Rhino's Sports Pub and Bacon Bistro

SANTA MONICA, Calif. — ‘Twas the day before MLS Cup, and somehow, magically, and without any notice, Rhino’s Sports Pub has managed to avoid much of the intense, two-week-long hype for MLS Cup XVI, which will be played for a record fourth time at the Home Depot Center in beautiful, Carson, Calif.

Perhaps it was NFL Week 11, Tebowing, a potential new MLB CBA, and the possibility of no NBA season that pushed Major League Soccer — an up-and-coming league — and its penultimate match aside.

Well, here we are a day before the championship, outlined against a partly cloudy Southern California sky (weather update at 12:19 p.m.: It’s mostly cloudy now), and suddenly, there are obvious signs that the big game is finally upon sports fans.

The morning’s sports talk wasn’t focused on last night’s Iowa State upset of No. 2-rated Oklahoma State, but David Beckham in possibly his final game with the Los Angeles Galaxy — who are making a record seventh MLS Cup appearance (they’ve only won twice, however) — and whether or not the upstart Houston Dynamo — making their third MLS Cup appearance (they’ve won both of their prior appearances) — can pull off the shocking upset on the home pitch of the star-studded Galaxy.

A conversation overheard at the local Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf surrounded Robbie Keane, and how much he’ll have left in the tank after helping his native Ireland earn a berth in Euro 2012, for its first appearance in the European Championships since 1988. A trip to the local farmer’s market revealed that potentially thousands of fans from Houston might have descended upon the city, with the team’s signature orange kits prevalent everywhere, and those fans likely giddy in anticipation for the big game on Sunday night (at 6 p.m. PT on ESPN).

If only there were “MLS Cup Memories with Ian Darke” that one could enjoy much like American football fans can on the eve of Super Sunday with “Super Bowl Memories with Steve Sabol.” Many probably need that world football fix at the moment. (By the way, for historical perspective, this is the 16th edition of MLS Cup. In the NFL, Super Bowl XVI pitted the San Francisco 49ers against the Cincinnati Bengals — the first time. Not sure what that actually really means, to be honest.)

So, it’s time to give the final prediction of this, historic and epic Major League Soccer season.

I know, you didn’t ask, but …

Los Angeles Galaxy 3-1 Houston Dynamo

If this is to be Beckham’s final MLS game, it’d be great to see him go out a winner.

Feel free to follow Rhino on Twitter at @jimreineking.

To be honest, I really like the Major League Soccer playoffs. Much of the rest of the world’s top-level soccer leagues crown its champions based on which team accumulated the most points over the course of a long season. However, this is America, and we crown champions through career-deciding playoff systems. I prefer the American method here. Major League Soccer’s playoffs are typically pretty exciting and often generate surprise winners. This is America, and we love an underdog, so will this year’s MLS Cup quest produce a surprise?

Here are one humble man’s picks …

Wild-card round

FC Dallas v New York Red Bulls
The pick: New York Red Bulls
Colorado Rapids v Columbus Crew
The pick: Colorado Rapids

Eastern Conference semifinals

Sporting Kansas City v Colorado Rapids
The pick: Sporting Kansas City
Houston Dynamo v Philadelphia Union
The pick: Philadelphia Union

Western Conference semifinals

Los Angeles Galaxy v New York Red Bulls
The pick: Los Angeles Galaxy
Seattle Sounders FC v Real Salt Lake
The pick: Seattle Sounders FC

Conference finals

Sporting Kansas City v Philadelphia Union
The pick: Sporting Kansas City
Los Angeles Galaxy v Seattle Sounders FC
The pick: Seattle Sounders FC

MLS Cup XVI

At Home Depot Center, Carson, Calif.
The pick: Seattle Sounders FC over Sporting Kansas City

Based on these well-thought-out picks, the Sounders would win the “double,” having already won the U.S. Open Cup for the third consecutive year. Only three teams in MLS history have won the “double”: 1996 D.C. United, 1998 Chicago Fire and 2005 Los Angeles Galaxy.

Illustration by Ben Liebenberg

• Follow Ben on Twitter

That’s New York Giants tight end Kevin Boss, and he’s sporting a Seattle Sounders FC kit during an unofficial practice hosted by Giants QB Eli Manning at Hoboken High School in Hoboken, N.J.

There’s a rhyme to this reason … Kevin’s older brother, Terry, is the backup goalkeeper for the Sounders.

The Sounders, it should be noted, are playing the bitter rival Portland Timbers for the first time as Major League Soccer teams on Saturday. There’s some not-so-friendly banter going on between the two cities leading up to the match.

Unfortunately, we were unable to get our beers fast enough to catch the start of the second half of action between the L.A. Galaxy and Portland Timbers at the Home Depot Center.

More:

• Expansion Timbers no match for Galaxy
• Donovan’s goals overshadow calls

We’re talking base-ball (and some other stuff) …

» Because ESPN insists on being a PR vehicle for the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees, we here at the Sports Pub are opting to try to watch our favorite teams via MLB Extra Innings on DirecTV (the irony here is that if you click on that MLB Extra Innings link, it’s littered with photos of Alex Rodriguez and the “big sloppy,” David Ortiz).

Of 11 already-scheduled, nationally televised games for either ESPN or ESPN the deuce, six involved either the Red Sox, Yankees or both. ESPN might realize that there are actually 28 other teams in MLB, but not many more.

I guess the bottom line here is — and please don’t take this the wrong way — that I’m making it my own personal crusade to avoid the Red Sox and Yankees as much as possible during the 2011 Major League Baseball season. That is going to be hard (re: impossible) to do.

» Sports Illustrated‘s respected baseball writer, Tom Verducci, recently posted his “Most Compelling Players of 2011″ list. Only one Yankees player (Derek Jeter) and no Red Sox players made the top 10. The defending World Series champion San Francisco Giants have two of the top three — pitchers Tim Lincecum and Brian Wilson. The defending American League champion Texas Rangers have the other player in the top three, outfielder Josh Hamilton (in the piece, Verducci compares Hamilton to Mickey Mantle … that’s heady stuff).

As the current national TV schedule has it now, ESPN/2 will air one game involving the Rangers (Sunday, April 17, against … drum roll please … the Yankees!), and no more games featuring your World Series champions (though, they were on an ESPN2 telecast on Sunday, April 3 against the rival Los Angeles Dodgers).

» For all the hoopla surrounding the top quarterbacks in the 2011 NFL Draft (namely Cam Newton and Blaine Gabbert), I really believe that one of the “second-tier” group of QB prospects will be the better pro passer. I’m looking for TCU’s Andy Dalton to be that man.

That being said, the Carolina Panthers — a team struggling to be even remotely relevant — would be crazy to not select Newton with the No. 1 overall pick.

» From Tuesday: Inter Milan 2-5 FC Schalke 04. Shocking! Inter are the defending UEFA Champions League (umm …) champions.

» You didn’t ask, but here are my brief thoughts on a movie I saw recently, Battle Los Angeles … check your brain at the door and enjoy the ride, better than expected, a jazaabulous explosion-filled tour de force, earning a rating of three popcorn bags out of a possible five.

» Complex.com recently dropped a “50 demolished stadiums we love” list. Seemed like a fun way to spend five to 10 minutes. Somehow, to my utter surprise, neither Milwaukee County Stadium nor Cleveland Municipal Stadium made the cut (SPOILER ALERT: Some crap shack called “Yankee Stadium” was ranked No. 1).

Complex.com did redeem itself, however, with its “5 reasons to get excited about the 2011 MLS season” list, which had the Pacific Northwest rivalry respectfully placed at No. 2 (it’s No. 1 in our hearts and minds, but Thierry Henry was a very valid choice for the top spot).

» There’s a team called the Omicrons in my softball team’s league. I jokingly like to call them the “Unicrons,” but nobody from my team seems to get it. That’s OK, it’s a Transformers reference, and that toy genre is not exactly in many of my teammates’ wheelhouse.

» I’m cooking up a “My Star Wars droid power rankings.” I don’t want to spoil the surprise, but there might just be an upset at No. 1.

» I’m currently reading Milwaukee Braves: Heroes and Heartbreak, by William Povletich (Amazon page). So far, it’s been a nice trip back to a time when Milwaukee helped revolutionize baseball. The Boston Braves moved to Milwaukee in 1953, five years before the Dodgers and Giants shifted to the West Coast. That was kind of a big deal at the time, because no American League or National League teams had moved in 50 years (1903, when the Baltimore Orioles moved to New York and became the Highlanders first and then ultimately the Yankees).

I didn’t know this, but renegade/promotional genius/pioneer sports team owner Bill Veeck — then owner of the woeful St. Louis Browns of the American League and a former owner of the minor-league Milwaukee Brewers — was also eyeing moving his team to Milwaukee at the time (the Browns ultimately moved to Baltimore and became the Orioles … funny thing is, the Browns were the former Brewers, one of eight original American League teams in 1901).

The Milwaukee Browns? Could you imagine how history would have been different?

Until then, feel free to meet me at the bar …

Follow Rhino on Twitter @jimreineking.

With Chad Ochocinco attempting to make the transition from football to futbol with a four-day trial with Major League Soccer’s Sporting Kansas City, this seems like a good time to revisit a little ditty I wrote for FOXSports.com leading up to the 2006 World Cup in Germany.

One of U.S. soccer’s up-and-coming talents will be on display in Germany when 6-foot-4, 201-pound defender Oguchi Onyewu takes to the pitch for his first World Cup.

“Gooch” has the combination of size and strength that is rarely seen on the soccer pitch (he is believed to be the biggest field player -— non-goalkeeper -— in U.S. national team history). American sports fans, however, see this sort of impressive physical specimen all the time. Whether it’s flipping through NFL Sunday Ticket each autumn Sunday while checking out the doings of the stars of their fantasy team, or admiring the high-flying abilities of the NBA’s best players, the U.S. features the greatest collection of athletes in the world.

The fact of the matter is this: Soccer is not the most popular sport in the U.S. That spot is firmly held by football. Soccer, known as football outside the U.S., is the most popular sport, at least team sport, in most other countries. The best athletes in those countries play soccer like our nation’s best athletes dream of playing in the NFL, Major League Baseball or the NBA. While that is beginning to shift thanks in part to the professional aspirations Major League Soccer is offering young players, soccer remains far behind the established sports.

So, while Landon Donovan, DaMarcus Beasley, Eddie Johnson, Clint Dempsey and the rest of Team USA prepare to take on the world’s best soccer players in Germany, let’s consider an alternate universe where our nation’s greatest athletes possessed soccer skill, grew up in the game, and eventually went on to represent Team USA against the rest of the world’s best.

What if our nation’s greatest athletes were soccer players? Here is a look at how our “Dream Team,” comprised totally of star athletes outside soccer, would look …

Forwards

Chad Johnson (club: Cincinnati Bengals) -— Wide receivers seem like a natural to play forward. They are playmakers, with speed and size to challenge any defender the opposing team throws out there.

Could you imagine Johnson with a list of World Cup defenders that he’s going to beat like the one he had last season for cornerbacks he faced?

Game 1 – Marek Jankulovski and Tomas Ujfalusi of the Czech Republic … check
Game 2 – Fabio Cannavaro and Alessandro Nesta of Italy … check
Game 3 – John Mensah and Hans Sarpei of Ghana … check

Terrell Owens (club: Dallas Cowboys) —- The fun of having Johnson and Owens playing together at forward, besides the fact that there just wouldn’t be enough ball to go around, would be the creativity of each of their goal-scoring celebrations. Think the Sharpie would warrant a card?

Midfielders

Kobe Bryant (club: Los Angeles Lakers) —- Bryant played a lot of soccer back in his youth, which means the transition from court to pitch would be smooth. However, some have considered Bryant to be a bit of a ball hog. How would that translate to the pitch? This team has a lot of ball hogs. Great players want the ball in crucial moments in the game. That’s the sort of athlete we want here.

Carl Crawford (club: Tampa Bay Devil Rays) -— Crawford was once recruited to play option quarterback at Nebraska and point guard at UCLA. He now toils in Tampa, where he currently leads the big leagues in stolen bases. As arguably baseball’s best all-around athlete (who also is a U.S. citizen), Crawford earns his distinction as baseball’s lone representative on the starting 11.

Steve Smith (club: Carolina Panthers) —- At 5-foot-9, 185 pounds, Smith would be the smallest player on this team. However, Smith still has height advantage over USA notables Donovan, Beasley and Bobby Convey. Seeing Smith work in the open field after he catches passes on the gridiron would indicate that he would have a knack for doing the same with the ball at his feet on the pitch.

LaDainian Tomlinson (club: San Diego Chargers) -— On the gridiron, Tomlinson is able to run inside or use an arsenal of moves outside to embarrass defenders. The sort of skills that the NFL’s most dynamic player possesses translate well to the pitch, where Tomlinson would be a nightmare to defend.

Defenders

Troy Polamalu (club: Pittsburgh Steelers) -— Every soccer team worth its salt needs a player with goofy hair. That’s where Polamalu fits in. Well, it’s not just because he sports a long weave of black hair, but because he seems to be wherever the ball is at all times.

Joey Porter (club: Pittsburgh Steelers) —- Somebody needs to get in the opposing team’s head before game time. Porter would be seen on the pitch in Kaiserslautern kicking dirt on Italy’s Francesco Totti. Think the 5-foot-11, 181-pound Totti is going to mess around with the 6-foot-3, 250-pound Porter? Now, 6-foot-8, 220-pound Jan Koller of the Czech Republic would be a better match for the meanest man in Germany.

Brian Urlacher (club: Chicago Bears) —- The 2005 NFL Defensive Player of the Year does more than tackle opponents on a regular basis, he showed his athletic versatility in college, where also played some receiver and returned kicks. If by some stretch of the imagination a forward is able to beat these other defenders, Urlacher — one of the fastest linebackers the NFL has seen — will surely be there to eliminate a scoring threat.

Roy Williams (club: Dallas Cowboys) -— Unfortunately, Williams’ signature horse-collar tackle would earn him a red card. Still, even if Williams gets red carded, we don’t think any forward is going to want to mess around with the aforementioned defenders.

Goalkeeper

Kevin Garnett (club: Minnesota Timberwolves) —- At 6-11, Garnett would be the tallest ‘keeper in the world. Throw in a wingspan of more than seven feet and the quick reflexes required to play in the NBA, and it’ll be tough for even the world’s best strikers to get a ball past him (that’s given that they can even get by our Fearsome Foursome of defenders).

Bench

Forwards: LeBron James (club: Cleveland Cavaliers), Grady Sizemore (club: Cleveland Indians), Dwyane Wade (club: Miami Heat)

Midfielders: Tiki Barber (club: New York Giants), Reggie Bush (club: New Orleans Saints), Bill Guerin (club: Dallas Stars), Allen Iverson (club: Philadelphia 76ers), Derek Jeter (club: New York Yankees)

Defenders: Brian Dawkins (club: Philadelphia Eagles), Ray Lewis (club: Baltimore Ravens)

Goalkeepers: Elton Brand (club: Los Angeles Clippers), Ben Wallace (club: Detroit Pistons)

Coaches

Bill Cowher (club: Pittsburgh Steelers) —- The head coach of the Super Bowl champion Steelers deserves this spot, but will need assistants such as Bill Belichick (club: New England Patriots), Phil Jackson (club: Los Angeles Lakers) and Bill Parcells (club: Dallas Cowboys) to help keep a roster loaded with flamboyant characters in line.

Related material:
• Watch: Ochocinco kicks extra point in 2009 preseason game

Option No. 1 to help pass the time as the NFL lockout continues is the Major League Soccer season, which kicks off when America’s Team — Seattle Sounders FC — hosts the Los Angeles Galaxy at Qwest Field on Tuesday (on ESPN).

MLS is kicking off a season in which it presents a simple motto: “More teams. More games. More rivalries. The league is bigger than ever.” Simply put, MLS is opening yet another potential breakout season.

I’m not going to lie, this has probably been the most I’ve ever looked forward to the MLS season getting under way. As an unabashed supporter of a certain team sporting awesome green and blue kits whose dedicated fans are seldom sober, the addition of Vancouver Whitecaps FC and the Portland Timbers adds a spicy/fiesty sporting element to the Pacific Northwest, a region that has quickly emerged as a soccer hotbed. These rivalries are real, dating back to the days of the North American Soccer League of the 1970s-80s, and should help make MLS even more fun to follow.

Those Pacific Northwest teams factor prominently in my MLS games to watch in 2011 power rankings (which, actually, are not listed by rank and more along the lines of chronologically) …

April 21 — D.C. United v New York Red Bulls (on ESPN2): D.C. United finished at the bottom of the Eastern Conference table last season, but figures to be the most improved team in the league this year, having added U.S. national-teamer Charlie Davies, among others.

May 7 — Los Angeles Galaxy v New York Red Bulls (on ESPN2): The two teams with the most star power in the league square off as former Red Bull Juan Pablo Angel teams with Landon Donovan and David Beckham (we hope) to take on former ‘mates Thierry Henry and Rafa Marquez.

May 14 — Seattle Sounders FC v Portland Timbers (on ESPN2): Oh boy! Here we go … now these two cities — and their ardent supporters’ groups — will finally square off for real in a league match. The Timbers raised the stakes quite a bit by erecting a billboard near Seattle’s Qwest Field proclaiming Portland as “Soccer City USA.” This should be fun.

May 21 — Chivas USA v Los Angeles Galaxy (on ESPN2): This is a rivalry, too, but not to the scale of Portland-Seattle. Still, the Honda SuperClasico often gives the Home Depot Center an opportunity to pack each seat, which — and please don’t take this the wrong way — is rare, no offense L.A. soccer fans.

June 9 — Sporting Kansas City v Chicago Fire (on ESPN2): The team formerly known as the Kansas City Wizards, who were formerly known as the Kansas City Wiz, have been rebranded, given fancy new kits and will open a brand-new stadium against the Fire. Some experts are also predicting Kansas City will return to the MLS playoffs this year. And Chicago? Not so much.

June 11 — Seattle Sounders FC v Vancouver Whitecaps FC (on FSC): U.S. national-tearmer, and Green Bay, Wis. native, Jay DeMerit joins the second Canadian club to enter MLS (a third, Montreal, will join the fray in 2012). While Seattle-Vancouver doesn’t figure to be quite as nasty as Portland-Seattle, tensions should still be high when the two meet up.

July 2 — San Jose Earthquakes v New York Red Bulls (on ESPN2): Last year, the ‘Quakes shocked the world (hyperbole used for effect and not as actual indication of upset’s impact) by upsetting the Red Bulls in the first round of the playoffs. To say that this would be a “revenge” match is a stretch, but that playoff upset is a nice storyline for this one.

July 4 — Los Angeles Galaxy v Seattle Sounders FC (on ESPN2): In order to be the best, you must beat the best <– great use of a sports cliche there. For the Sounders, to get to the top of the Western Conference they must get a grip of its matches against the Galaxy, who thoroughly owned the Sounders in league games last year, outscoring the Sounders 10-2 in four matches (two regular-season and two playoff games). Ouch!

Aug. 20 — Portland Timbers v Vancouver Whitecaps FC (on FSC): This rivalry dates back approximately 35 years to the NASL, through the United Soccer Leagues and now onto MLS, where these two — along with Seattle — form a triumvirate of soccer-crazed cities that should help boost the profile of the league.

Sept. 29 — Philadelphia Union v D.C. United (on ESPN2): Possibly challenging D.C. United for a playoff spot out of the Eastern Conference will be their new rivals from Philly, the Union, who added Carlos “El Pascadito” Ruiz — formerly of the Galaxy, FC Dallas and Toronto FC — in the offseason.

Oct. 14 — Colorado Rapids v Real Salt Lake (on ESPN): The league’s last two MLS Cup champions square off well into autumn in a match that will likely have 2011 playoff implications.

Follow Rhino on Twitter @jimreineking.

Moving forward, I’m going to try to on a semi-regular basis put pen to paper and fingers to computer keyboard for a good, old-fashioned mind dump of random musings. In this spot, you’ll witness writings on such thought-provoking topics as sports and beer.

» I had the opportunity to attend/help NFL.com cover the NFL Scouting Combine this week in Indianapolis. Upon leaving our hotel on Tuesday, a concierge said, “See you next year.” I responded, “I surely hope so.” NFL CBA talk had me pretty beaten down at that point.

» Julio Jones might have been the most impressive performer at the combine, having sped to a 4.39 time in the 40 (seventh-best among all athletes). This happened, we later learned, on a fractured foot. Jones — a possession receiver who was not expected to speed past the competition at the combine — also excelled in the broad jump and 60-yard shuttle.

» Patrick Peterson, a cornerback from LSU, now sits atop my 2011 NFL Draft big board. Draft analysts say that he is the most pro-ready player in the draft. Problem is, history. No cornerback has ever been selected No. 1 overall in the NFL Draft. The Carolina Panthers sit atop the draft, and have a myriad of team needs, including cornerback. Given the overstocked defensive line position — easily the strongest in the draft — perhaps the Panthers could be tempted to take Peterson and hope a quality defensive lineman is sitting there when the draft shifts into the second round.

» While Peterson rises on my 2011 NFL Draft big board, Heisman Trophy-winning QB Cam Newton drops. It seems that he might be best served to fall in the first round and go to a team that already has a quarterback under whom Newton can learn the ropes for a couple years. But, that won’t happen (because, well, there are so many young quarterbacks in the game, and there’s no team with an established starter ready to start grooming a replacement, like the Green Bay Packers successfully pulled off with Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers). Quite frankly, Newton needs to be humbled. Going to a team with which Newton will be asked to start very early on in his career is not going to be a good thing, given the pressure to perform at the game’s most important position.

» I will attempt to have mock draft 1.1.1 out soon.

» I am formally announcing right here that my pro day will be held on March 20. However, instead of running the 40-yard dash, I will be running 26.2 miles in the L.A. Marathon.

» My bench-press number from the combine will be kept … 16 reps at 135 pounds was a solid showing, given I didn’t warm up and was wearing work clothes.

» Indianapolis (or, the general region surrounding Indianapolis) has a solid collection of beers, many of which I tried in my time in the city, but in my humble opinion Wisconsin and the Pacific Northwest are the areas in the United States with the best brew offerings.

» I am now accepting nominations for Rhino’s Sports Pub’s “new beer of the month” for March. And, by the way, it’s the domestic beers’ turn in the rotation.

» Speaking of March …

• There are only 11 days until Major League Soccer kicks off its season at Qwest Field when America’s Team, Seattle Sounders FC, hosts the Los Angeles Galaxy.
• There are only 13 days until the start of the NCAA Tournament. Fittingly, March Madness begins on St. Patrick’s Day. Seems like a good time to bunker in and own a spot at the local sports bar.
• There are only 27 days until Major League Baseball’s opening day, which for some strange reason lands on a Thursday — and not the traditional Monday — this year. The Milwaukee Brewers visit the Cincinnati Reds on March 31, and the winner will get an early jump on the competition for the NL Central crown.

These developments are good for America.

» I’m currently reading Passing Game: Benny Friedman and the Transformation of Football (Amazon page). So far, it’s been an enjoyable and educational read based in a time when pro football was in its infancy and the forward pass was a novel concept. Friedman was the NFL’s first great forward passer, and for some strange reason it took until 2005 for Friedman to finally be enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. I’m cooking up a fun blog post about Friedman to be unveiled some time soon. Stay tuned, or not, it’s totally up to you.

» And finally, Bulldogs are hilarious.

Until then, feel free to meet me at the bar …

Follow Rhino on Twitter @jimreineking.