I'm new here
| 16
|
by user Bberg11
I'm very new to the blogging scene. In fact I just started a sports blog on google's blog service and was invited to join here (There are way too many "O's" and "G's" in that sentence). Since this is dedicated to sports, I think I should fit right in. So I'm going to throw a few of my previous posts here to see what kind of reaction I get. This is where they came from in case you want to read any others: [1] Let me know what you think.
Wednesday, July 4, 2007
Instant Replay in Baseball?!
It's time that people in baseball stop letting tradition ruin the game. Now, I'm all for recognizing baseball traditions; even more so in baseball than any other sport. But there's no sense in keeping out technological advancements because they didn't have it 120 years ago. Last night alone, there were two plays that cleary showed the need for instant replay in baseball; or at least some level of video review. In Detroit, a huge divisional match up between the Tigers and Cleveland Indians saw the Indians win by one run in extra innings. But the big play was in the 5th. Carlos Guillen singled with the bases loaded and Placido Polanco scored easily, but Gary Sheffield was called out sliding home. Now the play was very close, but why make the umpire make such a difficult call in a close game without the aid of any replay; replay which the rest of the world watching the game on TV has the benefit of seeing. Would the Tigers have won the game if they had been credited with that extra run in the fifth? Nobody can answer that, but why should the game be left with that question when the technology is readily available to assist in eliminating those questions. While the game in Detroit is only left in question because of a tough call by the umpire, the game between the Phillies and Astros in Houston was simply blown because of a tough call. The situation: The Phils were winning by run in the bottom of the ninth, but the Astros had the bases loaded with only one out. The Phils desperately need a double play. What happens next? Nothing other than a ground ball to shortstop Jimmy Rollins. Right from the beginning it looked like a textbook double play. However, first base umpire Lance Barksdale ruled that Chase Utley's throw relay to first was not in time and the run scored, tying the game at four. Now, yes, it was a close call at first, but not nearly as close as, say, the play in Detroit. And replay cleary showed the ball arriving with in Ryan Howard's glove with "plenty" of time to spare. Simply put, the game should have been over right there; the Phils being 4-3 winners. However, instead, the game heads to extra innings, and the 'Stros win it with a walk-off homer by Hunter Pence in the bottom of the thirteenth. Now, baseball does not need replay to review every close play and every close ball and strike, but there are numerous close plays every night that could, or do, have an impact on the outcome of the game. How do they determine which are the "big" plays that require replay? Beats me, I'm not smart enough to firgure that one out. But I am smart enough to see that too many games are decided by a human being judging differences of fractions of a second with nothing but the naked eye and ear. These ball players work too hard to see the game turn on a single play all because the league, and traditional fans, feel that instant replay would somehow damage the purity of the game. And I'm not even going to go into how steroids have done nothing to damage the purity of the game
Thursday, July 5, 2007
These ain't Clarkie's Flyers
As a huge hockey fan living in the Philadelphia area, the 2006-2007 NHL season was about the worst sporting experience of my life. Things got so bad, I would scower the national sports websites for their power rankings; praying that the Flyers would rise out of the last spot. On a couple occasions it did. And those were the best moments of the season. In case you missed it, the Flyers had the worst season in their franchise history, finishing with a league low 22-48-12 record for 56 points - 11 points worse than the next worse team. A couple weeks into the season, Bob Clarke resigned as GM and Ken Hitchcock got fired after the team achieved just one win in that time. You can't tell from the results of the rest of the season, but that was the moment when things took a turn for the better. Not exactly a sharp "youie," but a turn none the less. Paul Holmgren became the new GM and within a couple months began undoing the mistakes Clarke made coming out of the lockout. Like a gravitron, Holmgren began sending slow, ineffective players every which way in an attempt to evolve into a quick post-lockout team: Freddy Meyer to the Islanders for Alexi Zhitnik (who in turn was later traded to Atlanta for young, quick, big defenseman Braydon Coburn), Kyle Calder to Chicago for another young defenseman Lasse Kukkonen. Then the big move came: Peter Forsberg was traded to Nashville for a 1st round pick in the 2007 entry draft, Scottie Upshall, and Ryan Parent when it became apparent that the Flyers season was over and Peter could not give any assurance that he would play beyond the season due to injuries. The next day, the Flyers acquired Martin Biron from Buffalo for a second round pick in the 2007 draft in a deal that not only served to provide a solid goaltender, but also, we would soon find out, as a bargaining chip in acquiring top free agent center, and former roommate of Biron's, Daniel Briere. Holmgren's genius didn't show through though until shortly after the Nashville Predator's season ended in the first round of the playoffs (about four months after the Flyer's ended). Realizing that the Predators were in dire financial straits, "Homer" sent a first round pick (the one he received in the Forsberg trade from the same Predators) to Nashville for the rights to soon-to-be unrestricted free agents Kimmo Timonen and Scott Hartnell. Holmgen quickly negotiated 6-year deals for both players. That brings us to the draft where the Flyers still had the number two overall pick, which they "earned" for their performance the preceding season. With the pick they chose big boy, James vanRiemsdyk. Shortly following the draft the Flyers entered free agency where they signed Briere, as previously mentioned, to an heavily front-loaded eight year deal. Holmgren then capped off (at least so far) the rebuilding offseason by trading much-maligned defenseman Joni Pitkanen to Edmonton, along with Geoff Sanderson and a third round pick in the 2009 draft, for Jason Smith and Joffrey Lupul. So in less than a year as GM, Paul Holmgren, at least on paper, has simultaneously erased the damage Bob Clarke did after the lockout as well as built a team that looks to have a deadly mix of youth and veteran leadership (three of the new players are former captains), size, speed, skill, and grit. It's now up to coach John Stevens to throw all these puzzle pieces on the table and fit them together into a complete team. Judging by the way the team progressed late in the year, despite a lack of tools, and played very competitive under the first year coach, Stevens seems to be up for the challenge. And if he is, we may witness one of the most drastic turnarounds of any team in the history of sports.
Monday, July 9, 2007
Goodbye to a legend
After 18 years, Dan Patrick has left ESPN. I'm not totally sure why, but this really upsets me. Sure he was, by far, my favorite sports anchor on the station. But I don't even watch ESPN that much anymore. When I did watch ESPN on a consistent basis, I always thought he had the perfect balance of comedy and professionalism. And that balance is even harder to find in todays sportscasters. In fact, it's almost impossible to find anybody talk about sports who can make you laugh, relay the information, and hold a serious conversation with an athlete, or anybody for that matter. Only a few other sportscasters/anchors come to mind that matched Patrick's style and skill. One being Keith Olbermann, who has since gone on to host "Countdown with Keith Olbermann;" a countdown on the days current events with a bit of a comedic twist. Another is Chris Berman, who thankfully is still with ESPN. No one does highlights like this guy. In fact, I will be listening to him call the Home Run Derby in about two hours. Lastly, the only other person I can think of who matched Patrick (as I write that Tony Kornheiser and Dan Wilbon come to mind as sports reporters who I admire) is a local guy: Michael Barkan. He's probably the most visible face in sports in the Philadelphia area; and for good reason. I now have one less reason to turn to ESPN for my sports news, as Stuart Scott and his lazy eye will probably get even more airtime.
