Blog Outsourcing 4/26

Welcome to the final TMA for April 2010. It was Earth Day last Thursday, and there have been lots and lots of weird environmental occurences. With earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, and the ridiculous heat, it is as if Mother Earth is giving us a wassup?! (Or Maybe it is just Al Gore, who will be here in the islands in June). So here are some ways of accelerating the healing process (Info taken from here).

12. Ride your bike. Cycledan would approve of this.

27. Teach kids about the environment. Dads all over the world would appreciate it.

24. Landscape with native plants. Those with gardens would know how to do this.

19. Bring your own bags to the grocery store. Given a choice between plastic and paper, opt for paper. Some malls here have instituted the BYOB Wednesdays!

9. Recycle your newspapers. Hopefully not recycle old news.

Now, time to make your move. But before that, kindly check the links.

I am terribly annoyed at some people who would rather retire than deal with being undrafted. That guy need to see these people.

Who is Mr. Irrelevant?

Spurs are just one win away from ousting the Mavs. Does Mark Cuban have bad juju?

The 2003 draft studs sure looked the part. Lebron with a trip-doub. Wade scored 46. Melo's Nuggets lost, but he went 39-11.

How to improve the NFL Draft.

I wonder how many teams would benefit from Alan Faneca.

The end of the Jamarcus era. Mercifully.

Maybe he will rediscover the Patron with Pete, who is remaking the Seahawks to look like SoCal.

There may be still hope for this guy.

Aren't the Mets getting too much tWWL exposure?

Who thought the Red Wings get tested to the limit? Meanwhile, the best chance for Canadian hope is still alive.

Should Savard do the Brandon Roy?

Finally, Kevin Harvick wins one again.

Chelsea staves off Manchester United, with two games each to go. One pt. separates the two.

To part off, here is some sensual music.

An Iron Man 2 Screening for a good cause

 (Photo taken from Iron Man website)

You are probably wondering what the heck is Iron Man doing on this particular blog.  Well, the Ateneo Alumni Tennis Club (for the benefit of the Ateneo Tennis Development Program). will be having a special screening of Iron Man 2 at the Powerplant Cinema 1 on 2PM Sunday, May 2 (after you watch Mayweather vs Mosley)

Tickets will be @ 500 pesos with raflle prizes awaiting lucky patrons. If you want to reserve tickets, one can contact Ms. Ida Solis at 426-6001 local 4081 or text 0920-9120946 or email her at isolis@ateneo.edu

Iron Man will be shown in the Philippines on April 30 while it will be shown in the US on May 7 (Thanks to Az for the date info).

The Ateneo LA Clippers Fantasy Baseball Roster

A couple of weeks ago, there was an open invitation for me to participate in a Fantasy Baseball League. This is the end result of my 1st ever auction draft. It's a 5x5 12-team standard ESPN Head-to-Head league.

ATENEO LA CLIPPERS
2	Jason Heyward, Atl OF	$17
11	Miguel Cabrera, Det 1B	$41
13	David Wright, NYM 3B	$37
17	Stephen Strasburg, Was SP	$6
27	Felix Hernandez, Sea SP	$39
34	Zack Greinke, KC SP	$39
52	Hideki Matsui, LAA DH	$6
58	Matt Wieters, Bal C	$18
61	Brandon Phillips, Cin 2B	$22
67	Andrew McCutchen, Pit OF	$14
146	Franklin Gutierrez, Sea OF	$4
160	Leo Nunez, Fla RP	$2
177	Julio Borbon, Tex OF	$4
185	Everth Cabrera, SD SS	$2
194	Brendan Ryan, StL SS	$1
217	Tim Wakefield, Bos SP	$1
226	Chris Perez, Cle RP	$1
235	Garrett Jones, Pit 1B	$1
243	Matt Lindstrom, Hou RP	$1
251	Skip Schumaker, StL 2B	$1
259	Jake Fox, Oak 3B	$1
266	Scott Feldman, Tex SP	$1
270	Neftali Feliz, Tex RP	$1

Looking at my roster, I took a huge gamble in securing the rights to both Jason Heyward & Stephen Strasburg (especially with the Nationals pitcher presumed to have a pitch limit of 100 innings in the majors). I took two top tier pitchers in King Felix and the recent AL Cy Young winner. Saves are a concern with issues involving Lindstrom and Nunez, plus Perez keeping me afloat.

Blog Outsourcing - 4/19

First of all, I had the pleasure of attending my first Auto Show yesterday, I am amazed with all the vehicles that were there. But there was this one that caught my eye.



Pardon as it is not much, you can say it is partially mailed-in.

And so, it's linking time.

The Durantulas get a reality check. Durant may have had difficulty against RonRon, but he is not fazed.

Magic survive a crash comeback. This matchup features two people from the classic series Avery Johnson wants to forget. Oh, Captain Jack's just fine.

Is this Hasselhoff-lover the best Euro ever?

It took two days, but the road team finally won a game. Because it was Miller Time.

We all knew KG's punk ass attitude will finally catch up to him. Now he pays the price. Q-Rich just pays. And Wade is thinking Frankie Goes to Hollywood.

Here's the memo on Memo: You're done.

Fanhouse has everything covered in this post.

He can play, but the question is actually where will he end up?

Jonathan Dwyer must be emulating Ricky.

Jason Heyward's legend continues. As the 7th person in the batting order.

Congrats Vin Scully! Manny sent you a gift.

Running always helps clear your head. Ask Ubaldo.

Have the Sharks perfected the art of choking?

And enjoy the week ahead.

Western Conference Playoffs Preview

Welcome to the NBA playoffs. After a slight hiatus, the TWTWTNBA returns to give snippets of what to see in the playoffs.

Western Conference Playoffs

1 - Los Angeles Lakers (57-25) vs 8 - Oklahoma City (50-32)

Oklahoma City, welcome to the postseason, and your reward is meeting with the defending champions. And already, we are seeing mind games from the Zen Master and Kevin Durant. Both teams sort of limping in into the postseason, with key crunchtime losses on the Thunder's end, while the Lakers just cruised by, with Kobe missing time to rest his injuries.

Key players to watch for: Kobe vs Durant scorefest beckons, but which Russell Westbrook will show up? And someone from the Lakers' bench needs to produce (Farmar, Brown, Vujacic, Walton and Powell) while Andrew Bynum is out and Lamar is starting in Andrew's place. After all, the OKC bench (Maynor, Harden, Ibaka, Collison) will cream them.

Prediction: Lakers in 6, but the Thunder is here to stay. Durant averages 35 pts in this series. Let's see if KD35 has the same competitive overdrive as Lebron and Kobe has.

2 - Dallas (55-27) vs 7 - San Antonio (50-32)

The Spurs have long since been on cruise control, deciding that they favor this I-35 rivalry. The Mavs, with 

their bunch of 30-somethings, could be the biggest hurdle for the Lakers as the West champs.

Key players to look out for: Dejuan Blair for the Spurs is the next coming of Malik Rose. Hopefully, Richard Jefferson is not the glorified version of Michael Finley in this incarnation of the Spurs. As for Dallas, the contributions of Brendan Haywood and Erick Dampier, as well as how Caron Butler as the Josh Howard replacement will be the major influence as to how the Mavs get it done.

Prediction: Mavs in 7. This series looks solid, but could possibly bore you to death.

3 - Phoenix (54-28) vs 6 - Portland (50-32)

Portland is limping in, with Brandon Roy as Exhibit A as to why Lebron is being DNP-CD'd. Of course, we all know about the Oden / Pryzbilla injuries. The SSOL P.D. (Post D'Antoni) looks in form, save for the injury to Sideshow Mel.

Key players to watch for: If Roy does not play, Martell Webster and Rudy Fernandez need to step up the way Travis Outlaw did last year. Given their thin frontline depth, Marcus Camby needs to keep himself in the game. The Suns' Hustle and Flow unit (Jared Dudley, Goran Dragic, Leandrinho Barbosa and Channing Frye) have been the difference between the SSOL and the SSOL P.D.

Prediction: Suns in 5. Brandon Roy will not play this postseason. Much credit though for Portland, because everyone (including their head coach) was hurt all year.

4 - Denver (53-29) vs 5 - Utah (53-29)

Denver lucked out of the draw by stealing away homecourt from the Jazz, because as people know, it is ridiculously difficult to win in the arena formerly known as the Delta Center. Blame it on the Mormons.

Key Players to watch for: Kenyon Martin and Nene needs to play 30+ minutes apiece if they have any chance to progress. Wesley Matthews has been a surprise since March, averaging double figures and playing major minutes. Paul Millsap grabbed 24 rebounds recently, and he really makes Boozer dispensable.

Prediction: Jazz in 7. Remains to be seen if the Nuggets can beat the Jazz in Salt Lake City, because the Jazz can beat the Nuggets at the Pepsi Center.

Eastern Conference Playoffs Preview

Welcome to the NBA playoffs. After a slight hiatus, the TWTWTNBA returns to give snippets of what to see in the playoffs.

Eastern Conference Playoffs:

1 - Cleveland (61-21) vs 8 - Chicago (41-41)

Most people expect the Cavs to steamroll the Bulls. Then again, we said the same thing about the Celtics last year against these Bulls and look at how many games in that series were ESPN Classic-rewatchable.

Key player to watch out for: Lebron, obviously, but Mo Williams needs to be the #2 that he is. Plus, we need to cue the Godfather music. For the Bulls, Derrick Rose needs to be at the range of his 2009 playoff performance. And Flip Murray has to approximate a good Ben Gordon day.

Prediction: Cavs in 5.

2 - Orlando (59-23) vs 7 - Charlotte (44-38)

Larry Brown completes the rebuilding cycle, with the Bobcats securing their first winning season and with that, their first playoff berth. Remains to be seen if he will return to the scene, although he has indicated he will. Let's see if the Magic can make their return trip with all their upgrading.

Key players to look out for: Crash and Captain Jack will carry the load, but how Raymond Felton and DJ Augustine play is paramount. Oh, and they have no chance if Tyson Chandler is out. As for the Magic, it's all about Matt Barnes, because he will be guarding both Crash and Captain Jack.

Prediction: Magic in 5

3 - Atlanta (53-29) vs 6 - Milwaukee (46-36)

This would have been fun, if Andrew Bogut did not suffer this. And who knew that the Hawks would escape the 4-hole. Do you #FearTheDeer?

Key players to look out for: Jamal Crawford will be winning the 6th Man of the Year. John Salmons looks like he will get rewarded. Oh and will Brandon Jennings shoot well? He shot just under 28% against the Hawks, his worst among all the teams.

Prediction: Hawks in 4.

4 - Boston (50-32) vs 5 - Miami (47-35)

Let's see if the PGA Tour can one-up the One-Man-Band. All the rumblings about the Celtics being in their last legs may be true. For Pat Riley's sake, they need a really good push in order for the MV3 to stay in South Beach.

Key players to look out for: Nate Robinson was acquired to provide a little oomph on their bench. He has averaged only 6.5 pts, 1.5 rebs and 2 assts since the All-Star break. We all know about Sheed. As for the Heat, someone has to help out Wade. It would naturally be Michael Beasley, but his numbers have tailed off since the All-Star Break.

Prediction: Boston in 7. Miami is like the marinade for the Celtics, who would then be barbecued by the Cavs in the next round.

Blog Outsourcing 4/12

Wassup! Another day, another week in the sporting realm of Sparty and Friends.

It has been sizzling hot over the past few days here in the islands. The heat, plus the additional work I have been assigned here in the office, has somewhat sapped me of my mind lately. Don't worry. There will be a NBA post being cooked up. Just waiting for the regular season to end. I might throw in another one for good measure. Just hoping that my mind would be able to cooperate.

Just as your college basketball season has ended, mine has just begun. The local collegiate preseason just began last Saturday, thus beginning the preparations for the quest towards a third straight title. We lose four players (three to graduation, which we are definitely proud of, one having to redshirt due to injury.) But knowing how prestigious my alma mater is, there are always good recruits down the pipeline, those that can withstand the rigors of being a true student-athlete. Yes, we will miss the low post offense of Rabeh Al-Hussaini, the defensive acumen of Nonoy Baclao, and the outside sniping of Jai Reyes, but we still have key cogs waiting to take over the mantle of leadership, like Eric Salamat and our own version of the Truth, Ryan Buenafe. And of course, this guy who has a knack of beating Tigers. Plus, we get training from Kobe.

Speaking of Tigers, here are the links:

The winner of the 2010 Masters also took time off from golf to deal with issues. As for you know who, well... some guy already predicted his 2010 schedule.

Anthony Kim was *this close* to winning it. And of course, no discussion of Anthony Kim is complete without showing you...

This year's Hard Knocks is going to be must-see TV. IMHO, this is a warning shot to someone by the Rooneys (Character above all). And yes, I am going to see / hear a lot of 60-minute puns for Mike Wallace. Too much of it, I predict.

Speaking of the Jets, still no word on Jason Taylor joining them. Looks like both the Redskins and the Jets are trying to secure either a DeLorean or the Hot Tub Time Machine with their acquisitions.

This matters because we really do not know who faces who right now.

Goodbye, Texas Stadium. Do you have any memories?

If this sale does not push through, it is Robert Mugabe's fault.

Casey saved the Brewers from the Pujols.

Can we give it to Doc already? But Lincecum won't give it up that easily.

So far, so good for the hidden assets in the minors, both in Altoona and in Louisville.

The AL Central race can be described as simply feisty. Feisty all season long. Speaking of which, will J-Rod describe the feeling of Target Field?

More fodder for concern for Red Sox Nation. As if Papi's hitting issues were not enough... Speaking of Papi, why would he speak out for him? Guilt by association? Maybe not.

We don't want another case of the Korey Stringer.

Happy to see this guy box again. I would not mind Manny facing him over Floyd. However, this is one of the many reasons why the heavyweight division is a joke. Meanwhile in MMA, lots of talk regarding Anderson Silva.

Father and son are together again.

Bulls looking good to be the first sacrificial lambs to the Lebrons. Speaking of Bron, he needed a day off.

Blazers needed the win, but suffered a crucial loss. Up next, a dogfight with the Durants, who botched it against the Currys.

If he gets the 20-5-5, #Reke4Roy, right?

Remember Derrick Coleman?

Futbol alert. Lionel Messi is awesome. So is Barcelona.

Video: Why is Lionel Messi awesome.

Sports Snippets

It has been a while since I last posted my sports snippets. Work admittedly sucks the life out of you and I have been out of whack lately. In other words, somebody needs to getcha head in the game. So let's begin.

NCAA College Basketball: And so ends the US Collegiate basketball scene. Congrats to the postseason tourney winners in Duke (NCAA), Dayton (NIT), Virginia Commonwealth (CBI) and Missouri State (CIT). Gotta show much love for Butler with how they performed all year. The NCAA title game is an instant classic. Imagine if Gordon Hayward made that shot. Just imagine. Stevens got an extension that will let him stay until the 2020-21 season (or some prestigious traditional established program i.e. Indiana / Duke / UCLA / Kentucky hires him). On the distaff side, a streak was broken. UConn's streak of blowing people out ended. Yes, finally, someone was *this* close to winning against this unstoppable force. Unfortunately, Stanford still lost, and the unbeaten run of this batch of Huskies continues. All of a sudden, that 88-game streak of UCLA under John Wooden a.k.a the Wizard of Westwood, is in jeopardy.

Tiger: Tiger Woods is currently playing his first tournament. Not bad to make your debut to be the first major of the year (The Masters). As of this writing (end of the 3rd rd), he's tied for 3rd with KJ Choi, 4 strokes from current leader Lee Westwood. Just a stroke back from Lee is good ol' Lefty. Hopefully, things do work out for him. And look, Tom Watson (yes, that Tom Watson) is in the top leaderboard.

Baseball begins and NBA regular season ends. Soccer machine Lionel Messi is on fire. Local college basketball just started the preseason and the local pro scene is alive as well.