Our heated baseball rivalry with China
Maybe it’s best that Colby Rasmus couldn’t play in the Summer Olympics after all.
His knee injury knocked him off of Team USA – and kept him away from the mayhem that ensued when the United States beat China 9-1.
Matt LaPorta, the key player Cleveland got from Milwaukee in the CC Sabathia deal, was right in the middle of things.
LaPorta ran over Chinese catcher Wang Wei in a play at the plate in the fifth inning, forcing Wang from the game with a left knee injury. LaPorta was safe on the play.
Team USA teammate Nate Schierholtz bulldozed China’s back-up catcher, Yang Yang, while scoring a run in the sixth. Yang had to be restrained from going after Schierholtz.
“I think we not only lost the game but lost our catcher possibly for the rest of the games,”China manager Jim Lefebvre said. “The umpire should have ejected (Schierholtz). That’s when the game got out of hand.”
In the seventh, China pitcher Chen Kun drilled LaPorta in the head. LaPorta stayed down for some time and was later taken to a Beijing hospital with a mild concussion.
“We do not throw to hit people,” Lefebvre said. “We do not teach that in China or in the U.S.” Perhaps, but five American hitters were hit by pitches during the game.
China’s only run came in the ninth, when Yang homered and raised his right fist as he circled the bases. See what ESPN Sports Center has done to sportsmanship?
For a video recap, check this out.
Memphis Redbird Brian Barden singled and scored a run and former Cards prospect John Gall had a RBI double.
HE CAN AFFORD MANY FRIED EGG SANDWICHES
Michael Phelps will have a fat wallet this year as the endorsement deals roll in. The Wall Street Journal fills us in.
WEIRD OLYMPIC FEATURE
Wouldn’t it be weird to have Deion Sanders show up at the house and take so much interest in your kid? Thanks to The Big Lead for bringing this to our attention.
Wow. You’ve got to love the music in this video feature. And as Patrick Imig wrote, “There is also the awkward sense that Mr. Liukin is not too fond of Deion. I’m guessing he either doesn’t trust PrimeTime with his daughter or he really despises MC Hammer songs.”
i think nbc’s coverage of the olympics has been pitiful. they have chopped up events to add commercial time and made it very hard to watch. i was able to catch u.s. vs s. korea and a couple of pieces of other games. but out or what i have been lucky enough to see, i am very impressed with some of the talent on the other teams. i’m excited because it looks to me like the overall quality of play has been greatly improved. this is good for the game. also, our prospect barden has played very well. i hope the cards have some scouts at the games.
Based upon the coverage I’ve seen to date, I think that NBC has done a reasonably good job in their coverage. The commercials are unfortunately required interruptions, but I think NBC does try to work around them in most cases. I think the NBC folks that interview the athletes after the track events should give them a bit of time to recover before they descend upon them. Most of the time they’re too gassed to talk. I wonder if the same individual that inserted ballroom dancing also gave us the BB gun competition.
NBC has given very limited coverage to my favorite Olympic event, the “Booty Call”. Here are my projected medalists for best Olympic behind; Bronze - Elena Isinbaeva (Russia - Pole Vault), Silver - Misty May-Treanor (USA - Beach Volleyball) and Gold - Susanna Kallur (Sweden - 110m Hurdles).
Funny how other teams continue to make deals and try to get better while the Cardinals sit and do absolutely nothing. The strategy for this entire year was to wait and pray for Carpenter, Mulder, Clement and now Wainwright to get healthy. Well we see how that has played out.
Stay home Steven Jackson, you’re a joke and the Rams should be applauded for the stance they have taken. Even though this season will be a disaster (3-13 here they come), it is well worth the fact that they are not caving in to your ridiculous demands. You have left your teammates high and dry and now you want to be rewarded? I agree with what Marshall said 100%.
When does hockey season start?
3-13?
S.W. arent you the same person that said the Cardinals would only have 60 wins? Don’t worry, we’re not going to let you forget it!!!!
I think you should leave the predicting to people who know better.
I hear ya S.W. but I have very low expectations for the Blues.
Too bad we don’t have an NBA franchise to further embarrass the fan base.