I love the ‘top’ and ‘untouchable’ tags.  And all of a sudden these tags are being applied to the kids whose numbers have always been good, but now they are being brought to the forefont. Omar has handled the perception that the Mets farm system was depleted to begin with and then further weakened after the Santana trade, very nicely. 

And as we have seen from Murphy so far, maybe these kids ARE that good and the rest of the league has just undervalued them.  Fantastic job by Omar Minaya. Yet again.

It is a cruel irony that the man most responsible for establishing the Fall Classic was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame on the same day that has for the greater part of 16 years signaled the unofficial end of baseball season here in Western PA, the start of Steelers training camp. During Barney Dreyfuss‘ 32 years as owner, the Pittsburgh Pirates finished in 2nd place or higher 13 times, won 6 pennants and claimed 2 World Series titles. He would be mortified to know that his team is now working on its 16th straight losing season, a new US sports record.

In the past week, the Pirates have almost singlehandedly managed to inject new life into the AL East race by trading OF Xavier Nady and RP Damaso Marte to the Yankees and now OF Jason Bay to the Red Sox. Two-thirds of the most productive outfield in baseball gone for young players and prospects. As the ghosts of Aramis Ramirez, Jason Schmidt and Chris Young circle around my head, I find both optimism and pessimism swirling through an endless, numbing void.

Baseball was actually my first sports love. I came to sports in the early 90’s when the Pirates and Penguins were winning and the Steelers were languishing in mediocrity. I remember when Pedro Martinez was called PJ Martinez because there was a Pedro A. Martinez in the Big Leagues; I remember when Joe Torre was the manager of a pretty mediocre St. Louis Cardinals team; and I remember when Barry Bonds was skinny, stole bases and batted lead-off. It was easy to enjoy the game.

All sports fans experience periods that test their resolve. Some fandoms, like that of the Chicago Cubs, are practically built around the (ridiculously idiotic) idea of “lovable losers”. Some emphasize the ‘experience’ of the game as a way to avoid facing losing - “Boy that park sure is purrty!”, others are simply cursed, such as the Cleveland Browns, and some just deserve to lose, such as any fandom in Philadelphia. But in most cases, a dearth of winning refers to winning championships, not winning seasons.

If your team is at least occasionally in the hunt, you can have hope. In order for Steve Bartman to have become an issue, the Cubs needed to be in contention in the first place. We have, on this site, rightly decried bandwagon jumpers, those mealy-mouthed cretins who enjoy the peaks and avoid the valleys.

But losing on the scale of the Pirates is, methinks, a different kettle o’ fish. It’s not that they haven’t reached the World Series since 1979 or that they haven’t won a Division Title since 1992. To my knowledge, the Pittsburgh Pirates have not had a .500+ overall record at any point past the All-Star break in any individual season since 1999. This hallowed .500+ post All-Star mark has been reached only twice since Barry Bonds took his big bat to the East Bay after the 1992/93 season.

I’ve picked sides in the World Series from time to time but I’m a homer and as such, I can’t truly cheer for another baseball team. But 16 years of spectacularly bad baseball have robbed me and many others of our passion for the (former) National Pastime. I don’t live and die with this team. I die and die with them yet still attend 5-6 games at PNC Park each season.

So the question is - should I be considered no better than the bandwagon jumper because I describe baseball season as the winter of my sports discontent or hang my head when the Pirates come on Sportscenter. When faced with such extreme losing, what’s a fan to do? Oh that’s right - Steelers training camp just opened. Here we go!

Photo Credit: Icon/SMI

- Most of the major sports websites have been previewing the upcoming season but for me, the coup de grace is today’s ESPN.com articles on Hate. I think sports is driven more by hatred of other teams than by love of one’s own chosen squad and nowhere is this more true than in the seething cauldron of collegiate athletics. Is there an occasion where I’ll pay attention to Big East traitor Boston College - yes, when they play Notre Dame. Why do I occasionally cheer for Texas or Michigan - because I despise Oklahoma and Ohio State.

- It may surprise the unacquainted to know that I hate Ohio State since I made the apparently unpardonable sin of ranking the Frakeyes #1 a couple months ago. For the record, I despise everything to do with the state of Ohio, from the boring, flat terrain to that sorry excuse for a city called the Mistake by the Lake to the moronic dotting of the I. However, I’ll stand by the pick even as it makes me want to hurl because no other major program is a better bet to get to the big game. I’ll also be weeping tears of joy with any decent human being (Ohioans aren’t human) when OSU gets waxed by whichever opponent faces them.

- Last weekend’s Outside the Lines delivered a scathing indictment of Joe Paterno Univ, I mean Penn State University’s football program. I’m not going to crucify PSU for its problems given that many Universities seem to be having troubles these days. However, I was a little disturbed at JoePa’s reaction. Whereas University President Graham Spanier called the numbers (72 charges in 2007 alone, resulting in 9 convictions) staggering, Mr Penn State brushed it aside as a witch hunt. Maybe boys are just as naughty now as they have ever been. Maybe not. But with bigger dollar signs in college football, comes bigger scrutiny and more incentive for programs to walk the tight line. PSU needs to get it in gear - and hire Greg Schiano away from Rutgers next year.

The willingness of major clubs to take on added mountains of debt in order to buy new players, which results in restructuring loans of sometimes hundreds of millions of dollars, or simply not to operate in the black blows my mind. According to Forbes.com, Manchester United’s debt load stands at 60% of the team’s estimated value of US$1.8 billion. Yet the club recently restructured their loans (again) so as to free up the resources for boss Sir Alex Ferguson to make additions in the summer transfer market.

Chelsea FC, which have no debt but have posted a profit only once in owner Roman Abramovich’s tenure, will be dipping into the Russian oligarch’s personal fortune once again to fund acquisitions. Chelsea don’t even forecast moving into the black consistently until after the 2009 season, an estimate regarded as optimistic at best.

Liverpool FC boss Rafa Benitez has been told by the club’s American owners that there is no money forthcoming and he will have to finance player acquisitions mostly by selling. The Reds do have a debt load of 65% of team value, mostly from loans incurred by Tom Hicks’ & George Gillett’s purchase of the team, but recent loan re-financing did not free up monies for a big transfer fund. Needless to say that this lack of cash has LFC supporters dreaming of a Dubai International Capital takeover on Merseyside. Arsene Wenger at Arsenal will also have to finance any transfer deals by selling players due to the team’s debt load from the building of Emirates Stadium.

In the NFL, the three highest debt loads (NY Giants & Jets at 67% and Dallas Cowboys at 42% of team value) are almost entirely due to the construction of new stadia. The debt loads of American teams are rarely built up and/or restructured simply to pay for new players and teams with such debt loads sometimes operate on the cheap while paying it off. After Mario Lemieux led an investment group to buy the Pittsburgh Penguins, he kept the organization on tight purse strings (resulting in many years of horrible showings) until it had paid off all its debt. Now that the Penguins play in a newly salary-capped NHL with comprehensive revenue sharing and have a new arena deal, the team can stay in the black (or close to it) and be competitive on the ice as well.

Lord knows, I wish LFC had a big transfer fund to go after the likes of Robbie Keane with impunity but all these loans make me wonder about the long-term financial stability of major world futbol club play. The case of Leeds United, in particular, must give us pause. This is a club which finished in the top 5 of the First Division/Premiership nine times from 1990-2004, won a domestic title in 1991-1992 and reached the semi-finals of the Champions League as recently as 2001. This is now a club languishing in League 2, the third tier of English futbol.

One word best describes such a precipitous fall - loans.

In anticipation of further Champions League windfalls, Leeds took out major loans which they were unable to pay when they did not, in fact, re-qualify for the UCL. The Whites fell on dire financial straits, which eventually led to the sale of the club’s assets as well as prospects and major players, such as Rio Ferdinand to Manchester United. This was followed by relegation to the Championship (2nd tier) in 2004 and the sale of the club for £10 million followed by entry into Administration in 2007 and further relegation down to League 2 in the same year.

Manchester United and Chelsea FC partisans have come to expect that their clubs will go after the best players available, virtually regardless of cost. Though I would not anticipate a Leeds-style fall from grace for either squad, fans may have to prepare for a day when the clubs’ owners will have to go frugal in order to pay down debt and/or start operating in the black. Futbol fans often view their clubs as community trusts wherein winning is the sole goal. If a team must take on debt to win or an owner must spend of his personal fortune, then so be it. Even at the expense of going into the Red.

Hey NFL fans, Gossip Girl here, and I have the biggest news ever!  One of my many sources sends me this, Spotted in Mississippi, Brett F frantically texting his former BFF Ted that he wants back in the Pack! But Ted’s on vacation! Will he get Brett’s desperate message?  Or will he move on with Brett’s frenemy Aaron? 

****

Since Favre conveniently picked the deadest sports week of the calendar (coincidence?) to go public with his latest unretirement, the sports media universe has had the opportunity to cover the story ad nauseum.  All possible angles were covered and debated and rehashed, so I won’t waste too much of your time here.

I just have a few things I wanted to get off my chest:

• I’m sick of the passive-aggressive bullshit from Favre.  This is our All-American, Wrangler-wearing, tractor-driving, stubble-keeping tough guy? Waah Waah Waah, I’m Brett Favre I didn’t feel ‘welcomed back’ Waah Waah Wahh. What does that mean?  Did they not respond to your text messages quickly enough?  Did they forget to rub your feet and hail the all-mighty quarterback? His public bitch-fest to Greta Van Susteren is the kind of thing that gets players like TO and Ocho Cinco reamed in the media for being selfish.  Not to mention that he possibly pulled a Roger Clemens and sold his friend out to score PR points.  Can we put “biggest drama queen” on his Hall of Fame plaque?

• As far as front offices go, the NFL is a 12 month a year job.  There is no off-season.  It’s 2008, and draft/free agency prep begins the moment the whistle blows on the season’s final snap (or in this case when Mr. Gunslinger throws a season ending interception).  If the GM and head coach asks you to make a decision within a certain time-frame, it’s because that’s what they think is best for the future of the franchise.  It’s not because they want to force you out.  Favre has been around long enough to know this.  He’s a grown-ass man, and he should have more respect for the franchise that gave him a chance to start when no one else thought he was any good.  He should show some gratitude to the team (and fanbase) that paid him millions of dollars over the years, and deified him to the point where he could probably pull his pants down, take a huge poop on the state flag of Wisconsin, and people would still talk about what a gutsy play it was.

• He does NOT deserve the benefit of the doubt about this.  Sample quotes I’ve heard over the past week: “Yeah I know it sucks that he’s putting the Packers in this position, but…he’s Brett Favre! They have to let him play.”  and “He’s Brett Favre!  If he wants to play, let him play, he’s so much better than Rodgers anyway.” Basically, the argument boils down to the irrefutable logic of…”He’s Brett Favre! He should be able to do whatever he wants.”  To which I reply: So fucking what! Why are we treating him so differently from every other player?  He has as many rings as Trent Dilfer!  Okay, I understand that because of his career accomplishments and what he’s meant to Green Bay, he maybe gets some leeway when making his decision.  But he’s done this after EVERY SINGLE SEASON for the past three years.  He has already gone through whatever goodwill and credibility he had the first time around.  It’s not true that he “needs time to see if his body can hold up”.  The guy’s been playing for over 16 years, he should know by now what his body will feel like in July.

• I was ecstatic to see that most Packer fans, while clearly not sharing my level of irrational outrage, aren’t exactly rolling the red carpet out again for their hero.  In an unscientific phone poll, Packer fans said they want Favre to remain with the Packers, but they are split on whether he should start.  These are smart, involved fans and they know what is best for the long-term, continued success of their team.  Yes at first, it would really hurt them to see Favre in another uniform, but if there’s one thing even the most idealistic sports fans understand, it’s that the loyalty we feel for our favorite players exists in a vacuum.  I applaud and embrace giving out that loyalty, but the satisfaction I derive from it has to exist on it’s own terms.  The fans cheer, and the player plays hard and hopefully plays well.   There’s no question that Favre has always played hard, and most of the time he has played very well.  There’s also no question that the entire football watching world has adored him for almost two decades.  But that’s the end of the bargain. Be a grown-up and be a professional, Brett. Stop messing around with the Packers and their fans and make up your mind.  If you’re willing to play for another team, the fans will get over it eventually.  If you stay retired, they’ll get over that too. Chris Berman and John Madden will just have to find someone else to cream themselves over.

****

OMG! Was it only five months ago that our All American hero stepped down for the third consecutive year to make way for Aaron? Did Ted really push Brett out?  Or is Bretty just bored of the farm life and pouting his way back to the game?

I’ve got all the dirt.  And who am I?  That’s one secret I’ll never tell.  The only one.   

XOXO,

Gossip Girl

The sidebar in this saga is the development of the European domestic leagues and their potential as rivals to the NBA. Marginal NBA players have been going to Europe for quite some time but the fact that an academically-challenged blue-chipper like Jennings would even consider a European league over the JUCO or prep school route is testament to the increasing prowess and financial viability of the European leagues.

We all know that foreign national teams have become more than a match for the US national team but the same cannot necessarily be said of foreign club teams, namely because the best foreign players ply their trade in the Association. I think it’s safe to say that if money wasn’t the issue, top foreign players like Tony Parker or Pau Gasol would be more likely to stay in their home country or at least consider staying in Europe. If nothing else, maybe Dirk Nowitski or Yao Ming would venture to Europe in the latter stages of their career, ala hockey where Jaromir Jagr is going to Avangard Omsk of Russia and Martin Straka to HC Lasselsberger Plzen in the Czech Republic.

I’m not an NBA expert but I would find it interesting to see a model emerge over the next couple decades wherein world basketball begins to look like world futbol (except this US league is good at basketball).

A more robust international club field where foreign teams are competitive in keeping or attracting some of the best talent would lead to the development of national styles in the various leagues. If player movement in world basketball approaches that of world futbol, an American player could gain even more valuable insight into the varied nuances of the game by playing for, say a Real Madrid. Then imagine his potential impact playing for the US National team, ala Fernando Torres crediting his experience at Liverpool for his play with Spain during Euro 2008.

It’s hard to imagine that leagues in Spain, Italy, Russia, or Greece may ever rival the NBA for spending power but I’d love to see a player of Agent Zero’s talent playing for Real Madrid pitted against a Lebron James and the Brooklyn Nets in a Club World Cup style tournament. Among the many questions to consider - how would Arenas’ upbringing in the US affect his ability to mesh with his Spanish compatriots and their [insert national style] way of playing basketball or how would James have to adjust his game to lead my Nets to victory over Madrid.

As a college basketball fan, I realize the evolution of a global basketball system similar to world futbol could eventually rob the college ranks of the best American talent. But if it results in those players left behind staying longer in order to get their game up or in true student-athletics returning to the court, I wouldn’t mind. As long as James and the Nets can handle the Agent Zero’s Galacticos.

Photo Credits: Tom Hauck/ESPN.com, Wizznutzz.com

For me, the memory of the NBA’s greatest season in recent history will always be marred by the drama surrounding the theft of Seattle’s basketball team.  And how the commissioner’s office stood by and did nothing about it.  And I’m not even a Sonics fan.  I can’t even imagine how they’re feeling.

For those who haven’t been following, let me offer this brief timeline to summarize:

Nov. 4, 1995: Sonics play their first game at KeyArena. NBA commissioner David Stern attends the game and says that KeyArena “is very special to me,” and that everyone in Seattle should be proud of the “beautiful building.”

2005-2006: The New Orleans Hornets, relocated by Hurricane Katrina, play half their home games in Oklahoma City, which develops a taste for NBA hoops.

July 18, 2006: Clay Bennett and a group of Oklahoma businessmen buy the Sonics from Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz for $350 million, pledging a “good-faith” effort to keep the team in Seattle.

April 2007: The state Legislature rejects the Sonics’ proposal to build a $500 million arena in Renton, paid for mostly with an extension of taxes currently paying off Safeco and Qwest fields. In response, Bennett threatens to relocate the Sonics.

August 2007: Sonics part-owner Aubrey McClendon confirms the suspicions of many Sonics fans when he tells an Oklahoma newspaper, “We didn’t buy the team to keep it in Seattle; we hoped to come here.” The NBA later fined McClendon $250,000 for the remark.

Sept. 10, 2007: The Seattle City Council votes 8-0 to strictly enforce the Sonics’ KeyArena lease, rejecting any early buyout.

Sept. 21, 2007: Sonics owners file for arbitration on KeyArena, seeking approval to pay a cash settlement instead of playing out the final two years on the team’s lease.

Sept. 24, 2007: Seattle files a lawsuit seeking to hold the Sonics to their KeyArena lease through 2010.

Nov. 2, 2007: Bennett announces he is seeking NBA permission to move the Sonics to Oklahoma City.

April 18, 2008: NBA approves the Sonics’ move to Oklahoma City.

June 16-26, 2008: U.S. District Court Judge Marsha Pechman listens to testimony during a six-day bench trial to settle the issue of the Sonics’ lease.

July 2, 2008: The Sonics owners reach an agreement with the city, buying out the last two years of the lease at KeyArena for $45 million. The team will play in Oklahoma City next season.  The Sonics logo and team history are, for all intents and purposes, dead.

And that’s what it must feel like for Sonics fans this week.  The untimely death of a loved one feels like their soul has been stolen from you.  And the Sonics were soul of Seattle, the city’s first and most successul pro sports franchise.  This is the ugly side of sports as a big business.

Meanwhile, David Stern showed his true colors.  Merely a dozen years after calling Key Arena something “to be proud of”, he supported Clay Bennett holding the city hostage for a new arena, and granted him permission to leave when they didn’t pony up the cash.  Forget John Gotti, David Stern is the most successful mafia don of our time - with his arena extortion rackets and gambling referees it’s a wonder more people around him haven’t been whacked.

I’m ashamed of the league I love for treating its fans so poorly.  Who knows which team is going to be held hostage next?  It could be yours.

The NBA: Where dicking over a loyal fanbase happens.

The growing numbers of foreign players in domestic club teams has led to fears that the development of some national teams (mostly in Europe) may suffer because clubs spend less time and resources developing local talent. The most prominent example of this is the English Premier League, considered by some to be the best futbol league in the world but whose increasing excellence is due to an influx of foreign players. The England National Team was notably absent from Euro 2008 but well-represented by its non-English players.

It’s easy to recognize the impact of foreign-born players on the top teams in the world. It’s true that everyone benefits from increased levels of competition, not the least of which are the coffers of the clubs that pay huge transfer fee’s for these players. By going to Benfica, Freddie Adu is finally starting to become the player we all thought he could be.

But at stake here is the right of clubs to field the best possible squad that they can afford to buy (and thus make a profit) versus the need to grow the national teams. Therein lies the balancing act because we must consider whether domestic clubs are neglecting the development of home-based players in the constant pursuit of the mercurial talents of the Messi’s and Ronaldinho’s of the outside world.

I believe that futbol remains a fundamentally nationalist game, one in which performance for country makes or breaks a player’s legacy more than performance for club. In this light, the domestic leagues can be looked upon as feeders for growing players capable of playing at the national level. I have no doubt that Liverpool’s English fans wish that a player of Fernando Torres’ quality was suiting up for the Three Kings.

Blatter’s rule won’t ensure that the best players in the world always stay in their home country, nor is it necessarily intended to do that. Manchester United would still find a place for a player of Cristiano Ronaldo’s talents and Lionel Messi would still have left Newell’s Old Boys for FC Barcelona. However, a re-approportionment of talent with added emphasis on local development will not only help to even out the competitive disparity in many European club leagues but it should also benefit the development of national teams.

Photo Credits: 1000goals.com, AFP

• If you missed Euro 2008, you missed one of the best sports tournaments in recent memory. Watching Fernando Torres score the winner against Germany was especially gratifying for this fan given the criticism leveled at El Niño for not finding the back of the net much during the rest of the tournament. It’s nonsense of course as Torres was one of the hardest workers on the Spanish team, creating numerous chances for David Villa and others along the way.

• I particularly enjoyed that Spain coach Luis Aragonés didn’t go into an all-out defensive mode towards the end of the match. He continued to attack as the Spaniards nearly took a second goal in the waning minutes. Too often it seems that national teams choose between a boring defensive style that wins (read: Greece in Euro 2004) and an attractive brand of futbol that ultimately fails to win (read: Argentina in the 2007 Copa América). This Spanish team combined solid defensive play with a great up-tempo game.

• Though they flamed out against Russia, count me among those who thoroughly enjoyed the Oranje Crush of Holland. I’ll admit that I didn’t particularly like those garish bright orange uniforms when I first saw them at the 2006 World Cup but I came around in this tournament. It’s easy to like a team that plays an attacking, offensive-minded style of futbol (unless you’re Italy). Plus the uni’s have a certain kitsch factor to them.

• Coverage of Euro 2008 in the US was as good as a futbol-phile could have hoped with regular highlights on Sportscenter and decent commentary during games (as opposed to the horrific excuse for commentary we got in ‘06). The final between Spain and Germany drew a strong 3.1 rating on ABC and there was even coverage of the tournament final in local newspapers across the country.

• Despite the attention it brought on this side of the pond, if anyone thinks Euro 2008 will be the watershed moment that brings soccer into the US sports mainstream, forget it. There will be no singular moment or tournament, even if the US wins a World Cup (pah!). Soccer has been making slow but steady gains in the US for years now and bit-by-bit is the only way it will continue to grow.

Photo Credit: Shaun Botterill - Getty Images

Perennial powerhouse France was bounced unceremoniously in group play in this year’s Euro.  Which means French players like Thierry Henry, who thought they would be playing deep into the tournament, will have to find other things to do with their time.

Luckily for me and a few hundred other New Yorkers, Henry had dinner with Steve Nash last week, where Nash reportedly asked Henry to play in his upcoming charity soccer game.  And luckily for us, Henry said yes.

Nike Field in Sara D. Roosevelt Park is one of 15 soccer fields that Nike and FieldTurf have created in communities across the country to give pickup soccer players a place to play in urban areas.  On Wednesday, the park was host to a joint effort between Steve Nash’s foundation and Claudio Reyna’s foundation.  Billed as “The Showdown in Chinatown”, the match pitted superstars, from the worlds of both basketball and soccer, and even a couple of members of the media, in an 8-on-8 match. 

Nash and Reyna were joined by players who have represented the United States at the international level (Jozy Altidore and Gregg Berhalter), a handful of former and current players from the English Premier League and MLS (Steve McManaman, Robbie Fowler and Salomon Kalou, Juan Pablo Angel) and a few current NBA players (Jason Kidd, Baron Davis, Leandro Barbosa, and Raja Bell).  And yes, your faithful correspondent was there, starstruck but still on the job.  A few thoughts:

• This is soccer in its purest form.  Two goals, one ball, no hands.  The beauty of the game is in its simplicity, and never have I ever seen it on display like this, with professional athletes playing like we played in our backyards as children.
• I guess they underestimated the kind of crowd they would draw.  Even though it was a weekday afternoon, throngs of fans showed up, some climbing fences and trees to get better views of the action.  And although some of the crowd were just rubberneckers joining the crowd just because there was a crowd, there were plenty of soccer diehards.  If they do this again, I’d love to see it in a bigger venue.  It’d also be great if I could get press credentials, hint hint.
• Thierry Henry is absolute poetry in motion.  We’ve watched him lead his teams to victory in the Champions League and the World Cup, so we know he’s good.  But seeing him perform his magic from such a short distance away is an experience in and of itself.  He orchestrated the Team Nash 9-4 victory, and included a healthy dose of showmanship by balancing the ball on his head, or firing in volleys from long distance.
• Steve Kerr must have been shitting bricks.  Three of the top 7 players on his roster were playing and exposing themselves to injury.
• Props to Baron Davis for keeping things light.  He brought his beard, his horn-rimmed glasses, and his jokes with him, since he had no prior experience playing soccer.  Unfortunately, his antics earned him two yellow cards that resulted in penalty kicks taken by Team Nash.
• I knew Nash plays regularly in the offseason, and Barbosa is Brazilian so it has to be in his DNA somewhere.  But the shocker to me and most of my crew in attendance was how well Jason Kidd played.  I know, I know, you’re thinking “Jesus, when is this SK guy going to get off J-Kidd’s nuts?”  But he managed to notch two assists on Team Reyna’s four goals, and I think it’s safe to say that nearly everyone was as pleasantly surprised as I was.
• Three words.  Hot sideline chicks.  I need to go to these charity things more often.
• I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that ESPN’s Marc Stein and NBA TV’s Simone Sandri not only managed to keep up with the professional athletes, they played pretty well.  Way to represent the weekend warriors, guys!

All in all, I got to watch world-class athletes play soccer up close for an hour before walking over to Chinatown and stuffing myself with dumplings.  For a random Wednesday evening, I don’t think it gets much better than that.  Want to see pics?

People found seats wherever they could:

Baron Davis, before the game:

From left to right, Raja Bell, Jason Kidd, Steve McManaman, Salomon Kalou, and Steve Nash:

Thierry Henry and Jason Kidd:

“Baseball is a nineteenth-century pastoral game.
Football is a twentieth-century technological struggle.

Baseball is played on a diamond, in a park.The baseball park!
Football is played on a gridiron, in a stadium, sometimes called Soldier Field or War Memorial Stadium.

Baseball begins in the spring, the season of new life.
Football begins in the fall, when everything’s dying.

In football you wear a helmet.
In baseball you wear a cap.

Football is concerned with downs - what down is it?
Baseball is concerned with ups - who’s up?

In football you receive a penalty.
In baseball you make an error.

In football the specialist comes in to kick.
In baseball the specialist comes in to relieve somebody.

Football has hitting, clipping, spearing, piling on, personal fouls, late hitting and unnecessary roughness.
Baseball has the sacrifice.

Football is played in any kind of weather: rain, snow, sleet, hail, fog…
In baseball, if it rains, we don’t go out to play.

Baseball has the seventh inning stretch.
Football has the two minute warning.

Baseball has no time limit: we don’t know when it’s gonna end - might have extra innings.
Football is rigidly timed, and it will end even if we’ve got to go to sudden death.

In baseball, during the game, in the stands, there’s kind of a picnic feeling; emotions may run high or low, but there’s not too much unpleasantness.
In football, during the game in the stands, you can be sure that at least twenty-seven times you’re capable of taking the life of a fellow human being.

And finally, the objectives of the two games are completely different:

In football the object is for the quarterback, also known as the field general, to be on target with his aerial assault, riddling the defense by hitting his receivers with deadly accuracy in spite of the blitz, even if he has to use shotgun. With short bullet passes and long bombs, he marches his troops into enemy territory, balancing this aerial assault with a sustained ground attack that punches holes in the forward wall of the enemy’s defensive line.

In baseball the object is to go home! And to be safe! - I hope I’ll be safe at home!”

Here’s a quick recap of the top 10 picks from the 1998 NBA draft, as well as where each player has ended up after a decade in the League.

Team - Player, Current Team (Number of teams played for)

1. LA Clippers - Michael Olowokandi, Out of the league
2. Vancouver - Mike Bibby, Atlanta (3)
3. Denver - Raef LaFrentz, Portland (4)
5. Golden State - Antawn Jamison, Washington (3)
4. Toronto - Vince Carter, New Jersey (2)
9. Milwaukee - Robert Traylor, Out of the league
7. Sacramento - Jason Williams, Miami (3)
8. Philadelphia - Larry Hughes, Chicago (5)
6. Dallas - Dirk Nowitzki, Dallas (1)
10. Boston - Paul Pierce, Boston (1)

Here’s an excerpt from Bill Simmons’ column after the Celtics finished off the Lakers:

‘But Pierce …

I mean …

We watched that guy grow up. We watched him become a man. We believed in him, we gave up on him, and we believed in him again. I don’t mean to sound like the old man in “Pretty Woman,” but part of me wanted to walk onto the court Tuesday night and just tell Pierce, “It’s hard for me to say this without sounding condescending, but I’m proud of you.”…We spend so much time complaining about sports and being disappointed that our favorite players never end up being who we wanted them to be, but in Pierce’s case, he became everything we wanted him to be. When he held up the Finals MVP trophy after the game and screamed to the crowd in delight, I don’t think I’ve ever been happier for a Boston athlete. How many guys stick with a crummy franchise for 10 solid years, then get a chance to lead that same team to a championship? Does that EVER happen in sports anymore?’

There IS another guy who has been with the same franchise for 10 years, and had a chance to lead that team to a championship, and he was ironically picked right before Pierce (and immediately traded for Robert “Tractor” Traylor and his bag of Funyuns). Unfortunately, Dirk Nowitzki’s story hasn’t ended as happily…yet.  It’s still somewhat fun to imagine what it would be like if it did.

Just a wee bit of hope-mongering on a lazy summer evening.

photographs by John Biever, David E. Klutho, Cnnsi.com

The Celtics had always won titles with a “Big 3″.  So last offseason, GM Danny Ainge assembled a new Big 3.  The 2007-2008 incarnation blew through the regular season, winning 66 games.  But the final goal was the same as Russell, Heinsohn and Cousy, or Bird, McHale, and Parrish.  And Garnett, Pierce, and Allen did not disappoint. 

Not since the 1996 Chicago Bulls has the old adage has come to fruition with such vengeance - offense wins games, but defense wins championships.  Game 6 last night was the epitome of this.  Boston won because of its quick, swarming, and committed defense played by all five players on the court.  Not only did they out-rebound the Lakers 48-29, they forced 19 turnovers leading to 32 points.  The real key to playing defense in the NBA is desire - being quick to rotate on double teams, contest shots, and stop drives to the basket.  Tracy McGrady and Dywane Wade have both said that after facing the 2007-2008 incarnation of the Celtics, that it was the best defense they’ve ever played against.

Fitting that after a 21-year absence from basketball in June, that the matchup in The Finals would be against their old foil the Lakers, whom they’ve faced 11 times now.  This series had everything - Willis Reed moments from Paul Pierce and Ray Allen; a 24-point comeback in Game 4, and a near 24-point comeback in Game 5; Kobe playing for his first title without Shaq; KG, Pierce, and Allen playing for their first titles period; Phil Jackson coaching to pass Red Auerbach.  The clinching game was capped off by the first basketball court Gatorade bath I’ve ever seen, and KG screaming to the heavens before collapsing in tears.

So congrats to the Celtics.  I guess this means more gushing from Bill Simmons.  But that’s a small price to pay for the most entertaining NBA regular season, playoffs, and championship in recent memory.  If David Stern was in fact the one pulling the strings behind this all, then mission accomplished.

PS: Sorry for the hiatus, faithful readers… but I’m back, fully rested and better than ever.

Around $50 million of this $140 million Mets team has either been on the DL for significant lengths of time this year or underperforming (Alou, Pedro, Delgado). So any arguments we will hear from Minaya today will be full of crap. Additionally, it is the front office that has allowed the tensions within the organization go grow and let Willie hang out to dry in the media.  As I said in my previous post, Mets ownership needs to either fire Omar Minaya or sell the team to competent owners who can trust their baseball people and stand behind them.  Obviously, Willie is no angel in this situation either.  His accusations of racism against SNY were ill-timed and uncalled for.  However, he did help turn the franchise around and I feel he deserved better.

Ok ok, before I slip off into a diatribe about Don Shula, let’s get to the point - that Penguins fans’ despondency over a Stanley Cup loss and subsequent hope for a brighter future must be tempered by a recognition that the sports gods are fickle fiends.

The Penguins have the talent in place to make another run despite impending free agent losses. Marian Hossa, Gary Roberts, Pascal Dupuis, Adam Hall, Ryan Malone, Brooks Orpik, Ty Conklin, Georges Laraque and Jarkko Ruutu are slated to become free agents. I would love to see the Penguins shell out some money for Orpik, a tough and talented defender who played a spectacular series. Still, Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Jordan Staal and Marc-Andre Fleury will be back. Mark Eaton should finally return from injuries.

Regardless of defections, the Penguins should contend next year and the Finals loss will eat at them all summer.

But who can delay the whips and scorns of time. Any team, young or not, that loses a championship cannot be assured of future success. The Penguins weathered long stretches without Crosby and Fleury last year but luck may not be a lady next year.

The Detroit Red Wings aren’t going anywhere either. Though an older team, the Red Wings don’t rebuild; they simply reload despite constantly drafting low. Don’t be surprised to see these two teams again in next year’s Stanley Cup Finals.

Back to Marino - I take solace from a couple differences between the Penguins and the inept Dolphins. Those Dolphins teams were never as complete as even this year’s Penguins. Of course, football and hockey are very different sports. However, Pittsburgh has a better organization than Miami, a better owner and general manager. The Penguins had one of the best defenses in the NHL and great complements to Crosby in Evgeni Malkin and Marc-Andre Fleury. Marino had almost no help offensively, only one 1,000 yard rusher in all his years in Miami and never had a great defense. And thankfully the Penguins don’t have Don Shula as head coach.

Photo Credit: Keith Srakoci/AP