Pats' Harrison played with chip on his shoulder

By Chad Garner

Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

Passion. You either have it or you don't.

And no one could ever question whether Rodney Harrison played the game of football with passion.

Well, apparently the passion to play is gone for New England Patriots safety Harrison, who officially announced his retirement from the National Football League this afternoon.

So long Rodney, Patriots fans will miss you.

It's refreshing to know that a player like Harrison played the game because he loved it, and he played to win and didn't settle for anything less.

Boy, the Pats and coach Bill Belichick got a real gem when Harrison jumped aboard with the Pats for the 2003 season. 

Didn't the San Diego Chargers think he was washed up after 9 years? Wrong!

He was far from done. With Harrison in the secondary, the Pats won two Super Bowls and the veteran brought accountability to his fellow teammates, a tough guy mentality and became a great leader and a guy who took younger players under his wing.

What more could you ask for from a player? 

Harrison was all about team. While his skills did diminish over the years -- he had a hard time in pass coverage with age -- he never stopped being aggressive and physical.

That was Harrison's trademark -- dishing out bone-crushing hits to the opposition whether in the passing or running game. Harrison, who battled serious injures late in his career, never backed down. He was tough as nails and opposing teams had to always account for him or they might be taken off the field on a stretcher after Harrison unloaded a vicious hit.

Some say his physical play teetered on the side of cheap or dirty. Yes, Harrison was cheap at times with some late and unnecessary hits after the whistle, but he was a guy that you wanted on your side, not across the field.

Unfortunately, Harrison admitted to using a banned substance in 2007 and was suspended for four games and that's another black mark to his name. While I don't condone what he did, he came clean and admitted what he did was wrong. I quickly forgave him, but credibility wise, that's a devastating blow to a character of a player.

Make no mistake, Harrison wasn't a popular guy outside of his own locker room, but he didn't care. He played for his team, his coaches and the fans. He just wanted to win, nothing more and nothing less.

And the fans appreciate all you did as a member of the New England Patriots. We'll see you on TV on NBC this fall.

Dice-K Earns First Victory Of 2009, Continues To Be Infuriating To Watch

By Erik Pesta
Fan Fanatic Sports Staff


Getting a paper cut and pouring lemon juice on it. Scraping my knuckles on a cheese grater. Cleaning my ears with an ice pick. What do these things have in common? These are all things I'd rather do than watch Daisuke Matsuzaka pitch a baseball game. There's the seemingly never ending string of three-ball counts, not to mention going full on one out of every three batters, and constantly throwing a ball in the dirt with runners on base. He walks around the mound after every pitch, rubbing his neck or wrist and then the ball. He refuses to throw strikes and challenge hitters he should be blowing away. These are all things that make the Dice-K experience positively maddening. He constantly dances through the rain drops, and I can't stand it. I just wish he would have a clean inning once in a while. You know, perhaps save a few of those bullets so he might be able to pitch into the sixth just once? This is NOT Japan anymore. He needs to stop acting like Francona is going to allow him to stay out there to throw 140 pitches. Throw strikes and let the defense make plays. You just might save the sanity of viewers everywhere.

Yes, he got the win, and his line looked half-way decent. I know he allowed just the one run. But to paraphrase what Eckersley said when Dice-K departed after five frustrating innings, "I watched, and it wasn't pretty". He was the beneficiary of three double plays, one of which was a base running blunder by Curtis Granderson; another was a line drive out in which the runner got stuck in no-man's land and doubled off of first. They weren't exactly text book. He allowed a ton of base runners, didn't have a single 1-2-3 inning, and walked the number eight and nine hitters to LEAD OFF the fifth. Are you kidding me? This tight-rope act is getting old, and it's going to come back to bite the Sox. In fact, it has already started, as evidenced by Matsuzaka's balloon-like 7.17 ERA.

Jason Bay broke a 1-1 tie in the third with his 16th homer of the year, a line drive into the left field seats that scored J.D. Drew and gave the Sox a 3-1 lead. Detroit's bullpen fell apart in the sixth, as Dustin Pedroia and Kevin Youkilis drove in runs for the Sox, with a walk and hit by pitch, respectively. That made the score 5-1, the way it would remain for duration of the contest. Drew, Jason Varitek, and Jacoby Ellsbury all had two hits apiece for Boston, with Ellsbury being robbed of a third hit by the official scorer on a grounder that was called an error. David Ortiz was 1-for-5 on the night, with three ugly strikeouts. A decision appears imminent from the Sox brass on just what to do with Ortiz. One thing is certain: they cannot allow this futility to continue. It is going to cost the Sox ballgames, in a division where little or no margin for error can be afforded. It's tough to say how many games Papi's struggles have cost them already, but you can bet it's a least a handful. Jonathan Papelbon also looked shaky once again, loading the bases but eventually using 35 pitches to strike out the side and preserve the victory.

The middle game of the three-game set takes place tonight. Josh Beckett (5-2, 4.60 ERA) faces Detroit's Armando Galarraga (3-5, 5.50 ERA). First pitch is at 7:10 from Comerica Park.

Bruins start the offseason correctly!

By Jim Ingram

Fan Fanatic Sports Staff

It's been a few weeks now since the Bruins' disappointing series loss to the Carolina Hurricanes. Luckily for B's fans, the Bruins front office has not been wallowing in misery. They have made the first of two very important signings this off season. It was announced yesterday that David Krejci to a multi-year extension. The agreement terms haven't been announced yet, but rumors have it as a 4 year pact worth around $4 million per season.

This is a fantastic signing for the Bruins. He's only 23, and is arguably the 2nd best play maker on the team behind Mark Savard. Of course, the only other player in their category is Phil Kessel who is also set to hit the free agency market. That 2nd important signing is Phil Kessel. There are rumors that the Canadiens would love to sign away the young budding super star. I would hate to see him in a Habs' uniform for the next 10 seasons.

The questions surrounding Kessel's return to Boston have everything to do with salary cap space. The B's just might not have enough room to bring him back and fill out their roster. I think they have to bring back both Kessel and Krecji for this organization to make a solid run over the next 5 years. If I had to choose between the two players, I would take Krecji. There is more upside to him than Kessel. Not only can he score, but he's also a much better distributor of the puck than Kessel. He also doesn't have the injury history of Phil Kessel. This is just the beginning of the off season for the Bruins. Besides Kessel & Krecji, they also have Bryon Bitz and Matt Hundwick as restricted free agents. The unrestricted free agents are P.J. Axelson, Stephane Yelle, Mark Recchi, Shane Hnidy, Steve Montador & (thank god) Manny Fernandez. Fernandez and Recchi are most likely gone. I would love to see the B's keep Axeslson and Yelle because of the penalty kill proficiency. After that, we'll see how their defensive core shakes out.

Well, I am off for now, but keep checking back for all of your Boston Bruins off season news and analysis.