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Monday, July 3, 2017

Something To "Mitch" About


Well, it didn't have the ending Rider Nation wanted, but you can't say the 1st official CFL game at Regina's Taj Mahal wasn't entertaining.

The question now is "Where do you stand on this Riders team that is 0-2?".  If there was frustration after the loss in Montreal, I'm guessing there were some who wanted to jump off the Hill Towers after the OT loss to Winnipeg.  A Twitter poll I am running says 63 percent of you as of the time of this writing are still optimistic, and that's a good thing. 

Once again, it was a nightmarish night for Tyler Crapigna. He knows and so do others that the team wouldn't have the record they do if he makes end-of-game kicks.  I'll give him credit though. It didn't last long, but when myself and others swooped in on him, he stood there and answered the questions. He had a chance to run and hide, but he took account for it. I have to wonder if Dave Ridgway might have had an opportunity to speak with him after. He would be the perfect guy to give a peptalk.

The negativism against Kevin Glenn somewhat confuses me. Yes, he threw two INT's, but he also threw for almost 400 yards. He threw 4 TD's and he brought the team back in the 4th quarter.  If Brett Smith did that, you would be celebrating.  If Brandon Bridge or Marquise Williams did it, you would be buying their jersey. Did KG let Weston Dressler and others constantly get behind him? Did KG fumble a kickoff at the 9? Did he miss a kick in OT?  Criticizing his performance is somewhat puzzling. His age means nothing either. He should have 2 wins on his resume this year or at least a win and a tie!

--How big was the smile on Weston Dressler’s face at game’s end.  I don’t think Dressler did a Durant at the end of this game, but you have to think he was smiling like a butcher’s dog.  The one big mistake Chris Jones has made since his arrival in Regina was in this humble blogger’s opinion was letting number 7 go.  I sometimes wonder if  Jones has realized that. The guy can still play. It’s something all of us know. Some had mentioned to me it would be somewhat poetic if Dressler was the first player to score a TD in the new stadium.  He wasn’t, but he might have been the player of the game.  By the way, it still doesn’t look right seeing him on a CFL field not wearing green. I don’t know if it ever will.  

--Where would the secondary be if Justin Cox had not had a legal issue crop up and Marc-Olivier Brouillette not retired? 

-- As for Jones. the knives continue to be out on him. That is understandable, as patience is wearing thin and no one wants to seemingly be a part of a rebuild, but if you want him gone as many of you seemingly do, then who should step in midseason? Who? Getting rid of Jones means you are right back at square one.  Is that what you really want? If so, the team is no further ahead. This team is better than the 2016 version. They have gone right down to the last play in both games before the verdict has been determined.  Be frustrated all you want, but pull back just a little and put the torches and pitchforks away. If these results were double digit losses and there were no signs of encouragement. go hard with the hate, but that isn't happening.  






THE FIRST NIGHT -  If you didn’t know how grand of a building Mosaic Stadium was before, you do now. I received a text from Edmonton just after kickoff last night from a friend who had only seen the outside of the building and not the inside.  He asked “It can’t be THAT nice can it?”   Yes it can!  Walking around before the game, you could see the excitement of people as they just gawked. Who’s kidding who. I was one of them. I walked down into Pil Country before the game started. I have to be down there during a game at some point.  

I was on the concourse level getting some 50-50’s when I realized I wouldn’t be able to get back up to the press box in time before the Riders came out. I went and stood near the Riders entrance and it was sooooooo loud. So much louder than the old Taylor Field.  When this team starts to win, there will be no team who wants to come in here. 

How about the 50/50. 554 thousand dollars!! Yes the jackpot started at 100 grand and to tell you the truth I thought the jackpot would end up in the 250-300 thousand dollar range.  It was at that by kickoff wasn’t it? We’re in an economic downfall and money is tight right?  Not on this night it appeared. Did anyone NOT buy a ticket? Did anyone also notice the figure slowly started to go down and not up at the end?

Weather-wise. It was perfect. Can we pre-order some more of those. The forecast is calling for 33 degrees when the Ti-Cats visit town next Saturday night.  It will be a great night for football!! 

I am guessing whoever won could not care one bit that the Riders lost.  If it was 554 grand for this game, what will it be for the next game. It obviously won’t start at 100-thousand like it did for this game, but could we expect a 300-400 thousand dollar jackpot for the Hamilton game The bar has been set.  Meanwhile, someone is trying to figure out what to do with 277-thousand dollars that he didn't walk into Mosaic Stadium with. What a nice problem to have!!

I wonder if the Argos had a 50/50 that started at 100-thousand if the total purse would end up being 110-thousand? Just sayin! 

NHL FREE AGENCY -   The Winnipeg Jets really gave Dmitri Kulikov 13 million over four years?  That was one of the thoughts that popped up as my phone went crazy with the announcement of one signing after another.   Other thoughts:

--The Jets are still a good goalie from getting into the playoffs. Is Steve Mason the answer?

--The Stanley Cup champion Penguins were decimated losing many players. The core guys are still there, but they lost a lot of depth.

--The Chicago Blackhawks appear to show no sign of wanting to remain as a Western Conference powerhouse. Their salary cap problems may have finally caught up with them.

--When will the aging Jaromir Jagr and Jarome Iginla sign with anyone? Will they? Could this be it for them? I have to think someone will offer a one year deal to both.

--Can we put the Lightning down for another Stanley Cup seeing Chris Kunitz is now with them? Cups seem to follow him as we've seen.

--Patrick Marleau in Toronto? I did not see that coming!

--Carey Price signs a monster deal in Montreal which is great for the Habs, but it doesn't answer the question as to who is going to score for them come playoff time.

BYE BYE BLUE JAYS - Toronto baseball fans, there will be no playoff baseball for your club this year. Put the blame on that directly on whoever decided to let Alex Anthopoulos go. Mark Shapiro and Ross Atkins have basically destroyed the team.

Yes, they were good enough last year to get back to the playoffs, but the moves that have been made along with some injuries have killed the team this year. What now? There isn't a lot you can deal away while keeping an eye on the future. You are not getting rid of Aaron Sanchez and Marcus Stroman. You would be crazy to send Josh Donaldson elsewhere. You may be able to get some good prospects for Roberto Osuna, but he is still young.

Will anyone want Tulowitzki's contract. No one wanted Bautista in the off-season, and I'm guessing that is still the case.

It's ugly Blue Jays fans, and it's not getting better anytime soon.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HITMAN -  Not only did Canada turn 150 on Saturday, but the "Excellence of Execution" turned 60. Happy Birthday to Bret "Hitman" Hart....a Canadian treasure and a Canadian icon!






20 comments:

Anonymous said...


Note to all Crapigna haters: The guy kicked 3 game winning FG's last year and the Riders won 5 games.

Anonymous said...

Note to Scruffy;
The unorganized, dysfunctional group known as the Saskatchewan Roughriders rest entirely on Chris Jones' shoulders. He scouted them, he signed them and he's coaching them.
Further on in your blog you state that Mark Shapiro and Ross Atkins have wrecked the Blue Jays.
Well give credit where credit is due. Chris Jones has single handedly wrecked the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

BB

Anonymous said...


Marleau signing with the Leafs is an indication that the agenda by Babcock has been accelerated.

Toronto is going to be a top 4 team in the East next year and a viable Cup contender.

Anonymous said...


How can anyone criticize Glenn? That's moronic! QB's will throw interceptions from time to time. Those INT's had no outcome on the game.

You are right when you talk about the secondary, but shouldn't the great John Murphy have connections to find us good DB's. Why is Kevin Francis on this team? Why was Mike Edem signed? Can Mr. Murphy explain that? Yes, to be fair he did bring in Cox, but there was obviously no character check done on him

If the DB's can get their s**t together, this team will be fine. There are too many braincramps happening. Jones is right when he says he has to be better, but having some DB's who have a clue would help.

Rick

Bill Eng said...

Hey BB, the Riders were 3 - 15 in 2015. The Canadian talent was weak and the coaching was not CFL calibre. The salaries were totally poorly distributed. Rebuilding this team will take time.

Anonymous said...

The one event that killed the Riders against the Bombers was that 15 yard penalty applied on the kick-off after Rider#45 did a horse collar tackle on Dressler well after he crossed the goal line. What an incredibly dumb decision. It immediately lead to the fumble on the kick-off which was recovered thanks to the 15 yard advantage the Winnipeg cover team had getting to Morris near the goal line. The Rider players need to smarten up fast.

Anonymous said...

A goalie that makes 40 saves but lets in two soft goals isn't a good goalie. Kevin Glenn is footballs version.

Anonymous said...

The INT's had not outcome on the game?

So the fact he three one n the last minute of the half and the Bombers scored a field goal? The entire game is built on a sequence of events. That's sports!

Anonymous said...

Note to BB. Instead of just complaining lets hear your ideas of who the team should have hired as GM, Head Coach and what ideas you have after you fire Jones. Lets hear who you would suggest as GM, Head Coach and Director of Player Personnel. We are all waiting.

Larry Binder said...

The Alex Anthopoulus era in Toronto needs to be remembered for what it was in its entirety, not just its last year. The Jays record for when AA was the GM:
2010: 85-77, 4th place in AL east, 11GB
2011: 81-81, 4th place, 16GB
2012: 73-89, 4th place, 22GB
2013: 74-88, 5th place, 23GB
2014: 83-79, 3rd place, 13GB
2015: 93-69, 1st place, 0 GB

AA's first 5 years as GM could hardly be called successful. The only year the team was moderately successful was in 2015 when he literally and figuratively sold the farm. I don't consider making the playoffs as a success; playing in or winning the World Series can be deemed as a successful season. The current administration was left with a farm system void of almost all talent, traded for the very Tulo contract you are now bemoaning and the rental David Price as well as others. Beeston and AA knew it was their last year in TO and did everything in their power to get back to the World Series and they still fell short.

Anonymous said...

The onky thing wrong with Bret Hart is his hometown!

Anonymous said...

Yeah kunitz is the key to Tampa's Stanley cup aspirations haha

Anonymous said...

Saskman 02. You are right with the #'s, but let's go further.

Rogers did not give the Jays the payroll for AA to compete until 2015. It allowed him to get some assets and make some great trades. What did they give up for Travis again?

The 2015 team was set to make noise again in 2016, but the new regime didn't want to keep Price. They let Revere go and let Lowe go.

FF to the end of the 2016 season and both Saunders and Encarnacion aren't re-signed. The Blue Jays had a chance again to compete this year, but blunders up top screwed it up and now Toronto is where they at. Put the blame on Atkins/Shapiro.

Richard

Anonymous said...


BB is like many others. Quick to want change, but not willing to put his own ideas on the table.

Anonymous said...

To the impatient one:
You and Scruffy could do a better job than Jones and Murphy.
I'm sorry I didn't get back to you earlier but I have to work for a living.

BB

Larry Binder said...

Richard,
Granted, Rogers never gave AA a large payroll to build a team but a GM, in five draft years, should be able to produce more than a handful of major leaguers...Stroman, Sanchez, Syndergaard, Osuna and Pillar.
AA did pull off a major win in trading for Josh Donaldson but he also had his fair of share of miscues:
- signing Dickey at the absolute highest point in his career for way too much money. Although he was an innings eater, he was hardly an ace or achieved Cy Young type of numbers again. Not worth the money he was signed to.
- trading away Syndergaard
- trading for Josh Johnson and Jose Reyes
- signing Russell Martin to a contract thru 2019. If you think his .213/.369/.368 line is bad now, wait until this time in 2019
- he did trade one bad contract (Reyes) for another (Tulo), although Reyes has shown he is willing to work with his current team to do what is best for the team; play any position / bench player / platoon. Tulo shows no such willingness to accept such a role.

I'm very glad Shapiro / Atkins did not re-sign Saunders. Six months after he signed with the Phillies, he was DFA due to a lack of hitting and is back in the Jays AAA team with the Phillies picking up a majority of his salary.

Your other two examples have both struggled since leaving the Jays proving that the Jays were smart not to pay them. Mark Lowe lasted one year with Detroit after leaving the Jays and he shouldn't even lasted that long. His numbers were horrible and is now with the Mariners minor league team. Revere was traded to the Nationals and couldn't hit and is now a fourth outfielder with the Angels.

I was not impressed when Encarnacion was not re-signed but it could be debated that the current Morales / Smoak duo is better and cheaper than Smoak / EE.

Shapiro / Atkins are hardly a dream president / GM and have shown they do make mistakes but AA has a suspect record at best. Given his lack of success in the draft and some questionable signings / trades, I just don't hold him in such of a high regard as others do.

Anonymous said...

BB

Too busy in the drive-thru tonight?

Anonymous said...

I'll bet Patrick Marleau has one very upset wife.

Anonymous said...

To BB

Come on BB you can do better than a dumb comment. Let's hear who you really think would be a better choice. The reality is you just like to bitch. No substance just whining. Am I wrong? Well let's hear from you when you are off work. I can wait.

Anonymous said...

Okay I'll quote myself.

I said, "Chris Jones has singlehandedly wrecked the Saskatchewan Roughriders."

Can you deny that

BB