Minicamp: Wednesday, June 10, 2009

The first day of the Patriots' 2009 mini-camp has concluded, and there was a pleasant surprise, as Vince Wilfork, DT, finally showed up for the mandatory minicamp. He had skipped out on all of the previous Organized Team Activities because of contract disputes, now arriving late for training camp, pulling what I like to call "a Manny". Wilfork knows his duty to his team, as he stated on Wednesday, "Right now, the smart thing thing is to be here, playing football, what I do best...At the end of the day, I’m still a Patriot, and I want to be a Patriot. I’m looking forward to a great camp and to a great season. Hopefully we can move forward from here." Obviously, the pro bowl DT has true Patriot Pride, as he grinds out his final contract negotiations. I'm happy to see Wilfork sticking with the Pats, unlike former Super Bowl winners who deserted New England for the big bucks of free agency, such as Asante Samuel, Adam Vinatierri, and Deion Branch.

Also, the Patriots' special teams are looking sharp--well, at least the punters and kickers. First year punter Tom Malone has shown significant improvement from the beginning of OTA's. Also, fourth-year kicker Stephen Gostkoski has been impressing coaches. During the 2-minute drill, he and his unit rushed onto the field and promptly nailed a 60-yarder.

Overall, the team is heading in the right direction, and if this continues, look for a very successful 2009-2010 Patriots' campaign. Missing fom Wednesday's practice were: WRs Tyree Barnes, Shaun White, and Brandon Tate; DB Brandon Meriweather; RB Sammy Morris; CB Mike Richardson; WR/DB Ray Ventrone; safety Brandon McGowan; LBs Jerod Mayo and Tyrone McKenzie; OL Mark LeVoir; DLs Ty Warren and Jarvis Green.

"It's Pathetic and Disgusting"

Phillies left fielder Raul Ibanez is having a breakout season, ranking second in the Major Leagues in RBIs and second HRs. He is on pace to set career-highs in batting average, hits, runs, RBI, steals, slugging percentage, and home runs. It is his breakout power at the plate that is eye-catching. Ibanez has 20 HRs and is on pace to hit 57, which would be more than his 2008 and his 2007 totals combined. He has never hit more than 33 in a single season, and his .671 slugging percentage is more than 100 points higher than his career high of .516. It’s a sad reality that any player who, out of nowhere, demonstrates huge power numbers will be suspected of juicing. This especially true for aging players: Ibanez has played fourteen seasons in his MLB career, and turned thirty-seven this month. The sudden spike in Ibanez’s offensive stats has put him under the sinister shadow of the Steroid Era. Ibanez reacted to these notions with comments as strong as his new homerun-swing: he said on Tuesday, “I’ll come after people who defame or slander me…it’s pathetic and disgusting. There should be some accountability for people who put that out there…You can have my urine, my hair, my blood, my stool—anything you can test…I’ll give you back every dime I’ve ever made [if the test is positive]”. This violent outburst will go a long way for Ibanez, as he continues to hit more long-balls. Such a vigorous response is far more convincing than what most suspected steroid users come up with as they try to clear their name, e.g. Barry Bonds.

Kyle McYankee?

In the 30th round of the 2009 MLB Draft, Thayer Academy’s own Kyle McKenzie was drafted by the NY Yankees. Out of Canton, McKenzie has helped lead Thayer Academy to back-to-back ISL Championships. After throwing a perfect game last year, he finished his senior season with a 7-0 record, 0.88 ERA, and 93 strikeouts in only 48 innings. He surrendered an average of .33 hits per inning (16 total). He throws his fastball in the mid-nineties, with a devastating curveball, as well as a changeup and a cutter. Not to take anything away from Kyle, but being drafted by the Yankees isn’t really as promising as is might sound. We all know the Yankees have been the most dominant franchise in the Major Leagues for the past decade, but that’s not because of their expert scouting and draft choices—more because their willing to shell out gobs for every free agent available. Since 2000, only nine of the forty-eight Yankee draftees to go in the top five rounds have any Major league experience, with only one (Joba Chamberlain) having much success. Me, I’d rather be drafted by the Red Sox, who have one of the most highly-touted farm systems in baseball, led by scouting director Jason McLeod. Since 2000, nineteen of the Red Sox forty-two picks in the first five rounds have played in the pros. Among these nineteen are Jacoby Ellsbury, Clay Buchholz, Dustin Pedroia, Jonathan Papelbon, and Jon Lester.

McKenzie’s situation is quite unlike most draft picks, however: in last year’s Draft, only 17 of the Yankees 51 draft choices were under the age of 20, and McKenzie is not even 19 yet. K-Mack still has a ways to go as he progresses through the minor leagues, where the average age of a rookie is 24.2 years old (according to the NY Times). Now, since McKenzie hasn’t entered college yet, he has the option of playing for Tulane this year and reentering the MLB draft next year, instead of signing with the Yankees. His other option is entering negotiations with NY and signing a contract, which, for early-round picks, can be worth over $1 million. If McKenzie decides to sign with the Yanks, he’ll have to do so by the August 15 deadline. Should K-Mack refuse to sign with the Evil Empire this year, and he enters the 2010 draft after a season in college, the Yankees will not be able to draft him for a second time.

Why Kobe Blew Game 3

Last night, the Magic were able to secure their first NBA Finals victory in franchise history not because of Dwight Howard’s 20th double-double in 21 playoff games, not because five Magic players scored at least eighteen points (the Lakers had two such players), but because of Kobe Bryant’s foolish play in the second half. He had a ridiculous first-quarter, scoring 17 points (7-10 shooting), and accounting for 23 of the Lakers’ 31 points. From then on, Kobe planned on continuing his first quarter barrage for the remaining 36 minutes; he was on-pace to score 68 points, 5 better than Jordan’s playoff record of 63. He tried to split double-teams, go right at Defensive Player of the Year Dwight Howard, take threes with hands in his face, and he rarely passed the ball to his deserving teammates. Too often, double-teamed Kobe drove the lane, drew the entire Magic defense, and left wide-open Ariza, Farmar, or Fisher wondering why Kobe was trying to maneuver through the 33 feet and 1000 pounds that is the Magic starting lineup. Let’s look at what Kobe did after the first quarter: 4-15 field goals, 4 personal fouls, 4-9 free throw shooting, 3 turnovers, and a +/- of -7. In the fourth quarter, Kobe really blew it for the Lakers. Trying to be the hero he was in the first quarter, over-aggressive Kobe Bryant missed three 3-pointers in the final two minutes. Then, in a one-possession game with less than thirty seconds left, he tried to split yet another double-team, and got stripped by Mickael Pietrus, who went on to put the Magic up by five with two free-throws. But what really gets me is Kobe’s attitude on the court. After every Laker mishap, Bryant makes it out to be an astronomical cataclysm that won’t happen again on his watch. He comes off as an overly-didactic know-it-all, getting on his teammates’ case for something that either wasn’t their fault, or that they already understand how to correct. He’s not the coach. Phil Jackson is one of the most accomplished coaches in NBA history (most playoff wins, highest regular season winning percentage); he doesn’t need Kobe doing his job. Bryant is the best player on the Lakers hands-down, but he’s not the only player on the team. His supporting cast is far better than LeBron’s Cavs or Dwayne Wade’s Heat, and he should take advantage of that. I know he’s eager to prove he’s one of the NBA’s all-time best, that he doesn’t need Shaq to win a championship, but selfish play—no matter how spectacular—isn’t the way to do it.

Pats Minicamp

Minicamp: ironic that it is called "mini" because it truly plays a huge role in the success or failure of a professional team. Here, rookies learn the playbook and veterans scrap their rust. Since no contact is allowed, players can start to learn the system and execute plays without risking their bodies. Well, Organized Team Activities have crept up on us, and along with it, the June 10-12 minicamp.
Tom Brady has returned, bringing excitement and a feeling of expectancy none have felt since the release of the final Harry Potter. Matt Light showed that it's not just the fans who are excited when he told reporters, "We went to the charity golf tournament yesterday and a lot of the sponsors were telling us they’re ampped up for the guys we have here and the guys we brought in. It’s exciting as always. It’s the start of a new season. The new guys, and now getting a chance to install the new offense to see what these guys can do. I think it’ll be a lot of fun." This only shows his excitement and anxiousness to getting to the start of the new season.
The team has showed crispness and sharpness throughout the various OTA's, and we can only hope this will continue in minicamp and ultimately through the season. I will bring you updates from every practice through minicamp.