Online Poker Freerolls, Roger Clemens is a Yankee (no, really?), and more Kobe Bryant talk

(Disclaimer: The following blog entry may contain sports-like substances)

So I'm sitting at a Texas Hold'em Freeroll tournament with 138 other entrants. The prize pool is $1,000, with a top prize of $260, and even 20th place earns $14. I normally don't play well in freerolls, because there are always a bunch of nutjobs moving all-in with any two cards, doubling or even tripling up, and then bullying the table with their big stacks.

Hopefully I get some nice hands today. So far I've seen T9o (ten-nine offsuit, or of different suits), 82s (eight-two suited), and 63o, not exactly premium hands.

Ooooh...I finally got to see a flop...with a mighty 62s!

- So Roger Clemens is going to be a Yankee, and what a way to announce his "comeback": by showing up at a Yankees game, during the seventh-inning stretch, and feeding his massive ego by making the announcement from the owner's box. My thoughts on the story:

1. No freaking duh! Anyone who thought Clemens was going to Boston or the Astros must have been smoking something. Besides, he has (a prorated) twenty-eight million reasons to rejoin the Yankees. Anyone who thinks he's there for anything else other than the money couldn't be more wrong. Think about it: if family--his son is a catcher for the Astros, and he lives in Texas--were so important, then the fact that the Astros stink this year wouldn't have dissuaded him from playing in Houston this year.
2. I love the mudslinging between Yankee fan and BoSox fan. Yeah, as if the cesspool that is NY or the whining babies that make up BoSox Nation (paraphrases, by the way, not my own opinions!) are relevant in the discussion. And if I hear one more suggestion that Roger Clemens and BFF Andy Pettitte should go to San Francisco and get married, along with Derek Jeter and A-Rod, I'm going to puke.
   
3. What, exactly, are the Yankees getting for their $20+ million? A 45-year-old pitcher who had a very low ERA the last two years--it helps to pitch in the National League, and who still has dominating stuff. They're also getting a 45-year-old with recurring hamstring problems, whose last memorable pitching performance was one where he had to leave early in the game with an injury. Oh yeah, did I mention this was going to cost the Yankees $20+ million?
4. Then again, what else could the Yankees have done? They certainly didn't need another bat, and what pitchers are available in the trade market that is of the caliber of Roger Clemens?

Enjoy NY, Clemens. I'm glad you finally chose a team; now I no longer have to see your mug on my TV, as you struggle to decide with which team you are going to join. Just admit that you chased the money, then pack your bags and move quietly to NY, pitch up to your abilities, and let's see if you were, indeed, the missing piece to get the Yankees back to the World Series. Of course, asking the guy to shut up and NOT feed his massive ego is a tall order, I understand.

I should mention that I'm making this post not as a Yankee hater, but as a "Roger Clemens, GTFOMTV (Get The **** Off My TV)" fan.

(Hey, I actually saw a face card this time! My gosh, I'm so card dead right now!)

(OMG! I actually won a pot! And I won it with J3o!)

- Jason Kidd to the Lakers? Why the Lakers didn't make the deal for Kidd during the season was puzzling; I just don't think Andrew Bynum is going to develop into a superstar. Now that there is speculation that Bynum is on the trading block, it begs the question: why weren't they willing to trade Bynum during the season, but now they're willing to deal him? I understand the inclusion of overpaid C Jason Collins--actually, the terms "overpaid" and "center" are almost redundant nowadays--was also a big reason for the trade not happening, but Jason Kidd would have been perfect for the Lakers. He's a big guard, can shoot (not well, but he does shoot well in the clutch), and would fit very well in the triangle.

(I love freerolls. I had QQ and went all-in, and was called by KQ, 87, and AK. The idiot with KQ won with a straight on the turn.)

Not to mention, have you seen the guy in this postseason so far? He's playing out of his mind! With his family troubles, the pending move of the Nets to Brooklyn, and Wince Carter's pending free agency, now would be as good as time as any for the Nets to consider rebuilding. The likelihood of a Kidd-to-LA deal looks bad, though, since the Lakers lost one major bargaining chip (Chris Mihm's expiring contract), and it sounds like they're going to have to include Lamar Odom in any deal for Kidd. How about Lamar Odom, Kwame Brown, and Andrew Bynum for Kidd, Jason Collins, and a draft pick? No way can the Nets expect to get a draft pick from the Lakers, if the Lakers have to take on Collins' albatross of a contract. The only other trade, which I can't see the Nets taking, would be Kwame, Vlad Radmanovic, Bynum, and Evans (or a pick) for Kidd.

Sounds like a third team must get involved for Kidd to join the Lakers.

That's all for now. Until next time!