The Morning Wood - 11/13/2006

Stud: Houston Dynamo
On a day filled with weird-ass NFL games, some of which made me happy (Jets over Pats), some of which made me sad (the Giants' second half implosion), I think that your MLS Cup champion Houston Dynamo deserves some lime, especially given that the story is probably buried on page 13 even at the Houston Chronicle, behind the daily Bonzi Wells police blotter. This merry group of footballers equalized after trailing in overtime against the New England Revolution, then went on to win in a shootout. It's good to see that the MLS has lasted this long on the continued support of illegal immigrants.

Dud: MLB teams' decision-making
Some really horrific moves were made over the weekend, which marked the beginning of free-agent signing season. First off, the Orioles chose to "secure" their "pitching staff" by trading for Jaret Wright, the Yankees right-handed "pitcher." While the Yanks will eat $3 million of his contract, Jaret plans on eating $3 million worth of crabcakes, which will surely add to his already formidable amount of facefat. Not to be outdone in the shitty-moves department, the Mets resigned Jose Valentin, ye of limited range and poor plate-discipline. At least he's only 37-years-old. Finally, the Cubs decided to continue their winning tradition by resigning two of their players, Aramis Ramirez and Kerry Wood. While the Ramirez move is probably pretty solid, even if they slightly overpaid, it's about time to either teach Wood to throw left-handed or let him go.

Talk Around the Cooler:
How about the Bengals/Chargers game? 1000 yards in total offense? Fairly unreal. Also unreal is how Philip Rivers has stepped into that starting role and been a success right from the beginning. Maybe the bolts learned there lesson from previous experience. Wha happen??!!! The game included amazing performances by LT and Ocho Cinco, while Ocho Quatro was the victim of one of the dirtiest hits I've ever witnessed, which should land Marlon McCree an enormous fine and possible suspension.

Quick Hits...
James Blake took down Rafael Nadal at the ATP Masters Cup in Shanghai. The real winner here, however, were the Asian ladies looking for a sweet gunshow. Butch Davis will be coaching the UNC football team next year. In a related story, an emergency vote yesterday in Chapel Hill passed a measure to increase the local police force by 50%. The Redskins apparently trust a man named "Bubba" to handle their medical needs.