Bettman Makes The Right Call

by John Furgele

There are some tired things in sports.  Perhaps the most is when a golfer tees off on a 610 yard Par 5, and as soon as he hits his shot, the gallery yells, “get in the hole.”  How silly is that?  And, we all know that nobody is going to make a hole-in-one from 610 yards out.  Can’t the gallery think of something more crative—and realistic—to yell after tee shots are hit. 

Another tired thing is booing commissioner Gary Bettman when he comes out to present the MVP trophy (Conn Smythe Trophy) and the Stanley Cup.  It’s more than tired and to boo him and not know why you’re booing him is even more sillier than the golf gallery.  There may be times to bash him, but when he is giving out the most cherished piece of hardware that the game offers? 

The NHL is coming off a fine postseason.  Many of the series were pulsating, with several Game 7s.  Pittsburgh beat Washington in Game 7 in Washington in the Eastern semifinals, and Carolina won two Game 7s on the road, beating New Jersey in the first round and Boston in round two.  And, Pittsburgh did the ultimate by becoming the first road team to win Stanley Cup Game 7 on the road since the Montreal canadiens beat Chicago in the 1971 finals.  Furthermore, the Penguins win was the first in a Game 7 of a championship series in baseball, basketball and hockey since the 1979 Pittsburgh Pirates won the World Series in Baltimore. 

The NHL is doing better.  Game 7 drew 8 million viewers to NBC last Friday.  That’s a good rating for the NHL and Friday night is never the best night for television in the United States.  Furthermore, the 4.3 rating is more than half of what the NBA finals garnered on ABC.  Usually, the NHL gets about 1/3 the rating that the NBA gets, so getting half is a step up.  And, let’s not forget that another 3.5 million Canadians watched on CBC.

NBC does a solid job covering the NHL.  They don’t send their big wigs to cover the games.  Remember when Al Michaels did the NBA finals?  NBC lets the hockey experts—Mike Emrick, Ed Olyczk, Darren Pang, Mike Milbury, Pierre McGuire—cover the games.  Many Americans might not know any of these guys—who are mostly Canadians—but they do know that these guys know hockey.  NBC and the NHL recently extended their contract to broadcast games.  There are no rights fees, but if your sport is to be taken seriously, it has to have a network presence and NBC feels that the NHL is worth air time. 

Of course, as soon as the season ended, the news turned negative.  Jim Balsille, the founder of Blackberry, wants to buy the Phoenix Coyotes and move them to Hamilton, Ontario.  Are fans more passionate in the Steel City of Hamilton than they are in Phoenix, Arizona?  Yes, but Bettman is making the right call by trying to keep the Coyotes in Phoenix.  As much as Canada loves hockey, moving more teams there doesn’t make sense. 

There are over 3 million people living in the Phoenix area, about the same number of Canadians that watched Game 7 of the Stanley Cup final.  Moreover, Hamilton is too close to Toronto and Buffalo and the NHL doesn’t need three teams that close to each other.  There are three teams in the New York area and right now, the Islanders are teetering, the Islanders, winners of four straight Stanley Cups in the 1980s might move to Kansas City if they can’t get a new arena. 

Having a team in Hamillton makes the sport a bit too regional.  Some may argue that the NHL should be more regional, but that’s not the way to keep your sport relevant.  Hamiltonians are passionate hockey fans and would love to call a team their own, but many Hamiltonians attend Toronto Maple Leafs games and Buffalo Sabres games.  The Sabres claim that 20 percent of their ticket buyers come from Southern Ontario.  If Hamilton gets a team, those 20 percent will drop the Sabres in favor of Hamilton.  And, now you have another team hurting.  The NHL doesn’t want that. 

And, there’s no proof that the crowds will pack the Copps Coliseum in downtown Hamilton.  Sure, most of the seats will sell, but in today’s sports world, it is all about sponsorship and luxury suites.  Are there enough corporations in Hamilton to keep the team flying high?  And, even when the recession ends, there will be a new business model.  Companies will spend money to go to sporting events, but not as lavishly as before.  All one has to do is see the empty box seats behind home plate at Yankee Stadium. 

The big companies have learned a lesson and that lesson is that the bottom line matters.  No longer will companies take out loans to continue their debt and one of the easiest things to cut is the $250,000 or more luxury box at an NBA, NHL, MLB or NFL arena/stadium.  They might buy eight season seats and use them accordingly, but I’m not really sure if Hamilton area companies are going to line up to buy these luxury suites when they are trying to be thinner and more efficient. 

Boo Gary Bettman all you want, but this time he is making the right call.

Woe the Dreaded Pitch Counts

by John Furgele

A decade ago, when balls were flying out of parks and men were getting bigger by the day, the lament was that the pitching was so bad it would ruin the game.  Well, they were right, pitching is ruining the game, but it is not totally the fault of the pitchers.

Watching baseball today has become a painful experience.  Today’s game is managed by those who overmanage.  The Joe Torres, Joe Giradis and Tony LaRussa’s of the world love to put their stamp on the game by making pitching changes, and they are far from alone.  It seems as if everybody in baseball is married to the “pitch count.”

Even broadcasters can’t resist referring to pitch counts.  They other day Yankee radiocasters John Sterling and Suzyn Waldman brought up Rays pitcher Andy Sonnanstine’s pitch count in the fourth inning.  Waldman, far from the best analyst in the game, talks pitch counts all the time.  And, her partner, the full-of-himself John Sterling does the same. 

Pitch counts are ruining the game.  Today, once a starter gets past the fifth inning, pitch counts and panic usually sets in.  Here is an example I have seen way too many times this season.  The starter gives up two runs over five innings, but has pitched well the previous two innings.  In the sixth, the first batter hits a 66 hopper (or, a bounding ball as the classic broadcasters used to say) up the middle for a base hit.  The next batter drops a bloop into right field.  Automatically, the manager, feeling that the pitcher is spent, and with 87 pitches, figures it is time to remove the starter and let the bullpen try to get the remaining 12 outs of the game.  No longer does the manager say, “let’s see if Johnson can wiggle out of this,” even though the two hits were far from scorchers. 

As a result, pitchers are conditioned to think that getting through six innings is a sufficient day’s work.  After six, most feel that their day is done, and rarely, will they beg their manager to stay in the game.  Mets pitcher Johan Santana is perhaps the best lefty around, but he after seven innings, he is usually done.  Therefore, the seven inning pitcher can’t be angry at the bullpen if they fail to protect his win. 

Another obstacle that has to be overcome is the roles of the pitchers.  Recently, the Yankees decided to put Chien Ming Wang back in the starting rotation and placed Phil Hughes in the bullpen.  The experts call this a demotion for Hughes, but this used to be the way it was.  If you were good enough to be in the majors, but were the sixth best pitcher on the team; you went to the bullpen.  If you did well there, you earned starts.  But, because of pitch counts, many think Hughes would be better off starting at Triple A Scranton-Wilkes Barre, so he won’t lose his endurance.  How laughable is that?  Being a great starter against the Toledo Mud Hens is better than pitching the seventh inning against the Boston Red Sox? 

As for Wang, he calls himself a starting pitcher and says he doesn’t want to work out of the bullpen, but he has been so awful as a starter, the bullpen is where he needs to be.  Phillies pitcher Chan Ho Park is another starter who feels like being in the bullpen is the equivalent of unfair labor, but thus far Park has done well in the ‘pen, and manager Charlie Manuel is a smart man, he will keep him there.

The bullpen seems like the place to be.  As a reliever, you know you’re going to get work, not because the starter is awful, but because the manager won’t let the starter go past the fifth and sixth inning or past 105 pitches.  Somewhere, Jerry Koosman, Nolan Ryan and Mickey Lolich are crying in their beers with the shame that is modern day pitching.

The exception may be Toronto manager Cito Gaston.  Gaston has always been a “feel manager,” one who will leave his pitcher in the game after a couple of bloops in the sixth inning.  Last week, he let Roy Halladay throw a 133 pitch complete game, something Torre and Girardi would never do.  And, Halladay gave up four runs that game and still stayed in the game.   In his next start, Halladay went the distance on 97 pitches and shutout the Kansas City Royals, with no ill effects from the “pitch count,” of the previous start. 

I hope against hope and pray that someday, the pitch count thing will end and baseball will go back to letting pitchers be pitchers.  There is hope with the Texas Rangers.  Their Vice President, Nolan Ryan, has declared that pitch counts no longer be kept from the minors through the majors; that whether a pitcher stays in or comes out of the game be determined by strength, not by some artficial number.

Hopefully, this makes Jim Kaat happy.

Nadal May Be Better, But Federer Best

by John Furgele

The title of this column is a bit clumsy, perhaps even awkward, but it is very true.  Tennis has two great players in Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, but in the end, Federer remains the true number one.  Federer captured the one title he needed to have when he dismantled upstart Robin Soderling to win the French Open title at Roland Garros Sunday.  For Federer, it was his 14th Grand Slam title, tying him with Pete Sampras, but more importantly, it was his first on the crushed brick in Paris, and no longer will there be complaints that Federer is not a complete champion.  He has now won on hard, grass and clay and that can never be taken away.

Critics may argue that Federer had an easy path after Sodering beat Nadal in the 4th round, and many may say that had Federer played Nadal in the final, Nadal would have won, but I’m selling that.  In sports, you have to play who’s here, not who should be here.  How many times have you heard statements like, “they aren’t the best team,” or “they didn’t have to play the best team to win.”  That is plain fodder.  You play who’s in front of you and that is one thing Federer is great at. 

Nadal may be better against Federer, but there are players who can beat Nadal on a given day.  Andy Murray dissected Nadal in the semifinals of the 2008 US Open, then Federer breezed past Murray in the final.  This year, in Paris,  it was Soderling who took out Rafa, only to get blitzed by the Swiss Maestro in the final. 

The only person Federer loses to is….Nadal.  In last year’s French Open final, Federer played his worst match of his career when the Spainard carved him up, which included 6-0 in the third and final set.  Then came the epic five set battle at Wimbledon, and to say that Nadal was better than Federer on that day could be made, but when it goes 9-7 in the fifth, aren’t we splitting hairs?  When Nadal beat Federer at the this year’s Aussie Open, many said that the torch had been officially passed to Nadal.

Because Federer beats everybody but Nadal, he is always in the finals.  He is now 14-5 in Grand Slam finals, with all five losses coming at the hands of Nadal (he has two wins against him; both at Wimbledon), but the difference is Federer is always there.  Ivan Lendl (8-11) and Federer are tied with 19 Grand Slam finals apperances.  As good as Nadal is, and he is great, Federer is more reliable the Nadal.  Nadal has yet to make a US Open final; Federer has won five straight titles.  Nadal has won one Australian Open title; Federer has won three.  Nadal has six Grand Slam titles and is only 22 years old, so there remains a chance that Rafa will also get to double digits in slam titles, but Nadal can get beat in the early rounds, Federer cannot.

Federer is 27 years old and many say that means his best tennis is behind him, but where is the evidence?  He made the Aussie Open final and lost in five sets, then won the French Open.  To me, that doesn’t mean that his decline has begun.  If you’re a tennis fan, or even a sports fan, yes, you were disappointed that Nadal didn’t play Federer in the French final and you hope that the two can make to the finals of both Wimbledon and the United States Open.  This is very unfair to the other talented players on the tour, but that’s what makes sports great, having a true rivalry, and because of that, most of us want to see Nadal-Federer in the remaining two Grand Slam finals. 

Of course, sports cannot be scripted and even though Nadal might have the upper hand when he plays Federer, I still believe that Federer will be in the both the Wimbledon and U. S. Open finals.  For Nadal, I’m not as sure.  If he can get there, he may win both of them, but Nadal can be beaten by others, Federer, as a general rule, cannot.  Federer has the best chance to win four slams each year because he’s always in the finals.  That cannot be said for Nadal, especially in New York.

This makes tennis a bit strange, because we really don’t know who the best player is?  Nadal has the better head-to-head record, but Federer is more consistent and is as close to a finalist guarantee as there is.  So, we’ll leave it the way we started…..

Nadal is better, but Federer is still the best. 

Make sense?

Be Careful What You Wish For

by John Furgele

For this week, we will look at various items, and we will start with the NBA.  Rookie of the Year Derrick Rose is making waves because of an allegation that somebody else took his SAT exam before he enrolled at Memphis.  And, to nobody’s surprise, John Calipari was the coach at Memphis when this alleged violation took place.  Even though Calipari has been cleared of any wrongdoing, it is fairly clear that Rose was not exactly college material, and once again, it shows Calipari’s—and all others—penchant for winning at any cost. 

But, the real shame goes to the NBA.  This is what you get with the silly rule that one must be one year past his high school gradutation to play in the NBA.  All this does is force kids that shouldn’t go to a college and pretend that their students for one year.  The NBA and the NCAA hide under the fact that playing in college helps both college basketball and better prepares the player for life in the NBA.  You and I both know that’s bull.

The Detroit Red Wings are playing the Pittsburgh Penguins for the second straight year in the Stanley Cup Finals, and for the second straight year, it looks like the Wings are much better than the Pens.  Many thought that the more mature Penguins would give Detroit all they could handle and some even believe that they can win, but through Games 1 and 2, it looks like we’re watching a replay of the 2008 final.  Detroit has won both games by 3-1 scores and the Pens don’t look like a team that will generate enough scoring to beat Detroit—again.  But, before we write off the Pens, let’s see how they do on home ice.  I firmly believe that a series doesn’t truly begin until the road team wins a game and if Pittsburgh can hold serve, then we may have an interesting series.  But, my gut tells me that Detroit takes a game in Pittsburgh and closes things out in five. 

Superfilly Rachel Alexandra will be skipping this week’s Belmont Stakes, and while they may upset some, it is the right call.  Could Rachel beat the boys again—of course, but she has raced five times already this year and deserves a rest.  She already proved that she could win a big one when she dominated the Preakness (she led at every fraction after the 1/4 mile), and she doesn’t need to injure himself. 

As for Mine That Bird, he’ll have Calvin Borel riding him again, and Borel has already guaranteed a Belmont win.  Because he’s a gelding, MTB can do nothing but run and kudos to his owners and trainers for letting him run again this week.    They could easily save him for races later in the summer and fall, but they’re trying to win a second Triple Crown race.  Personally, I will be rooting for Mine That Bird, but the Belmont is the ultimate meat grinder.  It is an enormous track and can swallow up even the best of colts, geldings and fillies.  It ate up Smarty Jones, who came up 1/16 short in 2004; it engulfed Big Brown, one of the biggest fraud horses of all time in 2008; and took down the likes of Spectacular Bid (1979) and many others.  There has been one horse who swallowed Belmont Park and that was the one and only Secretariat in 1973.  His time of 2:24.0 for the 1 1/2 mile race is still the record—by two full seconds.

Propping Up a Loser

by John Furgele

I really can’t believe what I read.  This week, John Daly’s six month PGA suspension comes to an end, and as usual, there have been several columns trumpeting his return.  Among the descriptors, “he is a draw, “he has appeal,” “he brings a spark to the PGA tour,” and “he is the everyman.”  While Daly does do that, the fact that he gets hyped up is beyond comprehension.

I hate to say this, but John Daly is a low-life, a loser, and is not good for the game for the golf or the PGA tour.  Maybe that is a bit strong, perhaps too strong.  Unlike other pro athletes, he didn’t kill anybody, drive drunk and injure anybody or electrocute dogs because they didn’t do well in a fighting ring, so maybe I am being a bit too harsh on the insecure and childlike Daly. 

Daly is admired because he is a fearless player.  When people describe him, they often use the term “grip it and rip it,” as he drives the ball 300 plus yards.  In 1991, he was the ninth alternate and he drove through the night to play in the PGA Championship at Crooked Stick and shocked the golf world by winning a major title.  Four years later, at Royal St. Andrews, he did something that was even more unexpected:  he validated his first major title by winning the British Open in a four hole playoff no less.

As fearless as he is on the course, he is fearful off it.  The drinking problems, the marital problems, the arrests and most importantly, the arrogance he shows toward these problems are his cross to bear.  He admits he is an alcoholic, yet he brags about continuing to drink.  He brags about his sex life, the three packs of cigarettes he smokes and the case of Diet Coke he drinks each day.  This is a man who lived in excess, yet thumbs his nose at those who wish he would get help, real help.  This is a man who after finishing rehab celebrates by going to a bar.

Daly is going through his third divorce and he strikes me as a guy who meets a woman on Thursday and marries her on Sunday.  There is a good chance that he will marry again, and a better chance that he will divorce again, yet America roots for this man because he plays with reckless abandon on the PGA Tour.

He is lauded for being a regular guy, but dogs it in tournaments.  He has walked off the course and quit, and has shot 16s, 14s and 11s for individual holes.  He has almost as many rounds in the 80s as he does in the 60s.  When out of contention, he’ll play 18 holes in two hours than brag about with a drink afterwards.

Despite all this negativity, he remains an intriguing character.  He is 43, and this is probably his final chance to right himself and to give golf an honest chance, perhaps the first time in his career.  There will be people rooting for him.  These people say that he reminds them of themselves, but most 40 year olds I know are not professional golfers, do not smoke three packs a day and do not have the issues that John Daly has. 

I will remain neutral on John Daly.  I won’t root for him; I won’t root against him.  I also don’t care if he gets his life in order or wins another major title.  John Daly is John Daly, and that’s both a comedy and a tragedy.

The Problem With Horse Racing

by John Furgele

May is a great month for sports.  It starts of course on the first Saturday with the Kentucky Derby.  Despite the decline of horse racing in American sports, the Derby still draws over 150,000 people to Churchill Downs and more importantly, draws a 10.7 television rating.  There has to be some interest in this event, as 12.2 million TV viewers would indicate. 

Mint That Bird, at 50-1 pulled off a monumental upset and headed to Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore to see if he could win the Preakness and head to Belmont with a chance to win the Triple Crown.  Waiting for him in Baltimore was the fabulous filly, Rachel Alexandra, and she would get the best of  the game gelding with over 77,000 watching at Pimlico and another 7 million watching on NBC.

If the filly and the gelding head to Long Island for the Belmont, look for another strong television rating and 50,000 plus fans to head to the track to watch.  What does this say about horse racing?  It says that Americans generally care about big events, and the Triple Crown and even the Breeders Cup are big events.  The Kentucky Derby is the Kentucky Derby and will always be covered and followed by sports writers and sports fans.  But, what about the rest of the horse racing season?

The major problem with horse racing is that there are too many tracks and too many races and frankly too many days of racing.  Every year, there is always the story that centers on broken down Pimlico and that this year could be the last year that the Preakness will be run at the second oldest track in America (Saratoga).  Pimlico only races on 20 days and even though nearby Laurel picks up after the Pimlico season, the average attendance is dreadful.  There is nothing special about horse racing anymore.  When there are 160 days of live racing, how unique can it be? 

If horse racing wants to grab a bigger slice of the sports landscape, the tracks have to offer less, as in more is less.  Andrew Beyer of the Washington Post suggests that Laurel be closed and Pimlico enhanced to have a 30-35 day meet ala Saratoga to make sure fans make plans to get to the race track at least one time.

Saratoga Race Course remains the model, or what every other race track aspires to be.  The Upstate New York haven is only open 36 times per year and averages about 25,000 fans per day during the meet.  Saratoga is special.  The quality of racing is good, the purses are good and people know that it is only going tobe around for just 36 days.  There is no fall, spring schedule for those who miss the 36 day summer meet.

The New York Racing Association (NYRA) operates Saratoga and also runs Belmont and Aqueduct, so in essence, they offer year-round racing.  But only the diehards would venture to the Big A for racing on the first Saturday in February, but rather than close, states insist that horse racing live on, day after day after day. 

More tracks should follow the Saratoga model or the Beyer model.  By operating on fewer days, you make the product more special.  The NFL is the blurprint.  There are 16 games, just 16 chances to see the product, and frankly, even though expanding the season by two games is tantilizing, the NFL would be better served by not doing it. 

Beyer thinks Pimlico could be saved by offering a high quality 35 day meet with quality races from early April through Memorial Day.  He also suggests closing Laurel and refurbishing Pimlico into a must go to venue, both for horseman and fans.   A ritzier Pimlico with only 35 dates could be appealing for Marylanders, who still take pride in breeding horses. 

It costs a lot of money just to open a track and why open the track 160 times for 750 fans when you can open it up 35 times for 10,000 fans or more?  Americans prove each May and early June that they like horse racing; that they like to watch a big time sporting event like the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness, and the Belmont Stakes.  But, after these three races, they don’t really care about the sport anymore, and they certainly don’t care about the other 250 days of racing in America. 

The industry, because it varies widely from state to state probably won’t change, but each state should consolidate.  Maryland doesn’t need Laurel and Pimlico and certainly doesn’t need 100 days of racing.  New York probably doesn’t need winter racing at Aqueduct, but that doesn’t mean it will change. 

Most want to see horse racing stick around, but the best way to do it is to cut down on the product, because we all know that most of the time, less is more.

Kentucky Derby 135

by John Furgele

May could be the best month of the year with everything that’s going on, but the month starts with the Run for the Roses, and for what it’s worth, here are my selections.

Win:  Freisen’s Fire

Place:  I Want Revenge

Show:  Hold Me Back

We’ll see how that works out.

The Silly Waiting Game

by John Furgele

April and May are excellent sports months.  April brings us the start of the baseball season, and as ridiculous as the hype is, the NFL Draft, as well as the NHL and NBA playoffs.  Throw in the start of the Major League Soccer and the end of the European soccer leagues, and you have more than a full plate to feast your eyes on. 

May might be better than April.  By May, you get to see which baseball teams might be for real and which ones are frauds.  The NBA and NHL playoffs are getting deeper into the action and of course, you have the greatest two miutes in sports with the Kentucky Derby, followed two weeks later by the Preakness Stakes.  Memorial Day weekend also brings the start of summer and the Indianapolis 500 and the Coca-Cola 600. 

As the NBA and NHL playoffs progress through their first rounds, the thing that rattles through my mind is why do these leagues wait so long to get to the playoffs.  The NHL playoffs are riveting.  One goal can make or break a game, and each power play, each up-the-ice-rush is so exciting and so crucial.  The NBA is also full of high drama.  The NBA playoffs are very much like the NCAA Basketball Tournament.  Every posession is important and cannot be wasted.  In the NBA playoffs, you need to play good half court defense and you have to be able to get good shots on offense.  The gret thing about the NBA playoffs is that the games are possession by possession affairs. 

The NHL and NBA is all about the playoffs, and what I can’t understand is why these leagues wait so long to get us to the playoffs?  Why do they drag out an 82 games season over seven long months, when the playoffs is what American sports fans want to see?  Why do they play 82 games to eliminate jus half the teams, or why do they play 82 games, then take half the teams into the playoffs? In the NHL, they take 16 of 30 teams to the playoffs. 

Even on TV, you can feel a difference in playoff action.  You can feel the intrsnity through a television set, and you know that a magical moment is forthcoming at some time.  Turn on the TV in mid-January, and you can feel a lack of it, a run-of-the-mill just another game feel.  Why do the NBA and NHL want to market that? 

It’s been said before.  If the NHL and NBA playoffs are so good, so riveting, so exciting, why keep the fans from seeing it for so long?  Why not start them sooner?  Why not get to your exciting season as soon as you can?  Why not shorten the regular season, so the players that play in the playoffs are fresher and stronger come playoff time. 

A 60 game regular season would do the trick.  30 home games, 30 road games.  This would cut one month off the already too long regular season and would get the fans to the important stuff much sooner.  Why not start the playoffs in early March so by April and May, you’d be into the frenzy.  Crown your champions by Memorial Day or the first weekend in June and then let those who suffered through another long winter enjoy their summer? 

We know that teams and arenas would not want to give up “dates,” and owners would not want to pay players the same money for a 60 game season than they do an 82 game season.  Since the 60 game season is 27 percent shorter than the 82 game season, owners would be withing their rights to cut player salaries by that 27 percent, something that is happening all across America, where workers are often given a choice:  take the pay cut or find another job.  Many take the pay cut. 

Owners could do the right thing by letting players keep the same salary for one year, taking a 10 percent cut the next, and in year three, they would take another 10 percent cut.  In the end, the owners would give the players a break and cut the salaries by a total of 20 percent, rather than 27 percent, a thank you for accepting the new policies. 

We already know by 60 games the good teams from the bad teams, so why not get rid of the bad teams and let the good teams start the playoffs?

MLB should also cut their season, from 162 to 144 and start their playoffs in September rather than October, a 22 percent cut.  And, football, the sport that has the nearly perfect regular season slate of 16 games, should keep it at that.  Going to 18 games seems like a good move for a football demanding nation, but that would be a mistake.  The old adage “less is more,” really means something, especially in sports. 

Don’t delay, do it today.

Fans: You Deserve What You Get

by John Furgele

Citi Field, the new home to the New York Mets has hosted three games.  Yankee Stadium, the new home to the New York Yankees has hosted one.  But, Met fans are already angered with their new playpen, and I’m sure after a few hours of listening to WFAN today, we’ll get to hear from angry Yankee fans.

At Citi Field, there are two major issues.  The first is that many seats have obstructed views where some fans can’t see the right fielder or the first baseman or fly balls that go into the right or left field corner.  Based on what I hear, I’m not sure these seats are really obstructed.  To me, obstructed means you are sitting behind a pole and you have to move your body to see the game.  I’m not sure if seeing eight of the nine fielders counts as being obstructed, but with the outrageous prices that fans are paying, you can certainly sympathize with their anger. 

The second issue is the pricing and how it affected seat purchases for 2009.  There were many that had weekend packages at Shea Stadium and paid x amount for those games.  This year, that package skyrocketed in price and  the fan then stated to the Mets that they couldn’t afford the new price, but would be willing to spend the same or a little bit more for a package this season.  The Mets then gave this person a Wednesday night package and basically said take it or leave it.  Naturally, the fan who has to drive an hour each way wasn’t interested in doing so on a weeknight/worknight. 

The problem of course, is the price gouging done by both the Mets and Yankees.  At Yankee Stadium, the $250 seat is now $850, just a $600 or a 340 percent increase.  Are there that many millionaires in New York that are willing to pay these prices?  And, the really good seats at Yankee Stadium are $2,625—for one game.  This includes food and soft drinks, but I don’t care how good stadium food is, it’s still stadium food. 

Demand for baseball seats in New York has probably never been higher, and these prices were set before the recession really kicked in, but still, I can’t believe that both the Mets and Yankees are getting away with it.  Met fans actually seem to be clamoring for Shea Stadium to be put back up.  I never thought I would hear this, but I think many Met fans actually miss Shea Stadium, which unfairly has been called a dump for so many years.  Shea was hardly state-of-the-art, but it was a suitable place to watch a ball game.  I’m not saying that it should not have been replaced, but it never was a bad as it was portrayed.  You’re watching baseball, you’re not entertainig the Queen of England or the President of France, you watching the Montreal Expos play the Mets.   And, for the record, if Shea Stadium was called a dump, Yankee Stadium was a dump as well.  Packed concourses, lack of bathrooms and long, long, and slow, slow concession lines ruled the day at overrated, dumpy Yankee Stadium.

What the fans miss is the semi-affordable prices that Shea Stadium offered and before 2000, what Yankee Stadium offered.  Fans want too much.  They want a great seat at a great price and when they don’t get it, the moan and groan.  They want to take their kid to a game, but they don’t want to be in the last row in the upperdeck in right field. 

It is the entitlement mentality we have and it is this mentality that has gotten us into trouble.  $4 coffees, 62 inch televisions, Vitamin Water and silly energy drinks are all example of wasteful spending as is buying a house that you can never afford.  But, this is the world we live in.  In the 1970s, the teacher, truck driver, doctor and lawyer could sit next to each other in the mezzanine, now the teacher and truck driver probably can’t afford to go and the doctor and lawyer are way up in the upper deck.  But, we created this monster.   In Buffalo, I used to get $20 allowance for doing chores and that $20 could get me a ticket in the upper golds—the second best seats—to a Buffalo Sabres hockey game.  Now, the cheapest seats, the upper deck corners hover at the $40 range. 

Yankee fans flooded WFAN host Mike Francesa so much about the lack or customer service that Francesa had to get COO Lonn Trost on the phone to take complaints from fans on the radio.  I felt like calling in to try to sell my lawmower as I thought I was listening to Tradio.  The fans asked for certain seat locations, but were given what the Yankees wanted to give with the old “this is the best we have you, take it or leave it.”

I don’t really understand why fans feel the need to go to every game.  What’s in it for Met and Yankee fans?  Why do you feel the need to go to 10, 20, 30, 40 or all 81 home games and pay all this money to do so?  I wish Francesa would ask these fans why they feel compelled to go to all the games.  My guess is that they want to make sure they are there for the playoffs and they want to be there if their team wins the World Series, because for some reason, a fan gets respect for doing that.  When I tell my sports friends that I saw two World Series games, they actually seem to be awed and usually ask several follow up questions.  They say things like, “wow, that must have been awesome,” or “man, I wish I could have been there,” and other silly things.  And, I have done the same thing.  But, now I have to question why these things are so important. 

My advice for the Met and Yankee fan couldn’t be more clear, and that advice is simple:  go back to the old days.  Pick two or three games, preferably against a low rung team ala the Pittsburgh Pirates where the prices are lowest and go to those games.  Don’t buy season tickets, don’t buy the bloated mini-plans, just pick out one or two games and enjoy.  For the rest of the games, watch them on television.  You probably refinanced your house to get your 62 inch HD TV, so why waste that by sitting in a seat where you can’t see 20 percent of the playing field?  It just doesn’t make sense, to spend $300 on tickets, $18 to park and another $100 on food, when you can buy the MLB Extra Innings package for $179 and watch 60 games per week on cable TV. 

Shea Stadium is gone and with it the innocence of the old common fan feel.  Citi Field (they paid $400 million for naming rights over 20 years, yet had to accept a government bailout money) is not for the common fan and never will be.  The new Yankee Stadium isn’t even for the wealthy fan, it is for the billionaires, but it’’s okay, you don’t have to go to all the games.  Pick a couple and be happy, and remember……

The couch is most underrated seat in all of sports.

Terrell Owens the Least of the NFL’s Worries

by John Furgele

Say what you want about Terrell Owens, but here are some things he DOESN’T do.

 1) Drink.

2)  Hang out at clubs all night.

3)  Run people over with his car.

4)  Run people over with his car then drive away.

5)  Run people over with his car then claim he wasn’t driving.

6)  Kill people while driving drink.

7)  Assault present or former girlfriends.

8)  Shoot himself with an illegal concealed weapon.

9)  Get arrested for disorderly conduct and use his NFL fame to mouth off the authorities.

10) Get suspended by the NFL Commissioner for violating the league’s conduct policy.

I laugh aloud when I see the media rip this guy for being a bit of an ego case.  The NFL gives him more attention for harmless antics and ignores serious incidents, and they ignore these actions ALL THE TIME.  I hear Mark Schlereth look into the ESPN camera with such intensity defending the Romanowskis, Ray Lewises, and all the other part time criminals, then laugh when I see him use the same intensity to rip Terrell Owens or Jason Taylor for their selfishness for missing team weightlifting sessions.  How hyprocritical can people be?

ESPN calls Owens a cancer, a distraction and says his demands are too much for the chemistry of a football team.  But, Donte Stallworth just KILLED somebody driving drink—-KILLED SOMEBODY—-and ESPN and all the other media, because they want that access to the NFL, their meal ticket, pays very little attention to it.  But, Owens gets barbecued by the press for missing a optional workout?  A bunch of guys running around and lifting weights?  It’s that important to a team’s season?

When will this end?  When will somebody point out that NFL players get arrested at an alarming rate compared to NBA, MLB and certainly NHL players.  When will the league get ripped for this—-or anything?  And, sometimes people defend the players claiming that it is the violent nature of the game that in part leads to violent behavior off the field.  While nobody expects these guys to be Ward Cleaver, do they have to live the game 24/7/365?

Many NFL players, after they retire from the game, cannot function normally.  Some divorce their wives, run away from home and end up broke, depressed and full of rage.  HBOs Real Sports looked at this issue a couple years ago and the piece was downright scary.  But, the NFL doesn’t care, and worse, the media that covers the NFL cares even less.  All they care about is having something to talk about during the offseason and discussing Owens harmless eccentricities is much more easier than discussing what to do with the Donte Stallworths, Marshawn Lynch’s and Donta Whitners of the league.  Who wants to discuss vehicular homicide when debating Ocho Cinco’s name change is what the NFL really wants one to talk about?

In 2000 at the Super Bowl in Atlanta, Ray Lewis’ friends brutally attacked—some say murdered— a person.  I’m not saying Lewis was involved directly, but by most accounts, he watched the attack take place.  After he was convicted of obstruction, he was made the poster boy for NFL and its commercials.  How can this be?  Where was the outrage by sponsors, fans, media and the like?  The man was being investigated for murder, but in the end, turned out to make millions in endorsements. 

In fact, the Sports Illustrated’s of the world did feature pieces on him, trying to convince us that his upbringing was to blame for his violence, his numerous children with numerous women and how now he is a changed man.  I hope that’s true, but if you’re going to praise him for what he is now, you have to knock him for his past, which includes that night in Atlanta.  You can’t overlook the bad and try to convince us of the good.  Not right.  Not fair.

The NFL gets a pass because it is a multi-billion dollar industry.  For decades, the NFL dissuades those from gambling on the sport, but has never tried to hide point spreads.  Furthermore, not only do they publicize the point spreads, they require teams to submit injury reports so the bookies can adjust these point spreads accordingly.  Contrast that to the NHL, which uses vague terms, such as “upper body or lower body injury,” to describe what’s wrong with a particularly player. 

Take away the point spreads and the subsequent gambling on them, would the league be as popular?  All the other sports have minor leagues, but the NFL does not.  Why is that?  My guess is that there is so much gambling done on football that a minor league would be too hard to support because the gamblers would be too unfamiliar with the minor league players that they couldn’t wage money properly.  The fact that there are several minor hockey leagues, minor baseball leagues and even minor basketball leagues suggests that those sports may be more popular than football.  If football was so popular, why can’t a spring league survive?  Why did Arena Football suspend operations for at least one year, if not more?  Hockey is a distant fourth on the sports landscape, yet there are many more hockey teams in North America than football teams.  How is this so?

So, please, let’s leave Terrell Owens alone and let’s spend time discussing the real criminals that play in the NFL; the people that drive drunk, assault people, beat up women, shoot themselves and get into altercations at 5 AM outside of night clubs. 

If Owens’ only crime is skipping optional workouts, complaining that he doesn’t get enough balls thrown to him during a game, I’ll take it.  At least I know he won’t be making a name for himself on the police blotters.  As for those who cover the National Football League, let’s try to be objective and talk about the good, the bad and the really really bad. 

If you’re going to be there for the wedding, you have to be there for the funeral.