Author: lleonardbw

49ers NFC Championship report: Picking a winner in this one is a real hair splitter

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by David Zizmor

SANTA CLARA–For the third year in a row the San Francisco 49ers are playing for the NFC title and in the last two years their 1-1 so their going for their second trip to the Super Bowl and last Sunday they played a great game against the Carolina Panthers with a few bobbles early but the 49ers righted the ship later in the second quarter and really cruised to a victory and beat Carolina in the end 19-17. The game wasn’t particularily close.

Which is refresing because prior to that the previous three or four weeks there have been some nailbiters for San Francisco and they didn’t have to play a game that went down to the final seconds against Carolina going for the NFC Championship game against the Seattle Seahawks their nemisis, their arch rivals, a team they hate, a team they played already twice this season, a team their looking to win the rubber match against this Sunday at Century Link Field.

They have the season series split so they’re going to play the third and deciding game up in Seattle where the 49ers have had as much trouble winning and it would be facinating to see how San Francisco comes out and approaches this game. This is going to be a tough one. These are the two best teams in the NFL and either way nobody here should be an extreme favorite even if you think one team has a better chance of winning.

You have to admit that one team doesn’t have a bigger advantage over the other these two teams are the in the NFC if not the NFL and your going to see a really tight game and it’s going to be a rough game with a lot of good football. Some people give the 49ers a slight edge and their simply playing better right now over the last month and a half. Seattle’s offense has been in the doldrums part of it is that their passing game has been rather anemic.

Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson was not as great as he was like in October and November when he was lighting up the league. The Hawks have come back to earth a little when it comes to the offensive side of the ball and course they still have Marshawn Lynch whose been running everyone over in the last several weeks in the playoffs but against a team like the 49ers you can’t expect him to do it all by himself.

We saw in December when the 49ers played Seattle for that win the Niners were able to contain the running game and the 49ers had a good passing game for that razor thin victory. The 49ers Michael Crabtree wasn’t much of an impact player in that game. This is a 49ers offense that’s been getting better each and every week in the playoffs and really down the stretch in total. 49ers running back Frank Gore had a great week last week against Carolina, Crabtree and Anquan Boldin have had good games in these playoffs.

Running back Vernon Davis has a handful of touchdowns like he always does, having all those guys healthy and ready to go has made a big difference for this 49ers offense. In everyone of these meetings the 49ers have had the full compliment against Seattle. This is really going to be the first time the 49ers are really going to be at full strength against them. It might make a difference then it might not, Seattle’s defense is really, really good and they have the best secondary in the NFL.

So the curtain raises on Sunday in Seattle at Century Link Field for the NFC Championship, we’ll see whose the best team out of this contest.

David Zizmor covers the NFL for Sportstalk radio

A’s Dallas Braden’s retirement and that unforgettable Mother’s day game

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That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary

OAKLAND–In baseball more than in most things in life, it is all about timing. Stockton lefty Dallas Braden, who with the Oakland Athletics pitched the 19th perfect innings in Major League history says his left arm is done, he cannot pitch again, and at 30 years of age, announced his retirement. “There is nothing in there, it’s just a shredded mess” said Braden announcing his retirement, and now trying to become a coach or sportscaster.

About the perfect game; I can’t forget that game, because it was a wonderful typical clear sunny Sunday afternoon at the Oakland Coliseum, it was Mother’s Day 2010,and I had the pleasure of calling the action. A truly unforgettable game. To make the story even more compelling , Braden’s grandmother was at the game, she who raised him after his mother died while he was in high school.

Such is the beauty of baseball. Dallas Braden(born in Phoenix Arizona, raised in Stockton, California) was not a great pitcher by any means, he ends his career with the A’s with a record of 26-36 and a 4.16 earned run average in a total of 79 games, during a 5 game career with the Athletics.

Don Larsen was a pitcher for various teams for 14 seasons, he ended his career with 81-91 and a 3.78 earned run average, of his 14 years he only had 6 winning seasons, with Baltimore in 1954 he won 3 lost 21, yet on October 8, 1956 with the New York Yankees on the fifth game of the World Series against the Brooklyn Dodgers, he pitched a perfect game, with 97 pitches and retired 27 batters in a row. The only perfect game in a World Series.

On May 9, 2010, during a sunny afternoon at the Oakland Coliseum, Dallas Branden wrote his name in history by throwing the 19th perfect game, beating the Tampa Bay Rays 4-0, in front of 12,228 fans. He will never be inducted into the Hall of Fame, but his name is among a select group of baseball players, in accomplishing one of the most difficult things to do in all sports. Hundreds, if not thousands of pitchers can not say the same.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Spanish radio voice for Oakland A’s baseball and does News and Commentary each week for Sportstalk

Michael Duca on Cal basketball commentary: Healthy and solid Bears team steam rolls ahead

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by Michael Duca

BERKELEY–The Cal Bears came away this past week with wins over Oregon and Oregon State and averaged 92 points a game, the Bears hosted Washington on Wednesday night and will face Washington State on Saturday night. The Bears Justin Cobbs whose averaging 15 plus points a night was voted player of the week in the NCAA and the way he’s playing he could end up being player of the year.

You hope that people around the league are paying attention to when you don’t jump to another league after your freshman year when you actually decide to get an education in the classroom but also an education on the court. That basketball education really pays off too it’s not that unusual to make adjustments at half time. Teams will come out and scheme on you a little bit that you didn’t see something on film or on the scouting report.

The great coaches understand how to adjust and you can overcome a halftime deficit, you could overcome a situation where your team can see what it expected to see and that’s a lot of what went on and Cal head coach Mike Montgomery challenged Cobbs to be more aggressive in shooting the basketball and he still does what he does distributing the ball and grabbing a few key rebounds.

This is a young man who can also score the ball substantially, Cobbs can go out and get you 20-25 points a game a night, those players are not a dime a dozen, you have to take advantage of their skill sets. Going into the season it was thought that the top three were Oregon, UCLA and Arizona, UCLA has stumbled a bit, Oregon has stumbled a bit losing three straight including to Cal.

Cal seems to be consistently improving as the season goes along which is a hallmark of a Mike Montgomery. There’s a lot of conference basketball to play yet, there’s only three games in the books but if Cal is able to take care of things this week against the two Washington schools coming into Haas Pavilion. If Cal gets into a really solid undefeated conference start then we have to begin considering Cal becoming a third member of that three in the Pac 12 conference.

When they look at the original six rotation that are injured right now one of the teams that are currently playing with a solid eight man rotation it’ll be interesting to see how Montgomery deploys that talent and how’s he’s able to rest guys and respond to different defensive looks that the team sees. There isn’t anybody in the conference whose a better tactical coach than Montgomery.

Montgomery has a full quiver of arrows this year were going to see some more unexpected results out there out of that team just like they did in Oregon. So the Bears can’t go down if they win and as simple as that sounds it’s something to remember as the conference began this season if you keep winning nobody is going to get past you.

Michael Duca covers Cal basketball with Morris Phillips for Sportstalk radio

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That’s Amauy’s News and Commentary: 49ers need to go all the way this time

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That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary

SANTA CLARA–The San Francisco 49ers have won eight in a row and if they keep this up they’ll make it to the Super Bowl. They were not as strong as they were at the beginning of the year however the Niners are still very strong and the latest out of Seattle is that their not alllowing anyone from California to buy tickets to the Championship game this Sunday.

Previously the Seahawks have dominated the 49ers by 71 points and the 49ers had only 16. The 49ers have a very good defense and 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick is playing very well. The odds makers have the Seahawks winners by 3 1/2 and this is a shaky three and half.

This game is not going to be decided by the quarterbacks it’s going to be decided by 49ers running back Frank Gore. It’s going to be one of those games when each carry is going to be big, it’s going to be a very tough game and I’m going to make a prediction because I’m looking at the rosters. The 49ers are a little healthier than the Seahawks and we’ll have to see later this week by Thursday whose the healthiest if the 49rs are the healthiest I will pick them to win.

This is going to be one of those games that the Las Vegas oddsmakers are really throwing this one up in the air and of course in the AFC Championship with New England or Denver with the Bronco’s quarterback Peyton Manning and the Patriots Tom Brady. This is hog heaven for the NFL their expecting 40-70 million people watching each game. So it’s great that the NFL is just one step away from finding out whose going to be in the Super Bowl.

Of course in the Bay Area here’s the thing the Warriors up to last week won ten games in a row and the Golden State Warriors are the hottest team in the NBA and they’re almost their in first place in the Pacific thanks to the Clippers. So you have the Warriors going big and the 49ers heading to the Championship. So Bay Area fans are hoping they can go all the way.

In football you play just once a week, in hockey and basketball it’s every other day and in baseball it’s everyday, and a game like baseball is memorable because your playing everyday. In football you only play a hand full of games and a lot of people forget they were in the Super Bowl last year. Why did the fans forget? Because they didn’t win. Forty Niners fans are very frustrated from losing the Super Bowl last season even though they had a terrific season.

It’s another thing right now and I hate to say this if they didn’t win the Super Bowl it’s not a good year for them and I’ve always said this in football it’s 20 games in baseball it’s 162 games in a season. This magnifies the audience on TV so for the 49ers it’s Super Bowl win or bust and the 49ers will have to go all the way this year because most people thought they were going to go all the way last season so they’re going to have to win the next two games to go all the way.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is a talk show host on KIQI 1010 San Francisco and does News and Commentary on Sportstalk radio

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: MLB would like A-Rod to just go away he says otherwise

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That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary

A-Rod was suspended by an arbitrator for the 2014 season without pay, the whole season, and the playoffs (if the Yankees make it that far) The suspension will cost Rodriguez all of the $25 million the Yankees were obligated to pay him for the 2014 season.

But when the suspension ends, Rodriguez will still be owed $61 million through a contract that runs through 2017. Rodriguez will have an incentive to find a way to keep playing. Next July Rodríguez will turn 39.

That means his “comeback” from the game will be around 40. He said he will appeal the 2014 suspension in Federal court, but very rarely in this case an arbitrator’s ruling is overturned. To refresh our collective memories; Barry Bonds hit 73 home runs in the 2001 season at the age of 41. Both A-Rod and Bonds(together with Roger Clemens) are the biggest baseball stars to date to be accused of using steroids and other illegal substances.

Commissioner Selig is retiring following the 2014 season. Under Bud H. Selig’s reign as commissioner, Major League Baseball revenues have skyrocketed to unprecedented levels, television contracts in the billions of dollars, mediocre players, receiving very lucrative deals, but amid all this bonanza, he will also be the Steroids Era Commissioner in history forever. Bud Selig made money for his fellow owners, no doubt about that.

Common sense tells me, that Selig wants to leave the game and retire without Alex Rodriguez playing on the field. You might called a vendetta (ala Commissioner Bart Giamatti and Pete Rose, years ago)or you might say, that it is a coincidence that both A-Rod and Selig would be leaving the game at the same time, I am not a fan of conspiracies, but this one will always be talked about through out history.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the vice president for the Major League Baseball Hispanic Heritage Museum and does News and Commentary for Sportstalk radio

Commentary Michelle Richardson on the NCAA: Why Duke lost to Clemson in shocker

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by Michelle Richardson

Clemson 72 Duke 59: This is the new age for basketball and Duke head coach Mike Krzyewski and there used to be a time that coach K had kids that could mature into the system and it was wonderful in North Carolina but now he’s getting guys who are one and done and some people are leaving before their time and every year he’s had to reteach the Duke system.

Unfortunately the new recruits aren’t necessarily getting it, you got Jabari Parker he’s getting his points but they needed an Austin Rivers and a Seth Curry. They needed more time and Seth might have had more time because he transferred from Liberty. The bottom line is Rivers should have stayed at Duke another year and it would have done Duke good and it would done Rivers good as a player.

That’s the problem with the college game it is losing some of it’s luster and so is the pro game they’re letting kids come in too soon. It’s not about thier age it’s about their level of maturity as athletes and not necessarily as being young men as being professionals. Nobody is taking the time to learn the game any more everybody is trying to run to the NBA.

So Duke and coach K has to realize like any other sport baseball, football, or hockey it doesn’t matter the game changes as you ascend to a better level. Duke losing to Clemson 72-59 to unranked Clemson. Duke is number one at 12-4, 7th in the Atlantic and that’s a lot from an ACC team. That’s really going to hurt them come time for the ACC Playoffs. Duke has Virgina on Monday night at home we’ll see how that game works out.

Arizona still perfecto: The Arizona Wildcats (16-0) are truly finding themselves in the post Lute Olson era and the Wildcats aren’t afraid. You got to like this group of young men that are just not afraid and they have deomonstrated that with a razor shave close game in UCLA for a four point 79-75 win on Thursday night. You have to realize with the Bruins new coach Steve Alford you have kids trying to learn their system.

It’s kind of difficult to get things started when you don’t know what’s expected of you and it doesn’t matter if your half way through the season it’s still a new system. Arizona is trying to make things happen their not holding off. The Wildcats are number one in the country their not taking any prisoners. Wildcats guard Aaron Gordon is in it to win it and it’s really great to see Arizona head coach Sean Miller getting these young men to know their role who are playing solid basketball on both ends of the court.

Michelle Richardson does commentary on the NCAA each week for Sportstalk radio

Warriors new arena at Piers 30-32: Favorable polls show 75% want new downtown arena

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by Ken Gimblin

SAN FRANCISCO–A recent poll sampling showed that out of 400 potential San Francisco voters 75 percent of them would be in favor of a new downtown arena at Peirs 30-32. The Golden State Warriors are gearing up to start their campaign for a new arena and get it on the ballot. They need 9,702 registered San Francisco voter signatures by February 3rd to get the measure on the June ballot.

The Warriors new arena campaign manager Jim Stearns feels this is acheivable and with a little more than two weeks left to make deadline Stearns said that the campaign finance goal of up to $100,000 and if the opposition turns up the heat he can get more that where that came from, “we’re going to need between $75,000 to $100,000 to get the signatures and if there is deep pocketed opposition we’ll have more.” said Stearns.

If Stearns and the Warriors campaign were to get the 9702 signatures they will put a ballot proposal that could be in front of the San Francisco voters by as early as June. The opposition which consists of former San Francisco mayor Art Agnos and the Sierra Club are taking steps to a new Warriors arena, but they could consider also stopping a high rise development proposed at AT&T Park by the San Francisco Giants and the Warriors would have luxury condos across the Embarcadero near Piers 30-32 that would include a brand new hotel building.

Not to mention that Pier 70 in the Dog Patch neighborhood just off Third Street is proposing high rise development there that would include housing and retail. Agnos said that blocking the bay views and developing and changing the waterfront landscape should be stopped in protecting what environment and what views the waterfront has left, “it’s a reaction to what appears to be the unchecked granting of exemptions of City Hall for high rise luxury developments along the city owned waterfront, if these projects are good as they say, then they should have no problem.” said Agnos.

Agnos’ point stemming from the 8 Washington condo ballot measure last November in the form of the San Francisco propositions B and C went down to defeat in the proposal for development on the waterfront not too far away from piers 30-32. However Warriors spokesman Nathan Ballard is confident in not only the recent poll results but if the Warriors pursued the signatures to get the meausre on the next ballot the Warriors would have no problem getting them, “we are confident when the voters see the entire (arena) proposal, they will support it.” said Ballard.

The Giants who stand to be the only show in town after the 49ers leave for the South Bay want to develop part of their parking lot property to high rises, condos, shopping retail and other activity along the waterfront but with the Warriors new arena coming on the scene the Giants might be forced to take a side because of all the opposition to the over development of the area. The plot thickens stay tuned.

Ken Gimblin is covering the arena developments for the Golden State Warriors and the Sacramento Kings for Sportstalk radio

Larry Leavitt on Pro Hockey commentary: Improved offense gets Bulls rally in ovetime victory Saturday

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by Larry Leavitt

DALY CITY–The Alaska Aces have a lot of speed and they brought it to the Cow Palace and the best part of hockey is watching the team speed, they have a lot of speed and have very good passing and their back playing the San Francisco Bulls for three games this weekend. The interesting thing about it is seeing the Aces right winter Peter Sivak a former Bulls player back playing against his former team.

Sivak is a very skilled player and Bulls head coach Pat Curcio is wondering why Sivak didn’t get resigned again because he definitely is a playmaker. The Bulls who have been involved in two one goal games losing Friday 3-2 and winning on Saturday 6-5 are focused on playing more of a stable game, their not an ebb and flow peak high. The Bulls are very stable.

Alaska outskated them and the Bulls hung in there and hanging in will get you opportunities and you never know what happens. The interesting thing about the game on Saturday night was the 6-5 victory for San Francisco and they set a team record scoring four goals in 1:31 all unanswered. The Aces took the lead 3-0 all in the first period, the Aces came out and scored a goal in 18 seconds in the first period.

The Bulls looked down and out but in the second period before you know it if you went to get a beverage or two and came back to your seat it was 3-3 and they caught fire. You can’t count a team out when they finally get pucks to the net. They’re going to rebound or they’re going to be putting them back in, the Aces gave up the fifth goal to tie it up 5-5 for the Bulls and went into overtime as the Bulls won it 6-5.

San Jose Sharks update: The Sharks are coming off a very good game against the Detroit Red Wings they played exceptionally well against the Detroit Red Wings last Thursday in a 4-1 win. The Wings are a very tough team and this was a game that the Sharks can get help from the fourth line and the Sharks center Andrew Desjardins made a beautiful play off the boards shot towards the net and scored at 9:44 of the second period to put the Sharks on top 2-1.

The Sharks Joe Pavelski scored two goals in that game for numbers 20 and 21 of the season and the power play worked for the Sharks as Dan Boyle who scored at 16:28 in the second period for the Sharks fourth and final goal of the night. Looking at the positive side for the Sharks they had up to five forwards that were out at one time between the surgeries of Brett Burns, Raffi Torres with a lower body injury, Tyler Kennedy is out and Tommy Wingels was out he energized that team and gave the Sharks something that they were missing when they were in Colorado last week.

The Sharks now prepare for the road trip in Washington, Florida and Tampa Bay and it just seemed like they were back east with Chicago and Colorado last week and then they flew home and they fly all the way east again. The Sharks need to get better on the road, they’re taking over the switch in the Pacific but Anaheim is doing a decent job but it’s not sure that they could hold on for the entire season.

Larry Leavitt does commentary weekly on Pro Hockey for Sportstalk Radio

Kings downtown arena: U.S.Bank attorney not on board with eminent domain plan

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by Ken Gimblin

SACRAMENTO–George Speir an attorney from Chicago representing U.S.Bank partner of the Macy’s building ownership. Macy’s is located at the west end of Westfield Mall downtown plaza. Speir has objected to eminent domain reasons given by the Sacramento city council to force emient domain and for U.S. Bank to sell it’s share of the former department store building to the city.

The city council enforced emient domain through a 7-2 vote on Tuesday that will force U.S.Bank and CalPERS to sell their shares of the property to allow the Sacramento Kings to build their training facilities near the new arena at the mall.

Speir argues that the U.S.Bank has niether received an offer from the city for the property and Speir wrote that the “public interest and necessity do not require the project.” The city council said eminent domain could be enforced if it benefits the region economically and brings jobs to Sacramento.

Does this mean that U.S.Bank will hold out for more, Spier says the bank has not received an offersheet since the last bid that was made on the property last year when the Kings wanted to buy the Macys building but withdrew after the Kings nearly moved to Seattle. The NBA later ruled in favor of Sacramento to keep the Kings and fast forward to today the city and the Kings are asking U.S. Bank and CalPERS to sell or face emient domain.

Once it was decided to keep the Kings in Sacramento the city has been trying to negotiate with the building owners but neither side has been able to settle on final sale price. Speir is the only hold out at this point as CalPERS is on board with selling their share to the city in statement from CalPERS spokesman Brad Pacheco, “CalPERS has no objection to the city’s right to acquire the property through eminent domain, we recognize the significance of the city’s downtown redevelopment efforts and are eager to find a resolution that is in the best interests of everyone involved including our members, the city of Sacramento and the tenant of the property.”

Sacramento city attorney James Sanchez said that the city did forward an offersheet for the property to U.S.Bank last September. Speir says that he nor U.S.Bank received an offersheet from the city. There had been talks through the summer between U.S.Bank and the city about purchasing the property and sources tell Sportstalk that the city nor U.S. Bank can come to an agreement on a price. U.S.Bank is not satisfied with the amount being held in escrow by the city which came from the Kings at $4.3 million.

The city is holding the money also as part of a pre construction agreement that was made at the time of new owners purchase of the team regarding construction budgeting. The city which is also facing an anti arena group Sacramento Taxpayers Opposed to Pork or STOP who are trying to put an initiative on the ballot that asks voters to approve public monies for all facilities built for sports or entertainment.

The eminent domain legal costs are not part of the $258 million city contribution for the $448 million new arena costs. The $4.3 million came from the Kings to be held in escrow for the property purchase which U.S.Bank says they need to see a new offersheet.

The city now must present the eminent domain case in front of judge, the city must prove that the city would benefit economically in order to force the sale and a move on the building owners. City Council members who voted for the arena say that the property is necessary for the completion of the new arena and training facility for the Kings.

The two council members Darrell Fong and Kevin McCarty voted against the eminent domain proposal and Fong said that the arena doesn’t “cross the threshold” for eminent domain.

Ken Gimblin is covering the new arena proposals for both the Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors for Sportstalk Radio

Michael Duca on Cal basketball: Oregon big test for Cal offense; Bears will need all their shooters

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by Michael Duca

BERKELEY–The Cal Bears (10-4) next game coming up in Eugene against Oregon (13-1) is a very ranked team and they seemed to conserve every bit of it. I was up there when Cal was up there a few years back.Oregon has built this team up to be a successful club but dont look no further than Arizona (15-0) who is number one in most poll ratings in the country and they could be the Pac 12’s top winner this season.

UCLA (12-2) has an extremely good team this year, USC (9-5) were beat by UCLA 107-73 last Sunday and UCLA’s total score is like the combined score of some NCAA games. The Bears who beat Stanford (9-4) last Thursday 69-62 is always a good thing coming away from Maples Pavilion to come back with a W. Maples is a tough, tough place to play.

If its not your band being shouted down by one that doesn’t seem to actually be playing beautiful notes but still manages to make a lot of noise or your tiny contigent of fans tucked up in a corner completely outnumbered by the Stanford fans. Stanford is a hostile place for Cal to go play even though its their shortest road trip.

Its their tougest game and its a very positive thing to come out with that win at Stanford last Thursday going into this game. Two years when I was up in Oregon they had a enthusiastic crowd with a maybe a half built arena. No matter how good basketball gets in Oregon it’s never going to beat football and football is the sport they live and die for.

You can’t buy a football ticket ten years out but basketball tickets you can walk up and get, if they don’t sell out they never will because Oregon has an awfully good team. The best thing about Cal’s offense is balance lately Tyrone Wallace has been the guy whose been doing the scoring and led the team last Thursday with 20 points.

Nobody at Cal is upset to see that, there going to be a better team and they can develop a lane based offense and get some outside shooting. They have the big guys inside, they can go inside but their going to open up the floor a lot more and turn it into an inside out game taking a low post pass and repeating out to an open man once the defense starts to collapse towards them.

For Cal in this game scoring is not going to be the issue as getting stopped by the Ducks. Oregon is a team that you don’t want to try and catch when your ten or 15 points behind.

Michael Duca and Morris Phillips cover Cal Basketball for Sportstalk Radio