A Crazy Thanksgiving Weekend

by John Furgele

Lost in the shuffle of turkey, NFL football and Tiger Woods were two dramatic events that occurred in what most would call minor league sports.  The United Football League wrapped up its first season with the Las Vegas Locomotives beating the Florida Tuskers 20-17 in overtime to win the UFL Championship and $5,000 per man.  The announced attendance was 14,801 at Sam Boyd Stadium in Vegas. 

I’m sure that most Americans did not watch the game or have even heard of the UFL, but the quality of play was better than average.  The league did not hide behind gimmicks, they tried to sell football, which unless it’s the NFL is a hard thing to do.  The league has solid coaches in Jim Fassel, Jin Haslett, Dennis Green (though he doesn’t look too healthy) and Ted Cottrell.  All have NFL experience and Fassel, of course, led the Giants to the 2000 NFC Championship and a Super Bowl appearance. 

I’m sure the league will fold soon, if not next month, perhaps after next season.  Reports indicate that the league will lose $30 million in its first year, a figure that “was expected.”  Well, expected or not, do you continue to play at that much of an operation loss? 

I will root for the league to come back.  I watched a few games and liked what I saw.  The players can play and it was clear that they were coached well.  But, I’m an old softie.  I like the underdogs.  I watch bowling on television and watch non-BCS conference football games.  I was more pumped for BYU-Utah than I was Alabama-Auburn and so be it.  I also watch MLS soccer and took delight in the 2009 MLS Cup.    I’ll trumpet the league, but they don’t need me to watch, they need the regular sports fan.  I do think if people like football—and all indications are that Americans do—then why wouldn’t they give the UFL a chance?  I’ll tell you one thing:  the UFL Championship Game was much better than Lions-Packers and Cowboys-Raiders, a lot better.   For as good as the NFL can be, it can also be painfully bad.  Simply, there are a lot of boring, sloppily played games in the NFL.  But, the fans don’t care.  They watch and watch some more.  My point is if you like to watch football, then why not watch the UFL and the NFL. 

Yesterday, the 97th Grey Cup—the CFL Championship Game—was played in Calgary between the Montreal Alouettes and the Saskatchewan Roughriders.  For those scoring at home, there have been 43 Super Bowls and 97 Grey Cups, so let’s give our neighbors up north some credit about football.  This game had everything.  The underdog (Saskatchewan) jumps out to a 17-3 halftime lead.  In the 4th quarter, they lead 27-11, but back comes Montreal.  They score to make it 27-17, then get the two point conversion to make it 27-19.  They score again to close to 27-25, but miss the two pointer.  Their defense needs a two-and-out (only three downs in Canadian football) and they get it.  They drive down to the 40 and line up for a 43 yard field goal to win the game.  The kicker misses, but Saskatchewan is called for too many players on the field (they had 13, in the CFL, you’re allowed 12).  The kicker (Damon Duval) gets another chance, this time from 33 yards and of course, he makes it to give the Alouettes a 28-27 win in one of the zaniest and dramatic games I have ever seen.

This weekend was nutty for me.  I watched football on Friday, Saturday and Sunday and none of it was NFL football.  But, between the UFL, the NCAA and the CFL.  It was good.  Very good.  I hope that next year, more people will join me and watch some UFL and CFL football as well.

Thursday Thoughts: October 22, 2009

-Alex Rodriguez is having a one-for-the-ages postseason, while Manny Ramirez and David “Big Papi” Ortiz floundered.  All three were identified as PED users this spring/summer.  Ramirez served a 50 game suspension, while Rodriguez admitted his wrongdoing and Big Papi sort of took the blame for putting illegal substances into his body, even though he may not have known that their were forbidden. 

After serving the suspension, Ramirez came back as an ordinary player, and Ortiz has spent the last two seasons coming back to earth.  As for Rodriguez, he is still in the prime of his career, but all three leave tons of unanswered questions.

Is Rodriguez still using something?  How many years was Ramirez on the stuff?  And, what’s the truth with Ortiz?  This is what’s unfair about this stuff and what will make it hard for the Baseball Hall of Fame voters.  Instead of looking at the raw numbers and big moments, the voters now have to make guesses as to which years look good and which look suspect.  Watching Ramirez and his slow bat in this year’s playoffs makes me think he’s been on PEDs for years, but how will we ever know?  He is over 35 and naturally, his bat should be slowing down.  Barry Bonds’  bat kept speeding up, even at age 40,  and we think we know what was behind that, but the questions will continue to linger.

-The emergence of the Denver Broncos and quarterback Kyle Orton is yet another reason why taking a quarterback in the first round or furthermore, the number one through five overall pick is not really necessary.  Say what you want about Orton, but the man is 28-12 as a starter, good for a 70 winning percentage.  The top QBs in college right now are Sam Bradford (Oklahoma), Colt McCoy (Texas), Tim Tebow (Florida), and Jimmy Clausen (Notre Dame), and to me, none are first round worthy, although the experts at ESPN and elsewhere say otherwise. 

Bradford plays in a gimmick offense and has been hurt all season. When you’re in the shotgun for every snap, that doesn’t give you the experience you will need to play in the Big League.  Ditto for Colt McCoy.  To me, he looks like a bigger Ty Detmer, who was a backup for most of his career.  They’re both solid quarterbacks, but I don’t see greatness when I watch them.  I see them throwing to wide open, first option receivers.   Does that translate to success in the NFL? Ask Mark Sanchez of the NY Jets.  Sanchez has the tools, but maybe making just 15 college starts is now showing up on Sundays.  At USC, Sanchez didn’t have to make lots of reads.  And, before we get on the Matt Barkley bandwagon, let’s remember that his tight end was wide open every time he looked at him, as were the other receivers.  Please, slow down.

Clausen may be the best prospect, because like him or not, he plays in Charlie Weis’ pro style offense.  Notre Dame lacks defensive players, but they do have skilled players on offense, and they run the Pro I, the offense that every NFL team runs.  That may make Clausen more suited for the NFL, but Notre Dame’s track record of producing star first round QBs is not there.  Rick Mirer was destined for greatness and Ron Powlus was supposed to win two Heismans.  Both failed to live up to expectations.  At least Mirer was a good college QB.  Oh, and what about Brady Quinn?  Everybody was miffed when he slipped to number 22 in the draft, but in reality, he should have slipped to number 42.  The best QB to come out of Notre Dame and do well in the pros was Joe Montana, and he was a 3rd round pick by the 49ers in 1979.

Tebow is the mystery man.  Like most, I don’t like his throwing motion and I also question his accuracy.  Most of his passes connect with guys that are wide open and once again, that will never happen in the NFL.  Like Bradford and McCoy, he plays in a real trumped up, gimmicky offense created by head coach Urban Meyer, the same guy who had Alex Smith run it while at Utah.  Tebow might be a tight end, an H-back, or a QB, nobody is really sure, but I don’t think he’s a going to be a 10 year starter NFL QB. 

The point is that there are guys that can be found at smaller schools and in the later rounds that can be producers like Kyle Orton is.  Everybody knows that Tom Brady was taken in the 6th round, and Shaun Hill was a decent QB at Maryland, and now starts and wins—over Alex Smith—games for the 49ers.  Heck, Buffalo Bills backup (and this week’s starter) Ryan Fitzpatrick played his college bowl at Harvard.  Baltimore’s Joe Flacco starred at Division 1-AA Delaware, so we know it can be done.  For every Peyton Manning, there are two Ryan Leaf’s, but when I hear that Bradford is slipping out of the top ten, I cringe, because he really isn’t first round worthy at all.

-Major League Soccer is winding down its 14th reagular season and unless you are web savvy you would never know.  Of the the 15 teams in the league, only three are officially eliminated from playoff contention with one week left.  American soccer and the MLS have improved greatly since 1996, yet the media doesn’t seem to care.  Newspapers should be faulted.  All they have to do is run some Associated Press articles, but they don’t.  Most newspapers suscribe to the AP, so the articles are there for the taking, yet hardly any newspaper runs them.  Why is that?  They can’t run the AP story on a slow Wednesday or Thursday?  And, newspapers wonder why subscriptions are and revenue are down.  Less is not more, and unless newspapers realize that covering the news and providing information is what they’re supposed to do, they won’t survive.  Nobody expects the MLS to be covered like baseball and football, but to ignore it completely is bewildering. 

What makes it more bewildering is ESPN.  They pay for MLS rights, they show Champions League games and this year, they show an English Premier League match every Saturday.  They have invested monies into soccer, but they never show any MLS highlights even though they pay the MLS a fee to broadcast their games.  They show more NHL highlights and they gave up the NHL years ago. 

Until next time.

Quick Thoughts: October 19, 2009

by John Furgele

-Is Charlie Weis done?  In five years, he still doesn’t have a signature victory?  He may have skilled players on offense, but his defense continues to be porous.  Next week, the Catholic Bowl at home versuse Boston College.  Coming close to beating USC doesn’t get it done and Weis has many deterents in South Bend.  Jon Gruden would be a great face for Notre Dame football and by the way, he is available.

-Everybody is hyping Florida, Alabama and the SEC, but Florida can be had, and Arkansas had them on the ropes in Gainesville on Saturday.  Don’t automatically write in two 12-0 teams in the SEC Championship Game just yet.  If the SEC is as good as everybody says, then both teams should lose at least one game.

-Good to see Ohio State lost at Purdue.  Now, they won’t get an at-large BCS bid.  Like Notre Dame, they haven’t beaten a better team in years and Terrell Pryor is just not a good thrower.  They may still win the Big Ten, but they’re not a top flight team.

-Boise State is overrated as well.  They are a legitimate program and it is time to get rid of the blue covered turf.  You don’t need the attention anymore, so, if you want to be taken seriously, let’s go green.

-What has happened to the Tennessee Titans? 

-The Bills have set pro football back fifty years in the last two weeks.  After losing 6-3 to Cleveland they needed overtime to beat the Jets 16-13, AFTER getting six interceptions from Jets passers.  As for Mark Sanchez, it may be time to watch a coupls of games from the sidelines. 

-Based on the first two games of the ALCS, it just may be the Yankees year.  They already have a great lineup and now they’re are getting some good breaks and A-Rod is finally on post-season fire.  I’m not saying they’re lucky, but good teams have the karma and the lady luck that goes with karma and right now, they have it. 

-Once again, censorship has hit the media.  The United Football League has played two weeks and most newspapers have ignored it.  Yes, space has become limited for most of our nation’s newspapers, but why does media choose to ignore sports leagues.  Why can’t they run a piece or two about the UFL?  Ditto for Major League Soccer.  That league has been around since 1996 and still can’t get a 60 second hightlight package, yet ESPN will spend 10 minutes talking about Donovan McNabb’e ribs.

On College Football: Week 2

by John Furgele

Level The Field Please:  As usual, week two of the college football season was a crazy as ever.  Houston’s victory at Oklahoma State had to make old Bill Yeoman proud.  The Cougars, once a valued and top member of the old Southwest Conferecne stunned the Cowboys, who one week earlier beat Georgia to open the season.  More than ever, college football has seen much more parity.  yes, the big dogs still dominate, but for a Conference USA school to beat a Big 12 school on the road has to say something about the talent pool that exists in the game today. 

Of all the games, all the announcing and all the commentary, perhaps the best came from the color commentator at the Lehigh-Villanova Division 1-AA game.  I watched the game on FCS, and forgive me for not knowing and therefore not giving credit to the commentator, but his comment concerned scholarships at the 1-AA level. 

In Division 1-AA, the maximum number of scholarships is 63 (at Division 1-A it is 85).  Because of that, we are seeing more 1-AA teams not only compete, but beat Division 1-A teams.  Villanove beat Temle and Richmond and William andMary also posted wins over Duke and Virginia respectively. 

In Division 1-AA, there are several conferences that do not permit theior members to give it all or any scholarships.  The Ivy League does not allow its members to award any type of athletic scholsarship.  Now, that certainly doesn’t mean that players don’t receive grants, academic scholarships, but unlike a Delaware, which can have 63 full scholarships, the Ivy League schools have to be more creative in getting quality athletes to their schools. 

I’m not sure that bothers the Ivy league.  This league plays by its own set of rules. For years, teams could only play on Saturdays, their seasons could not begin until the third September, and members would play 10 games with the last game being the Saturday before Thanksgving.  Recently, the league has allowed some Friday night games to get some TV exposure, but the other rules remain in place.  And, the Ivy league champion does not participate in the 1-AA playoffs.  There has been some talk about the Ivy League entereing the 1-AA playoffs but nothing serious has come out of it.

The Patriot League is like the IvyLeague.  They can offer grants and academic scholarships, but cannot offer atheltic ones.  But, unlike the Ivy League, they do participate in the 1-AA playoffs and 2003, Cogate appeared in the championship game, losing to Delaware. 

The Northeast Conference, featuring the likes of Albany, Monmouth, Wagner and Central Connecticut only recently began allowing its members to award athletic scholarships, but instead of having 63, they permit 30.  The NEC is eligible for the postseason, but they do not get an automatic bid and through 2008 has never had a member make the playoffs.  That will change in 2009, when Division 1-AA expands its playoffs from 16 to 20 teams.

Here’s the point.  The NCAA, whch oversees 1-AA football (that’s why there’s a playoff) should get everybody on the same page.  If you want to play 1-AA football, you have to award the full compliment of scholarships.  If not, drop down to Division II or form a 1-AAA league where the Colgates, Bucknells, San Diegos and Cornells can play each other each week.  Watching Albany play Massachusetts can be just as tough as watching Charleston Southern venture into Florida. 

The commentator kept emphasizing how solid the Patriot League is without the use of scholarships and he stated that if the Patriot League allowed its members to have them, they would be right on par with the Colonial Conference, which is considered by most as the best and deepest 1-AA conference in the nation.  These were not just the commentators words, they came from Villanova coach Andy Talley. 

Many of you do ot care, but Division 1-AA is very important to the fiber of college football in America.  Not every city and town in the country can have a major univesity with a 75,000 seat stadium.  For towns like Newark, Delaware, Statesboro, Georgia, Boone, North Carolina, and Missoula, Montana, Division 1-AA football is a big time event.  I lived in Delaware and was fortunate enough to attend three UD games, where over 20,000 packed old Delaware Stadium to see their beloved Blue Hens play. 

When you watch Ball State play Penn State, you assume that Penn State will win, but you know that both schools have 85 scholarship players.  It should be the same when Albany takes on Massachusetts or Bucknell plays Cornell or lehigh plays Villanova.

On College Football: Week 1

by John Furgele

The best team of the year has arrived with the start of the 2009 college football season.  Often, too much is made of how teams look in the first week, resulting in fans getting too excited or too down too soon.  Let’s take a look at what’s in store for the season.

The Oklahoma Mets?:  Sports Illustrated picked the New York Mets to win the World Series this year, but injuries to several of their key stars derailed that.  Is the same thing in store for the Oklahoma Sooners?  In their 14-13 loss to BYU, they lost both quarterback Sam Bradford and tight end Jermaine Griffin.  The injury to Bradford’s shoulder is likely more serious than what’s coming from Norman and at the least, Bradford will miss three weeks if not much more. 

Easy on Paulus:  Gre g Paulus seemed to make a nice transition from point guard to quarterback, but it is important to not get too carried away.  One, it was Paulus’s first game as a college quarterback and because of it, Minnesota had to preapre a vanilla defense for him.  The lack of film actually helped both Paulus and the Syracuse coaching staff,under first year head man, Doug Marrone.  Two, the game was at home against an average opponent.  This week, Paulus and the Orange travel to Penn State.  We’ll know a lot more about Paulus on Sunday.

Penn State Should be Ashamed:  If the Lions finish 11-1 and get left out of the BCS Championship Game, they will have no one to blame but themselves.  Is there a weaker non-conference slate in the nation than the one the Penn State athletic department put together?  Akron, Syracuse, Temple and Eastern Illinois are on the slate this year.  The only case can be made for Syracuse.  When they game was scheduled, the Orange were in much better shape and the Big East is still a BCS conference.  But, Eastern Illinois is a 1-AA team, and both Temple and Akron are from the mid-major Mid America Conference.  We know why the big schools play a soft non-conference schedule, but playing one team of equal ability should be required.  Oklahoma playing BYU, Georgia traveling to Oklahoma State after going to Arizona State last year is an example of good and proper scheduling, so please, no complaining if you get shafted come bowl time.

The Big Least:  This summer, representatives from the Mountain West Conference petioned Congress to look at how fair the BCS is.  Senator Orrin Hatch is a big player on this committee, and he hails from Utah, a school that has had two undefeated seasons.  The Big East is a member of the BCS, but is the Big East better than the MWC?  I don’t think so, and I’m sure others agree.  The Big East has not one team ranked in the pre-season Associated Press Top 25, while BYU, picked by many to finish behind Utah and Texas Christian in the MWC is ranked 8th.  And, Colorado State won at Colorado, futhering the MWC case for an automatic BCS berth, a berth they should get.

Grohing Old at Virginia?:  Virginia unveiled a new spread (ho-hum) offense against 1-AA William and Mary.  The result was a 26-14 loss to the Tribe.  Yes, it’s early, but setiment for Al Groh was not overwhelming high before the season and to lose to a 1-AA opponent cannot be a good sign. 

There were also high expectations at Duke under second year coach David Cutcliffe, but the Blue Devils fell to 1-AA Richmond, 26-14.  Granted, the Spiders are the defending 1-AA champions, but games against 1-AA teams are scheduled for a reason—to win. 

A Bad Win?:  Navy has proven that it can play with anybody and last week’s 31-27 loss at Ohio State should not worry those in Buckeye Nation.  The Middies have trouble stopping people, but their option offense will move the ball on every opponent.  Some are calling it a bad win or a moral loss, but Ohio State survived Ohio last season and still wound up 10-2 and in the Fiesta Bowl.  This week, we will find out just how good the Bucks are when they host high powered Southern California.  The Trojans have talent, but they’re young and this is a game that Ohio State and the Big Ten need.

Does Notre Dame-Michigan Mean Something This Year?:  Both teams beat inferior oppenents as the Irish thumped Nevada and the Wolverines trounced Western Michigan, but both teams dominated in doing so.  Last year, Michigan lost at home to Utah, and Notre Dame stumbled to a 6-6 finish against the coach who has a “decided schematic advantage” in every game in Charlie Weis.  This week, Notre Dame is ranked 23rd as they travel to Michigan.  This is probably a bigger game for Rich Rodriguez who needs to get the dogs off his back after last season’s 4-8 finish and this year’s alleged practice time violations.  There are alos those who don’t like Michigan’s new offense, favoring the old three yards and a cloud of dust offense of yesteryear.  But, had UM gone 8-4, the offense would be great. 

America’s Teams:  Army, under new coach and option guru Rich Ellerson thumped Eastern Michigan (yes, they’re hapless) 27-14 and will host Duke this Saturday at Michie Stadium in West Point.  The Duke game is a winnable game and there are dreams of a 2-0 start.  But, Duke will come in angry after being bounced by 1-AA Richmond. 

Indiana State dropped its 28th straight game, losing 30-10 at Louisville.  The Sycamores opened the season against  NAIA school Quincy University and blew a 17-0 lead and lost 26-20 in overtime.  Another winless season is a reality.  Since the 2005 season, ISU is 1-46 and some message boards are calling for ISU to drop football.  That should not happen.  ISU is a 1-AA school and things can turn around.  Prairie View A&M is a classic example.  The Panther lost 80 consecutive games from 1989-1998, but now are challenging in the SWAC, and last year finished 9-1 overall.  There is hope for the ISU faithful.  They host Eastern Illinois this Saturday.

The S Stands For Sadness

by John Furgele

ESPN continues to take over the sports world.  Yesterday, ESPN had coverage of the opening of the 2009-2010 English Premier League Soccer season.  And while it’s true that Fox Soccer Channel also will carry games this year, it won’t be long before ESPN throws enough money at the EPL and becomes the exclusive United States home for arguably the most exciting club soccer in the world.  If ESPN really wants something, they will get it, leaving the crumbs for the other networks.  If you need to know more, just wait for the United States Open tennis tournament.  For decades, USA Network was the place to be.  They would come on at 11 AM for the afternoon matches, then at 7 PM for the prime time matches.   But not anymore.  ESPN has wrested the US Open away and while they do do a good job, USA Network now will have to settle for Monk reruns.

ESPN also feels that they have to show the Little League World Series ad nauseum.  Once again, this is ESPN at its worst.  I won’t bore you with how their coverage exploits young kids because it really doesn’t, but why does ESPN have to do this?  Why do they have to put Little League baseball games on television?  And, why so many?

It used to be fun when you read about the games and then tuned into ABC for the Saturday, 3:30 PM final, but now ESPN has made us immune by showing all the games.  Once again, why?  The games, first and foremost, are not that great, not that exciting and not that appealing.  Why they have to show regionals, and play from Williamsport on a daily basis is just plain sad.  And, I don’t really care if the 12 year old blows his elbow out and never pitches again.  It’s not that impotant, because the reality is that none of these kids will ever make the majors anyways and so what if the kid’s elbow prevents him from playing baseball in the future?  At age 11 or 12, he has his life to look forward to and chances are he’ll be working and jogging three tmes per week to keep the gut down.  That’s reality and one would love to see ESPN say that during the overexposure of what was once a sign of innocence. 

The only area where ESPN took a hit is the National Football League. Of course, the one entity bigger than ESPN is the NFL.  Maybe the NFL was sick of Chris Berman with his over the top style, or maybe they wanted to put money somewhere else, but ESPN got Monday Night Football, and although football is football, MNF is the second rate package.  The games look good on paper now, but if the Philly-Dallas week 13 matchup is between two 5-7 teams, ESPN is stuck with it, unlike NBC, which gets flexible scheduling on its Sunday Night package, which suits the league and the network, but certainly not the fans, who may have to adjust plans in a very short time period, but we know that as long as the seats are filled, nobody really cares about the needs of fans. 

ESPN, the network which once showed Davis Cup, CFL football and Aussie Rules football, now has pirated Little League Baseball, the English Premier League, US Open tennis,and anything else it wants.  I would not be surprised to see the network get the NHL back someday, not because they want it, but because they want to tell Versus that it has no place in sports, because ESPN is the ruler of the fiefdom.

The Sports World Keeps Churning

by John Furgele

It has been some time, so let’s get right to it with some snippets from the Sports World.

-I am tired of Lance Armstrong.  I don’t consider the Tour de France a major sport and I’m not a big fan of bicycle racing.  When Lance Armstrong was the lead rider, his teammates had to help him win.  Now, the shoe is on the other foot and Lance wants to ride independently and try to win the Tour de France for the eighth time.  He is a tremendous athlete who is allegedly the clean one in a very dirty sport.  If you you ask Lance how he can be clean and win when the others are dirty, he guilts you by pulling out the cancer card.  He originally intended to go to France and be a team player, but now that he thinks he can win, that’s out the window.    I respect the hell out of him, but for now, I’m selling.

-Despite the arrogance and the going over the top with the cheesy Nike gold 15 outfit, Roger Federer is still the world’s best tennis player.  As mentioned before, Nadal may be better, but Federer is the best.  His five set victory over American Andy Roddick eclipsed last year’s epic final and it would have been nice to see Roddick win the title he craves so dearly.  But, Federer is 15-5 in Grand Slam finals and it would be no surprise to see him hoisting the US Open trophy the Sunday after Labor Day.

-The sports media is trying to sell us the Albert “The Great” Pujols.  He is considered a great man, he is given credit for marrying a woman with a special needs child and he is considered a clean, PED free player.  I would like to caution everybody.  I don’t have any reason to believe that Pujols is a drig cheat, but haven’t we been down this road before?  We breathed a deep sigh of relief when Barry Bonds wasn’t resigned and we said that Alex Rodriguez would someday hold the clean home run record.  But, A-Rod became A-Roid, so we gravitated to Manny Ramirez, then he tested positive.  Would we be surprised if Pujols tested positive?  I certainly wouldn’t, so I refuse to go ga-ga over Pujols because I am now a permanent skeptic.  Baseball doesn’t have the right to sell us a clean player until they can prove that he is clean and that will only come to with blood tests, ala the Olympics.

-I still do not fathom why the NFL continues to get a free pass on PEDs while baseball gets raked through the coals.  Why aren’t the football players scorned like their baseball brethern?  We all know that all the networks pussyfoot around the NFL for fear of reprisal, but what about objective journalism?

-I don’t know which was sadder:  the death of Michael Jackson or the death of Steve McNair.  McNair was a tough guy who could lead men and play hurt.  When New England won their third Super Bowl in four years, the team–and man— that they feared the most was McNair’s Tennessee Titans in the AFC Divisional Playoffs.  New England warded off the Titans, then cruised, but that’s how good and tough McNair was. 

But, like all of us, McNair has flaws off the field.  Despite being married and the father of four kids, McNair was dating another woman, who apparently killed him and herself.  Does a man deserve death for cheating on his wife?  Of course not, but it should be a cautionary tale for all. 

-Like steroids, the baseball All-Star Game is still held to a higher level.  The NFL Pro Bowl is a classic joke and the NBA and NHL All-Star Games aren’t much better, but for some reason, the baseball All-Star Game has to mean something?  Why?  Deciding World Series home field advantage in the All-Star Game is wrong, plain and simple.  And, it is more than unfair to the National League and its clubs, which haven’t had home field advantage in the WS since 2001.  And, if the NL wins the next seven games, it would be equally unfair.  Because baseball is the only sport with two sets of rules, home field will remain unfair.  It is not fair for NL teams to have to employ a DH for the World Series and it is just as unfair that the AL teams have to bat their pitchers.  Why doesn’t baseball address a real issue instead of artificially propping up an exhibition game?

-If it were another sport, the announcement that Jacques Lemaire is returning to coach the New Jersey Devils would be a major story.  In his first stint behind the Devil bench, he lost the epic 1994 Eastern Conference Final to the New York Rangers only to lead the Devils past the highly favored Detroit Red Wings in the 1995 Stanley Cup Final.  Moreover, he was the man who ushered in the neutral zone trap, a tactic that many teams adopted because of the Devils success.  Say what you want about Lemaire’s coaching techniques, but the man’s name is on the Stanley Cup 11 times as a coach and player and that means he knows what he’s doing.

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?