Fun in the Dunn

One Year--365 days, a handful of full-moons, one day in which you receive an abundance of Facebook congratulations from people whom you no longer associate with, and a world of difference. Think about it, a year ago today we had previously thought that John Travolta only couldn't keep his hands to himself around Olivia Newton John, Cee-Lo Green was Gnarls Barkley, and for all we knew, YOLO was the Yugoslavian-Ottoman Liberty Organization from the Cold War Era.

Things change. Similarly, the expectations for this year's Chicago White Sox were much lower for this year's campaign than they were the year before, and with good reason. Adam Dunn was coming off his worst year as a professional, Alex Rios was barely functional--at bat or in the field--and the Sox consequently hit .252 as a team. This year, however, Sox fans were leery of the Tigers who went out and signed Prince Fielder to add to an already dangerous lineup and a pitching staff that has perhaps the single most dominant pitcher in baseball, Justin Verlander. Not to mention, after a year that featured more Spanish obscenities than a back kitchen at Rosati's pizza, the Sox finally let go of Ozzie Guillen, who then proceeded to demonstrate his unyielding support for one of the most brash and irrational creatures in the modern world. Makes sense.

Instead, they hired Robin Ventura, who can be seen as responsible for the lower expectations for the Men in Black headed into 2012. He was a first-time manager with no in-game experience, but Kenny and Jerry trusted that Rockin' Robin knew baseball; specifically, how it is meant to be played on 35th and Shields.

The Sox impressive first half and consequent division lead has been catalyzed by a variety of hosts--youthful energy from utility men (De Aza and Viciedo), a remarkable young left-hander (Sale), a stellar resurgence from a veteran who was seemingly out of his prime (Peavy), and a couple of household-named mainstays returning to the form they once had in the limelight of their careers (Konerko and Pierzynski). Although all of the contributions of the aforementioned players have been profoundly important in garnering the frist-half AL Central division crown, none of them have been as impressive as what I like to refer to as "The Renaissance of the Donkey". No, it is not a facet of the Chinese Zodiac Calendar, but rather the reawakening of Adam Dunn.

Adam Dunn has proven over the course of time to have one of the most unique skill sets in Major League Baseball; a heftily built outfielder/DH who can miss a pitch by 4 feet and then proceed to hit the following pitch 400 feet into the right field mezzanine. He leads American League hitters in strikeouts by an astounding 24 K's over Carlos Pena. However, he also sits in the top 5 in Walks (1st), Home Runs (3rd), and RBI's (5th). It's hard to imagine that array of statistics to be done in any other sport. That's like Durant winning the scoring title along with the rebounding crown, getting to the charity stripe more so than anyone else in the league, but simultaneously leading the league in turnovers. In my eyes, that's harder to imagine than why Kate left Tom. You know, besides the whole 5'2'' inch Scientologist that is 12 years her senior idea.

What is most impressive about Dunn's resurgence, though, is how he has done so in the face of a full-year of media scrutiny. Truth be told, Dunn was torn apart last year from Comcast Sports Net to The Score, and with good reason. He hit .159 with 11 homers in 2011. Still 159 points higher and 11 more homers than Jordan "JYD" Brodbeck hit in his Junior campaign for the Lake Zurich Bears, but nonetheless career worsts for the Donkey.

Chicago--much like New York, Boston, and Philadelphia--has the unique ability to ruin careers with the suffocation that their fans can allocate on the players who perform in their city. So, what perhaps is most impressive about Dunn is his ability to rise from rags to riches and return to All-Star form like Tony Danza in the Garbage-Picking, Field Goal-Kicking Philadelphia Phenomenon.

In similar fashion, the Sox have revitalized Kevin Youkilis' season and he is proving his mettle in the Sox lineup and producing timely hits and RBI's to an already solid rotation of run producers. Say what you want about Kenny Williams, but anytime you can get what Jonah Hill referred to as "The Greek God of Walks" in Moneyball who looks like he's fresh off the set of American Chopper all in exchange for Zach Stewart, Brett Lillibridge, and Brett Lillibridge's ears, you are doing something right.

Therefore, in adulation and admiration for the so-far, so-good 2012 White Sox, here's a toast to you. Your season has already produced an unrivaled amount of excitement from Hawk Harrelson as he inches towards becoming an octogenarian, but perhaps this season we can even hope for some from Ed Farmer as well. May Konerko and Dunn continue to inspire as the rest of us perspire in this wet, hot, American Summer in the City of Broad Shoulders.

As for Pick of the Day, the Pulse Man is thrilled to be back on duty betting with his heart as he feels the American League will take the Mid-Summer Classic tonight in Kansas City. Addionally, he likes Cutis Granderson to amass more hits and runs than Dan Uggla, who is the All-Star Game's resident goat after his 3 error performance some years back. People don't forget, Dan.

Pick of the Day: American League vs. National League-- AMERICAN (-143)

Now I'm done. Rack me

Frost

The Lost Boy

After being held captive at home for 36 straight hours, I truly feel like a P.O.W. (Prisoner of Weather) Over the course of these last two days, I have subjected myself to some of the most bizarre behavior I could have ever imagined. For instance, I not only watched, but ORDERED "Going the Distance" with Justin Long and Drew Barrymore. After viewing it, and as much as it pains me to say, enjoying it, I told the Pulse Man that the only downfall of the movie was the casting of Drew Barrymore (she was as bad and as unattractive as ever. Plus, she was playing a role at least 8 years her Junior). Intelligently, the Pulse Man replied, "Yea, but it was realistic at least. No one else is dumb enough to fall for Justin Long." The following day provided no more enthusiasm or zest for life from yours truly as I once again found myself watching "A Walk to Remember", a romantic comedy starring Shane West that was made 9 years ago! Now, we all know that I only partook in watching "A Walk.." because of my deep affinity for Mandy Moore and her rousing portrayal of a shy, wholesome SLD (sexy, little demon-shout out El Don). But, her character's ability to see past the flawed, rugged exterior of Landon (Shane West), and see the good in him has inspired me to look at the 2010-2011 season of Luol Deng from an entirely different perspective. I suppose that I'm scratching the bottom of the barrel here, but it was all I could come up with. I should probably lock myself in my bedroom and listen to the "Silver Side Up" album cover to cover only to remind me that things can in fact, become worse.

Think about Luol though, does anyone else receive less of a fair shake than him? Ok, maybe Cutler. But we have burdened Luol with expectations entirely out of his capacity since the Bulls acquired him through the draft as a 19 year old. Every time Deng has a good game, we throw it in our "use him as trade bait" vault like holding onto him is going to cause the entire roster to come down with Trachoma (disease of the Sudan. Don't look it up). Does anyone else see LD as a piece of the Bulls' puzzle that has only fit together for a handful of games so far in this season's first half? In the past, maybe we have set the bar too high for Deng. He was a young-20's kid on a team with less talent than Season 8 of American Idol (the one where Kris Allen won. I know, who?). But now with a bonafide superstar at the point guard position and another All-Star manning the low-block, perhaps this is the best possible situation for Luol Deng to emerge into his potential. How many other 3rd scoring options in the NBA have put up 40 this season? Luol has.

If you think that I'm trying to rationalize his contract with you, I'm not. It's a ludicrous deal. Luol Deng has more money than Davey Crockett, but is that his fault? The Bulls' front office personnel are the feeble-minded morons that gave it to him. Yet when you watch the Bulls in mixed company and Deng misses an open 18-footer, you hear endless insensitive "I wish Leo would have mowed him down in Blood Diamond" jokes that really aren't warranted. This happens every time. Listen for it. People hate Luol Deng. Yet Deng and Bogans are the only two Bulls who have started every game for the division leaders so far this year. Rose might just get the MVP this season and Boozer will probably be an All-Star. Hell, Noah might be the NBA's Defensive POY 4 times before his tenure in Chicago is over, but can you really put a price on a reliable 3rd option? Sure you can, $11,355,850 for 2010-2011. Not a penny more, not a penny less.

As for Pick of the Day, the Pulse Man likes Blake Hoffarber and the rest of the Golden Gophers to clip Indiana in Assembly Hall by more than 3.5 tonight. It's Groundhog Day, why not pull for the rodents?

Pick of the Day: Minnesota (-3.5) @ Indiana- MINNESOTA

Record:(51-36-0)

Now I'm done. Rack me

Frost

Sharper Image

First of all, let me just say that whoever is in charge of making the final decision on the formatting of the NHL All-Star game should be working at Cash for Gold come Monday. I mean, for the love of the sport, find something that works and stick to it. In past years, we've had North America vs. The World, and Eastern Conference vs. Western Conference, establishing some firm allegiances for the players to represent. But this year, they chose to throw the sticks on the ice and have captains choose. Really? What is this? A pre-teen game of capture the flag? And furthermore, could they possibly decide upon two less controversial captains than Nicklas Lidstrom and Eric Staal. If they wanted to capture the nostalgia of Mystery, Alaska, you can't name two frontmen without any personality. Granted, Lidstrom and Staal are two of the best defenseman in the business, that's not even debatable, but they're not going to stir their teams into a frenzy in a meaningless exhibition game. Now, Crosby and Ovechkin, they could do that. But the NHL would never succumb to that wish because that would just be quenching too much of the viewer's thirst, and after all, they're still a major professional sports enterprise.

So with the meaningless teams decided and the goals piling up like Charlie Sheen rehab stints, the NHL's All-Stars casually skated around for a couple of hours and exchanged pleasantries with division and conference rivals. I get it. Hockey is a demanding sport and the NHL is a demanding season, let alone the playoffs. But this game was like watching Billy Elliot on Ice at the Allstate. The only highlight of the game was when Ovechkin blatantly threw his stick at Matt Duchene in an attempt to...I don't know, trip him? Make a joke? Ovechkin! (watch the ending)

Still, with all the crisp passing and playful skating that this game displayed, Patrick Sharp managed to make out with the game's MVP trophy. Honestly, I thought him and Mark Ruffalo switched places and Sharpie went to the SAG awards in some whimsical scheme they stole from an Olsen twins movie. What would you rather have, the NHL All-Star MVP trophy or the SAG award for playing the Best Supporting Actor in The Kids are All Right? Toss up. Either way, the guy who was wearing Patrick Sharp's jersey put the puck in the back of the net on one occasion and also contributed two helpers for "Team Staal". Perhaps this added hardware on Sharp's mantle can spark a spurt for the Blackhawks to become more consistent in the 2nd half. Now that they are finally close to full strength, the Hawks have a viable chance to climb the Eastern Conference ladder to avoid a grueling 7-game series in the playoffs' opening round. I guess we can consider All-Star weekend the highlight of the Blackhawks season so far--a popularity contest in which the homecoming king skated away with the highest award and a new car to get laid in...like he needed it.

As for Pick of the Day, the Pulse Man is now amongst the elite company to win 50 bets in his first 1/2 year of professional betting. For tonight, the Pulse man likes the Jazz giving 3 at home to the Bobcats.

Pick of the Day: Bobcats @ Jazz (-3)- JAZZ

Record:(50-35-0)

Now I'm done. Rack me

Frost