Useless Accessories

It was in the mid-60s today and it is the end of March.  Some could point towards a little thing called climate change, others could point towards the fact that it is Spring time and it's time for the cold weather to go away.  My wife came home after stopping at the grocery and she brought steaks with her.  It was wonderful grilling weather.  How can you argue with sunny, yet cool, 60 degrees?  Perfect beginning to the grilling season.  A few years ago, we bought a new grill because the one my parents got for us for our wedding finally kicked the bucket.  The burner rusted out and I looked at replacing it, but I couldn't find the parts because the grill was about eight years old. 

Our first grill had one of those stupid burner on the side that never really worked.  I hooked it up when we first got it and it didn't work.  Right out of the box, didn't work.  Not too upsetting because who uses that?  The majority of the time when we grill in the summer we have baked beans.  Not once, in the nearly ten years we have grilled, had we thought 'hey, let's throw the beans in a pot on the side burner of the grill.'  No.  Anything other than what is being cooked on the grill is usually prepared and made inside. 

Is the side burner one of the most useless accessories every invented when it comes to food preparation?  I mean, unless you invest in a professional level grill and can use it year round, is there a point to this burner?  The only use I got out of it was as a beer holder because the middle of the coil was the exact diameter of a can.  Beer cans rested perfectly on the burner of no use.  The grill we bought as a replacement does not have this useless accessory.  The only accessory that the new grill came with?  A bottle opener.  Perfect. 

Endings and Beginnings

Half way through the hockey season, anyone with half a brain realized that the Detroit Red Wings were not going to make the playoffs.  Their play was inconsistent, other teams were playing far better, and they struggled against teams in the conference.  Of course the main focus as everyone came to this realization was that the 25 year streak of the team making it to the playoffs was going to come to an end.  While it is a bit of a disappointment, it can be seen as a bit of a relief.  As I watched the game this afternoon against Minnesota, I thought that it was good that this streak was coming to an end. 

So why would a fan of a team be happy about their struggles?  Why would someone in good conscious want to watch their team fail?  In actuality I don't.  Of course I enjoyed seeing the Wings make it into the playoffs year after year after year.  The last time they hadn't made the playoffs, I was ten.  My concern is all about the development and focus of the younger players.  Many on the team now are just coming up to the NHL or have been in the league for less than five years.  How stressful must it be to be in your first two years into your professional career and have this playoff cloud looming over you?  You start to grip the stick a little bit tighter.  You start to make passes that are too fine.  You want to continue the streak as opposed to becoming a better player.  I am all for the team missing the playoffs one or two or even three years if it means the young players can focus on becoming better hockey players and playing as a team. 

It is true that they are coming up from an organization in the Grand Rapids Griffins that are successful, but that is the minor leagues.  This is the big time.  The game is faster, the guys are bigger, the stage is broader.  The young core of this team has learned the winning ways of the organization and they must maintain it.  Coach Blashill has said (paraphrasing) that this year is just a bump in the road and it is the Red Wing way to play well and win.  The players they have I think can do that.  They just need to develop.  Avoiding the injury bug is key as well.  

Another reason why it is a good thing that the team is not having a successful year is the draft.  The last time the organization had a top ten pick was the year before they started their playoff streak.  TWENTY SIX YEARS AGO!  It was the 1991 draft and they drafted some guy named Martin LaPointe.  During their playoff streak, the highest draft pick they have had was in 2014 and they drafted Dylan Larkin.  Someone who many people the next couple of decades of success can be centered around.  There have been plenty of late first round and early second round picks to be sure, but in this sport one guy can make all the difference.  During this twenty five year stretch, they have had ten years when they did not have a selection in the first round, and two years when they didn't have a second round pick.

The organization is run well enough that they will not sink into oblivion.  I do not see them struggling for more than two or three years before returning to form.  Granted, I think they still have plenty of work ahead of them in terms of becoming Stanley Cup contenders again, but a return to the playoffs should calm the nerves of the fanbase.  They also have the talent within the organization to be playoff contenders.  As long as the injury bug stays away from key players they can make their way back into contention.  It is yet to be seen as the future is always cloudy. 

162 Games of Wonder

'Good seasons start with good beginnings.' -Sparky Anderson

We are less than two weeks away from Opening Day of baseball.  THIS IS NOT A DRILL!  Our long winter nightmare is almost over.  We got a wonderful taste of meaningful baseball with the World Baseball Classic tournament.  The WBC comes around every three years and I love it.  There's more outward emotion, explosive moments, and amazing moments (Adam Jones' leaping catch anyone?).  The wonderful thing about it is that it's just a two week tournament.  They cram lots of talent and entertainment in that time.  It's hard to think that this type of energy and hype and emotion can be spread out over the course of a 162 game season, but you can still enjoy the marathon that is the baseball season.

The A.L. Central is in flux right now.  A couple of teams in Minnesota and Chicago are in rebuild mode.  Detroit and Kansas City are both teams that can compete for a post season spot but are a few pieces away from being true contenders.  Only Cleveland got better this offseason.  At least it started out that way.  The injury bug has hit them a little bit in the last week, but they were the only team that added pieces.  Good pieces. 

They added Edwin Encarnacion and will have Andrew Miller (former Tiger Andrew Miller) for a full season.  When you're the reigning divisional and league champions and you add a couple of pieces that bolster your roster you are crowned the champs of the upcoming year.  On paper they should win the division.  Granted, it might be closer than last year because surely they won't beat Detroit fourteen out of eighteen games again.  Right?  RIGHT?  At least that is the hope.  They are pretty young with the exception of a few players and are just starting to hit their stride.  They could be the top of the division for the next few years until Chicago's team comes up.    

Chicago is in full rebuild mode and will be really good in about three or four years depending on the development of the prospects they added to their farm system when they traded away a couple of players.  Minnesota has been in rebuild mode since the early 2000s.  I'm starting to think that they aren't very good.  I know they are a small market team and can't draw big name players, but for a long time they had a highly rated farm system and the players haven't really panned out.  We've lived in Minnesota for quite some time now and I've gotten to see a lot of their games.  It's a struggle to sit through some of them because the talent isn't really there.  

Detroit went into the offseason saying that they were going to get 'younger and leaner'.  They traded away one player.  That was it.  Granted there were plenty of sighs of relief in Tiger Town, but at the same time they are getting older.  Everyone is happy about the trades they made to get their younger pitching staff, but the offense is getting old.  I don't know if they were asking for too much for the players that they were shopping or if no one was interested at all, but I was a bit disappointed.  I want to see them throw the towel in for a few years in an effort to get better in the long run.  This is how you reopen the window for championship runs.  They are still dangerous.  They are still good.  It will all depend on the pitching rotation.

What the hell happened to Kansas City?  Was it just a hiccup after going to back to back World Series?  They still have their core team.  They are still pretty young and just as talented.  Just like the Tigers, the team will go as far as the pitching staff will carry them.  If you don't have a starting rotation that can pitch your team to a good chunk of wins, you are in trouble.  Sure, their bullpen is still pretty good, but not as good as it was two years ago.  The game is no longer six innings before getting to a shutdown bullpen.  There are now holes in the armor.  Their core players are coming up on free agency.  If they don't sign team friendly contracts, Kansas City will be back to rebuilding.  They would need to trade away their star players to get young talent or draft picks back.  The Royals are still really good, don't get me wrong.  They just don't scare me as much as they did about four years ago.  It is very likely that they can come up and end ahead of Cleveland and Detroit.  Their roster is full of players that get it.  They know how to win and what it takes. 

With all that said, here's how I see the A.L. Central ending up when the season is complete:

1. Cleveland
2. Detroit
3. Kansas City
4. Minnesota
5. Chicago

I'm a big picture guy and I think that Detroit won't be in the playoff hunt and I hope that this is evident by the beginning of July.  They could trade off guys like J.D. Martinez and Justin Upton for prospects.  Martinez is up for free agency at the end of this year and if healthy is going to draw lots of interest and will probably come away with a large contract.  The Tigers are moving away from larger contracts so it is safe to say that unless he wants to sign a team friendly deal, he is going to be playing somewhere else in 2018.  If he signs elsewhere, the Tigers won't get anything in return.  They need to trade him away if there is no shot at the playoffs.  With some of the other teams in the MLB, I don't think they truly have a shot at the World Series, but who knows.  I hope I'm wrong on that.  Upton has an opt out clause in his contract.  He can bounce at the end of the year if he wants.  Yes he is under contract through 2021 (I think), but the opt out clause is there in case he wants to test free agency.  Again, if the Tigers want something in return he will need to be traded. 

Managerial Leash

'The head coach tells us what to do and we follow his orders.' -Peyton Manning 

If there is one thing that truly irritates me, it has to be a fan base wanting a manager axed just because the team struggles a bit.  Every team in every sport in every country I'm sure has had a call for a manager to be fired.  Coaches should be allowed at least five years to be in charge of a team before a major decision regarding their tenure is addressed.  Unless something major comes up that endangers or otherwise compromises a team or players, why can't they be given a certain time frame to institute their style on the organization?  The one thing that can help stabilize a team/organization is leadership.  Not the leadership that players provide, but the leadership management provides.  If an organization has the same manager for a sustained period of time, I believe they will inherently get better.  You wouldn't have a different leadership style every couple of years.  You wouldn't

Two coaches in Detroit, Brad Ausmus and Jeff Blashill, have been under quite a bit of scrutiny as of late because of the struggles of their teams.  While both coach for recently successful organizations, the fans don't seem to want to give them any slack or compassion.  The Red Wings are going to miss the post season for the first time in 25 years this season.  They have been awful this year, no doubt about it.  They are transitioning to a younger team.  Their veterans are on the verge of retiring and their young players are coming up.  There is going to be a learning curve for these young guys.  Their two plus decades of success have caught up with them as they have had very few high first round draft picks.  Yes, they have drafted and found talent, but players getting drafted in the top ten are there for a reason and the Wings haven't been able to capitalize with those high draft picks.  The Tigers are on the verge of getting 'younger and leaner' in the next few years.  They need to rebuild their farm system and in order to do so, they are going to have to draft and trade their way to do that.  In the next few years, Ausmus is going to grow as a manager or he will be fired.  There is no doubt about that.

I have faith that both managers will succeed.  Both have a good head on their shoulders, but more than that, they have an organization that is not rash in their moves.  At what point, however, does the ownership step in and cut the manager loose?  The leash on these managers seem to be pretty long.  The organizations seem to be letting them work through a lot of issues without stepping in.  I feel like that is a good sign.  With that said, the organizations do have to be ready to cut ties if that is what is best.  The past couple of years the Tigers have been signing Ausmus to a year to year contract.  That is a smart idea.  That way they aren't on the hook for an extended period of time if they do not see eye to eye with Ausmus or if Ausmus loses the team's confidence as manager.  It's smart, but at the same time can keep the team in flux.  Especially if the team has a bad year and Ausmus gets fired.  Then they are back to square one with a new manager and new voice. 

Entering his fourth season, Ausmus has managed the Tigers to a 250-234 (.517) record.  That's about 83 wins per season.  Not bad for a guy who hasn't had any MLB managing experience.  Granted, he was given a team with a strong track record of winning the majority of it's games.  Jeff Blashill was 41-30-11 in his first season as the head coach of the Red Wings and everyone thought it was going to be easy sailing as the team transitioned.  Not so much.  He and the team have struggled this year and many question whether or not he has the gumption to be an NHL coach.  He needs time to learn and grow.  The players know him from his and their time in the AHL.  

Blashill has some growing into the role to do, but Ausmus's learning curve is coming to an end.  The one thing that is really holding Ausmus back is his bullpen management.  Of course, if he had a bullpen with solidified roles, it would be much easier.  Blashill might not make it very long as the Red Wings head coach.  This organization is use to being a power house and relevant that he might be the fall guy as the team learns how to lose again.  The organization leadership hopefully sees him as the guy to lead the learning curve for the young players and keep him around.  Whether they do or not has yet to be seen, but I feel like he won't last very long.    

More New Music!

'Music expresses that which cannot be put into words and that which cannot remain silent.' -Victor Hugo

My birthday was in February.  I got a bunch of iTunes gift cards.  I was a kid in a candy store.  I opened my card from my parents in-law, saw the gift card and told my wife 'Well, I already spent this.'.  I had some albums from artists I wanted to look into and wanted to find some new artists.  I did just that. 

Here's a list of the artists that I found.  A combination of alternative/rock and rap albums.  I found new bands in The Orwells, Jidenna, and Hozier while getting albums from bands I already have. 

• Screaming Females (face melting rock)
• The Orwells  (garage rock)
• Jidenna (political rap)
• Doomtree (two albums [Midwest rap])
• Hozier (bluesy guitar)
• The Dead Weather (rock supergroup)

And I still have more money left to spend!

I've said it before and I'll say it again, if you limit yourself to one genre of music you truly limit yourself.  For the longest time I thought rap wasn't for me.  I just didn't grow up listening to it and had no exposure.  So I'm a little late to the party on rap music.  It's a different planet when it comes to comparing rap to alternative or rock music.  Yes, they are both music but they're just different.  It's like comparing 'Dumb and Dumber' and 'Schindler's List'.  They're both movies, but on opposite ends of the spectrum. 

I will say that rap is hit or miss for me.  I'll like one album but then listen to another one by the same artist and just not enjoy it at all.  A lot of rap artists seem to experiment more with song, style, and subject.  With someone like Jack White you know what you're going to get album to album.  Even if he does something a little different from one album to the next, it will still have the same feel. 

True Vacation

'I love being on vacation and never knowing what day of the week it is'

In May my wife and I will be celebrating our ten year anniversary.  In all those years, we have never gone on a vacation.  We have gone home for vacations and taken weekend trips here and there, but we have never gone somewhere by ourselves.  It just isn't economical for us.  We don't make hundreds of thousands of dollars a year.  So we thought that this year we would take a true vacation to celebrate our tenth year of marriage.

We went to Florida!  Nothing fancy and no plans were made with few exceptions.  We bought tickets to a Tigers Spring Training game.  They lost, unfortunately, but it was still cool to see a game this early in the calendar year.  We also made a plan to spend an afternoon at a beach.  And we went to Coco Beach.  It was overcast and not the greatest day to go, but I did step into the Atlantic Ocean for the first time.  The last thing we had concrete plans for was visiting some family. 

Three things we had on our vacation planned.  The rest of the time there were no solid plans.  That is the whole point of a vacation is it not?  To relax.  We stayed up late.  We slept in.  We spent time by the pool.  Drank overpriced mediocre drinks.  All that fun stuff.  It.  Was.  EVERYTHING!  Because it was something we don't do on a regular basis, it felt indulgent.  Maybe in another ten years we will find another place to laze around, but for the near future we will just go home for vacations.  Which is still great.