Let's start with NASCAR. I'm not sure how many of you watched the Talladega race on Sunday, but if you didn't you missed one of the best, and cleanest finishes I have ever seen in a race.
Jimmie Johnson edged out Clint Bowyer by .002 seconds (tied for the closest finish in NASCAR history) to take the race. 88 lead changes during the 499 mile event. That doesn't count the lead changes that happen during a lap, just when they get back to the start-finish line. So, in 200 laps, 88 times there was a different leader than the lap before. That's pretty incredible.
There were enough subplots to this race to look at. Dale Earnhardt Jr. deciding not to try to break his 100-race winless streak and push Jimmie to victory, the lack of "the big one", Ryan Newman making two incredible saves, and of course, the difference in racing that we've ever seen in 'Dega. That would be the one to focus on.
Look, I don't care what drivers say, I don't care that attendance was down, watching that type of racing was exciting. Yeah, we don't have 33 cars within one second of each other, but watching cars trying to find partners was almost like watching the ugly kid trying to find a date for the prom. There was always somebody left out, and watching who ended up hooking up with who was interesting. What other race would you see Dave Blaney leading the second most amount of laps and being around near the end? What other race would you see 8 cars having a shot to win on the final lap? None. People say "So what? I have to sit through three hours of boringness to enjoy the final lap?" Uhh, yeah. How's that any different than watching three hours of an NBA game for the final two minutes? It's not. I love that type of racing, I hope it doesn't change.
Let's move onto the NFL. At 7pm, the NFL released its regular season schedule. Normally a time for fans to look to see if they get to watch their team and figure out who they have a shot in hell of beating, the 800 pound elephant in the room (aka lockout) has really put a damper on everything else. The Dolphins have the first MNF game of the year, which normally I'd be jumping for joy about, but instead the question in my mind is, will there even be a season?
It's taken the fun of the offseason. This would be a time to start complaining about the Dolphins not going for a certain player in free agency, but instead, nothing. I just finished my top 10 prospects on Phin Phanatic (check out the series, really, www.phinphanatic.com search: top 10 prospects) (...shameless plug for myself) and I've loved learning about all the prospects. It's been a learning experience for me, but the draft has a bit of damper on it by this stupid lockout. No trades on draft day, no nothing. Bleh. LET THEM PLAY.
And last and most certainly least, the New York Mets. This team is horrible. It's one thing for my parents to make me a Dolphins fan, but the worst thing you can ever do to a child is make them a Mets fan. A little part of me dies every time I have to admit I like this team. This year, a non-existent offense. A defense (more specifically, an outfield) that cannot play defense, and a pitching staff that is made up of minor leaguers. It's embarrassing and I honestly feel bad for Terry Collins for being stuck with that job. The one bright spot of this season is that I went in with no expectations. I knew this team would be horrible, so the fact that they are playing horrible doesn't make me feel any worse.
One thing I came across the other day was a video of David Wright playing catch with some young Atlanta Braves fans before a game. That made me happy. In the MLB and pretty much across all sports, athletes are seriously starting to gain a rep of being complete selfish assholes. In my cases, it's true. Lost in all the crap about how bad the Mets are is David Wright. He truly is one of the few remaining good guys.
The good thing about this season is that I have fantasy baseball to distract myself with. I'm currently playing Obi this week, and if I lose to him again I might cry, loudly.
That's pretty much it. Nice writing about sports for a change.
R.I.P Kyle
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