Growing up, I never had a pet.  I used to win a goldfish at the local festival every year, but failed to feed it after a couple of weeks resulting in a toilet flush and an empty fish bowl.  My father used to make it clear to me that if I was not going to be home to take care of a pet, that he surely wouldn’t rearrange his day to do so.  Hence, no pets.  I am not an animal lover because I have not had the exposure some kids have toward many different types of animals.  So a petless home was my tradeoff for playing football, being in a band, working, going to school, and having the social agenda of a rockstar through college.

I watched a disturbing piece on ESPN’s Outside The Lines yesterday about what happens to a racehorse when it can no longer race.  Naturally, an animal story has to be represented by PETA, the animal loonies who are extreme in most cases.  However, on the other side of the coin, ESPN showed disturbing footage of a horse being taken to a barn, shot in the head, and skinned.  The horse was then processed, like a cow, for consumption. 

Horse meat is a delicacy in Japan.  They showed it packaged like beef in a Japanese grocery store.  Then they mentioned that horse meat is also used to make dog food.  I can’t imagine having a slice of Mine That Bird for dinner in a couple of years, but I guess some people can.

Some owners keep the horses and let them live a natural life, but others are quick to sell the horse for consumpyion purposes.  I guess if Wisconsin started a derby race involving cows, we might take the same stand on eating beef.  However, in our structured USDA-stamped meat cases, we learn at a young age where beef comes from.  We accept it, and for the most part, we eat it.

Take Japan off of my vacation destination list. 

New Thunder Head Coach Chris MacKeown is without a doubt obsessed with turning Mahoning Valley’s turbulent season into a smoother ride.  MacKeown has eleven years of arena coaching experience and a great track record to behold, a good sign for Thunder fans.  He kind of reminds me of a young Bill Parcells in the sense that he is called upon to turn bad into good, much like Parcells has done for a few NFL teams.

MacKeown grew up in Dayton, Ohio but now calls Amarillo, Texas his home.  When I asked him what he though of Youngstown so far, MacKeown said, ” In my short time here, I am shocked that people will come up to me in a restaurant to encourage me to win.  It says a lot about this area and its love for football and this team“.

When I asked MacKeown what his realistic goals are while he is in charge to which he replied, ” Realistically, the goal is to win a championship.  I want to win, make no mistake about it.  What I have to work with here is a good bunch of guys who will fight to the finish, the attitude and morale is still pretty high despite the 1-9 record“.  MacKeown also was very clear to point out that those who do not want to win will not be wearing a Thunder uniform for long.

In his free time, Coach MacKeown said he likes to get in a good workout.  He was quick to point out that his free time is scarce.  He spends time in his office creating ways for this Thunder team to do better.  In fact, Coach MacKeown said he doesn’t have hardly any free time.  He makes his job as head coach a daily and nightly task.

When I asked Coach MacKeown what he watches on TV, he chuckled and informed me that he doesn’t even have cable. 

With the recent loss of Blake Powers with a broken collarbone, MacKeown reflected on the progress Powers made in the Kentucky game.  He has no problems turning to Davon Vinson saying his biggest problem as a quarterback is that he sometimes calls the wrong play in the huddle.  He smiled again, as Vinson was within earshot and probably heard the comment, and picked up his new starter by saying, he is having a great week of practice and I like the pure athletic ability he brings to the table, he is going to have a good week.

To say that Coach MacKeown is all business is an understatement in so many ways.  Thunder fans, know that you have a general in the trenches, the guy is a proven winner and will not put up with anything less than success while he is here.  Coach Brennan Booth and MacKeown will make a great tandem and I hope these two gentlemen stay for awhile.

The Mahoning Valley Thunder trailed Milwaukee 28-7 in the second quarter of their AF2 game Friday.  The Thunder rallied back to tie the game at 34 apiece, but eventually ended up losing the contest, 58-47.  The Milwaukee offense scored 41 of their 58 points in the first and third quarter.  The Thunder failed to score in the final quarter to extend their road losing streak to 17 straight and their 2009 campaigns ninth straight loss. 

Milwaukee QB Todd Hammel threw for 337 yards and seven touchdowns without a fumble or an interception.  Hammel’s main target of the night was Antoine Burns who caught eight passes for 112 yards and three touchdowns.  Burns also added a rushing touchdown for the Iron.  WR Bryan Pray also did damage catching seven Hammel passes for 79 yards and a TD.

Quorey Payne was nothing short of sensational in the loss for Mahoning Valley.  Payne had two special teams touchdowns for the Thunder.  A 50-yard kickoff return and a 50-yard missed field goal attempt yielded big in Mahoning Valleys rally.  Starting QB Davon Vinson played well in defeat throwing for 222 yards on 20-34 passes.Vinson finished the game with five TD’s and one pick.  CJ Brewer stepped up and had twelve receptions for 107 yards and three TD’s.  Hopefully this is a sign of things to come for Mahoning Valley offensively.  Brewer catching that many balls will force opposing defenses to better defend him leaving Payne a little operating space.  If a defense chooses not to worry as much about Brewer, than Vinson -to- Brewer will be a resounding tandem the rest of the season.

The Thunder get back on the bus Friday and head to Albany for their third meeting with the Firebirds on Saturday night.

Penguins played so bad last night, lost their composure and ended up getting smashed by Detroit.  Orlando and LA go back at it tonight.  Here are some stories worth checking out:

• Fanhouse posted a tribute by Mickael Pietrus who wore shoes in Game 1 to honor the fallen of Air France Flight 447.
• Steady Burn brings us the results of the Conan O’brien sports figures lookalike contest.
• AskMen.com brings us 5 things you may not know about Derek Jeter.
• NESW Sports found video footage of a 15 year-old Grant Hill dominating the opponents in a basketball game.
• Detroit4lyfe looks at the beating Detroit gave Pittsburgh in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup.  Sidenote, if Pittsburgh loses this series, I have to write a story on Detroit4lyfe about how Detroit beat Pittsburgh and why they are deserving champions…
• Talk Hoops And Both Teams Played Hard open their E-mails to each other to provide a unique preview for the NBA finals in Cross Polination: NBA Finals Preview.
• My Sports Rumors details the Cavs needs and thinks that Charlie Villanueva may be headed to Cleveland.
• Josh Q. Public takes a look at Randy Johnson, his 300 wins and lists some facts you may not know.
• No Guts, No Glory also features a Randy Johnson story called Randy Johnson’s road to 300, every mullet and moustache along the way.
• Major League Jerk takes a look at a new sport called baby racing.
• Sharapova’s Thigh takes a look at the short career of Hensley “Bam Bam” Meulens in their random retro baseball player segment.
• Sports Rubbish found us an early favorite for idiot of the year: A 41 year-old man who attacked the Special Olympics torch relay.
• The World of Isaac takes a look at what the Cavs have been doing since being eliminated.
• Moondog Sports found a story on a Chinese man who lost his hand in a tug-of-war.

With the 2008-09 Pittsburgh Penguins battling the Detroit Red Wings for the Stanley Cup, I decided to compare this years team to the 1991-92 Penguins team that won back-to-back Stanley Cup championships.  The only common link between the two teams is Mario Lemieux.  Player then, owner now.

The 1991-92 Pens finished third in their conferences regular season and struggled to get by Washington in the first round, winning 4-3.  They then got by the powerhouse Rangers 4-2.  The semis were a cake walk as the Pens swept Boston, and won the championship by sweeping Chicago.

Mario Lemieux led the 91-92 Pens en route to winning the Art Ross & Conn Smythe trophies.  Super Mario had 44 goals and 87 assists, good for 131 points.  The next big dog on that particular team was Kevin Stevens.  Stevens was second behind Lemieux in scoring for the league that year.  Stevens had 54 goals and 69 assists for 123 points. 

The 91-92 Penguins were blessed with offensive talent.  Larry Murphy may have been the best at keeping the puck in the zone during a powerplay.  Jaromir Jagr and Mark Recchi scored frequently.  Ron Francis was nearing the twilight of his career, but was a great second-line center.  Tom Barrasso was in net for the two championships.  The Penguins defense gave up too many points during the regular season in 91-92.  In fact, they gave up more points than everybody in the league besides the Quebec Nordiques and the expansion San Jose Sharks.

The 2008-09 version of the Pittsburgh Penguins has a similar top two on offense.  Evgeni Malkin had 35 goals and 78 assists for 113 points.  Sidney Crosby had 33 goals and 70 assists for 103 points.  This is where the similarities stop on offense in this comparison.  The next highest scorer on the team was Jordan Staal with 49 points.  Sergei Gonchar and Bill Guerin were nice additions and had they played full seasons, I am still not sure this team would even be close to the 91-92 team in overall firepower.

What the 08-09 team does have that the 91-92 team did not get much of is defense.  Brooks Orpik is a bad man.  If this years Penguins had the 91-92 defense, they would be out already.  To hold a powerful Detroit Red Wings team to four third period shots says alot about a defense.

Marc Andre-Fleury is better than Tom Barrasso by leaps and bounds.  Fleury showed in game four he is the real deal at clutch time.

Overall, I have to say the 08-09 team isn’t quite the special bunch that the 91-92 team was.  If they win the cup, then they overachieved with what they had.  Coach Blysma has really been an asset coming in after the All-Star break and really turning things around.  Scotty Bowman is a legend in hockey and had many toys to play with.

Edge: 1991-92 Pittsburgh Penguins

Larry Harrison is one of those guys who can talk about anything.  I have seen him talk to management, coaches, fans, kids, media, and members of his Mahoning Valley Thunder team.  The fact that he can adapt his conversation level to suit who it is he is talking to makes him one of the most charismatic members of the 2009 Mahoning Valley Thunder team.  Larry is one of those people who has the gift of communication piped into his blood.

Harrison is enjoying his time spent in the greater Youngstown area, “I love it here, Youngstown is a football town and the people have been supportive.  I wish we were winning and this place would be full for home games“.  The Thunder are not winning, but Harrison is buying into the “never quit” attitude being pushed by new coach Chris MacKeown.  He has had an impact as a defensive lineman for Mahoning Valley.  I now expect to see him hurry quarterbacks the rest of this season the way he has in the last couple of weeks.

Interestingly, Harrison says his football role model is Reggie White, another charismatic guy that the fans liked.  Larry said he could only hope to be the kind of person Reggie White was both on and off the field.  I see the Reggie in Larry.

Larry watches Sportscenter and CNN.  He has a PS3 and is currently playing the newest Grand Theft Auto game and says he is addicted to first person shooter games.  Harrison admitted to me that his favorite thing to do to relax is sleep.  “I don’t watch that much TV, the best thing to me is a nice nap and a good night of sleep”.

Because Harrison grew up in Detroit, he has to have some Motown in his diverse musical preferences.  “When you grow up in Detroit, you gotta have Motown on at some point”.  Larry also likes Gospel, Blues, Hip Hop, and Rhythm & Blues.

Harrison said he likes to eat at Jeremiah Bullfrogs.  “We have meal card allowances, so the food is free, but it is delicious“.  Larry liked Bullfrogs so much that he said if family or friends came in to visit, he would take them there because it is a nice crowd and they would like the food too.

Hopefully Larry Harrison is a Mahoning Valley Thunder player for a long time.  He, like Quorey Payne, is one of those guys who politely leads by example and smiles when he gets it right.  He is polite and well-spoken and the kids love getting his autograph at the home games.

Watching Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods play in a skins event on the Golf Channel was fun stuff to see.  All the proceeds went to charity and it seemed as though all eight golfers playing at Nicklaus’ course in Dublin had a pretty good time.

Since Jack Nicklaus is the prototype that Tiger Woods is busy trying to overshadow, isn’t it  ironic that Jack would tell Tiger to man up and “quit babying the leg“.  I was stunned when I heard this for a number of reasons. 

First of all, if you want to keep any of your records Jack, be silent and let him baby the leg for awhile.  No need to pour fuel into the car running close to empty during the race.  Poor timing.

Secondly, tell him in private.  Don’t show him up, even if your intentions were pure and good-hearted.

I would bet money that Tiger will make nothing of this out of the respect he has claimed repeatedly for Nicklaus.  Not only that, but he will keep his mouth shut until he breaks all of Jack’s records.

Pirate fans, meet Andrew McCutchen.  McCutchen has been the Pirates #1 offensive prospect over the past couple of seasons.  His time is now.  With the departing of Nate McLouth, McCutchen will have a chance to play every day in the Pittsburgh OF.  Here are some stories from other great sites:

•  Major League Jerk takes a look at the upcoming MLB Draft titled Bud Selig Wants You!
•  Steady Burn pumps the new Lil’ Wayne single called, “Kobe Bryant”.
•  Ballerblogger previews the NBA Finals.
•  A Stern Warning has found the new Vitamin Water commercial starring Dwight Howard. Intentional Foul offers another post on the Dwight Howard Vitamin Water commercial.
•  My Sports Rumors debuts a new feature called the Twitter files, in which some tweets are featured from around the twitter world.
•  Rootzoo posts a great interview clip with Darryl Strawberry speaking about Pete Rose and steroid abuse in the majors.
•  Zoner Sports gives us the scoop on Sammy Sosa saying he will soon formally announce his retirement from baseball.
•  PSAMP invites us to watch a Pittsburgh created dinosaur chow down on an octopus before game 3.
•  Josh Q. Public brings a video clip of Randy Orton wigging out and swearing at a Mexican wrestling commentator.
•  Hugging Harold Reynolds shows us the warning signs that you need to look for to know you need to take a few days off.
•  Pacman Jonesin’ finds the tension between Janice Dickinson and John Salley on I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here.
•  NESW Sports Thursday version of The Interweb: Featuring a funny video of how Shaq is paying for his MMA lessons.
•  Detroit4lyfe found Matthew Stafford decked out in Tiger gear in the broadcast booth at the Tigers vs Red Sox game Wednesday.
•  Total Pro Sports writes about how Floyd Mayweather has no idea who David Beckham is.
•  Sports Rubbish brings us a fight between two Russian womens handball teams.

Nate McLouth has been sent to Atlanta for three minor-league players.  I am not thrilled about the trade as I see it as another dumping of payroll by the Pirates cheap front office.  McLouth was an All-Star and the closest thing Pittsburgh had to offensive consistency.

Internet traffic has mixed reviews.  The Pirate fans are split in the sense that Andrew McCutchen now can be called up and will play very very soon.  Look for that to happen tomorrow.  Some people saw McLouth as an overachiever with a Gold Glove and an All-Star appearance. 

Who’s next?  My guess is either Paul Maholm, or a catcher when Ryan Doumit returns.  I think the Pirates are trying to push Jaramillo’s stock up and will keep Robinson Diaz to back Doumit up.  Then again, who knows if Doumit is safe? 

For the people who liked the trade and think it is wise to take in three 20 and 21 year-old Braves farmhands:  Have you learned nothing since 1990?  Everything good goes away and gets better elsewhere.  Has the Jason Bay thing been forgotten?  Sharpen your pencils, Bonds, Bonilla, Bay, and now McLouth?  Sorry, I don’t buy it unless McCutchen absolutely sets the world on fire when he gets to PNC Park.

The three players the Pirates got in the deal are pitchers Jeff Locke and Charlie Morton, and OF Gorkys Hernandez.

The third leg of the Triple Crown of Horse Racing runs this Saturday.  I really don’t think anyone can overtake Mine That Bird, especially with Borel going for the first ever jockey Triple Crown on different horses.  The question is what horse should you put with Mine That Bird in your Exacta and Trifecta picks?

Here is the field, jockey, and early odds for the 2009 Belmont Stakes :

1. Chocolate Candy (Garrett Gomez)   10-1
2. Dunkirk (Juan Velasquez)   4-1
3. Mr. Hot Stuff (Edgar Prado)   15-1
4. Summer Bird (Kent Desormeaux)   12-1
5. Luv Gov (Miguel Mena)   20-1
6. Charitable Man (Alan Garcia)   3-1
7. Mine That Bird (Calvin Borel)   2-1
8. Flying Private (Julien Leparoux)   12-1
9. Miner’s Escape (Jose Lezcano)   15-1
10. Brave Victory (Rajiv Maragh)   15-1

Calvin Borel is in touch with these horses.  He knows Mine That Bird is a closer running a mile-and-a-half and should blow the field away in this race.  Charitable Man is the same kind of horse as Mine That Bird in the sense that he closes too.  The difference is clearly that Alan Garcia is no Calvin Borel.

Predictions For The 2009 Belmont Stakes

WIN: Mine That Bird

Exacta Prediction: 7-1

Trifecta Prediction: 7-1-6