Dodgers v Cubs Game One Thoughts, Terrible Owens, and Lance Armstrong
Let’s get right into the topic of the day.
- After watching Cubs’ pitcher Ryan Dempster yield his seventh walk of the day, and then making James Loney look bad on three straight low pitches, I was very upset when I saw Loney swing at another one.
Routine fly ball to center, I thought to myself. Another wasted opportunity—thanks, Andre Ethier—in a game where every run was going to be huge.
That’s when I noticed that TBS’ camera was still panning up, and all of Wrigley Field immediately became silent. Even the winds that make Wrigley Field famous couldn’t knock that shot down.
As I watched Loney’s slam find its way into the bleachers, I had no idea how to react. Cheer, dammit, I kept thinking to myself. For some reason, I felt paralyzed. James Loney hit a grand slam, and you can’t even utter a “YES!”???
Eventually, I had the wherewithal to text my sister the following message: BOOM!!! OUTTA HERE!!!
In a matter of mere moments, the Dodgers erased a 2-0 deficit, and all of a sudden, Cubs fans everywhere are seriously gripping with the possibility that they may have to wait another year for a World Series opportunity.
(Don’t include me in that list, Cubs fans! As far as I am concerned, the series is playing out exactly as I expected it to; I figured that the Dodgers’ best chance to steal a game was Game One, and I just don’t see the Cubs—and Zambrano—losing Game Two. In fact, I actually predicted that the Cubs would win this series in four games, losing Game One in the process.)
Yes, Cubs faithful, many things were going against the Cubbies in this game: Derek Lowe being on top of his game, the euphoria running about in Wrigley, the adrenaline flowing through Ryan Dempster, and that guy named Manny.
(Did you see that lob wedge he hit? What a showoff he is, applying a tiny bit of draw to the shot :P)
However, even after that seventh walk—did Dempster really walk Derek Lowe TWICE????—it looked like Dempster was going to escap. Too bad he hung just one pitch right over the plate, and as the ball was lifted into the sky, you could have heard a pin drop in Wrigley. Even still, Cubs fans…
(clears throat)
IT’S JUST ONE GAME!!! CALM DOWN!!!
Worry not, Cubs fans. Z will lead your team to a win tomorrow.
Seriously, Cubs fans, I sincerely hope the reports that some of you were acting like the series was over were exaggerated. Come on! That’s why the NLDS is a best-of-five, right? That’s why your team earned the home field advantage, right?
(This isn’t helping, is it, Cubs fans?)
Here are some other thoughts on topics in the sports world:
- Oh, Terrible Owens, I expected more out of you than a weak “The media blew it all out of proportion” argument. I’m almost disappointed in your poor effort. Couldn’t you have uttered this phrase while doing some chin-ups, at least?
My favorite part:
“That is not to say nothing about Tony Romo,” Owens said. “I am not going to be able to catch every ball thrown my way. Every pass was not a valid catchable pass.”
Do those two sentences bolded above appear even somewhat contradictory? They sure do to me; after all, who is the one throwing “every pass?”
I can’t wait for T.O. to be traded to another team, just so I can hear what he really thinks about Tony Romo.
- In the wake of Lance Armstrong’s return to competitive racing (a terrible idea, IMO), apparently the French anti-doping agency wants Armstrong to approve the testing of his 1999 Tour de France “B” urine samples, a request that Armstrong has since rejected.
(Here’s why I think Armstrong returning to the sport is such a bad idea: his legacy is intact, speculation aside. He’s has nothing close to a Kirk Radomski (Roger Clemens) or something as damning as a grand jury perjury charge (Bonds) on him. And no, it doesn’t hurt that he’s perceived as a “good guy.”
So what’s the point of coming back? To prove that he did everything legitimately?
If Armstrong comes back and fails, what would the main reason be for his failure: lack of cheating, or simply age?
If Armstrong comes back and succeeds, and doesn’t pass a test, would Armstrong really be perceived as clean, or could there be additional speculation that he is simply “getting over” on drug-testers?)
As much as I admire Armstrong, I gotta ask this question: if he knows he didn’t cheat, then why wouldn’t he approve of the re-test? Wouldn’t declining the test only provide even more speculation that he really did cheat?
I hope I never see the day where Lance Armstrong is proven, beyond a shadow of a doubt, to be a cheat. At the same time, though, if he is a cheater, I would want to know. Allowing a test on urine samples from 1999 would, in my opinion, be a huge step in proving his innocence.
On the other hand, who knows what state those samples are in? Who knows if those samples are tainted? These are just even more reasons why Armstrong should not bother returning back to a sport that is going to monitor his every action, 24/7, for who knows how long.
Until next time!