My random thoughts
The Bearcats are 8-2. I'm not sure how the Bearcats are 8-2. But a 3rd straight conference title is still in play. And a New Year's 6 bowl is still in play. The Bearcats are 8-2.
I think it takes 10 wins to make the playoffs in the AFC. Can you find 5 more wins for the Bengals? That Pittsburgh loss in Week 1 is such a kick in the shin. It leaves the Bengals having to steal a win in the second half of the schedule.
The credibility flashpoints for the Reds roster this offseason center around Mike Moustakas and Aristides Aquino.
We are getting into checking out live music at area spots. We saw Catalina Wine Mixer Band Friday night at the Little Miami Brewing Company Event Center. Great venue. Fantastic band. Music of the 70's......Eddie Money, Hall & Oates, Boz Scaggs, Steely Dan, Elton John, Toto, Lionel Richie, Player, Little River Band..right in our sweet spot!
My final lawn mowing and sidewalk edging of the year is officially in the books. I don't care how much my yard grows from here on out!
The Bengals led 35-0 at the half and beat another NFL team by 21 points...... without Chase, Reader, Awuzie, Hilton, Tupou and Flowers. I don't understand how that gets couched by some fans because of the 'caliber' of team they beat.
Food recommendation: The Empanadas Box in Covington. We discovered them at a Findlay Market table stand a few years ago. They became the first graduate of the Findlay Launch Accelerator program and opened up a shop in Covington earlier this year. Owner Diego Nunez was born in Buenos Aires. We grab a box of eight Argentine-style empanadas to-go and put them in the freezer.
I just don’t know how people watch national talking head sports shows….from First Take to Get Up to Undisputed and everything in between.
My biggest challenges talking CBB on the show has always been how splintered the interest is in the area. When there are so many different fan bases it's tough to talk about a specific team and keep the interest of the masses. It leaves me doing very few CBB caller topics, and mostly doing interview segments with coaches/writers/broadcasters. For fans that want more there are always the coaches shows we carry.
So sad to hear of the passing of Fred Hickman. He teamed with Nick Charles on CNN Sports Tonight in the 80's and 90's......Their chemistry, coolness and writing made them must watch at 11pm, over Sports Center. RIP.
Rebuilding baseball teams don't have high payrolls. For the most part, younger players/prospects make the minimum salary ($700K). Will Reds fans accept the payroll number as part of rebuilding, or, simply see 'rebuild' as a convenient way for the team to go cheap, again?
Ever manage to screw up the setting on your phone keyboard, that QWERTY thing, and wind up with letters from a foreign language? And struggle to figure out how to fix it? Ugggg.
Can I mute all mentions, in any form of media, of Aaron Rodgers?
What an opening paragraph from C. Trent's story about the Reds in The Athletic this week: "Just like the regular season, there’s not much to look forward to when it comes to the Reds' offseason. It’ll likely be as quiet as the stands during an August businessman’s special and feel slower than the long wait until Christmas. But like winter, the NBA season and election commercials, it’ll come to an end at some point, even if it doesn’t feel like that moment will ever arrive."
Does that fact it is football season take away from your time and interest in college basketball? Do you follow just one sport at a time?
I would HIGHLY recommend checking out the Netflix documentary: The Redeem Team. It's the story of the U.S. men's basketball teams seeking redemption at the 2008 Olympics after embarrassing failure in 2006. Whether you like the NBA or not, it's incredible storytelling, especially the dynamic of the relationship between Kobe and the rest of the team It's 90 minutes.
No matter what the Reds offer up in explaining what they are doing, I think most fans are simply fed up with the fact the team is in another rebuild after losing 98-94-94-95-87 games from 2015-2019. And then getting a scoreless two game playoff series in 2020, a stand down on the 2021 season and a 100 loss tear apart effort last year.
I'm happy for Dusty Baker. That World Series title finally erases any possible doubt about his Hall of Fame resume.
Joe Mixon's performance through eight weeks certainly earned criticism. His performance vs Carolina certainly earned praise. That's how it works. Are we going to pretend he wasn't among the least productive backs in the NFL through eight weeks? I don't get the 'hater' narrative.
We are big fans of the CBS TV show Blue Bloods. Love the family dinner scene. Love Frank Reagan (Tom Selleck). I'd watch it. Forthwith.
Ever leave home without your wallet....and buy something before realizing it? I stopped by a retirement lunch/party last Friday at the Outback on Glenway Avenue for a long-time listener. I ordered a Coke. When it was time to pay I realized I'd left my wallet at home. I quietly and embarrassingly explained my situation to the bartender and tried to pay with Google Pay from my phone. But that was not an available option. The bartender told me not to worry about it, that the drink was on her. How cool is that? I drove back to the Outback this week and gave her $5 for my drink and $5 for a 'thank you' tip. I don't like owing money.
Eric Church made me a country music fan two years ago. I’ve been following country music and catching up on the history ever since. What a night of music watching the CMA Awards. The performance of “You’ll Never Leave Harlan Alive” by Patti Loveless with Chris Stapleton was chilling.
If you gave me a TV remote and told me I could only channel flip, not watching more than a minute at a stop, I think I could be happy with that.
If you fire your coach, and need an assessment of your roster/staff/franchise for the rest of the season, it makes sense to hire an outsider like Jeff Saturday to do the review. But as head coach?
It's sad how many restaurants/fast food places we stop at that feel like they are barely holding it all together...from staffing shortages to supply issues. I was in line this week and heard one worker says to another "take it easy on the lettuce.....that's all we have." It was early afternoon. At lunch last week, customers at another place were opening up the supply closet to get their own napkins and silverware.
Skip 'The Patient' with Steve Carell on Netflix. I'll never get those hours of my life back.
Shortstops are usually the best/most athletic/most versatile player on their team growing up. Stop worrying about how many shortstops the Reds have in their system. The goal is always to assemble as much young talent as possible and then figure out.
If the NFL didn't have gambling or fantasy football..........
We are up to over 81,000 followers in our Twitter group (@ lancemcalister) and over 25,000 in our Facebook group (LanceMcAlisterSportsTalk). That's outstanding. I appreciate your involvement in the show!