Stack's Random (Sports) Thoughts

The Most Overrated Sports Debate

2008-11-28T19:15:00.002-05:00

Thanksgiving Day was one of those days when you experience the irony of some people's arguments.

As I trolled newspapers across the country, and read text messages from friends throughout the day, I noticed the utter irony in people's complaints that the Detroit Lions were playing on Thanksgiving Day.

The Lions, now 0-12 after getting trounced by the Titans yesterday, are one of those teams people would rather not watch. But I found it ironic that on Thanksgiving -- a day in which us Americans are supposed to give thanks for what we have in our lives -- people would complain about a trivial topic like which football team they had to watch on TV.

Isn't it enough for people to just have a house to live in, a couch to sit on and a TV on which to watch a game? Are we so spoiled with our lives that in the midst of our country's economic turmoil, at a time when many Americans are losing their homes (and others in Iraq and Afghanistan are losing their lives), that we have to complain about which friggin' football team we get to watch?

More to the point, why don't we just stay thankful that the NFL is not embroiled in a labor dispute -- something that we might not be able to say in two years with the owners currently opting out of their collective bargaining agreement with the players -- and that we are privleged enough to spend our time stuffing our faces with food and watching a football game in the warmth and privacy of our homes?

Pujols wins

2008-11-17T14:24:00.003-05:00

He has a funny-sounding last name, but Albert Pujols is a damn good baseball player. He won his second MVP today, and deservedly so. A buddy asked me if Pujols should have won the award. There is discussion from time to time of whether players on non-playoff teams should be considered. Of course, the answer is YES!

It seems that in leagues like the NBA, a player must be on a top two or three team in his conference to get serious consideration. In MLB, a player can win it even if his team finishes fourth in their division.

Pujols has MVP-like numbers (.357/.462/.653, 44 2B, 37 HR, 116 RBI), and along with his truly outstanding defense, it is easy to make the case that Pujols was more valuable to the Cardinals' 86 wins than Ryan Howard (the second-place finisher) was to the Phillies' 92 wins and World Series crown.

Let's just hope Pujols heals correctly from elbow surgery this off-season and is back in the St. Louis lineup on Opening Day.

Yanks overbid? Say it ain't so

2008-11-17T10:31:00.002-05:00

Let's all welcome Doug Melvin to the modern world. The general manager of the Milwaukee Brewers stated last week that the Yankees were "overbidding" in their attempt to sign free agent starting pitcher CC Sabathia. Right, because it is so out of the ordinary for the Yankees to overbid on players.

Melvin obviously is invested in Sabathia's free agent negotiations since Melvin himself presented Sabathia with his first contract offer this off-season: a five year deal totaling $100 million, some major cheddar from a mid-market team in Wisconsin. But Melvin doesn't understand why the Yanks don't offer Sabathia just $110 million, instead of the reported $140 million or so they did offer. Who's the cheesehead now?

Firstly, why is Melvin surprised that the Yanks offered Sabathia so much more money? The franchise has spent gobs of money on free agents during the George Steinbrenner Era, dating back to the late 70s. It was widely reported that the Yanks would offer Sabathia a contract 30 to 40 percent higher than any other team. If the $140 million is true, then that would represent a 40 percent increase over the Brewers' offer, the only other official contract on the table.

Secondly, Sabathia has stated he has two glaring preferences: to stay in the National League (where he can hit, and, presumably, face lighter-hitting offenses), and to play in California. Considering the Yanks play in the American League and along the East Coast, there has to be something else they can offer which make up for their not meeting the lefty's two preferences. In their case, it's to bring an extra briefcase of money to the table. Money talks, the Yanks have lots of it and why should they be ashamed?

To suggest that they should offer Sabathia just $10 million more than the Brewers is an ignorant and almost amateurish way of looking at the situation. Nobody will confuse Melvin with the word "savvy." If he's frustrated that the Yanks can offer so much more money than his team, well, join the club. That's why the Red Sox owners labeled the Yanks the Evil Empire.

But the Yankees are doing what they have to do to stay in negotiations with a player whom they want. Now maybe Melvin is just trying to play mind games with the Bombers. It's difficult to fathom a MLB general manager truly feeling surprised that the Yanks, the richest team in American sports, would spend more money than other teams to get the player they want. That's how the world works, and a man who is glued in to the infrastructure of MLB should've seen this offer coming from a mile away.

MLB awards too late for my taste

2008-11-13T11:39:00.003-05:00

If you haven't noticed, Major League Baseball is rolling out its big season awards this week. Rookies of the Year, Cy Youngs, Coaches of the Year...it's all leading up to the Most Valuable Players (obviously, each award has an National League and American League participant).

But my question is, do sports fans really care about end-of-season MLB awards this deep into the fall? Would it hurt MLB to push up its end-of-season awards up to the first round of the playoffs?

The NBA announces its big regular season awards during the first round of its playoffs. The NFL does the same in the week preceding its postseason. Why must MLB wait until two weeks after its postseason to announce its regular season award winners?

MLB could argue that fans are as locked in as ever into the sport now that the offseason trades and free-agent signings are beginning to ramp up, especially with the Winter Meetings slated for the second week of December. But the problem there is offseason moves encourage fans to look toward next season.

By mixing regular season award winners in the same time period that teams are beginning to frantically -- and in some cases, drastically -- reshuffle their rosters, MLB fans are caught between shifting their thoughts back and forth between the 2008 and 2009 seasons.

If MLB were to announce its regular season winners during the first-round Wild Card series, fans would enjoy the benefit of having the regular season fresh in their minds. That might make Evan Longoria's Rookie of the Year award seem more acceptable than it does now, two weeks after he went 1-for-20 (.050) with one RBI in the World Series.

Fans don't care less about the MLB MVP, an award endlessly debated in the NBA and NFL, for two reasons: 1) there are two MLB MVPS, one for each league, which is a rule that should be eliminated to make room for one overall winner, and 2) most sports fans are spending their valuable time tracking the NBA, NFL, college football and the impending college basketball seasons.

Considering that MLB, like every other major sports league, caters itself to casual fans (they already know they'll reel in the die-hard fans at any time), it might serve the league better to announce its regular season winners while most fans can still remember the season.

Giants should sign CC

2008-11-09T12:29:00.002-05:00

Buster Olney was dead-on in his blog post yesterday: The Giants should think very strongly about signing CC Sabathia.

Barry Zito's awful $126 million contract aside, the Giants are a team with no identity. You could make the case that Tim Lincecum is talented enough to be the face of the franchise, but he doesn't seem to carry the charisma to be The Man.

The Giants are a team lacking offense, but their youthful pitching staff is envied around the league. Lincecum, Matt Cain and Jonathan Sanchez have all experienced different levels of success, and they have appear to have very bright futures. What better veteran could they have to learn from than Sabathia, the epitome of a "pro's pro."

Giants fans would flock to AT&T Park to watch Sabathia every fifth day, with the excitement of Lincecum pitching the day after.

Sabathia would be back in the area in which he grew up, pitching half his games at pitcher-friendly AT&T Park, not to mention the opportunity to throw similarly friendly ballparks in Los Angeles and San Diego.

The only glaring downside from Sabathia's point of view would be the unlikelihood of reaching the playoffs. The Giants, even with an outstanding pitching rotation if Sabathia were to join the squad, would need to vastly improve their offense and bullpen to be a playoff contender.

Still, the Giants need a face to their franchise to move beyond the Barry Bonds Era and Sabathia has emphasized the appeal of playing in California and being able to hit, as a NL pitcher. All the Giants need to do is realize Zito's contract is a sunk cost. Even if Sabathia costs an arm and a leg, his dominant pitching, leadership and vivacious personality could bring the Giants just what they need: an identity.

Knicks still an exercise in futility

2008-11-05T12:50:00.002-05:00

A change in management, from the front office to the basketball court, still hasn't represented a shift towards common sense in the New York Knicks organization.

The stubbornness of general manager Donnie Walsh and head coach Mike D'Antoni to keep Stephon Marbury on the squad despite their declaration that he won't play is same old, same old for fans alienated by poor decision after poor decision from this franchise. Hey, maybe Walsh and D'Antoni are trying to play it cool, and actually are seeking trade possibilities for Marbury. After all, Marbury is an above-average player whose $21 million salary this season can help a prospective trade partner eliminate a healthy chunk of salary cap space after the season.

But if Walsh and D'Antoni expect that their team can remove itself from all the controversy of the past few years by essentially hiding Marbury at the end of the bench, then they have another thing coming. D'Antoni's remarks yesterday that the New York press would become tired of this story and would stop reporting about it since they'd be "beating a dead horse" shows just how out-of-touch D'Antoni is with the media in his new home city. He might have enjoyed dealing with the laid-back West Coast media in Phoenix, but the Philly-NYC-Boston media triangle torches decisions like the one Walsh and D'Antoni made yesterday.

There is no way the Knicks will create a new team culture as long as perpetrators of the past few years still show up for work every day. It's bad enough that overpaid stiffs like Jerome James and Eddy Curry are still on the team. But declaring that Marbury won't play for the remainder of the season, and then trying to sell fans and the media on the fact that Marbury won't create a disturbance, is about as irrational and unrealistic as you can get.

Buffalo, Cleveland have it worse than Philly

2008-10-30T12:14:00.004-04:00

You know, Philadelphia hasn't been that deprived of sporting excellence. The Phillies might have broke a 25-year championship drought amongst Philly's Big Four teams (Flyers, Phillies, Eagles, Sixers), but 25 years isn't that long of a time. In fact, it's as old as me. And any "drought" which is as old or younger than me just isn't enough to justify the absurd amount of national attention Philly's championship-less streak drew during the recent World Series.

Think of it this way: In the past 25 years, Philadelphians got to watch five more MVP-like years from one of MLB's greatest all-time third baseman (Mike Schmidt), the greatest power hitter in post-steroids MLB (Ryan Howard), two of the greatest NBA scorers of all-time (Dr. J and Allen Iverson), two of the more exciting and productive NFL QBs ever (Randall Cunningham and Donovan McNabb), one of the Top 10 NFL defenses of all-time (the Reggie White, Jerome Brown, Eric Allen Eagles), three new sports stadiums (Eagles, Phillies, Sixers) and I guess that Eric Lindross guy from the NHL (a league which used to be a big deal.) What I'm saying is Philly has had a few things to cherish over the years. Let's take a look at two other cities which haven't.

We'll start in Cleveland, a city which last celebrated a major sports championship (we're talking major basketball, football, baseball and hockey here). Cleveland is an ugly, industrialized city which brags about hosting the Rock N' Roll Hall of Fame as its main non-sports attraction. The Indians haven't won a World Series since 1948 and although they have appeared in three World Series since then ('54, '95 and '97), there were times when they were the flat-out embarrassment of baseball. How else do you explain a major motion picture (Major League) dedicated to profiling their miserable existence? Talk about a punch in the face followed by a punch in the stomach. How depressed would you get if a movie was made essentially making light of the inept state of your team?

As if this wasn't bad enough, Cleveland's beloved Browns -- who were dominant in the '40s and '50s and won an NFL Championship in 1964 -- were moved to Baltimore after the 1994 season. After a rich history in the NFL, including the great Dogg Pound days of the '80s, Art Modell decided that he felt like ripping the guts out of a city by heartlessly moving the entire team, history be damned. And even when the Browns returned to the NFL, in 1999, it's not like they've done much to build on their rich tradition.

The Cavaliers haven't won an NBA title since expanding into the NBA in 1970, although they did make an appearance two seasons ago during the ongoing LeBron James Era. And Bron Bron is the main reason why Cleveland can't be considered the most tortured city in American professional sports. He's a joy to watch, a potentially transcendent player who can bring the Cavs -- and Cleveland -- NBA titles. Too bad he'll likely leave for the riches and spoils of a New York franchise in two seasons. His departure would pit Cleveland at the bottom of the sports city totem pole. No city would have less fan confidence.

Unless, of course, you include Buffalo. As if being tucked away in a snowy town along Lake Erie in western New York weren't bad enough, Buffalo is one of the poorest major towns in the U.S. The fans there have two pro sports teams -- the NHL's Sabres and the NFL's Bills -- although they are originally the home of the Los Angeles Clippers, one of sport's most laughable franchises.

Anyway, the Sabres are 0-3 in the Stanley Cup in their 38 years of existence, so Buffalo hasn't truly connected with them. Does anyone really count the NHL anymore, though? Can't we just say that there are the Big Three (NFL, NBA, MLB) and a lot of other influential sports leagues (PGA Tour, NASCAR, NHL and WTA, MLS, WNBA to lesser degrees)? I think so.

But the crux of Buffalo's discontent has been the Bills. The squad which won back-to-back AFL Championships from 1964-65 has been wildly frustrating since. How about the O.J. Simpson-led squads of the '70s which battled between respectability and downright hopelessness? And how can one forget the early '90s squads, which lost four consecutive Super Bowls.

We take for advantage now that the Bills had to be one hell of a team to make four straight Super Bowls (this, the NFL era immediately preceding free agency), but those Bills teams ran into bad luck (Scott Norwood's Wide Right in SB XXV against the Giants), a dynasty on its last legs (SB XXVI against the Redskins) and a terrorizing mini-dynasty (SBs XXVII and XXVIII against the Cowboys).

And that's not to mention the Music City Miracle, one of the most controversial NFL moments ever. But, hey, when O.J. Simpson is probably your city's greatest professional athlete, even four straight Super Bowl losses and a freakish game-ending play don't seem so bad.

No matter how much Philadelphians would like to sulk in their sorrows, they have nothing on the downtrodden fans of Cleveland and Buffalo. If Philly wants to throw 25 years at America, Cleveland and Buffalo can retort with 44 and 43 years of championship-less pro sports, respectively. For that, Philadelphians can shove a cheesesteak up their asses. Enjoy your World Series you bunch of whiners!

Deja vu for the Cowboys

2008-10-20T13:43:00.003-04:00

I just finished reading the book Boys Will Be Boys by Jeff Pearlman, a fantastic read about the early-mid '90s Dallas Cowboys. One of the more interesting angles in the book is how hard-ass extraordinaire Jimmy Johnson shaped a team that would win three Super Bowls, two of which were at his helm. The third was won by Barry Switzer, a laid-back, "player's" coach who replaced Johnson after the team's second Super Bowl win.

Although Switzer won the dynasty's third Super Bowl, the team culture he introduced was quite a respite from that of Johnson's.

Johnson came in more as a dictator than anything else. He was an extremely good talent evaluator who had a knack for understanding what parts of his team's roster needed help. Despite alienating many players by yelling at them like a drill sergeant and making examples out of some of the team's lower-profile players, Johnson was a great motivator who knew how to take the temperature of his team, so-to-speak. Although many of his players hated his ego and arrogance, there is no denying his success with the team. They won two Super Bowls under Johnson and essentially won the third (Deion Sanders notwithstanding) largely with players traded for, signed and drafted by Johnson.

Switzer came into the fold in '94, an old buddy of owner Jerry Jones. Although his open demeanor and buddy-buddy philosophy with his players proved a welcome change-of-pace after Johnson's regime, Switzer didn't install the one characteristic critical to the 'Boys' downfall in the mid-90s: accountability. He ran light training camps and in-season practices, but his most glaring downfall was his inability to instill discipline and accountability to the team.

Although the '94 and '95 Cowboys seemed relieved to be removed from high level of pressure and anxiety that permeated through the locker room during the Jimmy Johnson Era, a level of remorse and subtle reflection settled amongst some of the players. They realized that even though Johnson was a mean, stubborn and unrelenting S.O.B. at times, he helped produce a winning attitude. He kept the players motivated and hungry to win. Switzer's laisezz-faire attitude promoted a lazy, content attitude that took down the 'Boys.

Now, sound familiar? Just replace Jimmy Johnson with Bill Parcells and Barry Switzer with Wade Phillips. The similarities aren't entirely accurate. Neither the Parcells- nor Phillips-led Cowboys have even competed in an NFC Championship game, much less a Super Bowl. And Phillips hasn't created quite as undisciplined an environment as Switzer.

But there's no doubt Parcells assembled the core of this team, although he wasn't around to forsee Romo's development into an elite NFL quarterback. But Phillips isn't near the disciplinarian that Parcells was, and perhaps it's more evident than ever that with the 'Boys embroiled in a difficult stretch, they might need a Parcells-style coach who demands only the best out of his players. The players don't fear Phillips, as was smartly noted today by ProFootballTalk.com. And the teams that win championships are those that fear letting down each other and their coaches.

Mannywood needs to end

2008-10-17T12:55:00.004-04:00

As a lifelong Dodgers fan, part of me will always feel indebted (unwillingly) to Manny Ramirez. It's tough to say that any one player can ever put a baseball team on his back, but Ramirez's presence with the Dodgers was the most important reason why they broke free of a season-long .500 record and climbed the National League mountain to the NLCS.

After getting traded to the Dodgers on Aug. 1, Ramirez ended the regular season with a bang, hitting .396 with 17 home runs, 53 RBIs and an astounding 1.232 OPS (including a ridiculous .489 on-base percentage) in 53 games. And his numbers might not have been his most valuable contribution to the team. His light-hearted personality and willingness to take media attention and pressure away from his teammates enabled the entire team to loosen up, have fun and play confidently. And the hot hitting didn't stop once the Dodgers reached the postseason. Manny went 13-for-25 in the playoffs with four home runs and 10 RBIs.

But even in a game of numbers such as baseball, there are other factors -- aside from statistics -- that one should consider before signing a player to a long-term contract. The crux of the Dodgers' decision to meet Ramirez's contract demands is affordability -- and not just in economic terms.

Sure, Ramirez's agent, Scott Boras, has set the market price at a minimum of 5 years/$20 million per. Boras has even stated that 6 years/close to $25 million per is a more realistic plan for Ramirez, something that might be out of the ballpark for nearly every team. Ex-Dodgers general manager Fred Claire stated in the Los Angeles Times recently that the Dodgers should consider a deal for 3 years at $20 million per year, despite Andruw Jones earning $18 million next season in the back-end of his two-year deal and Juan Pierre heading into Year 3 of his 5 year/$45 million contract. And that obviously excludes Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier, two young and ultra-productive players who should (actually, who need) to play every day.

So even if the Dodgers can fiscally afford to sign Ramirez (no given, considering their willingness to take on Ramirez and third baseman Casey Blake only if their former teams picked up their contracts), then they will be creating a situation where someone else needs to be moved. Of course, Jones does just have that one year left and it's unknown whether he will ever return to his All-Star form after an extremely disappointing 2008. In fact, Ramirez never would have been on the Dodgers' radar had Andruw Jones produced as was expected.

Anyway, there are no sure signs that the Dodgers can afford Ramirez monetarily. Can they even afford him in the sense of having his presence on the team? The Red Sox may have won two World Series with Ramirez in the lineup, but they ultimately ridded themselves of him because his teammates demanded it. Do the Dodgers want to reward a player who has such a controversial -- and quite unnerving -- past with his old ball club?

The beautiful thing about acquiring Ramirez this season was that the Dodgers basically didn't owe Ramirez a thing. They used him for his hitting ability and drawing power, with the Dodgers reaping tens of millions in extra merchandise and attendance (they were already the top drawing team in the NL without Ramirez) because of Ramirez's "charm."

Now, the Dodgers have to decide if that "charm" will have an extended shelf life. The fear is Ramirez was on his best behavior because he wants a new contract, and no matter how much Ramirez and Boras might refute his inspired play had something to do with his quest for a new deal, how many athletes have we seen over the years play better and shut up when they want to improve their bank account? And while there may be no doubt that Ramirez, even at 36, can continue to rake the ball with the best in the game, what about his porous fielding? How many runs, and games, might the lazy left fielder cost the Dodgers? He won't exactly become more spry as he nears 40.

While Angelinos might love Ramirez because he's the first true Dodger superstar since Mike Piazza, and they might love Ramirez for helping lead the Dodgers to the NLCS, the truth is the Dodgers are a team filled with exciting, young players who need to grow on their own. They don't need to play under the cloud that Ramirez might cast if he were to sign a long-term deal with the squad. With Manny, there is always risk for controversy, so why would a team with youngsters like Russell Martin and Matt Kemp and Clayton Kershaw take an unnecessary risk on a player who can fracture a clubhouse? Why not just let the younger players learn from the playoff experience they received this year, and let them take control of the squad beginning next season? The Dodgers don't need Manny to move on and improve as a team, so there's no reason to sacrifice their long-term balance sheet and their overall team pysche with a player like Manny Ramirez.

Random thoughts...While craving a Silo burger and fries

2008-10-15T13:33:00.007-04:00

What would an impending NBA season be without the Shaq Man threatening a player, coach or entire franchise? Shaq says the Spurs were "cowardly" in fouling him in last year's playoffs while maintaining a lead. I say the Spurs played smart basketball by exposing a glaring weakness of their opponent. As depressing as it is to see Shaq hobble up and down the floor, it's even more gut-wrenching to read him talk trash. The big fella's bark is much louder than his bite these days, so I'm not expecting any of his vintage 30/15 efforts against the Spurs this year...

Fantasy owners, prepare for frustration in owning a Dallas Cowboy receiver. With Tony Romo out for at least a few weeks, Brad Johnson and his linguine arm will have a tough time throwing downfield to T.O. and Roy Williams. Add Jason Witten (probably the most likely to be consistent) and Pat Crayton, and you have yourself a full-fledged cluster-you-know-what. And when Romo gets back, will he feel more indebted to making T.O. happy, welcoming Roy to the team by targeting him, targeting Crayton to let him know he won't get lost in the shuffle or going to Witten, his best bud? Some might say Romo holds the key to unlocking the treasure chest that is the Cowboys' receiving core, but no NFL quarterback will be under more pressure to diversify his passes...

Actual Article That One Would Suspect to Find on The Onion: Dan Quayle gave Sarah Palin some vice presidential-advice. That's like Pacman Jones advising an NFL rookie on how to conduct one's self in public...

In the end, Rays-Phillies is probably for the better. The teams have been more consistently superior all season than the Red Sox and Dodgers, and they really have the more complete teams. There's enough star power among Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, Jimmy Rollins, B.J. Upton, Evan Longoria and Carl Crawford for MLB to promote. The obvious storylines would be Tampa Bay emerging as an elite team, ala the Cleveland Indians in Major League. And then there's Philadelphia's quest to end the 26-year professional sports team championship drought. And, no, Philly's Arena Football League's title this year doesn't count...

Replay eliminates great plays

2008-10-12T18:27:00.003-04:00

Instant replay has helped correct numerous poor calls over the years, but there are times when even great plays are nullified due to their illegality.

During the Cowboys-Cardinals game today, Cardinals quarterback targeted wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald on a fade route in the right corner of the end zone. Warner threw a beautiful, arching pass towards the corner, where only Fitzgerald could grab it. And Fitzgerald did, contorting his body with his back to the crowd, placing his left foot down as his momentum was taking him out the side of the end zone. However, he tried landing his right foot just inside the side white line, the line that is the right boundary of the end zone.

At first glimpse, it appeared that Fitzgerald got his right foot down, but replay showed that the right edge of his right foot touched the white line, indicating that he was out-of-bounds and nullifying his touchdown.

The call was correct, since Fitzgerald was out-of-bounds. But it was still a spectacular combination of balance and grace for the wide receiver to attempt to place both his feet in the end zone. And considering that his right foot, barely, just barely, was out-of-bounds, it was disappointing to see a wonderful effort stripped away and essentially lost forever in the ever-expanding list of NFL touchdown plays.

I understand that black and white issue that replay attempts to solve (either a foot is in or out, a ball is dropped or caught), but it seems that some plays are so close to being technically legal. As a fan, I just wish some plays could be left alone as a means of rewarding an outstanding effort from a player.

Of course, the Cardinals received another chance at scoring a touchdown. And guess what the scoring play was? A fade route by Fitzgerald for a touchdown.

Red River officiating

2008-10-12T14:35:00.003-04:00

It seems that we're in a sports world littered with writers proclaiming every player, play, game and team to be the "greatest" or "worst" ever. Part of this is probably meant as a way to generate interest in one's column and perhaps even provoke thought in the reader. Another reason for this may be that, as human beings, we probably act with a greater level of emotion to an event we have just witnessed, since we are able to recall a greater number of details from a game or play we've just watched than from a game or play 1, 5 or 10 years ago.

So, I will join in the "best" or "worst" foray -- that I typically despise. But yesterday's Texas-Oklahoma game was seemingly a contest among the referees in "worst calls of all-time." The two roughing the passer calls against Oklahoma linebacker Travis Lewis on Texas quarterback Colt McCoy were unforgivably horrendous. There is something to be said for protecting the health of quarterbacks, but throwing a flag (or two) on a defender who is visibly letting up on running down a quarterback headed for the sidelines is asinine. If the calls were made because McCoy was running along the Texas sidelines, the calls were still atrocious. What difference should it make what sideline a player is running along? The refs should've taken in account that Lewis slowed down and even tried to help prop up McCoy as he ran into him.

The Oklahoma interception in Texas' endzone which was ruled a dropped pass was equally frustrating. The player clearly caught the ball in the endzone, held onto it as he fell to the ground and let it fall from his grasp only after he hit the ground. Television viewers were able to see this as it happened in realtime, so why couldn't the refs, even with the benefit of replay?

I'm not implying that there was a conspiracy against Oklahoma (there were some very bad calls made against Texas), but one would hope the quality of officiating in such a big game would be much better.

Cubs wise to keep Harden

2008-10-08T15:54:00.005-04:00

The Cubs exercised a $7 million option on Rich Harden today, acting before a deadline which would have allowed the pitcher to become a free agent. Even though the injury-prone righty is expected to have his right elbow checked out soon, the Cubs made the correct decision in ensuring his presence in their pitching rotation next year.

Harden managed to get through 148 innings over 25 starts this season, his highest totals in each category since 2004. This past season was actually the first time he remained healthy for most of the season since 2005, a victory in-and-of itself. Many baseball fans had wondered what types of numbers Harden could put up if he simply stayed healthy. Well, how do 181 strikeouts (for a 11.0 K/9 rate), a 2.07 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP sound?

After a midseason trade to the Cubs, Harden would have garnered Cy Young-talk for his spectacular numbers with the Cubbies (5-1, 89 Ks in 71 innings, 1.77 ERA, 0.97 WHIP) if not for CC Sabathia, another American League pitcher traded to a National League Central Division team.

When you look at Harden's production, you would suspect that a pitcher that effective at his age (he'll turn 27 later this year) could garner a truly daunting per year salary, something in the range of $15 million-plus. That's his upside. The downside is teams will always be risking whatever salary they pay for the reward of him staying healthy long enough to have a sizeable positive impact on his team.

For a big-market club such as the Cubs, who have had annual World Series ambitions for a few years now, $7 million is a small price to pay for a pitcher who can be a true difference-maker when he stays healthy. And considering the Cubs should bring back most of the squad that was supposed to win the Series this year, making sure Harden sticks around for another year at a very reasonable salary (by ace pitcher standards) is well worth the gamble, injury risk be damned.

Follow the yellow brick road...created by TNT

2008-10-07T15:19:00.002-04:00

One of the most frustrating aspects of sports coverage today is the bloated set of most pre- and post-game football shows. This doesn't seem to occur often in baseball or basketball, just football. Perhaps it's because most games are played on one day, so TV networks feel that a higher number of analysts will somehow give the viewer a greater depth of knowledge about all the players and teams that encompass the NFL.

Although FOX (Howie Long, Terry Bradshaw, Jimmy Johnson) and CBS (Dan Marino, Boomer Esiason, Shannon Sharpe) have held steady with their studio cores, each has added another member (Michael Strahan on FOX, Bill Cowher on CBS) to their sets in the last two years. Instead of the idea of more great football minds contributing to a higher amount of football intellectualism, all viewers seem to get is a discombobulated and incohesive group of individuals.

NBC has taken this to another level by housing seven (I think) people on their "Football Night America" set on Sundays. The fact that I literally had to count on my fingers the number of guys on the set indicates how overwhelming the show can be. There are three "football" guys (Cris Collinsworth, Jerome Bettis, Tiki Barber) and four "media" guys (Bob Costas, Dan Patrick, Keith Olberman, Peter King), although King plays more of the "insider" role while Collinsworth can cross over into the "media" and "insider" roles himself.

Costas is supposed to be the primary host of the show while DP and KO bring back memories of their fantastic ESPN days by co-hosting game highlights packages. They're all in different rooms, on different sets, with different opinions (and sometimes the same) on different topics. It's mind-numbingly awful television. There is no rhythm, no chemistry, no sense that these guys would actually hang out off of the set. So, I have an idea to break up this seven-man crew. Style it after TNT's "Inside The NBA," which offers a three-man set which sometimes expands to four.

First, pick a host. I would drop Olberman out of contention since he is a blithering, self-indulgant smart-ass. Patrick is a great choice, although I've found him to be immensely funnier and more personable as a radio voice than a studio host. I'm probably one of the few who feel that Costas is less a preppy, New Yorker-type elitist than just a very solid, intelligent and objective studio host. Costas would be my choice to take charge.

Collinsworth is a must, as he would play the Kenny Smith-role: a former player who has connections everywhere and is funny and hip enough to relate to old and young audiences alike.

Some might pick Bettis as the outgoing, charming player who would fill the Charles Barkley role, but I'd go with Barber. He is superior at expressing his thoughts and I feel he has a smaller chance of falling into the Tim Hardaway/Emmitt Smith trap than does Bettis. Barber could take a course in growing some balls and lightening up, but I'd give him a chance with Costas and Collinsworth.

If nothing else, you would at least have a smart triumvirate of broadcasters who won't embarrass themselves. Sometimes, that's better than going for a home run with "funny" guys who aren't funny.

Lastly, King could play the "insider" role incredibly well, and he has a personality to go with his great football insight and Rolodex-like knowledge of the NFL.

Bob Costas, Cris Collinsworth, Tiki Barber and (occasionally) Peter King. That's the group NBC should go to battle with every Sunday. And that's the group I would actually spend my time watching instead of what I do now when "Football Night America" comes on: anything else.

Catching up with Random Thoughts

2008-10-06T16:08:00.003-04:00

I'm beginning to find out how time-consuming Life can be, even moreso than College. I thought I had no time to do everything I wanted in College, but Life moves just as quickly. Maybe I should call it ACL (After-College Life). Or PCL (Post-College Life). Anything acronym that sounds like a knee ligament should work. Anyway, random thoughts, some of which I will try to detail in greater depth sometime this week...

The Dodgers are in the NLCS!!! For the first time since that magical year of 1988!! It's been an up-and-down year for me as a sports fan, with UCLA reaching the Final Four for the third straight year (yet going home without a ring), the Lakers reaching the Finals again (yet losing to the Celtics, an agonizing defeat that finally linked my generation of Lakers fans to previous generations) and now the Dodgers are four wins away from the World Series. Of course, in a year filled with the Pats-Giants Super Bowl, Tiger winning the U.S. Open in five days on a torn knee, Chalmers sending a great college basketball final into overtime, a Lakers/Celtics NBA Finals match, the Federer/Nadal Wimbledon final, the Rays making a postseason run, Sabathia in Milwaukee/Manny in Los Angeles, AND a Summer Olympics highlighted by Phelps winning eight Golds and the U.S. regaining its basketball superiority culminating in a C-L-A-S-S-I-C Gold Medal match that started at 2:30 in the morning on the East Coast, there is only so much we as sports fans can bitch and moan about...

Lamar Odom at point guard. Wrong offensive system, but nice thought...

Reason No. 5,423 why fantasy football sucks. DeAngelo Williams finally pulls a three-touchdown game out of his ass, just when fantasy owners least expect it. Jonathan Steward had all but wrapped up the sole starting role, but now Williams has reached back and re-gained fantasy relevance. How can fantasy owners ever predict what will happen in football?...

Carson Palmer is throwing like his sister...

Why do so many USC offensive players from the Pete Carroll Era flame out in the NFL? Palmer, Leinart, Reggie Bush, LenDale White, Mike Williams, Dwayne Jarrett. Those are six powerhouse collegiate players from the last few years, but they have been disappointing to terrible in their NFL careers...

Plans for the weekend

2008-10-03T09:26:00.001-04:00

Writing, writing, writing on this. What a hectic week, but I have a plethora of topics in my head which need to be squeezed out through my fingers and onto this blog. That didn't make sense.

The final day

2008-09-28T14:26:00.002-04:00

It's Sunday, which means a day of recovering from boozing on Saturday, a day of NFL football and, being that it's the last week of the MLB regular season, a day of tracking fantasy baseball for the last time until April. If I were able to insert those little face moods that you usually see on message boards, I'd post a :(.

That said, I can end the season on a :) note IF the Cokers maintain their 6-3-1 lead. I'm only up four RBIs heading into today, but a tie with wins, a narrow ERA lead and narrow WHIP defecit are the stats to track today. Slutty Tom can actually win if his four starting pitchers notch him just one win and lower his ERA below mine.

Sunday's potential win would be even sweeter since it would be a back-to-back title for me. And that means my fellow competitors in the RedZone will not hear the end of it, if it happens.

Looking forward to a comfortable Sunday on the couch, contributing nothing good to the world. :).

Still surviving

2008-09-26T09:11:00.004-04:00

And now we're in the stretch run. There's just three days left in the RedZone baseball season, and my lead looks strong if you were to just look at the overall score. 7-3 always looks great in head-to-head play.

Of course, one of my fears heading into this week has come to fruition: my relievers are crapping Colonel Coker's bed. A night after Luis Ayala gave up three earned runs in another Mets collapse, J.J. Putz served up a two-run homer to boost my ERA to 5.00 (.34 better than Slutty Tom) and my WHIP to 1.59 (.06 worse). The silver lining is that my boy Vladdy Guerrero hit that homer, helping me take over the RBI lead, 20-19.

Not only is my ERA lead slim, but I have one "point" leads in counting stats such as wins (3-2), saves (same) and RBIs (20-19). This baby can shift at any moment. That said, I have six closers rearing to go today and Slutty has two starters, Andy Sonnanstine and Scott Richmond. Two good outings could give Tom the tie or lead in wins while also lowering his ERA below mine. That would create a 5-5 or 5-4-1 score, offensive stat changes notwithstanding.

This shapes up to be quite a Friday night, spent inside my apartment (my last weekend there, actually) tracking the match and HOPEFULLY watching our two presidential candidates debate.

More Random Thoughts from Championship Week

2008-09-24T13:04:00.003-04:00

Score through two days: I'm up 5-4-1. I'm ahead by one in four different counting stats (HR, SB, W, SV) with a .08 lead in WHIP. Slutty Tom is leads RBIs by 1, Ks by 5, OPS by .11 and ERA by a relatively healty .88 margin. We're tied in runs...

Living on the East Coast, there are plenty of late-night MLB games which I don't stay up for. I had to get to bed early last night, missing three or four West Coast games in the process. So it was somewhat of a surprise this morning when I awoke to find that J.J. Putz secured a save, putting me up by 1 in that cat. Troy Tulowitzki added on to what was a 2-for-2 night when I went to bed with a home run and RBIs to give me the lead in homers and put me one RBI short of Slutty. Waking up to notice these late-night stats the next morning is like finding $20 in the back pocket of a pair of pants you haven't worn in a week. I might go to bed at 10 tonight...

Slutty Tom is at it again. Wandy actually did well last night, striking out seven batters in five shutout innings (even though he had been assigned an earned run after the second inning). Evidently that performance gave Slutty the confidence to start the vaunted Edwin Jackson/Jonathan Sanchez duo tonight. They've actually been very productive pitchers this year, so I can't knock Slutty's hustle...

I start Clayton Kershaw and Adam Wainwright tonight. I'm going with my starters this week for unknown reasons, even to myself. I guess part of me wants to play the strikeout/win game with Slutty Tom this week. I was able to beat Kevin last week by relying solely on my relievers to rack up saves and keep down my ERA and WHIP. I just don't have the confidence in my relievers that they will be as stellar as last week, so I'm trying to be proactive in attaining strikeouts and, possibly, wins. It's a gamble that hopefully will pay off, but I'm banking on this matchup going down to the wire on Sunday.

Tom gets Slutty

2008-09-23T12:34:00.002-04:00

The dude I'm competing against this week is named Tom Patterson. We know him as Slutty Nuns, a team name that is supposed to be witty because it's an oxymoron. We all know who the real moron is, though.

Slutty Tom added Wandy Rodriguez today as a probable starter, and this is what you have to love about fantasy baseball championship week: Wandy Rodriguez is viewed as a welcomed addition. In Slutty's fairness, Wandy has been wonderful at home (Houston's Minute Maid Park) in his last two starts, posting a 14/1 K/BB ratio with just one earned run allowed in 12 2/3 innings. Those starts did come at the end of August, so will that success at home translate over to his start today, in late September? There's no telling what can happen when Wandy Rodriguez starts.

I'm currently up 5-3-2 after one day, with ERA and WHIP shaping up to be true battles. I'm ahead in ERA 4.66 to 5.14, but behind in WHIP 1.76 to Slutty's 1.43. And the rotation flux will continue as Slutty Tom and I decide which crappy starters we think might have a chance of helping us win the RedZone crown.

Championship Week

2008-09-22T21:38:00.003-04:00

I'm back in familiar territory. To the annoyance of the three people who read this blog (there IS a reason I haven't been actively marketing this blog), I am going to blog about all things Colonel Coker in what is the final week of The RedZone baseball league's season. It's title time.

I won the RedZone championship last year, but the final week blazed by. I honestly don't know how I won it, who won it for me or even whether I deserved to win it. All I know is that I beat BobcatNation All-Stars and Alfonso Soriano (thanks you-know-who!) hit 14 homers last September.

This year, I fear I may have peaked a week too early. After the Kyle Stack Comeback Classic against Tunez, I entered last week against the best overall team in our league, USSR Lightning. I didn't activate any starters, relying on my relievers to rack up saves while hoping they could keep a low ERA and WHIP. You could say I was also influenced by USSR's seven or eight starting pitchers. There was no point in trying to compete with him in strikeouts, and likely wins, so why fight it? I chose to play to one of the strengths of my team.

My offense supplied enough firepower with homers, RBIs and OPS to give me a chance to win, and I did.

Entering this week, I was immediately confronted with the option of playing Aaron Harang, who is making a great late-season comeback after crapping the bed for most of the year. He had a 1.97 ERA and a 0.93 WHIP in four September starts, including two straight scoreless outings. My confidence was palpable. But Harang's effectiveness on Monday was unacceptable. He allowed four earned runs in seven innings, giving the Cokers the high ERA and WHIP I didn't encounter last week.

I started Harang on the pretense that my bullpen wouldn't go through another zero-run week. Lo-and-behold, Luis Ayala gave up one earned run on three hits and a walk in a typical Mets bullpen inning. Great. I did sign Joey Devine to add an extra closer for the week -- and to take away a potential closer option from the Slutties, team I'm playing this week.

Anyway, I'm down 6-2-2 with most of the night complete. I won't give much credence to the first couple days since OPS, ERA and WHIP are still extremely volatile due to low sample sizes. And I don't know if I'm going to go with another starter; my bullpen may need to bring down my pitching averages.

Winning with power

2008-09-17T13:00:00.009-04:00

I'm in the midst of a tough battle against the No. 1-ranked squad in my baseball league, and I'm just trying not to get struck by USSR Lightning.

My all-time classic comeback victory on Sunday left me with the reward of facing Lightning, a team which employs devastating home run hitters (Giambi, Dye, Thome, Uggla) with lights-out starting pitchers (Lincecum, Hamels, Lee).

The score is 6-4 in my favor, with WHIP, ERA, Saves, OPS, HRs and RBIs in my favor. He leads in Runs, SBs, Ws, and Ks. I didn't start Aaron Harang last night simply for the fact that my relievers have allowed only two hits in 7 1/3 innings of work this week. Since I employ only three starters and am not willing to sacrifice my relievers for any other scrub starters, it doesn't make sense to try to compete with Lightning in Ks and Ws. He has seven starters, including a couple who start twice this week, so I feel like I'd be a dog chasing its tail by trying to compete in those areas. I'll take the chance that my relievers won't blow up often enough to let Lightning gain an advantage in either pitching average.

I have the lead in three of five pitching categories, leaving my offense to take control of the scoreboard. I'm dependent on my team winning in at least two of HRs, RBIs and OPS, but likely all three considering Lightning has Runs won and holds a one steal advantage in SBs. My team is built around RBIs and OPS (Ryan Howard, Mark Teixeira, David Wright), so if I'm going to win, it's going to be my offense that carries me; hence, Sunday afternoon, when my guys belted eight homers and 12 RBIs. I'm willing to live-and-die with my power hitters.

What's eating Gilbert's knee?

2008-09-17T13:00:00.007-04:00

Doesn't it feel like Gilbert Arenas's knee is going the way of Grant Hill's ankle? Gilbert had his third operation in 17 months on his left knee today, where doctors cleaned out "floating debris."

Arenas originally tore the lateral meniscus in his knee in April 2007 and it's been a rough ride ever since. He rehabbed too quickly the first time, forcing him to miss most of last season. And now he's expected to miss at least the first month of the impending season as he tries to fully rehab his main "pushoff" knee. Arenas is right-handed and he prefers to drive to his right with his dominant hand dribbling the ball. To do that, he has to gain leverage by being able to push off his left foot to get his first step. Obviously, a healthy left knee allows him to display his quickness, enabling him to beat his defender off the dribble.

Gil is known as a guy cut from a different cloth, so who knows what sorts of things he's done on his own time to speed the recovery of his knee. The guy is an insanely hard worker and he, more than anyone, is likely to be motivated by the people who doubt he can regain the athleticism and quickness he had pre-injury. He may actually thrive on it as he's made it his goal to prove the doubters wrong for his entire collegiate and professional careers. I just hope this isn't the case of an athlete fighting an eternal uphill battle, the way Grant Hill did when he lost the prime years of his career to a balky left ankle.

Watching the Mets fans run like the Japanese in a Godzilla flick

2008-09-17T13:00:00.004-04:00

They're running to Connecticut! I love watching these Mets fans squirm here in New York City. Half the guys in the Bullpen at MLB.com are Mets fans. The doorman in the building of my full-time job is a Mets fan. Plenty of people I pass on the streets or share a subway car with are probably Mets fans. And almost all of them are sweating it out even as the weather in the city cools in mid-September. I love it.

After losing Game 7 of the 2006 NLCS, it seems Mets fans were on hard enough times. But then last summer came and the Amazin' Chokers blew a seven-game lead with 17 games remaining to the hated division rival Phillies.

Now, they might drop another division title to the Phillies. They were up 3.5 games with 17 contests remaining, but now remain a game behind the Phils with only 12 games left (13 for the Phils).

And what sucks for Mets fans is that Johan Santana was supposed to be the missing ingredient they needed to put them over the top. Instead, Santana has been merely spectacular, not dominant. Billy Wagner is out for the season, leaving an already shaky bullpen without its most reliable arm. John Maine is done for the year, Pedro is unpredictable and even the offense has been a mess. Fernando Tatis is out for the season with a separated shoulder and that is actually a disappointment for the Mets. Did any Mets fan think, coming into the season, that losing Fernando Tatis would be disappointing? Probably not, since he wasn't on the team entering the season.

Carlos Delgado, for all his NL MVP talk, is hitting just .271 with a .330 on-base percentage since his five-hit game on Aug. 21. Sure, he has nine homers and 20 RBIs in the 22 games played since then, but eight of those homers and 16 of those RBIs have come in just four (four!) of those games. That means he has one home run and four RBIs in 18 of his other 22 games. And that's supposed to be MVP-worthy?

Mets fans play the part of younger brother in their regional "rivalry" with the Yankees. Yanks fans, the older brothers, are so self-assured that the only teams they worry about are those in the Yanks' division. Mets fans constantly measure their accomplishments and circumstances against the Yanks and their fans. And many Mets fans, although caring very much about the Phils and Brewers right now, are loving that the Yankees are all but officially eliminated from the playoff race. This was supposed to be their year to reclaim a part of the New York baseball spotlight. Instead, they might be on the outside looking in when the calender turns a page, to October.

For me, a Dodgers fans, I love nothing more than to watch New York fans squirm. They deserve it for being so boisterous when their teams win, although it is worth noting that many Mets fans this season treat every win with some sort of caution. It's probably because they've been so disappointed the last two seasons that they almost expect another letdown this time. And they just might get it.

Colonel Coker lives on

2008-09-15T22:23:00.002-04:00

Victory always tastes sweet, but its taste hits a particularly higher level when you pull out a win you didn't expect. That's what happened in the first round of my main fantasy baseball league's playoffs last week.

I won't go through all the boring stats of my head-to-head matchup, but my team hit eight homers and drove in 12 runs on Sunday to take the lead in both categories and flip a 6-4 deficit into a 6-4 win. And Colonel Coker lives another week to defend its championship!

I was so certain on Saturday night that my season would be over by the next night that I began stockpiling prospects. Not that I would really keep any of them. I just wanted to keep them away from opponents, which could be an indication of what sort of ass I can be in fantasy leagues. I'm very bothersome.

Anyway, the Kyle Stack Sunday Comeback was amazing in that nearly every time I checked my score, I noticed another uptick in HR and RBI.

Part of my comeback surge was due to a pair of superstars whom I traded for since the beginning of the season. Ryan Howard, whom I obtained in May for a "crappy rookie first baseman and a bag of chips" (according to someone in my league) was 10-for-22 (.455) with four homers and 12 RBIs from Monday to the first game of his doubleheader on Sunday.

David Wright, who I acquired along with Joakim Soria for Alfonso Soriano and Edwin Encarnacion in a pre-draft trade, went 12-for-19 (.632) with four homers and nine RBIs in five games last week.

I clearly couldn't have won without either of their contributions. And now I have to hope (not pray) that they keep up their production as I head into another tough matchup this week.

While sweating it out in my non-air conditioned living room...

2008-09-14T16:02:00.002-04:00

How tough must it be for NFL kickers to concentrate warming up on the sidelines right next to cheerleaders...

How can any serious college football fans take Ohio State seriously? After losing to Southern Cal 35-3 on Saturday, the Buckeyes are becoming as well-known for their choking in big games as they are for producing elite NFL talent. Head coach Jim Tressel has brought a classy, workman-like attitude to the Buckeyes, but perhaps his discipline and strict maintenance of the team has produced a uneasy nervousness heading into big games.

So now there are reports Raiders owner Al Davis planned on firing head coach Lane Kiffin on Monday, regardless of Sunday's outcome (which was a 23-6 Raiders win over the Chiefs). And Kiffin was very outspoken in his comments, stating that one can never expect much job security with Davis at the controls of the franchise. It's hard to argue with Kiffin's sentiment, but shouldn't he have known better when he took the job in the first place? Davis was already known as the NFL version of Isiah Thomas, so perhaps Kiffin should take some blame for showing poor judgement in leaving Southern Cal, perhaps the cushiest job in all of football, for the wasteland that is now the once-proud Raiders franchise...

Not sure I've seen anybody mention this, but why doesn't Davis bring back John Madden?! He already tried bringing back Art Shell, with disastrous results. But imagine the PR help bring back Madden would create. He doesn't even have to coach; he can just stand on the sidelines with a clipboard and repeat "Boom!" on every running play. Or we can hear him talking to his offensive coordinator, saying something like, "You know, when you run, that means you can't pass the ball." The senior moments would be priceless...

Holy freaking crap

2008-09-12T23:43:00.003-04:00

So I stayed in tonight for three reasons: 1) it's raining, 2) I already drank for a couple hours during Happy Hour, and 3) I'm going out tomorrow night and it's harrowing to try to drink three nights in a row (I drank last night). So I figured I'd stay in, enjoy some MLB.TV and track my fantasy baseball playoff match, until.....I found out I screwed myself over after getting screwed last night.

I was leading my match, 6-4, last night until Matt "F'ing" Cain took the hill and gave up five earned runs on six hits in the FIRST INNING!!!!....against the PADRES!!!!....at PETCO PARK!!!!!! Enough for the exclamation marks, but Cain's horrific outing pushed my ERA and WHIP sky-high, past my opponent (Tunez) and possibly too high to come back for victory.

I had planned on starting a few pitchers each of the next few days to try to bring my ERA and WHIP down, or at least to catch up in wins and strikeouts, but I made a major, major no-no tonight. I didn't check my starters who were on the bench to make sure they weren't starting tonight. And after rosters locked, I noticed Aaron Harang was toeing the rubber tonight. Major "doh!" He pitched seven innings, gave up zero earned runs on four hits, exactly the type of outing I needed to catch up to Tunez. But I'm an idiot, was drinking and working and didn't follow through. And that's why I'm going to lose in the first round and not defend my championship.

Between this and getting knocked out of the first round of my other ESPN baseball league because of some bullshit tiebreaker rule that rewards higher seeds, I might not sleep well all fall/winter/spring. Holy...freaking...crap.

While watching the first episode of the new season of Entourage for the second time

2008-09-09T21:58:00.002-04:00

I'm a little perplexed that Kobe Bryant decided to not have surgery to fix the torn ligament in his right pinkie. He's had the injury since February, so he had to have known the time table for a recovery. He had said while he played through the injury during the regular season, playoffs and Olympics that he would get it fixed as soon as his off-season began. So, why the change in decision? The max time table is 12 weeks, but Kobe is a famously quick healer. He has an insane ability to compartmentalize pain better than any athlete I've seen, so it's likely the injury won't affect him the way it would another athlete (or at least he won't let anyone know it affects him)...

What is going on with Vince Young? He admitted during the off-season that he wanted to retire after his rookie year, which is a disturbing thought for a player of his stature that's even worse to admit publically. Now he apparently didn't want to return to the field on Sunday after throwing his second interception and then he allegedly wanders off Monday, with friends and family concerned for his safety. If you were one his teammates, would you have the confidence in him to lead your team? If you answered "hell no," then that'd make you like nearly every Tennessee Titan player right now...

One of the most quotable athletes is Stephon Marbury, partly because the guy is just crazy -- and he doesn't mind letting people know it. Here are a few gems from a recent interview:

"I drink life’s happy water which is bottled at the divine source."

"If I didn't play the way how I played, I wouldn't have gotten no max contract. ... Don't get mad at me, because I'm telling you what's real. One plus one is two, all day long, and it's never gonna change. And that's factorial."

And then there's this brilliant quote where Steph tries to figure out why the sports writer whom he's speaking with is an atheist.
"If your mind can transform thoughts to create rockets to go into space, who is to say if an Ark was built? Like, if you could build spaceships to go from off this ground, to go up into the sky, and go land on the moon — you're saying, these things can't happen? So everything gets challenged, you understand what I'm saying?"

Weekend thoughts

2008-09-08T10:23:00.004-04:00

Damn, this really is the best time of the year for sports. So much happened this weekend:

You know, I'm not excited about Tom Brady getting hurt. More than anything, I hate to see great athletes get injured in the prime of their career. I don't think of Brady as part of any Evil Empire or a recipient of bad karma or anything. I just hope he returns as soon as possible so that we can watch him play quarterback. And we all know how few effective NFL quarterbacks there are...

Carlos Delgado is NOT the National League Most Valuable Player. IS NOT. Since his two-homer, nine-RBI game on June 26 at Yankee Stadium, Delgado is hitting. 293 with 20 homers and 56 RBIs. Good numbers. But he's batting just .273 with a decent .349 OBP in his past 20 games. Sure, he has seven homers and 22 RBIs in that stretch, but six of those homers and 13 of those RBIs came in just three games. Aside from a five-hit, three-RBI performance also during the streak, Delgado has just four MVP-like games in his last 20 contests. Sorry, but an MVP has to be more consistent than that to get the award...

Sort of like Albert Pujols. Chew on these stats from his past 19 games, a time in which the Cardinals are only 9-10: Pujols has 10 multi-hit games, has hit safely in 17 contests and he has nine multi-RBI efforts, with eight home runs in the stretch, including four in his last eight games. THAT is an MVP, folks. How far under .500 would they be in that stretch without Albert's efforts?...

I don't like Reggie Bush, and not just because Kim Kardashian is one hot mama right now (no matter how awful she's destined to look in five-10 years). I don't like Bush because of the way he carries himself, an attitude evident in a comment he made on Sunday after juking a defender who had been talking trash to him earlier in the game. When asked about blowing past Tampa Bay Bucs defender Jermaine Phillips for a touchdown, Bush said, "The play before he was talking trash and the next play he was on my highlight tape." I mean, seriously, SHUT UP! Bush has 16 career touchdowns, including one return TD, in 29 games, so he hasn't exactly been lighting the NFL world on fire. He didn't even have a rush or a reception longer than 25 yards last season, kind of an odd statistic for someone who's supposed to be one of the NFL's biggest playmakers. I don't know what's in the food of the student cafeteria at Southern Cal, but their football program sure has put a lot of busts and muscleheads in the NFL the last few years, haven't they? Matt Leinart, Bush, Dwayne Jarrett, Mike Williams, LenDale White...

Living in a fantasy world

2008-09-07T16:18:00.004-04:00

Sometimes I'm not sure whether I like real life or fantasy life more. There are many things in real life that are under our control, but what about real life sports? There is absolutely nothing we can do to control how our favorite teams (Lakers, Dodgers, 49ers, Montana State, UCLA for me) go through their days. That's sort of why I want to be a sports journalist, print and radio, so that I can make my opinions public.

Anyway, the fantasy sports world gives us unlimited control over our teams. Want Peyton Manning for your football team? You can have him. And you know what? I have him.

I'm in four fantasy football leagues but I consider my "main" team to be in The RedZone baseball/football league I play in with a bunch of knuckleheads/friends. We have most of the same players in baseball and football, so rivalries are formed, bad jokes are exchanged and one-sided trades are made (I dominate in that last category). Anyway, we're in the second year of our keeper football league, with each team required to keep three players from last year's roster. Naturally, I have Peyton, Marion Barber III and Andre Johnson. I could have kept Michael Turner, but I didn't want to keep a player who was entering his first starting job in the NFL and on a bad team at that. After Turner rushed for 220 yards and two touchdowns today, I may or may not be trying to kick myself in the nuts.

Anyway, I had a very good QB/RB/WR trio heading into the draft. With one more RB, another WR, an additional RB/WR, a TE, a K and a DEF to fill out my starting lineup, the pressure was off to find that one start to fill one of the big three positions (QB, RB, WR). I already had a star at each.

With the second-to-last pick in the "first round" (really the fourth round since each team had kept three players, thus three rounds eliminated), I chose Darren McFadden, (hopefully) pissing off two Raiders fans in our league in the process...you know, I really don't want to give a round-by-round account of my draft.

How about I go position-by-position? Much better and easier to follow.

Quarterback
Peyton Manning and David Garrard
Manning is the mainstay, but with his recovery from a burst bursa sac (my favorite injury since Felix Pie twisted a testicle in April. No, seriously. Oh, wait, I did like that Carlos Guillen suffered from hemorrhoids earlier this summer. Or maybe it's the jock itch the Southern Cal football team experienced in August training camp. Ahhh, so many options!). Anyway, Manning should be fine, but I drafted Garrard just in case he isn't. Garrard is safe, like the family accountant you hire and only hear from if there is a problem (in which case, you're glad he/she is handling it). You always feel good about Manning (Peyton, that is) as your fantasy quarterback, but having Garrard as a backup option is just as reassuring.

Running Back
Marion (The Barbarian) Barber III, Darren McFadden,
Ricky Williams, Edge James, Chris Johnson
Chris Johnson could easily be the sleeper, and I thought that before he rushed for 93 yards today. Williams and James were just picks I made for the sake of consistency. Barber will start every week and should sniff the endzone nearly every game. McFadden could be a star, although I don't think he'll have the impact of Adrian Peterson. How often does a rookie have Peterson's type of impact anyway? Williams will get plenty of opportunities with the Dolphins, especially with Ronnie Brown still nursing his recovery from an ACL tear. James is James, reliable but not fantastic anymore.

Wide Receiver
Andre Johnson, Anquan Boldin, Brandon Marshall, James Hardy, Vincent Jackson
Johnson is a stud as long as he stays healthy. Boldin is in a ridiculous contract dispute, because he doesn't think $4 or $5 million per year is enough for the type of player he is. Perhaps he and McCain can grab a milkshake and talk about how much life sucks when you have less than $5 million (and I know McCain's comment on that was a joke, but I like provoking Republicans). Brandon Marshall could be the key to my season. I grabbed him in Round 7 when everyone had avoided him because of his two-game suspension. However, it was reduced by a game and theAn dude is possibly a Top 10 receiver this year. Thoughts of starting him with Johnson and Boldin, along with Barbarian, McFad and Peyton, make my mouth salivate the way it does when I see Adrianna Lima. As you can tell, I'm excited (not in that way). Hardy and Jackson are just throw-ins. They could each record six or seven touchdowns. But if they suck, I'll just slot in one of my running backs at the flex spot. I figure Marshall, Boldin and Johnson should be good enough, even if one of them gets hurt.

Tight End, Kicker, Defense
Nobody cares about these positions and this posting is too long anyway. This shall remain a mystery.

I'm still alive

2008-09-06T14:52:00.005-04:00

I haven't forgot about this blog...I just haven't really had a moment to myself this week.

A few quick thoughts: I'm already tired of the Chad Ocho Cinco crap. I probably won't watch any Bengals games this year as a result...

I'm pissed that Phils-Mets is rained out for Saturday, but Friday's game was great...

Speaking of great, how about Brandon Morrow nearly pitching a no-no against the Yanks on Friday night? What made it great was sitting in the same room with three or four die-hard Yankees fans...

The NFL starts tomorrow?? Holy crap, as if I didn't have a life before...

Novak Djokovic bagged a really hot Olympian. Good for him, that bastard...

My fantasy team will probably have to be reviewed after Week 1 or tomorrow morning. Whatever, I'm excited I drafted Brandon Marshall in the seventh round. Suckers, are my league mates...

Alright, back to work. Hopefully I'll revisit this thing in the late night or early morn.

Tired

2008-09-03T09:54:00.000-04:00

Just tired. Trying to think of what I want to say about my main fantasy football team. I'll write about it today.

Time to get random...

2008-08-31T13:21:00.004-04:00

Kim Kardashian bugs me. She's sort of hot, but she's the symbol for this age of ridiculous pop culture and TV reality shows. What's her definable skill? She has none. Her only worthy characteristic is that she has some pleasant curves, if you go for the shorter, thick type, which I don't. And how much longer can she stay looking relatively good? It's in correlation to her TV life expectancy. How much longer can she stay on TV, like, two more years, tops? As many channels and weird shows as there are, you figure she can't keep up this Life with Kardashian (or whatever the hell it's called) for much longer. I say two years, max. Once she's off TV, nobody will care much for her, since she doesn't offer anything positive to society. If people don't care, she's not in the limelight. If she's not in the limelight and isn't on TV, how motivated can she be to stay in shape? Reggie Bush, look out man...

There aren't many Major Leaguers I'd pay to watch play only defense, but Torii Hunter is one of them...

Southern Cal's C.J. Gable looked like the reincarnation of Reggie Bush on his 33-yard touchdown scamper on Saturday. Flowing white towel hanging from his pants and everything...

UCLA football is screwed. They're already down to their third-string quarterback and Southern Cal looks like a monster...

I have some fantasy football advice for anyone in drafts this week: Pick Peyton Manning, Tom Brady and/or Tony Romo. Having the stability at quarterback is invaluable. Think of it as one less position to worry about every week. I've drafted Peyton two times and those were the only two leagues in which I've reached the championship game. And don't be afraid to draft Brady in the first round and Romo coming back in the second. You can always trade one of them for an elite running back or wide receiver...

Damnnnn

2008-08-30T23:30:00.002-04:00

I work a lot. A LOT. I'm slaving away for the second straight night at MLB.com and I don't even see the end of the road. When am I going to sleep? I have to work the ESPN game tomorrow night, but I'm spending tomorrow outdoors, rain, snow, sleet or sunshine.

Uhhhh, peace.

Lincecum has pitched like a Giant

2008-08-28T13:51:00.003-04:00

Brandon Webb has been a popular choice for the NL Cy Young award for various baseball writers, bloggers and message board posters around the Web. There's no doubt he is a very strong candidate. Webb's 19 wins are four more than any other NL pitcher and he's tied for third in WHIP (1.12). Oh, yeah, WHIP is walks + hits divided by innings pitched, for those who don't know.

Anyway, Webb has been outstanding, even posting a 3.08 ERA (it can be a useful stat) and a 1.18 WHIP at his home park, formerly known as the B.O.B., now known as Chase Field, either way a very good hitter's park.

But there has been one pitcher better than Webb in the National League. Okay, actually two but CC Sabathia hasn't been in the NL long enough this season to provide serious competition to Webb and.....Tiny Tim Lincecum. The nickname is cute....his fastball is not.

Being the Dodgers fan that I am, it feels sinister to hold such high regard for a despicable Giants player, but Lincecum has been a dominating force all season long. He's posted a 15-3 (.833 win percentage) record on a team that is 59-74 (.444). In fact, the Giants are 19-9 (.679) when Lincecum toes the rubber. Talk about a need for cloning. (It should be noted that Lincecum's first outing this season, a win, was a four-inning relief appearance).

He's pitched 22 quality starts (a quality start constitutes allowing three earned runs or less in at least six innings) in 27 starts. Webb's at 21 QS's in 28 starts. Lincecum has the highest quality start percentage in the Majors for all pitchers who've made at least four starts.

His 1.18 WHIP can't match Webb's aforementioned 1.12 WHIP, but he does have a better ERA (2.43) than Webb (2.96). Lincecum's batting average against is third-best in the NL at .221. Webb has a .235 BAA. You can't say that Lincecum's .221 is a matter of good luck (if you're of the belief that there is any other type of luck than good luck), since his .306 batting average on balls in-play is a relatively average mark for his opponents.

Lincecum's strikeout ability is what really sets him apart. His 210 strikeout leads the Majors by 13, over CC Sabathia. The difference in physical appearance between Lincecum (5'11, 170) and Sabathia (6'7, 290) is striking. It doesn't seem possible that such a small pitcher can throw so powerfully, but his strikeout total and 10.2 K/9 rate (Webb's is 7.5) are indicative of his amazing pitch velocity.

For a pitcher of his physical stature, Lincecum has an amazing mound presence. I witnessed it in person during his July 8 appearance at Shea Stadium against the Mets. He is as intimidating as any other pitcher in the game. He has seven 10-plus strikeout games, including four in his last seven outings. He's been dominant all season long, and isn't that what the Cy Young is really about? Wins are often given too much weight when determining the Cy Young winner. Lots of other things go into a win besides just a pitcher's performance. A pitcher can't control how his team fields or hits. What voters can control is who receives the Cy Young award and mound dominance should be a primary factor in the final decision. And Lincecum has been dominant.

Things I don't understand...

2008-08-27T14:47:00.003-04:00

I sit in a room with six co-workers in a corner of my office. It's called the "newsroom." The guy next to me, who honest-to-God peruses the IMDB pornography database daily at work, does a few things that I don't understand. Please keep in mind that he's pushing 40, if he isn't already there.

Every day for lunch, whether he's scarfing down a burrito, munching on a salad or clogging his arteries with, from the way he looks, the umpteenth pizza slice of his life, he "wears" a napkin as a bib. Who, might I ask, wears a bib while eating, aside from children younger than 5? Who does that? Furthermore, he drinks ALL of his Diet Pepsi's/Cokes from the can -- with a straw. He doesn't peel his banana; he removes a plastic knife from his draw full of eating utensils and applies a swift cutting motion to the stem and then he peels it. He doesn't pull apart a bag of potato chips to create an opening; he cuts a corner with a freaking scissor. But it's the bib and, to a lesser degree, the straw that perplex me.

Did he just do that?

2008-08-26T22:27:00.003-04:00

That's what I find myself saying as I watch video after video of NFL.com's slick new advertising campaign for the fantasy football portion of its site. Seemingly inspired from the LeBron James Powerade ad where he makes full court jump shots and Kobe Bryant's recent ads for Nike where he jumps over a speeding Aston Martin and a snakepit, NFL.com has put a new twist on the physical abilities of NFL players.

Quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers/tight ends and kickers accomplish on-field feats such as catching balls with one hand and easily hitting downfield targets that are supposed to make the viewer want to choose that player for his or her fantasy football team. The best thing about these ads is that they make even the kickers look like bad asses. That's not easy to do.

Here is probably the most popular one, involving Chris Chambers, but I recommend you check 'em all.

Deconstructing Ryan Howard

2008-08-26T00:01:00.009-04:00

It's not often that a hitter will swat 30-plus homers and still have an OPS below .800. Slugging percentage makes up one part of the OPS equation (on-base percentage + slugging percentage = OPS) and a high slugging percentage is often the byproduct of a high home run total. Despite Phillies slugger Ryan Howard's 34 homers, his OPS sits at just .792.

Only one other player since 2005 has hit 30-plus homers and still not reached .800 OPS territory: Arizona center fielder Chris Young, who went deep 32 times but had only a .763 OPS. His problem was that he posted just a .295 on-base percentage, partially a result of his .237 batting average (hits + all types of walks / plate appearances = on-base percentage). Since 2000, there have been only nine instances in which an offensive player has hit 30 or more homers with a sub-.800 OPS.

In Howard's case, there are several factors hindering his OPS. While the 34 homers are impressive, they're somewhat behind pace compared to Howard's homer totals the past two seasons. He hit 58 in 2006 and 47 last year. With roughly five weeks left, it would take a very good September just to get him to last year's total.

He had also averaged 26 doubles in those two seasons and is slightly behind schedule with his 17 two-baggers so far. The extra-base hits are down, though, lowering his slugging percentage to sub-.500 territory, a rarity considering the .600 range he normally hovers around.

His on-base percentage is down for a variety of reasons. His .227 batting average is well below the .268 average he posted last year and light-years away from a .313 mark he achieved in '06. One culprit is his ridiculous strikeout rate. He's fanned on 34.6 percent of his at-bats, which is actually lower than his superhuman 37.6 percent rate last season.

You'd think his batting average would have been worse last season, but he actually recorded most of his outs by whiffing. Looking at his hit percentages, his line drive percentage last season was higher (24.3) than this year (21.4) and his ground ball percentage was dramatically lower (31.5 vs. a very high 43.7 this season). Don't let all these numbers confuse you. This year, he's hitting fewer line drives (which typically go for hits) and many, many more ground balls (which are usually infield ground outs). So, he might be striking out a little bit less, but he's still recording more outs overall. That kills his batting average.

His on-base percentage is also affected by his diminished walk rate. He's drawn a free pass on just 11.3 percent of his plate appearances this season vs. 16.8 percent last season. Looking at his monthly splits, Howard drew 36 of his 64 walks in April and May. That means only 28 walks in the (nearly) ensuing three months. His lack of plate discipline over the summer could be a result of him pressing. He was hitting just .206 by the time June rolled around, so he's probably thrown more pressure at himself trying to raise that batting average to a respectable level.

All of this isn't to infer that Howard is a useless player. He's still one of the best sluggers in the game and his homers and RBIs (108 this year) are among the best in baseball. From a practical level, though, Howard has not done a good job swinging the bat this season.

Team USA on top of the world

2008-08-25T15:08:00.009-04:00

What a basketball game it was on Saturday night, or, technically, Sunday morning.

I plopped myself on the couch after a few hours of drinking in the East Village, scarfed down two grease-soaked pizza slices (one cheese, the other pepperoni) and settled in to watch Team USA reach the end of its road to redemption. A few thoughts from the gold medal game against Spain:

-Not to take anything away from the USA players, but Dwyane Wade was the only guy in the first quarter whom you could say, definitively, was leaving it all on the floor. Dude was ALL over the court, hitting threes, making steals and just expending an inordinate amount of energy.

-I noticed that when Kobe and LeBron, with two fouls apiece, were sitting on the bench in the first quarter, Kobe gave LeBron a "look" while the Spaniards kept the game close. It was a look, like, "Damn, this might be a tough game."

-I wasn't able to complain to myself about Doug Collins' announcing like I normally do because the referees' ridiculous inconsistency gripped my attention. First quarter was called like each offensive player had a five-foot halo around him. Second quarter was Rugby rules. Just frustrating to watch, so I can't imagine what it was like to have to play under those conditions.

-Seventeen-year-old Ricky Rubio is going to be a straight-up baller by the time he's 20. His handle is sweet, he understands spacing and body positioning and his overall intelligence has already been well-documented.

-By the time the Spaniards came within two, 91-89, deep in the fourth quarter, the intensity of the game crept to a level I'm not sure I've seen in basketball. It was akin to the final minutes of the Pats-Giants Super Bowl in February. Maybe the final minutes of the '98 Finals between the Jazz and Bulls, MJ's last game, is the only comparison in my viewing lifetime (going back to '90). I loved that NBC kept showing shots of the USA bench after scores. Carmelo was yelling and clapping like a high schooler in state playoffs, a wonderful sight for all the naysayers who claim NBAers don't care about the Olympics.

-Kobe had sort of an odd fourth quarter. He had a plethora of huge plays: a really tough runner in the lane to stretch the USA lead to 93-89; a kickout to Deron Williams for a three; a penetrate and pass to Dwight Howard in the lane for a dunk; the four-point play and subsequent hushing of the crowd which was probably the signature play of the game. But Kobe made some poor decisons. He missed two threes which where badly out of USA's offensive rhythm, not to mention his excruciatingly poor defense on Rudy Fernandez on one play, which opened up Fernandez to drive to the hoop and posterize Howard. The threes I can sort of understand, since he was trying to take over the game. The occasional lapses in judgement, though, weren't what I was expecting from a guy who's played in five NBA Finals. Still, Kobe made the biggest plays when USA needed them the most. It's why he's the best in the world.

-Finally, the thing I'll remember most from the game were the hugs all the players were giving each other as the game wound down. You could tell all the pent up emotion these guys had bottled up throughout their journey. And the pride Team USA displayed in re-capturing the gold was something that should make every American proud, regardless of how unimportant some people think sports are. One camera caught Coach K, once the buzzer had sounded, looking on admiringly from the bench as the players celebrated on the floor. Coach K didn't need a gold medal (which coaches don't receive); he just needed the win. Watching the players celebrate an accomplishment that was three years in making seemed to have made his night. What a great coach he is.

PS3 in my possession

2008-08-25T12:05:00.004-04:00

Sweet stuff, I have a PlayStation 3. Unfortunately, it's the 80GB that doesn't play PS2 games, but I'm betting between Madden '09 and Tiger Woods '09 (which I'll buy when it comes out), I won't have any need for those shabby, outdated PS2 games. Now I need a HDTV to maximize PS3's capabilities. Hookups???

Dodgers start Bulldog at their own risk

2008-08-23T18:56:00.004-04:00

In his first start with the Dodgers last night (his second stint with the team), Greg Maddux gave up seven earned runs on nine hits and one walk with four strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings at hitter's haven Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. We all know what a great pitcher the four-time Cy Young winner used to be, but the fact is he's a huge risk every time he steps on most Major League mounds.

Last season, when Maddux pitched for the Padres, he carried a 3.59 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP in San Diego's PETCO Park, one of the most favorable pitcher's parks in the Majors. Outside of PETCO, he posted a 4.65 ERA and a 1.28 WHIP.

This season, Maddux tallied a 2.62 ERA and a staggering 0.98 WHIP in 14 starts at PETCO. When you throw in the starts he has made at NL West ballparks Dodger Stadium and the Giants' AT&T Park, Maddux a.k.a. The Bulldog, has a 2.42 ERA and a 0.93 WHIP in 104 innings. And what is it everywhere else? How about a 7.69 ERA and a 1.89 WHIP in 55 innings.

It's evident that Maddux is an excellent pitcher when he throws at the home parks of the Padres, Dodgers and Giants, but a liability everywhere else. So wouldn't it make sense for the Dodgers to start him only at those parks? Sure, if winning is in their best interest. But, of course, spot starting Maddux for particular parks won't happen.

For one thing, there is the potential that he could lose his confidence, as, at the end of the day, Maddux is an athlete and many athletes don't appreciate the mind games that would come with suggesting he just couldn't pitch at certain parks. Secondly, spotting Maddux for only three ballparks would throw a wrench into the workings of the starting rotation. Certain pitchers might have to move up or down days to convenience Maddux. Also worth noting is possibly compromising Maddux's pitching rhythm. Knowing that he is to throw every fifth start is probably comforting, phsycologically and physically, for Maddux.

Still, I can't help but think how much more effective of a role Maddux could play for the Dodgers if he were to start only in San Diego, Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Phelps is nobody's parent

2008-08-22T16:33:00.005-04:00

Someone at a message board I frequent often, www.bobcatnation.com, linked to an article that notes the latest attempt for some parents to shift their responsibilities to others. Michael Phelps signed a deal with Kellogg's to endorse Frosted Flakes, the noted health conscious cereal. However, some people have a problem with a swimmer appearing on a box of cereal which isn't a healthy choice for children.

Since when does Phelps have a responsibility to help children eat healthier? Isn't that the responsibility of parents? Phelps has already made it known he's not too concerned with what he puts in his body...you can read his daily menu here.

If parents would rather attach responsibility for their kids' health to an athlete, then maybe those adults shouldn't have procreated in the first place.

Fantasy football doesn't grip my attention

2008-08-21T17:44:00.006-04:00

I wonder if I'm a fantasy sports elitist. Friends (mostly chicks) ask me about fantasy football, why they don't understand it, whether I like it, blah, blah, blah, and I usually have to explain that I'm much more interested in fantasy baseball than football. When asked if I'm looking forward to fantasy football season starting, I sort of raise my nose to the ceiling and roll my eyes in this defiant tone, sort of like some wannabe-Carrie Bradshaw Manhattanite who's asked if she shops at Macy's.

Anyway, I prefer fantasy baseball for three reasons: 1) Injuries don't kill your team the way they do in football, 2) the season is much longer, thus making any accomplishment that much more rewarding, and 3) the length of the baseball season cancels out all the casual fans who typically get a rise out of playing fantasy football.

$4 mil a year can't buy happiness

2008-08-19T23:05:00.006-04:00

Just when you thought another NFL wide receiver couldn't act like an inconsiderate primma donna, Anquan Boldin decided, that, he too, has the ability to alienate hard working, lower- and middle-class NFL fans.

Taking a page out of the Chad Johnson/T.O. manual of how to make yourself look like an ignorant asshole in front of the media, Boldin continued to whine on Tuesday about the contact extension the Arizona Cardinals wouldn't re-negotiate with him. Apparently, Boldin's four-year, $22.75 million contract, which ends after the 2010 season, isn't enough to keep the little baby happy.

Boldin, whose average salary is $4 million per season, actually said, and I quote, "It's a tough situation, especially when you come into a working environment." But what do professional athletes realistically know about real working environments?

"But my job is to stay professional. I'm going to do what I'm supposed to do." What he's supposed to do is shut the hell up and play football. Oh, and honor the contract his greedy ass signed in the first place.

More mouth jabbering from the idiot: "If I'm not going to be treated fairly, if my hard work and loyalty isn't going to be rewarded here..." Whoa, this isn't the end of the quote, but hold it right there! His hard work is being rewarded with four million dead presidents whom he probably wouldn't even recognize, much less be able to name.

Ahhhhh, I'm just getting myself worked up. This won't do any good, but it'll let me sleep a little better at night. Man, I can't imagine getting to a point in life where I felt a $4 million salary was insulting. Man, oh man, oh man...

I need my Madden fix

2008-08-19T17:55:00.002-04:00

The only perk of my full-time job (as a reporter for an online marketing publication) is that when we write stories on company's marketing campaigns, we can occasionally request "samples" of the products. So, when I wrote a story discussing the Madden '09 campaign, I was sure to request a "sample" of the game for PlayStation 3. I received that "sample," also known as a copy of the game! For free! Unfortunately, I don't have a PS3...it's always the small details that get me.
My PlayStation2 is sitting at home in Montana, but I decided to go for the PS3 since I'm actually due another PS3 title from some other company in October. Anyway, since PS2 games can be played on the PS3, I thought to myself, before requesting which Madden platform I wanted, "Why not make the step up?" Well, now I have a fresh copy of Madden but no system. Anyone have the hookup with Sony?

...No, I'm not that cheap and, yes, I probably will buy a damn PlayStation3 this weekend. But I have to buy a TV first, haha...

Wearin' down Big CC

2008-08-19T11:22:00.007-04:00

After CC Sabathia was traded from the Indians to the Brewers in early July, ESPN's Buster Olney wrote in his daily MLB blog that an astute reader thought of a very likely scenario: Won't the Brewers, knowing they probably can't afford to re-sign Sabathia once he becomes a free agent this off-season, pitch the hell out of him knowing that they won't suffer the inevitable physical repercussions of his high pitch counts? Well, apparently so.
Sabathia has been pitching so well that the Brewers have had no problem leaving him on the mound for entire games.
In 18 starts for the Indians earlier this season, Sabathia pitched every frame three times, including two shutouts. His average pitch count per start: 107.4 pitches.
In nine starts for the Brewers, Sabathia has gone the full tilt five times, two of which were shutouts. His average pitch count per start: 112.8 pitches.
Three of his four highest pitch counts this year (all over 122 pitches) have come with the Brew Crew, including a season-high 130-pitch barnburner last night.
There's no doubt Sabathia is pitching better now than he did to open the season, when he allowed 27 earned runs in 18 innings over his first four starts, and it seems like the Brewers are trying to take full advantage of it. After giving up hotshot hitting prospect Matt LaPorta for (probably) half a season of Sabathia, the Brewers are trying to pry as much value as they can out of Sabathia's left arm.

NOTE: I see Buster Olney blogged about this as well, so you can read what he said here.

My self promotion

2008-08-18T21:52:00.001-04:00

It's a record-setting third post on the Stack Blog today, which follows my then-record second post of the day a couple hours ago. I'm heading into Phelps territory...

Anyway, I will start posting my amNew York articles here for those interested in reading more professionally written articles. You can see what amNew York is all about by clicking here.

And here is link to the web version of the article...

http://www.amny.com/sports/am-nflfilms0814,0,2039524.story

What happened to the men's 100m final?

2008-08-18T18:51:00.001-04:00

Ummm, did you see the men's track & field 100 meter final in Beijing? I'm pretty sure it happened because I saw a scrolling line on ESPNEWS on Saturday stating that Jamaica's Usain Bolt won the event with a world record time of 9.69.

I've been attached to the television morning and night watching the Summer Games, but I still don't when the race occurred. I intentionally didn't find out for this posting to communicate how even an interested Olympics watcher didn't know when the 100 meter final began.
What's more confounding is that this race used to be a showcase event in the Olympics. What the big gymnastics event are to the female viewers, the 100 meter men's final is to the males. Or at least it used to be that way. According to a poll in the August 18-24 issue of Sports Business Journal, 65 percent of the 487 respondents would rather watch swimming or diving (diving!!!) than track and field.

It seems like people are alienated by the persistent doping stories that have accompanied track and field in recent years. Michael Phelps' amazing eight gold-medal performance surely took attention away from the 100 meter event, but that brings up another question: didn't the event used to be run on the Friday or Saturday night before closing ceremonies? Since closing ceremonies occur next weekend, why wasn't this event pushed to that time? Why was the final run concurrently with Phelps' final two quests for gold? These are questions of which I need answers.

Jeff Kent is a miserable human being

2008-08-18T16:21:00.002-04:00

He said Dodgers announcer Vin Scully "talks too much." He called Vin Scully "some guy." Jeff Kent, the irritable bastard that he is, insulted Vin Scully. The same Vin Scully who has been calling play-by-play for the Dodgers since 1950 -- when they were in Brooklyn. Scully is a legend in Los Angeles. He ranks among the city's most beloved sports figures, next to John Wooden, Magic Johnson, Sandy Koufax and fellow broadcaster Chick Hearn. It's not that he could get away with murder (although even ex-Southern Cal running back O.J. Simpson pulled it off in L.A.), but there is a certain respect that is maintained for the 80-year-old Scully.

So, when Scully opined over the airwaves recently that Kent's increased productivity (.410 batting average so far in August) has coincided with the arrival of Manny Ramirez, who hits behind Kent in the lineup, it would have been best for Kent to do what he so often does: keep his trap shut. In Kent's interview with L.A. Times sportswriter T.J. Simers, the 40-year-old expressed his dissatisfaction with anyone and everyone who could possibly question Kent's ability to hit a baseball with a bat.

Now, it should be mentioned that Scully has perpetuated a long-held baseball myth: that one hitter can have a significant effect on another hitter's performance. Many nerdy baseball statgeeks have devoted countless lonely Friday and Saturday nights to prove that the "lineup protection" myth, is, in fact, just that. But that doesn't make it right for Kent to say Scully talks too much. First Christ sake, it's Scully's job to talk.

Anyway, Kent has argued in the past with ex-teammate Barry Bonds (hey, who can blame him?), current teammate Matt Kemp, assorted sportswriters and other members of the media. Scully hasn't offered a retaliation to Kent's illogical comments, but there's something to be said for a man who has too much class to get involved in Kent's childish tirade. Scully's been in the game too long to let little pests like Kent bother him. That's why he's got to treat Kent like a Jay-Z song and scrape that dirt off his shoulder.

Jock itch

2008-08-14T10:06:00.001-04:00

Sooooo, I haven't written a damn thing on here since my Welcome to the Blog posting about a month ago. I've been busy with my three (or is it four?) jobs, but no excuses. There's so much happening in the sports world...Summer Olympics, MLB pennant race, NFL training camp, the college football season is looming, PGA Championship, the impending U.S. Open in tennis (which I may check out since I live in NYC), the list goes on.

One of my favorite stories lately is an all-time great among football training camps: The Southern Cal football team is suffering from jock itch. Yep, new compression shorts that the team is wearing underneath its football pants has rubbed some fellas the wrong way. In fact, up to 25 percent of the team's players are suffering from the uncomfortable, and somewhat awkward, "injury." I can only hope this team epidemic continues since it's the only thing that can keep SC from continuing its Los Angeles dominance in college football. I'm a UCLA fan, and, well, the Bruins' season looks somewhat lost with their two top quarterbacks hurt.

Anyway, my favorite quote from the SC jock story (which you can find here) comes from running back Stafon Johnson, who's remained itch-free. When asked what was afflicting his teammates, Johnson noted, "I don't know what it is, but I'm staying away from it." Wait, if you don't know what it is, how do you know to stay away from it? I'll just leave you with that.

A bit of history

2008-07-24T12:14:00.000-04:00

Hey there,
My name is Kyle Stack and this is MY blogpost blog. Seemingly everybody has one of these blogs, even those who write for pure entertainment. Well, I find writing entertaining, but I also get paid to write. amNew York pays me to contribute as a freelance reporter and MLB.com shells out some (not much) money for me to update the news and notes section on their fantasy page. I actually get to dispense daily fantasy advice as well, which you can check out, Monday-Friday, here: http://fantasy411mlblogs.com

Hopefully I'll be able to become a salaried sports writer one of these years. I'm working on it and the process is undoubtedly long and hard, but what are we without goals and dreams? Anyway, this blog is a way for me to release my thoughts on random happenings around the sports world. Enjoy and please feel free to e-mail me with any questions and/or comments: kyle.stack@gmail.com