The 300s Podcast: Red Sox Chasing 100 Wins & the Gang Fights a PED Suspension

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A new episode of The 300s Podcast is hot off the presses! This ep is a grab bag of news as we’ve got headlines everywhere from drug rings to a historical run by the Red Sox to PED suspensions and back to NBA free agency. Click here to listen or download on iTunes or Google Play. Subscribe, rate, and review today!

It came out the other day that Hanley Ramirez was allegedly Pablo Escobar andddd now he’s apparently not. Whoops.

The Red Sox are on pace to win 100+ games for the first time since 1946 and I’m still not sold on this team.

Julian Edelman is pulling a Ryan Braun and appealing his 4-game suspension on the way his test was physically handled more so than the actual results.

LeBron “The Decision” James reportedly doesn’t want a recruiting circus this time around in free agency. Is this the height of hypocrisy or has LeBron learned from getting roasted after The Decision?

The 300s has a very exciting announcement to make and that my friends is what they call a big market tease.

So When Are We Getting This Aquaman Trailer?

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All signs point to the Aquaman trailer finally dropping at San Diego Comic Con on July 21st, which feels late because we haven’t seen *anything* from this movie and it comes out on December 21st. So to have not even seen a teaser yet feels odd, but its done a pretty good job of building up the hype train. James Wan did technically tease an Aquaman fight scene while promoting his own Funko Pop figure, but that hardly counts.

The DCEU has been super hit or miss with Man of Steel (55 Metascore), Batman v Superman (44 Metascore), Suicide Squad (40 Metascore) Wonder Woman (76 Metascore), and Justice League (45 Metascore). Wonder Woman is the only one of that group to even crack 56 on Metacritic so its been a mixed bag. They’ve all been entertaining if nothing else, but the majority of these movies have been plagued by their tone. Do we want to be dark? Was that too dark? Should we do mass reshoots to be less dark and more cheeky (i.e. Suicide Squad) or just try and be everything to everyone?

With all that being said Momoa brought a welcome comic relief to the film.

But he also can still throw the hands.

So I for one am very excited about this movie, and with that I think DC has already achieved the No. 1 goal, which was to make Aquaman not look soft. After years of getting roasted on everything from internet message boards to Robot Chicken, it could have been a tall task to make the King of Atlantis cool again.

Having Khal Drogo, son of Khal Bharbo, leader of his khalisar and the Great Khal was a good start. Maybe I’m biased because I’m a huge Game of Thrones guy, but Jason Mamoa has been a perfect choice to give this IP a jump start. They could have easily picked some clean cut skinny dude to slip into a green and gold costume and that would have been an easy choice, a disaster, but an easy choice.

Instead they doubled down on the head of the Dothraki. Really it was already an uphill battle trying to best the OG Aquaman as portrayed by one Vincent Chase.

Good luck topping that.

So I am looking forward to this trailer and I’m hoping DC has learned something useful from the massive hit Wonder Woman was coupled with the mostly disappointing other entries. Just let Momoa do his thing and get out of the way.

 

 

LeBron Doesn’t Want to Make a Big Deal About THE DECISION That He Makes in Free Agency

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ESPN – James has until Friday to pick up his $35.6 million player option with the Cleveland Cavaliers. While James hasn’t decided yet whether to pick up his player option, sources close to the situation tell ESPN that he has no intention of hearing elaborate pitch meetings from teams. James might meet or speak with a club official or owner at some point, but the elaborate presentations that have become common in NBA free agency over the years are unnecessary after 15 seasons in the league.

Should James become a free agent, league sources believe he and his agents Rich Paul and Mark Termini have enough understanding of the stakes and NBA landscape to handle the process without much fanfare. James went through a much more elaborate courtship when he was a free agent in 2010. The Knicks, Heat, Bulls, Nets, Cavs and Clippers flew delegations in to make presentations to him, and he announced he was joining the Heat in a televised special.

Look, I get it. Who would want to make a big circus around THE biggest DECISION of their lives? Like the last thing you would want as a guy trying to decide his future is have THE ultimate and difficult DECISION you make be aired on live TV?

That sounds incredibly stressful, egomaniacal and even disrespectful to your current team. Making THE biggest DECISION in your life is something you should sit down with your family and not someone like Jim Gray to choose where you want to continue your career.

Good for you, LeBron.

The 300s Reviews: Guaranteed Rate Field, Home of the Chicago White Sox

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My quest to see all 30 MLB parks has brought me to Chicago this week. To be honest, I’ve been putting off this park for a while, and like my 300s counterpart Big Z, I wasn’t jumping for joy at the chance to see what Guaranteed Rate Field had to offer.

Situated in South Chicago, I’ve pretty much only heard bad things when the White Sox stadium was brought up in conversation. But alas, I’m not in Chicago incredibly often and the quest is to see all 30, so it was time to bite the bullet and check this place out.

I’ve decided to do this review a bit different than my past reviews. Most of the time I’m writing these as a retrospective piece, trying to recall my favorite and least favorite parts of the experience. However, seeing as I was only at this field yesterday, I thought it would be a little fun to give you an exact play by play of how things went down. While I was there, I took brief notes on my iPhone to really capture the essence of what I was feeling in the moment. So I present to you, an unaltered account of my day yesterday at Guaranteed Rate Field.

12:35 pm: Just arrived at Guaranteed Rate Field. So far I feel like I am the only person at the stadium, it’s a ghost town. Checked out the team store, which has a good amount of Cubs gear for no good reason.

12:45 pm: Got a vodka lemonade souvenir cup for 10 bucks. Pretty god damn strong, good price.

12:56 pm: Apparently it’s the mascots birthday. Kind of a lame mascot. No spark, looks dead inside. Although he is named Southpaw, which I appreciate the lame pun for being on the south side of Chicago, and myself being a lefty.

1:07 pm: Decided to do the speed pitch machine. Arm is completely shot. In actual pain. Great form though and hit 60 mph.

1:08 pm: Fireworks mistaken for gunshots. South side Chicago problems.

1:10 pm: Made my way to the upper deck and we have closed concession stands! Supply and demand!

1:19 pm: First inning just ended. So far the best way to describe this place is lifeless. Guy in front of me has taken his shoes off and is reading a Chicago Tribune. I can’t tell exactly, but there also appears to be a 10 year old sleeping a few seats down from him. Beer guy came through and held up a beer, didn’t bark or try to make a sale, and then went back down the tunnel to the concourse.

1:30 pm: Mascot tricycle race. We’re getting desperate

1:38 pm: They’d like you to believe this is Frank Thomas’s number when in actuality it is today’s attendance.

1:48 pm: Apparently you can’t leave the 500s section if you have a 500 level ticket. Calling kangaroo court on this one. There’s no food open up here, so I will fight my way down to the main concourse.

1:53 pm: There are an excessive amount of people making balloon animals. Just had to mention that.

1:58 pm: Not sure if it’s the sweltering heat or last night’s hangover, but I’m starting to have an existential crisis about being at this game and killing another 7 hours til my flight home.

2:06 pm: Grabbing a vanilla cone to try and lift my spirits.

2:15 pm: Cone made things worse.

2:30 pm: Actually watching some of the game now. Moncada with a 3 run double! There’s audible cheering! We may just have life yet.

2:32 pm: And we’re back to deafening silence.

2:35 pm: Jose Abreu with one of the worst slides I’ve ever seen to kill a nice 2 out rally.

2:39 pm: Remember how I said it was the mascot’s birthday? They’re giving out fucking birthday cake. This place is so bizarre.

2:40 pm: “Overall moist and flavorful for a mass produced cake.” – Laurel B

2:44 pm: The cake has now led to heartburn. Luckily I always keep spare Tums on me.

3:16 pm: Just saw a grown-ass man spike his drink because he missed a foul ball. Hardest I’ve laughed all day.

3:18 pm: I think that’s all she wrote for my day in Chicago, overall just an incredibly strange place to watch baseball. Definitely not my least favorite stadium, but it’s probably bottom 3 for me. Crowd started coming alive as the runs were coming home, so this place has the potential to be fun when it wants to be. Time to catch a flight.

Official review: 6.4 out of 10

The 300s Reviews: Target Field

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Target Field opened in 2010 and brought outdoor baseball back to Minnesota for the first in nearly three decades. The Minnesota Twins moved to Target Field after playing 28 seasons inside the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome. Prior to playing in the Metrodome, the Twins played 21 seasons at Metropolitan Stadium in Bloomington. The Twins shared both of those facilities with the NFL’s Minnesota Vikings. Target Field is the first home the Twins can call their own.

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Moving from a multi-purpose stadium to a baseball-specific stadium is a huge upgrade by itself, but there’s so much more to like about Target Field. The downtown ballpark offers stunning views of the city’s skyline. Sitting along the third-base line you could imagine that the 1965 World Series was played there and not in Bloomington. That’s because Target Field is a perfect example of a retro modern ballpark (a la Petco Park) as opposed to a retro classic ballpark (Camden Yards).

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Gate 29

The exterior of Target Field features limestone and glass, as opposed to the brick and green steel featured at retro classic ballparks. Also visible is the stadium’s canopy, which can help shield fans in the upper level from the elements on cold days and the sun on better days. There were talks of building a retractable roof for this ballpark, but that feature proved to be cost prohibitive.

The entrances for Target Field are numbered with some of the team’s retired numbers, and while there’s no grand main entrance like old Yankee Stadium I think it’s fair to say that Gate 29 (Rod Carew) is the de facto main entrance. At least that’s where the longest lines are on giveaway days.

Despite the ballpark’s relatively small footprint, it does not feel cramped at all. Quite the opposite, in fact. You can do a complete lap on the lower level of the ballpark and never lose sight of the pitcher’s mound and home plate. As someone who enjoys visiting and touring ballparks, I love to move around and check out everything a park has to offer. You can do that in Target Field and not lose track of the game. The small footprint might explain the steep seating in right field, but that’s a minor quibble. You still get a great view of the game from out there.

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Target Field’s concession stands don’t offer anything crazy like toasted grasshoppers, but they do a good job of delivering hot dogs, sausages, burgers, chicken fingers, french fries and all of the other ballpark standards. There are a lot of pop up stands run by local restaurants, including Red Cow and Kramarczuk’s, that feature more “gourmet” options.

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Poutine helmet from Kramarczuk’s

Lines are generally reasonable, and so are the prices. A 24 oz Bud Light draft will set you back $9.50, which seems like a bargain compared to some other parks. And if you’re in town on a Wednesday you can experience what is probably one of the last regular dollar dog nights in the bigs.

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Just $21 for this whole tray!

The park also offers seven (!) bars inside the stadium. Stadium pricing obviously still applies but it is nice to be able to walk around the stadium to grab a beer, especially if you get there early on a hot day.

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And, of course, no ballpark is complete without a mascot race these days.

The Atlanta Braves recently moved out of Turner Field after just 20 seasons and the Texas Rangers will ditch the Ballpark in Arlington in 2020, but I don’t think we’ll see Target Field fall out of favor that quickly. The Twins have already shown a willingness to tinker with and improve the stadium (and the fan experience) on an almost annual basis. There’s no reason why the Twins can’t play at Target Field for the next 50 years. It’s the best ballpark I’ve been to yet.

Big Z Ballpark Rating – 9.3

BREAKING: Islanders Hire Stanley Cup Champion Barry Trotz as Head Coach

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Look, I’m not going to pretend this is what puts the Islanders over the edge as far as chasing a cup goes. We have a lot of holes, namely a star free agent center we have to re-sign, but this is such a drastic step in the right direction. The way this organization has been run over the course of my lifetime is indefensible. We’ve been plagued by bad ownership (one of which, the poster boy for the phrase “Snake It Til You Make It”, John Spano, who bought a team with absolutely no money!), bad coaches, injuries, pretty much whatever you can think of that screams circus on ice. This offseason has now brought in a 3-time Stanley Cup GM in Lou Lamoriello and current Stanley Cup Champion coach Barry Trotz. Get John Tavares to sign on the dotted line and bring in a half way decent goalie and I will be on the phone with Isles ticket reps TONIGHT.

We’ll post more info as it becomes available.

Tom Brady Has Put Everyone’s Brain in a Pretzel This Week

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NBCSports – Somebody needs to tug on Tom Brady’s sleeve and let him know that fun’s fun, but he’s drifting into Brett Favre territory now. Forty-eight hours hadn’t passed since the Oprah Orchard Interview in which Brady said his retirement was coming “sooner rather than later” and there he was on Instagram Tuesday afternoon insinuating in Spanish that he’s back to playing until he’s 45. Given that he’s 40 right now and his contract expires at the end of the 2019 season, 45 seems like later not sooner. That’s standard fare this offseason.

Tom E. Curran wrote an article yesterday about Tom Brady’s back and forth retirement timeline plans thats definitely worth the read. Curran is as tied into the Brady family as anyone so when he writes about Brady I pay attention.

It’s definitely frustrating to not know when exactly Brady will ultimately play until, but thats the cross you bear for having a 40-year-old quarterback, who just won the MVP by the way, leading your team. I’m sure 99% of the NFL would swap places with Patriots fans right now.

The waffling and the mind games are what will drive people up a wall though. Saying ad nauseum that he’s playing until his mid-forties or beyond, only to tell Oprah that he’s going to hang em up “sooner rather than later” only to then cryptically comment “45” in Spanish on an ESPN post on Instagram.

The Brett Favre comparisons will only grow louder unless Brady makes a definitive public statement declaring his intentions one way or the other, but why would he? It’s frustrating, but I get it. If my job asked me to commit to 3-4 more years I would give them a big shrug emoji.

Did Brady likely bitch and moan to the owner to get his heir apparent in Jimmy Garoppolo shipped out of town? All signs point to yes, but its not Tom’s job to make sure the Patriots are set up for 2024. That’s on Robert Kraft and Bill Belichick.

Listen, if Brady up and retires tomorrow it is a massive dick move and is a complete about face from everything he’s preached for the last few years. That would be unforgivable after he basically forced Kraft to ship Jimmy G out of town….but fans would forgive him sooner rather than later. Sure, Bill may never talk to him again outside of Hall of Fame inductions and such, but its become pretty clear over the past several months that these guys aren’t exactly ripping it up together on the VII Rings in Nantucket.

Back to Curran’s larger point here though. Brady joked after the Super Bowl when asked about retirement “Why does everyone want me to retire?” Thats just it. Everyone, outside of New England at least, does want him to retire. The rest of the league has just been counting down the seconds on the imaginary doomsday clock thats been ticking, and ticking, and ticking since the day the Pats drafted Garoppolo and we all became aware of “Tom’s age and contract situation.” So yea no kidding everyone wants to know when Brady is retiring. So they can start planning to maybe possibly be competitive or even potentially win an AFC East title for the first time in nearly 20 years.

“does he not get that his and the Patriots stranglehold on the NFL isn’t like Jordan’s on the NBA. It’s closer to Godzilla’s on Japan, and that every other NFL team and fanbase is counting the seconds until he walks.

That’s why every throat-clearing, every pause, every social media “like” is scrutinized for clues as to which way he’s ultimately leaning.”

The end is coming. I don’t know when, but we’re not quite there yet. They may have announced last call at the bar, but they haven’t turned the lights on just yet. So until then lets just enjoy the ride.

I Would Like to Apologize to Cole Beasley for Sleeping On His Rap Album Because It BANGS

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I personally would like to apologize to Cole Beasley for sleeping on his debut rap album until just now because I heard it for the first time today and it BANGS.

Released last month, “The Autobiography”, popped up on my Spotify this morning while I was at the gym (no big deal) and I found myself jamming along before saying who the hell is this? Color me shocked to look down at my phone and see its none other than Dallas wide receiver Cole Beasley.

Any time an athlete releases an album I immediately think of Willie Beamen’s failed rap career. We’ve seen so many garbage musical endeavors from athletes over the years from guys like Deion Sanders, Shaq, more recently Lonzo Ball and lets not even mention Bernie Williams’ acoustic album.

But theres a few nuggets in there, hell even John Cena had a couple hits that get played to this day. Seriously, his song “My Time is Now” is featured in the new Toyota Camry commercial.

I can’t say I expected the white slot receiver from the Cowboys to put out such heat, but I should have known better with Cole Beasley. This is the guy who lives for roasting fools on Twitter.

The dude can spit, theres no denying it. He raps a lot about his money, but not in the way you’d expect. He talks about how he doesn’t have a flashy chain because he’s got his money put away for his kids’ college funds. He’s got a song about white stereotypes when it comes to rap, but more importantly how it relates to football. How he’s described as “deceptively athletic” where he says he’d probably just be “athletic” if he was black.

Most importantly, this album has got legit beats and you can tell theres solid production value there. The guys a millionaire so I’m glad he didn’t make it in GarageBand. You can tell its not just a side project for the guy, he wants to be respected as more than just a football player. I gotta say, this is a pretty good rap album. Its not J. Cole’s KOD by any means, but there’s plenty of white space (no pun intended) to be filled in the rap scene today and believe it or not Cole Beasley’s album deserves a listen.

Check it out on Spotify.