by Nick Brower | Apr 6, 2018 | FEATURED POST, SPORTS
The Yankees lost a tough one to Baltimore last night 5-2. It was a pitcher’s duel through five as both Andrew Cashner and Masahiro Tanaka were cruising. Aaron Judge finally woke the crowd up in the sixth with a solo shot (his second of the year) but that was about all the offense the Yank’s were able to manage all night. For awhile it looked like that might be enough as Tanaka was dominant through 6. He made one mistake all night, a hanging slider that ended up in the left field seats off the bat of Andrew Jones. Chad Green would come in for Tanaka but would also struggle, allowing the O’s put up a 5 spot in the 7th and never look back. Baltimore’s pitching had the Yanks off balance all night, only allowing four hits while tallying 8 strikeouts.
Overall, I don’t think there is too much to worry about here. Tanaka was great outside of one pitch and Betances even turned in a relatively clean inning in the ninth. Every offense, even this crazy lineup, is going to have bad nights once and awhile. Let’s not forget that the opposing pitchers are professionals too. So no need for panic in Yankeeland, it is a long season my friends. They’ll be back out there tonight looking to redeem themselves against Baltimore. First pitch is at 7:05 in the Bronx and we’ll have CC Sabathia facing Kevin Gausman.
by Nick Brower | Apr 6, 2018 | SPORTS
If you haven’t heard by now, LeBron James can opt out of his contract and test free agency after this season. It has been one of the biggest discussions in the NBA for obvious reasons, James can single-handedly turn the league on its head by making virtually any team an instant Finals contender. He’s still the most dominate player in the league and we saw his raw ability last night when he went into full bully mode on the Wizards, leading his Cavs back from 17 down halfway through the fourth quarter (he finished with 33, 14, and 9). James is the number one free agent on every teams’ board, they’d be stupid not to go after him. And James would be stupid if he didn’t opt out. He will be receiving the max money anywhere he goes, why not make the Cavs pay the premium to try to keep him?
His decisions of late have been very clear, he’s chasing titles and having the contract flexibility to move around keeps him in the best position possible. This desire for flexibility has allowed fan bases all over the country to start recruiting. New York is the latest city to join the race. They followed in the footsteps of Cleveland, Akron, Los Angeles, and Portland and put up a huge billboard aimed at the King. A new billboard went up on 31st and 7th Ave in Knicks blue and orange reading, “King of New York? PROVE IT. #KINGJAMESNYC18”
Now I’m a New Yorker and Knicks fan through and through. I would love to see LeBron come save the Knicks. Put him with Porzingis and get a point guard and they’ll be off and running. And who doesn’t want to play in New York. The Garden will always be the Mecca of basketball. LeBron knows that too well, he averages 28.5 ppg at MSG and has gone off for 50 twice. But realistically, I don’t think the Knicks have enough to offer currently to woe James. They are still a piece or two away from being a respectable supporting cast for the King. I think Los Angeles is probably the front runner currently, but who knows? All we know is that LeBron will go where he damn-well pleases, and that that team will instantly be a favorite to win it all.
by Nick Brower | Apr 5, 2018 | MUSIC, ON THIS DAY IN HIPHOP
Alright ladies and gentlemen today we’re sending a big happy birthday to none other than Pharrell Williams. Skateboard P has been a major influence in everything hip hop since he came on the scene in the early 90s. You might know him from the powerhouse production duo The Neptunes, you might know him from the rock/funk-hip hop crossover band N.E.R.D., or you might know him from his dope solo catalog. You can’t listen to hip hop from the 90s and 2000s without stumbling upon something Pharrell touched. He has produced some of the best known beats from the entire era.
You can recognize a Skateboard P beat anywhere by his signature 4-beat count in to begin each track. He’s worked with everyone from Snoop Dogg, Mariah Carey, Lil Uzi Vert, and Rihanna. The Neptunes produced for Brittany Spears and had one of their biggest successes with Nelly’s “Hot In Herre”. Pharrell himself has had both well respected and commercially successful solo hits. He has won ten Grammy’s in his long career and has two Academy Award nominations as well. Pharrell definitely made some of my personal favorite all-time tracks. Some that come to mind right away besides the classics are “S.N.I.T.C.H” with Pusha T, “Alright” off of Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp A Butterfly and “Neon Guts” from Lil Uzi’s most recent album.
Pharrell will go down in history as an ageless wonder. He turns 45 today and still looks like he did when he broke out. His music has been timeless as well. No matter the year, you hear that 4-beat and you know you’re in for a banger. P brought such a funky vibe to the keyboard and has continued to push the art of production forward. With any luck, we’ll get another 20 years of Pharrell music. And I’m sure it would all be fire.
So that’s what we’ve got for today. If you think you’re familiar with Pharrell, I challenge you to look up all the songs he’s credited on. I guarantee you’ll learn something new. We all know the big hits, but the pure amount of music he is involved in is incredible. It could take you weeks to listen to it all. Go celebrate Pharrell’s birthday with me and try to make your way through a crazy thick catalog of bangers. I’ll get you started with some of my favorites you might or might not recognize. Check out the tracks I mentioned earlier too. Happy Birthday P!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IDC5yOSuCv0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N2wqmGu1EY8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JDknpQzPY-o
by Nick Brower | Apr 5, 2018 | SPORTS
Chuck Nazty is locked into Colorado now for the foreseeable future after agreeing to a six-year extension with the Rockies. The deal is slightly backloaded and heavy on incentives, but could end up paying a max of $116 million when its all said and done. It is also reported that Blackmon will have multiple player options throughout the deal. Blackmon, who is a quiet superstar, tried his best to keep the contract discussion out of the media. He told reporters, “I didn’t want to create distractions,” throughout spring training. Blackmon has been putting up stupid numbers the past couple of seasons and is slotted to be in the MVP conversation again this year. And after a tough offseason for free agents, Blackmon is smart to get his money now. This move speaks to a bigger trend in the MLB. Big time sluggers had a hard time getting big paydays this offseason with a handful still not playing. Next year is slotted to be tough again with many teams planning on spending huge on a few big names like Harper and Machado. With more and more teams adopting the “tanking” strategy and accepting bad seasons, many players find themselves caught in between being can’t miss superstars and veterans that teams can’t justify giving the salary they deserve. It just isn’t worth paying an above average veteran if you are a team that is trying to rebuild. There is no more pride in competing to be .500. It is much more valuable to fully commit to not contending and trying to speed up the rebuild process. Now Blackmon does not find himself in that twilight zone, he’s a bonafide superstar, but you can’t blame him for wanting to sure up his future. And if he can keep up the production we’ve gotten used to seeing from him, those incentives will all pay out and his future will be very bright.
by Nick Brower | Apr 5, 2018 | SPORTS
Yes, you read that headline correctly. Robert Griffin III has agreed to a one-year deal to play for the Baltimore Ravens after not playing at all last season. It might come as a surprise, but it really is a smart move. Baltimore has needed a backup for Flacco for awhile and they needed to get one relatively cheap because of their cap situation. RG3 fits the mold perfectly. He is experienced, more than capable of serving as a backup to an established starter, and will come at a bargain price. He is definitely a more exciting name than the other options at this point (Mark Sanchez, Derek Anderson, and Matt Cassel to name a few). Colin Kapernick is of course still unsigned but not for football reasons. I think Griffin is a good move, even if he doesn’t end up on the regular season roster. The Ravens could still look to the draft for a young quarterback to develop under Flacco. Either way, he comes as cheap insurance. It will also be good to see RG3 get another chance in the league. He has always been an exciting player but has struggled with injury issues. Let’s see what he can make of the opportunity. I hope he can find some success because this will probably be his last shot.
