I've been traveling abroad in Europe the entire NBA Finals series. Needless to say, finding a bar that is open past two and three in morning is impossible. I bootleg streamed most games (I admit that for Game 2 and 3, I could not stay awake long enough).

As I watched Game 6 from my friend's apartment in Istanbul, the Warriors solidified their NBA Championship with ten seconds still left on the clock. My clock was nearing 7am.

I was elated, but also heartbroken. I felt narrow minded in my vacation plans. Why was I here when I should be in San Francisco, celebrating with my friends and immersing myself in the commotion on the street? I won't even make it back in time to surf the sea of people in the parade set for Friday in Oakland.

Then I realized...this isn't about me. 

The Warriors fuckin' deserve this. Oakland deserves this. Bay Area sports fans deserve this.

As a life-long Warriors fan which goes back one generation in my immigrant Oakland-based family, I have been waiting to see this day since I was born. 1975 – the time of the Warriors' last championship – was way before this '80s girl's time.

I intently rode the playoff wave with them for the last three seasons only to be disappointed. Last night, even as I struggled to keep my eyes open, my heart settled. It's not about me.

I'm a happy sports fan.

Coincidentally, my visit to Spain was scheduled during the Champions League finals. Why was being in Spain special? FC Barcelona – Spain's premier team and securing a football treble, winning three trophies in one year (La Liga, the Spanish Cup, and now the Champions League) – were in the final against Juventus.

I may not have been in Barcelona to view the game with the hardcore Barça fans, but I still enjoyed the match one and the same, at the only bar in the small village of Tresviso, high in the mountains of the Picos de Europa (try finding it on a map). It may not have been the craziness that you see below, but it was still special.

I’m a fantasy loser.

Can you relate? There’s only one champion in each league, so your chances of being crowned are one in like…uh…we can do the math later.

What kind of satisfaction are we really seeking from this vicious fantasyland where we pretend to be general managers of a professional sports team when we know the odds? I paid $30 to fall to 10th place out of 12 at 5-9-0 for the season.

Ahh, but it's still fun. Okay?

Well as fun as that was, there are a lot of things I learned after being real bad at it:

Fantasy Football is better than Fantasy Baseball
Let me get this one out of the way first. Fantasy football - higher stakes, less games to worry about, less roster moves or drafts, exciting trades. Fantasy baseball - a holy grail of general managers that don't ever make moves, everyone has an all-star team, just too much.

Drafting means everything
Yeah, I was that person who's computer froze mid-round and got Russell Wilson on autodraft. Not a bad pick, but not the best. I was also stuck with Vernon Davis all season (don't ever listen to your boyfriend during a draft). My only player that performed solidly was Steven Hauschka (yikes). 

Any way, the draft is crucial. I still don't know how to do it "properly" (whatever that means), but I know that most champions of fantasy leagues stick with the players they drafted.

Watch the wire
If you wanna be awesome at fantasy, assess your waiver possibilities every week. Shit happens. Tight ends were a scare resource. Wide receivers were getting hurt. Quarterbacks were stepping up. Sometimes you gotta take chances on guys you think might outperform in later weeks, or be the first one to bid on a hot player that someone stupidly gave up. Once the Ray Rice scandal broke and he was booted from the NFL, my ear was listening to who would get more touches in his stead. Justin Forsett ended up doing me good.

Don’t be scared to trade
If you end up in a league like mine, chances are that no one even bothered to trade (I'm not even sure people were playing). BUT the one time I did trade, I did my homework and made sure the trade was in my favor. I ended up getting Vincent Jackson (pre-injury) and Antonio Gates for a couple of players I could do without.

Learn from the best
Listen to podcasts (my favorite was Fantasy Focus), read blogs, follow Twitter tips, ask your cool friends (who aren't in your league) how it's done. It's how you learn.

It's fun! So treat it as such.
Cry babies in your league? Fuhget that. The worst thing that could happen is someone moaning about how the world is out to get them, including injuring their star running back. It's football, it's fantasy, it's your friends – have fun! Especially if that means Smack Talkin' once in a while. Loosen up!

There’s always next season
I know that's right. Hats off to another great season of football. Until next year...

...wait, anyone want to try Fantasy Hockey?

It was announced today that A's signed former Double-A Trenton Thunder switch-pitcher Pat Venditte to a minor league deal. In the last century, Major League Baseball has only seen one pitcher of this species: Greg A. Harris, who threw a switch-pitching ninth inning in 1995. It's rare.

True to A's form, they wanted him. Probably not just because he's a weird anomaly (I'm sure he was cheap, too), but he's had a solid minor league career: .246 ERA, 17-22 record.

Or maybe Billy is looking for the next market inefficiency.

It's going to be hilarious and entertaining. I don't know why the Yanks didn't bring him up to pitch a game just for the immense PR showing it would've ensued.  

Because of this debacle with Venditte versus switch-hitter Ralph Hernandez, the MLB now has rules on switch-pitching/hitting protocol:

"Switch-pitchers must establish which arm they will throw with to start the at-bat, alerting the umpire and opposing team. Then, the batter must decide from which side of the plate he will hit.

Other details:

-After one pitch is thrown, the pitcher and the batter may each change positions one time per at-bat. 
-Any switch must be clearly indicated to the umpire.
-No warm-up pitches are allowed during a change of arm.
-In the case of injury, the pitcher may change arms, but not use the injured arm again for the rest of the game." 

Imagine the confusion that would occur with the defense, as well. You thought shifting was a problem before, wait until you see a major defensive shift in the middle of an at-bat.

Either way, I'm excited to have him as a new addition to the A's franchise. Now let's get him on the mound!

It's as if the baseball gods orchestrated the Captain's last home game to end on the most perfect note. Bottom of the ninth in the Bronx with 5-5 on the scoreboard. Orioles allow a single then a sacrifice bunt. Derek Jeter is now up. My roommate calls me over, "Jeter is about to bat!" I race over, sit and rhetorically ask, "Jeter walk off?" 

First pitch, solid hit past the first basemen, a run scores and Yankees win with a Jeter walk off base hit! A misty-eyed Jeter welcomed hugs and performed wholeheartedly during his last post-game interviews at Yankees Stadium. Hats off to an amazing career.

And what was the last thing he wanted to do before he left the stadium? Take in the view from short stop.

How can you not be romantic about baseball? 

Huge leap for women in sports. Congratulations, Becky Hammon for becoming the first full-time female NBA coach! Hammon will join the San Antonia Spurs this season after her retirement from the WNBA. May this pave the way for more female leadership in sports.

Read the full article here »

World Cup group stage is coming to an end, my favorite and top ranked team Spain played their last match, and my jaw is still dropping from all of the exciting play. What a difference four years makes; this is a completely different World Cup.

As exciting as the tournament has been, there are many nuances the sport of soccer has to offer that I don't get, but I'm learning. Below are some of my inquiries and discoveries from the last couple of weeks.

What the hell is offside?
Not to be confused with offsides for us American football fans. I catch myself saying that a lot. "OFFSIDESSS! I mean...offside." This is likely the most misunderstood and frustrating rule in all of sports, especially for us wee fans. Here is how I understand it, layman's terms style:

Offside position is different than an offside offense. You can be in an offside position when you have less than two defenders, including the goalkeeper, between you and the goal. Theoretically, you're allowed to be in the offside position the entire match. Your fans would think you're grade A stupid, but you wouldn't be violating any rules. When you're in an offside position is when you can commit an offside offense. To commit an offense means while in the offside position, you are involved in active play. With the evolution of FIFA rules, the meaning of active play has changed significantly. 

Offside offense is committed in active play when you're:

• playing or touching the ball passed or touched by a teammate (the most common)
• preventing an opponent from playing or being able to play the ball by clearly obstructing the opponent’s line of vision or movements or making a gesture or movement which, in the opinion of the referee, deceives or distracts an opponent.
  
• playing a ball that rebounds to him off a goalpost or the crossbar having been in an offside position or playing a ball that rebounds to him off an opponent having been in an offside position.
  

These rules exist because they clearly give players an advantage. 

Let me give you a typical scenario: player A and player B are both on the offensive side of the field. Player B is in offside position, however before the time player A kicks the ball intending to pass to player B, player B gets back onside and receives the ball. Is this offside? NO. The player was not offside when his teammate included him in active play. Now, if player B was in offside when player A passed the ball, then YES, player B is offside. 

There are exceptions to this rule during corner kicks, goal kicks, or throw-ins.

Still don't get it? I found a YouTube video that helped me practice my offside detection skills. It's long, but worth it.

How do you know an offside offense is called?
The Assistant Referee (AR) will raise a big flag. The AR is no doubt the most athletic person on the field, constantly shuffling and sprinting down the sideline. 

I'm sure you couldn't keep up like these lunatic fans. Curious about other signals? Check out this YouTube video.

Why is it called soccer and not football like the rest of the world?
John Cleese is definitely not happy about this one. And you know what? Neither am I. But before reactively blaming the U.S. for trying to be different than their British colonialists (why are we on standard and not metric!?), I recently learned that those damn British are the ones to blame for our use of the term soccer!

It comes from the original name, "association football." Colloquialisms developed around British sports, including soccer for association football. The Brits dropped the term in the 1980s after it became "too American" (boo) and went back to football. You can read more in this Huffington Post article. 

I agree with Mr. Cleese. Football makes sense. It's a ball that is kicked with your foot. American football? It's not even a ball, and it's only kicked when a special set of players takes the field under special circumstances. 

The #1 lesson from World Cup: soccer players are the hottest athletes in the world
That's not even an exaggeration. They are. Ripped bodies, cool uniforms, neon cleats, funky hair, beautiful faces. I will end this post with examples. You're welcome.

The professional women's soccer league in the U.S. dissolved in April 2012. Months later they would win gold at the Summer Olympics in London. The National Women's Soccer League has been back since 2013.

I didn't realize this until I was watching the first USMNT World Cup game against Ghana and a co-worker inquired about their female soccer counterparts. Shows how much women's sports are prioritized in headline news. Or maybe it shows my ignorance. Either way, I'm glad they're back!

It was announced on Tuesday that David Villa, fierce striker and World Cup Champion, signed a three-year deal with the brand new New York City Football Club officially becoming their first Major League Soccer player.

I'm a big softy for Villa, and it all started from his amazing performance during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Numero 7 executed five tourney goals (over half of the total goals for Spain), including this bionic kick against Chile during group stage. España took World Cup glory for the first time in its soccer history.

That was the year I learned to appreciate soccer. During the final, I sat in a crowded restaurant in Costa Rica, eating my Tico breakfast while watching the gridlock match finally end in extra time.

Villa was 28 years old. Most soccer players will likely see their careers drastically dwindle around that time, but Villa continued to impress despite his season ending tibia injury and absence from the Spanish Euro Cup team in 2011-2012. Healed and back in competitive action, it only took Villa seven minutes to score a goal in his first La Liga match since 2011.

Historically brushed off as a joke, MLS didn't used to appeal much to the talented celebrity Europe was producing. 

Then the tide shifted. 

Stars like David Beckham, Thierry Henry and Robbie Keane have come over to the states, raising the seemingly dismal profile of soccer and securing revenue for the league to sustain itself. Plus, it's giving these old dudes another chance at a sport they love.

For us Americans, it's increasing the pulse of soccer and expanding the international game to new and much needed markets. MLS stands at a total of 19 teams today, including the addition of NYCFC. A soccer match in Yankee Stadium? I'm so there.

I recently attended my first Seattle Sounders and San Jose Earthquakes (at the same time!) match in CenturyLink (luckily, no Seahawks were around). Sounders fans are European serious about their soccer. I'm talking full brass band, cheer conductors on both ends of the field, and fans that never sit. You can't help but give a sight of relief and say, "Finally."

With USA in Brazil this year and more big names signing to the MLS, I hope soccer continues to grow in this part of the world and build as serious of a fan base as baseball and American football. The rest of the world loves it. It's about time we did, too.

It's cheesy and cliché. You're enjoying the game, the Dance Cam is running on the jumbotron, and then the next camera frames a young couple with big letters on the screen calling your attention (or maybe even poorly animated hearts fluttering about). The guy gets down on his knee (you don't hear any audio, by the way), but my lip reading informs me he's saying something corny like, "Oh Madeline, will you make me the happiest man on Earth and marry me?" Madeline has a look of utter surprise and shock, unconsciously saying something to the effect of "Oh my God!" usually with her hand covering her mouth until she is able to finally mutter a YES. The crowd hollers and applauds. And for a minute or so everyone is rooting for Team Love. 

My initial reaction on the other hand: rolling eyes while choking with disgust. Secondary reaction: holding my breath because I hope the poor man attempting such an outlandish proposal doesn't get embarrassed (see what I mean below). Heartbreaking.

I LOVE SPORTS (dear reader, you know this). So you would think that I would also LOVE to be proposed to during a live sporting event. Wrong. It's embarrassing and horribly unromantic and un-intimate. It makes a spectacle out of a moment that should be personable and special; cheerleaders, celebrity athletes, colorful mascots, and complete strangers all included. It's just EW!

Recently, I was proposed to at O.co Coliseum — not for marriage, but for prom (no you sickos, he's a high school teacher). Even though we weren't publicly displayed on Diamond Vision, it was still overwhelming and mortifying. Worst part: I felt cornered to say YES when I really wanted to say no. The gesture was followed up with "Congratulations!" from strangers that made me even redder in the face. Long story short, it wasn't pleasant.

Now I'm not saying to rule this out. Some women would love it, but please-oh-please only do it if you know that! Ask yourself some simple questions before subjecting yourself to sheer humiliation: 

1. Will she appreciate this type of public display of affection?
2. Does it make sense to our relationship to choose this venue/game for my marriage proposal?
3. Will she say yes?
4. Can I afford it? Sorry Dodgers fans, it'll cost you $2500 to pop the question.
   

A no to any of these, fuggedaboutit.

I'm also not saying that I wouldn't love to be proposed to at a sports venue. I just wouldn't enjoy having that happen during a live sporting event. Get me on an empty diamond with no one else around and "pitch" me your proposal (oh geez, I threw in a sports metaphor). I love the marriage proposal story of Jennie Finch, badass Olympic medal-winning softball pitcher, and Craig Daigle, free agent Minor League pitcher.

Kanye West's proposal to Kim Kardashian was grandiose, but romantic at least. I doubt Kimye have any personal connection with the San Francisco Giants or San Francisco for that matter. The venue made no sense to me. 

If you're considering a sports proposal, do it right like these guys: