Thoughts on a Few Things

With the Yankees seemingly done dealing for the Winter (yeah, right), I'll turn my attention to other things around the sports world for commentary.

The Trouble with Torre

First, there's this Joe Torre mess. If anything, it looks as if his book has tarnished him more than it has tarnished the Yankees. Everyone already knew that baseball clubhouses were a mess and that the Yankees were no exception. However, before this, it seemed that everyone thought Joe Torre was a trustworthy, respectable guy. Chances are, the opinion of most has swayed on this. As a Yankee fan who grew up in the "Dynasty Years," I will always have a softer spot for Joe Torre because he was the manager during the four Yankee world titles. I'm not gonna sit here and say, though, it was all because of him. The Yanks were a playoff team in '95 and were rolling at a .619 clip before the strike in 1994. Joe Torre stepped into the right place at the right time and took the team to the promised land. Now, I also can't say that just anyone could've managed those teams, but I do think Torre gets too much credit for the four WS wins and not enough blame for the two WS losses.

What troubles me most about this is the timing. If Torre wanted to release this book after his tenure with the Dodgers was over, fine. He'd be out of baseball and really wouldn't have anything to lose. By releasing it now, though, and raising all sorts of questions about his trustworthiness, you've gotta wonder what the players for the LA Dodgers are thinking. Torre went into LA with a reputation for being the strong, silent type the players could trust. Now, it doesn't seem that way. If I'm a young player on the Dodgers, I'm a little worried right now about how much I can trust Joe Torre. And if I'm a high paid veteran--Juan Pierre--I'm definitely going to be worried about whether or not I'm gonna be the next guy thrown under the bus.

The Super Bowl

This Super Bowl is a giant "meh" in my eyes. Last year, my Giants were in it and we all know how that turned out. I'd never been more excited for a football game in my life. Now, though, I don't even have a team to root against. At least if the Eagles had made it, I could've rooted hard for them to fall for the Steelers. Now, I don't really care who wins. If the Cardinals win, good for them. They came out of no where and did a great job. They also share a mascot with my high school so that factors in. If the Steelers win, that's cool, too. I like Mike Tomlin and I think the Rooneys are a pretty classy family. I'll be at my girlfriend's house for the game and to be honest, I'll probably be more interested in the fried zucchini and buffalo chicken dip she and I are making than in the game. But for shits and giggles, here's my prediction: Arizona 24 Pittsburgh 23. Arizona wins it on a late fade route from Warner to Fitzgerald--shades of Manning to Burres last year.

UConn Basketball

As a UConn student, I love how well the basketball team is playing right now. Before the season started, I thought they had a chance to make a serious run at the National Championship, and now I believe that even more. Jeff Adrien is playing his usual beastly basketball, AJ Price is shooting lights out from three point land, and Jerome Dyson is a fucking walking highlight reel. Hasheem Thabeet is once again dominating on the defensive end and on the glass, but I think his offense needs to see a little more aggression, especially if he's going to make it at the next level. Too many times I've seen him go up for a lay in instead of jamming it home like he should. His hands are still a little rough, too and he has a tendency to forget how tall he is. There are times when he plays like he's 6'3" instead of 7'3." However, I'd obviously like to have him instead of not. Lastly, I'll touch on freshman Kemba Walker. He is a damn exciting player and in two to three years, he will be a National Player of the Year candidate. Book it. GO HUSKIES.