Blame it on- And a possible Goodbye

Photo Credit:Jason Christensen

Sorry,I've been away.
I'm going to try to catch up over the next few days,the Jackasses at Verizon have made my online life miserable and it could be as many as five days before I get this fixed.

Actually,if they don't do things then to my satisfaction,I may be changing servers and then that will drag the time out further before they could come and fix things.
So,I suppose unless I can get very lucky (on occasion,I do get some "good" time when things are running smoothly),I'll be doing much of my blog work from the road office.

I do have some podcasts planned,but I have to be honest-If I change IP providers,the cost will go up.
We all know how the economy works,but since things continue to rise and my paycheck does not,I may have to cut a thing or two and the 100+ dollars to Podbean will likely be a start.
I enjoy doing the show and I wish it wasn't so,but life is about choices.

I do plan going out with a bang though with two visits from Daniel Parlegreco and Scott Dryden on the NFL Draft and if he recovers from his broken jaw (get well soon,Joe),Joe Werner on baseball prospects.
I gave the TRS podcast an extra year after losing the sponsorship and with a few tweaks,some things were going to need decisions.
Sad to say,unless I get the proverbial Sack of Money falling from the sky to save the show,Sometime in May or June (I think that's the date) will be the last podcast.
Unless someone has a "Podbean" like base that they are willing to host my data on anyway,that is.

Blame it on Verizon.....
I'm still catching up and I'll get there soon-Thanks for reading...

Editors Note;This will have no effect on Fightheads,You can still catch me there every Monday night...

Cleaning out the inbox

Time to clean out the inbox with a few things that have piled up!

The 1968 Topps set is a real love or hate it with its "Burlap" background.
I like it,but my favorite set of the 1960's is 1965 with 1963 and 1968 battling for the place spot.
With the set being my birth year,you would figure that would be a set that I would work on,but the oppressive cost of the Nolan Ryan and Johnny Bench rookie cards have scared me off through the years.
1968 Topps also has my favorite insert set of all time with the Baseball Game set that came one card per pack in that years set.

The 1968 Topps design is back in the headlines this season as it is the chosen design for the Topps Heritage line.
Heritage is pretty much the only major league cards that I buy to have a set of for personal collection and for the occasional major leaguer that I would see on the trail.
Topps takes a gander at their own product here.

I'm working on a future post on one of my all time favorites-"Mr.Perfect" Curt Hennig and found this terrific article from SI in 2016 that looks back at the "Perfect Athlete",but does it with his son,current WWE wrestler "Curtis Axel" Joe Hennig.
That adds a special spin on the article as it talks just as much about Hennig the man as the wrestler and it allows his son to be more than just the current performer.
I found it quite absorbing...

Rolling Stone writes about the 40th anniversary of Slap Shot and why it is the quintessential sports movie of the 70's.
One of the best parts of the movie (besides the Hansons!) is just looking around an average small city in the 1970's and what it looked in an era when I was a child.
Slap Shot is truly a funny movie and ranks with some of the best sports movies made for fun and laughter..
Toe Blake! Eddie Shore! Old Time Hockey!

Wired has an oral history of the O.J.-Made in America documentary,which not only I recommend,but won an Oscar for best documentary.
It focuses on the making of the film and the people being interviewed more than Simpson,so if you've seen the film,it is a nice companion piece and if not,a good starting point for knowing a few of the interviewees before you start....

Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain Dealer writes of the rise from almost nowhere for Ashland tight end Adam Shaheen,who could be drafted as high as the third round in the NFL Draft,depending on what draft meister that you choose to read.
The 6'6 tight end is a former basketball player,which seems to attract players to the tight end position...

Thurman decisions Garcia-Boxing Challenge

The run of getting decisions in borderline fights ran out for Danny Garcia as he lost his WBC welterweight title to WBA champion Keith Thurman via split decision in Brooklyn.

The bout was nothing visually impressive and nothing to get excited about as Thurman controlled the bout winning 116-112 on my card despite giving away the final two rounds by "boxing" AKA running away to avoid contact.
I tweeted during the late rounds of the fight that some judge was going to have this close and sure enough, there was one.
The fight wasn't a classic by any means and I doubt that even with two title belts now that Thurman will be gaining a lot of points in the TRS rankings.
I earned two points in the boxing challenge by picking Thurman, while Ramon Malpica picked Garcia.

The undercard saw talented junior middleweight Erickson Lubin crunch overmatched Jorge Cota with a powerful left hand in the 4th and qualify for a WBC title shot vs the winner of Jermell Charlo-Charles Hatley.
Lubin is a strong prospect and it'll be interesting to see how he steps up in his title challenge.
Lubin's KO gave me two points to Ramon Malpica's one.

Andrezj Fonfara stopped former world champion Chad Dawson in an untelevised bout on the card in the tenth and final round.
Fonfara's KO allowed me two points to Ramon Malpica's one.

The fight of the day was in London, where WBC cruiserweight champion Tony Bellew move up to heavyweight and pull a massive upset over former cruiser and heavyweight champion David Haye in the 11th round of a bombs-away slugfest.
Haye had his moments in the 4th and 5th rounds hurting Bellew before slipping on some water in the 6th and injuring his Achilles Tendon.

Bellew took over against the battered Haye, scoring a knockdown in the 6th round before ending the fight by sending Haye through the ropes in the 11th and his corner threw into the towel.
I had Bellew ahead 95-94 entering the final round with Haye winning the first five rounds prior to the injury and Bellew winning the rounds thereafter.
Haye's loss cost the UK a huge fight there with Haye challenging Anthony Joshua (assuming Joshua wins against Wladimir Klitschko).
I doubt Bellew wants that fight with the size difference, so the best payday for Bellew might be waiting for Haye to heal for a rematch.
Both Ramon and I picked Haye to win for no points.

The boxing challenge saw me outscore Ramon six to two on the weekend and move ahead in the overall challenge 22-20.

Boxing Challenge

The Boxing Challenge continues with a huge fight to set the winner forward to an argument for being the best welterweight in the world.
Ramon Malpica currently leads me in the challenge 18-16.

On CBS on Saturday night,WBA welterweight champion Keith Thurman will unify his title with the WBC title held by Danny Garcia to create an arguable claim to the top 147 pounder in the world (In the TRS rankings,it is a battle of the 4th and 5th rated in the division).

I have been critical of both Thurman (for overrated power and less than strong opponents) and Garcia (weak opposition over the last three years and getting close decisions that he hasn't always deserved),but I am excited about this bout.
I am always in favor of titles being unified and it's nice to see these two fighting good fighters,but this hype of this being like this generation's Leonard-Hearns seems far too excessive.
This might be a good fight,but I have my doubts about it being an all time classic.
Garcia is more proven against better competition,Thurman has looked better at the weight,so this is a pickem fight,but one thing that cannot be questioned-the winner of this fight will have other bigger fights ahead such as the winner of Kell Brook-Errol Spence.
The winner of this fight against the winner of that fight is a great fight-that winner will be truly the top welterweight in the world...

The undercard is nothing special with promising Erickson Lubin in what is expected to be a squash match against Jorge Cota in a junior middleweight fight and former champion Chad Dawson fighting Andrezj Fonfara in a light heavyweight bout that could mean the end of the line for the loser.
The main challenge of interest other than Thurman-Garcia is the heavyweight bout from England with former heavyweight champion David Haye against current WBC cruiserweight belt holder Tony Bellew.
This bout seems pretty heated and might be fun for a while before Haye overpowers the smaller man.
If you cannot take the shots of Adonis Stevenson at 175,I'm doubtful you can handle David Haye...

WBA-WBC Welterweight title unification .12 rds
Keith Thurman vs Danny Garcia
R.L:Garcia split decision
TRS;Thurman split decision

Junior Middleweight.12 rds
Erickson Lubin vs Jorge Cota
R.L;Lubin unanimous decision
TRS:Lubin KO 5

Light Heavyweights,10 rds
Andrzej Fonfara vs Chad Dawson
R.L;Fonfara unanimous decision
TRS;Fonfara KO 6

Heavyweights.12 rds
David Haye vs Tony Bellew
R.L; Haye KO 4
TRS: Haye KO 6

1978: The Final Two

It was 1978 and a ten-year-old Shawn was enjoying the summer of playing baseball and hanging around the neighborhood.
Fifth grade was looming at Fountain Rock Elementary, which might be the best year that a person can have at school- which is being the oldest kids at school, yet young enough to still be able to relax, have fun, and enjoy still being a kid,

However, I had a problem.
And to me, it was a huge one-I was close to finishing my first ever Topps baseball card set.
Now, one wouldn't think that would be an issue, but it was one for one reason, but first some background.

From the beginning of Topps' start to make baseball cards in 1952, Topps would release their set in a few different series, which enabled them to add players that were traded, late rookie arrivals, and stars to make them still worth buying.
This helped stretch Topps's product to last the entire summer and kids always needed more cards.
The problem with that was that by the last series, kids were going back to school, the baseball season was winding down and football season was starting, which meant demand was less and fewer stores ordered them, which resulted in all those sets having the now dreaded high numbers, where even common players aren't inexpensive in those sets.

In 1974, Topps changed policy and released their entire set all at once, figuring that with a huge set all at once, kids would need more time to complete the set and it wouldn't hurt sales.
That part was true, but in my case, something unforeseen occurred- My dad knew I was down to two cards and decided to quit buying cards for me!
The logic was sound as the set had 726 cards in it, so my chances of gaining one of the two cards that I needed were a cool 363 to 1 per pack.
In 1978 dollars, the packs were either 20 cents (or 25, I cannot remember) and Dad felt he was tossing money away along with accumulating extra cards against those odds.

It wasn't like I needed big money stars out of the set-I had all the stars of the day, but needed two outfielders-Sixto Lezcano of the Milwaukee Brewers and Jerry Turner of the San Diego Padres.
Lezcano was thought of as a coming star and he was coming off his best year to date with 21 homers in 1977.
Still, it was a common card because Lezcano's rookie card was the year before.
Turner, on the other hand, was the epitome of journeyman outfielder having hit .246 with a career high of 10 homers in 1977.
Those cards being commons meant little because this was the day before card shops and card shows, so I was limited to the one or two people that I could trade with and if they didn't have them, it wasn't looking good for the finished set.
There was still hope though, the one person in the neighborhood who had more cards than me (By a huge margin) likely had Lezcano and Turner, so I cut my way through my grandmother's yard to reach his house.

I mentioned the numerous games of basketball that I played against Chris Mullin in my post a few years ago on the Kentucky Colonels and when it came to cards, everything in the neighborhood ran through him.

I had one thing going for a decent stash of 1960s stars that had been given to me by my grandmother's nephew and those helped me get some good stuff in return at times.
The object of Chris Mullin's desire on this day? My 1962 Brooks Robinson and Chris was willing to part with Lezcano and Turner for Brooksie!
Even at 10, I knew that was a bad deal, but I felt cornered in, so I did what most kids did -ran home and asked Dad for his advice.
His advice? "Do it, in the long run, the set will be worth more".
So I did and was then laughed at by Chris, who did pull a fast one for himself, but I still was thrilled to have finished the set.

Let's look back 39 years later at Beckett and see if Dad was right.
Keep in mind the set was not mint and neither was the 1962 Robinson, but for the purpose of this, we'll assume that they are.

Doug Hopkins sent these with the warning they are rough averages from different sources.
1978 Set:100.00
1978 Jerry Turner and Sixto Lezcano combined .70
1962 Brooks Robinson ranging from 12.50-20.00

All things considered, Dad was right, but the story has a sad ending.
Dad got into baseball cards and my collection was communed with his and when he sold his stuff years later, my 1978 set went along with it.
The funny part is that I never forgot Sixto Lezcano or Jerry Turner along with the story and when I bought Strat O Matic for the PC and those two players appeared, I made sure to use the pictured cards from 1978....

Devils Deadline Deals

The New Jersey Devils weren't expected to be major players at the deadline,but thoughts were that they could get a little something for a role player or two.

The Devils did send out two players,but the return was nothing to be excited about as the team sent defenseman Kyle Quincey to Columbus in return for defenseman Dalton Prout and forward P.A.Parenteau to the Nashville Predators for a sixth round draft pick.

I was disappointed with both trades for different reasons.
Parenteau,who scored 13 goals with 14 assists for the Devils,I would have thought would have been worth more than a sixth round pick,although if someone offered more,I'm sure that Ray Shero would have taken it.
I'm usually in favor of getting something (a 6th rounder in this case) for nothing (Parenteau is a free agent at the end of the season),but in this case,such a low return for a player that has helped the team be competitive only makes sense if the Devils intend on tanking the final weeks of the season to move up in the draft.
If that's the case,I can see it-for any other hockey reason-Not so much.

I do have one theory though-Since Parenteau went to the same team as Vernon Fiddler and the Fiddler deal brought a higher than thought return (2017 4th rounder),the Devils could have given Nashville Parenteau because there were no other suitors.
Had the Fiddler trade not happened before and this deal happened today-Fiddler/Parenteau for a 4 and 6,we might have thought a bit better of the deal...

The Parenteau trade is one that I wonder about for the low draft choice,but the other trade baffles me.
Kyle Quincey was a free agent at the end of the year and would have been off the books and cap.
Quincey scored 4 goals and had eight assists in his one season in New Jersey.
Instead of a pick in 2017 or even 2018,the Devils added another journeyman blueliner as the Blue Jackets sent Dalton Prout to the Devils.
Prout has a year remaining on his contract at a little over a million and a half (which seems a little high) and I doubt he gets any higher than the sixth defenseman at best.
Prout had played for just 15 games in Columbus this year and notched three assists,but played more under past Blue Jacket coaches than under John Tortorella,
Prout is a physical player that isn't afraid to throw the gloves off and bang away (102 penalty minutes in 2015-16),so he may have some entertaining,if not good moments for how ever long Prout stays in Newark.

All in all,a disappointing day.
I didn't expect 1's and 2's,but I did expect more than a borderline defenseman and a sixth rounder and for the first time since Ray Shero took over the Devils,I can't understand what the end goal was with these trades..

Cavaliers bring in Andrew Bogut

The Cleveland Cavaliers and General Manager David Griffin had one more card to play before the deadline for playoff eligibility as the team added another missing piece with the signing of center Andrew Bogut.

The 32 year old Australian native faced against the Cavaliers last season in the finals as a Golden State Warrior,but when the Warriors needed to clear cap space for their free agency signing of forward Kevin Durant,Bogut and Harrison Barnes were traded to Dallas in the off-season.

Injuries hampered Bogut in Dallas as he played just 29 games as a Maverick before being traded to Philadelphia in the Mavericks trade with the Sixers for young center Nerlens Noel with various issues,but is reported to be currently in good health.
Bogut doesn't bring a lot of scoring to Cleveland ( three points per game in Dallas),but he rebounded the ball well (8.3 boards as a Maverick) and brings the type of big body that the Cavaliers lack.
Bogut is almost instantly a good fit defensively as a rim protector and defensively will help against opponent's big men.
Bogut was being chased by other various contenders,but chose Cleveland as his best chance to add another championship ring to his collection as one would think the road to the finals is easier with the Cavaliers than with any team in the Western Conference and that includes the Warriors.
With the injury to Kevin Durant last night possibly derailing him for quite a while,I'd think barring a major of their own,the Cavaliers would be considered the favorites to repeat as champions.

I wrote in the Deron Williams post about how I felt about the ring chasers.
I can understand wanting a title at any time,especially if you have never won one,but this trend in the NBA is starting to make me wonder if its worth it for some players.
I mean joining a team this late in the year,asking for a release from your team and then basically playing with a team for six weeks and the playoffs-is that really the way that you want to win a championship?
I can buy the argument of signing with a contender when you have fulfilled your obligation to a team and want to spend your free agency wherever you want,but even then I wonder if we have gone too far with the "superteams".
I'm not crazy about those unless you drafted into them,but the role players that are late season hired guns are even worse,especially in the case of Deron Williams,who left Dallas and the Mavericks received nothing for their services other than a little cap space.
Once again,my team is using the system to their advantage (as well as others),but that still doesn't make it right...