Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in Unbalanced.
Message Board
Anytime a major album drops, fans and critics alike jump into Message Board to discuss the album. This week, Zach Cronin, Stone Strankman, and I break down the debut album from New York rapper A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, The Bigger Artist. Make sure to listen to the album The Bigger Artist after the review, despite what you may hear.
Justin RichardsPublished 7 years ago in UnbalancedHow Far Can Barkley and McSorley Maturation Take Nittany Lions?
Plenty of college football fans and pundits have already penciled in Alabama Crimson Tide-Clemson Tigers III as this year’s CFP National Championship Game.
Myles StedmanPublished 7 years ago in UnbalancedSurprise! Only Substantial Change Will Make Baseball Games Shorter
(Data via Baseball-Reference.com) Yes, baseball games are getting longer. What that means to a non-casual baseball fan like me is nothing, really. But, it matters to MLB and the people who call the shots because they think it will continue to hurt baseball's popularity in the future. The pace of play debate has been around for a few years now and MLB hasn't been afraid to experiment and implement different rules.
Owen McGrattanPublished 7 years ago in UnbalancedNBA Shows Where Its Target Market Is, and It’s Not You
I’d been suspecting for a while that I’m now in the older demographic of NBA fans, despite not exactly being old. This week, the League confirmed my suspicions, announcing they had made big changes to the All-Star Game format. For the first time in 67 years—the first time ever, actually—the Eastern Conference will not be playing the Western Conference.
Myles StedmanPublished 7 years ago in UnbalancedDisjointed: Neo Yokio Review
Neo Yokio uses New York City culture to show the hypocrisy of high-class society in a flawed and fizzled animated series. As someone who was born and raised in New York City, hearing about a anime theme story about life in the city had my eyeballs turning to fire emoji's. Would there be fights on top of the Empire State Building? An epic chase down Park Ave? A transformation of a foil character? Yea, issa a no on all three. The fighting on top of the Empire State Building was replaced with an "eligible bachelor board." The epic chase-down in the city turned into a getaway attempt of a known terrorist. And the only thing that transformed was the futuristic robot butler Charles (Jude Law). My idea of New York was completely different from creator Ezra Koenig.
Justin RichardsPublished 7 years ago in UnbalancedSorry Mets Fans, Firing Ray Ramirez Isn't Going to Fix Things
News broke Monday morning that long-time athletic trainer Ray Ramirez was being let go by the Mets in a host of other personnel moves. If you're at all familiar with #MetsTwitter, the responses of fans on social media shouldn't surprise you in the slightest.
John EdwardsPublished 7 years ago in Unbalanced"Almost 100% Certain" Jagr Won't Be Retiring
Well, it finally happened. After an entire off-season of wondering where Jaromir Jagr would land, he finally signed with the Calgary Flames on Monday on a one-year, $1 million contract. It was a long time coming, and as I wrote back at the beginning of pre-season, the case could be made that Jagr deserved to be signed before most of the over-30 veterans who were signed to similar (or even larger) deals. At age 45, Jagr is coming off a season that is on par with or better than almost any of the veteran players signed this off-season to the same contract. And yet, perhaps because so many teams don't want to be left holding the bag when Jagr finally reaches his end, he remained unsigned until October 2nd, just a few days before the NHL season begins.
Kyle VandenbergPublished 7 years ago in UnbalancedSame Thing, New Big 3
Okay, so we are here now. Super teams, while not new, are the new trend and everyone is looking to hook up with another Olympian and pursue a title. Teams are now attempting to jump the line in pursuit of Larry O'Brien. The Oklahoma City Thunder are the newest edition after winning this off-season and acquiring two top 30 players to join Russell Westbrook via trade. The Thunder locked up their MVP for another five years at 233 million dollars and acquired Carmelo Anthony to accompany Paul George rounding out the starting five. On paper, this is a team that should challenge the Warriors and contend for a Western Conference title. The last time the Thunder had a big 3 like this, they made it to the NBA Finals. An interesting fact, since Lebron left Cleveland for Miami in 2010, “super teams” are 3-4 in NBA Finals. What does that say about this phenomenon? Nothing is guaranteed. Injuries happen, players do not gel, etc. You still must play the games.
Kyle Jordan FergusonPublished 7 years ago in UnbalancedTake the Knee, or Stand...
I am going to attempt to bring unity consciousness to one of the most divisive cultural and political issues America faces right now. As a Canadian, I have some distance and objectivity on this matter and may not be able to fully empathize with everyone's perspective, but I will do my best to try to understand and offer solutions to help us move forward in a more constructive manner.
Michael ThielmannPublished 7 years ago in UnbalancedFree from Egos, Do These New York Knicks Finally Have a Shot?
Last week, new Oklahoma City Thunder forward Carmelo Anthony laughed in the face of a journalist who had dared to utter, “Come off the bench,” in his presence.
Myles StedmanPublished 7 years ago in UnbalancedGoing Going... Back Back... To... SD?
They say that hindsight is 20/20, and it turns out that “they” were right. The “Super Chargers” moved from San Diego to Los Angeles this year to what was supposedly the land of opportunity in an NFL market sense. Not only are they losing “the fight for LA," but it turns out that the Chargers were a tad overestimating when considering the likelihood of being able to establish anything resembling an immediate fan base upon relocating, and in fact, really overestimating.
Kenneth WilsonPublished 7 years ago in UnbalancedThe Yankees Struck Gold on Aaron Hicks
While the top prospects from the Yankees farm system quickly matriculate to the majors, one player acquired in General Manager Brian Cashman’s retool has proven himself worthy of a prominent long-term role on the club. With the arrivals of Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez to the Bronx, and hot prospects like Gleyber Torres on the way, it’s easy to forget about just how good of a player Aaron Hicks has developed into. Let’s take a brief stroll down memory lane, to Baseball America’s scouting report on Hicks in 2009:
Matt MocarskyPublished 7 years ago in Unbalanced