Random Observations on the Wonderful World of Sports

In the words of the great San Francisco Chronicle sports columnist Scott Ostler, here are my deep thoughts, cheap shots, and bon mots:

---The Philadelphia Phillies are your 2008 World Series Champions. Congratulations to the City of Brotherly Love. The city of Philadelphia has been waiting to celebrate a major sports title for a long, long time.

---And who better to record the final out than Brad Lidge, the best closer in baseball.

--- Lidge's perfect season is a flabbergasting accomplishment.

---Special kudos to World Series MVP Cole Hamels for his excellent delivery of the Top Ten list on "The Late Show with David Letterman".

---As for the Rays, they turned in an unbelievable season. If Joe Maddon does not win Manager of the Year in the American League, it will be the biggest injustice since the O.J. verdict.

---Some observations on the first week of NBA action: Look out for the Hornets, they are dangerous. This Phoenix team has adapted a completely different style of play, a style with much less fast breaks. The Clippers will flop this season. Boston has every intention of repeating. Derrick Rose clearly has star potential.

---Let's hope Greg Oden makes a quick recovery. He has great potential in this league, and he seems to be a great guy. But my goodness, he looked like an arthritic ninety-year-old in his NBA debut against the Lakers.

---Okay, okay, I get it. The Lakers are good. However, listening to all these analysts drool over LA is nauseating. Also, call me crazy, but both Lamar Odom and Luke Walton are overrated. On the flip side, Doc Rivers' Celtics are not receiving nearly enough recognition.

---My Warriors are 0-2. In both losses, at home against New Orleans and on the road against Toronto, we had a lead with twenty seconds remaining in regulation. Ouch, those losses are painful. However, Golden State can hang with anybody. It's just a matter of executing down the stretch. If we can find a way to do this, we'll be fine. GO WARRIORS!

---A great football weekend kicks off tonight with Texas at Texas Tech, a game with huge national championship implications. Tomorrow's slate of NFL games is headlined by a huge NFC East clash between the Giants and Cowboys at the Meadowlands. I like Tech to upset the Longhorns. And I like the Giants---big.

---At some point during the New York-Dallas game, I would not be surprised if Wade Phillips has that deer-caught-in-headlights look. I've said it before, and I'll say it again: The Cowboys are overhyped every single year.

---Who would have thought Mike Singletary would stir up this much emotion in his first two weeks as head coach of the Niners. First it was his post game tirade against Vernon Davis. Now it has been revealed that he dropped his pants at halftime in the Seahawks game. Hmmmm, certainly a unique strategy.

--- Many respected football minds, including ESPN's Mark Schlereth, view Singletary negatively as a result of his recent antics. Not me. He is the type of fiery coach the Niners have desperately needed for many years.

---I've alraedy picked the Giants; here are the rest of my Week Nine NFL picks: Bills, Bears, Jaguars, Browns, Bucs, Vikings, Rams, Titans, Broncos, Falcons, Eagles, Colts, Steelers.

---College basketball experienced its first major injury this past week, as Tyler Hansbrough will be out two weeks. There is no need to worry Tar Heel fans. Hansbrough is an incredibly tough competitor. He'll be back at full strength in no time.

---And finally, I know this is not a political blog, but with the election a mere three days away, I thought I'd make an endorsement: GO OBAMA-BIDEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!