Columnists - The Daily Cardinal

COLUMNS

Column: Pitchers like this year's Felix Hernandez can be MVP's

By Whitney Newman and Jack Baer | Aug. 12, 2014

Statement 1: Félix Hernández is the most valuable player in the American League. Statement 2: Félix Hernández is a pitcher. It has become a prevailing wisdom in the baseball fandom and media that Statement 2 makes Statement 1 somewhere between unlikely and virtually impossible. This wisdom was widely discussed when Justin Verlander was humiliating batters in 2011 and some saw fit to lower him on their MVP ballots or drop him altogether. Verlander almost certainly would have lost the award if his team hadn’t made the playoffs.

COLUMNS

Column: Let's classify the MLB All-Stars

By Jack Baer | Jul. 7, 2014

The rosters for the 2014 Major League Baseball All-Star Game in Minnesota were released Sunday night, so now it's time to wade through the rosters and separate the wheat from the chaff and the Jeter from the young baseball players.

COLUMNS

Column: Thoughts, tidbits and musings from the 2014 NBA Draft

By Jim Dayton | Jun. 27, 2014

If you’re like me, you’ve been enthralled with the 2014 NBA Draft ever since the media’s talking heads proclaimed last fall that this would be the most talented draft in years. Not only would there be potential all-stars and franchise players at the top, there would also be many quality role players to be found in the middle and later parts of the draft.

COLUMNS

Column: Appreciate the Spurs, appreciate LeBron

By Jim Dayton | Jun. 17, 2014

San Antonio won its fifth NBA title in franchise history Sunday night after a resounding 104-87 victory over Miami. With lights-out shooting, stingy defense and crucial contributions off the bench, the Spurs closed out the Heat in five games and perhaps put an end to the Big Three era in Miami.

COLUMNS

Column: Previewing the 2014 FIFA World Cup

By Jonah Beleckis | Jun. 11, 2014

After four unbearably long years, World Cup season returns and is coming to its spiritual home in Brazil. To preview this month-long celebration, here are my picks for what to expect at the 2014 FIFA World Cup. For each category, I first give an answer that is more on the obvious side, followed by a not-so-obvious answer that significantly less people are talking about. Finally, I give my predicted winner and break down why I see them hoisting the trophy at the Maracanã in Rio De Janeiro July 13.

COLUMNS

Television delights waiting to wow you this summer

By Callie Kollenbroich | May. 4, 2014

Our final days of classes are soon to be a distant and fuzzy memory, clouded by the sting of UV rays and the familiar scent of sunblock. Summer is fast-approaching, which means some much needed time to relax, decompress and question your life choices after yet another grueling semester. But who needs Vitamin D and sandy beaches when you have a recliner and a guide channel that’s saturated with some fantastic new shows? Here are a few of the upcoming series I am most excited for. You can bet your firstborns I’ll be holed up safely indoors for these summer premieres.

COLUMNS

Beautiful books to get you through the summer

By Maham Hasan | Apr. 30, 2014

With the end of semester, quite literally looming ahead of you like a giant honing beacon you can’t hide from, it is perhaps time to look back and reflect. You might have added many accolades to your name this spring, what with having survived the mother of all cold winters and making it halfway through 2014, but I bet you couldn’t name a life-changing book you read.

COLUMNS

Column: Maintain the momentum from racism dialogue

By Jonah Beleckis | Apr. 30, 2014

America is buzzing about Donald Sterling and racism.

COLUMNS

Video game lingo helps move industry forward

By Adam Paris | Apr. 30, 2014

Game criticism has evolved so completely from its early years to the point that many modern reviews would look wholly foreign to the ’80s, neon-jacket wearing kids who read Nintendo Power. Assuredly many outlets do still follow the basic framework established back then. A succinct summation of the game’s features, how well the story holds up, its replayability, etc.—these terms aren’t likely to go away, but they do demonstrate an advancement of the gaming lexicon.

COLUMNS

Column: Softball deserves more attention

By Grey Satterfield | Apr. 29, 2014

You should love softball.

COLUMNS

FX’s ‘Fargo’ just as worthy as original

By Andrew Haffner and Callie Kollenbroich | Apr. 27, 2014

Nestled among the frozen plains of the snowy American landscape is a locale as foreign to some as it is familiar to my corn-growing, cheese-loving roots. The inhabitants of this region bundle themselves in fur hats and down parkas and express themselves with an abundance of “Oh ya”s and “You betcha”s. Their daily struggles range from whether or not to make meatloaf for dinner to how to best cover up a botched attempt at kidnapping your own wife for ransom. This is the Midwest, or at least the Midwest envisioned by a pair of goofball filmmakers known informally to us as the Coen brothers. Yah der hey.

COLUMNS

Column: Potential player strike the wrong reaction to Clippers' owner Donald Sterling's alleged racist remarks

By Brett Bachman | Apr. 27, 2014

This week, the Los Angeles Clippers find themselves in a bind. Even playoff basketball, this time, may not be enough to distract the 13 players on the Clippers’ playoff roster and their coaching staff from the harsh face of reality.

COLUMNS

Column: Managers should be given more time to do their job

By Jonah Beleckis | Apr. 24, 2014

You never want to replace the man, you want to replace the man who replaced the man.

COLUMNS

Column: How James Dolan ruined basketball for New York City

By Grey Satterfield | Apr. 23, 2014

The NBA playoffs are underway. The matchups are intriguing and the play on the court is fierce. For the first time all season, NBA players are actually playing defense and hustling on every play.

COLUMNS

Parsing the difference between 'jam bands' and 'stoner rock'

By Brian Weidy | Apr. 21, 2014

Last Sunday, among other things, was 4/20, and across the country and the world, legions of people in dank corners of their apartments, forests and other desolate areas came together to “celebrate” this faux holiday with minimal fear of legal repercussions.

COLUMNS

Column: Baseball analysts should have a base knowledge of statistics

By Ben Breiner and Jack Baer | Apr. 21, 2014

Here are some things that have been said on national television by a man paid millions of dollars to be an expert in baseball.

COLUMNS

Confession of a belated convert: catching up with 'Game of Thrones'

By Callie Kollenbroich and Jon Spike | Apr. 20, 2014

It’s been over four years since the inception of one of premium cable’s most celebrated series—HBO’s "Game of Thrones,”—and I must admit that until a few weeks ago I couldn’t have cared less. It’s not that I thought I wouldn’t enjoy it—I take pleasure in nerding out to medieval fantasy dramas as much as the rest of you—but at the time I had my nose in other pastures. Long story short, I had already been watching far too much TV and I just wasn’t ready for the commitment.

COLUMNS

Column: Manchester City needs big players to step up

By Jonah Beleckis | Apr. 16, 2014

Wednesday in world soccer saw the heightening of hopes for some, and the crashing of chances for others.

COLUMNS

‘Cheap Thrills’ does not skimp on delights

By Austin Wellens | Apr. 16, 2014

So, over the weekend I got to spend some time with E.L. Katz and Pat Healy, who respectively directed and starred in the new film “Cheap Thrills,” and I learned a thing or two. I learned about Danish people. I learned about what really matters when you’re making a movie. I found out that some men can just rock a mustache. And I learned that sometimes light and dark can blend together beautifully.

COLUMNS

Column: Excitement building from college football spring games

By Grey Satterfield | Apr. 15, 2014

The dark clouds rolled away as the temperature crested into the 50s. U2 blasted through Camp Randall Stadium as the Badgers charged onto the field. College football is back.