Pickin' pigskin with Bob and Steve: Week 14, Part 2

Sorry about the delay yet again, but yet again, I was busy (procrastinating) with work, which affected by time in posting this.

INDIANAPOLIS over Denver (7)

Steve: Indy -7

Listen, as they say on The Office, when there are two Santas, things get ruthless. And the Colts want that perfect record... Actually, I have no idea if this is the case, but I did love The Office this week. I really wanted to work it into the football picks somehow, and I decided to do so here. Do I regret this? No. Because it really was a wonderful episode. And it was awesome when Dwight kicked the tree down. And oh so awkward when they called David Wallace on speakerphone. And awesome how Jim knew the perfect gift to get Kelly.

Bob: Pain and misery -7

I feel like this is the last opportunity to stop the Colts before they go 16-0. And I don't think Denver has it in them to do it. Next week they face Jacksonville for the second time, and Indy seems to perform well against teams the second time they see them. Other than that its the Jets and Bills. Both teams could be dangerous, but I don't see how they are any more dangerous than the numerous other opponents the Colts have knocked off. Meanwhile Denver hasn't beaten anybody terribly good this year and lost to the perhaps mediocre Steelers and Ravens.

As for this week's episode of The Office, I felt like it wasn't nearly as funny as this week's episode of 30 Rock. Between Tracy Jordan being the only one to see through the writer's Verkunian dodge to Kenneth's Secret Santa, Jack letting his Boston accent slip for a bit, and Liz Lemon calling in the bomb threat to keep Jack's crush in town from the writer's phone, the episode was pretty hilarious. I'm not trying to discount The Office, since that show is funny too, but 30 Rock is the show I really look forward to on NBC Thursdays.

MINNESOTA over Cincinnati (7)

Bob: Minnesota -7

It's starting to look like the Bengals might have had a really weak schedule. We thought the Steelers and Ravens were good, but maybe they just aren't. Otherwise, the Bengals have beaten Detroit, Cleveland x 2, and Chicago. The only good win they have is against a Green Bay team that was very troubled at the beginning of the season. They are catching Minnesota at what could be a very vulnerable time (Brett Favre in December), so they may be able to sneak a win. But I can't say I've been too impressed with anything the Bengals have done this year, and they have looked even worse since Cedric Benson went down.

What can we compare Brett Favre's ongoing troubles in December to, by the way? We could talk about Tony Romo in the playoffs, but for Romo it seems mental whereas Brett Favre just seems to lose some sort of magic. I would say a better comparison would be Robin Williams - who is great in most comedies but just seems to not be great in serious movies. Sure, he was good in Good Will Hunting (Sure, Brett Favre won that Super Bowl), but everything else has been kind of unimpressive or just plain bad. That would make Brett Favre's interception to end his career with the Packers What Dreams May Come (a good effort that just didn't come together) and his season as a Jet Bicentennial Man (unmitigated disaster). I hate to say it to Brett Favre haters, but the first two movies I thought to compare to this season (Insomnia and One Hour Photo) were apparently very well received. Let's hope that this season is more of an Artificial Intelligence (so much promise but in the end just awful).

Steve: Cincy +7

I'm not sure if I buy into your Robin Williams argument, since two of his best received movies - Good Will Hunting and Good Morning Vietnam - he was playing “serious” characters. Sure, in Vietnam he got to be a bit wacky, but it's still a movie primarily about war.

I feel he has the opposite problem – When he tries to do a comedy, it ends up sucking. Robin Williams is like a character from a Saturday Night Live skit. Almost all of them suck when they're exposed in a longer movie, such as Night at the Roxbury or It's Pat or Stuart Saves His Family. Every once in a great while, a movie will work somewhat OK - The Ladies Man and Hook - and every once in a while, you get the rare thing that works completely - Wayne's World and the aforementioned good Robin Williams movies.

That really doesn't have much to do with this game at all. I'm going with the Bengals because I'm a glutton for punishment, and I have to take some chances to pick up games at this point.

NY Jets over TAMPA BAY (3)

Steve: Jets -3

Collapsing team vs. team that teases me with competence. Hm... I'll go with the Jets for this game, even though The Sanchise is allegedly not playing. (That could be even more reason to pick the Jets here, you know.)

Bob: Jets -3

Tampa Bay had a nice little run there when they covered against a few teams, but they are still 1-11. This spread seems dangerously low to trust the Bucs to stay in the game. Then again, Kellen Clemmens is an interception machine. In his one season as a starter he averaged an interception roughly every 25 passing attempts, and the next year he managed to throw a pick with only five attempts over the whole season. I'm going to stick with the Jets only because I just don't trust the Bucs to be able to take advantage of the bad QB.

KANSAS CITY over Buffalo (PICK)

Bob: Buffalo

So if having to watch Buffalo play in Toronto was like having to watch your girlfriend cheat on you on The Real World, does that mean having to watch them play Kansas City is like having to take them to a play after you take them back (because let's face it, you aren't doing better)?

Steve: Kansas City

Uhhhh... I'm not sure about this analogy. But hey, it's almost Christmas, so why not? As a result, my gift to the Chiefs is picking them, and Matt Cassel, in this game. Also, I hope that I spelled Cassel right, because I'm too lazy to look it up.

Green Bay over CHICAGO (3)

Steve: Green Bay -3

I'm shocked that this line is so low. Haven't the Packers won them some football games? Don't the Bears still suck?

To make more references to NBC shows, it is as puzzling as the decision of Community to focus on Britta as the romantic interest of Jeff Winger, the lead character played by Joel McHale. Britta is OK, but she is no Alison Brie, a smoking-hot brunette that plays the neurotic student Annie. It seemed like the producers of the show realized this halfway through the season, as they started downplaying the Winger-Britta romance, and started showing Annie in short skirts and tight fighting outfits. Good times, good times.

Bob: Green Bay

I refuse to dignify this game with more analysis. The Bears will lose by double digits.

New Orleans over ATLANTA (10)

Bob: New Orleans -10

I've got to say, I was rooting for New Orleans for most of this season. I don't remember the last time they had a good team and I still feel guilty that New Orleans kind of got destroyed by a hurricane. But in successive weeks they have embarrassed the Patriots and then managed to beat my hometown Redskins by getting two of the most perplexing calls this season. I have a theory that the reason that the Colts are undefeated is because Peyton Manning personally fellates every ref before the game. Well, I'm starting to have the same question about Drew Brees.

But that's only half the reason I'm starting to root against them. They also have this inability to cover that is maddening. I value my pride over New Orleans fans' happiness.

Steve: New Orleans -10

Wow, way to take a STAND, Bob. You mean you're confident picking the team that's undefeated against the team that just got completely killed by the Eagles?

BALTIMORE over Detroit (13)

Steve: Baltimore -13

I don't like this line at all. It seems like the Ravens haven't been as good since the beginning of the year. But, the Lions are still the Lions. I'm torn, so I'm going with the home team and the better team. I'm guessing the Ravens might play a little bit better now that the Steelers have shit the bed so much.

Bob: Baltimore -13

Who would have thought that people who are trying to make money by gambling operations would make these games so difficult to pick? I, too, will go with the Ravens since the Lions haven't been able to stay in games against even semi-decent opponents lately.

JACKSONVILLE over Miami (3)

Bob: Miami +3

I would have been more mad last week if I hadn't seen that coming from a mile away. I guess I did pick the Patriots to cover last week, but it became clear to me after the first quarter that the Patriots were going nowhere against the Dolphins on offense. Thus, I knew the Dolphins would chip away at the lead until they were able to surpass the Patriots. Ugh, not that I was happy, but I wasn't surprised or angry - which is a positive step for me.

Why am I picking Miami to cover when Jacksonville is the slightly better team, at home, with only a three point spread? Meh, I really can't justify it too much except I think Miami is too dangerous to pick against any week, particularly when they are playing a team like Jacksonville that doesn't seem to show up that often. I think it will be close enough that I'm comfortable with the points.

Steve: Jaguars -3

I'm a bit annoyed that you picked the Dolphins, since I wanted to pick them in this close game. But, I have to make up some games on you, you dastardly devil! Even if this means picking my mortal enemy David Garrard to win a game, I suppose I have to bite the bullet and actually do it.

NEW ENGLAND over Carolina (13.5)

Steve: New England -13.5

I'm surprised the line is this high – still. Unless the Patriots get up by 28 or more in the first half, then I'm not sure if they can hold on to a two-touchdown lead to cover the spread. Luckily for the Patriots though, I think they can get up by that much on a pretty iffy Carolina Panthers team.

And also, I need Brady to do well for fantasy purposes. Mendenhall didn't do great on Thursday night, earning only about six points, but in even better news for my team and bad news for my opponent, Big Ben had a worse game, and only had 10 points when his season average is in the 20s. I realize Brady is beat-up, but if he has a “normal” game for him, then quarterback should be a “win” position for me this week.

Bob: Carolina +13.5

I don't even know what to think about the Patriots anymore. As I said on Thursday, I think people are overplaying the “Belichick is done” angle. The fact of the matter seems to be that the Patriots can't keep teams honest because they have no running game. The Whitman's Sampler of Laurence Maroney, Sammy Morris and BenJarvus Green-Ellis just isn't cutting it. Maybe when (if?) Fred Taylor comes back they will look better, but right now why wouldn't you cheat against the run?

The lack of a running game seems to have a cascading effect. Since teams are cheating against the pass, they are able to focus on running toward Brady. This is making things difficult on the offensive line, which as a result is getting porous — it's difficult to block when defensive rushers don't have to guard against a play that could go outside the tackles. This also puts a burden on the defense, since the Patriots cannot control the clock. For any given loss, the defense hasn't looked terrible. But the offense has been unable to control the ball in the second half giving opposing teams numerous opportunities to come back.

Additionally, Bill O'Brien hasn't seemed to be able to call plays to try to cover up the Pats' lack of a running game. Say what you want about Charlie Weis, but he was able to make the Patriots look good when Antowain Smith was in the backfield. Instead, O'Brien has kept almost everything between the tackles, which has added to the problems I mentioned above.

So I pick Carolina to cover. I feel as though they are actually better off with Delhomme hurt. I don't see an upset here, but anything is possible unless the Pats can start picking it up.

HOUSTON over Seattle (6)

Bob: Houston -6

I want to abstain. Why should I have to pick this game? Neither of these teams does anything too impressive and they are kind of painful to watch. I pick Houston because Seattle has been really bad on the road. Houston can burn in Hell, though, until they get their act together. I am tired of them teasing everybody at the beginning of every year.

Steve: Seattle +6

Seattle is bad on the road, but the Texans seem like they're in freefall again, and the Seahawks did win last week (at home, but still). I'll try riding them again for another win.



TENNESSEE over St. Louis (13)

Steve: Tennessee -13

I guess I have to get ride back on the Titans bandwagon. You know, it's kind of like Parks and Recreation, a series that has really gotten a lot better in its second season. The first season just felt like a rip-off of The Office, but the second season feels distinctive, since the Pam-Jim dynamic in the first (Leslie longing after Mark) has been completely ditched, and the show has found its own niche.

The Christmas episode was pretty strong, as well. Leslie was accused of having an affair with a local councilman, but she didn't, but she couldn't prove it. It was total lawlz, Bob, and you should be watching this show regularly.

Bob: St. Louis +13

I'm not off the Titans bandwagon, but they haven't been blowing teams out for the most part. Also, St. Louis has been frisky lately — not winning, but still frisky. So 13 is just too rich for me.

As for Parks and Recreation, I tried to stick through that show last season but just couldn't do it. It was way too much of a ripoff of The Office, and I'm not wild about Amy Poehler outside of Weekend Update. I might give the show another chance based on your recommendation, but Thursdays are already a crowded night for me, with Fringe and Grey's Anatomy (I'm married so I have to share the Tivo) taking precedence over NBC for the most part.

Washington over OAKLAND (1)

Bob: Oakland +1

If the Redskins had any heart, they would go out and beat the pulp out of whatever team they played the week they had a win stolen from them—particularly a win against an unbeaten team. The Redskins don't have any heart.

On a completely unrelated note, I am listening to awful music on Youtube right now. I watch music videos every morning before I go to work, which leads to bad pop songs getting stuck in my head. Well, I just clicked over to listen to “She Wolf” by Shakira, and the top comment made me laugh. “i think that having sex with this woman would be a good treat for me.” Don't we all agree?

Steve: Washington -1

I'm not sure what I think of Shakira. I feel the same way about Fergie. On paper, both should be more attractive, but for some reason, I'm just not into them. Maybe it's something about women who do dance songs – I'm also not really into anyone from the Pussycat Dolls, not even the Nicole Sckhdsjhs girl who is kind of attractive. The only exception is Beyonce, but I wouldn't date her because her ex is Jay-Z, who is like the modern, rap version of Sinatra. I'm not crossing that guy.

Oh yeah, the game. I think you're overreacting to the Redskins losing to the Saints. I mean, they cut their kicker! Of course they can win by a field goal this game. Besides, the Raiders only beat good and average teams, not below average and underachieving teams. And also, I wonder how Campbell would do on a decent that didn't dick around with him each year with a new coordinator. I feel like he could have been similar to Aaron Rodgers, but he never got the chance.

DALLAS over San Diego (3)

Steve: San Diego +3

I feel like there is a chance things could get really ugly in Dallas this weekend. You wouldn't think that from the record of Wade Phillips, but the guy comes across like a clueless old man when he's talking about how impressive his win-loss record is. Hey Wade, maybe the fact that you think a good regular season record is good is the reason why people are pissed off about you!

He kind of reminds me of the apologists for URI men's basketball coach Jim Baron. At a certain point, you actually have to get over the hump and get into the NCAA tournament. Wade Phillips, at a certain point you have to actually win some games in December, and even better, win some games in the playoffs.

Bob: San Diego +3

Now is the part of the season that we remember that the Cowboys just weren't that good in the first place but managed to look impressive by playing the Redskins and other bad opponents. As for Wade Phillips, my feeling about him is similar to the feeling of the Queen of Hearts, who is played by Kathy Bates in the SyFy special Alice I'm currently watching -- “Off with his head!”

I've never understood why owners stand by mediocre or bad coaches just because they're winning. If anything, you should knock off your bad coach after a season where you have a decent record but got killed by your coach for whatever reason because you might be able to attract a Cowher or other above-average coach who knows he won't have to rebuild your team. Phillips, Brad Childress and Norv Turner will each cost their teams a big game this year, leading their teams to be eliminated from the playoffs. Just because the guy's teams are great in September doesn't mean he's worth holding onto.

NY GIANTS over Philadelphia (1)

Bob: Philadelphia +1

So wait, the Giants manage to upset Dallas and their shaky defense and all of a sudden we think the Giants are good again? Roughly equivalent to an Eagles team that rocked them 40-17 several weeks ago and has won their last three? Not so much.

Steve: Eagles +1

I've been going against you on almost every pick, but I can't with this one. Because of their respective fan bases, I feel like the Giants and Cowboys and (to a lesser extent) Jets always have weird, crappy lines. Hey, the Eagles just totally shit all over the Falcons, and yet nobody seems to care. Meanwhile, the Giants barely got by the Cowboys, who always collapse in December.

Arizona over SAN FRANCISCO (3.5)

Steve: Arizona -3.5

Okay, Cardinals, you have my support. Which reminds me that another Thursday night show, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, is my favorite on television now, and that isn't even counting their absolutely hill-air-e-us Christmas DVD that just recently got in stores. Anyway, in this week's episode, they were trying to recruit a fourth teammate for their flipcup team, and trying to get revenge at the bar across the street that beat them in the last flipcup tournament they were allowed to play in, Flip-A-Delphia, about 10 years ago.

Bob: Arizona -3.5

I'm not wild about the Cardinals, but San Fran is the NFC version of the Texans — looked good to start off the season, a fashionable pick to do something after a bad year, but in the end they fall apart. Meanwhile, the Cardinals have been bizarrely dangerous.

Kristin's picks are scheduled to post at 11 a.m. EST Sunday. The photo of Tracy Morgan is from this weird blog about hermaphrodites in Hollywood - seriously. The Hillary Swank thing was inspired by The Office, and a web site is created for it here.

Delayed response!

So, I got busy again with work today. I'll type a proper entry later. (Hint: It'll be on the awesome finale of Glee the other night... Well actually, that's not much of a hint, more of a confession.) But for now, I'll just post an amusing YouTube video in order to temporarily distract you:



Ah, Animaniacs. How I miss thee...

Pickin' Pigskin with Bob and Steve and Kristin: Week 14, Part 1 and Standings

Pittsburgh over CLEVELAND (10)

Bob: Cleveland +10

In the last three weeks, Pittsburgh has lost both at Kansas City and versus Oakland, 24-27. Cleveland, after playing Pittsburgh on Thursday, will play at Kansas City and versus Oakland. How is that for some kind of weird symmetry? As for my pick, I feel very nervous picking an awful Cleveland team to beat a Steelers team that badly needs a win, but I think the Steelers just don't have the magic without Troy Polamalu. Beyond that, the Browns have been able to keep the Bengals and Chargers within 10 in the last two weeks, so they have a decent chance of covering. Finally, I feel as though Mike Tomlin's decision to blow up his starters during a short week might backfire.

Speaking of which, is making a public announcement that some starters will lose their job right after a loss really a good strategy? I feel as though it would be more motivating to say some starters may lose their jobs, based on next week's performance. That way you get both your starters and backups motivated to really show what they can do in practice and the game. Instead, by announcing that some people are just going to lost their job without warning, you've just demoralized your starters and perhaps may be elevating second-stringers who aren't ready for the spotlight yet.

Has Mike Tomlin really done anything to show us he's a good coach, by the way? He won a Super Bowl and has a 28-16 regular season record, but he also has had extremely talented teams and retained many of Bill Cowher's assistants. The first time he has faced adversity is this season (mostly in the form of losing one defensive player), and so far his team has shown up with a 6-6 record. I'm not saying he's a bad coach, but can we stop acting like he's great until he does a little bit more? Does anybody remember “genius” John Gruden? In contrast, Bill Belichick ended up going 11-5 last year with his backup quarterback (the second time a team under him has overperformed with a backup quarterback), and this year has lost to a dangerous Dolphins team, the at-that-time on fire Broncos and Jets, and two undefeated teams (Saints and Colts), yet people are asking whether Belichick has lost his touch. Bizarre.

Steve: Pittsburgh -10

I agree that the whining about Belichick has been much ado about nothing; the only "bad" loss in that span is to the Dolphins, who are now back in the playoff hunt because of the win, and did so without their top two offensive players coming into the year. However, all of the other Patriots' losses are defensible.

I still think Tomlin is a very good coach, but yeah, the sheen has come off his star. People are quick to claim he inherited everything from Cowher, but Cowher won like one Super Bowl, got crushed in another and otherwise got eliminated early in the playoffs every year by better coaches with less talented teams, like Bill Parcells.

The Steelers really do miss Troy, even more so than the Colts' annual loss of Bob Sanders to injury. That being said, I think the Browns have been playing some other teams a little too close lately, and for some reason, that the Steelers will dominate in this game. Also, I need Mendenhall to kick ass in this game, with at least 20 fantasy points. Therefore, I can't pick against the Steelers here.

Kristin: Browns

As far as I can tell, the only thing the orthopedics floor of the hospital where I am currently sitting and the Thursday night game have in common are that both are cooooooold. Otherwise, I am sitting near some nurses that are all chatting excitedly about a fellow nurse that just delivered up on the maternity floor and named her seven-pound baby girl Bianca (which I personally feel dooms your daughter to a snobby life full of shiny pink lip gloss, small dogs and shallow relationships).

They have time to talk because while we are still receiving post op patients, they are coming one at a time instead of all at once. My job is to enter their post-op pain medication, antibiotics and home medications for blood pressure, diabetes, etc. for their stay overnight in the hospital. My main challenges are to not become bored entering essentially the same medications on each patient and to read the handwriting of tired / lazy doctors and surgeons.

I guess that is another similarity between my work and the game - Both might sound cool and exciting, but when you get down to it, not so much.

-----
It was yet another craptastic week for me, as I slid further down the standings, cementing my status as the Detroit Lions of picking football games this year. Woohoo!

Bob: 8-8 (96-93 overall, first place)
Kristin: 6-10 (95-94 overall, second place)
Steve: 5-11 (90-99 overall, third palce)

On the bright side, my fantasy football team qualified for the fourth team out of six for my league's playoffs. This is the first time in three years that we've qualified for the playoffs, so that's swell for us. Good times, good times. I think as long as we win this week, we have a chance at recouping some of our entry fee, and we have a decent match-up, since our opponent has the suddenly-in-the-doghouse Randy Moss.

The Lions fan picture is from here. Note: Kristin did get her pick and take in by 7 p.m., but I didn't get a chance to update it until now.

Lowell trade gives Red Sox even more flexibility

So, Ken Rosenthal is reporting on his Twitter that the Red Sox have dealt Mike Lowell to the Rangers for hot minor league catching prospect Max Ramirez. The Sox would also pay almost all of Lowell's salary. For the source, check out his Twitter feed for now, and I imagine ESPN of the like will have the full trade details out soon, since they still have the 11 p.m. PST Sportscenter to produce.

My off the cuff reaction is that this seems like a much bigger move on the surface than it is. Lowell has been a well-liked, productive player in Boston when healthy. However, this past season his range was clearly diminished in the field, and I didn't think he would survive through the off-season on the team. I think this coming year for Lowell plays out like Jason Varitek's 2008, with his bat eroding to the point that it can't carry his iffy fielding.

I'm surprised the return is Ramirez, though. The Rangers seemingly valued him high, and as much as Lowell can still hit, I'm surprised his defensive shortcomings meant the Rangers would give up Ramirez. A year ago, he was thought to be the better prospect of Taylor Teagarden and Jared Saltahcflsjfhasl.

The hype comes from Ramirez mashing the ball at AA in 2008 - slash stats of 354 / 450 / 646 in 243 at-bats. He also had really good years in 2006 and 2007 at A and high-A respectively.

However, something happened to him this year. In 274 AAA at-bats, his slash stats were 234 / 323 / 336. According to this Fanhouse blog, Ramirez was battling wrist injuries all year, which almost always causes horrible damage to batting numbers. The Red Sox seem to be trading when Ramirez is at a reasonable midpoint in value: He could recover completely and mash, or he could collapse completely, a la the struggles Jed Lowrie and David Ortiz have had recovering from wrist surgeries.

I still like this trade for the Red Sox though, because they turned a declining, good asset (Lowell) into one at a premium position that could be an All-Star regular. It also gives them more flexible to fill holes, as odd as that seems. With Lowell gone, they can sign Beltre to play some decent defense at third, or pursue a trade for a big bat at first base (Miguel Cabrera? Adam Dunn?) and switch Kevin Youkilis over to third. And, my favorite part of the trade is that the Sox didn't have to move any of their valuable young prospects - Casey Kelly, Ryan Westmoreland, Clay Buchholz - in order to acquire Ramirez.

All your cakes are belong to us

Tis the season for mouth-watering dishes.

So folks, I need your help. Not this weekend, but next, I'm going to a potluck Christmas dinner slash party, and as part of the festivities, I need to bring a dish. It will be mostly high school and college friends at the event, and mostly people that I know pretty well. As a result, I'm trying to avoid bringing, say, just a bag of chips or a 30-pack or store-mix brownies.

When it comes to my skill cooking, I think I'm an adequate chef. While I will say straight-up that I'm not looking to hand knead 50 pounds of day to individually make a big batch of cookies, I'm willing to put some effort into something I cook. My past "good" cooking moments are mostly with big cuts of meat (that's what she said). I've done well making things like a rosemary roast leg of lame and corned beef with potatoes, and I am good at following a recipe on the back of a box or off an online sheet of directions.

As a practical thing, ideally, I should be able to make it the night before, or the day of in a couple of hours. Because my hours are so weird from reporting a lot of the time, there isn't a guarantee that I'll have time the day of to make something piping hot, although that is what I'm shooting for. Also, because I imagine other people will be bringing mostly baked goods / desserts, something more savory would go over better, I believe. My spending range is between $20 and $60.

Anyway. If you have any good suggestions, feel free to leave them in the comments to this post, or to e-mail me (sgre6768@gmail.com) or to IM me on AIM - ChemBros15. I must get back to watching television and napping, which is why this post is unfortunately about two hours late. It is a ridiculous television night, with the season finales of Top Chef and Glee tonight, and a new episode of Modern Family. Woohoo! I'm glad this is the one night this week that I don't have to work. Tomorrow is football picks day, but I will probably post some reflections on all three shows either Friday or Sunday night.

Prime rib picture from here.

Yankees trade bad for the Red Sox

Since I was typing yesterday from the catacombs of the Civic Center, it only seems appropriate that I do this entry today in the 20 minutes before Rhode Island's game tonight. I'm busy eating some macaroni and cheese as I type this though, preparing for the game, so again, please excuse me if my thoughts are disheveled somewhat.

Anywho. The big news of the day in sports was the Yankees trade for Curtis Granderson, which, as a Red Sox fan, made me groan. Granderson isn't still projected to be a mega-superstar, like he was as a minor league prospect coming up, but he is a serviceable center fielder.

This would be an improvement on what the Yankees were probably planning to parade out there this year, some combination of Melky Cabrera, Brett Gardiner and maybe Austin Jackson. According to ESPN, the Yankees would give up Ian Kennedy, Phil Coke and Jackson.

Of those players, only Jackson has real potential as a plus-contributor on a playoff team. After his repeated shellings in the rotation the past few years, I'm shocked Kennedy still has value to another team. At best, I think he's a fourth or fifth starter, which is normally something you promote from within or sign on the cheap on the free agent market. Coke is a nice arm for the pen, and Jackson might grow up to be Granderson, so I'm surprised the Yankees had to give up so little to end up with Granderson in this trade.

I have no idea why the Diamondbacks did this trade. They ended up with Kennedy and Tigers' starter Edwin Jackson, who regressed badly after a hot start, and gave up the past prospects, who the Tigers picked up in the deal.

Granderson photo taken from this blog.

Lost predictions from the catacombs

So, I finally caught up on Lost, powering through all of season five in a two-day session this weekend. (WARNING: Huge spoilers immediately proceed!)

Predictably, the season ends on a ridiculous cliffhanger, as Juliet falls down the drilling hole, but she is able to smash the thermal nuclear core, making it detonate and executing the plan of Jack and Daniel Farraday.

I have to be brief, because I'm typing this in the 10 minutes before the Providence College game tonight, from the catacombs / basement press area of the Dunkin' Donuts Center. However, based on the past events of the show and the events of season five, I think the plan to “fix” time will work.

Why? Because for the most part, Daniel Farraday is correct on the show. If he thinks this has a chance to “fix” the timeline, then there is a good chance it will. Locke (or the being that possesses him) and Jack and Ben are sort of locked in an endless ideological struggle, and all of them seem to be right and wrong at various times. To steal terminology from Farraday and mathematics, his science is a constant of correctness on the show... at least so far.

With that in mind, I imagine the timeline of the fifth season will “start” when the original Oceanic plane crash occurred, except that it won't crash this time. From there, who the heck knows what will happen?

As far as the island goes, it wouldn't surprise me if Locke / Thing in Locke's body was in some sort of split timeline, or if he and Ben manage to be on the island and struggling over it anyway. Charles Widmore is also still presumably in the picture, and he might think of some ways to get the main cast (Jack, Kate, Sawyer, etc.) back on the island somehow.

Pickin' Pigskin with Kristin: Week 13, Part 2

Note: All of the below is from Kristin.

Hey, sorry if I messed up / missed the Thursday night game. I did pick the Jets, I don't know if you got it. I'm not even sure if they won, but I told Bob to e-mail in my pick while I was making him Shakin' Bake for dinner. He asked for my thoughts on the game, and I said Shakin' Bake was more worthy of my attentions.

Denver over KANSAS CITY (4.5)

Kristin: Denver

I originally wrote Kansas City, then I reconsidered and erased it. Denver is one of those teams that seemed to get better and better as the season began and to really be worth worrying about. Then, they stalled out and took a nose dive, leaving everyone saying they must have never been very good. Now they seem to be coming back again, and I don't know if we're in for a repeat performance of the good or awful version of Denver.

PITTSBURGH over Oakland (14)

Kristin: Oakland

The Steelers score enough to win, but they don't always score enough to cover. I'm less sure about this pick since they are at home, but screw the Steelers.

JACKSONVILLE over Houston (PICK)

Kristin: Jacksonville

Since this is just a pick, I figure go with the home team. Plus, Houston is in the dog house for losing to Indy last week.

INDIANAPOLIS over Tennessee (6.5)

Kristin: Tennessee

"What! Tennessee??!," you must be thinking. I wrote a long pasta-themed rant earlier this season about how Tennessee will trick you into thinking they have a shot before painfully reminding you that they don't. However, I am picking Tennessee in this situation for 2 main reasons.

1) No matter how bad Tennessee is, they always seems to play Indy well (a.k.a. as the Blue Jays are to the Red Sox). 2) Again, I can't face the thought of cheering for Indy in another situation where this might be the game that keeps them from a perfect season.

I can come to terms with Tom Brady having two different baby mommas and Payton Manning still happily married to his high school sweetheart, even though it pains me, and I wish their relationships were reversed. You don't marry working models T. Brady, when her beauty fades so will your relationship (grumble). But, what I can't accept is the idea of both QB achieving the status of having a 16-game perfect season. If this occurs then that Yankee lovin' Victoria's Secret has gots ta go!

Philadelphia over ATLANTA (5.5)

Kristin: Atlanta

Again, I originally wrote Philly. Then, after remembering how Philly played such a tight game against the Red Skins last week, I reconsidered.

CINCINATTI over Detroit (13)

Kristin: Cincinnati

Go Cinci!

New Orleans over WASHINGTON (9.5)

Kristin: New Orleans

As much as I love Washington, and I do believe they have a strong defense and they do rise up to be only a little worse than their opponent (while they keep losing, its usually only by 1 score), if New Orleans can run up a bunch of points against the Pats how can they not do the same against Washington, who can barely score.

CAROLINA over Tampa Bay (6.5)

Kristin: Tampa Bay

Just because I feel like it.

CHICAGO over St. Louis (9)

Kristin: St. Louis

Here is a game Chicago can finally win, but by 9? Please.

San Diego over CLEVELAND (13)

Kristin: San Diego

San Diego hasn't really been playing worth hating this season, but Boo Hiss anyways.

SEATTLE over San Francisco (PICK)

Kristin: Seattle

Ooh, two picks in one week, interesting. I would like to say San Fran, but I already promised to stop picking them since they never asserted themselves as a promising underdog worthy of my attentions. I'm going again with the home team.

Minnesota over ARIZONA (4)

Kristin: Minnesota

No contest.

Dallas over NY GIANTS (2)

Kristin: Dallas

How differently I would have picked this game at the beginning of the season.

Editor's note from Bob: I would like to point out that Kristin did in fact pick the Cowboys when they played the Giants earlier this season.

New England over MIAMI (5.5)

Kristin: New England

We always have tight games against Miami in December - especially when Miami is at home. However, the only time we blew a lead to lose to Miami when they were at home in December I have already accepted blame for, so please let us move on. This was back when Bob and his brothers HAD to eat Chips Ahoy cookies in the second-half of each and every game for good luck.

They had just returned from celebrating the holidays with their Aunt and Uncle, and every year, their Aunt sends each boy home with a giant Tupperware container full of amazing homemade Christmas cookies. We had spent the night laying on the couch watching the game, stuffing our faces with Christmas cookies. Then the boys started to fall asleep, and I said it was silly to eat lame-o store bought cookies after all those homemade cookies just for luck - yup, I was wrong.

GREEN BAY over Baltimore (3)

Kristin: Baltimore

I feel like I want to pick Baltimore any time I can now that I saw the ESPN 30 on 30 about poor fat old men crying that their Baltimore Colts fled in the night. Apparently, HBO has an even sadder show where a fire fighter that got crushed and wasn't predicted to last the night by a random bus after surviving 9/11 goes on to repeat his Iron Man status. I learned this while discussing movies / TV that have made us cry at work. Some of my most memorable cries include: The Notebook (which Bob banned from my life), game three against the Yankees in 2004, the entire 45-minute bombing sequence of Pearl Harbor (not the romance part), and the vast majority of the second Lord of the Rings movie.

The End

Pickin' pigskin with Bob and Steve: Week 13, Part 2

Denver over KANSAS CITY (4.5)

Bob: Denver -4.5

I know Denver hasn't been setting the world on fire lately, but they took care of a Giants team last week that, while mediocre, is worlds better than the Chiefs. This line is surprisingly low.

Even without considering that, though, it would be foolish to take the Chiefs based on the Cassel-McDaniels connection. A struggling NFL quarterback facing the coach who made him last year? Betting on the Chiefs would be like betting on Frankie Five Angels Pentangeli to take out the Corleone family. It ain't happening.

Steve: Denver -4.5

I was surprised at how easily the Broncos handled the Giants last week. It seemed like the Broncos were in a free-fall from their potential playoff spot, losing out to the Chargers in the grand scheme of things. Now, just a week later, I feel like the Broncos are the most likely of the AFC playoff contenders to actually make the playoffs.

Speaking of, did Josh McDaniels steal Bill's magic on the way out of town? Coming into the season, the Broncos seemed like a good bet to finish with a losing record, even in the porous AFC West, and the head coach and seemingly-franchise quarterback were feuding. Fast forward three months, and the Cutler trade looks like sheer brilliance, since he's sucking in Chicago, and the Bears owe the Broncos their picks as a result.

PITTSBURGH over Oakland (14)

Steve: Pittsburgh -14

I mistakenly assumed that the Raiders would put up a fight against the Cowboys, who were coming off a miserable game. The Raiders had a spunky win against the Bengals with a “new” old starting quarterback. Then they laid a complete egg against the 'Boys. Good times, good times.

So, in summary – Eff you, Raiders. I hope Mendenhall, who is now sadly my #1 fantasy football running back, rushes for a couple of touchdowns and 500 yards against you. You still have Richard Seymour, so I think this is unlikely, but still. A man can have dreams and hopes and goals in life, and chief among them should be fantasy football, of course.

Bob: Oakland +14

This isn't an endorsement of the Raiders. They have been awful this year. But the Raiders have not been as pathetic as St. Louis or comparable teams that regularly gets blown out by their opponent. They have certainly been blown out, including a 17 point loss to Dallas last week. However, they were able to hang in for both games against San Diego and they have been able to sneak wins against decent opponents like the Eagles and Bengals. On a good week, I think the Raiders may even be able to win this game.

Beyond the Raiders ability to hang into games, though, is the Steelers' ongoing slide. Pittsburgh has lost three straight, including a loss to Kansas City two weeks ago. Despite Baltimore doing everything they could to give away the game last week, they still were unable to win. Furthermore, it seems unlikely that Roethlisberger will play on Sunday. Even if I didn't feel like the Raiders had a chance, 14 points is too rich for my blood.

JACKSONVILLE over Houston (PICK)

Bob: Jacksonville

This is mostly to punish the Texans for failing to knock off the freaking vulture Colts last week. But Houston also doesn't defend well against the run, and I feel as though Jacksonville lives and dies with Miller Jenuine Draft.

Steve: Houston

Now now Bob, let's not let emotions get the best of you. Are you forgetting that the Jaguars shit the bed themselves last week? I realize they're playing this game at home, but that's not much of an advantage because their games are blacked out on television because of low attendance. I wouldn't expect a rousing, raucous Jacksonville crowd to spur them to a win; I think it's more likely that the sneakily-underrated Matt Schaub dissects the Jaguars on the way to an easy win.



INDIANAPOLIS over Tennessee (6.5)

Steve: Indy -6.5

Ah, the undefeated team vs. the suddenly hot chick. Besides serving as a flimsy excuse for me to include a picture of a hot woman, this game should be one of the best of the week. The Titans are suddenly the new “it” team, even if their chances of making the playoffs are still slim because of how horribly they started the season.

In this case, I think the long-term, sustained excellence of Peyton Manning will triumph over the suddenly hot Vince Young. To go back to the hot chick analogy, Young is like Megan Fox. Although I'm not the biggest fan of her, she is the go-to “hot chick” example of most present day situations. However, I will still go for someone who is less popular now but with a greater track record of hotness over time – Jennifer Love Hewitt, Jennifer Connolly, even a Mila Kunis or Sofia Veraga.

Bob: Tennessee +6.5

For once I don't feel terrible picking against Indy. Vince Young just wins and Chris Johnson continues to tear it up. Hopefully this game lives up to the hype instead of being a Colts blowout. This seems to be what happens in games that are supposed to be competitive upsets — remember Pats vs. Saints on Monday?

Philadelphia over ATLANTA (5.5)

Bob: Philadelphia -5.5

Both of these teams have good records but haven't looked particularly impressive. Furthermore, both teams managed to win only by three last week, which is good because they won but bad because their opponents were Washington and Tampa Bay. Atlanta's defense is really terrible, though, so I have no qualms about picking against them.

Steve: Atlanta +5.5

Just because I want to be different from you, I'll go with the Falcons here. I'm surprised this game isn't a pick, and Texans vs. Jaguars is, somehow. The fact that the Falcons are home is just gravy. Both of these teams are wildly inconsistent, so when you add it all up – Falcons are home, Philly wasn't super impressive last week, Falcons are getting 5.5 poins – I think the current employers of Matt Ryan are the winners.

CINCINATTI over Detroit (13)

Steve: Cincy -13

Oh, Cincinatti. How you tease me from week to week... Honestly, I don't have a ton of confidence in the ability of the Bengals to cover this spread, but I am more confident in their ability than that of the Lions.

Speaking of the Lions, I am impressed with Stafford. I thought he would be a bust coming into the season, but he is having more of a “shows flashes of greatness” quarterback season, a la Peyton Manning and Matt Ryan, than the ambivalent “well at least he didn't eff things up” debuts of Joe Flacco and Trent Dilfer and the aforementioned, suddenly popular only in this blog Bruce Gardowski.

(Speaking of, this almost makes me wonder how I can work in obscure back-up and former starting quarterbacks into every picks column. Watch out for next week, when I somehow start talking about Jim Sorgi, Tim Rattay and Michael Bishop! NFL back-up quarterback fever, catch it!)

Bob: Detroit +13

I get the feeling that I'm going to regret this pick. I initially penciled in the Bengals since they seem to have this uncanny ability to win and they seem due for a breakout game. However, as (I think) I noted last week, the Bengals have not been blowing out teams this year. They have only had two games this year where they scored more than 23 points and teams usually score in the double digits against them. So I'm not going to take them as 13 point favorites.

New Orleans over WASHINGTON (9.5)

Bob: New Orleans -9.5

I was disgusted by the way the Patriots performed on Monday. I hope the Saints go 16-0.

Steve: New Orleans -9.5

Well, that was pretty short and sweet, so I will be as well. The Saints are going to make that whole “smallpox blankets” thing seem tame in comparison to what they do this weekend.

CAROLINA over Tampa Bay (6.5)

Steve: Carolina -6.5

Ugh. I never know what to think with either one of these god damn teams. With Carolina, you have to wonder if Evil Delhomme or Good Delhomme is going to show up on any given week. With Tampa Bay, its coach sucks, and I have no idea how they manage to compete on a weekly basis with its offense, which is a rookie quarterback from the “well at least he didn't eff up” category.

I will side with the Panthers for two reasons. First, they're at home, and second, they're favored by less than a touchdown and extra point combination. Those two factors swing the equation over to Carolina for me.

Bob: Carolina -6.5

I can never decide if Neve Campbell is hot (or was hot, since she's not in anything anymore). It's not like she's hot in certain movies and not in certain other movies—her hotness varies wildly even from scene to scene. In one scene she can seem ridiculously hot but in others she just looks pouty and irritating. Upon further research (e.g. Google image search), I decided that she is hot when she is smiling but not when she is not. Thinking about the Scream movies, she always seemed particularly ugly when she was trying to emote. This seems like it would be a bad quality in an actress. This all being said, will this stop me from watching Scream 4, which is apparently being made? Absolutely not. Although isn't she kind of old for a series of movies that was really about teenagers/college-aged kids, and brings back fond memories of the 1990s?

Anyway, trying to decide whether Neve Campbell is hot is like trying to decide if Jake Delhomme will be good or not. It's a waste of time.

CHICAGO over St. Louis (9)

Bob: Chicago -9

The Bears are due for a big week. I hope the Bears bring in Donald Trump to deliver Lovie Smith the news at the end of this season, though. He seems like a nice guy, but boy are the Bears awful this year.

Steve: Bears -9

Both of these teams have been a crapload of suck this year. However, my trend of this week seems to be me relying on home field advantage, so I will do it again here. Yeah, Cutler and Forte have been one of the most disappointing, over-hyped one-two punches of the century.

But still, these are the Rams we're talking about. Again, to reference another trend of my responses this week, did you even know Kyle Boller was still in the NFL until he popped up as the injury starter for the Rams this season? I don't understand the fetish for him and other quarterbacks like Gradowski and Ryan Fitzpatrick. At best, they're going to be average, and more likely, they're going to suck. Why not take a chance on a rookie? If you're incredibly lucky, you might hit on the next Brady. Instead, teams play to minimize embarrassment – similar to the backlash against Belichick when he went for it on fourth-and-two – as opposed to maximizing their chance to win.

San Diego over CLEVELAND (13)

Steve: Chargers -13

After seeing the Chargers steamroll the miserable Chiefs last week, I feel fairly confident about this pick. I have no idea what kind of growth hormone LDT is on. His resurgence has been so shocking to me that I don't think its human growth hormone; I think cyclops or giant or centaur hormone is the more likely source.

Bob: San Diego -13

I may not know if Neve Campbell is hot, but I know if Eric Mangini is fat. He is.

Speaking of stupid, awful coaches. How is it that a Norv Turner-led team is on a roll like the one that the Chargers are on? It seems like we're in some bizarro universe. Has anybody checked Norv Turner and LDT for goatees?

SEATTLE over San Francisco (PICK)

Bob: San Francisco

At first I was surprised that San Fran wasn't favored, since they have the better record and have been generally more impressive looking than the Seahawks. But then I looked at their schedule and they are in St. Louis territory in terms of unimpressive numbers. But Seattle has managed four wins only because they came against St. Louis twice, Detroit, and the erratic Jacksonville team. So there's no way I can take them in this game.

Steve: Seattle

This is erratic vs. erratic. On the surface, San Fran should be the easy pick in this game, and yet... The last time I thought the Seahawks would be easily defeated, it was when they were hosting the Jaguars, and the 'Hawks went out and brutally crushed them.

With that in mind, I'm bucking that trend and picking the Seahawks. I honestly don't think they'll win this game, but hey. There is no rational reason for me to pick them, or for the line to be a toss-up, so I'm siding with Vegas on this one.

Minnesota over ARIZONA (4)

Steve: Minnesota -4

Another odd line. Minnesota is dismantling teams right now, and the Cardinals – if I recall correctly – lost against the Titans. The Titans are on the upswing, but still. If the Cardinals are really within a touchdown of the Vikings at this point, then they need to be able to win that game against the Titans last week. Leinart is underrated as a quarterback, at least to me, and the Cardinals should have been able to stop the Titans on defense on that last drive last week.

Bob: Minnesota -4

How is this even a question? Screw the Cardinals and you're making a mistake if you bet against Favre, at least in the warm weather.

Dallas over NY GIANTS (2)

Bob: Dallas -2

Dear Tony Romo,

At some point you will get sick of whatever bimbo you're dating now and get rid of her. Maybe it will be because she jinxed you like Jessica Simpson did or maybe it will be because you got her pregnant and no respectable NFL quarterback should stay with his baby mama unless she's a Brazilian supermodel. Either way, I have a recommendation for you for your next conquest. Let me introduce Dichen Lachman. She is a cast member of the soon-to-be defunct Dollhouse. She is crazy hot and also quite exotic looking since she has a Tibetan mother and an Australian father. Think about that for a second. We know that all Australians are hot. They are kind of like a poor man's Brazil. And we all know that Asian women are hot. Put those together, and you get some kind of super being. Well, that is Dichen Lachman. This will serve two ends. First, it will elevate her status so she will be in more television shows or movies. Every warm blooded male will thank you for this. Second, it will hold you over until Miley Cyrus turns 18 next year. Because, c'mon, we all know that is definitely going to happen.

Steve: Dallas -2

Wow. I'm left speechless. And please, it's Texas. I'm a bit surprised Miley Cyrus isn't already dating Tony Romo. Also, I wasn't aware of the oddly-named Dichen Lachman until just now, and I feel like I have led my life in the specter of darkness. She is very, very angular and odd-looking, but in an attractive way, somehow. She's kind of like a bizarro version of that weird-looking Asian lady from Grey's Anatomy and Sideways.

New England over MIAMI (5.5)

Steve: New England -5.5

This game makes me nervous. On paper, the Patriots should win it easily; I feel like they normally do really, really well in weeks following loses, as rare as that has been for them in recent seasons. The Dolphins are without Ronnie Brown, and Chad Pennington has been gone for so long that I forget he was originally a big part of that team.

But... The Patriots' offense is derived from the pass, and I feel like the Dolphins have a better-than-average pass defense that is getting better as their young players mature. I thought the Patriots defense was improving as well, but they have seemingly regressed as the season has gone on. Outside of Wilfork and Mayo, I'm not sure if anyone is consistently above-average. I still think the Patriots have enough to get by the Dolphins this weekend, but they don't have the consistency to play well for their portion of 60 minutes.

Bob: New England -5.5

It's a good thing that I've had a little time to cool off since Monday. For the first part of the week, I really felt as though a part of me had died. I remember my late high school and early college years, when you just had a feeling about the Patriots. You knew they could beat any team in the league, and even if they didn't it would at least be competitive. That's why that Halloween 2004 pounding by the Steelers was so surprising—the Patriots rarely got dominated like that. Either they beat themselves (like that Monday night loss in Miami where Brady threw a pick while he was on his ass) or they came up just short. Either way, you were pretty sure they would be able to pull it all together in crunch time.

That era is over. I don't think the Patriots can beat the elite teams in the NFL right now. We saw what the Saints did to the Patriots. New England was probably lucky to hang in with the Colts. I don't feel as though we would stand a chance against Minnesota and even beating San Diego seems like a stretch (Dear God, please don't let us see Bill Belichick be outcoached by Norv Turner in the playoffs). Which brings me to a second point: even though the Pats will likely make the playoffs, I doubt they can make it to the Super Bowl. My friend, who is a Bears fan, recently mocked my lamenting of the Patriots season by saying “at least you'll make the playoffs.” Is it really better, though, to know your team will make the playoffs but to also know that they have no chance of getting to the Super Bowl? It's not a moral victory, like it would be if the team had been terrible or mediocre for a few years. I'm used to seeing the Patriots as a championship-caliber team, but instead I'm watching them knowing that they will be knocked off by the Colts or Chargers in the playoffs. How is that better than having no emotional investment in the playoffs? I guess there is always hope, but still, this isn't a great feeling.

GREEN BAY over Baltimore (3)

Bob: Green Bay -3

Baltimore is on the low end of the league in terms of total number of sacks, so maybe Aaron Rodgers will actually get the chance to throw to his receivers. This game is tough to predict otherwise, though, because both of these teams have been fairly erratic this year.

Steve: Green Bay -3

You bastard, I was hoping that you would go with the Ravens, since I have a bit of a crush on Rodgers. Once he actually gets some protection, I think he becomes an elite level quarterback, year-in and year-out. As is, he's still pretty decent without a consistent running threat to take pressure off himself, and without consistent pass protection.

Anyway, to the game at hand. The Ravens' defense is seemingly coasting by on its reputation nowadays, and the great offense they showed at the beginning of the season seems to have been a mirage based on playing some bad teams. The Packers are erratic, but still play with a base level of competence that I think allows them to prevail.

The awesome John Madden picture from Family Guy is from here. The picture of Jennifer Connelly is from this site. The picture of Sorgi is from this blog. And the Dichen picture is from this forum.

In defense of Scutaro's defense

Your newest Boston Red Sox - Marco Scutaro

So earlier today, the Red Sox announced that they signed shortstop Marco Scutaro, most recently of the Toronto Blue Jays and formerly of the Oakland Athletics and New York Mets, to a two-year, $11 million contract, with an option for the third year. While the response was mixed on Boston's chief sports radio station, WEEI, I'm generally in favor of the signing for a couple reason.

- The years and money are surprisingly low to me. If Chone Figgins is (rumored to be) getting four years and $32 million, then the Red Sox are making out like bandits if they only have to guaranteed two years to Scutaro. Yeah, he's a little bit older, but he also plays an up-the-middle position that is hard to fill.

I view Scutaro's most recent season as a bit of a fluke, and out of line with his past production. However, it's only about 20 points of batting average and 20 to 30 points of on-base, which lead to a bit of an uptick in his slugging. His numbers this year - 282 / 379 / 409 - are not ridiculously out of line with his career numbers - 265 / 337 / 384. And if he does crap the bed, the financial investment in him is small enough that it won't kill the Red Sox to dump him in a trade or flat-out release him, a la Julio Lugo.

- The comparison that was rampant on sports radio this afternoon was Scutaro vs. Alex Gonzalez. The fact that this comparison was even coming up shows that statisticians still have plenty of work to do with sample size and defense.

I don't know why, but there is a lingering assertion that Gonzalez is a better defender than Scutaro. Maybe it's because he played for the Red Sox, and made some slick plays here and there. However, his career rate (click here for a definition) at shortstop is 97, three runs below average. His only above-average years were not in Red Sox uniforms. He has committed 155 errors at shortstop in 1,206 games, an average of about one per 7.7 games.

Scutaro has a smaller sample size at short vs. Gonzalez, but bests him in these defensive categories. He has 40 errors in 415 games, an average of one per 10.4 games. His career rate at shortstop is 107, seven runs ABOVE average, and 10 runs better than Gonzalez's career. In 2009, Scutaro's rate was 108, while Gonzalez was 98 in Cincy and 93 in Boston. Gonzalez missed all of 2008 after having surgery to repair a fractured knee; this might have affected his play permanently.

Hopefully this thwarts some of the "Gonzalez is a better fielder!!!" crap floating around out there. And when it comes to offense, Scutaro is the clearly better player, since A-Gonz is so horrible. His career line at the plate is 247 / 294 / 395; his only asset is a bit of pop.

- With all of that being said, I'm not under any illusion that this "fixes" the Red Sox problem at shortstop. Scutaro finished sixth in VORP (click here for an explanation), but his total of 39.9 was clearly below the superstar levels of Hanley Ramirez (79.9) and Derek Jeter (72.8), and closer to the "average" shortstop level of Rafael Furcal (18.6), Brendan Ryan (17.7) and Ryan Theriot (17.4).

Unless he suddenly goes in the tank, Scutaro should be a good solution at shortstop for the next two years, and he'll give the Red Sox time to evaluate whether Jed Lowrie can be the answer in the future, and provides a good defensive option for third base and second base if Mike Lowell or Dustin Pedroia are out for a stretch of time.

The Scutaro photo is from this nifty blog; I used it mostly because it was a "wide" photo, which is better for displaying on these posts.

One hour delay

The court beat I do for my actual job took me a bit longer than usual today, so tonight's "real" entry will drop at 8 p.m. EST, as opposed to the usual 7 p.m. slot. Sorry about that, folks. The topic will be the Red Sox' signing of shortstop Marco Scutaro.

Pickin' Pigskin with Bob and Steve and Kristin: Week 13, Part 1 and Standings

Okay, I might put up with her being on the show...

NY Jets over Buffalo (3, at Toronto)

Bob: NY Jets -3

How can Buffalo fans watch this game? This is like watching your girlfriend on The Real World. Yeah, it's cool that your girlfriend is on TV and was endorsed as hot since she was put on TV, but you do realize that she's going to end up hooking up with some douchebag in the hot tub, right? Pretty soon, we're going to get to hear you cry via phone when your girlfriend calls you to break the news. Ditto for Buffalo fans. It will be cool to watch your team play this week, but you realize the NFL probably has designs to move your franchise to Toronto. So while you're watching your team, you are getting a preview of the future where the Bills will hook up with some Canadian floozy.

I'm actually of two minds on this. It will be horrible when Buffalo, which has so much history with the Bills, loses their NFL franchise. They have an extreme emotional attachment to their team and have had some rough experiences (wide right). I don't want to see the news clips that are the equivalent of the old, fat men in Baltimore crying when they lost the Colts that we saw on ESPN's 30 for 30. But the city probably can't support an NFL franchise anymore. The worst case scenario is a Hartford Whalers / Baltimore Colts scenario where the team toys with leaving for a few years, keeps giving the fans false hope that they might stay, and then bolts fairly abruptly. I would rather see the Band-Aid ripped off then see Buffalo fans given the equivalent of blue balls by a team that is almost definitely leaving.

Steve: Toronto +3

Well, first off, your response gives me an excuse to run a picture for the Hartford Whalers, and to also link to their rally song, "Brass Bonanza," on YouTube. I said in a previous post that if the Whalers had stuck around for longer, I might have been a fan of them instead of the Bruins, and I stick by it now. They are technically closer to my house, and I normally identify a bit more with lovable losers, as opposed to a team with championship prestige like the Bruins. (Football example: I root for the Bengals over the Patriots whenever they play.)

Now, with the preceding statement, you would think I would like the Bills to stay in Buffalo. However, you're wrong. It's not so much that I hate the city of Buffalo, which I've never visited, as much as I love Toronto, which I have visited. It's just a gorgeous city with a great zoo and passionate sports fans. Hey, if they want a National Football League team, then I'm for it. It would be better if they didn't have to eventually steal the Bills to do it, but unfortunately, thems the breaks in professional sports.

By the way, I do find it odd that the super-capitalist and super-Republican commentators on WEEI's The Big Show and Dennis and Callahan are quick to bitch about socialized health care and other anti-market things... but then endorse things like the NFL salary cap and want to eliminate the Yankees' payroll advantage. Uh, excuse me? Uh baking soda? Do you want free market economics or not?

Kristin: XXXXXXX -+3

Kristin's text here... Or at least, it will be when / if I get it. She hasn't sent in a pick as of 7 p.m. I'll update this if she does.

-----

Well, I shouldn't have bragged last week about getting closer to the leaders, since I lost several games this week. Sigh! I should have known better than to pick against the Washington power couple's local team. Curse you Hansons!!!

Kristin: 8-6 (89-84, first overall)
Bob: 8-6 (88-85, second overall, one game back)
Steve: 6-8 (85-88, third overall, four games back)

In fantasy football news, my team is backing into the playoffs. We've lost three of our last four, I believe, lost Dwayne Bowe and Ronnie Brown for most of the season, and I've been reduced to scrounging between Kevin Faulk and Robert Mitchum as free agents. So basically, unless Tom Brady throws for 500 yards and six touchdowns, I most likely will not advance in the playoffs, which start next week. This week, we have an Indianapolis Colts' end season special, in that whether my team wins or loses, it has absolutely no effect on the standings. Good times, good times.

The picture of the ridiculously hot girl from The Real World is here, along with a pretty length question and answer with her.

Getting Lost with Lost - Season 3 and 4

Note - Don't read on if you're not interested in Lost and planning to be at some point, because there are extensive spoilers (at least I think) for the first four seasons. Warning you straight up, peeps.

I recently dove back into Lost after taking a bit of a hiatus because I've been too busy with work. In the past three days, I've managed to power my way through about a season's worth of episodes, stretching from the last six or seven of season three to the first six of season four. Some observations on the show...

- According to Amanda Meyer, who has a new, fantabulous blog of her own here, by the way, I'm pretty decent at judging some of the plot developments of the show. I don't think this is because of any special ability I have with Lost specifically; I think it is more of a function of Lost itself being a quality drama, and thus, sharing traits with other well-made movies and television shows.

By this, I mean that well-made content shares certain traits. For example, it is surprising and shocking without being totally out of left field. One of the more recent episodes that I watched, "Eggtown", teases throughout that Kate is pregnant based on the "flash forward" segments in the episode. Only at the end is it revealed that it is actually Claire's baby; the whole issue of Sawyer being a father and the tension it creates with Jack is a diversion.

This is a good, simple and logical plot point. A lot of Lost operates similar to a street magician - While you are focused on Major Plot Issue A of an episode, the actual important plot details are in the small but apparent details.

And like most good content creators, it is important to remember that J.J. Abrams doesn't introduce characters just for the sake of having someone new on the show. If you learn a character's name, it normally means they're going to keep popping up, at least until...

- Everyone on Lost either dies or deals with death. At one point or another in the show, every character either: 1) dies 2) kills someone or 3) watches someone die, either on the island or in a flashback. This is an important thing to keep in mind, because if you're ever wondering what's next for a certain character, a safe bet is bleak misery. Even some of the best "sweet" moments are founded on the backs of truly depressing scenes - Charlie's entire death montage, Desmond finally being able to connect with Penelope in "The Constant", Sayid's dismal luck with love yet his eagerness in pursuing it, etc.

If someone isn't dealing with death, then the other common theme of the show is betrayal. By the fourth season, you can really see the intense paranoia sinking into all of the characters, especially Locke. I'm only halfway through season four, so I'm not sure how valid his fears are, but his actions are manic and panicked. Also, the sheer skill of Ben at manipulating Locke and others is terrifying at times. This leads a bit into my third point...

- Jack is still awesome to me. I know, from the flash forwards, it seems like he's going to go nutty very shortly. However, I still feel more empathy toward him than other characters because he is willing to sacrifice his own desires for the good of the group on a consistent basis.

Things got a little too weird for me at points of season three. Too many of the scenes with The Others are shrouded in completely secrecy, so it was hard to have any clue about the true intentions of Jack, Ben, Juliet, Locke, Sawyer and practically every character on the show.

Jack lost some of his moral fortitude, but I think he has reclaimed it - at least so far - with his strong decision to go after the radio signal at the end of season three, as opposed to succumbing to his lust for revenge. I've made this comparison before, but I think Jack parallels Luke Skywalker from Star Wars. A lot of people dislike the character because it doesn't have the flair or ambiguity of someone flashier (Han Solo / Sawyer), but you still need his presence as a sort of "rock" of morality, like Ralph in Lord of the Flies. If everyone is some swash-buckling asshole, there isn't enough contrast among the characters.

This all dovetails into my final point...

- I have a visceral dislike of Locke now. I have an up-and-down relationship with him; in the premiere episode of season one, I initially thought he was evil, which gradually gave way to ambivalence and like as more of his background was revealed.

However, I am now firmly in the dislike column because of his actions in seasons three and four. At best, he appears to be like a suspicious native, given his intense belief in mysticism and coincidence. At worst, he is a poor man's version of Ben, manipulating innocent people in order to selfishly preserve his access to the Island's healing effect on his paralysis.

Of course, this opinion could change as I watch the rest of season four and all of season five, in preparation for the Tuesday, February 2 premiere of season six. I think this of one of the strongest points of Lost: It is masterful as creating a sense of paranoia, in the viewer, that mirrors that of the people on the island at times. I intensely dislike Locke right now, and Ben as well, but I still have to be guarded and open to the idea that there is really is a good explanation for their actions. The character motivations are almost constantly shifting, meaning there is the potential for surprise in every episode.

Anyway, this is all I have for now on the topic. I might post another entry on this later in the week on some of the excellent accessory characters if I feel up to it.

Weird Rhode Island and Florida news

In this week in weird Rhode Island news, a Johnston man told police that he had found an abandoned dog. In reality, he made up the story because his mom, who was in the hospital, asked him to put the dog down and he couldn't bring himself to do it. He was hoping the dog would get adopted instead if he claimed it was abandoned. Perfectly normal, perfectly healthy. I'm not sure who sounds worse in this story - the mother or the kid.

And in bizarre Florida news - outside of the whole Tiger Woods thing - a man allegedly doused his wife in a flammable fluid and then tried to kill her by setting her on fire. Good times, good times. One of their neighbors is named Freedom, which somehow makes things worse to me. Quote from Freedom: "It's so mind-blowing. I don't understand how any of this could have happened."

The photo is from this site.

Why no Best of Ellen Cleghorne?

In the past, I've expressed my love for Saturday Night Live. While this season hasn't really tickled my fancy, outside of the Taylor Swift episode, I've been watching a lot of classic episodes from the late 1980s and early 1990s lately, along with the Best Of discs for several performers from that era. At that point, you are past the weird, early-1980s casts of Anthony Michael Hall, and into Mike Myers, Dana Carvey, Dennis Miller, Kevin Nealon, Adam Sandler, David Spade and Chris Farley.

However, for each of these above-average performers, there is some other cast member pulling a Kristen Wiig and getting way too much airtime. (See how I turned a right on to Topical, as Daniel Tosh would say?) From the title of this entry, you can no doubt tell that I'm referring to Ellen Cleghorne.

According to Wikipedia, she was on the show for four years, then basically dropped off the face of the Earth. Since Wikipedia normally records every single little aspect of a person's career, she REALLY must not be up to much.

I guess after leaving SNL, she had her own sitcom on the new WB network for a single season. This means that it must have been one of the most wretched shows ever if it only lasted a single season on the WB, since they nursed along anything with a pulse - The Steve Harvey Show, Charmed - for years and years.

Because of this, I feel it is the duty of SNL to release a Best Of disc for Cleghorne, to satisfy my morbid curiosity. She didn't really play any compelling or funny characters, so I'm also interested to see how they would fill up two hours of such a product. You could even make it a double disc for $20, along with the entire run of Cleghorne!, her WB show. Let's go NBC, let's get a hand in and get this done!

The Cleghorne picture is from the always-excellent Saturday Night Live transcript web site, which is here.

Pickin' Pigskin with Kristin: Week 12, Part 2

Miami over BUFFALO (3)

Kristin: Miami

I think that Miami is clearly the better team. However, after watching 10 minutes of the T.O. show while channel surfing, I feel pretty sad for Buffalo. In the episode, TO was welcomed to Buffalo with open arms and even given a key to the city from the Mayor. However, that key came with two conditions: 1) TO score 10 touchdowns this season and 2) Buffalo make the playoffs. I wonder if he will really return the key after this season or just leave it at the bottom of a drawer somewhere. He does however have a great smile (not as good as Randy Moss) and seems very likeable when edited onto his own TV show. So I guess, I feel bad not only for the pathetically disappointed city of Buffalo but for TO himself.

Seattle over ST. LOUIS (3)

Kristin: Seattle

I thought St. Louis played surprisingly well last week, until I was reminded how stupid Detroit is by their blow-out on Thanksgiving. It is a shame because the Detroit uniforms are really pretty.

PHILADELPHIA over Washington (9)

Kristin: Washington

Last week, Washington's defense looked great (until minute 56 they looked really great). While they may not be able to score, if they can keep Philly from scoring, then they will still beat the spread. Also, they can't lose heartbreakingly at the very end of the game if they are losing by more than 9.

Oh and for fun - this is the Washington joke I was told at work this week: The Redskins adopted a team cat and are letting it live in the locker room. The team was very excited to learn that cat can do tricks. For example, when the team scores a field goal the cat will jump about and give all of the players high-fives. It's really amazing, and the fans love it. So, what does that cat do when they score a touchdown? ... We don't know yet.

ATLANTA over Tampa Bay (12)

Kristin: Tampa Bay

I don't think that Atlanta is anything special, and Tampa Bay, while bad, can hold their own.

Indianapolis over HOUSTON (3.5)

Kristin: Houston

I am picking Houston for three reasons. 1) I am following my plan to only and always pick Houston at home. 2) Indy only beat Baltimore by 2 points and Baltimore isn't a fabulous team; my point here is that Indy is beatable and that they have been winning tight games - a.k.a. not more than a field goal. 3) If this is the only shot for Indy to lose before the end of the season, I can't bear to be rooting for them just so that my pick is right.

CINCINNATI over Cleveland (14)

Kristin: Cleveland

Boo hiss, I am annoyed at Cincy for not winning last week. In revenge, I am not picking them even though I still think they will win - just not by that much.

NY JETS over Carolina (3)

Kristin: NY Jets

Common people, the Jets are way better than Carolina, and they are at home.

SAN FRANCISCO over Jacksonville (3)

Kristin: San Francisco

I really think that either team could win this game, so I am choosing the team that is more fun to cheer for - you get to sing the Rice-aroni song.

SAN DIEGO over Kansas City (13.5)

Kristin: Kansas City

San Diego really isn't that great. I don't think they deserve a spread this big.

MINNESOTA over Chicago (11)

Kristin: Minnesota

Hello ass platter, meet the Vikings.

TENNESSEE over Arizona (3)

Kristin: Arizona

Tennessee doesn't know how to win games.

NEW ORLEANS over New England (1.5)

Kristin: New England

I have been rooting for the Saints all season, but I'll oviously put that on hold for the Pats game. People keep saying the Saints are winning by playing cupcake teams, which I am willing to believe as they beat the Giants on the eve of their collapse and otherwise have been playing softy teams. I hope that this is all true so that the Pats win, but I also think that even if the Saints are as good as their record looks the Pats can still take them. Especially once we start healing from all these injuries and get our depth back.