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.

Trade Winds Blow Wild at NHL Draft

Image via WikipediaThe Minnesota Wild and their general manager Chuck Fletcher did some wheeling and dealing before and after the NHL Entry Draft, which just happened to be held in St. Paul over the weekend.  By the time it was over, they gave up one of their best and most popular players and gained plenty of question marks.

The Wild began by trading Brent burns to the San Jose Sharks for Darin Sebaguchi and a couple of other draft picks.  Burns was in his free-agent year and wanted to stay here (he even bought a house in the area), but the Wild have not been very good about keeping talent at a reasonable price.  See:  Marian Gaborik.

The move enabled the Wild to make two first round draft picks:  Jonas Brodin from Sweden and Zach Phillips in the Burns trade.  For a little local flavor, they added Mario Lucia, whose father is the University of Minnesota's hockey coach.

Two veterans have also been added:  Darroll Powe from the Philadelphia Flyers and Chuck Kobasew from the Stanley Cup champion Boston Bruins.  Both were acquired for prospects and picks.

So what does all this mean for the Wild?  It means that, for new coach Mike Yeo, he has two veteran goal scorers in Setoguchi and Powe to help make up for the lack of offense in his lineup.  That's good.  But they haven't addressed their need to have a reliable goaltender behind Niklas Backstrom, should Josh Harding be rendered ineffective due to injuries that kept him out most of last season.  That's not good.

All those moves that Fletcher made in the past week or so doesn't necessarily inspire confidence in the ticket-buying public, for whom Xcel Energy Center is seeing a lot less of these days.  What happens when the puck drops in October will go a long way toward whether Fletcher is proven right.

Timberwolves: The Whims of Kahn

Image by Getty Images via @daylifeHow serious are the Minnesota Timberwolves about improving their lot after another bad season?  Well, the answer depends on what general manager David Kahn is doing at the moment.

• As expected, the Wolves chose Derrick Williams of Arizona as their top pick in this year's NBA draft.  So far as we know, they're going to keep him in spite of all the trade rumors out there.  The same can't be said for fellow first-round pick Donatas Motiejunas and for Jonny Flynn, who were both traded to the Houston Rockets for Brad Miller and some draft picks.  Did we mention that Kevin McHale coaches the Rockets now?
• Ricky Rubio was given a hero's welcome (but something less than a ticker tape parade) when he arrived in the Twin Cities after the Wolves finally signed him.  Looking like a Spanish Justin Bieber, Rubio was the prime pick in Kahn's collection of point guards.  But his play in Europe, even though he was part of a Barcelona team that won a championship there, left something to be desired to those in the know.  Kahn has confidence that Rubio can play in the NBA, so it'll be interesting to see if he's more than just a pretty face.
• If you believe the media reports, Kurt Rambis will no longer be the Timberwolves' coach by the time you read this.  The only person who hasn't confirmed this is Kahn, who has inexplicably kept Rambis on a string up until now while deciding his fate.  Is Kahn really this indecisive, or does he have someone in mind and couldn't announce it yet?

Now let's see if all this tweaking means that the Timberwolves have finally turned the corner, or if it's still a toxic mess.  Only David Kahn knows for sure.

On a June Weekend

Image via WikipediaNews and notes from the past weekend:

• As Tiger Woods sits out another of golf's majors because of injuries he should have taken care of sooner, his heir apparent dominated the U.S. Open.  Rory McIlroy led every round of the tournament near Washington, mostly by several strokes over his nearest competitors.  He has forever erased the final round meltdown that occurred months earlier at the Masters with a performance that was beyond impressive.  Woods will be back soon, but it's clear his best days are behind him.
• The Minnesota Twins are playing better baseball after a lousy start these days, having won their last seven games.  They're still in last place in the American League's Central division, eight games behind the Detroit Tigers.  But Joe Mauer has returned from his mystery injury to a standing ovation at Target Field, in a show of Minnesota Nice willing to overlook how his news was handled by the team.  The Twins are still this close to falling out of the race completely, so enjoy it while you can.
• The NHL Wild named Mike Yeo as their new head coach.  Yeo was promoted after one season from the AHL's Houston Aeros, who went as far as the Calder Cup finals before losing to Binghamton.  Now Yeo must convince an increasingly skeptical State of Hockey that he's the right guy to coach the Wild when Todd Richards wasn't.
• So Ricky Rubio has decided to play for the Timberwolves after all?  That's wonderful.  Now please do something about coach Kurt Rambis.  Is he staying or going?  General manager David Kahn still hasn't decided.
• As the end of the NFL lockout is apparently being negotiated, the Vikings are still working on their Arden Hills stadium deal with Ramsey County.  They, like just about everyone else in Minnesota, are waiting for a legislative special session that would keep state government afloat.  And what if it doesn't happen?