Category: Misfit pieces of prose

Family. Human interest stories. 9/11 tributes. All the articles that don’t quite fit into one particular genre of writing.

Mockingjay Part 2 fails to register

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Sorry Katniss Everdeen. I’ve seen better finales than this. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part Two(still way too long) failed to register.

After four years and four cash cow entries, the feeling I got when I left this rebellion joint was a lack of satisfaction. That’s the problem when you decide to split up the final book of a popular book series. After Mockingjay Part One came and disappointed with its drab storyline and overwrought atmosphere, expectations were high for this finale. The gamble didn’t pay off.

If you don’t know the plot, let me bring you up to speed. Katniss(Jennifer Lawrence, legit but bored and out of tears) is still the face of the rebellion against President Snow(Donald Sutherland, the only person having any fun) and his evil empire of tyranny. When she is told to merely wage war via camera and inspire the rebels to fight Snow and his men, she has other plans. She wants to kill Snow, but will have to get past many obstacles to do so, including dragging the audience on the driest love triangle of all time.

Seriously, the Peeta or Gale contest grew old two movies ago. It drags down the action here. It doesn’t help that Liam Hemsworth and Josh Hutchinson seem like misplaced jocks from the Twilight films. Hemsworth is so bad. It must be hard at Thanksgiving when your brother is Thor. He sucks. Go back to playing the heartthrob or use your accent in a different film.

There are few surprises. Having read the book, the film is a series of check marks. The raids. The ambush set up by the Games. The explosions. The longing looks extended between Katniss, Gale and Peeta. More explosions. Too much talking. The ending feels completely tacked on after a depressing climax. In the book, which wasn’t well received, the ending didn’t land with such a thud.

The action is thrilling in parts but doesn’t pack enough of a punch. The attack of “The Mutts” is scary yet reminded me of I Am Legend zombies. The climax, so powerfully written in the book, fizzles here in the film. Whenever in doubt, Lawrence just blows things up.

The film plays long and wears on the viewer. Watching the story take its final swings, the viewer waits for that final point of interest and it never comes. The cast is game yet tired. Lawrence has always been the difference in these films, a wicked combo of strength, attitude and beauty that is worth fighting for and watching. Here, even her Katniss doesn’t have a place.

There isn’t enough of Woody Harrelson’s Haymitch. He is the vital comic relief that is missing from this overly serious film. The presence of Philip Seymour Hoffman is just sad and wasted. Julianne Moore casts a cold spell as Coin, a woman who has more up her sleeve than good will and harmony. Sutherland is good at smug sinister moves, but his character is all too familiar.

Collins’ books aimed to tell a world weary tale that mirrors the modern world and possibly the future that awaits us, but it isn’t interesting enough nor does it connect with the viewer. The propaganda, rebellion, and political ideals are all there, but none of it registers. The first two films were thrilling exhibits of human sacrifice and heroism and kept you plugged in. The final two films bog everything down in a boring heap of nonsense.

This is the kind of movie you get up from your seat and shrug your shoulders at. It wasn’t good, bad or ugly. It wasn’t disappointing. It just wasn’t fulfilling enough to justify the split of the final book and the cliffhanger trap placed in Part one. After a great start to the franchise, The Hunger Games ended with a whimper. Save your hard earned theater cash for other more worthy films.

Cotto vs. Canelo: Clash of the Titans

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AFP PHOTO/ John Gurzinski/Getty Images 

Saturday night at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Miguel Cotto and Canelo Alvarez will produce the fight of the year. These aren’t boxers who train for six weeks only to run around a ring for twelve rounds. They carry the intent to let their hands go once the bell dings. They carry the intent to wage war on each other. It won’t be a matter of who is ahead on points at the end of the fight. It will be who is merely standing.

Each fighter is known for never backing down from a tough opponent. They don’t take easy fights. Look at their losses and the best of the best, Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr., are the only people able to stop them within the laws of a boxing ring.

This fight brings together two furiously passionate boxing countries, Puerto Rico and Mexico. Cotto, the 35 year old four time champion who calls the PR powered New York his stomping ground, is fighting to stay in the big fight business. Alvarez, 25, the Mexican pale white red headed superstar, is looking to retire the older fighter and take ownership of his now vacant(Cotto forfeited it this week due to not paying a sanctioning fee) WBC title belt. This isn’t just about belts, blood and battles. This is about legacy.

Since he rediscovered his lost touch in the ring with trainer Freddie Roach, Cotto has been a different boxer, going 3-0 with two stoppages and a knockout. A man possessed in the ring, sending Sergio Martinez to his retirement party early. Canelo is fresh off bashing brawler James Kirkland in Houston, surprising many by vanquishing him in the third round with ease. In a fight that many saw as a fist willed test, Canelo produced his most impressive result to date by knocking Kirkland out cold.

Canelo has superstar written all over him. He carries a record of 45-1-1, with 32 knockouts supporting that win total. The only loss coming to Mayweather Jr. two years ago. Cotto, 40-4 with 33 knockouts, is coming off an impressive win over Daniel Geale in June. He is 3-0 with Roach and looking to extend his career with a win over Canelo.

Why is this fight going to be sensational? Styles make fights and this is a perfect matchup of two sluggers. Cotto and Alvarez can box and move their head enough to extend a fight, but they aren’t known for taking steps backwards in a ring. They move forward, hunt, peck, and work until the opponent is surrounded. They unleash vigorous combinations that don’t just get their opponents attention. They stun the nervous system. They are each known for their vicious hooks and the ability to crash the body with assault. They aren’t street brawlers, but far from defensive strategists. Most boxers devise a game plan that keeps them safe in the ring while securing victory. These two guys have no such plans. They will go out on their sword before fighting a conservative match.

Do yourself a favor and don’t worry about the belt drama. Miguel Cotto didn’t want to pay a ridiculous fee to have the WBC sanction his belt in the fight, so he gave it up. They want him to also pay an 800K step aside fee to Gennady Golovkin. If Canelo wins, he gets the belt. If Cotto wins, the belt goes to Golovkin, the opponent for the winner of this fight. It’s all a murky mess, outside the ring boxing politics that shouldn’t concern fight fans. It doesn’t affect the average boxing fan who has what belt going into the ring Saturday night.

Know this. This is going to be the fight of the year. All other fights will pale in comparison. It’s not one sided or easy to call. It won’t be boring. Will Canelo use his newfound boxing expertise to keep distance between him and Cotto for him to land his big shots? Can Cotto use his veteran skill to break into the areas of the ring where Canelo feels are his? Who lands the big shots? Who gets hurt first? While Canelo is a favorite to win in the Vegas books, the outcome is not so easy to determine due to the skill set of these two true boxers. One could think Canelo, ten years younger, is simply too much for Cotto, who is prone to wearing down late in a fight. The other may think Canelo isn’t seasoned enough to take down a never better Cotto.

Between these two fighters, there are 65 knockouts. Only five losses, all to championship level fighters. Each fighter has a chip on their shoulder. Something to prove. This could be Cotto’s last big title fight. A chance to stay in the spotlight. This is Canelo’s opportunity to seize the moment and finally equal the hype that has surrounded him his entire career. Outside the ring, two countries known for facing off against each other over the brutal sport of boxing, will look on in amazement at their best products take aim at each other in the ring.

This is an exciting fight. Go watch it. Watch it with boxing lovers. Admirers of the sweet science and people who miss the good old days. A time where two men met in a ring to fight and left the politics to the suits outside of it. They don’t make them like Cotto and Canelo anymore and you won’t see many fights like this one. These are the fights many promoters stay away from because of the unpredictability of it all.

Tonight in Las Vegas, two warriors meet in the ring. Only one can make it out. One  will win. One will lose. If a draw occurs, the ring will need scrubbing. Saturday night will be a good night for boxing.

 

Evander Holyfield: The Most Underrated Boxer of All Time

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The Real Deal. That is Atlanta Georgia native and boxing legend Evander Holyfield’s nickname. And it fits. He is the only boxer to win the heavyweight championship four different times. He fought until he was 48 years old. He engaged in battles with Riddick Bowe, Lennox Lewis and none other than Iron Mike Tyson. Back in early November 1996, I told any breathing soul around me that Holyfield would beat Tyson in their November 9th mega fight. It was happening and nobody believed me.

As 30 for 30, ESPN’s brilliant sports documentary series, chronicled this week, Holyfield spent the better part of his boxing career chasing not only Tyson but his reputation and mythical presence as the news hungry bad boy of the sport. The 77 minute tale is an invigorating account and paints a bittersweet picture of The Real Deal. While he beat Tyson, he never got the respect because their rematch ended in a bizarre manner. This came years after a fight with Bowe where Holyfield was about to knock him out when a parachuting spectator landed on their ring. Throughout his career, Holyfield never got his rightful spot atop the sport. He did get the best of Tyson. He didn’t just knock him out. He made him go berserk.

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In 1996, Tyson, fresh out of jail, was kicking everybody’s ass. He kicked people’s ass faster than the arena he fought in could fill up. He got a vacant belt and after years of delay, was set to fight Holyfield. Evander wasn’t in a good place boxing wise. He lost the title years before to Michael Moore, and then left the sport due a heart condition that ended up being misdiagnosed. He returned and lost a one sided third fight to Bowe. He beat a nobody in Bobby Cyrz and got set to face Tyson, who everybody was still enthralled by even though he had just went to jail for beating up and raping his girlfriend Robin Givens. Back in the day when Ray Rice’s ordeal would have been called lame.

Few people gave the old man Holyfield a shot. Why would they? Even though Holyfield had fought everybody in sight, beat a majority of them and held a more impressive record than Tyson, he was the underdog. Without saying it, people still didn’t buy into this guy. No one fought with more heart or tenacity than Holyfield. He redefined what a hook could do to a man’s body and head. When you think of a boxer digging at another man’s body, you think of Holyfield. Yet, to everybody else, he was boring. A boring two time champion who didn’t duck Tyson. Mike hurt his ribs and a 1992 bout got voided. Then he went to jail for the aforementioned rape, but to boxing fans it was Holyfield’s fault. After much delay and hardship, these two met in the ring. Holyfield was a 25 to 1 underdog.

The result was legendary. I remember the second round the most. Tyson hit Holyfield flush with a right hand and the guy barely moved. He took Tyson’s best shot and kept coming. It was over right there. As the fourth round came along, Holyfield began to find new life and tagged Tyson at will. He was winning every round. He punished Tyson’s ribs and landed clean hooks to the head. Tyson was wobbling by the 9th round and went down on a Holyfield left hook. By the 11th round, Tyson was hitting hammered. He had nothing left and Holyfield knocked him out. People were shocked. They thought they were seeing an alternate reality. At last, Holyfield had beaten Tyson. He finally had a shred of the respect he deserved.

In May 1997, a rematch took place and everybody and their best friend’s uncle knows what happened. Frustrated after a few rounds of Holyfield dominance, Tyson bit the man’s ear twice and was disqualified. It was over. In a voiceover during the 30 for 30, Tyson said he was so angry with how good Holyfield was and lost it. In the end, after losing to Holyfield again, Tyson had the most coverage. In defeat, he created a spectacle with the ear bite. To this day, people will remember the ill-fated rematch instead of the mesmerizing first fight where Holyfield knocked Tyson out. History has a nasty way of defining a man’s legacy.

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The champ didn’t rest. Holyfield would eventually meet Lennox Lewis in a thrilling pair of matches in 1999. In earning a draw in a match many boxing analysts called one of the worst decisions of all time, Holyfield was once again on the flip side of notoriety. Many thought Lewis won and in a rematch, he indeed beat Holyfield to win the title. Later, Holyfield would beat, lose and earn a draw in three consecutive fights against John Ruiz Holyfield beat Hasim Rahman in order to get a third crack at Lewis, but instead Lennox chose Tyson and destroyed him. That was the last time Holyfield had a chance at the title. Throughout his whole career, Tyson never stopped pestering Holyfield and blocking his legacy.

What deserves to be remembered is Holyfield’s dominating win over Tyson, his furious bouts with Bowe, his toe to toe battles with Lewis as he neared 40 years of age and his unwillingness to quit. He is easily one of the most underrated boxers of all time.

Do yourself a favor and watch “Chasing Tyson” on ESPN On Demand or catch it on the network this week. If you don’t appreciate Holyfield now, you will after it is over. He was one of a kind and a brand of heavyweight that doesn’t exist anymore.

 

5 Reasons to see Amy Schumer in St. Louis

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55a60708c8e92.imageIt’s possible that some of you have no idea who Amy Schumer is, but that should all change by the end of the year. She is everywhere and other places as well. This winter, she is bringing her standup comedy tour to the Scottrade Center in St. Louis. The 34 year old New Yorker is the writer, producer and star of the Comedy Central series, Insider Amy Schumer, but she is also making waves in other circuits as well. She starred in the hit comedy, Trainwreck, over the summer and hosted Saturday Night Live this month. If you want a taste of her standup routine, check out her show from the Apollo Theater on HBO right now. She is all over so get used to it. Is she worth watching? Here are five reasons to consider her for a date in December.

~She is legit funny. You won’t find any gimmicks with her brand of comedy. If you like the old classic days of SNL mixed with a new age theme of realism, Schumer will make you laugh. She will make jokes about the squeamish moment in the bedroom, the dating game and the struggle for women as a whole. Unlike Melissa McCarthy, she won’t tire you out with one kind of joke. She is versatile.

~She didn’t just get her newfound success. She earned it, creating the Amy Schumer show, which caught director Judd Apatow’s attention and made him seek her out for Trainwreck. She wrote the film as well as starring in it, and she got that opportunity after years of hard work on the standup scene and after catching a break in the series, Last Comic Standing. She has carried multiple duties on Inside Amy Schumer for two years and is breaking into film. She didn’t simply show up.

~Schumer put Lebron James and John Cena in the same film and made them funny. The star basketball player and wrestler won’t find a better role in film.

~She isn’t just a comedian but someone who cares about real life threatening issues. Her stance on gun control isn’t a call for attention but something she takes very seriously. At a showing of Trainwreck on July 23rd, a gunman walked into a theater in Louisiana and opened fire, killing people and injuring several. A survivor reached out to Amy on social media and since she has taken the issue by the collar. Recently she appeared with New York senator and cousin Chuck Schumer to close the loop holes on gun control. She isn’t a one trick pony folks.

~In a recent Seattle Times article, she had this to say about feminism. “People ask if there is pressure for you to be pushing feminism, and I’m like, ‘No! It’s just part of us.’ And you have to keep fighting.” Enough said!

Schumer, in a lesser way, is like Ronda Rousey. She is reshaping what it means to be funny, provocative and timely for a woman in show business. She is changing the game. Get a taste of that action with her appearance at Scottrade Center on December 18th.

Ronda Rousey is the Role Model We Need

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hi-res-e0789e52e396bb0929872035117a0d31_crop_northSay hello to the toughest woman on the planet. Ronda Rousey is exactly the role model this world needs. She’s a 28 year old undefeated champion in MMA and the woman who made Dana White a believer that women belonged in the UFC. You may have heard of her. She beat Floyd Mayweather Jr. out for Fighter of the Year at the ESPY’s in July and taunted him about not knowing who she is, even challenging him to a fight(he won’t take it if he appreciates his health). Rousey is globally fearless and that’s why we should love her.

Sure, she gets into an octagon and fights other women in a brutal MMA sport; wrestling, kicking and punching towards more wins in the UFC. Don’t discount the woman because she’s a fighter though. For a world that gets swept up in the all American game of football every fall/winter that’s damaging men’s futures one tackle at a time, a woman fighting for her cash isn’t bad at all. If folks can pay millions to see a wife beating Mayweather Jr. dance around a ring like Houdini, Rousey’s wicked style of destruction should be digested smoothly.

When I think of Rousey, I think about He For She, the campaign Emma Watson started to drive the dagger home for men and women sharing equal rights and opportunity. Rousey is a role model not just for other fighters that are coming through the ranks, but she is also a beacon of light for every single woman on this planet. The ones that work an extra hour to get prepared and make themselves look pretty for this world that still wishes to beat them down on a daily basis. Rousey is the reminder that if you are very good at a job, you should get paid no matter what sex you are. She’s a renegade and someone who created her own success. That’s hot.

There are few more pressured packed jobs than that of a fighter. Think about it. You have to literally punch and grapple your way to victory and every ring meeting is a chance to damage your brain or lose a piece of your bone structure. One bad decision could be the end of your career or at least the painful beginning of the demise. The general perception is that fighters aren’t needed and I beg the differ. I don’t want think of a world without people who create their way of living by using their own two hands. As Jim Lampley once said, people play “fighting” for a living. You stand, you fight, and that’s it.

Rousey hasn’t been handed a thing in her life. She was a daddy’s girl as a young girl, learning how to swim to the point of where she got pretty good at it. The direction her life could have went if her dad didn’t tragically take his life after a debilitating injury zapped the life from him is the opposite direction of a fighter. She could have been diving off a board at the Olympics. Instead, her mother taught her how to fight.

Rousey’s mother knew a thing or two about it herself.  AnnMaria De Mars was the first American woman to win the World Judo Championship in 1984 and is a master in the martial art. So when Ronda was hanging around the lowest of lows, her mother took her to the gym and taught her the most authentic and simplest technique. The ability to knock someone else out when needed. Trust me, it was a better option than the salon or Starbucks.

After competing in the Olympics herself and taking home a medal, Rousey had to scrap around for a while. There isn’t a lot of money to go around the fight game until you find the right match or bust your butt training. Ronda lived in her car while she trained. Working far out of the spotlight while she collected the right training. Training that would eventually revolve around one single move. The arm bar. The act of strangling one’s arm on top of your knee while on the ground, where the arm is then bent the complete opposite direction that it wants to go. Many opponents have found the need to tap out before Rousey separates the arm into two pieces. It’s brutal but it doesn’t come without warning.

Rousey has won all 11 of her fights and most of them end in an instant. Rousey is the Mike Tyson of MMA. The sport wasn’t quite ready for her method of mayhem and they still have a hard time digesting a woman winning a fight in the same amount of time it takes you to make a video on Instragram.

It doesn’t hurt that she is gorgeous, curvy and built like a Mack Truck. That may turn certain people off, but for others it’s a welcome sight. A woman brandishing her skills and youthful powerful beauty in a ring instead of a man. The people who are intimidated by Rousey badly want to be as confident as her. They whisper to themselves after they denounce her in front of their friends, “man I wish I could be so fearless.” She’s graced movie screens, fighting alongside Sylvester Stallone’s Expendables and against Vin Diesel’s car heisting crew in Furious 7 this past spring. Soon, she will shoot a film with Mark Wahlberg. Unlike some crossover star athletes, Rousey doesn’t lose focus. It helps that she’s struck a good balance between a Tommy gun temper and supreme confidence.

Rousey also isn’t afraid to say what’s on her mind. She is a hot take quote machine, and never fails to shoot a journalist or opposing fighter straight. When an opponent tried to make a knock at her father, Rousey simply stated she has to make that woman suffer. Rousey can zing you with a jab or a one liner, and that only broadens her legend. People don’t just want a undefeated record with their fighters these days. They want a personality and Rousey’s is authentic, free spirited and quite direct.

A week ago, Rousey destroyed her latest victim, Bethe Correia, a Brazilian fighter in 34 seconds. The weakest fighters always throw the biggest punches outside the ring before shrinking inside the ring. When Rousey’s fist hit Correia’s nose, the only words uttered were “please stop”. I expected Correia to tap out, like I expect Jason Statham to win in the end of all his action films.

If Watson wanted to blaze a trail with her He For She campaign, she should let Rousey drive the chariot of fire. The woman is everywhere and here all at once, and she isn’t going anywhere.

Prepare to see a lot of Ronda Rousey. Just don’t make her mad. She is a beacon of light for a world of women fighting for equality every single day. I don’t have a hard time liking that. Do you?

Bernie Miklasz “changed things” at the Post Dispatch

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bernieBack when I was a kid, I appreciated the more simple things in life. For me, it was getting up and sprinting to the nearest St. Louis Post Dispatch machine and getting the paper. I went to the machine near Tholozan and Kingshighway. Most days I actually got fully clothed but others I just ran out in what I was in at the time. If they would have timed me on one of my pursuits, I may have challenged a college draft pick for the 40 yard dash.

I needed the paper because I needed to know what local scribe Bernie Miklasz thought about a game, player or upcoming event. As a St. Louis sports fan and prospective writer, he was the guy I looked up to. Every fan has their selective voice and for me, Miklasz was it.

Bernie Miklasz is leaving the Post Dispatch after 26 years of writing print columns, blogging for their STL Today website and producing many podcasts, including Breakfast With Bernie and Best Podcast in Baseball with Cards reporter Derrick Goold. To me, he is the epitome of “tell it like it is and don’t care what others think”. Bernie doesn’t sip the koolaid(unless you put it next to a fine cigar) and prefers to think against type on certain topics. He is a blunt instrument in a world of talking head sports types that are afraid to challenge the status quo. (more…)

Furious 7 Delivers The Action And Tugs At the Heart

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I remember where I was when I watched The Fast and The Furious. The first film that launched the careers of Vin Diesel, Paul Walker and Michelle Rodriguez into the

imageHollywood stratosphere of invincibility. I saw it with my dad at Esquire in St. Louis when the theater was a hot spot. The theater was only half full because the cast was a bunch of nobodies then. Unknown faces yet interesting ones. The soldier who died for a little girl in Saving Private Ryan in Diesel. The ill fated quarterback from Varsity Blues in Walker. The tough fighter from Girlfight in Rodriguez. Who were these people? Rob Cohen directing the flick with barely a resume. Here was this cheap little independent action flick about hot rod cars, muscle bound men and tough babes. Innocent, simple, ridiculous and entertaining. By the end of the film, something else peeked up and showed its head. A heart. Something most action films dispose of before the credits begin and before the first bullet is fired.

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The Cardinal Way Appears At Fenway

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I believe in the Cardinal Way.  While the Boston Strong moniker is wearing thin on me, this brand name sticks because it connects to the way the St. Louis Cardinals play baseball.   At their best, the Cards grind out at bats, make the plays, get timely hits and present young guns on the mound to make the other team squirm or look like old haggard sluggers.   On more than one occasion, Boston right fielder Shane Victorino stared out into space after striking out against Michael Wacha and Carlos Martinez.  Dustin Pedroia went to a knee reaching for a Martinez delivery.  Johnny Gomes looked as useless as a plant in the winter time at the plate against Trevor Rosenthal.   Throughout their two years under Mike Matheny and the final portion of the Tony La Russa managerial streak, the Cards have been a team that strings the little hits together, doesn’t quit until the end and makes every effort count.  We are either universally loved or hated for never putting these attributes to rest.   As I said in the NLCS, the Cards play like they all grew up together and became a team and weren’t merely assembled to win.   Here is what happened Thursday night for the Cards to win 4-2 and pull the World Series even at 2 games.

*Michael Wacha pitched very well without his best stuff.  The Red Sox stuck to their sickening trend and made the young hurler work for his outs, but Wacha didn’t break.  Sure, David Ortiz hit a changeup above the green monster for a brief Boston lead, but that was all the Sox could score off the kid.   Wacha shut down another offense for 6 solid innings.  He is 4-0 this postseason.  I have a feeling he will adjust more to the Red Sox than they will to him for the next game.

*Carlos Beltran, fresh off a shot of painkillers to his bruised ribs, collected 2 key hits and knocked in a huge insurance run in the 7th inning where the Cards netted their lead taking charge to reclaim the game.   Beltran is a smooth easy going presence that could make walking across a tight rope look easy.   He has saved this team many times this postseason with different methods.  Deemed a slowing down player in September, Beltran slammed a 3 run bomb to open the playoffs at home against Pittsburgh.  He put on a one man show in the first game against the Dodgers, throwing out the winning run at home plate before knocking in the eventual game winner.  He saved a potentially back breaking embarrassing grand slam in Game 1 against the Red Sox on Wednesday night.  Under the shadows of playoff glory, Beltran is working his October magic.  I am glad it’s on our end and not like in 2004-2005 when he helped make our life a living hell while playing for Houston.   He is a Cardinal now and it will be hard to let him go after this season.

*Matt Holliday is quietly putting together a big postseason.  He isn’t collecting a ton of hits but he has made them count.  He hit a solo HR in game 1 and tripled and scored the first run last night.  In the first series’, he seemed to collect that HUGE HR and get the hits when needed.   It would be amazing if this long ridiculed left fielder won the World Series MVP.  That would shut all the haters up.  For all the errors on the infield and NLCS hijinks in the outfield, Holliday has played a solid outfield for the Cards.  He handled the green monster in Games 1 and 2.  He doesn’t make many flashy plays but he makes the routine ones and has a better arm than either of his center fielders.   Holliday is a secret weapon.

*The Young Arms reveal themselves to the Red Sox hitters.   Carlos Martinez, after being used here and there for most of the season, has broken out during the past month.   Once again, Matheny was keeping a hot sports car in the garage as long as he could until he had to use it.   Down the stretch run to the division title and through the playoffs, Baby Carlos is proving to be the late inning setup man to Rosenthal with his eye popping fastball and wicked breaking pitch and nearly folked Victorino up last night.   He threw a crucial 2 inning last night to form the bridge to Rosenthal’s shutdown 9th inning and is starting to lose the baby tags.   He is a mult-tool threat for the future that could contribute in the bullpen and rotation.  One of many.  Nice to see Rosenthal climb the rubber at Fenway and blow 11 fastballs past the Red Sox and silent their postseason momentum and that stuffed crowd of raucous beantown fanatics.  If we win this series, it will be on the heels of our great young pitching.

*Our defense stayed strong.  In a ballpark known for sending opposing players into fits, the Cards made the plays last night.  The highlight of the night was Pete Kozma redeeming himself with a misdirection grounder field and throw in the 7th inning that reminded people why he started so many games this summer for the Redbirds.   Kozma is a plus defender with a great arm and helped the defense hold the fort yesterday.

Instead of being down 2-0 and looking fatally wounded, the Cards come home with a 1-1 series and 3 games at Busch.   Sure, Allen Craig will probably be on the bench, but then again Boston will lose either David Ortiz or Mike Napoli.   Each team will lose an offensive bullet so its even.   The series will be defined by how little mistakes are made and how great the relief pitching can be.   So far, it’s tied and looks like a 7 game series.  At the moment, the momentum belongs to the Cards.

Thanks for staying,

D.L.B.

@buffa82 on Twitter

 

9/11: 12 Years Later

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imageedit_1_9536987025(CNN.com)

Every year, I look back at that day.   A day where as a country we found out our defensive abilities weren’t as strong as we thought.   A day where realism struck several homes and loss carried a whole new meaning.   Rolling Stones’ classic tune, “Paint It Black”, was brought to life in New York City.  A sunny Tuesday morning was painted black indeed and stayed that way for years.   I know where I was and what I felt, and its amazing to think that 12 years have passed since a few planes in the sky changed our country forever and set off a wave of connection, bad decisions, hot tempered wars, and a decade plus of abandonment.  I didn’t lose anybody close that day but I felt the impact of others who did.   What can you say to make it all seem like perfect sense?

As a human being, we all have the ability to feel the impact of death.   I see a list of names and instantly think of all the people who won’t be able to spend another minute with those people again.   Death is a son of a bitch because its final and often there are no clear cut goodbyes.  The lost souls from that day didn’t get the chance to call their loved ones.  Sure we have heard the tapes of ones who did but I always wonder how many people got voice mail as they sat in that burning building, doomed plane or dark staircase.  How many people simply had to hope they would be missed.  Imagine a funeral for them.   How many people would show up?  People who made a pact to lose weight, call their parents more, live it up were suddenly facing down imminent death.  All kinds of people were seeing the rest of their life flash before their eyes that day.  I do believe it happens before we die.  A carousel of clips from our life start to play and to the individual it will most likely seem incomplete.  Death is brutally final not just for the people who experience it but the hundreds of souls who had a connection to that victim.   Young people, parents, daughters, sons, sisters, uncles, brothers, friends, cousins and co-workers.   If anyone thought life couldn’t change in an instant, ask anyone from NYC about that day.   2,996 people went to bed on September 10th, 2001.   They didn’t get a chance to go to bed on September 11th, 2001.   That will never lose resonance with me.

9/11/01 has changed for me in the past 12 years.  I am a father and husband now.   When I awoke on that day in my dorm at Mizzou and saw the burning buildings, I was single and going through the motions of college.  I hadn’t met my wife yet.  I wasn’t tied to anything but unpredictability.  I walked to my Psychology class and they quickly sent us home to our dorms to engulf 1,000 different angles of those planes crashing into the towers, the constant updates, horrifying pictures and the buildings collapsing like a jinga stack.  People jumping from the towers.  Victims covered in ash.  Innocent bystanders acting like they have never seen severed body parts before or had the chance to smell burning flesh.  Survivors can probably be counted as victims from that day of chaos.  I watched it all.  I let it in.  Felt the emotions, anger and raging fury send shock waves through my body.  I didn’t have a one headed monster to get mad at yet.  We didn’t yet know Osama Bin Laden was the mastermind.  This wasn’t a movie with three neat acts.  The bad guy is presented and the good guys get him and normalcy is returned to the surface.   The bad guy didn’t get caught for nearly 10 years.   The good guys ended up losing over 46,000 souls if you count the related illnesses, loss in the war and so on.   The people who died that day were only the beginning.  Anyone who worked on the site, sucked in the smoke and horrible fumes, or spent time there looking for loved ones had their lungs damaged that day.   It was like coal mining if it involved finding dead bodies every 30 minutes.  Anyone who went to war after were victims as well.   I am all for starting a war when needed, but for some reason George W. Bush invaded Iraq instead of just going after Bin Laden, the man responsible.  We lost thousands of soldiers fighting a war many of those lost souls never understood nor did we.   I am not saying Obama would have done different its fair to say the toll from that day stretched out over years.   That’s change.

Now that I am a father, I think about it differently.  A lot differently. I can only imagine if I left one day to go to work and this happened and my son wouldn’t see me again.   Imagine how many fathers and mothers didn’t come home that day.  How much explaining had to be done to little kids, teenagers or older sons and daughters about what happened to their caretakers?  A shit ton.  A lot of words and tears.   I think about my wife Rachel not coming home and the impact that would have on my family.  I think about losing a family member too but when a loss affects your every day home, your inner circle of loved ones, that’s the scariest scenario known on this earth.  I don’t know what I’d do without my wife.  I don’t want to imagine staring down imminent death and wondering if I will never see my son again.  It’s horrifying and that is how I relate to those who were affected that day.   If you didn’t lose somebody, the event can still affect you.

In 2009, I went and saw the Dave Matthews Band at Wrigley Field.   It was harmless really.  I took a trip on the Mega Bus and stayed with my friend PJ.   Weeks later, after I got home, I would find out that a bomber was attempting to blow up that area on that very night.   He planted what he thought was a bomb right outside Wrigley Field and left, only to be detained by the FBI/CIA(I can’t remember exactly which) because he was set up.   Law enforcement gave him a different bomb, a fake one, because they were working undercover to take down this cell.  However, I imagine from time to time if that bomb was real and how that would impact lives around me.  I exited the building on the side the fake bomb was planted.  I wouldn’t have felt anything.  My son would have never been born.   This isn’t easy to write or for some of you to read but it’s in my head so here we go.  9/11 did this to us.  It made us painfully aware of forces outside of our control.   Every time a plane flies lower than normal, I look up.

I don’t think 9/11 was a conspiracy or a coup.  I don’t rule out the idea that the government may have ignored intel or looked the other way but I carry the belief that our country was caught with its pants down that day.   We were blindsided.  Defeated straight up by a smart, crafty mastermind who planned it for years.  People lose sleep and breath over convincing themselves that we weren’t simply attacked by an evil force that day.   I don’t think Bush had anything to do with it and I require evidence to change my opinion.   Buildings collapse with 80,000 gallons of jet fuel running down their legs.  It happened and it was committed by the most wanted man this country will ever know.   We were knocked down that day and of course when we got up, a lot of wild swings and emotions were thrown around.   Alliances were broken.  New fear was created.  Bonds were made.  And you know what, a lot of connection happened.   People did come together and help each other.  Odd couples became friends.

I believe to this day sports played a huge part in healing that city and as a whole, our country.   The Yankees winning emotional late inning games and going to the World Series.  Mike Piazza hitting that game winner at Shea on the night baseball came back.   Jack Buck’s tour de force speech at Busch.  When we are shaken by bad circumstances, we look to sports and movies as much as friends and family.   It’s an escape for the most tormented soul.   At our weakest, sometimes all we need is a game to watch or a movie to invest our emotions with.   Simplicity lies at the heart of therapy.  Just my take.

I always say this to people I know about what happened that day.   No matter the cause, terrorists or conspiracy, those 2,996 souls are never coming back.  Finality tromps cause and reason.  If it were a coup, those people are still dead.  If it was a simple act of terrorism, those people aren’t coming back.   No crime to solve.   All we can do is prevent it from happening again.   Prevent the new Freedom Tower and the fountains and memorial from being attacked.   The United States of America will be targeted for days.  Every day.   It’s our ability to prevent it that separates us from the grave.  Stop fighting about what happened that day and celebrate the men and women who sacrificed themselves then to save a life.   Remember the sacrifice that happens every day by the people serving in the armed forces.   The ones who serve thousands of miles from their homes so we can feel safe in our own.  I try to remember the first responders who went into the towers, pulled people out and didn’t think twice before running back into the buildings.   You could have told them the buildings were collapsing in 5 minutes, and they would tell you I can get somebody out in 4 minutes.   They are the true heroes.   Certain people become firefighters or cops and are kind of brave.   Others are willing to put everything on the line to save another.   That’s sacrifice.  The courage to run in when so many are running away.   That is what I try to remember on this day.

That’s all I got.  Keep living.  Respect the privilege that we have today.  Living is a privilege.  Death is a conclusion.  I’ll never forget what happened that day or the heroic deeds that defined it.  We aren’t perfect but I hold a belief that to this day there are more good people than bad.   I could be wrong.  I could be right.  I will never know.  I do know that when Vinny gets older I’m taking him to NYC to show him what happened.  Let him see the thousands of names on the memorial fountains.   Describe to him what real courage is.  Those are questions I will be ready to answer.   As a son, father, brother, and husband, that is my right.

Sincerely,

Dan Buffa

 

STL CARDS Recap

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As I step over the dead body of another Cards loss, let me break it down QUICK. Bullet points used.

 
  • The Cards managed to fire up some offense tonight.  The grill was working tonight as the Cards scored 2 runs in the first inning and added on individual tallies.  Like a young kid slowly coming out of his shell, there was no eruption tonight.  Just stringing some singles together.  The team jumped a good pitcher, Jeff Locke, for 4 runs and 12 hits.  They gave Waino a lead.
  • Waino didn’t hold it.  His pitches weren’t sharp.  He didn’t have a 1-2-3 inning and wasn’t good overall.  He went 7 innings but didn’t hold a 2-0, 3-1, or 4-2 lead.  Unfortunate that your ace loses the first game of a road trip and then lets you down when you most need it.  Waino is 13-6 this year and rarely messes up but recently he has been rough.   Bad luck and timing
  • Trevor Rosenthal is slowly cracking in the 8th inning.  He allowed the go ahead run.  Made it 5-4.  Rosenthal has been one of the best setup men in baseball but hasn’t been too sharp recently.  He is allowing baserunners and getting beat on his heater.  No matter how hard you throw a MLB professional can time it and hit it hard.  Plain old rules there.  
  • The pitching wasn’t what we needed it to be.  
  • In the 9th inning, with 2 outs and the Cards down by a run and a bench full of power and capability, Mike Matheny didn’t go to Matt Adams or Matt Carpenter.  No excuse there.  You don’t let Daniel Descalso, who had an RBI hit early in the game, hit there.  You have to take your best shot.  Put your best bat up there.  Adams can tie it with one swing.  Carpenter can pinch hit and take over Descalso’s spot at 2B.  NO EXCUSE.  One run game in a must win situation.   DD can’t hit there.  DAMN!  Mike Matheny has shown plenty of veteran savvy so far in his managerial career.  He has also shown plenty of cracks in his rookie skipper facade.  
  • The Cards suffer from bad luck.  Line Drives caught.  A mis-call at first base that led to winning run.  Good hitting and bad pitching.  But this affects every club.  So no need to dwell here.
  • This isn’t the end of the world but it’s close.  The Cards were 25 games over .500.  Now they are 18 games over .500 and 2.5 games out of first place.  Things change quick in baseball and that is why you play 162 games.  Long summers burn certain teams.  How will the Cards rebound?  What will happen with Joe Kelly on the mound tomorrow?  Questions that ride my soul tonight.  
  • The trade deadline came and went.  One of the weakest impact days of my baseball life.  Nothing out there worth giving the future away for.  Waiver deals are common and Mozelaik will do something I believe.  Teams, like the Cards, don’t want to give up young prospects for 2 month rental fixes and instead keep their young talent and save money.  It’s the new way.  You will see less gambling because this game is getting younger.  Look at the age of the best players in the game.  YOUNGER.
  • The Cards need a move.  Their lineup is exposed and weak looking.   Weak spots right now are CF, SS, and C.  No offense to Cruz but he needs to play a little while before his bat convinces me it can walk and talk.  Jon Jay is weak hitting.  Pete Kozma is just plain weak.  David Freese aka FACE OF IMOS is getting close very close to becoming weak.  The Cards can’t excuse Kozma anymore because another weak spot lies in the catcher’s hole.  
  • Yes, the Cards big hitters need to hit.  We all know that.  Thanks Bernie Miklasz.  Matt Holliday, ridiculed by the little minds that still critique his defense, collected 3 hits and 2 RBI today.  He has 3 of the Cards last 5 RBI in the past 3 games.  He plays a shitty LF but finds a way to keep his errors down and has been hitting.  Move on haters.
  • What happens tomorrow?  No fucking clue.  What happens now?  I am going to the gym.  
Stay tuned for a job search operation update.  A good friend of mine, on this blogging list, is going to team up with me and set up a small personal job fair in STL this coming month.  A way to promote me, find me a job, get together, maybe promote Film-Addict and do something a little unconventional.  I still want to WRITE for a living but have 8 years of experience in the warehouse industry to fall back on.  Yeah baby.  
 
Goodnight,
 
Buffa