Hamilton Has Finally Arrived

Josh Hamilton is Major League Baseball's next superstar. Hamilton had become an afterthought to most baseball observers after being the first overall selection in the 1999 MLB Draft by Tampa Bay. Hamilton's talent was so immense he was mentioned in the same breathe as Ken Griffey Jr. and Alex Rodriguez. He was destined to be baseball's next great star, but his fast track to the majors was derailed by drug addiction.

Hamilton's struggles to stay clean have been well documented and the Tampa Bay organization never gave up on him throughout his journey back. He was finally able to conquer his substance abuse problems in 2006 and has been clean ever since. Inexplicably, after sticking with Hamilton throughout his dark days, Tampa Bay left Hamilton unprotected in the Rule 5 draft where he was selected by the Chicago Cubs and then traded to Cincinnati. Hamilton flashed his potential in 2007 with the Reds despite battling injuries and being bounced around the line-up.

Hamilton was traded to Texas in the off-season for highly regarded prospect Edinson Volquez and both players have prospered in their new surroundings. Hamilton is the starting center fielder, firmly entrenched in the number three spot of the Rangers' line-up and exhibiting his elite natural ability at the plate. Baseball observers are now noticing Hamilton again as he was named American League Player of the Month. Hamilton batted .330 with 6 home runs and 32 RBIs during the first month of the season. As baseball tries to move past the "Steroid Era," there isn't a better story going than Josh Hamilton. Anyone who loves baseball should being rooting for Hamilton because his story is one deserving of more attention.

Boston College Wins College Hockey Championship

We like to apologize for our lack of post-game coverage because Be Nasty decided to watch the game on campus while enjoying Sam Summer's, highlight parties, John Oates, and watching others play individual games of slap the bag.

Moving on:

After two straight years of disappointing performances in the National Championship game, BC proved that the Third Tynes a charm (thank you Lawrence Tynes) after they defeated Notre Dame 4-1 to reach the summit of NCAA hockey. Nathan Gerbe was a man on a mission against Notre Dame, scoring BC's first two goals and tallying assists on the other two. He took the team on his back during its National Championship run with an incredible 7-goal and 11-point performance.

Gerbe Records Hat Trick in 6-1 Win

We here at Bleeding Sports pride ourselves on our analysis and full coverage of every top flight sporting event. Our very own correspondent Be Nasty took time off from his 18-hour a day Investment Banking gig to travel out to Denver and cover the NCAA hockey Frozen Four. Be Nasty even snapped a few photos to chronicle the shellacking that Nathan Gerbe and the boys from Boston College laid on those lumberjacks from North Dakota.

Who are the Chefs?

This classic Snickers commercial popped into my head the other day for whatever reason. Great Googly Moogly, naturally the ad can be found on YouTube allowing Bleeding Sports to share with all our friends. I still get a kick out of it after all these years.

Kansas Breaks Through

They were the worst of the #1 seeds and barely escaped the upset to Davidson in the Elite Eight. Now, they are the National Champions. College basketball fans had become accustomed to watching Kansas fail to live up to expectations and choke in the NCAA tournament. Can you say Bucknell or Bradley? But the Jayhawks silenced the doubters by reaching the Final Four and then blitzing a North Carolina squad that had looked invincible during the tournament.

The National Championship game went back and forth until Memphis and freshman star Derrick Rose took control. Facing a nine point deficit with two minutes to play, Kansas seemed destined to fall short yet again. It looked like just another disappointing ending to a season of high expectations for coach Bill Self and his team. Only this time, the Final Four's Most Outstanding Player, Mario Chalmers, and his Kansas teammates decided to write a different ending.

Give an assist to Memphis. Despite his best efforts to diffuse talk of his team's struggles from the foul line, John Calipari's Tigers couldn't seal the deal from the charity stripe. Kansas rode their momentum and emotion into overtime exhibiting brilliant offensive execution and stifled Memphis on the defensive end. As the buzzer sounded, the result was one amazing Jayhawks comeback.

Kansas finally has their One Shining Moment.

The Lights Stay On

from Gweeg
gweeg.blogspot.com

"Friday Night Lights" will return for a third season. NBC has struck a deal with DirectTV that calls for 13 new episodes that will begin airing in October exclusively on DirectTV. The deal between NBC and the satellite television provider allows for DirectTV to contribute to the "Friday Night Lights" production costs in exchange for the rights to air the show first. After the season airs on DirectTV, Friday Night Lights will return to NBC in January 2009. Kudos to NBC for thinking outside the box and keeping alive the critically acclaimed program. Far too often, quality programs with a loyal yet small fan base fall by the wayside. Let's hope that in the case of "Friday Night Lights" a new precedent has been set.

Duke Punk Hits Deck

Here is one of Bleeding Sports favorite moments of the 2008 NCAA tournament. As the final seconds of his college career ticked away, Duke's resident cheap shot artist, Gerald Henderson, looked to take out his frustration on West Virginia's Cam Thoroughman...from behind. Only this time, the cowardly Mr. Henderson messed with the wrong guy. Thoroughman, the Mountaineers' third string small forward answered Henderson's final shot with one of his own. The result was little Gerald culminating his collegiate career with a seat on the deck.