1) NFL - With mini-camps opening up this week, I thought I'd touch on some of what's in the news with football;
A) Ricky Williams- Let me ask you a question. If the arbitrator had ruled in favor of Ricky and said he didn't need to pay back close to $9 million dollars to the Dolphins, do you think he'd be making a comeback right now? In his press conference he talked about how much he missed playing, what it meant to him, blah, blah, blah...... I didn't hear him once say he needs the money. At the end of the day, it's just what Rod Tidwell said in "Jerry McGuire", "Show me the Money!" We'll see what happens, but I can't imagine there are too many teammates in his locker room that are happy to have him back. I say when he returns after his 4 game suspension, he is a bit player and the Dolphins try to trade him at the end of the year.
B) Renegotiations - Touchy topic here. Several big name players (Terrel Owens, Javon Walker and Richard Seymour) are threatening to sit out the year unless their teams renegotiate. My stance on this is that the player agreed to the contract, so honor it. The argument you hear is that the club can cut the player anytime so why should the player honor the contract. My feeling is that argument has 2 flaws in it. First of all, you have signing bonuses, which have come about in order to give the players guaranteed money. They know when they sign those contracts, the only thing they're guaranteed is the upfront money, NOT the base year salaries. Secondly, this structure is what the Owners and Players Association have agreed to in the Collective Bargaining Agreement. If the players don't like it, they need to fire the head of their Union (Gene Upshaw), and when the CBA expires, renegotiate a different pay structure. Until then, they need to shut the hell up, get into camp and play football!
##### Editor's Note ##### Just as I get done writing this bit and go to publish it, I notice ESPN has an article on it. You can read it here http://tinyurl.com/7hsew
2) Money Ball - In case you haven't noticed, the hottest team in baseball right now are the Oakland A's. After getting off to a horrible start, the A's have won 37 of their last 50 games including 7 in a row, and are currently only 5 games out of first place. After tearing apart their pitching staff in the offseason, very few people gave them any chance this year. What they've discovered is a young staff which is giving up very few runs and an offense which has been scoring at will lately. The General Manager, Billy Beane, was criticized for ripping the team apart, but with this latest surge, his "money ball" philosophy is being lauded again. If you haven't read the book about him and his baseball beliefs, I highly recommend it. One of the neat things about it is some of the young guys he drafts in the book, are now making their debuts on the Major League team and are big contributors to this latest turnaround. Check it out here http://tinyurl.com/avqs3
3) Love Em or Hate Em - I heard this on ESPN radio the other day and thought it was interesting. Michael Vick. I'd have to say LOVE HIM, because he is a tremendous athlete and fun to watch play. HOWEVAAA, if I'm a head coach, I probably hate him, because he'll be too quick to try to run, instead of running the offense. Probably drive me crazy.
4) Link of the Week - Next time you go to Vegas and you're wondering what to do, you need to take the advice of professional poker player Antonio Esfandiari. http://tinyurl.com/73l9x
Till next time,
Bill
Tuesday, July 26, 2005
Wednesday, July 20, 2005
Ramblings - 7/20
1) MLB trade deadline - Some interesting races shaping up out there and a couple big names being tossed around. Baltimore is reportedly going after Florida's A.J. Burnett which could seriously affect the East. Skankees and Red Sox have discussed minor deals (Yank's talking about Byrnes in Oakland, Red Sox just acquired utility player Graffanino from KC), but look for both to pull the trigger on big deals at the July 31st deadline. Who are they looking at? Red Sox are discussing JC Romero from Minnesota and Tom Glavine from the Mets (he grew up in Massachusetts and is a longtime Sox fan) and the Yanks have inquired about Jason Schmidt from San Fran. and Ken Griffey Jr.
2) White Sox - Can anyone stop them? Right now as I type they are 62-30 and hold a commanding 12 game lead in the Central. My prediction? They'll finish with 105 wins and get knocked out of the playoffs early, similar to what happened to the Mariners a couple years ago.
3) Super Agent? Although I don't always agree with Drew Rosenhaus, it was nice to read the story about him rescuing a drowning boy http://tinyurl.com/aukt3 I guess agents aren't all bad!
4) Michelle Wie - I like her. OK, I like her alot. I think she's talented and pretty darn cute for 15. I just don't feel women should be playing in men's tournaments. That is what the LPGA is for. When the LPGA starts letting men (or maybe in this case, teenage boys) play in their tournaments then the girls can start playing in the mens. Going along with this, how come women reporters are allowed to interview men in the locker room but male reporters are not allowed to go into women's? So you're saying women would never let their eyes wander but men would???? Ok, bad example, but you get the picture!
5) Tour De France - I'm pulling for Armstrong to win again, and with only a few stages left, he's pretty well wrapped it up. When he retires, this sport will once again go back to being barely mentioned here in the states as well it should be....
6) Calling Brown- No I'm not talking about UPS but Larry Brown. Can't wait to see him behind the bench in Madison Square Garden. It'll be good for basketball and I'm sure the NBA will play it up big time. Expect to see the Knicks on NBC every Sunday afternoon this winter.
7) Time For a Brew - Good news for all us Patriot fans, as it looks like Tedy Bruschi will be back playing this year after suffering a stroke back in February. Hopefully he's not pushing it too much, as along with being a great player he's also a devoted dad and husband and his health needs to come first. ***** EDITORS NOTE******** Looks like I jumped the gun on this one! http://tinyurl.com/93fp8
8) Naive or is something going on? So she just decides to let him take topless photos "for himself"...... Come on, something must have been going on between them. Where are these women, and how can I get them to let me photograph them? Apparently in Russia.... http://tinyurl.com/dln6t
9) Link of the Week - The man's my Governor...... http://tinyurl.com/a7y64
Until next time,
Bill
2) White Sox - Can anyone stop them? Right now as I type they are 62-30 and hold a commanding 12 game lead in the Central. My prediction? They'll finish with 105 wins and get knocked out of the playoffs early, similar to what happened to the Mariners a couple years ago.
3) Super Agent? Although I don't always agree with Drew Rosenhaus, it was nice to read the story about him rescuing a drowning boy http://tinyurl.com/aukt3 I guess agents aren't all bad!
4) Michelle Wie - I like her. OK, I like her alot. I think she's talented and pretty darn cute for 15. I just don't feel women should be playing in men's tournaments. That is what the LPGA is for. When the LPGA starts letting men (or maybe in this case, teenage boys) play in their tournaments then the girls can start playing in the mens. Going along with this, how come women reporters are allowed to interview men in the locker room but male reporters are not allowed to go into women's? So you're saying women would never let their eyes wander but men would???? Ok, bad example, but you get the picture!
5) Tour De France - I'm pulling for Armstrong to win again, and with only a few stages left, he's pretty well wrapped it up. When he retires, this sport will once again go back to being barely mentioned here in the states as well it should be....
6) Calling Brown- No I'm not talking about UPS but Larry Brown. Can't wait to see him behind the bench in Madison Square Garden. It'll be good for basketball and I'm sure the NBA will play it up big time. Expect to see the Knicks on NBC every Sunday afternoon this winter.
7) Time For a Brew - Good news for all us Patriot fans, as it looks like Tedy Bruschi will be back playing this year after suffering a stroke back in February. Hopefully he's not pushing it too much, as along with being a great player he's also a devoted dad and husband and his health needs to come first. ***** EDITORS NOTE******** Looks like I jumped the gun on this one! http://tinyurl.com/93fp8
8) Naive or is something going on? So she just decides to let him take topless photos "for himself"...... Come on, something must have been going on between them. Where are these women, and how can I get them to let me photograph them? Apparently in Russia.... http://tinyurl.com/dln6t
9) Link of the Week - The man's my Governor...... http://tinyurl.com/a7y64
Until next time,
Bill
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