J: The Key to Good Pitching

Happened to look at the MLB AL Pitching stats tonight and noticed the top 5 pitchers (by ERA) all had names that begin with the letter J. Looking even further, the top 7 are all J's.

Is this a science? As a Red Sox fan, I have proof it is not (See: Lackey, John).



If you cannot make this out the names are: Justin, Jered, Josh, James, Jeremy, Justin, Jon.

Anyway, I saw this and thought I would share it. Nothing more than a coincidence... or is it?

The leaders in AL Wins are Justin Verlander, (CC Sabathia - damn Yankee would mess this up), Jered Weaver, C.J. Wilson (yes, that counts), Jon Lester.

And just because I can.... the AL leader in Saves... Jose Valverde.


If you didn't believe this blog site was all about "Random Informal Thoughts", hopefully this post changed your mind.

Fastlane... NOT So Fast!

On my way home tonight via the Mass Pike, I got stuck behind a couple of cars at the toll. This usually never happens to me because of the Fastlane (or EZ Pass for you non-Massholes) pass that is attached to my windshield.

What I realized had happened here was that this lane was not just for Fastlane. It was for Fastlane & Cash. Ummmmm?

So here I am, a member of the Fastlane community (the community that let's me bypass the toll lines) and I'm waiting for people to count their exact change.

I realize this doesn't mean the world is about to end, but come on now! This is like having an express lane at a supermarket (i.e. 10 items or less) and then say but it's also for people with more than 10 items. Or it's like having a carpool lane, but you don't actually need 2+ people in the car.

The whole idea behind Fastlane is to let me get through the tolls faster and to reduce the amount of workers needed as toll collectors. And yet someone had the brilliant idea to do this? This is certainly not the way to get more drivers to sign up for Fastlane!

PS - The car at the toll was taking so long that I actually switched over (safelt) to a regular Fastlane toll and left the change counters in the dust.

It's the New England Revolution, Revolution

The New England Revolution, of Major League Soccer (MLS) have had quite the week. In what I can only describe as a long shot, they had the chance to (and did) sign a young (26), experienced, US National team player. His name: Benny Feilhaber. In another great move, they announced a major partnership with United Healthcare that will now be a sponsor on the Revs' jerseys.

With a brand new international forward they brought in last week, the Revs have potential? Potential to succeed, depends on your definition of success. These moves certainly won't guarantee them an MLS Cup, something that has evaded them for quiet some time. But what these moves do are create some buzz around the team. Whether they can capitalize on such buzz is another question.

If we didn't have names, stats or salaries of our newest acquisitions we'd possibly think these are NY Red Bull type deals. In fact they are not, not even close. They don't have to be (it would be extremely difficult, and costly to bring in another Henry-caliber player).

But what this does make me think about is how after all these moves we are not making strides in the league. The Revs aren't the first to do this (both bringing in a DP-like player, or having a jersey sponsor), in fact they are one of the last. So although the Revolution fans are ecstatic that the team is making moves, it should remind us of just how, dare I say bad, we were? The Revs are finally stepping up to league average, and hopefully this is the start of something great.

I hate to bring the negativity to the table, but this is the first time in a few years the Revs have done anything really worthwhile. Hopefully it's not too late and we can return to being one of the premier teams in the league.

Should Varitek Change His Name?

So we keep hearing about how the newest catcher of the Red Sox, Jarrod Saltalamacchia, has the longest name in MLB history (14 letters). It's really nothing more than a tongue twister and a hassle for the guy that has to sew on all those letters.

Anyway, news came out today that Jason Varitek has proposed to his girlfriend. Congrats to Tek, but here comes the question for our beloved catcher and captain... Does he take on her name or keep his own? You may say this is quite the easy decision as his current name is widely known. BUT... if he takes on her name, he could 1-up Salty, and have the longest name in MLB history (15 letters).

Her name you may ask? Panagiotopoulos

To make it easier for you to count: Panag-iotop-oulos

Anyway, I think Jason Panagiotopoulos could catch on! Although I'm still not sure how to pronounce that.



vs.



... and before you judge, I never said I was an artist.

Coach K vs. The Devil

As I was watching today's Duke vs. Michigan 3rd round tournament game, I noticed something... Coach K. and the Duke mascot look pretty similar. How have I never noticed this before?

The nose, the chin, the ears... dare I say twins?
vs.


Well I thought I'd touch up Coach K's picture a bit, and now you can't even tell them apart.

March Madness

It's been a while my friends, but I'm back writing... for now.

As I'm watching another "3rd Round" March Madness game, I had to comment on how great this tournament is. Besides a few first round games - namely the 1 vs. 16 games - every game is up for grabs. Any team, regardless of seeding, could pull off an upset. When you get past the initial games, this is even more evident. Seeing a #1 Pittsburgh lose, watching another #1 Duke almost lose in the final seconds, one realizes anything can happen. Like "any given Sunday" in the NFL, on any day a team could win and that's what makes this tournament so great.

Another reason college basketball is so entertaining is the fact that these kids are passionate. They're not spoiled millionaires (although some will be soon) and they're playing with heart.

There's been talk of expanding the tournament to 96 teams, and I think that's just ridiculous. By adding almost 30 teams, you're just watering down the competition. You will still have teams and fans complaining their team didn't get in, unfortunately that will never end.

Just a couple thoughts...

GO UCONN!!!

The Meaning of Records

Have you ever thought about the meaning of a sports record? What it says about a player? What impact it has on that sport?

Recently Ray Allen, of the Boston Celtics, became the career leader in 3-pointers made in the NBA. He surpassed Reggie Miller, who set the record in 3 more years, and about 300 more games. This is an amazing accomplishment, and says a lot about the skill and longevity of Allen. What may be more impressive is the person with the 3rd most 3-points is almost 1,000 baskets behind, and yet is a hall-of-famer (Jason Kidd).

Listening to the hype around this record made me think about what records mean. Which records really say something about the athlete, and which just mean a guy was able to stay healthy to play long enough? I'll admit that it usually takes both of these to break records. Many great players dealt with early career ending injuries, and many healthy players just weren't good enough to last.

When you look at Ray Allen's newest record you can break it down based on these factors. He's been healthy enough to last 15 years in the league. But when looking at his impact on the game and the others on that list of players, one can acknowledge his great skill.

Another record of where skill and longevity allowed for such accomplishment is that of recently retired Brazilian soccer player, Ronaldo. Ronaldo has a record 15 World Cup goals. Few players had ever scored in 3 different World Cups, and this is no easy feat on its own. Playing at such a high level over at least 9-10 years is impressive, and scoring frequently demonstrates his niche for scoring goals.

Now come the other type of records. These records are still impressive, but were able to happen due to longevity more so than skill. Whether correct or not, I do take a bit away from these records. Some are fortunate to not suffer major injuries and over time records will be broken.

The first example that comes to mind is Brett Favre and all of his records. Whether it be touchdown passes, passing yards, or interceptions, they were all bound to be broken after 20 years of playing. Is he a hall-of-famer? Yes. But statistically he's not the best there is, rather his ability to avoid major injury has allowed this to happen. (Favre's TD:Int ratio is 1.5, Brady: 2.5, Manning: 2.0)

Maybe I just have something against Brett Favre, but I didn't mean for this to be a Favre bashing post. Some athletes are more fortunate then others when it comes to major injuries and when this happens records are less about skill. Records such as Cal Ripken Jr's record of games played or Favre's streak for that matter are still impressive.

This concludes my rant on this subject. It's been on my mind for a few days and I felt I needed to post after being silent the last few weeks. My point is just that in my eye's their are records set with skill, and records set with longevity. Both impressive, yet different.

Thoughts?

Snow, Snow, Go Away!

I just got home from work after a long, tiring week of shoveling and doing my best to drive carefully around snow banks and on now-narrow roads. Please don't read into this as I am complaining about the snow. Living in New England for over 2 decades, I am used to this and accept it as a part of life.

What I can't seem to get over though is just how bad people are at dealing with it. Every drivers' true colors comes to show when there is snow on the ground. People think it's some act of God that we have to deal with. It's snow! Sure, there are things you are supposed to do: drive slower, brake with more time in the event the roads are icy, etc. But then you have the people that speed like their at Daytona. The best part about it, is everyone thinks they are not to blame for the 2-hour commute to work. If you haven't expected this by now, move to Florida.

That's enough of my rant on bad drivers in the snow. My real issue is with the government and agencies put in place to deal with this weather. I realize we're experiencing a more than usual amount of snowfall so far, and it doesn't help storms have come so frequently. Enough about excuses. Cities and towns have already exceeded their snow removal budgets, and we're still in January. Look, someone has to realize we're in New England and to over-estimate the budget for this. Yes, I understand schools need money, but this happens every year and no one learns. Make some bold moves, and rearrange the budget to properly support the winter weather that we all dread.

Now to the safety issues. Mounds of snow at street corners, and narrow roads. Alright folks, am I the only one that has almost been T-boned by oncoming traffic because I must inch halfway into the road to see if a car is coming? These piles of snow are blocking my entire line of vision, as well as the vision of oncoming cars. Can these plows be a little more thoughtful about where they build up 8-feet piles of snow? Or maybe we should hire a special division of people that go around shoveling off feet of snow at each corner. I realize these are asking a lot, but my point is, I've been in enough near accidents, that I'd prefer to not actually get into one to fully make my point.

Additionally, has anyone noticed the width of our roads got cut in half? Do the plows not consider those few feet on the right side of the street part of the road? I deal with this every day where cars must ride both lanes because the right-most lane is not wide enough for a car. This too is an accident waiting to happen, and I see them almost occurring every day.

The point I'm trying to make with this post, is that we live in New England, and should know how to properly move snow. We spend a ton of money each year on doing snow removal, yet somehow it remains inefficient. I recommend developing a committee that lives in Alaska for a year to learn exactly what they do when it snows. I never hear them complaining, so something they do must be working.

The Love of My Life Evades Me

I wanted the title of this post to be serious, but don't think this is some lovey-dovey romance story. I think many people share my feelings on this subject, and as I sit in my bed early on this Saturday morning I decided to share my thoughts.

The love of my life, is sleeping, and unfortunately as I have entered this thing we call the "real world" it evades me. In college, especially my last semester or two, I had an amazing class schedule. Many times I was able to sleep in until 11am or noon, and that doesn't include after a rough night of partying. In fact, more than half my college career was without classes on Friday (How is that preparing us for the real world?!). So there I was, having a 3 day weekend, with very little responsibility. My biggest concerns on a Saturday were: What am I going to eat? What sport games are on TV? and When to start pregaming for that nights activities? That was the life of a college student. Not only was I able to sleep in, but my body physically allowed me to do so.

Now we fast-forward to the present day, at a time when I'm up early 5 days a week to begin the work day. And unlike school, you can't get away with being half asleep in your seat. It was a rough transition even though I had been used to it the last few summers.

The work week isn't really what I'm upset about as I've come to a realization that waking up early Monday-Friday will be my routine for the next 40 years. What I have an issue with is how this routine effects my weekend plans. I'd love to sleep in and sometimes mimic a day in the life of a college student, but that just doesn't happen. My body has become used to the idea of waking up early and sleeping in on the weekend is now 9am. That's just way too early.

For all you youngsters, it is better to accept what I am saying then try denying it. Even if you have nothing to do on the weekend, you will end up waking early.

Like taxes and death that are inevitable, so is the death of sleeping in.


I guess after writing this post I can say I've been productive today...

The Challenges of Blogging

So I've taken a bit of a break from updating this blog, and as much as I'd like to say it was because I was away on vacation, it wasn't. It was purely me being lazy and not coming across a topic I really felt like writing about. Every time I have mentioned my dilemma to people they respond by suggesting a topic or two for me to discuss. And although I appreciate the ideas, it's not always that easy.

Some people manage a blog on a full-time basis and are therefore forced to create content daily. Others maintain blogs that are focused on a certain topic and that tends to give them guidelines to write within. And maybe that is what makes keeping a blog such as Unsophisticated Banter difficult. I created this blog with the intentions to write about any and all topics I came across that I was passionate about, or at least that interested me enough.

The problem here is trying to come up with enough thoughts and/or analysis on a subject that you can write a well thought out post. You would think it's easy to write what comes to our mind, but in fact maintaining a blog is more then that.

Even as I write this I find that I am forcing myself to keep typing.

This is going to end up being a shorter post then I normally do, but I encourage all you fellow bloggers out there to share your blogging experience.

Where do you get your ideas?

How to you develop your thoughts for the blog?

Any tips for me or others with hopes of starting a blog?