Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Sky Hook.


Here at Garbage Minutes we're always fans of when former or current athletes show the initiative and intelligence to put their thoughts on paper.  Grant Hill did a fantastic job in this New York Times piece after the ESPN documentary The Fab Five aired.  Today Kareem Abdul-Jabbar wrote a little something on ESPN.com regarding the pending NBA lock-out.  Good for him.  Much more articulate than Tweeting something meaningless or just saying cruel and irrational things to a reported during a lock out like the Steelers James Harrison did with Men's Journal last month.

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Stupid is as Stupid Does.


Fantastic piece from Norman Chad at The Washington Post about stupid things that still linger in sports.  The only thing he left off was the mid-air celebratory bump between athletes.  We're coming up on nearly a decade of wide receivers jumping in the air to bump into other receivers after a touchdown and power forwards doing the jump-bump with bench-warmers as they approach the sideline during a time-out.  Not that creative to begin with and very overdone this many years in.

Money Ball, Version II


Good read from Grantland about the evolution and transformation of the Cleveland Indians; an interesting study in keeping up with the playoff race despite the fifth lowest payroll in the league.  Best of all, Billy Beane isn't mentioned.

Friday, July 22, 2011

Monday, July 18, 2011

My Goodness, My Guinness

You know you're a popular winner in the golfing community, and especially in Ireland, when you're drinking a Guinness during your post-round interview...

Darren Clarke, 2011 British Open Champion

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Cleveland Steamers


Humorous piece on Grantland by Bill Barnwell on the "25 Least Valuable Players in the NFL".  Guess who has the top two least valuble players?  You guessed it, the Cleveland Browns.

On Browns safety Sabby Piscitelli:

"His unique mix of blown tackles, dreadful instincts, and inflated ego really make him the worst player to see regular time in the NFL over the past several years."

On Browns QB Jake Delhomme:

"The permanently shell-shocked passer threw an interception every 21.2 attempts, converted just 27.5 percent of the third downs he faced, and put up one of the most awe-inspiring terrible lines of the 2010 season by going 12-of-20 for 86 yards and an interception against the Bills in Week 14. His existence as a highly paid quarterback would make more sense only if he was the walking, breathing example of the players’ case against the owners in the lockout."

Monday, July 11, 2011

Grove Park Inn

Yesterday the Garbage Minutes Guys got away from the stresses of running a high powered sports blog and played a quick round at the Grove Park Inn Golf Course in Asheville, NC.  Great little historic spot in the mountains of Western NC.  Pillars of industry, politics and American history such as Henry Ford, Harvey Firestone, Thomas Edison, and presidents ranging from Taft to FDR to Eisenhower to Obama have stayed there.  Best of all, they have a fine golf course, originally built in 1899 and restored in 1924 by the legendary Donald Ross.  Fun course to play and worth the visit if you're in driving through on the Blue Ridge Parkway. 

Grove Park Inn
Donald Ross
President Obama's clubs from a round at Grove Park

Great Hogan plaque.



Friday, July 8, 2011

Bull City.


Images from last nights Durham Bulls game.  Unforunately no citing of Costner, Robbins or Sarandon.

Smoke coming from the bull after a home run.  Hit the bull...win a steak.
"Crash Davis, an obscure 1940's infielder who emerged as something of a celebrity when Kevin Costner became his namesake playing a shrewd but fading minor leaguer in the movie 'Bull Durham,' The Crash Davis of ''Bull Durham'' was a longtime catcher brought in by the Durham Bulls to take the rough edges off the irrepressible pitching phenom Nuke LaLoosh (Tim Robbins). The baseball career of Lawrence (Crash) Davis bore some resemblance to that of the film's Crash Davis. The real Crash Davis indeed played for the Durham Bulls. But he was a second baseman, shortstop and first baseman who had been a genuine if undistinguished major leaguer, with the Philadelphia Athletics."

* Photo of "Crash" Davis taken inside Men's Restroom. 

Thursday, July 7, 2011

3,000

From The Wall Street Journal.


Too bad they clearly forgot about the late Bernie Mac...

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Hammer Time


The Oakland A's will be giving out these MC Hammer bobble heads to the first 15,000 fans on July 17th as part of their "80's Weekend" celebration. Take note, Lowell Spinners. This is how you put asses in seats. Free MC Hammer bobble heads. Not shooting some geriatric over a wall.

Human Home Run

In a Jackie Moon-esque stunt at a Single A baseball game in Lowell, MA, the Lowell Spinners shot some idiot over the left field wall for the first ever "human home run".
Not impressed. If I am at the game I am pissed they paid this moron instead of giving the first 200 fans Dustin Pedroia bobble heads. "Corndogs, Jackie!! Corndogs for all these people!!!" Anyway, here is the video:

Field Of Dreams 2

Pretty good effort by funnyordie.com making fun of the lockout with a Field of Dreams parody.

Monday, June 27, 2011

Thoughts From The Bench - A Lazy Evening Diatribe

Starting Line-Ups and Becketts: The Evolution of a Sports Crazed Youth

Last Thursday the NBA Draft took place.  I was especially interested in this draft because I'm from Cleveland and a lifelong Cavaliers fan, the embarrassed and betrayed organization that was "given" the first and fourth picks.  Leading up to the draft I did some research on who the stars of the draft were and what the Cavs were thinking about doing with such a unique draft situation.  I followed their front office and the local beat writers on Twitter.  When the time came, it was no surprise they took Kyrie Irving with the first pick. Even though he played about as many games this year during his lone season at Duke as Rudy dressed for at Notre Dame, the general sporting public has known about him all year long, just as we knew about the Timberwolves pick of Derrick Williams at number two. 


Then the draft just got hazy.  The Jazz selected a guy I had never heard of two weeks ago.  My own Cavs took a power forward from Canada who played one year at Texas that I had never heard of this whole college basketball season.  Picks five, six, and seven sounded like international interns at the United Nations....Jonas Valanciunas, Jan Vesely, and Bismack Biyombo.  As the picks proceeded to get even stranger and more unrecognizable, I started to think back at the drafts I grew up watching and how interested I was in each pick.  Then I started wondering, based off of how much college and international basketball has change in the last ten years, if kids even follow the draft anymore.  I then started to think about the vast differences between what interested my friends and I about sports as kids and teenagers compared to what might interest the current generation.  Whether it was trading baseball cards, showcasing Starting Line-Ups in our rooms, researching card prices in Beckett's or writing handwritten letters to our favorite team's front offices in hopes of an athlete's autograph, the state of a sports crazed kid/teenager has changed more in the last 10 years than ever before.

Look at the first ten picks of the 1992 NBA Draft...

1) Shaquille O'Neal - Junior
2) Alonzo Mourning - Senior
3) Christian Laettner - Senior
4) Jimmy Jackson - Junior
5) LaPhonso Ellis - Senior
6) Tom Gugliotta - Senior
7) Walt Williams - Senior
8) Todd Day - Senior
9) Clarence Weatherspoon -Senior
10) Adam Keefe - Senior

There were eight seniors taken in the first ten picks; the only other two were juniors.  These college stars became household names before they ever put on a NBA jersey.  Laettner was even a gold medalist with the Dream Team before ever arriving in Minnesota.  Other names in the first round included Robert Horry, Harold Miner, Anthony Peeler, Doug Christie, Hubert Davis, Jon Berry, and Latrell Sprewell.  I still remember where each of these players went to college and can even remember certain games they played and famous highlights during their collegiate careers.  Compare that to having never heard of my favorite team's pick at number four until about a week before the draft.  Much of the magic in events like the NBA draft is gone, which makes me wonder about the generation of sports fans that are growing up right now.


I treated each Beckett, a monthly publication that priced all trading cards, like a priest treats his bible.  I knew exactly how much each card was worth.  I knew what trades I could get away with on other friends in an effort to improve my collection.  I regularly visited the local card shops researching prospective cards, only to collect enough money up to ride my bike to the card store to make such a significant financial commitment, with the same emotional connection and interest as a young couple picking out their first house.  Do kids even buy, collect and trade cards anymore?  I just had to Google "Beckett Magazine" to see if they are even in business anymore.  They are, but I wonder if anyone even buys them anymore; might as well just Google the price of your cards.


I remember planning my entire Saturday mornings around making sure I caught Ahmad Rashad host the weekly installment of NBA Inside Stuff on NBC.  To this day I still have VHS's tucked away that have special events such as the Dream Team's gold medal game and ceremony from 1992, Notre Dame games taped on NBC, and "Pistol" Pete Maravich instructional videos.  What do kids nowadays do...just DVR and YouTube all of the great moments of their youth?  My walls were line with posters and pennants, items I still have to this day.  Do they even sell cool posters anymore? I'm nearly positive you can't go down to the local sports equipment shop and pick up an Aaron Rodgers cartoon pennant.


If the changes in following sports for kids has really changed as much as I assume it has, I'm glad I grew up before the internet, YouTube, iPhone apps and over-the-top video games with headsets connected to creepy strangers in Shanghai.  I'm glad I treated my Dominique Wilkins card collection as serious as I treat my current 401K.  I'm glad I had to run out to the the mailbox to see if a letter came back from the Cleveland Browns front office with a Bernie Kosar autograph instead of simply emailing them from an iPad.  Things were simple for the paperboys admiring Babe Ruth in the 1920's, and just as simple for kids playing stick ball in the streets during the 1940's,  1950's and 1960's, when pretending they were Ted Williams, Joe DiMaggio, or Mickey Mantle .  It wasn't very complicated in the 1970's, 1980's and 1990's when keeping an All-Star's rookie card hidden in your sock drawer had the same secrecy as a CIA agent hiding his extra passports.  Unfortunately, things are much more diluted nowadays.  The convenience and overwhelming fascination with technology has improved things for the entrepreneur, Wall Street investor and world traveler, but has taken away some of the innocence I remember from my childhood obsessing about sports figures, statistics, and collectibles.  Besides, if kids aren't collecting cards anymore, who am I ever going to trick into trading for my Jose Canseco Topps rookie?

Friday, June 24, 2011

Submission of the Day

From J.P.F., one of our favorite followers and a member of one of our favorite bands that is still coming together after nearly a decade of rehearsals, Sloppy Tuna, comes this nice observation...

"I just saw an advertisement that BMW is the official car sponsor of the US Olympic team...  I appreciate a sharp, reliable car as much as the next guy.  I just purchased, with very little guilt, a Honda Accord, something several of our Grandfathers would have scoffed at...Still, for a number of reasons, it saddened me a little.  I also couldn't help but wonder how many people INSTANTLY, as I did, raised an eyebrow at the overwhelming irony of the sponsorship- that the cornerstone of German engineering, that once fueled the German war machine, whose corporate symbol gives homage to its history as a manufacturer of the prop-engines that (I assume) roared over both our boys, and the streets of our allies emerald cities, now sponsors our Olympic program- what was once perhaps the premier symbol of our national power and identity.  I also couldn't help but instantly think of two names- Adolf Hitler and Jesse Owens."

Del Potro does The Bomber


Hilarious stuff from Wimbledon, which is a rare comment to say about a place that requires everyone to wear all white and is located in England.  Argentinean Juan Martin Del Potro reenacted a classic scene from The Royal Tenenbaums at Wimbledon.  I can't make this stuff up.  Instead, I'll let you compare the temper tantrums...

Episode #1: Juan Martin Del Potro at Wimbledon


Episode #2: Richie "The Bomber" Tenenbaum at Windswept Fields

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Cover of the Day

Very cool cover this week from Sports Illustrated...

Choir Boys


Interesting read in The Wall Street Journal about the few schools who have actually played by the NCAA's rules. 

According to the NCAA, there are 17 schools with major athletic departments (whose football teams compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision) that have never been found guilty of any major violation in any sport since 1953, when the NCAA began tracking rule violations. That's about 14% of the total.

There are only four athletic programs from major conferences on the list. They are Boston College, Northwestern, Penn State and Stanford.

Excruciating Pain

Fantastic SportsCenter commercial out right now. 



If you're a huge soccer fan and take offense to this commercial or try to defend this part of the game, you're the exact reason why soccer has never really taken off in America.  We love hard hits in football, posterizing dunks in basketball, huge home runs in baseball and aggressive checks against the boards in hockey.  We love BBQ ribs, cold beers and loud music.  We don't like athletes faking injuries.  Basketball players may "flop" for charges, but they get up right away without making a scene.  Football and hockey?  Don't even compare...those guys are getting concussions and having a hard time even walking after retiring.

Until that part of the game goes away or soccer can even admit it's a stupid part of the game, I'll continue to watch The Office reruns on TBS instead of any MLS game on ESPN.

Double Down.


"A member of the golf club in McIlroy’s hometown of Holywood won 25,000 pounds on Sunday after he bet 50 pounds at 500-1 odds that McIlroy would win a major before turning 25.
Gerry McIlroy, Rory’s father, may be the next to hit the jackpot. According to reports, the elder McIlroy and a few friends each bet 100 pounds at 500-1 odds that Rory would win the British Open before the age of 25. McIlroy will have three opportunities to win the Open Championship before he turns 25 and land his father a payday."

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Athletes On Gay Marriage


New York Daily News compiled a list of quotes from athletes and sports personalities commenting on the issue of gay marriage. We don't do politics at GM, just wanted to post the link to reinforce the fact that athletes are morons, by and large. Why does anyone listen to these people? Stay in your lane. Just hit home runs and shut up. (Wow, Smoltzy. Wow.)

Morning Wood: Your Wednesday Links


Looking good, TB. Looking good.

- Deceased E-Street band member Clarence Clemons went 4 for 5 at his own funeral. That's right. 4 of his 5 wives showed up to pay tribute. Respect.

- Cubs catcher Geovany Soto with one of the best reactions of the year after Ozzie Guillen booted his catchers mask across the diamond.

- Ricky Rubio is finally coming to the NBA, even though he sucked in Europe. T-Wolves using his number for ticket promotion anyway:


- Trip to Dodgers game becoming stranger and more surreal by the day. Pic from last night's game. Imagine what it would have looked like if there wasn't a free towel giveaway:


- Apparently there are still some schools out there without major NCAA allegations/violations. Congrats, I guess, to Boston College, Northwestern, Penn State and Stanford.

- This is what happens when you are employed by a classy organization and start sleeping with your teammates' wives. Good luck in Sacramento, Tony.

- Pictograph of how, exactly, the Boston Bruins racked up a $156,679.74 bar tab at a Foxwoods casino night club.

- The Rory/Tiger comparisons are ridiculous, but they do have this one thing in common. Child prodigy TV appearances: