| Blog |
And we're rolling... - 01.09.2007
I spent quite some time on espn.com this afternoon, reading all I could find about the baseball hall of fame. Am I happy that Ripken and Gwynn are in? Sure, both guys where among the best players ever. They also shared the common trait of playing so long for one team. To me, The Orioles will always be Ripken's team and The Padres will be Gwynn's team, the same way the Bulls are Jordan's team and the Celtics are Larry's team. Is that simple, they deserved the honor.
Maybe I should have expected as much, but McGwire's percentage was very low. This re-opens the entire steroid controversy. I have never shared my opinion on this subject, so here it is.
I always use analogies in this kind of situation. Ever since computers came into play, things in work enviroments have changed drastically and many employees where kicked out of their jobs because they refused to adapt, to learn. In life, you change, you do what you have to do, or you are kicked out and forgotten. I think I defend McGwire,Sosa,Bonds and all the others. To us, common folk, baseball is a pastime. We just sit in the couch with chicken and beers and enjoy a good game, or we go out and play with friends,our little kids and all that. Just fun, a way to past the time, to relax and take pressure off each of us. But to this guys, the McGwire's, Sosa's and Canseco's of the world, baseball is their job. They have to do whatever they need to to stay in the game, to keep their jobs and earn their money. The same way people who refused to learn and adapt to computers in work enviroments where found without jobs or reduced to tasks not fitting for them, the same thing would happen to baseball players who did not used steroids in this time. Argue against me. Tell me that players like Ichiro dont use steroids and are at the top of the game. Tell me that the Pujols and A-Rods dont use steroids. Are you so sure about that? Can you prove it? I dont think so. Players capable of this sort of power are a rarity. Today, we see many players capable of putting the ball 500, 600 feet off the plate. Sure, talk about weight lifting programs and nutrition supplements all you want. But fact of the matter is, other substances are involved. I am not pointing fingers. I am not saying Pujols and A-Rod use them. But I believe the great majority does. Talk about the purity of the sport and what not. But remember the exciting times you had watching that McGwire-Sosa saga. It revitalized baseball. They where ICONS. And now we intent to leave them out of the hall for doing what they had to do. Tell me, if you had to take steroids to earn a bigger paycheck or to stay competitive in your work enviroment....would you do it? I think that at least 75% of you would say yes. And you know why? Because we want what's the best for us. This guys did that. A couple extra homers meant more money, recognition, fame. Dont we all want that? Dont we all want to stand out from the pack? If everyone else was doing it and making big bucks, why should I settle for the bench, or for peanuts when the others that do it earn the big money, go to all star games and are recognized icons? I suggest you stop blaming the players and think: what if it was me? What if this meant my job? My salary?
I think this is all part of the evolution of sports. And I think those who refuse to acknowledge it are dumb. They fight and fight about the purity of the sport and about the DiMaggio's and the Mantle's and such. Different eras folks. You have to move on with the times. And dont tell me some of those players would never had used steroids if they where avalible back then. Because it meant their salary and their jobs too.
For us, they are recreation, fun. For them, it's their job, their life. Time to move on. And I hope one day McGwire, Sosa and Palmeiro end up in the hall. |
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And we're rolling... - 06.15.2006
Yeah plenty of stuff to vent about.
I join the group of people who thinks ECW sucks. I was a huge ECW fan, loved ONS, but then I got to see this crap on Sci Fi. Damn! Justin Credible jobbed like Aldo Montoya, Zombies, Vampires, strippers, a lame battle royale....shit this was crap. They need to take thinks back to the bingo halls and ballrooms of the world and stop trying to take it global. Maybe they need to go back to ECW Arena or Hammerstein Ballroom and do a TNA Impact like TV taping with two shows at a time like Larry Csonka said...something, anything to truly capture the ECW feel. Why? The rating was good, but it is not going to be so again. Loyal ECW fans tuned in to see how it did and after that crap, I bet they wont show up next week. Casual fans tuned in to see what the fuzz was about,but after that crap, they wont show up next week. This spell disaster until they return to their core base and try to grow from there, not the other way around.
X-Men 3 was a big dissapointment. Maybe I expected much after the good showings in the first two movies, but I hated the fact that three key people died just like that and it seems this will be the end of the franchise. I was loyal to X-Men, mainly because of the comics and cartoons, but it seems the movie went off too far from the comic and cartoon story arcs and that kinda ruined it for me. Good movie, but not the great movie I wanted to see.
Now boxing. I was surprised by Bernard Hopkins showing in his fight with Tarver. He looked like the Hopkins of old and I hope he does retire at the top and is not lured to a rematch by big money. I dont think it hurts Tarver's momentum, he is likely to get the titles back once Hopkins is done and their is still the prospect of a fight with Jermaine Taylor. If he beats Taylor, the man who beat Hopkins twice, then he will be reivindicated.
Miguel Cotto's fight with Paul Malignaggi was a dissapointment. I expected Cotto to knock the shit out of the cocky italian, but an injured hand cut off his momentum and forced the decision. It was a good showing, he was never in any danger, but he did not end his run as Junior Welterweight Champion with that killer knockout. Part of it is the fact that he has trouble making that weight, he has been having those same troubles for over year and a half and I am happy that he is finally moving up to the welterweights. His lack of stamina is not his fault, is the overkill training to try to make the weight. Without the need to over train, I expect him to do better in the welterweight division. But I think it is a huge mistake to gun for the big boys this fast. Talks about a fight in November, in the welterweight division, with either, Arturo Gatti or Ricky Hatton, could spell trouble. Why not as easy fight to make sure he gets used to the weight class first? But we have been hearing big fight talk for two years now and I feel Bob Arum is pressured to deliver. Hope this is not a mistake. As for Malignaggi? Well, he looked decent and he is young and inexperienced. He was undefeated in over 20 fights, but he had never fought someone as skilled as Cotto. I feel he has shades of Arturo Gatti and might become a better boxer in the future.
TEW 2005 rocks! Finally decided to spend money on it after following the series since EWD, but after the dissapointment that I felt for TEW 2004, I decided to wait and see. Well, much better game, but still needs to fix some things, mainly angle and storyline issues and taking over promotions. Also I would like the ability to control a child promotion, like OVW. It would be a challenge to make new stars, see them called up by the WWE and be force to make a new star. Or get people who WWE sends down and expects you to use them...that sort of stuff. But I am really enjoying my time with the game,even if the lack of real world data(only about 7 scenarios out there), compared to the dozens of scenarios for EWR, hurts some. Also I seem to book a promotion for 3 months and then get bored and start again...Oh well.
Now personal matters:
It sucks that I failed Applied Math. I hate math and I hate to repeat it, specially because I am in a hurry to finish college already. Plus, I expect a one of a kind, out of control, chew my ass, rambling from my Dad. You see, I make little money in my fast food job and due to a technicality, I dont get any scholarship aid, so my Dad pays for everything. Shit, if I gave my kid $2,500 a semester for school and he failed, I would be pissed off too. But it is only one class and so many people failed, I think about 5 out of 30 in my room managed to pass with a C. I just hate to fail, but I am aware that I did the best I could and some people just suck at math...I am one of them. So instead of waiting like a little kid to get my ass yelled at, I expect to do some yelling of my own. My dad and I have a real close relationship, better than most people my age, but he always expects me to be perfect and I think this pressure has had an adverse effect in my life. Ever since I was a kid, he has been pushing me so hard that whenever I did something wrong, I became a wreck. As I grew up, I learned to deal with it and ignore it, but it still pisses me off, because no matter what I do or how hard I try, he always finds a way to make me look bad or blame everything on my friends, the time I spend on the PC or whatever else he can throw at me. Everything except my job that is. It is hard to come from work tired at 2am and have to get up four hours later to go to school, come home, rest two hours, or study if I have to, go back to work, rinse, repeat. Probably if I did not have such a piss poor job, I would be doing better, but I need the money, so their is no way around it. Job around here is very scarce, so you have to cling to what you have.
That's all for now... soon I will write again, possibly with a book review that I am not allowed to post in the main page or something. Oh and my toughts on the NBA Finals! |
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And we're rolling... - 02.25.2006
I am not one to write much about sports on this site, but I am a huge sports fan. I love baseball, basketball and football(american) and have followed this sports with devotion for a long time.
On my first blog entry, I want to take something off my chest. Carlos Arroyo was traded from the Pistons to the Magic and I believe this can be a great deal for both teams. Arroyo is from Puerto Rico, which is enough to make me an automatic fan, but the thing is, he has never been allowed to show his true potential. This kid carried the Puerto Rican National Basketball team past Team USA in the last Olympics! The talent is there, but they need to allow him to play and be himself. Remember when Stockton retired and he took over as the starter for the Jazz? That season he had decent numbers and was well on his way to establishing himself. But Jerry Sloan didnt want Carlos Arroyo to be Carlos Arroyo. He wanted him to be John Stockton! Problems between them caused Arroyo to be benched and then traded. Many have come foward and criticize Arroyo for being a "shoot first" type of player and that is not the case. Just watch that magical game aganist Team USA. Just watched what he did in his first seven minutes as a Magic last Tuesday. In those seven minutes, he did more than he had done in year and a half in Detroit. But you have to let him be himself. Sloan tried to make him John Stockton. First, he said he didnt pass the ball enough. Then that he didnt shoot enough! What type of coach is that?
I understand his lack of playing time in Detroit. They have a great mix and the people in the bench had almost zero chance of seeing quality minutes. But what about the times when Detroit has been ahead by 15-20 points late in the fourth quarter? Why not rest Billups for a game they have won and give playing time to the people in the bench? That I cannot understand. Something tells me that the Pistons wont make it to the Finals because of that, because of how many minutes the starters have played.
But Orlando has all the qualities that can make Arroyo a star. It is full of latin american people, specially Puerto Ricans. That is enough to make him a draw for the crowd and his first series of home games have been near sell outs. That and the fact that Jameer Nelson is out with an injury(altough he is more of a shooting guard) and Kenyon Dooling, to me is not starting material. 18 points aganist the Sonics with several key assists showed that the talent and the desire to play was there. He told the local press after the game "I had forgotten how great it felt to play 27 minutes".
Orlando has some decent young talent and will have a lot of cap space next year. They can make two or three moves to turn themselves around and be a playoff team next year. It's not like the East is that competitive anyway. |
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| Archive |
Ultra Combo News Report 11.15.09: Final Fantasy XIII Release Date, Modern Warfare 2 Breaks Records, More
(11.16.2009)
SouthPeak Picks Up TNA, Madden Arcade Ready For Thanksgiving, The Quick Hits, More. |
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The Ultra Combo News Report 11.09.09 Halo: Reach Details Leaked, Halo Waypoint Opens, Mass Effect 2 Special Edition and More!
(11.09.2009)
Plus, No Doubt sues Activision, EA and Madden's Ultimate Team, Star Trek Online Release Date, The Quick Hits and more! |
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Ultra Combo News Report 11.02.09: God of War III Ultimate Edition, God of War Collection Release Date, Bayonetta Release Date, More!
(11.02.2009)
Plus, my thoughts on the Modern Warfare 2 "Massacre" scandal, the Quick Hits and a lot more! |
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Pinball Hall of Fame: The Williams Collection (PS3) Review
(10.28.2009)
The greatest pinball video game ever made? Oh yeah! With 13 classic tables and amazing graphics, Pinball Hall of Fame is a must have for pinball fans. |
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Ultra Combo News Report 10.26.09: PS3 Wins September, Rocket Knight Makes a Comeback, Band Hero Set List, More
(10.26.2009)
Plus: The Beatles beat Guitar Hero 5, Need for Speed Nitro Release Date and more! |
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Need for Speed Shift (PS3) Review
(10.22.2009)
Need for Speed Shift is the game ProStreet should have been: a fun simulation racer that offers tons of replay value and a deep career mode. |
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Ultra Combo News Report 10.19.09: Mass Effect 2 Release Date, SSFIV Release Date, More
(10.19.2009)
Plus, 250GB PS3, Expansion Packs set for SOCOM Confrontation and Borderlands and Madden Arcade is on the way! |
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Ultra Combo News Report 10.12.09: PS3 Dominates, More Halo, Alpha Protocol Delayed and More!
(10.12.2009)
Plus, God of War Collection's rumored delay false (for now), Little Big Planet PSP release date, EyePet delayed and much more! |
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Ultra Combo News Report 10.05.09: Super Street Fighter IV Announced, Wii Problems With Update 4.2, 100+ PSP Games Added to PSN and More!
(10.05.2009)
Plus, Trine release date, Modern Warfare 2 DLC, Splinter Cell Conviction Collector's Edition and more! |
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WWC Septiembre Negro Results 09.26.09
(10.04.2009)
The Universal Title changes hands, The Puerto Rican Title changes hands and Chicky Starr recovers his name. |
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Ultra Combo News Report 09.28.2009 Wii Price Cut, Sony Motion Controller Details and Even More Game Delays!
(09.28.2009)
Plus, Final Fantasy XII gets 250GB PS3 Bundle, No UMD Conversion for PSP Go and a lot more! |
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Batman: Arkham Asylum (PS3) Review
(09.26.2009)
The greatest superhero game ever made? Oh yeah! |
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Ultra Combo News Report 09.21.09: Bioshock 2 Release Date, Fallout 3: GOTY Edition Release Date, Star Ocean Coming to PS3 and More!
(09.21.2009)
Valkyria Chronicles 2 coming next year, Free Realms coming to PS3, Fallout 3 PS3 DLC details and more! |
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The Ultra Combo News Report 09.14.2009
(09.14.2009)
Bethesda sues Interplay over Fallout, Uncharted 2 goes gold, Problems between Activision and Courtney Love over the use of Kurt Cobain, Halo Waypoint release date and much more! |
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The Ultra Combo News Report 09.07.09: Halo 3 ODST Details, God of War Collection a Reality, Uncharted 2 Limited Edition and More!
(09.07.2009)
Plus, OnLive beta goes live, Gran Turismo PSP Bundle, The Quick Hits and more! |
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The Ultra Combo News Report 08.31.09: Xbox 360 Price Drop, Batman Sets Record, Cobain in Guitar Hero 5, More!
(08.31.2009)
Plus, tons of release dates, the Quick Hits and much more! |
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Marvel vs Capcom 2 (PSN) Review
(08.27.2009)
The classic 2D fighter hits the PSN for $15. Is it worth the purchase? Find out inside! |
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The Good, The Bad and The Ugly 08.24.09: PS3 Slim is Here, Fable III in 2010, Release Dates for DJ Hero and Blur, More
(08.24.2009)
Plus, Rock Band 3 all but confirmed and details on Napoleon: Total War! |
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AAA Verano de Escandalo Results 08.22.09
(08.23.2009)
Dr. Wagner vs El Mesias vs Cibernetico, Charly Manson vs Chessman in a No DQ Match, Billy Boy lost his hair and much more! |
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Fat Princess (PSN) Review
(08.22.2009)
Fat Princess is one of the best multiplayer experiences on the Playstation Network, but fails but match the absurd amount of hype it was given. |
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