Red Sox prospect shoots himself in the leg?

Did Brentz not go to the hospital or something?

So apparently a Red Sox minor leaguer named Bryce Brentz shot himself in the leg "while cleaning a handgun."  Brentz played 5 games for AAA Pawtucket last year, and is considered to be the #6 prospect in Boston's organization.  He was likely going to have an opportunity to participate in big league spring training, but will now miss out because of the large bullet hole through his leg.  Brentz is expected to be fine, and the injury is not career threatening.  He is currently in Fort Myers "recovering," and hopes to be ready to play by the start of the season.

Whether there is more to the story or not, there is one big part of it that I do not understand: The accident happened two weeks ago.  How is it possible it just became news today?

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Today seems like a good day to talk about sleds

The classic "Norman Rockwell" style:

While appealing to look at it's pretty terrible to use, and probably should have stopped being made when plastic was invented.

The Toboggan:

This is mostly just good for a scared small child that wants his/her mom riding on the sled behind him/her.

The super cheap "roll up" sled:

These's don't work very well, but they are light and easy to carry, and you can bring them to school.

The saucer:

The trouble with this kind is that you spin around and often can't see where you're going.

The inflatable saucer:

This has the same flaw as the regular saucer.  But it's a lot more comfortable, good for jumps, and you can also use it in the pond in the summer time.

The simple standard red plastic sled:

The clear winner.  It goes fast and straight, and it's easy to control by using your hands for steering and brakes.  Also when you're a ballsy pre-teen you can try standing on it like a surfboard (don't worry Mom, I never actually pulled that off).

Side note: The last time there was a huge storm I wrote this "choose your own adventure" blog.

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Paul Pierce has become Rajon Rondo (in the best possible way)

Pierce is filling up box scores in a Rondo-like fashion.

When Celtics All Star Rajon Rondo was lost to a season ending injury he was dominating the NBA in triple doubles, even posting one in each of his final two games.  In Boston's first contest without Rondo, Paul Pierce managed a trible double of his own.  During the C's 5 game winning streak Pierce has continually put up some very Rondo-esque numbers.  His scoring is down, but Pierce's rebounds and assists are way up.

In the point guard's absence the Captain is averaging 16.2 points, 10 rebounds, and 6.2 assists.  Rondo's season averages?  13.7 points, 11.1 assists, and 5.6 rebounds.  In the 38 games Rondo played this year he led the team in both rebounds and assists 9 times (Bueller? Bueller?), but no other Celtic ever did.  Since Rondo's been gone Pierce has now managed that same feat on 3 of 5 occasions (all Boston victories).

For his career Pierce's averages are 21.9 points, 6 rebounds, and 3.8 assists per night.  And now, halfway through his 15th NBA season, the Celtics #2 all-time scorer is drastically altering his game because that's what the team needs to win.

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Awesome Old Song of the Week: "Return to Innocence" by Enigma

A few weeks ago I wrote about "Phonebooth" (that's the short version of the name) by Primitive Radio Gods.  While I was working on that post I kept thinking to myself "there's another mid 90's pop song that sounds the same as this one."  Today while randomly scanning old Billboard charts (yeah, I do that sometimes) I came across it: Return to Innocence by Enigma.  I'm not sure exactly what it is that makes these two songs so much alike, but to me they are interchangeable.

Also, is it possible I never saw this video before?  All the stuff going backwards is really cool; the bocce balls in particular.

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Dikembe Mutumbo swatting stuff is great

Yesterday I wrote about the Super Bowl halftime show, so today I'll explore it's other main topic of interest (outside of football), the commercials.  Somehow I missed this one during the game, and I haven't heard anybody mention it while discussing their favorite ads from Sunday.  I saw it on TV last night, and to me it wins hands down over everything I watched during the game (although I did enjoy the Taco Bell old people acting young):

My favorite of Dikembe's blocks is the exploding cereal box the kid attempts to toss into the cart at the grocery store.  I also have to give Geico credit for their attention to detail, look closely at all the fake cereal brands on the shelf that very closely resemble real ones.

(Click on the picture to expand)

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Halftime show analysis

So it appears that Beyonce's Super Bowl halftime show was very well received by the internet world, and people who like watching the game for things other than football seem to have greatly enjoyed it.  I thought she put forth a very solid performance, and was definitely way better than Madonna last year.  I do wish that when she slowed it down and sang "Halo" she'd also done some of "If I Were a Boy" as well; I'm a big fan of that tune.  Anyway, if you somehow missed it, or just want to watch it again, here it is:



Something about CBS's coverage didn't quite sit right with me though.  I'm not a fan of the way they so quickly zoomed in and out and jumped from one camera angle to the next.  Because of this the show occasionally looked as if it wasn't even a live performance, but a music video shot in advance.  I think I would have preferred if they'd stuck to a single camera from a little further away for longer periods of time, and given you a better view of everything that was going on all at once.

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What were the LA Clippers thinking?

The least dramatic game winner I've ever seen.

After holding the Celtics to just 3 points over an 8+ minute stretch of the 4th quarter yesterday, the Clippers had cut a onetime 19 point lead all the way down to two, 103-101.  They had the ball and a chance to tie the game with 42 seconds left.  An offensive foul with 26 seconds to go gave possession back to Boston.  Amazingly, that's when LA decided they didn't want to win.

This contest will be remembered for Paul Pierce's "clutch" three pointer to ice the game with 2.5 seconds left.  I'm not sure how "clutch" it really was though, because it didn't actually matter if it went in.

For some incomprehensible reason the Clippers opted not to foul, and allowed the Celtics to run out the 24 second clock, despite the fact that there were just 26 seconds remaining.  Even if Pierce's shot had missed, the final two seconds would have all but run out during the rebound.  Here's what Doc Rivers said about it during his postgame interview:

"Honestly when the ball was in the air I was just thinking 'hit the rim,' you know and fly, go somewhere.  That's what I was hoping for." 

I watched in shock from my seat in the Garden as this scenario unfolded.  With 10 seconds left it was clear LA wasn't going to foul, and I knew the game was already over.  In the back of my mind I was hoping Pierce might take some sort of ridiculous high arching shot towards the rafters; purposely throw up something that had no chance of connecting, but would still be in the air as the final buzzer sounded.

Pierce was pretty baffled by the Clipper's "strategy" as well, as you can see from his comments immediately following the game:



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