The NFL, Unlocked

Image via WikipediaAmerica's long national nightmare is over.  No, we're not talking about the debt crisis.  The four and a half-month work stoppage in the National Football League has ended with owners and players agreeing to a new deal.

What was at stake was the $9 billion in league revenues, and how it was going to be divided.  It turns out that the owners will be getting most of the money, but the players got some concessions in terms of onfield safety.  The new agreement lasts through the 2020 season.

Through all this, only one preseason game was canceled (the Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio) and the start of training camps for some teams had to be delayed.  So the preseason games everyone seems to dislike except the owners and TV networks will actually be necessary this year, because players did not have structured off-season workouts during the lockout.  They might be in great physical shape, but not football shape.

It also means that, starting now, there'll be a brief period of signing free agents and rookies who were drafted last spring.  The fates of teams could be altered depending on how many free agents choose to either stay where they are, or go elsewhere.  Or they might not.

As for the Minnesota Vikings, who will once again be training at MSU-Mankato, things are pretty volatile.  New coach Leslie Frasier will either start Joe Webb or Christian Ponder at QB, or surprise everyone and bring in Donovan McNabb from the Washington Redskins.  But we do know one thing:  Brett Favre is not coming back.  Or is he?

The lockout is over, and football fans no longer have to worry about how to fill their Sundays and Monday nights.  Now we can go back to discussing concussions.

A Little Good News For Japan, Made In Germany

Image by Getty Images via @daylifeFive months ago, northern Japan was hit by a major earthquake, which led to a tsunami that spread across the Pacific.  Then came the nuclear disaster that shut down Fukushima and environs.

Now, with the country still reeling from the death and destruction, they have some good news.  The Japanese women's soccer team won the FIFA World Cup in Frankfurt, Germany Sunday, defeating the United States 3-2 in extra time and penalty kicks.

To get here, the Japanese team had to defeat established soccer powers Germany (the host country and defending champion) and Sweden in dramatic fashion.  The final was no different.

The first half was scoreless.  In the second half, Miyama scored to tie the match at 1-1 in the 81st minute, not long after Alex Morgan had scored for the Americans in the 69th minute.  In extra time, the same pattern of the U.S. scoring first and the Japanese tying the game emerged.  Abby Wambach gave the Americans a 2-1 lead in the 104th minute.  But Homare Sawa tied it again for Japan at the 117th minute mark.

For the first time since 1999, the championship was decided in a shootout.  Goalkeeper Aryumi Kaihari made the crucial saves and Saki Kumugai scored the winning goal as Japan won in penalty kicks 3-1.

For the United States, making it this far after being the last team to qualify for the Women's World Cup was an accomplishment in itself.  In the final, they kept missing their shots and hit the Japanese goal posts more often than anyone was comfortable with.  Having battled back to win their quarterfinal against Brazil in extra time and penalty kicks and struggling in their semifinal against France, the U.S. team looked tired toward the end of the final and unable to hold off a determined Japanese squad.

The United States has been a soccer power from the first year FIFA added a women's tournament in 1991, and they will likely continue to be.  But this is Japan's triumph.  After all that country has been through in the past few months, they deserved to take home a trophy that isn't radioactive.

National League Wins Sub-Star Game 5-1

Image via WikipediaThe MLB All-Star Game at Chase Field in Phoenix, won by the National League over the American League 5-1, was notable for who didn't play in the game than who did.  Big name players such as Derek Jeter (who just had his 3000th career hit) and C.C. Sabathia of the New York Yankees opted out either because of injuries, or they wanted time off.  Which meant that fans watching the game in person or on TV had to consult their scorecards to find out who was who.

The game was played in the state of Arizona, where there's a controversial new law against immigrants who don't carry citizenship papers.  Despite pleas by some to organize a boycott of the game, Major League Baseball commissioner Bud Selig and the players--a good percentage of whom are of Hispanic heritage--chose to ignore the issue, in the apparent belief that it is too political.

Well, what about MLB's support for wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, under the guise of "supporting our troops"?  Or some players appearing in videos encouraging gay and lesbian youths not to commit suicide?  Aren't those political, too?

Those aren't the only minefields MLB has had to go through this season.  A summary:

• Roger Clemens goes on trial for allegedly lying to Congress about his steroid use.  It's one thing to declare your innocence in front of grandstanding politicians and TV cameras.  It's quite another to do the same thing in a court of law.
• The Los Angeles Dodgers file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, caused by owner Frank McCourt's divorce proceedings and alleged mismanagement.  MLB takes over the franchise after yanking the team's new TV deal with Fox.  Lawsuits abound.
• A Texas Rangers fan (who just happened to be a firefighter) falls to his death during a game in Arlington, Texas, when he went after a foul ball lobbed into the stands by Josh Hamilton.  Two things:  (A) No one would have blamed Hamilton if he had retired on the spot, and (B) you're going to see a lot less lobbing of balls in the future.
• The Yankees fan who caught the ball that was Jeter's 3000th hit, then returned it for tickets, got hit by the IRS for a big tax bill.  Now we know why people are so reluctant to give up a piece of history.
• They're talking about realignment again.  This time MLB wants to even out the number of teams in each league.  The American League has 14, while the National League has 16.  The Houston Astros are the team most often mentioned to switch leagues.  Or maybe they should leave things the way they are.

Otherwise, it's time to get the rest of the season going.

Twins Midseason Report: Now It Gets Interesting

Image via WikipediaRemember when we told you about catching up on your reading, going down to the local multiplex to see the summer blockbusters, or doing just about anything except watching the Minnesota Twins play baseball?  Recent events have forced us to temporarily amend that.  The Twins aren't awful any more.

Thanks to a combination of factors, including a successful June that was focused on manager Ron Gardenhire's philosophy of winning series, better starting pitching and a weak American League Central division, the Twins are no longer in last place.  They are now 6 1/2 games behind the division leading Detroit Tigers with a 41-48 record at the All-Star break, having taken three out of four games from the White Sox at Chicago.

There's still the traces of incompetence that colored the early part of the season.  The blowout losses.  The blown saves.  The injuries to the starting lineup that forced an influx of players from the minors who weren't ready for the majors.

Things are better now.  Joe Mauer has recovered from his "lower body injury", and has started to play some games at first base in addition to being behind the plate.  Michael Cuddyer has played well enough to be the Twins' lone representative at the Major League All-Star Game in Phoenix.  Joe Nathan is settling in as a set-up reliever after a rough return from Tommy John surgery.  And Ben Revere and Danny Valencia are making their cases for staying out of the minors.

However, Justin Morneau is back on the disabled list, this time for a neck injury.  Also on the list are Jason Kubel, Scott Baker and Denard Span.  Baserunning mistakes still abound.  And Gardenhire is showing signs of disgust whenever closer Matt Capps is in danger of blowing a ninth-inning lead.

The Twins are still a long shot to defend their Central Division title.  If they're still in contention by September, Gardenhire will have outdone himself for taking this team from the outhouse to the penthouse in the same season.

If not, then we could just renew our Netflix subscription.

Nothing Is Easy For U.S. Women's Soccer

Image via WikipediaThe United States women's soccer team made things harder for themselves at the FIFA World Cup in Germany, even though they made it to the quarterfinals.  In the only upset of the tournament so far, Sweden defeated the Americans 2-1 on Wednesday in the final game of the first round.  The U.S. needed only a win or a tie to win their group.

Both Swedish goals were set up by defensive mistakes.  The U.S.' Amy LePeilbet tripped a Swedish player in front of the goal, resulting in a successful penalty kick for the Swedes.  Their second goal came off a free kick that deflected off of LePeilbet.  Abby Wambach scored the only U.S. goal in the 67th minute of the second half.

Previously, the U.S. had shut out North Korea and Colombia in Group C play, which meant that this match wasn't exactly do-or-die.  Now, having clinched second place in their group, they get to play favored Brazil in Dresden on Sunday.  Germany is seeking its third consecutive Women's Wold Cup title, hoping to win it in front of the home folks.

This is not your mother's World Cup side, which was last won in an historic 1999 game at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, CA.  Instead of Mia Hamm, Brandi Chastain, Julie Foudy and Brianna Scurry, we now have Wambach, Hope Solo, Heather O'Reilly and Amy Rodriguez defending the Red, White and Blue.  They were one of the last teams to qualify for the Women's World Cup, after losing to Mexico in an important match.

This current collection of American women has won gold medals at the past two Summer Olympic games.  Now they'd like a Women's World Cup to call their own.  But first, they have to start scoring against Brazil.