Jit Camp

With no MLB in the foreseeable future this Rays fan has his eye on the only game in town the KBO.

The South Korean Baseball League will be airing it’s games live on ESPN starting at about 1 a.m. Eastern time, as part of a new deal with the network. The games will feature american commentary.

The league started in 1982 starting with six franchises, but would later expand to ten teams. The Kia Tigers are the most successful team having won 11 out of the 38 championship games. The teams are mainly made up of South Korean born players but each team allows three international players on each team. The quality of play is not MLB level but it’s definitely better than most Triple A games. Top flight pitchers are slinging 93 mph fast balls in the KBO as opposed to some MLB pitchers that throw 97 mph. If your a fan of big sluggers this league has it, and you know what that means more celebratory bat flips.

Now the question is what team to root for? I am going with the Kimwoon Heroes, the only team in the league not named after a company or a business. The Heroes play in the Gocheok Sky Dome, a state of the art dome giving off vibes of what a new Tropicana Field could look like in St.Petersburg. Heavy hitter First baseman Park Byung-ho lead the KBO in homers last year with 33. Shortstop Kim Ha-seong is also an MLB caliber player to watch out for on the Heroes.

The KBO is currently playing games with fake fans in attendance which is a bad sign for upcoming Rays season ticket holders. We might be able to at least see our home town team play but it will be from behind a screen. Until the MLB makes a decision on the 2020 season, the only thing get our sports fix as of now might be KBO baseball. In that case Go Heroes!!!

Artist: Drake

Album: Dark Lane Demo Tapes

Fav Tracks: “Deep Pockets”, “Tootsie Slide”, “Time Flies”, “D4L”, “Pain 1993”.

Least Fav Tracks: “Landed”, “War”

Grade: 3.5/5

With the promise of his next album dropping Summer 2020, mixtape Drake is back to hold fans over.

“Dark Lane Demo Tapes” shows all of the sides of Drake. You get the introspective side for the first three tracks,but mainly on the intro track “Deep Pockets” where Drake spits about his life and the state of the rap game. He’s also got his Future collab cuts on here as well with prob my fav track on the album “D4L” featuring Future and Young Thug over an asain inspired Southside banger.

When Drake flipping the “Song Cry” beat on “When To Say When” and using the Eminem “Superman” hook on “Chicago Freestyle” came off as very corny to me and just made me want to listen to the original songs. The songs aren’t bad they just come off as lazy rather than cool so I usually skip those.

At first I hated “Toosie Slide” but the Tik Tok cash grab song has grown on me, but I am still going to call it “Tootsie Slide”.

This project is decent for a “demo tape” mixtape but some of the songs like “Landed” and “War” seem like throwaway tracks, especially “War” which sounds like I should be on Drake’s NY Drill album when it drops.

On this mixtape you also get the “ride the wave” Drake where he makes his best attempts at jumping on the hottest trend in the rap game. Sometimes this formula works for Drake like on the X inspired “KMT” from “More Life”. But it can also go horribly wrong like some of those trash Dance Hall cuts from “Views”. On this tape Drake borrows the Playboi Carti sound on the Pierre Bourne produced “Pain 1993” which is done pretty well but to me it just sounds like Drake wanted this for his project instead of Carti’s. Drake also takes a crack at the new “NY Drill” sound that gained popularity after the death of Pop Smoke earlier this year. “Demons” featuring Fivio Foreign and Sosa Geek nails the esthetic of the sound with a menacing drill beat provided by JB Made It. The final track “War” is also in a similar style but just feels like a throwaway. Not sure if this sub genre will last with the death of Pop Smoke but I know for sure Drake ain’t the future of it.

Despite half this mixtape being kind of wack the three tracks I really do vibe with off of it will definitely be on my playlist all Summer 2020!

Regardless of the suspended 2020 MLB Season, Tampa Bay Rays fans and Season Ticket holders have a lot to be happy about.

The Rays are projected to be one of the league’s top teams once the season does finally begin. Blake Snell is a huge part of that success. This break in the season allows him to get fully healed and claim the first MLB The Show Players Championship. Players like Ji-Man Choi and Austin Meadows have been using the time off to strengthen their social media presence making them two of the most popular players on the team.

With the games having to be rescheduled the Rays have decided to give season tickets holders a 25% bonus of the price of the games as a credit that can be used on food and merch at The Trop. This will entice fans to keep their current tickets as well as spend more money in the stadium instead of on third party vendors. I am not sure what other teams around the league are doing to keep their season tickets on board during the pandemic but they might want to take something from the Rays playbook.

At the start of the season I was looking at the various ticket packages the team offered but it made more sense for me to just get a Weekend Season ticket package. Once everything goes back to somewhat normal I can’t wait to join my fellow Rays fans in The Trop, while we all chant Choi right before he hits a home run. See you soon from Section 145 Row V!

Despite the 2020 MLB Season being on hold, players have been able to stay busy on the virtual field.

One player from each of the thirty MLB franchises have been going at it in a players MLB The Show 2020 League. Personal favorite and 2018 AL Cy Young winner Blake Snell is representing the Rays, dominating the competition, only losing a few games leading him all the way into the championship series meeting up against sixth ranked Lucas Giolito Pitcher for the Chicago White Sox’s.

I would like to maybe see other leagues like the NFL and NBA adopt similar player tournaments with their video game franchises. With many players also being gamers the chances they would be on board is pretty likely. It also is a great chance for fans to see players in a different more personal atmosphere rather than in the heat of the game. Getting to see a different side of Blake Snell has made him one of my favorite all time Rays players. His custom Devil Rays control is really dope.

Snell ultimately swept Giolito in the five game series making him and the Tampa Bay Rays 2020 MLB The Show Players League Champions. Although it’s not a AL Pennant or a World Series Title it’s nice to see the Rays and one of their star players get the national spotlight on ESPN, even though it’s for a video game tournament. Let’s hope the Rays play on the virtual field can reflect their play on the field once the 2020 season officially begins.

After rewatching the Godzilla Shōwa Era of films I was looking for something new to get my kaiju fix. Look no further than “Ultra Q”!

Created by longtime Godzilla special effects wizard Eiji Tsuburaya in 1966, the original goal of the series was to be a Japanese Twilight Zone and Outer Limits style series featuring a creature of the week, but ultimately turned more into a Tokusatsu or a live action Japanese series or film with a heavy use on special effects.

The short lived series only lasted one season, later turning into Ultraman making it the first in the Ultra Series of Tokusatsu shows. Each episode features a singular story dealing with some sort of giant monster or alien threat on the earth. There are some reoccurring characters throughout the series like Professor Ichinotani who usually gives his observations on the situation.

The first episode pulls you right in with a battle between Gomess a lizard monster created from an old Godzilla suit and Litra the guardian bird that protects the twin from Gomess. If you need your fix of kaiju this is the series for you the Meteorite Monster Garamon and the Arctic monster Pegulia are my favorite two in the series both having appearances in two episodes of the series. The Garamon episodes are probably my favorite, watching him kangaroo hop through a city instantly made him one of my favorite kaiju, and the reason I initially checked out the series.

With Quarantine in full effect, “Ultra Q” should definitely make these hard times a little better, because who doesn’t love giant monsters!

After drafting OT Tristan Wirfs to anchor the offensive line with their first pick, the Buccaneers looked to use the rest of the draft to fill in some missing pieces in what already looks like a playoff bound team.

Instead of reaching on a RB after Wisconsin stud Jonathan Taylor was picked up by the Colts, Bucs GM Jason Licht beefed up an already stacked defense drafting Safety Antoine Winfield Jr with their 2nd Round pick. Our secondary is very young but as the team grows it will continue to get better, Winfield Jr adds to that bringing ball hawk interception skills. Winfield Jr also specialize in his run defense often picking up the middle of the field tackles.

In the 3rd Round the Bucs finally secured a RB drafting Vanderbilt standout Ke’Shawn Vaughn to share carries with ROJO, which hopefully will take some of the load of Brady. To me he seems like a Doug Martin style running back, short but once he gets through the hole he has potential to take it to the house.

In the 5th Round the Bucs got Brady another possible weapon on offense getting another Minnesota player Tyler Johnson at WR. I can’t see him being a week one starter but it never hurts to give Bruce Arians even more weapons to draw up plays for.

Later Round Picks usually don’t get that much love but the Bucs added another Nebraska DT Khalil Davis with their 6th Round Pick. Davis joins fellow Cornhuskers Suh and fan favorite Lavonte David on Todd Bowles squad. Even if David doesn’t get much playing time due to Suh and Vea he can lessen the load on those two if he has a productive rookie year. I’ll definitely be looking out for Khalil Davis to make some big plays on D!

Later in the 7th Round the Bucs added another defensive player Temple OLD Chapelle Russel. They also went for RB Raymond Calais out Louisiana. Hopefully if Vaughn doesn’t get it going Calais could help take the load of ROJO this season.

With such a huge free agency and a team already on the cusp of a playoff birth, the Bucs leave the 2020 Draft with a franchise caliber OT and probably two more players that will probably see game time if not be starters with Winfield Jr and Vaughn. Time will only tell if the 7th Rounders make the team but I think Khalil Davis will stick around for a year or so. If they where able to get Jonathan Taylor at RB that would have given them an A+ grade but for the 2020 NFL Draft,I give the Bucs an A-.

The Buccaneers didn’t take any chances leaving Tom Brady unguarded this season by moving up one spot to select Tristan Wirfs OT from Iowa with the 13th pick.

It is likely that Wirfs will start at Right Tackle and the Bucs are looking for Wirfs to be a Frank Gruber esque cornerstone lineman for years to come. Having a great balance of speed and strength, Wirfs might not be as big as the other tackles drafted before him,but he is quicker on his feet running a 4.86 40 time weighting in at 320 lbs. His crazy jump out of a pool has been shown over and over again on sports center, showcasing his leg strength.

Personally I feel the team got a steal with Wirfs at 13. Becton I felt lacked the maturity to be a starting tackle for Tom Brady as a rookie. Wirfs is just a small town kid from a single mom living out his dream.

Although picking a Tackle with your first pick is not a flashy move, Tristan Wirfs has a bright future ahead of him rocking Pewter and Red, I know I’ll have my Wirfs jersey on during game days.

When he’s not being kicked out of a park for practicing football, it seems Tom Brady making some behind the scenes dealings after the Buccaneers acquired Patriot legend and future Hall of Fame TE Rob Gronkowski for only a 4th Round Pick.

With rumors of Bucs former first round pick TE O.J. Howard being on the trade block, after having a piss poor season last year, it was surprising to see Howard not involved in the trade. Personally I think they should hang on to Howard just in case Gronk needs a breather. If the team decides to move on they should get no less then a 2nd Round Pick.

With Mike Evans already being a freak of nature, Brady will have two big security blankets on the field just in case he finds himself in harms way. After a year of resting I am sure Gronk is ready to get back at it with another chance at the Super Bowl with his BFF Brady.

Life is good these days being a Tampa Bay Buccaneers fan with two of my all time favorite players reunited at long last, let’s just hope the season actually starts.

As a life long Patriot fan living in the Tampa Bay Area I have always rooted for the Buccaneers as well due to being my home town team. Now after the signing of Tom Brady to the Bucs this off-season the fandom struggle is real deciding which team to love more.

After experiencing the Tampa Bay Vipers games and the final Bucs game against Atlanta, my mind was pretty much made up that I was going to get Buccaneers Season tickets regardless what QB was at the helm. One of my life long dreams and goals is to have Patriots season tickets but living in the Tampa Bay Area makes that difficult. For now the best option I have is to root for both teams while still enjoying the in game experience of live football at one of the NFL’s hidden gems stadiums Raymond James.

Growing up I can remember my Grandma Judy having the Bucs game on every Sunday when Chris Simms and Cadillac Williams started on the team. I remember the excitement the area and team had surrounding the drafting of Josh Freeman who we thought would be our QB of the future. The signing of Tom Brady is a huge moment for the team and the Tampa Bay Area putting us in the National spotlight.

People might say that it makes me a bandwagon fan to root for the Patriots and the Bucs but who cares? I’m not going to miss out on seeing the final years of my favorite player and hero play for my home town team, it’s sort of like Tom brought the Patriots to Tampa Bay. I hope over the next few seasons regardless if we win a Super Bowl or not, it is definitely going to be a fun experience hearing the cannons fire at Ray Jay for years to come.