All World All Sports
-Digger's Daily-
Remember charismatic player turned manager Bobby Valentine? Bobby V was very well liked as a player during his unspectacular 10 year journeyman career. His popularity soon soared during his managerial career in Texas and New York (Mets).
Bobby V quickly became an icon in Japan as manager of Chiba Lotte Marines. In his 2nd stint as Marines manager they were pennant winners in 2005 for the first time in 31 years. A few games later, Chiba won their first championship since 1974. Bobby V mania soon took over. Players and fans love him in Japan. Management seems to be another story. I don't have concrete details other than hearing brief reports stating past personality clashes and ownership currently not willing to renew V's contract beyond 2009.
ESPN recently reported 100,000 Marines fans signed a formal "petition seeking to keep the American as manager of the Chiba Lotte Marines beyond the 2009 Japanese baseball season." Will it work? Who knows? 100,000 signatures certainly solidifies Bobby's stature in Japanese baseball regardless of managements decision. His folklore can only grow if this stunt works.
I know of a few Texas Rangers fans keeping fingers and toes crossed hoping for Valentine's contract to expire without renewal. After a recent texting session with friends, it's clear fans in his large circle definitely want owner Hicks to rehire their most beloved former manager. I witnessed Valentine's Dallas area popularity while living in Plano years ago. If the Rangers (currently 1st in AL West) pull another one of their usual summer fades from grace ... then there's little doubt local talk radio (The Ticket) and area fans will lobby for Bobby's return.
I was not one of Bobby's bigger fans when he managed the New York Mets. He had a terrible time handling self indulged personalities during playoff runs. Rickey Henderson, Bobby Bonilla and Armando Benitez were clubhouse disasters. Bonilla never lived up to super hyper NY contracts and often wore ear plug to drown out Shea Stadium boo-birds. Henderson famously left NY's dugout during NLCS vs rival Atlanta to play clubhouse poker with Bonilla and others after being removed from the game instead of using their veteran skills to motivate Mets teammates. At other times, Valentine made rookie type mistakes ranging from illegal lineup substitutions to poor pitching staff decisions. Failing to demand Roger Clemens ejection after intentionally throwing a broken bat at Mike Piazza during Mets 2000 World Series loss vs Yankees was inept. But, hey... that's just my arm-chair quarterback 2 cents.
One of Valentine's most famous Mets incidents occured in 1999 after being ejected. He snuck back into the dugout after changing clothes, wearing a faux mustache and dark glasses. This moment was replayed over and over around New York. Fans ate it up. If Mets fans endure another classic September choke Bobby's name will quickly become local headline fodder campaigning for his return to the Big Apple.
If Japanese fans have their way then Bobby Valentine stays. If he's cut loose then I hope Texas Rangers will quickly jump at an opportunity bring back V. To be fair, Bobby knows how to inspire young players. I'm sure team prez and Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan knows this fact. Rangers have a young nucleus of talent. Bobby V might be the perfect fit.
(www.allworldallsports.com)
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Showing posts with label Japan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Japan. Show all posts
Friday, June 12, 2009
Sunday, March 22, 2009
News Makers, Rumors, Champs & More Chumps
Visit All World All Sports
-Digger's Daily-
It's been another wild week in sports news with much to discuss. It's been a week of good, bad and ugly. Let's begin with good stuff today before taking aim at the rest.
Good:
World Baseball Classic has been great fun to watch. In stunning fashion, the Netherlands disposed of a heavily favored Dominican Republic team... not once, twice! DR roster looks like Major League Baseball All Star team. David Ortiz, Hanley Ramirez, Jose Reyes, Miguel Tejada, Robinson Cano, Pedro Martinez and many rising stars. DR's pitchers gave up only one earned run in WBC play. It didn't matter as a gutsy Netherlands team stunned everyone by taking two.
Semi-Finals: USA vs Japan (Sunday 8 pm ET). This game could be an instant classic. USA is in a zone. Oswalt will take on Japan's greatest players. Boston's Dice K will take aim for Japan against his fellow major leaguers. USA will have their hands full trying to knock off a great squad. The Japanese team plays a very well disciplined game. USA will have to play their best brand of baseball without mistakes and deep pitching counts. I'm looking forward to watching this one!
NCAA Basketball Tourney got underway this week. Much to the delight of college basketball fans. Much to the dismay of CBS daytime soap opera fans. Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski responded to President B.H. Obama's bracket predictions: "Somebody said that we're not in President Obama's Final Four, and as much as I respect what he's doing, really, the economy is something that he should focus on, probably more than the brackets." Duke reached the Sweet 16 Saturday night.
In the Midwest bracket, #13 Cleveland State stunned #4 Wake Forrest. Their next opponent is #12 Arizona who knocked off #5 Utah. The heat will be turned up with every game as team fight for survival. Great games have already been played. Many more to come!
NBA
Shaquille O'Neal has become the 5th all time scorer in NBA history (27,411) Saturday. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is #1 with 38,387. Shaq might of had a chance to reach as high as #3. Has anyone ever watched Shaq botch free throws? He's missed a few thousand.
NHL
New Jersey Devil Martin Brodeur is the NHL's all time winningest goaltender after breaking Patrick Roy's record. Martin has 523 wins and counting. He has showed no signs of slowing down. One of my favorite hockey players ever continues to shut down opposing teams. His '09 record is 15-3-2, 1.97 GAA with 5 shutouts. NJ is red hot and ready to make a run at another Stanley Cup Championship.
Rumors:
Pedro Martinez wants to be a NY Met again. His signing a few years back was a complete bust. Pedro spent more time on the disabled list than on the mound. However, he's healthy now for the first time in many years. He looked terrific in limited action for his Dominican Republic WBC team. He's willing to play for a very minimum salary. Mets, or any team in need of a starting pitcher, would be crazy not to take a chance by offering Pedro a modest salary.
Champs:
2008 NHL Champion Detroit Red Wings took over as top point leader with 105. Detroit is red hot and suddenly looking ready to defend their title after a somewhat less than spectacular season in '09. There dead on right now. Playoff hockey will be stronger than ever. I'm rooting for New Jersey or Boston to dethrone Detroit.
Chumps:
Here we go again... Dante Stallworth (NFL, Cleveland Browns) struck and killed a pedestrian with his car in Miami Beach. Initial reports alleged Stallworth was legally drunk. The dui story has been debunked, for now, by Miami police who stated results are pending. I guess the phrase "dumb jock" lives on!
#2 goes to President B.H. Obama for comparing his bowling skills to Special Olympic participants. What seemed like an innocent joke on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno has become somewhat of a media nightmare. One of Obama's biggest supporters, California First Lady Maria Shriver quickly pounced on his remarks stating laughing at such comments "hurts millions of people throughout the world." Obama later called Shrivers brother Special Olympics Chairman Tim Shriver, to apologize. This episode fueled a minor media frenzy highlighting some of the many early gaffe's of our nations new administration as they struggle to stand on solid ground.
(www.allworldallsports.com)
-Digger's Daily-
It's been another wild week in sports news with much to discuss. It's been a week of good, bad and ugly. Let's begin with good stuff today before taking aim at the rest.
Good:
World Baseball Classic has been great fun to watch. In stunning fashion, the Netherlands disposed of a heavily favored Dominican Republic team... not once, twice! DR roster looks like Major League Baseball All Star team. David Ortiz, Hanley Ramirez, Jose Reyes, Miguel Tejada, Robinson Cano, Pedro Martinez and many rising stars. DR's pitchers gave up only one earned run in WBC play. It didn't matter as a gutsy Netherlands team stunned everyone by taking two.
Semi-Finals: USA vs Japan (Sunday 8 pm ET). This game could be an instant classic. USA is in a zone. Oswalt will take on Japan's greatest players. Boston's Dice K will take aim for Japan against his fellow major leaguers. USA will have their hands full trying to knock off a great squad. The Japanese team plays a very well disciplined game. USA will have to play their best brand of baseball without mistakes and deep pitching counts. I'm looking forward to watching this one!
NCAA Basketball Tourney got underway this week. Much to the delight of college basketball fans. Much to the dismay of CBS daytime soap opera fans. Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski responded to President B.H. Obama's bracket predictions: "Somebody said that we're not in President Obama's Final Four, and as much as I respect what he's doing, really, the economy is something that he should focus on, probably more than the brackets." Duke reached the Sweet 16 Saturday night.
In the Midwest bracket, #13 Cleveland State stunned #4 Wake Forrest. Their next opponent is #12 Arizona who knocked off #5 Utah. The heat will be turned up with every game as team fight for survival. Great games have already been played. Many more to come!
NBA
Shaquille O'Neal has become the 5th all time scorer in NBA history (27,411) Saturday. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is #1 with 38,387. Shaq might of had a chance to reach as high as #3. Has anyone ever watched Shaq botch free throws? He's missed a few thousand.
NHL
New Jersey Devil Martin Brodeur is the NHL's all time winningest goaltender after breaking Patrick Roy's record. Martin has 523 wins and counting. He has showed no signs of slowing down. One of my favorite hockey players ever continues to shut down opposing teams. His '09 record is 15-3-2, 1.97 GAA with 5 shutouts. NJ is red hot and ready to make a run at another Stanley Cup Championship.
Rumors:
Pedro Martinez wants to be a NY Met again. His signing a few years back was a complete bust. Pedro spent more time on the disabled list than on the mound. However, he's healthy now for the first time in many years. He looked terrific in limited action for his Dominican Republic WBC team. He's willing to play for a very minimum salary. Mets, or any team in need of a starting pitcher, would be crazy not to take a chance by offering Pedro a modest salary.
Champs:
2008 NHL Champion Detroit Red Wings took over as top point leader with 105. Detroit is red hot and suddenly looking ready to defend their title after a somewhat less than spectacular season in '09. There dead on right now. Playoff hockey will be stronger than ever. I'm rooting for New Jersey or Boston to dethrone Detroit.
Chumps:
Here we go again... Dante Stallworth (NFL, Cleveland Browns) struck and killed a pedestrian with his car in Miami Beach. Initial reports alleged Stallworth was legally drunk. The dui story has been debunked, for now, by Miami police who stated results are pending. I guess the phrase "dumb jock" lives on!
#2 goes to President B.H. Obama for comparing his bowling skills to Special Olympic participants. What seemed like an innocent joke on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno has become somewhat of a media nightmare. One of Obama's biggest supporters, California First Lady Maria Shriver quickly pounced on his remarks stating laughing at such comments "hurts millions of people throughout the world." Obama later called Shrivers brother Special Olympics Chairman Tim Shriver, to apologize. This episode fueled a minor media frenzy highlighting some of the many early gaffe's of our nations new administration as they struggle to stand on solid ground.
(www.allworldallsports.com)
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