By Aaron M Smith
We are officially done with football until April. Pitcher and Catchers are starting to report to Spring Training – and I really didn’t have a topic for this weekend. So I decided to see if I could conjure up some discussion on the board and throw out observations on some recent topics in sports. Here we go:
1. I know we have avoided the “S” question for quite some time on this site, but unfortunately I believe it has to has to be brought to the table again. Alex Rodriguez. A-Rod. Or as the NY Tabloids are calling him – A-Fraud. Aside from being a Red Sox fan, I was disappointed to hear that this story was in fact true. I believe a lot of baseball fans were putting their hopes on A-Rod. Here was the guy that would take over Barry Bonds as the HR King. I congratulate Alex for coming out and being honest about his usage of Performance Enhancing Drugs. That being said, was I the only one that felt his explanation was wishy-washy? It is obvious that major league baseball has not hit rock bottom in the steroid scandal. Yes – I said it – steriods. It is like saying ‘Lord Voldemort’. Living in Boston, I started to wince every time Curt Schilling opened his mouth – but this time, I think he is right. Release the names of the 104 positive names and let’s move on. I would prefer to see baseball move on from the issue, and not worry that 2 or 3 years down the road another name is going to come out.
2. Did anyone else know that Anquan Boldin has two years left on his existing contract? I also just found out that Drew Rosenhaus is his agent. Hmmm, sign a deal and then re-negotiate halfway through. That sounds familiar. Could it be that Rosenhaus’ other clients (Terrell Owens and Chad Johnson ) have done the same routine? My first reaction is – let him sit out the next 2 years if he doesn’t like his contract, but that leads me to..
3. Has any team been hit harder then the Arizona Cardinals in this offseason? Already they have lost both their offensive and defensive coordinators. Your starting QB and one of your start wide receivers are threatening to either hold out or retire. And all of this in less then 2 weeks. Even Jerry Jones has to be chuckling to himself a little bit.
4. We haven’t talked much NHL on here, but the Buffalo Sabres took a HUGE hit when they lost leading scorer Thomas Vanek for a month with a broken jaw. It will be interesting to see how the Sabres make up for his scoring, as they push for the playoffs. Normally, I would know who they would call up but – who is their farm team now?
5. Does anyone remember a time when we were this close to the beginning of spring training and big names like, Ken Griffey Jr., Bobby Abreu, Adam Dunn, Orlando Cabrera and Manny Ramirez still don’t have a job? I would include Ben Sheets in the equation, but the recent news of elbow troubles makes it likely that he will be out for the 2009 year. Personally, I believe that as long as Abreu and Dunn are available on the market – no team is going to make more then a 2 year offer to Manny Ramirez.
6. Tiger Woods is rehabbing the knee and is starting not only swing the golf clubs – but play rounds of golf. Do you think other golfers are starting to think, “Boy, if I am going to win – I had better do it now!! ” ?
7. Also – did anyone else feel teased by ESPN when they started showing ads for the first 2 rounds of the Masters this week? The tournament is in April – are you trying to drive me nuts?
8. If you haven’t noticed the countdown on the site – the greatest rivalry in all of sports is about to add a new chapter. Duke and North Carolina battle it out in Cameron, Wednesday night. Should be a good one.
Enjoy..
HOT OFF THE PRESS – THIS JUST IN – EVERYBODY HAVE A SEAT…Brett Favre is going to retire. 🙂
Did Rosenhaus and Boras go to the same school?
5. Of all the guys not signed I am surprised by Cabrera. He is a more than an adequate shortstop who has a penchant for clutch hits. I can’t imagine him asking for the same price tag as an Abreu.
What is the Masters? Why is it driving you nuts? Is it anything like when Aunt Bea is baking a pie? The aroma becomes so much Pa and I just can’t stand it. Pa he just walks around the house muttering – mmm…mmm…mmm. Aunt Bea I swear you outdone yourself this time.
The players’ union must love Curt Schilling. Look, we can talk all we want about how they should release the names of the 104 guys who tested positive, and how that would be fair to all of those who didn’t–although we don’t know for sure that that exonerates everyone else–but it’s a moot point. The union agreed to the testing under the stipulation that it would be anonymous. So, who’s going to release the names? Sports Illustrated? Well, I guess the only way to release the names would be to leak them to the press, so that may be the answer.
That brings me to another point. Bud Selig recently asked a reporter, “So what do you think I should do?” in response to clamoring about how MLB need to get tough, crack down…blah blah blah. Bud is absolutely right. There’s really nothing that can be done at this point other than what’s already being done. What people seem to not realize is that the MLB Players’ Union is right up there with the UAW and the Teamsters as the strongest unions in the country, so Selig can’t just play hard ass and do whatever he feels like. He deserves a fair share of criticism for how slow MLB was to react, but let’s not forget that it took Congress to prevent the players’ union from resisting him on instituting testing in the first place. That should tell you how hard it is to be the commissioner when you’re dealing with a union like the MLB Players Association. Let’s cut Bud some slack for that.
Steroids, Steroids, Steroids!!! There, I said it.
Chas
Do you feel better now that you have had a catharsis?
Are we playing fantasy baseball again?
Can we pinpoint a place in time where Schilling officially became a weenie. I swear he is auditioning for one of these Valentine’s Day commercials – you know the one I am talking about – “because you are not that guy.” He says all the right things for the public to eat up, but I find him about as believable as I do much of ARod’s interview with Gammons. You didn’t know what drugs you were putting in your body? Why didn’t he just say he was not going to answer that question. He didn’t know?!?
Slowly the HR record is becoming irrelevant. My concern is the effect these issues have on guys like Andre Dawson or Don Mattingly. I can’t help but think their HOF candidacy is affected by the inflation of power numbers brought on by steroids. Suddenly Dawson’s number are easy to overlook. Why? Because a guy like Brady Anderson goes for 50 in a season. The HR value has changed, but guys like Dawson and Mattingly whose careers were on the fringe suffer consequences for something they did not do.
Did anyone catch the Outside The Lines segment on the birth of steroids in the NFL? Interesting stuff.
Just in from the news room: Duke is a “decent team”. Casey … you may have been right about them all along. Sorry.
Did I hear that Abreu just signed? With who?
This just in – Drew Rosenhaus, the agent for Plaxico Burress, Anquan Boldin and Chad Johnson sent an e-mail to all NFL teams informing them that all 3 players are available via trade.
Huh?
Isn’t that for the coaches to decide? Or is this a new strategy from NFL GMs where they let the agents do the dirty work?
There is not a team this year capable of being successful by entering into a shootout with UNC. Last night was a perfect example. Duke hung with UNC for what was one of the best halves of basketball I have seen in a long time. But the Blue Devils gave into temptation and thought they could they could maintain that pace. When UNC starts scoring within five seconds of getting possession they are at their best. They can maintain that pace over a long period.
Not bad, I passed this on to a aide of mine, and he actually bought me lunch because I found this for him, so let me rephrase: Thanks for lunch.