury face cream.”

3. Worse second round NBA playoff series ever?

Let’s recap: Three four game sweeps. A few good close games, but no upsets in those series sweeps (Lakers vs. Jazz has a good one, Suns vs. Spurs has a good one too). Only one series that went six games, but none of those six games were decided by less than 8 points. Pretty much the two most memorable moments of the second round series were Steve Nash playing with one eye in game four and finally beating the Spurs, and the LeBron James stinkbomb that was thrown up in game five. Let’s hope for better conference finals.

4. I don’t normally link to other sites, but my friend Rich sent me this video yesterday. Wait for the end to see what the anchor says.

a. http://www.abc26.com/news/local/wgno-beauty-breakthroughs-g-shot,0,2355202.story
b. PS – My new goal in life is to find a reason to say this to someone with a straight face.

5. Fantasy baseball review:

Who is Tyler Clippard? He’s a Washington Nationals reliever with a 7-1 record on the year. That basically means he’s headed for 30 wins or 8 wins for the whole season. My guess is on something close to the latter, but I’d still rather have him than most closers.

Not sure if Jose Contreras will pick up saves or even pitch well, but he’s got SP eligibility in Yahoo! if you wanted to throw in six relievers with save potential in your roster on any given day.

Not sure if you can say Matt Kemp is better than Andre Eithier right now. Eithier is playing out of his mind.

6. Last week’s recap

Iron Man 2 made only $128mm last weekend, which was pretty disappointing if you ask me. I thought it’d clear $145-150mm no problem (and only $7.5mm on midnight showings Friday morning). I’d say it was headed for a $350mm final tally. The one thing it has working for it is little competition; Robin Hood looks like a bomb – more on that later, Shrek 4 and SATC 2 will open big, but the wild card is Prince of Persia. I have a feeling that Iron Man 2 will end up being the second highest grossing movie of the summer.

I was way off on my NBA playoff predictions. I predicted two game 7 series, there wasn’t even one! I thought San Antonio would win 2 at home, instead they lost both. At least I was right about Orlando…

In my list of potential summer jams, I should have included “Taio Cruz feat. Ludacris – Break Your Heart”. In the words of Chris Rock, “That’s a catchy ass song.”

I hope you all watched Friday Night Lights – the season premiere was well done (not great, but a good solid episode). I see the beginning of some fantastic story lines and predict this is going to be a great season. The best since the fantastic first season. Also, the Vince character will be the new Matt Saracen – the one character you root for that surprises you with his football ability and his heart. One more thing, you cannot listen to that opening theme song and not be inspired. How the guitar strings hums along so quietly at the beginning, then the music picks up right around when the names “Taylor Kitsch” and “Jesse Plemons” appear in the credits. Whew. It gets me every time.

7. By catching an early screening of Iron Man 2 (w/o trailers), I missed the new teaser for J.J. Abrams new flick, Super 8. All I can say is I have no idea what to expect, it had me at Spielberg, and Abrams can put together a teaser trailer better than anyone in the business (see Cloverfield and Star Trek).

8. Robin Hood looks headed for the award of first box office bomb of the summer. I predicted this in my summer movie preview (go ahead, check it out. It’s in the archive). Robin Hood won’t recoup its budget domestically (estimated to be around $155mm), but it’ll do well overseas. These types of movies always do.

9. If you are looking to me for movie advice, well then watch Fantastic Mr. Fox – it’s a great movie with snappy dialogue and amazing visuals. Fair warning, the movie is in stop motion animation. But to me, that makes it all the more incredible.

10. Congrats to my friend, Navid (aka “The Champ”) on graduating from med school.

And my friend, Sean McBride, will be performing two nights at Caroline’s Comedy Club (Monday, May 17th @9:30pm and Wednesday, May 19th @ 9:30pm). He’s one of the funniest guys I know and puts on a great act. Go check him out if you are in the area and like to laugh (and who doesn’t?).

Thanks for reading this week. Have a great weekend. I promise to write something for the ladies, maybe a Sex and the City 2 review.

Weekly Random Thoughts: 5/7/10

1. I went to see Cirque Du Soleil: Ovo last weekend. It was my first time ever seeing a Cique Du Soleil show or visiting Randall’s Island for that matter. I thought it was a very good show. Some really awesome sections and some few slow spots. Either way, I’d highly recommend it unless you’ve seen the other Cirque Du Soleil shows (which I heard once you’ve seen one, you don’t see anything new). Some thoughts/questions:

• a. My first thought when I saw all the performers was of the character Yen in the Oceans movies. I love Ocean’s Eleven.
• b. There was a part where one performer was standing on one hand atop what looked like a mini-staircase without the stairs. It was definitely an impressive showing of balance and strength. But by the fourth time the person was doing it, it got kind of boring. Then again, I can barely stand up on one leg, so who am I to talk.
• c. The six jugglers/twirlers (with the big plastic kiwis and pieces of corn) were one of the highlights of the show. Yet, I kept hoping that one of them would drop the kiwi or the corn. Yes, behind my nice guy act I am a horrible person.
• d. The acrobats (or Robin’s as I like to call them) were cool, but nobody went flying across the entire stage. So I was a little disappointed. That dude Yen from Ocean’s Eleven would have totally went across the stage. Heck, Chris O’Donnell would have too.
• e. The crowd interaction part was very funny. Most people hate being picked out of the audience and made center of attention. I know I do. Actually, I only know one person who loves to be picked for this kind of stuff. His name is Sean McBride…he’s a comedian. Youtube him.
• f. The rock climbing/trampoline section ended the show on a high note.
• g. I wonder how many hours a day these people train?
• h. And I wonder how much the performers get paid?

2. Hugo Weaving has officially been cast as the new villain, Red Skull, in the upcoming Marvel film, The First Avenger: Captain America. If you don’t know who Hugo Weaving is by name, well you definitely know the face or voice. He played Agent Smith in the Matrix trilogy, was the voice of Megatron (not Calvin Johnson, relax Scotty Watts) in the Transformers movies, and was also in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Since the Matrix premiered in 1999, Weaving has been in 14 movies (most recently “The Wolfman” remake). Those 14 movies have grossed $2.68bn in domestic box office, which averages out to $191.3mm per film (and that’s including 3 low budget movies that made less than $150k each). That’s Will Smith/Tom Hanks/Tom Cruise territory. But of course Weaving would never be referred to as an A-lister (a guy who could open up a movie himself). He’s basically this decade’s Jeff Goldblum. Goldblum, if you remember, was the co-star of such hits in the 1990’s as Jurassic Park, Independence Day, and The Lost World. Goldblum was the go to supporting actor for big budget films and he did it masterfully. As my friend, Jay the comedian would say - I miss Jeff Goldblum.

3. Every summer there are a few songs that tear up the radio waves and become the unofficial summer jam. Last year it was Keri Hilson, Drake, Lady GaGa, and Black Eyed Peas. It’s early, but so far my prediction for the summer jam of 2010 are:

• a. Usher feat. Will.i.am – omg
• b. Travis McCoy feat. Bruno Mars – billionaire
• c. B.O.B. feat Bruno Mars - Nuttin on You (or the new song “Airplanes”)
• d. Other artists with songs coming out soon (I haven’t heard them yet) – Eminem, Katy Perry, T-Pain, Christina Aguilera, Drake, Pitbull, Miley Cyrus, and M.I.A.

4. Some small, low budget indie film called “Iron Man 2” comes out today. Apparently the reviews have been worse than the first one (generally in the C-B/2 star range). And after having some time to digest the movie (I wrote a blog entry about it – you should read it) and reading the reviews, I can see why people think it is only an OK movie. I was probably swayed by the crowd and atmosphere when I saw the early preview. Still worth watching though. It’s a fun movie that is the essence of good popcorn flicks.

5. Last week’s random thoughts recap:

• a. Nightmare makes only $32mm. It’ll be lucky if finishes with $65mm.
• b. Met’s blow the Philly series and show no resiliency. But at least they didn’t get swept.
• c. I was 3-0 in my NBA playoff predictions – Atlanta came back and won games 6 and 7. Utah and L.A. both closed out in game 6.
• d. The answer is that you do not say “Bless You”.
  

6. NFL Draft (rounds 2 – 7) fantasy preview: I did my review of the round one NFL draft and its fantasy impact last week. Well, here are some non-first rounder’s that may have fantasy potential this year.

• a. Dexter McCluster, Chiefs – Probably won’t get many carries behind Jamaal Charles and Thomas Jones, but could see time lined up in the slot. He’s a good pass catcher, but probably won’t get enough looks to warrant drafting (barring injury to Charles/Jones). Then again, he could be Reggie Bush-like.
• b. Jimmy Clausen, Panthers – A good chance to start at some point in the season if Matt Moore fails to produce. Could have a similar first year to Jay Cutler - start by week ten or so, show promise, but ultimately not fantasy worthy unless in keeper leagues.
• c. Toby Gerhart, Vikings – A good downhill runner that grinds the yards out. Expected to take on role left by Chester Taylor, but not an excellent pass catcher. Not sure how he gets carries playing behind Adrian Peterson. Could be a fullback. See Jacob Hester.
• d. Colt McCoy, Browns – Probably won’t see the field this year, but he has a chance to be the best of this year’s QB crop. Has a little Drew Brees in him.
• e. Joe McKnight, Jets – Made Leon Washington expendable. Expect him to be used in change of pace and pass catching situations, but will fight Tomlinson for those. Won’t be fantasy worthy this year, but down the road has a chance to be like Leon.
• f. Jonathan Dwyer, Steelers – Stuck behind Mendenhall, but Pittsburgh has always employed more than one RB (think Mewelde Moore). Dwyer could play a similar role as a change of pace/pass catching back. But Mendenhall will still be the workhorse.
• g. Anthony Dixon, 49ers – Another RB rookie the 49ers hope to relieve some of the workload from Frank Gore. Not sure if Dixon will make much of an impact, but the 49ers do have a solid, rebuilt offensive line. Keep an eye out for him as a late rounder.
• h. Mardy Gilyard, Rams – Has a little DeSean Jackson in him. Could be a threat to break out a long TD catch or run at any moment, but won’t see many catches (hurting value in PPR leagues). Could develop a nice connection with Bradford for years to come.
• i. Ben Tate, Texans – Could immediately step in and be the starting RB for the Texans. In that offense, if he takes the job, he has a chance to be more fantasy relevant than CJ Spiller.
• j. Damian Williams, Titans - Hoping to follow in Kenny Britt’s footsteps as a promising rookie WR for the Titans. But Titans are still a running team and Williams might not garner enough attention to warrant any consideration yet. Could be fantasy worthy toward the end of the season, so keep an eye out.
• k. Jimmy Graham, Saints – a TE prospect that could fit in nicely with the dynamic New Orleans offense. May not be relevant this year, but Shockey won’t be there forever. Could be a stud TE in a few years.
• l. Rob Gronkowski, Patriots – Possibly the answer to New England’s TE problems. But we all know that New England spreads the ball around and TE’s are either hit or miss (see Ben Watson).
• m. Montario Hardesty, Browns – Could be the starting RB for the Browns (they don’t believe in Harrison). Will struggle behind that rebuilding team, but could have some fantasy worth weeks. A decent mid-late round flier with keeper potential.
• n. Golden Tate, Seahawks – This year’s Percy Harvin. A jack of all trades. Expect to see a few wildcat packages – he’ll run, he’ll catch, maybe even pass and return kicks/punts. He’ll be worth a pickup as a WR3.
• o. Arrelious Benn, Buccaneers – Steps into the best situation as a rookie WR, in that he has little competition. Could be the teams #1 WR on day one, which makes him fantasy relevant. But Josh Freeman is still a project and the team will not be known for its passing. A worthy bench player with upside.
  

7. Fantasy baseball update – My team is struggling, mainly because my offense sucks (I’m looking at you Justin Upton). But pitching is starting to come around (wish Grienke or Cliff Lee could actually get a win though). Here are my weekly thoughts:

• a. Tampa Bay has the best pitching staff (Garza, Shields, Price, and Niemann) right now – every one of those guys is top 20 right now.
• b. San Francisco has second best pitching staff (Lincecum, Cain, Zito, and Sanchez) – best in the NL (with St. Louis a close second).
• c. Good to see David Wright turn it around after last year’s disappointing season – 7 HR’s so far (6 on the road) compared to only 10 last year. But he still strikes out too much and that average needs to go up in the .300 range.
• d. Alex Gonzalez is headed for a career year (Toronto can mash). Watch out for David Freese and Tim Stauffer as below the radar guys who are producing.
• e. Worst teams for fantasy players (Baltimore and Pittsburgh). I could only find a handful of guys worth having (Matt Weiters, Adam Jones, Nick Markakis (DL), Andrew McCutchen, and Evan Meek) and none of them are playing that well. At least Kansas City and Seattle have stud pitchers.
• f. Buy low candidates – Jason Bay, Prince Fielder, and Josh Beckett.
  

8. NBA playoffs update:

• a. After two games, only the Boston-Cleveland series is tied. That one could go seven.
• b. I expect San Antonio to win the next two at home. They won’t go down without a fight and they are one of the best teams at making adjustments. This one could go seven too.
• c. Utah doesn’t have enough to take down the Lakers…reminds me of the year’s that the Bulls struggled to beat the Pistons (back in the MJ/Isiah days). Utah will have to figure out how to get over the hump (i.e. The Lakers) in order to take the next step. But Deron is a top ten player right now.
• d. Atlanta doesn’t have enough to compete with Orlando. Magic might have easiest road to the conference finals of anyone (I’d be surprised if they lost more than one game along the way).

9. In this week’s edition of ignorance and intolerance:

• a. I went to the Museum of Natural History a while back. As I’m walking through, I pass by one of the staff members. For no reason, other than the obvious, he stops me to tell me that the Asia history section is on the third floor. Ummm…I wasn’t asking.
• b. Went to Bubba Gump restaurant in Times Square with my girlfriend and another couple. And the first question the hostess and waiter asked us was, “So where you visiting from?” Ummm…Queens!!!

10. Friday Night Lights season four starts tonight on NBC. If you aren't watching this show, then you are missing out on the best TV show on right now. "Clear eyes, full hearts, can't lose"...

Thanks for reading and don't forget to tell your friends.

Weekly Random Thoughts: 4/30/10

1. A nightmare on Elm Street opens up today. I expect it to dominate the box office with a $40mm weekend gross, but expect it to fall quickly and be out of theaters in a month.

2. Next weekend is Iron Man 2. A.K.A. the start of the summer movie season. I can’t wait. And I don’t have to…I got tickets to an early showing on Tuesday night. Lucky me.

3. Big weekend series for the Mets as they face off against the defending NL Champs, Philadelphia. Mets are a half game up in first place and this series will either put to rest all the talk of them being back or reinforce all the talk that they are contenders once again. As a Met fan, all I want is for them to win one game and not get swept. And that’s how sad of a state the Mets fans are in.

4. NBA playoffs have been pretty good so far:
a. The Spurs put down a favored Dallas team with relative ease (becoming only the sixth #7 seed to beat a #2 since the seven game first round series format). Typical San Antonio – coast through the regular season, then turn it on for the playoffs. And another failed season for Nowitzki and Kid.
b. Milwaukee has Atlanta on the ropes without its best big man and behind a rookie PG. John Salmons was a great pickup.
c. Miami failed to even scare Boston, but DWade really showed up in game 4 (otherwise, it would have been a sweep). I expect Wade to leave next year and hope he goes to a contending team that will help him get back to the finals. The guy is my favorite player.
d. OKC is giving the Lakers a difficult time advancing. Lakers will still win in six, but Durant has a chance to be a top two player for years to come and Westbrook is putting himself in the Derrick Rose level of talented, up-and-coming PG’s.
e. Speaking of the Bulls, they just couldn’t keep up with the Lebron Cavaliers. But you can’t fault Rose (or Noah). Both guys really showed up and would make for outstanding compliments to a stud free agent pickup (say Wade or Bosh). If that happens, watch out for the Bulls next year.
f. Jazz are surprising everyone out West and could make it to another finals behind Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer. This series has shown me two things: Jazz only can’t lose Deron – the rest (Okur, Kirilenko) are replaceable. And George Karl is missed dearly on the Nuggets sideline.
g. Suns put down a scrappy Portland team and now are looking at a rematch with the hated Spurs. Who would have thought Jason Richardson was the key to the Suns playoff success.
h. Orlando defeated Charlotte in the most boring first round series. I still don’t see Orlando beating Cleveland if Carter is the go to guy (they miss Turkoglu). And curious to see how Micheal Jordan deals with mediocrity in Charlotte, because sadly only the old MJ could save that team.

5. Looking forward to round two matchups (assuming Atlanta comes back, Utah wins at home, and Lakers put away OKC – and yes I am predicting Atlanta being the only 7 game series in round one).
a. Lakers vs. Jazz: Lakers in six. Deron will keep Utah in it, but won’t have enough help. Kobe will pick his spots and Gasol will outplay Boozer.
b. Spurs vs. Suns: Suns get revenge as Nash and Co. take out their anger over the last time these two teams met (when Robert Horry body checked Nash and got Amare suspended).
c. Cavs vs. Celtics: Cavs put away a feisty Celtics team in seven. Look for a few classic games. Lebron wins a few by himself. Pierce and Ray win a couple on buzzer beaters. But Lebron overcomes the elbow injury and moves full steam ahead to the finals.
d. Hawks vs. Magic: Hawks are too tired after a grueling seven game series. Howard breaks out of his mini-funk with a couple of 20-20 games.

6. Fantasy baseball is almost a month of the way done. Here are my surprises so far:
a. Kelly Johnson and Robinson Cano – The two best fantasy 2B in the game.
b. Paul Konerko – Leading both leagues in homers.
c. Francisco Liriano and Ubaldo Jimenez – the early front runners for the AL and NL Cy Young awards.
d. Matt Capps and Jon Rauch – further proof that you never pay too much for saves.
e. Vernon Wells and Barry Zito – finally playing up to their enormous contracts.
f. Mike Pelfrey and Jorge Cantu – possibly headed for career years.
g. Alex Rodriguez and Hanley Ramirez – both off to slow starts.
h. Matt Weiters and Tommy Hanson – why you never over pay for hyped youngsters.

7. Mini NFL draft fantasy recap:
a. Ryan Matthews – coming into best fantasy situation. Could have a Jonathan Stewart like season.
b. CJ Spiller – most hyped rookie RB comes into the worst fantasy situation. So bad that he could become undervalued. Bills will get rid of Lynch (or even Fred Jackson). And speed combined with skill does have a way of making a fantasy impact (see Chris Johnson, DeSean Jackson, and Devin Hester). Expect a few long TD scores.
c. Jahvid Best – could be similar to Chris Johnson’s rookie season. I could see Kevin Smith playing the part of goal line carrier and limiting Best’s carries. If so, I could see Best excelling as a speed threat with pass catching ability.
d. Dez Bryant – If Roy Williams is cut, then I think Bryant will break the rookie WR curse and have a 1,000 yard and 8 TD season. The difference will be Tony Romo throwing him the ball.
e. Demaryius Thomas – a WR project who won’t make a huge impact this year. He’ll be given the chance to learn and will be good one day. Just not this year.
f. Sam Bradford – Will have his moments, but expect to see final stats along the lines of Matthew Stafford. However, in three or four years we will be looking at a star.
g. Tim Tebow – will score a few TD’s with special offensive packages, but not enough snaps to justify a draft pick.
h. Jermain Gresham – the top rookie TE will have his moments next year (similar to Brandon Pettigrew), but in a couple of years he will become a top tier fantasy TE.

8. Is anybody following some little horror movie called, “The Human Centipede”? Well I don’t want to follow it, but I can’t help it. It’s like watching a train wreck as its happening; I just can’t keep my eyes away. The movie is so sick and twisted, yet it’s also so original. I honestly don’t think I could make myself watch the movie, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to check it out just for curiosity sake.

9. Question? If you are in the bathroom stall at work (doing a #2) and somebody in the stall (also doing a #2) next to you sneezes…do you say, “Bless you”?

10. It’s really hard to think of things to write when you have no general theme. Yet, I’m still making it work.