Thursday, April 13, 2017

Sports this 'n' that

The other day, I ventured up to the ol' alma mater, Troy High, to see a non-league JV game vs. Amsterdam. What I found, outside of the fact that Troy blew away the Rams, is that not only does Troy need lights for their baseball & softball diamonds, which are adjacent to each other, but an electronic scoreboard as well. They have an old fashioned scoreboard where you can write the score as you go on one diamond, but that's it. Small wonder, then, why reporting scores to the paper is so hard.

The varsity baseball team, meanwhile, has lost their last two, dropping a 10-6 decision to Ballston Spa on Wednesday. The softball result was not reported, leaving ye scribe to wonder if the game had been played at all, considering the boys were able to play through less than ideal conditions after it rained most of Wednesday. No programs are available, and there's no PA for the baseball/softball games.

Bottom line: Troy schools need help with their budget, but it may require divine intervention......
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Former Tri-City Valleycats pitcher Vince Velasquez is off to a bad start for Philadelphia this season. Velasquez lasted just 5 innings Wednesday in a 5-4 loss to the Mets, as the visitors completed a 3-game sweep in Philadelphia, running their current winning streak to 4 straight as they head south to Miami this weekend. The problem with Velasquez seems to be a high pitch count, as he's racked up 17 strikeouts in 2 starts, but hasn't been able to get past 5 innings. The Phillies would be in the cellar if but for the fact that Atlanta's already there.

Meanwhile, the Mets' Yoenis Cespedes led a 20 hit barrage on Tuesday in a 14-4 blowout, hitting 3 home runs. The Mets had 7 total for the night, 10 for the series, and sit alone in first place going into tonight's game at Miami.
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ESPN's Stephen (Screamin') A. Smith has put his foot in his mouth again. Gee, what a surprise.

Smith got on his whiner's soapbox on Wednesday's First Take to complain about how the NBA's Dallas Mavericks honored Cowboys QB Tony Romo, who has traded his shoulder pads for a CBS blazer. Smith tried playing the race card, but Max Kellerman shut him down. What Smith didn't get, obviously, was that the Mavericks were representing the city of Dallas in paying tribute to Romo, despite the fact that the Dallas Cowboys play their home games in Arlington, and haven't really represented the city in eons, dating back to their move to suburban Irving back in the 70's.

The only reason ESPN keeps Smith employed, other than to keep him away from Fox or any other cabler, is because of his Howard Cosell-wannabe rants, which generate more controversy than actual thought, assuming Smith ever bothers to think and read between the lines. They expect people to talk about it over the water cooler about the latest crap being spewed by this week's Dunce Cap winner. The truth is, Smith's act wore thin a long, long time ago, such that all that needs be done is to count the days until someone at ESPN or Disney finally gets a clue and cuts bait, sending Smith packing with a lifetime supply of beef jerky to shill.
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It's taken 16 years, but the NFL is finally bringing professional football back to Las Vegas, with reports that the Oakland Raiders will play out their current lease and move to Sin City in about three years time.

I know. You're saying, "16 years? Since when?". Since Vince McMahon's ill-fated XFL placed a team in Vegas back in 2001. The league lasted just 1 season. Couple this with the NHL putting an expansion team in Vegas as early as this year, I think, and it's a matter of time before the other shoe drops, and the NBA will follow suit. Baseball? The Mets' AAA team in the Pacific Coast League is based in Vegas, but a MLB franchise? I don't think so. Just sayin'.

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