The Ups and Downs of Football Picks

As we enter week 10 of the NFL season, I suppose that it’s about time that I talked about my weekly NFL picks.
I play in two different pools: one of them is in a local restaurant, and the other one is at the newspaper where I work. We run an “Armchair Experts” section of the Sunday Saratogian, where five of us from the sports department go through the NFL schedule and choose our projected winners for the week.
In the restaurant pool we play with a point spread. At the newspaper we do not, we just pick the winner of the game.
Point spreads have never been one of my friends, and week in, week out for years I have lost many a bet, a football sheet, or a pool simply on a lousy half point.
To say that picking winners in the NFL is not an exact science is about as obvious as saying that wild animals live in Africa.
At the newspaper, where there are no points involved, I am doing quite well. I have been running consistently second or third out of five all season.
The restaurant pool, however, is a totally different story. All I can say about that is that I’m glad that my choices in the restaurant pool do not get posted in the paper, or no doubt some maniac would have hunted me down already and skinned me alive because he lost his house based on one of my losing selections.
Hey, this is a small town, and it isn’t easy to hide when you work for the only newspaper in the county.
It seems that last week, Week 10 in the NFL, I took a turn for the worse in the standings.
With a record of 84-47 entering last week, I was holding my own quite well, running second in the standings only to my editor, two games back.
To say that last week was tough on all of us is a huge understatement. The boss was a mediocre 7-7, as was Stan. I was a dreadful 5-9, Adam went an amazing 9-5 to take the top weekly honors, and even Ian, who has been picking up the rear all season long, out-picked me by one game.
That shook up the standings a bit. Instead of me still on Brian’s heels, I am now four games behind him.
I opened the week one game in front of Adam, two games ahead of Stan, and was leading Ian by seven, but now that’s all changed. Now, I am tied with Stan for third place, behind Adam, which does not make me very happy.
Upsets were abound, there’s no doubt about that, and once again the underachievers played the spoiler, the winless or near-winless finally played with some enthusiasm, and the favorites did not cover the spreads. Ha ha.
It was an atrocious week, one I would like to soon forget. The Chiefs were one of the teams to stick it to me. Kansas City has been playing better as of late, and they’re always tough at Arrowhead. The Denver Broncos have been something short of horrible, and they have been a nightmare on the road. Take the Chiefs, right? Wrong. Denver jumps out of the gate to take an early lead, and K.C. was never in a game that it lost, 27-11.
Next up, Carolina. The Panthers have been somewhat inconsistent, with all of their quarterback injuries and what not. But somehow, Carolina has been able to keep its head above water.
In come the Atlanta Falcons, who have had a miserable season, starting with the whole Michael Vick fiasco that lead to Atlanta losing its quarterback before the season even began.
This wasn’t a game that anyone expected to be a landslide, but even with Carolina’s troubles, it wasn’t a tough guess to think that the Panthers would muster up enough offense to come away with a win against the reeling Falcons.
Nuh-uh. Instead, Atlanta (like Denver) took an early lead and never looked back as they beat Carolina 20-13. Loss number two.
Next up, it was the New Orleans Saints’ turn to foil my predictions. They were hosting the winless St. Louis Rams. Another no-brainer, you say? NO SOUP FOR YOU!! The Saints, at home and winners of four straight games, could not even handle the hapless Rams. St. Louis goes on to win a shootout, 37-29, and once again, the bookies never lose.
Tennessee was next to sock it to me, as they were at home against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Another matchup that didn’t take too long to consider. The Jaguars have been rocky, and the Titans have had one of the league’s stingiest defenses all year. The Titans at home would be the logical choice, but once again, no. Tennessee could not get points on the board for most of the game and the Jaguars went home 28-13 winners.
Baltimore-Cincinnati was a bit of a toss-up, but as good as the Ravens’ defense is and as unpredictable as the Bengals have been, I took Baltimore at home.
Another mistake. Again, Cincinnati took a quick lead and the Ravens could not catch up all game, and the Bengals walked away with the 21-7 win on the road.
The Detroit Lions continue to let me down this year. I just can not win with them. When I think that they are going to stumble, they win convincingly, and when I think that they have a win in the bag on Saturday, sure enough on Sunday they revert back to looking like last year’s squad.
This week was no different, as the Lions went out west to visit the underachieving Arizona Cardinals. Arizona went into the game at 3-5, and the Lions were at 6-2. With the Lions looking like a football team lately – no, honest, they really have – I didn’t think that Detroit would have much of a problem. Once again, I couldn’t have been more wrong if I said that gas was going to drop to $1.50 per gallon next summer. Cards 31, Lions 21.
Next up, Chicago at Oakland. The Raiders are one of my two favorite teams, but they have been so absolutely miserable in recent years that I have pretty much decided that I would not pick them until they showed me something.
They still can’t score any points, but the defense has not been playing that badly and the special teams have been playing well. Add that to the fact that Brian Griese continues to throw interceptions in key situations, and that the only offense that the Bears have had recently has been their kick returner, Devin Hester, and I thought that maybe the silver and black would find a way to win at home against a stumbling opponent.
Wrong again. The Raiders stayed with Chicago for most of the game, but the Bears pulled away in the fourth quarter for the 17-6 win.
My two disappointments of the day by far were the Giants and the Colts.
The Giants were winners of six straight going into their rematch with the Dallas Cowboys. Had New York avenged their earlier loss to Dallas, the two teams would have been tied for first place. The game was in The Meadowlands, and the Giants had all the momentum that they could ask for.
They squandered their opportunity, as they turned the ball over on their first possession and Eli Manning was sacked twice and threw a pair of picks in the first half.
That set the table for the Cowboys, and they did what good teams will do – they make you pay for your trespasses. Dallas took a quick lead, added to it, and by the time it was over the Giants were left hanging their heads and Dallas returned home with a two-game lead in the NFC East.
The Colts were visiting the San Diego Chargers in what should have been a fairly easy game for the Colts.
Indianapolis has been excellent all year (except, of course, when they played the Patriots, but everyone had looked bad against New England, so you almost have to give the Colts a pass on that one) even without their star wide receiver, Marvin Harrison.
That game featured something that has never happened before, and is likely to never happen again – Peyton Manning threw six interceptions.
No team, not even the Patriots, could think that they could get away with throwing six picks and still winning. Turnovers are the name of the game in football. If you win the turnover battle, more often than not you will win the game. The Chargers proved it, as they beat the Colts during a season that San Diego has played less than dominant, even at home.
So, it was a pretty gut-wrenching week for the old football picks. The only teams that did not disappoint me were the Packers, the Bills, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Seattle.
And I don’t even want to mention how I did against the spread at the restaurant. I had what had to be the worst week of my life, as I won just two games.
Maybe, at least, I will qualify to win low-man honors for the week. How pathetic.

The Green Dot

I have been a football fan for more than 35 years now. I have seen many changes in the National Football League. Different styles, new and improved design changes in equipment, and so on.
I also have always been the type of person that pays very close attention to detail. If you watch TV or a movie with me, you may find that several times during the production, I will point out technical errors.
For instance, perhaps someone in a movie is speaking and from one camera shot they have a corsage on their lapel, and then in the next shot the corsage is missing. Switch back to the first angle and the flower reappears. Those are the kinds of things that I notice.
I also have been good at, especially when I was growing up and we collected baseball cards and actually read magazines, noticing changes in uniforms in sports. Even to this day, I could tell the difference when the Miami Dolphins added that touch of blue in their logo, for example, or when any other changes, no matter how subtle or slight, were made to team uniforms.
Last year during training camp I noticed that the Minnesota Vikings changed their style of unis, and the year before that when there was a change made in the NFL officials’ uniforms.
Usually, when there is any kind of league-wide change to team uniforms, whether it be something that is added or deleted, we will learn about these changes when we watch the games on television. The announcers will normally make us aware of the changes and the reason or reasons for the changes.
Until this year. There has been a change that I have noticed, it has been a league-wide alteration, and for some reason, to this day (Week 9 in the NFL just passed), nothing has been mentioned about it.
The announcers haven’t talked about it. I haven’t seen any story about it on the internet. I watch 4-6 NFL games per week and I haven’t heard anything mentioned.
It is a small change, a change so subtle that as the first few weeks of the season went on, and I found myself watching a game with someone that I know for the first time of the season, I would ask if they noticed it, or if they had heard what it was for. One by one, they all informed me that they had neither seen it before or heard why the change was made.
You can see this difference literally 100 times per game. It’s a small thing, something little, but I have been looking at it constantly each and every Sunday and Monday for the last nine weeks and still no one has explained where it came from or why it is now there, and it’s really beginning to annoy me.
How could this difference in the NFL uniform be on television screens from coast to coast 50-100 times per game, but yet be ignored by the announcers of the game all season long, as if it’s a secret, league-initiated coup that everyone is to be tight-lipped about, something that they don’t want the fans to know about.
If you haven’t figured it out yet, or maybe you still haven’t even noticed it, it’s the little green dot that is currently on the back of every NFL quarterback’s helmet.
I don’t know where the green dot came from, and thus far, no one has been willing to talk about it.
They haven’t mentioned it on Sports Center, on any of the pre-game shows, any Website, in any magazine, or by any of the announcers during the games.
What is the reason for the green dot? What is its significance? What is it trying to tell us? I don’t know the answers to these questions and it’s bothering me tremendously.
Now that I have mentioned what it is, you can clearly see that I was not exaggerating when I said that you can see it at least 100 times per game.
You can see the dot before every play, when the quarterback is huddling up the team, is in the huddle, or perhaps when he’s calling out the signals at the line of scrimmage and he turns his head to shout to the other side.
I have come to believe that most TV announcers do a pretty good job of letting us know the new developments in the teams, and even the uniforms, at season’s beginning.
But somehow the NFL has snuck in this little green dot without heed or warning. They have not offered us any explanation as to why we are forced to stare at this hideous little lime green circle all day and night on Sundays and for three hours on Monday night. And I want answers. And the sooner, the better, folks, because I haven’t been alerted to reason of the little fluorescent sticker’s existence, and the more I see it, the more I wonder just what the NFL is up to now. And, more importantly, why aren’t they talking about it.

Consistency or Wins? That is the Question

As the NASCAR season headed to its “Chase for the Cup,” a new points system took over which, if you weren’t too dizzy from watching cars go around in circles for eight months, brought a very interesting question to mind: “What matters more in the NASCAR Chase, wins or consistency?”
If you were to talk to some of the old-time NASCAR fans, crew chiefs, or drivers, undoubtedly they would all answer “consistency.”
Which makes perfect sense. Since winning the championship is based on points, and points are based upon performance, i.e. not only how many races you won, but how you finished in ALL of the races from February through November.
So, the general thinking was that if you ran consistently well throughout the season, and collected points each week based upon how you finish in each race, you very easily could win the title by finishing strong each week. If you end up with, say, 10-15 top-10 finishes, maybe between five and ten top-fives, and throw in three or four wins, you have a recipe for nearly guaranteed success.
That has all changed now. Here, in the 2007 season, we see how drastically things have changed in NASCAR. Jeff Gordon has had, by most accounts, a model year for another strong championship run. He has had a nearly flawless ’07 campaign right from the start, where he finished 10th at Daytona, and throughout the course of the season amassed 21 top-10 finishes, 15 top fives, 10 top-threes, four second-place finishes, and four wins, while posting just one DNF (did not finish) on the year. Gordon also finished ahead of Johnson in 16 races.
As for Johnson, along with his six wins, he recorded 16 top 10s, 14 top fives, 11 top threes, one second-place finish, and he did not finish four races. Johnson finished ahead of his mentor nine times.
When the regular season ended, and NASCAR switched to the points system for the Chase, Gordon’s season suddenly didn’t look so dominant, as his 300-plus points lead evaporated like a politician’s campaign promises.
Jimmy Johnson had a solid season, to that there is no doubt. He did not have a dominant season, not a season that other drivers looked at in awe, but it was very good, especially compared to the 41 other drivers in the Nextel Cup Series, besides Gordon.
Johnson didn’t run as consistently as Gordon, he didn’t have as many top-10 finishes, or as many top fives, but he did do one thing that Gordon did not: he won six races.
Gordon won four races on the year, but it seemed like more with all of the success he had week in and week out, all season long.
One difference in the points system once the regular season ends, is that there is a points bonus for winning races. That boded well for Johnson, because although he didn’t have the type of season that he would have liked to, he did manage to squeak out six wins, which ironically, enough, was two more than Gordon (who at that time had a lead of more than 300 points).
Since NASCAR decided to put a premium on winning races regardless of how you finish in the other races, and despite how consistently well you ran all season long, Johnson was the big winner, as he entered the “Chase Season” in first place over Gordon.
This is an issue that NASCAR needs to address. They can not simply put a premium on winning races. There has to be some value to the regular season in another way, not just if you won, or how many races you won. What happened to Jeff Gordon is not right. It completely devalues all of the hard work that he, his crew chief, and his crew did all season long to make the 24 DuPont Chevrolet a serious contender to win the NASCAR Nextel Cup Championship.
Apparently, it doesn’t matter to NASCAR whether you come in third or 43rd week in and week out, only if you won or not.
That sends a bad message to the drivers, crews, and fans of the sport. There should and must be some type of reward for running well all season long. Perhaps they should consider some type of system where the regular season points leader gets extra points, pro-rated on how much of a points lead he has accumulated.
Take, for example, that Gordon finished the season with a 400-point lead. If there was a system that awarded the driver 20 percent of the points lead and added that to the points he would have started the Chase with, Gordon would have then received an additional 80 points. That seems fair, considering that nobody really posed a threat to the No. 24 team all season long. They should get a bonus for a great season, a season where they dominated the field from start to finish.
I’m not saying that what I have suggested is the answer, or the only answer, but something has to be done. And if they like, I’ll give NASCAR all the help that I can.

Once Again, American League too Tough

Another beaseball season has come and gone, and once again, the American League has prevailed.
It has happened quite often lately, and it's beginning to look as though the A.L. has a bit of a dominance over the "senior circuit."
Now, before you self-dubbed "purist" National League fans start getting all bent out of shape, screaming about the designated hitter, or the Cardinals in '06, or the Marlins and Diamondbacks clubs that have won the Series recently, look at what has been going on between the two leagues over recent years.
For one, the last time that the N.L. won the All-Star Game was all the way back in 1996, a 6-0 victory.
The American League is 10-0-1 since 1997 (the 7-7 tie in '02 being the only non-win), and has won 16 of the last 20 mid-summer classics, with the National League winning three ('94, '95, and '96), with the last one being over a decade ago. Put it this way, if your kid is less than 14 years old, he probably doesn't remember seeing the National League win an All-Star Game. That' dominance.
There was a time when the N.L. fan could say that the All-Star game doesn't mean anything, but as we all know, now it does, as the winner hosts the World Series. That means something.
Over those 20 years, the A.L. has outscored the N.L. 110-74.
In the fall classic since 1991, the A.L. has won 11 out of the last 16 series', and they have beaten the N.L. 55 series games to 33.
To look even further at National League futility against the American League, consider in the last four years, the A.L. has won the Series three times, and the N.L. has failed to win a game in any of those series'. That's dominance.
Or, just look at what happened this year. The Colorado Rockies were America's darlings, winning 21 of 22 games going into the Series, including back-to-back sweeps of the Philadelphia Phillies, who got hot in mid-September to steal first place away from the reeling Mets, and the Arizona Diamondbacks, who were the best team in the National League all season long.
The Rockies got an eight-day layoff between game four of their series with the Diamondbacks and the first game of the World Series. Some of the experts wondered if the layoff might hurt Colorado, who had been a team afire going into the series.
Maybe that did have something to do with it, but the team that had somewhere around a .280 batting average looked like a little league team against Josh Beckett and company.
Let's face it, folks. I know that, like I said earlier, you can bark about the '06 Cardinals, a vicious veteran lineup that went against the young Tigers' pitching staff (who also committed at least one error in each game against the Cards), or the '03 Marlins and the '01 D-backs who beat the Yankees, but those three teams have been the exception rather than the rule for the National League against their A.L. rivals.
Regardless of wether they use the designated hitter (hitters hitting, kind of makes sense), or the (Ho-Hum, yawn yawn) pitchers-behaving-badly-trying-to-hit National League rules, the American League is bi-annually torturing the National League, in the All-Star Game and in the World Series, and I'm loving it.

George has Flashback to Earlier Years

It seems that New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner has reverted back to his wicked, old ways.

Just as many of us thought that George was losing his capacities, as his lack of appearances at Yankee Stadium, paired with the medical confirmation of his sad news would suggest, he transcended time and went to a place that he is most recognized for: the 1970's and 1980's, primarily.

In his heyday, Steinbrenner got as much press as his team did, if not more.

Steinbrenner's antics were well documented, from hiring and firing Billy Martin five times, to labeling Dave Winfield "Mr. May" after the Yankees fell to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 1981 World Series, to firing Buck Showalter - when all Showalter did was to help mold the club that would bring home four world titles from 1996-2000.

In more recent years, it seemed as though the Boss had mellowed, with his sudden lack of voice in the media as well as his lack of appearances in the clubhouse.

Some thought that perhaps he had finally learned his lesson, and decided to let the men in the clubhouse and dugout do the motivating and criticizing.

Then, the monster reared its ugly head.

With the Yankees' back against the wall in the division series against the Cleveland Indians, Steinbrenner said in a statement to the press that if his club didn't come back and win the World Series, that Manager Joe Torre would, in all likelihood, not be invited back with the club.

Joe Torre, who, upon the announcement that he was named the Yankees manager, was dubbed "Clueless Joe" in the New York papers.

All "clueless Joe" did in his 12-year tenure as manager was win 10 A.L. East titles, six pennants, and four world championships.

The Yankees, as we all know, were bounced by the Indians, and for the seventh year in a row, New Yorks would not win baseball's ultimate prize.

This put Big Stein in a hell of a spot. Once again, Mr. Steinbrenner opens mouth and inserts foot. On one hand, if he asks Torre back, he loses credibility of being able to stand behind his words. If he doesn't ask Torre back, he risks the rath of the New York media, and most of all, the fans.

So, George has to then figure out a way where he can make everyone happy. He has to make good on his threat, but how can he appease the fans that are so heavily on Torre's side?

In the Godfather, there was a saying that Don Vito Corleone would "make someone an offer that they couldn't refuse." Steinbrenner, along with his brain trust of his children and his general manger, came up with an idea of making Torre an offer that he couldn't accept.

They came up with an idea to make Torre an offer (that alone would appease the fans who would otherwise call for their collective heads) that they knew Joe would never go for (thus, Torre does not return, as per the wishes of the Boss in the first place).

After all that Torre has done, the Yankees offer him a one-year deal with a pay cut, as if Torre has anything else to prove. Is there any doubt why Torre wouldn't take that deal?

Joe Torre has received credit for a lot of things, but not enough credit for others.

Torre ranks (and rightfully so) alongside other great Yankee managers, such as Miller Huggins and Joe McCarthy. However, there is one huge, underrated difference between the kid from Marine Park, Brooklyn and the others.

If you look at the Yankees' rosters in the days of Huggins and McCarthy, there is something that the two have in common: the rosters changed slightly, if at all.

It must have been very comforting for Huggins to know at the end of the season that all of his boys, including Ruth, Gehrig, Dickey, Lazzeri, and others were locked into contracts that would keep them in pinstripes for years to come.

McCarthy surely slept soundly during the winter months knowing that Rizzuto, Berra, DiMaggio, and later Mantle would be back without question the following seasons to defend their crowns.

Torre didn't have that luxury. From year to year, Torre was never quite sure in November what his club was going to look like the following spring.

But, through it all, Torre kept on winning. Whether it was Clemens retiring, Pettite going to Houston, Knoblaugh not being able to throw to first, Giambi's injuries and steroid scandal, an unhappy Scheffield, Stottlemyre and Zimmer leaving, free agents taking off, or any other of the ump-teen personnel changes that he had to endure, Torre kept winning. And those were many, many obstacles that neither Huggins nor McCarthy would have had to think about in their wildest dreams.

Who can blame Torre for not accepting a one-year deal and a pay cut. This man has proven many, many times that he is a winner, a manager that can overcome adversity and is more than likely going to the hall of fame as a skipper. Even if the Yankees haven't won the series since 2000.

So, the Yankees prepare to enter a new era. It's been a long time since New York had a new manager. And, it's been a long time since they didn't have Joe Torre. The Yankees, primarily King George, won't truly appreciate Torre until after he's gone. And, to quote Oliver Hardy, I say to George, "Now look at the fine mess that you've gotten us into!"

Michael Vick needs to pay

One of the hottest topics entering the 2007 NFL season hasn't been the upcoming season itself, it has been about Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick and his involvement with dog fighting at one of his homes.

When the story first broke, Michael Vick began the process by denying any knowledge of what was going on at the house, which is in Surry, Virginia, citing that he had cousins living there and that he did not go there very often himself.

It's funny how stories change. After entering a not guilty plea, others that were indicted in the case decided to plead guilty. After this turn of events, Vick has suddenly changed his plea to guilty. Perhaps he, or at least his attorney, could see the writing on the wall, and they knew that if everyone else turned state's evidence, Vick would end up being the fall guy for everyone involved. So, out of fear, if nothing else, Vick changed his plea to guilty.

Michael Vick has lied to all of us. He has let down his teammates, his coaching staff, his NFL organization, and the fans, many of whom are teenagers and children that wear his Falcons number 7 jersey.

Several videos have been circulating following the investigation, videos that were too barbaric and gruesome to show on network television.

There were some horrendous things going on in that house and the property that surrounds it. What investigators found as evidence, including various tools and devices that are meant for torturing purposes, are utterly disgusting.

When police first inspected the property back in April, 54 pit-bulls were found. Later investigations of the grounds turned up seven graves of dogs that were killed by "Bad Newz Kennels", the company that Vick's relatives were running. These dogs were killed by strangulation, electrocution, bullet wounds, or other means when they were found either not to be good fighting prospects, or punishment for dogs who lost their fights. It was also discovered that dog fighters from as far away as South Carolina, Texas, and New York would come for the events.

"Bad Newz Kennels" also put on exhibitions and sponsored fights in other parts of Virginia, North and South Carolina, and other states.

We have a major problem in this country when it comes to this matter: the laws as well as the punishments for these heinous acts are minimal, at best. On Tuesday it was released that Vick has worked out an "agreement" with prosecutors in the matter. It has been said that prosecutors want Vick to serve 12 to 18 months.

As a human being with a basic conscience, an animal lover, as well as a vegetarian, I am personally insulted at the lack of penalty that Vick may or not have to serve.

I can not believe that where the laws state that these types of crimes may warrant fines of $350,000 and up to six years in prison, that they can be reduced to such a minimal level.

Why should they cut a deal with Vick? If they have evidence to put him away, then it would appear to me that they are in the driver's seat, and I say, fire away, and let him serve SIGNIFICANT jail time.

I am not saying that the value of an animal's life is on the same level as a human's, but at the same time, torturing any living creature, whether it is human or not, is cruelty, and it is no less cruel or sick to torture an animal as it is to torture a human being.

This is not a crime that was a one-time act. That could be looked at as a mistake, something that could possibly be forgiven or made up for with a minimal penalty. This is a series of vulgar mistreatments of animals that went on for a period of at least five years, and severe penalties are in order, and should be exercised.

There is an awful lot yet to be sorted out, such as Vick's punishment, the "deal" which will be formally made next Monday, his contract, his future with the league, and so on.

But I believe that our lawmakers will discover, through this case, that they have their own work cut out for themselves, when it comes to the laws that are currently on the books for animal cruelty, torture, and abuse. The penalties for these crimes are ridiculous, and need to be sharply stiffened.

It seems that the men and women who make the laws and punishments in this country leave things very lenient until a case comes about when the whole country becomes outraged at a national story.

I believe that this is the national story that will and should outrage Americans when it is announced next week that Vick's punsihment will be barely more than a slap on the wrists.

It breaks my heart, because Michael Vick used to be one of my favorite quarterbacks in the National Football League. Yes, I said used to be.

Stampede win District Title

SARATOGA SPRINGS – In a game that would have not been believable had it been scripted in a Hollywood movie, the Saratoga Stampede overcame an eight-inning deficit to win the District IV American Legion Tournament as they defeated the Anaconda Indians by a 4-3 score on Sunday.
Starting pitcher Zach Hartman got into trouble early, as a base hit, a triple, and a ground ball to shortstop resulted in a 2-0 lead for Anaconda in the first inning.
Mike Center took the mound for Anaconda, and he was very impressive, as he would turn away most of Saratoga’s threats during the course of the game.
The Stampede would finally get on the scoreboard in the third. With one out and Kenny Recore on first via a base on balls, Andy Brown grounded into a force play at second. After stealing second and third, center fielder Vince Farfaglia smacked a line drive to left field, scoring Brown and cutting the Indians’ lead to 2-1.
The game would remain 2-1 until the ninth. Hartman, meanwhile, settled down, and after giving up three hits in the first, he would not allow another hit until the sixth.
Brown made a rare error at short to open the fourth that put Ed Shively at second, but Hartman picked his teammate up by wheeling and throwing to Brown to pick Shively off. Shawn Kennedy smacked a single up the middle with two outs in the sixth, but Hartman caught Kennedy in a rundown, and Kennedy was retired on a 1-3-6 caught stealing to retire the side.
In the bottom of the inning, Chris Hackett led off by slapping a single to center, and was moved over to second on Ryan Washburn’s bunt. But Center fought back, and he struck out Justin Wilock, and two batters later he got Brad Elliott to fly out to center to end the inning.
Saratoga again got the leadoff hitter aboard in the fifth, as Kenny Recore struck out, but made it safely to first on a wild pitch. After Brown bunted him over to second, Vince Farfaglia hit a ground ball to Matt Kelly at short, and Kelly threw to third for the fielder’s choice. Neil Callahan then struck out and the inning was over.
In the home sixth, Hackett led off with his second hit of the game, a single to left, but a fly ball to right and a ground ball back to Center turned into a 1-6-3 double play to squash the Stampede’s threat.
Hartman then pitched a perfect seventh and eighth innings, but gave up an insurance run in the top of the ninth. Billy Nikolski lined abase hit to left to start the inning, and Hartman tried to pick him off, but his throw was out of Callahan’s reach, advancing Nikolski to second. Center then flied out to Farfaglia, but Kennedy got the run home with a single to left to make it a 3-1 game. Hartman was then relieved by Ryan Washburn, who got the next two batters to end the inning. Then things got interesting.
Washburn reached safely on a dribbler between third and short that resulted in an infield single to open the ninth, and then Wilock drew a walk, putting runners on first and second. Jeff Mound laid down a bunt to move the runners to second and third, and then Manager Paul Mound sent in pinch hitter Kyle Baldani. Baldani got the job done with a base hit, and Washburn and Wilock both scored to tie the game at three apiece and send the game into extra innings.
In the tenth inning, Washburn got Jordan Pennings to fly out to Recore, who was moved to right field, and then Recore made a tremendous catch in foul territory off of the bat of Dave Filak for the second out. Pinch hitter Joe Privatera then grounded out to Mound at second for the final out.
Farfaglia grounded out for the first out in the bottom of the frame, but then Neil Callahan, who has struggled in his last two games, belted a shot towards the left field wall. Mike Center had a bead on the ball as he neared the wall, but it popped out of his glove, and Callahan was on second base with one out.
Paul Mound then sent in his fastest player, Mike DeGregory, to pinch run. Saratoga could smell a victory, and Hackett came through with his third hit of the game, an infield single. Degregory got a great jump on the play, and he raced home from second for the winning run that propelled the Stampede in the state tournament.
When asked about his winning hit, Hackett was pleased, while also being a bit perplexed.
“It wasn’t quite a line drive, but it will look like it in the box score…I didn’t even see what happened…I saw him coming home, and I thought that was awesome, a good feeling.”
Anaconda had a terrific tournament, and the first and third-ranked teams in New York State showed why they are ranked where they are, as both teams played a tremendous game, and both are worthy of playing in the state tourney.
Anaconda head coach Jim DeMidio was obviously disappointed, but he was proud of the way that his team performed throughout the tournament, as he should have been.
“The better team won today. They out hit us in the last two innings, and that’s what counted. (My team) played excellent. I couldn’t ask for anything else. Maybe they were tired. This was our seventh game (of the tournament, while the Stampede played just four games).
Neil Callahan, who drove in the winning run, was equally impressed with his club’s tourney play.
“Coming out of this district without a loss is pretty impressive,” said Callahan.
“We started out the tournament slow. Our bats were slow, and then today, they were slow, too. But I think we’ve got to get the momentum of starting off early like they did, and keep going all night, those long innings. It was a great tournament for us. The pitching stepped up huge the entire tournament, which was awesome. Hackett threw a great game (on Friday night, 7-2/3 innings, one earned run, eight strikeouts). Hartman throwing, probably, the game of his life, and just couldn’t get any run support. It was great, and we’ve got a pretty good shot to go back to the state championship game. Hopefully, we won’t come back until Sunday (after the state title game).
Zack Hartman offered his viewpoint on the game.
“(In the) first inning, I think we were a little anxious. I was over-throwing a little bit, and I got knocked around, and after that, I settled down, and I just waited for the guys to score, and once they did, it was kind of nice.
Hartman was also quick to give credit to his opponent.
“They can hit one through nine (in the batting order)… They have some good players on their team that can hit, through their lineup, some good pitchers. They’re a tough team, and we were fortunate to pull that one out late.”
When asked about the upcoming state tournament, Hartman is looking forward to it.
“I can’t wait for the states. We’re all excited, we’re riding pretty high, that was a big win for us, and hopefully that can carry over to the states.”
Manager Paul Mound also shared some thoughts about the team that he had to get through to get to the states, as well as what he expects from his club in the state tourney.
“Right from the beginning of the season I felt like Anaconda and Saratoga were the best two teams in the district, and the state rankings indicate such, we’re number one and they’re number three. So it’s fitting that the championship be played between the two of us. They’re an awfully tough team, I mean they’re not going to give you anything for free. You rarely get them to make an error in the field, and the one error they did make, we were able to capitalize on it, and score the game-winning run. It was a fitting ending to a great tournament and a great summer, now we go on to the state championship for the second year in a row. Out of 228 (teams), there are eight left, and we are one of them, so it’s already an accomplishment, and I’m not for one minute, not looking to win the state title. We want that, that is our goal, however, that’s gravy as far as I’m concerned, because winning our district is really, really huge. We’re going to go and give it our best shot, and win, lose, tie, or draw, it’s been a heck of a lot of fun. I think we’ve got the horses to win it, and that’s how we’re going to go about it…an extra-inning ball game, two best teams in the district, I don’t think that you can argue, either side…in fairness to them, they (Anaconda) gave it everything they had, they battled us right to the end… but we got it done in the tenth, it was a great battle, I think it’s great for the district that the two best teams in the district ended up in the championship game, and obviously, for our kids, I’m ecstatic that they’re going back to the states. It’s tons of fun.
Travis Wilson will get the start for game one, followed by Hartman in game two.
The Stampede has a record of 78-18 over the last two seasons, something that Mound is very proud of.
“This is an outstanding ball club, fitting of being a New York State representative, said Mound.

"We’re going to match up with anybody that could possibly come against us, so, we like our chances.”
The Stampede will play their first game on Wednesday, against Coughlin, out of Rochester.
The State Tournament will be aired over an internet webcast. For more information, go to www.americanlegionbaseball.org.

American Legion Tournament comes to Spa City

SARATOGA SPRINGS – For the third consecutive season, the Saratoga Stampede will compete in the American Legion District IV Tournament, but this time they will host the tourney at East Side Rec.
Saratoga completed its regular season with a 36-6 Legion record, the best in New York State. Manager Paul Mound is thrilled that his team has surpassed its 2006 record of 36-10.
“Last year we came out of the district tournament unscathed to advance to the New York State final. Back in May, I felt as though this year’s Stampede team was better than last year’s that made it to the state championship final.”
Mound is also quick to acknowledge that the regular season is behind them, and that advancing to the state tournament will be no easy task.
“We have formidable competition, with the likes of the Anaconda Indians and St. Johnsville.” said Mound. “The task this year is going to be tough, but we have players on this roster that have the ability to play as a state championship team. We’re going to need to play state championship-winning baseball to advance past our very difficult district.”
The American Legion has been around since 1925. It’s the oldest and largest teenage baseball organization in the United States, as 10,000,000 players have competed in the league since its inception. It also continues to grow, as 1,900 new teams have registered to join the Legion since 1985.
The Legion boasts ties to Major League Baseball as well, as 52 percent of all Major League players have gone through the American Legion system. MLB also honors the Legion at the World Series, as it is there that the big boys celebrate the Legion’s national championship team by presenting a trophy to the winning club.
The National Baseball Hall of Fame also recognizes the American Legion, as they annually honor the Legion player of the year with a plaque. This year, Fernando Irizarry, from Puerto Rico, received his trophy at the Hall of Fame Game in Cooperstown.
MLB doesn’t stop there, either, as they contribute $35,500 - 3 percent of the Legion’s annual budget - to the American Legion.
Once the state winners have been decided, the teams advance to the regionals. The country is divided into eight regions: the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Southeast, Great Lakes, Central Plains, Northwest, and West. 64 teams, including 1,280 players and coaches, do battle to come out of their region as champions, and the right to go to the American Legion World Series. The regional tournaments draw quite a crowd, as the average attendance at the regionals was 75,000 people last year. Saratoga plays in the Mid-Atlantic District.
This year, the eight teams will fight for the right to go to Bartlesville, Oklahoma, where the national champion will be crowned.
Mound would love to see his club go that far, but admits that there is plenty of work to be done.
“We have been practicing defensive plays we wanted to work on, as well as other strategies we wanted to develop.”
Although Mound yearns to board a plane with his team and head to Bartlesville, he’s taking one step at a time.
“Our goal that we set out to achieve this year is to win the district and the state.”
The tournament will begin on Tuesday, but the Stampede have earned a bye, and will play their first game at 7 p.m. on Wednesday night, against the winner of Tuesday's 4 p.m. game between the Clinton County Mariners (Plattsburgh) and Ticonderoga.

Stampede shuts out Ticonderoga

July 24

SARATOGA SPRINGS – The Saratoga Stampede closed out the American Legion regular season on a high note – defeating Ticonderoga by a 4-0 score to claim their fifth consecutive win.
The game was well pitched on both sides, and through the first two innings Ryan Washburn gave up just two hits for Saratoga, and Ticonderoga starter Hunter Denno allowed only a single by Justin Wilock.
In the third, Washburn was relieved by Andy Brown, as Stampede Manager Paul Mound continues to fine tune his staff heading into next week’s district tournament. In the tournament, the games change from seven innings to nine, so starters can’t pitch complete games as they do in the regular season.
Brown was very effective, yielding just a walk to Garret Hume in the third.
In the bottom of the inning, the Stampede would open the scoring. Brad Elliott drew a walk, stole second, and took third on a wild pitch. Kenny Recore then did his job, grounding out to the right side, driving home Elliott, and giving Saratoga a 1-0 lead.
Brown got the first out of the fourth easily, but then an error on third baseman Chris Hackett put Todd Carr on first. Two batters later, Travis Tabor singled, and there were runners on the corners. But Brown worked out of it, striking out Andrew Stanley to retire the side.
In the fifth, Brown again worked in and out of trouble. With one out, he walked Steve Burris, and then Hume slapped a base hit to left field. Brown then hit pinch hitter Travis Turnbull to load the bases, but he came back to strike out Adam Pond and got Carr to ground into a force play at second to end the threat.
Saratoga added two more runs off of Denno in the bottom of the frame, but only one of them was earned. Wilock reached on an error on Burris at short, and then stole second. A wild pitch sent Wilock to third, but when Tabor, the catcher, recovered the ball and fired to third, it sailed past Hume, the third baseman, and Wilock scored to make it 2-0. Later in the inning, Recore doubled, and Brown followed with a single to center to plate Recore and make it a 3-0 contest.
Neil Callahan came on to pitch the sixth, and he faced just four batters to keep the shutout alive.
The Stampede completed the scoring in the bottom of the sixth, as Callahan and Hackett started with back-to-back base hits. After Denno struck out Washburn and Wilock, Zach Hartman, playing right field, smacked a single to drive in Callahan, and it was 4-0.
Mike DeGregory, who just returned to the Stampede after a shoulder injury, saw his first action on the mound since the beginning of the season in the seventh. DeGregory showed some rust, walking Hume and throwing three wild pitches, but he struck out three batters, including pinch hitter Pat Wallace, to strand Turnbull on third and preserve the shutout.
Manager Paul Mound talked about his pitching staff, and the difference between the regular season and tournament play. He’s also quite pleased at what he has seen.
“When we go to district play we’re going to be doing nine inning games, so you’ve got to piece it together. We’re not going out and throwing complete games when they’re nine inning affairs. We’re getting more and more positive out of Mike DeGregory, I’m really pleased. He had a lot of pop on the fastball that last inning. Andy Brown threw phenomenal. (If) You get that kind of approach out of Andy, who got the win tonight, and I’ll tell you what, that’s a big contribution for us. Callahan’s been doing extremely well out of the bullpen, and that’s really what’s going to be the difference in this tournament. In these nine inning games, that’s the great equalizer – pitching.”
Mound also believes that the parts of his bullpen are coming together.
“I’m actually looking at one of our starters, if not both of our primary starters (Wilson and Hartman) as being the ultimate closer. The key to being able to use them in that role is to minimize how many pitches they throw in starts they have… if we can get the kind of performances out of the middle guys like I’m seeing right now, namely Callahan, DeGregory, Brown, those guys are going to be very big players in the districts. We get good starting pitching, with Travis, with Zach, with Wash(burn), with Hack(ett), and with Ryan White, I like what we have from the starting rotation’s perspective.”
The win puts Saratoga’s record at 36-8, and they are ahead of last year’s pace, where they finished at 36-10.
The Stampede will play a non-league double header against the Vermont Lakers on Thursday night, with the first game beginning at 5:30 p.m.

Stampede tops Oneonta

July 23
SARATOGA SPRINGS – Neil Callahan drove in eight of Saratoga’s 11 runs as the Stampede finished their regular season on Monday by defeating Oneonta Post 259 by an 11-6 score.
The Stampede jumped out to a quick lead in the bottom of the first inning. Kenny Recore led of with a base hit, as he would go on to reach base safely all four times that he batted. After Recore moved to second on a passed ball, Andy Brown popped out to second baseman Lance Ratchford, and then Vince Farfaglia reached safely on an error by third baseman Ryan Lynch. Next up was Callahan, and he smashed a home run over the left-center field wall to put the Stampede on top, 3-0.
Manager Paul Mound was working his pitching staff, as he prepares for the District IV Tournament that begins on July 31. Mound used four pitchers during the game, and starting pitcher Ryan White was taken out after the second inning.
In the second, Oneonta picked up a run on a walk, a stolen base, and a two-out single up the middle. They tacked on two more runs in the third to tie the game. Three straight singles off of newly reactivated Mike DeGregory made it 3-2, and then a double two batters later tied the game.
But Saratoga answered back in the bottom of the inning. Recore was hit by a pitch, Andy Brown reached on an infield single, and then two batters later, Callahan picked up his fourth RBI when his infield single plated Recore to make it 4-3. Chris Hackett smacked a sacrifice fly to left, and Brown came home to make it 5-3.
DeGregory was shaky in the fourth, surrendering a single and two walks to load the bases. Lance Ratchford then lined a bullet to short, but Brown snagged it and tossed to Justin Wilock at second to catch P.J. McMullen off the base to complete the double play. A single to right brought in a run, and Oneonta pulled to within 5-4.
The Stampede got the run back in the fifth, as Recore, Brown, and Farfaglia all singled to start the inning. Farfaglia’s base hit scored Recore to make it 6-4. An error would lead to Farfaglia scoring later in the inning, and at the end of the fifth Saratoga was on top by a 7-4 margin.
In the sixth, the Oneonta club showed that they had plenty of fight left in them, and they scored twice to make it a 7-6 game.
But in the bottom of the inning, Callahan saved his finest feat for last. After Brad Elliott walked, Recore was hit by a pitch, and Brown reached on a bunt to load the bases, Callahan would clear them on a 1-0 pitch, slamming a grand slam high over the left field wall to give the Stampede an insurmountable 11-6 advantage.
Levi Washburn, who came in to pitch the sixth, closed out the game, allowing a base hit, and then inducing A.J. Herrmann to ground into a 4-6-3 double play. After walking McMullen, Jack Benjamin popped out to Callahan at third to end the ball game and improve Saratoga’s record to 35-8 on the season.
The Stampede will host a tune-up doubleheader against the Vermont Lakers on Thursday before heading to the District IV Tournament next week.

Stampede sweep double header

July 22

SARATOGA SPRINGS – The Saratoga Stampede swept a double header at East Side Rec today, coming from behind to defeat Hudson Post 184 7-6 in the first game, and then coming from behind again, this time against Mohican Post 553 out of South Glens Falls, to win by a 4-2 margin.
Against Hudson in the first game, Travis Wilson took the ball from Manager Paul Mound, and the 6’ 5” southpaw struggled just a bit with his control, which is a rarity. After allowing an infield single and a base hit with one out, Wilson tried to pick off Dave Ellis at first. The throw sailed past first baseman Neil Callahan, and the runners advanced to second and third. Wilson settled down and struck out Brian Gauthier, but then walked Zach Kraham to load the bases. Wilson then got his focus back, and fanned Mike Rigos to retire the side.
In the bottom of the frame, Saratoga took a 1-0 lead without the benefit of a base hit. Catcher Kenny Recore led off by drawing a base on balls, and then went to second base on Andy Brown’s swinging bunt down the first base line. A wild pitch then sent Recore to third, and when the catcher recovered the ball, he overthrew third baseman Eric Mossman, and Recore jogged home for the game’s first run.
Hudson touched Wilson for their first run in the third. With one out, Brooks Winner lined a single to center, but Wilson came back to strike out Ellis. Gauthier came up next, and he smacked a double to drive in Gauthier and tie the game. Kraham then smacked a line drive that seemed destined for center field, but second baseman Justin Wilock timed his leap perfectly and robbed Kraham of a hit and Hudson of the lead.
The Stampede threatened in the bottom of the inning, with runners on second and third and nobody out, but Kraham did a beautiful job of working out of it, as he struck out Recore, Brown, and Vince Farfaglia to snuff out the threat.
In the fourth, Hudson took the lead for the first time. With runners on first and third, Jeff Mound muffed a ground ball, and it was a 2-1 game. Wilson wasn’t fazed, as he then picked off Nate Toussant for the final out.
It remained a 2-1 game until the seventh, when things took a turn for the worse for Saratoga. After Erin Mossman fouled out to Callahan, Wilson walked Zach Issler, and Toussant reached on an infield single. Winner reached on Mound’s second error to load the bases, and then Ellis drew a walk to plate Issler and give Hudson a two-run advantage.
The walls seemed to be falling in on the Stampede, as Gauthier then smacked a two-RBI single to center to make it 5-1, and then Paul Mound lifted Wilson in favor of Callahan. Callahan came up huge, first by inducing Kraham to pop out to left field. The shot appeared that it was going to fall in, but Brown showed his range at short by tracking it down and making the catch two steps in front of left fielder Brad Elliott. Wilson then got Drew Doty to ground out to Mound to end the inning.
Meanwhile, Kraham was cruising for Hudson. Through the first six innings, the Stampede could only muster three base hits; Wilock reached on an infield single in the third, Recore singled in the fifth, and Chris Hackett lined a base hit in the sixth. Kraham also had sent nine batters down on strikes. Down by four runs, the Stampede were down to their final three outs.
The Stampede opened the inning with four straight hits. Wilock singled to right, and then Elliott doubled him home to pull the Stampede to within 5-2. Recore’s base hit to left put runners on the corners, and then Brown pulled a single to left. Elliott scored to make it 5-3, but Gauthier misplayed the ball in left, and Recore and Brown moved up to second and third. A wild pitch by Kraham scored Recore, making it 5-4, and then two batters later Callahan singled to left to plate Brown and tie the ball game at five.
The game went into extra innings, as it remained tied until the top of the ninth, when Hudson again took the lead. Toussant was safe on an infield single, went to second on a bunt by Winner, and then stole third. Mound’s third error at second scored Toussant and gave Hudson a 6-5 lead. Gauthier then lined out to Elliott in left and then Callahan got Kraham to ground out for the final out.
But Saratoga would not be denied. Back-to-back base hits by Recore and Brown put pressure on Hudson reliever Brett Anderson, but he came back to strike out Farfaglia.
Next up was Callahan, who has come up big all season for the Stampede. Neil wasted no time, as he blasted a double on the first pitch that he saw, scoring Recore and Brown and giving the Stampede the come-from-behind win.
Chris Hackett took the mound for Saratoga in the second game, against Mohican Post 553.
Hackett showed much better form than he has in recent outings, and he kept the Mohican bats at bay, scattering just two hits and two walks over the first five innings.
The Stampede got on the scoreboard in the third. Levi Washburn led off with a base hit to center, and then he stole second. Jeff Mound bunted him over to third, and then a wild pitch by Mohican starter Lance Chapman allowed Washburn to race home for the game’s first run.
After five innings of futility, Mohican finally scored in the sixth. Hackett struck out the first two batters, and then Lance Bull singled to center. Hackett then lost his control, throwing two wild pitches that moved Bull around to third. Chapman walked and stole second, and then Matt Lacy slapped a single, scoring both runners and giving Mohican a 2-1 lead. Hackett then got Tyler Beecher to hit a ground ball to Brown at short, and he flipped to Mound at second for the force to end the inning.
But, as in the first game, Saratoga could not be held down. Brown led off with a base hit, and then went to second on Farfaglia’s ground ball to short. A wild pitch sent Brown to third, and then Callahan drew a walk. Kyle Baldani came up next, and he singled to plate Brown and tie the game at two. Ryan Washburn walked to load the bases, and then Levi singled to right, driving in Callahan and Baldani, and Saratoga re-took the lead at 4-2.
Mohican would make it interesting in the seventh. A walk and a singe put runners on first and second with nobody out, but Hackett collected himself, and he got Damian Tyler to fly out to Recore in right. Joe Deutchman tried to tag up from third, but when Recore’s throw was cut off by Callahan, Deutchman tried to head back to second, and Callahan fired to Brown at second for the double play. Hackett then went to a full count on Ryan Chadwick before he caught him looking at a called third strike to end the ball game.

Double Trouble

July 18

The Saratoga Stampede are off to a terrific start to defending their 2006 District IV American Legion championship, and pitchers Travis Wilson and Zach Hartman are two of the reasons why. With identical 7-1 records, the two have a combined earned run average of just 1.82, and have accounted for nearly half of Saratoga’s 31 wins.
Wilson has had a tremendous season on the mound for the Stampede, ranking as one of the aces on the staff. In 13 appearances, eight of them starts, Wilson has thrown 58.2 innings, has yielded just 48 hits and 16 earned runs, has struck out 55 batters while walking only 24, and boasts an earned run average of just 1.91.
He has also helped his own cause while at the plate. The Stillwater grad has made the most of his nine at-bats, as he’s contributed three hits, scored two runs, has two runs batted in, and sports a .500 on-base percentage to go along with his slugging percentage and batting average, both at .333.
As for Hartman, he has been equally effective, if not more so. He’s had 10 appearances and seven starts, and has allowed just 13 earned runs on 32 hits, and has struck out 55 batters in only 53 innings while walking just 17. Hartman also has a miniscule ERA of 1.72, in a league that has an optional designated hitter.
A product of Ballston Spa High School, Hartman has proven to be an asset at the plate, as well. In 21 games and 57 at-bats, Hartman has 18 hits, including 14 base hits, three doubles, and a triple. He’s driven in 10 runs, scored 12, has an on-base percentage of .426, a slugging percentage of .404, and is batting .316 on the season.
When talking to the two hurlers, one finds many similarities between the two. Whether talking about their high school careers, their summer with the Stampede, or their future at the college level, Wilson and Hartman seem to be on the same page.
Hartman was quick to note the difference between Legion ball and his experience at the high school level.
"I have more confidence with the guys I'm playing with over the summer," said Hartman. "Everybody out there's a stud, and you know they're going to score for you, too. In high school we didn't get as many runs as the Stampede puts up. And with these guys we know we can put the ball in play and they're going to get the out.
One of the advantages of American Legion baseball is that it gives the players who just graduated from high school a taste of what they're to expect come next fall at the college level. This is particularly helpful to Wilson, who attended Stillwater High, and may have been considered a big fish in a small pond. This opportunity was huge for Wilson, and it has helped to answer any questions he may have had about his own ability, and how he might fare against college competition.
"Definitely for me (the experience has helped), because I go to a smaller school than he (Hartman) does, and I face less competition, so this summer was a real test for me, to make sure I could get out good hitters, said Wilson. I'm a lot more confident going into college now then I was at the end of the high school year.
Hartman agreed that this summer with the Stampede would give him an edge as a freshman pitcher.
"Some of the legion players already played in college," replied Hartman. "Guys are coming to get after you, too. They're all stars on their high school teams, so it prepares you for some of the hitters you're going to see in college."
Another one of the advantages for the players of Paul Mound's Saratoga Stampede program is that some of his players come from sub-par high school programs, where they carry the burden for their team, but they all get to showcase their talents for the Stampede.
When asked why it all seems to come together for the Stampede, Wilson offered his view.
"I think that the weight's lifted off of everybody's shoulders (with the Stampede). You know that if you don't get a hit that the guy behind you is going to pick you up. And I think that takes a lot of pressure off of everybody because they're more relaxed, more confident. I know, being in high school, when I was pitching, I knew that if I was getting tired that were no other options. Now, if I get tired, I can look over in the bullpen, see him (Hartman) warming up, I know that I can give the ball up.
The Stampede is a fun team to be around. They're loose, they know how to have fun, and it's an atmosphere that baseball is all about.
With that said, don't think that this team doesn't take its job seriously. When talking to these players, it's clear that they know what's going on, they love what they do, they know what it takes to win, they study the game and its effect on their lives, and they also appreciate heir teammates. For Wilson and Hartman, this is the best pitching staff that they have been a part of.
"This (staff) is unreal," said Hartman. "Usually, you're team has one or two good pitchers, if that, and this team's got four or five… It's nice to have confidence that everybody that you hand the ball to, no matter who goes on the mound, we know we have a shot at the win."
This team has shown that they definitely have a shot at the win, no matter who they're playing. The Stampede just completed the 12th Annual Cooper's Cave Tournament, where they were a perfect 7-0 to take the title.
The regular season is nearly over, which means that the District Tournament isn't too far away, and then, hopefully for the Stampede, it will be on to the state tourney.

Hartman and Wilson both feel good, and they're ready for what lies ahead.
"I'm pitching with a lot of confidence right now, trying to get rolling into the districts," said Hartman.
The Stampede will be at home at East Side Rec to take on Anaconda in a double header on Friday night, and the District Tournament, which they will host, begins on July 31.

Stampede wins title

July 15

Saratoga Springs – Powered by Neil Callahan’s two home runs, the Saratoga Stampede defeated the Newburgh Nuclears 6-2 to win the 12th Annual Cooper’s Cave Tournament Sunday at East Side Rec.
Callahan, named the tournament’s Most Valuable Player, launched his first shot in the bottom of the first inning with Andy Brown on first base to give Saratoga a 2-0 lead.
Travis Wilson took the mound for the Stampede in the title game, and he had one of his finest outings of the season. Wilson kept the Newburgh bats silent, giving up a harmless single in the second, and then he did not allow another hit until the top of the fifth.
Saratoga made it a 3-0 contest in the second. Ryan Washburn walked to lead off the inning, and then brother Levi smacked a single up the middle to put runners on first and second. One out later, Brad Elliott laid down a beautiful bunt that plated Ryan Washburn to make it 3-0.
The Stampede kept the pressure on in the following inning, as Callahan’s second dinger to left field drove in Kenny Recore, who opened the inning with a base hit, and Andy Brown, who had drawn a walk, and the score was then 6-0.
Wilson ran into some hard luck in the sixth, and Newburgh took advantage of it. Josh Depew started the inning by hitting a shot to third base, and Chris Hackett misplayed it for a two-base error. Rick Pacione then reached on a swinging bunt infield single, putting runners on the corners. Wilson then threw a wild pitch that got past Recore, which doesn’t happen often, and Depew raced home to pull the Nuclears to within 6-1. After Jack Crawford flied out to Elliott in center, John DeGroodt lined a single to left to drive in Pacione and Newburgh was within 6-2. Wilson then took matters into his own hands and picked DeGroodt off of first, the second time he nailed a runner in the game.
In the seventh, Wilson caught Sean Griffin looking at a called third strike for the first out. Mark Corrado then popped out to Brown at short, and Saratoga was one out away from winning. But Newburgh wouldn’t go down without a fight, and after Vinny Moscato reached on an error and Tommy Hand doubled, the Nukes had some confidence back with runners on second and third.
But once again Wilson answered the call, and he struck out pinch hitter Sean Leahy to end the game.
The Stampede finished the tournament with a perfect 7-0 record, and they will next play at home on Friday night in a double header against Anaconda.
For the tournament, Callahan went 8-for-22 (.364), with two home runs, seven RBIs, seven runs scored, four doubles, and six walks.

Stampede take two

July 14

Saratoga Springs – The Saratoga Stampede did what they had to – win two games to advance to the championship game of the 12th Annual Cooper’s Cave tournament at East Side Rec on Saturday.
The Stampede (29-7) first took on St. Johnsville Post, where they won a tight match, 3-2.

Saratoga wasted no time getting on the scoreboard, as designated hitter Kyle Baldani drove in Andy Brown to make it a 1-0 game after one inning.
The Stampede would score the remainder of their runs in the second. With runners on first and second with two outs, Zac Kozersky ripped a base hit to score Justin Wilock to extend the lead to 2-0. Kenny Recore followed with a single to right, plating Brad Elliott for a 3-0 edge.
Ryan Washburn took the ball from Manager Paul Mound, and he turned in a terrific performance. Washburn, who now hurls for the Hudson Valley Community College pitching staff, has pitched sparsely for the Stampede. It didn’t show, as Washburn held St. Johnsville, a formidable team, scoreless over the first four innings, while scattering just three hits. The three hits in the fifth inning would amount to two runs, but after Josh Nethaway’s RBI double made it a 3-2 game, Washburn struck out Nick Manganelli to retire the side.
In the next inning-plus that he pitched, Washburn would yield just a harmless base hit before giving way to Travis Wilson, who struck out Derrick Nugent and Brandon Elmendorf to end the game.
In the semifinal game that leads to the championship match, which will be played today at noon at East Side Rec, Saratoga was matched against Hoxsie Cleansers from Rhode Island, who crushed the Malone Post earlier in the day to make it to the semis.
Zach Hartman, who has been an ace for the Stampede all season (7-1, 1.72 ERA), took the mound for the Stampede. Hoxsie was not intimidated by Hartman’s success, as they tagged him for a run in the top of the first inning.
Hartman would have the last laugh, however, as he settled down and held Hoxsie to just three runs over six innings.
Saratoga doesn’t play from behind very often, and this game was no different. Third baseman Chris Hackett led off with the first of two long doubles that he would hit on the night, and he would score later in the inning on a wild pitch by Hoxsie starter Angelo St. Laurent.
Ryan Washburn, who drew a walk, scored later to make it 2-1, as the Stampede sent eight batters to the plate.
In the fourth, Saratoga picked up another run. With one out, Kozersky reached on an infield single, stole second, went to third on an error, and then scored when Recore laced a single to center
The Stampede put the game way in the fifth, as Kyle Baldani, Hackett, and Washburn all drew walks to open the inning. Wilock then polished off Hoxsie with a base-clearing double, giving Saratoga an insurmountable 6-1 lead.
Hoxsie, however, refused to go down without a fight. They ripped three straight singles off of Washburn to start the sixth, but Washburn showed his mettle, as he gave up just one run while retiring the next three batters to end the inning.
The Stampede added two more runs in the bottom of the frame, as Hackett’s double to deep left-center field scored Neil Callahan, and then he would come around to make it 8-3 on an error on shortstop Dan Gamache to complete the scoring.
Neil Callahan, who sparkled defensively by making two tremendous diving plays to steal a hit from the opposition in each game today, recorded the final three outs to preserve the win.
The Stampede players are excited to be playing Newburgh, who they lost to by a 3-2 score in an earlier tournament this season. Zach Hartman is just one of the players who remembers the heart-wrenching loss.
“We saw them with the wood bats earlier, and we can’t wait to get back at them with the metal ones,” said Hartman.
Manager Paul Mound, who has seen his club in the championship game of two tournaments already this season, is thrilled to be in the same position once again.
“The team’s on a roll, just like last year…we’re doing it with all kinds of players…up and down this lineup, every day it’s somebody else… so, what more can you ask for?.. Washburn was huge today, Hartman was unbelievable on short rest, Hackett’s bat is back, Justin Wilock is hitting the cover off of the ball, Kozersky is a major weapon because of his foot speed and what he brings to the game… so, for us, I’m incredibly pleased.
“Newburgh is a very good squad… they’re well managed, they’re fundamentally sound… they came from behind to beat Saugerties 7-6 in the bottom of the seventh inning… Newburgh’s undefeated (5-0 in the tournament, one game cancelled due to rain), we’re undefeated (6-0), so I guess it’s fitting… We’re going to give them our game, we know what they are all about, our guys are pretty stoked to go and play them again, and we feel like we owe them one."
Saratoga and Newburgh will face off today at noon at East Side Rec.

Hartman continues to mow down competition

July 12
SARATOGA SPRINGS – Saratoga Stampede starting pitcher Zach Hartman had another impressive outing, this time in the 12th Annual Cooper’s Cave tournament, as he allowed just one earned run in a 4-2 win over the Rondout Royals at East Side Rec on Thursday night.
Hartman struck out eight batters while walking just one as he kept the Rondout bats quiet for most of the night.
The Stampede gave Hartman an early 1-0 lead with a little two-out lightning in the bottom of the first inning. After Kenny Recore and Justin Wilock grounded out to shortstop Dan Steers, Andy Brown worked out a walk. Neil Callahan then delivered the big blow, a double into the left field corner that scored Brown all the way from first.
Saratoga increased its lead to 4-0 the following inning. Ryan Washburn reached safely on an error on second baseman Gideon Sterer, and then advanced to second when Mike Hughes, the Royals starting pitcher, threw wildly to first in an attempt to pick him off. Ryan’s brother Levi then stroked a base hit into left field, scoring Ryan and putting the Stampede up 2-0.
After Brad Elliott struck out, Recore reached on an infield single. Justin Wilock delivered another blow to Rondout when his single to deep left field scored Levi Washburn and Recore, and Saratoga was on top 4-0.
Hartman was in a groove by then. After surrendering a single to Joe Dennin to open the game, Hartman retired the next eight batters before Sterer poked a single to left. Hartman then got Fred Moore to ground out to Wilock at second to end the inning.
The Stampede threatened again in the third, with runners on second, but 15-year-old relief pitcher G.C. Yerry came in, walked Levi Washburn on a full count, and then struck out Brad Elliott to end the inning. Yerri would strike out seven Stampede batters in 3 2/3 innings.
Other than a hit batsman, Hartman sailed through the fourth. In the fifth, he stumbled just a bit. He walked Joe Viviani, and then Levi Washburn misplayed a fly ball in left, resulting in an error. Sterer’s groundout to Andy Brown at short scored Viviani, but then Moore smacked a ground ball to short that hit Dennin, who was running to third, and the inning was over.
Hartman allowed his only earned run in the sixth, but struck out Jonny Harkins for the third out.
In the seventh he picked up his final two strikeouts, including Moore for the final out of the night.
To go with his eight K’s, Hartman scattered just six hits over the seven-inning contest.
The tournament continues today, with the first game scheduled for 9 a.m. at East Side Rec, and the Stampede will play at 8 p.m. versus Malone Post.

Stampede - Saratoga's best-kept secret

July 9
SARATOGA SPRINGS – There’s some great baseball being played right here in the Spa city, and no one’s watching.
The Saratoga Stampede, the defending District IV Champions of the American Legion, is one of Saratoga’s best-kept secrets.
The Stampede was founded by their head coach, Paul Mound, seven years ago. Starting out as a Babe Ruth team as well as a 15-and-under independent travel team, Mound turned down offers to bring his club into the Connie Mack league and instead opted to join the American Legion. Some say that his club is better suited for Connie Mack, but Mound defends his choice to join the Legion.
“I don’t believe that Connie Mack baseball is as good as American Legion baseball because college guys don’t come out and follow Connie Mack baseball. I can give you college coach after college coach that are big proponents of Legion baseball. I think it’s a much better brand of baseball also because in American Legion, you can come back and play after you’ve completed your freshman year of college and challenge high school kids. You can’t do that in Connie Mack, they’re all high school players. So it’s an extension of high school baseball in many ways. It (Connie Mack) typically doesn’t travel outside of the immediate area, where we go outside of our immediate area to seek out tougher competition.”
Others believe that the competition would be better in Connie Mack, but again Mound stands by his league.
“Locally, when we play weeknight games I would make an argument that some of the teams that come out of certain counties are not as strong because there are too many posts in that area.
“If you were Melvin Roads out of East Greenbush, who won the Newburgh tournament last weekend, they’re a very good team, and we pounded them. After we pounded them they went up to Plattsburgh and won the Plattsburgh tournament, and went down to Newburgh and won the Newburgh tournament.
Mound is 100 percent dedicated to his team as well as his league, and he has made it a point to learn the history of the league, former players, and the current teams as well as the management of the other clubs.
“We go down and we play Shrub Oak. The director of the Shrub Oak baseball program happens to be the East coast director of scouting for the Kansas City Royals. We play the Newburgh Nuclears, chartered in 1948 and personally have put nine players in the major leagues and continue to be a college hotbed for quality college baseball players. Beacon is a solid program whose players are always being recruited to go play. So to the nay sayers I would say this, ‘What percentage of players are you placing at top-shelf college programs versus what percentage the American Legion is placing,’ and I think that speaks volumes.”
Mound continued to show his detailed knowledge of the league.
“St. Johnsville’s head coach was a nine-year major league baseball player, Roger Weaver, who pitched for the Detroit Tigers for nine years… St. Johnsville has an amazing baseball program. You go out to Utica, New Hartford, who are New York State champions, they ran nine guys out on us last year, eight of them who were Div. I or Div. II baseball players!”
American Legion baseball has been around since 1925. The American Legion in the state of New York has produced over 50 major league baseball players, including many from this area.
“Think of these names, out of the Utica area; American Legion baseball players Mark Lemke, Andy Van Slyke, Dave Cash, all out of Utica, New York. Gary Tuck, who played American Legion baseball with me out in Amsterdam, was solely responsible for the development of Jorge Posada. He’s currently the catching instructor for the Boston Red Sox. Dave LaPointe from Glens Falls Post, and David Palmer, who pitched for the Montreal Expos and the Atlanta braves.
“American Legion baseball is quality, quality baseball, and, on top of it, you can go travel to American Legion tournaments and get tested even more.”
And when it comes to quality baseball, Saratogians do not have to travel to Utica or Amsterdam to see fine athletes, as the Stampede play right in our own back yard.
Of the players from last year’s squad who helped bring home the crown, Kevin Gent, who pitched for the Stampede for six years and holds all of Saratoga’s pitching records, is now hurling for Plattsburgh State. Matt Kelley is playing for Hartwick, Oliver Aldrich is a member of Castleton State’s baseball team, Steve Hughes is in the U.S. Naval Academy, and Brian Sheridan is part of Hudson Valley Community College’s starting rotation.
And it doesn’t end there. Currently, part of this year’s Stampede team just completed their freshman year of college, while others who graduated high school this year have a college career already mapped out for them.
Third baseman Chris Hackett, one of five Saratoga High School products currently on the Stampede roster, will be headed to the University of Albany. Second baseman Jeff Mound, one of the team’s co-captains, just completed his freshman year at Plattsburgh State, as did Andy Brown, the team’s other co-captain, at Union College. Underclassmen Brad Elliott and Ryan White also hail from the Blue Streaks’ squad. Zac Kozersky, a Schuylerville grad, is playing for Hudson Valley, where he led the team in stolen bases in his freshman campaign. Ryan Washburn, who was a teammate of Kozersky’s at Schuylerville, is also on the roster at Hudson Valley, where he led the club in batting average in his first year.
Not only are the players on the Stampede talented, as their record consistently shows, but they are loyal to the program as well.
The aforementioned Gent was with the Stampede for six years, co-captains Mound and Brown are seven-year veterans of the program, and since they have been with the club since before they were a Legion team, have put up records that will never be broken by another Stampede player.
Kozersky, while sitting out last season, is also in his sixth season with the club, as is Washburn. Hughes played for Saratoga for four years, and Hackett is in his fourth season and will most likely be back for a fifth and maybe even a sixth season. Neil Callahan, Justin Wilock, and Kenny Recore are all three-year veterans of the Stampede.
When asked why he thought his players were so loyal to the team, Mound wasted no time in giving his perspective.
“Because I love each and every one of them like they’re my own family,” said Mound.
“You won’t know what kid is my kid, other than the name on his back. I don’t treat any of them any different. They’re all an extended part of my family. They know that I care about them not only as players, but as people, and I want them to have these years, when they look back at them, to be the greatest time in their life. So we have a lot of fun.”
Ryan Washburn added some color on the subject when he said that he had opportunities to play elsewhere, but he didn’t want to miss a season of “Paul Ball,” as the players have titled Mound’s baseball philosophy.
What exactly is “Paul Ball?” Quite simply put, it’s fundamentally sound, winning baseball. His team can hit, they are excellent defenders, there’s plenty of team speed, and they round it all out with outstanding pitching.
The Stampede are off to another fine season, as their record shows (20-5 American Legion, 22-7 overall). So, if you’re a fan of baseball, there are some great games being played right here in town, where you can see the stars of the local high school and college baseball diamond, and it also gives you a chance to follow the area players after they have graduated from high school.
Saratoga plays its home games at East Side Rec, and will have an extended home schedule this season, as they will be hosting the 12th annual Cooper’s Cove tournament, an 18-team tournament that will be played from July 10-15, as well as the American Legion District IV Tournament, which runs from July 31 - Aug. 5. To see the complete 2007 Saratoga Stampede schedule, visit http://www.saratogastampede.com/, click on the eteamz link, and the click on schedules.

Stampede lose first home game in over a year

July 3
Saratoga Springs – The Saratoga Stampede lost their first home game in more than a year, as they split a double header to the Vermont Lakers, a college team, on Tuesday night.
The Stampede (17-4 American Legion, 19-6 overall) took the first game by a 2-0 score, as Ryan White, a Saratoga High School product, scattered six hits over six innings and struck out four batters while walking just one to earn the win.
The game went by quickly, as both starting pitchers carried shutouts into the fifth inning.
Both teams threatened, but could not come up with the key hit. In the top of the second, a two-out hit loaded the bases for Vermont, but White got former Stampede player Oliver Aldrich to ground out to Levi Washburn at shortstop to end the threat.
Saratoga answered in the bottom of the frame, as Chris Hackett opened the inning with a walk. A single by Ryan Washburn and a beautiful sacrifice bunt by Kyle Baldani put runners on second and third, but Zach Hartman’s grounder was played to home to cut down Hackett, and then Justin Wilock tapped one back to the mound, and Vermont pitcher Jeremy Gilchrist threw to the plate to end the inning.
In the top of the third, White surrendered back-to-back singles to start the inning, but then got Matt O’Rourke to fly out to Hackett in right, struck out Ted Mills, and enticed Dan Conley to groundout to Wilock at second to retire the side.
The Stampede broke through to end the scoreless tie in the fifth. Levi Washburn opened with a base hit up the middle, Wilock grounded out to first, and then Saratoga received four consecutive singles, by Zac Kozersky, Kenny Recore, Vince Farfaglia, and Hackett. Recore drove in Washburn and Farfaglia’s base hit to left plated Kozersky for the 2-0 lead.
That was all that White needed, as he gave up a leadoff single in the sixth, and then got the next three batters. In the seventh, he struck out Mike Jones, gave up an infield single to Anthony Angrasano, picked him off, and then ended the game by striking out Aldrich.
Vermont sent pitcher Stephen Shorml to the mound for game two, and he simply dominated the Stampede. He sent Saratoga down in order in the first, and then his club gave him a 1-0 lead to work with in the top of the second.
Shorml was even more impressive in the second, as he struck out Andy Brown, Baldani, and Hartman all in a row. After two innings Shorml had four strikeouts.
Stampede starter Chris Hackett pitched well in the third, but lost the strike zone in the fourth, walking the first three batters he faced. Three hits and a sac fly later, Vermont had built a 4-0 lead.
They added two more in the fifth, as two more walks came around to score, making it a 6-0 contest.
After Ryan Washburn struck out two and faced the minimum three batters in the sixth, the Lakers picked up their final two runs in the seventh off of Brown on four base hits, and the deficit was then 8-0.
Saratoga went quietly in the seventh, as Mat Tutthil struck out Farfaglia and Brown before Baldani scorched a line drive to short, and Scott Robinson timed his leap perfectly, robbing Baldani and ending the game.

Stampede to hoist flag tonight

June 26
Saratoga Springs – The Saratoga Stampede will receive their 2006 American Legion Division IV championship flag, which they will raise tonight in a pregame ceremony at East Side Rec.
The flag will be presented by Saratoga Central Catholic baseball head coach Alphonse Lambert. Lambert has close ties to the Stampede, as Vince Farfaglia, Neil Callahan, and other members of the Saints’ team are a part of Paul Mound’s Stampede squad.
To honor the ’06 team that won District IV and went to the state finals, Mound has invited players who were on last year’s club, but are age ineligable to play this season, back for the ceremony.
Kevin Gent, a left-handed pitcher who now attends Plattsburgh State, is one of the former players that will be attending the ceremony. Gent played for the Stampede for seven years and holds all of the Stampede’s pitching records. Since the Stampede began as a Babe Ruth and 15-and-under independent travel team and have only been in the American Legion for three years, Gent’s records should stand for as long as the Stampede remains a baseball club.
Also appearing for the ceremony will be Matt Kelley, who only played one year for Saratoga, but was a huge part of the ’06 team. Kelley hit three home runs in one game against St. Johhnsville in last year’s state tournament.
Mike Ruggiero, who posted a 15-3 record in two years as a starting pitcher for Saratoga, will be in attendance, as will Oliver Aldrich, who now plays for Castleton State in Vermont. Rounding out the list of last year’s players are Steve Hughes, who left the club midway through the season to attend the U.S. Naval Academy, and Brian Sheridan, who recorded an 8-2 record as a starting pitcher and worked his way into the closer’s role by season’s end. Sheridan is now a member of Hudson Valley Community College’s pitching rotation.
Making the ceremony extra sweet for the Stampede is the fact that they are playing St. Johnsville, who they defeated for District IV title.
The ceremony will begin at 6:45, with first pitch scheduled for 7:30.
Also attending tonight’s ceremony will be the Director of the Saratoga Springs Recreation Commission, Linda Tericola.
“Linda has worked closely with me over the past seven years to insure the growth of the Stampede program. Her time and assistance has been extremely valuable to our success,” said Mound.

NHL: Isles get Smyth for deal of deadline

There were several moves made in the NHL at the trading deadline, with some teams bulking up for the post season and others unloading unhappy players and unsignable free agents.
Among the best deals to emerge from the deadline was the New York Islanders' acquisition of the Edmonton Oilers captain, Ryan Smyth.
Smyth has been the heart and soul of the Oilers for 10 years. He's scored fewer than 20 goals just twice in his career, has scored more than 20 goals four times, and has scored more than 30 goals four times as well, including this season (31 and counting).
He has totaled 50-60 points four times, 60-plus points three times, and scored 70 points once, in the 2000-'01 campaign. Smyth has also tallied at least 10 power-play goals seven times in his career.
Smyth is a great playmaker, as he proved in his Long Island debut, assisting on the Islanders' first goal and playing a big part in their second, even though he wasn't credited with an assist.
There have been kudos from coast to coast and in both Canada and the U.S. praising New York General Manager Garth Snow for pulling off the seemingly impossible.
The Islanders have had their most competitive season in several years, and Snow rewarded his club by adding Smyth, as opposed to past years when Islanders fans watched more and more talent shipped out of Uniondale come trade-deadline time.
With the addition of Smyth and fellow veteran winger Richard Zednik, the Islanders proved that they are out to prove something this year, and bringing Smyth to Long Island just may be the best move of the deadline.

NBA: Time for Thomas to let Lee run wild

I understand that Channing Frye is a local product and a fan favorite, being from White Plains and all, and the Knicks once again don't want to eat crow about another unsuccessful draft pick, but it's time for Isiah Thomas to realize that David Lee is a better player than Channing Frye, hands down, and the numbers more than prove it.

Compared side by side, look at the numbers. They are both the same age, 23; Frye is 6'11", Lee is 6'9". But Frye is one pound lighter than Lee, and it shows. Frye is a nice player, but he doesn't intimidate anyone inside, and he has a soft interior game.

Frye is averaging just under 26 minutes per game, 10 points, and five-and-a half boards.

Lee is averaging just under 31 minutes per contest, and is dropping in 11.2 points and grabbing 10.7 rebounds.

Lee is a nightmare for opponents in the paint, and his play lifts the team's energy level and spells havoc for the opposition. He is instant offense, as he comes in off of the bench time after time, and is usually in double digits in both points and boards after he's been in the game just 10 minutes.

Frye doesn't offer that. He doesn't fight for the ball in a crowd like Lee does, nor does he have that "refuse to be boxed out" mentality that Lee shows under the glass. Not only does David Lee do that (dive for balls), but when he does, he's often more successful than not.

Lee has missed four straight games due to an ankle injury and five out of six. His last game was against the Milwaukee Bucks on February 23, when he recorded 10 points and nine rebounds in 26 minutes. In his last game before that, against Orlando on Feb. 20, he scored 14 points and hauled in 16 boards in 36 minutes.

But for some reason, he still doesn't get the start.

I understand the importance of a sixth man. It is something that championship clubs rely on. It is often the final missing piece of a puzzle for a team that has everything else. So, I understand the affect that Lee has coming off of the bench.

But, at the same time, unless I missed something, the Knicks are not at the point where they are missing just one piece of the puzzle. This is a team that struggles to win each and every night, regardless how good or pathetic the opponent is. They need Lee's energy from the opening tip-off, not coming off of the bench when they need a boost midway through, or when a starter gets into foul trouble.

Knicks fans have been complaining during recent years that the only position that the club has taken seriously when it comes to acquisitions, is at guard. With Starbury, Franchise, Crawford, and Robinson, New York has reached its guard quota, and is in good shape.

The problem has been in the paint.The Knicks finally have some light at the end of their power forward tunnel, and that light is David Lee, who shot 14-for-14 and won the game's Most Valuable Player award in the Rookie-Sophomore game at the NBA All-Star Weekend last month. If Isiah doesn't see that, then he just might get hit by that oncoming subway car.