The Critic

I have no problem with what Mariotti is saying, because it's a variation on what everyone here has been saying for months, or years. My problem is that I don't find him the least bit entertaining. His "style" is the same know-it-all blowhard junk you can find littering sports talk radio everywhere. It's just incredible to me that the guy following him on MVP actually does the same format even worse than Mariotti does. New slogan for the WMVP weekday format: "Mike & Mike, Then Take A Hike"

Quizno's is overpriced, overrated toasty little sub sandwiches. No singing rats will make me buy that junk.

In New York they usually cheer when the guy goes down to begin with.

I hate WMVP for hiring Mariotti and Jim Rome because I like good radio. Those two imbeciles' shows are completely unlistenable.

A report filed by a former head of the SEC - on hire from the owners - claims that 30 NHL teams combined to lose over 270 million dollars LAST SEASON. Wouldn't surprise me at all - the salary scale for the NHL is terribly skewed in comparison to its popularity and revenue generating ability. No NHL player in the post-Wayne Gretzky era should be paid 10 million dollars or more. Of course, the NHLPA said that the report is "fundamentally flawed". This is gonna get ugly....prepare yourself for no NHL next fall....of course, SlackHawks fans have had no NHL hockey for a while now.

Just for accuracy's sake, JR wasn't stretchered off the ice. He was helped off the ice by teammates and waved to the fans as they cheered for him....AT MADISON SQUARE GARDEN!!!! That's right - they weren't cheering the injury, they were cheering that he GOT UP!!! The animals who root for the Rangers CHEERED for the health of an opponent???? What's going on here??? Next thing you know, ShamME will get a standing O at USCF......NAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH......

I second the sushi vote. My stupid groan-inducing sushi joke: "Sure, I like sushi....as long as they cook it right!"

I want a decent pitcher as much as anybody, but I really don't want Frank to leave. Even when he has a "bad season", he hits bombs and drives in runs.

I dunno - can you hum a few bars?? buhdum-BUM!!! Zankoo - I'll be here all ze week....

Holy Crap! If that's the rational predictions, and NONE of the starters will have a losing record, what kind of record would your HEART give these guys??? Pastime's Heart's Predictions: MB 34-2 EL 29-3 JG 24-6 SS 19-7 #5 18-11 That's 124 wins from our starters, and you just KNOW Billy Koch is good for 10 out of the pen!!!

I am not a fan of fighting. I used to kinda like it, but now it seems that it's a bit embarrassing for the sport. Hockey, when "played the right way" ( thanks, OZZIE! ) is the best sport around, IMO, and doesn't need the goonism. I'd much rather see a fast-paced game with a lot of scoring chances and CLEAN physical play than a scene out of SlapShot. That said, I realize that I'm clearly in the minority on this - if you ever see a picture of a hockey fight in the newspaper, check if you can see the crowd in the picture. There won't be ONE face that isn't smiling. It's the weirdest thing - lots of people complain about hockey fights, but everyone seems to like it when it's happening in front of them.

The Mrs. works this weekend, so I am home with the daughter. Once the little one's asleep.....I probably will be too.

Mariotti is the Master Of The Blatantly Obvious. No props to that idiot for stating what everyone in town already knows. That's a nice picture of Andy Griffith, though....nice and puffy and bloated and red and wrinkled....sorta looks like an alcoholic shihtzu....

I guarantee and promise that an order will be forthcoming, but I have to wait a week or two. .....no reason.....

RPS and I were talking last night about catching a couple of minor-league games in Joliet and Schaumburg this summer as well.

Looks like I'm only going to the 3 games with my daughter ( signed her up for the Silver And Black Pack ) and maybe a half-price Monday or Tuesday or two. And I'll have to make the trip to USCF to buy tickets, just so TicketBastard doesn't get to stick their hooks in me too. Those prices are ridiculous - the Sox aren't the only people on a budget, you know!!! Although it's still not as bad as paying 36 bucks for a bleacher ticket on "prime dates" somewhere ELSE in Chicago.... :puke

I'm probably going to play SS or 3B for my softball team, since my body has entered the Cecil Fielder/Tony Gwynn/Mo Vaughn/Terry Forster stage of life at the ripe old age of 40. I will STILL, however, be the team's 3rd hitter, leading batter for average AND power, and probably lead in "doubles-that-would-have-been-triples-or-homers-a-couple-years-ago". I can still swing the bat - it's the only reason my phone ever rings in February anymore.

Perfect place for McWhiff - low low expectations, near his home I guess, a little more cash in pocket.

I'll go one further and post my guesses for W-L and ERA MB 20-10, 3.45 EL 17-12, 3.52 JG 15-9, 3.56 SS 10-10, 4.03 NC 9-14, 4.53 71-55 out of the starters, which is OK by me.

or a reasonably priced gold tooth

Ahhhh, yet another shining example for the youth of America. I'm really starting to think that parents should be placed behind a huge plexiglass wall during their children's sporting events. Except for the 3 years that my Dad coached me, my parents never even attended my games, and I was glad about it. My Dad practiced with me on non-team practice days, but left me alone to play the games. I get sick to my stomach when I hear these know-it-all parents shouting instructions to their 7-year-olds during an at-bat.

The following is my list of favorite Pink Floyd songs:

The difference is, only about 300 or so seats will be affected by USCF's poles, and no one's view of such minor things as FLY BALLS or THE SCOREBOARD will be greatly affected. Wrigley is beloved because it's an old ballpark. If anyone built Chewing Gum Park today, they'd be run out of town. It's cramped, MANY seats have below-average sightlines and the amenities are few and the ones they do have are subpar. USCF beats the tar out of CGP as far as actually WATCHING and ENJOYING a baseball game. Hands down, simple as that.

I think Rasheed will be HAPPY to go from Portland to Atlanta. Not professionally happy, but extra-curricular activities happy. Lots more things to do for him in Atlanta, I would think. Bad news for the Hawks, though....

I would be fine with the tag-up offsides coming back, and the no-touch icing. The race for an iced puck is not interesting to me, and very seldom results in any real scoring opportunity anyway. I'm not that much of a purist, really, so the idea of eliminating the red line ( or the two-line pass ) is okay with me, as is the idea of 4-on-4 all the time. The players today are giants compared to the "old days", and it's much more feasible to go 4-on-4 than it is to enlarge the rinks and reconfigure the seating areas of every NHL building ( and AHL, ECHL, etc. by trickle-down ). I also think there has to be some control over the mattresses today's goalies wear on their legs. If you're not going to enlarge the nets, then you have to set a limit on goaltenders' equipment AND enforce it strictly. Did you see those huge yellow atrocities on Robert Luongo's legs at the All-Star Skills Competition?? YIKES!! I enjoy watching wide-open hockey, with end-to-end rushes and lots of scoring opportunities. In my eyes, that's the way the game ought to be played. Attack, hit, forecheck aggressively and I WILL pay to watch you. I appreciate a good defensive battle, and in my opinion the playoffs will still deliver those in droves, but I do NOT enjoy the logjam strategies of teams like the Devils and Wild. That, over the 82-game regular season, is some BORING hockey.