My best laid plans of seeing three movies today fell by the wayside for some house hunting...
BUT, I did manage to get to see one of the movies on my list - Sugar.
Sugar's the story of a young man from the Dominican Republic looking to make it to the big leagues as a pitcher. The story follows his path from one of the youth camps in the DR that baseball fans often hear about to spring training and... well, to preserve a non-spoiler setting, we'll just say "on from there."
I really dug the movie as I thought it painted a very strong [and probably very realistic] picture of what that transition must be like for those players. As a baseball fan, of course, I dig all the Spring Training and "on from there" stuff as it seemed more realistic than a lot of the past baseball movies have handled that topic.
The ending I also found to be very satisfying as it was one that you can take as either a depressing ending or an uplifting ending, depending on how you perceive the rest of the movie's plot as well as the main character's desires.
Give a bonus point to some excellent music including a Spanish cover of "Hallelujah" and you've got a very solid basehit on your hands. Maybe not a homerun - but definitely a line drive to the gap.
BLUE'S REVIEW: Definitely see this if you're a baseball fan. If you're not, you may not enjoy it as much but I think there's enough there for you to warrant a viewing. Fair warning though - there are some subtitles involved so be prepared for some light reading.
2009-05-02
2009-05-01
2009-04-30
2009-04-29
Now That's Interesting
Yesterday, MMA sites were all aflutter with the news that Anderson Silva had signed for his next fight. He'll be fighting at Light Heavyweight later this year against the former LHW Champ Forrest Griffin.
Wow.
Just when I think the UFC doesn't have many more fights that I'd pay to see, they somehow manage to dig one up. The mere thought of this one makes me a little giddy. Silva's taken a lot of heat over the past six months or so since he's had two fights in a row that were less than explosive - and far less than entertaining. We miss the Silva who decimated Rich Franklin - twice. Oh, and by the way, how weird is it that Franklin is training with Anderson Silva? Bizarre.
Anyways, in my humble opinion, a fighter like Griffin who will go balls-out to throw down in every fight he's in is exactly what Anderson Silva needs. Plus, it's a top LHW contender for Silva in what many think is babysteps towards Silva going after two titles.
Personally, I still want to see him destroy GSP but after his last couple fights, I'm less convinced that would happen. But the fight is apparently still being discussed. They want another GSP defense and at least one more Silva win before they look at it seriously.
A Silva win over Griffin might just pave the road into what is, on paper, the biggest fight that the UFC can deliver right now.
Wow.
Just when I think the UFC doesn't have many more fights that I'd pay to see, they somehow manage to dig one up. The mere thought of this one makes me a little giddy. Silva's taken a lot of heat over the past six months or so since he's had two fights in a row that were less than explosive - and far less than entertaining. We miss the Silva who decimated Rich Franklin - twice. Oh, and by the way, how weird is it that Franklin is training with Anderson Silva? Bizarre.
Anyways, in my humble opinion, a fighter like Griffin who will go balls-out to throw down in every fight he's in is exactly what Anderson Silva needs. Plus, it's a top LHW contender for Silva in what many think is babysteps towards Silva going after two titles.
Personally, I still want to see him destroy GSP but after his last couple fights, I'm less convinced that would happen. But the fight is apparently still being discussed. They want another GSP defense and at least one more Silva win before they look at it seriously.
A Silva win over Griffin might just pave the road into what is, on paper, the biggest fight that the UFC can deliver right now.
2009-04-28
Fucking Torre!
The Title of this post were my exact words after reading the results of tonight's game.
Okay, I need a Yankee fan to be reading this post and let me know if Torre is known for this and somehow I just missed it last year. Is he really this bad at handling his bullpen? I know he has a reputation for riding a pitcher to total fatigue but... mercy Jesus, how many fucking times can you go for a five out save in the first month of the season?
So, they summoned Broxton from the 'pen in the 8th again. And he blew the save. Then they take him out.
I just don't get it.
How many five out saves?! HOW MANY?!
Can someone tell him I'd prefer to have a closer with A LIVE FUCKING ARM after April?
Sweet Jesus.
I'm sooooo frustrated with the bullpen and Torre's handling of it so far this season.
Can someone get Grady Little on the phone?
...
Well, let's not be rash.
Okay, I need a Yankee fan to be reading this post and let me know if Torre is known for this and somehow I just missed it last year. Is he really this bad at handling his bullpen? I know he has a reputation for riding a pitcher to total fatigue but... mercy Jesus, how many fucking times can you go for a five out save in the first month of the season?
So, they summoned Broxton from the 'pen in the 8th again. And he blew the save. Then they take him out.
I just don't get it.
How many five out saves?! HOW MANY?!
Can someone tell him I'd prefer to have a closer with A LIVE FUCKING ARM after April?
Sweet Jesus.
I'm sooooo frustrated with the bullpen and Torre's handling of it so far this season.
Can someone get Grady Little on the phone?
...
Well, let's not be rash.
2009-04-27
Bullpen Part Two
Gah.
Another win given away by a tired and ineffective bullpen. Bellasario was the culprit tonight, failing in his efforts to hold the lead in the eighth inning.
So, what now?
They say Eric Milton looks pretty good in AAA. Apparently, he just picked up the Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Week award which is good news. Jeff Weaver also appears to be somewhat ready as well.
The problem is - both those guys are starters. So, they plug one of them into the fifth starter hole and slide James Macdonald into the 'pen? Makes sense, I suppose. At the moment, that probably helps quite a bit since most of the starters are having trouble getting past five innings or so.
Other than that, all we can do is wait. Wait for Cory Wade to heal up and pitch again and hope that Torre doesn't pitch him until his arm falls off. Wait for Kuo to regain his confidence and pitch like it. Wait for some of the other 'pen guys to show some consistency. Heck, while we're at it, we can wait for Kuroda to get off the DL which... who knows what that means to the rotation.
The offense is... okay. Lots of missed opportunities still but that'll always hang out there probably. I'm not real concerned about the offense as long as the pitching comes around.
Another win given away by a tired and ineffective bullpen. Bellasario was the culprit tonight, failing in his efforts to hold the lead in the eighth inning.
So, what now?
They say Eric Milton looks pretty good in AAA. Apparently, he just picked up the Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Week award which is good news. Jeff Weaver also appears to be somewhat ready as well.
The problem is - both those guys are starters. So, they plug one of them into the fifth starter hole and slide James Macdonald into the 'pen? Makes sense, I suppose. At the moment, that probably helps quite a bit since most of the starters are having trouble getting past five innings or so.
Other than that, all we can do is wait. Wait for Cory Wade to heal up and pitch again and hope that Torre doesn't pitch him until his arm falls off. Wait for Kuo to regain his confidence and pitch like it. Wait for some of the other 'pen guys to show some consistency. Heck, while we're at it, we can wait for Kuroda to get off the DL which... who knows what that means to the rotation.
The offense is... okay. Lots of missed opportunities still but that'll always hang out there probably. I'm not real concerned about the offense as long as the pitching comes around.
2009-04-26
Mass Hysteria
After a day of washing my hands at work much more frequently and with everyone cracking swine flu jokes, I come home to find this headline on Yahoo...
Is swine flu 'the big one'?
Public health experts have long feared a new flu could appear and kill millions worldwide.
Wow.
Is that really necessary?
I understand the need for sensationalism to achieve maximum clickthrough rates but... come on... really?
Even if it's true, is there a need for it? Can it accomplish anything more than generating a mass panic? Not to mention it'll jam emergency rooms with people convinced they're suffering from it.
Is swine flu 'the big one'?
Public health experts have long feared a new flu could appear and kill millions worldwide.
Wow.
Is that really necessary?
I understand the need for sensationalism to achieve maximum clickthrough rates but... come on... really?
Even if it's true, is there a need for it? Can it accomplish anything more than generating a mass panic? Not to mention it'll jam emergency rooms with people convinced they're suffering from it.
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