It’s The Results That Matter
Well the baseball season is slowly unfolding and as it to be expected the highs and low of the season are to be expected . The Minnesota Twins it appears is on its way to becoming synonymous with mediocrity within baseball for this season . It will be interesting to see if the team does indeed end up with the worst record in baseball at season’s end. And for Twins’ manager Ron Gardenhire this can’t have been what he expected for his team and the very fact that their All Star catcher Joe Mauer was lost to the Twins for a prolonged period. The Minnesota Twins for their part have made Target Field in Minnesota something of an elephant’s graveyard with the mediocre play and lack of the real cohesion as a team .
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Slide show for your perusal .
It would appear having got back to winning ways of sort in defeating the Texas Rangers —- 8-1 one would have thought that victory would enough to provide the Twins’ fans with some form of relief but nothing could be further from the truth. The Minnesota Twins are languishing at the bottom of the NL Central with a 25-39 record , some 10 games behind the division leading Cleveland Indians (34-28). Having won 8 of their last ten games the Twins continue to struggle and one would be hard pressed to believe that over the remainder of the season they could prove to be serious challengers not just for the division but also for a wildcard berth within the AL .
The month of June will tell us a great deal as to the directions that a number of teams will be taking . From a personal standpoint although I just can’t see the Twins making any sort of change that would have me believing that they can actually turn things around . This team appears to be lacking in confidence and I doubt that Gardenhire and his coaching staff can now coax this team to play with any level of consistency in spite of their last ten games. This has been a season thus far that I believe that the Twins’ fans and players would rather forget as they simply move systematically back and forth in terms of an uneven season .
The CONCACAF — Gold Cup has started and no doubt Team USA under the management of coach Bob Bradley was hoping to see the team show some improvement as a sign that they are heading in the right direction in lieu of the FIFA —- World Cup (2014) in Brazil in 2012 . The team is off to an inauspicious start in Group C having played three games , winning one , a draw and a rather embarrassing 2-1 loss to Panama . If anything this result shows that Bradley faces a stiff challenging a team that will have the right traits not only to qualify for the World Cup but also have some semblance in winning the Gold Cup.
Viewed as a pre tournament contender and favorite alongside Mexico the team still stands a good chance of making out of the group qualifying rounds before the format of the tournament then becomes a knockout competition . Starved of an out and out attacker with formidable goal scoring talent this has simply been the Bradley’s biggest lament . In the tournament the team’s joint top scorers are Clint Dempsey are Clarence Goodson with one goal apiece . I have always maintained that the real problem with the game of soccer resonating amongst the large majority of the fans here comes from the very fact that it is merely viewed as a recreational pass-time . And even though MLS a divisional endeavor is up and running the league itself still struggles to create any form of a seismic rumble amongst fans . Granted with the number of international stars acquired to add some glamor to the league it really hasn’t helped given the fact that the likes of Thierry Henry , David Beckham and Maicon Santos are either players who were unable to establish themselves domestically in their respective countries or in the cases of Henry and Beckham their best is simply now a thing of the past.
This Gold Cup was obviously viewed as a precursor for the upcoming World Cup and with Bradley obviously wanting gain some semblance of consistency instead he now has a team that is bereft of creativity and ideas in light of this rather humiliating 2-1 loss to Panama a team that seven times out of ten they should beat handily .
The team now faces a stern test in their next game to be played with Group C against Guadeloupe on the 14 th June . A win is a necessity if they’re to not only qualify from the group but also gain a favorable match-up in the knockout phase of the competition . It remains to be seen whether or not Bradley will be able to regroup his players and have them ready in time for the match .
At the start of the NBA season it seemed that in large part the vast majority of fans were already prepared to anoint the Miami Heat as NBA champions even before the season had started . With the acquisitions of Chris Bosh and LeBron James to add alongside Dwyane Wade it appeared that all the Heat had to do was to simply waltz their way through their schedule and lay waste to the opposition during the postseason . Well as stories go this was a script that was still being written for the drama that would be played out in the NBA Finals .
The Dallas Mavericks may well be viewed as the underdogs coming into this series but if anything only a fool would actually have felt that way and there’s a reason why Vegas simply lured the suckers in with the odds favoring the Heat . Up 3-2 in the best of seven game series and with the final two games being on the Heat’s home-court of AAA Arena , Miami , Florida in order to close out the series . The Heat players in particular James and Wade knew exactly what was on the line for them not only in terms of the team players but the franchise as a whole . Team President Pat Riley and team owner Micky Arison’s master plan had been put into effect. An assortment of role players to surround their trio of superstars and all that had to be completed would be the defeat of the Mavericks to justify the whole experiment and season as a whole .
If only the Heat players and in particular James , Wade and Bosh had left their enormous egos at the door ! Instead we saw how complacent all three had become and the classness of their demeanor throughout much of the series . And for Erik Spoelstra one has to wonder whether or not some of the blame will be layed at his door beyond that of the players and in particular the triumvirate of superstars ?
Contempt and ignorance when it manifests itself in a team , then more often than not it tends to lead to disaster and it became a reality for the Miami Heat as their hold on what they believe to be rightfully theirs was taken right out of their presumed grasp by a Mavericks’ team that simply hungered for the title even more so than their opponent . Dirk Nowitzki along with Jason Terry and JJ Barea simply showed why at times it’s great to see the good guys actually win ! The trio led the team by example and outplayed the Heat when it mattered most and by securing the deciding game six victory 105-95 the Dallas Mavericks would secure the organization’s first NBA title . And for the victorious team owner Mark Cuban this had to be the most relishing moment in his tenure as the owner of the basketball club .
Perhaps the most heart warming moment after the Finals had ended was in knowing that seasoned veterans Jason Terry , Nowitzki and Jason Kidd could finally acknowledge that they can indeed now be looked upon as being champions .
Dirk Nowitzki justifiably so , was named Finals MVP with his stellar play throughout the postseason and the Finals itself . On the flip side of the case that will now be made ……….. was the hyperbole over the Heat simply worth it considering how lackluster this team’s performances were ? We had James and Wade mocking Nowitzki’s illness prior to game 6 and even if it were meant in jest it showed how lacking in class the duo were ! Pretty much sums up how best to describe a bunch of self absorbed athletes who simply believe that the entitlement mentality and adoration makes them the persons that they are ! From my own perspective I am thoroughly enjoyed the spectacle of seeing the Heat being hoisted on their own petards in front of their home crowd . It makes that defeat all the more embarrassing not just for the fans but the whole organization as a whole . Perhaps after this James and Wade will have at least learned some civility rather than the odious behavior that they’d shown throughout much of the regular and postseason. The results matter but so too does the demeanor under which a team carries themselves during a sporting event and that simply wasn’t shown here with the Miami Heat. Decorum was never within their sphere as they simply strolled around without any deference to anyone at all !
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Picture gallery for your perusal .
What thoughts if any do you have on the points raised within this piece ? Simply leave a comment as to your thoughts as you deem fit .
Alan aka tophatal ……………………
https://tophatal.wordpress.com
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(1) MINNEAPOLIS, MN – JUNE 11: Arthur Rhodes (53) of the Texas Rangers pitches against the Minnesota Twins during the eighth inning of their game on June 11, 2011 at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Twins defeated the Rangers 8-1. Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images …..
(2) Delmon Young (21) of the Minnesota Twins singles against the Texas Rangers during the first inning of their game on June 11, 2011 at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Twins defeated the Rangers 8-1. Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images …….
(3) Ben Revere (11) of the Minnesota Twins steals second base as shortstop Elvis Andrus (1) of the Texas Rangers catches the ball during the fourth inning of their game on June 11, 2011 at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Twins defeated the Rangers 8-1. Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images ………..
(4) MINNEAPOLIS, MN – JUNE 11: Alexi Casilla (12) of the Minnesota Twins hits an RBI single while Mike Napoli (25) of the Texas Rangers defends home plate during the fourth inning of their game on June 11, 2011 at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Twins defeated the Rangers 8-1. Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images ….
(5) Clarence Goodson (21) of Team United States celebrates his goal against Team Panama during the CONCACAF Gold Cup Match at Raymond James Stadium on June 11, 2011 in Tampa, Florida. Getty Images / J Meric ……..
(6) Jozy Altidore (17) of Team United States advances the ball against Team Panama during the CONCACAF Gold Cup Match at Raymond James Stadium on June 11, 2011 in Tampa, Florida. J Meric / Getty Images North America ….
(7) Team Panama celebrates their victory over Team United States during the CONCACAF Gold Cup Match at Raymond James Stadium on June 11, 2011 in Tampa, Florida. Photo by J. Meric/Getty Images North America ……
(8) Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban carries the NBA Championship basketball trophy as he leads the team off the jet after their arrival at Love Field in Dallas, Monday, June 13, 2011. The Mavericks beat the Heat to win the championship. AP Photo/LM Otero ….
(9) “I am not a pussy . ” LeBron James (6) of the Miami Heat looks on dejected against the Dallas Mavericks in Game Six of the 2011 NBA Finals at American Airlines Arena on June 12, 2011 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images …..
(10) Tyson Chandler (right) of the Dallas Mavericks attempts a shot against Miami Heat in the Game Six of the 2011 NBA Finals at American Airlines Arena on June 12, 2011 in Miami, Florida. AFP PHOTO / POOL / David J. Phillip ……
(11) TOPSHOTS : Dirk Nowitzki(notes) (R) of the Dallas Mavericks shoots before Chris Bosh(notes) (L) of the Miami Heat during Game 6 of the NBA Finals on June 12, 2011 at the AmericanAirlines Arena in Miami, Florida. AFP PHOTO / DON EMMERT ….
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MLB Schedule 3 days at a glance
MLB scoreboard & results 12th June 2011
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Tophatal's Blog 
So LeBron I’m Not A Pussy James is now criticizing the press for his his and the team’s poor play ? What next he’ll complain that the yellow streak down is spine is actually a new tattoo ?
How you like me now ?
My how a whiny lil’ bitch like LBJ can turn ? LOL,LOL ,LOL !!!
Well here’s one song that doesn’t describe LBJ or the Heat !
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I don’t get it it’s fu##king Panama that we were playing ! I’m going to join Rep Weiner and take a leave of absence !
USA Team manager Bob Bradley
I bet you’re all asking if my other hand is on my weiner ? Anthony Weiner Democratic Rep for NY .
tophatal ……….
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As if my post NBA Finals lull wasn’t bad enough, now Dwight Howard wants out of Orlando. Ugh.
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Chris Humpherys
Do you blame Dwight for wanting out ? I mean what has Smith — surrounded him with ? And as we now know that three Superstar model simply doesn’t work if the teammates aren’t all on the same page . Wade had his own ulterior motives and LBJ simply had his head so far up in the clouds that reality wasn’t even on his fu##ing horizons .
And that’s how you can tell if a girl is interested in you ………. she puts out .
The Magic are a mess not simply as a team but also from coaching , a financial and executive standpoint. Amway Center may well be cool and all that but the only time that ” bitch will be filled “ is when there’s either a Bieber or Lady Gaga concert being played there . Because it’s not going to be happening during a regular season Magic game that’s for sure and that’s something that the both of us know to be true !
tophatal …….
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Actually the Twins have been playing a lot better than they were. I think they were like 17 games out a few weeks ago, now they’re only 9 back of Cleveland! Crazy!!
Congrats to the Mavs, I decided to not talk about the Heat since the Mavs won…
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chappy
The victory over the Rangers was impressive but this team is still 10 back of the division leaders and I can’t see them mounting enough of a challenge to win the AL Central n much less the wildcard berth .
The fact that Mauer is still on the DL and they’ve no idea when he’ll be back makes the situation still grave . So I think you’re being somewhat optimistic .
I’m being paid to be on the DL . What’s up with that ?
tophatal ……….
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The NBA is a joke. Dalals beat the heat. I love it. bradley needs to be fired. His team sucks. Tim Howard and Clint Dempsey are the only two real players the USA has.
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Bobby Gee
I think that the vast majority of NBA fans are happy with this result ! The Heat and in particular James and Wade can come off as being obnoxious and entitled . Humility isn’t a part of their DNA as they’re still showing that as men they’re still immature . I suffice to say men would be the wrong word to describe either of the duo ! If at their respective ages they can’t show grace and humility then they’re deserving of their fate at this juncture !
Bob Bradley couldn’t fight his way out of a wet paper bag much less coach a soccer team. If the US doesn’t make the semis much less the Finals of the Gold Cup there’ll be hell to pay. Personally I now believe that his job should be on a game to game basis as of now .
Dempsey is overrated to begin with and Howard’s best days are behind him , certainly not ahead of him .
tophatal …….
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As far as the Miami Heat is concerned, it couldn’t happen to a nicer bunch of jerks:)
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aero
I think you’re being way too polite using the word jerks to describe the Heat ! But I know at this juncture you want to be politically correct . LOL,LOL,LOL !!
What really pissed fans off was the hype behind the celebrations that went with James joining the Heat and in particular idiotic and self indulgent interview foisted on the public by ESPN purely for ratings and for LeBron’s ego. The Heat’s front office and those in charge of the PR are a bunch of fu##ing idiots to begin with ! And that also came across in the arrogance shown by Pat Riley , Wade and LeBron in particular . Let’s face facts the Heat simply didn’t do enough to convince us all that they were the better team much less that they deserved to be crowned NBA champions .
This is the house that Riley built and it didn’t take the Big Bad Wolf to blow it all down. All if took was Dirk and his Mavericks’ teammates ……. that’s great ! Couldn’t have happened to a bunch of less deserving and self absorbed arrogant assholes than the Heat as an organization and as a team !
tophatal …….
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Chris Ross
Thanks for chiming in with a vote !
tophatal ………….. 🙂
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