SEC versus Pac-12 Throw Down Trash Talk

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That’s right, IT IS ON MOFO’S. Grudge match between the Jim White Hats and the Bmaz Black Hats. Since before the college baseball season started, we were pimping and poking each other about which conference and whose team was better. And here we are, with the finals of the College World Series set to start tomorrow, and it is indeed going to be SEC v. PAC.

Just not the teams we had in mind. Turns out ASU had a little criminal issue and was banned from postseason play this year (not sure they would have made it anyway, but might well have) and the Florida Gators had some unfortunate luck and got bounced out of the CWS in a preliminary round. Bah humbug for both of us! I am still kind of representin though, as the Arizona Wildcats (hey, I did do some graduate work there) are already in the CWS finals, and tonights last play in game between Arkansas and two time defending champs South Carolina will determine the Cats opponent. Pac versus SEC no matter what. I think the Cocks are too battle tested and will likely make it through to the finals, then GAME ON. Go Cats!

In other sporting news, a team from somewhere, with some player who STIFFED his home state and original team to embarrass himself n a Tony Montana like Caligula decision show, just won the NBA title. Boo. Hiss.

Also this weekend is the Grand Prix of Europe from Valencia Spain, round 8 of this year’s circus. There have been seven races so far this year, and seven different winners for five different constructors. I have never seen anything like it. Sebastian Vettel was fast in Practice in Valencia:

Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel looks poised to extend his dominance of Formula One’s European Grand Prix after setting the fastest time through two practice sessions on Friday.

The two-time defending world champion, who has won the race for the past two seasons after starting from pole, clocked the day’s best lap in the second session of one minute, 39.334 seconds on the 5.4-kilometre (3.3-mile) Valencia Street Circuit that weaves its way through the America’s Cup Harbor.

The overcast sky that had kept the track cool in the morning session cleared up by the afternoon, with the sun raising track temperatures to 40 degrees Celsius (104 F). Even higher temperatures are forecast for the weekend.
…..
Force India driver Nico Hulkenberg’s best effort left him just 0.131 seconds adrift of Vettel, followed by Kamui Kobayashi of Sauber at 0.261 seconds back.

Mercedes’ Michael Schumacher overcame more mechanical problems that have plagued him all season to record the fourth fastest time, just 0.267 seconds behind Vettel.

I may add in some more on F1 later, we shall see. But I am a little tight on time, so I have to fly here. I have been downtown most of the day with friend of the blog Shahid Buttar, head of the Bill of Rights Defense Committee. This is a great group of folks, and they are doing really good work on a LOT of the same issues we do here at Emptywheel, and they have a real knack for taking the effort into state and local communities in conjunction with other and partner groups.

Shahid is in town for this panel and workshop at the annual Unitarian Universalist convention. Have met many amazing people there the last couple of days, and yesterday had lunch with longtime Emptywheel and FDL member, RevDeb. Yes, she is awesome.

So, that is it, for now anyway. Have some fun and let loose with all yer tall tales and wild yarns etc.

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49 replies
  1. Jim White says:

    Since I love pulled pork so much, I’m pulling for the Pigs tonight. I’ve had enough of South Carolina for a loong time.

    There are a few rumors Hudson Randall may pass up signing his MLB contract and come back for his senior year. Tyler Thompson has also been granted a medical redshirt, so we have a very good, very fast glove coming back to center field next year. The veterans from this year’s team are moving on, but the freshmen were outstanding and there’s another good class coming in.

    Gator baseball. Just wait till next year.

  4. Jim White says:

    @bmaz: And you need to be one, too. Because if South Carolina wins tonight, I’m going to pull for former Gator coach Andy Lopez and Arizona. I’m that sick of South Carolina. Won’t be much fun this weekend if we’re both pulling for Zona.

  6. Bay State Librul says:

    A victory lap?

    BOSTON—Roger Clemens visited Fenway Park on Friday night, four days after being acquitted in a federal perjury case.

    Clemens sat in the first row above the Green Monster in left field as the Red Sox played the Atlanta Braves.

    Roger Clemens, in white cap and shirt, acknowledges the crowd as he’s introduced at Fenway Park. (AP Photo)

    He received a subdued mixture of cheers and mostly boos when shown on the center-field scoreboard after the third inning with the words “Welcome Back Roger Clemens” on the screen.

    The 49-year-old former Red Sox pitcher was acquitted Monday on all six counts that he lied to Congress when he denied using performance-enhancing drugs.

    USA Today reported that Clemens likely is in Boston to take part in a charity fundraiser.

    From the AP

  7. Jim White says:

    @Bmaz: Gaaah! Have I mentioned how much I hate South Carolina?

    About halfway through the game last night, the ESPN announcers seemed to give up on defending the home plate umpire. His strike zone for South Carolina pitchers all night gave an extra 4-6 inches on either side of the plate and removed an inch or two on either side and at the bottom for Arkansas. The “ball four” pitch that walked in the “winning” run was a strike according to ESPN’s K zone, just catching the bottom of the zone. It also appeared that the batter swung, but the home plate umpire did not check with the first base umpire and ESPN did not even bother with a replay from down the line or their camera above home plate looking straight down.

  9. rosalind says:

    and this cracked me up:

    “A team of engineers and two crazy drivers are preparing for a history-making challenge drawn from the daydreams of every child who’s ever crisscrossed his parents’ living room with plastic race tracks: building, and racing on, a human-scale Hot Wheels double loop track, just like the one you had when you were a kid.”

    http://www.wired.com/playbook/2012/06/playbook_0620_jump/

  10. emptywheel says:

    Apparently the folks who took the train to the wedding I’m at were all full of people in tuxes headed to Ascot. Apparently there was a very exciting race just run. Apparently a girl horse won.

    Good thing I just figured all that out or bmaz would have made me go check it out.

  12. chetnolian says:

    So you’re in my country Marcy! I hope we make you very welcome and that you don’t have to go anywhere that gets flooded. Berkshire and points west (i.e. my bit)seem to be ok though.

    Update on the GP tomorrow. The front row’s a bit predictable, Vettel and Hamilton but it gets fun after that.Pastor Maldonado then Grosjean and Raikonnen in their Lotuses (!!!). Copying Hamilton’s set-up didn’t do the magic for Button who had to settle, bad-temperedly, for ninth. He predicted tomorrow will be a procession. Let’s see.

  14. quebecois says:

    Vettel put three tenths of a second on Hamilton for the pole. This season is epic so far. Supper’s Ready epic for those in the know…

  16. quebecois says:

    Schu is holding a pack behind him. It’s a karma year for the kaiser, all those years of psychopathy and poor sportmanship are finally paying off. Couldn’t happen to a stiffer guy…

  17. bmaz says:

    @quebecois: Tee hee hee hee.

    I am totally down with all the schadenfreude as to Schumi; he deserves it completely. Still, I would love to see him have dependable top equipment for a few races to see what, if anything, he still could do. Sadly, the Merc seems fast enough, but just not dependable.

  18. bmaz says:

    By the way folks, yesterday was the 40th Birthday for Title IX. Talk about a piece of legislation leaving a lasting and positive legacy, just look at where women’s athletics are now, not just at the collegiate level, but all levels, as a result.

    Title IX was some good work. Salute!

  19. bmaz says:

    Also, come on folks, no love for Old Slowhand on Motherless Children, the stone cold classic from 461 Ocean Boulevard? Tragic.

  20. chetnolian says:

    I’m with you Bmaz. It was good to see the old maestro on the podium, but it was difficult not to shed a tear along with Fernando. Not usually my favourite driver this was a seriously good drive in front of his very own crowd. And a Lotus podium after all those years! We all thought Kimi had gone off into the boondocks never to be seen again.

    And if I were Martin Whitmarsh I would be looking nervously over my shoulder. All these silly little tech failures in the pits. Would never have happened under Ron. If it hadn’t occurred Lewis wouldn’t have needed to go dicing with Pastor, never a safe occupation.

  21. bmaz says:

    @chetnolian: Quite unfortunately, Lewis returned to the antics that have stained him the last couple of years. He is not a kid anymore, and has all the talent in the world; it just makes him look bad. I don’t get it, he is better than that.

    Also, hope things are well over there. Are you excited about the Olympics, or is it a headache?

  22. chetnolian says:

    @bmaz: Not atall a Lewis fan but I didn’t see it that way atall. Hamilton was entitled to take the line he did, Maldonaldo had all four wheels off the road and his safe way out was to stay out and back off. Just checked and the stewards agree with me. Maldonado was penalised. The Olympics are a pain. The sailing’s just down the road in Weymouth and we have had much unnecessary highway rework, the locals are of course barred from being anywhere they can see and navigation around Weymouth and Portland is being regulated with questionable legality by the securocrats.I shan’t go anywhere near London, which will be taken over by benign American organisations like Coca Cola and MacDonalds and of course by the securocrats. It’s rotting up my son’s life becuase he works in air traffic management and there is massive short term disruption to all airways around London, ordered by, guess who?, the securocrats.Need I go on?

  27. bmaz says:

    It is time for the PAC-12, represented by the Arizona Wildcats, now supported by both bmaz AND Jim White, versus teh evil SEC, represented by South Carolina Cocks (Boooooo!).

    As Jim just told me on the telephone, when a team is called the Cocks, you know they are a bunch of dicks. BOOYAH!

  33. Mrs. JimWhite says:

    For being such a classy lady, I seem to use the phrase “you suck” a lot at sporting events. Now that the Heat aren’t on TV anymore (Hey LeBron, you suck!), I need a new target and I have found….South Carolina! I normally wouldn’t use it on another SEC team but “Hey South Carolina….”

  41. quebecois says:

    @bmaz:

    Schu finished on the podium, what a race. Sad that Renault is having alternator problems. Vettel was winning with a comfortable lead, and Grosjean was utterly convincing before the power was cut off. Alonso did a splendid job, kudos to him. Maldonado was in the wrong as far as the rules goes, but, I’m sure deep down, Hamilton is kicking his own ass for his unsuccessful attempt at staying in front of a car that will pass you anyways cause his rear tires were shot… Back to Schu, I have to say that he drove well, like a gentleman, which is a welcome change from his norm.

  43. Jim White says:

    @GulfCoastPirate: I’m in the southwest part of Gainesville. NWS says we got about 5 inches of rain yesterday:

    http://radar.weather.gov/ridge/radar.php?rid=jax&product=N0R&overlay=11101111&loop=no (and then click on “storm total”)

    Fortunately, the rain let up around midnight and we even have some sun this morning. I’m packing the family up to leave this afternoon for a week, so we’re watching carefully to see if the storms come back to life for this afternoon. The horses didn’t get out to graze at all yesterday, so I’m hoping we can turn them out in a few minutes and leave them out for the pet sitter to bring in at dinnertime.

  44. GulfCoastPirate says:

    @Jim White: Glad to hear you folks are OK. Having lived through Ike and a few others to come ashore around here over the years you don’t have to tell me how bad those storms can be.

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