Nice start to a career

Jeremy Hermida hit a grand slam in his first major league at bat:

The only other player with a grand slam in first major league at-bat was pitcher William "Frosty Bill" Duggleby, who did it for Philadelphia at home against the New York Giants in the second inning on April 21, 1898, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. Duggleby, who started that game, hit only five other homers in the remainder of a career that ended in 1907.

Go here to read about "Frosty Bill's" illustrius career. If things go as scheduled, Matt Stairs great, great, great grandson will accomplish this feat next sometime in the year 2112.

Create your own South Park character

Go here to see a site where a guy created the entire Reds South Park team. There's a link on his site that takes you to a site where you can create your own character. Randy Moss is my first creation.

Thanks to the Sportfrog Swamp for showing the link.

Finley a Spur

Michael Finley signed with the Spurs. I'm still deciding how to view Finley's choice.

1. Idealist: He decided to stay in Texas, and he wants to win so badly that he's willing to take a reduced role just to be a part of a championship team.

2. Cynic: He knows there's not much gas left in the tank. Instead of going to a contending team that would need him to fill a prominent scoring role (Minnesota, Denver), Finley went to a team that already has Manu Ginobli, Bruce Bowen, and Brent Barry who will share his playing time.

Warning...

More Red Sox content below

David Wells update

David Wells issued a written apology for saying mean things about Bud Selig, Bob Watson, and baseball in general.

Basically, when Wells met with baseball officials, they told him he could release a formal apology or he could be fined and suspended again. Wells, not wanting to lose any more of his beer money, decided to cross his fingers and issue an apology .

Saint Schilling the Shelled update

Curt Schilling got shelled early in last night's game. He did recover and pitched okay in later innings, so hopefully that could be sign for better performances to come. So what was the topic of Boston radio this morning? A few fans booed Curt Schilling after he gave up several consecutive extra base hits! How could Fenway fans boo the great Curt Schilling!!!!

Time to find another "next great American tennis player"

Good news, Andy Roddick lost in the first round of the U.S. Open to Gilles Muller of Luxembourg.

Guess the Athlete!

Depressing

Kerry Wood is having shoulder surgery. It seemed like yesterday he was pitching a 20 strikeout game, and everyone was calling him the next Roger Clemens.

Jessica Alba in Miami at the MTV Video Awards before she met up with Shaq and Dwyane Wade on stage and then with Patriotsy2k in a sleazy Boca Raton motel.

I knew this would happen

Yankees to sign Mark Bellhorn. I hope it works out as well as their Alan Embree signing.

Cross Bud Selig off David Wells' X-Mas list

Wells lost his appeal so his 6-game suspension will not be reduced. I had never been so happy for a rain delay because I just got to watch David Wells lambast the commissioner for 30 minutes. I'll try to find the full transcript later, but here's some highlights:

• "I've been tested three times this year, but it's obvious that there's guys getting away with doing it," Wells said. "And he's not doing a thing."
• "I guess that gives umpires a reason to do whatever the hell they want to do," Wells said, adding that he thought he was pushing teammate Kevin Millar, who was trying to restrain him. "It's a sad day for me. ... I don't get it. I'm very bitter about the situation."
• Of Watson, the well-respected former Astros [and Yankee] All-Star, Wells said: "I don't even know why he played, because it's like he's against the players."
• "I'm really holding back because I've got a lot of negative things to say," he said. "I can't wait to win the World Series and have Bud Selig come up there [with the trophy]. I really can't. Who knows what will come out then."
• "Maybe it's a blessing in disguise," he said. "I can't miss a game or I'm out a big chunk of money. I wouldn't mind losing that money if I was in the wrong. But I look back at the video and I wasn't wrong."

During the interview, they replayed the argument over and over. First, the only contact I saw was Wells pushing into Millar inadvertently into an umpire. Maybe that gets you six games, but there's no rhyme or reason to punishments in baseball.

Then I noticed this. Three players and an umpire separated Wells from Macho Man Chris Guccione. Macho Man Guccione is on the other side of the blockade screaming at pointing at Wells. If baseball had any integrity, Guccione would have been fired the next day. Only in baseball can a man in that position get away with behavior like this.

Now contrast this incident with what happened with Greg Maddux on Saturday against the Marlins. After two straight close pitches were called balls, Maddux "showed up" the umpire and demonstratively screamed obscenities right at the homeplate umpire. His display made Wells initial reaction to the close calls look tame. So what did the umpires do? Nothing. The second base umpire didn't even run into save the day!

The result of good umpiring. I got to watch a good Cubs/Marlins game, and Greg Maddux doesn't have to worry about a suspension.

How to get noticed if your a male tennis player

Write something derogatory towards women. Some thoughts from Justin Gimelstob:

[Female tennis players] live in Bizarro World. However, one of the benefits of having the women around is the ever-increasing desire for each and every young sassy player trying to outdo or, in this case, under-dress the next.My prediction: Pretty soon the WTA practice courts and maybe even the match courts will resemble a women's volleyball court, with g-strings and bikinis being the only logical next step. Not that I'm complaining, or even think that wouldn't be a valuable marketing tool. But I'd like to recommend to players both female and male, and even coaches out on the practice courts ... if you resemble a beached whale, keep your gear on."

Sounds like a good plan to me. Serena Williams did not help the case of women tennis players today, as she had to pause from her match to put on some earrings that fell off during a point.

Bad Karma Clemens

He got lazy the last few years with the Red Sox.
He lied to the fans when he left Boston.
He forced is way out of a commitment to Toronto.
He was a Yankee.
He threw at Mike Piazza's head.
He threw a bat at Mike Piazza.
He scammed a Hummer out of the Yankees (insert Yankees Suck joke here) by faking his retirement .

Rogers Clemens has had one of the most illustrious careers for a pitcher, but now the Baseball Gods are getting revenge on him. Someone with a 1.51 ERA should have a better record than 11-6. Mike Piazza, Sox fans, Yankee fans, and Blue Jay fans are all getting a good laugh this year as the Astros have been shut out in eight of Clemens' starts.

History repeats itself

Tony Dorsett and Jerry Rice,

unfortunately playing for the Broncos.

Fantasy Advice

Don't draft Maurice Clarett. Mike Shanahan already regrets the pick and has cut him. Shanahan screwed up picking Clarett, but a lot of teams screw up in the draft. The bigger story is how Clarett screwed up. Despite all of his problems he was lucky enough to be picked by the perfect team for running backs. All he had to do was show up and work, and the odds are he'd have a productive well-paying career. Instead, he complained about money and avoided practice because of minor injuries. Now he'll end up with a team that doesn't know how to develop a good back.

Clarett could have been the next Terrell Davis, instead he may be the next Al Bundy.

Warning...

For those of you sick of people writing about the Red Sox, you may want to avoid the next two posts.

New England's Brett Favre

Brett Favre has been a great quarterback who helped the Packers win a Super Bowl. He's also friendly with the media and can be counted on to give a good quote. Curt Schilling has been a great pitcher who helped the Red Sox win the World Series. He's also friendly with the media and can be counted on to give a good quote.

Listen to the media, and neither man has done anything wrong in their lives. Favre I've already discussed, but let's look at Schilling.

After the World Series, Theo Epstein is seen at a rally for John Kerry and Schilling is seen at a rally for George Bush. Theo gets bashed and Schilling -- he's a great American that cares about his country. Coincidently the most prominent voices on Boston radio are to the right of Rush Limbaugh.

Then Schilling comes to spring training out of shape. He did have surgery on his ankle, but last I checked you can still exercise without using your ankle. Again, no criticism. Imagine if Manny comes into camp out of shape.

Then, he shows up to Congress for the Steroid hearings. After boldly saying how steroids is a big problem and how he knows tons of players are users, he basically tells Congress that he doesn't really know anything.

Then there's his rehab. I know hindsight is 20/20, but it's now obvious he did not make the right decisions in his rehab.

Now the latest is his last pitching performance in which he got shelled. No one in Boston is blaming Schilling for pitching poorly; after all it's just his first game back, so we shouldn't have expected much. Apparently it was just a rehab start.

Pitchers shouldn't be doing rehab starts in the majors late in the season during a pennant race. If Keith Foulke went straight to the bullpen after his stint on the DL and got shelled, people would be trashing him for selfishly avoiding the minors. Instead, we get to hear the Boston media speak of Schilling's selflessness by going to the bullpen instead of starting in the minors. If he did continue his rehab in the minors, he'd probably be pitching a strong 7 innings per game by now -- which is exactly what the Red Sox need.

Now if Schilling starts to pitch well again I'll be cheering with everyone else, but in the mean time he shouldn't be above criticism.

Bye Bye Bellhorn

Mark Bellhorn was released by the Red Sox and couldn't even get into the clubhouse to get his stuff:

When the second baseman inquired about retrieving his stuff from the Fenway clubhouse, he was told he couldn't get it. The Rolling Stones were on the premises, and club officials asked Bellhorn if he could wait until after their concerts. Bellhorn went home to Phoenix. ''Mick Jagger had dibs on the clubhouse," said Bellhorn's agent, Mark Rodgers. ''Even though Mark hit three home runs in the postseason, he's still not Mick Jagger."

Bellhorn was absolutely terrible this year. Over and over he'd watch a perfect pitch with the bat on his shoulders and then swing at the next one above his shoulders. But I'm trying to forget about this year. He was an underrated fielder, a good clubhouse guy (even with this year's struggles), and he was one of the heroes of the playoffs last year.

When Red Sox fans think of Bellhorn they should think of how he silenced Yankee Stadium with his homeruns in Games 6 and 7.

Wonder why Fenway's outfield got wrecked

Hypogonadism

When Palmeiro started to promote Viagra, he set himself help for a lifetime of jokes. Now that he's been caught using steroids, maybe we should revisit those commercials. Dr. Joseph Russ of Florida wrote an interesting letter to Sports Illustrated. Here's part of it:

...As a physician, I couldn't help but note that Palmeiro became a spokesman for Viagra while in his late 30s. Although he never admitted to erectile problems, one major side effect of steroid use is hypogonadism with testicular atrophy and increased incidence of erectile dysfunction, the problem Viagra treats.

Fat Favre?

Why didn't we see this headline the last few years? This preseason I keep hearing reporters compliment Favre for coming into camp in such good shape and how he lost a lot of weight. Favre's been pretty blunt about his fitness:

"I felt like the last two or three years I cheated myself," Favre said, "which obviously ends up cheating your teammates as far as being in the best shape physically and mentally that you can possibly be in."

Favre should be praised for working hard during the offseason. However, if he wasn't in good shape the last few years, why was this never mentioned by all the "experts" that supposedly know everything about the game? I guess they were too busy talking about how a cornerback's hands must hurt so much after intercepting a Favre pass.

Answer to Guess the Athlete

Starting pitcher Jason Vargas of the Florida Marlins, who's career ERA is better than both Roger Clemens and Pedro Martinez.

Site news

Bad news for all of you fans of the recent comments completely unrelated to any of my posts that just happen to have a link to another site that just happens to be selling something. I found out that these comments are called "Blog Spam."

To prevent these from showing up, people writing comments will now have to verify they're humans by typing in a word verification. If this doesn't work, I'll require people to e-mail me their social security numbers, bank account numbers, and ATM passwords.

Last place Packers?

This article may get some of our famous Packer fans out of hibernation. Adam Schein of FoxSports.com explains why the Packers will finish in last place this year. Some excerpts:

• The Packers won't be able to stop the run, pressure the opposing quarterback, turn the opposition's offense over, and have simply no defensive depth or margin for error.

  Other than that, the defense should be OK.

• The signature move made by new general manager Ted Thompson in the off-season was bringing in Jim Bates to coach this awful unit. A player or 10 might have helped.

• The biggest part of the Packers poor off-season was letting two of Brett Favre's bodyguards go. Mike Wahle is a versatile, tough, and flat-out consistent guard in his prime. Marco Rivera's been a rock on the offensive line. They instantly improve the Panthers and Cowboys, respectively.

  And to compound the problem, Thompson didn't bother to replace these great guards. He gave former New England reserve Adrian Klemm a multi-year deal. Klemm's been a one-man MASH unit in his NFL career and can't shine Wahle's shoes

• And the severely depleted offensive line can't help Brett Favre, who after 17 picks last year, is not the same quarterback he was while he was building his first ballot Hall of Fame career.

  Those 17 interceptions don't include the four brutal ones he tossed at home in the gruesome loss to the Vikings in the playoffs last year.

  I repeat — he's not the same quarterback.

• In what might just be Favre's final season, the big question is simply this...
  Can Green Bay hold off Chad Hutchinson and the Bears?

Ouch.

Coincidence?

This afternoon on MSN.com these two headlines were next to each other:

• 16-year-old 'Sleepover' star missing
• R. Kelly signs on for MTV Awards
  

Bob Huggins hired to coach Portland Trail Blazers

Not true. Just my lame attempt at parody.

Ebony & Ivory

Milton Bradley says Jeff Kent doesn't know how to deal with black people.

"The problem is, he doesn't know how to deal with African-American people," Bradley said. "I think that's what's causing everything. It's a pattern of things that have been said -- things said off the cuff that I don't interpret as funny. It may be funny to him, but it's not funny to Milton Bradley..."

Nice use of the third person Milton. So, Bradley thinks he knows why Kent doesn't get along with him. What's his explanation for why everyone else doesn't like him?

Jeff Kent responded with the famous "some-of-my-best-friends-are-black-people" reply:

"If you think that I've got a problem with African-Americans, then go talk to Dusty Baker. Go talk to Dave Winfield, who took me under his wing. Go talk to Joe Carter -- all the guys that I idolized in this game and all the veteran players who taught me how to play this game.

"That's a shame, and I take offense to that. That's just absolutely pathetic if it comes from his mouth."

From the Brushback...

Member Of John Olerud’s Posse Arrested In Nightclub Shooting

(excerpts)
WALTHAM, MA--Police in Waltham, MA arrested a member John Olerud’s posse in a nightclub shooting Saturday night....

...“I think it was this guy named Darius who threw the first punch. Then that was it. It was chaos,” said Ferrara. “Everybody was screaming, all the customers were afraid, even I thought I might get shot. The funny thing is that Olerud was standing off to the side the whole time, casually sipping a drink and laughing. He was trying to be so cool, you know? He thinks he's such a pimp. At one point someone did throw a bottle at his head, but it shattered against that batting helmet he was wearing.”

...“Anytime you hear something like that it’s pretty scary,” said Francona. “I know John has had his share of problems in the past. He has made some questionable decisions with regard to the places he goes and people he hangs around with. But that doesn’t mean he’s a bad guy. We just need to reach out to him and let him know that he needs to make better decisions. If anything happened to him I know it would be just devastating to his family. Worse yet, it would force me to start Kevin Millar at first base. Now that's devastating.”

Thinking about the White Sox

The White Sox have been around for over 100 years. We know they haven't won anything in a long time, but fans of other teams can say that too. Fans of other teams, however, can point out a Top Shelf Hall of Fame player that represented their team. For example, Cubs fan may have not seen a World Series in a while, but at least they got to see Ernie Banks play.

Here's a list of teams that have been around for over 100 years and an example of an All Time Legend associated with the team. Some teams have more than one player, but I'll just list one.

Braves - Hank Aaron
Orioles/Browns - Cal Ripken
Red Sox - Ted Williams
Cubs - Ernie Banks
Reds - Pete Rose
Indians - Bob Feller
Tigers - Ty Cobb
Dodgers - Jackie Robinson
Twins/Senators - Harmen Killebrew
Yankees - Steve Howe
Athletics - Jimmie Foxx
Phillies - Steve Carlton
Pirates - Roberto Clemente
Giants - Willie Mays
Cardinals - Stan Musial

Now who do you associate with the White Sox? There's Shoeless Joe Jackson, but he was on the Sox for less than 10 years, and there was that little Black Sox thing. There's also Carlton Fisk, but 1975 makes me associate him with the Red Sox despite playing more years with the White Sox.

So being a White Sox fan means not being in the World Series since 1959 and not winning one since 1917, being overshadowed by the Cubs, and not having a memorable player associated with your team for over 100 years.

White Sox fans, I commend your team loyalty.

It's about time

Cincinnati is forcing Bob Huggins to quit or be fired.

His on and off court behavior and his players' off court behavior has been a disgrace for years. Any real Cincinnati student(one that actually goes to classes) or professor must be ashamed at what Huggins has done to the reputation of this university.

What does this guy have against Fuji?

Yutaka Fukufuji, a goalie born in Tokyo who signed with the LA Kings.

Guess the Athlete!

Answer on Friday

I'm complimenting the Lakers

I don't like to do this, but I have to say the Lakers were smart to sign Aaron McKie. This signing reminds me of the Suns signing Raja Bell. McKie's a good complimentary player that winning teams need. While SportCenter shows Kobe hogging the ball, McKie will be in the background setting picks, playing good defense, and hustling. Hopefully McKie is getting too old.

Don't study the schedule too much

To see how a team will do in a playoff race people often look at the weakness or strength of a schedule. Sometimes it helps, but just remember: last week the A's were scheduled to play the pathetic Royals while the Yankees were scheduled to play the "best team in the American League," White Sox. Must be good to be an A's fan, right?

Well the Yankees gained two games on the A's. The White Sox are showing they're not as good as their record, and the Royals, well, a team has to win a game or two once in a while.

For confused Red Sox fans

Sox fans, remember that feeling that there was no way your team could get by a certain opponent. No matter what they did, that better team had a little bit more talent, and maybe a little bit more luck. Do you miss that feeling? I don't. But if you do, become an Andy Roddick fan. I don't want to sound like a Yankee fan, but there's no way Roddick will ever beat Roger Federer when it counts.

Answer to Guess the Athlete

First, sorry for the delay. I guess it's much more difficult for a power company to turn on electricity than to turn it off. Also, according to my wonderful power company, my address does not exist.

I hope no one lost sleep waiting for this week's answer, Anthony Hargrove of the St. Louis Rams. As for the car (the only reason I posted the picture), I believe it's a Lincoln Navigator with Lamborghini Doors. If you'd like these doors on your car, call West Coast Customs, as featured on one of my favorite shows, Pimp My Ride.

Worst College Football Preview Ever

I don't think I watched a college game last season until around January 1st. However, for the first time in years, I'm actually excited about the college season started. Here's the reasons why I'm excited about the season, and a preview from someone who knows little about college football.

The 2005 Rose Bowl
After watching that game I told myself I had to start watching some more college football. While Braylon Edwards and Cedric Benson are no longer around, several of the key players from the 38-37 thriller are still there. Is Vince Young the next Michael Vick? Is Steve Breaston the next Desmond Howard? Is Mike Hart the next Tom Brady? Is Alan getting carried away?

The return of other players I actually heard of
There's two reasons why I'm not a diehard college fan. I don't have a favorite team that I follow closely and I can't keep up with who the best players are. Usually, once I figure out who they are, they're leaving to the NFL.

This year I actually know some players! I've already mentioned Vince Young, Mike Hart, and Steve Breaston. There's also three players who were at last year's Heisman ceremony: Adrian Peterson, Reggie Bush, and Matt Leinart.

As for Matt Leinart: Has there ever been a quarterback returning with as much success in his past has Leinart has had? Is there anyway he can improve upon what he's already done? Maybe he can hook up with more Hollywood starlets.

Coaches I care about
Until this year, Pete Carroll was the only coach I was interested about. It's amazing that this is the same guy that was run out of New England. I'll be writing about comparing his Patriots and Trojans experience another time.

Charlie Weis. I have never rooted for Notre Dame (the result of going to college with obnoxious Notre Dame fans and a lifetime dislike of Lou Holtz). I'm going to find it tough to root against Weis. I'd love to see him rebuild a program, but I don't know if I want to hear from gloating Notre Dame fans again. Nonetheless, it will be interesting to see how Weis does. I say he'll do great. He'll be able to recruit players by telling them he'll get them ready for the NFL. Also, besides being a coordinator in New England, he was instrumental in the development of players. Weis has been credited for helping the development of Ben Coates, Curtis Martin, Keyshawn Johnson, and Tom Brady. He should get the most out of his college players.

Steve Spurrier. He might be a smug jerk who was a failure in the NFL, but his college teams are always exciting. For the first time in my life I'll actually want to watch a South Carolina game. Plus, now no one can argue that Steve Spurrier is a Cock -- s South Carolina Gamecock.

Urban Meyer. Utah played a fascinated exciting offense last year under Meyer. It will be interesting to see what Meyer does with the great athletes of Florida.

Dave Wannstedt. Will he continue to be an inept coach or will he catch a case of PeteCarrollitis?

BC joining the ACC
When the only game on television is BC versus Rutgers it's tough to be college football fan. I'd rather watch the Christie Brinkley infomercial. Now I get to see BC lose to Florida State and Clemson.

So that's my pathetic preview. I won't embarass myself with any predictions.

Who turned out the lights?

Apparently the Godfather or several Yankee fans work for the electric company. There's no power at BartcopSports World Headquarters so I'm posting this from my secret location. My next post will probably happen on Saturday, or I might squeeze in a drunken post late Friday.

Juicy Rumor

On several message boards --including bostonsportsmediawatch.com, sportsfrog.com, and the Sons of Sam Horn -- there's a rumor that Roger Clemens has tested positive for steroids. Clemens is getting most of the attention, but I've also seen Johnny Damon's and Gary Sheffield's names mentioned.

I absolutely hate Clemens, but I hope this rumor isn't true. Clemens caught with steroids would be terrible for baseball. It could be a bigger hit to the game than the Pete Rose scandal.

My opinions on Sheffield and Damon are a bit more simple: Damon -- please tell me it's not true; Sheffield -- couldn't happen to a better person.

From theBrushback.com and Sportspickle.com

theBrushback.com

Jets Thinking Super Bowl For Patriots
NEW YORK--With the addition of all-pro cornerback Ty Law and a healthy Chad Pennington, the feeling around New York Jets camp is that this may be the year—for the New England Patriots to three-peat. Coach Herm Edwards is confident that his young team will be competitive week in and week out, and will ultimately lose to a much better Patriots team. “Our motto this year is quite simple: Why not the Patriots?” said coach Herm Edwards. “Sure, winning three Super Bowls in a row is rare, but I think they have the talent to do it. There are a lot of naysayers out there, and a lot of people who think the loss of Romeo Crennel and Charlie Weis puts them at a disadvantage. But we don’t pay attention to what the doubters say. We know the Pats can do it. As for us, we will compete, and that’s all I can ask from any team--especially one coached by me.”

Some Sportspickle Headlines

• Red Sox fans growing to hate Curt Schilling as much as everyone else
• Michael Vick threatens Falcons with passing more
• Female boxer plagued by glass rack
• Witness Protection Program places high-profile mob informant on Kansas City Royals
  

Pollack ends holdout.

First round pick David Pollack ended his holdout with the Bengals. I don't care, and I know no one else besides the seven Bengal fans in America do either. Also, his last name is not spelled exactly the same way as the famous artist, but I wanted to give this site a little culture. So enjoy this painting as you take a sip of some white zinfandel.

Coming this weekend...

Worst College Football Preview Ever!

Worst negotiator ever

After a poor pitching outing last week, a frustrated Livian Hernandez threw his glove into the stands. The next day he wanted it back because it was his lucky glove. The Nationals tracked down the fan, and the fan said he would exchange the glove for the following:

• season tickets for next year
• playoff tickets
• $18,000 cash

Hernandez then decided maybe this glove wasn't so lucky. Now this fan is stuck with a used glove of a mediocre pitcher.

Now for my public service announcement: If you're ever lucky enough to be in this fan's situation do not repeat his mistake. This sounds like a guy who would put a 1983 Ford Escort on EBay and list the starting price at a million dollars.

He should have let Hernandez make the initial offer then ask for about double. If handled correctly, this fan should have at least gotten a couple of tickets, some merchandise, and a nice autograph -- from manager Frank Robinson, not Hernandez.

So remember, don't get too greedy the next time a player mistakenly throws you his glove or bat.

Remember this name...

I'm trying a new feature. Periodically I'll give you a name of some young athlete who might turn into something special. The great thing about this is that if the player does turn out to be good, I can brag about how knowledgeable I am. If the player turns out to be nothing, no one will remember my mistake because who would waste their time going through my archives.

Anyway, the athlete leading off this wonderful feature is...nineteen-year-old pitcher Felix Hernandez of the Seattle Mariners. When he wins the Cy Young in a few years, tell everyone you first heard about Hernandez at Bartcopsports. If you already knew about him, lie for me please.

Three Tigers Posts in a Row!!!

Dear Fernando Rodney,

Your first name does not match your last name.

Sincerely,
Alan

p.s. Thanks for giving up the tying home run to Ortiz.

Over managing

Nate Robertson of the Tigers was breezing through the Red Sox lineup. Ortiz and Ramirez did nothing against him, and he had only thrown 90 pitches in eight innings. Meanwhile the Tigers have admitted that their closer situation is a mess. So what's the logical thing to do? Bring in the closer!

Since Robertson was taken out, the Red Sox have scored eight runs, and Ortiz hit two homers. As for Alan Trammell's managing skills: he was a great shortstop.

Jeter -- a glorified Alan Trammell?

If you replaced Jeter with a young Alan Trammell, would the Yankees be much worse? Trammell was one of the great shortstops of the eighties and was rarely surrounded by much talent (besides 1984).

Jeter's numbers are better, but Jeter is playing in a good lineup during the era of juiced balls, juiced players, and weak pitching thinned out by expansion. As for all "the little things" Jeter does to make him great: Trammell did them too, but he didn't have a New York media glorifying every popup he caught.

Enough with Schilling

Curt Schilling is NOT a closer. Send him back to the minors and have him work on starting. In this stupid experiment with Schilling in the bullpen, he has not improved his pitching and he hasn't done anything that Timlin couldn't have done.

You just don't put a guy who isn't ready to pitch in the closer's spot.



By the way, here's the guy who scored the tying run,
Nook Logan:

Good MMQB

First Peter King does a great job trashing Terrell Owens:

"...I hope this is the last time I need to bash him in this space, but with this lame-brained nut job such as T.O., you never know."
King then goes into fairly deep detail about the absurdity of Owens' behavior.

Later King touches on my favorite subject -- bashing officials. I wish other writers, especially NBA writers, would join King in examining bad officiating. It's important to fans, and it's important to the integrity of the game. Anyway, here's King on refs:

In the final 10 minutes of the Browns-Giants preseason game on Saturday night, Terry McAulay's crew threw 17 penalty flags. Not all were accepted, but 17? Seventeen! ...A little ridiculous, in other words. The penalties were so absurd -- three separate ones on a single play, all against the Browns -- a Giants club official walked over to the officiating supervisor in the press box late in the game and told him what an embarrassment McAulay's crew was.

Guess the Athlete!

Answer on Friday

Kellen Winslow, Jr.

Still bitter

It's been about four years since Carl Everett left the Red Sox. He's still mad.

Everett battled with teammates (including the infamous Darren Lewis clubhouse fight), umpires, and reporters during the 2001 season, which came on the heels of a stellar first year in Boston, when he hit .300 with 34 homers and 108 RBIs. He accused manager Joe Kerrigan of being a racist and received a four-game suspension for his verbal attack against the Sox manager.

Though there's been significant turnover since the John Harrington-Dan Duquette regime ran the Red Sox, Everett told the Sun-Times, ''I don't know how [John] Henry runs it, but when I was here, it was a terrible organization . . . The trainer, for instance. He was garbage. The head trainer, Jim Rowe, he was part of the mess over there. A big liar. All around, when I was here, it was a terrible organization."

And Trot Nixon won't be going to Carl Everett's birthday party:

He said he was hurt. Maybe he was hurt," Nixon said. ''I don't know. Other people were saying he quit on the team that one year. He's a great talent, but if he's still gonna sit there and worry about what went on a few years ago, it's time to move on."

Asked to describe his relationship with Everett, Nixon said, ''I don't think I had any problems with him. I have a problem with him . . . if he's gonna say certain things about certain ballplayers. He might as well come over and say it to my face or come out and say it in someone else's face, rather than say it in the papers."

Matt Clement's pitching today against Everett's White Sox. Clement's fifth in the American League in hit batters.

Saints Football!

Rookie Adrian McPherson still has a lot to figure out.

Picture found on Sportsfrog.com

Why the Bears will have a first round bye

The return of guest writer Bryan
(I think he wrote this before the Grossman injury.)

Excuse my absence, a summer of landscaping takes more
out of you than you'd think...plus I drink a lot.

I saw Alan's pictures of 'So many QB's, so little
talent.'  While that might be better suited for last
year, it certainly isnt the case this year with the
Chicago Bears.  The Chicago Bears will go 11-5, and
get a first round bye in the playoffs, book it.  Mark
my words.

First, lets talk about the offense.  The problem with
the Chicago Bears the past couple of seasons has been
the offense, more to point the offensive coordinator.
Gary Crowten, John Schoop, and Terry Shea, all guys
who just didn't get it.  Luckily, we now have Ron
Turner back as offensive coordinator.  Leave out his
record at Illinois.  He won't have to recruit players
anymore.

Quarterbacks: Grossman, two fluke injuries.  One
injury to his hand coming down on a helmet breaking a
finger.  Another injury to his leg scrambling out of
the pocket.  Grossman loves the deep ball and has a
pretty one, and his offensive coordinator loves the
deep ball too.  Hutchinson is a competent backup, and
so is Kyle Orton who was the MVP of the HOF game.

Rest of the offense:  a much improved offensive line,
and an upgrade at WR with Muhammad.  Sure, our first
draft pick is still holding out, but I am a Thomas
Jones fan and I think he will probably still be the
starter.  When Jones loses the job, Benson will factor
in great.

Defense:  Everybody is healthy.  'Nuff said, but if
you want more..the Bears do not play a good offense
until Week 6 with Minnesota.  Actually, of all the
teams they play only Minnesota, Green Bay, and
Pittsburgh were in the top 10 for offense last season.
Word is out on Big Ben and they have problems with
Ward and Staley.  Favre lost his offensive line and
they have no defense.  Minnesota will still be good,
but not as much of a threat with no Moss.

Plus the Bears play in the much weaker NFC, and a weak
non-conference schedule with Washington, Cincinatti,
Cleveland, New Orleans, and San Francisco.  Oh, and
the much overrated Mike Vick.

Book it, I'm buying my playoff tickets early

Van Halen suing the Orioles

The Orioles cancelled a concert schedule for Camden Yards, so Van Halen's suing. Here's an article with some more details. It's obviously written by a Yankee fan. First the writer compares the band to the Yankees, and then he mentions how the Yankees usually beat the Orioles. Very relevant to the lawsuit story.

Anyway, I hope the Orioles win this one -- I still haven't gotten over David Lee Roth leaving the band.

How Patriots preseason games are judged

If the Patriots win -- "It's just preseason."

If the Patriots lose -- "They're doomed!!!"

No answer to Guess the Athlete!

I screwed up. I saw a funny WNBA picture and figured I'd post it for Guess the Athlete, but then I forgot to write the names of the players down. I could do some research to find out who these players are, but I just don't want to. I'm afraid of ending up in some WNBA fan site. If you really want to know the names of these fine female athletes, you can do the research yourself. I'm not doing it. They're WNBA players; who cares what their names are?

Maybe the best thing ever written

Here's an article comparing each baseball team to a Simpsons character. Any baseball fan and Simpsons fan must read this article!

The whole thing is amazing, but here's a few samples.

Philadelphia Phillies - Milhouse Van Houten - Lack of adequate vision (blind without his glasses, hanging on to Jim Thome). Perpetual sidekick to a more successful leader who constantly takes advantage of their weaknesses. Striving for a goal (Lisa's affection, the playoffs) that looks unattainable in their current state, and nobody really takes them seriously.

Cincinnati Reds - Principal Seymour Skinner - Spent much of their existence under the hand of a domineering, insane woman who was impossible to please (Agnes Skinner, Marge Schott). Possessors of a dirty little secret that they would rather sweep under the rug (Skinner's true identity of Armand Tamzarian, Pete Rose). Their lives were given meaning in the '70s (Vietnam, the Big Red Machine) but now all they have to escape the monotony of their everyday existence is the flashbacks.

Los Angeles Dodgers - Disco Stu - Overconfident and forever predicting the return of their glory days. Brought up by devoted fans more often than is probably reasonable, considering their sporadic appearances. Haven't been relevant since the '80s.

Such a good teammate

Warren Sapp always has his teammates' backs.

"A 3-4 defense is based on your linebackers and we didn't have exceptional linebackers," Sapp said. "You have to be honest about it. We suffered a little bit a year ago. People were dropping when they were supposed to be rushing and rushing when they were supposed to be dropping."

Sure Warren, it's always your teammates' fault.

Make sure you own the entire team

News Flash: The Atlanta Hawks are a mess. In a related story, the weather in South Florida is hot in August.

There are three owners of the Hawks. Two of them want to sign Joe Johnson for too much money, one does not. 30% owner Steve Belkin, who's against the bad signing, initially won a court case to stop the trade, but Czar David Stern has written an affidavit (I thought that's what you hid on Passover) supporting the two owners who want to waste too much money on Johnson. If you're confused, maybe this link will help.

When I own an NBA team, I'll make sure to own 100% of it.

K-Rod brings back little league memories.

Score was tied with runners on the corners in the bottom of the ninth. The catchers throws the ball back to K-Rod, who nonchalantly catches the ball. Actually he doesn't catch the ball! As it rolls by the pitchers mound. Jason Kendall wisely takes off from third to score the winning run as Oakland takes over first place. Maybe Vlad Guerrero was chasing butterflies in right field, and Bartolo Colon was trying to stuff an entire bag of Big League Chew in his mouth.

Billy Beane's critics are awfully quiet these days.

Love that Texas Ranger Baseball

They have the best hitting infield in the game, all the players are young, and Teixeira is a potentially a future MVP. (However, the spelling of Teixeira's name is a blatant slap in the face of all fourth grade teachers preaching, "i before e except after c.")

Anyway, how can you top the fun of watching a great hitting team. Combine them with the Rangers' terrible pitching stuff, and everyone has a good time. Runs for everyone!

The Hidden Ball Trick!!!

Mike Lowell pulled it off against the Diamondbacks. One of sports' greatest plays.

Here's a list of every hidden ball trick pulled off inMLB history. Who can forget when Bob Caruthers fell for Jack Farrell's trickery to end a game on June 17th, 1888?

Great seats!

Steinbrenner speaks

From the NY Daily News:

"I'm not pleased with the manager," Steinbrenner repeated. "I don't know why he left him in."

These are pretty tame words coming from Steinbrenner, but it's always news when an owner publicly second guesses the manager. I'm still waiting for Steinbrenner to trash Brian Cashman. Maybe Cashman has some pictures of George in some compromising positions.

T.O. soap opera continues

Andy Reid has "asked" Terrell Owens to leave Eagles camp for a week. Apparently T.O.'s been miserable since his holdout ended, and he's been ignoring his team's demand that he does autograph sessions with Philly fans. Actually, I'm not gonna blame him for this one. Eagle fans are pretty obnoxious.

It will be interesting to see what T.O. will do next to convince the Eagles to trade him or rework his contract. From what I'm seeing, I don't think it matter what he does; the Eagles won't do anything for him.

Steroid Rumor

From Bostonsportsmedia.com:

Howard Bryant (subscription only) looks at some of the rumors being talked about involving steroids in the baseball world. He mentions a TV executive who claims baseball has 12 positive tests that it is trying to figure out how to deal with. A player on the Royals told Bryant that one rumor had 58 players with positive tests, while a baseball executive said the rumor he heard was close to 50. Bryant says that teams are not happy with how baseball is handling the steroid issue.

Howard Bryant is a writer for the Boston Herald, which requires people to pay for certain articles. There must be some nervous teams and players out there.

George Brett can't be happy

The Royals went into the ninth inning last night winning 7-2. They lost 13-7. So now they're 26 games under .500 and 35 games out of first.

This was the franchise of George Brett, Frank White, Willie Wilson, and Dan Quisenberry! You can blame the economics of modern baseball only so much for this disaster. This team needs a new owner who will spend some money and a competent general manager.

Imagine if this was Sheffield

A Star on the Decline

Written by the Godfather

Since there are so many stories focusing on the negative aspects of many athletes lately, I thought I would submit a more positive story.

Mike Piazza will be a first ballot Hall of Famer. He has broken the HR record for catchers, has a .313 career batting average, and driven in over 1200 runs. His defense has always been poor, but when it comes to getting in the Hall, his offensive numbers for his position are not matched by anyone.

Piazza began the year batting cleanup for the Mets. This past week, he dropped as low as 7^th in the order and probably will not make it much higher than 6^th in the batting order the rest of the season. In a city where every action is covered by the media, this has been a very quiet development in NY. Piazza is playing for a rookie manager on a team that has gone through several periods where they have struggled to score runs. He has never complained publicly once about his role with the team. He has actually seemed to be more productive batting in the 6^th spot.

The New York fans have been known to “boo’” their superstars when they are not producing. Over the past month, the fans have cheered until Piazza has come out for a curtain call for every HR he has hit. I don’t know if a .267 Avg., 14 HR’s and 54 RBI’s (at this point of the season so far) will land Piazza a DH job next year. With all of the egotistical players in sports today, it is nice to see some athletes actually will do what it takes to help their team win.

From The Brushback...

Native American Mascot Ban Totally Makes Up For Genocide

Speaking of holdouts...

Rookies never look good when they hold out, especially when they talk. The words of Pacman Jones:

"My teammates, I don't think they've been as loyal as they should have been in this situation. A lot of other guys around the league are holding out and my teammates are the only ones that are saying negative stuff about me....But then I have to hear Keith Bulluck talking about me, how he doesn't even know who Pacman is…"As far as my teammate and everything, that will never change. But as far as the respect level off the field and me calling him for advice, that will never happen now."

Alan knows who Alan is. Alan thinks Pacman won't be very popular with his teammates when this holdout ends.

Why not a little Dilbert?

Dilbert.com

So much for suspensions

An arbitrator ended Kenny Roger's suspensions, therefore proving Selig powerless. David Stern can suspend a player for a season and Selig can't even get 20 games.

Meanwhile, the NHL prematurely ended the suspension of Todd Bertuzzi. At least Bertuzzi won't be allowed to play against Steve Moore because of his criminal probation. Then again, the Avalanche haven't re-signed Moore because he still hasn't fully recovered from the broken neck he received from Bertuzzi. Wonderful!

The Marino Myth?

When comparing Young to Marino, Dolphin fans may quickly point out how Marino had no support. This article from last year investigates this claim and argues that Marino didn't have it so bad. Careful reading this in South Florida; this article could get you arrested. Some highlights from the article:

• These DollFans are weak and disoriented. It’s easy to beat them into a fetal ball. Tell them that Marino, the greatest player in Miami history, is an overrated fraud. With any luck, they’ll have an instant apoplectic seizure. If not, they may fight back like a desperate rat trapped in a corner.
• He holds records in every meaningful career and single-season statistical category. But he never got it done in crunch time, and his failure to win a Super Bowl is a black mark in Miami history. Marino is, quite simply, the greatest player in North American sports never to win a championship....DollFans have created an entire Mythology of Marino to explain this failure. They say he had no defense, no running game, no supporting cast. It sounds good on paper, but it’s just not true.
• Marino joined Miami at a time when it had a reputation of being the best ground team in football. In fact, the year before Marino was drafted, the Dolphins made it all the way to the Super Bowl on the strength of a great running game and great defense....It would be disingenuous to say that the Dolphins were a great running team later in Marino’s career. Of course, much of that can be attributed to too few rushing attempts and a misguided faith placed in Marino’s arm.
• In his 17-year career, Marino played with 55 players named to the Pro Bowl.
• If any quarterback in NFL history walked into an ideal situation in which to win a Super Bowl, it was Dan Marino.
• In fact, Marino threw at least one interception in 13 of his 18 career playoff games. He threw two or more interceptions 10 times. The Dolphins went just 1-9 in those 10 Marino multi-interception playoff games....So, DollFans, if you're looking for a reason why Miami never won a Super Bowl in the 1980s or 90s, look no further than the faded Dan Marino poster still taped to the ceiling over your bed.

So many QB's, so little talent...

So happy I'm not a Giant fan

They're still talking about the mean Jets. Some quotes with my comments:

• "There's going to be a lot of animosity, you can count on that," Giants linebacker Barrett Green said Monday. "In the preseason game, there's no question about the rules, there's no question about hitting people. They're going to get hit, hard."

Forget about getting ready for the season. They're gonna get revenge on the Jets! What's the over/under on cheap shots against Pennington?

• "Obviously, they had different intentions out there than we did, and it showed," said Green, a starter who is coming back from ACL surgery and sat out both sessions Saturday. "I don't think there were a whole lot of people over here on the blue side who were too happy about it. They had a few smart comments they made about how that's how they practice, but we're very capable of practicing that way, too. But we didn't get a chance to do that."

They didn't get a chance of practicing hard?

• According to quarterback Eli Manning, the Jets showed a wider variety of defensive looks than the Giants expected, which threw off the offense's timing.

  "You're allowed to do some blitzes, but on a lot of plays they were lining up in a Bear defense, in a 3-4, moving people around, bringing the strong safety in and blitzing. And we just kind of wanted to get our basic plays run instead of having to check off. We didn't really game-plan for that stuff."

I think that's what his brother Peyton said about the Patriots last year.

• (More from Barrett Green:) "They got a lot of free shots in [Saturday], and they know it," he said. "Our coaches wanted us to display class and character out there, and that's what we did. Nobody is happy about what happened, but it's over, we learned from it, and it's definitely made us closer. And we'll see them in the third preseason game."

Jeremy Shockey is all about "class and character." I might have to watch a preseason game this year.

Ty Law a Jet

This is difficult for me. A player I like goes to a team I don't like, and a team that plays the Pats twice a season -- maybe three times this year. Ty Law did get into a little trouble with drugs at the Canadian border and the contract situation got a bit nasty the last few years, but it will still be tough to root against him. He worked hard, played hurt (sometimes really hurt), and he made a ton of big plays. Also, he was Peyton Manning's favorite receiver.

But he goes to a team I don't like! I'll just hope his interceptions come in losses. I don't know how significant this contract will be in regards to the Jets' cap situation, but on the field it's a great signing (unless he gets hurt). Hopefully, Law is too old to be a repeat of Curtis Martin leaving the Pats for the Jets.

December 4th: Ty Law comes to New England. How many times has Law faced against Troy Brown in practice. I'd love to see Brown burn him on the fourth.

Priorities

Representative Patrick McHenry, a North Carolina Republican, on the Palmeiro news:

"I think (commissioner) Bud Selig and the players' association as well should allow us to have full disclosure when it comes to this matter, and all of these drug testing matters. It's important to the integrity of the game. We're talking about our national pastime and who our kids look up to as heroes."

He's so passionate about the integrity of the game. Imagine how passionate he must be about the integrity of the White House. When are they starting the hearings about the White House outing a CIA operative two years ago? It may need to wait until after Congress has hearings on baserunners stealing signs.

Guess the Athlete!

Answer on Friday

AFC already beating up the NFC

The Jets and Giants practiced together yesterday and the Giants didn't like that the Jets were hitting so hard. Some highlights from a great article

• "That's not what we teach. That's not why we're here," Coughlin said. "We're here to practice to try to get better. We certainly didn't come to fight."
  
  However, several Giants hinted that the Jets did. Coughlin was particularly angry at the way the Jets' defenders attacked Giants receivers during a non-contact passing drill, knocking several of them to the ground when plays were over. At one point Coughlin was so furious he yelled at the Jets' defense.
  
  Henderson quickly fired back. "That's how we practice," he said. "We put our (helmets) on people."

• ...The first official play, after a false start by Giants left tackle Luke Petitgout, was a run to the right. When it was over, Celestin shoved Shockey in the back.

  Shockey retaliated by throwing a punch, which led Jets linebacker Jonathan Vilma to grab Shockey from behind. Then safety Erik Coleman jumped into the pile.

• When Toomer protested, Barton yelled, "Get to the playoffs." Not surprisingly, another shoving match ensued.

• "I guess they practice different than we do," Toomer said. "We try to keep our players healthy. I guess they don't. They kind of just beat the crap out of their receivers."

• ...Jets fullback B.J. Askew body-slammed Giants safety Brent Alexander during a full-team drill.

Young or Marino

Steve Young and Dan Marino are being inducted into the Hall of Fame today. If you could choose one of these guys to play quarterback for your team in the Super Bowl, who would choose?

I think I'm going with Young mainly because of how good he was in that 1993 season

For some reason, this statement annoys me

Here's what Antoine Walker had to say about the Celtics' offseason moves:

''When you win the division, you try to move up and keep battling and try to get to that next level," said Walker. ''But they chose to go the other route and go young and start from the ground up again. It's an odd situation. I don't really understand it. Maybe, in a couple years from now, we'll understand the madness to it."

Antoine, winning the weak Atlantic Division last season means absolutely nothing. Seeing you and Pierce being outplayed by Indiana, with injured, suspended, and old players, means much more. The Celtics are "going young," because they know their "veteran leaders" aren't going to take them anywhere beyond a second round loss in the playoffs.

Crying in football

Video of a Dolphin rookie crying in practice has been on television constantly. Here's Bill Parcell's opinion on crying:

'I've had a couple of 'em cry. Not when I was screaming at them, but crying at the situation. It's a human emotion. We all do it. That doesn't bother me unless it's a woman crying. Then I try not to pay attention."

El Guapo update!

From today's Boston Globe:

. . . Rich Garces made his third Gulf Coast League appearance yesterday, pitching a 1-2-3 inning for the Sox' affiliate. El Guapo has now retired 9 of 10 hitters he's faced this year (the other homered). He again peaked at 89 miles per hour, throwing 9 of 14 pitches for strikes. But there were indications that the organization is alarmed by his weight . . .

There's some shocking news.

Answer to Guess the Athlete

It's 17-year-old Sidney Crosby, the number one pick of the recent NHL draft. He'll be joining Mario on the Penguins, and NHL fans are saying he could be the next big thing. Here's an article with some more information.

Lucky Derek Anderson

The Portland Trail Blazers were the first team to use the "amnesty clause." They still have to pay Anderson, but his salary won't count at all towards the luxury tax penalty. (If a foreign players gets waived according to this rule, would it be the "amnesty international clause? Sorry.)

Now Derek Anderson gets paid for a team he doesn't work for, and if he signs with another team, he'll still receive all his money from the Blazer plus the money from his new team's contract.

By the way, once it was announced that Derek Anderson was released, the Yankees gave him a call. Cashman is hoping one of these released players will work out for him.

Lee Mazzilli fired

I didn't see that one coming. If I were to give you a quiz in May with this question:

Which of the following managers will be fired in August?
A. Phil Garner, Astros
B. Ken Macha, A's
C. Lee Mazzilli, Orioles
D. Someone who's never been in my kitchen

How many people would have guessed "C"?

Maybe the Yankees can sign Mazzilli just like they sign any player who gets released (Embree, Nomo, Leiter. etc)

There's 2 Niedermayers?

Scott Niedermayer left the New Jersey Devils to join his brother Rob on the Mighty Ducks. As you can tell by my headline, there's not much I can add to this story. Here's a good article about Niedermayer.

Maybe I'm too optimistic

I'm excited about David Terrell on the Patriots!

Read this article, and you might see why. I still remember him as a top ten pick who did amazing things at Michigan. He never played for a good quarterback and probably not for a good coach either. Now he's with his former Michigan teammate, Tom Brady.

I was also excited when the Patriots signed Marion Butts, so we'll just have to wait and see.

Smart move

There's a lot of money being wasted in the NBA, and despite all the spending many teams forget about the importance of role players. The Suns just signed a good one: Raja Bell. He won't replace Joe Johnson's offensive production, which the Suns already have enough of. However, he will do all the scrappy little things and play some good defense.

Shaq's financial goals

I guess Shaq could have earned more than $20 million a year, but he settled for that salary so the Heat could get better players to surround him. I wish I could "settle" for $100 million. And what's a Shaq story without a Shaq quote?

"I'm very excited about my new agreement with the Heat," O'Neal said in a statement released by the team. "This contract allows me to address all of my family's long-term financial goals while allowing the Heat the ability to acquire those players that we need to win a championship."
Anyone care to guess what the long-term financial goals for Shaq's family is.

More Walker

It turns out the Celtics helped Walker get some more money by working out this deal. If they didn't do a sign and trade with Miami, the Heat would have had to offer Walker a mid-level exception contract. All the Celtics got was some second round draft picks and financial flexibility, which is always good. Maybe more importantly, the Celtics helped Antoine Walker. Players and agents talk to each other, so it can only help the Celtics that Walker will be telling his colleagues the Celtics treated him right. Here's a link for more information about the trade: Walker traded

Answer to Guess the Gut

John Daly! Thanks for playing.

One problem solved

Richard Seymour ended his holdout. I'm not a fan of holdouts, but at least he was quiet about it without ripping his team and teammates (unlike you know who). Plus, the holdout worked; he got some more money.

Antoine Walker hitting South Beach

It looks like we'll be seeing Antoine Walker doing the Walker Wiggle in Miami. He's a part of a five or six team trade involving about twenty players and maybe some cheerleaders too. I'm too tired to figure this trade out, but I'm struggling to picture Walker playing in Miami. He can be a good third scorer, which is something Miami needed, but Walker has some flaws. Maybe playing with Shaq and Wade will help Walker play a smarter game with less forced shots. Right now I'm saying this is a good trade because I think Walker and Shaq will get along, but I might change my mind in five minutes.

At least Gammons said something nice about Boggs

From his Hall of Fame induction speech:

...But, to be here the day Wade Boggs is inducted is a special thing for me. This is a guy who play seven minor league, hit three something ridiculous six straight years, went through three rule five drafts and kept saying "my success will be measured in terms of dealing with adversity". In the last half century, Wade Boggs is the oldest position player to debut in the major league and make the Hall of Fame. He is the model for overcoming adversity of all kinds....

Give Wade some respect

Wade Boggs joined the Hall of Fame this week, but you might have missed it if you were living in Boston. It was a bigger deal in Boston when Dennis Eckersley was elected to the Hall. There's something wrong with the city when a player who built his Hall credentials in Oakland gets more acknowledgement than a player who built his Hall credentials in Boston.

Boggs had some flaws:

• He embarrassed his team and himself with his Margo Adams affair (a story that was over exposed -- I'm sure he's the first athlete who cheated on his wife).
  
• He was known to complain to an official score keeper about ruling a potential hit an error (all players do this, but Wade got criticized the most for doing it).
• He went to the Yankees. (This is what bothered me the most about Boggs, but I've gotten over it. The Sox made no effort to re-sign him. Also, in my twisted mind, the image of Boggs winning a series as a Yankee doesn't bother me as much now the Red Sox won one).
• He played too long just to get 3000 hits. (On the other hand, the Red Sox waited way too long to bring him up from the minors. I'm too lazy to look it up, but not many player reached 3000 in fewer games than Boggs.

Notice I didn't mention his refusal to hit for power as a flaw. This seems to be the first thing Boggs detractors complain about. Instead of looking at what Boggs could do, they concentrated on what he didn't do. All Boggs did was get on base a ton and score a lot of runs -- which I think is the point of baseball -- scoring more runs than the other team.

Look at his stats.
For seven straight years he had over 200 hits, walked a lot, and scored over 100 runs. In 1985 he had 240 hits, 107 runs, a .368 batting average, 42 doubles, and an on base percentage of .450. I wouldn't mind having a player like that hit in front of Ortiz and Manny.

Not everyone ignored Boggs going into the Hall of Fame. Bob Ryan wrote a nice article.

Caught cheating

After his 3000th hit, I wrote about how there was really nothing interesting about Rafael Palmeiro's career. Now there is. Rafael needs to talk to Giambi about finding better masking agents for his drugs.