Tree of Life

31 May

Baseball a Dying Sport? I Don

published in category: Pittsburgh Penguins, Pittsburgh Pirates on Thursday, May 31st, 2012 – 2:10 pm

Baseball has been America's pastime sport for ages. The tide is slowly turning towards football. More people watch football, even if your team is terrible. But I think otherwise. Baseball is not dying at all.
I was at the dentist a couple days ago and had a great conversation with the secretary there. She was telling me how her two kids love the game of baseball. All they want to do is play baseball. It got me thinking, is our pastime really dying? It's not dying in big market city such as Philadelphia or Boston. It is thriving. That is how it is all over the country. People love the game of baseball, especially if their team is good.
Living here in Pittsburgh is actually no different. People just do not realize the sport of baseball as much as football or hockey. Yes baseball has lost some popularity. For example, my hometown of Freeport is a baseball town. Freeport hosts The Freeport International Baseball Invitational each summer in July and invites teams from all over the world. The town lives for summer night games. But, I could remember when I was playing Little League back in 2003 that we were able to fill six teams and now we are lucky to fill four. Baseball has lost some of its popularity.
However, the sport of baseball is still thriving. Kids are still coming out to PNC Park to watch a .500 baseball club in the Pirates. The Pirates still sell-out games on weekends and fireworks nights. Just think if the Pirates would make the playoffs or even break .500. Pirate tickets would be just like Penguin and Steeler tickets. They would be expensive and hard to get because they will become so popular. So it comes to my conclusion that fan base of baseball is not dying: it is hungry. It is hungry for a winning baseball team. This will then translate to baseball becoming popular again throughout the area. Baseball is not dying, it is just hungry.

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Posted in Pittsburgh Penguins, Pittsburgh Pirates

 

31 May

Power sign wide receiver A.J. Jackson by Dominic Errico

published in category: Sports Talk Radio on Thursday, May 31st, 2012 – 10:24 am

The Power have a new wide receiver in the mix for playing time. A.J. Jackson, from California (Pa) University has been assigned to the team and could contribute quickly to the team.

Jackson set school records in 2009 with 101 receptions for 1424 yards and 18 TD's. He totaled 2130 yards and 28 TD's in his two season with the Vulcans.

His size (6'4" 236 pounds) makes him very tough to cover, and he has enough speed to make defenders pay if they make a mistake in coverage. Jackson is also skilled at making yards after the catch.

He was named to the 2009 AP Little All-America (Division II, III & NAIA) second team.

Take a glance at his highlight video below. He makes some incredible catches and shows great footwork along the sidelines. He should be a fun player to watch if he is given a chance to play.

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Posted in Sports Talk Radio

 

30 May

"The Piece" Looks for Second Ring with Kings by Jon Pennline

published in category: Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday, May 30th, 2012 – 9:11 am

Despite being the eight seed in the vaunted Western Conference, the Los Angeles Kings find themselves four wins away from their first Stanley Cup championship in franchise history. The recipe for success has been timely scoring, solid defense, and superb goaltending.

But, while Jonathan Quick, Drew Doughty, Mike Richards, and Anze Kopitar have received most of the attention, Rob Scuderi has continued to perform at a high yet unnoticeable level. In 14 playoff games, Scuderi is a +8 with 21 blocked shots.

This is nothing new to Penguins' fans, who witnessed "Scuds" become a shutdown defenseman in the 2009 playoffs. After teaming up with Hal Gill to shutdown Claude Giroux, Daniel Briere, Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom and Eric Staal in the first three rounds, Scuderi made two unbelievable plays in game six of the 2009 Stanley Cup finals against Detroit. Late in the third, the Penguins were up 2-1 when the puck trickled past Marc-Andre Fleury and sat in the crease. With Red Wings swirling around the crease, Rob Scuderi made a last-ditch effort to knock the puck out of harm's way.

Then, with 16 seconds remaining in the game, Marian Hossa's shot produced a big rebound in front of the net. With Fleury out of position, swaying to the left side of the crease, Johan Franzen had a golden opportunity to tie the game. But as Franzen jabbed away at the puck, Rob Scuderi made two amazing kick saves to buy enough time for Fleury to cover the puck and stop play. The Penguins would go on to win game six and, eventually, game seven to clinch the Stanley Cup.

Rob Scuderi was selected by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 5th round of the 1998 draft out of Boston College after his freshman season. Eleven years later, Scuderi became the first Long-Island native to have his name engraved on the Stanley Cup.

While Evgeni Malkin would end up winning the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP, Rob Scuderi picked up the nickname "the piece"after misspeaking during a post-game interview. After a Penguins' win, Scuderi accidentally said he was "the piece to the puzzle" instead of "a piece to the puzzle." The quote was more than enough fodder for teammates to give him a hard time.

Three years later, it is Scuderi who has the last laugh. While he is in the Stanley Cup Finals, the Penguins are sitting at home after failing to get out of the first round. Maybe the nickname is more than just a playful inside joke. Against a tough, opportunistic New Jersey Devils team, the Kings will need a complete effort to close out their unprecedented run. Jonathan Quick will need to be stellar between the pipes, Anze Kopitar will need to continue his offensive dominance, and Rob Scuderi will need to be the defensive piece to a championship puzzle.

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Posted in Pittsburgh Penguins

 

29 May

Is Gregg Ritchie to Blame for the Pirates Offensive Problems? by Jon Anderson

published in category: Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday, May 29th, 2012 – 11:38 am

I have been on a mission for a few weeks now to find out if it's in any way logical to put any of the blame of the Pirates complete offensive ineptitude on the shoulders of hitting coach Gregg Ritchie. My original hypothesis was that he had very little to do with it. Big league hitters don't need coaching, they just need confidence and consistency. While they certainly need help with both of those things, I don't think it's a make or break job. I have always felt that no hitting coach can make a huge difference on a team.

First I talked to Kevin Orie, former Major League player for the Chicago Cubs and Florida Marlins. Orie basically agreed with me, noting that the coach functions are basically another set of eyes that is there to correct minor things that he sees going wrong. It's a player by player thing. The coach has to know what each player has to do to be at his best, and he needs to step in and correct them when they are getting away from that. Orie said that most big leaguers don't need a bunch of coaching, since they have been basically fully developed by the time they get to this level, but they do rely on the coach to help them see their swing from a different perspective.

After that I talked to the man himself, Gregg Ritchie. I left the Pirates specifically out of it, and just asked him the gist of what his job is.

"You're there for the guys. You're there to help them do what they've gotta do – to take the next step and help them be the best they can be" said Ritchie.

He also stressed the importance of the mental side of hitting.

"It's generally a lot of mental [things], it all starts with a a thought, with a mentality, a belief that you can hit, that's number one. All of us believing in each other – that's number one. The mechanical side is secondary to the mental thought".

The players won't say it, but there just has to be some serious lacks of confidence in the clubhouse. How can a team that's the worst offensive team in the league by far be mentally positive and ready to go every game? It doesn't seem possible in the slightest. Is there anything Ritchie and Hurdle can do? I would argue no. You have to see success before you get real confidence, and there's not a whole lot the coaching staff can do to get them to that point.

Ritchie went on to say that he agrees that his job is largely being another set of eyes to see things that players don't, as Orie mentioned. He did note that he Pirates have a lot of young guys up here that might need more help than a big league veteran might. It's different for every player, but he largely doesn't try to make big changes with guys.

So does this answer the original question at all? No, not really. I do still hold to my belief that you can't put blame on the manager or the hitting coach for their guys struggling. The Pirates don't have a lot of offensive talent. Outside of Andrew McCutchen and Pedro Alvarez (at times), they don't wow you. Those guys are going to struggle at times. Is a .217 team batting average acceptable? No. Should the Pirates be trying to do everything (logically) that they can to fix it? Yes. Is firing Gregg Ritchie going to help the problem? The jury's still out on that one, but my answer is no.

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Posted in Pittsburgh Pirates

 

25 May

Where

published in category: Pittsburgh Penguins on Friday, May 25th, 2012 – 8:37 am

Everyone says the Pittsburgh Penguins need a winger to compliment Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. Why? They have one in James Neal. They also have two other ones in Chris Kunitz and Pascal Dupuis. So why get other another winger this offseason? It makes no sense to me.
If you are the Penguins you address the need that got you knocked out of the playoffs in the first round and that is the defense. They gave up five goals a game in the playoffs. That is an alarming rate and unless you score ten goals a game (like they did in Game 4) you will not win. So address the defense. This is what they need to do:
1. Cut Paul Martin: The 31-year old will be entering his third year of a five year deal next season and should be in his prime. Instead, he is looking like he is in the tail end of his career, with only playing three games in the playoffs this season before bowing out with concussion like-symptoms. The Penguins can save a lot of money by cutting him now and bringing up Simon Despres, who is ready for the NHL.
2. Bring in a New Back-up Goaltender- Brent Johnson had a great run while he was here in Pittsburgh, but it is time for the 35-year old to say good-bye. The Penguins need a solid back-up, even if it is Brad Theissen. The Flower cannot play almost 70 games again. He was too tired when it came time for the playoffs.
3. Bring in a Shutdown Defensemen- The Penguins missed a defenseman who could shut-down the high-flying Flyers in the Playoffs. A true shut-down defenseman, like a Rob Scuderi, is needed for next year. Bring in Brad Stuart or even Hal Gill for another season just to solidify the defense. Either one won't be a huge cap hit.

Offense can wait because it is not broken and is doing fine. There are needs, such as signing Crosby and Jordan Staal to long-term deals, but the defense needs fixed as soon as possible. Besides, defense wins championships.

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Posted in Pittsburgh Penguins

 

22 May

Fans Need to Show More Support of Malkin by Jon Pennline

published in category: Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday, May 22nd, 2012 – 9:01 am

Since Mario Lemieux in 1992, only one player has lead the league in scoring in both the regular season and the playoffs.

Evgeni Malkin.

Not since Wayne Gretzky's 1982 season has a player led the NHL in scoring during the regular season, and the World Championships in the same year.

That would also be Evgeni Malkin.

Yet, for some reason, Malkin has been receiving undue criticism about his allegiance to the Pittsburgh Penguins, a team he joined in 2007 after defecting from the Metallurg Magnitogorsk in an airport in Finland.

What's the deal, Pittsburgh?

If this is some Eastern European complex because either A) Jaromir Jagr is from the Czech Republic and he left the Penguins or B) the Russians used to be the Soviet Union, need I remind you both events are in the past and neither have any connection to Evgeni Malkin.

Jagr and Malkin aren't even the same type of personalities. I spoke to someone within the Pittsburgh media who recounts an 18 year old Jaromir Jagr walking into night clubs with a pen and tablet, trying to get as many phone numbers as possible. Meanwhile, since he first arrived in the United States, Malkin has surrounded himself with teammates and family.

Evgeni Malkin's 2012 playoff stat sheet shows he was not nearly as dominant as he was in the regular season when he racked up 109 points in 75 games. Nevertheless, his 8 points were still second on the team behind Jordan Staal. What most people forget is, the Penguins' biggest problem wasn't a lack of scoring goals. Despite playing just six games in these playoffs, the Penguins are still ranked 7th out of 16 in goals scored. With a league leading 4.33 goals per game, the Penguins should've rolled through the Philadelphia Flyers. Instead, due to bad defense and horrific penalty killing, the Penguins were sent packing in six.

Malkin then took his talent to Sweden where he racked up a tournament best 19 points (11 g, 8 a) en route to Russia's third Gold Medal in the last five years.

The reaction in Pittsburgh? Largely negative.

Rather than applaud Geno's efforts, fans have characterized Malkin's performance as a brand of betrayal; believing he took games off in the NHL playoffs in order to get to the World Championships quicker. These are the same fans that are quick to point out how critical Sidney Crosby's participation in the 2010 Olympic games was for the Canadians to win the Gold Medal. Why can't Malkin get that kind of recognition?

Regardless of what fans may speculate, the truth is that Evgeni Malkin loves Pittsburgh. It is a town similar to his own back in Russia. He risked his livelihood, friends, and family to come here and be a part of something special. So far he's contributed to one Stanley Cup and if the Penguins hope to get back within the next 10 years, they'll need Evgeni Malkin to help carry the load.

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Posted in Pittsburgh Penguins

 

18 May

Are the Pirates really just one bat away? by Jon Anderson

published in category: Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday, May 18th, 2012 – 11:07 am

The Pirates are sitting at 17-20 after two straight losses in which their pitching gave up more than five runs and their offense wasn't up to the challenge. We're all curious as to where the Pirates could go this year if they could add another bat to the lineup to help the offense.

The fact is that the Pirates aren't going to be able to find a bat at this point in the year without severely overpaying. So should the Pirates overpay for a bat? Neil Huntington doesn't think so, and that's really all that matters.

My question now is, would doing that even be enough to get this team to where they want to go? I'm convinced that the goal for this franchise isn't .500 this year, they are looking to make a playoff push in the next few years. Unless some crazy things happen, that's not happening this year. Adding another bat could boost them to being close to that .500 mark and breaking the horrible streak we're on, but would it be worth it to lose what they would have to lose to make that happen? I say absolutely not. The offense is simply too bad right now to be helped that much by one guy, unless we're talking about a stud hitter which the Pirates simply aren't going to get. The best they get is a league average hitter and that's simply not going to do all that much to help.

The Pirates should only be making these types of moves if it's going to give them a shot at the playoffs. The goal isn't .500 right now – although that would be a huge stepping stone for this franchise (and it would increase ticket sales quite a bit). The goal isn't stepping stones, the goal is the island you get to when you cross all the stepping stones. One bat isn't getting the Pirates to that island this year, so it would be foolish to throw away players they could use in the future to get to that island.

If the offense starts to come around and the pitching keeps doing what they're doing and the Pirates find themselves around or above .500 come July, then this is a different story – but for now we just have to continue to be patient.

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Posted in Pittsburgh Pirates

 

18 May

McCutchen's Star Shining Brighter than Ever by Jon Pennline

published in category: Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday, May 18th, 2012 – 8:44 am

The Pittsburgh Pirates have squandered a lot of drafts over the last two decades. But they appeared to hit the jackpot in the 2005 MLB draft when they selected a sinewy high school outfielder from Fort Meade, Florida with the 11th pick. In a draft that featured names like Braun, Zimmerman, Bruce, Tulowitzki, Upton, and Ellsbury, it is hard to believe there would be room for one more superstar taken in the first round.

Andrew McCutchen is rapidly reaching the superstar level fans have been waiting for since Barry Bonds left in 1992. While the Pirates have had All-Star players such as Brian Giles, Jason Bay, and Aramis Ramirez, since then, none of them have come close to the excitement McCutchen brings to every game. He's the perfect balance of speed, power, coordination, athleticism and professionalism.

He's baseball's version of Sidney Crosby, if you will. Maybe not in terms of his ceiling potential, but definitely in regards to the level of excitement, creating countless hold-your-breath moments.

In 125 bats this season, McCutchen has a .344/.404/.488 with five home runs and seven stolen bases. After batting a solid .302 in April, 'Cutch has turned it up even further, hitting .436 in 12 games in May. His performance has been lost in the shuffle with the Pirates' starting rotation continuing to dominate while the rest of the lineup compiles a league worst .219 average.

This all coming after 6 year, $51.5 million contract in the offseason. The Pirates paid for MVP numbers and, so far, the 25 year old has been able to produce just that. In last night's win against the Washington Nationals, McCutchen went 2-4 with two monster home runs, the second coming after a spectacular acrobatic catch in the bottom half of the previous inning. While Matt Kemp is still the early, overwhelming favorite to take the NL MVP title, McCutchen is at least in the conversation.

Another big step in Andrew McCutchen's development is an increase in his power numbers. After posting 23 long balls, last season, McCutchen is currently on pace for about 25 home runs. But if he continues to hit like he has in May, we could see #22 reach the 30 home run milestone; something another former Pirate outfielder didn't do until he was 25 years old.

Barry Bonds.

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Posted in Pittsburgh Pirates

 



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