Should the NFL Go Tweetless?

Throwing you a bender because I just thought you should know...

Is anyone in the NFL offices really monitoring Twitter? Are all of these tweets and followers slipping under the radar of league honchos? Is this social media a very slippery slope that the NFL is heading precariously towards? Or am I the only one astonished at the frequency with which these players try to jeopardize their income, careers and livelihood?

During the recent bounty situation with the Saints, normally classy Drew Brees stands up for his coach, Sean Payton. No problem there but, ooops, Brees finishes his tweet with "I need to hear an explanation for this punishment." Did he miss Roger Goodell, NFL Commissioner, clearly stating it about 500 times on ESPN last week? Did he miss the part where Goodell explained how the NFL was even lied to about the bounties once they had discovered them? I applaud the loyalty but someone of Brees' stature and position might be able to find a better way to express it.

But Twitter takes us even further into the depths of the NFL. "QBKilla,"  who is also known as Warren Sapp of the NFL Network, tweets that Jeremy Shockey of the Saints is the "snitch" in the bounty situation. Shockey denies the claim via Twitter then goes on Yahoo Sports and says he would never do that "to Payton and the Saints."

If I am reading this correctly, Sapp is starting this contest of idiocy by basically declaring that anyone (in this case, Shockey) who would make the league aware that potential career ending bounties are being put on players by a team is wrong to do so. He is even doing this on the NFL's own network!

Shockey, an offensive player, replies by saying he would never expose them. Shouldn't we expect him to be saying that he knew nothing about it? Is he really saying that he and maybe other members of the offense knew about the fund and payments and just said nothing at all? Could this include Brees?

Goodell dropped the hammer on Payton, defensive coach Gregg Williams and the Saints but, in comparison, it was a light hammer. Mickey Loomis, the general manager, only received an eight game suspension while Payton only received one year. These people and the Saints are lucky that Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis was not in charge!

Now it has been a few weeks since Tim Tebow has been mentioned in every other story. So by putting him on the market, he was brought back into the daily news. Unfortunately, his trade to the Jets put Drew Stanton in the position of being demoted to third string QB and having access to Twitter. But he allowed his agent, Deryk Gilmore, to take up the tweeting for him and bash the Jets. Gilmore is slamming the Jets move via Twitter by saying Tebow is a "gimmick to sell tickets." Basically, Gilmore has now reduced the league by one team in regards to the chance any of his clients have of getting a big contract from New York.

Stanton and Gilmore follow that up by demanding a trade. Stanton is upset and frustrated about being demoted and not being 2nd string? His career stats for four seasons are 12 games, 5 TD passes, 9 interceptions, 4 fumbles and playing on a team that went 0-16 for a season. Shouldn't he be happy just to be a 5th string punter and not a fast food drive-thru attendant? We know Tebow is a work in progress but at least he won some games and a big playoff match up. What is Stanton really whining about?

But maybe where we really need Goodell to throw his weight around is in the Twitter arena. How about a three day waiting period and a committee review before players and agents are allowed to hit "send" on a tweet? While the NFLPA might vehemently argue, careful analysis might reveal this would be good for the union!

To me, all this NFL nonsense and Twitter ridiculousness can only mean one thing...that baseball and Opening Day cannot get here fast enough. Play ball!

All this because I know more about nothing...

Who Made That Call? Boy Umpire!

Throwing you a bender because I just thought you should know...

Jeter comes up with a runner on first for the Yankees. He rips the first pitch towards the left field corner, right on the line. Crawford races over for the Red Sox, fielding the ball cleanly and firing it into third base attempting to nail the incoming runner. Youkilis takes the throw and applies the tag...in time? No, the umpire signals safe and the Fenway crowd is upset.

Throughout the remainder of the game, they boo every move and call made by the third base umpire. but do they realize why there is a third base umpire AND that they are booing the wrong man?

Billy Evans, boy umpire, is the man to thank for many umpiring innovations. After leaving Cornell Law School in 1904 because of his father's death, Evans returned to Youngstown, Ohio and landed a job as a sports reporter for the newspaper. As has happened a million times in all levels of baseball, Billy was covering a game and asked to fill in for a missing umpire. He did well, enjoyed the pay and was offered a full time position in the Ohio-Pennsylvania League. He also retained his sports reporter job and was quickly referred to the American League. This was an unheard of jump from Class C minor league baseball to the Major Leagues! In addition, he was still only 22 years old.

Based on his education, job experience and never having played professional baseball (rare for an umpire in those days) Billy Evans brought a fresh vantage point to the game and umpiring. During an era in the early 1900's where only two, or even sometimes just one umpire worked a game, he quickly implemented new techniques that became standard practice for umpires to this day.

One such innovation was his habit of running to a base where a play was made so he could call the result more accurately. He was the first to suggest and promote formal training for umpires and that techniques be uniform amongst all league umps.

After a World Series dispute (Evans umpired six World Series) where neither umpire could see where a ball had bounced over a fence to determine if it was a double or home run, Evans developed the idea of having four umpires on the field per game instead of two alternates sitting in the stands.

Despite his being a rare umpire to state that he was not perfect and had missed some calls, Evans "substituted diplomacy for belligerency and proved an arbiter could control a game without threats of physical violence."

He did retain some toughness needed by umpires of that era as well however. When an angry Ty Cobb threatened to "whip him at home plate," Evans invited the Tiger great to the umpires room to fight in private. Players from both teams were reported to have followed them into the room and openly cheered for Evans! Billy was back at work the next day wearing bandages and sprinting to bases to make calls.

Amazingly, Evans also kept his sports writing job the entire time he was umpiring major league games. Imagine an umpire today calling a World Series game, then turning in his story of the contest to the newspaper, all while being 25 years old!

After the 1927 season, Evans retired from umpiring to become the first "general manager" in baseball. He guided the Cleveland Indians from a perennial loser into a first division club. After that stint, he was the head scout for the Red Sox, then even switched sports to become general manager of the Cleveland Rams football team. In moving back to baseball, Evans was named league president of the Southern Association and had that league thriving in attendance during his four year tenure. He finished his executive career as general manager of the Tigers, stepping aside in 1951 to let Tiger legend Charlie Gehringer take over.

He continued to campaign for umpires training, writing numerous articles and two books while being elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1973.

So because the third base umpire immediately runs down the left field line in order to clearly see the ball land and the home plate umpire sprints to third base in order to cover any resulting action there, the late tag by Youkilis is seen easily. The umpire signals safe, the Fenway faithful erupt in disapproval and very few fans even notice the rotation that has been made while tracking the ball, fielder, and runners. Before the next pitch, the four umps assume their starting positions again, ready to move if necessary, and the fans are left with a perfectly correct call and the wrong umpire to boo! Billy Evans would be proud.

All this because I know more about nothing...

Take Me Out to the Ball Game, But Why Am I Standing?

Throwing you a bender because I just thought you should know...

Most of us have been there, and hopefully stayed, through the seventh inning of a baseball game. We find our seats, peruse our game program, organize our food and become immersed in the sights, sounds and actions of a ball game. We follow along, rising and falling in conjunction with our team or favorite player. Maybe some of us are just people watching, enjoying treats and soaking in the relaxing atmosphere of an afternoon at the ball park.

But regardless of our interest or devotion to the actual game, we all rise together after the first three outs of the seventh inning.

* Remember, there are six outs in an inning of baseball!

Despite the many different factions of people attending the game, despite the varied and diversified interests of the fans in the stadium, each of us focuses our attention for this short moment.

It just has to be done. It overcomes baseball strategy, conversing with other fans, filling out our scorecards and even hypnotizes young fans into becoming one with the whole stadium.

The seventh inning stretch is here and we are on our feet. Some of us raising our arms, some stretching their legs, adjusting our clothes but all waiting for the first notes to "Take Me Out to the Ballgame."

So why are we on our feet and how did this get started? 

The most popular explanation seems to trace back to 1910 and President William Howard Taft. He is sometimes credited with beginning two traditions on that Opening Day in Washington. So after throwing out the ceremonial  first pitch before the game, President Taft settled his massive 6'2", 300 pound frame into a seat to enjoy the Senators and Philadelphia Athletics. At the midway point of the seventh inning, he rose out of his seat and in respect to the President standing, or maybe even leaving (boo), the rest of the stadium rose as well.

However, a story exists from 1882 at Manhattan College that may shed earlier light on the tradition. Brother Jasper was the Prefect of Discipline and the baseball coach. As he managed the team during the game, he was also responsible for the behavior of the students. During the seventh inning of a game one day, Brother Jasper noticed his students had become restless and somewhat unruly. He requested time out and had everyone in the bleachers stand up and unwind. Receiving the results he wanted, Brother Jasper repeated this strategy every game in order to give his team a quick rest and his students quick relief. As Manhattan's nine often played in the park of the National League New York club, the practice caught on with Giants fans.

Looking further, we find literature from 1869 when Harry Wright of the Cincinnati Red Stockings described the fans rising between halves of the seventh inning "to extend their legs and arms and sometimes walk about." He wrote that it provided relief and relaxation from the "long posture upon hard benches."

So although it appears the seventh inning stretch is at least as old as 1869, we really have no idea where or when the custom originated. But at least 143 years later, we all still rise as one after those first three outs of the seventh inning. We sing, we stretch, we relax and at least one of us reminisces about why we are doing this. Anybody who was attending any of those games in 1910, 1882, or even 1869, please let me know...until then I will wonder forever.

All this because I know more about nothing...

Who Are These Guys?

Throwing you a bender because I just thought you should know…

The date is approaching! It is almost time for the Forest Citys, the Highlanders, and the Worlds Champions to take the field. If you were “lucky” enough to be tucked under the covers with a bed time story by this writer, then you know exactly who I am talking about.

In the developmental days of baseball, teams were named for situations, characteristics, geography and even their players. These types of team nicknames were prevalent long before marketing, demographic studies, and money took over. Many teams were just called by one name only in the newspapers as writers would use Forest Citys, Detroits, and Bostons to describe the local nine.

So in early April, the Indians will open the season but some youngsters will go to sleep with the knowledge that Louis “Chief” Sockalexis was the inspiration for the nickname. They might even later recite how the Forest Citys, named after the emerald necklace of green trees and thick forests around Cleveland, evolved into the Spiders when the ball club employed many players who were tall, skinny and lanky.

After a few intermittent team names and poor play, Napoleon Lajoie became player/manager which caused Cleveland to quickly become known as the Naps. After Lajoie left the team in 1914, a new name was needed and the owner reached back in the club’s history to honor the former player and Native American. The team was christened the Indians, which has survived until today.

 Also at that time, the Highlanders were a low paid group of enthusiastic ball players that played their home contests in Hilltop Park, on the most elevated part of Manhattan. Obviously, they adopted their name based on their locale but evolved into the Yankees as scribes used the nickname in mild protest of Highlanders as it was also a term for a British military unit. Upon moving to the Polo Grounds, Yankees was adopted full time. Now, they are better paid, have a glorious stadium of their own but are still the Yankees.

Just to the south in Brooklyn, the residents and players for the local team were very adept at maneuvering throughout the streets and arriving at the stadium without being hit by the numerous trolley cars. Being named the Trolley Dodgers was just natural and appropriate. Even after moving into Ebbets Field (1913) and having many players live across the tracks in a nearby hotel, the name stuck, shortened to Dodgers and was even kept upon moving thousands of miles away from the trolley cars.

Tradition even went so far in the early 20th century as to have the winner of the World Series remove their nickname, logo or insignia on their uniform and replace it with “Worlds Champions” for the following season. In this era of “look at me” players and over-the-top alternate jerseys, I am surprised this old custom has not been resurrected.

So, in conclusion, as if you were taking notes, baseball and its development is beautiful. It is always changing…just look at the team names and locations over the past century. It is always evolving…look at the rules, strategy, and analysis for the previous 100 years (another topic, another day). But mostly it remains exactly the same… as a father and his kids play hooky to catch a ballgame, just like 40 years ago!

All this because I know more about nothing…

Wilt Chamberlain 1961-1962

Throwing you a bender because I just thought you should know...

With the recent anniversary of Wilt Chamberlain's 100 point game, there became a need to look a little bit deeper at this accomplishment.

Since it took place during the 1961-62 NBA season, the coverage and reporting of this feat was much different than what we are used to seeing today.

Common knowledge and several reports write off this achievement as just something that happened because Chamberlain was 7 feet, one inches tall. I don't believe the man is getting his just due as a basketball player and all around talent. He was so much more than just tall, he was a world class athlete in a perfectly built body.

 
A native of Philadelphia, he was an incredible combination of speed, strength, size and ability. Maybe one of the most imposing blends of physical characteristics the sports scene has ever witnessed. While in college at Kansas, he ran the 440-yard dash in under 50 seconds. At a time when the world record was just over 7 feet, Wilt high jumped 6 feet, 7 inches. He also covered over 53 feet with the shot put and was able to long jump 23 feet. His strength, balance and agility enabled him to dead lift over 600 pounds.

Upon entering the NBA - a year after he played for the Harlem Globetrotters, which required even more skill, talent and ability - Chamberlain dominated immediately by recording totals of 37.6 points per game and 27 rebounds per game. These are hardly totals that can be written off because of his size when compiled over 72 games against professionals.

Entering the 1961-62 season, Wilt had improved upon his numbers even more from his rookie campaign and was poised to set records. There was foreshadowing that something monumental was coming. This was not a freakish event, a one night anomaly.

Early in the 1961-62 season, Chamberlain set the single-game scoring record with 78 points in a triple-overtime loss to the Los Angeles Lakers.

In the three games leading up to the record breaking night, Chamberlain scored 67, 65 and 61 points.

Only twice during the entire season (80 games!) was Chamberlain held under 30 points, both times by the Boston Celtics' Bill Russell.

So while scoring 100 points was incredible and beyond imagination at the time, it was within the realm of Chamberlain's game. 

In those days, the NBA often scheduled doubleheaders in neutral sites in order to jump start attendance and bring attention to the league. So one night in Hershey, PA, in front of a sparse crowd that had the Baltimore Colts (featuring Gino Marchetti) and Philadelphia Eagles (with Sonny Jurgensen) basketball squads playing the lead in game, Wilt dropped 100 points on the last place Knicks.

As Wilt lived in New York and commuted to his home games in Philadelphia, he often drove his Cadillac to games. So yet again on this night, after posing for the famous hand written, hand held sign indicating "100", he climbed back into his Cadillac with a friend from the Knicks and drove back to Harlem to check in on his night club and party until 8 am. In other words, just another night for Wilt.

So we should marvel at 100 points, we should stand amazed still over his talents and skills as a basketball player and athlete. We should celebrate his accomplishments and recognize the ability that goes into achieving the individual game, season, and career moments that Chamberlain provided us. We should not write these off to just "being tall" and we should find a way to correct Wilt who was quoted as saying, "Nobody roots for Goliath."

All this because I know more about nothing...

Basically One Big Baseball League

Throwing you a bender because I just thought you should know...

This is it! Basically, the last season that we really see any separation between the American and National Leagues. They have been moving towards this for a while now, parts of it almost unseen or unnoticed by the casual fan.

We have seen the elimination of both American and National League umpiring crews, having consolidated them into one MLB crew. Umpire crews now rotate throughout all games, applying the appropriate rules depending on which park they are in for the home team.

There are no longer League Presidents, presiding over their individual issues and only looking to maximize the strength and wealth of their own members. Even the baseball itself is labeled for all of Major League Baseball and only contains the commissioner's signature. Baseballs showing an American League logo and Lee MacPhail's signature or a National League logo ball autographed by Bill White are only in collector's hands now.

None of these being a big deal or even all that noticeable. But what about 2013?

The 2013 realignment has Houston moving to the American League, creating three divisions in each league of five teams each. Geographic realignment won't be far behind to create better schedules, better local TV times, regional rivalries, reduce travel costs and be easier on the players.

But the main item in place requiring a shake up may be the designated hitter. Beginning in 2013, there will be an interleague series throughout the entire season. Opening Day, every month, through the dog days, and even during the pennant race, baseball will be played under two sets of rules on a daily basis.

 This is the perfect moment for the National League to catch up with the rest of the world and convert to the DH and have one set of rules. Of course, the "purists" out there (who apparently still take a horse and buggy to work) will rise up and scream against this change. But their reasons fall flat.

Sure, the game originated without the DH, and traditionalists always state that fact. But it has been 40 years now, beginning in 1973, which is a much longer period than interleague play, wild cards, more rounds of playoffs and even instant replay. Looking at current rosters, only Jamie Moyer grew up in an era where the DH was not a regular part of baseball.

The NL needs to add it as you will never see it going away in the American League. Not with 15 extra high paying positions coveted by the Players Association and the huge advantage it currently gives the AL in negotiations. Eleven of the 13 richest contracts are in the American League since they can offer big bucks and extended years by allowing a player to wind down a career as a DH. There is a significant advantage on the field as well but that is another topic, another day.

I would still rather see an aging David Ortiz or Victor Martinez at the plate instead of watching Clay Buchholz or Justin Verlander flail away helplessly. I find it amazing that some baseball fans will relate back to the "strategy" argument regarding the DH. Really? So you have a man on first and less than two outs with your pitcher up.....is there a strategy involving having your pitcher bunt that would elude an AL manager or fan? And is watching Ron Roenicke or Bruce Bochy (household names in the area of excitement) execute the double switch more riveting than seeing Hideki Matsui or Vladimir Guerrero swing for the fences?

In today's game, pitchers have grown up with even less exposure to hitting, running and bunting than ever before. This has led to injuries and ridiculous situations, even so extreme as AL managers instructing their pitchers to just stand there and not even swing, during interleague games. Imagine going through your developmental career, from high school, into a major college program, progressing through the minor leagues without really ever having to step into a batters box. Upon finally making the major leagues, you are then asked to step in against Roy Halladay and produce! End this madness!

Baseball, as everything, has evolved, progressed and moved forward through time. It is still the most beautiful game, the ultimate team sport. And now it has subtly implemented changes that have brought it to the precipice of instituting a grand and exciting advancement. There is no more perfect time for the National League to adopt the designated hitter than 2013.

All this because I know more about nothing...

A Timeless Man for a Timeless Game

Throwing you a bender because I just thought you should know...

As baseball teams have reported and I begin perusing the Spring Training rosters and player invites, I see Jamie Moyer is in camp! Looking to make the Rockies, his 9th team, for his 25th major league season. Now this obviously requires a deeper look.

Analyze the Rockies roster a little further so you can see pitcher Tyler Chatwood in camp also, born in 1989. Moyer's Topps rookie card is older than that and was also with a different team as Moyer had already been traded once in his career by that point.

The key may be the Tommy John surgery he had last year. The procedure used to be a death sentence but improvements and rehab techniques have almost made it into an upgrade. Moyer has rehabbed from the surgery and received an invite to Colorado's camp.

The man must love the game, the camaraderie and competition as he has made about $83 million in his career along with winning a World Series and accumulating 267 wins. This kind of perspective on the game by Moyer is what makes spring training over flow with hope and allows us to love the game of baseball as much as he must.

 
In 1986, he began pitching in the Major Leagues. He could throw harder then, before interleague play and even the wild card were in place. He would not have even had the chance to play for the Rockies as they didn't exist yet. Just imagine the spectrum of knowledge he can provide Rockies pitchers having played with hard throwing Nolan Ryan and soft throwing Charlie Hough!

After six seasons in the bigs, Moyer was 34-54, hardly a pre cursor to a 25 year career. Then he won 145 games with Seattle in the middle 11 years of his career. His trade to Philadelphia allowed him to continue, going 56-40 for the Phillies while leading the 2008 World Champions in wins with 16.

He has 114 wins since turning 40 years old all without the velocity to break a neighborhood window.

He is in camp with 19 pitchers on the Rockies 40 man roster who have combined for a total of 234 wins, still short of Moyer's 267 victories. They have about eight pitchers in camp with some experience in starting major league games but none with 628 starts worth of experience.

He could become the oldest pitcher ever to win a game. The handful who appeared that were older did not earn a victory or start except for Satchel Paige who was claiming to be 58 when he started a game in 1965**.

** Paige went three innings, gave up ONE hit and NO runs

Even if he doesn't make the team at age 49, Moyer holds the record for oldest pitcher to throw a shutout (47, which he has done in four different decades), oldest to start an NLCS game at 45, and oldest to ever beat the New York Yankees (47).

I am rooting for Moyer to make the team, pitch in Miami's new park allowing him to have thrown in 50 different Major League stadiums, and record a win. A timeless man for a timeless game.

All this because I know more about nothing...

Tiger as a Navy SEAL?

Newk's Bender on the Game

Throwing you a bender because I just thought you should know...

Being a Tiger Woods golf fan and curious about whether he can achieve a comeback, I was compelled to read the excerpts released from his former coach, Hank Haney's, new book. After reading the excerpts and looking for clues to his comeback ability and expecting sordid tales from the sex escapades, I was more drawn to the revelation by Haney that Tiger was considering becoming a Navy SEAL.

"I was beginning to realize that his sentiment ran deep, and that as incredible as it seemed, Tiger was seriously considering becoming a Navy SEAL," Haney wrote, referring to the summer of 2007. "I didn't know how he'd go about it, but when he talked about, it was clear that he had a plan. After finding out that the Navy SEAL age limit is 28, I asked Tiger about his being too old to join. `It's not a problem,' he said. `They're making a special age exemption for me.'"



I don't have any issues with Tiger respecting the military, having a background in it from his father, and thinking it would be a cool idea. Most of us have seen footage of Navy SEALs and have thought how exhilarating it would be to perform that job but without any realistic expectations of actually doing it or even being physically and mentally able to meet the requirements.

And this is where I wonder about Tiger and his thoughts. Apparently, he was very serious about doing this and his agent, while blasting Haney and his writing of the book, did not contradict the declaration. He even continued by stating this book was only written to make money. Duh.

While Tiger may be the best trained golfer in the world, SEALs are the best trained humans. Golf courses with appearance fees and sponsors are drastically different than obstacle courses with terrorists and freedom on the line. Tiger couldn't stave off an attack from a blonde with a 7 iron and he wants to face passionate terrorists?

Tiger is good at what he does, he is one of the greatest of all time at what he does. He could play Doral in 67 strokes, but a SEAL could take Doral in 67 minutes, on a slow day.

Again, I respect Tiger's appreciation for the military but let's be realistic about giving up a multi multi million dollar career for this kind of assignment that he may not even be capable of performing.

If there is a need to have Pebble Beach Golf Course played in 66 strokes, you can call Tiger (apparently lots of people have his phone number). But if you need the entire Pebble Beach Resort overcome, destroyed or re-captured, you call a SEAL...and good luck getting that phone number.

All this because I know more about nothing...