Leelanau Sports Guy’s World

I was looking at the Detroit News and for some reason clicked on Rob Parker’s article called Dombrowski has failed.

I had a feeling it would make me mad and boy was I right. I don’t know why I even bother reading Parker’s columns. I really think the Tigers are better now, than when Dave D. got here, and for some reason Parker doesn’t think so.

The minor league teams are in better shape with more prospects, especially pitchers, than in recent memory. The Tigers have a strong offense (when healthy) and could easily finish .500.

To think that Jeff Weaver is a better pitcher than Bonderman is ridiculous. Weaver has already pitched his best, Bonderman is still learning how to pitch and is very young. Let’s look at their careers when finished and see who was the better pitcher, I think it will be hands down Bonderman.

I think Dombrowski has helped bring the Tigers back and now a .500 season or better is a must. I still think they would have been .500 last year with a healthy Guillen, Maggs, and Young.

I wish someone would show Rob Parker the door.

The Glen Lake ski team will take part in a Class B-C-D regional today at Crystal Mountain. On the girls side, the Lakers are ranked 10th, but will face tough competition from #1 ranked Traverse City St. Francis. On the boys side, the Lakers face tough competition from 4 top-10 ranked teams. The Glen Lake ski team is a co-op with Suttons Bay, Lake Leelanau St. Mary and Leland.

Read Two teams hope to weather regionals in the Record Eagle

Suttons Bay played Leland tough, but in the end the Comets continued their winning ways with a 25-7, 20-25, 25-18 victory over the host Norsemen. Leland and Suttons Bay both defeated Forest Area in the triangular meet.

Read Leland takes two victories in the Record Eagle

Everyone is talking and writing about it. Some think it’s a good move, others don’t. I believe that if Joe D. can get a #1 pick back for him at this point, that’s a good trade. I like the trade (Darko & Arroyo to Orlando for a #1 pick - maybe lottery protected - and Kelvin Cato) because it would give the Pistons a pick and also free up cap space for Ben Wallace to sign after this season. Dumars is always looking towards the future and this is no exception.

Farlane and I were just talking about what if the Pistons had chosen Bosh, Wade or Anthony? Would they be the big stars they are today, or would they have rode the pine like Darko? I tend to think they would have been relegated to backup and mopup duty just like Darko. That’s why good teams don’t have high draft picks, because they don’t need them. If you look at any of the good teams (Spurs, Mavs, Suns, Heat) not many of those rotations would find a lottery pick contributing much. And remember, the Heat weren’t considered elite when they drafted Wade, they hadn’t traded for Shaq yet.

Here’s some bloggers opinions I read today on the subject…

Read Available: One Human Victory Cigar, Barely Lit at Out of Bounds

Read Darko’s Mood: Bewildered at Deadspin

Read If it’s Tuesday near the trade deadline, it must be Belgium time to talk Darko at The Wayne Fontes Experience

Read Darko… Cato… Darko… Cato… ? at Sweaty Men Endeavors

Leland used a balanced scoring attack to move to .500 in the Cherryland Conference with a 79-51 win over Lake Leelanau St. Mary. Five players scored in double figures for the Comets led by Marcus Whittaker’s 16 points as the Comets improved to 3-3 in the conference and 5-9 overall. St. Mary was led by Adam Konieczka’s 16 points.

Northport battled tough with Buckley, but the Bears scored the final 9 points in a 70-61 win. Drew Mitchell scored 28 points for the Wildcats as they fall to 9-7 overall and 4-3 in the Cherryland.

Ray Freund’s double-double wasn’t enough as Suttons Bay fell to Lake City 59-45 in a non-conference game. Freund scored 16 points and grabbed 11 boards. Suttons Bay is now 8-7.

Read Buckley edges Northport in the Record Eagle

A short article about Leland senior Daina Parent and being back with the Lady Comets after missing last season as an exchange student in Australia.

Read Parent back after year away in the Record Eagle

My schedule should be getting back to normal after a weekend away with my wife at a Worldwide Marriage Encounter. We had a great time, and it was a nice break spending time alone without interruption. As a bonus, we realized how great we get along and communicate, so that’s a plus!

Moving on to the world of sports…

Pistons lose to Heat - Not the worst thing in the world to happen, but the way it happened is some cause for concern. The Pistons blew a big 4th quarter lead and couldn’t stop Dwayne Wade down the stretch. Not the kind of confidence you want to give to your #1 conference rival. Shaq played one of his best games of the year and Tayshaun one of his worst. After looking at the box score and reading the recaps my breakdown is that the Heat (specifically Shaq and Wade) played one of their best games of the season and the Pistons didn’t. That sums it up.

Wings win 6th straight heading into break - I wouldn’t doubt that some of the Wings would love to keep on playing right now instead of taking a break for the Olympics. The Wings have been on a roll that last couple of weeks and now have swept the Avs for the year. Goaltending has been solid and the offense is scoring lots of goals, with those two combinations the Wings are pretty hard to beat.

Cool Pistons Backgrounds - Farlane at Absolute Michigan pointed me to some cool backgrounds done by Need4Sheed.com. Check them out (my fave is the new All-Star one)!

That’s it for now, back to work!

The Leland Lady Comets continued their dominance of the Suttons Bay Invitational by defeating Suttons Bay 21-7, 21-12 in the tourney final. It is the fourth straight year the Comets have won. Leland’s Alisha Glass was tournament MVP with teammate Whitney Grant being named MVP of the morning session. Suttons Bay was led by Holly Orban’s 47 of 49 serving and 52 kills. Glen Lake split all of it’s matches in the 2nd place pool and Northport captured the 4th place pool.

Read Leland wins tourney for fourth straight time in the Record Eagle

Ali Drake and Sarah Wiesen led the way for the Glen Lake/Suttons Bay girls ski team as they captured the final Lake Michigan Ski Conference meet to claim the title. Drake won the giant slalom and finished second in the slalom. Wiesen finished third in each. The Glen Lake/Suttons Bay boys finished 4th.

Read Bellaire, Glen Lake win LMC in the Record Eagle

For more info on this crazy soap opera, check out the article below.

Read Mike Martz Named Lions Offensive Coordinator at DetroitLions.com

My View: This time it’s official, as the Lions and Martz have agreed on a deal. Martz and new defensive coordinator Donnie Henderson will be announced next week. I was very excited initially, and still am. Martz has done amazing work with quarterbacks and could be just the guy to revive Joey Harrington’s career. I am pleased it is for three years, instead of the one, and that his future replacement is being groomed (Wilbert Montgomery). It looks good on paper and gives the Lions two agressive coordinators who aren’t afraid to create chaos. Look for Charles Rogers to be given a solid chance to perform and earn a spot as he would be a perfect fit in a Martz offense.

Lots of great winter events are on tap for the Traverse City area in the month of February including a limited supply of free snowshoes to borrow at the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.

Read Winter events abound in the Record Eagle

Buckley used a 30-11 fourth quarter advantage to fight off a tough effort from Lake Leelanau St. Mary to remain undefeated in the Cherryland and earn a 56-40 win. The Eagles held a 29-26 lead after three quarters. Adam Konieczka led St. Mary with 17 points.

Read Buckley perfect in league in the Cadillac News [After clicking, scroll down]

Alot of fans in West Michigan will be watching the 2006 Olympics in Torino with great interest as Muskegon’s Mark Grimmette will go for his third Olympic medal in his fourth olympic games. Grimmette and teammate Brian Martin participate in the doubles luge competition.

The Muskegon Winter Sports Complex is the place to be to watch and cheer on Grimmette and his efforts. A Community celebration/viewing party set for February 15th at 6 PM. The event is free with donations being accepted. TV’s will be setup to watch Grimmette and Martin go for the gold!

Visit Muskegon Winter Sports Complex on the web
View Mark Grimmette’s Bio at NBCOlympics.com
Read Nice guys win on luge track at the Detroit News

Leland led the entire game, but in the final second Buckley sank two free throws to defeat the Comets 57-55 and stay undefeated in Cherryland play. Leland falls to 2-2 in the conference, 4-10 overall.

Read Buckley topples Leland at Cadillac News

Northport played tough all day, but finished 1-3 in the Ellsworth Tourney. The defeated Alanson and lost to Ellsworth, Bear Lake and Pickford. Leading the Wildcats was Cecilia Kohler.

Read Northport finishes 1-3 at Ellsworth in the Record Eagle [after clicking scroll down]