Sad Day for Michigan Football

I never have liked the University of Michigan football team. Not because of the brand of football they play or for the colors of the school. You needn't look any further than my own higher education. As an Ohio State Buckeye alum you have to look long and far to find a Buckeye that likes UofM. I have always respected Michigan though because they have a traditionally tough football team and has given The Ohio State University fits in the past, although not in this century with the Buckeyes holding a 7-2 advantage dominating the last five with a 42-7 victory this past year in Columbus and a departing gift to former coach Lloyd Carr holding his Wolverines to a mere 61 total yards in the last confrontation in Ann Arbor. Despite those lopsided victories I still have respect for Michigan until today.

The once proud football tradition appears to be keeping pace with non-conference rival Notre Dame down the shameful losing path. The downfall started with the decision by Athletic Director Bill Martin to hire the wrong person to lead the team. Rich Rodriquez in his one season in Ann Arbor is already trying the patience of the University. The team lost a record 9 games last season including a woeful home loss to the MAC's Toledo Mudhens, err Rockets. On the football field Rodriquez has lost the fans, now off the field he is losing his own players. This past week players have complained to the press that the coaches are working them too hard. In a slightly enforced NCAA rule the coaches have been accused of forcing players to commit excessive time over and above the off-season NCAA limits. So not only is their decension among the players with the coaching staff but it appears the players do not want to be successful on the field.

Usually players are committed to team and will work extra to be successful on the field especially the teams that are competing to win conference or national championships. It appears though the goal in Ann Arbor this year amongst some of the players is to ease through the season and go through the emotions with "no goal involved". To make matters worse instead of Coach Rodriquez bringing his team together to explain, "why you do not talk to the press, why you do not share information with reporters or on your own on the internet", he goes to the press and cries. That's right a head coach from the University of Michigan crying. I never thought I would see the day. What recruit is going to want to play for this guy, or this University?

This is appalling for any football program but for Michigan? I wouldn't be surprised if the very quiet press conference held by RichRod jump started the breathing patterns and heart pumping of the late Bo Schembechler, who is probably yelling at the top of his lungs for anyone that can hear him to start digging because he might be the only one that can save the Wolverines from an apparent decline in Michigan football.

Salude to Tedy Bruschi

Today was a another interesting day in my life. Tedy Bruschi retired. Its another sign I am getting older. I recall as a student returning to college in 1994 I was on the University of Arizona campus. Tedy Bruschi was one of about five Wildcats to be on the cover of Sports Illustrated and the team was the pre-season #1 ranked team by Sports Illustrated coming off of a 29-0 whitewash of Ray Lewis and the bad boys at Miami University.

My class schedule was in sync with Tedy Bruschi's schedule as I would see him every day around the library. He was a stocky guy, certainly not tall and not your prototypical pass rushing defensive end. I certainly never would have guessed that this guy would go on to win three super bowls, an appearance in the Pro Bowl and spend 13 years with one of the best teams in the NFL the New England Patriots. It was 1994 and New England Patriots and best team were two words that simply were not heard in the same sentence.

Based on what I saw today Tedy Bruschi the smallish defensive end that transformed himself into a impact player as a special teams guy under Bill Parcells and eventually a great team player and linebacker was as responsible for the Patriots success as anyone outside of Tom Brady. It was nice to see Bruschi so content in his retirement speech talking about how it is so important in your career to have one great moment and he was so fortunate to have many great moments. Bruschi's moments seemed to parallel the Patriots success as a team. It was Brushi against the Jaguars in the 1996 AFC Championship Game against the Jacksonville Jaguars. It was Bruschi in the "tuck rule" game against the Raiders. It was Bruschi in the Super Bowl against the Rams, Panthers, and Eagles.

Simply put Bruschi was exactly what you wanted in a football player, the ultimate team player, and the perfect player according to future Hall of Fame Head Coach Bill Belichek. Bruschi was and has been the New England Patriots for the past 13 plus years. His numbers were not huge, but he made the right plays at the right time. He was always in the right place at the right time. He had the respect of his peers, his teammates and certainly the respect of this former Arizona Wildcat.

He was also perfect in his goodbye speech. Tedy will certainly be missed. Tedy belongs on the football field and someday I expect he will be back as a coach, possibly a head coach.

Must Win Season for Michigan Football

The pressure is mounting in Ann Arbor. A once very proud University with a strong football tradition has fallen on very hard times.

It seems forever since the #1 vs. #2 match-up where a veteran Michigan team was playing for a bid to the BCS Championship game against 2006 Heisman Trophy winner Troy Smith and the Ohio State Buckeyes. The Wolverines supposedly had the best defense in the country led by current Steeler and Super Bowl Champion Lamar Woodley. The Wolverines had a Heisman hopeful in their own veteran quarterback, current Miami Dolphin Chad Henne. That night in Columbus the Wolverines played valiantly but came up on the short end of a 42-39 score. Since that night the hangover in Ann Arbor has lingered over Michigan Stadium as fans called for the head of Lloyd Carr after losing to division I-A Appalachian State and Oregon to open the 2007 season after pollsters ranked the Wolverines as high as #5 in the pre-season polls and many predicted Michigan would make the Championship game with returning All-Americans Henne, Mike Hart, 2008 top NFL selection Jake Long, and Mario Manningham. Not only would the Wolerines falter against two non-conference opponents in their own stadium to open the season but would also get spanked in Lloyd Carr's home finale where the high powered Michigan offense could only muster 61 yards of total offense against Ohio State in a freezing rain. The loss to Ohio State was their 4th straight loss and 6 losses in the last seven seasons for Carr against the hated Buckeyes leaving many alumni and boosters desperately looking for another leader to answer their prayers of beating their rival from the south.

Coach Carr under the heavy pressure resigned after the Ohio State game but remained true to his players committing himself to stand with his players in the season ending bowl game, The Capital One Bowl in Orlando against the defending National Champion Florida Gators and Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow. As an unheard of two touchdown underdog against the Gators the Wolverines showed the potential that had been expected of them all season long when despite turnovers manhandled the Gators in a game that was much closer on the scoreboard as Michigan dominated the line of scrimmage pushing around the Gators in front of a home crowd less than two hours from Gainesville. This was the last sign of life at Michigan. That last sign that Michigan the winningest program in NCAA football was an elite football program.

Today Michigan is heading into its second season under the leadership of their football messiah, Rich Rodriquez the architect of the Buckeye killing spread offense. This year before the ball has even been kicked off Rodriquez who was the center of controversy following his departure from his alma mater West Virginia for failing to hold up to his end of the buy out clause in his contract is again in the press for all the wrong reasons. Turns out his own players are crying to the Detroit Free Press that coaches are subjecting players to double and even triple the allotted time for off-season mandatory workouts. The players in the program certainly need the workouts after a 3 win season but with players complaining to the media this could cause a rift in team chemistry. The coach will have to answer to investigators, the coach will also have to be very careful about what he asks of his players not knowing who to trust. This is not the best condition for winning when the same alumni and boosters who called for his predecessors job are rumbling again in Ann Arbor.

The Wolverines have lost two straight home openers something that had no happened in decades prior to the Appalachian State loss. Last year they lost to non-BCS conference opponent Utah, although Utah proved to be a great team with an undefeated season and bowl win over SEC powerhouse Alabama. This year the Wolverines open with Western Michigan from the MAC conference. The last MAC team to go into the big house, Toledo walked out last year with a huge win over the Wolverines and Western Michigan will be out to duplicate their conference's success against Michigan. Should Western Michigan win Rich Rod might not make it to the week two game against Notre Dame.

College Football Kickoff

The season kicks off this coming Thursday with a match-up of two BCS contenders; The Oregon Ducks of the Pac-10 ranked as high as #7 in the pre-season polls travel to the smurf turf just east of their Pacific Northwest home to Idaho to avenge their 2008 home loss to power of the WAC, Boise State Broncos.

The Oregon Ducks under new head coach Chip Kelley have loads of top talent led by stud senior running back LaGarette Blount and a big physical offensive line that on paper should overpower most opponents but this is where the good news ends.

The Broncos return sophomore sophomore to be Kellen Moore who completed nearly 70% of his passes albeit with lightweight competition and a very physical running back in Jeremy Avery. On top of that the smurf turf home field that has caused numerous guests to lose their composure before the game even kicks off. The Broncos will also be looking to get the bowl game loss to TCU out of their mouths with an opening day battle with the powerful Pac 10 Ducks.

The game should be a battle of talent versus home field over-achieving players wiht a major chip on their shoulders. The game should favor the Ducks from the perspective of talented, experienced players. The Ducks want revenge for last year's loss at Autzen Stadium in Eugene by the score of 37-32. In the loss due to injuries the Ducks were down to their 4th string quarterback and still nearly rallied late to beat the Broncos. In games like this a team the caliber of Oregon learns from their mistakes and than lets the talent take over but execution is easier said than done as the Broncos are not a pushover, especially at home. The coaching change for the Ducks doesn't help the Oregon cause as any time there is change mistakes are prone to happen and magnified in a what should be a tight game.

As for the Broncos they have a tough, experienced team. They will not ambush the Ducks and will get Oregon's best shot from kick off. This game will be a great indicator for Boise State as to how good they really can be this year. Beat Oregon and the table is set for making a run at a BCS bowl game, lose and their immediate focus will be winning the WAC. Boise State also needs to improve their image. Since their epic win using the statue of liberty play against Oklahoma in their only BCS appearance at the 2007 Fiesta Bowl in one of the great games of the century they have fallen short in bowl games against tough competition losing last in the waning moments against TCU by the score of 17-16 and the previous year in Hawaii getting ran over by current Tennessee Titan Chris Johnson and the East Carolina Pirates.

The battle in Boise is about as even as two teams can get. Talent favors the Ducks, experience is even, and the home field favors Boise State. Don't ever estimate the Broncos but at the very least we should expect a high scoring battle. Both running games will be physical and it should come down to quarterback play. Both Moore and Duck signal caller Jeremiah Masoli can put the ball up but the very physical Masoli gives the Ducks an extra runner in the backfield, edge on offense to the Ducks. On defense the Ducks are bigger, faster, more talented and have the taste of losing last year to the Broncos.



This should be a close one but final score prediction Ducks will score 32 again this year, control the ball from the start and will have to weather a late Broncos rally but be able to hold the home team to under 30 points. If you are a betting person take the over with any total less than 50 and give up to 3 points with the Ducks.

Roids vs. Party Favors

Who would win a MLB all-star game between the modern day steroid users and the "High Time" players? Who would win if the players were straight. It's performance enhancing drugs vs. performance diminishing drugs. Please help me out with players that you feel have not been given their due credit. Realize only one person can make a position and there are a lot of guys that just missed due to lack of needle play or just not being able to out-drink their fellow competitors.

All Performance Enhanced Team:

1B: Rafael Palmeiro, not only did he need the steroids but after games was popping viagra for exceptional male pleasure. Raffy gets the nod over some stiff competition because of exceptional overall numbers that easily outdistanced "Big Mac" and he absolutely denied in front of congress that he never used steroids only to get popped the following season.

2B: Brett Boone, I know there was never any official evidence of Brett doing steroids but at 5'9" in height and probably a rock solid muscular 225lbs Boone normally a light hitting second sacker put up huge numbers in the early part of the 21st century and was all done when testing became part of MLB. He was also part of a Jose Canseco accusation and so far Jose is being proven by many players to be telling a lot of truth.

SS: Tough competition here between two major roid-heads. The nod goes to Miguel Tejada. He probably got the roids through from Alex Rodriquez's cousin though. Tejada unlike A-Rod has seen his numbers decline since the testing began.


3B: Ken Caminiti; the former Padre 1998 NL MVP was convinced 85% of the other players were using roids and credited his on-field performance to steroid use. Can't get much more clear cut than Cami at the hot corner.


LF: Jose Canseco the poster boy for steroid abuse. David Wells noted in his book during his days in the minors Canseco went from about a buck and a half to two and a quarter over the course of one off season. Jose could have hula hooped a lady's braclet he was so skinny. Since then Jose has proven steroids not only make you big but make you a bad decision maker. Jose has tried his luck in one on one combat sports getting knocked out by 185lb former Philadelphia Eagle Vai Sikahema and then deciding to go after Korean Giant in MMA Hong Man Choi the 7'2" 340 behemoth. You're not that big, tough, or skilled Jose. You could hit a baseball though and also take on off the knoggin'.

CF: Brady Anderson, he hit 50 homers in 1996 almost double his next best season in the majors. According to former teammate Cal Ripken, "Brady always had a much more advanced concept of cross-training and plyometrics and his diet. He was just ahead of the curve... he showed Alex Rodriquez's cousin where to buy over the counter steroids.

RF: Sammy Sosa, the ever happy Chicago Cub who made it a habit of hitting 60 plus home runs per season doing it three times making a mockery of Roger Maris, Babe Ruth and forcing Barry Bonds to keep up with the Sosas. Sammy always had a kind word for the media but when congress questioned him on steroid, all of a sudden "no habla anglais". Furthermore when a Chicago sports writer questioned him and asked if he would take a test Sosa was compliant until the sports writer told him he had a doctor waiting when Sosa turned up his roid rage!

C: Pudge, not Fisk but Ivan Rodriquez. The Puerto Rican catcher went from 5'7" 225lbs down to a realistic 180 lbs after drug testing became en vogue in MLB. Pudge still has a great mind for the game when the roid free backstop went on his South Beach diet after leaving the Marlins for the Tigers and leading a young pitching staff to the 1996 World Series.

SP: Plenty to choose from here but Kevin Brown gets the nod over The Rocket. Brown an Human Growth Hormone abuser put up some gawdy numbers in the late 90's and eventually would succumb to injuries.

RP: Eric Gagne, the Canadian hockey player was a mountain of a man coming out of the pen at 240lbs but in recent years since testing has trimmed down to 195lbs and has seen his average of 50 saves from 2002-2004 come back to earth at an alarming rate to averaging 14 saves per season during the past three years without serious injury.

All-Performance Diminishing drug Team

1B: Joe Charboneau the 1980 rookie of the year award winner from the Cleveland Indians actually played in the outfield but we need to find a place for this guy. This guy the "Wild Thing" before Charlie Sheen's Rickie Vaughn came into the spotlight in the hit sports movie "Major League". Charboneau was a favorite at the nightspots in Cleveland where he would eventually end up after popping open beer bottles with his eye socket and drinking the brew from a straw through his nose. Joe even pulled on of his sore teeth with a pair of pliers after drinking a shot of whiskey. Chuggin' Joe would eventually end up at the flats working the door checking ID's and tending bar after a short lived career with the Indians. Probably the fasted decline of any ball player in MLB history.


2B: Billy Martin, despite being part of World Champion Yankee teams in the 50's the Bronx Bombers were forced to trade Martin away because he was corrupting superstar Mickey Mantle. The writing was on the wall for Martin when he drove off the road killing himself in a drunken stupor at the age of 58.

SS: Pretty clean position here any suggestions, better yet any personal stories?

3B: Ken Caminiti wins this position hands down after killing himself with a cocaine overdose in Mexico but since he cannot play on both side of the ball the nod goes to Hall of Famer, Wade Boggs. What performance diminishing drug was Boggs addicted to? The worse kind.....women. Boggs an admitted sexual addict was pumping bowsers when there was nothing else available. The power of pussy can be very detrimental and Boggs's habitual back problems were probably the result of late night inverted sit-ups.

LF: Daryl Strawberry the guy was in and out of re-hab his entire career and it's amazing he lasted so long in the Majors. Many more colorful players including the Babe who had an addiction to booze, women, hot dogs, and lack of interest in the game he dominated but not quite the wigged out sad case of the former NY Met and Yankee.

CF: Mickey Mantle, how good would he have been had he not had such an affection for the booze. Mantle missed a team train in Cincinnati after partying all night in that live wire town of Covington, Kentucky where anything goes only to catch a cab with Whitey Ford and Billy Martin the next day to Pittsburgh where they had an exhibition game. After knocking a 500 foot blurry eyed home run Casey Stengel gave him the rest of the day off while teammate Martin cursed him as he had to sweat out his hangover in the field playing all nine innings of an exhibition game for missing the team train.



RF: Dave Parker, affectionately known as the Cobra for his uncoiling action when blasting line drives off the right field wall in Three Rivers Stadium Parker had problems with smoking cigarettes in the dugout, cocaine, a rift with racism in Cincinnati as Marge Schott's n-boy, had to deal with Ron Peter's Pete Rose's bookie in the Cincinnati club house, Canseco and McGwire doing roids in the Oakland Clubhouse and than rounding out his career in Milwaukee where Bernie the Brewer was being dunked in beer before finding peace at the age of 40 north of the border in Toronto for one season. Imagine if the Cobra was able to play in Baltimore for Earl Weaver or in Los Angeles for Tommy Lasorda for 17 seasons he might have been able to put up eye popping numbers.

C: Darrel Porter the former all-star from Kansas City and St. Louis. Porter had a tough time with booze that shortened his career and eventually pulled a Caminiti killing himself with a nose candy overdose.

SP: A lot to choose from here and its tough to ignore Don Larsen's perfect game with a hangover but what Doc Ellis did for the Pittsburgh Pirates in the early 70's pitching a perfect game on LSD takes the cake. Acid is a powerful 10 hour trip and how he stayed focused might be the most amazing feat of concentration in sports. He must have been addicted to the streamers that were following the ball that day.

RP: Save the best for last, Steve Howe. The former Los Angeles Dodger Rookie of the year and all-star fireman. Howe was suspended 7x from MLB for his cocaine abuse. Later in his career he was spotted in Costa Rica where the price for the "white" comes much cheaper. He hooked fellow Dodger teammate Dave Stewart on the "blow" and Stew got the Lord quick and was able to rectify his career winning a World Series and Cy Young Award in Oakland. Howe was not so fortunate, his battle with cocaine ended at the age of 48 killing himself in an auto accident just east of Palm Springs in Coachella, California.

Who is deserving that isn't on this list? Who would win a match-up between the two teams? First game all-looped up, second game straight, and the rubber match if necessary the players would have to switch drugs and play? If nothing else it would be very interesting.

King Cobra Malt Liquor and a Big Mac

Dave Parker otherwise known as the Cobra could have easily been mistaken as the Camel for this chain smoking ways during the psychedelic 70's with the Pittsburgh "We Are Family, Sister Sledge" Pirates and on through his latter years teaming up with Mark McGwire and Jose Canseco the roid brothers in Oakland.

Parker has probably been overlooked for his prowess on the baseball field by Hall of Fame voters in lieu of the gaudy power numbers produced by the grand fraternity of modern day stimulants not necessarily associated with nicotine.

Despite an alleged horrible habit that is subject to much more lenient fines in restaurants and bars throughout various states in the Union the Cobra was one hell of a ball player.

During the course of his career he was a 7x All-Star selection, 2x World Series champion, 3x Gold Glove Award winner, 3x Silver Slugger Award winner, the 1978 NL MVP, the 1979 MLB All-Star Game MVP, and the 1985 Home Run Derby winner.



Meanwhile Parker's future teammate in Oakland Mark Mcgwire who he teamed up with to win a world series and play on the same all-star team together wowed 'em in Oakland and St. Louis while playing for the Athletics and Cardinals. He also received standing ovations on the road in numerous National League cities for hitting tape measure home runs. Big Mac was the big news in the 90's cranking out record setting numbers of home runs. He topped Roger Maris's single season mark of 61 with an eye-popping 70 home runs in 1998.

During the course of his 15 year career shortened by back problems he won one gold glove at first base, was a 12 time all-star, won 3 silver slugger awards, a home run derby and one world series title.

So Big Mac with his mighty 586 home runs easily outdistances Parker's 339 dingers but doesn't appear to be headed anytime soon to Cooperstown. On the flip side Parker outhit McGwire with both average and hits with 2,712 to 1,626 and .290 to .263. So now it doesn't appear that McGwire even with the roids should be a shoe in if a guy like Parker isn't getting the cred he deserves. Parker also had his run ins with illegal substances feeling the need for nose candy which caused his numbers to slump in the early 80's. Parker was also a defensive stud with a cannon for an arm which he displayed routinely but on the big stage throwing out Jim Rice at third and Brian Downing at home to squelch a late rally by the American Leaguers.

Hopefully sports writers are taking more notes on substance other than nicotine, roids, and blow and focusing on the numbers and impact the players had on the game. Dave Parker for all of his bad boy activities was a force on the field whether at the plate or in the field during his day. If he didn't knock one out of the park he would knock the cover off the ball while putting line drive dents into the right field fence of old Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh.

Furthermore Parker easily outdistances McGwire as a colorful personality of the game. McGwire almost hid his guilt of roid abuse in interviews often avoiding the press rooms and keeping his comments simple.

Parker was embodied by Sister Sledge, probably got Steve Howe started on nose candy in the early 80's, and was Marge Schott's N-boy in Cincinnati. Although I am sure he didn't prefer the latter but was quite a combination with Madame Kraut in Riverfront Stadium while being coached by the in-house handicapper and all-time hits leader Pete Rose. Just when it was getting wild Parker ends up in Oakland to win a world series with the roid brothers including future mixed martial artist and boxing beat down boy Jose Canseco. And if that wasn't enough he goes onto making the all-star team with Milwaukee in 1990 while making Bernie go down the slide into the tub of beer 21 times in old Milwaukee County Stadium.

While McGwire's numbers were effected by performance enhancing drugs, The Cobra's career was effected by performance inhibiting drugs along with racial tensions, gambling tensions, and a crazy mascot that nearly drown himself in beer. Someone please give big Dave a Hall of Fame vote he deserves it!

Male or Female?

Is she male or female. There are a lot of feminine guys out there with child bearing hips and chesticles. So why is it hard to believe that this young lady with no boobies or hips could be female. First of all she is a world class athlete and trains like one and is still only 18, not too hard to believe she might just not be developed fully although those muscles tell a different story.

This one is just downright baffling. Glad I have yet to see an interview.

Gun Laws

The Constitution tells us we as citizens have the right to bear arms to protect ourselves, especially against an unjust government. So it makes perfect sense when NY City Mayor Michael Bloomberg makes it a point to publicly blast Plaxico Burress for his having a gun in the Latin Club on the upper east side of Manhattan. On the night of November 22, 2008 Burress shot himself accidentally in the leg. An accident! Unknown to anyone in the loud club Burress removed himself and was taken to the hospital by teammate, NY Giant linebacker, Antonio Pierce.

Why did Burress have a gun on him that evening? Was he exercising his right to bear arms to protect himself? Consider one week earlier teammate and fellow wide receiver Steve Smith was held at gunpoint and robbed in front of his home. Consider friend Shawn Taylor was murdered in his home during a robbery a year earlier. Consider former NFL player San Diego Charger linebacker was shot and killed by an off duty police officer. Consider Jacksonville offensive lineman Richard Collier was shot 14 times and lost his leg effectively ending his lucrative NFL career. Consider promising young cornerback Darrent Williams of the Denver Broncos was shot and murdered leaving a New Year's Eve party after his rookie season ending his life. NFL players are wealthy. They are big men. The aforementioned players are black and perceived as dangerous by society based on prison populations and media portrayal of prison criminals. They are targets for both the police and random armed burglaries.

Yes, even itchy triggered off duty police officers who are employed by the tax payers to protect and serve don't seem to be doing their job when guys like Steve Foley are being murdered yet being claimed as a victim of accidental death.

Is it possible that Plaxico might be fearful. Consider he has been the victim of two home burglaries and vandalism to his home, so criminals are coming to his door, his space. So is it reasonable to believe Plaxico might have carried a gun with him on his career changing night in November of 2008? Is is also reasonable to believe Plaxico might not have known one of the tens of thousands of NY City laws? In the land of the free and home of the brave it is reasonable to expect that when you have no malicious intent in your heart as Plaxio Burress had on the night of November 22 that you should not expect to go to jail when you harmlessly go out on the town to enjoy your freedom and accidentally hurt yourself in the process.

Yet, Mayor Michael Bloomberg feels it is necessary to stick a tax paying citizen in prison. The judge based on Bloomberg's influences feels it is necessary to increase Burress's bail from $10,000 to $250,000. The prosecutor feels it is necessary to go to the media calling for Plaxico to do prison time. The charges of the court is documented as The People of the State of New York vs. Plaxico Burress. Who in the state of New York does sending Burress to prison benefit other than the Mayor, the prosecutor and the prisons themselves? No one! Plaxico hurt no one. He paid his hospital bill. He pays his taxes! Putting him in prison is an injustice towards the rest of society with the exception of Bloomberg, the judge and the prosecutor. The prosecuting of the case was a waste of taxpayer money and the dollars necessary to house Plaxico will be another waste of taxpayer money. Land of the free......right, don't try to sell me shit and call it gold.

Who is the next person to go to jail when you do not have your high paid lawyer walking with you every step of the way because you aren't exactly sure what your freedoms are from state to state.

Cub fan, Cub Infiltraitor

This past week, I lost the guardian of my youth. Mr. Richard O. Viren of Rock Island, Illinois was a lifelong Chicago Cub fan who never saw the Cubs win a World Series during his 85 plus years on this planet. What could have been in October of 2003? For on the 14th of the Halloween month in 2003 the biggest obstacle between the Cubs squaring off against the Yankees in the fall classic was not the Florida Marlins but a cursed Cub fan named Steve Bartman. Young Mr. Bartman probably spent a pretty penny for his left field foul line seat and thought he was entitled to a foul ball worth at best $10 yet was priceless to many Cub fans including myself and old man Viren.

Like most sports baseball is a situational game. One out in the eighth inning in 2003 against the Marlins and the Cubs held a 3-0 lead when second sacker Luis Castillo was at bat. Castillo hits a high foul ball down the left field line which was within reach of being caught for the 2nd out of the inning. Moises Alou a veteran baseball player and professional athlete merely needed to reach up a foot into the stands to snare the ball for the 2nd out of the inning. Alou today has been very generous towards Bartman stating that catching the ball was not a given but considering we are talking about a professional athlete the caliber of Alou chances are very high that he makes the catch. Replay also shows his glove hovering right under the cursed alleged Chicago fan just waiting for the 2nd out of the inning. Unfortunately for legions of Cub fans many of whom have passed away over the course of the past 6 years the foul ball souvenir was more important to Bartman than the opportunity to get into the World Series for many long time Cub fans. After Bartman's greedy little fingers reached out to steal the hopes of many long time Cub fans there was riotous activity down the left field line. Old ladies were among the raucous crowd berating the newest edition to Cub curses, the traitorous fan in blue, and quite possibly the most insensitive person to ever set foot in historic Wrigley Field who mocked the ghost of Harry Carey with his act of evil!

Many non-Cub fans will disregard Bartman's devious act but if a Red Sox, Giant, Indian or White Sox fan on that night witnessed one of their home crowd dressed in their colors act with such disregard for the situation they would understand the events that would transpire.

Now had Cub enemy #1 never boughten a ticket for game 6 in Wrigley Field that night the probability the Cubs would have two outs with only the speedy future Cub Juan Pierre on second base and the slow footed Ivan Rodriquez at the plate. Rodriquez hits a grounder to the backhand of Cub shortstop Alex Gonzalez who takes his time, makes the grab and easily throws Pudge out at first base for the final out of the inning leaving only three outs and no runners on base between the Cubs, a date with the Yankees in the fall classic and one step closer to the baseball dreams of Mr. Viren.

Unfortunately the situation was not two outs but one out and the very fast Juan Pierre on 2nd base. Castillo would eventually work a walk off of Cub starter Mark Prior with a ball four wild pitch that sent Pierre to third base. Now leading 3-0 a double play would get the Cubs out of the inning. A ground ball out or sacrifice fly and Pierre easily scores from third tightening the game to 3-1. As a baseball player you want the double play and Alex Gonzalez wanted the double play so bad he hurried his actions rather than being able to take his time due to Steve Bartman's act of evil against every Cub player, Harry Carey, and fan in the last 95 years since 1908. Because Gonzalez had to hurry his actions he ended up booting the ball making the score 3-1 and putting men on first and second with future Cub all-star Derek Lee at the plate who would tie the score with a double and the avalanche would continue until the Marlins were safely ahead 8-3. Eight runs because of Bartman. Eight runs because of Bartman. I can't say it enough to make history change but to this day the game was changed by Steve Bartman.

Any home team fan whether its the Tampa Bay Devil Rays or the New York Yankees knows you do not interfere with a home team player trying to make an out, especially in a crucial game 6 of a league championship series. Especially when the hopes of 95 years of futility as in the case of the Chicago Cubs was at stake. I recall watching Derek Jeter of the Yankees diving three rows deep into the stands in the playoffs to come out with a bloody gash under his chin. Yankee fans understood the situation and they have been winning World Series at an alarming rate yet the fans were hungry enough to win rather than get a foul ball.

Baseball is just a game. If the Cubs never win or even make it to a World Series I will not be too upset because there is more to life than baseball. But I have a good feeling this year about the Cubs. They are right there in the thick of the Central Division playoff race and should they make the playoffs I know the ghost of Mr. Viren will make his presence known whether it's an infield bleeder or a 2 out broken bat RBI, he will make his presence known. In 2002 right after my mother passed away I felt her presence during one of the wildest college football seasons for my alma mater, Ohio State. A fourth down touchdown pass against Purdue, two game ending interceptions against Cincinnati and hated Michigan to go undefeated in the regular season setting up a title match for the National Championship with one of the best and most talented college football teams of the decade the powerful Miami Hurricanes. And in that national championship game the touchdown underdog Buckeyes made fortunate unreal play after unreal play that gave me the feeling my mother's ghost made her presence felt during that game. Not that she was a Buckeye fan but she just wanted to see me happy. Well Mr. Viren you have left this world only in body, I look forward to seeing your spirit in action for the remainder of this season.

Basketball champions, slam dunks, and YouTube Phenoms?

What do Bill Russell, John Wooden and Michael Jordan have in common? Well first of all none of them has ever come to visit me on Christmas Day or any other day for that matter so they have a lot in common but the basketball denominator is the slam dunk.

John Wooden, the infamous Wizard of Westwood won ten NCAA Championships in 12 years, a feat that probably never will be matched again. Consider Duke and Indiana won 3 championships in their best 12 year span since the great UCLA teams of the 60's dominated the collegiate hardwood and prior to UCLA's dominance Kentucky won 4 championships during their best 12 year span. Even more powerful no collegiate team outside of John Wooden's Bruins ever won more than two titles in a row. UCLA under "The Coach" won an unprecedented 7 straight from 1967-1973. Although Wooden's teams had two of the great dominant big men of the late 60's and early 70's with Lew Alcindor and Bill Walton the dunk was never a part of the UCLA game plan. The plan was to play team basketball, concentrate on the fundamentals, and play hard for 40 minutes or until the final buzzer sounded. Wooden's teams were moved the ball around with precision passing, and the players were constantly in motion with or without the ball causing defensive problems for the opposition. Wooden's teams were a YouTube.com nightmare. No dunks! The highlights were fast breaking layups, open look jump shots, and back door cuts for easy baskets. Fundamentals were crucial to the success of the NCAA's greatest teams of all-time.

Bill Russell if the younger generation does not know this name by anything other than the current NBA Finals MVP trophy knows as the Bill Russell NBA Finals MVP trophy at 6'9" and the centerpiece of the great Boston Celtics of the 50's and 60's actually never was much of a dunker. Russell did win 11 NBA Championships though during his 13 year career added to his two collegiate titles in 1955-56 as the University of San Francisco Don's center plus a Olympic Gold Medal at the 1956 summer games. Bill Russel not only didn't have much use for the slam dunk but was also a YouTube.com reject in that his prowess as a shot blocker rarely ever sent a ball flying out of bounds but would deftly reject shots into the direction of his teammates often leading the team to an easy two at the other end of the court. Russell also never averaged more than 18.9 points in any season.

Michael Jordan considered by many as the greatest player to ever play in the NBA really didn't have much use for the slam dunk either. Sure Jordan has his silhouette adorned to Nike shoes and clothing and he did win a slam dunk title in 1988 en route to an All-Star MVP performance but the dunk was never really that valuable to one of the NBA greats. Heck, Jordan was dunked on by John Starks in the 1993 playoffs that sent that put the Knicks ahead of the Bulls 2-0 but would eventually the lead would discipate over the course of the next four games as Chicago finished off the Knicks in 6 with a avalanche of turn-around fade aways, defense, and more fundamentals that would lead Chicago to it's third straight NBA title. So much for the Starks dunk it was useless but did get a few night of air time before the Bulls went on to claim the all-important Larry O'Brein trophy for the NBA champions.

Jordan's illustrious career can be defined by two eras. The high flying slam dunking scoring machine from 1984-1989 including his slam dunk title and than the 1990's when Jordan increased his assist numbers along with team play that led to six titles in the six full years that Jordan played from 1991 through 1998.

Point is it's always good to take notice of the greats of the game on how the game should be played. Concentrate on the fundamentals and a long NBA career is more apt to happen as opposed to honing up on your slam dunking skills to make YouTube.com highlights. Don't get me wrong you can get a fine playground legend reputation but that doesn't pay the bills, it doesn't put you in front of the big crowds, and you will never compete against the best. In the past month camera phones and video recorders have caught a freshman from the University of Kentukcy slamming on Jerry Stackhouse of the Dallas Mavericks and a junior from Xavier University slamming on King James, Lebron James. It's created quite the buzz but really the footage is poor and not quite up to the NBA's caliber of cameras dating back thirty years and there doesn't seem to be very big crowds either.

So......who cares? Unless your goal is to be the next "Kimbo" Slice and beat up bums on YouTube.com than get into the ring with a real Mixed Martial Artist only to get knocked out in 12 seconds the whole slam dunking doesn't mean squat for either the Kentucky fresman or the Xavier junior because Jerry Stackhouse has had a long career in the NBA earning multiple millions of dollars where he can retire very comfortably in extreme luxury and "King James" will continue to scare just about everyone in the NBA outside of Kobe Bryant every time he brings the ball down the court. He will end up in the NBA Hall of Fame and probably win a few NBA championships along the way. The slam dunk was just a kid with some hops getting a good angle and the King didn't feel like putting his body in the way during a summer pick up game.

I wonder if there were video recorders and YouTube.com around during one of the greatest baseball players of all time Babe Ruth would they have been getting headlines every time he struck out. News flash the Babe struck out 1,330 times! It's not that big of a deal and all of those pitchers that might have struck him out could have been YouTube phenoms in today's era but also remember the Babe hit .342 off of these guys, popped 714 home runs, knocked in a whopping 2200 plus runs, and had a plethora of other offensive records against guys that struck him out. Oh, yeah even the Babe never slam dunked.

NHL owners don't want Balsille?

I am trying to figure out why the NHL owners do not want Jim Balsille the Canadian billionaire to take over the bankrupt Phoenix Coyotes and would prefer to accept a bid of $75 million less from Baseball and Basketball owners Jerry Reinsdorf of the White Sox and NBA's Bulls?

Balsille's plans make sense when it comes to moving the Coyotes out of Phoenix to Hamilton, Ontario. Phoenix cannot draw excitement with Wayne Gretzky the man who made Hockey in southern California and the Ducks can thank for winning their Stanley Cup. Phoenix appears to be a big write off.

Phoenix is one of the worse conceived plans for NHL Hockey. First of all the northern game played on ice is sitting there in an empty stadium in the desert. Not many Phoenicians grow up on hockey and those that move in from Chicago, New York, Wisconsin, Minnesota and other states are loyal to the their hometown teams. The original Coyotes played in the old America West Arena is downtown Phoenix which is centrally located with a large population surrounding the stadium. Today the updated US Airways Arena is an even better location in downtown Phoenix due to the light rail system which can bring in fans from further out. The current Coyote facility at jobing.com stadium is a joke. It's located on the outskirts of Glendale. Sure the NFL Cardinals can draw fans there since they are the reigning NFC champs and football only hosts 8 games where fans can fill up the hotels but hockey is different.

Hockey has 41 home games and it's a regular event from October to April and fans cannot afford to stay in hotels every night. The hockey facility is located better than 25 miles from Scottsdale, Mesa, Tempe, Chandler, Gilbert and the other outlying areas that would be a good target for potential Coyote fans. Also the Coyote fans that want to go out have a good time and drink a few have to be very wary of the "cowboy lawmen" who come equipped with needles to test blood alcohol content in any suspected driver. And the "cowboy lawmen" are very aggressive when it comes to suspecting. I have to give the whole Phoenix experiment two thumbs down for planning to move an NHL franchise and not even Jerry Reinsdorf nor George Steinbrenner could make the Coyotes successful in Phoenix.

Meanwhile in Canada where hockey is religion makes Hamilton an ideal place not only immediately but in the future. The growing population of Toronto especially to the south makes for a natural rivalry at least for the Maple Leaf games which Phoenix has nothing comparable being 300 plus miles from the Ducks in Anaheim. In Toronto the Maple Leafs regularly sell out so fans to the south of Toronto that want to watch hockey can make the short trip for the games. As for the future many of the youth move out of Hamilton for the big city and can still maintain an allegiance to the Hamilton franchise in the future heightening the natural geographical rivalry and still being able to attend games in Hamilton.

Meanwhile to the southest of Hamilton about 90km is Buffalo. Another natural geographical rivalry. If nothing else the travel cost for these games would be minimal compared to what the current Coyotes are dishing out to visit local rivals in Anaheim and Los Angeles.

The NHL's big complaint is Jim Balsille himself. Many claim he is trying to come in through the side door to the league and the league owners expect him to come through the front door. Well the league owners are not letting him in the front door so Mr. Balsille's only option is the side door if he wants into the league.

Just over 20 years ago a very wealthy oilman from Arkansas wanted to get into the NFL. He wasn't greeted with the most open of arms. He has often been chastised by other owners in the NFL. Since he came into the NFL he has been one of the most successful owners in the NFL despite ridding the great Dallas Cowboy franchise of iconic personalities such as Hall of Fame Head Coach Tom Landry and President Tex Schramm. Jerry Jones was a new blood in the NFL and he brought great new marketing ideas which has benefitted all of the owners in the league.

Jerry Jones came into the league in a non-traditional manner much like Jim Balsille would with the NHL and the NFL is a model for how all team sports leagues should be run and the NHL is lagging behind the other sports so maybe it is time for a Jim Balsille to enter into the league!

It's most definatly time for hockey to leave Phoenix, which is not worthy of an NHL team!

It's time for a smart move to Hamilton for the NHL that will make three franchises more prosperous. As for Toronto and Buffalo losing a fan base, what they lose in fans they will make up in future television revenues as the facilities will be full and more games per year will be far more exciting.

Goodbye Giambi on this day August 8, 2008

As a tribute to Jason Giambi let's hope the poster boy for steroids is the turning of a page in the future of baseball where the game can be free of sports.

In honor of Giambi on this day August 8th, 2009 let's look back in baseball history at players that deserve recognition for their feats on the diamond as clean ball players.

1903 - Joe McGinnity (New York) pitched two complete games in one day. He won 6-1 and 4-3 over the Brooklyn Dodgers. The lanky Irishmen free of steroids but potentially a high tempered athlete on the whiskey.

1915 - Clifford "Gawy" Cravath (Philadelphia) hit four doubles and brought in eight runs in a game against the Cincinnati Reds. During an era of the mushball where not even steroids might have helped the Philly right fielder wooo'ed onlookers on this day smacking the bejeeezies out of the dead ball!

1920 - Howard Ehmke (Detroit Tigers) set an American League record when he defeated the New York Yankees 1-0 in 1 hour and 13 minutes. Where was Tony Larussa to pull the Tiger Ace? Out defending Mark McGwire and slamming Jose Canseco?

1931 - Bob Burke (Washington Senators) pitched a 5-0 no-hitter against the Boston Red Sox.

1954 - The Brooklyn Dodgers scored 13 runs in the eighth inning to beat the Cincinnati Reds 20-7 at Ebbets Field. Not the greatest of comebacks but the ethically diverse Dodgers led by Captain "Pee Wee" Reese was not on the "juice radar" with his slap hitting prowess!

1973 - Boston Red Sox Orlando Cepeda hit four doubles against the Kansas City Royals. Not quite the deadball but one of the first latin ball players along with Roberto Clemente to not visit the juice bar with "Cousin Rodriquez".

1982 - Doug DeCinces hit three home runs against the California Angels. He had hit three home runs against Minnesota five days earlier. Great third sacker with a wirey frame was one of the early free agents that earned big bucks with a great glove instead of the long ball which has been incentive for the "juice crowd"

1996 - Eddie Murray (Baltimore Orioles) moved into 15th place on the career home run list when he hit his 494th. How many "juice heads" have passed the great Eddie Murray and is there a reason he isn't referred to as "the great Eddie Murray"? Even if mistaken as the great Lions field goal kicker.

1996 - Willie McGee (St. Louis Cardinals) hit his 2,000th major league hit. Willie's upper body was as thick as Giambi's bicep yet the Cardinal speedster and former MVP was good enough to win a World Series ring in "82.

1998 - Paul Molitor (Minnesota Twins) stole his 500th career base. One of the pure greats of the game in the early stages of the steroid era, he continued to get key hits throughout his career en route to being part of Three World Champion teams in the latter part of his career in Toronto and Minnesota.

1999 - Wade Boggs got his 3,000th hit of his major league baseball career. And the self-proclaimed sex addict was verile enough to establish public relations across the typical baseball demographic with a fine handlebar red mustache.

2002 - Major league baseball players and owners agreed to a $100,000 increase in baseball's minimum salary. The minimum was set at $300,000 starting in 2003. I guess more money was needed by the players to pay for the travel expenses for A-Rod's cousin to the Dominican Republic to pick up care packages!