The Padres Need to Step Up to the Plate!

Okay, please let me begin by stating that I could not be more pleased with the effort that San Diego Padres have put fourth thus far. Here we are, almost to the All Star break, and my Padres are in first place by 3.5 games, in the NL West. If that isn't amazing enough for you, how about this? The Padres have the best record in the National League! Still need more? The Padres have, by far, the lowest ERA for any pitching staff in baseball, even though they do not have a single pitcher on the All Star team. How about this? The Padres lead baseball with 13 shutouts!Still not convinced? This should help...The San Diego Padres have the best record in the National League since last July! If you think they are doing it with mirrors, you are wrong.

So, how are they doing it? Pitching, defense, hustle and heart. Just take the recent series with Houston for example. Game one, the Padres fell behind early and fought back to tie it up at three runs a piece. Uncharacteristically, Luke Gregerson, could not find the plate, walked three guys, and gave up a bases clearing double to blow the game open and they lost 6-3.

Game two: Scoreless tie into the 8th inning. The Padres scratch and claw for three runs, and win 3-0.

Game three: Scoreless tie into the 8th inning and the Padres manage to score one run and win 1-0. Are you seeing a trend here? Every game was tied in the eighth inning and the Padres had the heart, and pitching to win three out of four.

Game four: The Padres were clinging to a 2-1 lead in the eighth and looked to be blowing the game. A lead off double, followed by a rare triple from Berkman, made it a 2-2 tie with a runner on third and no one out. With the Padres bats lacking pop, this could have spelled disaster. Sure enough, a strikeout, a ground out, and a fly out, ended the inning with the 2-2 tie in place. Move to the bottom of the ninth, the Padres scratch and claw their way for one run and with the game 3-2 and the series 3-1. That about sums up how the year has gone for the San Diego Padres. Close games, great pitching, great hustle on the bases and solid defense. The question is, will that be enough to hang on to first place?
Well, my short answer is, yes! I do think the Padres have what it takes to win the NL West. By the way, don't give me this, "The West is a weak division" garbage. Four of the five teams in the West are over .500, so they must be okay. My problem is, if and when the Padres make the playoffs, they are going to need to score a couple more runs a game if they want to challenge the big bopping teams like St. Louis, or Philly in the NL and New York and Boston in the AL.

So, what to do? I say the Padres need to become buyers, not sellers and go after a bat! Local radio personalities ask San Diego listeners, "When will San Diegans believe in their Padres?" The answer is, when the Padres management believes in them! When Jed Hoyer, the Padres GM says, "If we are contending at the trade deadline, we will look to become buyers." What kind of GM says that? If the GM doesn't believe yet, why should the fans? As far as we know, they still may be looking to get rid of Adrian Gonzalez and Heath Bell! If they do that, you may as well play your vacation trips for October because the Padres will not be playing.

I understand that the Padres do not have a lot of money to spend. They are going through an ownership change and the new owner did not plan to spend too much, too early. His problem is that the Padres are forcing his hand early by showing that they truly are a contender, not a pretender. The Padres must buy, and the sooner the better.
Here is my suggestion, and I can't believe I'm saying this. Bring in Milton Bradley to play left field and bat behind Gonzalez. Bradley has all the tools to play well at the spacious Petco Park and has a strong enough bat to give some protection to Gonzo. Even Bradley says that he was happiest when he was a Padre and the limited pressure from the San Diego media is a nice environment for him. He would just have to get over the fact that his last game as a Padre was ended when his manager, Bud Black, beat him up at first base and blew out his knee.

From the Padres end, Bradley will come cheap. Any other big named bopper will cost them someone out of their very talented bullpen. With runs being at a premium, they cannot afford to lose Gregerson, Adams, or Bell, their top three relievers. Also, there were no negative comments from the Padres regarding Bradley's earlier tenure with the club. "Model Citizen" is the most frequent comment made about Bradley in those days.

Will the Padres pull the trigger and show that they want to win? Will the new management act like the old management and say, "Hey, we're in first, we don't need to make changes." ? I say, buy now!!!!

New Ideas For Winter Olympics!

First of all, let me tell you that I really do like watching the Olympics. Winter, summer, doesn't matter, I watch many hours a day. I watch to the point where I walk around work like a zombie from the lack of sleep. That being said, I must admit that some of the sports could be a little more exciting to watch. After all, we are in the X Games era and it's hard to get people to watch some middle aged guy sliding stones down an icy surface, trying to get someone else's rocks off (so to speak).

With that in mind, I have thought about most of the Winter Olympic sports and tweaked them a little to make them more exciting to watch. Here is what I came up with:

Curling:

This was a challenge to spice up. However, I think that having the "sweepers" for both teams actually battle with each other while the stone is sliding down the ice may make it better for fans. Picture the sweepers swinging their brooms at each other like pirates with their swords! That would be exciting! I'd watch it!

Biathlon:

This sport combines cross country skiing and target shooting. The shooting helps, but not enough for most viewers. How about this? Replace the pellet shooting rifles, with paint ball guns! The skiers actually get to shoot at each other! If you get hit by a paint ball, you have to stand still for a 15 second penalty. That would inspire the participants to ski faster and they would have to shoot on the fly.

Speed Skating (long track):

First of all, we need to add more racers for each race. I would like to see 6 to 8 skaters per race. Then, change the shape of the race into a figure 8! This would increase the chances of crashes and near misses. After all, that is what many people watch this for in the first place.

Speed Skating (short track):

The only suggestion I have for this sport is to add a couple of racers since there are already a lot of crashes. Short track seems to know what we like already.

Figure Skating:

Have six competitors on the ice at one time! Assign one judge for each skater and have them all skate together. How hard would be be to land a "triple sow cow" with someone else doing a "Hamel Camel" in your landing spot?

Ice Dancing:

Just drop it.

Couples Figure Skating:

Only divorced couples can compete. Think how crazy the throws could be if the man owes child support woman.

Snowboard Half-Pipe:

Not much room to improve this exciting sport. So, let's pay a tribute to the original Olympics and have them perform naked! Those girls were pretty cute and they tend to be in better shape than the down hill skiers (Lindsey Vonn not included).

Snowboardcross:

A good sport, but I want it to be held in the luge track!

Ski Jumping:

Alright, this is one that is already exciting, but the jumpers are getting so good that there are very few crashes. Therefore, lets combine ski jumping with the aerial competition! Just raise the angle of the jump at the end of the 90 meter hill! By the time they get to the bottom, they could have completed 12 flips and 15 full rotations! Land that and you deserve a medal!

Luge and Bobsled:

Already crazy enough for me.

Ice Hockey:

Pretty crazy already, but the Olympics tries to take away the fighting! I say, every penalty leads to a one on one, old style hockey fight in the middle of the rink. After a minute or so, judges decide who won the fight and the loser sits in the penalty box for five minutes.

Well, that's all I have for now. If you have an opinion, or some ideas of your own, just drop me a comment! I'd love to hear from you.

Enjoy the Olympic Games!

Bolt Notes: Super Bowl Edition

Well, here we are on the eve of the Super Bowl and once again my Chargers are sitting at home (or in a strip club, knowing many of them) preparing to watch the big game. I would love to go on a rant about how the Chargers showed again that they are immature and don't get the responsibility that comes with the paycheck. I could go on and on about LaDainian Tomlinson asking for his release and how it seems star players never leave San Diego in a pleasant fashion, but rather they leave frustrated, angry, and disappointed (See AJ Smith and Norv Turner).

I could talk about those things, but I would rather just move on and focus my attention on the teams that had the talent, maturity, fortitude, coaching, and luck to make it all the way to Super Bowl Sunday!

Yes, the Saints and Colts will meet tomorrow to provide much of the world with something to watch between commercials. We have arguably the best quarterback of all time in Peyton Manning, versus one of the greatest emotional stories in the New Orleans Saints. This should be a barn burner to the end.

I must admit that I am having a hard time picking this game's winner. I have been successful so far in the post season with just three losses, but I think I have changed my mind on this game on a daily basis. Most days, I say, "I want the Saints and Drew Brees, but I expect the Colts and Peyton to win." Then other days it's, "The emotion of the Saints will take them to another level that the Colts won't be able to match. Not to mention, with Freeney being hurt, the Colts defense will be much more vulnerable to the pass and run. Hopefully, I will come to a decision by the end of this post.

Looking at the Colts, I see an excellent passing game, led by Peyton Manning. However, with the late week injury to Reggie Wayne, I could see that attack slowing down if the injury has much effect of Wayne's running or cutting ability.

The Colts have the worst running stats in the league. That is true, but I would not say they have the worst running game in football. That privilege goes to my Bolts thank you. The Colts don't run poorly, they just don't run often. Their reliance, and the success of their passing game, makes it hard to rack up too many yards for Indy running backs.

Defensively, the Colts are small and fast. With Freeney, they have a very good pass rush and with Bob Sanders, they have the ability to cover well and turn the ball back over to their offense. Without Freeney and Sanders, they are average at best.

Coach Caldwell, of Indy, has a ton of pressure on him this week. Not only is he a rookie coach, he is the coach who threw out a possible perfect season in order to rest up for the post season. If he wins, he is mostly vindicated. If he loses, his fans will regret missing out on the perfect regular season. Fortunately for Caldwell, he has a pretty good coach on the field in Manning.

As for the Saints, they have many things on their side. For instance, Drew Brees is no slouch in the passing game. He moves the ball down field with a strong vertical attack and has Reggie Bush to dump the ball off to if the defense shuts down the deep balls.

The Saints also can rely on a solid running game with Pierre Thomas and company. The Saints should try to move the ball on the ground in order to open up the passing game, slow down the rush of the Colts, and keep Manning off the field.

The Saints defense is interesting. They just gave up a little less than 500 yards to Brett Favre and the Vikings. That leads me to believe that the Colts should be able to carve them up for ridiculous yards and with Manning's ability in the "red zone", the Colts should be able to put points on the board. However, the Saints "D" also forced five turnovers against the Vikings. Every defender is trained to strip the ball from runners and the corners and safeties are not afraid to cut a route and try to intercept the ball. Manning has had days in the past where he gets a case of the picks, but not too often.

What it comes down to is, can the Saints D keep the Colts offense out of the endzone? Also, can the Colts D do the same to the Saints? I must admit that my mind says that the Colts will win this game with relative ease. My heart however, and that little voice in the back of my head, says that Brees and Co. will outscore Manning and the Colts and win the game by less that a touchdown. In fact, I see a last minute drive by the Colts actually falling short due to a Manning interception to secure the victory for the Saints. It will be the biggest play the Saints D makes all day.

Final Score: Colts 34 Saints 38

MVP: Drew Brees

Bolt Notes: Pro Bowl Edition

Here is my official take on the NFL Pro Bowl.....WHO CARES?

That's about it! Okay, as a Chargers fan, I would like to see the Chargers who made the team do well and have the AFC win the game. That being said, if they don't, I won't lose any sleep at all.

Now, when this game was played in Hawaii and it was after the Super Bowl, I still didnt care that much, but I was far more interested than I am now. This new way of running the Pro Bowl has to be one of the worst ideas in sports history. The NFL changed the location from Hawaii to the Super Bowl site. Result: Many players were not inspired to go (no offence South Florida). Next, the NFL decides that they should play the game before the Super Bowl (am I allowed to write "Super Bowl"?), instead of the week following. Result: None of the Super Bowl participants will be allowed to play. They get to show up to Florida a day before their team and wave at the crowd during pregame festivities. Sounds like fun to me! Further results: So many players have opted out of the Pro Bowl that it isn't even an all start game anymore.

The NFL says that this new Pro Bowl setup is already a success because the media is talking about the game more than ever! The problem is that the media, and Joe Blow on the corner, are only talking about it to say how stupid it is.

Prediction: AFC 38 NFC 31

MVP Chris Johnson (assuming he is going to play)

Enjoy the game.....if you bother watching.

Bolt Notes: Pissed Off Edition

Well, I was waiting to write this post until I got over the Chargers loss from last Sunday. Apparently, that is not going to happen in time for this week's games. The one thing I will say is that I give the Jets credit for waiting patiently for the Chargers to self destruct. The Jets are a decent team, but do not belong on the same field with the Chargers when comparing talent. However, the Chargers are a bunch of mental midgets who act like they are sill in high school with their coach changing their grades so they can play. MORONS!

Okay, now that that is out of my system, here are my picks for the Championship round:

jets vs COLTS

The Colts are similar to the Chargers on offense with a more mature group of guys. Even the rookies play like veterans. The Colts also have a better defense than the Chargers so they should be able to stop the Jets running game and force the Jets to throw the ball. The Colts "varsity" team will handle the Jets with relative ease.

jest 10 COLTS 24

vikings vs SAINTS

This one could be a toss up, but I am going with Drew Brees at home and the Saints first ever trip to the Super Bowl! The Vikings have the better defense, but the Saints are on fire offensively. I also don't see Favre having the kind of day that he had last week again.

vikings 20 SAINTS 31

Bolt Notes: Divisonal Round Analysis and Picks

Okay, it is late on Friday night and I just got home from a high school girl's water polo tournament. I am hearing my bed calling me, but I have to at least make my picks for this weekends game. After all, it could be the most exciting week of football on the whole season. Anyway, sorry so brief, but I hope you will check it out and give me your picks as well. By the way, I was 3-1 last week.

CARDINALS @ saints

As with many of these games, my pick has changed on a daily basis this week. It should be a shootout, but who knows where the Saints are right now. I began the week liking the Saints to win at home in a high scoring game. As the week went on, I started dwelling on the fact that the Saints haven't played to win in a month! Are they so good that they can turn off the switch in week 15 and then turn it back on and beat Kurt Warner and the high flying Cardinals? I don't think so. Cards 38 Saints 24

ravens @ COLTS

I hear people talking about the great Ravens defense and the powerful Ravens running game. Okay, I'll buy that (for the most part). I hear others say that the Colts, and Peyton Manning, don't do well in the playoffs after a bye. Okay, I'll buy that (history doesn't lie). Then I look at the fact that Joe Flacco is hurt, the Colts are at home, and the Colts are pissed off that they didn't get a chance to be perfect. Also, the last time these two teams met, Flacco was healthy and his powerful offense only scored on 5 field goals. If the Ravens can't score touchdowns, they can't beat the Colts. Ravens 12 Colts 24

cowboys @ VIKINGS

Here is another game that I have flip-flopped on all week. Yes, the Cowboys are on fire right now. Yes, Tony Romo has knocked the playoff monkey off of his back. Yes, Brett Favre is almost as old as I am. Yes, Adrian Peterson hasn't broken the century mark in a game in the last seven weeks. All that being said, I think the Cowboys don't have the pressure they had on them last week and may relax just a little bit. Also, Favre is sure to have one great game in the playoffs. In fact, I see him playing great this week and having a tough game next week and missing the Super Bowl (at least that is what I feel today). Look for the Cowboys to come back down to earth. Cowboys 20 Vikings 28

jets @ CHARGERS

Well, obviously I am going with the Bolts this week. I always go with the Bolts. I'm a homer and have no problem admitting it! That being said, I must say that the closer we get to game time, the wider I think the margin of victory will be. The way I see it is that the Jets have one studly defensive back in Revis. The problem is that they don't have anymore. They need someone to cover all the other weapons that they Chargers possess. Go ahead and lock down Jackson. Just look out for Floyd, Gates, Nanee, Sproles, Tomlinson and even Tolbert. The Chargers just have too much fire power for the Jets.

The Jets will be able to run the ball, but other teams have run the ball as well and still lost to the Bolts. The Chargers give up a lot of yards, but not that many points. In the last half of the season, the Chargers defense has played very well in the redzone. You can ask the Dallas Cowboys if that statement is true.

The fact is that if the Chargers can score like I think they can, the Jets will be forced to pass the football more than they want to. Not that Sanchez is terrible, but he is a rookie and I don't think he beats Philip Rivers in a battle of the quarterbacks. If it becomes a shootout, the Jets don't stand a chance.

Don't get me wrong, I do think the Jest have a chance to win this game. I am not looking past them. I just think that the Chargers are a better team and if they play their game, the Jets so not have the answers for them. That really became clear to me when I started hearing quotes from Jets coach Rex Ryan. The way I see it is if the coach is talking smack, it is probably to try to get in the Chargers heads and to convince his own team that they have a chance.

Jets 16 Chargers 31

Enjoy the games!

Bolt Notes: Wild Card Weekend Analysis And Picks!

In the immortal words or George Thorogood...."And away we go!" That's right, the 2009/2010 NFL playoffs will begin on Saturday with some great wild card matchups! We have the Jets invading Cincinnati, and the Eagles flying to Dallas! Both games are repeats of week 17 matchups that had the Jets and Cowboys claiming victories and momentum going into the post season. Do last week's victories really mean that much? Or, do we throw them out and start from scratch?

If that wasn't enough excitement for one weekend, we have the Sunday games! We begin with the Ravens trying to rough up the ailing Patriots and the Packers trying to win back to back weeks against the Cardinals.

I don't know about you, but I can't wait. Now, let's see who I pick and why. I would love to see some comments from you sharing how you feel things will work out.

New York Jets vs Cincinnati Bengals

Last Sunday, the Jets hosted Cincinnati and simply put a beat down on them. The Bengals started their first string and accomplished nothing. Literally nothing! Carson Palmer only completed one pass for exactly zero yards! His backup didn't fare much better as the Bengals folded for the Jets, allowing New York to waltz right into the playoffs where they will meet the Bengals again.

The question is, how bad did Cincy want to win that game? It appeared that they tried to keep things simple and not give away too much. That may have been their theory but they had to leave the game wondering why they could not move the ball at all against the Jets top rated defense. Not to mention, Bengals star receive, Chad Ochocinco slipped in pre-game and injured his knee. He will play Sunday, but he may be somewhat limited. Perhaps Ochocinco will be happy in the long run to have an excuse why he got shut down two weeks in a row.

Jets Head Coach Rex Ryan has explained in the media that despite their 9-7 record coming into the playoffs, their top rated defense and their top rated running game should make them favorites to win the Super Bowl. Well, I hear where he is coming from, but I'm not buying what he is selling.

It has been said that the team that can run the ball and play the best defense will win in post season. I would even say that I agree with that statement. However, let's look at why it is true most years. First of all, defense tends to show up every week when offenses can have bad days. Second, there are fewer bad things that can happen when you run the football and you control the clock when you keep it on the ground. Okay fine. I'm with you so far Rex. Here is where I split apart. In my humble opinion, the reason that teams with tough defenses, and offenses that feature the run are so hard to beat in post season is the weather. Normally, there are teams in the post season, hosting games, in the bitter cold, snow, ice, and rain soaked fields. In those conditions, it is very difficult to pass the ball. If you don't have a run game, you are really hurting. Looking at this year's venues, we won't be having inclimate weather games to deal with. After the wild card week, all the games are likely to be played in a dome, or a warm weather site like San Diego. Passing offenses could flourish this year.

As for this game? Well, this is the one exception to the good weather games for this post season. It is supposed to be cold and snowing in Cincinnati on Saturday. That is bad news for Carson Palmer and the Bengals offense. The Jets have shown that they can win without the help of rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez. He can throw 15 times a game to keep the other team honest and then let his potent ground game take over. Much like the Steelers a few years ago. With that in mind, I have to pick the Jets to win this one in a low scoring, fast moving game.

Jets 20 Bengals 13

Philadelphia Eagles vs Dallas Cowboys

I have flip flopped on this game at least five times this week. Romo and the Cowboys have never won a playoff game together. The Eagles tend to move through the playoffs every year until they lose focus and falter. The thing about this game that makes it a tough call is that the Eagles were shutout by the Cowboys just a week ago! Shutout!!! In fact, the Cowboys defense has thrown back to back shut outs to end the regular season. That is hard to do against anyone, much less the very talented Eagles offense, lead by Donavin McNabb.

Some people say that the Eagles laid down because they had the playoffs locked up. I don't see it that way. They could have earned a bye in week one and a home game next week if they had won the game. They had to be trying. Yet, they failed to even kick a field goal.

Well, just as the Cowboys silenced the critics by showing they can win a game or two in December, I think they are in line to win one in the playoffs this year. Since they are at home, I will be going with Tony Romo and the Cowboys.

Eagles 20 Cowboys 27

Baltimore Ravens vs New England Patriots

As a Chargers fan, this matchup is particularly interesting to me. If the Patriots win, the Chargers will face them in the divisional round. If the Ravens win, the Bolts will face the winner of the Jets/Bengals game. With the injuries that New England has suffered and the veterans they have lost on defense, I think most Bolt fans would tell you that they want the Patriots to win and then come to San Diego to get humiliated! But then again, you can't forget the last couple of times they have met in the playoffs and the game has not turned out so hot for the Chargers. Be careful what you wish for keeps coming to mind.

Let's not get ahead of ourselves though. The Chargers have the luxury of sitting and watching this weeks game. In fact, if the Chargers are hoping for anything it may be that the Patriots and Ravens play a brutally physical game and both teams crawl off the field needing medical attention and perhaps last rights! In that case, it wouldn't matter who won.

The Patriots go into this game with some real challenges. Top clutch receiver Wes Welker blew out his knee last week and will not be available. That is a huge loss, even though they do have a Welker clone in Julian Edleman who came in for Welker last week and grabbed 10 receptions for 103 yards. The question is, can this rookie receiver perform on the big stage? Also banged up in New England is quarterback Tom Brady. Cracked ribs and a broken finger on his throwing hand have been reported. Some of his passes last week leads me to believe the stories are true. Pats coach Bill Belichick claims that Brady is fine, but we all know that Belichick has a different take on what the truth is than most fans outside of New England.

The Ravens had their issues this year but they do have a strong running attack and a very good second year starting quarterback in Joe Flacco. Also, Ray Lewis is still making plays and delivering big hits for the Ravens defense. The Ravens defense is not the feared D that it once was, but they can still come up with plays and hits that make you remember the team that once was at the top of the NFL on that side of the ball.

Look for this to be a hard hitting, turnover filled game. The weather should not be a huge factor. It should be very cold, but clear. As long as it stays dry, both teams should be able to pass the ball. However, a cold ball is a slippery ball so look for fumbles and picks to make the difference. I have to give the Pats credit for knowing how to win the big games against teams they should beat.

Baltimore Ravens 23 New England Patriots 24

Green Bay Packers vs Arizona Cardinals

The last game of the weekend is another rematch form week 17. The Cardinals took a beating last week as Aaron Rodgers and the Packers ran right over them. However, that doesn't mean much this week as you must remember that Arizona had nothing to play for and they had Matt Lienhart at quarterback most of the game. That being said, you have remember that Arizona did decide to play much of their first string which lead to the high ankle sprain of wide receiver Anquan Boldin. That is bad news for Arizona. Although Boldin is as tough as they come, he may not be very effective this week.

The Packers come into this week as the hottest team in football not named the Chargers. Aaron Rodgers is playing at an extremely high level and looking for a possible third matchup with his old teammate, Brett Favre. The Packers have the entire package. They run fairly well, they play solid defense, and they can throw the heck out of the ball. This should be one exciting game to watch!

When it comes down to it, you have to consider the pride of the Arizona Cardinals. They come into this game as the reigning NFC champions! They do not want to lose that honor to a wild card team at their own field. Look for Kurt Warner to make miracles happen on Sunday.

Green Bay Packers 27 Arizona Cardinals 32

Enjoy the games!