Let’s Not Call It Good-Bye…Let’s Call It “Smell Ya Later.”

Some things it seems aren’t meant to last forever.  America’s quadrennial interest in soccer, pre-teen romances, and sports blogs are three things we all know can have a life-span shorter than a Christian Scientist with a severed artery.  By this time next week, the end of the World Cup will relegate soccer to that same American sports broom closet as the Olympics, the relationship between Lisa Simpson and Nelson Muntz will exists only in re-runs, and Sports Blog Movement will no longer show up in your news feed.

This incarnation of SBM started in January of 2012, the idea being one site dedicated to to cross-promoting the works of independent sports bloggers. We raised up against the iron-mauled sports blog tyranny of the ESPNs and the Bleacher Reports of the world.  After two and a half years, over 1,100 posts, and over a dozen different contributors, it time to realize that this attempt to be the next big thing in the world of sports blogging has met the same fate as many other revolutionary ideas…we’ve gone the way of the USFL, the Dennis Miller on Monday Night Football experiment, and that fucking “glowing puck” from when Fox covered the NHL.

The difference is those failures were easy to see.  Football in the spring? Hmmm…. A guy giving liquored-up NFL fans with GEDs comparisons to the Battle of Verdun? Yeah… Turning hockey into a Sega Genesis game that you don’t even get to play? Fuck that.

But SBM had content that kicked ass, largely because it had of contributors who kicked more ass than a 1997 version of Jean-Claude Van Damme would have if they had invented an ass-kicking version of Viagra. The upside is we know that, so we are going to drop fifteen and punt. In other words, SBM didn’t work, so we are suspending the site. But that doesn’t mean we are suspending the creation of awesome content.

Although you won’t see any new content on this version of SBM, Ryan Meehan and I are making plans as we speak to continue our collaborations. Jeremy Wiebe is probably too smart to answer my email asking for continued collaborations. To be honest, I’ve come to love the work of all the people I’ve worked with on SBM over these past few years, but to be honest, this bit is way funnier if I deliberately slight some of them.

That’s really why it is important for you to realize the content of SBM isn’t going away.  The individual blogs we were trying to promote are still out there, and they will continue to be the home of the content you have come to expect.

And who knows…maybe…just maybe SBM will be back someday…

Holland vs Argentina World Cup Semifinal Preview

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There is no shortage of history between Holland and Argentina when it comes to the World Cup. The two countries met in the 1978 final in Buenos Aires, where the hosts emerged with  3-1 triumph, and their first World Cup title.

20 years later in Marseille, Holland got their revenge, scoring a 2-1 victory thanks to one of the best goals in the history of the World Cup, scored by Dennis Bergkamp.

In total, Holland and Argentina have met four times on the biggest stage, with the Dutch holding a 2-1-1 advantage over their South American counterparts. Their last meeting was a dreary affair in 2006 that ended in a 0-0 draw.

Both sides have injury issues to deal with. Argentina will be without Angel di Maria who suffered a thigh injury in Argentina’s quarterfinal victory over Belgium. Holland will be without defender Ron Vlaar who picked up knee knock…

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Brazil vs Germany World Cup Semifinal Preview

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Despite the many surprise results that have dominated the discussion at the World Cup, the semifinals are left to the heavyweights of the sport. And make no doubt of it, Brazil and Germany are two of the absolute heavyweights, soccer has to offer. A combined 8 World Cups between the two. Two of the greatest players in the history of the sport, Pele and Franz Beckenbauer. All in all, Brazil and Germany are the gold standard in world football.

Despite the rich pedigrees these two sides have, they have only met once in World Cup history. The 2002 final in Yokahama. Ronaldo’s brace gave Brazil a 2-0 victory on that fateful day. Germany were shorthanded, as star midfielder Michael Ballack missed the final due to suspension.

The X-ray that shows the fractured vertebrae in Neymar’s back.

This semifinal has the tables turned as Brazil won’t be able to field their…

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The Seattle Mariners, and the San Francisco Giants,are looking at trading for Chicago White Sox outfielder Dayan Viciedo according to MLB Trade rumors. General Manager Jack Zduriencik is looking to add more right-handed power bats to the line-up to help balance out the left-handed hitters on the roster. Seattle is also in desperate need of more consistent offensive production from the left fielders.

That’s why the interest in Viciedo makes a lot of sense for the Mariners. He is a right-handed power bat, that is young (25) and under club control for a few years (until 2017).

Apparently the Mariners initially engaged in discussions to acquire Viciedo during Spring Training. But with the White Sox scuffling — 40-46 record, 10 games behind the Tigers in the AL Central on July 4th — and the Mariners currently in the second wild card spot — and trailing Oakland by 4.5 games in the AL West — it makes sense for these two squads to again be talking about the “struggling” outfielder. Continue Reading->

France vs Germany World Cup Quarterfinal Preview

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France vs Germany. The history between these two nations is endless. Much of it is unpleasant to say the least. Of course, there is World War II, which saw the two nations and their respective allies fought a brutal, savage war that lasted six years, and millions of lives lost.

The 1982 semifinal in no way compares to the horrors of WWII, but it did intensify feelings and emotions between the two nations. The bad blood rose on the soccer pitch in Seville, when West German keeper Harald Schumacher flattened French defender Patrick Battiston with a crushing blow, as both men were going for a loose ball. Many observers thought that Schumacher deliberately tried to injure Battiston and thought the keeper should have been shown a red card. But the Dutch referee thought otherwise and didn’t call a foul. West Germany went on to win the match on penalties. France…

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