Mozes signs with Vikes

Dan Mozes signed a free-agent contract with the Minnesota Vikings. Mozes was a two time All American and winner of the Rimington Award as the top center in the nation, yet was not one of 6 centers drafted. Current Viking centers are Matt Birk a nine year veteran and multiple Pro Bowler, Ryan Cook who plays center, guard, and tackle, and Norm Katnik who spent last year on the practice squad. Denver also made an offer, but last year signed 2005 Outland Trophy and Rimington Trophy winner Greg Eslinger in the second round.

Boo McLee signed with the St. Louis Rams as a free-agent. The Rams did not draft any linebackers in the 2007 draft. Boo didn't watch the draft.

"I didn't stay and watch the draft, I went miniature golfing for a while," said McLee, who spent Sunday in Uniontown at his aunt's house. "I was told about all the linebackers that got picked. It's real tough. You work real hard, but you can't control the situation."

Guard Jeremy Sheffey signed with the San Diego Chargers. The San Diegans, San Diegites, San Diegons (?) drafted no offensive linemen in 2007.

No word yet on Brandon Myles signing with any team or if he played frisbee golf during the draft.

Rough draft for the Mountaineers

There was a possibility of both Dan Mozes and Brandon Myles being drafted on the second day with a slim possibility of Boo McLee getting a call. The phones remained silent during the draft as 0 Mountaineers had their name called, got to put on a hat, or hold a jersey. Some schools of note that did get some players drafted. Alambama A & M (1), Albany (1), Coastal Carolina (1), Elon (1), Lane (1), Towson boys (1), and Washburn (1). Dan, Brandon, and Boo could all still sign with a team as a free agent and we will keep you updated if they do so.

In other news Brady Quinn liked Cleveland and got picked by Cleveland and I wish there was more, but no one really talked about it during the draft. Also the Sopranos sucked this week like a dump in the shower that someone stepped in.

NFL Draft 2007 tidbit

Just in case you were not aware, Brady Quinn was drafted 22nd in the first round on Saturday. There were a few other guys drafted over the course of the weekend. 21 of them before Brady Quinn. Some sportscasters chose to pay special attention to Brady Quinn. Others decided to discuss Brady Quinn the entire time. I enjoyed the coverage of Brady Quinn. I hope none of our readers were playing the Brady Quinn drinking game while watching the draft. Who else got the go ahead in the draft, who cares? Brady Quinn was a steal for the Browns. Brady Quinn, Brady Quinn, Brady Quinn. If his middle name were Aaron, he could be called B.A. Quinn. B.A. Barakas would be a good mentor for Brady Quinn. Brady Quinn is a french waiter now. Brady Quinn.

Dave Hickman is an idiot

I hate to call people out. Actually, that is a lie. I love it and Dave Hickman you may be a poor sports writer, but you are a terrible lawyer. Hickman wastes two pages in today's Charleston Gazette verbally fellating John Beilein and the correctness of the buyout. That's fine, you loved Beilein and wanted to have his baby, but science won't let that happen yet even though Arnold got preggers in that one movie. Unfortunately, Hickman then tries to explain the purpose of the buyout.

Now, before anyone decides that the settlement between West Virginia and Beilein should be taken as a signal to try to barter down that tuition you owe, or the check you’re about to write for season tickets, it’s apples and oranges. This isn’t money owed to West Virginia for services rendered, but rather a punitive award.

Well I'm not a contract lawyer, but my first year in law school contracts taught me that there is almost never a punitive award in contracts. The goal in contract law is to put the non-breaching party in the position they would have been had there not been a breach. Liquidated damages must be proven both to have been reasonable in light of the anticipated or actual loss and difficult to prove at the time of the drafting of the contract to be enforceable. Should a liquidated damages clause look penal (not the organ but a punishment) then it is unenforceable. Whether the clause in Beilein's contract could be construed as punishment is reviewed by OS here and here.

WVU clearly settled for one reason alone. The liquidated damages clause was vague and high enough it could be construed as punishment. If so, a judge would not lower the clause, but throw it out giving WVU actual damages which are the cost to bring in Huggybear. So going to court would have been $2.5 million or basically $0, plus the expenses of court. WVU looked at the situation and said $1.5 million is still a lot, so lets take it. Whether it was right or wrong is as the Dude would say, "like your opinion man." Personally, I would have taken it to court because the precedent is set that WVU will back off during later negotiations, but then again I don't have to answer to the state had WVU lost. $1.5 million may not purchase a new scoreboard, but it would at least be able to buy some new sound effects during introductions. I'm sending Dave a link for his response. And Dave if you do drop by you also screwed this up recently, too. Dummy.

*Note from Option Spread: To let you guys know, all three of the contributors to this site are admitted to the practice of law in various states. Its not a brag, its to let you know that we're not just coming up with this crap off the top of our heads or from research on the googles or the ebays. We actually know what we're talking about and we have the student loan debt to prove it.

Further, the information contained in this article and other posts on this site, if legal in nature, is merely provided as information and is not to be construed as legal advice. If you have a legal matter similar to Beilein's or otherwise, please contact a local attorney immediately as the factual nuances in each case differ and are often times essential to the correct analysis of your situation. Since very few of our readers know our actual names and/or identities, this post, and others like it, are also not solicitations or advertisements for legal services. Sorry for the legalese, the ethics rules require this stuff.

Blue Gold Game Pics

I've noticed some of our visitors have come to our little blog looking for pics from the 2007 Blue Gold game. Unfortunately, we have yet to actually post of any them except for those included with our guest contribution to Everyday Should be Saturday. To make it up to you, here's the link to our photobucket page containing all of the cold and snowy images from that somewhat blaize day of hangover and butt stench. (There is allegedly also a big deal about the delicious Red Seal and stylish white sneaks. They, however, alluded my camera lense.)

http://s175.photobucket.com/albums/w150/thebastardsons/

(At some point, perhaps after we add a few more photos from upcoming football games, we'll add a link over to the right somewhere so you guys can more easily find this stuff.)

Not Vicks Dogg

This picture does not appear to be altered. The dogs name is Hercules, and it is billed as "The World's Biggest Dog Ever" according to Guinness World Records. Hercules, the English Mastiff, and has a 38 inch neck and weighs 282 pounds.

I don't know if Ronnie Mexico has a rape stand big enough to accommodate a dog that size.

Settle down now

The Dominion-Post is reporting that John Beilein and West Virginia University have agreed to settle the buyout of his contract for $1.5 million over 5 years. In addition, the payments may be going to the Mountaineer Athletic Club or the WVU Foundation. The reasoning would be that I guess Beilein could attempt to use a payment to either as a tax write-off.

In other Michigan/WVU news it appears as though upcoming UM senior safety Ryan Mundy is attempting to transfer to WVU. In a little used NCAA rule, one that has been rescinded, a player that graduated could transfer and not sit out a year if the school he transferred to had a graduate program unavailable at the former school. Mundy is attempting to get in under a grandfather clause and would have one year of eligibility remaining. Florida cornerback Ryan Smith used the rule last year to follow Urban Myer from Utah and in basketball UNLV player Kevin Kruger used the loophole to leave ASU and play for his daddy.

Ron Mexico is back

WVU rightly takes a lot of criticism for Pacman and Henry, but VT has it's own dynamic duo of the Vick brothers. And VT named a freshman dorm after Michael.
At this point Vick may have a Jeckle and Hyde thing going with the Micheal Vick/Ron Mexico personalities. One plays football and wants to endorse products. The other will flip off the crowd, give your girlfriend herpes, and smuggle contraband through an airport. Mexico has re-entered the news for running a dog and cock fighting ring at home he owns.

Vick has apparently been under investigation for several years. What, how long does it take to notice dead dogs and birds being thrown out in the trash. This is Michael Vick, you know he just set them out there in large heaps, it's not like he's a criminal mastermind.

Early reports indicate as many as 70 dogs on the property, including 60 pit bulls with wounds that appear to be consistent with dog-fighting. Authorities have allegedly uncovered extensive dog-fighting paraphernalia, including rape stands (used to allow fighting dogs to breed while preventing them from attacking each other), equipment used to build strength and endurance in fighting dogs, and controlled substances frequently used in dog-fighting.

Jesus, rape stands. The police where there on a drug investigation of Vick's nephew who apparently lives there. The officers found three different buildings of dogs and up to 50 showing serious signs of neglect.

Officers from the Meherrin Drug Task Force also were on the scene. It's a multi-jurisdictional task force to investigate major drug trafficking

Let's see if the NFL has the balls to go after their once golden boy if these charges start to pile up.

Is that a burrito in your pants?

A Florida doctor was arrested, while dressed as Captain America, for groping a woman with a burrito stuffed down his pants.

Witnesses said that Adamcik was walking around with the burrito tucked into the waistband of his costume, asking women if they wanted to touch it. When one woman refused to touch the burrito, it is alleged that the doctor removed the snack and groped her.

The police were called, and, according to the official report, 'there were so many cartoon characters in the bar at the time, all Captain America's [sic] were asked to go outside for a possible identification.'

He was also caught trying to flush a joint down the toilet at the jail. He now faces charges of battery, drug possession, trying to destroy evidence, disorderly conduct, ruining a burrito, and will have to pay the costume store to have sour cream and beef stains removed from the Captain America underpants. Somewhere a superhero is turning in his imaginary grave.

BSR- Round of Reubens

Today marked the third day of my new job, and the first day I did not order a reuben when the whole group went out to lunch. Cheddar's does not offer a reuben sammy. This may be the event that sparks my boycott of said eatery. . . at least for the time being.

MLB Preview - Part VI

As you may have read previously, I have accepted a new position that keeps me buried within the nether regions of area court houses. This afternoon I managed to sneak out early enough to spare a few minutes and post this just for you. As coincidence may have it, you will find that the sixth installment of the Bastard Sons MLB 2007 Preview and Predictions (according to BSR anyway) fall in the precise order that the standings are in as of press time. The winning percentages will change some as the teams spread out. The Dodgers and Padres will move out in front of everyone else. The Rockies and D’backs may slide into oblivion. The Giants aren’t good and their record will reflect it, but we will all see so much of Barry Bonds you would think they were winning games. I can’t wait until he gets close and we get to watch every nauseating at bat. So with that said, I give you the NL West.

1. Dodgers- I hope that tummysticks takes note here- because this is only the second maybe third team in the league where I have complimented the pitching staff. Brad Penny is money, no pun intended. HE is 3-0 as of today with a 1.37 ERA and 1.33 WHIP. Nice. New addition Randy Wolf is a solid southpaw starter, and when combined with Derek Lowe (better than his numbers so far), Hendrickson and Tomko, the Dodger blue staff is among the best all around in both leagues. They don’t even have to pitch to DH’s. nice. Luis Gonzalez is now patrolling left, not the bat they wanted- but not a bad one to have. Nomar should be fine on first if he stays healthy, and Juan Pierre will do a fine job at short- by far the best glove on the team. Takashi Saito is an alright closer. I look for him to get more opportunities than last year to prove himself. This race will come down to LA and SD again, and LA might have the pitching to win it. I like the Dodgers to take the division without settling for the wild card this season.

2. Padres- I don’t care how old Greg Maddux gets- he can pitch for me. In the meantime, Jake Peavy is the real anchor of the staff. I do like David Wells too. He is a big, drunken lefty who pitched well for my Yanks a few years back. Check out his numbers and wish he was on your team. I do. New additions to the bullpen Royce Ring and Heath will help out down the stretch chasing LA. Both are coming off of seasons with the Mets. Pitching in important games is good experience to have, right? Brian and Marcus Giles are holding down the right side of the field well enough, and are both hitting well over .300 so far. Adrian Gonzalez is a good bat on first base, and Khalil Green is no slouch at short. The Fathers would love to have a big name RBI factory, but I think they will be fine with the hand they’ve been dealt this year. I don’t think they will finish on top of the Dodgers, but they will make the rest of the division pretty bad.

3. Giants- Barry Bonds! The Giants have Barry Bonds. Barry is probably gonna break Hank Aaron’s record this year, and I could care less. I liked Barry when he was normal sized and played in Pittsburgh. I am hoping Hanks telegram tells Barry to go have sex with himself. But I digress. You might call Barry Zito the ace of the staff. He is good, but nowhere near what he is paid. Lefty starters are always a hot commodity, but c’mon… ten million dollars this year alone is a little much for a guy who went 16-10 last year with an ERA approaching 4. Armando Benitez has the potential to be a great closer but is little whining crying pussy baby. (I would never say that to his face) He does have five saves in seven appearances this season. Big name bats include Klesko and Rich Aurilia. How many first basemen do we need in the NL again? Dave Roberts is aging fast, and is less of a threat in center. Oh yeah. The Giants have Barry Bonds.

4. Diamondbacks- Hey guys, you know Randy went to New York and starting pitching pretty awful at times. (Although not nearly as bad as Skip thought) We should give him a little over $9 mill this season and see if he can come off that back surgery even better than he used to be. Could someone have actually said that in the Arizona front office? My guess is apparently so. Sorry guys, the Padres knocked him around pretty good. Not a nice beginning. (ERA over 10) Find me someone in the bullpen worth writing about and I will. Most noticeably absent in the pen is a real closer. Orlando Hudson (2B) is swinging a hot bat. Eric Byrnes leads the team in homers with three, only 11 behind A-Rod for the major league lead. The D’backs are worse than they think they are. It should only take another three or four weeks until everyone knows it.

5. Rockies- Todd Helton has a decent average, and will probably keep it up there. Matt Holliday is swinging the biggest bat so far, and should continue the lead the team in most offensive categories. The rotation is crap. The bullpen is crap (for the most part) and Brian Fuentes is a mediocre closer at best. He would have a better chance at proving me wrong if the Rockies had the lead more- I understand that. It will take more than adding Jason Hirsh and Taylor Buchholz to the pitching corp. to turn this persistently sinking ship around. Last season was the best ERA posted by the Rockies as a team ever (4.66). That is not a bad stat. Nonetheless I call bullshit and predict it to inflate to well over five by seasons end. Sorry Rockies fans, at least there is good beer in Colorado. Well, Coors Original is good anyway.

WVU beats down UMD

WVU has been dominating the football series of late and won the last basketball game between the schools, but they rarely play anyway. However, Maryland consistently smacks WVU down in baseball. Last night the tables wewre turned as the Mountaineers broke out the whopping stick to a tune of 13-2 against the Terrapins. The victory was the first against Maryland since 2004 in baseball. And it came on dollar night. Dammit for us not knowing that until now. All tickets, hot dogs, popcorn and drinks were a dollar. Robin loves a chance to put on some team shorts and engage in some serious competitive eating. WVU now heads for a weekend series with Virginia.

In football news Wanny is still having trouble building his wall to keep all Pittsburgh area recruits. Upcoming senior TE prospect Mike Cruz commited to play at Pitt three weeks ago claiming that Pitt was his dream school and that his goal was to always play there. Now his tune has changed:

"It’s true, I’ve decommited, Cruz said on Sunday. "It’s more of a matter that I got caught up in the moment. I think I rushed my decision. I want to look around. I hadn’t seen any other school, and then I went to visit West Virginia and it opened my eyes.

Wanny might need a little spackle for the wall, or some blinders for his recruits. This shows what an important year the upcoming one is for Pitt. They can't afford to keep putting up 5-7 wins while WVU puts up 10+. They've always had to take the leftovers from PSU, but to have Western Pa up for grabs could really hurt their program. Luckily WVU and Pitt tend to go after different types of offensive players due to the divergent schemes, but there will be battles over the top athletes and while Pitt is the home school WVU has been winning and going to big bowl games for 4 straight years now. At some point the excuses for lack of talent Walt Harris left at Pitt become irrelevant as this will be Wanny's third year and mostly his players now. If he can't win with his players the wall will become an access road out of Pittsburgh for local players and WVU, PSU, UVA, and UNC all seem to be stepping up the recruiting in the area.

Site Update

For those of you waiting with baited breath on the final installment of Robin's MLB preview I have some bad news. Robin has started a new job this week. The job keeps him in the cold recesses of records rooms and probably away from computers. He also most try to impress his new bosses by actually doing some work so he will probably been posting very little in the foreseeable future. We wish him well and hope the same misfortune never befalls us me.

The Bastards Fishing Report for the week of April 16

And now for your consideration, the Fishing Report for Smith Mountain Lake, Virginia for the week beginning April 16, 2007.

April 18: Cold. Fishing sucked. No beers. No strip clubs.
April 19: Cold. Fishing sucked. No beers. No strip clubs.
April 20: Cold. Fishing sucked. No beers. No strip clubs.
April 21: Not as cold. Fishing good. No beers. No strip clubs.

Eh, could've been worse. I could've been at the office all week.

And for lack of anywhere else to put this, some clever law students at WVU put together a little video. Its not the greatest thing ever, but its good to see a group of law students taking law school as serious as we Bastards did. Wait, is that period italicized?

Round of Reubens

Pacman Jones has taken out a full page ad to print an open letter of apology to the Tennessee Titans and their fans and pledge to regain their trust. Jones has also stated that he plans to re-enroll at WVU to finish his degree and provide a scholarship for walk-on players at WVU.

The words he wrote came from his heart, his attorney, Manny Arora, told The Tennessean. I don't think he could describe any better what he felt than what he wrote.

But apparently not all of the words are factual. While Rich Rodriguez would allow Pacman back into the WVU football facilities to work out and would gladly take his money; it appears as though Pacman has yet to inform WVU of his now published plans.

Nobody’s talked to him. Nobody in our program or on our staff, Rodriguez said. Obviously anybody who’s going to use our facilities is going to talk to us first.

WOWK decided to run the story of Pacman wanting to return to WVU next to a poll that may or may not have been an attempt at humor.

Are you concerned about safety on college and university campuses in West Virginia?
Yes - Very
Yes - Somewhat
No

The West Virginia University baseball team lost two out of three to Notre Dame this weekend to fall to 23-13 (6-8 in the Big East) for the season. The team is led by Justin Jenkins on offense in almost every statistical category. Jenkins is batting .429 with 6 HR and 39 RBI. 32 of his 66 base hits have been for extra bases. Josh Whitlock leads the team in wins with a 5-3 records and sports a 3.12 ERA. All baseball statistics can be found here.

Noel Devine is one step closer to playing for the Mountaineers next season as he has received a qualifying score on his ACT test. Devine must keep his grades at their current level in order for his score to remain qualifying or otherwise he will be forced to take the ACT again to receive a higher score to offset a drop in grades.

In John Beilein news it appears that OS has been right in his prediction of a settlement if you read between the lines of Beilein's lawyer.

Things still aren’t finalized yet,” said attorney Bob Fitzsimmons. “Things are working out well. Everybody seems to be cooperating.

In better news for Beilein, he won an award I'm guessing he won't ever win again; the WV state college coach of the year. Beilein beat out Rich Rodriguez for the state college coach of the year. Beilein attended the ceremony, but left halfway through because he felt that he could get a better dinner at the Shoney's across the street. He defended what many felt was a lateral move by stating the Shoney's had the tradition and facilities to get him full and it was a challenge he looked forward to taking.

Bastard Sons Golf Index

Your golf index for today, Friday, April 20th is a 10. Maybe an 11 in the greater Morgantown area. Sunny with a high of 70... wicked awesome. With the run of horrible weather over the last two weeks, this is overdue. Enjoy the sunshine boys.

Red Sox fans are crazy

More bad behavior for Robin to comment on thanks to Deadspin.

Round of Reubens

The NCAA may close the text message loophole after the management council has recommended a ban on electronically transmitted correspondence with exceptions for limited faxes and emails. Phone calls and personal visits have been limited for years, but a loophole had allowed coaches unlimited numbers of text messages to kids. The move is supported by Chris Hansen as more than once he lured an old man to a meeting with a 16 year old boy via texting to watch videos of the boy and the man turned out to be a coach wanting to watch the kids highlight reel.

How will WVU cope with this change? Well according to the Charleston Gazette Rodriguez will be happy. Warning about the article at the Gazette. Writer Dave Hickman must not understand the rule as he makes a case to keep it because otherwise recruits will be called constantly. This is dead wrong as coaches have very limited numbers and times they can call recruits. The loophole was that they could text unlimited. Hickman is an idiot. On Rich's texting abilities:

I’m one-fingering it and I’ve got to look at it and make sure stuff is spelled right. So it takes me all week just to get my guys once a week. Rodriguez said. Some guys are a lot faster. Most guys are a lot faster. . . I’m still learning the slang, Rodriguez said. I still spell out ‘you’ instead of just using ‘u.’ I still write ‘two’ instead of ‘2.’ I haven’t even gotten the shortcuts down.

One of the most innovative coaches in college football over the past decade is befuddled by a phone or email (he doesn't use it either). So it is doubtful he reads the Bastards, damn. Luckily for him this coaching things seems to be working out as most other people have to give that new fangled technology a try at/for work.

Finally, ouch. A Preston County couple is suing WVU Hospitals for an injury caused to their son during a circumcision.

They also claim Hunter has been permanently disfigured and request full compensation for the injuries and damages sustained

I would think a jury of all males would be supported by the plaintiffs in this one.

And in a related story, according to the DA,Cox slips into NCAA Nationals.

Ahoy Pittsburgh!

Why not us?

The Bucs used to have "Why not us?" as their slogan, for the fans it's been 15 years of "Why us?" The Pirates may be the worst run franchise in sports over the last 10 years. They transitioned from the Bonds/Bonillia/Drabek team to a team of Kendell/Giles/Benson to a current team of Bay/Sanchez/Gorzelanny. That is a downward spiral Trent Reznor would applaud. The biggest problem has been the draft. The Pirates have had high draft choices, but have avoided big name players because of signability issues. Instead the Pirates have focused on pitching early despite conventional wisdom stating you should get hitters early and draft quantities of pitching due to how many pitchers burn out before the majors. Last years first round pick Brad Lincoln (pitcher) just underwent major reconstructive elbow surgery.

The club also lacks any vision in assembling a team. Last year the Pirates traded one of their best hitters, Craig Wilson, for Shawn Chacon who was going to be released by the Yankees. The reasons were two-fold: Wilson wasn't a good enough fielder according to the Pirates and he couldn't get on the field due to Jeremy Burnitz. The Pirates then proceeded to sign Xavier Nady, almost the exact same player statistically. The signing of low rate veterans has also been a problem. Over the years Burnitz, Joe Randa, Matt Stairs, Reggie Sanders, and worst of all Raul Mondesi who quit and Derek Bell of Operation Shutdown have been clogging up the field. The Pirates have consistently taken two or three older players no one else wants and overpaying them instead of paying one veteran that could help the team. This link will further pain a Pirates fan as it is a list of the 10 worst moves over the last few years.

The strong point of the current team is actually pitching even if it is young. Starters Tom Gorzelanny (24) and Ian Snell (25) both have ERAs under 2.00, Zack Duke (24) has had two great outings and one terrible outing. Paul Maholm (25) has a career ERA around 4.30 and Maholm, Duke, and Gorzelanny are all lefties. The Bucs have no fifth guy currently as Tony Armas or Shawn Chacon are bp quality (gas station or batting practice equally applies). Relievers Jonah Bayliss (26) and Matt Capps (23) could turn into quality short relief/set-up/closer types depending on progress. The rest of the bullpen is old, bad, or a combination except for Damaso Marte who will be traded before the season is over to a team in need of a situational lefty.

Now for the really bad part. This team, as assembled, has way to many players that are exactly the same. Nate McLouth and Chris Duffy are both below average CFs with below average bats. Freddy Sanchez and Jose Castillo both can only play second leaving a weak hitting Jose Bautista for third. Jack Wilson actually cries when runners are in scoring position and he is up. The only other infielder is Don Kelly who is 6'4" and weighs 190 pounds (enough said). Adam LaRoche is batting .116 and effectively blocking both Ryan Doumit and Brad Eldred from seeing any playing time to evaluate their talents. Doumit could also catch, but the club is infatuated with Ronny Palino who is batting .214 and has a career slugging percentage under .390. The Pirates also carry career backup Humberto Cota so they have three catchers and no flexibility while Doumit oscillates between positions and triple-A. Xavier Nady blocks Eldred in right or he could move to center but he has also Cansecoed one off his head for a homer already this year.

Finally, the Pirates are a week fielding team with no flexibility due to the above. Bay is a below average leftfielder with limited range and a weak arm. McLouth/Duffy are average or worse in center and Nady is below in center or right. Eldred would be average at best in right. Bautista has been shaky already at third and there is no alternative there as Castillo has never played the position and Sanchez doesn't have the arm.

The only hope for the Pirates is for the starters to continue to work deep and win games 3-2. The Pirates can't score and give up too many cheap runs due to poor defense. Other than those simple flaws everything is fine in Pittsburgh. Well at least the stadium rocks. And it's easy to sneak beer into. Which is good if you actually have to watch the Bucs play.

MLB Preview - Part V

As a follow up to yesterdays review of the NL East, I humbly submit my thoughts and wreckless predictions of what might be the silliest division in the majors. Six teams makes it the biggest, and if it weren't the Pirates I would say they all have a shot at winning it. I have no reservation in saying I have the least amount of confidence in these predictions as compared to every other division. Cinci was under four games out of the pennant at the end of last year and were not a .500 team. The Cubbies have some big bats, as do the Astros, but I think the Brewers have the best pitching staff. That said, as usual- feel free to leave comments. This time I might not argue with you if you disagree with me. All these teams are mediocre.

NL Central

1. Brewers- This might be the first team, yep- it is the first team, that I, BSR, have applauded for the work they have done acquiring pitching. It is this pitching that leads me to seat Milwaukee atop the NL Central. Picking up Jeff Suppan and Claudio Vargas will round out a young but emerging rotation. Francisco Cordero is a solid closer and they have a handful or capable arms in the middle- I like Greg Aquino, Derrick Turnbow a la 2005, and Matt Wise’s goatee. Johnny Estrada, newly arrived from Arizona gives them a decent bat behind the plate. “I really like the way he handles the staff. The bat is a bonus.” Another solid year from Prince Fielder on first, a break out season would be good from Corey Hart in right, and big numbers from Geoff Jenkins in left will have many taking notice of this team comprised of relative unknowns. I like the Brew Crew.

2. Astros- Losing Pettite and potentially the Rocket too will be hard not miss in Houston. It doesn’t require rocket science to realize that Jason Jennings will not be able to fill the void left by those two, but he can try. It isn’t going to happen from the DL though. Forcing the four man rotation so soon? Woody Williams and Wandy Rodriguez aren’t gonna win too many for ya this year. I hope Carlos Lee is worth the $100 million they shelled out to get him. Does he look fat in those road uniforms? His bat will be a big help, hopefully outweighing the hindrance his glove will be. They will get the usual production from Biggio, Berkman, and Morgan Ensberg. With addition of Lee, Lidge might have a chance to pick up a few saves. They will outscore more than they out-pitch anyone. But with the rest of the division virtually in shambles- I think they will finish high again this year. Another no. 2.

3. Cardinals- Sorry Redbird fans, no repeat this season. A team that had the worst record of any World Series winner in history- surprise… lost pitchers. Jeff Suppan going to the Brewers is the only one they might miss. They should not have had Jeff Weaver on the roster anyway. Mark Mulder should return mid season- if surgery recovery goes well you could throw him out there for some BP. Wainwright wasn’t fooling anyone when Pittsburgh was in town yesterday- and if the Bucs are hitting you like that it isn’t good. Isringhausen is a solid closer, but that means jack when you are behind on the scoreboard. Chris Duncan is hitting the ball well. Scott Rolen, Jim Edmonds, and Senor Pujols will produce as expected. If they want to finish higher than I project them to they are going to need to win a lot of high scoring games. Kip Wells already has to losses with a 2.25 era. That is sad, sorry Kip. I did hear that Kip had been chatting online with babes all day. Do you think Pujols can pitch?

4. Reds- Finishing just 3.5 games behind the first place Cards last year, they should have been more than a team two games under .500. Wait, this is the NL Central. The Reds have done pretty much zilch to the roster since last year. They picked up Mike Stanton. So what he turns 40 in June… he hasn’t given up a run so far this year. He has allowed only one hit in his five and a third innings through this afternoon. The starters are not awe inspiring- Harang, Arroyo, Saarloos. Yeah, maybe I have heard of them. Adam Dunn leads most offensive categories and will continue to. Griffey, Jr. might play in more than 100 games this year. I would still be afraid to put money on it. This team was not good enough last year, and nothing has changed.

5. Cubs- Cubs Win! Cubs Win! If the moon were made out of ribs, would ya eat it? I would! Then I’d wash it down with a tall cold Budweiser! The Cubbies welcome Sweet Lou and Alfonso Soriano to town this year with hopes of winning it all. Soriano got sweet money too- as did Aramis Ramirez to stay at Wrigley and hold down the hot corner. Carlos Zambrano is supposed to be the ace of the staff, but is not pitching like it. Rather southpaw Rich Hill is 2-0 with only one earned run through 14.0 strong innings. Ted Lilly can win a few games here and there, and Dempster is capable of being a top notch closer. If the Cubbies get Soriano comfortable in center and swinging the bat, in conjunction with the usual production from Derrek Lee (2005 numbers), and Aramis Ramirez the Cubbies have a good chance of finishing much higher than fifth. If the bullpen proves themselves and Cliff Floyd gives them a BA around the .300 mark (currently .303) the north side of Chi-town could be very pleased with Sweet Lou and the boys. I predict the Cubs somewhere between first and last in this division. A tough call.

6. Pirates- This review has been reserved for Bastard contributor and Pirate fanatic letsplaytummysticks. I could tell you what I think, or I could let you read into the Pittsburgh Pirates placement on this list of teams.
I will say the Bucs could use a few starters, a number one most notably. Z. Duke is not quite enough. LaRoche might be the Bucs savior, but I doubt it. A real closer might help things a bit. Salomon Torres has a great era, 5.14. woot. Tell them about it tummysticks. I am anxious to see what you think of your beloved Buccos.

One little additional thing on Beilein's Buyout

As we've previously discussed, no one is readily paying over the $2.5 million allegedly owed by Beilein to WVU pursuant to his employment contract. We proffered earlier that Beilein and his team of crack attorneys may be banking on the fact that the buyout clause is potentially unenforceable due to its amount in proportion to his salary and lack of language declaring otherwise.

The guys over at mgoblog raised another possibility - er, a plan B for Beilein. Even if the clause if found enforceable, Beilein should be able to get the amount reduced if he pays it all right now based upon current value accounting. Without getting too technical, CVA is premised upon inflation, i.e. $500k in 2012 is actually worth less than $500k in 2007, so any payment today of a sum guaranteed in the future should be appropriately reduced.

The contract language, "Coach will pay . . . $500,000 per year for the remainder of the Agreement's term" suggests that if this liquidated damage clause is enforceable in its entirety, Beilein would owe the University $500,000 once per year over the next 5 years instead of $2.5 million right now. Using the CPI calculator available from the US Bureau of Labor and Statistics, and assuming a rate of growth over the next 5 years similar to the past 5 years, Beilein's total buyout has a current value of $2.31 million.

Furthermore, cash in hand is always more valuable than cash owed. And let's not forget settlement value. The potential flaws in the liquidated damage clause raises the possibility of expensive litigation and creates the possibility of WVU getting squat, nada, zilch.

Add it all together, and assuming some sort of financial backing permitting Beilein to settle now, I'm predicting a settlement in the $1.7 million dollar range.

*The mgoblog guys also raised some issues about taxes (as did my boss), but I know about as much about taxes as I do about appropriate conduct in public.

MLB Preview - Part IV

Today I begin our trek through the National League with the Bastards MLB Review 2007. For those of you reading this entry who may be wondering, yes I did italicize that period. For those of you who aren't sure what that means, should you ever find yourself in a Legal Research and Writing course- be very skeptical. That said I give you the fourth installment of the seven part series wherein I make brief analysis and project the outcome of the season when it is way to early to call. In that way I much like all the other bullshit media out there, but I hope you read this anyway. If you don't like a pick leave a comment. I might explain to you why we differ.

NL EAST

1. Braves – “America’s Team” turned into the Fulton County follies last year, finishing 18 games out of first place and not winning the division for the first time since 1992. That makes these guys easy to hate on. Especially considering the number of Braves games I will inevitably watch this year- thanks TBS, and fuck off Bud Selig.
Off to a hot start, the Braves are better this year than last thanks to – addition by addition – a few new arms in the bullpen. Mike Gonzalez was a good pick up, as were Tanyon Sturtze and Rafael Soriano. I like Smoltz starting again. Hudson is a solid starter, and Chuck James is throwing well. While Marcus Giles will be missed, the hitting is still there. Chipper & Andruw Jones and Jeff Francoeur will put up big numbers. To win this thing this season, the Braves need production from Ryan Langerhans (LF), Scott Thorman (1B), and Kelly Johnson (2B). None of these guys have started hitting yet, but they keep winning. If the pitching holds up I see a two team race down the stretch, maybe three. I will go ahead and discount Florida and DC.

2. Mets – I foresee a near repeat this season for the Shea Stadium crowd. They have to want another go at the Cards, who beat them in seven for last years NLCS. Not gonna lie to you- the absence of Pedro until August hurts- but I see the aging Glavine having a fine season if he stays healthy, and Orlando Hernandez winning 15 or so. The remainder of the rotation will have to scratch and claw to prove itself, but I see them putting it together. It is hard not to get wins with a powerful lineup like the one in New York. Both New York teams will be outscoring the other guy this year. Delgado, Beltran, Wright, Reyes and Alou will make it easier for the starters, no matter who you throw out there. If the Bravos stay on track I think this one will be close.

3. Phillies - Despite being in the cellar of the NL East at press time, the guys in Philadelphia were actually pretty popular picks to win the division this year. Playboy picked them to win and the Mets to take the wild card. Playboy is stupid, or at least Tracy Ringolsby- the guy who made there picks must be. The pictures are good though. The particular issue in question featured a themed pictorial, “Girls of Conference USA.” Of the 36 girls displayed from across the conference, MARSHALL ONLY GOT ONE girl in the magazine. UTEP had 13, and one girl made it in twice.
Back to baseball, the Phil’s will miss Abreu, who went to New York. Ryan Howard had a slow spring, to say the least, and they need him to crush the ball again this year. The lineup is strong- Howard, Utley, Rollins. The bullpen is not good. So far Cole Hamels has been the only bright spot in the rotation, but Jamie Moyer (good move M’s) has potential to help them out. Sorry Phillies fans- I do not see a pennant in your future. I like the Phillies in third place- down from last year. Maybe second if Atlanta falls apart.

4. Marlins – They were babies last year, nearly all rookies. This year they are still to young to expect much. Florida fired Joe Girardi last season because of disagreements with management. But really, could anyone have won many games with that team? Joe hung on for a while early- I liked him. (Not because of any Yankee loyalty either.) I thought he did pretty well with what he was given. Now without Joe Borowski closing games out- when an opportunity might arise- the Marlins are hurting. Miguel Cabrera at third and Mike Jacobs at first are the only offensive bright spots. Has anyone ever heard of any of the starting outfielders this year? Josh Willingham, Alejandro De Aza (.303 so far), and Joe Borchard do not inspire confidence. Willingham and Borchard both played most of last year, but all three combined have played in 417 career games. De Aza has played in 7 games so far for his MLB career. So why is the centerfielder hitting better than his “veteran” counterparts? After Dontrelle Willis the rotation is laughable. Sorry guys, you will probably finish ahead of the Nats.

5. Nationals – What can you say? You have no pitching- the worst starting ERA in the NL last year. Now you have no offense. Alfonso Soriano- gone. Jose Guillen- gone. Jose Vidro- bye bye. What did you do with money you saved? Nothing. At least this seasons tragic ending won’t fall on baseball legend Frank Robinson’s shoulders. New manager Manny Acta. Centerfielder Ryan Church is hitting the ball well so far. Second baseman Ronnie Belliard, of Cleveland fame is too. These two, with Dmitri Young from Detroit had better keep it up. They lack a starting rotation, a bullpen, and hitting. Certainly a new managers dream come true. My friends around DC are in for a long summer. At least you will have to opportunity to see other stars from around the league in person. You will probably get an opportunity to see them hit too- deep and often.

Pizza and an Alcoholic Beverage

We've reached the sahara of the WVU sports season. I guess we could do a draft analysis, but none of us have slick enough hair. And we could probably do an analysis of the upcoming Mayweather-De La Hoya fight, but they've already marketed that to saturation. We do promise, however, a post on the Blue-Gold game from the weekend before last. Its my fault its late. I suck.

To make it up to our millions of faithful readers, here's a sample of what it would be like if we were play-by-play guys (except for the fact that we would spend the entire game doing this).



Thanks to With Leather for originally posting this.

I'd quit watching too

I'm assuming now that Mussina's leg fell off and Pavano realized he gets paid if he pitches or watches and chose watching that BSR decided to quit with the baseball predictions of how every other team didn't have enough pitching. Either that or he'll finish them up around the all-star break. Don't worry though, Robin, just because Wang, Mussina, Pavano, Karstens, and Sanchez are all on the disabled list doesn't mean all is lost. Chase Wright, Kei Igawa, and Darrell Rasner will solidify that rotation. And Pettitte hasn't been injured in years.

happy thoughts

Day after

Today we'll try to move on to what we do best, making poorly executed jokes about all things WVU related. I'm sure everyone needs a break from the 24 hour news cycle on VT. The media descended upon Blacksburg like locusts and won't leave until they've saturated the t.v. with non-stop pictures of death, crying, and fear. So don't turn that channel. And the political hacks from both sides are out to argue pro and anti-gun rhetoric. There isn't time for mourning, there is money to be made and people from the other political side to yell at. An article in today's Daily Athenaeum expounds upon this more than I care to at this point. We'll be back on schedule today with our normal programming. I'm sure either Pacman or Henry got arrested last night.

Tragedy at VT

Virginia Tech has suffered from two separate shootings this morning on campus killing at least 20 students in the largest school shooting incident in American history. A very sobering start to the week and we can only hope and pray for the students and families. Many of us know students or alums from VT. Tech's campus is not that much different from Morgantown in a lot of respects.

"We were like, 'What's going on?' Because this definitely is a quaint town where stuff doesn't really happen. It's pretty boring here," said Heiser during a phone interview as she sat on her classroom floor.

That statement could be about WVU, Frostburg State, or hundreds of other schools.

Fear The Turtle

I am in the neather regions of West Virginia with the Maryland anonymous guy from the family from here further known as "Wolf." I am disapointed to relay to BSR that the White Star is closed. The Kac-a-pon still has gravy though.

New WVU President Announced

Mr. Hat to be named AD. We try to stay out of politics here and believe me this search reeked of politics from all sides. In the end Mike Garrison will be WVU's 22nd President. If you want to cheer or attack the selection feel free to do so in the comments. Garrison will be the second straight president without academic experience for WVU and second straight lawyer. The faculty is not behind him, but then again they gave Hardesty a vote of no confidence and he seemed to be able to sleep at night. Hopefully moving up the academic ladder for all schools (I'm looking at you law school especially) will be a priority. Sports should be fine as Garrison was a MAC member before being named president. We shall see. If he tries to name Mr. Stick to any post we are in real trouble.

Warning: Legal Analysis Ahead - Beilein's Buyout

A week or so ago, when it was finally official that Beilein was heading off to "greener" pastures in Michigan, the silver lining to that ominous rain cloud was his $2.5 million dollar "buyout" provision in his contract. Most fans felt we could use that money to improve various aspects of the athletic program or at least get some hookers for Hardesty's going away party. Well, not so much.

Apparently, no one is going to pay it unless court ordered. From, ugh, ESPN:

Beilein won't go on the record about his intentions in seeking legal counsel, but multiple sources have told ESPN.com that Beilein is trying to get the buyout reduced -- if not wiped out entirely. Pastilong said he wouldn't discuss anything more about the buyout, except that, "We expect the contract to be honored. A contract is a contract. [The buyout is for $2.5 million] and that's what the contract is for."

Well, not exactly.

The short story: This clause is potentially uneforceable (more on this below). If the judge finds that it IS enforceable, WVU gets $500,000/year ($2.5M). If the judge finds it unenforceable, then the liquidated damage clause is out, but Beilein is still on the hook for "damages", which, unfortunately here, seem to be minimal.

The long story: Beilein's buyout clause was not written particularly well. Beilein's buyout clause is technically what is called a liquidated damage clause. Liquidated damage clauses allow parties to specify in advance an estimated value of how badly a party would be damaged if the other party breached the contract. However, they're typically only enforceable if the contract provides that "the parties hereto hereby agree that in the event of a breach by either party that the nature of this Agreement would prevent an accurate measurement or estimation of the actual damages incurred by the nonbreaching party" and "that the parties hereto hereby agree that $xxx,xxx.xx is a fair and reasonable estimation of damages resulting for a breach and that the nonbreaching party shall be entitled to this amount in liquidated damages in the event of a breach." So, lets take a look, does Beilein's contact have this stuff:

Crap. Who drafted this thing? What? Some second year law student? Where's Cardi!? Regardless, the liquidated damage clause, i.e. buyout, is probably still enforceable. However, it faces two potential "uphill battles". First, a liquidated damage clause is only enforceable if actual damages are difficult to measure and the amount is found to be reasonable, i.e. $500,000 is a reasonable estimate of damages. That's why drafters typically include the "the parties agree that it will be hard to esitmate and that this is a reasonable amount" language. Unfortunately, that language is missing from Beilein's contract and so more open to review by a judge than if it had that language.

Second, there are other limitations on employment contracts. For instance, clauses that make it unreasonable or overly difficult for a former employee to pursue new employment can be striken from a contract if its found to be against the public policy encouraging the freedom of employment.

So, if this is actually litigated, WVU has to be concerned whether the "iffiness" of the liquidated damage clause and the prohibition against restricting future employment weighs so strongly against it that a judge rules it as unenforceable. While I find it unlikely, the potential exists for such a ruling. Consequently, WVU may have to decide whether to roll the dice and have the full amount enforced or settle for a smaller amount. And this, I imagine, is why Beilein is fighting it.

*This is not legal advice. This is only general legal information. Do not rely upon the information provided herein. This is also not a legal advertisement.

*More analysis in the comments. Please read on. Questions? Feel free to ask.

A second response

This time for the people that are attacking the basketball team. Here is an example of one of these groups (my responses will be in italics) from the Daily Athenaeum:

Huggins hire sends a bad message about WVU values

An open letter to West Virginia University director of athletics Ed Pastilong:

My wife and I are both alumni of WVU from 40 or so years ago.

Glad you were so precise. Apparently you weren't math majors.

We are not people who care passionately about sports, but over the past few years, we have come to follow the fortunes of the Mountaineer football and basketball teams closely.

Ah, you like us when we are good. Glad to see the bandwagon wasn't too full for you the last few years. And I can understand why you don't normally like sports. They are so barbaric what with winning and losing and all.

We have especially enjoyed the attractive brand of basketball that John Beilein introduced to his teams, with its emphasis on teamwork, smart shooting and disciplined play that went beyond individual athleticism and often led to victories over teams with superior individual players.

Yes, everyone liked how Beilein's teams played. But constantly having a team with less talent is NOT an admirable trait.

It was so different from, and more exciting than, the big-man-stuffs-the-ball style that prevails these days that it came to represent (along with Beilein's teaching skills) a set of values that distinguished the University.

I hate to watch dunks too. When Joe Alexander or Frank Young dunked this year I booed. I'd much rather watch a two hand set shot like back in the fifties. Oh, and some other qualities Beilein showed. Wanting to leave no matter what. Trying to go to NC State, Indiana, and then Michigan in a one-year span. Then claiming he couldn't win or recruit any higher at WVU because WVU wasn't as good as Michigan.

In your quest for a new coach, we had hoped you would keep these values in mind.

Which ones the coach that teaches teamwork, the coach that can't recruit, or the coach that hates Morgantown?

We are particularly disturbed to learn that you have hired Bob Huggins, a man who is unquestionably a good coach, but also a man who, according to news reports, has been arrested and convicted of drunken driving, and a man who was forced to resign from Cincinnati over issues that included players' arrests, suspensions and low graduation rates.

Huggins left Cinci after losing a power struggle with UC President Nancy Zimpher. The 2004 DUI just gave the president more ammunition to call for the firing. More worrisome than the past arrest is the heart attack suffered in 2002.

These are not the kind of values that should be shaping the lives of young men, nor are they the kind of values we wish to have associated with teams that represent our school.

The school you haven't followed until the last two or so years admittedly.

I'm afraid you'll have to count us as former Mountaineer basketball fans and potential donors.

After 40 or so years you are still "potential donors." You haven't given a red cent, but you feel the need to add your two cents? I bet you haven't been to a game either. So in the end WVU loses you what, not watching games on ESPN. I bet you still will sneak a peak.

Jerry and Suzanne Bowles

New York, N.Y.

Now in all seriousness Huggins would not have been my first choice as the coach. But I'm not the AD or the boosters with millions. And I can understand the reasons for the hire. First off Huggins is a big name and great coach. Cinci was not a major program when he took over, hadn't been since the Big O. He has been to a Final Four and 3 Elite Eights. He has made the postseason every year at UC or KSU. The man can flat out recruit and won't use the "we are in WV" cry as an excuse if he misses on someone. The biggest drawback would be the graduation rates. Huggins disputes the numbers and claims he has had teams with valadictorians, high rates, and GPAs, but the NCAA numbers don't count players that started school elsewhere.

So Huggy bear has given the detractors ammunition over his career. But is he any worse than Eddie Sutton before his hire at OSU? The overall reason that WVU made the move for Huggins, despite the fact that it could be problematic from a PR standpoint, is that he is from West Virginia. WVU had two choices. Look for a big name or find a small guy and raise him (ala Beilein). The small guy has a great chance of failure. Also if either he or the big guy succeed they could use WVU as a spring board elsewhere. WVU hit option 1 with the insurance that Huggins was a WVU guy. The alternative was hold your breath and hope the new guy is both good and loyal to WVU. Then start over.

One of the things that won me over about Huggins was his press conference. He WANTS to be here. He also knows he isn't well liked in most places and doesn't care. Winners don't care how the loser preceives them. WVU needs more of that. Huggins talked about the inferiority complex some in WV have. People from WV are one of the few PC options people can still openly mock (ask Imus). Maybe it bothers me more because I'm not from West Virginia originally. But, if we lose we're loser hillbillies and when we win we are still inbred hillbillies. Well I'd rather be called a hillbilly after my team just put their foot up someones ass anyday.

Beilein was a great coach and most wish he would have stayed here until he retired. But, he wanted out. We took a good girl and married her, then she started going out behind our back and left us for another guy. Now the hot girl we wanted back in high school came calling. Sure she had a reputation in high school, but she still is hot and she wants to settle down. Let's just hope she doesn't give us chlamydia.

Even Marshall students like WVU better

This kind of program

The aftermath of the Pacman and Henry suspensions has started. WVU is being mentioned as the school both players attended. This is an embarrassment for all of those associated with WVU and the football program. However, some are starting to overstep the chance to take shots at these two idiots and are attempting to generalize the program. The question posed is what kind of program is WVU running in football?

One of the ways to answer that question is to look at academics. WVU football placed two players on the Academic All-American team last year. Those players were starting center and Rimington Award winner Dan Mozes and starting MLB Jay Henry. Henry was also named the Big East Scholar-athlete of the year and a finalist for the Draddy Award which is the Academic Heisman. In addition, OL Ryan Stanchek was named All-District with the other two to give three All-District Academic All-Americans to WVU which was the most for any school within the district including Penn St., UMD, the Navy, Pitt, and others.

Another answer is arrests. Surely if WVU is out of control and full of thugs then arrests will follow. Drugs, guns, rape, etc. Over the past two years WVU football players have TWO arrests. Jeremy Bruce and Adam Bednarik have been arrested for DUIs. That is all I can find. Two arrests. Someone call the NCAA and give this program the death penalty. These thugs are out of control.

How about how the current WVU athletes act. The two best players on the team are Pat White and Steve Slaton. So they must be showing off after every play and starting fights to set the thug mentality correct? I personally have never seen either do anything except either hand the ball to a referee or celebrate with their teammates after a big play. So there had to be a bunch of dirty plays or fights. Well WVU didn't have anything stand out last year and someone please tell me if they remember the last on the field incident between WVU and another team that was out of control. Like Miami-FIU, Clemson-USC, VT-Louisville (all VT in that one), or the big-time thugs at Holy Cross-Dartmouth. The only on-field incident I can recall is in 1992 versus Syracuse.

Now to the real heart of the accusation. Pacman and Henry. First of all Henry was suspended twice during his final year by Rodriguez. That may not seem like much, but one of those suspensions was against Pitt. A win in that game versus Pitt would have sent WVU the the Fiesta Bowl and a BCS berth. Instead WVU lost a close game and settled for the Gator Bowl. Henry was never arrested while at WVU. His suspensions came from immaturity on the field and breaking team rules. Pacman Jones had one major off the field incident at WVU when he was charged with a felony for a bar fight ending in him hitting another WVU student with a pool cue. He later plead guilty to a misdemeanor. EDIT. ESPN interviewed Floyd Reese who worked with the Titans when drafting Pacman. He stated that Pacman had no other red flags or incidents other than the bar fight until AFTER he was drafted. I'm not sure how WVU can be held accountable for his or Henry's actions after they were given a boatload of money and free time.

So the accusations about WVU are centered on two former players, one of which was suspended for his actions at WVU, and a player that has yet to step foot on campus. So you tell me, what kind of program is WVU running?

This is Re-goddamn-diculous

The gift of playing Marshall just keeps on giving. Not only do we lose millions in home game revenue and have to play a team that has been consistently ranked in the bottom half of Division I teams, but we get to do it before noon. The Charleston Daily Mail has confirmed an 11:10 kickoff for the game. 11:10, in the morning. That's 8:10 for anyone on the West Coast. I'll just reprint some of this from the Daily Mail because I can't make any better jokes than this:

While it might not seem that a pre-noon kickoff is optimum of a showcase situation like the Herd will have with a rare Mountaineer visit, a morning start isn't new for a big game at Marshall.
When Kansas State became the first Bowl Championship Series conference team to visit Joan C. Edwards Stadium in September 2005, the game had a 10:40 a.m. kickoff on ESPN2. Marcum recalled the early start surely didn't affect attendance. The largest crowd in MU history turned out -- 36,914. That number will be eclipsed at the 38,019-seat stadium for WVU's first trip to Huntington since 1915.

The two biggest home games in the history of the school and neither could wait until noon. Mathew Mcconaughey doesn't even roll out of bed until 1:30. How is he going to get there to make a firey motivational speech before the Herd lose by 40? My only guess is that Marshall is trying to either discourage visiting fans from taking over the stadium or keep people from drinking before the game. And the outcome is that the largest attendence in the history of Cabell Community College is under 37K. If WVU averaged under 37K for a year we would be thrown out of the Big East and rightfully so.

The WVU-Marshall telecast is one of 10 Conference USA home dates on ESPN or ESPN2. As the home team, the Herd has the final say on the kickoff time, but these days, if TV wants a game moved, it usually does.

Apparently the next time WVU visits it will be played at 3 a.m. just to get the game on ESPNU. Thanks again Joe.

They Gone

I have to make this quick because of worky, I promise more later this week when shit settles down. Pacman got a year and Henry got 8 games.


The commissioner made these two the first two players suspended under the new NFL standards of life policy. Tank Johnson will be soon to follow after he either is released or escapes from prison during a Natural Born Killers style riot. Pacman and Henry are going to use their time off to read to children and feed the homeless. Or get really drunk and fight people that are looking at them wrong. They haven't decided yet. From the Commish:

Your conduct has brought embarrassment and ridicule upon yourself, your club, and the NFL, and has damaged the reputation of players throughout the league. You have put in jeopardy an otherwise promising NFL career, and have risked both your own safety and the safety of others through your off-field actions. In each of these respects, you have engaged in conduct detrimental to the NFL and failed to live up to the standards expected of NFL players. Taken as a whole, this conduct warrants significant sanction."

Haha, no mention of WVU, therefore it's like they never even graduated went to school lived here. Now everyone at Deadspin can make the easy Huggins/Pacman/Henry joke. At least it's better than the "hey WV is rural here are some stereotypes of rural people" jokes.

Premature Projectionator

So Joe Lunardi has some idle time on his hands. And as God knows, idle time leads to calloused hands and sticky sheets. Thankfully, ESPN has put him to work prematurely predicting next year's men's basketball NCAA Tournament. TheBigLead, back from its battle with Cowherd, provided the following insight:

Trying to capture the magic of Mel Kiper’s early-look at the 2010 NFL draft, or Chad Ford’s premature musings on the NBA class of 2009, Lunardi is all over next year’s tournament, paying no mind to the fact that plenty of talented underclassmen have yet to declare for the draft, coaches are in flux, and we don’t know who will pull out of the draft and come back to school.

More pertinent to WVU, we're projected at a 6 seed next year. While this is so premature as to be completely useless, it still serves the purpose of getting a little hype going for next year's basketball team. Apparently, the addition of Huggy Bear and the return of 5 of our top 6 scorers from the NIT Championship team carries some weight in the eyes of bored, borderline-out-of-work analysts at the 600 pound gorilla.

If in the event that our millions of readers instantaneously rush over to the Big Lead and crash their site, well, we're sorry.

2007 Blue and Gold Game Pics

Among the reasons this selection of photos is lacking in quality or is otherwise subpar include but are not limited to the following: laziness, hangover, irritability and or delirium enduced by cold temperatures and or stadium hot dogs with way too much yellow mustard, the guy behind us shitting himself- no seriously he did- someone wearing white shoes, and technical difficulties. Enjoy the view Lord Helmet.

MLB Preview - Part III

We open this week with the third installment of the '07 MLB Preview... The American League West. If you don't want to read any further, you should know that Vlad Guerrero can hit anything- little sisters included. That is why the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (more than a mouthful) are gonna take the division. The A's take second because Mike Piazza's hair is not as cool as Frank "the tank" Thomas on his worst day. And the only thing keeping the Rangers looking okay is the Mariners. In our next installment, we tackle the National League East. Enjoy.

1. Angels- All things considered, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim may have the best outfield in the game- dollar for dollar. Vlad Guerrero is a beast and will hit the cover off the ball as usual. Garret Anderson and Gary Matthews, Jr. round things out nicely. Expect solid seasons from Molina and Hillenbrand. If given the opportunity I think Robb Quinlan is prime for a break-out season. The starting rotation is strong enough to bring them a divisional pennant, but much further than that I harbor doubts. I like John Lackey to improve on his win/loss from last year, as well as Kelvim Escobar. Who names a kid Kelvim? When Bartolo Colon comes back from the rotator cuff… if he comes back… he will only make things stronger. Provided of course that his arm stays attached to his torso. By the way, Angel closer Francisco Rodriguez leads the majors in saves over the past two seasons with 92. Add three more this year at press time.

2. Athletics- Many pick the A’s to top the American League West. They did sweep the Twins before getting rolled by the Tigers last fall. But I think some of their off season moves are questionable. I do not expect Piazza to match the production Frank Thomas put up last season, despite being 11 for 28 through seven games so far. Alan Embree does provide a veteran arm in the pen, and was good for just over 50 innings last year. A strong hitting line-up will keep them close to the Angels, but I don’t look for them to be in contention for the wild card. They will be looking for big numbers from Nick Swisher, Eric Chavez, and Ex-Pirate Jason Kendall. Unless Piazza proves me wrong I think they will be just shy of the post season. The starting rotation will need more quality starts from the injury prone Rich ‘why is pitching so” Harden if they are going to make through the year in one piece.

3. Rangers- I don’t expect much from the guys in Arlington, but they will probably finish ahead of Seattle. They will need big numbers from Hank Blalock, which they didn’t really get last year. They could also use outfield production from Brad Wilkerson, which also was not there last summer. They shelled out somewhere in the neighborhood of $6m for Eric Gagne, who has yet to fully recover from back and elbow surgeries. But really, what is $6m to the Rangers? They are still paying A-Rod that much every year to play in New York. Six-mill to have the guy in your uniform must be nice. Millwood, Padilla and Brandon McCarthy don’t make a bad 1-2-3 in the rotation, but an iffy pen and lack of run production will keep the Rangers from achieving their goals this season. At least in my view that is.

4. Mariners- Hey, has anyone talked to Jay Buhner lately? We could use him. Here is an idea… we have been in the cellar for the past three years. Should we try to get some talent this season? Nah. The Mariners did not add anything close to significant to the roster for this season. Do not expect Mike Hargrove to have a job by the All-Star break if he doesn’t right this sinking ship. Of course Ichiro will put up another good season and be the Mariners only legitimate player to play during the mid-season break. The starting rotation is questionable at best. Only one man in the rotation had a winning record last year. Miguel Batista, who went 11 and 8 in Arizona last year. They also added Horacio Ramirez, who is coming off of a 5 and 5 season in Atlanta. You know you’re in trouble when Jeff Weaver is in the starting rotation. Anything but last place will shock me from the M’s this season. Good luck fellas. BA has no sympathy for you.

2007 Masters Champ Zach Johnson

Until this weekend I had never heard of the man you see pictured at right. Since he put up a big +1 to win the Masters I suppose we will all hear about him- at least on and off for the next few years. If he never wins another tourney, you will still see the name pop up every spring when they pass out those nice jackeys.

The greens were ridiculous, and the weather was not much help. Appropriately enough, he thanks Jesus and God and Jesus and his deceased grandfather... ad nausea. Happy Easter everyone, Happy Easter bastards, and Happy Easter guy behind me at the Blue and Gold game who decided to warm up by shitting his pants. White Shoes are always a good choice.

MLB Preview - Part II

Here you go baseball fans, the second installment of the Bastard Sons of Pinfall Marks 2007 Major League Baseball Preview and Predictions. Today I offer you my take on the American League Central. Tummysticks thinks it might be the strongest division in baseball. Maybe so- if you transplant New York, Boston and Toronto. The Tigers are sure to show us a big summer, and the Royals are sure they will attend all their home games- with or without fans in the stands. If you disagree with my picks, feel free to comment. I will read them and tell you why you're wrong. Enjoy.

1. Tigers- Jimmy Leyland had the good sense to reunite with Sheffield. Despite his age, Gary has the quickest bat in the game- and also uses one of the heaviest bats among big leaguers. Leyland became a fan of Sheffield when they were hanging out with the Marlins during the Series a few years back. I thought Rodney would have told Jimmy about him, but apparently Leyland didn’t even need Rodney’s help with that one. That said, the Tigers have a strong lineup and a solid starting rotation. Bonderman is experienced enough now- I look for more than his 14 wins from each of the last two seasons. Followed up by Justin Verlander who is picking up steam well for his age, the big bats shouldn’t need the wild card this season. I predict the Twinkies will need that one.

2. Twins- Your author projects the Twins to be slugging it out with the Jays at seasons end to garner the AL wild card. Fans still haven’t forgotten getting run over by Oakland in the post season, and are looking for their Twins to seek revenge this year. They would be better off had they signed an arm or two, but did nothing rash. Radke’s retirement and Liriano’s surgery might have prompted me to do something. Maybe Johan Santana can win 30+ games to make up for a lack of pitching otherwise. They do have a young arm by the name of Boof Bonser, the 21st overall pick in 2000 by the Giants, and the first time I have ever heard that name outside the context of Michael J. Fox’s girlfriend in Teen Wolf. The Twins will hit, Hunter, Mourneau and Mauer virtually guarantee that. I like them to finish stronger than some experts- I have seen them behind the Indians in third. They need to keep the big three bats I mentioned healthy though.

3. Indians- Suffering from the same plague that afflicts most teams- pitching, the Tribe needs a bullpen to show up this year. Off season acquisitions Borowski and Hernandez are better than nothing, but probably not enough to put them over the top in a division stacked with bats. Second baseman Josh Barfield, the son of former Yankee and Blue Jay Jesse, looks primed to make his big break-out. He will help the infield and could turn into some offense for the Indians this year. Grady Sizemore is a legitimate offensive threat, but the Tribe gets a little weaker after that. They are hitting the ball well so far, so they might overachieve this season, but it won’t be enough to find the post-season in my judgment.

4. White Sox- Again, pitching, pitching, pitching. Contreras is the only real veteran on the staff, and Kenny Williams continued to deal away for younger and younger arms this winter. Mark Buehrle is going to have to turn his numbers around from his 12-13 season last year to give the Sox a chance. As you can see I have them finishing just above the Royals… so it won’t happen. Konerko, Dye, Crede and Pierzynski won’t be enough to win them many games, and I doubt the starting rotation and bullpen full of holes will provide Bobby Jenks with the opportunity to match his save numbers from last year. 41 saves is no slouch- but the ChiSox are sure to disappoint many on the south side of Chi-town this year. Hey, at least the Royals are still in your division- you won’t be completely in the cellar on the last day of the season.

5. Royals- What can you say? The Royals lost 100 games last year. Sure Tampa lost 101, but I have picked the Devil Rays to improve. Could the guys in KC lose even more this year? Perhaps. They tried to go out and buy some pitching, but were denied by free agents even with the biggest offer on the board. They did land Gil Meche, 11-8 with an ERA over 4 last year for Seatle, but they gave him $11m a year for five seasons. Are you kidding? $55m for a mediocre righty who got drafted eleven years ago? Not many bats to speak of either… but they did sign Tony Pena’s kid, Tony- from Atlanta. He is a better shortstop than slugger, AND everyone likes his dad, so… Esteban German is the real deal, maybe- he hit .326 last year in 279 AB, but over 106 games. Even the Pirates won more games last year than the Royals. That said, I still like the old school powder blues a la the Bo Jackson / George Brett era. Sorry KC fans, another crap year for you.