My Hands Are Small, I Know
Following last night’s defeat to the Miami Heat, Knicks Forward Amar’e Stoudemire decided to let off some steam. For some, that would involve hitting a pillow. For others, it would involve punching a fire extinguisher. Stoudemire chose the latter.
NBA writers and reporters got a little suspicious when they saw Stoudemire leaving the arena with his hand bandaged and his arm in a sling. They got more suspicious when they saw a puddle of blood on the carpet that connects the court with the visitor’s locker room. 2 and 2 were soon put together and equaled 4.
The extent of Stoudemire’s injury is not yet known, but some reports from sources in the locker room stated that he would be done for at least the rest of the series, due to the large gash, the amount of stitches, the heavy blood loss, and the fact that this will likely be an abbreviated series.
Stoudemire or not, the Knicks face a steep uphill climb heading back to Midtown Manhattan. They are down 2-0 in the Best-of-7 series and have lost by an aggregate score of 43 points. Game 3 will be played on Thursday. All heavy objects should be removed from Madison Square Garden.
Bump Bump Bump
Late in their Game 1 loss to the Atlanta Hawks, Boston Celtics’ Guard Rajon Rondo disagreed with a referee’s call. He, too, decided to let off some steam. For some, that would involve hitting a pillow. For others, it would involve following the referee and walking into him. Rondo chose the latter.
Yesterday, the NBA dropped the hammer. Thankfully, for the Celtics, it was one of those Little Tykes hammers.
Rondo will be forced to sit out tonight’s game against the Hawks. It will be the second time this season that Rondo will be suspended for referee-directed anger (in February, he threw a ball at a referee). The Celtics, already undermanned, due in part to bone spurs in Ray Allen’s right ankle, will rely heavily on second-year Point Guard Avery Bradley to fill some of Rondo’s void. The young Guard has improved dramatically in his sophomore season, but faces a tough task on the road against an experienced backcourt.
Just To Hit The Ball and Touch ’Em All – A Moment In the Sun
Not a whole lot of moments in the sun in Southern California during the month of April. And, no, I’m not talking about the weather.
During the offseason, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim signed Albert Pujols to a 10 year/$200+ million contract. They signed Albert in the hopes that he’d, you know, hit home runs. Hitting home runs was something he showed a propensity for doing during his tenure in St. Louis. Never had he hit fewer than 32 home runs in a full season. Never had he gotten on-base at a clip below 37% in a season. In short, he was a very good baseball player.
Now, April is not a fully season. It’s only 1/6 of the season. That said, Albert is currently on pace to hit 0 home runs and get on-base roughly 26% of the time. And the natives are getting restless.
It seems that when you pay someone a lot of money to do something and they don’t do it, people become impatient. A funny world that we live in.
Jokes aside, Pujols is pressing hard to hit his first home run of the season. He is striking out more than he is walking (something he hasn’t done since he was a 21 year old rookie). And his swing is sloppy. And it doesn’t look like just a matter of time before he pulls out of his current funk. Which could make for an interesting season in Anaheim, where people had visions of World Series rings on April 1st.
Your Daily (Brief…I Promise) Washington Nationals Update
The Arizona Diamondbacks come to DC tonight to start a three game series. Bryce Harper will make his home debut. Jordan Zimmermann will take the hill for the Nats. He’ll be opposed by Diamondbacks’ righty Trevor Cahill. (7:05 p.m./MASN)
Game of the Day
I get that there are a number of playoff games tonight. Celtics/Hawks, Nuggets/Lakers, Devils/Flyers. But Bryce Harper is making his DC debut. And I have a strong Mid-Atlantic Bias.
Mid-Atlantic Bias 
