In New Jersey, restaurants are permitted to open with properly-spaced outdoor seating. Next week, barbershops can reopen. Which is good, because my hair is now long and puffy enough to resemble that of a 1970s Arsenal player.
The above example: George Armstrong, who played with the North London team's 1st XI from 1962 to 1977. His hair is so long in this photo, it obscures the Elvis-esque sideburns he grew. He was only 5-foot-6, but a fantastic player, a key figure on their 1971 League and Cup "Double" team. Sadly, he is no longer with us: After coaching with the team for most of the 1990s, he collapsed at the team's training center in 2000, and died, only 56.
Today, Premier League action resumes in England, with games being played "behind closed doors," meaning no fans admitted, a.k.a. "ghost games." Arsenal, whose manager and former star player Mikel Arteta survived the virus, plays away to Manchester City. Major League Soccer returns on July 8.
The NBA will also soon restart, with teams already eliminated from Playoff competition having their seasons declared over, and the remaining 22 teams going into training camps, and then, starting on July 30, jockeying for seeds in a standard 16-team Playoff.
The NHL will also soon restart, with the top 24 teams -- the Devils not being one of them -- beginning training camps on July 10, and then playing in a staggered Playoff format, with the top 8 teams getting a 1st-round bye.
Both of these leagues usually have their Champions crowned by this time, and will see their Playoffs end later than ever before, possibly even in October, when their new seasons would usually start. We might not seen the 2020-21 season begin until Christmas, or even New Year's.
Football, at every level, looks like it's going to begin on time: College (and, in some States, high school) in the last week of August, and the pros and the high schoolers (at least, here in New Jersey) in the 1st week of September. Whether fans will be permitted to attend remains to be seen.
Thoroughbred horse racing's Triple Crown has not only been postponed, but had its usual order changed: The Belmont Stakes, usually the last of the 3 races, was postponed from June 6 to June 20 (this coming Saturday, definitely behind closed doors), the normally series-opening Kentucky Derby from May 2 to September 5, and the Preakness Stakes from May 16 to October 3.
The Olympic Games have been postponed until next year. So has the European Championship soccer tournament. Wimbledon, originally set to run from June 21 to July 5, was canceled for the 1st time since World War II. The French Open was set to run in Paris from May 24, to June 7, has been postponed to September 20 to October 4.
This will be after the U.S. Open. With the number of new COVID-19 cases continuing to drop, Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York gave the U.S. Tennis Association the all-clear to hold the tournament, albeit behind closed doors, on schedule from August 31 to September 13.
And then there's baseball. Commissioner Rob Manfred, as with all previous Commissioners the tool of the team owners, has been shoveling variations on the same restart deal at the players' union, the Major League Baseball Players Association, over and over again, and the players have rejected all of them as completely unacceptable, because the plans mean the owners will not be honoring their side of the contracts.
Last week, Manfred says there was a 100 percent chance that we would have baseball this season. Yesterday, he said, he was "not confident."
The players make a lot of money. They are not the problem here. They are ready to honor their contracts. The owners are trying to screw them. It doesn't matter that the players make so much more than you do: They are still being screwed. You wouldn't put up with this from your boss, so why should the players put up with it from theirs, regardless of how much they're being paid? They are still being cheated.
One thing is for sure: It looks like the Yankees will be screwed again. But then, what did you expect? I told you that they haven't won a World Series with a Republican as President since 1958, and they still haven't. I told you to vote for Hillary.
*
So, with some kind of schedule once again available, I can, for the 1st time since March 8, update my countdowns. However, Trip Guides are seriously affected. Due to events beyond my control last Autumn, I decided to cut short the NFL ones, and to drop the NBA ones altogether. I still did them for the NHL, and got them done for 30 out of 31 teams before the shutdown, missing only the Minnesota Wild.
Ironically, Minnesota United was 1 of the 3 MLS teams I had already done them for, the others being my home team, the New York Red Bulls, and Real Salt Lake.
Not yet having revised MLB or MLS schedules, I will not do those for 2020. Hopefully, I will be able to do them in 2021.
As for football, the NFL and college games that would apply: These games will probably be played, but it's increasingly likely that they will be behind closed doors, so it would be pointless to do Trip Guides for them. Once I learn for sure, I will have to adjust my schedule accordingly.
According to the schedule I had laid out before my hip replacement surgery on February 19, I had predicted that I would be able to go back to work in 8 weeks, on April 13. Who was I kidding? I might be able to do a data entry job, but I'd still have to get to and from work, and, without a car, and the closest bus stop a mile from my house, that would have been damn near impossible at the time. It would be pretty hard now: It's still twice as far as I've yet walked with the cane.
At any rate, each of the following is tentative, and may not have anyone actually in attendance:
Days until Arsenal play again: 0. They play away to Manchester City, in Premier League action, at 8:15 PM London time, 3:15 PM New York time. They have also advanced to the Quarterfinals of the FA Cup, although they have been eliminated from the UEFA Europa League. So now, their only chance to get into next season's UEFA Champions League is to finish 4th or higher in the Premier League -- or 5th, if Man City's CL ban is upheld, which is by no means a certainty.
Days until the New York Red Bulls play again: 21, in the MLS is Back Tournament, which will be held entirely behind closed doors at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex, which is part of the Walt Disney World Resort, in the Orlando suburb of Bay Lake, Florida. Although the schedule has not yet been finalized, they have been put in a group with Atlanta United and the 2 Ohio teams, the Columbus Crew and FC Cincinnati.
Days until the Red Bulls next play a "derby": Given that neither New York City FC, nor the Philadelphia Union, nor D.C. United, nor the New England Revolution are in the Red Bulls' group for the tournament, and who is likely to advance, is anybody's guess, then so is this number.
Days until the next North London Derby: 24, on Saturday, July 11, Arsenal's long-delayed 1st visit to the new Tottenham Stadium, adjacent to the site of the previous White Hart Lane. When they'll play their 1st game there in front of fans, most of them Spurs' mental acrobats, is anybody's guess, since the 2019-20 season is not yet finished. Usually, by this point, the next season's schedule -- or, as they would say in England, fixture list -- would have already been released.
Days until the Yankees' 2020 Opening Day: Unknown. MLB had been talking about a restart date of July 31, which would be 44 days from now, a decent time to have a Summer version of "Spring Training" to get ready. At this point, nobody knows.
Days until the Yankees' 2020 home opener: See the previous answer.
Days until the next Yankees-Red Sox series begins: See the previous answer.
Days until the Democratic National Convention: 61, on Monday, August 17. It was set for the Fiserv Center in Milwaukee, the new home of the NBA's Milwaukee Bucks, a nod to the fact that Hillary Clinton "lost" Wisconsin by such a close vote last time. But the Convention may have to be "virtual." Joe Biden might be the 1st Presidential nominee to not give his acceptance speech on the Convention floor since Franklin Roosevelt was too ill to accept a 4th term in person in 1944.
Days until the Republican National Convention: 68, on Monday, August 24. The Republicans have already moved their convention from Charlotte to Jacksonville, since the Governor of North Carolina (Roy Cooper, a Democrat listening to the medical experts) refused to reopen the State; while the Governor of Florida (Rob DeSantis, a Republican listening to Donald Trump) is happy to risk lives for his lord and master at Mar-a-Lago.
Days until East Brunswick High School plays football again: 79, on Friday night, September 4, against arch-rival Old Bridge, at the purple shit pit on Route 9.
Days until the next East Brunswick-Old Bridge football game: See the previous answer.
Days until Rutgers University plays football again: 80, on Saturday, September 5, at noon, home to Monmouth University, a Football Championship Subdivision School in West Long Branch, Monmouth County, New Jersey. In other words, if they don't win this game overwhelmingly, especially now that Greg Schiano is back as head coach, it will look very, very bad.
Days until the New Jersey Devils play again: Unknown, since the 2020-21 NHL schedule has not yet been released.
Days until the New Jersey Devils next play a local rival: See the previous answer.
Days until the U.S. national soccer team plays again: Unknown, although the 2nd weekend and 3rd week in October is usually set aside for international games. So, if we presume October 10, a Saturday, then it's 115 days.
Days until the next Presidential election, when we can dump the Trump-Pence regime and elect a real Administration: 139, on November 3, 2020. Under 5 months.
Days until the next Rutgers-Penn State football game: 164, on Saturday, November 28, at home.
Days until a fully-Democratic-controlled Congress can convene: 200, on January 3, 2021. Under 10 months.
Days until Liberation Day: 217, at noon on January 20, 2021. A little over 7 months. Note that this is liberation from the Republican Party, not just from Donald Trump. Having Mike Pence as President wouldn't be better, just differently bad, mixing theocracy with plutocracy, rather than mixing kleptocracy with plutocracy.
Days until Euro 2020 begins, a tournament being held all over Europe instead of in a single host nation: 359, on Friday, June 11, 2021. Under 1 year.
Days until the next Summer Olympics begins in Tokyo, Japan: 401, on July 23, 2021. A little over 13 months.
Days until Alex Rodriguez and David Ortiz become eligible for the Baseball Hall of Fame: 573, on January 11, 2022. Under 2 years, or under 19 months. We will then find out if it's okay for a Red Sox steroid cheat to be in the Hall, but not for a Yankee steroid cheat.
Days until the next Winter Olympics begins in Beijing, China: 597, on February 4, 2022. Under 2 years, or under 20 months.
Days until the next World Cup is scheduled to kick off in Qatar: 887, on November 21, 2022, in Qatar. Under 3 years, or a little over 29 months.
Days until the next Women's World Cup is scheduled to kick off: 1,118, on July 10, 2023. A little over 3 years, or a little under 37 months. A host nation is expected to be chosen a week from tomorrow. Bids have been put in by Colombia (South America has never hosted), Japan (Asia last hosted in 2007), and a joint bid by Australia and New Zealand (Oceania has never hosted).
No comments:
Post a Comment