Josh Hamilton

Alright, I know I haven't written here in a while and doubt anyone will read this anyway but I feel I have to talk about Josh Hamilton. I'm prefacing the talk by admitting that I am a huge Hamilton fan. I didn't just jump on his bandwagon either, I rooted for the crackhead through all his trials and tribulations. As a ravinous Phillies fan, I'm pretty much not allowed to root for another major league team because, let's face it, I hate them all. The only franchise I can find myself rooting for is that aaaa team the Devil Rays. They are pretty much the only team whose history is more pathetic than the Phils' one championship in 120 years. I never really followed him when he played, but ever since he inexplicably turned away from baseball I've found myself cheering for him. In fact, my fantasy baseball last year, before he even started his comeback, was named Josh Hamilton. Given these facts, I am elated and very surprised at his strong start. This is the same guy that struggled in the low minors last year. The guy goes from batting .260 in low a ball to a .333 with 5 homers in just 30 at bats. The guy has been performing like a superstar after a four year break and just 50 at-bats last year. That is rediculous and is a testament to the pure talent the guy has. I wasn't the type of person that thought talent could soley make someone a good baseball player, in fact I've had many drunken conversations citing David Eckstein as the proof, but he might have changed my mind. Sure talent matters, but I know that baseball should take a whole lot of hard work and preparation. If this is how Hamilton plays without all that and after a four year layoff, I am afraid of how good he might be if he continues on a good path. Why didn't the Phillies trade up for the first pick in the rule-5 draft??

National Championship

So the NCAA basketball season is over and all I can say is I'm depressed. As I sit here watching the one shining moment video, all I can think is, does Florida have an ugliness quota? But in all seriousness they clearly were the best team and did (sorry I got sick for a second when I saw a 45 year old Greg Oden hug Joakim Noah) win tonight. Oden may have proven that he is the absolute first overall pick in the draft, but Florida proved that it was deep enough to win a national championship...again. It wasn't even as if Ohio State wasn't playing well, sure they just threw up 3s at the end of the game when I wouldn't have, but Florida answered every time Ohio State made what seemed like a statement shot. It was as if they knew that it could slip away and they just willed the ball into the net. I chose Florida winning again, against my real desire for them to be humiliated, because they pretty much had to. I still think that Ohio State is far and away the more talented team, and if no one turned pro early Ohio State would be the biggest disappointment in recent years if they didn't win a championship next year, but Florida was more or less flawless. Florida never missed a major shot and really beat Ohio State at its best. It was simply a case of Florida having more depth than Ohio State. Oden was clearly the player to stop, and despite the great play from him, Florida kept throwing players out there to either stop him in the lane or limit him to one instead of two points. Florida was deep enough to win and they used that. That being said, with the three best Florida players almost guaranteed to leave, I think Donovan would be stupid not to take the money and run to Kentucky. Sure the pressure is greater in the best basketball school this side of LA, but Donovan can win and will be able to strive there. There is nothing left to prove at Florida, he has little chance to win another title next year, and any run at the record for repeats is ludicrous. The smartest move for him is to take the money and run. He will still go down as a great coach for back to back national championships, and I’m sure that if he gets in trouble at Kentucky the Celtics will be looking for a coach.