Look at the Shoes

Stupid interview but when the camera woman asked to see her shoes I was a little surprised when I saw her titties. Only bright spot in the entire interview.

Not Too Shabby

Starting with a 64 in Round 1 of the U.S. Open at Bethpage Black is what every player is hoping for. Mike Weir did just that and is holding the lead after the first round. This is great news but have you ever seen a player go start to finish? Yes it happens but I seem to always see guys shoot low on Thursday and then fall and become a victim of poor play on the last 3 days of the tournament. It would be nice to see another Canadian take home a Major but I'm not banking on it.

To the DL

Roy Halladay is officially on the DL and my The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly seems to have produced The Ugly. After reading and hearing about this through almost every sports writer out there, I was thinking how the Jays were going to handle this new DL stint. It seems every pitcher, player, or even bench coach is headed to the DL these days. In the end, maybe this is the best thing to happen to the Jays.

First, this is a great option to be safe than sorry. This is the franchise, leader, and straight up the man at the SkyDome. Putting him on the DL and having him recover and heal is better than having him go out there at 75-80% pitching and causing more damage to the groin or any other part of the body that is trying to compensate for the injury. I know a 75-80% Halladay is still better than almost 95% of the pitchers out there in the MLB when they are fully healthy but in the long run it's stupid to throw him out there.

Second, having Halladay on the bench recuperating might be what the Jays need to build some responsibility into the players and grow some hair on their chests. With their leader gone, players seem to know and understand that every single player on the team needs to contribute a little more. The little things that everyone puts in to try and make up for the loss of Halladay will in the end benefit the Jays. For every sacrifice bunt, legging out an infield hit, or throwing their body to catch that fly ball the Jays will be better off, not only now, but when Halladay returns. The loss of Halladay is not what the Jays need right now but it actually might be a good thing.

The DL is not a place where any player wants to be but if they put Halladay out on the mound instead of putting him on the DL, I would be a pretty disappointed in the Jays organization.

Champions

The Lakers are again on top of the basketball world. I don't really have too much to say but congratulations. I am a Lake Show fan and I have been one for some time now.

Just a few thoughts.

Phil "Zen Master" Jackson is absolutely ridiculous. Just think about it, the guy has 12 championship rings!!! He has 2 as a player and 10 as a coach. The funny part is everyone talks about his 10 coaching rings but barely does anyone talk about the 2 he has as a player. Come on, 12?!?!

Kobe is a champion again but this time he did it without Shaq. But I was always thinking isn't Gasol the equivalent to Shaq? Back in the 3-peat days of Shaq and Kobe, Shaq was absolutely more dominant than Gasol has ever and will most likely ever be but he is still a big man that has skills. Everyone talks about how Kobe needs this ring without Shaq to solidify his greatness but he still needed a big man in the middle to do it. Just asking, did Jordan need that big man down low to win his 6 rings? Hmmm...just something to think about.

No denying Kobe is a legend at this point but I still don't think he can compare to Jordan. The NBA is and will always be a league where the big man down low will get you championships and this is why Jordan, in my eyes, is still the greatest.

Derek Fisher is the man. If you went back a few years when the Lakers had Malone and Payton in the lineup when the Pistons were the opponents I specifically said, "Fisher should be starting because if he does, they will win. Bench Payton!!!" Well, I was right back then and I am right now. Fish is the man. He is the prime example of a guy who doesn't have any flash or skills that will dominate others but he has the savvy experience that any and every playoff team needs.

Kobe and the Lakers are at a point where rings are in reach and yes I meant rings with the "s". Now that Kobe has tasted the life sans Shaq on the podium and is within reach of Jordan's 6 titles, the Lakers are most likely in contention for at least 2-3 more rings in the next 3-5 years.

This is the start of a new Lakers dynasty.

Really?!

Chien-Ming Wang has his own pair of shoes. I know he's a god back in Taiwan but come on, not the best timing.

21.1IP, 0-4, 14.34ERA, 17K, and 2.67WHIP. They give signature shoes to guys who produce those numbers?!

Good, Bad, & Ugly

The Good. Who doesn't love the throw back uniforms. Just classic!

The Bad. Halladay will miss his next scheduled start BUT is expected to start next Saturday against the Washington Nationals.

The Ugly. The groin strain is an injury that can linger and for a pitcher is one of the worst places to have an injury especially in the right groin for a right throwing pitcher like Halladay. If the injury turns out to be worse than initially thought, the Jays are going to be in rough shape. Halladay is the glue to this team.

Few Thoughts

Just think of your shittiest day you have ever had in your life. I guarantee you that is how Marian Hossa is feeling right now. After reaching the Stanley Cup finals just a year ago, he decided to forgo a long-term contract with the Penguins to sign a one year $7.5 mil contract with the Wings because he thought the Wings would have the best chance of winning the Cup.

Things were going just dandy for Hossa until he ran into his former teammates the Penguins in this year's Stanley Cup Final. I am kind of stuck on the fence on how I feel about this whole situation.

One side, I think he's a complete idiot and selfish bastard for leaving his teammates just for a chance to win a cup. It would have been a good idea if he left a team that was a bottom feeder in the NHL but as you can see from this year and the results from last year, the Penguins are the real deal. Hossa left a team that was on the verge of being a dynasty. That's right, I'm using the word dynasty. Look at the make-up of the team. Crosby, Malkin, Staal, and Fleury are a few guys that come to mind. The dynasty talk will come up in the near future in a post.

On the other side, I'm all for him leaving the Pens and signing with a team that had a legitimate chance at the Cup. In the end, it was for the Stanley Cup. The whole thing just finished in a way that most would never have come up with. Come on, leaving a Stanley Cup runner-up and signing with the champions and a year later, the runner-up becomes the new Stanley Cup champions, only a hollywood writer could have come up with this kind of story.

Either way, you do have to feel some sort of sadness for the dude. Guy just watched two of his teams lose in the Stanley Cup finals.

Moving on, the Cup belongs to the Penguins and the NHL has ended their season. I do have to admit, the final game looked like a pretty intense game. I only watched the highlights but after watching them I should have watched the entire game live. Guess I'll just have to wait until the start of the 09-10 NHL season. Is this the start of dynasty in Pittsburgh?

One More

Just browsing the box scores and reading through all the stories on ESPN and TSN when I happened to bump into the NHL playoff section on Yahoo! Sports. Can you believe the 08-09 NHL season is going to be over on June 12th?!?! Where the hell does time go...it just seems like yesterday that the season started. To be honest, I lost interest in November. The NBA this year was absolutely amazing. The fierce battles didn't start when the playoffs started but right when the season began. Remember when KJ was taunting Calderon during game seven of the regular season.

I can't seem to find a reason for why I didn't keep up with hockey this year. I always keep up with hockey and the day to day life that surrounds the league. If you asked me who the leading scorer was I would be puzzled. If you asked me who finished first in each conference I would be puzzled. If you asked me...you get the picture.

Maybe it was the Leafs that kept me from watching. The Leafs kill me. They have all the resources in the world but still can't find a way to compete in the NHL. Almost every kid who grows up in Canada wants to play for the Leafs or the Canadiens but they still can't seem to sign a free agent, who isn't over the hill, to play and contribute. It baffles me everyday!

Just read somewhere that Dany Heatley of the Senators wants out of Ottawa. He still has 5 years left on his contract extension and it's pretty hefty in price, I think $7.5 mil each year, but still worth a look. If the Leafs wanted to sign and bring in a player who can score and understands the game, this would be a guy they need to sign.

As a Leafs fan, I'm used to saying, "Maybe next year, maybe next year."

Guess we'll see how I feel when the 09-10 season rolls around.

14 and Counting

**Apologies for the long absence from the world of On The Fence Sports. It seems life, work, and the books are all conspiring together to keep me away from posting.

The guy finally has achieved his goal of tying the unthinkable, 14 grand slams that Sampras achieved through his career. Congratulations are in order for Federer for, finally, winning the French Open. This story has been covered thoroughly through the world of sports but has anyone really talked about the "other side" of the story? What other side? Well, how about that famous guy who took his #1 spot from him, Nadal.

The whole 14 grand slams is a great story and I know Federer is satisfied with taking the title but if I was him I would still have a little feeling inside me, "do I really deserve this?" Just think about how many years and finals appearances where he finished behind Nadal at the French Open. Nadal is the real deal when it comes to the clay and if I was Federer I wouldn't feel complete unless I beat him at the French Open...finals, semis, or any match at the French.

Don't get me wrong, winning a grand slam is nothing to sneeze over but when it comes to the French Open, in my eyes, Federer needs to beat Nadal on the championship route to be considered a champion on clay. Just think about Nadal winning on grass at Wimbledon.

There is not much for me to say other than, he is the 2009 French Open champion and one grand slam away from breaking Sampras's grand slam record. There is an asterix beside the win at the French, not the same kind of asterix that should sit beside all the steroid abusers in baseball, because Federer lucked out and watched Nadal fall before reaching the finals.

Remember the Bulls before and after Jordan? The teams who took down the Bulls and won the NBA championships didn't really beat the Bulls.