The Ramblings of a Sports Fan….

So, it’s been a while since I posted… This is a bad habit I have had for many years. going months without typing a blog post, one I have been trying to correct most of my blogging lifetime. I don’t know if this will ever change, but for now, I am writing. Let’s begin with the Sports Nerd Show. In case you have missed it, we are back, and broadcasting live each Sunday Night on a new platform call D-Live. You can find my profile here, please review past broadcasts from the last few weeks. It may seem like they are shorter than what you are used to, that’s because recently (like today) I found out I was broadcasting at too-high of bitrate, I am hoping that after changes made tonight that will be resolved, so please, if you are a fan of sports, comedy, movie reviews, and all-around NSFW shenanigans, I encourage you to tune in and enjoy the fun.

Second order of business, the usual sports talk I have been known to spit out on this blog from time to time. MLB races are heating up, NFL season is upon us, as is the NCAAF season, and I am glad to have football back after 7 months of withdrawals. There are many different stories and highlights I can discuss, but for now, I am only going to address a brief number of them. I haven’t posted since early July and it would take me a month to coverall that has been going on. I am going to pace myself, just address these in a brief sentence, then move on.

Tiger is back, and that is the golf mention of this post. I don’t care what you say, it is only a matter of time before he is winning again. I believe he will make the Ryder cup team in September, and I fell that he will win a tournament next year, even perhaps a major… we’ll see.

The Browns have been featured on “Hard Knocks” and although I admit to having HBO, I haven't watched one minute of that sideshow. I am only interested in what they do during the season, and I don’t care about what happens behind the scenes, only what happens on the field. Josh Gordon is back in the fold, which is good to see, the defense is going to be good, and we finally have a real QB under center. I am a firm believer in Tyrod Taylor, and after being unsure about overall #1 pick Baker Mayfield during the draft, I am pleased with his passion and his performance during preseason games. I still feel he needs to sit this season, but after that, depending how good Tyrod does, he maybe ready to become the QB of the future for this franchise. Hue has a long way to go before I am convinced he is the coach to lead this team to the playoffs, specifically I just want to see them win a game in the regular season.

Staying with my favorite teams, the Cleveland Indians are running away with the Central Division in the AL, but the division is not my concern. It is, of course the top teams in the American League that has me concerned. The Indians have one of the most potent lineups in baseball, but the bullpen is making me nervous, because Cody Allen has let us down a lot this season. They got Hand from the Padres, which was supposed to shore up the closer role, but I am not quite sold, plus Trevor Bauer is on the DL and he may not see the mound again before the postseason, so the starting pitching is also concerning me. So in a nutshell, the Indians need to straighten out their pitching issues if they are going to make a run I the postseason, cause the Red Sox, Yankees, and Astros are all better and the A’s and Mariners even scare me a bit, but we’ll see… all bets are off once the postseason begins, and we are just now starting the September push toward the playoffs, so may the best team win, and Go Tribe!!

With all that being said, LeBron is in LA… meh who cares, I hate the NBA. Hawaii wins the LLWS… Serena is the favorite ate the US Open, despite the French Open saying she cant wear the “cat suit” in future tournaments, never mind the fact the outfit was keeping her alive… NFL players are still Kneeling, good for them.. and for the record as the 4583902894th person to say it, they aren’t protesting the anthem, they are protesting injustice, and the fact they do it DURING the anthem is how they are attempting to bring attention to their cause, because if they walked to midfield and kneeled at halftime, it would not have near the impact, and they want to have their issues front and center, despite the fact of how it would impact the public’s opinion of them. Keep Kneeling guys, I am behind you, oppression has no place in the world, and these athletes have the platform to bring the issue to the forefront, and anyone that thinks they are protesting the Anthem, or the troops, needs to take off their racist rose colored glasses and see what’s really wrong in this country.

Finally, let me just say this, and it will ruffle a few feathers, but once again we had a mass shooting this week. this time it was in Jacksonville at a Madden ‘19 tournament. Some asshole didn’t like the fact he got beat and decided he was going to be a sore loser and shoot up the place. It has been released that the guy has had mental issues most of his life, yet he was still allowed to own a gun. It is my opinion that ANYONE with a history of mental illness should not own a firearm of any kind. I am pro 2nd amendment, despite the fact that I decide to not own a gun, because once we start down the road of repealing amendments to the constitution we are headed to the endgame of the loss of all freedoms. I believe in (talking point warning!!) common-sense gun laws and will vote for any candidate who also believes in them. Tighter background checks… longer waiting periods… mandatory background checks for any gun sold at gun shows….. the same waiting period for AR-15’s as there are for handguns… and eventually, the ban of AR-15 type weapons considered and that fall under the label of assault weapons. I have family members that own these weapons, and even though I love them more than anything, I still don’t feel that these weapons have a use in society, outside the use in the military. You want to shoot a military style weapon, then join the military, it is not needed in civilian life…. so ends the extreme left-wing portion of this post.

Finally…. I never voted for him ( I don’t live in AZ) and I did not support him for President in 2008, but I do want to honor a man that I had great respect for. John McCain Served in Vietnam as a Naval Aviator. He was shot down over Hanoi in the late 60’s. Ejecting from his plane broke both arms and one leg (if I am wrong please let me know) and despite his injuries and treatment by his captors, refused early release. His father was a highly ranked and well-known officer in the Navy during Vietnam, and despite the fact the North Vietnamese provided him an out because of his fathers rank, he refused. He said that he would not go home until those that we captured before him were released. He suffered horrific torture at the hands of his captors during his years of captivity in the Hanoi Hilton. For those Millennials that think that the name Hanoi Hilton means that he was kept in a hotel with room service and amenities, use Google Search and look up “Hanoi Hilton” to get an idea of just exactly what that prison was. The fact he endured all of this tells me everything I need to know about the honor, the character, and the morals of John McCain. I did not agree with his politics, but I never questioned his patriotism, and I have always respected him, no matter his position on a particular subject or issue. A true Patriot, an American Hero, and a dedicated servant to his country, Godspeed Senator, and may you Rest in Peace.