Extra Points

ATBATW: A look at the day's signings around Major League Baseball; Fielder, Lincecum, Colon, Morrow, Betemit

2012-01-24T17:51:00.001-05:00

Around the Block, Around the World: Baseball Edition
All stories compiled by the Associated Press

Fielder, Tigers agree to 9-year deal
DETROIT — Free agent first baseman Prince Fielder and the Detroit Tigers agreed Tuesday on a nine-year, $214 million contract that fills the AL Central champions’ need for a power hitter, a person familiar with the deal said.
CBS first reported the agreement.
The person told the Associated Press that the deal was subject to a physical. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the contract was not yet complete.
Detroit boldly stepped up in the Fielder sweepstakes after the recent knee injury to star Victor Martinez. A week ago, the Tigers announced that the productive designated hitter could miss the entire season after tearing his left ACL.
The Tigers won their division by 15 games before losing in the AL championship series to Texas. Adding Fielder gives the Tigers two of the game’s premier sluggers, pairing him with Miguel Cabrera.
The move also keeps Fielder’s name in the Tigers’ family. His father, Cecil, became a big league star when he returned to the majors from Japan and hit 51 home runs with Detroit in 1990. Cecil played with the Tigers into the 1996 season.
Several teams had shown interest this winter in the 27-year-old Fielder, who had spent his entire career with Milwaukee. He visited Texas, and the Washington Nationals also got involved in the discussions.
The beefy slugger hit .299 with 38 home runs and 120 RBIs last season. He is a three-time All-Star and was the MVP of last year’s event in Phoenix.
Fielder has averaged 40 homers and 113 RBIs over the past five years. He’s also been among the most durable players in the majors, appearing in at least 157 games in each of the last six seasons.
The deal is only the fourth $200 million contract in baseball history, following Alex Rodriguez’s $275 million, 10-year contract with the New York Yankees, A-Rod’s $252 million, 10-year deal with Texas and Albert Pujols’ $240 million, 10-year contract last month with the Los Angeles Angels.
Among current players, his $23.78 million average salary is behind only A-Rod ($27.5 million), Ryan Howard ($25 million), and Cliff Lee and Pujols ($24 million each).
Detroit general manager Dave Dombrowski said last week he felt finding a replacement for Martinez was a short-term problem, but he left himself some wriggle room, saying it depended who the player was.
Acquiring Fielder opens all sorts of possibilities, such as moving Cabrera to third base or having one of the two sluggers be the designated hitter.

Lincecum, Giants agree to 2-year deal
SAN FRANCISCO — Two-time NL Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum and the San Francisco Giants reached a verbal agreement Tuesday on a two-year contract worth $40.5 million.
The deal includes a $500,000 signing bonus and salaries of $18 million this year and $22 million in 2013, a person familiar with the agreement said Tuesday, speaking on condition of anonymity because the terms were not announced.
Lincecum had asked for a near-record $21.5 million in salary arbitration and had been offered $17 million by the club. He remains eligible for free agency following the 2013 season.
The 27-year-old right-hander, the winning pitcher in the Game 5 World Series clincher at Texas in 2010, earned $13.1 million last season when he completed a two-year deal worth $23.2 million.
When the sides exchanged numbers last Tuesday, Lincecum’s request neared the record amount sought in arbitration. Houston pitcher Roger Clemens asked for $22 million in 2005.
San Francisco’s offer was the highest in arbitration history, topping the $14.25 million the New York Yankees proposed for shortstop Derek Jeter in 2001.
As Giants vice president Bobby Evans expected, they found common ground around the midpoint of the figures — and did so in only a week.
San Francisco’s front office had hoped to lock up Lincecum and fellow starter Matt Cain with long-term deals, though Lincecum seemed set on keeping his options open in the near future on a shorter contract. A call to the pitcher was not immediately returned and his agent declined to comment.
With Lincecum earning a hefty contract, Evans joked last week, “I usually leave off the final three zeroes because it’s easier to calculate.”
In February 2010, Lincecum agreed to a $23 million, two-year contract ahead of the scheduled hearing. He had been set at that time to ask for $13 million.
That last contract was quite a raise for the undersized, hard-throwing pitcher his teammates call “Franchise” and “Freak” after he earned $650,000 in 2009.
Lincecum — the 10th overall draft pick out of Washington in 2006 — has been an All-Star in each of the past four seasons. He went 13-14 with a 2.74 ERA last year for his first losing record. The Giants scored no runs while he was in the game in seven of 33 starts, had one run six times and two runs five times, according to STATS LLC.
San Francisco, which sold out every game in 2011 but missed the playoffs, will have a payroll of around $130 million.

Morrow and Blue Jays agree to $21M, 3-year deal
TORONTO — Pitcher Brandon Morrow and the Toronto Blue Jays have agreed to a $21 million, three-year contract that avoided salary arbitration.
Morrow gets $4 million this year and $8 million in each of the following two seasons. Toronto has a $10 million option for 2015 with a $1 million buyout.
The 27-year-old Morrow was 11-11 last season with a 4.72 ERA.
But the right-hander also set career highs in wins (11), innings (179 1-3) and strikeouts (203).
On Monday, the Jays announced the signing of 44-year-old infielder Omar Vizquel to a minor league contract.

A’s agree to terms with right-hander Bartolo Colon
OAKLAND, Calif. — The Oakland Athletics and free agent right-hander Bartolo Colon have agreed to terms on a one-year contract.
The team made the announcement Tuesday. The sides had an agreement last week pending a physical.
The 38-year-old Colon, a former A’s nemesis during his four-year stint with the AL West rival Angels from 2004-07, went 8-10 with a 4.00 ERA in 29 appearances and 26 starts last year for the New York Yankees in his 14th big league season. He won the 2005 AL Cy Young Award.
Last month, the A’s traded away starter Trevor Cahill to Arizona and All-Star lefty Gio Gonzalez to the Nationals. Oakland sent All-Star closer Andrew Bailey to the Red Sox on Dec. 28.
He is 5-1 with a 2.14 ERA in seven appearances at the Coliseum.

Orioles sign Betemit to two-year contract
BALTIMORE — Infielder Wilson Betemit and the Baltimore Orioles have agreed to a two-year, $3.25 million contract.
The Orioles announced the deal with the free agent Tuesday and say it includes a vesting option for 2014.
Betemit will receive a $500,000 signing bonus and earn $1 million this season and $1.75 million in 2013. The option for 2014 becomes guaranteed if he has a combined 7000 plate appearances over the first two seasons.
The switch-hitting Betemit batted .285 with eight homers and 46 RBIs in 97 games for Kansas City and Detroit last season. In nine big league seasons with six teams, Betemit has hit .269 with 63 homers and 243 RBIs.
To make room for Betemit on the 40-man roster, the Orioles designated RHP Rick VandenHurk for assignment.

Around the Block, Around the World: Former Pro Wrestler to serve time for knowingly spreading HIV, Jorge Posada to announce retirement and A Woman Completes an Unassisted Ski Trip Across Antarctica in Record Time

2012-01-23T16:40:00.001-05:00

All stories by The Associated Press

Ohio wrestler gets 32 years in HIV assault case

CINCINNATI — A former professional wrestler was sentenced Monday to 32 years in prison for having sex with women without telling them he had tested positive for the virus that causes AIDS.
Andre Davis, 29, was sentenced in Hamilton County Common Pleas on 14 counts of felonious assault. Davis, who wrestled using stage names including Gangsta of Love and Sweet Sexy Sensation, was convicted in November.
Prosecutors said Davis violated state law by not telling a dozen sex partners about his HIV status or lying to them.
Davis told the judge Monday that he was a “sex addict” and that his addiction grew worse when he lost his dream of becoming a professional wrestler after getting the HIV test results.
He said sex addiction is probably the worst addiction anyone could have.
“Drugs and alcohol are terrible, but sex is something everybody wants,” he said.
Davis, who said he didn’t disclose his HIV test results because he didn’t want his family to know, said he never intended to hurt anyone.
“I am not a monster,” he said.
Assistant prosecutor Amy Tranter had argued during trial that Davis should go to prison for a long time, saying the case was about his responsibility to tell the women his test results.
Davis’ attorney, Greg Cohen, argued that the state law regarding HIV and felonious assault is poorly written because it doesn’t require proof that there has been harm or an attempt to commit harm.
Cohen said Monday that his client was sorry for what he had done and that the women Davis slept with also had some responsibility for choosing to have unprotected sex.
The judge, citing medical privacy laws, had prohibited attorneys from bringing up whether any of the women was infected with the virus, which can be transmitted through unprotected sex.
The Cincinnati Enquirer has reported that World Wrestling Entertainment told Davis in July 2009 that it wouldn’t hire him because he failed his physical and tested positive for HIV.
Cohen had noted during the trial that a company, not a doctor, told Davis that he was HIV-positive and that he did not think prosecutors could prove that Davis has HIV. But the state law requires those who test positive for HIV to inform their sex partners of that status and it was not necessary to prove that Davis is HIV-positive, Tranter said.
Tranter and Cohen didn’t immediately return calls for additional comment Monday.
Davis, who could have received over 100 years in prison, faces similar charges in Warren County, north of Cincinnati.

Posada to announce retirement Tuesday
NEW YORK — The New York Yankees say Jorge Posada is going to announce his retirement Tuesday at Yankee Stadium.
The 40-year-old five-time All-Star catcher will end his 17-year big league career with the team that drafted him rather than pursue another team. Posada became a free agent after a trying season in New York, the final year of a four-year, $52 million contract.
The Yankees announced Posada’s decision in a statement Monday. Sports radio station WFAN first reported his plans two weeks ago.
The clubhouse leader helped the Yankees win five World Series titles. For his career, Posada hit .273 with 275 home runs and 1,065 RBIs. But he lost his catching job this year and his playing time diminished.

Tears, joy as woman sets Antarctic crossing record
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — British adventurer Felicity Aston became the first woman to ski alone across Antarctica on Monday, hauling two sledges around crevasses and over mountains into endless headwinds, past the South Pole and onward to the coastal ice shelf, persevering for 59 days in near-total solitude.
She made it to her destination ahead of schedule, using nothing but her own strength to cover 1,084 miles (1,744 kilometers) from her starting point on the Leverett Glacier on Nov. 25 to Hercules Inlet.
The most surprising thing about her journey, she said, was how emotional it proved to be, from the moment she was dropped off alone, through every victory and defeat along the way.
“I’m not a particularly weepy person, and yet anyone who has been following my tweets can see me bursting into tears,” she said in an interview with The Associated Press on Monday while waiting for a plane to pick her up.
“When I saw the coastal mountains that marked my end point for the first time, I literally just stopped in my tracks and bawled my eyes out,” she added. “All these days I thought there was no chance I was going to make it in time to make that last flight off Antarctica, and yet here I am with three days to spare.”
Aston also set another record: the first human to ski solo, across Antarctica, using only her own muscles. A male-female team earlier skied across Antarctica without kites or machines, but Aston is the first to do this alone.
Aston, 34, grew up in Kent, England, and studied physics and meteorology. A veteran of expeditions in subzero environments, she worked for the British weather service at a base in Antarctica and has led teams on ski trips in the Antarctic, the Arctic and Greenland.
But this was the first time she traveled so far, so alone, and she said the solitude posed her biggest challenge. In such an extreme environment, the smallest mistakes can prove treacherous. Alone with one’s thoughts, the mind can play tricks. Polar adventurers usually take care to watch their teammates for signs of hypothermia, which is easier to diagnose in others than yourself, she said.
She thought she was done for when her two butane lighters failed high in the Transantarctic Mountains, where it got “really very cold.”
“Suddenly I realized that without a lighter working, I can’t light my stove, I can’t melt snow to make water, and I won’t have any water to drink, and that becomes a very serious problem,” she said. “It’s quite stressful. It was just a matter of every single day, looking at my kit, and thinking what could go wrong here and what can I do to prevent it?”
She did have a small box of safety matches, and counted and re-counted every one until the lighters started working again at lower altitude, she said.
This Antarctic summer has seen the centennial of Roald Amundsen’s conquest of the South Pole, where Britons still lament that R.F. Scott’s team arrived for England days later, demoralized to see Norway’s flag. Scott and his entire team then died on their way out, and some of their bodies weren’t found for eight months.
Aston had modern technology in her favor: She kept family and supporters updated and received their responses via Twitter and Facebook, and broadcast daily phone reports online. She carried two satellite phones to communicate with a support team, and a GPS device that reported her location throughout. She also had two supply drops — one at the pole and one part way to her finish line — so that she could travel with a lighter load. Otherwise, her feat was unassisted.
While others have traveled farther using kites, sails, machinery or dogs (now banned for fear of infecting wildlife with canine diseases), she did it on her own strength.
“She’s pretty average really, stands about 5-foot-6 I suppose, with an athletic build, but nothing outstanding,” said Brian Dorsett-Bailey, a trustee with the British Antarctic Monument Trust. “It’s only when you talk to her that she stands out. ... Whatever she wants to do, she’ll do. She’s a very determined lady.”
Aston, whose journey also helped raise money for monuments to the 29 Britons killed on Antarctica since Scott, had to fight near-constant headwinds across the vast central plateau to the pole. Then she turned toward Hercules Inlet, pushing through thick, fresh snow, until she reached her goal on the Ronne Ice Shelf, a spot within a small plane’s reach of a base camp on Union Glacier where the Antarctic Logistics and Expeditions company provides logistical support to each summer’s expeditions.
With skies clearing Monday, Aston tweeted that she’s been promised red wine and a hot shower after she gets picked up. “A very long, very hot shower,” she emphasized. “It’s something I haven’t had in quite a long time now!”
From there, she’ll join dozens of other Antarctic adventurers on the last flight out, a huge Russian cargo plane that will take her to Chile. Then she will fly home next week to Kent, in southeast England.
There, after two months of little but freeze-dried food, she can look forward to chicken pie, her mother said.
“I think there will be lots of cuddles, lots of hugs, it will be quite emotional,” said Jackie Aston, 61.
Felicity Aston, pondering her last hours of solitude Monday, told the AP she felt both joy and overwhelming sadness at finishing.
“I’m still reeling from the shock of it that I’ve made it this far. I honestly didn’t think I’d be getting here,” she said.
What remains, she hopes, will be a message about perseverance.
“If you can just find a way to keep going, either metaphorically or literally, whether you’re running a marathon or facing financial problems or have bad news to deliver or it’s tough at work or whatever, if you can just find a way to keep going, then you will discover that you have potential within yourself that you never never realized,” she said.
“Keeping going is the important thing, persevering, no matter how messy that gets. I mean, for me, sometimes I’ll be sitting in my tent in the morning bawling my eyes out, having tantrums. It’s not been pretty. But I’ve kept going, and that is the important thing because at some point in the future you’ll look back and just be amazed at how far you’ve come.”

We misreported Joe Paterno’s death, here’s how it happened.

2012-01-21T23:40:00.003-05:00

Along with hundreds of other news outlets we made a serious error Saturday night: we reported that Joe Paterno died when, in fact, he was still fighting for life in a Pennsylvania hospital.

Mistakes like that are unacceptable — everyone at the Saratogian knows that.

First and foremost, our sincerest apologies go out to Paterno and his friends and family who were hurt by the deluge of misreports. Second, everyone at the Saratogian, including myself, apologizes to our readers for our mistaken report. Our credibility is damaged, understandably so, and we will all redouble our efforts to (re)gain your trust in our news reporting.

The apologies are one thing; but they alone won’t cut it.

Here’s an accounting of how this mistake was made, how we attempted to correct it and what we will do to make sure nothing like this happens again.

First, a timeline of the error:

We first published an AP story that Joe Paterno was gravely ill around 6 p.m. Saturday. That story was posted on all of our sports and news social media accounts.

From that point on, the three members of the sports department who were working and I watched social media and national news outlets very closely for news related to Paterno. We also paid strict attention to the news being reported by the Citizens Voice newspaper from Wilkes-Barre, Pa. That paper broke the (correct) news of Paterno’s grave condition so we lent it credence we otherwise might not have.

The sports and news departments continued to build the print pages of the Sunday paper while keeping a close eye out for developments in the story. When the Associated Press published an extended story about Paterno’s health we updated our website. The sports department began to develop two plans for the print product — one front page design in the event of Paterno’s death and another if the story remained the same all night.

Around 8:30 p.m. things began to go wrong.

We all noticed hundreds of reports on social media of Paterno’s death. We immediately checked major news outlets (like CNN, ABC, NBC, CBS, ESPN) for confirmation. When CBSSports.com reported Paterno’s death we hesitated to publish until we also saw that the Citizens Voice and one of our sister papers in Pennsylvania published the same news.

At that point we (it was really all hands on deck in the newsroom) pulled the trigger on a short story online that cited and linked to CBS’ report of Paterno’s death. We posted that story on all of our social media outlets. We also retweeted CBS’ reports on Twitter.

A few minutes later I took the information from CBS and combined it with an earlier AP story that had details of Paterno’s career to create a longer story about his (alleged) death for the website.

Then, we scrambled to correct our mistake:

Less than 30 minutes after we reported Paterno’s death we began to see a new deluge of reports via social media — reports saying he was in fact still alive.

I again edited our online story and headline, this time couching CBS’ report (which was not yet retracted) with links to a New York Times reporter’s tweet quoting the family spokesperson.

We sent more alerts via social media highlighting the discrepancy in reports.

When the Associated Press reported the same quote from the Paterno family spokesperson (that reports of Joe Paterno’s death were ‘absolutely not true’) I pulled all mention of Paterno’s death from our website and posted a new story. That story began like this:

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) — News that former Penn State football coach Joe Paterno had died exploded on the internet Saturday evening, including a report on CBS Sports. Soon after, however, the Paterno family spokesman, Dan McGinn, told the Associated Press that reports of former Penn State coach's death are 'not true'.

I wanted to account for the media reports of Paterno’s death that were still pouring out, fast and furious, from across the country, while also reporting the family spokesperson’s assertion that Paterno had not died.

At this point we began to pull back all of incorrect reports on facebook and twitter. We posted the correct story several times, deleted tweets and facebook posts with incorrect information and responded to readers who had called us on our mistake.

Here's the story that ended up in print and on our website.

So that’s how it happened, here’s how we prevent it from happening again:

All of the incorrect reports trace back to the CBSSports.com story which cited OnwardState.com, an independent Penn State student newspaper that first incorrectly reported Paterno’s death. We got caught up in the sense that “everyone” was reporting Paterno’s death, when in reality a lot of people we follow on twitter were passing around CBSSports’ and OnwardState’s incorrect reports.

We should have drilled down to the source on every media report we used to justify our publication of the story – including the incorrect reports at our sister paper and at the Citizens Voice. Had we done that we would have wound up with just one source, Onward State via CBS, rather than the multiple sources we thought we had. (Click here for more on this idea from Poynter.org)

We should have waited for the Associated Press to publish a report or waited for independent confirmation from at least one other national media outlet before we published a story.

We should have counted to 10 (or 10 million) before hitting publish. In the age of online journalism and in a company that prizes a “digital first” ethos, it’s easy to get caught up in the rush of pushing news out fast and furious. Waiting a few minutes to confirm and then confirm again feels like an eternity when it seems everyone has beaten us to a story. Getting a story wrong feels a lot worse, as we learned tonight. In the case of misreporting someone’s death, getting the story wrong is just not acceptable.

Emily Donohue

Online Editor

edonohue@saratogian.com

SPORTS HAIR!!! Round 1

2011-12-11T20:30:00.001-05:00

By Sam Moyer
samuel.j.moyer@gmail.com

Imagine you’re an NFL receiver playing against Pittsburgh. You make a leaping catch, turn around, and all you see is Troy Polamalu blitzing through the air, his long curly locks trailing like a swarm of locusts blocking out the sun.

Imagine the sheer terror.

After rolling around in their sleep, normal people sometimes wake up to find a small “bird’s nest” in their hair. Polamalu actually incubated a nest of seven blue jays during the 2008-2009 season, four of which survived despite 73 tackles. The nest, some have speculated, also contained yellow warblers.

Thursday against Cleveland Polamalu picked up eight tackles falling just short of his season high of nine. The strong safety is only 38th in the league in tackles and 10th among safeties, but you have to take into account that the Steelers are third in the NFL in fewest passing yards allowed, largely due to the intimidation factor of Polamalu's hair.

Along with their season nemesis Baltimore Ravens, the AFC North leaders seem likely favorites to go on to Super Bowl XLVI (is that a real number?)

Speaking of the Packers, Green Bay will also be relying heavily on defensive hair to come up with key plays.

Packer linebacker Clay Matthews, skilled axe maker and direct descendant of Fabio, picked up a sack, forced fumble, and returned an interception for a touchdown against the Giants leading his team to a three point victory last Sunday.

If the two teams meet the results could be apocalyptic, like if Chuck Norris’ beard accidentally bumped into Mike Ditka’s mustache in a crowded bar and said "hey buddy, watch it!"

All-in-all the Packers are a better rounded team, and will probably be relying less on Matthews’ hair than Pittsburgh on Polamalu’s, but it should be an interesting battle nonetheless if the two teams meet.

Comment and cast your votes for our next installment of SPORTS HAIR!!!

Sam Moyer

Major League Baseball, MVP Braun to star in episodes of Pretty Little Liars

2011-12-11T08:09:00.004-05:00

By Eric Theiss
etheiss@saratogian.com

If you Wikipedia "banned substances in baseball" this is stated in the first paragraph of the page:

" David Wells stated that "25 to 40 percent of all Major Leaguers are juiced".^[1] Jose Canseco stated on 60 Minutes and in his tell-all book Juiced that as many as 80% of players used steroids"

Now I know this is not a fact it is an opinion but whom are you to believe??

Just when baseball fans thought that all of this was over, it comes back again as the most recent MVP for the National League, Milwaukee's Ryan Braun tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs.

Supposedly he knew he hadn't pass even before he accepted the honors of MVP and was on television seeming in disbelief of the honors:

"I was obviously thrilled, excited. It's honestly difficult to put into words how much this means to me." Braun said

Well now we are all looking at you in disbelief Ryan Braun, you were supposed to be part of the new crowd, the good guys, those top players to bring baseball back to its glory and out of the "dark years."

You WERE a golden boy, who was deciding to play for a small market team and work hard to make them better not go to a larger market and join the ranks of All-Star teams.

You used to be hated and loved by fans because you were so good, now you are just hated.

Braun will now forever be linked with that big old *

The worst part of it all is once again you can't trust any player and they are guilty till proven innocent.

Albert Pujols? Derek Jeter? Roy Halladay? David Freese? Stephen Strasburg?

How can players be stopped? Should they just allow players to take them and limit the dosage? How about follow along with other sports like NBA and NFL and sweep allegations under the table.

All I know is that as a baseball fan, It hurts.

Honestly I have no real problem with a player taking steroids if it wasn't illegal. But it is, and they lie, and tarnish the game, and its almost becoming acceptable to get caught.

As long as you take the proper precautions admitting it right away you will only be slapped on the wrist by fans and writers for a short while and then it will all go away.

(No one still follows ARod's steroid usage anymore, they just assume he has stopped... has he??? who knows)

I guess 50 game suspension is not gonna cut it Bud, These players are out of control and you need to institute a bigger penalty otherwise, this game will forever be one big *

If you could be Commissioner of Major League Baseball for one day, how would you handle this???

> Eric Theiss is the Senior Editorial Assistant at the Saratogian newspaper. His love for baseball and his childhood memories keeps him in doubt that these players are not lying to him. Follow Eric on twitter @BigErTheiss

Sports Movies: What's your favorite?

2011-12-04T23:20:00.000-05:00

By Sam Moyer
samuel.j.moyer@gmail.com

If you’re like me, than you probably drink alcohol.

For whatever reasons you do (which I'd love to hear all about), you might find solace in films that reinforce this unhealthy behavior.

Films like Animal House, PCU and Beerfest, that portray brave thirty-ish party animals, who in the face of eviction, expulsion, and/or pummeling from large Germans (Operation Recipe Retrieve!!!), somehow overcome their adversities by drinking more alcohol.

It’s a nice Hollywook opiate.

After a long day of missed calls from collections agencies, wondering when the donut will fall off my car, and diving behind bushes to avoid my landlord Hank, I like to kick back, crack open a cold beer, and watch something on TV that takes my mind off this hellish existence.

Yes, Bad News Bears (1976) is a baseball movie about a bunch of mangy 70’s kids who despite all odds come together and… in the end, well… they actually lose. It’s about more than that though.

It’s about an old drunk (Walter Matthau) who drives around drinking whiskey and cleaning pools, and he needs a few extra bucks so he lands a sweet job as a little league coach. And all this during the late 70’s recession when America’s protesting fire was burning out and you either sank or swam on your own.

It’s about the American spirit.

He Got Game was a close second, but only because of the nudity.

What’s your favorite sports movie and why?

Anyone who wants to be a can't-hack-it pantywaist FAN who catches a home run, raise your hand... or your bank account

2011-10-28T20:02:00.004-04:00

By Eric Theiss
@BigErTheiss

Its one of life's unanswerable questions, love or money? The Beatles sang "Can't buy me love" while the hip-hop star The Game coined the term "Money over bitches" yet no one can seem to find an answer.

I tell you that to talk about Baseball. If you didn't sacrifice your sleep to stay up and watch game six of the 2011 World Series, you missed a game that shows Americans again why baseball is the nations pastime and that Cinderella can be in the form of a 28 year old kid who is playing for his hometown major league team.

In the bottom of the 11th inning Cardinals third baseman David Freese hit a walk-off home run to force a seventh and final game on one of the biggest stages in sports.

But that's not what I'm here to talk about, I was told to write about ethics, human nature, and national peer pressure.

Said ball hit, said ball soared over the wall, said ball was picked up by unknown man. That unknown man was Cardinals fan Dave Huyette. He was the lucky fan to race across the grassy knoll at Busch Stadium for the coveted holy grail of leather and string.

Unfortunately sports has turned from a childhood game to a brutal battle of greed in past events as fans not much different than good ol' Dave here look to cash in on the opportunity, But not Huyette he asked for nothing in return and was happy to have been a part of history.

Maybe Americans have heard the who's down in whoville, because this isn't the first time this season a fan has stayed loyal to his Boy Scout oath.
Chrisitan Lopez, a New York native was the lucky fan who caught the dramatic 3,000th hit by Derek Jeter that just happened to also be a home run.

These two men did what they thought was right just give the ball back to the deserving player who gave their beloved fans a moment they will forever remember.

But other fans and media have seemed to disagree with their sentimental judgement call siding with the likes of Gordon Gekko.

Some people believe that an event like that is Bed, Bath, and Beyond the game and the Barker Beauties should be handing them a over-sized blank check in return for a ball.
Yes a ball, a cork or rubber ball wrapped in string and leather to some seems to be worth more zeros that a perfect-game scoreboard.

If you want my opinion, a baseball fanatic with a degree in Business and Economic, I say call me Earl cause karma is the way to go. I'd give the ball back in an instant knowing I'd be lockin' lips with my own Wendy Peffercorn as my good deed wouldn't go unnoticed.

Now readers aka the one co-worker who has to edit this post and Mom (shout out to JZ!) I want your opinion, What would you do? You've got three choices: 1. Give it back, 2. "Go on take the money and run", or 3. Put that ball on your own mantle and brag to every human being you come in contact with.

So please give me your opinion! I work off commission so the more comments I receive the closer I get to buying myself my own trapper keeper, I'm sick of sharing with my co-worker Sam Moyer!

P.S. - If you mildly liked or even strongly hated this post tell me via tweets at @BigErTheiss, I have no love or money, Twitter is Free

Saratoga climbs in state rankings

2011-10-13T02:04:00.002-04:00

The Saratoga girls soccer team is continuing to climb in the New York State Class AA poll. The Blue Streaks are sixth in the latest rankings, which were released Wednesday.

Saratoga suffered just its second loss of the season on Tuesday night, falling, 1-0, to Burnt Hills, which is ranked No. 4 in Class A. The Blue Streaks and Spartans, along with Niskayuna, are Suburban Council teams ranked in their respective classes.

The Shenendehowa football team climbed one spot in the Class AA football poll, to No. 5. The unbeaten Plainsmen (6-0) face Saratoga this Friday in the homecoming game for the Blue Streaks. Burnt Hills has climbed to No. 18 in the Class A rankings. The Spartans have advanced to the Class A semifinals at the Carrier Dome in two of the last three years.

Complete football rankings

Complete boys soccer rankings

Complete girls soccer rankings

Basketball Tryouts

2011-08-12T21:46:00.001-04:00

Skidmore will be holding a basketball camp for ages 7-15 running from Monday, August 15 to August 18. Camp hours are from 1-6 p.m. For more information please contact Joe Burke at 580-5384 or email at jburke@skidmore.edu

Saratoga Stampede 14U Tryouts

2011-08-12T21:45:00.000-04:00

The Saratoga Stampede 14U baseball team will be conducting an open tryout on August 28 at

Geyser Rd.

from 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. The team will develop their 2012 Spring/Summer roster from this tryout. The Stampede plays in the ENYTB league as well as several tournaments and finished the 2011 season with a 34 – 8 record. The team has won the New York State title two out of the last three seasons. All players who will be age 14 or younger on May 1, 2012 are eligible to tryout. To register for the tryout or for more information, contact George Coleman at 312-3442.

Whiteface to giveaway free lift tickets

2011-08-08T17:06:00.002-04:00

Skiers and snowboarders will have a chance to get free Whiteface Mountain lift tickets at several locations in Saratoga this weekend.
Anyone wearing winter gear – helmet, hats, goggles, skis, ski boots will get a free lift ticket and may enter a contest for a Whiteface season pass and a ski-and-stay package for two days and nights for four people.
The Whiteface Lake Placid Road Warriors will offer such prizes at four Saratoga Springs locations. On Friday, they’ll be at Bailey’s Café on Putnam Street from 7 to 9 p.m. On Saturday they’ll be at Congress Park from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., at The Horseshoe Inn Bar & Grill on Nelson Avenue from 6 to 8 p.m. and at Gaffney’s on Caroline Street from 9 to 11 p.m.

Ballston Spa Pop Warner to hold board meeting

2011-08-08T17:06:00.001-04:00

The Ballston Spa Pop Warner league will host a board meeting on Wednesday, August 10th at 6:30pm at the Concession Stand at the Ballston Spa High School football field. This is a regular board meeting open to all. Voting is limited to those that meet the voting guidelines per the organization's bylaws. All are welcome. For more information on BSPW please visit our website at www.ballstonspapopwarner.com

Northeast Kidney Foundation Tailgate Party

2011-08-08T17:05:00.002-04:00

On Friday, Aug. 19 at 5 p.m. the Northeast Kidney Foundation (NeKF) will join local equestrian Colleen Cunningham and hall of fame jockey Randy Romero at the Saratoga Polo Association for the Saratoga Polo Tailgating party. An entry fee of $10 will be donated to NeKF to help raise funds for the fight against kidney disease. Colleen and Randy will team up to judge each Saratoga Polo tailgate, with the theme this year being Health and Horses. At the Tailgate Party, the crowd and judges are expected to see Saratogians decorate their spaces with tables, wine glasses and unique decor.
Colleen Cunningham is a junior at Saratoga High School and an avid equestrian who was born with a kidney issue that surfaced only a bit more than a year ago. She underwent corrective surgery and is so inspired to give something back that she immediately started raising funds and awareness for the local Northeast Kidney Foundation. She recently teamed up with famous hall of fame jockey Randy Romero, himself a dialysis patient, to reach out within the racing community. Together they have joined forces to continue Colleen and her mother Jill’s efforts to help raise funds for the fight against kidney disease.
The tailgate will kick off a weekend series of events involving Romero and Colleen. On Sunday, Aug. 21, Colleen and her mother will co-chair Catwalk for Kidneys, a brunch and fashion show at the Gideon Putnam Resort, in which Romero and additional celebrities will walk the runway. There will be a special race in honor of Randy’s involvement at the Saratoga Flat Track following the Catwalk event. Set to go off at 2 p.m., it will be called Randy's Race for Kidney Health. For tickets and more information please visit www.healthykidneys.org

Apex Girls Lacrosse announces fall registration

2011-08-08T17:05:00.001-04:00

Apex Girls Lacrosse Club will be offering a competitive and officiated fall ball league on Sundays starting September 11th from 4-5pm at the Northside rec fields in Saratoga Springs. This is a great opportunity to play in the off season with some top players from the capital district. As in the past, players will be grouped with either their JV or Varsity high school team or on a "house" team, depending on the numbers. The cost is $50 for the 4 week session. Please go to www.apexgirlslax.com for more information and to register.

George J. Dennis Memorial Golf Tournament, Monday August 8

2011-07-26T21:58:00.001-04:00

The Alzheimer’s Association of Northeastern New York and Event Chairs Erinn and Dean Kolligian of McGregor Links Country Club have announced that Sean “The Beast” Fister will make his first visit to the Capital Region. The golf legend and World Long Drive Champion will participate in a charity golf tournament that will benefit the Alzheimer’s Association and honor Catherine Dennis, who was lost to Alzheimer’s and was a former Wolfert’s Roost Country Club Champion, while also shooting a 79 at McGregor as a 79-year-old. The Tournament will be held Monday, August 8, 2011 at McGregor Links Country Club.
Raising over $750,000 since its inception, 100 percent of the funds raised by the tournament will support the programs and services offered locally.
Sean Fister has the distinction as the first professional long driver to break the 400 yard barrier in the final round of the World Long Drive Championships at 406 yards and five inches in 1997. He was also the first Long Drive member to qualify for both the Open and Senior divisions in the world championships.
Golf pricing, which includes lunch and dinner, is $200 per golfer and $800 per foursome. Dinner alone is $100.
Reserve a foursome or learn about sponsorship opportunities by contacting Sarah at 867-4999, ext. 304 or at sarah.o’higgins@alz.org.

Youth sports coaching certification July 31st

2011-07-26T21:56:00.000-04:00

Youth sports coaches and program administrators in the Adirondack area are encouraged to attend a coaching education and certification course on Sunday, July 31 at Adirondack Community College. The widely popular SUNY Youth Sports Institute’s coaching class will be held at the Scoville Auditorium in room 206 and run from 4 to 6:30 p.m. Adirondack Community College basketball coach and SUNY Youth Sports Institute instructor, Bill Haskell, will bring insights, tools and tips for coaches to make the most of their youth sports leadership opportunity.
Since March 2008, the SUNY Youth Sports Institute has trained and certified over 9,500 youth sport coaches in towns and cities across New York State. If you are interested in becoming a SUNY Youth Sports Institute Certified Coach you can register online for this course at the cost of $20 or find future training dates near you at www.youthsportsny.org/eregistration.html

Town of Malta ChiRunning workshop July 30th

2011-07-26T21:55:00.000-04:00

Whether you are an injured runner, a beginner runner, a marathon runner, or someone who runs to stay fit, ChiRunning will improve your technique, reduce injury, and help you achieve your personal goals. ChiRunning focuses your mind, lifts your spirits, strengthens your core and opens the flow of chi for lifetime of pain-free, injury-free and enjoyable running. Class is held at the Shenentaha Creek Park on July 30 from 9 a.m.to 1 p.m.
Malta resident fee $100, non resident fee $110, senior resident fee $50. Registration and information can be found at the Malta Community Center at 899-4411.

Saratoga Springs Recreation Department announce summer hours

2011-07-26T21:49:00.000-04:00

The Saratoga Springs Recreation Department would like to announce the summer hours for the Recreation Center. Until Sept. 6, the hours will be Monday-Friday 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Saturday-Sunday noon to 5 p.m. A monthly calendar of the gym schedule is available on the city website, www.saratoga-springs.org.
If you need any further information please call the Saratoga Springs Recreation Department at 587-3550 ext 2300.

Saratoga Springs summer programs

2011-07-26T21:47:00.000-04:00

The Saratoga Springs Recreation Department has announced that registration for summer clinics and fall programs has been ended, but late registration is still available with a late fee. Registration is held at the Recreation Center located on 15 Vanderbilt Ave., Saratoga Springs, during the following hours: Mon.-Fri. 9 a.m.-6 p.m; Sat. 12 a.m.-5pm; Sun. 12 a.m.-5 p.m.
Fall soccer registration has been extended to June 30.
The following clinics are being offered: Boys & Girls Basketball, Volleyball, Softball, American Legion co-sponsored Baseball Clinic, Cheerleading, Girls & Boys Lacrosse, Soccer Clinics, Pickleball, Skate Park Clinic and a Tennis clinic.
The recreation department will also hold the following programs: Hoop-It-Up Basketball League (grades 4-8, July 12-Aug. 18), Kinder Skating (ages 3-6, July 5-Aug. 16, Tuesdays), Track Program (June 23-Aug. 28, Thursdays), Running Program (July 1-Aug. 20, Mondays and Wednesdays), and Fall Soccer Program (ages 3, pre-k and grades K-12, Sept. 10-Oct 30).
For further information, please contact the Recreation Office for dates and fees: 587.3550 X-2300. Volunteer coaches are also needed.

Troy-Albany hockey travel teams

2011-07-26T21:45:00.000-04:00

Troy-Albany Hockey Association is looking for a few more solid hockey players to complete on its competitive travel team rosters. If your child would like to tryout for one of these openings, email the registrar at kevinjcase1150@aol.com.

Union Football Camps August 1-5

2011-07-26T21:44:00.000-04:00

Union High School Football Camp: August 1-5, full contact, 6:30-9:30 p.m., Monday thru Friday at Union College Turf Field. Cost is $175.00. Players entering grades 9-12. All positions offense and defense. For information go to www.union.edu and click on athletics and camps. You can register online, or call John Audino at 388-6152 or email audinoj@union.edu.

Greenfield sports camps July 25-29

2011-07-26T21:43:00.000-04:00

The US Sports Institute is holding three different camps at the Middle Grove Town Park the week of July 25-29. In the morning from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. will be two sessions of tennis for 5-14 year olds. From 12:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. will be a multi-sports camp for 5-13 year olds, and from 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. will be an introduction to sports camp for the 3-5 year olds. For more information call 893-7432, ext.307.

Athletes react to Osama bin Laden's death

2011-05-02T00:46:00.002-04:00

Following the death of Osama bin Laden, athletes took to Twitter to take part in the relief of the overwhelming weight that had pressed upon the nation:

Revis24 Darrelle Revis

Osama Bin Laden is dead!!! its been 10yrs since 9/11. Rejoice!!!

KingJames LeBron James

#WoW!! Obama words are earth moving and inspiring.

nickmangold Nick Mangold

As an adopted New Yorker, I couldn't be more proud of the men and women of our country's military for getting the job done. #USA

SI_JonHeyman Jon Heyman

A great day in #USA history. Terrific job by #USA intelligence, #USAmilitary, #USA president. Good night all.

RealMikeWilbon Michael Wilbon

Just getting into terminal areas w TV screens...folks getting off flights from all over to crowd around TVs and hear Bin Laden news...

OzzieGuillen Ozzie Guillen

to all the troops you guys are my heros

JLester31 Jon Lester

Job well done to our troops

toriihunter48 Torii Hunter

Great day for the US. Don't forget about those who fell from his devilish acts. Be blessed and all Goodnight.

LoMoMarlins Logan Morrison

Osama Bin Laden dead? Waiting anxiously for this Presidential announcement...

zach_duke Zach Duke

I am jealous. The SEALS are Legit! “@Maholm28: I get to meet some navy seals tomorrow AWESOME!!!”

drewbrees Drew Brees

by Maholm28

God Bless America

hanrahan4457 Joel Hanrahan

What a day for the US!!! I always love listening to the national anthem, but tomorrow is going to be that much sweeter!! #hegone

JLEWFifty Jensen Lewis

You'll always remember where you were on 9/11 .. Now you'll always remember where you were on 5/1 .. #neveradoubt

BrianDawkins Brian Dawkins

Before yall go to sleep, please lift up some prayers to the Lord for our Troops and Nation for coverage. To retort any retaliation!! AMEN!!!

JeremyShockey Jeremy Shockey

Osama Bin Laden Dead

roddywhiteTV Roddy White

I'm mad that they found him in a mansion though he was just chilling I'm happy he is dead caused our country a lot of pain

sharper42 Darren Sharper

Bin laden, bin gone!!!

Athletes react to Japan earthquake

2011-03-11T22:23:00.002-05:00

As the death toll following the devastating 8.8 magnitude earthquake in Japan continues to rise and the aftermath just begins, athletes throughout the country offered thoughts and prayers for the millions of affected people.

Former Florida quarterback and current Denver Bronco Tim Tebow, who has spoken extensively throughout his career regarding his religious beliefs, offered up his support on Twitter:
@TimTebow: Hey everyone, please keep the people that are being affected by the massive earthquake near Japan in your prayers. #Psalm46:1

Controversial wide receiver Chad Ochocinco chose to go about his remarks in a different manner, offering prayers in more than one language:
@ochocinco: God Bless those in Japan, our prayers are with you
@ochocinco: 【JR東日本HP】東北地方太平洋沖地震による輸送障害等について。2011年3月11日に発生した東北地方太平洋沖地震により、JR東日本管内の新幹線、首都圏、東北エリアについては、本日は運転いたしません #prayforjapan

Former Syracuse basketball star and current New York Knick Andy Rautins also expressed his feelings about the disaster:
@andyrautins1: Thoughts and prayers to those in Japan who've been devastated by the earthquake.. Unreal what is happening out there :/ #prayforjapan

New York Jets defensive tackle Sione Pouha, who lives in Hawaii, responded to numerous tweets from concerned fans:
@Pouha91: We are safe up in the mountains but thoughts go out to our brothers and sisters in Japan.

In Port St. Lucie at New York Mets spring training, ESPN's Mets beat writer Adam Rubin spoke to pitcher Ryota Igarashi throughout the day about his family's safety:
@AdamRubinESPN: Interpreter Mike Peters says Ryota Igarashi believes his family is OK in Japan, but they haven't spoken because family doesn't do email.
@AdamRubinESPN: Igarashi has now communicated with his family in Japan and everyone is OK.

Click here to read about Boston Red Sox Japanese pitchers Daisuke Matsuzaka and Hideki Okajima.

--Zach Wallens

A local wrestler's take on Herkelman-Northup

2011-02-20T17:59:00.005-05:00

Making its rounds through the national sports media in the past week has been the story of Cassy Herkelman, a female high school wrestler in Iowa who had her opponent — Joel Northup — default rather than face her in the state’s prestigious high school tournament.

Northup cited his religious beliefs as the reason why he elected to not take on Herkelman, believing it unsuitable to engage a female competitor one-on-one in a physical sport; for her part, Herkelman took the high road and said she did not agree with, but did support, Northup in his decision.

This story actually played out locally several years ago. Sarah Anderson, who wrestled at Schuylerville and now competes for a women’s team at King College, said she had an opponent refuse to face her in sectionals when she was an eighth grader. The default win ended up allowing Anderson to move onto the third-place bout, but left her "discouraged" and "flustered" that an opponent would refuse to face her at her sport.

"When you step on the mats, you're a wrestler," Anderson said. "It's a sport and everyone can play it, so it shouldn't be like 'I'm wrestling a girl and it's against my religion.' It should be 'I am a wrestler and I'm going to go out there and wrestle.'"

Anderson said when she first heard the story it brought back memories of her experience, a moment she said she had rehashed several times in the past few days with her teammates at King College. Anderson, a two-time sectional champion in high school, said having someone forfeit a match to her because of her gender made her feel inferior.

"I wanted to be considered a wrestler; I didn’t want to be considered as just some girl," she said, adding she worried that people looked down upon her third-place finish that year as some form of charity and that she had not earned the spot.

Anderson also took issue with Northup’s characterization of wrestling as a violent sport, saying that while injuries do occur — Anderson herself is recovering from a shoulder injury — that wrestling is not a "kill sport" and that the "fighting" in wrestling is technique-based and not just two people brawling.

"On one hand, you do have to be a little violent to win a match and get pumped up for it," she explained. "But I’ve had really great matches, win or lose, and you’re out there hugging the other person afterward because it was such a good match.

"It's like a soccer game. It's just a competition."

What's your take? Was Northup correct in holding to his stance or should he have simply wrestled Herkelman like any other (male) competitor?

Either way, there's no denying the irony of the whole situation — Northup's stance resulted in the first win in the state tournament’s history for a female competitor.

For more on the Herkelman-Northup story, check out these links …

A general overview
Rick Reilly’s take: Religion is not an excuse
The Des Moines Register’s coverage

HIGH SCHOOL BOYS BASKETBALL: Saratoga beats Niskayuna, 56-51

2011-02-08T08:25:00.005-05:00

Few extra notes from Saratoga's 56-51 win over Niskayuna on Feb. 7 ...

First of all, it was too bad the game was so lightly attended, though because of the circumstances of the night — hockey showdown against rival Shenendehowa and that the basketball game was a make-up contest — a heavy crowd was likely unattainable. Really well-played and exciting game — several dunks, back-and-forth action, and a lot of intensity from both squads. Most importantly, with the win, Saratoga moved a half-game ahead of Niskyauna in the Suburban Council's North Division.
Couple of odd calls in the fourth quarter marred the game's finish, leaving Niskayuna coach Mike Black pretty upset. Black's team had two questionable flagrant fouls called on them in the final quarter. I couldn't get a great look at the second of the two fouls — it was in a scrum on the other side of the court from me — but the first one was pretty bad; on a Blue Streaks fast break, Niskayuna's A.J. Akpanikat first tried to make a play on the ball from behind and then ended up wrapping up Dan Keehn. Akpanikat did grab Keehn from behind, but did so in a way that Keehn never fell to the ground. Black offered a quick "No comment" after the game in response to his thoughts on the calls.
Had not seen the Blue Streaks personally yet this season and I came away pretty impressed with Mikey McElroy. I knew he could score a bunch of baskets, but often times I am wary of guys who are scoring a lot for a team mostly losing its games because usually it indicates someone who might be out for themselves; however, McElroy only forced one (maybe two) of his shots on Monday night and really let the game come to him through coach Mitch Snyder's offense. Very impressive.
Did not get to talk a lot about the game Keehn had in the actual story, but he was a great steadying influence for the Blue Streaks. Each of his 18 points seemed to come at a time when Saratoga really needed a basket. It was fitting that he hit a pair of free throws with just a couple of ticks left to seal the win. Keehn is definitely playing his best ball of the season.
As a whole, the Blue Streaks are playing their best basketball of the season, too. They started off 3-7 but have been able to even up their overall record and just seem to be a confident bunch. Snyder said after the game that the team's practices have been a lot better in the past couple of weeks and that he feels like his team is improving every day, something he felt was not happening in the season's early going. Saratoga has three more regular season games — @Shaker, Burnt Hills, Shenendehowa — to try and improve its sectional seeding.

--Michael Kelly

Traveling Steelers couple extras

2011-02-05T23:21:00.011-05:00

For Super Bowl Sunday, The Saratogian sports section had a feature about a retired couple, Ann and George Frantti, who brought a Pittsburgh Steelers “Terrible Towel” along with them for the duration of their trip around the world. The basic gist of the story was that Ann and George took pictures and videos of themselves in many of the places they visited — they touched down on five different continents and visited over 60 cities in 13 different countries — with the gold towel waving.

Here’s a link to a copy of the story on The Saratogian’s website.

Below are a few extras and tidbits that did not quite make the story, as well as a video the couple made of themselves with their towel on the trip …

Ann and George kept a blog documenting their trip; it can be found here and is worth a look for anyone who wants to make themselves insanely jealous for not getting to go on a similar trip. Lots of fun stories and great photos.
The couple’s story was also featured on a Steelers-themed blog hosted by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Both said their favorite (current) player is “Number 43,” or Troy Polamalu. “You could just go down the list off all the Steelers, but Polamalu stands out,” George said. “He’s a tremendous player and person off the field.”
Besides Polamalu, Ann added she is especially fond of linebacker James Harrison. The defensive standout was subjected to several fines this season for illegal hits after the NFL decided midseason to more thoroughly enforce some of its rules, but Ann is glad Harrison has not altered his style of play. “I’m glad he’s not backing off,” she said.
While overseas, the Franttis said they never met a Steelers fan. They said most in soccer-loving Europe were dismissive of the “America Football” team, while knowledge of what a Pittsburgh Steeler is was in shortest supply in China and Japan.

Personal Note: As if getting to go on a 10-month vacation around the world was not enough, the Franttis regularly taunted me throughout the process of putting together the story about the weather. The couple now spends its winters down in Naples, Fla., and while they never actually said anything about their consistent 80-degree and sunshine-filled days, I could sense they were always (internally) laughing at us for our frigid/snowy/wet weather.

So, if you are reading this: I am on to you, George and Ann.

--Michael Kelly

Greene nominated for national honor

2011-01-18T23:10:00.002-05:00

Shenendehowa running back Bronson Greene has been nominated for the Old Spice Player of the Year Award, a national honor that will be presented to 50 players across the country.

As a senior, Greene rushed for 1,264 yards and 17 touchdowns this past fall, giving him a school-record 3,518 yards rushing for his three-year varsity career. He shared Empire Division Player of the Year honorswith Ballston Spa lineman Chris Ohnsman, and was named Shenendehowa's Player of the Year.

Snowed out again

2011-01-18T15:26:00.002-05:00

Once again, the weather has wreaked havoc on Section II athletics.

The vast majority of high school sporting events scheduled for Tuesday evening - including a full slate of basketball games - have been postponed thanks to the "wintry mix" of snow and sleet that has been falling in the area all day.

The Saratoga basketball teams, which were slated to face Averill Park tonight, will have to hope the third time is a charm. The Blue Streaks were scheduled to play the Warriors on Jan. 7 when a snow day forced postponement to today; now it's been rescheduled again.

In fact, the majority of tonight's basketball games were reschedulings from the Jan. 7 storm.

Stay tuned to The Saratogian and saratogian.com for a complete high school schedule as more details become available.

Saratoga hockey fifth in state

2011-01-13T22:59:00.003-05:00

The Saratoga hockey team is ranked fifth in the latest New York State Division I hockey poll.

The Blue Streaks, last year's state runner-up, are 10-2.

Shenendehowa, which the Blue Streaks defeated in late December, is ranked seventh in the poll.

Shen girls, Greenwich boys ranked

2011-01-13T22:56:00.002-05:00

The Shenendehowa girls basketball team and the Greenwich boys basketball team have again earned rankings in this week's respective state polls.

Shenendehowa is ranked fourth in New York State Class AA. The Plainsmen, last year's state runner-up, are undefeated heading into this weekend's matchup with Saratoga.

Greenwich is ranked 13th in Class C.

Shen wrestling still atop state

2011-01-13T22:53:00.002-05:00

The Shenendehowa wrestling team, with a perfect 15-0 record, is ranked first in New York State among large-school wrestling teams.

The Plainsmen have been atop the poll each week since it was released.

Corinth is ranked 23rd in the state among small schools. Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake received an honorable mention nod in the combined category.

For the complete state wrestling poll, click here.

The Satire Evening Post: An Interview With A Jets Fan

2011-01-09T14:37:00.004-05:00

In honor of the Jets’ Wild Card victory of the Indianapolis Colts, I am posting, verbatim, the victorious rant of celebrated Jets fan and friend of The Saratogian, Nicholas “Nicky Boy” Bochelli, roughly an hour after the game ended. In order to keep within the high standards of The Saratogian and keeping in accordance with the AP Stylebook, all curse words have been replaced with names of various vegetables. Imagine he is yelling this whole thing, so that I don’t have to burn through my exclamation point allowance for the year. Also, imagine his speech is a little slurred.

Hey, hey! J-E-T-S Jets-Jets-Jets amirite?! Did you see that pumpkin beauty of a game? Nicky Folk hero. You know it’s the shared first name, right? I just know Old Rex was kissing that foot two minutes after the cameras left.

I’d have made the same kick too, only I’d have invited the whole Colts team out to try and block it. Then, I’d have slammed it at Dwight Freeny so that it bounced off his would-be -concussed head and straight through the uprights.

Man, those onion Colts and that brussels sprout Manning didn’t stand a chance. He’s a chump. You know why he’s number 18? Because that’s what I figured his completion percentage would be for the game. He’s slow. He plays like he’s underwater in a suit of armor. Forget that guy. Indianapolis Colts: never a threat.

(From what I saw he had a good outing. He led that drive that put the Colts up with under a minute to play.)

No man. That was the Jets giving them a glimmer of hope. False sense of security. KnowwhatI’msayin? That was the plan the whole time. I was there on the sideline, using Alosi’s field pass since I knew he wouldn’t need it. Old Rex was like, ‘Give it to them so that they know what it tastes like, then snatch it back and beat ‘em over the head with it like the celery they are.’

(Yeah, but that kick for the win was pretty close to the right upright for a chip shot. Plus, it was a little wobbly.)

Never in doubt, my man. There are some people who might try to tell you that I leaked a bit just after the snap, and then tried to cover it up by rubbing hot dog condiments on my pants, but that’s not true. I tried to finish my dog quick before the inevitable celebration, and I spilled a ton of mustard. Heat of the moment, man. Fog of war. Things get sloppy.

(Why would anybody try to give me the first account of that story?)

I dunno. Don’t worry about it. That kick was true all the way through, though.

(So will you be this confident next week going into Gillette?)

Of course, man. We have a hit list for this playoffs. We put a fresh beating on the Colts because it was personal with Old Rex. Next, we abscond that throwaway loss against the Pats. You remember that false hope we laid on Manning I was talking about before. Yeah, that’s what that Week 13 loss was. Let them feel good about themselves … get overconfident, then BAM! After that, we’ll get vengeance on Baltimore for Week 1, and finally, meet either the Bears -- those carrots -- or the Packers to kick their asparagus in the Super Bowl. The one that doesn’t make it would not be worthy of our beating. That covers all the teams that wronged us. We’ll be like a crazy mix of the Punisher and the Highlander.

For the playoffs, we are going to be like the final scene of The Godfather, going to the mattresses of those enemies we have not yet vanquished. You wait. That’s the playoffs in a nutshell. Mark “Corleone” Sanchez going nuts. The city of Dallas will probably be destroyed in the process with his power.

(Will you be at the next game too?)

Beans yes! I’ll be sitting so close that I’ll be able to hear the Pats cheerleaders talking themselves into the courage to talk to me. They’ll be all ‘Oh, Nicky. I have seen the error of my ways. I want you to take me home so I can shed this blue and silver and’ … (graphic imagery removed for the sake of the reader).

A Farewell to Randy Edsall

2011-01-05T22:25:00.002-05:00

Losing Randy Edsall was a shocking blow to many UConn football fans, who had heard repeatedly that their beloved coach wanted to stand on no home sidelines but the one on Rentschler Field.

Many non-fans felt he should stay and see the program he built from a Division I-AA (as it was called then) nobody to a top BCS program. Some of those opposed to Edsall’s decision, myself included, were eased to find that the reason UConn’s supposed football savior left was for his “dream job” at the University of Maryland.

The excuse that a coach has left this program and the students that he sold it to for his “dream job” has been used before. (Brian Kelly being a recent example, when he left Cincinnati for Notre Dame.) In the case of Kelly, he left for Notre Dame, one of the highest profile coaching gigs on the planet. While it may have been his “dream job,” it is hard to say that the position itself had nothing to do with it.

In the case of Edsall, he left to coach what some would say is a lower-profile gig than the one he left in Storrs. Maryland won the Military Bowl on Dec. 29, a far less significant bowl than the Fiesta Bowl Uconn played in three days later. Also, the position he took had also been occupied for the last 10 seasons by Ralph Friedge.

Edsall was coaching at UConn for the last 12 seasons, and this is the first time that both the position was open and he was the most qualified person to fill it. Edsall also claims that the first college football game he went to see as a boy was at Maryland’s Byrd Stadium.

The signs all point to Maryland being the unlikely dream job of one of the most sought-after football coaches in the NCAA. The UConn fans I have spoken to have felt a mixture of hurt because Edsall will no longer be calling the plays on Saturdays, and joy in that someone who did so much for Connecticut football could go and feel as if he were signaling his quarterback from cloud 9.

He has done so much for UConn football, that it is a small task to be happy for him as he leaves.

Stathead Matt's Week 17 Quick Picks

2011-01-01T16:15:00.003-05:00

Last Week: 10-of-16
Overall: 124-of-225
(2-13) Carolina Panthers at
(12-3) Atlanta Falcons -14.5

(11-4) Pittsburgh Steelers at
(5-10) Cleveland Browns +6.5

(6-9) Minnesota Vikings at
(5-10) Detroit Lions -3.5

(7-8) Oakland Raiders at
(10-5) Kansas City Chiefs -3.5

(7-8) Miami Dolphins at
(13-2) New England Patriots -3.5

(4-11) Cincinnati Bengals at
(11-4) Baltimore Ravens -9.5

(9-6) Tampa Bay Buccaneers at
(11-4) New Orleans Saints -7.5

(4-11) Buffalo Bills at
(10-5) New York Jets -2.5

(11-4) Chicago Bears at
(9-6) Green Bay Packers -10.5

(6-9) Tennessee Titans at
(9-6) Indianapolis Colts -9.5

(9-6) New York Giants at
(6-9) Washington Redskins +3.5

(8-7) Jacksonville Jaguars at
(5-10) Houston Texans -0.5

(5-10) Dallas Cowboys at
(10-5) Philadelphia Eagles -7.5

(5-10) Arizona Cardinals at
(5-10) San Francisco 49ers -6.5

(8-7) San Diego Chargers at
(4-11) Denver Broncos +3.5

(7-8) St. Louis Rams at
(6-9) Seattle Seahawks +2.5

Stathead Matt's Family Christmas Special Week 16 picks

2010-12-25T12:15:00.005-05:00

Ah, Christmas. The season of family and togetherness. Traditions vary from family to family, so instead of gathering around the fireplace, my father, brother, and I have gathered around the HD to take in some Christmas basketball and lumberjack competition on commercials.

Lumberjack competitions are much like strongman competitions. They are played in marathons and if you are not careful, you can get completely sucked into them. I guarantee that before this column is over, I will be passionately rooting for one lumberjack or lumberjill, and watch an upset that will have me openly yelling at the tv.

(12-2) New England Patriots at
(4-10) Buffalo Bills +8.5
I'm outvoted on this one. The Bills have been a different team since the weather turned, and they are playing in the big snowdrift in Buffalo. Plus the Bills have played the Pats hard their last few meetings, and even at the beginning of the season when they were bad they still lost by less than 8.5. My dad and brother counter with an argument of "yeah, but it's the Patriots." Point taken.

(10-4) New York Jets at
(10-4) Chicago Bears -1.5
There's trouble afoot in NYC. They will have to toe the line with their turnovers. If Sanchez still has shoulder pains, his throws may not have the same arch, and if he throws too many interceptions he will be quite the heel. The Jets will have to put their heart and sole into this one. Okay, everyone got it out of their system? Since it is Chicago, they may get a foot of snow. Okay, now we're good. Dad picks the Jets, and my brother and I say the Bears are a shoe-in. Done.

(10-4) Baltimore Ravens at
(5-9) Cleveland Browns +3.5
My brother, Greg, as I now realize I have not introduced him, (My father is named Tom by the way) just announced that he is a Ravens fan. Each Christmas involves one family member making a startling declaration, but Greg's isn't too much of a shock as he has been an Orioles fan since middle school. Greg chooses the Ravens in his first act of homerism, and dad likes the Browns from a jilted lover hosting an ex angle. I have decided to bless Greg's choice, if only because he has finally picked a team.

(5-9) San Francisco 49ers at
(6-8) St. Louis Rams -2.5
I must say it's good to see the Rams on top again. Even if they are only king of the landfill that is the NFC West. Boy I hope they host the Giants in the first round. The Rams are our first unanimous pick of the day. Oh how far the 49ers have fallen this year.

(4-10) Detroit Lions at
(7-7) Miami Dolphins -3.5
This game has no meaning other than to let us watch Ndamukong Suh play. We're taking a break because my sister Amanda, brother-in-law The Mike, and 3-month-old niece Lilly have shown up for a few minutes of season's greetings. Let's call this one for the Lions.

(5-9) Washington Redskins at
(8-6) Jacksonville Jaguars -6.5
We all agree that there is too much turmoil in Washington. Haynesworth, McNabb, Shannahan. Jones-Drew or not, who could pick the Redskins to play cohesively right now?

(6-8) Tennessee Titans at
(9-5) Kansas City Chiefs -5.5
Remember the Titans? No, really. They were my AFC Super Bowl favorite at some point this year, and now they are a shell of a team. Chris Johnson has not lived up to last year, Vince Young fell apart, Randy Moss did nothing, and the team quit on Jeff Fisher. The only positive memory I have of them this season was the Kenny Britt game. Plus, it will be good to have the Chiefs in the playoffs again. They are too good a football city to have been this bad for this long.

(8-6) Indianapolis Colts at
(7-7) Oakland Raiders +3.5
Colts to the playoffs. Ride them until the dice come up snake eyes. Plus they have a full backfield again. Greg thinks Darren McFadden can carry the Raiders to a win in this game. I think it's a little too early for Greg to have had this much egg nog.

(5-9) Houston Texans at
(3-11) Denver Broncos +2.5
Greg says, that the Texans, down by 13 in the 4th, get two big plays, a run by Foster and a catch by Andre Johnson, and they seal it up as time expires. There is always one meaningless late-season game that is surprisingly compelling and entertaining, so I will not put it out of the realm of possibility. Plus, these two teams have the combined defensive capabilities of a nursery school roster, so a high-scoring back and forth contest seems probable. Even still dad and I are backing the Broncos.

(8-6) San Diego Chargers at
(3-11) Cincinnati Bengals +7.5
The lumberjacks are done, and we did too much channel surfing to get as involved as I had predicted. It was worth it for one girl running on floating logs. We could have watched her for the entire broadcast. Why do they focus on the burley woodchoppers instead of the lithe running ladies again? We ended up flipping between basketball and King Kong. The Chargers are firing on all cylinders, and dad is on record saying the cold of Cincinnati will not affect the team. Good enough for me.

(6-8) Seattle Seahawks at
(8-6) Tampa Bay Buccaneers -6.5
Tampa Bay felt good for a few weeks, and actually had me believing they could upset the balance of the NFC South. It was fun while it lasted, but the Seahawks have more of a chance in the wretched West. Dad thinks the Bucs are a better team, and feels that is the only factor that matters.

(9-5) New York Giants at
(8-6) Green Bay Packers -2.5
Dad points out that the Giants win the tough ones and lose the easy ones. To me that means that last week must have been an especially easy game if they lost to the Eagles like that. Whatever. They win and they're in. I can get behind that. Greg differs to the Green Bay crowd.

(5-9) Minnesota Vikings at
(10-4) Philadelphia Eagles -13.5
Dad believes the Eagles have to come down from their high, but all that momentum plus the magic of Michael Vick is hard to predict. Peterson might still not play. I'd give the Vikings a shot if they lined up Jared Allen at QB and let him and Gerhart run with the ball like it was a Burnt Hills game this season. With the game at home and the crowd ready to celebrate their returning heroes, it becomes a matter of how many points can the Eagles score? I say they get above 14.

(10-4) New Orleans Saints at
(12-2) Atlanta Falcons -2.5
Dad and Greg immediately go for Atlanta in what many feel is going to be the game of the week. Seriously, no love for the defending champs, still? The Saints are still the Who 'dat? team that stole our hearts last season, yet as soon as they lost a few games, they were immediately off everyone's radar. I think they may have been holding back for a postseason run, pacing themselves after an elongated 2009 season and ready to play the tough games when they count in 2010. Here they are. The Saints come marching back!

This week: 1-for-1
Last week: 8-for-16
overall: 115-for-210

Thanks to everyone who came by to read. Have a wonderful holiday season and a spectacular new year.

Stathead Matt's Week 15 Quick Picks

2010-12-18T14:33:00.002-05:00

Overall: 106-for-193
This Week: 1-for-1
Last Week: 7-for-15

(5-8) Cleveland Browns at
(2-11) Cincinnati Bengals -1.5

(5-8) Washington Redskins at
(4-9) Dallas Cowboys -6.5

(5-8) Houston Texans at
(5-8) Tennessee Titans -1.5

(8-5) Jacksonville Jaguars at
(7-6) Indianapolis Colts -4.5

(8-5) Kansas City Chiefs at
(6-7) St. Louis Rams -1.5

(3-10) Buffalo Bills at
(7-6) Miami Dolphins -5.5

(3-10) Detroit Lions at
(8-5) Tampa Bay Buccaneers -6.5

(4-9) Arizona Cardinals at
(1-12) Carolina Panthers -2.5

(10-3) New Orleans Saints at
(9-4) Baltimore Ravens -2.5

(9-4) Philadelphia Eagles at
(9-4) New York Giants -2.5

(11-2) Atlanta Falcons at
(6-7) Seattle Seahawks +6.5

(9-4) New York Jets at
(10-3) Pittsburgh Steelers -6.5

(3-10) Denver Broncos at
(6-7) Oakland Raiders -6.5

(8-5) Green Bay Packers at
(11-2) New England Patriots -10.5

(9-4) Chicago Bears at
(5-8) Minnesota Vikings +3.5

New king in Newcastle and Week 14 NFL picks

2010-12-11T10:57:00.009-05:00

My favorite English club team, Newcastle United, recently fired their manager, Chris Hughton, and it couldn't be worse for my psyche.

I found out about the sacking while compiling the Around the Block, Around the World segment we do on The Starting Gate -- a page we do early in the night -- and it was all I could think about for the rest of the day.

Hughton had been a successful manager since coming in as a caretaker, leading the club into the middle of the Premiership after a dominant campaign in the League Championship. It's more than we could ask for after the last few seasons of transfer miscues, front office mistakes and and on-pitch failures. His departure was never called for by the fans this season, and his performance had been written about in good light. If Chris Hughton could be fired in his first real managerial gig despite success and the backing of fans, what decent coach would ever want to take up the position, especially given the club's history of this type of behavior?

Since I started following Newcastle in 2006, the club has gone through many managers. In fact, they were going through a managerial change, Graeme Souness to Bobby Roeder, at the time I picked up the club. Since then I have watched Sam Allardyce, Joe Kinnear, Kevin Keegan and Alan Shearer try their hand as Newcastle manager before Hughton got his chance. That is seven managers in under six seasons. Even the Yankees in their Steinbrenner/Billy Martin heyday and the wretched Detroit Lions cannot claim such a carousel of managers.

"By God, we will be unstoppable!"

Granted, some of these managers have been on an interim basis. Bobby Roeder was just a place-holder, as was Joe Kinnear until something better came along. But even managers that were chosen for the long-term have been unable to produce. Sam Allardyce was hand-picked by owner Mike Ashley, but succeeded to only talk a big game while his squads failed to back it up on the pitch.

Kevein Keegan was the manager back during Newcastle's last run of success in the early 90s, when the team climbed out of what was then called Division 1, and finished second, sixth, second and secondin the Premiership from 1993 to 1997. He abruptly resigned after that run, only to return in 2008 to take over for Sam Allardyce.

I was watching a live broadcast of Newcastle's game against Manchester United (I even kept a live blog of the game) when it was announced that Keegan would return as manager, and I remember the elation and expectations that came with the return of King Kevin.

I was the fella on the left, and I think I imagined the two on the right

He lasted less than a year after disagreements with owner Mike Ashley and Director Dennis Wise over transfers, the aftermath of which turned fans against the owner and Keegan from the club.

Nine months later. Not our proudest moment.

Alan Shearer's tenure was nothing more than a huge tease to the fans. Shearer was the face of the franchise as a goal scorer until his retirement in 2006. He then came in as manager to save a sinking ship that was doomed to relegation, and almost succeeded. Fans thought he was the savior we needed to steer us back to the Premiership. It would be just like the old days.

In our heads we thought, "Well, management ran Keegan out of town and sold our best young player for pennies on the dollar, but so long as Shearer is at the helm, I will stand by this team forever".

"You'll never turn on me again, right, Mauley McBear?"

Yet, in another staggeringly brilliant public relations move, Shearer was cut down, held in limbo over the job throughout the offseason, and finally not re-fired. When Newcastle failed to lure back Keegan, the job went to Chris Hughton as a caretaker until they could find their longterm manager. We looked dead in the water, and doomed to mire in the second tier of English football.

And then something wonderful happened. Hughton did an immaculate job as manager during the club's year in the League Championship. Newcastle dominated the league over the course of the season, and stormed their way back into the Premiership. We were contenders again, and I felt a sense of pride in the team that I had not felt since the initial honeymoon of choosing them in the first place.

The current year has had mixed success, but has still been better than many fans had predicted. The fact that there have been any ups has more than made up for the downs, and following the team has never been more fun. We were shut out in the opener by Manchester United, but came right back with a 6-0 win over Aston Villa in the next match. We kicked powerhouse Chelsea out of the Carling Cup only to lose to Arsenal in the next round. Andy Carrol has emerged from our youth team as a constant scoring threat, but talented Joey Barton cannot stay out of trouble with officials and the law. We upended rival Sunderland with a five-goal barrage and crept past Arsenal after losing in league matches, only to find ourselves playing our last four games without a win.

It's been that kind of season, except the manager was thrown off on the corkscrew.

Yet those last four games have been the deciding factor of the future for Chris Hughton at Newcastle. What? Mike Ashley, who took over ownership of the club soon after I began following them, and has been as popular with fans as an acid and salt rinse after a root canal, decided the team needs to be managed by someone with more experience.

On paper, it's a justifiable move, along the lines of 'if the team is doing this well with some nobody as manager, think of how well they'd do with an accomplished manager.' It would be like the New Orleans Hornets -- who are exceeding all expectations by starting the season 11-1 with rookie head coach Monty Williams -- firing Williams because of their current 2-5 skid and replacing him with perennial also-ran Don Nelson, because Nelson has been a coach longer. Except whoever the soccer version of is Don Nelson was not available, so they hired a journeyman manager
in Alan Pardew, or the P.J. Carlesimo of soccer coaches.

Will Joey Barton be the Latrell Sprewell of soccer?

Can Newcastle difinitively say they are in a better position than they were in before they fired Hughton? No. At best, they can say they broke even on this move

In reality they have burned the bridge of every personnel member the team ever wants to sign in the future. Who will sign with a club that will unceremoniously fire you even if you overperform? Why even risk it?

Pardew told the BBC that other managers had sent him text messages saying that "he must be mad to sign there", and I am inclined to agree with them. Even with his 5 1/2 year deal, how long does he expect to stay with a club who fired their last manager after he exceeded any and all expectations? With Newcastle's managerial history, how did the club even generate any interest in the position from career-oriented managers?

This move may not affect the team this season, but it will in the long run, and not for the better. And to think I let them get my hopes up.

Week 14 NHL Picks

This Week: 0-for-1
Last Week: 12-for-16
Overall: 99-for-178

(5-7) Cleveland Browns at
(2-10) Buffalo Bills -1.5

(8-4) Green Bay Packers at
(2-10) Detroit Lions +6.5

(8-4) New York Giants at
(5-7) Minnesota Vikings +2.5

(2-10) Cincinnati Bengals at
(9-3) Pittsburgh Steelers -9.5

(7-5) Tampa Bay Buccaneers at
(5-7) Washington Redskins +2.5

(10-2) Atlanta Falcons at
(1-11) Carolina Panthers +7.5

(6-6) Oakland Raiders at
(7-5) Jacksonville Jaguars -4.5

(6-6) Seattle Seahawks at
(4-8) San Francisco 49ers -4.5

(6-6) St. Louis Rams at
(9-3) New Orleans Saints -8.5

(10-2) New England Patriots at
(9-3) Chicago Bears +3.5

(6-6) Miami Dolphins at
(9-3) New York Jets -6.5

(3-9) Denver Broncos at
(3-9) Arizona Cardinals +3.5

(8-4) Kansas City Chiefs at
(6-6) San Diego Chargers -6.5

(8-4) Philadelphia Eagles at
(4-8) Dallas Cowboys +3.5

(8-4) Baltimore Ravens at
(5-7) Houston Texans +3.5

Jeter to third base and other changes the Yankees should make for 2011 plus Week 13 NFL picks

2010-12-03T06:08:00.004-05:00

It's 6 a.m. on Friday morning. I've got a pot of coffee on and we're coming off a busy sports day. We saw LeBron returned to Cleveland. (Were the derogatory "Scottie Pippen" chants harsher on Scottie than on LeBron?) There was an NFL game I didn't get to watch (and a Dan Orlovsky sighting that I missed). The U.S. also lost their World Cup bid to Qatar. (I have a better chance of seeing the 2018 World Cup in Russia.) But all I want to talk about is the Yankees.

This is probably due to the fact that December decided to rear its head, but in the form of cold and a ridiculous rainstorm. If it were snow, we'd be fine, but cold and rain just make me pine for lazy summer days, and writing phrases like "lazy summer days" only makes it worse. Sorry.

The Yankees need to set the wheels of change in motion, slowly, even though their fans may not want to yet. Yankees fans can be loyal to a fault. We demand that the Yankees continue to win, and demand that they win with the players we have grown to love on the field. Those players have this terrible habit of aging, and that can have a negative effect on their on-field production. Even if they are past their prime and no longer provide the team with the best chance to win, fans want to see no one else in those pinstripes. This creates a chasm between economics and management, tradition and progress, the past and the future. We need to begin a transition into a new era that loyalist fans can accept, and it needs to start before Jeter, Mo, Posada and Pettitte are gone.

My girlfriend's mother told me that she would boo the Yankees if they did not re-sign Jeter, because he is a class act and she has always liked him.

This does not have any effect from a managerial stance, since his popularity does not win them games, but means everything from an economical stance, since he and the other "dynasty" Yankees, (Posada, Rivera and Pettitte) have a decade plus of promotion and success behind them and easily hold the interest of the casual fan. They have been playing long enough together for fathers to have brought up their now-adult kids on them. Nobody wants the group to disband or for the ride to end. That's what this season will be about. 2011. The season of denial.

The 2010 Yankees performed as well as they did in spite of the production of "dynasty" Yankees Derek Jeter and Jorge Posada. (Jeter did not sniff .300 and Posada batted below .250 for the first time since 1999.)

Their fielding left much to be desired s well, as Jeter's Gold Glove felt like the punchline to a season-long joke and Posada threw out a Piazza-esque 15% of would-be base-stealers.

So while those players own the hearts of New Yorkers, they are quickly becoming a liability on the field and at the plate.

Mariano Rivera has remained productive as the closer and Andy Pettitte had another consistent season, but as evidenced by the 2-year deal that Rivera inked yesterday and Pettitte's retirement indecision, neither has many seasons left at this level. The "dynasty" Yankee window is closing, and the team has to show fans that they are prepared to move on in a way that is acceptable to those fiercely loyal fans.

Reduce the roles of Jeter and Posada

Derek Jeter is still an everyday ball player. He is still the Captain, still plays his heart out, and should be on the field as often as possible as a leader. Gold Glove award aside, he should be at a less demanding position than shortstop. Luckily, the Yankees already have an established player who has been called a better defender at the shortstop position. He plays right next to Jeter. Alex Rodriguez.

When the Yankees acquired A-Rod, there was much debate as to who should play the 6-spot, since almost all experts agreed that Rodriguez was the better defensive fielder, but the position belonged to Jeter. The time has come for them to switch spots. Jeter does not need as much range to play third, and a less demanding position may rejuvenate him at the plate.

Worst case scenario: Jeter takes the position change personally and it affects his play, although his career of professionalism suggests that this will not happen.

Jorge actually has two replacements at his spot in Francisco Cervelli and Jesus Montero. Cervelli does not appear to have the offensive potential of Montero, while Montero definitely does not have the defensive potential of Cervelli. Combined though, they have the talent to give Posada the rest he needs to stay productive behind the plate. Posada catches, Montero DHs. Cervelli catches, Posada DHs. Find a timeshare of that that keeps Posada fresh for the postseason, and we keep Jorge involved while grooming a replacement.

Cervelli is the replacement in my book. He had a clutch year at the plate -- .316 BA with runners in scoring position -- and looked comfortable behind the plate. (Ironically he threw out a lower percentage of base stealers than did Posada -- 14% vs 15% -- and their other defensive comparisons last season are comparible, right down to their pitcher's ERA and RAvg (Posada: 4.13, 4.35 Cervelli: 4.04, 4.33). Perhaps I was too harsh on old Posada before, or too high on Cervelli.

Either way, Cervelli has my vote of confidence going forward, whatever that is worth.

Montero is a fantastic hitter, but everything I have read about him says that he will not stay at catcher. He's an older Bryce Harper-type with a slightly lower ceiling and is destined for the outfield or a DH spot in the AL. So be it.

Worst case scenario: Neither performs well this season and Cashman panics and goes crawling back into a trade for Bengie Molina.

Bengie Molina is such a sucker for Peter Gabriel

Name a replacement for Mo

This one was easy. We did it a few years back, but it was too easy and we had too much time to think about it blew it with Joba Chamberlain. Like an easy pub trivia question.

Q. Who painted the Mona Lisa?
Me: Da Vinci. But that is way too easy. The question guy is trying to throw us off. Didn't he design it and have one of his students paint it? Who was a famous student of his?
Friend: Raphael might have been. That's why he was in the Ninja Turtles I bet.
Me: Genius. We're gonna be the only ones here who get this right.

He had all the tools to be a dominant closer, and with him in the setup spot, the Yankees were gold with a lead in the 7th.

"Yeah, but what if he were a starter and we got that type of performance for seven innings every fifth game?" -- Brian Cashman's evil internal Jimminy Cricket.

A couple years of that not working leaves Joba with a shattered confidence and no role back in the bullpen. Super. We have three options: Fix him, and frankly none of us know what it will take to do that. Audition the role and hope for the best or find a free agent when Mo retires.

Audtion the role?:

Yankee closer, 2015

I want to give Joba another shot at the setup role this season. He has the capabilities, but needs to get his head back. He is an emotional guy, and the role calls for a collected individual who reacts to nothing.

Watch Rivera close out a game. He looks like he is playing chess while listening to a Bernie Williams album.

He is concentrated yet laid back. Joba looks like he just finished off an MMA fight after each inning of work. Since Kerry Wood was not resigned, (why, when he was so reliable?) we let Joba set up until the end of May and make the call then.

Pettitte is gonna do his thing

Pettitte has left for Texas before. He has said he was going to retire before. We will always take him back, but it has been made clear long ago that we need him more than he needs us. No hard feelings. If we lose him again, it will probably hurt fans the least of the four, yet it will still hurt.

Andy Pettitte has been the rock of the Yankee pitching staff. He hasn't been a Cy Young candidate in years, but every time he steps on the mound, he gives us a chance to win.

This one is the toughest to call, since starters only pitch every five games, nobody would really be replacing him if he left. Someone else is in his spot four out of five games anyhow, unlike Jeter who is always between second and third and Rivera who is always on with the lead on the line. Pettitte's spot is in the playoffs when we need a win, and he was not started in that spot in the ALCS. Game 6 went to Hughes, who took the loss.

Since the Yankees management already took the role away from Pettitte, and he has always felt like the most likely to leave, losing Andy Pettitte doesn't seem like the deathblow that fans find the idea of losing the other three.

If he stays we'll be happy. If he leaves it will not affect ticket sales.

Worst case scenario: Sergio Mitre is our fourth starter if Pettitte goes and we do not get Cliff Lee. I take it back. Losing Pettitte could be terrible.

Promote the heck out of the rest of the farm-raised team

As I said before, the Yankees did as well as they did in large part because of the up-and-comers on the team.

Yes, free agent mercinaries like Mark Teixeira and CC Sabathia and Alex Rodriguez played a large role, but where would the Yankees have been without the production of Brett Gardner, Robinson Cano, Phil Hughes and Francisco Cervelli?

Each of them came through the Yankee farm system and shown that they can be mainstays in pinstripes for years to come. (Speaking of farm-raised stars, I cannot wait foe Ivan "Super" Nova to break out in another season and a half.) We can even include Nick Swisher in the group since he blossomed in New York after forgettable seasons in Oakland and Chicago.

With a small change in promotion tactics, the Yankees look like they are rebuilding with youth even though they are basically maintaining the status quo. These are the Yankees that will inherit the team when Jeter an company retire, even though that will not be for a few years. It will be a lengthy transition, but that is how the fans will best accept it after fifteen years of this core group.

Worst case scenario: None. The Yankees are just shifting focus. Nobody will forget about the veterans.

All this leads to Derek Jeter's contract. Critics say he is worth no more than the average shortstop and should accept a short contract in case he breaks down. Fans will not accept an abrupt departure and will blame the Yankees if he is not retained.

Frankly, I have no problem with a contract in the 15-20 mil a year range. (I'm not paying it and he plays on my television for free.) I would simply include a team option for a position change. Nobody else will offer him that much per year to play shortstop.

That way, he gets his money, the fans keep him, and the team gets better. We all win. Especially the team. Enough to get to the World Series with the "dynasty" Yankees for one last hurrah, while preparing fans for what is to come.

Week 13 picks:
Overall: 87 for 162
This week: 1 for 1
Last week: 8 for 16

(8-3) New Orleans Saints at
(2-9) Cincinnati Bengals +6.5

(8-3) Chicago Bears at
(2-9) Detroit Lions +3.5

(4-7) San Francisco 49ers at
(7-4) Green Bay Packers -9.5

(6-5) Jacksonville Jaguars at
(5-6) Tennessee Titans -3.5

(3-8) Denver Broncos at
(7-4) Kansas City Chiefs -8.5

(4-7) Cleveland Browns at
(6-5) Miami Dolphins -4.5

(2-9) Buffalo Bills at
(4-7) Minnesota Vikings -6.5

(5-6) Washington Redskins at
(7-4) New York Giants -7.5

(5-6) Oakland Raiders at
(6-5) San Diego Chargers -12.5

(9-2) Atlanta Falcons at
(7-4) Tampa Bay Buccaneers +3.5

(1-10) Carolina Panthers at
(5-6) Seattle Seahawks -5.5

(5-6) St. Louis Rams at
(3-8) Arizona Cardinals +3.5

(3-8) Dallas Cowboys at
(6-5) Indianapolis Colts -5.5

(8-3) Pittsburgh Steelers at
(8-3) Baltimore Ravens -3.5

(9-2) New York Jets at
(9-2) New England Patriots -3.5

Stathead Matt's Week 12 NFL Quick Picks

2010-11-27T11:45:00.003-05:00

For the rest of the season, (and what would have been the smart thing to do starting a few weeks ago) I will be making my Thursday picks via twitter. I went 2-for-3 on Thanksgiving, but how to prove it? You can get them by following @mvdonato27.

And now, on account of a trip to CT that I am already supposed to have departed for, here are my Week 12 Quick picks.

(7-3) Green Bay Packers at
(8-2) Atlanta Falcons -2.5
Someone has to distinguish themselves and break away in the NFC South. I say it will be the Falcons.

(7-3) Pittsburgh Steelers at
(2-8) Buffalo Bills +6.5
How many weeks in a row have I picked the Bills now? They have actually done well against the spread on account of all their close losses. Plus, there is nice trap game potential for Pittsburgh.

(1-9) Carolina Panthers at
(3-7) Cleveland Browns -10.5
Jake Delhomme makes it up to Panthers fans by giving back one win for so many he took away in the last few seasons.

(6-4) Jacksonville Jaguars at
(6-4) New York Giants -7.5
The Giants are beat up and the Jaguars are hot right now. All things point to the Jaguars. Wasn't this New York squad called the best in the NFC by experts a two weeks ago? I'm going with the Giants because the rest of their schedule is divisional battles, and they need it more heading into that gauntlet.

(3-7) Minnesota Vikings at
(5-5) Washington Redskins -2.5
Down goes Frazier.

(5-5) Tennessee Titans at
(4-6) Houston Texans -6.5
The Titans were my preseason pick as AFC champions. Championship teams are more than just a quarterback...I hope. Let's find out this week.

(6-4) Kansas City Chiefs at
(5-5) Seattle Seahawks +1.5
The Chiefs are 0-4 on the road, but the Seahawks are overachieving just by being at .500. Today will even things out ever so slightly.

(5-5) Miami Dolphins at
(5-5) Oakland Raiders -3.5
The Dolphins have all but disappeared from my playoff radar, and it looks like they will start Thigpen. IThe better chances lay in Oakland finding their schwerve from before their bye two weeks ago.

(7-3) Philadelphia Eagles at
(7-3) Chicago Bears +3.5
(7-3) Tampa Bay Buccaneers at
(7-3) Baltimore Ravens -7.5
Did you see the article in today's (Sunday's) Saratogian saying that nobody believes in Tampa Bay or Chicago despite their (7-3) records? They both have difficult challenges against (7-3) conference foes. I believe one of them will emerge and quiet the skeptics this week. That will be the Bears, at home against Philly. You heard it here first.

(4-6) St. Louis Rams at
(3-7) Denver Broncos -3.5
Bradford has played well enough to get people to notice, but has yet to have a real standout performance that defines his successful rookie campaign. He gets it here. My prediction is 350 yards and 3 TDs against a defense that has given up tied for the 4th-most passing TDs and only have six interceptions on the year.

(5-5) San Diego Chargers at
(6-4) Indianapolis Colts -3.5
If Gates plays, and I think he will. The Chargers will have the offense to take this game, fueling both Chargers comeback talks and "What's wrong with Peyton?" talks. Should be fun.

(3-7) San Francisco 49ers at
(3-7) Arizona Cardinals +1.5
I will not feel bad about missing this Monday Night snoozer. And neither should you. I hope your Thanksgiving went well. Good luck this week.

Last Week: 9-for-16
Overall: 77-for-150

Stathead Matt's Week 11 picks

2010-11-20T15:53:00.004-05:00

Week 10 shall henceforth be known as Week Dumpty. We do not even need the Humpty part. It was that bad. The Thursday game was a miss and I went 0-fer on the 1 p.m. games, causing me to feel a combination of humility and angst that is usually reserved only for those dentist visits where you must admit you don't floss twice a day and cannot wait to leave the shame in that office.

At least it is only one week of picks, and I have not underperformed as much as the Houston Rockets, Dallas Cowboys or Hartford Colonials. (Have you watched any UFL by the way? The regular season finale is this week. It may be your last chance to see Josh McDaniels play lose my team another close one.)

Last Week: 3 - 14
This Week: 0 - 1
Overall: 68 - 134

(1-8) Buffalo Bills at
(2-7) Cincinnati Bengals -5.5

(2-7) Detroit Lions at
(2-7) Dallas Cowboys -6.5

(6-3) Baltimore Ravens at
(1-8) Carolina Panthers +10.5

(3-6) Cleveland Browns at
(5-4) Jacksonville Jaguars -1.5

(5-4) Oakland Raiders at
(6-3) Pittsburgh Steelers -7.5

(4-5) Washington Redskins at
(5-4) Tennessee Titans -7.5

(3-6) Arizona Cardinals at
(5-4) Kansas City Chiefs -7.5

(6-3) Green Bay Packers at
(3-6) Minnesota Vikings +3.5

(4-5) Houston Texans at
(7-2) New York Jets -6.5

(7-2) Atlanta Falcons at
(4-5) St. Louis Rams +3.5

(6-3) Tampa Bay Buccaneers at
(3-6) San Francisco 49ers -3.5

(5-4) Seattle Seahawks at
(6-3) New Orleans Saints -11.5

(6-3) Indianapolis Colts at
(7-2) New England Patriots -3.5

(6-3) New York Giants at
(6-3) Philadelphia Eagles -3.5

(3-6) Denver Broncos at
(4-5) San Diego Chargers -9.5

Stathead Matt's Week 10 NFL picks

2010-11-13T14:03:00.004-05:00

If you have been following The Saratogian's college sports lately, you'll notice the straight bangin' Syracuse coverage we have been printing. But as any quality sports fan knows, it is always prudent to keep a keen eye on the competition. Learn their weaknesses and create a point of attack, so that in the rare but fantastic case that the coach falls ill and they call you out from the stands to lead your beloved team, you will be prepared to go all Sun Tzu on the opposition.

It is under that pretense that I am writing a brief preview on the UConn Huskies, and not at all because I am from Connecticut originally and will use any excuse to write about the closest thing my state has to a professional team. (That includes the UFL, WNBA, and AHL teams we have.)

A women's write up is easy. On the court Uconn's opponent will see Maya Moore coming up court with the ball, scream like they have seen the silhouette of Michael Myers in the moonlight and run like hell, allowing the Huskies to win by at least 50 a game.

"spooky"

So we're all set there, amiright? UConn women, I look forward to your PBS showcase and your telethon games. This year I may even donate for the sweet tote bag or just buy the Huskies chips and salsa from a CT grocery store and cart it back here for the memories. But I am not compelled here. They are good and we know it. Ho hum. Status quo. End o' story.

"Another roller coaster year for the UConn women"

If we are looking for a sneaky, young team to upset the current power balance in the Big East, it is on the men's side. Last night, the Huskies started three freshmen (Niels Giffy, Tyler Olander, and Jeremy Lamb)a sophomore (Alex Oriakhi) and a junior (Kemba Walker).

Walker is the main returning starter, and after years of setting up the likes of Jerome Dyson, A. J. Price and Hasheem Thabeet, the team is now his to run. Walker is a leader on the floor and an in-game manager who can set up plays for his scorers.

The question is, just who are those scorers?

Right now, it looks like nobody ... yet.

In their game against Stony Brook last night, Walker took over scoring, (team-high 18 points), driving to the hoop (team high six free throws attempted), and set up few teammates for scores, (three assists). This may be expected from a team that started three freshmen, has had little time to click and is looking to their one proven star to get the job done, but that is not Walker's role, and the team will not hit its potential until he goes back to his role as play-maker and someone else steps up as the scorer.

The team is young, and we do not know nearly enough about the freshmen yet, except that Niels Giffey played for a club team in Germany and was one of their finest U-19 players, that Tyler Olander went to school down the street from the Storrs campus and should be a huge hometown hero.

So why am I so excited about this year's team, that is about to start a 2-year probationary period for recruiting violations and is hemmed by Jim Calhoun, who seems to coach one or two games per season from a hospital bed?

For one, did you see their defense last night?

Here is the stat sheet from the game. Go ahead and check what Stony Brook shot in the second half. I'll wait.

15.2% from the field. 5-33. 0-6 from beyond the arch. That would give an offensive-minded coach like Don Nelson or Mike D'Antoni nightmares.

UConn has been a second half team for years. They play like a prize fighter, feeling out their opponent for a few rounds, then hammering them home. Granted, their opponent was Stony Brook, and I am certain that many will be quick to point out that Stony Brook is as feared in the College basketball world as any mouse to a cat.

I take it back. I totally take it back.

The other thing is their potential. The Huskies are young with quality leadership and one of the few coaches in the country that can routinely get the best out of his players, (Ignore last season. Just everything about it.)

These young players are not ready to make the jump to the NBA after one season, and are only going to grow stronger as they gain points to their experience, charisma and jump shot.

"Roll 14 for 'and 1'"

That is why UConn will sneak up on the Big East come tournament time. As my brother-in-law The Mike, the UConn guru who reminded me of all the details from last year that I chose to forget and gave me a scouting report on each incoming freshman put it. "We have to get better. We cannot do any worse than last year."

So now Syracuse fans, when you are ready to taunt my Huskies from your lofty top 25 spot, you will have more information that you did before.

Week 10 picks
(6-3) Baltimore Ravens at
(7-2) Atlanta Falcons -1.5
I didn't tweet or put this online, but you still win since it was wrong.
(2-6) Detroit Lions at
(0-8) Buffalo Bills -2.5

(3-5) Minnesota Vikings at
(5-3) Chicago Bears +1.5

(6-2) New York Jets at
(3-5) Cleveland Browns +3.5

(2-6) Cincinnati Bengals at
(5-3) Indianapolis Colts -7.5

(5-3) Tennessee Titans at
(4-4) Miami Dolphins +0.5

(1-7) Carolina Panthers at
(5-3) Tampa Bay Buccaneers -7.5

(4-4) Houston Texans at
(4-4) Jacksonville Jaguars -1.5

(5-3) Kansas City Chiefs at
(2-6) Denver Broncos +0.5

(1-7) Dallas Cowboys at
(6-2) New York Giants -13.5

(4-4) Seattle Seahawks at
(3-5) Arizona Cardinals -3.5

(4-4) St. Louis Rams at
(2-6) San Francisco 49ers -5.5

(6-2) New England Patriots at
(6-2) Pittsburgh Steelers -4.5

(5-3) Philadelphia Eagles at
(4-4) Washington Redskins +3.5

Last week: 6 of 13
Overall: 65 of 120

Horse by Horse: Breeders' Cup Classic and Week 9 picks

2010-11-04T15:48:00.016-04:00

Disclaimer: I am not a horse racing insider. Do not get me wrong. I'm at the track here at Saratoga as much as my time and cash will allow, and I did read every article we put in the pink sheet this summer, but this is by no means an insider look. What I do have is a home-made, super villain-like, statistic-analyzing data-interpreting sooth-saying machine -- i.e. a mathematical formula -- that has been known to rack up winners and rough up the Justice League with respectable accuracy.

Seen above: a mathematical formula.

Is this roughly the equivalent of analyzing a Madden simulation to predict the Super Bowl? That's for you in the comments section to determine.

The field: The 2010 Breeders' Cup Classic has 12 thoroughbreds racing 1 1/4 miles as fast as they can for what I'm sure they know is glory, pride and fame, and not for a bucket of oats and to escape whatever keeps stinging them in the haunches whenever they try to slow down. 11 of these will mire indifferently in defeat, while one lucky horse will feel the honor of finding itself graced upon the cover of so many publications it cannot read.

"I can't believe you told them I cannot read."

The formula suggests we rid a few of these horses, as they have a slimmer shot at winning than this post has for a Pulitzer.

The "Aww. We still love you, honey" candidates: Pleasant Prince, First Dude, Fly Down, Etched, Musket Man

They are just out. You do not get to the Classic without being a winner -- unless you are Fly Down -- but these horses just haven't shown as much in the big stage to warrant consideration. They shall be the also-rans, the Pokey to the rest of the field's Gumby, if you will.

"Tell me again about the rabbits, Gumby."

That leaves us with seven delicious (presumably) horses to choose from.

Paddy O'Prado is the only horse left who hasn't hit 100 on his speed rating in his last four starts, and Haynesfield's competition is lacking compared to the other remaining horses, even with his win over Blame and Fly Down on Oct. 10, so I will let them slide.

Zenyatta is the next horse on the list that the evil formula suggests to bump off, even with her 19-0 record. (I did mention that the formula was evil, didn't I?) I cannot do it yet. Am I caught up in the legend? No. But with a track record like hers, literally, I feel if I put her out of the money then she and her Amazonian horse friends will track me down and give me a lifelong case of hoof-breath.

Still not worth it.

Instead, I am going to drop Blame. He lost to Haynesfield in his last race, and he has nobody to bla-- you know what. I'm going to stop right there. You know where that one was going, so I'll spare you.

Quality Road drops as well due to his recent loss to Blame. He is backed by Todd Pletcher and Johnny V., and that should stir some locals, but popularity does not equal success, even though you'd think the two go hand in hand, like a clown at a fun party, but neither are rules, and sometimes they are the exception.

I take it back. This clown would make any party more fun.

So, we have three horses left. Our money horses. In these three must be a long shot who comes in and tramples Godzilla-style all over your trifecta (and a little on your heart if you are like me and bet your Christmas savings). For the Classic, that horse is Espoir City. He certainly fits the part. No, not because he hails from Japan and I made a Godzilla comparison. That's just silly.

"Do I look silly to you?!"

It's because he is a 20-1 long shot with a speed rating average of 120.75 over his last four races and has averaged over $608,000 in winnings per race this year. Hmmm. 20-1? That looks more and more like an intriguing bet, no? The evil formula had him at #1, and the only reasons I knocked him down were because I'm not 100% certain how our SPDRTs and purses compare to those overseas, and to knock him down a bit before he becomes too powerful.

The formula had Zenyatta at #5, but I rose her to #2 out of fear and respect. We all want 20-0. It has never happened. She will go out on top even if she does not win. Also, she is very pretty and smells nice even right after a race ... so please don't hate me.

That leaves us with Looking at Lucky. The horse that my evil predicting machine says will take down the mighty Zenyatta. He is peaking at the perfect time, and at 6/1, he's just enough of a long shot that people can act shocked.

It's the perfect combo, 20-1, 8-5, 6-1, in the Breeders' Cup is an epic trifecta payoff. Zenyatta may not win, but at least you will.

--Matthew Donato

Week 9 picks

(5-2) Tampa Bay Buccaneers at
(5-2) Atlanta Falcons -8.5

(4-3) Chicago Bears at
(0-7) Buffalo Bills +2.5

(6-1) New England Patriots at
(2-5) Cleveland Browns +4.5

(5-2) New York Jets at
(2-5) Detroit Lions +4.5

(3-4) Arizona Cardinals at
(2-5) Minnesota Vikings -8.5

(5-3) New Orleans Saints at
(1-6) Carolina Panthers +7.5

(4-3) Miami Dolphins at
(5-2) Baltimore Ravens -5.5

(3-5) San Diego Chargers at
(4-3) Houston Texans +1.5

(5-2) New York Giants at
(4-3) Seattle Seahawks +5.5

(5-2) Kansas City Chiefs at
(4-4) Oakland Raiders -2.5

(5-2) Indianapolis Colts at
(4-3) Philadelphia Eagles -2.5

(1-6) Dallas Cowboys at
(5-3) Green Bay Packers -7.5

(5-2) Pittsburgh Steelers at
(2-5) Cincinnati Bengals +4.5

Last week: 8 for 13
Overall: 59 for 117

Stathead Matt's Week 8 NFL Picks

2010-10-30T11:56:00.004-04:00

So, after the "Hard Knocks" preseason, the posturing, the smack talk and LaDainian Tomlinson's tatoo, it was hard to see the New York Jets as anything but overrated. What would it take to back up their preseason boasting? A Super Bowl? A perfect season? It was an impossible task. They painted a target on their backs for opposing teams and the media, and nothing would be good enough.

Now it is Week 8. The Jets are 5-1 coming off a bye and are a sloppy season-opening one point loss from being exactly what they claimed they were throughout the "Hard Knocks" season. At what point do we all begrudgingly acknowledge that the Jets are backing their case as best team in the league?

For some, the denial comes from a morality standpoint. (These guys cannot be the best. Santonio Holmes was pinched for substance abuse. They harassed that female reporter. Edwards had that ridiculous DUI in a city choked with taxi cabs. That is not the team that should finish on top.) The record books do not take likability into account. If they did, the Cowboys and Yankees would not have won their championships in the 90s and 00s.

Right now, the best teams in the NFL all play in the AFC. I have the Jets in the "A" group with Pittsburgh. The "A-" group includes New England and Tennessee. The "B" group is Indianapolis, Baltimore and surprise Kansas City. The sneaky looming "C" group is Miami and San Diego.

Miami is out from a playoff standpoint since all their losses have come to the top teams on this list, but they beat all lesser competition. We are still waiting for their ground game to get going. They have the means to move up.

San Diego has defied the odds by having the top offense and defense in the league yet still stuck at 2-5. The law of averages says they have to turn around and breakout, but the law of the score at the end of the game suggests they are missing that extra something that winners have. They are still not a team to count out.

(3-3) Miami Dolphins at
(2-4) Cincinnati Bengals -2.5

(3-4) Jacksonville Jaguars at
(1-5) Dallas Cowboys -6.5
Backing Jon Kitna? It's a spooky Halloween pick!

(4-3) Washington Redskins at
(1-5) Detroit Lions -2.5

(0-6) Buffalo Bills at
(4-2) Kansas City Chiefs -7.5

(1-5) Carolina Panthers at
(3-4) St. Louis Rams -3.5

(4-3) Green Bay Packers at
(5-1) New York Jets -6.5

(2-5) Denver Broncos at
(1-6) San Francisco 49ers -0.5
The last time the 49ers played abroad, they lost to Arizona in Mexico City in 2005. No NFL team should have an international losing streak.

(5-2) Tennessee Titans at
(2-5) San Diego Chargers -3.5

(4-2) Tampa Bay Buccaneers at
(3-3) Arizona Cardinals -3.5

(2-4) Minnesota Vikings at
(5-1) New England Patriots -5.5

(4-2) Seattle Seahawks at
(3-4) Oakland Raiders -2.5

(5-1) Pittsburgh Steelers at
(4-3) New Orleans Saints -0.5

(4-2) Houston Texans at
(4-2) Indianapolis Colts -5.5

Last week: 6-14
Overall: 51-104

2010 World Series a must-watch

2010-10-25T16:35:00.002-04:00

Baseball fans rejoice.

The Texas Rangers and San Francisco Giants have made it to the World Series, and once the first pitch is thrown on Wednesday night, we will each be able to bear witness to one of the more unique championship series that has happened in our lifetimes. So what if we lost the entire east coast in the two League Championship series and the television outlets are crying over lost revenue, or that neither team has a $100 million payroll — Texas is below $60 million — or that the Yankee lineup and the Phillies rotation will not be seen again this October. I’m here to focus on the decedent positives. Here are the best reasons to love the 2010 World Series:

One reign of futility will end: The last time the Giants won a World Series, 1954, Willie Mays was competing with Duke Snyder and Joe DiMaggio for the title of “best center fielder in New York” — DiMaggio won the title by marrying Marilyn Monroe that year. Teams didn’t even play major league baseball further west than Chicago.

Rangers fans have not waited as long for a championship only because they haven’t even existed for that long. They began their hapless lives as the Washington Senators. First in war. First in peace. Last in the American League. Those Senators.
They weren’t even the cool ones that won a World Series in 1924 or were managed by Ted Williams for a few seasons. Those Senators became the Minnesota Twins.
One of these two clubs has to win the World Series, and it will be nothing like any of their fans who are not collecting social security has ever seen.

Both teams are likeable underdogs: On top of everything I said above, there are more recent debacles each franchise has had to overcome.

When I say “San Francisco Giants”, I am willing to bet Allen Iverson’s Turkish salary that the first image that comes to your mind is still the maligned Barry Bonds. He became the face of the steroid era and did more damage to the image of the sport than Tiger Woods would have if he played for the Mets.

That subconcious image should be of Kung Fu Panda’s doughy frame jovially manning third with an equally doughy Juan Uribe literally filling the gap at short, or Brian Wilson’s playoff beard, which should count against their playoff roster, or Lincecum’s contortionist routine to deliver in the high 90’s despite being listed under six feet tall. That’s a fun team to pull for.

They will still not draw as many cheers from neutral fans, because the Rangers have a World Series story that if it were turned into a movie, you would scoff at it for its unbelievability (editors note: that last word does not exist). It is every classic underdog story rolled into one.

Before the season started, manager Ron Washington resigned from the club and admitted that he had been using cocaine, only management would not let him quit. (Character in need of redemption)

One of the players he manages, Josh Hamilton, was a promising young ballplayer with limitless potential until he fell into drugs that included heroin. Hamilton cleaned up and has redeemed himself by realizing his potential. (Feel-good character and quazi-role model)

The Rangers were bankrupt under owner Tom Hicks and had to be sold. (Team at its low point)

The commissioner continued to let them spend money on key free agents even though all their income came from revenue sharing. (Benevolent leader showing trust in the underdog)

One of the principle investors was none other than Nolan Ryan, the greatest baseball player ever to pitch in Texas. (Hero returning to save the club)

The team traded for the best available player in the game when a better offer was made by another team. (Luck, perhaps divine)

That same team that made the better offer, the Yankees — the reigning World Series champions with four times the payroll who used to routinely beat Texas in the playoffs the last time they were any good — became the last obstacle the Rangers had face in order to get to the World Series and a chance to be the first champions in franchise history. (Overcoming the odds to defeat the antagonist)

The entire season plays out over-the-top.

Even if the Giants win, the average viewer will still have to feel good for the Rangers for getting this far, and cheer the team that saved itself from collapsing simply by playing their hearts out.

Like many here in New York, I was rooting for the Yankees as a loyal fan. But now that they are out I see no reason to abandon my high level of interest in the postseason. I want to see a fan base celebrate for the first time in most of their lives. I want to see Lee duel Lincecum. I want to see if this Rangers movie gets the Mighty Ducks treatment or the Rocky treatment. At least, as baseball fans, we are all going to win.

— Matthew Donato

Stathead Matt's greatest Fantasy Basketball setup plus Week 7 Picks

2010-10-23T18:47:00.005-04:00

If you came here just looking for my Week 7 picks, they can be found at the bottom of the post.

There are some fans out there who are still on the fence about playing fantasy basketball, and that is understandable. It lacks the popularity of fantasy football and they intricate statistics of fantasy baseball. Many do not find the appeal. Allow me to present the appeal to you: realism. Thanks to the NBA's collective bargaining agreement, we can build a fantasy sports league that can more closely resemble the strategy of a real general manager than we can for any other sport. Just use the CBA as a guide and incorporate the fantasy tools at your disposal to create the league. Here is how it plays out.

Basic Settings: The league has 10 teams, consisting of 12 players. 9 can start in one day while 3 players will sit on the bench. There are 2 slots for injured players. Therefore only the top 120-140 players in the NBA will be used, or about the top 1/3 of the league. This allows for decent players to still be available on the wire, while getting us pretty close to a real NBA roster (15 players, about 10 of which play in a game.)

Scoring: One word: categories. In this league there are 10 scoring categories: PTS, STL, REB, FG%, 3P%, BLK, AST, FT% and TO. Winning a category requires having the highest number in each category with the exception of TO where you want the lesser number. Since there are 10 categories there is the obvious risk of a tie. You want to make sure your team is set up so that it can compete in each of these categories, or can absolutely dominate in more than half of them...otherwise you will lose a lot. In non-category fantasy basketball, one could theoretically fill their team with shoot-first scorers. That would be fine for the fantasy team, but would never work in real life. However...

Ties: In the case of a tie, the tiebreaker will be the PTS category. Basically, basketball breaks down to who scores the most points, and ties are for Europeans and fancy dinner parties.

Draft: This is where it gets good and the strategy comes in. There is a salary cap of $200 or about $16.67 per player. Each team will take turns nominating a player to be bid on. One of the reasons I made the rosters 12 players instead of 15 is to cut down on draft time, but 120 players will be bid upon. This will be slow at first with the superstar players, Durant, Kobe, Miami, and go pretty quickly in the end when most teams have run out of money. There are many draft strategies. One is spend on the big time players and try to grab a bunch of nobodies at the end, (The Heat Method), and the other is that of cap management and saving until the end to grab whoever you want, (The Spurs Method). Either way, you only have as much to spend as you have cap space, which leads me to...

Cap Space: There is an initial soft cap set at $200 for each team. For every dollar you go over the cap, up to $30, you will be penalized in cap space the following season. If you spend $210 in salary this season, the following season you will have a hard cap of $190 meaning you will not be allowed to go over that amount. This will go as high as $230 to $170. If you win the league though, you will not be penalized for going over the cap during your championship season and will have a $200 soft cap the following year like everyone else. If you win without going over the cap, you will be granted a $215 cap for the following season that is not penalized until the owner goes above the $215 limit. Therefore, this season my league's winner from last season, Justin, has $215 in cap space. He will hit the luxury tax only at the $216 mark. His soft cap limit still stands at $230 and does not jump up to $245 because he started at $215. Second place gets the same benefits only close to halved. Either a $208 non-taxable cap or no penalty on up to $15 they went over the cap the previous season.

Keeper Contracts: At the end of an unsigned player’s first season with your team, you are allowed to sign them to a contract of your choosing. You can keep as many as you want so long as you stay under the cap. The contract may be for as long as you want, but it will be $8, or half the value of the average player, more than you paid for them the year before, continuously. If you drafted a player for $10 and sign him at the end of the season to a 4-year deal, the next year he will be $18, then $26, then $34, and finally $42 in his final season of the contract. After their keeper contract ends, the player automatically becomes a free agent to be bid on in the next season’s auction draft. Even if a player is traded to a new team, their contract is still in play like in real salary cap shenanigans. The player will always opt for the free agent market after their contract ends (the auction draft). These contracts can cripple a team that has signed expensive players only to fall out of their cap bracket, because you have to pay your contracts. Someone who signed Gilbert Arenas to a multi-year deal has him on the books throughout the length of the deal, even if he isn’t playing. Even if you have less than 12 players signed and are at the cap limit, you cannot pick up any more. So what do you do when you are pressed by a bad contract...

Releasing players: You cannot drop a player under contract, but you can release them. A bad contract is your mess, and it will cost you to clean it up. You can release a player under contract for half the amount that is owed to the player that year and each year he was signed for. If the $10 player from before has bad knees and is logging 12 minutes a game in year 3, he can be bought out and released for $17 in year 3 and $21 in year 4. Sure it still hurts the team’s cap, but not as much as before. The released player goes back into the waiver pool and can be picked up and purchased by anyone. Wait, how would waiver even work in this system...

Waiver wire: Since your team is locked into a cap for the season after the draft, with only trades being able to change your cap space, waiver wire pickups become tricky. We don’t want a team’s salary moving from frequent waiver wire moves, so there is only one option. Whomever you pick up off the waiver wire takes on the exact salary as the player you dropped back into the waiver wire. So a non-keeper being dropped to the wire at $20 is replaced by a player from the wire at $20. This is both good and bad. If you find a sleeper in the wire and drop a cheap player to get him, then you got that sleeper for very little and can sign him for cheap after the season, but if you drop a more expensive player then the sleeper will cost you more as a keeper, or may not even be worth keeping at that price. Remember, you cannot drop a player under contract. The beauty of this league is that you can manage yourself into a corner like Isaiah Thomas or cruise your way through happy waters like a pre-Grizzlies Jerry West.

Trades: As mentioned, you can change your team salary during the season through trades and releases. These work with similar intentions as real NBA trades. Trade talent for cap relief. Salary dump for a big free agency class. Go for expiring contracts so you’ll have enough to keep your superstar long-term.

Vetos: There are no vetos. You have your reasons to trade. Just keep it under the cap. That is your guideline. This is a game of strategy more than anything else and everyone needs a plan. What looks crazy to some can still work into the plan. Has anyone ever vetoed David Kahn or Chris Wallace? Bad trades happen in the NBA, and if you get screwed over it is your own fault.

(What if I do GM myself into a hole? It would be no fun having a lousy team trying to get back into this thing.) Solution.

Rookie draft: Before the auction draft we will have a rookie draft. There is no lottery. The team that finished last picks first and so on. The rookies drafted are immediately signed for $1. After their first year you can choose to sign them to a rookie contract, a 3-year deal that starts at $8 the following season and progresses as normal or drop them back into free agency. The rookie will immediately go back into the free agent pool after the rookie contract expires. This way awful teams can rebuild through the draft.

I think I covered all the bases here. This is the setup for the most realistic GM experience I can come up with. I think this will be a huge leap from last season and will be more fun and engaging and will involve much more strategy.

Hopefully you made it all the way through the manifesto. Let me know if in the comments if you have any thoughts or questions on the league set up, such as why I chose to hold onto this nugget until so close to the opening of the regular season.

Week 7 Picks

(2-3) Cincinnati Bengals at
(4-2) Atlanta Falcons -3.5

(3-3) Washington Redskins at
(4-2) Chicago Bears -2.5

(4-2) Philadelphia Eagles at
(4-2) Tennessee Titans -3.5

(3-3) Jacksonville Jaguars at
(3-2) Kansas City Chiefs -5.5

(4-1) Pittsburgh Steelers at
(3-2) Miami Dolphins +3.5

(1-5) Cleveland Browns at
(4-2) New Orleans Saints -13.5

(3-3) St. Louis Rams at
(3-2) Tampa Bay Buccaneers -2.5

(1-5) San Francisco 49ers at
(0-5) Carolina Panthers +3.5

(0-5) Buffalo Bills at
(4-2) Baltimore Ravens -13.5

(3-2) Arizona Cardinals at
(3-2) Seattle Seahawks -5.5

(4-1) New England Patriots at
(2-4) San Diego Chargers -2.5

(2-4) Oakland Raiders at
(2-4) Denver Broncos -6.5

(2-3) Minnesota Vikings at
(3-3) Green Bay Packers -2.5

(4-2) New York Giants at
(1-4) Dallas Cowboys -3.5

Stathead Matt's Week 6 NFL picks

2010-10-16T11:31:00.003-04:00

I have got to make it quick today. Hopefully these meat and potatoes picks will lift me back up from last week's debauchery.

Also, Cowboys-Vikings. This is the closest we will get as a modern civilization to a gladiatorial bout. The loser is dead and the winner is severely injured but pleased to still be alive. Wade Philips is even living the All-Star fight scene from Gladiator, with Russell Crow holding a sword over his head and the Emperor giving the thumbs up for a split second just before bringing the fans to cheers by turning it down. If Wade Phillips loses this game and is still on the sidelines the following Sunday, then the Dallas/Fort Worth search and rescue team will have to divert all its efforts to finding the real Jerry Jones.

Last week - 6 of 14
Overall - 41 of 76

My pick in bold.

(2-2) Seattle Seahawks at
(4-1) Chicago Bears -6.5

(4-1) Baltimore Ravens at
(3-1) New England Patriots -2.5

(1-4) Detroit Lions at
(3-2) New York Giants -10.5

(4-1) Atlanta Falcons at
(3-2) Philadelphia Eagles -1.5

(1-4) Cleveland Browns at
(3-1) Pittsburgh Steelers -13.5

(2-2) Miami Dolphins at
(3-2) Green Bay Packers -1.5

(2-3) San Diego Chargers at
(2-3) St. Louis Rams +8.5

(3-2) New Orleans Saints at
(3-1) Tampa Bay Buccaneers +5.5

(3-1) Kansas City Chiefs at
(3-2) Houston Texans -4.5

(2-3) Oakland Raiders at
(0-5) San Francisco 49ers -6.5

(4-1) New York Jets at
(2-3) Denver Broncos +3.5

(1-3) Dallas Cowboys at
(1-3) Minnesota Vikings -1.5

(3-2) Indianapolis Colts at
(3-2) Washington Redskins +3.5

(3-2) Tennessee Titans at
(3-2) Jacksonville Jaguars +3.5

Did I really just pick that many road teams? Yes. Yes I did.

10-10-10

2010-10-10T12:05:00.002-04:00

In honor of today's date, let us celebrate some of the best 10s in sports...why not 10 of them?

10. Scooter- Shortstop Phil Rizzuto wore #10 as a member of the New York Yankees from 1941 through 1956 before his 40 year run as the Yankees radio and television announcer. Bonus 10: During his tenure as a Yankee, the Bombers won 10 AL titles. Holy cow!

9. Strikers- Take a look around the world of soccer. All those big-named goal scorers all have something in common. They all wear the number 10. Messi, Totti, Rooney... the list goes on and on.

8. John Wooden- The coaching legend was born in 1910 and passed this summer (2010) at the age of 99. He is one of only 3 men to be inducted into the basketball Hall of Fame as both a player and a coach. Bonus 10: Wooden won 10 NCAA championships in 12 seasons between 1962 and 1975.

7. Super Bowl- Sure we are approaching Super Bowl XLV and the media juggernaut that comes with it, but lets look back at a more humble time, 1976, to Super Bowl X. The favored Steelers took care of business, beating the Dallas Cowboys, 21-17. Lynn Swan made a diving end zone catch in the second quarter en route to his MVP award for the game. It would be the second of the Steelers' six Super Bowls.

6. World Series- So long as we are looking back at championships, how about the 1910 World Series. The Chicago Cubs represented the NL and the AL featured the Philadelphia Athletics. (weird, right?) Connie Mack's Athletics took the first three games and eventually the series in Game 5.

5. Bowling- Bowling is rife with 10s. 10 pins. 10 frames. 10 calories burned per game. (citation needed)

4. Cigar- The racing legend won the Breeders' Cup Classic while wearing the number 10 in 1995, finishing in 1:59.58. Bonus 10: Rock Hard 10, winner of the Swaps Stakes and Malibu Stakes in 2004, and winner of Charles H. Strub Stakes, Santa Anita Handicap and Goodwood Breeders' Cup Handicap in 2005.

3. Wrestlemania- The 10th annual Wrestlemania was showcased in 1994 at Madison Square Garden, and saw the WWF Championship defended twice by Yokozuna. Lex Luger was desqualified in the first match, but Bret Hart succeeded in pinning Yokozuna in the feature match to claim the title.

2. The 10th man- If you are a baseball fan, that's you. So long as you are at the park, cheer the home team, stand up late when the closer has two strikes and reach a new level of cheering and excitement when the team needs it, the 10th man can become a recharged battery that the team can feed off.

1. October- Yeah, it's the first 10 in our 10-10-10 and it is awesome for sports. Every major professional sport is active. Baseball is in its playoffs. College football and the NFL are well underway. Hockey and basketball have begun. NASCAR is in the chase. MLS and EPL are going strong. The Ryder Cup was held in October for the first time since 1983. October is an amazing sports month, and one of the best 10s you can find.

Stathead Matt's NFL Picks: Week 5

2010-10-08T12:12:00.003-04:00

Last Week: 9-14
Overall: 35-59

(2-2) Jacksonville Jaguars at
(0-4) Buffalo Bills) +1.5

Buffalo's backfield gets a lot less cluttered with the trade of Marshawn Lynch, allowing Fred Jackson and C.J. Spiller, the two most talented of the group who have been rested while Lynch got the majority of the touches in the last three weeks, to prove their mettle. Expect Ryan Fitzpatrick to hook up with both Lee Evans and Roscoe Parrish quite a bit against the Jaguar's 30th ranked passing defense. If the D-line can keep MJD in check, the Bills will lock up their first win at home.

The Pick: Buffalo Bills

(2-1) Tampa Bay Buccaneers at
(2-2) Cincinnati Bengals -6.5

This is one of the tougher calls of the week, because neither team has shown us exactly how good they are. The Bucs beat two scrubs before being blown out by a Steelers team led by the immortal Charlie Batch. The Bengals showed promise by beating the Ravens but are also coming off a loss to an underwhelming Cleveland team. If they both play to potential, the Bengals would be the pick, but coming off a bye week, the Bucs are rested and have more to prove.

The Pick: Tampa Bay Buccaneers

(3-1) Atlanta Falcons at
(1-3) Cleveland Browns +3.5

Don't get cute. Atlanta is the pick. In fact, you may wat to tease them with...

(2-2) Philadelphia Eagles at
(0-4) San Francisco 49ers -3.5

Vegas is breaking its own rule rewarding the 49ers for losing by basically saying with this spread that they cannot possibly lose five in a row. They can. They will. Niners fans will see their first win soon though, they will just have to wait until next week when Oakland comes to town.

The Picks: Atlanta Falcons and Philadelphia Eagles

While we are on the topic of Vegas rewarding a loser, they are doing it twice. I cannot remember the last time I saw this.

(2-2) St. Louis Rams at
(0-4) Detroit Lions -3.5

The thought seems to be here that this is the Lions only chance to win, maybe all season. Granted, the Rams have played an extremely soft schedule to get to their 2-2 mark, but at least they have shown they can win. Don't give Detroit any points until they prove they can do the same.

The Pick: St. Louis Rams

(3-0) Kansas City Chiefs at
(2-2) Indianapolis Colts -8.5

The Colts are giving more than a touchdown to the only remaining undefeated team in the NFL? That tells you that everyone still believes the Colts are the Colts, despite their record, the injuries and their 29th ranked rush defense. The Chiefs have Jamaal Charles, one of the most underrated backs in the league, to burst through that defensive hole, and have and a run D that will force Peyton Manning to beat them. Manning will need a shootout, and with his banged up receiving corps, I don't see them putting up enough points to cover.

The Pick: Kansas City Chiefs

(3-1) Green Bay Packers at
(2-2) Washington Redskins +3.5

The Packers haven't faced the stiffest of competition, but have looked like a playoff team nonetheless, whereas the Redskins have stepped up when the games mean something extra, beating Dallas and Philly. This game means nothing more than another Sunday at work, and I expect the Packers to continue their domination of inferior teams.

The Pick: Green Bay Packers

(3-1) Chicago Bears at
(0-4) Carolina Panthers +2.5

Jimmy Claussen was not terrible in the New Orleans game last week, and Jay Cutler is not playing for the Bears in this contest. That honor belongs to Todd Collins. So who would you back in this game, the kid who pushed the defending champs to the wall and may actually get Steve Smith the ball, or the guy you thought was out of the league and whose best target is Johnny Knox? As a kicker, it looked like Carolina's meat and potatoes ground game finally started working last week, and I expect that trend to continue.

The Pick: Carolina Panthers

(2-2) Denver Broncos at
(3-1) Baltimore Ravens -7.5

This would be an easy Ravens pick if Ray Rice had shown any life so far this year. Last season he'd be good for 75 yards rushing and 75 yards receiving a game (or so it seemed as his fantasy owner) but this season he just has not gotten it going. The Broncos have one of the best rush Ds in the league, so I cannot expect him to bounce back yet. The Ravens are the top ranked team against the pass though, and that seems to be all the Broncos do these days. Look for a low scoring affair, with the Broncos covering by default.

The Pick: Denver Broncos

(2-2) New York Giants at
(3-1) Houston Texans -3.5

I have to believe that the Texans are still cruising on that Colts upset vibe because I saw the Giants turn what had looked like a decent Bears team into a pile of ash last Sunday night. Since the Texans beat Indy, they have lost to Dallas, beaten a shabby Raiders team and squeaked by a mediocre Washington team who could only think of the Philly game the following week. Houston should not be giving points to the Giants who looked to have finally come together.

The Pick: New York Giants

(3-1) New Orleans Saints at
(2-2) Arizona Cardinals +7.5

Rookie Max Hall gets the start for the Cardinals and....I think I've said enough.

The Pick: New Orleans Saints

(2-2) San Diego Chargers at
(1-3) Oakland Raiders +6.5

I really thought Jason Campbell was going to do well here, and he seemed like the kind of guy you wanted to do well and succeed somewhere, even if it was for the Raiders. He is running out of windows on a career that could have been much better with a consistant offensive scheme. Gradkowski gets the start. Nnamdi Asomugha will waste his talent covering Malcolm Floyd, and the Rivers-to-Gates scoring tandem will be all too active.

The Pick: San Diego Chargers

(2-2) Tennessee Titans at
(1-2) Dallas Cowboys -6.5

When are the Cowboys not disappointing? It's the longest trend that nobody is following. The Titans are too good to be getting almost a touchdown from anyone. I site the fact that they have yet to lose by that much. The Cowboys are coming off a bye week and won the Texas Bowl the week before that, so maybe they are on the rise, but I cannot back them with 6.5 yet.

The pick: Tennessee Titans

(1-2) Minnesota Vikings at
(3-1) New York Jets -4.5

Remember at the beginning of the season when the Jets lost to Baltimore by a nose in an ugly game and everyone discredited them after their ballyhooed reality show? It turns out that Ravens team was pretty good, and the Jets have yet to lose since. Also, the Vikings may have been the most overrated team going into the season. Favre seems to regret coming back, and Revis gets another crack at Randy Moss after allowing a touchdown to the Vikings new receiver in the Patriots game. This one's already over.

The Pick: New York Jets

Realignment good for baseball?

2010-09-28T15:13:00.002-04:00

John McCormack brings up a great topic for conversation in his article "Let's Go Back to Eight Team Leagues" featured in the 1987 book "The National Pastime".

McCormack felt at the time of the writing that baseball should both expand and contract in order to bring back the popularity the sport had when it shared the name with the book in which the article finds itself.

This was 1987, and the Marlins, Rockies, Diamondbacks and Rays did not exist yet. The Nationals were still in Montreal and inter-league play and the wild card had not yet been dreamed up. It was simply the American Leagu and National League and each had an East and West division.

The average team had to travel too far just to play within the division McCormack felt. Everything was too spread apart. Rivalries fell apart because fans could not keep track of distant clubs. (Reminder: 1987 -- no internet) He felt that We should blow up the whole AL and NL and start from scratch, making four regions (Northeast, Midwest, Southern and Western) with eight clubs each. Teams would play each other within the region 22 times each, 11 home and 11 away for 154 games, so that rivalries could develope naturally against nearby cities.

The McCormack breakdown:
Northeast: Toronto, (Montreal now Washington)Boston, N.Y. Yankees, N.Y. Mets, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and what he said would be a new team in either Buffalo, New Jersey or Washington D.C.

Midwest: Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Detroit, Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, Milwaukee and Minnesota

Southern: Atlanta, Houston, Texas, Kansas City, St. Louis, and three new teams from either Tampa Bay (already exists) New Orleans, Miami (already exists, Memphis or Birmingham

Western: San Diego, Los Angeles Angels, Los Angeles Dodgers, San Francisco, Oakland, Seattle and two new teams from Denver(already exixts) Vancouver, Phoenix (already exists) or Portland

He felt the average fan would care more for his team if the game was regional like it was in it's heyday and they would care more to beat an opposing team if they saw them more regularly and grew the rivalry. He noted that it would save on team travel expenses and that the money saved (he hoped) could be used to drive down ticket costs.

What do you think, would baseball be better serving to the average fan if MLB switched to 4 regional leagues?

--Matt

The interview of Marty McHale

2010-09-24T14:26:00.008-04:00

If nothing else, I hope this post opens the door for you as a sports fan to actively seek out more used book stores and thrift shops. For $2 I stumbled upon "The National Pastime", edited by John Thorn, published in 1987, and it is from there that my next few posts will be rooted.

The first article in the book is a long-forgotten interview of the late Marty McHale, who pitched for the Red Sox and the Yankees from 1910-1916, and finished off 1916 with Cleveland. Here is a link to his baseball-reference page.

Like many ballplayers of his era, McHale found other work in the offseason, and his offseason job, which he claimed he loved just as much as baseball, was as a vaudeville performer. He even had a stage act with Hall of Famer "Turkey" Mike Donlin.

While this link is to a different collection of writings, it is the same article that can be found in "The National Pastime." Baseball fans who want to know what the game was like at the turn of the century will find this a must read, and I can say it is the finest interview I have read in quite some time. The article begins on page 253.

--Matt

Saratoga ranked 8th in Class AA girls soccer

2010-09-23T19:42:00.003-04:00

Saratoga and Shenendehowa headline the Section II representatives in the latest girls soccer poll released by the New York State Sports Writers Association.

The Blue Streaks checks in at No. 8 with a 4-2-0 record on the season. Shenendehowa was second in the AA rankings off to a perfect 5-0-0 start.

Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake led Saratoga County teams in the Class A rankings, at No. 2, with a 5-0-0 record and a win over Saratoga on the season. South Glens Falls, also 5-0, is No. 20 in the rankings.

Mechanicville is off to a great start this season with three wins and one loss, and ranked second in Class B. Schuylerville is 15th.
In Class C, the Galway Eagles lead Section II, ranked 11th.

Full rankings, below.

Class AA
1: 2-0-0 West Islip-11
2: 5-0-0 Shenendehowa-2
3: 3-0-0 North Rockland-1
4: 5-0-0 Baldwinsville-3
5: 3-0-1 Vestal-4
6: 4-0-1 Union-Endicott-4
7: 3-1-0 Webster Thomas-5
8: 4-2-0 Saratoga-2
9: 0-0-1 Massapequa-8
10: 5-1-0 Kenmore West-6
11: 0-0-1 Northport-11
12: 2-1-0 John Jay East Fishkill-1
13: 4-1-0 Bethlehem-2
14: 3-0-1 Washingtonville-9
15: 1-0-1 MacArthur-8
16: 1-0-1 East Islip-11
17: 1-0-1 Connetquot-11
18: 3-1-1 Brockport-5
19: 3-2-0 Williamsville North-6
20: 2-1-2 Warwick-9

Class A
1: 0-0-0 Rockville Center South Side-8
2: 5-0-0 Burnt Hills-2
3: 6-0-0 Mercy-5
4: 2-0-0 Rye-1
5: 0-1-0 Islip-11
6: 6-0-0 Grand Island-6
7: 5-0-0 Owego-4
8: 1-0-0 Garden City-11
9: 1-0-0 Shoreham-Wading River-11
10: 6-1-0 Williamsville East-6
11: 4-0-0 Schalmont-2
12: 6-1-0 Jamesville-DeWitt-3
13: 2-1-0 Cornwall-9
14: 1-0-1 Byram Hills-1
15: 1-0-0 New Hyde Park-8
16: 4-0-0 Pearl River-1
17: 5-0-0 Whitesboro-3
18: 5-0-0 Scotia-Glenville-2
19: 4-0-0 Homer-3
20: 5-0-0 South Glens Falls-2

Class B
1: 3-0-0 Briarcliff-1
2: 3-1-0 Mechanicville-2
3: 7-0-0 Greece Odyssey-5
4: 5-1-0 Oneonta-4
5: 4-0-0 Lansing-4
6: 0-0-0 Center Moriches-11
7: 6-0-0 Potsdam-10
8: 0-0-0 Mattituck-11
9: 2-0-0 Bronxville-1
10: 0-0-0 Cold Spring Harbor-8
11: 6-1-0 Marcellus-3
12: 6-0-0 Watertown Immaculate Heart-3
13: 6-1-0 Nichols-AIS
14: 5-1-0 Chenango Forks-4
15: 4-0-0 Schuylerville-2
16: 6-0-0 Midlakes-5
17: 6-0-0 Allegany-Limestone-2
18: 3-0-0 Highland-9
19: 6-0-0 Seneca Falls Mynderse-5
20: 4-0-0 Burke Catholic-9

Class C
1: 0-0-0 Stony Brook-11
2: 5-1-0 Elmira Notre Dame-4
3: 3-0-0 Sauquoit Valley-3
4: 7-0-0 Maple Grove-6
5: 1-1-1 North Salem-1
6: 5-0-1 Addison-5
7: 4-0-0 Albany Academy-2
8: 4-0-0 Ausable Valley-7
9: 3-0-0 Florida-9
10: 2-0-1 Marathon-4
11: 5-0-0 Galway-2
12: 5-0-1 Alexander-5
13: 7-0-0 Marion-5
14: 3-0-1 Voorheesville-2
15: 6-0-0 Tully-4
16: 5-0-0 Randolph-6
17: 6-0-0 Bishop Ludden-3
18: 5-1-1 Walton-4
19: 2-1-0 Tri-Valley-9
20: 0-0-0 Friends-8

Class D
1: 5-0-0 Chazy-7
2: 5-1-0 Wheatland-Chili-5
3: 7-0-0 Belfast-5
4: 5-1-0 Davenport-4
5: 7-0-0 Remsen-3
6: 5-0-1 Heuvelton-10
7: 3-1-0 McGraw-3
8: 4-1-0 Genesee Valley-5
9: 3-0-0 Livingston Manor-9
10: 3-2-1 Chateaugay-10
11: 6-0-0 Edwards-Knox-10
12: 4-1-0 Poland-3
13: 4-1-2 Morris-4
14: 5-2-0 Gilboa-Conesville-4
15: 0-0-0 Smithtown Christian-11
15: 3-1-1 Northville-2

BSpa grad Casey Wright MVP at UAlbany tourney

2010-09-18T22:38:00.003-04:00

BEAUMONT, TEXAS — Ballston Spa graduate Casey Wright was named the most valuable player of the Lamar Volleyball Tournament after leading the University at Albany to two wins on the final day of play at McDonald Gym on Saturday. The Great Danes defeated McNeese State, 3-1 (25-15, 25-22, 24-26, 25-16), before sweeping the host Cardinals, 3-0 (25-21, 25-20, 29-27).

Against McNeese State, Wright recorded a career-high 25 kills on a .449 hitting percentage to go along with nine digs and eight total blocks.

Teresa Coppiellie finished with a double-double of 10 kills and 10 digs, while Laurie Gonzalez totaled a match-high 26 digs. Traci Vandegrift, who was also named to the all-tournament team, started off the day with 12 digs to go along with seven kills, seven block assists and two service aces. Setter Kaley Jacobson handed out 40 assists and six digs, while Abbey Wexel added 11 digs defensively for UAlbany.
McNeese State finished with just three total team blocks, while UAlbany had 17 total blocks, and the Great Danes held the Cowgirls to a .082 hitting percentage.

In the tournament finale, Coppiellie led UAlbany with 17 kills, while Dunja Prgomet added 11 kills. Coppiellie completed a double-double with 12 digs, while all-tournament team selection Laurie Gonzalez paced the team defensively with 15 digs. Coppiellie and Gonzalez also combined for five of the team’s seven aces, as Coppiellie served up three, with Gonzalez adding two. Jacobson tallied 40 assists, nine digs and four block assists, while Wright wrapped up the tournament with a seven-kill, four-block performance, along with four digs.

UAlbany (8-4) will return to action on Friday, Sept. 24, visiting Yale in non-conference action, before hosting the Bulldogs in a return match to open the home season at University Gym on Saturday, Sept. 25.

Skeeter Cup Jr. golf tournament Oct. 3

2010-09-18T22:27:00.001-04:00

A golf tournament for junior golfers will take place at 2 p.m. on Sunday, October 3, 2010 at McGregor Links Country Club in Saratoga Springs. All proceeds from the tournament will benefit the American Lung Association of New York in memory of Glens Falls native, and golf enthusiast, Ralph “Skeets” Woodbury.

The tournament is being organized by 16 and 14-year-old brothers, Matthew and Calvin Beckwith, who raised $1400 last year and hope to surpass that amount this year. The boys were family friends of the late Ralph “Skeets” Woodbury, of Lake George, who passed away from lung disease. This is the second annual event and the area’s only charity junior golf tournament open to the public. There will be two age divisions this year, 14 years and under and 15-18 year olds.

Prizes include a complimentary round of golf for two donated from Saratoga National Golf Club. Prizes will also be awarded for closest to the pin, longest drive and hole-in-one.

Registration for junior golfers is $30.00. Hole sponsorships, are also available for $30.00. Registration for golfers is on a first come basis so register early! For more information, please call 581-6617 or email kush@nycap.rr.com.

An intern’s reaction to a local team’s run at the championship

2010-08-12T20:28:00.001-04:00

Editor's note: Phil Forte is a UAlbany senior journalism student who spent the summer working as an intern in The Saratogian's Sports Department. As one of his last assignments, he covered the Saratoga Americans 11-U baseball team on their road to a state title.

By PHIL FORTE

I guess you could have called me the 11-U Saratoga Americans beat writer this week.

I’ve been following the Americans since last Tuesday (8/3), when their win over Northern Columbia sent them into a Section III Championship rematch against last year’s state champs, Rotterdam, the same team who eliminated the Americans’ hopes at a New York State title last year in the same Section III Championship game.

In this year’s Section III rematch, it was Saratoga who sent Rotterdam packing with an impressive, seven run, sixth inning comeback, capping a wild walk-off win.

The win gave the Americans, along with seven other New York little league teams, the opportunity to play at Twin Town Little League Complex in Troy for the highly-coveted New York State Little League title after competing in rounds of pool play.

The Americans made it all the way into the semifinals before being eliminated by a Staten Island team on Tuesday night. One more win would have sent them to the state championship, but as they say, all good things must come to an end.

Regardless of their elimination, the Saratoga Americans showed what it was like to play as a team, with respect and dignity for the game of baseball. The Americans, as well as their coaches and fan base, showed the class that most, if not all, the other teams in the tournament were lacking.

The Saratoga faithful stuck around when their team trailed by six runs in the bottom of the sixth inning and rallied for a win, and they were there cheering on the Americans when the team fell to Staten Island by mercy rule on Tuesday night, applauding the team as they made their way off of the field.

It was the welcoming, anything-you-need attitude that brought me back each game, eager to cover the team and to cheer them on as well (but don’t tell my editor). It was a delight covering such a humble team and the team’s contributions made my job a heck of a lot easier, too. I have to thank the players, coaches and supporters as a whole for their generosity towards The Saratogian and our coverage, and for that you are all winners, regardless of what game you lost on Tuesday night.

Aside from the Americans, the overall quality of competition in the state tournament was phenomenal. The level of play seen at the 10 and 11-year-old age division blew my mind. There were kids laying down perfect, fundamental bunts and infielders turning double plays like it was practice. Never in my mind would I have thought 11-year-olds were capable of making such plays and understand the game of baseball so well.

Not only was the quality of play well above average, but the field conditions were as well. Twin Town Little League Complex had their own field maintenance crew, who wet, dragged and re-lined each field before and after each game. Even when it started to downpour on Monday night, the crew was quick to cover the mound and field with tarps.

Covering the Americans on their journey to the New York State Championship was nothing short of memorable and I am thankful for the opportunity to cover such a hard-working, committed organization. Best of luck to the Americans next year.

Stathead Matt's Picks for 08/07/2010

2010-08-07T11:22:00.002-04:00

There are still a few hours until the first race, so I hope these are getting out to you in time. In the interest of time, here are the picks.

Race 1
1) Pistols at Dawn
2) Brother Bird
3) Lubango
4) Monsignor
5) Mad For Smarty

Race 2
1) Evenforever
2) Maloof Magic
3) Military Star
4) Naughty You

Race 3
1) Payout
2) Dougie
3) Hear the Footsteps
4) Western Connection
5) Dirt Track Demon

Race 4
1) Doctor Peach (Best Longshot Bet)
2) Jaguar Paw
3) Enclosure
4) Ae Pit
5) Just Hold On

Race 5
1) Counterspy
2) Montana Knight
3) Macho Joe
4) Where Is'em
5) Tocco d'Oro

Race 6
1) Thatcatismine
2) Favorite Hour
3) Justin Phillip
4) Tiz Blessed
5) Lemon Ghost

Race 7
1) African Diamond
2) Livin Large
3) Oskar Hval
4) Alcomatch
5) Missinglisalewis

Race 8
1) Snow Top Mountain
2) Ailalea
3) Barracks Road
4) Hyperlink
5) Sea Bond

Race 9
1) Franny Freud
2) Belle of the Hall
3) Pica Slew (Best Name)
4) Tidal Pool
5) Buckleupbuttercup

Race 10
1) Blame
2) Quality Road
3) Haynesfield
4) Musket Man
5) Jardim

Race 11
1) Talk Therapy (Best Bet)
2) Whateverittakes
3) Syzygy
4) City Train
5) Gotta Go Around

Overall: 16-49 (32%)

Good luck!

Stathead Matt's Picks for 7/29/2010

2010-07-29T02:33:00.002-04:00

Well, it was bound to happen. 1-for-9. It hurts. It hurts a lot. Do I feel any better because the one race that I did hit was hit for a $142 trifecta? A little, but not better enough. I owe one to your wallet. I am also knocking my number of listed horses back down to seven. That way, even if three horses listed scratch, you can still have enough listed for a superfecta, but I don't have to list 400 horses per race. Maidens are still only listed top five because of a lack of data and are listed with a *. Here we go.

Race 1
1) Mabou
2) Nationbuilder
3) Virginia Minstrel
4) Quiet Approval
5) Italian Wedding
6) Sermon of Love
7) Arch Hero

Race 2*
1) Sky Hosoya
2) Tensas Punch
3) R Bling
4) Siren's Step
5) Kisses From Karen

Race 3*
1) Driven by Fear
2) Vision d'Amour
3) High Stakes Player
4) Scuba Diver
5) Z Force

Race 4
1) Lady Alexander
2) Devil by Design
3) Decelerator
4) Unforgiven
5) Southern Accents
6) Perfect for You
7) Worstcasescenario

Race 5*
1) Dyani
2) Remark
3) Ermine Slippers
4) Click Your Heels
5) Somalia

Race 6
1) Unique Ally
2) Rotten to the Core
3) Redwood Fever
4) Dance Floor Maniac
5) Fire the Bullet
6) Awesome Preacher
7) Prince Cody

Race 7*
1) System Ready
2) Peb Hughes
3) Legend of Naverone
4) Rise to Glory
5) Powhatan County

Race 8
1) Lethal Combination
2) Beau Choix
3) Our Douglas
4) Alfarabi
5) Psychic Income
6) Lonesome Street
7) Make a Note

Race 9
1) Who Is Lady
2) Chorus Music
3) Great Gracie Dane
4) Exonerated
5) Two Moons
6) Wild Awake
7) Ketuba

Race 10
1) Devon Rock
2) Karakorum Legend
3) Versailles Road
4) Star of New York
5) Cherokee Speed
6) Ad Infinitum
7) Pegasus Tommy D.

Overall Win Record: 13-39 (33%)

Lock of the Day: 0-4 (0%) Lady Alexander, Race 5

Long Shot of the Day: 0-4 (0%) Lethal Combination, Race 8

Name of the Day: Mugger Hugger, Race 3

I'm off tomorrow, but best of luck at the races today. There will be more picks for Saturday.

Stathead Matt's Picks for 7/28/2010

2010-07-27T20:49:00.003-04:00

We're back from the regularly scheduled Tuesday break from racing. I hope you maximized Monday's selections, as they went 5-for-9, including the last three races in a row for a pick 3 that would have won $701. Let's hope this hot streak keeps up.

(As always, for maiden races I will only put in my top 5 since I have more limited data in some of those races. They will be marked with a *.)

Race 1
1) Steal the Shot
2) Zosogood
3) Hittin the Note
4) Bridledway
5) Fortunate Run
6) Game Token
7) Justin P
8) Heavenly Blaze
9) Reading Group

Race 2*
1) E Street
2) Include the Cat
3) Saint Jen
4) Grosse Pointe Anne
5) Amazing Lauren

Race 3
1) O'Kid
2) Aquino
3) Motown Shuffle
4) Marina market
5) Kiln Creek
6) Not for Money
7) Shryock
8) Saratoga Seven

Race 4
1) Quick Delivery
2) Motion Play
3) Runweiser
4) Nacho Carona
5) Giopi
6) Love and Havoc
7) Cops Fever
8) On Vacation
9) Mischief
10) Overlap
11) Kick Up Your Heels

Race 5
1) Greens and Beans
2) La Belle Gabrielle
3) Great Cliff
4) Money Charger
5) Won Token
6) Sudden Silver
7) Silver Tax
8) Our Lady Liberty
9) Essex Ferry
10) A Girl Named Maria
11) Hunny of a Tour

Race 6*
1) Charmed
2) Truth Will Tell
3) Much Fanfare
4) Conspicious
5) Kiss of Fire

Race 7
1) Don't Fooli Houli
2) King Rock
3) Crowned General
4) Flatter Than Me
5) Count Catamount
6) Cayo Hueso
7) Little Alex
8) Mississippi Hippie
9) Dunvegan
10) Coronation Day

Race 8
1) Bay to Bay
2) Strike It Rich
3) No Explaining
4) Neon Light
5) Khancord Kid
6) Crescenda
7) Caminadora
8) Go Ask Alex
9) Dynazaper
10) Perfect Shirl
11) House of Grace
12) Exclusive Love
13) Kittylicious
14) Ambitoness
15) Queen Hazel

Race 9
1) Ben's Boots
2) Colour the Wind
3) Broken Dreams
4) Speckledbird
5) Always a Party
6) Taconic Victory
7) Tempest Storm
8) Easy Ashley
9) Royal Fortune
10) Crimson Glory
11) Atrea
12) Echt
13) Connie Mac

Overall: 12-29 (41%)

Lock of the Day: 0-3 (0%) Quick Delivery, Race 4

Long Shot of the Day: 0-3 (0%) Motown Shuffle, Race 3

Name of the Day: Broken Dreams, Race 9 (A harsh reality of betting the ponies, but not for us, right?)

Enjoy the track. We'll see you back here tomorrow.

Stathead Matt's Picks for 7/26/2010

2010-07-26T04:01:00.003-04:00

I'm hoping my picks for you today are as good for you as Saturday's were. Saturday saw 5 winners in a row. We started off cold but hit in race 5 when Moonwalk Beauty scratched and moved up Lindsay's Point into the top spot. Lindsay's Point started a string of winners that included: Spa City Fever, Wine Police, Ash Zee, and Devil May Care. We missed the Pick 6 on the last race, but still turned in the second best string of five consecutive races at the track this weekend, behind only Javier Castellano's 5 consecutive wins as a jockey on Sunday. Here are my Monday picks.

Race 1
1) Devilish Due
2) Regal Soul
3) Moon Nistle
4) Show Trial
5) Full Tilt Noogie
6) Always On the Move
7) Fiery Rebel
8) Dontquityourdayjob

Race 2
1) Primed to Be Ready
2) Zippy Larry
3) Taza
4) Flaming Punch
5) Mariah Scary
6) Lorraine in Spain
7) First Flute
8) Lady Apple
9) By the Sky

Race 3
1) Icabad Crane
2) Mighty Morris
3) Ruffino
4) Giant Moon
5) Groomedforvictory
6) Slevin
7) Naughty New Yorker

Race 4*
1) Bird Empire
2) Sweat Shop
3) Avenging
4) Naughty You
5) Mystic Fever

Race 5
1) Diamond Dina
2) Firey Red
3) Queen of the Creek
4) Granted Tiger
5) Sweetest Song
6) Talented Princess
7) Hot Trip
8) Consequence
10) Kid Kate
11) Color Me Up

Race 6*
1) Bernie's Pal
2) Rennina
3) Hennessy Light
4) Boatman's Dream
5) Lady Alma

Race 7
1) Honorable Truth
2) Platinumplus
3) Come From Away
4) It's Not For Love
5) Catty Madeline
6) Mollyisintheclouds
7) Double Dinghy Day
8) Southside Babe
9) Suzee Sunrise
10) Holiday Chills

Race 8
1) Checklist
2) Dr. W
3) Rollers
4) Endless Circle
5) Hamazing Destiny
6) Hull
7) Congor Bay

Race 9*
1) Lamar Valley
2) Evenforever
3) Maloof Magic
4) Pico Dinero
5) Risky Dynamite

Overall Season Average: 7-20 (35%)

Lock of the Day: 0-2 (0%) Diamond Dina Race 5

Long Shot of the Day: 0-1 (0%) Flaming Punch Race 2

Name of the Day: Mariah Scary Race 2

Stathead Matt's Picks for 7/24/ 2010

2010-07-24T03:10:00.002-04:00

Opening day gave us rain and, as so often happens on rainy days, quite a few upsets. Today the forecast calls for storms early, but the track should be hot and sunny come race time.
Also, I feel like I was holding out on you yesterday. I rank each horse in each race, yet I only gave you my top four. Many races were littered with scratches, and you may have been left without a listed replacement. In the 5th race, I correctly picked the top three finishers in order, but when my 4th horse, Good to Be Me, scratched, you didn't have the opportunity to plug in Ponte Vecchio, who would have filled out your superfecta. Near miss of the day: My 3rd race picks would also have gotten landed a superfecta if they were boxed. That payout came to a cool $4150. (Don't fret, I didn't make that bet either.)
Today will be different. You get them all*. The whole shebang. If one horse has scratched, just move the remaining horses up one spot. The list will be longer, but you'll thank me later. (* getting them all does not include every horse in each maiden race. My ranking system for horses who have little history is more diluted, but I promise at least my top five for the maidens.)

Race 1
1) Winning Ticket
2) Tom Kitten
3) Abilio
4) Mineswept
5) Mr. Vantastic
6) John Wyatt
7) Leatherhead
8) Wishingonadream
9) Mr. Hooker
10) Franklin Delano
11) Thunder Chief

Race 2*
1) D'Sauvage
2) Never Right Joey
3) Bristol Harbour
4) Tall Tale Teller
5) Cousin Frankie

Race 3*
1) Chairman Now
2) Keep Me Informed
3) El Primero
4) Rock America
5) Baatesh

Race 4
1) Missinglisalewis
2) Ad Infinitum
3) Versailles Road
4) Northern Giant
5) Slevin
6) Xodo
7) Cherokee Speed
8) Good Prospect
9) Compliance Officer
10) Bull Hole
11) Strong Commitment
12) Thunder Perfect
13) Thomas Got Even
14) Piazza Di Spagna
15) Rein King
16) Romans Reward

Race 5*
1) Moonwalk Beauty
2) Lindsay's Point
3) Fastish
4) Katlyn Ann
5) Turned to Gold

Race 6
1) Spa City Fever
2) Come Undone
3) Duke of Naples
4) Saginaw
5) Good Karma
6) Dixie Night Out
7) Hammock
8) Hangingbyathread
9) Eire's Run
10) Midnight Billy
11) Alltiffedoff
12) Too Amenable
13) Stormy Success
14) Prince Dubai

Race 7*
1) Wine Police
2) Biddy
3) Goodtimehadbyall
4) Joe Vann
5) Santiva

Race 8
1) Ash Zee
2) Zonga Zing
3) Patience Drive
4) Happy Week
5) Persuading
6) Lady Etienne
7) Cinco De Mayo Mio
8) Spina
9) How Far to Heaven

Race 9
1) Devil May Care
2) Biofuel
3) Connie and Michael
4) Seeking the Title
5) Acting Happy
6) Bahama Bound
7) Lisa's Booby Trap
8) Absinthe Minded

Race 10* (This race is a maiden, but I have extra data on many of the horses participating.)
1) Ae Pit
2) De Price
3) Grand Strategy
4) Equestrio
5) Craven Caden
6) Prospective Union
7) Paperless
8) Deadly Catch
9) Scary Guy

Overall win% this season: 2-10, (20%)

Lock of the Day: 0-1 (0%) - Devil May Care, Race 9: This horse looks like everyone's lock since it opened at 6-5 odds. Devil May Care dominates the rankings though, grabbing 72 of his race's 80 maximum points, while his closest competitor, Biofuel, has 56. This race may not pay well, but you can feel good about the win.

Long Shot of the Day: 0-1 (0%)- Lisa's Booby Trap, LBT hasn't lost a race in its career. 3 for 3. What are the morning line odds for a horse that has never lost a race? 30-1!!! I understand that LBT has not raced against horses of this caliber, but it has shown that it has an eye for the finish line, and it will be hard to bet against LBT when the payoff is so good.

Name of the Day: Absinthe Minded, Lisa's Booby Trap may have a name that will make the schoolboy in you giggle, but it isn't even the best name in the 9th. That honor goes to Absinthe Minded, which is clever enough to get a small bet from me on name credibility alone, even though I have it ranked dead last in the GI Stakes race. Honorable Mention: Chariman Now, Race 3.

Best of luck and enjoy the races.

Stathead Matt's Picks for 7/23/2010

2010-07-23T00:03:00.002-04:00

Today is opening day at the Saratoga Race Track, and I am proud to bring you my first picks of the season. Each horse is run through a formula designed to rank it against its peers in each race. I will give you the top four horses as they are ranked. The goal is to hit the trifecta in each race, so the fourth horse is listed in case one scratches. At the end I'll give my lock of the day and the long shot pick of the day. Good luck!

Race 1
1) Seattle Mission
2) Steal the Shot
3) Leatherhead
4) Mr. Enrico

Race 2
1) Home Rule
2) Holy Place
3) Simply Carina
4) Remark

Race 3
1) Mad For Smarty
2) Bank Merger
3) Bimini
4) Footcandles

Race 4
1) Chef Eric
2) Cozy Lion
3) Morethan Fourhours
4) Sharif Al Medina

Race 5
1) Roderick
2) Whateverittakes
3) City Train
4) Good to Be Me

Race 6
1) Unaccountable
2) African Diamond
3) Stealth Missle
4) Miner Bird

Race 7
1) With the Current
2) Playing Pirates
3) Heavenly Pride
4) Malibu Cougar

Race 8
1) Vinyard Haven
2) Cool Coal Man
3) Discrete Treasure
4) You and I Forever

Race 9
1) Final Mesa
2) Let's Get Fiscal
3) Dos Lunas
4) Show Me the Bling

Race 10
1) Unbridled Fury
2) Adams Circle
3) Hillswitch
4) In Just We Trust

Lock of the Day: Seattle Mission, Race 1
Long Shot Pick of the Day: Unbridled Fury, Race 10
Advice of the day: It is expected to rain at some point tomorrow, and if it does, don't be afraid to bet the longer shots.

Best of luck at the track today. We'll see you tomorrow.

Free Blue Streak football camp July 11, 18 and 25

2010-07-07T18:03:00.000-04:00

A free football camp is being offered for all kids ages 5 to 13. Blue Streak Football Camp will be put on by Saratoga Varsity football players and certified Pop Warner coaches July 11, 18 and 25 from 6 to 8 p.m. at East Side Rec.

Saratoga Pop Warner will also be holding registration during the camps. For more information, please contact Matt Riker at matthew.riker@gmail.com

“Real Million Dollar Baby” Shea in feature fight July 30 in Saratoga

2010-07-07T17:37:00.003-04:00

World-ranked female featherweight Maureen Shea (14-2, 8 KOs) will face rugged veteran Liliana Martinez (8-10, 4 KOs) in a six-round feature fight with regional title implications July 30th at the Saratoga Springs City Center.

The fight, sanctioned by the NABF for a regional 126-lb title, will be featured on Pugnacious Promotions annual "Night of Future Champions" summer fight card during the beginning of racing at the historic Saratoga thoroughbred horse track. Doors to this year’s boxing event will open earlier to showcase some of the area’s best amateur boxers in preliminary bouts supporting the pro fight card.

Shea, 29, first gained notoriety as Hillary Swank’s training partner as the Oscar-winning actress prepared for her role in Clint Eastwood’s “Million Dollar Baby” with trainer Hector Roca at Gleason’s Gym in Brooklyn. Swank not only trained and sparred regularly with Shea, but attended the Bronx native’s amateur bouts in the New York area. A NY fight attraction since that time, Shea is now world-ranked by three championship sanctioning bodies. In her last fight at the Paradise Theater in the Bronx, she defeated overmatched Norma Faris (3-2, 1 KO), Puerto Rico, by third-round TKO.

Martinez, 26, is a native of Dominican Republic and a 10-year veteran of the ring. She has faced a number of world-class women – including world champion Alesia Graf (24-1, 9 KOs), top-ranked Jenna Shiver (11-4, 2 KOs) and Dominican prospect Katy Penelope Hernandez (12-0, 8 KOs) – and challenged Magdelena Dahlen (10-2, 3 KOs) for a European title in November, 2009.

"I am so pleased to finally have Maureen on our card," said Lisa Elovich. “Her reputation precedes her as the ‘real million dollar baby.’ She’s a great addition to our card featuring young local prospects.”

Guilderland lightweight prospect Mike Faragon (11-0, 5 KOs) will face RI’s Eddie Soto (12-1, 4 KOs) in the eight-round main event. Also appearing on the card are Troy light heavyweight and former All-American Shawn Miller (2-1, 1 KO), Delmar lightweight Zach Smith (3-1) and other fighters to be announced. Amateur boxers include Saratoga Springs junior Mike Barcia and super heavyweight Josh Dulmer, plus the rematch of the region’s amateur welterweight bout of the year between Albany’s Amir Iman and Troy’s Ray Velez.

Tickets and VIP tables, including dinner by Brindisi's Restaurant and table service throughout the evening, are available from Pugnacious Promotions at 518-527-0160 or www.pugnaciouspromotions.com.

Coopers Cave American Legion tournament starts today, July 6

2010-07-06T06:47:00.000-04:00

The 6th annual "Burdell Bailey" Coopers Cave Tournament gets underway today with 19 teams from across the Mid-Atlantic Region competeing at the U19 American Legion level.

Here is my story in today's Saratogian.

2010 Coopers Cave Tournament divisions
Red DivisionPost 233 Tri-County, New York
Hoxie Cleaners, Rhode Island
S.D. Ireland, Vermont
Post 150 Kingston, New York
Westbrook, Maine
Post 168 Morris J. Edwards, New Jersey

White Division Saratoga Stampede
Post 141 Trumbell, Connecticut
Post 232 Helmuth-Ingalls, New York
Colchester Cannons, Vermont
Post 72 Saugerties, New York
Post 735 West Seneca, New York

Blue DivisionPost 1080 Shrub Oak, New York
Post 64 Wicomico, Maryland
Post 20 Clinton County, New York
Post 323 Granville, New York
Anaconda Indians, New York
Post 184 Hudson Post, New York

Coopers Cave Tournament
Pool play schedule
Tuesday, July 6
Moreau Rec Park3 p.m. S.D. Ireland vs. Morris J. Edwards
6 p.m. Tri-County vs. S.D. Ireland
Veterans Memorial Park5:30 p.m. Colchester Cannons vs. Granville
8 p.m. Granville vs. Anaconda Indians
East Side Rec.8 p.m. Saratoga Stampede vs. Halmuth-Ingalls

Wednesday, July 7
East Field, Glens FallsNoon Kingston vs. Morris J. Edwards
3 p.m. Shrub Oak vs. Colchester Cannons
6 p.m. Hudson vs. Shrub Oak
Moreau Rec Park3 p.m. Kingston vs. Hoxie Cleaners
6 p.m. Tri-County vs. Hoxie Cleaners
Veterans Memorial Park3 p.m. Saugerties vs. Colchester Cannons
5:30 p.m. Granville vs. Wicomico, MD
8 p.m. Wicomico, MD vs. Anaconda Indians
East Side Rec9 a.m. Morris J. Edwards vs. Westbrook, ME
Noon Helmuth-Ingalls vs. Trumbell, CT
3 p.m. Tumbell, CT vs. West Seneca
5:30 p.m. Helmuth-Ingalls vs. West Seneca
8 p.m. Saratoga Stampede vs. Colchester Cannons

Thursday, July 8
East Field9 a.m. Hudson vs. Colchester Cannons
Noon Colchester Cannons vs. Wicomico, MD
3 p.m. Tri-County vs. Morris J. Edwards
6 p.m. Kingston vs. Tri-County
Moreau Rec3 p.m. Shrub Oak vs. Granville
6 p.m. Hudson vs. Anaconda Indians
Veterans Memorial Park3 p.m. S.D. Ireland vs. Westbrook, ME
5:30 p.m. Helmuth-Ingalls vs. Colchester Cannons
8 p.m. Trumbell, CT vs. Colchester Cannons
East Side Rec9 a.m Hoxie Cleanders, RI vs. Westbrook, ME
Noon Hoxie Cleaners, RI vs. S.D. Ireland, VT
3 p.m. Saugerties vs. West Seneca
5:30 p.m. Saratoga Stampede vs. Saugerties
8 p.m. Saratoga Stampede vs. West Seneca

Friday, July 9
East Field9 a.m. Colchester Cannons vs. Anaconda Indians
Noon Tri-County vs. Westbook, Maine
3 p.m. Hoxie Cleaners, RI vs. Morris J. Edwards
6 p.m. Morris J. Edwards vs. Kingston
Moreau Rec9 a.m. Kingston vs. Westbrook, Maine
Noon Colchester Cannons vs. West Seneca
3 p.m. Hudson vs. Wicomico, MD
6 p.m. Hudson vs. Granville
East Side Rec9 a.m. Shrub Oak vs. Wicomico, MD
Noon Saugerties vs. Helmuth-Ingalls
3 p.m. Shrub Oak vs. Anaconda Indians
5:30 p.m. Trumbell, CT vs. Saugerties
8 p.m. Saratoga Stampede vs. Trumbell, CT

NY Elite Soccer tryouts for girls July 13, boys July 15

2010-07-06T00:25:00.000-04:00

New York Elite FC is holding tryouts for the 2010-11 soccer season. NYEFC is a Premier and Elite Soccer Club accepting talented players, U10-U23, from throughout the Capital District.

The NYEFC coaching staff is comprised of the most accomplished coaches and trainers in the area, under the direction of Miles Joseph.

Tryouts for Girls will be held on 7/13 and Boys on 7/15 at the Clifton Commons, Clifton Park. For more information and to register for tryouts, please visit www.nyelitefc.com

H. Allen Jerkens to be honored at Siro's Cup benefit

2010-07-06T00:16:00.003-04:00

The 17th Annual Earl B. Feiden Siro’s Cup to benefit the Center for Disability Services Foundation will be held on Thursday, July 22. The party, held on the eve of opening day at the Saratoga Race Course, begins at 6:30 p.m., at Siro’s Restaurant, 168 Lincoln Avenue, Saratoga Springs.

At 7 p.m., there will be a presentation to Hall of Fame trainer H. Allen “Chief” Jerkens to honor his contribution to the horse racing industry and salute him for his long and successful career. Jerkens is legendary for sending horses to the starting gate who then upset favored champions. The event will welcome many top jockeys and trainers. Guests will dance to music from the Electric City Horns until 11 p.m. under an open air tent. The evening includes a cocktail buffet and open bar. Siro’s Cup is held rain or shine.

The popular event is a benefit for the Center for Disability Services Foundation in support of Adult Services, Center Health Care & Assistive Technology, Clover Patch Camp, CloverPatch Pre-School, Langan School and St. Margaret’s Center. The Center is a resource for people of all ages who have disabilities or health related conditions. It has a 68 year history in the Capital Region and beyond, and is known as the place where people get better at life.

Tickets are $125 per person by July 21st or $1100 for a group of ten tickets if purchased by July 16th. Advance reservations are strongly encouraged. Walk ins are welcome and tickets at the door are $150. For reservations, call 518-944-2125 or email: pedreira@cfdsny.org

Giants parking passes on sale/training camp schedule

2010-07-06T00:15:00.001-04:00

University at Albany Vice President and Director of Athletics Lee McElroy announced today that New York Giants’ summer training camp all-session parking passes will be available to the public, beginning Tuesday, July 13, at the UAlbany Athletic Ticket Office.

An all-session parking pass is $15.00. The daily parking fee is $5.00. Dutch Quad Lot is the primary public parking facility. The UAlbany athletic ticket office, located in the Physical Education Building’s south lobby, will be open Monday through Friday, from 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. For more information, call 518-442-4683. The training camp schedule can be accessed through www.giants.com or www.ualbanysports.com.

The New York Giants and UAlbany recently announced an agreement to hold training camp this summer. The arrangement also includes a two-year option to have the Giants train on the UAlbany campus through 2012.

The Giants have trained on the UAlbany campus, just 2-1/2 hours north of the New Meadowlands Stadium, since 1996. In the 14 years that the Giants have trained at UAlbany, the preseason camp has averaged more than 33,000 fans per summer. The camp attendance mark of 46,960 was established last year.

2010 New York Giants Training Camp Schedule
August 1, Sunday Practice: 3:15-5:15 p.m.

August 2, Monday Practice No. 1: 8:35-10:35 a.m.
Practice No. 2: 3:15-5:15 p.m.

August 3, TuesdayPractice No. 1: 8:35-10:35 a.m.
Practice No. 2: 3:15-5:15 p.m.

August 4, WednesdayNo Practice

August 5, ThursdayPractice No. 1: 8:35-10:35 a.m.
Practice No. 2: 6:05-8:05 p.m.

August 6, FridayPractice: 2:35-4:35 p.m.

August 7, SaturdayPractice No. 1: 8:35-10:35 a.m.
Practice No. 2: 6:05-8:05 p.m.

August 8, SundayNo Practice

August 9, MondayPractice No. 1: 8:35-10:35 a.m.
Practice No. 2: 6:05-8:05 p.m.

August 10, TuesdayPractice: 2:35-4:35 p.m.

August 11, WednesdayPractice No. 1: 8:35-10:35 a.m.
Practice No. 2: 6:05-8:05 p.m.

August 12, ThursdayPractice: 10:30-11:30 a.m. (Jog-Thru)

August 13, FridayPractice No. 1: 8:35-10:35 a.m.
Practice No. 2: 6:05-8:05 p.m.

August 14, SaturdayPractice: 2:35-4:35 p.m.

August 15, SundayPractice: 10:00-11:30 a.m. (Jog-Thru)

August 16, MondayNFL Preseason Game @ New York Jets, 8:00 p.m. (ESPN)

August 17, TuesdayNo Practice

August 18, WednesdayPractice: 2:35-4:35 p.m.

August 19, ThursdayPractice: 2:35-4:35 p.m.

August 20, FridayPractice: 10:30-11:45 a.m. (Jog-Thru)
Camp Ends

August 21, SaturdayNFL Preseason Game vs. Pittsburgh, 7:00 p.m.

NY Giants parking passes/training camp schedule

2010-07-06T00:07:00.003-04:00

6th annual Schuylerville cardboard boat race Aug. 14

2010-07-05T23:39:00.003-04:00

Hudson Crossing Park presents its 6th Annual Cardboard Boat Race on Saturday, August 14th (rain date Sunday, August 15th) at the Fort Hardy Beach on Route 29 in Schuylerville. Registration opens at 8:00am and boats launch at 1:00pm. Race entry fees are between $10 and $25 and all who pre-register by August 1 receive a free T-Shirt! This FREE event includes live music, great food and lots of prizes.

A list of rules, registration forms and hints to get started with your boat building is available at www.hudsonrivercrossing.org or by calling Marlene Bissell at: 518.859.1462.

Racing participants will construct a “human-powered” boat made of corrugated cardboard or 100% recycled materials, that will hold at least 1 crew member and be “seaworthy” enough to race a short distance on the river. Racers may construct their boats ahead of time or on the morning of the event, where materials will be available at the event site.

During racing preparations, there will be live music, great food, t-shirt sales and terrific photo opportunities in a fun-filled day for all. Individuals, families, or groups, business & school teams are all encouraged to race. Whether you come as a crew member, the captain, or an on-shore cheerleader, we promise you a day you’ll never forget! See you on the river!

Hudson Crossing is a new bi-county educational park centered on and near the Champlain Canal Lock 5 Island of the Hudson River. The park offers river and canal access, a floating dock, trails, picnic sites, fishing access, points of geologic and historical significance and the innovative Hudson Crossing Play Garden.

The public is always welcome to monthly Hudson Crossing meetings on the last Wednesday of every month from 3:30 - 5:00 at the Saratoga Town Hall on Route 29 / Spring Street in Schuylerville. Call Marlene Bissell 518.859.1462 for more information.

Malta BPA plans inagural 5k run Sept. 11

2010-07-05T23:30:00.001-04:00

Plans are underway for The Inaugural Malta Business & Professional Association (MBPA) 5K on Saturday, September 11th. The 5K will begin at 8:30 am at the HVCC Tec Smart building in the Saratoga Technology and Energy Park and routes though Luther Forest Technology Campus. The event is open to the public with $20 advance registration online at www.areep.com. Runners can also register for $25 Day of event starting at 7:30 am.

The Malta BPA 5K will benefit local veterans and emergency responders. Proceeds are also being donated to: Saratoga County Rural Preservation Company, Malta Ambulance Corps, Round Lake Fire Department and Malta Ridge Fire Department.

For more information, visit maltabpa.com

Aug. 6 grappling bouts at Knights of Columbus

2010-07-05T23:23:00.003-04:00

Save the date, Friday, August 6 for some serious grapplin.

Doors open at 6 p.m. at the Knights of Columbus at 50 Pine Road with bouts starting at 8 p.m.

Skidmore names Navy's Joe Burke as head hoops coach

2010-07-05T23:15:00.002-04:00

Skidmore College has named Joe Burke as head men’s basketball coach, following a national search. Burke recently completed his sixth year as an assistant coach at the U.S. Naval Academy after four years on the Cornell University staff.

“We are thrilled to have Joe Burke join the Skidmore family and take the helm of our men’s basketball program,” said Gail Cummings-Danson, Skidmore athletics director. “Joe has proven himself as a tireless worker who has the ability to attract outstanding student-athletes. I look forward to watching the progress our program makes under his guidance.”

Burke was instrumental in the resurgence of the Navy program, serving as one of its top recruiters. He brought outstanding talent that immediately contributed to Navy’s improvement on the court. Five of Navy’s recruits earned Patriot League All-Rookie Team honors over the past six seasons.

In the 2008-09 season, one of Burke’s earliest recruits, Kaleo Kina, was a first-team All-Patriot League selection after leading the Midshipmen to a 19-11 record that equaled the most wins for Navy since the 1999-2000 season.

"I am thrilled to be at Skidmore,” Burke said. “This is a tremendous opportunity for me and my family. It will be a privilege to fulfill a life long dream of being a head coach at a great institution.

"I am anxious to get started," Burke said. "I have been fortunate to be an assistant to Steve Donahue when he took over at Cornell and Billy Lange when he took over the Naval Academy program, so I have a good feel for how much work there is to do. I am excited to start reaching out to the team, their families and the former players because this is truly their program. I am also excited to get on the road to recruit and represent Skidmore College."

A 1996 graduate of Ursinus College, Burke sees Skidmore as the prefect place for his first head coaching position. “I immediately reached out to Gail Cummings-Danson when the job became available and that interest only grew stronger as I went through the interview process and had the opportunity to meet Gail, her staff, the committee and members of the team.

“Everyone associated with the school and the community made me feel at home. Having been a student-athlete at Ursinus and having coached at such great academic/athletic institutions like Cornell and the Naval Academy really makes this a great transition.”

Prior to Navy, Burke coached at Cornell from 2001-04, serving as the team’s top assistant in the 2003-04 season. He was responsible for recruiting, practice planning, and game strategy. After leaving Cornell, his recruits helped the Big Red continue their upward trend toward their recent dominance of the Ivy League.

"I couldn’t be more excited about the future of this program," Burke said. "I think there are many pieces in place and I look forward to providing the leadership to take it to another level. As I told the kids when I met them, we will never settle. They want to achieve great things both on and off the court and it is my goal that as a team we do just that."

Burke was an assistant coach at Philadelphia University from 1998 to 2000. A 1992 graduate of Bishop Eustace Preparatory School in Pennsauken, N.J., he served as an assistant at his alma mater from 1996-1998.

Burke succeeds Luke Flockerzi, who recently took over the University of Rochester program. Skidmore returns four starters from last year’s team which went 16-10, tying a program varsity win record.

Burke and his wife, Victoria, are the parents of a son Alec (6) and two daughters, Elena (4), and Olivia Grace (2).

Suburban Council baseball all-stars

2010-07-05T22:53:00.005-04:00

Suburban Council Baseball 2010 All-Star Team

There was a three-way tie for Coach of the Year: Paul Deluca/Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake, John Furey/Niskayuna and Peter Mravlja/Shaker.

Pitcher of the Year was Nick Cioffi/Averill Park and Player of the Year was Matt Zanotta/Guilderland

Suburban Council First TeamCatcher: Brian O` Keefe/Colonie
First base: Matt Zanotta/Guilderland
Middle infield: Bret Dennis/Burnt Hills and Branden Cogswell/Shen
Third base: Derek Gardella/Shaker
Designated hitter: John Craig/Shen
Utility: Brian Guilder/Ballston Spa
Outfielders: Kyle Willmott/Saratoga, Scott Buniak/Shen and Keaton Flint/Burnt Hills
Pitchers: Nick Cioffi/AP, Matt Coleman/Saratoga, Chris Kalica/Colonie and Jeff Hoffman/Shaker

Suburban Council Second TeamCatcher: Brandon Galluppi/Shen
First base: David Wixted/Shen
Middle infield: Sean Geisel/Guilderland and Christian Brown/Columbia
Third base: Andrew Kalish/Shen
Designated hitter: Dan Buff/Burnt Hills
Utility: Stephen Proper/Columbia
Outfielders: Nick Valletta/Niskayuna, Luke Fauler/Saratoga, Luke Stark/Guilderland
Pitchers: John Prendergast/Shen, Matt Dempsey/Shen, Mike Nowak/Shaker and Corey Parks/Burnt Hills

Gary Stevens to keynote National Museum of Racing Hall of Fame

2010-07-05T22:42:00.004-04:00

Legendary jockey Gary Stevens will be the keynote speaker at the National Museum of Racing’s 2010 Hall of Fame induction ceremony on Friday, August 13. The ceremony will be held at the newly renovated Fasig-Tipton Sales Pavilion at 10:30 a.m. It is free to the public.

Stevens, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1997, will be the fourth Hall of Fame member – following John Nerud in 1994, D. Wayne Lukas in 2004 and Chris McCarron in 2009 – to accept an invitation to speak at the ceremony.

Stevens, 47, won 5,005 races and had purse earnings of $237,644,302 in a career that spanned from 1979 to 2005. He won the Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes three times each and posted two victories in both the Preakness and Travers. Stevens also won a record nine runnings of the Santa Anita Derby and posted eight wins in Breeders’ Cup races.

One of the most popular athletes in the history of Thoroughbred racing, Stevens has enjoyed tremendous success in many endeavors. In 2003, he received critical acclaim for his role as jockey George Woolf in the Academy Award-nominated film “Seabiscuit.” Stevens has also been a popular racing analyst for NBC Sports and Horse Racing Television (HRTV), and recently signed on for a role in HBO’s upcoming racetrack series “Luck,” which will also star Dustin Hoffman and Nick Nolte. He also has authored a book about his life, The Perfect Ride.

Stevens was born March 6, 1963 in Caldwell, Idaho. He began his riding career at age 16 in his home state at Les Bois Park in Boise. Stevens quickly became a top rider in Washington and then found success in California. In 1993, he became the youngest jockey to surpass $100 million in earnings. In 1996, Stevens won the George Woolf Memorial Jockey Award. He won the Mike Venezia Memorial Award in 1999. Stevens earned the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey in 1998, the year after his Hall of Fame induction.

Stevens won the Kentucky Derby with Winning Colors (1988), Thunder Gulch (1995) and Silver Charm (1997); the Preakness Stakes with Silver Charm (1997) and Point Given (2001); and the Belmont with Thunder Gulch (1995), Victory Gallop (1998) and Point Given (2001).

- Courtesy National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame

Saratoga Estudiantes U11 and Colo Colo soccer finish strong

2010-07-05T22:29:00.005-04:00

The Saratoga Estudiantes '99 U11 soccer team recently went undefeated in capturing the Niskayuna U12 Soccer Tournament. The team went undefeated against Latham Circle, Henry Hudson, Niskayuna, and Clifton Park. The Estudiantes '99 team then traveled up to Syracuse where they won the Northstars Cup U11 Championship. The team went 6-0 going undefeated against Empire United Syracuse, Liverpool Soccer Academy, Soccer Central, and the Cicero Jr. Northstars.

Players on the team were: Colby Obrecht, Nick Cavotta, Menard Bibow, Zarin Tuten, Thomas Preece, Tommy Pendergrass, Seth Granger, Ryan Stites, Jack Beck, Colin Maruscsak, Gabe Olsen, Jesse Godine, and Max Schynoll.

The Saratoga Colo Colo '00 U10 soccer team recently went undefeated in capturing the Burnt Hills Father's Day Tournament. The team went undefeated against Williamstown, Chazy, Brunswick, and Clifton Park. Players on the team were: Nick Rosebrook, Jonathan Irons, Aidan O'Malley, Tommy Pendergrass, Alec Olsen, Daniel Varsames, Ryan Postlethwait, Aidan Rice, Jack Lena, and James Pouch.

The Saratoga Estudinates '99, Colo Colo '00, and Colo Colo '00 teams are coached by Jeff Geller and ended their spring soccer season with a combined record of 35-8-6.

Fryer to Siena

2010-06-17T20:13:00.002-04:00

Greenwich senior pitcher Neil Fryer, and The Saratogian's Male Athlete of the Week on June 15, has committed to Siena College along with CBA senior Dennis Buckley. (Photo courtesy Stan Hudy, The Saratogian).

According to a press release just sent out by Siena College, Greenwich High School senior Neil Fryer will be playing his college ball in Loudonville.

From the release:

He comes from the strong Greenwich High School program and played his summer ball for the renowned Saratoga Stampede. Fryer helped Greenwich reach the New York High School State finals this past season.

“Neil is coming off an outstanding high school season where his team finished runner-up in the New York State Tournament,” Siena head coach Tony Rossi said. “He should see quality innings out of the bullpen initially and spot start. He has an outstanding fastball and curve and is an outstanding student as well.”

Dennis Buckley, another local product, just finished his senior season with the strong Christian Brothers Academy team. He started and relieved for the team this year, and with a fastball in the upper-80’s, he will be counted on to come out of the bullpen and provide quality innings.

“Dennis transferred from Colonie Central High School to Christian Brothers Academy where he played football as well as baseball,” Rossi said. “He will be a welcome addition to the bullpen where the hope is he will provide mid to late inning help. He should get quality time immediately.”
Five athletes recently made late signing period commitments to Siena. The group raises the incoming freshman class to 11 – the largest recruited class in the history of the program.

Adam Guinn (Norris, Tenn.), Neil Fryer (Greenwich, N.Y.), Richard Baerga (Pomona, N.Y.), Dennis Buckley (Albany, N.Y.) and Greg Wilson (Medford, Mass.) all committed to the program. They join: Matt O'Kipney (Liverpool, N.Y.), Jimmy Meindl (Old Bridge, N.J.), John Rooney (Syracuse, N.Y.), Tyler Bell (Cornwall, N.Y.), Vinnie Citro (Montclair, N.J.) and Kenny Kirshner (Cornwall, N.Y.) who committed to the program during the early signing period.

Live coverage of Saratoga Invitational Regatta Day One

2010-05-28T06:10:00.001-04:00

Scholastic Rowing Nationals Day One

Live webcast: Saratoga boys lacrosse at Shenendehowa, 7 p.m. April 30

2010-04-29T23:16:00.001-04:00

Saratoga boys lacrosse at Shenendehowa

Ballston Spa's Ed Pompa to race for Double H Ranch June 5

2010-04-29T23:03:00.002-04:00

On June 5, 2010, Ed Pompa of Ballston Spa will once again Race for the Ranch in the ARCA race at Pocono Speedway.

For the past 3 years Ed has participated in the race proudly displaying the Double H Ranch logo on the hood of his car. Over the past several years Ed and his wife, Nancy, have raised funds and awareness through this program to help send children dealing with a life-threatening illness to camp.

All programs at the Double H Ranch are free of charge. Ed has designed sponsorship levels for others to support the Double H while advertising their own corporation or business. The cost for the camp to host one child for a week is $1,800.

Ed will once again offer sponsors the opportunity to have their name and company logo featured on his race car, with possible TV exposure live on race day on Speed TV. Make a donation to the Double H Ranch of $100 or more before May 15th indicating “Racing for the Ranch” and your name, your company name, or your company logo will be featured on Ed’s car.

100% OF YOUR DONATION GOES TO THE DOUBLE H RANCH

Several sponsorship levels are available based on a $1,800 camper sponsorship.

(All information must be submitted by May 15, 2010.)

-for up to 1/3 camper sponsorship, names will be put on the trunklid.

- for 1/3 to 1/2 camper sponsorship, names or logos will be put on the ‘B’ posts.

-for 1/2 to 1 camper sponsorship, names or logos will be put on doors, ahead of rear tires.

-for 1-2 camper sponsorships, names or logos will be put on the ‘C’ posts.

-for 2-3 camper sponsorships, names or logos will be put on lower rear fenders.

-for 3-4 camper sponsorships, names or logos will be put on the hood, and company will be listed in race press releases as co-sponsor of the car. Includes 2 race tickets.

-for 4+ camper sponsorships, names or logos will be put on rear fenders, and company will be listed in press releases as primary sponsor of the car. Includes 2 race tickets plus 2 pit/paddock passes to the ARCA race.

Donate today at www.doublehranch.org or by check to the Double H Ranch, Gift Processing Center, P.O. Box 1378, Williston, VT 05495. Please indicate in Comments section online and by check “Racing for the Ranch”. For questions and additional information please contact Ed Pompa at (518) 857-3928, or by e-mail at bedrock5@nycap.rr.com

Let Saturday be a Crappie tournament day

2010-04-29T22:29:00.002-04:00

The first annual Adirondack Crappie Tournament sponsored by the Adirondack Bass Club will be held 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, May 1 on Saratoga Lake, coming out of the South Shore Marina, 113 Route 9P.

The cost is $50 per boat and there is a 10 fish limit per boat, live bait is permitted.

Payout with 50 boats participating is $480 for first, $350 for second, $280 for third, $210 for fourth, $165 for fifth, $125 for sixth, $90 for seventh and $50 for eighth.

Registration and launch will be held from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.

For the more daring, the 10th annual Michael D. Ciccolella Memorial Pike Tournament will be held May 23 out of the South Shore Marina on Saratoga Lake.

Entry fee is $100 per boat for a two-man team. $5 from each entry will be donated to the Red Cross in the name of Michael D. Ciccolella. There is also an optional $10 lunker pool with 100 percent payback.

Fishing will be held 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. with a three-fish limit per boat with any combination of Pike, Pickerel and Walleye. Live bait is permitted.

Expected payout with 50 boats registered is $1100 for first, $800 for second, $640 for third, $480 for fourth, $380 for fifth, $280 for sixth, $200 for seventh and $120 for eighth.

For more information, contact Joel Marcotte at 654-7210, Scott Franck at 632-5232 or visit their website at www.adirondackbassclub.com.

1st-ever Dragon's Pride Run 5k May 16

2010-04-29T22:17:00.003-04:00

Support the Division Street School PTA by participating in its first-ever Dragon's Pride Run 5k 9 a.m. May 16 beginning at the Warming Hut at Saratoga Spa State Park.

The fun 5K race/walk is designed to promote physical fitness for our children, families and community. Proceeds from the race will go towards the Division Street School PTA to help us enhance our children's physical fitness through extra programs and equipment.

Prizes will be awarded for first place in age categories, medals for childrens who participate in the race and T-shirts for all participants.

Directly following the race fun fitness activities and friendly competitions for the kids to participate in. Along with a bouncy bounce, face painting and more!

Register on-line at www.active.com and search for Dragon's Pride Run.

Additional information and updates on the race can be found here.

The organization is also looking for volunteers the day of the race.

If interested call Maureen Delnicki 584-3089 / emdel@together.net or Karen Duthaler @ 309-3165 / kduthale@nycap.rr.com.

Local talent headlines Extra Innings summer camps

2010-04-29T22:04:00.002-04:00

Extra Innings in Saratoga features former college and professional coaches at their upcoming Summer Camp programs.

Fastpitch Softball camps are headed by Oneonta’s Michelle Norwich; Skidmore pitching coach Jackie Hall; Castleton’s Laura Rodgers, along with former Shen standout and current Syracuse pitcher, Angie Sagnelli, among others.

The Baseball camps are headed by former Cortland SUNY/AC player of the year, Coach Michael Hubbs, with former professional players, Will Groff (Cardinals) and Jimmy Dougher (Blue Jays), along side Castleton’s Oliver Aldrich, and SUNY Albany’s Chris Hackett, among others.

Camps include play at Extra Innings and DoubleDay Park in Ballston Spa for June 28th – July 2nd, July 5th – July 9th, and August 9th – 13th. Enroll in the Rookie Camp Ages 6-9; Advanced Youth Camp 9-12; and Senior Division/Big League Camp Ages 13-15.

The camps will provide instruction in all areas of the game. Extra Innings invites you to the only camp in the area offering a 20-hour camp with your choice of specialized instruction in Catching, Infield, or Pitching.

Junior EXPRESS announces Summer Indoor Baseball
Extra Innings – Saratoga announces its instructional Summer Indoor Baseball programs. Both the T-Ball Division Ages 4-6 and the Rookie Division Ages 6-9 will meet twice weekly throughout the summer. All players receive instruction every week with games, and skill contests every Friday. All aspects of the game including hitting, throwing, catching, fielding, and base running are taught.

Extra Innings announces Summer Pitching Clinics
Both Fastpitch and Baseball summer pitching clinics are now registering at Extra Innings. Fastpitch clinics are every Wednesday from 4:30 – 6:00pm beginning May 5th and continuing throughout the summer with instruction focusing on speed and control. Summer. Baseball pitching clinics will begin July 12th and with a 12 session program that meets on Monday and Thursday evenings from 6:00 – 7:30. Ages 9-15 are welcome in both programs.