MLB writer Adam Mccalvey predicts Prince will hit open market as a free agent after 2011 season and not sign an extension w Brewers, according to his twitter page.

Minnesota broadcast team's call of Favre's INT

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/images/01/25/FavreINT.mp3

Brewer's 25-man roster

With the most recent signing, the 25-man roster is really starting to take shape. Here is what I got...

PITCHERS (12)

1. YO
2. WOLF
3. DOUG DAVIS
4. BUSH/PARRA/SOUP
5. BUSH/PARRA/SOUP

6. SOUP? (Long Relief)
7. VILLA
8. STETTER (Lefty)
9. VARGAS
10. HAWKINS
11. COFFEY
12. TREVOR TIME

POSITIONAL (11)

C - ZAHN
Backup - KOTTARAS/SALOME

INF - PRINCE, WEEKS, ESCOBAR, MCGAHEE
Backup - Counsell

OF - BRAUN, GOMEZ, HART
Backup - Gerut

That leaves 2 spots open IMO. The most intriguing I think will be whether Gamel makes the ballclub as a platoon at 3B or if they send him to the minors (maybe even to start working out as a right-fielder). I also think they send Navelson and Mulder (when he signs) to Nashville so that both can provide some much needed insurance incase (when) a starter gets hurt. You wonder if they'll open the year with an additional (13th) pitcher for the bullpen like they've done in the past? If so, who would it be? Tim Dillard or Chris Smith could be options at long relief. If Gamel doesn't make the club, then the Crew could opt for a 5th outfielder over a 6th infielder. I don't see anyone on the roster that could fit this bill currently. Perhaps there is still another signing to be had. Perhaps there is a free agent who will take a minimum salary to stay in the game and be a pinch-hitter late in games (kind of like a Matt Stairs for Philly).

NFL PLAYOFFS WEEK 2

Last week, I went 3-1 vs. the spread and straight-up and I'm currently in 1st place out of 10 in a little playoff-picking pool against the spread with some friends and colleagues.

Here is who I like this weekend...

AZ +7.0 over N.O. (but, like N.O. straight up to win the game)
IND -6.5 over BALT
MIN -3.0 over DAL
SD -7.5 over NYJ

Last play of the Pack-Cards playoff game

Bill Simmons, a writer for ESPN.com, did his typical Friday column and gave out "awards" for the 1st round playoff games. He had this to say about the ending of the Pack-Cards game...

The Apollo Creed Award for "Best Body Sag That Induced Chills"

"The Cards-Packers recap done by NFL Films for "Inside the NFL" was one for the ages. I watched it four times. Maybe that wasn't the best game ever played, but it's hard to remember a more exciting one. (I hate doing the "best ever" thing with games; it's more about "entering the discussion." And that game entered the discussion. The next time you have a "most entertaining playoff games" conversation, that one has to be mentioned.) Anyway, they show the game-winning fumble return by Dansby. That's immediately followed by a from-the-sideline angle of the play -- you can barely make it out, and it's hard to even tell what's happening -- but when the fumble happens, the heavyset guy in front of the camera sags to his knees.

Wait a second … that's Mike McCarthy!

I saw it once, then rewound it and watched it again. It's incredible. He's watching the play, the fumble happens, and right as Danbsy grabs the ball and starts running, it's like someone took a bat and swung it to the back of McCarthy's knees. He doesn't just sag to the ground. He melts. He collapses. It's the modern version of the old "Wide World of Sports" "agony of defeat" moment. I'm not kidding … I watched it 13 times. I kept rewinding it. It's brutal. It's agonizing. It's football. You will never see a better clip of a coach getting his heart ripped out. Beyond that, it captured that game to a tee. I will always remember that replay."

NFL PLAYOFFS WEEK 1

Here is who I like this weekend (straight up and against the spread)...

Jets over Cincy (on the road)
Ravens over Patriots (on the road)
Cowboys over Eagles (at home)
Packers over Cardinals (on the road)

Bowling scores from tonight... 225-248-225-698. Needed the 1st ball in the 10th and threw it out too far.

Best Games I Attended in the Last Decade (Part 3 of 15)

HONORABLE MENTION #3...

Mexico vs. United States, Chase Field Phoenix (March 7, 2006)

-- 1st World Baseball Classic game on American soil --

2006 was the inaugurial year of the World Baseball Classic (a "World Cup"-like world tournament of baseball teams, created by Bud Selig). I've been to Spring Training three times in Arizona to watch the Brewers train, and going in 2006 was a no-brainer for me, as I could also see the first World Baseball Classic game ever for the United States. USA won the game 2-0 in front of 32,700 (in what was a fairly split crowd of Americans and Mexicans). The US scored their runs via 2 solo-homers... one by Derreck Lee in the 4th inning... and one by Chipper Jones in the 7th. Jake Peavy started and went three innings and then 6 relivers (throwing 1 inning each) combined with him to shutout the Mexicans!

Best Games I Attended in the Last Decade (Part 2 of 15)

HONORABLE MENTION #2...

Atlanta Braves at Milwaukee Brewers, Miller Park (May 16, 2004)

-- Ben Sheets strikes out 18 --

I wound up going to this game by myself, as everyone seemed to be busy and I really wanted to catch a Brewer game. It was great from the standpoint that I was able to roam around the park and I wound up watching Sheets warm up as I stood over the bullpen before the game started. Even watching him warmup, I noticed he had good "stuff." I recall pitching coach Bill Castro even saying so to a fan he seemed to know after Sheets finished getting ready. Of course, as known to most baseball fans, Sheets was assisted by the infamous daytime shadows of Miller Park. That said, Sheets' curveball that day was wicked and I've never seen as dominating of a start by a pitcher in person before or since. Once the crowd realized how many K's Sheets had, the crowd rose after he got to 2 strikes on each batter from the 7th inning on. Sheets' 18 K's was four more than the previous Brewer's record of 14 by Moose Haas in 1978 and only 2 shy of the all-time MLB record for a 9-inning game (held by Roger Clemens, Kerry Wood & Randy Johnson). When healthy, Ben Sheets was one of the best pitchers in baseball during his stint with the Brew Crew. That fun spring Sunday afternoon proved that.

2009-10 NFC Playoffs

The NFC playoff picture is set...

1st round
6. Phila at 3. Dallas
5. GB at 4. Ariz

Byes
2. Minn
1. N.O.

Records over the last 8 weeks of the regular season...
Green Bay 7-1
Philadelphia 6-2
Arizona 5-3
Dallas 5-3
Minnesota 5-3
New Orleans 5-3

Best Games I Attended in the Last Decade (Part 1 of 15)

One of my hopes with the New Year is that I will post more to this blog. With that said, I decided to borrow an idea from a Milwaukee radio show called the D-List. Once per week, they do what they call the "D-List list of the week." Last week, they did the top 5 sporting events you attended over the past decade. As most of you know, I've been to MANY sporting events over the past 10-years and beyond! So, as I made my list, I had well over 5 that I felt needed mentioning. And, instead of simply listing them, I decided that some words were needed to explain why I felt they were worth remembering. As I started to write a "few" words about them, I realized that this was a larger undertaking than I originally planned. I started researching details about each game and I also wanted to provide background about the game. And so with that said, I am going to try to post one game I attended each day until I reveal the #1 game I attended the past decade. In all, I will reveal about 15 games that I felt were worthly of including under the title of "Best Games I attended in the Last Decade." That includes my top-5 and about 1o honorable mentions. Without further ado, here is the first of my honorable mentions (which will be in no particular order)...



HONORABLE MENTION #1...

Cincinnati Reds at Milwaukee Brewers, Milwaukee County Stadium (September 28, 2000)

-- Last game ever at County Stadium --

Of course, this game shouldn't have ever been played during this past decade. County Stadium was set to close following the 1999 season however the "Big Blue" crane collapse which killed three workers caused considerable damage to the first-base side of the new Miller Park, causing the new stadium's opening to be delayed by one season. County Stadium will forever hold a special place in my heart... I practically grew up there! Living within a few miles of the stadium, I attended over 100 games at that old stadium, which opened in 1953 and was built for $5 million. Of those 100 games, the most memorable included seeing Robin Yount’s 3,000th hit and watching Reggie White sack quarterbacks! One of the unique aspects of the stadium is that it served as a home venue for an NFL team (the Green Bay Packers), a National League MLB team (the Milwaukee Braves) and two American League teams (the Milwaukee Brewers & Chicago White Sox). It hosted three World Series (1957 & 1958 - both Braves v. Yankees, and 1982 - Brewers v. Cardinals), one NFL conference championship game (1967 - Packers v. LA Rams, which was one week before the Ice Bowl) and two MLB All-Star games (1955 & 1975). It was also the site of the movies "Major League" & “Mr. 3000” and hosted performances by many greats including: Bob Hope, Rolling Stones, Eagles, Beach Boys, Pink Floyd, Journey, Paul McCarthy, Billy Joel, Elton John, The Temptations and even Hulk Hogan v. Andre the Giant in a steel-cage match! The legendary Hank Aaron hit the final homer of his career at County Stadium, #755.

The final game at County Stadium itself was awful, as the Reds defeated the Crew 8-1. However, the most memorable parts of the event that was the final game occurred with the introduction of famous athletes who once played at the stadium (after the game) and an introduction of an athlete who would never actually play at the stadium (during the game). The later turned out to be the loudest the crowd would ever get during the pathetic game. Ben Sheets, a Brewer prospect at the time, was introduced to the crowd in-between innings. Sheets had just returned back to the States that day following an 18-hr flight from Sydney, Australia, where he had just pitched the United States to victory in the gold-medal game over Cuba! In that game, he pitched a complete-game shutout to give the U.S. it's first-ever gold medal in the sport! It was only the second loss ever for Cuba in the Olympics. Sheets came out of the dugout to the Olympic theme song and all of the fans rose to their feet and gave him a thunderous and long ovation! I can honestly say, listening to that music, and remembering the old stadium and thinking about the future with Sheets and Miller Park... I was very emotional and had a few tears in my eyes. It wouldn't be the last time that day! After the game, a lot of the great athletes who played at the stadium where introduced to the fans and they came out from the left field opening and walked/ran to the infield. This half-hour was probably the most emotional I've ever been at a sporting event, as I reminisced about my time at the ballpark and while watching the emotion on the players faces to how they must have been feeling. I think they were shocked at the huge ovation that they each got! The list of players introduced included... Warren Spahn, Hank Aaron, Frank Torre & Bob Buhl (the Braves)... Willie Davis & Fuzzy Thurston (the Packers)... Paul Moliter, Rob Deer, Dave Sveum, Jim Gantner, Rollie Fingers & Robin Yount (the Brewers). All of it was great, but the best part was Robin Yount entering the stadium on a Harley Davidson (a la when he did this following the 1982 World Series)! The saddest part was the end of Bob Uecker's speech, when he said "... so long old friend, and goodnight everybody." I went with two friends (Mike and Jen). It was an amazing day/night! I will never forget that old stadium. My love of sports started there.