Anyone can write a year-in-review column at year end.  It takes a special kind of apathy to write it ten days later after everyone stopped thinking about New Year’s.  Everyone wants to be first, well I want to be the last year-in-review column you read about 2009.  So I hope you had a great New Year’s event and holiday break, and I want to welcome you to 2010 with my ‘BESTS’ of 2009. 

Best Sporting Event I Attended:  Pittsburgh Pirates @ San Francisco Giants, the Lincecum 15 strike-out game sometime in July or August.

    It was a cool Monday evening, and it was electric.  We had great seats on top of the left field fence.  Timmy (that’s what I call him cause we’re close friends) had six strikeouts by the end of the third inning.  Ten strikeouts after five innings.  The crowd was roaring after every pitch.  You could feel the energy in the air.  Pitch after pitch, it was magic.  My favorite part of baseball is pitching, and this was the performance of a lifetime.  To see a Cy Young winner in the midst of another Cy Young season on your favorite team have a command performance, that’s good stuff.

Honarable Mention:  Men’s Basketball UCLA Bruins @ Stanford Cardinal in January, UCLA wins!

Best Baseball Player:  Zack Greinke, SP – Kansas City Royals

    If you’ve read any of my previous columns, you likely know about my manly baseball crush on Zack Greinke.  He threw for a ridiculous amount of strikeouts (242), and complete games (6), and had a miniscule ERA (2.16) while playing on a terrible team.  And while we all appreciate the magnificence that is Lincecum, Greinke did it in a league with better hitters, and did it with a weaker supporting cast.  So while chicks may dig the longball, I dig the fastball.

Honorable Mention:  Albert Pujols, 1B – St. Louis Cardinals
 

Best NFL Player:  Darryl Revis, CB – New York Jets

    I saw a stat during the Jets-Bengals playoff game on Saturday showing eight elite receivers who had been kept to less than 35 yards receiving by Revis this season.  Add in the interceptions he gets, and the fact that he led the Jets to the playoffs with a rookie quarterback, and you’ve got the only legitimate shut down corner in the league this year.  Yes, I know Peyton Manning and Drew Brees and Brett Favre have been awesome this year, but I feel like you could trade them around on each other’s teams and their teams wouldn’t lose too much.  But there is no one in the league who could replace Revis and engender a similar result this season.

Honarable Mention:  Vincent Jackson, Drew Brees
 

Best Sports Movie:  Blindside

    Have you ever seen a movie with a conceptually compelling plot, where the writer/directors make every wrong decision and ruin a movie?  Like they take every potentially cool part and choose to make it inexplicably trite or mundane (Yes, ‘Origins of Wolverine’ I’m talking about you)?  Well Blindside is the opposite.  They take a very formulaic and cheesy remarkable true story (Ravens rookie LT Michael Oher) and take every opportunity to make it more compelling and not too ‘Hollywood’ every single moment.  The main kid actor is extremely believable and I could actually visualize his struggle, to the point where I began to wonder if the actor’s real life youth mirrored the movie in anyway.  I like that they didn’t have the over-the-top ‘football game to win the state championship’ scene.  And I loved Sandra Bullock, she was like a classier more attractive Erin Brokovich (the first time I’ve felt attracted to Bullock since ‘Speed’).  Its’ definitely Disney, not Scorcese, but it was fun and made me eager to adopt a potential football star (Do you think Jake Locker needs new parents?).

Honorable Mention:  Didn’t see any others, but I heard the soccer one was good (something with “United”).
 

Best New TV Show:  Jersey Shore

    Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock or you have two or more kids, you have heard about the MTV Jersey Shore reality show.  They basically put 8 extremely stereotypical young New York/New Jersey Italians in a beach house at Seaside Heights, New Jersey for the summer.  They party, tan, speak with ugly accents, get in fights, drink, hook up, tan, get haircuts, workout, fulfill embarrassing racial stereotypes, get in fights, take steroids, and shame their families every week.  I think the real beauty of it is how seriously they take being Guidos and Guidettes, and how proud they are of their antics.  They don’t know that the fans are laughing at them, not with them.  I’m mean seriously, how much can one person fist pump?  The show is just a big hot beautiful mess.  They have a guy who named his abs ‘The Situation (Note: My abs are named Rajon Rondo).’  On another note ABC’s ‘Better off Ted’ is smart and original and funny.  It’s better than the now popular ‘Modern Family.’

Honorable Mention:  Better Off Ted
 

Best Member of Jersey Shore Cast:  The Situation

    Mike on the Jersey Shore is cocky, tanned, and constantly on the prowl.  He works out a lot and places high value on his abs, which have the nickname ‘The Situation.’  As a result Mike’s nickname is ‘The Situation’ and he is rife with lady drama on the Jersey Shore TV show.  He is the most compelling character on the show, and he doesn’t even fight.  It makes for fun times when it’s hard to figure out if he’s talking about himself, his abs, or an actual situation. 
    I know the previous paragraph sounds stupid if you haven’t watched the show.  So seriously, go watch it.  It’s better than Hard Knocks.

Honorable Mention:  Snookie
 

Best Non-Sports Sports Story:  Plaxico = Gun + Sweatpants

    The Plaxico and Gilbert Arenas situations are terrible and tragic and stupid, but I feel that we haven’t addressed the larger underlying issue (uh-oh, I’m getting on my soapbox).  We live in a society where many young black men feel so disenfranchised and so helpless, and so distant from the justice system which they feel is designed to keep them down, that even some of the richest and most talented young black men still don’t feel safe and secure in what they have and what they’ve accomplished.  People say they made bad decisions and should know better, and that is absolutely true.  Guns are exceedingly dangerous and gun laws should be followed in all cases.  But if you grow up in a bad neighborhood, you’re not worried about being arrested for possession of a gun, you’re worried about someone threatening your family and you not being able to protect them.  I’m not making excuses for these men or others who illegally carry guns and endanger people, I’m saying that we have some very serious problems in our inner cities that aren’t being addressed (tired of standing on my soapbox now).  And these problems have a far more immediate and devastating impact on American society than a lot of the things our government does spend time and resources on (just got off of my soapbox).

Honorable Mention:  Gilbert Arenas – Guns + Gambling; Tiger - Infidelity
 

Best Ribs:  Baby Back Ribs at Cache Creek Casino

    The week before New Year’s I went with the boys to Cache Creek Casino out by Sacramento.  I was on fire, lighting up the blackjack tables.  I was playing wild, doubling down, splitting tens, hitting on 17, and ended up +$250 after 4 hours.  Then I played 2 hours of poker and lost $100 dollars (I was distracted by the Boise blue turf of the Humanitarian Bowl).  Then we went to the Mexican restaurant inside the casino with our free $25 in free food.  I have never seen baby back ribs before at a Mexican restaurant, so I ordered it.  It was amazing.  Sweet and spicy with a bit of tanginess.  The texture was tender but not falling off the bone, the smell was smoky, and portion was generous.  Certainly in my top five for Mexican meals in my lifetime (which is saying something cause I’m from Fresno and went to college in LA).

Honorable Mention:  None (not a great year for ribs)
 

Hottest Girl on an MTV Real World/Road Rules challenge:  Kelly Anne

    I’m not gonna get into this too much because I don’t want to sound to shallow or chauvinistic.  But she’s attractive with a nice body, beautiful face, nice lips, etc.  She has the nickname ‘Fembot’ because she is so perfect yet physically strong.  She is also the toughest straight girl in the history of these challenges, and she speaks her mind and is straight up with people.  So it’s all very appealing except that she’s hooking up with Wes.  Additionally, Ibis has maybe the most beautiful eyes on the planet.  Google it.

Honorable Mention:  Brittini, Ibis

Best Comic Book:  X-Force/Cable Messiah War

    I don’t know how many of you are into comics, so I’ll be brief.  This storyline takes place in the future with Cable (Cyclop’s son) jumping throught time running from X-Man Bishop.  Wolverine and some of his buddies are sent from the past to help out and the result is a dark, violent, desperate, beautifully drawn arc that also serves as a refreshing break from the rest of the ‘Dark Reign’ activities occurring in the Marvel Universe.  If you like Cable, Wolverine, Deadpool, or Apocalypse, you should check out this storyline.

Honorable Mention:  Blackest Night

 

Best Basketball Player:  Kobe Bryant, G – Los Angeles Lakers

    Is Lebron technically better (jump higher, run faster, dunk harder, pass better)?  Probably.  Kobe’s got the rings.  And he’s got a stronger will, a more refined killer instinct.  If were choosing teams for a pickup game (as in right now), I pick Kobe still.  It’s really, really close though.  Oh and there’s a small chance that Kevin Durant might actually be the best player on earth, but that’s a secret, so don’t tell anyone.

Honorable Mention:  Lebron James, F – Cleveland Cavaliers

Best NBA Draft Pick: #5 Tyreke Evans, PG Memphis – Sacramento Kings

    Great draft for the Kings.  They now actually have some decent young players, and maybe a future.  What made choosing Tyreke Evans impressive was that they picked him in front of more highly regarded point guards Ricky Rubio and Jonny Flynn (who actually turned out to be a lot better than I thought).  And they got a monster.  When you watch him play, you can tell that Evans is actually too big and athletic to be a point guard.  He’s got speed, moves, and a mid-range shot that is way better than expected.  The difference between him and Bucks rookie Brandon Jennings is that Jennings looks like a seasoned pro who is just a normal good player.  Evans looks like a rookie who can get a lot better, and even a little stronger, and that is scary. 

Honorable Mention:  #23 Omri Casspi, SF Israel – Sacramento Kings;  #10 Brandon Jennings, PG Italy, Milwaukee Brewers
 

Best SF Giants Moment:  The Jonathon Sanchez No-Hitter

    Obviously, a no-hitter is a big deal.  But this should have been a perfect game.  Juan Uribe jacked it up in the 8th inning.  Sanchez’s father was visiting from Mexico and watching his son pitch in the majors for the first time.  There was so much tension and emotion.  Just a phenomenal performance.  Giants fans around the Bay Area felt like they were watching their son pitch.  Great job by the t.v. crew and the entire team and organization. 

Honorable Mention:  The Tim Lincecum 15 strikeout game;  The Randy Johnson 300th win.
 

Best UCLA Moment:  Stanford killing USC at the LA Coliseum in football in November.

    It’s a little sad when UCLA’s best moment actually has nothing to do with the Bruins.  But USC getting crushed by Stanford was the harbinger of calamitous things to befall USC including but not limited to: losing to Arizona; getting busted for Joe McKnight SUV; getting busted for OJ Mayo payments; Pete Carroll leaving; people realizing that Will Ferrell isn’t that funny; and the indignity of playing in the Emerald Bowl.  But I like how Pete Carroll whined about Stanford running up the score.  I predict that it’s all gonna fall apart this year without Pete Carroll around to protect USC.  The kicker ‘accidental death’, the Stafon Johnson ‘incident’, the Reggie Bush ‘free’ house, the OJ murders, the ‘Twilight’ movies, USC is going down for all of it in 2010. 

Honorable Mention:  UCLA beating Temple in the Eaglebank Bowl (Hey, winning this bowl proves we’re a top 60 program, so deal with THAT).

 

My Best Fantasy Basketball Draft Pick:  Tyreke Evans, G – Saramento Kings.  Round 12 of 16 in a ten team league.

    I’ll fully admit that Kevin Martin getting injured made this pick look a whole lot better, but what can you do?  My strategy was drafting point guards and centers, and that’s been more than enough.  I’m completely dominating my league.  My hope is to clinch a playoff spot by the Superbowl.  Yes I am that good.

Honorable Mention:  Monta Ellis G, - Golden State Warriors.  Round 6 of 16.

My Best Fantasy Football Draft Pick:  Cedric Benson, RB – Cincinatti Bengals.  Round 9 of 12 in a 12 team league.

    This might actually have been my only good pick of the whole draft.  My whole team was sucky other than Benson and Visante Shiancoe.  I lost early and often.  Actually I just took Benson to handcuff Matt Forte, as I thought Benson was still on the Bears.  Shows how much I know.  Lame.

Honorable Mention:  Visante Shiancoe, TE – Minnesota Vikings.  Round 7 of 12.

My Greatest Athletic Feat:  11 Consecutive Pull-ups.

    I can’t do 11 now, but I like to do some pull-ups every once in a while at the gym.  At for some reason randomly in the middle of summer, I hulked-out and dropped 11, which probably hasn’t happened since I was 15.  Oh yeah, while I love to watch and follow sports, I don’t play a lot.

Honorable Mention:  Acquired a Legitimate Tennis Serve.

 

Best MMA Eff You:  Dream Lightweight Champion Shinya Aoki Breaking Mizuto Hirota’s Arm on New Year’s Eve.

    The biggest Japanese MMA event every year is the New Year’s Eve Dynamite cross-promotional extravaganza.  Shinya Aoki is a lightweight who wears funny long pants who is widely regarded as the best submission fighter in the world.  So he caught Mizuto Hirota in a hammerlock about a minute into the match, but Hirota didn’t tap out, wouldn’t submit.  Aoki held the move a while longer, then …. broke the guy’s arm.  This is unfortunate, but it does happen in MMA.  But then, Aoki jumps up in jubilation and gives the double bird to Hirota while yelling at him.  Then he mimics the arm breaking on his own body to the crowd, then gives a few more middle-fingers to Hirota.  Not the classiest thing I’ve seen, but definitely the best Eff You.

Honorable Mention:  Dan Henderson Super-punching Michael Bisping when Bisping was already knocked out on the ground at UFC 100. 
 

So those are my ‘BESTS’ for 2009.  What are your bests?  And come back next week for my ‘WORSTS’ of 2009.  Let me give you a little spoiler alert, Edgar Renteria and Darius Heyward-Bey will make an appearance.  Again, happy New Year everyone.  Peace.