The Meaning Behind the Name

The video listed above should clear up any and all questions about the name with which I have adorned this blog. Although I am not a Met fan, I concur that the Amazin's deserve their place in sports folklore. The 1986 World Series exemplifies everything good you need to know about sports: as Yogi Berra once quipped, "It ain't over 'til it's over."

Obama the Sportsman

Credit James Bedell of PolicyThought for this intriguing find on Barack. Obama, using his passion for pick-up basketball as a focal piece to this segment, has instilled quiet dignity and grace into his campaign, going so far as to display his basketball skills for the American public to see. Under the tutelage of one of his many advisors, Obama set up national 3-on-3 basketball tournaments (most notably in New Hampshire) to collect voters and instill awareness of his campaign to the many who took the Senator up on the opportunity compete. Vested at the heart of Obama's campaign is the true American spirit, an entity that rabidly feeds off competition and the sports realm. May this awareness and a propensity to bounce back from the PA primary defeat carry him through Indiana and North Carolina in the coming weeks.

Everyman Barack Obama

Sports Illustrated journalist S.L. White conveyed a refreshing take on Barack Obama, a man about sports, a man about relations, a man about change. In the vignette, Obama took time off from his busy campaign trail to engage in a game of pick-up basketball with White, an intimate encounter that spoke volumes about Barack's character and potential leadership initiative.

For one, Obama did not (scratch that--would not) offer up any political posturing, nor would he impose the foundations of his campaign on White throughout the course of a rather intense hoops battle.

Furthermore, Barack's courtship with his current wife Michelle was as much a make-or-break deal as his bout in the Pennsylvania primaries. Ever the basketball fanatic, Michelle asked that her brother Craig Robinson challenge Barack to a game of basketball to determine his worth as a potential husband. Silly, you say? Michelle actually offered sound perspective on the whole ordeal: the etiquette and temperance displayed on-court might very well sum up a man's countenance and character. Now THAT'S a woman with knowledge about the male psyche: we are a truly competitive breed, whether it be about the game we are competing in or the game our team is playing in. In addition, it's how this said individual or squad goes about their competition: with arrogance or dignity? It appears as though Barack lived up to the latter.

As this article further evidenced, Obama is tireless in his efforts to succeed, and yet, he has taken the time to portray an ordinary, down-to-earth persona by taking part in a spirited contest of basketball. He has immense potential to bestow upon our nation viable insights on race relations that no leader before him ever has. He is a man about image, a man of quiet confidence, and a man of forgiveness; after all, Obama has treated the game of basketball, 'his first love,' as a gift, not the remembrance of an absent father. When it comes to values, I appreciate Barack's valiant attempts at conveying to us a remarkably sound candidate, even in spite of the obstacles thrust upon him (inexperience, preacher affiliation, questionable commentaries on voting demographics, etc.). 2009 will bring an era of change, and I wouldn't be put off at all if the sports-minded Barack Obama were the vanguard leading us through these exciting times.

Washington Baseball Economics

Upon Rick Reilly's exodus from Sports Illustrated, the magazine had no other choice but to change format. The last page featured in SI is aptly titled Point After, moderated by a committee of journalists that change from week-to-week. One particular submission by writer S.L. White commented on the buzz surrounding the construction of new ballparks.

An establishment like Yankee Stadium is fully being funded by Steinbrenner and Co., so Yankee fans can expect extravagance and aura at the stadium's inception in 2009. Nationals Park, on the other hand, was predominantly funded by the District of Columbia, as per Mayor Adrian Fenty. According to S.L. Price, 'the civic burden for stadium construction [is] usually between 60% and 70%.' D.C., contrarily, opted to foot 97% of the total bill for the Washington Nationals' new stadium. Do the math: 0.97 X 647,000,000 = 627,590,00, as in dollars---in a city that bleeds for educational reform. Logistically, should a legislation (a) care more about getting fans out to the ballgame or (b) care more about diminishing violence and aiding the sorry state of education across the D.C. landscape?

Have a look at the other statistics that S.L. White compiled: the nation's capital has a 37% adult illiteracy rate and a high school graduation rate of 59%; of those that graduate, only 9% go on to graduate college within five years. That is a sad state of affairs.

Understand this: the vast majority of the nearly $630 million pumped into Nationals Park may never be seen by the city again, seeing as the Nationals' revenue, for the most part, goes back into funding the team's operations, NOT the city's operations. Sure, ballparks do plenty to beautify an urban landscape and offer entertainment value for city denizens (white-collar citizens, that is)....but will Nationals Park ever boost the city's economy, as Mayor Fenty desperately hopes for? Chances are, no. The spend-more, get-more mentality will do nothing for the betterment of D.C.'s illiteracy issue. Furthermore, the stadium will provide another tourist attraction amongst the many in Washington already, but that's about it. As the new ballpark opens, three branch libraries in the city have closed down and some will not receive necessary renovations until 2010 at the very least. And let's not even discuss the traffic the new ballpark will produce, not to mention the spike in ticket prices the working class, metro-Washington's majority, will never even be able to afford. (And that's a bigger problem pro sports needs to tackle: the most passionate fans looking to go to the ballpark ARE the working class, the ones who comprise the 4 million fan figure the Yankee organization has seen several years running. What happens when this fan dynamic vanishes?).

Here's a novel idea: ballpark revenue going back to the city. The city deserves a large(r) cut of the money a team makes for Fenty's 97% payoff to make sense. And the cut should come with a stipulation: the money absolutely must go back to civic services like law enforcement, education, and cost-effective, environmentally sound public transportation. Beautifying a landscape with an amenities-laden ballpark without any hope of financial return is nothing but smoke and mirrors.

The Apple Doesn't Fall Too Far from the Tree

The Stein lives on! As an earlier posting suggested, the Steinbrenner legacy continues to defile the Yankee tradition, right to its very core. So as to establish George's character and further bring light to the ways of the old Stein regime, here are two anecdotes to emphasize what we as Yankee fans have all grown accustomed to.




Circa 1973. Having made some serious bank in U.S. Steel and Kinsman Shipping, George leads a team of investors in the pursuit of purchasing the New York Yankees (he does so for $10 million--the team's value in 2007 had since skyrocketed to $1.5 billion, so you have to commend his financially savvy ways). While present at one of his first games in the press box, a Yankee is on third and crosses the plate in the midst of a ground-out...after the third out has already been recorded. George applauds the 'feat.' A member of the organization had to enlighten George, calling to attention that the run would not count. The moment served as testament to a piss-poor baseball quotient.


Circa 1977. 'Sweet' Lou Piniella is called into Steinbrenner's office to discuss the disheveled hair-do Piniella let fester during spring training. Piniella gripes, claiming that if a gentleman like Jesus Christ was able to shag out his hair, why couldn't he? At this, George took Lou by the arm and led him across the street, to a hotel with an outdoor pool. "Lou," Steinbrenner began, "if you can prove to me that you can walk on water, you can keep the haircut." Point emphatically made. Lou abided by the infamous grooming demand and cut his hair. As this moment proves, not even Piniella's moxie could compete with Steinbrenner's.


Spring forward to today. Hank 'The Tank' Steinbrenner, even without George in the picture, has channeled his father, spewing ludicrous insights that the New York Times posted in Monday's sports edition.


In light of the Yankees' sputtering start (by the way, with a week and a half left in April, the team has already surpassed its win total from April of last year), Steinbrenner had plenty to say. "If I were part of the personnel decisions last year," Hank chortled, "there was no way Joba [Chamberlain] would be in the set-up role. You'd have to be an idiot to not start a guy who can throw 100 MPH. An idiot." (Joe Girardi and Brian Cashman must appreciate that vote of confidence). He then proposed what a possible starting rotation would be if Joba were a part of it: Chien-Ming Wang, Phil Hughes, Andy Pettitte, Ian Kennedy, and Chamberlain. Seemingly missing from the list was Mike Mussina. This is where the flaming commenced. "Now, if only Moose could begin to pitch like [45 year old] Jamie Moyer, our rotation would be in good shape." (Nobody put a gun to your head when 'your' organization opted to pick up that multi-million dollar option on Moose, did they Hanker?).


For argument's sake, let's dissect Moyer's stint in the past five years, along with Mussina's:


Mussina: 68 - 42, 4.21 ERA, 906 IP's, 732 K's, 1.27 WHIP, .277 BAA (including a 2007 when he reached career highs in ERA and BAA, and career lows in K's and IP's)


Moyer: 66 - 53, 4.40 ERA, 1027 IP's, 597 K's, 1.33 WHIP, .277 BAA




As one might observe, the stat-lines are parallels of each other, with Mussina edging out Moyer for his efficiency and K-capacity. But consider: Mussina is the only pitching acquisition that has panned out for the Yanks in the last nine years, especially when you put Moose up against the likes of Jose Contreras, Jeff Weaver, Jon Lieber, Javier Vazquez, Kevin Brown, Randy Johnson, Jaret Wright, Carl Pavano, Kei Igawa, and the 2007 version of Roger Clemens. Mussina's tenure with the Yankees cannot be overlooked, even if he has been inconsistent the past year and a half. As for 2008: take away Mussina's at-bats against Manny Ramirez this year (especially last Saturday's contest at Fenway, when Moose should have intentionally walked Manny with 1st base open and two outs in the 6th), and Moose doesn't look nearly as shabby as his rotation counterparts.


Hands down: Joba Chamberlain is a special talent, a pitching phenom the Yankees haven't seen since, well, Mariano Rivera. The questions Hank needs to ask himself: will Joba's 100 MPH and four-pitch arsenal (hardly Santana-esque, just yet) translate to winning games every fifth day? Will Joba's starts be good enough to make up for what LaTroy Hawkins and Kyle Farnsworth will offer in the 8th inning? Is sending Joba down to Triple A for a period of at least a month be worth it when the Yankees (1) have nobody to relieve in the 8th and (2) Jeff Karstens/Kei Igawa/Darrell Rasner are forced to spot-start every now and again until Joba returns to the big club? Any person with an iota of baseball knowledge would answer 'no' to each inquiry, especially when you consider that the Joba and Mo's prowess shortens the game to 7 innings practically EVERY time they pitch together. The only team that can come close to such dominance is the Chicago Cubs, with Carlos Marmol working the 8th and Kerry Wood working the 9th (that is, if Wood stays healthy for more than three weeks). From what baseball man to another, Hank: do not, I repeat, DO NOT consider Joba's potential as a starter; allow him to dominate the 8th and work steadily towards becoming Mariano's replacement. After all, how many World Series has Rivera helped deliver?

As if Hank's comments on Monday weren't enough, young Stein has openly put a bounty on Gino Castignoli's head for burying a David Ortiz jersey beneath the construction of the new Yankee Stadium: "I hope his co-workers beat the living s#*& out of him." It appears as though the apple hasn't fallen too far from the tree: Hank has proven he can bully with the best of them, which, for this Yankee fan, is arduous to swallow.

That's Music to My Ears!

Straight from the Vault....

Scouring YouTube has been my latest obsession, a practice that led me to this superbly classic nugget: the NBA on NBC theme song, composed by your boy John Tesh. During the 1990's, NBA coverage on NBC resulted in a ratings spike that shattered the substantial viewership prevalent during the Bird/Magic era. A musical score like this, heard blaring from television sets on Saturday and Sunday afternoons, was enough to get you hyped for every single broadcast. In addition, hearing the voices of Marv Albert and Bob Costas was an absolute treat to NBA aficionados both young and old (that was, until Brother Albert went postal on the back of some chick's neck, dressed to the nines in feminine apparel).

How About That?

The following search is courtesy of YouTube once again: stepping to the plate, This Week in Baseball, accentuated by the opening theme Jet Set and the accompanying Gathering Crowds, which ran during the closing credits. Talk about inspiring sports programming! No sports coverage is complete without a riveting musical accompaniment of its own. Enjoy these finds at your leisure!

Celebrating Jackie

On the 61st anniversary of Jackie Robinson's breaking of the color barrier, Major League Baseball released a report that conveyed a staggering statistic: only 8.2% of the players currently competing in the major leagues are African-American. Mind you, what many fail to see is that Jackie Robinson eradicated the fetters of oppression for all minorities that have thrived in professional baseball (why else would Latin star Robinson Cano adopt the number during April 15th's contest with the Rays? Hell, the man wears Jackie's inverse, 24, to honor his legacy; and did you notice what his parents' named him?). When you calculate the number of players of Japanese, Latin and African-American descent, that 8% number jumps considerably. Furthermore, observe the last 16 MVP award recipients in the last 8 years: 13 of them are non-white, including Jimmy Rollins, Ryan Howard, and Barry Bonds (four times). Of the greatest living ballplayers, feast your eyes on this group: Willie Mays (arguably the best all-around ballplayer EVER), Ken Griffey, Jr. (a man who dominated an entire decade, the 1990's), Bonds (baseball's most prolific slugger), Hank Aaron (Mr. Consistent, a man having slugged 755 homers in a career when he never topped 40 in a season), Rickey Henderson (the game's best leadoff man), Ozzie Smith (nicknamed the Wiz for his slick fielding), Tony Gwynn (Ted Williams's equal), Barry Larkin, Frank Thomas, Andre Dawson, Jim Rice, Rod Carew, Joe Morgan (arguably the best second basemen to grace the diamond), Bob Gibson, Reggie Jackson, Dave Winfield, and Frank Robinson (the first black manager, who later led his team to a World Series)...and this is merely the list of LIVING black baseball superstars. Once all is said and done, every one of these names will be recognized in Cooperstown. In fact, if you removed these players' accolades and plaques from the halls of Cooperstown, you wouldn't have much of a Hall of Fame: PERIOD. These aforementioned players are not simply amongst the best: by many standards, they are the best. None of this is possible without Jackie's influence. Several baseball purists argue that, because of his impact on the game, Babe Ruth's number should be retired all throughout baseball, just like Jackie's was in 1997. As far as I am concerned, this practice would altogether nullify the sanctity of what Robinson did for the game of baseball. As astounding as Ruth's feats were, his toughest choice on any given day was picking the woman he was going to sleep with or the beer he was going to swig that evening. Jackie endangered the well-being of himself and his family to make a statement to supersede all statements: people of color belonged in baseball. If Jackie's tenure in baseball were just a decade or two earlier, we'd be hearing stories of Josh Gibson's homerun prowess (a man said to have hit between .350 and .384 for his career, along with 800+ homeruns), not Babe Ruth's. Remember: Jackie Robinson wasn't merely a superb ballplayer; he was the greatest sports icon to ever live. Hence why millions nationwide pay homage to #42 this day, April 15, 2008.

From the archives of ESPN.com: Jackie Robinson by the Numbers (scroll down).

This Date in Mullet History

This message is brought to you by Giuseppe Franco, male hair-loss extraordinaire, who wouldn't put his name on the line for something that didn't work.

Blog Spot Presents: Real Men of Genius. We salute you, Mr. Wade Boggs. Not since you strode around on horseback at Yankee Stadium has your awesome hair styling been so prevalent. Apparently, a steady diet of steamed chicken and gallons of Rogaine worked wonders on your legendary epidermal regions.

Boggs made his debut last week with the Baseball Tonight crew, offering up sound analysis that overwhelms the likes of Orestes Destrade, Candy Maldonado, and Eric Young. Even so, I could not help but watch awestruck, gaping profusely at the rat's nest that formed atop Boggs's once receding dome. Had the man not hired a PR person that praised the importance of stately appearance prior to going live before millions of viewers? Has Boggs taken fashion tips from Barry Melrose since signing on at Bristol? Let us hope that Boggs doesn't go so far as to alter his likeness on the Hall of Fame plaque to resemble him in his better years, donning a Tampa Bay Devil Rays cap. You laugh: Rogaine has done far more bizarre things to lesser men.

So here's to you, oh mutineer of male-pattern baldness. You've made the mullet cool again for all those Red Sox fans still stuck in 1986.

Pictured : Wade Boggs (above), commemorating his historic signing with the Tampa Bay ball club. Jonathan Papelbon (below) signs for fans, taking in Boggs' stylish 'do.

Madison Square Garden: The World's Most Controversial Arena

Nineteen years separate two bizarre incidents that have since resulted in two integral rule changes in the NBA and the NHL.

January 15, 1990. Madison Square Garden. Bulls and Knicks. Score knotted at 106. 0.1 seconds left in regulation. Knicks with possession. Having discerned that a tap-in was his only feasible option, Knickerbocker coach Rick Pitino drew up an in-bounds play for Mark Jackson to lob the ball into Patrick Ewing for an alley-oop.

Instead, Jackson inbounds the ball to three-point assassin Trent Tucker, who, in the space of 0.1 seconds, caught the ball beyond the arc, faced the basket, set his feet for release, and hoisted a three-point bucket....to win the game! Knicks win, 109 -106! Through the Garden's frenetic state of hysteria, Bulls coach Phil Jackson approaches the referees on-hand to protest, but to no avail. At the end of the contest, the Bulls file an additional protest, only to be rejected by league officials (including scorekeeper Bob Billings and referee Robbie Nunn), who claimed everything went 'perfectly fine.' At season's end, in lieu of the sheer impossibility of the Knicks' heroics, the league adopts the 'Trent Tucker Rule,' thereby denying a team the opportunity to score on the last possession with less than 0.3 seconds on the clock (that is, unless, a team can tip the ball into the basket).

(The only team to score under the 0.3 second window to win a contest was, ironically, the New York Knicks; on December 20, 2006, David Lee deflected home the in-bounds pass to deliver the victory).

April 13, 2008. Back at the Garden. Devils and Rangers. Teams knotted at two goals a piece. Rangers left-wing Sean Avery wildly flails his stick at goaltender Martin Brodeur, so as to distract the perennial Vezina winner from stopping the puck. Officials on the ice had no idea how to handle Avery's fractious display, so the behavior went unpenalized. Regardless of Avery's attempts to, under bizarre circumstances, thwart the Devils' defense from halting a Rangers' scoring chance, New York lost in overtime 4-3. The very next day, after roughly 100 years of minimal rule changes, the NHL re-examined the interference/unsportsmanlike rule (aptly changed to the 'Sean Avery Rule') to compensate for Avery's unorthodox practice the night before, much to the delight of ESPN analyst Barry Melrose (a man bringing back the mullet in the worst way), who was clearly scrounging for a highlight to finally take precedence over sports coverage that actually matters (at this rate, Major League Soccer will draw higher ratings with a full season of David Beckham at the helm for the Los Angeles Galaxy. Question for our readers: can you find the Versus Channel on your cable line-up?).

Needless to stay, the controversy surrounding Tucker's unlikely three-point field goal effectively triggered the Knicks/Bulls rivalry in the 1990's (sadly, nearly any contest Michael Jordan was a part of resulted in a resounding Chicago win). Furthermore, Sean Avery singlehandedly resuscitated a rivalry that was near defunct status (considering the Rangers took 9 out of 10 from the Devils in 2007 - 2008 prior to Sunday's loss). And to think, all it took was some rule-altering controversy! Bravo, Trent and Sean: the city of New York commends you!

Kobe Bryant: LVP for 2008!

First, a rape conviction, and now this? As coach of the Los Angeles Lakers, Phil Jackson simply cannot be happy.

It just goes to show you that Kobe Bryant IS the face of NBA...A.M.J. (After Michael Jordan). Kobe harbors the me-first, image-obsessed mentality that has consumed the game since Jordan's departure. We have the 'Melo/A.I. tandem; lost in their most recent playoff run is Carmelo's widely publicized connection to LaLa, posing in the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue as his fiance, not an MTV personality. There is Shaquille O'Neal; Phoenix media circles are still holding their breath over what the Big Aristotle will proclaim as his next nickname. We have Lebron James, known more for his endorsements, ESPY-hosting endeavors, and SNL appearances than his breath-taking postseason accolades. Lest we forget the thug-persona adopted by many in this miscreant-infested league (see Stephen Jackson, Stephon Marbury, and Ron Artest). The 'Good Guys' (also known in media forums as the San Antonio Spurs) transgressed their way to an NBA championship last year by barrelling Steve Nash into the scorer's table (resulting in the Game 6 and 7 Boris Diaw/Amare Stoudemire suspensions, which you can thank the Knick/Heat brawls of yesteryear for). Take an H.G. Wells stroll with me in time to May of 2007: in Game 1 of the Suns/Spurs matchup, Steve Nash was minutes away from leading his team to victory and building momentum in the series....until his nose was shattered by 'defensive specialist' Bruce Bowen, requiring lengthy attention by team trainers. By the time Nash returned to action, the Spurs had already taken advantage of the MVP's absence, winning the contest handily. When reflecting on 2007, remember the antics of Robert "Big Check Bob" Horry and Bruce Bowen, not Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, or Manu Ginobili.

(By the way, Steve Nash gives me reason to watch the NBA. He is the epitome of the consummate pro, unflagging and driven, the Phoenix Suns' rendition of an Energizer Bunny in purple and orange. The man plays hard every possession, a la Kevin Garnett, who, in this fan's dream world, might very well face the resurgent Hornets in the NBA Finals, a team ably lead by the league's future, Chris Paul.)

As much as Kobe has pieced together a stellar season without the help of injured thoroughbreds Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol, he, in no way, deserves the league's Most Valuable Player award, no matter what the gaudy statistics and heroics may dictate. He should not represent this league (how can you root for a guy who switched numbers for additional jersey revenue?), for if he does, we are looking at the death of professional basketball as we know it. If last year's Finals' ratings were any indication of where the league lies, then this said, NHL-esque extinction is nearly here.

Where have you gone, Larry and Magic? This league turns its lonely eyes to you...