K-Rod to the Mets

Francisco Rodriguez is heading from LA to New York. The man who just set a record with 62 saves last season will try to fix the biggest Met problem: the bullpen. The Mets would have made the playoffs in front of the eventual World Series champs Phillies if not for their bullpen. K-Rod will translate into an extra 7-10 wins for the Mets in 2009. Along with K-Rod the Mets made a deal to get the Mariners' closer J.J. Putz. Putz will be a great set-up man for K-Rod. Look for the Mets to win the NL East in 2009 and maybe represent the NL in the World Series. 

Final Practical

For my final practical I decided to talk about something that I absolutely hate: The BCS. The BCS is unfair to all the teams with one loss or not in one of the big conferences. I talked about how Oklahoma and Florida are in the BCS national championship, but a possible seven other teams deserves a shot: Texas, Alabama, USC, Utah, Texas Tech, Penn State, and Boise State. I used a variety of angles and different shots to make contrast in the video. I wanted a goofy type of look to my video, so I provided a bunch of pretty crappy pictures of the schools and slapped them on top of my ugly face. The BCS is something I could talk about all day, but simply would only make me angry. 

The Day the Earth Stood Still

I went to 'The Day the Earth Stood Still' last night and still don't know what to think. An alien life form comes to Earth through a giant sphere. Keanu Reeves is the alien and his acting is just awful. I think I could have done his job. He honestly has no personality or anything in the movie. Jennifer Connelly plays an astro-biologist who befriends the alien, trying to figure out why he is there and what's going to happen. The movie plays out with Keanu seeing that the humans are a viable race and doesn't deserve to be eliminated. Basically, a swarm of bugs is the ingredient that will wipe out Earth. The movie concludes with Keanu stopping the swarm and going back into the giant sphere. This movie is one of those movies where you have a bunch of questions, but they never get answered. This movie was not good.

C.C. to the Yankees

C.C. Sabathia, once the pitcher of the Cleveland Indians and Milwaukee Brewers signed with the Yankees on Thursday for reportedly a 6-year deal worth over $160 million. Holy crap! Not bad for someone who works May-September, and once out of every five days. Sabathia is good, but I don't think he's worth the richest pitching contract in MLB history. He's going to help the Yankees a lot; the Yankees needed pitching desperately. Sabathia will now be the #1 for the Yanks followed by Wang and Chamberlain. This is a viable one, two, three, but they may need at least one more good pitcher to compete with the Rays and Red Sox. My prediction: Sabathia in '09; 14-8, 3.39 ERA, 187 K, 58 BB. Yankees miss the playoffs. 

Final Video (Hotdog Champ)

Stephen Brua, Brett Kasten, and I filmed our final project in the light of Stephen's 2009 Nathan's Hotdog Eating Championship. We used humorous B-roll of Stephen and I hurriedly chowing down dogs. Stephen and Brett did a nice job of capturing the interview process on "ESPN 8, THE OCHO". We took what was similar to the Sportscenter backdrop and used it for THE OCHO's set. Our commercial was Brett Kasten at his finest. Kasten wanted to get the word out on safe sex, he promoted it with the likes of Durex and Johnsonville Brats. This was a fun video to film and make and I hope you enjoy. 

Matt Cassell's father dies

New England Patriots' quartback Matt Cassell is going through something that almost all sons and daughters eventually go through, the loss of a parent. Cassell's father died, and Matt has joined his family in California for the funeral. This is where the true colors of professional athletes shine through. It's good to see Cassell is forgetting about football for the week, and helping his family through this tragic time. Coach Bill Bellichick went through the same event during the season in 2005. He said that football shouldn't even be in the head of Cassell right now, and that's a mature thing to say from a football coach. I remember Brett Favre having a spectacular showing on Monday Night Football after his dad died earlier in the week. I'm hoping Cassell will be able to help the Patriots on Sunday, but I'm hoping even more that the Cassell family gets through this tragedy.

Tribute To Jimmy V

It's Jimmy V week, and that means donations to cancer research, but more importantly a tribute to a man who changed the way many think about life. Jimmy Valvano will be remembered as the winning coach for the North Carolina State Wolfpack against the favored Houston team. He will be remembered for running around the court after the game looking for someone to hug. He will be remembered for his speech at the ESPY's. And as we remember Jimmy V this week, we must remember the words he said, "Don't give up, don't ever give up."