You've Got to See This

I received an email from my buddy John yesterday with a link to the first video show below. This clip is from the dream match up of Morgan State/Winston Salem State football game last week (I know some of you deadbeats out there lost cash on this game!) After I saw the clip, I was impressed but not as impressed as a couple of other catches that I had seen in the past so I thought I would post a montage of a couple of my favorites. Watch them and tell us in comments which one impresses you the most.

Morgan State's Edwin Baptiste



WWU's Chris Moore



Alabama's Tyrone Prothro

Free at Last, Free at Last

Lord almighty, we are free at last. Free, college basketball fans, of the stranglehold of Bill Packer. Free from his assholeness. Free from his ACC bias. Free from his Dean Smith, Roy Williams, Coach K manlove. Free from his UK and U of L bashing.

Free, free, free!!!!

For those of you who actually like to read, you can find out more about it here.

I don't even mind that we will know by subjected to Clark Kellog instead - we are free of Billy Packer. That's like getting George Bush out of the White House!

Now if we could just find a way to get more Gus Johnson on the network:

Just Another Day at the Office

Here is another spot in the spirit of great (if obviously fake) sports commercials. I wish my work was this exciting.

See more funny videos at CollegeHumor

What about the people that go both ways?

You know, AC/DC? In sex, we just like to call them greedy. In baseball, however, we call them useful. But it's not often that we see a switch pitcher. In fact, this is the first one I have ever seen. Switch hitters are a dime a dozen and some of them (Mickey Mantle for instance) become Hall of Famers. But switch pitchers? Unheard of and a true delight to watch.

So what's better than a switch pitcher? How about the unintentional comedy that results from a switch hitter and a switch pitcher locked in a battle of wills. Laurel and Hardy would be proud of this little routine. I've got a feeling that they could have kept this up all night. Watch and enjoy.

The Curse Returns?

One thing Slick and I noticed during our excursion to the farmlands of Tennessee was just how immense Cubs Nation is. Seriously, I know a whole generation of us grew up watching Sandberg, Davis, Durham, Berryhill, Dunston, Grace, Dawson, Sutcliffe (and the immortal duo of Hector Villaneuva and Doug Dascenzo), but it's amazing to see just how many of your long suffering bretheren exists. Roo was no exception. You couldn't throw a bong without hitting someone where a Cubs hat, shirt, or Jersey. To make things even more satisfying to us Cubs fans, MLB was sponsor of the festival and had a semi set-up to showcase it's authentic merchandise and to give us poor heat stroke induced fools a place to sit in the shade and play MLB 2K8. If you were drunk enough, you could also take hacks in the batting cages, play cornhole with MLB branded sets, or test your arm against the Juggs radar gun. All fun and games, but also a great place to find your fellow Cubs brethren checking in to see what the score was.

Unfortunately, on the drive down to Murfreesboro on Wednesday, our serene drive time was interrupted with the news of Alfonso Soriano breaking his hand. Yeesh. Last night, things went from bad to worse as Big Z (Carlos Zambrano) left the game with the dreaded sore right shoulder. As visions of Mark Prior and Kerry Wood threaten to implode my brain, I am fighting to tell myself to relax. Sore shoulder does not equate medically necessary surgery. Oh wait - this is the CUBS - OF COURSE IT DOES. To make matters worse, we are (as I type this) about to be swept by the Tampa Bay Rays. ARGH!!!!!

So as I searched for a little levity tonight, I came across this wonderful entry for the always fun Uniwatch on ESPN.com. Paul Lukas points out not only do the Cubbies have one of the best looking uniforms in the game, but also the most original. Give it a read - it's worth your time.

And, if you are so inclined, make sure you offer up an extra prayer for our boys in blue. Looks like we are going to need it! Go Cubbies!!!

Look at the Cannon on Mrs. Cannon

For the record, here are the things that I know about Mariah Carey:

1) Most women hate her, even if they like her music.

2) Most men lust for her, even if they hate her music.

3) Most people I know hate her music, but still know the words to at least a couple of her songs.

4) I loved her when she was bat-shit crazy and passing out ice cream on TRL a couple of years ago.

5) My dog will leave the room when she hears Mariah hit those high notes that have become her trademark.

Well, it seems that it is time to add one more thing to the list. Mariah Carey, diva extradinaire and cradle of love rocker (you go Nick Cannon! Pssst - how did you manage to snag her without a prenup???) has long been looking for a baseball team that will allow her to throw out the first pitch. Problem is, no one in MLB will allow her to assume these ceremonial duties without agreeing to sing the national anthem before the game. (Even though I can't figure out why not since it is free publicity).

So what's Ms. Carey-Cannon do? She gets a Japanese baseball team to let her "throw" out the first pitch, and, I have to admit, I am SO GLAD that they did. What an arm! Even my 3 year old throws better, but at least Mariah looks better in heels.

Enjoy the hilarity.

Time to Break Out the Short Shorts

I was going to do this myself, but it seems that life and it's never ending series of challenges has removed most of my free time recently. But, never fear, Deadspin is here and they beat me to it anyway! Check out this piece from Deadspin about the history of the Celtics/Lakers rivalry.



You know back a couple of weeks ago when the Chicago Bulls conveniently parlayed their long shot odds into winning the top draft choice in the draft lottery, I had to break out the conspiracy theory. Now, things are coming into full bloom as Thursday approaches and David Stern and ABC finally can give America a NBA finals that might just actually be watched. Bring on the Lakers vs. the Celtics! Just keep the short shorts in the closet.








As we saw during the "80's Night" promotion at Staples Center this year (and against the Celtics to boot), this is just ill advised. To quote mid-90's "Saturday Night Live" - "Who are the ad wizards who came up with this one?"

The Two Great Tastes that Taste Great Together

Comics and Baseball. Well if this story is a match made in heaven for this blog, I don't know what is. What you are looking at is the cover to the May 26 issue of Sports Illustrated. It appears that SI tapped fan-favorite artist Mark Bagley (Spiderman, DC's Trinity) to do a "Bizarro" cover to accompany Tom Verducci's piece about this upside down season in MLB. Yankess, Tigers, & Mariners in last place? Check. Top 5 records in baseball belong to the Diamondbacks, Cubs, Marlins, Rays, and Twins (as of last Friday?) Check. Someone call Jerry Seinfeld because we are definitely in the Bizzaro World.

(Forgive the meandering here, but I loved this exchange...

Jerry: Yeah. Like Bizarro Superman. Superman's exact opposite, who lives in the backwards bizarro world. Up is down, down is up. He says "Hello" when he leaves, "Good bye" when he arrives.

Elaine: Shouldn't he say "bad bye"?

Jerry: No, it's still goodbye.

Elaine: Does he live underwater?

Jerry: No.

Elaine: Is he black?

Jerry: Look, just forget the whole thing, all right.




Best known for his work on Marvel's Spiderman books, Bagley has recently signed an exclusive deal with rival DC and will be handling the art chores on the weekly Trinity book that will prominently feature DC's "Big 3" of Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman. Nice to see that DC also tapped Bags for this high profile gig for SI.

And who doesn't love seeing Derek Jeter getting a rectal exam? I defy you to tell me that this doesn't look like it hurts! Makes me wander if Man Hands is around.

To quote Fletch: "Moooooon River. Whew, ever serve time, Doc?"

Where are my Conspiracy Theorists?

As the NBA is currently drooling over the possible revival of the league's greatest rivalry of all time in the Lakers versus Celtics, here comes a development that is poised to have many a fan and reporter alike calling collusion. The Chicago Bulls have won the NBA draft lottery.

Easily one of the top 3 most well known franchises in the NBA (thanks MJ!), it appears David Stern is going to get be a happy man now that the Bulls get to choose either Memphis State's Derrick Rose (a Chicago product and sure fire ticket seller) or Kansas State's Michael Beasley (the workhorse superstar that the Bulls truly need). As a Bulls fan, I couldn't be happier. As an observer however, I think it is odd that the Bulls just happened to win the draft lottery when they only had a 1.7% chance of landing the top spot. Either Jerry Reinsdorf and John Paxson are living right, or the NBA just got what it wanted.

If you see the Lakers and Celtics in the NBA finals instead of the Pistons versus the Spurs, the NBA revival is in full swing...just like David Stern planned.

Click here to read ESPN's take on this story and thanks to them for the picture.

It's Always the Quiet Ones

I swear, this has been a bonkers day. BONK-AIRS. First, it's Dwayne Wade having to deny that his doing to super nasty with Star Jones (ewwww, that's super nasty). Then this news about Marvin Harrision, Indianapolis Colts star wide receiver and, by all media reports, an all around swell dude. Now, he's a wanted man. From ESPN.com:

"The source said the alleged victim came into the bar, Playmakers, about 5 p.m. and engaged in an argument with Harrison, who was at the bar. The victim then left the bar, heading to his car, with Harrison following. Gunfire broke out, the victim was hit in the hand, and a young girl was slightly injured by flying glass from a car that apparently was hit by a bullet.

Police came to scene, but the victim did not identify a shooter. On Wednesday, according to the source, ballistic tests showed that the gun that had fired the shots was a custom-made Belgian weapon, and police determined that Harrison owned such a gun. A source told ESPN.com's John Clayton that the gun is registered.

Police then went to a Philadelphia car wash owned by Harrison to question him about the gun. Harrison admitted owning such a weapon, but claimed it never left his suburban Philadelphia home.

However, the source said the gun was discovered in a bucket at the car wash, and tests showed that it had fired seven bullets that matched those found at the scene.

The source said police were contacted Friday by an attorney representing a second alleged victim in the shooting, and police are now waiting for that individual to come forward."

So, for the record: Shot a brother, used a rare gun that practically no one else in the city would own and that is registered to him, fled the scene, lied to police when questioned, and finally, stupid enough to not get rid of the gun. Woowee, move over Pac Man Jones and Chris Henry!

This Man is a Genius

For all you baseball lovers out there.

Randomness

Randomness that I found entertaining tonight as I fight the stomach flu. Thank god for Pepto Bismol!

This guy has a great life. He has been to every Major League baseball field in one year and followed it up with every NBA arena in one year. The best part? Free tickets for every arena except in Boston. That's why the Celtics suck.

Who doesn't like the crazy soap opera storyline coming from Mindy McCready? Roger Clemens has some more explaining to do!

Gotta take a few minutes to hand it to "The Popcorn Trick" (see link to the right – got to pimp the links!). They put together the TOP 25 Opening Credits of 1980's Action Shows. Wow, here I thought I wasted my free time.

Here is the mix tape of the new century.

We here at The Outfield are big fans of women, movies, and sports. So how about a list of the Top 10 Underappreciated Sports Movie Babes?

How about 30 Catchphrases in 60 Seconds?

And finally, we close with the Top 10 Most Vulgar Wall Street Ticker Symbols.

Now on the clock...

Hello all you geeky sports fans out there, today is the day you get to sit around and do nothing (provided you have your "honey-do" list completed if you are married). Today is the greatest sports event not actually played by teams - the NFL draft. I will be hitting you up with my thoughts later tonight, so watch this spot for updates throughout the day.

Couple of changes to keep in mind. The draft will start at 3:00 PM EST this year instead of it's lunch time start in the past. Also, teams will have 10 minutes to pick in the first day rounds instead of 15 minutes. This should speed up things considerably and make for better television.

So sit back, grab a cold one, and prepare yourself for staring at Mel Kiper Jr's hair helmet for far too long. We are now on the clock.

Joker back with thoughts after the first two rounds:

Big winner - The Kansas City Chiefs. Glenn Dorsey was the best player in this draft and to get him at #5 is fantastic. Trading up to get Branden Albert to anchor the O line will make Larry Johnson and Brody Croyle happy. Lots more picks on day 2 - that should help a team with lots of needs.

Big Loser - Detroit Lions. Geez, will someone please run Matt Millen out of town? On second thought, keep him because, as a Bears fan, he makes beating the Lions pretty easy. Passing on Mendenhall and D help and then reaching for a questionable 1st round O-lineman. Sounds like Millen!

Bears - Got the left tackle we sorely needed in Vandy's Chris Williams and a potential 3 down back to push Benson in Tulane's Matt Forte. Solid if not flashy and trendy. Thank God we passed on Chad Henne. Now, we need to grab John David Booty or Early Doucet/Earl Bennett with the 7th pick of the 3rd round and our offense should be getting better.

Brian Brohm - Fitting that the best QB going into the season last year falls to the 2nd round - gotta love those NFL scouts. Green Bay surprised everyone by taking Brohm but they got a heck of a player. Too bad he goes from the hated Louisville Cardinals to the hated Packers. Still, he is in a great position as the GB mind trust seems to believe in Aaron Rodgers about as much as I do.

More later...