The Buster Posey era begins in SF...and the Brian Sabean era should end

The Buster Posey era is off to a great start. A six for nine start (.667 BA) with two doubles and four RBI in his first two games. And the Giants offense comes to life. Now Buster won't continue at this pace, but a .270 to .290 average, a 10-15 HR pace with 75-80 RBI pace would give credence to my theory that this guy will be the face of the franchise for the next ten years or longer. Much like Joe Mauer will be for the Twins and Derek Jeter is for the Yankees.

This should please Giants GM Brian Sabean to no end. His recent derogatory comments regarding Posey's progress in AAA should be the last straw for ownership. How much more proof do they need that this guy is just a total fool. To denigrate Posey's start like some sort of jealous Dodger fan is foolish and repugnant. You don't piss on your product, much less the crown jewel of the farm system right now.

Can you not say something along the lines of, "We're pleased and happy that Buster Posey is justifying his selection by the Giants, the bonus he received and the hopes we have for him to be a future star for this organization." Would that have been too hard, Brian?

They should have been beaming and bragging like a proud parent. But no. Not the Giants. Not Brian Sabean. And do you know why? Because Buster's great start just shows the stupidity of the re-signing of the ever-petulant Bengie Molina. Another over-paid, over-the-hill Giant player that shows the Giants recent proclivity to stockpile these type of contracts. This forces the manager into a "play the contract over the talent" mentality that will retard the organizations development into a bona-fide playoff team. Play the talent, not the contract, geniuses.

They were fortunate with Tim Lincecum who proved he could play and forced himself into the Giants starting rotation. And the rest is history. But there are multiple spots in the starting rotation. They did the same thing once it was clear that Pablo Sandoval could rake at any level and was ready for the bigs. Like Posey, he was not the most polished catcher. But they found another spot for him, are happy with the results with the bat and again the rest is history. Throw another All-Star on the list, another face of the franchise.

Now comes Buster Posey. Why was it not very clear to this club LATE LAST YEAR, that Posey was ready for the bigs and that a cursory trip to AAA, to delay the clock from running on his eventual free-agency, was a waste of time? Then the Molina signing becomes the stupid move it is proving to be now and will continue to be until the end of the season. Mr. Meritocracy is going to bitch and whine about the Golden Boy until the Giants cut his sorry ass. Sorry Bengie, the kid is better than you now, he was better than you last year and he was likely better than you two years ago. Keep your bags packed please, the Mets still need a catcher and appear to be as stupid as ever. I told you last year they were the perfect spot for you.

Chipper Jones politicked the Braves brass into keeping Jason Heyward with the Braves rather than send him out for further seasoning. And the rest is history in the making. The Giants should have done the same with Posey.

But the Giants would rather judge talent and playing time by the size of contract and length of service rather than who can help the team to win right now.

The Giants would rather wait until they begin to slip into third place behind the surprising Pads and the resurgent Dodgers, to call on Posey to help.

And that's one of the big problems with this organization. The other one is Brian Sabean.

This is how we do it in Chicago.....a stirring rendition....an emotional reaction

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US National Anthem drowned out by cheers at 91 NHL All Star Game

Wayne Messmer sings the National Anthem at Chicago Stadium during the '91 NHL All-Star game, days after the U.S. went into Iraq at the start of the Gulf War. He is nearly drowned out by the crowd.

This was broadcast live to the troops in the Middle East, and Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf reportedly played a tape of this to his soldiers.

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I don't know if this will start the debate anew, but I like this. I like it a lot. And maybe it is time for the somewhat quaint and antiquated tradition of showing quiet respect for the flag falls by the wayside. And maybe we can show our love and support for our country and the troops in a passionate way. Why not? To do otherwise conveys the impression that the support is not there.

I understand why veterans quietly bow there heads and pay homage and respect in their own way, but they do not seem to be offended by the 'Hawks fans level of support. It is veterans and armed services groups that present the colors each time the anthem is played here and they do not seem offended.

In the Fox News debate below the columnist from Detroit who takes issue with the 'Hawks fans display mentions that the "penalties" for this type of action are the same as those for defacing the flag. Well someone should have pointed out to him that thanks to the Supreme Court those "penalties" are zero. It's a free speech right apparently to deface, defile and rebuke the flag and all its stands for in every way, shape and form imaginable. IMO, it is high time those of us who support the flag and this country and all that it stands for stand quietly no more. Those that stand for something else can choose to stand somewhere far away from myself and those who attend games at "The Madhouse on Madison". By law, we may not be able to silence you, but we sure as hell can drown your sorry ass voices out.

I agree with Marv Albert's description of the 1991 display. A stirring rendition.

HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY, GOD BLESS AMERICA AND GO BLACKHAWKS!!!

BLACKHAWKS IN SIX.

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2010 Chicago Blackhawks National Anthem: "Let's Show The World How We Do It In Chicago"

In 1991, a week after we sent our troops into the Gulf War, the Blackhawks hosted the NHL all-star game. After it was announced that the troops were watching the game overseas, the crowd cheered throughout the ENTIRE national anthem. It's been a tradidtion ever since. You've never seen anything like this...

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Blackhawks National Anthem Controversy

The thin line between good and bad behavior in sports.....

One of the most interesting dynamics in youth sports is the interplay between the interests and motivations of parent, coaches and the young athlete to participate in youth sports programs.

There is a growing disconnect between the reasons for participation and the value received from participation that causes a natural and growing friction from each constituent in this "love-triangle" of sports.

Parents generally see participation as competition. There is a natural competition between the child and his peers, the child and himself and the parents themselves built into participation.

Kids generally see participation as an extension of their social network. Many are involves primarily because their friends are.

Coaches also see the games as competition and are stressed by attempting to balance their own need to win games versus the parents interest in their child's development and the child's need to develop athletically as well as socially.

This competition between the needs of each group provides much of the friction that comes between the groups as they interact with each other throughout the season. It sets up a circle of anger or frustration that can rapidly deteriorate into a vortex that sucks life out of a team and removes the joy of participation in the sport.

And as we can see by looking at the following column, if we are not continuously reminded to stay focused on the positive values and goals that come from participation, then it can be very easy to take the step over the line from good behavior to bad.

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From Pschology Today:

December 16, 2009, Evolutionary Psychology
The Morally Questionable Lessons of Formal Sports II: Moral Disengagement in the Drive to Win
How athletes justify cheating, lying, and deliberately hurting a person.

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/freedom-learn/200912/the-morally-questionable-lessons-formal-sports-ii-moral-disengagement-in-t


1) What is disturbing here is the the link between the length of time participated in sports and the moral justification of bad behavior.

2) Interesting as well that this behavioral process is no longer seen a gender-specific. It is no longer "boys will be boys". Apparently, the march to equality brings with it some unwanted baggage for the Title IX-ers.

Maria Kavussanu, at the University of Birmingham, in the UK, has for a number of years been studying sports morality. In one of her studies many college basketball, soccer, rugby, and field hockey players admitted (on anonymous questionnaires) to lying, cheating, and deliberately injuring others within the context of the game.[1] Interestingly, she also found that the longer a person had been playing formal sports, the more likely they were to say that such behaviors are justifiable. This relationship between time in sports and acceptance of transgressions applied to women as well as well as to men, though the former claimed less acceptance of such behaviors, overall, than did the latter.

There is some good news here as well. But this study demonstrates that the onus may belong on the coach, as the pack leader, to model and demonstrate the proper values.

Other researchers, studying youth football (soccer) in Norway, have found that the degree of acceptance of such behavioral transgressions depends on the "motivational climate" set by the coach.[2] If the coach emphasizes the importance of winning, then acceptance of morally questionable actions goes up; if the coach emphasizes the joys of the game, good sportsmanship, and the value of developing your own personal skills, then acceptance of such transgressions goes down.

This part of the article is fascinating as well in a very chilling and disturbing way. If you look at the reason cited for the concept of "moral disengagement" to justify unsportsmanlike behavior, they are eerily similar to the behavior slide cited by Dr. Philip Zimbardo in "The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good people Turn Evil", Stanley Milgram's "Obedeince to Authority" and to a some extent Hannah Arendt's book "Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil".

So the same psychological and situational issues that led to Holocaust, the Stanford Prison Experiment, the abuses at Abu-Gharab, etc. are at work to explain the prevalence of bad behavior in sports.

 LOVELY!!!

In subsequent research, Kavussanu and her colleagues found that athletes used eight psychological means of moral disengagement to justify their transgressions, both to themselves and others.[3] Here they are, with my own examples to illustrate them:

• Moral justification (describing the transgression as morally right, not wrong). "I had to do it to protect my team's honor. We're not patsies."

• Euphemistic labeling (using language that disguises culpability). "I bent the rules a little," instead of "I broke the rules." Or, "I dusted him off," instead of, "I deliberately hit him with a pitched ball."

• Advantageous comparison (comparing your actions to others' worse actions, which make yours look good). "I hit him, but I didn't throw at his head, like others would have in this situation."

• Displacement of responsibility (claiming that your action was not your choice, but that of a higher authority). "It was the coach's decision; my job is to do what the coach asks."

• Diffusion of responsibility (attributing the action to the whole group rather than yourself personally). "It wasn't just me; the whole team charged the pitcher."

• Distortion of consequences (minimizing the damage done). "Hey, it's a small injury; he'll be back in no time."

• Dehumanization (speaking of the opposition in ways that deny their humanity). "They're a bunch of animals. When you play them you have to treat them that way."

• Attribution of blame (blaming the victim). "He started it with his trash talk." Or, "If he's got a weak ankle he shouldn't be playing."

'It's just missing teeth' or Why soccer will never be popular in America...

The Blackhawks' Duncan Keith slumps in pain after getting hit in the face with a puck Sunday during the second period. Keith lost seven teeth.

Photo and story from the Daily Herald:

You have to read this story from the Blackhawks finale versus the San Jose Sharks and maybe you will understand on a visceral level why soccer will never rise in popularity in this country above hockey, much less basketball, baseball, football or even auto racing.

Soccer star gets kicked in the shins, WHILE WEARING SHIN GUARDS, and writhes around on the ground in pain as if he was shot from the cheap seats, until the referee pulls out his red card, or green card or American Express card, or whatever, and then bounces up and continues play.

Well, here's my message to all the soccer-nazis who will no doubt begin their every fourth year assault on Americans who "just don't get soccer" like the rest of the more intelligent communistas in the world:

Americans appreciate toughness. We appreciate those who get up and go to work every day (like Cal Ripken) and play hurt and don't make excuses and fulfill their obligations to others (teammates).

We are not now, and will never be like Greece, so help me God!!

In no other sport in this country is faking injuries like a pansy rewarded or appreciated as part of the culture. Here we walk it off, we don't rub the spot when the pitcher drills us with a fastball. WE GOT ICE, BABY!!!! We applaud taking one for the team.

We don't even demonstrate such behavior in women's sports in this country, including your beloved soccer.

So you can keep your undying soccer love and your World Cup. We'll keep guys like Duncan Keith.

Photo and story from the Daily Herald:

http://www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=382957&src=149

John Madden estimated Duncan Keith's mouthguard flew 22 feet.

Taking a puck to the kisser from close range will do that to a guy.

"I knew right away. I took one breath and I felt like my whole mouth was missing," he said. "I saw a couple of them fall out and I had one I could feel in the back of my throat and I just coughed it out. A bunch of them disintegrated."

After missing about six minutes of play in the period, Keith was back on the ice to finish off the frame and the rest of the game.

He wouldn't have had it any other way, regardless of what the doctors had warned.

"No, I was (ticked) off," Keith said. "It's just missing teeth. It's a long way from the heart."

BTW, how tough must hockey dads be to produce kids like this? We make fun of Little League dad over here in the lower 50 sometimes for pushing kids too hard, but can you imagine what goes on at the local rinks across Canada?

"What are you crying for you big pansy? It's only a busted nose. The blood dries up. Get the heck out there and finish your shift. It's not like your missing a hand or anything.

Oh, you are? Son, you've got to stop making excuses for yourself. Get out there and shoot the puck left-handed or you are walking home."

What was that line about hockey-mom, a pit-bull with lipstick? Hockey dad must be a like pit-bull on meth. Gotta love 'em.

GO HAWKS!!!

Giants prospects review

With the calls increasing for the call-up of Buster Posey and/or Madison Bumgarner and two months worth of games in the book, it's about time to update the Giants prospect list.

We waive good-bye to 25+ age prospects LHP Dan Runzler, RHP Henry Sosa, RHP Kyle Nicholson, RHP Daniel Otero and LHP Craig Clark. Runzler is contributing as a spot starter at the major league level. With his stuff, if he can harness it, he could be a valuable late-innings match up reliever or a potential future closer. Sosa shows promise when healthy. The rest are still toiling in the minors, thereby solidifying their status move from prospect to suspect.

New addditions include last years draftees, RHP Zach Wheeler, C Tommy Joseph and RHP Jason Stoffel, all of whom impressed in limited work late season or in this years camp. Wheeler is a potential top of the rotating starter, Joseph has an impressive power bat, but his glove may transfer to the infield if Posey develops as expected. Stoffel could be a solid mid-rotation starter or a power arm out of the bullpen.

Buster Posey and Madison Bumgarner retain the 1-2 spots. The high-risers are OF Thomas Neal, who moved from #5 to #3 and OF Francisco Peguero, moving from #13 to #7. Stock falling list includes #B Connor Gillaspie, statistically a solid bat, may be the type that scouts have to see everyday to appreciate. Gillaspie moved from #3 to #12. RHP Waldis Joaquin fell from #7 to #11 and RHP Jose Casilla fell from #9 to #15. Both battle health and/or command issues.

On the Latin American front, reports indicate the Giants may be the top contender for Dominican OF and top all around International position prospect, OF Eskalin Vasquez. He is a RF with a strong arm and good power. A $2M bonus is expected, so it is good to see the Giants have not become gun shy after the Angel Villalona fiasco.

Also, according to Baseball America, the Giants have signed Cuban RHP Reineir Roibal, a top young pitcher who defected in 2009.

It is the strength of the Latin American team and the scouting and player development staff that will plant the seed for the Giants long-term success.

Who's playing the best baseball? Let's turn to STAT-MAN for the answer.

http://www.urban75.org/comics/fan3.html

STAT-MAN IS COOL!!! AS ARE THE OTHER FAN PROTOTYPES FROM THIS SITE.

http://www.urban75.org/comics/fans.html

I've probably been all of them at one time or another. God, I need help.

So anyway, back to the original topic, Who is playing the best baseball so far this season?

It depends on how you look at it, I suppose. Still a bit early to go entirely by win/loss record.

Teams have not played each other enough to sort it out. The Giants early season record may be inflated by a a plethora of early season games versus the Astros for example, who knows? But thank goodness for the Astros, right?

I like to look at run-differential and road record to start. Scoring more runs than the other team is the object of the game. So run-differential is important and correlates to total wins rather nicely. And if you can combine that with an ability to win games in the other guys yard, that just shows a mature, professional approach that wins games come playoff time, in my mind.

So who are the early leaders? (as of 5/19/2010)

In the AL:

Rays 29-11 overall, 16-4 road, + 95 run diff.
Yankees 25-15 overall, 12-10 road, +70 run diff.
Twins 24-16 overall, 12-10 road, +34 run diff.
Blue Jays 24-17 overall, 13-6 road, +32 run diff.

Three teams in the AL East and bad news for the Red Sox.

In the NL:

Phillies 24-15 overall, 13-7 road, +64 run diff.
Cardinals 23-18 overall, 11-11 road, +27 run diff.
Padres 23-16 overall, 11-7 road, +41 run diff.
Giants 22-16 overall, 9-8 road, +45 run diff.


Maybe you prefer the best pitching staff approach? If that is the case:

In the NL, you would like:

Padres 118 runs allowed
Giants 121 runs allowed
Cardinals 143 runs allowed
Phillies 150 runs allowed
Braves 166 runs allowed

In the AL, you would like:

Rays 122 runs allowed
Mariners 158 runs allowed
Twins 158 runs allowed
Yankees 161 runs allowed
A's 175 runs allowed

The top run scoring teams are as follows:

In the AL:

Yankess 231
Rays 217
Red Sox 213
Blue Jays 212
Rangers 194
Twins 192

Top four teams are in the AL East. Bad news for AL pitchers.

In the NL:

Phillies 214
Brewers 210
Dodgers 203
Diamondbacks 199
Marlins 194

The top teams in run differential are the Rays +95 and the Yankees +70. The Phillies lead the NL at +64 with the Gigantes next at +45.

The bottom run differential teams are, not surprisingly the Pirates -100 and the Astros -64.

The weakest offenses are the Astros 122 R's in 40 G's, the Mariners 139 R's in 39 G's and the Orioles 140 R's in 41 G's.

The weakest pitching belongs to the Red Sox -220, Royals -210 and the Angels -209 in the AL and the Brewers -228, Pirates -241 and the Diamondbacks -245 in the NL.

Very surprising results so far for the Red Sox and the Angels. No mention of the two Chicago teams or the Mets, which perhaps means that those teams are simply mired in mediocrity.

Not a good place to be mired in if you asked me. But who asked?

The Stanley Cup and LeBron in Chicago?

RESPECT THE CHIEF!!

It seems as if the Blackhawks are about to put the finishing touches on a trip to the Stanley Cup Finals by taking two road wins against the suddenly listless San Jose Sharks.

Dustin Byfuglein is an absolute BEAST!!

http://espn.go.com/nhl/players/profile?playerId=3070

I have not really been into hockey that much since the year the Lightning won the Stanley Cup down in Tampa. I thought it was very unfortunate that they did not get a fair chance to defend the title and further promote the sport in that area due to the lockout. This Blackhawks team reminds me of the Lightning, a lot of guys filling roles and meshing well together.

Combined with becoming the possible destination for one LeBron James, the Chicago market could become the center of the sports world for the next couple of years. Hopefully, the Chucklehead in Chief stays out of the negotiations for LeBron, given his track record bringing home the Olympics and all.

LEBRON AND DERRICK ROSE EQUALS CHAMPIONSHIP??

Now, if only the Cubs could provide some excitement on the baseball front, this city would really ROCK!! Maybe, I ask for too much.

ERIC BYRNES IS STILL ONE OF MY FAVORITES!!

With the release by the Rays of Pat Burrell, I was reminded that "Pat the Bat" and "The Crash Test Dummy" Eric Byrnes were on my short list of free-agent signees for the Gigantes recently (after passing on Matt Holliday).

Considering that Burrell can't break the Mendoza line and Byrnes is playing beer-league softball, maybe this GM thing is harder than it looks and I owe Brian Sabean an apology?

HAHAHAHA, I must be high......I'd have to piss away a lot more payroll than that before I was in Sab's league. Approximately, the GDP of a small country.

FREE BUSTER POSEY!!!

Suing over steroids and WADA finally gets it......

http://www.youcanbefit.com/ster.html

This story highlights one of the more under reported aspects of the steroids scandal that is finally beginning to get needed attention. The culpability of strength coaches, who receive undue reputation benefit by enhancing an athletes performance. Some HS team coaches are alleged to have investigated how to incorporate illegal, illicit performance enhancer into their program in order to get a leg up on the competition.

When the athlete gets caught via positive test, everybody throws up their hands, the athlete is always presumed to be guilty and life goes on. But the coaches who "knowingly" and in some cases surreptitiously introduce these drugs into the program are not punished. Certainly not to the degree the athletes are.

As noted in the follow-up story below, according to the current WADA rules as shown on its web site, www.wada-ama.org, the principle of strict liability only applies to athletes. That has never seemed fair to me and apparently now the international pooh-bahs agree. Now the national and international agencies are looking into sanctioning or punishing dirty coaches who are linked to positive drug tests.

We only need to look at the example of the former East German Olympic program to see that, at least on occasion, trusting athletes are taken advantage of by sports coaches seeking to "enhance" their reputation and won-loss ledger without regard to the disposable athletes they train.

Here is an example from Tennessee where a HS football coach allegedly provided performance enhancers to an athlete under his care without his knowledge. The kid apparently trusted the coach to guide him in the right direction with near tragic results.

Suing over Steroids:

http://crossville-chronicle.com/local/x434655442/Status-of-coach-one-of-issues-in-lawsuit?referer=d1a38dbaf3c5c3b7d2fad43e9b99a392

A former high school football coach, the school's principal, assistant principal/athletic director, the School Resource Officer and the Cumberland County Board of Education have been named in a lawsuit in connection with the selling of anabolic steroids to a former player.

As a 17-year-old member of the SMHS, Dodd approached Wilson after the 2008 season, asking for advice on over-the-counter supplements to help him gain muscle mass. The suit claims that Wilson responded that he could obtain supplements but that the family would have to reimburse the coach.

Dodd's mother then issued a check for $140 for 85 tablets which turned out to be anabolic steroids. The suit claims neither mom nor son knew that they were obtaining steroids.
Shortly after, Dodd and his mother state that Dodd became sick, suffering from headaches, chest pains and violent mood swings. In January, Dodd was transported by ambulance to Crossville
Medical Center where he was treated and released.

Even the international bodies have taken notice as the head of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) calls for stricter guidelines and penalties.

WADA boss calls for ban on tainted coaches


http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/sports/WADA-boss-calls-for-ban-on-tainted-coaches_7611456

COACHES OF athletes who are found guilty of anti-doping offences should also be banned, says director general of the World Anti-doping Agency (WADA) David Howman.

"Yes! And that's a subject that we feel has to be accentuated to by government," Howman told the Observer in an exclusive interview yesterday.

"You can deal with lawyers who misbehave; you can deal with journalists who misbehave; you can deal with doctors who misbehave (but), how can we deal with coaches?

"You can strip them from representing the country; you can stop them from going to (an) event, but you can't stop them from coaching unless there is a law, so we're looking at ways and means of where that can be encountered," the WADA boss declared.

"The reason for it is that very often the athlete is, I can't say innocent, but is the receptacle of information given of persuasion by people who should know better; older people who they take guidance from who tell them to go and do something which is wrong," Howman added.

"There should be a degree of responsibility... laid at the feet of those people (including) coaches... trainers, agents, doctors, pharmacists, and we think very strongly they've got to be dealt with."

According to the current WADA rules as shown on its web site, www.wada-ama.org, the principle of strict liability only applies to athletes.

"The principle of strict liability is applied in situations where urine/blood samples collected from an athlete have produced adverse analytical results.

"It means that each athlete is strictly liable for the substances found in his or her bodily specimen, and that an anti-doping rule violation occurs whenever a prohibited substance (or its metabolites or markers) is found in bodily specimen, whether or not the athlete intentionally or unintentionally used a prohibited substance or was negligent or otherwise at fault."

Conversely, there are few documented cases where coaches of sanction athletes have been handed coaching bans.

In July 2008, the United States Anti-doping Agency (USADA) slapped Trevor Graham with a lifetime coaching ban for reportedly helping his athletes, which included Marion Jones, Justin Gatlin and Tim Montgomery, to obtain performance-enhancing drugs. Graham has always denied providing performance-enhancers to his athletes.

Athletics Canada also handed Ben Johnson's former coach, the late Charlie Francis, a life-time ban after he told a 1989 inquiry that he had introduced Johnson to steroids.

Johnson tested positive for the steroid stanozolol after winning the 100 metres at the 1988 Seoul Olympics and was stripped of his gold medal.

The WADA boss hinted that until countries put legislation in place to sanction coaches and other athlete representatives, the anti-doping fight will not end.

"They should be subject to at least the same sort of sanctions as the athletes. They should be out of sport for two years or out of sport for four years. There's no reason why not, so I look at it from the angle of being fair to all that might be part of something," he said.

"If you look in society and you say they are five people are involved in a crime, you don't just prosecute one, you get the whole five who are involved in the conspiracy. We should be doing the same in sport," added Howman, who is a lawyer by profession.

WADA, which is headquartered in Montreal, Canada, was established in 1999 to act as an independent international agency to co-ordinate efforts to rid sports of doping. The agency involves government representatives, certain inter-governmental organisations, alongside sporting bodies.

To add to this topic, I would be remiss if I did not mention the passing last week of Charlie Francis, who many would say is the worlds top sprint coach. No mention of Francis will ever be made without linking him to Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson and Johnson's subsequent positive steroid test. Many believe this was Ground Zero for the subsequent steroid madness that followed throughout the last twenty years.

SPRINTER BEN JOHNSON AND HIS COACH, CHARLIE FRANCIS

From ESPN.com:

Francis didn't run from steroids truth

http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/columns/story?id=5186345

The most tragic part of the story is the last line where Francis sums up in essence what was gained and what was lost by his involvement in the scandal.

"For me, my life has been better since I stopped coaching," Francis reminisced last June.

Final Score: The gain in glory was temporary at best, the loss of doing what he must have loved was permanent.

BAD NEWS IN SPORTS....and one piece of good news

A couple of bad news stories from the world of sports last week. Some of them would be funny if they were not so sad. We end on a positive note.


WOW, an early candidate for CRYBABY COACH OF THE YEAR.....

FROM PASADENA NEWS:

http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/ci_14989503

HIGH SCHOOL TRACK: Jewelry snafu costs South Pasadena

SOUTH PASADENA - There likely will be very little friendship when the South Pasadena and Monrovia high school track and field teams meet next time.
That's because a friendship bracelet decided the Rio Hondo League girls title.

With the pole vault deciding Thursday's dual meet, Monrovia needed at least a second-place finish to claim its first league title.

South Pasadena's Rachel Ma and Monrovia's Samantha Boltz and Gabby McBride all cleared 7-0. South Pasadena's Robin Laird, the Tigers' best pole vaulter, passed at the height.

With a crosswind and both teams watching, cheering wildly on makes and groaning on misses, Laird easily cleared 7-6. Monrovia co-coach Mike Knowles pointed out Laird was wearing a friendship bracelet. Any jewelry calls for automatic disqualification. The coaches called CIF-Southern Section officials to confirm the disqualification.

"I hate that," Knowles said. "I didn't want to do that. I've lost a CIF title because a girl had one diamond earring she forgot to take out in the 4 by 400 relay."

Laird's disqualification gave the Wildcats a 65-62 win.

"Our girls know," South Pasadena assistant coach C.B. Richards said.

"It's going to seem like the onus is on her and you could tell her all we can that it's not," South Pasadena coach P.J. Hernandez said. "Maybe if we could have eliminated a sweep here or there. Every point matters. For it to come to a DQ is unfortunate, but technically,

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.....This is like something out of a bad summer movie plot


From the Florida Sun-Sentinel:

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/sfl-jerry-joseph-0511,0,235898,full.story

Texas high school basketball star bonds out of jail
Dillard grad Guerdwich Montimere, 22, posed as 16-year-old

Guerdwich Montimere, a 2007 Dillard High School graduate who posed as a Texas high school player, bonded out of the Ector County Detention Center early Wednesday morning by posting $500 bond.

Montimere was arrested Tuesday in Odessa after officials determined the 22-year-old was posing as high school sophomore Jerry Joseph.

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...not much of a surprise here, huh?

According to CHARACTER COUNTS:

Which Country Has the Worst Sports Parents?

YOUTH SPORTS
Which Country Has
the Worst Sports Parents?

A Reuters/Ipsos survey of 23,000 adults in 22 countries found that more than 35 percent of adults worldwide have witnessed a physically and/or verbally abusive parent at a children’s sporting event.

So, where is the most unsavory behavior and conduct observed?

Could it be Italy, whose fans are known to be rather overzealous? (Nope, but they were third with 55 percent of respondents witnessing unsavory parental behavior.)
How about Argentina, whose soccer fans are renowned for their extracurricular activities? (Uh-uh, they were fourth at 54 percent.)

Ah, then it must be Australia. They can be a might rowdy. (Nah, they were sixth at 50 percent.)
Unfortunately, the statuette for worst parent conduct went to the U.S. with a shameful 60 percent.

“It’s ironic that the United States, which prides itself in being the most civilized country in the world, has the largest group of adults having witnessed abusive behavior at children’s sporting events,” said John Wright, Ipsos senior vice president.
Here is the entire list from worst parents (top) to best parents (bottom):

United States (60%)
India (59%)
Italy (55%)
Argentina (54%)
Canada (53%)
Australia (50%)
Spain (42%)
Belgium (39%)
Great Britain (37%)
Sweden (35%)
Germany (35%)
South Korea (34%)
Poland (32%)
China (31%)
Brazil (31%)
Russia (30%)
Netherlands (28%)
France (26%)
Japan (25%)
Mexico (25%)
Czech Republic (24%)
Hungary (16%)
[marketwire.com, 4/7/10]

-------------------
...now for the good news.

FROM CHARACTER COUNTS:

The Preamble: The Importance of Developing Character in Athletics

In a research paper published by the Center for the 4th and 5th Rs (School of Education, SUNY Cortland, in Cortland, New York), authors Matthew L. Davidson, Kelli Moran-Miller, and Jeffrey Pratt Beedy propose a blueprint for performance success and character development.

“Most coaches recognize that achieving excellence requires hard work, perseverance, self-discipline, and determination. In other words, performance character – the knowledge, habits, and dispositions necessary for success in sport, school, the workplace, and other performance contexts.

“But cultivating performance character is only one part of a coach’s educative charge. They also must focus on developing their players’ moral character – the intangibles of moral excellence such as integrity, honesty, and concern for others that moderate our personal desire for success with issues of justice and a concern for the greater good.”

The document goes on to discuss such aspects as 1) character develops best when it’s caught and taught, 2) character thrives within a community or team context, 3) opponents are allies, not adversaries, in character development, 4) character development enhances leadership, 5) sportsmanship is the final fruit of many vines, and many more.

Read the complete report here.
http://catholiceducation.org/articles/education/characterdevelopmentinsports.pdf


The Preamble of the Arizona Sports Summit Accord states that “The values of millions of participants and spectators are directly and dramatically influenced by the values conveyed by organized sports. Thus, sports are a major social force that shapes the quality and character of the American culture.”

Nearly 50 influential leaders in sports issued the Arizona Sports Summit Accord in 1999 to encourage greater emphasis on the ethical and character-building aspects of athletic competition.

Read the full text here.
http://josephsoninstitute.org/sports/resources/accord/index.html

Time to see what Buster Posey can do? The debate continues....

Buster Posey is hitting .345 and hit his 5th HR yesterday. However, according to GM Brian Sabean, he is not ready defensively for major league duty behind the plate.

However, this is a guy who played all nine positions in one game for Florida State and arrived on their campus as a SS. He has demonstrated the ability to use other gloves.

Additionally, Sabean took a backhanded slap at Posey's early success with the bat by saying:

"Triple-A baseball isn't very good, I'm going to tell you that right now. Especially from a pitching standpoint. Anybody who can pitch is in the big leagues."

So he knocks the Giants most prized prospect--casting doubts about Posey's defensive prowess that will still be there in the mids of the staff of the big club when Posey is brought up. Nice move, slick.

Sabean said the 23-year-old is "still learning how to catch. Some of that is game calling. Some of that is the consistency that he'll need as, we hope, an offensive catcher."

Sabean's quotes are from Andrew Baggerly of the San Jose Mercury news:
http://bleacherreport.com/tb/b45qb

The Giants had a similar dilemma a couple of years back with a young catcher who was not glove-ready, but who seemed to rake wherever he went. And now, Pablo Sandoval is a All-Star.

If Aubrey Huff's bat is keeping Posey in AAA, that would be a crime. If service time is the reason, that would be equally criminal.

I understand that they want Posey to be the catcher for this franchise for the next ten years or so. Unfortunately, they may wait until they begin to slip out of first place and use a call-up as a spark to light a fire under the team.

Last nights performance by the Cubs Starling Castro ( 3 E's yesterday, 4 E's in 4 games ) may show the futility of that approach.

"Stick it, A-Rod" - Amen, to that

So now the kid that A-Rod dismissed for sticking up for honoring the values of the game rather bow at the shrine of A-Rod stands vindicated. It looks like Dallas Braden may be in the Hall of Fame before A-Rod, no? How about that?

"Stick it, A-Rod," the feisty granny told Bay Area reporters after her grandson had completed his gem.

A-Rod is a tool. It makes for great theatre, but once again, for now, the good guy has prevailed. And I always love when that scenario plays out.

Braden went from little-known hurler to outspoken villain (or hero, depending on your feeling about the Yankees) on April 22 when he ripped A-Rod for crossing the pitcher's mound at the Oakland Coliseum while running back to first base after a foul ball -- a baseball no-no. The two exchanged words on the field, and Rodriguez said afterwards he found it "funny" a player with a "handful of wins" would call him out on a rule of which A-Rod claimed not to have been aware.

This is the problem with defending A-Rod in this mess. He is a self-centered fool. In a team environment, he's all about A-Rod.

I only wish the current Yankees captain had more of the grit and respect for the game that a Thurman Munson had, rather than the touchy-feely, corporate style of Derek Jeter. I can only imagine how a Thurman Munson would handle the A-Rod persona. Given how the relationship with Reggie Jackson played out, my imagination need not stray too far.

Baseball's First Scouting Combine

Baseball's first Scouting Combine will be held Aug. 18-21, 2010 at Dr. pepper ballpark in Frisco, TX.be

The top 100 HS and college baseball players will be invited. Every MLB team has been invited to attend as well. The Andrews Institute and Athletes Performance will help with the performance and medical evaluations.

- The Andrews Institute will conduct a comprehensive Physical and Orthopaedic evaluation.

- Athletes Performance will conduct Functional Movement Screens (FMS), VO2 and Body Composition evaluations.

- Position players will go through 60 yard dash, vertical jump and 5-10-5 agility assessments as well as SmartKage batting evaluations.

- Psychological and Leadership evaluations will be conducted along with direct interviews with the athlete.

- Practice sessions and games will be conducted to give scouts a more traditional on-field analysis.

It will be interesting to see how many teams participate and how it affects the 2011 draft. This has been a long time in the making, and you can argue about some of the process here and there-- the utility of some of the tests-- as is done every year when the NFL holds its combine, but to do this in combination with traditional scouting is better than to not do it at all.

I fail to see how more information is not better for teams and having said that, the nature of competition is that some will be better at PROCESSING that information than others.

There will always be failures to point to and say, "see this process doesn't work". I'll just bet that G.M.'s and scouting directors will sleep better knowing they have more complete, comprehensive information than they have ever had before when investing significant amounts of money on 18-21 year old players.

We're from the government and we're here to help....HAHAHA

Your tax dollars at work, hypocrisy in action. The same thing they accuse Goldman Sachs for doing, they are doing as individuals. GREAT!! And if you want to say, NO, SLAV, Goldman Sachs is accused of fraud, well there's plenty of fraud in D.C., correct?

http://finance.yahoo.com/tech-ticker/congressional-hypocrites-were-betting-against-stocks-as-country-collapsed-477789.html;_ylt=Areu3uybWnPXZ_iIKoYTB8W7YWsA;_ylu=X3oDMTE2M2hvOWQ3BHBvcwMxMQRzZWMDdG9wU3RvcmllcwRzbGsDY29uZ3Jlc3Npb25h?tickers=gs,xlf,spy,^dji,^gspc,^ixic,qqqq&sec=topStories&pos=9&asset=&ccode=

Remember all that scorn in Congress about evil shortsellers betting against America and bringing the country down?

Well, it turns out Congress-people did it, too. And they used derivatives to do it, which they now say they abhor.

(For the record, we have no problem with shortselling or derivatives, and we find the routine scapegoating of both after market crashes ludicrous. But if you're going to complain about how awful shortselling is and how evil and venal people are for doing it, you should probably abstain from the practice yourself.

And, yes, most of the folks here were just betting against stocks, not actually selling stocks short. But it's the same idea. To use their own tortured, populist logic, they were betting against the country and their 401k-holding constituents!)

Jason Zweig, Tom McGinty, and Brody Mullins in the WSJ:

Some members of Congress made risky bets with their own money that U.S. stocks or bonds would fall during the financial crisis, a Wall Street Journal analysis of congressional disclosures shows.

Senators have criticized Goldman Sachs Group Inc. for profiting from the housing collapse. And Congress is considering legislation to curb Wall Street risk-taking, including the use of financial instruments known as derivatives and of leverage, or methods that amplify returns.

According to The Journal's analysis of congressional disclosures, investment accounts of 13 members of Congress or their spouses show bearish bets made in 2008 via exchange-traded funds—portfolios that trade like stocks and mirror an index. These funds were leveraged; they used derivatives and other techniques to magnify the daily moves of the index they track.

And what were the regulators doing while the financial crisis brewed and bubbled. Well, they missed the Madoff scandal, they missed the Sanford scandal, they missed the sub-prime debacle.. WHY, YOU ASK?. Maybe this explains it.

According to CNN report:

Report: SEC staffers watched porn as economy crashed
April 23, 2010 12:31 p.m. EDT

http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/04/23/sec.porn/index.html?eref=rss_topstories

So just like the health care reform debacle--which does nothing to contain costs by ignoring tort reform--we will get financial reform, that does nothing to address the REAL underlying problems that got is here--GOVERNMENT MEDDLING AND INCOMPETENCE.


And what will come next, no doubt, is REFORM of the energy industry. So we'll have more central planning of huge chunks of our economy by government bureaucrats. Great, ask Greece how that's working out for them. What's happening in Greece is a preview of coming attractions over here in the good old U.S.A. given the track we seem to be taking.

Cubs make another trip to the panic button, call up SS Starlin Castro

From ESPN.com

Cubs call up shortstop Castro

http://sports.espn.go.com/chicago/mlb/news/story?id=5170714

The Chicago Cubs have called up top prospect Starlin Castro, and the shortstop is expected to join the team Friday in Cincinnati, the player told ESPNDeportes.com.

The Cubs also elevated prospects Josh Vitters and Andrew Cashner one level. Vitters will report to Double-A Tennessee, and Cashner will report to Triple-A Iowa.

Castro, who was signed as a non-drafted free agent out of the Dominican Republic in 2006, was hitting .376 at Double-A Tennessee with one home run and 20 RBIs.

I'm sure this was not in the plan when they broke spring training and it does nothing to resuscitate the ailing bats of Derek Lee (.217) and Aramis Ramnirez (.148), but they have to do something. Geovany Soto is hitting so the arrival of Vitters could be delayed until later in the season.

This is a risky move once again by the Cubs. Castro showed well in spring training, but this is different. He was hitting well in AA, but this is different. He is a top prospect, but you sent him to AA and not AAA for a reason. And why impede the kids development because some of the aging veterans can't pull their weight?

Cubs are starting to wear out the panic button. Castro is a good looking prospect though.

Is Barry back with the Giants?

I think so. It seems as if Barry Zito has reworked his approach to accommodate the loss of velocity from his years with Oakland.

According to Aaron Gleeman at HardballTalk:

http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2010/04/did-you-know-barry-zito-has-a-246-era-since-last-seasons-all-star-break.html.php

what's interesting about Zito's turnaround is that it actually dates back to last season. In fact, since last year's All-Star break Zito has the sixth-best ERA in all of baseball among pitchers with at least 100 innings

The FB velocity numbers are about the same as when Zito signed his huge Giants deal, but apparently Zito is going back to "pitching backwards"--or using his curveball to set up his fastball instead of the other way around.

With Zito revitalized and Jonathan Sanchez continuing his development, the Giants may have the most potent pitching staff in the National League. Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain continue to pitch like elite top of the rotation starters.

Now if only the bats begin to come around......maybe we can shake off the surprising Padres and run away from the competition. It looks like the Rockies may come around once the weather warms up and overtake the Padres as the main competition. The Dodgers may be close to pushing the panic button along with Milwaukee and Atlanta in the NL. In the AL, it seems like the Sox--both Red and White--are also close to panic-button pushing mode.

The Cubs and D-Backs may be close to being in panic mode as well. The Cubs, with the Zambrano shuffle, are showing early signs of fraying around the edges. Zambrano moving from the rotation to the bullpen does nothing to address their need for a significant left handed bat in the middle of the order.

On the plus side, the Rays, Twins and A's continue to do the most with the least and solidify their reputations as the most well run organizations in baseball. The Mets, Nats and Padres lead the surprise list in the NL.

But it is early, the weather is still football-like in many areas, so while firm conclusions cannot be drawn, trends are beginning to develop and bear watching.

Girl Power, Indeed!!

A hat tip to my sister Maria, who sent this to me under the Girl Power title.

We can apparently add 12 year-old Chelsea Baker (joining previously highlighted Eri Yoshida) to the list of potential women working to become the first to break the gender barrier in MLB.

Given her age, she may arrive in another ten years or so, hopefully I live long enough to see it.

http://www.fanhouse.com/2010/05/03/joe-niekros-knuckler-lives-through-arm-of-12-year-old-girl/?icid=main|main|dl4|link1|http://www.fanhouse.com/2010/05/03/joe-niekros-knuckler-lives-through-arm-of-12-year-old-girl/

She fits in the mold of the type of player who would be able to make the leap. Although she now throws a near 70 MPH fastball, which is elite company among twelve year olds, she will lose ground as the boys mature and are able to power 90 mile per hour fastballs in the future.

Physiologically, she has very likely nearly topped out as far as power production necessary to fire elite fastballs, but the knuckler will give her a chance to pitch anywhere.

I don't think Wakefield or either of the Niekro's threw harder than low to mid 80's anyway.

Apparently, Joe Niekro took a shine to her down in Plant City, FL before he passed away and taught her the basics of the knuckler.

I love the quote from Chelsea's step-dad:

"I still hear parents from other teams say, 'When is she going to start playing softball?' '' said stepfather Rod Mason, who helps coach her team now. "And it kind of ticks me off. So I usually just say, 'When she stops striking out your little Johnny.' ''

It shows that their need not be any barriers to success in an environment where merit is the sole basis for reward and advancement. The ball simply does not know who is throwing it or hitting it, it rewards the elite craftsmen without discrimination.

I know some will say coaches will discriminate subconsciously based on societal norms and expectations, but at some point coaches will be more motivated by wins and losses.

Good luck to Chelsea. We will keep an eye on her progress.

The 2010 Kentucky Derby field goes to the post

I Love the Kentucky Derby, wish I was there.

For the 2010 edition, I like:

Lookin at Lucky
Super Saver
Jackson Bend

even though Lookin at Lucky drew the inside post position.