First of all, congratulations to St. Bonaventure and Syracuse, two local teams who made it through the First Four round. At least one more win each would solidify the NCAA committee's choice to include them.
Nicknames that will mess up my wife's picks:
As you may be aware, her choices often stem from the match-up of nicknames or mascots. Sometimes she has to flip a coin -
Seton Hall Pirates vs. NC State Wolfpack - Both were scourges of the high seas - and mean.
Michigan Wolverines vs Montana Grizzlies - An interesting match-up in the forest, on the court, not so much.
Kentucky Wildcats vs Davidson Wildcats - "What do I do now???"
Auburn Tigers vs Charleston Cougars - Well, the tiger is bigger.
Where we differ:
She likes Alabama "Roll 'Tide." I will root for Auburn - War Eagle.
When we were on a trip down south, we stayed in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Everywhere you went, we saw "Roll Tide signs and banners. Later, We stopped at a gift shop in Montgomery, Alabama. I was looking thru some pins on the counter and Anne asked me what I was looking for. "I wanted to see if there was a "Roll Tide" pin," I said, laughing. From behind, a loud booming voice said, "Y'all in Auburn country, now." It was a little old white-haired lady glaring at me. "Yes Ma'am," I said as I scurried away.
I like to watch Duke play. She likes ABGA (Anybody But Grayson Allen). I actually see her point.
Anne asked who St. Bonaventure would be playing next. I told her they would be in with the big boys, now. Actually, #1, 2, or 3 seeded teams against are not automatic winners against teams seeded #10, 11, 12 etc. That's one of the beautiful things about college basketball. No matter how large your enrollment is, you can only put five guys on the court at once. This makes for competitive games where you wouldn't think there would be.
I can't do a posting without some mention of baseball.
** The NY Yankees have had their wrist slapped by MLB because Aaron Judge told Manny Machado of the Orioles, "You'd look nice in pin stripes." Baseball called that very close to tampering. Yeah, like Judge decides who the Yankees will sign. Instead of concerning himself with off-the-cuff kidding between ballplayers, why doesn't Commissioner Manfred pay more attention to improving the pace of play in a reasonable manner instead of the ridiculous ideas he's come up with so far.
** Like these changes that are under consideration.
Start extra innings with men on base, from a man on second with no outs to bases loaded with no outs. This flies in the face of the integrity of the game.
Start extra innings with a three and two count on every batter. This like a beer game. Might as well have a keg out at second base. Actually, that's not such a bad idea.
Let the managers start each extra inning with whatever lineup he wants. If you're going to do that, why not let each teams best home-run hitter bat continually until he makes three outs or hits a homer.
All of these ideas is meant to keep teams from having 17 or 18 inning games. Yeah, like we have one or two of those every week.
I will repeat the only thing they have to do to shorten games is KEEP THE HITTER IN THE BATTER'S BOX. There, was that so hard?
***THEY SAID IT***
"Drew Brees turned down much larger guaranteed offers to resign with
Saints. Nice to know that it’s not ALL about $$$. Though guessing Drew
can still feed his family on $25 mill even if 2nd year not guaranteed." -- Janice Hough
"Frances McDormand’s Academy Award was stolen during an Oscars after party. No truth to the rumor that the perp was wearing a Tom Brady jersey." -- Dwight Perry
"About last Sunday’s Oscars telecast, Michael Strahan is to red-carpet interviews what Ryan Seacrest is to rushing the quarterback." -- Jerry Perisho
"Warriors coach Steve Kerr said undrafted college basketball players
should be allowed to return to school, which is different than the
1960s, when students enrolled in school mainly to avoid being drafted." -- Jim Barach
"Dolphins going to release Ndamukongsuh. Ouch, that will really stomp on his ego." -- Janice Hough
"Canadian skicross racer Dave Duncan apologized for his arrest in
PyeongChang for stealing a car while intoxicated. Can’t recall Duncan?
He’s the skier whose bib had a cup holder." -- RJ Currie
"Two U.S. gold medal-winning snowboarders are 17. When I was 17, I’d just gotten the training wheels off my bike." -- Brad Dickson
" Anybody honestly believe the Dolphins are better without Ajayi, Landry and
Suh? It’s like you own a car dealership and your first order of business
is to fire your most productive, top-earning salesmen." -- Greg Cote
CP-
Thursday, March 15, 2018
Tuesday, March 13, 2018
MARCH MADNESS
It's my favorite sporting event. Why?
1) Well, it's not just one game, it's many.
2) If you root for your team and they lose, there's another "favorite" team playing later that day (Actually sounds like my dating history).
3) College teams have cheerleaders who actually get excited about the game and aren't paid to jump around in skimpy outfits.
4) The cheerleaders jump around in skimpy outfits
5) EVERY game is sudden death. That makes for exciting finishes because teams go all out even if they're behind by 10 points with 30 seconds left.
6) Coaches run up and down the sideline getting more exercise than they've gotten in years.
7) I don't need Dick Vitale to tell me it's an exciting game. BABY!
8) There's a hero in every game.
9) Did I mention the skimpy outfits?
10) I love the odd nicknames for some of the teams. (Can you say you root for the Hokies with a straight face?)
11) Did I mention...oh yeah, I did.
The usual comments on match-ups
There are odd match-ups that occur accidentally because the "committee" picks them by the team records. My way is much more fun.
** It can't happen, but wouldn't a Final Four consisting of Villanova, Kentucky, Arizona and Kansas State be interesting? You could root for the "Wildcats" and not be disappointed in the outcome. (Sorry Davidson, but I had to choose four)
** There's only three Tigers in the mix this year: Clemson, Auburn and Missouri. If Princeton had made it, we could have had another fun Final Four. Or a better Elite Eight.
** Some nicknames I don't recall seeing before.
Brooklyn Blackbirds (If they lose, you could sing "Bye Bye Blackbirds)
Radford Highlanders (Could be embarrassing to play in those kilts)
Lipscomb Bisons (Bisons, Yes. Lipscomb, not so much)
Marshall Thundering Herd (I understand the starting five averages 295 pounds)
More on match-up tomorrow, In the meantime, a sad note. The Omaha World Herald has decided to drop "Breakin' Brad," a humor column written by my friend Brad Dickson. Apparently, newspapers aren't above making dumb decisions. There's enough bad news in the world and humor helps us to deal with it. Mr. Dickson was one of the best at providing that valuable humor. Anne Murray sings, "I really could use a little good news today." We've just lost some.
***THEY SAID IT***
"Heading to March Madness, 64 down to 1. And besides the possible Trump administration resignations, there’s a basketball tournament going on." -- Janice Hough
"Ex-Nebraskan Molly Schuyler won the Wing Bowl by downing 501 chicken wings, an average of 16.7 wings per minute — breaking the old record held by a garbage disposal." -- Brad Dickson[I'm going to miss this - CP]
" WWE legend and porn star Sunny was arrested on contempt of court and fugitive charges. She is reportedly in jail, where all holds are barred" -- RJ Currie
"The U.S. is sitting sixth in the medal count halfway through the Winter Olympics — behind Russia, Which isn’t even officially here. I was pretty fired up about that. That’s like losing a bar bet to an empty stool." -- Michael Rosenberg
"Reports are that Peyton Manning could make $10 Million a year as an analyst for Fox Sports or ESPN. And that’s before he mentions Budweiser or Papa John’s every 15 minutes." -- Janice Hough
"Arkansas landed an inside linebacker named Bumper Pool. Now the Razorbacks are searching for an outside backer named Lawn Darts." -- Brad Dickson
"Danica Patrick’s NASCAR career ended with a win-loss record of 0 for 191. “See? Now leave me alone!” said Anna Kournikova." -- RJ Currie
"The U.S. topped Canada to reach the gold-medal match in men’s curling. That’s like the U.S. beating Italy in pasta-making." -- Roy Neese
CP-
1) Well, it's not just one game, it's many.
2) If you root for your team and they lose, there's another "favorite" team playing later that day (Actually sounds like my dating history).
3) College teams have cheerleaders who actually get excited about the game and aren't paid to jump around in skimpy outfits.
4) The cheerleaders jump around in skimpy outfits
5) EVERY game is sudden death. That makes for exciting finishes because teams go all out even if they're behind by 10 points with 30 seconds left.
6) Coaches run up and down the sideline getting more exercise than they've gotten in years.
7) I don't need Dick Vitale to tell me it's an exciting game. BABY!
8) There's a hero in every game.
9) Did I mention the skimpy outfits?
10) I love the odd nicknames for some of the teams. (Can you say you root for the Hokies with a straight face?)
11) Did I mention...oh yeah, I did.
The usual comments on match-ups
There are odd match-ups that occur accidentally because the "committee" picks them by the team records. My way is much more fun.
** It can't happen, but wouldn't a Final Four consisting of Villanova, Kentucky, Arizona and Kansas State be interesting? You could root for the "Wildcats" and not be disappointed in the outcome. (Sorry Davidson, but I had to choose four)
** There's only three Tigers in the mix this year: Clemson, Auburn and Missouri. If Princeton had made it, we could have had another fun Final Four. Or a better Elite Eight.
** Some nicknames I don't recall seeing before.
Brooklyn Blackbirds (If they lose, you could sing "Bye Bye Blackbirds)
Radford Highlanders (Could be embarrassing to play in those kilts)
Lipscomb Bisons (Bisons, Yes. Lipscomb, not so much)
Marshall Thundering Herd (I understand the starting five averages 295 pounds)
More on match-up tomorrow, In the meantime, a sad note. The Omaha World Herald has decided to drop "Breakin' Brad," a humor column written by my friend Brad Dickson. Apparently, newspapers aren't above making dumb decisions. There's enough bad news in the world and humor helps us to deal with it. Mr. Dickson was one of the best at providing that valuable humor. Anne Murray sings, "I really could use a little good news today." We've just lost some.
***THEY SAID IT***
"Heading to March Madness, 64 down to 1. And besides the possible Trump administration resignations, there’s a basketball tournament going on." -- Janice Hough
"Ex-Nebraskan Molly Schuyler won the Wing Bowl by downing 501 chicken wings, an average of 16.7 wings per minute — breaking the old record held by a garbage disposal." -- Brad Dickson[I'm going to miss this - CP]
"Forrest
Whitley, the Astros’ 6-foot-7 fireballing mound prospect,
has been tagged with a 50-game suspension after failing a
drug test. Club
officials figured something was amiss last season when his
errant spring-training pickoff attempt in West Palm Beach,
Fla., finally rolled to a stop in Okeechobee." -- Dwight Perry
" WWE legend and porn star Sunny was arrested on contempt of court and fugitive charges. She is reportedly in jail, where all holds are barred" -- RJ Currie
"The U.S. is sitting sixth in the medal count halfway through the Winter Olympics — behind Russia, Which isn’t even officially here. I was pretty fired up about that. That’s like losing a bar bet to an empty stool." -- Michael Rosenberg
"Reports are that Peyton Manning could make $10 Million a year as an analyst for Fox Sports or ESPN. And that’s before he mentions Budweiser or Papa John’s every 15 minutes." -- Janice Hough
"Arkansas landed an inside linebacker named Bumper Pool. Now the Razorbacks are searching for an outside backer named Lawn Darts." -- Brad Dickson
"Danica Patrick’s NASCAR career ended with a win-loss record of 0 for 191. “See? Now leave me alone!” said Anna Kournikova." -- RJ Currie
"The U.S. topped Canada to reach the gold-medal match in men’s curling. That’s like the U.S. beating Italy in pasta-making." -- Roy Neese
CP-
Monday, February 19, 2018
BASEBALL! IT'S FINALLY HERE!
It's Spring Training, the time when every team is a potential champion - at least according to the media. Even the players are strutting about, proclaiming the virtues of their team. As usual, there will be the contenders and the pretenders.
There will be the five elite teams and the one sleeper. Houston, Dodgers, Cleveland, Washington and Yankees.will contend. The Angels, Boston, Cubs and Arizona will put up a fight but probably won't make the World Series. The Brewers and Twins were last years sleepers. This year, I think it will be the Tampa Bay Rays.
The Yanks will be a lot of fun to watch with all the big bats in the lineup. And I mean BIG. Mike Lupica, NY Daily News, describes them this way. "They're not built to break records. They're built to break windows." This should be fun.
Money, money, money
I don't believe it. I thought that this year, Scott Boras would finally learn that he's NOT the smartest man in baseball. Teams would no longer be willing to pay out big bucks and long term contracts to players just to get the one or two good years out of them. We made it all the way to spring training before Boras found that "one dumb owner." It was San Diego. They just signed Eric Hosmer to a deal that qualifies them as this year's "ODO." 5 years @ $20 million per year plus 3 more years @ $13 million per year.This for a guy 28 years old. He has averaged 20 homers a year with a batting average of .284 over seven years. Good numbers but is that really worth $139 million? Of course, we're talking about a team who traded for Chase Headly without a gun to their heads. There are still a lot of decent ballplayers still unsigned and some of them will remain that way. Even Scott Boras has to be scratching his head.
Let's use our heads (What am I saying?)
Can we please bring some sense of reason to baseball's suggestions on how to shorten the games? They have suggested putting a man on second to start every inning after the 10th. Start every inning after 12 with the bases loaded and no outs.
They want a pitch clock and a batting clock. These are too hard to control. There are so many parameters that it will take a Philadelphia lawyer to figure out when to start them and when someone has violated the rule. You want to speed up the game without corrupting the basic sport? Two simple rules:
1) Limit trips to the mound to one per inning, whether it's the coach, manager, catcher or infielder. Unless there's and injury, a second visit means the pitcher is out of the game. Fake the injury and manager is also ejected.
2) Keep the damn hitter in the box. I don't care about swings and misses, foul balls or looking for signs. Keep him in the box.
While we're at it, eliminate Instant Replay and Challenges. There's 15 minutes a game right. there. Even with the arguments. Besides, I like arguments.
As Groucho Marx said, “Outside of the improvement, no one should notice a thing.”
Another suggestion
I am not a fan of play-by-play broadcasters and analysts in the booth. They all need to fill every minute with words which end up being just blather. Please shut up. We can see the same thing you see. We don't need you to explain it. And stop with the "cute" terms. The player did not "go vertical." for cripes sake. He JUMPED. Why do we need so many people to announce the game? That's easy to fix. Just make the booths smaller. A lot smaller.
Your screaming does not make the play more exciting. Listen to Bode Miller analyze skiing. Very calm and informative. Please tell us the truth. Tara Lipinski and Johnny Weir are not afraid to say that some skating judging is absolutely insane. We know it, we saw it, too. It's not blasphemy to voice that opinion. I like their outfits, too, but Johnny is going to have to explain his hair. How can it grow three inches overnight?
***THEY SAID IT***
Patriots coach Bill Belichick, was asked by reporters what the difference between this Super Bowl and his previous seven: “This one is in Minnesota.”
"Serena Williams won the Australian Open a year ago while eight weeks pregnant. I think we’ve finally found something that Roger Federer can't do on a tennis court." -- Bob Molinaro
"The Yankees have acquired the baseball rights to the Seahawks’ Russell Wilson. Imagine how the Jets and Giants feel, knowing that the Yankees have the best QB in New York." -- Brett Miller
"Striking strippers in New York canceled plans to perform in Philadelphia this past week after they were told the poles there were coated with Crisco and hydraulic fluid." -- Tony Chong
" Ex-Nebraskan Molly Schuyler won the Wing Bowl by downing 501 chicken wings, an average of 16.7 wings per minute — breaking the old record held by a garbage disposal." -- Brad Dickson
There will be the five elite teams and the one sleeper. Houston, Dodgers, Cleveland, Washington and Yankees.will contend. The Angels, Boston, Cubs and Arizona will put up a fight but probably won't make the World Series. The Brewers and Twins were last years sleepers. This year, I think it will be the Tampa Bay Rays.
The Yanks will be a lot of fun to watch with all the big bats in the lineup. And I mean BIG. Mike Lupica, NY Daily News, describes them this way. "They're not built to break records. They're built to break windows." This should be fun.
Money, money, money
I don't believe it. I thought that this year, Scott Boras would finally learn that he's NOT the smartest man in baseball. Teams would no longer be willing to pay out big bucks and long term contracts to players just to get the one or two good years out of them. We made it all the way to spring training before Boras found that "one dumb owner." It was San Diego. They just signed Eric Hosmer to a deal that qualifies them as this year's "ODO." 5 years @ $20 million per year plus 3 more years @ $13 million per year.This for a guy 28 years old. He has averaged 20 homers a year with a batting average of .284 over seven years. Good numbers but is that really worth $139 million? Of course, we're talking about a team who traded for Chase Headly without a gun to their heads. There are still a lot of decent ballplayers still unsigned and some of them will remain that way. Even Scott Boras has to be scratching his head.
Let's use our heads (What am I saying?)
Can we please bring some sense of reason to baseball's suggestions on how to shorten the games? They have suggested putting a man on second to start every inning after the 10th. Start every inning after 12 with the bases loaded and no outs.
They want a pitch clock and a batting clock. These are too hard to control. There are so many parameters that it will take a Philadelphia lawyer to figure out when to start them and when someone has violated the rule. You want to speed up the game without corrupting the basic sport? Two simple rules:
1) Limit trips to the mound to one per inning, whether it's the coach, manager, catcher or infielder. Unless there's and injury, a second visit means the pitcher is out of the game. Fake the injury and manager is also ejected.
2) Keep the damn hitter in the box. I don't care about swings and misses, foul balls or looking for signs. Keep him in the box.
While we're at it, eliminate Instant Replay and Challenges. There's 15 minutes a game right. there. Even with the arguments. Besides, I like arguments.
As Groucho Marx said, “Outside of the improvement, no one should notice a thing.”
Another suggestion
I am not a fan of play-by-play broadcasters and analysts in the booth. They all need to fill every minute with words which end up being just blather. Please shut up. We can see the same thing you see. We don't need you to explain it. And stop with the "cute" terms. The player did not "go vertical." for cripes sake. He JUMPED. Why do we need so many people to announce the game? That's easy to fix. Just make the booths smaller. A lot smaller.
Your screaming does not make the play more exciting. Listen to Bode Miller analyze skiing. Very calm and informative. Please tell us the truth. Tara Lipinski and Johnny Weir are not afraid to say that some skating judging is absolutely insane. We know it, we saw it, too. It's not blasphemy to voice that opinion. I like their outfits, too, but Johnny is going to have to explain his hair. How can it grow three inches overnight?
***THEY SAID IT***
Patriots coach Bill Belichick, was asked by reporters what the difference between this Super Bowl and his previous seven: “This one is in Minnesota.”
"Fontbonne
of St. Louis beat Greenville (Ill.) 164-154 in overtime
Wednesday night, breaking the NCAA Division III record for
combined points.In
other words, they scheduled a D-III men’s basketball game,
and the NBA All-Star Game broke out." -- Dwight Perry
"The Canadian women’s hockey team defeated the United States at the Winter Olympics. These Canadians were mostly late bloomers. Some of them didn’t pick up a hockey stick until they were 9 months old." -- Brad Dickson
" So this is how you judge Slope-Style Skateboarding: The winner was determined by who came as close as possible to killing himself while remaining standing on his board." - Phil Mushnick
"Team Norway at
the Olympics got 15,000 eggs instead of the 1,500 they ordered. So far
the Norwegians are clean of PEDs, but their cholesterol is off the
charts." -- RJ Currie
"One problem with Winter Olympics is just when we begin to figure out
what, for example, a good slalom run looks like, the events are over." -- Janice Hough
"Serena Williams won the Australian Open a year ago while eight weeks pregnant. I think we’ve finally found something that Roger Federer can't do on a tennis court." -- Bob Molinaro
"The Yankees have acquired the baseball rights to the Seahawks’ Russell Wilson. Imagine how the Jets and Giants feel, knowing that the Yankees have the best QB in New York." -- Brett Miller
"Striking strippers in New York canceled plans to perform in Philadelphia this past week after they were told the poles there were coated with Crisco and hydraulic fluid." -- Tony Chong
" Ex-Nebraskan Molly Schuyler won the Wing Bowl by downing 501 chicken wings, an average of 16.7 wings per minute — breaking the old record held by a garbage disposal." -- Brad Dickson
"Among
Oregon’s football recruits this year: Habakkuk Baldonado, a
defensive end from Clearwater, Fla. Talk
about mixed reviews: He’s rated a three-star recruit by 247
Sports but only one star by the National Association of Copy
Editors." -- Dwight Perry
"Wait a minute, how did Shaun White get to be 31 years old? I didn’t know they allowed snowboarders to be over 30." -- Janice Hough
"A
brawl broke out in a professional rugby game in the country of Georgia,
complete with punching, kicking and bloodshed. Then things got really
violent: they played rugby." -- RJ Currie
CP-
Thursday, January 18, 2018
26 DAYS TO GO
Pitchers and catchers report in less than 4 weeks (Feb 13th) with position players due 5 days later. This promises to be one of the most interesting Yankee seasons in a long time. To paraphrase Chris Berman: "They...could...go...all...the...way!"
In the meantime --
WHO
It's Hall of Fame time again, a very frustrating time for me, since voters have turned it into the Hall of the Very Good. There are 33 names on this year's ballot and I see five that should be elected, in my humble opinion.That's a lot for the harsh taskmaster that I am. The five:
Trevor Hoffman
Mike Mussina
Jim Thome
Gary Sheffield
Curt Schilling
I know that flies in the face of many writers who say that because they can only vote for ten players, a lot of worthy candidates will be left out. There are a few that are close, but not quite.
Wait-till-next-year would include the 2 Jones boys, Chipper and Andruw,Vlad Guerrero, Jeff Kent and Edgar Martinez. And of course, the steroid boys, Bonds, Clemens, and Sosa.
Interesting note about Sammy Sosa. The owner of the Chicago Cubs, Tom Ricketts, says that Sosa isn't welcome back to Wrigley Field until he owns up to his steroid use. Of course, since Sammy "doesn't speak or understand English," he probably doesn't know what's going on.
WHAT
Poor sportswriters, they don't have anything to report. There are lots of rumors but no free agent signings or trades of any significance since the Yanks nailed Stanton. Yu Darvish, the biggest name still out there, has named the only six teams he will sign with and still no movement. This is the Scott Boras Philosophy at it's finest. Who will blink first? Will the free agents lower their asking price significantly or will some team finally panic and offer a ridiculous contract? We will see.
I DON'T KNOW
There is a lot of talk lately about the New England Patriots being the beneficiary of a number of penalty calls that have helped them win games all year. Are they in fact getting all the breaks? It's possible but then others say, good teams make their own breaks. No one knows for sure and the officials on the field certainly aren't going to say.
What's happening in the NBA? The teams are complaining that there are a lot of Technical Fouls being called and that most of them are uncalled for. The players claim that the officials hare exercising a vendetta against the players. Again, you'll never get the officials to admit that or even explain what they think is happening. Supposedly, the two sides will sit down at the All-Star break and iron things out.
I DON'T CARE
The networks are afraid that will be the attitude of the viewers if the Super Bowl ends up being a Minnesota - Jacksonville game. No major market team can mean low viewership and worse yet, lower commercial income. Now we can't have THAT, can we? Well, I don't care,
GOOD NEWS, BAD NEWS
The Good: Utah Jazz Rodney Hood was fined $35,000 by the league after slapping the cell phone out of the hand of a fan as he left the arena after being ejected from the game. Would have been better if it was $50,000. When are these prima donnas going to realize that those fans are the life blood of the sport and should be treated with respect?
The Bad: We have lost Keith Jackson, one of the best sports announcers ever. He understood all the sports he covered and did not try to impose his personality over the actual game. I will miss his pet phrase - "Whoa Nellie!" Goodbye, Keith.
***THEY SAID IT***
"Boston recorded a temperature of minus-30 degrees. And that was just between Bill Belichick and Tom Brady." -- Brad Dickson
"Word is Maria Sharapova has unleashed a record-level shriek of 119 decibels. It happened when Australian Open officials announced the withdrawal of Serena Williams." -- RJ Currie
"NBC announced that it will air over 2,400 hours of Winter Olympics coverage. Well, 2,402 hours counting the men’s events." -- Brad Dickson
"The expansion Las Vegas Knights’ have a 17-2-1 home record. Does the policy of having the visiting team partake in the ‘two-drink minimum’ have anything to do with this?" -- TC Chong
" Since we are now looking at a possible Minnesota-Jacksonville Super Bowl, neither with a quarterback most Americans have heard of, I guess this might be a game where people really do watch for the commercials." -- Janice Hough
"Jennifer Lopez publicly suggested Alex Rodriguez should be the next Yankees manager. Really? Last anyone heard, A-Rod had his hands full managing himself." -- RJ Currie
"There’s nothing so wrong with the NFL that it couldn’t be fixed by a reasonably well-aimed nuclear warhead." -- Phil Mushnick
CP-
In the meantime --
WHO
It's Hall of Fame time again, a very frustrating time for me, since voters have turned it into the Hall of the Very Good. There are 33 names on this year's ballot and I see five that should be elected, in my humble opinion.That's a lot for the harsh taskmaster that I am. The five:
Trevor Hoffman
Mike Mussina
Jim Thome
Gary Sheffield
Curt Schilling
I know that flies in the face of many writers who say that because they can only vote for ten players, a lot of worthy candidates will be left out. There are a few that are close, but not quite.
Wait-till-next-year would include the 2 Jones boys, Chipper and Andruw,Vlad Guerrero, Jeff Kent and Edgar Martinez. And of course, the steroid boys, Bonds, Clemens, and Sosa.
Interesting note about Sammy Sosa. The owner of the Chicago Cubs, Tom Ricketts, says that Sosa isn't welcome back to Wrigley Field until he owns up to his steroid use. Of course, since Sammy "doesn't speak or understand English," he probably doesn't know what's going on.
WHAT
Poor sportswriters, they don't have anything to report. There are lots of rumors but no free agent signings or trades of any significance since the Yanks nailed Stanton. Yu Darvish, the biggest name still out there, has named the only six teams he will sign with and still no movement. This is the Scott Boras Philosophy at it's finest. Who will blink first? Will the free agents lower their asking price significantly or will some team finally panic and offer a ridiculous contract? We will see.
I DON'T KNOW
There is a lot of talk lately about the New England Patriots being the beneficiary of a number of penalty calls that have helped them win games all year. Are they in fact getting all the breaks? It's possible but then others say, good teams make their own breaks. No one knows for sure and the officials on the field certainly aren't going to say.
What's happening in the NBA? The teams are complaining that there are a lot of Technical Fouls being called and that most of them are uncalled for. The players claim that the officials hare exercising a vendetta against the players. Again, you'll never get the officials to admit that or even explain what they think is happening. Supposedly, the two sides will sit down at the All-Star break and iron things out.
I DON'T CARE
The networks are afraid that will be the attitude of the viewers if the Super Bowl ends up being a Minnesota - Jacksonville game. No major market team can mean low viewership and worse yet, lower commercial income. Now we can't have THAT, can we? Well, I don't care,
GOOD NEWS, BAD NEWS
The Good: Utah Jazz Rodney Hood was fined $35,000 by the league after slapping the cell phone out of the hand of a fan as he left the arena after being ejected from the game. Would have been better if it was $50,000. When are these prima donnas going to realize that those fans are the life blood of the sport and should be treated with respect?
The Bad: We have lost Keith Jackson, one of the best sports announcers ever. He understood all the sports he covered and did not try to impose his personality over the actual game. I will miss his pet phrase - "Whoa Nellie!" Goodbye, Keith.
***THEY SAID IT***
"Boston recorded a temperature of minus-30 degrees. And that was just between Bill Belichick and Tom Brady." -- Brad Dickson
"Word is Maria Sharapova has unleashed a record-level shriek of 119 decibels. It happened when Australian Open officials announced the withdrawal of Serena Williams." -- RJ Currie
"The
Cleveland Browns just threw in the towel on the 2017 season. To
no one’s surprise, it was intercepted and returned for a
touchdown." -- Dwight Perry
"What's it like living in New York City in
the 1970s. I used to jog 5 miles a day — 2 for my health, 3
for my life." -- Marc Sheffler
"LaVar Ball told USA Today
his son Lonzo is a better player than Steph Curry. If there
was a concussion tent in basketball, they’d never let LaVar
out of it" -- RJ Currie
"NBC announced that it will air over 2,400 hours of Winter Olympics coverage. Well, 2,402 hours counting the men’s events." -- Brad Dickson
"The expansion Las Vegas Knights’ have a 17-2-1 home record. Does the policy of having the visiting team partake in the ‘two-drink minimum’ have anything to do with this?" -- TC Chong
" Since we are now looking at a possible Minnesota-Jacksonville Super Bowl, neither with a quarterback most Americans have heard of, I guess this might be a game where people really do watch for the commercials." -- Janice Hough
"Jennifer Lopez publicly suggested Alex Rodriguez should be the next Yankees manager. Really? Last anyone heard, A-Rod had his hands full managing himself." -- RJ Currie
"There’s nothing so wrong with the NFL that it couldn’t be fixed by a reasonably well-aimed nuclear warhead." -- Phil Mushnick
CP-
Thursday, December 14, 2017
THE NEVER-ENDING BOWL GAMES
It used to be a really big deal to get into a bowl game. There were about 10 of them when I was a betting...er, a young man, and you had to have a great record to get into one. They had names like The Gator Bowl, or The Sun Bowl. Of course, there were the big four played on New Years day: Sugar, Cotton, Orange and the Rose Bowl, daddy of them all. Notice too, there were no sponsor's names cluttering up the titles. And forget your record. any excuse a bowl could come up with got you in.
Now, there are some 40 games and they ALL have sponsors. There are so many now that soon the bowls will have to come up with gimmicks to attract fans and teams. Here's what I can see coming up in the near future:
(These are the actual names of bowls)
The Military Bowl
Both teams must remain at attention the whole game
The Camping World Bowl
No hotels for the teams and no locker rooms. You can shower down by the crick.
The Play Station Fiesta Bowl
The teams sit in the stands and play Maddon Football on their gameboys.
The Walk-on Independence Bowl
This one's hard to promote because the game will be played by whoever shows up.
The AFR Celebration Bowl
There's no game, just a beer party
The Dollar General Bowl
It won't be much of a game, but hell, it's only a buck.
The Franklin American Mortgage Bowl
You get in free if you bring a foreclosure notice on your house.
The Nova Home Loans Arizona Bowl
Next year, you'll be eligible for the Franklin Amer. Mort. Bowl
The CheriBundi Tart Cherry Boca Raton Bowl
After dinner, you come here for dessert. (Record holder for the longest name)
The Bahama's Bowl
Make sure you see the guy in the parking lot. "I've got the best stuff, Mon."
The oddest sponsor pairing belongs to The Bad Boys Mower Gasparilla Bowl. Lawn care and a pirate. You figure it out.
Enjoy whatever games you prefer. Remember, it's all about supporting colleges and the sport. Or as My Uncle Al used to say., "I'm taking Notre Dame and the points."
***THEY SAID IT***
"I just saw the video of Edmonton coach Todd McLellan reaming out the Oilers during a recent practice. Profanity? It reminded me of the last call from my ex-wife." -- RJ Currie
"Reportedly Astros saw that Yu Darvish was tipping his pitches in World Series. Question of the day – why couldn’t the Dodgers see it?" -- Janice Hough
" On “Monday Night Countdown,” Steve Young bit the head off a raw fish. If this doesn’t restore ESPN to ratings prominence, I don’t know what will." -- Brad Dickson
"After explosives failed to raze the Silverdome on the first try, they had to rename it Cleveland Browns Stadium to get it to collapse." -- Alex Kaseberg
"The IOC is considering pole dancing, poker and foosball for the Olympic Games. At the current rate, soon we’ll have Olympic Hangman and beer pong." -- Brad Dickson
"LiAngelo Ball just got a tweet of sympathy from Bluto Blutarsky: “Three months of college down the drain!” -- Dwight Perry
"A Florida couple hoping to sue their landlord for not fixing a door faked a break-in by shooting themselves in the leg. Who gave them legal advice? Plaxico Burress?" -- RJ Currie
CP-
Now, there are some 40 games and they ALL have sponsors. There are so many now that soon the bowls will have to come up with gimmicks to attract fans and teams. Here's what I can see coming up in the near future:
(These are the actual names of bowls)
The Military Bowl
Both teams must remain at attention the whole game
The Camping World Bowl
No hotels for the teams and no locker rooms. You can shower down by the crick.
The Play Station Fiesta Bowl
The teams sit in the stands and play Maddon Football on their gameboys.
The Walk-on Independence Bowl
This one's hard to promote because the game will be played by whoever shows up.
The AFR Celebration Bowl
There's no game, just a beer party
The Dollar General Bowl
It won't be much of a game, but hell, it's only a buck.
The Franklin American Mortgage Bowl
You get in free if you bring a foreclosure notice on your house.
The Nova Home Loans Arizona Bowl
Next year, you'll be eligible for the Franklin Amer. Mort. Bowl
The CheriBundi Tart Cherry Boca Raton Bowl
After dinner, you come here for dessert. (Record holder for the longest name)
The Bahama's Bowl
Make sure you see the guy in the parking lot. "I've got the best stuff, Mon."
The oddest sponsor pairing belongs to The Bad Boys Mower Gasparilla Bowl. Lawn care and a pirate. You figure it out.
Enjoy whatever games you prefer. Remember, it's all about supporting colleges and the sport. Or as My Uncle Al used to say., "I'm taking Notre Dame and the points."
***THEY SAID IT***
"I just saw the video of Edmonton coach Todd McLellan reaming out the Oilers during a recent practice. Profanity? It reminded me of the last call from my ex-wife." -- RJ Currie
"Reportedly Astros saw that Yu Darvish was tipping his pitches in World Series. Question of the day – why couldn’t the Dodgers see it?" -- Janice Hough
" On “Monday Night Countdown,” Steve Young bit the head off a raw fish. If this doesn’t restore ESPN to ratings prominence, I don’t know what will." -- Brad Dickson
"After explosives failed to raze the Silverdome on the first try, they had to rename it Cleveland Browns Stadium to get it to collapse." -- Alex Kaseberg
"The IOC is considering pole dancing, poker and foosball for the Olympic Games. At the current rate, soon we’ll have Olympic Hangman and beer pong." -- Brad Dickson
"LiAngelo Ball just got a tweet of sympathy from Bluto Blutarsky: “Three months of college down the drain!” -- Dwight Perry
"A Florida couple hoping to sue their landlord for not fixing a door faked a break-in by shooting themselves in the leg. Who gave them legal advice? Plaxico Burress?" -- RJ Currie
CP-
Sunday, December 10, 2017
THE EVIL EMPIRE RETURNS
..and so have I. There have been a lot of mildly (to me) interesting things happening lately, but we finally have a blockbuster. And baseball's winter meetings won't start for a couple more days.
Last year, when the Red Sox landed Chris Sale, it looked like lights out for the AL East. Instead, the Yankees gave Boston all it could handle before the Sox finally won the division only to fall in the first round. Which proves the adage: You can load your roster with big names, but you still have to play the games, The Yankee fans should keep that in mind, because...
The Yanks have added THE big name this year, one Giancarlo Stanton. This gives the Yankees potentially four 40+ home run hitters. Of course, scoring is only half the battle. You also have to keep the other team from scoring. Cashman will probably try to nab a frontline pitcher. There are a couple of potential land mines with the addition of Stanton:
Can he accept being just one of the stars on a team loaded with them?
How will he react to the overwhelming media coverage?
Can he fit into the clubhouse dynamic?
The Yanks also have a new manager, one with no experience. It will be up to him to get this machine running on all cylinders. Aaron Boone may be a great guy, and a win was expected of him, but now...it's going to be demanded.
The New York media has already come up with one interesting marketing ploy. Aaron Judge may have the "Judges Chambers," but Giancarlo will have "Stanton's Island." (Between the NY Daily News and the Post, this could be a long summer)
Will we see the birth of a new episode of Murder's Row? The Yanks have had some powerful tandems of sluggers in their past. Ruth and Gehrig, DiMaggio and Berra, and. of course, Mantle Maris. Even if Stanton & Judge match last years home run totals, they still fall 4 short of the M Boys 115 in 1961. It will be fun to see them try.
The Army-Navy game was played in the snow down in Philly yesterday, with Army winning 14-13.
There were 6 punts, 95 runs and only 3 passes. Somewhere, Woody Hayes - author of the "three yards and a cloud of dust" offense, was smiling, having a beer and saying, "Now that's the way we do it."
Syracuse beat Colgate (the college, not the toothpaste) for the 52nd straight time (maybe it was the toothpaste) and they did it with only three players. At least, that's what it seemed like. Howard had 18 points, Brissett had 20 and Tyrus Battle threw in 24. That's 62 points. The whole Colgate team only scored 58. I don't think the Orange played a very aggressive defense: they only had 5 personal fouls the whole game.
A girls basketball game in Montana ended with the score 102-0. Come on, what reasonable coach would let his team run up a score like that? Apparently, the losing squad only had five players. I give them credit for staying to the end.
***THEY SAID IT***
" If Yankees win 2018 World Series will they vote Jeter a playoff share?" -- Janice Hough
" If you already rooted against @Yankees then it’s not sour grapes if you start rooting against Stanton right?" -- Janice Hough [Janice is a die-hard SF Giants fan, so expect more of these. - CP]
"Cleveland receiver Josh Gordon said he used drugs or alcohol before every game. “They also help after games,” said Browns fans." -- RJ Currie
"The IOC said it might consider including pole-dancing, poker and foosball in the next Games. They also said it’s the first Olympics that will be held in a frathouse basement.” -- Conan O'Brien
"“Giants players beg Al Michaels not to use their real names during starting-lineup introduction.” -- The Onion.com
" A meteorite may have flown past the U.S. last week. Then again, it may have been a wayward shot from Lonzo Ball." -- Brad Dickson
"And you wonder why NFL ratings are down! Putting the Dolphins offense on ‘Monday Night Football’ is like putting Aunt Phyllis’ minivan in the Daytona 500." -- Mike Bianchi
'Dale Earnhardt Jr. and his wife are expecting their first child. There’s no excuse for not getting Mom to the hospital on time.” -- Brad Dickson
Just so you know it's really a Yankee Christmas at our house this year.
CP-
Last year, when the Red Sox landed Chris Sale, it looked like lights out for the AL East. Instead, the Yankees gave Boston all it could handle before the Sox finally won the division only to fall in the first round. Which proves the adage: You can load your roster with big names, but you still have to play the games, The Yankee fans should keep that in mind, because...
The Yanks have added THE big name this year, one Giancarlo Stanton. This gives the Yankees potentially four 40+ home run hitters. Of course, scoring is only half the battle. You also have to keep the other team from scoring. Cashman will probably try to nab a frontline pitcher. There are a couple of potential land mines with the addition of Stanton:
Can he accept being just one of the stars on a team loaded with them?
How will he react to the overwhelming media coverage?
Can he fit into the clubhouse dynamic?
The Yanks also have a new manager, one with no experience. It will be up to him to get this machine running on all cylinders. Aaron Boone may be a great guy, and a win was expected of him, but now...it's going to be demanded.
The New York media has already come up with one interesting marketing ploy. Aaron Judge may have the "Judges Chambers," but Giancarlo will have "Stanton's Island." (Between the NY Daily News and the Post, this could be a long summer)
Will we see the birth of a new episode of Murder's Row? The Yanks have had some powerful tandems of sluggers in their past. Ruth and Gehrig, DiMaggio and Berra, and. of course, Mantle Maris. Even if Stanton & Judge match last years home run totals, they still fall 4 short of the M Boys 115 in 1961. It will be fun to see them try.
The Army-Navy game was played in the snow down in Philly yesterday, with Army winning 14-13.
There were 6 punts, 95 runs and only 3 passes. Somewhere, Woody Hayes - author of the "three yards and a cloud of dust" offense, was smiling, having a beer and saying, "Now that's the way we do it."
Syracuse beat Colgate (the college, not the toothpaste) for the 52nd straight time (maybe it was the toothpaste) and they did it with only three players. At least, that's what it seemed like. Howard had 18 points, Brissett had 20 and Tyrus Battle threw in 24. That's 62 points. The whole Colgate team only scored 58. I don't think the Orange played a very aggressive defense: they only had 5 personal fouls the whole game.
A girls basketball game in Montana ended with the score 102-0. Come on, what reasonable coach would let his team run up a score like that? Apparently, the losing squad only had five players. I give them credit for staying to the end.
***THEY SAID IT***
" If Yankees win 2018 World Series will they vote Jeter a playoff share?" -- Janice Hough
" If you already rooted against @Yankees then it’s not sour grapes if you start rooting against Stanton right?" -- Janice Hough [Janice is a die-hard SF Giants fan, so expect more of these. - CP]
"Cleveland receiver Josh Gordon said he used drugs or alcohol before every game. “They also help after games,” said Browns fans." -- RJ Currie
"The IOC said it might consider including pole-dancing, poker and foosball in the next Games. They also said it’s the first Olympics that will be held in a frathouse basement.” -- Conan O'Brien
"“Giants players beg Al Michaels not to use their real names during starting-lineup introduction.” -- The Onion.com
" A meteorite may have flown past the U.S. last week. Then again, it may have been a wayward shot from Lonzo Ball." -- Brad Dickson
"Per
presidential custom, Donald Trump pardoned two turkeys last
week. He
should’ve pardoned the Giants-Washington game." -- Dwight Perry
"The
attempted implosion of The Detroit Pontiac Silverdome was a
complete fail. Meanwhile The Detroit Lions continue to
implode." -- TC Chong
"Arizona is considering a bill to outlaw
wearing a mask to a public event, which
could make it very rough on the catchers
during home games for the Diamondbacks." -- Jim Barach
"Bruins RW David Backes scored two goals in his fourth game back
from having surgery to remove part of his colon. That’s right; he
punctuated his return with a semicolon" -- RJ Currie
"I had a nightmare that New York Giants officials were in charge of the North Pole and sat Santa on Christmas Eve to go with his backup." -- Brad Dickson"And you wonder why NFL ratings are down! Putting the Dolphins offense on ‘Monday Night Football’ is like putting Aunt Phyllis’ minivan in the Daytona 500." -- Mike Bianchi
'Dale Earnhardt Jr. and his wife are expecting their first child. There’s no excuse for not getting Mom to the hospital on time.” -- Brad Dickson
Just so you know it's really a Yankee Christmas at our house this year.
Sunday, November 12, 2017
WHO'S IN CHARGE HERE?
The New York Yankees are looking for a new manager, the only managing job open at this time. It's a very, very attractive job. The new skipper will be taking over a team with a number of young , extremely talented players, with a farm system on the verge of spitting out some more. They have a front office that will spare no expense to provide whatever is needed. You will also become more famous than you ever imagined and in some ways you will not appreciate.
That is the bad news. You will be dealing with a news media that is not constrained by a lot of facts, and they will report every rumor and criticism that they overhear, factual or not. And there are a lot them out there. This leads to the fans also being super-critical. They will jump on every single move you make and you better have good answers ready. You will start to believe that every manager's press conference should be accompanied with a bottle of Maalox...and you're probably right.
There are already a lot of hats in the ring. So far, GM Brian Cashman has interviewed former manager Eric Wedge (very experienced) and Yankee bench coach Rob Thompson (in the Yankee system for many years). A few of the people who have openly declared an interest are Aaron Boone, David Cone and John Flaherty. There is also a rumor that Alex Rodriquez thinks the chance to manage that team is "intriguing." I would like to declare for the job myself. I've been watching Yankee games since 1955, so what more experience do I need?
I offer a note of condolence to my west-coast sister-in-law, the lovely Pauline, over the World Series defeat of her beloved LA Dodgers by the Houston Astros. If it's any consolation, Pauline, the Dodgers finished second while the Astros finished next to last.
There is a real question mark over who will be the American League MVP between Aaron Judge and Jose Altuve. Altuve will probably win because his previous seasons were also pretty good. There is no question about Rookie of the Year, however, Judge has that locked down completely. The AL Cy Young award seems fairly clear cut to me: Corey Kluber has a little better year than Chris Sale, who faded at the end of the season.
In the NL, Cody Bellinger appears to be a shoo-in for Rookie of the year and Giancarlo Stanton will most likely be the NL MVP, even though the Marlins didn't make the playoffs. Being on a winning team has always carried a lot of weight with me when it comes to a Most Valuable player, but Stanton's numbers are not to be ignored. Clayton Kershaw gets my vote for NL Cy Young, Kenley Jansen's 40 saves notwithstanding.
[A side note: now Bill James (with help) has come up with another stat, the CYP - Cy Young Points.
This is an elaborate formula which assigns a value to various stats which will help you determine who has the best year. Two points here: the values assigned to each stat are arbitrary and they also include a "bonus" of 12 points if your team made the playoffs. What does that have to do with who the best pitcher is? This is not the most valuable pitcher, just which pitcher had the best year. I suppose Bill James has to earn his money somehow.]
The Silly Season (trade rumors) is about to begin and this time, the rumors aren't limited to this season. There are rumors about next season's free agents and trade possibilities. The Biggest question concerns one of next year's free agent - Bryce Harper of the Washington Nationals. The press is already projecting him as a $40 million a year man with at least a 10-year contract. There are a few teams you could buy for that kind of money.
***THEY SAID IT***
" A tailgating Bills fan is OK after leaping onto a burning table and catching on fire. I’m going to guess the fire was put out with beer." -- Brad Dickson
"Did someone tell Michigan State players they had a bye week this week. (Ohio State 48, MSU 3.)" -- Janice Hough
" Dodgers Cody Bellinger set a Series record by striking out 17 times. “Hold my beer”, said Yankees Aaron Judge." -- Tony Chong
"A gambler won $14 million on World Series game seven. Here’s what’s suspicious — turns out it was some guy named Yu Darvish." -- Conan O'Brien
"Cleveland wideout Josh Gordon saying he used drugs or alcohol before every game: “To which diehard Browns fans are saying, ‘Welcome to our world.’ ” -- Jim Barach
"A "Tom Brady Signature Edition" Aston Martin is for sale for $360,000. Because it’s a Brady edition, all the air has been let out of the tires." -- Brad Dickson
"NASCAR driver Danica Patrick was among the first passengers to ride a new driverless bus in Las Vegas. To make her feel comfortable, they had it follow 33 cars." -- RJ Currie
"Jerry Jones has apparently declared war on Roger Goodell. Pass the popcorn, this could be more fun than most NFL games." -- Janice Hough
"Think this guy just might have an ink-cartridge endorsement in his future? Introducing Stanford placekicker Jet Toner." -- Dwight Perry
"The Houston Astros beat the Los Angeles Dodgers last night to win their first World Series title in team history. Sad news for Dodgers fans, some of whom have been following the team since as far back as Game 3." -- Seth Meyers
"On a Florida highway, a potato chip truck collided with a beer truck, scattering the contents of both all over the road. This sounds like every other Super Bowl commercial I’ve ever seen." -- Brad Dickson
"Three UCLA Bruin basketballers questioned for shoplifting in Shanghai. The college basketball season hasn’t even started, and already UCLA leads the nation in steals." -- Jerry Perisho
"The 2016 Milwaukee marathon's course was 3/10 of a mile too long, and last year it was 6/10 of a mile too short. "Next year it will be just right," said Goldilocks." -- RJ Currie
"Kate Upton, who is marrying Justin Verlander this weekend, says Astros pitcher fully supports her modeling career. So do I, Kate. So do I." -- Randy Beard
CP-
That is the bad news. You will be dealing with a news media that is not constrained by a lot of facts, and they will report every rumor and criticism that they overhear, factual or not. And there are a lot them out there. This leads to the fans also being super-critical. They will jump on every single move you make and you better have good answers ready. You will start to believe that every manager's press conference should be accompanied with a bottle of Maalox...and you're probably right.
There are already a lot of hats in the ring. So far, GM Brian Cashman has interviewed former manager Eric Wedge (very experienced) and Yankee bench coach Rob Thompson (in the Yankee system for many years). A few of the people who have openly declared an interest are Aaron Boone, David Cone and John Flaherty. There is also a rumor that Alex Rodriquez thinks the chance to manage that team is "intriguing." I would like to declare for the job myself. I've been watching Yankee games since 1955, so what more experience do I need?
I offer a note of condolence to my west-coast sister-in-law, the lovely Pauline, over the World Series defeat of her beloved LA Dodgers by the Houston Astros. If it's any consolation, Pauline, the Dodgers finished second while the Astros finished next to last.
There is a real question mark over who will be the American League MVP between Aaron Judge and Jose Altuve. Altuve will probably win because his previous seasons were also pretty good. There is no question about Rookie of the Year, however, Judge has that locked down completely. The AL Cy Young award seems fairly clear cut to me: Corey Kluber has a little better year than Chris Sale, who faded at the end of the season.
In the NL, Cody Bellinger appears to be a shoo-in for Rookie of the year and Giancarlo Stanton will most likely be the NL MVP, even though the Marlins didn't make the playoffs. Being on a winning team has always carried a lot of weight with me when it comes to a Most Valuable player, but Stanton's numbers are not to be ignored. Clayton Kershaw gets my vote for NL Cy Young, Kenley Jansen's 40 saves notwithstanding.
[A side note: now Bill James (with help) has come up with another stat, the CYP - Cy Young Points.
This is an elaborate formula which assigns a value to various stats which will help you determine who has the best year. Two points here: the values assigned to each stat are arbitrary and they also include a "bonus" of 12 points if your team made the playoffs. What does that have to do with who the best pitcher is? This is not the most valuable pitcher, just which pitcher had the best year. I suppose Bill James has to earn his money somehow.]
The Silly Season (trade rumors) is about to begin and this time, the rumors aren't limited to this season. There are rumors about next season's free agents and trade possibilities. The Biggest question concerns one of next year's free agent - Bryce Harper of the Washington Nationals. The press is already projecting him as a $40 million a year man with at least a 10-year contract. There are a few teams you could buy for that kind of money.
***THEY SAID IT***
" A tailgating Bills fan is OK after leaping onto a burning table and catching on fire. I’m going to guess the fire was put out with beer." -- Brad Dickson
"Did someone tell Michigan State players they had a bye week this week. (Ohio State 48, MSU 3.)" -- Janice Hough
" Dodgers Cody Bellinger set a Series record by striking out 17 times. “Hold my beer”, said Yankees Aaron Judge." -- Tony Chong
"A gambler won $14 million on World Series game seven. Here’s what’s suspicious — turns out it was some guy named Yu Darvish." -- Conan O'Brien
"Cleveland wideout Josh Gordon saying he used drugs or alcohol before every game: “To which diehard Browns fans are saying, ‘Welcome to our world.’ ” -- Jim Barach
"A "Tom Brady Signature Edition" Aston Martin is for sale for $360,000. Because it’s a Brady edition, all the air has been let out of the tires." -- Brad Dickson
"NASCAR driver Danica Patrick was among the first passengers to ride a new driverless bus in Las Vegas. To make her feel comfortable, they had it follow 33 cars." -- RJ Currie
"Jerry Jones has apparently declared war on Roger Goodell. Pass the popcorn, this could be more fun than most NFL games." -- Janice Hough
"Think this guy just might have an ink-cartridge endorsement in his future? Introducing Stanford placekicker Jet Toner." -- Dwight Perry
"The Houston Astros beat the Los Angeles Dodgers last night to win their first World Series title in team history. Sad news for Dodgers fans, some of whom have been following the team since as far back as Game 3." -- Seth Meyers
"On a Florida highway, a potato chip truck collided with a beer truck, scattering the contents of both all over the road. This sounds like every other Super Bowl commercial I’ve ever seen." -- Brad Dickson
"Three UCLA Bruin basketballers questioned for shoplifting in Shanghai. The college basketball season hasn’t even started, and already UCLA leads the nation in steals." -- Jerry Perisho
"The 2016 Milwaukee marathon's course was 3/10 of a mile too long, and last year it was 6/10 of a mile too short. "Next year it will be just right," said Goldilocks." -- RJ Currie
"Kate Upton, who is marrying Justin Verlander this weekend, says Astros pitcher fully supports her modeling career. So do I, Kate. So do I." -- Randy Beard
CP-
Wednesday, November 01, 2017
THE WORLD SERIOUS?
Having rooted passionately for the Yankees since I was 7 years old (Mickey Mantle's rookie year...and, strangely enough, his uniform number), I never have a lot of interest in the Series when the Yanks aren't in it, but I do pay some attention. I don't understand the hullabaloo over this years games. They've played six games and two of them have been hailed as great games, and game five as "the greatest World Series game ever."
Two words: Bull and Roar.We're talking about a game where pitchers couldn't get anyone out. Why does that make it great? My definition for a great game is one that includes no errors, terrific fielding, dominating pitching and a couple of timely hits. There have been many, many exciting games like game five, but the greatest ever? Afraid not.
Try game six of the 1975 Series between Boston and Cincinnati. That game contained some very timely and exciting plays, culminating with Carlton Fisk's body-english aided home run in the 12th inning. The greatest, however, has to be the 1956 game five - the Perfect Game. Let's have no more talk of the "greatest game."
Let's go to the real question. How come all these Cy Young quality pitchers are failing in the playoffs? Are they overworked? Are the managers panicking and pulling them from the game too early? Are they facing really good hitting all of a sudden? Are they not used to the pressure of a national stage? It's probably a little of all the above.
I think a major factor is cybermetrics. There, I said it. The Book says that so and so loses it after 80 pitches. History says he has trouble the third time through the lineup. These facts are all averages, you understand. If a pitcher fails after six innings once, but pitches well after six twice, it's self-defeating to automatically pull him after six because you are simply perpetuating the myth, that he's no good after six innings.
Add to that the fact that all the playoff teams have what is considered very good bullpens. Managers feel, "What good is having the guns if I don't use them?" All year, Keuchel, Kluber and Kershaw and the like have pitched into the 7th inning and gotten into and out of trouble along the way. Here we go into the playoffs and the managers have shown NO patience. Three hits and two runs, well you're all done. Bull pens aren't infallible. You bring in three relievers in a game and bound to run into someone who's having a bad day. Go to four relievers and that's almost assured. Give these guys a chance to solve their own problems. They're the ones that got you there.
In short, these managers are not managing to win, they're managing so as to be able to justify their decisions with front office and the press after the game. Especially the press. The teams that don't deviate from their normal game have the best chance of winning. This year, it seems to be the team that screws up the least has the best chance. Throw the book away and watch the game.
To paraphrase Charley Brown - "Tell your cybermetrics to shut up!"
Talk about a night game
Could someone have Commish Rob Manfred call me tomorrow morning and tell me what happened during the last two innings of Game seven. I tend to fall asleep in my chair after midnight. I know start times are determined by the advertising dollar, but how much influence does a commercial have on a guy sound asleep in front of the TV?
That'll teach him
I'm glad to see MLB moved quickly to punish Yuli Gurriel for his insensitive mocking of Yu Darvish with his insulting gesture. He's been suspended for five games. Wait, it doesn't take place till nest season? As long as you're being irrelevant you might as well schedule it for spring training games.
***THEY SAID IT***
"Can we make it a felony offense for 1st person who says “Game 7, win or go home.” -- Janice Hough
"Saturday night, Nebraska played the Purdue Boilermakers. After facing Ohio State last time, the Huskers said it was just nice to be back playing a college team." -- Brad Dickson
"A kitten wandered onto the field during the Ravens 40-0 thrashing of Dolphins. It looked just as weak as — well, you know — the Dolphins offence" -- RJ Currie
"A feral cat ran across the field at the tail end of the Ravens’ 40-0 pasting of Miami on Thursday night. Adding further insult, the cat finished the night as the Dolphins’ leading rusher." -- Dwight Perry
"Miami traded Pro Bowl running back Jay Ajayi to Philadelphia for a fourth round draft pick. A fourth-rounder! Miami may as well have given Ajayi to Philly for a stationary bike and box of kicking tees." -- Greg Cote
"So Dave Roberts actually had the audacity to challenge a call based on a rule his own 2nd baseman (Chase Utley) caused with a dirty slide?" -- Janice Hough
"UNC b-baller Joel Berry broke his right hand hitting a door in anger over losing a video game. What's position does the guy play? Pointless guard?" -- RJ Currie
"Bears QB Mitchell Trubisky threw only seven passes in a victory over Carolina. There’s a lot to be said for bringing a rookie along slowly, but Trubisky is playing with the world’s largest set of training wheels." -- Bob Molinaro
"An Italian soccer player was suspended five games for urinating on fans. This raises a frightening question: what do you have to do to be suspended for 10 games?" -- Brad Dickson
"Game 4 could have started at 7:05 EDT, but TV money commanded that it begin at 8:21 — on a Saturday! And Manfred has the colossal gall to claim that MLB’s top priority is kids — kids who work the night shift." -- Phil Mushnick
CP-
Two words: Bull and Roar.We're talking about a game where pitchers couldn't get anyone out. Why does that make it great? My definition for a great game is one that includes no errors, terrific fielding, dominating pitching and a couple of timely hits. There have been many, many exciting games like game five, but the greatest ever? Afraid not.
Try game six of the 1975 Series between Boston and Cincinnati. That game contained some very timely and exciting plays, culminating with Carlton Fisk's body-english aided home run in the 12th inning. The greatest, however, has to be the 1956 game five - the Perfect Game. Let's have no more talk of the "greatest game."
Let's go to the real question. How come all these Cy Young quality pitchers are failing in the playoffs? Are they overworked? Are the managers panicking and pulling them from the game too early? Are they facing really good hitting all of a sudden? Are they not used to the pressure of a national stage? It's probably a little of all the above.
I think a major factor is cybermetrics. There, I said it. The Book says that so and so loses it after 80 pitches. History says he has trouble the third time through the lineup. These facts are all averages, you understand. If a pitcher fails after six innings once, but pitches well after six twice, it's self-defeating to automatically pull him after six because you are simply perpetuating the myth, that he's no good after six innings.
Add to that the fact that all the playoff teams have what is considered very good bullpens. Managers feel, "What good is having the guns if I don't use them?" All year, Keuchel, Kluber and Kershaw and the like have pitched into the 7th inning and gotten into and out of trouble along the way. Here we go into the playoffs and the managers have shown NO patience. Three hits and two runs, well you're all done. Bull pens aren't infallible. You bring in three relievers in a game and bound to run into someone who's having a bad day. Go to four relievers and that's almost assured. Give these guys a chance to solve their own problems. They're the ones that got you there.
In short, these managers are not managing to win, they're managing so as to be able to justify their decisions with front office and the press after the game. Especially the press. The teams that don't deviate from their normal game have the best chance of winning. This year, it seems to be the team that screws up the least has the best chance. Throw the book away and watch the game.
To paraphrase Charley Brown - "Tell your cybermetrics to shut up!"
Talk about a night game
Could someone have Commish Rob Manfred call me tomorrow morning and tell me what happened during the last two innings of Game seven. I tend to fall asleep in my chair after midnight. I know start times are determined by the advertising dollar, but how much influence does a commercial have on a guy sound asleep in front of the TV?
That'll teach him
I'm glad to see MLB moved quickly to punish Yuli Gurriel for his insensitive mocking of Yu Darvish with his insulting gesture. He's been suspended for five games. Wait, it doesn't take place till nest season? As long as you're being irrelevant you might as well schedule it for spring training games.
***THEY SAID IT***
"Can we make it a felony offense for 1st person who says “Game 7, win or go home.” -- Janice Hough
"Saturday night, Nebraska played the Purdue Boilermakers. After facing Ohio State last time, the Huskers said it was just nice to be back playing a college team." -- Brad Dickson
"A kitten wandered onto the field during the Ravens 40-0 thrashing of Dolphins. It looked just as weak as — well, you know — the Dolphins offence" -- RJ Currie
"A feral cat ran across the field at the tail end of the Ravens’ 40-0 pasting of Miami on Thursday night. Adding further insult, the cat finished the night as the Dolphins’ leading rusher." -- Dwight Perry
"Miami traded Pro Bowl running back Jay Ajayi to Philadelphia for a fourth round draft pick. A fourth-rounder! Miami may as well have given Ajayi to Philly for a stationary bike and box of kicking tees." -- Greg Cote
"So Dave Roberts actually had the audacity to challenge a call based on a rule his own 2nd baseman (Chase Utley) caused with a dirty slide?" -- Janice Hough
"UNC b-baller Joel Berry broke his right hand hitting a door in anger over losing a video game. What's position does the guy play? Pointless guard?" -- RJ Currie
"Bears QB Mitchell Trubisky threw only seven passes in a victory over Carolina. There’s a lot to be said for bringing a rookie along slowly, but Trubisky is playing with the world’s largest set of training wheels." -- Bob Molinaro
"An Italian soccer player was suspended five games for urinating on fans. This raises a frightening question: what do you have to do to be suspended for 10 games?" -- Brad Dickson
"Game 4 could have started at 7:05 EDT, but TV money commanded that it begin at 8:21 — on a Saturday! And Manfred has the colossal gall to claim that MLB’s top priority is kids — kids who work the night shift." -- Phil Mushnick
CP-
Sunday, October 29, 2017
2017 RECAP...AND A RANT, OF COURSE
There were good things and bad things in the course of the season, as they are in most years. The good things bolstered the confidence of all the Baby Bombers and helped them realize the great potential they have. Even the bad things were great learning experiences. A 29-game stretch in August when they 15-14, taught them that baseball is indeed cyclical, and that losses came become epidemic. But they also learned that perseverance pays off in the long run and it will help them stave off extended slumps in the future.
To accomplish this, however, they need that veteran clubhouse presence, the team leaders and the Yanks have a few: Bret Gardner, for sure, perhaps David Robertson. CC Sabathia and Todd Frasier could both fill that role IF they remain on the team next year.
There is always some house-cleaning to be done at the end of the year and hear are my suggestions
Players to dump:
Jaime Garcia - He was only procured as a safeguard anyway and never showed any ability to be anything other than that.
Jacoby Ellsbury - His talents have deteriorated and he's good only as a part-time (very part-time) backup outfielder. The Yanks would have to swallow a decent - actually indecent - amount of salary but I can't see that as being much of a deterrent.
Michael Pineda - He's a free agent so let him go. He's way too inconsistent.
Chase Headley - Can still hit but prone to extended slumps And his fielding at 3rd base has become a liability. Trade him even if you have to eat some salary.
CC Sabathia - sign him to a one year deal. His knee and shoulder make his continued health a mystery.
Todd Frazier - Re-sign him. He's a terrific fielder and a power hitter and could average 25-30 home runs a year. He's 31, so I wouldn't go more than a 2 or 3-year deal.
Starlin Castro - He can sure hit, but he's absolutely wild at the plate so when he slumps, I doubt anyone can help him. He's a definite liability in the field. I think they should make him part of a package with some 2ny level minor leaguer and get a decent pitching prospect. This will make room for Glyber Torres next year.
I think the rest of the team is fine.
Now the big question - who will replace Girardi? I can't say I'm sorry to see him go because I was tired of him 3 years ago, and in fact, Annie-O is also glad because she's tired of hearing me scream about his decisions.
A lot of names are being suggested by the Yankee beat writers, such as bench coach Rob Thompson and a couple of minor league managers from the Yanks farm system. My thinking has led me to one surprising name:
David Cone
He a natural leader, very personable and very smart. As we all know, he is a big, big proponent of cyber metrics. I think he'll work very well with the young pitching staff, and he's very familiar with the Yankee farm system. He would be my choice. I asked Annie-O if she agreed and she said, "Without a doubt."
And now a word from my cohort in crime:
"The Chad and C. Vod Picasner Dictionary of Contemporary Sports Words and Phrases" Word of the Day!
SCUMBAGGERY - n. : any utterance by a billionaire NFL franchise owner when he thinks he is not being recorded.
Example: Bob McNair, owner of the Houston Texans said "We can't have the inmates running the prison" during last week's owners meeting, in reference to ongoing player demonstrations.
Perhaps Bob should be taken into the little blue tent and put receive the concussion protocol. Or, better yet, perhaps Bob should be taken into the little blue tent and receive a concussion."
***THEY SAID IT***
"Tiger Woods has pleaded guilty to reckless driving. His short game hasn't been much either." -- RJ Currie
" The Chicago Cubs just dismissed their pitching, hitting & third base coaches after losing in NCLS. Wow, one win after a century and talk about greedy." -- Janice Hough
"During the Astros' 11-inning World Series Game 2 win over the Dodgers, a fan jumped into the Astros' bullpen. If the game had gone another inning the Astros planned to use the guy on the mound." -- Brad Dickson
"Odds-on favorite to win this year’s “Pot, Meet Kettle” Award: Kentucky’s John Calipari — the only coach to lead multiple schools to vacated Final Four appearances — saying the FBI’s probe of college basketball is giving his sport a “black eye.” -- Dwight Perry
"Apparently the cow that recently wandered onto a Brooklyn soccer field had momentarily escaped being slaughtered. It was like halftime for a Cleveland Brown" -- RJ Currie
"Ex-heavweight champ George Foreman, 68, challenged tough-guy actor Steven Seagal, 65, to a fight in Las Vegas after Seagal went off on NFL anthem protesters. They’re calling it ‘The Geezers at Caesars.’" -- Alex Kaseberg
"For the first time, several dogs at the Iditarod tested positive for a banned substance. People got suspicious when one of the huskies led Stage 3 of the Tour de France." -- Brad Dickson
"Joe Girardi fired as manager of the New York Yankees because he couldn’t get them far enough in playoffs. San Diego Padre fans are thinking ‘What are playoffs?" -- Janice Hough
CP -
To accomplish this, however, they need that veteran clubhouse presence, the team leaders and the Yanks have a few: Bret Gardner, for sure, perhaps David Robertson. CC Sabathia and Todd Frasier could both fill that role IF they remain on the team next year.
There is always some house-cleaning to be done at the end of the year and hear are my suggestions
Players to dump:
Jaime Garcia - He was only procured as a safeguard anyway and never showed any ability to be anything other than that.
Jacoby Ellsbury - His talents have deteriorated and he's good only as a part-time (very part-time) backup outfielder. The Yanks would have to swallow a decent - actually indecent - amount of salary but I can't see that as being much of a deterrent.
Michael Pineda - He's a free agent so let him go. He's way too inconsistent.
Chase Headley - Can still hit but prone to extended slumps And his fielding at 3rd base has become a liability. Trade him even if you have to eat some salary.
CC Sabathia - sign him to a one year deal. His knee and shoulder make his continued health a mystery.
Todd Frazier - Re-sign him. He's a terrific fielder and a power hitter and could average 25-30 home runs a year. He's 31, so I wouldn't go more than a 2 or 3-year deal.
Starlin Castro - He can sure hit, but he's absolutely wild at the plate so when he slumps, I doubt anyone can help him. He's a definite liability in the field. I think they should make him part of a package with some 2ny level minor leaguer and get a decent pitching prospect. This will make room for Glyber Torres next year.
I think the rest of the team is fine.
Now the big question - who will replace Girardi? I can't say I'm sorry to see him go because I was tired of him 3 years ago, and in fact, Annie-O is also glad because she's tired of hearing me scream about his decisions.
A lot of names are being suggested by the Yankee beat writers, such as bench coach Rob Thompson and a couple of minor league managers from the Yanks farm system. My thinking has led me to one surprising name:
David Cone
He a natural leader, very personable and very smart. As we all know, he is a big, big proponent of cyber metrics. I think he'll work very well with the young pitching staff, and he's very familiar with the Yankee farm system. He would be my choice. I asked Annie-O if she agreed and she said, "Without a doubt."
And now a word from my cohort in crime:
"The Chad and C. Vod Picasner Dictionary of Contemporary Sports Words and Phrases" Word of the Day!
SCUMBAGGERY - n. : any utterance by a billionaire NFL franchise owner when he thinks he is not being recorded.
Example: Bob McNair, owner of the Houston Texans said "We can't have the inmates running the prison" during last week's owners meeting, in reference to ongoing player demonstrations.
Perhaps Bob should be taken into the little blue tent and put receive the concussion protocol. Or, better yet, perhaps Bob should be taken into the little blue tent and receive a concussion."
***THEY SAID IT***
"Asking
prices for Packers tickets have dropped 50 percent and Green
Bay-area businesses expect a 15-20 percent drop in revenue
since QB Aaron Rodgers broke his collarbone last Sunday. And
State Farm is down to just a Discount Single-Check. ' -- Dwight Perry
"Tiger Woods has pleaded guilty to reckless driving. His short game hasn't been much either." -- RJ Currie
" The Chicago Cubs just dismissed their pitching, hitting & third base coaches after losing in NCLS. Wow, one win after a century and talk about greedy." -- Janice Hough
"During the Astros' 11-inning World Series Game 2 win over the Dodgers, a fan jumped into the Astros' bullpen. If the game had gone another inning the Astros planned to use the guy on the mound." -- Brad Dickson
"Odds-on favorite to win this year’s “Pot, Meet Kettle” Award: Kentucky’s John Calipari — the only coach to lead multiple schools to vacated Final Four appearances — saying the FBI’s probe of college basketball is giving his sport a “black eye.” -- Dwight Perry
"Apparently the cow that recently wandered onto a Brooklyn soccer field had momentarily escaped being slaughtered. It was like halftime for a Cleveland Brown" -- RJ Currie
"Ex-heavweight champ George Foreman, 68, challenged tough-guy actor Steven Seagal, 65, to a fight in Las Vegas after Seagal went off on NFL anthem protesters. They’re calling it ‘The Geezers at Caesars.’" -- Alex Kaseberg
"For the first time, several dogs at the Iditarod tested positive for a banned substance. People got suspicious when one of the huskies led Stage 3 of the Tour de France." -- Brad Dickson
"Joe Girardi fired as manager of the New York Yankees because he couldn’t get them far enough in playoffs. San Diego Padre fans are thinking ‘What are playoffs?" -- Janice Hough
CP -
Tuesday, October 10, 2017
THE DEATH OF PURE SPORTS
After last night’s Yankee win, Joe Girardi can spend a lifetime
knowing he and the incompetence of an umpire share the blame for NY
losing this series if Cleveland wins on Wednesday.
Here's to FoxSports 1 for a truly horrible broadcast of this series. John Smoltz should never be allowed to work a Yankee series. He still suffers from the scars of the Yankees winning four straight over his Braves team nearly twenty years ago.
While many use the mute button while watching sports, I needed a button to quickly turn the video off. Last night I counted 108 close-ups of Cleveland manager Terry Francon leaning on the dugout railing and spitting out mouthfuls of trash, and I doubt I counted them all. His over-stuffed yapper and constant oral defecation makes Ron Washington, ex-Texas manager, look like the perfect dinner guest.
Equally useless but at least less disgusting were the hundreds of cameo close-ups of bench players doing nothing and close-ups of pitchers’ nose hair while taking the sign. Real tension builders.
One shot I particularly enjoyed - a close-up of the back of several fans heads and nothing else. Inspiring!
And finally, if you have hung in this long, I’m saddened that any man with even a modest level of self-respect can wear a uniform that includes a racist, Native American caricature, that hideous, grinning, red-faced logo embroidered on the Cleveland jerseys and caps?
VOD-
It's been a whole since Vod has graced the pages of CP at Large with one of his rants. While I agree with his comments, I wish he had included a few choice words about the Louisville basketball debacle.
CP-
Here's to FoxSports 1 for a truly horrible broadcast of this series. John Smoltz should never be allowed to work a Yankee series. He still suffers from the scars of the Yankees winning four straight over his Braves team nearly twenty years ago.
While many use the mute button while watching sports, I needed a button to quickly turn the video off. Last night I counted 108 close-ups of Cleveland manager Terry Francon leaning on the dugout railing and spitting out mouthfuls of trash, and I doubt I counted them all. His over-stuffed yapper and constant oral defecation makes Ron Washington, ex-Texas manager, look like the perfect dinner guest.
Equally useless but at least less disgusting were the hundreds of cameo close-ups of bench players doing nothing and close-ups of pitchers’ nose hair while taking the sign. Real tension builders.
One shot I particularly enjoyed - a close-up of the back of several fans heads and nothing else. Inspiring!
And finally, if you have hung in this long, I’m saddened that any man with even a modest level of self-respect can wear a uniform that includes a racist, Native American caricature, that hideous, grinning, red-faced logo embroidered on the Cleveland jerseys and caps?
VOD-
It's been a whole since Vod has graced the pages of CP at Large with one of his rants. While I agree with his comments, I wish he had included a few choice words about the Louisville basketball debacle.
CP-
Sunday, October 08, 2017
NO PROBLEM, I'M JUST LAZY
I've said many times, how respect and admiration I have for writers who can publish daily, while I have problems publishing once a week - or even once a month, as you can see. So, here goes with a few rants.
I checked in with ESPN this morning to find out what's new today. There they were, two guys (former athletes?) dressed nicely in suits and one woman with her hair in a bun and dressed appropriately - if she was on her way to a tailgate party. Okay, so it's her choice but on to sports. Except we didn't. For the next 90 seconds, we celebrated the birthday of one of the guys. Pictures of his family holding signs, tweets from other players, all the while the young lady made funny (to her) comments at the top of her lungs, talking over everyone else. No ice cream or cake and definitely no sports. Goodbye.
It's taken a few years, but I finally agree with something Joe Girardi said. "I screwed up," he said, referring to the non-challenge of a hit-batsman call, a call that probably changed the course of the game. Of course, the bigger mistake was taking Sabathia out in the 6th when CC was going strong.
But that's Girardi. He can't wait to go to the bullpen. He likes to pull the starter in the sixth and get the last 10 or 12 outs with the bullpen. However, when you use 4 relievers, you run a big risk of running into a pitcher who's having a bad day. He'll never learn. His contract is up this year. Maybe Cashman and Steinbrenner will replace him. One can only hope.
So the Yanks are in the post season. Somebodies got to pay for it. Guess who? It's the fans:
With the Yankees back in the postseason, so is the price-gouging.
Parking in the Yankees’ lot, a gulping $35 during the regular season, is now $50.
Bleacher seats to Tuesday’s wild-card game were swollen from a regular season $17-22 to $101 a ticket, plus a $6 per ticket “convenience fee” and another $3.30 tack-on. Thus one bleacher seat cost $110.30. From Phil Mushnick, NY Post
Sometimes Annie-O and I make fun of David Cone doing the color on Yankee games. He is a huge believer of sabermetrics, often emphasizing their value with his pet phrase, "Without a doubt." But after hearing him and two clowns who shall remain nameless, on MLB Network during a playoff game, you'd have to say that he was far and away the best in the booth. His comments were on point and clear and, unlike one of his cohorts, refused to relate every play to his own career. He ignored repeated attempts by his partner to make fun of his own career and stuck to analysis of what was happening on the field. Way to go David!
***THEY SAID IT***
"Detroit Tiger Andrew Romine played all nine positions in a game. Then he ran into the stands and sold hot dogs." -- Brad Dickson
"Yankees manager Joe Girardi said “I screwed up” in not challenging HBP call. He did. But he wasn’t on the mound giving up six runs." -- Janice Hough
"Texas’ refurbished football locker room featuring 126 flat-screen TVs. It’s essentially Buffalo Wild Wings, without the liquor license." -- Norman Chad
"A couple that’s divorcing is involved in a custody battle over their Edmonton Oilers season tickets. Only in Canada do people say, “He can have the kids. I want the hockey tickets.”" -- Brad Dickson
"ESPN.com wrote Jose Altuve, 5’6″, “joined short list of players” with 3 home runs in 1 game in postseason. Did they type that with a straight face?" -- Janice Hough
"Unconfirmed reports say the Miami Marlins players knelt for the anthem at their last home game. One fan booed. The other fan applauded." -- RJ Currie
CP-
I checked in with ESPN this morning to find out what's new today. There they were, two guys (former athletes?) dressed nicely in suits and one woman with her hair in a bun and dressed appropriately - if she was on her way to a tailgate party. Okay, so it's her choice but on to sports. Except we didn't. For the next 90 seconds, we celebrated the birthday of one of the guys. Pictures of his family holding signs, tweets from other players, all the while the young lady made funny (to her) comments at the top of her lungs, talking over everyone else. No ice cream or cake and definitely no sports. Goodbye.
It's taken a few years, but I finally agree with something Joe Girardi said. "I screwed up," he said, referring to the non-challenge of a hit-batsman call, a call that probably changed the course of the game. Of course, the bigger mistake was taking Sabathia out in the 6th when CC was going strong.
But that's Girardi. He can't wait to go to the bullpen. He likes to pull the starter in the sixth and get the last 10 or 12 outs with the bullpen. However, when you use 4 relievers, you run a big risk of running into a pitcher who's having a bad day. He'll never learn. His contract is up this year. Maybe Cashman and Steinbrenner will replace him. One can only hope.
So the Yanks are in the post season. Somebodies got to pay for it. Guess who? It's the fans:
With the Yankees back in the postseason, so is the price-gouging.
Parking in the Yankees’ lot, a gulping $35 during the regular season, is now $50.
Bleacher seats to Tuesday’s wild-card game were swollen from a regular season $17-22 to $101 a ticket, plus a $6 per ticket “convenience fee” and another $3.30 tack-on. Thus one bleacher seat cost $110.30. From Phil Mushnick, NY Post
Sometimes Annie-O and I make fun of David Cone doing the color on Yankee games. He is a huge believer of sabermetrics, often emphasizing their value with his pet phrase, "Without a doubt." But after hearing him and two clowns who shall remain nameless, on MLB Network during a playoff game, you'd have to say that he was far and away the best in the booth. His comments were on point and clear and, unlike one of his cohorts, refused to relate every play to his own career. He ignored repeated attempts by his partner to make fun of his own career and stuck to analysis of what was happening on the field. Way to go David!
***THEY SAID IT***
"Detroit Tiger Andrew Romine played all nine positions in a game. Then he ran into the stands and sold hot dogs." -- Brad Dickson
"Yankees manager Joe Girardi said “I screwed up” in not challenging HBP call. He did. But he wasn’t on the mound giving up six runs." -- Janice Hough
"Texas’ refurbished football locker room featuring 126 flat-screen TVs. It’s essentially Buffalo Wild Wings, without the liquor license." -- Norman Chad
"A couple that’s divorcing is involved in a custody battle over their Edmonton Oilers season tickets. Only in Canada do people say, “He can have the kids. I want the hockey tickets.”" -- Brad Dickson
"Ousted
Louisville basketball coach Rick Pitino said pretty much the
same thing he did after his program’s previous scandal:
“These allegations come as a complete shock to me.” In
a related story, he’s going to this year’s Halloween party
dressed as Sergeant Schultz." -- Dwight Perry
"25th-ranked
LSU paid a $1 million appearance fee to — and then lost to —
20½-point underdog Troy. The last time Troy was involved in
a story this embarrassing, a horse was involved." -- Janice Hough
" Rick Pitino, on FBI charges of college basketball corruption:
“These allegations come as a complete shock to me.” Right. Every bit as
genuine as his hair colour." -- RJ Currie
"O.J. Simpson could
be released from prison as early as Monday. And to think,
Los Angeles was worried about North Korea." -- Argus Hamilton
"Right about now a whole lot of AL teams, including Red Sox would sign a petition to move the Houston Astros back to the NL" -- Janice Hough"ESPN.com wrote Jose Altuve, 5’6″, “joined short list of players” with 3 home runs in 1 game in postseason. Did they type that with a straight face?" -- Janice Hough
"Unconfirmed reports say the Miami Marlins players knelt for the anthem at their last home game. One fan booed. The other fan applauded." -- RJ Currie
CP-
Sunday, September 10, 2017
NUMBERS AND SIGNS
This is the home stretch for MLB, the last two dozen games, when every game, every at bat, every pitch is so important. Teams fighting for a playoff spot fight for every single game. They set up their pitching staff so their best pitcher starts a game that will help his team the most. Lineups are tinkered with, more pinch-hitters are used and managers mix and match relievers so much, your scorecard looks like a two-year old was turned loose on it.
On Tuesday this week, the Red Sox & Blue Jays used 19 pitchers - 12 by the Sox - in a 19 inning game that took 6 hours to play, probably an hour and a half just to change pitchers. Now that's going all out to win a game.
Well, maybe not quite all out. The Sox found an easier way to win. They cheated. Using all the wonderful electronic technology available to them, they stole signs, relayed them to the dugout and finally to the players in the field. Both the GM and the manager claimed to know nothing about it. And Sgt. Schultz never saw Col. Hogan's men doing anything suspicious. Sign stealing is not illegal but it's supposed to be unaided by any artificial means, such as binoculars, CCTV or microphones. Vin Scully used to treat his listeners to mound conversations by reading lips. When teams heard about this, they said, "Hey, wait a minute. This could be a good thing." Soon everyone on the field began covering their mouths like they all had a lethal case of halitosis.
Commissioner Manfred is going to have to do something drastic as a penalty because a thousand dollar fine and a slap on the wrist won't even be noticed by Boston. He could take away some wins but that idea rests only in the dreams of every Yankee fan. We will see.
Announcers like to inform us of every possible milestone that occurs in a game. So much so, they begin to sound so contrived that it's got to be hard for them to keep a straight face while relating them to us. ("Bob, that's only third time a left-handed hitter with a full beard popped up to third with two men on base and one out in the fifth inning of a game in an East Coast city against a pitcher of Lithuanian decent in the last two weeks.") I assume they've run out of reasonable stats.
Here's one that's real and not quite so silly:
Against the Orioles on 9/7, Chase Headley (uniform #12) hit his 12th homer of the season, Later in the game, Starlin Castro (#14) hit his 14th homer of the season. Where the hell is Aaron Judge (#99) when you need him?
The Cleveland Indians have won 17 games in a row - so far. They haven't lost a game since August 23rd. Is there anyone out there who can beat them? On the other side of the ledger, the Los Angeles Dodgers, at one time on a pace to win 125 games, have now lost 9 in a row, and 14 of their last 15 games. Is there anyone out there who can't beat them?
As I keep telling Annie-O when the Yanks slump, baseball is cyclical. everyone streaks and everyone slumps. To wit, Cleveland isn't that good and the Dodgers aren't that bad.
Best move of the season: The Houston Astros just completed a trade with the Detroit Tigers, with the Astros getting Kate Upton for three players and cash. The trade was almost cancelled when the Tigers insisted on packaging Justin Verlander in the deal, but Houston finally relented.
***THEY SAID IT***
"Roger Goodell, when asked if a team should sign Colin Kaepernick – “I’m not a football expert.” When the commissioner is right, he’s right." -- Janice Hough
"The Red Sox are in hot water for using modern technology to relay stolen signs using Apple iWatches. The Yankees are counter accused of using a TV camera dedicated to the Boston dugout. Meanwhile, the Mets are still using 70’s communications with Dick Tracy watches and ‘Get Smart’ shoe phones." -- Tony Chong
"Patriots coach Bill Belichick summed up their opening game efforts as “nothing was good enough.” No, wait a minute — that was my ex-wife's grounds for divorce." -- RJ Currie
"Ex-NFL diva Terrell Owens will be on this season’s “Dancing With The Stars”. If you care, keep it to yourself." -- Bob Molinaro
" In a 19 inning game vs Boston, Blue Jays had to use a few pitchers who hadn’t pitched recently. They were so much out of the loop, they had to ask the Red Sox to decode the signs." -- Tony Chong
"Ronda Rousey got married last weekend. Lately just about everybody has pinned her down." -- RJ Currie
CP-
On Tuesday this week, the Red Sox & Blue Jays used 19 pitchers - 12 by the Sox - in a 19 inning game that took 6 hours to play, probably an hour and a half just to change pitchers. Now that's going all out to win a game.
Well, maybe not quite all out. The Sox found an easier way to win. They cheated. Using all the wonderful electronic technology available to them, they stole signs, relayed them to the dugout and finally to the players in the field. Both the GM and the manager claimed to know nothing about it. And Sgt. Schultz never saw Col. Hogan's men doing anything suspicious. Sign stealing is not illegal but it's supposed to be unaided by any artificial means, such as binoculars, CCTV or microphones. Vin Scully used to treat his listeners to mound conversations by reading lips. When teams heard about this, they said, "Hey, wait a minute. This could be a good thing." Soon everyone on the field began covering their mouths like they all had a lethal case of halitosis.
Commissioner Manfred is going to have to do something drastic as a penalty because a thousand dollar fine and a slap on the wrist won't even be noticed by Boston. He could take away some wins but that idea rests only in the dreams of every Yankee fan. We will see.
Announcers like to inform us of every possible milestone that occurs in a game. So much so, they begin to sound so contrived that it's got to be hard for them to keep a straight face while relating them to us. ("Bob, that's only third time a left-handed hitter with a full beard popped up to third with two men on base and one out in the fifth inning of a game in an East Coast city against a pitcher of Lithuanian decent in the last two weeks.") I assume they've run out of reasonable stats.
Here's one that's real and not quite so silly:
Against the Orioles on 9/7, Chase Headley (uniform #12) hit his 12th homer of the season, Later in the game, Starlin Castro (#14) hit his 14th homer of the season. Where the hell is Aaron Judge (#99) when you need him?
The Cleveland Indians have won 17 games in a row - so far. They haven't lost a game since August 23rd. Is there anyone out there who can beat them? On the other side of the ledger, the Los Angeles Dodgers, at one time on a pace to win 125 games, have now lost 9 in a row, and 14 of their last 15 games. Is there anyone out there who can't beat them?
As I keep telling Annie-O when the Yanks slump, baseball is cyclical. everyone streaks and everyone slumps. To wit, Cleveland isn't that good and the Dodgers aren't that bad.
Best move of the season: The Houston Astros just completed a trade with the Detroit Tigers, with the Astros getting Kate Upton for three players and cash. The trade was almost cancelled when the Tigers insisted on packaging Justin Verlander in the deal, but Houston finally relented.
***THEY SAID IT***
"The
Mariners committed five errors in one inning? Everybody
knows there’s no I in team, but who knew there
were five E’s in Seattle?" -- Dwight Perry
"Saturday, a huge Nebraska comeback fell just short as the Huskers lost to Oregon 42-35. How bad was the Husker defense in the first half? At halftime the Oregon marching band scored on the Huskers when a third clarinetist caught a 39-yard touchdown pass from a trombone player." -- Brad Dickson
"Saturday, a huge Nebraska comeback fell just short as the Huskers lost to Oregon 42-35. How bad was the Husker defense in the first half? At halftime the Oregon marching band scored on the Huskers when a third clarinetist caught a 39-yard touchdown pass from a trombone player." -- Brad Dickson
"Roger Goodell, when asked if a team should sign Colin Kaepernick – “I’m not a football expert.” When the commissioner is right, he’s right." -- Janice Hough
"The Red Sox are in hot water for using modern technology to relay stolen signs using Apple iWatches. The Yankees are counter accused of using a TV camera dedicated to the Boston dugout. Meanwhile, the Mets are still using 70’s communications with Dick Tracy watches and ‘Get Smart’ shoe phones." -- Tony Chong
"Patriots coach Bill Belichick summed up their opening game efforts as “nothing was good enough.” No, wait a minute — that was my ex-wife's grounds for divorce." -- RJ Currie
"Ex-NFL diva Terrell Owens will be on this season’s “Dancing With The Stars”. If you care, keep it to yourself." -- Bob Molinaro
"Notre
Dame will wear Knute Rockne tribute uniforms when the Irish
play Navy on Nov. 18. Now
comes the tough part: Convincing the players to wear the leather
helmets." -- Dwight Perry
"The St. Petersburg Bowl has been renamed the Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla Bowl. That sounds like something the Centers for Disease Control would warn us about." -- Brad Dickson
"The St. Petersburg Bowl has been renamed the Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla Bowl. That sounds like something the Centers for Disease Control would warn us about." -- Brad Dickson
"Norwegian
cross-country ski champ Therese Johaug tested positive for a
banned substance in her lip balm. She can kiss the 2018 Winter
Olympics goodbye." -- Tom Cuddy, WBZ radio in Boston
"Patriots sign surveillance
drone to 7-year deal." -- TheKicker.com
"Patriots fans soundly
booed NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell during Thursday’s
season opener. Michael Vick got a better reception at the
Westminster Dog Show." -- Alex Kaseberg
"LPGA
rookie Sherman Santiwiwatthanaphong will be the first golfer
ever disqualified for running out of ink while signing her
scorecard." -- Dwight Perry" In a 19 inning game vs Boston, Blue Jays had to use a few pitchers who hadn’t pitched recently. They were so much out of the loop, they had to ask the Red Sox to decode the signs." -- Tony Chong
"Ronda Rousey got married last weekend. Lately just about everybody has pinned her down." -- RJ Currie
CP-
Friday, August 25, 2017
...AND IN THIS CORNER..
...weighing in, with a pea-sized brain...
Without going any further, I'll bet you know who I'm talking about. Yes, it's home plate umpire Carlos Torres, ably assisted by first base umpire and crew chief, Dana DeMuth who looked totally bored with the whole game.
When Tiger pitcher Michael Fulmer intentionally hit Gary Sanchez, there was a strong case for ejecting Fulmer right then, since Sanchez had beat up the whole Tiger pitching staff for three games. But there wasn't even a warning issued. Either of those actions would probably have forestalled all of the drama that followed.
When Yankee pitcher Kahnle threw behind Cabrera, HE was ejected, followed closely by mgr Girardi.
While Torres was standing in the infield, proudly defending his poorly timed decision to take control of the situation, he totally ignored the by-play between NY catcher Romine and Detroit batter Cabrera which quickly became an all-out fist fight. That started one of the biggest brawls I've ever seen. This was no usual "grab your partner and dance" standard baseball brawl, this was a few actual battles with players trying very hard to get at each other. Naturally, with all those bodies packed together, this was impossible - except for one guy. Aaron Judge came storming in from right field and parted the waters like they were little kids in front of him. I don't know who he was after but I don't think he reached him since there were no bodies on the ground when the fight finally broke up.
With the score tied in the seventh and the Yanks in the middle of a fight for the pennant, Betances was ejected for hitting McCann in the head with the second pitch of the inning. If you're going to intentionally hit someone in a close game, you don't put the lead off hitter on base and you never aim at the head. You're not Sal Maglie, a notorious headhunter, after all. So. Betances and interim-manager Thompson headed for the showers.
But they weren't done. Tiger pitcher Alex Wilson, who had displayed excellent control to that point, hit Yankee hitter Todd Frasier. Bye-bye Wilson and Tiger manager Brad Asmuth, who, according to Joe Girardi, first suggested that one Yankee player " be fruitful and multiply," but not in those words.
There will be fines and suspensions handed out, but the biggest punishment should be given to umpire Carlos Torres for basically creating the whole problem, followed by the crew chief, Dana DeMuth, who should have taken command but didn't. Never happen.
** In other news, Cleveland took Chris Sale to the woodshed by blasting him for seven runs in three innings while beating the Red Sox 13-6. Good news for the Yankees at least.
** Can somebody tell me what the Dodgers are doing? With the best record in baseball, heading towards a 116-win season, they go out and get premier pitcher Yu Darvish. Then they trade for Met slugger Curtis Granderson, who promptly hit a grand slam homer in his first game as a Dodger., after hitting a grand slam in his last game as a Met. How much help do the Dodgers think they need? These two guys haven't helped at all. The Dodgers are still only on a pace for 116 games. Maybe Mike Trout is available.
** I heard one of Aaron Judge's homers described as a "moon shot." That's a home run that is hit very, very high. I believe this phrase started back in the late 50's (Yeah, I'm that old) when the Dodgers first moved to California. They played in the old Memorial Coliseum that was not designed for baseball. This resulted in a left field wall that was about 250 feet from home plate, a little too short for major leaguers. To combat this the Dodgers erected a 40-foot high screen. This was partially successful until a left-handed singles hitter learned to slap fly balls to left which cleared the screen and probably never traveled more than 300 feet in distant. The players name was Wally Moon and this type of homer will forever bear his name. He hit eleven homers that year. Doesn't sound like a lot until you know that he only hit 13 homers total in the following six years of his career.
** I'm sick and tired of hearing Michael Kay announce the attendance of games and then declaring it as "sold out." Then the box score shows the same attendance number but says the it is 98% or 96% , based on the announced capacity of the stadium. C'mon Michael, don't be such a network stooge.
***THEY SAID IT***
"Manu Ginobili signed 2-year, $5mill deal with Spurs. Of course San Antonio saves some money since Manu’s health costs covered by Medicare." -- Janice Hough
"A man throwing out the ceremonial first pitch in Boston hit a Red Sox team photographer in the groin. Turns out he’s a Yankees fan and that’s where he was aiming." -- Brad Dickson
"The IOC ordered Los Angeles to upgrade its pistol-target venues for the 2028 Olympics. What’s wrong with the freeways we already have?" -- Argus Hamilton
"Panda Sandoval was called up this week by SF. Giants immediately installed speed bumps in the buffet line." -- TC Chong
" Justin Smoak notched his team-leading 33rd homer and 80th RBI helping the Jays win 5-3 over the Rays. Where there’s Smoak, there’s fire." -- RJ Currie [Note: RJ has officially taken over the lead for the Punmaster of the Universe title from Dwight Perry - CP]
"Just wondering: Do curlers take things for granite?" -- RJ Currie [See what I mean? - CP]
"The Red Sox and Yankees may be playing a series next year across the pond. London, UK; where the sport of choice vs baseball is Cricket. A Cricket game can last up to 4 or 5 days. So a NYY-Bos game could probably be no different!" -- TC Chong
Without going any further, I'll bet you know who I'm talking about. Yes, it's home plate umpire Carlos Torres, ably assisted by first base umpire and crew chief, Dana DeMuth who looked totally bored with the whole game.
When Tiger pitcher Michael Fulmer intentionally hit Gary Sanchez, there was a strong case for ejecting Fulmer right then, since Sanchez had beat up the whole Tiger pitching staff for three games. But there wasn't even a warning issued. Either of those actions would probably have forestalled all of the drama that followed.
When Yankee pitcher Kahnle threw behind Cabrera, HE was ejected, followed closely by mgr Girardi.
While Torres was standing in the infield, proudly defending his poorly timed decision to take control of the situation, he totally ignored the by-play between NY catcher Romine and Detroit batter Cabrera which quickly became an all-out fist fight. That started one of the biggest brawls I've ever seen. This was no usual "grab your partner and dance" standard baseball brawl, this was a few actual battles with players trying very hard to get at each other. Naturally, with all those bodies packed together, this was impossible - except for one guy. Aaron Judge came storming in from right field and parted the waters like they were little kids in front of him. I don't know who he was after but I don't think he reached him since there were no bodies on the ground when the fight finally broke up.
With the score tied in the seventh and the Yanks in the middle of a fight for the pennant, Betances was ejected for hitting McCann in the head with the second pitch of the inning. If you're going to intentionally hit someone in a close game, you don't put the lead off hitter on base and you never aim at the head. You're not Sal Maglie, a notorious headhunter, after all. So. Betances and interim-manager Thompson headed for the showers.
But they weren't done. Tiger pitcher Alex Wilson, who had displayed excellent control to that point, hit Yankee hitter Todd Frasier. Bye-bye Wilson and Tiger manager Brad Asmuth, who, according to Joe Girardi, first suggested that one Yankee player " be fruitful and multiply," but not in those words.
There will be fines and suspensions handed out, but the biggest punishment should be given to umpire Carlos Torres for basically creating the whole problem, followed by the crew chief, Dana DeMuth, who should have taken command but didn't. Never happen.
** In other news, Cleveland took Chris Sale to the woodshed by blasting him for seven runs in three innings while beating the Red Sox 13-6. Good news for the Yankees at least.
** Can somebody tell me what the Dodgers are doing? With the best record in baseball, heading towards a 116-win season, they go out and get premier pitcher Yu Darvish. Then they trade for Met slugger Curtis Granderson, who promptly hit a grand slam homer in his first game as a Dodger., after hitting a grand slam in his last game as a Met. How much help do the Dodgers think they need? These two guys haven't helped at all. The Dodgers are still only on a pace for 116 games. Maybe Mike Trout is available.
** I heard one of Aaron Judge's homers described as a "moon shot." That's a home run that is hit very, very high. I believe this phrase started back in the late 50's (Yeah, I'm that old) when the Dodgers first moved to California. They played in the old Memorial Coliseum that was not designed for baseball. This resulted in a left field wall that was about 250 feet from home plate, a little too short for major leaguers. To combat this the Dodgers erected a 40-foot high screen. This was partially successful until a left-handed singles hitter learned to slap fly balls to left which cleared the screen and probably never traveled more than 300 feet in distant. The players name was Wally Moon and this type of homer will forever bear his name. He hit eleven homers that year. Doesn't sound like a lot until you know that he only hit 13 homers total in the following six years of his career.
** I'm sick and tired of hearing Michael Kay announce the attendance of games and then declaring it as "sold out." Then the box score shows the same attendance number but says the it is 98% or 96% , based on the announced capacity of the stadium. C'mon Michael, don't be such a network stooge.
***THEY SAID IT***
"Yankee
slugger Aaron Judge broke the major league record by
striking out in 33 straight games.
That’s
what he gets for changing his breakfast menu from Wheaties
to Special K." -- Dwight Perry
"Manu Ginobili signed 2-year, $5mill deal with Spurs. Of course San Antonio saves some money since Manu’s health costs covered by Medicare." -- Janice Hough
"A man throwing out the ceremonial first pitch in Boston hit a Red Sox team photographer in the groin. Turns out he’s a Yankees fan and that’s where he was aiming." -- Brad Dickson
"The IOC ordered Los Angeles to upgrade its pistol-target venues for the 2028 Olympics. What’s wrong with the freeways we already have?" -- Argus Hamilton
"Panda Sandoval was called up this week by SF. Giants immediately installed speed bumps in the buffet line." -- TC Chong
" Justin Smoak notched his team-leading 33rd homer and 80th RBI helping the Jays win 5-3 over the Rays. Where there’s Smoak, there’s fire." -- RJ Currie [Note: RJ has officially taken over the lead for the Punmaster of the Universe title from Dwight Perry - CP]
"Just wondering: Do curlers take things for granite?" -- RJ Currie [See what I mean? - CP]
"Hear
about the latest set of Dallas Cowboys trading cards? They’re
the first to feature both front and side views." -- Dwight Perry
"The Dodgers — in the midst
of a 43-7 run — landed Rangers ace Yu Darvish, which is
like Bill Gates finding money." -- Greg Cote
"So if these brawls keep up can we expect to see the Yanks & the Tigers on pay-per-view? Down goes Frazier. (Clint). Not exactly what you expect in a baseball game." -- Janice Hough"The Red Sox and Yankees may be playing a series next year across the pond. London, UK; where the sport of choice vs baseball is Cricket. A Cricket game can last up to 4 or 5 days. So a NYY-Bos game could probably be no different!" -- TC Chong
"Last Wednesday,
in case you missed it, was National Coloring Book Day. Or as it’s
better known around college jock factories," National
Textbook Day." -- Dwight Perry
CP-
Sunday, July 30, 2017
IF I WERE COMMISSIONER...
...there's a few things that would be changed.
** Eliminate the Automatic Intentional Walk. You're not really saving any significant time and things happen. Balks and wild pitches can occur.
** There's no such thing as Defensive Indifference. Players care so much about their personal stats, let them pay for giving away an extra base. You let him get to second base than the runner gets a stolen base and it goes on your record that you gave up one.
** Institute the Designated Hitter in both leagues. Does it make the game different? Sure, it does. So What? One of the biggest reasons for it, is it keeps older players in the game longer. How do you think Boston would have felt if David Ortiz could only pinch hit all year? As for the purists, there is no rule that says you have to use a DH. Play your team that way but don't claim your opponent has an advantage by using the DH.
** Eliminate the Interleague play. Other than a few intercity rivalries, there's no big deal in having Tampa play Cincinnati or Arizona going against Boston. Let it go.
** Return the Hall of Fame Game. It was part of the celebration of the induction of the newest members. You can always make the game count in the standings. Let's celebrate the players superior accomplishments with the actual game that they excelled in. (We'll hear more about this when I ask to be in charge of the Hall of Fame.)
** Institute a code of behavior for umpires. We'll have an investigation every time a player or manager is ejected. If an umpire kicks a guy out, he better have a damn good reason. If an ump goes after a player or manager, there better be a compelling reason. When an umpire walks over to a dugout and tosses a guy, the ump is wrong. Being an over-officious jerk on the umpires' part will get him suspended. Here's two of the latest examples:
A) Home plate umpire Will Little (certainly an appropriate last name) threw out three Blue Jays in the course of one at-bat. The manager, the pitcher and finally the catcher all got the hook. Why? Little's strike zone was quite erratic and players complained. Umpires are often referred to a arbiters. An arbiter, by definition, a person whose views or actions have great influence over trends in social behavior. This means that when you make a decision,someone is going to be unhappy. So don't be surprised when they object. You asked to be an umpire, so live with the complaints.
B) Same game, umpire Gerry Davis threw out Adrian Beltre because he wouldn't stay in the on-deck circle. NOBODY stays in the on-deck circle. NOBODY stays in the coaches box either. NOBODY stays in the batters box. Why don't you do something about that?
Actually, we can make this easier. Watch whatever Umpire Joe West does and stop umpires from doing that.
** Please follow the rules. This is one of my favorite sore spots. "An umpire shall not call time once the batter is in the box and the pitcher has started his windup or is in the set position on the mound."
This is an actual quote from the rule book, yet umpires do it all the time. It also says the umpire should not allow a batter to be out of the box for longer than reasonable, but that's so vague, there is no way to enforce it. You might try not allowing them to re-tighten their batting gloves four times or more during an at bat.
** Post Season games should start by 7:05 PM EST. That's first pitch at 7:05, not the start of pre-game.
Do you hate sports cliches as much as I do? Read Hartley Miller's take on them:
There you have it. All improvements in my mind, at least. Of course, there's little chance of any of these actually occurring, but I can dream, can't I. Now you have some idea of what Annie-O has to listen to every night. That's when I can get a word in when the broadcasters take a breath. If they ever do.
NY Post back page headline after Brett Gardner's walk-off single:
"Guard-ian Angel"
***THEY SAID IT***
"It has become more than somewhat official that Odell Beckham Jr. has become the latest New York City sports star to think that having an unspoken thought is against the law." -- Mike Lupica
"British Open winner Jordan Spieth took 30 minutes before taking a shot on the 13th hole. It was so slow, Major League Baseball offered suggestions to speed up play." -- Alex Kaseberg
** Eliminate the Automatic Intentional Walk. You're not really saving any significant time and things happen. Balks and wild pitches can occur.
** There's no such thing as Defensive Indifference. Players care so much about their personal stats, let them pay for giving away an extra base. You let him get to second base than the runner gets a stolen base and it goes on your record that you gave up one.
** Institute the Designated Hitter in both leagues. Does it make the game different? Sure, it does. So What? One of the biggest reasons for it, is it keeps older players in the game longer. How do you think Boston would have felt if David Ortiz could only pinch hit all year? As for the purists, there is no rule that says you have to use a DH. Play your team that way but don't claim your opponent has an advantage by using the DH.
** Eliminate the Interleague play. Other than a few intercity rivalries, there's no big deal in having Tampa play Cincinnati or Arizona going against Boston. Let it go.
** Return the Hall of Fame Game. It was part of the celebration of the induction of the newest members. You can always make the game count in the standings. Let's celebrate the players superior accomplishments with the actual game that they excelled in. (We'll hear more about this when I ask to be in charge of the Hall of Fame.)
** Institute a code of behavior for umpires. We'll have an investigation every time a player or manager is ejected. If an umpire kicks a guy out, he better have a damn good reason. If an ump goes after a player or manager, there better be a compelling reason. When an umpire walks over to a dugout and tosses a guy, the ump is wrong. Being an over-officious jerk on the umpires' part will get him suspended. Here's two of the latest examples:
A) Home plate umpire Will Little (certainly an appropriate last name) threw out three Blue Jays in the course of one at-bat. The manager, the pitcher and finally the catcher all got the hook. Why? Little's strike zone was quite erratic and players complained. Umpires are often referred to a arbiters. An arbiter, by definition, a person whose views or actions have great influence over trends in social behavior. This means that when you make a decision,someone is going to be unhappy. So don't be surprised when they object. You asked to be an umpire, so live with the complaints.
B) Same game, umpire Gerry Davis threw out Adrian Beltre because he wouldn't stay in the on-deck circle. NOBODY stays in the on-deck circle. NOBODY stays in the coaches box either. NOBODY stays in the batters box. Why don't you do something about that?
Actually, we can make this easier. Watch whatever Umpire Joe West does and stop umpires from doing that.
** Please follow the rules. This is one of my favorite sore spots. "An umpire shall not call time once the batter is in the box and the pitcher has started his windup or is in the set position on the mound."
This is an actual quote from the rule book, yet umpires do it all the time. It also says the umpire should not allow a batter to be out of the box for longer than reasonable, but that's so vague, there is no way to enforce it. You might try not allowing them to re-tighten their batting gloves four times or more during an at bat.
** Post Season games should start by 7:05 PM EST. That's first pitch at 7:05, not the start of pre-game.
Do you hate sports cliches as much as I do? Read Hartley Miller's take on them:
There you have it. All improvements in my mind, at least. Of course, there's little chance of any of these actually occurring, but I can dream, can't I. Now you have some idea of what Annie-O has to listen to every night. That's when I can get a word in when the broadcasters take a breath. If they ever do.
NY Post back page headline after Brett Gardner's walk-off single:
"Guard-ian Angel"
***THEY SAID IT***
"It has become more than somewhat official that Odell Beckham Jr. has become the latest New York City sports star to think that having an unspoken thought is against the law." -- Mike Lupica
"British Open winner Jordan Spieth took 30 minutes before taking a shot on the 13th hole. It was so slow, Major League Baseball offered suggestions to speed up play." -- Alex Kaseberg
"Star
receiver Dez Bryant reported three hours late
to Cowboys training camp after hosting a
hometown barbecue the day before to thank his
supporters. Team
publicists, already in midseason form, listed
him as day-to-day with greasy fingers." -- Dwight Perry
"Whenever I listen to Sterling I hear a man doing an imitation of Ted Baxter.” -- Sportswriter Doug Branch
"Whenever I listen to Sterling I hear a man doing an imitation of Ted Baxter.” -- Sportswriter Doug Branch
"Alabama DE Da’Shawn Hand was arrested for alleged DUI last night. The
Tide open Sept. 2 against Florida State. But I’m sure Nick Saban will
send a strong message by suspending Hand for the first quarter of the
Sept. 9 Fresno State game." -- Janice Hough
"I told my wife to buy Tom Brady’s upcoming self-help book: not because it'll make me a gifted QB, exceptionally handsome or very rich, but because I live with a supermodel. She said: “We’re still not getting an 80-inch TV." -- RJ Currie
"How excited was Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck at Big 10 media days? Picture Richard Simmons with his finger in a light socket." -- Brad Dickson
"China has banned Disney character Winnie the Pooh due to comparisons made to Chinese President Xi Jinping. Look for America to follow suit, when the White House will ban the Disney character Pinocchio." -- TC Chong [Okay, not sports, but I like Tony - CP]
" You can come out now! Al Leiter is off for a while from YES’ Yankees telecasts. Even while inhaling, Leiter doesn’t stop talking. He’s like the universal sister-in-law." -- Phil Mushnick
" With Chris Paul and James Harden sharing a backcourt, every Rockets game will be a flopping clinic. There will be times when one of them takes a shot and both of them fall down." -- Scott Ostler
"With two tough losses, SF Giants blew great chances to climb within 30 games of the Dodgers." -- Janice Hough
"I told my wife to buy Tom Brady’s upcoming self-help book: not because it'll make me a gifted QB, exceptionally handsome or very rich, but because I live with a supermodel. She said: “We’re still not getting an 80-inch TV." -- RJ Currie
"How excited was Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck at Big 10 media days? Picture Richard Simmons with his finger in a light socket." -- Brad Dickson
"China has banned Disney character Winnie the Pooh due to comparisons made to Chinese President Xi Jinping. Look for America to follow suit, when the White House will ban the Disney character Pinocchio." -- TC Chong [Okay, not sports, but I like Tony - CP]
" You can come out now! Al Leiter is off for a while from YES’ Yankees telecasts. Even while inhaling, Leiter doesn’t stop talking. He’s like the universal sister-in-law." -- Phil Mushnick
" With Chris Paul and James Harden sharing a backcourt, every Rockets game will be a flopping clinic. There will be times when one of them takes a shot and both of them fall down." -- Scott Ostler
"With two tough losses, SF Giants blew great chances to climb within 30 games of the Dodgers." -- Janice Hough
"The LPGA is
enforcing a conservative dress code, including limitations on leggings and racerback
tank tops. Yep. That'll convince young folks golf isn't an
old fuddy-duddy sport." -- RJ Currie
"LaVar Ball is another one of those guys in sports about whom you have to ask this question:
Does he ever run out of saliva?" -- Mike Lupica
Does he ever run out of saliva?" -- Mike Lupica
CP-
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