14 Innings, The Contender, Movies...

...at least that's all I have on my list. As those who are close to me can attest, I'm forgetful. So lately, I've been keeping a list of things to write about. Since it's been a while since my last post, this list is now somewhat outdated, but I'm going to go ahead and toss it out there, even though nobody ever reads my blog. Am I really that boring? Yes, I know I am. The least you could do is reply sometime.

First off, my cousin Mike(y) and I met up in Cincinnati to go to the May 24 Reds game against the Washington Nationals. Also, it was Griffey Bobblehead Night, which was our original reason for getting tickets. The tickets that I picked up were $30 seats, two rows back from the field. I also got an extra ticket so I could pick up a Bobblehead for my brother Josh, which was a hassle, because they made me run out to the centerfield exit to re-enter. Bleh. Anyway, the game was pretty enjoyable until the 9th inning, when Kent Mercker started his second inning giving up a hit. Then David Weathers came in, retired two batters, and allowed the runner to score, tying the game at 3-3.

Of course, at this point you think it's all over, as it generally is with the Reds. Well, the game drags on for some time, with both teams going through a multitude of pitchers and bench players. It was getting awfully late, and I still had a 2-hour drive ahead of me and an alarm clock ready to wake me up at 6:30AM. My scorecard was so screwed up by the time I ran out of space in the 12th that I just gave up and put it away. In addition, it had been sprinkling off and on all night. Finally, in the bottom of the 14th, the Reds get LaRue and Luis Lopez on base, when the newly called-up pitcher Randy Keisler comes to bat after pitching two good innings. He drops a hit just over the heads of the infielders, and the Reds win in four hours and twenty minutes. After it was all over, I can say that it was actually pretty fun, but I was tired at work the next day.

Moving on...The Contender finale was aired on the same Tuesday night, so I didn't get to watch it live, but I did remember to record the whole thing. Megan and I have been watching it pretty much all season, and I never thought that I'd get into boxing that much. One thing I didn't like about the finale was that they didn't show 3 of the undercard matches, which we were looking forward to. First, they showed the Bronze Medal round between Alfonso Gomez and Jesse Brinkley. After the first round, Alfonso really took over and won the match. Too bad he couldn't take over the previous match like that, because I was really pulling for him to take it all. The Final match between Sergio Mora and Peter Manfredo was actually pretty boring. Mostly it was Mora being held back on the ropes but landing some good punches every time. By the end of the match, Manfredo had pretty much given up trying to get a desperately needed knockout, so Mora won decisively. I guess they're planning on having rematches and more title fights within the confines of The Contender, so we may see these guys on TV again. One thing to note: boxing is much more interesting--especially at these lower weight classes--when it's "Contenderfied," rather than live, because they give you the highlights, have better camera angles, and show great punches in slow-motion. It is much easier to follow and understand.

Bleh. That was a lot of typing. I'm even boring myself at this point. I'll leave my movie-going experiences until next time.