|
|
Post by BakFu on Mar 2, 2019 0:03:51 GMT
Mirko Cro Cop had a stroke following his victory over Roy Nelson. Thankfully, it appears that he will recover fully, but he has announced his retirement from fighting. One of my top three favorite fighters of all time, in any sport. For years, I worked on emulating his kicks in sparring. Despite the Gonzaga moment(which he did avenge, much later on), losing to Fedor, and falling behind Aerts and Hoost in K-1, Cro Cop was one of the true elites of his era, still dangerous a decade out from his heyday, a true warrior who fought until he could fight no longer, an underrated personality in the sport, a dangerous, innovative striker who had top notch defensive grappling and perhaps did better than any other kickboxer in transferring his style to MMA. Add to that his insane real life background with the anti-terror police in Zagreb and the Croatian parliament, and you have a story that will not be duplicated any time soon. And it should be mentioned that default Cro Cop in FPR was an unearthly CRITICAL beast. With Fedor on his last leg, Rampage going into videogame streaming more than fighting, Wanderlei Silva effectively finished, Big Nog fully retired, the Pride Generation has come to its eventual conclusion. There will never be another time in MMA as exciting, another set of fighters as unique and larger than life. Thanks for the years of entertaining us all with those perfect head kicks. As overdone as it may be to say it, Cro Cop was an inspiration to fighters and fight fans worldwide, and his days in the ring and the cage will be missed. Wow, this is shitty news, I hope he has a quick and full recovery. Yeah, Mirko has been a warrior through his whole career, his K-1 stuff was incredible, the rivalry with (my BOY!) Mark Hunt was stuff of legend, and to see it carry through to PRIDE was a real treat! Filipovic was an incredible ring general, even when you KNEW that left high kick was coming, you still ate one and went to sleep (one of the best quotes of all time, "Right kick hospital, left kick cemetery."). His reflexes in his prime were amazing, for a guy his size to move as well as he did and strike with such accuracy, speed, and power, it was a real treat to watch him fight. That left straight (everyone remembers the kicks, but his punches set that missile up for him all of the time!) was a dream crusher for many fighters, and even his losses were usually pretty epic events. Not unlike WWE, UFC has done their best to expunge the existence of other organizations, and it's likely that most people only remember CroCop telescoping when that ham and egger, Blanka looking bastard Gonzaga got a lucky shot in on him, but the guy fought top talent his entire career, and even adapted to MMA after whupping ass in kickboxing. Check out some K-1 stuff, he fought Hoost, Hunt, Semi Schilt, LeBanner, and even Mr K-1 Andy Hug! After that meat grinder of a schedule, he decided to head to PRIDE. Amazing stuff from a true warrior and martial artist. Easily an all time favourite of mine, and a guy who's fights I used to get people interested in fighting and combat sports. I hated seeing him fight in more recent years, he has NOTHING to prove, and time gets all of us, no matter how bad we might be. It was painful to watch him slow down, and I prayed he'd quit and just enjoy life instead of doing more damage to his body and reputation, hopefully he'll use this setback as a sign that it's time to pass the torch and enjoy life after fighting (both Mirko and Mark Hunt, I almost have a fit when I watch them fight, I feel like a helicopter mom watching her snot nosed kid fight! I want them both to quit!). And he has a great sense of humour, too! :) |
|
|
|
Post by El Marsh on Mar 2, 2019 3:10:39 GMT
That's unfortunate news about Cro Cop but at least it seems like he'll recover well enough from this one. Hopefully it's not a recurring thing for him going forward. Dude was a true phenom that helped raise the profile of MMA as a whole.
In unrelated and much lighter news, veteran NBA center Pau Gasol was bought out of his contract with the San Antonio Spurs today and will immediately sign with the Milwaukee Bucks. Doing so today ensures that he will be eligible to appear on their playoff roster. Pau is obviously at the end of his great 18-year career but being a 2x NBA Champion, he'll provide the young, unseasoned Bucks with something that they lacked as nobody on their roster has NBA Finals experience. It will be interesting to see if the Bucks end up playing Toronto in the Eastern Conference Finals, as that would pit Pau's team against younger brother Marc's for the biggest opportunity of the latter's career.
that Harper deal is nuts
and if I understand correctly, he's fully locked into it (there is no player option or opt-put whatsoever, just a no-trade clause)
That's an incredibly bold move for a guy who's had one great year (3 seasons ago) and a couple of good ones besides. At least he doesn't project to just fall off of a cliff in terms of production over the next 5-6 years. It's when he gets in that 34-35 range that he'll "probably" start to noticeably decline, at which point he'll be halfway through the contract. If Philly wins a WS in that time, it will undoubtedly have been worth the $26m per year investment (it kicks down to $22m a year in the last couple of years of the contract).
|
|
|
|
Post by Timberwolf on Mar 2, 2019 5:33:35 GMT
The money notwithstanding, I think 13 years is just too long to lock into a contract. A typical contract should be 4 to 5 years for a youngster and maybe 2 to 3 years for veterans.
Let's say the Phillies win the title in 2020 or 2021, then begin cleaning house to cut payroll. Harper will be stuck on a shitty team for a while as the Phillies trade veterans with high payroll for prospects.
Not to mention there is no telling the state of the Phillies in a few years. The owner could suddenly decide to sell. New owner wants to relocate. There is a regime change.
That is too much to commit to.
If I had a choice to pick between money and length, I'll take the length if the money's right for it. I would rather take 25 mill/year for 4 years than 30 mill/year for 10 years like Machado.
|
|
|
|
Post by El Marsh on Mar 3, 2019 5:16:29 GMT
|
|
|
|
Post by Timberwolf on Mar 9, 2019 16:46:05 GMT
So with Major League Baseball opening the season in about three weeks, what do everyone feel about their teams' chances in the 2019 season? I'll start. I feel my Brewers will have it tougher this year than last year. Last year, they surprised people with a nice run with strategies such as bullpenning and defensive shifts. This year, other teams will be ready for them. Milwaukee has a question mark in the starting rotation, but the bullpen is still one of the best in baseball, assuming Jeremy Jefferies gets rid of the yips that doomed him in the playoffs. The rest of the line up is solid except for maybe Orlando Arcia. He can be sensational in one game and play like shit in the next. At least they no longer have a log jam in the outfield like they did last year. The Brewers do play in a tough division. The Cubs always find a way to contend. The Cardinals should bounce back from last year's disappointment. They showed improvement at the end as did the Reds. I'll let Zealot talk about the Pirates 😉 The rest of the National League looks to be very competitive as well. The East is loaded with the exception of Miami. The West also should be a dog fight. In fact, I think Miami will be the only truly bad team this year. The rest of the National League looks solid, but someone's gotta lose. I know nothing about the American League because I'm a National League fan. I'm not a fan of the DH rule and other shit that the American League does. What say you, Marsh, Zealot, and any other baseball fan on this board? How do you feel about the upcoming season? |
|
|
|
Post by Zealot on Mar 9, 2019 17:04:55 GMT
I don't see the Pirates really improving much from last year unless the hitting and starting pitching gets better. We have question marks in the middle infield as well as in middle relief. If that hitting coach could do some wonder to build off that amazing stretch Pirate batters had late last summer (and Polanco actually plays to his full potential), 90 wins could be achievable. However, I think the best shot we have is the wild card play-in game again sadly.
I don't think anyone will catch Milwaukee in our division as the Cubs are getting older and the Cardinals have been inconsistent. The Reds are also a major question mark with the additions of Kemp and Puig, but hardly any pitching. I think the Bucs have a celing of 3rd honestly but could finish last only a few games out of the wild card.
As for the Marlins, the only real positive is that they finally got rid of that monstrosity of a sculpture in the outfield and now have a way cooler logo. Otherwise....LOL! #JeterLoria
|
|
|
|
Post by BakFu on Mar 9, 2019 23:24:23 GMT
Likely that no one here cares that much, but Rugby Sevens in Vancouver is on today, and Canada beat Fiji 26 - 19 (I'll try to find a clip of Canada's Luke McClosky getting nearly snapped in two by a typical, earth-shattering Fijian hit... Awesome tackle!) AND Spain beat New Zealand! What the hell is going on?!?
I love the regular, union rules 15 a side international stuff, but Sevens are always fun to watch (and Canada doesn't totally blow!). Sevens give smaller rugby nations a chance to be competitive and gain experience as a national side against the established superpowers of rugby. I always love watching Fiji, they always crush it in Sevens, but seeing non traditional teams like Kenya, Spain, and Brazil making headway is awesome stuff! If you've ever been interested in figuring out rugby, Sevens is fun because the matches are SHORT, and the field is way more open, allowing for a much more offence oriented game. Fun stuff!
|
|
|
|
Post by Zealot on Mar 10, 2019 12:57:25 GMT
Yeah, that is strange that Fiji and the All Blacks would fall like that regardless of the format. On the flipside, it's good for the sport in general as more nations are improving.
In news for the other form of handegg, Antonio Brown was traded from the Steelers to the Raiders for a 3rd and a 5th. On paper, it's a great deal for Las Oakland. While I'm surprised that the Steelers didn't get at least a 2nd and were left with dead money, I feel like it offsets with AB turning 31 and possibly underperforming with that new bloated contract he got. Still, the Steelers will have to deal with his dead money so it's kind of even really.
Still, the original idea of AB going to Buffalo sounded so much funnier.
|
|
|
|
Post by El Marsh on Mar 10, 2019 15:28:40 GMT
Timberwolf ..... I think the AL Central will be the worst division in baseball once again but there still "could" be two teams that crack the .500 mark. I think Cleveland definitely got worse this off-season but they're still obviously more talented than the other 4 teams in the division. I think the White Sox and perhaps my Royals could end up with winning records but only the division winner will make the playoffs. Speaking of the Royals, they're not really scaring anybody with their lineup and their power and defense took a huge hit last week with the news that All-Star/Gold Glove catcher Salvador Perez will miss the season after Tommy John surgery on his cannon (something that very well could precipitate him being used as a DH more exclusively in coming years; here;s hoping for a great recovery). Whit Merrifield is their best hitter, Alex Gordon remains their best defensive talent, and Adelberto Mondesi is the guy who everyone will be watching for a "breakthrough." After making his MLB debut as PH in the 2015 World Series, all the expectation in the world was foist upon him but he was RAW and needed more seasoning before seeing regular time in the bigs, something that he got at the end of 2017 and most of 2018 where over the last 2 months of the season, he was among the best hitters in the AL. He has a good eye, surprising power, and is EXCEPTIONALLY fast on the basepaths. We've waited about 7 years from signing to now to see him become a star at the major league level and if the Aug-Sep 2018 is any indication, he's very ready to do so. Here's hoping. And yeah, not happy about AB to Oakland for obvious reasons but maybe he'll decline rapidly in the vein of "DON'T CARE, GOT PAID!" I mean, for all of the incessant drama with him, the one thing that's never been in question is his work ethic so him slacking off seems unlikely but yeah, I really don't want to see the Raiders get their shit together before the Chiefs actually do SOMETHING in the playoffs. Despite all of the tremendous promise of Mahomes and the Chiefs' offense, I'm still very skeptical that we'll clear that playoff hump anytime soon. I'm super happy that we have the NFL MVP on our team and he's young and only getting better but.....a lifetime of heartbreak sort of numbs you to the idea that we can win a title.
|
|
|
|
Post by BakFu on Mar 10, 2019 15:30:29 GMT
|
|
|
|
Post by Zealot on Mar 10, 2019 15:39:41 GMT
Jesus. My ribs hurt after that one.
|
|
|
|
Post by El Marsh on Mar 10, 2019 17:11:48 GMT
Search and destroy.
SEARCH AND DESTROY!
|
|
|
|
Post by Timberwolf on Mar 10, 2019 17:51:15 GMT
I could never understand Rugby players without a helmet and other protection.
|
|
|
|
Post by BakFu on Mar 10, 2019 20:24:28 GMT
I could never understand Rugby players without a helmet and other protection. Everyone says that, but the funny thing is that the lack of padding and such makes players a lot less reckless when tackling someone, plus, there are laws (rules) regarding tackles (wrap up and take to the ground). I had some idiot spear me head first in the chest once, he left the pitch on a back board. And I was always wary of tackling skinny dudes, imagine running as fast as you can and diving into a pile of loose lumber, that’s what tackling a skinny bastard is like, all elbows, hips, and bony knees! Dangerous tackles are far less common in rugby than you would think (OT: when I was still playing and was around 195 lbs, I tackled a guy who was 360 lbs. I could barely get my arms around his leg (singular) but managed to take him off balance, and he went down. His other leg fell across my chest, and I swear that’s what having a car parked on your chest would feel like. He congratulated me on a good tackle and asked if I was okay... 🙂) |
|
|
|
Post by OrochiGeese on Mar 10, 2019 22:06:14 GMT
I could hear Goldberg's music playing right after that hit and JR commentating it. "SPEAR!! BAH GAWD HE BROKE HIM IN HALF!" Love how the Fijian player is still unnamed - it gives it a "parts unknown" heel vibe. And with that hard head, are Fijians the Samoans of the Rugby world? |
|
