Chip Shots
A Sports Blog
A Sports Blog
Chip Shots
Way Too Early To Raise The White Flag
I just love cynics. Forty games into a baseball season, they are all declaring teams dead, trading players and reloading for next year. Yet, there are 120 games left on the schedule and it's not even Memorial Day, the first traditional mile marker of a baseball season.
While I know there is concern surrounding the Chicago White Sox, let's not lose sight of a few important facts:
1) The Law of averages catches up with everyone. A cold start does not translate to a cold finish and a hot start does not translate to a hot finish. Outside of Detroit, there are no sure things in the AL Central. Certainly, Cleveland and Kansas City will come back the pack while the Sox will catch up to it.
2) Adam Dunn is just starting to hit. Paul Konerko will hit. The Cuban Sandwich and Alex Rios have been hitting. You get something out of Tyler Flowers and everything will look better. Oh yes, then there is the guy Comcast Sportstalk Live forgot to mention last night, Conner Gillaspie.
3) Having John Danks back will be like going out and trading for a pitcher. Personally, I think this pitching staff is better without Pink Gavin Floyd.
4) Gordon Beckham's return will shore up the defense. Anything is better than watching Tyler Green trying to play second.
I love all of these cyberheads on TV with their PERCOTA predictions and their simulations and all of that nonsense. They tell us all the computer models now say the Sox are done for the season. I wonder, if this was 1969 and they ran sims on the Mets, how that would turn out? Or on the '64 Cardinals. Or the '67 Red Sox. Or the '78 Yankees?
Let me tell you something about sabermetrics. They are a useful tool. But they are not always accurate and they are not always right. And, at this point, the sample size is way too small to begin folding tents and planning the invasion for 2015.
A baseball executive that I talked to recently told me that yes, teams are exchanging phone calls on players or testing the market, but that no one is serious for awhile. It's too early to panic and it it is too early to start selling.
See me on July 4th and then we'll talk.
Taxation Without Justification
We have come to a crossroads in this country where public services have become an expensive proposition and each and every struggling state and local government is trying to squeeze out every dollar they can from tax payers without them noticing it.
Chances are your community has a "room tax" on hotels and motels, you just don't know it because don't stay there. You will notice it on your next vacation.
There are also taxes on food, drugs and other important items at the federal, state and local level.
Thus far, there have not been taxes on the Internet because there is no way to regulate them and make sure each state gets it's proper share. To do this Internet stores would have to enlist an army of people to track and calculate these taxes and then return them to the states that they belong in. Some cities like Mobile, AL where I live are drooling at the prospect of getting this money.
Mobile City Finance Director Barbara Malkove says "There are a lot of us that feel that all of our (brick-and-mortar) businesses here are supporting our local charities and ball teams (etc.)," Malkove said. "These other people are not. I know that is the sentiment of a lot of the businesses here and I hope that (message) is being passed along."
This is the same kind of attitude that arose in the 60's when local people thought the interstate would prevent people from stopping and spending money in their communities. It's the same attitude people have when Walmart wants to come to town.
I shop on the Internet for two reasons: First, outside of groceries, I don't like to shop. I don't like crowds, I don't like being assailed by sales people and I don't like using a tank of gas to drive around town to find what I am looking for if they indeed have it to begin with.
Furthermore, even with tax and delivery, the Internet is cheaper. How much cheaper you ask? I was looking for a 5 quart Dutch Oven. I found one at a store for $99 dollars and another one for $89. I found one on the Internet for $29.95.
That's right, I found what I was looking for at a great price in my jammies on a Saturday morning at 5am. Brick and mortar my buttocks.
One more reason: Because I am a big boy, it is hard for me to buy off the rack. Where do I order my clothes? That's right. On the Internet. Sorry Brick and Mortar guys, you just don't offer me clothes that fit. And if you do, you chage me far more than I want to pay. Omarthetentmaker.com is fine by me.
So, my message to you communities who whine about Internet commerce: You already tax us. You already spend everything you collect. You mismanage the money and then beg for new streams of revenue not tied to income tax. You think the Internet will open the flood gates for a financial windfall. But at the end of the day, you will most likely mismanage that.
And in reaping your windfall, you will put a lot of companies out of business or raise prices so they can process the wind fall.
Who benefits from this? The brick and mortar guys who are overcharging us in the first place and the people who mismanage our taxes.
Who gets screwed? Me, of course. But that's what you wanted in the first place, wasn't it?
Quick Shots: Bulls Don't Use Injuries As Excuse
- The Chicago Bulls have become the story of the NBA playoffs. Here is a team with two of their best three players out, their second best player limping around on bad feet and without a valuable point guard. Here's a team where a guy who should be a bench player gets hit in the mouth, gets ten stitches, comes back and seals the deal down the stretch. Here's a team whose roster mirrors a MASH unit and still beats the best team in basketball. Just awesome.
- Just think how good the Bulls could be if Derek Rose would show up.
- The White Sox are starting to look like the Bulls with 3/5ths of their starting staff injured. Unlike the Bulls, the replacements are a little scary.
- Memo to Coach Qstache: How about a little less Gandhi and a little more Probie tonight against the Wild? I understand you guys want to play like the Europeans, but every once in a while you have to whack somebody to make your point. See game tape of the Montreal-Ottawa series for details.
- I have no issue with the reporter who voted for Carmelo Anthony over Lebron James for MVP. Surely, he didn't know he was the only one. And he's right, Melo had every right to be considered.
- The Vikings have released punter Chris Kluwe, who is an outspoken proponent for gay marriage. That's not why he was cut. You see, the Vikings drafted a punter in the fifth round who is younger and cheaper. Now Kluwe will have to find a job elsewhere. Let's hope they judge him by is foot and not by his mouth.
Quick Shots: Tom Ricketts Shows Some Spine
- He's been patient up until now, but between the demands of the city, the Wrigleyville neighborhood and the entitled rooftop owners, Tom Ricketts may have finally seen the light. When rooftop owners vowed to block the Cubs proposal for a left field video board, Ricketts said that he may consider leaving the 99 year-old facility. Since the Cubs own the place, the city can't stop them because there is no lease. Going to see the Cubs play in Arlington Heights or Rosemont may actually be something Cubs fans are looking forward to.
- The Blackhawks looked a bit lethargic last night in their 2-1 overtime victory against Minnesota. A 1-8 matchup should not be that hard, but it looked like the Hawks came out flat from the get go. Let's hope the Q-Stache can catch their attention in practice today and get them ready for game 2.
- It's really too early to start ripping the White Sox. What is telling is that they have reverted right back to where they were when we left them in the last three weeks of the season. No clutch hitting, porous defense and the bullpen getting lit up. While it is not too early to reverse this, it will be a big project moving forward. Hopefully when the Sox get Gordon Beckham, the Cuban Sandwich and John Danks back, they will still be in the AL Central race.
- ESPN is so hypercritical and has so little integrity. When Jason Collins announced he was gay, ESPN trotted out Chris Broussard on "Outside the Line." Broussard, who appears to be a devout Christian, said some pretty spicy things about homosexuals. But that's not the point. They put him out there for his opinion. One day after his comments, which were loudly bashed by gay groups and assorted lefties, ESPN issued a statement saying that they "regretted" Broussard's comments. Here's a news flash ESPN: Either vet your guests better or allow them to have an opinion. And, run a disclaimer. But don't publicly come out and "regret" someones comments because he doesn't fit your agenda or a loud group of outsiders starts to storm your castle. Show some spine.
- Jason Collins can do whatever he wants. I could care less. Just don't compare him to Jackie Robinson because it is clearly not the same thing. Jason Collins will never be denied a hotel room or a seat in a restaurant.
- Did you hear about the soccer official in Kenya who had his boys grabbed by a coach who felt he was making bad calls? Someone should do that to Phil Cuzzi.
Bears Take First Round Long Shot
When I was covering the Packers in the middle of the previous decade, much was made of Packer GM Ted Thompson's draft choices. Packer fans would moan and groan everytime someone was picked because in their eyes, they either didn't think the player was the right choice (Aaron Rodgers) or they had never heard of the player before (Nick Collins, Brady Popinga.) What they learned over time was Thompson watched more film than Roger Ebert and he was a mad genius.
Let's hope Bears GM Phil Emery is cut from the same cloth.
Picking at number twenty, with talent like Tyler Eifert, Sylvester Williams and Shariff Floyd still on the board, Emery selected Oregon Guard Kyle Long. HUH?
Last year, Emery rocked Bears fans with Shea McClellin , an undersized pass rusher who really was destined for the second round and not the 19th pick. This year it's long, a guard. The Bears haven't picked a guard in the first round since before I was born!
And so it goes. This tells us two things: Phil Emery doesn't care who the fans like (I would have picked Eifert) and that the Bears current collection of offensive linemen is not very good. If, for example, Gabe Carimi, another number one pick could play guard, Long's services would not have been needed and they could have gone after a tight end, an inside pass rusher or a linebacker not named T'eo. If I were Gabe, I'd probably be checking to see when my apartment lease expires because chances are, he won't be living there much longer.
Here's our Senior Bowl Interview with Kyle Long
Quick Shots: Bears Should Steer Clear Of T'eo
- It's NFL draft day and Bears fans across the country are eagerly awaiting the first pick of the Mark Trestman era. Will it be an offensive player like Notre Dame Tight End Tyler Eifert or a defensive player like North Carolina Defensive Tackle Sylvester Williams. I just hope the Bears do not try to replace the departed Brian Urlacher with Manti T'eo. I think everything you needed to know about T'eo's game you saw on January 7th, when Alabama exposed him as the biggest fraud since Bernie Madoff. 'Nuff said.
- Other things you want to watch during the draft tonight are the numbers of teams trading down to acquire more picks. The Bears could be one of those teams, trading their 20th pick and getting multiple picks for the second and third rounds. From what all the experts have been telling us, once you get past ten, this draft is pretty even from 11-50. This isn't the Bears being cheap and not wanting to pay some one, this would be the Bears getting more players.
- I'll be interested how the Bears draft reflects their new coach. Do the Bears go offense in a bg way? What about the needs on the line? Do you take someone like Alabama center Barrett Jones (who can play multiple positions) if he is available in the second or third round? Do you take Chance Warmack or D.J. Fluker if they are available in the first? Maybe the Bears could reassemble Alabama's offensive line. It's much better than the one they had last year.
- The Blackhawks skate off with the President's Trophy. It should be noted in the last ten years, only one team has won the trophy and Lord Stanley's Cup in the same season. That would be the '07-08 Dead Things.
- Give the Bulls credit: As banged up and beat up as they are, they still play hard. And this is without Derek Rose. And no, I don't wish to debate that subject with you right now. I'm sick to death of it.
- Speaking of pain, the White Sox are not playing well right now. The airtight defense of last year is gone and the opportunistic hitting of early last season also seems to have escaped them. I wonder when Sox fans will turn on Robin Ventura. Some already have.
- There are always stories in the news about athletes and women and most of the time we rush to judgement and take her side of the story. Shaq was sued by his former mistress on a variety of charges (including racketeering) and had the great defender of women, Gloria Allred as her attorney. Yesterday, Allred withdrew, citing ethics. In other words, she didn't believe her client either. That should indicate how truthful the mistress is. Proof again, wait until you hear the whole story before you take a side.
RIP Pat Summerall
One of the giants of my industry passed away yesterday. Pat Summerall was 82 and had been in ill health. His last appearance on network TV was the 2011 Cotton Bowl.
I remember in 2004 when Mike Patrick, then doing Sunday night football, had a heart attack and was sidelined for a while. ESPN called in Summerall, who had been off the air for a couple of years, to call the games. What a comforting couple of weeks that was, enjoying the voice and the style that made him the legend that he was.
If there is a Mt. Rushmore for NFL announcers, the big four probably would be Summerall, Al Michaels, Curt Gowdy and Dick Enberg.
Summerall's genius was his minimalist approach. He could get more mileage out of simply intoning "Emmett Smith" then detailing the whole play. Besides, he had Tom Brookshire and John Madden to do the rest of the talking. Summerall learned his trade by working with the great Ray Scott in the late '60s and early '70's. A lot of you never heard Scott, but trust me, he was the original to Summerall. Summerall was clam and understated at all times, which was so much easier to listen to than a lot of today's announcers (you know who you are, Gus Johnson.) In fact, I'm willing to bet that my distain for Gus comes as a direct result of growing up with Gowdy and Summerall, two of the most low key announcers in history.
In addition to his football career, Summerall left a rich legacy with tennis and golf, hosting the Masters long before Jim Nantz. He was certainly a triple threat.
Pat Summerall overcame some personal demons as well, including a 1992 intervention that got him to dry out at Betty Ford and a liver transplant in 2005. The last few years of his life found him in ill health, ravaged by the hard lifestyle he lived back in his days with Brookshire.
Pat Summerall is gone, but, to a generation of football fans between the ages of 30-100, will never be forgotten. No doubt, he's in sports heaven somewhere where Brookshire has just purchased the first round.
Don't Blame Carlos Quentin
One of the big topics on our show this morning on WNSP, Mobile was the Dodgers-Padres fight between Zack Greinke and Carlos Quentin. Quentin, who has been hit by Greinke a number of times, broke his left collarbone in the fight.
This morning on our show and on Twitter, Quentin has elicited a visceral response, led by SI's Peter King who, last time I checked, was a football and not a baseball guru.
I was never a big Carlos Quentin guy when he was with the White Sox, but still, don't lay Greinke's injury on Quentin.
When 46 year-old Nolan Ryan was rushed at the mound by a then 23 year-old Robin Ventura, Ryan grabbed him in a headlock, gave him a noogie and wrestled him to the ground. It made all of the papers and highlight reels and no one ever felt like Ryan was this poor defenseless guy because HE PROACTIVELY DEFENDED HIMSELF.
At the risk of being politically incorrect, Greinke fights like a girl. Instead of planting his base firmly and taking Quentin on like a linebacker takes on charging fullback, Greinke stood sideways, exposed his shoulder and was toppled to the ground. It was Greinke, who had at least five seconds to react that got himself injured by taking a stance nobody who has ever had a younger brother would take with a man rushing toward you.
Dodgers Manager Don Mattingly insists that Quentin's suspension should last the length of Greinke's stay on the DL, but I find that absurd. Even if you are one of these pacifists that thinks Quentin is evil for rushing the mound, the fact remains Greinke could have avoided injury by positioning himself to take the hit better. Period.
I hope baseball has the good sense to recuse Joe Torre from this case or else it will become a conspiracy theorists dream.
I also hope baseball will take my suggestion and make it a one game suspension if you leave the dugout or the bullpen during a fight. That way, unless you are Chuck Norris or Billy Jack, you'll think twice about taking on nine guys by yourself. Problem solved. If that rule was in place last night, perhaps Zack Greinke wouldn't be injured.
Quick Shots: Hoops Dreams Plus
- This has been one of the lamest NCAA Tournaments in history. Finally Saturday, two good games. Up until then, with the exception of one of two, most of the games this year have been blowouts. Saturday we had some real excitement with Louisville rallying to beat Wichita State and Michigan holding off Syracuse.
- Tonight, I'm pulling for Michigan. You can take the boy out of the Big Ten, but you can't take the Big Ten out of the boy.
- What is CBS thinking running the tip off at 8:20 central time. I'll be out by halftime. If you plan on staying up and watching the whole game, you are looking at going to bed no earlier than 11:15. On the east coast, it's even worse. Why not tip at 7:20 and be humane to people? Besides, you are only getting an hour and forty minutes worth of prime time.
- I'm going to side with Sean Hannity on the Mike Rice deal. But I also understand that because we live in a politically correct society where the squeaky wheel forces itself to be greased, that something had to give. The thing people keep failing to realize is, he should have been fired because of his record. And, you haven't heard the last of the coach that turned Rice in, Eric Murdoch. Murdoch is being investigated by the FBI for allegedly extorting money from Rutgers. Think what you want about Rice, but don't paint Murdoch as a sympathetic figure either.
- The Cubs have placed relief pitcher Carlos Marmol on the DL with severe neck sprain which he suffered Saturday night in Atlanta while watching the Upton brothers drive two of his pitches out of the park.
- We had John "Moon" Mullen from CSN Chicago on our show today on WNSP. He thinks the Bears might draft Arthur Brown, a linebacker from Kansas State. He's not my choice of Kevin Minter, but anyone is better than the galloping ghost lover, Manti T'eo.
- ESPN is back to being the official network of the Red Sox and Yankees. If you look at their listings, those are the primary teams on both ESPN and MLB Network. Never mind the White Sox and Nationals are a compelling matchup. I won't get to see any of those games.
- Congratulations to the Chicago Blackhawks for being the first NHL team to lock in for the playoffs this season. If they get everyone back healthy, it could be a deep run.
- I hate the '83 clown costumes. I know everyone ooohed and ahhed when they trotted them out yesterday for the first time but I still hate them. And you can talk all you like about what a wonderful season 1983 was, but please explain to me why the hell Brit Burns was still on the mound in the tenth inning of the ALCS. I'll hang up and listen.
Sox 2013: So Far, So Good
We're only six games into the 2013 baseball season, but the White Sox are sitting at 4-2 for the first week, which, if you think about it, is better than expected.
The Royals have mastered the White Sox the last couple of years, but the Sox took two out of three from them to open the season. They then turned around and lost a heart breaker Friday night against Seattle, but came back and won Saturday and Sunday.
The first rule of winning a championship: Win series. The second rule: Beat teams in your own division. Check and check so far.
Among the concerns that I have early in the season is the Sox defense. Last year, they caught everything, this year not so much. Especially annoying are the constant collisions on pop ups. Seriously, not only do Alexi Ramirez and Dyan Viciedo speak the same language, they come from the same country. If they would have done what they did the other day while playing for the Cuban National Team, Castro would have had them sent to a labor camp. Pay attention boys.
I'm a little concerned with Jeff Koeppenger's bat as well. It won't be long for the Mark Teahen compairasons to begin, if the y haven't already.
Washington will be the best team the Sox have faced this year and the first team they haven't seen in spring training. I'll take 7-3 on this road trip, but I expect 6-4. At least they avoid Stephen Strassburg.
