You'll have to excuse this looooong post. I have still not been able to solve my internet problems while I'm away from home. Besides being disconnected from the blog world, I am also unable to watch my out-of-market games on mlb.tv. I am getting very, very antsy. I typed up these ravings Monday night after the Mavs game when I at least got my computer up and running again after it seemed to overheat and make some frightening noises before shutting itself down. I found a disc and am posting this from work now- living on the edge, I know:

I have some embarrassing confessions to make. It all started when I got worked up into a tizzy as the Spurs managed to trim what had been a twenty point lead to the Mavericks down to 76-72. I cursed all the people who proclaimed the Mavericks the certain winners of this series after their game-four win that put them up 3-1 over the defending national champions. I looked at the scoreboard and saw 3:12 on the clock with a little four next to it. I started screaming at the television but took a breath of relief when Keith Van Horn hit an amazing three point shot to put Dallas up by seven. Thirty seconds later, Nowitzki planted an incredible turnaround shot shortly before Van Horn sank another jumper from beyond the arc.

Even after Van Horn missed his next shot, and Bruce Bowen and Tim Duncan brought the Spurs back within six points, the Mavericks got the ball back and had the lead with seventeen seconds remaining. As time wore out, Dirk took a shot that came up short, but I was pleased nonetheless. I reached for the phone to call a friend, as I heard Marv Albert announce the score: “Dallas 84, San Antonio 78 at the end of this incredible third quarter”. My heart sank, not for the first time today.

After my tirade against the premature celebration of a Dallas triumph, I was left looking more than a little foolish. I had just announced in a voice, weak from disbelief, that we were going to the conference finals. Suddenly, I realized that the little four I had noticed next to the time on the score graphic indicated the time on the shot clock and not the quarter of play.

I am not sure why I didn’t question if we were in the 23^rd quarter moments later or why I failed to notice just how quickly the game had gone by or how low the score was. Usually I’m the one caught off guard to discover that there are less than two minutes remaining in regulation, although there is little chance of that happening in San Antonio’s A####mp;T Center. I had been busy screaming at Josh Howard (when he missed his first foul shot), hurling balled-up socks at Tony Parker (on television, during the taped interview about breaking the hearts of the Mavericks), and cursing Tim Duncan (just because… not really) along with all the people who jinxed the Mavs. In the midst of all that frustration and anxiety, logic seems to have escaped me.

When I realized that I had another twelve minutes to go before the winner would emerge, I thought I was going to be physically ill. It certainly was a painful but incredible twelve minutes, too. Dallas still led by as many as nine points in the final nine minutes of regulation, but Duncan and Manu Ginobili outscored the Mavericks 15-10 and Michael Finley hit a three-pointer to bring San Antonio within one point of his former team with 1:45 remaining (for real this time).

Duncan went to the line after Erick Dampier fouled out against him. He tied the score at 101 with his second shot after missing his first attempt. Spurs fans can blame officials, Mark Cuban’s blog, Manu Ginobili or anything else they like, and I will not argue that Duncan stepped up his game tremendously this postseason- particularly against the Mavericks, leading all scorers in five of seven games. Still, the fact remains that he missed six of his twenty-three shots from the line tonight, missing more shots than any player, other than Dirk or Ginobili, even took.

After a missed shot by Nowitzki, Ginobili hit a three-pointer to put the Spurs up 104-101 with 32 seconds to go. Ten seconds later, Dirk brought the Mavericks back within a single point, but a shooting foul was called on Ginobili and Dirk tied the score up with his free throw. Finley inbounded the ball to Ginobili after the Spurs’ timeout, and he dribbled around the arc, running down the clock. With precious few seconds remaining, Manu, who had been praised throughout the fourth quarter for his effortless ability to sink clutch baskets, went in for the layup to break the tie for San Antonio… and missed. Tim Duncan tried to get another shot at it, but Dirk was there and had other plans. Jason Terry, back after his one-game suspension, got the rebound and the game went to overtime.

By then, the anxiety truly had made me ill. To borrow a line from a classic film, “I threw up a little bit,” but that did not keep me away from the TV once the game returned. Josh Howard struck first in OT. With just under two minutes remaining, the Mavericks led the Spurs by six points. After Tim Duncan cut that back to four points, DeSagana Diop drew a foul on Bowen. He sank the second shot after missing the first and San Antonio had the ball back. After a timeout, a foul was called on Devin Harris for moving in the way as the ball was going to be put in. The Spurs got a free throw for Michael Finley to come within four points. They also regained possession of the ball, as it was not yet in play when Harris’s foul was called, and had over twenty seconds remaining.

In those final seconds, Dallas aggressively defended against San Antonio and drew a pair of fouls. Nowitzki’s “two shots”, the Mavericks went up 119-111. Finley missed the final shot of the game and Adrian Griffin, who had been pulled off the bench (literally, by his collar) by Avery Johnson as Terry shot, grabbed the rebound as time expired for the reigning NBA champions.

Secret Number Two: While I’m spilling my secrets, here’s another one for you: I like Mark Cuban. I am not saying I agree with every word the man says or that I want to hang out with the guy (but Mark, if you read this- I live about seven minutes from the AAC. Stop by after the game anytime. Bring your wife, some of the guys, the coaching staff- anybody but Humble Billy- and have a drink. I’ll make some brownies or something.

Seriously, though, Mark Cuban certainly can be obnoxious at times, but I have never- especially in this town- been so absolutely convinced of an owner’s commitment to winning. In recent years he has made some decisions which have been unpopular among some and questioned among many.

First among those would be his release of Steve Nash. Nash, along with Dirk and Michael Finley, was considered part of the core of this new generation of Dallas Mavericks. After the team had gone through a horrific period in the 1990s, Nash was part o####roup of players who, with Coach Don Nelson, brought winning back to Dallas basketball. Upon his departure from Dallas, Nash went on to the Phoenix Suns and turned a team that had been sixth place in a relatively unimpressive division the season before and turned them into the winningest team in the NBA. He was voted the MVP and helped knock his former team out of the playoffs in the second round. Nash has now been named the MVP for the second consecutive season and many still question how Mark Cuban could have let him ride off west. However, the fact remains that Nash just was not playing at that same level in his final seasons in Dallas. One of the main reasons he probably stepped up his training and turned up his game was because he had something to prove. He also plays a different role in Phoenix than he did in Dallas. Mike D’Antoni does not run the same game that Nellie did or Avery does. To assume that Nash could have been a two-time MVP in Dallas is ridiculous. Of course, the Mavericks now have the opportunity to prove that they are capable of beating Nash and the Suns to go farther than they ever did with him.

The following season (meaning this past year), another one of those star franchise players was sent packing. This time it was Michael Finley who wound up with the reigning champion Spurs. His regular season in San Antonio was less than impressive, primarily playing off the bench and not producing much of anything. He managed to do some damage against his former team, both in regular season meetings, as well as in the playoffs. Without blaming Michael Finley for the Spurs’ elimination (because it is certainly not his fault) or making Cuban or Nellie, Jr. out to be geniuses, it is once again a team without Finley that is advancing to the conference finals.

Team management / ownership was also criticized this past off-season for remaining stagnant and a few busts. I will not attempt to upside the Doug Christie deal except to say they got rid of him quickly enough, and the general wisdom of signing Erick Dampier to his large contract is certainly questionable. However, even that has not been a total bust with the Little General figuring out how to get the most from his big men.

I understand that Cuban is in business to make money. That said, he has actually lowered some ticket prices and created more promotions to make the games more accessible to fans and to families. If he can spend less money on personnel and still wind up with what could be the most successful team in franchise history and bring in more revenue without driving up ticket prices, more power to him. Since the day Mark Cuban took over this franchise, it has been a different looking team (and I’m not referring to the new uniforms or the new arena). Attitudes about the team’s potential, the fans, and, most importantly, winning changed almost overnight. I still say Cuban should buy the Rangers. Now I just need to convince him and Tom Hicks.

Secret Number Three: I missed the very beginning of the Mavericks game (about a minute and a half on the game clock) because I was wrapped up in the Sox – Yankees game at Fenway. Without internet access, my ability to watch my out-of-market games online was hobbled, but I had been excited when I saw that the game was on ESPN. With Boston retaking the lead from the Yankees, I was so caught up in the action (and so unused to this series getting started much before 9 pm local time) that I did not switch over in time for tip-off. After losing so much sleep over the late starts, I almost dropped the ball when the Texas game ended up in the early time slot (since the double-header was shared with a game in Phoenix and not Detroit or Cleveland).

I did check in on my boys in Boston periodically during commercial breaks, but I made sure that I did not miss another second of the action in San Antonio. With the Sox extending their 4-1 lead to a 7-1 and then a 9-1 lead, I did not worry too much about them.

Fortunately (for me), I missed the entire debacle when Keith Foulke nearly converted an eight-run lead into a save situation with a five-hit, four-run ninth inning. I only learned about Alex Rodriguez’s pointless two-run homer when I flipped back and found Baseball Tonight on after the game.

Secret Number Four: I almost completely missed the Rangers coming from down 2-0 to win 3-2 against Anaheim, with Coco getting the hold and Akinori Otsuka picking up the save. It looked like an exciting game, but I’m not sorry I missed it. If they do it again in October, I promise I won’t miss it.

Secret Number Five: I have learned something new about myself this past week. I already knew that like the Boston Red Sox and the Boston Celtics (okay, like is putting it mildly). If I watched hockey, I would probably like the Boston Bruins. I enjoyed learning about the Boston Tea Party when I was in school. I like to bake and eat Boston cream pie. Although I only saw it a few times, I kind of liked the show Boston Public. None of that is news to me or anybody, but I have discovered that I do not like Boston Terriers. I consider myself an animal lover. I’m even a vegetarian, but my friends’ Boston Terriers that I am currently watching (as well as their lousy internet service or wireless router) are driving me absolutely crazy.

Okay, well, enough for now. I'm sure I'll have more to say later.

Secret Number Six (addendum): Due to circumstances beyond my control, I also missed last night's Pistons - Heat conference finals game as well as any baseball action. I couldn't even watch an archived game before bed. I almost cried a little.

Secret  Number Seven:  I have no desire for boobs...

Boston ended what has been an ugly three-game losing streak and avoided the sweep in the Rogers Centre today. Things looked iffy for a while, after the Red Sox looked poised to blow a 4 – 0 lead. Fortunately, with some insurance runs in the final innings and some good work out of the bullpen, the Sox hung on to win.

It was reassuring to see the Sox take a three-run lead before Toronto ever came up to bat. Josh Towers, who is now 0 – 4 for the Jays, hit lead-off batter Kevin Youkilis. David Ortiz then came up and hit a homer that put the Sox up by two with just one out in the game. Towers followed it up with back-to-back singles to Manny Ramirez and Trot Nixon. Another single to Mike Lowell drove in Manny before he got out of the inning.

Matt Clement did rather well against the Jays early in the game, allowing only two hits in the first three innings. In the fourth inning, Kevin Youkilis drove in Willie Harris (continuing to hit well with runners in scoring position) to put the Sox’s up 4 – 0. However, that lead appeared to be jeopardized when Gregg Zaun quickly brought the Jays within a run at 4 – 3. Matt Clement was not entirely to blame, however, as lead-off man Vernon Wells reached on a throwing error by third baseman Mike Lowell. He did walk Lyle Overbay, however, and later hit Alex Rios in what proved to be the ugliest inning for Boston.

His control continued to waver in the fifth inning when he hit Vernon Wells and gave up another walk to Overbay as well as a base hit Frank Catalanotto. He escaped the inning without any further damage. After allowing two singles with just one out in the sixth, Clement was pulled by Terry Francona and Keith Foulke took the mound in relief. Although Foulke has been somewhat inconsistent lately and has been replaced in his role as closer, he looked good today and held the Jays at three for Boston. In an inning and two-thirds, he allowed no hits and had three strikeouts.

In the eighth, Adrian Gonzalez led off with a walk against Vinnie Chulk. Youk and Loretta hit back-to-back singles, with Gonzalez scoring off Loretta’s. Afterwards, the Jays brought in B.J. Ryan to stop the bleeding, but Mike Timlin already had a bit more cushion in his lead when he took the mound in the bottom of the inning. The set-up man allowed one base hit but struck out two before handing it off to Jonathan Papelbon.

Shaun Marcum took over for Ryan in the top of the ninth and allowed a lead-off single to Jason Varitek and RBI double to Mike Lowell to give the Sox a 6 – 3 lead. He then walked Harris before eliciting two pop flies and striking out Youk to strand Harris and end the inning.

Papelbon, sporting his new mohawk, came on for the close in the bottom of the ninth. Although he allowed consecutive singles, to lead-off hitter Russ Adams and Frank Catalanotto, Papelbon continued his streak of scoreless innings (now up to eleven and a third) that earned him his new ‘do in the first place. Papelbon struck out Vernon Wells and Troy Glaus hit into a 6 – 4 – 3 double play to end the game (and Boston’s losing streak) and earn Papelbon his eighth consecutive save.

And, oh yeah- Lasorda for Commissioner.