Big Move of June 21st

The Bruins making it rain to the tune of 156 000 one dollar bills. Okay, they might not have partied like they were Adam Pac Man Jones and word is the 30L bottle of champagne that cost $100 000 was actually donated by the bar owner in exchange for signatures but this is still an impressive feat. I think the Mavericks bar tab barely reached 100k after their victory so this isn't too shabby for a hockey team without a Mark Cuban type owner. Then again, isn't a basketball team only 12 players or so? I guess the 24 assistants on the bench bring it even with a hockey team though. 

Big Move of June 20th

The Florida Marlins bringing back former manager Jack McKeon to coach the ballclub for the rest of the season. The Marlins were ten games above 500 and just two games behind the Phillies on May 31st for first place in the NL East but a brutal June in which they have won just one game took it's toll on former manager Edwin Rodriguez who resigned this past Sunday. With little time to find a suitable replacement the Marlins turned to their hot tub time machine and hired McKeon, making this the second time the club has hired him in the middle of the season. The first time occurred in 2003 and it worked out quite well for the team as they went on to win the world series that fall in shocking fashion. However, I highly doubt the same will occur this year and the odds are McKeon's return will be as successful as Joe Gibbs comeback with the Washington Redskins. I'm generally not in favour of recycling former coaches or players on any team but in this case that's not even the major issue revolving around this hiring. In fact, that's a minor detail. The glaring issue is that the Marlins just hired a man who was around during the Black Sox scandal... Alright, that's stretching it a bit but McKeon is 80 years old, which will make him the oldest coach in professional sports by quite a few years. I can't see how he'll be able to manage games when they typically start three hours after he's had dinner and around the same time he settles into bed with a nice episode of Columbo! Unless the Marlins start moving games to 12:00pm I don't think this hiring will work out too well.

Big Move of June 19th

Rory McIlroy running away with the U.S. Open to claim his first ever major. In doing so, McIlroy became the second youngest to ever win a major at age 22 and set a record for lowest score under par at the U.S. Open. This was one of the most dominant performances in golf history and ranks up there with Tiger Woods' 12 under 15 stroke win at Pebble Beach in 2000. More importantly, it cast away the choker label Rory was starting to develop after previous collapses in the past year at the British Open and Masters. He got his first major under his belt, which is a huge hurdle (just ask Phil Mickelson) and should propel him to many more. I don't want to make any wild predictions because golf is a crazy game but Rory does have the talent and ability to take a run at Jack Nicklaus' record of 18 majors or whatever Tiger Woods ends up with if he is able to piece things back together (a big if). He has an incredible and consistent swing along with a good frame that should help him avoid injuries. Add to this that he is still very young and well beyond all golfers within ten years of his age. To be honest, I don't think he has any competitors that could really threaten him except for Phil Mickelson and potentially Tiger Woods and quite frankly those two would still need to play their best to beat Rory head to head. This is an exciting time for golf and his emergence is much needed with the disappearance of Tiger Woods. I am looking forward to watching what else he can accomplish this year and he is without a doubt the favourite heading into the British Open next month.

Co Big Move of the day. The University of Western Ontario calling for donations at 7:30 pm on Fathers day... Really?!!?! Come on guys, lets pull our heads out of our asses! Any other day of the week I wouldn't mind and might have considered giving some money, but it was just rude to pull such a stunt on a Sunday evening let alone Fathers Day. I'm all for giving back and will eventually do so but not at this time. I'd also like to think my University is a bit above Bell, Rogers or Cogeco for annoying solicitations. Nice job UWO... this might prompt me to add an 'ass of the day' column to this blog.

Big Move of June 16

Zach Stewart shining in his major league debut. Stewart threw seven solid innings of two run ball and struck out four while needing only 85 pitches to do so. His location was fantastic all game long and there was not one point in the game where he was not in control or looked as if me might unravel. Unfortunately the Jays offense was not able to deliver him the run support he needed to get a much deserved victory but it was a positive debut nonetheless. I don't want to make too much of one game but Stewart is a highly touted Jays prospect and is known for very good control, which he displayed yesterday. After seeing Drabek and Cecil disappoint this season the Blue Jays are hoping Stewart can step up and help contribute to the AL's second worse starting staff by ERA. For the last five years it seems as if one young pitcher has come up midway through the season and delivered strong results. I wouldn't be at all surprised if Stewart is this year's breakout pitcher for the Jays and if he is able to keep his control he could be quite an effective pitcher who can induce lots of ground balls and eat up innings. If he is successful let's hope he'll avoid regressing or getting injured like Jays pitchers have done in past seasons after strong rookie campaigns, which has proven to be the biggest hurdle for Jays pitchers in recent years. Jesse Litsch, Shaun Marcum, Dustin McGowan and Brett Cecil come to mind. To be honest, Ricky Romero has been the only Jay to avoid sophomore jinxes or injuries in the last decade, but what else would you expect from one of the best pitchers in the game!?!?

Big Move of June 15th

The Canucks and the city of Vancouver melting down on hockey's biggest stage. The Canucks showed absolutely no fight last night and let the Bruins walk away with one of the easiest game seven victories in history, which paved the way for riots in the streets shortly after. 'If we win we're legends' was the quote from Ryan Kesler on Tuesday heading into the game. However, he forgot to mention the alternative label for the team if they lost, which is gutless. Aside from Kevin Bieksa no Canuck played with any passion and there just didn't seem to be any urgency in their game even after giving up the first, second and third goals of the game. But what would you expect from a team filled with great regular season players who aren't willing to pay the price in the playoffs? The Sedins being the most glaring example. Ryan Kesler even got in on the action and was a non factor in the game last night and the entire series, registering only one point. In fact, he was barely noticeable from the Nashville series on. To be fair, he was likely playing through a groin injury but Steve Yzerman managed to win a stanley cup on one leg in his mid thirties and so did many other past players who wanted to win badly enough.The only Canuck that played with some consistency in the playoffs was Alex Burrows and that's pretty sad because he's still not much of a factor and softer than a marshmellow. Lastly, Roberto Luongo lived up to his billing as a goalie who doesn't show up for big games or come through in the clutch. It is unfair to blame him entirely for last night's game but he had a legitimate chance to make a save on all three Boston goals he let in and looked a step behind on each one, unlike his counterpart Tim Thomas who was sharp all night and throughout the series. If Luongo could have kept the game scoreless for just a while longer perhaps the Canucks could have gotten the opening goal they desperately needed to ease the pressure that clearly got to them? But then again, the forwards didn't mount too many scoring chances anyways so perhaps the outcome would have been no different if Luongo stood on his head. Regardless, he'll ultimately take the brunt of the loss and his jersey is now as fashionable to wear as wallet chains and LA Gear shoes (especially the ones with the lights). Luongo clearly needs a change of scenery and both him and the fans are no longer enamoured with one another. Vancouver probably has as good a chance to win with Corey Schneider but trading Luongo's contract won't be an easy task. They sure won't get fair market value for him but perhaps the gain will be through subtraction.

I should mention the Bruins in this BMOD because they do deserve a lot of credit. They were definitely the best team (not the most talented) in the playoffs this year and worked extremely well together. Tim Thomas deserves a lot of praise and rightfully won the conn smythe trophy, but Zdeno Chara admirably anchored a defense filled with no names and a bystander (Tomas Kaberle) to help Thomas shine and avoid rebounds. I'd imagine fans in Ottawa are cringing at the fact they let him walk away and chose to resign Wade Redden several years ago.

Finally, how sad was it to see the city of Vancouver make an ass of itself again? The fans in the arena showed a ton of class and probably had the most right to be angry having paid ridiculous amounts of money to attend such a terrible game(upwards of $7800 per ticket). However, it was the small pockets of young punks in the streets around the arena that showed no restraint and thought it would be a great idea to torch cars and vandalize local stores. What's worse is they were basically allowed to do so unimpeded. The Vancouver police and riot squad were the only team softer than the Canucks in Vancouver last night. Canada's greatest and most beautiful city (self proclaimed by Van residents) managed to undo the great impression they left on the world a year ago at the winter olympics and once again show why they're a city undeserving of a stanley cup champion.

Big Move of June 13th

Bobby Lu coming up with the clutchest playoff performance since Patrick Lalime in game 7 of the first round agains the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2004. In fact, he was so good that he didn't even have to play the last 49 minutes of the game last night. This has been a very strange series and shown that home ice does matter in hockey afterall as both the Canucks and Bruins have won all three of their games at home to set up the championship game Wednesday night. Luongo has especially displayed the importance of home ice advantage after stopping 95 of 97 shots to win three games in Vancouver while giving up 15 goals on 64 shots in Boston, losing all three games and getting pulled in two games. Not since Steve Webb has the NHL seen a player that personifies Tarzan at home and Jane on the road as much as Luongo has this series. Hopefully the home trend continues one more game for the Canucks but I have a feeling Tim Thomas isn't going to let his first and most likely last opportunity to win the stanley cup Wednesday night. If that happens I'd imagine the Canucks will have a tough decision this offseason and look to trade Luongo in favour of retaining the younger, cheaper and potentially better long term solution in net, Corey Schneider. Philly would be a nice landing spot for Bobby Lu, I don't think they even care anymore when their goalies choke in the playoffs and have just come to accept it like blackflies during the summer in Thunder Bay. But, maybe I shouldn't get too far ahead of myself here. Afterall, I did predict a Canucks sweep in this series and all but handed them the cup after game two.

Big Move of June 12

There's no crying in Basketball!!! Oh wait, I think the quote is baseball... No matter, I'm sure the same rule applies to any professional sport. I don't think much needs to be said about the Mavericks winning the championship. Everyone outside of Miami and especially those in Cleveland became huge Dallas fans in the last few days and rejoiced Sunday night when they disposed of the Mavericks. The icing on the cake was Bosh discharing a salty fluid from his eyes after displaying the softest performance ever in a playoff season. In fact, his performance prompted Philadelphia cream cheese to make him an offer as it's new spokesman for its softest spread eveer. Speaking of Philly, maybe he'll get traded their in the offseason? I can't see him being able to take that city's fans though. But he definitely is on his way out of Miami after blowing a golden opportunity to mooch off Lebron and Wade for championships in the sun. There's just no way the Heat can justify keeping this whiny player earning 16 mil a season who makes Tim Duncan look like 2003 Ron Artest when standing next to him. For 16 million the Heat could add a nice compliment of bench players and role guys who they clearly lacked this season.

Big Move of June 11th

Mike McCoy pitching a 1-2-3 ninth inning against the Boston Red sox. If you're not familiar with McCoy then you might be asking why this is such a big deal since plenty of pitchers throw 1-2-3 innings. Well, it just so happens that Mike McCoy is not a pitcher and rather a position player who is used in various spots in the infield or occasionally the outfield. After the Red Sox routed the Jays starting pitcher Brandon Morrow for nine runs and then had their way with Frasor, Dotel and Janssen the Jays turned to McCoy to play the role of the mop up pitcher to end a lost game. Turns out he's not a bad pitcher and did what few Jays pitchers could do on the day by shutting out the Red Sox in the ninth. Word is the Jays are now scouting Air Canada for pitching talent since they'll probably be throwing more strikes than anyone on the Jays roster this summer (with the exception of Romero and Rzypcenski).

Big Move of June 5th

Manny Malhotra returns to the Canucks lineup after suffering a gruesome eye injury that required emergency surgery in March and has kept him out ever since. It was once thought that Malhotra's career was in jeopardy and that he may never see out of his left eye again. Returning to hockey at all was in doubt let alone making a comeback in the stanley cup final. His return to the lineup last night was nothing short of outstanding and provided one of the greatest moments of hockey this season when he took his first shift and faceoff two minutes into the game in front of a standing ovation and crowd chanting his name. Malhotra's return was a huge emotional boost for the Canucks and his presence in the lineup was by no means trivial or to act as a cheerleader. Malhotra is an excellent faceoff man and proved so by winning 86% of his draws last night, which is a very important and often overlooked part of the game, especially in the playoffs.

Co big move of the day, some asslcown who should have been suspended for last night's game scoring the overtime goal to put the Vancouver Canucks up 2-0 and all but lock up the stanley cup. If you think I'm jinxing it or talking too soon consider this statistic, of 34 teams to open the finals with two straight losses on the road only 2 have been able to come back and win the cup. The most recent being the Pittsburgh Penguins beating the Detroit Red Wings in 2009. I'm going to go out and say Boston will not become the third team to do so and I wouldn't be surprised to see Vancouver sweep the Beaners. 

Big Move of June 4th

Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal winning their semi-final matches to set up a great final at the French Open this coming Sunday. I struggled finding a big move from yesterday but I suppose this deserved mention. I was pretty pleased to see Federer beat jokeavich, especially since I thought he was starting to move towards the twilight part of his career and edging towards being washed up. Maybe that's a bit ignorant of me to say, I'll be honest I don't know a heck of a lot about tennis but aren't they like running backs and all but done when they hit 30? I just haven't heard his name a lot lately or seen him win any big tournaments. Again, I don't watch much tennis so feel free to correct me if you do. Either way, great final for Sunday and if Federer can beat Nadal on clay at Rolen Garos (not sure if that's how you spell it) I'd imagine it will be considered one of his greatest victories and perhaps complete all there is to accomplish in his career since I don't believe he has beaten Nadal at the French Open. I know he won the French a few years ago to complete the career grand slam but he never faced Nadal because Rafael lost before the championship and was hobbled by a leg injury. To me this would really legitimize the French Open title for Federer and is kind of like how a career is not complete at Michigan if you don't beat Ohio State, or beating USC if you go to Notre Dame, or beating the Steelers if you play for the Ravens... You get the idea.

Big Move of June 2nd

Dirk Nowitzki leading a 15 point comeback against the heat with only six minutes left in game 2 of the NBA finals. I'm not a big fan of basketball and will admit I did not watch any of this game but I can respect the significance and difficulty of this comeback so I'll concede BMOD honours to it. Especially considering it came against the team I hate most in basketball along with everyone outside of Miami. I did watch the highlights and the part of the game I enjoyed most was Dirk making Bosh look like an idiot several times in the last few minutes of the game, including his drive with 3 seconds left to score the winning bucket. Out of the 'Big 3' I'd definitely say Bosh is the most annoying and insignificant player but fills the role of the 'group loser' quite nicely (George in Seinfeld for instance... or was it Elaine? Maybe Turtle from Entourage is the better example). The 'group loser' is essentially that guy who adds nothing and you only notice when he screws up big, like Bosh did last night. Occasionally they have one big day and ride that glory forever (Bosh in game 3 vs. Chicago last series) but for the most part they don't do much. He is paid quite handsomely though to fill this role so I'm sure he has no complaints. However, with the impending NBA lockout, which will surely bring a cutback to players salaries and a lower cap Bosh will likely be banished from Miami next season in order for the team to keep Lebron and Dwayne Wade. I think Milwaukee would be a nice destination and serve him right for the bulls$!# he pulled on Toronto during his last season.  The only drawback to that is he'll incrase his already annoying tweets by 200% in order to try and stay relevant.

In other news. I will have to concede that 'Joey Bats' is the proper nickname for Jose Bautista and I'm all for it after seeing this promotion. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4lohgU46mRA
Big move by MLB digging up Bobby Bacallieri and Johnny Sacs brothe rin law from the Sopranos to do this promotion.

Big Move of June 1st

Alex Burrows getting pumped up for game 1 by watching the replay of the Mike Tyson/Evander Holyfield fight from 1997. Unfortunately he took a little bit too much from watching this fight and brought Tyson's antics into the arena by trying to bite off Patrice Bergeron's finger while Bergeron gave him a nice facewash.  Burrows is known for bush league antics and cowardly acts when confronted by players much tougher than him (the entire league) so this act really shouldn't come as any surprise. The bite only furthers his title as the most despised player in the NHL amongst players and fans (yes, he's even passed Avery). I have to say that it's really going to suck watching this guy lift the cup over his head in about a week's time. I'm fully behind the Canucks along with the majority of Canadians but Burrows and Ryan Kesler sure do make you want to cheer against this team at times. Maybe Kesler will lighten up when the Canucks win but Burrows will still be annoying to look at and listen to.

Big Move of May 31st

The sale of the Atlanta Thrashers to True North Sports paving the way for a relocation to Winnipeg. Over 15 years have passed since the Jets left town and now the city of Winnipeg is looking for redemption trying to provie it can support an NHL franchise once again. Funny, didn't Atlanta say the same thing in 1999 when they got a second chance at NHL hockey after it failed? I'll admit that these are two different cities and fan support was not the reason the Jets left in 1996 while fan support was the major reason hockey failed twice in Atlanta. Actually, to be honest, Atlanta is a pretty brutal town for fan support regardless of what sport is being played, unless of course the Falcons are over 500. Hockey had no chance to survive in Atlanta to begin with but Gary Bettman continually showed blind support for the team and was always quick to point out that it is the 4th largest TV market in the U.S. That's a very nice statistic, by that reasoning a team should be put in Beijing or New Delhi because they're two of the biggest cities in the world. Of course a large population will flock to a team and sport they have no history or roots in. To be honest, I wouldn't be surprised to see Bettman trying to move a team into Asia before he makes the most obvious decision to relocate a team to the GTA, or two for that matter. He's either incredibly dumb or the Maple Leafs have a photo of him punishing a donkey from behind, which are the only two theories I can come up with to explain why he's avoided this money making market. But I digress, today is about Winnipeg and not the dictator that runs the NHL with an iron fist and stubborness. Congratulations Winnipeg, it's great to see another Canadian team join the fold and I think everyone is happy for you... well, except for the wives and families of the Thrasher players who now have to spend the Winter in the Peg as opposed to the country clubs of the south where you can wear shorts and t-shirts in February. Odds are the players will be buying homes close to James Armstrong Richardson airport, otherwise known as the best part of Winnipeg. Why? Because when you're there you know you can leave!