The Critic

Chris Jericho got sent home from the overseas tour after he kicked the Brazilian flag in the ring. Word is he was close to being arrested and WWE officials had to do some quick talking to keep him out of jail. He was then placed on "indefinite suspension" and replaced in all his upcoming matches on the tour. BUT......his band Fozzy is scheduled to begin a European tour now (which he was going to be taking time off to do anyway), so this could all be an elaborate work. Wouldn't surprise me in the least.

QUOTE (chw42 @ May 26, 2012 -> 06:15 PM) I don't understand how a glove is even all that useful when playing 16 inch. I made a couple diving catches down the RF line in the 16" gloves tournament I played in - catches I absolutely would not have made without the glove. Still, though, it felt really weird to play a 16" game with a glove.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ May 26, 2012 -> 04:49 PM) Marty has been so incredible for so long, and you never hear about him doing anything but winning hockey games. I think if I had to choose I'd prefer the team that's never won it to get the Cup before Marty getting a fourth but he does seem like a good guy and he's been terrific for a long long time. No problem with him winning it, if that's how it shakes out. The Devils don't seem to have any real assholes on the team, so it would be fine if they won, I suppose. Better than the Rangers, that's for sure.

QUOTE (IlliniKrush @ May 26, 2012 -> 06:39 PM) It was assumed the movie was good aka the playoffs I wouldn't walk out of a movie I was enjoying, but to make that connection, I haven't found these playoffs to be all that good. s*** officiating, gooning at a high level, teams I don't like beating teams I do like. Not my cup of tea at all, thus the indifference.

QUOTE (IlliniKrush @ May 26, 2012 -> 01:56 PM) Again, you do what you want, but you can't really be a big NHL/hockey fan if a championship series means nothing to you. Apparently it's only certain teams for you, not the game itself. My point is that it doesn't matter who the teams are. And how is NJ/Kings sucking when they haven't played a game yet? The concert/movie analogy doesn't really add up there. Two separate concepts, not related in any way. You brought up leaving a movie with 5 minutes left and I commented on the idea of leaving a movie early.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ May 25, 2012 -> 11:58 PM) I played 16" for one year in the financial league at Grant Park. I hated it. I know that is sacrilegious in Chicago, but too damned bad. Now put some ketchup on my hot dog and leave me alone. Agree about ketchup, disagree about hating 16". I liked 12" when I played it because it felt more like baseball, but I grew up with 16" so it's always my favorite version of softball.

QUOTE (IlliniKrush @ May 26, 2012 -> 11:55 AM) Good and an exciting brand. Like I said, it's more of the "Stanley Cup Finals hockey is epic and as a hockey fan I want to follow until the conclusion of the season." It's the biggest stage for a sport you (in theory) enjoy. That or I guess you're really just a Hawks/Wings fan. It's like watching a movie for 2 hours then with 5 minutes left, bailing. I know people do this for other sports, but I just don't get it. If you have no interest in watching the championship game/series for a sport, you aren't really a fan of that sport, you're more of a fan of a particular team than anything. I do walk out of movies or concerts if they suck. The money's already spent, so there's no incentive to stick around to see the end of something I'm not enjoying. Just FYI, the "not a fan" routine has zero effect on me. I watch (or don't) for my own reasons and I couldn't care less if that makes me "less of a fan" to anyone. I can't pretend to care about the New Jersey Devils, and I only very, very slightly care more about the LA Kings, so this series holds almost no interest for me regardless of when it happens and if a trophy is on the line.

QUOTE (IlliniKrush @ May 26, 2012 -> 09:02 AM) Both teams are playing really good hockey. Just because they aren't "name" teams, that means you wouldn't tune in? That's something a non-hockey fan would say. Also, if you're a fan of the NHL (or any sport for that matter), I don't know how you don't watch the championship series for that given sport. Of course they're playing good hockey, they're in the championship round. I just don't care about either team, and as I've said before, I need to have a rooting interest to watch. Watching just to watch would be like watching a Bears game for me. If it's on and I'm in the room, fine, but I'm not searching it out.

Go Kings, I guess, but I don't really care that much. I'll watch if I happen upon it, but I won't seek it out.

QUOTE (JoeCoolMan24 @ May 25, 2012 -> 11:19 PM) I played 16 inch once when I was young, but I can't imagine it being too much fun. Maybe for the older and younger crowd, because the ball is squishy and you can't hit it very far anyway, but I love 12 inch. I liked both games, but 16" was always way more challenging IMO because you don't have a glove to help you. In the leagues I played in we had a bunch of guys who could crush a 16" ball - we had guys going 250' or more the opposite way. The weirdest tournament I played in was a 16" tourney with gloves allowed. Half the guys refused the gloves because they weren't used to playing that way.

QUOTE (Brian @ May 20, 2012 -> 12:13 PM) I hope they use the extra time to build a tag division. Not have Cena every hour. It appears they're leaning towards doing that through Abraham Washington, but we'll see.

QUOTE (2nd_city_saint787 @ May 20, 2012 -> 12:53 AM) Fantastic, theyve got a ton of young talent coming up soon so a longer show will be needed to showcase all of them....at least I hope thats the reasoning. That's the optimistic view. They've screwed up so many things that could have been great that I'll wait and see what they do with the extra hour. I'm not excited about it yet.

QUOTE (PlaySumFnJurny @ May 18, 2012 -> 04:06 PM) Wow. Sure didn't see this coming: http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainmen...0,5923608.story I'm not surprised. Ed still hates Dave, it was just a matter of time until he got sick of him again. The fact that VH has not made any formal announcement yet tells me that any announcement they make will be BS unless they announce Ed had a drinking relapse.

The nickname I hope he avoids is "Yard" Sale.

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ May 17, 2012 -> 10:54 PM) Sorry to interrupt the Kaner alcholism/sweathogging conversation, but an #8 seed is about the make the Finals and probably be the favorite, crazy stuff. The Kings look good, think they just major under acheived in the regular season. Even with all the upsets every year, no seed higher than a #5 has ever won the Cup. They were really struggling to score all season. The Jeff Carter trade, as insignificant as it seemed when it happened, added something they really needed, although not from Carter himself. Dustin Brown started scoring like crazy when the Kings got Carter, and it's being said that he was motivated by rumors that Carter was brought in to make him expendable. Plus, Jon Quick has played out of his mind outside of a couple brain farts in Game 1 of this series.

Math is hard.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ May 14, 2012 -> 10:05 AM) I wonder when the last time they actually took in USCF was? I have been to a lot of stadiums and ballparks, and that is not even close to being one of the worst. The only reason it gets grief is because it is Sox park. The reason it gets grief is because it's not "beautiful, historic", delapidated, smelly, crumbling, cramped Wrigley Field.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ May 14, 2012 -> 10:04 AM) In 2 games so far I haven't made an out... but the first game was the definition of lucky. I was lunging and overanxious at the plate (which I swear happens to me every opening day), and hit three ground balls to the left side. One scooted just between SS and 3B, another was an unintentional bunt, the third the 3B just couldn't get there and get a decent throw off fast enough. Plus a walk. 3-3 +BB looks great on the stat sheet, but doesn't reflect the ugliness that it was. Don't question it, just take it! A night is coming when you're going to hit three ropes right at guys, you know it.

QUOTE (danman31 @ May 13, 2012 -> 11:10 AM) Man City scores twice in stoppage time to win the title despite a poor showing. Some of the most dramatic stuff in sporting history. That stoppage time was absolutely crazy. Once City got the equalizer, it really felt like they'd get the winner. QPR looked fairly comfortable until City tied it, then they seemed to panic.

QUOTE (JoeCoolMan24 @ May 13, 2012 -> 06:54 PM) Hah, I always laugh at teams that try to employ a shift. It's slow pitch softball, most skilled hitters can place the ball anywhere they want to. The shift only works on the bad hitters who can't aim the ball, or the hitters who swing for a HR every time, so it's going to end up being a pulled ball either way. When I played, the shift did seem to work on most lefties, though. Not a lot of LH hitters could, or would, go the other way. I always did, because pitchers would take the jump-step to my right and then float the ball away from me (which was stupid when their guys were shifting me to right), so it made sense to drop my back shoulder a bit and drive the ball to left.

QUOTE (JoeCoolMan24 @ May 12, 2012 -> 11:13 PM) What size field do you guys play on? My Thursday night league plays on 300ft fences, but my Chili's softball tourney that we do annually is usually on 275ft fields. I can definitely put it out of 275, I can probably put it out on 300, but I don't even try to do it. I figure if I hit a HR every other game, I will end up making a ton of flyouts, so I don't even waste my time. I just drop my back foot and line it to RF. I'm a big, slow guy, so most people play me kind of deep, but like a smart Paul Konerko, I just take my singles to RF and then have a speedster pinch run for me. Haha, the life of a DH who doesn't run the bases! (I'm actually a pretty solid OF, one of the best on the team, but my lack of speed greatly reduces my range, and the other guys are real fast.) I used to pound the ball in warmups, just crush it as hard as I could, dead pull to RF all the way. Then in the game guys would play me really deep with a huge shift to RF and I would slap the ball down the LF line for doubles and triples. Then when they thought they had me figured out I would pop one over the right fielder's head and trot.

Played for a long time, both 12 and 16, until age/weight/injuries ended it for me a couple years ago. I was a speed guy with some power at first, then became a power guy with good speed ("runs well for a fat guy"), then a power guy with some speed, then with no speed, then a spectator.

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ May 11, 2012 -> 10:52 PM) It truly is. One of the best things about the Cell right now is the abundance of outstanding food choices. But if you are stuck in the 500 level (and are not a season ticket holder), then you can't even access them, WTF? I assume they don't want too many people just going standing room around the 100 level, but I don't think the crowds are big enough to worry about that. They were when they made that rule, though. I think they should base the rule on expected attendance. They know their advance sales, and I'm sure they have some sort of research regarding walk-ups, so just revise the rule to say if the crowd reaches X attendance, the lower deck will be off-limits to non-ST upper deck patrons. Seems doable to me.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ May 9, 2012 -> 12:27 AM) I wish I had Harvey Levin's money, lol. The People's Court rocks, btw. Better than that evil Judge Judy. Wrong. Judge Judy is the real deal. I love the way she blatantly abuses the dumb. If I wasn't married, and if she wasn't married, and if she wasn't 100 years old, and if she didn't look like a ventriliquist puppet.....ooh baby.... Oh, and Kosuke is within his right to want more AB, but I don't know how much I'd play him now that it's not April anymore.

QUOTE (Brian @ May 8, 2012 -> 09:24 AM) WWE pulling out all the stops with brining Heyman back. Probably just a one time thing. I read that he signed through SummerSlam as a way to keep the storyline going when Brock's not there because of the limited-dates contract he's under. It's a really good move. Heyman has a way of making everything he says seem...."legitimate". Given his history with Brock in WWE and his personal friendship with him, not to mention his talent on the mic, he's the perfect guy to bring in.