Monday, November 16, 2009

WHISKEY TANGO FOXTROT?

So I see this headline on the Fox News Website:

Obama: Terror Networks Are Biggest Threat to U.S.

Are you kidding me? This is 3 days after the announcement that KSM will be prosecuted in civil court in NYC blocks from the World Trade Center. Why is the administration treating the terrorists like civil criminals and not war criminals? Why didn't they just invite KSM to the Yankees' ticker tape parade? Why didn't they invite him to the Commissioning of the USS NEW YORK, which has 7.5 tons of steel from the WTC that KSM planned to bring down? Is Mr. Obama's memory so short that he doesn't remember how success prosecuting the terrorists who tried to bring down the WTC in 1993 in the civilian courts worked?

Sunday, November 15, 2009

Patriots-Colts

I'd argue against the criticism Belichick is taking. All 11 Colt defenders were at the line of scrimmage at the snap once Kevin Faulk moved out of the backfield. Why didn't Randy Moss run a Go route? The Indy CB was up in press coverage, and he's six inches shorter. Moss would win a jump ball, get a pass interference call, or defensive holding call. Instead Moss didn't run a real route trying to clear space for Faulk.

Tuesday, November 03, 2009

World Series

I'm not sure that Joe Girardi had a better option than cycling all of his starters through on 3 days rest. Joba Chamberlain was one of the 4 regular starters during the regular season but he was moved to the bullpen for the postseason when he struggled with high pitch counts late in the season. Chad Gaudin? He made 6 starts for them. I don't know that I could send him to the mound to start a WS Game. You can't "throw" a game away and that might have happened if he started Game 5. They would have had Burnett and Pettite on normal rest for 6 (7 if necessary) with Sabathia available (why I understood the move to start him in Game 4). The extra risk that I see is when pitchers go on short rest they also tend to make shorter starts. That's not a good sign for the Yankees who only trust 1 reliever right now, Mariano Rivera (though they trust 1 more reliever than the Phillies do).

Thinking about Rivera, in Game 2, the Phillies didn't send their runners on a 3-2 pitch in the 8th inning. Chase Utley grounded into a DP and the rally was done. The Phillies played for power but that usually doesn't work against Rivera. The Red Sox have had the most success against him; rarely do they beat him with HRs. They foul off lots of pitches, draw walks, run aggressively, and score on bloop hits. That is all Rivera gives up.