Tommy Hunter has broad shoulders and a barrel-sized chest, which is good. The Rangers' hopes of evening the World Series are riding on the 24-year-old right-hander tonight.
Hunter has not pitched into the fifth inning in either of his two postseason starts, though he pretty much dismissed his struggles when asked about them after Saturday night's game. Simple command issues, he said. "I'm excited to get back out there," he said.
Rangers manager Ron Washington offered a little more insight. "When Tommy can command his fastball, his other pitches can come into play," Washington said. "He's not a power pitcher. He's a pitcher that relies on command."
In both of his starts, Hunter was bailed out by quality efforts from Derek Holland. But Holland struggled so much in Game 2 that Washington might not go to the young left-hander so early. He does not have many other choices, though, given the trouble that Mark Lowe has encountered in both of his outings—he’s allowed five runs and only gotten two outs in the World Series.
If not Holland, Washington likely will go with hard-throwing Alexi Ogando, who struck out four and allowed only one hit in a two-inning outing in Game 1. Ogando, though, has been known to over-throw in tight situations.
Burrell, Sandoval out
Giants manager Bruce Bochy has not tinkered much with his lineup through the postseason but he's made some changes for Game 4. They make sense.
Out is Pat Burrell, who struck out in eight of his nine at-bats through the first three games. “It will give Pat a chance to work on some things, and get his timing back,” Bochy said. “Expect to see him tomorrow. He understands. He admits his timing if off a little bit. I told Pat my thinking. He?s fine. He’ll be ready to come up and pinch hit tonight."
Out after one game at DH is Pablo Sandoval, even though the Rangers are starting another right-hander. In his first start of the World Series, Sandoval grounded into a double play, struck out and flew to center in Game 3.
In are Travis Ishikawa at first base and Nate Schierholtz in right field. Aubrey Huff will DH and Cody Ross moves over to left. The starts will be the first of the postseason for Ishikawa (2-for-7 in the postseason) and Schierholtz (2-for-8). Both had RBI hits in the eighth inning of the Giants' Game 1 victory.
“This gives our lineup a little more balance with a couple of more left-handed hitters,” Bochy said. “Gives us a legitimate DH in Aubrey Huff, who has experience in doing that. It tightens up our defense."
Jeff Francoeur will start in right field again as the Rangers go with their standard lineup vs. left-handers. The Giants are starting 21-year-old Madison Bumgarner, who was the winning pitcher in the NLDS clincher against the Braves and who pitched two scoreless relief innings in the clinching victory over the Phillies in the NLCS.
Sunday, October 31, 2010
White House Opens Doors to Washington Trick-or-Treaters
President Obama and his wife, Michelle, are welcoming area children and military families to celebrate Halloween at the White House Sunday evening.
Local students between 6 and 14 years old, along with children from military families, were invited to trick-or-treat their way across the North Lawn.
No tricks are scheduled, but participants will receive treats: a box of White House M&Ms, a sweet dough butter cookie made by pastry chef Bill Yosses, and dried fruit.
During the festivities, the children can meet spooky costumed characters, including Dracula and Frankenstein, and watch a pumpkin-carving demonstration.
Later, the military families will continue the celebration inside the White House.
Late Sunday afternoon, workers were busy putting the finishing touches on the decorations as Obama returned to the White House from a campaign trip.
Multicolored pumpkins and gourds lined the driveway -- individually, in gravity-defying stacks and as part of a large mound over five feet tall. Pumpkin-headed scarecrows made of cornstalks loomed over the path with menacingly raised arms. Under the White House portico, a mobile resembling bats flying through clouds fluttered around a lantern.
Some of the local children are students at Bancroft Elementary, which helps tend the first lady's White House garden, and Tubman Elementary, which has a relationship with the White House chefs.
Last year, the Obamas stood outside the White House front door chatting and passing out cellophane goody bags. The president, dressed in casual clothes, was one of the few not in costume. Mrs. Obama wore furry cat ears and a leopard-patterned top.
Over the years, the winter holidays have been the ones to get the full treatment at the White House, with Christmas trees and tinsel all around.
The Obamas are not the first, though, to show Halloween spirit.
President George H.W. Bush and first lady Barbara Bush hosted 500 children on Halloween in 1989, loading them up with fun loot but also teaching them about the dangers of drugs. In the Clintons' first year in the White House, a huge orange jack-o'-lantern was formed around the front entrance to the White House, with the front door to the mansion serving as the middle tooth.
Local students between 6 and 14 years old, along with children from military families, were invited to trick-or-treat their way across the North Lawn.
No tricks are scheduled, but participants will receive treats: a box of White House M&Ms, a sweet dough butter cookie made by pastry chef Bill Yosses, and dried fruit.
During the festivities, the children can meet spooky costumed characters, including Dracula and Frankenstein, and watch a pumpkin-carving demonstration.
Later, the military families will continue the celebration inside the White House.
Late Sunday afternoon, workers were busy putting the finishing touches on the decorations as Obama returned to the White House from a campaign trip.
Multicolored pumpkins and gourds lined the driveway -- individually, in gravity-defying stacks and as part of a large mound over five feet tall. Pumpkin-headed scarecrows made of cornstalks loomed over the path with menacingly raised arms. Under the White House portico, a mobile resembling bats flying through clouds fluttered around a lantern.
Some of the local children are students at Bancroft Elementary, which helps tend the first lady's White House garden, and Tubman Elementary, which has a relationship with the White House chefs.
Last year, the Obamas stood outside the White House front door chatting and passing out cellophane goody bags. The president, dressed in casual clothes, was one of the few not in costume. Mrs. Obama wore furry cat ears and a leopard-patterned top.
Over the years, the winter holidays have been the ones to get the full treatment at the White House, with Christmas trees and tinsel all around.
The Obamas are not the first, though, to show Halloween spirit.
President George H.W. Bush and first lady Barbara Bush hosted 500 children on Halloween in 1989, loading them up with fun loot but also teaching them about the dangers of drugs. In the Clintons' first year in the White House, a huge orange jack-o'-lantern was formed around the front entrance to the White House, with the front door to the mansion serving as the middle tooth.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Oden’s practice brings some optimism
Here it is, folks, the moment we’ve all been … wait a minute, who is that?
The preseason has evaporated, games of true significance are upon us, and … hold on, who are those reporters swarming?
The Blazers host the Phoenix Suns tonight in their regular-season debut, a night the city of Portland has marked on its calender since … what? Greg Oden practiced?! And ran some 5-on-5, too?! Since when has Christmas landed in fall?
Two vibes emerged from Blazers practice Monday: Anticipation toward a definite, and enthusiasm toward an as-soon-as-possible.
Yes, the Blazers will meet Phoenix at the Rose Garden tonight, and players and coaches’ thoughts on the matter will appear in a few paragraphs.
But there was also a certain 7-footer interacting with teammates in a way he has not for 10½ months.
Oden, who ruptured his left patella last December, practiced “lightly” Monday and took part in half-court 5-on-5 drills.
Does this mean he’s zeroing in a return date?
No.
But it was an important step — even if that step was painful and nerve-racking.
“I was worried, but it was fun,” said Oden adding that the knee was “a little stiff” after practice. “Your first time out there you look around, head on a swivel, everyone’s moving fast … just being a little cautious about it. It takes a long time to trust it like you really want to.”
Oden said he found out he was practicing, “When coach said, ‘Get out there.’ ”
He went about 75 percent (as instructed by coach Nate McMillan) and said he felt like “the weak link out there, but I was still out there.”
Despite the progress, which he said was more mental than physical, Oden still offered no timetable as to his return, saying only: “Whenever I feel like I can compete with the best.”
Nic Batum and Wesley Matthews feel that way now.
Batum tweaked his neck in the Blazers’ final preseason game last Thursday and Matthews has been out the past couple exhibitions with a sore Achilles. Both, however, are expected to play against the Suns tonight.
And what about that Suns team?
Phoenix may have lost All-Star forward Amaré Stoudemire to the Knicks this offseason, but McMillan said the Suns’ style of play will remain the same.
They are still going to run.
Still going to launch 3s.
Still going to give Nash full control of the offense, which is dangerous no matter how undersized they may be.
But the opponent appeared to be of less significance to the Blazers than the stakes. After all, for the first time since May, Portland is playing a game that counts.
“For the first game of the season, I’m always really excited,” Brandon Roy said. “I’m looking forward to going out there and playing well and improve on the season before.”
Roy downplayed the idea that Phoenix ousting the Blazers in the first round of last year’s playoffs has morphed this into a “rivalry” game. He just thinks the Suns are a quality opponent for which his team is prepared given their recent practices.
McMillan agrees.
The sixth-year coach paused, smiled, and said: “We’ve had a good camp. It’s been good. We’ve been getting in what we want to get in in terms of our defensive rules and our offense. It’s time to go.”
Apparently, it was time for Jerryd Bayless to go, too.
The former Blazers’ guard was shipped to New Orleans for a conditional first-round draft pick Saturday. In addition to giving rookie point guard Armon Johnson more minutes, McMillan said the trade provides “an opportunity” for Roy and Matthews to spend more time in the backcourt together.
According to Roy, this does not necessarily mean more minutes for him, but he will often be the point guard when not sharing the court with Andre Miller.
Roy is not complaining.
“I’m very comfortable with that. I’m a 2 (shooting guard) a lot because of my size, but I think naturally I’m a ballhandler. I’m a creator,” Roy said. “I wouldn’t call myself a 1 (point guard), but I wouldn’t say I’m a pure 2, either. I’m a combo guard.”
When Matthews was asked about his comfort level as a point guard, the swingman responded: “As I’ve said before with positions — I’m comfortable on the court. If that means playing point, OK. If that means playing the 4, I can do that, too.”
Notes
• The Blazers officially signed center Fabricio Oberto on Monday. The 35-year-old Argentine, who won a title with the Spurs in 2007, will wear No. 21.
• Portland also signed Australian point guard Patty Mills, but waived forward Jeff Pendergraph, who tore his ACL in the second preseason game.
The preseason has evaporated, games of true significance are upon us, and … hold on, who are those reporters swarming?
The Blazers host the Phoenix Suns tonight in their regular-season debut, a night the city of Portland has marked on its calender since … what? Greg Oden practiced?! And ran some 5-on-5, too?! Since when has Christmas landed in fall?
Two vibes emerged from Blazers practice Monday: Anticipation toward a definite, and enthusiasm toward an as-soon-as-possible.
Yes, the Blazers will meet Phoenix at the Rose Garden tonight, and players and coaches’ thoughts on the matter will appear in a few paragraphs.
But there was also a certain 7-footer interacting with teammates in a way he has not for 10½ months.
Oden, who ruptured his left patella last December, practiced “lightly” Monday and took part in half-court 5-on-5 drills.
Does this mean he’s zeroing in a return date?
No.
But it was an important step — even if that step was painful and nerve-racking.
“I was worried, but it was fun,” said Oden adding that the knee was “a little stiff” after practice. “Your first time out there you look around, head on a swivel, everyone’s moving fast … just being a little cautious about it. It takes a long time to trust it like you really want to.”
Oden said he found out he was practicing, “When coach said, ‘Get out there.’ ”
He went about 75 percent (as instructed by coach Nate McMillan) and said he felt like “the weak link out there, but I was still out there.”
Despite the progress, which he said was more mental than physical, Oden still offered no timetable as to his return, saying only: “Whenever I feel like I can compete with the best.”
Nic Batum and Wesley Matthews feel that way now.
Batum tweaked his neck in the Blazers’ final preseason game last Thursday and Matthews has been out the past couple exhibitions with a sore Achilles. Both, however, are expected to play against the Suns tonight.
And what about that Suns team?
Phoenix may have lost All-Star forward Amaré Stoudemire to the Knicks this offseason, but McMillan said the Suns’ style of play will remain the same.
They are still going to run.
Still going to launch 3s.
Still going to give Nash full control of the offense, which is dangerous no matter how undersized they may be.
But the opponent appeared to be of less significance to the Blazers than the stakes. After all, for the first time since May, Portland is playing a game that counts.
“For the first game of the season, I’m always really excited,” Brandon Roy said. “I’m looking forward to going out there and playing well and improve on the season before.”
Roy downplayed the idea that Phoenix ousting the Blazers in the first round of last year’s playoffs has morphed this into a “rivalry” game. He just thinks the Suns are a quality opponent for which his team is prepared given their recent practices.
McMillan agrees.
The sixth-year coach paused, smiled, and said: “We’ve had a good camp. It’s been good. We’ve been getting in what we want to get in in terms of our defensive rules and our offense. It’s time to go.”
Apparently, it was time for Jerryd Bayless to go, too.
The former Blazers’ guard was shipped to New Orleans for a conditional first-round draft pick Saturday. In addition to giving rookie point guard Armon Johnson more minutes, McMillan said the trade provides “an opportunity” for Roy and Matthews to spend more time in the backcourt together.
According to Roy, this does not necessarily mean more minutes for him, but he will often be the point guard when not sharing the court with Andre Miller.
Roy is not complaining.
“I’m very comfortable with that. I’m a 2 (shooting guard) a lot because of my size, but I think naturally I’m a ballhandler. I’m a creator,” Roy said. “I wouldn’t call myself a 1 (point guard), but I wouldn’t say I’m a pure 2, either. I’m a combo guard.”
When Matthews was asked about his comfort level as a point guard, the swingman responded: “As I’ve said before with positions — I’m comfortable on the court. If that means playing point, OK. If that means playing the 4, I can do that, too.”
Notes
• The Blazers officially signed center Fabricio Oberto on Monday. The 35-year-old Argentine, who won a title with the Spurs in 2007, will wear No. 21.
• Portland also signed Australian point guard Patty Mills, but waived forward Jeff Pendergraph, who tore his ACL in the second preseason game.
Blake Griffin sparks Clippers, who trail at half
Halftime: Portland 54, Clippers 49
Blake Griffin is making his presence known on both sides of the court; how that will ultimately translate into wins and losses for the Clippers remains to be seen. But the sense at Staples Center is that the No. 1 overall pick out of Oklahoma from 2009 is going to be a difference maker.
A minute into the second quarter, Griffin drove hard down the right side and scored on a layup, and 40 seconds later he fed DeAndre Jordan inside with a quick pass down the lane. Jordan was fouled and made both free throws to bring the Clippers to within one, 31-30.
Griffin showed some outside shooting touch with an 18-footer from the left side at the 8:54 mark, though the Clippers still trailed by five.
Griffin fed Eric Gordon for an easy inside bucket to cut Portland's lead to 40-38 with 6:07 remaining. And Gordon's driving dunk with 5:11 gave the Clippers a 41-40 lead after Rasual Butler had made a free throw after a technical foul.
Butler's three pointer made it 44-40 soon thereafter, but a couple of Portland baskets erased that lead.
Griffin's line at the half: 13 points on six-for-nine shooting, seven rebounds, one assist and no turnovers.
Brandon Roy leads the Trail Blazers with 18 points, including a three-pointer at the halftime buzzer.
End of first quarter: Portland 31, Clippers 23
What's the big deal about Blake Griffin? Well, if someone who can jump high enough to see eye to eye with fans in the 300 level at Staples Center and move with the quickness of light is a big deal, Griffin is a big deal indeed. OK, that's a little hyperbolic, but you get the idea.
Griffin showed that the yearlong wait to get him onto the court was worth it with his early play in the Clippers' opening game Wednesday night against the Portland Trail Blazers.
Clippers fans, filling most of Staples Center, roared when Griffin scored his first two points in a regular-season game at the 8:38 mark. On a breakaway, Randy Foye fed Griffin, who was driving down the lane, and Griffin went high to catch the ball with one hand and slam the ball through.
Just a minute later, Griffin drove for a layup from the right side, and 40 seconds after that, he slammed home a left-handed dunk off a rebound, and L.A. basketball fans began to see that the guy many followers think is a favorite for rookie of the year has some skills that haven't been seen in a Clippers uniform for some time.
Griffin, who sat the last three minutes of the quarter, ended with period with nine points of four-of-six shooting and five rebounds, four of them on the offensive boards. After he sat, though, Portland extended its lead.
Griffin, of course, missed all of last season after injuring his knee before the regular season. He showed no ill effects in the early going.
The Clippers opened with Baron Davis at the point, Eric Gordon at the other guard, Ryan Gomes at forward and Chris Kaman at center, along with Griffin. Gordon sat three minutes into the game after committing his second foul.
Blake Griffin is making his presence known on both sides of the court; how that will ultimately translate into wins and losses for the Clippers remains to be seen. But the sense at Staples Center is that the No. 1 overall pick out of Oklahoma from 2009 is going to be a difference maker.
A minute into the second quarter, Griffin drove hard down the right side and scored on a layup, and 40 seconds later he fed DeAndre Jordan inside with a quick pass down the lane. Jordan was fouled and made both free throws to bring the Clippers to within one, 31-30.
Griffin showed some outside shooting touch with an 18-footer from the left side at the 8:54 mark, though the Clippers still trailed by five.
Griffin fed Eric Gordon for an easy inside bucket to cut Portland's lead to 40-38 with 6:07 remaining. And Gordon's driving dunk with 5:11 gave the Clippers a 41-40 lead after Rasual Butler had made a free throw after a technical foul.
Butler's three pointer made it 44-40 soon thereafter, but a couple of Portland baskets erased that lead.
Griffin's line at the half: 13 points on six-for-nine shooting, seven rebounds, one assist and no turnovers.
Brandon Roy leads the Trail Blazers with 18 points, including a three-pointer at the halftime buzzer.
End of first quarter: Portland 31, Clippers 23
What's the big deal about Blake Griffin? Well, if someone who can jump high enough to see eye to eye with fans in the 300 level at Staples Center and move with the quickness of light is a big deal, Griffin is a big deal indeed. OK, that's a little hyperbolic, but you get the idea.
Griffin showed that the yearlong wait to get him onto the court was worth it with his early play in the Clippers' opening game Wednesday night against the Portland Trail Blazers.
Clippers fans, filling most of Staples Center, roared when Griffin scored his first two points in a regular-season game at the 8:38 mark. On a breakaway, Randy Foye fed Griffin, who was driving down the lane, and Griffin went high to catch the ball with one hand and slam the ball through.
Just a minute later, Griffin drove for a layup from the right side, and 40 seconds after that, he slammed home a left-handed dunk off a rebound, and L.A. basketball fans began to see that the guy many followers think is a favorite for rookie of the year has some skills that haven't been seen in a Clippers uniform for some time.
Griffin, who sat the last three minutes of the quarter, ended with period with nine points of four-of-six shooting and five rebounds, four of them on the offensive boards. After he sat, though, Portland extended its lead.
Griffin, of course, missed all of last season after injuring his knee before the regular season. He showed no ill effects in the early going.
The Clippers opened with Baron Davis at the point, Eric Gordon at the other guard, Ryan Gomes at forward and Chris Kaman at center, along with Griffin. Gordon sat three minutes into the game after committing his second foul.
The unkept promise of Greg Oden
Greg Oden is everything he has been accused of being. He has missed so many games as to be certifiable as a horrible disappointment. (Is the Kevin Durant vs. Oden debate on hold, or dead?)
At the same time, as promised, in those times he has been on the court, he has produced, as promised, like the best young big man in the game. Even through the awkwardness of getting used to the league -- he has played just a season's worth of games -- he was a top-10 NBA player, according to PER, in his 21 games of last season. He is also one of the best young rebounders in NBA history.
But none of that matters when he's nursing an injury on the bench, as he's doing, once again, for the foreseeable future.
"It's all right," he says of his left knee, which has recovered from a broken kneecap, but is now burdened with "jumper's knee," a kind of tendinitis. "It has its good days and it has its better days. After a workout it gets a little stiff but that happens with everybody. Just a little bit more with me because of the equipment I have in there. Just normal stuff. After I work out, it's pretty sore, but I keep it moving.
"Whenever I feel that it's ready, and that I can go out there and do all the things that I'm capable of doing, that's when I'm going to come back. I'm not going to put a date on it, because that puts a lot of pressure, and usually just hypes up the media, because if I don't come back on that date they make it a big problem, and ask why didn't you come back on this day. I try to stay away from that."
Pressure is not Oden's thing. Not now. He admits, for instance, that he does not have the thickest skin when it comes to criticism.
"In the media, from the little bit that I have read ... there's not a lot of pity. There are some people, usually older people who have been around, or people who really know basketball. Other people in the media are usually like 'well, stop getting injured.' You know, like I can control it. Like I'd go out there and want to get injured. I don't know how to really look at that. I just go on and do what I do and try not to listen to it. Because if you listen to it, it's really discouraging. People out there in the media, people who talk trash -- that stuff hurts."
At the same time, as promised, in those times he has been on the court, he has produced, as promised, like the best young big man in the game. Even through the awkwardness of getting used to the league -- he has played just a season's worth of games -- he was a top-10 NBA player, according to PER, in his 21 games of last season. He is also one of the best young rebounders in NBA history.
But none of that matters when he's nursing an injury on the bench, as he's doing, once again, for the foreseeable future.
"It's all right," he says of his left knee, which has recovered from a broken kneecap, but is now burdened with "jumper's knee," a kind of tendinitis. "It has its good days and it has its better days. After a workout it gets a little stiff but that happens with everybody. Just a little bit more with me because of the equipment I have in there. Just normal stuff. After I work out, it's pretty sore, but I keep it moving.
"Whenever I feel that it's ready, and that I can go out there and do all the things that I'm capable of doing, that's when I'm going to come back. I'm not going to put a date on it, because that puts a lot of pressure, and usually just hypes up the media, because if I don't come back on that date they make it a big problem, and ask why didn't you come back on this day. I try to stay away from that."
Pressure is not Oden's thing. Not now. He admits, for instance, that he does not have the thickest skin when it comes to criticism.
"In the media, from the little bit that I have read ... there's not a lot of pity. There are some people, usually older people who have been around, or people who really know basketball. Other people in the media are usually like 'well, stop getting injured.' You know, like I can control it. Like I'd go out there and want to get injured. I don't know how to really look at that. I just go on and do what I do and try not to listen to it. Because if you listen to it, it's really discouraging. People out there in the media, people who talk trash -- that stuff hurts."
DURANT, WESTBROOK HELP THUNDER GET PAST BULLS
Kevin Durant scored 30 points and grabbed seven rebounds while Russell Westbrook totaled 28 points, 10 rebounds and six assists, leading Oklahoma City to a 106-95 victory over Chicago in the season opener for both teams at the Oklahoma City Arena.
Durant connected on just 9-of-24 shots from the field but made 11-of-13 from the line as the Thunder made 38 foul shots en route to the victory -- including 12 from Westbrook. Jeff Green scored 21 for the hosts, who are coming off a 50-win season and first-round playoff defeat to the defending champion Lakers.
Derrick Rose scored 28 points, but made only 12-of-31 shots, and handed out six assists. Joakim Noah scored 18 points and grabbed 19 boards for Chicago, which fired head coach Vinny Del Negro after a 41-win season and first-round exit from the playoffs at the hands of the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Tom Thibodeau suffered the loss in his NBA head coaching debut.
James Harden's three put the hosts ahead 82-80 with 24.2 seconds left in the third before CJ Watson's jumper evened the score heading into the final 12 minutes.
Both teams struggled to post points during the first half of the fourth quarter before the Thunder pulled away in the final four minutes.
Rose's off-balance jumper pulled the visitors to within 93-91 with 3 1/2 minutes to go, but that was the closest the Bulls got the rest of the way.
Westbrook hit two foul shots to push the lead to four and then took a feed from Thabo Sefolosha that led to a dunk. The ensuing foul shot completed the three-point play to make it a 98-91 game with 2 1/2 minutes left.
Durant drove the right baseline for a dunk to extend the lead to nine with just under two minutes left before Sefolosha intercepted a Rose pass and was fouled en route to a breakaway, giving him two free throws and the subsequent possession to the Thunder.
Sefolosha hit 1-of-2 from the line before Green's three-pointer with 89 ticks left capped an 11-0 burst that sewed up the victory.
Oklahoma City led 30-25 after the first quarter behind 12 from Durant, despite making only 9-of-22 shots from the field. The hosts went 11-of-13 from the line in the opening 12 minutes to forge the lead.
Green scored 14 in the second quarter to help the Thunder take a 59-54 lead at the break. Rose scored 20 of his points before intermission.
Game Notes
Green connected on 7-of-17 from the floor...Forward Nick Collison, who did not play during the preseason due to a lower leg stress reaction, did not play for the Thunder...Oklahoma City was 22-8 against the Eastern Conference last season...The Thunder were 31-16 last year when Durant scored 30 or more...Oklahoma City was 27-14 as the host last season...Taj Gibson added 16 points, on 8-of-12 shooting, and grabbed 11 rebounds for Chicago...The Bulls are 24-21 in their history on Opening Night, including a 12-11 mark on the road...Chicago finished 17-24 away from home last season.
Durant connected on just 9-of-24 shots from the field but made 11-of-13 from the line as the Thunder made 38 foul shots en route to the victory -- including 12 from Westbrook. Jeff Green scored 21 for the hosts, who are coming off a 50-win season and first-round playoff defeat to the defending champion Lakers.
Derrick Rose scored 28 points, but made only 12-of-31 shots, and handed out six assists. Joakim Noah scored 18 points and grabbed 19 boards for Chicago, which fired head coach Vinny Del Negro after a 41-win season and first-round exit from the playoffs at the hands of the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Tom Thibodeau suffered the loss in his NBA head coaching debut.
James Harden's three put the hosts ahead 82-80 with 24.2 seconds left in the third before CJ Watson's jumper evened the score heading into the final 12 minutes.
Both teams struggled to post points during the first half of the fourth quarter before the Thunder pulled away in the final four minutes.
Rose's off-balance jumper pulled the visitors to within 93-91 with 3 1/2 minutes to go, but that was the closest the Bulls got the rest of the way.
Westbrook hit two foul shots to push the lead to four and then took a feed from Thabo Sefolosha that led to a dunk. The ensuing foul shot completed the three-point play to make it a 98-91 game with 2 1/2 minutes left.
Durant drove the right baseline for a dunk to extend the lead to nine with just under two minutes left before Sefolosha intercepted a Rose pass and was fouled en route to a breakaway, giving him two free throws and the subsequent possession to the Thunder.
Sefolosha hit 1-of-2 from the line before Green's three-pointer with 89 ticks left capped an 11-0 burst that sewed up the victory.
Oklahoma City led 30-25 after the first quarter behind 12 from Durant, despite making only 9-of-22 shots from the field. The hosts went 11-of-13 from the line in the opening 12 minutes to forge the lead.
Green scored 14 in the second quarter to help the Thunder take a 59-54 lead at the break. Rose scored 20 of his points before intermission.
Game Notes
Green connected on 7-of-17 from the floor...Forward Nick Collison, who did not play during the preseason due to a lower leg stress reaction, did not play for the Thunder...Oklahoma City was 22-8 against the Eastern Conference last season...The Thunder were 31-16 last year when Durant scored 30 or more...Oklahoma City was 27-14 as the host last season...Taj Gibson added 16 points, on 8-of-12 shooting, and grabbed 11 rebounds for Chicago...The Bulls are 24-21 in their history on Opening Night, including a 12-11 mark on the road...Chicago finished 17-24 away from home last season.
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
National Weather Service explains high number of tornado warnings
Tuesday, schools and day care centers across West Michigan were canceled as tornado sirens blared and people braced themselves for what was to come. The National Weather Service issued six tornado warnings, an unusually high number. After the storm passed, producing what is considered minimal damage, many residents were frustrated.
It started coming into the area about 8:00 a.m. or 9:00 a.m. It was very fast moving and ended up leaving our area by about 1:00 p.m.," said TJ Turnage, a meteorologist with The National Weather Service.
Turnage says they were tracking storms, moving as fast as 60 miles per hour, mainly by radar. He says the issued the warnings based on what they were seeing.
"Which was evidence of rotation within each of these storms," he said. "We had not gotten any reports but that doesn't mean nothing had happened. So right now we have people out surveying the areas where it looked particularly interesting on radar. And a lot of these storms of interest were going over fairly unpopulated areas, so that might have had something to do with it."
He says they are always concerned about "over" or "under" warning people about weather events. However, with a system as potentially nasty as this one was, he feels they took appropriate action.
"Well you will see circulation on radar at times and it doesn't produce a tornado. That definitely does happen. And given the information we have with radar data and other things we don't have absolutely perfect picture of what is going on. So there are certainly times when tornado warnings do not result in tornadoes. But if we issue a tornado warning that means we think it is a very serious threat and people still should take protective actions," said Turnage. "Just because you don't have anything going on at the first time you hear of the warning does not mean you are out of danger. For example today we had storms that were moving 60 miles an hour so you may not have anything going on but within 10 minutes or so you could have some serious stuff going on."
It started coming into the area about 8:00 a.m. or 9:00 a.m. It was very fast moving and ended up leaving our area by about 1:00 p.m.," said TJ Turnage, a meteorologist with The National Weather Service.
Turnage says they were tracking storms, moving as fast as 60 miles per hour, mainly by radar. He says the issued the warnings based on what they were seeing.
"Which was evidence of rotation within each of these storms," he said. "We had not gotten any reports but that doesn't mean nothing had happened. So right now we have people out surveying the areas where it looked particularly interesting on radar. And a lot of these storms of interest were going over fairly unpopulated areas, so that might have had something to do with it."
He says they are always concerned about "over" or "under" warning people about weather events. However, with a system as potentially nasty as this one was, he feels they took appropriate action.
"Well you will see circulation on radar at times and it doesn't produce a tornado. That definitely does happen. And given the information we have with radar data and other things we don't have absolutely perfect picture of what is going on. So there are certainly times when tornado warnings do not result in tornadoes. But if we issue a tornado warning that means we think it is a very serious threat and people still should take protective actions," said Turnage. "Just because you don't have anything going on at the first time you hear of the warning does not mean you are out of danger. For example today we had storms that were moving 60 miles an hour so you may not have anything going on but within 10 minutes or so you could have some serious stuff going on."
The first live images of the forthcoming Playstation Phone manufactured by Sony Ericsson and powered by Android have surfaced.
The preliminary specifications for the device consist of the 1GHz Qualcomm MSM8655 (part of the Scorpion series of chips) 1GB of ROM, 512MB of RAM, the display is between 3.7 to 4.1 inches in diameter with a 16:9 aspect ratio and in a break with tradition, features a microSDHC slot.
The early hardware also features a sliding gamepad with the familiar Playstation layout, with the exception of a multi-touch analog pad between the directional pad and action keys.
The phone is expected to be released with Android Gingerbread along with a new storefront developed in cooperation with Google for the delivery of games to the device in a bid to compete with Apple’s surging position as a gaming platform.
Release timeframes had been previously predicted for Winter of this year in time for the holidays, but a 2011 release is now likely, due to the early state of the Android build being used and the need to launch the new storefront alongside the hardware.
Adobe: 10 Million Flash Installs Soon; AIR Extending To Three Screens
Adobe (NSDQ: ADBE) says its Flash player on mobile phones has exceeded its own expectations by achieving two million downloads on Android devices since releasing it in June and now expects the browser-based technology to hit 10 million installs by the end of the year—many coming preloaded on new devices like the Samsung Galaxy Tab.
See more of our latest Google coverage.
Now, it’s also extending its application-based technology, called Adobe AIR, from the desktop to the three screens. The company’s moves give it a foothold to work from as content is consumed on various devices—spanning from the Internet on the mobile phone to applications on the TV.
Today’s announcements were made at Adobe’s MAX developer conference, and were supported by big names, like Condé Nast, which said they will formally rely on Adobe tools to craft digital replicas of its magazines for devices, such as the iPad.
Adobe said AIR 2.5 can be used to build applications across multiple platforms, including mobile OSes, like Android, iOS and BlackBerry’s upcoming tablet, but also traditional desktop environments, including Windows, Mac and Linux. It also is being used on TVs. Samsung will be the first TV manufacturer to ship Adobe AIR in its line of SmartTV devices in 2011. The AIR 2.5 platform has been quietly live on Android for a couple of weeks, and so far, has seen 300 apps published, said Adobe’s Danny Winokur. Right now, AIR is a little behind on the iOS platform because Adobe had abandoned developing for it when Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) banned technologies like AIR. Adobe has since resumed development when Apple changed its mind.
In addition, Adobe said today it will not only help developers make apps, but will assist in getting their applications to market. Adobe InMarket will allow developers to distribute to multiple app stores at once. For now, the InMarket solution is integrated with Acer, Intel (NSDQ: INTC), BestBuy and others, but no big names like iOS or Android (although it could conceivably get there…).
Winokur said using AIR will make it “very easy” to make an application that will work across multiple platforms. Some alternations could be made depending on the device, such as integrating a camera, multi-touch location or an accelerometer. Otherwise, “use the same logic and the same visual assets…We are finally really getting to the point, and realizing the vision that we set out a couple years ago to reach—with a single app—a multiple screen audience and navigate between the phone, desktop, tablet, and while viewing on the couch.”
As always, Adobe’s business model stays the same. It’s licensing its technology free of charge to any member of the Open Screen Project, and will give away the basic development tools to developers. For higher-end professional tools, such as Adobe Creative Suite, developers will have to pay a fee.
See more of our latest Google coverage.
Now, it’s also extending its application-based technology, called Adobe AIR, from the desktop to the three screens. The company’s moves give it a foothold to work from as content is consumed on various devices—spanning from the Internet on the mobile phone to applications on the TV.
Today’s announcements were made at Adobe’s MAX developer conference, and were supported by big names, like Condé Nast, which said they will formally rely on Adobe tools to craft digital replicas of its magazines for devices, such as the iPad.
Adobe said AIR 2.5 can be used to build applications across multiple platforms, including mobile OSes, like Android, iOS and BlackBerry’s upcoming tablet, but also traditional desktop environments, including Windows, Mac and Linux. It also is being used on TVs. Samsung will be the first TV manufacturer to ship Adobe AIR in its line of SmartTV devices in 2011. The AIR 2.5 platform has been quietly live on Android for a couple of weeks, and so far, has seen 300 apps published, said Adobe’s Danny Winokur. Right now, AIR is a little behind on the iOS platform because Adobe had abandoned developing for it when Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) banned technologies like AIR. Adobe has since resumed development when Apple changed its mind.
In addition, Adobe said today it will not only help developers make apps, but will assist in getting their applications to market. Adobe InMarket will allow developers to distribute to multiple app stores at once. For now, the InMarket solution is integrated with Acer, Intel (NSDQ: INTC), BestBuy and others, but no big names like iOS or Android (although it could conceivably get there…).
Winokur said using AIR will make it “very easy” to make an application that will work across multiple platforms. Some alternations could be made depending on the device, such as integrating a camera, multi-touch location or an accelerometer. Otherwise, “use the same logic and the same visual assets…We are finally really getting to the point, and realizing the vision that we set out a couple years ago to reach—with a single app—a multiple screen audience and navigate between the phone, desktop, tablet, and while viewing on the couch.”
As always, Adobe’s business model stays the same. It’s licensing its technology free of charge to any member of the Open Screen Project, and will give away the basic development tools to developers. For higher-end professional tools, such as Adobe Creative Suite, developers will have to pay a fee.
Google Android hits 100,000 application milestone on Android Market
Google has passed another important landmark in their quest to conquer the mobile market - we're looking at the Android Market surpassing the 100,000 application mark, which is notable, but it doesn't really put a dent in Apple's App Store where total number of apps are concerned. Of course, purists would argue about the amount of shovelware in the App Store (the Android Market is not exempt either), but for the sake of numbers, the Android Market is still far behind by more than two thirds. We would say that this bodes well for the Android platform and it shows that you don't need a closed hardware ecosystem to do well, where Microsoft might want to take a page out of Google's book with their Windows Phone 7 launch.
Monday, October 25, 2010
NU women's lacrosse to play at Cowboys Stadium
Northwestern will play a game next year at Dallas Cowboys Stadium.
The Northwestern women's lacrosse team, that is.
The Wildcats, NCAA runner-up last year after winning the previous five national titles, will meet William & Mary on March 19 at 7 p.m. in the Texas Taj Mahal.
The teams last met in 1991. Northwestern is 2-4 against William & Mary, having lost the final four games in the series.
William & Mary's top player, senior defender Sarah Jonson, and Northwestern's Taylor Thornton, who started as a freshman, both played prep lacrosse at the Hockaday School in Dallas.
The Northwestern women's lacrosse team, that is.
The Wildcats, NCAA runner-up last year after winning the previous five national titles, will meet William & Mary on March 19 at 7 p.m. in the Texas Taj Mahal.
The teams last met in 1991. Northwestern is 2-4 against William & Mary, having lost the final four games in the series.
William & Mary's top player, senior defender Sarah Jonson, and Northwestern's Taylor Thornton, who started as a freshman, both played prep lacrosse at the Hockaday School in Dallas.
A Walkman Obit: Remembering the portable player
The Walkman, the Sony cassette device that forever changed music listening before becoming outdated by digital MP3 players and iPods, has died. It was 31 years old. Sony announced on Monday that it has ceased production of the classic, cassette tape Walkman in Japan, effectively sounding the death
knell of the once iconic, now obsolete device. The Walkman is survived by the Discman (still clinging to life) and ironic music listeners who think using a Walkman in this day-and-age is charmingly out-of-touch.
It will continue to be produced in China and distributed in the US, Europe and some Asian countries. Digital Walkmans are also being made with models that display lyrics and have improved digital noise-canceling technology.
Still, if you're looking to chisel a date in the Walkman's tombstone, then Oct 25, 2010, is as good as any. For many, that it's taken this long is surprising: "They were still making those?" Perhaps Oct 23, 2001, the day the iPod was launched, is the better date of expiration.
But none of the success of Apple's portable music players would have ever happened without the cassette Walkman. Some 220 million have been sold since the first model, the TPS-L2, debuted in July 1979. (It retailed for $200.) At the time, transistor radios were portable, but there was nothing widely available like the Walkman. It was developed under the stewardship of Sony founders Akio Morita and Masaru Ibuka. Morita insisted the device not be focused on recording but playback, a relatively odd notion at the time. Originally called the "Soundabout" in the US, the Walkman was an immediate sensation and a revolution in music listening. Foremost, it was portable. Music no longer needed to be something that one experienced sitting in a room, but could be blasted on the bus, pumped while jogging on a beach or played softly while studying.
By turning the volume up, anyone could be tuned out. The detached teenager with foam earphones slouched in the back seat or bobbing his head in the elevator became an indelible image of the `80s. (The first Walkman did have an orange "hot line" button to lower the music and increase the microphone so you could hear someone talking to you.)
Music, previously listened to in a room with shag carpeting and a stereo, was cast into the world, made a part of daily life. Pink Floyd could join a walk in the park, Public Enemy could soundtrack a commute.
More than portability, it fostered a personalization to music, a theme the iPod would also highlight in those early dancing silhouette ads. A big reason there's so much nostalgia for the Walkman today is because it eliminated any separation from music. It felt like an appendage, which is perhaps why some (with questionable fashion instincts) clipped theirs to their belt.
The Walkman was also the father of the mixtape, an offspring that nearly trumps the progenitor. For the first time, music was something you could make yours by arranging it and swapping it. For those young and unfamiliar with this process, making a mixtape typically entailed gathering songs by the Cure and Depeche Mode, labeling the tape with care and awkwardly giving it to a love interest.
The Walkman didn't disappear so much as it was improved upon. Sony continues to use it as a brand, but the company long ago ceded hipness and style to Apple. The iPod will likely one day befall a similar fate, and another generation will gasp in joined wistfulness.
When it comes to music and how we hear it, we're all romantics.
knell of the once iconic, now obsolete device. The Walkman is survived by the Discman (still clinging to life) and ironic music listeners who think using a Walkman in this day-and-age is charmingly out-of-touch.
It will continue to be produced in China and distributed in the US, Europe and some Asian countries. Digital Walkmans are also being made with models that display lyrics and have improved digital noise-canceling technology.
Still, if you're looking to chisel a date in the Walkman's tombstone, then Oct 25, 2010, is as good as any. For many, that it's taken this long is surprising: "They were still making those?" Perhaps Oct 23, 2001, the day the iPod was launched, is the better date of expiration.
But none of the success of Apple's portable music players would have ever happened without the cassette Walkman. Some 220 million have been sold since the first model, the TPS-L2, debuted in July 1979. (It retailed for $200.) At the time, transistor radios were portable, but there was nothing widely available like the Walkman. It was developed under the stewardship of Sony founders Akio Morita and Masaru Ibuka. Morita insisted the device not be focused on recording but playback, a relatively odd notion at the time. Originally called the "Soundabout" in the US, the Walkman was an immediate sensation and a revolution in music listening. Foremost, it was portable. Music no longer needed to be something that one experienced sitting in a room, but could be blasted on the bus, pumped while jogging on a beach or played softly while studying.
By turning the volume up, anyone could be tuned out. The detached teenager with foam earphones slouched in the back seat or bobbing his head in the elevator became an indelible image of the `80s. (The first Walkman did have an orange "hot line" button to lower the music and increase the microphone so you could hear someone talking to you.)
Music, previously listened to in a room with shag carpeting and a stereo, was cast into the world, made a part of daily life. Pink Floyd could join a walk in the park, Public Enemy could soundtrack a commute.
More than portability, it fostered a personalization to music, a theme the iPod would also highlight in those early dancing silhouette ads. A big reason there's so much nostalgia for the Walkman today is because it eliminated any separation from music. It felt like an appendage, which is perhaps why some (with questionable fashion instincts) clipped theirs to their belt.
The Walkman was also the father of the mixtape, an offspring that nearly trumps the progenitor. For the first time, music was something you could make yours by arranging it and swapping it. For those young and unfamiliar with this process, making a mixtape typically entailed gathering songs by the Cure and Depeche Mode, labeling the tape with care and awkwardly giving it to a love interest.
The Walkman didn't disappear so much as it was improved upon. Sony continues to use it as a brand, but the company long ago ceded hipness and style to Apple. The iPod will likely one day befall a similar fate, and another generation will gasp in joined wistfulness.
When it comes to music and how we hear it, we're all romantics.
McGee makes history
The Coboconk Legion exploded with cheers on Monday night as Ric McGee was elected to a second term as mayor of the City of Kawartha Lakes.
After several hours wait, the results came in – 13,850 votes for Mayor McGee and 12,722 for Andy Letham. Third place candidate Lynne Boldt received 2,417 votes.
Wearing his trademark Pete Cziraky Detroit Red Wings jersey, Mayor McGee punched the air as he hugged his “good buddy” Emmett Yeo, who retained his Ward 2 council seat.
The mayor said he “couldn’t be more proud” of the people of the city, saying they showed their confidence by re-electing him and many of the incumbent ward councilors.
Earlier in the evening, the Legion was buzzing with anticipation as the supporters of both Ric McGee and Ward 2 incumbent councilor Emmett Yeo anxiously awaited the results of the municipal election.
Prior to the release of the results, Coun. Yeo gave the mayor a gift, jokingly calling him “Mayor McCheese” and adding, “he’s the guy I follow into council every day.”
Two of the mayor’s supporters, Charlie Cameron and Al Cummings, said the mayor and Coun. Yeo are “people’s politicians” who “aren’t in an ivory tower.”
“[Mayor McGee] would do anything for you if you have a problem,” said Mr. Cameron. “I hope they both get back in.”
Throughout the evening, Mayor McGee was calm and unruffled; after the results came in he said it was a “tenuous” evening for everyone. Asked if he ever doubted the result, the mayor said, “There’s always doubt.”
But, he said he was delighted the voters showed the confidence to re-elect him, and also said he was very proud of his campaign team.
When Andy Letham woke up this morning, he headed to work at the Lindsay Fairgrounds just like usual.
He would have rather been celebrating, but when the votes were finally tallied around 11:30 p.m. Mr. Letham failed in his bid to be the city’s next mayor.
“We gave it a good battle,” said an obviously disappointed Mr. Letham. “We had a lot of good people working very hard… We thought people were ready for a change. I guess we were mistaken.”
Mr. Letham told This Week he knew it was “going to be tough” to unseat the incumbent, but felt the challenge was worth the effort.
Although eleventh hour candidate Lynne Boldt secured 2,417 votes, Mr. Letham said it would be difficult to guess whether the support she acquired would have made a difference, either way
After several hours wait, the results came in – 13,850 votes for Mayor McGee and 12,722 for Andy Letham. Third place candidate Lynne Boldt received 2,417 votes.
Wearing his trademark Pete Cziraky Detroit Red Wings jersey, Mayor McGee punched the air as he hugged his “good buddy” Emmett Yeo, who retained his Ward 2 council seat.
The mayor said he “couldn’t be more proud” of the people of the city, saying they showed their confidence by re-electing him and many of the incumbent ward councilors.
Earlier in the evening, the Legion was buzzing with anticipation as the supporters of both Ric McGee and Ward 2 incumbent councilor Emmett Yeo anxiously awaited the results of the municipal election.
Prior to the release of the results, Coun. Yeo gave the mayor a gift, jokingly calling him “Mayor McCheese” and adding, “he’s the guy I follow into council every day.”
Two of the mayor’s supporters, Charlie Cameron and Al Cummings, said the mayor and Coun. Yeo are “people’s politicians” who “aren’t in an ivory tower.”
“[Mayor McGee] would do anything for you if you have a problem,” said Mr. Cameron. “I hope they both get back in.”
Throughout the evening, Mayor McGee was calm and unruffled; after the results came in he said it was a “tenuous” evening for everyone. Asked if he ever doubted the result, the mayor said, “There’s always doubt.”
But, he said he was delighted the voters showed the confidence to re-elect him, and also said he was very proud of his campaign team.
When Andy Letham woke up this morning, he headed to work at the Lindsay Fairgrounds just like usual.
He would have rather been celebrating, but when the votes were finally tallied around 11:30 p.m. Mr. Letham failed in his bid to be the city’s next mayor.
“We gave it a good battle,” said an obviously disappointed Mr. Letham. “We had a lot of good people working very hard… We thought people were ready for a change. I guess we were mistaken.”
Mr. Letham told This Week he knew it was “going to be tough” to unseat the incumbent, but felt the challenge was worth the effort.
Although eleventh hour candidate Lynne Boldt secured 2,417 votes, Mr. Letham said it would be difficult to guess whether the support she acquired would have made a difference, either way
Romo injury leaves Kitna in tough spot
Cowboys QB Tony Romo suffered a broken left clavicle in the first half of the Monday-night game against the Giants.
Romo was pressured by Giants LB Michael Boley, who hit Romo and landed on him, with 11:55 remaining in the second quarter, on the Cowboys' first offensive play of the period. Romo rolled over in obvious pain after completing the pass to WR Miles Austin. He headed to the locker room for X-rays.
The Cowboys announced that Romo will not return to the game tonight. He's likely to miss several weeks, if not the rest of the regular season. The typical recovery time for this type of injury is 8-10 weeks.
Jon Kitna replaced Romo at QB.
The PFW spin
This is a huge loss for the Cowboys, who had taken a 20-7 lead in this game but were in danger of losing it, as the Giants scored 31 straight points for a 38-20 lead late in the third quarter. They came into the game with a 1-4 record and in desperate need to get hot for any chance to make the playoffs.
Kitna has had some big passing seasons, but until Monday he hadn't played in a regular-season game in more than a year. His limited mobility was on display early in his relief appearance against the Giants, and it could be an issue behind a lumbering offensive line that is already down a starter. The Cowboys have great talent at receiver and tight end, but the offense must be tailored more to Kitna's diminished skills at this point.
Romo was pressured by Giants LB Michael Boley, who hit Romo and landed on him, with 11:55 remaining in the second quarter, on the Cowboys' first offensive play of the period. Romo rolled over in obvious pain after completing the pass to WR Miles Austin. He headed to the locker room for X-rays.
The Cowboys announced that Romo will not return to the game tonight. He's likely to miss several weeks, if not the rest of the regular season. The typical recovery time for this type of injury is 8-10 weeks.
Jon Kitna replaced Romo at QB.
The PFW spin
This is a huge loss for the Cowboys, who had taken a 20-7 lead in this game but were in danger of losing it, as the Giants scored 31 straight points for a 38-20 lead late in the third quarter. They came into the game with a 1-4 record and in desperate need to get hot for any chance to make the playoffs.
Kitna has had some big passing seasons, but until Monday he hadn't played in a regular-season game in more than a year. His limited mobility was on display early in his relief appearance against the Giants, and it could be an issue behind a lumbering offensive line that is already down a starter. The Cowboys have great talent at receiver and tight end, but the offense must be tailored more to Kitna's diminished skills at this point.
Hakeem Nicks Now Has Most Touchdowns by Receiver in NFL, 20-14 Cowboys
The Giants are incredibly lucky to be in this game. Three turnovers have led to all 13 of the Cowboys offensive points, and they have also allowed a special teams touchdown by Dez Bryant.
To be down 20-14 at this point the Giants have to be counting their lucky stars.
That said, they have only allowed 55 total yards defensively, and Tony Romo has yet to come back in the game. The Cowboys have to be very worried with Jon Kitna handling the snaps.
The Giants have moved the ball very efficiently since throwing two interceptions on their first two drives, and the defense has held tight on three straight defensive possessions now, allowing two field goals despite the Cowboys starting their drive in Giants territory.
On his second touchdown of the game, Hakeem Nicks is tied for the NFL lead in touchdowns with eight, and leads all receivers in that category. Apparently his ankle is not an issue.
The Giants have been taking advantage of both Mike Jenkins and Terrence Newman being injured during the game. Whether they can recover from those two playing hurt will be a huge factor in the remainder of the game.
The Giants forced a punt and are in Cowboys territory with a chance to take the lead, hopefully they take advantage of a first down on the 22 yard line.
To be down 20-14 at this point the Giants have to be counting their lucky stars.
That said, they have only allowed 55 total yards defensively, and Tony Romo has yet to come back in the game. The Cowboys have to be very worried with Jon Kitna handling the snaps.
The Giants have moved the ball very efficiently since throwing two interceptions on their first two drives, and the defense has held tight on three straight defensive possessions now, allowing two field goals despite the Cowboys starting their drive in Giants territory.
On his second touchdown of the game, Hakeem Nicks is tied for the NFL lead in touchdowns with eight, and leads all receivers in that category. Apparently his ankle is not an issue.
The Giants have been taking advantage of both Mike Jenkins and Terrence Newman being injured during the game. Whether they can recover from those two playing hurt will be a huge factor in the remainder of the game.
The Giants forced a punt and are in Cowboys territory with a chance to take the lead, hopefully they take advantage of a first down on the 22 yard line.
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
October Is Cliff Lee’s Playground
HE’S BEEN TRADED FOUR TIMES in his career and three times in the last 15 months. He was 5-8 with a 6.29 earned run average and was demoted to Triple-A as a 29-year-old in 2007. He’s been underestimated, disrespected and shipped cross-country more than once.
Now Cliff Lee is the most compelling pitcher in baseball, and soon he’ll be the most influential, too.
In my last column, I detailed the unprecedented rise of the Tampa Bay Rays and noted that they might be the only thing left between the Yankees and their second consecutive trip to the World Series.
Oops.
Two wins at Tropicana Field, one complete game and a 21:0 strikeout-to-walk ratio later, Cliff Lee had shown me and anyone else who picked the Rays that we really shouldn’t have done that. You don’t bet against Cliff Lee’s team. Not in a best-of-five American League Division Series.
Clifton Phifer Lee is an invaluable baseball player. He’s more than a game-changer, more than an ace. He’s an automatic win — or two, whichever you need — in a playoff series. The man simply doesn’t lose after the calendar turns to October. Including his run to the World Series with the Phillies last year, Lee is 7-0 with three complete games and a 1.26 ERA in the postseason. In this year’s ALDS, the lefthander gave the Rays no room for error; they weren’t going to beat him, so they had to win Games Two through Four if they wanted to advance to the American League Championship Series.
But the greatest thing about Lee’s continued presence in this year’s postseason is the opportunity he now has to put a hurting on the teams that have spurned him over the past year.
That opportunity began last night when he shutout the Yankees for eight innings to give the Rangers a 2-1 lead in the ALCS. New York – which had been poised to acquire Lee from the Seattle Mariners back in early July – didn’t close the deal, favoring prized catching prospect Jesus Montero among other minor leaguers over a sure-fire spot in this year’s Fall Classic with Lee and his former Cleveland Indians teammate, C.C. Sabathia, as its 1-2 punch at the top of an unbeatable rotation. Instead, Lee is guiding a Texas franchise on its maiden voyage past the first round of the playoffs, and he’s trampling over the regretful Yankees in the process.
Somewhere in the wake of it all, George Steinbrenner’s ghost is fuming and calling New York general manager Brian Cashman into his office for a sit-down.
While the second half of Lee’s opportunity isn’t halfway formulated yet, it’s a good reason to start rooting for the Rangers and Phillies in their respective League Championship Series if you haven’t already.
If Texas can topple New York and Philadelphia can take care of business with San Francisco, Lee will have the chance he’s been chomping at the bit for since the two-time defending National League champs traded him to Seattle in order to open up a spot for his replacement, Roy Halladay.
The sexiness of a Lee-Halladay matchup in Game One of the World Series would put Gisele Bundchen and the whole Victoria’s Secret lineup to shame. It would be all that Shaq and the Heat against Kobe and the Lakers in the NBA Finals never was, all that Brett Favre and the Vikings against Aaron Rodgers and the Packers in the NFC Championship Game could still be — and then some: The old guy who they wanted to keep versus the new guy who they wanted a little more. An answer to the ultimate question of, “Who’s better?” Maybe a reason for the Phillies to kick themselves.
Whatever happens in the coming weeks, two things are certain: Cliff Lee is going to become a very rich (I mean, even richer) man this winter, and he’s going to alter the balance of power in Major League Baseball.
Roy Halladay is making $15.8 million this season, and C.C. Sabathia is making $24.3 million. Lee is in the final year of a 5-year/$23 million contract, and he’s going to get at least as much as Halladay and possibly more than Sabathia from a willing bidder this offseason. As a man who’s been tossed around, chewed up and spit back out by more than one team in his career, it would be tough to criticize Lee for taking one of the enormous offers he’ll receive from the Yankees or the Red Sox or one of baseball’s other big spenders in a few months’ time. But boy, it’s been fun to watch him pick up and carry two different teams through October the past two seasons, and it would be equally exciting to watch him raise Texas or another franchise to within firing distance of New York and Boston on a yearly basis.
But a longer discussion about Lee’s impending free agency is one for another day. Right now it’s about sitting back and enjoying the show.
Now Cliff Lee is the most compelling pitcher in baseball, and soon he’ll be the most influential, too.
In my last column, I detailed the unprecedented rise of the Tampa Bay Rays and noted that they might be the only thing left between the Yankees and their second consecutive trip to the World Series.
Oops.
Two wins at Tropicana Field, one complete game and a 21:0 strikeout-to-walk ratio later, Cliff Lee had shown me and anyone else who picked the Rays that we really shouldn’t have done that. You don’t bet against Cliff Lee’s team. Not in a best-of-five American League Division Series.
Clifton Phifer Lee is an invaluable baseball player. He’s more than a game-changer, more than an ace. He’s an automatic win — or two, whichever you need — in a playoff series. The man simply doesn’t lose after the calendar turns to October. Including his run to the World Series with the Phillies last year, Lee is 7-0 with three complete games and a 1.26 ERA in the postseason. In this year’s ALDS, the lefthander gave the Rays no room for error; they weren’t going to beat him, so they had to win Games Two through Four if they wanted to advance to the American League Championship Series.
But the greatest thing about Lee’s continued presence in this year’s postseason is the opportunity he now has to put a hurting on the teams that have spurned him over the past year.
That opportunity began last night when he shutout the Yankees for eight innings to give the Rangers a 2-1 lead in the ALCS. New York – which had been poised to acquire Lee from the Seattle Mariners back in early July – didn’t close the deal, favoring prized catching prospect Jesus Montero among other minor leaguers over a sure-fire spot in this year’s Fall Classic with Lee and his former Cleveland Indians teammate, C.C. Sabathia, as its 1-2 punch at the top of an unbeatable rotation. Instead, Lee is guiding a Texas franchise on its maiden voyage past the first round of the playoffs, and he’s trampling over the regretful Yankees in the process.
Somewhere in the wake of it all, George Steinbrenner’s ghost is fuming and calling New York general manager Brian Cashman into his office for a sit-down.
While the second half of Lee’s opportunity isn’t halfway formulated yet, it’s a good reason to start rooting for the Rangers and Phillies in their respective League Championship Series if you haven’t already.
If Texas can topple New York and Philadelphia can take care of business with San Francisco, Lee will have the chance he’s been chomping at the bit for since the two-time defending National League champs traded him to Seattle in order to open up a spot for his replacement, Roy Halladay.
The sexiness of a Lee-Halladay matchup in Game One of the World Series would put Gisele Bundchen and the whole Victoria’s Secret lineup to shame. It would be all that Shaq and the Heat against Kobe and the Lakers in the NBA Finals never was, all that Brett Favre and the Vikings against Aaron Rodgers and the Packers in the NFC Championship Game could still be — and then some: The old guy who they wanted to keep versus the new guy who they wanted a little more. An answer to the ultimate question of, “Who’s better?” Maybe a reason for the Phillies to kick themselves.
Whatever happens in the coming weeks, two things are certain: Cliff Lee is going to become a very rich (I mean, even richer) man this winter, and he’s going to alter the balance of power in Major League Baseball.
Roy Halladay is making $15.8 million this season, and C.C. Sabathia is making $24.3 million. Lee is in the final year of a 5-year/$23 million contract, and he’s going to get at least as much as Halladay and possibly more than Sabathia from a willing bidder this offseason. As a man who’s been tossed around, chewed up and spit back out by more than one team in his career, it would be tough to criticize Lee for taking one of the enormous offers he’ll receive from the Yankees or the Red Sox or one of baseball’s other big spenders in a few months’ time. But boy, it’s been fun to watch him pick up and carry two different teams through October the past two seasons, and it would be equally exciting to watch him raise Texas or another franchise to within firing distance of New York and Boston on a yearly basis.
But a longer discussion about Lee’s impending free agency is one for another day. Right now it’s about sitting back and enjoying the show.
Fallout: New Vegas–Inside the New Videogame
Many videogames strive for gravitas, but few channel it like Fallout. The series began in the late ’90s as a role-playing game featuring mutants and technology instead of dragons and magic, but has grown into a fascinating speculative vision of America after a nuclear apocalypse. In 2008’s Fallout 3, players roamed freely across a ruined Washington, D.C., finding themselves in the middle of allegorical conflicts small and big. The new Fallout: New Vegas returns the series to its original West Coast setting, and to the hands of some of its original creators.
We spoke with Feargus Urquhart, CEO of Obsidian Entertainment, the developer of the game, about history, culture, and television in New Vegas.
What feels Fallout, and what doesn’t feel Fallout, to you?
Feargus Urquhart: One thing we focus on is to make sure that we keep that blend of post-apocalyptic feel with the super-Fifties feel. It’s vacuum tubes rather than too many transistors. Instead of motherboards, not that you won’t see circuitry; it just wouldn’t be like if you opened up your computer nowadays. This idea that things are rounded rather than squared off. There’s a certain artistic, design sense that we stick with, and make sure that we continue to follow through with.
There was a good response in Fallout to some of the pop-culture references. We went overboard in Fallout 2. In Fallout: New Vegas, for the most part it’s no; there is no pop-culture reference. Keep the player in the game. That’s one of the big differences between the early Fallouts, and Fallout 3 and New Vegas. They’re much more “I’m in the world.” It’s less that I’m playing a game and more that I’m experiencing something.
New Vegas uses the same engine as Fallout 3, and looks outwardly similar. What are the fundamental ways that New Vegas differs from Fallout 3?
The DC wasteland in Fallout 3 has this green-gray-brown color. Brown is maybe—it had a definite look about it. When we brought it over, we said, let’s make it feel like Southwest. We have blue skies, instead of the more smoky, gray skies. The sun is very bright. There’s tumbleweed; there are Joshua trees.
On top of that, one of the things we put in was this hardcore mode, which changes a lot of the rules of the game. Healing with stimpaks, instead of happening instantly, happens over time. It sounds like a simple change, but totally changes how you think about fighting in the game. You can actually dehydrate, and you can starve. You have to think about, where can I get water, and how can I get food, and I have to manage my radiation, because a lot of the things in the wasteland are irradiated.
All of your Fallout games have been based on the West Coast. What is the appeal of the West Coast?
That’s a good question. Because we live out here? Because it was going to be based on the United States—and it was going to be based upon the “real world”—it’s more comfortable to do something where you’re more knowledgeable about the area. If we had put Fallout in DC, we just don’t know that area at all. We don’t know what freeways people actually take and what freeways they don’t actually take. We don’t use the subway here.
Out here, the desert feels like a wasteland. A lot of the early inspiration for some of the Fallout stuff was Road Warrior. And when we think of the desert, the Mojave Desert and things like that are what we immediately think about. One of the areas in Fallout is the L.A. Boneyard. Obviously it’s Los Angeles, but it’s irradiated. In the Boneyard there’s more of a gang presence. That goes with the fact that people associate gangs with L.A. It’s probably just things like that.
What’s the appeal of the Fifties? Of that look, that era of American history?
It’s inherently sarcastic, in some ways. You get to use the Vault Boy, who we based upon the Monopoly guy. You can put him in these situations where he has his fist up, and he’s smiling, and he’s got his foot on someone’s neck. What was always interesting about the Fifties is, it’s got this feeling that everyone was happy and smiling, and it’s Leave It to Beaver. You can contrast that, within the same image, with really bad things.
Also, of course, it was in the Fifties that—that’s when there were all these fallout shelters. That’s when there was this duck-and-cover, and all those kinds of things. And so [we imagined] the Fifties just kept on going. The United States and the world didn’t really evolve from the Fifties. What would it look like?
What’s your exposure to the Fifties culture? Do you feel that most of your audience have a general awareness of it?
I think it’s a lot of different things. I think it’s a general awareness; you know what a Fifties car looks like. That kind of big GM, that big Chevrolet car. I’m 40, so I’m a different generation, but when I was growing up, Happy Days was still on the TV. Weirdly enough, the Fifties kind of continued in mine and some of older people’s heads. Happy Days was on, and it wouldn’t seem to go away from the TV. That was a connection. Reruns of Leave It to Beaver. M*A*S*H.
It was TV. TV kept the Fifties alive while we were growing up, through primarily sitcoms. And then there’s just the sense of poodle skirts, and American Graffiti, and Grease, and things like that. The Fifties didn’t go away, and it was supposed to be this idealized part of American history. We get to create that contrast—we take this idealized view of this period of America, and contrast it with World War III, and these horrible things that are happening. I just think that creates an interesting image.
What is one interesting vignette or sight to be seen in New Vegas?
Day or night, you get to a high point in the basin. If you spin around, you’ll see the crazy casino lights of Vegas off in the distance. It really gives you this sense of, that’s where I’m trying to get to. It feels like there is this bustling, alive area of humanity off in the distance, which contrasts with what is currently right around you—which is a little bit different than the other Fallout games.
Fallout 3 drew a really vivid picture of Washington, D.C. and was in some ways a rumination on American patriotism and our national identity. Where can we find some of the commentary in New Vegas?
The New California Republic are trying to be the new American government, the way that the government was. And they’re bureaucratic, and it’s difficult for them to make decisions quickly. There’s Caesar’s Legion, which is acting like the old Roman empire, in which they storm across the wasteland. They capture tribes, and they make them Romans. They lose their identity of whatever tribe they were. Immediately people go, they’re totally evil, and they’re just killing people. But people now get to be a part of this society in which they’re taken care of.
You can look at each of the different groups that you can talk to, and side with. They comment upon an aspect of things the United States have done, or other governments, or things in the past, just to make people think. I guess the main statement is, the initial feeling that you get from interacting with that group—it’s deeper than that. And how they really are is something you need to think about more.
What is the appeal of the apocalypse for a game?
It simplifies the rules for people. Our lives are complicated, and they’re—do I do this, do I do that, do I put this in my 401k, should I go to my daughter’s recital or not, should I—our lives are filled with 400 million questions every day about what we should and shouldn’t do. The apocalypse is interesting because it simplifies that all. It becomes about survival, it becomes about saving the people that you’re close to. I think in people’s minds, it wipes away all that burden that comes with being an industrialized society. In movies and in games, it clears away all the other stuff and just makes it about, how do I make it to the end of the day.
What were the influences you took from the cinema, or film, or television?
What we really tried to do, particularly when it came to Vegas, was look at the feeling. One of the key things we used was this idea of the Rat Pack—Sammy Davis, Jr., and Dean Martin, and Sinatra; and we made sure that we got a sense of them. Looking at the old Ocean’s Eleven movie, or the most recent one, and getting that feeling for the era.
We definitely have our Howard Hughes-like character called Mr. House. It was going in and researching and understanding Howard Hughes’ impact on Vegas, and how we could use that in an interesting way. If you tie all that stuff together, that’s really what tied Vegas together so many years ago. Doing so in the game should make it feel even more like Vegas.
We spoke with Feargus Urquhart, CEO of Obsidian Entertainment, the developer of the game, about history, culture, and television in New Vegas.
What feels Fallout, and what doesn’t feel Fallout, to you?
Feargus Urquhart: One thing we focus on is to make sure that we keep that blend of post-apocalyptic feel with the super-Fifties feel. It’s vacuum tubes rather than too many transistors. Instead of motherboards, not that you won’t see circuitry; it just wouldn’t be like if you opened up your computer nowadays. This idea that things are rounded rather than squared off. There’s a certain artistic, design sense that we stick with, and make sure that we continue to follow through with.
There was a good response in Fallout to some of the pop-culture references. We went overboard in Fallout 2. In Fallout: New Vegas, for the most part it’s no; there is no pop-culture reference. Keep the player in the game. That’s one of the big differences between the early Fallouts, and Fallout 3 and New Vegas. They’re much more “I’m in the world.” It’s less that I’m playing a game and more that I’m experiencing something.
New Vegas uses the same engine as Fallout 3, and looks outwardly similar. What are the fundamental ways that New Vegas differs from Fallout 3?
The DC wasteland in Fallout 3 has this green-gray-brown color. Brown is maybe—it had a definite look about it. When we brought it over, we said, let’s make it feel like Southwest. We have blue skies, instead of the more smoky, gray skies. The sun is very bright. There’s tumbleweed; there are Joshua trees.
On top of that, one of the things we put in was this hardcore mode, which changes a lot of the rules of the game. Healing with stimpaks, instead of happening instantly, happens over time. It sounds like a simple change, but totally changes how you think about fighting in the game. You can actually dehydrate, and you can starve. You have to think about, where can I get water, and how can I get food, and I have to manage my radiation, because a lot of the things in the wasteland are irradiated.
All of your Fallout games have been based on the West Coast. What is the appeal of the West Coast?
That’s a good question. Because we live out here? Because it was going to be based on the United States—and it was going to be based upon the “real world”—it’s more comfortable to do something where you’re more knowledgeable about the area. If we had put Fallout in DC, we just don’t know that area at all. We don’t know what freeways people actually take and what freeways they don’t actually take. We don’t use the subway here.
Out here, the desert feels like a wasteland. A lot of the early inspiration for some of the Fallout stuff was Road Warrior. And when we think of the desert, the Mojave Desert and things like that are what we immediately think about. One of the areas in Fallout is the L.A. Boneyard. Obviously it’s Los Angeles, but it’s irradiated. In the Boneyard there’s more of a gang presence. That goes with the fact that people associate gangs with L.A. It’s probably just things like that.
What’s the appeal of the Fifties? Of that look, that era of American history?
It’s inherently sarcastic, in some ways. You get to use the Vault Boy, who we based upon the Monopoly guy. You can put him in these situations where he has his fist up, and he’s smiling, and he’s got his foot on someone’s neck. What was always interesting about the Fifties is, it’s got this feeling that everyone was happy and smiling, and it’s Leave It to Beaver. You can contrast that, within the same image, with really bad things.
Also, of course, it was in the Fifties that—that’s when there were all these fallout shelters. That’s when there was this duck-and-cover, and all those kinds of things. And so [we imagined] the Fifties just kept on going. The United States and the world didn’t really evolve from the Fifties. What would it look like?
What’s your exposure to the Fifties culture? Do you feel that most of your audience have a general awareness of it?
I think it’s a lot of different things. I think it’s a general awareness; you know what a Fifties car looks like. That kind of big GM, that big Chevrolet car. I’m 40, so I’m a different generation, but when I was growing up, Happy Days was still on the TV. Weirdly enough, the Fifties kind of continued in mine and some of older people’s heads. Happy Days was on, and it wouldn’t seem to go away from the TV. That was a connection. Reruns of Leave It to Beaver. M*A*S*H.
It was TV. TV kept the Fifties alive while we were growing up, through primarily sitcoms. And then there’s just the sense of poodle skirts, and American Graffiti, and Grease, and things like that. The Fifties didn’t go away, and it was supposed to be this idealized part of American history. We get to create that contrast—we take this idealized view of this period of America, and contrast it with World War III, and these horrible things that are happening. I just think that creates an interesting image.
What is one interesting vignette or sight to be seen in New Vegas?
Day or night, you get to a high point in the basin. If you spin around, you’ll see the crazy casino lights of Vegas off in the distance. It really gives you this sense of, that’s where I’m trying to get to. It feels like there is this bustling, alive area of humanity off in the distance, which contrasts with what is currently right around you—which is a little bit different than the other Fallout games.
Fallout 3 drew a really vivid picture of Washington, D.C. and was in some ways a rumination on American patriotism and our national identity. Where can we find some of the commentary in New Vegas?
The New California Republic are trying to be the new American government, the way that the government was. And they’re bureaucratic, and it’s difficult for them to make decisions quickly. There’s Caesar’s Legion, which is acting like the old Roman empire, in which they storm across the wasteland. They capture tribes, and they make them Romans. They lose their identity of whatever tribe they were. Immediately people go, they’re totally evil, and they’re just killing people. But people now get to be a part of this society in which they’re taken care of.
You can look at each of the different groups that you can talk to, and side with. They comment upon an aspect of things the United States have done, or other governments, or things in the past, just to make people think. I guess the main statement is, the initial feeling that you get from interacting with that group—it’s deeper than that. And how they really are is something you need to think about more.
What is the appeal of the apocalypse for a game?
It simplifies the rules for people. Our lives are complicated, and they’re—do I do this, do I do that, do I put this in my 401k, should I go to my daughter’s recital or not, should I—our lives are filled with 400 million questions every day about what we should and shouldn’t do. The apocalypse is interesting because it simplifies that all. It becomes about survival, it becomes about saving the people that you’re close to. I think in people’s minds, it wipes away all that burden that comes with being an industrialized society. In movies and in games, it clears away all the other stuff and just makes it about, how do I make it to the end of the day.
What were the influences you took from the cinema, or film, or television?
What we really tried to do, particularly when it came to Vegas, was look at the feeling. One of the key things we used was this idea of the Rat Pack—Sammy Davis, Jr., and Dean Martin, and Sinatra; and we made sure that we got a sense of them. Looking at the old Ocean’s Eleven movie, or the most recent one, and getting that feeling for the era.
We definitely have our Howard Hughes-like character called Mr. House. It was going in and researching and understanding Howard Hughes’ impact on Vegas, and how we could use that in an interesting way. If you tie all that stuff together, that’s really what tied Vegas together so many years ago. Doing so in the game should make it feel even more like Vegas.
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Oswaldo José Guillén Barrios
Oswaldo José Guillén Barrios (born January 20, 1964), well known as Ozzie Guillén (Spanish pronunciation: [ɡiˈʎen]), is a former shortstop in Major League Baseball and the current manager of the Chicago White Sox.[1] Born in Ocumare Del Tuy, Venezuela, he is the first Latin American manager in the history of the game to have won a World Series. His playing career stretched from 1985 through 2000, playing for the White Sox (1985–97), Baltimore Orioles (1998), Atlanta Braves (1998–1999) and Tampa Bay Devil Rays (2000).[1] He batted left-handed and threw right-handed. As a player, Guillén was regarded for his passion, speed, hustle, intensity and defensive abilities and his ebullient love for the game.[2][3]
Guillén was a light-hitting, quick-handed shortstop, emerging from a line of Venezuelan shortstops that included; Chico Carrasquel, Luis Aparicio (both White Sox players), Dave Concepción, and Omar Vizquel (who now plays for Guillen as a utility player for the White Sox).[4] He was originally signed as a free agent by the San Diego Padres in 1980.[5] In December 1984, he was traded to the Chicago White Sox as part of an eight-player trade.[5]
In 1985, Guillén received both the American League Rookie of the Year and The Sporting News Rookie of the Year awards, becoming only the third rookie shortstop in major league history to win a fielding title.[6][7] He became known for his daring, aggressive style of play, as was demonstrated on August 2, 1985 in a game against the New York Yankees.[8] With the game tied 5-5 in the 11th inning, Guillén hit a two-out single and, then proceeded to steal second base.[8] When the next batter hit an infield single, Guillén never hesitated as he rounded third base, catching the Yankees' defense off guard and scored the game-winning run.[9]
Guillén suffered a severe knee injury that caused him to miss almost the entire 1992 season, and which subsequently diminished his defensive range as well as his stolen base output for the remainder of his career.[1][10] Guillén recovered in 1993 with his most productive season offensively, posting a .280 batting average, and career highs with 4 home runs and 50 runs batted in, as the White Sox won the American League Western Division title.[1][11] He hit .273 and scored 4 runs in a losing effort, as the White Sox were defeated by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 1993 American League Championship Series.[12]
In October 1997, after 13 seasons with the White Sox, Guillén was granted free agency status and signed a contract to play for the Baltimore Orioles.[5] In May 1998, the Orioles released him and he signed with the Atlanta Braves as a utility infielder.[5] He helped the Braves win the 1999 National League Championship Series against the New York Mets with a 10th inning, pinch hit single in Game 6 of the series that tied the score at nine runs apiece, as the Braves went on to win the game and the series.[13][14] The Braves would eventually lose to the New York Yankees in Guillén's only World Series appearance as a player.[15] After playing one year with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2000, he retired as a player at the end of the season.
Playing career statistics
Guillén was an All-Star in 1988, 1990-1991, and won the Gold Glove Award in 1990.[1][16] He led American League shortstops twice in range factor, once in assists and once in fielding percentage.[1] Guillén's .974 career fielding percentage ranks him 40th overall among major league shortstops, ahead of both Luis Aparicio and Dave Concepcion.[17] While he was considered one of the best fielding shortstops in the American League, Guillén was often overlooked in post-season awards because his playing career coincided with that of Cal Ripken, Jr.[3] Guillén ranks among the White Sox all-time leaders in games played, hits, and at-bats.[18] As a hitter, he was known as a free swinger, posting one of the highest at bats per walk ratios in major league history.[19] Guillén played his entire Venezuelan Winter League career with Tiburones de La Guaira.
Manager
Following his playing career, Guillén coached for the Montreal Expos in 2002 and the World Champion Florida Marlins in 2003 before he was hired in the offseason to replace Jerry Manuel as the White Sox manager.[20] He received a standing ovation from the crowd of 37,706 Chicagoans when introduced before his first game as a manager at U.S. Cellular Field on April 13, 2004. On May 30, 2005, the White Sox extended Guillén's contract, making the move while the team had the best record in the majors (33-17). The White Sox picked up the 2006 option on his contract, added two more years and included an option for the 2009 season. In October 2005, he led the White Sox to their first American League pennant since 1959, and their first World Series win since 1917 with a 4-game sweep of the Houston Astros. Guillén claimed that he might retire after the 2005 season should the White Sox win the World Series, but at the parade celebrating the World Champions he received cheers from the fans when he announced he would indeed return to manage the next season. In November, Guillén was voted the 2005 American League Manager of the Year Award by the Baseball Writers Association of America.[21] In 2006, he managed the American League All-Star Team to a 3-2 victory over the National League.[22] On September 4, 2009, Guillén won his 500th game as manager of the Chicago White Sox as the White Sox defeated the Boston Red Sox by a score of 12-2.[23][24] Guillen has publicly stated that he feels the 2003 steroids list should be released to the public.
Guillén was a light-hitting, quick-handed shortstop, emerging from a line of Venezuelan shortstops that included; Chico Carrasquel, Luis Aparicio (both White Sox players), Dave Concepción, and Omar Vizquel (who now plays for Guillen as a utility player for the White Sox).[4] He was originally signed as a free agent by the San Diego Padres in 1980.[5] In December 1984, he was traded to the Chicago White Sox as part of an eight-player trade.[5]
In 1985, Guillén received both the American League Rookie of the Year and The Sporting News Rookie of the Year awards, becoming only the third rookie shortstop in major league history to win a fielding title.[6][7] He became known for his daring, aggressive style of play, as was demonstrated on August 2, 1985 in a game against the New York Yankees.[8] With the game tied 5-5 in the 11th inning, Guillén hit a two-out single and, then proceeded to steal second base.[8] When the next batter hit an infield single, Guillén never hesitated as he rounded third base, catching the Yankees' defense off guard and scored the game-winning run.[9]
Guillén suffered a severe knee injury that caused him to miss almost the entire 1992 season, and which subsequently diminished his defensive range as well as his stolen base output for the remainder of his career.[1][10] Guillén recovered in 1993 with his most productive season offensively, posting a .280 batting average, and career highs with 4 home runs and 50 runs batted in, as the White Sox won the American League Western Division title.[1][11] He hit .273 and scored 4 runs in a losing effort, as the White Sox were defeated by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 1993 American League Championship Series.[12]
In October 1997, after 13 seasons with the White Sox, Guillén was granted free agency status and signed a contract to play for the Baltimore Orioles.[5] In May 1998, the Orioles released him and he signed with the Atlanta Braves as a utility infielder.[5] He helped the Braves win the 1999 National League Championship Series against the New York Mets with a 10th inning, pinch hit single in Game 6 of the series that tied the score at nine runs apiece, as the Braves went on to win the game and the series.[13][14] The Braves would eventually lose to the New York Yankees in Guillén's only World Series appearance as a player.[15] After playing one year with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2000, he retired as a player at the end of the season.
Playing career statistics
Guillén was an All-Star in 1988, 1990-1991, and won the Gold Glove Award in 1990.[1][16] He led American League shortstops twice in range factor, once in assists and once in fielding percentage.[1] Guillén's .974 career fielding percentage ranks him 40th overall among major league shortstops, ahead of both Luis Aparicio and Dave Concepcion.[17] While he was considered one of the best fielding shortstops in the American League, Guillén was often overlooked in post-season awards because his playing career coincided with that of Cal Ripken, Jr.[3] Guillén ranks among the White Sox all-time leaders in games played, hits, and at-bats.[18] As a hitter, he was known as a free swinger, posting one of the highest at bats per walk ratios in major league history.[19] Guillén played his entire Venezuelan Winter League career with Tiburones de La Guaira.
Manager
Following his playing career, Guillén coached for the Montreal Expos in 2002 and the World Champion Florida Marlins in 2003 before he was hired in the offseason to replace Jerry Manuel as the White Sox manager.[20] He received a standing ovation from the crowd of 37,706 Chicagoans when introduced before his first game as a manager at U.S. Cellular Field on April 13, 2004. On May 30, 2005, the White Sox extended Guillén's contract, making the move while the team had the best record in the majors (33-17). The White Sox picked up the 2006 option on his contract, added two more years and included an option for the 2009 season. In October 2005, he led the White Sox to their first American League pennant since 1959, and their first World Series win since 1917 with a 4-game sweep of the Houston Astros. Guillén claimed that he might retire after the 2005 season should the White Sox win the World Series, but at the parade celebrating the World Champions he received cheers from the fans when he announced he would indeed return to manage the next season. In November, Guillén was voted the 2005 American League Manager of the Year Award by the Baseball Writers Association of America.[21] In 2006, he managed the American League All-Star Team to a 3-2 victory over the National League.[22] On September 4, 2009, Guillén won his 500th game as manager of the Chicago White Sox as the White Sox defeated the Boston Red Sox by a score of 12-2.[23][24] Guillen has publicly stated that he feels the 2003 steroids list should be released to the public.
Apple’s decline in margins casts shadow
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — Apple Inc., which posted blowout earnings growth, saw its shares fall Tuesday as investors turned their focus to narrowing profit margins and lighter-than-expected iPad sales.
On yesterday's earning call, Apple CEO Steve Jobs issued a string of criticisms about Apple's rivals from Research in Motion and Google to unnamed companies making seven-inch tablets. Plus: what analysts have to say this morning about Apple's growth overriding concerns. Peter Kafka and Jennifer Valentino-DeVries discuss on Digits.
IPad sales were another concern for investors. Nearly 4.2 million units of the table device were moved in the quarter, but analysts had been expecting sales closer to 4.8 million to 5 million units.
Shares of Apple fell nearly 3% to $308.54 by late Tuesday afternoon. The stock had set a new all-time high of $318 in the previous session — up 32% over the past two months.
“In the absence of high expectations, Apple’s quarter would be viewed well,” wrote Keith Bachman of BMO Capital Markets in a note to clients. “However, we believe investors will give an appropriate amount of focus on the relatively weak gross margins.”
Most analysts stayed highly bullish on the stock, with some raising their price targets following the results.
“While shares of Apple may pull back today, we would be buyers based on our belief that investors will gain optimism over the next three months that the growth story will continue,” wrote Gene Munster of Piper Jaffray, who raised his price target to $429 from $390.
Munster noted that Wall Street was disappointed with the company’s margins, “but we believe higher volumes are a net positive for the business.”
Street stays bullish
Despite the margin pressures, Wall Street remains highly bullish on Apple.
About 92% of brokers covering Apple rate the shares as a buy. Several analysts raised their price targets on the shares following the report — lifting the median price target from $350 to $365. Even at their current level, Apple shares remain below nearly every price target set by analysts.
Apple
The iPhone 4 and the iPad.
“Apple pullback is a great gift in time for the holidays,” wrote Brian White of Ticonderoga Securities, who lifted his price target to $450 from $430, predicting a strong holiday season outlook for the company.
In its conference call Monday afternoon, Apple executives said the declining margins stem from aggressive pricing on the iPhone 4 and iPad. CEO Steve Jobs said the company’s focus on delivering high-functioning products at low prices will keep it ahead of rivals — especially as more companies are prepping their own tablet devices for the market.
“So we’re all about making the best products at aggressive prices, and that’s what we will do,” Jobs said. “That’s what we’ve done with the iPod and that’s what we will do with the iPad as well.”
Apple said it expects gross margins to remain around the 36% mark for the December quarter.
“Apple margins are clearly in a downtrend, but should get some additional help from component costs and iPhone mix [margins lower but still above corporate average] next quarter,” wrote Kevin Hunt of Hapoalim Securities in a note to clients. He raised his fair-value estimate for the stock to $325 from $318.
Shannon Cross of Cross Research believes the September quarter will be a “trough” period for gross margins for the iPhone 4, as the company begins to benefit from declining costs.
“We think Apple management believes superior features/functionality will drive unit sales and share gains during the crucial adoption phase for both iPhones and iPads, and therefore is willing to absorb the gross margin impact,”
On yesterday's earning call, Apple CEO Steve Jobs issued a string of criticisms about Apple's rivals from Research in Motion and Google to unnamed companies making seven-inch tablets. Plus: what analysts have to say this morning about Apple's growth overriding concerns. Peter Kafka and Jennifer Valentino-DeVries discuss on Digits.
IPad sales were another concern for investors. Nearly 4.2 million units of the table device were moved in the quarter, but analysts had been expecting sales closer to 4.8 million to 5 million units.
Shares of Apple fell nearly 3% to $308.54 by late Tuesday afternoon. The stock had set a new all-time high of $318 in the previous session — up 32% over the past two months.
“In the absence of high expectations, Apple’s quarter would be viewed well,” wrote Keith Bachman of BMO Capital Markets in a note to clients. “However, we believe investors will give an appropriate amount of focus on the relatively weak gross margins.”
Most analysts stayed highly bullish on the stock, with some raising their price targets following the results.
“While shares of Apple may pull back today, we would be buyers based on our belief that investors will gain optimism over the next three months that the growth story will continue,” wrote Gene Munster of Piper Jaffray, who raised his price target to $429 from $390.
Munster noted that Wall Street was disappointed with the company’s margins, “but we believe higher volumes are a net positive for the business.”
Street stays bullish
Despite the margin pressures, Wall Street remains highly bullish on Apple.
About 92% of brokers covering Apple rate the shares as a buy. Several analysts raised their price targets on the shares following the report — lifting the median price target from $350 to $365. Even at their current level, Apple shares remain below nearly every price target set by analysts.
Apple
The iPhone 4 and the iPad.
“Apple pullback is a great gift in time for the holidays,” wrote Brian White of Ticonderoga Securities, who lifted his price target to $450 from $430, predicting a strong holiday season outlook for the company.
In its conference call Monday afternoon, Apple executives said the declining margins stem from aggressive pricing on the iPhone 4 and iPad. CEO Steve Jobs said the company’s focus on delivering high-functioning products at low prices will keep it ahead of rivals — especially as more companies are prepping their own tablet devices for the market.
“So we’re all about making the best products at aggressive prices, and that’s what we will do,” Jobs said. “That’s what we’ve done with the iPod and that’s what we will do with the iPad as well.”
Apple said it expects gross margins to remain around the 36% mark for the December quarter.
“Apple margins are clearly in a downtrend, but should get some additional help from component costs and iPhone mix [margins lower but still above corporate average] next quarter,” wrote Kevin Hunt of Hapoalim Securities in a note to clients. He raised his fair-value estimate for the stock to $325 from $318.
Shannon Cross of Cross Research believes the September quarter will be a “trough” period for gross margins for the iPhone 4, as the company begins to benefit from declining costs.
“We think Apple management believes superior features/functionality will drive unit sales and share gains during the crucial adoption phase for both iPhones and iPads, and therefore is willing to absorb the gross margin impact,”
GED Testing Program
General Educational Development (or GED) tests are a group of five subject tests which, when passed, certify that the taker has American or Canadian high school-level academic skills. The GED is also referred to as a General Education Diploma, General Equivalency Diploma, or Graduate Equivalency Degree.
To pass the GED Tests and earn a GED credential, test takers must score higher than 60 percent of graduating high school seniors nationwide. Some jurisdictions require that students pass additional tests such as an English proficiency exam or civics test.
The American Council on Education is the sole developer for the GED test. The test is always taken in person and never available online.[1] Jurisdictions award a "Certificate of General Educational Development" or similarly titled credential to persons who meet the passing score requirements.
Only individuals who have not earned a high school diploma may take the GED tests. The tests were originally created to help veterans after World War II return to civilian life. Common reasons for GED recipients not having received a high school diploma include immigration to the United States or Canada, homeschooling, leaving high school early, the inability to pass required courses or mandatory achievement tests, the need to work, personal problems, and wanting to get into college early.[citation needed]
More than 15 million people have received a GED credential since the program began. One in every seven Americans with high school credentials received the GED, as well as one in 20 college students. Seventy percent of GED recipients complete at least the 10th grade before leaving school, and the same number are over the age of 19, with the average age being 24.[citation needed]
In addition to English, the GED tests are available in Spanish, French, large print, audiocassette, and braille. Tests and test preparation are routinely offered in prisons and on military bases in addition to more traditional settings. Individuals living outside the United States, Canada, or U.S. territories may be eligible to take the GED Tests through private testing companies.
ACE revised the GED Tests for a third time in 1988.[2] The most noticeable change to the series was the addition of a writing sample, or essay. The new tests placed more emphasis on socially relevant topics and problem-solving skills. For the first time, surveys of test-takers found that more students (65%) reported taking the test with the intention of continuing their education beyond high school, rather than to get better employment (30%). A fourth revision was made in 2002 to make the test comply with more recent standards for high-school education.[2]
To ensure fairness, all Official GED Testing Centers must adhere to the uniform testing standards specified by the American Council on Education, including adherence to the provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 or the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Local policies determine whether students must take all five tests in one day. Some locations divide the tests among two or more days, and testing days are not always consecutive.
In the social studies test, test-takers read short passages and answer multiple-choice questions. Some passages come from such documents as the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Supreme Court decisions. Many questions use graphs, charts, and other images, such as editorial cartoons, along with or instead of written passages.
Questions involving civics and government and economics rely heavily on practical documents, such as tax forms, voter-registration forms, and workplace and personal budgets. Topics such as global warming and environmental law also are covered.
and focus on environmental and health topics (recycling, heredity, and pollution, for example) and science's relevance to everyday life. Students should expect to see tables, graphs, charts, and diagrams, as well as complete sentences. Most questions on the "Science" test involve a graphic, such as a map, graph, chart, or diagram. Subjects covered include photosynthesis, weather and climate, geology, magnetism, energy, and cell division.
Questions do not require test-takers to be familiar with the larger piece of literature from which the excerpt is taken, the author's other works, literary history, or discipline-specific terms and conventions.
Forty of the 50 are multiple-choice; the other 10 use an alternate format, requiring the test-taker to record answers on either a numerical or coordinate-plane grid. Both portions of the test have questions of both types. The test booklet offers a page of common formulas as well as directions for completing the alternate-format items and using the calculator.
The test focuses on four main mathematical disciplines:
Official GED Testing Centers are controlled environments. All testing sessions take place in person (not online) according to very specific rules, and security measures are enforced. Breaks may be permitted between tests, depending on how many tests are being administered in a session. There may be restrictions on what test-takers may bring into the testing room.
There are approximately 25 different editions of the GED Tests that may be in circulation. This measure helps catch test-takers who may be cheating. As with any standardized test, the various editions are calibrated to the same level of difficulty.
In some areas, there is no charge to students who wish to receive the GED. In Arkansas, for example, there is no charge to students who pass a practice test[3]. In Connecticut, veterans and students under 21 take the test for free; depending on their local GED board, students can also take preparation courses for free and/or receive a free copy of the official preparation textbook.[4]
In other states, the test-taker must pay for the cost of the test. Fees in 2008 ranged from $7.50 at North Carolina's community colleges[1] to more than $100 in California.[5] There may be a fee for registering for the exam, and then a separate fee for re-taking any section, which the test-taker can do up until the expiration date of that exam, which is generally the last day of that year or the next year.
Accommodations may include, but are not limited to,
In most jurisdictions, students must earn a minimum score of 410 on each of the five tests, as well as an overall average of 450 or above. Many jurisdictions also set score requirements for earning an honors diploma. Some districts hold graduation ceremonies for GED Tests passers, and award scholarships to the highest scorers.
If a student passes one or more but not all five tests within the battery, he or she need only retake the test(s) not passed. Most places limit the number of times students may take each individual test within a year. A student may encounter a waiting period before being allowed to retake a failed test. Tests must be completed by the expiration date, which is generally every 2 years on the last day of the year.
The GED credential itself is issued by the state, province, or territory in which the test taker lives.
Many government institutions and universities regard the GED as the same as a high school diploma with respect to program eligibility and as a prerequisite for admissions. The United States military, however, has explicitly higher requirements in admissions for GEDs to compensate for their lack of a traditional high school diploma.[9] Likewise, economic research finds that the GED certification itself (i.e. without further postsecondary education or training) does not create the same labor market opportunities available to traditional high school graduates.[10]
Some[who?] believe the test is easier than it should be, and some employers look down on it as a form of degree lower than a high-school diploma. Others believe the GED is harder than it should be; according to GED Testing Service statistics from the 2003 GED Statistical Report, the number of candidates who tested, completed, and passed the tests declined in 2002 and 2003. This decline is attributed to the new tests being more difficult.
The most common criticism is of the test battery's mainly multiple-choice format. Others[who?] argue that the reading-comprehension test is too simple, and that there are too many basic operations on the mathematics portion and not enough advanced algebra and geometry questions.
In response to this criticism, the test was revised in 2002 to make it more difficult to pass. One of the most important revisions made it more difficult to guess correct answers from the choices provided. This greater degree of difficulty is achieved by requiring students to show the process for finding the correct answer to a question, rather than simply providing a correct result. For example, a typical mathematics question will not ask what the second leg of a right-angled triangle is when the lengths of the first leg and the hypotenuse are given, but instead will ask for the formula that should be used to find the correct answer; this requires the student not only to know the correct answer, but also to explain how to find it; it also uses both algebra and geometry, as opposed to just one discipline of mathematics.
A number of the questions also contain such options as "Not enough information given", "None of the above", and "No correction is necessary" as possible answers. These are found mostly in the "Mathematics" and "Language Arts: Writing: Part I" tests.
The test is administered to a representative sample of graduating high-school seniors each year, about 30% of whom fail the test. That only 70% of these students pass the test may show that it is harder than commonly believed.[11]
While people who have earned GEDs tend to earn more than dropouts and less than high school graduates, economist James Heckman has found that this is primarily due to preexisting differences in the characteristics and backgrounds of GED graduates. When controlling for other influences, he finds no evidence that, for the average taker, the GED as a credential improves an individual's economic opportunities above those for other dropouts.[10] However, on-going academic research shows that the minority of takers with high levels of both academic ability and characteristics of persistence and motivation potentially benefit greatly from obtaining a GED.
To pass the GED Tests and earn a GED credential, test takers must score higher than 60 percent of graduating high school seniors nationwide. Some jurisdictions require that students pass additional tests such as an English proficiency exam or civics test.
The American Council on Education is the sole developer for the GED test. The test is always taken in person and never available online.[1] Jurisdictions award a "Certificate of General Educational Development" or similarly titled credential to persons who meet the passing score requirements.
Only individuals who have not earned a high school diploma may take the GED tests. The tests were originally created to help veterans after World War II return to civilian life. Common reasons for GED recipients not having received a high school diploma include immigration to the United States or Canada, homeschooling, leaving high school early, the inability to pass required courses or mandatory achievement tests, the need to work, personal problems, and wanting to get into college early.[citation needed]
More than 15 million people have received a GED credential since the program began. One in every seven Americans with high school credentials received the GED, as well as one in 20 college students. Seventy percent of GED recipients complete at least the 10th grade before leaving school, and the same number are over the age of 19, with the average age being 24.[citation needed]
In addition to English, the GED tests are available in Spanish, French, large print, audiocassette, and braille. Tests and test preparation are routinely offered in prisons and on military bases in addition to more traditional settings. Individuals living outside the United States, Canada, or U.S. territories may be eligible to take the GED Tests through private testing companies.
History of the GED Testing Program
In November 1942, the United States Armed Forces Institute asked the American Council on Education (ACE) to develop a battery of tests to measure high school-level academic skills.[2] These Tests of General Educational Development gave military personnel and veterans who had entered World War II service before completing high school a way to demonstrate their knowledge. Passing these tests gave returning soldiers and sailors the academic credentials they needed to get civilian jobs and gain access to post-secondary education or training.ACE revised the GED Tests for a third time in 1988.[2] The most noticeable change to the series was the addition of a writing sample, or essay. The new tests placed more emphasis on socially relevant topics and problem-solving skills. For the first time, surveys of test-takers found that more students (65%) reported taking the test with the intention of continuing their education beyond high school, rather than to get better employment (30%). A fourth revision was made in 2002 to make the test comply with more recent standards for high-school education.[2]
How the test works
The five tests that comprise the GED test battery are "Language Arts: Writing", "Social Studies", "Science", "Language Arts: Reading," and "Mathematics".To ensure fairness, all Official GED Testing Centers must adhere to the uniform testing standards specified by the American Council on Education, including adherence to the provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 or the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Local policies determine whether students must take all five tests in one day. Some locations divide the tests among two or more days, and testing days are not always consecutive.
Language Arts: Writing
Part I
The "Language Arts: Writing" test portion is divided into two parts, of which the first covers sentence structure, organization, usage, and mechanics. Test-takers read text from business, informational, and instructional publications and then correct, revise, or improve the text according to Edited American English standards (or equivalent standards in Spanish and French versions). Test-takers have 75 minutes to complete the 50 items in Part I.Part II
This part of the "Language Arts: Writing" test requires the student to write an essay on an assigned topic in 45 minutes. Persons who finish Part I early may apply the remaining time to their essays. A passing essay must have well focused main points, clear organization, and specific development of ideas, and demonstrate the writer's control of sentence structure, punctuation, grammar, word choice, and spelling. There is no minimum word count.[citation needed] The essay should be long enough to develop the topic adequately. Assigned topics are always an opinion or perspective that does not require special knowledge, such as the influence of violent music on teenagers or the advantages and disadvantages of living without children. Essays need not be true or based in reality as long as they are developed around the assigned topic.Social studies
This test covers American history, world history, civics and government, economics, and geography; 70 minutes are allotted for the 50 questions.In the social studies test, test-takers read short passages and answer multiple-choice questions. Some passages come from such documents as the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Supreme Court decisions. Many questions use graphs, charts, and other images, such as editorial cartoons, along with or instead of written passages.
Questions involving civics and government and economics rely heavily on practical documents, such as tax forms, voter-registration forms, and workplace and personal budgets. Topics such as global warming and environmental law also are covered.
Science
This 80-minute test of 50 multiple-choice questions covers life science, earth and space science, and physical science. It measures the candidate's skill in understanding, interpreting, and applying science concepts to visual and written text from academic and workplace contexts. The test focuses on what a scientifically literate person must know, understand, and be able to do. Questions address the National Science Education Content StandardsLanguage Arts: Reading
This 65-minute, 40-question test examines a test-taker's ability to read and understand texts similar to those encountered in high-school English classrooms. The test has five fiction and two nonfiction passages, each about 300–400 words long. The fiction passages include portions of a play, a poem, and three pieces of prose. The nonfiction passages may come from letters, biographies, newspaper and magazine articles, or such "practical" texts as manuals and forms. Each passage is followed by questions that assess reading comprehension, as well as the test-taker's ability to analyze the text, apply the information given to other situations, and synthesize new ideas from those provided.Questions do not require test-takers to be familiar with the larger piece of literature from which the excerpt is taken, the author's other works, literary history, or discipline-specific terms and conventions.
Mathematics
This 90-minute, 50-question test has two equally weighted parts, the first of which allows candidates to use calculators, while the second forbids their use. Test-takers must use the calculators issued at the testing center, no other.Forty of the 50 are multiple-choice; the other 10 use an alternate format, requiring the test-taker to record answers on either a numerical or coordinate-plane grid. Both portions of the test have questions of both types. The test booklet offers a page of common formulas as well as directions for completing the alternate-format items and using the calculator.
The test focuses on four main mathematical disciplines:
- Number operations and number sense
- Measurement and geometry
- Data analysis, probability, and statistics
- Algebra, functions, and patterns
Test administration
There are more than 3,200 Official GED Testing Centers in the United States and Canada. Testing centers are most often in adult-education centers, community colleges, and public schools. Students in metropolitan areas may be able to choose from several nearby testing locations.Official GED Testing Centers are controlled environments. All testing sessions take place in person (not online) according to very specific rules, and security measures are enforced. Breaks may be permitted between tests, depending on how many tests are being administered in a session. There may be restrictions on what test-takers may bring into the testing room.
There are approximately 25 different editions of the GED Tests that may be in circulation. This measure helps catch test-takers who may be cheating. As with any standardized test, the various editions are calibrated to the same level of difficulty.
Cost
The cost of the GED for test-takers varies depending on the state. The most reliable and up-to-date information regarding any given area's current testing costs and policies may be found by contacting the local testing center.In some areas, there is no charge to students who wish to receive the GED. In Arkansas, for example, there is no charge to students who pass a practice test[3]. In Connecticut, veterans and students under 21 take the test for free; depending on their local GED board, students can also take preparation courses for free and/or receive a free copy of the official preparation textbook.[4]
In other states, the test-taker must pay for the cost of the test. Fees in 2008 ranged from $7.50 at North Carolina's community colleges[1] to more than $100 in California.[5] There may be a fee for registering for the exam, and then a separate fee for re-taking any section, which the test-taker can do up until the expiration date of that exam, which is generally the last day of that year or the next year.
Students with disabilities
Disabled persons who want to take the GED Tests may be entitled to receive reasonable testing accommodations. If a qualified professional has documented the disability, the candidate should get the appropriate form from the Testing Center:- physical disability and chronic-health disability (such as blindness, low vision, hearing impairment, and mobility impairment): "Request for Testing Accommodations—Physical/Chronic Health Disability" form.
- learning or cognitive disability (such as dyslexia, dyscalculia, receptive aphasia, and written-language disorder): "Request for Testing Accommodations—Learning and Other Cognitive Disabilities" form.
- emotional or mental-health disorder (such as bipolar disorder, Tourette's syndrome, and schizophrenia): "Request for Testing Accommodations—Emotional/Mental Health" form.
- Attention-Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder (inattentive type, hyperactive–impulse type, or combined type): "Request for Testing Accommodations—Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder" form.
Accommodations may include, but are not limited to,
- Audiocassette tests
- Braille or large-print tests
- Vision-enhancing technologies
- Use of video equipment
- Use of a talking calculator or abacus
- Use of a sign-language interpreter
- Use of a scribe (a person who writes down the test-taker's answers)
- Extended testing time
International testing
The Maine Department of Education, through a contract with the GED Testing Service of the American Council on Education, awards a Maine High School Equivalency Diploma to those candidates who have successfully tested through Prometric's International GED Testing Program.[6] Prometric offers a computerized version of the test at various locations worldwide. The test-taker can set dates on available weekdays throughout the year.[7]Passing the GED testing battery
The maximum score a person can earn on an individual test within the GED battery is 800. The minimum score is 200. A score of 800 puts the student in the top 1% of graduating high school seniors. ACE sets a minimum passing score (410 on each sub-test, and 450 average on all the sub-tests). However, jurisdictions (US states) may require tougher standards for issuance of the certificate if they choose. Colleges that admit based upon high school grades may require a minimum score on the GED for admittance based upon the GED. (For example, Arizona State University requires an average sub-test score of 500 in addition to the certificate) [8]In most jurisdictions, students must earn a minimum score of 410 on each of the five tests, as well as an overall average of 450 or above. Many jurisdictions also set score requirements for earning an honors diploma. Some districts hold graduation ceremonies for GED Tests passers, and award scholarships to the highest scorers.
If a student passes one or more but not all five tests within the battery, he or she need only retake the test(s) not passed. Most places limit the number of times students may take each individual test within a year. A student may encounter a waiting period before being allowed to retake a failed test. Tests must be completed by the expiration date, which is generally every 2 years on the last day of the year.
The GED credential itself is issued by the state, province, or territory in which the test taker lives.
Many government institutions and universities regard the GED as the same as a high school diploma with respect to program eligibility and as a prerequisite for admissions. The United States military, however, has explicitly higher requirements in admissions for GEDs to compensate for their lack of a traditional high school diploma.[9] Likewise, economic research finds that the GED certification itself (i.e. without further postsecondary education or training) does not create the same labor market opportunities available to traditional high school graduates.[10]
Some[who?] believe the test is easier than it should be, and some employers look down on it as a form of degree lower than a high-school diploma. Others believe the GED is harder than it should be; according to GED Testing Service statistics from the 2003 GED Statistical Report, the number of candidates who tested, completed, and passed the tests declined in 2002 and 2003. This decline is attributed to the new tests being more difficult.
The most common criticism is of the test battery's mainly multiple-choice format. Others[who?] argue that the reading-comprehension test is too simple, and that there are too many basic operations on the mathematics portion and not enough advanced algebra and geometry questions.
In response to this criticism, the test was revised in 2002 to make it more difficult to pass. One of the most important revisions made it more difficult to guess correct answers from the choices provided. This greater degree of difficulty is achieved by requiring students to show the process for finding the correct answer to a question, rather than simply providing a correct result. For example, a typical mathematics question will not ask what the second leg of a right-angled triangle is when the lengths of the first leg and the hypotenuse are given, but instead will ask for the formula that should be used to find the correct answer; this requires the student not only to know the correct answer, but also to explain how to find it; it also uses both algebra and geometry, as opposed to just one discipline of mathematics.
A number of the questions also contain such options as "Not enough information given", "None of the above", and "No correction is necessary" as possible answers. These are found mostly in the "Mathematics" and "Language Arts: Writing: Part I" tests.
The test is administered to a representative sample of graduating high-school seniors each year, about 30% of whom fail the test. That only 70% of these students pass the test may show that it is harder than commonly believed.[11]
While people who have earned GEDs tend to earn more than dropouts and less than high school graduates, economist James Heckman has found that this is primarily due to preexisting differences in the characteristics and backgrounds of GED graduates. When controlling for other influences, he finds no evidence that, for the average taker, the GED as a credential improves an individual's economic opportunities above those for other dropouts.[10] However, on-going academic research shows that the minority of takers with high levels of both academic ability and characteristics of persistence and motivation potentially benefit greatly from obtaining a GED.
Monday, October 18, 2010
Pay no attention to these BCS standings
When the first Bowl Championship Series rankings came out in 2003, Louisiana State was ranked 12th. The Tigers ended up winning the title. Four years later, LSU lost its regular-season finale, dropping its record to 10-2 and sliding to seventh in the BCS standings. A week later the Tigers were selected for the title game anyway. They went on to hold the crystal football.
The BCS unveiled its first poll of the season Sunday – Oklahoma is No. 1, Oregon is No. 2, Boise State is No. 3 and so on.
There is and will be much consternation. There is and will be much fear. Much of it will be unnecessary. The BCS propaganda is about how every game matters or every week is a playoff or some other talking point.
More From Dan Wetzel
* 'Huskers hopes burnt by orange Oct 16, 2010
* Pressure is all on Michigan, Rodriguez Oct 4, 2010
ADVERTISEMENT
Bob Stoops and Oklahoma are No. 1 in the initial BCS rankings released Sunday, but they shouldn't get too excited.
Mark Zerof / US Presswire
History shows the exact opposite.
The first poll rarely matters – just once have the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the first standings met in the title game (2005: Texas vs. USC). While the No. 1 has reached the title game six of 12 years, twice those teams dropped before returning.
In 2007, South Florida, ranked second initially, didn’t even finish in the top 20.
Almost no major Big Six conference team in the top 10 or 12 is out of it. Those teams can sustain a loss (sometimes two) over the course of a season and still play for the BCS title. They can still lose this season. They can lose in November. They can even lose the final game they play.
Forget every game matters. In some years, with the BCS, a game can actually not matter at all.
In 2001, Nebraska lost its final game 62-36 to Colorado, watching the Buffaloes rack up more than 600 yards of total offense. The loss meant the Cornhuskers didn’t even advance to the Big 12 title game as champions of the league’s North Division. Two weeks later, without playing another game, they were selected for the BCS national title game anyway.
The Huskers somehow edged out Oregon, which, its then coach, Mike Bellotti, noted didn’t lose its final game by 26 points. He then unleashed what remains the gold standard of anti-BCS rants.
“I liken the BCS to a bad disease, like cancer,” Bellotti said.
In 2003, Oklahoma did manage to win its division, but the Sooners did the Huskers one better by losing the Big 12 title game to Kansas State by 28 points (35-7). The next day they got picked for the BCS championship game anyway.
We can go on. On message boards and in bar rooms across the country they still do. This isn’t to rehash every argument, some of the selections may have been proper (as least as “proper” as the flawed polls and non-math-based computer formulas of the BCS can be).
About the authors
Book cover
Dan Wetzel and Jeff Passan write for Yahoo! Sports, the most-read sports site on the Web. Josh Peter, a former Yahoo! Sports reporter, is a freelance writer. Wetzel has coauthored four books, including the New York Times bestseller “Resilience: Faith, Focus, Triumph” with Alonzo Mourning, and lives in Michigan. Peter is an award-winning investigative journalist who has earned national attention for his reporting on the Bowl Championship Series. In 2005, he was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for a series on race and high school football in the South. He lives in Los Angeles. Passan has won multiple Associated Press Sports Editors awards and lives in Kansas.
Buy at Amazon
This is to tell the college football world to not panic about the initial standings. The debate rages, which is a fine distraction from looking at the inherent foolishness of determining a championship matchup – let alone revenue shares, conference power and recruiting might – based on the silly BCS standards.
Mostly it’s not to fall for the drivel about the importance of each game unless you know of another “playoff system” where losing by four touchdowns is cause for immediate advancement to the title game.
The BCS isn’t big on math, science or logic. It really isn’t big on history. It would rather forget previous disasters and count on broadcast partners to trot out the same tired public relations spin.
We’ve had teams such as Ohio State in 2007 lose at home in November and make it. We have had teams finish second despite losing head to head to the third-place team (Miami-Florida State in 2000, Nebraska-Colorado in 2001).
We’ve had teams not lose at all and not get a crack at the title – including an unbeaten SEC team, Auburn, in 2004.
“We beat five top 15 teams that year,” lamented then-Tigers coach Tommy Tuberville, now the head man at Texas Tech. “It’s just so much politics.”
In a bizarre way, that profound screw-job actually serves the BCS well. It’s what feeds the fury, the angst and the headlines that declared Alabama’s hopes over when they lost last week to South Carolina.
Were the Tide done? Not even close. If Alabama wins out (which would include victories over No. 4 Auburn and No. 6 LSU), there is probably only one scenario that can keep it out: if Oklahoma and Oregon are both unbeaten. The odds of both teams doing that aren’t good.
This could be a year a bunch of unbeatens get screwed. It could be a year where you can end the season with an ugly loss and move on anyway.
The only wild cards are the hopes of Boise State and No. 5 TCU (or No. 9 Utah). They’ve received a lot of attention yet they’ll need significant losses by everyone else to make the title game. That was always the case, though. Last year Boise State was ranked fourth in the first BCS standings, won every single game and finished sixth.
More intriguing is what if big conference teams that lack big brand recognition (Michigan State, Missouri, Oklahoma State) win out? Presuming Oklahoma and/or Oregon slip up, would they get a nod over Boise State? How about over a once-beaten Alabama? Perfect LSU or Auburn would certainly trump them.
There’s no way to know and there is nothing the BCS loves more than not knowing. All you can go with is history, which tells us the first standings don’t matter. The second-to-last standings don’t either.
So don’t fret, with the BCS it is always all an illusion. At least until the money gets counted.
The BCS unveiled its first poll of the season Sunday – Oklahoma is No. 1, Oregon is No. 2, Boise State is No. 3 and so on.
There is and will be much consternation. There is and will be much fear. Much of it will be unnecessary. The BCS propaganda is about how every game matters or every week is a playoff or some other talking point.
More From Dan Wetzel
* 'Huskers hopes burnt by orange Oct 16, 2010
* Pressure is all on Michigan, Rodriguez Oct 4, 2010
ADVERTISEMENT
Bob Stoops and Oklahoma are No. 1 in the initial BCS rankings released Sunday, but they shouldn't get too excited.
Mark Zerof / US Presswire
History shows the exact opposite.
The first poll rarely matters – just once have the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the first standings met in the title game (2005: Texas vs. USC). While the No. 1 has reached the title game six of 12 years, twice those teams dropped before returning.
In 2007, South Florida, ranked second initially, didn’t even finish in the top 20.
Almost no major Big Six conference team in the top 10 or 12 is out of it. Those teams can sustain a loss (sometimes two) over the course of a season and still play for the BCS title. They can still lose this season. They can lose in November. They can even lose the final game they play.
Forget every game matters. In some years, with the BCS, a game can actually not matter at all.
In 2001, Nebraska lost its final game 62-36 to Colorado, watching the Buffaloes rack up more than 600 yards of total offense. The loss meant the Cornhuskers didn’t even advance to the Big 12 title game as champions of the league’s North Division. Two weeks later, without playing another game, they were selected for the BCS national title game anyway.
The Huskers somehow edged out Oregon, which, its then coach, Mike Bellotti, noted didn’t lose its final game by 26 points. He then unleashed what remains the gold standard of anti-BCS rants.
“I liken the BCS to a bad disease, like cancer,” Bellotti said.
In 2003, Oklahoma did manage to win its division, but the Sooners did the Huskers one better by losing the Big 12 title game to Kansas State by 28 points (35-7). The next day they got picked for the BCS championship game anyway.
We can go on. On message boards and in bar rooms across the country they still do. This isn’t to rehash every argument, some of the selections may have been proper (as least as “proper” as the flawed polls and non-math-based computer formulas of the BCS can be).
About the authors
Book cover
Dan Wetzel and Jeff Passan write for Yahoo! Sports, the most-read sports site on the Web. Josh Peter, a former Yahoo! Sports reporter, is a freelance writer. Wetzel has coauthored four books, including the New York Times bestseller “Resilience: Faith, Focus, Triumph” with Alonzo Mourning, and lives in Michigan. Peter is an award-winning investigative journalist who has earned national attention for his reporting on the Bowl Championship Series. In 2005, he was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for a series on race and high school football in the South. He lives in Los Angeles. Passan has won multiple Associated Press Sports Editors awards and lives in Kansas.
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This is to tell the college football world to not panic about the initial standings. The debate rages, which is a fine distraction from looking at the inherent foolishness of determining a championship matchup – let alone revenue shares, conference power and recruiting might – based on the silly BCS standards.
Mostly it’s not to fall for the drivel about the importance of each game unless you know of another “playoff system” where losing by four touchdowns is cause for immediate advancement to the title game.
The BCS isn’t big on math, science or logic. It really isn’t big on history. It would rather forget previous disasters and count on broadcast partners to trot out the same tired public relations spin.
We’ve had teams such as Ohio State in 2007 lose at home in November and make it. We have had teams finish second despite losing head to head to the third-place team (Miami-Florida State in 2000, Nebraska-Colorado in 2001).
We’ve had teams not lose at all and not get a crack at the title – including an unbeaten SEC team, Auburn, in 2004.
“We beat five top 15 teams that year,” lamented then-Tigers coach Tommy Tuberville, now the head man at Texas Tech. “It’s just so much politics.”
In a bizarre way, that profound screw-job actually serves the BCS well. It’s what feeds the fury, the angst and the headlines that declared Alabama’s hopes over when they lost last week to South Carolina.
Were the Tide done? Not even close. If Alabama wins out (which would include victories over No. 4 Auburn and No. 6 LSU), there is probably only one scenario that can keep it out: if Oklahoma and Oregon are both unbeaten. The odds of both teams doing that aren’t good.
This could be a year a bunch of unbeatens get screwed. It could be a year where you can end the season with an ugly loss and move on anyway.
The only wild cards are the hopes of Boise State and No. 5 TCU (or No. 9 Utah). They’ve received a lot of attention yet they’ll need significant losses by everyone else to make the title game. That was always the case, though. Last year Boise State was ranked fourth in the first BCS standings, won every single game and finished sixth.
More intriguing is what if big conference teams that lack big brand recognition (Michigan State, Missouri, Oklahoma State) win out? Presuming Oklahoma and/or Oregon slip up, would they get a nod over Boise State? How about over a once-beaten Alabama? Perfect LSU or Auburn would certainly trump them.
There’s no way to know and there is nothing the BCS loves more than not knowing. All you can go with is history, which tells us the first standings don’t matter. The second-to-last standings don’t either.
So don’t fret, with the BCS it is always all an illusion. At least until the money gets counted.
The amazing race for three local runners
Three men. Three age groups. Twenty-six miles.
Good things are going to come in threes for Wellsville’s Michael Berardi, Steve Chaffee and Ron Wightman during the 115th running of the Boston Marathon in April.
All three distance runners have different levels of experience, different ages, but they have trained together and somehow all are nailing down qualifying times to start together in Boston. Prestigious races like Boston and the New York City Marathon only allow elite runners who hit specific qualifying times.
For Berardi, who is new to the sport, the clock was ticking.
Two weeks ago, the man most known for his walking (around Giant Food Mart where he is president and owner), ran the Corning Wineglass Marathon with hopes of qualifying for Boston. Competing in the age 40 to 44 bracket, Berardi had to finish in 3 hours and 20 minutes.
He finished 27th in his age group and 183rd out of 1,486 runners. But as he crossed the finish line, he looked up and saw he missed the cutoff for Boston by 8 seconds.
“After about 15 minutes, I realized the finish line time is not my actual time because we have (computer chips) on our sneakers,” said Berardi. “I went from sitting down exhausted to looking for the official results.”
The official result: Berardi crossed the finish line with 9 seconds to spare, qualifying for Boston.
While Ridgewalk and Run founder Rich Shear is not running Boston, the Iron Man gets a lot of credit for sparking interest in distance running and pushing his friends to succeed.
“Rich is the pioneer that got many local runners on their way including myself,” said Berardi. “He got Ron, Steve and myself interested in going to the Grand Canyon for the Rim to Trim to Rim in May of 2008 and 2010.
“Rich was instrumental helping me through the difficulties of getting started. Four years ago I was in his store weekly for advice. And he was never short on words,” Berardi continued. “My goal is to be like Rich and hopefully help inspire others to get into the great sport of running.”
Steve Chaffee, 46, ran the Montreal Marathon in October and qualified for Boston with a time of 3 hours and 21 minutes. He is looking forward to Boston.
“It will be a blast. The last time I went, Ron ran, but we were in different starting positions. Mike and I should be able to start side-by-side. It will be fun because it’s Mike’s first Boston, so it’s going to be fun for him.”
Chaffee is a veteran of the New York City Marathon and has run Boston once. He has a goal to run 50 marathons by age 50. He is at 47 and if he runs this month in Niagara Falls and then a second he has planned, Boston will be 50.
“I will hit that goal and 50 might be Boston,” said Chaffee, who started running in high school with track and field and cross country. “I ran in college on my own, not on a team. I think I do it to keep my sanity. It’s fun, I enjoy it and at times I really get into the training. I enjoy the other runners and going to the races.”
Chaffee said he is impressed with his two running partners.
“Mike’s been running really great, to qualify for Boston in his first marathon is amazing, I couldn’t do that. He has a schedule, he researches and he trains for the race. Mike and I ran a lot together that’s why our qualifying times are so similar,” said Chaffee. “Ron is amazing — I don’t know how he runs as fast as he does and whether it’s a marathon or a shorter race, he does so well he always always wins. He is 61 and to watch him is encouraging because I hope to be doing that at his age and make those times.”
Wightman laughs. He is very modest, but at 61 years old, he is in such great shape he gets asked for his identification to make sure he’s over 21.
“People guess my age and give me an extra 10 to 15 years. I think running has helped me stay young and in shape for everything else I want to do in life,” said Wightman.
Berardi started running in his 40s, Chaffee in high school and Wightman in his 30s with some 10Ks. he ran his first marathon at 40 and has not looked back.
“I am going to try one more time to qualify for Boston to see if I can nail down the same time they got, that way the three of us can all start together — that will be cool,” said Wightman. “It is unique to have three people from the same area run in this race and being able to run close to each other.”
Wightman has run the Boston Marathon three times and 13 overall. He said Boston is his favorite because of the atmosphere.
“Steve has dedication loves his running,” said Wightman. “Seeing Mike get really excited about it as a new runner is fun for us — he sets some high goals. I’m really looking forward to this.”
Good things are going to come in threes for Wellsville’s Michael Berardi, Steve Chaffee and Ron Wightman during the 115th running of the Boston Marathon in April.
All three distance runners have different levels of experience, different ages, but they have trained together and somehow all are nailing down qualifying times to start together in Boston. Prestigious races like Boston and the New York City Marathon only allow elite runners who hit specific qualifying times.
For Berardi, who is new to the sport, the clock was ticking.
Two weeks ago, the man most known for his walking (around Giant Food Mart where he is president and owner), ran the Corning Wineglass Marathon with hopes of qualifying for Boston. Competing in the age 40 to 44 bracket, Berardi had to finish in 3 hours and 20 minutes.
He finished 27th in his age group and 183rd out of 1,486 runners. But as he crossed the finish line, he looked up and saw he missed the cutoff for Boston by 8 seconds.
“After about 15 minutes, I realized the finish line time is not my actual time because we have (computer chips) on our sneakers,” said Berardi. “I went from sitting down exhausted to looking for the official results.”
The official result: Berardi crossed the finish line with 9 seconds to spare, qualifying for Boston.
While Ridgewalk and Run founder Rich Shear is not running Boston, the Iron Man gets a lot of credit for sparking interest in distance running and pushing his friends to succeed.
“Rich is the pioneer that got many local runners on their way including myself,” said Berardi. “He got Ron, Steve and myself interested in going to the Grand Canyon for the Rim to Trim to Rim in May of 2008 and 2010.
“Rich was instrumental helping me through the difficulties of getting started. Four years ago I was in his store weekly for advice. And he was never short on words,” Berardi continued. “My goal is to be like Rich and hopefully help inspire others to get into the great sport of running.”
Steve Chaffee, 46, ran the Montreal Marathon in October and qualified for Boston with a time of 3 hours and 21 minutes. He is looking forward to Boston.
“It will be a blast. The last time I went, Ron ran, but we were in different starting positions. Mike and I should be able to start side-by-side. It will be fun because it’s Mike’s first Boston, so it’s going to be fun for him.”
Chaffee is a veteran of the New York City Marathon and has run Boston once. He has a goal to run 50 marathons by age 50. He is at 47 and if he runs this month in Niagara Falls and then a second he has planned, Boston will be 50.
“I will hit that goal and 50 might be Boston,” said Chaffee, who started running in high school with track and field and cross country. “I ran in college on my own, not on a team. I think I do it to keep my sanity. It’s fun, I enjoy it and at times I really get into the training. I enjoy the other runners and going to the races.”
Chaffee said he is impressed with his two running partners.
“Mike’s been running really great, to qualify for Boston in his first marathon is amazing, I couldn’t do that. He has a schedule, he researches and he trains for the race. Mike and I ran a lot together that’s why our qualifying times are so similar,” said Chaffee. “Ron is amazing — I don’t know how he runs as fast as he does and whether it’s a marathon or a shorter race, he does so well he always always wins. He is 61 and to watch him is encouraging because I hope to be doing that at his age and make those times.”
Wightman laughs. He is very modest, but at 61 years old, he is in such great shape he gets asked for his identification to make sure he’s over 21.
“People guess my age and give me an extra 10 to 15 years. I think running has helped me stay young and in shape for everything else I want to do in life,” said Wightman.
Berardi started running in his 40s, Chaffee in high school and Wightman in his 30s with some 10Ks. he ran his first marathon at 40 and has not looked back.
“I am going to try one more time to qualify for Boston to see if I can nail down the same time they got, that way the three of us can all start together — that will be cool,” said Wightman. “It is unique to have three people from the same area run in this race and being able to run close to each other.”
Wightman has run the Boston Marathon three times and 13 overall. He said Boston is his favorite because of the atmosphere.
“Steve has dedication loves his running,” said Wightman. “Seeing Mike get really excited about it as a new runner is fun for us — he sets some high goals. I’m really looking forward to this.”
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