Who's Crying Now?

It seems the people in the National Football League think that it was wrong that the New England Patriots played the full 60 minutes of Sunday's game against the Washington Redskins. John Clayton of ESPN told Mike & Mike in the Morning on ESPN Radio that people were livid that Bill Belichek didn't call off the dogs in scoring 52 points in their 52-7 win over Joe Gibbs' Washington Redskins.

Calling off the dogs in a sport is akin to taking you foot off the pedal in the car on the way to work in the morning. You can't get to work with the car idling! New England is now 8-0 going into a showdown game with the 7-0 Indianapolis Colts this week. Oh by the way, the Colts are the reigning Champions of the aforementioned NFL. Should the Patriots have pulled Tom Brady? Should they have run the ball between the tackles on every play, the defense thus knowing the play to stop them? Should the defense of New England laid down for the running back to get a first down, or even score? Should the National Football League have crying?

There is a saying as old as dirt. There is no crying in baseball. You get plunked by the pitcher - walk to first and don't rub it. So I retort with this: In the World Series of a week ago, when the Boston Red Sox were laying the wood to the Colorado Rockies 8-0 in the 6th inning, should they have taken Manny, Big Papi or Series MVP Lowell out of the line-up? Maybe they could have sent Eric Gagne out to the mound with a gas can and a few Blue Tips. He could have given up the long ball to 4 or 5 guys, just to make it fair.

Instead of calling off the dogs, they played 9 innings, taking into account the Rockies winning 21 of 22 to end the season and sweeping themselves into the World Series where they waited 9 days to play the Boston Red Sox. Ask them if they wanted the lay off. Granted, they won't apoligize for winning early, but they had some rust.

The Patriots play the defending champs this weekend. Do you think they want to take their foot off the gas before they get to the final horn of the Super Bowl, much less against the Redskins?

Bizarro World?

For those of you who don't understand what the "Bizarro World" is, let me explain it quickly. In the Superman Comic Series by DC Comics, there is an alternate and opposite world. Superman has an evil opposite of himself, and hello is goodbye. If I go any further, one may draw the conclusion that I'm a nerd. Far from it, just know it from Seinfeld.

Anyhoo. I was running through the news of the day and found a Bizarro World right here on earth.

The Christian Science Monitor had an article that answered a question many people have asked me in the past. What happens to the merchandise of the losing teams in sports? You know the ones claiming the guys that lost really won. You won't walk around in the United States and see a guy sitting on a park bench wearing a 2007 AL Champion Cleveland Indians t-shirt. The shirts were made because they were a game away from winning. So where do they go?

Africa my friend. They send them to the poor and needy in third world countries. I was in Chicago at the Museum of Natural History looking at a picture of an African child in a Batman shirt. At first I dismissed it as pop culture all around the world. After finding this, I realize my attitude was closed minded. That child had a smile while living in poverty. He could care less what was on his shirt. Maybe he was just happy to have a shirt, even if he might not know from where his next meal was coming.

Those shirts and merchandise go to help people. I know that they could care less who wins, but if you were to go to that place one might think the Chicago Bears won the Superbowl last year. I'm happy to see that the clothes are put to good use, and it is a great help to those who need it instead of ending up in an incinerator somewhere here in States. MLB started this year by signing on with other sports leagues to help.

Even if your a fan of no one in the series, at least hope that it goes seven games. It will benefit someone...and it will be one less day until Spring Training '08.

6 Pack?

Whitey says:
Rockies in 6!

Say What?

With the World Series upon us and the NFL in full-swing, Whitey and I feel the need, nay the duty, to alert all of our faithful readers to many of the inane comments consistently issued by purportedly intelligent commentators. These guys (and sometimes gals) get paid to spout some the most banal drivel this side of your local news.

Watch any of the side show NFL games and you'll know what we're talking about (Craig Bolerjack anyone?). Whitey loves Tim McCarver. I think Dick Enberg should be banned from announcing any event not involving ice skates, strawberries and cream, or azaleas ("Oh My!").

Here are some of our favorites (?) :

1. "At the end of the day..." The classic. Uttered by coaches and commentators alike. At the end of the day it's amazing you still have a job.
2. "That's a great football play," or "...wonderful golf shot." Hey moron, I know what sport I'm watching. I would be surprised if Tiger Woods hit a stunning half-court volley. This is one of John Madden's favorites ala, "He's a great football player." Incredible insight. Along these same lines is, "He's a gamer."
   
3. "Crafty Lefthander." During the World Series game tonight, start your stopwatch and see how long it takes for Tim McCarver to call Jeff Francis a "Crafty Lefthander." Or how long it takes for them to mention the Yankees. It's a toss up.
4. "Scrappy" or "Never-say-die attitude." The Rockies will get this one thrown at them early and often, especially if they are losing 10-0 in the third.
   
5. "Catching lightning in a bottle..." Again, this will said by someone within the first ten minutes of tonight's World Series game. Guaranteed.
6. "If the season ended today..." Well, it doesn't, so we don't care.
7. "Chop wood" or "Blue Collar" or "Lunch-Pail guys" or "Grinders" or "Insert your favorite workingman's phrase here." These guys just go to work, albeit for slightly more money than your local Ford assembly line employee. I don't know how they do it...
8. "Whoever wins the turnover battle..." Rinse. Repeat next week.
9. "They have to play as if they have nothing to lose." Really? This is the "What Me Worry?" line which comes flying out every time a team appears woefully over-matched. Most teams do have something to lose...like the game.
10. Anything said by Skip Bayless. If you see Skip, change the channel. Now.

Remember, the mute button is your friend. And be on the lookout tonight for two guys: Matt Damon and Ben Affleck. You might see them.

Classless?

My first major League experience was at Yankee Stadium. My father and I went to a game against the White Sox. I was never a AL fan and never will be. I think the DH is an abomination. However the mystique of Yankee Stadium is haunting. All the great players that have placed that franchise on so many banners, past and present, is mind blowing. My take from the experience was that Yankee fans were rude and the owner was a tad cranky at the time, the early 80's.

Forward to the years that Rudy ran crime from the streets and the Yankees started their run to a few rings. Seinfeld placed Costanza in the front office of the Yankees and Buck Showalter lost his job. Along comes one of the classiest cats in baseball, Joe Torre. Along with Rivera, Posada, the sprinkling of Sheffield, Lofton, Aaron Bleepin' Boone and the maturation of Derek Jeter, the Yankees as an organization became somewhat palatable.

All that went out the window last Thursday. Offering a guy that has been second only to Bobby Cox in post season births being a 40% pay cut and an incentive laden contract is classless. There were no negotiations, showing as much disrespect as would canning the guy in Spring Training. To offer a manager a lame duck contract is as classy as booing A-Rod after a MVP season.

Yes Yankee fans, you will now feel like the Storm Troopers on the Death Star. Bend over and kiss your tokus good-bye. There will be chaos in the Bronx. Big Stein is back making decisions for the sake of being relevant. Brian Cashman, the Senior VP and GM of the Yankees, has got to feel kicked around like a hacky sack at a Lalapalooza tour stop. Cashman got to be the guy who offered that joke to Torre. And that is what it is, a joke!

Torre won 4 World Series Titles, 12 Divisions Titles, and was the AL Manager of the Year twice. Bobby Cox hasn't won the titles that Torre has, but has a longer Post Season streak and a job. Bobby doesn't have a carrot at the end of a stick contract and Torre's next one won't either. If I were the Yankees, I would have at least locked the guy up in the organization, but they can't think that far ahead. They will think twice when Torre shows up across town in Shea Stadium taking the Subway Series, or in Boston at which time the Death Star implodes in on itself.

The Atlanta Braves have stuck with Bobby Cox as he has caught and surpassed the record for being ejected from games by a manager and only won one World Series. He is their guy, and has continued to be for 16 years. Atlanta had made a run into the post season for 14 straight years before the resurgence of the New York Mets. Cox didn't make it to the playoffs for a couple of seasons, but he still has a contract and is not looking over his shoulder.

The over inflated expectations of the Boss has sent one of the best managers into the booth. If you can't remember how bad it was in the late 70's, and 80's, just wait Yankee fans. History repeats itself. You can put them in a new stadium, but you can't make them have class. As long as the business people are running the baseball operations, Cashman may want to keep his head on a swivel.

All is calm in Hotlanta; and bedlam in the Bronx.

By the way...go ahead and look at the number #15 team in the country!

1. Rushing Defense #13
2. Scoring Offense #7
3. Scoring Defense #5
4. Net Punting #2
5. Turnover Margin #1
6. Interceptions #1

The Keg of Nails comes home this weekend!

GO BEARCATS!

Take Two!

Much has been made (or missed, ha!) of the "Timeout right before the kicker attempts a critical field goal" scenario in the NFL. The tactic has seen success and failure so far - the Broncos made the Raiders do-over and Janikowski missed. The Raiders took the hint and used a time out against the Browns the following week to force a second kick, which they blocked. On Monday night the Bills made Cowboys kicker Nick Folk do it twice...and he made it twice.

Initially I considered myself a member of the change-this-scenario crowd. I found it a bit over the top - an annoying and sleazy tactic. But The Professor has had a change of heart. I heard an interview with Dolphins kicker Jay Feeley last night on Fox Game Time Live with Andrew Siciliano which provided a new slant to the idea.

Feeley said that providing the kicker two chances to make one kick is akin to allowing a golfer two attempts at a putt. In an extremely scientific experiment conducted by myself and a friend over many rounds of golf this summer, I can attest that the second putt is almost always more accurate than the first.

Feeley claims the same thing is true with kicking. While a couple of times the scenario has not played out exactly this way, he claims that if you a give a kicker two chances to make the same field goal more often than not he can nail the second one. Taking into account the wind, the trajectory, the distance, blah blah blah...the kicker can fine-tune his kick based on the results of the first one. These being professional kickers, giving them basically a practice kick is not a good idea (in the long run) according to Feeley.

His argument is a compelling one, seeing as he's a kicker and should know a bit about these things. I also find such arguments as "They should change the rule" a bit misleading. There isn't a specific rule that allows coaches to do this sort of thing. In fact, one would have to significantly alter the current rules to allow for a "No-Time-Out-Right-Before-The-Kick" situation. On any play the coach (or a player) is allowed to call a time out right up to the snap of the ball. In an article today Michael Smith argues for a change that would state "... any time a team lines up in a field goal formation, the opposing team may not call timeout after the play clock reaches 10 seconds."

I must point out the insanity behind this idea. Let's say a team lines up for a field goal and with nine seconds left on the play clock flips into a different formation, ala a fake field goal or a blatant non-field goal formation. Is it ok to call a time out now? What if a team lines up in field goal formation and then has the QB, who may be positioned to hold the ball for the kick, stand up with 11 seconds left and position himself for a shotgun snap? The rule would have to have addenda such as "The opposing may team may not call a time with ten seconds or less on the play clock unless the formation changes to a certain extent as to significantly alter the purpose of the play or complete mayhem ensues and we have no idea what is going on and therefore all bets are off and a naked man runs across the field."

Leave the rule the same. The fans know the second one is gonna count (as you cannot call time outs on consecutive plays with no play having been run) and the thrill will still be there. Heck, maybe the kicker will ask his own coach to call a time out so he gets one free practice shot. Well, maybe not.

It's A Mistake?

Instant Replay in baseball. Sounds simple. It's not. In the one hundred and sixty third game of a one hundred sixty two game schedule, the play-in game was decided on a play at the plate. From the time I woke up at 0530 this morning until I sat down to opine on the controversy, I had seen the replay some 100 times, from a variety of angles.

The basic mantra being bantered about is that the runner missed home plate. I saw the hands of the home plate umpire signal safe. That is where it ends for me.

All the pundits crying that they deserve the right call need to just shut up. Baseball has been played - and judged - by the human eye since it's inception.

The argument that seems most prevalent is for Instant Replay. It's technology. It's state of the art. Hey steroids are technology, but they're taboo.

There are 32 teams, multiplied by 162 games, multiplied by 54 outs a game. Added to that the 350+ balls and strikes. No one is perfect and things happen. It all evens out in the end.

Today in the Padres clubhouse I'm sure the guys that are packing up are bent over the call, but not more than the loss of a 2 run lead. In the 13th inning, by a Hall of Fame lock closer no less.
The only guys that it should make a difference to is them and they don't want it. At this level of play these guys have had calls go both for and against them.

If your check doesn't say San Diego Padres, it's not yours, so Shut up!