Dan Patrick just said a source told him the appeal is ongoing in the Ryan Braun case. It got me to thinking about a nice streak that the Brewers slugger has going. Every full season of major league baseball that the left fielder has played, he's started the All-Star Game.
Let's say he is suspended for the first 50 games. Will that streak continue?
We all know that the majority of fans don't care about PED use in baseball, and I believe that will be proven in the voting for the mid-summer classic. Matt Kemp is in, so there are two spots open in the National League outfield. If Braun doesn't fill one of those, who will? Carlos Beltran or Matt Holiday from St. Louis? Probably not teammates. Jay Bruce, Justin Upton, Andrew McCutchen, Carlos Gonzalez? All of them are very good players, but only Gonzalez can match Braun's trophy case and postseason success.
Chicken Meatballs
Using a few tricks and ingredients, this chicken meatball recipe cracks the impossible code of delivering the flavor, moisture, and tenderness of the traditional beef/pork meatball, with about half the calories and fat.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/2 cup parmesan
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 tsp salt
1 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
1 Tbsp garlic powder
1Tbsp italian seasoning
1 1/2 lbs Roberts' italian sausage (available in a wide variety of flavors/spicyness)
1 egg
1/2 yellow onion, shredded
1/2 cup part-skim mozzerella
1/4 corn starch
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 jar store-bought marinara sauce
Directions:
Using your hands or a stand-mixer, combine the first seven ingredients in a large bowl and mix well until combined. Add chicken, egg, onion, and mozzerella, and mix until just barely combined. DON'T OVERMIX! (makes for tough meatballs)
Using medium-sized ice-cream scooper, scoop out meat mixture and form into balls, using hands (should make about 18), and set on a plate. Refrigerate for half an hour.
Roll meatballs in corn starch, shaking off excess, using hands. Meanwhile, start heating oil over medium-high heat in a large, shallow, stainless steel pan. Place meatballs in pan and cook covered for 10-12 minutes, turning (or shake the pan) every 3-4 minutes, until all sides are browned.
Add marinara sauce to pan. If there are any bits of meatball stuck to the pan, scrape it off using a wooden spoon (that's flavor!). Bring to a boil, reduce to simmer, and cook for about 20 minutes, covered.
Serve over your favorite whole wheat pasta or whole-wheat hoagie bun, and enjoy!
Didnt expect the show this morning to take an unexpected twist with Howie Magner sitting in for Wickett.. i contended that the Badger basketball team for all of it regular season success,has been a major failure in the NCAA Tournament.Too many times they have had the doors blown off by a lesser team when expectations were much higher..At least in my book..Howie contended that the Badgers have been successful in the tourney. I thought i was argue-free for a day when Wickett took a vacation. Still ,i dont understand how anyone can feel differently about Badger hoops. Great regular season program,especially in fattening up on bad teams and of course dominating the top 25 at the Kohl Center. But a MAJOR disappointment in March.
Once traded for Chris Webber, the former North Carolina State standout was at the Wolfpack game against Florida State with fellow NC State alum Chris Corchiani. The video shows both men being removed from their seats after getting under the skin of referee Karl Hess. Did I mention it was a home game for NC State?!?!
I'm not interested with what Corchiani said to Hess. You don't kick out a star alum. NC State ended up losing.
I know what you're thinking. You're angry, and I'm sorry. I know it's a terrible pun, but aren't I entitled to one bad Jeremy Lin pun. Oh, it's not the pun you're angry about? You're upset because I'm about to compare Knicks' point guard sensation, Jeremy Lin, to Jackie Robinson, the legendary Dodger who broke the color barrier in baseball. You're saying that comparison is crazy and an insult to Robinson. Well, it's not crazy and it's actually a compliment to Robinson's legacy.
Floyd Mayweather Jr., while maybe by accident, was partly correct when he tweeted that Lin was only getting so much attention because he was Asian. It's not the only reason, but race is a factor and that's a good thing. Lin is the first ever American-born Asian NBA player. He is the one and only; the very definition of unique, and unique is a story. Also a story, is that he's doing some pretty damn impressive things, just like Robinson did when broke on the scene. As long as people handle it respectfully, or at least try to, it's a celebration that the game is more diverse today than it was yesterday. The fact that professional sports, and all avenues of success, continue to open up to more and more people of every race, creed, and color, is a very testament to the struggle of people like Jackie Robinson.
Also a testament to Robinson is the fact that Lin didn't have to go through the same struggles Robinson did to break the 'color barrier' in the NBA. Open racism is frowned upon now, and instituional racism is outright illegal, because of the progress we've made as a country thanks to Jackie Robinson and other civil rights leaders. But that doesn't mean that race and racism isn't, and hasn't been, something that Lin has had to overcome. Everyday we see another comment, headline, etc. that comes off as (at the very least, possibly) racist, sometimes seemingly by accident. You don't think he sees that? You don't think it affects him?
And if the kid is for real, what reason is there, other than race, that he was overlooked coming out of High School and college? Scouts, coaches, and even fans had never seen a great, or even good, Asian-American basketball player, so they just assumed there weren't any and immediately discounted him. Lin fell victim to the same type of thinking that said black people can't play quarterback in the NFL, and a long list of stereotypes that continue to be proven untrue.
Richard Childress Racing: Crew chief change for Kevin Harvick again! Shane Wilson will now try his hand at working with “Happy” Harvick. Jeff Burton finds himself with a new crew chief in Drew Blickensdefer, who comes over from Roush racing. Paul Menard remains with Slugger Labbe going into his second year with RCR. I’m not a fan of constant changes at the crew chief position on racing teams from year to year as chemistry is key to a success of any race team. However, having said that, the most pressure on this team this year is on the driver who didn’t have a crew chief swap and that’s the Paul Menard team. Without Clint Bowyer back this year, Menard will have to step his game up to justify Bowyer leaving to go to Michael Waltrip racing. I think it’s reasonable to set a goal of two of the three drivers to be in the top 15 at the end of the season.
Roush Racing: Only major thing to happen this off season was the #6 car going from a fulltime ride with David Ragan to a part time ride with Ricky Stenhouse. Will the loss of that full time ride help or hurt Roush racing? This is the first time they’ve been a three car team, my money is on that it will make them stronger. I believe all three guys will be in the chase, with Carl Edwards winning the championship.
Joe Gibbs Racing: Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin are locks to be championship contenders each and every year regardless of what’s happening with the other teams. Thankfully, JD Gibbs didn’t overreact and let Kyle Busch go this off season after his off track incident. Joey Logano is in a must win situation this year and unfortunately for him he has to do it with a new crew chief as Zippy left to go help out at Stewart-Haas racing. Nationwide crew chief Jason Ratcliff is the new man in charge and is good enough to help Joey take his game to the next level, now let’s see if Logano can do it. His contract is up after this year and it would be a huge step back for Logano if JGR lets him go. I don’t think he makes the chase but he better win a couple of race in 2012 to secure his ride for the future.
Hendrick Racing: Welcome Kasey Kahne! This will be a HUGE upgrade in my opinion, Kahne can drive anything given to him and get the most out of the equipment given to him. Dale Earnhardt, Jr is the worst driver of the four guys racing for Rick Hendrick now and it’s not even debatable. The one thing Junior has going for him is his last name which will ensure sponsorship and a full time ride with whichever team he chooses to race for. Jeff Gordon isn’t getting any younger, but until he shows some signs of father time affecting his driving abilities, you pencil him into the chase. Jimmy “Five Time” Johnson finally had his championship string stopped in 2011 and I’ll go out on a limb and predict that after 2012 you will see a change at crew chief for the 48.
I hear this one (in some form) at LEAST 5 times a week: "They should just shut up and play. I'd play (insert sport) for 1/10th of what those spoiled rich athletes make"....yeah? Would ya? I think we all would. But here's the problem: YOU CAN'T. You're not good enough. You never were. You either didn't work hard enough or you weren't blessed with the talent to be better than everyone else in your town as a kid. Guess what? Neither was I. Nor were 99% of the rest of the people on this planet. That sucks. I know. We'd all like to play shortstop or quarterback for our favorite teams. Guess what?? But life sucks.
Guess what else? They're human. They have problems like all of us. Family...work...friends...women. I will grant you this: they don't have the financial issues that some of us have. But when they go into a funk (see: Brandon Jennings) and they seem to be upset and not giving their all, I wonder if I've ever had my personal life run into a show of mine and affect my on air performance. Has this happened to you? If you answered "no" then you're either 1 of 2 things: a liar or a robot.
We're human. Just like the athletes. Sometimes they show it when we don't want them too. We damn them for not saying a word and crucify them when they say what's on their mind if it's not the company line.
Cut them (especially the younger ones) some slack. What they do on the court/field/ice/etc is unlike anything else on Earth.
Pitchers and catchers report! Are you ready, or did the negative bug bite you?
Yes, Prince is gone, and the team WILL move on. But that doesn't mean the crew will not do well in 2012. We're talking about a team that won 96 games. The same rotation will be intact for 2012. The same back end of the bullpen is still there. Yes, some changes on the infield, most notable 3rd baseman Aramis Ramirez. Ramirez will pick up a big chunk of the offensive loss due to Princes departure. So here we go, from 96 wins and a division title, to 88 wins and another apperance in the post season. Can you see it?
Oh, I need to consider a potential suspension of NL MVP Ryan Braun? Let's cross that bridge when we get there. At the time of this writing, there has been no suspension. To get into the playoffs, you need to win your division, or make the wild card if my memory serves.
Are the Cubs going to compete in the central? Not quite yet, however, Dale Sveum will certainly help. Pirates? Much improved, but not quite their time. Cardinals? When you lose Albert, and LaRussa, I can't see them as this POWERHOUSE when compared to the crew. Are they good despite their losses, yes, but how good is the question. Reds? Pitching, pitching, pitching...do they have enough?
The 2012 Brewers may not win 96 games again, but will compete for the post season. Lets take it one step further. The goal is to win the World Series, I believe we can all agree on that. What it takes to win a championship is to get hot at the right time. Example, Cardinals. In football, the Giants. Are the Brewers capable of being that team that gets sizzling hot at the right time? Why not?
Milwaukee Bucks PG Brandon Jennings said the following after they lost to New Orleans on 2/15: "I can't say I've been playing hard the last couple games...I really haven't. I need to look in the mirror and ask myself if this is something I'm up for." <-----that got everyone upset...and with good reason. If I was a season ticket holder and paid my hard earned money to see a team play, I'd be pretty upset to hear our "star" point guard admit he wasn't playing hard every night. (Hello, randy moss!) I can't blame anyone for being upset with BJ or this whole season so far.
I'm going to look at this with a "glass is half full" mentality real quick...(not a popular viewpoint, i know). Things aren't going well for the Bucks...(duh). I think Brandon is getting bad advice from a certain teammate/party planner. I think the feud between SJax/Skiles is boiling over to the PG who has the entire weight of the team on his back, since #6 went out (again). We've all had bad days, even stretches at work where we just go through the motions. Sometimes our relationships with our coworkers just rub us the wrong way and we wonder, "why?". We get over it, whether through a cool down period, time away, quiet time or just by manning up. I hope for the bucks (and bucks fans) sake that Brandon will use this adversity to grow stronger. I hope that he understands what he's got in front of him. He can have an entire city behind him. I think he WANTS to do good for Milwaukee...i also think it's just bad time for the young buck...As for the spoiled athlete idea? ...well that's tomorrow's blog.
I regret to inform you that your product has a flaw and needs to be fixed. At some point Mr. McMahon, you need to let go of the past and move forward. I understand that you deserve credit for building an empire that’s known as WWE, however, that shouldn’t allow you to become complacent and rest on your laurels. Hulk Hogan put this company on the map and since then you have developed many personalities and made them cultural icons. Whether it be Stone Cold, the Rock, Triple H, the Undertaker or Shawn Michaels all of them became bigger than life to the average fan through their ring skills, mic skills, and roles that they may have played in television shows or movies.
If you noticed, four of those past their prime entertainers will probably be involved in this year’s Wrestlemania in Miami. I’m not quite certain if this shows your lack of faith in your current group of people on your roster to carry the biggest event of the year or your lack of motivation to create story lines worth following.
If it’s the first reason, then by all means it’s time to start bringing in some new talent that have better mic and ring skills. I simply don’t understand how guys like Jack Swagger have jobs in the top wrestling company on planet earth. Do you not listen to the broadcasts? The guy is awful and on top of that has a lisp that becomes very annoying. Then there is Cody Rhodes, who let’s face it has a job because of his father and your allegiance to him. On top of that the diva division is an absolute joke as you’ve taken away the sex appeal. If you think people are all fired up to watch women try to wrestle like the guys do, you’re dead wrong.
Let’s say the reason you bring back the over the hill stars is indeed you and your staff’s lack of motivation to write better story lines. Then shame on for you for having let it get to this point. Hulk Hogan went into business with Dixie Carter to have their brand of wrestling that I hoped would generate competition for you and indeed get the competitive juices flowing to write better story lines. That was my fault for assuming that it would motivate you. I guess the only thing that motivates you at this point is dollar signs, which is really a sad sign of the times today.
The Elimination Chamber pay per view is scheduled to be in Milwaukee this Sunday, February 19th. This consumer will not be attending until your product’s flaw has been fixed.
